Curse of the Djinn

Everyone I know online – published and unpublished authors – are abuzz about NaNoWriMo ‘09.  Who will opt in, who will opt out?  Will I do it, will you do it?

I won my first completion from them last year I’m very proud to say but to be honest, what I completed was utterly vile drivel and got itself cut to shreds and is lying in tatters on a spare hard drive somewhere at home.  Some parts of the writing I’m astoundingly proud of, some parts…not so much. 

Nano is taking place, obviously, over November.  The timing works quite well as it’s invariably colder and darker and it gives you a chance to snuggle in with your computer or laptop to BIC (butt in chair) and write. 

My friend Karen Mahoney – soon to be published by Flux in the States – has decided to slightly restructure the original nanowrimo idea, putting a new spin on it, one with a more maneagable word count. 

• Nanowrimo = 50,000 words
• Kaznowrimo = 30,000 words

Kaznowrimo works out to 1,000 words a day.  So that’s not too bad.  But then, Nanwrimo works out to 1,666 words a day.  Which to be fair, is still not too bad.  But looking at those two figures…the one that looks possible is 1,000 words.  It’s a long chatty email to a friend.  It can be done.

So, this year I won’t be doing Nanowrimo but I will be doing Kaznowrimo.  Not just to support Kaz in this, because I will be doing that too, but also because it will allow me to play around with an idea for a contemporary (supernatural/urban fantasy) young adult novel that’s been bugging me for a little while now.  I am planning to revise even more on Djinn (shows bleeding stubby fingers) but it will also allow me a chance to get rid of my pent-up frustration about not writing-writing, you know?  I get to figure out where this new story wants to go.  I have the opportunity and luxury to do this as I don’t have deadlines to work to, except the ones I’ve set for myself.  It’s also a way to channel creativity, to work on something else apart from Djinn which has been my life for 7 solid months, thus far.

I also wanted to mention something else that I’ve dicovered.  It’s a group called Million Monkeys.  They are on Facebook but what you need to know is: they are London based.  Mondays and Wednesday nights they meet up at the Royal Festival Hall on the South Bank.  A whole group of writers – they sit down at their little tables and they write from 6 – 9 pm. After nine you can either pack up and go or you can hang around for a chat and a drink.  I’ve not been myself, but I’m thinking I may very well join them this coming Monday – it’s “enforced” writing with no excuses.  I will drag my revisions for Djinn with me, plug myself into my music and continue with the revisions. 

Then tomorrow – Saturday – will be my first ever SCBWI British Isles and I am genuinely looking forward to that.  It sounds very interesting and I am hoping to not be picked on by the tutor for sending in possibly the most dull chapter from Djinn as an example of what I felt I struggled with.  But we see.  I shall report back!   

PS: my word counter here says that I’ve writter 577 words in this blog post.  Not bad eh?  Half my Kaznowrimo done!

I am currently doing a lot of homework whilst my friend looks over Djinn.

Every day I visit all my RSS feeds, I’ve subscribed to Publishers Marketplace (definitely worth it for $20 a month) and I look at querytracker.com and compile lists of agents to approach once Djinn is ready to go out to into the wide world on its query quest.

I am thinking of looking at both US and UK agents.  It makes sense to me at least.  It gives Djinn a bigger chance…no, I am lying.  It gives ME, Djinn’s creator, a better chance to hopefully get an agent who will care enough about Djinn (and me) to get us a publishing deal.

One of the blog posts I stumbled across is one on the newly discovered The Big Bad Book Blog where they talk about Seven Guidelines on Genre and Market Trends.  In this article you will find a lot of sobering information.  For instance, what grabbed my attention is this:

Choose one genre. You have a dozen ideas in as many genres? That’s wonderful. Now choose one. Yes, just one. You may not decide which one it is until after writing a couple of books and getting a feel for your style and strengths and even interests. But it is very rare to successfully cross genres, and then only once you’ve established yourself in one. When you query agents or publishers, choose your best writing. Be honest.

This little paragraph then links to this excellent article by the always eloquent and always forthright agent Rachelle Gardner’s blog.  In this article she gives the reason why you need to look at staying in one genre:

This is a marketing issue, first and foremost. If you want to publish books, attract a loyal readership, and have long-term success as an author, then you’ll need to pick a genre, do it well, and keep doing it over and over. Simple as that. All the arguing in the world and all the talent in the world is not going to change this reality.

There are a tranche of comments below this article and all of them make valid points, such as what about writing heroic or traditional fantasy as Mike Swordbrandisher whilst also writing paranormal romance or urban fantasy novels as Talulah Honeysuckle?  How do you pull this off?

