Fi Michell's Blog, page 4

Writing News – March 2013

My good news this month is that my story, ‘The Kyne Extraction’, will soon be published in Plasma Frequency Magazine. This was a fun story to write, and only began to come together after I changed the point-of-view from which it was written. It’s a short SF/horror piece, written in a log format, and I’m thrilled it’s found a good home.

I’ve written a lot recently, but have had an unusually high number of interruptions as well. If I gave up due to interruptions though, nothing would get written at all. I can never tell whether a story will take a couple of months to slog through, or if I’ll nail it within one week. I’ve written both kinds.

Critters has been very useful this month. I posted a story I’d become stuck with. The feedback helped me clarify which parts were working or not, and I’m looking forward to the rewrite. In the meantime, I reworked the draft of a gothic story I first wrote over a year ago. Back then, I didn’t feel I’d developed the skills needed to finish it. I’m not sure if I can resurrect it entirely, but working on the fight scene, using Alan Baxter’s ebook, Write the Fight Right, was worth doing for the education alone. His book is a great resource for people like myself who haven’t had personal experience fighting, and also for anyone who just wants a guide to the kinds of things worth remembering when writing about a fight. A great addition to my reference library.

Now I’m looking forward to finishing both stories off and sending them out the door.

Soon, hopefully, I will post on how I’ve found Twitter since I began using it a few months back. Also, some thoughts on e-books now that I’ve had a Kindle for some time.

Writing for Creative Energy

Every week I attend a writing group and participate in a number of free writing exercises. They are amongst the best ways I know to rejuvenate my mind and re-energise my writing.

Most writers I know have tried this kind of exercise at some stage, whether or not they still use them. Practiced regularly, I find they help develop my ability to generate fluent first drafts, to sink into and explore characters, and to shut off my internal critic.

I find them brilliant for warm-ups, especially if circumstances have prevented me writing for a while. If I’m stuck with a story or scene, I find familiarity with this kind of exercise can help me free-write my way through the problem or blockage.

The other wonderful gift is the generation of ideas that may otherwise never surface. These techniques draw upon the well of creativity we all have in our subconscious mind. Writing this way is an adventure, a constant process of discovery. I think that’s why I find it so energising.

What are they?

In case you’ve never tried a free writing exercise, I’ll give some examples. You may never have written before – that doesn’t matter. All you need is a pen and paper, and a prompt. The prompt can be:

a line from a song;
a single word;
a phrase from a story you’ve just read, or even written yourself;
a colour;
the sounds in the room around you when you close your eyes;
something you did that morning;
an artwork (I particularly enjoy abstract art prompts);
a person you passed in the street yesterday;
a photograph;
a news item;
the first object you see when you open your eyes;
anything else you would like to use (first thing that comes to mind).

Take your prompt. Write for a set time (you can even set a timer for three minutes, twenty minutes, whatever you prefer). Don’t think beforehand about what you will write. Don’t be tempted to edit, or lift your pen from the page. Write whatever comes to you, even if your instinct says it’s rubbish. Let your mind go where it will. Don’t censor your thoughts, and don’t judge yourself.

Now try it again, using a different prompt.

And, again.

There are an infinite number of variations on this theme.

You don’t need to share your writing exercise with anyone, though in a group, I find it fun and encouraging to both share my own work and listen to that of others.

Unhelpful exercises

I find some exercises can rein in and dampen my creativity. For me, this happens when the instructions are too restrictive or specific. Perhaps these are different for other people, but here are some examples of the kind of exercise I personally find stifling:

Think of a time you were terrified and write about it;
Describe your feelings when you had a painful break-up;
Write about the best day of your life;
In a group, pick fifteen random words. Now, put them all in a story.

Other people may enjoy these kinds of prompt, but they don’t usually work for me as a free-writing exercise. I come away from them trying to judge if I’ve accurately completed the task, rather than with the joy of having simply written and discovered something new.

I don’t think they are bad exercises (that depends on what you wish to achieve), so much as that they prompt me to use the analytical part of my brain to select a starting point before I even put pen to paper. So while I may find them useful for personal exploration or a challenge, for me they don’t always have the same benefits as completely free writing exercises.

Using Pen and Paper

I use pen and paper for these exercises, because if I use a keyboard, I find myself editing or correcting my spelling as I go. But I do know people for whom the reverse is true. For the exercises to work, it’s important that nothing comes between your creativity and the page.

As a designing architect, I found the same thing. Free-hand sketching on butter paper which I could screw up and toss away, or scribble and trace upon, over and over, generated far more ideas for me than using a computer which demanded immediate precision.

