Tayari's Blog: Writing
July 04, 2008
Mid-Point Progress Report
Well, this is officially half-way through my residency at Blue Mountain Center. Two weeks down, two to go. I am happy to report that I am making some good progress here on my novel. I am trying to figure out the best way to report. There is always word count, but that doesn't really get to the heart of the effort. But I guess we have to work with what can be measured. So here goes:
Words: 13,571
Not bad at all.
June 26, 2008
Love Is A Tiger
As I am plugging away at this book, I have been thinking a lot about love. Not the romance novel kind, but the solid kind. I wanted to write about love between a father and daughter. So I was writing corny scene after scene when the father makes all these loving gestures toward his daughter. I was writing stupid daddy’s girl crap. I am ashamed to admit it, but I even wrote a made-for-Hallmark scene when she learns to dance standing on his feet. Please forgive me.
So, I then decided to mine my autobiography. I’ve always felt close to my daddy, but when did I know that he loved me? I thought and thought and thought and I came up with this while taking a hike.
I know that what makes a scene work, what makes an emotional real is to tie it to hard experience. So here's mine:
When I was about four years old, I wanted a Tony The Tiger ink pen. (See, a writer even as a tot.) The deal was that I had to send in about four box tops and fill out a little cupon. Let me tell you, that was a lot of cereal. Finally, my packet was ready to go and we mailed it to the cereal people.
For weeks I stalked the mailman and my daddy was getting into the act, too. It was all Tony all the time. One day, daddy came into my room looking so sad. The mail had come and there was a postcard from the cereal people. There were no more Tony The Tiger ink pens. He explained to me what “while supplies last” meant. I can remember how distressed he was and to this day I can call up my distress and his distress. Then I thought, “this is what it means when he says he loves me.”
This story has a happy ending, one too convenient to go in my book, but the next day, there was an envelope in the mail. There must have been one ink pen left! I kept that pen with me for a long time.
June 23, 2008
You Never Know How You'll Learn
Yesterday, I took a ride out in a canoe. I had seen people operate canoes on TV and I thought I knew what I was doing. I didn’t think myself to be a pro, but I thought I had the basic idea. I sat myself down and I rowed. My arms were killing me and I wasn’t getting anywhere. I think of myself a person in decent shape. I know I have upper body strength, but my canoe wasn’t really moving forward. Everyone else was speeding across the water, laughing, telling jokes. And I was struggling.
Today, I went back out thinking that I just needed to try harder and build up some endurance. Well, after about ten minutes I realized what I was doing wrong. I was sticking the oar in the water and pulling it with my arms. Looking at arms you can see they are teeny weeny muscles. What I should have done was used my arms to place the oar in the water and used my torso to pull. (I don’t know if I am doing a good job of explaining, but I could show you if we ever end up in a canoe together.) The point is that I was using bad form. I was trying as hard as I could, but I just wasn’t doing it right and wasn’t getting anywhere.
Now, let’s switch to my writing situation. I have this bright idea for my novel and I have been trying so hard to make it happen. I was letting my mind guide me. I was also getting myself all dialed up about the fact that I have come here to write and every second I am not writing is a second wasted. I got more focused. I cracked the whip on myself.
It was a bad idea. Just like the canoeing, it was bad form. I was trying to use the part of myself that reasons. I was also motivating myself with pressure and sprinkling in some guilt. I wasn’t tapping into my instincts. I wasn’t listening to myself. And I was getting nowhere. The reason I ended up in the canoe in the first place is that I wasn’t accomplishing anything with my writing and I was getting sort of bummed out about it.
And then, like that, on the water, it came to me.
I know this sounds sort of corny. But that’s exactly how it happened.
June 12, 2008
Making it Happen
So, as promised, I went to a coffee shop and Ribe Tuchus(ed). Before I left, I wasted a lot of time gathering my belongings.Crisis#1-- I couldn't find my pen.I tore up the apartmemt looking for it until I got over myself and just grabbed a cheap pilot pen. After that I fretted that maybe the coffee shop was overly airconditioned. I should wear a sweatshirt. But it's so hot in New Jersey right now... You get the idea. I was finding reasons not to work. I finally dragged my raggedy self to my favorite local cafe. At first it was weird. I sat at the little table with a cup of decaf, pulled out my paper and pen, and just sat there. I looked around. I tried to rope innocent people into conversations. Then I wrote my name a few times, practicing new signature options. After that, I wrote a strange sentence: "Every disaster begins with an idea." I am not even sure if this is true, but I rolled with it and just continued to write. Who knows if the three or so handwritten pages I ended up with are decent from a craft standpoint? The point is that I wrote them and felt good writing them. I could almost feel the rust flaking off my brain as I scribbled away. It was so good. I almost cried.
Ribe Tuchus
I will admit that I haven't been the most creative person lately. I wouldn't say that I have writers block. But I have some sort of problem. I feel like I have a million things to do, that I am taking care of so many folks, that I cannot get my mind on my own work.
It's time to break out the secret weapon: Ribe Tuchus. Apparently, this is Yiddish for "rub your bottom on the chair." In other words, just go sit down and write. No blackberry, no computer, no nothing. Just me, sitting in an empty room-- or at a coffee shop-- paper, pen, and my ideas. For one hour. No getting up. No refills on the java. I have done this in the past when I have managed to become estranged from my own project.
I'll check in before bedtime and let you know how it works.
June 09, 2008
The Name Game
Ladylee emailed me the other day asking about a post in which I mocked myself for naming the characters in my very first story "Angelique" and "Mignon." What are the rules for naming characters?
Well, everyone knows the basics-- you can't have several characters in a story who have almost the same name. Jon, Jonathan, Jim, and Jack cannot co-exist. The other guidelines are harder to put your finger on. I made fun of the names "Angelique" and "Mignon" because those names really identified me as a teenaged writer, givng characters names I thought were cool or pretty, rather than names the characters would actually have if they were real people.
Rather than give a list of Dos Don'ts, I will just explain how I went about naming the main characters in my first novel, Leaving Atlanta.
June 04, 2008
Moving On, Or Not.
Erika blogged a couple of days ago about letting go of her first novel. She wrote it, tried to publish it, and finally just put it aside to work on something else. I've written here about a novel I wrote when I was twenty-three or so. My dad sent it to me last week and I haven't had the heart to open the box and look at it. The question I want to think about today is how do you know when to let a project go.
It's tricky. Any person who has completed a novel, or even a short story, has has moments when you thought the story was hopeless, that you should just chuck it and try something else. Part of writing good is to also write really bad.
And who doesn't love the rush of starting something new? I have had many students who are great at beginnings. They get through a first draft, or even a second, with lots of energy and heart. But after they see all the work left to do, they wither. Then, they think up a new project and they are again buzzing with energy. At the end of the term, they have a folder full of terrific starts.
So how can you tell the difference? What are the right reasons to let a project go. How do you know that you just aren't scared or lazy? Again, it's tricky.
