The Child Inside

First of all, a huge thanks for the linkage by Kung Fu Monkey, which probably assures that one or two other people might see my ramblings. I've returned the favor, so if you're here cruising for writing advice, I'd suggest checking out his blog instead. =p He's got some great articles and he's a blast to read. Plus, he's got real experience in the field. So, yeah. Go. Abandon me. I won't cry. Much.

I've also included links to my LJ blog for my novel project,
Path of the Just. My recent surge of writing on the book is actually the subject of today's post, which I'll get to shortly. You can also find a link to Sylver Sword Studios, the home of my better half, who is a tremendous artist and writer. Sylver Sword is also the home of the eternally under construction Path of the Just web site. If the site is finished in the near future, I'll link it. I'll then sprinkle salt for all the ice that's just formed from hell freezing over.

So, after idling on the book for quite some time, things have finally started coming together in a frightening way. The characters are jumping off the page, the dialogue is clicking, and the action sequences are coming out pretty good. So, I thought, what better subject for this entry than how it happened?

Well... to be fair, I get the feeling the semester nearing an end had a lot to do with it. Let's face it, when you're trying to memorize the taxonomy of marine invertibrates and trying to figure out exactly what it is a rough endoplastic reticulum does, and looking forward to the day you can get back to animal behavior, it's a little hard to focus on writing. Another problem was that a particularly nasty problem came up in Chapter 22, and I wasn't sure how to deal with it. Finally, an epiphany came and I got through it, and since then, I've torn through six chapters in less than a week, and I suspect more will follow today, tomorrow and Saturday.

But, a big part of this came by letting the child inside run rampant.

Now, I'm not talking about some psychology blah-blah-blah. This was a piece of advice I got in my first college writing class: The writer needs two minds. One is the child, which writes the story in the first place. Then the adult comes in and ruins all the fun. Or something like that. It was something I tried to do, for the longest time, but I could never get that analytical part of my mind to shut down. Besides, I didn't trust the kid. He ate paste and shoved pencils up his nose, and that's probably the last person I want touching a story. So, I never really paid attention.

It was a recent discussion about movies with a friend that made it click. To me, when you go to see some films, you're looking for that experience that makes you feel like a kid again. You maybe don't completely check your brain at the door, but that sense of wonder you felt when you were first shown the constellations, you want to capture that. You want your reader to believe in this world you've created. And, the more I look at it, the more I realize it requires more than research. Think of, say, Spiderman or Lord of the Rings. Sure, there was a lot of work that went into creating those worlds, but if you can't find that sense of wonder in them, what's the point? You can spend five hours in the library figuring out the scientific basis for a character doing something, but if you can't see yourself swinging through the city streets on a web line, how much is that research worth?

So, as I've been writing lately, I've been letting go of that analytical side. I've been thinking, "What would just be COOL?" And, yeah, at the same time, I feel like I'm doing a lot of character development, description, all that stuff that comes with the territory. But if I want to throw in a line that's lifted from a favorite movie, or put in a weird idea from an old story, I'm feeling free to. And, as a result, some real interesting concepts have come about. I've actually come up with a way to really deepen the characterization of a major character, all through this kind of playing around. And, as a result, I can see myself in this world. I'm excited about this world. And darned if everything else right now, with a few exceptions, is stuff that happens between writing.

So, I'm just letting myself have fun. The kid's got control of the playground, and unless it involves running to the store and getting an Elmer's buffet, I'm letting him run with it.

After all, the adult's watching from the porch, with an amused smirk, realizing he can change it in revision if he has to.

Fights and Emotional Context

I'm still alive, somehow. I've finally got at least SOME asthma medication that does me some good, and the insanity at both work and school is clearing up(this is in part due to missing three days thanks to my breathing sounding like Darth Vader... without the aide of a $50 toy). So, I figured I might as well return to my audience of none. =p

A recent topic on another writing forum was that of fights, and the best way to make them work in a story. More often than not, battles in both written word and film come off as dull, at least in my opinion. This in spite of an overwhelming array of new tricks and techinques and the introduction of fighting styles from around the world.

