Progress Report: This Emerald Crucible

Wed, FEB 28, 2024 - 20:51

It was in February of 2018 — six whole years ago — that I recall wiping my forehead dry and taking my first deep breath of humid jungle air. Cambodia was in the midst of a stifling summer and there I stood, trusty Fujifilm camera in-hand, ducking and picking through some of the world’s most beautiful and enigmatic ancient ruins.

Like so many before me, I was dumbfounded. Angkor Wat is perplexing, to say the least. It’s a sprawling complex whose whole purpose is still unclear, and whose full extent continues to grow with every turn of the archaeologist's spade. Those structures which remain standing are vast and silent, most holding their secrets close. And yet the odd carving seems to scream for attention and rememberance.

It should therefore come as no surprise that I was immediately inspired by the place, and began jotting down notes even before I’d left the site.

The idea was simple. I wanted to extend the world of Aliru — the world I’d created in The Torril City Mysterion — and weave a story that could transmit the beguiling feelings of mystery and majesty I’d experienced. The story would take place in steaming ruins with enigmatic, time-worn stones. I couldn’t think of a better vehicle for delivering this excitement and adventure to readers.

With that, This Emerald Crucible was born. And today I’m thrilled to announce that the first draft is finished.

It’s been underway for almost three years and there’s still a long way to go, but already I feel that this new addition to the ‘Aliru Anthology’ is a worthy successor to Torril City. This is not a sequel, nor a prequel. It features different characters in a different time and place, but there are little sparkles to be discovered along the way which, seen together, can illuminate a greater whole…

Stay tuned for more announcements. I can’t wait to share This Emerald Crucible with you all very soon.

Jim :)

Come Say Hi

Mon, JAN 29, 2024 - 9:09

It’s summer in Australia, which means it’s time for festivals, fairs, flings, and fun. And one festival which happens on my doorstep just happens to be Midsumma, a month-long celebration of people and love – if you want to get all hippylike.

But for the past three years, my partner and I have also been regulars at another venue on our doorstep. A board-games bar called Boardies on Smith St. in the trendy Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy. It’s become our second living room and we’ve been lucky to forge a good relationship with the staff and owner, while enjoying some funky cocktails and of course, learning a bunch of new boardgames. If you're ever in the area, you have to go visit, it's a treat!

Not only is it a great venue, but a while ago the owner kindly offered to sell my books on his bar, which has been fantastic for me as the clientele is mostly wonderful nerds and fantasy fans. Then, a month ago he added a new twist to the game, by mentioning that Boardies is going to have a table at the Midsumma street festival on February 11, and that I’d be welcome to set up shop there and hawk my wares.

Of course, I was thrilled with the idea and said I’d love to.

So, if you happen to be in Melbourne at the Midsumma festival on Feb 11, 2024, come say hi! The Boardies table will be located in Peel St. on the small park beside Two Birds Café (also a fabulous venue, if you’re after a good brekky and coffee).

A huge shout out and thanks to Craig from Boardies for organising this with the event planners, and I hope to see you there, dear reader!

Jim :)

Am I Detecting Notes Of Cynicism?

Sun, JAN 28, 2024 - 09:52

I sat down to watch Wonka a few nights ago. And while I do have criticism, overall it was a passable addition to the 'Roald Dahl Universe' (yes, that is happening). Sure, the movie leant a bit too heavily on CGI, Timothé Chalamet is not as charismatic as Gene Wilder (though far less creepy than Johnny Depp, so we'll take it) and the plot was predictable — modern cinema seems content to ignore subtext and clever scripting to focus more on visuals, so that’s nothing new — but it was around the third song mark that I started to wonder if the musical genre perhaps needs to take a little masterclass…because we were only 15 minutes in.

To be fair, Wonka contained a few welcome surprises and a sense of oddball creativity that harkened back to the loose-boundaried fantasy films of the 1980s. It also contained a few toe-tappers that are both genuinely chuckleworthy and catchy. The songs, written by a Joby Talbot ('Sing'/'Sing 2') and Neil Hannon (an Irish singer-songwriter with comedic inclinations) cover some well-trodden terrain. The ‘Oompa Loompa’ song and ‘Pure Imagination’ are examples of this. But it includes a couple of nice new additions, too. ‘Scrub Scrub’ has managed to lodge itself in my brain and slips out in mumbles as I’m doing housework, while ‘You’ve Never Had Chocolate Like This’ is a worthy cheerleader for the film.

The problem is that, like so many films nowadays, the inclusion of musical numbers was at times clunky and at other times unnecessary. In the worst instances, the songs actually took me out of the film. And don’t get me wrong. I’m a huge fan of the musical. But it seems that increasingly, musical filmwriters and their songwriting compatriots are forgetting a golden rule when it comes to characters flexing their voiceboxes.

That rule is simple, and it was explained perfectly by musical theatre addict, Mo Murray:

…characters should speak when the emotion is too great for silence; sing when the emotion is too great for speech; and dance when the emotion is too great for song.

