Luke Walker's Blog: https://lukewalkerwriter.wordpress.com, page 41
February 26, 2012
Guess what a writer does
Go on. Have a guess. No clues. Just guess.
Give up?
OK. I'll tell you. Ready? Are you sitting down? Here it is...
We write. That's it. Big shock, I know, but I'm always reading stuff online about writing that comes at the expense of actually writing. The latest one was in relation to plotting a graph before writing a book. If I got my head around the idea properly (Maths and all that was never my strong point), it involves making a graph in order to see where the plot could or would hit a high point of action, drama or whatever. Then the low points would presumably be the talky bits like in an action film when you go to the loo because nothing is going to blow up for a minute.
To me, this is a very odd way of doing things. Imagine all that time spent supposedly coming up with an idealised plot based on a poxy graph. What about actually sitting down and typing out a story? What about seeing where your characters take you? I mentioned in an earlier post about the new writers who think there are tricks to writing a book. There are apparently a perfect number of words or chapters or words per chapter or yadda yadda. This graph business is the same sort of thinking. There are no tricks to writing. You could read the top ten best-selling books of the last few years and analyse them to see if you can take the best-selling elements from them and apply those to your own book, but you'd be better off writing your own sodding story to the best of your abilities instead of coming up with a cynical, mashed up rip-off pile of crap. Or messing about with graphs for that matter.
A writer writes. That's what we do. Just like an athlete exercises or a chef cooks a lot, we write. And then when the book is finished, we write another one. And then another.
Give up?
OK. I'll tell you. Ready? Are you sitting down? Here it is...
We write. That's it. Big shock, I know, but I'm always reading stuff online about writing that comes at the expense of actually writing. The latest one was in relation to plotting a graph before writing a book. If I got my head around the idea properly (Maths and all that was never my strong point), it involves making a graph in order to see where the plot could or would hit a high point of action, drama or whatever. Then the low points would presumably be the talky bits like in an action film when you go to the loo because nothing is going to blow up for a minute.
To me, this is a very odd way of doing things. Imagine all that time spent supposedly coming up with an idealised plot based on a poxy graph. What about actually sitting down and typing out a story? What about seeing where your characters take you? I mentioned in an earlier post about the new writers who think there are tricks to writing a book. There are apparently a perfect number of words or chapters or words per chapter or yadda yadda. This graph business is the same sort of thinking. There are no tricks to writing. You could read the top ten best-selling books of the last few years and analyse them to see if you can take the best-selling elements from them and apply those to your own book, but you'd be better off writing your own sodding story to the best of your abilities instead of coming up with a cynical, mashed up rip-off pile of crap. Or messing about with graphs for that matter.
A writer writes. That's what we do. Just like an athlete exercises or a chef cooks a lot, we write. And then when the book is finished, we write another one. And then another.
February 23, 2012
Meat - Joseph D'Lacey
Ever wondered about that burger you're eating? Or that bacon butty you had for breakfast? Ever thought about the chicken in your chicken tikka? After reading Joseph D'Lacey's Meat, you might look at your food in a different way.
Abyrne is a town that has grown after an apocalyptic event. It's not the nicest place to live but given that everywhere else is a wasteland, there isn't much choice. The town is run by two groups: MMP who supply work to much of the population (as well as food), and the Parsons who ensure that the town's religion is followed to the letter. While MMP is the more obvious villain given what they do, I found the Parsons and those blindly following their forced beliefs to be equally as vile. In any case, Abyrne is one of the bleakest examples in fiction of what might come after the collapse of civilisation - a mix of physical horror and emotional brutality that has no time to question the state of things or to think for yourself. Remember the bit in Life of Brian when Brian tells his followers they're all individuals? The people of Abyrne would be first in line to state as one that yes, they are all individuals.
Meat is a superb read with plenty to offer. Take the raw horror from it, or the commentary on religion or the pessimistic view of the human race having learned nothing after the end of all things. Meat doesn't shy away from any of this and I am definitely looking forward to more of Joseph D'Lacey's work.
Pork chops for dinner, anyone?
February 20, 2012
And it's one more guest post from me
My last planned guest blog post. Here I am over at Fiona Dodwell's blog, talking about horror and sexy vampires.
guest horror post
guest horror post
February 18, 2012
Itchy
Since publication day of The Red Girl, my focus has been on editing Belham with a plan of submitting it as soon as it's ready. For the last few days, I've been working on a different book to get it ready for submission. Usually, I don't have any problem with editing. I know a few writers who consider it the most boring part of writing a book. I quite like it. It's a way for me to see things I missed through the first draft, a way of developing plotlines and characters. I figure that can only be good for the book. Plus I've never been one to come up with a perfect page on the first go. I must prefer getting the first draft done and working my way through it to improve it.
The problem with the most recent load of editing is it's been going on for too long. I'm getting bored with it and I'm itching to write something new. Of course, the problem with doing that will be books that aren't ready for submission which pretty much defeats the purpose of being a writer. There's no point in starting something new while I have two books which can't go anywhere. It's like when you're at work and you have three or four jobs to do. One of those jobs is a tedious pain in the arse, but you know it needs doing. So you can either put it off or manage your time and get it done. The recent batch of editing is rapidly becoming that tedious pain in the arse job, but if I don't do it, nobody else will. And if I don't do it, there's no chance of anyone reading either of these books.
So why I'm talking about it instead of doing it? Time to shut up and get stuck in.
Put the kettle on. This could take a while.
