Books DO Burn Up

Often ideas or novels being written will go on the back burner. For any number of reasons. Perhaps it’s not fully formed quite yet. Or it’s not flowing. Or another project demands action instead. Whatever the cause, there always seem to be simmering stories.

But can they ever burn up completely?

Probably not officially, as one can just never tell what will rise from the ashes if they do. But that’s not to say that they can’t become ash first.

I suspect They Never Left, a novel of mine on said back burner, will no longer have more written upon it. It’s kind of sad, I suppose. But then again, there’s so much else to be done, I can’t really cry over blank pages. Why is it allegedly defunct now? A few reasons, actually.

Not in order of importance, one factor is that the world in which it takes place is rapidly diminishing. The irony here, of course, is that I’d set it in non-fictional Chicago. Sounds like it’s not possible, right? But back in this post, I explained how many of the actual locales I’d written into the tale no longer exist. Lots which have been vacant for many years have been built up, for instance, or shops have gone away. How can I create real-Chicago on paper when the places I want to use keep disappearing - or else have new additions? Turns out Gil lives very near one of the most important locations in the book... and I see there’s now a statue there. [I don’t want the statue there! ;) ]  (Not to mentiion a crucial bit being painted over.)

Another issue is that I’m finding the “point” behind the tale might better be served in a different book on the back burner. It seems issues I’m addressing in narrative form have a bit of crossover. That’s to be expected, given the issues are important to me. But if one tale is able to carry the same message just as well as the other, do both need to be written?

That, I suspect, depends on the power of the story. Does each hold enough merit to warrant its own novel? If I’m to be honest with myself, thinking back on it, there’s not much excitement to hold interest in They Never Left. At least for me. And if I’m not "gung ho" about it, can I really expect others to be? They Never Left, as it stands, tells of two buddies (a guy & a girl) who are out to assemble a particular group. Thus, right now it’s naught more than solving puzzles to find each member and convince them to reconvene... fun and engaging as it happens, sure – but on the whole? Once the group is assembled, it will likely turn out to just be a “heady” novel without much action. Probably best not explored, especially when the seed concept can be incorporated into a better tale  It is true, though, that two folks read what I have so far [Doodles and Air] and they enjoyed what they read.  But to reiterate, it doesn't have the potential to pan out into something great.  There is one particular line that I’m reluctant to lose, though. But it’s certainly not worth completing the novel for that one stab at reality. Maybe I can work it into the other novel, but it doesn’t fit as well that I can see at this moment.

I will, however, absolutely hate to abandon the one character. I’ve gotten pretty darn fond of him. Mostly because of his defiant nature. Not so much within the storyline, but with me. He’s a strong-willed creation who has no trouble telling me what he does and doesn’t like or just what’s up in general. [Such as that hairstyle as seen in the pic.  He INSISTS on it!]  Sometimes I miss him... which stands to reason that I shouldn’t throw him away. And I don’t have to, certainly, but then – how can I get rid of his best friend? He’ll squawk at me for sure! Don’t get the impression that I dislike her. On the contrary. It’s just that she’s the catalyst for the novel’s progression – she’s the one who’s determined to find the group. Besides that, she’s sort of set up to be in this story. And I just don’t see her truly functioning outside of her namesake.

I also really like the ending.  It's the sort that establishes another part of the story, too.  A la sequel.  In fact, They Never Left had been meant to spawn any number of sequels, limited only by the resource materials.  And there'd been quite a bit.  Truth is, though, that beyond book two the notions were too vague.  But it would have been a terrific conclusion/cliff-hanger!

One might think that the solution is easy... to place these two friends as characters in the other novel instead. Won’t work, however. At least not how I conceived the other novel. This one is the “ghost story” that I’m dealing with – and the living characters in it are not meant to be prominent. As I’ve already said, the guy I like is quite outspoken and he just wouldn’t stand for being secondary. Or not hearing his name.  [It's quite a name.]

And thus, I’m thinking that They Never Left to have charred away instead of simmered. 'Tis a pity, for a ton of research and work went into this book.  But then, that's true of any book I write.  Naturally, I can rescue the guy and girl from the pages. They might not fit in the other novel, but who’s to say they won’t have another adventure I need to write? I hope so. For I really do like him.

But one thing is for sure – should these two show up again in my pages, they’ll be living in a fictionalized Chicago – or at least one that's not so damn accurate.

Composing a Compass

Originally the post about Gil had been meant as a quick note regarding how Life really does imitate art...

as in how I have a way of relating everything to Peter Pan...

or, really, on the same (panpipe) note, that we cannot escape storytelling, even in our own lives.

But then, given the way Life played out, it became a reminder that even though it may seem as if we can at times, we cannot truly know tomorrow.  As much as we may want to plot out or lives, the story always takes a few turns.

 

I said I’d remark on another way it reminded me of a story.  Well, here ‘tis.

In college my best friend Laughter and I knew this guy.  I won't reveal his actual real name either, but I will say that his first name is on this page and his surname is found on a compass.

There'd been something weird about Compass.  What sort of weird?  Much.  And this is coming from a guy who shouldn't be calling the kettle black.  Ask Laughter and he'll tell you the same thing (on both accounts.)

