Tales of the Trickster

The Curse of Millhaven

I wish I could tell a story half as well as Nick Cave can. The man has a gift for telling stories, and he does it through song.  How talented can you be?  Who does that anymore?  Now granted, a guy who has an album called "Murder Ballads" does tend to favor the darker end of the street (more like the back alley), but don't hold that against him.  The man is good.

In any case, I'm listening to The Curse of Milhaven on my iPod right now, and I can't tell you just what a naughty pleasure this song gives me.  I actually feel guilty for loving it as much as I do.  It's just so wrong.  I'd give you a YouTube nugget, but I couldn't find a good version of it there.  You can listen to it here though.  And read the lyrics if you can't listen to it.  If it doesn't make the naughty imp on your shoulder cackle madly, well then you probably don't have my twisted sense of humor.

Magic Feather

I feel the need to give mad props to my buddy, HeyStacy.  Because of his little writing workshop excercise idea, I managed to mostly complete a short story, and I haven't had the courage to do that in a long time.  Also, a shout out to his sometime-evil-sidekick (and sometimes evil dictator of Aggietown) Aggie, for participating, and by default, encouraging the process.  Also to any of the other mad scientist creative team participating at the Rotten Apples Workshop.  You know who you are. 

The idea is to write two pages a week, but not to edit them.  No editing, just write, write, write.  At the end of two weeks, we present what we have to the group for feedback, and write another two pages, and so on.  Forcing myself to not edit as I go along has put a stinky sweatsock in the mouths of most of the negative voices in my head, and pushes me along the story without slowing myself down with details.  It's like Dumbo's magic feather.  I can't believe how well it's working so far.  Thanks guys!!

Fairies on the Brain

Not sure what it is, but I've had fairies on the brain for months.  Yeah, the comic has a lot to do with it, but now that I'm taking a break from the comic to write myself a little entertaining story, I go right back to writing about fairies.  Maybe it's a phase, like when I was in high school and I couldn't stop writing about vampires.  Of course, didn't we all have that phase in high school?  Heh.  In any case, it's a subject that always fascinated me because it's so delightfully deceptive.  Most Americans have this view of cute little Tinkerbell pixies like in Disney (never mind the fact that in the book, even Tinkerbell was kind of a bitch), but I've always loved the old school idea of fairies.  You know.  The fair folk that you really shouldn't fuck around with.  The "others" that don't abide by our rules, but have their own standards of how to live.  I love to dive into the psychology behind them.  Any yahoo who's read an Anne Rice novel can talk about vampires and sex, but fairies are a little more elusive.  They're wild, alien, almost sociopathic in a way. 

In any case, fairies and fairy tales are tons of fun to write.  I've always joked about how if you scratch the surface of some of our favorite children's stories, fairies or no fairies, you get seriously macabre tales.  (Okay, hello?  Willy Wonka?  There's just something not right about that man, I don't care what book or movie you're reading/watching.)  Some of the Grimm stories are just plain wrong.  You know what's even more twisted?  Some of the stories that the Grimm brothers based their stories on.  I'm serious.  Read this article on Snow White from the Endicott website and tell me some of that stuff isn't well and truly fucked up, I dare you.  Dead body in a glass coffin, and the prince falls in love with it?  Ewwwwww.  Bedtime stories as told by Anaïs Nin, maybe.  Put that in your psychology textbook and smoke it. 

Oh, and to bring the discussion around full circle, if you ever want to read an amazing story based on the Snow White tale, I highly recommend Tanith Lee's Red as Blood. You can find it in her anthology Red as Blood, or Tales from he Sisters Grimmer, or like I did, in a cheesy paperback collection of stories that's probably out of print by now called Vamps.  It's been my favorite version of the story since I read it in junior high school (you know, the start of my vampire phase), and it actually does have a vampire in it. Bonus.

Sorkin, Whedon, TV & Comics

I hope I can get back into writing this weekend, now that I'm getting some of my focus back.  I've been stressing out about some things at work lately, and it seems I'm starting to get a handle on most of it, thank goodness.  Plus, I'm feeling all "girl power" today after watching a fantastic episode of The West Wing  Wing ("The Women of Qumar") while working out on the treadmill this morning. I really think the show was at its best during its second and third seasons.  The writing was nothing short of stellar, and I totally want to be CJ Cregg when I grow up, with a healthy dollop of Amy Gardner thrown in.  Maybe I can channel some of that into my ongoing "Mission:  Simplify" when I get home tonight, and clean out some more of those old boxes cluttering up my closets and attic space.  (Ha!  How funny.  "I'm feeling all empowered with female energy--I must use it to clean!"  Doh!)  I really feel like reducing and tidying up will help my zen. 

