Category Archives: Observation

I Am Stone

18 Wednesday Jun 2014

Posted by in Observation

≈ Leave a comment

I Am Stone     My life is so far from where I want it to be. Indeed, I am so far off course that I feel utterly and fully lost. Despite goals and resolutions, do-overs and re-starts, I cannot seem to find the path—I will not say “the path back” because I fully doubt that I was ever on it to begin with. I realize that I must be careful here. For what we offer ‘honestly’ is not necessarily ‘truth’.

     I feel like stone. Wind and lichen, frost and sun, ice and moon light. My world is blue. My use is not forgotten, for it has never been discovered.
     I feel like stone. I was raised with purpose. Can it be that I have missed it in watching the path of the sun? Winter is here, yet still I cannot find the way.
     I feel like stone. Could my use have been so brief that I lived the moment without realizing it? I understand so much better now how one can tire of life, tire of trying not to wait and yet being forced to because there was no where to go.
     I feel like stone, but then I take a breath and my fingers hum. I am enveloped in the sound. An envelope…no! A gate. I move carefully about the room. I must not lose my balance. I must not wonder if I have found the way or I will stumble back to stone.
      “Here stone. Now, right now. I have brought you a gift.” My lady of sorrows, my bronagh bean-uasal, she has opened a door to the place between. The rift hums and vibrates. Through my buzzing fingers. Through the breath. The truth comes out.
     She does not heal me. She does not offer comfort, a soft word or an answer. She simply allows me to hear my pain, completely, utterly, accurately, honestly, truthfully in a way that these…these broken stones, these words never will! No confusion, no hesitation…or a time I am lost in its purity.

     The vibration ceases, the portal closes, the vacuum hammers my ears and I crumble bursting into a thousand pebbles. 53 and my heart weeps like a child. I am in the Library. The gate is closed. Silent silver and black. I never left. Yet I walked a thousand years.

Good Stuff

17 Tuesday Dec 2013

Posted by in Observation, Revision, Writing

≈ Leave a comment

GoodStuff     At present, I am not a novelist. I am a writer. I have produced manuscripts, some of them very long, but I have not produced a novel despite the mind-altering propaganda-like encouragement to the contrary from the Office of Letters and Light and the NaNoWriMo.
     Why, if I have written manuscripts of up to and beyond 50k-words, am I not a novelist? Because to have a novel, I must have a finished manuscript; what I have is rough draft. I do not have a novel. I have various stories, at various stages of completion. I even have one rough draft that is nearly done…as a rough draft, but I do not have a novel. What I have is an unfinished manuscript.
     To be clear, a finished manuscript is one that has been revised and rewritten to completion, not simply one that happens to have a beginning, middle and an end or one that has only been proofread and edited for spelling and grammar.
     Even though I have been an English teacher for 25 years, even though I have written since I was 10 years old, even though I have taken various courses in creative writing, even though I advise young writers, my rough drafts are most decidedly not novels.
     My rough drafts are certainly not publishable. To become so will require painstaking and multiple revisions, not simply cursory proofreading, but honest changes that make my manuscripts better, more readable, up to snuff and worthy of publication—with tight story lines, empathetic characters and interesting prose that moves a reader onward with euphony and economy. A truly finished manuscript will take rewrite after rewrite, drastic changes, conservative additions and heart breaking deletions; it will take time and effort.
     I will not attempt to publish my present manuscripts via an E-publisher or a vanity-press, I will not send off a query or advocate for them at a conference, convention or weekend-retreat because they are but rough drafts, unfinished, and crap which I have no business muddying up publication waters with. They are “under the bed” stories and essays in the craft, stepping stones toward something greater. I understand that I must not fall in love with my writing and think it perfect or “done”. I will not get over-excited and publish my manuscripts before their time without carefully considering the writer’s craft, what little I know of it and how much I need to learn. I will not use reverse psychology and be taken in by the self-deception that a rough draft is a finished product. I will not confuse proofreading or editing with revision and rewriting. Fitzgerald rewrote This Side of Paradise three times; he rewrote and revised The Great Gatsby almost up the moment of publication. I am not Fitzgerald? Only too true, but I’ll be damned if I’ll seduce myself into believing I can do anything less… or better by simply skimming for bad grammar.
     I love writing. I want to write well. Of course, I want to publish, but I want to publish good stuff, stuff that people will enjoy reading and want to read more of, stuff of quality that will honor and further the craft I love so much.
     At present, I am not a novelist. I am a writer.

Too Many Minds…Too Little Else

06 Wednesday Mar 2013

Posted by in Observation, Writing

≈ 1 Comment

     This IS, officially, “…one of those days…” Ha! One of those “…lives…” more like it.
     Writing is so hard right now.
     Well, hell, writing is always hard…but right now in particular.
     There are just so many distractions at the moment, too many demands. Some are obligations that come with making a living, some are social contracts voluntarily accepted, some are part of the landscape of being human. That being said, I don’t think they would be as much of an issue were it not for the feeling that our household is hemorrhaging financially. Money pours out like blood from an open wound. As soon as we get one bleed under control another opens up. “When it rains, it pours,” they say: vet bills, upside down mortgages, car repairs, bank loans, computer failures, extra time-consuming work demands and the freak-outs that follow. They do not space themselves out nice and evenly but seem to come all at once.
     I think, however, I could handle it all were it not for feeling as if my wits are scattered to the four winds. I’m unable to focus. My memory feels lethargic and my thinking processes sluggish. I feel like a library that’s suffered an earthquake. All the cases are toppled, books are off the shelves, volumes scattered in a mess and I don’t know where to begin picking things up. I feel too dazed to rally.
     My creative friends are producing like never before. I’m inspired to read, write, draw, carve, create, yet I feel stuck, bogged down by the sticky mud of obligation, apprehension and fear of the future. I don’t have writer’s block, on the contrary, the ideas are lined up and call out to be auditioned. Instead, I have…well…would-be writer’s A.D.D. It’s as close a descriptor as I can come up with for this mixture of paralyzing internal fear and overwhelming external demand all yammering for an audience.
     “Too many minds!…mind sword, mind face, mind people watching, too many mind.”
     It’s hard to stay focused. I suspect this is because of a lack of a lack of discipline on my part. Stride. I must find my stride before I lose heart. Lately, however, the sense of urgency that rises from the chaos chokes me and I’m paralyzed with panic. I can’t breath…I can’t write…I flail about for a hand hold…feeling the ideas growing tired.
     I think I need some very, very good sleep, but I suspect what I really need is to radically change the paradigm, alter the construct, because it’s evident that the present one is not working.

