Not sure if this is actually part three or part twenty-two. No matter.
I'm pleased to announce Some Insights. No, not mine -- those of my masterful-writer with crit-partner, Janny. She's found out that she cannot have "The Box" in her head when she's writing. That she must write like she wants to, the stories she wants to tell.
Now, this is a writer with a superb sense of "story." She is always asking her characters: "Why?" And she insists I take my work to a higher level by asking my characters "Why?" also.
Here's the reason. You sit down and begin to write (at least, you do if you're a seat-of-the-pants writer, like I am) and a character pops up and begins to form in your mind. Sometimes, if the Muse is smiling on you (mine usually doesn't -- that's why I call her Sulky Brat), your character will pop up full-formed and deliciously realized, like Athena springing from the forehead of Zeus. At other times, you only get a glimmer of who your character is. This demands you drill deeper.
Let's say your character is a woman with commitment issues. You peel off a layer and find out she has commitment issues because (1) her dog died; (2) her father abandoned the family when she was small; (3) the last guy she dated treated her like youdon'twannaknowwhat.
Okay -- why? Why do these things cause her to distrust going with someone long-term? How did they affect her? You don't know that just by discerning the basis of her issue. You have to ask why, not once but many times, to get the right depth and make her "live" in your reader's mind as a character.
Janny's great at this -- when she lets herself tell the story she wants to tell and doesn't hem herself in by thinking, "Must color inside the lines...must color inside the lines."
No. Take risks. Get dirty. Dare to tell the story you want to tell, give your characters the lives and personalities they must have, let your voice be heard clearly. Worry about the market later.
Showing posts with label writing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label writing. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Friday, March 27, 2009
The Way Things Are, or, Earning the Right to Be Heard
This is going to be a long post, longer than some, but I hope all three of you will bear with me. It'll be worth it, I hope.
Recently I visited a writer's blog. No names...I'd heard from this writer on a different blog some time ago. I read a current post or two, which seemed to contain writing advice. Some of it seemed, well, a bit hinky, some not well phrased, some rather authoritative about the small press world.
Hmm, thought I, better go & check who publishes this writer.
Turns out: no publisher as yet. She is totally self-published.
When I was a kid, we talked a lot about our Christian witness. About how it wasn't enough to stand on a street corner and yell about Jesus. We might want to grab someone by the lapel, shake them, and screech, "You need to hear about this wonderful Lord I serve!"
We agreed that wasn't the way. No--instead, we had to earn the right. We needed to bear witness AFTER we had established our good faith, with/to folks we knew. There should be some mutual trust. Mind you--handing out tracts on streetcorners is great in its place. But a deeper witness should result in a life-change for our hearer, and before this happens, we should earn the right to speak.
This author, IMO, has not yet earned that right. Before you tell me about The Way Things Are, particularly in a marketplace I've learned so much about in recent years, particularly in a small press world where I have sold books and you have not...
You get the drift. I won't be visiting her blog again. Your mileage, of course, may vary, but to me she has not earned me as an auditor.
Thoughts?
Recently I visited a writer's blog. No names...I'd heard from this writer on a different blog some time ago. I read a current post or two, which seemed to contain writing advice. Some of it seemed, well, a bit hinky, some not well phrased, some rather authoritative about the small press world.
Hmm, thought I, better go & check who publishes this writer.
Turns out: no publisher as yet. She is totally self-published.
When I was a kid, we talked a lot about our Christian witness. About how it wasn't enough to stand on a street corner and yell about Jesus. We might want to grab someone by the lapel, shake them, and screech, "You need to hear about this wonderful Lord I serve!"
We agreed that wasn't the way. No--instead, we had to earn the right. We needed to bear witness AFTER we had established our good faith, with/to folks we knew. There should be some mutual trust. Mind you--handing out tracts on streetcorners is great in its place. But a deeper witness should result in a life-change for our hearer, and before this happens, we should earn the right to speak.
