Forgiving Mistakes(ie - responding to Cancel Culture)

Here I go, wading once again into the culture wars like an idiot.  But still, this kind of stuff can affect us writers.  What I'm talking about is the current Cancel Culture.

For those who don't know, Cancel Culture is when we find something - anything - objectionable someone has done in his or her past, and we insist that, based on that past, the person should be excluded from polite society.  The most recent example was that of Carson King in Iowa.  For those who don't know, Mr. King is a 24-year old Iowa man who held up a sign at a college football game asking for beer money as a joke.  Playing along with that joke, lots of people sent him money, and he soon found himself with over $1 million.

Now, if I had that kind of money, I'd pay off my car, put some money away for my kids' college, and pay off my mortgage.  I might give a little to charity to assuage my conscience, but I am almost certain I wouldn't do what King did, which was to give everything to a childrens' hospital.  That in itself made me know he's a better man than I.

Unfortunately, better people are not allowed, so enterprising reporters from the Des Moines Register dug into his past and found tweets he made that were racially insensitive...from eight friggin' years ago when he was 16.  King was not a public figure running for office or someone known for his donations - he is a regular schmoe who gave lots of money to a childrens' hospital that treats kids with cancer.  Then scumbags in the media decided he had to be destroyed for that.  Luckily people fought back against that kind of stupidity, and King will be just fine.

So what was the point of that tirade?  That we all have likely said or done really stupid stuff in our past, especially when we were teenagers.  I'm grateful there was no Twitter or Facebook when I was 15 or 16, and I'll bet a lot of us feel the same way.  Teenage years are for being dumb.  You do dumb stuff, learn from it, and grow and mature.  As people who live publicly, writers say all kinds of wacky stuff.  Do we really want folks looking into us to determine if we've strayed from societal orthodoxy, especially when we were young and stupid?

How about we enjoy what we do now, mmmkay?  Yes, adults who do stupid stuff in the moment should be called out, but even then, unless it's totally egregious, shouldn't we be willing to forgive those who say or do dumb stuff and realize their mistake?  Be careful of what you want to cancel, for tomorrow, you may find yourself in the crosshairs.

Are Writers Crazy?

I've come across a few posts recently questioning the sanity of writers.  Yes, these pieces have been written by writers.  Do they have a point?  Perhaps.

Most of writers write down are the stories(voices?) in our head.  We feel an obsessive-compulsive need to write.  Furthermore, we invent new people and wild situations(if we're any good).  We obsess over tiny bits of dialogue, think our characters are reacting to the story instead of us making them react, and invent stuff that doesn't exist.  Sounds like crazy to me.

Of course, the world sometimes needs a little bit of crazy.  Crazy has advanced the world.  Yes, the boring, hum drum stockbroker or serious news pundit get things done in a sober, serious manner, but they don't progress.  The Wright Brothers were crazy to think they could fly.  Albert Einstein was crazy to think that time slowed down depending on the mass of an object.

As with anything, crazy can be overdone, and writers have no problems going there on occasion.  Go to a writers conference of some kind and you'll see crazy in droves - blue hair, multiple lip piercings, tattooed necks, people with stuffed animals, people talking to...no one, the crazy is evident.  Even as "reasonable" and "logical" as I think I am, I have extremes in my own mind and life, especially in my passions.  I know crazy when I see it because I've got a few symptoms myself.

Hitting A Block?

Going off of my previous post, I'm considering stopping publishing after my fifth book(Homecoming), or at least massively reconsidering my strategy.  It costs me on the order of $750 to publish a book because of a cover and conversion to both print and ebook.  Or maybe I'll reduce costs to approximately $500 by going to only ebooks(covers are still necessary).  Either way, I'm not made of money, and unless I start to make more of it, I'm going to have to scale back.  I'll continue to write, but whether anything new comes out may depend on how much I sell.  We'll see.

Running On Fumes

I'm quickly running out of blog ideas.  Maybe I'm just not writing them down when I have them.  At this rate,  my posts will slow down considerably in the future.  Thoughts?