I believe story theorist and screenwriting guru Robert McKee would agree wholeheartedly, and I have long felt the same way. In musicals, songs are not just add-ons. They carry significant narrative weight and often reveal a character's inner thoughts or advance the plot. It's a unique feature of this wonderful genre, allowing a deeper emotional connection with the audience. So if and when a song happens, it must matter.

Even before Disney’s Frozen, when princess Anna blurted out, “…don’t know if I’m elated or gassy, but I’m somewhere in that zone!” and needlessly tossed aside the immense power of song for a cheap poopie-joke (thank you, K. A. and R. Lopez…), I’ve been cautious about new musicals. I was burned badly again by The Greatest Showman, perhaps the biggest misstep in musical history with its overproduced, unjustified, and poorly written songs (wasting the talents of a truly wonderful cast), but that hasn’t been the only film during which I groaned when a character opened their mouth to sing.

Wonka, more tactful than the aforementioned examples, floats just above the tideline where songs are thrown in just to meet the demands of a genre. At times, musically-fitted words tumbled out of characters’ mouths without much cause, yes, and the numbers don't begin smoothly (recall Rodgers & Hammerstein musicals where the audience almost doesn’t notice a song beginning). But I didn’t find myself wincing with trepidation or an air of vicarious embarassment, wondering if I was going to be able to relax or pray for deliverance as the actors tried their best to perform the unperformable.

This is all to say that overall, while I worry about the musical as a genre, I’d recommend Wonka. It was creative enough, fun enough, and will certainly be a hit with kids. I just didn't feel it was anywhere near daring enough. It didn't make me uncomfortable or tickle my nerves as many of Roald Dahl's stories routinely do and as the original Gene Wilder 'sequel' ('prequel?', 'sidequel?') did. And the songs, clearly designed to cater to the masses (no ‘Wonderous Boat Ride’ in this film!), were not always memorable. In general, though, the film manages to hit a sweet note.

Jim :)

Egypt: Land of Mystery

Thurs, OCT 26, 2023 - 19:39

Two days ago I returned from a month-long trip to Egypt, not quite as tanned as I'd expected, definitely thinner, and with my mind still reeling from the things I'd seen and done and learned.

Modern Egypt is a world of contradictions. It's both organised and chaotic, cruel and kind, poor and wealthy, and even now after days of reflection I'm having a difficult time trying to abbreviate my feelings. Perhaps they can't be. Perhaps they will remain a jumble of disconnected ideas and images. It is, after all, a very complex place. The past is constantly battling for attention in the present, and the present has its own problems to deal with.

I was dismayed as everyone else was on October 8, when two Isreli tourists and an Egyptian tour guide were murdered in Alexandria. At the time I was in Saqqara, just south of Cairo, and the news hit the region like a storm squall. Everyone was talking about it in low and disappointed mutters, worrying about what it would inevitably lead to. Most of the people I met and talked to were realistic about the implications for the region, though one of my drivers muttered darkly that this was the beginning of the final war, which no part of the world would escape. I sipped my carbonated pineapple drink, staring at the desert slipping by out the window of his van and listening politely as he worked his way through the problem and finally changed the subject.

By the time I left Egypt two and a half weeks later, things had indeed worsened, and I will admit to feeling relief as my plane finally reached the Indian Ocean on the homeward stretch to Australia.

Still, nothing will dim the memories of the beautiful things I saw and the experiences I had. There are few places where hospitality still plays such a large role as in Egypt, and fewer places still with such an incredible material legacy. I can't wait to share some of these things with you, so stick around for an announcment on that, very soon.

Jim :)

UPDATE: This Emerald Crucible

Tues, OCT 10, 2023 - 11:46

I first toyed with the idea for This Emerald Crucible back in the summer of 2018 while travelling through Cambodia, for few things can charge up your inspirational battery like a visit to the enigmatic temples of Ankor. Like silent sentinels from a forgotten age, the structures that await the visitor in those steaming jungles are utterly remarkable and if you've been lucky enough to visit, you'll understand immediately why I felt my creativity sparking up.

No matter how much research you do before a trip, actually being there is always different and in the case of Cambodia, it surpassed what I'd imagined. Standing on the causeway gazing at the hulking, graceful monuments, my imagination couldn't help zipping off to wrestle with questions about their purpose and design, and what kind of minds lay behind their construction.

But it was while sitting at my hotel in Siem Reap watching one of the most ferocious downpours I'd ever experienced that I began jotting notes for what I tentatively named 'Deeds, Mouldering in Shadow,' a new story about a young man charged with saving the last seedlings of an exotic fruiting plant. At that point, I was already well into the first draft of The Torril City Mysterion - "A Pinch of Peril", and I began toying with the idea of intertwining this story into Torril's world, Aliru, which I had already come to love so much.

Well, it's five years later and I think it's finally time to announce a couple of things. Firstly, the first draft of This Emerald Crucible is almost done. It's currently enjoying a round of proofreading with some of my eagle-eyed and wonderful friends before it zips off to the editing desk. I think it's shaped up very nicely and I'm excited to have reached this point, once again.

