AS YET UNWRITTEN
I’M often asked how to write a novel. That is, how does one go about it? Is it all about planning, using the right writer program or software, going to college and taking creative writing courses, kibitizing with readers, writers and authors, participating in writers’ conferences…in short, from whence does a story come? From literally decades of authoring, I’ve come to realize that my best stories come from “inside” but only when they’re ready. All the “tricks” people often tout to encourage the story to “come out,” are exactly that. And they generally don’t result in the quality story to which I continually aspire. While waiting, I do research. Sometimes a couple weeks as with QUANTUM DEATH (Savant 2016) with A. G. Hayes, sometimes years of research as with “The Sword of Kamehameha” manuscript that I’ve begun and am eager to finish. Either way, my “job” as an author of books is to continuously explore life with unbounded eagerness, relax and let my unconscious mind “do its thing.” No wine before its time.
Having said that, when ready, the stories come to me mostly in “off” moments, like when I’m awaking (I keep a pen and pad at my bedside) or during the twilight hours of a day. My job is to write (these days type) as fast as I can to capture all of what my subconscious is “dumping” me before my conscious mind takes over. My friend and colleague A. G. Hayes says his characters “talk to him” when they’re ready to be recorded on paper. Ready to assume a digital life, so to speak. In a spiritual sort of way, it’s all about when the story is ready to become reality. The impetus for me always comes from inside, but only when it’s ready. And that takes a lot of patience on my part, something some authors have called “writer’s block,” and I have never experienced with my approach.
While the creative moment is mostly intrinsic, once it’s on paper, everything becomes conscious. I’m no Mozart. My stories aren’t perfect from the start. I’ve been known to edit my initial manuscripts ten or even twenty times, moving from content to sentence to word level until I think I’ve crafted a perfect manuscript. Samuel Clemens (“Mark Twain”) once said ““The difference between the almost right word and the right word is really a large matter. ’tis the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning.” Only when a manuscript is perfect down to the word level, do I work on a synopsis, pitch and submit it to a couple publishers whom I’ve identified as being the “right home” in terms of readership. It’s all about making certain the submitted manuscript is a totally engaging, “easy read” like an unobstructed stream flowing down a hillside.
One caveat: I do sometimes write short works, relying fully on my conscious abilities, mainly when I’m targeting a particular readership right from the beginning. For example, a blog post, magazine article or short story. But my novels aren’t consciously directed at a particular readership, despite the fact that many well-known professional novelists begin with a targeted readership. What I find is that my style of creativity often cuts across or defines new genres, which may or may not be good for sales. Certainly THE EDGE OF MADNESS (Aignos 2020) by Raymond Gaynor is an example of the latter, a socio-techno-political Sci-Fu (science-based future study) thriller with all the human accoutrements of emotionally-laden romance, love, lust and sex. Go figure.
Quantum Death
The Edge of Madness
https://www.amazon.com/dp/0999693859
Having said that, when ready, the stories come to me mostly in “off” moments, like when I’m awaking (I keep a pen and pad at my bedside) or during the twilight hours of a day. My job is to write (these days type) as fast as I can to capture all of what my subconscious is “dumping” me before my conscious mind takes over. My friend and colleague A. G. Hayes says his characters “talk to him” when they’re ready to be recorded on paper. Ready to assume a digital life, so to speak. In a spiritual sort of way, it’s all about when the story is ready to become reality. The impetus for me always comes from inside, but only when it’s ready. And that takes a lot of patience on my part, something some authors have called “writer’s block,” and I have never experienced with my approach.
While the creative moment is mostly intrinsic, once it’s on paper, everything becomes conscious. I’m no Mozart. My stories aren’t perfect from the start. I’ve been known to edit my initial manuscripts ten or even twenty times, moving from content to sentence to word level until I think I’ve crafted a perfect manuscript. Samuel Clemens (“Mark Twain”) once said ““The difference between the almost right word and the right word is really a large matter. ’tis the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning.” Only when a manuscript is perfect down to the word level, do I work on a synopsis, pitch and submit it to a couple publishers whom I’ve identified as being the “right home” in terms of readership. It’s all about making certain the submitted manuscript is a totally engaging, “easy read” like an unobstructed stream flowing down a hillside.
One caveat: I do sometimes write short works, relying fully on my conscious abilities, mainly when I’m targeting a particular readership right from the beginning. For example, a blog post, magazine article or short story. But my novels aren’t consciously directed at a particular readership, despite the fact that many well-known professional novelists begin with a targeted readership. What I find is that my style of creativity often cuts across or defines new genres, which may or may not be good for sales. Certainly THE EDGE OF MADNESS (Aignos 2020) by Raymond Gaynor is an example of the latter, a socio-techno-political Sci-Fu (science-based future study) thriller with all the human accoutrements of emotionally-laden romance, love, lust and sex. Go figure.
Quantum Death
The Edge of Madness
https://www.amazon.com/dp/0999693859
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