During my lazy, lazy long weekend recently, a new story popped into my head. This is annoying for several reasons. Mostly, it's because I'm still writing Human. Human, incidentally is the bane of my existence. It's moving along at a better clip now, and I should be finished relatively soon (fingers crossed!), but this is the longest I've spent struggling to write a story and I hate its guts with the passion of a thousand fiery suns. Still, I am no quitter and so Human will get finished... even if it kills me. Which it might. I hate it so much. It really bites.
...
I'll see myself out.
Ahem. That was a weird tangent. The point is that I have a new story. Following my brain's apparent lack of regard for being pegged as a writer of any particular genre, this book isn't a fantasy. Nor it is science fiction. It's not even horror. Nope, not paranormal either. In fact, this book is not speculative fiction of any sort... Which is going to make marketing it problematic since I was always, until this, at least writing in genres that all belonged to the same culture - speculative fiction.
This story is actually historical fiction. Historical fiction is precisely what it sounds like. It takes known personages from the past and fictionalises them and their lives. Unsurprising to anyone, the historical fiction that popped into my head begins and ends in Roman-occupied Britain, though most of it takes place in Roman-occupied Gaul.
I'm really excited about this story, guys. Really excited.
Quite normally when I begin writing a novel, I have but two things figured out - the protagonist and the ending. That's generally all I need. However, like my science fiction novel Skylark, this story arrived to me almost fully formed. I have it all in my head. I know everything. Of course, it helps that I'm such a Celtic Studies nut, and reading for interest and pleasure turns out to be the same thing as research for most people #HumbleBrag. Still, the fact that it arrived pretty much fully formed makes me happy, and tells me that this one will likely not be such a horrific slog to write.
When writing Skylark, I was thrilled with how quickly that story was started and finished. Just the writing part took me a little over a month. Human aside, which has taken me almost a year, it usually takes me roughly three months to write a novel. #HumbleBrag? I don't know. How long does it take most people? In any case, three odd months is fairly average for me. Skylark was a happy exception, and I was so happy while writing it, despite the fact that it's a pretty tragic story.
I'm expecting good things from this new story, which I will get to as soon as the first draft of Human is finished. Let that book be finished soon. I'm itching to get at this new story!
Well, I have to get back to work. Today is Shwmae Sumae Day to celebrate the Welsh language. I'm celebrating by getting frustrated with lesson six of Same Something in Welsh. Seriously, I failed the first run of this lesson. It made me sad.
Alright, I should go.
Ciao!