Fifty Shades

My dearests!

I emerge from my cave that has swallowed me to proclaim:

You all need to read Fifty Shades of Grey.

Rosecuervo is currently tearing through the my copy and because I haven't heard from her in hours, quite out of the ordinary for her, I know she is enjoying it much like I did.

Rosé has already said that she would probably do a review of the book on her blog when she finishes so I will not steal her thunder. So what is this blog post actually about? It's about not taking shit.

What could that possibly mean? Exactly what it says. I actually emailed the author, EL James, and she responded. Promptly and politely I might add. In summary, I just said how I enjoyed the book and how she took something that could very easily be construed as sleazy and made it beautiful.

But as a writer, even at the lowest levels, you will not always be met with positive reviews. What you might find insightful and brilliant someone else might consider boring and contrived. A stellar example of this is Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. For those who aren't familiar with the premise, the book is about a boy who may or may not have Aspergers (they talk about test being inconclusive and then give him savant tendencies) whose father died in the September 11th attacks. I found the book fairly interesting as it weaves the family story like a braid focusing on the younger generation but relating their problems to the older generation's issues in WWII. It's fairly impressive. And while the book is interesting and fairly well written look at the central components.
1. Aspergers Syndrome
   -I have a problem with how this is and Autism Spectrum Disorders are portrayed in the media anyway, and this makes it worse. Not every child is a savant and there is a great deal of harm being done when this is the only way the disorder is presented.
2. September 11th
    -Does this need an explanation? Granted, we have no idea how soon Titanic movies were being made after the disaster and it would be hard to determine how much money was made off of it in the sudden aftermath. But one hundred years have gone by. There are hardly any, if any survivors. September 11th was ten years ago. People are still feeling the effects. Many critics have said this is an insult to the families still dealing with the pain that day caused.
3. World War II
    -Believe it or not there are still people who are not over this war. And there are a lot of issues that surrounded this war that are still brought up. That was the age of Eugenics, the age of fear and some might say an age ignorance, and we're still dealing with cultural clashes involving race and religion (see almost every article written about 9/11). We may be far removed from this time, but it still has its grips.


I've already said I enjoyed this book, but see how others might not?

Now ask Jonathan Safran Foer how he feels about my comments.

Everyone is a critic and when you put yourself out there, you put yourself out there to be critiqued. But if you love what you do then don't stop. It's hard, but thicken that skin! My personal favorite, and maybe this is the darker side of me, but I relish harsh words. I want to be pushed, I want to be discouraged and beaten down. When I get knocked in the dirt it makes getting up and doing it, whatever it is that I want to achieve, that much sweeter.

Sincerely,
S. Darkly

Not Quite Finished Yet

Kudos to whoever knows where I got the title for this post.

I decided I wanted to share a little list of novels, short stories, and poems that I find particularly inspiring and wonderful. They provide readers with entertainment and writers with some terrific examples of the writing we should all emulate. Obviously, this will be the first of many.

1. The Great Gatsby
    F. Scott Fitzgerald

No I could not have only posted ONE photo. That would not have been enough. Normally I am not a fan of novels being adapted into movies but there are some exceptions, and this is the greatest. Read this novel and then read about the life of the Fitzgerald's, both Scott and Zelda. It's a tragic love story much like The Great Gatsby and ironically enough, Fitzgerald penned them both. 

Aside from my crazy infatuation, this is a splendid novel that is a fairly frank depiction of the life that consumed America in the 1920's. Both sad and lovely this masterpiece gives all literature fanatics what we really want, one hell of a story. 

2. A Farewell to Arms

    Ernest Hemingway

Yes, I love the Jazz Age. No, all of my recommendations are not from this time period. 

A lot of Hemingway's work revolves around the same idea of war wounds man mentally or mentally and physically, there is a girl somewhere, the end is tragic and involves the rain. How then do you ask can I love this and suggest it? Because it's beautiful. It's two books in one. You get the love story between Henry and Catherine and the war novel where as a reader, you question humanity. As a writer, you question how a mere mortal created this dream of literature. 

That's Hemingway, clacking along on his typewriter. 

