Icy Sedgwick's Blog, page 106
October 11, 2011
Say hello to Nerine Dorman
I love throwing open the doors of my blog to different writers, so today I'm very pleased to welcome South African word mistress Nerine Dorman! Nerine Dorman works as a newspaper sub-editor and writer by day; at night she writes and edits fiction. Her novels are an indulgence in black magic; vampires; tall, dark and looming...
You've got several books available, and more on the way. What first attracted you to writing as a career?This is one of those very difficult questions I'm not quite sure how to answer. It's safe to say, I've been story-telling since a young age, be it my worlds of make-believe I'd dream myself to sleep to, or make up games with friends. During my young adult years I used to do a fair amount of fantasy role-playing with my geek friends.
But I remember very clearly at about the age of 13 when I wanted to write a novel. It seemed such an unattainable goal and I had no idea how I was going to go about it, but it kinda stuck through all my phases—like the time I was convinced I was going to be the next best thing after Trent Reznor and Peter Steele for the South African music industry. I've always come back to the written word.
You work as both a writer, and an editor. Which gives you greater satisfaction?This is a tricky one. I love both equally. I'm always thinking up better ways to say stuff. Nothing gets my goat more than reading a passage and wanting to reach for my red pen. I guess it stems from the fact that both my parents were school teachers.
But seriously, I get as much kick out of writing as I do making authors improve their writing. When an author turns around to me and says "thank you" or refers to me as their "super editor" on a blog, it makes me go all warm and fuzzy, and I have to go sit down 'cos I feel all teary-eyed. Working with an author who visibly improves after the first novel is just the best feeling ever.
As November is nearly upon us, what do you make of the NaNoWriMo phenomenon, from both a writer's and an editor's perspective?Luckily this year I've talked myself down from the very high place of doing NaNo. I know I can do it. After all, at the start of the year I wrote a 95 000-word novel in just over two months. But to be honest, it's very intense and since I've already proved that it can be done, I don't want to go down that road again. It's exhausting. Also, with my editing deadlines—I'd be treading dangerous ground headed for a burn-out.
NaNo is great if you're a writer who needs the focus but as an editor, I see a lot of authors rush off their manuscripts the moment they're done, and that's not always so good. Usually about a month or two after NaNo I see an influx of submissions. Not all these are ready for publication.
Speaking of editing, you recently launched an editing service. Tell us about it.At some point I'd like to resign from my day job and do the work I really enjoy—which is editing from home and not having to commute or get out of my PJs. I'd like to build solid relationships with authors who need a personalised editing service that isn't going to cost them an arm and a leg; my rates are, I believe, affordable. I've been editing professionally now for a number of years and have a pretty good handle on the most obvious issues that occur in a manuscript. My preferred genres are horror, urban/dark fantasy as well as epic fantasy. I'm not averse to romance, erotica, BDSM or paranormal.
What hobbies or interests do you have that you find most compatible with writing?I have a huge love for music. Considering that music features in a lot of my stories—some characters are involved in the industry—this is definitely a plus. I have particular soundtracks I prefer to listen to while I work that help to create a positive mood for my writing and editing. After that it's magic, history and philosophy. These themes are recurrent. After that it's travel and the environment.
Travel's a big one for me because it offers me a lot of inspiration for creative world-building. Many of my readers have commented that my settings are very realistic. Even if they haven't visited Africa, they feel as though they walk every step with my characters.
I am, by proxy, also involved in South Africa's subcultures—be it the goth scene, the body mod tribe, indie filmmaking and the fetish scene. My husband is an indie filmmaker and photographer. I meet some VERY interesting folks; this ties into my writing quite nicely.
As your day job is related to writing and you do so much in your non-day job time, do you ever worry you'll get bored with the written word?Bored? What's that? I don't have time to get bored. There's always one more deadline I need to take care of. If I need a break, I play in my garden a little or spend time with my animals. To be honest, I'm on the go nearly all the time. I compulsively have to fiddle and if I don't have a computer keyboard, book or ereader handy, I start getting twitchy. Sometimes I get a yen to play music on one of my guitars or even haul out my piano accordion. The sounds I produce are usually so discouraging I go back to my computer. A wee bit OCD—that's me. I'll sleep when I'm dead.