The second thing to announce is that I lied to you all, because This Emerald Crucible will not be "a one-shot novel set in the world of Aliru", as my homepage claims. At this point, it will almost certainly be two books – the reason being that once I threw myself into the story and became familiar with these new characters, I felt their story needed to play out properly.

If you're a fantasy fan like myself, then this news is probably welcome because there's nothing like sinking your teeth into a great big tome. As long as it's a good one. And that's what I'm hoping This Emerald Crucible is. I really hope when it finally drops, you'll enjoy it as much as I do.

Jim :)

A Quick-Take on AI

Sat, APR 22, 2023 - 23:04

I'm an optimist but I have to admit, things are pretty crazy right now.

As a writer, graphic designer, and content-creator who’s with two decades in these professions, I’m witnessing a revolution because in the last two years alone, all of these professions have come directly into the firing line, each at high risk of being ‘destroyed’ by new AI technologies.

At least, that’s what a lot of alarm-bell smacking journalists and furious artists would have you believe.

Honestly, things are moving so fast that nobody really has a clue what’s coming, so with the introduction of services like ChatGPT, Midjourney, and various new, AI-driven video editing apps (many of which are still emerging), some would have us believe that entire industries are about to become obsolete.

But I see things differently. I don’t believe this is the end of human endeavour (unless we’re about to experience an AI-driven apocalypse — totes possible) and I’d like to explain why.

If you’re a nerd like myself, then you’ve no doubt played around with some (or all!) of these new image-generation technologies and, honestly? They’re more than just impressive. They’re magic. I mean, what’s more incredible than coming up with an idea and seeing it appear before your eyes? Never before in human history have we had the ability to watch an idea take shape so quickly and visually. This development is huge.

Text-based AIs like Open AI’s ‘ChatGPT’, or Google’s ‘Bard’ are also amazing, even now in their early stages. And they’re only going to get better.

So of course I see the risk; that a client who asks for an illustrated novel cover will head for AI generated art, far more polished than anything I could come up with in the same time. And for far less money. I can also imagine that people won’t buy my books, in favour of something an AI wrote, which may be both more profound and coherent (and probably also cheaper, too!).

Totally fair. I get it, and I don’t blame people for choosing AI over me if it saves them money and time.

However, there’s something missing from AI generated content that machines will never be able to replicate, and as corny as it sounds, it’s the human-factor.

The reason I go to comedy stand-up shows, for example, is not to hear jokes. I go to see personalities telling those jokes. People whose delivery and style I enjoy. Sure, an AI will be able to duplicate these things, one day, and maybe an android Bill Bailey will dance across the stage and reel off his set with perfect timing and endless energy.

But I still won’t be watching Bill Bailey, and to me (and plenty of other people), that’s the only reason I’m there.

This applies to almost all types of human activity. I don’t just go to a cafe because I like their coffee and menu items, but because I like the interactions with the staff. I want to support a cafe owner or local bookshop because it’s a human endeavour, and as another human, I empathise with their dreams and goals.

I hope the same applies to my own work. I hope that when people read my books, they’ll enjoy them not just for the content, but because they also empathise with a human who has put a great deal of work into creating them for other people’s enjoyment. And that they’ll also appreciate the ideas and dreams that that person has tried to express.

Now, that’s not to say that general AI, when it eventually arrives, won’t have similar dreams and goals. It probably will, and we’ll probably end up enjoying content created by AI personas like we do human personas. The point to consider here is that AI won’t eclipse the experience, but add to it. We won’t give up on watching human stand-up comedians, we’ll just watch them and AI comedians.

As for my work as a designer, I am already using midjourney to inspire myself. It’s great at generating colour palettes, and its compositions can be used as guides for my own work. The thing is, I don’t use it to replace the work I do, but augment my process, because personally, I love the challenge and satisfaction of creation. Again, it’s not eclipsing me, but functioning alongside me.

There is one thing I’ll state right now, however: I do not ever intend to use AI to generate written material. I love and always want to create characters, ideas, problems, and solutions myself. So, if you read one of my books or stories, you can be sure it’s me that’s written it.

Otherwise, though, what I believe AI offers is an endless stream of inspiration to tap into. An endless variety of ways to visualise an idea or overcome a block, or to nudge me onto an alternate, creative path. I have no interest in giving up design or writing or creating fun videos, because I love all of these activities. I want to continue to learn, and improve, and share what I’ve achieved, and it seems to me these are universal, human desires.

I hope that people realise that AI doesn’t have to take that away, but rather lessen our reliance on human labour for mundane tasks, and open fuller, more varied experiences to more people. I also hope it doesn't decide to wipe us out. But hey, it's a big universe, and why go to the trouble of squashing all the ants when you've got endless possibilities to explore?

With no way to tell what's coming, all we can do is wait and honestly, rather than worrying myself sick, I'd rather play the optimist.

A Wardrobe-Change is in Order

Wed, APR 05, 2023 - 12:13

Whatup, fantasy fiends?

Once upon a time, in a past life (see, from uni until my 30s!) I was a graphic designer. So, when the chance came up to try my hand at the cover for my self-published book, "The Torril City Mysterion", I dove in with gusto!

