Monthly Archives: January 2012
Chillers, Thrillers, and Killers
What better way to spend Terror Tuesday than talking about the ones that make it all happen?
I just finished reading Writing the Breakout Novel and am in the middle of Bullies, Bastards, and Bitches right now, and it’s left me pondering what makes a strong antagonist.
When I think back over the literature that I read growing up, a lot of the Big Bads were really big. God big. Satan big. So how were they effective? How did David Eddings keep me reading for five books before he really introduced his Big Bad and we ever saw Torak’s melty face? I read a lot of epic fantasy, which always seems to have a lot of black and white (at least on the surface).
Think for a moment of the best, scariest, most disturbing antagonists you ever read/watched. Hold them in your mind, because we’re going to take them to our play pen.
Put them all in here! Let's see what they do!
In urban fantasy, the Big Bad is often an old scary vampire (Picary in the Hollows, the Mother in Anita Blake — or any other number of scary vamps in that world). While those can be effective, they need more than just the oogly-boogly factor to make them creep into your nightmares.
The Oogly-Boogly Factor
The Oogly-Boogly Factor is where that particular baddie lies on the spectrum of badness. What, you ask, is the spectrum of badness? Aha. Observe.
Spectrum of Badness
Here’s the key with the best Big Bads — they’ve been through the entire spectrum. When I think of the Big Bads I liked the most, the ones who stuck with me — these are the ones whose motives I understood, who may have even made me sympathetic to their cause at some point, and who have more depth to their character than just the Oogly-Boogly Factor.
You can plunk a character onto the Just Plain Evil part of the spectrum and call them a Big Bad from the get-go, but that won’t make them convincing. Sure, someone who kills at random is scary, but the methodical planning on serial killers is chilling.
Big Bads should also be stronger than the protagonist, at least initially. If the protagonist you’re rooting for can just smush them into smithereens before you can say yikes, that’s no fun at all. Boring. And that violates the basic rule of entertainment: don’t bore anybody.
Big Bads tap into our most primal fears. Something hiding in the dark. Something invading our safe places. Things that do what shouldn’t be done, make happen the things we dread the most. They make us children again, make us forget our adult sensibilities and make us want someone to tell us it’s not real.
Let’s look at a couple of my favorite Big Bads!
Image via Wikipedia
- Creeptastic Preacher Man
Caleb the Preacher, from Buffy the Vampire Slayer
As many Big Bads as there were in that show, Caleb is one who has haunted me and who gives me chills each time I watch it. So where is he on the spectrum?
Caleb is full on Big Bad — we don’t see his progression during the show, but we do get glimpses of his back story.
Caleb’s primary characteristic is his misogyny. He calls women “dirty girls.” One interesting trait that he has is that he’s not hugely power hungry. He gets his power from the First Evil, but he bows to it willingly. He is murderous. One of the things that makes Caleb as terrifying as he is comes from the clothes he wears. Even if you’re not religious, his choice of outfit is disturbing. That collar is supposed to symbolize someone who is at least safe. Caleb makes it frightening. He uses religion in his rhetoric often, which adds another chilling layer to his persona. Here’s a quote that sums him up:
Now, it’s a simple story. Stop me if you’ve heard it. I have found and truly believe that there is nothing so bad it cannot be made better with a story. And this one’s got a happy ending. There once was a woman, and she was foul, like all women, for Adam’s rib was dirty—just like Adam himself—for what was he, but human. But this woman, she was filled with darkness, despair, and why? Because she did not know. She could not see. She didn’t know the good news, the glory that was coming. That’d be you. For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours, now and forever. You show up, they’ll get in line. ‘Cause they followed her. And all they have to do is take one more step, and I’ll kill them all. See? I told you it had a happy ending.
Since we’re on the Buffy subject, let’s look at the development of a Big Bad — see the progression across the spectrum. Buffy fans probably know who I’m talking about…
Image via Wikipedia
- Creepy Willow
Willow Rosenberg, from Buffy the Vampire Slayer
To get a feel for the humble origins of this Big Bad, it might be better to show a before picture:
Willow with...pigtails?
Willow starts out as a stereotypical smart, nerdy girl. She’s shy and awkward, she’s in love with her best friend Xander, and she is so self-effacing that you want to just hug her.
As the series progresses, Willow experiences heartbreak and begins to explore the world of magic, becoming a powerful witch. She often misuses magic for selfish reasons, which backfires more than once. This is where she is lured by the dark side a bit. When her first love cheats on her and leaves her, she meets Tara.
Tara brings out the power in Willow. Together, they hone their craft and fall in love. Tara is kind, wise, and gentle. When Willow spirals out of control, addicted to magic (enter Kinda Naughty range of spectrum), Tara cuts her off and breaks up with her. Willow is forced to learn to give up the magic if she wants to heal her relationship with Tara — and succeeds.
Enter Warren.
Warren is going after Buffy, but he’s a crap shot with his pistol, and he shoots Tara through the heart, spattering her blood across Willow’s shirt. Traumatic Event.
It doesn’t take long for Willow to go off the deep end in her anguish. Willow’s transformation is incredible, because she goes through every bit of the spectrum to become Dark Willow. When she gets there, she is full on Big Bad. She’s lost her most treasured love. She’s vengeful. And best of all, we sympathize with her. I cheered her on when she went after Warren.
For the writers out there, how do you make your Big Bads convincing? Do you actively ensure that they are in some way pitiable or sympathetic? Where do they fall on the spectrum, and how did they get there? Even if all of that doesn’t end up in the book, you should know.
As I rework my book, one thing I’m doing is strengthening my Big Bad, making him more frightening, considering his back story. Even though he is downright terrifying, he has reasons for being that way.
I want to hear your thoughts!
Who are your favorite antagonists? How do you feel good antagonists add to a story? If you’re a Buffy fan, how did you feel about Caleb? Willow?
