I can blog.
Or I can write my novel.
Probably not both.
Besides, a notch of privacy is not a bad thing.
If I know you and like you, catch me on Facebook.
Signing Off for now.
Steven Francis Murphy
Kansas City, Missouri
The Writing Front – Short Story Project
I spent part of the day yesterday looking over Fishin’ Fer Tuesday, the prequel to my first published short story, Tearing Down Tuesday. The writing is sound enough and certainly I can’t be taken to task for style or world building. Teaching interrupted any further progress on this story six years ago and I’ve been looking it over to see what can be done with it.
I could describe the problem or I could allow YouTube to provide an analogy of my problem.
Here it is.
You can see the problem about halfway through the video.
I think it can be fixed. I just don’t know how to fix it yet.
The Writing Front – The Novel Project
I am going to call the novel A Forlorn Harvest and right now we’re at 74K words. It is long enough now that I need a printed manuscript to get my mind wrapped around it. Today I printed her out for a bit of review later.
Starting April 15, after I file my taxes, I will start my own personal novel writing month endeavor where I attempt to hammer out 50K words before May 15th. This should bring the novel up to the goal of 120K words.
There are gaps, character problems and general problems all over the place with the novel as it stands. But then again, she is a second draft and will naturally require a fair bit of polishing, gap filling and most likely a full structural analysis before we get to anything vaguely resembling a submission point.
That said, progress is progress.
Respects,
Steven Francis Murphy
Author of The Limb Knitter and Tearing Down Tuesday
Kansas City, Missouri
The Writing Front
On my writing desk, which is really just a converted K-Mart dining room table, is the current draft of my novel, tentatively entitled Velaysia. Right now the overall manuscript weighs in at 72,000 plus words. The final word count goal is closer to 120K to 150K words.
It is an interesting thing to see it sitting there. Much of my ambition in life has been to become a published science fiction novelist. Part of the reason I chose to earn a Master of Arts in History was to provide a different perspective on writing. Part of the reason I worked as a security officer for six years was to provide a living for myself while I worked toward my goal. Even teaching history, which is another end goal of mine, has served to provide me with some insights into the best way to convey information in a storytelling format.
The novel is my Life’s work. Hopefully not my only novel and hopefully not the only thing I accomplish in life in general. But it is The Mission. I’ve been at it for close to twelve years now.
So how did the process evolve?
I started with short stories, following the standard model of short story writers who eventually graduate to novels. There was a bit of initial success with Tearing Down Tuesday in 2007 and The Limb Knitter in 2008. After that, the short story front came to a grinding halt for a lot of reasons, some personal, some professional and some simply due to the fact that I didn’t have a place to work on my writing.
I also provide consulting work to another novelist and if you are a regular reader of this blog during the infrequent updates then you already know that story. If not, there are places to find that part of the story.
What has the experience taught me thus far?
The first thing it has taught me is that I MUST have a place to write that is my own. It doesn’t need to be terribly big but it does need to provide solitude and room for both the computer and editing. It has to be relatively quiet, especially concerning human conversations either by virtue of people talking to each other or the droning of a television/radio. If I hear people talking, forget it, I can’t write anything. If it is muffled by a wall or a floor, that will suffice.
I’ve learned that unless I am passionate about the short story idea, I am not going to stick with it. Eventually I will get bored and set it aside. My shelves are groaning under the weight of short story projects which I’ve started, grown bored, exasperated with and the like. This is not wasted effort per se, as I recycle that material from time to time. Tearing Down Tuesday and The Limb Knitter both were recycles which were polished up to a point where they would sell to market.
That said, I’m happier writing beyond 10,000 words.
Another important thing I have learned is that there are some elements of the science fiction and fantasy community that I simply must learn to ignore. To read their posts on the internet, to pay attention to what they have to say, virtually ensures the worst case of Writer’s Block. Instead, I’ve got to go to that office, that quiet place and wait for the world of the story and the characters who live there to come and talk to me. They’ve got to come to me without any overt effort to try and shape them. They’ve got to come to me as they are.
Finally and perhaps most important of all, I have learned that writing need not be a linear sequential process where one throws raw meat into the meat grinder and makes X number of sausage links. I can work a little bit on the end, a bit on the beginning and filling in the gaps here and there. It is more important to write the scene I have in my head, even if that means I might cut it later, than it is to get hung up on the notion that I must constantly write one sequential scene after another.
So that is what I have learned.
Over the course of the next month I intend to have my own personal National Novel Writing Month exercise. The goal is to reach 50K words by May 15, the last day of finals at my institution. If I get this done, I’ll hit my upward manuscript goal.
I also think I am changing the title. I still like the title, A Forlorn Harvest. So that is what I think I’ll go with.
Respects,
Steven Francis Murphy
Author of The Limb Knitter and Tearing Down Tuesday
Kansas City, Missouri
Republication Note: Apparently Night Shade Books is in the middle of being broken up and liquidated. Bad news if you are a writer with a contract with them. I feel for those writers.
On the other hand, I knew when I first encountered these folks back in 2003 that they were bastards. I said as much in this article back in 2010. Current reports swirling around the internet continue to verify pretty much what I have always said.
I am doing the, “I told you so,” bit mainly because a lot of people wrote my concerns off as sour grapes. I happen to be Right of Center in some of my viewpoints and the folks at NSB are supposedly Far Left (which might explain why their business is in the toilet) so I was brushed off.
Well, I was right. I’m sorry for my fellow writers who are caught up in this mess but I’m not sorry to say that I’m standing on the riverbank pissing on the bodies of NSB leadership and staff as they float by.
Maybe folks will learn this time around.
Original Article.
I told you so, years ago. Much as I have told the science fiction community about other problems, only to be roundly ignored, told it was personal, sour grapes, etc.
Ponder this article at Publisher’s Weekly.
What is Night Shade Books? Well, they are a small press that aspires to be a big one. If you look at the bookshelves you’ll find their wares, some of which are generating some buzz.
A personal note. I do not like the people who run the operation and it is personal. They behave like assholes. If anyone wonders where I obtained many of my internet flamewar tactics, all I did was ape what I saw at their forum. I continue to be amazed that their behavior is considered acceptable and is indeed tolerated in many respects while similar behavior by others is not.
I stated in the early part of the decade that I’d never do business with these people. There was never a danger of that on the writing score. However, I extended that to their products. I simply refused to purchase them due to the way they seem to treat anyone who disagrees with them.
Well, if you are an ass in one respect, eventually it will manifest elsewhere if it goes on uncorrected. If you read the link above you will note that Liz Williams has consistently been screwed over by Night Shade Books. I’ve been aware of this for awhile now but held off on any additional commentary until I saw the Publisher’s Weekly entry on the matter.
Want my advice?
If you are a purchaser of science fiction novels, simply decide to abstain from purchasing Night Shade Books products until they correct their behavior.
I mean, why not call for a boycott? Isn’t that what often happens in the Fail Fandom Community when something doesn’t suit them? Call for a boycott? Well, I’m not calling for one. I’m just saying you might want to join my already extant boycott.
If you are a writer, simply decide that you will cross them off your list of potential market options. This was easy for me to do.
The above two options are the quiet, easy way out but as the Publishers article relates, apparently other writers have had trouble with Night Shade Books. They are afraid to speak out about their troubles for fear of damaging their careers.
You know, I can understand this. “I don’t want to bitch about this editor because then the other editors will gang up on me and decide that they won’t buy my stories anymore. I don’t want that to happen.”
But you know what? Sometimes the wrongs are very simple to identify. The solutions are relatively simple to identify as well.
What is needed is a bit of intestinal fortitude, which appears to be in very short supply in the community. Maybe if there was more fortitude and less spaghetti spined behavior, maybe assholes like the ones who run Night Shade Books (who I might add are not the ONLY problem in the community insofar as shitty behavior goes) would get their act together.
That said, I suspect Night Shade Books will continue on their merry little way, screwing writers and readers over without any apparent concern because they do not fear the consequences. As far as they are concerned, there are no consequences.
Sad days indeed.
Oh, and before the trolling starts, I’ll turn the moderation function on. Rules are simple. Sign your posts with your real name if I do not already know you.
And if you are from NSB, since you banned me from your forum years ago, rest assured that you will not find a forum here. Go fix the problem on your end.
Steven Francis Murphy
Author of The Limb Knitter and Tearing Down Tuesday
North Kansas City, Missouri
Everyone has a holiday they do not particularly care for. Some diehards and killjoys have more than one and some Scrooges do not care for any of them. I am not particularly any different except for one thing.
I do not know that I feel a particular need to spit in the punch bowl at a party I have declined an invitation to. It always annoys and grates when some sanctimonious, self righteous bastard comes along to hold forth on, “The Invasion of North America,” or how the Fourth of July signifies independence, liberty and freedom only for white plantation owners. While we’re at it, we can skewer the holiday of Thanksgiving because after all, the Native American populace of North American would eventually be greatly reduced in number over the coming centuries.
Myself? I am, at best, an ambivalent agnostic when it comes to religion. It is difficult for me to separate myself from the most valuable thing Karl Marx every had attributed to him, namely that religion is the opiate of the masses.
Or to put it in my father’s words, “We’ve got ours, you wait and pray and maybe you’ll get yours after.”
However, on this day, Easter Sunday, I think a different tack is required.
First, let us remember the saying, “Let he who is without sin cast the first stone.”
So I’m putting my rocks down for this day. I have plenty of other days to cast them about and again, I am hardly without sin or flaw.
