The Roller Coaster of Writing
From Lisa Mangum, Editor of One Horn to Rule them All and A Game of Horns, and Editor at Shadow Mountain
When my niece McKenna was much younger (and much shorter) she and her family traveled to Disneyland. She desperately wanted to ride the roller coaster California Screamin’, which has an upside-down loop. The ride attendant had her stand to the side to measure her height, and oh, she was so close. He shook his head and said, “I’m sorry, but you’re just not tall enough.” And with tears in her eyes, McKenna said, “But I’m brave enough!”
It took another year, but eventually she was tall enough. And when her family went back to Disneyland, guess which ride was her favorite?
I think writing is a lot like that. Sometimes you have to let an idea grow a little before it becomes a story. Sometimes it’s really scary to look at what’s head of you—whether it’s two back-to-back loop-de-loops or two really tricky chapters—and all you can do is buckle up, hold on, and go for it. And somewhere between the screaming and the laughter, you realize that you love it and that all you want to do when you get off the ride is ride it again.
I also think that is why we as readers love books so much—especially series. We find a good story with good characters and all we want to do is tag along on their adventures, see what they see, feel what they feel. Characters in fiction often have much more exciting roller-coaster lives that we do here in reality. (Don’t get me wrong, though, sometimes reality is a wild ride all by itself.) And my favorite characters face their fears with a strange blend of determination and anticipation. I know that if I ride along with them, I’ll learn something about them—and possibly even something about me.
I try to keep that in mind as I work on my own stories. Each story is its own kind of ride. Some are fast, straight shots to the end. Others are wild rides, offering plenty of excitement, stomach-dropping surprises, and thrilling twists—and even a few more anticipation butterflies than expected. But that’s not always a bad thing, you know.
So whenever I approach a new story, I try to stand up straight, measure myself against the task at hand, I know that—no matter what—I’m brave enough to take this ride.
Lisa Mangum