Posted in Books, Writing, tagged author websites, blogging, creative writing, novel writing, reader-writer interaction, Writing, writing techniques, writing tips on 07 Aug 2013| 2 Comments »
This week I came across two articles for writers that I thought I’d pass along.
The first article comes from my friends over at The Noble Dead website. Barb and J.C. Hendee are bestselling authors with nearly a score of books to their collective credit. J.C. is also their webmaster, and trust me, he knows his stuff. (more…)
Posted in Writing, tagged building backstory, building believable characters, building characters, Characters, creative writing, novel writing, Seattle, The Wolf Tree, Writing, writing research, writing techniques, writing tips on 29 Jul 2013| 1 Comment »
First, a welcome to our new subscribers. At some point we popped up over the 200 member mark, which I find pretty cool. So, thanks, all, for your interest.
My free time this weekend was spent backtracking. I’d started my research of Seattle’s history at 1860, heading up the years toward 1874, but it became clear that for my purposes, 1874 Seattle was just too big a town. I want a setting that is rougher, more primitive, and a town that is smaller.
Picking 1874, the backstory for my main “Old Seattle” character included experience in the Civil War, possibly with injuries, certainly with trauma. I wanted a reason for him to immigrate to the West, but also a reason for him to recoil from society and live outside the town. (more…)
Posted in Writing, tagged Chapter One, Chekhov, Chekhov's gun, creative writing, how to start a novel, novel writing, Writing, writing techniques, writing tips on 26 Jul 2013| 14 Comments »
No, not my Chapter One. Sorry if I got your hopes up, there. (Did I? I hope I did, actually.)
No, I mean Chapter Ones (or is it Chapters One, like attorneys general?), in general. What are the needs, what are the requirements of a novel’s Chapter One.
A lot of writers paraphrase Chekhov. In essence, If you hang a loaded gun on the wall in Act I, it must go off by the end of Act III.
A lot of writers (mostly newer writers) want the literary equivalent of a movie’s “establishing shot.” They want everything set up in Chapter One–characters, setting, conflict, subplots–everything.
For me, the best advice I’ve ever heard on how to build my Chapter One is this:
Shoot the sheriff on the first page.
Posted in Books, Writing, tagged creative writing, novel writing, quote, Stephen King, thesaurus, Writing, writing techniques, writing tips on 24 Jul 2013| 9 Comments »
If there’s one thing that irks me, it’s applying rules to creative endeavors.
I’m also not much for taking things out of context. Like this.
Any word you have to hunt for in a thesaurus is the wrong word. There are no exceptions to this rule. — Stephen King
A lot of writers treat King’s advice on writing like a bible and, like a lot of Bible carriers, they often take things over-literally and take quotes completely out of context.
This is an example of both.
Posted in Writing, tagged creative writing, Fallen Cloud Saga, longmire, novel writing, Seattle, The Wolf Tree, Writing, writing techniques, writing tips on 23 Jul 2013| Leave a Comment »
…and why it matters.I’m still researching Seattle history for my next book, The Wolf Tree, trudging through Thomas Prosch’s bone-dry but fact-filled Chronological History of Seattle from 1850 to 1897. I’m up to 1871, which is within spitting distance to my target of 1874.
Some people might say this is a bit over-the-top for what is essentially a secondary story line in a mainstream/non-genre novel, and I’ll admit, I do have a tendency to over-research.
But you know what? That’s just tough. Deal with it, peeps. I won’t apologize or change.
Here’s why. (more…)
Posted in Gardening, tagged creative writing, gardening, quiet living, spider, web spinning on 18 Jul 2013| 1 Comment »
I am out on the deck when I find her, hanging by a thread of her own making.
She swings from a long silver strand attached to the eaves, the tender breeze pushing her left, then right. Eight legs outstretched, she is no bigger than a lentil bean, and the sunshine makes her body glow, bright with orange and yellow. Where are you going, I wonder, with ten feet of space between you and the ground?
Curious, I sit down, leaned on the railing, and watch. (more…)
Posted in Writing, tagged creative writing, historical fiction, novel writing, Seattle, Seattle history, The Wolf Tree, Writing, writing research, writing techniques, writing tips on 12 Jul 2013| 1 Comment »
For the past few weeks, I’ve been doing research for The Wolf Tree. It’s been an education, in several ways.
Seattle isn’t like New York or San Francisco or London. I don’t have dozens of books to choose from, rows of scholarly tomes filled with history, details, and anecdotes. (more…)
Kurt R.A. Giambastiani 