Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Attention to Detail.
Influence this week: My theme song for Cin.
S.O.S. (Anything for Love) - Apocalyptica ft. Cristina Scabbia of Lacuna Coil - Worlds Collide (Special Edition)
Cyanide Sun - H.I.M. - Venus Doom
It's the first requirement of almost anything you do. It's glass top absent of a speck of dust. It's the gentle heart that breaks and the flinch in her eyes. The glance to the door every second. The way she memorizes the room as she walks through. Writing a scene is like reading the fine print. Everything is in the details, including how you hook the reader.
***
The first thing I noticed when I pushed open his front door was that it wasn't locked. The second thing was the broken glass on the floor and pressed into the bottoms of my feet. My heart thudded painfully in my chest and even though I had nothing to do with this; I couldn't help but think someone had come looking for me and found him instead.
Night had settled upon the humans, and street light shined through his window blinds. I slipped through the darkness and made no sound as I neared his bedroom. The door was cracked, the wood bowed in and hung from the hinges by just a couple of screws. The smell of his blood was faint and I closed my eyes and held my breath to keep my control. Blood smeared on my hand as I touched the door, sticky and cold, long since been shed. I rubbed my hands on my pants, and turned away from the door.
I moved through his apartment and into his living room, carpet thick and plush under my feet, glass flakes shimmered like a million diamonds around his brown leather sofa. The fire in the fireplace had long died out and the red hot embers smoked and cracked as they crumbled into ash. It was here that smelled strong of blood, and red dripped from the edge of his coffee table and onto the tan area rug. The sound reminded me of a dripping spring in the winter, the sound embedded into my memory. It was times like these that I wish I had a voice and didn't have to settle for the silence.
***
I write description as though I'm the one walking into the situation. Say I'm walking from the ship deck to my bunk. I go through it frame by frame. You have to set the scene behind your character. How are they framed? "The reddish and orange hues of the sunset played off the white capped waves of the sea. All was quiet on the mighty RWR tonight as I moved silently across the deck to the mast. The feel of the breeze on my skin raised goosebumps and rustled through my hair. I smoothed it down as I reached up for the first metal peg and hoisted myself up. The climb relaxed me as I let my body go fluid with the rocking motion of the ship. Each step brought me closer to solitude. A long day of rum guzzling and man oogling was tough on a hard working ninja like myself and I was ready to kick back in the crow's nest for a little nap."
Description is different through different sets of eyes. That may sound redundant; but some people catch the fly on the wall and some merely glance over it and never truly see it for what it is. Writing description is like this as well. Writing the description calls for us to be overzealous with our attention to detail. What color are the walls? What sort of layout? What is in the room? Where are you standing? Does he own his great-grandmother's Victorian sofa and crystal or something new and modern and a bear skin rug in front of the fireplace? The detail makes the character you learn to know and love. Their flaws and virtues are intricate details we iron out as we write them.
So today, let's work on our scene description. How would you describe the most mundane of things? If your character was walking into a room, how would they choose to see it? And are you the type to catch the fine print detail or are you more caught up in the moment?
S.O.S. (Anything for Love) - Apocalyptica ft. Cristina Scabbia of Lacuna Coil - Worlds Collide (Special Edition)Cyanide Sun - H.I.M. - Venus DoomIt's the first requirement of almost anything you do. It's glass top absent of a speck of dust. It's the gentle heart that breaks and the flinch in her eyes. The glance to the door every second. The way she memorizes the room as she walks through. Writing a scene is like reading the fine print. Everything is in the details, including how you hook the reader.
***
The first thing I noticed when I pushed open his front door was that it wasn't locked. The second thing was the broken glass on the floor and pressed into the bottoms of my feet. My heart thudded painfully in my chest and even though I had nothing to do with this; I couldn't help but think someone had come looking for me and found him instead.
Night had settled upon the humans, and street light shined through his window blinds. I slipped through the darkness and made no sound as I neared his bedroom. The door was cracked, the wood bowed in and hung from the hinges by just a couple of screws. The smell of his blood was faint and I closed my eyes and held my breath to keep my control. Blood smeared on my hand as I touched the door, sticky and cold, long since been shed. I rubbed my hands on my pants, and turned away from the door.
