Is this Blog for You? (#7)

(Continuous research for historical novel)

Half in jest, and I suspect half-earnestly, my friend asked me, “…can you explain to me why on earth I would want to blog through minutia of the making of a novel that I'm not sure I’m that interested in reading when it’s finished.”

Why indeed!

Well, there is an answer, but it will probably appeal only to people who may not have written any books, but always thought that perhaps, one day, they might pick up the quill… Don’t we all want to say something, sometime, without being interrupted? (This applies to married men only).

Such people might find it fascinating what research method would a writer use to write, e.g., a historical novel. I remember when writing Yeshûa, I went through a dozen thick books on philosophy, ancient customs, history and suchlike, before I wrote a single line on my trusty Mac. Writing the book took me about 7 weeks. The research about 2 years. Not to the exclusion of doing other things, but it took about that long before I was ready to just sit down and write. You accumulate knowledge in your subconscious and then let it flow. Preparing to write a book is, sometimes, like studying the piano for 5 years to be able to play Chopin’s Minute Waltz in… 60 seconds. (Actually it takes just under 2 minutes; ‘minute’ stands for ‘small’, or ‘tiny’, but the sentiment is there).

Of course, most people won’t care how many years the pianist studied as long as he plays well. But some do. And when they find out they might, just might be in awe. Or they may decide to never, never attempt to write a book.