Thank you for flying Terror Tuesday, do come back.
Related articles
- Why we love the Big Bad (christopherspenn.com)
- Monday Man: Wesley Wyndham-Pryce (emmiemears.com)
- Buttressing Your Protagonist, Part 2 (emmiemears.com)
- Monday Man: Spike (emmiemears.com)
- Treading the Tightrope Between Worlds (emmiemears.com)
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Monday Man: Wesley Wyndham-Pryce
After some thought and a facepalm, I reckon I should say that THIS POST CONTAINS SPOILERS! SPOILERY, SPOILERY SPOILERS!
Consider yourself warned.
Another little PSA: Today I defy the laws of physics by being two places at once! That’s right, gentle viewers, you can have a second dose of Emmie over at the lovely Kourtney Heintz’s blog!
My husband and I are watching season three of Angel right now. It’s been a while since I’ve watched it, and one thing that is coming across like someone’s blaring it in an earhorn is how impressive Wesley‘s development really is.
When he first appeared on Buffy the Vampire Slayer as her replacement Watcher when Giles got sacked, he was — in a word — a doofus.
Do I mean doofus? Hm.
Yep. I mean doofus.
From slavering over Cordelia to his horrifically botched handling of Faith when she went rogue, it’s safe to say that he became the utter Emperor of Doofonia. This quote from Giles just about sums it up:
“For god’s sake, man! She’s 18, and you have the emotional maturity of a blueberry scone, so would you just ask her to dance and stop all this fluttering about?”
At the end of that season, Wesley and Cordelia shared what was, in my humble opinion, the single most awkward and embarrassing kiss in television history.
Bleeeeeeeeeeuuuuuuuuuurgh.
With the squishing, and the awkward — ack. No more. No more.
Wesley shows up in season one of Angel ready to prove himself as a rogue demon hunter. He is a man on a quest to redeem himself after being sacked, he is a man chafed by leather, he is…a rogue demon hunter. To which Cordelia responds, “What’s a rogue demon?”
At first, it seems that he will retain his position of comic relief with all his bumbling about. He shares another awkward kiss with Cordy, who unbeknownst to him is just trying to rid herself of the visions passed to her by Doyle, fumbles around, and falls down a lot. He also shows a tendency for slime.
As the show progresses, however, Wesley begins to take initiative. When a couple mobsters show up and demand to see an absent Angel, he plays the role of the vampire with a soul and manages to save a young debutante from being sacrificed to the goddess Yeska by her father (and I thought I had daddy issues). Wesley sustains a couple serious injuries — more than a couple when Faith gets her implements on him — which begins to alter his persona in many ways. He smiles less. He bumbles less. He takes a turn for the serious.
In fact, he begins to become downright dour until the group lands in the demon dimension of Pylea at the end of season two. When they bring back the lovely, zany, wonderful Fred (who is a woman, by the way), it sparks a change in Wesley. His attraction to her is immediately evident. His smile returns when he looks at her, and with the help of the beneficent Cordy, he starts to woo her.
Until, in typical Joss fashion, a misogynistic young man named Billy shows up on the scene who has the power to turn any man into a woman-killer simply by the touch of his hand or blood. When Wes comes into contact with Billy’s blood, he turns on Fred and tries to murder her. Not the best start for a budding relationship.
Following this episode, Wesley’s remorse and grief cripple him. He doesn’t leave his dark apartment for days and almost doesn’t answer when Fred comes to see him. It takes him a very long time to begin to trust himself again. I should mention here that Wesley has a very abusive father who constantly puts him down and denies him any sort of approval or fatherly pride — which clearly plays into his behavior after the Billy episode.
To make matters worse for poor Wes, when he finally does get up the nerve to go for Fred again, she’s already fallen for Gunn. For me, that scene is a little devastating, as much as I adore Gunn and love the dynamics of him with Fred. Wes continues a downward spiral (like every other character on the show, Fred being the possible only exception — Angel went to a much, much darker place than did Buffy). The capstone events are set off when he abducts Angel’s infant son, destroying Angel’s trust — all for a false prophecy that was fed to him.
If there is any time whatsoever that I’ve wanted to screech at my television, this season does it. But ah, the plight of the helpless viewer. Back to Wes.
Wes is betrayed the moment he tries to give the child to Holtz, and he gets his throat slit. Left to bleed out in a park, he realizes his error. Far too late. With Angel’s son whisked away to an unassailable dimension, Angel takes out his fury on Wesley and tries to kill him.
I think I can safely say that this is the lowest point of Wes’s arc.
Wes has a keen conscience and a tremendous sense of moral obligation — it’s exactly that morality that drove him to take Connor from Angel when he feared for Connor’s safety, however sorely he was misled. When faced with the consequences of his actions and the estrangement from his friends and colleagues, Wesley still tries to do right in his way.
Alienated from everyone he loves, he still tries to fight evil and ends up beginning a sexual relationship with one of the lawyers from the Big Bad Law Firm Wolfram & Hart — someone he comes to care for and eventually mourn.
Wesley eventually returns to the team at Angel Investigations after rescuing Angel from his sea-grave where his son imprisoned him (reading this makes me realize just how convoluted that whole plot arc really was), but everything about Wesley’s makeup has changed.
I can’t think of another character on this show whose development is so deeply moving, arresting, and ultimately painful. Through the seasons, Wes was the character I came to care most about. I remember the first time I watched the show, I had to stop partway through season three or four because it hurt too much to watch Wes’s life get decimated.
His actions in the face of such extreme diversity are truly heroic — and for that, Wesley Wyndham-Price is today’s Monday Man. To the underappreciated and beloved bumbler-turned-hero, I salute you.
What do you think about dark characters, gentle viewers? What characters’ transformations have become pivotal to you? Who have you felt for? I wanna know! 
Mrow.
