Month: July 2020

Short Breaks

Fallton Havenstonne

When I take short breaks, I go outside for a walk to get fresh air or do something such as organize, clean, or exercise to get my mind off the thing that I’m struggling with. I do something where my mind is focused on something else aside from the story I’m writing so that I can get a new perspective on it when I return.

Once I do that, it’s as if I’m looking at the story from a new mindset. I’m suddenly able to fill in the gaps and clarify concepts. I might even get an epiphany that can change the course of the story and improve it.

It’s hard to take breaks sometimes because we want to finish what we’ve started. There’s a negative feeling associated with leaving something unfinished. It’s as if it’ll be worse off if we don’t finish it or that it won’t get done.

Perhaps it’s one of those things where we were taught from an early age that we had to finish our homework before we could take a break or get a reward (such as watching TV or going outside). If we say that we’re going to finish it later, the likelihood of us doing so will be curtailed by other things that come up throughout the day.

But with writing, taking a break can lead to creative inspiration and finding solutions. Writing requires a plethora of ideas, many of which won’t be used by the time the story/work is done (by work, I mean essay, letter, report, etc.).

In stepping away from a work, it lets new ideas formulate in a subconscious way. It’s as if we can see the whole picture again–the outline–the mind map–rather than a specific idea that we got hung up on.

There comes a point where something isn’t working and we can’t progress in our work. Instead of fixating on what we’re stuck on, we need to step away, to take a short break, so that we can see the other ideas that we unwittingly ignored.

When we return to our work, we might get that feeling of “why didn’t I think of that in the first place?” or “how could I have not seen that?” And the simple answer is that we’re not cognizant of the solutions/ideas until we stop what we’re doing and let them in.

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

Fallton Havenstonne

Would it be possible to express a picture in one word? How about two? How might that look like in a picture? Does a picture of a letter, such as the letter “a”, represent a thousand words? How about a picture of a number such as “0”?

This phrase is certainly a commentary on the speculative imagination of the viewer–the gaps they fill in when they look at a picture. The story (or stories) they create to make sense of the image and bring it to life, since the image is undoubtedly static–frozen in time.

A scenic image of a landscape may conjure thousands of words that describe the season or the atmosphere of that environment, but the picture evokes emotions as well. And it’s hard to describe any emotion with just words when it’s something that’s not simply read, but felt and experienced.

Words and images essentially have different functions. Words require us to think abstractly or to use our imagination to perceive a reality that’s separate from the physical world. Images, however, are a visual representation of thoughts and emotions. They are perceived directly without the buffer of words.

Images can be manifestations of words, and words can be manifested as images via the mind or art. Whereas the former provides the visual experience, the other asks us to actively create it.

Compare reading a 1,000 word description/caption of a painting to observing the painting. It’s certainly not the same experience, and I think the quote misses the point when we observe a work of art. Although we can come up with a thousand words that describe or provide a narrative for the image, it’s how we respond to it–in a visceral sense–that cannot be summed up in words.

Visualizing a Scene

Fallton Havenstonne

I tend to visualize a scene as I write, almost like staging a scene for a movie or play. Visualizing a scene helps me describe it in detail, particularly the gestures of the characters, the lighting, the objects and set pieces of the environment, etc.

A motif in my writing is the sky, particularly the time of day and the lighting cast by the sun or the moon. For me, it sets the tone, and I can visualize almost everything else as it happens. If it’s dark, I tend to write a scene more edgier. If it’s the morning, things are happening slower–calmer.

The pace at which the characters are moving also affect how I write a scene. If they are running, I tend to write it as if it were a chase scene. But if the characters are sauntering or moving at a slow pace, I give the characters a chance to talk or to explore the environment.

There are some authors that are very descriptive of the environment/scenery, and others that describe just enough so that you know what’s going on. When there are paragraphs or pages of minute detail, I’ll get lost in the text and lose focus on what’s happening. For example, if there is a ton of detail on the appearance of a character, I’ll lose track of what’s going on since I’ve spent a larger part of my concentration trying to picture/visualize the character.

I’d have to double back to figure out what the context was to put the information back together. But when too little description is given, I’m not sure how to visualize the scene or where the characters are geographically. It gives me the impression that the characters are merely cardboard, or that the scene is flying by without much there to imagine it lucidly.

There needs to be a balance, especially once a scene begins. As a reader, I want to be pulled into the world and to have a clear idea of what’s going on. Once the scenery is established, I feel it’s easy to follow the scene, and, perhaps, the rest of the story.

Dialogue

Fallton Havenstonne

Dialogue is one of the most enjoyable things to write, as it gives life to the characters. A lot can be conveyed in dialogue, including the attitude and values of the characters. Writing dialogue can be like an out of body experience, since the characters can communicate in a way that is unnatural or alien to the author but is completely natural for the characters.

Dialogue takes a lot of time and practice to get right, since I find that the characters might say contradictory things, and this raises the question of where they really stand on a point, or if they would really say such and such line. Dialogue can be nuanced when we look at how the characters pronounce words, their speech patterns, and if they pause during speech or speak in brevity or in long-winded sentences.

A lot has to be worked out in dialogue, but when it works, it feels natural and the characters take on a life of their own. Dialogue also helps us access the characters thoughts and feelings, as well as understand their motivations.

