The Cackling Scribe

Musings.

2012-01-28T22:00:00.005+10:30

Around 2004, back in my church-going days, I turned up at a morning service and noticed a guy of about my own age sitting in a pew by himself. Thinking that he looked a tad lonely, I sat down next to him and introduced myself. He told me that his name was David, and that he had just returned to Adelaide after a spell in Sydney. He said that he was an illustrator of children's books and was currently doing some work for a local publisher. At this my ears pricked up. At the time I was struggling away with early versions of what would eventually become the Ghost of Ping-Ling, and meeting someone with a foot in the publishing world was unusual and interesting. We talked for a little while, but I didn't mention my own writing. I hated talking to anyone about my writing in those days. For some (strange) reason, I felt that in doing so I might damage the fragile seed before it had any chance to bear fruit. It sounds crazy as I write it, but that's the mindset I was in.

Time went by, and I didn't get much of a chance to speak to David again as our paths didn't cross. But a buzz began to spread throughout the church community. It seemed David had written a book -- a fantasy -- which was going to be published sometime in the following year. As much as I wanted to grab him by the scruff of the neck and talk to him about it, I still couldn't bring myself to do it. Again, it was because of this sense that I was too early in my writing process, although now I think it was good old-fashioned fear -- fear that I would reveal my early writing attempts to someone and have them laugh at how woeful they were. So I kept silent, though I eagerly listened to any news of David's progress.

The book was published, and an email came inviting my wife and I to the launch. I replied that we would most definitely be there. When the date finally came, Pip and I headed to the SA Writer's Centre where a large crowd had already gathered for the night's celebration. I can vividly remember my sense of excitement as I climbed the stairs. The first thing that greeted me was an enormous poster showing a character from David's book, one of many that he drew himself. It was breathtakingly good, and so was the evening that followed. Sean Williams, a prolific and multi-award winning author based here in Adelaide, gave a speech, during which he asked what was in Adelaide's water to have so many fantasy authors come from here. Then David's publisher took the microphone and spoke about how the world he had created was so unique, and read a section from the book to prove it. Finally David spoke, and told of the long and often painful journey he had gone through in writing the book, and how amazing it was to be standing there on the cusp of becoming a published author.

I can't describe how I felt that night. I already knew I wanted to write. I had already written hundreds of thousands of words, dabbling in science fiction and fantasy, satire, children's writing, adult fantasy and YA. But I couldn't find my voice. I couldn't find the world of my stories, a world that seemed to hover on the edge of perception without ever showing itself clearly. The whole thing felt tantalisingly close, but still so far away, despite all my efforts.

Attending David's launch gave me a much needed boost. I can remember having coffee with Pip afterwards and saying that I needed to keep drilling away at my writing, and that one day I too would have a book launch like David's. I was even more determined, even more focused. If it meant wearing out fifty lap-tops and working my fingers down to stubs, no matter. I was going to chase it with all I had in me.

And that's what I did.

Who was that author? His name is D.M.Cornish, author of Monster Blood Tattoo, which has now won numerous awards and been published all over the world. And who was the publisher? Her name is Dyan Blacklock, of Omnibus Books, an imprint of Scholastic.

And, I'm very happy to report, she's now my publisher too.

I Think I Just Took the Blue Pill.

2012-01-25T20:45:00.013+10:30

I've developed a ritual over the last couple of weeks. At lunch time I head down to the Mall (only two minute's walk from my work) and wander casually into Dymocks to check if my book is on the shelves. When I started doing this I was grasping at straws -- there was almost no chance the orders had been sent out. But as the days went by and the likelihood of the book actually being there increased, so did my heart-rate as I walked through the door. Today my chest felt like it had a belt around it as I headed into the shop and quickly scanned the new release shelves. Nothing. I trod the familiar path to the back of the store and the children's section. Nothing. I scratched my head. Surely the shipment of books should have arrived by now? Alas, it seemed not. Feeling the now familiar sense of disappointment I turned and started out of the shop.

As I was passing the door to the back-room, the place where they keep all the boxes of incoming books, I heard someone inside make a kind of gasping noise. Someone else said 'Oh, you've been waiting for that one?' and the reply was 'Yes, this one's local'. My heart did a somersault. Surely she wasn't talking about my book? Immediately I went into ace detective mode, and rather cleverly tip-toed past the open door of the book-room, ever so nonchalantly glancing inside. One of the staff was reading a book, and I could just see part of a page, though not enough to tell if it was mine or not. I tip-toed back. She moved the page so I could see the cover. I caught a glimpse of an orange background and the word "Ping-Ling".

By this time I'd stopped breathing completely. There was no question of heading out of the shop. Instead I went upstairs and wandered around the rest of the shelves. After maybe two minutes I came back down.

And there it was, facing outwards, with a little tag underneath that said "local author". My book!

Had I dreamed about that moment? Yes! Had I imagined what it would be like? Yes! Was it anything like I dreamed or imagined? Yes! Surprisingly close to how I pictured it. Surreal meets thrilling meets gob-smacking meets breath-taking meets nerve-wracking.

But then things got even more surreal. I picked up one of the books and had a look, and the sales person said "oh, that's just been released". Feeling a little abashed, I told her I was the author. The next thing I knew she was taking me to meet the other staff and the owner and the children's buyer. They asked me lots of excited questions about the book, and could I sign them, and would I mind if they put a display at the front of the store. They brought out a pen and I scribbled (and I do mean scribbled, I have a terrible signature, something to remedy) my name in however many books there were. They put "signed by author" stickers on and put them back on the shelves, some at the back of the store in the Children's section, some at the front right inside the door. Marion, the children's buyer, took a photo of me with the rest of the staff for their Twitter feed. Then they all wished me well and said how exciting it was and told me they'll make sure the book flies off the shelves.

I went out of the store with an impossibly huge grin on my face, and back to my desk at work. There I spent the afternoon debugging java-script files. At least I think that's what I did.

What an amazing lunch-time. To have my book on the shelves was already a head-trip, to have such an encouraging and enthusiastic reception from the people who will be working hard to sell it puts it on a whole new plane.

A huge hats-off to the team at Dymocks Rundle Mall. Thank you for making this newbie author feel so welcome!

I've Got a Big Box of Books.

2012-01-23T18:53:00.006+10:30

Nearly 2 and a half years ago I sent this off to Scholastic. (You can read more choice details about the event here).

Today they sent this back.

In anyone's language that's a heck of a good deal.

And if you live in Australia or New Zealand, I'm reliably informed the book should be in stores in the next few days. If you don't live in Australia or New Zealand, and you have an insatiable burning overwhelming desire to own the book (bless you), it's available to order online from many places (Google should guide your path).

It's very hard to describe how this moment feels. Perhaps I'll contemplate it further over a celebratory glass of wine.

A Light To Guide Me

2012-01-09T20:50:00.010+10:30

At same stage in the distant past I worked out a very important truth about writing, something that has helped me on numerous occasions and just this evening came to my assistance yet again. The truth is this:

If you're bored writing something, people will be bored reading it.

I wrote a lot of stories when I was a teenager, but I hardly finished any. The reason was that I always got bogged down in the opening pages trying to set up the world. I would give the back-story on both the setting and the characters, the preamble about how such and such a person ended up where they were at the beginning of the book, and so on. By the time I'd scribbled my way through five pages, I was so fed-up with the whole thing I never wanted to see it again. I was bored, and had I been cruel enough to subject a reader to my efforts, they would have been bored too. 100 percent guaranteed.

Now I'm older and grayer I know you should never worry about back-story, but instead start with action and weave in the background later. Grab your reader's interest early and never let it go. Still, tonight, while I was banging out the first draft of Jeweller of Rassylon, I found myself sinking into that familiar sensation of tedium, as if my fingers were made of lead on the keys. And the reason? I'd moved from a section of action to a section where the next bit of action is set up. Dillen moves from A to B. He sits down. He thinks about this and that. He looks to see what's around him. He thinks some more. So boring I can hardly repeat it here for fear of nodding off.

Thankfully, I had my rule to guide me. I ditched 500 words of Dillen thinking and sitting and looking, and replaced it with about four sentences of essential set-up, linking action scene A with action scene B. And you know what? It was fun to write, and I'm pretty sure it will be a lot more fun for the reader to read too.

Four Weeks to Go ...

2012-01-01T20:29:00.004+10:30

... until publication date, and I have to say I'm starting to get excited. One of my daily rituals now is googling the book and the series, and seeing if anything else has come up (I have google alerts set, but they don't seem to work for me for some reason). So far it's mostly book shops advertising it as a pre-release title, and most of these seem to be in New Zealand for some reason. It still sends my heart into a flutter when I see it there. A real book with my name on the front -- who would have thought it?

A few people have asked me if I'll be having a launch. Originally I had been planning on it, but this last month or so my enthusiasm for the idea has waned. I think it was because my publisher wasn't all that keen on the idea -- something about the current climate of doom and gloom in the book-world -- and I'm not sure I can face the task of organising the whole thing myself. Perhaps I'll change my mind and hold something in late Feb, early March when I know for sure the books will be in stores. Watch this space.

I've also been giving a bit of thought to the whole publicity thing, ie. what, if anything, I can do to give the book a bit of a lift in the book-stores. I've considered following Duncan Lay's lead and doing spruiking sessions in various places, but I'm not entirely sure it will work as well for a YA/children's book. School visits might be more appropriate, so I think in the next while I'll start prodding the publisher to think about organising a few of those. Yes -- the idea of standing up in front of more than a hundred fidgety 8 year olds and trying to say something that will grab their attention terrifies me senseless, but it's probably something I should get used to.

Perhaps I could borrow a friend's (blunted) Samurai sword and give a demonstration of my prowess with the ancient art of the blade? At least it will give them a laugh.

Another One Goes By...

2011-12-30T20:24:00.008+10:30

Wow, hard to believe 2012 is nearly upon us, and what a huge year it will be for me. Ghost of Ping-Ling comes out in Feb, then in March the book gets taken to Bologna Children's Book Fair in Italy, in the hope that agents and publishers from around the world will decide to buy the rights (that will be an extremely nervous few days for me, and I'm not even going to be there). In June Mapmaker's Apprentice comes out, and perhaps even book 3 before the year's end, given the amount of time between 1 and 2. Hard to believe so much will be happening, it promises to be a dizzying ride.

This year, on the other hand, has been mainly hard work and waiting. In January, around the time I lost my job, Feb 2012 seemed an eternity away. That sense of frustration increased as the months ticked by. It's a very strange feeling when you've signed a contract for your first book but it hasn't yet come out. You feel like someone pressing your face against the window of a fancy restaurant, but you're not allowed to go in and eat. At first it's pure excitement and overwhelming joy, then it becomes a grinding wait for the publication date to actually arrive. Thankfully my wait is now measured in weeks (less than 5, to be exact).

And, of course, there's the ever present nervousness about how the book will be received. Some days I feel quite confident about it, a calm sense that the book is quite good (or at least the best I could make it) and should hopefully appeal to at least a few people. Other days I worry it will be shot down in flames, and this post I wrote some time ago will come back to haunt me, as if I unknowingly wrote my own destiny.

But who knows. As the great man said, who of us by worrying can add a single hour to our lives? It sounds like a good piece of advice to me.

I hope everyone has a happy and safe new year, that you take the time to dream, and that at least some of those dreams come wildly true.

See you on the other side!

Drifting Right Along

2011-12-24T15:59:00.006+10:30

I'm about 25K words through draft 1 of Tales of the Blue Jade (from hence abbreviated as TBJ) book 3. In some ways that's a bit of a worry, seeing as this time last year I had a complete first draft of the Mapmaker's Apprentice, and even then delivered it 2 months late of the June deadline. What makes me a bit less worried is the fact this story is much better planned out than MMA, so hopefully I won't have huge amounts of rewrite and rethink to bog me down in the coming months (touch wood).

I'm noticing a bit of a pattern in the way my drafts develop. Even if I'm happy with the story (which I *think* I am in this instance), a number of things always need substantial work on the second pass. One is geography. The characters of my first drafts usually inhabit bland, hilly lands, perhaps with a few trees or rivers thrown in for good measure. Only afterwards do I spend time thinking about how to make the landscape more exciting and diverse, as well as atmospheric.

In some ways that's not a bad thing. As events, characters and conversations tend to flow in ways I didn't initially expect, so landscapes often need to change to suit the new tone. I may have initially planned a conversation in a green field in broad daylight, for example, only to have the conversation take on more sinister overtones than I anticipated. Gone, then, is the green field, and in it's place is a mist shrouded valley in the dead of night. Landscapes, like every other part of a story, need to be flexible and free to adapt in any way that suits.

Secondary characters also need lots of work on the second draft. To me, my characters are always identical when they're first introduced, and only later do they take on their own personalities and histories. This is a deliberate strategy. I prefer not to spend time thinking too much about the personality of a secondary character when they're first introduced. I like to see how their character develops, how it begins to seep onto the page as they talk and act in the story. They usually end up much more interesting that way (at least to me, hopefully others feel the same way!)

I find now that this combination of planning the story (outlining) while allowing some aspects of the story to evolve on their own is the best combination for me.

Mapmaker's Apprentice Cover

2011-12-08T21:02:00.002+10:30

This was sent to me today. I absolutely love it!

Anyone who remotely knows the story should have no problem guessing who's on the cover of book 3...

First Ever Review

2011-11-30T20:56:00.005+10:30

A big thanks to Lynette from Asia Bookroom, who kindly emailed me to let me know Ghost of Ping-Ling had a 4 star review in the summer edition of Bookseller and Publisher Magazine (not to mention scanning it for me and sending it so I could actually read it). The fact that she told me it had 4 stars made it a much less nerve-wracking experience, but it still made my heart thump to read it. I have to say I'm really delighted to have this as a first review -- Rebecca Butterworth has understood the intent of the book well, and the bit about the descriptions appealing more to boys made me laugh (now I'm tempted to put a snot-flicking scene into book 2).

I hope I'm not committing any heinous copyright violations by reproducing it here...

Dillen is alone, orphaned while travelling with his father in a far-off land and raised there by a spiteful priest. Without a job or a home, it looks like Dillen will remain there forever, until a mysterious Easterner appears who wants him for an important duty: he must find Hallegat, the mana-lord -- a man from Dillen's own land -- and help him on his quest, for a great reward. To succeed, he will have to outsmart and outrun the puk-do, half-men half-pig creatures bent on Dillen's destruction. Even when Dillen finds others who will join him on his journey, the quest becomes increasingly dangerous -- as the puk-do become the least of the party's troubles. This is the first book from author Peter Cooper, a fast-paced pure adventure story packed with new dangers around every corner. The prose is well pitched to readers aged 10 years and up, and the characters are just the right mix of complicated, heroic and humerous. This is a story that future Tolkien readers will lap up, and the book leads well into the second of three parts. Cooper is an excellent storyteller for boys and girls, though the descriptions -- which are deliberately ugly, for example, of the smelly, spit-dripping puk-do -- may appeal more to boys.

(Rebecca Butterworth is a freelance writer and book reviewer living in Melbourne.)

What's Inside the Box?

2011-10-28T14:06:00.006+10:30

In your fantasy novel, a character walks into a room. It's an office of some kind, perhaps that of a petty official in the service of whatever government rules the land. You describe the room – a desk, chair, cupboard, window. It’s generally spartan, no decorations, a few maps on the wall, a small wooden box set neatly on the desk. This box will be never be mentioned again. It’s not part of the story, and you only include it in your description to indicate that the office, while bare, is in use.

Here's a question. What's inside the box?

Sure, the box is never opened, never comes into the story, and will be forgotten by the lead character the moment he/she leaves the room, but does that mean it's unnecessary for you, the author, to know exactly what the box contains? Is this a vital detail – or is it just something you can skip over while you move onto the exciting parts of the story?

Imagine, for the sake of argument, that you have given consideration to the contents of the box. It contains a writing kit – two quills, two bottles of ink, and a blotter. This is an office, after all, so it's no suprise to find it contains writing implements. Now you can forget about the box and move on.

Or can you? The thing is, if it’s a writing kit in the box, that poses a number of other questions. For one, what does the official write on? You’ve made no mention of any paper lying around, no books or documents. Why would a desk hold writing equipment if there’s nothing to write on? An office desk without paper seems odd, even in a fantasy world, and needs to be explained.

But does this society even have paper? Paper was invented by the Chinese sometime around the 2nd century AD, spread to the Islamic World, and reached Europe in the Middle Ages. Before that, expensive materials like animal hide (vellum, parchment) and even silk were used. Documents produced with these materials were greatly valued, and were the exclusive property of the rich.

If the society of your novel is pre-paper, that would go a long way towards explaining why there are no documents or paperwork on the desk. Perhaps the records this official handles are stored elsewhere, and brought in only when his attention is needed. Perhaps he hardly ever sees documents, and the writing kit is more of a badge of honour than a functional tool.

