As usual, I'm struggling to decide on a topic. I live in great fear of choosing the wrong topic, getting 10,000 words in, and hating my novel and failing at the attempt.
Yesterday I was obsessed with whether I should set the novel in the past or the present. My original impulse had been to set it in the past, but then I began to get bogged down in historical detail.
For example, let's say my main character goes to the market to buy some fish. I don’t care what kind of fish she buys, or even what the market looks like, but I do care what it means for her to go. Is this a normal, everyday occurrence? A chore she hates but must do because she can’t afford a maid? An act of rebellion, because women aren’t supposed to leave the house on their own? A dangerous mission she must complete to bring food to her family? A chance to socialize and catch up on the neighborhood gossip?
I'm a big believer in person-in-environment. We don’t live in a vacuum, and the choices we make are influenced by the people and circumstances and culture around us, whether we realize it or not. So, to me, knowing a good deal about the social fabric of my setting is necessary for character and plot development.
Last night I took a break from my furious and unfocused research, and took a long walk with the baby, and cleaned the house. Scrubbing the bathtub felt almost therapeutic. Which is weird, for me. I hate cleaning.
And then this morning I came to a conclusion. If I set the novel in a particular historical time period, I will not finish, because I will be too bogged down with this historical muck. I already am! It’s a good thing to realize now.
So I think I will keep the general plot idea the same, but set it in the present. With a main character that has a penchant for wearing long skirts.
On a totally different subject, while my daughter and I were on our walk, we stopped at the park, where she stood unassisted for the first time!
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