Posts
By Lonnie Cruse
Or is it "Penny wise, pound foolish?" Maybe both?
One of the best doughnut shops anywhere in the world is Southpaws in Metropolis, Illinois. If you're ever in our area, be sure to drop by. I love everything they make, hence the pound foolish part.
As to "In for a penny," it's a most interesting story. Southpaw's owner Glenna Brown and her business partner started saving pennies more than ten years ago to see how many they could acquire toward paying off their loan. Customers noticed the various popcorn canisters of pennies and started dropping in extra pennies. Time passed, the amount of the owners' business loan dropped as the amount of pennies rose until the two met somewhere in the middle. After calling to warn the local bank she was coming, Brown arrived pushing a wheel barrow containing 39,535 pennies to pay off her final payment of $395.35. It took over ten years, and unfortunately her business partner didn't live to see the big day. If you'd like to see a picture, click here:
http://www.metropolisplanet.com/news.html
Some friends and I were having a discussion recently about the economy, and someone asked how we each thought we'd survive if another great depression hit. Our discussion didn't sink into who is to blame for our country's current financial crisis or how to fix it, nor do I intend to do that here. Instead, we each listed ways we could cut our spending, if forced to do so to survive. Quite fascinating.
In most cases, the first budget item to go was, sigh, our various ways of connecting to the Internet. Imagine not being able to read email, check blogs, send jokes (okay, I could easily live without that one) or surf the net. Not to mentioning ordering stuff you can't find in your home area.
Next to go was cable or satellite television. Argh. I love all the choices even if maybe 100 of the 200 plus channels are pure fluff or fillers, if you will. Surely the jewelry auction channels will suffer if we all cut back? But without that little dish, hubby and I would be reduced to a grand total of four channels and two of them are barely viewable.
After that came land lines for phones, since most people now have cell phones and their total monthly cell phone bill is usually cheaper than a land line with long distance. That cut I could live with and would have already done IF we didn't get such poor cell phone reception where we live. Still, it may come to that.
The amount of meals eaten out took a huge cut in our discussion. Eeek. And frankly, many restaurants are already struggling in our area. (Ahem, I must confess, we were on our way to eat out when this discussion took place.)
Most of us agreed that gas bills would be hard to cut to a great degree with people having to drive to and from work, (plus possibly any driving done while there, if the job requires it.) Economists frequently urge us to lump errand running together and not make extra trips. Most women I know have been doing that since they learned to drive.
One of the contributors to this discussion builds houses as well as doing remodels, and according to him new home building in our area is waaaaay down but remodels are still flourishing. Hmmm. New stove, anyone? I'm just praying my noisy washer doesn't turn up its toes.
So, what could you live without if you had to that you can't seem to live without now? Doesn't hurt to give it some thought. Just in case. And don't forget to save those pennies. 39,535 pennies might come in handy some day.
Friday, November 7, 2008
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Please buy my book--but not on eBay!
Elizabeth Zelvin
Mystery writers who maintain contact with the community of mystery lovers—readers, booksellers, and librarians as well as fellow writers—know that excessive BSP, Blatant Self-Promotion, is a cardinal sin. We go to great lengths not to commit it. We mention our books, but we don’t tout them every time we post on DorothyL or CrimeSpace. We hand out bookmarks, but we don’t press them on people in the middle of a conversation. We don’t harvest address lists and send unsolicited material to everyone on them. While we benefit the most when readers make their purchases in mystery bookstores, we understand that some need the convenience of online ordering and the discount the big chains offer. We develop our readership by speaking at libraries and assuring our friends and acquaintances that it means a lot to see them at our signings, whether or not they buy the book. We mean it, too.
Because networking at launches and mystery conventions and writers’ conferences is so essential to getting and remaining published in the 21st century, we all know so many writers that we can’t possibly afford to buy all their books themselves. Those of us, especially, whose books are available only in hardcover—the publisher’s decision, not ours—understand that not everyone who wishes us well can afford to spend the price of our work. We don’t want to offend anyone who might some day buy our books or mention them to another potential or take them out of the library, thus sending librarians the message that our books are a good investment. Writers who want to succeed must be goodwill ambassadors for themselves and their work. One of my mantras—which I apply even to motorists who cut me off and cellphonistas who assault my ears in the bus—is “No enemies!” You never know when one of them might walk into a mystery bookstore, be intrigued by my title, and get ready to buy—only to change his or her mind on seeing my picture on the dust jacket.
But I felt impelled to speak up, in the nicest way I could, when a MySpace Friend with whom I’ve had a pleasant correspondence for some time wrote that she had failed to win an eBay auction for my book, but would keep trying. I know her intention was to show support for me and my work. And indeed, I am pleased that she’s making a determined effort to read the book, which of course is my primary goal in being a writer. I know that, like most people outside the publishing world, she had no idea that her buying the book on eBay meant that not only would I not get paid a royalty for my work, but the purchase would not count as a sale in my publisher’s computers, which determine whether they are willing to give me the next contract so I can go on being a published author. A book that’s offered for auction on eBay is a secondhand book. The “new and used” books offered on Amazon for sale from third party booksellers—often from Day 1 of publication, when new books become available directly from Amazon—are also secondhand books. The author gets nothing. The publisher gets nothing. The sale doesn’t get counted.
If enough people search for secondhand books instead of buying them new (even at an online discount), the consequences can be as dire for the authors as if the readers hadn’t bought them at all: no next contract, and thus the end of a series that readers have been enjoying; a one-book contract rather than two or three, so the author’s career is always on the line; no paperback edition, so the author never gets a crack at the wider readership that won’t pay for a more expensive hardcover. Buying books secondhand was one of the tips for economizing on the AOL home page a few months ago. The teaser was something like, “Never pay full price for a book again!” Penny wise and pound foolish? I think so. The majority of fiction writers in particular have trouble making a living writing fiction. If readers defect completely to secondhand books, eventually there will be no more stories.
Mystery writers who maintain contact with the community of mystery lovers—readers, booksellers, and librarians as well as fellow writers—know that excessive BSP, Blatant Self-Promotion, is a cardinal sin. We go to great lengths not to commit it. We mention our books, but we don’t tout them every time we post on DorothyL or CrimeSpace. We hand out bookmarks, but we don’t press them on people in the middle of a conversation. We don’t harvest address lists and send unsolicited material to everyone on them. While we benefit the most when readers make their purchases in mystery bookstores, we understand that some need the convenience of online ordering and the discount the big chains offer. We develop our readership by speaking at libraries and assuring our friends and acquaintances that it means a lot to see them at our signings, whether or not they buy the book. We mean it, too.
Because networking at launches and mystery conventions and writers’ conferences is so essential to getting and remaining published in the 21st century, we all know so many writers that we can’t possibly afford to buy all their books themselves. Those of us, especially, whose books are available only in hardcover—the publisher’s decision, not ours—understand that not everyone who wishes us well can afford to spend the price of our work. We don’t want to offend anyone who might some day buy our books or mention them to another potential or take them out of the library, thus sending librarians the message that our books are a good investment. Writers who want to succeed must be goodwill ambassadors for themselves and their work. One of my mantras—which I apply even to motorists who cut me off and cellphonistas who assault my ears in the bus—is “No enemies!” You never know when one of them might walk into a mystery bookstore, be intrigued by my title, and get ready to buy—only to change his or her mind on seeing my picture on the dust jacket.
But I felt impelled to speak up, in the nicest way I could, when a MySpace Friend with whom I’ve had a pleasant correspondence for some time wrote that she had failed to win an eBay auction for my book, but would keep trying. I know her intention was to show support for me and my work. And indeed, I am pleased that she’s making a determined effort to read the book, which of course is my primary goal in being a writer. I know that, like most people outside the publishing world, she had no idea that her buying the book on eBay meant that not only would I not get paid a royalty for my work, but the purchase would not count as a sale in my publisher’s computers, which determine whether they are willing to give me the next contract so I can go on being a published author. A book that’s offered for auction on eBay is a secondhand book. The “new and used” books offered on Amazon for sale from third party booksellers—often from Day 1 of publication, when new books become available directly from Amazon—are also secondhand books. The author gets nothing. The publisher gets nothing. The sale doesn’t get counted.
If enough people search for secondhand books instead of buying them new (even at an online discount), the consequences can be as dire for the authors as if the readers hadn’t bought them at all: no next contract, and thus the end of a series that readers have been enjoying; a one-book contract rather than two or three, so the author’s career is always on the line; no paperback edition, so the author never gets a crack at the wider readership that won’t pay for a more expensive hardcover. Buying books secondhand was one of the tips for economizing on the AOL home page a few months ago. The teaser was something like, “Never pay full price for a book again!” Penny wise and pound foolish? I think so. The majority of fiction writers in particular have trouble making a living writing fiction. If readers defect completely to secondhand books, eventually there will be no more stories.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
A New Voice: Scott Pratt
Interviewed by Sandra Parshall
Scott Pratt was a reporter, columnist, and editor on Tennessee newspapers before he decided to go to law school in his late thirties. Eventually he was drawn back to writing, and after a more difficult struggle than he had anticipated (see below for the whole story), he sold his first legal thriller, An Innocent Client, which was published this week. Publishers Weekly gave An Innocent Client a starred review and called it a “brilliantly executed debut” with “richly developed characters.” The first chapter is posted on Scott's website.
Scott and his wife have two grown children and share their Tennessee home with a German shepherd named Rio, a Yorkshire terrier named Pedro, and a Bichon Friese named Nacho.
Q. Tell us about your first novel.
A. An Innocent Client is the story of Joe Dillard, a forty-year-old criminal defense attorney who is excellent at what he does, but has grown tired of the constant moral compromises he’s forced to make in the profession. On his fortieth birthday, he makes an off-hand wish for just one innocent client before he quits. Not long after that, he thinks he’s gotten his wish. A young girl is accused of stabbing a preacher to death in a motel. Dillard is hired to represent the girl, and he sincerely believes she’s innocent.
However, as the case unfolds, Dillard finds himself dealing with a dirty cop, a politically-astute district attorney, a drug-addled sister, a dying mother, a violent stalker, and a manipulative redhead who isn’t what she seems. Dillard is forced to make a series of gut-wrenching decisions along the way and ultimately is forced to confront his worst enemy – himself. I tried to keep the story suspenseful but fun, fast-moving but deeply evocative. There are several twists, a bunch of great characters, and what I think is a satisfying, plausible ending. Sounds like a bestseller, huh?
Q. I’ve heard that the legal thriller market isn’t easy to break into. What was your road to publication like? Easier than you expected or more difficult?
A. It was vastly more difficult than I expected. I knew going in that I could write, but I didn’t know how to structure a novel. I enlisted the help of The Editorial Department, an on-line company that not only helps writers develop manuscripts but also helps them secure literary agents. It wasn’t cheap, but without Renni and Ross Browne, the owners of the company, I don’t know whether I could have done it. I went through five drafts of the novel. After each draft, we’d send it out and get rejected.
After the fourth draft, I knew something fundamental was missing, so I bought a copy of “Plot and Structure” by James Scott Bell. That put me over the top. I did another draft and Renni called Philip Spitzer, whom she’d known from her days as an editor in New York. Philip got the manuscript on a Monday and called me Tuesday afternoon. The first words out of his mouth were, “This is the best first novel I’ve read in ten years.”
I started the novel in January of ’06, Philip picked it up in July of ’07, and he sold it to Penguin in October of ’07, so it took me a little over a year and a half, start to sale. Over the next few months, Philip and his co-agent, Lukas Ortiz, also sold it to major publishing companies in France, Germany, Japan, Holland and Bulgaria, and I firmly believe he’ll sell it to more publishers before all is said and done.
