Writing Advice from Junot Diaz

So Junot Diaz, author of The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, wrote about the difficulties of writing on oprah.com, and I thought it was fitting to read his thoughts, since I'm in the horrible third week of NaNo and I'm really really behind in my story. Here are two parts of his article that I really liked.


"It wasn't that I couldn't write. I wrote every day. I actually worked really hard at writing. At my desk by 7 A.M., would work a full eight and more. Scribbled at the dinner table, in bed, on the toilet, on the No. 6 train, at Shea Stadium. I did everything I could. But none of it worked. My novel, which I had started with such hope shortly after publishing my first book of stories, wouldn't budge past the 75-page mark. Nothing I wrote past page 75 made any kind of sense. Nothing. Which would have been fine if the first 75 pages hadn't been pretty damn cool. But they were cool, showed a lot of promise. Would also have been fine if I could have just jumped to something else. But I couldn't. All the other novels I tried sucked worse than the stalled one, and even more disturbing, I seemed to have lost the ability to write short stories. It was like I had somehow slipped into a No-Writing Twilight Zone and I couldn't find an exit. Like I'd been chained to the sinking ship of those 75 pages and there was no key and no patching the hole in the hull. I wrote and I wrote and I wrote, but nothing I produced was worth a damn."


"Because, in truth, I didn't become a writer the first time I put pen to paper or when I finished my first book (easy) or my second one (hard). You see, in my view a writer is a writer not because she writes well and easily, because she has amazing talent, because everything she does is golden. In my view a writer is a writer because even when there is no hope, even when nothing you do shows any sign of promise, you keep writing anyway. Wasn't until that night when I was faced with all those lousy pages that I realized, really realized, what it was exactly that I am. "

More Snicket! More NaNo!

So I'm taking a break from writing to pass on a great piece of news from the New York Times. Lemony Snicket (Daniel Handler) is writing more books!

Lemony Snicket, the notorious pseudonym of Daniel Handler and the author of the bestselling “Series of Unfortunate Events” sequence, has agreed to sell the North American rights to publish a new four-part series to Little, Brown &Co., moving from HarperCollins. The first volume in the new series is scheduled to be published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers in 2012. In a press release, Megan Tingley, publisher of Little, Brown’s Children’s division, said the new books would be a series of “highly inventive and entertaining works that will enthrall Lemony Snicket’s legions of fans.”Mr. Handler has also signed a deal with Little, Brown Books for Young Readers to publish his first young adult novel. The book, as yet untitled, will be illustrated by Maira Kalman, who composes an occasional visual blog for the New York Times Op-Ed page. That novel will be published in 2011.As part of the deal, Mr. Handler’s longtime editor, Susan Rich, will join Little, Brown as an editor-at-large in the Young Readers group.The “Series of Unfortunate Events” books, which have sold 60 million copies worldwide and apparently ended in 2006, were published in North America by HarperCollins Children’s Books.

I love the "apparently" added. It did not "apparently" end. It did. The last book was called "The End," in fact. Lol.

As for NaNo, I'm at 12,094 words right now, which is horribly behind what I should be at, roughly 18,000, but I'm aiming for 15k by the end of the night. I've been writing each day, but the problem is I'm not writing enough to keep up sadly. But the story is moving along now, so it should get easier, I hope.

Until later!

NaNoWriMo is almost here!

" Oh, would that my mind could let fall its dead ideas, as the tree does its withered leaves!"  -Andre Gide

pic copyright Adrian Pingstone

I'm soooo excited for NaNoWriMo. I feel like I have this secret purpose in my life outside of homework now. I have my novel idea and rough characters, but I haven't looked at my notes in ages, so I'm going to do that to get back into the groove. I am really concerned with getting stuck and losing steam early on, because it's been so long since I've been involved in my story. But I think the momentum of the NaNo events and the letters of encouragement they send should help me.


 I have to be very very very focused. 1,666 words per day. I'm setting an alarm to go off each day to make sure I have a habitual writing time. I also have 2 essays for school to work one, one which is due next Friday, so it's going to be stressful for the first week or so. But  we'll see. It just means I need to work harder, sleep less, no YouTube time, no Facebook, no Hulu, no long lunch and dinner chats with friends. It's going to be a lonely, but productive month.


But the weather is also AMAZING. Autumn puts me in such a good mood. It's chilly and I can have tea or apple cider while typing furiously on my laptop. The cold will keep me from socializing and going outside:)


My Zac blog will be taking a break so I can actually get this novel done, but I'll be back with him in December hopefully. So far I have 5 dishes and 7 subscribers yayyyy. I'm so proud of myself for doing that blog. It's a strange, unconcious story that's continuing and I have no idea where that project is going. But it's there and that's what matters. 


I hope some of you do NaNoWriMo too. It'll be nice to have some company. I've joined the East Valley group and the Phoenix group, so I can meet up with them and discuss our novel troubles throughout the month. This is going to be real change of pace, but I think it should be a good one. Good luck and happy writing!

Vooks are Not Vivacious Books

"Do not say a little in many words but a great deal in few."

- Pythagoras

pic copyright: manipulateddreams (deviantart)

So I read this interesting article in the NY Times about this new thing called a "vook." It's basically a virtual book, with text interspersed with digital elements like videos. It's the future of books! Or is it?

I like the fact that people are trying to shake up the literary world and expand the horizons of what a story is, but what worries me is that it's trying to avoid being a book. What's wrong with just reading a book with words? You read a book, because it's a book and if there's a movie adaptation, you might go see that to see how it looks, but both together? I don't know, it's weird to me.

Lots of books these days are now connecting to websites and adding a virtual world for the characters. Readers can go on and influence or discuss the storylines like in The 39 Clues, which is a huge hit in children's fiction. I think it's great that there are enthusiastic readers who want to continue the story outside the pages the author wrote. Especially since most kids won't talk about a book outside of class, but they'll be more than willing to go on discussion boards and talk about who Blair and Serena should end up with or who should have gone home on American Idol.

It's an interesting idea, but I don't want it to be an excuse for people to not actually read words anymore. All that flashes is not a good story. Words paint pictures and emotions that can't be physically reproduced in my opinion. I work hard to be able to capture an image and bring a character to life and to have a video replaces parts of that text would make it all seem pointless...But we'll see whether this catches on or not.

To read the article, check it out here:http://tinyurl.com/ydmfkk5

Tracking the Odyssey

" Speak, Memory- of the cunning hero, the wanderer, blown off course time and again, after he plundered Troy's sacred heights."

- Odyssey 1

So it's ironic that my blog is chronicling my odyssey of writing stories, novels and poems on the road to publication, and in my honors class, I'm actually reading the book I took the name from. But I'm super excited, because I love love Greek mythology, always have. That's why I loved reading the Greek myth anthologies (and comparing them to the copycat Romans lol), Magic Tree House series, watching any Wishbone episodes of the Odyssey, King Midas etc and of course, the Percy Jackson series.

What's interesting is that the paper I have to write is not simply writing about an element in the Odyssey, but actually writing an argument about it. I can only use the textual evidence to support my thesis and write a 5-7 page paper. This is due in more or less 2 weeks. Yeah, and I haven't started.

Well, I've at least narrowed down the 2 prompts I'm interested in, but I can't seem to figure out which one would be worth pursuing, or which one would be easier to defend.I'm stuck between arguing the significance of women in the Odyssey or the significance of gods.

I'm also worried about plagiarism, which is a huge no-no, especially in college. But I can't help that my basic ideas seem to agree with what Sparknotes has, so what am i supposed to do??

I need owl-eyed Athena to guide me through this haha. I love the symbolism in Greek mythology, but come on, how many times do they have to repeat "owl-eyed" or "grey-eyed" Athena? It loses its specialness after a while...

