Anatomy Of An Idea: For As Many Dawns

We interrupt your (generally) regularly scheduled blog post to bring up a new publication of mine and talk a little bit about the inspiration.  You can read it here:

For As Many Dawns

(I do recommend you read the story before this post, if you do intend to read both, as here be potential spoilers.)

The kernel of this story comes from an old fairy tale or fable known as "The Buried Moon."  There's a bit of mythological this-is-why-it-is to "The Buried Moon:"  it starts with the conceit that when the sky is dark (new moon), the moon has come down to wander the earth.  In this particular fable, though, her progress through the dark forest is interrupted by all manner of evils, normally driven away by her light ... but when she trips over a tree root, the creatures swarm her and bury her in the swamp.  The fable has a happy ending:  eventually, a local village manages to free her.  You can read a version here.

It was the idea of this anthropomorphized moon, and the power of her light, that carried into "For As Many Dawns."  What happens to the moon's children after she leaves the heavens?  I wanted that feel of old tales, of legends, to seep into the story.  And how could a legendary problem have anything but a legendary solution?

Song Styles

With the holiday season nearly upon us, already upon us, or in full swing (depending on who you ask), I'd like to pose the question to you:  what are your favorite tunes?  It doesn't have to be Christmas - I've learned the Hanukkah tune Sevivon - or even connected to a religious holiday - I adore Marshmallow World, popularized by Johnny Mathis (and mangled by a Target commercial last year, but never mind that).

So ... what special songs make you smile this time of year, no matter how often you hear them?  Do they have special versions that are "right" to you, or can any artist sing / interpret them the way they choose?

What about ancient songs, passed down for centuries, sometimes fragmented and reworked?  What about the most modern of new classics?

Tell me what music stirs your soul.

Wednesday Wanderings

When I first started writing, I thought of myself as solely a novelist.  Writing short stories had no appeal - or so I thought.  Even back then, I participated in fandom, and wrote short tales about my characters, though somehow - perhaps because this was for the love, never professional - I never really thought of that as "real" short story writing.  Or maybe because rather than creating a story out of new elements, I was taking snippets from character backgrounds or transcribing / filling in scenes roleplayed with other fandom folks.  I did short fiction for a fantasy e-zine I ran for a time, but they were all very much serials:  (mostly) self-contained segments, part of a larger arc.

So I told myself I had no interest in being a short story writer, that I was going to write and sell novels, and I believed me.  When I did start writing short fiction, it was with purely mercenary intent:  at the time, novelists had more luck with short story sales to back them up.  Then I found out - horror of horrors! - I really enjoyed it.

More than that:  I've been working pretty steadily on my novel projects of later, but took a break to work on a so-called flash piece.  (I say "so-called" because the first draft clocks in at 1,333 words.)  The satisfaction of setting up the opening, keeping a tautly wound plot, and then - most of all - finishing the story was glorious.  I've also been mulling on a couple poems - which, for me, entails looking at forms I want to play with - and brewing on a fairytale reworking.

I've come to the conclusion I need the break and the change in pace, taking a step aside from the marathon of a novel to write something more contained. ... relatively, because I am a big fan of the, "Yes, but ..." ending, where the current tale is wrapped up, but the story implies there's more to come.

GoodReads Review: Blue Cats and Chartreuse Kittens: How Synesthetes Color Their Worlds - Patricia Lynne Duffy

(I don't usually post non-fiction or even non-fantasy books here, but this one so deeply involves the creative mind and perception that I had to share.)

  Blue Cats and Chartreuse Kittens: How Synesthetes Color Their Worlds by Patricia Lynne Duffy
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A fascinating exploration of the concept of synesthesia and the world of synesthetes, this book is both accessible and theoretical, personal and scientific. Duffy opens each chapter with a personal story that provides an introduction into the concept developed in the chapter, easing the reader from concrete illustration to the abstract of advanced topics. Synesthesia opens the door to contemplation of the source of creativity, the use of metaphor, and how the human brain regulates perception. A great, stimulating read.

