To celebrate the release of Under the Empyrean Sky, I’m gonna just leave this post here today for you to ask me anything you want. Ask me about the book. About young adult fiction. About my other books or my future books or whiskey preferences or toddler-wrangling techniques.
Anything.
Anything at all.
I’ll swing by here around noon EST and answer the first volley.
Then I’ll pop by come evening and answer more.
BECAUSE I’M FUNKY LIKE THAT.
Further! I’ll toss some swag and free books and such to my favorite five questions.
What kind of swag? Hell, I dunno. FREE STUFF. Mmmm. Free.
I am very excited and also very nervous about this book release (I got seven other books out now with publishers and each time I still get that “I might vomit up a cloud of nervous moths at any moment” feeling on release day). I am maybe a leetle teeny weeny bit more nervous this time because this book was a riskier story for me. It’s young adult, more worldbuildy, more sci-fi-flavored, and so forth. Plus it’s got stuff about sons and fathers, about food and agriculture and my memories of farm-life. It tries to be exciting and yet say something at the same time — yet also say something without being preachy about it and aaaaaaah *head asplodes*
What I’m saying is:
It was a tricky book to write and I hope it paid off.
And so, my plea: I only get to keep doing this if you tell folks and those folks maybe check out the book? I live and die by the grace of goodly readers such as yourselves — and, more to the point, this website lives or dies in much the same way. My writing helps fund this website (and monthly costs are no longer cheap, sadly), and so it’s folks buying my books and talking about those books that keeps this whole set of plates spinning.
So, again:
Check out the book.
Tell folks.
If you’re so inclined to leave a review somewhere: yay.
I appreciate it.
This website appreciates it.
My two-year-old appreciates it.
High-five to each and every one of you.
Now ask me some questions, willya?
Eva Caye says:
Do you think violence and aggression are natural expressions, i.e. chemically-based, or do you think they are ‘programmed’ into us by our culture, or do you feel there are other ’causes’?
July 30, 2013 — 5:08 AM
terribleminds says:
I suspect they are natural expressions. Our biology asks for it, I think. But human ingenuity and creativity and compassion should help us to defeat that urge.
But I’m no HUMANOLOGIST, just a humble semi-clueless writer-type.
July 30, 2013 — 10:19 AM
Tharwat says:
Can a scene start and end with no conflict in mind? There is no conflict or anything it is just a scene -taking readers back in time- on how the protagonist met his wife. Or do I need to make meeting exciting and original? Thanks Chuck!
July 30, 2013 — 5:10 AM
terribleminds says:
I’m of the opinion that a scene is always better with some kind of conflict. That doesn’t mean like, NINJA ATTACK or something, but conflict is the food that feeds the readers. No conflict tends to be boring, at least for me.
July 30, 2013 — 10:20 AM
Kate says:
I am currently reading Mockingbird (no spoilers please!!) and I am also trying to work out how, just HOW your writing is so kick-arse. This story is RELENTLESS, how is your protagonist not dead yet, hahaha. My question is, how did you keep the flow going? It barely pauses for a rest break, it is breath-taking! Did that take a lot of re-writes?
July 30, 2013 — 5:22 AM
terribleminds says:
BRUCE WILLIS IS DEAD THE WHOLE TIME
Oh, ahem, anyway, yes! Hi! Thank you. MOCKINGBIRD was fun to write — I wrote the first draft in like, 30 days. And subsequent drafts were not significantly changed, which was neat.
Um — how do I keep the flow? I outline ahead a little bit to determine general structure of story and character choices, and then the goal is to complicate and escalate every chapter. Just keep making things harder — and keep twisting the tale for the audience.
July 30, 2013 — 10:24 AM
Kate says:
i did say, out loud, more than once “Oh my God Chuck, what are you doing to her NOW??” – haha!! Finished it this morning, it rocks!!! Thank you for answering my question!
July 30, 2013 — 3:43 PM
Lindy Moone says:
Wow, Chuck, what an opportunity! One might say it was destined to be, if one believed in that sort of thing. So, here’s my question:
“Have you ever experienced clairvoyance, or any other form of extrasensory perception?”