The first rule is that the decision to let go has to be your own. I was urged with both my novels to scrap the project. Why didn't I listen? I knew that I wasn't done with the novels. I couldn't say for sure that they were publishable. I couldn't say for sure that they were any good. All I knew was that I wasn't finished.
The second rule is that the decision to keep going has to be your own. Erika writes about her efforts to revise the manuscript in order to work with an agent. After a while, it can start to feel like you are writing the book that the agent/editor/professor wants you to write. You then have to ask yourself if you are still looking at this book as a work of art, or are you trying to make it into something that can sell or something that will win approval from some outside person. When you get there, let it go.
The third rule is to know when the project is keeping you from growing. Scary cautionary tale. I know a writer who finished a novel and sent it to agents, editors, contests. He got nibbles, but no bites, and lots of advice. He took chapters out, put chapters in, added characters, took them out. You get the idea. Seven years later, he finally found a publisher for it. Hurrah, right? Well, sort of.
In the time that he spent meddling with a manuscript that was a fine effort for a first timer, many of his peers had published two books by then and had moved to different career-levels. What he ended up with was an okay novel, a lukewarm debut. He could have put the first one in a drawer, and used all that energy (and postage!) writing a second, better book, and he could have had a much stronger debut.
It's hard to walk away from a project you have spent so much time working on. It's kind of like romance. Haven't you been in a situation where you've said "I've invested two years in this relationship!" as a reason not to move on. And weren't your friends saying "Cut bait! Cut bait!". It's a balancing act. You have to simultaneously trust your own instincts, but also know that you may not be in a position to be objective. A paradox, I know. But that's just kind of how it is.
May 30, 2008
Learn to Love It
When I am on the road, I'm asked quite a bit about my process. 
Lately, I've been saying "Your process is like doing your hair." Then, I sort of catch myself because I am a woman writer who wants to be taken seriously, so the impulse is not to say something so girly. I have tried and tried to find a more "neutral" or "universal" metaphor, but I can't find one and who cares? I have deciphered more than my share of sports analogies, so this is just a little karmic correction.
So, on to the issue of process. When you ask a writer about her process, it's kind of like asking her "How do you do your hair?" (It's actually another question I get quite frequently.) On the hair issue, I explain that I am usually wearing a twist out and I set it with Miss Jessie's. If I have the time I explain about the blow-dryer miracle. The person can then go home, try the products and maybe it will work for her. And maybe it won't. Or maybe she ends up incorporating the blow dryer, but the Curly Pudding makes her itch. And regardless, her hair will never look just like mine, but it can still be really cute on her. Or cuter. You get the idea. Everyone's hair is different. I can tell her what I do, but I can't guarantee the outcome when she tries it in her own bathroom.
Process is like that too. Sometimes, I'll explain my revision process. (It's pretty radical. I call it clear-paper revision. Basically, I rewrite the whole thing using the first draft as a reference book.) Someone listening will always say "Such-and-such famous writer doesn't do it that way!" My response is always a polite, "So what." It's going to be different for everyone.
So, on to the next girly metaphor.
You have to learn to accept your process, just as you have to learn to accept your body.
Any woman who has ever looked at a magazine has self-diagnosed everything that is wrong with her body. She knows she's an apple, a pear, or whatever. She has words at her disposal like muffin-top, saddle bags, all the destructive language. Some of us have a complex about our skin tone, our hair texture. You can spend your whole life worried that you don't look right and spend all your precious energy trying to fix it. Although it is easier said than done, you just have to learn to enjoy the body you have.
Here's how this relates to writing: My process goes something like this. I write a hundred pages. I feel great about them. I think I am on to something. I end up keeping about ten pages. Carlson used to tell me that I "write my way into a story." This means, I figure where the story is by writing. And this can take weeks. Once I find the story, I am good to go. I used to mourn for all those wasted pages and all that wasted time.
I am now at the point that I understand that this is just how I do it. I have learned some tricks along the way that help me get to the story a little faster, but I still write for a year on a novel before I find it's heart. If I am going to be happy as a writer, I have to embrace the process. All of it. It's just how I roll. It's just how I am.
May 19, 2008
My Mind Is Playing Tricks On Me
As I spent the last few days away, I have been gathering my thoughts and turning my attention to my manuscript. Well, I wrote a few lines and they sound a little bit familiar. One character says to another:
"Go home for the holidays. Your mama not for always, you know."
I think this line comes from somewhere in my memory. That expression "your mama not for always" is a sort of southern feeling thing. (Translation for those who are not familiar: your mother won't always be around.)
Although I am not worried that I am accidentally plagiarizing another writer, I worry that one of my characters in another book or story has already said that. Maybe it's someone in The Untelling, but I can't figure who would have occasion to make such a warning. (Hermione is just not sentimental like that.) It sort of sounds like Berenice, a character in my favorite short story, "Have You Known Me Lately", but I checked and it wasn't Berenice. (She's the girl from Opelika, Alabama who learned sex-ed from the Bookmobile Lady.)
Then the next thought is what does it mean that I am thinking of my characters like they are real people. I could be either brilliant or insane. Recent events suggest the latter....
April 12, 2008
Roller coaster? We Should Be So Lucky.
People often compare the process of writing and publishing as being on a roller coaster... you know ups and downs. I reject that metaphor because when you're on a roller coaster, you sort of know that you'll be okay. Yes, your heart drops when you hurtle down the steep hill and that little clicking sound is thrilling, but it's all make-believe and you know it. Publishing on the other hand is the real deal. You actually fear that you won't survive the experience.
(UPDATE: I've just worked out the metaphor. It's like this: You think you're ready for the controlled danger of a roller coaster. You're at the amusement park, dressed appropriately, strapped into the ride. Your friends standing in line waiting for thier turn. THey smile, you smile back. As the ride pulls away, you notice something about the cute 17-year-old boy running the machine. Is that a crack pipe in his hand????)
But I digress...
Pen/Faulkner winner, Kate Christensen, looks really young, but she has lived through a wide-range of publishing experiences. Her first book sold well, but wasn't taken seriously. The next one was released just in time for 9-11. The third was taken seriously by critics, but sold very modestly. And then the fourth title, BANG. Pen/Faulkner.
I love some of the things she has to say in her essay. It's not a sappy "keep on, keeping on" sort of essay. It's more about the terrifying and exhilarating range of possibility.
(via Joyous)
March 20, 2008
What Not To Do
I saw this over at Practicing Writing:
You may remember that the Wilesden Hearald short story contest was called off last year because the judges could not find one single short story worthy of the prize. Some people cheered, as this was seen as a return to standards, and others thought the judges needed to just get over themselves.
Well, the paper has decided to post a list of 27 common mistakes they found when sorting through last year's submissons. Many of the listings are quite helpful, so it's worth a look.
This is the best one:
3. Undifferentiated characters. A name is not a character. Pinky said this, Perky said that, Blinky said something similar and Pisky said the same, as the old wartime song might have gone. Each character should be a complete person, with their own C.V. if you like, their own history, temperament, habits, weaknesses, plans, objectives etc, though these need not and should not be explicitly listed as such.
