h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I've found writing an odd and interesting process. You start with an idea, a little , do a bit of planning and research, and start writing.

I've drawn on memory and notebooks, books and websites. (I've found Google maps useful, because I've been able to search the area around the town on which I've based my fictional Caillac and find things from restaurants to hospitals.)

But I've found that, as I write, I discover new things I didn't know before - my anti-hero would have a photo of his mother; the restaurant would have a patio garden with tables and a few flowers. And, in the second draft, those things become clearer and more real. So, for me, the second and subsequent drafts are an important part of the creation of a fictional world.

Thanks for that insight. I think maybe as you write, the scene comes into focus, like with a camera?

I don't know much about painting, but I imagine you start with a sketch, fill in the background -sky, trees, or buildings. Then you fill in the details bit by bit and the painting comes alive.

Good point. I remember reading about a famous painting - though I don't remember which, or the painter's name.

It seems it was scheduled to go up in an exhibition. The painter was annoyed because it was a seascape, mostly blue, and looked washed out next to the brightly-coloured painting beside it.

When the exhibitors refused to move it, he painted a red detail in the lower foreground.

This changed the painting and made it stand out.

Today, I'm taking the day off to read Scott Turow's 'Innocent'. It's riveting, and I can't stop.

300 pages into this story, an object which has been in plain sight for the whole story has suddenly leapt into focus and changed the game for everyone concerned.

Now THAT is msatery of your place.