First (is this really first?) let me say that there'd been an instant attraction to Compass.  I loved him immediately.  But I also feared him.  Compass had a kind of hold on us.  What I mean is, if Compass said, "Hey Pete, let's go to the mall and play Turtles!" I would do it.  Despite spending the very last of all my money, despite knowing I shouldn't, despite not being in the mood, despite having better things (like schoolwork, perhaps) to do.  [Oh - 'Turtles' refers to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles arcade game.]  It seemed I’d do anything Compass wanted and spend lots of time with him.  It had been a magic spell.  Laughter's 'enchantment' might have been lesser than mine (I'm not sure), but the ability of Compass to get his way still applies.  Watch a movie that's seriously nothing more than a vehicle for gore at two in the morning when you have class early in the morning?  Sure.  Go out to eat after already eating in the cafeteria?  Sure.  You get the idea.  I'm not proud of it, not by a longshot.  I cannot rationalize it, it just... yeah.

So anyway, Compass's weirdness didn't merely stem from his puppeteering.  It's as if he came from another world or something.  He didn't seem to know basic things.  Using a spoon.  How to pronounce "crepe."  He would brag about his girlfriend back home who had allegedly been a model (but whose picture seemed like the kind that came with the frame.)  Realizing that most people didn't want to be discussing the ramifications of zombie guts at dinner.  To be honest, it's been 23 years now, I can't recall every single instance of oddity.  But trust me, he'd just been "off."  To the point of actually wondering if he'd just been a half-baked imaginary friend.

I managed to break the spell, but that’s another story.  I still hung out with him, but the magic fizzled.  Then Compass, quite suddenly, announced that he would be leaving.  That he'd not be coming back next school year.  In fact, he didn't even finish the term, as I recall.  Just decided to go... fueling the fire of thoughts that he'd not even been real.

Laughter and I would joke about him in the sense of being some sort of demon sent to thwart us.  A writer certainly couldn't help but think of it in terms of a book.  What if he actually were an "entity" here to teach us a lesson or something?  The idea developed... if "Compass" came back… hmm, it would make a cool novel.  Later on in life, Compass out of the blue.  And what if he'd come before?  But I knew that I didn't have the wherewithal to write such a tale.  Not yet at least.

Well, 23 years later, along came Gil.  Let me clarify here... Gil is nowhere near the magnitude of Compass.  I liked him immediately, yeah.  But the way I love him now grew with time.  And Gil doesn't have power over me.  Gil's also not bizarre like Compass.  There's things he doesn't know, but they're easily explained in that he's many years my junior.  (And he does know about spoons!)  Unlike Compass, Gil reciprocates everything from help to meals.

So it hadn't been until the sudden event of Gil leaving that I remembered Compass.  The parallels all became clear.  An amazingly friendly and playful guy comes out of nowhere for whom the attraction is great and strong.  Gil could convince me to do anything, but not ANYTHING, having learned my lesson with Compass.  He's gotten me to watch things out of my nature - and I've enjoyed them.  Gil loves playing video games and I'll happily watch or play.   He has his marvelous backstories.  Also, Laughter is quite fond of him.  Maybe it doesn't seem all that clear, but it did (and does) to me.  I see each manifestation of Compass to be different, but reminiscent, a guide tailored to the stage of Life in which he appears.

 

Thus, "Compass" had shown up again, in a way.  Naturally it got me thinking about him.  And the to-be-written novel.  Are my experiences with Gil to serve as inspiration for another section of the book?  Am I going to now write the book?  Not likely sooner than later.  I have PLENTY to work on already.  Besides, who’s to say Compass won’t show up again?  I’d rather the tale be self-contained with no sequel.  ;)  But I'm talking about it because I learned something else from all of this: Sometimes a novel takes a lifetime to be able to write.

That's pretty darn profound to me.  I guess up til now-ish I figured a story, when set down to be writ, would just spring to life with a little help from the characters.  As I always say, they've lived the tale and they relate it to us.  So the idea that one’s own lifetime is required to play out before a particular tale can truly be told – without the focus being a chronicle of one’s life – intriguing to say the least.

*Love referred to is Plantonic.

To Error By Era...

I talk a lot about the wonderfully wacky and wow-ing 21st Century. We’re able to get guided directions, find out that name of an actor we can’t remember with a few touches of a finger, receive emails, shop, check the weather and a whole host of other sundry tasks all in the palm of a hand. And that’s just smartphones! Surely I needn’t go on about the other technology marvels that may as well be fiction!

But I’ve often wondered what it’s done TO our fiction. Certain elements common to all sorts of tales are now not going to fly. Once upon a time if a character wound up in unfamiliar territory, it meant “lost” and the panic would ensue. How to rectify the situation? Ask that kindly old man who turns out to be a sexual harassment creep? Break out the map (if one is even along!) but have no street lights to read it by? Keep walking and hope for a cab? The possibilities are endless. And yet many of them are cut short because nowadays, said character could just look up how to get back home on the “phone,” a device that does nearly everything other than be a telephone. Oh sure, there are ways around it for authors to thwart the character. The batteries are dead. The device  itself got lost two days ago. Or...

I’m not saying that technology had ruined fiction, just that it’s given us storytellers more on the plate to have to contend with and thus makes it not so easy to create havoc and tension in the events of a story without having to cover other bases.

Go back even further, to beyond when a cellular phone had just been that and that only, a telephone. No texting, no pictures, no maps, no Angry Birds (no I don’t play)... Even then, there’d been a huge dynamic shift from something like Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho. If they’d been able simply to CALL Marion Crane on her cell phone in the car, it would have turned out much differently. Yes, yes, it’s probable that she’d not answer or what have you, but any way it’s sliced, there’s a huge change in how the whole situation is perceived.

