Is there Fire behind that Smoke

So the other day I planned on a very productive writing day.  That's always the first clue that something is going to go radically wrong.  It doesn't always.  But today it did.  Coffee in hand, computer on and ready - that's when it happened - I got the call.  Not the call that I'd published anything but the OMG you won't believe what happened.

Who would have expected.  A fire overnight had left a friend's house severely smoke damaged and needless to say her nerves a bit jangled.  Characters were forgotten.  My latest heroine's sentence left dangling somewhere in space. 

Mostly fiction is an exaggeration of life but sometimes life surprises us.  And not always pleasantly.  This time round, while the event was traumatic - no one was injured and that's the main thing.  In fiction that's not always the case otherwise there would be no dramatic tension.  It's an element I'd prefer to keep between the pages of a book. 

So today I'm back to fiction and adding drama to the lives of my character.  A bit of drama, smoke if you will, has them scurrying around looking for the fire just like the fire fighters how many nights ago. Without the fire there's only smoke.  Whether its a subtle danger lurking in the background combined with a mismatched pair continually thrown together or something more dramatic like a mad man and a live explosive or two - something tangible has to move the story.  Without that threat of doom, of a problem and no resolution, is there a reason to turn the pages? 

As for life - I'd be happy if it remained peaceful and that includes the weather.  A beautiful late summer day, a day on the deck and a book to read.  The drama safely contained within the pages.  What are the odds? 

Any drama in your day?

Ryshia
www.ryshiakennie.com
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