What are your thoughts on writing exercises? Do you enjoy them or find them useful? Are they a regular part of your routine, or do you use them occasionally if you feel a need?

‘Shoeless’ aboard Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine

In January, a well-known Australian speculative fiction magazine accepted one of my stories. Now I feel confident to share the details.

‘Shoeless’, will be published in Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine, Issue #57, edited by Lucy Zinkiewicz . Last night I received approval for the last edits, and I’m very happy with the final polish.

‘Shoeless’ is a light, contemporary fantasy and fairy tale. It went through my writing tutor, then Critters Online workshop, then three other wonderful beta readers with whom I sometimes exchange stories. All of that feedback proved invaluable and I’m grateful to everyone who helped me with this story, and to my editor, Lucy, for her final suggestions.

It looks like I should to add a new page to this blog to list my publications. This marks a milestone for me, because when I began blogging here a year ago, I had no publications to my name, and no idea whether I ever would.  But I did have, and still have, a love of writing.

‘Shoeless’ aboard Andromeda Inflight Spaceways Magazine

In January, a well-known Australian speculative fiction magazine accepted one of my stories. Now I feel confident to share the details.

‘Shoeless’, will be published in Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine, Issue #57, edited by Lucy Zinkiewicz . Last night I received approval for the last edits, and I’m very happy with the final polish.

‘Shoeless’ is a light, contemporary fantasy and fairy tale. It went through my writing tutor, then Critters Online workshop, then three other wonderful beta readers with whom I sometimes exchange stories. All of that feedback proved invaluable and I’m grateful to everyone who helped me with this story, and to my editor, Lucy, for her final suggestions.

It looks like I should to add a new page to this blog to list my publications. This marks a milestone for me, because when I began blogging here a year ago, I had no publications to my name, and no idea whether I ever would.  But I did have, and still have, a love of writing.

‘Shoeless’ forthcoming in Andromeda Spaceways Magazine

In January, a well-known Australian speculative fiction magazine accepted one of my stories. Now I feel confident to announce the details.

So, ‘Shoeless’, will be published in Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine, Issue #57, edited by Lucy Zinkiewicz . Last night I received approval for the final edits, and though there weren’t many, I feel they gave the story a final polish.

‘Shoeless’ went through my writing tutor, then Critters Online workshop, then three other wonderful beta readers with whom I sometimes exchange stories. All of that feedback proved invaluable and I’m grateful to everyone who helped me with this story, and to my editor, Lucy, for her final suggestions.

It looks like I’m going to have to add a new page to this blog to list my publications. This marks a milestone for me, because when I began blogging here a year ago, I had no publications to my name, and no idea whether I ever would. What I did have, and still have, was a love of writing.

‘Splinters’ is published.

My story fragment, Splinters, is now published at Eggplant Literary Production’s Miscellanea: the Transdimensional Library.

It’s very short, and free to read, and will remain there for about six months before it vanishes into the transdimensional ether. At some stage, it may be reborn as part of its longer story.

I love what the Librarian is doing at Miscellanea – you never know what you will find clicking through the library cards!

Writing News February 2013

Over Christmas and New Year, I took a reluctant break from writing. Even though writing every day is wonderful for fluency, I did not even do this. But I did recharge, going on holiday to Tasmania, and reading as much as I could.  Now I’m back writing again, fresher than if I hadn’t taken the break.

Soon after I returned from holiday, I received an acceptance from one of my favourite Australian speculative fiction magazines for a story I completed late last year. I’m not announcing specifics here yet, as I’m still waiting on the contract, but afterwards I spent a week wandering around doing ordinary things, unable to write much with the kids home most of the time, but feeling a happy sense of achievement. I’ve submitted several times to this magazine, and this was my third time through to the final round, and I was pleased but had no expectation of making the final cut. So it was a thrill to open their email and see an acceptance.

Then I began writing again. I’ve a loose plot for a novella, but it turned out my writing group wasn’t going to begin our novellas straight way, which gave me a great opportunity to write some shorts again first.

I began with a challenge: A writer friend told me Green Gecko Publishing was offering semi-pro rates for 500 word short stories for their Dirty GRE Study Guide. The stories needed to include all ten words from one of the lists on their website, each use followed by a definition. Last year, a visiting teacher challenged my writing group with something similar, and I hated the exercise. This time, I wanted to get the better of it, rather than the other way around, and I had more time. The story needed to be fun and dirty. After rejecting several alternative ideas, I wrote ‘Locks and Keys’, with an 18th Century setting and some weird science. Pleased I’d met the challenge this time around, I sent it off.

This week, I received an acceptance from Green Gecko Publishing, so ‘Locks and Keys’ will feature in their Dirty GRE Study Guide, for word list 14. (The lists will remain visible until the slots are filled, so if anyone is looking for a fun, short project, read their guidelines.)

