I've written about 20,000 words of my second novel. Since the novel is an expansion of a short story written at Clarion, parts of the framework were already in place. I read the short story several times, made some notes on what I thought were the major points, then wrote a rough outline. Then I started.
The last and only other time I wrote a novel, my first draft was just a big 300 page freewrite: no outline, no notes. Just start writing and find out what happens as you go along.
Although there are many things I love about freewriting, this time I felt I needed some type of outline. The danger is in following your outline so closely that you begin to manipulate your story. The outline is very skeletal and I frequently depart from it, but I still think it gives me a loose but helpful framework. Whatever the case, I feel much better about this novel than the first one. Plus I'm really taking my time on this one: 1,000 words a day. That's not much, but I wanted to also spend time on some short stories. Maybe even some poetry.
I've got five stories out right now. I started expanding a flash fiction piece last night, "Lady in Broken Satin" about Billie Holiday.
Very disappointed in Alias last night. Think I'll stick to PTI.
Now Playing = Wildflowers – Judy Collins
Thursday, March 17, 2005
Friday, March 04, 2005
Novel Fever
Three years ago I started and finished my first novel. I wrote a first draft, set it aside for a few months and started a second draft. I finished the second draft, let my writers group read it, and set it aside before going to Clarion.
When I got back from Clarion I was really focused (and still am) on writing short stories, so I kept the novel in a drawer. A few months after Clarion, I read the novel again.
Boy, was it bad. And it still is. (They don't get better sitting in the drawer. I know some of us would like to think they do, but they don't. Take my word for it.)
I think the initial idea I had for it was good. Not very original, but still good: In 1880, two university students (both male, of course; it's 1880.) accidentally stumble into an apartment in downtown Baltimore. (I know - how do you accidentally stumble into an apartment? That's just one of the things that needs work!) Inside the apartment they find an entire room full of objects and devices they have no way of explaining. That's how the novel begins.
I still think it's a good idea and believe the novel contains some good scenes, but overall, it's a bad novel. I didn't know how to put it together, didn't know how to execute it. (Hey, maybe execution's a pretty good idea!) It's a first novel. It was a learning experience and one I wouldn't trade for anything.
Now I'm starting another one.
I hadn't planned on doing it. I'd written a short story at Clarion and did a revision of it six months later. I sent it to P.O.E. and got some good critiques on what worked and what didn't. And I came to the point that probably all writers come to at one time or another when working on stories: There's just too much story here for a short story, or novelette, or even a novella. This sucker's got to be a novel.
But I'm not in a hurry. My word count goals are pretty small – I want to write at least 1,000 words a day. That's not much, but I still want to work on short stories too. So I'm 6,000 words into the novel and feel pretty good about it. But ask me again in three or four months.
Writing the first novel was like trying to walk through the jungle. I had no clue at all, I just started walking. It's a little different now. There's a tiny, winding, dusty trail cut through the jungle now. I can see up ahead that the path branches off in several different directions. Which one's right? We'll see. But the journey is the fun part.
I hope I feel this way four months from now.
Happy writing, everyone.
Now Playing = A Night in Tunisia – Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers
When I got back from Clarion I was really focused (and still am) on writing short stories, so I kept the novel in a drawer. A few months after Clarion, I read the novel again.
Boy, was it bad. And it still is. (They don't get better sitting in the drawer. I know some of us would like to think they do, but they don't. Take my word for it.)
I think the initial idea I had for it was good. Not very original, but still good: In 1880, two university students (both male, of course; it's 1880.) accidentally stumble into an apartment in downtown Baltimore. (I know - how do you accidentally stumble into an apartment? That's just one of the things that needs work!) Inside the apartment they find an entire room full of objects and devices they have no way of explaining. That's how the novel begins.
I still think it's a good idea and believe the novel contains some good scenes, but overall, it's a bad novel. I didn't know how to put it together, didn't know how to execute it. (Hey, maybe execution's a pretty good idea!) It's a first novel. It was a learning experience and one I wouldn't trade for anything.
Now I'm starting another one.
I hadn't planned on doing it. I'd written a short story at Clarion and did a revision of it six months later. I sent it to P.O.E. and got some good critiques on what worked and what didn't. And I came to the point that probably all writers come to at one time or another when working on stories: There's just too much story here for a short story, or novelette, or even a novella. This sucker's got to be a novel.
But I'm not in a hurry. My word count goals are pretty small – I want to write at least 1,000 words a day. That's not much, but I still want to work on short stories too. So I'm 6,000 words into the novel and feel pretty good about it. But ask me again in three or four months.
Writing the first novel was like trying to walk through the jungle. I had no clue at all, I just started walking. It's a little different now. There's a tiny, winding, dusty trail cut through the jungle now. I can see up ahead that the path branches off in several different directions. Which one's right? We'll see. But the journey is the fun part.
I hope I feel this way four months from now.
Happy writing, everyone.
Now Playing = A Night in Tunisia – Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers
Tuesday, February 22, 2005
Learning from Others
Damon Knight's Creating Short Fiction contains "Semper Fi," one of his own stories. Only this story is annotated with Knight's thoughts on what he was thinking when he wrote it and the devices he used. The story is on the even pages, the notes across from it on the odd pages. This is a great idea and is extremely helpful. I wish more people who pen books on writing would annotate their own stories.
You can find some other books that are very helpful in explaining how sf/f stories work:
Robert Silverberg's Science Fiction 101 (formerly Worlds of Wonder) contains Silverberg's thoughts on each story from a writer's point of view. The stories are somewhat old school, but there's good stuff there. (Silverberg's introduction alone is worth the price of the book.)
Two other books that do the same thing (recommended to me by Gordon Van Gelder at Clarion) are Paragons and Those Who Can, both edited by Robin Scott Wilson. Both contain examples of stories and author essays on plot, character, theme, point of view, etc. Paragons contains more current writers (Nancy Kress, Karen Joy Fowler, Lucius Shepard, Kim Stanley Robinson, John Kessel, etc.) than does Those Who Can, but both books are excellent.
Intersections is a collection of stories submitted to and critiqued at the Sycamore Hill Writers' Conference, an invitation-only event featuring some of the biggest names in sf/f. Not only do you get great stories, you also get to read how the participants critiqued each story. Extremely valuable. Intersections is edited by John Kessel, Mark L. Van Name and Richard Butner.
That's it for today. Happy writing, happy studying.
Now Playing = Now Here Is Nowhere – Secret Machines
You can find some other books that are very helpful in explaining how sf/f stories work:
Robert Silverberg's Science Fiction 101 (formerly Worlds of Wonder) contains Silverberg's thoughts on each story from a writer's point of view. The stories are somewhat old school, but there's good stuff there. (Silverberg's introduction alone is worth the price of the book.)
Two other books that do the same thing (recommended to me by Gordon Van Gelder at Clarion) are Paragons and Those Who Can, both edited by Robin Scott Wilson. Both contain examples of stories and author essays on plot, character, theme, point of view, etc. Paragons contains more current writers (Nancy Kress, Karen Joy Fowler, Lucius Shepard, Kim Stanley Robinson, John Kessel, etc.) than does Those Who Can, but both books are excellent.
Intersections is a collection of stories submitted to and critiqued at the Sycamore Hill Writers' Conference, an invitation-only event featuring some of the biggest names in sf/f. Not only do you get great stories, you also get to read how the participants critiqued each story. Extremely valuable. Intersections is edited by John Kessel, Mark L. Van Name and Richard Butner.