(I have a specific reason to ask this, and it’s laid out in a blog post I wrote recently about… YOU. Check it out while humming the theme to The Twilight Zone. http://lindymoone.wordpress.com/2013/07/15/quid-pro-ho/)
July 30, 2013 — 5:28 AM
terribleminds says:
I get deja vu semi-frequently, but that’s not really the same thing. Sadly, no psychic powers of foretelling! I can burn things with my mind, though. DON’T TELL ANYONE.
July 30, 2013 — 10:25 AM
Lindy Moone says:
Your secret is safe with me.
July 31, 2013 — 2:38 AM
Katherine says:
I’m currently attending a creative writing summer program at Cambridge University, and some of the people teaching here (there are many: lecturers, supervisors, program directors, etc) give me the sense that they don’t believe genre fiction can be anywhere near as good as literary fiction. I’ve given them some of my own arguments, but I’m curious what your thoughts are on this?
July 30, 2013 — 5:36 AM
terribleminds says:
This is sometimes true of academic writing programs. And it is, of course, mule shit.
The genre and literary divide is utterly imaginary.
Genre can be literary.
Literary can lean genre.
Chocolate and peanut butter. Both great, both with their own purposes, both mix well together.
July 30, 2013 — 10:26 AM
Sebastian Peters (@SebThePeters) says:
So I read the Blue Blazes not long ago, and I was hugely impressed with the quality of writing and plot and everything really. And then I happened to see the post on Adam Christopher’s blog in which he did your ten questions, and you said you wrote The Blue Blazes – 100k words – in two months.
So my first question – how in hell did you manage that?
And for my second – do you refer to your beard as a POWERBEARD?
(I refer to your beard as a POWERBEARD, FYI)
July 30, 2013 — 5:37 AM
terribleminds says:
I write 2000 words a day bare minimum. Er, at least, on weekdays. So, assuming 20+ weekdays in a month, I can write 40k in a month easy. And 2k is the minimum, I usually write 3k or more. So — if a story’s rocking, then two months I can have a pretty big book finished.
I do not refer to my beard as POWERBEARD.
I refer to it as “BEARDTRON, EATER OF LESSER BEARDS.”
— c.
July 30, 2013 — 10:28 AM
Pee Dee says:
With all the self-published stuff out there jamming up the Internet’s S-bend, how do you manage to rise above the considerable volume of chunks that should seriously have been flushed? “Write good stories” is the pat answer, but that doesn’t address how to be a big chunk in a toilet bowl filled with very mediocre diarrhea.
July 30, 2013 — 5:45 AM
terribleminds says:
Well, write good stories is part of it, but it’s also framing those stories in a professional way. Cover, editing, marketing. Also by connecting with readers in a not-so-promo way, like, just talking and being the best version of yourself. And it’s also about taking risks and putting yourself out there on the page and hopefully standing on the shoulders of books that didn’t do that.
July 30, 2013 — 10:29 AM
Jemima Pett says:
So what are your whisky preferences. And if they don’t include the Oban or the Balvenie, why not? 🙂
July 30, 2013 — 5:51 AM
terribleminds says:
Balvenie Doublewood is my go-to-whisky!
But Laphroaig is lovely for when I want to drink of BURNING DRUIDS.
— c.
July 30, 2013 — 10:29 AM
idreamofthought says:
Is the pen really mightier than the sword?
July 30, 2013 — 5:56 AM
terribleminds says:
The sword is the short con.
The pen is the long con.
I can kill a dude with a sword.
I can change the world with a pen.
July 30, 2013 — 10:30 AM
Tyro Vogel (@TyroVogel) says:
Pretty fucking poetic. Love it.
July 31, 2013 — 10:41 AM
idreamofthought says:
Thanks for scrolling down!
People forget that they have that power, the power to change.I could kill one person with a sword, but millions with dogma.
Thanks for the ideas, and advice and ambition.
August 1, 2013 — 6:22 AM
Patrick O'Duffy says:
What are we drinking when you get to Brisbane?
