I’ve been balancing both research and imagination this week. Somehow, Taos Toolbox unleashed some major creativity. It’s like a door opened in my head. Things just keep showing up. I’m enjoying it while it lasts and taking notes.
This past week was all about major edits with the Toolbox critiques. This past week, I also submitted my first completed short story. Three rejections, but it’s progress. I’ve never sent out anything before, so another baby step. I have vowed to throw a great party at 100 rejections. Putting yourself out in the world is a big deal.
That’s the imagination part—imagining I can get published and working on new ideas. I even had a great idea for a major short story that will support the novel and dovetail beautifully with it. I’m eleven pages in.
But it requires research. 1920s slang, cars, inventions, and fashions. The challenge has been remaining sensitive to when not to show off research and go with imagination. The research definitely helps with world building. The tension between the two is reminiscent of the conflict we need to keep putting our characters in!
