March 16, 2009
To me, writing a novel is truly a juggling act. As I work my way through it, I have to constantly balance multiple elements, using them in just the right proportions at just the right times: plot, setting, characterization, sensory detail, pacing, inventiveness. I have to always be aware of everything I’ve already written and everything I have yet to write. And even as I focus on balancing all these elements, I have to keep the creative, improvisational side of my brain chugging along, contributing pieces that are as fresh and original and spontaneous as they can be. So it’s a highly complex process…and all the more rewarding because it’s so complex.
In my current novel, I’m working hard to bring everything together in the perfect balance while keeping the work fresh and inventive. It’s truly a challenge, because I have to juggle all these elements without consciously obsessing over them. If I pay too much attention to them with my conscious mind, the writing can come out stiff and overly formal. I think I’m doing a pretty good job this time around, but I know I’m not hitting everything all the time the way I should be. So the bar has moved higher, and I have to work harder to rise above it. To write a novel that hits all the marks…and exceeds them.
Tonight’s travel photo is a very special one to me…a shot of me in Washington, D.C. in August, 1979. In this photo, I’m with my grandparents and little brother, Scott. That’s my grandfather and grandmother, Ben and Margaret Heinrich, beside me…then my brother, Scott…then my paternal grandmother, Henrietta Jeschonek. I couldn’t have asked for better grandparents, and I miss them every day of my life. See you tomorrow!
Washington, D.C., 1979