Probably the most interesting thing – and frustrating at some level – I discovered along the way is that publishers aren’t necessarily looking for good books. They’re looking for bestsellers. If they don’t think a book is going to be a big hit – especially a book from a first-timer – they’re not going to take a chance on it. Ditto for agents.
Q. How did you get the news about the sale? What was your first reaction? How have your family and friends reacted?
A. I got the news about the sale in an email from Philip. He called a little while later. My reaction was mixed – part of me said, “Finally,” and another part said, “I don’t believe this is really happening.” You have to understand that when I quit practicing law and made the decision to do this, I had some financial resources, but, as things turned out, not enough. About a year into the process, my wife was diagnosed with breast cancer. We wound up filing bankruptcy, losing our home and our vehicles… it was bad. But I kept telling myself that I’d eventually make it and that all the bad things that were happening would make me more appreciative of the success. And that’s what’s happened. I’m extremely humbled and thankful for what’s going on right now and for the opportunities I’ve been given. My only concern is to get the snowball effect going and keep it going.
As for my family and friends, I couldn’t have asked for a more supportive group. They were skeptical at first, but once they realized I was serious, they all believed that good things would happen, and they told me so. My mother is proud as punch.
Q. What was the inspiration for the story? Were you already familiar, as a lawyer, with the legal issues involved, or did you have to do some research?
A. The inspiration for the story was the moral dilemmas that I faced each and every day as a criminal defense lawyer. The criminal justice system is the perfect backdrop to explore the themes I wanted to explore -- things like the hypocrisy in the criminal justice system, the fine line between justice and injustice, man’s continued inhumanity to man, the dangers inherent in extremism and power, the havoc that childhood trauma, especially trauma that is buried and unresolved, can wreak on the life of an adult, just to mention a few -- and I used the opportunity to work out some of the dilemmas in my own mind.
As far as research, I have to admit I did very little. After practicing law for as long as I did, I was intimately familiar with both the legal and moral issues involved in the story.
Q. Why did you decide to go to law school after working as a journalist?
A. To be honest, I was tired of being poor. I had a couple of kids and a wife to support, and I thought law might be a good fit for me. I didn’t start law school until I was 38 years old and I had to commute over 200 miles a day, five days a week, for three years to get through. It was so difficult I barely remember it. The other reason I went is that as a journalist, one of the things I noticed was that lawyers could actually change things for the better once in awhile, and that appealed to me. I practiced criminal defense and I also took on some civil rights issues.
Q. Do you write full-time now? Do you outline and stick to a writing routine, or do you wing it?
A. I write full-time. I’ve already finished my second novel, In Good Faith. It’s in the production process and is scheduled for release in May. I’ve also written a couple of teleplays and a screenplay based on my novels. There’s some serious interest in Hollywood, but so far nobody has shelled out any money.
I outline loosely, but the stories, and especially the characters, sometimes seem to develop a mind of their own. I do have a routine – it’s called “get your butt in front of the computer and write every day.” I take a day off every now and then, but when I’m closing in on an idea, I tend to spend a lot of time on it. The other thing I do is talk with my wife every day. We walk four miles every morning at a park near our home and I bounce ideas off of her and listen to her suggestions. She’s been a great help.
Q. What do you believe are your greatest strengths as a writer? What aspects of craft are you still trying to master?
A. I don’t know what my strengths are, really. Maybe dialogue. I hear the characters speaking in my head when I’m writing. As far as the other aspects of the craft that I’m still trying to master, the answer would be all of them.
Q. What writers have inspired you and taught you by example? Whose books do you rush to read as soon as they’re published?
A. I have a wide range of tastes. I love James Lee Burke, Grisham’s early stuff, Paulo Cohelo, Mark Twain, Ernest Hemingway, John Steinbeck, J.K. Rowling, and a bunch of others. Probably my favorite writer of all time is Mike Royko, a columnist in Chicago. I like straightforward prose, a subtle sense of humor, and writers who leave themselves out of the story.
Q. Are you planning a series, or do you want to write stand-alones? Can you give us a hint of what the next book is about?
A. The next book, In Good Faith, is the second in what I hope will be a long series. At least five, anyway. In the second book, Joe Dillard has taken a year off from the legal profession and is drawn back by what he perceives as gross injustice. The twist is that he’s a prosecutor in the second novel, a job he thinks he might feel good about. It doesn’t quite work out that way.
Q. Will you be doing any signings and conferences where readers can meet you?
A. Right now I have a couple of signings scheduled here in Johnson City, Tennessee. I’m still trying to figure out the marketing thing. I’ll be posting events on my website, www.ScottPrattfiction.com, as they come up.
Q. In parting, do you have any advice for aspiring writers?
A. I think the most important characteristic for an aspiring writer – besides talent - is persistence. You also have to have patience, you have to be willing to accept criticism, and you have to believe in yourself. To anyone who wants to do this for a living, I think you might be nuts, but I certainly wish you all the best.
Scott Pratt was a reporter, columnist, and editor on Tennessee newspapers before he decided to go to law school in his late thirties. Eventually he was drawn back to writing, and after a more difficult struggle than he had anticipated (see below for the whole story), he sold his first legal thriller, An Innocent Client, which was published this week. Publishers Weekly gave An Innocent Client a starred review and called it a “brilliantly executed debut” with “richly developed characters.” The first chapter is posted on Scott's website.
Scott and his wife have two grown children and share their Tennessee home with a German shepherd named Rio, a Yorkshire terrier named Pedro, and a Bichon Friese named Nacho.
Q. Tell us about your first novel.
A. An Innocent Client is the story of Joe Dillard, a forty-year-old criminal defense attorney who is excellent at what he does, but has grown tired of the constant moral compromises he’s forced to make in the profession. On his fortieth birthday, he makes an off-hand wish for just one innocent client before he quits. Not long after that, he thinks he’s gotten his wish. A young girl is accused of stabbing a preacher to death in a motel. Dillard is hired to represent the girl, and he sincerely believes she’s innocent.
However, as the case unfolds, Dillard finds himself dealing with a dirty cop, a politically-astute district attorney, a drug-addled sister, a dying mother, a violent stalker, and a manipulative redhead who isn’t what she seems. Dillard is forced to make a series of gut-wrenching decisions along the way and ultimately is forced to confront his worst enemy – himself. I tried to keep the story suspenseful but fun, fast-moving but deeply evocative. There are several twists, a bunch of great characters, and what I think is a satisfying, plausible ending. Sounds like a bestseller, huh?
Q. I’ve heard that the legal thriller market isn’t easy to break into. What was your road to publication like? Easier than you expected or more difficult?
A. It was vastly more difficult than I expected. I knew going in that I could write, but I didn’t know how to structure a novel. I enlisted the help of The Editorial Department, an on-line company that not only helps writers develop manuscripts but also helps them secure literary agents. It wasn’t cheap, but without Renni and Ross Browne, the owners of the company, I don’t know whether I could have done it. I went through five drafts of the novel. After each draft, we’d send it out and get rejected.
After the fourth draft, I knew something fundamental was missing, so I bought a copy of “Plot and Structure” by James Scott Bell. That put me over the top. I did another draft and Renni called Philip Spitzer, whom she’d known from her days as an editor in New York. Philip got the manuscript on a Monday and called me Tuesday afternoon. The first words out of his mouth were, “This is the best first novel I’ve read in ten years.”
I started the novel in January of ’06, Philip picked it up in July of ’07, and he sold it to Penguin in October of ’07, so it took me a little over a year and a half, start to sale. Over the next few months, Philip and his co-agent, Lukas Ortiz, also sold it to major publishing companies in France, Germany, Japan, Holland and Bulgaria, and I firmly believe he’ll sell it to more publishers before all is said and done.
Probably the most interesting thing – and frustrating at some level – I discovered along the way is that publishers aren’t necessarily looking for good books. They’re looking for bestsellers. If they don’t think a book is going to be a big hit – especially a book from a first-timer – they’re not going to take a chance on it. Ditto for agents.
Q. How did you get the news about the sale? What was your first reaction? How have your family and friends reacted?
A. I got the news about the sale in an email from Philip. He called a little while later. My reaction was mixed – part of me said, “Finally,” and another part said, “I don’t believe this is really happening.” You have to understand that when I quit practicing law and made the decision to do this, I had some financial resources, but, as things turned out, not enough. About a year into the process, my wife was diagnosed with breast cancer. We wound up filing bankruptcy, losing our home and our vehicles… it was bad. But I kept telling myself that I’d eventually make it and that all the bad things that were happening would make me more appreciative of the success. And that’s what’s happened. I’m extremely humbled and thankful for what’s going on right now and for the opportunities I’ve been given. My only concern is to get the snowball effect going and keep it going.
As for my family and friends, I couldn’t have asked for a more supportive group. They were skeptical at first, but once they realized I was serious, they all believed that good things would happen, and they told me so. My mother is proud as punch.
Q. What was the inspiration for the story? Were you already familiar, as a lawyer, with the legal issues involved, or did you have to do some research?
A. The inspiration for the story was the moral dilemmas that I faced each and every day as a criminal defense lawyer. The criminal justice system is the perfect backdrop to explore the themes I wanted to explore -- things like the hypocrisy in the criminal justice system, the fine line between justice and injustice, man’s continued inhumanity to man, the dangers inherent in extremism and power, the havoc that childhood trauma, especially trauma that is buried and unresolved, can wreak on the life of an adult, just to mention a few -- and I used the opportunity to work out some of the dilemmas in my own mind.
As far as research, I have to admit I did very little. After practicing law for as long as I did, I was intimately familiar with both the legal and moral issues involved in the story.
Q. Why did you decide to go to law school after working as a journalist?
A. To be honest, I was tired of being poor. I had a couple of kids and a wife to support, and I thought law might be a good fit for me. I didn’t start law school until I was 38 years old and I had to commute over 200 miles a day, five days a week, for three years to get through. It was so difficult I barely remember it. The other reason I went is that as a journalist, one of the things I noticed was that lawyers could actually change things for the better once in awhile, and that appealed to me. I practiced criminal defense and I also took on some civil rights issues.
Q. Do you write full-time now? Do you outline and stick to a writing routine, or do you wing it?
A. I write full-time. I’ve already finished my second novel, In Good Faith. It’s in the production process and is scheduled for release in May. I’ve also written a couple of teleplays and a screenplay based on my novels. There’s some serious interest in Hollywood, but so far nobody has shelled out any money.
I outline loosely, but the stories, and especially the characters, sometimes seem to develop a mind of their own. I do have a routine – it’s called “get your butt in front of the computer and write every day.” I take a day off every now and then, but when I’m closing in on an idea, I tend to spend a lot of time on it. The other thing I do is talk with my wife every day. We walk four miles every morning at a park near our home and I bounce ideas off of her and listen to her suggestions. She’s been a great help.
Q. What do you believe are your greatest strengths as a writer? What aspects of craft are you still trying to master?
A. I don’t know what my strengths are, really. Maybe dialogue. I hear the characters speaking in my head when I’m writing. As far as the other aspects of the craft that I’m still trying to master, the answer would be all of them.
Q. What writers have inspired you and taught you by example? Whose books do you rush to read as soon as they’re published?
A. I have a wide range of tastes. I love James Lee Burke, Grisham’s early stuff, Paulo Cohelo, Mark Twain, Ernest Hemingway, John Steinbeck, J.K. Rowling, and a bunch of others. Probably my favorite writer of all time is Mike Royko, a columnist in Chicago. I like straightforward prose, a subtle sense of humor, and writers who leave themselves out of the story.