3. The Phantom Tollbooth

    Norton Juster

This book is the greatest manipulation of the English language ever. Milo is the central character and on a day when he decides he has nothing to do, a magical tollbooth arrives to show him the magic of every day. He travels through a magical land and, spoiler alert, realizes how amazing the world truly is. The manipulation mastery is found in every chapter of the book. My personal favorite is when Milo and his companion Tock, a watchdog (a dog with a watch for a stomach) who ticks because his parents misnamed he and his twin, are driving passed an island called Conclusions and the only way to get there is by jumping. Get it? This is pushed as a children's book but I think that's a little absurd. For example, there is a scene where everyone in Dictionopolis must speak kindly because they eat their words, literally. They feast on their words. See what I mean? 

That's Tock. Honestly, I don't even know if children today know that's what a clock can look like. They expect to see digital numbers. 

4. Anyone Lived in a Pretty How Town

    E.E. Cummings

My absolute favorite poet ever. I have a lovely little anthology that have his poems separated by theme, so love, death, religion and it gives a little biography as to when and why these themes were particularly important. This poem is wonderful because it tells the love story of two people. But, it isn't in your face about their relationship, you have to put the pieces together. It's truly brilliant. 

And wasn't he attractive? 

5. The Veldt

    Ray Bradbury

For a lady who loves short stories I sure put a lot of novels, huh? Then I give a super random short story? Jeez! Well, read this short story then you'll know why I included it. I'm not saying it's the most important short story ever written, but it has some terrific qualities. First, this piece is still relevant despite being written over half a century ago. Find an author who says they don't want their writing to transcend time, and I'll show you a liar. Secondly, you know so much about this family and it only takes you about five pages depending on where you read it. It's amazing the way Bradbury introduces you to an entire world that you know so much about with relatively little information. It's minimalist writing at its best. 

A Month Later

And I'm back!

Between school and therapy I have been drained and I barely have time to bathe and breath yet alone do enjoyable activities. Thankfully, Spring Break has allowed me time to myself and with beautiful nails and a screwdriver I begin to type this post.

How freaking cute right? That's what's on my nails and it was 5 dollars! 

I'm visiting Prince Charming for the remainder of my break and since he works most of the day I worked on my still nameless novel. Then it hit me like a ton of bricks. I'm about fifty pages in and if I had it my way I would got through those fifty pages and add about ten more. I have almost the opposite problem of most writers and it is my sincere hope that there is someone else out there who is like me. I typically find I need to add to my writing.

Does this mean I never have to cut out anything that I write? Absolutely not, there are no absolutes, except for the Absolut in my beverage. No. I mean that as a writer who adores reading and writing short stories it is fairly difficult to commit and write a novel. I believe my longest short story was roughly five pages, rest its soul. It was lost to technology when my old computer, lovingly named Big Mac, journeyed into the great beyond.

Oh there I go getting sentimental. Perhaps some back tracking/flashbacking would be helpful.

Get the Delorean ready!

In high school I took accelerated courses in English so from eighth grade until tenth I was only required to take my English classes at the local community college. Eleventh grade I decided to pick up the English classes at the high school to
A. Torment a teacher.
B. Learn from this teacher because he's a literary genius.
C. Some academic reasons that have long been forgotten.

Anyway, at this point my writing and textual analysis skills were fairly superior to my peers because for all intents and purposes, they hadn't actually taken an English class ever. Since I had experience my teacher and I would have more in depth discussions on our reading and the rest of the class just listened to us argue back and forth. But on the days when he actually focused on the rest of the class I had fifty minutes to myself and on these days I just did some free writing. In my accelerated course my assignments included writing papers and some creative writing projects and I used this time to focus on them. You can't write a novel in fifty minutes so I wrote short stories.