The problem with the most recent load of editing is it's been going on for too long. I'm getting bored with it and I'm itching to write something new. Of course, the problem with doing that will be books that aren't ready for submission which pretty much defeats the purpose of being a writer. There's no point in starting something new while I have two books which can't go anywhere. It's like when you're at work and you have three or four jobs to do. One of those jobs is a tedious pain in the arse, but you know it needs doing. So you can either put it off or manage your time and get it done. The recent batch of editing is rapidly becoming that tedious pain in the arse job, but if I don't do it, nobody else will. And if I don't do it, there's no chance of anyone reading either of these books.
So why I'm talking about it instead of doing it? Time to shut up and get stuck in.
Put the kettle on. This could take a while.
February 13, 2012
Guest post - where The Red Girl came from
I've done another guest post. This one concerns waiting on stories and features a bit about where The Red Girl came from.
Waiting On A Story
Hope you like.
Waiting On A Story
Hope you like.
February 12, 2012
Women in horror films
I've done a guest blog post over at Diane Dooley's site. You can have a read about my favourite female characters in horror films here -
Women in horror films
As always, let me know what you think. And enjoy the films.
Women in horror films
As always, let me know what you think. And enjoy the films.
February 11, 2012
The last week...
...has been focused almost entirely on the edits for Belham which I think are now complete. This has been a strange one. Editing a book usually takes me much less time but with publication of TRG and all the stuff leading up to it, my focus obviously had to go there for a while. I think my original plan was for Belham to be edited by some point before Christmas so I'm a little behind myself. It's done in any case, and I can focus on what happens next.
I've got a couple of ideas for short stories floating about which need a bit of planning before I write them and I might return to one or two older ones to see if they can be reworked. Then there's plans for the next book to finalise. I've been saying for a while that it will be a followup to Belham and it may still be, but I have to admit, it may not. A couple of other ideas have come over the last month or so and one in particular is so delicious, I might need to put Belham 2 on hold for a few months. Once I start jotting down my plans on paper, I'll have more idea on which one needs to be written first. Anyway, they all get written eventually so it won't be the end of the world if the followup to Belham is delayed.
In other news, an excerpt to The Red Girl can be read here on Ethan's blog -
TRG excerpt
- and I have a home to find for one of my most recent stories. If you're not a fan of anything with eight legs, this one won't be for you. In the meantime, I have a couple of guest blog posts coming up (details to come) and a cup of coffee to drink. Enjoy the rest of the weekend.
I've got a couple of ideas for short stories floating about which need a bit of planning before I write them and I might return to one or two older ones to see if they can be reworked. Then there's plans for the next book to finalise. I've been saying for a while that it will be a followup to Belham and it may still be, but I have to admit, it may not. A couple of other ideas have come over the last month or so and one in particular is so delicious, I might need to put Belham 2 on hold for a few months. Once I start jotting down my plans on paper, I'll have more idea on which one needs to be written first. Anyway, they all get written eventually so it won't be the end of the world if the followup to Belham is delayed.
In other news, an excerpt to The Red Girl can be read here on Ethan's blog -
TRG excerpt
- and I have a home to find for one of my most recent stories. If you're not a fan of anything with eight legs, this one won't be for you. In the meantime, I have a couple of guest blog posts coming up (details to come) and a cup of coffee to drink. Enjoy the rest of the weekend.
February 6, 2012
Ten question interview
I've done an interview with Ethan Jones which is online now. Ten questions on my book and how I write. Have a read and let me know (or Ethan) know what you think. An excerpt from The Red Girl will follow in the next couple of days.
Ten questions
Ten questions
February 2, 2012
DVD review - A Lonely Place To Die
A couple of weeks back, I mentioned the film A Lonely Place To Die. I didn't have time to do a proper review then (I had book stuff going on since I am a proper writer with a book and a small beard and everything) so this is a little later than I planned.
In short, this is one of the best British films I've seen in a while. A small group of friends are mountaineering in the Scottish Highlands when they discover a young girl who's been kidnapped. Immediately, they're faced with problems. Firstly, the girl is understandably terrified and has no reason to trust them. Secondly, they're in the middle of nowhere with no spare equipment to get the girl to safety. And thirdly, what do they do when the kidnappers come looking for the girl?
It's a simple set up and one that works extremely well. I can't say too much about it without risking spoilers, unfortunately. What I can say is the scenery and locations are stunning, the performances are first rate and the degree of oh shit how are they going to get out of this is about as high as I could take. I know this is a point I have mentioned online before but it's always worth repeating: a film with a massive budget does not automatically equal a great piece of film making (cough cough The Matrix cough cough). And while a low budget also doesn't guarantee a great film, it's done no harm to this film.
Ten out of ten.
In short, this is one of the best British films I've seen in a while. A small group of friends are mountaineering in the Scottish Highlands when they discover a young girl who's been kidnapped. Immediately, they're faced with problems. Firstly, the girl is understandably terrified and has no reason to trust them. Secondly, they're in the middle of nowhere with no spare equipment to get the girl to safety. And thirdly, what do they do when the kidnappers come looking for the girl?
It's a simple set up and one that works extremely well. I can't say too much about it without risking spoilers, unfortunately. What I can say is the scenery and locations are stunning, the performances are first rate and the degree of oh shit how are they going to get out of this is about as high as I could take. I know this is a point I have mentioned online before but it's always worth repeating: a film with a massive budget does not automatically equal a great piece of film making (cough cough The Matrix cough cough). And while a low budget also doesn't guarantee a great film, it's done no harm to this film.
Ten out of ten.
January 29, 2012
An interview with Musa
There's an interview with me up on Musa's site. Have a read and feel free to leave a comment here or there.
http://musapublishing.blogspot.com/2012/01/sitting-down-with-luke-walker.html
http://musapublishing.blogspot.com/2012/01/sitting-down-with-luke-walker.html
