The Path of a Writer

The Editing Process As I See It

2012-01-26T11:29:00.000-08:00

I'm currently editing a short story for which I don't currently have a title.

The first draft was about 4,000 words long. Not too long. The final draft of my previous short story was around 5,500 words.

As I see it, the editing process is to reread the story with a critical eye, trimming away words and phrases that don't move the story along, are redundant, or just aren't needed. Can you use one sentence instead of two? Five words instead of seven? Short stories need to be concise and to the point. It's kind of why they are called "short" stories.

I expect to trim 10% to 20% of the original word count off this story, taking it down to around 3,200 to 3,600 words. Now, the word count isn't the most important thing, but the ability to be judicious with language and communicate intent.

I don't think the final product of the writing process (a short story or novel) should be longer than the original. Ideally, during the writing of the first draft, you've emptied the story out of your head. Everything that you need to develop characters, describe settings, infuse the story with emotion, should be poured out.

From here, you trim, you cut, you slash. You reorder and rearrange. You search for words that make the most impact. That doesn't mean you NEVER add words, sentences, or paragraphs but there'd better be a damn good reason for doing so. Even this blog post started out longer than what you're reading now.

If I edit this new story and turn out a finished product that has 5,000 instead of 3,500 words, I'll feel that I've failed.

How do you feel about the editorial process?

The Lola Quartet

2012-01-23T15:32:00.000-08:00

{EAV:5babe125cc261864} I love reading well-written, engaging books.

Not only because I love great stories, but because I learn from each author whose books I read.

Emily St. John Mandel is the author of 2 novels: Last Night in Montreal and The Singer's Gun. Her new novel, The Lola Quartet, is to be published in May 2012. Besides being a writer, I'm a bookseller and that gives me the opportunity to read pre-publication copies of many books.

Whenever I hear that Emily is publishing a new book, I am sending emails to her publisher, begging for a reading copy of the new book. She is a fantastic writer.

Her new book, The Lola Quartet is her 3rd novel and in my opinion, her best yet.

Florida, New York, Utah. Journalism, drugs, jazz, and gambling addictions. Characters who seem to be real people, who elicit a visceral response from the reader. And, an ending that was an emotional punch in the gut. Emily's books only get better and better and I look at her as one of my personal writing teachers.

It's Been Awhile

2012-01-23T10:41:00.000-08:00

Wow!

I know that's what you're probably saying.

I haven't written on this blog in a while. You're right. I slacked off on writing the blog.

Hey, I'll be honest, I slacked off on writing as well.

But, I'm back and redoubling my efforts once again. I've even written down a New Year's resolution to write at least 1,000 words a day. How has that gone you ask? Well, the first four days of the year were great. I knocked out almost 5,000 words, completing the rough draft of a new short story- not sure what to call it yet. But, then, I started editing it and I didn't write the 1,000 words a day. Finding a balance between writing and editing is going to take some time (along with everything else going on in life).

I thought I'd share some numbers that you might find interesting (or not):

My first short story, "Once Was Lost," which I posted to both Barnes and Noble's Nook and Amazon's Kindle sites, has sold a very modest amount at the $0.99 price point. Amazon sold 9 copies and B&N sold 5. The Amazon sales were all in a short burst- all 9 copies being sold within the first two months of posting it. The B&N sales were actually spread out throughout the entire year of 2011.

Recently, I've tried something new. I removed "Once Was Lost" from the B&N Nook store and signed the Amazon Select agreement. This gives Amazon a 90 day window to be the exclusive seller of "Once Was Lost." Why would I do this?

First, it gives me the option to give away "Once Was Lost" for FREE for up to 5 days during the 90 day window. It is still up there for a couple of more days for FREE (until January 24, 2012). You can get it here- "Once Was Lost." I see this as a way to get my name out there to a wider audience and promote myself and my writing.

Second, it gives me the ability to allow Amazon to "loan" the short story to any member of their Amazon Prime program. Amazon puts aside an amount of money ($700,000 in January) to divided among all the authors whose books have been "borrowed." I figured that was another way to promote my writing as well as make a little bit of money.

So, how's it been going so far?

From Friday, January 20, 2012 until today, I've given away 86 copies of "Once Was Lost" through Amazon.com. Another 22 have been downloaded through Amazon.co.uk (the British site), and surprisingly, at least to me, another 7 copies were downloaded through Amazon.de (the German Amazon). No copies have been borrowed yet, but why would they be, since you can get them for free right now? I see this as 115 people who hadn't been exposed to my writing as at least taking an interest and getting my name out there a little more.

That becomes important as I will be posting a new short story this week and perhaps some of those who downloaded "Once Was Lost" and enjoyed it will purchase the new story. Then, when I'm ready to post the next short story, I'll make this next one free for a few days as well, hopefully building on increased recognition.

Will it work? I don't know, but I'll let you know how it goes.

What I've Been Reading

2011-04-09T15:47:00.000-07:00

In the last couple of weeks I've finished reading two books, both mysteries, from authors who have completely differing styles. Reading one after the other, juxtaposing these novels, was an eye opening view of contrast, which has taught me a lot about how to tell a story. It's like Stephen King once wrote (and I'm paraphrasing here), "If you want to be a writer you must be a reader."

The first book was a forthcoming title from two time Edgar Award winner,

John Hart. His new book, Iron House, coming in July 2011, is a wonderful example of how detail and description give emotional body to a story. Since this story hinges on information from the past, it's amazing to watch how Hart can move the current storyline forward while inserting backstory, remembrance, or flashback into many paragraphs without ever making the reader feel as if this information is intruding on, or sidetracking you from, the main story.

I've now read three of Hart's novels, Down River, The Last Child and now, Iron House, and while he has always been able to write with this incredible touch for detail and emotion, his art just continues to improve.

The second book was one that I discovered while on a business trip to Albuquerque, New Mexico. I was wandering thought he mystery section of a bookstore, killing some time, when I ran across The Chicago Way by Michael Harvey. The Chicago Way was published in 2007, and Harvey has written three more books in this series, including the newest title, We All Fall Down, coming in July 2011. The book intrigued me as I love to read mysteries which are set in cities that I have visited and am somewhat familiar with as I can envision the locations where the story is taking place.

The Chicago Way is a complete contrast to Iron House in that it is a hard-boiled detective novel, stripped down to tell the story in a dark and gritty way. Detail is limited to what you need to know to move the story along. Reminiscing about the past is almost non-existent unless it is absolutely necessary to the story. Unlike Iron House, the past is approached smashed-mouthed and head on, not in flowery prose subtlety inserted into paragraphs, giving you peeks at the past for tone and emotional impact. This head-on style brings its own in your face impact that is just as effective for The Chicago Way as the subtle tone was for Iron House.

Getting into Harvey's book was a shift in gears after reading Hart's "Iron House"- in fact it felt like stripping the gears when I first got started. Yet, I've really come to enjoy Harvey's style and I'm already deep into his second Michael Kelly novel, "The Fifth Floor."

Though contrasts in storytelling, Hart and Harvey give indelible lessons on how to create a story, build suspense, draw out emotion from the reader, and develop characters that you want to keep following well after the book has come to the final page.

Wrapping Up the Week, March 19,2011

2011-03-19T16:40:00.000-07:00

You've probably noticed I haven't posted anything for a couple of weeks. It doesn't mean I haven't been writing- well, it sort of does mean that.

Last week I ended up, in bed, hiding from the world, particularly any light and sound, as I fought a migraine that went on for four straight days. I finally went to the doctor and she gave me something to take care of it, but I felt hungover for the next three or four days. Migraines and the resulting hangovers really put a damper on writing. Even trying to stare at the computer screen is excruciating.