That's it for today. Happy writing, happy studying.
Now Playing = Now Here Is Nowhere – Secret Machines
The Journey to Best Picture
Last year I almost made it. I saw four of the five films nominated for Best Picture. The only one I missed, Mystic River, I saw a couple of weeks after the Oscars.
I don't think I'll even get that close this year. With only six days left, I have three films to see. But I'm going to try. Of the five nominated films, I saw Ray about four weeks ago and Million Dollar Baby yesterday. Having seen Eastwood's latest film, I have to ask two questions:
1 – Is Million Dollar Baby really one of the five best films of 2004?
2 – Why didn't Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind receive a nomination for Best Picture?
There's been a lot of controversy about Million Dollar Baby and if you haven't seen it, I'll be bringing up a few SPOILERS now. But forgetting the controversy concerning the ending (which bothered me, but other things bothered me much more), I want to talk about the film itself and whether it deserves the "Best Picture" nomination.
Now anybody that follows movies will tell you that the five films nominated for Best Picture are not always the five best films of that year. Many films (especially independent ones) are often ignored by Hollywood for obvious reasons. Some years are better (or worse) than others and sometimes a film that's just not that good slips in. That's the case (at least for me) with Million Dollar Baby.
This isn't a boxing movie. I didn't believe for one minute that anything happening onscreen was in any way true to boxing. I'm no boxing authority, but what I do know about it contradicted what I saw onscreen. So if it's not a boxing movie, what is it?
It's a melodrama.
Don't get me wrong, it's pretty good as melodramas go. But the story feels manipulated, contrived and artificial. Morgan Freeman's narration reminds us way too much of The Shawshank Redemption and when at the end we learn the reason for the narration, we think, "That's just not plausible. Why would this man write this letter to a woman he'd never met? And why would she even read it?" Frankie's (Eastwood's) strained relationship with his daughter only serves one purpose: to have Freeman's character narrate the story.
Again, the boxing scenes are just too much to accept, especially Maggie's title fight. I didn't believe one bit of it, plus it was telegraphed in big, flashing letters. Maggie's family consists of stereotypical cardboard characters that just aren't convincing. A director asks his audience to believe that certain things can and would happen under certain circumstances and I didn't believe Clint this time. I just don't think this film's that good.
And I certainly don't think it is a better film than Eternal Sunshine, which is original, well acted and directed, brilliantly edited, compelling and satisfying. But I've learned over the years to never expect justice on Oscar night.
More about writing next time. I promise.
Now Playing = Mingus Ah Um – Charles Mingus
I don't think I'll even get that close this year. With only six days left, I have three films to see. But I'm going to try. Of the five nominated films, I saw Ray about four weeks ago and Million Dollar Baby yesterday. Having seen Eastwood's latest film, I have to ask two questions:
1 – Is Million Dollar Baby really one of the five best films of 2004?
2 – Why didn't Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind receive a nomination for Best Picture?
There's been a lot of controversy about Million Dollar Baby and if you haven't seen it, I'll be bringing up a few SPOILERS now. But forgetting the controversy concerning the ending (which bothered me, but other things bothered me much more), I want to talk about the film itself and whether it deserves the "Best Picture" nomination.
Now anybody that follows movies will tell you that the five films nominated for Best Picture are not always the five best films of that year. Many films (especially independent ones) are often ignored by Hollywood for obvious reasons. Some years are better (or worse) than others and sometimes a film that's just not that good slips in. That's the case (at least for me) with Million Dollar Baby.
This isn't a boxing movie. I didn't believe for one minute that anything happening onscreen was in any way true to boxing. I'm no boxing authority, but what I do know about it contradicted what I saw onscreen. So if it's not a boxing movie, what is it?
It's a melodrama.
Don't get me wrong, it's pretty good as melodramas go. But the story feels manipulated, contrived and artificial. Morgan Freeman's narration reminds us way too much of The Shawshank Redemption and when at the end we learn the reason for the narration, we think, "That's just not plausible. Why would this man write this letter to a woman he'd never met? And why would she even read it?" Frankie's (Eastwood's) strained relationship with his daughter only serves one purpose: to have Freeman's character narrate the story.
Again, the boxing scenes are just too much to accept, especially Maggie's title fight. I didn't believe one bit of it, plus it was telegraphed in big, flashing letters. Maggie's family consists of stereotypical cardboard characters that just aren't convincing. A director asks his audience to believe that certain things can and would happen under certain circumstances and I didn't believe Clint this time. I just don't think this film's that good.
And I certainly don't think it is a better film than Eternal Sunshine, which is original, well acted and directed, brilliantly edited, compelling and satisfying. But I've learned over the years to never expect justice on Oscar night.
More about writing next time. I promise.
Now Playing = Mingus Ah Um – Charles Mingus
Thursday, February 17, 2005
Backstory, or Why Can't I Write It? HE Did!
I can't tell you how much I'm enjoying and learning from Damon Knight's Creating Short Fiction. What a great, practical book. But that's not what I wanted to yap about today.
I started reading a certain novel two days ago. It's by a much recognized and honored writer. This particular mainstream book, in fact, won several awards the year it came out (over ten years ago). It begins with a brief description of the setting, which is itself a character. The opening only hints at the coming conflict between characters. What follows next is our good friend Backstory.
And it goes on. And on.
And nothing happens. I mean nothing for the next three chapters, which is where I stopped.
Then I started reading Philip Roth's The Plot Against America, which also contains quite a bit of backstory. The difference between the two books is Roth's opening is so compelling (What if Charles Lindbergh became a Nazi sympathizer and beat FDR in the 1940 presidential election?) that I didn't mind the backstory. In fact while reading, I understood that Roth was using the backstory to explain to me how this intriguing premise could have legitimately come about. Maybe the first writer was going to show me how his/her characters were going to develop, but after three chapters of zero conflict and a not very engaging premise, I wasn't about to hang around any longer.
So we've got two established writers using a lot of backstory. But Roth knows how to get away with it. The first writer didn't sell the backstory as well as Roth, but he/she got away with it too (just not with me). Watch out for backstory, boys and girls, it's everywhere. When you find it, see if it's justified. See if it goes on for too long. Today's lesson is over. Happy writing.
Now Playing = B.B. King Live in Cook County Jail
I started reading a certain novel two days ago. It's by a much recognized and honored writer. This particular mainstream book, in fact, won several awards the year it came out (over ten years ago). It begins with a brief description of the setting, which is itself a character. The opening only hints at the coming conflict between characters. What follows next is our good friend Backstory.
And it goes on. And on.
And nothing happens. I mean nothing for the next three chapters, which is where I stopped.
Then I started reading Philip Roth's The Plot Against America, which also contains quite a bit of backstory. The difference between the two books is Roth's opening is so compelling (What if Charles Lindbergh became a Nazi sympathizer and beat FDR in the 1940 presidential election?) that I didn't mind the backstory. In fact while reading, I understood that Roth was using the backstory to explain to me how this intriguing premise could have legitimately come about. Maybe the first writer was going to show me how his/her characters were going to develop, but after three chapters of zero conflict and a not very engaging premise, I wasn't about to hang around any longer.
So we've got two established writers using a lot of backstory. But Roth knows how to get away with it. The first writer didn't sell the backstory as well as Roth, but he/she got away with it too (just not with me). Watch out for backstory, boys and girls, it's everywhere. When you find it, see if it's justified. See if it goes on for too long. Today's lesson is over. Happy writing.
