Quentin Tarantino's Speech and the Creative Process

I'm not much for award shows. I get a little tired of Hollywood patting themselves on the back.

However, I love Tina Fey and Amy Poehler. A pair of funnier ladies is hard to find. Given that, I did watch a little bit of the 70th Annual Golden Globes last night, mainly while The Good Wife was on commercial breaks (my wife loves that show). From what I saw I came away with three thoughts.

First, Brave shouldn't have won for Animated Feature Film. I love animated movies and I love Pixar but Brave didn't live up to their extremely high standard. It was a good but a little boring and predictable. My vote would have been for ParaNorman.

Second, holy plastic surgery batman! There were a few actresses I didn't even recognize they've had so much work done. Kate Hudson is starting to look an awful lot like Lindsay Lohan (which isn't a good thing) and one gall (who's name is now escaping me, which I realize doesn't help this post) doesn't even look like anyone anymore!

Finally, the last thing that stuck with me and the reason for this post was Quentin Tarantino's acceptance speech for Best Screenplay for his movie Django Unchained. If you haven't seen this movie, it's very good. Don't go see it unless you're prepared for some serious violence and profanity but do go see it. It's funny and sad and action packed and wonderful. The amazing thing about Mr. Tarantino's acceptance speech was the small glimpse he gives into his creative process. Take a look (hint: his speech starts at about 1:12):

He thanks his actors (which is good) and then he goes on to thank a group of friends that he reads scenes to as he writes. Apparently, when he's gone through a scene as many times as he can stand, he then reads the scene to a friend or two. Instead of feedback he simply asks for these people to listen. They are sounding boards. Mr. Tarantino explains that when he reads a scene to a friend he hears it through their ears. For him to take the time to thank this group in front of a live national audience lends weight to how important this step is for him in his creative process.

So here's my question: do you do anything like this?

I've done something similar with my non-fiction. When writing journal articles to be submitted to peer reviewed publications I will sometimes read particularly tricky sections to a colleague in order to see how it flows and to gauge their reaction and level of understanding to the material. But I've never done it for one of my fiction stories. Perhaps I should.

What about you?

5 Resons Every Writer Needs A Dog

Good news everyone who's trying to convince their spouse, boyfriend, girlfriend, mistress, mom, dad, landlord, roommate, body double, parole officer, gay cousin, -self that you need a dog:

I'm going to give you 5 good great reasons that will finally shut them up once and for all are sure to convince them that as a writer, you need a new best friend.

Sorry cat lovers, this post isn't for you. Actually, there's a pretty good chance that you'll never find a post on this site extolling the virtues of cat ownership. Cats aren't my thing.

No wait, you'll love my cat. He's just like a dog.

You have a pet that makes me sneeze and craps indoors but otherwise is just like a dog. Why don't you just get a dog. Oh, and don't let your cats outside people. Seriously. They're pretty much the 8th biblical plague as far as wildlife goes.

 BAD KITTY!!!

 Anyway, back to subject at paw:

I got your back!

1. Companionship: Even though there are plenty of posts floating around to the contrary, writing really is a solitary sport. The internet has given us writers a wonderful tool to interact with and stay connected to other writers, which is great. But when it comes down to the actual act of writing, it's just you a blank page...and your dog (if you have one). My dog is my writing partner. While I'm typing away you can usually find him under my desk lending emotional support.

Good dog.

2. Dog Walking Cures Writers Block: I swear this is true. Whenever that blank page wants to stay blank I just walk the dog. **POOF** The mind clears and the ideas come.

Q: Want to know what to do if that doesn't work?

A: Walk the dog again.

3. A Dogs Not Gonna Pee On Your Laptop: I have a friend who's laptop was just fried by her cat's overactive bladder. I'm just saying.

Pippin's listening!

4. Dogs Are Great Listeners: As writers, it's sometimes hard to get people to listen to our story ideas. Our friends and family are sick of it. Our significant others do their best but their eyes glaze over as soon as the words "plot hole" are uttered. It's not their fault. But your dog will listen. He will listen intently to every crazy story idea and character description you subject him to. Sure he's only paying attention in the hopes of hearing the word "treat" but that's not important. What really matters is that you have an audience that pays attention to what your saying (and doesn't give snarky feedback to boot!).