And that, then, affects how and WHEN authors craft a story. It makes me think of my own “epic” novel What If It’s a Trick Question? One day my #1 fan Anon wrote to me and told me exactly what year the book takes place. I’d been surprised. It didn’t have a specific year so much as an era. Jeremy, the main character, has a cell phone. Okay, sure. He plays video games... yet it’s before the Wii and motion-control gameplay. I could bring in other examples, but you get the idea. There are certain elements that can or cannot be in the story, also to the extent of his station in life (and what could be afforded and such.) It had been quite easy to figure out, since I essentially aimed at the time period during which I wrote it.

I didn’t have to worry about whether this time overlaps the particulars for quite some time, you see? Until Anon goes and figures out all the math accordingly (from story data) and also from the calendar. [The book takes place over the course of a month, each chapter is the subsequent day.] Anon located which year the dates matched up to the book and told me WHEN it happened. Interesting, no? Given that the world of the book is a fictional version of Chicago, it didn’t matter to me so much when the calendar aligned... I’d aligned it with the events/circumstances of the book. Again, it had been a time frame. If it hadn’t been meant to be a real city, did it have the same cycles of days as us?

That's the rub of writing what (at the time) is contemporary - advances render the book into a bygone era. But that’s the essence of this post. Things we now take for granted must factor into new storytelling. Why can’t she just use her cell phone? Did they record it in HD? Why is he using TAPES? Don’t they have security cameras placed at the top of the lampposts or something that would show the killer? Well, once upon a time all these didn’t apply.

Just one more way in which authors need to keep up with the times -- and it can be argued that such techno newness is ruining the options in a good book. What would Agatha Christie do with DNA matching?! From another angle, though, it opens up a lot more, too... always a trade off, Isuppose.  For when writing in a past era you've got to REMEMBER (or research) what could/couldn't be done and what did/didn't exist.

We’ve got a lot more to contend with and control and make up excuses for (if you’ll pardon the expression) as to how it all went down in our stories.

Who's Asking About the Past?

Just because it isn't in the story as shown doesn't mean it didn't happen.

By that I mean storytellers need to know the backgrounds and histories of their characters even if those parts of their past are not told in the tale at hand.

As an example, in the movie Back to the Future (and its two great sequels), a high school boy is friends with a crazy (no no, crazy is too harsh... eccentric?  wiley?  frazzled?) scientist with a doctorate who specializes in wacky inventions and has a Rube Goldberg Machine to feed his dog.

The fact that they are friends is pivotal to the story... and when the movie begins, Marty is entering the Doc's (he calls him Doc) "lab"/garage.  Thus, from the start, they have an established relationship.  There's no denying they're good friends.  Even so far as the Doc telling Marty to meet him in the parking lot of the mall at 1:15 in the morning and Marty does it without question!  We're to accept their friendship and go on with the adventure. 

However, fans have always wondered... how does this unlikely pairing exist?  Why does a teenage boy (who has aspirations of being a rock star and problems at home [like so many of them out there]) with a girlfriend choose to spend his time with a (ahem) strange Doc of weird science?  Likewise, why does a white-haired scientist who's been [seemingly] unsuccessfully creating things since at least the 1950's such as a mind-reading helmet (which looks more like an Erector set dome with hair curlers) want to have an angsty kid hanging around?  Oh sure, plenty of answers can exist.  And the speculations ran rampant.  Everyone had their own idea of this duo's dynamic beginnings.  But what's the truth?  Which one is correct?  IS one of them correct?

It turns out yes, there is a definitive answer.  Why?  Because the truth is that director/writer Robert Zemeckis and writer Bob Gale, as well as the actors and others involved with creating the film had their own version of the origins of the friendship between Marty McFly and Dr. Emmett Brown.  Why?  Because as storytellers, they needed to know.  It would affect how the characters reacted, hence the actor's performances.  And it had to all come across as believable.  Which it did... I don't think anyone ever called "foul" on their friendship, just a "Hmmm...what's the deal?"  It didn't present it self as problematic.  Rather it became intriguing.

How do we know there's a definite tale of how they met and became friends?  Not so long ago in the media news, we were treated to the insight by Robert Zemeckis himself.  You can read it here if you're curious.

My point, then, is that a story exceeds the boundaries of the medium in which it is told.  Just because a piece of the characters' or situation's history is not revealed in the book, the author(s) must have an idea of what it had been.  It's not possible to create a successful tale and not know the backstories.  For knowledge of it will shape how the bits that ARE shown play out.  It helps to have the intesity of the emotions and situations bolstered by the past.

Think of your own relationships.  Are they not affected by what had been forged long ago?  If we were to tell an adventure from your life as a book, would it not behoove us to feel the fervor of what had been to better understand the events and kinships that exist during said adventure?  Of course.

Then again, it's not always important to actually know in the storytelling.  After all, we're telling specific events.  The audience can easily be bored by every detail of the past.  In the case of Back to the Future, for instance, we don't need to waste precious movie time with the events that Zemeckis described as the start of their friendship.  They're not part of the tale being told.  Imagine if it the film showed that scene.  We'd then have to show the progression, the build of how they came to care about each other... and thus it would take "forever" to get to what the movie is really about.  But again, these previous moments in time shine through in the background, for as I said, no one questions their being pals.

