When Stories Come By Themselves
Inspiration in The Sparklight Chronicles is ironic when you think about it
I just realized I haven’t written to you in over two weeks! My apologies—I value having you as a connection, and I hope you get value as well. But I thought you might like to know what has kept me tied up.
You probably know that The Way of the Three-Year-Old Why has published, and that has kept me a little busy, but that’s not the main reason I haven’t come up for air. Though I am grateful for those of you who have bought the book in any of its formats or shared it with friends, the thing that has grabbed me is the story that is technically the third book in The Sparklight Chronicles.
That’s ironic for a couple of reasons.
For one thing, without giving spoilers, The Way of the Three-Year-Old Why (abbreviated 3yo) deals in some ways with inspiration and its nature. What drives creativity? How do we cultivate it and make it our own? So I find it ironic that Medium Well (working title for the work in progress) has almost spilled out on its own. It feels more like I’m watching it happen than that I’m writing it.
For another, I was halfway through what is technically the second book in the series (working title Real Speak, abbreviated RS) when Medium Well broke in. Chronologically, MW will remain the third book. But at this rate, I believe MW will be the second book published.
That’s a little awkward, since the first chapter of Real Speak was included at the end of 3yo. But there is a through-line joining them all.
Readers of 3yo will recognize several characters in MW. You’ll also find some familiar characters in RS, but not as many. But I think the themes line up nicely, and you will find other satisfying connections among the three, although any of them work well as stand-alone books.
As a bit of looking ahead, here is an object that will play a role in the story of Medium Well.
No spoilers, though. Still, you might have some fun speculating how this connects to the story of Skye Jackson and how she wrestles with coming to terms with who she is and the need to believe in herself.