View all my reviews

Wednesday Wanderings

It's time to face facts and 'fess up:  I'm not going to meet the goals I set back here.  While disappointed, I don't feel I've let myself down or relaxed on my commitment to write.  I've made some good progress, but life interfered in a lot of ways.  The new job has been excellent, but very physically intense, and the commute is a bear.  My older dog, Lexi, got very sick very suddenly.  She's on the mend now and with a long-term plan, but it swallowed a lot of my emotional energy.  My venerable Frankenlaptop decided to do a swan dive, which interfered with my writing because I'll to write in the evenings while chilling in front of the television.

Some of the delays have been directly writing related.  I got my proof for Scylla and Charybdis (!), which took priority.  I also decided to incorporate an element into the worldbuilding for my next project that requires some research, so now I'm down the blissful rabbit hole of learning new things.  I'm also feeling like I need to stretch my flash and poetry muscles a little, so I may take a pacing break for that.

I've always been the kind of person for whom deadlines are liberating, but I'm also the kind of person who stresses over them and beats herself up for falling short ... so I know when I need to let go of the deadline and let things happen in their own time.  I hope both novels (all three novels!) will be better for it.

It's time to face facts and 'fess up:  I'm addicted to alliteration.

Song Styles

I've mentioned before that there are some thematic worldbuilding similarities between Scylla and Charybdis and Surgeburnt:  both are settings that have "recovered" from the apocalypse; both address a backlash against current society's constant connectivity; and both put physical books in an isolated but hallowed niche, primarily because I am a book nerd and have an undying love for ink and paper.  I even posited a theory that they could be the same setting, since the planetary denizens in SaC have long since lost contact with Earth, and I haven't ruled out space travel in Surgeburnt, at least not explicitly.  But that's a bit of silly fluff and I don't think I'd formalize it; the two settings *feel* very different to me in other ways, and to me they don't belong in the same universe.

But there is one more thing that is similar between them.  I recently discovered that they both have the same song on their general theme list:

Children Of The Revolution - Kirsty MacColl

(This is Kirsty at her best, by the way:  it's such bright, cheerful instrumentation and the lyrics are biting, snarky and dark.)

The song applies to my projects in different ways, but it is definitely appropriate for both.

Wednesday Wanderings

One of the best recommendations I can make for fellow writers is this:  critique the stories of others.

We all take for granted the advantages of having someone else read our work, from big picture review to catching typos that our eyes just skip over, but even if you never submit a story to a workshop or post on a forum in turn, the process of critiquing can be immensely helpful to your own writing and editing.

First, it helps hone your critical eye.  Picking out what elements you like or don't like in a story and - even better - trying to analyze why helps you be aware of flaws when you return to your own work.  Read a tale that involves an act of deus ex machina, and it might bring your attention to a badly used coincidence in your novel.  It's also a "safe" place to notice these things, when you don't have the personal attachment of it being your keyboard-borne baby.

Second, it helps you separate objective and subjective issues, especially if you read outside your preferred tastes.  Is this battle scene and its gore over the top, or are you just not the intended audience?  What about an unhappy ending - is this cheating a reader, or do you just hate them on principle?  This kind of perspective is useful to have when, inevitably, an editor's rejection bounces back to you with comments, and you have to decide whether or not they have a point.

Third, the act of writing the critique improves a different set of writing muscles.  An effective critique discusses the story subjectively and without directing its suggestions straight at the author - where comments can too easily be taken as attacks.  Instead, a good critique focuses on how the reader reacted to the story, without much attention for the author.  (Comments like, "English must be your second language," or even, "I assume you're a native, because your grasp of (X) culture is ..." are landmines.)  This leads to using "I" language instead of "you" language, which puts people on the defensive in any context, much less one so artistically personal.

Of course, reading a set of critiques is a skill of its own ... but that's another topic.