Mobile Army Surgical Hospital

There are permanent dark spots on my laptop to either side of the mouse thingy where my palms sit while I type. I think I’m wearing holes in my laptop.

To all my writer friends: I’ve noticed, while listening to others quietly in the corner in the room, that women are much more attracted to guys with absolutely no direction in their lives than they are to aspiring writers. Go figure.

So it’s coming up on the end of the fourth quarter for Writers of the Future. I’ve heard down the grape vine that people have been receiving their rejection letters and acceptance calls. I have received neither a phone call nor a letter. My bet is that I made unpublished finalist. First place loser.

Either way, I’m mailing out Scharling Lew to WotF on Thursday. And if I hear back that Hero Kyros wasn’t accepted, then that will be sent out to Fantasy and Science Fiction. When I get both those sent out to their respective destinations, I will update the side panel with the location of the short story and the date at which it was sent out.

I have the outlining done for Shadow Love. I’ve also done a little outlining for the new beginning of Dragonborn. And I’m searching for a new title for it. I will also start the outlining for Envoy soon.

Writing is taking a backburner. I know I promised to do more of it. But sleep is more important right now. I’m sorry to all of you hardcore writers that put writing ahead of small things like food, sleep and general hygiene. I will try to write for an hour or two tonight after my Inscape class.

Curse those afternoon reruns of M.A.S.H. on the Hallmark channel. But as Jaime knows, M.A.S.H. is like a muse to me. It’s good luck, damn it.

For those of you that don’t know the story, here it goes. At the Orson Scott Card Literary Bootcamp, I couldn’t come up with a good story. I spent hours that Wednesday morning holding my head in my hands and trying to squeeze something creative out of my brain. Finally, I gave up. I went ahead and spent four hours watching M.A.S.H. while my bewildered co-students dropped by and wondered what the heck I was doing not writing. Then I took a nap. Finally, I started writing at about nine-thirty and finished around three A.M.

And thus was born the first draft of The Manor at Scharling Lew.

Writing Is Such Sweet Sorrow

I've been very busy lately with school and work (the real kind that actually gives me a weekly paycheck), and so I haven't had much time or energy for writing in my blog or working on my stories. I'm becoming accustomed to my new sleep schedule, however, and will be getting back into both of those.

Every time I go to writing group or spend several hours on a piece, I change my mind about something and go back and alter different things that require me to spend hours upon hours of editing. It's happened three times now in just Dragonborn alone in the last few weeks and it's getting tiresome.

Hence, I am going to put Dragonborn aside (don't hold you breath, I may be back at it by my next post) and do a few excercises in plotting. Normally, when I get an idea I launch myself into it until it gets boring and then move on to the next project until I come around to the last in a large cycle of getting very little actually finished and mailed off. I've decided to try and put a stop to this.

So I'm going to practice plotting. What I mean, is, I have a couple short story ideas that I haven't gotten very far in the actual writing (namely The Envoy and Shadow Love) that I'm going to spend time structuring. I'm going to write down the characters, the sequence of events and all the plot twists in a few pages of outline and then I'm going to start anew with them both.

Many of you are saying, um, why didn't he do this in the first place? Let me explain. I'm not really a planning type of person. I tend to build up a head of steam and just charge into it. Don't laugh- it got me 93,000 words into Dragonborn. Unfortunately, this strategy doesn't work very well, no matter how talented one is. The fact that Kyros and Manor came out at all is a fluke.

I do the same sort of blind charge into research papers and essays. I just have never been big on outlines. But I do better when I write an outline. So I'm going to force myself to practice (another thing I've never been good at) by writing the outlines for a couple of short stories. Then I will write the stories themselves. Maybe by then I will have a better idea of what it takes to outline a story and I can begin the daunting task of re-creating Dragonborn.

It's not the writing I resent, it's the fact that there are only twenty-four hours in a day, and that eating, sleeping, school and paying the bills have to come before writing.

By the way, Jim, if you read this, leave me your office hours and location and I'll drop by sometime soon. It would be great to see you.

The Work Goes On

I have finally finished “The Manor at Scharling Lew.” It’s about dang time.

I spent about four hours of my Saturday night completing Manor and I think I’m satisfied with the ending. I’ve sent it out to a few people to give it a read through and commentary and I’m not going to read it again until Wednesday or Thursday so that it can settle a little.

