R.P. McCabe's Blog: Novelist R.P. McCabe: On Writing & Other Useful Subjects

Until I Find You

href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/93..." style="float: left; padding-right: 20px">Until I Find You by John Irving

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Literary Fiction is my favorite genre and Irving one of my all-time favorite writers. And he doesn't disappoint in this meandering tale of a young unwed mother out to find the tattoo artist father of her little boy. The story is told through the eyes of the little boy as he grows to manhood. It is a haunting story in many ways leading you on a strange journey through tattoo parlors all over Europe with twist and turns in plot that are a joy to slip down the side streets of Amsterdam whores with him.

Once the little boy is grown and the story changes gears there is no loss of spectacle as his relationship with the daughter of his mother's lesbian lover grows out of their childhood when he is the only boy in an all girl's school and she his protector, sexual guide. This is a seriously hot novel in that regard. A truly magical fantasy relationship grows from hand-jobs to the sincerest of love.

This novel is packed with so many wonderfully profound twists and insights into humanity that I don't want to unfold much of it for you. Suffice to say, this is a fantastic read. The kind of book you want to curl up with on a rainy day with a hot cappuccino and absorb like a sponge. Really, the craft at it's highest illustration. In this novel, Irving treats you to what great writing is until you almost forget how wonderful the story he is unfolding to you is.



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My Reviews

I recently received an email questioning why nearly every review I write is rated 5 stars. ~ Here is the thing. I'm a writer, not a reviewer, though I don't mind sharing my thoughts with other readers. I read a lot. I don't review much. If I read a book I think is poorly written, I figure there are tons of experts out there just waiting to tell you how bad it is. I'll leave that to them. I try to read the kind of writing I aspire to myself, ergo, you generally see very high marks because if I am disappointed, I either stop reading it or simply scratch the author from future reading lists.

I won't continue reading a book I can't rate at least 4 stars. My time is too valuable. But I know how hard writing can be. And learning good writing can require making some mistakes. Writers deserve a bit of a break from other writers, in my opinion, because they aren't going to get that from reviewers and fans. Based on the reviews I see posted, you don't need me to point the bad ones out to you, there are plenty of reviewers who are more than willing to do that job.

I plan to continue reading great novels by writers I respect and from whom I can learn and hopefully improve my craft. Writers I will share with you. Here's the thing, if a writer makes my reading list, he or she, in my estimation, is a good author.

The bad news is, there simply isn't enough time to read all the great work available to us today. There are some really great talents out there.

Only a Writer?

I've been writing for years. Well, more than thirty to be accurate. I started freelancing magazine articles in the late 70s. In the 90s I was a feature writer for Enterprise Magazine. They're gone along with thousands of other print media and I dare say many more are destined to go the way of the dinosaur.

Like so many writers, I toyed with being a novelist; started several over the years. Ran out of juice. Started again. Tossed those out, too. Last year I self published what I judged a worthy piece of work: Betrayed. IT's doing "okay", great reviews, actually. Very strong. I've even garnered some national attention; AOL Finance, Business Insider. I have some pending ink from the New York Times, New York Post...NPR New York.

I managed to finish my second novel, Thick Fog In Pacheco Pass, which I plan to release in March. I also write a very edgy...somewhat ribald political blog.

What I haven't managed yet is figuring out how to use the Goodreads platform. I have a difficult time even navigating the site. My fault, not theirs. The brain-trust this site has is scary. There are so many high-powered degrees in computer sciences and software engineering I have a hard time reading the "About Us" page. I can't even pronounce some of those degrees. I'm only a writer. I'm looking over at the right side of this page as I write this article and I see: Formatting Tips. I read down the column and I see the possibilities for this very article using html code. (I get all jiggly just writing those words). Alas, I press buttons, click on links and stare, deer in the headlights, at how I might navigate to the next window that will finally result in what I want. No luck.

The point is, and believe me, I'm giving this message to myself as much as to anyone who bothers to read my blog; we can no longer be...only writers. We also have to learn what the hell to do with that code sitting over there on the right of this page. We have to uncover every nuance of how to use this and the hundreds of other platforms to bring our work to readers if we are not to drift away into obscurity...well, deeper into obscurity than we already are.

For me...I'm taking the bull by the horns. Goodreads boasts 13 million plus subscribers. I'd be happy if a mere hundred thousand or so discovered what a witty soul I am; clever, erudite...funny on some days. All-in-all a good writer whose works they'd like to have on the shelf. But first I have to figure out how to let them know I'm here. That I exist. That I'm bleeding out while attempting to decipher the Holy Grail of marketing. And the worst of it is...I'm only a writer.