Kevin Lucia's Blog, page 65
January 22, 2011
A Review and a Giveaway at "A Tale of Many Reviews"
Not only another review of
Hiram Grange & The Chosen One
but also a giveaway of a signed copy over at "A Tale of Many Reviews". All you gotta do is read the review, comment at the end about something the review said about Hiram that appealed to you, and you'll be entered. As always, one of my favorite little bits:
"The action starts right from the beginning and gets you hooked into the mystery. It doesn't slow down much from there, only occasionally stopping for the reader to catch their breath before the next event occurs."
Read the rest of the review.
As writers we're not supposed to pay too much attention to reviews, (and unfortunately as a newbie I've been gleefully ignoring that rule), but one consistent comment I've been very gratified to receive is about its pacing, because that's something I struggled with very badly at first.
You see, I'd never attempted a novella before. Had always tinkered around with the longer, novel-length manuscripts. So, my first several drafts of Hiram were way too long, (I won't say HOW long), and included too many unnecessary scenes and plot tangents.
I've got to give ultimate credit for the pacing over to two folks: Tim Deal of Shroud and one of my former students. Tim's advice on how to pace a novella - thinking of it in terms as scene cuts in a screenplay - chopped out tons of chaff.
Also, one of my former students inadvertently influenced me when he entered my classroom one day commenting on a book he was reading - I forget the title - that had very short chapters. He remarked that the substance of the story hadn't been sacrificed for speed, because the chapters were short and getting through them so quickly created a "sense of accomplishment" that kept pulling him through.
And then I thought: "Hmm. Short chapters, you say?"
Anyway. Nice to see another review. If I remember right, there are only a few these left out there, (one or two that were supposed to go live months ago), and then it'll be time to let Hiram go and move on to something else. So then I can work on not reading about myself, put my nose to the grindstone and work on other stuff.
Until then, of course...
"The action starts right from the beginning and gets you hooked into the mystery. It doesn't slow down much from there, only occasionally stopping for the reader to catch their breath before the next event occurs."
Read the rest of the review.
As writers we're not supposed to pay too much attention to reviews, (and unfortunately as a newbie I've been gleefully ignoring that rule), but one consistent comment I've been very gratified to receive is about its pacing, because that's something I struggled with very badly at first.
You see, I'd never attempted a novella before. Had always tinkered around with the longer, novel-length manuscripts. So, my first several drafts of Hiram were way too long, (I won't say HOW long), and included too many unnecessary scenes and plot tangents.
I've got to give ultimate credit for the pacing over to two folks: Tim Deal of Shroud and one of my former students. Tim's advice on how to pace a novella - thinking of it in terms as scene cuts in a screenplay - chopped out tons of chaff.
Also, one of my former students inadvertently influenced me when he entered my classroom one day commenting on a book he was reading - I forget the title - that had very short chapters. He remarked that the substance of the story hadn't been sacrificed for speed, because the chapters were short and getting through them so quickly created a "sense of accomplishment" that kept pulling him through.
And then I thought: "Hmm. Short chapters, you say?"
Anyway. Nice to see another review. If I remember right, there are only a few these left out there, (one or two that were supposed to go live months ago), and then it'll be time to let Hiram go and move on to something else. So then I can work on not reading about myself, put my nose to the grindstone and work on other stuff.
Until then, of course...
January 21, 2011
Recommendations for Debut Authors
Some of the best advice I've seen yet, focused on the things that matter. I cringed and felt affirmed all at once...
Kiersten Writes: Recommendations for Debut Authors: "If you are not a debut author, feel free to skip this post. I've had a lot of people asking me what I thought worked and didn't work, what ..."
Kiersten Writes: Recommendations for Debut Authors: "If you are not a debut author, feel free to skip this post. I've had a lot of people asking me what I thought worked and didn't work, what ..."
January 18, 2011
New Review of Hiram at "Another Slightly Scary Story"
"Kevin's descriptions are flawless. The monsters are real and tangible. I could smell when I wanted to breath in, feel what I wanted to touch. Nothing was overdone, leaving just enough room to imagine..."
...and...
"I was impressed with Kevin's writing. As he delved further along in the book, everything that seemed out of place began to make sense. Everything that seemed off ended up being explained, without telling it all to me and shoving an explanation down my throat. I was left to believe it, which I ultimately did..."
