Volume 7

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A Balancing Act

By Jessica Quillin

At the end of last week, a professional door opened for me that I thought was essentially closed. Okay, not so much a closed door as a door that was slammed shut, window shade pulled down, and then a sign posted saying “CLOSED FOR BUSINESS. COME BACK TOMORROW. THANK YOU FOR YOUR BUSINESS.” The big news? I was contacted by a local university about an opportunity to teach adjunct courses in writing.

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The Secret Life of Salvador Dalí by Salvador Dalí

By Chris Stokum

In the early chapters, Dalí seems to be little more than a highly creative but spoiled child. As Dalí reflects on his young adulthood, however, a new facet of his personality begins to emerge. Dalí’s actions, we find, are never as senseless as they appear, his radical opinions never as unfounded as one might be tempted to think. In fact, Dalí’s reasoning, based largely on his aesthetic sense, is often just as convincing as the common rationale he rebels against.

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By L.L. McKinney

That is the first step to take after finishing a first draft and this is what we discussed in last week’s article. Once you’ve typed up that final page, put it all aside. They say to let two to six weeks pass before starting on the second draft. And who are They? Other writers, published and aspiring, agents, editors, and people who take up residence in the world of literature.

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WNW talks with author Steven Craig Barrett

By Elizabeth Milo and Christopher Stokum

We recently spoke with Steven Craig Barrett, author of the The Apocalypse Chronicles, the first book in the series of the same name.

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At the end of last week, a professional door opened for me that I thought was essentially closed. Okay, not so much a closed door as a door that was slammed shut, window shade pulled down, and then a sign posted saying “CLOSED FOR BUSINESS. COME BACK TOMORROW. THANK YOU FOR YOUR BUSINESS.” The big news? I was contacted by a local university about an opportunity to teach adjunct courses in writing.

Part of me is over the moon about the possibility of getting some solid teaching experience and teaching students about the art and profession of writing that I love so well. However, part of me also is cautious. This is partially because I’ve been badly burned by the academic system over the past 7 years. I’m also uncertain if this is the right time for me to be taking on extra work while I’m building my writing-based business, working on my own freelance portfolio, and finishing my first academic book.

My biggest worry: how on earth am I going to balance everything?

Ever since completing my PhD in late 2005, I have been courting and been courted by various universities about potential teaching opportunities, and have applied in earnest for hundreds of academic positions. However, as many people know, the academic job market has been in a slump, particularly in the humanities, for at least the past decade, well before there was ever a hint of an economic crisis.

When none of my seemingly thousands of applications, meet-and-greets, and e-mail queries went anywhere, I focused my career objectives in a totally different direction. I tasked myself with making a business out of turning English Literature into an applied field. In this new model, my academic publications, including my current book on Shelley and music, suddenly had weight as proof of my research skills, content expertise, and ability to write across fields, even in light of my lack of teaching experience (which is difficult to get in the British university system in which I studied). Building on connections and some good luck, I was finally able to start my own company this past April, and I am now fulfilling one of my longtime dreams: to write professionally. Yet, this renewed thrust into the world of words brought with it two problems that I never envisioned: 1) when you can suddenly do anything, what do you do first?; and 2) how do you decide if you need to set aside some dreams in order to pursue others?

The sheer act of writing, never mind attempting to make a business out of it, is a balancing act. Whether you are an occasional freelancer looking to build your portfolio or a corporate grant writer completing RFPs (request for proposal) to get much-needed funding, writing requires planning, energy, focus, and, perhaps most importantly, time. We all have other commitments in life, obviously. But I’m talking about the actual art of sitting down to translate ideas into written language. You have to balance nouns and verbs, establish a logical flow of ideas between sentences and across paragraphs, and maintain your reader’s interest while staying true to your outline and agenda as a writer.

For me, writing is always a mêlée. I am not a linear person. I make outlines but never precisely stick to them. I also am easily distracted. I have been known to spend more time searching for an appropriate quote to begin a chapter or essay than I do actually writing the piece itself. When I write, I throw ideas around, following this thought that leads to this other tangential thought that ends up being more topical than the first. Eventually, I write and write, virtually crumpling up drafts as I go (which usually means sticking it in another Word doc in case I need it later). I always am slightly amazed when I see a finished product, given the circuitous way in which I write.