Q. Are you planning a series, or do you want to write stand-alones? Can you give us a hint of what the next book is about?
A. The next book, In Good Faith, is the second in what I hope will be a long series. At least five, anyway. In the second book, Joe Dillard has taken a year off from the legal profession and is drawn back by what he perceives as gross injustice. The twist is that he’s a prosecutor in the second novel, a job he thinks he might feel good about. It doesn’t quite work out that way.
Q. Will you be doing any signings and conferences where readers can meet you?
A. Right now I have a couple of signings scheduled here in Johnson City, Tennessee. I’m still trying to figure out the marketing thing. I’ll be posting events on my website, www.ScottPrattfiction.com, as they come up.
Q. In parting, do you have any advice for aspiring writers?
A. I think the most important characteristic for an aspiring writer – besides talent - is persistence. You also have to have patience, you have to be willing to accept criticism, and you have to believe in yourself. To anyone who wants to do this for a living, I think you might be nuts, but I certainly wish you all the best.
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
A Fantastic Primer
Sharon Wildwind
I had a wonderful time this past weekend at the World Fantasy Convention, not only a well-run con, but held this year in Calgary, so I could come home every night to sleep in my own bed. After I sort out my notes and recover from “convention fever,” I’ll post my thoughts on what I learned about the similarities and differences between mysteries and fantasy genres.
In the mean time, here are recommendations from the Best Fantasy of the Past Twenty Years panel. The panelists—all editors or publishers—identified these books as those which began a trend, or took fantasy in an unusual direction. Some of these may have been published slightly outside of the 1988 to 2008 time frame that the panel was supposed to stick to, but if you’ve ever been to a convention, you know that the most interesting panels frequently wander from the given topic. Happy reading.
Listed in alphabetical order by author’s last name.
Orson Scott Card: Seventh Son, first book in the Tales of Alvin Maker. (alternate American frontier history, American folklore and superstitions)
Charles de Lint: Moonheart (Canadian urban fantasy, ancient magic and old feuds). De Lint is a Canadian author.
David Drake: Lord of the Isles series (Sumerian religion, medieval era technology, parallel universes) Note that “Isles” referred to are imaginary; the books are not set in Scotland.
Steven Erickson: Gardens of the Moon, first book in The Malazan Book of the Fallen. (epic fantasy, use of magic, plot structure which is not linear) Erickson is a Canadian author.
John M. Ford: The Dragon Waiting: A Masque of History (alternate Italian and English history, with vampires)
Ariana Franklin: Mistress of the Art of Death (medieval mystery in which medical knowledge and forensics of the time are key factors)
Neil Gaiman: American Gods (a mix of American popular culture and Norse gods) In an unusual cross-over, a few characters from The Sandman graphic novel—also by Gaiman—make cameo appearances.
Laurell K.Hamilton: Guilty Pleasures (a combination of alternative history and hard-boiled detective, featuring Anita Blake, a zombie animator and licensed vampire executioner) One of the books that started the current vampire infatuation.
Robert Jordan: The Wheel of Time series (European and Asian mythology, the concepts of balance, duality and a respect for nature) Jordan’s real name was James Oliver Rigney Jr, and he died entirely last year at entirely too young an age.
George R. R. Martin, A Game of Thrones, first book in A Song of Ice and Fire series (fantasy world, based on Medieval Europe) A good example of multi-platform marketing, the book spawned several popular games and trading cards.
Haruki Murakami: Kafka on the Shore (magic realism) The fates of two characters wind inevitably toward one another. Murakami is a Japanese writer.
Garth Nix: the Old Kingdom series, The Seventh Tower series, and The Keys to the Kingdom series (young adult fantasy series) Nix is from Australia.
Tim Powers: The Stress of Her Regard (horror fantasy, vampire-like creatures control a secret thread running though our history)
Robert V.S. Redick: The Red Wolf Conspiracy, The Chathrand Voyage Triology (fantasy involving a magical ship and a desperate voyage to bring peace to a warring world)
Alice Sebold: The Lovely Bones (a murdered girl watches from heaven as her family and friends adjust to her death) There was general agreement that reading the book is better than seeing the movie.
Gene Wolfe: The Book of the New Sun (science fiction and fantasy set in the far future when the sun is dying)
---
Writing quote for the week:
Writing mysteries for young adults which depends solely on the impact of keeping the mystery a secret doesn’t work. The name of the game today is to spill the beans. The kids read the book and immediately go on chat rooms to tell all.
~Alison Baird, Canadian young adult fantasy writer
I had a wonderful time this past weekend at the World Fantasy Convention, not only a well-run con, but held this year in Calgary, so I could come home every night to sleep in my own bed. After I sort out my notes and recover from “convention fever,” I’ll post my thoughts on what I learned about the similarities and differences between mysteries and fantasy genres.
In the mean time, here are recommendations from the Best Fantasy of the Past Twenty Years panel. The panelists—all editors or publishers—identified these books as those which began a trend, or took fantasy in an unusual direction. Some of these may have been published slightly outside of the 1988 to 2008 time frame that the panel was supposed to stick to, but if you’ve ever been to a convention, you know that the most interesting panels frequently wander from the given topic. Happy reading.
Listed in alphabetical order by author’s last name.
Orson Scott Card: Seventh Son, first book in the Tales of Alvin Maker. (alternate American frontier history, American folklore and superstitions)
Charles de Lint: Moonheart (Canadian urban fantasy, ancient magic and old feuds). De Lint is a Canadian author.
David Drake: Lord of the Isles series (Sumerian religion, medieval era technology, parallel universes) Note that “Isles” referred to are imaginary; the books are not set in Scotland.
Steven Erickson: Gardens of the Moon, first book in The Malazan Book of the Fallen. (epic fantasy, use of magic, plot structure which is not linear) Erickson is a Canadian author.
John M. Ford: The Dragon Waiting: A Masque of History (alternate Italian and English history, with vampires)
Ariana Franklin: Mistress of the Art of Death (medieval mystery in which medical knowledge and forensics of the time are key factors)
Neil Gaiman: American Gods (a mix of American popular culture and Norse gods) In an unusual cross-over, a few characters from The Sandman graphic novel—also by Gaiman—make cameo appearances.
Laurell K.Hamilton: Guilty Pleasures (a combination of alternative history and hard-boiled detective, featuring Anita Blake, a zombie animator and licensed vampire executioner) One of the books that started the current vampire infatuation.
Robert Jordan: The Wheel of Time series (European and Asian mythology, the concepts of balance, duality and a respect for nature) Jordan’s real name was James Oliver Rigney Jr, and he died entirely last year at entirely too young an age.
George R. R. Martin, A Game of Thrones, first book in A Song of Ice and Fire series (fantasy world, based on Medieval Europe) A good example of multi-platform marketing, the book spawned several popular games and trading cards.
Haruki Murakami: Kafka on the Shore (magic realism) The fates of two characters wind inevitably toward one another. Murakami is a Japanese writer.
Garth Nix: the Old Kingdom series, The Seventh Tower series, and The Keys to the Kingdom series (young adult fantasy series) Nix is from Australia.
Tim Powers: The Stress of Her Regard (horror fantasy, vampire-like creatures control a secret thread running though our history)
Robert V.S. Redick: The Red Wolf Conspiracy, The Chathrand Voyage Triology (fantasy involving a magical ship and a desperate voyage to bring peace to a warring world)
Alice Sebold: The Lovely Bones (a murdered girl watches from heaven as her family and friends adjust to her death) There was general agreement that reading the book is better than seeing the movie.
Gene Wolfe: The Book of the New Sun (science fiction and fantasy set in the far future when the sun is dying)
---
Writing quote for the week:
Writing mysteries for young adults which depends solely on the impact of keeping the mystery a secret doesn’t work. The name of the game today is to spill the beans. The kids read the book and immediately go on chat rooms to tell all.
~Alison Baird, Canadian young adult fantasy writer
Monday, November 3, 2008
In The Dismal Swamp with Pat Balester
by Julia Buckley
Patrick Balester is a mystery writer, photographer and computer programmer who lives in Kansas City, Missouri. When he first began writing his novel, he actually lived only a few miles away from the Great Dismal Swamp Wildlife Refuge. He spent many hours hiking on its trails and taking photographs of this wild area.
Hi, Pat. Thanks for agreeing to a blog interview.
Your new mystery is called IN THE DISMAL SWAMP. Tell me about this setting.
The Great Dismal Swamp was known in colonial times as an impenetrable wilderness that straddled the Virginia/North Carolina coast. George Washington (our first President) proposed draining it & growing rice, but the task was too daunting. Before the Civil War, it became a refuge for runaway slaves, who knew that superstition would keep bounty hunters from entering it. Afterwards, it became a source for lumber. Cedar, the dominant tree, was prized for making roof shingles because of its natural water resistance. The water in Lake Drummond was often used on whaling ships, because of the high tannin content (leached from cedar tree roots). The water was resistant to the growth of bacteria, so it could stay fresh below decks for months and even years at sea.
Interesting! Readers can see the first chapter of your book on your website. The writing style reminded me of Jack London or Bret Harte. Were you at all influenced by the works of these writers?
Thanks for the comparison! I read a lot of Jack London as a youngster. I remember being awed by the story, “To Build a Fire” and its description of the Arctic wilderness and the effects it had on the main character. It was the first time I realized the power of fiction to tell a universal truth.
You are also a photographer and a computer programmer. How did you become interested in writing mysteries?
I was reading a lot of mysteries because I liked trying to solve the crime before the end, and liked a lot of writers from Avalon Books. Since I already wanted to write one myself, I decided to check out the publisher. I actually targeted them, because they took un-agented material and I had no agent. I submitted to other publishers, of course, but wrote my novel with Avalon in mind, placing their submission guidelines on the wall of my office. In no time at all (about 18 months) I received a letter from their editor saying they wanted to buy my book.
That's no time, huh? :)
Your photos of the Great Dismal Swamp Wildlife Refuge are also viewable at your site. Do you find this place to be especially photogenic?
Yes, especially in the spring and fall. Hundreds of bird species migrate or live in the swamp, as well as large populations of black bear, bobcat, beaver & rattlesnakes. You can even find the occasional alligator in the swamp, which is about as far north as they can survive. I took a nice shot of one, and it’s on my website.
BOOKLIST called you a “talented first novelist.” Did you have a party the day your review came out? :)
I was thrilled when my editor sent me a copy of the review. I asked her if they’d made a mistake! That night, I celebrated with a nice dinner out with the family.
How did you come up with the premise for your book?
I wanted to tell the story of the swamp and since I wanted to write a mystery, I thought it was the perfect setting for a crime (with a name like Dismal Swamp, it was a natural). I managed to use clues from within the swamp itself to provide the solution to the murder. This allowed me to tell people about the swamp while telling an entertaining story.
Your novel deals with people who poach on protected land. I knew this was a big problem in other countries, but is it a problem here?
Surprising to say, it is a big problem. Black bears are especially vulnerable to the East Asian trade in body parts used in traditional medicines. As Asian societies become wealthier and their own wildlife populations become depleted, international demand for bear paw and gall bladder have targeted our wildlife. Wealthy hunters looking for trophy sized game also attract a few unscrupulous guides who operate outside the law in several western states.
You have mentioned that you enjoy reading mysteries. Do you have some favorites?