So it's up to an author to realize what information is pertinent to the story at hand.  But it's also up to the author to know what's pertinent behind the scenes, even if no one wants to or needs to know.  Yet if you do it right, they will want to know.  Any writer who cannot tell you about the extraneous bits of their story isn't doing the job.  That's not to say that every single bit of minutia of has to be known, but by golly, if asked, the answer should come springing forth.  And if it doesn't, don't fear, the characters know... just ask them.

Lovely? Happy? No worries!

Here’s another bit from Peter Pan’s NeverWorld that one might construe as a discrepancy.

From Peter and Wendy:

“You just think lovely wonderful thoughts,” Peter explained, “and they lift you up in the air.”

Said by Pan in PPNW:

“Now think happy thoughts and wriggle your shoulders.”

Happy thoughts? Shouldn’t it have been “lovely wonderful thoughts”?

Well, perhaps.  I’ll let you in on my rationale for this one.

We know from Barrie that Peter Pan can be quite scatter-brained and also that he’s prone to saying whatever comes into his head. Thus, we cannot necessarily rely on him to repeat the same exact phrase.

And that’s a factor, too... repeating Barrie’s exact phrasing of those two modifying words for ‘thoughts’ would seem a little over-the-top, no?   Maybe even stilted.   Thus, I don’t have Peter Pan saying the same thing verbatim.   It just wouldn’t happen.

Why, then, does he say “happy” when it’s become the standard in pop culture’s thinking about how one flies in the world of Pan? Well, precisely for that reason. You see, it’s not just in our own real life that Pan is known throughout by young and old alike. It’s within the world of the Barrie’s stories of him as well. Tales of Pan are passed down for generations... and not just via the Darlings’ descendants. Here’s the beginning of the chapter titled for the boy in The Little White Bird:

If you ask your mother whether she knew about Peter Pan when she was a little girl she will say, "Why, of course, I did, child," and if you ask her whether he rode on a goat in those days she will say, "What a foolish question to ask, certainly he did." Then if you ask your grandmother whether she knew about Peter Pan when she was a girl, she also says, "Why, of course, I did, child," but if you ask her whether he rode on a goat in those days, she says she never heard of his having a goat. Perhaps she has forgotten, just as she sometimes forgets your name and calls you Mildred, which is your mother's name.  Still, she could hardly forget such an important thing as the goat. Therefore there was no goat when your grandmother was a little girl. This shows that, in telling the story of Peter Pan, to begin with the goat (as most people do) is as silly as to put on your jacket before your vest.

And let us not forget this passage about Wendy’s mother in Peter and Wendy:

At first Mrs. Darling did not know, but after thinking back into her childhood she just remembered a Peter Pan who was said to live with the fairies. There were odd stories about him...

... which just go on and on.

There you have it. I hope you’re happy with the lovely way I’ve manipulated the wonderful world of Pan.

I'm B-a-B Finishing the Interquel

The progress report on Peter Pan: Betwixt-and-Between...

just over half done.

Sorry if you were expecting more.  If only I were able to spend every moment working on it.  Alas, that is not to be.  Also, I don't want to rush it.  After all, they're the pictures for the tale and I want to be happy with each and every one.  So far that's true.

Part of the delay process is both selecting which parts to illustrate and another factor lies in what illustrations I am feasibly able to do.  For instance, I'm using actual photos (my own) of Kensington Gardens wherever I can... but not all scenes take place there!  So the hunt for more is on... (one picture in particular is composed of three - and you should have seen Bart get wide-eyed at that news.  He'd no idea that had been the case.) 

More importantly, recall that I wish it to have the 'feel' of the original drawings for both Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens and Peter and Wendy.  Sort of a hybrid of the two.  For is it not a story that lies somewhere toward the middle of the two?

I'm not the only one who likes the pictures I have completed, either.  Like I said, Bart's been impressed.  He doesn't placate me, especially when it comes to something important such as pictures for a novel.  [This after I got the "go ahead" from worthy critics Anon* and Andrea Hook & Jill Jones who each saw the first illustration.]

I've also been revising the novel once again.  And that includes "maintenance" so to speak, as I tend to not want a page with, say, only two sentences on it or whatnot.  Sometimes, but not often, such undesirable results wind up unavoidable.  But I'm doing my best to prevent them... without sacrificing the original text.  That can be tricky.  But I'm happy to say that so far it's only caused a better flowing narrative.

And yes, I spent a good portion of the past holiday weekend working on the book.

So hang in there, Pan fans.  I'm only trying to produce something I can crow about!
(I should also mention that the work is going by much more quickly than I anticipated.)

You'll be able to crow about it soon enough.

*Barrie enthusiast and my faithful reader and #1 fan

Whatever Works

On my stream of tweets that I follow, there's a bunch that are tips, quotes or advice about writing.  I'd also recently been interviewed (I'll be sure to let you know when that interview is posted to the web) and I'd been asked advice on writing and/or the writing scene.

Know what I've found?  Not surprisingly, there's a lot of conflicting advice.  For example, when I had the good fortune to meet Isaac Asimov (see here & here) I walked away from his lecture with this wisdom:  Think of a great ending first and then write until that ending is reached.  Sound advice from a master of the craft.  And yet, here's another tip from author Rose Tremain:  In the planning stage of a book, don't plan the ending. It has to be earned by all that will go before it.*

Well, gee, which is it?

I can see the case for both.  It's important to know where you're headed in a story... but you need to be able to take detours.  Characters are very often tricky in that they've reserved a whole ball of wax that can be fashioned into the very light of the tale.  Sometimes it's planned guesswork.