But if this is the case, why would there be maps on the wall? Pre-industrial maps were hand-drawn, and usually considered works of art in their own right. They also tended to be very large. Any pre-paper map that sits on your fantasy office wall is likely to be worth a fortune. Is it really going to be left pinned up on the wall of a minor bureaucrat's office? Unlikely, to say the least.

So, in order to maintain reality, the maps have to go.

But having established that your society is pre-paper, other questions need to be answered. For one, how is news exchanged in your fantasy world? It can’t be by newspaper, or letter (except by the rich), or posters in the town square. Could it be by town criers – people who journey from township to township, standing in the village squares and proclaiming the events of the land? Could it be by minstrels – music makers who compose songs about current events and sing them in taverns and other public places? If so, how do these minstrels and criers get their news? How do they travel? How current is the information they bring? What sort of news is it?

Again, none of this information may ever reach the pages of your story. Not directly, anyway. It will reach the pages of the story in other, more subtle ways, because this kind of isolation influences the way communities of people evolve and develop.

It’s easy for us to forget that widespread and easy communication is a very recent invention. In the pre-technological world, cities and towns needed to exist with a great deal more autonomy than modern times. It was either that or face extinction. If Grud Tonguestealer and his merry band of raiders decided to come out of the mountains and attack the nearest city, it could take days for the alarm to reach other settlements and for aid to come. If the city didn't have strong leadership, heavy fortifications, an effective army, and some sort of early warning system, it would quickly have been reduced to rubble. These towns and cities needed to be able to stand on their own, at least long enough for help to arrive.

This autonomy needs to be considered in fantasy cities, too. How does this autonomy look to your fantasy hero as they roam the streets? What sort of military presence does he/she see? What sort of early warning systems are visible – lookouts on towers? Beacons? Riders clopping through the streets carrying news from the outer garrisons? On a slightly more abstract level, how does this autonomy look in the eyes of the occupants of the city? Do they revere the lord of the city more than the lord of the land? Do they identify themselves as citizens of the Kingdom/Empire or as citizens of the city? Where are their loyalties, their frustrations?

I could go on forever, but I think I’ve made the point.

It might seem insignificant for the author to know what’s in an unadorned box on a desk in a minor official’s office – a box that plays no part in the story and is only mentioned once in a brief description. But nothing could be further from the truth. In fantasy, as in real-life, details do not stand in isolation. Stating a fact – whether it be the contents of a box, what someone is eating for dinner, even the colour of their shirt – opens up a wider net of links and facts that must be explored and explained. It’s this coherence that gives a fantasy world depth and realism, and makes it the type of place that could function completely if it were ripped from the pages and transplanted into some lonely corner of the real world.

Time to look again at our writing. Any boxes left unopened?

Hold Your Breath and Dive In...

2011-09-29T21:46:00.007+09:30

Tonight I started writing Tales of the Blue Jade Book 3, otherwise known as The Jeweller of Rassylon. I've spent the past 6 or 7 weeks nutting out an outline and filling my notebook with ideas and maps, and I've reached the point where I feel it's time to dive in (hence the very witty title of this post) and get started.

It's a funny bitter-sweet feeling when you start writing a new book. Part of me feels scared that I'll discover I've lost my ability to write, another part feels excited to be joining Dillen, Koto and Tajni on yet another adventure. However I feel, I have to push on and hopefully come up with something resembling a decent first draft by the end of the year.

As I mentioned, I've decided this time to completely scrap the "driving without headlights" approach and make a careful outline of what is going to happen in each chapter. I decided to do this when I realised that I wrote about 4 drafts of Mapmaker's Apprentice without any real idea where the story was going, and I could have reached draft 5 in a much shorter time if I had only taken the time to plot and plan and work it out as much as I could beforehand. That way I would have avoided the rather panicky last few months where the deadline started to loom and I ended up having to ask for an extra month to get it finished.

I'm happy with the outline I came up with for book 3, and to be truthful it poured off the pen much more easily than book 2 -- perhaps something to do with "book 2 syndrome", a malady that I am now firmly convinced exists. Let's hope it all works out in the end.

In other breaking news, I have a short story in the latest edition of Andromeda Spaceways.

It's called Zombie Dreams and it's about a zombie who decides all he wants in life (death?) is to become an architect. The idea first came to me when I was staring out the window of the bus on the way to work. That night I wrote a first draft, which I promptly decided was utter rubbish and confined to my hard-drive for all eternity. Then a few months later I happened to give it another read and thought it was actually quite good (amazing how time and distance can give you a new view of things) so I worked to get it up to scratch and sent it in. It's a comical story, obviously, but somehow it's quite special to me. No idea why, but I hope others are able to enjoy it too.

On a side note, my good writing buddy Liz has a story in the same edition, and she managed to have hers illustrated! (No jealousy there whatsover. Not even a hint). Congrats, Liz! It's a wonderful story indeed.

On Maps and Mapping

2011-09-20T21:41:00.013+09:30

I thought I might do a bit of a post on the process I go through to produce maps for the books. Getting the process to a stage where I'm happy has been long and daunting, and has involved lots of experimentation with different kinds of media, so perhaps it might be in some way helpful if I share a little of what I've learned as I've gone along.

Most of my maps start off like the image below -- a pencil sketch in my moleskine notebook, with lots of crossing out and rubbing out and fairly basic detail. Usually I doodle these at the same time as working out the plot, so I have at least some kind of idea of the world in which the characters are moving.

Sketchy, pencil drawn maps are all very good, but when it came time to provide something more presentable to the publisher I went into a bit of a spin. My first thought was to try and rope someone else into doing it for me, then I realised that the maps were a very important component of the story and something I really needed to own myself. After a bit of experimenting, I bought a set of (extremely expensive) technical drawing pens and used a pad of tracing paper to turn my pencil sketches into something more presentable.

I liked this version, and I considered it good enough to send to the publisher, but somehow I knew it wasn't what I wanted to end up in the book. It looked too much like something from Lord of the Rings, with little trees and bumpy mountains and the like. Since Tales of the Blue Jade is set in a world based on Asian mythology I decided I needed to look at historical Asian maps and get a feel for how these were drawn.

After a visit to the university library and quite a lot of googling, I found the map below.

It's an old (unfortunately I don't know exactly how old) Chinese map showing the Korean Peninsula. It had exactly the kind of feel I was looking for, so I used it as the basis of the map I finally ended up drawing.

The other thing I did is put away those expensive technical pens. Instead I bought a nib and bottle of ink for about $10.00 from the local art shop. Because cartridge paper gave me too much "bleeding", I used some heavy duty paper designed for acrylic paints. Not only did it hold the ink perfectly, but it had that aged parchment look to it, which further accentuated the look I was trying to achieve. Here is the result.

And yes, I did the whole thing by hand. Drawing those waves nearly took away my eyesight and my sanity, and every second I lived in fear of that misplaced drop of ink that would ruin the whole thing. I'm sure I could have done it more easily with photoshop and a tablet, but somehow I felt the urge to use a more traditional medium, something at least vaguely close to the tools used by historical mapmakers. And I think it came out well, if I say so myself.

This version then went, in a very heavily reinforced envelope, to the publisher, who added proper typeset labels for all the features as well as a scale and a compass that fits in with the existing feel of the map. I'd like to post the final version, but I don't have a copy of it yet (other than in the ARC, and that's too small to reproduce).

I guess you'll have to buy the book and see it!

Uba Uba Uber Alles

2011-09-08T19:49:00.006+09:30

This came in the post yesterday.

It's a thing of a thousand names -- arc, proof, galley, uba (that last one was a new one to me) but basically it's the book in a pretty well complete form minus the cover. After so many exciting and new experiences with covers, pages and so on it was yet another one to hold the book in my hand and start to read.

And look how thick it is!

Somehow I'd imagined an 80,000 word book being about as thick as a Discworld paperback, so this is a bit of a surprise. Did I really write all that??

Starting to feel more real all the time....

(By the way, I'm hoping to be able to write some more substantial blog posts in the next little while. Time has been at a bit of a premium over the last few months but hopefully things will start to settle down soon. Hopefully.)

Cover...

2011-08-22T21:41:00.003+09:30

Is this not the most beautiful, exciting and wonderful cover ever devised by human hand? Whether or not you agree, it is to me!

And now it's almost starting to feel real...

So Close Now I Can Smell It.

2011-08-12T11:57:00.004+09:30

I can't believe it's been a month since my last post, and how much has happened in that time!

I've finished the submission draft of Mapmaker's Apprentice and sent it off to the publisher. After nearly a year and a half of pain and 10 drafts (one of them handwritten) I have to say I felt really happy with the final result (thank the stars). So now I'm in that nervous wait time while the editor and publisher read it.

I also finished the edits for Ghost of Ping-Ling and sent them back. Currently I have a beautiful white wad of what they call "pages" sitting on my desk. It's basically the book in its near to final layout form -- like the finished thing but minus a cover, so myself and the editor can pick out any final (hopefully minor) changes.

Speaking of the cover, a few days ago I saw the latest version. It's probably enough to say it's the cover I was dreaming of. I am utterly desperate to show it, but that probably doesn't make much sense until the final version, which hopefully won't be too far away. Watch this space!

Oh, and as a final update. The series now has a title: "Tales of the Blue Jade."

Editing

2011-07-08T15:44:00.003+09:30

Yesterday I started the edits for the Ghost of Ping-Ling. Prior to getting the manuscript back I was a bit worried about how much work I'd have to do , but in the end it's turned out to be quite reasonable (lots of misused commas -- I still think commas are one of life's greatest mysteries). I even got to write "stet" yesterday -- in green pen. Talk about the giddy heights!

At the same time I'm finishing off editing Mapmaker's Apprentice. I have to say, writing this book has been really, really hard. For some reason it's been extremely difficult to get the finer points of the plot ironed out, and some of the characters have changed two or three times and I'm still not quite sure I'm happy with the result. I've ended up having to ask for an extra month on the deadline so I can (hopefully) get it right.

(I should mention that three of my crit partners have read the manuscript now, and all were overwhelmingly positive (two of them said they enjoyed it more than GPL). That was desperately needed encouragement, but I can still see improvements that I want to make. I hope I'm not being overly picky.)

By a stroke of luck I'm about to finish up at my current work and start a new job, and I have 3 weeks off before I do. A large part of that time will have to go into editing, but having that time takes the pressure off enormously.

Then I have to start thinking about book 3!

Submissions...

2011-07-03T10:38:00.004+09:30

It's been a very dry year as far as story acceptances go. I've managed to get a few things on shortlists and so on but nothing has made it through to acceptance. Then this morning I woke up to news that my short-story "Dead on the Doorstep" has been accepted by Kaleidotrope for publication some time next year.

This will be my first non-Australian sale, so I'm extra happy about it. For those with long memories, it's the story that I originally wrote for After the Rain but ran out of time to finish before the submissions closed. I'm glad it found a good home!

I should also point out that this will be my second comic Zombie piece to be published. Perhaps I've found my niche?

Interview

2011-07-02T09:44:00.003+09:30

I have an interview (my first ever, yay!) in the latest newsletter for the Online Writing Workshop. You can check it out by going here and clicking the "current newsletter" link on the left hand side.

It's a lot more wordy than I thought it was when I sent it off. Hopefully there's something helpful and/or encouraging amongst it all!

Recipe for a B-Grade Disaster Drama

2011-06-03T23:12:00.003+09:30

All the following MUST be included¹.

1) Divorced couple, both scientists, highly antagonistic towards each other until said disaster forces reconciliation.

2) Spunky kid who nobody understands but who plays huge role in averting disaster.

3) Old man in flanelette shirt (usually the dad of one member of the divorced couple) who is wise but misunderstood and whose warnings are ignored.

4) Extremely thick law enforcement officials who care for their positions more than the impending destruction of the world.

5) A dog. The dog is there for cuteness value, but could also do one of i) alerting good guys to hiding bad guys ii) barking an important warning iii) pissing on highly important piece of evil electronic equipment.

¹Yes, if you can't tell already, I've just watched yet another of these. This one had the Moon about to crash into Earth. It even had a choice line where the President of the United States asks if anyone will survive the collision.

Another One Bites the Dust

2011-05-27T21:35:00.003+09:30

There's only one bad thing about reading a wonderful book (or series). It's that feeling you get when you finish, and you go to your bookshelf to pick something new to read, but all the books look "blah" because they're not the one you just finished (even though at any other time you'd say they're gems).

I had that experience tonight when I finally finished Sean Williams' Books of the Change. The good news is that he's written a follow up series called Books of the Cataclysm. I happen to have one of them sitting on my shelf, courtesy of the 50% discount at the local soon-to-be-closed Borders. Unfortunately it's book 3. Not the best place to start a trilogy.

I foresee a bookshop visit happening soon, and money changing hands.

Golden Editorial Moments

2011-05-16T16:16:00.017+09:30

Seeing as I'm in an editing state-of-mind at the moment I thought I'd share ten of the best errors I've found during recent or previous editing of my own manuscripts (GPL, MMA or other works-in-progress). They are in no particular order, although my favourite is unquestionably number 10 (mainly because I found it two nights ago).

1) Non POV character's facial expressions are described even though characters are in a pitch-dark room.

2) Characters don't eat for four days but never complain of hunger.

3) A horse gallops for eight hours.

4) Characters don't sleep for two days but never complain of tiredness.

5) The Moon is full twice in a week.

6) An 80 mile journey is carried out in two days (on foot).

7) A major injury is forgotten the next day.

8) Fires are lit effortlessly without tools/implements/matches.

9) The Sun sets in the East.

10) A character uses an axe to chop the leg off a table so the table-leg can be used to try and break through a rusted iron bar (this one might require a moment's thought).

All I can say is how glad I am I caught these!

A Milestone Reached

2011-05-12T09:59:00.000+09:30

I've finally finished the latest (and hopefully longest) round of editing on the Mapmaker's Apprentice. This is the phase where I hammer out bumps in the plot and also do a first cut at reworking sentences and making the whole thing read better. There wasn't a lot of rewriting, but a few chapters towards the end needed a revamp due to smaller changes earlier in the story (the snow-ball effect). All in all I was pretty happy with how it went.

So now I've printed it out and I have a big wad of A4 paper sitting on my desk. I'm already half way through reading it and there's not a page that isn't covered in green notes (all minor things, fingers crossed). I'm hoping I won't have too many further changes to make but already I'm thinking there's a couple of chapters that could probably be completely removed. Not a bad thing, considering it's about 97,000 words and it's supposed to be 80,000.

My next move is to give it to the small group of faithful beta-readers who read GPL, and get their thoughts. At the same time I'll convert it to an MP3 format and spend a day (somehow) listening to the whole thing. That's one of the best ways I've found to give a form of distance to the work -- having it read by a detached electronic voice and being forced to listen to every word at a regular pace, without being able to skim anything. It's a great way to pick up whether the pace of the story is building at the right rate and whether information is being learned by the protagonists (and thus the readers) in a measured and tension building way. It's also a great way of picking up typos which your eye would normally skim over.

It's so satisfying reaching a point where I can finally hold the manuscript in my hand. It feels like it's been a bit of a tortuous path to get to this point, but I'm glad it's arrived. It makes me just that bit less stressed about that July 1 deadline, which now seems so close! Where does the time go?

When Editing Rules Your Life.

2011-04-27T10:06:00.004+09:30

I'm only three chapters away from finishing the edits on the latest draft of the Mapmaker's Apprentice. Editing is always a hard slog, and this has certainly been no exception, even though it's more big-picture stuff than the nitty gritty sentence structure type things that I'm yet to face.

One of the things I find once I start editing is that, once I have those "editing glasses" on, it's really hard to take them off again. I find I can't read a paper, a document, a book or even a road-sign without subconsciously looking for mis-placed commas or bad grammar or whatever. It's a bit like when you've been driving all day and you go to bed and all you can see is the road winding away in front of you; the repetitiveness burns into your brain.

Someone who is not wearing editing glasses is unlikely to see the world the same way you do. I offer up proof below.

This is a sign I saw on my walk into work this morning. I took the pic and showed it to two people in the office, and neither of them could pick anything out of place. One of them, who happens to be Chinese, went to great pains to read the Mandarin script to see if that's what I was talking about, which I thought was very flattering because I can no more read Mandarin than I can play a piano with my elbow. Neither of them picked anything wrong until I explicitly pointed it out.

I was pretty surprised, but I guess it's proof they're not deep in the editing process at the moment.

What about you -- can you see anything interesting in the pic? Do you have your editing glasses on?

They never had it when I was a lad...

2011-04-21T10:15:00.007+09:30

There's a person at my work who insists on communicating with me by Google-Talk¹. This wouldn't be so bad if it weren't for the fact that the person sits approximately 10 feet from me, with nothing to separate us but a stretch of carpet and a three foot high desk.

So I'm sitting there working away at my computer and the little chat window pops up, and it's a message from -- let's call him, for the sake of anonymity -- "Barry". And Barry is asking what time I'm going to lunch. Now, perhaps a lot of people would type in an answer, and everyone would go away happy. But for some reason I can't help but find this insistence on not talking just a tad vexing, particularly when Barry is, how do I put this, one of those Engineers who probably would benefit enormously from as much vocalisation as he can get.

