rhythm, action, credibility

Some thoughts on Saturday after treating myself to a story and a slice of cake at a coffee shop that had this really big clock on the wall.

Whenever I finish reading a Murakami story, I can’t help but think, damn, I had an idea for a story like that and he stole it!

I read stories and I learn to write better stories myself. The following are some scrambly thoughts on Murakami’s stairs-and-elevator story.

• Rhythm in dialogue mixed in with sentences in between to sustain credibility and continuous reality. This is seen in the way the woman and the narrator talks in the very beginning, the narrator interjecting about the pencil and the woman crossing her legs. These are subtle details, but they sustain the reality in the dialogue!
• Little actions or gestures or details about people. A character is characterized by one thing. For example. The jogger with his stopwatch. The old man with his philosophy on smoking. The little girl with her interest in donuts. One thing, just one thing that really really characterizes the character. Really really think about it. Example from myself. Uncle George with his gold watch. Giovanna balancing her chin. And so on.
• Some credible knowledge about the real world. It is so true that in the detective business, if you agree to take a case too early, the client will suspect you. Also some knowledge about the police force and how the investment consulting business runs. A little bit of knowledge about the real world always helps. How do people run a store? And so on. What brands are being carried now? And so on.
  
  
  drafted on 080126

thoughts of stories and of people who walked with me

Here is another passage of self-talk (as I tend to talk to myself a lot as I write). This was written just before my writing session today:

You know what. Sometimes you just have to write the story before you really know what your character is like. How can you know everything beforehand? Here’s the thing, in this writing process, don’t get too much into the detail so early. What I mean is, allow lots and lots of room for your story to change shape. I know you want your stories connected and all, but really, for each individual story, you have to allow lots and lots of room for the story to take the shape that it is supposed to take. I had that experience with Dorina and also to some extent I’ve had to revisit Cosmonaut many times. If you allow lots and lots of room, your chance of coming up with something good is much greater. And your story will be more natural. In other words, you would arrive at something good in less time.



The following is a random scribble on the Second Day of the New Year:

Got time. Got lots of time.

Staring at the clock and I tell myself I ought to have something before it strikes 5:45.

Sipping an almond drink.

Train of thought…

If I type about my train of thought, the train will never pass. It’s like trying to forget someone by trying very hard to forget.

So I’ll step away, in mind.

Here’s a sentence that’s been revolving around this head: I’m undefined. At least not as well defined as I would like (and so this brings me to the quest of self-definition). But more or less, I still feel like a dotted line in a world that rewards solid lines with solid love. Dotted lines stand in the wind and get hit.

In this moment, three thoughts are in my head.

Thought 1: I’m missing a friend who used to tell me stories about how she ran away with random guys and how she ran away from them when they tried to follow her home. She used to cut out job postings for me in a time when I couldn’t find work. I used to run into her in the supermarket and I used to look up to how she could live so vivaciously. She used to jump out at me when she saw me on campus and she would urge me to sit and have coffee and snap pictures together. I haven’t talked to my friend in more than a year. Few years ago I ran into her on Yonge Street. She walking north. Me walking south. We were both very happy to see each other. I asked her to update me with her new number. She gave me her business card. She is working for a bank.

Thought 2: I’m missing my sister who lives in Japan.

Thought 3: I must define myself. Start by resuming regular exercises and buying some new clothes.

Thought 4: I need to revise my story.

5:49



The following passage is my internal monologue on the morning of New Year’s Day. (Nowadays, all I seem to think about are my short stories):

The point is simple. Just fix it up. Just fix it up so that the overall shape is doable and then I’ll have to leave it (since I think I’ve been too involved with it this holiday), just leave it and fix up another story. You know what. Instead of starting a new story (and the few new stories I’ll have to write will be so fun to write), I want to dig up an old one and revise. I want to dig up “Acrobat”. It’s a simple story but I think it has a lot of heart in it. It follows a straight narrative. So there. Some of the new stories are a bit on the metafictional side and so I think I’ll leave those for now. I think I’m on a roll with this revising business (since I’ve been pretty impressed by the way I’ve been able to really cut up this Dorina piece), so I think I want to ride this momentum and dig up some old pieces. Then, say in the summer (or maybe sooner, who knows), I’ll tackle the new stories and I’ll have a much firmer grasp of how to go about it instead of circling around. Quarrington says it doesn’t get any easier. Something tells me that if I study and polish the craft enough, (not that it would get “easier”), but at least it might take shorter time for me to come up with a good story. So there.

Forgot to mention, it’s the first day of 2008. It’s all white outside. Looks gorgeous. Only the sky is gray. Hope the weather is okay tonight.