Month: May 2009

I am a character centered reader and writer. The most elaborate and ornate plot can not pull me in, unless there are characters at the heart of it that I can identify with, or I can watch train wreck.

In writing, I want to ride my characters like Granny Weatherwax rides a bird.

And right now, I find myself working on these incredibly elaborate machinations for the Troll Story. The plotting is sound. It’s a little fuzzy in regard to the real bad guys coming in, but that will come.

What I’m not doing yet is sinking into my characters, and letting the fall out of their emotions drive this puppy. It’s the difference between playing Dungeons and Dragons with lead figures and a grid, versus role playing a story.

How do you guys work? Is it the character, the plot, or both that excites you? How do you manage a marriage?

Tonight’s writing goal is to look everything over, and really SINK into my characters motivations. I like the characters in this story, but I don’t seem to know their insides yet.

Except Nick and the Widow. For some reason, they’re pretty easy. Well, that’s two less I have to crack open.

Off to work. It’ll be finals, how-to papers, and a meeting. MAYBE Wonder Woman paper?

Catherine

I get a lot of compliments on the Writer Tamago site. What’s not to like? It’s an attractive, clean blog that uses the easy interface of Word Press to keep you updated with information. Light on images, it loads readily onto your computer. It cross posts to LJ, and I’m working on Dream Width configuration.

Did I say me? I should more correctly say Mark McKibben, my web guy. I’m one lucky writer. I have this great friend, Mark, and he likes helping people with web sites. This is a real boon for me. I’m savvy enough to do user friendly interfaces, and I could learn most of the easy computer stuff, but frankly, you’d rather have me writing books. (I know I’d rather be writing them.)

So, I have Mark. Mark hooks me up, cleans up my site, gives me spam filters, and generally makes my authorly life easier. He does this a couple of SF organizations I’m involved with as well, and he even does it for his own site.

Mark could even be convinced to do it for you, for I think a nominal fee, if you’re one of those authors struggling with a web presence. Whatever that means. Really, though, if you’d like to bring your website into the 21st century, Mark’s your man.

In the spirit of the Tamago, then, here’s an interview with Mark McKibben, Web Guy.

1. How did you become interested in designing websites?

Personally, I blame the closing of my Cub Scouts troop when I was a little kid. I liked earning those merit badges but without a troop, there wasn’t a way to do it. As I got older, I became a computer geek. Then back in ’97 or so, I had all 4 of my wisdom teeth pulled. For a week afterwards, I was doped up on pain-pills just enough that I couldn’t go anywhere but not enough that I slept around the clock. And when I was awake, I was in enough discomfort that I needed something more active than watching TV or reading a book to distract me. Being a computer geek and in the earlier days of the Internet’s popularity, having your own website was kind of like earning a merit badge. So building a site was what I did to get keep busy.

2. A lot of writers need websites, but are not web savvy. What are some simple products that they can use to have a website? Why do you recommend them?

My recommendation depends on what the client needs and their level of technical expertise. Generally I would recommend most people look into using some sort of blogging software, as it’s the simplest way to get their content online. For some one with minimal technical expertise and who has no or limited need to customize the look of their site, I would recommend going with a hosted blog on a service
like WordPress.com or LiveJournal. These services are the simplest and quickest way to start getting their content online. For some one with minimal technical expertise and who wants more control over their site’s design or content, then they should be looking into hiring somebody to help them setup a website of their own. I would still recommend they use a form of blogging software, if only to make it
easier for them to update the site with new content. I personally use WordPress (http://wordpress.org/) for my site and for those sites I’ve setup for my clients. WordPress is open-source and has a rich community of developers creating new themes and plugins for it.

Continue reading “Mark McKibben: Web Guy”

Hard to buckle down to the story tonight, as there were many errands and I had less time. I also wrote a handout for Wiscon today for the Your Friend Academia panel, so I think that sucked out my writing skill.

So, I did some character sketches, and some re-outlining tonight, at least adding some words. Here’s where we’re at so far.

20762 / 90000 words. 23% done!

7301 / 50000 words. 15% done!

I am currently behind 2407 words to where I should be on May 6th. Happily, I am feeling better now, so that will help.

I now need to write 1708 words a day to make it. Whatever happens in terms of word count, I intend to keep making forward progress, even when my brain has to do planning and thinking as it did tonight.

Catherine

Thanks to Brian Kellof The Eyeball Afterlife fame, I found about The Five Randoms‘ Hook Contest.

It works like this: Fifty hooks are reviewed. Hooks can be revised and re-submitted Friday, based on feedback. The prize? The top five hooks will get to submit page one of the manuscript, and then agent Wendy Schmalz chooses one of the first chapters to read.

My hook is number 7, and I’ve already integrated the feedback from the comments that are there, but if you want to offer up any suggestions to my or the other hooks, I’m sure they’d be appreciated.

BTW, feeling loads better. Love my drugs. We couldn’t have done this a week ago, huh? Last time I listen to my urgent care guy.