So I turn to Barry and I say "Twelve O'clock?". His response is to jump like someone dropped a tarantula down the back of his neck. He then peers at me through his glasses and nods in a kind of dismissive way, as if willing the voices in his head to go away. I'm left feeling like a bit of a meanie, but hopefully my point has been made.

Of course, one of the side-effects of my insistence on meeting his text questions with verbal answers is that the rest of the office now thinks I have a tendency to spout random, unconnected phrases at full volume to nobody in particular. This probably explains why conversation tends to hush when I walk into the kitchen.

¹In case you don't know what that is, it's a little chat program that lets you send text from one computer to another, kind of like an instant email.

That is a very funny word

2011-04-10T10:21:00.004+09:30

No, I mean 'that' is a very funny word. Not ... oh, never mind.

I call 'that' a "flashing word", because whenever I edit it flashes in and out of the manuscript. On one pass I'll cut out all the instances of it, in the next I'll put it back in. Then the whole thing repeats (by which time, I start to suspect it's time to hand the manuscript to wherever it's going, or take a long break).

Take this sentence for example.

"How typical that he would expect Wilbur to act just as badly."

vs.

"How typical he would expect Wilbur to act just as badly."

When I read the first example, my mind tells me I don't need the 'that', so out it comes. But when I read the second example, my mind tells me I do need the 'that', so back it goes. And so forth.

Here's another example.

"It was the same dog that he had seen sniffing around earlier."

vs.

"It was the same dog he had seen sniffing around earlier."

To me, this example is a little more straight-forward. I would definitely not use the 'that' if this were a real sentence. I have, however, had critiquers tell me I need to have the 'that' there in sentences almost identical to this one, so obviously opinion is a little divided on the issue.

My current position is it depends (is that it depends?) on the feel and flow of the sentence. If you read aloud the two dog sentences above, you'll notice the beat is different. The 'that' in the first acts like a speed-bump, a kind of jolt in the flow. The second sounds more smooth and natural, and I think it's easier on the eye.

The Wilbur examples I'm still not completely sure about. I lean towards the first, ie keep the 'that', because although the second might flow better, it doesn't quite sound right. Or maybe it does. Or maybe it doesn't.

I think that it is time that I had another strong coffee.

After the Rain

2011-04-01T10:18:00.008+10:30

The After the Rain anthology is finally out and available at a special pre-order price from here. I've only read one of the other stories so far (which is a bit hopeless of me, I know) but it was absolutely fantastic.

When I look at the other authors in the table of contents, I'm still not quite sure how I managed to get into it. But I'm not complaining! (Who would?)

Thou Shalt Keep a Blog

2011-03-28T10:09:00.009+10:30

Over the last few weeks I've read 3 different articles/postings on the importance of writers keeping regular blogs and building an on-line following prior to their books being published. Each article gave the ideal time between an author starting a blog and their book coming out as 3 years. Each article waxed lyrical about the importance of regular, informed and interesting posts. Each article talked about complementing the blogging activity by using Facebook and Twitter to further build the author's online presence.

Maybe it's just me, but I can't help but feel uncomfortable with that kind of advice. Not because it's wrong per-se, because I don't think it is. I think what I object to is the way it's put forward as the only possible way for a budding author to publish a successful novel, and that any author who ignores the advice and, heaven forbid, doesn't actually blog or use Facebook is setting themselves up for an epic fail when it comes time to publish their book (or to attempt to get it published).

Sorry, but that's utter tosh.

How long has the internet/blogging/Facebook been around for now? How long have successful authors been around? To suggest that frenetic blogging and deep wading in the social-network pool is the only path to writing success is total nonsense. It's one path, yes. But not the only path.

Writing a book is really, really hard. Anyone who's tried it will tell you that. It's hard coming up with ideas that are original and interesting. it's hard developing your own natural writer's voice. It's hard finding time to write. It's hard dealing with statistics that tell you you have very little chance of success. It's a plodding, difficult, frequently excruciating journey that takes every ounce of will-power and determination to keep you from giving up. The last thing you need is someone coming along and laying a whole bunch of extra burdens on an already close-to-toppling pile. "Oh, you're not doing a regular blog yet? Well, you better get started." or "Oh, only twenty friends on Facebook? Gotta do better than that, fella."

If you're a full-time writer, perhaps you have time to act on this advice. For most of us, it's little more than an added pressure we don't need.

Rejections...

2011-03-21T11:28:00.008+10:30

At the moment I'm going through a bit of a spell of rejection letters. I've had one from ASIM, one from Strange Horizons, and yet another "your story did not win" from Writers of the Future to add to my collection. At the same time, I've been reading a brilliant collection of short-stories (a collection of brilliant short-stories?) called Australis Imaginarium. If you haven't taken a look at it, I strongly recommend grabbing a copy from here.

Reading the anthology has helped me keep the rejection emails in perspective, because the more of those stories I read, the more I understand why my own efforts didn't make it. That's not to say my stories were bad, because I don't think they were. They just weren't anywhere near the standard of the ones I'm reading. Far from being discouraged by that, it's encouraged me to keep writing and to keep striving for improvement.

One thing I do need to work on is endings. I find it much easier starting a short-story and getting the whole thing rolling than I do coming up with a satisfying conclusion that wraps everything up nicely. My endings tend to be abrupt, or in some other way fail to complete the journey I've embarked on. I think I'm getting better, but still a long way to go¹.

¹I hope that wasn't too abrupt an ending for this post.

Then, He Started Talking About "Then"...

2011-03-10T15:32:00.013+10:30

I've always been deeply suspicious of "blanket" writing rules. You know, things like "never ever ever use present participial phrases" or "never ever ever start a sentence with 'but'". Someone, somewhere -- be it a schoolteacher, agent, parent, fellow-critiquer or whatever -- has put these ideas out there, and huge flocks of aspiring writers have latched on to them as gospel truth. Dare to break one of these axioms in your writing, and you can expect the full wrath of the critiquing community to break over you like a tide, waggling their fingers in front of your face and beating you about the head with Strunk and White¹.

But perhaps I'm exaggerating just a little bit.

You can always expect sympathy and understanding from your critiquing buddies.
These days, I've learned to tune out those kind of comments in critiques, although I still get a preemptive shudder when I knowingly break one of the "rules". One thing, however, that I do find myself agonising over is the use of the word "then".

I can't quite remember where I read it, but there's a piece of advice floating around Internetia to the effect that there are two words a writer should never use: "then" and "suddenly". The gist of the argument is that both words are unnecessary, as the movement of time should already flow naturally from the writing.

Example: "He went to the chair, then sat down."

It's pretty obvious that the sitting action followed the approach to the chair, otherwise this person will end up on the floor with a sore rear. It would be much better written as:

"He went to the chair and sat down."

And:

"I opened the box. Suddenly, a dwarf with red hair leaped out, strumming a banjo."

Again, it should be obvious the action is sudden, without having to explicitly say so.

"I opened the box. A dwarf with red hair leaped out, strumming a banjo."

Here are two cases where the "rule" makes perfect sense, and should be applied. But it shouldn't become a blanket rule, without exception, at least when it comes to the word "then" (I might leave "suddenly" to another time, if at all.)

Take this example:

"He watched the car through the binoculars, then handed them to Cory. "You take a look.""

Is the usage of the word "then" incorrect here? No, I don't think so. Is it necessary? Well, I suppose it could be written like this:

"He watched the car through the binoculars, and handed them to Cory. "You take a look.""

To me, that's an awkward sentence. The handing of the binoculars to Cory doesn't flow logically from the other character using them to watch the car -- the two events are not really connected in a way that makes the "and" feel correct, as they would be in this case:

"He polished the binoculars with his shirt sleeve, and handed them to Cory. "You take a look.""

That feels a little better, because he's (presumably) polishing the binoculars so that Corey can see through them more clearly. The two clauses are more closely related, and therefore a "then" might be seen as redundant (although I still think it would be perfectly valid for it to remain).

My take on it is this, and (as always) I'd be delighted to hear other people's thoughts. "Then" is frequently redundant, but not always. It seems to me that its best use is to connect two events that are not really related in any other way, other than the fact that one follows the other. Even then, there are probably cases where it could be dropped in favour of "and" or some other conjunction.

Like many (all?) blanket writing rules, I think it's nonsense to say that "then" should be eliminated completely, but it should probably be used with care, and only when its absence would make the flow of action in a sentence less clear -- ie, it's not redundant.

¹You should also never ever ever mix your metaphors.

Nomenclature, and Other Diseases of the Knee.

2011-02-25T09:53:00.012+10:30

Coming up with names is one of those mixed joys. I prefer it to nutting out a plot, or fleshing out a description, or dreaming up a character for the first time, but that doesn't make it a trivial or easy task.

A name is pivotal to a story. A name should be interesting, unique, and it should capture a sense of the place or person to whom it is ascribed (imagine if Darth Vadar had been called Cyril. Spoils the effect completely).

Because I know it's a difficult task, and should be approached carefully, I usually do very little naming in any of my early drafts. Instead, I use place-holders, memorable words that I can easily find and easily replace at a later date. With my current work-in-progress, I went even further, and used the same name - Barney - for every new thing or person. The village of Barney, Master Barney, the River Barney etc. (I really hope none of these slip through). Most times I'm not quite so extreme, and I'll attempt to come up with different place-holder names for each character or location, usually something like "Bill" or "Ted". It takes slightly more thought, but makes it much easier when I get to the end and do a global search-replace with proper names.

That's where the fun begins. When it comes to picking non place-holder names, these are some different methods I've found useful:

1) Pure invention.

Sometimes I'll come up with a name by just rattling sounds and letters around in my head and seeing how they form. Many of my favourite names started life this way, like Ping-Ling, Tajni and General Magoda. It can also help to work through the alphabet, using each letter as a starting point for a new word.

Be aware, though, that this approach has a potential sting in the tail. On a few occasions I've come up with an absolutely wonderful name, only to find out later it's come from another book, or a film or some such place. At some point I've read or heard it and, having sunk into my subconscious, its raised its head when I've tried to dream up of a new word.

That's not necessarily a bad thing in itself, but originality is a pretty good thing to strive for. One way to reduce the chances of this happening is to Google any name you come up with, just in case.

2) Language Dictionaries.

Because my current series is set in an Asian themed world, I've made a lot of use of Japanese, Chinese, Korean and Thai language dictionaries to help me pick names. Most times I'll change the word slightly, so that its origin isn't immediately clear, but sometimes I'll use it as is, if I particularly love how it sounds. You could do the same with German, French or just about any other language dictionary you can think of. They're a huge resource for words and names you wouldn't otherwise hear in everyday usage.

3) Maps.

This is something I've recently discovered, and I think it's become one of my most useful methods for coming up with place-names. With the advent of Google Maps, it's easy to take a virtual cruise over any landscape you want, checking out landscape names and picking and choosing what you like. Again, as with language dictionaries, you can change as you wish¹.

4) Online Name Generators.

I can't say I'm completely sold on these, but I have used them to generate a fairly major character name in one of my works-in-progress. The idea is you can enter a series of constraints (male, female, locale, genre etc.) and the computer will spit out a fantasy name. You can check out one of them here. They're actually strangely addictive...

5) Other Odd Places.

I picked the name of one of my lead characters, Koto, from the working-name of a microprocessor I was helping to design at the time. It's amazing how many sources of great names there are if you keep your eye out for them!

So there you go, a summary of my current methods for finding names. I'm sure I'll stumble across others as I go along. As always, feel free to share some of the methods you've used. I'd love to add to my list!

¹As a (hopefully) interesting aside, I recently flipped to a map at the beginning of Sean Williams' The Sky Warden and the Sun, and was surprised to see a number of strangely familiar names. It took me a moment to realise they were all based on town-names north of Adelaide - "Boliva" instead of "Bolivar", "Three Wells" instead of "Two wells", "Long Sleep Plains" instead of "Wild Horse Plains", "Lower Light" instead of .. well, "Lower Light". Then I remembered -- Sean Williams grew up in Whyalla, a town north of Adelaide. He would have seen each of these names on road-signs as he drove into the city along Highway 1. The only reason I know this is that I grew up in Woomera, also north of Adelaide, and I used to see the same signs too.

I felt strangely privileged at this discovery, like I've been let into a great secret!

We Write. And Then We Write Some More.

2011-02-20T12:33:00.009+10:30

Description is one of those difficult things to get right, at least for me. I often find myself labouring over a small descriptive paragraph for hours, and still not being happy with the result - whereas a passage of dialogue or action can slip onto the page with minimal effort and remain almost unchanged throughout all the subsequent drafts.

The difficulty, I think, is not so much giving the description -- "the room had an altar and a stool, a wide arched ceiling, and three small clay leprechauns all in a row" as giving it in a way that reflects the viewpoint character's perception of the scene, the way he or she would naturally look upon it, how their eye would be drawn, and what their mind would do with the information received. "There were three clay leprechauns in the corner, like the type Uncle Herbert used to have at the foot of his bed. But there was no bed here, just a stool set before a marble altar, and a wide ceiling like the type the old Reformatory School had in its dining room."

The character here is filtering the information, noticing the most noticeable first, and only noticing the rest in terms of his/her efforts to understand the presence of the first. All the information is filtered through their own experience, their own sense of the world as they see it. This stops the description feeling arbitrary, like a list, and anchors it more firmly in the point-of-view of the protagonist.

The other thing about description is selectivity - working out what's worth mentioning and what's worth leaving out. When I was about twelve, and I used to write adventure stories, I would describe everything. "The man was about six feet tall, with blond hair and a square jaw, blue eyes and a droopy moustache. He was dressed in jeans and a polo-necked shirt, with a poka-dot hankie hanging out one pocket, and a pair of boots caked in mud from top to bottom. He had an unlit pipe in one hand, and a pistol in the other."

Way too much information for the reader to process, with the result that the scene is muddied, rather than painted. The trick, I think, is to pick two or three key details, again the sort of thing the protag would most likely notice, and let the reader fill in the gaps. If I were describing the above character, I might say something like this:

"He looked like one of those bush types, with a droopy moustache and square jaw, and boots caked in a thick crust of mud. Then I saw the pistol, hanging limply in his left hand. Thankfully, there was no hostility in his blue eyes, nothing to make me think he would raise it."

Gone is the hanky, the pipe, jeans, height, hair and shirt. I've still kept the pistol, boots, moustache, jaw and eyes. The hope is that the reader will have enough information to form a mental picture, and that they will fill in the gaps of any information missed. As the narrative continues, other details can be introduced, and the reader's picture is either confirmed or slightly adjusted (but hopefully never jarred). The overall result should hopefully be a clearer idea of scene, but even more importantly, a sense that the reader has an involvement in the story, that they are in some sense drawn in and caught up in the narrative process. In the end, that's what makes reading infinitely superior to TV or movies, where all the information is given to you on a plate. (Incidentally, I think that's why movies based on books are so frequently disappointing, because we feel as if our own private world has been reinterpreted by another, and not necessarily very well.)

These are some of the things I've picked up over the years, things that I strive to bring to bear in my own writing. I think that's probably why I find description so difficult, because I'm not simply writing a list, I'm trying to present information through the eyes of the POV character, while at the same time attempting to paint a vivid scene without spoon-feeding the reader or swamping them in detail. And, over all that, I'm trying to write words that flow well, are readable, and carry their weight.

Who'd be a writer, hey?

Who'd Have Thunk It?

2011-02-08T11:55:00.007+10:30

It seems the Hobbit Query Letter has been nominated in the Fantasy Short Story section of the Aurealis Awards. You can find the full list here.

It's a very long list, and being nominated just means someone, somewhere has put it forward as an off-chance. But it still give me goosebumps, seeing it alongside works by some of my all time favourite authors. For me, just being nominated is a huge, huge honour.

There's also a couple of reviews about the place. Here's one from Diabolical Plots (in which, I'm glad to report, the reviewer 'gets' that it's supposed to be an encouragement to writers), and here's another, much briefer, reference in SFCrowsnest.

There Are Simply Way Too Many of Us.

2011-01-26T22:00:00.005+10:30

Peter Coopers, that is.

Exhibit A) There's a village in New York named after us.

Exhibit B) A Google search reveals 241,000 entries.

Exhibit C) After receiving several mysterious wrong numbers on my mobile phone, a little bit of research uncovered another Peter Cooper with the exact same mobile number as me, except the last two digits were reversed. I'm sure he thinks there are way too many of us too.

Now, this preponderance of Peter Coopers has never bothered me before. But now that I'm thinking about registering a domain name and perhaps getting something resembling a "proper" author website set up, I find that the only peter.cooper domain names still available are way too obscure for anyone to ever find. So, unless I decide on a Fiji extension, my only option is to register with something other than my name.

I'm told the resemblance is uncanny.
Alas, my parents never gave me a middle name. I've tossed around the idea of inventing one, just for writing, but it just doesn't sit well with me. I think I'd end up looking at the name on the side of a book and thinking it's not really me, because it's not the name my parents gave me. Deep, perhaps, but that's the way it is.

