She is Risen

I’ve finally locked the story for “Baby Girl.”  And that mighty wind you hear is an exhale of relief.

“Baby Girl” will mark the first time in 17 years that I’ve actually seen a writing project through to fruition (not counting school papers and blogs).  Every bright idea that I’ve had throughout college and beyond has usually disintegrated due to lack of confidence, laziness and general boredom with my own concepts.  Of course, at least two of those bright ideas have found a home within “Baby Girl” so perhaps I’ve been brainstorming this project all along which would make it my own personal “Chinese Democracy.”

For those of you who’ve been following this blog, there have been big changes to the story.  Instead of a trilogy, I’m condensing it into one story and cutting out some major plot developments that simply didn’t work.  The biggest deletion is the story arc that would’ve comprised the entire second volume in the trilogy:  the book formerly known as “She Is Risen” has been more or less killed.  I may keep SOME of it in the midsection of “Baby Girl,” but it will have a very, very different impact that it originally did.  In the new version of the story, it will represent a kind of Wonderland dream world spinning out of control as opposed to the futuristic sci-fi pulp epic that it was originally going to be.

For those who were drawn into this story by the hook of “women take the world back from men and establish themselves as the dominant gender,” DON’T WORRY!!  That concept WILL survive, but it will be part of another project which will be (almost) entirely separate from “Baby Girl.”   And besides, there is still the matter of a “Baby Girl” sequel, but we’ll get to that in just a moment.

By condensing “Baby Girl,” I’ve solved a few nagging problems.  For one thing, we now have one story that will exist as a self-contained entity.  If I never have the opportunity to write a sequel, then that won’t be a problem because the ending of “Baby Girl” will have definitive closure.  Yes, at least two of the main characters (if not all of them) will be able to return for another story, but the primary arc and conflict of “Baby Girl” will be resolved in one story. 

Thankfully, I’ve been able to discard the need to jerk the audience around for two entire volumes to preserve my sub-Shyamalan style twists.   Yes, TWILIGHT ZONE-style plot twists which force you to reevaluate everything you’ve just read or seen can be a lot of fun, but they also involve the need to develop red herrings instead of exploring important character arcs and this story just wouldn’t be nearly as good if I went that route.  My current plan is to alert readers (and viewers when I inevitably take it to that level) of the dynamic between characters early on so that you will be able to follow the story on its terms the first time you read (or see) it and not be forced to take it in a second time (although I hope that to do so would yield its own rewards).

Most importantly, I’ve established Cub as the new central character and this has allowed me to radically alter the tone of this story in a positive way.  Cub brings a youthful sense of perspective to the older characters who often run the risk of taking themselves too seriously.  She’s a moderator who has a personal interest in the romance between Emma and Ben (seeing as they are her parents after all) and Anna’s bitter jealousy (seeing as Cub knows what it’s like to feel alienated and excluded where her parents are concerned). 

Anna remains the narrator, but Cub is the one pulling the strings.  The “dream world” of this story exists on her terms and she is able to learn who her parents really are (through a fantasy filter of a teenager’s imagination) and enable Anna to finally find peace.

“Baby Girl” has a lot more heart than it used to which is a good thing since deep down, I’m a big softie.  I’ve been warned about making this story too dense or complicated for first-time readers, but I honestly don’t think that will be a problem.  Aside from some David Lynch/Charlie Kaufmanesque plot machinations, it’s actually a fairly straight forward drama about two alienated women who teach one another to find peace within themselves.

When I finally close the book on this story, I hope that the personal issues I’ve been struggling with will also be put to bed and that the characters who’ve taken this journey with me will stick around for an entirely new adventure.