At last, I am writing a novel....slowly....

After two and a bit weeks I am now 6500ish words into my novel - being a sort of spin off from my story "The Big Three-Oh". At this, very early stage, I think I can see where it is all going, but there is enough vagueness about how we're going to get there to keep it interesting. The good thing with writing something so much larger than a short story is the way that ideas pop into being as you're writing and there is plenty of room (at least in this first draft) to let them fly. For example, I had just started writing about my character getting tortured and then rescued, but, to my surprise he started hallucinating before the torturers arrived which has led to an interesting story development. And who knew that someone had shoved pins into his tender parts? Which makes getting slung over your rescuer's shoulders no fun at all....

Todays drabble -  a wee bit of gothic horror. Only 100 words to play with, but again, this shows how things change as I write them - it just seemed a very gothic-y idea to start with someone digging up a grave.....

“This is monstrous,” wailed Lady Charlotte as I dug up her husband’s grave. When I saw her furious expression, I realised it was not this act of desecration that horrified her; but the mud that splattered her dress.

“Save your complaints,” I replied, “this might save you from the gallows.”

My spade crunched against the wood of the coffin lid. Lady Charlotte looked down in fury as I prized it off. The tattered skull of Lord Hawsham looked up at us.

“Who disturbs me?” hissed the rotting body.

“Your wife,” she spat, “now, tell the police I didn’t murder you.”

The problem with stuff like this is that I find myself asking loads more questions - so how come Lord Hawsham is in some kind of undead form, and what did Lady Charlotte have to do with it? And who is the narrator - he's not particularly polite to our Lady...hmm, something going on between them, did Lord Hawsham know? And do you know what? I have a suspicion that even if Lady Charlotte didn't murder her husband (and I'm not convinced on that one) I reckon she's got more than a few skeletons in her cupboard...