I moved through his apartment and into his living room, carpet thick and plush under my feet, glass flakes shimmered like a million diamonds around his brown leather sofa. The fire in the fireplace had long died out and the red hot embers smoked and cracked as they crumbled into ash. It was here that smelled strong of blood, and red dripped from the edge of his coffee table and onto the tan area rug. The sound reminded me of a dripping spring in the winter, the sound embedded into my memory. It was times like these that I wish I had a voice and didn't have to settle for the silence.
***
I write description as though I'm the one walking into the situation. Say I'm walking from the ship deck to my bunk. I go through it frame by frame. You have to set the scene behind your character. How are they framed? "The reddish and orange hues of the sunset played off the white capped waves of the sea. All was quiet on the mighty RWR tonight as I moved silently across the deck to the mast. The feel of the breeze on my skin raised goosebumps and rustled through my hair. I smoothed it down as I reached up for the first metal peg and hoisted myself up. The climb relaxed me as I let my body go fluid with the rocking motion of the ship. Each step brought me closer to solitude. A long day of rum guzzling and man oogling was tough on a hard working ninja like myself and I was ready to kick back in the crow's nest for a little nap."
Description is different through different sets of eyes. That may sound redundant; but some people catch the fly on the wall and some merely glance over it and never truly see it for what it is. Writing description is like this as well. Writing the description calls for us to be overzealous with our attention to detail. What color are the walls? What sort of layout? What is in the room? Where are you standing? Does he own his great-grandmother's Victorian sofa and crystal or something new and modern and a bear skin rug in front of the fireplace? The detail makes the character you learn to know and love. Their flaws and virtues are intricate details we iron out as we write them.
So today, let's work on our scene description. How would you describe the most mundane of things? If your character was walking into a room, how would they choose to see it? And are you the type to catch the fine print detail or are you more caught up in the moment?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Books by the Crew
104 comments:
Sin, you are such a tease. All these tidbits of your WIP...such delightful bits.
I'll have to review my writings, but I suspect I am more caught up in the moment. I tend to flavor my work with a rare taste of rich detail.
But you inspire me to do more, sneaky ninja.
I sat at lunch on Saturday. A day of meditation with 40 other class attendees. Quietly, I pulled the few items I had brought out of my lunch bag and set them on the table. Nine whole wheat crackers, flavored with garlic and other herbs. Their scent drew moisture to my mouth. One by one, I unwrapped the pepper jack cheese sticks and slowly took one bite. A bit of cracker, a bit of cheese...
I savored it, the crunch of the black seeds were so loud in that quiet room. The bite of the cheese, turned to cream on my tongue. A sumptuous meal. The sections of pink grapefruit, a color I know sets my skin glowing, waited for me.
Even now, my mouth waters at the memory of that fruit. It's tart sweetness, the scent full of summer, was a treat to finish off my quiet lunch.
Then we meditated again. ;)
Interesting Sin...stimulating as always!
I think that I like description to have a sharp focus. Its the amateur sleuth in me. In your scene I would have focused immediately on the blood and then worked away from it, trying to find clues for causes, motives, reasons.
The sound of blood dripping onto a soft carpet would have raised my hackles. Reminds me of the Buddhist meditating on the sound of one hand clapping. I'll be thinking about that all day now!
Chance, your lunch break reminded me of a film I saw a long time ago...think the director may have been Bergman but not sure. Two lovers sat opposite each other, locked in admiration and expectation as they took mouthfuls of luscious succulent food. The juices dripped from their mouths but eyes never strayed from the loved one's face.
Then they went back to meditation...or whatever *grin*
I love descriptions. You can't just use any description either, it has to set a mood and tone for the book. And yes, different characters see things differently. I'm careful about making my characters notice things in their unique way.
I try to do this. I think my level of success really depends on the type of scene it is. In action packed scenes, I tend to move fast, focusing on the the movements instead of the surroundings. But other times I dwell on it, times when my character would notice them.
Though of course you're the master of this. :)
Wow Sin, great example! I love how you make us feel like we're right there in the same room. This is definitely something I need to work on. I think that to do description very well, you have to know that character very well and be deep on their POV - otherwise the description just turns into boring lists of items in a room.