Add that to a snow day off from school, and that makes for a pretty good day...
January 17, 2011
Seton CC's January Visiting Author: Claudia Gabel - "Romeo & Juliet & Vampires"
The "Visiting Writers' Program" at Seton Catholic Central High School (where I teach) recently welcomed our first visiting author of the year. To recap: this program was brainstormed two years ago when the administration at SCC expressed their desire for a Creative Writing Class (taught by moi).
At the same time, a student running for Student Council proposed an initiative to bring in professional writers of all kinds to visit our students. As educators, we're forever stressing careers in medicine, business, management, law, big things like that. However, for some reason we often forget the Arts; especially the art of writing.
I decided to "marry" the two initiatives, to develop a Visiting Writers' Program that would serve as the core of the Creative Writing Class. The class would read the works of many different types of writers, then meet with those writers to talk with them about the craft and the business. Also, students not in my Creative Writing class would still be eligible to meet with the writers. They had to read the work, respond to it in a reflective essay, then they'd be excused from class to meet with these writers.
Last year, our program embarked on its maiden voyage with resounding success, bringing in the following authors/writers/poets to visit with our students:
Dan Keohane, Bram Stoker Nominated author of Solomon's Grave
Andrei Guruianu, poet, professor, and former Poet Laurette of Broome County
Bryan Davis, bestselling YA/Teen fantasy author, creator of Dragons In Our Midst
Tom Monteleone, award winning author/screenwriter and owner of Borderlands Press
Rio Youers, rising author of Mama Fish and End Times
This year's schedule is jam-packed and ambitious. Thanks to several grants, we're bringing in seven different authors and at the end of February, two authors will visit SCC for three days to conduct an intensive workshop for my Creative Writing students.
Needless to say, things are going to be very, busy over the next few months and we kicked things off recently with Claudia Gabel, author of the latest genre mash-up, Romeo & Juliet & Vampires (HarperTeen, a division of HarperCollins).
A graduate of Seton, Claudia has visited us several times in the past, speaking to classes and donating her time to judge at poetry contests and work at book fairs. This was her first formal visit as part of our Visiting Writers' program, and it was a huge success.
Claudia spent roughly two hours talking about her career path as a writer, (graduate school, MA in English, her positions at Random House and HarperTeen), her other works - In and Out, a teen series for Scholastic and other ghost-writing projects - and shared her inspirations and goals. She answered questions about Romeo & Juliet & Vampires, detailing her research, how she approached rewriting a classic work of literature, and how the project came to be in the first place.
Along the way, she offered our students invaluable insight into the writing and publishing process, especially when it came to working with editors and accepting their critique and guidance. Many of the students were surprised (and perhaps a little frightened) that novel writing wasn't the glamorous, stress-free blissful experience so many movies and television shows make it out to be.
Claudia is a hardworking, dedicated professional. A classic example of that kid who doodled stories in her Mead notebooks all through high school, dreaming of being a writer - and then going out and doing exactly that.
Next month's visiting writer is Bram Stoker Award-Winning author Norman Prentiss.
At the same time, a student running for Student Council proposed an initiative to bring in professional writers of all kinds to visit our students. As educators, we're forever stressing careers in medicine, business, management, law, big things like that. However, for some reason we often forget the Arts; especially the art of writing.
I decided to "marry" the two initiatives, to develop a Visiting Writers' Program that would serve as the core of the Creative Writing Class. The class would read the works of many different types of writers, then meet with those writers to talk with them about the craft and the business. Also, students not in my Creative Writing class would still be eligible to meet with the writers. They had to read the work, respond to it in a reflective essay, then they'd be excused from class to meet with these writers.
Last year, our program embarked on its maiden voyage with resounding success, bringing in the following authors/writers/poets to visit with our students:
Dan Keohane, Bram Stoker Nominated author of Solomon's Grave
Andrei Guruianu, poet, professor, and former Poet Laurette of Broome County
Bryan Davis, bestselling YA/Teen fantasy author, creator of Dragons In Our Midst
Tom Monteleone, award winning author/screenwriter and owner of Borderlands Press
Rio Youers, rising author of Mama Fish and End Times
This year's schedule is jam-packed and ambitious. Thanks to several grants, we're bringing in seven different authors and at the end of February, two authors will visit SCC for three days to conduct an intensive workshop for my Creative Writing students. Needless to say, things are going to be very, busy over the next few months and we kicked things off recently with Claudia Gabel, author of the latest genre mash-up, Romeo & Juliet & Vampires (HarperTeen, a division of HarperCollins).