But back to the genre writing: it’s something I keep wondering myself.  I love so many genres and have written short stories in a variety of them.  I love middle grade and YA novels and I like writing for them, but what I’ve come to realise is that people see these two groups as GENRES.  And they are not.  Middle Grade and YA = target audience.  And THAT is where your specialising comes into play.  I think.

Within these target audiences, you find your genres.  For instance, as Sarah Prineas so eloquenty said in 140 letters on Twitter a few moments ago: ”genre” is “paranormal romance” or “urban fantasy” or “thriller” or “horror” whilst the ”target audience” is “readers of paranormal romance, urban fantasy, thriller or horror.”

Clear?

So what about writing under two different names for two different genres? TIME.  Baby, time’s gotta be on your side.  Can you steadily and seriously maintain a writing schedule that will enable having two books being published a year, maybe even more – to support your different personas?  Think about it – unless you have a tardis, or amazing managerial skills, then no – chances are that everything you do will suck.  Because you won’t have time honing and perfecting and specialising.  Think about it.  Think carefully.  As much as I would like to wear a variety of hats like the Mad Hatter I won’t be able to.  I would love to write an epic fantasy series – I love reading these and they are still a staple diet.  Or even urban fantasy – man, since the first time I picked up a copy of Charles de Lint’s Moonheart, my little heart beat a tattoo for stories where myths and legends stalked modern cities.  Or maybe I can do paranormal romance – say what you will, the market is huge, the authors’ talents are wide and varied and it is fun reading.  I love kick-butt heroines , magic, creatures that go bump in the night and impossibly complicated relationships. 

And as much as I love these established adult genres, I still think – and hope that – my talent lies writing for the younger folk as a target audience.  Because the cool thing about writing books for younger folk here in the UK at least, is that their bookshelves are not catergorised into different genres – age yes, genre no.  Not yet.  You have all the above fantastic genres (maybe not quite that much paranormal romance) lobbed into one massive kids’ section and you can go wild and read anything your little heart desires.  And that’s magic because like Forest said: you never know what you’re gonna get. 

 About the picture used: I stumbled across this picture by this vastly talented artist called Aly Fell – this is the blog it came from.  Please do not take any of the art, without linking back to the blog.  This is Aly’s main site - I am green with envy!

This past week turned out to be a genuine holiday! 

I thought it was going to be a bit of a waste of my time and although I struggled with our pointless neighbours’ dog barking incessantly for hours on end during the course of every day - I kid you not – I ended up listening to a lot of music, really loudly and also reading.  A lot.  Four books in 3 days.  Impressive, no? 

During the week, I picked up my printed copy of CURSE OF THE DJINN to revise and after the first twenty pages I realised my heart wasn’t in it.  I set it aside and went for a long walk instead.

I’ve not gone back to it yet.  It’s sitting on our small coffee table in the lounge, neatly packaged in its elastic bands, keeping it from falling everywhere.  I still feel proud but am now officially terrified of it.  This new week will be revising week.  Wish me luck.

This week will be writing reviews week. 

I’ve read the following books this past week whilst on holiday:

• Girl from Mars by Julie Cohen – aimed at adults, a lighthearted romance novel from Little Black Dress Books  – such a good read which will easily be overlooked by the more serious literary readers and to be honest, it will be their loss.  Girl from Mars is an excellent read!  Especially if you are a fan of science fiction and fantasy. 
• Hunger Games 1 by Suzanne Collins by Scholastic – YA novel – if you’ve not read it, where have you been?  Under a rock like me?  I read HG1 in one day.  Several sittings, but one day.  The following day I picked up
• Hunger Games 2 – Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins  by Scholastic – YA novel – the follow-up to HG1.  Not yet available in the shops, but take my word when I solemnly declare it to be ridiculously good.  And to make sure you buy a copy to read.  
• The Secret of the Pink Carnation by Lauren Willig – a historical drama with a side-step into romance,  set during Napoleonic times, it’s a little bit Dumas, a little bit Scarlet Pimpernel and a little bit James Bond – only in petticoats. 

 This week I’ve got Nekropolis to read, as well as The Reformed Vampire Support Group.  As well as Djinn for revising purposes.

I have an entire bag of research for Book 2 but am terrified of looking at it.  Such hard work, to be honest!  The 300 pages or so I had printed off on a variety of subject needs to narrowed dramatically into something I can work with.  I have a large lever arch folder full of research for Djinn.  I’ve called it ”The Nicholas Bible” purely because everything about Nicholas and the djinn is in there – historial research as well as character “sketches”.  If I lost TNB whilst writing I would be lost. 

So now I’m hesitant to beging book 2 – TPP – as I’ve no idea where it’s going yet – too many ideas and sub-plots, so I need to ruminate more.  Less of the gung-ho and more of the braincells burning, y’know?

