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Category Archives: Thoughts on Writing

Free at Last!

29 Sep

“Ha, ha! I’m free at last, free at last!!!”

Free at Last!!

Free at Last!!\

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“Finally! That wretched creature you call the Domestic CEO released me from my plastic coffin. Stuffed in there with effigies of witches, pumpkins and candy corn, I’ve been in mass graves with fewer occupants. I thought I was your writing partner? Huh? Wasn’t that what we agreed to?”

“Uh…yes it was but, I didn’t realize she packed you away until it was too late to come find you. Besides, I knew you’d make an appearance about this time.”

“Some friend you are! Hey, you’ve been busy. The stories coming along and I like the twist…”

“Hush, Nabob! don’t give it away.”

“Okay, okay. But look at that section in the beginning with the entire cast. Now that really needs some work. What were you thinking?”

“Well, I was trying to keep the story moving forward and kind of glossed over it. I knew I’d come back and fix it later.”

“It’s time to get it done, Writer.”

“Not quite yet, Nabob. I still need to finish the last three scenes.”

“Oh yeah. Shitty first draft and all that, right?”

“Right.”

So, Writer, where are you at?”

“I’m in the middle of the big fight scene where Derek and Amy are …”

“Good to be back, Writer.”

“Good to have you back, Nabob.”

 

 
2 Comments

Posted by on September 29, 2014 in Journey into Fantasy, Other Strangeness

 

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Imaginary Friends

17 Jul
Apprentice meets his mentor

Writer meets his not so imaginary friend!

I saw a quote the other day that I thought was worth passing along.

“Writer’s block is a condition that happens when your imaginary friends stop talking to you.”

Talk about a sad, lonely experience! What would you have to do to your imaginary friends for them to abandon you?

Seriously though, the Muse can be a “fickle bitch”. One minute he can be hammering at your brain keeping you awake until you get up and scribble a few lines to pacify him. The next minute she gives you the cold shoulder, slams the door, and leaves you with a sink full of dirty dishes, a lawn that needs mowing, a stack of bills to pay, and no story ideas.

At times when my current imaginary friends abandon me, I have a trick to get them back.

Wait for it.

Here is comes.

I create new imaginary friends. 🙂 That’s the great thing about imaginary friends, you can create as many as you want.  Sometimes they get me thinking about another project. I have to be careful with this as it can lead me away from my current project so far that I never do finish it.

Other times I consider adding an additional character. The character usually gets scrapped later but it keeps the creative juices flowing. Once in a while the new character gets to stay as it fills a before overlooked need in my story. Whichever method I use, before too long, my imaginary friends get jealous and come back to me. We start working together and the story takes off.

Before you call the men in white coats to come and take me away, listen to the voices in your own head. They are probably telling you to sit down and write something. Listen to them. You’ll be better off if you do.

 
6 Comments

Posted by on July 17, 2014 in Thoughts on Writing

 

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The Gift

09 Jul

Gravatar 1

I recently finished the second part of my summer vacation. A recount of the first 9 days can be viewed here. The second half consisted of various family members visiting the cabin at varying times. The first to visit was my father. The domestic CEO had taken the day off and prepped the cabin for our arrival. Furniture was moved to make it easier for dad to maneuver his walker. little did I know the gift that he would give me over the three days of his visit. Those of you with aging parents and grandparents, pay attention.

At the tender age of 91, dad took the long car ride quite well. I know this because he started talking before we got in the car Friday morning and hardly took a breath until we arrived at the cabin four hours later. This is the same man who said a total of six words to me during a thirteen hour trip we took to Arkansas when I was about twenty. Sure I heard some stories and a few jokes that I’d heard before, but I also heard stories that I have wanted to hear for most of my life.

Over the next two and a half days, dad talked more than I can ever remember him talking. At one point the Domestic CEO was watching a favorite television show. Dad and I were discussing the finer points of testing outboard marine engines. Dad went so far as to try to bring the CEO into the conversation. The CEO finally turned and gave me a look. Bless her heart she didn’t say anything, but the look said it all. “Would you two just shut up until my show is over?” I smiled warmly at her and went back to the conversation. The weather outside was cold and rainy, and the cabin is just not very big. The CEO survived and made us a great supper.

I mentioned a few special stories that I always wanted to hear about. Two dealt with dad’s experiences during World War II. The events that led to his being recommended for two Bronze Star Medals. I had done some research and read the commanding officer’s recommendations so I had some idea of what to expect. But…there is something about hearing the first-hand account that makes the hair on the back of your neck stand straight up. I also, got him to talk about his father whom I knew as a child but really didn’t know his background.