A graduate of Seton, Claudia has visited us several times in the past, speaking to classes and donating her time to judge at poetry contests and work at book fairs. This was her first formal visit as part of our Visiting Writers' program, and it was a huge success.Claudia spent roughly two hours talking about her career path as a writer, (graduate school, MA in English, her positions at Random House and HarperTeen), her other works - In and Out, a teen series for Scholastic and other ghost-writing projects - and shared her inspirations and goals. She answered questions about Romeo & Juliet & Vampires, detailing her research, how she approached rewriting a classic work of literature, and how the project came to be in the first place.
Along the way, she offered our students invaluable insight into the writing and publishing process, especially when it came to working with editors and accepting their critique and guidance. Many of the students were surprised (and perhaps a little frightened) that novel writing wasn't the glamorous, stress-free blissful experience so many movies and television shows make it out to be. Claudia is a hardworking, dedicated professional. A classic example of that kid who doodled stories in her Mead notebooks all through high school, dreaming of being a writer - and then going out and doing exactly that.
Next month's visiting writer is Bram Stoker Award-Winning author Norman Prentiss.
January 15, 2011
Nothing New Under the Sun Blowing Like Dust In the Wind....
Double-whammy on the "deep-though-o-meter" this morning. First, I hit Barnes & Noble to tinker on a story I've been asked to write, (my first potential pro-paying solicitation ever; here's hoping I don't screw it up), and while taking a break, I wandered back to the Teen Fantasy/Adventure section - the genre I've pitched to a senior editor at a New York publishing house - all full of myself because of how positive the editor's reception had been. "Well now," I thought, chest puffed out just a little, "let's check out the competition."
Do you know how many titles I found back in that section that were almost EXACTLY like the one I pitched?
Like. All of them.
Wow.
Now, this could be a good or bad thing. Maybe good: the editor will decide there's a market for my series, that's it a "hot thing".
Or maybe bad: because it's not different than what's out there and won't stand out. At all.
Ugh.
The Bible says "there's nothing new under the sun", and everyone always says "there's really only 4-5 different kinds of stories to tell" anyway. Still. Little disheartening to realize your self-styled "wildly original" idea ain't so much, at all.
Second reality check: stopped by my favorite used book store. I used to bring back books and trade them all the time, but with the advent of Amazon.com I got seduced away. Recently, I've decided to try and give the mom and pop store my business first, if I could, so I took some paperbacks to trade in and browsed the horror section.
Humbling, man. Do you know how many writers are on those shelves - probably GOOD authors, at least as good as me, probably better - that I didn't recognize?
Countless. And now there they are, on a used book shelf. Maybe they're still writing. Maybe they've shuffled off this mortal coil. Maybe they called it quits.
And that's all that's left, for all the hours of dedication and blood, sweat, and tears.
Whew.
Heavy.
Makes me want to eat. And nap. So if you'll excuse me...
Do you know how many titles I found back in that section that were almost EXACTLY like the one I pitched?
Like. All of them.
Wow.
Now, this could be a good or bad thing. Maybe good: the editor will decide there's a market for my series, that's it a "hot thing".
Or maybe bad: because it's not different than what's out there and won't stand out. At all.
Ugh.
The Bible says "there's nothing new under the sun", and everyone always says "there's really only 4-5 different kinds of stories to tell" anyway. Still. Little disheartening to realize your self-styled "wildly original" idea ain't so much, at all.
Second reality check: stopped by my favorite used book store. I used to bring back books and trade them all the time, but with the advent of Amazon.com I got seduced away. Recently, I've decided to try and give the mom and pop store my business first, if I could, so I took some paperbacks to trade in and browsed the horror section.
Humbling, man. Do you know how many writers are on those shelves - probably GOOD authors, at least as good as me, probably better - that I didn't recognize?
Countless. And now there they are, on a used book shelf. Maybe they're still writing. Maybe they've shuffled off this mortal coil. Maybe they called it quits.
And that's all that's left, for all the hours of dedication and blood, sweat, and tears.
Whew.
Heavy.
Makes me want to eat. And nap. So if you'll excuse me...