More importantly, setting aside Easter Eggs, chocolate bunnies and valid advisories that perhaps purchasing live bunny rabbits for children is always a bad call, we should consider the message of this day.
The message is that the Judeo-Christian Savior, Jesus Christ, was crucified on the cross by the authorities of the day for non-conformity. The Romans had a few basic rules that they expected you to follow but when you are the Son of God himself, well, why let a few basic rules bother you.
He died. He didn’t just die because the Romans slowly tortured him to death on a Cross, perhaps one of the worst ways to die one might think of. The dying was merely a byproduct of the primary purpose of the exercise, to cause the individual to suffer as much pain as possible in a public setting as an example to others before finally expiring.
He died in order to grant humanity a clean slate, to cleanse our sins. And to prove that he was the Son of God, he came back a few days later from the dead.
The moral of the story is sacrifice and redemption. One doesn’t need to, “buy” into religion to see the value of the story anymore than one needs to discard the value of giving Thanks as a result of a central flaw in the narrative of the Pilgrims and the Native Americans. One could learn the lesson and perhaps apply it to their own life.
Yes, maybe in that way you accepted Jesus Christ as your savior. Is that really all that bad? It isn’t like you are planning on going on Crusade to the Holy Land or burn anyone at the Stake. Nor are you planning on launching an Inquisition. Seeing value in the moral of the tale, which truly is a miracle when you get right down to it, does not mean ignoring the bad things which have been done in the name of religion through the vast gulf of time.
So tomorrow I’ll celebrate Easter with my family in my own way. Perhaps I won’t be in a church but I will give thanks for the sacrifice and consider the value of self sacrifice for the redemption of others.
A little religion, just a smidge of God for a day, won’t kill me anymore than a smidge of patriotism won’t kill others on those other holidays.
Thanks for listening.
Respects,
Steven Francis Murphy
Author of The Limb Knitter and Tearing Down Tuesday
Kansas City, Missouri
It appears, knock on wood, that I am clearing the last vestiges of an illness which has laid me low for nearly three weeks now. Influenza A coupled with bronchitis pretty well chewed me up and spit me out. At the time of this entry the last bit of it seems to be a lingering cough that won’t quite go away plus some fatigue. Otherwise, I’m well enough to function.
The new lifeguard job is rolling into the third week. I do not plan on talking about this job much. It is a good employer with solid standards and no restrictions on when to call 911. The guards are competent and do their jobs. The pay is decent for the type of job it is and there is regular in service training. Toss in the fitness center that is attached to the facility plus the close proximity to the house and I suppose the only drawback would be that it is an indoor facility.
I’ll miss working outside. Some of my favorite moments in lifeguarding come when I’m sitting on stand at a competition pool with a slight breeze in the air, the water rippling against the wall and it is just a bit on the quiet side before the day really kicks off. There isn’t much of that sort of thing at this facility, but it is a year round job, which I need.
On the teaching front, starting next week, unless it is yanked at the last minute, will be my second eight week class. That will take some pressure off the beleaguered budget. In fact, barring disaster (knock knock again)the next few months should be relatively flush. I’ll be using the resources to get basic maintenance out of the way with the car, help Cindy move back into the house and generally get ahead on some of the bills. The downside of the lifeguard job is that we’re limited to 25 hours a week, which during the summer time might be a notch of a problem. I’ve not decided how I will handle that yet.
Of course, if a summer class fell into my lap, I’d take it. I usually prefer not to teach during the summers but if it were a Western Civ One course I’d take it without reservations. In any case, I think the more likely scenario is that I’ll need to pick up some other work somewhere. We’ll see.
Elsewhere on the To Do List is a need to visit UMKC’s School of Education to talk to their people about returning to classes this Fall for teacher certification. It should be possible, as I understand it, to get through certification fairly quickly given that I’ve already got a Bachelors in the field plus a Masters. The main thing will be the courses required for certification plus student teaching time. I do not plan on screwing around with it. I plan on getting it done so I can move on to a more sustainable job.
There is a problem of sorts to deal with.
It is possible that my current employer might hire a full time historian over the next couple of years. If an opening occurred I’d certainly put in for it but one has to ask a basic question.
A full time instructor at my institution usually starts out around $40K to $45K a year. They do not get to write off their student loan debts in most instances by teaching at a community college. Conversely, at some public schools an instructor starts out at around $35K a year, less it is true though I might get more due to my Master of Arts Degree. However, if I get hired on at an impoverished school district in an urban or rural region, then I can get my student loan debt written off after five years of service.
I owe, with interest, $80K. If I got a novel advance in the range of $55K today, I could pay most of it off today.
Most first novel advances are not that high so I think that is not an option. I’m left with the choices listed above.