I like some of the traditional suspense novelists like Patricia Carlon (Australia) but I’m broadening my interests. Mark Coggins and Anthony Neil Smith are producing some fine work. I’m also a big fan of JA Konrath. And I’ve recently discovered Rick Mofina and Sandra Ruttan, who are strong Canadian crime writers.
You enjoy hiking in the Dismal Swamp. Do you have other favorite sight-seeing destinations?
I like traveling along the Eastern Shore peninsula, which extends down from Maryland into Virginia, and has some of the last unspoiled beaches on the Eastern seaboard. You haven’t has crab cakes until you’ve dined at some of the restaurants in this area, unless you go to Baltimore or New Berlin.
Does your job in computers aid you in your job as a mystery writer?
Yes. It’s been a wonderful tool for doing research without leaving your office. I’ve also explored the ways in which a computer can be used in solving, and committing, crimes. You’d be amazed by how much data about the average citizen is available out there for thieves to steal.
That's a scary thought!
You live in Missouri. Have you always lived there?
I grew up in Pennsylvania and moved to Virginia as an adult. It was while living in Chesapeake, VA that the idea for my first novel came to me. I wrote it while living there. My office window looked out over a pond that attracted blue heron, egrets, mallards and tons of frogs.
What are you writing now?
I’m writing the next novel in the Greg Parnell mystery series. Greg was the protagonist of my first book. This one is set on Assateague Island, off the coast of Virginia, which is a home for some of the last wild ponies on the Eastern shore. The ponies, and a nearby NASA rocket launch pad, both figure prominently in the story.
You say that some of your characters are based on real people. Do the real people know it? :)
A childhood friend was one role model. I have told him, because I admired his dedication to the job and also asked him to fact check my research into law enforcement. Others I haven’t mentioned, and I sometimes wonder if they’ll ever recognize themselves.
How can readers find out more about you and your first book?
You can check out my website at www.patrickbalester.com. I try to update it with news every couple of weeks. I’ll also be appearing at the Hiawatha Public Library in Iowa on November 15th at 1 PM to talk about my novel.
Thanks for chatting, Patrick.
Thanks for the opportunity to talk with you, Julia.
(All photos courtesy of Patrick Balester).
Patrick Balester is a mystery writer, photographer and computer programmer who lives in Kansas City, Missouri. When he first began writing his novel, he actually lived only a few miles away from the Great Dismal Swamp Wildlife Refuge. He spent many hours hiking on its trails and taking photographs of this wild area.Hi, Pat. Thanks for agreeing to a blog interview.
Your new mystery is called IN THE DISMAL SWAMP. Tell me about this setting.
The Great Dismal Swamp was known in colonial times as an impenetrable wilderness that straddled the Virginia/North Carolina coast. George Washington (our first President) proposed draining it & growing rice, but the task was too daunting. Before the Civil War, it became a refuge for runaway slaves, who knew that superstition would keep bounty hunters from entering it. Afterwards, it became a source for lumber. Cedar, the dominant tree, was prized for making roof shingles because of its natural water resistance. The water in Lake Drummond was often used on whaling ships, because of the high tannin content (leached from cedar tree roots). The water was resistant to the growth of bacteria, so it could stay fresh below decks for months and even years at sea.
Interesting! Readers can see the first chapter of your book on your website. The writing style reminded me of Jack London or Bret Harte. Were you at all influenced by the works of these writers?
Thanks for the comparison! I read a lot of Jack London as a youngster. I remember being awed by the story, “To Build a Fire” and its description of the Arctic wilderness and the effects it had on the main character. It was the first time I realized the power of fiction to tell a universal truth.
You are also a photographer and a computer programmer. How did you become interested in writing mysteries?
I was reading a lot of mysteries because I liked trying to solve the crime before the end, and liked a lot of writers from Avalon Books. Since I already wanted to write one myself, I decided to check out the publisher. I actually targeted them, because they took un-agented material and I had no agent. I submitted to other publishers, of course, but wrote my novel with Avalon in mind, placing their submission guidelines on the wall of my office. In no time at all (about 18 months) I received a letter from their editor saying they wanted to buy my book.
That's no time, huh? :)
Your photos of the Great Dismal Swamp Wildlife Refuge are also viewable at your site. Do you find this place to be especially photogenic?
Yes, especially in the spring and fall. Hundreds of bird species migrate or live in the swamp, as well as large populations of black bear, bobcat, beaver & rattlesnakes. You can even find the occasional alligator in the swamp, which is about as far north as they can survive. I took a nice shot of one, and it’s on my website.
BOOKLIST called you a “talented first novelist.” Did you have a party the day your review came out? :)
I was thrilled when my editor sent me a copy of the review. I asked her if they’d made a mistake! That night, I celebrated with a nice dinner out with the family.
How did you come up with the premise for your book?
I wanted to tell the story of the swamp and since I wanted to write a mystery, I thought it was the perfect setting for a crime (with a name like Dismal Swamp, it was a natural). I managed to use clues from within the swamp itself to provide the solution to the murder. This allowed me to tell people about the swamp while telling an entertaining story.
Your novel deals with people who poach on protected land. I knew this was a big problem in other countries, but is it a problem here?
Surprising to say, it is a big problem. Black bears are especially vulnerable to the East Asian trade in body parts used in traditional medicines. As Asian societies become wealthier and their own wildlife populations become depleted, international demand for bear paw and gall bladder have targeted our wildlife. Wealthy hunters looking for trophy sized game also attract a few unscrupulous guides who operate outside the law in several western states.
You have mentioned that you enjoy reading mysteries. Do you have some favorites?
I like some of the traditional suspense novelists like Patricia Carlon (Australia) but I’m broadening my interests. Mark Coggins and Anthony Neil Smith are producing some fine work. I’m also a big fan of JA Konrath. And I’ve recently discovered Rick Mofina and Sandra Ruttan, who are strong Canadian crime writers.
You enjoy hiking in the Dismal Swamp. Do you have other favorite sight-seeing destinations?
I like traveling along the Eastern Shore peninsula, which extends down from Maryland into Virginia, and has some of the last unspoiled beaches on the Eastern seaboard. You haven’t has crab cakes until you’ve dined at some of the restaurants in this area, unless you go to Baltimore or New Berlin.
Does your job in computers aid you in your job as a mystery writer?
Yes. It’s been a wonderful tool for doing research without leaving your office. I’ve also explored the ways in which a computer can be used in solving, and committing, crimes. You’d be amazed by how much data about the average citizen is available out there for thieves to steal.
That's a scary thought!
You live in Missouri. Have you always lived there?
I grew up in Pennsylvania and moved to Virginia as an adult. It was while living in Chesapeake, VA that the idea for my first novel came to me. I wrote it while living there. My office window looked out over a pond that attracted blue heron, egrets, mallards and tons of frogs.
What are you writing now?
I’m writing the next novel in the Greg Parnell mystery series. Greg was the protagonist of my first book. This one is set on Assateague Island, off the coast of Virginia, which is a home for some of the last wild ponies on the Eastern shore. The ponies, and a nearby NASA rocket launch pad, both figure prominently in the story.
You say that some of your characters are based on real people. Do the real people know it? :)
A childhood friend was one role model. I have told him, because I admired his dedication to the job and also asked him to fact check my research into law enforcement. Others I haven’t mentioned, and I sometimes wonder if they’ll ever recognize themselves.
How can readers find out more about you and your first book?
You can check out my website at www.patrickbalester.com. I try to update it with news every couple of weeks. I’ll also be appearing at the Hiawatha Public Library in Iowa on November 15th at 1 PM to talk about my novel.
Thanks for chatting, Patrick.
Thanks for the opportunity to talk with you, Julia.
(All photos courtesy of Patrick Balester).
Saturday, November 1, 2008
Why?
Fifteen years ago this month, on a deserted back road near St. Antoine, New Brunswick, seventeen year-old Marcel Cormier and his fourteen year-old girlfriend, Marcia LeBlanc, were parked in Cormier’s car. It was late. It was cold. I always imagine the two of them wrapped around each other on that November night, young and in love in the way you can only be the first time.
Those were the last moments the two teens would spend together. The next day Marcel Cormier’s body was found in the car. He’d been shot. Marcia LeBlanc was missing.
RCMP interviewed a lot of people in the days after the crime, including Roger LeBlanc (no relation to Marcia), who they knew had spent time at an after hours bar not far from the crime scene. A day after being questioned by the authorities, Roger LeBlanc disappeared At first police thought he’d gotten lost while out hunting. Very quickly they discovered Roger LeBlanc had vanished into the woods by choice. RCMP and Search & Rescue volunteers went over the area for any sign of Roger LeBlanc or Marcia LeBlanc. Some of Roger LeBlanc’s belongings were found in a nearby river, but there was no sign of him.
The rumours began almost as soon as LeBlanc went missing. He was long gone—in Ontario or farther west one story went. Others insisted Roger LeBlanc knew the area around St. Antoine like the back of his hand, that he was hiding, living in a part of the woods so dense no one would ever find him. And of course there were whispers that he was dead.
Despite the rumours, no one knew if Roger LeBlanc knew anything about the murders. Could he be a killer? Was he a witness? Had he just been in the wrong place at the wrong time? Maybe he knew nothing.
And where was Marcia LeBlanc? Her father refused to believe she was dead, refused to stop looking for his child, refused to give up hope as the days turned into weeks and then months. He searched the woods and back roads and it was impossible not to hurt for him, or hope—even just a tiny bit—with him. And impossible not to grieve for him when Marcia LeBlanc’s remains were finally found.
Why? That was what everyone wanted to know. Why would someone—Roger LeBlanc or anyone else—murder a couple of teenagers? Did they see something? Did they stumble on another crime? A drug deal? An assault? Why?
There were no answers in the Marcel Cormier-Marcia LeBlanc murders. The case is still listed on the Unsolved Crimes section of the RCMP’s website.
Why? Why do people do what they do? What drives someone to kill another person? What drives someone else to try to catch the killer?
A number of years ago science fiction author Nancy Kress was a columnist for Writer’s Digest magazine. She talked about the need for writers to answer the question “Why?” in one of her columns. In the real world, she explained (I’m paraphrasing) people do things for silly reasons, stupid reasons or for no reasons at all. But in a fictional world your characters better have reasons for the things they do and those reasons better be good ones.
In the fictional world the whys have to be answered. When I think about Marcel Cormier and Marcia LeBlanc I wish the whys had to be answered in the real world as well.
Those were the last moments the two teens would spend together. The next day Marcel Cormier’s body was found in the car. He’d been shot. Marcia LeBlanc was missing.
RCMP interviewed a lot of people in the days after the crime, including Roger LeBlanc (no relation to Marcia), who they knew had spent time at an after hours bar not far from the crime scene. A day after being questioned by the authorities, Roger LeBlanc disappeared At first police thought he’d gotten lost while out hunting. Very quickly they discovered Roger LeBlanc had vanished into the woods by choice. RCMP and Search & Rescue volunteers went over the area for any sign of Roger LeBlanc or Marcia LeBlanc. Some of Roger LeBlanc’s belongings were found in a nearby river, but there was no sign of him.
The rumours began almost as soon as LeBlanc went missing. He was long gone—in Ontario or farther west one story went. Others insisted Roger LeBlanc knew the area around St. Antoine like the back of his hand, that he was hiding, living in a part of the woods so dense no one would ever find him. And of course there were whispers that he was dead.
Despite the rumours, no one knew if Roger LeBlanc knew anything about the murders. Could he be a killer? Was he a witness? Had he just been in the wrong place at the wrong time? Maybe he knew nothing.