January 14, 2011
A Milestone
First, the obligatory "pimping my stuff" quip - The Midnight Diner, Volume 3 - which contains my story "Lonely Places" - is up on Amazon. I read it at Horrorfind 12 this year, and people seemed to like it. Anyway, grab a copy and if you do, let me know what you think.
Second - so today is the day. A milestone. It could be nothing but a footnote in an otherwise unremarkable journey, or it could be THE BIG THING. Anyway, today I send in a pitch for a series I've been working on for the past few months, a series that began as merely an idea that has now grown huge, gotten under my skin and in my head, something I'd LOVE to see come about.
Regardless of the publisher's response, it's a milestone because I finally learned the value of writing the dreaded synopsis. That's right. The "book report about my book." That thing that authors everywhere groan and gnash their teeth about, and believe you me, there's been a whole ton of groaning and gnashing of teeth these past few weeks.
AND, I have to be totally honest. I managed pretty well because I'd already turned in a bare-bones synopsis, (which - as usual - bears little resemblance to what I'm turning in today), and was asked "Let me see more. No worries about page length."
Golden words, those. Don't worry about how long your synopsis is. I just want the whole story, with all the details. Very freeing, let me tell you. BUT, I can't say I've mastered the art of "writing a winning one page synopsis of your book." Just so we're clear on that. I probably will NEVER be able to that.
However, I've really discovered the value of writing a synopsis for myself. Usually I just write and go, let the story flow on its own. I DID admittedly do a rough outline for Hiram Grange, but I had a time schedule, and I didn't stick to it totally, regardless. BUT, I think I've always been a little afraid of writing a synopsis or generating an outline, because I didn't want those to become more important than the story itself.
With this current exercise, I hammered out a nice compromise. For both books I sat down and banged out the first three or four chapters, didn't bother with the synopsis at all. THEN, after I'd drafted and revised said chapters, I wrote the synopsis. The interplay was kinda... cool. Writing the first three chapters off the top of my head REALLY plugged me into the characters, which is always of paramount importance to me. THAT gave me a lot of fuel to write the synopsis for each.
Writing each synopsis then made me rethink certain parts of the plot I'd established in the first few chapters that weren't very believable or sustainable. So a back and forth ensued between the chapters and synopsis.
Lo and behold, the end product: two novel snyopsis (es?), completely and meticulously planned out to the very END. Given the go ahead, I could start writing tomorrow and be very confident of finishing a rough draft fairly quickly. Said rough draft might not stick to the synopsis totally, but I've learned that's not the point. Not for me, anyway.
A synopsis and outline is just a safety net against the even more dreaded "writers block". In the process of writing, if I feel the story pulling itself in a different, stronger direction, I'll go with it (depending on what my editor...if this person becomes my editor...thinks about it. That would be a new experience, but I think a good one!).
However, the synopsis gives me landmarks and endpoints, a road map to a decently thought-out destination. If I find a "better way" or "short cut" along my journey, so be it. But in this case...I at least know one way to get there.
So, yeah. Me, a fan of the synopsis. Woulda thunk it?
BUT.
It's something I need to get used to. I've really enjoyed working with an editor from a New York house. Regardless of whether or not I get the green light for this, I'd like to do it some more, and for the big boys - a synopsis is a must. And let's be honest, here.
It's the big boys I want to run with. I might get stomped. But who cares? At least I made it there to get stomped in the first place.
January 9, 2011
Hiram Grange Makes The List....!
No, no sillies...not THAT list. Still holding my breath on that one, (pointlessly, because I have very little chance of making it, honestly), but
Hiram Grange & The Chosen One
DID make Flames Rising's 2010 Year of the Undead list:
"This list covers some notable works that are zombie-inspired, Lovecraft-inspired, apocalyptic, general horror or have horror elements. Some I have read, watched or played and others have caught my interest enough to want to read, watch or play them in the near future."
I'm guessing Hiram's on there for his Lovecraftian overtones, though there are some undeadly type beasties roaming around there, too. Either way, a nice little spot of sunshine to chase away yesterday's poopy-pants attitude...
"This list covers some notable works that are zombie-inspired, Lovecraft-inspired, apocalyptic, general horror or have horror elements. Some I have read, watched or played and others have caught my interest enough to want to read, watch or play them in the near future."