This was a fun and rewarding process that allowed me to bring my vision to life. But as we all know, there's always room for improvement. Plus, a good book cover design is more than just an aesthetically pleasing image; it's a visual representation of the story that can speak to readers and make them want to pick up that sucker. A good design can capture the essence of the telling, set the mood, and pique the reader's interest.

Thus, while I have fond memories of the original cover, I’m excited to announce that Torril City is getting a little update.

Take a gander. I feel this new cover captures the characters more accurately while giving the book a fresh new feel, and I hope you’ll agree!

Yep, the same great story, with a fresh, new look™. This cover will be going live at some point this year, so keep an eye out!

I hope you're feeling funky and fabulous, wherever you are.

Magic and Meaning

Tues, JAN 17, 2023 - 08:48

As a fantasy author, I believe there's a unique power in this genre. It can inspire and uplift like no other, giving us a chance to rekindle a little childlike fascination, hope, and magic. Nowadays, we could all use a little more of that.

We're all exposed to various dramas every day, whether political, environmental, social or familial, and it's easy to feel overwhelmed and helpless in the face of these problems. Just take Covid-19. After that saga and the many difficulties and uncertainties it brought to us all, I personally found myself taking solace in some good old fashioned escapism. In tales which present other possibilities and ideas.

And it seems I wasn’t alone.

The recent, meteoric surge in popularity of the Marvel cinematic universe, Game of Thrones (and similar shows), and Brandon Sanderson's epic tomes are just a few examples proving people’s hunger for stories in this incredible genre. People are craving other worlds, adventures and magical creatures, not to mention incredible, one-of-a-kind personalities to delight and excite.

As an author, I naturally keep an eye on the industry. I revel in watching other creators capture the imagination of their audiences, and it’s been truly inspiring to watch the metamorphosis of media over the last decade. Creativity and quality are at an all-time high, so whether you're a longtime fan of the genre or just starting to explore it, I hope you find just as much joy in the magnificent array of stories we have now access to.

I'm so grateful to be part of this community of dreamers.

Torril, A Year On…

Thurs, SEP 29, 2022 - 10:29

Howdy, fantasy fiends!

Believe it or not, today marks the one year anniversary of the release of The Torril City Mysterion, and I can’t believe how time has flown by.

I still remember a time when I battled inwardly with self-publishing. After all, I’d heard horror stories, listened to publishers and big publishing houses alike condemn ‘indie’ authors. At one time, I even got into the querying game, spending months researching agents, crafting letters, logging everything in spreadsheets, and eating the inevitable rejections — and it was all to avoid the ‘shame’ of remaining unsigned -gasp!-

Well, it’s a year on, and here’s what I now know about self-publishing: It is the ultimate freedom for authors.

Sure, the journey has been a bit of a rollercoaster. There have been difficulties and heartbreaks at times, and when I published Torril City in Sep, 2021, many years’ worth of worry and doubt were sitting on my shoulders. But I’d spent the time learning the craft. I’d done the hard work, and been through the journey from drafts to re-writes to edits. And most importantly, I’d written the story I had always wanted to read.

The support that I received from readers, friends, and family, therefore, told me at once that it had all paid off. Plus, connecting with readers all over the world, and hearing their thoughts on my work — to know that my words have touched so many people — is something I feel incredibly fortunate to have experienced.

So, to my readers out there, near and far, young and old; you are everything. Thank you for not forgetting about us indie writers and here's to many more adventures together!

TIME TO LAUNCH

Wed, NOV 10, 2021 - 12:45

If you’re like me, you get a bit excited when it’s finally time to lift the lid on a project. After all, as Zac Efron once eloquently put it, “The deep, soul-quenching thrill of creation is a uniquely human experience which at once enriches and revitalises our lives.”

OK, Zac Efron never said that. But the point remains; there is something very fulfilling about completing a project. And what’s even better is sharing it with the world.

That’s why I’m so thrilled to announce that right now, The Torril City Mysterion — my first fantasy slash mystery novel — is going to print. Worldwide. It will be available through the regular channels such as Amazon, but will also be available at any local bookstore within two or three days. That's right. You can walk into your local bookstore and order a copy, just like that!

I'm incredibly lucky to have this opportunity, and so grateful to all the people who've helped me along the way. From my wonderful editor, Stacey Dumoski, to my friends and family, and of course my husband, Moritz, who has been there reading drafts from day one. You are all amazing, so thank you.

If you’re curious to snap up a copy, stay tuned, I'll post some links shortly.

The Torril City Mysterion will be available in softcover and eBook format.

A Little Spit 'n Polish

Wed, SEP 29, 2021 - 10:23

In 1963, Ian Fleming gave an interview about the craft of writing. His advice was pretty clear. He followed a set schedule every day, in those hours he wrote 2,000 words, he never looked back at what he’d written, and in six weeks he had finished a book. After a rather brief revision and publishing process, it was then time for the next James Bond story.

Dame Agatha Christie is on record saying something similar, although she places far more emphasis on the planning phase. “The real work is in thinking out the development of your story and worrying about it until it comes right,” she explained in an interview. “That may take quite a while. Then, when you've got all your material together, as it were, all that remains is trying to find time to write the thing. Three months seems quite a reasonable time to complete a book if one can get right down to it.”

