There comes a time in the writing of every novel when I realise I need a timeline. This is when I get tired of flicking from page to page trying to figure out how old a character was in 1992, or how old they are when their mother dies.
Making a time line is not an easy thing to do when you’re crap at maths.
I sat there with my calculator figuring out birthdates back from 2013, where the story ends. I got to the end and realised I’d missed out years or added in years and I had things happening all over the place. I kept at it, though, donating a couple of writing days to the process.
It’s done, though. I’ve added all the details of schooling, deaths and marriages.
Now it’s much easier to write through. Because it really does make a difference if a character is 13, 23 or 33 when their mother dies.
Remind me to show you how I do the dates and days of week thing for timelines. I can even get sunset times for any day I need in someone’s lifetime. And no calculator is involved…
This is why I do not write stories that span over years. I am the worst person to think chronologically and overlay events, which have happened to different characters in a long span of time. Shudders…
Gillian: That sounds good! Knowing what day of the week it is can be important, too.
Harry: I share your shudders. Having to remember, and knowing that it matters if you get it wrong, is kinda scary. This one has just expanded itself.
It happens and I think it is a good thing. Getting outside our comfort zones helps us more or less to become better at what we do. Or so I believe.
Interesting you should say that, Harry. I’m way outside my comfort zone with this book and it really is pushing me. Making me solve puzzles I haven’t solved before, that kind of thing. I’m researching things I never thought I’d be interested in. Hopefully it will work out!
I am positive about you doing well with it. I just read the ‘Blue Stream’ in Dead Souls anthology and am very confident in your abilities as a writer.
Thank you, Harry. I’m really happy that story is getting another chance to be read.