How far is far?

[John Dean]

As I have said in past blogs, the wise author listens when the story speaks to them and if that means changing the original plan then so be it.

But how far should the author be prepared to change the story that they originally decided to write? I mean, it was the author’s idea long before those pesky character stuck their oar in, wasn’t it? There has to be a limit, doesn’t there?

I have been asking myself that question quite a lot in recent weeks as I work on my latest DCI John Blizzard crime novel.

The reason is that, like most/many novelists, I regard it as crucial that I jot down a synopsis before beginning the writing process.

The synopsis can be a rough outline or a detailed breakdown of the plot; in this case, it was pretty rough but, importantly, it reflected the type of book that I wanted to write, namely a claustrophobic story strongly focused on a single family, the tragedy that befell it and the ramifications of the event down the years.

I decided that, in order to achieve the claustrophobic atmosphere I needed, it would almost be as if the outside world did not exist and I planned to use very few locations and a small number of characters.

Thirty six thousand words later, the family and its problems are still there – indeed, much of the book remains their story - but other characters who were originally designed to be bit players quickly assumed much greater importancl.

Although the original ‘claustrophobic’ storyline survives, it is now part of a much bigger narrative with plenty of characters, some of whom end up travelling half way round the world as part of the story.

How far should the author listen to a story that demands to be heard? I would say as far as it needs to go!