VOLUNTEERS OF AMERICA
I had a major breakthrough today on the book. I came up with an entire plot line for a sequel. I know what you're thinking. "Dude, you haven't even written the first book yet."
All very true. But the idea that I couldn't come up with another decent plot was kind of scaring me. Now that I have the bare bones of a serviceable second book that helps me believe in my creative juices. So it does matter, at least to me.
Writing is a ruthless process, where no memory is safe from exploitation, no scrap of information too small to be picked clean of anything that might further the story. I have managed to pick over the scrap heap of my past to come up with another plot angle based on my volunteer work.
Last year I finished my third (and probably final) case as a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA), which is a program that trains volunteers to be a long-term presence in cases involving children in need of assistance so that they don’t get lost in the shuffle of Social Services caseloads.
It is a great program but probably not for everybody. These are often the worst of the worst (at least in the eyes of the system), and they tend to go on for years. When you stand in a courtroom and watch a mother lose permanent custody of her kids, that's about as deep as it gets.
My last case unfolded over a three-year period and had a lot of ups and downs but a good resolution. Some of the people I met while working as a CASA will be used to develop the character of a not-so-nice guy. All I can say is don' be too quick to judge. It is as true in fiction as it is in life.
October 19, 2009
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