More good news: another story I wrote last year has been shortlisted at one of my other favourite Australian speculative fiction magazines. They sent me some lovely reader comments, the first feedback I’d received since the final revision of the story. Of course I hope it will make the final cut, but even if not, it’s encouraging for the future of this story.

And two ideas I liked dropped into my head for new short stories – so in the last couple of  weeks I’ve written a lot. Don’t know how they’ll go yet; they are still incomplete first drafts. But it feels good to be back writing again.

Of course, I have a few stories sitting out there awaiting responses that will most probably be rejections, but it has been a wonderful start to the writing year.

Finishing the Malazan Book of the Fallen

Steven Erikson’s ten volume series, the Malazan Book of the Fallen, spanned over a decade of writing and three million words. I’ve been reading the series since the first book came out in 1999, and recently finished the last volume. My Goodreads review of the final book, The Crippled God, is here.

Upon finishing the Malazan series, I felt bereft. There wouldn’t be a next volume. This is always my reaction to leaving a wonderful world and its characters. But I also felt satisfied, freer to embark on other series with other authors, and to find new fantasy worlds.

I read many other books over this time, but the sheer size and scope of this series allowed it to dominate. One volume of the Malazan series is as large as three volumes of many others. The reading of it was a constant that stretched over many changes in my life.

This series put me off attempting to write. (As have several other wonderful series over the years.) Like many people, I’d experienced the urge to write my own fiction, but reading work I so admired filled me with the conviction that writing was only for a genius. The way Erikson could track a complex plot and bring characters to life, seemed a miracle I couldn’t hope to replicate.

However life twists and turns, and I found myself looking after my two young children, with two careers behind me, going a little bit mad. I tried a creative writing course as a means of exploring whether or not I was still able to create anything at all.

I discovered I loved writing as much as I’ve always loved reading. Rather than worrying about being unable to create works as great as those I admired, I became content to create regardless, and to go on creating. I discovered the fascination of learning a craft and improving over time, and not measuring myself against others, especially giants of the field. I realised those authors I looked up to had honed their craft over many years.  I still believed in genius, and talent, but masterpieces aside, realised anyone can write for pleasure, and improve if they were willing to keep writing and to keep learning. Now I write for the joy and satisfaction of creating stories, and for the fascination of learning to do so.

One of the things I enjoyed about the Malazan series was its contrast with the common fantasy tropes made popular by the Lord of the Rings. Erikson’s anthropological background brought a grittiness and authenticity to his invented peoples that made them feel to me as real as any extinct race on earth.  I find it irritating when people associate the fantasy genre only with orcs and elves, or only with traditional fairy tale elements, much as I enjoy those things myself when they’re done well. (I have a particular love for modern fairy tales that restore much of the darkness of the originals.) With the Malazan series, Erikson provided a completely original, entertaining and convincing alternative.

What am I reading now?

Now that I’ve finished the Malazan series, I’m enjoying launching back into other types of fantasy novels. I’m half-way through Bitter Greens by Kate Forsyth, which couldn’t be more of a contrast. It’s a retelling of the Rapunzel story, interwoven with a fascinating historical novel, and cleverly depicts the entrapment of women in those times. Like all good books, fantasy included, its themes have relevance in our own time and world. Next, I’ve got Margo Lanagan’s Sea Hearts/The Brides of Rollrock Island lined up. Plus, I’m still reading three collections of short stories that cover contemporary fiction, magic realism, science fiction, and humour.

If you’ve ever felt bereft after finishing a favourite series, which series was it? I’d love to hear.

Exploring a Longer Story

I’ve had a great time in the last eighteen months writing short stories. It’s been a fantastic way to focus my learning and progress in the craft. But there are some things short stories can’t teach me, so in the first few months of 2013, like others in my writing group, I’m planning to write a novella. That is, something less ambitious in length than a novel, but long enough to handle more complexity than one of my short stories.

My novella will be fantasy, so I need to build a world. That’s something I’ve not tackled much in my short stories, which have been mostly contemporary in their settings.

Having once been an architect, I can’t help thinking of writing in terms of design. When I first trained at university we began with smaller scale buildings — I think one of my first was an ampitheatre — and by the end of the degree, we’d moved up to multi-storey, multi-building precincts, in all their interrelated glory. Only one of those buildings would have been developed in greater detail.

The degree took about six years. It wouldn’t surprise me if it takes at least that long for me to make a similar transition to what I can handle in my writing. Probably longer, especially considering that like most people, I can’t write full time.

