Accountability

There is a lot of writing advice on how to write, how to market, suggestions for what to write and how to follow trends, but there is a dearth of information on writing accountability. I'm not talking about fact checking for a nonfiction piece, or whether or not you should smear your sibling's reputation in your memoir. I'm not referring to creating the good habit of writing each day either. I'm talking about being accountable for what a fiction writer serves up for readers and how it might influence, change, or desensitize them.

I noticed from a young age that there are many calibers of fiction writing. Not just the quality of good prose, but the quality of subject and how it is treated. For many years I've witnessed online debates among writers about pushing envelopes to see how much they could get away with including certain topics, scenarios, and even words in their writing. The flow of this river seems to always want to pick up as much dirty debris off the banks as it can and gather energy over the rapids to make it become the new normal. There's the age-old conundrum of art reflecting society and society reflecting the art it consumes. Kind of a chicken before the egg or egg before the chicken scenario.

I'm not here to profess an answer, but I am a firm believer that you are what you consume - whether it's food, medicine, music, movies, books, news, etc. That, of course, implies that consumers should be responsible for their choices, and they should. But what if all a consumer was offered was junk food? Or the only medicine they could afford had six horrible side effects? It's the same with our media consumption. If all that is being put out is dark, violent, sexual, rude, biased, mean, promotes abuse, or is of one type of ideology, then what are consumers to do? It goes beyond trends. If this art we produce is what we feel society is like, aren't we also promoting that type of society?

I've seen society's moral compass rapidly slide into the trash bin. I find it highly disturbing, and as a consumer, it has greatly limited my options for consumption. I used to get excited to try out new media, and now I approach it all warily, ready to close the book, switch channels, or turn off the streaming service as soon as something horrible pops up. I don't care how compelling the story is. I'm sick of the vulgarity, darkness, violence, and sexual unreality. 

Writing is one of the oldest influencer arts there is. Writing should reflect life, but I dare to ask, why are we so focused on reflecting the worst of us rather than the best of us? What is with this drive to create the baddest, darkest, most gritty version of a story in order to feed the consumer? True, there are stories that creep into inspirational when a character travels through a dark world and comes out victorious, but is it really inspirational when so much mud and filth has to smack the reader along the way? 

I know when I was a teenager there was much eye-rolling going on over stories about perfect people. Perhaps the fall into the mire was a result of defying those norms. It is possible to balance these. Writers make choices over what to focus on in their writing. So even if the MC is going through a gritty world, do we have to spell out every detail of that world? Do we have to make the MC make subpar choices because it's now the norm in society? Where are the MCs who defy the norm by having higher standards? Where are the powerful meek characters? You know, the ones with great discipline, who don't stoop to roll in the mud with their counterparts because they know better? Meek characters aren't arrogant, or revengeful, or "in your face" (which is something the modern teen has so few role models for). Where are the noble characters who have a sense of duty and sacrifice? Where are the loving characters who show respect for the person they love by not undressing them but by serving them and being there for them? 

There is no publishing or government agency (at least not in the USA) that sets a bar for accountability of this kind. I'm not saying there should be. I do say that whatever we write, we are accountable for to society at large. Once you write and publish something, it's out there, and there's really no going back. Your words are powerful, and they will influence the thoughts of someone else. Thoughts lead to actions and expectations. If you're adding the worst and most profane vocabulary to your stories, those words will stick in readers' minds. Words like that have become more common now because they became more common in the media consumed by people. We creators helped in a large part to make it more acceptable. If you're illustrating through words scenes of passion or abuse, then those images will be in your readers' minds. And some readers are so impressionable that coming across something like that distresses them, and they can't get those images out of their heads. If you're choosing to take your readers through one violent action after another, they will become inured to that kind of horrible behavior. That doesn't always translate into action on their part (because the reader has the power of choice and accountability too), but you influenced them. If your aim is to shock, bend the rules, or push boundaries, you are accountable for the effect on reader's minds. It's lying to yourself to say that readers know what they are getting into, because there is no regulation on books and their contents to prewarn them.