With this free-form approach to writing, I have faced some hard choices over the past few months in balancing and prioritizing my writing agenda and, in turn, my business plan. Like many writers, I have a lot of different goals, so it’s often hard to determine what to do first and to feel assured that you’ve made the right decision at the same time.  

Three months into my new writing career, I feel like I have a decent routine and a respectable business plan. I spend most of my early mornings doing a variety of freelance writing, the late morning and most of the afternoon on core client business work, and my late afternoon working on my academic book.

This is why the whole prospect of teaching is confusing. Until last week, I had, at least for the most part, sealed off the dream of teaching as something to pursue later in order to focus on my writing business. But now I’m not sure what to do.

I’ve been highly successful in doing things semi-academically by building my academic writing into my business model. Teaching takes up a lot of time; and I’m already pretty inundated. Also, as an entrepreneur, I’m worried that the temptation of the academic world will distract me from my business pursuits. Yet, the word-addicted, poetry-loving, quote-mongering, professional and academic writer in me wants to seize this pedagogical opportunity to teach others about writing, since it is another of my dreams.

Is it wrong to go through an open door even if you risk being flooded? Or is it better to follow another dream first, do it well, and worry about other goals later? I clearly have no answers to these questions, but I have a meeting later this week about this teaching opportunity that should hopefully make my decision less agonizing…   

Jessica Quillin owns Quillin Consulting, LLC, a consultancy in Washington, DC, focused on content development, research, and strategy for the public and private sectors. She holds a Ph.D. in English literature from the University of Cambridge.

Wait.

That is the first step to take after finishing a first draft and this is what we discussed in last week’s article. Once you’ve typed up that final page, put it all aside. They say to let two to six weeks pass before starting on the second draft. And who are They? Other writers, published and aspiring, agents, editors, and people who take up residence in the world of literature. I’ve set SWAYED on the backburner, and two of my planned six weeks for a break have already passed. What have I been doing during this time? Working on another project and attending a writers group. The latter is what we’re going to take a closer look at this week. More specifically, we’ll examine a few of the types of groups out there, what to avoid, and what to look for when trying to find the write group. (Heh, I made a funny).

Writing groups can be so much more than just a small number of people who get together to critique one another’s work. The right members can prove to be such a wealth of knowledge for brainstorming, editing, character development ideas and tips, etc. Or they can be the biggest detriment for what you are trying to do with your work. That last bit may come as a surprise to quite a few people. It came as a surprise to me until I experienced it myself.

About a year and a half ago, I started looking for a writers group. I wanted to receive the kind of help with my work that I couldn’t get from friends and family. Don’t get me wrong, the people closest to me are wonderful at giving me their raw reactions without looking for what’s wrong with it, but I needed (we as writers need) feedback that was more than “I like it” or “it’s good.” I also needed to be around like-minded people. As I have said in previous articles, my family supports me in what I am trying to do, but it is hard for them (or anyone who is not a writer) to see writing and reading in the same light as us, or to truly understand the significance it holds for people like me and you. So, the hunt began. I went from group to group, session to session, searching. What I ended up finding was that everyone in a writers group is not there for the most obvious reason: to help and be helped.

Some people join a group so they can have their egos stroked. Some attend meetings just to rip apart someone’s work because they themselves aren’t confident in what they have produced. And some are there so they can brag about being a member when they don’t even put pen to paper, or fingers to keys. It was somewhat jarring when I realized that writers groups hardly ever turn out to be anything like what their names suggest—groups of writers. I ran into so many obstacles and dead ends that I, like many, turned to the Internet for help. What I found are names for the little clubs that try to disguise themselves as writing groups. There were all sorts, but three kept surfacing repeatedly; the ones I’ve encountered the most, are:

Sharks and Fish: A small, tightly knit core of people that tears apart those who are not deemed worthy to be a part of the crème de la crème. In this group, certain things will stick out. People who aren’t a part of the center will be afraid to read their work. Others will talk badly about members who aren’t there to defend themselves. The biggest red flag will be the almost brutal critiques that are given. Holly Lisle, a wonderful writer, has written concerning these types of groups and says to watch out for an “open hostility toward anything not written in the group's approved style or genre, people that come to one meeting and never return, and a general Fall of the House of Usher darkness.”

