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| Micha Fire is an artist living in Germany, who works in her creative process to "be open like a child". |
I had shown interest to be featured by
Jamie Sheffield on his blog. In return he would write something up
for me to post in mine. This is the first time I have ever done
something like this, so I asked him what kind of post he would like
me to do. This was the answer:
I would love one on some aspect of your writing process:
character development, story/plot mapping, etc.
Self-Interview
Well, not as easy
to answer for me as it seems. See, I don't plan my books and stories.
I just write them.
"But you must
have some idea about what you want to write?"
Yes, I mainly get
the ideas for my stories while I'm sleeping, dreaming. I don't dream
the stories in words. It's the images, emotions that stick. To put
that into words forms a story. Or two.
"So, the
stories are always about you?"
NO, not at all.
Sure, some traits of my character and personality do come through in
the stories. Very often though it's how I am NOT. Maybe how I want to
be. Usually a completely different character than me. It's more like
listening to some people telling you about their life and then you
write that down in your own words.
"Ah, more
like writing biography. Packed in a nice story."
Yes, I guess you
could call it that. Not a full biography though. Only one event or
experience that deemed important to be remembered and passed on. It
can be the story of just one day, a few weeks - or a lifetime to tell
this relevant topic.
"All drama
then. With tension and action."
Hahaha, not all
life changing events are dramas. Some can be very subtle little
things. Like waking up one morning and noticing the warmth of the sun
on your face shining in through the window. A phrase overheard while
riding the bus to work. A smell that makes you recall memories long
forgotten. All these things can make lovely stories too.
"No drama at
all; no action? You know, like in the movies?"
Some stories might
have drama, action too. If it helps to get the point across I will
write it that way. But most of my stories are on the happy side. The
nice things that happen to you. Finding friends when you feel alone,
being accepted for what you are and treated with full respect,
tackling difficult situations and not being crushed by them. There is
so much happiness and positive things in the world. Why neglect them
and only write about the bad and ugly; the horror and drama and sad
things. No needed to add to all that "negative" stuff
around us. Sure it's there, but it won't go away when we focus on it
so much. See it, change it (or do your best to change it) and be
happy. Life is for living and loving, not mourning and being
depressed.
I'm not saying my
characters are happy all the time and don't feel sad or anxious. They
do. But they don't get stuck in those feelings. They actively (there
you have the action) do something about how they feel. And it can get
them into tricky and dangerous situations too.
"OK, I think
I get how your characters are. But what about the plot, the
development of the story?"
Well, I start
writing with the emotion of my character in mind. Of how they feel
in the main situation I'm writing about. So far, I do start at the
beginning of the book and write it through until the end; just as you
would be reading it. Not a later episode first and then some earlier
stuff. I tried that once and I got all muddled up, repeating things I
already had written about but in the wrong order. While editing the
story, I might add a paragraph or move it around a bit. But mainly
the story develops as I write it. Not after a plan. Sometimes I'm
surprised myself at how the story ends differently from what I had in
mind when I started out. But the overall message it has doesn't
change.
"And there is
always a happy end?"
A happy end or
even an open end. Life doesn't stop just because you managed to go
through a situation. The character surely will have more such events
to go through in his or her life. Bu tit's not important to that one
story about him/her.
"Doesn't it
get boring to write this same kind of plot of mastering a situation,
successfully?"
No, not at all. As
each person in the world is unique so are my stories about them. They
are all written in different styles and genres. Not one label for all
to place them under.
"All the
stories are then based on live on Earth. In a kind of world you live
in as well."
Those are the
easiest to write. No need to "invent" words for things that
don't exist. But I do write stories about other beings too. Like the
one in "Forgotten". That was very hard to write as those
beings actually don't have gender like humans have. Or don't use
names. I had to come up with something to describe this and pack it
into a story a reader can relate to. I'm not sure if I succeeded in
that fully. From the feedback I received I know some people find it
heard to think outside of human gender when reading about other
beings.
"So you do
world building in some of your stories. How?"
World building is
such a big word. I don't built a world. I dive into the one I
conceived. I paint a picture of the landscape and living situations
with my words. Like an artist creates a landscape on canvas with
paint and other materials. Just as every being is unique so is the
world they live in. It may touch the one you live in. Or be
completely different. So different that you don't understand it.
"No planned
character development, no plot mapping, no world building. Don't you
think about the readers?"
I, as author,
don’t write for a certain audience. or readers. I write for
everyone, knowing that many will not really understand what I'm
writing about; and may, or may not, enjoy reading my stories. If the
reader can dive into the story and have the same images in mind as I
had when writing it, great. If not, well, there will always be other
stories to read and write.
Micha Fire is an artist who creates in many formats, from poetry to novels to drawing and sculture. Her blog can be found at:
and her website at:
