Tuesday, July 3, 2007

At least it's a happy day in the world of writing

Irritation and bad mood aside, I've been excited and nearly giddy at the prospect of writing today.

1. In a post a few posts down I mentioned working through a character issue in chapter 7 of the urban fantasy I'm editing. Writtenwyrdd commented with some advice that was quite helpful, and led me down into the fun world of "what if I try it this way, no this way, how about if we add this other twist here..." in order to see which solution would work best.

I get a kick out of that.

Specifically, she brought up the prospect of using a red herring to make my main character think she'd been wrong in her suspicions, only to find out she was right later on, that this guy is not a good guy, though perhaps for a totally different reason than she suspected of him.

I have heard of red herrings, know what they are and all that good stuf, but that's one of those instances that I don't think of its proper name even as I use it. Although, I occasionally notice, "Hey that right there is a handy bit of foreshadowing," after writing something. But yes, so it jogged my memory and now I can go back and really play with that character and the interaction between him and the protagonist.

2. Earlier today I began an AIM conversation with a friend, still ongoing, where she invited me to go clubbing this Saturday. Now to look at me you wouldn't think I'd be much of a dance club-attender. You would be right. I could probably count on one hand the number of times I've been in any club, and still have a finger or two left over. And the occasions that I've danced n club even less so.

But I am trying to fight the ever-present urge to give in to my hermitude, and she's my friend and I don't get to hang out with her as much as I'd like (frankly the only people I do spend a lot of time with are my immediate family and my coworkers--all those hours at work, goodness--perhaps a bit too much on both accounts). So I said sure. A couple of minutes later, the exciting prospect came to me.

Even if the night is a bust--too hot and sweaty, expensive drinks, don't want to dance, don't like the music, etc.--I can still use that night as research.

I'm working on a new story which centers around the proprietor of a dance club, now in disrepair, both Harry and his bar. But it was once quite popular, and I feel scenes within a couple of clubs may appear throughout the story. Even if everything that happens saturday night doesn't make it into this story (and I think we all know it won't), the experience will, through little details that add realism to scenes.

...yay!

Write what you know, right? Well, I don't know much about clubs, due to my lack of going to them. But I've been to a few over the years, and I'll go to this one and it wil all come together as knowledge and information I can pluck out of my consciousness for a particular aspect. Like the smells, or the sounds. Finding the right words to describe that kind of din or the lighting (strobe lights, anyone? we'll find out).

Would it be rude to wander absently over the club, jotting down notes into my little pad of paper.

You never know, even my short discussion with my friend about the possbile dangers of me wearing my glasses onto the dance floor may make it into this story, or some other one.

In any case, I can't predict what the weekend will bring, but the prospect of widening my knowledge base thrills me, and sends me into spirals of writing nirvana.

I love learning new things. I really do.

In other news, although I've been reading her blog for months, if not over a year, I finally read Magic or Madness by Justine Larbalestier. I've borrowed and reborrowed it from the library, but never got around to reading it. Now I have. I enjoyed it. And I appreciate her use of the multiple viewpoints. Perhaps a more detailed review will be forthcoming, but now I've got to get ready for work. Alas.

2 comments:

writtenwyrdd said...

yay books and yay red herrings! I'm writing at the moment and it's a tricky bit, so I'm not feeling Yay, writing! just now, lol.

Foreshadowing seems to just pop up out of nowhere sometimes, too, doesn't it? Then you can make a note of it, and use that bit later. Gotta love how the subconscious nudges us along!

Have fun clubbing. Research can be fun! And remember your earplugs. (I have hearing loss from one night when the club was small and the music painfully loud.)

Sabrina Favors said...

Or you write something and then realize you'd foreshadowed it chapters ago and never noticed. That's fun.

I'll remember the ear plugs. They're also handy when the music is awful, too. But I'm fighting the temptation not to bring a notepad and a pen. I'll be with friends and that seems a bit rude. I'll just have to remember all the interesting stuff (snag a napkin and pencil from the bartender.) ;)