Archive for December 2008
The unexpected
I’m often questioned as to how I can be surprised by something that happens in the book that I am writing when I am the one doing the writing. “Don’t you know what’s going to happen next?” Oftentimes the answer is no, and this is one of my favorite parts about writing. Here’s a great…
Read MoreMy beginning with Mr. Compo
In the acknowledgments of Something Missing, I thank Mark Compopiano, my high school English teacher, for teaching me that “words can change minds.” I had always wanted to write, but Mr. Compiano, my English teacher in high school, made me believe that writing was possible. When I entered Mr. Compo’s English class, I thought of…
Read MoreMy writing group
About six months ago, I gathered some friends who are interested in writing and formed a writing group. We meet about once every other month and discuss our work. It’s quite a varied group. We have fiction writers, poets, a singer/songwriter, essayists, and a pulp fiction writer in our ranks, and the work that we…
Read MoreInternational
My mother-in-law found Something Missing listed on the Japanese version of Amazon today. Kind of neat. Huh? While I’m not certain, I think this is actually an English version of the book, being sold in Japan. As far as I know, the international rights to the book have been sold to publishers who will translate it…
Read MoreOne step closer
The Advanced Reader Copy for Something Missing arrived today! An ARC is (in the words of Wikipedia) a copy of a book released by its publisher before the book has gone to the press. ARCs do not have the final dust jacket, formatting, or binding of the finished product. The text of an ARC may…
Read MoreStrunk, White and the placenta
Last night Elysha and I attended our final birth class. Though the first two classes were highly informative and well worth my time, this was the class that included the breathing exercises and the dreaded videos. Not a night to remember. It turns out that the breathing exercises are merely a diversion from the pain.…
Read MoreHow to make your wife cry
I have many reasons to write, and most are of the high-minded, creative sort. But I also like to make my wife cry. It was a Friday in May, and I was at work. My students were in art class, gone for an hour. My student-teacher and I were sitting at my desk, discussing lesson…
Read MoreLiterary and humorous
Each day, Something Missing seems to pop up on another bookselling website, and each time Google Alert informs me of this, it’s just as exciting as the first time. Though admittedly the book’s appearance on places like Amazon and Barnes and Noble were a little more breathtaking than the others. What I’ve found most interesting…
Read MoreStealing from real life
Something Missing is a work of fiction. Even so, there are elements of my own life contained therein. Several characters are loosely based upon friends and acquaintances, certain plot lines vaguely resemble actual moments in my life, and specific incidents and locales inspired parts of the story. Sometimes I think that Something Missing is little…
Read MoreWhen to revise?
Danny (an old high school friend, perhaps?) asks: When you write, do you draft everything quickly and then rewrite it later, or do you craft each sentence until it is done? Every writer is different. There are some who just blaze through their first draft as quickly as possible, doing all the revisions later on.…
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