A Novel Response and a Question (to blog readers)

In a comment question yesterday, the wonderful Lilian Natel asked (among other things) whether I approach adult novels differently than, say, the novels I've written for young adults. The answer is no. I give as much, I ache as much, I confuse myself as much, I nearly walk away as much from any genre with which I choose to torment myself. I work the opening 50 pages countless times, for it is in those pages that many of the most important decisions are being made. Voice and mood, for example, which are established within the first lines. Conflict and backstory. Recurrencies and themes. Trajectory. The spaces I wish to leave blank, the spaces that will be flooded out with light.

The book I am writing at the moment is being carried by two very different characters, two moods, two tenses, and the suspense of inevitable intersection. The book entails enormous research, causing me to stop every line or two to find something else out. My frustration of late concerned a misfired motivation. To fix it, I had to fix just about everything else. One small novel particle, wavering at a novel's start, disallows progression, I find. Until I fix it, I won't move on.

Now for my question, to all of you. I blog every day, as you know, and sometimes twice a day. But would it be kinder to my readers (which are you), to pull back a bit from all of this? It's something I've been pondering. I know what BH thinks. I wonder about you.

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Thanking my Lucky Stars

Clearly, I've already said much too much today.

Except there's this: I have two extraordinary women and bloggers to thank for noticing the work that I seek to do here, the stories I try to tell with images and words.

First, might I thank Barbara, whose beautiful, thought-provoking blog was the subject of last Sunday's New York Times article on "slow blogging." I was moved by Barbara's comments in the story, logged onto her blog, discovered the value of her mind, and said something. She took the time to visit me here, and to mention my work on her site. I thank her.

Then, last night or this morning (I didn't sleep; this day has blurred), I discovered somehow (I really don't know how) that a clearly generous, quite popular, and talented blogger soul named Amy had mentioned my blog on her site.

Well, what can you do, when the heavens open up and sweetness rains down?

One thanks one's lucky stars. And the stars themselves.

Speaking of stars—this photo montage was created by my artist husband/business partner years ago, when I was working on a novel that takes place in southern Spain. Something Lenore posted a while ago has me thinking about that novel again. I have something I'd like to write into it. And I just might.

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