Metamorphosis

Sometimes a story tells you what it's about, and not vice-versa.

Gaia's Hands, my thrice-edited novel, is my case in point because I am not privy to the revision process of other authors. When I first interrogated the dream and wrote the story, I wrote a light-hearted, unconventional romance between an older woman and a younger man who just happened to have unusual talents. It was, in other words, humorous and bland. It didn't "grab" at the reader. It was, in other words, the same sort of fantasy/romance story I wrote in sixth grade, only with a chance of intercourse.

Being the new writer I was, I felt dissatisfied with the story, but I couldn't figure out why. What was the problem? The story had a beginning, a middle, and an end. It had a resolution. What took me the longest time to understand was that the story had a resolution, but it wasn't resolving anything of substance.

After a couple other books under my belt,  I tried writing Gaia's Hands from the viewpoint of the four characters most involved in the action of the plot, which had grown to involve a small miracle and more menace from a corporate cabal. I laid in subplots for the two other characters, and they're fascinating enough that they may deserve their own short stories -- Eric tries to find his surrogate mother, and Annie is revealed as a refugee for a surprising reason.

However -- four viewpoints in a novel is painful for a reader to follow, and the novel seemed fragmented. What I figured was "avant-garde" was actually confusing. Not only because of the four points of view, but because of the fact that four subplots doesn't compensate for a less-than-solid main plot. Reading the book reminded me of watching hand-offs in two-person juggling.

After a couple MORE books under my belt (there are five completed now, although one isn't good enough to revise), I reviewed Gaia's Hands and decided the following:

• I could go back to the two points of view -- Jeanne and Josh, third person limited -- because they are most important in the plot and subplot. I love those two oddballs.

• I needed more plot, more menace -- if for no other reason, to illustrate why Jeanne was being persecuted by a corporate cabal. It couldn't be just because her research supported alternate forms of agriculture -- not even I found that believable under scrutiny. Could it be that the corporate cabal was goaded by a third party with his own vendetta about Jeanne? A mysterious figure that would tie this book into the later ones that it's a prequel to? Yes! And so that character, immortal and mercenary, brings with him a lot more menace than the shadowy cabal alone could.

I'm almost done with this (hopefully final) edit, and then a quick once-over, and then I hand it to beta-readers (HINT: You too can be a beta-reader. Just ask!) 

To summarize the metamorphosis from what I've related over several entries:

• Dreamed a weird dream -- I will not tell you how weird, but suffice it to say it involved a much younger man and a kitchen, followed by wandering through a subterranean city with white glossy walls, lots of whiteboard, and really bright fluorescent lights. (To my current readers: The young man wasn't you, so don't panic.)

• Interrogated the dream ("Young sir, why were you in my dream and why were we -- ?") I used a Gestalt dream interpretation tool.

• Wrote my imaginary interrogation as a play snippet. (It comes off like high school angst)

• Wrote two short stories to flesh out the play snippet. 

• Husband suggested I write a novel.

• First draft of what then was called "Magic and Reality" (referring to magical realism). Mainly a love story. Not much tension, except between the two characters about their age difference.

• Second draft, renamed "Gaia's Voice". Emphasized the role of Gaia, the Earth-Soul. Brought in JB94 (see "Not all my characters are people").

• Third draft, named "Gaia's Hands" -- the four-way point of view

• Fourth draft, still named "Gaia's Hands" -- two way point of view, more menace

Whew!