Finding the write words #2

I sit down to write the second installment in this writing series with a cup of tea in hand and Taylor Swift in ear. It’s been a while, I realize, since I first penned (typed?) about my novel, and the writing process. In truth, writing is something that I always do, in some way or another, and I usually forget to tell people about it. Maybe that comes from years of purposely withholding information about the stories I created—whether because of embarrassment or privacy.

But this story is different than the others, and therefore I’ll endeavor to tell you all more about it. Secrecy is not my intention. The first obvious thing to do would be to tell you what genre it is. I suppose it’s a harder question to answer than you might think. It is a hybrid of sorts—a combination of the different genres I hold close to my heart. I needed to write within my favorite genres, for obvious reasons.

**I realize maybe it’s not so obvious. Here’s my number one rule for writing: you need to write for yourself, not for others. At least not inititally. Write about things you love, because if you don’t love it, your audience won’t either.**

So, considering this, the book is both a tale of historical fiction and one of magical realism. There’s some mythology in there, too. I love the idea of exploring a specific time period through a more escapist lens—I think it helps to explore the human condition in a really interesting way. This novel spans from 1919-1946, roughly. It is set in Germany. That should give you an inkling into some of the events that drive the novel. In all reality, though, WWII and the rise of the Nazi Party serve more as necessary background than any kind of main role.

It took me a long time to decide what I wanted the main plotline and conflict to revolve around. It wasn’t until I read a book with seemingly no connection whatsoever that I found what I was looking for. Susan Cain’s non-fiction masterpiece Bittersweet talks about the kind of person who, for lack of better phrasing, sees the beauty in sadness. Cain’s thesis is that at the end of the day, we suffer because we love. Every moment of sadness, yearning, longing—it all comes back to love. Even though it is a non-fiction work, I was astounded at the way Cain wrote about love as though it was an omnipotent entity—an invisible force that touches us all in different but equally powerful ways, taking many different forms. It was exactly the image I needed in my head to help me solve the plotline dilemma I was facing. I decided my story would be one centered on the power of love.

And who else could possibly embody that power, if not the Goddess of Love herself?

Everything else fell into place the moment I decided that Aphrodite would narrate this story—scratch that—when I decided more than one Greek god would narrate this story. I’ve since split the narrative into two parts: the first told through Aphrodite’s eyes, and the second through Athena’s. The main premise (without giving too much away) centers on a challenge of sorts, one that is bred from an arguement between Aphrodite and the God of War, Ares. He believes that war and suffering are the most powerful forces that influence the human condition. Aphrodite thinks peace and love are much more enduring. Athena challenges Aphrodite to tell the gods and goddesses a tale about a time when love proved more powerful than war. And so, our story commences.

So as you can see, this is really a story within a story. It’s all quite fun.

I’ve had the most fun creating my characters, though. I knew off the bat that Aphrodite and Athena would live up to the stereotypes set for them over centuries in some ways, but would be much more complex in others. I do not like the current narrative that exists about the kind of goddess and woman Aphrodite is. I am endeavoring to re-make her as a woman who has moments of lust, sure, but is someone who is truly a proponant of all kinds of love: romantic love, love between friends, self-love, and motherly love. She has as many insecurities as she does points of confidence, and at the end of the day, Love isn’t as intimate a partner as we think it is. Here’s a sneak peek.

Our first impression of Aphrodite fits the existing and age-old description:

“A woman crosses one of these streets, the heels of her red suede pumps clicking against the old stones in a steady, assured rhythm. She isn’t in any particular hurry, although of course she has somewhere to be. Her journey continues along the crowded sidewalk, and her presence garners more than a few stares as she passes by windowpanes and family dinners. This is to be expected—she has never gone unnoticed easily. Perhaps it’s her perfume, the smell of rose and vanilla dancing in the air. Maybe it’s her shoulder length, perfectly wavy brunette hair—it frames her red-lipped, smokey-eyed face in such a way that you couldn’t possibly imagine it looking better than it does right now. It is also quite probable that people—men and women alike—are noticing the way her black dress hugs her hips just right, like it was made for her and only her. But, then again, perhaps it’s something different altogether. There is an air of mystery that surrounds this woman like a shield. She is impossibly beautiful. The kind of woman poets write sonnets about.”

But then, we get a glimpse of the heart inside of her:

“You see, my job as a goddess situates me as a conduit for Love—the channel that allows it to find its way to the people it’s destined for. Love meanders through my bloodstream and interacts with every part of me. It flows in through my red lips and my olive skin and flows out through my manicured fingernails. But the love in my veins is not mine. It does not belong to me, but rather everyone else. You’d be surprised how debilitating that can be, sometimes—how haunting it can feel to remember every human I’ve given the gift of romantic love, knowing that I’ve never felt it’s effects the way they have, and not knowing if I ever will.”

Athena, as the Goddess of Wisdom, likes to pretend she doesn’t believe in Love. She is, after all, the most well-known virgin goddess. But there are forms Love takes that Athena understands and is drawn towards, even though she’ll never admit it. She is strong, independant, and wise but with a touch of softness that only people who prove themselves worthy get to see. The reader’s first impression of Athena is one to be expected:

“The seated woman is clad in a burgundy pantsuit and black heels, a pearl pendant hanging from a chain around her neck. Her hair, a lighter brown than her companion’s, is swept up in a conservative and meticulous braided bun. With eyes shaped like almonds and high, defined cheekbones, this woman is all neat edges and sharp corners. The type prone to destroying pompous young men in ten words or less. The kind who thrives on intellect and strategy.”

But we see that there is a side of Athena that stays hidden to most, except her sister:

“She almost doesn’t catch the way Athena’s mouth quirks up, the way her eyes lose some of their hardness. Even though she closes the curtain on her emotions again a second later, it’s clear to Aph how much Athena cares about this story—how much she has invested in it.”

They’re both such a complicated, wonderful characters and I can’t wait to see where they take me on this wild ride.

That’s all for now, my apologies for the insanly long post! I hope you’re even a little sliver as excited as I am about this book.

Fashionably Yours,

Hanna