Paul Alan Fahey's Blog, page 5

Picking Up Where We Left Off—Literally

When I begin a novella in the Lovers and Liars gay historical romance series, I literally pick up the characters where I left off. If someone’s water breaks at the end of a book—which happens in A Deadly Game of Malice—that character better have the baby in the next one.

It’s all about continuity or keeping things consistent from novel to novel, or in my case, novella to novella. Believe me, it isn’t as easy as it might seem, especially if you write different books in between installments.

Sometimes inconsistency can lead to a good thing, but usually not.

When I created Caroline’s little village in Kent, I had a photo of an English village I found online and used it for reference. Small, intimate, and isolated, the village was an actual location in Kent and a perfect fit for my story.

In Weep Not for the Past, the second novella, I dropped a river smack dab in the middle of town—something from my imagination that worked well for a scene between Caroline and Leslie; something that wasn’t there before but now was.

Five novellas down the road, in A Deadly Game of Malice, I was glad to have this bit of rushing water handy as I sent one of my victims head over heels right into it. See what I mean? A good thing.

But most of the time, continuity problems can be a big deal for the series writer.

Here’s an example:

Readers expect characters to change but not necessarily in their physical descriptions, unless you’ve covered a great deal of time from book to book. Lovers and Liars moves slowly through the early years of WWII, so I need to remember Leslie is tall, thin, wears thick glasses with broken frames, and worries over his dwindling blond hair.

I also need to keep in mind Caroline went from a pageboy to short-cropped hair from the first book to the second. It wouldn’t do to have Cyril fondling her long tresses in A Manx Tale, the third book, unless she’s wearing a wig. ☺

Another example:

One of my major characters was shot—only a flesh wound mind you—at the end of Bomber’s Moon, yet I failed to address this injury in the next novella. And the weird thing is I didn’t think about this lack of continuity until just the other day, after I’d written five installments. Like I said in an earlier post, I’m not the smartest or sharpest knife I guess. (Mixing metaphors here? Another one of my many talents.)

Okay, here’s the question you’ve been waiting for:

When you read a book in a series, do you notice these inconsistencies much, and if so, how do they affect your reading enjoyment? Do they throw you out of the story? Do they annoy you or do you just move on?

Until next week when we talk about a writer’s greatest fears and how they can creep into their fiction.

The best is yet to come.

Paul

The Forest for the Trees

I’ve always been a detail-oriented guy. I focus on the trees and not so much on the forest. The overall picture of most things is something I don’t see. Being trained as a learning disabilities specialist—in another career—I knew my learning style by heart. I couldn’t generalize for beans. I had to work my way up to the big picture by adding up the details.

Here’s a good example of what I mean:

When I started to write Bomber’s Moon , the first novella in my Lovers and Liars series, I knew I wanted to focus the story on a gay character who recently lost his partner in a tragic automobile accident. The setting would be 1940 London and the historical event was the Blitz. I also had a puzzle or mystery in mind so I threw that into the mix. That’s really all I knew at the outset. Well, maybe a little more, but I didn’t have that big picture yet.
In Bomber’s Moon, I set my characters down in an interesting historical setting (WWII) and then tried to be as true to the period as I could. I used the setting mostly for atmosphere and then went on from there, following my characters every step of the way.

And the genre I was writing in? I didn’t have a clue; was it gay, fiction, historical, romance, romantic suspense, or mystery? After I sent the manuscript off to my publisher, JMS Books, we decided Bomber’s Moon was a gay historical romance. Hmm. Okay. Without J.M. Snyder’s help, I wouldn’t have gotten there on my own. Never.

Let me ask you a few questions because so much depends on a reader’s expectations when they pick up a book and choose to read it.

1. When you hear the words, historical fiction or historical romance, what books immediately spring to mind?
2. What’s more important to you in reading and enjoying a book set in the past: the atmosphere and mood, or 100% accuracy of the details? Or both?

There’ll be more next Tuesday on writing a series and the problems I sometimes have keeping things straight—as in remembering what happened to my characters in the last book. I promise I’ll keep it short.

For now, I’m still finding my way through the trees.

The best is yet to come,

Paul

Readers, Writers, & Writers’ Conferences

Hi, Welcome to my Tuesday blog. Don’t know if it’s my age or just the old adage of time flying but here we are again and I guess I’d better be prepared.

I wanted to thank all of you for following my short little weekly notes—as I’m now calling my slow blog. I appreciate your being here. Truly. It gets pretty tough for us writers since we spend so much time in isolation with our crazy thoughts and imaginary characters. So it’s really cool when I can write to you weekly and even though many of you don’t always comment, I still know you’re out there, and I’m very, very grateful.

I’m never really sure how many readers and writers I have following me here at Goodreads so let me address all of you.