5. BONUS PIPPIN VIDEO:

McCaffrey Letter Update: The Reply

I'm not the type of fella that writes a lot of fan mail. In fact, in my life I've only written one piece of fan mail (well, now two but I'll get to that later). In August 2011, I wrote the author of one of my favorite fantasy/science fiction series of a time, The Dragon Riders of Pern series, Ms. Anne McCaffrey.

Please take a moment and check it out.

As you know, Ms. McCaffrey passed away a mere three months after I sent my letter. I very much hoped she got the letter but since she lived in Scotland and it had to be routed through Random House, I figured the odds weren't good. Regardless, I resigned myself to never knowing and moved on.

That is until I got back from a visit to my field site in early April and found a reply letter in a stack of mail my wife had left on the counter. I'm sad to say it wasn't from Ms. McCaffrey but happy to report it was from her son, Mr. Todd McCaffrey, who has picked up the torch and written a number of the Pern books with his mother and several on his own.

I won't go into the details of his letter since they were rather personal but suffice it to say that Todd was good enough to take the time out of his busy schedule to write a full page response. He even shared a couple antidotes about his mom and passed on a great tip about writing that I would like to share with you.

"If there's any time in your studies, you might want to add at least one acting class to your courses - Mum's sense of place and placing were very much developed from her love of the theater and, as she called it, "off-off-off-off-Broadway" productions."

Of course I replied to Todd's letter thanking him for his generosity and asking him, as a fan, to continue what his mother started and keep the Pern series alive. I hope he does.

Book Review: The Help

I can't believe this is her debut novel.

Seriously, it's not fair how talented some people are. I'm not saying this book didn't take a lot of work. I'm sure it did. But a best-selling, major-movie-inspiring, phenomenally written debut novel?

I'm jealous. Lurk in her bushes to see if she's actually an alien kind of jealous.

For those of you who haven't read "The Help" by Kathryn Stockett, do yourself a favor: Drop whatever you are doing and go snag yourself a copy (Please note: the author of this blog is not libel for any damaged or broken property or babies).

I think it would be hard to give this book too much praise. It's beautifully written, timelessly poignant, and as heartfelt as it gets. The civil rights era was not that long ago and the big events and major players of this important time in America history have not been forgotten. But this book isn't about the big events. In this story, Mr. Stockett explores the day to day life of average working class southerners with wonderfully well rounded, flawed, sympathetic characters. She shows us the stubbornness and hate that go into full fledged racism living along side the simple ignorance that fuels divisions between race, sex, and class. Nobody is at fault yet everyone is to blame. Ms. Stockett gives voice (using the most effective phonetic writing I've ever seen) to women both black and white, using the differences between them to highlight the similarities. This book is so packed full of tension, flows so well, and is so hard to put down, that I stayed up past 11 pm on a weeknight to finish it (that might not sound like a big deal but you can ask my wife, nothing short than the hand of god will keep me out of bed most nights).


I look forward to and dread seeing the movie. I just hope they didn't screw it up too much.

Ray Bradbury, 1920 - 2012

For those of you than don't know, author Ray Bradbury passed away last night at the age of 91.

Over the next few days I'm sure that there will be many remembrances of the man who was one of the pillars of speculative fiction and most of them will be far more eloquent than mine. I just want to say that Ray Bradbury wrote stories of the highest caliber. His works defined genres and set the bar for generations to come. He was, and is, a writer I look up to.

And he was a writer's writer. If you want to know what I mean, take a few minutes and watch this interview from 2010.

Ray Bradbury, you will be missed.

The Writer's Zodiac: Who's Your Patron Writer?

January: J.R.R. Tolkien
You have a deep love of words and language, so much so that you've even tried to create your own. You're also a world builder, crafting broad landscapes filled with fantastic characters and creatures. Political and patriotic, your aren't afraid to speak your mind and you're educated enough to pull it off. Instead of quantity, you write for quality, taking years to finish a single manuscript. You like wizards.
  

February: Charles Dickens
You're a genre bender that relies on the audience to point your story in the right direction. You don't just want to be writer, you want to be a famous writer...a REALLY famous writer. But you have a strong sense of social justice and you're not afraid to put your name on the line for the right cause. When you fall in love you fall hard and you don't care about tradition or convention. And here's a little friendly advice: stay away from trains.


March: Louisa May Alcott
Your stories draw inspiration from your life to such a strong degree that they're nearly biographical. Despite your humble roots you've surrounded yourself with big thinkers and big ideas. Writing has never been your day job. Instead, you use writing as an outlet, crafting everything from wholesome children's stories to fiery romances. You keep your personal life to yourself, leaving those who want to speculate to their own devices.