Now Playing = B.B. King Live in Cook County Jail
Monday, February 14, 2005
Valentine's Day, Ursula K. Le Guin and Fred (Sorry, these topics have nothing in common whatsoever.)
Happy Valentine's Day, Boys and Girls,
Well, it's that time of year again - no, not Valentine's Day, but Navy Band tour, which Cindy is on for three weeks. That translates into: I've got to cook for myself, clean for myself, etc. But I get to read and write more, so I'm looking forward to three super-productive writing weeks. As long as I don't fall asleep watching American Movie Classics or something like that.
Reading some really good stuff. Read two Ursula K. Le Guin stories this weekend, "Nine Lives" (which is very good) and "The Day Before the Revolution" (which is so good it's scary). Anybody who doesn't read Le Guin should be taken out and whipped right now, this very minute! Man, the woman can write. I'm in awe.
I'm also working my way through Damon Knight's excellent book Creating Short Fiction. Knight says that the act of putting a story together involves a collaboration between the conscious mind and the unconscious mind, which he calls Fred. A lot of times when you're working on a story, you've simply got to turn it over to Fred; he's the only guy who can get it done. The only problem is Fred doesn't keep a regular schedule.
I've been working on a couple of short stories that I hope to send out in the next few weeks. One of them just won't get over a certain hump. I've told Fred to work it out; I've done all I can do with it. The answer I get? "I've got a couple of my best guys on it now." Yeah. I can just picture a couple of overweight derelicts taking a nap on top of several pages of my manuscript.
Fred will eventually come through. He's got stacks and stacks of my manuscripts in his IN box and a few paragraphs in his OUT box, but he'll get the job done. Sure, I'd like him to work faster. What can I do, fire him? Who else would work this cheap?
Happy Writing
Now Playing = The Tony Bennett/Bill Evans Album (Hey, it's Valentine's Day, alright?)
Well, it's that time of year again - no, not Valentine's Day, but Navy Band tour, which Cindy is on for three weeks. That translates into: I've got to cook for myself, clean for myself, etc. But I get to read and write more, so I'm looking forward to three super-productive writing weeks. As long as I don't fall asleep watching American Movie Classics or something like that.
Reading some really good stuff. Read two Ursula K. Le Guin stories this weekend, "Nine Lives" (which is very good) and "The Day Before the Revolution" (which is so good it's scary). Anybody who doesn't read Le Guin should be taken out and whipped right now, this very minute! Man, the woman can write. I'm in awe.
I'm also working my way through Damon Knight's excellent book Creating Short Fiction. Knight says that the act of putting a story together involves a collaboration between the conscious mind and the unconscious mind, which he calls Fred. A lot of times when you're working on a story, you've simply got to turn it over to Fred; he's the only guy who can get it done. The only problem is Fred doesn't keep a regular schedule.
I've been working on a couple of short stories that I hope to send out in the next few weeks. One of them just won't get over a certain hump. I've told Fred to work it out; I've done all I can do with it. The answer I get? "I've got a couple of my best guys on it now." Yeah. I can just picture a couple of overweight derelicts taking a nap on top of several pages of my manuscript.
Fred will eventually come through. He's got stacks and stacks of my manuscripts in his IN box and a few paragraphs in his OUT box, but he'll get the job done. Sure, I'd like him to work faster. What can I do, fire him? Who else would work this cheap?
Happy Writing
Now Playing = The Tony Bennett/Bill Evans Album (Hey, it's Valentine's Day, alright?)
Tuesday, February 08, 2005
See, I'm Not the Only One
Today I was looking at the number of stories I'd sent to markets last year compared to what I've sent out so far this year. Much fewer this year. Right now I've only got three stories floating around out there, all of them revisions of stories written at Clarion. I've been working on a new story for about a month and it's slowly taking shape. It might be ready to send out after another three to six weeks.
Now I'm looking at my goals list on my monitor. "Keep at least 5 stories in circulation and send out a new one every 2 weeks." Nope. Not gonna happen. I think I could do that, but I'd be wasting some editor's time and moving my name to the top of the "Discard Immediately" pile.
Some of my Clarion buddies are going through this same process of slowing down, which tells me I'm probably on the right track. I think the key to the whole thing is knowing your characters. In the story I’m working on now, I've been freewriting about two of my characters for the past few days. I'm learning a little more about them each day. Not all of what I'm learning will make it into the story, but it's all stuff I need to know. The more you know the character, the more he will tell you what to do. Do you ever re-read something you've written and your character says "I'd never do that. Never. Delete that, you clown. That's not me." Happens to me. (Sometimes I get called things worse than a clown, though.)
It's not just character, it's also setting, tone, pacing and about a dozen other things. The temptation is to concentrate on all of them at once, but you have to isolate problems. One thing at a time. Patience. Patience. Patience.
Now Playing = How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb – U2
Now I'm looking at my goals list on my monitor. "Keep at least 5 stories in circulation and send out a new one every 2 weeks." Nope. Not gonna happen. I think I could do that, but I'd be wasting some editor's time and moving my name to the top of the "Discard Immediately" pile.
Some of my Clarion buddies are going through this same process of slowing down, which tells me I'm probably on the right track. I think the key to the whole thing is knowing your characters. In the story I’m working on now, I've been freewriting about two of my characters for the past few days. I'm learning a little more about them each day. Not all of what I'm learning will make it into the story, but it's all stuff I need to know. The more you know the character, the more he will tell you what to do. Do you ever re-read something you've written and your character says "I'd never do that. Never. Delete that, you clown. That's not me." Happens to me. (Sometimes I get called things worse than a clown, though.)
It's not just character, it's also setting, tone, pacing and about a dozen other things. The temptation is to concentrate on all of them at once, but you have to isolate problems. One thing at a time. Patience. Patience. Patience.
Now Playing = How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb – U2
Saturday, February 05, 2005
Out of the Sick Boat
Man, I'm glad that's over. Most of it is, anyway. Cindy got sick first, then I got it. I mean I couldn't do anything. Surprisingly it didn’t hurt too badly to read, so I got some books read and watched a few movies, two of which were outstanding.
2003's House of Sand and Fog (based on the novel of the same name, which I have not read) is a modern-day tragedy with excellent performances, especially from Ben Kingsley. (Although it still chaps me that he won the Oscar for Ghandi – a part he was literally born to play - over Paul Newman in The Verdict in 1983.) I'd give the film 4.5 stars out of 5. In the last third of the film, one of the characters does something major that the viewer was not prepared for. The character wasn't prepared for it either; there was no indication that this character had any inclination to do this thing. It just didn't ring true for me, but I suppose the film couldn't have continued (or ended) without it. Sorry I can't be more specific, but I don't want to spoil the film for you. (And you should see it.)
I also saw 2004's outstanding Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. It's a crime that this film is not nominated for Best Picture. I had absolutely no idea what the film was about when I rented it, so I'll leave you in the same situation by not describing the plot. But this is an exceptional film, beautifully photographed, brilliantly constructed, well acted. Don't be surprised if you see yourself in it.
