Here we go.
My month shown via widget.
I'm also partnered up with writing buddy A Silent Spectre, so you can see how we're doing here.
Sunday, November 2, 2014
My NaNoWriMo Metrics 2014
I intended to start NaNo early because of some upcoming travel, but that was a bust. Nevertheless, I'm going to give it a shot. My goal this year is 20,000 words.
Here we go.
My month shown via widget.
I'm also partnered up with writing buddy A Silent Spectre, so you can see how we're doing here.
Here we go.
My month shown via widget.
I'm also partnered up with writing buddy A Silent Spectre, so you can see how we're doing here.
Friday, December 20, 2013
Challenge Essay 3: Formerly One Fine Day with Colonel Mustard
“ Write an essay somehow inspired by super-huge mustard.”
Of all the topics we considered when putting together this blog challenge, the super-huge mustard was the one that gave me the most trouble. No single idea resonated with me completely. I thought about writing from the perspective of a futuristic scientist or space commander who had discovered a massive quantity of mysterious yellow goop. Forced to find a use for this tangy, spicy substance, the scientist-commander would decide to bottle it and sell it as a foodstuff. (Soylent yellow is people! Yes, I considered it.)
I also thought about writing an essay that revolved around Grey Poupon TV ads from the 1980s. A wealthy man being driven around in a luxury vehicle would scroll down his car window and speak to a similarly well-dressed man in another car. Excuse me, sir, would you have any Grey Poupon? No? How about gray coupons? No? Would you happen to have a finely aged poodle thereabouts, then, good sir? I discarded that idea quickly.
I finally settled on writing a short stylistic biography about Colonel Mustard as a young man. The Secret Life of Colonel Mustard, I wanted to call it. (By stylistic, I mean the Colonel Mustard I envisioned was a pompous windbag. Get it? "Super-huge" Mustard?) This explains the graphic I created to accompany my essay.
Well, this essay is about none of those ideas above. I noticed something belatedly that seemed more suited to a personal essay.
Since age 15 or so, I have written almost exclusively from the male point of view or have populated my writing with male protagonists. It’s not intentional. When I’m in a story, I usually see the world through a boy or a man’s eyes, though that male may not be stereotypically male. (If I were to replace all the pronouns with “she” and “her,” I think these characters’ thoughts and behavior would still ring true—with certain exceptions for experiences that are exclusively feminine, of course.)
All of the protagonists in the scenarios I described above could have been female. But automatically, I put myself in the body of a male.
Is my inner writer a man? Is writing from a female perspective too personal? Is writing from a masculine viewpoint my way of trying to understand men? (There were certainly many moments in my teenage years, and yes, even in my young adult years, where I puzzled over things they did or said.) Or do I actually identify with men more easily than I do women?
To answer this question, I examined my few female characters. Worried that they’re too stereotypically female, I react against that, having them take on traditionally male jobs or behaviors. As a person who likes to go against the grain, I wanted to challenge others’ expectations of what these women would do. But these attempts to turn women into nonconformists seemed superficial, hardly authentic. They also became too defined by these showy moments of “Look, I’m not a stereotype!” and got lost in them. Not good.
How do I feel when I write from a male viewpoint? After spending a period writing (and seeing the world) from male eyes, I often feel like I’m turning into a man. I also wonder if my male protagonists are “too feminine” in their thoughts and behavior. Do I need to have them “man up,” so to speak? These cognitions carry with them an entirely different set of questions about gender roles, societal expectations, and personal prejudices. Why not have a male character who is less macho? We know from past research in psychology that men and women are more similar than we think, and that traits we normally assign to women (e.g., being romantic, falling in love first) actually describe men more than they do women. Are we selling men short by not allowing them to be warm, caring beings?
After considering these questions, I’ve concluded that writing from a male perspective serves many purposes for me. I do use it as a way to help myself understand men. Simultaneously, it is also a way to distance myself from the character’s thoughts and behavior, i.e., it is a less personal experience.
But here’s the problem. If I say I’m trying to understand men by writing from “the” male perspective, I’ve fallen in precisely the same trap of stereotyping I was trying to avoid. I can really only understand that given person’s motivations and perspectives, not all men’s, through the viewpoints I adopt in my work.
Did you enjoy my essay? Check out my fellow challengers' essays below. Better yet, join us and write your own!
Challenger Susan
Challenger Elizabeth
Wednesday, December 18, 2013
Challenge Essay 2: Patient File for John "Waldo" Doe
“So where is Waldo, really?”
PATIENT NAME: Doe, John "Waldo"
PATIENT NOTES: (Page 2)
PATIENT NOTES: (Page 2)
Day 15. Since regaining consciousness, the patient only responds to the name “Waldo” and becomes visibly agitated if any other name is used.
Day 17. Patient abhors empty spaces. Exhibits anxiety when alone and gravitates toward large groups, working his way into their midst. Dislikes being center of attention, however. Seems happy to stay invisible and observe.
Day 19. Patient escaped clinic grounds. Four hours passed before local law enforcement located him at a crowded parade on Main Street. Did not struggle when he was brought back in. Seemed quite pleased to be found.
Day 20. Therapy sessions begin. Patient must be restrained. Without restraints, patient attempts to conceal himself in corners or behind decorative plants.
Day 22. Forget about restraints. Patient is cooperative and talkative if allowed to remain behind couch. Patient requested that I conduct the session from under my desk. Asked me why I’m interested in other people’s behavior. Does asking him questions teach me something about myself? I just whacked my head on the keyboard tray for my trouble.
Day 23. Patient recalls he was fond of hide-and-seek games as a child. Claims he has a natural talent for blending in and seeming ordinary. Always played background characters and sang in the chorus in school plays. Asked why I want to stand out so much. Did I think those diplomas hanging behind my desk really mean anything to anyone? Patient is surprisingly astute.
Day 24. No session today. Patient snuck off-grounds again. Was captured at a hamburger-eating contest 50 miles away. How did he get there?
Day 27. Patient spent duration of session pawing through the books on my shelves. Always wished he could write a book, he said. Well, we’ve got that in common. Then, he reconsidered and said he’d rather be a character in one. Characters have more fun than writers, according to him. Right. Asked him if he wasn’t having fun with us. Did he want to escape? He just stared at the clock and chewed on his lip.
Day 28. Had a feeling he would ask about the lack of personal effects in my office. That’s because I stuck them way back in my desk drawer as a pre-emptive measure. I don’t think my personal life is any of his business.