And where was Marcia LeBlanc? Her father refused to believe she was dead, refused to stop looking for his child, refused to give up hope as the days turned into weeks and then months. He searched the woods and back roads and it was impossible not to hurt for him, or hope—even just a tiny bit—with him. And impossible not to grieve for him when Marcia LeBlanc’s remains were finally found.
Why? That was what everyone wanted to know. Why would someone—Roger LeBlanc or anyone else—murder a couple of teenagers? Did they see something? Did they stumble on another crime? A drug deal? An assault? Why?
There were no answers in the Marcel Cormier-Marcia LeBlanc murders. The case is still listed on the Unsolved Crimes section of the RCMP’s website.
Why? Why do people do what they do? What drives someone to kill another person? What drives someone else to try to catch the killer?
A number of years ago science fiction author Nancy Kress was a columnist for Writer’s Digest magazine. She talked about the need for writers to answer the question “Why?” in one of her columns. In the real world, she explained (I’m paraphrasing) people do things for silly reasons, stupid reasons or for no reasons at all. But in a fictional world your characters better have reasons for the things they do and those reasons better be good ones.
In the fictional world the whys have to be answered. When I think about Marcel Cormier and Marcia LeBlanc I wish the whys had to be answered in the real world as well.
Friday, October 31, 2008
Bela Lugosi, you're still the man . . .
By Lonnie Cruse
Trust me. Nobody but NOBODY can say "Good Evening" and send shivers up your spine like Bela Lugosi. And nobody but NOBODY has ever done the part of Dracula in a movie or on stage as well as Lugosi. He set the bar too high.
Back in the Fifties, homes had no VCRs or DVD players so I was introduced to Bela Lugosi's magnificent Dracula of the 1931 movie version thanks to a late night show that aired on Las Vegas television every Friday night. I don't remember the hosts' names but I can still see the husband and wife team showing and chatting about all the old horror movies, and me glued to the TV screen, waiting for Bela. Sigh, best night of the week after my father had hogged the television all evening for the Friday Night Fights.
Back in those days, actors once typecast in a roll were rarely allowed to play anything else, and admittedly, Lugosi played in some real stinkers late in his life. Opposite the Bowery Boys? Gimme a break.
Still, Lugosi managed to make his presence felt in more than one movie that otherwise would have been lost in shame forever without him. Take WHITE ZOMBIE. His protrayal of the character, Murder Legendre, is in my humble opinion one of his greatest roles. That the part for the female lead was seriously silly, you get no argument from me. But Lugosi? The stuff legends are made of. And what about THE BLACK CAT where some genius brought Lugosi together with Karloff as they fought over a young bride? The special effect of beautiful dead young women floating lifelessly in glass coffins on the wall? Lugosi as the good guy for once, trying to defeat Karloff and save the newlyweds? Ahhhh.
Then there were his minor roles, like Bela the Gypsy in the 1941 version of THE WOLF MAN with Lon Chaney, Jr. Or how about Egor in one of the FRANKENSTEIN movies? As I said, minor roles, but always extremely well done.
If you've never seen Lugosi's last movie, PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE you truly have not plummed the depths of horrible horror movies. Lugosi (fortunately for him?) died during filming, and the director substituted a local chiropractor. The good doctor should have stuck to his day job. But that awful movie is now a cult fave, and as a true Lugosi fan, I, of course, own a copy.
And as a responsible parent and grandparent, I have introduced my sons and grandsons to the delights of Bela Lugosi. I collect his movies when I can find them, usually buying 2-3 copies to share with my grands. Can I help it if their parents no longer appreciate the true value of these one-of-a-kind treasures?
Every October I pull my collection out and emerse myself in Lugosi movies. I was surprised to learn from a recent horror movie documentary that Lugosi was NOT the first choice for the DRACULA movie, though he'd played the part well on the New York stage. However, serendipity interviened, the other two or three actors being considered weren't available for whatever reasons, and Lugosi snagged the part. Movie history was made.
In the 1931 version of DRACULA, Lugosi's reaction to Van Helsing opening a mirrored cigarette box is truly classic, without him even uttering a word. I love that. And the way Lugosi stands in a garden, working to capture the mind of the young woman in WHITE ZOMBIE. Wow.
It's not to late for you to enjoy the delights of a Lugosi movie this Halloween. I suggest DRACULA OR WHITE ZOMBIE. But SCARED TO DEATH, THE APE MAN, THE INVISIBLE GHOST, MURDER BY TELEVISION, etc, you could probably skip. Unless, like me, you believe that Bela Lugosi is still THE man. Sigh.
Thanks for stopping by. Please close the door behind you as you leave. It's time for me to pop another DVD into the player. Hmmm. Let's see. How about the one with the rediculously huge robot that Lugosi controls from a box on his belt? Yeah, that's a good one. Happy Halloween.
Trust me. Nobody but NOBODY can say "Good Evening" and send shivers up your spine like Bela Lugosi. And nobody but NOBODY has ever done the part of Dracula in a movie or on stage as well as Lugosi. He set the bar too high.
Back in the Fifties, homes had no VCRs or DVD players so I was introduced to Bela Lugosi's magnificent Dracula of the 1931 movie version thanks to a late night show that aired on Las Vegas television every Friday night. I don't remember the hosts' names but I can still see the husband and wife team showing and chatting about all the old horror movies, and me glued to the TV screen, waiting for Bela. Sigh, best night of the week after my father had hogged the television all evening for the Friday Night Fights.
Back in those days, actors once typecast in a roll were rarely allowed to play anything else, and admittedly, Lugosi played in some real stinkers late in his life. Opposite the Bowery Boys? Gimme a break.
Still, Lugosi managed to make his presence felt in more than one movie that otherwise would have been lost in shame forever without him. Take WHITE ZOMBIE. His protrayal of the character, Murder Legendre, is in my humble opinion one of his greatest roles. That the part for the female lead was seriously silly, you get no argument from me. But Lugosi? The stuff legends are made of. And what about THE BLACK CAT where some genius brought Lugosi together with Karloff as they fought over a young bride? The special effect of beautiful dead young women floating lifelessly in glass coffins on the wall? Lugosi as the good guy for once, trying to defeat Karloff and save the newlyweds? Ahhhh.
Then there were his minor roles, like Bela the Gypsy in the 1941 version of THE WOLF MAN with Lon Chaney, Jr. Or how about Egor in one of the FRANKENSTEIN movies? As I said, minor roles, but always extremely well done.
If you've never seen Lugosi's last movie, PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE you truly have not plummed the depths of horrible horror movies. Lugosi (fortunately for him?) died during filming, and the director substituted a local chiropractor. The good doctor should have stuck to his day job. But that awful movie is now a cult fave, and as a true Lugosi fan, I, of course, own a copy.
And as a responsible parent and grandparent, I have introduced my sons and grandsons to the delights of Bela Lugosi. I collect his movies when I can find them, usually buying 2-3 copies to share with my grands. Can I help it if their parents no longer appreciate the true value of these one-of-a-kind treasures?
Every October I pull my collection out and emerse myself in Lugosi movies. I was surprised to learn from a recent horror movie documentary that Lugosi was NOT the first choice for the DRACULA movie, though he'd played the part well on the New York stage. However, serendipity interviened, the other two or three actors being considered weren't available for whatever reasons, and Lugosi snagged the part. Movie history was made.
In the 1931 version of DRACULA, Lugosi's reaction to Van Helsing opening a mirrored cigarette box is truly classic, without him even uttering a word. I love that. And the way Lugosi stands in a garden, working to capture the mind of the young woman in WHITE ZOMBIE. Wow.
It's not to late for you to enjoy the delights of a Lugosi movie this Halloween. I suggest DRACULA OR WHITE ZOMBIE. But SCARED TO DEATH, THE APE MAN, THE INVISIBLE GHOST, MURDER BY TELEVISION, etc, you could probably skip. Unless, like me, you believe that Bela Lugosi is still THE man. Sigh.
Thanks for stopping by. Please close the door behind you as you leave. It's time for me to pop another DVD into the player. Hmmm. Let's see. How about the one with the rediculously huge robot that Lugosi controls from a box on his belt? Yeah, that's a good one. Happy Halloween.
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Chipping Away the Stone
Elizabeth Zelvin
Everybody knows that Michelangelo, widely accepted as the greatest sculptor ever, explained how he created his magnificent marble statues, including the David and the Pietà , by chipping away the stone until only the form imprisoned within remained. Writers, at least those who know that every first draft needs some revision, go through a similar process. Instead of quarrying the raw material, they create it by putting words together in a form determined by the mysterious process we call creativity. In fact, what writers initially do with words is much like what sculptors in clay do: building up one small bit at a time until a rough form is achieved.
After that, how sculptors revise a clay figure is a combination of of building, removing, and smoothing. We could say that writers do that too. But recently, after many years of writing, I think I’ve reached a new level of ability to critique my own work, and it feels more like chipping away the stone to reveal the story pared down to its essence, containing not one wasted word. At least, that’s the goal. Not being Michelangelo, I never achieve perfection. But the process feels much the same.
When I first joined Sisters in Crime’s Guppies chapter with the first draft of Death Will Get You Sober burning a hole in my computer, among the first pieces of advice I heard were these:
Don’t query agents or editors with a first draft.
Join a critique group.
Kill your darlings.
If I had followed all these dicta immediately, I might have sold my first mystery a lot sooner than I did. Or maybe it was meant to take the time it took to learn by my mistakes.
I was so excited about my manuscript that I couldn’t wait to send it out, so I experienced many rejections—and got many good suggestions—before it got published in a form far different from that original first draft. I did join a critique group, but it was the wrong one for me. I knew it when the elderly lady in the group told me my subject matter was “sordid.” (On the other hand, another member was the wonderful Krista Davis, who is a friend and critique partner to this day.) And I understood what “kill your darlings” meant. But for a long time, I couldn’t do it. Every clever phrase and carefully chosen word was so precious to me. How could I take any of them out, even in the interest of a tighter story? And not only my attachment to them, but also the fear that my creative well might run dry at any moment, prevented me from revising as ruthlessly as the material needed.
I know exactly when the shift took place. In 2006, I had the honor of being selected for a three-week residency at the Atlantic Center for the Arts in New Smyrna Beach, FL, working with master artist SJ Rozan. SJ both chose the participants and ran the workshop brilliantly, and it was a powerful experience. I learned a lot from the other writers. But SJ provided the moment of truth, some time during the second week, when she said, “Liz, you need to give us less, not more. Two clever lines in a paragraph are enough—three or four are too many.”
I went back to my room and took another look at the manuscript I was presenting to the group. (We “workshopped” three of the first four chapters of Death Will Help You Leave Him, the upcoming second book in my series.) For the first time in the 57 years I’ve been writing, what I needed to cut leaped off the page before my eyes. I could suddenly see the difference between the shape of the story and the bits of literary marble I could chip away. This new ability has stayed with me. In recent weeks, I’ve written two short stories. They’re a departure for me in that they’re not whodunits about Bruce, my series protagonist. In both cases, I envisioned the whole story, final twist and all, before beginning to write. So I was quite pleased with my first draft in both cases. But as soon as I printed them out and began to read them over, the marble chips began to fly around. So I grabbed a pen—and greatly improved the stories.
Everybody knows that Michelangelo, widely accepted as the greatest sculptor ever, explained how he created his magnificent marble statues, including the David and the Pietà , by chipping away the stone until only the form imprisoned within remained. Writers, at least those who know that every first draft needs some revision, go through a similar process. Instead of quarrying the raw material, they create it by putting words together in a form determined by the mysterious process we call creativity. In fact, what writers initially do with words is much like what sculptors in clay do: building up one small bit at a time until a rough form is achieved.
