Marcus V. Calvert's Blog, page 51

Sick Idea - 092714 - Hitting The Wrong Car

I saw a fender-bender today. Two college gals swapped insurance cards and went on their way. It got me thinking of ways to twist the story. Naturally, I'd pick something at night, in an isolated location. Maybe the driver at fault's a person and the wronged driver isn't. Imagine wrecking a vampire's new Ferrari or doing a hit-'n-run on a mob boss's only son.

Hope this was of use.

The Piecemeal Approach

If I'm working on a collection of short stories, I pass them to my editor (Ed) on an individual basis. Same for chapters in any book I write. Once the piecemeal editing's done, then we look at the book as a whole.

In my opinion, it's better than the other way around.

My First Interview

It's an odd thing when someone hears about you and wants to do an interview (below is the link to mine).


http://inthelandofcleve.blogspot.com/...

Some tips I'd pass along (for when your day comes):

1. Be patient. Folks interviewing you have way too many juggling axes in the air. You might get interviewed in July and not see it online until a month later.

2. Be prompt. When a deadline's set, meet it. The interviewer's time is precious.

3. Comp him/her a free copy of your work(s).

4. Quadruple-check your interview answers over a two-day period. Each time I read my answers, I wanted to tweak something. You will too.

5. When the link finally comes out, share it w/o being obnoxious.

6. Lastly, be careful what you say. This ain't a journal. It's a PUBLIC article.

Hope this was of use.

Short Story Tips

There are plenty of tips a writer can use to generate a short story. Frankly, anyone can write a short story if he/she puts in enough time. If you do enough of them, with the aim of honing your chops, you could be top-notch someday. It's like cooking, dancing, or cat juggling: you only learn by doing.

Some of my basic tips for writing short stories:

1. Keep it within 1,000 - 3,000 words (a good middle range for a story). Less is more, if you expect to read a story to an audience (trust me), like under 1,000 words.

2. When you write that very first draft, don't worry about it being perfect. Just knock it down and polish it up later.

3. It's easier to write in the past tense than the present tense. Whichever tense you pick, stick with it.

4. Keep your plot different and unpredictable from other stuff. Your reader shouldn't see your story's entire plot coming a mile away. For example, I once wrote a story about a downsized tooth fairy who ended up becoming a vengeance fairy. How would you expect that story to end?

5. Balance your details. Tell enough for the reader to understand/enjoy the story (scenery, descriptions, etc.). But don't bog the tale down with tons of useless details either.

6. Good dialogue enhances a story, especially if it's something memorable (silly, odd, etc.). Don't believe me? Think of your favorite movies and you'll probably remember cool lines from it.

7. Realism matters (even when doing sci-fi or fantasy). When you're done with that first draft of story, look for - and weed out - anything that doesn't make sense. If you're writing a western, where the cowboy whips out a six-shooter and fires fifteen times (without reloading), that's a reality gap.

8. Conflicts are key. Without it, it's hard to keep a story from becoming just a bunch of (probably) boring events written in prose. Whether the conflict's violent or a subtle test of wills, think your conflict through before you write it down. Good conflicts aren't necesarily run-of-the-mill. Shoot for a dilemma that's not so easy to solve/avoid.

9. Don't be afraid to show your characters' flaws. If the hero' an alcoholic womanizer with a heavy fear of heights, so be it. Such imperfections can be played beautifully.

10. Make up a bit of back story for the main characters. Know (at the vey least) their past, what motivates them. Armed with that info, you can direct their actions a lot more easily. I wrote a story about a husband killing his wife and how he almost got away with it. A fried of mine looked it over and asked "why'd he kill her"? I didn't put it in or even think it over ("duh" on me).

11. Make sure the ending has some kick to it. A snappy line. A dramatic exit. Or, at the very least, make the ending a logical place to stop.

The "What If" Technique

If faced with writer's block, one twisted little way to squeeze a story out of your subconscious is the "What If" technique. Quite a few of my short stories came into being this way. The core part of this technique's to look at something in the real world and ask yourself "What if . . . . ?"

Think about it. Odds are you've seen a movie or read a book based on a "What if" scenario.

