Sparks
Of the four novels that are in various states, both electronically and cerebrally, the one that is foremost in my mind is the latest one, The Spark That Set The Flame. Straight, or standard, fiction, versus science fiction, seems to be the most difficult to sell to, and one genre that I didn’t think would interest me, but, ever since I finished Perfect Paradox, the ideas and subsequent inspiration for this story compel me to work on it. The other stories are still there, but this one is speaking loudest to me at the moment.
More:
It came to me in the car as I drove from Burger King with my lunch in hand. Or, on the passenger seat if you want to be pedantic about it. I know how I’m going to tell the story. Apart from the primary theme, though, I don’t know where the story will go. I don’t know if the ending will be happy or sad. Or, both, which is my usual preference. I like untidy endings. This is not to say that I like endings that are left so open that you feel like you wasted your time, or endings that are sequel segues. I mean untidy. Happy, but with a cost. Sad, but with hope. Tragic, but not for every character in the story. The events portrayed must indeed finish, stuff happened and is now in the past, but where the characters wind up afterward should be varied. Or not. Your mileage may vary.
As to the meat of the story, well, I don’t want to spoil anything. I am, however, going to draw more fully from my life experiences for this one, as well as from an unexpected source of inspiration. A new muse, as it were. I haven’t been this excited about a story in a while.