I guess I've just always enjoyed the Odyssey as a story and never thought about it analytically. Greek myths are usually pretty obvious in their meanings, because they're meant to explain natural occurrences in our world that the Greeks couldn't explain. Sometimes I think authors don't really plan out any deeper meanings or motifs and all that stuff. They just tell the story the way it's supposed to be told and readers find all these underlying coincidences and such.

But you have to admit, the Odysseus is an amazing piece of literature. It has probably the only fictionalized couple that I actually cared about- Odysseus and Penelope. I really feel sad thinking about how long they were apart from each other, how she remained loyal to him, and how happy he was to see his family again. There's real hardship and suffering, which creates real emotions. Unlike a certain group of sparkling vampires we all now:)

Anyways, I will be plunging through the Odyssey at full speed to write this paper, but I have not forgotten my other mission-to prepare my novel for NaNoWriMo in November. It sounds far away, but I know it'll be just around the corner, teasing me to keep my pact. As long as I have the right tools and preparation, it should be smooth sailing for me.

Unless Poseidon decides to take his anger out on me along the way....

NaNoWriMo

"Most people run a race to see who is fastest. I run a race to see who has the most guts.

- Steve Prefontaine

pic copyright munfitnessblog.com

so i signed up for NaNoWriMo 2009 for the first time ever. Basically this means I am attempting to write an entire novel from Nov 1- Nov 30. I doubt I will be able to finish the 50,000 word count, but I think just being in the whole project alone will be an awesome experience and hopefully the right motivator to finish my novel. I know you can't start writing until midnight on November 1st, but there aren't any rules on outlining and plotting ahead of time right? because that's what takes me time. If I can have a decent outline and know where I'm going with my story, I think I'll have a much much easier time just writing away. It's sort of like a marathon, getting all hyped up and in shape. Some of my secrets are changing fonts, writing centered and in places other than my room(or dorm room.) maybe I'll set up shop in the cliche Starbucks downstairs. I'll need fuel:)
There's something strange about writing for quantity and not quality. Normally, I would feel like it's a waste of time, but in a way, writing crap really helps me unblock and write better. Plus I think it's really cool that I'll be on a website where millions of other people are writing novels and have the potential to have their book published! I don't know how anyone can write a book in a month and get an agent or publishing house interested. I guess they have to do rewrites and then they send up queries. I already have a list of agencies and publishing houses I want to submit to and I don't even have anything finished-very lame.
First rule of publishing is write the book first! So I'm hoping NaNoWriMo helps me do just that. I don't really want to make a schedule for myself, but my goal is to write every day. You even get pep talks sent to keep up the motivation from published authors like Meg Cabot(!), Phillip Pullman, and Katherine Paterson-I love that! I think it would so awesome to be a winner, even though there's no prize as the website says. So I encourage anyone to sign up for this crazy adventure with me at nanowrimo.org. Let me know if you do! Oh and I'll leave you with a Meg Cabot NaNoWriMo pep talk that perfectly address the dilemma in my last post:)

Dear NaNoWriMo Author,

I know what you're doing. You're thinking about cheating, aren't you?

Ha! Caught you!

Come on. One cheater knows another. You think I've never been there?

Maybe for some of you it's not too late: you haven't crossed the line...maybe you're just entertaining the idea of abandoning the story you're currently working on.

Maybe you're just thinking of taking a break to jot down a few notes about the story you just thought of; that ultra-fresh, totally cool, sure-to-be-a-bestseller you dreamed up the other morning while you were supposed to be figuring out where you took the wrong turn on your work-in-progress.

But I'm here to let you know: That's how it starts. The next thing you know, you're doing character sketches. Then a little dialogue. Then whole scenes.

And then you're through. You've given up on your work-in-progress entirely, and the next thing you know, you've started working full-time on this new story you thought up.

I know only too well what comes next. The excuses. The rationalization: "So what? So I switched stories. I've still got a work-in-progress. It's just not my original work-in-progress. So I'm a little behind in my word count. I'm still writing, right?"