Now Playing = Medulla - Bjork
2003's House of Sand and Fog (based on the novel of the same name, which I have not read) is a modern-day tragedy with excellent performances, especially from Ben Kingsley. (Although it still chaps me that he won the Oscar for Ghandi – a part he was literally born to play - over Paul Newman in The Verdict in 1983.) I'd give the film 4.5 stars out of 5. In the last third of the film, one of the characters does something major that the viewer was not prepared for. The character wasn't prepared for it either; there was no indication that this character had any inclination to do this thing. It just didn't ring true for me, but I suppose the film couldn't have continued (or ended) without it. Sorry I can't be more specific, but I don't want to spoil the film for you. (And you should see it.)
I also saw 2004's outstanding Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. It's a crime that this film is not nominated for Best Picture. I had absolutely no idea what the film was about when I rented it, so I'll leave you in the same situation by not describing the plot. But this is an exceptional film, beautifully photographed, brilliantly constructed, well acted. Don't be surprised if you see yourself in it.
Now Playing = Medulla - Bjork
Wednesday, January 19, 2005
Another Birthday
Yesterday was my birthday - my (ouch) 43rd. But I don't feel 43, which is good. I received several nice cards/wishes/gifts from family and friends and my family & friends are giving me a party Friday night. I really have been blessed in so many ways.
As far as writing goes, a lot of things happened during the past year:
I had some articles published in a couple of local newspapers and one magazine.
I've been asked to teach a future DC Writers Way workshop.
I was accepted to Clarion (East) where I met and lived with seventeen wonderful new writers and seven established ones.
I'm still getting rejection letters from markets, but most of them include hand-written notes (some of them even saying "send more"), which is a big step forward. (Hey, at least the notes don't say "Try using verbs in your next story.")
I've established a schedule and process for reading and studying stories on a regular basis.
I know that I'm getting closer to becoming a good writer. I can see progress. My First Reader (Cindy) can see it and my writers' group P.O.E. can see it. Now it's just a matter of sticking with it and working on it everyday.
I think it was Ray Bradbury who said you've got to write about 1,000,000 words before you produce anything good. I figure I've written about half that, so if I've climbed the mountain, maybe I'm on the way down. (Or maybe I'm just halfway up the mountain and the hardest part is yet to come?)
But anyway, the journey is terrific.
Now Playing = Now Here is Nowhere - Secret Machines (birthday present - Thanks Bob and Em!)
As far as writing goes, a lot of things happened during the past year:
I had some articles published in a couple of local newspapers and one magazine.
I've been asked to teach a future DC Writers Way workshop.
I was accepted to Clarion (East) where I met and lived with seventeen wonderful new writers and seven established ones.
I'm still getting rejection letters from markets, but most of them include hand-written notes (some of them even saying "send more"), which is a big step forward. (Hey, at least the notes don't say "Try using verbs in your next story.")
I've established a schedule and process for reading and studying stories on a regular basis.
I know that I'm getting closer to becoming a good writer. I can see progress. My First Reader (Cindy) can see it and my writers' group P.O.E. can see it. Now it's just a matter of sticking with it and working on it everyday.
I think it was Ray Bradbury who said you've got to write about 1,000,000 words before you produce anything good. I figure I've written about half that, so if I've climbed the mountain, maybe I'm on the way down. (Or maybe I'm just halfway up the mountain and the hardest part is yet to come?)
But anyway, the journey is terrific.
Now Playing = Now Here is Nowhere - Secret Machines (birthday present - Thanks Bob and Em!)
Monday, January 17, 2005
The Journey
I’m convinced that the people who are most successful – writers, actors, musicians, football coaches, business people, software designers, restaurant managers, sales people - have a plan. That’s certainly no revelation, but I think sometimes we forget about planning.
I still remember what one of my mentors told me when I was a band director. “To have a great band, you only have to go through three steps: Step One – Know what a good band sounds like. Step Two – Know what your band sounds like. Step Three – Know how to get your band from Step Two to Step One.”
That’s the plan. First, find out what a good story is like. Right now I’m studying one story a week, one story that I really admire. (This week’s story is “Only Partly Here” by Lucius Shepard.) What is this writer doing in this story? How does he do it? Why does he use this tense? This point of view? What does this scene do? How does he convey information about the characters, the story, the setting? Why does he use dialogue in this scene and not this one? What does this symbol mean?
Then know what your stories are really like. If you’re getting your stories critiqued on a regular basis, you’ll start seeing patterns. Right now I know that I have too many ideas in my stories. I also sometimes don’t make pivotal story points clear enough. You’ve got to point to specifics in your stories and be able to say, “This is a problem.” (And I believe you need somebody to point them out, whether it’s a first reader, an editor or a writers’ group.)
Now the fun part. Moving from where you are to where you want to be.
I remember the first band I taught. They sounded awful and it was my fault. I asked a director friend of mine to listen to them. When the rehearsal was over, I said to him in frustration, “Everything is wrong. Nothing is right. What do I do?”
“Isolate problems,” he said. “Fix the most obvious problem first, then tackle the others one at a time. That’s it.”
When it comes down to it, he’s right. That’s exactly what you do.
And I wasn’t kidding. The journey – learning and applying what you learn - really IS the fun part! Maybe I’m weird (a given), but when I discover something about my writing I didn’t know before, and how to make it better – that’s exciting. That means I’ve taken one step closer to becoming a better writer; not necessarily a published writer, but a better one. And I can live with that.
Now Playing = Tales From Topographic Oceans - Yes
I still remember what one of my mentors told me when I was a band director. “To have a great band, you only have to go through three steps: Step One – Know what a good band sounds like. Step Two – Know what your band sounds like. Step Three – Know how to get your band from Step Two to Step One.”
That’s the plan. First, find out what a good story is like. Right now I’m studying one story a week, one story that I really admire. (This week’s story is “Only Partly Here” by Lucius Shepard.) What is this writer doing in this story? How does he do it? Why does he use this tense? This point of view? What does this scene do? How does he convey information about the characters, the story, the setting? Why does he use dialogue in this scene and not this one? What does this symbol mean?
Then know what your stories are really like. If you’re getting your stories critiqued on a regular basis, you’ll start seeing patterns. Right now I know that I have too many ideas in my stories. I also sometimes don’t make pivotal story points clear enough. You’ve got to point to specifics in your stories and be able to say, “This is a problem.” (And I believe you need somebody to point them out, whether it’s a first reader, an editor or a writers’ group.)
Now the fun part. Moving from where you are to where you want to be.
I remember the first band I taught. They sounded awful and it was my fault. I asked a director friend of mine to listen to them. When the rehearsal was over, I said to him in frustration, “Everything is wrong. Nothing is right. What do I do?”
“Isolate problems,” he said. “Fix the most obvious problem first, then tackle the others one at a time. That’s it.”
When it comes down to it, he’s right. That’s exactly what you do.
And I wasn’t kidding. The journey – learning and applying what you learn - really IS the fun part! Maybe I’m weird (a given), but when I discover something about my writing I didn’t know before, and how to make it better – that’s exciting. That means I’ve taken one step closer to becoming a better writer; not necessarily a published writer, but a better one. And I can live with that.
Now Playing = Tales From Topographic Oceans - Yes
Wednesday, January 12, 2005
Publishing Crap
It happens all the time, but it still gets under my skin.
You pick up a novel that looks somewhat interesting. It’s by an author you’ve never read, an author who has several books to his/her credit. It’s worth a shot, right? And so you start reading.
And it’s crap. I mean not just bad, but so bad you want to join the Save the Trees Foundation and picket the publishing company until the author of that pile of debris takes a vow to flip burgers from here on out.
