Writing is an art as well as a craft and like all acts of creation, writing a novel is a process of discovery. I’m working on the third revision of my next novel, “A Wonderful Good Morning,” and it’s only with this revision that my characters are finding their voices, because it’s only now that I’m starting to understand who they are.

“A Wonderful Good Morning” began as a little short story, “Happy Travels,” which was published last year in an anthology of short stories titled: “Stranded – a Collection of Stories and Poems from the Writing Journey.” (Available on Amazon). It morphed from this early version into a novel about one man who found himself stuck in a time warp while on a river cruise that was supposed to have been a sort of pre-honeymoon. But even though it had a beginning, middle and end, and most of the loose ends were tied up, it didn’t feel finished. Hence, revision #3.

I’ve been letting it sit for a couple of months while I worked on my next novel, a fictionalized memoir of my grandmother’s life called “Riva’s Journey.” When I opened “A Wonderful Good Morning” about two weeks ago and began at page one, my protagonist, Tim, jumped out at me, and I could hear his voice. Now, all I have to do is write down what he tells me.

As my novel begins to shape itself into a finished work, my excitement builds and I can’t wait to find out how it ends!