SunHi Mistwalker's Blog, page 8
June 20, 2012
Ray Bradbury On Writer Hygiene
Colin Marshall did a great summary of the video so I won’t rehash it. Here’s a little of what he said below. If you want to read more, check out Open Culture.
Don’t start out writing novels. They take too long. Begin your writing life instead by cranking out “a hell of a lot of short stories,” as many as one per week. Take a year to do it; he claims that it simply isn’t possible to write 52 bad short stories in a row. He waited until the age of 30 to write his first novel, Fahrenheit 451. “Worth waiting for, huh?”
You may love ‘em, but you can’t be ‘em. Bear that in mind when you inevitably attempt, consciously or unconsciously, to imitate your favorite writers, just as he imitated H.G. Wells, Jules Verne, Arthur Conan Doyle, and L. Frank Baum.
Examine “quality” short stories. He suggests Roald Dahl, Guy de Maupassant, and the lesser-known Nigel Kneale and John Collier. Anything in the New Yorker today doesn’t make his cut, since he finds that their stories have “no metaphor.”
Stuff your head. To accumulate the intellectual building blocks of these metaphors, he suggests a course of bedtime reading: one short story, one poem (but Pope, Shakespeare, and Frost, not modern “crap”), and one essay. These essays should come from a diversity of fields, including archaeology, zoology, biology, philosophy, politics, and literature. “At the end of a thousand nights,” so he sums it up, “Jesus God, you’ll be full of stuff!”
Tagged: fiction, writing, writing life
June 18, 2012
A Secret Guide To Our Frozen World
Much of the world worries about global warming. Some people focus on preventing it, while others aim to discredit it. But 200 years from now, no one will know what it is. And if they do somehow find an ancient bite of data that speaks of the Kyoto Treaty or the imaginings of global warming alarmists they will simply laugh and consider it a great work of fiction. Or maybe they will cry, not because there was no need for alarm. There was a need for alarm — but for something entirely different. You see, no one saw it coming. While the world did see the catastrophic changes in the planet’s weather, they were unable to see the dangerous cliff at the end of the tunnel. They overlooked the gradual dimming of the sun’s rays. Better yet, they misinterpreted it.
When the skies first began to darken and cool the earth’s surface, scientists hypothesized that the planet was correcting itself, while religious leaders declared it was a sign from a merciful God. It’s even rumored that the U.S. government took matters into their own hands to hasten the cooling of the earth by blocking even more of the sun’s rays. But none of them imagined that 120 years After The Darkness, warmth would become something people prayed for and that the powerful could buy, bargain with and steal it.
But wait, I don’t want to talk about that. For my world, our future world, none of that matters now – it cannot be changed. My concern is for a young girl, Nadia Comani. You see, Nadia doesn’t know anything about global warming, nor is she versed in the true history behind the planet’s dark, frozen condition. She was born into the world as it is. The only light and heat she has ever experienced comes from the corporate-military heating complex that controls the City of Calcane. As a level 5 she’s never had to worry about much, especially not the matters of warmth, food and safety. Unfortunately, that’s about to change… Someone is coming, I will try to tell you more later…
–Unsigned–
Get your copy of “After The Darkness” now.
Tagged: fiction, science fiction
June 10, 2012
Published! After The Darkness: Episode Two
The second episode of the “After The Darkness” series has been published! Check it out here: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008AD4KQY
May 30, 2012
Story Updates
I’ve been pretty busy for this month; but here are some brief updates:
After The Darkness: Episode 2
The second episode in this science fiction series is done! Yay! It’s now in the editing phase and will be online by June 11th. I am so sorry for the delay!
The Shelter
The short story “The Shelter” is now available on Nook in addition to Kindle. You can also read a long excerpt at Wattpad. The follow-up novel is coming along quite well and we’re on target for a Fall publication date.
