Month: May 2011

Cool “writers on writing” archive

Hi, folks–

I took Monday off. Kind of a Manic Monday, don’tcha know.

Anyhoo, I came across this really sweet New York Times archive. It’s called “Writers on Writing” and it’s a big ol’ list of articles done by various writers that addresses some aspect of writing. Super cool.

How about E.L. Doctorow on how novels are following films into a land of “fewer words”?

As more than one critic has noted, today’s novelists tend not to write exposition as fully as novelists of the 19th century… .The 20th-century novel minimizes discourse that dwells on settings, characters’ CVs and the like. The writer finds it preferable to incorporate all necessary information in the action, to carry it along in the current of the narrative, as is done in movies.
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Or Annie Proulx (whose work I deeply admire), on inspiration?

A whole set of metaphoric shovels is part of my tool collection, and for me the research that underlies the writing is the best part of the scribbling game. Years ago, alder scratched, tired, hungry, and on a late return from a fishing trip, I was driving through Maine when a hubbub on the sidewalk caught my eye: milling customers at a yard sale. I stop for yard sales. Pay dirt. I found the wonderful second edition unabridged Webster’s New International Dictionary with its rich definitions and hundreds of fine small illustrations.
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Or Alice Walker on meditation, John Updike on character, or Carl Hiaasen on plagiarizing from real life?

This archive is a treasure trove of gems from a variety of writers, from a variety of perspectives. Seriously check it out.

Happy reading, happy writing!

by Categories: Cool stuff to read, Coolness, Inspiration, Things that might make you think, Writing tipsTags: , , , , , , , ,

Sunday readin’ and ruminatin’ tip

Hi, folks–

As some of you know, I already suggested unplugging yourself from technology (read that here) and yes, I am fully aware of the irony of me telling you these things while I’m online writing this blog. 8)

I do think, though, that it’s important to get away from all the crap that’s online these day. Sock puppets, trolls, freaks, assorted conspiracies, rampant unhealthy consumerism…it’s not good for us as individuals or societies. Currently, there’s a troll-fest going on over on one of the Facebook pages I “liked” and I can’t help but wonder whether the asshats who are trolling would say the things to people in real life that they’re posting online.

In some ways, I think not, but even saying these things online tells me something about the kinds of people they are. And these are some vile, hateful things that these trolls/sock puppets are saying. If they are, in fact, the types of people who would say those things to someone’s face as well as online, then clearly they are not the kinds of people we need in our lives. Healthy, happy people don’t feel the need to say the kinds of things these people are saying, whether online or in real life. And if we are to maintain a healthy, happy outlook, then we need to remind ourselves that words do have power, and everything we say is a reflection of who we are as people, whether in real life or online.

Which brings me to author Richard Louv. Read on to find out why I recommend you read this guy.

Continue reading →

by Categories: Books, Cool articles, Cool stuff to read, Things that might make you thinkTags: , , , , , , ,

OMG! More zombie apocalypse survival tips!

Hi, folks!

Happy Saturday!

Okay, so today’s ZA survival tip has to do with camping. Remember, I mentioned that a couple of weeks ago? We’d talk about camping (if you have to) during a ZA. I recommended then that you not travel at night and one of the primary reasons for this is that you can’t see very well in the dark and if you use a flashlight or any kind of light, you’re going to attract zombies. And just as bad, in some cases, other survivors.

That means you need to travel during the day, and you need to think about where you are at all times. We’ve already discussed getting out of urban areas (simple formula: the more people –> more zombies), and I recommended that you stay mobile. So you need to travel light, with some basic supplies. Other stuff you can grab along the way. No living crowds, anymore, at stores, after all.

I’m personally of the opinion that going north (if you’re in the US) is a really good idea. Why? Well, think about it. Huge swaths of Canada weren’t that populated prior to a ZA, which means fewer zombies. Also, I subscribe to the Max Brooks theory, in that cold weather slows zombies down. If you read his World War Z, there are survivors there who go north and make it a habit to go out with the spring thaw and start dispatching zombies that were frozen during the winter. So yes, winter and cold weather can totally suck and it’s dangerous for the living, but I think that it can provide a good chance for you to survive and perhaps even hunker down a bit, to give yourself a rest.


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ZOMG! There’s more!

Continue reading →

by Categories: Zombie Apocalypse Survival Tips, ZombiesTags: ,

This n’ That

Hey, kids! Happy Friday to all of y’all.