Monday Man: Wesley Wyndham-Pryce
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- Best of Buffy the Vampire Slayer (popculturetales.com)
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The Breakout
Don’t worry, gentle viewers. I don’t mean acne.
I thought about including a picture here, but I thought I would spare you the imagery of that. Most of us have lived through it.
I just finished reading Donald Maass’s book, Writing the Breakout Novel. If you are a writer who wants to hone your craft, do yourself a favor and go pick it up. Since Sunday is my writing blog day (Suuuundaaaaay, My Prints Will Coooome…), I thought it might be nice to take you for a little tour of Don’s book as well as sprinkle a few other breadcrumbs for you to find other books like it that will catapult your writing (and querying) to the next level.
I picked up this book at the recommendation of Kristen Lamb. Her blog often contains invaluable resources for writers, as well as a batch of humor and blowfish. (Don’t Eat the Butt.) I also got to see Don speak last weekend in New York, and as his session ended, I glowed like a little Glow Worm (even wriggled a little), because he gave me some of the best news I’ve had in a while about writing.
Somehow they made worms cute. This one looks like it's about to ask you to tango.
You know what he said? He said that 21st century readers want books with engaging, gripping plots driven by fully-realized, multidimensional characters. I write genre fiction. I love genre fiction. I think that it has a lot of merit for a myriad of reasons. If you write literary and hate genre, fine — I have a safe-haven for all the genre writers right here.
That said, it’s been literary books topping and dominating the bestseller lists lately. I’m talking months and months at a time — Water for Elephants, The Lovely Bones — books like that. Fantasy has jumped up there. The theme of the aughties (2000-2010) was breaking the rules. The rules for most of the tail end of the 20th century were: thrillers, romance, and suspense. Those are the books that stuck up there. That’s all changing. Blame the recession.
So how do you write a book with an exciting plot and engrossing characters? Read Don Maass’s book. You’re welcome. In all seriousness, here’s a teaser.
Think of a big impact scene in your book.
What is your protagonist feeling? What is her primary emotion? Write it down.
Is that emotion one of the Biggies? Fear? Guilt? Shame? Anger? Joy? Cross it out.
Think of about five or six secondary emotions your character might be feeling. Write them down.
Anxiety? Resentment? Frustration? Confidence? Bluster? What if your character is feeling shamed and frustrated? Guilty but confident? Afraid and blustery? Do you see how adding a secondary emotion adds dimension and focus to what is going on inside your character’s mind? Do you see where you can plunk something like that in your novel? Do it. I guarantee it will make your character more sympathetic and the scene deeper.
The face of publishing is changing quickly. How writers manage their careers has evolved as well — as has the way new writers break into publishing. If you’re like me and have the goal “book on shelf,” you probably still want to go the traditional route.
Move over, Scott! All your shelf are belong to me!
Starting the querying process is a bit daunting. I’m trying to decide if I want to frame my rejections or pop them on a railroad spike like Stephen King. Or Mod-Podge them into a collage. Decisions, decisions. The good news is, I feel sort of prepared for the process. It’s the satisfaction of knowing my homework is done when the teacher calls on me. The satisfaction of knowing not to write my query letter like this:
Catherine Agent
Non-Fiction Only Agency
345 New York Ave
New York, NY 10011
Dear Mr. Agent,
Are you looking to represent the next Stephen King? Well, look no further! My fiction novel blows The Shining out of the water and will rocket to the top of the bestseller lists. You better call Paramount right now and keep them in the loop, because they won’t want to miss out on making my fiction novel into a blockbuster thriller!
I can’t tell you about my book, because you’ll steal my idea. But it’s good. So good you’ll stay up all night reading it after it’s published. Make sure you send the advance to the right address — no less than seven figures!
Congratulations on finding me!
Your humble servant,
Jackass McAsserson
enc. NOTHING! You’ll steal it if I enclose anything!
Yep.
Thaaaaaat’ll work.
As exaggerated and absurd as that letter is, I have this withering little feeling that any agents who trip and fall onto this blog post might facepalm themselves right into a headdesk because it triggers some sort of post-trauma they acquired reading queries exactly like that.
Advice to other writers: don’t do that. That = bad.
No.
Whether you think your novel has breakout caliber (again, not acne) or think it will punt every current bestseller into oblivion is moot. And saying anything like that to agents is enough to have them position your query on a friendly patch of grass and punt it into oblivion.
Without further ado, here are some books that you should make your bible:
Writing the Breakout Novel by Donald Maass
Plot and Structure by James Scott Bell
On Writing by Stephen King
Bullies, Bastards, and Bitches: How to Write the Bad Guys of Fiction by Jessica Page Morrell
We Are Not Alone: The Writer’s Guide to Social Media, by Kristen Lamb
And the Holy Grail of all who quest for an agent:
How to Get a Literary Agent by Michael Larsen
A note about that last book — I first bought it because the first review on Amazon said something like this:
I queried agents for about eight months with no success before buying this book. I took the next six months to implement everything Larsen suggests. The next query I sent out got me my agent.
I believe it. Not only does the book explain in detail what agents look for, their thought processes, and their day-to-day activities, but it goes into some overviews of the publishing business that are pure gold. Do yourself a favor and read this book. I’ve read it three times, and I’m probably going to give it another go today.
What resources are your favorite go-to manuals? What querying mistakes have you made?
Related articles
- Emmie’s Salacious New York Adventure (emmiemears.com)
- On the Road Again (emmiemears.com)
- “On Writing” (accidentalwriter.net)
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CPR for the Undead: Can We Save the Vampires?
I love vampires. Ever since I got my paws on Christopher Pike‘s book The Last Vampire, they caught my attention. It was a series, and I first read it back when the cover looked like this:
Such charming imagery. Yes, I know this is the second book. I loved this book.