Day 29. No session again. Patient disappeared overnight. By the time he was discovered mingling at Santa-Claus-themed 5K Fun Run, it was after hours. Santa Claus Fun Run? It’s not even winter!
Day 30. We have a breakthrough! Patient caught sight of my camera kit and became agitated. Broke down at the sight of my telephoto lens. Kept repeating, “Don’t shoot! Don’t shoot!” as he was carried away.
Day 31. Today’s a holiday, but he doesn’t know that. I want to get to the bottom of his reaction yesterday. Does he finally remember? Can he cope?
Day 34. Now we have it. Full transcript of recorded session below:
“I—I wanted to use my talent for blending in somehow. It’s...it’s really the only thing I’m good at. So after failing at odd jobs here and there, I enlisted. My mom was so proud. She was tired of getting spooked by me everywhere she turned. I don’t even try to be invisible. I just am.
Where was I? Oh...yeah, so I enlisted. Army photojournalist. I wasn’t fit for combat. Wrong mindset. I’d never advance in the ranks. ‘No leadership skills, lack of initiative,’ my commanding officer said at some point. ‘Might as well let him be invisible.’
My unit was stationed in Aleppo. You know that place? Glittering, modern city. Cars, people. Families. Not—not anymore. [Patient begins to cry.] It’s just rubble. Ruins of buildings, the crumbled stone charred from blasts. Deaths every day. No...not deaths. Murders. Massacres.
The lucky ones got out. I don’t know where—Turkey, Iraq, Jordan—there were too many. Mothers and children separated; husbands and wives torn apart. Every day, holding their breath and praying not to see loved ones’ names among the lists of the deceased. [Patient sobs.]
I witnessed terrible things. People did terrible things to stay alive. They had to. And I couldn’t look away. I had to point my lens at them and push down on the shutter, committing these atrocities to memory.
The—the last thing I remember was a blast. It was deafening, so bright and white-hot. There was a child screaming... [Sobs.]
I couldn’t save her in time.”
END NOTES
Did you enjoy my essay? Check out my fellow challengers' essays below. Better yet, join us and write your own!
Challenger Susan
Challenger Elizabeth
Monday, December 16, 2013
Challenge Essay 1: Ren Diller's Ultimate Guide to Surviving Alienhood
Essay 1 from the #Flashback2School College App Blog Challenge. Rules here.
“If you could be raised by robots, dinosaurs, or aliens, who would you pick?”
I’d choose to have aliens as parents. Here’s the thing, though—my parents are already from another planet.
Okay, back up. Let me explain.
I was the birthday girl who proudly toted a tray of ice-cream-cone cupcakes to school in second grade. My mom had struggled with what to make for the occasion. We didn’t “do” cupcakes at home, so I felt extra-special as I bestowed a cake-filled cone upon each of my classmates. As the kids around me bit into their frosting-free treats (no frosting, my mom didn’t do frosting, either), I began to hear exclamations of disgust. “Eww! It looks like poop!”
My mother had had the inspired plan of sprinkling the cake batter with peanut M&M’s. Festive, right? As the cupcakes baked, the colorful candy shells melted off, leaving gooey brown lumps lodged between crumbs of golden cake. Sure, they didn’t look so appetizing. But what right did my classmates have to say so?
I was crushed. Some of the kids finished their cupcakes, no harm done, but many of them discarded theirs after the first bite. Who could blame them? There were images of poo-cones dancing in their heads.
I was crushed. Some of the kids finished their cupcakes, no harm done, but many of them discarded theirs after the first bite. Who could blame them? There were images of poo-cones dancing in their heads.
At home, when my mom asked how her cake cones had gone over, I just mumbled a few unhappy words and went to go hide my disappointment inside a book. She never tried to make them again.
It wasn’t just that we had different languages. It was hard to pass along customs. How do you explain your traditions and culture when they’re the only ones you’ve known? To an alien, these seem automatic and natural, not something you teach. In our house, the right way to receive compliments was to put ourselves down. With my mother, this extended to accepting gifts. Every single birthday gift, Mother’s Day gift, holiday gift...she found something about them to critique. She refused them; she returned them. I grew up with a distinctly warped way of reacting to gifts that didn’t win me any new friends. In fact, I may still owe a few apologies.
My alien parents were a source of frustration, and occasionally mortification, for most of my life. My childhood is filled with stories of awkwardness, of unintended rudeness, of brazen why-are-you-two-so-unreasonable arguments.
It wasn’t until I became an expat at the age 28 that I began to understand all of these inexplicable events of my childhood for the first time. I knew theoretically the life of an alien was hard. I had seen how my parents struggled to make simple requests while shopping. I saw how they shied away from school events, too embarrassed by their English skills, too proud to make some unknowing social faux pas.
I saw that they favored businesses, teachers, and doctors where their language was spoken. There, they felt at ease. They could communicate elegantly; they could be understood perfectly. Not just their words. At other establishments frequented by aliens, people understood their background and family history, their customs, their fears, and the challenges they faced. There was no “being alien.” Not among your own people. But I didn’t understand just how frightening it is to be an alien until I became an alien myself.
I saw that they favored businesses, teachers, and doctors where their language was spoken. There, they felt at ease. They could communicate elegantly; they could be understood perfectly. Not just their words. At other establishments frequented by aliens, people understood their background and family history, their customs, their fears, and the challenges they faced. There was no “being alien.” Not among your own people. But I didn’t understand just how frightening it is to be an alien until I became an alien myself.
I’ve navigated over 30 years of culture shock, language barriers, different customs, and strange beliefs, all within my home. Outside my home, that was an adventure, too. Things that were simple for my friends—what to say when ordering eggs, what to wear to a dress event, the right things to ask during a college interview—they weren’t easy for me. I didn’t have coaching. It was like everyone around me had gotten their own user manual for living life, but I could only check mine out of the library. But the funny thing is, I think everyone feels this way, maybe just a little.
I got used to being a little “weird,” a little out-of-place. I never quite fit in, but I didn’t mind. I grew to like it. I found that I didn’t really care what others thought of me. This became a wonderful gift—the gift of freedom from judgment, from expectation. I can break away from the conventional. I’m not afraid to voice the unpopular opinion, to make my own choices.
And other bonuses? I’m curious about other aliens. I learned to view “different” as exciting, not threatening. I can share my alien-ness with others.
Yes, my parents are aliens. In the best sense.
And I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Did you enjoy my essay? Check out my fellow challengers' essays below. Better yet, join us and write your own!
Challenger Susan
Challenger Elizabeth
Did you enjoy my essay? Check out my fellow challengers' essays below. Better yet, join us and write your own!