If we only focus on the letter points from both these authors, then, writing seems very straightforward. It’s an idea followed by planning and writing, and then the book is done. Yet, strangely, both authors gloss over what I consider the most important element of writing. Namely, that of editing.

Sure, in a quiet space and with no distractions anyone could write away and bang out a chapter a day, and doing so, one could theoretically finish a book in a couple of weeks. The problem there is, of course, that any book written so quickly would undoubtedly be slop — even with good planning.

I have no doubt that both these authors did plan their stories meticulously before diving in to writing, but I still find it odd that they place so little emphasis on editing. The fact is that I also plan very thoroughly before writing. I create a small outline for the story, then an expanded outline. I then plan chapters out individually, noting who is in the scene, their goals, what the chapter goal itself is. I have spreadsheets and notes for every kind of detail, even images and music to help fasten things in mind. But I also tend to read over what I've read every single day, and in this time inevitably find a boatload of things to modify or delete. It’s incredibly time-consuming and I can easily spend a week on one chapter.

I once (in)famously stated in a YouTube video that, “[creative endeavours] are 10% creation, 99% modification,” and faulty as my math was, I still stick by the point. I reckon that editing and rewriting make up the bulk of my writing process, and really wonder how these authors-of-old handled it.

The simple truth could be that I don’t possess the mental acuity they did, and that their drafts were so perfect that editing was barely necessary. Or that they had editors who went to town and polished the book up without author intervention.

Either way, though I hear woeful tales of authors reaching the dreaded ‘editing phase’, I actually love it. Reading over and altering my work is great fun and has so many benefits, from solidifying the plot and minutiae in my mind to helping me consider what I’ve written more thoroughly. It allows me to plant links and connections which I can use in the future, and which I otherwise wouldn't have planted without careful inspection.

Plus, it results in a polished, shiny-ass story. And who doesn’t like one of those?

The Road to Publication - PT. 2

Tues, MAY 04, 2021 - 09:38

READ PART ONE HERE

So, Siltari had been rejected. I'd been rejected. Not as many times as J.K. Rowling, but who was I kidding? I wasn’t going to keep pitching this book for ten years.

Pitching is exhausting. It’s time consuming and kind of degrading. And I want to spend my days writing, damnit. Not begging and scraping. Not wading through a throng of hundreds of thousands and waving until some traditional publisher finally looks down from above and takes pity on me—

-whoa. Just one, cotton-pickin’ second, there. Was that sarcasm? Was I becoming…jaded? I’d barely even waded into this world of gatekeepers. I’d barely tasted rejection. What right did I have to be so critical of something so tried and true?

Well…perhaps it was that book I read about the publishing industry, which had stressed how useless it was to try and make a living from writing? Perhaps it was hearing from published authors how much they were making, or their stories of disappointment once they’d finally signed that magical contract? Or, perhaps it was that course I’d done from a veteran of the traditional publishing world (with her 30 years of experience), siphoning my joy and excitement away by the lecture?

I looked over the notes I’d jotted down from that one…

…chances of getting picked up less than 0.1%…publisher won’t have any real budget to market my book even if I get signed…cover design would be out of my hands…publisher would only care about my work for one season, then drop it to focus on other projects…likely advance for new author only $2,000-10,000…expect you to bring your audience to them, not the other way around…
Right. So, why exactly was I excited about traditional publishing, again? All these years of work. All this trouble, and all these glittering prospects to look forward to, just for that fabled ‘prestige’? A little feather in my cap? What a load of knobbly-cheddar!

It was just six months after my attempts at pitching ‘Siltari’ when, after a lot of to-ing and fro-ing and weighing up the pros and cons, the realisation dawned that traditional publishing wasn’t for me. At least, not at this point in my journey. What was surprising was the fact that, when I finally decided to self-publish, I immediately felt a massive weight lift from my shoulders.

I realised I now had freedom. I’m a resourceful chap. I was a professional graphic and web-designer for 15 years. I’ve got experience in film, narration, and have some great connections. I work hard and am more driven than a Trabbi. I realised that it would be difficult. I realised that I had to keep expectations low. But I also realised: I could do this.

And here we are, another half-year later. It has indeed been a hell of a lot of work. But things are moving. I’m working down my strategy doc. I’ve been building my social media presence. I’ve dabbled in the art of building relations with bookstore-owners, rallied an army of friends and fans. I’ve organised marketing channels and crafted advertising materials. And most excitingly, I have printing and distribution with a great self-publishing house locked-in.

So, in August this year, 2021, The Torril City Mysterion will be my first published book.

Will this all be a disaster? Maybe. Will it ever become a viable source of income? Probably not. But that was never my reason for starting this journey. I genuinely feel I have awesome stories to tell and even if this is the path of most-resistance, then just like my books, I’m going to put my heart into it and come up with the best damned ending I can.

The Road to Publication - PT. 1

Wed, APR 28, 2021 - 13:16

Ah, traditional publication! Cue the heavenly chorus! What greater music is there to an aspiring author?