May 12, 2012
Tag I’m It! 7 Things You Probably Don’t Know About Me
I want to first thank Kat Morrisey for tagging me on her blog. Sorry it took me so long to post a response. I’ve been so busy writing I’ve had very little time for blogging. All of my posts this month will be part of the Blog Me Maybe Fest created by Tracey NeitherCott. This is my first time ever participating in a blogfest so… here we go, seven things you probably don’t know about me:
Photo by Jeltovski
1. I’m vegetarian. I’ve been vegetarian for over 15 years. I still eat eggs and cheese and I don’t plan on giving it up anytime soon. While I’m vegetarian I have yet to create a character that didn’t eat meat. A matter of fact, Sunni Brown, the protagonist in my book “The Shelter” absolutely loves chicken, especially the fried variety.
Photo by Calrita
2. I’m an avid roleplayer. That basically means I create fictional stories in a communal fashion with some wonderful folks in Second Life and I’ve been doing that for the past two years. I have met some the most talented writers in my Second Life roleplay community.
3. SunHi Mistwalker is a pseudonym, as in pen name. Nope I wasn’t born SunHi Mistwalker; but I think it’s an absolutely cool name so I’m sticking with it for now. SunHi means “one who brings happiness and good into the lives of others.” Mistwalker? Well, I don’t think Mistwalker has any specific meaning so I’m just going to say that it means “one who performs extraordinary feats” :p .
Photo by Jppi
4. I also write satire and historical fiction. My screenplay set during the early 19th century won two awards; but was never produced. While it’s true that some of my most recent work is quite gritty, I can also write comedy — and I’m good at it.
5. I make my living writing nonfiction. I work as a ghostwriter full-time writing blogs, articles, books and just about anything else that other people don’t have the skill or time to write. People hire me because I can write just about anything — really anything. I’ve written for attorneys, real estate gurus, fashionistas, dating experts, motivational speakers and academics. I’m really good at mimicry and can copy anyone’s writing voice.
6. I’ve been writing professionally since I was fourteen years old. I first discovered I wanted to write when I was eight years old; but I didn’t enter into my first official writing apprenticeship until I was fourteen. The first time I realized the true power of words was when I was running for Class Treasurer of my eighth grade class. The girl running against me was popular and everyone vowed to vote for her. My campaign posters were defaced by my opponent’s supporters and I was even threatened by classmates who thought I should drop out of the race. The day of the election all of the candidates were required to give a speech. When I stepped before the class to speak I was booed and mocked. But by the time I was halfway through my speech people were cheering. My speech won me the election and left my opponent in tears. Side Note: If this kiddie election sounds harsh, try to put it into context. I grew up in Chicago, a place where politics kill…literally.
Photo by Aconant
7. I speak French. I’ve been studying French for the past eight years. While I don’t speak fluently (like a native speaker), I speak well enough to carry on long rambling conversations about just about any subject. I spent a year living in Paris where I made a lot of progress in my French language skills.
Well, that’s it about me. If you want to join my mailing list to find out about my upcoming books, events and free giveaways, please join my mailing list. Also, check out my books:
Tagged: writing, writing life
April 21, 2012
The Darker Side Of Childhood
Last Spring I was reading a YA novel that’s been compared to Hunger Games, while the book was well written I found myself unable to continue reading. Why? Well, some of the storyline just did not ring true for me. How can you have a dystopian story about a teen girl living in an oppressive society who is jailed by a brutal ruling class; but she doesn’t even face the threat of sexual assault? I know that it’s YA literature and you don’t want to depict graphic upsetting images; but come on let’s be real here. I’m not saying that every dystopian story about a young girl in an oppressive society has to have some type of sexual assault issues, all I’m saying is that oppression and rape usually go hand and hand in the real world. And if you try to completely avoid even the slightest innuendo about how sexual assault is often used as a weapon in an oppressive society, I think that you’re cheating your reader, especially young readers.