The Pro and the Newbs:  This is a group where there is one published writer and the rest are all beginners. It starts out with a classroom-type setting where the published writer, the pro, is supposed to be the teacher, but it does not turn out that way. Instead of seeing the other writers as fellow students, the beginners turn into groupies. They are there to boost the published writer’s ego and little else. The pro talks about his/her greatness, what’s going on in his/her life, his/her work, and never leaves any room for helping with the progression of the students.

Pushing Pals:   This is an ideal group that usually consists of people who are on the same level, from unpublished to working. This group is usually the best combination, with established rules to deal with potential sharks or egotistical pros. They are friends who are open to accepting others into their circle and will make sure that these new people have their work critiqued as well. They push one another to try to help each other find agents and be published instead of tearing one another down or simply hanging around for praise. They are a good group of good people.

Obviously, the final group is the one to look for. I’m so thankful that I found my Pushing Pals. Their help, insight, suggestions, and every strike-through of red ink have been invaluable to the process of molding SWAYED thus far. Even though I am on this six-week break, I still go to the meetings. I have a responsibility to the other members to offer critique on their work as well. I oftentimes discover that what I help someone else with helps me with my own work later on.

Writing groups can be a wonderful resource or a deadly one if the wrong people catch you. As writers, we can give one another the kind of support that loved ones won’t be able to offer. This is not meant to be an insult, simply the truth. A doctor or lawyer or police officer cannot find the understanding or the professional advice in parents or friends that they could in a colleague. The people in the right writing group start out as our colleagues and can become our friends. Find your pushing pals and get the help you need to build up your work—and don’t forget to push those pals in return.

"Good friends, good books and a sleepy conscience: this is the ideal life." -Mark Twain

Happy writing.

L.L. McKinney is a freelance writer, a published poet and a playwright. As an active member of First Tuesdays and YA Lit Chat, she is currently seeking representation for her young adult paranormal urban fantasy, Swayed.

By Nina Romano

Your first line must be a still life,
a table of ripe fruit awaiting an artist’s brush
or the part in the movie where a character
moves towards the Lexus,
and you want to interject,
“Don’t turn on the ignition!”
but of course you know he will
because the hero rigged a bomb
about to go off.

You could also begin with an image of a man
coming home in the middle of the day,
approaching the house,
seeing fire trucks in his driveway,
hearing blaring sirens and the screams
of the neighbors he usually ignores.

You might bandy about words
like halcyon or peripatetic,
speak of Chinese brush paintings
where gold glints to gilt the frame,
that house silk or rice paper art—
mountains crested in snow,
mica, dust and diamonds in the sparkle.

A deaf and mute scrawls words like music:
queedle or crenulated wing
to help slip backwards while the feet
try to gain purchase in the scree of a slope
in the foothills.

Being neither deaf or mute,
you are crippled and so you run
toward the car parked in the high grass
at the edge of the forest,
dragging one leg, the assailant’s soft verse
or Latinate words segue,
but need a perfect fracture
to end the phrase or line,
to slice the imperceptible silences
between stars and sky
that deafen a scream of terror
at the dropped keys,
the growing shadows
in between trees
the snap of broken twigs,
the crush of leaves
of quickened,
following steps.

Perhaps

Wallace Stevens mused
“Perhaps the truth depends on a walk.”*
Yes, perhaps.

*Wallace Stevens in his “Notes toward a Supreme Fiction,” in The Columbia Anthology of American Poetry, edited by Jay Parini (New York: Columbia
University Press, 1995), 337.

Winter Day
      
Neither plane nor bird in the air,
yet lots of soft landings:
Snow is flying.

By Alex Miller

I remember the joy I used to get as a little kid perusing the aisles of books of my local library in Chicago. I was a nine-year-old who read H.G. Wells, Edgar Allen Poe, and J.R.R. Tolkien. The latter of whom—I must admit—I found extremely challenging. But I was nine; can you blame me? I used to envision those grandiose worlds, those macabre cellars, those dystopian futures. And then I’d think about being a famous author (partly sniggering to myself because I lived in the ghetto on Chicago’s South Side), and I’d pretend I could write such beautiful prose as to put an end to child abuse; exterminate poverty; or heap all the gangsters, crack-heads, and pimps into a dumpster large enough to hold them and jettison the horrid canister into Outer Space.