To desensitize means to expose yourself or others to something so often that it no longer disturbs, jumps out at you/them, or is noticeable to you/them. The point I want to make, is that the person was sensitive to that certain thing originally. If you think of a child, pure and wholesome, and then life and the influencers around that child create a level of environment that either keeps those sensitive guardrails intact or tears them down. Why do we think that becoming a teenager and then an adult means we have to weaken ourselves by partaking of horrible or harmful things? Why is that a rite of passage? I'm glad that a person can choose to re-sensitize and step back from the sheer cliffs of "adult" material. The walk up the mountain of life really is nicer when you aren't on the edge or constantly stumbling down never-ending pathways of addiction to "adult" content. Things of an "adult" nature are designed to addict, and content creators always have the challenge of coming up with worse material to one-up the industry. It's a death spiral for one's moral compass and grip on reality.

I know, this is a shot in the dark, an echo chamber against the powerful new norm. I miss the days when there were more choices for consumers out there. When I could pick up a book even in the MG or YA section of the library, open and read it without having my inner guard up for the moment the story violates my sensitivity level. I haven't been to a movie in a very long time, and the last handful I went to were rather subpar kids' films. I've been re-reading the books I've bought rather than take a gamble on something new for a couple of years. And I'm kind of tired of watching the same older shows and movies because new content on TV turns me off from the preview. A few things have passed muster, but not much. If this narrowing of my options has taught me anything, it's that I need to be accountable for what I create and dish up to consumers. Am I wallowing in the dirt of the worst realities or am I showing paths to inspire better behavior, better societies, better choices, and better outcomes? Good can be a reality too, things that are light, clean, bright, wholesome, and focused more on moral character than outrageous attitude. I know it can, because I've lived with people who are wholesome - not perfect or without flaw - but who try to emulate the best possibilities and are encouraging. Hope thrives among them, self-sacrifice, patience, love, virtue, kindness, determination, and respect. 

Art doesn't reflect the life I know. The chasm between them is impossible to ignore. 

It's your choice as a writer, as a consumer. I'll not deny you that. But regardless of choice, there is accountability of one type or another. We can help to lift or drag down our society. What kind of world do you want to live in?

The Joys of Prewriting

 I think my favorite stage of the writing process is prewriting, or brainstorming, if you will. The most word-vomitty part of the process, where I jot down any and all ideas, make diagrams, sketches, first come up with plots and subplots, and characters start to materialize. Everyone's process is different, and I've found that for me, every story is different in how I approach it. 

My chief rule is that the story idea needs to be complete. Whether its a two paragraph summary with a beginning, middle, and ending laid out, or a series of random notes where I take a character or plot and follow it through. Seldom do all of these first ideas make a final cut, but it sure is fun coming up with them. 

Everything is written down. I keep notebooks and usually do it by hand, although some stories have digital files of random notes for their inceptions. It's in this process where I really get a feel for whether the idea will go anywhere, if it's just a shadowy copy of another story, and my enthusiasm level for it. All of these factor in whether there will be a first draft or not. If a story idea is a shadowy copy of another, it usually means I need to revisit the original story and start again from another angle or incorporate my new ideas into it. 

Have you ever noticed a common theme in the collected works of an author? Have you noticed a common theme in your own? Does that same theme reflect in your choice of books to read by other people? It's fascinating to recognize that driving factor - our ultimate soap box issue, pivotal experience, or driving need. In my prewriting stage, it's easiest to see my pet themes, and also easiest to remedy the tendency to be redundant in how the story addresses them compared to my other stories.

