2 in the morning
This wasn’t the post I had lined up for today, but sometimes stuff happens, and at 2am yesterday morning, I woke up with a bright new shiny idea in my head. It was an idea for an adult novel, brought about by a sequence of events that have happened over the last week. I grabbed my notepad and pen (always have these by my bed) and started to write the idea down in the dark. Lay back down. More ideas, like fireworks fizzing. So turned the light on this time and wrote more. I think I did this five times, writing the framework for a novel over the space of about 20 minutes – probably around 5 minutes writing, 15 minutes thinking. Not only did I write the framework, but I saw the humour and a twist, the sting in the tail.
Lights out, I then lay awake for close to two hours. I even considered submitting to the buzz and fizz completely, donning dressing gown and going downstairs to write on my laptop. I convinced myself that this would be a bad idea – school run to do in the morning and all that. But I kept diving at the notepad and adding to it as pieces fell together.
Later on yesterday, I wrote a two page synopsis for the novel, and was so excited (still am) by it, I actually felt quite sick. I must add, the timing of this is a bit precarious. I am mid-way through my first YA… but this new idea, this book, is beating like a blood red ruby in my heart, and I can’t ignore it, and I know I mustn’t ignore it. And there are reasons that I know this…
A week ago, I started keeping a journal – a journal of unguarded writing, not aimed at an 
audience – thoughts, impressions, triggers – anything and everything that was prominent in my mind and that seemed significant. I recorded conversations, dreams, observations, and suddenly became profoundly aware that these were all somehow connected. I am currently reading ‘The Alchemist’ by Paulo Coelho so this has been buzzing around my head too – ideas of living out your dreams, destiny, ‘Maktub’ – what is written, and the significance of omens. A sequence of dreams and sightings of specific birds, over the last couple of days, led me to do a Google search… the results were mildly spooky!
Then, at 2am, it all fell into place – the whole lot, tied in. I am SO excited about the idea, which is like nothing I have ever read, or written, that I’m not sure how I’m going to sleep over the next few weeks / months. But sleep I must. And, I am still very enthused by TSP, my YA novel. So, do I juggle? Yes I do! I can, actually, juggle three balls… and I have juggled stories before – lots of authors do. So, the plan is to continue with around 1,000 words a day on TSP and make notes and collate bits and bobs for the new novel so that when the first draft of TSP is complete (in around a month hopefully) I can launch myself into this little gem… I wish I could tell you more, but at the moment, I can’t! But I know that this is a story waiting to be written and it needs me to tell it.
Do your ideas come to you in the silence of the night… and do you embrace them, or push them away?
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