April: Mark Twain
You started writing later than some but you've found success relatively quickly. Well liked and respected, it's your humor and your whit that draw people to you and to your writing. Your stories mix charm, adventure, and subtle social commentary. You've never had much trouble making money but because of your love of risky business ventures, hanging onto it sometimes presents a serious challenge. You have a love of science and pseudoscience alike and both find their way into your writing. And you have crazy hair.


May: Emily Dickinson
Introverted to the point of reclusive, you're well liked by those that know you but actually know by very few. Instead of venturing into the real world you commiserate with your fellow writers via blogs and forums. You have a fascination with death and immortality and these themes dominate your work. Also, although you're and extremely prolific writer, you're rarely (if ever) published. At least not while you're alive.



June: Elizabeth Barrett Browning
You've been writing epic poetry since you were ten years old. By the time you left home you'd read every book in the house and most of the books in town. Your writing is vivid, imaginative, and inspired by the change you want to see in the world. Health problems have plagued you since childhood but the love of your life gives you strength enough to carry on. You write with purpose and direction, leaving "art for art's sake" to others.




July: Ernest Hemingway
You have a talent for getting into dangerous situations and marriages that don't last. Your writing is deep and brooding, just like you. Character is key to your stories, whether they be six words long or 120k. You love to travel and the settings of your stories mirror your adventures. Oh, and you hate your mother.



August: Virginia Woolf
Despite your family's  wealth and connections, you had a pretty rough childhood. But that doesn't keep you from having fun. You're a practical joker and you surround yourself with like-minded people that you rely on for support. Your writing is lyrical, psychological, and highly stylistic. Sexual ambivalence is a theme common to your writing and your life. You only have one true love though and you'll stick with your lover until your dying breath.


September: Leo Tolstoy
You are one complicated individual. You're a realist in the strictest sense of the word. If it can be described as fanciful or romantic, you want nothing to do with it. At the same time you're a moralist and your writing reflects the many shades of gray you see in the world around you. You didn't write in your youth but now that you've started, you'll write until your dying day. Learning new things is never easy for you yet you're a ardent supporter of education. You're writing can only be described as "vast" in both scale and quantity yet you have the gift of constructing memorable one-liners. Oh, and Shakespeare? You think that guy was a hack.

October: William Faulkner
No media is off-limits. You're just as happy writing novels, short stories, poems, plays, essays, or screenplays. Whatever you write, there's a good chance that race and gender politics play a central roll. You're proud of where you're from and your writing reflects that pride. In your personal life you have an on-again-off-again relationship with booze, kinda like all those lovers that aren't your spouse.




November: George Eliot
You started writing later than most and now you have serious concerns about whether other writers will take your work seriously. Your stories are deeply psychological, draw inspiration from the Greek tragedies, and include the theme of class warfare which reflect your humble beginnings. You are no stranger to unrequited love and your long term relationships are... non-traditional. 


December: Jane Austen
You're a hopeless romantic with a dagger sharp wit. Your writing weaves intricate dialog, biting social commentary, and heady love stories sprinkled with subtle humor. You have a fascination with the upper class and the world they live in. You've been writing as long as you can remember and you'll continue until your dying day. Personally, you're a very private person. The most important things in your life are your family and your books, in that order.



Images courtesy of Wikipedia.

Monday Shout Outs

I had a wonderful weekend full of BBQ and writing. Really, what more can you ask for out of life?

To keep the ball rolling and start the week off right I want to throw out some love to a couple writers near and far.

Fist off, I'd like to invite everyone to check out the new YA novel "First Comes Love" by fellow Corvallis writer Katie Kacvinsky who has a book signing here in town on May 8th, come one come all!

Second off (wait, is that right?), for those of you with a morbid streak (like me) I encourage you to check out The Death Writer, a cool blog about all things death and how they relate to writing.

Also, I would like to thank everyone again that took the time to help my on my query letter. Let's give it up for:

Morgan Shamy
Connie Keller
Steven Till

Reneea Miller

Veronica Sicoe

Finally, I'd like to celebrate the end of the A-Z blogging challenge! I don't know about anyone else but I am sick of alphabetized blog posts!

Anne McCaffrey, Remembering the Dragon Lady

I didn't know.