The prewriting stage is a stage for mistakes, analysis, silliness, initial research, throwing crazy ideas at a wall and hoping they stick. It's not for the eyes of anyone else. It's the most freedom in writing, I believe, because there are no editors, critics, or checklists. My stories usually start with a situation and develop from there. I don't typically have much luck if I start from a solitary character. That character may be interesting, charismatic, or have something special about them, but without a situation or plot there's not usually a point in developing a story around them. Maybe other writers are different, and that's okay. I find that if I have a situation or plot in mind then the characters will come later. There is no story without a plot, only a state of being. 

I've blogged before about world-building - which is my most intensive part of prewriting, writing, and editing. Character development usually comes out of the plot phase when I ask questions like: what type of character would carry this plot? What type of character would have the most growth and conflict in this plot? What other characters would drive the plot or be good antagonists or helpers? Subplots emerge from this part of the prewriting process. Then comes the fun part of intertwining them. 

Prewriting isn't limited to the first phase of my writing process. Often before tackling a scene I do a session of prewriting, revisiting my original idea and then playing with it. This helps me get a better feel for how well this will fit with what previous scenes have done while making sure the new scene is headed in the right direction and focusing on what will move the plot and characters forward. Often a lot of changes happen at this point, and it becomes easier to dig deeper into the psyche of the characters. Over time, this method of prewriting before a scene has saved me from extensive edits later.

The joy comes from the act of mental creation, from the freedom of inhibition, and the discipline of getting the story down in a physical form. For many a story that won't make it to novel form, it's the journey of prewriting that makes me not regret my time on it. 

Prewriting Ideas:

1. Have a setting in mind and draw up a list of what if's to get a plot forming.

2. See how quickly you can write down/type all the ideas, thoughts, and impressions that come to your mind in regards to a plot, character, or setting.

3. Grab one aspect of your initial thoughts, like a character, and go crazy with what ifs and ideas on how you can develop it.

4. Come up with a list of rules or laws and then brainstorm conflicts or situations where those rules/laws will make life difficult for your characters.

5. Follow one character's basic arc from beginning to end by writing down one event or choice they make after another.

6. Pull something from your own experience and find a way to retell it or incorporate it into your story.

7. Look at a chain of events you've come up with and reverse one link in an entirely new direction. Then replace/edit the subsequent events with the consequences. See if you can still reach your main climax and resolution. Or - did you just come up with something better?

8. Write down a list of ideas for a plot sequence, then choose your last one as the way to go.

9. Create character profiles complete with physical details, backstory facts, motivations and desires, and capabilities or roles in the story.

10. Use a notebook as a writing diary. As you write for the day, take moments to record your experience in the process, jot down brainstorming ideas, lecture/encourage yourself, or hold a conversation or interview between yourself and one of your characters.

What do you do for prewriting? Do you like this stage of the process? Do you have any interesting or quirky suggestions for someone who might be new to prewriting?

Still Here and Moving Forward

 It's been too long since I posted anything. Family health issues and the death of someone very close to me are my reasons. And they are likely going to hobble my future posts for a bit too. However, I am still moving forward with writing and publishing.

In fact, progress has been good lately. The end is in sight for the next two Trefury novels. I've also finished a revision on an entirely different book, and written a few shorter projects.

I'm sure that, like me, writing is a healing vent for many of you - especially when real life socks you in the gut. We can take the pieces of what we are feeling or experiencing and remold them into a story, maybe make the outcome better now that we are wiser. I like trying to see things from multiple character angles, because in trying to see someone else's point of view or justifications, I grow more empathetic.