Hopefully, it will be ready to go by next Monday. However, I have a bit of strategy to think over before I send it out to the abyss of pro magazines.

The strategy is thus: I haven’t heard back yet from Writers of the Future. Because WotF only accepts submissions from people who have never been published, I need to keep in mind the possibility that I will not be a finalist. Or that I will be a finalist, but I won’t place, because I would still be allowed to submit.

If either of these is the case, it would be wise to keep Manor around for the next couple weeks. That way if I hear back from WotF and I have not made bank, I can submit Manor at the very end of this quarter, which is the end of September.

So I am going to do this, I think. I will polish Manor up and then put it on a shelf until September 28th or so. If I haven’t heard back from WotF yet, I will submit for this quarter. That way, if I’ve lost last quarter, I have another submission in that I’ll hear back on in three months or so. And if I win, I can send them an e-mail withdrawing my submission.

Regardless of what happens, whichever piece I have my hands on at the beginning of October will be sent to Fantasy and Science Fiction. They have an eight week turnaround time, which is better than anywhere else, and they are one of the best paying magazines. (I would make around $700 for Manor, around $950 for Kyros)

This is all assuming that both pieces are publishable works. Just keep the fingers crossed.

Other than that, I’ve been revamping the magic system in Dragonborn and I rewrote the very beginning. I’ve been thinking a lot about what to do with it lately. The name needs to be changed. The magic system needs to be more comprehensible (It’s getting closer). And I need a bigger mystery— a bigger driving force to the entire novel. I don’t want to rip off Brandon’s ideas, of course (at least not directly) but I need to make the evil a little less tangible without making it esoteric or demonic.

I’m going to spend quite a bit of time going through and removing as much of the “stereotypical” fantasy themes as possible. I have to admit, there are a disgusting number of them. Keep in mind I first started Dragonborn back when I first wanted to get into writing. It has improved greatly since then. Ask Charisa or Brandon, they might remember.

Mistborn

Mistborn is the second book by Brandon Sanderson, published by Tor books. And it’s amazing.

I finished it yesterday. Quite honestly, I was biting my nails the last two hundred pages. It’s incredible how well Brandon not only creates a world, but spins a story in such an unpredictable, enjoyable way.

Brandon’s characters a memorable and intelligently done. He makes the chemistry and conflict between them come alive and even manages to handle the romantic aspect without coming off as cheesy or overdone.

His stories are both character and plot driven. His mysteries twist throughout the story and become the paramount driving force that result in a nerve-wrecking climax.

That’s enough of the analytical drivel. Mistborn was awesome. Go buy it. Available in your local bookstores in hardcover.

Let's Talk About Writing*

I know good writing and I know bad writing. When it comes to a story, good writing can tell a bad story and bad writing can tell a good story. I see both frequently at Leading Edge.

I’m sitting in my Inscape class right now. We’re talking about short stories that our guest lecturer brought along. They are, in a word, useless. So far anyway, we’re only two stories in. I think that’s a good word for describing a lot of literature: useless. And, depending on your perspective, it can be applied to any form of literature. But I’m the one writing. And I’m the one who doesn’t like it. So.

The guy that’s guest lecturing is a writer/ teacher here at BYU by the name of Tuttle. He annoyed me straight off the bat by making a comment about how he doesn’t like any sort of speculative literature.

“The world would be a better place if more stories did less. If more stories went no where.” He just said that.

What a shmuck.

We’re reading “short shorts.” These are single scenes where all of it is descriptive and beautifully worded and absolutely useless. I will never understand literary writers. I’m arguing with the general populace here about the validity of these stories. I think I’m a little outnumbered.

I also sparked a vehement reply from the TA/ Editor. I suppose I can kiss any position of assistant editorship goodbye. Oh well. It means that I’ll have so much more fun playing Devil’s advocate.

I hate these open ended stories. When an author puts pen to paper or fingers to keys, he makes a promise to his readers— a promise that he reinforces when he writes the first few paragraphs of whatever. He’s promised that there will be something to make this story worth reading. And when a story tells “less?” Well, the author has broken his promise.