This author, IMO, has not yet earned that right. Before you tell me about The Way Things Are, particularly in a marketplace I've learned so much about in recent years, particularly in a small press world where I have sold books and you have not...
You get the drift. I won't be visiting her blog again. Your mileage, of course, may vary, but to me she has not earned me as an auditor.
Thoughts?
Saturday, September 15, 2007
Fiction as Fiction
A dear & faithful friend turned me on to this article. Run, do not walk, to see what this Brit author has to say about why we write, how we write, and why mediocre is just not good enough.
Since I can't seem to get the tag to work, google The Book of Morden. He gave a talk in 2005 about this very topic.
He makes the point quite concisely, that if we accept artificial limts on what Christian fiction can address, we might be doomed to fail before typing "Chapter One." Must we also preach the Gospel? Should we? And how does the agenda limit our ability to tell the story?
I can identify with what he says. I have been told "can't" in CBA fiction far more often than I've been told "can."
There is a huge presumption in CBA, which I am attempting to test, that readers go into bookstores and complain about being offended by this book or that book. Who does this? How often? Over what books? If this paradigm exists, those who cite it should be called to account. Where are the stats?
Being told we "can't" write about certain people, in certain ways, strikes me as wrong-headed and short-sighted. Does not Jesus know there is still a vast unredeemed world out there? Is He blind to their ways and habits? Yet our fiction must show our unsaved characters acting exactly like the Christians. What, then, is the point of writing of their redemption?
The article has helped me firm up my ideas for SEASONS IN THE MIST. I have decided to take my own advice and just tell the story. If it's "not Christian enough," whatever that means, too bad. If it doesn't preach the Gospel, too bad. I have a story to tell that will examine some basics in how worldviews change and hopefully improve over time, and how they stay the same, try as we might to climb some cosmic progressive ladder. Oh, sure, there's not slavery anymore, and we don't tie peasants to the land, but human nature doesn't change much in seven centuries. We're still sinful, still stubborn and hard-nosed and wrong-headed.
Even in the CBA when it attempts to limit a Christian's ability to examine anything and everything in fiction.
That's my take at this time, anyway.
Since I can't seem to get the tag to work, google The Book of Morden. He gave a talk in 2005 about this very topic.
He makes the point quite concisely, that if we accept artificial limts on what Christian fiction can address, we might be doomed to fail before typing "Chapter One." Must we also preach the Gospel? Should we? And how does the agenda limit our ability to tell the story?
I can identify with what he says. I have been told "can't" in CBA fiction far more often than I've been told "can."
There is a huge presumption in CBA, which I am attempting to test, that readers go into bookstores and complain about being offended by this book or that book. Who does this? How often? Over what books? If this paradigm exists, those who cite it should be called to account. Where are the stats?
Being told we "can't" write about certain people, in certain ways, strikes me as wrong-headed and short-sighted. Does not Jesus know there is still a vast unredeemed world out there? Is He blind to their ways and habits? Yet our fiction must show our unsaved characters acting exactly like the Christians. What, then, is the point of writing of their redemption?
The article has helped me firm up my ideas for SEASONS IN THE MIST. I have decided to take my own advice and just tell the story. If it's "not Christian enough," whatever that means, too bad. If it doesn't preach the Gospel, too bad. I have a story to tell that will examine some basics in how worldviews change and hopefully improve over time, and how they stay the same, try as we might to climb some cosmic progressive ladder. Oh, sure, there's not slavery anymore, and we don't tie peasants to the land, but human nature doesn't change much in seven centuries. We're still sinful, still stubborn and hard-nosed and wrong-headed.
Even in the CBA when it attempts to limit a Christian's ability to examine anything and everything in fiction.
That's my take at this time, anyway.
Sunday, August 05, 2007
Productivity
Maybe I shouldn't try for serious, large-volume writing output in the summer. There's always some fun activity, or must-do, to distract me.