As much as I adore SEP, she often throws in a paragraph of description when a character walks into a new room. And every time, I skim over it, because it's not related to the character - it's just plain description. And I don't find plain description nearly as evocative, as able to make me feel like I'm *right there* as description that's deep inside the character's POV like your example.
I'm probably not making any sense. I need to go find coffee.
Chance,
Actually, I don't think its a scene in my WIP. I think it's Cin but I don't think it has anything to do with my WIP. Weird, huh?
And I'm hungry for crackers and cheese now. Wench. Great description!
Your description of climbing up to the crow's nest revealed the ship perfectly. I was amazed and I live here. ;)
I am completely in the moment. I wouldn't even realize that all my stories happen in blank spaces if people didn't tell me or these kinds of blogs didn't come up. I've actually printed out pictures of an apartment and a restaurant for inspiration while I'm writing those two settings in my story.
ITA about a character's personal surroundings telling you a lot about them. My plan is for my heroine's apartment to be very black and white with hardly any color, until you get to her bedroom. Then color explodes. My hero's apartment is very masculine, but not in the sports memorabilia way. Just browns and solid textiles, strong lines.
My weakness will always be getting the vision in my head onto paper. I'm just not good at that.
Sin - reading your example then reading Q's comment made me realize something. Even though you write from first POV and you put us right in the scene, you don't always let us into the characters mind. Q said he would have seen the blood first then looked to figure out how it got there. What happened. But your character doesn't go there first. My guess is because she knows exactly what happened and how the blood got there. We know she knows, but she's not telling us yet.
That's your amazing hook. You let us in, but only so far. In case it's not coming across right, this is a compliment. LOL!
Oh! What a joy it is to read such horrifying prose! Excellent description, Sin. You had me smelling blood, listening to the symphonic crackling hearth and blood dripping in sync. Plop. Crackle. Plop. Crackle. Plop. :D
Description is what I love most when writing. I have to work hard on dialogue but I can describe settings and people til the cows come home. I LOVE to close my eyes and invision what is before my character, what sounds he/she hears, what things he/she sees, feels, desires.
As in film, panning out for the viewer or zooming in for a close-up onto something the viewer may ignore, you can plant red herrings or foreshadow character and plot with but a well-placed word. Bravo!!
Q, I always strive to stimulate you.
*grin*
I like black and white films much more than color ones. I think they focus more on the details of characters than wide angles of decorative sets. It's the very fine detail of the sparkle in their eyes as they meet. Or the gentle way his fingers carress her cheek when they touch, or the dramatic flare of passion.
That was a great description BTW. And hot. I think this blog is going to get steamy today.
Tiff, I totally agree with you. You really have to love diving into descriptions with your characters to make it feel as though the reader is right there standing beside the character. Descriptions never feel contrived this way.
Marn, don't be silly. The only thing I've mastered so far is the ability to procrastinate to the point of aggravation.
I know you do an awesome job. I might say that a certain part I read had me right there, pulse low and steady, emotion slowly starting to come undone as the shower pelted my skin. It was just as if I was there in the moment reaching out for anything I could find to take the pain away. It was fan-freakin'-tabulous description.
Hal, I'm not one for reading along in a book and finiding something that is just random description of the room or where they are. Unless it pertains to my character or noticing it as she's musing, I don't want to read it. You're really good about mixing it into your actions and that is really the key to description.
I love it when you start throwing around the compliments :)
And Marn, I gotta agree with Sin here on the shower scene!
A comment from a reader. See this?
“Description is different through different sets of eyes. “
This is the best advice that I’ve read about descriptive writing in a long time.
“That may sound redundant; but some people catch the fly on the wall and some merely glance over it and never truly see it for what it is.”
If you want to engage the reader, then you must Engage their five senses. Draw the reader into your world with description. Use words & phrasing that makes it feel like I , the reader, am standing in the middle of the action. Be careful to Keep the tone of your descriptive writing relatable. Keep it real. Keep it relatable. Doesn’t matter if f you’re writing a historical or a paranormal.
Keep it interesting. Every character a distinctive “visual” point of view. In the real world everyone is unique. Different . So each of your characters should “see” things differently. Literally. One style of descriptive narrative does not work for every character. It is disruptive to the flow of the story. And you run the risk of making your characters flat and one dimensional.