Four stories in and there’s nothing but flowery language. Unfortunately, that’s what these people like. Literary writing is about the language. We have to know exactly what the words are. Commercial fiction, which is what I write and enjoy, is just that: Commercial (aka, popular). If the reader notices the words that are being used to tell the story, then the writer hasn’t done his job. Oh so much better. Tell me a story. Don’t get me depressed. If you’re going to make me depressed, at least earn it.

I can’t deny that most of this is at least decent writing and some of it is very, very good. But it’s just writing. It’s not really a story. If you want to open someone’s soul and ask every question known to the cosmos without actually attempting to answer them, then write a poem. That’s what they’re for. Another reason I’m not a big fan of poetry: Pretty words strung together to bring on a quick, targeted emotional response or even a plethora of emotional responses.

This guest lecturer is really baking my beans.

That’s what it is! We’re going over personal essays in class right now (that guy is finally gone) and it made me realize that all these short shorts, these crappy literary stories, were written more like short essays with a setting and characters and without any of the redeeming qualities of the essay (like humor, or interesting conundrums).

Put a fork in me. I’m done.

*This blog entry had been brought to you live from the 419R Inscape class at BYU.

Leading Edge

I have some very exciting news. Exciting to myself, anyway. I’ve been asked to take on a new experimental staff position at Leading Edge this fall. For those of you who don’t know, Leading Edge is BYU’s only semi-pro magazine. We are staffed completely by students and we take submissions from all over the world. We pay our authors, artists and poets and we love to receive submissions in any form of Speculative Fiction. So, take a moment to click that link over to the right and check out our submission guidelines and look into ordering some back issues and/ or a subscription. We publish twice a year. The best thing you can do to support us is order our magazine.

The working title of my new position is “developmental editor.” My basic duties will be to work with writers that we see a lot of potential in, but need just the extra push to become publishable. Leading Edge is the only semi-pro magazine to offer critiques on every submission given to us. When our submission readers discover a piece that they really want to see a re-write from, it will be my job to compile the readers’ comments and add my own and continue a communiqué with the writer to develop the piece.

The position has a whole lot of potential, considering Leading Edge’s near future changes. We have a lot of work to do over the next couple years and I’m looking forward to being in the thick of it. Our main goal is to become a viable, competitive semi-pro magazine with a very large subscriber base. We have, and publish, the talent for it. We are expanding our advertising and going after the big book store chains to get us onto their shelves. This could be very, very cool. So become a subscriber and be able to say that you read us when we were just a little guy.

I will also be on the staff of Inscape, another of BYU’s journals. This one is a literary journal and not nearly as big as Leading Edge, but it will be a fun project anyway. I’ve applied for assistant editorship and for prose editorship there. We’ll see if I get either.

I have a few job applications in for writing positions at BYU (something that actually pays me). When more develops, I’ll let you all know.

But please, support Leading Edge. Order a subscription or even one issue if you just want to see what we’re like. We have included in past issues stories by Orson Scott Card, Dave Wolverton, Brandon Sanderson and interviews with such writers as HarryTurtledove and Terry Brooks.

Status Update

I took the first chapter of Dragonborn to my new writing group on Thursday. They did a great job of dissecting the problems, most of which seem to be character tags, adverbs and adjectives. The biggest issue was a lack of commitment (on the reader’s side) in the first chapter, so I’m attempting to remedy that.

Thursday evening I began to edit Dragonborn and I worked on it all weekend. I’m 95 pages (12 chapters, lots of words) into editing what I have finished. I’m taking into account as many of the little things that my new writing group suggested last week, but curiously enough, I’ve discovered that the problem areas go down significantly as I progress through the plot. That tells me that my writing was improving as I went, which is a good thing. But it means I have to go back and make it consistently good. Which shouldn’t be a problem.

Apparently there’s a Dragonborn.net now. When I googled Dragonborn eight months ago, there was natta but a few references to DnD. Now, though, there’s a lot more on there. Unfortunately, good ideas are swept up quick and rarely unique. So I might have to rename it eventually.

This Thursday I’ll take chapters two and three to writing group (they aren’t very long) but after that, I’m going to have to take just one chapter each week. This means probably around 20 weeks until I’m even half way through my novel. By that time, I’ll be done.