Once the migraine was beat back I was now a week behind on work at the pesky day job. That took a little doing to get caught back up.

And, last but not least, I received an advanced reading copy of "Hell Is Empty: A Walt Longmire Mystery" by one of my favorite mystery authors and friend, Craig Johnson. When Craig's new book shows up each year, everything else gets put on hold while I finish reading.

"Once Was Lost...," my first short story uploaded as an ebook for both Kindle and Nook, still sells ever so slowly, but a few sales are better than none at all!

And, as for writing, I'm now back on track there as well. I'm currently plowing my way through a book on how businesses can use social media effectively to get followers, create fans and increase business. That should be ready in the next few weeks. I haven't abandoned the fiction side of things- the short story, "The Cactus Curtain" is nearly done and ready to be put on display as a first draft and I've outlined the next short story, "Burned." I can't wait to get to "Burned" as this is a story that is now fully formed in my mind and should be one of the easiest to get written down.

Now, back to writing...

The Most Read Post of the Week, March 5, 2011

2011-03-05T10:39:00.000-08:00

This last week the most read post on The Path of a Writer was, "Why I Write," where I talked about my motivations for writing. Those of us who write all have our own motivations for doing it, but I wonder if many of us ever dig to the root of those motivations and are honest about why we do it. If your prime motivation is to make money, then Hey!, be honest about it. But, I would suspect that most serious writers have motivations that go deeper than that, since we well know, this is a tough business in which to make a living.

"Once Was Lost...," my first short story ever uploaded as an ebook to both Kindle and Nook continues to sell, slowly (every so slowly), but surely. I'm almost done with the first draft of "The Cactus Curtain," and I will post that draft on the blog once it's finished. I've also decided to fast-track a non-fiction book project entitled, "Get Social," about using social media for business, marketing and promotion. It's one I've been working on since November, but as I will be in Albuquerque, New Mexico on April 1, 2011 to give a social media presentation to a business group, I thought it would be nice to have a few copies on hand and online.

My Favorite Writing Tool

2011-03-04T07:00:00.000-08:00

No, I'm not talking about a writer who IS a tool. I'm talking about the tool I use to write with.

Some, like J.K. Rowling still like the longhand method- the rhythmic scratching of a No. 2 on a yellow legal pad. Others prefer the shotgun rat-a-tat-tatting of an old typewriter as the keys repeatedly strike the platen. And many, if not most, gently tap the keys and watch words appear and disappear on a softly glowing screen. I'm one of the latter.

Writing, even on the computer has evolved. I remember a time in my first year of college where the computer lab had the old green screen terminals connected to an IBM mainframe. To write a paper, we not only had to know how to type and what to say, but we had to take a class that taught us the proper codes to insert in order to indent, or double space, and even send the output to a dot matrix printer.

I've used my share of text editors and word processors, including WordPerfect and Microsoft Word, but a couple of years ago, I graduated to Scrivener. This is the program of which writers dream. Since, when I bought it, it only ran on the Mac OS, I bought a MacBook. That's right, I bought my first Apple computer so I could use a writing program.

Scrivener is so much more than a word processor. It makes outlining, organizing, research and editing easy. I can lay my story out, chapter by chapter with virtual index cards and move them around, arranging and rearranging, deciding in what order the chapters should go. I can organize research notes. I can set session goals, how long I want to work, or how many words I need to write. I can mark sections that are first drafts, that need more editing, or those that are done, all separate from one another. As I wrote the other day, Scrivener lets me determine my process, even when the process isn't linear.

Once I'm done writing and editing, I can move the entire project into a word processor like Word or Pages for further layout work. And better yet, with the newest version, Scrivener 2.0, I can export files direct to Kindle or EPUB formats. It can even do more, though they haven't created a version that can write the story for you- yet.

If you're interested in learning a little more about Scrivener and all the amazing things it can do, head on over to the Literature and Latte website. I highly recommend it. After all it made me buy a whole new computer.

How I Write

2011-03-03T07:00:00.000-08:00

Writing is a process.

Every writer has a process. Their own way of working. Of getting the story from their head to the computer screen (or paper, if you want to be old fashioned about it). The way one writer works might be considered crazy by another. But, does that matter? I don't think so. However you end up with a finished story, one that others want to read, a story for which they are willing to fork over a portion of their hard earned income, you've done your job. There is no right or wrong.

For years, I was self-conscious about my process. Am I doing this the right way? Should I outline, develop a character, roughly sketch it? Do I start at the beginning, or somewhere in the middle, working backwards and forwards at the same time? Does it really matter?

I had a writing teacher, back in my high school days, that didn't like my process. He liked the finished product, but didn't like the process I used to get them written. He called it "biological writing" because the story grew as I wrote. I didn't know where it was going until I wrote it. It wasn't outlined paragraph by paragraph. It drove him nuts and he let me know.

But I've discovered, particularly over the last couple of years, that the process matters far less than the finished story.

I still write short stories using the biological process- I start with the seed of an idea, a person or situation, and begin writing. I let it grow. Do I know how this is going to work out in the end? Nope. Does it always work? Nope. Do I do it this way all the time? Nope. Sometimes I know how the story will start and finish, I just need to write the middle.

When I've started work on novels, I've tried the biological process and it doesn't work as well. The ideas are too big, too complicated, have too many characters to just let it grow in the wild. That's when I outline, chapter by chapter. Then I pick a chapter and start writing, maybe knowing the beginning and the end, I let it grow. I've got several novels outlined with some of the chapters written. Now I just need to finish them.

My process is my process. It works for me. It may not have worked for my high school teacher and it may not work for another writer, but that's the point. Don't let anyone tell you how your process should work, tell you that if you don't do it their way, it's wrong. Don't let your self-consciousness or someone else's disapproval of your process stop you from writing, or you may end up like me. So worried about the process that it got in the way of the story. And then for years, I didn't write.

Why I Write

2011-03-01T06:00:00.000-08:00

Why do I write?

A question I've asked myself a lot in the last several days, weeks and months. And strangely, of all the answers I've given, all of them and none of them seem right. It's hard to put into words (sadly for someone who wants to call themselves a writer) why I want to write down the thoughts, words and stories that come into my head.

Why do it when I'll beat myself up for not turning a phrase like David Guterson or David Hilton, or depress myself for not telling a story like Peter Robinson or Craig Johnson? Is there something inside me that enjoys emotional self-flagellation?

I recently found myself accused of being a "published failed writer," which I found insulting, yet kind of funny at the same time. I'm published, yet, I've failed? Isn't being published the opposite of failure in this business called writing? And, it struck at the heart of the question, "Why do I write?"

I could say, "because I want to be rich and famous," but I know the odds of being struck by lightning are greater, so it's not for money and fame. I could say, "to get the girl," but frankly, I've already got the girl, and she has no delusions about my impending fame or fortune. It could be, "to see my name on the cover of a book when I walk into a bookstore," but that satisfaction is much more fleeting than it sounds. "To sign books, to meet my fans, to travel the world..." would all be convenient and comforting answers, and yet, as nice as each of those sound, they are not why I write.

Why do I write? I write for me. Let others choose for themselves to come along for the ride.

The Most Read Post of the Week, Feb. 26, 2011

2011-02-26T16:18:00.000-08:00

This past week, the most read (and commented post) was "The Irony of It All" where I discuss my decision to publish my short stories and novels in an ebook format, foregoing the traditional publishing route.

My short story, "Once Was Lost..." is still slowly selling for both the Kindle and Nook. Having made more money by epublishing this story than selling it to a magazine, I stand by my decision. What about six months or a year from now? We shall see.