That said, the time travel story is perking right along. I still "know" this story and there's still fun in writing it. I haven't had this kind of hoot writing away since ANGEL WITH A RAY GUN. That was one fun book to write, I'll tell ya.
There is early interest in my WIP from a small press. I have very mixed feelings about this fact. I'd like SEASONS IN THE MIST to be my breakout book from the small press world. It's been 5 years since I sold my first novel to a small press, and believe me, it's been a learning experience primarily and a success only if you use the term very, VERY loosely.
So my solution is to ignore the whole "where will I sell this?" conundrum for now, and simply write away on SEASONS. Like Scarlett, I'll worry about that tomorrow.
In other small press news, my construction manager love story, MY SILENT HEART, has been picked up by ByGrace Publishing for autumn '07 (I think) release. I'm so tickled that this story will see daylight, since it's always been the book I thought would sell first. My mistake!
That said, the time travel story is perking right along. I still "know" this story and there's still fun in writing it. I haven't had this kind of hoot writing away since ANGEL WITH A RAY GUN. That was one fun book to write, I'll tell ya.
There is early interest in my WIP from a small press. I have very mixed feelings about this fact. I'd like SEASONS IN THE MIST to be my breakout book from the small press world. It's been 5 years since I sold my first novel to a small press, and believe me, it's been a learning experience primarily and a success only if you use the term very, VERY loosely.
So my solution is to ignore the whole "where will I sell this?" conundrum for now, and simply write away on SEASONS. Like Scarlett, I'll worry about that tomorrow.
In other small press news, my construction manager love story, MY SILENT HEART, has been picked up by ByGrace Publishing for autumn '07 (I think) release. I'm so tickled that this story will see daylight, since it's always been the book I thought would sell first. My mistake!
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
The Plan and the Challenge
Good interchange of ideas this week with my dear crit partner. Now this woman is one Horking Fine Writer, but that said--we write differently.
She outlines, plans, plots, and generally knows where she's headed with a story before she types "Chapter 1."
I, on the other hand, get the germ of an idea and charge off into Literary Glory with my pants around my ankles.
Both approaches are good. Both are right. Both lead to their own unique speed bumps and detours.
A case in point: my "Huh?" romance (thus named because it's a Christian medieval time-travel romance) is going along swimmingly, but that's not because I planned it to. It's because it is. Years ago I wrote this story and now I'm writing it a second time (from scratch) with a very different briefcase of skills to write it with (and yes, I know I ended with a preposition). It's probably the easiest thing I've ever written; it's virtually writing itself.
Why? Because it's a Horking Good Story, that's why--oh, never mind. Perhaps it's going well because I'm using the previously written version as an OUTLINE? Because I actually PLANNED something (though I thought it was a manuscript, not an outline, at the time)?
Don't get too worked up about this. I am a Seat of the Pants writer (SOTP in the jargon) and unrepentant. And since I don't have a print copy of that earlier version, the "outline" is all in my head.
But it's nice to know where a story's going, for once.
In other news...look for a book-release entry later this week.
She outlines, plans, plots, and generally knows where she's headed with a story before she types "Chapter 1."
I, on the other hand, get the germ of an idea and charge off into Literary Glory with my pants around my ankles.
Both approaches are good. Both are right. Both lead to their own unique speed bumps and detours.
A case in point: my "Huh?" romance (thus named because it's a Christian medieval time-travel romance) is going along swimmingly, but that's not because I planned it to. It's because it is. Years ago I wrote this story and now I'm writing it a second time (from scratch) with a very different briefcase of skills to write it with (and yes, I know I ended with a preposition). It's probably the easiest thing I've ever written; it's virtually writing itself.
Why? Because it's a Horking Good Story, that's why--oh, never mind. Perhaps it's going well because I'm using the previously written version as an OUTLINE? Because I actually PLANNED something (though I thought it was a manuscript, not an outline, at the time)?