Differing Styles

I've often wondered how consistent a writer should be with his or her writing style.  Yes, writers should be somewhat identifiable with the style they write with, for many readers stick with an author because they like how they write.  However, can a writer attract new readers by changing styles every so often?

I've written three novels and have a fourth on the way.  I've varied my style twice already - twice with third person limited and once with first person limited - and will do so again with Schism(using a more omniscient perspective with snippets of "news stories" thrown in, as well as no single main character).  I like to do this because I think it gives the reader a different experience in what he or she reads.  That said, I wonder if I'm attracting more readers or driving away a proven audience.

What do you think of writers varying their styles, whether you're a reader or a writer yourself?  Does it help you expand your experience and talent?  Or does it make things too bumpy and the author untrustworthy?

Hooking And Shocking

Books need a hook, something to get readers reading the story all the way through.  The question is...how?

Picking a hook at the beginning of a story is hard because readers aren't yet emotionally invested with the story or the characters(assuming it's a stand alone story and not part of a series...a successful series doesn't need as strong of a hook).  That makes it hard to start with a death or a battle.  It also means you can't drop someone into the middle of a story they don't care about.  I'm not saying I have an answer, for each story is unique, but it's a consideration.

It's similar with shocks.  Twists and turns help make a story compelling as long as it enhances the story and doesn't become the story.  So how do you spin a twist that creates the right effect instead of making readers put your story down in disgust?  It needs to fit and be shocking enough without being so far outside the realm of the story, or negating their happiness, that it makes folks want to read more.  Each story requires its own twist, but you can't use the shock too often or it'll become cliche(look at M Night Shyamayan  for proof of how easy it is to go from promising new director to running joke).

These are the tools we have to consider in our work.  Hook and shock - a powerful combination.

Silly Or Serious?

My blog has alternated somewhat between silly posts and serious posts.  I've talked about the creeping erasure of history, and I've talked about the new header to my blog.  Basically, anything that struck my fancy has gotten on here.

But should I find one way and try to stick with it?  I've been wondering about the fastidiousness of readers and whether or not they prefer me to be serious or silly...or do they like the mix?  Some topics attract certain folks, and some turn off others.  I wonder whether or not my audience grows or shrinks based on what I decide to talk about.

I use this blog as a form of catharsis, so I've varied in what I've chosen to discuss, but I'm curious if I should choose to stay on one track or the other.  I'd be interested to know what you think.

More Time To Blog And Write

I'm almost caught up on my blogging, but I need another week to get through September posting.  Then, maybe I can get back to writing and editing.  I still have the goal of having Schism out by April 20, 2020, but at this rate, it'll be tough.  Most of the editing is done, but I can't seem to get off my ass and finish the last two acts.  I had to split Act IV into two so it made more sense, but I'm stuck on the last 10,000 words of Act IV.  Then it'll be on to Act V.  Maybe when I move to Tennessee, and have nothing to do but write, I can finish so this thing can take advantage of our polarized climate to take off.  I need to get going.

Re-reading Old Favorites

I'm weird.  Yeah, I know that's not exactly a revelation, but I wonder if others share some of my quirks.  For example, I go back and re-read my favorite books several times.  I know people often re-read what they like, but I go back and back and back.  For example, I just finished reading World War Z...for the eighth time.  And this is far from the only book I've done this with.  I'll bet I've read each Harry Potter book over a dozen times each, Guns of the South nearly 20, and Ready Player One approaching half a dozen.  In fact, I have a tendency to go back and re-read something I've really enjoyed more than I am to pick up something new.  Why is that?

I think it's because they're comfortable.  I know and love the characters, and I know I already like the story.  I also enjoy finding nuggets I missed the first time or five, so it's like something (slightly) new each time.  Am I the weird one, or are there any other weirdos out there who do something similar?  Remember, this isn't a movie that only takes up two and a half hours of your life - a book is a major commitment of time.  Is that reassuring or disturbing?

