Writing with a partner for the first time is like facing your first hurricane season. Yes, it is a learning experience. More than that, it is exquisite torture to mind and soul that brings out the best and worst of us. The worst is ugly.
Gwen and Sarah
The most important lesson learned was that together we have a different voice than either of us has alone. That blended voice is strong, funny, and well worth discovering.
Now that MURDER ON THE MULLET EXPRESS is finished, wounds healed, and all sharp objects ejected from the house, we are working on the next THREE SNOWBIRDS mystery. This time we know what we’re in for and think we’re prepared.
Here in Florida, that’s rather like thinking you’re ready for the next hurricane. Everyone has a checklist and has stocked the pantry, but only time and gale force winds will prove or disprove preparedness. There isn’t a sure method to discover what may be thrown at you when the storm takes a sudden turn. Below are a few of the things previous hurricanes tossed my way:
Writing on Demand
This little piece of detritus was flung my way very early in the partnership. Sarah came out of the office and flicked the words “You need to invent something” my direction.
The blank stare must have given my cluelessness away.
“The professor is your character,” she explained. “He’s an inventor. He needs to invent something for the story.”
Different Writing Styles and Flexibility
Sarah is the consummate pantser. I am a plotter. Hence the “invent something” situation. I could have started an argument or refused to consider coming up with an invention on the fly, but that wouldn’t move the project forward. Instead, I looked at what she had added to the story and came up with an invention that fit with her changes.
Since then, we have come up with a plan that considers her need to make changes to the plot. When she does, she also must make changes to the outline. I can be flexible but I don’t like being blindsided.
Differences must be Resolved as You Go
Sarah has her own version of objects blindsiding her in the storm. As a pantser, she doesn’t write in order. She picks a scene that captures her imagination and goes with it, and then goes back to tie them all together.
I didn’t read ahead to those stray scenes that she had plugged into the manuscript. This was a mistake. I revealed a clue much earlier than she intended, and ruined a scene she wrote. Once again we had to sit down and work out how to resolve the conflict. I made the case for why the clue should be at the point where I put it and she agreed, but we both learned to better accommodate each other’s writing style.
The Writing Environment
Sometimes writing together involved writing apart. I like quiet while I write. I need to think and hear the voices of the characters. Sarah’s life has a soundtrack. One character’s soundtrack is Nine Inch Nails played at full volume. Fortunately, that character is not in the book we wrote together.
Getting this part of the writing to work was one of the hardest. Most of the time, we were not writing simultaneously. When we did work together, I agreed to music without lyrics and at a modest sound level. This worked well for us.
Ironing out the Rough Spots
When different voices are blended, not every sound adds to the harmony. Someone must have the final say in what needs to be cut. This doesn’t mean that there shouldn’t be any discussion. Talk over any changes you feel should or shouldn’t be made. Then put your ego aside; the final say belongs to the person with the strongest self-editing skills. In our case, Sarah makes the tough decisions and turns my work and her work into OUR work.
I am not going to say writing with a partner is easy. Some days the lessons are harder than others. As I said in the beginning, writing with a partner is a learning experience. In our case, it was worth the effort and I’m looking forward to continuing the series.