I’ve had several opportunities over the past seven years to sit down and have these type conversations with dad. They are all some of my most cherished moments. I have seen first hand how our society files the elderly away into institutions and choose to ignore them. The knowledge base and wisdom from experience that is left to fade away would fill up a super computer. It’s a shame really.

I know that I am lucky that dad is still very sharp mentally and I intend to spend as much time as I can listening to his stories. How can you not love hearing about history from someone who was there?

 

 
12 Comments

Posted by on July 9, 2014 in Thoughts on Writing

 

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Back Stories

17 Apr

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A few weeks ago I read a post that really caught my imagination. It was Matt Wright’s post on Tolkien’s published appendices. The question that came to mind is how can the volumes of back story that we create for each character, plot, location, and obstacle be used other than to help write the story? A sizable portion of Tolkien’s world and back stories were published after his main books and were gobbled up enthusiastically by his fans. As Matt points out, the e-book industry is perfect for this type of follow-up publication and many of the author’s I follow have used it to good effect.

I got my start writing by creating back stories for my friend’s RPG characters. So, generating back story is something that I spend a fair amount of time thinking about. I found that creating a character study using free-writing is not only is fun, but it produces characters with interesting and unforeseen motivations, likes and dislikes. Back story written as short-shorts or even a short story can be a nice change of pace from your main WIP. Also, it can help a writer through a plot or character block.

So, this ‘extra’ writing  brings up a few questions, “Can back story be used to promote a book that has yet to be published? Can it be used to help create an audience for an upcoming book release? Can it be used for story promotion without damaging the story to come? If written with the intent to promote a longer upcoming piece, what is the best vehicle to introduce it to potential new readers? Would posting it on a blog provide as much exposure as e-publication? If the back story is a short-short, does it even make sense to try to e-publish it?

Honestly I’m split on this topic. Whereas, introducing readers to a short piece to lure them in may sound like a good idea, it would have to be written so that the writer did not give away too much of the character for the main story to follow. Also, short pieces are harder to write from a world-building/explanation stand point. The writer has less room for exposition.

The flip side is that a short piece might be enough candy to lure the reader into a relationship with your characters. The writer needs to be aware that new fans won’t wait very long for the longer piece to be released. So, unless the goal is to release numerous shorts before the main book is released, timing of the back story release would be critical.

What do you think? Do you have back stories you could use to promote your WIP? Would you ever publish back story to promote your WIP or do you think it best to wait and see if the WIP is well received?

 
8 Comments

Posted by on April 17, 2014 in Thoughts on Writing

 

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Once upon a time…

13 Mar
Once upon a time... Public domain image

Once upon a time…                                   Public domain image

If you have ever read folk tales, fairy tales, or fantasy stories of any kind, you have heard the words, “Once upon a time…” The purpose of the fantasy writer, and any writer for that matter is to transport the reader to another time and place. Can you think of four words that do a better job of opening the reader’s mind? The essence of this opening evokes the reader’s mind to journey to a land far away and usually a long time ago. The ‘Once” would indicate that the story only occurred one time. And, since most end with, “They lived happily ever after.” it would seem that the conflict that created the story was gone forever.

For the folk tales and fairy tales of old, This was a great way to open the story. Any time we heard that phrase we were prepared, and still are prepared to be transported to something special. We have talked about opening lines before and how important they are. However, the fantasy genre has evolved and expanded. Paranormal and horror have melded with fantasy. Vampires and werewolves have taken over for elves, halflings, and dwarves.

Urban fantasy has exploded. Every major city and more than a few minor ones have been converted into the hunting grounds for the above mentioned vampires and Lycans, as well as, zombies, wizards, demons, druids, fae, dragons, and yes, even elves. Writing about fantasy in the current modern world created some interesting challenges for writers. How to invoke that sense of wonder and departure from reality in a way the reader would believe.  

Take Jim Butcher’s epic urban fantasy series, The Dresden Files. In the first book Butcher uses the entire first page to introduce The main character. The new mailman can’t believe the sign outside Harry Dresden’s office. It says, ‘Harry Dresden, Wizard’. You see Harry is the only practicing wizard in the Chicago phone book. Butcher puts it in your face on the first page and you either accept it or not. but from that point on you know you are reading a fantasy story set in contemporary Chicago, Illinois.