July 30, 2013 — 5:57 AM
terribleminds says:
As I will be in YOUR MYSTICAL UNDERLAND, I will leave the drinking choice to you. I dunno, then. Dingo blood? Koala tears? Some kind of rare spider venom? YOU TELL ME.
July 30, 2013 — 10:30 AM
Tyro says:
Congrats on the new book! Sup. Didn’t think I’d be asking you this (at least not so soon), but hey, why the hell not. So, my question to you, Kind Sir, is as follows: if I do yours, will you do mine? Ie., if (more like, when) I buy your book (Blackbirds) & review it on my site sometime in September / late August, will you review mine if I send you a free copy some time after? Muahaha. And by “review” I don’t mean “ZOMG PRAISE MY SELF-PUBLISHED EFFORTS N0W, OH YOU W0RLD THAT SEES BUT DOES NOT UNDERSTAND”, I actually mean honest-balls-to-the-wall review, even if you read the first 3 paragraphs and then fling your Kindle out of the window of a moving car in a crime of RageH8passion [that’s RAGE-HATE-PASSION], which would suck, because that’s dangerous. Or, in other words, I’m just curious what you’ll think. Heh. Excuse my syntax. Just woke up. No coffee. Madness.
July 30, 2013 — 6:02 AM
terribleminds says:
I don’t generally review books. In part a function of time and a teetering TBR pile — I mean, I’ll talk up books I love but I don’t find it useful to shout down books I don’t. I’m at a point where I don’t think my personal preferences against a book should rob an author of her or his income.
July 30, 2013 — 10:32 AM
Tyro Vogel (@TyroVogel) says:
Good answer. 🙂 Anyway, like you’ve commented somewhere in this thread (thread? blogothread!) about connecting with your readers, I very much respect your “just talking and being the best version of yourself” approach. There were a few authors that should go unnamed that I’ve “met” on G+ who have much less credits to their name than you do, and yet appear to emit an air that it’s above them to interact with mere mortals. Meh. So, yeah, respect & rock the fuck on!
July 31, 2013 — 10:50 AM
Torre – Fearful Adventurer says:
How do you manage to write so much? And do you realise that you make the rest of us look bad?
July 30, 2013 — 6:08 AM
Shonnerz says:
These are my questions! Chuck writes an insane amount of words per year and it boggles my mind. I don’t have a husband or kid yet can’t seem to write a paragraph a week.
What’s the secret? Is it drugs? Voodoo? A legion of writing fairies trapped in the cellar? I need answers!
July 30, 2013 — 9:53 AM
terribleminds says:
Slow and steady wins the race! Even 2000 words on every weekday will net you several first drafts in a year. That doesn’t account for editing or rewriting, of course, so that needs to get folded into the equation.
I don’t think it makes folks look bad, though! My quantity does not equate to quality. I’ve no idea if my books are even any good!
July 30, 2013 — 10:33 AM
Maura C. says:
How do you keep your interest up and a fire in the belly through the long writing process?
July 30, 2013 — 6:09 AM
terribleminds says:
I don’t, really. I always hit a point (sometimes many points) in a book where I’m angry at it or hate it or feel like the fire is smoldering.
The goal is to push through because writers are moody and often the worst judges of their own work.
I like to think if I had the fire in the beginning I’ll find it again before and at the end. And that’s been true so far.
July 30, 2013 — 10:34 AM
Paul Weimer (@PrinceJvstin) says:
Now with many novels under your belt, on top of that experience, what do you think your experience writing HUNTER and other gaming stuff taught you about writing novels and stories?
July 30, 2013 — 6:15 AM
terribleminds says:
It taught me to keep things interesting. It taught me that the audience is in a way complicit in your world and they want to be involved in some emotional or intellectual way. It taught me to hit my fucking deadlines and write like a sumbitch.
July 30, 2013 — 10:35 AM
robbieknight (@robbieknight) says:
Writing can be lonely. How do you deal with it?
July 30, 2013 — 6:20 AM
terribleminds says:
Dog. Toddler. Wife. Other books. Imaginary people. Pornography.
Perhaps most of all: TWITTER.
