To what degree do we decide what's in our stories, and to what degree does it come unbidden?

I think there's a scale. Cyn, I know what side of the scale you fall on.

For me, it seems to go like this. An idea, or the gist of it, appears from somewhere. I play with it for awhile, thinking, making notes. I can choose what I'm going to do with it. At some point it gels, takes on a life of its own, and my choices are circumscribed.

Is it really as formulaic as all that? Do readers really want ALL Vampire books to be so predictable? Or is that just what the marketing people say?

And what kind of 2 timing romantic hero loves both a vampire and a werewolf? Oh well, dramatic conflict.

Horror goes mainstream... At least that's what the USA Today said: http://www.usatoday.com/life/books/news/2006-06-28-vampire-romance_x.htm
There's also a profile of writer Laurell K. Hamilton:
http://www.usatoday.com/life/books/news/2006-06-28-chat-hamilton_x.htm

Vampire/romance/detective books are big now. I was an early fan of Laurell Hamilton, but somewhere along the way she lost me. I think she took a turn into poorly written porn. I was into Kim Harrison's books of a vampire ridden Cincinnati, but I fear they are heading into the same cliched waters that Laurell Hamilton headed to. Apparently all Vampire books must involve a Vampire slayer who loves both a vampire and some type of werewolf. I wish I could write Vampire fiction as easily as I do my mystery stuff.

Tonight was the "launch event" for Lily Brett's novel You Gotta Have Balls at the McNally Robinson bookstore in SoHo. Lily came to the law office where I work for a consultation, and put my employer, Martin Price, on the list for this event. I seem to be the literary arm of the Law Office of Martin L. Price, so I went.

When I went to the Frank McCourt event I knocked myself out reading Angela's Ashes and Teacher Man beforehand. Since YGHB only went on sale in this country the day before yesterday, and would be on sale at the event, I didn't feel compelled to read it in advance, but she has also written a collection of personal essays called In Full View. I wish I'd read that before today, but it's not easy to find. I may have to get it from the library.

I had meant to e-mail her before today, introduce myself and ask her to visit the blog. I suppose I still can. It seems hard to orchestrate the timing of everything.

Is there a genre you enjoy reading, but can't seem to write? I have that problem with sci-fi. I enjoy reading and watching it, but I can't seem to write good sci-fi or fantasy for the life of me. It always comes out artificial or ridiculously derivitive. I think I could probably write a good Star Trek script or anything that the concept was already in place for, but I can't seem to come up with good concepts for Science Fiction.

Athena, I must ask. How long did you live in Huntington? Long enough to remember Mr. Cartoon? I grew up nearby in Portsmouth, Ohio and Huntington was the BIG CITY where all the television stations were.

And since I've discussed reader, now on to writers. Are there any writers you consider to be your inspirtation or that you aspire to be like in some way? How did they inspire you?

I've been thinking about what Linda posted about your "ideal reader." Do you have an ideal reader in your head? What else would they like to read if they enjoyed your work?

60* and counting!


*days since I submitted "A Singular Being" to Asimov's Science Fiction

I should've known: nothing like a deadline to get my butt in gear. ChiZine has its annual short story contest every summer, and its deadline is June 30th. Yesterday and today, I wrote and finished the story I'd been "planning" for about six months and only had a few notes jotted down for. I'm happy with it- I think I achieved the eerie tone I was going for, although of course, it still has to go through the final wringer- er, draft.

So, yay to me for finally finishing a story. :)

(By the way, this is my third year entering. The first year, I placed in the top fifteen; last year, I didn't get that lucky, although the story went on to sell to Surreal. I'm hoping for better news this year, although I'm normally a pessimist and won't count on much. :))

Wednesday marks the anniversary of the day I found On Writing by Stephen King at the Tompkins Square branch of the NYPL, and my life hasn't been the same since. It will also be the last day of school, just like that day, though last year it was on a Tuesday.

In On Writing, SK speaks of an "ideal reader," the first person you think of while you're writing, the first person to read your manuscripts. Often the writer's spouse or significant other.

Unfortunately, my spouse is not into reading. Even when he does read my manuscripts, he isn't the one to give me the kind of feedback I want. My daughter will probably be great but she's too young. So the job of being my ideal reader is sort of an open, rotating one.

Would anyone like to be the first to read the first draft of "The Daily Grind"?

Happy Summer Solstice!

Today will be the 56th day my dear manuscript "A Singular Being," my beloved cephalopod Pneumia will have spent at Asimov's Science Fiction without my receiving a rejection slip. That's if I don't receive one in today's mail!

56 and counting.

Titles are my nemesis, how about you? I talked to an agent who told me that titles are fifty percent of what draws him to a book. I hate titling my own work! Which since I'm a marketing professional and have no trouble naming contests or news franchises or coming up with catchy phrases to brand blocks of programming, you'd think I could do. I think I've come up with probably 2 good titles in my life.

I started Kindred by Octavia E. Butler today. It's wonderful! A woman suddenly finds herself mysterously transported in space and, she learns, time. A 20th century black woman who finds herself in rural Maryland in 1815, yet. (Not a fun trip.) Can't wait to continue!

I love it when authors do that - keep writing about the same "universe," in science fiction terms. When I realized Stephen King characters interacted with each other from novel to novel, I was delighted. It felt like a guilty pleasure, like he was breaking some rule. I guess because I've heard it said that "readers just want you to keep writing the same book over and over" and I got the impression authors were supposed to want to start from scratch each time. (Though usually certain characters reappear, even if they're not "supposed" to be the same person.) I love the idea of books about the relatives of characters from a book I've already read.