Don't get too worked up about this. I am a Seat of the Pants writer (SOTP in the jargon) and unrepentant. And since I don't have a print copy of that earlier version, the "outline" is all in my head.
But it's nice to know where a story's going, for once.
In other news...look for a book-release entry later this week.
Monday, May 21, 2007
Right Faith, Wrong Trimmings
Rant Warning: the following has some of the characteristics of a diatribe. Discussion, sharing of ideas, or conflict may ensue. You have been warned.
Recently on a lively writing loop, a topic arose about historical fiction. Now, just so we're all on the same page: much of CBA historical fiction consists of the Sweet Prairie Romance with the Bonneted Woman on the Cover. This is a known genre. Do not attempt to argue: it just IS.
Why do all CBA historicals have a woman wearing a bonnet (often a transparent bonnet, so you sort of wonder-what was the point?) on the cover, you ask? Very well, I will attempt to answer this burning question. They are there so innocent readers will know this is fiction set in an Acceptable Era: the 1800s.
The nineteenth century is the only acceptable time for stories to be set because it meets the criteria for acceptable fiction: the characters must be Protestant. Fiction dealing with Puritans, the Revolutionary War period, etc., should not be written. Worse, we should not write about pre-Reformation Christians: these would of necessity be Catholic.
Now, before you run screaming for the door: if you write or read historical fiction, you must to some extent abandon your current-day prejudices. People in the pre-Reformation centuries did not think of themselves as idolators, Papists, hidebound or any other stereotype we sneer at today. They called themselves CHRISTENDOM, and the reason they referred to themselves this way is that they kept Christian writings, Christian learning, Christian tradition alive during centuries when my ancestors were worshiping Odin and eating foul-tasting lutefisk...
Ahem. I digress.
We authors must not attempt to write stories set in these benighted times. Do you ask why? Because we'd be writing about Catholics.
I say no. We'd be writing about Christians. People of their time, like us. Many, many of them loved their Savior and served Him in the way the current day permitted. So do we. Some of them were "surface" believers. Some of us are. Some of them abandoned family, friends, and a normal medieval life in order to spend 100% of their time in prayer and learning. Some of us are blessed to do that, in this age.
Do not tell me not to write of these people because they were not Christians. You're wrong. If you don't want to read my work, that's fine, and your privilege. But don't use this most specious of reasoning to say that historical fiction must deal only with people who think like we Protestants do. Don't you dare forbid me to write of people in earlier eras and shed some light on their most-interesting lives and times.
Who knows, maybe we'll all learn something.
Recently on a lively writing loop, a topic arose about historical fiction. Now, just so we're all on the same page: much of CBA historical fiction consists of the Sweet Prairie Romance with the Bonneted Woman on the Cover. This is a known genre. Do not attempt to argue: it just IS.
Why do all CBA historicals have a woman wearing a bonnet (often a transparent bonnet, so you sort of wonder-what was the point?) on the cover, you ask? Very well, I will attempt to answer this burning question. They are there so innocent readers will know this is fiction set in an Acceptable Era: the 1800s.
The nineteenth century is the only acceptable time for stories to be set because it meets the criteria for acceptable fiction: the characters must be Protestant. Fiction dealing with Puritans, the Revolutionary War period, etc., should not be written. Worse, we should not write about pre-Reformation Christians: these would of necessity be Catholic.
Now, before you run screaming for the door: if you write or read historical fiction, you must to some extent abandon your current-day prejudices. People in the pre-Reformation centuries did not think of themselves as idolators, Papists, hidebound or any other stereotype we sneer at today. They called themselves CHRISTENDOM, and the reason they referred to themselves this way is that they kept Christian writings, Christian learning, Christian tradition alive during centuries when my ancestors were worshiping Odin and eating foul-tasting lutefisk...
Ahem. I digress.