And this was by far the worst:
24. Ankles. Particularly ankles in Asia. But I don't want to be overly negative and turn critique into a despicable blood sport, because there have been many charming, fascinating and amusing entries from the sub-continent as well as from Africa and other (to me) strange places. As a matter of fact, I’m not at all sure that Ankles in Asia, though it sounds worryingly now like a rare disease, is not in fact a virtue. Let a thousand professors dream of butterfly kisses with a thousand feisty young neighbour girls. And please do try us again with wonderful tales of African village life and politics.
Now, if this means what I think it means, it is kind of problematic that writng from developing countries is sort of seen as a "genre." I don't know if the qualifier "(to me)" when describing other countried as "strange" keeps it from being an ignorant, provencial, and probably racist remark. And that last sentence about "wonderful tales of African village life..." Is it me, or is this really condescending??
March 02, 2008
Just Because You Haven't Heard Of It...
Rule #1 for teaching creative writing: Just because you haven't heard of it, doesn't mean it's not true.
A few years back, I taught a one-week workshop in California. One of my students, a woman in her sixties, brought in a manuscript that I found to be a little bit hard to believe. It was a strange experience. She was a beginning writer, so the work had a lot of the hallmarks of a newbie just starting out-- a lot of extra words, clunky transitions, etc. On the other hand, there was a sort of passion on the page and the author herself was nervous in workshop-- signs that point to fiction that borders on autobiography. But at the same time, the story was just sort of far-fetched. I didn't know what to make of it.
Since I could tell that the author has put her whole heart on the page, I led the class discussion with kid gloves. The story was about a young girl who was sent to a home for unwed mothers, back in the 1950s. Frankly, I couldn't get myself to believe that pregnant girls were sent to live in facilities designed to humiliate them. For example, the pregnant girls were not allowed to walk in the front door. I found the community reaction as depicted in the story to be flat. Certainly no one spit on her when she said she was pregnant?!?! The conditions reminded of the treatment of blacks in the Jim Crow south!
I know that a more experienced writer can make a reader believe what she ordinarily would not, but this was a workshop for people who are just finding thier voices. At this stage in her writing, she wasn't ready to try and convert non-believers.
Flash forward a couple years:
February 18, 2008
Obama Is Messing With My Manuscript!
Here's a writing issue. My new novel, "The Outside Child", is set in Atlanta, circa 1987. Check out this paragraph decribing one of the characters, paying special attention to the last line:
Raleigh isn’t bad looking; he’s just really white looking. White enough to pass. My mother claims that she knew right away that Raleigh was a black man; she says it was something about his elbows. But my guess is that when she saw him with James, it was clear who was in charge and what real white man would let James call all the shots? None that my mother ever heard of, so she started checking out his body and found something about his joints that confirmed her hunches. And even she admits that in winter, when his elbows and knees are covered, he’s as white as the president.
So here is the issue. This line made sense in 1987, when the narrator is speaking, but since it may not make so much when the book is published, do I have to change it? And even if I don't have to change it, should I? Does the line have less kick if Barak, Michelle, and those beautiful girls are sleeping on Pennsylvania Avenue?
November 24, 2007
Sexual Healing
It's award season everybody and the "Bad Sex Award" long-list has been announced. The award ceremony promises to be great fun with the bad passages read by an actor. (And I guess this is one time we should celebrate the lack of diversity in the list of finalists.)
I got a kick out of this list, but it got me to thinking about what makes a good sex scene, well, good. One of the best sex scenes I have ever read is by Toni Morrison in The Bluest Eye. The coupling in question takes place between Cholly and Pauline Breedlove, Pecola's parents. What makes it work for me is the way that the power struggle in thier marriage is played out in bed as well. Another memorable sex scene is in Percival Everett's Erasure. In this scene, Monk describes sex with a colleague as being like riding a bicycle.
You may wonder why I think these sex scenes are good even though they are not exactly sexy. I choose these examples because the sex between the characters works as character development and also layers the conflict in the overall novel.
There is a little bit of sex in my second novel, The Untelling, but it's not hot sex. Aria and Dwayne have an uncomfortable encounter as they are trying to get pregnant. (At least he is.) The characters have had sex many times before, but I thought that this moment was the only one worth sharing in the novel because it was the only time thier sexual experiences were really interesting and character-developing.
Now, if you were to ask me about the hottest sex scene I have ever read.. well, there is no titillation like adolescent titillation. (Indie rockers Royal Pink have a song called "Judith Krantz" that is totally dedicated to this principle.) So, that said, the hotter that hot writing award goes to Judy Blume for the two explicit pages in the novel, Forever.
notes:
November 07, 2007
The Wallet and The Roadtrip-- Explained
Here is the explanation for the pop quiz posted on Monday.
My mentor Ron Carlsonturned me on to this idea back in 1996 or so when I was working on Leaving Atlanta. I think I have blogged in the past about my two-steps-forward and one-step-back writing process: I can get a good 100 pages into a project and realize that I am going about it all wrong and I have to start over. (My second novel, The Untelling, underwent THREE do-overs!) These set-backs used to devastate me. I couldn't understand why I couldn't get it right the first time. That's when Ron told me about the wallet.
Being a writer is about making mistakes. Big mistakes. Being bold it about trying new things that probably won't work. The key to success is how you feel about these missteps.
The people (24% of us who took the poll) who get happy just because they realized that the wallet was missing are in the best position. These are folks who just love being on the road. These folks are really into the process for its own sake.
I am in the middle (along with another 24%) who feels disappointed but am able to regain my rhythm once I have corrected the mistake. I'm the driver who will curse all the way home, but pop in a new CD and set out singing.
The rest (52%) will be mad until they have written enough pages to make up for the "bad" pages. These folks will look at the page count on their computer and think "I would have been finished by now if I hadn't spent all that time writing from the wrong point of view..."
The lesson, get happier earlier. We do this thing because we love it, right. Learn to love the whole thing. You'll have more fun and do better work.
November 05, 2007
The Road Trip & The Wallet
This has to do with writing, take my word for it. Think of it like a Cosmo quiz-- you know the ones that try to explain how the way you eat pizza determines who you'll marrry. Answer the question below and I'll get back with you on Wednesday to tell you what it all means.
Here's the set up:
You are on a road trip, in a fabulous mood as you burn up the highway. About 100 miles down the road, you realize that you have forgotten your wallet! You make a u-turn, go back home, get the wallet, and then set out again.
September 30, 2007
The Yucky Factor
Stephen King is the editor for the newest edition of Best American Short Stories. If you are not an MFA graduate, you probably don't even know that this series exists, let alone that an inclusion in the yearly collection is resume gold for a young writer trying to find an academic job.
In this NYT essay, King talks about his experience looking for the years best stories. I had to chuckle since one of my favorite games is looking for connections between the editor and the contributors. (I have found the geography is a huge factor.) Anyway, King talks about literally searching on his knees for little literary magazines. (I love the image.)
