John Baker’s Blog

What phases are involved in the creation of a text?

It’s different for each book.

The trigger can be centered around a crime, a setting, a character, something I read in the paper or heard on the news. Something a friend told me. Many times - maybe even every time — the trigger, no matter how small, sets the mood even though the plot is extremely hazy or non-existent.

I often set about building a world around this mood and vague idea. Some triggers are plot-driven, while others are character-driven. So the task is to build the weak areas in order to find balance. Is the concept strong enough? Are the character right for this journey and challenge? Sometimes my thoughts outgrow the initial idea. This is also the time I get lost and find it often helps to go back to the trigger and that initial mood. Have I veered too far from the initial concept? That’s usually a bad sign for me. What can I do to get back?

I’m an organic writer, so the story and plot continue to evolve as I work on the first draft. It seems that most of my books have fairly strong themes, but I don’t normally see the themes until the first or second draft, then they become obvious and at this stage I can use that knowledge to hit certain notes harder.

Anne Frasier is a novelist; she has won a RITA and the Daphne du Maurier award. Her website is: www.annefrasier.com. She blogs at Static.

If you enjoyed this post, subscribe to my RSS feed