I won’t tell you the author or the publisher, but they’ve both been around for years. I kept reading the book, hoping it would get better or at least not get any worse. I’ve only thrown one book across the room in my life and it was better than this one. I started to heave it, but thought the action would use too much precious energy. Besides, I was in the basement and I was afraid it would hit one of my bookcases, thereby infecting a great work such as The Sound and the Fury or Pride and Prejudice or one of my beloved Nero Wolfe mysteries. (My sf books are all upstairs. If anyone breaks in, they’ll have to sift through all the general fiction first, and by that time, Bullet will probably have his teeth sunk into some very painful portion of their anatomy.)
I couldn’t believe someone actually published this. So naturally, I marched up to the computer and started a new story.
Of course, it’s crap too.
But it won’t be forever. It’ll get better. I’ll figure out who the characters are, what they want, what’s at stake, who has the most to lose. I’ll let the characters speak, let the story tell itself in the way it wants to. I’ll work out the setting, the descriptions, the details. Then I’ll agonize over the language, spending time weighing one word against another, finding what I hope is the right flow.
And when I’ve gotten it as good as I can get it, I’ll send it out.
And when it comes back, I’ll do my best to heal the cuts and bruises and send it back out into the world.
All because some lousy book made me mad.
I guess that junk is good for something.
Now Playing = So Long, So Wrong – Alison Krauss and Union Station
You pick up a novel that looks somewhat interesting. It’s by an author you’ve never read, an author who has several books to his/her credit. It’s worth a shot, right? And so you start reading.
And it’s crap. I mean not just bad, but so bad you want to join the Save the Trees Foundation and picket the publishing company until the author of that pile of debris takes a vow to flip burgers from here on out.
I won’t tell you the author or the publisher, but they’ve both been around for years. I kept reading the book, hoping it would get better or at least not get any worse. I’ve only thrown one book across the room in my life and it was better than this one. I started to heave it, but thought the action would use too much precious energy. Besides, I was in the basement and I was afraid it would hit one of my bookcases, thereby infecting a great work such as The Sound and the Fury or Pride and Prejudice or one of my beloved Nero Wolfe mysteries. (My sf books are all upstairs. If anyone breaks in, they’ll have to sift through all the general fiction first, and by that time, Bullet will probably have his teeth sunk into some very painful portion of their anatomy.)
I couldn’t believe someone actually published this. So naturally, I marched up to the computer and started a new story.
Of course, it’s crap too.
But it won’t be forever. It’ll get better. I’ll figure out who the characters are, what they want, what’s at stake, who has the most to lose. I’ll let the characters speak, let the story tell itself in the way it wants to. I’ll work out the setting, the descriptions, the details. Then I’ll agonize over the language, spending time weighing one word against another, finding what I hope is the right flow.
And when I’ve gotten it as good as I can get it, I’ll send it out.
And when it comes back, I’ll do my best to heal the cuts and bruises and send it back out into the world.
All because some lousy book made me mad.
I guess that junk is good for something.
Now Playing = So Long, So Wrong – Alison Krauss and Union Station
Sunday, January 02, 2005
Job Hunting, Miss O’Connor and Writing Without Teachers
I’ve never minded working hard
It’s who I’m working for- Gillian Welch
I sent resumes out to two companies last week and inquired into a third. Two of these companies I think I could work for and one I’d love to work for. Although who you’re working for may ultimately be more important than what you’re doing, I’d love to find anything connected to writing or supporting the arts in general.
Right now I’m reading The Complete Stories of Flannery O’Connor. The woman was brilliant. There’s something about the way she combines the Southern mentality, Christianity, and finding/rediscovering your place in the world that really connects with me. I’m also reading Understanding Flannery O’Connor after each story I read. I think I’m becoming a better reader – I usually know what the author in Understanding is going to say before I read the passage about that story. Growth happens in small steps.
I’m also reading Peter Elbow’s Writing without Teachers. Elbow talks a lot about freewriting (which I already do). Don’t think, just write. When you freewrite, you allow your subconscious to flow and move, you don’t stifle it and you don’t edit. You can edit later. Too many times I’ve looked at the freewrite as a basic structure of a story that’s already in place. What I haven’t done is allow for different points of view (not character POVs, but different ideological POVs), different interpretations of what I’ve written. I haven’t allowed the element of conflict to germinate so several of my stories have seemed static and feel manipulated. Speculating. Dreaming. Exploring. I haven’t done that enough. How to fix it? Cook those differing ideas more, let them mix and blend with each other, even if it takes many drafts. Understand that you’ll revise later. Probably a lot.
My friend Marjorie has some great new stuff on her website and some great links. Check her out at http://www.marjoriemliu.com.
Now Playing = Everybody Loves a Happy Ending – Tears for Fears
It’s who I’m working for- Gillian Welch
I sent resumes out to two companies last week and inquired into a third. Two of these companies I think I could work for and one I’d love to work for. Although who you’re working for may ultimately be more important than what you’re doing, I’d love to find anything connected to writing or supporting the arts in general.
Right now I’m reading The Complete Stories of Flannery O’Connor. The woman was brilliant. There’s something about the way she combines the Southern mentality, Christianity, and finding/rediscovering your place in the world that really connects with me. I’m also reading Understanding Flannery O’Connor after each story I read. I think I’m becoming a better reader – I usually know what the author in Understanding is going to say before I read the passage about that story. Growth happens in small steps.
I’m also reading Peter Elbow’s Writing without Teachers. Elbow talks a lot about freewriting (which I already do). Don’t think, just write. When you freewrite, you allow your subconscious to flow and move, you don’t stifle it and you don’t edit. You can edit later. Too many times I’ve looked at the freewrite as a basic structure of a story that’s already in place. What I haven’t done is allow for different points of view (not character POVs, but different ideological POVs), different interpretations of what I’ve written. I haven’t allowed the element of conflict to germinate so several of my stories have seemed static and feel manipulated. Speculating. Dreaming. Exploring. I haven’t done that enough. How to fix it? Cook those differing ideas more, let them mix and blend with each other, even if it takes many drafts. Understand that you’ll revise later. Probably a lot.
My friend Marjorie has some great new stuff on her website and some great links. Check her out at http://www.marjoriemliu.com.
Now Playing = Everybody Loves a Happy Ending – Tears for Fears
Thursday, December 30, 2004
There’s Still Time… Plus – A Review of Bob Dylan’s Chronicles
Take a look at your resolutions from last year. How’d you do? I think I did okay. I exercised more and lost a total of 12 pounds. (Of course, I’ve gained two of ‘em back since Thanksgiving.) I didn’t read as many books as I did in 2003 (which was 100). This year I only read 35. But I read hundreds of short stories and studied several of them.
I did get published – just not in the way I’d expected. I had several articles printed in the Bowie Blade (our local newspaper), which was nice. I was accepted to Clarion and loved it. I learned a mind-boggling amount of stuff in those six weeks and met some of the greatest people in the world. Since Clarion, I’ve made several self-discoveries about my writing. I think I’m really close to breaking from Damon Knight’s Stage 3 to Stage 4. (See Knight’s book Creating Short Fiction. It was one of my Christmas presents. Thanks Jan and Pete!) I’m really excited about 2005.
Resolutions? Don’t really have any. (Except finding a job!) I just plan to keep reading, writing and studying. I really believe that most of my writing problems can be solved by delving deeper into the characters and letting them tell their own stories, free from my interference and manipulation.