Oh, also – rewatched Twilight on Saturday by myself, whilst eating pizza (Mark was off playing Dark Heresy with some friends) and I have to say:  I liked it a lot more the second time around.  I was less critical and less prone to mutter “that’s not how it was in the book”.  I am really looking forward to New Moon.  And did I mention that I am totally Team Jacob?

It’s been a strange two weeks, I have to admit.

Not working on Djinn and trying desperately not to think about it, has been odd – weirdly liberating, in fact. 

I have been reading – a lot.  I have also been catching up on some zzz’s.  And on what is happening in the world in general. 

This coming week, the second week in August, is my week’s holiday.  It will be dedicated to reading the draft, nitpicking and worrying at the ms. 

The holiday will also mean a visit to the British Museum as well as the Museum of London.  For no other reason than to mooch. 

I like mooching. 

Bookstores and museums call for mooching. Slow strolls and lots of thoughts about an interesting object or book. 

Then I may meet up with my friend Karen to talk writing, books, and then hubby Mark may stop by and we may have a brainstorming session or just talk all at once, in a fury of words, about writing, movies, comics, graphic novels, novels, fantasy, urban fantasy, DnD and whatever else we can think of. 

To an outsider we must appear utterly and completely frigging nutz.  Nothing else exists outside of this small circle of talk going on.  We’ve had people leave our vicinity in the past due to serious and intense conversations getting out of hand with gestures getting bigger and wilder and voices getting raised and laughter – oh, the laughter!

There isn’t really much else planned for next week, to be honest.  Just making notes on the draft, revising and then revising some more, fixing  a few things that I know need fixing.  And drawing up a wishlist of agents to approach in a few weeks’ time.  *insert terrified face*

Oh, one thing I am thinking of doing is looking through some of my previous stories and short stories I wrote to gauge how much my writing has changed.  I am sure it has.  I remember being addicted to long chunky phrases and raptuous descriptions of sunsets and deep melancholy thoughts…but that was only a month ago fortunately a good long time ago and it’s going to be very interesting to see if I’ve improved!  I honestly hope I have!

I may even stick a few items on here for you to point and snicker at.  See, I am just that open to ridicule!

Yes, the end is in sight.  At in excess of 53k the end is in sight for Nicholas and Jenny in Djinn. 

I am however stuck on how to approach the grand finale which is irritating.  I have never had problems writing fight scenes in the past, for orther bits and bobs I’ve done.   But now, now I’m stuck.  Have gone totally and utterly blank on how to approach the confrontation between the djinni and Nicholas.  Who does what?

I think this may call for watching a variety of fight scenes such as Constantine’s show down when he faces Lucifer and Gabriel.  I am thinking also the fight between the boys in The Covenant and also, Jet Li in One when he faces his worst enemy – himself.  Definitely have to re-watch Fight Club too.  For the moves, the action and the how-to.  Also…Brotherhood of the Wolf, I think when Mani takes on the French barbarians. 

Pardon? Oh, you think this “research” is maybe a way to uhm, stall and put off writing the end scene?  I have no idea what you mean!

I thought I had done all the research I needed to do for Djinn some while back, but clearly I haven’t. 

It’s ongoing, this sifting through of information, this “stealing” of traits from a variety of cultures and mixing it all up and changing it from the original to something altogether new that would hopefully work within the context of the novel.

What is more interesting though is, eventough this is only the first draft of Djinn I’m writing, I have got some material ready for a second book too.  No, nothing written down on the computer or anything, just a few thoughts scribbled down in the filthy Muji notebook. 

I am having fun though. 

I stand at 49,286 words as of this very second and am hoping to tackle the giant finale today and am hoping to finish it entirely in the next few days.  There is a lot of conflict, both internally and externally with Nicholas. 

I just pray that I’ve made him strong enough to survive the battle.

I am sure if you ask any other writers out there about their writing habits each and every one of them will tell you a different story.  Not just how they write but what they write with, i.e. : pen and notebook, laptop or desktop computer.

I try to write directly onto my laptop at home or my desktop at work during times when it is quiet.  I love seeing the words appear rapidly on the screen.  But when I choose to write by hand I tend to choose a Steadler triplus fineliner as my pen of choice and I write in numerous moleskines .

However, I got swayed by a new Muji opening in Selfridges earlier this week.  And I am stricken with guilt as I’ve bought myself a notebook from them – lovely, decent sized and easily able to fit into my bag. This is what the culprit looks like:

And you know what – eventhough I have crammed loads of notes into this already, I can’t help but feel bad about not using any of my moleskine notebooks.  I try to believe I am brand loyal – for instance, I love the chunky notebooks Paperchase does too and have a large selection of them at home too…but there is something so tangible about moleskines. 

So, there’s a further confession from me.  I am a cheater.  I cheat on my moleskines with a Muji notebook.