Illustration by Rex Queems At some point today I think I will finish a story from the celebrated and sometimes laughter-inducing land of Fledge. This one will be for the October edition of West Virginia South. This is significant largely for one reason, that being that this will mark my one-year anniversary with West Virginia South publishing my Fledge serial. I am really thankful for the … [Read more...] about The Story of How The Fledge Chronicles Came to Be
Writing
For You Writers: An Interview with P.G. Wodehouse
I found this link to a fascinating interview with the late, great humorist when he was in his early nineties. I found his advice to people writing humorous stories very valuable and several of his suggestions challenge my current approach. So I am encouraged by the opportunity for growth. Here's a small portion taken from the website of AbeBooks. The interview they have posted was from a 1975 … [Read more...] about For You Writers: An Interview with P.G. Wodehouse
Initial Discussion
A friend of mine, Jodi, recently asked if I would use a pseudonym/pen name if my book is ever published. OK, so my name is boring. Samuel Smith is my name, along with, according to the N.A.M.E. (Naming Association of Maladroit Educationists) four and two-thirds trillion other people (in Japan alone). So she suggested S.D. Smith. D is my middle initial, and yes, I was named after a woman named … [Read more...] about Initial Discussion
Tolkien on Writing as Sub-Creation
"What really happens is that the story-maker proves a successful 'sub-creator'. He makes a Secondary World which your mind can enter. Inside it, what he relates is 'true': it accords with the laws of that world. You therefore believe it, while you are, as it were, inside. The moment disbelief arises, the spell is broken; the magic, or rather art, has failed. You are then out in the Primary World … [Read more...] about Tolkien on Writing as Sub-Creation
Good Feeling
I am happy to announce, to the zero people who read this blog, that I completed the first draft of my first novel on this day in history. It feels good. I still have a lot of work to do, but I got a lot done today. It was the first day that I could turn my attention to my story in a long time, and I was able to make it pay by writing 6,000 or so words. My wife, as always, was a huge help, … [Read more...] about Good Feeling