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Relationships, Gay Issues, Education
14 years ago
General
So, right about the time 
Alex Vance's was working on my stories for the Bad Dog Book Club, I asked him for his thoughts on my writing. Him being the badass writer behind the Heathen City/Maranatha series, as well as the editor and owner of Bad Dog Books, well... I'm sure he's gonna have valuable input. He had some things to say. One of which, was point blank:
"You're into relationships, gay issues, and education."
He managed to sum up my entire body of work after having only read Carnal Shock and Blinded Troublemaker. I had to think about this for a while, and it was very clear.
He's right--this is the kind of stuff I write about. Most of the time. Which is totally not a bad thing. But the reason I do is because... well, these are the kind of things that are important to me, as a person, and important to me as a writer. They're the kind of stories I want to read, and the the kind of stories I like to tell. My sensibilities, in this regard, are very similar to
kyell's, and one of my editors was also keen to point that out. I love romance--it's what I strive for in my life, and I love to see relationships explored between two people. When you have two wonderful characters, like, say, Wiley and Devlin, and you do a good job of characterizing them in a way that makes the reader care about them, you can't help but WANT to see where their relationship is gonna take them; their highs, lows, pitfalls, and how they make up, etc. I love that kinda thing, and that subsequently shows up in my own writing. I like seeing how interesting people get together and explore their interactions. Relationships, on the whole, are the main focal point of my own writing, and probably every story I write is gonna have that kinda thing, regardless of the setting.
Gay issues are also important to me, and anyone who knows me knows that I'm rather militant in that aspect; as such, it also shows up in my writing from time to time. Education, well, that's more just the setting that I like to come back to every now and again, because a school or place of higher learning makes for all sorts of quirky characters, conflicts, etc. It's really the perfect kind of setting for contemporary dramas, in my opinion, because college kids are usually just like me and you. And most everyone has been to college, so most people can relate to it. It's the slice-of-life kinda thing, for me.
On the whole, it's really about the characters, for me. I remember when I did my Storytelling Panel with Kyell,
rukis, and 
meesh back at Further Confusion, and I started it by saying every story, for me, starts with the characters--who they are, what they want, what they're all about. Then Kyell came out and uttered the very same sentiment, which made me feel really... validated, in a way. Character-driven stories--that's what I like to write, and that's what I like to read. They're usually far deeper than plot-driven stories.
A rather ironic example to this is the movie 'Battle: Los Angeles.' Plot-driven, all the way. Absolutely none of the characters are memorable, remarkable, or even unique. Seriously, think for one second: Did you even remember any of the characters NAMES when watching that movie? The only thing that movie had going for itself was the intense, realistic action, which was just awesome. Conversely, look at (and I'm gonna hate this)... 'Twilight'. Yeah, it's melodramatic, outrageously pretentious, and just plain fucking terrible, BUT, you remember the characters, who they are, and they do end up being the slightest bit remarkable, even if they're all dumbasses. Which they are. But still, it's still a story driven by unique (uniquely stupid) characters, as opposed to a story driven by characters who are completely expendable and forgettable. Unfortunately, they're characters who aren't interesting enough that most people would WANT to care about them, but... I've made my point. This is also the only time I will ever defend Twilight. It's still a piece of shit.
But, getting back to the main point; Relationships, gay issues, education. Yeah... I guess that's pretty much me, on the whole. But rest assured, it's not the only thing I write. I'm also writing a sci-fi action story... which is character driven. And a fantasy political intrigue story, which is also character driven. I guess the real defining feature about my writing is that all my stories, regardless of setting or conflict is about characters and relationships. Yeah, that's me. :)
Alex Vance's was working on my stories for the Bad Dog Book Club, I asked him for his thoughts on my writing. Him being the badass writer behind the Heathen City/Maranatha series, as well as the editor and owner of Bad Dog Books, well... I'm sure he's gonna have valuable input. He had some things to say. One of which, was point blank:"You're into relationships, gay issues, and education."
He managed to sum up my entire body of work after having only read Carnal Shock and Blinded Troublemaker. I had to think about this for a while, and it was very clear.