Post NaNoWriMo Note

15 Saturday Dec 2012

Posted by in Observation, The Kraters of Ivory and Jet, Uncategorized, Writing

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , ,

Winner-180x180     Though at the close of November the voyage of this particular novel idea is far from complete, I made several personal observations during this year’s NaNoWriMo that should help me plot a course toward finishing it and will help me prepare for my next adventure.
     Observation One: Writing without a solid outline is less fun than writing with one.
     I can understand the draw of writing by the seat of one’s pants. I imagine it is akin to riding a literary rollercoaster or taking what amounts to a compositional drug-trip. Who knows where the plot will twist today? Let it flow. Who knows where the characters will lead? Follow them. Pansters claim it works and who am I to question it?
     I just do not have the mental and creative constitution for it. This month I started writing with only “The Sentence” (30 words) for direction, and not the outline I usually create. I did not enjoy the process of mental grasping-about that followed. I just need more structure than most. That being said, I am always open to my muse and inspiration. I am not slavishly locked into anything. It is, after all, my subconscious doing the talking and I need to make sure my conscious is listening.
     Regardless, from now on, at the very minimum, I’ll have an outline finished before I start, whether its a skeletal Hero’s Journey, a version of Freytag’s Pyramid, a thumb-nail Three-Act Structure, a modified Kishotenketsu or simply a bloody list of what’s next, but no more vague idea for a situation and a character or two and feeling for the rest as I go along.
     Observation Two: True “cheering sections” are rare.
     Writing can be such a lonely effort. It is a complicated, long term and protracted process paramount to living a monastic life style. That’s why true cheering sections are as important as they are rare.
     I had a close friend who used to ask about my writing whenever we exchanged emails or the occasional phone call. Her questions were always story centered. What was I working on now or how was the story going? Once in awhile she’d ask me to read to her, but only if she felt I was ready. She often signed off with a positive, “I can’t wait to read it!” or something along those lines. What I found wonderful was her ability to communicate her happy faith that I would eventually finish my book, her constant focus on story and her obvious desire to encourage me to keep writing.
     I didn’t realize how important or deeply effecting that kind of encouragement was until it was gone—people change, relationships change, life changes. Regardless, she will always have my undying gratitude for the long-ago gift of her animated interest.
     During my NaNo effort, I had plenty of support from relatives, friends and students, mostly in terms of giving me uninterrupted writing time, which was much appreciated! And to those who contributed financially to the NaNo-cause, YOU ARE CHAMPIONS! There was however an absence of any interest in what I was writing or how it was going, let alone any curiosity about hearing any bit of it that I might want to share. As sad as that was for me, I reminded myself that I compose without it all the time; indeed, I have for most of my writing life. In the end, writing is a solo gig. A cheering section is nice but not required.
     Observation Three: Anyone who is not a writer rarely understands what the process involves.
     It is amazing how many folk think that being part of the “cheering section” means advising: “Why don’t you just finish it and send it to a publisher?” It is also amazing how many of these people offer their brand of support without really understanding that it is not as easy as “…just sayin’.”
     I love these people and they obviously love and care about me, but they need to do their homework or trust that I have. There is so much more to writing than simply recording the story and sending it off to a publisher.
     Observation Four: I am far from finished.
     Though I knew this going in, it has struck me yet again that finishing a manuscript involves so much more than composing 50k. I have an incredible amount of work yet to do. 50k is, at best, only about a third of the way through the first draft of my manuscript idea. Further, I foresee, at the very least, one full rewrite with multiple revisions and edits beyond that will be required. Once I’m satisfied that this manuscript is indeed something I want published and that I have caught all flaws I can detect, then I’ll take it to a group of local published authors or submit it to Holly Lisle’s very strict and professional revision regime the result of which will involve be even more changes, additions and rewrites
I’m sure! This is what it takes to produce something worth reading, something others might want to read.
     Observation Five: I cannot “publish” too early.
     The internet has changed the publishing world in nearly the same way it has changed the recording industry and it is a route I intend to take. Artists are no longer required to kowtow to the whims of a massive, labyrinthine and aloof monopoly. They no longer have to sacrifice control over their own work or cater to a subjective middle man who is himself but a puppet of pop-culture. The flip-side however, is that without the more positive aspects of such a filter—amazing and knowledgeable agents, discerning and intuitive editors, demanding and dedicated publishers—self-published writers have produced a lot, A LOT, of poor writing—a substandard glut that must be weeded so as to find true flowers worth reading.
     There are NaNo-ers, God bless their little pea-picking hearts, who having written their 50k do a minimal spell-check and, with the encouragement of proud yet ill-informed supporters, add their work to the wild garden with a right-click. I will not do this. Quality is the only thing that will make my writing stand out among the crop of millions (I kid you not) and the only way to achieve such is through hard work, heart breaking honesty and a ruthlessness akin to a combat medic’s triage—see observation four.
     I can just hear those who know me querying, “Only five?” No. LOL! Not by a long shot, but these are the five that survived the storm-tossed sea of my seething brain to find a safe harbor after two weeks. Now, onward toward the farthest shore.