I realized the other day that if I write 5000 words a day from here on out, I could have Dragonborn finished in 20 days. That’s how incredible I am at math. But I would have to be writing a good three-five hours a day. Which is doable, I suppose. So I’ll give it a try.

You may have noticed by now that I have little of substance to actually talk about. So I’ll stop babbling. Sum-up: I’m working on Dragonborn. I hope to make good progress. Bye.

Yippy For Pirating HTML Coding

Yay! Look at that little fun thing off on the side there! It exists to make me feel bad about my progress.

Crossroads of Making Decisions on What to Work on

At least, that’s my working title right now. Unless I change my mind.

I’ve been attempting for about a week to finally get a start on the novelization of Hero Kyros. It’s proving to be a pain in the butt. Not only can I not get a good start on it, but thoughts have been resurfacing on my long lost novel: Dragonborn. Yes, I started going through and editing it this morning and I’ve decided to offer it up as a sacrifice to my new writing group. They’ll be reviewing the prologue and chapter 1 tonight (5900 words).

This is my new strategy. I haven’t touched Dragonborn since March, when I dove into Hero Kyros as a short story for Brandon’s class. I left off at about 92,000 words. The goal is anywhere from 150,000 – 200,000 words. This means that I’m around half way done. So. I’m going to send several chapters to my writing group over the next few weeks and see how they like it. If it gets a good response, I will do my very best to finish it in the next couple months and it will be the first thing I send to Moshe.

Obviously, the downside of this is that I already told Moshe all about Hero Kyros and he has the short story and he knows me as the “historical fiction guy”. But if he likes my style of writing, I think he’ll accept what I send him. And I won’t send Dragonborn until it’s finished and up to my par of expectation. Hopefully, that will be soon.

All this came about when I happened upon Isaac last night on campus. He was sitting alone writing up in the Joseph Fielding Smith Building. Isaac is one of the guys who went with us down to Worldcon. He’s been with Brandon’s group for far longer than I’ve known any of them and is working on getting a book finished to send to Moshe.

We discussed a lot of our ideas and writing styles and techniques that keep ourselves writing and while we were talking about our novels, I discovered myself talking about Dragonborn and realized that it was the richest piece of fiction that I have right now. Indeed, I have two years into the world, plot and characters now. With this realization, I decided to send Dragonborn to my new writing group and to get my butt in gear and finish it.

Because it really is a dang awesome world.

I also plan on finishing some short stories along the way. Hopefully. But if I get drawn into Dragonborn again, all bets are off. I set up with Isaac to spend some time every week writing together, which simply means that we meet someplace and sit on opposite sides of the room and type. Personally, I’m much less easily distracted when I’m working with another person around.

In addition, Isaac introduced me to a magnificent program. It’s called Keynote (google it) and it’s free and intuitive and super easy to keep notes in. I’ve had it for four hours and I’m already using it for Dragonborn and taking notes in class.

Oh yes. I also added several blogs links to the sidebar over yonder to the right. Go to them. Bask in the glory of my friends and comrades.

Workin'

There's good news and there's bad news.

The good news: Hallmark Channel has a MASH marathon all day. The last time I spent four hours straight watching MASH, I had writer's block at the OSC literary bootcamp and then went on to write "The Manor at Scharling Lew." Unfortunately, the ending of Manor wasn't up to par, and I scrapped the last six or seven pages and never got around to finishing it again.

Last night, however, I got back on top of Manor for several pages. If all goes well, I'll finish it today. After several more hours of MASH. Don't you love the holidays?

The bad news is that school starts tomorrow and I still haven't found a job. But that is neither here nor there. I'm having trouble starting the Kyros novel. I think the biggest problem I'm facing is the transition between first person in the short story and third person in the novel. It was recommended that I tell the novel from third person because it is apparently difficult to write a full novel (and do it well) in first person. It wasn't the discouragement so much as that I don't remember a good speculative fiction novel written in first person to act as an example. Can anyone recommend?

I had two decent short story ideas while at Worldcon. Unfortunately, I forgot one of them. The first, though, was going to be called "Angel of Mercy." It's a simple idea, really. The Angel of Mercy gets fed up and decides that the Angel of Justice hasn't been doing his job. It's a great idea, I think, but I can't decide where to go with it. All I can think of is a Quentin-esque blood bath followed by a lecture on the balance of the universe. It might work, but we'll see.