So I have to keep thinking about it, and checking out what other authors have done with their websites. Many of them are blessed with unique names, though I'm fairly certain most of them secretly wish they had a village in New York named after them too.

Milestones

2011-01-20T19:49:00.007+10:30

I've been out of work now since New Year's Eve, although I'm pleased to report I start contract work this coming Monday, with a good chance it will turn into a longer term thing. It's been a strange kind of time -- sometimes depressing and downright terrifying, other times a nice break and a chance to spend time with the family and catch up on some long delayed house-jobs.

It's also been a good chance to get some writing done. Right from the start I knew it would be important to keep up a regular routine, so I set myself a goal of spending Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at the university library working on the first draft of MMA. In the end, I didn't do it each week, but I managed to get in for about 5 or 6 days of the 3 weeks I was without work. On my best day I managed to write 10,000 words, quite an achievement for a single 8 hour session. I'm not sure what they put in my coffee that day, but I wish I could get hold of more of it. Most days I achieved a more modest total of between 3,000 and 6,000 words. Nice progress, and it enabled me to finish the draft yesterday, coming in at a final total of just over 80,000 words.

I wasn't sure how I'd go spending the whole day writing - whether I'd get two hours in and find myself unable to do any more. In fact, most days I couldn't believe how quickly 8 hours flashed past. I'm still not sure it's something I could ever do full-time, but it's been an interesting experiment anyway.

So now I start the whole editing process. First off are the major changes - chapters that need a complete re-write, characters who need to be deleted or altered significantly, that kind of thing. Next will be more minor tweaks such as the addition of better description, thinking through locations a bit more (which will involve drawing maps and diagrams), looking for logical errors and trying to plug them, hopefully with simple solutions. Finally it will be the more detailed edit, where I rewrite sentences and try and make the wording read better.

I find that as I pass through each stage of this process, the work gets easier but takes longer to do. For GPL, for example, I found that I could rewrite a chapter in about 2 or 3 evenings, but it could take as many as 6 or 7 to do a fine edit on the same number of words.

I need to remember, though, that this is only the second time in my life that I've gone through this process. Perhaps this time I'll find it quicker and easier. Either way, it's nice to finally have a firm first draft. It's taken me more than six months to get to this point, during which time I estimate I wrote around 120,000 words (60,000 by hand). I learned a lot though, so I'm sure when it comes time to write book 3 it won't be quite such a grind. Let's hope!

Queensland Flood Relief

2011-01-13T09:19:00.002+10:30

Fablecroft Publishing is releasing an early ebook edition of the After the Rain anthology, with all proceeds going to flood relief in Queensland. If you're in another part of the world and you haven't caught up on it, an area the size of France and Germany combined is now under water, and the rain hasn't yet stopped.

Details and how to purchase are at this link.

Writers of the Very, Very Distant Future...

2011-01-06T22:52:00.004+10:30

I did something a bit silly a while ago. I submitted the same story to two different places at the same time. The first was an SF magazine, the second was the Writers of the Future competition. Exact same story, 2 different places. At once.

I won't go into my reasoning for doing this, other than to say it was a spur of the moment thing, and I knew straight away it could potentially lead to problems. But I stuck with it anyway, figuring I'd just wait and see.

And the result surprised me.

The magazine snatched the story up for publication. This particular magazine is very hard to get into, and I was astonished when I found out they'd picked my piece.

WoF rejected it. Not even an Honourable Mention. Just a flat reject.

I find something extremely encouraging in this unintentional experiment. If I'd only submitted the story to WoF, I would quite likely have assumed I'd written a dud, and even though I would have sent it off to other places, it would still have been a huge discouragement. But it wasn't only sent to WoF; it was sent somewhere else and accepted.

To me, it's a huge reminder that a rejection doesn't necessarily mean there's anything wrong with your story. More often than not it simply means you submitted it to the wrong place. Pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and send it out again. And again. And again.

That's why magazines urge you to read at least one of their editions before you submit, so you can gauge what sort of stuff they print, and whether your piece "fits". I don't always do this, and I know I should. Maybe if I did I'd have a few less homeless stories floating about the place.

Anyway, undeterred by my competition result, I submitted another story for the new quarter of WoF. This time, it's a brand new piece, never submitted anywhere else. Is it good? Well, I kind of like it. Will it do well? I have absolutely no idea, because I still haven't read any of the WoF anthologies or seen any of the winning stories. I'm just working on the basis that the only sure way to fail is to never enter at all.

I'll let you know how I went in about 3 month's time!

Happy New Year!

2011-01-02T12:39:00.003+10:30

A couple of bits of publishing news..

ASIM #49 is out, with my poem, "Who the Hell is Willard Price?". You can get it here. The pdf costs around $4.5o, and the hard-copy about $8.00

Also, AntipodeanSF #151 is out with "A Random Booze-Up", aka "The Aussie Hobbit". This is free to read, and you can find it here.

Happy reading!

After the Rain

2010-12-22T12:35:00.004+10:30

Wow, absolutely stoked to be able to report that my short-story, When the Bone-Men Come, has been accepted for Fablecroft's "After the Rain" Anthology, due out Easter next year. To be honest, I didn't think much of that story, and I even got stuck into writing another one to submit in its place. As fate would have it, I ran out of time to edit that new one and had to send the original instead. It goes to show, we're almost always the worst judges of our own work.

This might mean a trip to Perth for Natcon next year, where the book will be launched. I've been waiting for an excuse to go to one of these things, and it looks like I well and truly have one. Roll on Easter!

Congrats to Teresa

2010-12-08T09:01:00.002+10:30

Teresa Frohock has been a long-standing OWW crit-partner and commenter here on the blog, and a fellow battler in this whole sometimes-exhilarating-mostly-just-damn-hard-work thing they call writing.

Today Teresa announced that her debut novel, Miserere: An Autumn Tale, is being published by Night-Shade Books in July 2011. I know for a fact that she's worked unbelievably hard for this, and it's terrific to see her dedication so well rewarded.

You can drop over and read more about it here.

Congrats again Teresa!

On a Whim...

2010-11-30T22:05:00.003+10:30

I did a google search tonight on "Ghost of Ping-Ling". I usually get this blog, plus a very interesting account of paranormal activity at a school in Nevada (why did he choose to take up residence in that school?).

Tonight I got this. It's an entry in the National Library of Australia Catalogue. Yes, it probably seems trivial, but it made my whole evening. It's real! It really is really real¹.

If I carry on like this over an entry in the catalogue of the National Library, what's going to happen when I see a cover? How will I react when I have a *gasp* ARC in my hand? What about the real published item?

After the last few days, it's wonderful to be reminded of something so unbelievably good.

¹In a very real and tangible kind of way.

There's No Easy Way to Say This

2010-11-27T22:16:00.010+10:30

Yesterday afternoon my boss came up to my desk and asked if I would duck into one of the meeting rooms for a quick chat. He does this now and again, usually to discuss some pay or other business related thing, so I wasn't particularly fazed. We went in, shut the door, and sat down. He looked at me and said: "There's no easy way to say this, so I'll just read from this letter."

And that was it. He didn't really need to say any more, because bosses don't tell you they have something difficult to say, then read from a letter, unless it's for one reason. Sure enough, through the fog that enveloped my brain over the next few seconds, I managed to catch snatches of words about business conditions and a weak US dollar and contracts not being renewed. Then three words I couldn't possibly miss.

Four weeks notice.

Not just me, about a dozen of my colleagues too. No sooner had I got back to my desk then the boss went up to someone else, a friend on my team, and asked him to the meeting room for a "quick chat". I watched them head into the lift, then packed up and went home before I had to watch anyone else being led off.

So today I dusted off my CV and started the search for a new position. Thankfully, I'm a professional, and I have enough experience in a diverse range of areas to make me fairly employable -- at least I hope so. I've already started firing off emails and checking job sites, and there's a couple of possibilities in the pipe-line. I don't think I have much to worry about.

But it's still a bugger. I really enjoyed working with that company. It was very layed back, and the guys I worked with were real friends, not something you find in every workplace. Besides that, I got to work in the CBD, with a great gym nearby and a bunch of book shops only too happy to take my hard earned cash.

Still, there you go. So many amazingly wonderful things have happened to me this year. My lovely little son James was born in March, I signed a 3 book deal in May, and my first ever published short story came out in October. It somehow seems fitting that the year would finish on a less than positive note. Even though I hope it won't turn out to be anything more than a minor inconvenience.

Technological Foibles

2010-11-23T08:35:00.002+10:30

I learned last night that Google Reader feeds are cached and can't be flushed, at least not easily. So if you write something in Blogger, then delete it, it still remains in the feed.

This means anyone lucky enough to be using Reader will be treated to two versions of On Borrowed Time, my early pre-edit draft, complete with typos and dodgy html tags, plus the newer, more polished version. As an extra bonus, I've thrown in a test post for free, something I was using while trying to debug what was going on.

All I can say is, this kind of thing never used to happen in the days of typewriters and stamps.

On Borrowed Time

2010-11-22T20:47:00.025+10:30

I first saw him sometime in late October. He wasn’t easy to miss, what with him screaming obscenities and shaking a half empty bottle of beer in the air. I thought he’d be arrested and taken away for sure, but he was still there at the station the next day, and the one after that, always in the same dirty tracksuit pants and jumper, with matted hair and three day's stubble. Just another of those people you see now and again, before you look back at your newspaper and try and push the vision from your mind.

But it got a whole lot harder to push the man away when they started work on the line, and I had to catch the train from his station rather than my usual one further up the track. All of a sudden my mornings were filled with the sound of swearing and coughing as I stood, briefcase in hand, and prayed that the train would come quickly.

He would shout abuse at the carriages as they passed, sometimes waving a hairy fist in the air, sometimes looking as if he might actually hurl his beer-bottle. "Mugs! Losers! Animals!" he would shriek, his curses interspersed with maniacal laughter, high-pitched and grating. But the laughter would end and he would grow quiet, sagging to his knees and running a hand down the side of his face. “It all must end,” he would sob. “It all must end.”

One day, some people were brave enough to approach him; I couldn’t believe it. A man and a woman, both dressed in suits. They looked at each other with expressions of shared resolve, then strode purposefully towards the shouting man. It shamed me. So much easier to let him remain invisible. So much easier to try and block him out.

I couldn’t hear what was said, but the man’s words were angry, and accompanied by the wobbly swing of a fist. The two people walked away, as fast as they could without running, faces flushed and eyes wide. “It all must end,” the man shrieked after them, bristling with anger, until his voice became cracked and weepy and he slid down the poster covered pillar, hitting the ground hard. “It all must end.”

Shame forced my hand. Selfishness, almost certainly, because I wanted to be able to tell myself that I had done something, that I too had the courage of those people in business suits. The next day I packed sandwiches, and grabbed a blanket from the cupboard. Trinkets to assuage the sting of guilt.

I almost prayed the man wouldn’t be on the platform that morning, but he was, lurching and cursing and swinging his bottle, shaking his fist at the trains as they passed. My mouth was as dry as the bubble-gum covered concrete as I went to him, preparing myself for a fast getaway, should he so much as growl at me.

“Good morning.” My voice cracked a little. “Chilly again.”

His heavy eyebrows knitted together as he looked at me, and at the box in my outstretched hand.

“It’s some food.” I gave the box a little shake. “Just a few sandwiches. There’s a blanket too.” I held it out.

The man stretched out a trembling hand and took the blanket, holding it as if his fingers had never touched such material. I smiled with relief, until he cast it down upon the rail-line, forgotten as quickly as he'd picked it up. I braced myself for an attack, but he grabbed the sandwich box, opened it, and began to stuff the sandwiches in his mouth, his hairy cheeks puffing out to the point I thought they might burst. Crumbs fell, and he made grunting noises like an animal, but it warmed my heart to think I had in some small way eased his suffering.

He looked at me, gratitude in his eyes. But his expression changed with the speed of an express train, his eyes filling with tears and his lower lip quivering. “It all must end,” he mumbled through the sandwiches. “It all must end.”

"What must end?" Perhaps I was pushing my luck too far, but curiosity overcame my fear.

The man gulped down the last of his sandwich. He raised a grubby hand and gestured at the station around. "This. And this." He pointed at the half empty six-pack at his feet, and waved the sandwich box. "And this. All of it. All of it must end."

I tried to think of words to say, of some comfort for him. But my train came, and all I could do was walk away and leave him to his sandwiches.

#

I had more food on Monday, plus a thermos of hot coffee, but the man wasn’t there. I searched for him all over the platform, and asked the mums with prams and the kids on bikes and the business people in their suits and shiny shoes. Nobody had seen him. I tried again the next day, and the one after that. The station seemed strange -- an empty, foreign place without the man and his cursing and stamping. By Friday I had forced myself to accept the truth. He was gone. And I never even knew his name.

#

I did see him again, though at first I didn’t recognise him. It was a month or so later, and I was in the bank cashing a cheque, standing in the lunchtime queue. I'd already noticed the man and woman who'd approached him serving behind the counter, and that brought him to mind, along with the now familiar worry about his fate.

And then he was there, coming out of one of the back offices. He wore a dark suit, impeccably pressed, and his face was clean shaven, radiating the confidence of a man with much responsibility.

“Mister Bradford, your 12.30 is here,” came the nasal voice of one of the receptionists, and the man waved in cheery acknowledgment.

“You!” The word came out louder than I had intended.

All went silent. As one, the customers turned towards me, and so did the man.

Before I knew it, I was out of the line, standing before him, pointing accusingly at his smiling face. “You’re from the station. I gave you sandwiches.”

He narrowed his eyes and rubbed his chin, and I felt suddenly foolish. Of course it couldn't be him. How could I make such a mistake? All I could do now was slink away and not come back for a month. If ever.

Before I could walk off, recognition came over the man’s face. He reached out a hand and patted me hard on the shoulder, then leaned towards me. “It’s like I said, my boy, it all must end, as all good things do.” His grin remained fixed, though regret flashed in his eyes. “Even long service leave.”

Written Connection

2010-11-05T10:37:00.003+10:30

Andrea has kindly added Cackling Scribe to The Written Connection , a great list of writing related blogs. She has some very kind things to say too. Please check it out!

ASIM #48 ....

2010-11-02T08:51:00.004+10:30

... has now been officially released. You can pick up a pdf copy (or hardcopy if you like) from here.

Exciting!

I also have the Willard Price poem coming out in the next issue, #49. That was a bit of a surprise, but a very nice one too.

Young Children Might Want to Turn Away

2010-10-27T23:08:00.006+10:30

Last night I tried to carry too many things from the lounge-room to the study. One of them was my laptop, and it decided half-way through the journey that it was time to jump ship. I didn't think it fell too far or landed too heavily, and it was on the carpet. But this was the result.

Not pretty.

It's auspicious that I'm writing with a notebook and pen at the moment, otherwise things would have ground to a screeching halt. It's probably also a good thing that I back-up regularly, in case it's more than the screen that's been damaged.

Herbert Hits the Bright Lights

2010-10-15T09:14:00.006+10:30

Here's the cover for the latest issue of ASIM, the one featuring the Hobbit Query Letter. I have to say, it feels strange to see my name on the cover of an actual published work. Bizarre is the word I'd use, like how I'd feel if I saw my name on a banner being dragged from the back of a bi-plane. But absolutely wonderful too. Particular thanks to Juliet Bathory for bringing it all together (oh, and picking the story too).

The issue isn't actually out yet, but it should only be a week or so if you feel like picking it up!

I have to say too, that is one seriously awesome cover....

Has Anyone Seen My Quill?

2010-10-13T09:30:00.006+10:30

I've been trying something new these past few days. Instead of using my laptop to write the first draft of MMA¹, I've been writing by hand in a notebook. It's the first time I've written a story with a pen since I was about 14. So far, my fingers are holding up, although I've noticed a long forgotten callus showing up once again on my index-finger. Welcome back, callus.

I've been thinking about trying this ever since I read a post by Garth Nix. He lists a lot of positives for writing by hand -- the main one being portability. For me, it's certainly been handy being able to take my notebook into the coffee shop at lunchtime and bang out 1000 words. Sure, I could take my laptop too, but then I have to worry about power supplies, getting it on my bike with all the other stuff I have to carry, and that self-consciousness I always seem to get when I'm working on my laptop in public (I think it must be some kind of new-writer neurosis).

But the main reason I'm trying it is a bit more subtle. I have a reasonably fast typing speed, courtesy of a course the government put me through when I worked as a clerk in my early 20's. That means I can easily type 1000 words in a very short space of time. You would have thought that's a good thing, but sometimes it's not. Speed rarely equals quality, and all too often I find myself writing whole chapters that will need serious rework, if not a total rewrite, in the second draft.

With hand-writing, I go a lot slower - my current rate being something like 1000 words in a solid hour. Because it's slow, it forces me to think more about what I'm writing, to plan more what the sentences will say before they spill out of my head and onto the page. Also, because it's written in ink on paper, rather than with 1's and 0's, it has a permanency to it -- it can't easily be wiped away with the delete key. Again, that drives me to think more carefully about what I want to write before I commit it to the page.

