My first published novel was ‘Starquest’ (I know it’s a cliche, but it really is ‘the book of my heart’.) It started out as a short story. When I wrote ‘The End ‘, it didn’t take long for Jess, my flame haired heroine, to sit beside me and whisper in my ear “Well, what about the rest of it?â€
“What ‘rest of it?’ I asked, “That’s it, finito! it’s finished!
“But it’s a sad ending, you can’t leave it like that.â€
“Yes I can, it’s my story, I wrote it. There are plenty of stories with sad endings ‘Romeo And Juliet’, ‘Wuthering Heights’, ‘Gone With The Wind’ – ”
“That’s as may be†(Jess is nothing, if not persistent) “but there’s a lot more about my story you don’t know, and a lot of characters you haven’t met yet.â€
Truth to tell, by now I was rather fond of all my characters and quite happy to find out more about them, and be introduced to a few more. So, the short story lengthened and became the first four chapters of what was to be a full length novel. Because Jess kindly dictated the story to me in my mind, the middle is in the form of a journal, and the end is normal third person narrative to balance the first chapters. (There is a reason why it couldn’t all be written in journal form.)  However, I’d no sooner typed ‘The End’, with a flourish, for the second time, when I heard that sweet, husky voice again.
“I’m sorry, but it didn’t really end like that!”
“Yes it did,†I argued, “this whole story has been working towards that very ending. Sorry.â€
“Well let me tell you what really happened.â€
“Sigh All right then, but it won’t make any difference.â€
As I said, Jess is nothing if not persistent. Then Dahll, who was only supposed to be a secondary character, but whom I’d become rather fond of, stepped in and gave his side of the argument. He, too, can be rather persistent. I stubbornly resisted. After all, when all’s said and done, I’m the author, I dictate what happens, don’t I? Not the characters!
Wrong!
“Why don’t you just try writing it this way, just to see how it looks.â€
“Oh, all right then, if you’ll leave me in peace. But only to show you that it won’t work, and then we’ll go back to my original ending.â€
Of course, after I’d rewritten the ending, I could see it really DID happen that way, I’d just contrived the original ending to suit what I thought was the logical course of the story, but now it seemed just that – contrived. Another sigh – how come my characters are always right? If none of the above seems to make sense to you, then I’m afraid you’ll just have to read ‘Starquest’ to find out what I’m talking about! 🙂
***
BLURB:
When Jestine Darnell is rescued from her sabotaged starship by the crew of the Destiny her only objective is to complete her mission and keep her promise to save a world from slavery. Love is the last thing on her mind. However, she has not counted on losing her heart to Kerry Marchant the ship’s second in command, who makes his distrust of her painfully obvious, despite the chemistry between them. The completion of her mission has consequences that neither of them could have foreseen.
Enter Dahll Tarron, who becomes involved in a long and dangerous quest to find the Destiny. Fates become intertwined, perils shared, culminating in the realization that sometimes love may be so close there is a danger it will not be recognized until it is too late…
You can see a trailer, here at Blazing Trailers:
0 COMMENTS
Cate Masters
14 years agoGreat post Lyn! Love the blurb. I’ve been an animal lover since childhood, and always had dogs, cats, parakeets (do you call them budgies?) mice, hamsters, guinea pigs, fish, and a horse. Life seems too empty and sad without furry friends!
I’m glad your heroine talked you into a sequel! They can be persistent, can’t they, lol.
Best of luck,
Cate
lainey bancroft
14 years agoGreat story, Lyn! Jess sounds awesome. Love the characters who declare their story and are then kind enough to feed it to you.
I’m bickering with a ‘Jess’ of my own right now. I only intended for her to be a novella…but she just won’t shut up.
You look great on horseback. A natural. And your name combination definitely works. I never forget it and always associate it with Wild Rose Press and your books. 🙂
Miss Mae
14 years agoI, for one, love the way it ended! Shucks, I loved the whole book! What an adventure! I felt like I was really on those alien worlds with all the intrigue, fights, and thrills to go along with it!
This is an amazing debut novel, and absolutely first class! 🙂
HywelaLyn
14 years ago AUTHORThanks so much Lainey and Cate.
Cate, animals are such a special part of our lives, I can’t imagine not having furbabies! Yes, Jess not only talked me into a sequel but … well I’ll tell you more about that later!
Lainey, thanks for the kind words. I’ve been mad on horses for as long as I can remember, and saved up for five years to buy my firt one! Yes, these heroines of ours can be very persistent, can’t they!
😆
Glad you think the name works, it certainly seems to make people think 😉
HywelaLyn
14 years ago AUTHORHi Lula
Thank you so much for stopping by, dear friend, and for your lovely comments. You are always so supportive and Jess and I are both tremendously grateful, as well as in awe of your own work! 😀
Caroline Clemmons
14 years agoLynn, I love it when my characters become real in my head and tell me their story. It’s like keying in as fast as you can to get down the movie in your head. And if you don’t write their story, they simply won’t leave you alone. Isn’t it wonderful we can hear voices and not be locked away in a room? Oh, wait, I write alone in a room. Hmmm, maybe there’s no difference between writers and crazies. Oh, dear, I hope that’s not the case! 🙂
HywelaLyn
14 years ago AUTHORHi Caroline
Thanks for dropping by and leaving a comment. You’re so right, it’s just like watching a movie in your mind in some ways, and fantastic when your characters come to live and start talking to one. Mmmmmm – one does tend to doubt ones own sanity sometimes though! 😀
Sherry S.
14 years agoI love how Jess told you her story wasn’t finished and I love a happy ending. I haven’t read the book yet and I hope she gets it.
HywelaLyn
14 years ago AUTHORHi Sherry
Thanks so much for all your comments, thanks for following me today! Yes , Jess was a wonderful character for me, and still lives with me and whispers in my ear. I put her ‘through the mill’ a bit but even though things worked out a little differently to my original ideas, it al worked out in the end. I love a h.e.a!
LK Hunsaker
14 years agoAh Lyn, I love this! And I’m anxious to dig into your story. 🙂
HywelaLyn
14 years ago AUTHORHi Loraine,
Thanks so much for stopping by and for your kind comment. really appreciate it!