I am not responsible for what I write in my Author Musings. They are unedited, raw and will likely offend someone – so read them at your own risk.
I’m absolutely thrilled to be finished with Iphigenia’s story. Her journey took an entire year to write, which is not the way I like to do things and I probably won’t follow this type of trajectory again. I wrote my first complete series (Shadow Sisters) in 6 months and there are 4 books. This is where Iphigenia is first introduced by the way so if you want a deeper sense of her and her birth family, you’ll probably love these too.
On the journey with Iphigenia I have found that I prefer to focus on a different character for each book, rather than stick with one character for three. This surprises me because I prefer to read series that focus on one character, which led me to believe that’s what I’d like to write. Nope, turns out that’s not the case and it will be something that I hope to delve into deeper, eventually, through blogging.
While Iphi was one of the easiest characters to write in the Shadow Sisters series where she was supporting cast, she became one of the most challenging characters in this series. Part of the reason why, I think, is because she’s completely different from me and anyone I’ve ever known. Iphigenia, in my opinion, is an enigma. She’s the kind of person you wish you had in your camp. The kind of friend you’d be lucky to know. But does anyone really do know someone like her?
Maybe she was born from my own wishes and longing but I don’t think so. The seeds of story are different for every writer. Some writers start with a plot, others with a theme and others, like myself, with the character/s. All of my books, since the first one I wrote twenty years ago, were all born from a character.
Iphi’s story grew organically at times and other times not so much. I spent days in reflection with myself and my editor. This series was difficult to write, I won’t lie. There were times I wanted to give up and lately, with my Synergist series, I’ve been feeling the same way. This is a difficult road. I’m not the kind of person who can push out two books a month, or even one. My brain doesn’t work that way and no matter how much I wish it did, it’s just not going to.
I have to remind myself to be kind – to myself. I’m kind to others but I push myself too hard. Right now I’m a little down but that’ll pass. This shit is fucking hard! Life is fucking hard. I have the type of personality (thank you past trauma) to just push through it all. Grit my teeth and keep going, even when I feel like giving up. And where’s the fun in that?
Lately I’ve been taking time to do some fun things, instead of spending 24/7 working, as I tend to do. I’m seeing plays and movies, going out with friends and trying to look at the world from the view of a toddler – where everything is new and bright and exciting.
That’s what writing (and reading) helps me do. Spend time in someone else’s head, living someone else’s life, just for a little while.
Thank you for taking this journey with me, I honestly could NOT do it without YOU.
XXOOXX ~ Chloe
