Julie Duffy's Blog, page 159

[Reading Room] Weights & Measures by Jodi Picoult

This is a sad story, dealing with two parents’ grief over losing their child: it’s a dangerous read for any parent. Do not attempt if you are feeling fragile.

That said, it is a very well written tale that totally lives up to the remit of the anthology it is published in: stories that keep you saying “…and then what happened?”

This story is contemporary, realistic fiction that veers into magical realism in a way I thought really fitted with the enormity of the subject. There is also a lovely helping of arcane knowledge (in this case about weights and measures) that made me happy.

My only complaint is that, while I liked the ending, I felt it swooped in a little too quickly.

Found in  – Stories: All-New TalesNeil Gaiman and Al Sarrntonio

The Time You Spend Waiting To Begin

Try to make your time matter: minutes and hours and days and weeks can blow away like dead leaves, with nothing to show but time you spent not quite ever doing things, or time you spent waiting to begin.

via Neil Gaimans Journal.

This except comes from a compendium of New Year’s Wishes from the master of modern storytelling, and champion of creatives, Neil Gaiman.

All of the New Year’s wishes are inspirational but this one struck me particularly.

We struggle to find time to write.
We make excuses for not doing the thing we love, in case we’re not good enough.
We say we’ll be creative another day, just as soon as we’ve cleared out plates of these urgent (but not necessarily important) tasks.

So try.

Try to do something creative today.

Then do the same tomorrow.

It’s worth it. I promise.

Need help getting started? Breaking Writers’ Block: A StoryADay.org Guideis chock-full of 60+ suggestions for ways to get started, even on the hardest day.

SWAGr February Check In

What did you write last month? What will you do in February? It’s time for the February  Serious Writer’s Accountability Group!

Leave a comment below telling us how you got on last month, and what you plan to do next month, then check back in on the first of each month, to see how everyone’s doing.

(It doesn’t have to be fiction. Feel free to use this group to push you in whatever creative direction you need.)

Don’t remember what you promised to do? Check out the comments on previous SWAGr posts.

And don’t forget to celebrate with/encourage your fellow SWAGr-ers on their progress!

****

Examples of Goals Set By SWAGr-ers in previous months

Complete a draft of a story – Ashley
Write 1 blog post a week – Cris
Write 10,000 (fiction) words this month.” – Julie
Read a new short story every day.” – Julie
Track my time and see what’s getting in the way of my writing – Alex
Revise two short stories and research possible markets – Jeannie
 Schedule “me time” to recharge my creative juices  – Jeannie
Finish one of my other short stories and send it out – Maureen
Write at least 500 words a day on any project – Maureen
Write 1,500 words a day on my book. On weekends … write 2,500 words a day – Jeffrey
Writing the synopsis for my novel – Misa
Finish one story draft each month – Carol

 So, what will you do this month? Leave your comment below:

(Next check-in, Feb 1, 2015. Tell your friends. )

Don’t forget, if you need inspiration for a story you can still get ALL THE PROMPTS from StoryADay May 2014 and support the running of the StoryADay challenge at the same time. Give a little, get a little  Click here.

Dear You Who Doesn’t Want to Do that Hard Thing | A Holy Experience

Life is Pain — and you get to choose: either the Pain of Discipline or the Pain of Disappointment.

via Dear You Who Doesn’t Want to Do that Hard Thing

| A Holy Experience.

The thing is: choosing the pain of discipline doesn’t guarantee you won’t also get the pain of disappointment:

Work hard on your story and it may be rejected
Turn up to write every day and still fail to craft best-selling commercial fiction
Write your stories but fail to find the right readers.

Why Not Skip Straight To The Pain of Disappointment?

Because as long as you are showing up, Doing The Thing, writing the story, losing yourself int he words; disappointment will remain a fleeting thing.

Disappointments will only ever be momentary because you will have on-demand access to the joy of those moments when the writing is going well and you sense something greater than your every day self, just at the edges of your consciousness.

No matter if anyone buys your work, the writing itself will make you a better, happier, more-fulfilled and easier-to-live-with person.

(Added to which, if you do the work even when the discipline is painful, you are doing the work that may eventually turn in to something people want to read. They can’t read your aspirations. They can’t read anything you haven’t had the discipline to sit down and write, edit, improve and publish!)

The pain of discipline or the pain of disappointment?

I chose the latter for too long. Now I’m trying to embrace the former.

What I’ve Discovered About The Pain of Discipline.

It’s only painful until you get started.
The hardest part about writing is the ‘butt in chair’ part. And the keeping the butt in the chair part.)

Which is why I say:

Try StoryADay this May.

No, you won’t write a worthwhile story every day.
No, you may not manage to write a complete story draft every day.
Yes, you will write every day.
Yes, you will finish a story some days.
Yes, you will come back every day and break through the Pain of Discipline. The Stumbling Block of Starting, The Resistance, The Fear of Failure, The Myth of Perfection.

Do that for 31 days and you will be more of a writer than 99% of people who claim the title.

Sign up now!

[Write On Wednesday] Giving Up

No! I don’t mean you! And I don’t mean me.

But there comes a point in any venture when a person thinks of giving up.

I recently wrote about how glad I was for the tenacity and commitment of the star of a show I went to see. And it got me thinking about all the other stories that could have resulted from each decision he had made during his life. And that I have made. And that you have made. And that our characters make…

The Prompt

Giving Up

Write a story in which your character is tempted to give up on something that matters to them. Or maybe they already have.