I'm Currently Reading: Kings of Colorado

2011-02-25T15:23:00.000-08:00

Stephen King once wrote: "If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot" (On Writing, Stephen King, Simon and Schuster, 2000).

I am constantly reading, mostly because I enjoy it, but I learn a lot from other writers as well.

Right now, I'm in the middle of the book, Kings of Colorado by David Hilton. It is the story of thirteen year old William Sheppard, who lives in the Chicago in the early 1960's, and stabs his father in the chest to stop him from beating his mother, abuse that he both repeatedly has seen and suffered himself. The court doesn't take into account the fact that he was defending his mother (whose arm is broken in the attack) but sends him to a "reformatory" in the mountains of Colorado.

The boys ranch, a working ranch where they care for horses, is isolated and the perfect place for violence and abuse to take place, led by the men who run the ranch. There are boys at the ranch who belong in prison, some who need some discipline in their lives, and others who don't belong there at all.

The story is brutal, some critics even calling this book the "heir to Lord of the Flies." But, what Hilton does best is drawn out the emotional response from the reader, painting the pages with words that are as colorful in their own way as the book jacket. If you want to understand, as I mentioned the other day, how a writer transmits emotions to their readers, this book is a prime example.

I'm learning a lot from this one.

Decision Reached

2011-02-23T06:18:00.000-08:00

The other day I wrote that I was deciding which of two short story ideas to work on. Turns out, I've decided to work on both.

I'm currently working on the first draft of a "The Cactus Curtain," a story about illegal immigrants trying to cross the U.S.-Mexican border in the dead of night. It's a story that I've had in the idea file for a few years that evolved from a novel length project that I shelved after I started working on the first draft. It seemed a good time to bring this one out due to all the heated conversation on immigration these days. It offers a different look at immigration- that's all I'll say for now.

I'm also working on the outline for a story called "Burned." This popped into my idea file only about a year ago, based on several experiences that I had in some business dealings. Maybe it's not the ideal way to take care of debts owed, but it certainly sends a message. The interesting part of this story, is who is sending the message.

Both these stories will be gathered into a short story collection that I hope to have ready to put up on Amazon and Barnes and Noble ebook sites within the next few months.

Indifference Can Kill You

2011-02-22T13:00:00.000-08:00

A while back, I attended a meeting in Denver with the board of directors of a bookselling association, a group of people who are both colleagues and friends. We meet once a quarter to go over business matters that relate to our professional association and we spend the evenings together, going to dinner and sitting in bars, talking. We enjoy talking about books and anything else that happens to come up since we only get to see each other in person a few times a year.

During those three days I related several stories about myself to these friends and we shared some good laughs. As we finished the meetings and were getting ready to head to the airport and fly off to our separate destinations, one of my friends gave me a big hug, a kiss on the forehead, and told me I was one of the best storytellers she had ever met.

I was flattered.

I was also depressed.

Why is it that I can tell a great story, but I struggle writing that same story down on the proverbial piece of paper? I sit for hours, typing a story on my computer, then, when I go back and read it I ask myself, "Who would want to read this shit?"

Telling someone a story, with the voice inflections, the gestures, and facial expressions, where emotions are being transmitted directly is direct and immediate experience. When writing a story you have to transmit those inflections, gestures, expressions and emotions to a reader via words on the page. It is a step removed. A gap between reader and writer. A good writer can involve the reader, get them emotionally invested in the story.

This is a lot tougher than it sounds.

Often, I'm so worried about getting the "story" on the page (the words) that I lose grasp of the feelings (the emotional impact). I want readers to hate the bad guy as much as I do. I want readers to feel the tension and expectation. I want them to love the heroine like I have come to. In short, I want the reader to feel what I do when I'm imagining the story, the setting and the characters.

Yet, I let story get in the way of the emotion.

What is more important, story or emotion? I've heard arguments on both sides.

The way I look at it is this: If the reader doesn't have some kind of emotional attachment to the story, love, hate or something in between, the story doesn't matter. Indifference is NOT an emotion. It's a killer. If you can't draw some kind of emotional response, or create an emotional attachment to the story, you'll be lucky to get the reader to finish, no matter how amazing the story may be.

Ask yourself: Do I rarely ever finish reading a book if I find myself feeling indifferent?

I know that when I find myself emotionally attached, to a character, a plot line, a setting, then that book is as good as done.

The Irony of It All

2011-02-21T11:21:00.000-08:00

I'm spending my President's Day fleshing out the next couple of short stories and novel that I want to work on. And I'm doing it while sitting in the cafe of a Barnes & Noble Store, which is ironic for a couple of reasons.

I like to work in places where there is noise, not necessarily distractions, just ambient background noises- music playing, people talking, cash registers ringing, espresso machines churning. You get the idea. I've written about it before. But of all the places I could choose to go, I choose a Barnes and Noble. It could be the free Wi-fi or the venti Chai latte. But, it's not. I'm here because I like the feeling of being surrounded by books.

Now for the irony.

First, I manage a bookstore. Not a Barnes & Noble. But my own bookstore isn't that inviting. There is no cafe, there are only three uncomfortable chairs to sit in, and well, when I'm there, I feel stressed out. So, I go to a bookstore, not my own, in order to relax and work.

Even more ironic is surrounding myself with tens of thousands of paper books. Why, you might ask, is that ironic since you manage a bookstore and are working on writing books and short stories? Because, I've made a decision about getting published- I am publishing everything I write from now on in an e-format: books, short stories, essays, and of course, blog posts.

This is not due to the fact that I've had myriad rejection letters, in fact, I've only ever received three rejections. It's more in response to the way the market is shifting. More and more ebooks are showing up on bestseller lists, more and more people are buying Kindles, iPads, Nooks, Sony eReaders, etc. Last year, of all the books sold in the United States, nearly 10% were ebooks, with estimates for 2011 being as high as 20%.

A good friend of mine, who is a publisher sales representative for one of the major New York houses has said to me repeatedly, "This books business of ours, it's on the cutting edge of the 16th century." And he's right. Paper and ink have been around for a very long time with very little change in the methods of printing, distributing and selling. A major shift is taking place in how we publish, buy, and read books, and I would rather get ahead of the change rather than let it run me over. Do I think paper books will go away? No, not for a long time. But, the electronic format will soon be the primary way we access the information in the medium we have for so long called a book.

A few days ago, for the very first time, I released a short story in this format for both the Kindle and Nook. The story, "Once Was Lost...," has sold a few copies via Amazon (thanks to all of you who have spent the ninety-nine cents), and as of yet, none for the Nook. Am I going to make a living on one short story in an eformat? No. But, I've already made more money from the "ebook" than I have by trying to sell it to magazine (in fact, if you count printing and postage, I'm in the hole trying to sell it to magazines).

My own observations of the book publishing and selling industries, as well as reading blogs from both Mike Cane and J.A. Konrath, have convinced me to go this direction. Will it be the right one? I think so. What about you?

Pass the Pepsi, Hold the Insomnia

2011-02-18T07:32:00.000-08:00

I couldn't sleep last night. Maybe it was the Diet Pepsi I drank at 8:00 p.m.. Maybe it was the nap I took from 9:00 p.m. to 12:30 p.m.

All I know is that once I woke, fully clothed, lying on top of the blankets, I couldn't go back to sleep until almost 4:30 a.m. Sad thing is; I had to get up at 6:00 a.m. to get to work.

I tried going back to sleep, but it just wouldn't happen. So, I read and responded to some email. Read a few blogs about writing, a few more about ebook publishing, checked my sales on my Kindle short story, "Once Was Lost...," read a few more blogs, and now it was 1:30 a.m.

