I have been mulling over a new book for the past four years, ever since Where All the Little Things Live was finished.
Recently, I decided to jump into more formal plotting using Aeon Timeline which jumpstarted the whole process, and the narrative and characters started pouring out faster than I anticipated.
I’ve spent the last month or so working through different characters arcs, exploring their motivations and personalities, and I’m at the point now where I’m writing small drafts in the form of scenes.
This is a different way of writing for me. My other books felt more plot based, and I wove the characters within it — and that worked well, I think.
But this time the plot seems almost secondary. A bunch of Macguiffins, sort of. What mattered more was who the characters are and what their motivations and desires are and how that navigates them through their situations and how they change. And there are far more characters involved that mean something than I’ve used before. More than just minor characters with the singular purpose of advancing the plot.
I’m excited to dive into more drafting and writing and seeing where this takes things. I’ve done enough plotting I think, and now I can go back to pantsing with intent. One of the most fun things I wrote was more or less putting two characters into a scene and letting them talk. I get to do a lot more of that here.
I have no firm dates, but look forward to this new book somewhere in 2025 or 2026: a story of Raquel the raccoon and her unlikely bond with a wayward hunting Vizlas named Finn.
I view this as a bit of manifest destiny… now that I’ve said it “out loud”, well — I’ve no choice but to make this come true.