Tips

Think about the emotional ramifications of making that decision. Is it something they have wanted for a long time, or just a whim? Your answer dictates how big a deal the decision is.
Think about the fall out from the decision. Who does it affect the most? Do the consequences match the expectations of your character? Is it easier than they thought it would be? Harder?
Think about how you can convey these things without directly telling the reader “She was finding it harder than she had expected”. What does it do to a person’s energy level, gait, relationships, ability to focus, when things are tough? What does it do to all these things if the character is surprised by how happy they are, after giving up?
You can write about the process of coming to the decision, or about the consequences, but remember to include some immediacy, some sense of movement in the events of the story. Don’t just tell it as if everything was resolved before you put pen to paper.

Go!

Post your story in the comments, or tell us how it went.

[Reading Room] The Knife by Richard Adams

On first coming to the end of this taut little tale I was a bit disappointed: is that it? But then I realized that the last line was perfect and the story really was done and that was all there was to it.

This is an atmospheric and well-drawn tale of a boy in a 1938 English boarding school, being bullied and wondering if he’s found a way out. It will feel familiar to anyone who has read C. S. Lewis’s memoirs about growing up and attending a school like this…or any fiction set in English public schools (what they call fee-paying schools). Heck, it’ll feel familiar to anyone who has watched the Human Nature/Family Of Blood episodes of Doctor Who.

Nevertheless, it is a unique and engrossing short tale with a chill in its bones and an absolutely delicious last line.

Found in Stories: All-New Tales – Neil Gaiman and Al Sarrntonio

Plot Twists To Avoid

The heroine/narrator is revealed to be a cat, dog, car, possum, tree or ghost!
A partner’s mysterious arrangements turn out to be for a surprise party
The perpetrators murder plan backfires and s/he eats the poison
A woman meets up with a handsome “stranger” for a steamy rendezvous and it turns out to be her husband
Someone nervous about a first day at school turns out to be the teacher; or about a wedding, the vicar; or an interview, the interviewer.
A woman spots her boyfriend/man of her dreams with a beautiful blonde lady – who turns out to be his sister
Anything involving twinsA murder/death actually turns out to be part of a play rehearsal

via Fast Fiction Guidelines – thats life!.

 

This is a great list of plot twists to avoid, found in the Writers’ Guidelines for an Australian magazine.

(The rest of the guidelines are good, too. I like the bit where they point out that too many characters and a story gets confusing. They recommend topping out at four.)

 

Although, it has to be said, the thrawn and perverse side of me is very tempted to write a series of stories in which one or all of these things happen, just to see if I could have fun with them. (Hey, the poison one worked for The Princess Bride…)

At The Mercy Of The Muse?

StoryADay May can help you develop that practice. Sign up here: http://storyaday.org/signup

[Write On Wednesday] Christmas Redux

It’s the perfect time to write a Christmas/New Year/Winter story!

Don’t believe me? Take a lesson from the wily Dutch.

Everybody knows that the time to plant spring bulbs is in the autumn and yet every spring I receive multiple catalogues from dutch tulip and daffodil distributors. Six months after (or before) I should (have) plant(ed) their products. What lunacy is this?

The bulb marketers know that in spring I’m experiencing floral beauty and regretting not having planted more bulbs last year. It’s all fresh. I can see where I could put this Red Matador and that Orange Empress to fill a scraggy gap in my flower beds. I am full of good intentions about next year.

And, in January, is that not how you feel? As you pack away the holiday decorations, are you not full of regret over the things not done? The gifts unsought? The cards unsent? Is the memory of your brother-in-law’s annual jokes about your dessert not fresh in your memory?

Indeed. So now is the perfect time to write a story set in the season we have just endured enjoyed.

The Prompt

Write A December/Jan Holiday Story 1

Tips

Think back over this past season and watch for strong emotions that pop up. What are they related to? Regrets? Vows of ‘never again’? Longing for next year’s repeat? Write those things down.
Think of moments that stood out for you. Why? What was the emotional resonance?
Think of a character you can put in a seasonal story who wants something. It can be something that is in tune with the message of the season or at odds with it, but they must feel strongly about it.
Now go about messing with their day. Put obstacles in their path. Put obnoxious visitors underfoot. Burn the turkey. Send in the ghosts of Christmas to settle their hash. Whatever works for your story…

Go!

There. Now you have a story ready to post on your blog/submit to a seasonal publication in early autumn/send out with your Christmas cards next Black Friday (you are going to send Christmas cards next year, aren’t you? Unlike this year? I know, I know, it’ll be our little secret…)

Now, excuse me while I check my mailbox for the Breck’s Bulb Catalogue…

 

 

(Do you send out a holiday story in seasonal cards to your friends? Make a note now on your calendar to do this next year!)

No, I’m not conducting a War on Christmas. I, myself, celebrate Christmas. I just feel it’s polite to acknowledge the other 68% of humanity. It has less punch than “write a Christmas story”, I grant you. But if that’s the price for doing unto others, then I’m willing to pay it here in my blog… ↩

[Reading Room] A Mother’s Love by Lottie Lynn

A Mother’s Love is a chilling science fiction story that was selected for the BBC Radio 4 Opening Lines series in 2014.

The stories are supposed to “”have a strong emphasis on narrative”” and this one does. Here’s the opening:

“Child wanted something to do. Mother had left him in their room, because she had to fix a pipe. He had wanted to help; but she said no, she didn’t want him to get hurt. Child thought it was because he lacked sadness whenever she left…”

I love stories like this, where no-one really explains much and you have to figure it out from the clues in the story. And I had to keep reading when, in the second paragraph, I came across this line,

“Pulling at his wires, he began to move towards the jumbled mass of objects Mother had given him to play with.”

What: wires?!

What had started out like a twisted domestic scene had taken a turn for the strange and intriguing. Note to self: breadcrumbs in stories are essential for turning it from ‘good’ to ‘un-put-down-able’.

This year’s deadline for entries is Feb 13, 2015.