Guest post by: Marie Lavender

It starts with the seed of an idea. For a writer, it’s one of the most exciting parts of the book process. Perhaps it’s the flash of a scene in your mind, stemming from current events, something you read or witnessed in life. Or an object caught your interest, a mere speck of dust from the comet streaking across the night sky.

Suddenly, a plant has begun to grow. Scenes materialize in fits and starts, gradually forming a loose storyline. If you’re lucky, you know some of what might occur from the beginning. If that’s not the case, discovering each section of the whole is akin to the exhilaration of an archaeologist on her first dig. Soon enough, however, you’ve accumulated sufficient knowledge to get an idea of the overall picture. If the writer has any hope at all of finishing the project, he or…