I also recently (on Twitter) read that I should give myself a ritual...for the discipline of creating a mindset...yada yada yada.  I don't disagree with it, I can see the potential.  But upon following this advice I found it did nothing for me.

We should create lush and rich descriptions of the landscape and the interior of a room, for it paints the mood and infects the reader with the very environment of the novel.  No, sorry, that does nothing but bore the reader into putting the book down.  Adamantly.  On both views.  Depends on who you ask.

Obviously, then, it comes down to whatever works for each particular author.

* Thanks to Jon Winokur @AdviceToWriters for tweeting that!     

HAD BEEN Working On It, Am Again

Well, today Andrea Jones asked about the progress on Peter Pan: Betwixt-and-Between.  She also typed to me that she's been "talking it up."  How very wonderful of her!  Thanks, Andrea!

I've recently been emailing with a fan who's delighted to have found someone so obsessed with Peter Pan.   The eagerness to read the interquel leaps from the typing.

Anon* has been curious about the progress, too, I believe.
Well then!  I suppose I should really get on that, eh?  I've checked a little into how best to make it available... and decided I needed to have a concrete page count and such.  And there's no way of knowing that until I finish with the revisions.  Which, I admit, I put on a backburner.

Well, I'm firing it up again.  In fact, I began this very night.  I chose to tackle the easier of the suggestions made by Andrea.  She noticed an over-use of the word combination "had been."  So  I looked.  I figured it would be a good way to wade back into it.  She'd been right.  63 instances.  Some places just needed a good tweaking, some written over with extra Barriesque comedy and some just plain thrown out.  Well, it's now down to 14.

So it's on to the other reworking...
I'll of course keep you posted.
For it seems as if there are some people waiting to read this novel!

*Barrie enthusiast and my faithful reader and #1 fan

Rules? Well, Maybe to START with...

I came across this on the world wide web. 

V.S. Naipaul’s Rules of Writing for Beginners

1. Do not write long sentences. A sentence should not have more than ten or twelve words.

2. Each sentence should make a clear statement. It should add to the statement that went before. A good paragraph is a series of clear, linked statements.

3. Do not use big words. If your computer tells you that your average word is more than five letters long, there is something wrong. The use of small words compels you to think about what you are writing. Even difficult ideas can be broken down into small words.

4. Never use words whose meaning you are not sure of. If you break this rule you should look for other work.

5. The beginner should avoid using adjectives, except those of colour, size and number. Use as few adverbs as possible.

6. Avoid the abstract. Always go for the concrete.

7. Every day, for six months at least, practice writing in this way. Small words; short, clear, concrete sentences. It may be awkward, but it’s training you in the use of language. It may even be getting rid of the bad language habits you picked up at the university. You may go beyond these rules after you have thoroughly understood and mastered them.

Much of it IS good advice.  But then, I can't get behind all of it fully.
For instance, what about #3?  See this post for more.

As for #4, does anyone actually do that?

I must disagree with #5.  Yes, I've encountered this rule/suggestion before.  But I don't think they need to be eliminated entirely.  Just curtailed.  Every actor will tell you that there's more than one way to read a line.  So in specific instances, writers may want to make sure the reader knows how the character delivered that line.  After all, it's not meant to be interpreted.  It's the author's story and s/he's the one "hearing" it, so naturally an author can/needs to let the reader know how it had been spoken when it's important to the story.

And #6 - avoid the abstract always?  I'm sorry, but for me as both writer and reader I like it when the text makes you use a little effort to figure out what's going on or has been said.  Not to any extreme, of course.  But I don't think every bit needs to be spoon fed without mixing flavors.

And how many times have we heard of a success that broke the rules?

I suppose it all comes down to it being for beginners?  Along with the line in it:  'You may go beyond these rules after...' But still, it seems as if writing produced under these strict laws would be very dry, dull and boring.  It might be effective in getting the point across quickly... but that's not always desirable in storycraft.  Or at least I don't think so.  A good tale needs to be spiced, tasted, savored and digested.

Thus, I prefer to think of them the way the rules are spoken of in the Pirates of the Caribbean series.  They're more like guidelines.

The Two Cents of Jones on the Interquel

As I already had reported in this post, Andrea Jones (author of Hook & Jill) loved what she had read so far of my interquel, Peter Pan: Betwixt-and-Between.  [If you're not familiar with the details of this book or want a recap, click here.]

I’m happy to now report that upon having finished reading, her appreciation of it has only increased. During our “playdate” this past weekend, she congratulated me on how I’d successfully created the transition from the baby Peter to the boy Pan. I’m relieved, to be honest. I knew Andrea would have not only a great critical eye, but an invested interest in keeping it in tune with Barrie.



What fun to see her smile when she pointed out her favorite bits (both humorous and solemn) as she went over her notes. How gratifying to know that my ideas had merit, that the ways in which I’d solved the inherent dilemmas proved to be not just viable, but satisfying. I did have to clarify one part, but only for Andrea’s sake at the moment. Within the story itself, it's meant to be like the charmingly ambiguous specificities so deliciously typical of Barrie.

The part of my story which I had been most worried about - for I thought it might be construed as too outlandish - she liked very much. Quite the opposite of my fear, Andrea thinks it’s “very Barrie.” I suppose it is, since the primary idea for it grew out of something he wrote anyway. And thinking on it further what happens ‘there’ is not unlike shenanigans he might have had with the Llewelyn Davies boys in the Gardens. Hosah.

