I was way past due in getting around to reworking my About and book pages. More coming soon.
About Time
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Martin: “done when it’s done”
Should George R.R. Martin, author of the books that inspired the Game of Thrones HBO series be apologizing for missing the deadline for his latest book?
I don’t think so.
It’s not just because, as an author, he has reached a level success many do not. This is about his work — writings that has made his career and defined him as an author.
Writing, like anything else, doesn’t always go according to plan. Sometimes it goes fast, sometimes it does not. Martin wrote, “Sometimes the writing goes well and sometimes it doesn’t…as spring turned to summer, I was having more bad days than good ones.” A writer who cares about his or her work, doesn’t want to get it done just to get it done.
There are times where the process does go fast and certain books get out quickly. Other times, not so much. The expectation to have a constant flow of books from authors is partly influenced by the apparent relentless parade of television and films. However, even those in the film business can be pressured to rush their work. Peter Jackson said he wasn’t happy with not having as much prep time with The Hobbit as he did with the LOTR. Extending the series to three from two films ultimately gave more time to create another epic trilogy. I get that publishing and filmmaking are businesses, but when you have something that has succeeded, why risk messing with what made it a success?
Like Martin wrote, “It will be done when it’s done. And it will be as good as I can possibly make it.”
Opening Our Eyes in 2016
I’ve written on how 19th Century author George MacDonald fathered the fantasy genre that has become such a staple of literature. Beyond that, MacDonald was also a controversial figure in his day, and even now. Why? Because he wasn’t afraid to challenge the status quo. Biographer Michael R. Phillips writes:
In his later writings MacDonald strongly attacks the mentality that cares more for providing its own position than for discerning the truth. He would prefer to find himself in the wrong, and thereby learn a new facet of truth, than win an argument…he would not even formulate an opinion until he sees the question more clearly…[he wouldn’t]…put forward an opinion prematurely until the light of truth had been shed upon it.
Here, on the first day of the new year, perhaps this is what we should keep in our minds and on lists of resolutions. A commitment to test what we read, what we are told and what the powers that be claim is so. In an election year this is even more important, because the professional politicians and their dutiful followers have already spent months weaving their deceptions. We need to be like MacDonald who had
…a mind not afraid to doubt and ask questions. It was a mind not hiding behind doors, but knocking on them. His eyes were wide open, alert to any entrance of truth.
So in 2016, let’s open our eyes, stop hiding and start knocking.
Categories: Critical Thinking, What You Can Do
Tags: 2016, george macdonald, Michael R. Phillips, new years resolution
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A Time to Speak
Even though some of my favorite books are old-school dystopian — A Brave New World, 1984, Fahrenheit 451 — I haven’t picked up many of the new wave of books in this genre. One exception has been Nadine Brandes‘ Out of Time series. I reviewed book one, A Time to Die here. Book two, A Time to Speak continues chronicling the life of Parvin Blackwater.
Parvin lives in a future where the world was devastated by disaster. All she knows of civilization is walled in from the rest of the world and run by an oppressive government. The rulers control the population through Clocks. Each person knows when their life will end as their Clock counts down. Parvin was only months away from the end and her life hasn’t amounted to much. In book one, we saw how she began to change that, facing perils she never could have imagined. The true nature of the world she lived in also began to reveal itself.
I don’t want to give too much about this book and reveal the ending of the first for those who haven’t read it. I will say, Parvin has not quit on changing the fate of her people even though events have become much worse. With the Council packing people up and shipping them off to an unknown fate — which reminded me of 1930s Germany — Parvin struggles with being anyone’s leader. People are also dying before their Clocks expire. Her journey will take her to distant parts of the globe and force her to decide if she will lead, and speak, regardless of the risk to herself.
Brandes continues a well-realized, character-centric story with Parvin. Not that the other characters aren’t important or without depth, but Parvin drives this tale. You want to see what happens to her next, her choices and her changes. While her dystopian world will be familiar to genre fans, and Parvin follows that reluctant hero path, it’s her journey that sets her apart from the others. Stories like this are one reason why people write and read:
To remind us to evaluate our own journey on this world.
Categories: Books, Fiction
Tags: A Time to Die, A Time to Speak, dystopian, Nadine Brandes, Parvin Blackwater
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Edit Without Mercy
Miss Benison gives some great advice for the editing stage of writing your book. Editing can be a long, drawn out process. It’s where you learn to shape and reshape words, sentences, plots, and characters. As Benison writes, this is where you need to:
Be ruthless and objective. Don’t think of the book as your own. Think that it belongs to a complete strangers. Don’t be afraid of the words “Cut” and “Delete”, in editing, they could be your best friends.
The idea of deleting may be unthinkable to some writers. We all know what things aren’t working. They probably never did. If they can’t be fixed or moved, deleting words, sentences, or whole paragraphs will often make a writer think, “Wow, that’s so much better.” Force yourself to evaluate your writing as someone else would. Don’t let yourself rationalize away parts of your story you know aren’t right.
Benison also writes about focusing on different aspects during each edit. Focus on grammar one time, details (too much or too little) during another.
At some point you may consider finding beta readers, because no matter how many times your review your manuscript, you’ll miss something. Then you’ll decide on whether or not you want an editor (other than you) to edit your work. Separating yourself from your work can be hard. Sometimes someone else can do it better.
Editing isn’t easy and it’s time-consuming. One of the best pieces of advice I read somewhere went something like, “Find part of your story that just pops: You know, every word is perfect and clicks with each other. It’s the example of what you want your voice to be. This is the standard the rest of the story should rise to meet.”
