Justin Alcala's Blog - Posts Tagged "am-writing"

I must confess, at one time in my life I was a naysayer, a bah-humbugger, a downright Grinch when it came to Christmas. It was my first years of college- a time when being uniquely tetchy was in, and all of the dark clothed art students along Michigan Avenue groaned at the sight of bows and stringed lights. I use to sit inside the Artist’s Diner between classes, hovering over my notebook and coffee as shoppers passed by- wishing they’d wake up from their commercialized delusion. Luckily, as time went on, I became less of a…well, dumbass. After a few lumps of coal, I realized that Christmas wasn’t some object of ridicule. It was a window of opportunity. As Fred from A Christmas Carol once said “[it’s] the only time I know of, in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut-up hearts freely, and to think of people below them as if they really were fellow-passengers to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on other journeys.”

But it wasn’t just my attitude that needed adjusting. It was my writing style as well. Early on, I’d refused to let my work be tainted by the feelings invoked from Christmas. No sir, I was a writer. I was focused and poised- immune to the unabated atmosphere of sparkling trees and jingling bells. If it were a noir piece I was working on, then damn it, I’d commit to my grim mood.

Unfortunately for young Justin, it would take a lot of life lessons to understand that being unyielding was not what a good writer does. A good writer understands how to adapt to new inspirations. They know how to hone creative stimulus and orchestrate it into something innovative. It might not necessary be a chapter that forces a Christmas-peg into a square hole, but it could be a provoked theme or emotion that’s woven into one’s work. It’s a simple formula. Take inspiration and apply it to your craft in order to create a great act, character or story.

Hundreds of well-known authors have honed this technique. Some, like author Jean Shepherd, wrote an entire book based on his cherished Christmas memories as a child in Hohman, Indiana, while others like J.K. Rowling, gave a simple tip of the cap by adding short scenes that celebrated the holidays. But it doesn’t even have to be that direct. Are you feeling a bit of cheer this holiday? Why not return to that optimistic character in Chapter 5 to see if any of it rubs off in the dialogue. Are you mesmerized by the snowy weather? Time to go back to that mountaintop section and see if you can strengthen the description.

Listen, I’m not saying that just because it’s Christmas, we should all write about elves, candy canes and mistletoe. No way. I’m just reminding fellow writers that inspiration is not an enemy. It’s a tool. It could be a book you’ve read, deep thought you’ve pondered or an event in your life that conjures the same emotions. It’s mulishness that’s your nemesis, and it will keep you from strengthening your trade if you allow it.

Happy Holidays to all,
Justin Alcala

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Lately, I’ve been reading a lot of Secrets to Writing books. It’s not that I’m feeling uninspired. It’s that I’m curious as to what established authors recommend when it comes to good writing. First off, if you’re ever going to rely on someone’s opinion when it comes to success, don’t let it be a person who makes up imaginary stories in their head. We are untrustworthy sources.

On that note, let me give you my capricious input, which was thought up between conceptualizing plots for fairies and leprechauns. Actually, it’s not so much my input per se, as much as it is the input of several self-help books. Step one- understand that every writer has their own methods. Not all authors come out and openly say this, as much as they tell you why their approach is best. I had to glue this one together myself. If you’re doing something and it’s working, stick with it. Writing can be a sloppy process, and it doesn’t matter if you take a car, bus or polar bear to get there, so long as you reach the destination.

Next, read. Every author with an opinion (and all of them seem to have one) agrees that you can’t learn to write betterer…betterest…better unless you’re constantly exposed to the work of others. Reading also gets you to understand the rhythm of a good book. You begin to develop cognizance for plot structure, concepts and dialogue. Plus, if you don’t like reading, why should you expect someone to want to read your book? It’s as contradicting as it gets.

Finally, stop reading self-help books. Allowing yourself to be influenced by opinions is the perfect way to go mad when your first round of edits or reviews rolls in. You have a story you want to tell. Somewhere out there, someone wants to read it. Get it on paper and don’t look back. People are like bad weather. They’re going to rain down on you whether you want it or not. Stop concerning yourself with how the professionals do it and just write. You’re you– not Mr. John Newbery Medal.

So that’s my spiel. Take it or leave it. In fact, if you’re a writer, leave it. You shouldn’t trust my opinion, just as much as you shouldn’t trust the opinion of some fancy big shot author. The best authors target what they want and much like a literary-grenade, throw their work out in the field and hope for the best.

Justin Alcala

Author of “Consumed” and “The Devil in the Wide City” (Zharmae Publishing Press)

www.justinalcala.com

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Dim Fairy Tales

Umm…this is awesome. AllThingsThatMatterPress has officially contracted "Dim Fairy Tales" for publication. This will be my third novel, and second within the Plenty Dreadful Universe. I’m very proud to partner with AllThingsThatMatterPress, who has brought the world great books for over ten years. More to come!
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It’s official, @Solsticepublish and I will be teaming up to bring “The Devil in the Wide City” back to the pages. Editors are already busy proof reading so that Ned can prowl the streets of Chicago once more. I am beyond excited.
#newbooks #readerslife

Thanks again for all the great support. The recent birth of Ronan has reminded me how storybook life can be. The good news, none of the excitement has halted writing production. Far from it. Below is a list of all the upcoming news for future works and events…

March 2020: I’ll be a guest interview on The Written World Podcast to discuss finding your voice in writing. Stream date to be announced shortly after recording.

April 2020: Running Wild Press will release their Running Wild Anthology of Stories, volume 4 in hard back and ebook. My short story, “A Blind and Terrible Thing” will be featured along with several other talented authors.

May 2020: The Hide & Seek anthology will feature my work, “The Dilemma of Old Furnaces” in their collection, in addition to being featured in the University of British Columbia’s cIRcle digital repository for UBC literary research.

June 2020: DLG Publishing plans to release my ebook short story, “A Forest Only Whispers” on amazon for kindle and kindle unlimited.

July 2020: Czykmate Productions presents their first Haunted MTL anthology, featuring “The Lantern Quietly Screams” along with several other haunting shorts on amazon and kindle.

September 2020: BLK Dog Publishing projects the release of their Power Loss anthology, including my full length story, “It Snows Here.”

Fall 2020: I’m looking to have updates on my latest novel, “A Dead End Job” as well as publication details.

Winter 2020: I also am looking forward to announcing new details on my latest YA novel, “The Last Stop” for future markets.

“Lilith, my oldest work-friend since… well, friends became a thing. Unmentionables weren’t around when dinosaurs and other eat-poop-then-die creatures were on Earth. It’s only when sentience became all the rage that God cut off her finger and gave it to me as Lilith, divine retribution for anyone bold enough to manipulate the cosmic work schedule. Since then, Lilith has, and always will be, the most dangerous weapon in existence. While I used her special holy abracadabra to transform Lilith into a scythe, she adjusts to the user’s character in order to be the best possible work tool. So if you want to be my next intern, and you’re comfortable getting my dry-cleaning, let’s first see what’s in that mushy pink wetware between your ears. It’s a sorting hat sort of thing, only with irremediable, world ending consequences.”
-Death

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