When the idea for Selkie Song first came to me, more than two decades ago, I saw the myth of the selkie as a powerful metaphor for sexual and romantic abuse: a man met this enchanted fairy creature, a seal in the sea and a woman on dry land, and stole her seal skin, her deep feminine self from her.
This novel has undergone so many deep changes. Early on, the main character was neither Ben, the young man who discovers the selkie, or Eloyn, the selkie herself. A third character took center stage, and the story of Ben and Eloyn filtered through the then protagonist's consciousness. Thanks to Louise Hawes, I realized I was protecting myself from the full impact of Ben and Eloyn's story. The whole novel shifted.
Now it is shifting again as I revise, though in a subtler way. (The earlier change dropped the novel from 250 pages to 90; then it grew again in the new direction.) Now I feel like Ben's heart and soul are fully revealing his true self to me as I revise; some events later in the novel that never felt like he had earned them now flow in a more unified way.
I am grateful for the process of revision, for my experiences as a writer, and for the way both Ben and his story are coming into deeper alignment.
I believe characters live in one layer of reality and readers in another. It is my job as an author to build a bridge between the two. I strive to share writing struggles and triumphs. Inspired by Jo in Little Women, I began writing at age nine and submitted my first story for publication at seventeen. I haven't looked back since; words, pens and paper, and the keyboard have been my constant companions ever since.
17.1.12
14.1.12
Book Signings
One of my favorite chapters in Peter Mayle's memoirs about Provence centers on Mayle's experiences as a new author. Readers leave copies of A Year in Provence in the mail box for him to sign, while others show up on the front step and invite themselves in. That hasn't happened to me yet, but in the last part of the chapter, Mayle describes what it's like to be an author at a book signing, sitting behind a table while people sneak past and stare in any direction except at the writer's face.
Yes, it can be that way sometimes. Often enough that I wonder why people seem afraid. We're readers, and we love books; otherwise, we wouldn't be here in the bookstore on a snowy Saturday. Yet every once in a while, a book buyer scuttles past as if the author on the other side of the book signing table has cooties or might bite.
That said, I had a lovely time at the signing event today at Half Price Books. The staff were obliging and friendly; one came over to talk with me about Love is the Thread, so she could be informed when she sent people over to see the book. Later she told me that it looked like I had had a successful day.
Lovely conversations with people about friendship, mine with Kristine, and some that they shared from their own lives. The author may seem like a different species there on the other side of the author table, but it was delightful to share with people whether they bought a copy or not. (And yes, some of them did.) A successful day, indeed.
Yes, it can be that way sometimes. Often enough that I wonder why people seem afraid. We're readers, and we love books; otherwise, we wouldn't be here in the bookstore on a snowy Saturday. Yet every once in a while, a book buyer scuttles past as if the author on the other side of the book signing table has cooties or might bite.
That said, I had a lovely time at the signing event today at Half Price Books. The staff were obliging and friendly; one came over to talk with me about Love is the Thread, so she could be informed when she sent people over to see the book. Later she told me that it looked like I had had a successful day.
Lovely conversations with people about friendship, mine with Kristine, and some that they shared from their own lives. The author may seem like a different species there on the other side of the author table, but it was delightful to share with people whether they bought a copy or not. (And yes, some of them did.) A successful day, indeed.
Labels:
author and reader connection
5.1.12
New Year, New Inspiration
What inspires you? Whether your inspiration motivates you to create a new story, or create anew in your life, take a moment to look back on those "Aha!" moments that helped you discover a new beginning.
My inspiration for new story ideas has often arisen from strange places. Like Samuel Taylor Coleridge's "Kubla Khan," I once dreamed a story, the middle readers novel The Forest Witch. Ironically, that old, old manuscript is the one I'll be seeing afresh sometime in the next month or so. (I have another I'm revising to submit to a publisher.)
Back when I wrote murder mysteries, a whole chain of plot and character ideas came to me after I watched the first five minutes of a movie on television, then had to hop in the car to drive to an appointment. The foundation for the book unfolded in my mind as I drove. (In The Artist's Way, Julia Cameron describes the creative inspiration often triggered by being in motion, whether that motion is walking or running outdoors, or being in a car.)
For a while I kept a notebook and pen on the passenger seat in my car. Ultimately, I decided writing while driving was just too dangerous.
Inspiration for poems tends to flood me only when I'm in love. As far as inspiration for daily life goes--well, maybe I'll write about that next time!
My inspiration for new story ideas has often arisen from strange places. Like Samuel Taylor Coleridge's "Kubla Khan," I once dreamed a story, the middle readers novel The Forest Witch. Ironically, that old, old manuscript is the one I'll be seeing afresh sometime in the next month or so. (I have another I'm revising to submit to a publisher.)
Back when I wrote murder mysteries, a whole chain of plot and character ideas came to me after I watched the first five minutes of a movie on television, then had to hop in the car to drive to an appointment. The foundation for the book unfolded in my mind as I drove. (In The Artist's Way, Julia Cameron describes the creative inspiration often triggered by being in motion, whether that motion is walking or running outdoors, or being in a car.)
For a while I kept a notebook and pen on the passenger seat in my car. Ultimately, I decided writing while driving was just too dangerous.
Inspiration for poems tends to flood me only when I'm in love. As far as inspiration for daily life goes--well, maybe I'll write about that next time!
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