July 30, 2013 — 10:36 AM
Aaron says:
I want to read all of your books. What do you suggest I start with?
July 30, 2013 — 6:23 AM
terribleminds says:
It depends, really.
BLACKBIRDS seems to be the go-to read. It’s horrory-crimey.
BLUE BLAZES is good for straight-up urban fantasy.
Today’s release, UNDER THE EMPYREAN SKY, is more sci-fantasy, and is YA and dystopian (think HUNGER GAMES meets the novels of John Steinbeck).
— c.
July 30, 2013 — 10:37 AM
Alisha Miller (@hostilecrayon) says:
Random fan opinion: Start with Blackbirds.
July 30, 2013 — 10:38 AM
Lindy Moone says:
Agree.
July 30, 2013 — 12:15 PM
Paula says:
How could Patrick O’Duffy’s question NOT win?
July 30, 2013 — 6:23 AM
Paula says:
If you could have written any book in the history of writing, aside from your own, which book would it be?
July 30, 2013 — 6:25 AM
terribleminds says:
You know, it’s weird, but none of them. If I like a book enough, I don’t want to have been the one to have written it!
I mean, I guess maybe like, HARRY POTTER, just so I’d be flopping about on a bed made of money. 😀
July 30, 2013 — 10:37 AM
Ian says:
What was your favorite spot in the Florida Keys on your “research” trip (wink wink nudge nudge)?
July 30, 2013 — 6:28 AM
terribleminds says:
No wink wink about it — it was a real research trip. The novel CORMORANT unfolded very easily as a result from that trip.
I quite liked the remnants of the old Seven Mile Bridge. Broken off, rusty, empty. Great spot.
July 30, 2013 — 10:38 AM
Johann Thorsson says:
So… Mookie Pearl. Is his name a Pearl Jam reference? (The band was originally called Mookie Blaylock)
July 30, 2013 — 6:29 AM
terribleminds says:
It isn’t, though several folks have asked me that.
Here’s the secret truth: it’s a play off of Miriam Black.
M-names. And her name is black, whereas his name is indicative of something white.
— c.
July 30, 2013 — 10:39 AM
Jezebel Parks (@JezebelParks) says:
I had a dream last night that I was playing pinball, but the machine used pieces of chicken instead of a ball, and I was singing the Goo Goo Doll’s “Broadway” as I was playing. What could this possibly mean?
July 30, 2013 — 6:40 AM
terribleminds says:
IT MEANS YOU WILL BE VISITED BY A BACKWARDS-SPEAKING GOAT. HE WILL GIVE YOU A SMALL GIFT BAG AND INSTRUCTIONS WHERE TO TAKE IT. WELCOME TO THE REVOLUTION.
July 30, 2013 — 10:40 AM
Simon Townley says:
If you needed to market / promote a book from scratch, from no platform at all, and you could do only one thing, what would it be? (Yeah, I’m asking this in the hope there is ONE THING that might work ‘cos I’m lazy that way.) If you want to stretch to three things, that’s fine. But I’m interested in knowing how you see the priorities. Let’s assume the book is good, now you just need to get someone, anyone to give a rat’s arse and actually read the darned thing. What would you do?
July 30, 2013 — 6:42 AM
terribleminds says:
I would take a year to earn an audience and a blog and a Twitter following and talk about the book and —
See what I did there? I know, I know, it’s not one thing, but “one thing” rarely works. Books and the promoting of books is a rich and confusing tapestry. We earn audience through various steps, few of them fast.
I sadly have no good answer for you.
July 30, 2013 — 10:42 AM
Sharena (Shay Dee) says:
Hi Chuck.
I lurk here….often.
I may be lurking up your trouser leg right now, but we’ll discuss that later.
One day I would love to be a part of Angry Robots.
I don’t read YA, I got fed up of it a LONG time ago, however, the last piece of awesome I read that was YA was Melvin Burgess’s Bloodtide. Since then I’ve struggled to come across that kind of grit, now I’m faced with Twilightesque mental threeways, intsalove and questionable heroines. Zzzzz…
So, considering your blog (and the way you write your posts) I thought to check out your new YA book. The negative reviews looked promising. When I see people thumbing down a book for “grit” I know it’s most likely the book for me. Teenagers acting like teenagers is what I want to read if I’m going to read about teenagers.
