The reason I haven’t blogged much this week is that I’m sick. I hate being sick. Hate hate hate. So when I’m sick, on top of feeling like crap, I’m in a pretty poisonous mood. At which point, it’s usually better that I just stay off my blog. Either that or share with you some real ranty mcrant-rants.
Don’t worry, I’ve spared you.
So what have I been up to? I’ve been reading. RITA entries and Golden Heart entries, mostly. I’ve been watching old romantic comedies on DVD. French Kiss is better than I remember it being. Overboard is not. I think it’s possible I’m just much more creeped out by the slavery aspects in the latter than I was when I saw it a long time ago.
I’ve also been reading many fascinating things on the internet. And I’m here to share them with you.
Justine Larbalestier’s blog vacation has made for some truly amazing guest posts. One of my favorites is the fabulous Lauren McLaughlin on how having a baby made her look at her fiction-writing in a totally new way. I really love the way Lauren is always so honest and forthright about her development as an artist. I think there are a lot of writers out there that feed into the myth that they popped out of the box full-formed, but that’s not the case, and reading articles like Lauren’s inspire me to talk more about my development as a writer. It’s also an interesting post because I always read the Cycler character of Ramie as being a person of color. (I see Filipino, actually — anyone else?)
My other favorite Larbalesti-guest post is from my newest object of professional-crushdom, Varian Johnson, on time management. Have I mentioned how Varian, upon hearing that we’d be at the same conference, brought me a bookstore newsletter that had an article about me all the way from Austin? As if I wasn’t already crushing on him because of the awesomeness that was My Life as a Rhombus. To wit: Varian’s books rock, and so does Varian. And so does Varian’s post on how he manages to be a civil engineer and a writing professor AND a writer AND help his (drop-dead gorgeous–I met her at the aforementioned conference) wife pick out granite countertops on the weekend. And here I am with a messy house, a fridge full of chicken soup and jello, and no other job but writing. I feel like such a slacker.
Speaking of the hard-working and prolific, another blog post I liked a lot recently was Lauren Baratz-Logsted’s take on the hated prologue on the Red Room. Lauren writes in half a dozen genres (at last count) and is as big a fan of the prologue as I am (her prologue count is 10/14, mine is 5/6). The prevailing opinion, however, is that one shouldn’t write prologues. Poppycock. What one should not write, under any circumstances, are bad beginnings, whether it’s labeled prologue, chapter 1, or nothing at all. (My prologues are rarely longer than a page, and are never labeled prologues.) For me, the prologues in my books that have prologues are all about setting a theme for exploration in the book, much like an epigraph of my own design.(Indeed, my only book that doesn’t have a prologue has an epigraph. So there.)
And, speaking of writing advice, a massive depository of such can be found in these two articles in the Guardian. It was interesting to read Elmore Leonard’s, which I either don’t agree with or disregard (perhaps to my detriment), especially given how much I always loved the advice I heard was his of “leave out the parts people skip.” However, apparently he wasn’t saying what I thought he was. I thought, you know, the boring bits. He thought, long paragraphs. Huh. I do like Roddy Doyle’s advice to give your work a name as soon as possible. I always find I work much better once I have a working title. It crystallizes my theme. Also, Geoff Dyer’s:
“Beware of clichés. Not just the clichés that Martin Amis is at war with. There are clichés of response as well as expression. There are clichés of observation and of thought – even of conception. Many novels, even quite a few adequately written ones, are clichés of form which conform to clichés of expectation.”
Which I think is very important for especially genre writers to remember. So often we fall into the trap of doing something because we believe (erroneously) that it’s expected by the readers. Have characters make the unexpected choice, have the unexpected reaction. Surprise the reader.
Richard Ford says, “Marry somebody you love and who thinks you being a writer’s a good idea.” That was probably one of the best decisions I’ve ever made, so I’m right there with Ford. Sailor Boy has thought I should be a writer from the word go. He bought me tickets to my first writing conference. He’s always been one of my biggest supporters. In fact, I was on the phone with him today about a new direction in my career, and he was really pushing me forward. I’m extremely fortunate.
Hilary Mantel advises: “Write a book you’d like to read. If you wouldn’t read it, why would anybody else? Don’t write for a perceived audience or market. It may well have vanished by the time your book’s ready.” So true. I was doing an interview recently, which asked what I’d write if I didn’t have to worry about money. I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to be offended by that question. Because the answer is the same damn stuff I’m writing now. I write books I want to write, and books I’d like to read, and I always expect that I’m not the only one who feels that way. Yes, I get paid for projects, but I’ve also turned things down that were worth good money because I didn’t want to write them. I think you can feel that sort of thing in the writing. Write for yourself, and the rest will fall in line.
I also love everything Jeannette Winterson says. There’s a lot of good advice in these articles, and a lot I think is ehhhh, but, you know what they say about opinions.
What else have I been reading? Well, there’s this laughable suit going on against JK Rowling. Man, people will do anything for a buck, I think. And PublishAmerica, a vanity publishing house, is now telling their authors that they will submit their supposedly good-as-the-big-guys “published” book to Random House, because (this is my favorite part): “Every writer dreams about becoming a published author. Once they have reached that goal, as you have, many dream of the next step up: to become a Random House author. Random House is one of the most prestigious publishing names. Their extensive operation a few miles from our own headquarters makes them virtual neighbors.”
So apparently every published author’s dream is to become a Random House author? (Disclaimer: I actually am a Random House author, and happy about it.) But I know lots of writers who are perfectly happy not being Random House authors and, when given the choice, chose not to become Random House authors in favor of better contract terms at, say, Penguin or Little, Brown. The whole letter is worth reading for entertainment value though. In passing, last I heard, PA was in Frederick, Maryland. Random House is located on Broadway, in New York City. This “extensive operation a few miles” away the letter is talking about is actually a Random House distribution warehouse in Westminster (yay, Google Maps). Hint: they don’t acquire manuscripts there. I feel sorry for the RH mailroom clerks who are going to have to deal with this influx of bound slush from PA.
And, last but not least, I enjoyed this blog post by author Kate Douglas on the challenges of breaking into a new genre, and how to stay published, even when you’re being published very well.
Okay, off to try some solid food. Wish me luck.
February 26th, 2010 at 7:29 am
That PublishAmerica bit is interesting (not least of which because I work at Harper). On one hand, I do find it wildly funny that they’re calling a distribution center their neighbor, falsely implying that editors work there. But ultimately it makes me sad because think of all the misguided and hopeful authors who aren’t likely to see the results they want from PA and really do believe they have an “in” with Random House.
Off-topic, did you see Story Siren’s review of “Rampant” this morning? FANTASTIC and CONGRATS!
February 26th, 2010 at 8:17 am
Hi, Laura! No, I didn’t see it, Must go check it out.
I feel like everything PA does is to delude their clients. I am not a fan of commercial self-publishing, but I also see that there is a very good niche for it (say you’re publishing something for your community, family, special interest group, etc.) And I think there are far better (and cheaper) outfits to go to than PA for those needs (Lulu does an excellent product) and there are far too many PA authors who mistakenly think that their “publishing” contract is going to secure them spots in Barnes & Noble.
It’s interesting though, because most of what PA says seems geared toward convincing their authors that they’ve got it as good as it comes, and now to come out and say “well, you could be a Random House author…” is very interesting to me.
February 26th, 2010 at 10:52 am
Sorry you’re sick, chica! Sending cyber hugs and get well wishes.
I’m not as opposed to the self-publishing business as most authors seem to be. Entrepreneur’s daughter, and all that. Hey – why not do it yourself if you have the writing smarts and the business savvy to write a damn good book, put together a decent package (cover art, back cover blurb, endorsement quotes, etc.), handle all your printing and warehousing, set up your own distribution network, and roll out a smoking marketing plan that will get your books in front of your target audience?
I actually considered doing that before NY picked up my book. Problem is, doing the jobs of the publisher (which includes printing, packaging, warehousing, sales, distribution, publicity, and editing) as well as the writer — and the small business owner — is a VERY tough row to hoe. My hat is off, in a big way, to anyone willing to tackle that and make a real go of it. (Jana Oliver, I salute you!) For those people. Very narrow VERTICAL MARKET SEGMENTATION is key. Find your writing niche – it has to be a definable, accessible niche you can specifically exploit for a minimum of $$. Write to that niche. Build your reputation by excelling in that niche, then expand. That is the most proven small business recipe for success. The odds of writing a book, self publishing, then hitting the NY times with that self-published book (without ever selling the rights to NY) are about as likely as winning the Mega Jackpot lottery.
What I *am* vehemently opposed to outfits that massively overcharge writers, provide next to nothing from an editorial standpoint, and lure writers in with promises like “Be the star of your own booksigning” and “You too can be a Published Author and see your book on the shelves at bookstores across America!” (which most POD and self-pubs eventually learn is not going to happen). These outfits are snake oil salesmen.
February 26th, 2010 at 11:53 am
Well, I think most authors are opposed to it because they DON’T have the business acumen OR resources to be all those jobs at once. I was reading John Scalzi’s blog today, and he makes a very good point — for all that readers seem to think I should take on every bit of job for creating a book — the editing, the design, the packaging, the printing, the distribution, the marketing, the warehousing, the shipping, the returns — or I’m not “entrepreneurial” enough, I don’t see people telling cattle ranchers they’d be much better off if they butchered the cow themselves, shopped it to the grocery store themselves, ground up the sirloin themselves, bought all the extra materials for burgers, formed patties, cooked the burgers, put it together, and got it on a plate.
Are we next going to tell tailors to grow their own cotton?
I’m a writer, not a publisher. And as a small business owner myself, I feel no less entrepreneurial because I realize what my business IS and what it isn’t.
February 27th, 2010 at 9:36 am
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February 28th, 2010 at 2:17 pm
Have you been feeling like . . . crap crap crappity crap?