After that, how sculptors revise a clay figure is a combination of of building, removing, and smoothing. We could say that writers do that too. But recently, after many years of writing, I think I’ve reached a new level of ability to critique my own work, and it feels more like chipping away the stone to reveal the story pared down to its essence, containing not one wasted word. At least, that’s the goal. Not being Michelangelo, I never achieve perfection. But the process feels much the same.
When I first joined Sisters in Crime’s Guppies chapter with the first draft of Death Will Get You Sober burning a hole in my computer, among the first pieces of advice I heard were these:
Don’t query agents or editors with a first draft.
Join a critique group.
Kill your darlings.
If I had followed all these dicta immediately, I might have sold my first mystery a lot sooner than I did. Or maybe it was meant to take the time it took to learn by my mistakes.
I was so excited about my manuscript that I couldn’t wait to send it out, so I experienced many rejections—and got many good suggestions—before it got published in a form far different from that original first draft. I did join a critique group, but it was the wrong one for me. I knew it when the elderly lady in the group told me my subject matter was “sordid.” (On the other hand, another member was the wonderful Krista Davis, who is a friend and critique partner to this day.) And I understood what “kill your darlings” meant. But for a long time, I couldn’t do it. Every clever phrase and carefully chosen word was so precious to me. How could I take any of them out, even in the interest of a tighter story? And not only my attachment to them, but also the fear that my creative well might run dry at any moment, prevented me from revising as ruthlessly as the material needed.
I know exactly when the shift took place. In 2006, I had the honor of being selected for a three-week residency at the Atlantic Center for the Arts in New Smyrna Beach, FL, working with master artist SJ Rozan. SJ both chose the participants and ran the workshop brilliantly, and it was a powerful experience. I learned a lot from the other writers. But SJ provided the moment of truth, some time during the second week, when she said, “Liz, you need to give us less, not more. Two clever lines in a paragraph are enough—three or four are too many.”
I went back to my room and took another look at the manuscript I was presenting to the group. (We “workshopped” three of the first four chapters of Death Will Help You Leave Him, the upcoming second book in my series.) For the first time in the 57 years I’ve been writing, what I needed to cut leaped off the page before my eyes. I could suddenly see the difference between the shape of the story and the bits of literary marble I could chip away. This new ability has stayed with me. In recent weeks, I’ve written two short stories. They’re a departure for me in that they’re not whodunits about Bruce, my series protagonist. In both cases, I envisioned the whole story, final twist and all, before beginning to write. So I was quite pleased with my first draft in both cases. But as soon as I printed them out and began to read them over, the marble chips began to fly around. So I grabbed a pen—and greatly improved the stories.
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
A New Voice: Jeri Westerson
Interviewed by Sandra Parshall
Jeri Westerson developed a taste for noir while growing up on the mean streets of South Central Los Angeles, at the same time she was absorbing the history of England in the Middle Ages from her Anglophile parents. When she began writing mysteries, combining the two interests to create what she calls “Medieval noir” seemed only natural.
Jeri worked as a graphic artist in L.A. and Pasadena in the mid 1980s and early '90s. After becoming a mother, she poured her creative energies into writing, but success eluded her. She continued to write while holding a variety of jobs – luggage salesperson, wine-tasting host and tour guide for a winery, choir director, travel insurance agent, secretary, ceramic studio manager, journalist. At last she found a publishing home with St. Martin’s Press, and her debut novel, Veil of Lies, came out on October 28.
Jeri and her husband, a commercial photographer, have a son in college and share their southern California home with two cats and a tortoise.
Q. Tell us about Veil of Lies and your protagonist, Crispin.
A. First off, thanks, Sandy, for allowing me to be here on Poe’s Deadly Daughters.
Veil of Lies is my own little subgenre, what I call a “medieval noir,” a darker storyline than you might find in medieval mysteries, with a hard-boiled detective. Crispin is an ex-knight, having lost his wealth, his title, his status—in short, he’s lost himself and now has to redefine his role on the mean streets of 14th century London. He found his niche by becoming the “Tracker,” my take on a 14th century private eye. He’s an interesting man; dark, brooding, a bit intense but very sharp. Likes to quote Aristotle. He’s much smarter than I am!
In this first in the series, Crispin is hired by a rich merchant to spy on his wife to see if she is unfaithful. When Crispin discovers that she is, indeed, up to something, he returns to the merchant to tell him the bad news, but the man is found dead in the proverbial locked room. What follows is a nest of lies and dangerous secrets involving international intrigue, a beautiful femme fatale, and a mysterious religious relic.
Q. Why is a modern woman like you hanging out in the 14th century? Why did you choose this particular era to write about?
A. Because it’s really hard these days to hang out in the 14th century. But seriously, it’s an era I have enjoyed researching and reading about for a very long time, really since I was a kid. My parents were both rabid Anglophiles and my father was even studying to teach medieval history. We had medieval history books on our shelves as well as the big names in historical fiction. I devoured those books as well as absorbed the odd discussion at the dinner table about some point of British history. Honestly, if I hadn’t picked up something I wasn’t trying very hard.
The fourteenth century in particular interested me because this was an era buttressed by the Plague in the early 1300’s and the forced abdication and murder of Richard II by century’s end. In between are the intrigues of court life, a nobility that now considers English its language rather then Norman French, tournaments, wars, a peasant revolt, Geoffrey Chaucer—you name it, it’s got it.
Q. Why did you choose mystery rather than straight historical fiction?
A. Ah, confession time. Actually, I was trying to get published in historical fiction for about ten, eleven years. But it’s an awfully tough market to crack. A former agent of mine recommended I try switching to historical mystery as an easier market to break into. My response: I don’t know how to write a mystery; I don’t want to write a mystery; I’m not going to write a mystery. But when a few more years passed with more rejections, I bloody well learned to write a mystery! But I didn’t want to write the run-of-the-mill medieval mystery. I wanted my own twist to it. So I combined my love for hard-boiled/noir fiction into this cross-pollination and came up with “medieval noir.”
Q. Why did you create a male protagonist? Does writing about a man of that period give you more freedom than you might have writing about a woman?
A. The thing of it is, I really never have written from the female point of view. Not in any satisfying way. I’ve always been a bit male-centric. There’s nothing misogynistic about that, I’ve just always had my mind geared that way, from my childhood as a tomboy to my writing as an adult. If I had wanted to write from the female POV, I would have found a way to give my character the freedom she needed to succeed. There are plenty of such role models in medieval mysteries. I just like getting into the mindset of a man. Particularly in this instance of a man with a strong code of honor. I’ve always been attracted to this “band of brothers” idea of men in battle and cleaving together in these intense relationships. In my experience and observation, women just don’t do that. With men, it’s very different. Maybe it stems from Neanderthal days of banding tightly together to hunt and defend, but it seems to be uniquely male. I like to explore that aspect of male personality with my character.
Q. Your characters have none of the tools used by modern detectives, professional and amateur – no telephones or computers, no databases, no forensics, no network of police departments. They don’t even have electricity. Does this allow you to be more imaginative and make up your own rules? Has the time period created any obstacles you’ve had to work around?
A. I don’t really find these to be obstacles. Getting into the mindset of the period is the fun part. I don’t really “make up my own rules.” I allow my characters to work within the rules of the society in which they lived. After sunset, a curfew is enforced and so now the only ones out on the streets are usually up to no good. It’s dark inside one’s lodgings except for a small fire in your hearth—your light and heat. You light a candle or oil lamp to chase the dark, but it’s still pretty shadowy. These are things I can use rather than having them be an obstacle in the story.
That being said, it must be explained that there were no private eyes in medieval England. The conceit of the character is in the “what if” factor: What if a man with his intelligence and skills were set adrift from all that he had ever known? What might he do for a living that would satisfy his intense sense of honor and justice? How could he do this and atone for his own sins at the same time? The fact of the matter is, such a person is possible. That’s what makes it interesting and challenging.
And as far as “medieval forensics”, you’ll have to scoot on over to Lee Lofland’s blog The Graveyard Shift at http://www.leelofland.com/wordpress/ where I will be a guest blogger the first week of November, talking about what tools Crispin could have had at his disposal.
Q. Tell us about your road to publication. Was it harder or easier than you expected?
A. Let’s see. It took me 14 years and 19 novels to get a publishing contract, so yes, this was a lot harder than I expected. When I first decided to turn this long-time hobby into a career (I had already written three novels “just for fun” before I decided to write “for real”), I researched the situation. What was the industry like? What did I have to do to get published? Did I need an agent, etc. I worked hard to discover all these things on my own and just began writing.
Three years in, I got an agent and we worked together for three more years trying to place two of my manuscripts. To be fair, she did place one of them (an historical novel about Shakespeare and the earl of Oxford) with a small publisher, but they went out of business before it went to press. We finally parted ways. More manuscripts and two awful agents passed.
When I finally took the advice to switch to mysteries I had given up on agents and planned on going it alone to small presses. But has it ever happened to you? When you weren’t looking for it, it falls into your lap. Love, the perfect house, agents. I stumbled upon this agency and the junior partner had a degree in medieval literature. I courted him for about a year. We exchanged emails and he helped me revise my manuscript, all without a contract. After a year we signed. Though the first Crispin Guest medieval noir got rejected everywhere, the second and third did not. He placed Veil of Lies and the next in the series, Serpent in the Thorns, with St. Martin’s Minotaur. I’m still with that agency (you better believe it!).
Q. What do you enjoy most about fiction writing? What aspect of craft has been most difficult for you to master?
A. I really enjoy the research. You find the best turns of plot when you are researching something. I can’t tell you how many times I have been led in an entirely different direction from a footnote!
What’s the most difficult? The other things you have to do: writing a blog, maintaining a website, getting yourself out there to promote, the day job. I’d rather just write!
Q. Although you’re knowledgeable about life in the Middle Ages, do you still find that you need to research certain things?
A. There’s always some specialty you need to research or something that never occurred to you to look up. Each novel concerns a religious relic—it’s my McGuffin—and so what is known about that relic must be researched. Real people show up, so they need to be researched. I had to research the wool market in this novel, archery in the second, things like that.
Q. Do you have a strict writing schedule? How do you balance writing with your day job?
A. It’s not strict, but I like to write at least three to four pages a day. Doesn’t always come out that way right now, but I try. I work at a day job three days a week (the same place my husband works, so we carpool). He works late, so when I’m done at 5:30, I whip out my laptop and work for about two hours and write while he finishes up. On my days off I write and research all day.
Q. With your first book coming out, you’ll have to add promotion to your schedule. Where do you plan to aim most of your promotional efforts? Signings, conferences, online activity?
A. As a new kid on the block, signings at bookstores aren’t the best use of my time since no one knows me and may not make the effort to come out. But I am going to be at a few bookstores in southern California where I live. I will be in San Diego, Orange County, Riverside County, Los Angeles, and the Valley. Check my website for my appearance schedule if you’ll be in the area. There are two large mystery fan/writers conferences I go to – Bouchercon and Left Coast Crime -- and I will be starting to go to the Historical Novel Society’s North American Conference. These are expensive for me so I’m keeping that down to a low roar.
I also blog. You have to blog these days. I have a popular one called “Getting Medieval” at www.jeriwesterson.typepad.com and my character Crispin has his own blog at www.CrispinGuest.com. The website — www.JeriWesterson.com — is fairly static. I just add news and my appearance schedule to it. And, of course, I’m doing a blog tour by posting as a guest blogger on various blogs or doing interviews like this one and advertising the heck out of it. (You can view my blog tour schedule on my website.)