NaNoWriMo Note

17 Saturday Nov 2012

Posted by in NaNoWriMo, Observation, The Kraters of Ivory and Jet, Writing

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

          I don’t like writing to my blog during NaNoWriMo as every word here should be a word written on my latest project: The Kraters of Ivory and Jet. I want to leave some word trail and record however, thus, briefly…
     I woke up this morning dreaming about having a difficult time navigating a route that I was used to traveling quite easily in earlier dreams. As usual in the dream world things had changed and I was spending most of the dream trying to figure out the changes and completing my route. Things were fine, I was recognizing my way, until I ran into a gathering of old friends I had recently reconnected with. They were playing a table top RPG without me. I was surprised I’d not been told of the get-together, but not unduly upset. One of the last things I remember about the gathering was that there were two tables. In the progression of the game, a player moved from one table to the other. At the “other” table was one of my friends and a senior student of mine who took it upon himself to demonstrate a certain game mechanic. Amazed that this student was with my friends, I left. Afterward, however things in the dream started to change, my route of travel suddenly without recognizable landmarks.
     In frustration I began rising from deeper sleep to nearly wake up. I began tossing and turning with each fit and start of the dream, asking directions, looking for landmarks and getting involved with other tangents—one of my daughters, my youngest, hiding in a corner and mumbling,
      “I hope she doesn’t see me; oh, I hope she doesn’t see me.”
as an old lady in a ha-jab emerged from an apartment in a tenement.
     It was then that a dream voice said,
      “It’s not that you are having a dream of travel during the course of which the route changes; it is that you are having a dream about a course change. That is, you have never traveled the route without the course change.”
     It was then that I gave up, realizing that this was true because I couldn’t remember where I was going or what it would look like when I got there for the simple truth that I had never been there…yet.

     NaNoWriMo is odd. I write during that month like I wish I wrote at other times. There is something about being connected to a community, though online it is a rather illusionary and ephemeral community. Regardless of its amorphousness, I rise on a weekend at 04:00 to feed the dogs and start the coffee pot and to write—on a weekend!—because I crave connection so much.

     Wrote Cornelia Funke, in her YA novel Inkheart,

Meggie Folchart: Having writer’s block? Maybe I can help.
Fenoglio: Oh yes, that’s right. You want to be a writer, don’t you?
Meggie Folchart: You say that as if it’s a bad thing.
Fenoglio: Oh no, it’s just a lonely thing. Sometimes the world you create on the page seems more friendly and alive than the world you actually live in.

     To paraphrase and perhaps add my own spin…

…it’s just a lonely thing. Sometimes the world [of those who] create on the page seems more friendly and alive than the world you actually live in.

     Maybe that’s it.

What do I hope to get out of my writing?

15 Sunday Jul 2012

Posted by in Observation, Rant, Reading, Writing

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, ,

Though I have posted very little over the last couple of weeks, it is not for lack of writing. I have been brain-deep in Holly Lisle’s “How to Think Sideways” course endeavoring to squeeze as much from my investment as possible. I must say that to do so has required as much dedication, patience and work as any course I took during my college days if not more! And so far, I have learned a lot.

In one of her writing tip newsletters, Holly challenged her students to, “know themselves As A Writer.” The first of two questions she posed to pursue this challenge was a doozey: “What do [you] hope to get out of [your] writing?” I had never really thought about that.

Since I was about nine or 10, I had expressed the desire to write a book. That goal in and of itself was enough to keep me content and journal writing and world building for years. I made no serious differentiation between what it was to write a book and what it meant to publish one until I was significantly older. Up until that point and beyond writing a book, I had never considered what I wanted from my writing.

In a conversation with my wife the other night, I flat out said, “Sometime in the near future, I’d like to quit full-time teaching and write professionally.” This was a bold statement; one that reminded me of the first time I had the guts to say, “I am a writer.” We spent a part of our conversation on what doing so would mean and require and how it might be done. One of my wife’s points had to do with publication. We discussed the merits of short story or essay publication and that, in her opinion, I might need to do that before I tackled selling a book. We came to no conclusions or even agreement, but it was good food for mental chewing and perfect fodder for the above question. While I do not think a career change and publication are a complete answer by any means to what I want get out of my writing, apparently it is two very important facets.

On a very basic level, I suppose I want the prestige of writing and publishing a book, regardless of how well it does monetarily. As a child I saw authors as quasi-divine kami of parchment, ink and idea, who literally worked magic: creating worlds, legends and myths. I wanted, and still want, to be a member of that club.

As with many who have reached the half-century mark and beyond and who admire fantasy and adventure fiction, the urge to do so came after reading Tolkien. I believe I had an advantage over many who have since encountered the modern myth, because prior to reading about Frodo and Middle Earth, I had read The Bible, Le Morte D’Arthur, The Odyssey, The Táin Bó Cúailnge, tales from the Book of Invasions, Ivanhoe and numerous Native American myths (particularly stories of The Sacred Pipe and White Buffalo Calf Woman). Pretty heavy stuff for a ten year old. Some might question this, but let me hasten to point out that in my neck of the woods and at that time, television only had three channels and no 24-hour continuous broadcasting. Stations used to “sign-off” right around midnight. Selections were limited, to say the least, so when I say there was nothing on T.V. worth watching, boys and girls, I mean there was NOTHING on T.V. worth watching. The only alternative, if one’s friends were busy, was reading, which is exactly what I did.

Thus, I came at Tolkien from a distinctly different point-of-view than most modern readers do. The modern mythology that Tolkien created blew me away. The merits or demerits of the plot were not issues I entertained yet, but what I could appreciate due to my reading habits was his depth of background and cultural constructs. I felt like I was reading Beowulf or The Iliad wherein I could sense deeper tales hanging like shadowy backdrops upon which the action took place—the story of Finn in the former and the war of the gods in the later. Poems half written—The Falls of Nimrodel, and the Lay of Gil-Galad—that I could tell were written somewhere in full. It was like a eureka moment for me to think that a modern writer could make myths on par with Gilgamesh or the Icelandic Sagas. I don’t know why I had never entertained such a thought before; I guess I just thought all the cool stuff had been written and now folk wrote books like the Happy Hollisters, The Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew and boring “adult” stuff I wasn’t even remotely interested in. From the moment the Company of the Ring stepped into Moria and Gimli sang part of the Song of Durin,

The world was fair, the mountains tall,
In Elder Days before the fall
Of mighty kings in Nargothrond
And Gondolin, who now beyond
The Western Seas have passed away:
The world was fair in Durin’s Day.