Chronicles, Vol. I – Bob Dylan
I don’t think anybody expected writing this strong from Dylan. I certainly didn’t. Non-cryptic, sensory-filled, and fascinating, Chronicles takes the reader through three stages in Dylan’s life: his arrival in New York, life in Woodstock in the early 70’s, and the circumstances surrounding the Oh Mercy recording sessions when Dylan was at one of the lowest points of his career.
For the first time, we get a pretty clear idea of what it’s like to be Bob Dylan. You can understand why he did some of the things he did, who and what influenced him, his dreams, fears and passions. Reading Chronicles is probably as close as we’re going to get to sitting down with Dylan and having him open up. But open up he does and what he tells us is amazing. The man knows a lot about music, people, philosophy, ideas and concepts, but he didn’t always. Watching him learn these things is almost too good to be true.
Either Dylan kept very detailed journals during the last 40 years or he’s got a fantastic memory. (Or he’s just making everything up, which I doubt.) In just a few sentences, Bob had me believing I was stepping inside a New York coffee house in 1961, listening to folk singers like Dave Van Ronk and Joan Baez.
Writers would do well to read Chronicles. Dylan’s musical journey is one that no doubt has parallels with hundreds of writers, artists, sculptors, dancers – anyone in the arts. Writer’s block? He’s had it. Depression? Yep. Feeling as if everyone is more talented than he is? Uh-huh. Whatever the problem, he’s had it, he’s been there. This is an outstanding book. Don’t miss it.
Now Playing = When I Stop Dreaming: The Best of the Louvin Brothers
I did get published – just not in the way I’d expected. I had several articles printed in the Bowie Blade (our local newspaper), which was nice. I was accepted to Clarion and loved it. I learned a mind-boggling amount of stuff in those six weeks and met some of the greatest people in the world. Since Clarion, I’ve made several self-discoveries about my writing. I think I’m really close to breaking from Damon Knight’s Stage 3 to Stage 4. (See Knight’s book Creating Short Fiction. It was one of my Christmas presents. Thanks Jan and Pete!) I’m really excited about 2005.
Resolutions? Don’t really have any. (Except finding a job!) I just plan to keep reading, writing and studying. I really believe that most of my writing problems can be solved by delving deeper into the characters and letting them tell their own stories, free from my interference and manipulation.
Chronicles, Vol. I – Bob Dylan
I don’t think anybody expected writing this strong from Dylan. I certainly didn’t. Non-cryptic, sensory-filled, and fascinating, Chronicles takes the reader through three stages in Dylan’s life: his arrival in New York, life in Woodstock in the early 70’s, and the circumstances surrounding the Oh Mercy recording sessions when Dylan was at one of the lowest points of his career.
For the first time, we get a pretty clear idea of what it’s like to be Bob Dylan. You can understand why he did some of the things he did, who and what influenced him, his dreams, fears and passions. Reading Chronicles is probably as close as we’re going to get to sitting down with Dylan and having him open up. But open up he does and what he tells us is amazing. The man knows a lot about music, people, philosophy, ideas and concepts, but he didn’t always. Watching him learn these things is almost too good to be true.
Either Dylan kept very detailed journals during the last 40 years or he’s got a fantastic memory. (Or he’s just making everything up, which I doubt.) In just a few sentences, Bob had me believing I was stepping inside a New York coffee house in 1961, listening to folk singers like Dave Van Ronk and Joan Baez.
Writers would do well to read Chronicles. Dylan’s musical journey is one that no doubt has parallels with hundreds of writers, artists, sculptors, dancers – anyone in the arts. Writer’s block? He’s had it. Depression? Yep. Feeling as if everyone is more talented than he is? Uh-huh. Whatever the problem, he’s had it, he’s been there. This is an outstanding book. Don’t miss it.
Now Playing = When I Stop Dreaming: The Best of the Louvin Brothers
Monday, December 20, 2004
Jonathan Strange and Mr James
Maybe it’s because it’s the holiday season and my schedule is all out-of-whack. Maybe it’s because we’re trying to get the house ready for company and we're running in a hundred different directions. Or maybe it’s just the snow outside…
Whatever the reason, I’ve stopped reading Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell, somewhere around page 80 or so (about one-tenth of the book). Maybe I’ll pick it up again at some point. Susanna Clarke did hold my interest for about the first fifty pages. Some really interesting things happened early on, but then Clarke decided to run down too many rabbit trails that just didn’t deliver. She spends too much time on lengthy discourses that obviously:
1 - do nothing to advance the story
2 – do nothing to reveal anything about the characters
Someone might object, “Well, that’s how novels were written back then.”
I don’t think so, because the story I decided to read instead of Jonathan Strange was “The Turn of the Screw” by Henry James, which is absolutely captivating. (To put it in perspective, the beginning of Strange takes place in the early 19th century; “The Turn of the Screw” was published near the end of the same century.) Although the James story is long (novella length – about 110 pages in my edition), all of the author’s words either directly advance the plot, illuminate the characters and/or the setting. And while economy of writing may not have been the rage in the 1890’s, “The Turn of the Screw” delivers such a wonderfully creepy story with stunning, unforgettable characters that nothing else matters. The characters in “The Turn of the Screw” are fascinating and the situations James places them in are hard to turn away from. The characters in Jonathan Strange have the potential to be fascinating, but it seems that you have to wade through hundreds of pages of not-so-fascinating episodes (and footnotes) to find this out.
Maybe it’s not fair to judge a novel after only 80 pages. Well, I didn’t say I’d never pick it up again. I’m just not reading it now.
I really think 90% of any story is character. I’ve spent a lot of time lately working on the characters in my new story. I’ve written journal entries from their POVs, I’ve written what a typical day at work is like for them, and I’ve written their bios. All of it is telling me where the characters should go and what they should do. (Actually THEY are telling me.) Invaluable. Hopefully I’ll have this particular story finished before Christmas.
Hey Al, Boris, John S. – thanks for the cards!
Now Playing = Forever Changes - Love
Whatever the reason, I’ve stopped reading Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell, somewhere around page 80 or so (about one-tenth of the book). Maybe I’ll pick it up again at some point. Susanna Clarke did hold my interest for about the first fifty pages. Some really interesting things happened early on, but then Clarke decided to run down too many rabbit trails that just didn’t deliver. She spends too much time on lengthy discourses that obviously:
1 - do nothing to advance the story
2 – do nothing to reveal anything about the characters
Someone might object, “Well, that’s how novels were written back then.”
I don’t think so, because the story I decided to read instead of Jonathan Strange was “The Turn of the Screw” by Henry James, which is absolutely captivating. (To put it in perspective, the beginning of Strange takes place in the early 19th century; “The Turn of the Screw” was published near the end of the same century.) Although the James story is long (novella length – about 110 pages in my edition), all of the author’s words either directly advance the plot, illuminate the characters and/or the setting. And while economy of writing may not have been the rage in the 1890’s, “The Turn of the Screw” delivers such a wonderfully creepy story with stunning, unforgettable characters that nothing else matters. The characters in “The Turn of the Screw” are fascinating and the situations James places them in are hard to turn away from. The characters in Jonathan Strange have the potential to be fascinating, but it seems that you have to wade through hundreds of pages of not-so-fascinating episodes (and footnotes) to find this out.
Maybe it’s not fair to judge a novel after only 80 pages. Well, I didn’t say I’d never pick it up again. I’m just not reading it now.
