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On Writing: My Approach to Creating Character-Driven Fiction
I’ve learned to go with it, and not ask too many questions
I love to write fiction more than almost anything in the world, even though I came to it late in life. I’ve written health books, resource guides, EPA reports, essays, informational articles, and pieces sharing wisdom from my sixty-two years of life — but I only began writing fiction a few years ago. First a short story, then a short play, and finally, a draft of a TV pilot that went nowhere. When the Covid-19 pandemic took hold of our world, I knew I would need something to pull me through — especially as a single woman living alone in a new state. And I committed to learning to write fiction.
I’d grown attached to some of the characters in my draft of a TV pilot, so I started there. That first book was a huge challenge: It did not receive any accolades from the few people who took a look, I did not sell it, and I was unsuccessful in finding an agent to represent it. But it was a beginning.
But — I discovered I had it in me to begin, pursue, and complete, a novel. Four additional novels completed this first series, set in a small town in New Mexico. Then, last summer through fall, I completed the first two books in a new series, and I finished the third book in the trilogy this spring. Sharing…