That’s a high standard, and no book is perfect to the author or all readers. If you set your standard as high as possible, however, you’ll end up with one amazing story.
Eris Miller Was Having a Bad Day
I have followed Michelle Proulx for awhile (her site that is), but never checked out her sci-fi book Imminent Danger.
I’ve long been a sci-fi fan, but I think the “YA/Romance” label threw me off. Not really into either of those genres, well, not at all. And was this one of those “cute girl gets abducted by aliens” stories?
Then I found myself considering the book while reading one of Ms. Proulx’s posts the other day. Maybe it was the cover — the woman on the cover resembled the person on my book cover. Parallel universe, perhaps? Or maybe it was the intriguing blurb. Plus, I need to get my money’s worth out of the Kindle and the book is only $2.99, so I might as well give it a try.
I’m happy I did.
The story of Eris Miller being abducted and her subsequent perils across the galaxy is a fast-paced adventure that will keep you turning the pages. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Galaxy vibe makes Eris’ bad-day-that-just-got-a-lot-worse an entertaining departure from all the super-serious books out there. It was like I was back in my Space Quest days (gamer fans, you know what I’m talking about).
Even though the author has labeled this YA, I think it will appeal to all sci-fi fans. As for the “romance,” I don’t think there is any more in here than in many sci-fi or other adventures (I’m not counting that creepy Luke-hitting-on-Leia-before-he-knew-she-was-his-sister stuff). That’s a common enough thread in many books not strictly in the romance genre. So don’t worry (if that worries you).
So hold your breath and prepare for hyperspace. Eris is about to make the galaxy wish E.T. never snatched her.
How the Father of Fantasy Told His Story
The influence of 19th Century novelist George MacDonald can still be seen in the fantasy genre today. C.S. Lewis referred to MacDonald as his “master.” Tolkien called his fairy tales “stories of power and beauty.” MacDonald encouraged his friend C. L. Dodgson to publish his children stories — later known to the world as Alice in Wonderland under the pen name Lewis Carroll. MacDonald unintentionally became the father of modern fantasy.
Biographer Michael R. Phillips writes he was “deeply challenged with the magnitude and complexity” of telling MacDonald’s life:
…[MacDonald had a] tremendous variety of…literary genres — he was [also] a theologian, a spiritual mystic, a poet, a novelist, a preacher, a scientist, an essayist, a highly successful lecturer, a teacher, an actor, an editor and a fantasy writer — his ideas defy categorization and pigeon-hole analysis.
That MacDonald was a writer can be seen in his comments on potential biographies on himself. He maintained “that no biography should be written, stating that his books contained all he had to say to the world…” Phillips continues:
But it is my hope to convey George MacDonald’s thoughts and emotions…[which are] most strongly reflected through his literary works…his fictional characters were a means of communicating his own ideas and view of the world…The words he wrote…illuminate what he thought about, how he approached his quandaries, what kinds of questions he asked, and what answers he found…His books are the fullest means we have to get under the surface of his thought-skin to discover what really made him tick.
Therein lies a truth for all writers. Their fiction is art, entertainment and conveyor of ideas and messages. Ultimately, though, no matter how they try not to (if they try not to), parts of their story is also in the tales they tell.
I have written often here that everyone has a story to tell. That doesn’t just mean in the sense of sci-fi, fantasy, thriller or romance. It means the stories that reveal who you are, regardless of what background you tell it against.
Categories: Writing
Tags: C.S. Lewis, fantasy, george macdonald, J.R.R. Tolkien, Lewis Carroll, Michael R. Phillips
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Return to Mars
Ever wish there were new adventures of your favorite books? One more trek across Middle Earth? Just a few more stories from Bradbury? Another voyage to Barsoom? Once an author has passed away, all such chances fade away, with rare exception. Tolkien’s son did complete his fathers The Children of Hurin. When Robert Jordan knew his health was failing, he made sure someone was going to finish his Wheel of Time series. There also has been a number of attempts to bring back Edgar Rice Burroughs quintessential space hero, John Carter, back to life through the world of comics.
First, I’ve never been into comics. I think I owned one at some point long ago. Now even the word “comics” is archaic and they have been replaced with graphic novels (graphic in the sense of lavishly illustrated). I may have to make an exception here, if it means more epic adventures across the Red Planet.
Back in the late 1970s, Marvel created the John Carter: Warlord of Mars series of new tales that took place within the first book, The Princess of Mars. A few years ago, all of the issues were collected into one volume (it’s surprising how vivid the artwork is when printed on high-quality paper as opposed to the old comic newsprint).
In recent years, Dynamite has brought Carter back in its graphic novels. One of the spin-offs of the series features the princess of Mars, Dejah Thoris, in her own adventures before she ever met earthling John Carter. Because of the highly visual nature of this iteration, these stories are usually labeled for “mature” readers.
Burroughs’ books weren’t explicit in nature, but what happens when the violence is visualized – and those barely clothed Martians are depicted? Whereas the books leave much to the imagination, these graphic novels — not so much. Ironically, Burroughs’ blink-and-you-miss-it description of Dejah Thoris in the first book would inspire decades of sci-fi and fantasy art.
So if you long to return to high adventure on the distant Red Planet, John Carter and Dejah Thoris are still out there generations after we first read of their meeting.
The ultimate action couple.
Categories: Fiction
Tags: Barsoom, comics, Dejah Thoris, Dynamite, Edgar Rice Burroughs, fantasy, graphic novels, John Carter, Marvel, sci-fi, science fiction
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Writing and That Other Job
Author Mike Duran gives some tips on how to manage your writing while holding your “day job.”
Darrick Dean 