Life, writing, links
Apr. 26th, 2009 01:21 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
dolorosa_12This post could easily be subtitled 'Why I Will Never Be A Professional Writer'.
Every so often, an interesting idea for a story will pop into my head. This has been going on all my life (hell, it's why, when I was a child, I decided I wanted to be an author when I grew up), and, for the most part, nothing much has come of it. (The only significant divergence from this pattern has been 'The Ravenstan Six', a story I've been working on since 2006, which probably needs a few more chapters to become novel-length. It is also a story I will never show to another livingor undead soul.)
The problem is, I never get plots, characters and themes all at once. I usually get one of the three. Most often, I get themes or characters, and, in a few cases, settings. That was what happened with Ravenstan.
'The heroes of this story come from the anarchic underworld of their city, a place where people go to hide and end up being more honest there than they could be elsewhere. Ravenstan is a place where it is openly acknowledged that human beings use one another parasitically, and somehow because of this cynical acceptance of human greed and selfishness, people have a greater respect for, and sense of solidarity with, one another.'
Story ideas come to me in the form of what ifs:
'What if there was a society where men were the only ones with the ability to use magic, and each mage or wizard or whatever had to draw on the power or spirit of a female Source in order to power his magic? And what if a woman who used magic (and, even worse, powered it with a male Source) appeared on the scene? How would that society cope with it?'
This one popped into my mind in late 2007 while I was walking to work at the newspaper:
'What if there was an international group of demon-hunters who communicated with one another through the internet through a variety of prearranged, complicated signals? [That is, a response of 'ROFL' to an inane youtube clip of a dog on a trampoline actually meant 'They can only be killed with a weapon made of silver', for example.] What if each book focused on a different hunter and showed how his or her problems were made better through the sense of community found online?'
This one came to me as part of a high school assignment:
'What if a person made a deal to save his life in return for handing over his descendant (as-yet-unborn great-grandchild) into slavery? What if his pregnant wife and whole society knew about this agreement after it had been made? How would they react? And what if this great-grandchild resisted fulfilling the terms of the agreement?'
The latest what if popped into my head about a week ago, just in time for it to seriously distract me when I was writing my take-home essay.
'What if there was a society so strictly hierarchical that it was divided into five (really six) rigidly separated classes? What if each class was instantly recognisable by height (the upper-most class being the tallest, the lowest class being the smallest, with the three in the middle each occupying a range of heights instantly recognisable to all members of the society) and form of dress, so that if a member of this society were to see a stranger, he or she would instantly and instinctively think (for example) "Wearing functional but well made clothes, within the height range for a Two, carrying a weapon...he must be a Two"? And what if these distinctions were maintained by a set of clearly-defined rules, a language with degrees of politeness (with, for example, six different forms of the word "you", in varying degrees of politeness)? What are the implications of such a society?'
The problem is, I don't really know what to do with these ideas. I fall instantly in love with the concepts, and with the societies, but I don't really know how to make them work. The obvious thing to do with this last idea is to have some people challenge the hierarchical structure in some way, and yet I adore the morally questionable nature of the society so much that I'd rather play around with it. I'd be interested in seeing how it affects people's ways of thinking about themselves, with concepts of identity.
And yet, ultimately, I don't actually think I'll do anything with it, because the truth is, I'm not really a writer. When I read about published authors' childhoods, there always seems to be this unifying trend: the unstoppable, irrepressible desire to tell stories. They were compelled to write as soon as they could pick up a pen, and before that, they told stories to their younger siblings. And this desire continued on throughout their lives. Now, I was completely in another world during my entire childhood (to the extent that I mostly zoned out in social events, and would constantly have a narrative running through my head. Now that I think about it, it might explain why I had so many problems forming meaningful friendships as a child - my mind was only half there), but it did not translate into any disciplined writing process as an adult (unless you count blogging and academic writing and reviewing).
I've been a reviewer long enough to know that with the right writing, some of those ideas could actually work, but I suspect it won't be I who writes them.
The life stuff that's been bothering me recently is related to work and identity. My mother, when asked what she does for a living, always says (and the phrasing is important), 'I'm a radio broadcaster'. I've been working in a variety of jobs since I was 15, and when I'm asked what I do for a living, I've always said, 'I work in a shop', 'I work for a newspaper', 'I work in child-care' or whatever. Not 'I am a shop assistant' or 'I am a sub-editor' (except out of context, such as when I writhe in pain at poor grammar. Then it's all 'I'm a sub, and it pains me') or 'I am a child-care worker'. At first it was because they were part-time jobs. They didn't define me, because I was a student. That was my identity.
