Does a spreadsheet have a role in creative writing? Spreadsheets are for numbers, right? Well I’m using one for my fifth book in the Sir Anthony Standen Adventures, working title, The Favourite Murder. I know it sounds crazy, but let me explain.
I’ve posted about the research I’ve been undertaking. I’ve read biographies of Louis XIII by Elizabeth Marvick, Marie de Medici by Julia Pardoe, Cardinal Richelieu also by Elizabeth Marvick, and Charles d’Albert de Luynes by Sharon Kettering. As I’ve been reading, I’ve made notes in my writer’s notebook. My problem is that the biography of Marie de Medici is immensely long, and packed with useful detail. I’m struggling to ensure that I get all the events and interactions between characters in the right order. Only by understanding the events and mindset of each character over time can I get a grip of each character’s motivation at any particular moment.
So I’ve started on a spreadsheet. Column A is for date, column B is for character, and column C is for the event. I’m using my notes and referring back to the appropriate page in each source to get the detail for each row. I should probably add columns for the source book and page too. Not every event in a biography has a specific date, but I can estimate a date from events that occur before and after. It’s not ideal, but it’s a start.
The joy of the spreadsheet is that I can sort the rows by date and by character. Then I can see the timeline of events influencing each character. I’ll get my apology in now. As with Called to Account, I will have to compress the timescale a little in order to maintain the pace of the story. I think I can allow myself that flexibility. I’m writing historical crime fiction, not a history textbook. I wont change history, but I think I should be allowed to speed it up a little, where necessary.