I began imagining my own mythology. The Silmarillion with its elevated style confirmed what I sensed lay behind LotR… what I now found to be just the tip of Tolkien’s mythological ice-berg. It sealed the deal: I would one day create my own mythology and write a book.

RANT WARNING: On a side note, the excitement of The Silmarillion’s publication made Christmas of 1977 particularly merry for me: more maps, more legends. By that time there were more T.V. channels, but thankfully I was hooked on reading and normally sought my entertainment from the page rather than the tube. I want to emphatically state here that I had few problems reading the more elevated style of Tolkien’s posthumous publication as many would-be readers do today. I would argue—and I know I’m going to step on toes here with my assertion, but I will swear upon my life it is true and after having more than 3000 students pass through my classroom over the last 20+ years, I know whereof I speak—I would argue that because I was not raised with television and movies as my primary source of entertainment, I was literate and skilled and critically minded enough to appreciate The Silmarillion for what it was. 30-plus years ago, peers to whom I had introduced the LotR did indeed struggle with the tome. Ultimately they complained that they expected more of the same, another adventure like Frodo’s. A few who had been raised on reading however, did slog through and admitted it made their reading of LotR all the more enjoyable. 20 years ago, students who had read LotR, complained to me that The Silmarillion was just, “…too hard to read…why did [he] make it so hard?” It was the same complaint they leveled against the Bible, the Torah, the Koran, the Greek Myths, the Matter of Britain, 1001 Arabian Nights, The Worm Ouroboros, etc. Today, many of my students complain that the reading of LotR is “…too hard…” to give it a go, that they would rather watch Jackson’s interpretations over and over or read easy YA. As for The Silmarillion? I don’t even mention it anymore. It would be paramount to assigning the Rosetta Stone as literature as far as they are concerned. What has happened since 35 years ago and now? It is so obvious, I will not even mention it here. The willful dumbing-down of society makes me weep especially because so much of it is deliberate ignorance chosen because “it’s too hard” (add the whine) and, mark my words, as a result society will suffer a descent no less deep and no less permanent than that suffered by Rome. The only difference is that ours will be based on illiteracy and the expectation that everything must be easy and rewarding or it is not worth doing.

Thank you, mother! Thank you, thank you, for putting your foot down and forcing me to read Le Morte D’Arthur at age seven, for shoving a book into my hands and shutting off the television! Of all the gifts you gave me, this is the one I treasure most. Rant over.

During the interim between those halcyon days and those I live now, I learned how important the storyteller is. Tolkien had contemporaries who were great mythmakers: C.S.Lewis, E.R.Eddison, and Lord Dunsany. Indeed there were storytellers who preceded Tolkien such as William Morris, the great pre-Raphaelite painter, architect and designer, who had a strong influence on Tolkien with his “prose romances” of which I read The House of Wolfings and The Roots of the Mountains. Howard, Burroughs, Norton, DeCamp, Moorcock, LeGuin, etc., etc. came after, their works impressing me over and over as to the critical role of the storyteller as modern mythmaker. Today the same is true, fantasy or fiction, historical novels or romance, be it stories of female bounty hunters or possession by aliens from a distant star, each requires a good storyteller. I have ever argued that there are no new stories, but there are new storytellers…mythmakers who with their unique voices and wizardry can take well worn archetypes and refurbish them strong and shining. I want to do that too. I find nothing in this world so rewarding or fulfilling, as telling my students a tale that they listen to with rapt attention and are eager to hear the finish of…even staying a few moments after the bell has rung to “hear the rest. The high is incredible. I yearn to tell a good tale, a story people want to read and feel they have not wasted their time in the reading.

At the end of my life, and here in the winter of my time on earth that thought is much more real than it was in my 30s, I suspect I will have far, far less creative successes to feel satisfied with than I will regrets. I do not, however, want this to be one of them. I want to relax into the arms of death content in this at least: that those who mourn my passing will remember me as a good storyteller, a mythmaker, a yarn-spinner…that I did what most folk only talk of: I wrote books and they were good tales. I want to look back and say, “I did it,” not, “I wish I had…”

Thus, “What do I hope to get out of my writing?”:

I hope to create a second career.

I hope to create my own myths and mythology.

I hope to tell good tales and publish them.

I hope to scratch the creative itch.

I hope to give my passing from this life some satisfaction.

Focus: My Biggest Challenge

03 Tuesday Jul 2012

Posted by in Observation, Storytelling, Writing

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , ,

I am seldom without a story idea. Some ideas are good, some are mediocre and some, upon retrospect, are just plain stupid. Thus, I rarely have a problem with coming up with something to write about. What I do have a problem with however, is staying focused, keeping my mind on the story at hand and my fingers on the keyboard channeling it from my attention-challenged brain to the ‘page.’

As my summer writing project, I am going through author Holly Lisle‘s “How to Think Sideways” writing course and a goal of the lesson I am presently working on is to identify my writing “Sweet Spot.” From this spot, a writer is be able to compose more comfortably, creatively and with more focus regardless of genre or requirement—a good skill to have considering today’s lightening fast and ever changing market. Thus, I was delighted to read author Brent Weeks’ July Writer’s Advice post on the subject of “Staying Focused.” As I read, I immediately saw parallels and connections between writing from the “Sweet Spot” and maintaining focus.

I’m not a big fan of re-posting (it kinda feels like cheating to me), so I offer a link to Brent’s site and the blog in question. The article may not have the same impact on others as it did me considering my present project, but it is a good article nonetheless containing excellent advice and concrete strategies for the focused-challenged writer.

I have heard that some author’s want their blog missives re-posted (credit being given where credit is due, of course) to presumably boost traffic to their sites (?). I’m not sure about that ‘tribal’ blog tradition and will have to look into it.

As an aside, I am about a fifth of the way through Beyond the Shadows, the last book of Brent’s epic fantasy “Night Angel” trilogy, and heartily recommend the set for a fun summer read.