You can find Nerine's author page on Facebook here, while her editor page is here! Go and check out her blog here, or go and follow her on Twitter @nerinedorman.
You've got several books available, and more on the way. What first attracted you to writing as a career?This is one of those very difficult questions I'm not quite sure how to answer. It's safe to say, I've been story-telling since a young age, be it my worlds of make-believe I'd dream myself to sleep to, or make up games with friends. During my young adult years I used to do a fair amount of fantasy role-playing with my geek friends.But I remember very clearly at about the age of 13 when I wanted to write a novel. It seemed such an unattainable goal and I had no idea how I was going to go about it, but it kinda stuck through all my phases—like the time I was convinced I was going to be the next best thing after Trent Reznor and Peter Steele for the South African music industry. I've always come back to the written word.
You work as both a writer, and an editor. Which gives you greater satisfaction?This is a tricky one. I love both equally. I'm always thinking up better ways to say stuff. Nothing gets my goat more than reading a passage and wanting to reach for my red pen. I guess it stems from the fact that both my parents were school teachers.
But seriously, I get as much kick out of writing as I do making authors improve their writing. When an author turns around to me and says "thank you" or refers to me as their "super editor" on a blog, it makes me go all warm and fuzzy, and I have to go sit down 'cos I feel all teary-eyed. Working with an author who visibly improves after the first novel is just the best feeling ever.
As November is nearly upon us, what do you make of the NaNoWriMo phenomenon, from both a writer's and an editor's perspective?Luckily this year I've talked myself down from the very high place of doing NaNo. I know I can do it. After all, at the start of the year I wrote a 95 000-word novel in just over two months. But to be honest, it's very intense and since I've already proved that it can be done, I don't want to go down that road again. It's exhausting. Also, with my editing deadlines—I'd be treading dangerous ground headed for a burn-out.
NaNo is great if you're a writer who needs the focus but as an editor, I see a lot of authors rush off their manuscripts the moment they're done, and that's not always so good. Usually about a month or two after NaNo I see an influx of submissions. Not all these are ready for publication.
Speaking of editing, you recently launched an editing service. Tell us about it.At some point I'd like to resign from my day job and do the work I really enjoy—which is editing from home and not having to commute or get out of my PJs. I'd like to build solid relationships with authors who need a personalised editing service that isn't going to cost them an arm and a leg; my rates are, I believe, affordable. I've been editing professionally now for a number of years and have a pretty good handle on the most obvious issues that occur in a manuscript. My preferred genres are horror, urban/dark fantasy as well as epic fantasy. I'm not averse to romance, erotica, BDSM or paranormal.
What hobbies or interests do you have that you find most compatible with writing?I have a huge love for music. Considering that music features in a lot of my stories—some characters are involved in the industry—this is definitely a plus. I have particular soundtracks I prefer to listen to while I work that help to create a positive mood for my writing and editing. After that it's magic, history and philosophy. These themes are recurrent. After that it's travel and the environment.
Travel's a big one for me because it offers me a lot of inspiration for creative world-building. Many of my readers have commented that my settings are very realistic. Even if they haven't visited Africa, they feel as though they walk every step with my characters.
I am, by proxy, also involved in South Africa's subcultures—be it the goth scene, the body mod tribe, indie filmmaking and the fetish scene. My husband is an indie filmmaker and photographer. I meet some VERY interesting folks; this ties into my writing quite nicely.
As your day job is related to writing and you do so much in your non-day job time, do you ever worry you'll get bored with the written word?Bored? What's that? I don't have time to get bored. There's always one more deadline I need to take care of. If I need a break, I play in my garden a little or spend time with my animals. To be honest, I'm on the go nearly all the time. I compulsively have to fiddle and if I don't have a computer keyboard, book or ereader handy, I start getting twitchy. Sometimes I get a yen to play music on one of my guitars or even haul out my piano accordion. The sounds I produce are usually so discouraging I go back to my computer. A wee bit OCD—that's me. I'll sleep when I'm dead.
You can find Nerine's author page on Facebook here, while her editor page is here! Go and check out her blog here, or go and follow her on Twitter @nerinedorman.
October 10, 2011
Photo Prompt 54
New prompt available!
If you want to use the prompt, all I ask is that you include a link to this entry and a credit to me for the photograph, and that you post a link to your story in the comments box below so I can see what you've come up with! If you don't comment on this entry, then I can't comment on your story.