Sometimes Childhood Is Hell
Sometimes childhood really is hell. There isn’t a week that goes by that we don’t hear about some tragic story about a young girl being killed or exploited, especially in undeveloped countries. A matter of fact, some people in this world have so much hatred of girls that they try to kill them for doing something as wonderful as going to school. Look at the recent story about Afghan schoolgirls being poisoned. How terrible! Are these men who did this just naturally spiteful and sexist? No, I don’t think so. But I do know that when a society has collapsed the worse in some people is bound to come out. But the hell of childhood is not confined to some far off lands. We can look right here in the United States to find children facing challenges most of us can’t imagine. Right now, we have cities and towns in this country that have collapsed. Municipalities are returning roads to gravel, cutting back on public services and many citizens are finding themselves unable to survive financially. Some of those people turn to illegal means to survive, many of those people are children. Did you know that there are millions of underage girls (and some boys) trafficked in America’s booming sex industry and that the number is growing? Girls are especially vulnerable in collapsed societies because there is no rule of law that will wield it’s mighty force to protect them. If you add poverty into the mix, girls have even fewer rights in societies that are in the process of imploding.
Why The Dark Side?
For the past few years I’ve had a very strong desire to tell stories about young girls living in dying societies. How do they survive? How do they cope? Who will become their allies? I didn’t want to tell these stories in a milquetoast way. I wanted to write it honestly and authentically. It feels good to know that I achieved that authenticity with “The Shelter ” and I hope that I also reach my goal with my upcoming novel which will continue to follow the protagonist Sunni Brown. If you want to receive updates about the Sunni Brown novel please sign up for my mailing list. And if you haven’t purchased your copy of the Shelter please click one of the following links:
US: http://www.amazon.com/Shelter-Short-S...
UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Shelter-S...
April 19, 2012
The Darker Side Of Childhood
When I wrote “The Shelter” I was terrified of writing something that would offend a lot of people. But then my old writing mentor’s words rang in my ear, “Bleed on the page!” Bleeding on the page is when a writer creates something without censoring themselves. And it is in this spirit of non-censorship that I wrote “The Shelter.” Why was I initially afraid of my own words? Well the truth is that so much of today’s dystopian fiction chooses to avoid tough issues around growing up, especially when it comes to issues concerning girls. Issues like poverty, sexism and sexual exploitation are often avoided or treated in such a way that the end result can only be compared to magical thinking. Because of this I knew that my story might be viewed as extreme.
Last Spring I was reading a YA novel that’s been compared to Hunger Games, while the book was well written I found myself unable to continue reading. Why? Well, some of the storyline just did not ring true for me. How can you have a dystopian story about a teen girl living in an oppressive society who is jailed by a brutal ruling class; but she doesn’t even face the threat of sexual assault? I know that it’s YA literature and you don’t want to depict graphic upsetting images; but come on let’s be real here. I’m not saying that every dystopian story about a young girl in an oppressive society has to have some type of sexual assault issues, all I’m saying is that oppression and rape usually go hand and hand in the real world. And if you try to completely avoid even the slightest innuendo about how sexual assault is often used as a weapon in an oppressive society, I think that you’re cheating your reader, especially young readers.
Sometimes Childhood Is Hell
Sometimes childhood really is hell. There isn’t a week that goes by that we don’t hear about some tragic story about a young girl being killed or exploited, especially in undeveloped countries. A matter of fact, some people in this world have so much hatred of girls that they try to kill them for doing something as wonderful as going to school. Look at the recent story about Afghan schoolgirls being poisoned. How terrible! Are these men who did this just naturally spiteful and sexist? No, I don’t think so. But I do know that when a society has collapsed the worse in some people is bound to come out. But the hell of childhood is not confined to some far off lands. We can look right here in the United States to find children facing challenges most of us can’t imagine. Right now, we have cities and towns in this country that have collapsed. Municipalities are returning roads to gravel, cutting back on public services and many citizens are finding themselves unable to survive financially. Some of those people turn to illegal means to survive, many of those people are children. Did you know that there are millions of underage girls (and some boys) trafficked in America’s booming sex industry and that the number is growing? Girls are especially vulnerable in collapsed societies because there is no rule of law that will wield it’s mighty force to protect them. If you add poverty into the mix, girls have even fewer rights in societies that are in the process of imploding.