Defaulting On Style

When you write, what fonts and sizes of text do you use?  I prefer to write in Arial 10, but that then becomes what I end up trying top publish in.  It may sound...petty, but I wonder at this sometimes.  I wonder because most folks tend to use Calibri or Times New Roman.  I also see most folks seem to use text size 12.  Whether that's because it's easier to read or what, I don't know.  So I was just wondering what fonts and sizes you use when writing, and whether you publish in that or change it prior.  If you change, how do you deal with the changes within the manuscript that crop up?

Okay, so that was a silly post, but after the past week or so of heavier stuff, wasn't it necessary?

IN YOUR FACE Styles

How breathless and in-your-face do you like a story to be?  I like to be kind of a passive third person observer who is being told the tale by someone who sounds like Morgan Freeman.  However, some folks prefer BREATHLESS stories where the author GETS IN YOUR FACE!  Brian Lumley and Dean Koontz fall into these categories for me, and I have difficulty reading them as a result.

Basically, such books are exhausting.  My feeling is that I'm expected to be on edge all the time.  My personality just isn't suited for that.  I feel like the constant musical score of the book is "DUM DUM DUM!!!"  I feel the urge to push back, and it never sits well with me.

At the same time, I understand how some people don't like the relaxed way of telling stories sometimes because they don't feel the drama, at least not as up front.  I like to infer the drama and get it occasionally, but some folks want to get it all the time.  How do you react to such a style?  Does it draw you in or push you away?

High Fantasy Or Grounded In Reality

I've been wondering recently about the tales we like to read - should they be grandiose and breathless, or should they be more down to Earth and realistic?  It's no secret that I like a certain level of consistency in my stories.  They can be in the most fantastical world, but they need to have a level of consistency and believability within the universe in which they're set.  So maybe I'm splitting the difference a bit.

Maybe this is why some stories are too much for me.  I'm grounded on Earth and present times, so going to a different world where they've never even heard of Earth is a stretch for me.  Don't get me wrong - there are some great stories by some terrific authors out there, but it's hard for me to get into them.  I'm the kind of guy who likes to picture myself in these stories, so I can't just get into what I can't comprehend.

But what do you think?  What kind of stories are in your wheelhouse?  Should our worlds be so far out there that they're true escapes from this one?  Or should they be just enough to take us from the daily grind without being so out there that our mind can't accept them?  It always fascinates me to find out where everyone else lands on this.

Do We Need More Writers?

Listening to a podcast recently, I heard the guest tell us that the world needed more writers.  We needed folks who could put on paper their story and the story of humanity.  This got me thinking - is that really true?  Do  we really need more writers?

The answer I inescapably came to was no.

We need more good writers, but simply getting more people to write doesn't do anything.  I've often said that lots of people think they can write, while most actually can't write their name in the snow.  Just telling people to write more so they can contribute to collective humanity is like saying we need more cooks so we can put food in landfills.

Now I know what you're saying - don't most people start off as poor writers before becoming good?  Weren't you a pretty bad writer by your own admission at one time?  Yes, that's all true, but I made an effort to get better.  I still make that effort, for I know I can get better.  Unfortunately, most folks won't make that commitment.  If we had a bevy of folks who knew they sucked at writing and were making efforts to get better, I'd be all for it.  But most people think they're already pretty awesome and don't need to get any better.  There's little humility, and that makes for some absolutely awful writing.  We have plenty of that; we don't need more.

Okay, I get it - I'm an elitist, I want to stifle creativity, yadda, yadda, yadda.  If that makes me a bad person, then so be it.  However, I don't like trying to wade through mounds of shit to find that one gleaming nugget I might enjoy.  There are already tons of terrible writers who are published.  There are lots of people who can write well in one genre but are bad in another(yet they try anyway).  Do we really need to add to that pile of garbage?

Finally, if you're discouraged by what I've written, then writing isn't for you.  Take the time and effort to get better.  If that's you, then maybe you'll one day be a good writer and will be someone who should be adding to our collection of the written word.  If you think you need no more help and are already the bees knees, then please stop.  For the love of all that's holy, please please please stop.  Writing in and of itself does not make you a great thinker or expresser of ideas, and we don't need you piling onto the (large) portion of crap we already have.