Official Cover of the Novel



Perhaps you recall I’d been struck with an idea for another bit to add to the end. I had meant it to strengthen an idea/theme and create another tie-in to Peter and Wendy. I had sent Anon* the new section (along with the entire last chapter) and had hoped to hear it worked. The truth is Anon didn’t notice the new part at all - which I took to mean that it fit well. Andrea’s copy of the book did not include this new paragraph, so I read it to her. She looked pensive for a small while and then replied that I didn’t need it. It lacked an impact or reason for being there. She went on to say that the ending to the novel is perfect just as it is and she didn’t want to see me ruin it. Imagine that! Both Anon and Andrea think the ending is marvelous. Just what an author wants to hear!

Don’t think, however, that all of her comments had been glowing. She did have an issue here or there - such as the amount of characters introduced all at one time. It seemed overwhelming and confusing, so she suggests that I spread out the introductions across the story. I concur. A good observation and one with an easy enough fix, which will not just alleviate the problem at hand but allow for better pacing and discovery (as to what the characters' functions are) throughout. I welcomed each of her critiques. I’ve already attended to one of them. It seems I abused the word ‘quite’ rather heavily. So I examined each one and decided if it had been necessary. For I could not banish it altogether as Peter Pan might, since in some cases no other word will do. Plus, it does appear frequently in Barrie’s works. But she’d been (ahem!) quite right. I managed to eliminate two-thirds of the offending word.

 1st draft of the Tagline design

To finish up, Andrea wants to see Peter Pan: Betwixt-and-Between published. She thinks highly enough of it that it should be included among the tales of the eternal youth. I accomplished what I set out to do. I’ve filled in the missing pieces to the puzzle of Peter Pan’s past with the flair of Barrie. Andrea’s summation in one line, as if it were her blurb on the back cover - Peter Pan: Betwixt-and-Between is bright and shiny like a new…tuppence.

So I will work on the revisions... and I suppose the fate of this novel has been decided. Eventually I will get it “out there” so that others may enjoy it, too.

And please don’t take any of this post as self-congratulatory. I’m thrilled that Anon and Andrea like what I have done. I’m just as amazed that it’s well received as they are with how I worked it all out.

* Barrie enthusiast and my faithful reader and #1 fan

Is Peter Pan Gun-Shy?

I believe in subsequent books of the NeverWorld, I'm going to put something you might not expect in the hand of Peter Pan.  A gun.

Before you balk and scoff (if you haven't already) consider this line from Peter and Wendy.

“Ah, old lady,” said Peter, hanging up his gun.

Ah, see, he does have a gun!

I can easily see why it's not within the scope of people's general perception of Peter Pan.  When have we ever seen him fighting with something other than a dagger or a sword?  Guns at all in the story only come with the pirates, or so it seems.  And that line can often slip by one's notice.  I've always wondered, though, why Hook doesn't just shoot Pan down?  An answer comes to mind quickly - Peter is too fast, clever and alert and ever so ready to dart out of the way.  At least that's what I believe.  And P.J. Hogan, at least, thinks so as well (though Peter actually escapes the shot with a warning from Wendy.)

However, the fact remains that guns are very real in the Neverland.  And since there's precedent for it as per Sir J.M. Barrie himself, I'd like to push the boundary of our conception of the world of the flying boy.  As someone who ventures forth into that world, I'm curious how such a heavy burden would be handled by Pan.  One has to wonder why he hasn't already used one famously.  Is there a reason?  I cannot say for sure what Barrie's might have been, but I have two educated guessses.

For the first (but not foremost) answer, I turn to my own work, Peter Pan's NeverWorld, since I presented my story-wise theory within its pages:

[Michael Pan] held the ax like a rifle, an instrument of which he never felt very fond.  Guns and rifles always seemed like cheating to him. He longed for a more adventurous clash with the enemy. Perhaps some things do run in the family.

Naturally I hope you agree with the thought.  As for the real world (meaning our own) application, I believe Barrie's particular aversion to real world war should be examined.  World War I claimed his beloved George.  Okay, to be honest, he would have written the play and novel long before George's gunshot to the head at the age of 21.  Consider, though, this line from the novel form of Peter Pan:

When you play at it by day with the chairs and table-cloth, it is not in the least alarming, but in the two minutes before you go to sleep it becomes very real. That is why there are night-lights.

Obviously Barrie never underestimated the severity of the dangers of Pan's island. And by extension, the world.  Maybe he could not cope with the horror of the personal cannon.  Perhaps that's one reason Captain Hook does not fall to sword or gunfire. Other reasons exist, for sure, but I venture it's a valid factor.

When it came time for Peter Pan's NeverWorld, part of the idea behind the project had been to explore how Peter Pan and the Neverland would be affected by the events of the world since the days of the original story. Knowing the emotional impact war had on Barrie, it definitely needed a major role in the new tale.

And now, having been prompted by a comment somewhere on the internet about Peter Pan not having a gun, I decided perhaps it's time we see it happen.

I'm not going to tackle this any time soon. I have plenty endeavors to keep me busy before then... including returning to NeverWorld to finish the second book. Quite honestly, I can most definitely see guns fitting perfectly into the storyline of book three. A grand match for it, indeed. Judging by the tingles [for lack of a better term] I'm getting inspiration-wise, I think it's a safe bet that book three will put a pistol in the hand of Pan.  Maybe by then I'll have figured out the best way to do it.

Until then, I'll be thinking of Peter with the Lagollon.