How did I kill the next three hours? I lay there letting story ideas race through my mind. Often times, that will help me drift to sleep (and occasionally give me something to dream about), but maybe because of the ideas I was going over, it kept me awake. I played around with the two stories that I told you about yesterday. Trying to weigh scenarios, characters, plots and outcomes. Trying to decide which to focus on first. That lasted until 2:30 a.m.

Finally, I gave up trying to force myself back to sleep, grabbed the computer and began writing. Now, I won't tell you which story I worked on- I still want your input on which story you think I should finish next. But, I've discovered that when you're tired, yet you can't sleep, there is no better time to let the mind wander and the fingers fly across the keyboard. Reading this morning what I wrote last night, I'll probably discard a bunch, but a few things worked as part of the story and maybe will make it better.

Now, excuse me while I lean my head against the window of the train and take a nap. Will somebody please wake me when we get to the Stadium station?

To Begin Again

2011-02-17T07:33:00.001-08:00

Since I've put "Once Was Lost..." out there on Amazon.com (and now for the Nook on Barnes & Noble), it's time to start work on the next project. I really don't have to agonize over coming up with a story idea- I've got an entire file on my computer full of them. I collect story ideas wherever I go.

I've narrowed the choices in the field down to two:

The first is a story about a house fire, where the occupant is terribly burned. As the man suffers in the burn unit of the hospital, fire investigators determine the fire was deliberately set. As neighbors are questioned about what they saw or heard that night, the police discover a pattern of bad behavior by the burned man, seemingly giving a number of people in the neighborhood the motive to have set the fire. What the police ultimately find out will shock them and the entire neighborhood.

The second story is set in the Sonoran desert on a moonless night as a man and woman attempt to illegally immigrate across the U.S.-Mexican border. They encounter several problems and dangerous situations while trying to make their way to the biggest obstacle- a newly built wall, patrolled 24 hours a day. Even if they can make it over the wall, they still have to evade the border patrol, not an easy thing to do with all the security measures that are now in place. But, the twist at the end is carefully concealed until nearly the last sentence.

Any thoughts on which one you would like to see first?

I've Finally Done It

2011-02-15T07:45:00.000-08:00

Well, I've finally done it.

I've finished the short story that many of you have read on this blog. Ok, so I finished it a while back, submitted it to some magazines and received some very nice rejection letters. Yeah, it hurts a little to see that "thanks, but no thanks" letter, but you've got to pick yourself up and move on.

Because I've decided to move on and try again, I've also decided to take a different approach than repeatedly send this story to magazines. I have sent this short story up to Amazon.com's Kindle store. It is now out there for the world to see (and purchase) on their Kindle's and Kindle enabled devices. Do I expect to make much, trying to sell a short story $0.99 at a time? No. That's not the point.

The point is- my short story is out there. To be seen, to be read, to be liked, loved, or hated. If you're interested in reading the final version, which has evolved from the previous versions I've posted here, follow this link to get you there: Short Story- "Once Was Lost..." by Drew Goodman.

And, I haven't quit writing, though my silence on this blog has been deafening. The journey has just begun. Stay tuned...

Wandering, Gathering and Inspiration

2010-10-30T09:14:00.000-07:00

I've been traveling lately. In fact, as I write this post I am sitting in a wonderful little cafe in Chicago, sipping a drink and watching people around me, inside and through the window.

While I have been here on business, the majority of the last five days spent in the basement convention halls of the Chicago Hilton, the evenings have been my own and I've contented myself by wandering through museums, gawking at architecture, and relaxing in restaurants, coffee shops and bars. Chicago is one of my favorite cities, not just for the many things there are to do and see, but for the diversity, laid back intensity, and the ideas this place sparks in my mind. It is a place that has inspired novels, movies, and musicals.

I've watched people give money to beggars, a transit officer and a hotel doorman get into a yelling match, and tourists that are lost stop me and ask for directions (the irony being that while I've been here before, I myself am technically a tourist). I've listened to a dozen different languages being spoken, heard emergency vehicles roar by my hotel at all hours of the night, and enjoyed myself as a piano player in a bar regaled us all with his own surprisingly good rendition of Billy Joel's, The Piano Man.

It's when I travel that my mind races, becoming hypersensitive to my surroundings, watching and listening for anything and everything, reveling in unfamiliarity, and ultimately, gathering in ideas, for settings, characters and stories, both consciously and unconsciously. It is when I am out of my element that I am most in my element. This trip to Chicago has filled my head- thank goodness I had my computer to catch the overflow.

Write What You Know. Really.

2010-10-08T10:21:00.000-07:00

"Write what you know."

Many of us who've taken writing classes have heard those famous words and they unfortunately have discouraged many from writing. When it comes to fiction, I would dare say that most of us haven't traveled through deep space, committed a murder, or been on a journey with hobbits and wizards. With this philosophy in place, there would seem to be a gaping hole in the heart of many stories. How do you write about what you don't know, what you haven't done?

All too often, writing teachers will teach this point too literally. "If you are a cop, write about being a cop. If you're a plumber, write about that," they say. I'm nearly 100% certain that Arthur C. Clarke never traveled through the solar system, or that Michael Connelly hasn't ever committed a heinous crime. So how do they write about these subjects?

"What you know" is the sum of all the parts, the totality of your experiences. Do you need to have traveled through deep space into the heart of luminous nebula in order to feel the wonder and awe associated with strange and natural beauty? I've experienced that in the canyons of the Southwest. Do you need to go to London or Tokyo to describe the excitement of visiting a large city that makes you feel small and overawed? I've felt that way wandering the streets of Chicago, or Seattle, or San Antonio. Do you need to be beaten and abused in order to know loathing, hatred and fear? Just ask me about the bullies I've dealt with in my life.

Our lives are the suml of the experiences that we've gone through. Robert Frost eloquently stated, "No tears in the writer, no tears in the reader." We can draw on a lifetime of experience, from the reservoir of emotional reserve to fill out the lives of the characters in our fiction. I write what I know; connections and emotions I understand complete my characters and the situations they find themselves in.

While I started this blog to take you through my writing experiences (i.e., the processes), I feel that a fundamental part of the process is missing. In the last year (while I've failed to update this blog) I've visited incredible places, met amazing people, read phenomenal books, and had experiences that were both fantastic and "oh, Shit!" moments. Those things are "what I know." They draw out thoughts, ideas and emotions that regardless of what I write, will be distilled into my fiction. So this blog is evolving. I will still blog about the process (and do it more frequently), but incorporate those people, things, and places that give me ideas and the emotional foundations on which to build stories.

In other words, I'm filling the hole in the heart of this blog. I'm writing what I know.

Putting Me Through The Wringer

2009-07-23T10:49:00.000-07:00

When I got home from the day job yesterday, lying on the coffee table was an envelope waiting for me to open it. Calling for me to open it. Screaming at me, really.

It was a copy of the short story "Lost and Found" that yesterday I told you had been taken by a bestselling mystery author friend of mine to be read and critiqued.

When he took it, he warned me he would "tell it like it is," He didn't want to create any bad feelings in our friendship. I told him I understood. I told him I wanted that critical eye telling me what I was doing wrong and what (if anything) I had done right. He told me that if he didn't make a comment on a sentence or paragraph, that meant he liked it. He said he'd make comments to help me improve the story otherwise.

I ripped open the envelope and sat down to both read the story and his comments. There was a Post-It note stuck to the front page- "I put you through the ringer (sic.) buddy- hope it helps!"

