Taking Ownership

As we’ve mentioned before, Jen has felt a bit disconnected from the process of writing our current novel, due largely to the higher hard scifi content. Not that it’s actually hard scifi, it’s just harder than our usual soft serve.

Now that we’re into edits, though, Jen is feeling much more connected. We’ve determined that some of our characters need to be fleshed out, and this is where Jen excels. She’s wild-eyed with glee over creating backstory, and Kent is staying out of her way.

We have found that a good way to produce a consistent narrative voice when working with a partner is to have each member edit the other’s work. Each collaborator’s stronger personality quirks gets smoothed out and the whole thing blends together seamlessly. Jen’s current backstorypalooza is the same thing on a somewhat larger scale. If left unattended, Kent would make the whole story a wiring diagram in narrative form. Jen is adding the human element for balance. If you left Jen unattended, the story would become a family tree in narrative form, told backwards, with no end, so it’s a good thing she has Kent to reign her in.

This novel has been an excellent lesson in the upside of working with a writing partner. Neither of us could tell this story on our own. We each have strengths that come into play, even if it’s not in the composition of the first draft. We know each other’s proclivities and strong suits, and how we compliment each other. If one of us seems to be dominating a certain stage of the process, we know that it will all even out in the end.

As one of our characters sagely said, it’s not a competition, it’s a collaboration.