My question to you is this: When you receive not-so-good reviews based on your choice of content for young adults, how do you (mentally or other) defend your choices? WHY do you think your content is appropriate for young adults?
Anywho, as you were….
July 30, 2013 — 6:45 AM
terribleminds says:
SO IT’S YOU WHO HAS BEEN TRAMPLING MY ROSE BUSHES
Ahem.
As to how do I mentally defend? With great vigor and liquor.
No, I dunno. I mostly ask myself if there’s value in the criticism. It comes down to whether or not the review calls out things that are a matter of PREFERENCE or a matter of things I think are BROKEN. Divvying criticism up into those two camps is for me, key.
I think the content is appropriate because being young is fun but also sometimes really weird and scary and, you know, fucked up. I want to speak to that, not look away from it.
— c.
July 30, 2013 — 10:44 AM
ccroese says:
Are you conscious of what real-world experience comes into play while you write, or is it something you come to look back upon later?
July 30, 2013 — 6:47 AM
terribleminds says:
As in, do I consciously mine my own life for what goes on in my books? I do!
July 30, 2013 — 10:45 AM
Fatma Alici says:
My questions seems kind of silly compared to the much witty, and well thought out questions. But, I’d like to know what makes you write?
I know what makes me write, utter sheer insane determination. The same thing that makes me finish cooking a meal even though I sliced myself with an electric knife. Or, the same thing that makes me go run a raid in MMORPG with a broken finger. Smart, rational people don’t do that. I can’t even say if I like writing half the time. But, everyday I get up and I do it anyway.
So, that’s the reason I ask: What makes you write?
July 30, 2013 — 6:59 AM
terribleminds says:
It’s not just determination — I mean, I have determination for this but not for other things despite my desire to do so, so writing for me is because I love stories. I love reading them, telling them, thinking about them. They’re fun and strange and magical and twisted and I love seeing an audience react to my work and I love how *I* feel when telling my own tales and reading the tales of others.
Stories are a wonderful drug. I am a gleeful, willing, functional addict.
July 30, 2013 — 10:46 AM
Lindy Moone says:
Love this answer. Tired of hearing authors whine about how writing is so hard, they hate it, they love having written but not the process. Writing is thrilling; I dance with glee when I’m writing. If someone dances with glee when they read my writing… I dance with glee.
July 31, 2013 — 3:04 AM
Reay Jespersen says:
Two-parter: Knowing what you do about the publishing industry, would you say it’d be a better idea (i.e. potentially more promising to get one attention for one’s book, and perhaps help land a better deal) to use one’s first novel to seek representation first, or to get published first (and then hopefully publish another and another) and let representation come as it may? Can one try for the split and shop for both at the same time with the same book?
July 30, 2013 — 7:02 AM
terribleminds says:
Get representation before you sign a publishing contract.
— c.
July 30, 2013 — 10:46 AM
Sam Kearns says:
Do you have strategies for writing during mental difficulty? (This can be many different things; It can be utter weariness, stress, for others it could be grief or mental disease. Problems of the mind that transcend mere “writer’s block”)
July 30, 2013 — 7:08 AM
terribleminds says:
If it’s real deep difficulty — grief or serious illness — I don’t push it.
Every other time, I just push. I exercise mechanical effort and type out words. I may hate them later but I may not.
You climb the mountain even when it’s miserable to do so. If the storm is too bad, hunker down and weather the blizzard — it will pass.
— c.
July 30, 2013 — 10:48 AM
Sam Kearns says:
I suppose that’s all you can do, really 🙂
July 30, 2013 — 12:08 PM
devin says:
Chuck,
When you switched from writing during your spare time to writing professionally, did you see a change in your writing/attitude? Did your writing become strenuous because the fate of every word became your livelihood?
Keep up the great work!
Devin
July 30, 2013 — 7:11 AM
terribleminds says:
Stressful? Writing itself isn’t stressful but the business side can be.