He's right--this is the kind of stuff I write about. Most of the time. Which is totally not a bad thing. But the reason I do is because... well, these are the kind of things that are important to me, as a person, and important to me as a writer. They're the kind of stories I want to read, and the the kind of stories I like to tell. My sensibilities, in this regard, are very similar to
kyell's, and one of my editors was also keen to point that out. I love romance--it's what I strive for in my life, and I love to see relationships explored between two people. When you have two wonderful characters, like, say, Wiley and Devlin, and you do a good job of characterizing them in a way that makes the reader care about them, you can't help but WANT to see where their relationship is gonna take them; their highs, lows, pitfalls, and how they make up, etc. I love that kinda thing, and that subsequently shows up in my own writing. I like seeing how interesting people get together and explore their interactions. Relationships, on the whole, are the main focal point of my own writing, and probably every story I write is gonna have that kinda thing, regardless of the setting. Gay issues are also important to me, and anyone who knows me knows that I'm rather militant in that aspect; as such, it also shows up in my writing from time to time. Education, well, that's more just the setting that I like to come back to every now and again, because a school or place of higher learning makes for all sorts of quirky characters, conflicts, etc. It's really the perfect kind of setting for contemporary dramas, in my opinion, because college kids are usually just like me and you. And most everyone has been to college, so most people can relate to it. It's the slice-of-life kinda thing, for me.
On the whole, it's really about the characters, for me. I remember when I did my Storytelling Panel with Kyell,
rukis, and 
meesh back at Further Confusion, and I started it by saying every story, for me, starts with the characters--who they are, what they want, what they're all about. Then Kyell came out and uttered the very same sentiment, which made me feel really... validated, in a way. Character-driven stories--that's what I like to write, and that's what I like to read. They're usually far deeper than plot-driven stories. A rather ironic example to this is the movie 'Battle: Los Angeles.' Plot-driven, all the way. Absolutely none of the characters are memorable, remarkable, or even unique. Seriously, think for one second: Did you even remember any of the characters NAMES when watching that movie? The only thing that movie had going for itself was the intense, realistic action, which was just awesome. Conversely, look at (and I'm gonna hate this)... 'Twilight'. Yeah, it's melodramatic, outrageously pretentious, and just plain fucking terrible, BUT, you remember the characters, who they are, and they do end up being the slightest bit remarkable, even if they're all dumbasses. Which they are. But still, it's still a story driven by unique (uniquely stupid) characters, as opposed to a story driven by characters who are completely expendable and forgettable. Unfortunately, they're characters who aren't interesting enough that most people would WANT to care about them, but... I've made my point. This is also the only time I will ever defend Twilight. It's still a piece of shit.
But, getting back to the main point; Relationships, gay issues, education. Yeah... I guess that's pretty much me, on the whole. But rest assured, it's not the only thing I write. I'm also writing a sci-fi action story... which is character driven. And a fantasy political intrigue story, which is also character driven. I guess the real defining feature about my writing is that all my stories, regardless of setting or conflict is about characters and relationships. Yeah, that's me. :)
Not all my stories are character-driven, but plot- or idea-driven. Some are based on one word alone. That's no reason not to have memorable characters you care about. Otherwise, what's the point? I may write a story to see how I work with breath-play or watersports or sex with flailing inflatable arm-waving tube men (sic), but unless the people in the story are interesting and deep in some way, well, I wouldn't keep reading unless I was reading for one specific activity. Yes, THAT specific activity.
It's also about how characters react to their plot moving forward. Their actions do it, but you can also throw in something unexpected, but that only changes the story once the characters react to it. So you don't really have a story until you populate it.
It's a hard concept to grasp if you're unwilling to ask, and answer, the questions your characters beg of you: what are they about? I just spent ten minutes finding the fuel mileage of the presidential limo...for one measly sentence! But that's something that happens in his dialogue, and it fits...at least for now. Where they come from, where they're going...and most of all, why...are the things that drive characters, and they, in turn, drive your story. They drive the world.
you write what you know, you write what you like, you write what interests YOU and hope others happen to like it as well.
this reminds me of a memorable quote from my father "Do what you love, and you will never work another day in your life..."
i.e. if you love it, then it's not really work