I live on the California central coast and annually attend our local writer’s conference that actually draws quite a few attendees from outside the state. It’s that good. A heartfelt thank you goes to our local heroes: Dave Congalton, Charlotte Alexander, Cathe Fein Olson, and Judy Salamacha for making this such a special and professional event year after year. Please check out the link below for an example of this year’s conference offerings. This is our 30th anniversary and it looks like another winner.

http://cuesta.edu/communityprograms/w...

At past conferences, I’ve met several people who are mainly readers but who are thinking of becoming writers. They want to know how writers come up with their ideas, create unique plots, and develop full, rich characters.

If you’re a writer, you might attend a conference as a workshop presenter, or mainly to network with other writers, or sit in the audience and soak up invaluable tips and strategies for your next novel or short story.

So here’s my question: If you attend conferences what are your expectations? What do you hope to get from the experience?

Please feel free to suggest topics that interest you for my future posts. Right now I’m thinking historical fiction for next week. As you know, I write the Lovers and Liars gay historical romance series.Lovers and Liars Bomber’s Moon is the first novella in that series. Bomber's MoonSome readers love it. Others not so much. We can talk about “why” next week.

Take care and remember the best is yet to come.
Paul

GUEST POST & GIVEAWAY TODAY

Hi, I'm coming to you from Italy today. Well, not really. I'm still in my office in beautiful Nipomo, California, but I'm guest posting on Erin E. Keller's blog originating from Italy. If you'd like more info on "Bomber's Moon," the first in my "Lovers and Liars" gay historical romance series, drop by and say CIAO!

Here's the link: http://erinekeller.wordpress.com

Bomber's Moon

Lovers and Liars

I hope I'll see you there. I'm having great fun right now responding to comments. Oh, there's a giveaway of the e book of Bombers.

CIAO!

Paolo

Some Questions For You and Two Great Reads

Hi, I'm a little early this week and thought I'd post my Tuesday blog today.

Would love to get some feedback from you. Here goes:

1. Do you like to read fiction or non fiction? Or both?

2. Do you favor plot driven stories over character driven ones or vice versa? Why?

3. Do you read in a specific genre: romance, horror, historical, fantasy, etc.?

4. What have you read lately? Would you recommend it? Why or why not?

During the past week I finished two great books I'd like to tell you about.

One is "Changing Tides" by Michael Thomas Ford. Wonderful character driven LGBT adult novel that kept me glued to the story and characters set in Monterey, California, and in the famous Steinbeck territory of Cannery Row. Changing Tides. Don't miss this one.

The second book is "The Horse That Went To Church," a short, humorous novella by C. T. Walker. If you love animals and specifically, horses, you're in for a treat. http://www.amazon.com/The-Horse-That-...

Hope you're having a great Labor Day weekend. Looking forward to your comments.

The best is yet to come,

Paul

TWO FREE E BOOKS—One Now, one in September

Hi, Welcome again to my short Tuesday blog. I want to tell you about a free e book from my backlist available now from JMS Books. It’s the short “Mistaken Identity,” and it’s set where I live on a Central Coast mesa in California. My first love has always been—and will most likely always be—short stories. I hope you’ll give this short e book a try and then comment on my post. I'd love to hear from you.

Here’s a little about the book:

“What is the meaning of identity? A woman living in an isolated cottage on the central California coast watches the fog drift across a desolate landscape. Several miles to the south, another woman, a patient in a Santa Monica hospital who has survived a brutal assault, struggles to regain her memory and her identity. These two women are connected, but how? What brings them together? Is intensive psychotherapy the key to unlocking the mystery, or will something more uncover their shared bond? Still not sure?

You can read an excerpt here:
http://www.jmsbooks.com/index.php?mai...

This September, JMS Books is releasing another of my short stories, “Words,” as a freebie. (Susan, if you’re reading this, it isn’t as sad as it sounds and it all ends on a hopeful note.) "Words" is being offered free a few months in advance of my next full length novella, Getting Gertie Out.

Here's a short synopsis for "Words."

"Blake believes in love at first sight; Stanley isn’t so sure. Their lifelong romance begins with a random meeting in a bar and ends in happily ever after.

As the years pass, Stanley’s struggling literary career takes off, and Blake finds fulfillment as a counselor at a local community college. When the the AIDS epidemic strikes their small town in the 1980s, their resolve and relationship are tested. The only way to survive the crisis is to draw strength in the love they share.

Later, as they enter their senior years, they must deal with frightening new issues of infirmity and disability. Yet through it all, the two men share a deep, emotional bond that survives and strengthens their resolve to tackle any and all challenges head on. Together.

YOU can read a short excerpt here:
http://www.jms-books.com/index.php?ma...