Why The Dark Side?
For the past few years I’ve had a very strong desire to tell stories about young girls living in dying societies. How do they survive? How do they cope? Who will become their allies? I didn’t want to tell these stories in a milquetoast way. I wanted to write it honestly and authentically. It feels good to know that I achieved that authenticity with “The Shelter ” and I hope that I also reach my goal with my upcoming novel which will continue to follow the protagonist Sunni Brown. If you want to receive updates about the Sunni Brown novel please sign up for my mailing list. And if you haven’t purchased your copy of the Shelter please click one of the following links:
US: http://www.amazon.com/Shelter-Short-S...
UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Shelter-S...
Tagged: fiction, writing, writing life
April 5, 2012
After The Darkness: Episode One is Published!
Finally, the first episode of "After The Darkness" is published! Please check it out here on Amazon. A short blurb about the story: The year is 120 A.T.D., 120 years after the sun's rays became blocked by black and gray clouds of pollution. Most of the time it is dark, much like a moonless night. There is a shortage of everything, food, water, shelter and heat. It is always cold, never warmer than 20 degrees (Fahrenheit) in the summer and 40 degrees below zero in the dead of winter; it snows, all year around. Poverty is rampant and people live with extended family in small, insulated apartments struggling just to stay warm, fed and safe. The government is run by the military, police and a small elite class who have power over food, heat, shelter and safety. In this society, there is a scarcity of everything that humanity requires creating a world of freemen and slaves. Fourteen-year-old Nadia is one of the lucky ones, born into a family employed in the heating industry places her amongst the privileged, that is until now…
This episode is 8,000 words approximately 40 pages. After The Darkness is part of an ongoing monthly series. Each episode ends on a cliffhanger. Please sign up for the mailing list to receive special promotions and free giveaways of related works.
I began writing "After The Darkness" in 2009 and originally launched it as a web series. Now it's back as a series of ebooks.
Novel Update: I am 27% done with the editing of the novel which follows the life of Sunni Brown, the protagonist from the short story "The Shelter." I working hard to get this novel polished and ready for the presses!
March 30, 2012
Who Is SunHi Mistwalker?
Welcome to my blog! If you've just read "The Shelter" and clicked that little link in the back of the book it brought you here to my little home. Okay, so it's not exactly my home — let's say it's my virtual home. Fair enough? Right. Here's a little about me. I'm a writer. But you knew that already. Well, I've been writing since…since forever. For the past six years I've been working as a ghostwriter and before that I worked for newspapers, magazines and even wrote stage plays and scripts. I have a few awards under my belt and even did a stint at an advertising agency. It was quite an experience, I'll say that much. For the past two years I've been preparing myself for the great leap into fiction writing on my terms. What does that mean? It means writing about things that matter to me without considering markets and trends. "The Shelter" is a short story prequel to a novel. The novel follows the life of a teen girl faced with poverty and societal collapse. No, this is not a YA novel. This book is written for adults. A matter of fact, I wouldn't recommend that anyone under the age of 16 years old read the short story or the novel. I deal with strong themes and I don't censor myself. While I personally have nothing against YA literature, I prefer to read books for adults even if they have teens or children as main characters.
So that's enough about me for now. If you want to receive updates about the novel or other books by me please sign up for the newsletter: http://sunhimistwalker.com/about/
March 29, 2012
The Shelter Ranked #77 @ Amazon.com
Wow! I have to say I am very surprised to find so many people downloading my short story The Shelter. It's ranked #77 in the Amazon store as of this moment. So many told me that people didn't like short stories that I just assumed only a handful would grab the story. I'm glad my assumption was wrong. Well, The Shelter is still free for the rest of today if you want to grab a copy. Also, feel free to sign up for updates on the novel here: http://sunhimistwalker.com/about/ The novel will follow Sunni Brown's life from the age of fourteen. Well, I should get back to work. Have a great day everyone!