The 54th prompt is Doors.
All photo prompts are my own photography - you can find more of it on Flickr. You can also buy my prints from Deviantart. 20% of all proceeds go to charity - the other 80% go towards my PhD fees!
If you want to use the prompt, all I ask is that you include a link to this entry and a credit to me for the photograph, and that you post a link to your story in the comments box below so I can see what you've come up with! If you don't comment on this entry, then I can't comment on your story.
The 54th prompt is Doors.
All photo prompts are my own photography - you can find more of it on Flickr. You can also buy my prints from Deviantart. 20% of all proceeds go to charity - the other 80% go towards my PhD fees!
October 7, 2011
Friday Flash - Chasing The Storm
Tempesta dashed across the meadow. She stabbed the wet grass with long metal stakes as she ran, forming a network of upturned glass jars on iron poles. She ducked between the rusty trees of her makeshift forest with practised ease. Fat raindrops exploded in her black hair. "I'll kill him, I'll actually kill him this time," she muttered.
She glared at the dark outline of the house among the trees. Tempesta swore she saw Tonitru silhouetted against an upstairs window. She hoped her younger brother saw her venomous look. Even if he escaped her wrath, he wouldn't escape that of Father.
A rumble of thunder rolled around the swollen purple sky. The ground vibrated beneath her feet, spurring on a fresh burst of speed. Tempesta put the trees and the house behind her, racing out across open grass. Lightning lit the undersides of the bruised thunderheads.
"No no no! Not yet! I'm not ready!" Tempesta shouted at the sky.
She rammed the final stake home as jagged claws of lightning tore open the clouds. Tempesta threw herself away from the metal pole as the electricity struck. The glass glowed green as the lightning snaked between the iron stakes. The jars hissed and spat as the raw energy made contact. Tempesta allowed herself a smile; the lightning coiled in the glass urns, humming a low note from the Song of Storms. The thunder coughed and spluttered overhead, the clouds rippling and breaking apart.
Tempesta sat back on the grass to watch the growing patches of blue sky. She thought of the broken storm casket, lying at Tonitru's feet. His penitent and fearful face swam before her eyes. She thumped the grass with a tired fist. The storm averted, Tonitru may have escaped their Father's wrath, but Tempesta vowed that she would never allow her little brother to play in her room again.
October 4, 2011
NaNoWriMo 2011
It's coming up to that time of year when the blogosphere threatens to implode under the weight of NaNoWriMo posts. Are you doing it? Are you giving it a miss? Do you think it's the worst thing to happen to fiction since Stephanie Meyer?I did my first NaNoWriMo in 2008 and wrote the first draft of my Fowlis Westerby novel (now awaiting yet more edits). I dropped out in 2009 after being made redundant a week into November, and found that job hunting became more important than a novel about aristocratic zombies. Last year, I managed to complete the first draft of a superhero noir tale set in my Vertigo City universe.
However, I am not doing NaNoWriMo this year. I think it's a wonderful way to get people writing, and the camaraderie is certainly a good boost to get that novel finished. Sadly I've got too much on my plate right now. I'm just starting a PhD in Film Studies, I will have hopefully begun the sequel to my pulp Western, The Guns of Retribution , I'm hoping to have a job by then, and I've got lots of blogging to do for my paranormal interests. Quite simply, I just don't think I'll have the time to fit in an extra 1167 words every day.
That said, I wish everyone who decides to take part all the very best of luck, and I shall be cheering you on from the sidelines!
October 3, 2011
Photo Prompt 53
New prompt available!
If you want to use the prompt, all I ask is that you include a link to this entry and a credit to me for the photograph, and that you post a link to your story in the comments box below so I can see what you've come up with! If you don't comment on this entry, then I can't comment on your story.
The 53rd prompt is Headless.
All photo prompts are my own photography - you can find more of it on Flickr. You can also buy my prints from Deviantart. 20% of all proceeds go to charity - the other 80% go towards my PhD fees!
If you want to use the prompt, all I ask is that you include a link to this entry and a credit to me for the photograph, and that you post a link to your story in the comments box below so I can see what you've come up with! If you don't comment on this entry, then I can't comment on your story.
The 53rd prompt is Headless.