Just Not Rite for Me

Well, I think I’m going to have go ahead and call the “Writing Ritual” experiment a failure. (See this post.) It certainly isn’t working the way it had been intended.


For one thing, part of the “Ritual” requires it to be dark outside. And while yes, that goes with the elements of the book, that cuts my available work time in half. Not so much a problem, it would seem, assuming that I often compose at night anyway? Well, limiting that portion of time to being able to tend to a candle and such with some privacy doesn’t always happen. Plus, I can’t seem to set a specific time on account of all the other events and stuff in my life. In other words, before I’d write when inspiration struck, where or whenever it struck. Thinking “I’ll remember that for later” or even writing the idea down for later just doesn’t work. By the time that candle-induced later arrives, the guys have shut up.

Also, the times that the cards do conspire for me, it’s not like there’s a great flood of material coming right then. Whereas I feel like I missed out on listening to the guys when THEY wanted to be relating their story.

I know that writing at a scheduled time works for many writers, so I thought I’d try it out. Since I didn’t have any trouble composing stories before without a “ritual” I guess I’m just not one of those for whom ‘forcing a time’ or ‘environment’ does any good.

Oh well.

Which Words Last as Last?

Since I don't really focus on Captain Hook much (since he's out of the picture for my purposes) I tend not to remember or notice as many details concerning him.

I did recently stumble across something to be curious about though - his last words.

What are they?  Well... that depends - are we going by the play or the book?

When it comes to being "canon" I go to the book first.  But that's only because when I expand on Pan, I'm doing so in novel form. 

In the play, he invokes his Alma Mater:  Floreat Etona
In the novel, having goaded Peter to kick him rather than stab him:

"Bad form,” he cried jeeringly, and went content to the crocodile.

Now since the book came second, one must think that Barrie consciously changed his mind as to what the pirate lord said.  I'd imagine that must be the case, since in the novel the whole good/bad form is played up to a large degree, especially concerning Hook.

However, when checking into the last time he revised his own story (a la his unused screenplay) Barrie again uses Floreat Etona.  As a second however, though, it is not written with quotes around it as are the other bits of dialogue (on the screen, as it would have been a silent movie.)  Thus, we can see that it is definitely important that Hook be associated with his school as he comes to his end.

So perhaps we can reconcile this non-threatening incongruity in this way:  Hook said "Bad form" and thought Floreat Etona.

Also interesting to note the contrast of what Peter Pan said as his last words when he thought he faced death:

To die will be an awfully big adventure.

I say interesting because either way as per Hook's last words, he's being childish.  That is... with his Alma Mater quote one can argue he's longing for his boyhood school days.  With his other words he's reduced to mocking his foe, as a child might do.  Pan, on the other hand, seems to face it bravely and with a very mature philosophical spin.  In Hook's defense regarding the screenplay:  He does walk the plank with commendable bravery (while thinking of his Eton days) and dives straight into the crocodile's mouth.

Just me over-analyzing again. In either case, at least ol' Pirate James knew that he'd be speaking his last words and could choose them. Someone else I'm thinking of didn't have that luxury!  What also comes to mind is that if we're dealing with the alternate timeline of the Barrie universe, a la the Neverland of author Andrea Jones, what would Hook's final utterance be then? (Just fun to think about - this is in no way meant as any kind of indication as to upcoming events in her books.)

And that's the last word on the last words.

Chapter the None

Who says there are rules on how to write a book?

Okay, there probably actually are a few...

...but I'm thinking I'm going to blur one of the basics while writing this new novel.

Usually my chapters are about 10-15 pages long.  There are always exceptions, of course, as per the needs of the story.  Andy's adventure has chapters which are only 1-5 pages long.  And though Jeremy generally follows the 10-15, he's got some bits of his story which are much longer.  So it's not like I've not changed up this aspect of my novels before.  But it seems I'm going to be even a little bolder for this book.

I'd been thinking about the scene I'm working on.  It's just about finished with it.  But if so, then I am left with just a chapter of about 2 pages.  True, I've had that before.  But as I ponder it further, there's just something about this novel that isn't fitting into the mold of "chapters."  I'm realizing that the perspective of the characters don't lend themselves to "chunks of time."  Rather they're more in an amorphous and free-flowing river of it.

Thus, I just might forgo the idea of "chapter" altogether.  How about that?  A novel with no chapters.  Breaks - yes.  The standard  chapter - no.  If you're asking "Would not each break constitute a chapter, then?"  I respond:  Not how I'm thinking of it.  There will be no headers/titles to each one.  There will be no numerical progression.  Just a stream of breaks and chunks of text with no minimum or maximum length, as per the mind-set and interactions of main characters.  When you're somewhat outside of Time, it would definitely appear and behave unconventially.  Therefore, why not reflect that in the writing of it?

It might be "fun" and/or useful for the reader, too.  S/he can create personal stopping-points.

As I've said before - every novel is different.

WRIT-ual

Given the nature of the subject matter of the new novel (a simple twist on a haunted house) I keep feeling compelled to write in the dark. It just seems apropos.

Well, I’ve extended that idea. I’m trying out something new. I decided to have a little ‘ritual’ each time I set to bring the story to the page. Right now it merely involves a few simple bits such as ceremoniously lighting a candle. Maybe it will develop even more 'steps' as time goes on... I just figure it should have a séance quality to it.

I tried it out last night and will again tonight.  So far it’s got a lot of potential. It lent a spooky aura...not just the glow of candlelight but being aware of the emptiness surrounding me. I really did feel more connected to the characters than before.

