I’m working up the characters for the new story, and they are a slippery bunch this time. This story started in my head with a visual, a moment of shared realization that the other was the most important person in the world to them. But that leaves a lot of wiggle room—like what, when, why, how, and even who.
Should the heroine be an heiress, with a deadline for marriage or she loses her money? Or should the hero be the rich guy, and the heroine a Cinderella sort? Or should they both be rich, which means money won’t be one of the themes of the story? Already I’m sure class consciousness will be.
Is she a country mouse, contrasting with his city-mouse sheen? Or is she the city mouse, showing him a thing or two about high society? Should they spend most of their story right in Manchester, the first “industrial city,” or out in Middleton, a quiet hamlet nearby, or at one of the great manor houses even farther out? Should they do a lot of traveling, meeting and reacting to all sorts of people, or can they do that right in the city or hamlet or manor itself? Should there be a big cheery fair, to contrast with the exciting/frightening protest rallies?
Is she troubled by past events, or by the present status quo? Does he regret what he’s had to do to succeed, or is he proud of it? And what about his feckless brother? And her crazy uncle?
And can I keep their parents alive this time? It’s hard to give a Regency-era girl an adventure when she has realistically repressive Regency-era parents. I’ve already killed off one (his father) so the estate-inheritance thing can come into play, but I’m pretty sure I can keep the mother, especially as she’s already got a big part to play in one of the first scenes.
I love this part. It reminds me of playing with Colorforms, layering the colorful pieces together, then swapping one out, slipping another in, watching how the change affects the scene. When I start writing, I’ll discover more; some characteristics will firm up but others will grow more fluid even into the first and second revisions.
Then, suddenly, it’s as if they’re fixed in amber; I’ll just know if they’re acting in character in a scene or not. But that’s a long way off for this story. OK, three months off and counting down…
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