I switched to writing professionally like, 15+ years ago.
The stress was present but worth more and felt better than the stress of doing anything else.
This stress feels good. Clean. Controllable.
– c.
July 30, 2013 — 10:49 AM
Shanan says:
You said this book was a tricky one to write. Do you have some suggestions to writers who have picked a subject, then suddenly realize Oh SHIT THIS REALLY ACTUALLY FAIRLY IMPORTANT, and get kind of intimidated and want to quit forever? (…I’m asking for a friend.)
July 30, 2013 — 7:13 AM
terribleminds says:
I care less.
It’s advice I give frequently to writers.
Too much pressure? Give less of a shit. You’re not curing cancer. You’re writing a story. Just relax and say fuck it and realize the fate of the world isn’t resting on this page of words you’re trying to push out of your narrative womb.
— c.
July 30, 2013 — 10:50 AM
Leifthesailor says:
I’ve been told I broke some kind of rule on my last work. How do you feel about multiple first person present episodic POV?
July 30, 2013 — 7:39 AM
terribleminds says:
Just thinking about that broke my brain a little but rules in writing are meant to be broken, provided you can break them capably and with aplomb.
July 30, 2013 — 10:50 AM
Reay Jespersen says:
While the publishing industry has been (fairly) likened to a casino, is there a type of writing that first-timers may have a better shot at being published with? Assuming that we’re talking about a solid, marketable story in whatever case, is there a better shot within the YA field, or horror, or SF, etc., or is there a pretty equal “need” among one and all?
July 30, 2013 — 7:52 AM
terribleminds says:
Forget marketing, write what you want to write.
Publishing isn’t a casino because it isn’t all luck. It’s skill and heart and drive and art.
Luck is a little bit involved — but luck is key in all facets of our lives.
Anybody who claims publishing is about luck and luck alone is selling a scoop of horseshit in an ice cream cone.
— c.
July 30, 2013 — 10:51 AM
Reay Jespersen says:
I like the thoughts on luck. Thanks.
As for forgetting marketing and writing what I want: the rules among different writing formats at times blur for me. I’ve gotten some traction writing screenplays, where the advice is to not just write what you want, but to write what you want that’s marketable. Would it not be the same to some degree with novels (or really, anything)? Whether it’s a script or a novel or a kid’s book or a comic or a TV show concept, I could write exactly what I want, but if it’s not done in a way that the Powers That Be can use — if it’s not marketable — then it just becomes more drawer-filler.
I’m not saying to follow trends or ape what a successful person has done rather than being true to yourself, but writing something you want to write while keeping in mind that you ultimately want to make it marketable is only going to help found (and hopefully continue) a career, isn’t it?
Also, I should perhaps clarify my question: like many writers, I’ve got a metric shit-ton of ideas. Perhaps not like many writers, they’re spread across a crazy-wide range of formats, genres, and demographics. Assuming for the moment that I’d write as good a, say, kid’s book as a horror book as a YA adventure/romance as a fantasy story (I know, right?, but stick with me here), is there any demo where a newcomer may more likely get a foot in the door? In other words, I was coming at the question from the angle of wondering which of my ideas to catch and saddle up on, rather than wondering which demo is easier to break into in order that I may then try to work up an idea for it. Pro-active approach to targeting a demo rather than reactive to it, as it were.
July 30, 2013 — 10:53 PM
Mozette says:
I have yet to read your books, but do you recommend which one to read first? Some writers have a first book/s where their characters are introduced… and I’d love to know which one to dig into first. Thanking you in advance, mate 😀
July 30, 2013 — 7:56 AM
terribleminds says:
I said elsewhere in this thread:
“BLACKBIRDS seems to be the go-to read. It’s horrory-crimey.
BLUE BLAZES is good for straight-up urban fantasy.
Today’s release, UNDER THE EMPYREAN SKY, is more sci-fantasy, and is YA and dystopian (think HUNGER GAMES meets the novels of John Steinbeck).”