It enthralled me, thinking of a 5,000-year-old vampire who had walked the earth with Krishna. I think I was 9. I guess that makes me precocious. Anyway, the next vampire book to snag me was Daughters of Darkness — followed by Secret Vampire – by L.J. Smith. That did it. I was hooked. I wanted Rowan’s sinewy feet and her raw strength. I wanted to see the glow of nebulae with my naked eye.
I’ll admit I’ve still never read Anne Rice‘s Chronicles, but I devoured The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova. This book captured me both because of the elusive vampire that haunts just outside the protagonist’s periphery through the entire book and because of her sweeping and single-minded mastery of the detail of Eastern Europe. I found out this weekend (thanks Chuck) that she spent an entire decade in Romania and Hungary learning and studying and recording. That book shines.
Back in the 90s following the advent of Buffy and the explosion of vampires into mass media, people began to think that vampires were a bit passé. They relegated him to the shadows and told him not to catch his swirling cape in the door on the way out.
But then someone dunked him in glitter, and he burst onto the scene once more.
Don't look at me. I'm hideous. Hideous like a unicorn and rainbows. *Runs away* (image from twilightsaga.wikia.com)
In the aftermath of Twilight, many other vampires joined the party. Enough that I’ve heard some groans — and as I pitched my book to agents, I wasn’t oblivious to the flinches I saw at the mention of the v-word.
My question is — can vampires be resuscitated? Can they still be salable?
You might call me blind or tell me I’m sailing Denial as its queen, but I believe people will always have a bit of bloodthirst for the fangy fiends. Here are my reasons and my caveat in frank, easy-to-follow bullet points! Just follow the bouncing ball!
- Blood is high-concept. Everyone has it. We all know that bad blood and leeches are stuff of the dark ages, but when we feel the pulse of blood, we know we live. Vampires threaten our very reassurance of life.(After writing that and searching for pictures, I discovered that people still use leeches. I don’t know whether to laugh or cry about that — or just bleleeeurrrrgh.)
Blame it on Stand By Me, but I will never let one of these critters near me.
- Vampires are sensual. Our necks are erogenous zones. Even when the vampires are well and truly monstrous, they evoke an allure.
- The “vampire genre” is mutable, always evolving. From the broody self-flagellators like Edward and Angel to Nosferatu and the vampires that plagued Barrow in 30 Days of Night, there are as many interpretations of vampires as there are minds to think them up.
Here is my caveat, without which all of the above becomes pointless drivel:
As Donald Maass put it, 21st century readers crave a blend of elements . They want gripping, engaging plots full of complex, fully-realized characters.
How many thrillers hit the shelves each year? Specifically how many “crime thrillers” or “legal thrillers?” Category romance? Mystery? No one thinks readers are sick of those because readers still devour them.
I believe that the Twihards will grow up still loving vampires. As they grow and mature, I believe they will seek out worlds that reflect their own evolution.
That is why I believe there will still be a market for my books in two years.
Vampires in my world are not omnipresent or gimmicky, nor are they an unnecessary focal point. They exist. They are predators, and they each have their own moral spectrum. The rule — as always — for standing out in a crowded room is to say something interesting. To paraphrase Hemingway (I think it was Hemingway — if you know and can find the exact quote, I’d love you forever), say what’s been said a thousand times over, but for fang’s sake, say it a different way.
Vampires aren’t dead — they just need a little CPR.
What do you think, gentle viewers? Do you think they’ll go the way of the dodo or stage a comeback like the African Elephant? Are fresh voices enough to revive them?
Related articles
- Why Are the Undead So Popular in YA Fiction? (beyondthepalebooks.net)
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Friday Fellow: Lyra Selene
Guess what, gentle viewers?! It’s Friday!
That almost certainly means more to you than it does to me, because I’m working a double close. Go to happy hour and tip your servers well for me, will you? Thanks.
I’m writing this at 5:30 a.m. after agonizing over my first ever query letter. I find it fitting that this particular agent wants snail mail queries. It looks rather nice sitting there in its Priority Mail envelope, the antifreeze green of the delivery confirmation slip gleaming against the red. Ah. First query.
It even came with a segue into the addition to today’s new Friday Fellow!
A bunch of you helped with the process and listened to me squeak (Kourtney, Kristin, and Nila — I’m looking at you), and for that I am profoundly grateful. I’m not alone in this, thanks to you all, and I appreciate your help so much.
Ms. Lyra Selene used to live quite close to me. Just down a flight of stairs and around a corner, for that matter. She found me when I was looking for a roommate and busy not being a Craigslist killer — she responded to my zany little ad, and we bonded over a love of Buffy and a passion for writing. Over the year I lived with her, she and I shared some books and chatted about urban fantasy. What are the odds I would find a roommate who not only wanted the same career I did but loved the same genre?
I don’t know, gentle viewers. I think the muses were looking out for us.
Lyra is an excellent writer — she has a beauty to her turns of phrase that never fail to thrill. Remember her name. You’ll see her on the shelves one of these days, mark my words. You can find her blog here and follow her on Twitter. She’s read over the first fifty pages of my manuscript several times. Just this week, I sent her a last-minute (as in 4 a.m.) request to look over my final polishing before submission, and when I woke up the next morning, she’d already plunked a hefty several pages of notes in my inbox.
I can’t wait to see more of her work — it’s going to be big.
Welcome to the Friday Fellows, Lyra!
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Thorsday: We Are Not Alone
We're being invaded by someone's chandelier.
I don’t mean we’re all awash in aliens. I mean, we might be, but that’s a topic for another day, so put away your little red flashy thing and leave my memory the way it is.
I’m an introvert. I’ve always quite enjoyed my own company. Being sent to my room as a child was never a punishment (though I don’t think it happened much, if at all). If that happened, I would just settle in with a book and a cuddly bear and prepare for the glory of quiet peacefulness. I work in a restaurant right now, and it’s my job to be friendly and extroverted. I am good with people, and I enjoy meeting them and talking to them, but when I get home, I’m flat pooped.