I was prepared for absolute devastation, but as it turns out, I didn't need to be. He made a lot of comments, ninety percent of which I think can only make the story better. There are some that made me think I might have to rework the underlying plot and reset the time line. There are even a few that are forcing me to do what I didn't want to- get rid of the first sentences and paragraphs that I wrote which were the basis of the story.

Click here to see the story and the editorial critique.

It was interesting and eye opening to get this perspective from someone who has been there and understands what it takes to make a story interesting. Now, if you'll excuse me, I must get back to work, as it seems I have a lot of work to do.

Do I Have ADHD?

2009-07-22T11:55:00.000-07:00

I sometimes wonder if I have ADHD? My attention span seems so short lived that I have to wonder if I'm easily distracted by the latest shiny object (or book) that catches my eye. Like the book I just picked up this week...

What was I talking about? Oh yeah, my short attention span.

Maybe it's due to work or family. It could be due to the fact that having lost two full time employees due to slow sales, I am doing three jobs instead of one, sometimes requiring me to take work home. Sometimes sitting at home, working on my computer, I find other sites I want to look at. Like, the other day, I found this site...

Where was I going with this? Oh, yeah- writing.

It's been a while since I last posted. Partly due to my short attention span, partly due to work and family, partly due to...

Hold it! Focus! Writing. That was what I wanted to talk about.

While I've been offline (not just off the blog, my Twitter and Facebook friends can confirm my absence there as well), I have been writing. Fiddling with ideas, sketching characters and playing with plot lines. But, something really cool happened too.

The first short story I shared on this blog, "Lost and Found," has been taken, read and criticized by a bestselling mystery author. I'm waiting to receive the manuscript through snail mail, but his email to me contained two words that were encouraging- "Good story." Lacking flaws? Perfect? Nah, I'm sure he's hammered it with the intent of helping me make it better, but I'm thrilled with the fact that he's found SOME merit in it.

Meantime, I've started a new short story I'm calling "The Hand That Feeds You." Now that may sound ominous. I hope it does. This is turning into an interesting plot. The protagonist becomes the antagonist and vice-versa. There are guns, traps, poisons, bears and chihuahuas. There is the opportunity to like and hate both of the human characters. At least that is what I hope the plot outline is giving me. If you'd like to see how I've plotted this out initially, go to "The Hand That Feeds You" plot outline.

Once again, make comments. Some of your comments have made "Lost and Found" better than it started out, good enough to be called a "good story" by a bestselling author. Hopefully, this story goes in the same direction.

Now, I was supposed to do something, but I seem to have forgotten...

Ok People, Make Some Noise

2009-04-11T15:03:00.000-07:00

I don't know about other writers, but I used to think that I wrote best when I was left completely alone, in a quiet place in order to be alone with my thoughts. I have recently discovered that I tend to be more productive when I'm in a place surrounded by noise.

Whether that noise is music, people, or the general background noise of life, I seem to be able to absorb that noise and focus it into my writing. The recent description I wrote of a young woman in a Las Vegas bar, was written in the midst of two dueling piano players who were singing loudly and getting the entire crowd to sing along with them. I've had several comments from people who really liked this description and want to know more about this story (this has subsequently turned into my next project).

Now, I can't concentrate when the noise is directed at me, such as people talking and wanting me to respond in some coherent way. But, if the noise is background, not soft, yet not completely drowning out my own thoughts, it becomes a kind of muse.

I should have started writing during rock concerts years ago. I'd have several novels done by now. Who knew?

To Curse, or Not To Curse

2009-03-21T21:14:00.000-07:00

Since I lasted posted on the blog, I have been working on my new short story "Burned," which I plan to share the first draft with all of you shortly.

Meanwhile, I was on the road this last week for business, but I took the opportunity to continue collecting ideas and characters in my little notebook that I always carry with me.

While in Las Vegas, I hung out at one of my favorite bars- The Piano Bar at Harrah's Casino. This place is just flat out fun. There are two grand pianos on a low rise stage right in the middle of the bar where every night from 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. two pianists take popular song requests get everyone in the bar to sing a dance along. It can get pretty raucous.

While there one night, I noticed a young woman sitting at the end of the low bar that nearly surrounds the stage. She was alone, which isn't unusual, but the more I watched, she turned out to be one of the most oddly interesing people in the bar that night. I had to pull out the notebook and start making notes.

While I don't normally curse heavily when I write, I also think that you have to be true to the characters you are writing about or describing. I ended up dropping the F-bomb a couple of times to describe this young woman. Here is the description I wrote:

"She sat near the music, the grand pianos on the small stage, white fedora on the counter seemingly oblivious to the music and drunken chaos around her. Even surrounded by a crowd in the bar you could tell she was alone. She talked and laughed with no one, sipped at a drink very slowly and didn’t sing along with the dueling pianists that had the rest of the bar sounding like a dissonant choir.
Skinny, almost stickly so, with almost non-existent breasts, not well hidden by her thin pink tank top that read "certified bitch." A pair of tight, faded skinny blue jeans, and a pair of what could only be described as a “fuck me” pair of shoes, though her attitude really said, “fuck you.”
Occasionally she would open up a small notebook, write in it, then scribble things out, often everything on a page.
She was pretty in profile, beautiful face on. When I finally noticed that, she was gone, but not forever I hoped. The white fedora, the notebook, and her drink were still on the counter.
I didn't see her walk out, but I waited achingly for her to walk back into the bar. And I waited.
When she came back she was wearing a camouflage jacket and reached down into one of the bags next to her chair, Walmart, Target and Rite-Aid, and took out a baby blanket that was brown with pink polka dots on one side and solid pink on the other. She put it on her lap, wrapped her hands securely inside, and pulled it close as she continued listening to the pianos and singers.
After a moment she quickly scribbled a note, stood and put it down on the piano in front of the closest piano player. She did it with a sense of familiarity and non-chalantness that either indicated that she knew the performer or didn't care what others thought about her walking onto the low stage. She sat back down and stared cold and emotionless at the piano player for a few moments before gathering up all her bags and leaving the noise of the bar behind in a wake of palpable indifference. The only thing that indicated her recent presence was a half finished drink, with a red straw held erect by the ice cubes, and the cheap hotel pen she'd been using to scribble in her notebook.
Those were soon cleared by one of the two waitresses working the bar that evening.
For some reason, I was suddenly cold in a city that sat in the middle of a raging hot desert. I had chills I couldn't rid myself of and the thought of the baby blanket, the bags she carried crammed full of her possessions, and the way she approached the musician left me with a frozen lump of ice in the pit of my stomach. Yet, I didn't know exactly why.
Was it due to a physical attraction unfulfilled or something deeper, a sense of having watched something take place that was subconsciously incongruous?
I couldn’t decide whether to follow her or try to find out what was written on the note she left on the piano."

I thought this could be the basis for a great story. I just don't know if I took the description a little too far, or if it came out with just the amount of punch I intended. Thoughts anyone?

I've Been "Lost and Found," Now I'm Being "Burned"

2009-02-24T20:43:00.000-08:00

"Lost and Found," the short story I've been working on and sharing here with you has officially been placed on the back burner as I've sent manuscript copies to a couple of friends who have graciously volunteered to read and critique it for me (Thanks Eric and Brandon!).

Several of you (Gay, Jenn, Sara among others) have left comments here on the blog giving me some great feed back as well. I'm waiting for the copies to come back to me, and then I will compile all the critiques and comments together and begin another revision. This also gives me time to step back away from the story for a little while and hopefully, when I return to it, will give me some fresh perspective on my own story.

Meanwhile, there's no time to rest. On to the next story! Writers (or wannabe writers) have to keep writing. So, I've begun work on my next short story, tentatively titled, "Burned."

