When I embarked on writing my first novel, I was excited to know that I was my own boss, and I could write whatever I wanted and make all my own decisions. But I was shocked to discover that was not entirely true. . .

I was deep into writing a scene in my first book way back then, and my main character was heading out for a day-long mountain hike with a friend. I felt that I needed to have a third person along for the adventure. I spent a day pondering the right choice of character to fill this spot. I reviewed all my options and had a few possibilities in mind, but no one seemed exactly right. 

The next morning, I woke up and it was as if one of my characters was standing in the room saying “Pick me! I want to go on the hike.” But it made absolutely no sense. Why on earth would this character be hiking with the main character? 

I went downstairs to breakfast and the character met me in the kitchen, again tickling my brain: “Pick me! I’m the one who should tag along on the hike!” I started to consider how this might work, but kept shaking my head, nope. It doesn’t make any sense.

But my character would not leave my head! She was very persistent, and then got downright pushy. Slowly, the scene unfolded in my mind. Oh, my goodness, Yes! Not only did it make sense – it was absolutely the right direction for the story. I’d been led to the perfect person to tag along!

I headed to my office and began to type. The chapter flowed so quickly I could barely keep up. This character was not only the perfect choice, she was the only choice!