New Places & New Faces
In 2000, I moved to Atlanta, Georgia . . . 800 miles from familiar places and familiar faces.
After a week, it occurred to me that my friends and favorite places were the result of habits and convenience. A natural outcome when you live within the same 75 mile radius for 28 years. I had to find my new favorite places. I had to find my new great friends. How does one go about doing that?
Deliberately and slowly and genuinely (and with a splash of spontaneity).
I bought a map of the city and learned the lay of the land. I got lost one night. On a toll road. I had no change and no clue how much the tolls would be. I cried. Then found my way home. In the light of day, I came across that toll road. It was three miles away from my new apartment. And the road had one toll . . . seven miles away from me . . . in the opposite direction I was driving the night before.
I signed up for a Summer Theaters class at a local technical school. Each week we visited a local theater house, watched a play, and then ate dinner. I discovered GREAT theaters and AMAZING restaurants.
I started up conversations with my classmates in my graduate school program. We started with the safe stuff (hobbies) and personalities (who’s funny). Overtime I learned the real stuff: what really drives a person.
I think starting a new story is like moving to a new place. You get lost a lot in the beginning, but over time you learn the roads. You discover great things about your setting, its culture. You find those little nuances that make it special. And when you meet your characters, you discuss hobbies and general likes and dislikes. However, over time you learn WHY those hobbies are so important. You understand the reasons behind the likes and dislikes.
And then one day (and several drafts later) you realize that you have created a life, a story, a world . . .
And then you move to the next place.