I've always kept a little notebook with me to write down story and character ideas when inspiration strikes. Just a few weeks ago, I wrote down a short character study which became the basis for this new short story. Here is the characterization as I wrote it down:

"The only comparison I can make is that he reminded me of a used car salesman and an insurance salesman combined. Would that be a used car insurance salesman? When first meeting him, he seemed a respectable and reputable person- tall and fairly lean for a man in his mid-fifties that spent his days in an office. His graying hair was shaved short, mainly to give the appearance of hair while trying to cover up the growing bald spots. He slipped on reading glasses only when reading fine print, making him look like a dignitary when sitting behind his desk. He was quick to shake your hand, pumping it rapidly while putting the other hand on your shoulder, giving you the feeling that he cared, that you were the only person in the world at the moment.
But, in reality, he was a mean, vulgar, and dishonest individual. He’d call you terrible names to your face when he felt slighted. He’d cheat you out of money duly earned if you worked for him, sometimes not paying you at all. He’d intimidate and threaten you to keep you quiet about his loutish, dishonest behavior.
The bullyish behavior would only be exhibited when he was sure he could get away with it, only when he was sure there would be no complaints, when he could be assured of no retaliation.
This obnoxious and brutish behavior was only exhibited towards children.
Someone eventually complained about something that had happened. One or more children had said something about how they’d been treated. There were threats against him; anonymous threats that escalated to pranks and then to violence. Now he lay in a coma, on the verge of death. Burned."

Now, I'm working on the first draft of the story, which I hope to share with all of you soon.

I Am Alive... And Writing

2009-02-07T20:42:00.000-08:00

It's been almost a month since I last posted to the blog. But, unlike my last post, where I admitted I'd been very, very bad, this time I've been good (not very good, but good).

It's been a busy month- I've been through a semester opening at the university bookstore where I work, attended the ABA's Winter Institute in Salt Lake City, went to the Mountains and Plains Independent Bookseller's Association board meeting, also in Salt Lake, and endured all sorts of massive changes flying at me at work (those are a topic for another post, one where I can rant a little more).

During all of it, I've found time to write nearly every day. Some days were more productive than others. Some days I only was able to work while riding the bus and train. But, I did work. Now, I've finished a revised draft of my short story, "Lost and Found."

Click here to read it, then drop me a comment and tell me what you think.

I've Been Bad. Very, Very Bad.

2009-01-10T18:36:00.000-08:00

My resolution this year has been to write. And to write consistently.

I've written about butt glue and the need to apply it to a chair and force yourself to sit there and write until you are done with that day's goal.

I've written about Don Music and getting frustrated with the writing process, but also, the willingness to dive back in and avoid the NEVER, NEVER, NEVER attitude.

I've written about letting your characters lead you through their story and finding out that what you thought the story was isn't what it turns out to be. You have to expect the unexpected.

I've written all about those things. I just haven't written much on my story for the last week.

Why? I'm full of excuses. I could list them all right here. But, they would still be excuses, so I won't bother you with all of the things that I could say have gotten in the way of sitting down and getting to work.

Last night, I had an opportunity to attend a dinner party with some new friends, people who blog about books and who live relatively near me. Our hostess, who arranged the party, was absolutely fantastic. She gathered a group of people together who care passionately about books into her home and let us have a relaxed discussion about the thing we love so much. She also invited local author James Dashner to join us, which he did.

It was enjoyable, especially for those of us who write, to talk to Dashner, not only about books, but about the writing process. Dashner loves what he does. You can tell. And he now writes full time- no pesky day job to get in the way of what he loves. But, then he told us that writing full time meant that he had to treat it as a job.

He has to dedicate time to writing and rewriting, to revisions and corrections sent to him by his editor. He answers email and fan mail. He has business discussions with his agent, editor and publisher. He works on his web site. He visits schools and does author signings. He has to organize his time and make sure things get done. When he got done describing a day, it sounded familiar. It sounded like a job (which I have, just doing something different).

I've resolved (and I'll do this again and again and again, knowing myself), that even though right now I don't have an agent, or an editor, or publisher (or fan mail, or author signings), I need to treat writing as a job. I love to write. I want to eventually work with an agent and sell my work- and ultimately, that is a job. That's how I have to treat it, starting right now.

Thanks James. You've made me realize that I can have a job and love it too.

Expect The Unexpected

2009-01-03T09:43:00.000-08:00

This is really more of an update than a full blown post. I continue to hunker down at my desk, typing away at my short story "Lost and Found." Since my "Don Music" outburst the other day, I have relaxed and taken it a little easier on the keyboard. I haven't screamed NEVER! NEVER! NEVER! again. I've rediscovered what it takes to finish a writing project. Perseverance.

Keep moving along, don't stop, write and rewrite. Expect detours and diversions. Don't force the story the direction you want to go if there is a better place to take it. Be flexible. Expect the unexpected.

Hopefully, in a short while, I'll be able to share the next incarnation of the story with all my readers.

For now, if you'll excuse me, this detour is over and it's time to get back to work.

Some Days Are Better Than Others

2008-12-31T10:53:00.000-08:00

I'm sure that all of you who write have experienced it.

Things seem to be going well. The words are coming out smoothly. You're in the flow. And then...

You hit that place, that certain point, where you can't seem to go any further. The words and ideas have suddenly stopped. It's like beating the bottom of that damn ketchup bottle, and nothing, but nothing, will come out!

I hit that point last night with my short story, "Lost and Found." The river suddenly dried up- OK, it wasn't exactly a river, more like a creek, but now it's just dried mud in the bottom of a channel surrounded by brown grass.

Those of you who grew up with Sesame Street might remember Don Music- "NO! I'LL NEVER GET IT!! NEVER! NEVER! NEVER!" And then he pounds his head on the piano keys. (Enjoy the clip below).

That's how it felt last night. That's when I knew it was time for bed. Well, that and the fact that I needed a new keyboard. They don't stand up to head pounding as well as I thought they would.

But, today's another day, another day to write, to get the river (creek) flowing once again. Once, I get back from buying a new keyboard.

Listening To Cline

2008-12-29T21:15:00.000-08:00

I've spent the last two evenings working on my short story, "Lost and Found." The writing continues to work me over, like body blows to the brain, but progress is being made. I seem to be getting a more complete picture of Cline, the main character. Does it mean you're crazy when the character you are writing about talks to you, directs his own story? It's just a matter of listening carefully to what he is saying. It's going to be interesting to see where he leads me, as his idea of the story is both more complete and a little different than the version I first put to paper.

Fortunately, I've had a little assistance. Both Cline and myself seem to like the same kinds of music, or at least the same mood of music. I guess it puts us both in the same frame of mind and we work better together on getting his story told.

Perhaps I've gone a little nuts, listening to one of my creations, but, hey, it's his story. I'll go where he wants to. I'll check back in with you all later. If I start calling myself Cline at that point, do me a favor- call a psychiatrist.

Rewrites and Self-Doubts

2008-12-27T19:34:00.001-08:00

Okay. I've got the idea, outlined it, fleshed out the first draft and now mapped the story out on paper in order to rearrange things, I've left the handwritten side of things and jumped over to the word processor. It makes things a little easier to fix as I rearrange and smooth out the rough edges.

But, with this change, I'm now struggling. I know what I want to do, what I want to say, but I'm having a hard time getting the pieces all back together again. This is the part where I start questioning my ability to be a writer. I want to be. I've always wanted to be. I've published a book before (non-fiction, which is beginning to seem easier than fiction). But, staring at this short story is testing my resolve, my dream. Am I really cut out for this? Good enough for this? Can I put the words together and make it work? Will people really want to read this garbage?