We authors must not attempt to write stories set in these benighted times. Do you ask why? Because we'd be writing about Catholics.
I say no. We'd be writing about Christians. People of their time, like us. Many, many of them loved their Savior and served Him in the way the current day permitted. So do we. Some of them were "surface" believers. Some of us are. Some of them abandoned family, friends, and a normal medieval life in order to spend 100% of their time in prayer and learning. Some of us are blessed to do that, in this age.
Do not tell me not to write of these people because they were not Christians. You're wrong. If you don't want to read my work, that's fine, and your privilege. But don't use this most specious of reasoning to say that historical fiction must deal only with people who think like we Protestants do. Don't you dare forbid me to write of people in earlier eras and shed some light on their most-interesting lives and times.
Who knows, maybe we'll all learn something.
Friday, March 23, 2007
Keeping On
Been involved in heavy-duty discussions with a writing associate about craft, expectations, haste, tardiness, and other issues. When I say heavy-duty, it means examining the core issues: why we write; what would happen if we stopped; can we stop; what it means to grasp for the highest pinnacle of excellence that's within our grasp.
Like I say, heavy. We two have very different writing styles, emotional wiring, approaches to life -- almost the whole smash. So what keeps us writing-friends?
I think it's that we understand each other. While her path is not mine, and mine not hers, we can empathize. She spots -- and elicits -- the very best writer I can be. Whether I can bring out her most excellent ways, I don't know. I'd be honored to try.
We talk about writing from the heart, the things that tickle us most. We talk about writing to the market. For some fortunate writers, these two paths intersect.
So far, it hasn't been true for us. Though both of us are published, it hasn't led to bigger contracts or higher profiles. So we're left with examining why we write, how we must write if we want to stay sane...
More later, once I figure it out.
Like I say, heavy. We two have very different writing styles, emotional wiring, approaches to life -- almost the whole smash. So what keeps us writing-friends?
I think it's that we understand each other. While her path is not mine, and mine not hers, we can empathize. She spots -- and elicits -- the very best writer I can be. Whether I can bring out her most excellent ways, I don't know. I'd be honored to try.
We talk about writing from the heart, the things that tickle us most. We talk about writing to the market. For some fortunate writers, these two paths intersect.
So far, it hasn't been true for us. Though both of us are published, it hasn't led to bigger contracts or higher profiles. So we're left with examining why we write, how we must write if we want to stay sane...
More later, once I figure it out.
Monday, March 19, 2007
Abandoning Subtlety
Subtle, as most of you blogophiles already know, I don't do. Gentle hinting is not my greatest strength.
That said: READ THIS BOOK! Its title is A VALLEY OF BETRAYAL. Tricia Goyer wrote it. I almost resent this book for being so good--it takes me away from my slow-going WIP, which we won't talk about right now because I think y'all should Read This Book!
Tricia kindly asked me to participate in her blog tour. While reading (did I mention you should do the same?) I got curious: how does a 21st century lady get interested in the Spanish Civil War, of all things?
Here are my curiosity-bits and her answers:
1. What was the toughest piece of research you did for A VALLEY OF BETRAYAL?
The most difficult parts are those dealing with the political climates of that time. One of my characters, Deion, is part of the Communist party. Today's reader has one view of what that means, but in the 1930s there was hope found there. In a country that was still segregated, the idea of "equality of men" was a huge draw, especially for African Americans.
2. How did you get into the mindset of the early Hitlerites?
Good question! My "research" into the mind of Hitler's soldiers started with my first novel, From Dust and Ashes. Starting with that novel, I've always included the point-of-view of the "bad guys." I suppose I wanted to figure out what made them tick. Research REALLY got involved in my second novel, NIGHT SONG. It was then I saw the Nazi beliefs as a religion. They saw Hitler as their savior and were determined to follow him ... no matter the cost. And, if they didn't, they lost their lives, and the lives of their families. That's a pretty good motivator!
