Opening comment: I just thought it might be helpful to include you in ‘the author’s struggle’. Here goes…[It’s helpful to talk it out ‘on paper’, even if the audience is rolling its collective eyes at you. ;-/ You should try it sometime.]
Readers and writers of all ages–it’s like this. I have been back and forth multiple times about how to write this book. I like the snippets concept, but how do I address the chronology of the story? I keep coming back to a 180-day approach, but that’s huge.
And then I wondered if maybe I should aim for a story that covers a third of the year, building toward some kind of turning point right around winter break. But that somehow felt too limiting, even though 60 school days would afford me plenty of plot points and opportunities for characters to assert themselves into the story.
I’ve also wrestled with the number of characters I should include. Too many–say seven or more–can get unwieldy, but hey! school really is all about people and lots of ’em.
So the struggle continues. I need to, as Emma Coats says, “Finish your story, let go even if it’s not perfect. In an ideal world you have both, but move on. Do better next time.”
Note: This post can also be found in my Teachable site.
**Image by Elias Sch. from Pixabay
Ed Notions 