I'm guessing Hiram's on there for his Lovecraftian overtones, though there are some undeadly type beasties roaming around there, too. Either way, a nice little spot of sunshine to chase away yesterday's poopy-pants attitude...
January 8, 2011
Frustrated for No Good Reason
Sooo....
Here I am.
Gonna keep this short. Been a little....I don't know, lately. Frustrated. Bottled up. Problem is, the things I want to say are the same old things I've gotten tired of saying and feeling, so I really don't want to go there. I don't want this to turn into a pissy rant, so I'll just keep things brief.
School will never change. I see that now. I'm an okay teacher. Not the best, and not the worst. I'm all right with that. If I'm going to dedicate myself to writing and still remain committed to my family, something's gotta give elsewhere. Teaching's it, and I've accepted that.
I'll never be the guy they dedicate a yearbook to. When students look back and remember teachers who changed their lives, I won't be the one they remember. They like me well enough and think I'm "pretty chill". A good teacher that does not make, though.
Oh, by the way? Did I mention that I'm horribly insecure and have poor self esteem?
Just in case you didn't notice.
My MA seems to have ground to a halt. I have to take a written Spanish test to graduate (I know. A Spanish test to get an MA in Creative Writing. Let's not go there). I haven't taken Spanish since high school. Don't remember any of it. I'd need to take a class to LEARN it again, not even just refresh it. And I just can't. After bulling my way through 40 credits the last two years, I'm just burned out.
And no one seems to get that but me.
I look around at publishing. Small press. Specialty press. Clustered little genre factions. Christian fiction. And I can't help but feel a healthy disdain for it all. I'm sorry folks, but I didn't grow up reading that stuff, didn't fall in love with that stuff. I know our dreams and reality rarely coincide, but when I look around at the horror genre and then it's alternative the Christian genre, (and that doesn't mean there aren't writers in both genres I adore; quite the opposite), more and more I snort in derision.
I'd open my mouth to say something...but you know what?
That just makes me tired, too. Billions of blogs out in cyberspace, all of us yapping into nothing and none of us listening. Often, that's what I feel blogging is.
Anyway. I obviously need to eat something; obviously need my caffeine. And I'm obviously frustrated about nothing.
It'll pass. Eventually. 'Cause I got an awesome wife and two awesome kids, and also?
I've got God, too. I know that's not so popular to say these days, but screw it. And I also know I'm not the best at living the way I should, but in the end...I hope I know... or am coming to know...what's most important.
But that's all internal. You'll still never catch me telling others how to live. That pisses me off just as much as everything else.
Anyway.
Yeah.
So endeth the rant.
Here I am.
Gonna keep this short. Been a little....I don't know, lately. Frustrated. Bottled up. Problem is, the things I want to say are the same old things I've gotten tired of saying and feeling, so I really don't want to go there. I don't want this to turn into a pissy rant, so I'll just keep things brief.
School will never change. I see that now. I'm an okay teacher. Not the best, and not the worst. I'm all right with that. If I'm going to dedicate myself to writing and still remain committed to my family, something's gotta give elsewhere. Teaching's it, and I've accepted that.
I'll never be the guy they dedicate a yearbook to. When students look back and remember teachers who changed their lives, I won't be the one they remember. They like me well enough and think I'm "pretty chill". A good teacher that does not make, though.
Oh, by the way? Did I mention that I'm horribly insecure and have poor self esteem?
Just in case you didn't notice.
My MA seems to have ground to a halt. I have to take a written Spanish test to graduate (I know. A Spanish test to get an MA in Creative Writing. Let's not go there). I haven't taken Spanish since high school. Don't remember any of it. I'd need to take a class to LEARN it again, not even just refresh it. And I just can't. After bulling my way through 40 credits the last two years, I'm just burned out.
And no one seems to get that but me.
I look around at publishing. Small press. Specialty press. Clustered little genre factions. Christian fiction. And I can't help but feel a healthy disdain for it all. I'm sorry folks, but I didn't grow up reading that stuff, didn't fall in love with that stuff. I know our dreams and reality rarely coincide, but when I look around at the horror genre and then it's alternative the Christian genre, (and that doesn't mean there aren't writers in both genres I adore; quite the opposite), more and more I snort in derision.
I'd open my mouth to say something...but you know what?
That just makes me tired, too. Billions of blogs out in cyberspace, all of us yapping into nothing and none of us listening. Often, that's what I feel blogging is.