King also makes this excellent point:
What’s not so good is that writers write for whatever audience is left. In too many cases, that audience happens to consist of other writers and would-be writers who are reading the various literary magazines (and The New Yorker, of course, the holy grail of the young fiction writer) not to be entertained but to get an idea of what sells there. And this kind of reading isn’t real reading, the kind where you just can’t wait to find out what happens next (think “Youth,” by Joseph Conrad, or “Big Blonde,” by Dorothy Parker). It’s more like copping-a-feel reading. There’s something yucky about it.
Yeah, yucky, indeed.
September 20, 2007
Stephen Lance On How to Be An Artist
You absolutely need a delusional amount of courage, commitment and energy to pursue a creative path. My experience is that fall back positions are useless; you are either an artist or you're not. if you have the heart of an artist then take the risk and do it. and if you're rewarded with money then great, if not it doesn't matter. the process of being an artist is purely personal and subjective so don't weigh it down with objectivity. i once tried to deny the creative path and it really doesn't work. on the other hand, if you look deeply into your heart and see no artist, then avoid it all costs...as it's generally a kick in the pants most of the time.
Read the whole interview over at Lux.
September 11, 2007
Daly's Is Having A Sale!
It's no secret that I love myself a nice writing pen. I often go to pen stores and drool over the $500+ instruments, but when it comes to my personal collection, I like to keep it in the fifty dollar range. When I write, I like to have something pretty in my hand, something a little heavy, but not something that I am afraid of breaking or losing. Fountain pens are my favorite-- I have about four or five each filled with a different color ink. Each day, I choose different one for my work so I can remember what I wrote when.
Anyway, Daly's is my favorite on-line pen shop. (The brick-and-mortar location is in Milwaukee.) The prices are already pretty reasonable, but right now they having a great sale . Also, the customer service is great. When you call, you talk to a real person who will not treat you like you are crazy just because you are in tears over purchasing the wrong cartridge.
I am jonesing for a new pen, but truly, I can't say I deserve one. I have not written 100 words since returning from MacDowell. Sigh. I am not blocked or anything, I have just been ripping and running with the new job, still trying to get my apartment unpacked, recovering from a really aggressive haircut, etc..
But if I were to get a new pen, I would get a Sensa!
September 06, 2007
Judy Blume's Updates
While on the subway yesterday, I was listening to "Wait, Wait! Don't Tell Me" on my iPod. (This is a peek into the life of the Urban Nerd.) Anyway, Judy Blume was a guest and she mentioned that she had "updated" some of her more popular novels for young people. For example, the mimeograph machines in Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing have been replaced with Xerox machines. Another change is that the archaic feminine hygiene products in Are You There God, It's Me Margaret have been made up to date. I am not sure how I feel about this.
When I read Are You There God.. in the fifth grade, the feminine hygiene products were obsolete even then. I had no idea what a belt had to do with getting your period, but it didn't interrupt my enjoyment of the story. I was surprised when I heard the author say that this detail was causing new readers not to be able to "relate".
I worry about this assumption that readers have to be able to "relate" to a story to understand or enjoy it. (I even hate that word, "relate".) I think this is just a way that people can read without having to grow. The mimeograph machines in Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing are an authentic detail of the 1970s, when the story is set.
Ms. Blume said that she didn't want kids to have to ask their parents about the details in the books. She wants them to think that she wrote the books "just for them".
This struck me because I never felt like Judy Blume had written her books "just for" me. As a little black girl, I loved loved loved Judy Blume, but I knew that I wasn't the audience for them. Quite frequently, I didn't quite "get" the issues in the stories. The names of the characters were unfamiliar to me and I sometimes didn't know how to pronounce them. (One that sticks with me is Joel. I couldn't decide is it rhymed with Noel or not.) The religious conflict in Are You There God baffled me. Margaret had to decide whether to join the YWCA or the Jewish Community Center? I had never even heard of the JCC! And who knew The Y was religious? In my community, it was just the place where you took ballet lessons. There was so ideological or spiritual dimension at all! Did this pull me out of the book? Did it make me less of a fan? No, indeed. I thought it was just fascinating. Furthermore I felt like I was Margaret-- flat chested, nonreligious, and hoping to make friends-- even though I knew I wasn't. That's what art does.
So question is whether this modernizing is dumbing down Judy Blume and if it sets a dangerous precedent.
Thoughts?
Ana Clark weighs in.
August 21, 2007
Tiphanie Yanique on Her Superpower
My life is kind of nuts now-- just getting home from Callaloo, getting ready to peek in at Breadloaf, and still unpacking.. so I haven't had an opportunity to really address this excellent and important essay by Tiphanie Yanique.
The essay, "My Superhero Secret" traces Yanique's development as a writer and a thinker in a world that doesn't offer much support. She writes about the way women play down thier smarts in writing and in life. She suggests that it is a way to confront the sheer disbelief with which our accomplishment is often met. My summary isn't doing justice to this piece, so again, I urge you to check it out for yourself.
Meanwhile, here is an excerpt:
It’s about being able to protect your own incredibleness when it seems others can’t accept it. It’s a private joke. It’s a quiet knowledge to hold above people when you feel they’ve kept you down.I don’t recommend this kind of strength. It’s a kind of trick power. Isn’t this how women have failed themselves, each other and even men, again and again? We like to play dumb; even us black girls dye our hair blond. We fall in love with men who mistreat us…and we stay with them and say it’s for their own good. We wear shoes we’re more likely to fall down in—and somehow feel more powerful in them. Are women writers any different? I own those shoes. I’ve fallen in love with that man.
thank you, joyous, for sending this link!
August 11, 2007
Revision is the Fun Part
Mark S. has posted some thoughts on revision. His discussion revolves around F. Scott Fitzgerald who was famous for his sweeping changes to what he thought were finished manuscripts.
As I am teaching at Callaloo this week, I am thinking quite a bit about process. When it comes to first drafts, I have very little advice. My teacher, RC, used to say, "Do what you have to do to survive the draft." After that, the fun stuff, revision, begins.
One of the best part of being a writer is that you can revise without fear. Just imagine if you were a painter-- if you make a change, you have altered the project and there's no real turning back. But us-- we make a change and just save it as a new file. If you feel you've done more harm than good-- no worries, you still have your original.
Often young writers are afraid to experiment with revision. I sometimes make a suggestion or give an assignment and the student may say "But that would change the story!" My response is some patient of reasoned version of "So what?" Changing a story can be a good thing. And, again, if it's not, you can always go back to where you were.
I wish I could remember where I heard this first: "Revision is like plastic surgery. You come out of anesthesia looking like a freak, but then the swelling goes down, the stitches come out, and voila." During the school year, I often ask my students to show me a revised draft of thier stories. A week or so before thier new drafts are due, they come to my office looking miserable. "I've ruined it," they say. I look at the drafts and often they are sort of terrible. I can tell where things have been moved around, or where scenes have been roughly augmented, etc. "Take it through one more draft," I tell them. "You need one more draft to be able to see the benefits of what you've done."
