Merry Christmas 2009

Here in southern California, the sun is shining and the skies are blue.  I try to think of all the good things and how much was accomplished this year.  Many lives around the world that experienced tragedy and loss and many lives that experienced triumph and victory.

Thanksgiving and Christmas are traditionally known for being times where one is most thankful for things in life (here in the United States).  However, I tend to try to be thankful for something everyday.  Today I am thankful for family and the support that I receive from them and also my friends around the world.  Thank you all.

As we come about the close of the year, we set our sites upon the horizon as the new year rises over the old.  Hope shines through and though we see ourselves as separate... we all approach this coming year together with hope for a better tomorrow.  A new chapter in my story, the story of Nevada Wolf, will begin and others around me will embark on their own adventures.  That is for tomorrow.

Today, I am thankful.  We all have something to be thankful for.  So even if you are alone during this time of year you can at least find yourself counting the things in your life that you are most thankful for and remembering that life is a challenge... these days are what brings out the best in us all.  I welcome the new year and the new challenges that will accompany it.

I wish you all a merry Christmas and a happy New Year!

Magic In The Mechanical Room

"I use magic, in some ways, as a metaphor for technology.  For example, I have these sisters who have books called Journey Books, and they can communicate using these Journey Books.  When they write something in one, it appears magically in its twin, and the person who's carrying the twin can return messages in the same manner.  It's email!  Big deal... I use magic as a metaphor for freedom.  The use of magic is the exertion of freedom to be one's best..."

-Terry Goodkind (author of the Sword of Truth series / aka Legend of the Seeker)

I love magic.  To me, science has always been a form of magic.  I remember playing a PC game called Arcanum and in this game you were a wandering traveler set in the Industrial Revolution era.  From the start, you chose if you would be someone that used magic heavily or someone that relied heavily on technology.  If you chose magic you would have to learn schools of spells and pick a specific school to specialize in.  If you chose technology then you would have to study a specific field such as Explosives, Gun Smithy, Smithy, etc.  The way the developers did it, however, was done in such a way that even the technological schools and disciplines seemed magical, and this is how I like magic to be.

I believe there is magic in everything.  The Mechanical Room has several magical races in it:

Dwarves
Gnomes
Pixies
Fairies
Sprites
Dryads
Imps
Gremlins
Shadow Stalkers
Cat People

I tend to think very practical like Terry Goodkind.  For instance, one chapter I write in first person because the character is addressing his journal (think Captain Kirk from Star Trek- "Captain's Log. Star Date....").  A few of his officers rush into his study chambers and begin arguing over who should speak first.  To settle matters, he creates a Turn Sphere.  In order to use a Turn Sphere you must place a personal possession inside of the glowing magical sphere.  Then, it will rotate at rapid speeds and whichever object shoots out first determines the order of turns.  It's dice!  Big deal!  I'm dealing with magically endowed beings who live and breath this stuff everyday and so they must come up with practical uses for their gifts, and it has to be something we can relate to. 

Often times in mythological stories the average person would behold something that they could not understand fully and so they tried to explain it as best they could.  Their explanations tended to be very fantastical.  Some people saw tall men and women and so they called them giants, or shorter individuals and they called them dwarfs, etc.

There is magic everywhere and in everything.  When creating The Cat People in my book, I simply referenced my cat Sam.  If I looked at him through the programmed eyes I would have a label for every thing he did and every part of him.  If I looked at him through eyes that had never seen such a creature before, then suddenly he is magical and has special powers like incredible agility, night vision, and super reflexes.

I try to make my magic believable by basing it on what already is.  The magic, or science, is not the center focus of the story.  The magic simply helps move the story along just as the characters do.  My focus tends to be on emotion... touching the human emotion through these characters I create.  There is magic everywhere and in everything.

Writing is my Therapy

I'd found an old typewriter a long time ago... it looked like a bulky briefcase, but you flip the top up and inside was a typewriter.  I think that might have been the little thing in my life that sparked a passion within me.  I was ten years old and just returned from my first Taekwondo tournament.  I wrote as best a ten year old could... all lowercase letters in a single centered column down the middle of the page.  I talked about the experience and how my heart raced and how good it felt to win even if it was only a bronze medal.

To this day, writing has served a major purpose in my life and has helped to keep me sane in this world.  From then on I kept journals throughout my life.  The journals helped me through high school, college, the military, and life in general.