Till next Tuesday then. I do appreciate all of you and your interest in my work, and I hope to read some of your “Mistaken Identity” comments during the coming week. Please don't think of this as homework. Just enjoy hearing from you. :)

The best is yet to come,

Paul

Live on WON today!

Hi, Today's the day. Drop by and say hi at Writers Online Network.

http://writersonlinenetwork.org/guest...

Here's a teaser from the post:

"I began writing fiction about 21 years ago. It all started when I read a terrific little book of very short stories titled, Flash Fiction, by James Thomas, Denise Thomas, and Tom Hazuka. (If you’re interested in writing flash, I highly recommend this book.) In those early days of the 1990’s, flash fiction was in its infancy; I didn’t know much about it or how to write it; I only knew I loved how the writers could tell a complete story within a 250-750 word range. By the time I finished the book I knew I was hooked. I immediately enrolled in Pam Casto’s, now famous, online course in writing flash, and during those early years, I managed to place several pieces in print lit journals and on emerging online flash fiction and flash memoir sites.

I think flash gave me the confidence I could actually write a story in a few words, and I’d have to say this experience helped to form my writing style that’s best categorized as minimalist. (Minimalist short story writer, Raymond Carver, is one of my all time favorite writers. If you haven’t read Carver, you’re in for a treat.)

Here’s an example of one of my flash pieces republished some time ago at Penduline Press.

And to give you an idea of the rules I followed when writing flash, here’s a short “how-to” article and a peek at my flash story, “Wednesday’s Child.”

My best,
Paul

My Journey from Writing Flash to E-Age Novellas—A Short Discussion and a Giveaway or Two

Hi, I'll be over at Writers Online Network tomorrow guest blogging about my writer's journey, talking about some writing tips, and also offering a giveaway or two. Hope you'll stop by and comment.

http://writersonlinenetwork.org/guest...

The best is yet to come,

Paul

TWO GREAT LGBT READS!

If you’ve been following my recent posts—and I sure hope you have—we’ve been talking about older gay characters in LGBT lit. Today I’d like to feature two books I love by two writers I very much admire.

First up is Henry and Jim, by J.M. Snyder, a lovely and loving reminiscence of a gay relationship. This beautifully written short story will grab you at the first sentence and keep you reading to the story’s poignant and magical end. Definitely not to be missed.

Short Synopsis:

Henry and Jim is a bittersweet short story about a lifetime love affair. Henry and Jim have spent a life in love, from the very first date arranged by Henry's sister, through the rocky times they worked to make ends meet, and into their twilight years. Old men now, Henry reminisces about the love they've shared as he learns to cope with Jim's fading memory and his own fear of being forgotten by the only man he's ever loved.”


When The Stars Come Out is Rob Byrnes at his very best. This intelligent, witty, and charming gay romance should be on everyone’s reading list—gay or straight.

Here’s what one reviewer had to say about this sophisticated, funny, and terrifically fast-paced read:

“Smart, wealthy, and good-looking, Noah Abraham should have no trouble meeting someone new. Still, there’s the ennui laced with desperation he feels when faced with the brick wall of his longtime project: interviewing closeted people in D.C. politics for a book he fears will never happen. In New York to see his post-heart-attack dad—famous attorney Max Abraham—he agrees to take dad’s trophy wife, Tricia, to a gay bar. There she establishes herself as Miss Popularity with the smokers outside, while Noah mopes inside until a handsome stranger makes contact while ordering a drink. Turns out Bart is the personal assistant to former star Quinn Scott, who needs a writer to help craft his tell-all memoirs. Ex-wife Kitty, now a Hollywood force, wants to sabotage this laundering of dirty linen, so the plot thickens delightfully. Byrnes turns out another deftly written and enticingly complex gay romance.” Whitney Scott, Booklist.


Bottom line: If you’re a reader, you can’t go wrong with either of these two skillful writers. If you’re a gay romance writer, like myself, these two writers have set the bar pretty high. ‘Nuff said.

If you’d like to recommend a favorite LGBT book(s) featuring long time relationships and mature main characters please let me know. Comments are always welcome.

On Saturday, August 23, I’ll be blogging over at Writers Online about more writerly things. I’ll keep ya posted.


http://writersonlinenetwork.org


Thanks for dropping by and more later next week.

The best is yet to come.

Paul

Just a heads up for Aug. 14th

Today, I'm over with good friends at Prism Book Alliance. There's an interview and two giveaways: One for my gay paranormal romance, Too Long Among the Dead--reviewed yesterday at PBA, and for the first in my Lovers and Liars WWII gay romance series, Bomber's Moon. Hope you'll drop by if only to say hi.

See you there.

Oh, here's where:

http://www.prismbookalliance.com/2014...