Some examples:

Think of Underworld (a classic movie): "What if vampires and werewolves had a war?"

Then there was Saving Private Ryan : "What if 8 soldiers were sent into insanely-hostile territory to rescue 1 soldier – a mere private, no less?"

And, of course, there's Kick-Ass : "What if a comic book geek decided to become a vigilante 'super hero': with no powers, fancy gadgets, or even training?"

The advantages of the "What if" are powerful. For one thing, you give your story an instant, solid foundation to build upon. Second, you can explain an idea a lot faster to someone else through a "What if" – which helps when dealing with potential buyers with short attention spans.

Now, how do you dig up a good, solid "What if" that no one else has gotten to yet? Just look around your everyday existence and let your creativity hunt one down. Odds are you're sitting on top of several and don't even know it. And they can come from anywhere.

Just of thinking of stuff I've seen this week, here are some "What if" moments for myself:

1 I saw a guy with a "Will Work For Food" sign (as I'm sure we all have). But what if someone came across a homeless man with a slightly different sign. Maybe the sign says: "Will Kill For Food"? You give him a ham sandwich and the name of your annoying next-door neighbor, just as a joke. And the next day, your neighbor is dead. And when you come across that wino's path, he thanks you for the sandwich . . . with a strange, crazy grin on his face.

2 It was snowing like crazy around where I live, in post-holiday January. Hmm. Let me run with this a bit . . . What if you found yourself Christmas shopping in the midst of a zombie apocalypse? Your kids are all bummed out about having to stay hidden, seeing as zombies are all over the place. And you're dumb enough to risk your life to give 'em some holiday cheer. So you grab a machete, some 12-gauge rounds, and stroll off with some buddies – through a raging blizzard – to a long-abandoned Wal-Mart ('cause they have everything).

3. I heard of an iPhone app that lets you talk in a Darth Vader voice (kinda' cool, I thought). Anyway, what if some unsuspecting person got an iPhone knockoff with thousands of apps and stumbled across one marked "Super Hero"? And, with the press of a button, the damned phone sprouted arms, legs, a cape . . . then flew to fight evil?

C'mon. Give it a try. Anyone who dreams up some particularly awesome "What If" concepts are free to post with their comments (just no full stories, please).

Good luck.

A Wonderful Day For Dueling Excerpt

Here's an excerpt from "A Wonderful Day For Dueling," one of 36 violent short stories out of Protected:

===============================================================

I started off by explaining that this had to be the largest duel in years. All ten of the world’s remaining nations and their Mercenary Houses decided to participate. With stakes this high, everyone expected the Secretary General to select a ground-based contest between mechanized battalions. Instead, the U.N., which basically ran the planet these days, called for an aerial duel. Each House would send one fighter with standard-issue thrusters, weaponry, and two weapon modifications of its choice.

The prize: a huge, recently discovered mineral bed smack-dab in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Rather than split the mineral rights amongst themselves, the ten Houses decided to have a “winner-take-all” duel to the death. While these House duels were an odd way to settle disputes, they were preferable to the nuclear wars of old.

Satisfied that I had covered the basics, I hit RECORD.

“Sorry about that,” I sighed. “My CO wanted a quick status chat. The duel is about to resume, so this is where I sign off. As always, you and your mom are in my thoughts. I'll win this duel and make it home to you both. I won't do it just for House and Country. I'll do it so I can watch you grow into a man and spoil your kids rotten.”

I grinned as my bird broke the sound barrier.

“Sleep tight, son. I'll see you tomorrow.”

With that, I hit a few buttons to end the transmission and sent the holo-letter to Colonel Zint. I pulled my helmet's visor down and headed for the Adriatic. The sun gleamed through the clouds in a mesmerizing fashion. I felt a familiar anticipation as I armed the weapons systems and waited for my enemies' fighters to appear on my long-range radar.

