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- Nov 3, 2010
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I'm working on a new talk to be launched alongside the publication of my third novel in three weeks' time. The title of the talk is 'Keeping The Reader Guessing (And The Writer Too)'. For illustration I will include story beginnings and trails from my thriller '11:59' and my upcoming psychological mystery 'As Close As You Are To Me'. The basic premise of my talk is that when I start a novel I have no real idea, beyond the 'inciting incident', of what is going to happen along the way. I learn this along with my central character, and meet other characters, some of whom make a substantial impact on the development of the plot. And I certainly don't know what is going to happen in the end. I always do this when writing fiction. I recognize this may be an unusual approach to plot development - only recently I was looking at some very complicated plot charts by writers I admire and respect - but I also know that I'm in good company. Stephen King, for example, uses the analogy of an archaeological excavation to describe his story development. He comes across something interesting and starts digging. After a while he can see that there is a lot more there - in fact the whole thing is already there to be found under the surface; you just have to keep digging and it will slowly reveal itself. I will use the example of King and other approaches to plot development in my talk. My own analogy is that of a journey I am taking in the company of my central character. Together we are either searching for something or looking for escape, often both. We may have a vague plan but can be sure that's going to change as things happen along the way. I'd be interested as part of my development of the talk to hear of others' habits and practices in writing fiction, in this area of story development. Thanks.