CW Gortner author of The Confessions of Chaterine de Medici and The Last Queen
CW has had an incredible ride. Read below to learn about the ups and downs of plotting a historical novel. And, the ultimate high...
His latest novel The Last Queen is out from Random House. As the trade giant, Publishers Weekly, reviews: "An enthralling story, brilliantly told."
The rights to his latest best-selling novel, The Last Queen have sold in 9 countries!
CW is also the author of The Secret Lion.
I asked CW about his writing process, with an emphasis on plot.
Blockbuster Plots [BBP]: How do you go about plotting your books?
CW Gortner [CWG]:I start my plotting with a factual framework. Historical novels are complex, because you're working within events that actually occurred, which you are fictionalizing for a novel. Because I write about historical figures, as well, the facts of their lives require extensive research.
My bibliography for The Last Queen reached over 100 books, and I also tried to read as many contemporary documents from the period as I could, which involved petitioning the various archives and libraries where such documents are housed. I always make a point of visiting as many of the physical locales associated with my central character as I can.
For The Last Queen, I traveled to Spain on separate occasions to tour the extant castles and cities associated with Juana of Castile, and I even took the route she did from Burgos to Toro. Some of the sites she knew are gone; for example, the castle at Tordesillas was demolished in the 17th century after a devastating fire, but the convent where she lived for a time still exists.
Other sites, like the Casa del Cordon in Burgos, retain only the facade, while the interior has been modernized (it's actually now a bank!) In some occasions, the site itself had historical information readily available, and that's always a plus! Otherwise, I did painstaking research to re-create them as Juana would have known them. This meant digging around for architectural plans or descriptions from chroniclers, ambassadors and others who described them. In cases when no information was forthcoming, I relied on books I have about period architecture and attempted to re-create a close facsimile of similar structures.
Once the factual framework is in place - significant dates, events, and places - I draw up a chronological outline. Because lives are composed of thousands of moments, I must select which events I'll cover in the novel and which I won't. This is a difficult process, because to me everything is interesting and relevant, and I have to keep in mind that a novel contains a finite amount of words. I also attempt to construct a story that will interest my reader, and not bog him or her down in superfluous detail. I don't need to put into the book everything I know; I just need to know it to inform the writing.
The last thing I do is sketch brief profiles of my characters based on the research I've done; their ages at the start of the book, likes and dislikes, prominent physical and emotional characteristics, the ways they relate to other characters. This is very important to me because it gives me a way to retain my characters' individuality and avoid cliche descriptions.
BBP: Are you a pre-plotter or after the fact?
CWG: A bit of both. Once my factual framework is done to the best of my ability, I let imagination take over. If I've done my homework, the customs, lore and ways people lived is ingrained in me, and I can begin to craft the actual novel itself.
I try not to pre-plan the writing too much, because for me the act of writing reveals the story; I want my words to be spontaneous, emotional. I strive for the characters to speak to me, and tell me where they want to go. Of course, my story is underpinned by fact: I have my chronological frame work, which will shift to accommodate the needs of the story, but remain immutable in the sense that I cannot alter what actually happened. It's like an underlying map to guide me so I don't get lost; it's always present as I write but it's transparent.
There have been times when I've had to go back and adjust my framework. For example, an event I thought I wouldn't cover suddenly becomes important as the writing progresses, while one I thought was necessary falls by the wayside. It's a delicate balance, in that I want the facts to inform, not dictate, the work. I must leave room for the character's viewpoint. A fact is just a fact: Juana went to Flanders at age sixteen to marry Philip of Hapsburg. But, how she feels about this is an interpretation that should arise within the writing.
BBP: What methods did you find particularly useful in plotting out your project?
CWG: All the above, plus keeping my research books at hand. If I get stuck, I snatch one up and read, to refresh my memory and get inspired anew.
Another method I find invaluable is to stop and listen to my characters. I know it sounds bizarre but invariably, an historical novel will turn into a maze. With The Last Queen, I had less trouble with this than with previous projects but there was a moment half-way through the writing when I reached an impasse. A major event was about to occur, and Juana was poised for it, but the means in which the event came about had no factual support. Several different things could have happened to precipitate the event and I had to decide how she would participate. I had no idea what to do, so I stopped and listened. What this means, literally, is that I removed my ego as much as I can and let her decide. It's an actor's technique, to lose yourself and let the subconscious come to the fore; it brings charac ters to life.
In this particular instance, Juana did something very unexpected. She reacted in a completely organic way. It was perfect. I could have thrashed around for weeks seeking a deliberate way out of the dilemma if I hadn't just let myself melt into my character. It's times like that when you know, as a writer, that you've embodied your creation.
BBP: Do you consciously develop thematic significance?
CWG: Yes, and no. I do in the sense that I have themes that permeate the weft of the book; in The Last Queen, it's the legacy we carry within. However, as I write, these are not the first or even the fourth things I think about. They get woven into the book, if I've done my work well.
I had one reviewer write to me and say, "I loved the way the theme of Boabdil's exile at the start of the novel kept permeating Juana's story as she attempted to find peace in her own country, where she was being turned into a stranger." I thought, Wow. I never deliberately set out to do that, but how marvelous that a reader felt that. I think thematic significance is vital to the reading experience but if it's done with a heavy hand, it can seem obvious and even pompous.
BBP: Are you a character-driven writer or action-driven?
CWG: Character-driven. I want to explore the inner worlds of these historical figures and breathe life into them. My books have plenty of action, certainly; they're not obscure physiological portraits, but I tend to let the characters drive me as I write, to center my story around them. Action is dictated by events; again, the facts: Juana takes flight on a horse while six months pregnant to escape her foes. The reasons why she chooses this escape, the emotions that fill her as she flees across a barren salt flat with a borrowed horse, desperate for freedom - that's what drives me as a writer.
I think that if a writer is attuned to the character's inner world, the actions will be all the more exciting and believable.
BBP: Plot tips to share?
CWG: Gosh, I don't know if I'm the ideal writer for tips, but if I guess I would say, keep it fresh. Don't get so engrossed in plotting everything out that it loses its spontaneity. The act of writing is an act of discovery, just as the act of reading is one of discovery.
You should know where you are headed but let the details of the journey arise as you write. Let the characters speak and surprise you; let the words be your path. It sounds silly, but in the end you'll find yourself as excited about the book you've written as your reader will be.
And hi to Martha Alderson! Everyone, Martha offers writers terrific plot and writing technique workshops. Check her out!