July 30, 2013 — 10:52 AM
Mozette says:
Thank you so much! Your books are at a place here called QBD for around $11.95… fairly good value! Might grab two of them the next time I’m out there trying to keep my parking there under 3 hours (we have pay for our parking at major shopping centres… it sucks big time). 😀
July 30, 2013 — 10:56 PM
danielahampton says:
Maybe this has already been asked, but what is your advice for finding a good agent? Are there requirements such as submitting a certain number of certain length works that they review, then accept or reject you? Are there other good resources for finding agents besides authors that are happy with theirs?
July 30, 2013 — 8:12 AM
terribleminds says:
Agentquery. Agentshark. Follow agents on Twitter. Look to their client base and books they sell. Pay attention to their submission guidelines. A good agent will rock. A bad agent is worse than no agent. Find an agent where you feel a personal connection, not just a professional one.
July 30, 2013 — 10:52 AM
entrebat says:
I know most of the advice you give is truth singed with bourbon and beard hair. What baby steps did you follow to reach where you are now? Did you have a product that was finished before leaping into the ‘self-employed’ arena or was it a metric ton of little projects that created the momentum? In short, Chuck, how would one recreate the lighting that you captured in that empty bottle?
July 30, 2013 — 8:14 AM
terribleminds says:
I just… you know, I just wrote. I got freelance work 15 years ago and I wrote, wrote, wrote. The 10,000 hours meme offers an arbitrary number but the message is key: you gotta work your ass off to get to a point where you actually have a clue and feel confident.
No lightning in a bottle — just a thousand lightning bugs in an old Mason jar! Doable, just takes a long time. 😀
July 30, 2013 — 10:54 AM
Wulfie says:
Haven’t even had coffee yet. Hi. Morning ‘n all that. I gotta say that I love your posts but MAN I might love the comment section even more. You’ve got some of the weirdest people on the planet dropping their awesome word bombs here. Just sayin’.
Question…uh….if you had written Miriam in a voice other than first person present, would that have changed your experience of writing it and would it have changed the story itself?
July 30, 2013 — 8:17 AM
terribleminds says:
Miriam is not actually written in first person present — she’s third person close POV with present tense. 🙂
I once tried to write her in first person. It was… too much.
July 30, 2013 — 10:54 AM
Wulfie says:
*feels like a dork…for a second* Holy crap, I’ve never even heard of that tense. That’s it, digging out the grammar books now. Thanks.
July 31, 2013 — 8:06 AM
Cfmeyer01 says:
I’m slowly getting through my first draft and things I thought I had answers for regarding world building keep coming up to say “hey dude, this makes no sense. You gotta think about this some more.” Does this happen to you or do you have all the rules pretty firmly in place before you start? Thank you for this blog and the kick-ass stories. I loved the shit out of the blue blazes and snagged under the empyrean sky this morning.
July 30, 2013 — 8:19 AM
terribleminds says:
I’m constantly trying to make things make sense and not be completely bonkers. It’s an important thing to think about in the beginning but also as you go along.
Thanks!
July 30, 2013 — 10:55 AM
jkflickinger says:
Why do you like to write? I mean, what does it really do for you as a person and if your two year old would ask you this question, how would you answer?
July 30, 2013 — 8:27 AM
terribleminds says:
I love stories.
I love language.
Together, they form VOLTRON.
I mean, together, they form my career. 🙂
— c.
July 30, 2013 — 10:55 AM
Maria Lima says:
What are your favorite hot sauce(s)? Are you a Sriracha guy or more into Tabasco or Cholula?
July 30, 2013 — 8:28 AM
terribleminds says:
Sriracha is awesome, but honestly, right now, I lean more toward Cholula.
But it also depends if we’re talking what style of food.
For Asian, I love Gochojiang sauce. Mmmm.
July 30, 2013 — 10:56 AM
Joanne Huspek says:
How fast can you type? I’m thinking 100 words per minute, considering how prolific you are.
July 30, 2013 — 8:35 AM
terribleminds says:
I think it’s like 80-90 WPM?
— c.
July 30, 2013 — 10:56 AM
jspotila says:
What’s your favorite kind of pie, and why?
July 30, 2013 — 8:49 AM
terribleminds says:
The kind that fits in my piehole.
