Category: Writing Advice

Writing is Like a Magic 8 Ball

A couple months ago, my wife and I went to an 80’s/90’s-themed party for her work. After the party, everyone was allowed to take one of the little toys or trinkets from their table.

Among other things, we grabbed a magic 8 ball that now sits on my desk.

I’ve found it more than a little fun to play with for the last few weeks. As I’ve sauntered through line edits and redrafting short stories, I’ve asked it several times for advice.

“Magic 8 Ball, should I kill this character’s puppy?”

Signs point to Yes.

“Aw, but it’s a cute puppy. Are you sure?”

It is certain.

“Oh… ok.”

I can’t tell you why the Magic 8 Ball had a vendetta against the little boy’s puppy, but it did. In much the same way, I’m sure there is no shortage of writers out there who are facing the same problem. They don’t often know what to do, so they turn to the muse for help, hoping it’s up and running. Most of the time, it’s like a stubborn bear that will lash out when poked or prodded.

Or, worse, it’s like that shiny Yveltal I got a code for that won’t listen to me because I don’t have enough gym badges (If you got that reference, you’re cool, bro).

Anyway, you know what I mean, right?

It is decidedly so.

Good.

Sometimes the muse is an odd, inept little voice that tells you to kill the main character in Chapter 1 so the book can be over sooner. But more often than not, it’s a voice with some reason behind it. Recently, I was writing a novel, and my outline called for one of the main characters to win the fight.

He didn’t.

He died.

Painfully.

At the time, I was a wreck. I didn’t know why I’d let that happen. There were still five or six more chapters left in the book. I couldn’t let him die!

But this was a rare occasion where I listened to the muse, bypassed my thorough outline, and kept going. And not only do I feel like the decision worked, but it actually solved a few plotholes I’d caught earlier in the novel.

So, should you listen to the muse? Is it always a good idea?

Ask again later.

“Oh…”

…

“Should I listen to the muse?”

Concentrate and ask again.

“SHOULD I LISTEN TO THE MUSE! TELL ME, DAMN YOU!”

Reply hazy. Try again.

“YOU’RE A STUPID PIECE OF CRAP!”

My sources say no.

“Ok, I’m done arguing with a toy!”

Don’t count on it.

Anyway, that’s all I’ve got for now! See you next week with Michael Ridding, Chapter 3!

-S.T. Hoover

What am I reading?

Guilty by Association by Albert Simon

This is the sixth Henry Wright mystery and while the grammatical side occasionally leaves a lot to be desired, I’m quite enjoying this book.

I’d actually read up to Book 5, Coachella Valley Traffic Jam, thinking that was the end of the series. I’d read on the author’s Kindle page that he was working on a sixth book, but at that time it’d been many, many years since Book 5.

But much to my surprise, when adding Book 5 to my Goodreads “Read” list, I noticed the 6th book had a page. I clicked on it for giggles and was plesantly suprised to see a reviews and a buy link! So, apperently, the series isnt over!

Anyway, just a brief summary: Henry Wright is a retired police chief who lives in Palm Springs, California. He is often called in by his friend in the local police department to help him solve the tougher cases. Recently, (minor spoiler) he’s gotten engaged, and his wife helps him solve some cases.

This is definitely not what I usually read, but I came across the first book (which is FREE on Kindle) while I was writing Michael Ridding. I wanted to get my head in the Palm Springs mindset, and the series did not disapoint.

Anyway, I’ll link to the first book below (try to remember it’s a first novel, but in my opinion, storywise, it’s a pretty good one!) I know, I should probably post a link to the book I’m reading, but if you want to get into any series, you should probably start with Book 1.

You can take a look and possibly download it below (again, it’s FREE on Kindle!).

Wow, that’s the longest “What am I blah blah blah” thing I’ve written so far! I guess I love this series more than I thought!

Both Types of Prolific

I’m not qualified to give you advice.

But I’ve been asked.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m flattered that anyone would look at me and go, “That guy knows what he’s talking about!” And sometimes I do, but when it comes to writing, I can never, ever promise the aspiring author that I will tell them anything they don’t already know.

That being said, I’ve come across a question in my own jaunts into the craft that’s often left me stumped:

What defines prolific?

Does a novel a month mean you are a prolific author? Maybe two a year means you’re blowing past the traditionally-published competition. Maybe one every two or three or five or ten years is the best you can do.

All of the above are fine and have been argued to death by the writing community at large, but I tend to see things differently. It’s a blessing and a curse, I assure you.

When I think of myself, I tend to feel like I’m a prolific writer.

With one book.

Which means, in reality, I’m not a prolific author. But I’m still a prolific writer.

You catch that?

Well, if not, let me explain.

I work hard every time I sit down at the desk. Do I spend some days staring out the window watching the birds come and go from the feeder? Certainly. But something always gets done.

One of my many visitors.

In 2018, I finished between 5 and 6 drafts, depending on your definition of the word, but that’s a whole other can of worms. So how many books did I put out that year?

Zero.

Zilch.

Nada.

Part of why can be read about in my 2018 review post, but I can say I am honestly still proud of the work I’ve done. This past year, I was a prolific writer, but not a prolific author.

To spell it out, being a prolific writer means you write a lot, being a prolific author means you publish a lot. At least, that’s how I see it. I know that’s not how it works for everyone, but for the sake of my own sanity, this is how I choose to handle the craft.

Am I upset a book didn’t come out in 2018? Kind of, but it’s hard to get pissy with myself when I’m looking at a stack of books sauntering through the bottleneck DenCom 2 has currently clogged up. Publishing isn’t easy–or cheap if you want to do it right. Time and patience are a virtue in this profession, one I occasionally forget to embrace. And yet, I can stare at that stack of work and know that each of those binders holds a story someone will love someday.

Not today, but someday.

Even if I die tomorrow, odds are those manuscripts will find their way to Kindle or a publisher where they can be read and enjoyed.

And that is often enough to keep me focused on my work.

This was midway through the year. I managed to spend the second half of the year rewriting that bottom one (DenCom 2).

So, I guess this all goes back to the king daddy of writing advice, a universal truth nearly all authors agree on:

Write.

It’s all we can do, but in a profession that has a way of bringing you down anytime, anywhere, without warning, it’s always good to have something that never fails to make you smile.

But like I said, I’m not a prolific author, so I’m not qualified to say anything.

Right?

Anyway, that’s all for now! See you next week for Chapter 2 of Michael Ridding: A DenCom Thriller!

-S.T. Hoover

What am I reading?

Jerusalem by Alan Moore

It’s been a while since I’ve read a big, big, big book, and if I finish this behemoth, it will probably be the longest novel I’ve ever read. I’m told it clocks in at over 600,000 words (that’s roughly 10 Michael Riddings!) And that’s after edits and cuts were made. The thing was originally supposed to be 1 MILLION WORDS!

In short, Jerusalem is about the author’s hometown, Northampton (the one in England, just so no one gets confused). It tells a story that takes you through the city’s history in what the author calls a work of “Genetic Mythology”. Sometimes it’s too much detail, but so far, I’m loving it anyway. Whether I’ll finish this monster remains to be seen, but I’m interested enough in what’s happened so far to keep going, even if I can’t always understand it.