Sure, it seems innocent enough. But the problem with doing this is that of course the new story always seems better than that old busted up, out-of-control story you've been working on for so long. That new story has the aura of dewy freshness to it. It's calling to you! It's all, "Yoo-hoo...look at me! I don't have any plot problems and my characters are way-intriguing and some of them wear leather jackets and oh, yeah, you know that weird transition thing you've got going on near chapter four that you can't figure out? I don't have that!"

I know. It sounds good.

But how long until some other story idea comes along and twitches its enticing little characters at you, and you decide to abandon this new one for it? How many words will you have then?

Not enough for a whole book, that's how many. And here's the thing: If you keep doing this, you never will.

Do you think I haven't been there? Cheating on your current work-in-progress with a new one is the oldest trick in the book! I have a plastic milk crate crammed full of stories I started and never finished because I cheated on them, then got so enamored of my new story, I never went back to the old one. Over and over and over again.

And that, my friends, is how you never finish a book. Take it from someone who has hundreds (maybe even a few thousand) of unfinished stories because of this phenomenon.

So stop right now! Stop using a new story idea (or whatever excuse you've come up with) to avoid the work you still have to do on your current work-in-progress!

Put the Shiny New Story away for later, when you're done with your WIP! If your Shiny New Story is that good, it will still be there waiting for you.

And please...don't end up like me, with a plastic milk crate full of half-finished stories. Think about what made you fall in love with your work-in-progress in the first place. Shower it with the attention it deserves.

And whatever you do, don't let it end up in the Milk Crate of Shame. Think of where we'd be if all the great stories we love today ended up there, uncared for and forgotten by their authors, because they got distracted by some Shiny New Idea while they were working.

Take a deep breath. There. Feel better?

Yeah. So do I.

Now let's get back to work.

And about the cheating...I won't tell if you won't.

Meg

chasing pages

“Realize what you really want. It stops you from chasing butterflies and puts you to work digging gold.”

- William Moulton Marston

pic copyright pareeerica @ flickr

I am the ultimate flip-flopper. Not in my politics, but in my writing projects.

Remember how I said I had an epiphany to write my Amirah Hassen novel as a part of a short story collection in order to be able to address all the different voices I wanted?

Well last night, I just HAD to come up with an incredible outline for the novel, with tons of great characters and subplots and themes....what's wrong with me?

I guess I don't have to choose between the two. I can still write a short story collection AND a novel. It's just going to take more time to finish either. Especially because I'm juggling my Zac Daniels story (psst:check out the other blog!) It's just so hard trying to figure which form is going to allow me to express myself better, which one is going to describe and entertain and connect more- the delicate short story or the grandiose, epic novel.

But I think with all the time I have between classes and in the mornings, it's good to have some kind of creative outlet depending on the mood I'm in. Or early in the morning like 4:30 am. Whatever:) Some writers say you have to stop thinking about writing as this oh so lovey, wonderful process and treat like work. Hard, frustrating, tearful work. I think the mentality of it is right, approaching it with punctuality and dedication. But if it's work, I'm not going to do it. I have enough of that for me already. I guess the emotions of love and hate are so intertwined, it's almost the same. I love writing and hate it. But the thought of finishing, of hearing my characters talk in my head when I'm walking to class or sitting in my room makes me want to keep going.

I feel bad for my roommate when I wake up and start typing away on my laptop. But I am not the kind of person who can remembers thoughts from the night before. I also cannot do that put a journal by your nightstand and write it down. I tried it and in the morning I read chicken scratch and loopy signatures. I guess turning on the light would help too....

I really want to have a decent amount of writing to show the writing club I'm joining (or hope to join. It better not be some exclusive club for english/creative writing majors grrrr.)

Now I honestly have something to look forward to after class. Having an awesome story to work on is like having a puppy or kitty waiting at home for you lol. Lame, but true. Unless that story starts acting up and making a mess and it won't leave me alone with all its problems.

Then I'll have to put it outside for awhile, let it feel lonely and sad and then come back in when it's ready to behave again.