With these things already in mind, I looked into the motives behind the earliest pilots who flew over Spain. I read books written by some of the pilots and tried to figure out what made them, personally, tick. I discovered that it was a great honor not only to fly, but to serve in the military. As you may know, after World War I, Germany was not allowed to have a military. So, in Spain this was their way of once again gaining respect after feeling as if their country had been disrespected for so long. There were also individual motives, but mainly these men felt they bore the worth and strength of Germany on their shoulders.
3. Did you travel to Spain to research there?
No, I wish I could have! Instead I dove into the books. I was also blessed to interview men who were there, and get the help/insight from a missionary friend who currently lives in Spain. When I was researching for my novel, ARMS OF DELIVERANCE, one of the autobiographies I read was from a man who was a B-17 bomber pilot over Europe--but before that, he was an American volunteer for the Spanish Civil War. I had never heard of this war before, which happened right before WWII in Spain. I started researching and I was soon fascinated. Some people call it "the first battle of WWII" because it's where that Nazis first tried their hand at modern warfare.
For this series I dove into the lives of an American artist, a few international volunteers, a Basque priest, and a German pilot. I research the real people first, and then the plot for my novel builds. Soon, I have to make myself stop researching to start writing. Research can be addictive!
4. What aspects of the politics of 1939 seemed most foreign to you?
All of the politics! Things were VERY confusing in Spain in the late 1930s. There were a group of people (the rich, the military, the state church) who liked how things were. Then there was a group that didn't ... everyone else. These others searched for answers in democracy, communism, and numerous other political systems. It took a LOT of research and study to get everything straight in my head who was on whose side, and why.
5. Do you plan on telling more of Sophie's story?
Yes, my second novel A SHADOF OF TREASON comes out this fall. In fact, book #2 picks up the very day where book #1 left off. It continues on in Spain in the lives of these characters, and ... well, soon they discover that more is at stake than what any of them originally thought. It's also published by Moody and it will hit store shelves September 1, 2007.
Generation NeXt Marriage will be released in January of 2008 and My Life unScripted, a teen devotional for girls, this summer. And, of course, I've got several other projects in the works, including A Whisper of Freedom, which is the next novel I have to write.
Those are Tricia's answers. The aspect of the book that gets my highest thumbs-up is her marvelous flair for description. You can almost sense yourself walking down the street of the French/Spanish border town, taking in the flavor of the breeze, sensing the fears of the people.
If I ever write a historical, which at this point doesn't seem terribly likely since I'm bogged down with my contemp, this is the flavor I'll be shooting for.
That said: READ THIS BOOK! Its title is A VALLEY OF BETRAYAL. Tricia Goyer wrote it. I almost resent this book for being so good--it takes me away from my slow-going WIP, which we won't talk about right now because I think y'all should Read This Book!
Tricia kindly asked me to participate in her blog tour. While reading (did I mention you should do the same?) I got curious: how does a 21st century lady get interested in the Spanish Civil War, of all things?
Here are my curiosity-bits and her answers:
1. What was the toughest piece of research you did for A VALLEY OF BETRAYAL?
The most difficult parts are those dealing with the political climates of that time. One of my characters, Deion, is part of the Communist party. Today's reader has one view of what that means, but in the 1930s there was hope found there. In a country that was still segregated, the idea of "equality of men" was a huge draw, especially for African Americans.
2. How did you get into the mindset of the early Hitlerites?
Good question! My "research" into the mind of Hitler's soldiers started with my first novel, From Dust and Ashes. Starting with that novel, I've always included the point-of-view of the "bad guys." I suppose I wanted to figure out what made them tick. Research REALLY got involved in my second novel, NIGHT SONG. It was then I saw the Nazi beliefs as a religion. They saw Hitler as their savior and were determined to follow him ... no matter the cost. And, if they didn't, they lost their lives, and the lives of their families. That's a pretty good motivator!