========================
Protected is now available in print, ebook, and PDF. Follow this link for details: http://www.talesunlimited.net

Book Of Schemes Excerpt

Here's an excerpt from "The Inheritance," one of 36 diabolical short stories out of The Book Of Schemes :

===============================================================

Two weeks after Nokrum died of prostate cancer, all of his children were notified and asked to assemble here on this exact date. They received a tour of the estate and were informed of the inheritance provision in their father's will. Nokrum's lawyer, Anthony Murgathol, explained that each of them would have one million dollars wired to their respective checking accounts by the end of the next business day.

Then Murgathol gave them two options.

They could take the money and move on with their lives. In doing so, they would forfeit any future claim to the multi-billion-dollar Nokrum family fortune: corporate holdings, real estate, stocks, et cetera.

Or, with their million dollars, any of the siblings could assemble a team of experts and search the house. Five hundred million dollars' worth of precious stones had been strategically hidden within the mansion. Any sibling who wanted a claim to the inheritance had to personally lead his/her team on a search for the stones – or be ruled ineligible. Each team would then be randomly assigned its own sector to explore. Once inside, they had from sundown to sunrise to conduct the search for the stones.

Murgathol also declared that the house was booby-trapped.

The lawyer explained to the surprised heirs that the late Hugh Nokrum had a knack for inventing "dangerous toys" in his day. These booby traps were all linked to a central data server, which was located somewhere within the estate. The traps would be activated one-by-one and in random sequence. As the night went on, the level of danger would exponentially increase. By dawn, anyone still inside would have – in Murgathol's opinion – absolutely no chance of survival.


========================
The Book Of Schemes is now available in print, ebook, and PDF. Follow this link for details: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

Your Own Damned Voice

Supposedly, if you can understand a writer’s voice you can understand the writer. Most of the time, I’d buy that argument: especially when someone spends a lot of time, devotion, and money on a piece of self-published lit. If writing from the heart, then your real voice should come through.

What’s my voice? I, for one, love writing about twisted things. For example, I once wrote a short story called “Life Tax.”

The premise was that, in a dark future, the U.S. took over the world (without a nuke fired). Why bother taking over the world? Because the Earth’s resources were running on “E” and there were just too many humans running around consuming them. Ergo, such a conquest was vital to mankind’s survival.

Upon taking over the world, the U.S. instituted the Life Tax. Every living person had to pay ten grand to the IRS – every year – regardless of income level. If you could afford it, you lived. If you couldn’t afford to pay your taxes or have someone pay it for you, then the efficient, brutal, trigger-happy operatives of the IRS would happily kill you. It’s the ultimate tale of economic Darwinism: if you can’t cough up ten grand a year, you don’t deserve to live.

Guess what, folks? I probably shouldn’t write children’s books.

Still, it’s my voice and I love it. Sometimes, if my mood’s brighter, I can write lighter stuff with happier endings.

If someone you like/trust/respect urges you to write against your voice, don’t give in. Some folks just don’t understand. A voice might change with time and experience. It might be as sweet as honey or as vile as skunk piss. But it’s your writing voice and it should never, ever, be betrayed. To do so would be to deny who you are.

Yes, I could see a writer abandoning his/her real voice for something more lucrative (and fake). I couldn’t do it though (not even for bestseller cash). And if you’re true to your voice and passionate about your work, the money/fame will come.

Every writer’s voice is as unique as a snowflake or a strand of DNA. Figure yours out. Then figure out who you’re going to market your stuff to. Readers have voices too, even if they don’t put them down on paper. Find your kind of readers and you’ll find potential lifetime fans. I won’t try to sell “Life Tax” to Amish farmers. But I might have better luck with the local IRS branch office [insert evil laugh]. And frankly, if you write well enough, all kinds of "normal" folks might like your twisted literature . . . if it's good enough.

By the by, if you're interested in reading "Life Tax," it's in my third book ("Protected"), now available in print, e-book, and PDF.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

My Very First Blog Post

My old blog site’s sinking like the Titanic. I recently opted to fold it into my website. While doing this, I’ve found some old blog posts worthy of being salvaged. Among them is my very, very first blog post:


Wednesday, December 29, 2010

Guess this is the blog post where I tell a little bit about myself and why I started this project. I'm a writer. It's in my blood, sweat, and bone marrow. Much as I'd sometimes love to live a regular life and shoot for happily-ever-after, I know my limits. Besides, I'd rather sit in a tiny apartment and write stuff. I prefer sci-fi. And these days, I do short stories. I've pushed out so many that I'm probably gonna publish them someday.