But it got me thinking about the distinction between being and doing, and how unconscious it is. I am always 'a Canberran', not 'from Canberra'. I am only 'an Australian' when I'm outside Australia. The rest of the time, I'm 'from Australia'. I am a Telopean, a Bundah-ite (which is not really a word, but oh well), a Sydney Uni student, a usydgroupian, an English Honours student, a Cambridge postgrad, an ASNaC (which is a wonderfully versatile acronym, since it can be a noun, a proper noun - 'ASNaC pub', an adjective - 'you can study ASNaCy things there', and, I hope, one day, a verb. Although the thought of what 'to ASNaC' would mean scares me), a sraffie, a Whedonista, an internet addict, a nerd.
But I'd love to find a job one day that I enjoy enough to integrate it into my identity like all those other things I've outlined. Work that is what I am, not what I do.
I believe Neil Gaiman calls this 'closing some tabs'.
I'm arriving rather late to the party, but the thought of a fanfic tribute to Twilight makes me laugh a lot. The Fandom Wank post about it makes me laugh even more.
The young-adult book-reviewer in me leaps about with happiness at the thought of Cycler. I think I read about it a while ago on Scott Westerfeld's blog, and then forgot about it. Here's an interview with the author, Laugen McLaughlin, and a a link to her blog. It was through McLaughlin's blog that I found out about Five Awesome YA Fans, a group of YA readers who found each other online and formed a community to discuss all things YA. It's things like this that make me love the internet.
Well, that's it from me for now.
Every so often, an interesting idea for a story will pop into my head. This has been going on all my life (hell, it's why, when I was a child, I decided I wanted to be an author when I grew up), and, for the most part, nothing much has come of it. (The only significant divergence from this pattern has been 'The Ravenstan Six', a story I've been working on since 2006, which probably needs a few more chapters to become novel-length. It is also a story I will never show to another living
The problem is, I never get plots, characters and themes all at once. I usually get one of the three. Most often, I get themes or characters, and, in a few cases, settings. That was what happened with Ravenstan.
'The heroes of this story come from the anarchic underworld of their city, a place where people go to hide and end up being more honest there than they could be elsewhere. Ravenstan is a place where it is openly acknowledged that human beings use one another parasitically, and somehow because of this cynical acceptance of human greed and selfishness, people have a greater respect for, and sense of solidarity with, one another.'
Story ideas come to me in the form of what ifs:
'What if there was a society where men were the only ones with the ability to use magic, and each mage or wizard or whatever had to draw on the power or spirit of a female Source in order to power his magic? And what if a woman who used magic (and, even worse, powered it with a male Source) appeared on the scene? How would that society cope with it?'
This one popped into my mind in late 2007 while I was walking to work at the newspaper:
'What if there was an international group of demon-hunters who communicated with one another through the internet through a variety of prearranged, complicated signals? [That is, a response of 'ROFL' to an inane youtube clip of a dog on a trampoline actually meant 'They can only be killed with a weapon made of silver', for example.] What if each book focused on a different hunter and showed how his or her problems were made better through the sense of community found online?'
This one came to me as part of a high school assignment:
'What if a person made a deal to save his life in return for handing over his descendant (as-yet-unborn great-grandchild) into slavery? What if his pregnant wife and whole society knew about this agreement after it had been made? How would they react? And what if this great-grandchild resisted fulfilling the terms of the agreement?'
The latest what if popped into my head about a week ago, just in time for it to seriously distract me when I was writing my take-home essay.
'What if there was a society so strictly hierarchical that it was divided into five (really six) rigidly separated classes? What if each class was instantly recognisable by height (the upper-most class being the tallest, the lowest class being the smallest, with the three in the middle each occupying a range of heights instantly recognisable to all members of the society) and form of dress, so that if a member of this society were to see a stranger, he or she would instantly and instinctively think (for example) "Wearing functional but well made clothes, within the height range for a Two, carrying a weapon...he must be a Two"? And what if these distinctions were maintained by a set of clearly-defined rules, a language with degrees of politeness (with, for example, six different forms of the word "you", in varying degrees of politeness)? What are the implications of such a society?'
The problem is, I don't really know what to do with these ideas. I fall instantly in love with the concepts, and with the societies, but I don't really know how to make them work. The obvious thing to do with this last idea is to have some people challenge the hierarchical structure in some way, and yet I adore the morally questionable nature of the society so much that I'd rather play around with it. I'd be interested in seeing how it affects people's ways of thinking about themselves, with concepts of identity.
And yet, ultimately, I don't actually think I'll do anything with it, because the truth is, I'm not really a writer. When I read about published authors' childhoods, there always seems to be this unifying trend: the unstoppable, irrepressible desire to tell stories. They were compelled to write as soon as they could pick up a pen, and before that, they told stories to their younger siblings. And this desire continued on throughout their lives. Now, I was completely in another world during my entire childhood (to the extent that I mostly zoned out in social events, and would constantly have a narrative running through my head. Now that I think about it, it might explain why I had so many problems forming meaningful friendships as a child - my mind was only half there), but it did not translate into any disciplined writing process as an adult (unless you count blogging and academic writing and reviewing).