There's a possible negative too, which I'm keeping an eye out for. Sometimes, in particular scenes, my writing gets into a fast flow. This usually happens in action moments, like fights or pursuits, where lots of things are happening fast and there is little need for detailed description. I haven't reached one of those with the handwriting yet, but when I do, I wonder if I'll find it much harder than if it were being typed. I'll have to see.

Funny thing, this writing business. There's so much to learn, it sometimes feels completely overwhelming. But I think experimenting is a big part of coming to terms with it -- researching what others do, trying it out, and seeing if it fits. If it doesn't, move on to something else. If it does, stick with it, no matter what people tell you you "should" be doing.

It's definitely a fun ride!

¹Yes, I've started again. No, don't ask.

I Have Not Actually Fallen Off the Face of the Earth

2010-10-07T13:41:00.003+10:30

Instead, I've been frantic with all sorts of other things, so the blog has taken a bit of a back-seat while I try and catch hold of my own tail. I also haven't had much to write about, other than the usual reports about book 2 turning into a slog, and the latest in my outline vs no-outline tug-of-war (currently outline is winning).

But! I have something to write about at last. It's been 10 months since I got the phone call from the publisher about the Ghost of Ping-Ling, and 5 months since I signed the contract. Since then, things have been awfully quiet, and even though I knew that would be the case, I did get the occasional worry that perhaps I'd dreamed the whole thing. But today the editor got in touch, and it looks like the editing process is set to start sometime around the end of November, with a tentative publication date in August next year, much earlier than I had expected. We also talked about possible artists for the cover design, though that's all in the earliest of stages.

So, things are slowly starting to move along. I suspect that when the editing gets started, I'll have even less time to blog, but I'll make every effort to pop in now and again and report how things are going.

More Updates...

2010-09-07T20:57:00.004+09:30

I wrote a little while ago about the short story bug I'd picked up, and how I had a couple of stories get through to the shortlist for Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine. The first one, The Office of Fantastical Creatures and Dubious Legends, got knocked back, but I found out tonight that the second one, Zombie Dreams, has been accepted for #52, due out Aug 11.

I'm quite shocked, and absolutely stoked! It was great just to get something through to the short-list, but to get it accepted is enormously encouraging and extremely humbling at the same time, particularly when I look at the quality of stuff that gets in there.

*Deep breath*

Back to the real world -- I need to sign off and get into MMA. It's been a bit of a slog lately, perhaps the dreaded 2nd Book Syndrome is striking? Or maybe I still can't quite shake that short story bug....

Readings....

2010-08-14T13:09:00.005+09:30

Just finished reading Abhorsen, the last book in Garth Nix's Old Kingdom series. It was one of those books I didn't want to finish, and now that I have, I get this vague feeling of emptiness, and I suspect the next book I pick up will have a hard time catching my attention, no matter how good it is.

Aside from a thoroughly enjoyable read, I learned a lot from the three books in the series. The principal lesson was that it's easy to slip into the habit of over-editing. There were many times when I read sentences in the books that I know I would have reworked had I written them - there were obvious ways they could be made sharper, more direct, more impacting. Except they couldn't, because somehow they worked perfectly as they were. It left me wondering how many times I've edited the soul out of a perfectly good sentence, in a vain effort to make it that much better.

From now, I think I'll try and be a little more relaxed in my editing, and perhaps allow a few more 'rough' sentences to remain as they are.

The other thing I found challenging in the books was Garth's use of omnipotent point-of-view. I've seen it used in other books, but never quite as smoothly as he did it, with transitions occurring in a way that was both obvious and seamless. It made me realise the tremendous power of that POV - how handy it is to be able to jump into someone else's head when convenient, and also to be able to describe things that none of the characters is actually witnessing. My usual POV choice is through the head of the protagonsist, and I'm noticing particularly with MMA that that can sometimes be quite restrictive. Not that I'm about to leap into omniscient - I don't think I can, seeing as GPL was written in third-person limited. But it's something I'd love to try in future books.

Overall, I had a fabulous read, and learned some important lessons at the same time! It doesn't get much better than that.

Strange, But True.

2010-08-02T10:58:00.008+09:30

My Monday morning so far...

At 7am, I head out to the car, rubbing my hands together against the cold and breathing fog into the crisp air. I hop into the sky-blue laser and turn the key. Nothing but a hideous clicking noise. It's no problem; this has happened before. I head inside, grab Pip's keys, open the bonnet of our second car, and jump-start the laser. My ears fill with the delightful sound of an engine running.

I get down the hill, park the car, and take out my bike for the rest of the journey into the city. I feel the weight of keys in my pocket, but there shouldn't be any keys in my pocket, because there's already keys in my hand.

I've driven off with Pip's keys.

I pull out my phone to ring her and let her know. She has a dentist appointment at 10 and I don't want her scouring the house at the last moment looking for keys that aren't there. My phone rings twice, then cuts out, the screen totally blank. I only charged it on Friday, but the battery has decided it's time to retire.

Uttering a few choice words, I hop on the bike and ride to the gym, then to work. When I emerge from the lift, I hit the combination on the door to get in. But the door doesn't unlock. I try again, then a third time, but the door has made up its mind. Like Gandalf on the bridge at Moria, the gleaming steel seems to cry out "You ... shall ... not .... pass". One of my colleagues sees my pathetic expression and comes to let me in, and tells me the lock is playing up.

I get to my desk, and fire up my computer, only to discover that the network is down. There's no internet access, and no access to the computer systems of our customers in the United States. It's all on the blink.

They say there's some strange electromagnetic effect that surrounds some people, that makes light bulbs die when they walk beneath them. I wonder what the name is for the electromagnetic field that's obviously surrounding me this morning.

And it's only 11am, too. Thank God the coffee machine still works.

Plodding

2010-07-28T22:20:00.005+09:30

I'm having a serious case of secondbookitis at the moment. 41,000 words in, and I can't help thinking this first draft has descended into a quagmire of ideas that sounded so great until I wrote them down. Situations that I was certain would be filled with tension, characters that would definitely leap from the page, backstory and worldbuilding that would grab and entice and inform. All of it has pfffft away like a half inflated balloon.

I'm thankful this experience is, apparently, perfectly normal, even expected. That knowledge has saved my desk from having a large imprint of my head permanently embedded in it, as a monument to my efforts.

On the bright side, I get to meet Garth Nix at a signing on Friday, and have him sign my copy of Abhorsen.

Come to think of it, perhaps I should take along Lirael instead, and ask if he was ever attacked by the curse of the second book. If he shares any gems, I'll be certain to pass them on.

Busy Little Bee

2010-07-21T11:48:00.004+09:30

It looks like I've caught the short-story bug. I have no idea how, seeing as I haven't associated with any short-story writers in the last little while, not unless they were short-story writers and they didn't tell me (the rats!). Anyway, I've managed to hammer out two 2,500 word pieces, both of which have made it to the shortlist for ASIM (not that I'm all that hopeful, seeing as only 1 in 20 get from there into print), and I'm also writing something for a Fablecroft anthology on the theme "After the Rain".

Yes, I probably should be working on the contracted book 2 of GPL, but I am getting to do bits and pieces of that through the week (currently sitting at 38,000 words). If I could get one or two of these stories into print some time next year, it would be a good way of getting my name out there in prep for GPL coming out. That's my excuse, anyway, and I'm sticking to it.

I'd cross my fingers, but they're too busy typing...

Flashy Fiction

2010-07-14T13:00:00.005+09:30

I just found out that a 500 word piece of flash fiction I wrote has been accepted for Antipodean SF, publication date January 2011 (issue 151).

I've been trying to hammer out these short stories for practice, as well as giving me a break from MMA. I'm really stoked to get one in print!

Reading Other Fantasy

2010-07-05T10:53:00.010+09:30

I mentioned in the last post that I'd been listening to author podcasts from the Sydney Writer's Festival. In the last one, the interviewer mentioned that many authors go out of their way to avoid reading other fantasy while they're writing, out of fear their work might in some way be influenced.

I must confess, I'd never heard an author author say that before, and it got me thinking. My aim this year is to read a book a month, almost all of it fantasy. So far I'm right on track, perhaps even a little ahead. I've read Garth Nix, Cindy Pon, Duncan Lay, Sean Williams, John Flanagan, Alison Goodman, and I've got a whole host of books sitting in a pile waiting for my attention. I've learned something from every one, whether it's some kind of style tip, or something about world-building, or an example of how to build tension or vividly describe a scene. I'm a firm believer that one of the most important aspects of growing as a writer is to soak in the work of the experts, to see how they do it, and emulate what you can.

The tricky thing, of course, is to do this while still maintaining your own unique style and voice, and I think that's where a lot of authors decide it's easiest not to read anything. And I know exactly what they fear. If I look back at some of my earlier drafts of GPL, I can tell you exactly what I was reading at the time. When a bumbling wizard appears on an island, talking about IME's, or Indeterminate Magical Effects, I was reading Harry Potter. When a witch appears, and insists the main evil protagonist plant a kiss on her cheek before she gives away any information, I was reading Discworld. And when Dillen makes a decision that, for all intents and purposes, appears to be a betrayal of his friends, I was reading the Hobbit - specifically the bit where Bilbo gives away the Arkenstone.

I like to think that I've gone past that, however. Surely by now I've put enough words on the paper and sprouted enough gray hairs to be able to recognise when somebody else's style is creeping into my writing. Surely.

But is it still there? What if it is, and I can't see it, and in five years time I'll look back and recognise bits of all the books I'm reading this year and cringe horribly?

And now, I'd be really interested to hear what other people think. Do you avoid reading other works while you're writing? Have you found stuff from your reading creeping into your manuscript unbidden?

Don't be shy! Fire away.

On Outlining (Oh No, Not Again!)

2010-07-02T12:44:00.009+09:30

I've been listening to some great author podcasts recently, courtesy of Valerie Khoo and the Sydney Writer's Festival (you can find them on iTunes if you want to check them out). Yesterday, I listened to Fiona Mcintosh, a fellow Adelaidian who has a phenomenal reputation but whose books are yet to reach the top of my burgeoning reading pile. She had some interesting points to make about the writing process, and particularly about the outline vs. writing by the seat of the pants approach (I know, I'm still harping on about this).

I would categorise Fiona as being at the extreme fringe of the anti-outlining faction. When she starts to write, she has no idea about anything - who her characters are, what will happen to them, where it will happen, what the world looks like, and so on. All of this, she insists, leaps out at her as she goes along, and the numerous loose and dangling threads have never failed to order themselves in a semi-miraculous manner, right towards the end of the book.

Now, while I don't subscribe to that approach (see recent posts), she did make one very interesting point. In her view, the main problem with outlining is that when you're outlining, you're not writing, and therefore you're not bringing the story forward. In her opinion, even writing a noodle-soup of dud ideas is better than not writing at all.

The reason this hit such a chord with me is that since I identified my need for an outline, I feel as if the book has ground to a halt. Sure, I've been spending time thinking about it, what happens and the backstory and so on, and I've come up with some interesting thoughts and ideas. But up until the last few days, I haven't written anything. My word count has stopped at 22,000, like a dodgy odometer on an old car.

While this might be good from the point of view of planning, it's not doing a lot for my piece of mind. There's something wonderfully satisfying about churning out the words, not matter how bad they might be. It shows you're progressing, you're actually getting somewhere. It boosts your confidence, particularly when the days are flying past and you have a sneaking suspicion the delivery date of June 2011 will be here before you know it.

So, enough outlining for me. A few days ago I picked up the dog's breakfast of a 22,000 word manuscript and resumed, although my recent planning means the story has a vast discontinuity (I plan on going back and fixing up those 22,000 words last). As of this moment, I'm at 29,000 words, within sight of the half-way mark. And it feels good. I feel like a runner who's had to spend a few weeks recovering from an injury, and can finally get on the track again and blow off the cobwebs.

I think in the end it comes down to balance. It's important to spend time outlining and planning, but you need to learn to recognise when it's time to start writing. It's OK if there are plot points yet to be clarified, or characters who are vague, or you haven't quite nailed down the landscape. All you need is a skeleton, a loose idea that you can build on as you go.

I think I've reached that point. Onwards we go.

Guest Post

2010-06-15T09:32:00.000+09:30

I have a guest post over at helluo-librorum. If you get a chance, please check it out!

A Change of Tack.

2010-06-02T12:06:00.009+09:30

Remember how I waxed lyrical about my Driving Without Headlights approach to writing – the method of not using outlines that worked so well with The Weight of Souls? Well, 22,000 words and several months later, I’ve come to the conclusion that I got lucky on that occasion, and that writing without an outline is more often than not a recipe for wasting time.

I started Mapmaker’s Apprentice with a solid idea of its beginning and end, and a burning ambition to write 1000 words per day until I’d come up with an 80,000 word initial draft. Things started off well, with the first chapter looking pretty good and the whole thing flowing well. But, by the time I reached the 20,000 word mark, the whole thing had become a veritable bird’s-nest of oddly-placed plot-points, disjointed conversation and wobbly characters. If I squinted down the road hard enough, I could clearly see a total re-write sitting in a deck-chair in the distance, waving at me and grinning.

That's not to say everything I've written has been a complete waste of time, or would have been if I had kept at it. By the end, I’m sure I would have had little bits and pieces that I could have tinkered with, ideas that came from nowhere as I bravely battled on. But now I think I can achieve the same thing in less than half the time and with less than half the effort, simply by spending some time working on a constructive outline before I begin writing.

*Sigh*. I never thought I’d say that. Many would say it’s glaringly obvious that writing with an outline is better than travelling blind. But I was so keen to try an exciting new method, and so convinced it would pay dividends, that I pressed on regardless. Now I know better.

Part of the problem has been a misunderstanding of how an ‘outline’ type approach should work. I had pictured a series of bullet points – something along the lines of “Fred walks into bar. Fred gets into firefight with Sheriff Dwayne. Fred shoots Sheriff Dwayne. Fred spits in spittoon as he ambles out.” Every time I’ve used this kind of thing, it’s been hopeless. It’s just too low-level, too detailed, and it fails to take into consideration the way characters have a habit of bouncing off each other and the situations you put them in, often leading to them acting differently to your initial expectations(the scoundrels! Don't they understand who's boss?).

But now I've seen a new method that's kind of half way between a bullet-point outline and a blindly written first draft. I first saw it mentioned in a blog-post by my writing-friend, Jonathan Danz. The idea is that, rather than churn out a blow by blow outline of the flow of action, the author should start by summarising the book in 15 or so pages, a summary that will contain the main themes of the book as well as the ways in which the characters develop from beginning to end. It’s almost like writing that first draft, but in micro-form, therefore saving a lot of time and avoiding a lot of unnecessary and certain to be changed detail. This summary then serves as a high-level roadmap, allowing detail to be fleshed out with a clear idea of the underlying drivers of action.

I saw something similar in a page by Garth Nix, where he explains his process for writing a novel. He describes the first stage as a kind of gestation of ideas, a time of thinking and musing on the story. From this, he writes a chapter by chapter outline of the book, with each chapter summarised in a few sentences. Again, this is not a blow by blow detail of what happens, but a condensation of the main events and themes of each chapter. Armed with this, he moves to the next stage - the long, hard slog of writing.

Garth mentions that he fully expects to depart from this outline, but that having it gives him a sense of security, a sense that he knows where he wants to go. I can certainly relate to that need for security. It's terrifying to launch into a book without really knowing what happens, doubly so when the manuscript happens to be contracted. What if you never do work it out? What if the ideas never come together in a coherent way, and all you end up with is mush? Starting with an outline means you know (or, perhaps, are fairly sure) that's not going to happen, and any deviations from the outline can only be because you've come up with something even better. Very good for your peace of mind.

So, feeling wiser and grayer, I’ve put down my 20,000 words of literary spaghetti, and picked up my moleskine notebook. I’m now working towards building an overall picture of what I want to happen in the book. So far, I know how I want each of the characters to develop over the course of the novel. I also know what information I want to reveal that pertains to the overall series. From this, I’ve managed to build a skeleton chapter outline, which I’m currently tinkering with as I think about characters and details. All being well, by the time I start writing again, I’ll know exactly where I’m going. I’m certain that, by the end of the process, I’ll have a much better product than I would have done with my no-headlights approach. Fingers crossed!

The E-Book Juggernaut

2010-06-01T16:25:00.010+09:30

I was talking to someone at work a few days ago about e-books. Being engineers, the topic quickly came round to all the whiz-bang applications that will eventually (if not already) be added to “enhance” the reading experience. Already there’s talk about author interviews being inserted, and animations. How long until we get sound-effects – or electronically generated smells – or maybe even an e-reader that vibrates or shakes in our hands as we approach some epic moment of action?

