Getting to Know You

Readers will sometimes ask me:  What's the most difficult part of writing a book?  Is it coming up with the plot and character ideas?  Writing the manuscript itself?  Editing?  Marketing?

Well, all of those phases of the writing process have their own challenges, but I think there's one phase that is harder than the others.  As I get started on book six, I'm in the midst of that phase right now.  It's the early chapters of the book.

I know where I'm going in book six.  I have a plot outline that I can't wait to explore in the draft itself.  I'm excited about the characters.  But now I have to start putting it all into words.  Once you're about a third of the way into the manuscript, the book begins to develop a momentum of its own.  The characters become fully formed in your head, and in an odd way, they help you with the writing itself, because their actions and dialogue start to seem natural.

Right now?  Not so much.  In the early chapters, you're still getting to know the characters.  They're still strangers.  I know some of their life stories, but I really don't know yet how they think, talk, act, and behave (or misbehave).  So it's a slow process, with lots of re-writes, as I start to put the first few brush strokes on the canvas.

It's been this way with every book, and I always say I'll remember it next year.  But I don't.  I still find myself in the early pages saying:  Why is this so hard?  Has it always been this hard?  Yes, it has, and I imagine it always will.  Soon enough, in the next couple of months, the people in this book will feel like old friends.  Now, I'm just finding out who they are.

New Book Club Opportunity: Video Chat

I've mentioned in the past that I regularly join discussions with book clubs that read one or more of my books.  For those of you in the Twin Cities area of Minnesota (where I'm located), I'm happy to visit your club in person.  In fact, I've got a couple more club meetings coming up later this month.

I also do book club visits by phone across the U.S. and around the world.  It's fun to answer questions for readers located everywhere from New Jersey to Florida to Australia, even when the time zone changes mean I can be chatting with people in the middle of the night.  If you're not a member of a book club now, you might stop in at your local bookstore or library and see if they have a club you can join.  And of course, feel free to suggest my books!

Meanwhile, I can now offer a new service to book clubs -- video chats.  I'm equipped with a web cam and a Skype account, so if one of your book club members is similarly equipped, I can actually chat with your group by video (and it's free for both of us).  If you'd like to talk to me about a club meeting (in-person, by phone, or by video), just send me an e-mail at brian@bfreemanbooks.com.

I'm in the process of working with my web team on the launch of the next generation of www.bfreemanbooks.com in September.  The site will focus on the community of Brian Freeman readers and will give me an opportunity to expand bonus content and other resources for fans.  I'll keep you posted as we get closer to releasing the new site.

THE BURYING PLACE

I'm back at work now and digging in on book six.  In the meantime, though, I know everyone is curious about the fifth Jonathan Stride novel, THE BURYING PLACE.

Book five will arrive in U.S. bookstores in April 2010.  Readers in the UK will get a head-start, as the hardback edition is due out there in September 2009.  Both publishers have developed tremendous -- and very different covers -- for this book. The U.S. cover, shown here, has a stark 1950s IN COLD BLOOD feel to it.  It captures the late fall loneliness of a novel in which much of the action takes place in the farmlands north of Duluth.

What is it about?  Well, I'll tell you that the action follows closely on the heels of the fourth novel, IN THE DARK, and for those of you who have read that book, you can imagine that the events will shape Stride's life as he tackles his next case.  It's shocking and intense, with deep characters and twists and turns.  I'll give you more hints in the months to come.

My sixth book, which I'm starting now, won't arrive in stores until early 2011 in the U.S.  This is my first stand-alone (unless you count THE AGENCY by Ally O'Brien), a novel in my classic psychological suspense style, but with all-new characters.  If you love the Stride books, I feel confident in saying you'll love this one, too.  Don't worry, though...Stride will return in book seven.