I need alone time to recharge.
However, even for me, too much time alone can turn into this:
I knew I was missing something...
I had a few surreal moments this weekend. For one, I realized that I’d never once heard the words “query,” “partial,” and “SASE” said out loud in person. It took me a while to put my finger on what the oddity was.
Writing had always been something I did alone at my desk or on my bed — my bed is heaven — and though I’ve been in some writing groups, for some reason the topic of submission rarely came up. When it did, I don’t remember anyone using those words. Probably because no one was ready to kick the ball down the hill. Regardless, my entire writing life had resembled something like this:
Tra la la, mine is a round and shiny home.
While it’s quite pretty and serene in that shiny, shiny bubble, it’s also rather lonely. When you float around everyone’s ears, you start to feel like you’re on the outside looking in rather than on the inside peering out. That all changed this weekend.
Not only did I discover that agents are people — and cool ones with erm, good taste in my hair! — but I found that the people who lurk behind the words of books are warm and genuine. They get it. They get writing, and they get the dream and the struggle. All of the people there from the ones still plonking away at the keyboard to finish the work in progress to the gatekeepers themselves and the kings and queens of the hills — all of them are somehow like me.
I marveled at the revelation, that indeed we are not alone. Kristen Lamb wrote a whole book about it — about how we don’t need to go it alone.
Many professions can be lonely. Many jobs out there plop you into a cubicle all day, isolated from others unless they show up at your cardboard-y corner. It’s not just writers who get cut off from their colleagues, though granted it’s a bit easier to live in a bubble when you work from home.
People need community; we need people. Even introverts like me, and I admit there are days that I’ll brandish my Scottish antique letter opener at you if you come near me when I need my space. We all need each other.
That’s one of the reasons I began the whole Friday Fellow deal (stop by tomorrow if you’re new around here!) — I wanted to celebrate the community we have in the blogging world. Raise up a few bloggers on a little pedestal and give them a moment to shine.
It’s amazing to me how much it means when someone takes the time just to reach out and say a hello or ask how things are coming along. Having people know about my dreams keeps me accountable, and knowing you all take the time out of your busy days to stop by my corner of the world keeps me honest. And honestly, I’m quite fond of you, gentle viewers.
This Thorsday is for you — you’re quite the ray of sunshine in my very busy life. All 500 of you. I got some chills when I saw I’d passed that little landmark. I’m very humbled and thankful that you’re here.
You. If the clouds parted and you made a bunch of light.
First person to sing kumbaya gets a pie to the face.
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- The Power of Introverts: A Manifesto for Quiet Brilliance (scientificamerican.com)
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Much Belated Blog Awards!
I fail. My excuse is that I was all a-flutter getting ready for my conference, but I rather left this blog post out in the cold — in January, no less! I was the joyful recipient of two blogger awards this month, the Kreativ Blogger Award and the Inspirational Blogger Award.
So, without further ado, allow me to explain the “rules” and how I decided to use them more as…guidelines.
For the Inspiring Blogger Award:
Steampunky. I like it.
The rules are that you link back to the lovely person who gave you the blog. In my case, it was Carrie Daws – thank you, Carrie! Then you share seven things about yourself and pass the award onto fourteen people.
For the Kreativ Blogger Award:
Shiiiiiny...
Heaps of thanks to the lovely JM McDowell for passing on this pretty gem! The rules for this bad boy are to share ten things about yourself, and then pass it on to six bloggers.
Here’s where I am going to get a little handsy with the rules. There are a lot of blogs I’m finding that are just plain awesome. Some of them are inspiring AND creative — er, kreativ. So I’ll give you some tidbits about me, and then you can go glut yourself on these lovely people. Sound good? I thought so.
1. A Daft Scots Lass: http://gillianhefer.blogspot.com/ She makes me miss Scotland. Her little girls box and play Xbox. This makes her automatically awesome.
2. Surly Muse Dan Swensen: http://surlymuse.com/ Okay, so Dan is not as scary as his name implies. He’s quite warm and friendly. And his blog is great!
3. A Yankee’s Southern Exposure: http://yankeeexposure.blogspot.com/ Having lived in the South and having heaps of family from the South, this blog is full of hilarity. Ever wonder the difference between “y’all” and “all y’all?” Ever hear anyone tell you, “You’re such a may-ess (mess)?” Go thither and be joyous, my children.
4. Mad Gay Man: http://diaryofamadgayman.wordpress.com/ He’s anonymous. He’s hilarious. I couldn’t be happier I found him.
5. Patricia Sands: http://patriciasands.wordpress.com/ You’ll often see Patricia around here commenting — she’s a great member of the community here at emmiemears.com, and her blog is full of thoughtful insight great writing in general.
6. Kourtney Heintz: http://kourtneyheintz.wordpress.com/ I had the pleasure of meeting Kourtney in person this weekend and having a rollicking good time. She’s a great human being and an excellent writer. Go be her friend.
7. Gina Carey: http://www.ginacarey.com/ I also got to meet Gina at several sessions this weekend! She works for the New York Times and writes YA and Middle Grade fiction — a very cool woman.
8. Lisa Ann Hayes: http://lisahayesblog.com/ It was such a pleasure to meet Lisa in NYC this weekend. She’s an established singer-songwriter as well as a writer of contemporary women’s fiction. And she has great taste in bookstores.
9. The Urban Misanthropist: http://theurbanmisanthropist.wordpress.com/ Funny and touching and insightful — what more do you want from a blog?
I like the number 9, so I will stop there. There are so many blogs in this world! I know there are some truly fantastic ones out there that I have yet to discover, but I will show you more as I explore the interwebz.
Now. Stuff about me that you don’t already know. Hmmm.