All photo prompts are my own photography - you can find more of it on Flickr. You can also buy my prints from Deviantart. 20% of all proceeds go to charity - the other 80% go towards my PhD fees!
September 30, 2011
Friday Flash - A Change
Bare feet skip along a woodland path. Sunlight peeks through the tree branches overhead. It dances on blonde hair, streaming behind the young woman. She whistles a cheerful melody as she skips. A young deer streaks through the trees, and she calls out a greeting. The deer pauses, snorts a reply, and disappears into the undergrowth.The young woman passes an ancient oak. A sudden chill in the air forces a break in her melody. She stumbles in her skipping, a shiver running across her golden skin. The woman glances around. She feels a gaze but sees no one, and heads away down the path, skipping perhaps a little faster now.
The man steps from behind the oak. Fragments of his mossy frock coat fall away in his wake. A solitary orange leaf lies in the middle of the path. The man stoops, and picks up the stem between his bony fingers. He lifts the leaf to his nose, and inhales the scent of decay.
The man gazes along the path, and smiles at the retreating Summer.
September 28, 2011
I Had A Dream
If you're anything like me, your heart will sink whenever you hear the words, "I had this weird dream, right?" By their very nature, dreams are weird since they don't follow the same narrative logic as conscious thought. The apparently illogical nature of the dream is the bedrock of Surrealism - the movement would not work without it.Still, dreams can sometimes prove to be strangely inspirational - and not in the "I have a dream" sort of way. I've been suffering with a most vexatious head cold over the past few days and as a result, I've been having remarkably vivid dreams - and I want to offer the most recent one as a story prompt! If you manage it, leave a link below so I can see what you come up with.
Your challenge, should you choose to accept it, is to write a story about a pirate captain, a fictional Londe bus route, and a kidnapped bear cub.
Enjoy!
September 27, 2011
Miniature Update
Greetings, friends!I've been whoring myself about a bit of late to promote The Guns of Retribution, which I'm now pleased to hold in my hands as a paperback! I'm going to be having a launch party in Newcastle upon Tyne once I've finalised things with the venue, so if you're in the North East in early October, then hopefully you'll be able to come along!
In the meantime, I've done interviews with the lovely Jen Brubacher and word wizard Tony Noland. I've also managed to snaffle three reviews of the book by Helen Howell, Paul D Brazill, and Pulp Serenade. Hopefully they'll persuade you to check it out. I've also got a post up over on Write Anything about writing genre - which is kind of apt when you've done a Western.
In other news, I'm currently working on an outline for the sequel. Grey O'Donnell is a character I'm really enjoying working with, and there are plenty more adventures for him to have - especially when things take a supernatural turn. He won't be putting away his Colt just yet!
I'm also working on a story for the Bloody Parchment competition. The deadline is Halloween, and the first prize is one round of professional editing of a novella or novel-length work, while the top thirteen finalists will see their work collected in an anthology. So if you have a piece of dark fiction less than 3,500 words, get entering!
September 26, 2011
Photo Prompt 52
New prompt available!
If you want to use the prompt, all I ask is that you include a link to this entry and a credit to me for the photograph, and that you post a link to your story in the comments box below so I can see what you've come up with! If you don't comment on this entry, then I can't comment on your story.
The 52nd prompt is Writing.
All photo prompts are my own photography - you can find more of it on Flickr. You can also buy my prints from Deviantart. 20% of all proceeds go to charity - the other 80% go towards my PhD fees!
If you want to use the prompt, all I ask is that you include a link to this entry and a credit to me for the photograph, and that you post a link to your story in the comments box below so I can see what you've come up with! If you don't comment on this entry, then I can't comment on your story.
The 52nd prompt is Writing.
All photo prompts are my own photography - you can find more of it on Flickr. You can also buy my prints from Deviantart. 20% of all proceeds go to charity - the other 80% go towards my PhD fees!