Challenger Susan
Challenger Elizabeth
Thursday, December 5, 2013
Blog Challenge: This December, I’m Going Back to School!
Inspired by this New York Times piece on the increasingly whimsical and thought-provoking questions that elite colleges employ to stretch their prospective applicants’ imaginations, we (writers in our late 20s to early 30s) are challenging ourselves to take on some of the REAL essay questions being pondered by current high-school juniors and seniors.
We’ll be answering the same three questions and posting our essays here. Follow along—or better yet, join us.
Creative College Application Essays
Topics:
(Dec. 16) “If you could be raised by robots, dinosaurs, or aliens, who would you pick?”
(Dec. 18) “So where is Waldo, really?”
(Dec. 20) “Write an essay somehow inspired by super-huge mustard.”
Here are the rules:
• We write as our current selves, not as 17-year-olds.
• Work in personal elements where possible (these are personal essays), but be as creative as you like.
• Upper word limit per essay is 750 words. No lower limit.
Logistics:
• We post our essays to our writer blogs by 5 PM Pacific on their respective due dates.
• Link each essay back to this challenge info.
• Once each person has posted her essay, share the direct link to that essay with the other challengers, so that we can link to essays on the same topic.
• Use hashtag #Flashback2School on your social media if you like!
All essays are now linked below. Enjoy!
Essay Topic #1:
Ren's essay
Elizabeth's essay
Susan's essay
Essay Topic #2:
Ren's essay
Elizabeth's essay
Susan's essay
Essay Topic #3:
Ren's essay
Elizabeth's essay
Susan's essay
Monday, December 2, 2013
On NaNoWriMo and Cutting the Fat
During a previous NaNoWriMo, I became incredibly ill during the second week. It was never diagnosed, despite multiple trips to the doctor. However, I suspect I had contracted mono, due to the fatigue that was ever-present for 2-3 months after. I continued writing during the illness, attempting to power through the exhaustion and malaise, but most of what I wrote ended up being unusable. I realized this when I sat down to edit over the summer.
I had written many extended scenes full of fun details and quirky dialogue, but all those words, line after line, served only to introduce one idea or a brief event. Better to cut to the chase, fit that single idea or event into the story another way.
Farewell, 10,000 words or more...
Those chapters are now trimmed from the novel, to be included on my website as bonus content. I hope my readers will enjoy these "deleted scenes" that take them beyond the novel, further into the lives of Dek Sundowner, Mer Pampero, and Shanna Tramontane, even if the storytelling did not push the plot forward enough to remain in the final draft.
What do you do with the scenes you excise from your work? Re-purpose them elsewhere? Say goodbye and banish them to the trash forever? Tell me what you like to do.
Remember, tough but tender is an editor's love,
Ren D.
Tuesday, November 19, 2013
Music Moves the Savage Writer
I'll be the first to admit it--I was never someone who could listen to music all day, while studying, while working, while waiting around--I found it far too distracting.
Nevertheless, music is a convenient writer's tool. For the small cost of a few megabytes on your laptop or mp3 player, it's always at hand. It can transport you to a different place or a different time. It can block out extraneous noises by playing different noises in your ear. (I guess.) My doctoral dissertation soundtrack consisted of 17 songs on one CD, which I played on an endless loop while I was drudging away underground (basement lab). I even thanked "die neue deutsche Härte" band OOMPH! in my dissertation acknowledgements.
Would I have been able to block out the loud phone conversations that echoed from the office next door without my music? Maybe, but it was certainly easier with the beautiful, husky voice of OOMPH! frontman Dero Goi in my ears. "Jede Nacht genau der selbe Traum...such mich tief im Abgrund deines Traums, ich liege sechs Fuss tiefer...du suchst mich doch ich bin längst am Ziel..."
Ah...
Ahem. Yes, music is more than art, noise, or a diversion, if you're a writer. While working on The Fracture of a Dream, I sometimes struggled to see the world through the eyes of my characters. The character of Mer Pampero posed a problem, especially. Once just an average woman, she's embittered by the life she's led--rational, most of the time, a mother and wife fiercely protecting her family--but nevertheless filled with built-up resentment and hate. Of all of my characters, she was the one I could characterize the most easily, yet she remained the one whose thoughts I least understood.
I started using music as a way of getting inside her head, of finding her voice. Using the same song every time I wrote her dialogue helped me stay consistent for her character. But, no spoilers! I can't tell you what her song is. Eventually, I began ferreting out perfect songs for each of the protagonists.
Have you read The Fracture of a Dream? What do you think? Which songs best embody Dek Sundowner, Shanna Tramontane, and Mer Pampero? And if you're a writer, how do you use music in your own work? Leave your suggestions below!
Tune in next time,
Ren D. ;)
Nevertheless, music is a convenient writer's tool. For the small cost of a few megabytes on your laptop or mp3 player, it's always at hand. It can transport you to a different place or a different time. It can block out extraneous noises by playing different noises in your ear. (I guess.) My doctoral dissertation soundtrack consisted of 17 songs on one CD, which I played on an endless loop while I was drudging away underground (basement lab). I even thanked "die neue deutsche Härte" band OOMPH! in my dissertation acknowledgements.
Would I have been able to block out the loud phone conversations that echoed from the office next door without my music? Maybe, but it was certainly easier with the beautiful, husky voice of OOMPH! frontman Dero Goi in my ears. "Jede Nacht genau der selbe Traum...such mich tief im Abgrund deines Traums, ich liege sechs Fuss tiefer...du suchst mich doch ich bin längst am Ziel..."
Ah...
Ahem. Yes, music is more than art, noise, or a diversion, if you're a writer. While working on The Fracture of a Dream, I sometimes struggled to see the world through the eyes of my characters. The character of Mer Pampero posed a problem, especially. Once just an average woman, she's embittered by the life she's led--rational, most of the time, a mother and wife fiercely protecting her family--but nevertheless filled with built-up resentment and hate. Of all of my characters, she was the one I could characterize the most easily, yet she remained the one whose thoughts I least understood.
I started using music as a way of getting inside her head, of finding her voice. Using the same song every time I wrote her dialogue helped me stay consistent for her character. But, no spoilers! I can't tell you what her song is. Eventually, I began ferreting out perfect songs for each of the protagonists.
Have you read The Fracture of a Dream? What do you think? Which songs best embody Dek Sundowner, Shanna Tramontane, and Mer Pampero? And if you're a writer, how do you use music in your own work? Leave your suggestions below!