Which brings us up to the present day. I consider myself a short story author and on my better days I very pretentiously say I write poetry. And a novel is nothing like either of these disciplines. In a novel I can get into the heart and soul of a character, they can change over time, they don't have this huge epiphany where their world flips on its axis. I can have more than a single character to focus on and I don't have to choose a single personality and likes and dislikes and speaking style and mannerisms. The essence of short story is the quickness with which the story conveys everything and the focused detail. The reader focuses on what the author wants you to focus on because it's relevant.* Often, you read a short story like a poem, slowly with the understanding that you will not be able to really experience the work the first time you read it. Novels have the luxury of having some leeway. Not to say you can vomit up some adjectives and call it a day, but a novel is like a television series where a short story is more like a movie.**

 THE POSSIBILITIES ARE ENDLESS.

There are so many things I can put in this novel and, there is no harm in doing so because I can eventually just extract it if I find it more cumbersome than enabling to my story! Yet I still find myself thinking to myself, "I should explain that more if I want this to tie in.", "Does her dad really need a background story?" and "Do I actually want to kill that person? Do they work better alive rather than dead?"

But that's what I think about people I meet in real life and when we get down to it, writing is just describing the real life that doesn't exist.

Sincerely,
S. Darkly

* Hills Like White Elephants is a phenomenal example of the focus I described. Hemingway isn't actually just describing the terrain people.
**Yes, I understand that a movie is longer than a television show, but I said series. Series can last for years and can really travel into who a person is whereas a movie has to move it along.

S.O.S., Shit, Outlines Suck

   Again, a terribly long hiatus. In an attempt to be a better writer, and an all around better person, I have decided that I will improve my time management skills. So much to see and do and such a short life to squander it on Tumblr, Stumbleupon, or God forbid, Facebook*. Self-Help section over. Writing time.

   As I said before it has been quite some time since I've posted, and the post that I'm commenting on is even older. The post was made by my delightful friend Rosé on outlining. While I love her dearly, we differ in our writing styles (more about this later, maybe readers will get a collaborative blog post?), but the focus of this blog, outlining. In fact, we are polar opposites when it comes to outlining. As stated in her post, Rose is constantly trying a new system of organization and that's fabulous. It makes the writing process much easier if you have an idea of where you want your characters to go and what you want them to be doing. For example, and this example is based off of Rose's baby which she is diligently writing as I blog**,  if you have a story with a couple main characters who aren't a pack (think Harry, Hermione and Ron) then you will have some trouble deciding what role they will play, when the will play it, when they will play it, and how they will play it. Rose has this in her work as there are main characters and then characters who are central to the plot, but not necessarily "main" and then characters who are important, but not central or main. Keeping that many characters, and those types, organized can be like wrangling toddlers for nap time. You know it's going to be a positive thing that will make everyone involved happier, but those little shits don't have that foresight and want to continue doing everything else but sleep.

   I do like Rose's suggestion about having color cards correspond to aspects of you story and sorting everything out before you start to write. That can be extremely helpful, especially when you hit a road block. Those are the days you climb on the struggle bus and whip out your cards so you can still be productive, you're still focused on writing, but you can still feel like someone extracted your brain and replaced it with a pile of garbage from a fratdaddy's*** trash can.

   But where do I come in? By now I think we all know I come when I want and here I am.

   I don't outline. Maybe a little, but I'm that artsy person who wants to "feel" their characters and "hear" their characters. And let me tell you right now it is bullshit. It is not professional and I am trying desperately to find a way to balance that with effective outlining techniques. But honestly, that's how I write. I got my idea for the book I'm writing one night at four am when I woke up to go to the bathroom. The only reason I remembered this flash of brilliance in the morning?
1. I have the weirdest sleeping antics which, if you are lucky, I will share here some day.
2. In my scenario I set up Leonardo DiCaprio was the main character and I thought about him later that day.

How is that relevant?

First, write more stuff down. If you aren't one to really outline and you wait for those bursts of creativity, for pete's sake be ready to document them. Don't stop there either. Remember where you documented them. Even better, on my nightstand somewhere in the midst of my T. Rex, painted margarita glass, pug picture and menagerie of books is my notebook. Not the cheesy one with Ryan Gosling shirtless. My writing notebook. It's a little notepad that I got at Staples in a three pack and it's my lifeblood. I get an idea, I write it down. I think of a name, I write it down. I have a short story in my mind that won't leave me alone long enough to think about ANYTHING else, I write that sucker down. This in itself is a great thing because you can go back in a couple weeks when you hit that inevitable rut and you can be reminded of what your work was, is, and will become.