And I'm going
shopping
for cheese & crackers!
Now!
Arggg
that should be
"Every character HAS a distinctive" has, Has, HAS!
And I don't HAS cheese so ... yah ... I has to go!
Julie - I think we all know we *need* to do that. The problem lies in figuring out *how* to do that. LOL! Or that's the problem for me anyway.
I'm not a fan of cheese and crackers. But Chance sure made that lunch sound like a sensual experience. Sheesh.
See it it your head. Then tell me what you see. Write like your talking to me.
thats you're. OMG
It is a Sign from God isn't it?
A loud voice thunders out from the Heavens...
"Step away from the keyboard!'
Fine
I can take a hint. Besides. I gotta go shopping!
That sounds easy enough, but trust me, I can complicate anything. Actually, ask my dad. He loves to tell me that over and over again.
Sorry everyone. I'm trying to keep up but I'm swamped at work and we've got an exam room out of commission and it's getting a little hectic.
Ter, I have a rough time getting my vision onto paper as well. Sometimes when I'm writing I'm really not paying attention to anything else than my POV telling me how it's unfolding. This sometimes translates into missing information that the reader needs to know in order to get from point A to point B. Which is why I refer back to walking through each individual step with my POV. If I don't, I feel like something gets lost in translation.
I've thought about my first person POV writing as well. Sometimes it doesn't feel like I write in first person, but I'm always only in one mindset. I like to write like I'm the reader and reading it, but usually I'm the person telling the story. I dunno. I don't put much thought into how I write it. I just want whoever is reading it to understand and see the story how I see it. And I think that's how we all write.
Kathy! I love seeing you aboard!
I work hard on dialogue too because that's where I lose a lot of my focus. I'm not naturally a talker myself and a lot of times, retorts and replies just slip from me without much thought. So dialogue, for me, is an exercise in deep thought. I've been told if I'd take a "class" this might help. Yeah. Right.
Also, Kathy, I write a lot of times completely zoned out with earbuds with noise cancellation. For me, it's like closing my eyes and imagining myself with the character. Walking through the dark apartment, the smell of blood thick in the air and the sound of gentle cracking in the fireplace. You know, the cracking in a fireplace can sound like the cracking of bones if you listen close enough. To me, writing is my art, and even though I can't paint or take great pictures, I write the things I see.
Hal, I think everyone here, in their own element, does a great job with description. I know we've all talked about (well, I know that Hellie and I talk about description at our non-existant writing meetings) wanting to write deeper description. You do a great job mixing it in, and with the genre that you write, it's perfect for your voice.
Jules, see, I need to consult you before I post a blog. You say exactly what I wanted to say, but you say it with less words and make it easier to understand.
"That sounds easy enough, but trust me, I can complicate anything.'
heck Terri ... buying cheese is Easy!
Okay. Let me try this again.
Write like you’re talking to me. But think of “me”, the reader, as a traveler who is visiting your world for the very first time. In this case “the world” is your world, i.e. your story. The traveler doesn’t speak the language of this new world… But you do. Think of yourself as the Traveler’s Translator. Talk to me, the Traveler. Tell me what’s going on in this world that I’m visiting. And remember that if you start getting into too much detail, if you make things too complex , then the traveler won’t understand what you are trying to tell them. Learn to focus on what details are important to the narrative. And which ones bog the narrative down.
BS SIN
You were more Interesting.
And more important
You know what the hell you're talking about. All I know is Cheese!
Jules and Ter,
Jules is right about writing what you see. It sounds easy to do, and relatively for the most part, it is, but when you start to overthink and complicate what you see, you can't quite grasp the visual. Ter, I think that a writing exercise of asking yourself how does that character see the world and apply it to how they "see" the situation might help you. Cin sees the human world through different eyes than someone who's inhabited there for a while. She notices things that other people tend to walk past. She's a little odd because she refuses to wear shoes, but little things, like the way the wind blows and the sun shines and the way birds chirp are things that get her attention easily because she's not experienced that in so long, she's easily distracted. Celi sees things differently doesn't she? How would she see the outside at spring?
Jules, you know plenty. One of these days I'm going to get you to guest blog and you are going to blow us away with your knowledge on everything.