I also need to get back to writing my comic.  Poor neglected little comic.  It's been waiting so patiently while I try to figure out how to get my act together.  If I could channel even a smidgen of Aaron Sorkin's genius into my own written word, I'd be in good shape.  I know it sounds weird, but I consider watching The West Wing and just about anything Joss Whedon writes for television as kind of homework when it comes to improving my own comic writing.  To write well for TV or for comics, it takes more than just a few clever phrases strung together.  You need to write visually, or it doesn't work.  Sorkin and Whedon do such a great job translating what is written to what should be shown on screen that I can't help but hit the rewind button sometimes and go over what I just saw.  The speech President Bartlet gives in "Two Cathedrals" (probably my favorite episode to date) makes me want to clap and cry at the same time, but all of the subtleties that are shown at the end of the episode without Bartlet even having to open his mouth (e.g. the hands in his pockets, the lighting from outside the window--not natural lighting, but lightning, the look on CJ's face when Bartlet points to the center of the room instead of the guy he was supposed to call on, the little smile Leo gives as he says "watch this", etc. etc. etc.), that's just art.  In a completely unrelated genre, Whedon can do the same thing in just about any episode of Firefly.  Some of his frames even look like they came out of a comic book. (Inara and Shepherd in the pilot episode, for example.) I know it's probably the fangirl in me gushing, but if you ever feel the need to geek out and really pick apart the scripts for either show, I can almost guarantee you'll learn something new.

Anyway, speaking of Firefly and comic books, did you know that there will be another Firefly comic book coming out next month?  It's called Serenity:  Better Days.  I can't say I'm terribly crazy about the cover (Mal looks pretty doofy, to be honest) , but you know if it's written by Joss, I'm going to pick it up!

Writer's Jitters

Random thought for the day.  I have a story idea in my head that I'm afraid to write.  It's dark and weird and kinda icky, but it's a subject I'm fascinated by.  I'm semi-inspired by the re-launch of Weird Tales Magazine, so take a gander at some of those stories if you like weird fantasy/horror/odd stories.

Why am I being so chicken?  It's been so long since I've written a full-on, straight up short story, I think I've forgotten how to do it.  I've been focusing so hard on the comic scripts.  Of course, I haven't given up on my comic, but I'd like to stretch my brain a little bit.  (Nooo! It hurts! Hee.)  I dabbled a little while ago, but I just couldn't find the right rhythm.  What to do, what to do?  Think I'll go goth tonight when I get home.  Do the candles and red wine thing.  That sometimes helps me face the Big Scary Blank Page.  In the meantime, I'm going to doodle some ideas down on a sketch pad.  That helps too.

So what about you guys?  What are you working on now?

Question for You Creative Types

Have you ever had a great idea for a creative project, and then had it intimidate you?  I get that sometimes.  Just had a great idea for a writing project (part of my ongoing comic obsession), and though it sounds like it'll be fun to write, it's a little intimidating.  Sometimes I see the story stretching ahead of me, and if feels like trying to walk across the country with only a pair of sneakers and a bottle of water.  Surely, I can't be the only one who feels that way.  Anyone else want to share?

Terri Windling & The Endicott Studio

I just discovered these paintings by Terri Windling through The Endicott Studio.  In fact, I kinda just discovered The Endicott Studio.  The first one is called "Coyote Woman," and the second one is called "Desert Fox Fairy."  Terri Windling even has a section in the Endicott Studios Reading Room on Tricksters! 

               

The Journal of Mythic Arts has the two poems by Neil Gaiman I pointed you to earlier.  Take a look.  Lots of cool stuff. 