Secondly, and this is me being a fan of old school techniques (a blog post later will go into greater detail of this), notice the verb littering that paragraph above this one? WRITE. You are a WRITER. You WRITE books. Would it kill you to back away from your computer and WRITE something? I mean this sincerely, all caps lock aside. My heart aches for the days of fountain pens, which I know are difficult to use, but my heavens the beauty of the script. Your name becomes elegant and rich when written with a fountain pen. But I understand that always having a fountain pen on hand can be rather problematic and we want our writing to be unhindered. That's why we aren't outlining, right? However, a pencil or pen is not difficult to obtain. Trust Ms. Darkly, your writing will thank you.

Finally, if you are not going to outline, and this is going to sting, your writing will suck when you first write it. Will you have descriptions that blaze a picture not into your mind, but into your heart? Yes. Will you have dialogue that you swear is too good for you to have written? Yes. Will these sparkly writing gems be few? Yes, and they will be far between and it is your job as a writer who does not believe in outlining to "listen" to your characters. Especially when they tell you it's time to make some changes.

Sincerely,
S. Darkly






*Do yourself a favor and end the insanity now. You will love your life without Facebook.
**Literally and figuratively. And I've read some of that sucker, it's a wonderful example of writing beautifully.
***Yes, I said "fratdaddy".

Ms. Darkly in the Dorm with Her Computer

Sorry for my absence chickadees, and by chickadees I mean the one person who is probably reading this.

I learned something tonight and it is my desire to share it with you. No, your significant other may not watch. My writing tips are intimate. Foreplay, anyone?

Currently, I am a slave in the hallowed halls in an institution of higher learning. Yes, college. Most things are enjoyable but there are a few things I dislike.

1. Group work
2. Slow walkers
3. Having to post my response to student formulated questions on an education forum for a class.

I do love the class, History of Education in America. The instructor is from a small town in Tennessee, has her eyebrow pierced, and is a drama nerd who quotes Fight Club. I think that encapsulates her nicely. She mixes her grad student vibe to relate, sense of humor, and honesty to be one kicking teacher. All those things combined made me accept that I would read the summaries of education articles and respond to questions posed by my peers.

Here's where the action gets going.

One of the articles was about how schools are thinking of doing away with recess. My first thought?

Someone was beat up on the playground and now everyone will be punished.

That playground is apparently the international market and that child that got beat up is America and those being punished are the Joe Smiths who make this country go round.

In answering the question(s) I let myself get carried away. The assignment says to write a paragraph. Well I wrote two. The answer was insightful, it was passionate, more importantly it was accurate. I drew examples from my personal life, then I used a double meaning to transition into my next point, and finally I put a small irony cherry on top. Answering that question felt amazing.

Here's the part where I turn my trick...over to you.

Take absolutely every opportunity you are given and write your heart out. This assignment I was given was a four point assignment that will only be worth ten percent of my grade. Not much. But that doesn't matter. What matters is that I wrote what I felt in my heart. There is no doubt in my mind that the other students in my class will have a strong reaction to what I wrote. That's because I had a strong reaction to what I wrote. People who wait for the "right moment" to write often miss out. As a writer, you hold the power to create that special, prefect, dare I say it again, right moment to write.

Since it is a little late and I'm feeling especially spent after that burst of activity, I'll present some great examples.

Texting your mother? Use a simile to tell her how you feel.
    -It's simple really, but it's a little thing that goes a long way. Talking to your mother that is, she gives great advice and always wants to be supportive.

Emailing your boss? Try to avoid a word you overuse
   -Take this opportunity to rediscover an old word, but dear god don't use a thesaurus. It takes the fun out of it.*

Chatting** with a member of the opposite sex? Everyone loves a classy and clever double entendre.
  -Notice how I said classy and clever. Keep that in mind. Anything else and you're coping out and not making the most of you opportunity.

As always, I hope you enjoyed our time together. Please don't be offended that I'm not the cuddling type.

