Writing A Slice Of Life

When I was in high school, I remember an English teacher sternly warning the class: “A short story has a clear-cut beginning, middle and end. I will look for this in your story, and if I cannot find it, I will fail you.” What she didn’t realize is that a good short story seldom works this way. She was stuck in the rigid conformity to the linear that the educational system encourages, unable to think outside of its structure, or to venture into the fields of her own thoughts.

In my first year of university, one of my lecturers was a best-selling Australian author. And in the first class of Effective Writing, when we got into the topic of the short story, he reminded us of every high school teacher’s words. And then…

“Bollocks! Bullshit!” he shouted.

The short story is a concise medium, a style of writing that serves many purposes, but none of them long-winded: a quick bit of entertainment to pass idle time; a thoughtful piece of prose that takes five minutes to read and hours to get off one’s mind; a serial adventure that has the reader encapsulated in an unreal world and unwilling to leave until the series is complete. Concise it may be, but powerful it is.

So why should it be linear? Why would it fit into the confines of the linear? It wouldn’t! It shouldn’t! No: the best short story is not immensely structured, fitting into a prepared timeline of events that set plot and drama into stone. It is a slice of life, a snapshot, a piece of time that is taken from the imagination of the author and stamped with the speed of machinery into the mind of the reader.

Stamped so fast that it may never be forgotten.

Short stories are not the vehicles for a history of time, not a life story, not a fantasy epic. The short story is a slice of life, a few centimetres from a whole ball of string.

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The Points of the Creative Artists’ Code: Zero - There are no hard and fast rules when it comes to creativity

This is the beginning of a series of explanations of each of the points of the Creative Artists’ Code. This series is meant to help others to grok these principles, so they can use them effectively to create and manage their own careers. Any questions, comments or contributions anybody may have about any point of it, are welcome. Without further ado, or preamble… Read more

The Generosity of Artists has always astounded…

The generosity of artists has always astounded me, though there are exceptions in every art, just as there are in the world; we are, after all, human beings, and some are just a bit more human than others, which means, in my cognizance that they exemplify the best that humanity has to offer. Before I present an example of such generosity, I should make it very clear that I do not support the American war effort in Iraq. I have followed this war as closely as anybody can in the media and I am certain that America’s position is wrong now, and was wrong in the beginning.

The war is about the oil, and it is not a war about democracy, which can never be created at the point of a gun by another nation, but must arise from within. But there is a human cost, that this fine artist, Hancock, has elected to honor and remember with her work to honor those who have fallen. And it is good work, I hope it succors those who have lost their loved ones, and reminds generations to come of what is lost.

Writing Tip: Prevention is better than cure - Avoid these ten new writer mistakes

Storytellers need to understand these ten points before they start writing. It’s worth spending some time at Holt Uncensored. There is a great archive and the material offered is good practical solid information that explains things very well. I spent a lot of time searching the net for storytellers who knew what they were doing, partly market research, but also to pick up on anything I might be missing, and I tell you “There is a lot of garbage advice out there.” A lot of misconceptions, and a lot of know-about, but very little know.

As a writer and storyteller I want sure and certain knowledge that I can use and that adds to the toolkit I will employ as a writer. There is one particular article Holt wrote that totally settles the argument about plot, scene, or character. I searched high and low for viewpoints on that one for quite some time and I heard and read so many opinions and despaired of finding one that actually worked. In my opinion Holt got it right and settles that particular debate, except for a couple of things: Function and Point Zero.

Creativity is a fishy business!

Recipes for creative success, we need ‘em. We really do! But here’s a tip for great health and the kind of food that keeps us up late at night burning fish oil in our minds! Seriously, fish is the food I and other Creative Artists eat to keep the words working smoothly. We’ll be bringing you some recipes to make you salivate and stay up late creating later. But fish and chocolate, not together! So what do you eat to keep the creativity running hot?

My favourite tip for songwriter’s block

I once invented a concept that has all but destroyed songwriter’s block in my life. At least, for the time being!

It’s called the tuneback. It wasn’t really created to combat creative block, but because all the members of Midnight.Haulkerton were itching for an excuse to put half-baked music out there while we worked on an album enshrined in top secrecy.

In order to ensure that minimum time was stolen from the endeavor of our precious album, we set a one hour, once a week time limit on the tuneback. It is central to the whole concept, actually. It taught us very quickly that the difference between a song that took an hour to write and record, and a song that took an hour and a half to write and record, is a very big one - and thus, that particular unit of time is very much important and influential on the sound of each final tuneback.

But what has this got to do with songwriter’s block?

I swear, it’s the pressure. I didn’t think it would work that way, but if I know I’ve got a song to write and if I don’t write it people are going to pissed, I write one. Seriously, I was a couple of hours late once, and I got a disgruntled email.

Pressure. It’s horrible for creative minds, but it works (kind of like how crack works for law students).

There and back again - World Building for Storytellers - The Fargoth World Building Project

Through the miracle of modern technology today, it is now possible for a story to be realized and constructed as a virtual world and this has changed the nature of the marketplace and opened up tremendous opportunities for those writers who embrace the idea of not just telling a story, but realizing entire worlds, multiple cultures and races.

Tolkien captured it best when he wrote the immortal lines of “There and back again” for they capture beautifully and simply what is at the the heart of the reader experience when they fall in love with or become immersed in a story; the desire to go somewhere other than this world, and experience what it would be like to be someone else, live in any time, any place, and under conditions far removed from the real world in which we all live. Time travel? Read more

Writing Tip: Writing Action Scenes - Great advice from Poul Anderson

Many years ago, when I started writing my first fantasy epic and was using the internet to research the potential for internet marketing and utilization, and in particular how it could be used as a research & marketing and educational tool (among its many other uses), I came across Poul Anderson’s On Thud and Blunder.

This is a very valuable piece of writing craft that literally makes the difference between amateur and profesional writing in the field of fantasy. It has a focus on writing action scenes, and though this is a fantasy-focused article it has relevance to any storyteller who is faced with writing strong action scenes which need to engage the reader, and put them into the middle of the action.

Poul’s article contains great advice and I wholeheartedly recommend it.

Ideas and their value - Support the Tuneback

I think there is such a thing as unconscionable commercial exploitation. It comes about when those who have money and power already act to take away from others the opportunity to exploit their own creations without so much as a “by your leave”.

When I heard about what had happened to the concept of the tuneback that was created and invented by my creative collaborator, friend, and colleague Joel Falconer, well I was immediately aware of the immorality of those that decided to capitalize without so much as a courteous well-mannered contact to the creator of the first tunebacks. This is what passes for “good business” today. And as the world has come to know it’s also what largely passes for the style of business a lot of American companies carry out today. Scandal, corruption, cheating, stealing, lying it’s the American Way today. An honorable person will tell you straight what is what, and when you look at it, they will be right. Not just right in a technical sense, but right in a moral sense. Read more

A Powerful Concept for Creativity - Function determines structure and content

“Function determines structure and content.” This principle has powerful utility in the craft and business of creativity, when I say “powerful utility” I mean: it has broad applications in every field. This is such a powerful concept that it can help one manage and resolve creative blocks. Read more