But I've got three big obstacles in my path to being a published writer.

One, according to the conventional wisdom, publishers don't touch newbie writers until they've built some kind of following or platform. It's a "sound business practice" thing. Publishers can only handle so many books a year, in a highly-competitive business where so many good books just don't make it. If you're unknown, they can't be sure your stuff will sell, even if it's great. But if you've got published works out and a large enough fan base, you might actually be good enough for them to take a risk on you. I need that kind of rep.

Two, I've much to learn about this writing game. I've read articles, bought "self-help" books on the matter, and probably written a million-plus words in my lifetime. . . and I still don't know sh*t. I've gotta pick up knowledge of this game, preferably by getting my hands dirty.

Three, I'm scared to death. Writing's the one thing I do better than anything else. The one thing I love. And I'm scared to pursue it. I'm not 100% sure why. And it annoys me that I don't know. But then again, I'm a compulsive writer. My need to write is an unstoppable force. My fear's an immovable object. So they're gonna clash, with me in the middle. I'm not immortal. And as I stumble toward 40, I think I'd better step up my efforts before I die of something.

This blog will (hopefully) help me through these three obstacles. Maybe it will help me build a platform by strengthening my wobbly people skills. And as I research the etiquette and means of getting my works published, I can jot stuff into this blog: much like keeping notes while taking a class. Feel free to read my posts. Maybe some nugget of wisdom will be of use. But mainly, I need to focus more on my passion to write and give my fear the middle finger.

There, my first real blog post. Hope you like the rest. Thanks for reading even this far.



Sincerely,

Marcus V. Calvert



P.S. – Of course, if I stumble across any interesting/cool/bizarre stuff, I'll post it in passing. This blog thing shouldn't be all work, now should it?

Unheroic Excerpt

Here's an excerpt from "El Gringo Cantina," one of 36 twists short stories out of Unheroic :


==============================
Broadstrike’s face twisted with shock and then recognition as he jumped to his feet. He laughed at Mr. Impossible’s present incarnation. Five years ago, Mr. Impossible was 6’7” and built like a pagan god of strength. He could fly at MACH 9, lift 60-ton tanks with ease, and survived a point-blank nuke blast once. Now, he was a scrawny little bartender!
After the first twenty seconds of non-stop laughter, Mr. Impossible gave him a half-glance.
“What’s so funny?”
“You’re a wuss now!” Broadstrike laughed on, tears forming in his eyes. “I came all this way to break you in half and you’re an Average Joe?!”
“Well,” Mr. Impossible shrugged, “that’s life. Two years back, I started losing my powers. Couldn’t fly as fast. My kinetic force beams didn’t zap as hard. I even started to shrink. I decided to call it quits before some lucky purse snatcher ended me.”
Teary-eyed, Broadstrike finished laughing and caught his breath. The escaped villain paused to wipe his eyes as he sat down again. Mr. Impossible glanced back at the TV.
“How’d you lose your powers?”
“I dunno,” Mr. Impossible turned back toward Broadstrike as a commercial came on. “I tried to undo it but couldn’t.”
“You could’ve hidden yourself better.”
“Not really,” Mr. Impossible leaned against the bar and set his mug down. “I get to watch scantily-clad women come and go, run a nice little bar, and even work on my surfing. There’s no better place to hide than here.”
“How come no one’s snuffed you by now?”
“You think you’re the first bad guy to find me?” Mr. Impossible chuckled. “Don’t flatter yourself.”
“How many?”
“You’re actually the . . .” Mr. Impossible paused and glanced up at the ceiling as he counted in his head, “ninth super villain to track me down. They all wanted me dead – just like you.”
“What happened to the other eight?”
Mr. Impossible gave his former adversary a scary smile.
“Sharks gotta eat, too.”

========================
Unheroic is available in print, ebook, and PDF. Follow this link for details: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...