Realistic Fantasy or Why I Prefer the Oxymoron: Aesthetic-Distance and the Suspension-of-Disbelief

18 Monday Jun 2012

Posted by in Observation, Storytelling, Writing

≈ Leave a comment

In my last post, I complained that V.M. Manfredi seemed to have trouble deciding if Spartan, A Novel was a fantasy story with a historic background or a historical fiction with fantasy characteristics. I stated that, in my opinion, the two genres do not mix well without careful forethought and that, considering how Manfredi handled the subject, the book would have been better as one or the other.

Considering my lack of credentials, this is a bold statement. It is not however uninformed. I would like to extrapolate on the reasoning behind my critique and on why I feel it is so important for writers and wannabe writers (like myself) of fantasy to consider Aesthetic-Distance and the Suspension of Disbelief, two concepts I learned long ago in a film analysis class and which are applicable to many an art form including that of writing.

From the onset however, I want to refer any reader who as a result of reading this entry feels duty-bound to defend their favorite author, genre or sub-genre to the “About” tab at the top of the page. I am not interested in trying to convince anyone of anything here. I am interested however, in exploring my own tastes and biases as I journey toward publication. Further, I realize that what follows here is paramount to declaring, “I think vanilla frosties dipped in chocolate are the best.” There is no surer way to inspire someone to riposte with, “…chocolate until I die!” or “twisties forever!” or even the odd “…strawberry, if you don’t mind!” than to say such. Please understand, I am not declaring what is best here so much as what I prefer. All flavors, well written, are good flavors.

I would also like to offer a Spoiler Alert as well. To make my point, I will be referring to critical events in Manfredi’s Spartan, A Novel, Martin’s The Game of Thrones and R. E. Howard’s Hour of the Dragon AKA Conan the Conqueror during the course of this essay. Those who have not read the above but plan to should proceed with caution.

To begin then.

I prefer fantasies best that have a certain ring of truth and realism to them, that sink their roots deep into the rich and firm soil of reality as apposed to those that freely embrace the more fantastical characteristics of the genre and are therefore more un-real. Though this sounds contradictory, I assure you that it is not. It is an extremely important distinction and I hope to eventually publish fantasy stories that bear its hallmark. This is why, I believe, Tolkien’s LotR has such appeal. The “Beowulfian depth” upon which it is built gives Tolkien’s work a ring of authenticity appreciated and admired by most readers. Magic, while it abounds, is nonetheless held in check and allowed to function as background rather than as essential.

That being said, any fantasy work founded on some sort of internal logic, that is in agreement with itself, is appealing to me. Regardless of its fantastical nature, as long as there is a consistency to which the author faithfully adheres, I will read and enjoy it.

This consistency is highly important to me because, as far as I am able, I want to create a faux-reality in which my readers can fully and comfortably immerse themselves. Like a good masseuse, I want to offer my clients an enjoyable experience without interruption, without pain, without jarringly cold hands. I want my readers to give themselves up to my ministrations and to suspend, for a time, any objections they may have, any doubts that the world I present them is not “real,” or that the story I weave for them is not sound, or that the characters therein are not convincing. To do this well, I must establish an Aesthetic-Distance between the reader and myself in which they feel comfortable enough to establish a Suspension-of-Disbelief.

Basically, “Aesthetic-Distance” is the concept that the reader or viewer is presented with material in such a way that a bridge is established between the reality of reading a book or sitting in a theatre and the un-reality occurring on the screen or page before them. The patron enters the theatre or opens the book knowing from the onset that what he or she is about to see and/or read is not real. They know for example that they are sitting in their living room or in a theatre, in their home town, in the 21st century, BUT for a time, they voluntarily agree to suspend their disbelief and accept what is happing on the screen or page as “real.” That there is indeed, “A galaxy far, far away.” In return for this suspension, the director or writer agrees to offer a presentation that is realistic to an agreed upon degree. The greater the degree of suspension required upon the part of the audience, the stronger the Aesthetic-Distance established by the director or writer must be.

Take for example, King Kong. Movie goers agreed to suspend their disbelief, firmly grounded in the reality that there are no 25’ tall gorillas (Jackson size—my preferred version). In return the director did his best to established an Aesthetic-Distance that treated the viewer to a believable 25’ tall gorilla and a story that did not threaten this agreement. If, however, should that distance erode at any time during the presentation of the story, the viewers’ Suspension-of-Disbelief collapses and the viewer is not longer in the jungles of Skull Island but in the reality of their theatre seat where Kong has become a mere special effect. While it is true that no director or writer can please all of the people all of the time, it should be their overriding concern to do so or at least labor to make such breakdowns of the Aesthetic-Distance as few as possible.

A chef is no less responsible when creating an excellent meal and must do all within their power to keep the patron engaged by serving the best dish possible. Based on the description in the menu, the chef and the patron enter into an agreement. The patron expects a certain dish and the chef creates said dish, albeit with individual style and flare yet still within certain parameters. No chef or writer would present their work as Penne al’Salmone or an action adventure and then serve tuna salad or offer a romantic comedy. That is obvious. What is not so obvious however, are the smaller interruptions and disruptions that though subtle nonetheless chip away at the Aesthetic-Distance and threaten the Suspension-of-Disbelief.

If during the course of the meal, I discover a fish bone in my Penne al’Salmone, I am a bit disappointed, but thankful I did not swallow the damn thing, and though I do not send the dish back, my enjoyment of the meal is interrupted. I will continue to eat and if I do not find another bone in my fish pasta, I will soon forget the disruptive moment as I immerse myself once again in dish’s savor.

If however, I find another bone, I will think seriously about ever ordering the dish again. I many not push my plate away,—I did pay for it after all—but my dining experience is now seriously challenged as I eye my food warily, picking at it with a fork, examining each bite alert for another bone. I am now almost completely removed from the experience the chef intended me to have with his meal.

