Temple of Dreams is the Work in Progress (WIP) and this week, as I was writing, I learned a lot of new details about Kendall and Wyatt. I knew who they were, and what their issues were, but now they're giving me facts about their lives. I find this interesting for a couple of reasons. First, I'm always curious about my h/h. Second, every book is different and the characters give me information differently. With some books, I know nearly everything up front (Through a Crimson Veil). Other books, they withhold important information, then spring it on me midway through (Ravyn's Flight), which causes all kinds of rewrites to foreshadow the big piece of baggage. With TOD, I knew all the big stuff, it's the small facts they didn't bother to tell me.
I always knew Wyatt was from Texas and had a nice, all-American family, but this week I learned that he's from Fort Worth; he has two older sisters who are both married and have kids; his parents are still married and have been for more than thirty years; and that he spoils his nieces and nephews.
I knew Kendall's mother was a serial monogamist, who was always looking for her soul mate, but as soon as the excitement of a new relationship died, she was moving on to the next man. What I didn't realize is that Kendall doesn't know who her father is, that her mother can't keep all her men straight and she couldn't even give Kendall a list of names to check into. And that there are times the questions eat at her; she wants to know who her family is and she feels partially adrift because she has no clue. I also discovered that Kendall is a little ashamed to admit that her mother doesn't know who fathered her, and that she's withheld this info from Wyatt. After all, he comes from such a normal family, how can he understand the upheaval she lived in as a child?
None of what I learned affects the big picture of who Wyatt and Kendall are, but they all add depth to their personalities. I love when that happens. The characters are the best part of writing. Watching them change and grow, watching them dare to be vulnerable, to risk rejection in order to have their HEA (happily ever after) is absolutely the reason why I spend hours hunched over the laptop trying to get the stories down. It's not like I get to steer the ship. :-( I'm more like an observer trying to get down the characters' thoughts and dialogue as they interact with each other.
So anyway, it's been a fun week for me, especially this newest scene I'm working on. I'm all excited about this information, and can hardly wait to see what they reveal next!
MN Weather Report: 71 degrees. Sunny.
