All Dressed up with Nowhere to Go

Apologies for lack of blog.  We had a mad dash at the end of last week to get everything packed and into boxes, expecting to exchange contracts on Friday and then when that was deferred, Monday.  We had the van hired, our haphazard summer itinerary all planned and then our purchasers, the most unkindest Cutts of all, pulled out.  On the day of exchange.  They are going to get divorced instead of buying our house and to be honest I can understand how the stress of moving might have that effect.

Now I've had time to recover from the shock and find my laptop, I'm wondering if there are creative writing lessons to be learned here.  I think there are...

There's quite a lot to be said for whipping the rug out from underneath the feet of your characters.  Apparently capsizing your story halfway through can have a devastating effect on them and therefore indirectly on your readers and is often the stuff of memorable fiction - think that notorious episode on the cruise ship in Jonathan Frandsen's wonderful novel The Corrections (I don't want to give too much away for those who haven't read it). Often, a blow that winds your hero will take your readers' breath away as well and can send your story off in a whole new direction, with fresh momentum too.

Another thing to bear in mind is that, as a writer (playing God in the fictional world you have created) you set challenges for your characters and send them trials and tribulations in order to show how they can grow and change, so the way in which they respond to a crisis is extremely important. Although a moment of introspection and uncertainty is human and therefore acceptable,  the reader will want to see them rising to the occasion with resilience and finding a way to resolve their difficulties.  Basically, there is no room for self-pity in your character's make up. It is the readers who must feel sorry for them, rather than your protagonist feeling sorry for herself.

With that thought in mind, I'm going to pick myself up, dust myself off and start all over again. No doubt another door (or gate) will open soon...