Me, I knew as I was writing "A Singular Being" that I'd like to write about that universe again, though I was thinking of the species/planet, not necessarily the same character. But now I'm thinking about a novel that will be in part a romance between Pneumia, the young scientist protagionist of "Being" and the guy who delivers the fresh have-to-think-of-alien-sounding-name-for-clams-mussels-oysters-shrimp that my intelligent and pychic sea creatures eat.

Do you start fresh with new characters for each story/novel or do you have continuing characters? Myself, once I flesh somebody out, I can't stop writing about them. That's why I have all these spin-offs. From my first completed book, I've spun off stories for the main character's parents (both in the present and in the past as younger people) his cousin (and an entire town full of fully realized characters where he lives), each of his three younger sisters, the family of one of his sisters' boyfriends, another set of cousins. Plus my 1920s novel features the great aunt of someone my first main characters knows and I also have a couple of books set in 1880s California that are actually about relatives of my character.

I just finished another mystery novel. This one is set in 1920s Toledo and focuses on the adventures of a female newspaper reporter with ganster friends. I'm not totally satisfied with the ending. I think I might have rushed it a bit. But I'll go back and tweak it later. I just wanted to get it down. The characters are where I want them, I just need to flesh out the scenery and do some more research. Now which story do I start next? I've got about eight of them butting around in my head competing for attention. PICK ME! PICK ME!

What's your process? Longhand or keyboard? Fast or slow? What's it like when you're starting a new project? Do you think of the characters first, the story, the setting, or does it all come at once?

I feel weird that my first post is self-congratulatory and promoting, but here it goes. I found out Friday that my short story, "Calamari and the Smell of Wet Sweat", sold to Wicked Karnival. Nice sale; I'd been waiting about three months to find out if I'd made the final cut. Wasn't very confident about it, as it's a strange little thing written in present tense-- something I never do.

This was the last story I finished, and that was back in January. I've started other stories (and a book), but they've all fizzled out, either from lack of desire or lack of direction. After this long a drought, I desperately need a kick in the pants.

I want to get the book Writing Down to the Bone by Natalie Goldberg. I learned of it from the same friend who gave me my first journal for my 14th birthday. That's the first I heard of the "free writing" technique, though I'm not sure Goldberg used that term.

The inner critic certainly has an important role to play in the writing process. It's called "revision." Maybe Ms. or Mr. Inner Critic has no business hanging around while we're trying to write a first draft. When starting a new story/novel/script/whatever maybe we need to stop thinking so much and JUST WRITE!

I've done a lot of that this weekend. The first draft of "The Daily Grind" is almost finished. I also wrote about 900 words on how my father was a waiter with a master's degree in library science how maybe the Talismans have some trouble breaking the class barrier once we leave school, and about 800 words on losing children's clothing in the laundromat or on the bus. I think I've figured out how to plug in the memoir. Write a little autobiographical piece whenever I feel like it, and add it to the main document. When it gets to be about 40,000 words, I'll start shaping, see what sort of book it might turn out to be.

Was reading some agents' profiles on Writer's Market today, saw that some of them like to meet authors at conventions. Asimov's always lists upcoming sci-fi conventions, & they must come to New York sometime (everything does.) Do other genres have conventions?

I'm not anywhere near ready to look for an agent yet, just thinking ahead. Also wondering if there are mystery conventions.

FREE WRITING EXERCISE #1
ELA THIER'S FREE SAMPLE SCREENWRITING WORKSHOP
May 30 2006

INSTRUCTIONS: Keep writing and don't stop for 10 minutes

Scenario: x and y are stuck in elevator with bomb in it
x = main character, y = me
(main character = Miryam Montoya
story-in-progress, "The Daily Grind")

Miryam: Oh, great. They kept saying this might happen.

Me: What?

Miryam: All that crap about terrorism. These elevators. We're sitting ducks.

Me: [sweating] What do we do?

Miryam: Hell if I know.

Me: What kind of attitude is that? Can't we defuse it or something?

Miryam: How should I know? I'm just a food processor. You're the one with the master's degree.

Me: OK. I used to be a techie. I've seen a lot of movies.

Bomb: tick, tick, tick

Me: Shut up!

Miryam: DO SOMETHING!

Me: OK. This has to be like a computer of some kind. I'm good with computers. [looking at bomb] OK... wires... they always talk about wires... Ya know, Miryam?

Miryam: What?

Me: I wish I'd picked the other scenario.

Miryam: Scenario? What the hell are you talking about?

Me: You're a fictional character.

Miryam: Will you stay focused? We're about to be blown off the face of the earth. And you don't know this place. It's a death trap. The safety inspectors are all on the take. The consortium doesn't care if we live or die.

Me: Well, they care if we show up for work, that's why they built this place.

Miryam: Show up for work? You don't work there. You ain't no consortium employee.

Me: No, I'm the author.

Miryam: The what?

Me: Oh never mind. Look, I've done this before. I used to build a lot of radio shack electronics kits when I was in my 30's.

Miryam: Your what?

Me: I mean, when I was a kid. I just have to cut this wire.

Miryam: With what?

Me: You carry any tools? No, of course you don't. You get hooked into that equipment and you just have to try not to get beheaded while it does its thing.

Miryam: You don't know what happened to my friend yesterday, it was awful.

Me: Well, I sort of know. I haven't written that scene yet.

Miryam: What?

Me: Never mind. Something to cut wire with... all I have in my backpack is a notebook, 4 barely-started unfinished manuscripts, and half a dozen pens. Oh, and July Analog. What would K'choi Gwu ka do?

Miryam: Who?

Me: OK. This isn't a starship. Focus, Linda. This is an elevator of the Consortium's Lower East Side Consolidation XXV underground housing project, 25 stories under the desert of ... I haven't decided yet.