September 23, 2011
Friday Flash - The Agency
I sat at my desk and stared at the blank sheet of paper in the typewriter. A cigarette balanced on the edge of an ash tray, a ribbon of smoke curling upward like a nicotine-flavoured Mata Hari. A bottle of ten year old Ben Nevis Single Malt stood just beyond my grasp. That was some good whiskey right there. I cast a longing glance at the bottle and licked my lips. A double shot would be my reward for finishing another chapter of my latest book.I looked at the clock. 10:23pm. She was late. I looked at the door, willing it to open. I drummed my fingers on the edge of the desk. She knew I was pushing a deadline here. My publisher wanted to move forward the release date of the next Dick Trenton mystery, and I still had fourteen chapters to write. I caressed the keys of the typewriter with trembling fingers, and considered typing something. My fingers locked up - no, I couldn't write without her. I snatched up the smouldering cigarette and took a drag.
At 10:30pm, the door swung open and crashed against the filing cabinet. I looked up, expecting to see her. Five feet and eight inches of pouting redhead, all curves and sophisticated tailoring. She liked to perch on my desk as I wrote, telling me the stories I would type.
"You Arthur Brannigan?" The 6ft brunette in the doorway pointed a red lacquered talon at me. A cigarette dangled from her scarlet lips.
"Yes. Who are you?" My fingers crawled along the edge of my desk to my drawer. I kept an antique Colt .44 in there, just in case.
"Your Muse." The brunette tottered into my office on skyscraper heels, wobbling around like goddamned Bambi. She wore the same kind of pinstripe outfit as my usual girl, but my usual girl had the parts in the right places to fill it out. This dame was built like a garden rake, and the suit hung off her like my dad's old business suit on a scarecrow.
"You're not Claudia."
"No, I ain't. Claudia ain't available, so the Agency sent me." The brunette sat down on the edge of the desk with a thump. My skin crawled to see her up close. Makeup pooled in the deep creases around her eyes and mouth. She grinned, displaying a mouthful of crooked, yellow teeth.
"Well, I, er, I suppose you'll do. You know the story?" I asked.
"Yeah, though I gotta tell ya, it ain't all that good." The brunette stubbed out her cigarette in the ash tray.
"What do you mean?"
"Your Dick Trenton crap is all the same. I liked that other one. What was it called?"
"Staircase to Nowhere." I sat back in my chair, deflated by her harsh tone. I hadn't thought about my first book in over twenty years - the only book to bear my real name.
"Yeah, that was some good storytellin', Arthur." The brunette fished around in a battered purse for a dented cigarette case.
"Well I don't write like that any more. But I got to get this one finished, so, I, er...I guess we better get started. You gonna tell me what happens next in the story?" I pulled my chair forward and laid my fingers on the keys, ready to type.
"Not so fast, bucko." She slipped another cigarette between her fire engine red lips and fumbled with the lighter.
"Hey, I'm paying you to do some work here!"
"Correction, you're payin' the Agency, and they pay me. You ain't my boss." She clicked the lighter again.
"I have a deadline to meet, and-"
"Then ya better get workin', hadn't ya?" She snapped her fingers and pointed at the typewriter.
"Well, where does the story go next?"
The brunette waved her hand to dismiss me. She shook the lighter and tried again. Still no flame. She growled at the unlit cigarette.
"What's your name?" I asked.
"That ain't important, sugar. Your deadline is, though, so you better get to typin'."
"Fine then, I'll just put in a complaint about the dumb broad who didn't want to do any work."
I reached across the desk for the telephone. She darted forward and put her ice cold hand over mine before I could lift the receiver.
"What did you call me?" she asked. The gruff edge fell away from her voice, and a steely glint in her eye taunted me.
"I called you a dumb broad. Now you gonna do your job?" I forced myself to sound forceful.
"Ain't nobody calls me a dumb broad, asshole."
She reached forward and laid her hand over my mouth. I tried to pry her fingers free but her grip was too strong. I kicked and bucked but she didn't let go. Intense cold radiated out of her hand, freezing my throat as it made its way down. My kicks grew weaker, until I couldn't kick any more.
I stood up, aware that I'd left my body behind. I turned around to see the corpse of Arthur Brannigan slumped in the chair by the desk. The brunette leaned forward through me, and hauled the corpse aside. The body landed on the floor with a thud. She climbed over the desk and sat in the empty chair. A wicked grin, devoid of any humour, spread across her face as she began to type.
I watched that bitch finish the manuscript. I watched her take phone calls, impersonating my voice. I read the reviews that she clipped from the newspaper and pinned to the wall.
I watched my replacement Muse become a better writer than I ever was.