August 08, 2007
The Glimmer Method
The Vail Daily News posts an article today about Pam Houston. I am a big fan of hers-- "Waltzing The Cat" is one of the best short stories ever; I teach it every term. I have had the pleasure of meeting Pam on two occaisions: one was at the Tomales Bay Writing Conference last year and the other was at a bizarre job interview. (She was great, everyone else was sorta nuts.)
Anyway, back to the article. Pam talks about ber process. I've long known that her work is heavily autobiographical, she often speaks of it. The situation is such that the lawyers at her publishing company ask to give a little disclaimer before she speaks, lest her ex-boyfriends decide to sue. (She never disclaims and they have yet to litigate.)
She explains her process of writing as looking for "Glimmers." She searches her memory for the shiny places in an experience and writes from there. In the article, she talks about some of the "glimmers" from her recent trip to Tibet. I thought that was pretty interesting as I am shifting my technique in my fiction classes a little, encouraging students to draw on their own memories. (I used to discourage the mining-the-past approach for fear of getting students hung up by "but that's how it happened!")
OK. Back to the article. This is the sentence that stopped me cold:
Indeed, some of Houston's contemporaries have called her the ultimate cannibal since essentially, she writes her experiences and hardly ever makes anything up. Sometimes she's writing just 10 days behind her life, she said.(bold added by me)
Ten days?!?!? She can write about something that happened just last week?? Whoa.
I have tried to write about memories when they are fresh, but it always ends up being too, well.. raw? This is particularly true for strong emotional content. Many times I had sat down at the computer in tears, trying to convince myself that I can convert whatever disappointment into Great Art. The best revenge is writing well!Well, I cut that out because I could write pages and pages of autobiographical melodrama and end up even more depressed for being such a hack.
Now, when I am upset, I go just for icecream. The best revenge is dulce de leche.
via galleycat
August 07, 2007
B.L.T.L.
I spoke with my agent today, mostly to wish her a happy birthday. Anyway, she asked about the new novel. I told her that it was coming along... then that pleading sound came in my voice. "I'm working as fast I can.. I think it's shaping up nicely. Would it be okay if I have a draft by Christmas???" My heart was churning in chest.
Madame agent said, "Take your time. Let the novel come. As I always say, 'Better late than lousy.'"
What a concise paraphrase of the SOS Band: "Baby you can do it, take your time, do it right..."
July 26, 2007
Final Word-O-Meter
As I approach the end of my seven week stay at the MacDowell Colony, I am delighted to post my last progress report.
July 16, 2007
Writers's Block? Writer's Break? Breakdown?
I am not sure what to call what I have been experiencing for the last few days. It seems wrong to cry "BLOCK" whenever the words don't come streaming from my consciousness to the page. I have been writing like crazy for the past four weeks, but for the last four days, I am just sort of out of ideas.
At the risk of sounding weird. I feel like a bottle of lotion that is almost empty. You can press the pump top aainst and again and it makes that weird noise and you might get a little bit of product,but basically, it's time to refill.
Back when we were doing The Artist's Way, there was a lot of emphasis on Artist's Dates which were activities to nuture your inner artists. People wrote in about all of the wonderful field-trips they were taking. I am wondering if I need to get out and do something that doesn't involve sitting at my writing table, because I think I have drained myself dry.
I am not ready to say that this is a writer's block. The word block implies that something is malfunctioning. When a bottle is empty it's not that the bottle is broken, it's just empty. So, this is not a block; I am just ready to take a much needed writer's break.
July 12, 2007
Weekly Word-O-Meter
Before I post today's tally, check out Ms. Peri (on the right margin), Michael (star pupil), who are posting word counts too!I know there are others that I am missing. Please send me your url so I can put you on for next week.
This is week 5 of my residency at The MacDowell Colony. So far, so good. Here area the results:
Stay tuned for next week... And if you have the urge to post your own word-o-meter results... that's what comments are for!
July 11, 2007
The Lazarus Factor
Often when I talk about my writing process, I speak about the unfortunate reality that I often write hundreds of pages that don’t make it into any novel. As shorthand, I say that I “throw away” these pages. But the truth of the matter is that I save them on my hard drive under goofy files names to help me remember what is what. The thing about these pages is that for the most part, they are “true”.
By “true”, I mean story-true. One really good example is the excerpt of Leaving Atlanta that I ended up publishing as a short story called “Press and Curl.” (For folks not familiar, here is a brief recap. In Leaving Atlanta, one of my main characters is Octavia, a spunky little girl who is crushed by the death of a classmate.) In “Press and Curl”, she gets her hair pressed for the first time in preparation for the funeral. In the universe of Leaving Atlanta, it is true that Octavia got her hair done in the kitchen of a mean old lady whose fine white hair looks like “somebody stretched spider webs over a bowling ball.” However, in the course of revision, I ended up cutting that whole section because the emotional intensity of the story was so high by the time Octavia is prepping for the funeral, that it didn’t make good novelistic sense to devote so many pages to a hair style—although I really really liked that story. It even won a prize.
On my computer now, there is a folder called “Numero Tres”, referring to my third novel. There are all manner of subfolders with names like “Second 100”, “2006 Baby!”, “Post Miriam”, and “At MacDowell.” All of these folders are crowded with scenes, even full chapters. In total they equal up to about 370 pages although, I have only 185 pages that I (as of now) consider to be really part of what will be the finished novel.
Yesterday, however, I had a best-possible case scenario moment, what I am calling the “Lazarus Factor.” A chapter of backstory I had written about a year ago, suddenly (with a little tweaking) became relevant. Although I lecture my students that no writing is wasted—after all, it helps us to understand the characters better—it is still a little distressing to labor for days or weeks of passages that end up being irrelevant. Being able to use something in a cast-off folder is sort of tangible proof that no writing is in vain, that you never know what those pages might be good for.
I use the name Lazarus to evoke the biblical figure who is resurrected. I thought about calling it the “Ambergris Occurrence “ because it reminded me of the chapter in Moby Dick when they happen upon the whale vomit that turns out to be worth a fortune. (I rejected that handle because it is too obscure and too gross.)
When I post my weekly word-o-meter tomorrow, you will see the “Lazarus Factor” as a new category. It’s such a gift, for which I am grateful to my muses.
July 05, 2007
Weekly Word-O-Meter!
This is week 4 of my residency at The MacDowell Colony. So far, so good. Here area the results:
Stay tuned for next week... And if you have the urge to post your own word-o-meter results... that's what comments are for!
June 29, 2007
REJECTION SECTION
Here's a kooky website that posts real-life rejection letters. Don't ask me why it cracked me up so much. One day, I'll share the rejections on my hard drive. Let me assure you that they are not pretty... And, for a more sober view, my agent, the fabulous Jane Dystel, tells why she chooses some projects and rejects others.
(thx ed for the rejection link)
June 28, 2007
Weekly Word-O-Meter!
This is week 3 of my residency at The MacDowell Colony. So far, so good. Here area the results:
Stay tuned for next week... And if you have the urge to post your own word-o-meter results... that's what comments are for!
