The Process

One of the most commonly asked questions of writers is "What is your process?" I'm never quite sure what is meant by this, and I've given all kinds of answers. But after a lot of deliberation, I think it means: Tell me how you write a novel in 1000 words or less. So, okay. Here it is: Ready, Set, Go I don't work from an outline, but I never start a book without knowing four things: 1)The title. To me, the title represents the message, or theme, I'm writing about. A Flash of Shadow was delayed several weeks because, even though I knew the story, I did not know the title. Once it finally came to me, everything else fell into place. By contrast, Undefeatable was actually set in the previous book, Dead Man's Trail , when Raine Stockton said, "They are smarter than us, more determined than us, and they have nothing to lose. They are virtually undefeatable." Who could resist that segue into a sequel? 2)The opening scene. Sometimes I actuall...