I’ll also be appearing on various panels around the southland and doing presentations at libraries and women’s organizations. Any place that will have me, really. I love giving presentations like: “The Challenges of Researching 14th Century London from 21st Century California,” “Top Ten Myths About the Middle Ages,” and “Medieval Forensics.”
Q. You had a blog before you sold your first book. How do you think that will pay off now that you’re published?
A. The blog helped me get recognized. I pushed myself out there with a variety of interviews of not only authors but librarians and small publishers. By advertising those to the mystery and history community I got noticed. At the first Bouchercon conference I went to back in 2006, I was shocked to discover that people recognized my name from my blog. It’s all about networking, really. My posts got linked by a few big bloggers, I linked back, chatted with them, met some of them in person at various book festivals and found myself suddenly with important contacts.
I figure readers will find my blogs to be good spots to get to know me and get to know Crispin. It will be a nice bridge for them between book releases.
Q. How long does it take you to write a book? Do you outline first or just plunge in?
A. I take about a month or two of just thinking about it (yes, I’m really working when I’m staring into space, at least that’s what I tell my husband when the laundry isn’t done), doing some preliminary research, taking notes and writing some scenes of dialogue that occur to me. And then I loosely outline, but I never seem to follow it once I start writing (but it’s good to have a starting point). And then I write, rewrite while I’m writing, and continue researching. In nine months, I have a novel ready to be critiqued. My husband reads it first—always. He’s my solid rock, by the way, the one who encouraged me to keep going for all those years of rejection. And then my critique partners—my Vicious Circle—get ahold of it and rip it a new one. And then I rewrite again and send it off to my agent, who also makes suggestions for changes. And then it goes to my editor, who will make even more changes. I’m actually pretty grateful that I started out life as a graphic artist. Having to create something for a client is good exercise for this sort of thing. You learn not to take these suggestions personally, thinking of it as just more clients you have to satisfy with your “product.”
Q. What mystery writers do you read? What have you learned from the writers you admire?
A. My biggest heroes are those writers of the past. I’m a huge fan of Raymond Chandler, Dashiell Hammett, and Dorothy Hughes. Dorothy Sayers and Ellis Peters are also faves. I’m also a big fan of current writers Julia Spencer-Fleming and Laurie King. But my tastes are quite eclectic, from J.K. Rowling to Arturo Perez-Reverte.
When I set out to create my own kind of medieval mystery, I started literally tearing apart the works of Chandler and Hammett to see what made a good hard-boiled detective. Dorothy Hughes lent me her noir strokes. Her sense of place is amazing. I wanted to use the spare style of Chandler but still give it enough of a lush feel of another place and time. It’s a tough act to follow, to be sure.
Q. Have you found writers’ organizations helpful? Would you advise aspiring writers to become active in mystery writers’ groups before they’re published?
A. Oh my God! Yes! When I switched to mysteries, I found a whole new world of opportunities. Not only are there numerous small presses devoted solely to mysteries, but there are also independent booksellers who pride themselves on just stocking mysteries. All over the country you can find these bookstores. Conferences. Panels. What a market! When I joined Sisters in Crime, I got the answers to the many questions I had. I found like-minded writers, support, critique partners. Really, everything you need to get a leg up. I don’t think I could have done it without organizations like Sisters in Crime. They are duly thanked in my acknowledgements. And yes, I would definitely recommend to start out in a local or online chapter. I belong to a “local” chapter, but it is quite far from where I live and a bit of a drive. I have found the online chapter to be most helpful (and saves on gas!).
Q. What do you see in your future? Where would you like to be as a writer in five years?
A. I would like to be well along in the series and with another medieval mystery series on its way. I’m already in the thinking stages of that one. I hope to be in a position to write a novel in each series every other year. I don’t think many of us can really devote the proper time to two novels a year. I don’t think I could do either justice, but we’ll see. I’m already a little ahead with the Crispin series because three are already written.
Q. What advice do you have for aspiring writers?
A. Don’t do it! Naw, just kidding. Well, don’t do it until you’ve done your homework and really know what you are getting into. It’s not easy. But if you are obsessed with writing and can’t not do it, then you’d better give it a go. And join writer’s organizations like Sisters in Crime. Get yourself a good critique group and—here’s the tough part—listen to what they have to say! You’ll save yourself a world of hurt if you can learn to take advice from other writers. You’ll learn to drop bad habits and begin to see your work more objectively. And when you finish your manuscript, don’t sit back on your laurels. Write the next one right away. You might find that the second one is better than the first.
Jeri Westerson developed a taste for noir while growing up on the mean streets of South Central Los Angeles, at the same time she was absorbing the history of England in the Middle Ages from her Anglophile parents. When she began writing mysteries, combining the two interests to create what she calls “Medieval noir” seemed only natural.
Jeri worked as a graphic artist in L.A. and Pasadena in the mid 1980s and early '90s. After becoming a mother, she poured her creative energies into writing, but success eluded her. She continued to write while holding a variety of jobs – luggage salesperson, wine-tasting host and tour guide for a winery, choir director, travel insurance agent, secretary, ceramic studio manager, journalist. At last she found a publishing home with St. Martin’s Press, and her debut novel, Veil of Lies, came out on October 28.
Jeri and her husband, a commercial photographer, have a son in college and share their southern California home with two cats and a tortoise.
Q. Tell us about Veil of Lies and your protagonist, Crispin.
A. First off, thanks, Sandy, for allowing me to be here on Poe’s Deadly Daughters.
Veil of Lies is my own little subgenre, what I call a “medieval noir,” a darker storyline than you might find in medieval mysteries, with a hard-boiled detective. Crispin is an ex-knight, having lost his wealth, his title, his status—in short, he’s lost himself and now has to redefine his role on the mean streets of 14th century London. He found his niche by becoming the “Tracker,” my take on a 14th century private eye. He’s an interesting man; dark, brooding, a bit intense but very sharp. Likes to quote Aristotle. He’s much smarter than I am!
In this first in the series, Crispin is hired by a rich merchant to spy on his wife to see if she is unfaithful. When Crispin discovers that she is, indeed, up to something, he returns to the merchant to tell him the bad news, but the man is found dead in the proverbial locked room. What follows is a nest of lies and dangerous secrets involving international intrigue, a beautiful femme fatale, and a mysterious religious relic.
Q. Why is a modern woman like you hanging out in the 14th century? Why did you choose this particular era to write about?
A. Because it’s really hard these days to hang out in the 14th century. But seriously, it’s an era I have enjoyed researching and reading about for a very long time, really since I was a kid. My parents were both rabid Anglophiles and my father was even studying to teach medieval history. We had medieval history books on our shelves as well as the big names in historical fiction. I devoured those books as well as absorbed the odd discussion at the dinner table about some point of British history. Honestly, if I hadn’t picked up something I wasn’t trying very hard.
The fourteenth century in particular interested me because this was an era buttressed by the Plague in the early 1300’s and the forced abdication and murder of Richard II by century’s end. In between are the intrigues of court life, a nobility that now considers English its language rather then Norman French, tournaments, wars, a peasant revolt, Geoffrey Chaucer—you name it, it’s got it.
Q. Why did you choose mystery rather than straight historical fiction?
A. Ah, confession time. Actually, I was trying to get published in historical fiction for about ten, eleven years. But it’s an awfully tough market to crack. A former agent of mine recommended I try switching to historical mystery as an easier market to break into. My response: I don’t know how to write a mystery; I don’t want to write a mystery; I’m not going to write a mystery. But when a few more years passed with more rejections, I bloody well learned to write a mystery! But I didn’t want to write the run-of-the-mill medieval mystery. I wanted my own twist to it. So I combined my love for hard-boiled/noir fiction into this cross-pollination and came up with “medieval noir.”
Q. Why did you create a male protagonist? Does writing about a man of that period give you more freedom than you might have writing about a woman?
A. The thing of it is, I really never have written from the female point of view. Not in any satisfying way. I’ve always been a bit male-centric. There’s nothing misogynistic about that, I’ve just always had my mind geared that way, from my childhood as a tomboy to my writing as an adult. If I had wanted to write from the female POV, I would have found a way to give my character the freedom she needed to succeed. There are plenty of such role models in medieval mysteries. I just like getting into the mindset of a man. Particularly in this instance of a man with a strong code of honor. I’ve always been attracted to this “band of brothers” idea of men in battle and cleaving together in these intense relationships. In my experience and observation, women just don’t do that. With men, it’s very different. Maybe it stems from Neanderthal days of banding tightly together to hunt and defend, but it seems to be uniquely male. I like to explore that aspect of male personality with my character.
Q. Your characters have none of the tools used by modern detectives, professional and amateur – no telephones or computers, no databases, no forensics, no network of police departments. They don’t even have electricity. Does this allow you to be more imaginative and make up your own rules? Has the time period created any obstacles you’ve had to work around?
A. I don’t really find these to be obstacles. Getting into the mindset of the period is the fun part. I don’t really “make up my own rules.” I allow my characters to work within the rules of the society in which they lived. After sunset, a curfew is enforced and so now the only ones out on the streets are usually up to no good. It’s dark inside one’s lodgings except for a small fire in your hearth—your light and heat. You light a candle or oil lamp to chase the dark, but it’s still pretty shadowy. These are things I can use rather than having them be an obstacle in the story.
That being said, it must be explained that there were no private eyes in medieval England. The conceit of the character is in the “what if” factor: What if a man with his intelligence and skills were set adrift from all that he had ever known? What might he do for a living that would satisfy his intense sense of honor and justice? How could he do this and atone for his own sins at the same time? The fact of the matter is, such a person is possible. That’s what makes it interesting and challenging.
And as far as “medieval forensics”, you’ll have to scoot on over to Lee Lofland’s blog The Graveyard Shift at http://www.leelofland.com/wordpress/ where I will be a guest blogger the first week of November, talking about what tools Crispin could have had at his disposal.
Q. Tell us about your road to publication. Was it harder or easier than you expected?
A. Let’s see. It took me 14 years and 19 novels to get a publishing contract, so yes, this was a lot harder than I expected. When I first decided to turn this long-time hobby into a career (I had already written three novels “just for fun” before I decided to write “for real”), I researched the situation. What was the industry like? What did I have to do to get published? Did I need an agent, etc. I worked hard to discover all these things on my own and just began writing.
Three years in, I got an agent and we worked together for three more years trying to place two of my manuscripts. To be fair, she did place one of them (an historical novel about Shakespeare and the earl of Oxford) with a small publisher, but they went out of business before it went to press. We finally parted ways. More manuscripts and two awful agents passed.
When I finally took the advice to switch to mysteries I had given up on agents and planned on going it alone to small presses. But has it ever happened to you? When you weren’t looking for it, it falls into your lap. Love, the perfect house, agents. I stumbled upon this agency and the junior partner had a degree in medieval literature. I courted him for about a year. We exchanged emails and he helped me revise my manuscript, all without a contract. After a year we signed. Though the first Crispin Guest medieval noir got rejected everywhere, the second and third did not. He placed Veil of Lies and the next in the series, Serpent in the Thorns, with St. Martin’s Minotaur. I’m still with that agency (you better believe it!).
Q. What do you enjoy most about fiction writing? What aspect of craft has been most difficult for you to master?
A. I really enjoy the research. You find the best turns of plot when you are researching something. I can’t tell you how many times I have been led in an entirely different direction from a footnote!