The steep, craggy road to publishing a book began for me in February of 2020. That’s when, after almost ten years of writing ‘The Binding of Siltari’, I began to seriously pitch it to publishers.

Of course, like a good little author, I didn’t just throw it about. I read and researched for months before sending those carefully crafted query letters. I listed publishers and agents, found out who they’d represented and tried to do a little personality sleuthing to see if they might be a good match. I found good reasons to approach each one of them and tailored my letters, accordingly. And, lucky me, I heard back from a whole five of those thirteen queries.

Seeing that first, unread reply in my inbox was a thrill — until I opened it. There, in line two, were the words, “Unfortunately, the story is not what I’m looking for, right now.”

I remember sitting straight and blinking. Not what she was looking for, right now? Alright, well, when would she be looking for it?

I was never to find out. The email ended with a cut-and-copy line wishing me all the best for the future, (in fact, on second look, the entire email might have been cut-and-copied…) and this response set the general tone for all the others I eventually received.

But my book was good, wasn’t it? Great, Auntie Nelly’s Chocolate Drops, I’d worked so hard on it! It wasn’t something I’d banged out in a month. I’d kept my expo trim! My dialogue was punchy! My character arcs drove the story, damnit! Robert McKee, how had I failed you!?

I mean, I wasn’t going to have to…self-publish, was I?

I shuddered.

No. I had worked too hard and had too much pride for that, damnit! Nobody should be subjected to such indignity. The self-publishing world was a latrine, wasn't it? A fail-party, where the armies of the unschooled and unfit poured their collective drivel. A world riddled with punctuation errors and poor-formatting…of cheap, fiverr-produced covers and prices, $2.99 and under…

No. I would never-…it was traditional publishing or nothing. I mean, J.K. Rowling! Remember how long she tried to get published? I certainly do. In every single supportive text-message I’ve received, over every single coffee-house chat, since then, nobody has let me forget it. And I’ve had to invent new expressions of gratefulness to deal with the inevitable reminders.

READ PART TWO HERE

The Quadrilogy Is Over

Tue, FEB 02, 2021 - 15:07

- CLICKCLICK! -

I pushed my chair back and stood, gazing at my computer screen for a moment without moving. I was done, but finishing a project always brings with it a Bhuja-Mix™ of emotions, and this was a large project.

It was December of 2020 and after almost a year’s work, I had just finished narrating the last in a series of fantasy books for a wonderful client.

My feelings were all over the place. I was thrilled to have completed such an audacious project, in which I had the pleasure (and pain) of voicing over 50 characters and experiencing a fantastical journey — both literary and professionally — but now it was done and the client and I wouldn’t be working together again for a while. Perhaps ever. I wouldn’t meet the characters again, nor would I traverse the world I’d been living in for so long.

That’s a strange feeling.

On such projects, when you’re conversing every other day, dealing with feedback, getting and sometimes giving advice, and basically helping each other to reach this milestone, and when you’re immersed in someone else’s (or occasionally your own) work, it’s not unusual to develop a bond to a client and the material. I certainly do, anyway.

Perhaps that’s something more common in narration; a strange gig by any measure. It’s lonely at times. It’s laborious. It’s technical. And it hurts. Some days I step out of the booth and don't want to open my mouth again until the next day. Sometimes, not even then. Joints and muscles ache, and going into that little void day after day, night after night, only to hear yourself is a test of endurance and a strange game of testing your own limits, in which damaging your own voice often spells ‘Game-Over’.

It’s tough to keep your energy up. It’s tough not to drift and lose the connection to the material. It’s tough when you listen to your work and find it sounds different to what you wanted, then scrap sentences and paragraphs — even entire chapters and character parts. But there’s certainly a reward at the end of it all.

I think we're all storytellers by nature. I love telling stories and always have, even before I tried to amass crowds of students at lunchbreak for fantastical journeys before the next-period bell rang. I love to write, and I love to read, and since I began narrating I’ve discovered a love of reading aloud.

I find a lot of pleasure narrating, and as with anyone who loves their profession, I try to learn more with every project. So when a client gets that final recording and replies with joy in exclamation marks and superlatives, I’m over the moon.

That happened on this particular project, and I was reminded once again that the hard work is worth it. Not only had I developed a great professional relationship with a client, I’ve also been priveliged to turn my skills to something I can be proud of.

If you’re a fan of fantasy, then I really hope you get a chance to hear my take on the Seven Citadels quadrilogy by British author Geraldine Harris. Written in the late 70s and 80s, this series’ rights were recently acquired by a film producer in Los Angeles who contacted me for the narration. It’s a curious, exciting and touching story full of bizarre and interesting characters, which will certainly make an amazing cinematic experience. I hope it made an interesting series of audibooks!

I hope to go into this series a little more in a future post, but until then...

Ciao!

Masterclass: The Verdict

SUN, JAN 03, 2021 - 11:28

I promised in an earlier post that I’d follow up my experience with Masterclass, so here we go.