I really think 90% of any story is character. I’ve spent a lot of time lately working on the characters in my new story. I’ve written journal entries from their POVs, I’ve written what a typical day at work is like for them, and I’ve written their bios. All of it is telling me where the characters should go and what they should do. (Actually THEY are telling me.) Invaluable. Hopefully I’ll have this particular story finished before Christmas.
Hey Al, Boris, John S. – thanks for the cards!
Now Playing = Forever Changes - Love
Wednesday, December 15, 2004
Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell
So (That's for you, John!), I've finally got this book in my hands - at least for the next three weeks, courtesy of the Odenton Library. I'd never heard of it until Kelly Link recommended it to me at Clarion. When I get home in mid-July, I find that it hasn't been published yet. No problem; I grab a few of the other titles on her "you-should-read" list and get started. And I wait for Susanna Clarke's book to come out.
Now I'd seen Clarke's name somewhere, but I couldn't remember where. Turns out she'd sold stories to a couple of Patrick Nielsen Hayden's Starlight anthologies, but I hadn't read those particular stories.
The book comes out and it's sold out everywhere. I look on Amazon and the thing's like #7 on their bestseller list. Plus it's twenty-eight bucks! (Okay, Amazon's cheaper, but by itself the book won't qualify for free shipping and this thing's bound to be a brick at 800 pages.) I think, "If it's that hot, Costco will have it." They don't.
I go to my local library and know good and well they won't have it. They'll have 25 copies of the latest James Patterson novel, but maybe two copies of Jonathan Strange. My expectations are fulfilled; the ONE copy they have is checked out.
By this time, I'm reading rave reviews in newspapers, magazines, just about everywhere. Neil Gaiman says "Unquestionably the finest English novel of the fantastic written in the last seventy years." Several reviews state that the book is "Harry Potter for Adults." (Untrue. Harry Potter is Harry Potter for adults.)
But then I start talking with people who've read it, or as much of it as they could stand. "It's boring," "It's too long," "It doesn't go anywhere," are some of the comments I hear and for the most part, the comments come from people I respect. Then at World Fantasy, Betty Ballentine (of Ballentine Books) sits on a panel and says the book is absolutely unreadable. Hmmmm.... If there was ever a "find out for yourself" moment, this was it.
By the time I get back from World Fantasy, Costco has the book for about $17, I believe. But I decide to pass on it.
And then the brand new Odenton Library opens... (And of course, I'm there on opening day. Can you imagine being the first person in a brand new library? Well, that's another post for another time...)
The book isn't on the new arrivals shelf, the "You've Gotta Read It!" table, or anywhere else. So I go schlepping around the science fiction section and there it is. On the bottom shelf, just minding it's own business, exchanging pleasantries with Arthur C. Clarke's Rendevous with Rama. I look furtively in both directions, nab the book, and make a clean getaway.
Then the moment of truth. I start reading...
The book takes place in 1806 England. A member of the York society of magicians laments the fact that no one is practicing magic in England. But one of the members had heard of a Mr (It's a British book, so you don't DARE place a period after Mr, so we were severely warned by a panelist at World Fantasy.) Norrell, a practicing magician who just might possess the ability to restore magic to England.
Okay, so I just started last night and I'm only 30 pages into it. But here's what I think so far:
I expected the language to be more Dickens-like, more 19th-century. But it reads easily enough, almost like any modern British novel, with a few antiquated words and phrases thrown in.
The storyline/plot is very linear. A few clues of things to come have been placed in plain sight. Norrell is by far the most interesting character (There's a hint that one of the minor characters may become very important later, but it's too soon to tell.) , but not so interesting that I have to stop watching Pardon the Interruption to find out what he's going to do next. I'm interested, but not ravenously interested.
Actually, I'm a little surprised at how fast things are happening. Clarke could really have drawn this opening out much, much more. (I wonder how many pages her original draft was?) For a period novel, it moves pretty quickly.
I've heard that the glut of footnotes in the book are distracting for some readers. Not for me. I skip 'em. I figure if it's not important enough to be in the body of the text, why should I read it?
So will I keep reading? Yes. Will I finish it before I have to turn it in to the library? Are you kidding? Not a chance. It's on my Amazon wishlist, so maybe I'll get it for Christmas. If not, well, I'm sure I won't have to wait too long for Jonathan Strange & Mr. (American version) Norrell, starring George Clooney and Ben Afleck. Geez, what's the world coming to?
Now Playing = The Legendary Small Groups - Benny Goodman
Now I'd seen Clarke's name somewhere, but I couldn't remember where. Turns out she'd sold stories to a couple of Patrick Nielsen Hayden's Starlight anthologies, but I hadn't read those particular stories.
The book comes out and it's sold out everywhere. I look on Amazon and the thing's like #7 on their bestseller list. Plus it's twenty-eight bucks! (Okay, Amazon's cheaper, but by itself the book won't qualify for free shipping and this thing's bound to be a brick at 800 pages.) I think, "If it's that hot, Costco will have it." They don't.
I go to my local library and know good and well they won't have it. They'll have 25 copies of the latest James Patterson novel, but maybe two copies of Jonathan Strange. My expectations are fulfilled; the ONE copy they have is checked out.
By this time, I'm reading rave reviews in newspapers, magazines, just about everywhere. Neil Gaiman says "Unquestionably the finest English novel of the fantastic written in the last seventy years." Several reviews state that the book is "Harry Potter for Adults." (Untrue. Harry Potter is Harry Potter for adults.)
But then I start talking with people who've read it, or as much of it as they could stand. "It's boring," "It's too long," "It doesn't go anywhere," are some of the comments I hear and for the most part, the comments come from people I respect. Then at World Fantasy, Betty Ballentine (of Ballentine Books) sits on a panel and says the book is absolutely unreadable. Hmmmm.... If there was ever a "find out for yourself" moment, this was it.
By the time I get back from World Fantasy, Costco has the book for about $17, I believe. But I decide to pass on it.
And then the brand new Odenton Library opens... (And of course, I'm there on opening day. Can you imagine being the first person in a brand new library? Well, that's another post for another time...)
The book isn't on the new arrivals shelf, the "You've Gotta Read It!" table, or anywhere else. So I go schlepping around the science fiction section and there it is. On the bottom shelf, just minding it's own business, exchanging pleasantries with Arthur C. Clarke's Rendevous with Rama. I look furtively in both directions, nab the book, and make a clean getaway.
Then the moment of truth. I start reading...
The book takes place in 1806 England. A member of the York society of magicians laments the fact that no one is practicing magic in England. But one of the members had heard of a Mr (It's a British book, so you don't DARE place a period after Mr, so we were severely warned by a panelist at World Fantasy.) Norrell, a practicing magician who just might possess the ability to restore magic to England.
Okay, so I just started last night and I'm only 30 pages into it. But here's what I think so far:
I expected the language to be more Dickens-like, more 19th-century. But it reads easily enough, almost like any modern British novel, with a few antiquated words and phrases thrown in.
The storyline/plot is very linear. A few clues of things to come have been placed in plain sight. Norrell is by far the most interesting character (There's a hint that one of the minor characters may become very important later, but it's too soon to tell.) , but not so interesting that I have to stop watching Pardon the Interruption to find out what he's going to do next. I'm interested, but not ravenously interested.
Actually, I'm a little surprised at how fast things are happening. Clarke could really have drawn this opening out much, much more. (I wonder how many pages her original draft was?) For a period novel, it moves pretty quickly.