Sin, our meetings are only momentarily non-existent. When we actually have them, the writing discussion is not completely non-existent. Just minimal. Or "lean" and "to the point."
Description is my worst writing skill. I mean, even below all my 'ly' words, and I use a lot of 'ly' words. JK Rowling would even say, "There's a lot of ly words in here, did you notice?"
Everything is always taking place in a white room. I never know how the apartment where my character lives is laid out. It changes to fit whatever is going on at the time. The only thing constant: the apartment is on a first level. I don't put my characters in apartments where they have to live on upper levels. I usually stick them in duplexes.
Oh, wait, I did put Adam & Eve in an apartment on an upper level (above the Shimmy Shack) and it's a one-bedroom hovel (as Adam describes it) with a pull-out couch in the livingroom for Lucy. There's a kitchen with a swinging door. (I guess I'm picturing a run-down version of Will & Grace's apartment.) The shower runs out of hot water fast. The mattress (it's a FURNISHED apartment) looks like a couple grisly murders took place in it and dips in the middle. (Bed description is very important to me. I love beds. Not this one; I would not want to sleep in this bed.) And it's hot. The AC wheezes and barely brings the heat down to a livable level.
Nothing about smell though. Oh, wait, I did describe the alley where the Dumpster was--and I had smell there. But I feel weird putting in smell all the time. My CPs would comment: "How many times is she going to SMELL Ben anyway? We know what he smells like. Geez." So now I've tried to put a curb on it.
Hellie, I know. I can't wait until I get some free time so that we can get back to having meetings. I feel much more productive when we're talking about what we're going to do, as opposed to not doing anything at all and not talking about it. LOL
I noticed the way Matt smells all the time. It depends on the person. We all have our little quirks about what's the first thing we notice. There is nothing like Matt right out of the shower when he smells like Old Spice...
I think I might have blanked out there for a second.
But see, the sense of smell could be something that reminds the heroine the hero is near. Like if she were talking to someone and not expecting the hero to be anywhere near her and suddenly she smells Old Spice and she connects it to the hero. It doesn't matter if it's the hero or not, it's the fact that she connects the smell to him.
I knon nothing.
my serial number is 0007-2-4-6-8-Who-Do-we-Appreciate......
I like the exercise for character: what is their life "motto" or what lens do they see life? Put your characters in an elevator and how do they react if it shuts down--that usually tells you what their motto or lens is.
I'm rarely able to do it, but I find it amusing and I do try to make sure the lens are different for each character.
Okay, that "tell me as if I'm new to your world" thing is quite helpful. That's a great way to go about it. Thanks for being patient with me, Jules. I can be so thick at times. LOL!
Celi sees things in a very cynical way, but she's closed herself off from most things so being observant of details is not her thing. She's at a point where she wants to go through her days without life getting too close. That way, nothing can hurt her. Or get in.
I think making a character notice more, almost making them wake up when they meet their counterpart, is a good way to show characterization. Very much like when the heroine goes from dressing in shades of gray or black or dark blue to wearing lighter colors.
Hellion - Do you realize you just wrote awesome description in that one little comment? LOL! I think you're doing just fine on the description front.
Mmmm, Old Spice. I do like that smell. And Irish Spring. My weakness--kryptonite if you will--is Drakkar Noir. Or it used to be anyway. Of course, it always makes me think of Kevin from high school/church, so that would be pretty useless for the guy I'm dating now. In fact, GXB used to wear Drakkar--and my first reaction was a blissful "Kevin" before remembering who I was actually with. I just stay away from it now since now it reminds me of both guys. And the other 50 million other guys who wear it. I need a new cologne to moon over.
Let's see. Let's do the elevator thing.
If I took Sadie and Ruiz into an elevator and it gets stuck between floors. Sadie would look at Ruiz and ask if he did something she should know about while they were canvasing the office for intel. Ruiz might give her a rueful smile and say maybe. Sadie would fight back a smile and they would go into action.
Now, if Sadie and Ash were in the elevator together, and it was stuck between the floors, Sadie instantly would lose it. Their relationship isn't as solid as her relationship with Ruiz. She's worked with Ruiz before. She knows his quirks. Knows what a pain in the ass he can be. But Ash is a closed book to Sadie and she likes control. If it were the same situation, Sadie would glare at Ash, daggers aren't as sharp as the look she would give him. "Did you do something up there I should be aware of?"