Anyway. I obviously need to eat something; obviously need my caffeine. And I'm obviously frustrated about nothing.
It'll pass. Eventually. 'Cause I got an awesome wife and two awesome kids, and also?
I've got God, too. I know that's not so popular to say these days, but screw it. And I also know I'm not the best at living the way I should, but in the end...I hope I know... or am coming to know...what's most important.
But that's all internal. You'll still never catch me telling others how to live. That pisses me off just as much as everything else.
Anyway.
Yeah.
So endeth the rant.
December 31, 2010
A New Year's Resolution: To Harness My Own Fears
I'm not big on the whole "let's look back on this past year and chronicle what I've done and look at what's ahead in the New Year" thing. Suffice to say, some cool things have happened this past year, both writing-wise and personally. Also, some very challenging times were weathered personally, and I've endured my share of writing-related frustrations. And, the year ahead is bound to offer the same mix of opportunities, triumphs (both personal and professional), closed doors, let-downs, failures and rejections.
Here, however, is one New Year's writing resolution, and it may surprise some of you.
To write fewer stories. Submit to fewer markets.
So I can dig WAY deeper in the stories I am writing. Dig deeper into myself, my experiences, my life, my failures, dreams, hopes, nightmares....and fears.
I had two of my "better" stories rejected from a reprint anthology recently. Granted, it was a pretty prestigious anthology edited by a prestigious editor, so I imagine the competition was stiff. You can bet I'll be buying a copy of this anthology when it comes out, scope out the folks who trumped me.
But I wasn't upset. In fact, I had sorta expected to get rejected, which is why I submitted. The editor is also someone I've studied under, so after both stories got rejected I felt free enough to open a dialogue with him about these stories' weaknesses. This editor had also read Hiram Grange & The Chosen One , so I asked for his opinion on that, too.
Mechanically, I think this editor is happy with my progress. He praised the action sequences in my Hiram, which is pretty high praise indeed. Still, he noted something very important, a lacking in my storytelling that I'VE come to note myself over the last six months or so.
My stories aren't ALIVE. Not yet. They move and function exactly as "stories" should, but according to this editor - whose word is as close to gospel about fiction for me as you can get - my work still reads an awful lot like someone "doing the writer thing". Probably the most telling critique was that the characters all appear as skilled actors who only live for the length of the story, and that it was hard to believe they'd actually exist OUTSIDE of the story itself.
We talked a bit about how to make my work come alive. One his quotes that will always stand out in my mind is this: "The real stuff, the stuff that lives and lasts, comes out of late night conversations with your very own self."
Wow.
Now, this both challenged me and encouraged me. Challenged me, because it made me consider all the anthologies I'd thought about submitting to over this next year. Was I thinking about stories that really reflected the above sentiment? Or was I just trying to "get into the anthology?"
It was an encouragement, however, because while I leaked a little of myself into Hiram Grange, I couldn't put all of myself into him because of how all the Hiram Five were building Hiram together. It was a group effort, so while a lot of Hiram belongs to me, not all of it does. My current project, however...is all me. Almost painfully so. Seems like I'm on the right track.
Also, this editor suggested I pick up
To Each Their Darkness
, by Gary Braunbeck, a nonfiction tome on writing horror. Luckily, I'd already pre-ordered a copy. Any of you serious about being a horror writer should pick this up NOW. I'm only a little way into it, but I've already discovered the best reason to write horror that I've ever encountered:
"What I see is pain and isolation that empowers not the sufferers, but that which afflicts them. I want a reason for this. I want a reason for babies born with cancer, for the endless supply of thoughtless cruelties both little and large we inflict on one another on an everyday basis, for old folks who are abandoned to die alone and unwanted and unloved.
I want an explanation, please, for all of the soul-sick, broken-hearted people who become so hollowed by their aloneness that they turn on the gas, eat the business end of shotgun, or find a ceiling beam that can take their weight. I want sense made of this. I want to know the reason why...and since none is forthcoming, either from above or those around me, I've decided to try and find an answer on my own. So far, the best - the only - way for me to work toward this is through writing horror stories."
- Gary Braunbeck, To Each Their Darkness (Apex Publications)
So that's my only writing resolution. To only take on writing projects that resonate with me, personally. If I can't find an emotional hook I can associate with, if I can't bring my own darkness and fear to it, I won't write it. This will result in fewer stories.