I've been a reviewer long enough to know that with the right writing, some of those ideas could actually work, but I suspect it won't be I who writes them.
The life stuff that's been bothering me recently is related to work and identity. My mother, when asked what she does for a living, always says (and the phrasing is important), 'I'm a radio broadcaster'. I've been working in a variety of jobs since I was 15, and when I'm asked what I do for a living, I've always said, 'I work in a shop', 'I work for a newspaper', 'I work in child-care' or whatever. Not 'I am a shop assistant' or 'I am a sub-editor' (except out of context, such as when I writhe in pain at poor grammar. Then it's all 'I'm a sub, and it pains me') or 'I am a child-care worker'. At first it was because they were part-time jobs. They didn't define me, because I was a student. That was my identity.
But it got me thinking about the distinction between being and doing, and how unconscious it is. I am always 'a Canberran', not 'from Canberra'. I am only 'an Australian' when I'm outside Australia. The rest of the time, I'm 'from Australia'. I am a Telopean, a Bundah-ite (which is not really a word, but oh well), a Sydney Uni student, a usydgroupian, an English Honours student, a Cambridge postgrad, an ASNaC (which is a wonderfully versatile acronym, since it can be a noun, a proper noun - 'ASNaC pub', an adjective - 'you can study ASNaCy things there', and, I hope, one day, a verb. Although the thought of what 'to ASNaC' would mean scares me), a sraffie, a Whedonista, an internet addict, a nerd.
But I'd love to find a job one day that I enjoy enough to integrate it into my identity like all those other things I've outlined. Work that is what I am, not what I do.
I believe Neil Gaiman calls this 'closing some tabs'.
I'm arriving rather late to the party, but the thought of a fanfic tribute to Twilight makes me laugh a lot. The Fandom Wank post about it makes me laugh even more.
The young-adult book-reviewer in me leaps about with happiness at the thought of Cycler. I think I read about it a while ago on Scott Westerfeld's blog, and then forgot about it. Here's an interview with the author, Laugen McLaughlin, and a a link to her blog. It was through McLaughlin's blog that I found out about Five Awesome YA Fans, a group of YA readers who found each other online and formed a community to discuss all things YA. It's things like this that make me love the internet.
Well, that's it from me for now.
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no subject
Date: 2009-04-26 01:40 pm (UTC)It's so frustrating to have those fascinating ideas about society and then realise that you don't have a story to go with them. It happens to me all the time. Some amazing What if...? thing will pop into my head, but fail to come with something useful in the way of a plot or a story. You never know, though; one day, a story may come along and it'll fit perfectly into one of your settings.
no subject
Date: 2009-04-26 02:42 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-04-26 09:23 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-04-26 02:52 pm (UTC)So I suppose there is something there beyond a world and culture, but there's not much. Also, a story such as this runs the risk of turning into a heavy-handed parable about racism. *sigh*
no subject
Date: 2009-04-26 09:20 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-04-26 09:55 pm (UTC)Thanks for all your help with this. It means a lot to me that you're so interested in prodding me to write!
no subject
Date: 2009-04-27 07:48 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-04-26 01:50 pm (UTC)Now I'm going to unplug the internet cable.
no subject
Date: 2009-04-26 02:43 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-04-26 04:55 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-04-26 05:03 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-04-26 07:39 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-04-26 02:50 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-04-26 02:58 pm (UTC)I suspect a lot of people on my f-list have similar issues, both with writing, and with finding a job-identity. We should all try to find a way to motivate each other to finish the stories we've started, to follow through on our ideas.
no subject
Date: 2009-04-26 05:12 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-04-26 08:33 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-04-26 08:41 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-04-27 10:57 am (UTC)And in relation to the job? Part of me feels like maybe there isn't that magical job that truly defines you... and you just do what you do and try to make the most of that. I have a similar view on love too... :P
no subject
Date: 2009-04-27 11:41 am (UTC)Looking at my parents as an example of love...well, let's not go there.
no subject
Date: 2009-04-28 07:09 am (UTC)-Catie
no subject
Date: 2009-05-02 04:36 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-05-02 03:08 pm (UTC)What she expects from her work (and what she thus expects me to be able to find in my work, which I don't believe I'm capable of doing) is that it will continue to keep her using her mind and her natural talents (journalistic research, the ability to express herself clearly, her persistence and pushiness and general thirst for knowledge). She loves change, variety and learning new things, and she's found the perfect job for that.