And Ash might say something to the effect of, "No, there was something I have neglicted to do for a while now." And before Sadie can move, Ash presses her into the cool metal of the elevator and takes her lips under his own.
Ruiz could do the same thing, but he likes the adrenaline rush of her anger. Likes the adrenaline rush of danger and so does Sadie. Since Ash and Sadie aren't familiar with each other's tendencies, it ignites more passion between them.
Sin said:
I feel much more productive when we’re talking about what we’re going to do
This smacks of plotting. Just sayin'.....
I know, Ter, I can't believe Hellie thinks she doesn't do good description of her setting. I've heard her say it to me more than once.
Ter, I thought Celi saw things more cynically, but I couldn't remember for sure. So the beginning of spring could really bring out some cynicism. You know, the whole new life, spring fever crap.
*You know, the cracking in a fireplace can sound like the cracking of bones if you listen close enough.*
Sin, that is sooo true and way cool! I love your take on things. As an historical writer, scene is the first thing I see. I learn about characters after everything else falls into place.
I don't get the opportunity to talk much either, which I think explains my lack of communication skills. LOL! But I do develope achy jaw syndrome when given the chance.
Julie, I love your Traveler's Translator comparison!
Hellion is great at description when deep into poetic prose!!! I love her blend of satire and mischievousness. ;D
I'm telling you Old Spice is liquid sex. Apparently, I hear that the Axe sprays are super nice as well. Matt has this colonge called Pi (It's the Pi symbol, sort of like Prince's symbol fiasco). It's the flippin' bomb. But I haven't seen it anywhere in a while.
If Celi were in an elevator and it got stuck, she wouldn't panic. She'd be more, "This confirms what I said about the Universe conspiring against me." (Which is the first line of my book.)
If she were in the elevator with Bryan, I guess it would depend on where in the book we are. In the beginning, they'd be arguing and calling each other things like "Ms. Stick-up-her-ass" and "Mr. Rocks-for-Brains". In the middle of the book, they're friends but a real physical attraction is sparking so she'd be uber-uncomfortable and likely snappier. In the end, they'd be crawling the walls and having a very good time. Though she'd still probably worry in the back of her mind that they might get caught.
I loved Drakkar back when I was in HS, but the one that still gets me is Polo. On the right guy anyway.
My ex-H wore Gray Flannel and luckily, not many guys wear that I don't think. So I don't have those flashbacks. My ex-BF didn't really wear cologne, he just had his own scent. The scent of sex. *sigh* I miss that one.
Kathy, I'm just morbidly weird like that. LOL
And Jules, I'm going to hound you about guest blogging when I get back from vacation. Prepare yourself.
And I'm a talker which explains why dialog is easiest for me. LOL!
Kathy - I'm the opposite, I get characters way before setting. I never thought about it but could that be because I write contemporary so I don't have to really create something I don't see everyday?
Ter, I don't plot. I talk mostly on how I'm going to write, and Hellie talks about what she's writing. The only plot I have is getting out of bed every morning and ruling the world. LOL
Sin - I was just pointing out that those words hinge on plotting. You can remain in your non-plotting land of denial, I just love to harrass you about it. LOL!
Ter, I thought you write contemporary because it suits your voice. But an advantage to writing contemporary is that you don't have to really set the scene of the times because it's in the present and readers take away from their own lives and project it into the book.
Oh, Jules is going to guest blog? Really? *jumps up and down* I can't wait!!
I like my world of denial. Thankyouverymuch. I'd never admit to plotting even if I did. LOL
I've been wanting Jules to guest blog for a while now. I just can't get her to commit. I think it would be awesome. I'm pretty sure we'd hit the record comments number if she would. She's got a lot to say. It's not like she's afraid to say it. LOL
Sin - I write contemp because those are the stories that come to me. I love to read historicals, but have NO desire to write one. Though back during fanlit I wrote chapters set in the Regency and I can pull off the voice. I just don't wanna have to. LOL!
*humming "Pinky and the Brain"*
Sin usually gives a rundown of what she has so far with her book. Then once I start believing she's actually writing about that book, she usually says, "But I really want to work on this idea instead" and gives an awesome world-building lecture about a completely different story, the story that she clearly should have been talking about at the beginning of the meeting but she didn't think she should because I lecture her about committing to a story.