With these things already in mind, I looked into the motives behind the earliest pilots who flew over Spain. I read books written by some of the pilots and tried to figure out what made them, personally, tick. I discovered that it was a great honor not only to fly, but to serve in the military. As you may know, after World War I, Germany was not allowed to have a military. So, in Spain this was their way of once again gaining respect after feeling as if their country had been disrespected for so long. There were also individual motives, but mainly these men felt they bore the worth and strength of Germany on their shoulders.
3. Did you travel to Spain to research there?
No, I wish I could have! Instead I dove into the books. I was also blessed to interview men who were there, and get the help/insight from a missionary friend who currently lives in Spain. When I was researching for my novel, ARMS OF DELIVERANCE, one of the autobiographies I read was from a man who was a B-17 bomber pilot over Europe--but before that, he was an American volunteer for the Spanish Civil War. I had never heard of this war before, which happened right before WWII in Spain. I started researching and I was soon fascinated. Some people call it "the first battle of WWII" because it's where that Nazis first tried their hand at modern warfare.
For this series I dove into the lives of an American artist, a few international volunteers, a Basque priest, and a German pilot. I research the real people first, and then the plot for my novel builds. Soon, I have to make myself stop researching to start writing. Research can be addictive!
4. What aspects of the politics of 1939 seemed most foreign to you?
All of the politics! Things were VERY confusing in Spain in the late 1930s. There were a group of people (the rich, the military, the state church) who liked how things were. Then there was a group that didn't ... everyone else. These others searched for answers in democracy, communism, and numerous other political systems. It took a LOT of research and study to get everything straight in my head who was on whose side, and why.
5. Do you plan on telling more of Sophie's story?
Yes, my second novel A SHADOF OF TREASON comes out this fall. In fact, book #2 picks up the very day where book #1 left off. It continues on in Spain in the lives of these characters, and ... well, soon they discover that more is at stake than what any of them originally thought. It's also published by Moody and it will hit store shelves September 1, 2007.
Generation NeXt Marriage will be released in January of 2008 and My Life unScripted, a teen devotional for girls, this summer. And, of course, I've got several other projects in the works, including A Whisper of Freedom, which is the next novel I have to write.
Those are Tricia's answers. The aspect of the book that gets my highest thumbs-up is her marvelous flair for description. You can almost sense yourself walking down the street of the French/Spanish border town, taking in the flavor of the breeze, sensing the fears of the people.
If I ever write a historical, which at this point doesn't seem terribly likely since I'm bogged down with my contemp, this is the flavor I'll be shooting for.
Wednesday, January 17, 2007
Inevitability
Weird title? I suppose. It's because I'm writing this afternoon on TOUCH AND GO, my mystery/suspense work-in-progress. As I write, the soundtrack to "Rob Roy" is playing on the CD player (breathes there a soul who doesn't write to music?). The music naturally reminds me of the movie. In it, the title character makes certain choices, based on his best instincts--some of them work out well, some of them lead to disaster. But once he's made his choices, events progress that are out of his control. There's a slow buildup of the consequences and his subsequent actions/reactions to them, creating a sense of destiny. Was Rob doomed? What other choices could he have made, and remain himself?
That's what I'm aiming for in this next book--that linkage of action/situation building on action, leading to that same sense of inevitability in the storyline and particularly in the resolution of the story problem(s).
You find it in the best-written books, the most immortal of music. Can you think of any piece by Beethovn in which the progression of theme and note can possibly result any other way than it does?
Aim high, they say. I'm aiming high with this one.
That's what I'm aiming for in this next book--that linkage of action/situation building on action, leading to that same sense of inevitability in the storyline and particularly in the resolution of the story problem(s).
You find it in the best-written books, the most immortal of music. Can you think of any piece by Beethovn in which the progression of theme and note can possibly result any other way than it does?
Aim high, they say. I'm aiming high with this one.
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