A novella feels to me like I’m moving from designing a single house (sometimes even single rooms) to a small apartment block.

Of course, a design using words is utterly different from a physical building, but my training inevitably affects the way I approach this, given my lack of experience with longer stories.

So this week, I’ve been nutting out an overall sketch plan. The details are pretty vague at this stage. I have a heroine, and a possible hero – or maybe he’s a villain. I’ve the beginnings of a town where they live, and a rough idea of the technology level. There’s an Order, which works like a religious institution, and there are wildernesses, wastelands, a vague economy, ancient religions, traders, and high and low magics.

I am getting a loose handle on my heroine’s needs and desires, and some of her flaws. Likewise, those of my hero/villain. Other characters are vaguely forming.

I began with a story idea, but it’s already beginning to change. That’s okay. That’s pretty similar to my architectural designing, when I used to do an awful lot of sketching, then crumple the papers up and toss them behind me until they littered my entire floor. (Eventually I would clean up, but when I’m generating ideas, stopping to do that risks breaking the flow.)

I don’t intend to do an incredibly detailed outline, but I feel I need something so that I’m not writing completely blind. I want enough to have a sense of where I’m going, even if that changes.

Novellas have a hard time selling, and it is likely too much to hope I could write a first novella worthy of a sale, though I’ll do the best I can. But I am hoping to learn from the process, and to find out whether I enjoy writing the longer form as much as I do the shorter one.

If you write, I’d love to hear how your approach to your stories varies with their length.

Go to Tasmania

Seriously.

I’ve just come back. Doesn’t matter if you are a family, or travelling with friends or as a couple, there are heaps of things to do. Here are some highlights from my holiday. (I know this my writer’s blog, not a travel blog, but it was such a great trip, I can’t resist a quick post.)

Cradle Mountain

The first place we visited, for three nights. We splurged on a cabin at Cradle Mountain Lodge, and were rewarded with wildlife coming right up to our deck, from where I took this picture. Pademelons with joeys in their pouches. Wombats grazing.  More animals there than on the very beautiful walks. I’m going back.

 

Strahan

We met up with family here, because my in-laws once worked in mining nearby. Took a wonderful cruise out to Gordon River and Sarah Island, where we had our first lesson about Australia’s tragic convict days. Beautiful scenery, very comfortable boat, sobering stories of the past. Nearby are the Henty Dunes (pictured), which the Roaring Forties have pushed thirty metres high.

Zeehan

There is a mining museum here with one of the best mineral collections in the world, despite the tiny size of the town. I don’t collect rocks, but I was fascinated by what I saw. Walking through the historic buildings nearby felt like stepping back in time. Relatively few people come here, yet anywhere else it would be crowded, the exhibits are so varied and in such good condition. The mineral pictured is local: crocoite.

The Wall

Half-way along the road through the wilderness between Strahan and Hobart, artist Greg Duncan is carving the history of Tasmania in Huon pine. Still incomplete, The Wall is a brilliant chance to see a sculptural work-in-progress, and it is already stunning. Other carvings in the gallery are almost indistinguishable from the real objects they emulate.

Hobart

This is my daughter, eating at Salamanca Place in Hobart, where there are lots of good restaurants.

What can I say in brief? Hobart is far smaller than Sydney, in a good way. Easy to get around, without compromising the quality of the food, the galleries or the historical attractions. I loved Luisa’s Walk, a theatrical journey through the Female Factory, one of Hobart’s early gaols. Within driving distance of Hobart, we found the Tahune AirWalk, Richmond, Bruny Island, and many quality vineyards. Port Arthur was closed while we were there, due to the terrible fires that destroyed 80 homes on the Tasman Peninsula, but there were still too many other things to see to list. For me, highlights were the Bruny Island Cruise, and Domaine A Lady A Sauvignon Blanc. Yes, a wine. It has redefined my understanding of what a Sauvignon Blanc can be. Splurge on a bottle from the vineyard, and have it with local oysters.

Mt Wellington

While in Hobart, we visited the top of Mt Wellington. As someone who’s spent time in New Zealand, I am still unsure why we call our Australian hills ‘mountains’, but the view from up there is amazing. And it snowed. In mid-summer. My kids were ecstatic. They’d never seen snow before. Yet later that week we took them to the beach.

The highlights didn’t stop there. One place I didn’t visit was MONA, because it’s not really suitable for young kids. I’d have loved to visit if I didn’t have them with me. As an Australian who’d never visited Tasmania before, I hadn’t realised it had so much to offer. I’ll be going back. And I’d recommend Hobart and Cradle Mountain in particular to any overseas visitors, for the wildlife in its natural state, and for the ease of access to so many World Heritage listed attractions.