Pagan Mirth, a follow up

A few months ago, I started writing a new novel called Pagan Mirth. At first I used the working title of "The Far Side of Midnight". As I continued to write the book, that title didn't seem to fit. One night at my writer's group, I got a writing prompt of "Pagan Mirth". We had fifteen minutes to complete a story using our individual prompts as part of what were writing. This one morphed into a section of my budding novel, which is a murder mystery of course.

One of my compadres and got to talking about the direction my novel was going and we felt that prompt would make a much better title. The protagonists are a husband & wife detective team. Duncan and Charlie Scott are descendants of ancient Scot clans and whose families happened to settle in southeastern South Dakota. These families are are also descendant members of one of the oldest Gnostic Christian Sects, Cathar.

The story begins in Lincoln County, South Dakota. Duncan was driving home late and happened to take a country road that he normally didn't. It wasn't uncommon for him to change routes, just for the fun of it and to stay out of a routine. He drives up on a group of prairie scavengers. What he found was the mutilated bodies of two of their best friends. From there, it is found out that this murder was not only a new case; but it becomes a religious battle as well with one of their old nemesis, Rex Mundi and his demons.

This story has taken on a life of its own. As I write it, I am thinking it is going in direction A then suddenly my hand is directed by the characters and my two muses Yeshua and Mary Magdalene to change to direction B or C. It is amazing how much my faith is directing the writing of this book. For a long time, I have wanted to write a mystery novel with religious and spiritual overtones. This one is definitely fitting that bill.

I have just completed typing chapters five and six. My fingers are itching to start chapter seven. I find that like the reality of life (unpredictable) that I cannot write to a tight outline. My books tend to be as unpredictable, to a point. I know the beginning, the end and the general direction. The rest is up to my muses and the characters. I find my characters become as real as my wife, my children and my friends. I feel the characters grow, just like we do in real life. It is like I become personally involved in their lives just like we do when we socialize with friends and family.