What’s the most difficult? The other things you have to do: writing a blog, maintaining a website, getting yourself out there to promote, the day job. I’d rather just write!
Q. Although you’re knowledgeable about life in the Middle Ages, do you still find that you need to research certain things?
A. There’s always some specialty you need to research or something that never occurred to you to look up. Each novel concerns a religious relic—it’s my McGuffin—and so what is known about that relic must be researched. Real people show up, so they need to be researched. I had to research the wool market in this novel, archery in the second, things like that.
Q. Do you have a strict writing schedule? How do you balance writing with your day job?
A. It’s not strict, but I like to write at least three to four pages a day. Doesn’t always come out that way right now, but I try. I work at a day job three days a week (the same place my husband works, so we carpool). He works late, so when I’m done at 5:30, I whip out my laptop and work for about two hours and write while he finishes up. On my days off I write and research all day.
Q. With your first book coming out, you’ll have to add promotion to your schedule. Where do you plan to aim most of your promotional efforts? Signings, conferences, online activity?
A. As a new kid on the block, signings at bookstores aren’t the best use of my time since no one knows me and may not make the effort to come out. But I am going to be at a few bookstores in southern California where I live. I will be in San Diego, Orange County, Riverside County, Los Angeles, and the Valley. Check my website for my appearance schedule if you’ll be in the area. There are two large mystery fan/writers conferences I go to – Bouchercon and Left Coast Crime -- and I will be starting to go to the Historical Novel Society’s North American Conference. These are expensive for me so I’m keeping that down to a low roar.
I also blog. You have to blog these days. I have a popular one called “Getting Medieval” at www.jeriwesterson.typepad.com and my character Crispin has his own blog at www.CrispinGuest.com. The website — www.JeriWesterson.com — is fairly static. I just add news and my appearance schedule to it. And, of course, I’m doing a blog tour by posting as a guest blogger on various blogs or doing interviews like this one and advertising the heck out of it. (You can view my blog tour schedule on my website.)
I’ll also be appearing on various panels around the southland and doing presentations at libraries and women’s organizations. Any place that will have me, really. I love giving presentations like: “The Challenges of Researching 14th Century London from 21st Century California,” “Top Ten Myths About the Middle Ages,” and “Medieval Forensics.”
Q. You had a blog before you sold your first book. How do you think that will pay off now that you’re published?
A. The blog helped me get recognized. I pushed myself out there with a variety of interviews of not only authors but librarians and small publishers. By advertising those to the mystery and history community I got noticed. At the first Bouchercon conference I went to back in 2006, I was shocked to discover that people recognized my name from my blog. It’s all about networking, really. My posts got linked by a few big bloggers, I linked back, chatted with them, met some of them in person at various book festivals and found myself suddenly with important contacts.
I figure readers will find my blogs to be good spots to get to know me and get to know Crispin. It will be a nice bridge for them between book releases.
Q. How long does it take you to write a book? Do you outline first or just plunge in?
A. I take about a month or two of just thinking about it (yes, I’m really working when I’m staring into space, at least that’s what I tell my husband when the laundry isn’t done), doing some preliminary research, taking notes and writing some scenes of dialogue that occur to me. And then I loosely outline, but I never seem to follow it once I start writing (but it’s good to have a starting point). And then I write, rewrite while I’m writing, and continue researching. In nine months, I have a novel ready to be critiqued. My husband reads it first—always. He’s my solid rock, by the way, the one who encouraged me to keep going for all those years of rejection. And then my critique partners—my Vicious Circle—get ahold of it and rip it a new one. And then I rewrite again and send it off to my agent, who also makes suggestions for changes. And then it goes to my editor, who will make even more changes. I’m actually pretty grateful that I started out life as a graphic artist. Having to create something for a client is good exercise for this sort of thing. You learn not to take these suggestions personally, thinking of it as just more clients you have to satisfy with your “product.”
Q. What mystery writers do you read? What have you learned from the writers you admire?
A. My biggest heroes are those writers of the past. I’m a huge fan of Raymond Chandler, Dashiell Hammett, and Dorothy Hughes. Dorothy Sayers and Ellis Peters are also faves. I’m also a big fan of current writers Julia Spencer-Fleming and Laurie King. But my tastes are quite eclectic, from J.K. Rowling to Arturo Perez-Reverte.
When I set out to create my own kind of medieval mystery, I started literally tearing apart the works of Chandler and Hammett to see what made a good hard-boiled detective. Dorothy Hughes lent me her noir strokes. Her sense of place is amazing. I wanted to use the spare style of Chandler but still give it enough of a lush feel of another place and time. It’s a tough act to follow, to be sure.
Q. Have you found writers’ organizations helpful? Would you advise aspiring writers to become active in mystery writers’ groups before they’re published?
A. Oh my God! Yes! When I switched to mysteries, I found a whole new world of opportunities. Not only are there numerous small presses devoted solely to mysteries, but there are also independent booksellers who pride themselves on just stocking mysteries. All over the country you can find these bookstores. Conferences. Panels. What a market! When I joined Sisters in Crime, I got the answers to the many questions I had. I found like-minded writers, support, critique partners. Really, everything you need to get a leg up. I don’t think I could have done it without organizations like Sisters in Crime. They are duly thanked in my acknowledgements. And yes, I would definitely recommend to start out in a local or online chapter. I belong to a “local” chapter, but it is quite far from where I live and a bit of a drive. I have found the online chapter to be most helpful (and saves on gas!).
Q. What do you see in your future? Where would you like to be as a writer in five years?
A. I would like to be well along in the series and with another medieval mystery series on its way. I’m already in the thinking stages of that one. I hope to be in a position to write a novel in each series every other year. I don’t think many of us can really devote the proper time to two novels a year. I don’t think I could do either justice, but we’ll see. I’m already a little ahead with the Crispin series because three are already written.
Q. What advice do you have for aspiring writers?
A. Don’t do it! Naw, just kidding. Well, don’t do it until you’ve done your homework and really know what you are getting into. It’s not easy. But if you are obsessed with writing and can’t not do it, then you’d better give it a go. And join writer’s organizations like Sisters in Crime. Get yourself a good critique group and—here’s the tough part—listen to what they have to say! You’ll save yourself a world of hurt if you can learn to take advice from other writers. You’ll learn to drop bad habits and begin to see your work more objectively. And when you finish your manuscript, don’t sit back on your laurels. Write the next one right away. You might find that the second one is better than the first.
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Words Fail Me
Sharon Wildwind
I’ve kept a journal—more or less, okay more than less—for thirty years. I’ve played around with umpteen-gazillion journaling techniques, from drawing with my eyes closed to dialoging with inanimate objects.
About three months ago I was trying to journal, yet again, about my love-hate relationship with housework. Make no mistake, I love a tidy house, with washed windows, vacuumed carpets, and everything put away in it’s own special place. At least, I think I’d love it if I could ever get there once. Just once.
There are too many interesting things to do. Write another scene vs vacuum? Research a new character vs wash windows? Play with cloth vs file papers? Guess which one I’ll choose every time. This is the result, what a corner of my office/workshop/atelier looks like. It doesn’t always look like this. Some weeks it looks worse.
As I struggled to put my love and loathing of housework into words yet again, I realized that words failed me. No amount of journal angst was going to do it this time. I wanted something substantial, that would show my ambivalence about hating mess and loving creativity at the same time. So instead of writing, I made a personal shrine. It’s called “Blue Over Housework.”
I think if you click on the photos you might get a bigger version. It works here in the preview screen, but I'm not sure what will happen once this thing gets posted.
For the techno-paper geeks out there: the base is 3/16" foam core board, covered with mulberry paper. The words were computer generated and printed on more mulberry paper, which was layered on the base. The blue-and-white dish pan, dishes and dishcloth are DECO air-drying clay from Japan. The dragonflies are made of wire, Japanese paper, and craft pearls. The thing that looks like an egg shell is . . . an egg shell. Embellishments include stamps, buttons, printed words, a air-drying clay disc stamped with the Chinese symbol for peace, a kitchen sponge, and an old house key. The whole thing is covered with multiple layers of Golden acrylic gel, tinted with Golden acrylic liquid paint.
I recommend a little shrine-building for everyone, particularly if you’re struggling with a conundrum that words don’t seem to cover. You might want to check out the multi-media artist, Carol Owen, http://www.carolowenart.com/ and her book, Crafting Personal Shrines, Lark Books, 2004, ISBN:1-57990-453X. http://www.larkbooks.com/catalog?isbn=157990811X That book has all the directions, patterns, tips, and list of materials you’ll need to build a shrine.
After that, just go for it. Play. Create. Build. Have a great time.
I'm off to the World Fantasy Convention, here in Calgary this coming weekend. 3 1/2 days of writing workshops and schmoozing with other writers. Best of all, I can take the C-train there and back, and sleep in my own bed each night.
-----
Creative quote for the week:
Our truest response to the irrationality of the world is to paint or sing or write, for only in such response do we find truth.
~Madeline L’Engle, writer
I’ve kept a journal—more or less, okay more than less—for thirty years. I’ve played around with umpteen-gazillion journaling techniques, from drawing with my eyes closed to dialoging with inanimate objects.
About three months ago I was trying to journal, yet again, about my love-hate relationship with housework. Make no mistake, I love a tidy house, with washed windows, vacuumed carpets, and everything put away in it’s own special place. At least, I think I’d love it if I could ever get there once. Just once.
There are too many interesting things to do. Write another scene vs vacuum? Research a new character vs wash windows? Play with cloth vs file papers? Guess which one I’ll choose every time. This is the result, what a corner of my office/workshop/atelier looks like. It doesn’t always look like this. Some weeks it looks worse.
As I struggled to put my love and loathing of housework into words yet again, I realized that words failed me. No amount of journal angst was going to do it this time. I wanted something substantial, that would show my ambivalence about hating mess and loving creativity at the same time. So instead of writing, I made a personal shrine. It’s called “Blue Over Housework.”
I think if you click on the photos you might get a bigger version. It works here in the preview screen, but I'm not sure what will happen once this thing gets posted.
For the techno-paper geeks out there: the base is 3/16" foam core board, covered with mulberry paper. The words were computer generated and printed on more mulberry paper, which was layered on the base. The blue-and-white dish pan, dishes and dishcloth are DECO air-drying clay from Japan. The dragonflies are made of wire, Japanese paper, and craft pearls. The thing that looks like an egg shell is . . . an egg shell. Embellishments include stamps, buttons, printed words, a air-drying clay disc stamped with the Chinese symbol for peace, a kitchen sponge, and an old house key. The whole thing is covered with multiple layers of Golden acrylic gel, tinted with Golden acrylic liquid paint.
I recommend a little shrine-building for everyone, particularly if you’re struggling with a conundrum that words don’t seem to cover. You might want to check out the multi-media artist, Carol Owen, http://www.carolowenart.com/ and her book, Crafting Personal Shrines, Lark Books, 2004, ISBN:1-57990-453X. http://www.larkbooks.com/catalog?isbn=157990811X That book has all the directions, patterns, tips, and list of materials you’ll need to build a shrine.
After that, just go for it. Play. Create. Build. Have a great time.
I'm off to the World Fantasy Convention, here in Calgary this coming weekend. 3 1/2 days of writing workshops and schmoozing with other writers. Best of all, I can take the C-train there and back, and sleep in my own bed each night.
-----
Creative quote for the week:
Our truest response to the irrationality of the world is to paint or sing or write, for only in such response do we find truth.
~Madeline L’Engle, writer
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)