I’m always trying to improve my writing — whether it be through finding tips from pros, reading books, or coercing friends into giving feedback — but last October I took the plunge and dropped €200 on a subscription to Masterclass, the web-based learning service where one can take classes taught by prominent names in various industries.

In my last post, I related how I’d found the course by Margaret Atwood enjoyable but not that helpful. I’d also done David Baldacci’s course and found his far more structured, with better delivery and a more technical approach. So my views were a bit muddled. Since then, however, I’ve done every writing course they have, and I think I can help other writers curious about taking the plunge to make up their minds — because I’ve made up mine.

The verdict is basically this: At first, I honestly felt that the offerings on Masterclass weren’t worth the price. The courses seemed very hit and miss, they are all relatively short, and the homework is kind of ‘meh’.

Some of these opinions haven’t changed. But I can elaborate, and there are two upshots…

Firstly, yes, the courses are hit and miss. Some might be strangely structured and felt like the instructor simply sat down and babbled for a couple of hours, after which these rantings were cut and ‘ordered’ to try and make a coherent series of units. R.L. Stine’s course made me never want to write again, it made writing seem that inconsequential and pointless, and David Mamet's felt like he’d been coerced into giving a scathing, almost sarcastic review of the industry rather than a helpful guide to writing for stage, (also, the amount of time he spent sketching on a whiteboard while trying to explain the simple point: “You need complications in your plot,” was borderline ridiculous).

Others — notably those from Dan Brown, Joyce Carol Oates, Malcolm Gladwell, James Patterson and Aaron Sorkin — were the opposite. I could tell that a great deal of planning went into them, and their content and delivery were excellent. These courses made me feel I was actually learning, and their words still stick with me when I sit down to write.

For these courses alone, I think the price was worth it.

Then there’s the problem of the courses being short. At around 2.5 - 3 hours each, it’s true that all these instructors have their work cut out for them to compress a lot of knowledge into a short sitting and I do understand the challenge. But honestly, it all feels too compressed. They really just manage to squeeze in the basics, the surface-level tips, anecdotes and advice as each unit zips rapidly by, then BAM!, you're done. This is great for people with short attention spans, and it is nice to have things be concise but my hope is that in the future, Masterclass will add a ‘season 2’ to a lot of these courses. That would allow a deeper-dive and really allow these pros to give proper instruction.

That said, I have already noticed that a few new courses have popped up since I began my subscription and this is fantastic. So even if there is no ‘season 2’ for many of these courses, it means that new content from new artists and industry professionals will continue to come.

I have to admit: I’ve been content with my subscription. €200 is steep, but I personally feel I’ve gained enough interesting insights to justify it, not just on the writing process, but on the writing industry, the ins- and outs of publishing and even how to manage the promotional side of being a writer. Another way to look at it: I imagine that paying for a web-seminar from a bunch of pros during COVID would be much the same experience.

Bottom line: If you’ve been writing for years or you’re already published, you probably won’t glean much from Masterclass. But for the beginner or aspiring writer, this service provides both advice, encouragement and some valuable ‘aha!’s which might otherwise take a lot of time, trial and error to attain.

I hope this review has been helpful.

Jim

Masterclass

MON, OCT 19, 2020 - 17:04

Last week, I did something I don't usually do. I actually let an online ad get me interested in something.

Now, YouTube had been hounding me for over a month with this crap, but for the first time (I think ever), I actually liked what I was seeing. So, I went and checked out this 'Masterclass' thing. Website looked good. Courses looked interesting. 'Aight,' I thought, and dropped €200.

For those of you who don't know; Masterclass is a streaming-video service which provides 'classes' taught by celebrities and big names in various industries. And for that price, you get a one-year subscription and can 'learn' everything from talking like an astro-physicist to playing the ukulele. At least that's the idea.

My first impressions? Neat, I suppose. It's neat to have a little look behind the curtain at how professionals work and it's neat to hear what they have to share. In a week, I've done two of the writing courses. One by Margaret Atwood, and another from David Baldacci. And while I enjoyed them both, their approaches were very different and I do have some comments.

Firstly, all these 'courses' are short. Too short. Each seems to run to about 2.5 hours and if you're an audiobook or fantasy book buff like I am, that feels like a prologue. Then there was the structure of each. In Atwood's course, she tended to speak much more candidly and give advice from the heart, and that was nice. But unfortunately, for me it also wasn't that helpful. Being the first course I watched and really liking Atwood's work, I was quite disappointed. David Baldacci's course, on the other hand, seemed far better planned out, and I found it far more in-depth, structured, and helpful.

I think the main problem with all these courses, however, is that they just aren't (as the name suggests) 'Masterclasses'. I feel they're more like 'primers'; short talks given by pros, and I was a bit peeved that I already knew almost all of what I heard. Having written for a few years, you'll discover most of these things intuitively. Or learn from others. Or read articles and books.

Now, not to say it wasn't helpful at all. Sure, I picked up the odd, new tidbit, but I feel Masterclass is actually aimed at beginners to the industry/craft. It's also possible that in the future, some of these pros will come back and do a 'part two', and if that happens, this might end up being worth the money. But right now, I'd say hold onto that purse-string! I'll keep going and report back, again.