I know this draft isn't the first, but it feels like it. Perhaps I need to go and read "Shitty First Drafts" once again to calm my nerves. Maybe I should dig around in my bookshelves and find one of those books that is so terribly written it ought to have its own chapter in a book on writing, "Shitty Final Products." Reading those kinds of things always makes me say to myself, "I can write better than that."

Okay, enough self-doubt and pity. Its back to work to make this thing work. If it doesn't work this time, I'll rewrite it again. And, again. And again.

You Did What, Where?

2008-12-26T22:46:00.000-08:00

As I resolved yesterday, I spread butt glue on my chair this evening and went to work on the rough draft of my short story, Lost and Found. Strangely enough, the chair on which I spread the butt glue, was not my own comfy chair in my home office, but a rather uncomfortable chair in the middle of a wedding reception at the Salt Lake Country Club. Why you ask?

My wife plays trumpet with a big band, and they had a gig tonight performing at a wedding reception. She didn't want to drive across the Salt Lake Valley in the middle of a snow storm, so I went with her to do the driving. Since I didn't know anyone at the reception, I decided to be anti-social, sit in a corner and read. I brought Kate Atkinson's "Case Histories" and Malcolm Gladwell's "Outliers" with me, as well as my Moleskine notebooks that I use for writing.

After reading a couple of chapters in each book, I decided it was time to work on the writing. Besides, no one was inviting me to partake of either the buffet or the cake, so I figured to continue ignoring all of them. I'm sure that taught them all a lesson.

I took some advice from Gay, who has posted some wonderful suggestions on this blog thus far, and decided to do a little reworking of the storyline. I mapped out the story into 14 basic sections, in their current order, and then began looking for some ways to rearrange the story to give it a better flow, build the characters some more, and add some tension. This was a little more difficult than I had imagined. You can see the story map here.

Since I envisioned the story the way I wrote it down originally, looking at a different time-line was tough. As I began to think it through and draw some lines, I realized that I would have to both add and subtract from the story to make this arrangement work a little better. It doesn't really change the story at all, hopefully it makes it better. So, now I am imagining a slightly different setup scenario, where Cline has a confrontation in his apartment building with another tenant or landlord that builds some tension and sets things up for his apartment being broken into at the end of the story. I have also rearranged the meeting with Jeannie in the cafe, so that there is more dialogue, more interaction, maybe a little hope for Cline that Jeannie has come back for him. Though, if he got the girl, what fun would that be. I don't do happily ever afters.

Overall, I think it potentially makes improvements, but I need to work out some of the new directions and clean off the rough edges, but I'll start on that tomorrow.

Right now, I just hope the Salt Lake Country Club isn't too upset about all the butt glue I spread around one of their chairs.

Where's the Butt Glue?

2008-12-25T17:44:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas everyone.

It has been a monstrously busy last few days around my life. Working, shopping, cooking, wrapping presents. Did I mention working? The holidays are always a hectic time of year. There is so much going on with family, friends, work and, of course, parties, that sometimes things get tossed by the wayside. One of those things has been my time for writing. I tell myself that I have an excuse. All the holiday interruptions don't give me time to sit down and work on my writing. But, I have been using this excuse for years, and not just at Christmas time.

My birthday, my anniversary, the Fourth of July, National Ice Cream Day. There always seems to be something that I can blame for my writing time being non-existent during the day. Always a way to get out of sitting down and thinking, typing, writing, editing, etc.

What this means is that in the last several days, I've not sat down and written a word. I've been busy. Really, I have.

Recently, in my attempt to return to my writing, I recalled a conversation about "butt glue." If you want to be a writer, you've got to have butt glue (you need to have a few other things as well, some talent being right at the top of the list). Can I buy butt glue by the gallon down at OfficeMax? How thick should I spread it on my chair? What kind of solvent should I use to get it off?

In reality, butt glue is that inner resolve to sit in your favorite writing chair and not get easily distracted, not to get up until you've reached a goal. Perhaps that goal is two hours of working on the latest project or maybe not getting up until you've written 3,000 words. You can't buy your butt glue at OfficeMax or Walmart (although it would be nice). It is made on your own, out of your own resolve. It should be thick enough to keep you in the chair for as long as it takes to reach your goal, whatever that may be. But, be careful, the solvent to melt the butt glue and release you from that chair can be found anywhere. A phone call, a TV show, a video game, even Twitter (damn you Twitter!) can dissolve butt glue faster than ice in a desert.

So, this Christmas Day 2008, I am resolving to find my butt glue, spread it thick, and hide from the solvents until it is time to get up from the chair. I will make time every day single day, whether Christmas, Easter or National Toe Jam Day, to sit and write and accomplish my daily goal. And of course, share my progress right here with you.

Now, where's that can of butt glue? I've got some work to do on a short story.

Some Fresh Perspective on "Lost and Found"

2008-12-22T19:56:00.000-08:00

As I explained in my last post, I often read a chapter in Anne Lamott's wonderful book "Bird by Bird," not necessarily for inspiration, per se, but to make myself feel better about working on the first draft of a story. That rough uncut lump that lands on the page with a thud is oftentimes as ugly as sin and twice as black. Reading the chapter entitled "Shitty First Drafts" helps me realize that all writers have to go through the same process (Lamott does say one writer she knows writes elegant first drafts, but that she and her friends don't like the writer very much and doubts that God likes her either).

But, now, as much I both like and loathe the first draft, it's here, on paper. It's shitty and that's what I expected. That's OK. No surprises in that outcome. Now comes the tough part, prettying it up. The red pencil (these days, also known as the delete key) comes out and its time to make changes. But, what changes to make?One of the commenter's on this blog so far, Gay, has made several entries and has offered some fresh perspective on the story. Seeing the story again through her eyes has given me some realizations. One, it needs work. Two, it needs tension. Three, it needs rearranging to help the flow and drive the tension.

It hurts sometimes, this criticism. You write and you know some parts are crap, but you believe in your heart that, beyond the crap, the story is good. No, it's great. It's your child, and my child is perfect. You want to believe that. But, I happen to be a parent in real life as well, so I know that the "my child is perfect" line is a huge load of crap anyway. It needs some help, the story, not the child (OK, the child too, but I'll deal with that offline). This criticism, no matter how painful to hear, should be heard. Should be paid attention to. Should be heeded. Does it mean that I'll take every suggestion, make every change suggested? No. I'll still insist that some of the things I've done, I like, that they work, and I'll keep them. But, I will listen. I will make improvements. I will appreciate the criticism and let it help me help my story.

So, I'm off. It's time to take some great suggestions, work them in with my own thoughts and ideas, and make it a better story in the end.

The story is still HERE in its first draft form if you want to read it and make any suggestions yourselves. I'm always listening.

Who's At The Door?

2008-12-21T14:08:00.000-08:00

My current project, the short story I'm working on with a main character by the name of Cline, started its formation with a couple of sentences, which grew to several paragraphs. And, that's where I got stuck.

I knew a couple of things about Cline from these paragraphs. I named him Cline because I wanted a name that could be from a rural area, Heartland of America. Why I settled on Cline, I don't know (Patsy Cline?), the name just hit me and it stuck. He's originally from a small town and has moved to a large city. Which small town and which big city? Although I have a couple of places in mind, I decided it wasn't important to the story to define the place. I left it vague, let the reader decide, create their own vision of where Cline is at and where he's from.

The reason he's in the big city is to get lost, to lose himself, to hide from his past. It doesn't concern him that he's from a small town, he just wants to escape a few things, his family, small town gossip, and something else. The something else, I still didn't know what that was.