But hopefully much better ones that actually LIVE.
Happy New Year!
Here, however, is one New Year's writing resolution, and it may surprise some of you.
To write fewer stories. Submit to fewer markets.
So I can dig WAY deeper in the stories I am writing. Dig deeper into myself, my experiences, my life, my failures, dreams, hopes, nightmares....and fears.
I had two of my "better" stories rejected from a reprint anthology recently. Granted, it was a pretty prestigious anthology edited by a prestigious editor, so I imagine the competition was stiff. You can bet I'll be buying a copy of this anthology when it comes out, scope out the folks who trumped me.
But I wasn't upset. In fact, I had sorta expected to get rejected, which is why I submitted. The editor is also someone I've studied under, so after both stories got rejected I felt free enough to open a dialogue with him about these stories' weaknesses. This editor had also read Hiram Grange & The Chosen One , so I asked for his opinion on that, too.
Mechanically, I think this editor is happy with my progress. He praised the action sequences in my Hiram, which is pretty high praise indeed. Still, he noted something very important, a lacking in my storytelling that I'VE come to note myself over the last six months or so.
My stories aren't ALIVE. Not yet. They move and function exactly as "stories" should, but according to this editor - whose word is as close to gospel about fiction for me as you can get - my work still reads an awful lot like someone "doing the writer thing". Probably the most telling critique was that the characters all appear as skilled actors who only live for the length of the story, and that it was hard to believe they'd actually exist OUTSIDE of the story itself.
We talked a bit about how to make my work come alive. One his quotes that will always stand out in my mind is this: "The real stuff, the stuff that lives and lasts, comes out of late night conversations with your very own self."
Wow.
Now, this both challenged me and encouraged me. Challenged me, because it made me consider all the anthologies I'd thought about submitting to over this next year. Was I thinking about stories that really reflected the above sentiment? Or was I just trying to "get into the anthology?"
It was an encouragement, however, because while I leaked a little of myself into Hiram Grange, I couldn't put all of myself into him because of how all the Hiram Five were building Hiram together. It was a group effort, so while a lot of Hiram belongs to me, not all of it does. My current project, however...is all me. Almost painfully so. Seems like I'm on the right track.
Also, this editor suggested I pick up
To Each Their Darkness
, by Gary Braunbeck, a nonfiction tome on writing horror. Luckily, I'd already pre-ordered a copy. Any of you serious about being a horror writer should pick this up NOW. I'm only a little way into it, but I've already discovered the best reason to write horror that I've ever encountered:"What I see is pain and isolation that empowers not the sufferers, but that which afflicts them. I want a reason for this. I want a reason for babies born with cancer, for the endless supply of thoughtless cruelties both little and large we inflict on one another on an everyday basis, for old folks who are abandoned to die alone and unwanted and unloved.
I want an explanation, please, for all of the soul-sick, broken-hearted people who become so hollowed by their aloneness that they turn on the gas, eat the business end of shotgun, or find a ceiling beam that can take their weight. I want sense made of this. I want to know the reason why...and since none is forthcoming, either from above or those around me, I've decided to try and find an answer on my own. So far, the best - the only - way for me to work toward this is through writing horror stories."
- Gary Braunbeck, To Each Their Darkness (Apex Publications)
So that's my only writing resolution. To only take on writing projects that resonate with me, personally. If I can't find an emotional hook I can associate with, if I can't bring my own darkness and fear to it, I won't write it. This will result in fewer stories.
But hopefully much better ones that actually LIVE.
Happy New Year!
December 30, 2010
Who's Your Batman, baby?
As you may or may not have noticed, I'm a bit prone to nostalgia. It takes very little to spark that fuzzy warm glow of memory in me. Running into an old girlfriend, hearing a song I haven't heard in years, kicking around a part of town I used to live in. Heck, I recently blogged about how nostalgic I am about our local mall.
I'm pretty happy living that way. It's who I am. As a writer and storyteller, I'm a bit obsessed with stories (if you haven't noticed), so when I run into someone I haven't seen in a long time, I immediately become curious about what their life has been like the last few years, about how their "story" has progressed since I last knew them.
