5 Years
—5 Years—
To the day. Christmas 2018. That’s when I penned the first line of NIGHTLIGHTER (then just a silly idea on a single-spaced Microsoft Word doc).
Kohra leaned her neck against the tunnel wall.
The first line pretty much remained such till I wrote the prologue. It’s still (mostly) the first line in the book, though I’ve been entertaining a short chapter from Part III as the first chapter. I’m not married to it, but it feels a little grander—a little more on brand for some of the bigger ideas the book tries to tackle. I do, however, like how the OG first line puts you beside Kohra—literally. You’re stuck with her in the Tunnels. You’re rooting for her. If, and again, God-willing, when, I sign an agent, perhaps they’ll have a deciding opinion, one way or another. I’m fairly open; I’ve tried starting the book with both in many of my query submissions.
In January, 2019, I was in my second year of teaching and exploring more deeply the complexities of the Junk Disko Chronicle. I’d determined a setting, written a couple character outlines, and found a name for my villain: Totality Imperator Gaimon Flax. Aside from my infatuation with Neil Gaiman, the name kinda just came to me. I was sitting with the Beautiful One at my kitchen counter (generous term for the white-tiled tabletop inside my 270-square-foot pool house [literally]) and announced, rather proudly I might add, his name. It sounded, well, villainous, and definitive. Powerful, yet just pompous enough that the right person could poke fun at how self-serious it came off.
Kohra was named, loosely, after the character of the same name in Disney’s Tron Legacy. (An amazing film, btw.) I’ve always liked the “oh” phoneme and the palatable long “O” sound in general. It sounds suave when spoken, sung, cursed, etc. Much of the vernacular and neo-logisms in the book feature such sounds. I’m excited for you to read them. It was only later in the NIGHTLIGHTER where I felt Kohra really grew into herself—really earned her name. It was a pretty fun moment that hits hard once you see it. Perhaps I’ll post more about this sometime.
I think I’m digressing here a bit (but I like talking about this backstory [pun intended] stuff; perhaps I’ll write another post dedicated to it), sitting next to my parents in their cozy, Christmas-decor-clad home in Spokane, WA, but five years later I can confidently say that I’m proud of myself. Writing a book is no easy feat. Hiring two editors, dropping $12,000 over the course of three years, querying twice over five months (currently two months in to Round 2), and revising and cutting over 120k words... is no easy feat. But it’s been worth it. Discouraging much of the time, but worth it. I’ve grown significantly as a writer: learned the beauty of 3rd-person limited, the art of pacing, the intricacies of actual character development, how to write believable, exciting action sequences, and much, much more.
I’m sticking with it; I’m having fun. And I’m determined to bring NIGHTLIGHTER to life. Fingers crossed I can get a few more manuscript requests and, eventually, an offer of representation. :)
That’s all for now. Peace and a very Merry Christmas,
-Taylor
TJH -- 12.25.2023