Photo by Emily from pexels.com

 This past year I've done something different with my reading, aside from a couple of newer books, I've been re-reading the books I already have. It goes into my philosophy of only buying books I intend to reread, and the library provides the new stuff to try out. So I've experienced nostalgia rereading books I bought because I intended to read them again. They've ranged from classics from other centuries to novels for kids, fiction and nonfiction, short story collections as well as door-stopper size novels. One thing I noticed about the books I've bought, I like stories that have a tone of hope in them. I'm not into gritty, dark, and sordid things - at least, those are the kinds of books I haven't bought because no matter how well written, I didn't have a desire to read them again. Books that were all flash or glitter haven't made the shelf cut in my home either. They were fun to read at the time, but they lacked depth in either plot or character to warrant a second visit. And I like romantic emotional payoff without crossing the line into details. The more self-restraint two people have the better, because it creates the kind of romantic tension I enjoy most. And once they get together, the story ends usually, keeping what is sacred and beautiful between two people private, not imagined out in gross and demeaning details meant to give a dirty thrill to the reader. I've noticed I've bought more children's, MG, and YA books than any other. (Well, aside from all the nonfiction I have.) I enjoy a wide range of genres. 

In short, rereading what I have has taught me about myself and my tastes. I've also pinpointed what stories influenced me me most. I liked the experience of rereading so much that I've decided to do it again this year - since there was no way I was going to get through my whole library last year! 

The one thing I feel I lack is my sense of writing community. I haven't had the time to participate, and have been left by the wayside - perfectly all right. No one needs to hold my hand. I have missed critiquing worthwhile projects from my peers, and receiving critiques in return. Having seen other writers disengage, for whatever reason, and disappear, it's interesting to be in that position myself. A learning opportunity, certainly. 

So to those of you who are still with me and have read this, hello again! And I invite you to look at your bookshelves and analyze your tastes to see what you can discover about yourself. What books do you reread or would reread and why?  If you're a writer, I especially wish you the hours and inspiration you need to make the vision in your mind a reality in manuscript or book form.

AoF #13: I Want to Share Something Beautiful with You

I'm kicking off a new series of blogposts, celebrating anything that falls under the tenets of my church's 13th Article of Faith (see bottom of post for full article): "... If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things." This is dear to my heart, because what we ingest intellectually influences us and helps shape our character. I'm adding a new page to the blog that will showcase some of my overall favorites in different categories, and I'll be posting about other things I've found to be of worth in the coming months. And I invite you to look for and share the things that are lovely and praiseworthy in your life with someone else.

I wanted to do a huge shout-out to my cover artist, Nicolle Murray. She not only designed the banner logo for this blog, but did the cover for my novel. 

AND ... she has this amazing coloring book series featuring mythological creatures and monsters from all different cultures around the world. Rather than a scary rendition, hers are child-friendly and educational because she includes facts about where the mythological beasties come from and what they do. Parents needn't worry about appropriateness either, since all pictures are modest, and no explanations are explicit in any way. Beautifully detailed, each page even satisfies an adult craving to color. Or you might be like me and just want to keep it as a good reference set. 

She's also debuted the second coloring book in a carousel series. Fine attention to detail make these coloring books treasures. Nicolle used to work as an operator for a carousel that is over 100 years old (and is still in use!); it was the inspiration for the first carousel coloring book.

Right now, like many people, she's caught in the home-building price crunch. Rising interest rates and construction price hikes have taken what would have been an easy matter two years ago, into a nightmare of constant revolving doors. Her young family experienced homelessness for several months, but now have a rental. Meanwhile their home savings is depleting. So she's launched this fundraiser to help keep that from happening.

So if you or someone you know loves horses, mythological creatures, or high-quality coloring books, consider purchasing some. They make great gifts for any occasion, and hey, Christmas is coming up. I have all but the newest one (which I plan to change soon), and I love them!

For a closer peak, check out the direct link to where you can purchase all of her books.

The 13th Article of Faith of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints:

"We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men; indeed, we may say that we follow the admonition of Paul--We believe all things, we hope all things, we have endured many things, and hope to be able to endure all things. If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things."

Writing Forums: What I've Given, What I've Gained, and Saying Goodbye

 The end of this month also marks the end of my experiment in belonging to writing forums. It was quite the experience, and one episode in my life I can't just let fade away without some kind of tribute. So here goes.