Sincerely,
S. Darkly


*I have nothing against Thesauri. But the point is to explained your mind, not to sound like a pompous jerk.

**You're right. Chatting isn't writing. But why can't a good conversation one night lead to a stellar dialogue in your short story the next?

Use It or Lose It

"...your sex life is nobody else's business. Quit worrying about begin judged, and do what you can to cut judgmental people out of your life. Respect yourself, enjoy your sexuality, and ignore the haters." - Coke Talk

That quote comes from the advice column of one of the smartest ladies I've never met. 

But Scarlett, what does this quote and incredible lady have to do with writing? 

I'm so glad you asked.

First, replace sex/sexuality with writing. Enough said

Second, I don't know who she is or what she does but there is much to learn from her. CT, as she will be referred to here, has an amazing voice. And that is the topic of this post. Use your voice or you will lose it, or much worse, if you don't use it you will never develop your voice. It's obviously not the only aspect of your writing, but your voice, or the voice of your characters, is going to make your writing relatable. That connection is crucial for any writer but especially for a new writer with no established reader base. A fun, and perhaps solo project for developing voice might be a technique actors use known as method acting and since I love CT I will use her as an example. 

There you are sitting in your coffee shop, your dorm room, or your small apartment in Big City, Somewhere. As you are, male or female, might not necessarily be able to formulate the voice of a strong independent woman, but look who we have. Coke Talk. Read her work and personal blog or even her clothing and jewelry boutique. (Do you see why this woman is one of my idols? She also has her Master's degree and some kicking job in L.A.). For the rest of the day imagine how she would handle a situation. Someone messed up the coffee order? What would Coke Talk do? Jerk at work come on to you...again? What would Coke Talk do? Maybe a more positive situation. Someone buys you a drink at the bar What would Coke Talk do? Think like your character. Talk like your character. Hell, walk like your character. Doing so will get you to understand your character better which in turn makes you write them better. 

Coke Talk not your cup of tea? Understandable. Look up the show Summer Heights High. It's an Australian show where one man plays the part of three characters. They include thirteen year old Jonah, the middle aged (and seemingly gay) Mr. Greg Gregson, fondly known as Mr. G, and finally sixteen year old Ja'mie King. Yes I spelled that correctly. Chris Lilley is the man behind this and I plan to write an entire post about him later and his ideas on characters and their development. Maybe I'll even post a video. But since that is coming later I will leave you with this...

1. Plagiarism is deplorable. If you don't have enough neurons firing off to think creative thoughts step away from your computer, pencil, typewriter, whatever. In reading the work of Coke Talk or watching Summer Heights High or his other works, you are not meant to copy them. You are meant to learn from these people and see what they do that works and maybe what you feel doesn't work. But don't copy. 

2. The "What Would CT Do" is an extremely clever play on the WWJD and there is a bracelet you can purchase from CT with WWCTD. Here's the link for the shop. 

Sincerely,

S. Darkly

The First Time

     I don't care who you are and what you say. Your first time is not magical. That same idea goes for your first blog post. It is teenagers groping at parts they can't talk about with a straight face. It is short. It is awkward. It is messy. Like other first times, I am doing this because a friend did. Rosé as she is known in my circle of life, is into the Young Adult sphere of writing and I am simply into writing. She got a blog and in her few posts she has demonstrated a couple of things:

A. She is going to be one hell of a writer.

B. The internet/blogging can be beneficial for writers. 

That foreplay was fun. Let's get awkward. 

     I am not a bad writer. In fact, I have moments when I write something and I can't believe I wrote that. But I am a beginner and I have much to learn. Much like the oldest profession in the world, you never stop learning, never stop trying new things, you never stop surprising the people who purchase your service, and most importantly, you never stop surprising yourself.

Now let's get messy.

There is a piece inside every person on this planet that is turned off. It's that piece that is shunned and hidden, but to be a good writer, you need to turn it on.

 That's me. I'm Scarlett Darkly. If I were to meet you, it might be a pleasure to make your acquaintance. 

I am turned on and now it's your turn and I sincerely hope this blog turns you on. 

Sincerely, 

S. Darkly