           Fast forward fourteen years. While perusing a library’s sci-fi aisle as I once did as a child, I made a bit of a less-than-startling, more well-that’s-the-way-of-the-world realization: all my favorite authors are white. I love sci-fi. I love thrillers. I love crime novels. There were black people in other genres, but I only really (secretly) enjoyed the novel Waiting to Exhale. So, where were the black authors of the fiction I love?

           I found myself asking this question over and over, night and day, until I came upon an answer. Maybe there just was no such thing as a black author of speculative fiction or horror. It hurt a bit. I guess it was one of those things that you are just so shocked to discover, you almost want to pretend you’d never learned it. I was reliving the death of Santa Claus. Clark Kent actually didn’t look a heck of a lot different than Superman. I’d never really get to marry Anne Hathaway. Obviously I was just being a simple-minded fool. After I became better educated, I became angry. Not angry at successful white writers for writing exceptional fiction. Oh no.

           I held, and still hold, my ire for the publishing industry. Making a name for yourself is tough, especially if you’re a black author trying to write something besides romance, erotica, memoir, or non-fiction anthology on the struggles of eighteenth century slaves. So you won’t think I’m pulling the race card and shoving it in your face, do me a favor and name as many black authors of sci-fi, paranormal, fantasy, crime novels, horror, speculative fiction, conspiracy thrillers, or mysteries as you can. I’ve Googled it, so I can name at least three now. But why should anyone have to do that? We know our Stephen Kings, our J.K. Rowlings, our Dan Browns, and our Isaac Asimovs; isn’t it time we started knowing our Samuel R. Delaneys, our Octavia Butlers, or our Tananarive Dues?

           I am not so naïve as to believe that Blacks are not interested in this type of fiction. Not anymore, at least. C’mon…get real. That’s like saying that white people don’t like Kool-Aid or watermelons. It’d be kind of racist to say that, actually.

           The truth, I believe, lies in the belief that blacks are mostly only interested in romance-driven dramas, biographies, and erotic fiction. “The Industry” would rather play it safe. People in publishing know that Terry McMillan sells. They know that Tyler Perry’s plays and films are a knockout. And they know that Zane and Antwon Fisher have huge followings amongst the black community. So, because of what they’ve proclaimed a rule, publishers have placed a sort of stigma on the black author who writes sci-fi or paranormal thrillers. Silly publishers: Ignorance is bliss.

            It is because of this skewed thinking that I’d rather not have a lable at all. I’d rather tap dance on glass ceilings than to be labeled a “Black Author,” as if being black has any bearing on how good my writing is. You see, this prejudice, this naiveté is truly what has made things hard for blacks. Really though, it’s okay. It just means that people who are different must try harder to succeed. As often as people try to draw lines and create barriers, that’s how often blacks will climb over those fences to become golf legends, tennis champs, and presidents. Oh, and famous thriller/sci-fi/paranormal/crime writers.

By Sarah Schiavoni

Heading home for some sort of school break some time ago—spring, summer, Thanksgiving...who knows?—I complained to my boyfriend that I didn’t have anything new to read. He offered me Chuck Palahniuk’s Diary, and explained that this was the guy who did Fight Club, a phenomenal movie that I hadn’t realized was first a book. Having enjoyed that movie, I was eager to see what Palahniuk’s books were all about. What I found were crazy plot twists, quirky characters, insane stunts, and more. Since then, whenever I’m in a bookstore, I peruse his books and often pick up another to add to my growing collection. The other week, I grabbed Invisible Monsters, attracted to its cover: a black and white picture of a woman’s head with a splash of neon pink splattered across her mouth. Like the three or four Palahniuk books I’ve read before it, I raced to get to the end, stumbling over the twists and turns as they came.

