*Spoiler alert for Chapter 10: Hideaway
This is it
This is the chapter the book has been building to. This is the big reveal of where Hope the dog came from, and how she survived on her own. Now you know where she kept wanting to run to when Dustin and Damon first brought her home.
Having a vision for a story is weird. As time passes, the exact moment and way I thought of the idea is less and less clear. This vision I had of a junkyard next to a drive-in theater...I can't remember when it flashed in my mind. It was probably while I was driving to or from work. The commute is some of my best thinking time.
As I've mentioned, the song Gone to the Movies is a major inspiration for this book. In the song, a rusted Pontiac is mentioned, and I must have been trying to figure out how to get a stray dog near "the movies." A junkyard...next to a drive-in! Yeah, that's it!
I wish I knew that this actually was my line of thought, but oh well, perhaps it doesn't matter anymore.
Anyway, as I set up the plot in the first half of the book, this is the chapter I couldn't wait to get to. Having been to a few pick-n-pull junkyards in my time, I knew I could build a thorough aesthetic and experience for the reader.
Some of the cars are so stripped down and have been there so long that they are sinking into the mud. Damon thinks they look like sunken pirate ships at the bottom of the ocean, half of their carcasses buried in the sand.
This is one of my favorite lines in the book.
Hideaway
As I developed the concept of a dog living in a junkyard next to the drive-in, the song Hideaway by Fuel jumped to mind. I probably hadn't listened to the song in 15 years, but it is one of my favorites from that album and fits the story perfectly.
Troubled days cloud my eyes
Stole the sun from my skies
And in this darkness I am tossing, turning
Lying wide awake
Hold my breath, wish that I could find a place
To hideaway
- Fuel, Hideaway
A few things become obvious in this chapter:
Hope is lost from her owner, but we don't know how/why
Something likely very sad happened to her, and has her scared of people, thus living in these questionable conditions
She's very intelligent, and crafty; able to survive on her own
The lyrics of the song reference these concepts. The sun was stolen from Hope's sky, and she found comfort in this place. She needed a place to hide away from the world. You'll find out in the next Chapter what brings her comfort while living in a rusted old Pontiac.
Prequel
What I don't get into in the chapter is, why the junkyard? I hint that the place is obviously long neglected. There's no one there to talk to, and this is obvious when looking at the state of it.
As an author, I will always wonder if I should have lingered on plot details like this a bit longer, but I try to focus on what moves the story forward, not drags it down.
I will, however, be revealing the full backstory in a prequel book. I have story in my head that is clear now, and I have to get it out. I didn't know all of this when writing Gone to the Movies. That's ok though. The cool thing about living in this digital age is I can always release a 2.0 version of the book later that better fits into a series or whatever.
As a reminder, you should be following me on Twitter for more hints about the prequel, and eventually some snippets of writing I'll share!
Until next time, see you at the movies.
Soundtrack (thus far):
Bonus Track: Interstate Love Song - Stone Temple Pilots
Bonus Track: Rockin' Chair - Oasis
Bonus Track: Happy - The Tories
Bonus Track: Song for You - Fuel
Follow as we build the soundtrack on Spotify!