1. I grew up with two moms. Some of you might know that already, but if you don’t, there you have it. I fully and achingly support gay marriage. I had a wonderful childhood full of love, and I grew up no weirder or more messed up than the products of straight families.
2. I once got a kitten from a homeless man who threw it on the counter of the Dairy Queen where I worked. It was a “please forgive me for making lewd comments” sort of gift. He tossed the little guy on the counter and left before the traumatized kitten skidded and spun to a halt, tiny claws out and not-a-tail straight up. I named him Daniel. He was a lovely cat.
3. We also had a cat named Zeus who was a 1/4 bobcat. He was one muscular dude and a top-notch hunter.
4. I went to seven different schools in three states before I graduated high school.
5. My net worth is negative $80,000…give or take.
6. I name my cars. The first car I bought for myself was called The Baby, and whenever I spoke of her, the “the” was included. “Why, hello, The Baby. How are you today?”
7. I have a terrible metabolism. I get a ton of exercise at my job, but it is very difficult for me to not gain weight.
8. One day I want to build a home in Scotland. A stone cottage with a library and a trellis.
9. The first nightmares I remember having were of a cartoon Beetlejuice coming out of my pillow.
Well, gentle viewers, there you have it! If I named you in the blog awards, I’ll let you choose what to do with them — you can have them both if you like! I think you’re all Kreativ and Inspiring!
Love and kisses!
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Try Not to Kill a Chicken
I know a lot of my blog days have themes. Monday Man, Wednesday Woman, Thorsday, Friday Fellows, Saturday Salaciousness, Sunday My Prints Will Come…
Yes, gentle viewers. I do know there are seven days and not six in the average week.
Tuesday is conspicuous in its absence. Or inconspicuous if you happen to hold an anti-Tuesday bias. I had conceived the idea for Terror Tuesday a while back, but it never seemed to fit before today.
Conquer your fear.
The idea for today’s blog politely tapped me on the shoulder on Sunday, during the closing address for the Writer’s Digest Conference.
You might wonder what was so scary about that closing address. Yep. Keep wondering.
First, I’m going to tell you a story. It’s not my story, gentle viewers. It’s the story of someone quite important, though I rather think he doesn’t think of himself that way. Many, many people think he is. You might be one of them. By the end of this story, you most likely will be.
Once upon a time, in a faraway state (this statement is relative), a young man had an idea. It was an ambitious idea, full of zeal and plenty of sparks. He had an idea to write a novel in a month. And he bamboozled 20 other people to do it with him.
Sound crazy? It is. But it’s also a little bit magical.
They got together to write. They dragged their giant laptops around — he said they were the size of washing machines — and they wrote through week one. They wrote through week two. Somewhere in week three, someone found the cord dangling out of those novels and plugged it into a wall.
ZING!
When electricity starts coursing through a work of writing — it’s a feeling like no other.
Suddenly novels were happening. Characters started doing what characters do. They get up and move when you ask them to sit still. They might pick their noses in public. That one just slept with someone who is actually in love with his best friend. That one grouched at everyone for the first half of the book before unexpectedly rescuing a chihuahua puppy before it could be hit by a careening van.
The twenty people of doubtful sanity kept writing. And by the end of the month, they had novels. How did these twenty people do it? How did they manage to scribble or type out 50,000 words in a month? I don’t know how they did it. I wasn’t there. But the next year over 130 people were. And the next year more than that. And on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on…and during that last “and on” there were over 300,000 people who wrote billions upon billions of words. Around the world, on every continent (maybe even Antarctica), novels were born. Some of them may have been nervous little novels at first. Shaky and trembling. Others may have started out with a bang so big that the rest felt like a fizzle. Some might have meandered around like one of Pooh Bear’s Pooh Sticks in a river — and perhaps not come out the other side of the bridge.
Who are these people? Are they the elusive novelists of the world?
Novels are not written by novelists — they’re written by every day people who give themselves permission to write a novel.
Millions of people have been touched by this phenomenon in some way or another. Whether they participated or just watched wide-eyed, full of sympathy or scorn or bewilderment — the fantastic, insane spark of an idea that kindled itself in one guy thirteen years ago has spread, leaving fire in its wake.
This is where the story caught up with my story. Because for most of that, I was oblivious. Then in 2008, I met a woman named Fly in Nashville who spent November glued to her keyboard. She’d show up to Borders with a handful of others, and they would go into a tunnel while I quirked an eyebrow.
In 2011, I decided to give it a go. I joined those 300,000-odd writers and try-ers and want-ers around the world, and I set out to write 50,000 words in a month. I blogged every day. If you’ve been around since then, you’ll know we had a wee challenge here in Emmieland, the NaNoRebel Challenge. We three, we happy three, plodded along and prodded ourselves, and we got our bar to turn purple together. I met with the Corridor Writers and spent many-a-day at Panera with our hourglasses named Sandy and Butch. Together the Corridor Writers passed 1,000,000 words together (and about 10% of that was Mollie…making the rest of us feel like slackers).
Including my blog, I wrote around 80,000 words that month. It began as an exercise in discipline and motivation. To teach myself that I could train to be a better writer, a more consistent writer. To convince myself to reach my arms out and take hold of what mattered to me. The end result was my second finished novel and a third begun with about 30,000 words.
During that month, I learned that the person responsible for this incredible journey, the one who inspired so many of us to just do it — this was his last year running the show.
I also discovered that he would be the closing speaker for the Writer’s Digest Conference. Yeah, that thing I attended over the weekend. That’s the one.
I walked out of my last planned session aiming to get some water and take a break before the closing address. Who happened to be standing right outside the door? The guy who founded NaNoWriMo. Chris Baty.
