I've lived in the country most of my life. I still live there now, in fact. Fifteen miles from the nearest city, and that's only the one that was recently deemed a city by popular vote (Sanford is now called the City of Sanford).
As much as I love the country at night, having my window open to hear the peepers and crickets, there's just something about the city that entices me. Driving or walking around Portland in the daytime is food for my creative side. Here's what I like about the city that always manages to get me excited to put pen to paper:
PEOPLE.
They're always around in the city, even when it's quiet. Who are they? Where are they going? What is their life like? Just the other day when I was driving to a friend's apartment, we were stopped because a bride and groom were crossing the street in front of us. That image excited me! I wanted to know more about this big day for these two people. It definitely gave me thoughts for a story.
BUSTLE
There's such a life going on in the city. Many meetings of people, establishments, and stores. There are so many things to see, and so many places to take your attention. I love to shop, and just seeing different stores is enough to energize me. So many options to choose from. It sure beats the two stores available near my house! While the country is generally the same most of the time, the city is always moving and always evolving as new people move in and try to make their mark on humanity.
Lastly, FOOD
Taste is often a sense that I forget to include in my writing. How much does taste influence our experience in a new place like the city? I know that going out to eat is definitely one of my favorite things to do - when I'm not exhausted and ready for a night crashed on the couch. Think about the fishing industry in Portland. All the fresh catch ready to be tried. Local breads and pastries. Even local drinks! Don't forget those.
So, those are just three of the reasons I love the city. I will always be a country boy at heart, but I just can't ignore the calling for excitement every few weeks. Hopefully this inspiration will turn into another aspect of my latest storytelling.
Thursday, October 3, 2013
Wednesday, October 2, 2013
Short Stories As Relaxation
I've been working on a short story for a few weeks now - from idea to actually writing it down in my notebook, and I've found that having this little short tale in between working on two mammoth (in my case) projects has been mentally and creatively refreshing.
Think about it. You just got done writing and editing upwards of 50,000 words. That's not chump change! My novel wasn't as long as many other romance books simply because it is written in the third person and follows a few different POV characters. A lot of the longer books I've seen are written in the first person and only show the view of the heroine. That's something I'd like to try sometime soon, but for now, I'm focused on this short story.
Working on a short piece forces you to hone your storytelling craft. Do your beginning, middle, and end all work? What about character? Are you getting the most out of these people in the short amount of time you have? These are great things to practice. I used to do a lot of short films and, let me just say, the story structure was and still is essential to any short narrative. It can't be about nothing. It has to have a precise goal and you have to hit it. We'll see if I do once it's published!
Give writing one of these 7,500 pieces a shot. Who knows? With eBooks, short stories are finding a new life.
Think about it. You just got done writing and editing upwards of 50,000 words. That's not chump change! My novel wasn't as long as many other romance books simply because it is written in the third person and follows a few different POV characters. A lot of the longer books I've seen are written in the first person and only show the view of the heroine. That's something I'd like to try sometime soon, but for now, I'm focused on this short story.
Working on a short piece forces you to hone your storytelling craft. Do your beginning, middle, and end all work? What about character? Are you getting the most out of these people in the short amount of time you have? These are great things to practice. I used to do a lot of short films and, let me just say, the story structure was and still is essential to any short narrative. It can't be about nothing. It has to have a precise goal and you have to hit it. We'll see if I do once it's published!
Give writing one of these 7,500 pieces a shot. Who knows? With eBooks, short stories are finding a new life.
Tuesday, October 1, 2013
Why Print?
Since launching my eBook Macyntire & Hough, I have received a lot of push-back about it being just a Kindle book. The plan has always been to have a print version via CreateSpace, but I just haven't formatted the text for that platform yet. Needless to say, I am making it a priority now that there has been a good deal of interest in my circle of friends and acquaintances. Whether or not the book actually sells to more than just my family remains to be seen. Yet, having a print edition of my book will be a great personal accomplishment, and definitely make it easier to provide books as gifts once Christmas comes around!
Here are my thoughts on formatting for print at the point where I am right now - preparing to export a PDF to submit to CreateSpace. (If you haven't checked out their options for print-on-demand, I highly suggest you do so! It's very exciting stuff, and perfect for a newcomer to book formatting such as myself)
I do have a background in print layout. I worked for two years at the University of Southern Maine as a graphic designer for the music and theatre departments. Essentially, the students and staff would give me the text for their recital and play programs and it was my job to be sure that it was all formatted correctly, spelled correctly, and printed nicely with the pages ready to fold and staple if needed. That meant a lot of calculating and a lot of mock-ups. If you don't know what a mock-up is, basically it is a test print that is used in the roughest sense to figure out which pages need to be where before printing.
These skills are essential if you are planning your book for print. There need to be blank pages in certain areas so that your first chapter doesn't start on the back of a page, and so on. The amount of time it takes will be worth it in the end. You also need to be sure that your margins are set up correctly. I've noticed on professional paperbacks before that some of the margins are too close to the edge of the page and that means that if your book is well-read, the pages can get worn down and the text will become destroyed. I did not like this and had to replace a few books in the past because of this issue. Make sure you give the text space! It's the most important part of your book.
Personally, I really love physical books - even though I'm a huge supporter of Kindle and other eReaders. Having the ability to get a book that was written by an independent author via Kindle is so exciting, but I still have to have my physical copy of everything JK Rowling and Stephen King write! Hopefully someday someone will say the same about my own work. Even if it is just my mother! (She's waiting somewhat patiently for the print edition of Macyntire & Hough...another reason to get going!)
Here are my thoughts on formatting for print at the point where I am right now - preparing to export a PDF to submit to CreateSpace. (If you haven't checked out their options for print-on-demand, I highly suggest you do so! It's very exciting stuff, and perfect for a newcomer to book formatting such as myself)
I do have a background in print layout. I worked for two years at the University of Southern Maine as a graphic designer for the music and theatre departments. Essentially, the students and staff would give me the text for their recital and play programs and it was my job to be sure that it was all formatted correctly, spelled correctly, and printed nicely with the pages ready to fold and staple if needed. That meant a lot of calculating and a lot of mock-ups. If you don't know what a mock-up is, basically it is a test print that is used in the roughest sense to figure out which pages need to be where before printing.
These skills are essential if you are planning your book for print. There need to be blank pages in certain areas so that your first chapter doesn't start on the back of a page, and so on. The amount of time it takes will be worth it in the end. You also need to be sure that your margins are set up correctly. I've noticed on professional paperbacks before that some of the margins are too close to the edge of the page and that means that if your book is well-read, the pages can get worn down and the text will become destroyed. I did not like this and had to replace a few books in the past because of this issue. Make sure you give the text space! It's the most important part of your book.
Personally, I really love physical books - even though I'm a huge supporter of Kindle and other eReaders. Having the ability to get a book that was written by an independent author via Kindle is so exciting, but I still have to have my physical copy of everything JK Rowling and Stephen King write! Hopefully someday someone will say the same about my own work. Even if it is just my mother! (She's waiting somewhat patiently for the print edition of Macyntire & Hough...another reason to get going!)
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