NANOWRIMO PAGES 4 to 7

Who are they? Where are they from?




As I keep struggling to choose the story to tell, a number of characters are queuing up in a kind of competition between them. I feel overwhelmed. I am telling them that I cannot afford to have all of them into one story and I do not even know whether I would eventually be a story teller, the world would be interested in.



The characters are very smart. They argue with me that it does not matter, whether the world would recognize the story. It is very important that I would recognize them. They want that assurance that the truth which they want to convey is not diluted by me in the

role of an author. In essence, they say they want to tell the story,

as it is.



These moments have been most difficult in my memory. I shared my anxiety with the characters that were upon me that I let them speak out. My anxiety is about the fact that as these characters speak out they should not be resembling any characters whom I am not representing through the novel. It is not enough for me to put a disclosure statement and get away. I am an ordinary white collar wage earner, I cannot afford the sophistications in facing claims upon someone's life being told without her permission.



An even more difficult part of the story of writing story is the fact that the characters are stronger than the poor author. Their contention in response to my anxiety is that as they are going to be speaking the truth in their lives, it is just not possible, they will be resembling anybody, as most resemblences start resulting from untruth. It is untruth that can hurt. Truth can never hurt.



I am just not equal to face these arguments from my characters.

But I told them one thing. I would have the freedom when to tell them start and when to tell them stop. And I would not be assigning any reason whatsoever. At last, some of the documents I have scrutinized in my life as banker came to my rescue. None of my characters has worked in a bank. Most of them had little reason to go to a bank as a customer as well. Although the few who had reason had very little to become obsessed with banking. This, for once, gave me some authority. I could structure the covenants for the deal.



I will accommodate as many characters as possible. They would convey truth and nothing else. I will decide when they should start and when they should end. Perhaps, when they should resume as well. Another important freedom I got from them was to introduce them. Even if there are any errors in my introduction they would not mind. They would expect me to introduce them from the period they lived in. I can change the place for narration. They would like to stick to the period with minimal inaccuracy.



As I was facing the characters from my past life, there was a miraculous rendezvous of some characters are engaged in my present life. They would love to dabble in their past as well as present. But they agreed that if I prefer a particular period, I can

intervene to tell them. They would try and accommodate my request as far as possible.



As a person who strongly believes in meticulous planning as the most fundamental step leading to successful execution, I did not mind the slow progress in the maiden novel and devoted a good deal of time in understanding the characters who have chosen to be in the novel.



By the time I was heaving a huge sigh of relief in my peaceful negotiation of a decent deal with various characters, I had the most pleasant surprise in my life. Young boys and girls were in a circle standing like an enclosure to the characters and myself, with their eyes and ears tuned to our conversations. They were intermittently whispering in each other's ears and smiling. I called them to my side and asked, "O my dear children! What are you upto?" These guys with mobiles in hands and ears, asked me in an unbelievable sweet chorus: "Uncle, can we join?".



I said "Join what?"



"Join you guys in writing or telling the novel."



"What do you want to tell?"



"We do not know as yet, we are eager to participate"



"Look, you guys are not going to tell the truth, like others"



"Does it mean we will tell lies?"



















"Oh, No. What I meant is you will not talk the reality. If you want to talk you will talk the dreams and passions. May be fears and concerns. But not what happened. That has been assigned to these characters. Not even what is happening. You need to speak what you think can happen. What you are concerned as a possibility impacting your future. Or what you see happening in future that will change our lives. Neither the Past nor the Present. Is that Ok with you guys?"



There was a deafening silence. I was for a moment wondering about my new skills as I embark upon the tasks for which I am relatively unskilled.



Is it possible when I step out of my comfort zone, I tend to imagine what I can do as a means of stepping into what I can and thus expand through realizing some of such possibilities?



Is it possible when these young boys and girls join me all they are doing is to step out of their comfort zone and they want to venture into something which is not an extension of their reality today but a quantum jump from all that is known about them and all that is potent but yet to be known about them?



If that is the case, I have probably done the right thing by laying down conditions of engagement with them in this novel. They will learn from past but not talk about it. They will realize what is happening but will not talk about it. They will catapult their and collective thinking of all of us in to that tomorrow which is not yet known and for the same reason remains potent with scope for realizing the promise and hope of life. We need some characters to go there and tell us, even as we get busy taking into our comprehension what happened years ago in our lives and what is happening right now without our even taking note of it.



Slowly I realized as I gave the freedom to the characters, we were all together expanding on the basis of a Tripod. The tripod had clear delineations for the past, present and future through various characters and their freedom to express themselves. All I am free to do is to introduce them, request them to start and stop and resume, as we go along.



The characters are human and have a fundamental right to err. And I have a fundamental value to forgive in case of error, but I would love to point out the error for non recurrence.



So much for the rules of the game.



The participative process and spirit of playing the game are more important for the sustainability and joy of the game.



I welcome all the characters to this wonderful experience of writing a novel out of their lives. God bless them with immortality. Even if I succeed in reaching a few scores of readers, I would plead with my characters to accept that as my role successfully played.



Truth often has fewer takers. Truth often is not that juicy. My characters are insisting on speaking the truth, where as I need a good fiction out of the truth.



I only keep my fingers crossed and pray for a readable result.



By the way, who are these characters? Where do they come from? Do they belong to a past or future? Who belong to the present?



An introduction is overdue.