Books

A month ago today (I know this because I returned my first set of books yesterday), I went to the Fairfield Public Library to get a library card. I already had a Bridgeport Public Library card from the branch five minutes down the street; it was an easy matter for the friendly woman at the circulation desk to look up my account and grant me borrowing privileges on the same card. She said the magic words - "You can take out as many books as you'd like" (!) - and I was off. Since my days are filled with service at and through the University, I limited myself to nine books and made it through part to all of four of them (I ended up renewing two).

Two of the books were young adult dystopias. After I read the first, I started the second and almost immediately thought, "Wow, this story line seems very familiar." Though I trust that the two authors eventually headed in different directions (I admit that I never made it through the second one to find out, though I do plan, in a far cry from good bookwormishness, to look up a plot summary online), both books started out with the same overarching plot points. When I described the similarities to my dad and offered that I could probably write that, he replied that I really probably could. (To his credit, he has not read either of the books in question.) Thus began my journey to write a book.

Thus far, I have taken the following steps:

1. Decide that even though I thought it would be easiest to write a dystopia, that isn't the genre I'm most drawn to and turn instead to the realistic fantasy sector (yes, I believe that does exist).
2. Come up with a basic setting and my main characters.
3. Reject the setting and decide to relocate the book entirely.
4. Start writing.
5. Consider that I should probably develop a premise for the story before getting much past four pages in the writing process.
6. Talk with my sister on Skype; divulge the first half of the nascent premise.
7. Appreciate how alike she and I think; finish the conversation feeling like I'm on the right track.
8. Reintroduce the setting that I had rejected, in modified form, for one of the main characters; keep the new setting for the other.
9. Taking into account the new premise, delete one of the four pages written thus far; write two more.
10. Think up the rest of the premise; prepare to write.

As you can see, I'm already ten steps (and five pages!) into the book. It really does have potential to be an enjoyable read. We shall see! 

Until it gets to some readable stage, I have a wonderful evening project to occupy my time after the service day. It's fun to have a new goal (write a book) towards which to work after eleven relatively goal-free months since I turned 24 and, simultaneously, completed my time on the Congressional Award. I like goals.