Tiffany:
It's 11:46 PM EST, and it's almost Thursday....it's February, and the air outside is cold and unforgiving. Night is well in progress, and I'm laying on my bed with my laptop, and a song on repeat.....and it's in this instance that I feel like I've just lost eight really good friends....Eight people whom I've known for over a year, and in some ways, they've been on my mind every other minute. It's that feeling, the one you have when driving away from a funeral, you're reflective, and in between sad and happy as your mind flows with memories of days passed.
Tonight is the night that Chelsi and I finished writing the lives of Taylor, Riley, Zac, Emily, Andy, Kaelin, Isaac, and Alexis. We've been writing them since December of 2004....we've lived their ups, their downs, and all their in betweens. We've lived through them on every single page, in every single word. We've laughed and nearly cried. We have been happy to the point of elation, and angered to the point we threatened never to write them again when certain characters seemed to take on lives of their own in our pages, through the words we typed.
This trilogy has turned out much better than I ever expected. The characters and storylines have grown so much, it's been an incredible experience. And Chelsi and I have become very close, as well as developing our skills as writers. As time has gone on, we're pretty much able to tell what the other is thinking, or where an idea is going before it's even finished. We've talked about everything under the moon, and back, and it's been many late nights of insanity, frustration, brilliance, and endless fun. So many priceless memories have now been made, forever cemented in our memories, at the expense of the eight characters we've made.
You never really think about how much a song can change your life....until it does. When I heard "Cannonball" back in 2004, I couldn't get it out of my mind, then I met Chelsi, and it had the same effect on her....when we started writing, we knew it was an integral part to the tale we were crafting, and it resonates through all three stories in various ways, however small. So many days we would come home and talk to each other, and we'd say things like, "I was in my car today, and I saw this sign, random, I know, but it made me think we should do this with Taylor...." And that simple idea would spawn a twenty page situation that we'd create and then dismantle.
By far, Taylor is the most complicated character of them all. He's moody and reckless, but he's also sweet and driven. He makes you love him one minute, and want to kill him the next....He's dynamic, and in writing him, we found that he liked to dig himself lots of holes....holes we had to fill. Surprisingly, Taylor is the one character we always agreed on in the writing process. Next, would be my personal favorite, Riley. That girl is always so.....fickle. She knows what she wants to do, but she can never decide to follow her head or her heart. She was my favorite to write, and Chelsi pretty much refused to write her when we got to "Crash." (Haha.) And Zac....he was a combination of both of our ideas of what he should be, and in the end, I think he turned out quite well. And Alexis was Chelsi's protege, and I really couldn't manage to write her that well....but she really was the balancing force in everything. And Isaac, he was the reasoner to his brothers, and the rock for Alexis, when she needed it. And Emily....in ways, she was the victim, yet some of it was self-inflicted. Then, the kids - the pawns in the games of their parents attempts at love.....or what they thought was love..... And no, I'm giving absolutely nothing away as you read this, wait, you'll see.
In closing....I feel empty. I feel like a huge part of my life is now missing. True, I'm already planning to finally start writing "Fatalistic," and Chelsi and I are well in the beginning phases of our next collaboration, and new characters that we're beginning to learn, but still, these characters linger in my mind....with all the "God yes," "Let go," "Just stay," and the "Say you want me's....." and everything in between. I think these characters brought out my true colors as a writer. In the nearly 900 typed pages, they challenged me in ways I never thought I'd be challenged.....and now, with their passing, I'm reluctant to say goodbye....reluctant to close the word document and watch the words disappear.....reluctant to think I'll never write them again, not in this time, this space, not ever this way.
I will say that I think "Crash" is incredible, and I can't wait for you all to read it.....it's a ride like no other. It's stronger than the other stories, and I really think it could stand well on it's own. "Cannonball" was about the concept, "Broken Road" was about developing the characters and their relationships, and "Crash" takes those things, and ties them together, in a chaotic little bow. I hope, that once you've read the last word to their story, that you're left speechless. I hope you're feeling a little empty, like maybe you've lost some good friends too.....Most of all, I hope you are affected by their lives as much as they've affected our lives.
Thank you for reading everything so far! I hope you'll stick with us for everything to come.
Rock on,
Tiff
Chelsi:
So, wow. Tiffany and I just finished “Crash” about an hour ago. While you should all be happy about this (because that means we’re going to start posting it), we are kind of in a bittersweet moment with it. We’ve been working on this series for a little more than a year.
It’s weird to think that, before “Crash,” before “Broken Road,” and even before “Cannonball,” Tiffany and I really didn’t know each other that well. We’d been talking for maybe a couple months by then. We met through her yahoo group after I’d read her other stories. You all know the story behind how “Cannonball” came to be, and if you don’t, read our reflections of “Cannonball” in the Extras section. The point is, this story was really our bonding point. Many, many, many late nighters, clicking away on the keyboard until our fingers felt like they were going to fall off. Lots of laughs, lots of frustration. Laughing too loud and staying up too late. So late, sometimes, that we’d fall asleep at the computer. I actually did that once…haha. Remember Tiff? Funny, funny.
I feel like our writing skills have grown dramatically. If you read “Cannonball,” and then you read, “Crash,” I think there’s an obvious difference. Together, we worked on our strengths, and learned from our weaknesses. All the while, creating this monumental piece of work. It may not be monumental for you. It may be just another story that you stumbled across on the internet once. Maybe one day you’ll be on a Hanson forum and say, “hey, does anyone remember this story where Taylor and this girl have dreams about each other, and then they meet, but she’s already fallen in love with Zac before she realizes it?” And maybe, Tiffany or I will see this post. And it will no doubt bring a smile to our face. Because this is our monument. This was our blood, sweat, and tears. And while it may be just a passing story to you, it’s so much more to us. And we appreciate everyone who takes the time to read it. Because it makes us feel good to know that we can share their story with you.
The characters have grown on us. I don’t think we’ll ever be totally rid of them. They’re in our veins now, as much a part of us as our best friends. They pop into our heads at random moments, during random events in our lives. They speak to us sometimes. (Does this make us crazy? Maybe, hehe. But remember, some of the best writers were a little crazy in their own way.) These characters are alive in us, and it’s sad that we’re finished with their story. This is the end of their story, but not the end of everything. We have so many more plans. So many more stories to tell, and people to introduce to your lives. Characters we don’t really know yet, but will eventually become part of our everyday lives. Just like Taylor and Emily. And just like Riley and Zac. And just like Isaac and Alexis.
This series is over, but we are not. We have future projects in the works. If you stick around, so will we. Hey, we’re stubborn, so even if you leave, we’d probably still stick around. ;)
Thanks for reading and for sticking around.
- Chelsi
No comments:
Post a Comment