Channeling my inner Hemingway… err… King… err… Gaiman…

Posted on March 2nd, 2009 by Mark.
Categories: Just Dumb, Writing.

So here I sit, at my desk.  The blinds are drawn shut, behind me incense (Citrus Teakwood, which cultivates in me neither a sense of citrus or teakwood), burns on the mantle in the soap stone burner that Sam gave me for Valentine’s Day.  To my right the halogen of my desk lamp shines a warm cone downward onto the keyboard and desktop.  It’s light illuminates the ghostly strands of steam that rise up and out of my coffee cup.  I have devoured my daily regime of vitamins, even going so far as to double up on the Ginkgo and the Ginseng.  Surely the mood will strike me.  Surely my eyes will glaze over in a haze of imagined happenings and I will write.  I keep my ears tuned to hear the voices but none come.  The silence is *insert cliche here* deafening.  I put on the Pastor of Panic for a brief instant, but the inane ramblings of Glenn Beck do nothing to stoke the inner writer.  Is there one amongst us who is not keenly aware by now that the Messiah is in all actuality, more mediocre?

This weekend was a mixed bag.  It was back to the rental house which has been a drain on my sanity.  What was avoided is now mission.  The work must be done, the deeds completed.  It is a mindset that spans the spectrum.  I grabbed up the writing with the same vigor as I will all things.  I powered through a scene that had me slowed to a crawl.  I pressed on in spite of myself, a wonderful, courageous, feat if you’re me.  No second guessing (other than about chapter length) and no introspective clap trap… I suppose I shall leave that to this bit of cyber obscurity.

I have bouyed my position in the positive, with all things.  Where it concerns the writing, I have turned to comments I have received.  Thus far with the exception of one, they have all been good.  Constructive criticism was offered where people thought it needed.  Not granting a name to the pro/an-tagonist of the the story until the final paragraph of the first chapter seems a common gripe.  Usually that gripe carries a caveat, that the character is compelling in spite of it and that he is written with strength.  That seems to me to indicate that I have done something right, and if it works regardless why change it?  It was an editor that first brought this to my attention, I hadn’t noticed it.  He said, “I’m invested in this guy within the first page and I don’t even know his name.”  It’s the first draft, this is when you experiment.  Could I rearrange the chapters, make the story more linear?  Absolutely.  For now though I’m doing it the way that works for me, the way in which I would like to read it.  For now (in this first draft stage) it’s my story and I’m going to do it my way.  I know, typical greedy bastard… I can accept that.  And if in the end it doesn’t work, the chapters are easily interchangeable.

Another friend offered, “I was compelled to read it, I was drawn to it.”  I took that as complementary, but then the demon spoke, “Car accidents are compelling, people are drawn to those too.”  I am quite pleased to say that I stomped the ever living crap out of that demon, and the quote from my friend remains ever accessible in my saved email folder.  One more weapon, one more inspiration, one more reason to try.

So, I sit here.  The coffee cools, the spirit of the incense drifts high above my head, the vitamins turn my stomach sour, and the Pastor of Panic has taken a long commercial break.  My long lament, like the remnants of my inane rituals serves as gentle reminder.  “Hey Stupid, it’s time to get to work.”

Today’s goal?  Fleshing out Victor Avila… no pun intended.

0 comments.

Writing and listening to music

Posted on January 22nd, 2008 by Mark.
Categories: Music, Writing.

This is a conversation that seems to come up a lot.  People that write always seem to be curious about whether or not you listen to music while working.  For me the answer is yes, but with a caveat.  The music that I listen to has to be instrumental, and has to take me somewhere… hopefully away from the noise and commotions that seem to be around all the time.  Soundtracks and ambient techno music are my preferred types of music when it comes to writing.  They have an ability to transport the mind while not bogging it down.  Often these types of music are repetetive which means there won’t be any surprises that take me out of what I’m doing.

Here are a couple of things that I’ve been listening to while writing recently.  Click on the audio box to have a listen. 

 

Moby ft. Kronos Quartet, God Moving Over the Face of the Waters, it’s the theme from Heat, (one of the best flicks ever) played at the end of the film.  Always loved this tune and it really has that ability to transport me into what it is that I am doing.

 

Never before have scales with a rocking guitar and some ominous electronic vocals sounded so good as in the 28 Weeks Later soundtrack.  John Murphy really took the super simplistic and turned it into a haunting bit of music that sets a great mood for writing.

 

I couldn’t just ignore the ambient techno, now could I?  Here is some old school techno that fits the bill.  Halcyon+On+On by Orbital is a nice repetetive bit of escapism with enough subtle changes to make for interesting background noise.  It really doesn’t even start until around the 2:30 mark.  Music like this can drive people nuts, but I like it and it serves the purpose well.