I walked past him and then turned on my heel and said, “Hey, so I did NaNo for the first time this year, and I won!” We started talking. I was struck immediately by the pure authenticity of this person. He shook my hand warmly. He made eye contact and asked about my book and what I had written — even reacted in a flattering way when I told him I’d done it “Rebel Style” and finished one book and started another. I told him that I thought his leaving NaNoWriMo was bittersweet — that he would surely be missed, but that I was (and am) so excited for him to be moving forward with his dreams.
He grinned and shifted his feet and said it was terrifying but exhilarating. I could relate to that — perhaps more than he knew. I told him that it feels good to be standing at the top of that hill, ready to just…kick the ball and get it rolling. See where it lands. Hope it doesn’t run over any chickens.
Soon all of us filed into the ballroom for Chris’s address. And what an address it was. I want to share it with you, gentle viewers, because I think it applies not only to writers, but to all of us. All of the strange containers of impulses that make up the human race.
Chris told us his story, about how NaNoWriMo began. That’s the story I’ve told you, of course. That’s why it’s not mine — it’s his. And then he said this:
I did one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do. I cleaned out my desk, turned in my keys, and I left. Monday — tomorrow — I start my new job: full-time writer.
Take a moment and let that sink in. Imagine for just a second that your dream — whatever that dream happens to be — suddenly must be fulfilled. Imagine cleaning out your desk or turning in your badge or uniform. Imagine walking out the doors of the familiar and safe, with only your dream in front of your face.
When he said those words, I teared up. I longed to do the same. Immediately my brain made a thousand excuses why I couldn’t do it too. But the next thing Chris said made something glaringly clear — it won’t be long before I must do it. Chris quoted John Shed and said something very, very true.
A ship in a harbor is safe, but that’s not what a ship is built for.
-John A. Shedd
It’s as true for you as it is for me, gentle viewers. Your ship may not be a writing ship. It could be any ship, bound for waters on the opposite side of the world, or an island no one has discovered. Maybe even Atlantis. But you’ll never get there if you don’t leave the harbor.
I’ll close this with one more bit of wisdom from a man who gave thirteen years of his life to a movement that has affected the world.
Get your dream in your mind’s eye. Think of it. Hold it there. The words “book” and “writing” are in this quote, but I’m still looking at you when I type it — all of you. Whoever you are and whatever dream floats in front of your face right now. Are you ready?
Listen up.
Your voice is important, and your stories matter. Someone has waited their entire life to read the book you are writing.
-Chris Baty
Now. Get to the top of your hill. I know it’s terrifying up there. It seems like you could fall and just roll down, possibly encountering some chickens. But there’s a ball that’s growing moss because it should be in motion. Kick the ball. Get it rolling. And try not to kill a chicken.
Related articles
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- NaNoWriMo Lessons: The Once and Future Writer (emmiemears.wordpress.com)
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Monday Man: Spike
It had to happen; you know it did.
At least for me, you cannot discuss the men of the Buffyverse without mentioning Spike. Perhaps without a dissertation on Spike. So dig in, get cozy, grab a cuppa (or a cuppa blood with some Weetabix), and get ready for some serious Spike discussion.
Aside from Buffy, Spike is my all-time favorite character in the series. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen such a spectacular character development or transformation occur on television. (And Joss Whedon agrees with me — at least that Spike is the best-developed character of the show — so there.)
Born with the name William and later known under the rather ignominious alias of “William the Bloody” — ignominious because it referred to his “bloody awful poetry” — Spike gained his more punkish nickname after Drusilla sired him, showing a proclivity for torturing people with railroad spikes. As the show reveals, even as a young vampire, Spike demonstrates fierce loyalty and protectiveness, as well as a tendency to fall deeply in love. He also attempts to cure his mother’s tuberculosis by siring her — but that unleashes all sorts of mommy issues when she turns on him with some propositions that would make even Oedipus blush. His back story is explained through several seasons in flashbacks, from his lovelorn life as a human poet to how he managed to kill two slayers over the course of his existence.
When Spike entered the scene in Sunnydale, side by side with Drusilla, he was well and truly evil. He came to Sunnydale to get a third slayer notch on his headboard…er, headstone.
Spike became Buffy’s arch nemesis – and later an ally when Angel went the way of the uber-evil and tried to end the world. This shaky alliance paved the way for the events of season four.
If you’ve never watched Buffy, you might be a little glazy-eyed right about now. So I’ll perk up your glazed eyes with some sugary Spike-candy.
You're welcome. Image via nerdreactor.com
What I love about Spike is that he is a demon in a man-suit at first — it takes time and several seasons for the demon to choose to be a man with a demon within. In season four, Spike is caught by the Initiative, a military organization that did experiments on vampires and demons to try and harness their powers to use. The Initiative implants a chip in Spike’s brain that prevents him from biting humans — or even hurting them.
As Spike slowly discovers that he is in love with Buffy, this chip is what plunks him into the role of Dawn’s protector in season five — a role that spawns no little bit of conflict between Buffy and her friends. Spike is still a vampire. He’s still evil at his core — a demon. But he begins to show signs of the man he once was.
His earliest moments of tenderness often involve Dawn. He looks out for her — even if his methods vary from what Buffy finds acceptable. He helps her figure out who she is and where she came from, and he stands up for her when Buffy berates her about it.
Spike’s evolution fascinates me — he is an icon among bad characters who go good. He is the beast who becomes something nobler.
Spike’s interest in Buffy is brought out into the light when he commissions a robot (er, sexbot) made to her likeness, and the Buffybot comes in contact with the Scoobies. Though this is unhealthy and frankly, disgusting, Spike’s emotions for Buffy are real.
He genuinely mourns her when she passes, and he continues to try and fulfill his promise to her to keep Dawn safe. He’s also one of the only people to see the truth of the matter when Willow performs the spell to bring Buffy back. Through season six, their relationship is dysfunctional — he’s the only one at first who understands why she has such a hard time adjusting to being alive again. This relationship hits rock bottom when she leaves him and he attempts to rape her.
