This is a topic I’ve been meaning to broach for some weeks, but with events, and a recent vacation (sailin’ sailin’) I have not had the chance until now.

This is the opportunity for my readers to shape that which is to come. I am currently working on two projects. Scimitar Moon, a pirate fantasy tale that has been stalled for wont of a rewrite for some time. Well, now’s the time. There are some dozen chapters of this tale up on my Elfwood site, and I would be interested to know where readers want or expect it to go. The outline is done, of course, but there is always room for change. Recent changes have added a new character, a seasprite named Mouse, and my short story Seasprite’s Bane has become the book’s new prelude.

The second project I’m just about ready to tackle is the third in the Cheese Runners saga. Saga? Well, I doubt that three novellas make a saga, but the third installment, Cheese Lords, is due to start soon. This one is a loose cannon, and with the situation as it is, with Cheese Rustlers not out in audio-book yet (give it a couple of months… Jeffrey Breslauer is warming up his vocal cords) not too many people have read the entire story through. I will entertain all kinds of silly suggestions where the third in this zany trio should go.

Lastly, I’d like to entertain ideas about sequel stories for my three novels. Weapon of Flesh is primed for a sequel, and tensions are high, but I must get more interest generated for the first in the series before I tackle the second. That doesn’t mean I’m not outlining, and now is the chance for everyone who loves Lad and Wiggen, and loves, hates or has no idea what to think about Mya, to crank out those ideas. Should there be a love interest between Mya and Lad? Should Lad have a child? Should Wiggen learn some manner of self defense, or remain a simple innkeeper’s daughter? Should Forbish lose a hundred pounds and take up Jujitsu?

There is also a sequel outlined for A Soul for Tsing, entitled Two Souls for The Beast, which I may put pieces up if readers are interested.

Deathmask might be difficult to sequel, but I was thinking of a prequel. Here’s a difficult one: Azrael’s Fall… The making of a Necromancer… From dutiful student to soul-consuming monster. Now that would be fun!

So give me those ideas, passions and gripes. If you like something, ask for more. If you think something I’m doing is going the wrong direction, pipe up. You are, after all, the most important factor in this whole crazy equation; for what is a writer without a reader?

Thank you all!

Chris

“Should I join a writer’s group?”

This is a question many aspiring writers have asked, and the boils down to one thing: Is it a good group?

What the hell do I mean by “good group”?

In my experience, and I must admit that a lot of my experience with writer’s groups has been negative, these types of organizations come in three flavors: Good, Bad and Ugly, with apologies to Luciano Vincenzoni.

The Good: There are two things, only two, that you absolutely must get from a writer’s group, and those are honest critique and encouragement. Honest critique is the hardest to come by. I’m currently in three groups: The Herscher Project, Tampa Writers Alliance, and Florida Writers Association, and I can honestly say that I get both of these things only from the HP. And here’s the shocker: it’s completely done on a Yahoo site, and e-mail. No inconvenient weekly or bimonthly meetings at the library! Honest critique from writers who don’t have an axe to grind, aren’t abusive and are wide-ranging in their talent and expertise. Professional editorial input! Cripes! What more could you ask for? The other advantage is a monthly, no pressure, short story project that is theme-based and really inspires me to stretch my limits.

That is not to say that TWA and FWA are not good organizations; they offer a number of meetings, expert speakers, contests and great get-togethers. Those are all very inspiring. I’ve won awards at the last two yearly meetings of each, and I was jazzed up for weeks! But there isn’t a lot of critique going on. They encourage their members to form smaller “Critique groups”. Primarily, I think this is due to the wide range of genre’s represented by the membership. If you want good critique, find a group that specializes in your genre.

The Bad: The worst kind is the group that simply gets together, infrequently, to discuss their projects, bash each other’s latest attempts, and eat cookies. I had a professor once who told me “there’s no such thing as bad critique” and I beg to differ.

“Oh, no, Chris. Don’t beg. Please!”

Oh, but I must!

“Very well then, just a little, but be dignified about it!”

Sorry, but my muse can be a pain… Here we go: There are lots of kinds of bad critique: inexpert, abusive and useless are the three most common. If you join a group, find one populated with experienced writers. I’ve been in groups where there were half a dozen different opinions of where to put a damn comma. Abusive critique I will delve into when I get to “Ugly”. Useless critique usually comes in the flavor of “Well, I do it this way, so you should, too.” One thing I will never tell another writer is “how” to write. We who write know what works for us, and we stick with it. I may suggest tricks that work for me, but my techniques may not work for others, and should not be forced on others.

The Ugly: A couple of groups I’ve sampled seem to be structured around the simple art of bashing each other’s work. Critique is one thing, and as a writer you must learn how to take it, but you should also learn to recognize what is critique and what is not. Some people simply must find negative things to say, constructive or not, to make themselves or their own work better by comparison. You should be able to recognize these groups without too much difficulty, and simply walk away.

One more thing: Writer’s groups need not be large (I’ve heard of successful ones with memberships as small as four or five) and they need not be professionally organized. If they charge a membership fee, be sure you get your money’s worth!

Chris

I know, I know, I was supposed to write something about writers’ groups, and I will, but my dear wife suggested this little bit and, with recent events, I think I’ll take her up on it.

First I’d like to say something about my wife. Not only is this the woman who agreed to live on a tiny little boat with a nut-case writer/scientist/sailor (not necessarily in that order) but when I can’t sleep, and get up in the middle of the night and start clattering away on the keyboard, does she ask me what’s wrong? Does she worry? Does she prescribe a sleeping pill? No.

She knows, you see.

I’m writing.

I’m striking while the iron’s hot.

Incidently, not too long ago I did this very thing and Last Run was the result. Of all my short stories, I think I’m most proud of this one, and not just because I won an award, or got a bunch of really great comments, although they were welcome. No, I’m proud of it because I got an inspiration, and without so much as thinking about it, I got up and wrote it.

My point it this: Never, ever, pass up inspiration. Writing is a business, and those of us who write every day we take breath know that it’s not always easy. So, if you are on a roll, if you wake up and think “Now there’s an idea”, or if a bolt of lightning strikes your head and the perfect idea for a screenplay starts blabbering out of your mouth, for God’s sake Write It Down!!

Never trust your memory. Never pass it up. Never let an idea stew in your head. I don’t care if you just write it down on a damned napkin at the Burger Barn, just write it down.

The second reason this post came to mind is due to a good friend’s recent passing. Larry Morris was a damn fine writer, and worked hard to bring other writers together to make something lasting and worth while. I’ll miss his wit, his persistence, and I will always, always kick myself for procrastinating about “that piece” he was coaxing me into submitting to his anthology.

So, so long Larry, and I know your work will live on. And I WILL submit that story.

Now, go write.

Chris