Poetry Confessional

For the most part, I don't like modern poetry.   There, I said it.  I feel guilty when people ask me to read their poems, because it seems to me such a personal thing, and yet I'm already predisposed to not like it before I've even given it a chance.  I feel like there should be a disclaimer given every time someone gives me a poem to read:  "Don't give this to me.  It's not fair to you."  It doesn't just extend to friends, but professional writers that I otherwise love and admire.  If an author has written an anthology, it'll take a lot for me to not skip over the poems.  I think Neil Gaiman was the last published author, and the only one I can think of off the top of my head, that can write a poem that'll make me stop in my tracks.  He did it with "The Fairy Reel," and again with "Instructions."  Some of his poetry is funny and cute, but those two really speak to me.  Still, I was ready to pass off even Gaiman when it came to poetry.  There's something about the man's words that catch me by the back of my collar and gently pull me back for another look. 

The funny thing is, I like poetry. I do.  I just don't care for much past Whitman's era.  I know I'll probably burn in library hell for this one, but I blame Uncle Walty for the corruption of the modern poem.  Before Whitman, it seemed poems were things of beauty.  Little shiny gems whittled down and polished until they shone.  People actually worked at writing a poem.  Then Whitman came around with his craziness, giving rhyme and meter the big middle finger, and then everyone thought they could write a masterpiece.  Free verse just doesn't do much for me.  (Though there are always exceptions.)  I dig listening to Slam poets because I like the performance aspect of it, but on paper, most of it just makes me go "meh."

Now, don't get me wrong, writing poetry is a great exercise.  It's a fantastic way to stretch and build literary muscle.  Play with it.  Use it.  Have fun with it.  Express yourself!  But lord help me, I just wish people wouldn't be so quick to share it with me after dashing off a few lines in five minutes.  Let it rest, come back to it, and then work on it again.  Just like a good story, it takes work.

Then again, maybe it's just me.  Maybe I'm the one with the blinders on.  I think it's something that I'll have to re-examine.  I'm afraid that if I don't  at least try to clear the bias from my head, I'll get stuck in a writer's rut.  After all, how can I expect someone to look at a piece of work I admire (let alone have written myself), if I'm the one mentally rolling my eyes at any poem that doesn't rhyme?  It's going to take work, but I will try.

Writer's Workshop Part II

So, let's just say, hypothetically speaking, that one were interested in creating an online writer's workshop.  Just as a little experiment, let's say.  And let's just say that several online friends have nibbled at the line, so to speak, on maybe putting their work out there for friends to read, but maybe not the whole world.

Well, I might be able to set that up.  I've been playing Typepad, and it seems that I can set up a side blog for those who are scribble-inclined.  Typepad also gives me the option of password protection.  That means, if you wanted to share something with your online buddies that may be personal in nature, or if you're a little shy like me, there is a certain amount of griefer-protection involved.  Now, I think I can include full length Word documents as attachments, so if you wanted to send me files to post for others to read, I could do that as well.  (That includes scripts for comics and such.  I'm pretty sure I can handle the load.)  If this is something you guys want to get off the ground, let me know.  I've set up a template and a password.  Any input is greatly appreciated.  And remember folks, I'm not a techie and everything I do online is pretty much a great big fat experiment for me, so please be patient.

OH!  One more thing!  Some of you out there may want a place to show off your art and photos.  I think I could do that too, but I can't promise any huge galleries or anything.  Just a place to post a picture you'd like some input on.  Keep in mind, this will be mostly a writer's workshop, but I know some of you are quite multi-talented.

So, anyone interested?  Shoot me a line.  trickster_chick@yahoo.com

Writers' Workshop?

I was on YABS last night until pretty late.  Unusual for me, but I couldn't sleep.  Anyway, some fellow YABSers and I got to talking about writing, and how we could all use an extra pair of critical eyes when it comes to editing.  I volunteered and so did they.  With so many YABSers out there, it seemed to make sense to start a little workshop.  But how to go about it?  I mean, I'm pretty chickenshit myself.  I don't exactly want the whole freakin' world to read my stuff, at least until it's ready.  Maybe do something through LiveJournal, and give it the "Only Friends" option?  That doesn't exactly lend itself to longer pieces, as it doesn't give you the option to insert a text file like Typepad does.  What to do, what to do?  I'll give it a think.  In the meantime, for those YABSers who want to follow up on the sending of their works, please do so:  trickster_chick@yahoo.com.  Bring it on!

As for the workshop, what are your thoughts?