We Interrupt Our Regular Post . . .

Hello and good late-morning (or evening, or afternoon, or night, depending on where you are) everyone! The wonderful Lisa M. Green, author of The First, has very graciously invited me to participate in the “My Writing Process” blog tour, where I answer four questions about . . . well, my writing process.

And why is everything in the color green, you ask? Oh, I’m sure once you give it some thought, you’ll come to see the (green) light.

My Writing Process . . . answered by author Devon Winterson:

1) What am I working on? - Recently, I was working on “The Drawing Voice,” the second book in my retrograde timeline Caendorian World novels, from the youthful perspective of Eden, the mother of Marisa, my main character from my first novel, The Perfect Player. But as of late, I’ve decided to change gears and finish up my humorous middle grade novel I’ve been writing with my son (off and on) for five years called “It Happened on Tarantula Island.” A loopy scientist; two rather large, intelligent, preposition-spouting tarantulas; a crew of dunderheaded pirates; a scholarly boy of ten; and a brilliant talking chicken! What could be more fun, really? 

2) How does my work differ from others of its genre? - Well, most dark fantasy, as far as I can tell, contains either vampires or zombies (and sometimes werewolves). While the latter is way cool (Zombies! Yay!), and the former are kind of ho-hum (to me), my novels have packs of sentient hell-spawned demons who get high from devouring human flesh and blood. But since I haven’t read every book in the universe, there may be something similar out there. If there is, it’s not exactly a very popular subject matter.

3) Why do I write what I do? - I’d like to claim craziness, but I’m no crazier than any other writer. I believe I write what I write because I enjoy delving into the dark corners of the human psyche and giving animalistic creatures more humanistic traits—kind of putting them at our level, and comparing them to humans themselves. I also like to play with situations that could never happen in real life, create fantastic events that I can control (or not!), and help readers understand the messages of tolerance, love, and understanding . . . yes, through dark fantasy. (They’re hidden, but they’re there, those messages.)

4) How does my writing process work? - I sit, write, shake my head in frustration, hit the delete button—many times—write some more, get some coffee, sit down again, write some more, yell at my characters to “DO WHAT YOU’RE SUPPOSED TO DO!!”, hit the delete button again, and again, and again, write and write and write and write . . . then edit out 90% of what I’ve written. But all silliness aside, I’m pretty much a “by-the seat-of-my-pants” writer. In other words, I love to see where my characters take me as they drag me through their world and out the other side, battered and bruised but “band aided” up and “boo-boos” kissed afterwards. Then I throttle them.

Next Monday, on March 24th, three other writers will give you their own “My Writing Process” answers:

Alianne Donnelly - an author of many hats, including fantasy, romance, paranormal, and post-apocalyptic, probably weaving a brand new tale in her head somewhere at this very moment. She does that. A lot.

Monica Mynk - a mild-mannered Chemistry teacher turned Christian fiction writer. 

Robert Evert - the author of the Riddle in Stone fantasy series; he hasn't ever killed anybody.

So, have you figured out why everything’s green yet?

Whee! Fun With Acrostics!

To tell, or not to tell. How exactly is that a question? Even the least-trained eyes can see, as it stands, that that’s merely a statement to reflect the (quite possibly) wishy-wash-ostiy of this writer’s mind.

Does that mean it couldn’t hold some hidden meaning? Really . . . not. And I’ll show you why. Whereas many blog posts are usually straightforward and make complete sense. I have chosen not to this time—make sense, I mean (and yes, that random sentence cut off was intentional). Not because I want to be cute or funny or silly or icky or even yummy, but because I want to be a pain in the arse and make you think. Green!

Very often I have the word of the week. Only this time, no. I’ve left it off for many reasons, all of which I won’t tell you. Completely because I want to be a noodge. Ever so much, yes.

Right. Eden*? Lemme show you what I’m talking about. Eden’s mind is completely out of synch. As is this blog post. So, as you read it, see if you can discover what I’m trying to tell you through some clever acrostics and distracting prose. Eeek!

Do you get it now? Aha! True enough, that was a question. End sentence.

I’ve also (hint!**) chosen this date (hint!***) as yet another (hint!****) to what I might be (hinting!) at. See . . . (hint!*****)

Many of you by now have probably spat at your computer screen in disgust. Angrily. Riters! Come on, why don’t they ever make a whit of sense?! Ha—or spell correctly!

True though it may be (not!), I’ve left you with a frustrating riddle to puzzle out enigmatically. Har-dee-har-harr! Is it easy? Really, that depends on what “it” is. Truly, things will soon change at The Ether of my Imagination, yes. Every 13th. Every month. New post. To tell, or not to tell. How exactly is that a question?

* * *

*Eden is Marisa’s crazy mother in my dark fantasy novel, The Perfect Player. She’ll have her own book soon.

**Think “acrostics.”

***Look up “acrostics”

****Fine, here’s a link to “acrostics.”

*****Rrrugh! All right! Here’s the answer!