Here's a comparison for you from a film that, for my money, failed miserably in a lot of ways: Matrix Revolutions. The end fight between Agent Smith and Neo should have been a real highlight, especially given the strength of previous face-offs(their Matrix work was outstanding, in my opinion, and while the Burly Brawl was rife with effects enhanced moments, it was still fun). What we're treated to instead is, in essence, a Dragonball Z fight scene. I swear, if Neo's hair had suddenly stood straight up and gone blond, I wouldn't have been surprised. It was dull. In the extreme.

Compare with the breath-taking "Stand for Zion" sequence earlier in the film. What makes the Zion scene work and the Smith-Neo scene fail to click? I think emotional involvement is the key.

I'm going to borrow a concept from pro wrestling here: Ring psychology. Why do some guys pull off the most amazing moves in the world, moves that look as though they shouldn't be physically possible, and get no reaction, while other guys can drop the most fake, hideous looking moves in the profession and get a HUGE reaction? The answer lies in psychology, or the art of telling a story with a match. A lot of wrestlers, unfamiliar with psychology, will go for their biggest moves early on, going for a quick reaction. Those who know the art of psychology, on the other hand, will save those big moves, for a time when there is more emotion behind them. The crowd is drawn in, they react more and, in theory, buy more tickets.

This works in written works as well, perhaps even more so... the fight is part of the larger story, and shouldn't happen just because your writing instructor or screenwriting book or beta readers say a fight should happen on page thirty-seven. Likewise, you shouldn't have your characters throwing in every nice techinque you saw in a Jackie Chan movie or in the latest Street Fighter game.

I can't believe I'm citing this as an example, but think of the Karate Kid movies. When did Daniel break out the big moves? At the end of the fight, yes, but after a point when we, the audience, NEEDED to see him use them. How many of you have read a book or seen a movie where you're just thinking, repeatedly, "Deck the son of a bitch!" Nine times out of ten, that simple punch can elicit more of a reaction from an audience than three consecutive bicycle kicks.

Another thing, and this is more common in "amateur" writing, like fan fiction, but it still sneaks into professional work as well... you may know the detailed names for moves, but your audience probably won't, unless you're speaking to a very specialized group. One of my tricks is, in the first draft, use technical names and such so I can see the fight in my mind and get it down on paper. Come the second draft, however, I visualize how it might look, and find ways to describe techniques that work. One of the prouder moments I've had in recent memory was a friend who is very serious about martial arts read a segment of my story, and recognized the techniques, simply from their description. It's almost like an Easter egg, and from my admittedly limited experience, it's quite rewarding for both you and your readers.

A long week....

I'm finally starting to get over a pretty prolonged funk, thanks in large part to my roommates and my utterly ridiculous cat, who has taken great pains to cheer me up during a pretty awful week. I'll spare the details, lest this become a typical emo kid's blog, but needless to say, I've had a lot better weeks.

I finally read Tietam Brown, Mick Foley's debut novel, during that time, and I suppose that might have had something to do with the funk. Foley's not the most polished writer in the world, but the book is an emotional roller coaster, and there's quite a bit of talent on display. I can hardly wait to see what happens once he has a few more books under his belt. His second novel, Scooter, is due out later this year, and I'll definately be checking it out.

I also read several Lawrence Block books, and the man is just amazing. Like Tietam, they're not for the weak of heart, but the dialogue and characterization is terrific. I've been through three Scudder books now, with the first, Sins of the Fathers and a more recent one, A Ticket to the Boneyard. I also checked out the first Evan Tanner book, The Thief Who Couldn't Sleep, and I'm amazed no one has turned it into a movie yet. It's easily one of the most entertaining journeys I've been on in quite some time.

As for my own writing... I've been blocked for a while now, and I'm hoping it clears up soon. I really want to finish the book and get a revision knocked out, so I can recruit a few honest folks to read over it and give me honest feedback. I'm keeping my fingers crossed, as it would be real nice to see this go somewhere... I'm still debating sending a story off to a few potential markets, but I'm still more than a little scared.