I feel bad about it but I simply didn't know. I've had my head buried in the sand that is graduate school and I've only recently decided that, for my own sanity, I have to peak out on occasion to keep an eye on my other passions, like books and writing. That's the reason I didn't know that one of my favorite authors of all time, a woman whose books introduced me to fantasy and inspired me to write, a wonderful writer who created one of the richest fantasy worlds of all time, Ms. Anne McCaffrey, The Dragon Lady, passed away last November.

I'd like to share with you a letter I wrote Ms. McCaffrey in August 2011, less than 4 months before her passing. I have no idea whether she ever read it.

Dear Ms. McCaffrey,

One summer morning when I was in my early teens, I was tasked by my parents with cleaning out our storage shed.  While rummaging through boxes I happened to come across one containing my dad’s science-fiction book collection.  More because of the cover art than anything else, I grabbed a dusty faded paperback with a dragon on the cover.  I then spent the rest of the day shirking my duties while sitting propped up against the shady side of the shed, a copy of Dragonflight in hand. If memory serves, the only thing that eventually broke the book’s hold on my imagination were my mom’s repeated calls to come to dinner.  Over the following few years I read the entire Pern series, loving every book.

I’m now almost thirty and I’ve gone back to school to get my graduate degree. While staying in a remote cabin to conduct my research, I came across another faded old copy of Dragonflight that a previous resident had left behind.  I usually don’t re-read books (there are so many good books out there that I haven’t read yet) but I’d already burned through the few I had brought so I decided to break custom.  I can sincerely say that I’m very glad I did.  I just finished re-reading the original trilogy and I must say that, having become an aspiring writer since the first time I read the series, I now have an even deeper appreciation for the skill in which you brought Pern and its inhabitants to life.  I don’t think I’ve ever read an author who is better able to inspire such love, hate, passion, or trust for his or her characters.

This is the first piece of fan mail that I have ever written but I felt it important to say that I look up to you as a writer.  Put simply, you inspire me.  

Thank you for giving us Pern.

Sincerely yours,

Adam Gaylord

As I said, I have no idea if she ever read it but hopefully, in sharing it with you, I'm helping her memory live on in some small way. 

Thank you Dragon Lady. You will be missed.

Picking a Genre

Earlier in the week I posted how it seems that many more writing oriented websites are written by women than men. Trolling around the writing blogoverse I've also noticed that there seems to be a heck of a lot of writers who call their work "young adult". This got me thinking about a few posts I've read recently that discuss what constitutes young adult fiction, including a post by our friends at BookEnds, LLC.

Check out the Genre Map at Book Country

Check out the Genre Map at Book Country

Personally, I've always thought that what defines a genre is composed of two parts, what you're writing and who you're writing it for. Young adult happens to be one of the genres that's defined mostly by target audience. It's true that the protagonists are usually under 20 y.o. but there are plenty of works outside the genre that fit that criterion. That's quite a bit different than science fiction or fantasy which are defined almost entirely by certain plot elements. Then there are the huge anomalous genres like "commercial fiction" which seems to be made of any book that has a chance of selling to a broad audience base.

I call the manuscript I'm currently working on "fantasy". That seems easy enough but then there are at least 12 sub-genres that many agents use to specify what kind of fantasy manuscripts they're interested in. Mine isn't urban fantasy (having classic fantasy plot elements and characters but set in an actual modern setting) or dark fantasy (just like it sounds) but instead probably falls into the realm of epic fantasy (aka high fantasy), which is cool but is also sound just a little pompous if you ask me.

What do you call your story?

Sex Bias in Reading

In putting together this blog I got to thinking about who my favorite authors are. I love fantasy so it's no surprise that names like Anne McCaffrey, Melanie Rawn, and C.S. Friedman come to mind. I also love classic literature including works by Betty Smith and Jane Austen. And when you scan by bookshelf for books centered around my chosen profession in the natural sciences you'll find names like Rachel Carson, Jane Goodall, and Temple Grandin. Picking up on a theme yet?

It turns out, all things being equal I tend to gravitate toward female authors. I have no idea why this is. I don't actively seek out women writers nor do I avoid their male counterparts. I certainly don't scan the shelves at the book store looking for feminine names. Oddly enough, I didn't even know C.S. Friedman (author of The Coldfire Trilogy) was a woman until partway through the 3rd book! Even the blogs that I have listed here are (at this point) all written by women. To have such a noticeable skew to a sex ratio seems kinda strange. But what can I say...I love the ladies.

How about you? Have you noticed any gender preference in your reading?