Ciao!

Update on Torril City

WED, OCT 07, 2020 - 9:01am

Not that it matters, but it was satisfying to see that I'd cracked 60,000 words in my first draft of Torril City, yesterday. For those of you who like page-counts, Pages also says that 100 pages. Huh.

Honestly, I've always been confused at why 'page-count' is a thing, though. I mean, it's the one aspect of a book that's completely meaningless, seeing as every single book has a different combination of typography, page-size and layout... One might as well ask, "what's the spine-width of your book?" But I suppose page-count sounds nice.

Anyway, that's where we're at. I am absolutely loving writing this draft and compared to Siltari, it's been a breath of crushed gelsi-root — but I have another post about the process coming, so I'll end this one here.

Peace!

All blocked up

SAT, OCT 03, 2020 - 8:22am

Maybe I'm just lucky, but I've never really had a problem with writer's block.

Whoa, whoa! Hold on, there, before you grab that pitchfork — that's not to say I don't get stuck while decision-making or finding resolutions. Sure I do. But that dastardly spectre people call "writer's block", where one sits in one's chair for hours, weeks, months, then pulls one's hair out because that perfect solution simply cannot be found? Thankfully, not yet.

At this point, I'm actually starting to think it's a myth designed to scare off novice writers, because what people describe as "writer's block" seems to me an exaggeration of a natural facet of the writing process: problem solving.

Every writer shoots around the core of a scene only to miss the mark, now and then. Every one of us has become stuck trying to resolve a scene or character arc in a satisfying way. The problem isn't that we can't find a solution, but perhaps that we're not handling that problem with the right mindset.

That said, there are occasions when frustration sets in, as I think a recent tweet of mine demonstrated nicely:

Considering J.R.R Martinning this scene and just killing all my characters with fire. That'd be easier than making it work, at this point...#WritingCommunity #AmWriting

— James McLeod is querying (@James_McLeod_) September 25, 2020

It happens!

But one way I tackle 'stuck' situations is pretty common, I think; I attack it with as many alternative ideas as possible. So, say we need a scene were the murderer needs to vanish from a crime scene quickly. Well, he could climb out the window. Shimmey up the chimney. Squeeze behind a bookshelf. Crawl under armchair. Find trapdoor under rug or crawl into ventilation system. Etcetera.

Most of these will be pure pfaddle and a bunch of freshly picked cliché. But now at least there's some turned soil to grow some fun ideas from.

So, what if it's a windy day, and the criminal cracks the window behind the curtains to make the fabric ripple. He hides behind the door until the protagonist enters, then slips out behind him, undetected? Some misdirection is always nice.

And even if I settle for an idea that isn't some-new-kind-of-genius, the way the scene is written can always make that mundane solution entertaining.

So, if you get stuck, have faith that you'll solve it and don't self-diagnose your problem with the fabled block too quickly. It only makes for unnecessary frustration.

Writing is problem solving, and you will figure it out. Best of luck!

So, What have we learned?

WED, SEP 30, 2020 - 7:32pm

Learning is odd. I feel it’s one of the only facets of the human experience which continuously gets more rewarding, for there is no law of diminishing returns, there. The more you learn, the more you wish to know. On it goes.

And after more than a decade of plotsing, screwing-up, re-writing, and learning, what a feeling it was to finally press ‘Save’ and leave my first manuscript behind for a new adventure.

The Binding of Siltari was a journey that was both long and frustrating for me, but absolutely thrilling and satisfying, as well. I can’t explain exactly what I learned along the path to 170,000 words. It’s one of those unquantifiable things. But what I can say with confidence, is that my writing is unrecognisable from what it was when I started in 2008. And not just my writing. I feel I’m a completely different person, too.

One of the most important things I learned, however, is the art of planning.

I no longer dive in to writing with just a vague idea in mind. I no longer throw characters in without knowing who they are. I no longer write scenes by following a feeling. (I’m also no longer able to read a book, or watch a film, without constantly trying to pick apart the mechanics of it. But that’s a post for another day...).

Another concept which taught me a lot was that of restriction. Siltari was an incredibly difficult story to write because I limited myself in so many ways with the setting and idea. It’s a very introspective story of a character in (what could have been) a very claustrophobic environment. But this forced me to really do a deep think about how to make it interesting and keep it moving; to explore every possible avenue and turn what is (for the protagonist) a horrible, unpleasant situation engaging and enjoyable for the reader.

I'll let my readers tell me if I had success, there. But now that I’ve embarked on my second novel, The Torril City Mysterion, all these things are paying off in a great big way. What I learned in Siltari has allowed me to plan a story which is so much smoother to write, and I can’t wait to share the progress with you all.

Welcome back, kid

TUES, SEP 22, 2020 - 12:38pm

Welcome to jimzip.com, my online home for almost fifteen years. It's undergone a lot of changes in that time, but I think now it will be easier than ever for people to get to know me and my work.

Here's where you'll find my musings about tunics, the world of fantasy books, movies and authors, and about my journey as an author, as well.

Enjoy.