Maybe when I'm completely over the wangst.

Writing Life(or lack thereof)

I'm now about a month into my career as a reporter.

As of right now, I'm not sure whether I liked it or watching Enemy of the State on nitrous oxide while having a wisdom tooth pulled and going to work on heavy drugs with gauze in my mouth better. Though I suspect the wisdom tooth thing, because at least then I had drugs.

I think it boils down to me having a different idea of "student life" than asking a bunch of college students where they plan to get drunk on Super Bowl Sunday. It's not something I really care to write about, but at least I'm getting decent practice at writing to a specific form and meeting deadlines and being underpaid.

The one other benefit is that I actually managed to secure an interview with Lawrence Block, tying in with the release of the new Matthew Scudder book... which, despite there being 16 of them, the new one will only be my second. Still, Block's got such a natural touch at dialogue, and it's remarkable how different Scudder and Bernie Rhodenbarr(one of my favorite characters) are in their narration and outlooks on life. And both are perfectly natural.

In the book I'm reading right now, Eight Million Ways to Die, there's a brilliant chapter where Block is able to write an incredible account of Scudder's descent back into alcoholism, and it just works so incredibly well. Block's work usually inspires me and, at the same time, makes me realize I can never write anything that good.

Frighteningly enough, I think it's inspiring me to try my hand at writing a mystery, too. That should come off as... very, very painful, I imagine.

Solitare

A friend asked recently if I could suggest one thing to improve writing productivity. Off-hand, I joked, "Delete all the games off your computer. Especially Solitare!"

Hmmm.

Lawrence Block talked about Solitare and his tendency to play when he should have been working in Spider, Spin Me a Web. Ultimately, he came to the conclusion that perhaps his mind needed the break. And, after flippantly dismissing any value to keeping the game on the computer, I thought about how Solitare actually helps me as a writer.

For example, I often play a game or two before I start my writing for the day, particularly when I'm working early in the morning. If I'm ever blocked on a particular segment of the book, I have a tendency to click open and play through a few times. I used to think I did this to procrastinate, but in thinking back on it, the story flows better that way. The Solitare is almost like a cup of coffee for the brain, and my production is better than when I start cold and write a bunch of junk that will have to be edited out later. And when I'm blocked on how to handle a particular scene, playing Solitare seems to straighten things out.

Like almost anything in writing, your mileage may vary. But it seems to me every writer needs their little warm-up exercise. I know writers who do a free write before tackling the daily work, others who read their previous day's work and revise, and others who do a physical activity, like jogging, before they start. I get the feeling this sort of work is critical, not just because you get a chance to mentally prepare, but it also helps set the routine. If you have something to reinforce sitting in front of the computer, doing the daily word count, it's worth it.

And I figure I'll bore my minimal audience here with an update: The book is 66,800 words in. With classes starting this week, I haven't been able to get much done(Chemistry is threatening to make my head go Scanners, already), but hopefully I'll be able to use story segments for work in my Fiction class. And am I ever glad I took it... if it had been all science this semester, I might go insane.

Opening Thoughts

For whoever has found this journal for whatever reason, welcome.

As my writing career is actually beginning to resemble an actual career and not some fevered delusion of my mind, I decided to create a journal where I could share my thoughts about the process, rant about the incredible difficulty of the writing life, and basically have a writing oriented spot to talk about everything I'm working on.

A first thought for anyone who might be considering writing a novel, but find themselves intimidated or discouraged: Go to the nearest book store, find the section your book would be placed in, and scour the shelves until you find the two authors you'd be situated between. After years of "Oh, I'm going to write a novel," I did just that today, and there's something about making that commitment, about saying, this is where my book will go, that motivates you like nothing else.

Fourteen chapters to go before the first draft is done, and it's flowing like crazy right now. As for the journalism, my first ever article was the lead story in the Life section, and I got some nice compliments from my fellow staffers. While journalism certainly isn't my love in life, it's nice to have a paying writing job.