I've heard that the glut of footnotes in the book are distracting for some readers. Not for me. I skip 'em. I figure if it's not important enough to be in the body of the text, why should I read it?
So will I keep reading? Yes. Will I finish it before I have to turn it in to the library? Are you kidding? Not a chance. It's on my Amazon wishlist, so maybe I'll get it for Christmas. If not, well, I'm sure I won't have to wait too long for Jonathan Strange & Mr. (American version) Norrell, starring George Clooney and Ben Afleck. Geez, what's the world coming to?
Now Playing = The Legendary Small Groups - Benny Goodman
Tuesday, December 14, 2004
Rejection and Acceptance
The bad news is I didn’t place in the contest I entered, but the good news is I’m sending the story to the next place on my list of markets. (Keep that sucker going until it lands somewhere or dies.) Congrats to my Clarion buddy Dr. Phil (not THAT Dr. Phil) who received a Laudable Mention from the contest.
Speaking of congrats, two of my other Clarion buddies have big news:
Marjorie’s first book, Tiger’s Eye will be released in March. For more info, check out her website: http://www.marjoriemliu.com.
Peter has launched a new e-zine called Shadows of Saturn that looks great. Send him your dark speculative stories. I plan to. http://shadowsofsaturn.com/static/guidelines.html
On the acceptance side, I’ve been asked to lead a writing workshop next month in DC. I’m very excited about that and can’t wait to get started.
Now to do some more Christmas shopping…
Now Playing = Imaginary Day – Pat Metheny
Speaking of congrats, two of my other Clarion buddies have big news:
Marjorie’s first book, Tiger’s Eye will be released in March. For more info, check out her website: http://www.marjoriemliu.com.
Peter has launched a new e-zine called Shadows of Saturn that looks great. Send him your dark speculative stories. I plan to. http://shadowsofsaturn.com/static/guidelines.html
On the acceptance side, I’ve been asked to lead a writing workshop next month in DC. I’m very excited about that and can’t wait to get started.
Now to do some more Christmas shopping…
Now Playing = Imaginary Day – Pat Metheny
Monday, December 13, 2004
Birds, Monsters, Texans, and Other Strange Creatures
Every writer reading this (both of you) should log off, drop everything and buy a copy of Anne Lamont's "Bird by Bird," a great book that offers some of the best writing advice I've ever read. It really puts writing (especially the quest for publication) in perspective.
Don't ask me why, but for some reason I felt compelled to read Heaney's translation of Beowulf and Stephen Mitchell's new translation of Gilgamesh, both great works that I will definitely read again. Gilgamesh was a little harder to get into, but after finishing it, it's the book I want to revisit first. It seems to have more beneath the surface (not that Beowulf doesn't) that intrigues me. But now I'm jumping ahead just a few years with Neil Gaiman's "Coraline," a really creepy children's book.
My Texas-football-fans-meet-weird-guy-in-the-median story is going slowly, but the pieces are locking in nicely. Stories have to come in their own time and I know that in the past I've been rushing them. In the last few days I've found a patience and calm that allows me to take my time, step back and look at not just writing, but everything. Things are happening and I'm learning about writing and living. I know, it sounds like I've been meditating on a mountain in Tibet, but I'm very pleased with how things are unfolding.
A new, serious temptation has appeared: The opening of the new (two-story) Odenton library mere miles from my house. (What kind of life do you have when you get this excited about a library opening?)
Mood = Good, in spite of the pathetic play of the Dallas Cowboys yesterday.
Now Playing = Don't Shoot Me, I'm Only the Piano Player - Elton John (courtesy of the Odenton Library)
Weight = 170!
Don't ask me why, but for some reason I felt compelled to read Heaney's translation of Beowulf and Stephen Mitchell's new translation of Gilgamesh, both great works that I will definitely read again. Gilgamesh was a little harder to get into, but after finishing it, it's the book I want to revisit first. It seems to have more beneath the surface (not that Beowulf doesn't) that intrigues me. But now I'm jumping ahead just a few years with Neil Gaiman's "Coraline," a really creepy children's book.
My Texas-football-fans-meet-weird-guy-in-the-median story is going slowly, but the pieces are locking in nicely. Stories have to come in their own time and I know that in the past I've been rushing them. In the last few days I've found a patience and calm that allows me to take my time, step back and look at not just writing, but everything. Things are happening and I'm learning about writing and living. I know, it sounds like I've been meditating on a mountain in Tibet, but I'm very pleased with how things are unfolding.
A new, serious temptation has appeared: The opening of the new (two-story) Odenton library mere miles from my house. (What kind of life do you have when you get this excited about a library opening?)
Mood = Good, in spite of the pathetic play of the Dallas Cowboys yesterday.
Now Playing = Don't Shoot Me, I'm Only the Piano Player - Elton John (courtesy of the Odenton Library)
Weight = 170!
Tuesday, November 30, 2004
Getting Better
Things are going better. 1400 words this morning on a new story. It’s a story about sports, money, and doing the right thing, but not at all in the way you might think. I feel good about it so far. When I know where it’s going, I’ll feel better.
I’ve spent a lot of time taking apart and studying John Cheever’s “The Enormous Radio.” I’m beginning to understand how good stories are put together and also beginning to see where my stories start going wrong. When I was a band director, one of the fundamental concepts I tried to teach my students was knowing what to do and when to do it.
As a writer, I’m learning more about what to do (and consequently, what not to do) in my stories. What is essential to the story, what has to be there? What character elements, what parts of the plot, what aspects of the setting, the weather, the tone, etc. are critical? What should be left out?
The next step is when (and where) to place those elements…the correct order, pacing, rhythm, tempo. Everything has to be in order.
My poet friend Liz and I have talked many times about how all the arts share common elements. I think there’s something to this. I can’t imagine putting together a piece of music without knowing what to do and when to do it. When I reach that same level in my writing, I’ll be on my way to putting together some good stuff.
Now Playing = “Four Sticks” – Led Zeppelin
I’ve spent a lot of time taking apart and studying John Cheever’s “The Enormous Radio.” I’m beginning to understand how good stories are put together and also beginning to see where my stories start going wrong. When I was a band director, one of the fundamental concepts I tried to teach my students was knowing what to do and when to do it.
As a writer, I’m learning more about what to do (and consequently, what not to do) in my stories. What is essential to the story, what has to be there? What character elements, what parts of the plot, what aspects of the setting, the weather, the tone, etc. are critical? What should be left out?
The next step is when (and where) to place those elements…the correct order, pacing, rhythm, tempo. Everything has to be in order.
My poet friend Liz and I have talked many times about how all the arts share common elements. I think there’s something to this. I can’t imagine putting together a piece of music without knowing what to do and when to do it. When I reach that same level in my writing, I’ll be on my way to putting together some good stuff.
Now Playing = “Four Sticks” – Led Zeppelin
Sunday, November 28, 2004
Hard Lessons
For several days I haven't been able to write anything that I'm satisfied with. No good ideas. Nothing.
What to do? Not sure. For some reason - and this has never happened before - everything seems completely overwhelming. Even putting a good sentence together is next to impossible.
Why? Don't know.
Wish I did.
What to do? Not sure. For some reason - and this has never happened before - everything seems completely overwhelming. Even putting a good sentence together is next to impossible.
Why? Don't know.
Wish I did.
Tuesday, November 23, 2004
The Writing Life
"The beginning of knowledge is the discovery of something we do not understand."
- Frank Herbert
- Frank Herbert
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