Tune in next time,
Ren D. ;)
Saturday, November 2, 2013
When Your Characters Have Become Real
To take a page from Margery Williams' The Velveteen Rabbit, specifically, a small part of the beautiful and oft-quoted passage about becoming Real:
In fact, this painting by Myles Sullivan immediately drew my attention a few months ago:
"That's Dek! And Shanna...slightly leggier and more bombshell than I'd envisioned her, but definitely still Shanna. They look like they're having one of their intense (and silly) debates at their favorite bistro."
It was a reminder that I needed to continue their story.
Returning to them, telling more of their story, is like catching sight of a beloved friend you haven't seen for quite some time. I feel a warmth and happiness to be reunited with my characters and wonder how their unwritten lives have passed since I last worked with them.
The only awkward part is that Dek and Shanna seem so real to me that, in the rewriting stage, adding new parts to their story felt like telling a lie. The way I told the story the first time -- to me, that was how all the events had come to pass. It couldn't be altered.
I have to remind myself that reality is not black-and-white, as we like to think. We each perceive and interpret events, behaviors, and words in different ways. And from Elizabeth Loftus' extensive work on the fallibility of memory, we also know that we mis-remember our own lives constantly. Aside from these mundane "alternate" realities that occur normally, there are also the moments of our lives which simply aren't chronicled -- because that would be dull -- and introducing new scenes might just mean I'm telling the reader something that hadn't seemed important before.
Taking heart from the Skin Horse's words to the Rabbit, however, I like the idea that my characters continue to live on, even when I'm away from them, the threads of their lives rolling, looping, and knotting in new ways that I haven't yet imagined. I guess that's why there are sequels.
And I'm pretty sure Shanna's got a few secrets that are going to come out. They usually do...eventually.
Stay curious,
Ren D.
The characters of The Fracture of a Dream have been real to me for quite some time now. Sometimes I'll see a photograph of a woman and think, "Ah, that's Shanna!" or hear a song that resonates perfectly with their storylines."I suppose you are real?" said the Rabbit. And then he wished he had not said it, for he thought the Skin Horse might be sensitive. But the Skin Horse only smiled.
"The Boy's Uncle made me Real," he said. "That was a great many years ago; but once you are Real you can't become unreal again. It lasts for always.”
In fact, this painting by Myles Sullivan immediately drew my attention a few months ago:
Myles Sullivan, Rendezvous
"That's Dek! And Shanna...slightly leggier and more bombshell than I'd envisioned her, but definitely still Shanna. They look like they're having one of their intense (and silly) debates at their favorite bistro."
It was a reminder that I needed to continue their story.
Returning to them, telling more of their story, is like catching sight of a beloved friend you haven't seen for quite some time. I feel a warmth and happiness to be reunited with my characters and wonder how their unwritten lives have passed since I last worked with them.
The only awkward part is that Dek and Shanna seem so real to me that, in the rewriting stage, adding new parts to their story felt like telling a lie. The way I told the story the first time -- to me, that was how all the events had come to pass. It couldn't be altered.
I have to remind myself that reality is not black-and-white, as we like to think. We each perceive and interpret events, behaviors, and words in different ways. And from Elizabeth Loftus' extensive work on the fallibility of memory, we also know that we mis-remember our own lives constantly. Aside from these mundane "alternate" realities that occur normally, there are also the moments of our lives which simply aren't chronicled -- because that would be dull -- and introducing new scenes might just mean I'm telling the reader something that hadn't seemed important before.
Taking heart from the Skin Horse's words to the Rabbit, however, I like the idea that my characters continue to live on, even when I'm away from them, the threads of their lives rolling, looping, and knotting in new ways that I haven't yet imagined. I guess that's why there are sequels.
And I'm pretty sure Shanna's got a few secrets that are going to come out. They usually do...eventually.
Stay curious,
Ren D.
My NaNoWriMo 2013 Metrics
Testing these widgets out. Who doesn't love widgets?
Hope I'll be a "winner" this year. ;)
My month shown via widget. You can see if I've been good or not.
This year, I'm also partnered up with writing buddy A Silent Spectre, so you can see how we're doing here.
Hope I'll be a "winner" this year. ;)
My month shown via widget. You can see if I've been good or not.
This year, I'm also partnered up with writing buddy A Silent Spectre, so you can see how we're doing here.
Tuesday, July 30, 2013
Talking to Strangers
Meeting a stranger creates, in me, a strange fiction.
People are remarkably accurate at guessing the characteristics of a stranger from the briefest moments of exposure (known as "thin slices" in this area of person-perception research). These "thin slices" of behavior can be as short as five seconds, thirty seconds, or a few minutes. We can read the warmth of a person, neuroticism, even sexual orientation, almost automatically.
Yet, people have a way of surprising us. That best friend you've had for 20 years? The one right beside you, patching up scrapes after taking a spill on the street, the one who held your hand when the police came with bad news? You don't know that friend as well as you think.
Because situations, especially new and frightening situations, can push a person to react very differently. But isn't that still the friend you know?
When I meet a stranger, I don't always know what part of me will show itself. Will I be brusque and guarded like Mer Pampero? Free-spirited but increasingly somber like Shanna Tramontane? Or well-intentioned but ineffective like Dek Sundowner? Well, it depends...on so many factors.
And there are many situations in our lives in which we meet someone for just three minutes or fewer. We never know which impression of ourselves we'll leave behind -- is it the Good Me, or the Bad Me? -- or how others will try to make sense of the way we act.
So yes, that first meeting with a new person brings an unusual tension to the relationship. When I take you in at first glance, I'll adapt myself a bit to meet you in the middle. Or maybe I won't, if I'm Mer Pampero that day.
Is my character Dek who he is because of the people he's known? Do these people bring out something that's already in him? Or does he mirror, in his behavior or his words, what he thinks they want to see in him?
The better question is, can he do any of that in his current condition?
So, readers...when do I meet you? And, which version of me do you expect to meet?
Ren D.
People are remarkably accurate at guessing the characteristics of a stranger from the briefest moments of exposure (known as "thin slices" in this area of person-perception research). These "thin slices" of behavior can be as short as five seconds, thirty seconds, or a few minutes. We can read the warmth of a person, neuroticism, even sexual orientation, almost automatically.
Yet, people have a way of surprising us. That best friend you've had for 20 years? The one right beside you, patching up scrapes after taking a spill on the street, the one who held your hand when the police came with bad news? You don't know that friend as well as you think.