Just a couple of things. I have conversations with my characters now and again, and I post those. You can find the latest convo, with my character Chris Gutierrez (Albuquerque police detective) over at Women and Words. There are links to 2 other character convos I’ve had on that post, as well. If you’re interested, check it out.

HOT book tip, from author Nicola Griffith. The blurbs alone should make you want to check this out (if it’s your thing), but Nicola says it’s a rockin’ ride, so I freakin’ bought it. I’ll definitely let y’all know what I thought of it. And the book is: Queen of Kings, the debut novel by Maria Dahvana Headley. Cleopatra. Ancient Egypt. She makes a deal with dark magic for her dead lover Antony. And funky, chaotic, awesome, dark and twisted stuff ensues. Sort of urban paranormal historic fiction. Like Queen of the Damned meets The Mummy. Or something. How could you NOT want to read that?

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And there you go. Happy reading!

by Categories: Books, Cool stuff to read, ParanormalTags: , , , ,

You. Must. Chill.

All right, this week has been crazy scary busy for me. One thing after another and deadlines and freakiness and…like that.

So tonight, I’m passing along a message that I used to tell my college-aged students when I was teaching. It was kind of a challenge I issued to them, if only because them crazy youngsters come out of the womb with electrical, not umbilical cords. I’d tell them this:

Be Amish for a week. Or at least a weekend (no disrespect at all to Amish people).

That is, unplug. Turn off your TV and computers. All your electronic devices. Leave your phone at home. Don’t drive anywhere. Or, better yet, do drive somewhere out of reach, like a cabin in the middle of nowhere with no internet connection and no TV.

Learn how to be with yourself, without the distractions of electronic devices that so many people today seem to define themselves either with or as. You are an individual, and healthy individuals need to spend time alone, without distractions, without obsessively checking email or text messaging. Get off the information superhighway and reconnect with your immediate surroundings, your family, your neighborhood.

And make this a habit. At least 1-2 evenings a week be tech-free (Amish). And extend it. You don’t need the constant mind-numbing bombardment of information, or the corporate-driven consumer drivel that makes you think you need things you really don’t. Turn it off. Build a community, build a true revolution that emphasizes individuals working in tangent with other unique individuals to oppose the brainless prattle that passes for “news” and “information” these days. Go to a library and read. Spend time with yourself, and spend face-time with people, rather than interacting via text and email.

Reconnect with nature. You need balance in your life, and being constantly plugged in to something techie is robbing you of real, sensory experiences.

So try it. Be Amish for a while. It could change your life.

Happy living!

by Categories: Inspiration, Random WTF stuff, Things that make you thinkTags: 4 Comments

Vonnegut interviews people he never met

Okay, so I was totally just going to go on off to bed because the ol’ day job kicked my ass today, but I found this awesome bloglink from Brain Pickings and I just HAD to share.

Here’s Brain Picking’s link, BTW.

So I’ll pimp Brain Pickings while I’m at it–irreverent, esoteric, and just a lot of fun stuff over there, like this post: “Kurt Vonnegut’s Fictional Interviews with Luminaries.”

QUOTE:
In 1997, iconic writer Kurt Vonnegut pitched an idea to New York public radio station WNYC: He would conduct fictional interview with dead cultural luminaries and ordinary people through controlled near-death experiences courtesy of real-life physician-assisted suicide proponent Dr. Jack Kevorkian, allowing the author to access heaven, converse with his subjects, and leave before it’s too late. The producers loved the idea and Vonnegut churned out a number of 90-second segments “interviewing” anyone from Jesus to Hitler to Isaac Asimov. The interviews — funny, poignant, illuminating, timeless, profoundly human — are collected in God Bless You, Dr. Kevorkian, a fantastic anthology playing on the title of Vonnegut’s 1965 novel, God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater, some of the best cultural satire of the past century.

Brain Pickings gives you a link to “Letters of Note,” which tells you a bit more. Here. I’ll be totally pimping that site soon!

Anyway, enjoy!

by Categories: Books, Cool blogs, Cool stuff to read, Coolness, The Awesome, Things that make you thinkTags: , ,

Music to soothe the savage beast

Hey-dee how-dee.

I’m here to pimp a couple of my fave websites that stream music. I listen to music pretty much constantly, especially when I’m writing, and each project I work on requires a different kind of soundtrack, though I’ve found that trance music is providing a soundtrack for virtually anything I’m working on, much to my delight in some ways.

