It's Only Life

 As soon as an idea pops into my head a write a few notes about it. That idea may not be followed up on for weeks, months, or even years. When I do follow up on an idea I build up as much information as I can about my 'story' line; whether it is a fiction or non-fiction book. Then I research to make sure that what I am writing about is feasible. This is when the interesting bit takes place, you would surprised at some of the ideas you get from research, stuff you find by accident. The next job is to build a framework. In the case of non-fiction I decide what I am going to address in each separate section or chapter. At this stage I don't worry about where the sections are going to be placed in the book. In the case of fiction I begin to build an idea of the plot. Once the plot is established I decide who is going to take part; a brief outline of the main characters. When I decide who my main character is going to be I work on their background, where they came from, what the...

 Well my autobiography is out with agents and that is just a waiting game now, so book number 11 is now in full swing and is my first attempt at a full fiction novel.  I must say that so far all is going well. To date I have sketched one of the main characters and the house, made a floor plan of the house, created a family tree, written a description of the four main characters, devised a plot and three sub plots and written the first 12000 words. Now that I have pushed myself to get on with it the creative juices are flowing. It is a romantic crime with a twist. I am not setting a deadline with this book as I want it to be right, and I have done enough working to deadlines in my lifetime. As is normal for me I get the story line and then have to make it fit to fact, rather than the other way around. Trying to make it believable is the hard part. More updates will follow as the book progresses.