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Posts from the ‘Craft’ Category

Dec 21

Using language to reflect character traits

In Chinese philosophy the yin-yang symbol represents dynamic opposites that make up a whole—unity in duality. The yin represents the feminine aspect: passive, dark, negative, downward-seeking, consuming and corresponding to the night. The yang represents the masculine aspect: active, light, positive, upward-seeking, producing and corresponding to the daytime. The circles that lie within and encompass the yin-yang symbol represent the whole that the two sides make.

In Patricia Hampl’s memoir, The Florist’s Daughter, she writes about the life and death of her mother and father. Her mother, a librarian and the family archivist, is piercing, cold, sharp-tongued, and looks for the negative in people. Her father, a florist dedicated to the art of beauty, is giving, positive, and always looking to lift others up.

Though we learn much about Hampl’s family history, their location in the “middle” of the country and in life, her story is really about finding who she is in the midst of these two strong aspects of herself: feminine and masculine, mother and father.

Hampl’s prose perfectly reflects this duality: at times beautiful and lyrical, at times cold, sharp, and biting. Read more

Dec 16

Hone your writing craft to pre-think your story

Photography and writing share many creative principles. One of these is the art of pre-visualization or pre-thinking the creative process.

Recently, I went on a photo tour to Sedona, Arizona, known for its towering red rocks. Our guide led us to a spot with a view of a place called Thunder Mountain. The view was pretty, but we needed clouds along with the glow of the setting sun to create a distinctive photo. The only clouds were off to the side above a range of rock formations.

The next day, I happened to see a photograph from the shoot. The photographer had pre-visualized the end result. He’d focused his attention on the adjacent ridge. He used a polarizing filter and multiple exposures combined with sidelight to capture the sky, the small wisp of clouds, and the texture and color of the rocks. Read more

Dec 15

Thirty-two best books of 2011

Mary Ann Gwinn, book editor for The Seattle Times, recently published a list of top 32 books for 2011. Read her article here, including her criteria for placing a book on the list. She admits any “top books” list is “squishy” and depends on the criteria you use. I’m sure we could find many more “top books” list for 2011.

What I love about The Seattle Times list is the variety of books represented: fiction, non-fiction, and even poetry.

As a writer, I love reading the blurbs for each book. One of the most useful tips I learned as I began writing my current novel was to have a one or two sentence bullet for my book that contains my original idea. This helps keep me focused as I write and will come in handy as I begin to pitch and promote the book. Also, book blurbs are goldmines for ideas. Read more

Dec 14

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Deepen your memoir by imagining character thoughts and feelings

One of the challenges of writing a memoir is describing feelings, reactions, and events that we didn’t witness. By the time I began writing my memoir, several family members who were central to my story had died. Some events happened before I was born. And in some cases, I was too young then to understand the significance or meaning of some dramatic moments that fueled my story.

I interviewed family and friends for insight, but in some cases, the passage of time dimmed some memories, or the family just didn’t have answers. Based on what I knew about my family, I used a technique I learned from writer Maxine Hong Kingston to fully imagine scenes and my characters’ feelings. Read more

Dec 6

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Memoir “The Tender Bar” inspires unique character descriptions

“The Tender Bar,” tops my list of favorite memoirs, not only because of the voice and emotional pull of the story, but for how it inspired me to think more creatively about character description in my own writing.

J.R. Moehringer, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, wrote The Tender Bar about growing up without a father but with the guidance of his Uncle Charlie and a group of other men at their neighborhood bar who filled in as father figures.

Here’s how Moehringer uses cultural icons to describe Joey D, one of the men from the bar:

“…a giant with a tuft of gingery hair atop his spongy orange head, and features glued to the head at odd angles. He seemed to be made of spare parts from different Muppets, like a Sesame Street Frankenstein — head of Grover, face of Oscar, thorax of Big Bird.”

Moehringer goes on to write: “Though hulking and slouch-shouldered, Joey D had the manic energy of a small man. He speed walked, fluttered his hands, spoke in word spasms that left him winded. Like hay fever sneezes, whole sentences exploded from his mouth in one burst: Ocean’sgoingtoberoughtoday!” Read more

Dec 5

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Using poetry to enrich your prose

French writer and philosopher Voltaire wrote that poetry is the music of the soul. He also said, “Poetry is an echo, asking a shadow to dance.”

Besides being an end in itself, poetry also helps me dream up ideas for the novel I’m writing.

Some people create storyboards or collages to help them brainstorm. I’ve done this but, recently, I wanted to delve deeper into an idea I was developing so I decided to write a poem about it.

Poetry is all about getting the right words in the right combination in a small space (well, at least smaller than a novel). Poetry is about condensing details and sense impressions, and using metaphor to evoke an emotional response in our readers. When I write poetry, it forces me to go deeper into my subject and think of it in new ways. I can relate to what Voltaire said because poetry becomes an echo that stirs up images and ideas on the periphery of my original idea or thought that I may not have otherwise seen. Read more

Nov 30

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Three ways to start writing your book now

People often tell me they want to write a book. They’re stuck, they say, because they just don’t know where to start. The thought of writing a book can be daunting. In fact, the more I learn about writing, the more I feel the enormity of what it takes to create a well-written manuscript. Compiled from workshops, personal experience, and advice from mentors, try these ideas to get your story moving.

Write the ending first. Many writers have an ending to a story in mind before they even know what comes first. If you know your ending, write it out first and use it as a springboard to create the story that comes before. If you know your ending, you likely have a sense of the themes and emotional throughline that will drive it forward. Read more

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