When it comes to writing, music can be a tool.  That’s how I utilize it.  I don’t want anything deep or thought provoking.  It can simply set a mood, that’s cool with me and actually preferable.  It’s just too bad that the readers don’t also have the benefit of the “soundtrack” I use to write this stuff!

0 comments.

Lucky me… beta readers like the story so far…

Posted on January 16th, 2008 by Mark.
Categories: Writing.

Well, I have allowed a couple of people to read my story (first few pages of it) and so far they’re liking what they are seeing.  There is a bit of ego that is involved in writing.  You’re engaged in this solitary exercise and you never know if it’s working or not, so you need some stroking to keep you going.  The wife used to beta read, (and she was great at being critical about it) but she refuses to do it anymore saying that she is tired of getting wrapped up in stories that never get finished.  I can’t really blame her, why invest the time to read something that won’t be completed?  Too bad for her then that she is out of the “development” phase on this new story.  I plan to finish this one, even if it kills me.  The bad part is, that aside from mechanics and things of that nature… when I’m done, I’m done.  If she hates what happens to this character or that character… too bad, so sad.  I’m a real bastard about commiting to the way I’ve developed things by the time I’m done and I won’t be inclined to change anything.

Right now I find myself at a bit of a crossroads.  Sure I had a basic blueprint going into all of this, but as you go along “opportunities” arise in the work.  There are other courses of action that can be explored.  One of these opportunities has come up and I am at a complete loss as to how to proceed.  *Shrugs*  I’ll consider it for a bit and then commit but there is always that “what if” element.  Can’t rely on the betas for this… it’s all on me… so I don’t even consult them on such things.  It’s better that way, nobody to blame but myself if I hate it!

Bleh… I better get back to writing… something, anything… just to keep the words flowin’.   

0 comments.

Rant on writing…

Posted on December 27th, 2007 by Mark.
Categories: Writing.

So your protagonist has no redeeming qualities?  It’s a question I asked myself today as I delved ever further into the psyche of my book’s main character.  It’s a tough question to consider.  On one hand you’d like to toss him a bone and have him do something decent at least once in the book, but on the other you have to consider if it is true to the character.  Redemption for this character is generated within himself, in his belief that what he does is so completely right.  He doesn’t need the world’s approval and doesn’t seek it.  As a matter of fact, the character’s loathing of the world is what drives him to act in the ways that he does.

So, here I sit… contemplating.  I wonder if all of it is a little too much for a garden variety reader.  I wonder if they will find after investing the time to read several hundred pages, a hollowness in the work.  For me, a character study into what it is that makes this guy tick would be fun… but for others?  I don’t know, and I suppose I can’t really spend a lot of time worrying about it.  Instead I guess I’ll put it all into his hands.  I’ll consider what it is that he would do in whatever circumstance he finds himself and stay true to that, at the very least it’s HONEST.  There may be no happy ending, no redemption whatsoever… and is that such a terrible thing after all?  I’m going to go with NO and keep blissfully typing along!

0 comments.

NaNoWriMo… huh?

Posted on November 6th, 2007 by Mark.
Categories: Just Dumb, My Life, Writing.

Yeah, I know what you’re thinking… my cat walked across my keyboard. 

Actually, November is National Novel Writing Month… or NaNoWriMo… and it’s unwittingly become a catalyst of sorts where it concerns my writing.  I infrequently frequent writing blogs, sites and forums… but I’d never heard of this little literary adventure (that had its start in 1999) until just recently.  Apparently in the month of November we novel writers (or hacks) can sign up and join the NaNoWriMo event which sets an individual goal for all participants of 50,000 words between Nov. 1 and November 30.  This can either be the length of the entire work you are writing or it can be a portion of a larger project, the goal is simply TO DO.  You have to love the simplicity of it all.

I can appreciate the spirit in which this whole thing is intended, so I have elected to make a go of it myself.  Will I do 50,000 words… maybe.  I know a lot of writers just write and figure I’ll make revisions/corrections when it’s done… but I can’t bring myself to do that.  My writing tends to be a bit more labor oriented, and that slows me down.  Just reading the last chapter to familiarize myself with where I left off can lead to hours of on the spot revision and well…. that could mean a pretty slim new batch of words for a day.  I didn’t sign up to be a part of the event so I’m basically lurking it.  Nobody is going to be let down if I don’t do 50,000 words… least of all myself.  I’m just excited to be seriously committing time and my imagination to this new project… I think it has the legs to go somewhere and I won’t be “rushing” through that!

Good luck to all that might be participating in NaNoWriMo and stumble across this blog… it surely isn’t EASY!

0 comments.