If you’re anything like me, you blanched when you read that. For a while, I thought that would be the end of Spike for me. I couldn’t get past it for a time. The scene is traumatic and horrific — and it’s what comes after it that challenges every bit of lore the Buffyverse has about vampires.
Spike is a vampire. By definition in the Buffyverse, he has no soul, no conscience. He is evil. A demon in a man-suit.
But when he tries to rape Buffy, his memory tortures him. He flashes back to it over and over again. He cannot live with what he has done to her. That right there is the utter beauty of his transformation — and why I disagree with assertions of Spike’s selfishness. Following this moment, he travels across the world to seek out a legend. He goes to find a demon who holds the power to restore his soul.
Spike's choice. Image via buffy.wikia.com
I’ve heard people say that Spike did this solely to get Buffy back, but I disagree. He did it because of the guilt he felt after hurting her, to be a better person. He never expected her to want to be with him after what he did to her, but he needed to be a better person. To prove he could be a man instead of a monster.
Spike proved over and over again why he is a worthy character. When it comes to love, I believe he’s better for Buffy than Angel is. Angel at his heart is a man cursed to decency, but his beast is always straining to be free, where Spike’s beast chooses to be decent. In many ways, Angel is a picture of an abuser more than Spike is. When Buffy does the wrong thing (sleeps with him), he turns evil and murderous. When he comes back, he “didn’t mean to hurt her.”
Spike knows he meant to hurt her, believes it because he didn’t have a soul to stop him — and even without a soul he tries to be a better man, even though he often flounders. His speech to Buffy in Touched describes why I love this character’s transformation so much. It shows that he risked everything to be a better man, to give the world the best of himself — and succeeded.
I’ve been alive a bit longer than you, and dead a lot longer than that. I’ve seen things you couldn’t imagine, and done things I’d prefer you didn’t. I don’t exactly have a reputation for being a thinker; I follow my blood, which doesn’t exactly rush in the direction of my brain. So I make a lot of mistakes. A lot of wrong bloody calls. A hundred plus years, and there’s only one thing I’ve ever been sure of. You. Hey, look at me. I’m not asking you for anything. When I say I love you, it’s not because I want you, or because I can’t have you – it has nothing to do with me. I love what you are, what you do, how you try… I’ve seen your kindness, and your strength, I’ve seen the best and the worst of you and I understand with perfect clarity exactly what you are. You’re a hell of a woman. You’re the one, Buffy.
I could probably write an entire dissertation on Spike and still have more to say, but this describes why Spike is today’s Monday Man. And forever one of the most phenomenal characters I’ve ever seen.
Monday Man: Spike
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Gumption, Chutzpah, and 14-Year-Old Courage
Phew!
Suffice it to say, gentle viewers, that I deem this weekend to be a mighty success. I saw some giant toys — and the giant Apple cube of glass. I frolicked on the giant piano and walked through THE giant park. I ate a giant amount of delicious food and even saw a giant rat. (Okay, so the rat’s not that exciting, but it’s hard to visit New York‘s subways without that experience.)
Above all, for the first time I put my writing out there. I figured out that agents are (gasp) actual humans. They don’t just float in the clouds like omniscient gods — they look like normal people. I imagine they were all rather uncomfortable sitting in the same spot for three hours. I imagine some of them had to pee by the end.
I couldn’t have had a better experience yesterday at the pitch slam. Not even if they’d given me cookies.
Another major highlight of the weekend was getting to connect with some fantastic bloggers. I am super excited to have gotten to meet Marcy Kennedy and Lisa Hall Wilson — fellow WANA people and all around really pleasant people. You can check out their blog, Girls With Pens. I give you my permission. And a friendly nudge in their direction.
I spent a lot of time with fellow WordPress blogger Kourtney Heintz. Today she was kind enough to put me up (or was that put up with me?) for a few hours while I waited for my bus. We had a fabulous Thai dinner (Pad Thai Noodle Lounge on 17th and 8th, if you’re wondering) that enhanced my suspicion that it is impossible for me to have mediocre food in New York. Do not burst my bubble.
Kourtney and I stumbled across Random House. Like…the publisher. Those also apparently don’t exist in the clouds, nor do they send books down to earth in little golden parachutes. It’s a real place!
We wanted to go in, but it was sort of Sunday and closed.
I was blown away by the people I met this weekend. From the well-known bestsellers like James Scott Bell to the garden-gnome paranoid (heh) Chuck Sambuchino and the NaNoWriMo founder himself, Chris Baty — I cannot imagine a better group of people to spend this weekend with. I have a bundle of business cards in my pouch, and believe me when I say I’ll share some new gems with you. I’ll also be doing a guest post over at Kourtney’s blog later in the week about one of the sessions — I’ll be sure to let you know where to head that day.
My first guest post! Warm fuzzies. You can all expect some fun new faces around here in the near future as well.
OH! I almost forgot. To prove that this trip rounded out and left me feeling complete, here’s something I set out to quest for — and achieved.
I dream of bagel.
If there is anything I learned this weekend, it’s the value of putting yourself out there. There were two teenagers who participated in the Pitch Slam this year. A 14-year-old and a 17-year-old. I don’t know about you, but I find that humbling. It takes a lot of gumption and chutzpah to take on New York publishing so young. To expose yourself to a world that often makes otherwise well-adjusted adults piddle themselves. These teenagers did something I’ve meant to do for a long time — and they got responses.
What that says to me is that maybe we adults fear to take the plunge too often. Maybe it’s because we get caught up in bills and the responsibilities that come with being “grown-ups.” I don’t know. But what I do know is that we can all learn from their courage. I know what it is I’ve feared doing for some time. What about you?
What is it that you want to do but have put off? Travel? Change your career? Tell someone how you feel? If a 14-year-old girl can sit down face to face with a New York City literary agent, what are we waiting for?