I have to say, I find the whole thought disturbing. To me, there’s a gulf of difference between the reading experience and the sensory stimulation provided by movies or other forms of audio-visual entertainment. A movie or television program entertains you by jumping up and down in front of you, waving its hands frantically while setting off firecrackers at every point of the compass. Actors strut their stuff, veritably oozing charisma, while music makes your heart pound, sound effects make your teeth shake, and special effects leave you wondering how on earth they could possibly have done that. It’s spectacular, it’s visual, and it’s in your face.

A book, on the other hand, is nothing but little inky splodges on off-white paper. It may have coffee stains on it. It may (like way too many of my books) have red-wine marks on several pages. It may have that dusty, old smell that forces you to try hard not to think about what sort of cultures are growing between the pages, and makes you rush off and wash your hands after every read. But if the author has done his or her job, none of that matters. It’s the words that draw you in. A book seduces you. It calls you by name, and leads you by the hand to a world of wonders, until you forget where you are and are drawn happily into a place that exists just for you – made in the way you, and you alone, choose to dream it.

I don’t need an e-reader with sound effects. If Stephen King or Lee Child or Ursula LeGuin describe to me how something sounds, I’ll hear it more clearly than any speaker could possibly pipe into my ears. I don’t need emotive music. If Tolkien describes the orcs massing, or Rowling a Quidditch match in full swing, I’ll be drawn more deeply than any orchestra could hope to achieve.

That’s the beauty of words. Used properly, they’re more powerful than anything visual, anything aural, or anything that can be dreamed up by some software engineer in a blue coat. I really hope that in the midst of this digital revolution people don’t lose sight of that and, in a well meaning but ill-informed attempt to make the reading experience better, end up ruining it completely.

That would be a tragedy of blockbuster proportions.

The Next Thing in Book Marketing?

2010-05-10T12:59:00.003+09:30

Duncan Lay is a recent arrival on the fantasy scene here in Australia. I read his book, Wounded Guardian, back in April and I'm hoping to get to the second one, Risen Queen, as soon as I can.

Even before I read his book, I've been watching Duncan's exploits with great interest. For nearly a year he's been setting himself up in bookstores around the country, chatting to customers and hand-selling his books. I have absolutely no idea how many sales he's made this way, but from what I hear it's been extremely successful. So much so that he's taking all of July off work in order to travel around the country with a goal of hand-selling 1000 books. Here's a video he posted on Youtube to talk about what he's calling "Big July" (and big it will be, too).

We hear a lot about authors marketing themselves - through Facebook, blogs, Twitter and so on. But this is taking it to a whole new level. Sure, author visits and signings happen all the time, but not a consistent and long-term campaign of hand-sales.

And what an amazing idea it is. Not only is this guy getting out and putting his book literally into the hands of the buying public, he's also meeting the people who work in the stores, the ones who do the selling. The next time someone asks them to recommend a new fantasy, whose book do you think will come to mind first?

Could this be the future for new authors? Perhaps I need to take that long-overdue look at my wardrobe, after all.

Once More Into the Breach

2010-05-03T20:46:00.010+09:30

I'm currently 16,000 words into the outline draft of The Mapmaker's Apprentice, the second book in the GPL series. Like I did with Weight of Souls, my approach has been to start with a minimal outline and just plough on, targeting 1000 words per day while never going back to edit or change (or even read) anything that's come before.

I still think it's the best approach for me, although it definitely has downsides. As you go on, it's a lot like trying to read a book with a microscope. You're so close to the whole thing that you can't really get a good idea of how its shaping up, and if you're a natural worry-wart like me, you tend to assume it must be a load of complete and utter tosh, and when you get to the end you're only going to have to scrub the whole thing and start over.

The thing that's keeping me at it, and giving me a modicum of comfort, is the fact that I felt the exact same way when I was writing WOS. During that writing marathon, I came very close to stopping and giving the whole thing up as a lost cause. In fact, I did stop for a few months. But when I finally sat down and re-read what I'd done, I was really quite pleased with what I saw. So I'm hoping the same thing will happen with this outline draft of MMA.

One thing I'm really glad about is the fact that, *so far*, the knowledge that this second book is contracted hasn't made it any more difficult to write (touches large heavy wooden object). I think I've lost count of the number of horror stories I've read about authors and second books - how they froze up with fear and developed really bad cases of writer's block, and ended up taking years to come up with something anywhere near worthy of submission. If ever.

Sure, I'm having to fight off regular bouts of fear. Wild ideas snap at my coat-tails - thoughts like "you were just lucky with GPL" or "you've forgotten how to write" or "you only ever had one book in you". But it's helpful to see that these are normal fears that writers everywhere experience, and yet second novels (gasp, even third and fourth novels) get published all the time.

Just When It Couldn't Get Any Better...

2010-04-30T13:04:00.002+09:30

Omnibus have changed their minds. Now they want to contract me for three books, not just one.

While I know I should be doing happy-silly dances around the office, my main emotion is one of shock. I'm sure when I come out of this stunned state I'll do many dances, but in the meantime I think I'll just sit here quietly and blink at my computer screen now and again.

Tribal Writer

2010-04-27T13:06:00.004+09:30

This is one of the best writing blogs I've seen so far.

(Thanks to Deb for providing the link.)

Fantasy Book Covers

2010-04-21T15:10:00.008+09:30

A choice find on cracked.com.

Worst Fantasy Covers of All Time

I'm vaguely disturbed that Tamora Pierce has two covers here. I'm also surprised how many of the books have 5 star reviews on Amazon. I guess there's truth in the old saying after all.

My absolute favourite (although I think it's the title rather than the cover that got me in)....

UPDATE. There's more!! Found two more links here and here.

And here's my favourite. Just imagine the author's face when the publisher pulled this beauty out of the briefcase....

Recent Reads

2010-04-19T21:56:00.004+09:30

Wow, I've managed to squeeze some time into blogging!

I've been wanting to post about some of the books I've been reading recently. Here's the good oil...

Wounded Guardian - Duncan Lay. I'm not really a fan of "heroic" fantasy, but this was certainly a good read. Most of all I loved the battle scenes - they were gritty and realistic, and it was obvious the author had done a lot of research into medieval type weaponry. I'm hoping to read the sequel in the next little while.

Leviathan - Scott Westerfeld. Brilliant! My second foray into steampunk, and I'm liking this genre more and more all the time. This was one of those books that I didn't want to end, but thankfully the next one is coming out this year. I'll be getting it the day it's released.

Two Pearls of Wisdom - Alison Goodman (released in the US as Eon). Another brilliant read. I was really keen to get hold of this one because the author does what I've tried to do in GPL - create a fantasy Asian world based (loosely) upon Ancient China. If I've done it just half as well as she has I'll be happy. This is one of those books that I think I'll read again and again - the world is so intricate and there are so many layers to it, and it hooked me from the first. Again, I'll be waiting for the sequel later in the year.

This Made My Day.

2010-04-12T11:56:00.004+09:30

Right then. I better try another one.

Hot Off the Press.

2010-04-09T15:22:00.005+09:30

I can't believe it's been so long since I had a chance to blog here, but I'm glad to be able to break the drought with some wonderful news.

Six months ago this week, I headed off to the post-office with a parcel tucked under my arm containing the manuscript for The Ghost of Ping-Ling. Its destination was Omnibus Books, an imprint of Scholastic Australia, which I expected to be the first of a long line of publishers/agents it would travel to.

Then followed a long wait. I counted the days off in the calendar section of my red engineering diary. One day, two days, one week, four weeks, thirteen weeks, all struck off in black ink. Finally, in early January, I got a call from Dyan Blacklock, the publisher at Omnibus. To my joyful astonishment, she told me that she loved the manuscript, but wanted me to make a few (minor) changes before she sent it further along the acquisition process. It took me just under two months to make the changes, and I ended up resending just days before James was born in early March.

Then I waited some more. This time, I found the wait even more difficult. I'd had a taste of success and, despite my valiant attempts against it, I allowed my hopes to rise. To counter this, I tried hard to plan what I would do if word came back in the negative. I even subscribed to Writer's Marketplace and started yet another list of agents and publishers for the next round of submissions.

But the list proved unnecessary. On Tuesday, Dyan emailed me with the news that all the divisions of Scholastic had given the green light. The Ghost of Ping-Ling will be published most likely towards the end of 2011.

It's quite difficult to express the range of emotions I feel as I type this. To have spent so long striving for something, working so hard while trying to keep realistic about chances of success so small they may as well be zero - then to have it actually happen, actually for real happen, just completely takes your breath away. In many ways I still can't believe it, and I'm thankful that I have it in writing so I know it's for real.

So that's the scoop! Absolutely wonderful, unbelievably good news. I'm really looking forward to blogging about the whole process as it goes along, from cover design to editing to launching and beyond.

An exciting ride awaits.

Delighted to Report...

2010-03-07T20:30:00.003+10:30

Our gorgeous little son, James, came into the world on Friday, weighing in at a solid 7.6 pounds. Mum and bubs (and dad) doing great. Probably not much blog action happening between nappy changes for next few weeks, but I hope to look in soon.

I Can't Believe, After All This Time We're Through..

2010-03-02T20:41:00.002+10:30

At least for now.

Tomorrow morning I'll be printing out the latest draft of GPL and trotting over to my second home - the office of Australia Post. It's been a huge slog, but I'm glad I managed to get it done within two months of the publisher asking for the edits.

It wasn't just fixing up the story. It was drawing two maps, writing the synopses (albeit brief) of four more books, completing the first draft of Weight of Souls, writing the synopsis of that one too, and eating. I did remember that last bit. Somebody told me that would be important.

So here I am again, in my waiting mode. I have all sorts of goals for what I'd like to do over the next few months, but I think I'll just sit back and enjoy my beautiful and soon-to-be expanding family. And I might try and fit in some blog posts too.

Scratchings

2010-02-26T11:18:00.005+10:30

I was asked by the publisher to supply some rough maps of the geography for GPL. I've done some rough doodles before, but never really thought about the overall layout and distances and so on.

The experience was daunting, but a lot of fun. I ended up using tech-pens and high-grade tracing paper, having experimented with everything from gouache to acrylic to plain old pencil. The map above is half of the real life A3 version, scanned then fed into MS Word and Paint. It loses a lot of sharpness in the process, so I might need to get it professionally scanned next time. I'm quite happy with how it's come out, though, given that it's a first-draft.

The next job is to do a smaller scale map of the area where GPL happens. I'm hoping to do that one with more of an Asian map feel, something that just wasn't possible with the scale of the above.

The thing I found interesting when I was drawing the map was the number of ideas that kept coming to me for further adventures. I guess once you start visualising the places, the ideas start to flow. It's definitely something I'll have to do a lot more of.

Uncle Pete's Sagely Writing Tips

2010-02-19T22:09:00.008+10:30

I'm currently head down tails up doing edits for Ghost of Ping-Ling, but I thought I'd briefly surface for air, as well as to share a couple of useful pointers I've picked up on my travels¹.

You know how it is when you've been working on a paragraph/chapter/book so long you can quote it in your sleep, and you've lost all objectivity as to how it sounds and whether it makes sense. Sure, you could give it to someone else and let them take a look. Or you could put it in a draw and throw away the key for six months.

But if neither of those solutions are practical, here's two suggestions.

1) Change the font.

It sounds ridiculous, but it works. If you change the font of a block of text, it helps you look at it with fresh eyes, no matter how many times you've stared at it in the past. I usually work in TNR, and I find changing to Courier works wonders.

2) Listen to it read.

That doesn't mean you have to get someone to read it out to you (of course, if you have that luxury, that would be wonderful). There are plenty of free text-to-speech converters available on the web. They have very listenable voices, and can usually be adjusted to male or female, British or US etc. I paid $50 for the one I use, but that way I get full functionality - which means I can translate my entire book to an mp3, stick it on my ipod, and listen to it anywhere and anytime I like. Money well spent.

So there you go. Some tips I've picked up. Hopefully they'll be of some use!

Now excuse me while I dive back into the dark depths of Lake Edit. If only I could find my scuba gear.....

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¹ I've picked up so many useful tips from reading other people's blogs, I thought it must be my turn.

How Long Does it Take to Tell a Story?

2010-02-10T22:54:00.004+10:30

Somewhere along the line, I read that a YA book by a first-time author should never be more than 80,000 words. I think it had something to do with the cost of publishing verses the risk of the unknown, as well as the (apparent) ideal length an average young-adult wants to read.

So, always keen to take on good advice, I've tried to keep to this length in all my writing, and have usually managed to come in almost exactly on target (by dumb luck rather than careful planning, I can promise).

But then recently I've read two books by first-time authors that are more in the region of 200,000 words. The first is Wounded Guardian, by Duncan Lay (well worth a visit to his blog, he gives some great advice), and the second is book 1 of the Monster Blood Tattoo series. Perhaps the 80K rule is one of those things that generally applies, but can sometimes be broken.

For me, though, I've always been comfortable with the 80,000 word target. I think if I tried to write something bigger than that, I'd probably end up fluffing it out with unnecessary detail and would only bore the daylights out of the reader, rather than adding anything of value. Perhaps that's just my style, or perhaps that's the length of book that I prefer as a reader (not to take away from either of the excellent titles referenced above).

Or perhaps it's the nightmare of having to edit a 200,000 word manuscript. I'm finding 80,000 words challenging enough as it is!

Guest Blog Post - Teresa Frohock

2010-01-28T09:52:00.002+10:30

As the final of our January guest blog posts, I'd like to introduce Teresa Frohock. Teresa is a fellow OWW critter and the author of some deliciously creepy horror, and she also runs a very informative and helpful blog for aspiring writers. I'm happy to leave you in her capable hands as she talks about the "Quiet Moment".

When writing fantasy or horror, I think we often focus too heavily on the action and adventure aspects of the story to the point of cheating ourselves and our readers of a very special moment. It's when the protagonist experiences the psychic change that carries him or her through the story's climax. This turning point is as pivotal as the inciting incident that sets the story in motion, and handled well, gives the reader a logical reason for the protagonist's actions as the story is propelled toward the climax.

The quiet moment of your novel is where your protagonist stands in the eye of the hurricane and makes a decision that will affect him, and those around him, for the rest of his life. All action stops in a freeze frame as you enter your protagonist's mind and show the reader a reflection of his thoughts and your theme.

Here you must use the lightest of touches, the simplest prose, and the fewest words to convey what can sometimes be a complex emotional choice. Too much, and you're beating your reader over the head, too little, and your protagonist's actions won't make sense in the end.

Since I use the three act story structure, I like to place the quiet moment between the second and third acts of my story. This is the portion of the tale where my protagonist has been brought to his knees by the events around him; things could not possibly become worse.

All the pain, all the grief my protagonist has suffered coalesces until he has no choice but to change or die. I want him to reach inside himself and draw from an inner strength he either didn't know he had or forgotten he possessed. This is the point where my protagonist begins their emotional journey back into the light. Sometimes it's a sentence, a paragraph, or even a brief scene, but the character dictates the moment.

I love reading and writing the quiet moment in a novel. What about you? Does your novel contain a quiet moment? How do you handle the pivotal moment of your protagonist's change in your novel?

ASIM

2010-01-23T19:14:00.007+10:30

I had some great news this evening - the Hobbit Query Letter is going to be published in the October edition of Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine.

I do feel a tad like one of those 80's rock bands still living off that one song, but overall I'm chuffed to finally be able to lay claim to a publishing credit.

It's a great magazine. Even without my article in it I'd have no hesitation in encouraging people to check it out!

"The Best Of" was a very short album

Guest Blog Post - Lindsay Buroker

2010-01-17T22:08:00.002+10:30

To continue the January Guest Blog Post theme, I'm happy to introduce Lindsay Buroker, who I have asked to write about comedy in fantasy. Lindsay is another OWW comrade-in-arms and has been a great encouragement in my writing. She has, however, been responsible for me repeatedly showering my computer monitor in coffee, so I can safely say she is more than qualified to speak on the subject of humour.

Take it away Lindsay....

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Have your characters ever been called flat? Your stories boring? Your voice bland? Adding a splash of humor to your prose might be just the solution. Laughing readers are rarely bored readers.

If you feel humor has no place in your writing (you must write science fiction or “epic” fantasy), then you can skip the rest of this post, but if you’ve ever longed to have sample readers email you LOL about your tales, then read on. We’re going to talk about some tried-and-true ways to add the funny to your stories. They are the Setup and Punchline, the Rule of the Three, and the Callback. Even if you haven’t employed these tactics before, you’ll surely recognize them. Every comedian, sitcom writer, and witty genre author keeps them in the armory.

Setup & Punchline

Every joke is made up of a setup (the straight road) and a punchline (the unexpected curve). Let’s take a look at a Dungeons & Dragons classic (yes, I only quote the best!):

How do you know a dwarf raided your pantry?
Only the bottom halves of the shelves are empty.

How do you know an elf raided your pantry?
Only vegetables and fruits are missing.

How do you know an ogre raided your pantry?
Pantry? What pantry?

The first five lines, while funny in their own right, are the setup. The last is the punchline. You can see how everything before that builds the anticipation. Without the setup, the punchline wouldn’t be funny at all. This format is so familiar, that your readers are already primed and ready to laugh when they see it.

