Writing Through the Block

The strange thing about writing a blog is that I don't always know what I'm going to write about. That's kind of the case today. I'm sitting on some news, and don't want to let the cat out of the bag just yet. So, I'm looking for something else to write about that will be on par with the witty, entertaining and, dare I say, downright brilliant posts that you've grown accustomed to.

Okay, maybe I'm stretching it a bit. Okay...a lot!

So, how am I doing so far? No, you don't have to answer that one. I'm on thin ice already for my statement in the first paragraph. I'm sitting here with my 7 year old daughter, and she's giving me advice on what to write. "Write about work...Write about dinner. You can write about anything that you want."

Oh, yeah. Sometimes we get caught up in the things we have to do, or those we feel we should do. We don't always consider that we have a choice, and that sometimes we can do whatever we want and not feel guilty about it. This is one of those times.

That's kind of what happens to writers. We put so much pressure on ourselves to write, and write well, that we wind up writing nothing at all--because nothing is good enough. I think the thing to do is just write your way through writer's block. Stream of consciousness, that's the thing. A lot of times when I do this, nothing but crud comes out. But eventually, the crud clears away, and the good ideas come gushing forth again.

And the good ideas always come. That's the beauty of writing. That's what keeps me coming back. Writing is a way of life. It's a means to come to grips with feelings and emotions. To blow off steam after a hard day, or to visit places or times you never would be able to in the here and now.

When I write, I am the architect of worlds, the giver of life, more than I normally am. At the same time, when I write about these new and different things, I am more me. You might think the crud's still flowing, but it's true. When the writing's good, it's really a kind of rush. You feel like you've accomplished something.

Well, I'm glad I got that out of my system. Thanks for reading!

Writing--It's Fantastic!

So, how did I get started writing fantasy, and writing it for tweens? I've always loved to read. Reading has been a staple ever since I read my first book on my own about a farmer who takes a big wheel of cheese to the market in town in a wheelbarrow, and loses it. It rolls up hill and down with the farmer chasing after it.

But that's kind of beside the point. My mother was (and is) of the opinion that a love of reading should be cultivated at a young age, and nurtured through those "difficult" middle grade years. In an effort to do this, she started reading to myself and my four siblings at the dinner table.

Every night when dinner was over, and the dishes had been cleared away, my mom would read a chapter of a book. The first book she read to us was "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe" by C.S. Lewis, the first in the Chronicles of Narnia series. I must have been 12 or 13 and I was entranced by the book. It let my imagination take flight, and took me to places I'd never known existed. Here's a picture of the edition she read to us from:

It's the 70's version. Kind of harkens back to the Beatles' Yellow Submarine. There's something a little Paul and Ringoish about Peter and Edmund.

I'd always been a fan of fantasy to some degree. In addition to my love of "Where the Wild Things Are" when I was younger, I also loved "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" and "The Phantom Tollbooth", among others. But on some level, I connected more deeply with this book.

Mom read the whole book over the course of a couple of weeks. Then, she moved on to book 2 of the Chronicles, "Prince Caspian". She read one or two more, but by the time she'd finished with book two, I'd raced far ahead. In no time, I'd devoured all seven books of the Chronicles and was looking for more.



That's when my mom suggested I check out "The Hobbit" by J.R.R. Tolkien. That was well and truly it. I was hooked. From there it was on to "The Lord of the Rings". Things haven't been the same since.



This started me on my way. I knew what I was going to do. I was going to write fantasy novels for children. I started right away. I made the mistake of trying to write an 8th book of the Chronicles of Narnia--not a good idea. Then, I started a fantasy epic of my own inspiration, complete with a map and everything.

Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately) I don't think anything has survived from that ill fated manuscript. After that I bided my time. Something else grabbed my writing attention around this time and on into high school and college--comedy. But that's a story for another day.

Hallo Tosis--Strange Name For A Dwarf

Hallo Tosis the dwarf is the fourth main character in my book. I know, it's kind of a stinky name. Right from the beginning, Hallo had a hard life. First, his father stuck him with that horrible name. Then, he finds that he's the least talented dwarf in the history of the Dwarf Kingdom. This gets him banished.

So, he's forced to wander the Iron Mountains, unable to get help from the dwarves of the Kingdom, and unwilling to go down to Calendria and reveal himself to the Big Folk. Finally, he decides to end it all, but changes his mind at the last minute, which is when he enters the story.

Hallo turns out to be invaluable. He helps the village in their plan to defeat Sharky and his pirate band. He also learns a few interesting things about his family history that change his relationship with his father.

He's feisty and funny and another standout character. He took a little while to develop, but once he did, he really took off. He's the perfect finish to the quartet of Eric, Stig, Kate, and Hallo--the group that became The Deliverers.

Back In the Saddle Again

Well, here we are. I can't believe it's November 5th already, and I REALLY can't believe that the photo above was taken on the morning of OCTOBER 30th. That was the day after a good old fashioned Nor'easter blew into Connecticut and nearby states, and dumped up to 17 inches of wet, gloppy snow on top of leaf-covered branches.

Do you know what happens when this occurs? Trees and/or huge tree limbs snap, crackle, pop and break, falling on to houses, sheds, and power lines. For us it meant a week long power outage. I was without power (and heat) for five days. Some people still don't have their power back. Not to worry, the power company expects (hopes?) to have power back to 99% of all customers by midnight Sunday. We shall see.

Anyway, I'm thankful that my power is back, and I hope those of you who are still out will get yours back soon. Meanwhile, I can honestly say that I was lucky. While my back yard looks like a tornado hit it:

I was extremely lucky in that nothing came down on the house or the shed and gazeebo. My wife, Stephanie, was great. She had to deal with two children all day who were bored because they were out of school and there was nothing electronic to play with. While I was at work, where the electricity flowed freely, as did the heat, she had to find places to take them to keep them entertained. And, thank goodness for the YMCA. Not only were we able to shower there, but the kids had a ball swimming. It was a lifesaver during a couple of afternoons this week.

So now, I've got some cleaning up to do. Ironically, I had just sold my chain saw (which I rarely used) the weekend before the storm, so that left me with just a bow saw. I went out this morning to make a start, and after about an hour the saw broke. So now, I'm heading out to Sears to pick up a new one. I hope they're not cleaned out, or my yard will be looking like this:

for quite a while. Oh well, all's well that ends well--although I guess I'll be losing four trees. I suppose it means less leaves to rake next year!

Now that things are sort of back to normal, I can start concentrating on my book again. In the next couple days, I'll be updating you on that front. I will also have an announcement to make sometime next week, so stay tuned. In the meantime, be safe and be warm!









But We Never Lose Power...

Hi all. I just wanted to post something quickly to let you know I haven't disappeared. I'm stuck smack dab in the middle of the worst area of power outages in Connecticut, so no internet, electricity...heat. When the power's back up, I'll make a real post and let everyone know.

In the meantime, if you have no power (then you're probably not reading this), be safe. If you have a warm place to stay, then stay there--don't be a hero. Remember, the local YMCA usually opens up to the community for showers, etc., and look for lists of community storm shelters in your area.

We're supposed to get power back here...sometime. I'll talk to you when that happens! All the best.