Invisible Monsters opens with a chaotic scene: a house is on fire, Evie Cottrell stands screaming on the staircase, and Brandy Alexander lies bleeding from a gunshot wound, asking the narrator to tell her life story. What occurs after is a series of non-linear stories in which the reader slowly learns about the characters and the circumstances by which they’ve become what they are. The narrator, a former model, unnamed until Brandy gives her a new identity, suffered from what appeared to be a freak accident that left her face mutilated--that made her an “invisible monster.” She hides her face behind veils and sets off on an adventure with Brandy, a pill-popping transsexual, and Manus, her ex-lover, that leads her back to Evie. The story is confusing, sarcastic, odd, and sometimes too graphic, but it kept me on the edge of my seat as I learned more and more about the intricate connections between the characters and the events that have shaped them.

Palahniuk brilliantly leaks out information in his books, slowly explaining the behind-the-scenes of the story but still completely surprising the reader at the end of the book. His interesting writing and the odd characters and events he describes make his books nearly addictive. If you like intense, unique stories, I highly recommend reading Invisible Monsters and all of his other books.

By Chris Stokum

“At the age of six I wanted to be a cook. At seven I wanted to be Napoleon. And my ambition has been growing steadily ever since.”

           Thus begins The Secret Life of Salvador Dalí, the autobiography of one of the 20th Century’s most engaging and enigmatic artists. A self-portrait in true Dalinian fashion, the book is a paranoiac, chaotic, undeniably brilliant exploration of – as Dalí does not let the reader forget – a genius.

           In the early chapters, Dalí seems to be little more than a highly creative but spoiled child. As Dalí reflects on his young adulthood, however, a new facet of his personality begins to emerge. Dalí’s actions, we find, are never as senseless as they appear, his radical opinions never as unfounded as one might be tempted to think. In fact, Dalí’s reasoning, based largely on his aesthetic sense, is often just as convincing as the common rationale he rebels against. Dalí has a piercing critical gaze that he turns equally on himself and those around him. Even the reader does not escape; Dalí predicts and addresses objections, hesitations and disbelief with surprising accuracy.

           Taken alone, this aspect of the book is somewhat alienating, but Dalí offsets his confidence and independence with a very human element: a love story – at least, his version of one. Dalí reserves kind words for a select group, including Raphael and Picasso, while he is overtly critical of such heavyweights as Michelangelo, Freud and Kant. Above even those select individuals he respects, he cherishes his wife, Gala. His meditations on the nature of their relationship are some of the most emotionally direct and sympathetic moments in the book.

           A translator’s note shows the strength of the bond between Dalí and Gala. The translator writes that the manuscript for The Secret Life was “one of the most fantastically indecipherable documents ever to come from the pen of someone having a real feeling for the value and weight of words,” littered with practically illegible handwriting, almost no punctuation or paragraphing, and “deliriously fanciful” spelling. It was only with Gala’s help that Dalí’s raving notes could be put into a form that the average reader can understand.

           While the book is a valuable resource for anyone interested in Dalí’s artwork – the origins of his crutches, grasshoppers, ants and soft watches are all explained – it will appeal to anyone with an appreciation for individuality and creativity. Dalí’s narrative voice ranges from playful to violent; he is fanatical, staunchly unapologetic and most of all, honest. As he writes, “it is at the supreme moment of reaching the marrow of anything that you discover the very taste of truth,” and in his autobiography, Dalí casts away the bone and offers only marrow.

By Elizabeth Milo and Christopher Stokum

We recently spoke with Steven Craig Barrett, author of the The Apocalypse Chronicles, the first book in the series of the same name.

WNW: You make heavy use of Christian imagery and narratives. Did other religions influence your story?
Barrett: Not really. The story-line of the first book as it relates to the Apocalypse, as well as other story lines of other books in the series, is based entirely upon the Christian belief system. However, my slant on how the end times unfold is a totally new take that, to the best of my knowledge, has never before been considered.

WNW: Did you draw on real-life experiences when writing any of the anecdotes in the book?
Barrett: In many cases, yes. While the majority of the series is, of course, fictional, many of the events, places, experiences, and people which the main character describes from his past are based on my own. Also, all the theories, viewpoints, etc. that are expressed through the primary characters are my own that I simply transpose onto them.