Okay, but who stops their stories to tell jokes? No one, we hope. But you can use the setup/punchline tactic to inspire laughter right in your narrative. Perhaps the dire, serious, tense situation is the setup, and then something unexpected happens (the fierce mercenary army is prepared to storm the hidden passage when the mage stands before the locked portal and cries, “Open Sesame!” and... everyone’s swordbelts unclasp and fall to the ground). Or maybe the personality of one your characters is the setup. Just think of how often you’ve seen the straight-man/funny-man set up. Or the adventuring party’s joke-cracking sidekick. Mixing serious characters with more lighthearted folk is a recipe for fun.

Dialogue provides the ideal opportunity for joke placement. In the vein of not-so-subtle self-promotion, I’ll delve into one of my own Goblin Brothers short stories for an example.

...A rolled piece of light brown paper slid out. Malagach grabbed it before it could fall into the water.
“It’s a map,” he said after a quick perusal. “A treasure map.”
“How do you know?” Gortok asked.
“All the traditional indicators are here: topographical representation of terrain features, a dashed line depicting a route, and a black X marking the final destination.”
Gortok leaned over Malagach’s shoulder to look. “And it says TREASURE MAP at the top.”
Maybe it’s not the instant classic of D&D joke, but it’s an example of setup (everything until the last bit of dialogue) and punchline used within the natural flow of a story.
Let’s move on to the next way to inject humor into your stories, the Rule of Three.

The Rule of Three

Fact of life: things are inherently more funny in threes. The “Rule of Three” is a classic structure in which a joke is set up, the setup is reinforced, and the punchline breaks the pattern.

Why is this funny? Who knows? Mathematically speaking, three is the smallest number you can use to establish a pattern and break it. But math is boring, so let’s just agree to accept this proven method.

Example:

You’re reading this post to further your education, to improve your writing, and because you’re bored at work.

Punchline, reinforcement, and unexpected curve.

The perspicacious readers will notice the dwarf, elf, ogre joke from the earlier example not only demonstrated the Setup and Punchline but also obeyed the Rule of Three. Now you know why you were helpless to keep from chortling.

The nice thing about the Rule of Three is that it’s easy to work into your writing without slowing down the pace. It only takes a sentence, so you don’t fall into the trap of having characters banter on for pages without plot advancement (not that I would ever be guilty of this, no, not me...).

Try using it in a setting description; it’s a great way to add zip to what might otherwise be a bland bit of prose. Example: Several indicators suggested this was not the most luxurious ski lodge: the broken hot tub, the peeling paint, the yellow snow.

Now that we’ve mastered the Rule of Three, it’s time to double the laughs with one of my favorites, the callback.

The Callback

The callback is simple; it’s just a reference to a joke you made earlier. It’s easy to implement, and people love it. And why not? If something tickled you once, wouldn’t you be delighted to relive the moment? Also, it can make for a satisfying conclusion to your story.

I’ll plunder my own work again for an example.

The first joke takes place in the middle of the story:

Robhart tilted his head and seemed to truly look at Malagach and Gortok for the first time. “You’re not like city goblins I’ve met.”
“Actually,” Malagach said, “we’re not particularly like mountain goblins either.”
“Ma says we’re especial,” Gortok said.
Malagach looked at his brother. “When did she say that?”
“Last month, when I added that extendable door-flap opener to the hut.”
“The thing she tripped over in the middle of the night?” Malagach asked. “I believe what she said was we were especially trying.”
Next, we’ve got some action, conflict resolution, and otherwise exciting stuff, and then we join the heroes again in a bit of denouement:

“...the stories told about us would have to be named after me, and I’d be the star,” Robhart said. “The hero, the main hero, can’t be a goblin.”
“Why not?” Gortok asked.
Robhart chuckled. “Who’d want to hear stories just about goblins?” He waved a quick goodbye and hustled off to turn in his orc hair.
Malagach and Gortok stared after the human.
“I’m middling sure people wouldn’t mind stories about us,” Gortok said. “Me, for sure.”
“Why you?” Malagach asked.
“I’m the cute, lovable, especial one.”
“That was especially trying,” Malagach reminded his brother.
“Close enough.” Gortok winked.
The callback is an economy of sorts. Set a joke up once and then milk it for all its worth. (If I were a better humor writer, I would have tapped into the Rule of Three and used that joke three times in my story!)

There you go: three humor-writing tricks of the trade that will never let you down. Always remember, laughing readers are never bored readers (and they writer nicer reviews, too).
Three Ways to Add Humor to Your Stories

Updates...

2010-01-14T19:42:00.006+10:30

In October I mentioned that I had sent off The Ghost of Ping-Ling to a publisher, Omnibus Books, here in Adelaide.

Last week, the publisher rang to say that she had just finished reading the manuscript, had really enjoyed it, and wanted to ask me a lot of questions about it (which she did). She then asked if I would make some changes and resubmit, so the manuscript can go to the next stage of the submission process.

This is, of course, not an offer to publish. It's quite possible (maybe even likely) that at the end of this process nothing will happen. But even if that's the case, to have been noticed in the slush-pile is a wonderful encouragement, especially as I had been fully convinced I would get nothing more than a rejection letter.

So, I now get to dust off GPL and get my teeth into some more editing. I also have to write a synopsis of the remaining four books in the series, and draw a map.

In the meantime, if anyone can tell me how to add about 10 more hours to the day, I'd be really grateful...

Weight of Souls

2010-01-13T21:56:00.013+10:30

Tonight I finished draft 0 of The Weight of Souls (insert joyous music and cheering crowd noises). I have to say, it turned out much better than I had hoped, and I'm now a firm convert to the Driving Without Headlights approach.

So many times, I started with a rough idea of what I wanted to happen, but when I sat down and allowed myself to type as my thoughts came, the story went in directions I would never have thought of in a planning session. Whether this is because of some strange operation of the subconsciousness, or the natural outcome of allowing the characters to be themselves, or some other reason that could well be debated by cardigan-clad academics over a few glasses of red, it worked.

Now I have to print out the draft and get it bound. Then I get to immerse myself in the scintillating delights¹ of the editing process.

----

¹ There is absolutely no sarcasm here. You will absolutely never find sarcasm on this blog. Absolutely not.

I Guess it Must be Summer Again.

2010-01-10T21:26:00.009+10:30

As I write, we've just finished putting our most precious possessions into a pile in the lounge-room, ready to take to my mother's house tomorrow. The weather forecast says we're in for 43 degrees C and a fire-danger rating of Catastrophic, and the memory of the disastrous bushfires in Victoria a year ago is still fresh in everybody's mind. Our plan, which appears to be the prevailing wisdom after the Victorian experience, is to get out of the danger area before the danger comes. So my wife will be spending tomorrow - heavily pregnant and with two three year old boys - in a very tiny flat which is, at least, air-conditioned, while I will be at work keeping a wary eye on the news.

It's a very interesting experience to condense your most precious possessions to a pile big enough to put into a car. Photos are always included, though nowadays most of them are on a portable hard-drive rather than in paper form. Toys for the boys are an obvious feature - as many as we can possibly take, as are portable and important items like cameras, old (and sentimental) books, drawings and stories from my childhood, documents, and a few changes of clothes. In the end, it comes down to what we will absolutely need, and what we will absolutely never be able to replace, should the worst happen.

I don't really think we'll have much to worry about. Apparently, our region is not in the high-danger list. But we can't lose anything by getting out anyway, just in case.

And now, I think I'll go and look at tomorrow's weather forecast for London. That's sure to cool me off.

Ghost of Ping-Ling

2010-01-08T10:38:00.003+10:30

A few people have asked about my wait for GPL and whether I've heard anything. I did get some news a few days ago, along the lines that I'll be waiting a bit longer before I hear anything.

At least now I know it was received! I'll keep you informed.

Dull News & Spam

2010-01-06T21:19:00.020+10:30

That Facebook thing,
That Facebook thing,
I do not like that Facebook thing.

Would you like to be my friend?
And cyber hook-up, without end?
My numbers are quite good, it's true,
But they'd be better still, with you.

I would not like to be your friend,
Or cyber hook-up without end,
But kindness puts me at my best,
And I'll click "yes" to your request.

Would you like to say hello?
And watch our scanty friendship grow?
I'm at my keyboard all the time,
Just log right in and up I'll chime.

I do not wish to say hello,
And wish you would not poke me so,
I have you as a friend it's true,
But I don't quite remember you.

Would you like this on your wall?
It's cute and kitch and does enthrall,
It's kittens, cars and men so fat,
I'm sure you would laugh hard at that!

I would not like it on my wall,
Your sense of humour, does appall,
I took you as a friend, it's true,
But put some space `tween me and you.

Status updates! Surely now,
You'd love to hear (upon the hour),
About the food I ate for tea,
Or what I watch on our TV?

I would not love to hear your news,
Or listen to your wretched views.
I wonder, though it might sound drear,
What life you have when you're not here?

I mix up "their" and "there" and "they're",
I can not spell, but I don't cair.
I end each sentence with a "lol",
Just so's you know I'm being droll (lol).

That's it! I will not take it so,
I've had enough, you have to go,
You'll see your numbers drop by one,
But you won't care it's me who's gone.

With just one click I say goodbye!
I cut you loose and breathe a sigh,
But then, in horror, I do see,
ANOTHER friend is poking me!

Guest Blog Post - David Douglas

2009-12-30T20:05:00.010+10:30

I'm on holidays, the cricket¹ is on, and I have a fridge full of VB². Alas, in the face of such noble and manly pursuits, this blog has taken a bit of a back seat (temporarily, of course).

But fear not! David Douglas, fellow OWW critter and blog follower, has kindly stepped in to fill the breach with the first ever Cackling Scribe guest post.

Many thanks, David! I shall now leave you in his capable hands while I go and get another VB....

¹ A game played in short bursts between long ad-breaks.

² A type of beer. Brewed in Victoria, but actually quite nice.

----

First of all, thanks to Peter for the opportunity to post here. My name is David Douglas. I write a travel & photo blog, and have just self-published my first fantasy novel, Demon’s Bane. PDF sample available here or check out where to buy here.

Every fantasy writer must be James Cameron. We have a lower budget, we lack CGI unless you count WYSIWYG on the word processor screen, and we don’t even have colors (much less 3D) to capture our reader’s imagination. But we start from the same place as Cameron did with Avatar: building a world in our minds, which must captivate the reader and bring him or her to a faraway land.

How to create a new environment? We can either start with what we know and modify it, or research something we know little about. For my first book, I just started thinking and let the world flow out (and later, the words). So quite a lot of it is based on my own North American culture, with a bit of European flair thrown in (as I’ve lived in Germany for five years now). When I moved into new areas I didn’t understand, I researched with Google and Wikipedia to keep my facts straight.

Take the setting, for example. The tale starts off in a deciduous, temperate forest, much like where I grew up in the eastern US. There are chapters where the characters are sailing, and a lot of terms were familiar (I learned to sail on the River Charles as a teenager). I had to do a bit of research there, however. In the following sections, the characters travel through prairies where I never lived (more research). In cities, my European experience came into play: almost every big city here has an “old town” area that dates from medieval times. A few still even have the city wall surrounding them, and there are many (sometimes crumbling) castles the likes of which most Americans have only seen in movies. My weekend tourism here has greatly improved the descriptions of the cities my characters encounter.

What about the characters themselves? North Americans hardly think about it, but players in the books we read generally follow the same social conventions we do. We shake hands, clap each other on the shoulders, or give a bear hug to an old friend we haven’t seen in years. Many Europeans give the two-kisses-on-the-cheek as hello, which we might also recognize. But Asian cultures are more likely to bow in greeting... when was the last time you saw that in a novel that wasn’t set in the Far East?

Treatment of women is another sticky subject. I’m all for fairness, and that shows in my novel (where women can be clan leaders, and are treated equally). But throughout history, the fairer sex was not often in a position of power. Even today, many cultures treat women in a way I find offensive (including most of the Middle East). It’s fascinating to see how writers address this in their novels; Westerners often have to use their imagination (or do research) to come up with a subordinate-female culture. Slavery and indentured servitude are also themes that fantasy writers can consider when writing about a less-civilized, ancient society. Even though they are (thankfully) far from our realities, they add a lot of depth and realism to a fantasy world.

One interesting cultural (and linguistic) aspect in my book is a character who likes idioms and expressions, but always gets them mixed up. I’m suspecting that Brits, Aussies, and Kiwis would also get the references (a bird in the hand... rocks in your head... the bigger they are, the harder they fall...). However, non-native speakers would understand these just about as well as I get the German idioms. Courtesy of a friend’s quotes-post: “The middle of nowhere” becomes “There, where the foxes say good night to each other.” And “Don’t get carried away!” becomes “Leave the church in the village.” I can only imagine what Asian sayings might be like, after I bought a magnet in Hong Kong that says “You are my love, my angle [angel?], don’t treat me like potato!”

In my next book, I plan to add an Asian flair, as the characters will be on a new continent with strange customs. It won’t be based on any one Asian culture, but on what I’ve learned from various trips to the Far East (China, Malaysia, Taiwan...). I have a feeling I’ll have to do a lot more research than I did for Demon’s Bane... but there will still be some western style mixed in. That’s what fantasy is all about: whatever we dream up can become real on the page! Just make it interesting and consistent, and each new world can be as compelling as Cameron’s Pandora.

To those who are writers, good luck! Do you have any interesting cultural tips you’d like to share from your own writing experiences?

Driving Without Headlights - Revisited

2009-12-28T22:07:00.012+10:30

I recently mentioned that I was starting my next novel - The Weight of Souls - without using any kind of outline and without stopping to review or edit as I went. This approach is completely new for me, and I was deeply cynical as to whether it would work. Nonetheless, I thought I'd give it a go.

In the end, I reached about 31,000 words before giving up. In my mind, the story had descended into a twisting morass of plot-ends, shallow characters and repetitive action. I was all set to write a blog post confirming that, for me, the non-outline approach doesn't work, and I now needed to start over from scratch. Presuming, that is, I ever had the heart to return to The Weight of Souls.

Then, a funny thing happened. A bit over a week ago, I sat down late one evening and decided to read through the 31K words I had written. I was fully expecting to cringe at every turn, and perhaps find myself unable to reach the end before giving up in disgust. Instead, to my utter amazement, I thought what I had written was quite good - very much worthy of first draft status. Yes, the characters are shallow and need a lot of fleshing out, as does the description, environment, and the overall back-story. But the plot works well, and most importantly, the voice and feel that I had hoped would come across appears to do so.

The next day, I got stuck back into it. As I write this, I'm sitting at 41,000 words, and aiming to finish the draft by New Years. That means I'm writing something close to 2,500 words a day, but I now feel encouraged that this approach can indeed work, and I'm not totally wasting my time.

I can now see the advantages of using this method, and I think I'll stick with it for the time being - provided the final result for this novel is what I would have hoped.

I'm enjoying it enormously. Even better, it's helping take my mind off my continuing wait for news of Ping-Ling. The manuscript has now been sitting in a publisher's office (at least, I hope that's where it is and it didn't get lost in the mail) for approaching 12 weeks, and I no longer have any fingernails left. Any distraction is very welcome.

Move Over, Byron!

2009-12-17T15:29:00.006+10:30

A little while ago, I subjected you all to a dose of my poetry, namely my entry in the Mentors, Muses and Monsters contest.

A rival I doth spy, with my little eye
It turns out I was one of the finalists, so please check out all the winning entries as they're posted over the next week!

'Twas One of Those Evenings....

2009-12-13T20:37:00.005+10:30

The weekend started off well. The weather was great, and I managed to get stuck into painting our new room in preparation for child number 3 due early next year. Then, at 6ish, I got a phone call from a friend asking why we hadn't arrived at their house for dinner yet. I insisted, in a definite tone, that she was mistaken, and it was scheduled for next Saturday. Alas, the evidence was there in the pixels of an email (which I obviously hadn't read very clearly), and I had no choice but to admit that I am, in fact, a bit of a dunce.

Then, just before bed, I checked my email in case there were any other social events I had forgotten. No social events, just one from ASIM, telling me my short story sub (which I wrote about last post) failed at the first stage. Apparently the reader didn't like the ending. Bugger.

Nobody should receive a rejection email on a Saturday night. It should be banned by law. There should be a narrow window of time established, say between 8.13 and 8.15 Monday morning, when rejection emails are allowed to be sent. Outside of that, you send one, you get a hefty fine. Maybe even thumb-screws.

So, there you go. No wonderful catch up with friends, no story in ASIM. Thankfully, I'm happy to report I got the room painted. At least the ceiling. Walls are due next week.

A Vision Most Clear

2009-12-08T15:52:00.009+10:30

Today, I submitted my first ever short story for publication. I sent it to a rather cool looking online magazine called Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine. They have a delightfully transparent submissions process, where the author is kept up to date as to where their story is in the slush pile. They identify three stages: Stage 1 means submission received, stage 2 means it's at the second reader, and stage 3 means it's been judged as good enough for the magazine, but needs and editor to pick it up. When you send your sub, you get a tracking number, and the number and stage are kept up to date on a website. How good is that!

