Behind the Scenes of a Novel- Day 15

Plumbing? Seriously who writes about plumbing? Well, I do. If you are writing about remodeling plumbing might fit into what you are doing. Am I dwelling on plumbing, no. Dani is having Brad remodel an old tunnel and chamber within her house. It needs plumbing, heat, and electricity. It was part of the Underground Railroad over one hundred years ago. It was lighted by candle then and plumbing was scarce at best.

Uh oh, did I give you part of my story line? Well, I might have, but I promise not to be spoiler and tell you what our fearless Dani wants to use it for. At least not yet, She kept Brad in the dark to begin with. While he sees the merit in what she wants to do, he fears she might be placing herself in peril.

There in lies the biggest disagreement between them. Along with trying to rebuild something they used to have. Brad wants to advance the relationship without scaring Dani off. Dani is leery because he left once before and she doesn't want him leaving again. Like most couples life is not smooth it has bumps along the way. No one sees eye-to-eye all the time.

They have to deal with everyday things. Dani is relocating her law practice. Brad runs a construction company. He has men working for him on several sites and is required to be on the sites every day. Not to mention finding new clients and running an office. Some days this will get in the way. Some days they will both want to toss their hands in the air and say, nuts. I have to give them this dimension without having it get in the way of my story.

As with most of us, they also have friends who make demands on their time. Dani's long time housekeeper is training a new girl. Dani has hired a new secretary. How is running a law office out of her home going to put a strain on Dani's life? How are the new help and the long time help going to get along? Will there be issues? How will they be handled. More dimensions to my characters.

If your character doesn't have an everyday life they tend to be unbelievable. Life doesn't just pass your characters by. They have neighbors who might or might not affect the outcome of your story. How are you going to portray them interacting? In Dani's case, there will be some who come only to offer condolences on the loss of her grandmother. Some will come out of curiosity as to what changes she is making in the old home. How Dani interacts with them will tell you something about the kind of person she is. It also builds a dimension to her you lose if there is no interaction.

Even something as mundane as grocery shopping can be worked into your story. Many authors build complete series around food. Then they go on to write cookbooks using the recipes their characters make. Look for the angles. Look for what will make your characters well rounded, human even.

Just don't let the everyday things in life take over your story. Make it blend in and seem real.