A Failure to Believe!
The challenges of creating conflict within any relationship consists of dickering around with how two people miscommunicate. Let’s face, that is the central conflict in any romantic situation. It isn’t she’s rich, he’s poor. She’s a cowgirl, he’s an airline pilot. She’s a granola eating surfer chick and he’s a crab fisherman. It’s that they don’t speak the same language, because they each have filters they get in the way of listening to each other.
All of these scenarios are fraught with built-in conflict. Not just because of different backgrounds, but how they communicate and believe what the other says. Or don’t.
I would imagine it’s the same when writing interracial. Or, if you’re a scifi writer, interspecies. (Yes, I write that, too!)
When I wrote The Kraken’s Mirror, my main point of conflict wasn’t that Emily was from the 20th Century and Silvestri wasn’t. Nope. The fact that she was suddenly in the pirate haven of Tortuga, and there were ipods and toasters in a world full of Hollywood swashbucklers didn’t change who she was. (Of course, she did assume she’d gone insane.) The challenge: How to get two people to communicate when she thought he was a figment of her imagination and he thought she was the most fascinating woman he’d ever met. And the key to breaking his curse.
He told her, again and again, that she was desirable. She, being a product of our modern culture, didn’t believe him. He had to have an agenda. (He did, but she didn’t know that! And his agenda had nothing to do with how much he wanted her.) He couldn’t be serious about a 53 year old widow who was short, plump and insane! Her filters made it all but impossible for her to believe he wanted her. Even though he was 65…her experiences told her he’d want someone younger, someone thinner. Someone who wasn’t her.
He kept showing her she was wrong.And telling her. But she didn’t believe him. They had some major communication issues.
The next book in the Kraken’s Caribbean trilogy, The Chameleon Goggles, again presents a major block when it comes to communicating for the hero, Mick, and the heroine, Jezzebel. Again, she doesn’t believe him. It isn’t that she thinks he lies. She knows he believes what he says. She can’t take it in, from the upbringing she had, it just isn’t possible.
Yup, they can’t communicate. Until they can, of course.
Me? I want to communicate with my missing kraken. Somewhere between the e-book and the print book, he disappeared. I couldn’t believe it, but there it was. He was gone. I’ve been searching the entire month of May…and I have posted a reward. Help me find my kraken!
Entries to my awesome contest taken on my website, wherever I guest…including here (please include your e-mail) …and (don’t tell anyone…) but my Facebook page.
The challenges of creating conflict within any relationship consists of dickering around with how two people miscommunicate. Let’s face, that is the central conflict in any romantic situation. It isn’t she’s rich, he’s poor. She’s a cowgirl, he’s an airline pilot. She’s a granola eating surfer chick and he’s a crab fisherman. It’s that they don’t speak the same language, because they each have filters they get in the way of listening to each other.
All of these scenarios are fraught with built-in conflict. Not just because of different backgrounds, but how they communicate and believe what the other says. Or don’t.
I would imagine it’s the same when writing interracial. Or, if you’re a scifi writer, interspecies. (Yes, I write that, too!)
When I wrote The Kraken’s Mirror, my main point of conflict wasn’t that Emily was from the 20th Century and Silvestri wasn’t. Nope. The fact that she was suddenly in the pirate haven of Tortuga, and there were ipods and toasters in a world full of Hollywood swashbucklers didn’t change who she was. (Of course, she did assume she’d gone insane.) The challenge: How to get two people to communicate when she thought he was a figment of her imagination and he thought she was the most fascinating woman he’d ever met. And the key to breaking his curse.
He told her, again and again, that she was desirable. She, being a product of our modern culture, didn’t believe him. He had to have an agenda. (He did, but she didn’t know that! And his agenda had nothing to do with how much he wanted her.) He couldn’t be serious about a 53 year old widow who was short, plump and insane! Her filters made it all but impossible for her to believe he wanted her. Even though he was 65…her experiences told her he’d want someone younger, someone thinner. Someone who wasn’t her.
He kept showing her she was wrong.And telling her. But she didn’t believe him. They had some major communication issues.
The next book in the Kraken’s Caribbean trilogy, The Chameleon Goggles, again presents a major block when it comes to communicating for the hero, Mick, and the heroine, Jezzebel. Again, she doesn’t believe him. It isn’t that she thinks he lies. She knows he believes what he says. She can’t take it in, from the upbringing she had, it just isn’t possible.
Yup, they can’t communicate. Until they can, of course.
Me? I want to communicate with my missing kraken. Somewhere between the e-book and the print book, he disappeared. I couldn’t believe it, but there it was. He was gone. I’ve been searching the entire month of May…and I have posted a reward. Help me find my kraken!
Entries to my awesome contest taken on my website, wherever I guest…including here (please include your e-mail) …and (don’t tell anyone…) but my Facebook page.
The Kraken's Mirror is so great and I can't wait to see where The Chameleon Goggles will go! How did you come up with such a cool name for the book?
ReplyDeleteMaureen, it's hard for any woman to believe a man. They're usually so full of s-, uh, squid guts they usually don't know what they're saying.
ReplyDeleteFantastic contest, and I love your new cover!
Kate...I needed a device that the evil scientist would want, that Jezz could hide...so they had to be small, they had to do something the Novan's would consider of strategic importance. And something the pirates could use when...well, I don't want to give it away!
ReplyDeleteWhen wearing the chameleon goggles, one blends into their surroundings...basically. ;-)
Thanks, JM!