Because situations, especially new and frightening situations, can push a person to react very differently. But isn't that still the friend you know?
When I meet a stranger, I don't always know what part of me will show itself. Will I be brusque and guarded like Mer Pampero? Free-spirited but increasingly somber like Shanna Tramontane? Or well-intentioned but ineffective like Dek Sundowner? Well, it depends...on so many factors.
And there are many situations in our lives in which we meet someone for just three minutes or fewer. We never know which impression of ourselves we'll leave behind -- is it the Good Me, or the Bad Me? -- or how others will try to make sense of the way we act.
So yes, that first meeting with a new person brings an unusual tension to the relationship. When I take you in at first glance, I'll adapt myself a bit to meet you in the middle. Or maybe I won't, if I'm Mer Pampero that day.
Is my character Dek who he is because of the people he's known? Do these people bring out something that's already in him? Or does he mirror, in his behavior or his words, what he thinks they want to see in him?
The better question is, can he do any of that in his current condition?
So, readers...when do I meet you? And, which version of me do you expect to meet?
Ren D.
Monday, July 15, 2013
The Trouble With Dreams
My novel-in-progress, The Fracture of a Dream, deals heavily with dreams (as you might guess from the title). Dreams of the subconscious variety, dreams of sleepers, dreams of one's future goals -- all are fair game in my exploration of life and death.
Overall, we consider dreams to be important, necessary. Mostly a positive concept to strive for. That's why there are so many motivational graphics about "chasing your dreams" and "it's better to regret something you did than regret never doing it." (I'm paraphrasing.)
But you know, dreams aren't always a good thing.
So, to stretch your brains today, I'd like you to complete the following sentence and then work it into a dialogue or passage of your own:
The trouble with dreams is _________.
A few ideas of my own:
Overall, we consider dreams to be important, necessary. Mostly a positive concept to strive for. That's why there are so many motivational graphics about "chasing your dreams" and "it's better to regret something you did than regret never doing it." (I'm paraphrasing.)
But you know, dreams aren't always a good thing.
So, to stretch your brains today, I'd like you to complete the following sentence and then work it into a dialogue or passage of your own:
The trouble with dreams is _________.
A few ideas of my own:
- The trouble with dreams is you wake up at some point.
- The trouble with dreams is that nightmares are dreams, too.
- The trouble with dreams is not everyone's can come true.
- The trouble with dreams is they don't pay your bills.
- The trouble with dreams is sometimes you can't sleep.
- The trouble with dreams is they don't come true when you're flat on your back, paralyzed with sleep.
What did you come up with?
Rendy
Wednesday, July 3, 2013
Why "Never Give Up" Is Terrible Advice
Yes, I'm at it again!
I'm still working on The Fracture of a Dream, so I thought I'd try Camp NaNoWriMo once more as an extra incentive to write every day. April's Camp NaNoWriMo was a massive failure for me, and I like to try again and again until I succeed.
Hmm...that must be why I spent my lunch hour playing backgammon until I won.
(Note: Psychologically, perseverance is not always a good thing. It's important to know when to cut your losses and give up. If you're unrealistic in your level of control, i.e., you think you have control over things you do not control, you're more likely to persist even when others would have stopped trying.)
We see this often in our everyday lives, with bad situations that we simply can't change, with jobs that must be done, with people who come into a relationship with their own motives, quirks, and emotional baggage. Sometimes, we have to make the best of it. Sometimes, we need to know enough to just leave.
Keep this little tidbit about perseverance in mind as you read about Dek Sundowner and his adventures. When should he give up? When should he keep trying?
And how might this change how his story ends?
Stay focused (unless you think it's time to give up?),
Ren D.
I'm still working on The Fracture of a Dream, so I thought I'd try Camp NaNoWriMo once more as an extra incentive to write every day. April's Camp NaNoWriMo was a massive failure for me, and I like to try again and again until I succeed.
Hmm...that must be why I spent my lunch hour playing backgammon until I won.
(Note: Psychologically, perseverance is not always a good thing. It's important to know when to cut your losses and give up. If you're unrealistic in your level of control, i.e., you think you have control over things you do not control, you're more likely to persist even when others would have stopped trying.)
We see this often in our everyday lives, with bad situations that we simply can't change, with jobs that must be done, with people who come into a relationship with their own motives, quirks, and emotional baggage. Sometimes, we have to make the best of it. Sometimes, we need to know enough to just leave.
Keep this little tidbit about perseverance in mind as you read about Dek Sundowner and his adventures. When should he give up? When should he keep trying?
And how might this change how his story ends?
Stay focused (unless you think it's time to give up?),
Ren D.
Tuesday, June 11, 2013
Writer Versus Himself
Many of the things I do, and the ways I perceive the world, are colored by my training as a psychologist.
Currently, I'm neck-deep in every writer's personal, inner revolution: editing.
I'm resisting. Oh, I'm resisting.
My novel was outlined and planned out with a certain degree of logic before I got far in writing (around the 15,000-word mark). I want certain events to happen, I want certain passages to stay intact...because they make sense that way.
(You can hear me arguing, I imagine.)
But when your thoughtful beta-reader respectfully disagrees, or when your reasonably sane-sounding writing-advice book Hooked, by Les Edgerton, tells you five red flags to avoid at all costs, it's time to stop being defensive and restrain yourself from throwing out the "buts."
But that part belongs there!
But I have a good reason for doing it that way!
But I worked so hard on it, and *I* love it!
But I'm the writer! Don't I know what's best?
Yep, I've been there, struggling along with the rest of my writer brethren. I know the feeling of unwillingness to bend to someone else's will. I know the feeling of total rebellion in the form of apathy: "Who cares? I'm doing it my way!" In my most recent situation, I've been fighting the edict that I must rewrite my first chapter entirely. I really did plan this chapter a certain way, and it plays a parallel to both the ending and the resolution of the first climactic point...but I need to let go of my defensiveness.
Perhaps, ultimately, it might be better for my novel if I keep the original first chapter. However, I won't know until I attempt, openly and non-selfishly, to find an alternate beginning. It could be there.
I was telling myself, "But there's just no other way that beginning, with the same logic and parallels, can come about!" I realized, of course, that this is ridiculous. I'm writing fiction. Thus, there can and will be a new beginning. I've challenged myself, as a creative writer, to find a solution to the problem and make it work even better than the original solution did.
And I will.
So it's back to the plotting board, as we plotters say. Push on through, fellow editing-revolutionaries!
Ren D.
Currently, I'm neck-deep in every writer's personal, inner revolution: editing.