This is her subtle way of saying, "I'm really working on both. Deal with it." It's not really plotting so much as a "need to know basis."
Also, her "plotting" is vague. I assure you. It's like: "Okay, this demon has her enslaved. She needs to become free."
And I say, "Okay, how?"
And she says, "I don't know. It's a mystery."
And I say, "Oh, okay, cool. Can't wait to see it."
And then I do something similar actually. I talk about Ben's book, the revisions--and then start talking about Adam & Eve's book with gushing infatuation. OR I talk about Adam & Eve's book, then end up talking about Ben revisions with gushing infatuation--whatever is going on that week.
Then she says, "Cool. Let me know how the mystery of all that turns out." Because she knows I don't know how it turns out yet either and she's not going to waste time asking me.
The whole cussing thing just throws me. I have one of the dirtest mouths known to all female kind. I can't imagine writing a character who has to have this veneer of properness. It's beyond my comprehension.
Or I suppose its "rein", isn't it?
Damn those homonyms.
I've been trying to convince Jules to guest blog too...but she laughs hysterically at me when I suggest it.
We'll reign her in eventually.
I just realized I call my book Celi's book and Sin calls her's Sadie's or Cin's book. But Hellie's are always Ben's book or Lucy's Book (even though it's Adam & Eve's book).
Not drawing any conclusions, just making an observation.
I haven't talked plot in a long time. And there are huge parts of my book I don't know about. Even after all this time. For these things it's either, "not sure what will happen in this section but after that...." or "Either this or that will happen here, I haven't made up my mind."
Yeah, if you give her reign over the ship, that would conflict with you being capt'n.
Yeah, I've always liked boys better, though God knows why. They're just cuter to look at, I suppose. Plus I'm in love with Ben--pretty much everyone is in love with Ben--but no one really loves Livie. I mean, she's okay and she's funny, but you just want to club her sometimes. Ben, you just want to spidermonkey.
Actually what's funny is that Dee--CP extraordinaire--always refers to it as Ben's book too, and not because of me--because I used to call it the Ben&Livie book at meetings. Dee always forgot Livie's name. *LOL* Ben was always the more interesting character. *LOL*
And Lucy is always more interesting to me than Adam & Eve, though A&E are interesting in their own right. They just don't make me laugh as much as Lucy. Lucy is just a more...Machivellian version of Ben, I think. Lucy is an anti-hero of action. Or as Terri pointed out: Lucy is Jack Sparrow which is why you like him so much.
Are you saying we don't like boys?! LOL!
The book on the back burner set in Ocracoke I think of as Joe's book. It's really his story. But the others are pretty much heroine-centric.
I'm elated that Julie's going to guest blog!
I have to work to control description. It's the writing where I get to play with pretty words and figurative speech, so too often I just get carried away. More words for me to cut.
Here's a bit I didn't cut:
The room had changed little since Dori had chosen the Jacob’s Ladder quilt that covered the four-poster, grapevine bed. Max ran his hand down the length of one poster, smiling a little as he remembered the carver, old Arne Philpot over in Orion, claiming that the grapevines insured fertility. One of Aunt Beami’s paintings, “Decoration Day,” glowed like summer sunshine on the forest green wall behind the bed. Three faces, smiled at Max from a silver frame on the dresser—Lauren’s third birthday. Max bit back an oath as pain sliced through his left hand. First a hot shower, then some food, then he’d face the memories. The pain meds that offered oblivion were in his bag as a last resort.
I love that description, Janga. There's always a melody to your writing. So lyrical. I do wish you wouldn't cut so much. :)
Janga, as I was reading that I felt like I was in the room, the house is older. The light coming through the window is soft. The floors are old wooden planks, worn with age and the four-poster is sitting in the middle of the room. Great description.
I agree. Janga should not cut nearly so much. I too love the melody of her voice--which is awesome since Max is a songwriter/singer.
Wow, ran to the grocery store and it got all crazy in here. :)
First, thanks Sin and Hal for the compliments on my "shower scene." I still haven't recovered from that I'm-one-sick-puppy feeling but I'm dealing with it.