As a writer it is important to never stop writing.  Writing can be no different, in terms of art form and craft, as painting or playing a musical instrument in that if you don't use it, you lose it.  This is one of the reasons why I keep this blog, and the same goes for many other published and unpublished authors.  I find journal writing particularly helpful because I am unrestricted in every sense.  I don't have to focus on capitalization, punctuation, style, selling anything, or marketing anything... I just write.

So in a lot of ways writing has been a form of therapy for me.  Writing helps me to release a lot of tension and stress.  People may ask, "Really?  You write 300+ pages of a novel and then you write some more?"  Well, yeah, but like I said it is a different form of writing.  It has helped me a great deal in life and never gets old and boring because my life never gets old and boring... and I write about my life and those around me.  It helps me to keep my mind sharp and active in writing.  Some people even recommend just going outside and writing what you see, which I know is something that helps a lot also.

Aside from journal writing I also write poetry, essays, and long emails to that special someone.  I think they all serve a purpose, but again my favorite is journal writing.  Here in Los Angeles there are some really nice shops for writers that sell these beautiful leather bound journals.  When I was in the Navy I snuck one into basic training that had (in Kanji / Japanese) the word "Peace" on the outside... HA!  I wrote in the dark at night, when I was on bed rest from having my wisdom teeth pulled, and throughout the rest of my training.  There were a few times during the writing of The Mechanical Room that I referred to my journal because the Alliance of Defenders in the Starlight Queendom are a naval force and I had to reference some naval terms.  And though there are things I will never forget about the military... a lot of it is better preserved in my journals than in my memory.

(Recommended reading: A Handbook To Literature by William Harmon and C. Hugh Holman)

Ladies and Gentlemen... John Noah

Character Profile: John Noah

Age: 30

Height: 5’7”

Weight: 140 lbs

Eye color: Brown

Hair color: Black / Dark Brown

Birth Date: September 17, 2079

Birth Place: Los Angeles, California

Scars/handicaps: Inflicted with Miller’s disease – a terminal illness with a 100% fatality rate. Has a birth mark on the lower back of his neck.

Education: Barely graduated from high school and eventually received his degree from a two year before getting his Bachelors degree.

Work: Works for a large non profit organization that strives to relieve suffering from natural disasters, sickness, and diseases around the world

Best friend(s): His niece Rain, his cat Jack. In “The Mechanical Room” world- Penn Wolfgang

Marital status: Widowed

Enemies: His boss Monica. In the other world- the dwarves, cat people, imps, gremlins, and shadow stalkers.

Parents: His mother Alana and his father Walter

Present problem: John is suffering from a terminal autoimmune illness known as Miller’s Disease. He has lost most of his family to this illness except his niece. He is forced to endure the agony of life without his loved ones until the illness finally claims his life, which is a day that John looks forward to.

Character traits: John is a man of his word. He means what he says and he says what he means. He can be very direct, which often puts a lot of people off. He used to try and be tactful before his affliction, but after losing the love of his life John no longer saw the point. He has a soft spot in his heart for women and children and animals. John tries to respect nature but often he finds himself unable to sit still long enough to absorb it fully. He can be impatient at times and often tries to find the best solution to a problem though it might not necessarily be the easiest solution. He can also be very stubborn at times.

Humor: He has a sarcastic and dry sense of humor and is not afraid to make a joke at his own expense.

Ambitions: John looks forward to dying so that he can reunite with Jannike (his wife that passed away), and at the same time he wishes to live so that he can see his niece grow older and wiser in the world and have a family of her own some day.

Philosophy: John doesn’t care what others think of him. He lives for himself and no one else. He doesn’t believe in wasting time worrying about what other people think when the only thoughts and opinions that matter are your own.

Favorite colors: Red and Black

Pastimes: John is a fan of chess. He also enjoys people watching and often just staring out into the world. He loves rainy days and playing with his cat Jack.

Dress: John is usually business casual. He doesn’t wear a tie. His sleeves are often rolled up. His shoes are a bit scuffed, but he somehow ties it all together and looks presentable. People often mistake his slouched/hunched posture for laziness or that he doesn’t care when, to him, he’s trying to conserve energy from having to sit up or stand up straight.

Hobbies: Chess, reading, sitting in silence, and watching old Hayao Miyazaki animated films.