I'm resisting. Oh, I'm resisting.
My novel was outlined and planned out with a certain degree of logic before I got far in writing (around the 15,000-word mark). I want certain events to happen, I want certain passages to stay intact...because they make sense that way.
(You can hear me arguing, I imagine.)
But when your thoughtful beta-reader respectfully disagrees, or when your reasonably sane-sounding writing-advice book Hooked, by Les Edgerton, tells you five red flags to avoid at all costs, it's time to stop being defensive and restrain yourself from throwing out the "buts."
But that part belongs there!
But I have a good reason for doing it that way!
But I worked so hard on it, and *I* love it!
But I'm the writer! Don't I know what's best?
Yep, I've been there, struggling along with the rest of my writer brethren. I know the feeling of unwillingness to bend to someone else's will. I know the feeling of total rebellion in the form of apathy: "Who cares? I'm doing it my way!" In my most recent situation, I've been fighting the edict that I must rewrite my first chapter entirely. I really did plan this chapter a certain way, and it plays a parallel to both the ending and the resolution of the first climactic point...but I need to let go of my defensiveness.
Perhaps, ultimately, it might be better for my novel if I keep the original first chapter. However, I won't know until I attempt, openly and non-selfishly, to find an alternate beginning. It could be there.
I was telling myself, "But there's just no other way that beginning, with the same logic and parallels, can come about!" I realized, of course, that this is ridiculous. I'm writing fiction. Thus, there can and will be a new beginning. I've challenged myself, as a creative writer, to find a solution to the problem and make it work even better than the original solution did.
And I will.
So it's back to the plotting board, as we plotters say. Push on through, fellow editing-revolutionaries!
Ren D.
Monday, May 6, 2013
When We Click
First of all, I have to confess that Camp NaNoWriMo was a spectacular failure this time around. I somehow thought I could revise my manuscript, take online courses, see friends and family, and job-hunt in earnest while traveling for almost five weeks.
I make myself laugh. None of that happened in April. I barely slept. As usual, I made myself ill.
But you know what did happen? I found the time to read a few books on my to-read list.
Click, by Ori and Rom Brafman, was among one of my stacks, and much like their book Sway, the narrative was both interesting and highly readable. Great storytelling job. Click deals with that special sort of "magic" we encounter -- whether it's an unexpected love connection, a number of complicated factors coming together just so perfectly all at random, or even just the feeling of being "in the zone" while working on a project.
The idea is fascinating, of course. You probably aren't aware of this, but there's something you use every day that's the product of one of the "clicks" discussed in the book. Can you guess what it is?
That mystery aside, Click got me thinking about those special people we have in our lives -- the ones we take a shine to right away, the ones we know will be our best friends as soon as we meet. These are the friends we can fill hours with, chatting away, the ones we trust with our spare keys and secrets, the ones with whom we can pick up where we left off after years of separation, no discomfort or reacclimatization needed. (Don't worry; I'm going somewhere with this.)
We are our best selves, our most unguarded, authentic selves when we are with these people. And, in our writing? When our characters are with someone with whom they click...that's when our readers (and we, as writers) get a dose of who they are, really. Their unfiltered personalities, their motivations, their anxieties, their dreams -- all these vibrancies can come through, if you get these characters together with the right person.
Many people act differently or speak differently, according to the situation they're in or the people they are with. (These social chameleons are generally known as high self-monitors, in case you're interested. They're always managing the impressions they leave behind.) This behavior is perfectly natural. It can make for a confusing character, however, when you're developing your protagonist. How can your readers get a good sense of who the character is, without needing you to tell them directly?
Get your character into a good click situation. Then, just let go. Whoever your protag is, just let that personality flow out onto the paper.
Ren D.
I make myself laugh. None of that happened in April. I barely slept. As usual, I made myself ill.
But you know what did happen? I found the time to read a few books on my to-read list.
Click, by Ori and Rom Brafman, was among one of my stacks, and much like their book Sway, the narrative was both interesting and highly readable. Great storytelling job. Click deals with that special sort of "magic" we encounter -- whether it's an unexpected love connection, a number of complicated factors coming together just so perfectly all at random, or even just the feeling of being "in the zone" while working on a project.
The idea is fascinating, of course. You probably aren't aware of this, but there's something you use every day that's the product of one of the "clicks" discussed in the book. Can you guess what it is?
That mystery aside, Click got me thinking about those special people we have in our lives -- the ones we take a shine to right away, the ones we know will be our best friends as soon as we meet. These are the friends we can fill hours with, chatting away, the ones we trust with our spare keys and secrets, the ones with whom we can pick up where we left off after years of separation, no discomfort or reacclimatization needed. (Don't worry; I'm going somewhere with this.)
We are our best selves, our most unguarded, authentic selves when we are with these people. And, in our writing? When our characters are with someone with whom they click...that's when our readers (and we, as writers) get a dose of who they are, really. Their unfiltered personalities, their motivations, their anxieties, their dreams -- all these vibrancies can come through, if you get these characters together with the right person.
Many people act differently or speak differently, according to the situation they're in or the people they are with. (These social chameleons are generally known as high self-monitors, in case you're interested. They're always managing the impressions they leave behind.) This behavior is perfectly natural. It can make for a confusing character, however, when you're developing your protagonist. How can your readers get a good sense of who the character is, without needing you to tell them directly?
Get your character into a good click situation. Then, just let go. Whoever your protag is, just let that personality flow out onto the paper.
Ren D.
Tuesday, April 9, 2013
The Ties That Bind Us
As a writer with a psychological bent, I often examine my own interactions with the people around me, probing the boundaries, fingering the threads and knots. I've done this since I was prepubescent, working out who got along well with whom, how to diffuse tense situations, how to tailor my approach to a person when I wanted to ask a favor. I'd like to say the ability comes naturally, but it doesn't.
I'm still the master of social gaffes. I sometimes work against myself.
But there's a beauty in the way people are connected -- some bonds stronger, taut, steady...others thin, wispy, barely sustained. Complicated. There's the mother who would sacrifice anything for her child, yet she hardens her heart with jealousy, eyeing her thriving child, born into privileges she herself was not fortunate enough to have. There's the broken criminal, brusquely keeping the other inmates in line with threats and muscle, but whose thoughts turn to the younger brother he left on the outside, barely a teen and now fending for himself and their younger siblings.
A story can take place anywhere, any time, in any setting. But it's the relationships between the characters that draw me in. So I don't rule out any particular genre. I'll read mysteries, sci-fi, fantasy...anything, if the author catches me with some good relationship tension. So how are your characters connected? Are the ties overt, simple? Or hidden, snarled?