And I don't think of any of my books as one or the other characters. HBG was my witch book and this is my angel book.
Does that mean I have no attachment to my characters?! *panics*
You have plenty of attachment. I think it just means that you can see the bigger picture of the story and that you can go into depth with each character.
Oh.
Whew.
That sounds better than what I was thinking. LOL! I would imagine it's bologne, as I think you guys are attached and in touch, but I appreciate the sentiment anyway.
XOXO
You know, I think I just don't ever like my characters names. If I liked my character names then I might call it by their names instead.
But my characters are always boring names. Nothing cool like Livie or Cin or Sadie or Celi.
That's my story and I'm sticking to it. And buying one of those baby naming books.
The difference, Marn, is that you have a hook. Not that everyone else here doesn't have a hook, it's that *I* don't have a hook. LOL! All I can say is "this is my romance book". LOL!
My other stories I can refer to that way. My love triangle story, my ghost story, my wedding from Hell story. This first one is just harder to pin down.
The wedding from hell book. Wow, I wanna read that. :) That's got comedy all over it.
My mama says I've been touched by an angel.
*snickering*
You could always email me and I'll just give you some random weird name. That's usually how it works for me. LOL
Marn - Yep, it's a Romantic Comedy. LOL!
Yeah, you're touched all right.
I heard that.
I don't like being between the two of you when you get like this.
8)
I might go to the gym and stalk her.
Man, you are just asking for her to kick your ass.
Promises, promises. BodyPump is tonight. You want to be buff, don't you? For any upcoming special events Super Secret Spy Ninjas might be participating in.
Terrio - What does ITO stand for? Did I get that right? Man, I left for a bit and the blog exploded, I lost my place!
I think you mean ITA and that's "I totally agree..."
I had to page up to figure it out as I don't know what ITO would stand for. LOL!
Whereas ITO is "I totally opine" or "I totally orgasmed"
Sees?! I got lost and couldn't find it. Having one a' those days!
I'm heading for the dog park with Bonnie, then home to more crackers and cheese. And to explore how my characters would react in a stuck elevator...
ITO- I totally orgasmed. I like it. I think it will stick.
Dude, flab is the new chic.
Flab is the new chic is my motto. That, and I try not to wave at people.
I totally orgasmed...cool.
You an always do the princess wave...
2nd, you now need a drink called: ITO
Oh, I forgot to say, I'd love it if someone could email me if they know she's okay. Okay? THANKS! :-D
Ahem... Excuse me! I'm sorry to interrupt, but I was wondering if anyone has heard from/seen/picked up a message in a bottle from Stephanie. I have not heard from her lo these many weeks.
And, Christie, wonderful post! I found this to be very difficult when I first started writing. How many details must I describe, I wondered, to capture a simple motion, like opening a door? And then there's the appearance of everything. And then there's the five (or six in some cases) sense. And then there's the character's own personal take on life. And his/her emotions. And all of those impact how he/she/it experiences a moment or space in the story.
Great stuff!
PC, I sent an email your way. :)
Thanks! You rock! I have a link to this blog on my blog, BTW. :-)
We are on a roll! Mega-superstars dropping by on a regular basis. I'm not sure we're good for their reps, but we're happy to have them!
*waves to Pamela*
I know! I feel like I've hit the blogging jackpot! PC! What an honor!
Et tu, Janga?!
Blog indeed! Are You people are mad? Well I know that you're mad ... since that is one of the Things that I like about you! But You're mad in a maddening mad way!
Whoa ... you Pirates have been Linked! Someone should tell Dr Richard Leakey (ask Quantum to explain the bad joke ) Congrats to all of you mad, crazy, impertinent, impetuuuuuOKAY! Who threw an empty rum bottle at my head? The Nerve! At the very least you could have tossed one that had some booze left in it!
*snickering* I know where they keep the extra rum.
Excellent! Jules is going to blog! That is going to be AMAZING.
Love your post, Sin. Writing descriptions seems to elude me at times. I keep thinking the reader knows where I am - so why do I need to describe it to them. That approach goes against everything Mrs. Kenney ever taught me! Write as if no one knows what you are talking about or seeing or feeling. Lud, I miss that woman.
I'm going to try the walk through!
Post a Comment