WNW: You’ve said that you intend this to be a nine book series. Have you planned all nine books, or are you designing the overall story arch as you write?
Barrett: Yes, the entire story line has already been planned out. The skeleton, if you will, of the story is complete.  Now it is just a matter of putting the meat on the bones.

WNW: Do you plan on continuing to include stories about the past and childhood in the rest of the series, or is that a device that you intend to use only in the first book?
Barrett: Yes, I intend to continue using that device.  In the way the books are laid out, the main character (the one ‘writing’ the books) brings you through his life, as well as what is transpiring in the world around him year-by-year (hence chronicles), in order to draw out a very detailed and engrossing account of his fate and the world’s as everything moves toward the coming apocalypse in a most surprising way. The past and the present connect in the final books as the story switches from past tense to present tense.  As the grit of the final days are upon him, the main character recounts events in real time, as opposed to the past-tense which is used leading up to the finale. However, throughout the series there will be many hints and suggestions toward what will be coming in the days of Revelation through the main character’s dreams, visions of his life, and other experiences and thoughts. As the series progresses, each book will have more and more material in it related to the Apocalypse and how the world is moving toward it.

WNW: What do you hope to accomplish with this book? Are there particular themes you want your readers to think about or consider?
Barrett: There are several themes that run simultaneously through the series: political, moral, and of course Christian, to name a few. The main character will use the events and experiences through which he takes the reader to illustrate social and moral dilemmas that we face both as a society and as individuals.  He will provide his take on them through a Christian prism, even though he may not have always viewed them as such. I have tried to touch on every emotion—good and bad—and every type of event—tragic or triumphant—that we have all faced in our own lives in a way the readers can relate to on a very personal level. While characters such as a wizard, vampire, or superhero have proven successful for other authors, I have attempted to create a character that every reader can easily identify with, and not one who we have to reach to imagine being.

WNW: A lot of the situations and crises that you describe in this post-apocalyptic world are actual issues that the current world faces today. Do you intend your series to be a kind of “wake up call” to the world?
Barrett: Yes, in part, many times the future can be accurately predicted by simply looking at the past and the present and making logical conclusions about where the present course of things might lead. While they are fiction, most of my theories, predictions, etc. about future events are based on those logical conclusions and assumptions, and very few are wild “out there” ideas like some apocalyptic-type stories portray. I try to keep the parts concerning world events (especially when talking about future events which are easy to take liberty in fictionalizing), as real and probable as possible to make the story seem more real to the reader and not just like crazy fiction.

WNW: You’ve really utilized the Internet in getting the word out there about your book. Have you enjoyed promoting your book through such a medium?
Barrett: Yes, though I have only scratched the surface of what the Internet has to offer. It has proven a valuable resource but a very time consuming one as well, especially with some of the restrictions placed on how fast I can promote through outlets such as Facebook. Nonetheless, it has been very helpful and productive in the pre-marketing of the book so far.

WNW: Where did the inspiration for your story come from?
Barrett: I have always felt the desire to write. I wrote my first book, a cheesy horror piece, back when I was 13. Of course, nothing came of it because I was only 13, but that was when my love of writing began. Over the years it has evolved and gone through many changes. I got the initial idea for this story about 20 years ago, out of the blue, and worked on it off-and-on over those years as the story format and title went through many changes. The very first draft of this story, other than the primary plot, was nothing at all like the end product. I have always had a fascination with the Apocalypse and wanted to write a story about it as well as a story that promoted God, which is what I hope this will do. While the series does have those elements, especially in the last few books, this is more of an epic drama meant to personally connect to every reader and not just a mindless story about meteors, earthquakes, plagues of locusts, and evil government conspiracies.

WNW: Are you concerned the religious nature of your work will alienate some readers?
Barrett: I have had that thought. I am aware that there is a deep, spiritual premise behind the series, though I try to avoid being “religious,” as it were. I have attempted to incorporate these elements into the story subtly and fluidly so as not to make the reader feel like they are being preached to at any given time, but rather simply reading an intriguing story.  But the messages I hope to share are still being planted, just not in an intrusive manner.

For more information about Steven Craig Barrett and his Apocalypse Chronicles series, please visit his Facebook page or his SterlingHouse Publisher page.