Sure, I love a good relationship. Does that mean I write romance? No. In fact, I find relationships that are barbed with awkwardness, conflicted feelings, and hardships to be the most interesting.
I also love to get deep down into a character's biggest soft spot. His or her true devotion, whatever he or she most wants to protect. Whom does Dek Sundowner most want to protect? The answer may not be so obvious...
Keep loving,
Ren D.
I'm still the master of social gaffes. I sometimes work against myself.
But there's a beauty in the way people are connected -- some bonds stronger, taut, steady...others thin, wispy, barely sustained. Complicated. There's the mother who would sacrifice anything for her child, yet she hardens her heart with jealousy, eyeing her thriving child, born into privileges she herself was not fortunate enough to have. There's the broken criminal, brusquely keeping the other inmates in line with threats and muscle, but whose thoughts turn to the younger brother he left on the outside, barely a teen and now fending for himself and their younger siblings.
A story can take place anywhere, any time, in any setting. But it's the relationships between the characters that draw me in. So I don't rule out any particular genre. I'll read mysteries, sci-fi, fantasy...anything, if the author catches me with some good relationship tension. So how are your characters connected? Are the ties overt, simple? Or hidden, snarled?
Sure, I love a good relationship. Does that mean I write romance? No. In fact, I find relationships that are barbed with awkwardness, conflicted feelings, and hardships to be the most interesting.
I also love to get deep down into a character's biggest soft spot. His or her true devotion, whatever he or she most wants to protect. Whom does Dek Sundowner most want to protect? The answer may not be so obvious...
Keep loving,
Ren D.
Thursday, March 28, 2013
What I Did Last Summer...I Mean, This Coming April
Anyone else taking part in Camp NaNoWriMo next month? I'm excited to be participating (though I'm extremely stressed out -- I'll be traveling, job-hunting, and taking courses at the same time). Nevertheless, after a successful (and productive) trial with NaNoWriMo last November, I feel pretty confident about tackling a reduced word count. If I happen to write more -- all the better!
I'd love to hear from my fellow Wrimos. What are you working on, what are you hoping to accomplish in April?
Stay writery,
Ren D.
Friday, March 15, 2013
Just Once, Metamorphosis
I think every creative person should be allowed to undergo a metamorphosis at least once without seeming inconsistent and a tad flaky (unless you're The Artist Not Really Known As Madge...then I suppose you've got free license to make yourself over anytime, as many times as you want).
As springtime approaches (in the Northern Hemisphere), it's the perfect time to think about the theme of change and renewal. Whether it's change in the form of editing and rewriting, or growth and dynamism in your characters, or even your own development and improvement as a writer, change is normal, natural, and virtually always going to happen. (In your stories, it better happen! Why else are you telling the story? To show how nothing changes?)
Often a story will approach a character in a way that shows him or her growing and changing, perhaps breaking free of convention or the bonds of static friends who hold the character back. It can be just as interesting, I find, for the character to be stuck, repeating the same mistakes, as this can make a point to the reader as well. (I think we all know people who are like that, don't we? Stuck, trapped...) In The Fracture of a Dream, Dek seems to be a spectator as life -- as even nature itself -- lives and thrives around him, while he finds himself stagnant. The people around him change, but he can't seem to move on himself or alter the path his life is taking. He may think he has some semblance of agency, to drive his actions, but it doesn't get him far.
Does it make a difference in where Dek ends up?
You'll have to read to find out.
Don't "stay anything," readers! Be bold and change. :)
Ren D.
As springtime approaches (in the Northern Hemisphere), it's the perfect time to think about the theme of change and renewal. Whether it's change in the form of editing and rewriting, or growth and dynamism in your characters, or even your own development and improvement as a writer, change is normal, natural, and virtually always going to happen. (In your stories, it better happen! Why else are you telling the story? To show how nothing changes?)
Often a story will approach a character in a way that shows him or her growing and changing, perhaps breaking free of convention or the bonds of static friends who hold the character back. It can be just as interesting, I find, for the character to be stuck, repeating the same mistakes, as this can make a point to the reader as well. (I think we all know people who are like that, don't we? Stuck, trapped...) In The Fracture of a Dream, Dek seems to be a spectator as life -- as even nature itself -- lives and thrives around him, while he finds himself stagnant. The people around him change, but he can't seem to move on himself or alter the path his life is taking. He may think he has some semblance of agency, to drive his actions, but it doesn't get him far.
Does it make a difference in where Dek ends up?
You'll have to read to find out.
Don't "stay anything," readers! Be bold and change. :)
Ren D.
Monday, February 11, 2013
Crayons and a Cardboard Heart
Sometimes we pour our hearts into finding (or making) the perfect gift for someone we love. That gift may represent unspoken hopes, such as the wish to share a future together, or the desire to see a loved one find success. The gift may be a reminder, letting the recipient know the giver is present, perhaps not physically but in mind. The gift may carry a message -- "Don't forget me" or "I'm thinking of you."
Overall, gifts are a lovely notion. We enjoy giving them; we enjoy receiving them.
Unfortunately, at times gifts may be given out of obligation, guilt (apology roses don't smell as sweet, eh?), or purely as a social leverage technique, an attempt to curry favor or achieve some other end.
The latter reason is overt, and therefore, not quite as interesting to me. Gifts of obligation and guilt are fascinating, however. Is it not enough to convey "I'm sorry" or make amends via words and more meaningful actions (such as doing something that was neglected or trying not to repeat an infraction)? Do gifts smooth the road, make the recipient forget the giver's wrongdoing? Does the giver want to weigh down the recipient with a reminder of what went wrong?
Sure makes it hard to forgive and forget.
Why not eschew the obvious, why not give simple gifts that carry the same message? Being around for a person in need. Taking the time to listen to a problem or to support someone who doesn't receive a lot of caring. Remembering things that are important to your loved ones. These small actions may bring big rewards. Letting a friend or lover know that they are important, that they are special to you, these are gifts that are far-reaching.
They will be remembered, and you will be remembered, because the effort and time required for such gifts of oneself come from a place that does not take credit cards. There's no returning them, and they are one-of-a-kind, intended for just that recipient and something that can only be given by you.
What do you think? If you've been wronged, would you rather someone woo themselves back in your favor by spoiling you with a gift or two, or would you rather see redress of a more emotional or proactive nature?
And what if you're the wrongdoer? What do you do to return to someone's good graces?
