One of my challenges in story-writing is the timeline. And boy am I a stickler about it\u2014almost obsessive, at times. As I teach and preach, even fiction must ring true. Saturday has to follow Friday. If it is summer in Honolulu, you\u2019d better not write in a sled ride in freezing temps. Readers don\u2019t trust writers who misstep when it comes to the logical flow of a story and the timeline.<\/p>\n
One of my challenges is keeping the story well-contained. Cozy mysteries generally take place within a short period of time. I tend to drag out my stories\u2014it takes time for some aspects of a story to gel and to make sense. If someone is traveling thousands of miles by car, they aren\u2019t going to reach their destination in a few hours. Sometimes things simply don\u2019t happen bam-bam-bam\u2014there must be time allowed for research to be done, a character to heal, a mind to be changed\u2026<\/p>\n
My last story, Mansion of Meows<\/i>, occurred within a brief week. That was a record for me\u2014high-five!! The one I\u2019m working on\u2014sort of a sequel to Mansion of Meows<\/i>\u2014encompasses a month and I\u2019m finding it difficult to keep true to the calendar, if you know what I mean. Realizing how important it is, however, I\u2019m spending a lot of time on my timeline. In fact, this morning, I went carefully through the draft and checked each day, noting the progression on a separate sheet of paper. I was pretty impressed with myself to learn that I was right-on with the succession of days, except for one small glitch. Oops, I had two Wednesdays in one week. Now that would never escape my astute readers\u2019 attention.<\/p>\n
My next task is to see if I can cut the time down. Problem is, some issues take time to incubate\u2014like a relationship does. Timelines in stories, like the baking of a perfect pie, can\u2019t be hurried. But it\u2019s vital that the author maintain a perfect sequence of events.<\/p>\n
I know one writer who pastes post-its all over the walls of her studio to keep track of her timeline. I tried using index cards once\u2014that was cumbersome for me, although I know it works for others. When you\u2019re writing a series, it is highly important that you maintain a natural and realistic timeline. I\u2019ve introduced a baby into my Klepto Cat Mystery series, for example, and it is important that I stay true to her age progression. The main cat character, however\u2014I think I\u2019ll have to give him eternal life. My fans would never forgive me if I allowed Rags to age and\u2026 No, let\u2019s don\u2019t even go there.<\/p>\n