I found this old Pokemon game guide in a chest back at my parent's house. The featured game is over 20 years old.
I loved it.
Teenage me used to adore game guidebooks. They were paper treasures brimming with secrets detailing how to get the most fun out of a video game. My favorite guide ever is for Super Mario 3. The poor thing is falling apart, but the cover art is enough to shoot nostalgia through me. Because of that "book of secrets" as seven-year-old me called it, I learned about all the extra items, warps, and how to beat the hardest enemies in the game.
When I find these dusty guidebooks, I have to remember they are collector's items. I was shocked to find that this one in its like new condition is worth around $100. You better believe I threw it on Ebay with some other "younger me" memorabilia. Someone may as well enjoy the treasures of my past. I'll definitely enjoy the extra cash in my present.
But the definition of "treasure" varies per person. When I'm developing characters for novels, their definition of treasure helps me round out the rest of them. Find what they value, and anyone can guess what type of person they are—at least at that point in the story.
For a specific tycoon, treasure was staring out of his top-floor window at Manhattan, believing he owned it all. (corrupt, arrogant, stiff)
For the cheating boyfriend, treasure was his secrets and believing he could get away with his actions. (unfaithful, reckless, disingenuous)
For the caretaker grandmother, treasure was watching her grandson make good life decisions and her employer she sees as a son giving up his unhealthy obsession. (genuine, kind, helpful)
And for Johnna, the protagonist of 3 Scoops of Integrity (which I'm doing one more editing pass on before finding a critique partner), treasure is her Mimi's wisdom.
Writing Johnna has been a challenge. I've been drawing on all my experiences to bring her relational struggles to life. She lost her grandmother who was more like a mother to her, broke up with her cheating boyfriend, and she longs to mend her relationship with her best friend. That last one is wistful for me. Most of us know what it's like to watch a friendship dwindle, whether we cause the bulk of the issues or not. Sometimes reconciliation isn't possible. And sometimes people just drift apart.
For Johnna, I wanted her to work to mend both her own relationships and her integrity. One of the common themes throughout the story is her drawing on her late grandmother's wisdom. Johnna's memories become her treasure as well as her greatest resource to mend the broken relationships around her.
Just like most of us, her "treasure" shifts throughout her journey.
Editing this story has been a constant reminder for me to keep my eyes on my treasure. For me, it's my relationship with God. Following Jesus helps me keep everything from my spending habits to my relationships with the people closest to me healthy. When I give into temptation to put myself first, important details start to slip.
I went through a period where self-reliance was my treasure. I had a decent amount of savings, no debt, I was in the best shape of my life, and (I thought) my marriage was all good. Then I broke my leg and needed surgery—good-bye independence for months. I had to lean on my husband hard for the first time ever, and I discovered how I often made him feel unnecessary. That was a hard, depressing lesson, but I needed it.
My eyes went straight back up to where they should have been all along. Self-reliance and independence is all a joke. At any moment, life can remove anything we believe is secure. When I write, I emphasize each character's true treasure by the end of their journey.
In 3 Scoops, Johnna didn't have a faith of her own. She needed an ultimate source of wisdom. When I wrote the first draft, I referenced her late grandmother. Halfway through my first real editing pass, I realized how important it was for Johnna to rely on her Mimi's wisdom to get her life back on track. She didn't start losing sight of what was important until her grandmother died.
Like so many of us, if Johnna hadn't hit her low point, she may not have met her love.
But I don't want to spoil too much. I believe 3 Scoops may have potential as a women's fiction/comedy, so I plan to pitch it to agents after I get it through another editing pass and critique partners. I'm enjoying this journey, and I'm curious to see where it ends up.
Keep on smilin'!
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