Ren D.
Overall, gifts are a lovely notion. We enjoy giving them; we enjoy receiving them.
Unfortunately, at times gifts may be given out of obligation, guilt (apology roses don't smell as sweet, eh?), or purely as a social leverage technique, an attempt to curry favor or achieve some other end.
The latter reason is overt, and therefore, not quite as interesting to me. Gifts of obligation and guilt are fascinating, however. Is it not enough to convey "I'm sorry" or make amends via words and more meaningful actions (such as doing something that was neglected or trying not to repeat an infraction)? Do gifts smooth the road, make the recipient forget the giver's wrongdoing? Does the giver want to weigh down the recipient with a reminder of what went wrong?
Sure makes it hard to forgive and forget.
Why not eschew the obvious, why not give simple gifts that carry the same message? Being around for a person in need. Taking the time to listen to a problem or to support someone who doesn't receive a lot of caring. Remembering things that are important to your loved ones. These small actions may bring big rewards. Letting a friend or lover know that they are important, that they are special to you, these are gifts that are far-reaching.
They will be remembered, and you will be remembered, because the effort and time required for such gifts of oneself come from a place that does not take credit cards. There's no returning them, and they are one-of-a-kind, intended for just that recipient and something that can only be given by you.
What do you think? If you've been wronged, would you rather someone woo themselves back in your favor by spoiling you with a gift or two, or would you rather see redress of a more emotional or proactive nature?
And what if you're the wrongdoer? What do you do to return to someone's good graces?
Ren D.
Tuesday, January 8, 2013
Dreams & Musings on Dreams
It seems like everyone I know is writing a novel or hoping to write one someday.
What is it about writing a novel that inspires so many people to set it as a goal? How many of the people who dream of publishing a novel actually succeed?
I don't know many people who've set out to make their own films or produce their own CDs. Similarly, I don't know many people who have the goal of creating their own gallery showcase of art or putting up a public installation.
Perhaps it's that words are readily available to (almost) everyone. We all have stories; we all have experiences that others do not share. Photography is a similar undertaking. Nowadays I see more and more people with no formal photography training create photography careers for themselves with the raw materials (their natural surroundings) already available to them. With a good eye for aesthetics and composition, many laypeople can pick up the techniques as they go.
I love (and appreciate) the ability to wake up someone's imagination and take him to unknown territories, but this is one of those days when I wish I were skilled in something a little more rare and visual (e.g., filmmaking, art) or lucrative (e.g., mathematics, business).
Nevertheless, I am still a firm believer in hard work being the foundation to making a dream come true. If you want something deeply enough, you may achieve it with determination and perseverance.
Fill 2013 with your dreams!
Ren D.
What is it about writing a novel that inspires so many people to set it as a goal? How many of the people who dream of publishing a novel actually succeed?
I don't know many people who've set out to make their own films or produce their own CDs. Similarly, I don't know many people who have the goal of creating their own gallery showcase of art or putting up a public installation.
Perhaps it's that words are readily available to (almost) everyone. We all have stories; we all have experiences that others do not share. Photography is a similar undertaking. Nowadays I see more and more people with no formal photography training create photography careers for themselves with the raw materials (their natural surroundings) already available to them. With a good eye for aesthetics and composition, many laypeople can pick up the techniques as they go.
I love (and appreciate) the ability to wake up someone's imagination and take him to unknown territories, but this is one of those days when I wish I were skilled in something a little more rare and visual (e.g., filmmaking, art) or lucrative (e.g., mathematics, business).
Nevertheless, I am still a firm believer in hard work being the foundation to making a dream come true. If you want something deeply enough, you may achieve it with determination and perseverance.
Fill 2013 with your dreams!
Ren D.
Sunday, December 30, 2012
Time Markers
I wish this were a post about a fantastic set of felt-tip markers that, when used, could manipulate the fabric of space and time. Sounds like a great children's independent reader series, actually. However, when devotees of art say that great art is transporting, I don't think that's what they mean.
I'm writing, of course, about the little signals that show us the passage of time in a film, TV show, or piece of writing. People talking about back-to-school shopping indicate that summer is ending (no!) and that autumn is on its way. Jack o' lanterns, cornucopias, lawn Santas, Christmas trees, and pink doily cupids give away similar clues about the time of year in which a story takes place.
When you write, and your story takes place over the course of several months (or years), how do you convey that information? Do you use the holidays? Do you simply state the day of week or time of year? Do you describe your characters' (hopefully weather-appropriate) clothing or mention the meal they are eating? If the time of day or year isn't important, do you forgo time markers completely? Human life is so inextricably linked to the passage of time that we often use time markers without even noticing or thinking about it.
Time is important to the characters of The Fracture of a Dream. It takes place mostly across a timespan of one year, so descriptions of the seasons were my method of marking the time. Dek is a character with a strong affinity for nature, so this also followed quite logically. I also wanted to avoid the assumption that my characters might celebrate any religiously linked holiday. Dek and his friends are solidly American, but they may not share all aspects of the culture that the majority of Americans consider to be a given. Trust me. With what Dek's going through in his life, remembering holidays is not high on his list of priorities.
And on that note, I wish you a happy new year, fellow readers and writers. May your 2013 be everything you dream it will be.
Ren D.
I'm writing, of course, about the little signals that show us the passage of time in a film, TV show, or piece of writing. People talking about back-to-school shopping indicate that summer is ending (no!) and that autumn is on its way. Jack o' lanterns, cornucopias, lawn Santas, Christmas trees, and pink doily cupids give away similar clues about the time of year in which a story takes place.
When you write, and your story takes place over the course of several months (or years), how do you convey that information? Do you use the holidays? Do you simply state the day of week or time of year? Do you describe your characters' (hopefully weather-appropriate) clothing or mention the meal they are eating? If the time of day or year isn't important, do you forgo time markers completely? Human life is so inextricably linked to the passage of time that we often use time markers without even noticing or thinking about it.
Time is important to the characters of The Fracture of a Dream. It takes place mostly across a timespan of one year, so descriptions of the seasons were my method of marking the time. Dek is a character with a strong affinity for nature, so this also followed quite logically. I also wanted to avoid the assumption that my characters might celebrate any religiously linked holiday. Dek and his friends are solidly American, but they may not share all aspects of the culture that the majority of Americans consider to be a given. Trust me. With what Dek's going through in his life, remembering holidays is not high on his list of priorities.
And on that note, I wish you a happy new year, fellow readers and writers. May your 2013 be everything you dream it will be.
Ren D.
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