Passing Comment

It’s old hat to point out the general negativity we see in the comments section of popular websites. We all know that IMDB is rife with hatred, that popular forums mix spirited debate with name-calling and bad spelling, and that YouTube is quite possibly the most negative place on earth. We also know why this is, at least in largest part. Because our anonymity gives us a shield. We can vent at people or videos without fear of physical reprisal. We can troll mercilessly, and the worst thing that will happen is that we’re banned from the site. Boo-hoo. Change your login name, update a new profile, and you’re back. It can’t be stopped, and it won’t stop. Never entirely.

I write this because of a minor incident recently.

On a popular movie site, two people were making fun of a third, over and over and over on different threads. So much so that they changed their profile names as insults to the person. They pretended to post as him, imitating him, and talking about all the “stupid shit he says” and how they thought it was funny to pretend to be him (the person being made fun of had opinions that ran counter to most, but was almost always courteous). Some took exception to this brand of humour, others thought it funny. I logged in and posted that I found their behaviour bullying, that they were dedicating themselves to demeaning another person. Without seeing the irony, they posted back that I should stop being so negative. I was also accused of being the one who wanted to create taxes on video games—apparently these geniuses had managed to extrapolate an entire character profile from an objection to their obnoxiousness. Thankfully, the owner of the site stepped in and banned the two bullies from the site. I was vindicated, after a fashion.

But it feels like a hollow victory.

I don’t advocate that we should only be able to create profiles that link back to our own details somehow, or such measures to curb negative behaviour. As a gut reaction, this feels like something Orwell might have written about were he alive in the internet age. But I do sometimes despair at how easy it is for us to demean others without consequence. Sure, this time two bullies were banned for their viciousness, but most aren’t, or come back in some other form. I can’t see an end to it, and at times feel like civilised discourse gets drowned out by the static of terrible grammar, swearing, and racial epithets.

The problem and the solution come inevitably start and end with us. Get upset, get passionate, but stay rational and refrain from name-calling. Those who resort to pettiness only do so because they have the weaker argument and the weaker minds.

2,013 Words in 2013

My new writing goal is trite, but easy to remember.

2,013 words, every week, in 2013.

The conditions here are as follows:

* The 2,013 words must all be new (editing and changing old passages doesn't count)
* The 2,013 words must all be on the same project
* Any words I write on other projects doesn't count toward the 2,013
* If I miss the goal one week, the leftover total carries over to the next week

The focus here is to finish my next book at the end of the year. This is the discipline I'm committing to in order to achieve it.

Sounds easy, yes? After all, some people do 50,000 words in a month for NaNoWriMo (how anyone can do this is beyond me, or at least, well beyond my capabilities). You have to bear in mind that I have a full-time job. An engagement party to plan. A wedding to plan. A honeymoon holiday to plan. Moving into a new unit to organise and execute. Looking for a new house. Seeing my family, and my new extended family. Making time for my friends. Making time to live a fulfilling life with the woman I love. Attending to all of life's many challenges and routines. When you take all of that into account, 2,013 words a week sounds like a stretch (or at least it does to me).

But I'm doing this. I'm committed. And I'm putting it out there as a measure to drive myself toward this commitment. I've been busy with other things lately, and my writing has become seeds with no water. The time has come to tend.

Why is it time? Because I simply can't face looking back at my life and feeling like I had all these books in me and I didn't realise them. I need these ideas to exist, because I think these are stories worth telling, and stories people are going to want to read, even if that's only a small number of people.

If I disappear from time to time, I apologise. Sometimes I'm not a good internet citizen. Just know that I'm off somewhere staring at a laptop, making things up and writing them down so you can spend a few diverting hours somewhere down the line.

Thank you for reading this. I'll be in touch soon.

- Emmett

Update

Hello Friends. It’s been a while. Stick around for two minutes and I’ll tell you why.

I got engaged recently. Yep, I asked the love of my life to marry me and she blessed me with a yes!

We were in Giverny, just outside of Paris. We were on a day trip to Monet’s Gardens, where Monet painted the famous Water Lilies that reside in the L’Orangerie, among multiple other outstanding works. We walked on to the Japanese Bridge. The moment I had spent months planning was coming to pass. My heart sped up. I told her I loved her and dropped down to one knee. And the rest, my friends, is history.

I am beyond excited. So lucky. These past months everything I’ve done has been focused on planning the big trip, shopping for the engagement ring, planning the big moment, and delivering on the biggest project I’ve ever worked on in my day job. There have been long hours and late nights and plenty of anxiety and stress. But that part of my life is over now. The next part begins.

I dropped off the radar for a bit, I know – I hope this explains why. I’m looking forward to spending some time back in the twittersphere and updating my blog more regularly... and also writing. I’ve missed it lately, but my head is full of ideas and I’ve been scribbling madly of late. I’m looking forward to sharing a few things with you all as I smooth out the rough ideas of my little ideas.

I hope this finds you all well, safe, and happy.

Chat soon.

- Emmett

What do you think?

