Meredith Mansfield, Author

Another thing about being a discovery writer is that sometimes it takes a while for me to find my way into a story. It’s not that I don’t know what happens in the story. It’s just that sometimes I don’t know what happens next.

To some extent, that’s been my problem with BEYOND THE PROPHECY. I knew what the story is about. I knew, broadly, what would happen. I just didn’t know what happened next. Makes it hard to write the next chapter.

But now I do. I can see the next three or four chapters clearly at last. All that noodling around with character relationship diagrams and synopses let my subconscious play around and then give me the answers. I should be able to build momentum and really get this story moving at last.

Of course, I may have to cut some of what’s currently in the early chapters. That goes with being a discovery writer, too. We’ll see. I’m pretty sure I need to move one chapter much earlier. Those are problems for after I get the first draft done. Now, it’s just make a note and move on.

I stumbled on some things I think are pretty good while I was trying to find my way into this story. If I have to cut them, maybe they’ll find their way into something else–a tie-in short story, perhaps.