June 25, 2007
Looking For My Mantra
I just listened to a podcast of the NPR show "Here and Now" featuring Paula Cole. She has been out of the music business for seven years after her big hit “Where Have All the Cowboys Gone.” She is back now with an album called “Courage”, which is produced on a small label. I can’t say that I am a big fan of Ms. Cole. I know almost nothing about her music, but I was really inspired by the interview.
Apparently Paula Cole broke up with her record label and was told that she would never make another record. (Maybe you remember her showing her unshaven armpits at the Grammys.) One of the things she said was that performing the same songs over and over and answering the same questions in the exact same way felt increasingly inauthentic to her. She then sort went underground, developing her life and her self and didn’t start making music again until she felt the music calling her, not the industry.
When asked what Courage means to Paula Cole, she says the word was her daily mantra when recording the record, making for a fitting title. Simply put Cole says, "I am searching for the truth. Somewhere, it's in the music."
I am working very hard to take a step back from all the industry talk. If I am seated at dinner and the conversation turns to agents and deals, I try to emotionally pull back, to think about something else. I know that since I am already a published author, it isn’t fair for me to urge people who don’t yet have agents to try not to think about agents. I don’t want to be like the happily married woman who urges her single sisters not to worry about finding love.
June 21, 2007
Weekly Word-o-Meter!
This is week 2 of my residency. I am pleased to report that my mojo is still working. Here area the results:
Stay tuned for next week... And if you have the urge to post your own word-o-meter results... that's what comments are for!
June 15, 2007
A Lock of My Own
Yesterday, I posted my "word-o-meter", which will track my progress on my novel while I am here at MacDowell. I must confess that I have written as much in the first week as I did in the last three months! I have been trying to figure out why this is so. I mean, I know MacDowell is a nice place. (Someone came into my room yesterday and changed my sheets! Lunch was delivered to my door!) But there must be more to it than lunch and linen.
MacDowell has provided me with a "room of my own", but that can't be the secret. I have a room of my own at home. As a matter of fact, I have two of them. Three, if you count the living room. And when I was living in DC, I had about seven rooms of my own, so why wasn't I getting work done?
I keep thinking about Renee Simms' guest post from a couple of weeks ago, "Jazzing My Way Through", when she talks about cobbling the time together to write while she meets her obligations as a teacher, a mother, a wife, and a daughter. I kept thinking: What Is My Problem? I don't have or husband or kids that need my attention. I don't even cook dinner for myself, so why can't I focus myself to write? Why did I have to come all the way to New Hampshire to do what I could have done right there at home in my foot-pajamas? Is there a way I can take some of this MacDowell mojo back home with me?
June 14, 2007
Weekly Word-o-meter!
Today marks one week that I have been at MacDowell. I am pleased to report that the writing is going really well. Here area the results:
Stay tuned for next week... And if you have the urge to post your own word-o-meter results... that's what comments are for!
June 07, 2007
What Not To Do
Over at Buzz Balls and Hype, Joshua Henkins gives advice to writers who are just getting started. The article is called "Letter to an MFA Student", but I think it has value for anyone who is trying to figure out how to write a good story. Here is one nugget:
I once had an undergraduate, a talented writer who wrote a story that could have been called “Stuff I Thought While I Was in my Car.” Her protagonist drove somewhere, passed places she recognized, people she knew, and gave the reader her observations, often quite eloquent and insightful, about what she witnessed. Line by line, the material was quite good, but in no meaningful way was it a story. I think subconsciously my student was hoping that the forward movement of the car would substitute for a deeper narrative forward movement. But it didn’t, and simply putting your character in a car will not make a story a story.
There's more where that came from. It's an essay in three parts, so read it when you have some time.
June 01, 2007
Meet Guest Blogger, Renee Simms
As you all know, I sometimes find myself in conversations with 
writers and I will cut them off in mid-sentence and say "Please write about this for the blog community!" Well, last week, was one of those occaisions. I was talking to Renee Simms about how she manages her full and busy like. She works, she goes to school, she writes fiction and poetry, she has two kids, and husband... You get the idea. She started explaining and then I asked her to write us a guest post.
But before she tells us her secret, here is a little biographical info: Renee Simms' work appears in North American Review, Inkwell, African Voices, Voices from Leimert Park, and elsewhere. Her awards include a Cave Canem fellowship, a Voices of our Nations Arts fellowship, and a PEN Center Emerging Voices fellowship. She's taught creative writing to middle and high school students in Los Angeles and Phoenix. This fall, she will teach at Arizona State University.
May 18, 2007
The Name Game
All the unpacking has giving me time to muse and when I muse, I usually muse about writing. While I was going through my stuff in Jersey, I found a book of baby names. Someone gave it to me to help me find names for my characters. I never opened it.
My students like to use this tool for finding names. They flip through the book and find really unusual and pretty-sounding names for their characters. I sometimes suspect that these are names for which they would like to trade thier own. I don't recommend this method as I think you just end up with names that give more information about the writer than the character.
March 09, 2007
The Terror of Showing New Work
I've just posted the opening to my novel-in-progress, The Outside Child, which I read at the AWP conference last week. A few people emailed and asked me to post it. To tell you the truth, I probably would have been more comfortable posting a photo of myself in my foot pajamas and satin bonnet! Why, because showing new work always makes me feel like a rookie.
Ladylee has an amusing post up about me reading from Leaving Atlanta-- five years after the book's publication. My knee-jerk response is to say that unlike a carton of milk, a novel has no expiration date. But also, there is a certain comfort zone in reading something that has already been tried and accepted. Every time you show your work or read from it, you're putting yourself out there. Sometimes it's great, and sometimes it's a little ouchie.
So, with no further ado. Here's The Outside Child.
The Outside Child
Below is the excerpt of my novel-in-progress, presented as a headline reading at the 2007 AWP Conference, held in Atlanta, Georigia. (February 28-March 3)
My father, James Witherspoon, is a married man. He’s been that way since before I was born, when he met my mother, Gwendolyn, at Davidson’s downtown. She was working in gift-wrap at the time, and he came to her counter with the electric carving knife that he had bought his wife for their ninth anniversary. My mother says she knew that something wasn’t right between a man and a woman when the gift is a blade. I say that maybe that means that there was a kind of trust between them, that he thought he could give her such a weapon and still sleep peacefully at night. But I don’t have to tell you that my mother and I tend to see things a little bit differently.
The point is that James’s marriage was never hidden from us. “James” is what I call him. His other daughter, Chaurisse, the one who grew up in the house with him, she calls him Poppy, even now.
When most people think of bigamy, if they think of it at all, they imagine some bizarre practice taking place on the pages of National Geographic. Some of us in Atlanta remember one sect of the Back-to-Africa movement, headquartered in the West End. The women were dealt out four to each man. From time to time, you can still see them, resplendent in white trailing six paces behind their mutual husband. If you spend anytime in beauty parlors, you will hear tales of new widows surprised at the funeral by the other grieving widow and her five kids.