Getting a full time position at a community college instructor would be, in the end, my first choice. Flexible hours in an environment I have experience in, have a history of thriving in, would be better. I also know that the probability of getting that full time job is slim at best, getting slimmer by the day.
So that has been on my mind.
Finally, there will be the issue of balancing Adjunctland out with a return to full time student status this Fall. I should be able to get at least one if not two courses for the Fall 2013 semester. Coupled with 12 hours of what are essentially undergrad courses, I do not anticipate any serious trouble with managing both. I may have to cut back on lifeguard hours but I’ll try to hang onto that job as well.
As for writing? I suspect I need to have this novel I am working on completed by no later than August of this year. There’ll be very little time to work on it after that.
So it goes.
Respects,
Steven Francis Murphy
Author of The Limb Knitter and Tearing Down Tuesday
Kansas City, Missouri
The Writing Front – The Novel Project
I’ve been fairly ill over the last three weeks, pushing through the flu, bronchitis and God knows what else. Still, I’ve managed to get some work done on the novel.
Like what?
Well, I’ve read over what I have in Part One of the novel. For the most part there are a lot of good things going on in that section. There is no shortage of scene setting in the early part of it. I think a fair number of characters are plugging along in good order. The plot threads are active and moving forward.
Of course, there are problems. For instance, I’m dealing with multiple points of view, something I’ve struggled with. This method allows me to generate word count by working on whatever hits my fancy that day. On the other hand, it has resulted in a sprawling cast of characters crammed into roughly thirty thousand words. The pacing is rapid at points, which is good for a combat scene, not so good for a scene where you need some character development. Toss in some narrative gaps and I think that sums up most of the problems.
For a second draft of Part One, this isn’t the end of the world. What works best for me is to print the manuscript out and go over it, line by line. As I work, I can usually suss out what needs to go where. A few sentences here, a paragraph or two there.
The eventual plan with Part One is to flesh it out, expand it and have it eventually weigh in between 35K and 50K words.
Part Two, on the other hand, is a bit of a mess. Part Two really feels like it should be Part Three. We have characters who are getting on great in Part One but by Chapter Three in Part Two, they are ready to kill each other. While that can happen in literature and in real life, it shouldn’t happen to these two that quickly.
One additional problem is that I am dealing with a closed society, isolated from the outside community mostly by choice for most of their recent existence. I want to introduce a foreign element into that society and I’ve not laid the proper ground work for that. As an historian I should know better than to just have things magically appearing one day.
Over all the current project weighs in around 65K words. This is the most I have ever written for a concerted novel project. I’ve consistently worked on this project since last summer, which is another good sign.
Is it a good story? I think so. Set in The Limb Knitter universe it gives readers a greater look into a world they only get a glimpse of in TLK.
In any case, there is the writerly update of late.
Respects,
Steven Francis Murphy
Author of The Limb Knitter and Tearing Down Tuesday
Kansas City, Missouri
Yeah, I know. Max Brooks already covered it. Got a survival manual you can check out, etc, etc, etc.
I think I prefer to come up with my own gear. Based upon my own research into the genre, which consists mainly of reading World War Z and watching The Walking Dead coupled with my time in the Army, time as a Civil War Reenactor and my experience as an historian, I’ve got some ideas.
Armor. Dude, you gotta have armor. Even the folks in the third season of TWD have figured that out. But modern armor is meant to stop bullets, leaving many delicate, fleshy bits available for the chomping upon. So, what would work best?
Duh, gotta have some chainmail. That’ll protect most of the vitals from biter attack. Be even better if one got the hooded version, which would protect the neck. Yeah, sure, your face is open but I’d cover that up with a good old riot gear quality face plate.
Yes, it is heavy. Stop your whining and put it on.
Weapons? Myself? I think I’d go with an M-16 A2 fitted with a bayonet. Or better yet maybe an M-14 with a bayonet on the end. Heavy, solid, useful as a stabbing, clubbing and shooting weapon for those moments when you have Close Encounters of the Unkindly Human variety. I’d augment that with a pair of M-1911 .45s to provide some close in support. Finally, I think I might add to that kit something distinctive, like a Roman Gladius, which would be a reproduction, of course but handy to have.
A few frags wouldn’t be a bad idea either.
As for vehicles?
Why, I’d want a van fitted out with a bed in the back. Something rigged with mesh over the windows to keep the bastards out. Electrify the outside of it to keep the humans out and maybe line it with body armor on the inside. It’d need a winch in case I got stuck and some solar panels on top to recharge my iPad, because even at the End of the World, you got to have an entertainment system.
So there you go.
What say you?
Respects,
Steven Francis Murphy
Author of The Limb Knitter and Tearing Down Tuesday
Kansas City, Missouri
Gotta Roll It!
Respects,
Steven Francis Murphy
Author of The Limb Knitter and Tearing Down Tuesday
Kansas City, Missouri
Those that done said stuff