Catherine

Who are we kidding? I’m so wigged out with pregnisone, zpack, and laryngitis, I am going to throw away everything I did tonight, except for the research notes I took on Luther College and the Kirkwood Law Enforcement program.

At least I am smarter now. My frost elves can come from a university in Bo, Norway, with whom Luther holds exchanges in Scandinavian Studies. The king’s elves can also maintain their cover via the college. This way the stranger finger will not automatically extend when the town gets paranoid.

There will also be the requisite charms to keep the Believers from catching on. (Believers=old mortals who see the Invisibles, because after you get so old, you just can. Invisibles=Scandinavian terms for supernatural critters.)

19940 / 90000 words. 22% done!

We end with the c’mon zpack chant!

C’mooooonnnnn, Z Pack!

Catherine

ps Does it surprise anyone that the Luther College sports teams are the Norse?

Maggie Stiefvater addresses writer insecurity, jealousy, and turning negatives into positives. I appreciated it, and agree with it.

Catherine

Life is a little surreal today. I forfeited the weekly allergy shot to ramp up the laryngitis meds, and sure enough, the doctors delivered after I told them I’d been more or less voiceless for eleven days. People who know me are inevitably amused by my helium-like squeak. Yeah, yeah. Wouldn’t be so funny if you were teaching with it…

Why surreal? Well, I’m not all here. I’m tired and sick, and still doggedly coming to work. My graduating ELA students are having a party, and I need to also get course evaluations and final exams out to them. Boo, hoo, hoo. Smeagol promised on the precious. Smeagol lied…oh, right, work! BTW, enjoyed that reviewing of the Jackson Ring films this week…

***

The real reason I’m here today is to talk to you about Ai Yazawa and Paradise Kiss. The indiscriminate SF reader may have, in fact, lumped all anime together, and I have to admit that it gets harder for me not to do that as I get older, and I’ve been around the Japanese pop culture block a few times. But, in every crop of new manga and anime that are floated, you can usually find something that is creatively different and sustainable as strong story telling.

Ai Yazawa is also responsible for Nana, which many think is her masterpiece. It’s longer and more intricate. The characters are deeply flawed, and the drama flows naturally from them. Yet, my favorite Yazawa work will always be the much shorter Paradise Kiss, Yazawa’s romp through the fashion world. Paradise Kiss is not as zany as Gokinjo Monogatari, but has some comedic elements as well. And of course, a costumer like me is gonna love a show about fashion!

Continue reading “My Favorites: Paradise Kiss”

Characters never lie:

“They’re looking for the princess,” said Sigurda. “I understand the Believers have mobilized the town against the devil.”

Sigfried raised an eyebrow. “That stink of other magic?”

“Must be,” said Sigurda.

“We have to find some way to avoid suspicion.”

“I think anyone will be considered suspicious at this point,” said Sigurda. “I think the author had best move our scene to earlier so that she can have us posing as tourists in the town before the lock down.”

“That seems fair to me,” said Sigfried.

***

Laryngitis continues to kick my butt, but I am putting in some word count tonight, darned it! I’ve modified my word count to 1700 a day, to get back on schedule.

17818 / 90000 words. 20% done!

Blood is Thicker than Water is up for the week!

Catherine

The flesh is still weak. If my voice isn’t any better by tomorrow, it’s back to the doctor for me. It’s almost impossible to teach. Happily, there are white boards and markers.

***

Sting of the day: I sent a story to an anthology, and didn’t get a rejection, learning my story wasn’t selected because I saw the table of contents posted. Well, okay. I’ll admit as a professional academic, I’m not used to being treated like that. I’ve come to expect the courtesy of a rejection, but you know, if that’s the way it works, that’s the way it works. I moved on.

Then today, another person posted and said that the editors had sent handcrafted rejections to almost everyone, some of them with advice about the story submitted. This could still be an oversight, or an accident. I am galled, however, at being almost everyone. This too will pass, but it has left a rather sour taste in my mouth for the future.

And of course, I can do nothing about this, save sound like a pissy chicken if I bring it to the editors’ attention. Admit it. You might be thinking that I sound bitter even now. The salient point being that usually in publishing I have been dealt with professionally, and this is the second time I haven’t. That’s a good track record, but I would have expected better from these folks, authors themselves. Poop.

***

In the spirit of getting on with my life, then, I’ll announce now that I’ll be at Wiscon May 22-25. I truly enjoy Wiscon, and will be making the annual journey with my good friends Dan and Lisa. I’m looking forward to seeing many friends and acquaintances there. If you’re going, I’d love to know, so we can hook up.

Here’s the mischief I’ll be up to for sure:

Your Friend Academia. Saturday, May 23 2:30-4 A few of us academically inclined people will be talking about ways the academy can support your research and writing. I’ll have a resource sheet available.

Nightmares in Pleasant Dreams. Sunday, May 24 1-2:30. Catherine Cheeker, Ellise Heiskell, Shira Lipkin and myself read from our works.

I *might* also be participating in Opening Ceremonies, and I don’t know if the academic track has accepted my paper yet, but if so, there will be a presentation on Wonder Woman in there somewhere.

So, who’s going?

Catherine