Novel Writing Pt. 1: First Person Perspective

Hello!

Michelle here. For those of you who are new to the writing game, or just getting to know me, my name is Michelle Baldwin (a.k.a. “Chelle Elle”) and I’m a professional writer and illustrator based in Seattle. Lately, I’ve begun sharing more about my process and experiences in novel writing.

Throughout this journey, I have battled the “boss” of NaNoWriMo, been K.O.’ed by self-doubt, hurdled the long jump of continuity, and collected much-needed level-ups from encouraging friends. But, there’s a final boss I’ve finally had to face; my pride and the assumption that I’m competing against other writers. Player vs. Player.

After a while, you get tired going solo. And, if you’re a bit of a novel-writing n00b like me, you’ll hopefully come to the conclusion that you need other people. For me, I realized I needed to get under the wing of someone with a little more XP (experience points, for those of us not-so-savvy in gaming terms).

Enter Kevin Howarth, an Atlanta-based content strategist, marketer, writer, consultant, music lover, comic, and friend. Whether drumming up content for a hefty, 500 favorite albums project, or tackling a technological treatise, he’s your go-to for all things literature and writing.

Kevin and I met a few years ago via a mentor / mentee program during my agency days. He took me under his wing and taught me the ropes of content writing. And yes, we used textbooks. He doesn’t play around. Talk about a game guide!

Lately, Kevin and I have been bonding over fantasy novel writing. As it is, I feel like I’m flying by the seat of my pants with too little information on the controls. Do you press “A” to jump? Am I doing this right?!

Tired of my confusion, I interviewed Kevin to learn from his approach and recorded both of our thoughts, struggles, and processes regarding the writing of our fantasy novels in a series of blog posts to help others learn and feel encouraged, despite their n00b-beginnings.

Let’s get started on Part 1 of the series where we get know the players firsthand!

Where Do You Get Inspiration?

I especially like fantasy, science fiction, Russian literature, and early 20th century literature. I also have “weird” inspirations that give me a warm fuzzy feeling, like “Final Fantasy II,” heavy metal, and Monty Python

I get inspiration from all over, but I think my inspiration comes a lot from the books I grew up reading like the “Harry Potter” series by J.K. Rowling, “The Seventh Tower” series by Garth Nix, and generally, the piles and piles of fantasy books I’ve read over time. I’m a book collector. If I could have a large, personal library… I would.

I take a lot of my inspiration from personal experiences as well. Then there’s world history, period and historical dramas (specifically British and Korean), Studio Ghibli, Disney, cartoons, various world cultures; I’m all over the place. I like a good mix of bubbly humor and deep thought combined with lesson learning.

What are Your Biggest Writing Struggles?

My biggest struggle is getting lost in research and not writing. Because I want to get the backstory right, I tend to get lost in research black holes and not get the novel written. I start to create nonfiction “fiction” about my backstory instead of writing the actual novel. I start to create timelines and waste time over details I’ll never need to use for my novel. However, sometimes I’ll be writing my novel and I won’t have the details I need. I’ll need to park it for a while, work on an aspect of my backstory, and then go back to writing.

I try to balance and make a skeleton version of my backstory, especially when I’m in the middle of writing a draft. My writing time needs to focus on writing.

A lot of people like to plan out all the minutiae of the world, but I often find that they’re not as invested in the heart of the world. Those details are important, but I don’t care in excessive detail what characters are eating, where the food came from, what the urn looks like, what the rug looks like, etc. Just stop and focus on the story!

Some tips:

Don’t lose sight of the fact that you have characters in your novel.
Don’t get distracted by the details. When I need to know that information, that’s when I work on that aspect of my backstory.
Make sure the plot is exciting and the characters have real emotional experiences as they engage with their worlds. Primarily, keep the plot moving and characters developing.

What matters most to me is that I’m writing, there’s a plot, there are compelling characters, and it’s all interesting.

I mourn the fact that others won’t see all the details I know or the history I’ve researched. In those moments, I feel like my time spent researching is wasted. But, then I think to J.K. Rowling and I know she’s taken a lot of time (see my other blog about it here: link) to create her world and her characters. As I really enjoy the Harry Potter series and look to her writing for inspiration, I feel a bit more comfortable about it all.

As a very empathetic / artistic type of person, it’s also hard for me to know that people won’t imagine things the same way I do in my head while I’m writing. I want my version, my emotions, my experiences to translate well… but, there’s beauty in personal interpretations. Novels mean different things to different people in different seasons.

What is Writing a Novel Like to You?

There’s something that happens when I sit down and I’m writing and putting down my words. Lately, I’ve been digging up some old writing while cleaning my apartment. During that process, I’ve been looking at my writing from fourth grade until now, organized in piles by year on my floor, and I just get these goosebumps and chills. I’m looking at this mysterious mind that’s just as mysterious as it was then. And it’s all unpublished... and I’m going, this is one weird dude. There are things that come out of my head that are made in a way that I like, but it’s a mystery. Why these things? Why do I go in this direction and not that direction?

Whenever I sit down and think about my ideas, it’s weirdly calming in a way. When I sit down to write, a peace comes over me. It’s almost like the pile of papers I’m staring at is more me than me. It’s profound and weird. There is always going to be that magic from this conduit where I get my ideas.

If you ask me why I know a character so well, I have no idea. I don’t feel like I’m writing at that point. When I’m at my best, it’s not me. I mean there’s still the brain me, but it’s like I let something go and something else comes through that’s like… Yeah, let’s go. It’s just as weird today as it was back in fourth grade.

Writing, for me, is a welcome time to hang out with my thoughts. I carry around a lot of ideas as an “idea person” and I dream up a lot of what-if scenarios. When I write, I get to put the little what-ifs and scenes that play like movies in my head down on paper (or a computer screen) and declutter my mind. It’s amazing to see how different elements come together in their final state.

Since I’m also an artist, I compare it to painting or drawing; you have an idea in your head and if you don’t get it out, you feel overwhelmed by the desire to see it “live.” I feel like I’m fighting myself when I won’t just sit down and write. Pure stubbornness.

But, even when you do get your ideas down, it doesn’t always turn out the way you expect. Sometimes, you have no idea where things are coming from. I’ll re-read something after I’ve written it and just wonder at it. Perhaps it’s a time I best connect to God. Maybe we’re writing things together.

If you’re glitching… I’m sorry, itching to learn more and keep up with this series, make sure to subscribe to my blog so you don’t miss a single post. And, of course, if you’d like to get to know Kevin better, make sure to check out his blog!

Sincerely,

Chelle Elle

“Chelle Elle” has been drawing since she was really small. No restaurant napkin was ever safe when crayons were involved! Now, she writes and illustrates characters and other fun ideas to help her dreams and the dreams of others come to life! And yes, she takes on freelance projects and requests and would love to hear from you.

Email her today to learn more about how she can bring your ideas to life at:

ArtofChelleElle@gmail.com!

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