I read and reread the paragraphs I had, asking myself where I wanted this to go. Although I didn't come up with an answer to that question, I did come up with a picture of Cline, sitting on a couch in a spartan, one room apartment. That's when I heard a knock at his door and I asked myself, "Who's at the door?"

Unfortunately, I couldn't answer that question just yet, but, I could certainly ask it. So, for the next three or four days I constantly asked myself, "Who's at the door?" The question kept running through my head, at home, at work, sitting on the train, reading a book, lying in bed. "Who's at the door?"

One evening, I had stayed up far too late, drinking far too much Diet Pepsi (Warning: don't drink 64 oz. Diet Pepsi's at 11:00 p.m. if you want to have a chance of going to sleep) while working on another blog I write. I went to bed at about 12:30 a.m., but couldn't sleep (gee, I wonder why?). The question, "Who's at the door?" was by now, my constant companion, and I was frankly getting quite sick of the question.

"Who's at the damn door already?"

It was banging around in my head, making it quite hard to sleep (that and the Diet Pepsi), when it suddenly hit me. I knew who was at the door. And surprisingly, it wasn't a person knocking, it was Cline's past. The story started pouring out of my head, like when your sinuses suddenly clear, but not quite so messy. Within a half hour, I'd told myself the story, from beginning to end. I liked it. The end surprised me. And, then, the caffeine wore off and I was asleep.

The next morning, on the train ride to work I started writing it down in my notebook. That evening on the train ride home, I kept writing. I wrote, sometimes in draft, sometimes in full prose, getting the story on the page. My handwriting got increasingly hard to read and I'd have to slow down. Oh, and I wrote it backwards. That is, I had written the first paragraphs of the story at the back of my notebook since I'd filled the front pages with another story idea, so I just kept writing from back to front. That's made the second draft entertaining at times.

I was constantly worried about what I was saying and how I was saying it. Some places it came out all right. Others, I hated the words the moment I wrote them. I nearly gave up over the words. I had to take a short break and read one of my favorite chapters in one of my favorite writing books, Anne Lamott's "Bird by Bird," and the chapter entitled, "Shitty First Drafts." It's OK she counseled me. No manuscript comes out perfect the first time. We all write shitty first drafts. Feeling better, I continued.

A day later, the first draft was done. Well, part outline, part first draft, but it was done. I had the story. It needed work. It needed some new words. It needed to be cut, cropped and molded. But, it was free of my head and was on the paper. And, for the first time in a long time, I was excited about writing again.

All it took was beating myself over the head with the question, "Who's at the door?"

To see the first draft/outline of this short story, click here for "Lost and Found." (This is a .pdf file, viewable with Adobe Acrobat Reader.)

The First Project- Lost and Found

2008-12-20T17:02:00.000-08:00

Normally, I carry a book everywhere I go because I love to read. Along with a book, I always carry a notebook to write down story ideas as I get them. I never know when and where I might get an idea. Watching people go about life, seeing a particular scene laid out, it may jog something in my brain that gets me thinking- "That could be a really cool story."

Three or four weeks ago, the book I was carrying with me was "The Best American Mystery Stories, 2002." I love mysteries and many of the ideas I've written down over the years were ideas for mystery stories. This was a particularly amazing collection because there were also several of the mystery shorts that revolved around baseball, and I'm a big baseball fan as well (go Rockies!). But, I'm getting off track. While reading one of the stories, and unfortunately I don't remember which one, I read a sentence, just part of a sentence, that I really liked. It stuck in my head.

Just a few minutes after reading this line, I was getting cleaned up and ready to spend an evening out with my wife. I jumped in the shower, this line still bouncing around in my head. Now, it wasn't necessarily the words, but the images that the words painted that suddenly gave me an idea. Do you sing in the shower? Well, I talk in the shower. And I started talking out the idea for this story. Unfortunately, I don't carry my notebooks into the shower and I had to keep repeating the lines to myself so I wouldn't forget them. I jumped out of the shower and wrote them down as near as I could remember them.

"Cline didn't have a small town chip on his shoulder. He just preferred the anonymity a big city provided."

This got me thinking about Cline: who is he? where is he from? what is he doing in the city? why is he there? As I mulled these questions, some thoughts came to me about Cline, his background and what had brought him to this unnamed city. I got the next two paragraphs that you can see below. (Click on the page for a larger image.)

This is where I got stuck.

I knew two things about this story. It was going to be a short story and it was going to be a mystery. Beyond that, I had no idea where I was going with this.

I had a teacher in high school (names have been left out to protect the guilty) who hated when I started a story with a sentence or paragraph and then tried to build from there. He called it biological writing and told me it was poor writers that didn't outline the story from beginning to end before writing with purpose. I never really believed him, but for some reason, it made me feel guilty all the same about my writing style.

Fortunately, one of my friends who is a writer started a children's series almost exactly the same way- with one sentence. Brandon Sanderson's Alcatraz vs. the Evil Librarians is a fun, exciting middle reader novel that was born from one sentence- "So, there I was, tied to an altar made from out-dated encyclopedias, about to get sacrificed to the dark powers by a cult of evil Librarians."

I figured if that was good enough for Brandon (and for Stephen King, as he wrote about in "On Writing.") then I shouldn't feel guilty about writing this way anymore. Now, I just needed to figure out the rest of Cline's story.

Getting started... Again

2008-12-20T16:09:00.000-08:00

I'm Drew Goodman. I've wanted to write ever since I can remember. I've always told stories, just ask my mom (some of them didn't amuse her). I tried my hand at writing my first book when I was six years old. It was basically a rip off of Moby Dick (sorry, Herman) with my own Crayola illustrations- except, instead of a whale, the captains' nemesis was an octopus.

I've written on and off over the years, getting my first chance to hone and show off my writing while in high school. I was asked to join the Literary Magazine class my junior year and learned more about writing than I ever had, although, I'm still not sure what diagramming sentences has to do with writing. Did Steinbeck ever have to put up with that kind of crap?

I had one or two stories published in the literary magazine during my two years in class, but, that was the point of the class, right? Write and publish.

Once I left high school, I did a number of things that left writing fiction by the wayside. By the time I graduated from college, I was married, had three kids, and a history degree. But, I still wanted to write. Now, finding the time between work and family made things difficult. Fortunately, I kept the dream alive by working in bookstores, constantly being inspired by authors who could and did produce books, books I enjoyed reading.

While working at a bookstore, I had come up with an idea for a book, which I was playing with, but never very seriously, until I had a conversation with a publisher sales rep who was a friend of mine. After a sales appointment, I blurted out the idea and asked what he thought of it. He seemed to like it and even said he would mention it back at the publishers offices. That is where I expected it to come to a screeching halt. Two days later I received a call from the publisher asking me to come talk with them about my idea. One year later the book was published. I was absolutely thrilled with the outcome. An actual book with my name on the cover.

Unfortunately, after publication, I stopped writing, not interested in working on another history book. The most I've done since that day eight years ago is ghost write a few chapters for history textbook and take up blogging.

Now, it's time to get started... again. This time with the ideas that I've collected over the years for short stories and books. Folders and notebooks filled with thoughts and ideas. Being serious about setting aside time to write. Looking for feedback and criticism (the part I hate the most). It may not work, but again, it may. And, this time, I'm taking others along for the ride.

This blog is going to be the place where I'm going to look for help. People to keep me honest about writing everyday. I figure if others know what I'm doing, what I want to do, they will hold me to it. But more than that, here is where I'm sharing the process with you. Here you can read along as I develop the ideas, draft them out, write and rewrite. You can see the process, comment on what I'm doing, and see the beginning and the end.

I hope that this will be a valuable experience for me as well as anyone who participates. Well, time to get down to it...