July 30, 2013 — 9:56 PM
jspotila says:
And this makes you awesome: NO PIE PREJUDICE!
July 31, 2013 — 11:00 AM
Scott says:
My current writing seems powered by Pop-Tarts and Laphroaig, am I doing something wrong?
July 30, 2013 — 8:58 AM
terribleminds says:
As long as its also powered by love and desperation, you’re probably fine.
July 30, 2013 — 9:56 PM
El says:
What is the most important thing you did to improve your craft of writing?
July 30, 2013 — 9:03 AM
terribleminds says:
For writing: looked for and removed instances of the construction “there is.”
For storytelling: learned to outline.
July 30, 2013 — 9:57 PM
Alisa Russell says:
I mainly lurk, but I have to say you offer some awesome writing advice. I have a folder of several of your posts to refer back to as needed. Here’s my question. What food/drink helps your writing to be productive and what food/drink have you learned not to eat before writing?
July 30, 2013 — 9:06 AM
terribleminds says:
Coffee and tea are my go-to writing helpers.
Any big meal — particularly carby — will kill my writing energy.
July 30, 2013 — 9:57 PM
Annette Drake says:
Why pick on corn? Why not tomatoes or zucchini?
July 30, 2013 — 9:09 AM
terribleminds says:
Because America has planted over 84 million acres of corn, not zucchini or tomatoes. 🙂
July 30, 2013 — 9:58 PM
Zac Dozier says:
If a writer were to base a novel off of a series of role-playing sessions they GM’d, what would be their responsibilities to their players, legal and otherwise? For instance, if large portions of the dialogue were taken from in-game play, should a writing credit be shared? I’m not trying to complicate this like writer attribution for the WGA. This is just something I’ve always wondered about, and figured you being an all-around penmonkey, might be able to answer or have an opinion about.
July 30, 2013 — 9:10 AM
terribleminds says:
You’re in weird legal territory there and I am not at all the person to ask. Lawyer up.
That said, I think bare minimum it deserves an open conversation with all parties involved.
July 30, 2013 — 9:59 PM
Cat York says:
Your book is in my Kindle belly. I’m excited about that. Also here to say thanks for all your posts. You’re a helper.
July 30, 2013 — 9:14 AM
terribleminds says:
WOOOO thank you!
July 30, 2013 — 9:59 PM
Sunee says:
At what point do you first let someone else read your work? First draft, seventy-third draft..? 🙂 When do you decide it’s ready for someone else’s opinion and how often do you listen to them?
July 30, 2013 — 9:25 AM
terribleminds says:
Usually after first or second, my agent reads it. I listen to her opinion because she is wise. I don’t consider her sacrosanct, but she’s more right than she is wrong.
July 30, 2013 — 10:01 PM
Gina Drayer (@GinaDrayer) says:
HaHa… you opened to flood gates!
With every agent and publishing house pushing YA right now, do you think the public (AKA the fickle readers) are getting sick of all the mediocre stuff being pushed out to fill the gap? And do you think this hurts the chances of really good YA books being discovered by readers?
July 30, 2013 — 9:26 AM
terribleminds says:
I think mediocre stuff is bad because it’s mediocre. 🙂
But sometimes it sells, so –? For the most part, I see a lot of great stuff getting attention, too, so I’m not too worried about it.
July 30, 2013 — 10:01 PM
Laith Shriam says:
When you realize your word processor just ate your final edit do you advise sobbing like a child, or screaming in incoherent rage before remembering you have a back-up?
July 30, 2013 — 9:34 AM
terribleminds says:
I recommend chainsawing that mannequin you bought two weeks ago for this very purpose.
July 30, 2013 — 10:02 PM
Pee Dee says:
Cat York nailed it. You’re a helper. Second question: You seem to attract seriously batshit crazy commenters. Do you think you’re an enabler, a catalyst for the inner weirdo, or a role model?
July 30, 2013 — 9:42 AM
terribleminds says:
I summon them to me by killing and burning a white ermine on a stone slab in the woods.
July 30, 2013 — 11:12 AM