Should I have the unhappy fortune to discover more bones as I gingerly chew in anticipation of such an advent, any pleasure I had in my eating experience prior is now irrevocably lost and I am most decidedly through with both the meal and the restaurant or, by extension…the movie…the book.

The fantasy writer has no less a responsibility to the reader as the chef does to the diner or the director to the movie viewer. Each of these professions has its own special dynamics that the others do not, but the common concern for patron enjoyment is arguably there regardless.

It is my belief that how seriously the writer wants the reader to consider their fantasy (or any other genre-plot, for that matter), depends on how sensitively the elements of fantasy, in particular the magical creatures, the magical artifacts, the magical situations and magic itself, are treated. How sensitively is measured by degrees of expectation on the readers part and this has much to do with the subgenre of fantasy being read. High fantasies rich in magic, Erickson’s The Malazan Book of the Fallen series for example, may have less pressure placed upon them by the reader because they expect dragons to abound, fairies to appear, lightening to spark from a wizard’s finger tips and gods to walk the earth.

If in a lower fantasy novel, however, such as Robert E. Howard’s sword and sorcery tale, Hour of the Dragon AKA Conan the Conqueror high fantasy elements were suddenly to appear without rhyme or reason, say a fire-breathing flight-capable dragon aiding and abetting the Cimmerian’s bid to reclaim the Aquilonian throne and destroy the sorcerer Xaltotun, it would render the Aesthetic-Distance moot and my Suspension-of-Disbelief would collapse. I am not suggesting that a dragon is taboo so much as pointing out that Howard would have had to have been at great pains prior to make the dragon’s sudden appearance acceptable. Howard did in fact present large lizards his Cimmarian referred to as “…dragons…” in “Red Nails,” but he was quick to make it clear to the readership that in all likelihood the creatures were dinosaurs left over from some earlier age.

Even in such epic fantasy novels as the Lord of the Rings (which walks a fine line between high fantasy characteristics yet, save for certain features and artifacts, maintains a relatively low magic profile), Tolkien was very careful not to stray too far from the characteristics of epic wherein he cast his characters. Gandalf does not wield spells in a DnD-esque fashion, Smaug is depicted as both a rare one-off and as the penultimate cataclysmic danger a dragon should (IMHO) represent, magically sealed doors operate according to strict enchantment and the culturally supernatural and inherit abilities of the elves are limited by internal logic—even bloody Gil-galad fell to Sauron’s power. Tolkien worked hard to maintain the Aesthetic-Distance between his readership and his material and as a result, the Suspension-of-Disbelief on the part of his readers was rarely threatened. For me, Tolkien maintained tone throughout his work, sometimes less successfully than others—where in the hell did Tom Bombadil come from?! (call it a fish bone)—but satisfactorily overall. Too many fish bones however, too many challenges to the Aesthetic-Distance might have rendered my suspension of disbelief impossible and he might have lost me.

This was the argument I had with Manfredi’s Spartan, A Novel.

SPOILER ALERT…SPOILER ALERT…SPOILER ALERT…SPOILER ALERT…SPOILER ALERT

Manfredi used the fantasy/divine element of prophesy quite often in this novel and with, for the most part, good effect. It moved the main character Talos/Kleidemos from situation to situation even as he too, like the readers, struggled to discern between what was a message from the gods and what was a hoax. Were they truly divine in origin or simply a means by which the Athenian or Spartan governments justified and achieved political ends? As Talos struggles with this, he is made all the more sympathetic by Manfredi as he wonders why he has been handed this fate and rails against it aching to be reunited with his life-long love Antinea, who is pregnant, and raise their child together in peace. At the end of the novel, Talos, now the leader of the Helots, decides on a desperate foray against an all-encompassing enemy and though his people fight heroically and admirably, they are ultimately out-maneuvered and prepare to suffer the fatal consequences. At the last moment however, they are saved by a proclamation from the Delphinine Oracle that smacks of political intrigue on the part of the Athenians against the Spartans.

While a somewhat startling last-minute save, it is not unlooked for by the reader or too unexpected. Manfredi has been at exceptional pains to weave prophesy into his story and to instill the reader with a suspicion of such prophesies as well as, an expectation as to their advent. Indeed, he has foreshadowed just such an incident with other prophesies that occurred earlier in the story, and because of this, the Suspension-of-Disbelief on the part of the reader remains intact. Thus, the Aesthetic-Distance has not been violated was it would with the sudden and actual appearance of Zeus or a decisive and ridiculous victory on the part of essentially peasant militia over trained hoplite Spartiates. Indeed, such would have smacked of a deus ex machine…a major fish bone…leaving the reader with a “WTF?” too big to swallow. Unfortunately, on the heels of the saving prophesy, Manfredi does exactly that and serves up a Moby Dick sized fish bone.

After the prophesy is relayed to the Spartan king and the Spartan troops withdraw, Talos/Kleidemos cannot be found. Fearing him dead, a close companion searches the battle field in vain for the body of his comrade. Calling for his friend, he is unexpectedly met and purposefully led by a huge wolf to where he finds Talos/Kleidemos’s singular armor, epic weapons and shield laying at the foot of a tree. The wolf disappears as suddenly as it appeared. Talos is never seen again, but his companion weeps understanding that Talos was an avatar of the gods and proclaims that Talos the Wolf will come again as his people need him, ala King Arthur.

Blink–WTF?—hack, cough: tink! Huge fish bone. He was an avatar? He was a construct of the gods? Well, what the hell have I been worried about him all this time for? If he’s an avatar, he’s not even mortal! What the hell do I care whether or not he rises above his destiny and is rewarded with hearth and home? He was a shape shifter? Where did that come from? Suddenly the Aesthetic-Distance crumbles under the stress placed upon it by Manfredi and with it my Suspension-of-Disbelief. It was just too much for my intellect to reconcile: there was no warning, there was no foreshadowing. Sure there were wolves present throughout the story, sometimes they seemed to favor Talos/Kleidemos but not in any way to hint that he might be a shape shifter let alone a Christ-figure. As a result, Spartan, A Novel receives a three stars rather than five from me. At this point I am curious enough to try a second Manfredi novel, but frankly, I will be very skeptical as I read and at the first hint of a fishbone, I am putting it down.