However, it’s also true that I found the writing to be slow-going. But not in the sense of not knowing what should be there nor even having trouble scribbling to the page. Rather I kept belaboring over the choice way of putting it down. That’s happened to me before, but, this time in reverse.  Unlike before, it hadn’t been me who objected to the words I'd write. I thought them just fine.  But my guys in the story didn’t seem to be very appreciative. So I’d re-craft what I had (at one point realizing an unintentional double entendre that HAD to be disposed of since there are no romantic feelings between the two of them) and wait until they approved. These guys seem to be giving me great impressions of how they feel rather than spouting out the story bits. Not that they aren’t forthcoming with what’s happening in their tale, they are very much so, even to the point of surprising me already. But with say, Jeremy, well, he wouldn’t stop rambling and I had to write like a madman to keep up with him. These two are wading in each moment, making sure I totally grok what they’re experiencing (even if it doesn’t appear directly onto the page) and hence I’m trying to carefully distill the essence into those ‘choice’ words.  Instead of the slowness frustrating me, I reveled in it - absorbing the atmosphere.

It’s so remarkable... how each book develops differently.

As for the music playlist I compiled before... it’s working pretty well. I might have to tweak it a bit. But then, I haven’t gotten through all of the songs on it yet either.

And so my ‘ritual’ will continue... and I certainly hope it produces great results. (Well, duh. ;] )

Of course, I won’t be able to utilize the ritual every single time. For I don’t plan on writing solely at home in the dark of night. I often bring my work with me.  If I’m in a café or by the lake... well, no candles can be lit. But whenever I write at home, I’ll fire up the steps to composing. It will be interesting to see if I can notice a distinct difference or not.



Let the Music Fit the Words

I did begin the new novel.  But not until way late on Sunday night/morning.  My weekened wound up full with stuff that I hadn't anitcipated at first.  Plus a little proscrastinating on my part.  Just a wee little bit.

I’m happy to say that the characters are quite vivid for me. Despite my having thought about what they might say next in their conversation, I never really knew. But when the pen went scribbling, my guys did in fact speak up. And I’m quite pleased with their rapport. I already see their relationship and personalities even with the little bit that I’d churned out.


It turned out to be just a little for I couldn’t help but need music to write to, as per my usual penchant. Sure, I could have just picked something on the spot... but then that song would have ended and I’d have to choose another. That would have disrupted the flow for me. Sure, I could have set it to a particular album, but then... which to use?

Thus, since my flow would be stop and go anyway, I carried through with what the guys were saying and then began my “playlist” for this book. That entails going through my list of songs and deciding which are appropriate or might be inspirational for each particular story. Some of my choices came directly from the characters looking/listening over my shoulder.

So I expect the next round of writing to go quite well, considering that the guys are forthcoming with themselves and I’ve got a collection of tunes to play in the background.

Now if only I had a title! This will be the second time I’m starting a novel and don’t know what the title is before I begin. Sure, titles sometimes change anyway during the course of it, but not always. It’s a little disconcerting not having the name of the book, especially since it’s one of the first questions people ask. Oh well... I’ll just have to live with it. It worked out fine for Jeremy’s story. I didn’t have the title of that book until three-quarters of the way through!

Surprised to See Him

A couple of posts ago I described how I had one character left to draw. But his actual visage eluded me, as I'd been somehow tainted by another character of mine that shared only very remote traits. So, in an attempt to bring him to paper, I just started to draw.

I began with a stroke that I don't normally make... couldn't shake the feeling that he's a blonde and then looked up hairstyles from the era that I know he lived, found inspiration and kept on going.

To my delight and surprise, I suddenly had a clear image of this mysterious guy. He's not at all what I thought and yet I knew I had it right.  No "objections" from him at all, just a smug greeting.

I then gleaned more about him, as sometimes happens. Still don't know his motivation, although I could definitely "see" the potential for his actions in his bragging nature showing through.

It's moments like these that make me happy - the odd discovery that fiction is quite real on some level. And no matter how many times I experience it, the feeling is always just as astounding.  Which I've said before, but it really bears repeating.  Each time.

Two Down One to Go

Well, I'm glad I listened to the character.

A little while ago I reported that I tried drawing one of the three I'm going to draw for the new novel.  I had not been happy with the result.  It didn't look like him in my mind's eye and he also 'told' me that I'd gotten it all wrong.  So, I had another go.  This time his personality is all there... and I'm convinced that I managed to capture him in lines.  There's been no objection from him either.

I've had some other bits of the tale come to me... looks like I will be writing this story after all.  I just hope that this guy shows up in words as well as he did in virtual ink.

The truth is I have three lines of the book... the opening three, which are dialogue.  But I know I'll not feel right about continuing if I don't get a picture of the third main character.  I've known about him the longest, actually, which doesn't explain why I didn't put him to paper first.  It could be because he's a little more mysterious and whenever I think of him, I bring to mind an image of a character from another book of mine.  But the two of them share very little in common so I'm a little confused as to why I think of the other character.  Well, I'll just have to try my hand at creating him in pictorial form as I do have a handle on him in the story.  I just need him to tell me his reason for acting the way he does... perhaps that's the bit I need to "see" him.

I probably sound crazy, but then, doesn't one have to be a little nuts to weave fiction?

Yes, yes - but you would have to be half-mad to dream me up.

- The Mad Hatter, Burton's Alice