At first, I was content to just join a writing forum. I knew I needed to connect with other writers, I needed advice on how to scale the mountain that is publishing, I needed to become a better writer. I also knew I had a modest amount of experience under my belt. After all, I'd been a rabid reader all my life, I'd been a critique partner before, in person, and I was willing to do the time and research it would take to up my game. I plunged into the writing pool. Some sites were full of participants, others less so. I quickly found the good spots where people had actually shared advice, if you took the time to read it. I made some initial connections, but became frustrated when the moderators for one forum suddenly stopped visiting, stopped giving advice and encouragement, just stopped everything. 

I learned you can be categorized as a forum participant. There are those who are very vocal and eager to throw their experience around (most good and legit, others are full of hot air and like attention). There are those eager to get everyone else to do the research and work for them. There are lurkers who never say anything. There's the sweet novice, just starting the journey, and the jaded veteran dripping with sarcasm and reality-checks. The PAY ATTENTION TO ME NOW!!!! type is only one degree less annoying than the spammer who only posts to try to sell something. The morose mingle with the bubbly, the dewy-eyed with the predatory. It's a strange sort of place, with the same general end goal: to write and publish a book.

I was an amateur, not a novice, and I was willing to do the work and share what I found out in order to help others. I spent hours researching and sharing. Once that first initial forum proved a bust, I moved on and found another. The second one was huge. I mined through the threads for new information to add to what I'd already learned. While people were friendly, the forum was too large for me. It was impossible to make real connections without turning into someone annoying. 

Third time was the charm. This one was suggested by a contact from the first forum. It was still fairly new, yet on the web long enough to have an established reputation for good information. It also had a forum format that allowed users to form their own groups. So I did. I used the forum search algorithms to send invites to anyone who fell under the same genre bracket as me, and the Speculative Fiction Group came into being.

It's a scary thing to find oneself as a moderator or administrator. I didn't claim to be anyone of note in the industry, or to be super in the know about it either. People tend to treat you that way when you're in a leadership role. It weirded me out sometimes. But there was something special about those first few years. Lots of people joined, and most stuck around and participated. We got group chat nights going, started up yearly critiquing marathons, shared industry news, and talked about all sorts of things. I met some amazing people and some really good writers. The best part, is most of the time, I didn't feel like I was sitting on some moderator pedestal; I was just one of the group.

I devoted more hours to critiquing. And I learned a ton. My insights as a reader bore fruit; and I was humbled a lot by my own deficiencies. I cheered when others met with success and mourned with those who didn't. I made new critique partners, some who are still with me today. Other people reached success and moved on. It was sad to see them go, but I understood. They'd outgrown a writing forum. 

After a number of years, the host forum ended. My group moved to their own forum hosting site. We tried to be the same, but we weren't. And I had found my own writing path by then, diminishing my need to research and share things that were pertinent to the main body of remaining writers. I'd outgrown a writing forum. The biggest difference was that the writers in my forum weren't a bunch of novices looking for someone to guide them. They had at least amateur status or higher, knew where to find their resources, and really only wanted a safe place to share and critique each other's work. I didn't want to let anyone down, so I kept the forum up.

But my time there diminished; I'd become like the moderators from my first writing forum, absent a good deal. No one else wanted to sink in and do what I'd done to keep things robust and alive, at least not at the same level. They didn't have to; and I didn't really expect anyone to. So as hosting a forum became just another thing on my plate, and life became more demanding, I was advised to let it go. And I have. It's a bit of a relief, letting go of that responsibility, of the expectations I can no longer fulfill. Yet, I don't regret being part of a forum all those years. It served it's purpose.

Thank you to everyone who touched my life in any of those forums. Thank you for the lessons, for the experience, and for the collaboration. To anyone in search of a good writing forum, let me give this one parting piece of advice: a forum is only as good as you're willing to make it. Don't expect others to create the experience for you. It's a team effort, and you play a part in its success or failure.

 

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