Pause, Restart

I decided to take a week off of writing the historical novel to think and do some research. I wanted to get closer to the time period, and writing actually was detrimental as I was thinking too much about prose and structure instead of imagining the distant time and place. The pause worked well, as yesterday I was able to write seven hundred words, far below my novel writing average, but I feel far more grounded in the setting.

The setting is the next step for me to consider. How important a protagonist should it be? In the historical novel I’m writing, I would have to say that the setting is so crucial that the story would fall apart without it. In my book “Blood Interrogator” and the draft for “Null City”, the settings are major protagonists, but both are invented settings. I have no experience in writing a story where the setting is a major protagonist and completely real, so I have some studying to do.

Over the course of the week I plan on writing the historical novel, even if it means throwing away what I’ve written. I’m at the point now where I’m getting a feel for the setting and the characters, so now is the time to hammer on the steel while it’s hot!