Interview With a Character 4

Emalie Napunoa

 

Emalie with obligatory cherry blossoms

As I'm polishing up my second draft of Under a Mango Moon, I'm getting to know Kai's mother, Emalie. She doesn't get much story time for some reason, so the other day I decided to get to know her a little better. I started off by imagining what she looked like. And since my drawing skills are not the greatest, I decided to bring her to life through my just-as-meager Photoshop skills!

Once I got to see her, I knew I was ready for a conversation. So here it is!

Understanding the writing process: How do you write?

Free-write, outline, or mind map?

Recently, a friend of mine asked me, "Do you just sit down and start writing, or do you actually, like, outline the basic plot points and such?" This was a similar question about writing that another friend had asked, but in the context of finding the time to write. Here, I was being asked what my process was.

How do you write?
How you write is tailored to your style. I can sit in front of my computer first thing in the morning and type 16,000 words to form a rudimentary story that has a beginning, a muddled middle, and maybe an end - and stop for lunch. Then I move on to unmuddling the middle or finishing my end before the family comes home. But not everyone can free-write like that.