When I venture into a part of town I haven't seen in years, I automatically reflect on how my "story" was so very different when I lived there, and how I left my "footprints" all over town, and how one simple landmark - like an old apartment or the deli where I bought all my subs - brings back the flavor of that story in an instant.
As you may also know, I like to color. A lot. Little things like that soothe me. Same thing with building models and such. So anyway, Madi and I color often. However, I've more than filled up the books I usually color in, and not in the mood to color in one of Madi's Disney Princess coloring books, the other day I hunted the Internet for some free coloring pages. Decided on Batman, and printed off several different pages of different Batmen.
Not surprisingly, I realized that for me, the true Batman will always look like the one I read consistently as a kid. There have been several different Batsuits over the years, many of them reflecting different stages in Batman's development, but for me, Batman will always look like this:
The blue cape and cowl, blue gloves and boots and gray suit. This will always be Batman as I remember him. There have been lots of other incarnations, but to me - this is Batman.
This image brings back the hours I spent not only reading the comics but coloring in my Justice League coloring book, and watching both Superfriends and Justice League of America on those blissfully uneventful and responsibility-free Saturday mornings.
Not surprisingly, the image of this Batman that's the most iconic for me is this one....
Now, at the time I'd been unaware of the reader poll to either keep or kill off Jason Todd (Robin). I just cruised comic book stores and read as many issues as I could. I didn't always have the money to buy the issues I wanted, so I missed a few.
I'll never forget where I was when I read this issue, though. In the Kmart over on State Street, back when they - and lots of other stores, even grocery stores (those were the days) - had racks of comic books.
I remember thinking: "No. Freaking. Way. They CAN'T KILL ROBIN!" Not coincidentally, you'll see the cover of my Hiram Grange resembles this picture quite a bit.
Anyway. Just another bit of mindless trivia that makes up my life. Any of you have iconic comic book/television heroes that remind you of a certain time in your life?
C'mon. 'Fess up. Break out that old black jacket and channel your inner Michael Knight (David Hasselhoff, Knight Rider), and post me some links in the comments sections of iconic images from your childhood...
I'm pretty happy living that way. It's who I am. As a writer and storyteller, I'm a bit obsessed with stories (if you haven't noticed), so when I run into someone I haven't seen in a long time, I immediately become curious about what their life has been like the last few years, about how their "story" has progressed since I last knew them.
When I venture into a part of town I haven't seen in years, I automatically reflect on how my "story" was so very different when I lived there, and how I left my "footprints" all over town, and how one simple landmark - like an old apartment or the deli where I bought all my subs - brings back the flavor of that story in an instant.
As you may also know, I like to color. A lot. Little things like that soothe me. Same thing with building models and such. So anyway, Madi and I color often. However, I've more than filled up the books I usually color in, and not in the mood to color in one of Madi's Disney Princess coloring books, the other day I hunted the Internet for some free coloring pages. Decided on Batman, and printed off several different pages of different Batmen.
Not surprisingly, I realized that for me, the true Batman will always look like the one I read consistently as a kid. There have been several different Batsuits over the years, many of them reflecting different stages in Batman's development, but for me, Batman will always look like this:
The blue cape and cowl, blue gloves and boots and gray suit. This will always be Batman as I remember him. There have been lots of other incarnations, but to me - this is Batman. This image brings back the hours I spent not only reading the comics but coloring in my Justice League coloring book, and watching both Superfriends and Justice League of America on those blissfully uneventful and responsibility-free Saturday mornings.
Not surprisingly, the image of this Batman that's the most iconic for me is this one....
Now, at the time I'd been unaware of the reader poll to either keep or kill off Jason Todd (Robin). I just cruised comic book stores and read as many issues as I could. I didn't always have the money to buy the issues I wanted, so I missed a few. I'll never forget where I was when I read this issue, though. In the Kmart over on State Street, back when they - and lots of other stores, even grocery stores (those were the days) - had racks of comic books.
I remember thinking: "No. Freaking. Way. They CAN'T KILL ROBIN!" Not coincidentally, you'll see the cover of my Hiram Grange resembles this picture quite a bit.
Anyway. Just another bit of mindless trivia that makes up my life. Any of you have iconic comic book/television heroes that remind you of a certain time in your life?
C'mon. 'Fess up. Break out that old black jacket and channel your inner Michael Knight (David Hasselhoff, Knight Rider), and post me some links in the comments sections of iconic images from your childhood...