It’s a shame that there isn’t a true name for a woman like my mother, Gwendolyn. My father James is a bigamist. That is what he is. Laverne is his wife. She found him first and my mother has always respected the other woman’s squatter’s rights. But was my mother his wife, too? She stood with him in front of a judge just over the state line in Alabama, but to call her only his “wife” doesn’t really explain the full complexity of her position.
February 05, 2007
When Good Advice Comes Back, It's Even Better
Part of what we're doing in The Artist's Way is figuring out which people in the world are our allies in arts. I've been working hard to weed out my "poisonous playmates", while remembering to value the people who nurture me and my work.
Here's a story:
When I was just finished with Leaving Atlanta, and getting going on The Untelling, I went to my mentor Ron Carlson for advice. I had about fifty tender little pages. Should I send them to my agent? Ron said, "Depends." I said, "Depends on what?" He said, "Do you like the pages? Do you feel like you're on fire? Are you in the zone?" I said, "Yes, yes, yes!" And Ron said, "Then don't show it to your agent yet. She's going to say that she likes it, but.." Then he looked up at the ceiling and started talking again. "She's going to say that she likes it, but she was thinking you should write something with-- I don't know-- civil war reenactors. And then you're going to be looking at your fifty pages trying to figure out where you're going to put those union soldiers."
Of course, my agent has never pushed for me to include the war between the states in my books, but I got the point: Don't invite outside meddling until you absolutely have to.
Apparently, I passed this advice on to my friend, Bryn.
Just yesterday, she passed it back to me in a much shortened form: "NO! Don't forget the Union Soldiers!"
It was just the boomerang I needed.
What's the best advice you ever got from a mentor? Did you pass it on? Has it come back yet?
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Category:
The Artist's Way
, Writing
January 20, 2007
What Are You Wearing?
Nichelle Tramble has this great feature on her blog called "What's On Your Desk," where writers send her pictures of thier writing areas and say what they have there and why. I think we should start one called "What Are You Wearing?" Folks can send in pictures of themselves actually writing. And I think a real picture of a writer at work would be really really inspiring. And if not inspiring, demystifying.
And if you to are too shy to be photographed, you can just tell us about it. (But I would really love photos.)
December 31, 2006
KUUMBA!
Today is the sixth day of Kwanzaa, Kuumba. (My good friend, Jafari, created the beautiful Kwaanza display pictured here.)
Today, January 31, is the day to celebrate the creative arts and the creativity in each of us. The official website of Kwaanza explains the principle of Kuumba as:
To do always as much as we can, in the way we can, in order to leave our community more beautiful and beneficial than we inherited it.
I really like this broadly drawn application of creativity. So often, we describe someone as "creative" only if she is a writer, painter, dancer, etc. But each of us is creative and we can put this gift to work every day. Sweet Honey in The Rock performs a lovely song called "Seven Principles". With their breath-taking harmonies, they interpret the seven principles of Kwaanza. For Kuumba they sing, "All that we touch is more beautiful!"
Let's spend this day touching everything and everyone that we can.
November 23, 2006
Happy Thanksgiving
Today is Thanksgiving. Last night, I received an instant message from a friend who asked what I was up to. I told him that I was clearing off my desk so that I could get up in the morning and write. “On Thanksgiving?” he said. “That’s dedication.” When I got up this morning, made my coffee and sat down at my cleared-off desk, I didn’t feel dedicated. I felt lucky, blessed, and grateful.
I am grateful for many things. There is a sort of shared roster that most people give thanks for this time of year: family, friends, health, and prosperity. And, of course, I value all these aspects of my life, but today, I am thinking of another angle. Today, I want to give thanks for my writing. By this I mean the writing itself. I am not talking about the books I have published or any honors I have managed to win. Right now, sitting at my writing desk in my pajamas and stocking cap, I am grateful for having this love in my life.
We have had some discussions on this blog about dreams. We wondered whether or not everyone has dreams, if dreaming is a part of being human. At the end of the day, we decided that not everyone has a passion or a burning life-long interest.
I have wanted to write as long as I can remember and I have actually written ever since I figured out how. On Thanksgiving Day, 2002, I gave thanks for the publication of my debut novel, Leaving Atlanta. I was so proud of myself for “reaching my dream.” By Thanksgiving 2003, I was wondering, “Now, that I reached my dream… what next?” Today on Thanksgiving 2006, I have figured out that the beauty of dreams is that they are never reached. My dream was to be a writer, not to publish a particular book or win a certain award. My dream-state is when I am sitting at my desk, pen in hand. This is when I feel most alive. It’s when I love myself the most.
Today I want to give thanks, not for any “gift” I may have when it comes to putting words on paper. The thing about living in your dream is that it really doesn’t matter so much how good you are. It’s how good you feel while you are doing it.
Happy Thanksgiving, Everybody. Do your thing. Gratefully.
November 15, 2006
Writing High In The Friendly Skies
I have a confession to make: the writing hasn't been going all that well. I have been sort of stuck for the last few weeks. But the good news is that something broke loose today while I was making the seven hour plane ride from DC to Portland. I can't say what brought it on. I wasn't in first class. I wasn't even in a window seat. Before I boarded the plane, I bought a yellow legal pad (for about 4 bucks!)
During the quiet time-- before they allowed me to turn on my iPod-- I took out my pen and started scribbling. I mean this literally, I think I was trying to draw. Or maybe I was trying to make a list to help me better understand my life. Regardless of what I was trying to do, I ended up working on the next chapter of my new novel By the time I landed in Portland, I'd written six pages.
The spirit is mighty, is it not?
November 08, 2006
Poetry Gets Political
Rigoberto Gonzalez is blogging over at the Poetry Foundation. He's talking, race, class, gender, ethnicity, and MFAs.
November 01, 2006
100 pages down...700 pages to go
I am happy to announce that I have written 100 pags of my new novel. Right now, it's called THE BIGAMIST'S DAUGHTERS. (And, to the helpful souls that will write in: I already know about that other book with a similar title. I'm deciding what I think about that.)
Anyway, I have 100 good-looking pages here. And to think that I only had to write 287 not-so-good pages to get them. For me, this represents and increase in efficiency. For The Untelling, I wrote about 1,400 pages to get 324.
I am imagining this to be a 350 page novel and I am hoping to write about 800 pages to get 350 that are useable. This used to break my heart, all these discarded pages, but I've kind of accepted that this is just the way I work.
But the point is that I am at page 100. The 187 discarded pages are behind me. They are stored in the same emotional drawer with bad ex-boyfriends: I learned. I moved on. So let's raise a glass to the present.
And then tommorrow, it's time to set out on page 101.
October 19, 2006
And The Lucky Winner Is..
I just heard from a very reliable source that the winner of Nichelle Tramble's manuscript critique was someone from THIS blog community. Congratualtions. Since you bid under a secret name, I won't divulge your true identity....
October 12, 2006
Be Honest With Me!
A former student recently shared with me a draft of a novel. "Be honest with me," she said. "Should I just throw the whole thing out and write something new?"