Friends,

How are you liking the continuing adventures of Elsewhere Girl?

The site has just hit 50 posts in 3 months... this is cause for celebration!!

From my point of view it’s been interesting to discover the story and the best approach to telling it – at first I felt as though everything was a bit disjointed and esoteric and lacking a clear direction, but I quickly switched up the format to tell a serialised story with longer posts that follow a narrative format, and from the numbers I’m getting it seems you’re responding to that. But I don’t want to make too many assumptions – that’s what I want your feedback now!

Leave a message in the comments section or message me on twitter (@oldhauntsauthor) or even e-mail me on emm_ett (at) hotmail (dot) com. All feedback is welcome, even if you just want to tell me your most and least favourite things. I keep this site going for you, and it keeps me going to know how you’re responding to it, so I really appreciate you taking the time to give me feedback.

I’m going to be taking a short break from posting updates due to an insanely busy period ahead in my life – but I’ll be resuming regular posting every 1-2 days again before you know it, and will make an announcement before I do so.

Thanks and I hope this finds you well!

Emmett

New Project Announcement: ELSEWHERE GIRL

My friends, I have a new project to announce: It is called ELSEWHERE GIRL, it is free, and you can start reading here at www.elsewheregirl.com.

What is Elsewhere Girl all about?

Elsewhere Girl is the story of Aliya, an unusual girl who is a fugitive in our world. It is an urban fantasy story told in the form of blog entries which introduce us to Aliya and her initial experiences in our world, then the piece quickly weaves into a streamlined narrative of her adventures as she tries to escape the vicious Huntsmen who track her between worlds.

Is this part of the promotion for a book?

No. This is storytelling for its own sake, and a gift to the people who have generously supported me so far in my burgeoning writing career. I wanted to write something that I didn’t have to sell, and I wanted to reward my supporters for their kindness by giving them an experience they can enjoy, free of charge. Elsewhere Girl is the result of these twin desires meeting.

But will you turn it into a book someday?

No. As a writer there is always a temptation to use something like this as a tool for promotion, or to make some money off it down the line, but I want Elsewhere Girl to be purer than that. Down the line I may set up the ability to take donations, but they would be donations in support of a good cause, rather than in support of myself.

What are you getting out of this?

I feel Aliya’s story is worth telling, so there’s that. Also, I don’t have to bother with much selling, outside of trying to sell people on the concept, which is a good thing for me (I’m not a natural salesman!) I also get some super sweet goodwill out of the experience, which I think is kinda nice. All in all, it’s a good deal for me!

What do you expect the reader to get out of this?

Several things. First, the posts are fairly short, so the reader will get an interesting dose of fiction without a big time commitment. Second, the reader gets the flexibility of knowing they can stop by and catch up on the story daily, weekly, or even fortnightly without having to do a massive catch up. Third, the pleasure of reading a good story! It is important to me that I reward long-time readers by calling back early posts and actually answering the questions the narrative poses. The intention is for the experience to deepen and become more rewarding as time passes.

With this being a serialised story, will it end?

Yes. I’m not infinitely blowing up a balloon here—the story will have a proper ending. I have not sketched out exactly where the end will take place—but I do have an ending in mind. For me it will be about keeping the story fresh, interesting, and exciting all the way through. The moment I feel that the story is close to tapping its potential, I will wrap it up. The idea is to build readers as time progresses, not start losing them due to directionless storytelling.

How often do you post new material to the site?

I’m currently updating the site with new posts every 1-2 days.

Do I need to read every single post to get up to speed?

No, but the posts are quite short so it wouldn’t take you long if you want to catch up on the whole thing. I would recommend starting no later than post #23, though, as this is when the narrative really kicks into second gear.

People who read every post will definitely get the most out of the experience (as well as some easter eggs that will be called back in future posts), but if you want to get on board really fast, then post #23 is a good place to start.

Final Statement: An Ongoing Thank You

Elsewhere Girl is an ongoing thank you to those who purchased my first novel, Old Haunts., and who continue to support me through twitter & goodreads (where I’m most active). I hope that it will be a thank you worthy of you all.

Click here to start reading now.

You Know Why You're Writing, Right?

I was chatting with a friend via e-mail today and we got onto the subject of writing, which is a subject I seldom discuss, which might seem odd for a writer. Then again maybe not—I can’t be the first writer who feels pompous extolling about his craft, and any genuine modesty cannot help but feel put on by times. At any rate, he added a question to the end of a response that shook me more than just a little:

“You know why you’re writing, right?”

I immediately thought he knew something I didn’t. I started to rack my brain. Why did I write? It wasn’t something I really thought about. My own response surprised me.

“I write for many reasons, the main one being that I’m compelled to. It’s a spark that’ll burn me from the inside out if I don’t put it to use.”

I stared at my own response after hitting send, feeling a sense of shellshock. Firstly because I hadn’t thought to put it that way before, and secondly because it was the most absolutely true thing I’ve said about myself in a long time.