Where Butcher uses a page, others still try it with one sentence. For example, let’s take the opening line from Kevin Hearne’s Iron Druid Chronicles, “There are many perks to living for twenty-one centuries, and foremost among them is bearing witness to the rare birth of genius.” Okay. We will be dealing with a person who was alive and fought with Genghis Khan. You think this is a fantasy story? And even though I am not a fan of vampire stories, this opening line to Jaye Wells’ “Red-headed Stepchild” had me for the duration of the series. “Digging graves is hell on a manicure, but I was taught good vampires clean up after every meal.” This vampire does NOT sparkle! But, she does have a great sense of humor.

So, what can we do to urbanize the classic opening, “Once upon a time…?” Granted it’s not as flashy but what about…

“Right now, in a city near you.”

 
11 Comments

Posted by on March 13, 2014 in Journey into Fantasy

 

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Work In Progress

07 Jan

WIPI’ve been reading a lot of blog posts about resolutions and goals for 2014. There are a lot of very ambitious goals out there. I hope everyone accomplishes what they set out to do. For me, I created an action plan. Because, that’s what I do. I’m a contingency planner. My goal(s) are simple.

Goal Number 1: Complete the SFD of current WIP.

Goal Number 2: Refer to Goal Number 1

Goal Number 3: When Goal Number 1 tasks are completed, Catch up on other writing.

There are a variety of tasks that go with these goals which I will not go into here. However, if for some reason, you don’t see a post from me for a while, it’s probably because I’m working on Goal Number 1. If you don’t see steady progress on my WIP meter (See right widget), you have my permission to give me a swift kick in the behind.

Speaking of WIP. How do you feel about writers posting excerpts of their WIPs on their blogs? I can see posting snippets from a published work to entice readers to purchase the whole story. However, WIP by definition is unfinished. What is the purpose of posting part of a ‘shitty first draft’ or even a revised piece?

Now some of you that follow this blog will remember that about this time last year I posted a handful of flash fiction pieces. They have since been revised to form the beginning of my current WIP. However, at the time, they were simply an experiment. My decision to turn them into a larger work has made me reconsider whether or not posting any of the story was a good idea.Would doing so jeopardize any chance of having the piece published traditionally? I don’t know.

Personally, I do read some excerpts, if they are short. I’m always looking for new reads and it gives me a barometer as to what other writers are doing. It has also exposed me to other genres that I might not otherwise have given a second look. For example: My blogging friend Jade, from Jade’s Jungle, has been pestering me to read some romance novels. Even though I read an excerpt from one of her books, I have been somewhat resistant. However, a while back, I won a copy of a romance novel “High” by Corey MP that has finally made its way to the top of my reading rotation.

But, getting back to the question at hand. Is it a good practice to post part of your WIP? There have been books written as a series of blogs and even as a series of tweets! There are books out there that explain the correct way to ‘blog your book’.  Perhaps the issues around doing this are a figment of my imagination. Weigh in on this please. I’d like to know how you feel about it.

Very Important NOTE!  My friend, Jade has started a new blog, Autism’s Child, relating to her family coping with a severely disabled child. Jade writes from her heart so, I believe it will be a very interesting, informational, spiritual, moving and emotional ride. I’m sure those of you who have developmentally disabled children will find it cathartic. I urge all of you who follow me to take a look at it whether you have children or not.

 
20 Comments

Posted by on January 7, 2014 in Thoughts on Writing

 

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100th Post

09 Oct

100th

 

 

 

 

Well, it’s been a little less than two years since I started this blog and today I’m writing my 100th post. I never would have thought that this blog would be as much fun nor become such a big part of my writing world.

I have shared a little of who I am, a little of what I know, and even some of my rough drafts. Hell, I even wrote and shared a freaking poem! I hope you have enjoyed my ramblings as much as I’ve enjoyed reading yours.

I have learned a great deal from all of you. Whether you believe it or not, I am a better writer because I hang out with you. Now that is a scary thought! You never cease to entertain me and always look forward to reading your posts and your comments.

Oops, hold on. Mmmm. Dove chocolate and caramel. As a beautiful redhead once said, all life experiences are improved with chocolate. But I digress.

Back to business. I want to give you a heads up as to what you will see here going forward. First we are T minus 45 days to the MAVEN launch. For those of you who are wondering what a MAVEN is, you will need to stay tuned because it is not a book. I will be cranking up a few posts prior to the launch date and beyond. Also, I will continue to post  on topics that were discussed at panels from the 2013 4th Street Fantasy Conference. My usual odd thoughts and musings will be interspersed with odd writing bits and maybe an excerpt from my WIP. An article or two on archery (my third love) and a few vignettes will keep things interesting.

Thank you. Now get back to writing! 🙂

 
19 Comments

Posted by on October 9, 2013 in MAVEN, Musings and Odd Thoughts, Thoughts on Writing

 

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