The story is called A Vision Most Clear. It's slightly different, perhaps a bit quirky, but I like it. Will they like it too? I'll keep you posted!

And, as the great poet said, if you never give it a go, you'll never ever know.

Who the Hell is Willard Price?

2009-11-30T12:03:00.017+10:30

Contestitis Chronicus has struck again. This time, the aim is to write some kind of tribute to an author who postively/negatively influenced our desire to become writers. The first (actually the second) name that came to mind was the late and great Willard Price, whose books I used to devour in my early teenage years. Here is my off-the-cuff attempt at (what is probably extremely bad) poetry.

Lots of fun to write. If you feel the urge to give me any helpful comments, please do so! I don't need to submit this until mid December.

While working b'ind the counter of my local Borders store,
A customer of youthful age approached me to implore,
That I should share my wisdom on which new book he might buy,
Ideally, without vampires, ghosts, or broomsticks in the sky.

Delightedly, I gave a grin and bid him walk this way,
Towards the tiny scrap of paranormal-free YA,
And reaching for the titles, I drew out something nice,
A ripping-yarn adventure tale, by author, Willard Price.

He screwed his stud-pierced nose at me, and stared like I was mad,
Then uttered words that stung me, worse than any slap I'd had,
“Who the hell is Willard Price?” he gave a mocking cry,
And I fought hard, against the urge, to poke him in the eye.

“You’ve never heard of Willard Price?” I kept my tone polite,
“It’s gripping, thrilling, heads above this modern YA shite,
Willard takes you places so exotic, far away,
'Twas he who made me want to write, and so I do, this day”.

“Well good for you,” the youth looked bored, his heart no longer in it,
“I write too, I text at nearly 50 words per minute.
But maybe I should simply listen, to my friends' harangues,
And buy that new release about the fairy with the fangs.”

And as he left, I sadly slipped the book back in its place,
There to wait for someone new, to set their heart to race,
Who the hell is Willard Price? The modern youngsters say,
But they don’t write them, like they used to, back in Willard’s day.

Am I the Only One Who Notices This Kind of Thing?

2009-11-27T11:58:00.010+10:30

This is on the ground floor of our building. It's truly beautiful.

Seven Weeks

2009-11-24T10:12:00.006+10:30

That's how long it's been since I posted the Ghost of Ping-Ling. Several authors whose blogs I follow have recommended that the best thing to do in this situation is forget it and get on with life, pretend you never even sent it in the first place. This is very sensible advice. I would go so far as to rank it alongside "eat lots of brussel-sprouts" and "always remember to floss".

I have tried to keep busy. I've written 35,000 words of my next project, edited a short story, drawn about eight sketches, watched ten movies, even managed to read a novel and a half. But I can't help thinking about my manuscript. Has anyone read it? Is it sitting, covered in a layer of dust, on a shelf somewhere? Is it in a brief-case on its way to a meeting? Was there some sort of horrible mail mix up, and it's currently propping up a wonky desk in a government office in Liberia?

Who knows? Wherever it is, the waiting is very tough, and this whole thing about forgetting it and getting on with life is not as easy at it seems.

I will never complain about the query system again. The query system is like having a bandaid ripped off. It's not pleasant, but at least it's fast.

It's a Tough Job, But Someone Has to Do It.

2009-11-19T10:20:00.004+10:30

Driving Without Headlights

2009-11-09T21:23:00.021+10:30

Since I finished GPL, I've plunged into my next project, an adult fantasy called The Weight of Souls. My aim has been to finish the first draft by the end of the year, giving me a target of 1000 words a day between now and then. As of tonight, I'm sitting at 23,000 words, a bit under where I need to be seeing as I ended up taking a couple of (desperately needed) weeks off.

My approach to writing this draft has been similar to that advocated by NaNoWriMo, as well as most of the authors whose blogs I follow. I call it the "Driving Without Headlights" approach. The aim is to sit down and write, with only a minimal outline and just a cursory idea of where the story is going to end up. You never go back and revise, and you don't stop to read what you've written. You keep ploughing on until you reach the end of the first draft, at which point you sink your teeth into what will almost definitely be an enormous amount of revision, if not a near-total rewrite.

The philosophy behind this approach, I think, is that too many people get bogged down in editing or preparation, and end up never getting the book finished or, sometimes, even started. Characters and situations also have a bad habit of doing their own thing, bouncing off each other in such a way as to make any planning and outlining null and void. I can testify to this, because I've seen it happen in everything I've written, and it's certainly happening in my current work in progress.

It's the first time I've used this approach, and I see it as an experiment as much as an exercise in producing another novel. At the moment, I'm not convinced it's the best way to write a book. Sure, using this approach will help you get the draft finished. Sure, it will avoid wasting time planning something that's unlikely to go in the expected direction anyway. But I'm wondering whether the end result will be little more than an elaborate outline that took several months to write and, when you sit down to do the editing, will only have to be replaced by a 'proper' draft. I've even seen authors refer to this first, pell-mell draft as "draft 0", knowing it won't be good enough to be graced with a number "1".

At times, when I'm writing the Weight of Souls, I'm totally clueless as to where it's going or what's supposed to be happening, though I have a string of loosely associated ideas in my mind for what I want to occur. Because I'm not reading back over it, I'm worried that, when I do, I'll shake my head at the absolute morass of dead ends and dragging narrative, loosely cobbled together with the ragged remnants of what once seemed such a good idea, and I'll have to start over totally.

Of course, I could be wrong, and I'll end up being pleasantly surprised. It's definitely an experiment worth carrying out, if only to find out whether this style works (or doesn't work) for me.

Nathan Bransford's Comp Update

2009-10-17T20:09:00.008+10:30

Nathan Bransford announced the winners of his first-paragraph competition this morning. I didn't make it, but the standard of the ten finalists is simply stunning, so I bow before Nathan's judgment.¹

I hope he has another one soon. I'm keen to try again!

¹ Grovelling? I have no idea what you mean.

Cloudy Wordy Thingy

2009-10-16T22:50:00.009+10:30

This seems to be a bit of a craze at the moment, and it's very cool so I thought I would jump aboard with a word-cloud of this blog.

No surprises that "book" gets the biggest mention. And I probably shouldn't be too shocked that, on a writer's blog, the word "wine" comes up larger than "write".

Image courtesy of wordle.

Be Thankful for the Gatekeepers

2009-10-15T11:22:00.000+10:30

Here is a recurring nightmare. If you're an aspiring author and this doesn't give you cold shivers, you should take your own pulse. You may, in fact, be dead.

It’s happened. The phone-call you’ve been waiting for has finally arrived. Your book is being published! And not just one; you're offered an advance on two more. It’s more money than you ever imagined; apparently, there is much excitement about your manuscript, and expectations are high.

You tell your friends, your acquaintances, your neighbours, anyone who will listen. People around you get bored with your constant jabbering about your book, but you don’t care. You’ve reached the unattainable. You have arrived.

The launch comes. It’s a big deal, you've invited as many people as you could think of. Artwork from the book is draped about the hall, red wine is flowing, a pile of brand-new novels stands guard next to a chirping cash-register. As you sit and sign copy after copy, your face flushed from wine and the heat of the occasion, you reflect that life couldn’t possibly get any better than this.

The next day, you start checking the review pages on all the sites you can think of. You check them five times a day, in between writing book 2 in the series. Nothing. Why can’t people read faster than this? Finally, a review. Your fingers tremble as you click the link to read it. Not good. Whoever this person is, they didn’t really get your book at all. Their review cuts like a knife, but you shake your head and force yourself to get over it. It’s only one person’s viewpoint, after all.

The days pass, and you find yourself ringing a few friends who have the book, on the pretence of idle chit-chat or a discussion about an upcoming social event. They say nothing about the novel and, in the end, you come right out and ask. After a moment’s silence, they say “Yeah, it was really good. I really enjoyed it.” But it sounds forced, awkward, and they seem keen to get you off the phone.

More reviews, each as negative as the last. Words begin to make regular appearances – “trite”, “mediocre”, “unoriginal”. Who are these people with such a damning view? Did they read your book or just the back cover? You tell yourself not to worry, it's a bad patch. The positive reviews will come soon. But they don’t. Three stars out of five is the best you get, and that’s from someone who gives five to almost everything. There’s a tone of mockery and laughter about the reviews, and a constant refrain rings like a bell in your ears: “How on earth did this get published?”

Meetings with your publisher are less than encouraging. She reassures you that sometimes books take a while to get moving, and that many great novels started off this badly. You ask for specific examples, but she simply plays with her pen and purses her lips. As time passes, she is more open. Sales are worrying. Sales are very worrying. At this rate, it looks as though you won’t earn back even a tenth of your advance.

The crunch. A meeting is called with your publisher and a very stern-faced company CEO. The talk is direct and brief. The company will not be publishing the second or third book in the series. The title has not lived up to expectations. The market has made its view abundantly clear.

Now, you don’t mention the book to anybody. Your greatest hope is that they will forget. You’ve tried to publish again, a different genre altogether, without mentioning your previous publication history. But it’s always the same. “You’re the author of that book, aren’t you?”, and the conversation is over.

And, in those bitter moments, when you sit and stare at the unopened box of books on the floor of your study, your mind always comes back to one thing. Why did that publisher tell you it was good enough? Why did she tell you that you were ready? Why did she open the door to failure and humiliation rather than snapping it shut with a quick form-letter rejection? Even you know, now, that your book is utter rubbish. You've learned so much in the interim, you're certain you could write a best-seller. All you need is a chance, a chance that will never come, because you only get one.

And yours, my friend, is gone.

Contestitis Obsessivitis

2009-10-13T12:06:00.003+10:30

So, Nathan Bransford has a bit of time on his hands and has decided to hold another competition. I had to deliberate for all of two and a half seconds before I decided to enter, competition junky that I am. This time, entrants must submit the first paragraph of a work-in-progress, to be judged initially by Nathan and then voted upon by readers of his blog.

At last count, there were nearly 700 entries, and three days to go. Why does he do this to himself?

Anyway, here is my esteemed entry, the first paragraph from the wonderful and noble work of literature entitled: "The Book That Currently Has No Title But I Hope To Come Up With A Good One Soon."

Arkansy De-Crisp Lechampion had a recurring nightmare in which he found himself fully-clothed in a public place. He would wake in a cold-sweat and sprint about his cave, knocking into cauldrons and tables and banging into the stuffed and beautifully posed sabre-toothed rapscallion, the very one he had defeated the previous summer using nothing but a fish scaling knife and an onion on a string. The usual method, of course, but Arkansy was nothing if not old-fashioned.

The Silence of the Blog

2009-10-07T21:22:00.018+10:30

It has been a bit quiet here lately, mainly because I've been frantically trying to edit and finish the Ghost of Ping-Ling.

It's finally done! This morning, I padded down to my local post-office and handed the manuscript to a rather bored looking man behind the counter. Then I walked out and stood blinking up at a great ball of fire in the sky. They say it's called "the Sun".

To commemorate the Great Posting, I even took some photos (OK, they're not the actual posting "event", but close enough).

Those with extremely good eyesight will pick up that it is heading to Omnibus Books, a division of Scholastic here in Oz. Likely to be its first destination of many.

How do I feel? A very strange mix of emotions. Partly relieved and glad to have passed such a milestone and to be able to get into a new project. Partly as deflated as a balloon from last Saturday's party. And partly panicky that I might have got all my pages mixed up, one of my sons might have stuck something nasty in the envelope when my back was turned, or maybe if I'd only spent a few more weeks brushing up on this and that I'd have given myself a much better chance of getting it published.

Either way, that's it. The Ghost of Ping-Ling is off to fend for himself. God speed, young Dillen, fare you well.

As I was cleaning up some of my paperwork, I realised what a monumental undertaking writing a book can be (as if I needed a reminder). This inspired me to take another photo.

This shot contains two laptops, seven drafts, two notebooks, a bunch of reference books, and some rough working notes. It doesn't contain hard copies of the hundred or so drafts and attempts I never printed. It also doesn't contain several cases of red wine.

Did someone say red wine? I'm outta here.

Readings...

2009-09-22T23:15:00.013+09:30

OK, I just finished reading a book.

When I return to my body, I might be able to write something coherent and vaguely intelligent about it.

New Center to Investigate Evidence of Non-Paranormal Young-Adult Books

2009-09-12T14:42:00.031+09:30

A new $100M Center for the Study of Non-Paranormal Books (CSNPB) is to be established in Orlando, Florida. The center aims to bring together years of research into the proposed existence of non-supernatural themed books in YA sections of the world's bookstores.

CSNPB Director, Dr. Steve Wilson, said it was high time for the establishment of the center. "We've known for a long time that there's more to the average bookshop than meets the eye. Over the years, too many people have reported sightings of non-paranormal books. It's time they were taken seriously. This center aims to bring these reports together and provide a resource for further study of this fascinating phenomenon."

Sceptics are understandably amused.

"How many years have people been prattling on about the supposed existence of these books?" declared Martha Ball, President of Science in Bookstores. "I'll tell you - since the time of Wuthering Heights. Where's the evidence, huh? You go into any bookstore, any time of the day or night, walk into the YA section and find me a non-paranormal book. Until that happens, I say phooey!"

Dr. Wilson remains unfazed by contrary views. "Look, only last week, a young man in Delaware saw a non-paranormal in his local bookshop. He even took a photo."

When contacted by the press, Patrick Plunkey, of Newark, was initially reluctant to talk about his encounter, claiming he was still too 'spooked'. Eventually, he was persuaded to tell his tale.

"I was, like, in the shop, looking for a present for my kid sister, and I was standing in front of the shelf. Then I saw it. About third row down on the left, between Twilight and Touch the Dark. A book about pirates. I couldn't believe it! It was just there, looking at me. I even snapped a photo with my phone. It's kinda blurry, like, 'cos my hand was shaking so bad."

Is this grainy image evidence of non-paranormal writing activity?

Experts from the newly formed CSNPB have studied the photo, using the latest digital image enhancement software, and are convinced of its authenticity.

Explained Dr. Wilson: "Look, you can clearly see the spine, if you hold the photo at this angle and kind of squint your eyes. It's definitely a book about pirates. No question."

After the supposed sighting, remote cameras and image sensing technology were stationed throughout the store in the hope of capturing a better image of the non-paranormal book. "It's kinda creepy, you know?" commented Bill Blunk, a member of the research team. "You're sitting there in the dead of night, deep in the YA section, and you get this prickling sensation in the back of your neck, like someone's watching you. Then you turn around and realise it's the life size cardboard cutout of Robert Pattinson."

Efforts to capture further images proved fruitless, and after a week the study was called off.

"It's a complete joke!" said Martha Ball, when asked about the photo. "Look, I accept that it might be a book about pirates. But even if it is, if you look at it really closely, the guy leaping over the gangplank with his cutlass up, about to hack into the enemy? He has fangs. Oh, and he's sooooooooooooo cute, too."

Letters and Emails

2009-09-11T10:13:00.007+09:30

I received an email from Nathan Bransford this morning (he says, casually). Apparently, the General Manager of a big literary agency here in Australia has asked permission to read the hobbit query letter in her presentation at an upcoming writer's conference in New Zealand.

My response was one of the following, see if you can guess which:

A) No. I like to keep these things private, go away and never speak to me again.

B) Who cares? Let 'em read whatever they like.

C) Absolutely, positively yes, and would you mind telling them I'm about to start submitting queries for my manuscript to agents here in Australia?

I'm not normally someone who pushes themselves forward, but I'm fast learning to make the most of every wonderful opportunity. Even if it only gives my query letter an extra ten seconds reading time, it's worth it!

Knowing When to Give Up

2009-09-06T21:03:00.011+09:30

When is it time to give up on a book and move on to something else? This is a question I think about a lot, particularly as my current project has been going on for more than eight years, and is still not ready for submission.

It's not an easy question to answer, and the water is further muddied by the mix of advice out there in internet land. A recurring theme is that you should never get caught up on "The Book" - the single work that drains years of your time and will probably never venture beyond your own bookshelf. On the other hand, there's also plenty of advice about how to self-edit, how to improve a book to increase its chances of publication, and how you should never, ever, ever give up.

According to popular legend, Jo Rowling spent several years trying to get Harry Potter published. I wonder what would have happened if, after a year or so, she'd decided it was time to move on, put Harry in a box beneath the bed, and gone off to write a story about a girl with a crush on a vampire, or something like that.

In the end, I have no answer to this dilemma, other than to say I think there is wisdom in both sides of the argument, and the truth probably lies somewhere in between (otherwise known as a 'cop-out'). For myself, I currently have one other book bubbling around in my head, and it's something I'm excited about and I'm desperate to get in to. But I've decided to do one last pass on Ghost of Ping-Ling, hopefully finish it in the next few weeks, then feed it to the machine. After that, I can get my teeth into something new in the six-months or so before I hear something.

What about you? I'd be really interested to hear other people's wisdom on this subject - don't be shy!