There are many great reasons to write. And whilst it my own reason for writing may not be considered great by some, I would argue that sometimes the simplest reason is the most powerful. I must get these ideas out of my head and bring these characters and these places to vivid life or they’ll chew at my soul until there’s nothing left. These ideas and people are important, even if only to me. This fiction, occasionally silly though it might be, has real meaning and substance, again, even if only to me.

It is as a wise man suggested: “You must stay drunk on writing so reality cannot destroy you.” That man’s name was Ray Bradbury.

I think he might have been onto something there.

If you like, let me know why you write in the comments below. I’m interested in your answers.

How Prolific Writers Do It

Nora Roberts and Joss Whedon are quite different. Joss writes TV and movies and comics, Nora writes prose. But both are insanely prolific.

Whedon has written, produced, or directed almost 200 episodes of television since 1996. He’s also written several movies (some unproduced, some where his scripts weren’t used, a handful he did script doctor work on), directed two himself, and scripted dozens of issues of comics (X-Men, Fray, Buffy among them). As a recent example, on a 30 day break from shooting the Avengers before he went into edit it, Joss managed to adapt a screenplay, cast it, and shoot it all in those 30 days. (It’s an adaptation of Much Ado About Nothing, if you’re curious). Think of that achievement: to write an entire screenplay from page one, organise all the actors, props, sets etc, and direct every scene in only 1 month! Makes me look back at what I did last month and cringe.

And what about Nora Roberts? Besides writing dozens of novels under her alter ego of JD Robb, Roberts has written more trilogies and quartets than most writers could dream of producing in 10 lifetimes, which is not to mention any standalone novels she has written, which are not small in number (I believe the total of her published novels is nudging 230 if you count all her pseudonyms).

The question these two people raise by their very existence is simply: “How do they do it? How do they find the time to get all this done?”

And I know the very simple answer. It’s so simple in fact, that it becomes somewhat terrifying: “They do it because they’re committed to it.”

That’s really what gets it done. Commitment. Deep, painful, binding commitment. This isn’t the sort of “I’m going to commit to that new diet” kind of commitment. This is like a marriage. You put it at the top of your priorities. Downtime is just another opportunity to write.

This is not to say that talent and skill are at all unimportant. Far from it—these are key factors at play, in that you need to have at least some talent to work with, and the skill honed by a diligent work ethic. But it’s also fair to say that if you throw a dart in the street you’ll hit someone with a talent that isn’t being utilised, or at least not fully exploited. Talented people who achieve nothing are a dime a dozen—they are absolutely everywhere, stuck in jobs they don’t like, watching TV instead of writing that song or picking up that paintbrush or training for that marathon they always wanted to run. These people spend their time unconsciously nursing once bright dreams into a slow, quiet death, all the while wondering at the better life they should be living, if only it weren’t for all their other responsibilities. Commitment is what is missing from their lives. Commitment will see you over the line when nothing else can. Commitment manufactures time.

Here are two more examples of lives built around writing: J. Michael Stracynski (the comic/TV/film writer) reportedly writes 10 hours a day, every day, except on Christmas Day. And James Patterson writes seven days a week and cranks out around 5-6 books a year on average. (Patterson in particular might prove a poor example, as his process is compared by some to a sausage factory, where Patterson churns out the idea and other writers develop it for him. Then again, the sheer fact that he has created such a factory is an example of a real commitment to task.)

The purpose of these examples is to show you the structure of their lives: which is not the same for each writer (Whedon has confessed that he writes “whenever he can” around his family life and other commitments), but it’s there. They write: that’s what they do with their time. Which is not to say that they’re forgone relationships, or children, or the general pleasures of life. There are sacrifices, of that much I’m certain, but these people still have lives and friends and function in society and conduct interviews and all of that. They are not machines that write and write only. They have simply committed themselves to writing, and they do whatever they can to see their ideas come to life.

And what about those who can’t write for a living? There are dozens of examples, but here’s one: Jim Butcher, author of the Dresden Files series, managed to produce 1 novel a year whilst working full-time until he could finally write for a living. 1 novel a year with a full-time job. Not easy to do, but possible if you’re committed. And where is he now? One of the premier urban fantasy writers in the world.

If you want to be prolific, you have to make writing as important to you as your marriage, your freedom, and your family. That commitment will see you over the line when you are too tired to be doing anything that involves your brain, when you get negative feedback, when you’re rejected, when you’re sick or blank, or when there are other things you might be doing that seem far more attractive. It’s the old adage at work: 1% inspiration, 99% perspiration. It’s up to you to commit or not.

Don’t be one of those people who quietly smothers their dreams and blames the busyness of life. Commit or move on. Make your choice.

***

On a personal note, I write this because I have been struggling with this very issue. To write is in my blood, but lately my blood has been betraying me in the form of some ongoing health problems. For me, this kind of commitment could quite literally break me, so I am at odds with myself in writing this.

That said, I felt the sentiment needed to be expressed if only to force me to do more with the time and energy I have, and to light a fire under the ass of people who are passively smothering their dreams.

I hope it helped. I hope it was worth something. That’s all I can really wish for.

E.