With that in mind, one of the best-kept secrets, I think, is Digitally Imported (electronica and everything like it). I’ve been listening to this site for at least three years now. I upgraded to the paid premium (about $5 a month and it’s well worth it), and turn that pup on and away it goes pretty much all day.

Another is Pandora, and I know some of you already listen to that and have created your own radio stations. One of the down sides — and I haven’t upgraded to a paying customer over there — is that the playlist on any particular station repeats after a while. Another pain in the butt is that in order to create a varied playlist, you have to constantly click that you “like” a particular song so Pandora remembers it and plays stuff like it. If you don’t click “like” for a while, Pandora will basically stop, because “it’s not sure you’re still listening.”

Another site I’ll use is 365Live, which offers virtually every genre under the sun. The site’s a little difficult to navigate, and because it basically just serves as kind of a clearinghouse, you have to click the station link to see if your player is compatible. But there are some truly great stations there, including world music, which is another of my faves.

AOL Music is offering free world music, speaking of. I haven’t really explored this site, but some of the genres are super cool.

And if you’re feeling totally new-agey or yoga-ish, Sky.fm has a New Age music stream. Super mellow.

One more tip–if you find a station you just love to death and you listen to it quite a bit, think about upgrading if it offers that option. No commercials, better sound, and you’re contributing to great music.

Happy listening!

by Categories: Cool tunes, Inspiration, MusicTags: , , , , , ,

Writing tip! A, B, Cs of plot development!

Hey, all–

Found this groovy writing tips site that includes this:

The ABCs (and Ds and Es) of Plot Development.

Here’s an excerpt:

Plot develops out of conflict, either external, such as a person or an event that precipitates a series of actions the main character undertakes, or internal, driven by the protagonist’s wants and/or needs. How that character, and others, makes choices and otherwise responds to stimuli determines the course of events.

The traditional structure of a plot is linear, in which the protagonist’s actions are charted in a more or less straight line, although many stories shift from that person’s point of view to that of one or more other characters as the tale progresses. Others involve one or more flashbacks, introducing new elements to the overarching plot.

Here’s the quick n’ dirty:
A = Action
B = Background
C= Conflict
D = Development
E = End

Go on and check it out.

Happy writing, happy reading!

by Categories: Inspiration, Things that make you think, Writing tipsTags: ,

Groovy Movie Tips: it’s a conspiracy!

Hi, kids–

Sometimes I post about movies that I see that I think are interesting for a variety of reasons. Sometimes they’re older movies that have come up again for whatever reasons and I pass that info along. Today is such an occasion.

A bit of background — I’ve been thinking recently about conspiracy theories and how they can be fun, yes, but they can also prove immensely damaging to individual, community, and even national psyches. I’m not suggesting there aren’t sometimes forces at work behind the scenes, or that government is always on the up-and-up. Certainly, there are plenty of cases to be made that demonstrate otherwise, so conspiracy theories have been around throughout recorded history.

However, conspiracy theorizing can put you in an echo chamber of more and more conspiracies, until everything you see and hear is part of some kind of conspiracy, and you’re unable to discern what is correct information and what’s not. The interwebs have allowed, I think, a massive increase in the spread of conspiracy theories, which is one of the downsides of it. It becomes difficult to tell what sites are disseminating truly useful and fact-based information and what sites are drawing exclusively from conspiracy theories. And it allows anybody with a keyboard to set him- or herself up as expert of something, whether it’s the FEMA camps that will soon hold us all prisoner; the black helicopters; fluoride in the water; birth certificates; bin Laden’s not really dead; vaccinations are a form of mind control; national ID systems will allow the government to put a microchip in your head; they’re all out to get you; and on and on like that.

More? Keep readin’…

Continue reading →

by Categories: Movies, Things that make you thinkTags: , , , , ,

My current whole NM series available as eBooks!

Yee-ha!

At last, at last! The second and third books in my New Mexico series are available as eBooks! That would be State of Denial and The Ties that Bind. You can get ’em currently at Rainbow eBooks, an awesome venue that carries lots of LGBT titles in digital format, and soon they’ll be available at Bella Books and as Kindle and Nook. I’ll keep you posted on that. Here on my site, just click on “Books” and the title you want and I have links there for all kinds of purchase options.

Or head on over to Rainbow direct from this page. Click here.

Sweet!

Happy reading, whatever your choices!

by Categories: Announcements, Books, The AwesomeTags: , ,