SPOILER ALERT…SPOILER ALERT…SPOILER ALERT…SPOILER ALERT…SPOILER ALERT

This experience was repeated with Martin’s initial offering in the A Song of Ice and Fire series. He is so good at the historicity of his story; I ate up the Game of Thrones at a record pace. In keeping with that established flavor, the gods are kept at a distance, magic though burning in the background remains in the background, his characters are human, engaging and believable. The evil Beyond the Wall, like a simmering crock-pot of soup, is slowly and deliciously turning into what is sure be an epic meal. Armies are on the move, dealing with the needs of man-power, maneuverability and access. The characters wrestle with alliances, betrayal, self-realization and, in some cases, mortal defeat. This rocks! I thought and then suddenly: BAM! A main character finds herself not only immune to fire, but “mother” of three dragons who are suckling at her breasts (cue the loud record-scratching sound)—What was that?!

Yuck, cough, choke—WTF!? Where did that come from? I think I actually cried out, “Awww, c’mon!” And why the hell…? Cheap titillation at this late date? For cryin’ out loud, Martin, you’ve all ready sold me; I don’t need the cheap sex tricks! Where’s the foreshadowing on this one (thumbs rapidly through the pages)? Yes, yes I knew the eggs seemed warm when she touched them, etc., but there are some things I want to know before I swallow this sudden, unexpected and disturbingly boney slice of fish. For example, how can viable embryos survive, arcanely or otherwise, in a fossilized state for hundreds, maybe even thousands of years? How the hell do they even know how to nurse? Do any reptiles anywhere on the FRACKIN’ planet nurse? I mean, it is fantasy, but come on, there are certain biological realities to consider here! How is it that the character, who’s beloved just died and has just survived a conflagration, as well as a purge, is not practically incoherent or at least freaking out over three lizards competing over her tah-tahs?! The situation and resulting questions so jolted me from the storyline, so instantly and completely, that I found I had lost all interest in reading the next novel and even felt a bit betrayed. So much of the novel was so good, so carefully rendered, this…this just seemed so random and so cheaply sensational. I finished up the first book three years ago and have not gone back.

By no means am I suggesting that Martin did not have the right to tell his story the way he wanted to or that he should not have used the dragon element. No way. It’s a fantasy novel: his world, his rules. If he wants to do that, more power to him. The point is, to me, he failed in his responsibility to present his dragons in such a way that maintained the Aesthetic-Distance and allowed me to continue my Suspension-of-Belief there by enjoying his story. Martin had built an expectation that he would honor the well conceived milieu he had heretofore described. By presenting his dragons in such a surprising and fantastical way, he challenged my disbelief and the distance failed. I see no reason why he could not have done it a bit more carefully and logically—utilizing magic in all its indefinable and all-encompassing qualities—wherein it could have matched and even complimented his gritty realistic and painstakingly rendered fantasy. Even if I had been able to swallow the bone, he would a serious job ahead of him, in reconciling the two elements: realism and fantasy, especially when those dragons come of age, considering at 18” and barely infants, they are already able to torch a man to death and melt iron manacles with their breath.

And herein lies the rub: if he’s willing to present such challenges to my disbelief now, who knows what is in store? Am I willing to risk another $7.99, 800 pages and the time to read them to find out? Do I even want to? Not at this point, but my wife loves the HBO series and I love my wife. I refused to sit and watch the first season but have consented to watch the second with her only on condition that I can leave the room without derision if I feel things are even remotely approaching critical-fish bone status.

I am but one reader and in the end my opinion accounts for nothing save to myself—and by extension, I know what I like. He lost me: big deal, so what? A clash of aesthetics. Others are head over heels for him. Maybe my standards are too high; others are more flexible. An author cannot please everyone every time. I am sure his pocket book and ego can handle my checking out and this is not a critique of Game of Thrones.

I feel that the more believable an author wants their fantasy to be, the more care they need to take in presenting it. I believe the more fantastic in nature a fantasy is, the more responsibility to keep a tight rein on the fantastic elements an author has. Note I did not say eliminate them, but I think fantasy writers have a particular burden and must beware of magic getting away from them or it either becoming a crutch or a plague. Magic and fantastic elements allowed to run amuck without rhyme or reason can ruin a well thought-out and realistic story line. I have found, for myself that if the fantasy leans toward the realistic, those elements used sparingly AND LOGICALLY are like sweet savor leading to many an “Mmmmm, yummy” moment, but then again, I am a self-proclaimed lover of realistic-fantasy. Even if it is a magically rich environment however, wherein every character has access to magic in one form or another and the supernatural is common place, the author still has a responsibility, if not more so, to the Aesthetic-Distance between the material and the reader and the Suspension-of-Disbelief. It still must be well considered and presented with sensitivity and with an eye toward logic. If not, the author risks losing his or her reader the moment they pause and wonder, “Where the hell did that come from?” or “How does that bloody work?” or “Really? Really! Really.” Challenged enough times and the reader is lost. One fishbone in my “Penne al’salmone” filet is enough, two and it goes back to the kitchen. Three and I most likely will do my dining out elsewhere.

Brent Weeks’ The Way of Shadows

15 Friday Jun 2012

Posted by in Observation, Reading, Review

≈ Leave a comment

I seriously enjoyed this book and read it in a couple of days. I am pretty picky and hold my epic fantasy up to an extremely bright light. I’m happy to say that Weeks was able to present a compelling story that kept the Aesthetic-Distance just about right, so there were only a few moments wherein my Suspension-of-Disbelief was challenged. Weeks maintained great tone and a mood throughout that kept me in the story. That being said, I’d like to have had a bit more information and, for example, have accompanied Kylar on one or two more pivotal “deader” assignments so as to compare an assassination to a wet-op so that the differences between the two could be made plainer.