The honest truth is that this is a decision only the writer can make. The bookends are entirely your own decision. No one can tell you what or when to write, and no one can tell you when to give up.
October 02, 2006
Rejection from the Other Side of the Table
The nice folks at my agency have a new blog up. This time, agent Jim McCarthy, talks about what it's like to send rejections:
About once a day, I get an e-mail from someone who is not taking rejection sitting down. They often tell me that I’ve made a terrible decision. Many point out that I’ve passed on the next Da Vinci Code. And that may be true. I don’t know anyone in this business who hasn’t regretted a rejection letter they’ve sent. I vividly remember seeing a project I had turned down displayed in a publisher’s catalog for the first time. I had a hunch when I first read it that there might be something there, but I eventually passed thinking it wouldn’t play. Oops!
Read the rest.
September 29, 2006
Letter To A Young Writer
I rec'd this query via email.
Hi Ms. Jones, I'm wondering what advice you would offer to a young African-American writer of literary fiction, particularly one without prior publications, MFA credentials, or industry connections. I have a completed novel manuscript and have begun to send queries to agents, but I know how uncertain that process is for someone in my position. So I am eager for any suggestions that might help my process. Thank you very much for you time and consideration. I hope you are well.Best,
J
July 25, 2006
do you outline?
I don't. I'd rather stick needles in my eyes. Really. For me, I write the story to figure out what's going to happen, to get to know my characters. My good friend and mentor, Pearl Cleage, uses a character chart to get acquainted with the people in her books. She gave me copy about fifteen years ago and I tried really hard to use it.
July 24, 2006
COMMUNITY WRITING WORKSHOP in DC
Class meets, Tuesdays, 6:30-8:30
September 12-Decemeber 5
As I mentioned a few months back, I have the honor of being the Jenny McKean Moore Writer in Residence at George Washington University. To apply, you need not have academic qualifications. Writers who are at the beginning or intermediate level will benefit most from this weekly workshop. The class will focus on reading short fiction by established writers as well as roundtable critique of work submitted by class memebers. There are no fees to attend the class, but you will be respinsible for making enough copies of your story for all ten participants. (Students at GW and consortium schools are not eligible to apply.)
To apply, please sent a letter of interest (by US mail), outlining your experience with creative writing and your motivations for taking the course. make sure you include you name, address, home and work telephone numbers. Enclose a 10-15 page sample of your work. If you wish to have your sample returned, please include a SASE. Applicants will be notified of acceptance by September 1.
Applications must be postmarked by August 25th, but the earlier you send, the better.
Fiction Workshop
Department of English
The George Washington University
801 22nd Street (Suite 760)
Washington, DC 20052
June 17, 2006
Q&A With Shalema K. McGee
Fresh out of college, Shalema K. McGhee moved to New York to try to make a career in trade book publishing. If you read Black Issues Book Review, you’ve read plenty of articles about the young black stars of publishing. But I thought we would spend a little time with Shalema and hear from someone still in the trenches, someone who is still trying to make her way.
Posted at 07:29 AM | Comments (3)
Category:
Guest Bloggers
, Writing
June 12, 2006
Ladies, Submissions Are Needed
Calling all women writers who have works that specifically illuminate an aspect of Black men and their bodies. KADUMA is a coffee table photographic art book, shot by Tony Smith,
of Black men artfully painted and adorned by Joseph Hampton. KADUMA wants poetry, essays, and flash fiction to be included however, the writing in it will come from women.
The submissions will be juried by Toni Asante Lightfoot and Arthur Ade Amaker.
April 28, 2006
Likeability?
What's your position about likeable charaters? I've been told that they key to a successful novel is that you have to have a main character that readers will "fall in love with." I am not sure where I am on this issue. I can see how reading about a character you "love" can draw a reader into a novel. I am thinking about the strong emotional reaction a lot of folks have to Celie, Shug, and Sophia from The Color Purple. But what about the characters in Sula? I didn't particularly like any of them as people, but I do love that novel.
March 14, 2006
P.O.P: Pt. 2
Well, it seems like angry women are on a roll. Yesterday, we got to hear about Kate Braverman's smack-down of her publishing house, and now Annie Proiux let's everyone know how pissed she is about the fact the Brokeback Mountain didn't get best picture. I tell you, it is all very inspiring. I've got axes to grind, myself. Maybe I'll discover my inner angry-exhibitionist??
(via Maud)
February 06, 2006
175 Words of My New Book
Okay, folks. I am working on a new novel. I am working HARD on it. I think I had forgotten just how difficult it is to get a project going. In this, novel writing is the opposite of romance. With love, the fun part is when you first meet, when you are just buzzing around, high on the whole potential of it all. And when it ends, it's because you have run the damn thing into the ground.
Writing a novel another matter all together. The rush comes at the end, when the project is almost over, when you can't wait to finish it although you know how much you'll miss it when it's gone. It's a strange thrilling masochism-- running at full tilt toward what you know will break your heart, but you're just dying to get there. The ugly part, all the heavy-lifting, is in the beginning, when you are unsure if you are going in the right direction, unsure if it will "stick." And this is where I am now. So, with no further ado, dear Readers, I am going to let you read the first 175 words.
To quote Eddie Murphy in Boomerang (yes, I am just THAT black): Be gentle.
December 04, 2005
I've Been Tagged
Nichelle Tramble has "tagged" me! This means that I am to write fifteen interesting facts about my writing/reading life. It's going to be hard since I am so confessional here on my blog. What is there that you don't already know about me? The assignment is fifteen things, but I am going to just do the best I can. Okay, here I go. And these are in no particular order. Ahem.
November 22, 2005
Tayari's Favorite Things
Monday, Oprah announced her "favorite things" for the holidays. You can go to her web site to check it out. You can even click for a printable shopping list. I hope you have several thousand dollars to blow, because Miz O is drawn to high-ticket items. ($150 corduroys anyone? $10,000 watch?)
Anyway, I was thinking of a gift guide for the writer in your life, even if that writer is yourself. So here are some tangible things that have enriched my writing life:
November 15, 2005
Quotable Quote
One of my students brought this little gem to my attention:
A good novel tells us the truth about its hero; but a bad novel tells us the truth about its author.
--G. K. Chesterton
English author & mystery novelist (1874 - 1936)
November 10, 2005
"Universal" is a 4-letter word
The other day, at a bookstore event, I was asked "How much of your writing is 'black' and how much is 'universal.'" Holy cats. Are people STILL asking writers that????
This is one of those moments where I wish I could go back and say something different that what I said. The question caught me off-guard. I am pretty sure that the man, (who was white), didn't mean anything neccesarily offensive by the question. But, it's two days later and I am still, annoyed, alarmed, and more than a little pissed off.
Let me explain.
November 02, 2005
Novemeber is National Novel Writing Month
On your marks, get set, GO! The goal is to write a short novel of about 175 pages (50,000 words) by November 30, which happens to be my birthday. Shall we all sit down and get our collective scribble on? Yes, let's. Here's the NaNoWriMo website.