Wonderful Prose

"It was early spring, and the night was cool but not chilly.  There was a fragrance in the air, washing down over the city from the high meadows in the mountain behind Riva and mingling with peat smoke and the salty tangy sea."
- David Eddings' Castle of Wizardy: Book Four of The Belgariad

Wonderful prose!  One of my favorite descriptive passages from Eddings' series and this book.  I know it is not unusual for a writer to be his or her own worst critic.  I happen to like a lot of what I write or otherwise I wouldn't write it... right?  Right, well of course there are times when I get frustrated and seem unable to find the right words to describe the scene I have in my mind and in my imagination.  Usually I will then take a short break, take some conscious breaths, and sit in my setting without the stress of trying to describe it to someone.

If you really think about it we do this as human beings everyday practically.  Take a look around your current setting/environment and what do you see?  An office?  An apartment?  A bedroom?  A park?  A cave?  Whatever it may be, we see it and sit in it but hardly take the time to appreciate it.  Can you describe your setting?  Can you describe your setting with your eyes closed?

I know a few friends and family members who are writing but find trouble with this.  For me it is particularly challenging because my worlds and settings are not real and in fact stretch the limits of ones imagination.  Making it real and believable is as simple to me as touching back on some of those memories of places I'd visited as a small child, when everything was new and mysterious, and conjuring up that feeling:

John and the others awakened to the callings of the forest creatures along with the rising of the sun.  The morning dew did not penetrate the home of Waya but instead gave a hint of moisture in the air.  Within the towering sequoia tree was a sweet smell of wood and sap that provided a feeling of peace and protection.  Gawonisgi advised them to set out early so that they made it to the Starlight Queendom in time to catch the officials.  He said that they were diurnal in nature like most magically endowed beings.
 -The Mechanical Room by Nevada Wolf 

This is one of my favorite pieces of prose from my book The Mechanical Room.  I conjured up old memories of waking up in my great grandmother's home (may she rest in peace) on the weekend with daylight breaking through.  When I combined this memory with the memories of being in what seemed like a forest in her backyard (when it was actually just a backyard) and sprinkled it with a bit of magic... that was how I got my scene, and to me it was perfect.

I may not know what peat smoke is, but I know what smoke is and I can use my imagination for the rest.  Many might not know what a sequoia tree is (especially those outside of California), but I bet they know what a tree is and the imagination does the rest.  I try not to get caught up too much on writing for others and instead I write for myself, and what sparks warmth in my heart may touch the hearts of others around the world if I am lucky.

Happy Holidays to everyone!

A Unique Voice

Most of my work tends to focus on a few central characters, however never neglecting the characters that also move the plot of the story along.  Given that I tend to have a number of characters, I try to make sure that each one has a unique voice.

Sometimes this can be tricky for me particularly when the characters are related (i.e. father and son, brothers, etc.).  One thing I try to remember is how many unique people I've come across in my life.  I've worked at a college counseling facility, lived on the east coast, west coast, and in the midwest, and I've been in the military.  I had to have come across some distinct characters in my travels. 

I try to dig back and reference some of these characters.  Another good tip that I read was to go to a park, or restaurant, or somewhere with people in general and just listen to the dialogue and conversations.  I'm kind of a hermit and so I hate leaving the apartment unless it's for food, family, or work.  I have, however, kept detailed journals throughout my life that also help me keep a record of the people and places I've encountered.

My main character, John Noah, was easily unique in his voice from the opening of the book, but I tried to keep it in balance with the changes occurring around him.  My favorite character to write, however, was the father of my supporting character Penn.  Elder Manaster... very wise, knowledgeable, brave but also very rude, short tempered, impatient and sometimes even a bit childish.  He was my way of getting away with some of the technical things in the book.  Whenever a character didn't understand something, Manaster would try his best to explain (as politely as he could), but then inevitably he would get frustrated and resort to belittling the person's intelligence... ha!  Almost like the character Sheldon from CBS's The Big Bang Theory.  Great show by the way!

My first guitar!

Christmas came a little early this year for me.  It is my first guitar and so I am learning how to play it.  My fingers hurt!  Damn it!  No one mentions this when they talk about learning to play the guitar.  Does it skip their minds?  As I sit and type, I can't feel my index finger strike the plastic surface of these keys!  But it's okay... it's all part of the process right?

I believe that creativity truly comes from a place of awareness, and sometimes different creative arts can inspire others.

There are times when the mundane typical challenges of life can threaten your creative flow... arguing with your girlfriend/boyfriend or husband/wife (trust me, I know about this one all too well), your kids stress you out, family drama, work has you feeling more like a slave than an appreciated and valued team member, etc.  In these times I believe it helps to use a creative outlet to get you back into the mood to write, or in other words use one art to create a space for awareness, and in that space your creativity can blossom and grow.

I guess I better get back to practicing... I hope my fingers can hold out!