His characters were well realized. I could so picture Gary Oldman as Blint; Sigorney Weaver as Momma K; Bradley James (from BBC One “Merlin” fame) as Logan. Strangely enough no one stepped into the Azoth/Kylar role, but that didn’t stop me from picturing him in my imagination. Doll-Girl kinda creeped me out. Not because of the way Weeks presented her, but because just before the school year ended one of my students showed me a pic of Dakota Rose–some sort of Internet personality and the image just sorta stuck in my head. I need to do a memory purge or something.

What an odd place Cenaria City must be to live with its juxtaposition of architectural styles over a foundation of rot and the outwardly hard lines between the nobility and the destitute countered by the supremacy of an underworld over that of respectable government. For the most part, Weeks’ descriptions of his world were excellent. I have to admit however, that there were moments when at some serious juncture of climactic stress, it felt like he was trying to describe too much, like his thoughts were getting ahead of his pen, and he lost me and I had to stop, go back and carefully read what was going on to get it straight. Admittedly that happened only once or twice and the problem could have been completely on my part.

One of my tests wherein I decide if reading the rest of the series or book is a good idea or if abandoning it would be a better one is how well the magic system is explained, realized and implemented. I appreciate a carefully considered magic system. It does not have to be a particularly original system as historic precedent and past-practice make creating one rather difficult, but it MUST be consistent in its rendering! It is truly the bread and butter of well realized fantasy. Whether center stage or as background a poorly rendered magic system makes the rest of the story hard to swallow: bad Aesthetic-Distance and a tenuous Suspension-of-Disbelief.

Weeks’ magic system is simple, expository and adhered too, though it is a little vague in places. For example, I could easily comprehend the Glore Vyrden – Conduit – Absorbency/re-charge model, but was not sure how or why certain magic-classes were more powerful than others. Referred to as “Talent,” magical augmentation is what separates a wetboy from an assassin. By extension, I would imagine it would separate other arts and services into mundane and “Talented” classes as well, but I have yet to encounter this.

Culturally much is left to the reader to figure out as there is a complex sub-culture of wytches, meisters and mages grown up around the system. Weeks supplies a glossary on his website and in the back of my version of the trilogy that helps. His “rules” for artifacts are also a bit murky as well, but as the story around them and conflict concerning them develops in the next couple of books, I’m sure it will clear.

I’m into the second book now, Shadow’s Edge, and things are rolling right along picking up a week after the first book ended. It too promises to be a fun ride.

Spartan, A Novel

11 Monday Jun 2012

Posted by in Observation, Reading, Review

≈ Leave a comment

No Spoilers

I think anyone who enjoyed the film The 300 or maybe even the remake of Clash of the Titans would enjoy this book. Certainly any reader who has a hankering for more things Spartan would like this book. Manfredi is at pains to honor original sources and as an archaeologist by trade, offers a wealth of rich detail and enough authentic description to make the reader feel as if they are in the midst of the action. The read is a lot of fun and reminds me more of a medieval romance, with its mysterious strangers that appear briefly and disappear, mystical prophesies that haunt the characters’ destinies and divine miracles and interventions than it does a historical novel.

Ironically, this is also wherein I find my two, albeit minor and personal, complaints. While I enjoyed Mandredi’s book quite a lot, he seemed to have trouble in deciding whether he wanted to write a fiction with mythological seasoning or a historical fiction that presents events as they might have been. This robbed me of completely abandoning myself to his storytelling. I personally do not feel both styles fit very well together. Either the story begins to sound too much like a fantasy to be historical or too much like the grit of history to be a fantasy. I think a book is more effective choosing one or the other. I would like to have seen him remove the supernatural suggestions and create a more believable possibility, such as in Pressfield’s Gates of Fire or Whyte’s The Skystone. To his credit, however, Mandredi holds off on any overt supernatural-ism until very late in the novel, it is a bit ‘bumpy’ at times and flirts dangerously with a deus ex machine or two. I have more to express on this topic, more definition to give it, but it is probably best presented in a separate blog entry.

Another minor quibble-point, though related to the above, and has to do with the language of the novel. As a translation, I am never quite sure how much of the author I am getting or how much of the translator. Character dialogue here is sometimes very dramatic, even epic, but then suddenly lapses back into informality in such a way as to be jarring or without natural rhythm. For me this is less than convincing as it disrupts dialogue euphony and pulls me out of the flow of the novel. For example:

     “…I’d rather sleep in the shed because I’m afraid the wolves will be out tonight.”
     “If that’s how it is,” nodded Kleidemos. “But wake me if you do hear the wolves; with my spear I can come to your aid.”
     “Thank you, my guest,” said Basias…

I do not mind the tone, but it sounds odd when juxtaposed with the informal contractions. I feel it should be one or the other and if it is going to shift there should be a plausible reason for it. I couldn’t help but smile and even chuckle a bit–“…with my spear I can come to your aid.” I am not sure if Manfredi wanted me to laugh to myself at that moment or not. Now, in his “Author’s Note” afterward, Manfredi mentions, “I’ve respected the original sources as closely as possible, seeking even in the language to reproduce the mentality and manner of living.” Those original sources, he mentions “Herodotus” for example, can sound pretty Homeric as the ancient writers seemed keen to give their narratives that Homeric sound of authenticity their readers no doubt expected. I wonder if what is coming through here is a mixture of Manfredi’s attempt to sound a bit Homeric and the translator’s own choices.

As I said, it is a minor point, but as a wannabe writer presently working on my own admittedly poor skills in writing such, I find it very important to keep the reader engaged in the story and odd dialogue is as sure-fire a method for challenging and possibly losing that engagement as any I can think of.

Regardless, I recommend the book to history fans like myself as well as adventure fans or those looking for a fix of ancient rock-‘em-sock-‘em seasoned with a little romance. I plan to purchase and read Manfredi’s The Last Legion, which, by the way, was made into a rather poorly written movie of the same name not too long ago starring Colin Firth and one of my favorite actors Ben Kingsley. The comparison between the two novels and their perspective voices should be interesting. On the other hand, I guess if a really want to know, I should learn to read Italian!