I find that each author writes dialogue differently. Cormac McCarthy, for example, doesn’t use quotations, which can make reading his dialogue puzzling when determining who the speaker is or if a line is intended to be dialogue. But once I got used to this format, I learned that each character has a distinct style to their dialogue (speech pattern), which illuminated who the speaker was, even when multiple characters are speaking. Perhaps that’s what authors are aiming for with or without quotation marks: lines that sound natural and real for each character.

I like dialogue where the characters are making a point, and where the other characters are debating with them. I also prefer dialogue that is direct and simple so that the story flows quickly.

Overall, dialogue should move the story forward as well as educate you as to who the characters are. When that happens, it makes what the characters say sound natural and give their voice distinction.

The Beast Soldiers And Other Stories

Fallton Havenstonne

The Beast Soldiers And Other Stories is now available on Amazon in Kindle and paperback. It’s a collection of 5 stories, one of which is a novella (The Beast Soldiers), and includes 4 short stories: Walkthrough, What Do You Wish?, Finders Keepers, and The Mage.

The Beast Soldiers is an action-packed science fiction story about humans that are genetically enhanced with special abilities. When they escape a transport, an agent (Lara Bergman) and Captain Reynolds track them down while they hide in Arlington, Virginia. Each chapter explores an encounter with the genetically enhanced humans through the eyes of unsuspecting characters. The last chapter is an exciting showdown with the most powerful of the genetically enhanced humans.

The other 4 stories are in the vein of The Twilight Zone with odd and inexplicable things occurring. I had a lot of fun writing these stories, as they are like vignettes–a world in themselves. In each story, the characters are faced with unusual circumstances and choices that turn their world upside down.

I hope you enjoy the collection of stories. 🙂

Get ready for a nonstop adventure in this collection of sci-fi and supernatural stories!

In Beast Soldiers, 3 genetically enhanced humans have escaped a top-secret transport, and it is up to Captain Reynolds and Agent Lara Bergman to track them down.

In the other stories, two sisters discover a life-changing secret, a realtor meets a unique cat, a man discovers a phone that grants wishes, and the world is on the brink of collapse after an invasion in a story where science fiction meets fantasy. 

eBooks And Physical Books

Fallton Havenstonne

In the past year, most of my reading has been done on e-reader devices. For many years, physical books have been my preferred choice given what was available to me, the ability to write notes in the margins, and the tactility of the experience. But since I’ve been writing more, I’ve gotten used to reading on the computer (given all the editing I’ve been doing for my books).

The switch from physical books to e-reader devices has been a long transition for me. For years, I’ve enjoyed having a library of books on my shelf. To see all the books that I’ve read gave me a feeling of accomplishment. But overtime, I found that I rarely returned to those books, and those books became more of a reminder of what I’ve read rather than what I would reread. 

I have had an affinity for physical books as far back as I can remember. For one, reading on paper is easier on my eyes, and reaching the end of a book after leafing through all the pages is a reward in itself. Also, in a book that has pictures/illustrations, the images appear much more vivid on paper (at least to my eyes). 

As I’ve transitioned to e-reader devices, however, I find them to be a more practical choice. The biggest adjustment was getting used to reading on a screen. At first, I could only read for so long until my eyes got tired or sore. But as I wrote more on the computer, I got used to reading on the screen. 

The great thing about ebooks is how inexpensive they are compared to physical books. Also, it’s great when you don’t have to wait for a book to be delivered or to pick it up from a store/library when you can just download it. Another great thing is that if you don’t know what the definition of a word is, you’re just a couple clicks away from finding out.

For me, this is a huge plus since I used to read with a dictionary on hand. The downside was that this delayed the flow of the reading experience, and after taking the time to look up the definition, I would have to double back in the book to recall what I was reading. 

Overall, the ease and versatility of ebooks makes them an economical and efficient choice. I will still read physical books from time to time, but it’s great when I can access so many books (as well as the chapters within them) with just a mouse click away.

Writing in Silence or with Music

Fallton Havenstonne

Writing in silence or with music in the background is something I’ve switched back and forth between, and while I used to write with the music in the background, I now predominately write without music. It’s definitely a personal preference, since music can be a motivation boost for writers. For me though, I find that music can take over as I try to write, since I’ll start to reflect or think about other things while I listen to the song.

A happy medium I found is when the volume is very low while I write. I tend to concentrate a lot better in silence than I do with music in the background. For me, music is something that takes my mind elsewhere–a place where I’m reflecting on ideas or memories rather than generating/creating content.

Of course, I’m merely speaking for myself as I write, but I can see where writing with music playing can be inspiring. Perhaps it also depends on the type of music (i.e. music with or without lyrics).

I used to spend a lot of time browsing songs during a writing session. Of course, having a playlist would be helpful to deter this, but I find that when a song changes the mood I need to write I’ll start browsing for a song again.

Overall, I need to get into a rhythm when I write. Once I get into a rhythm, everything fades away and the ideas burst onto the page. I think what we’re all after is being in the zone.

What is the zone? It’s that place where only the story matters, where your mind is constantly coming up with ideas that can’t wait to come out. It’s when the writing takes precedence and you’re not aware of anything else.

Short Story Collection Coming Soon

Fallton Havenstonne

I’ve been working on a new collection of short stories that will be released soon. It’ll have 5 stories altogether: 1 is a novella, and the other 4 are short stories.

Unlike THE INVAS10N, these stories aren’t connected. They’re more like Twilight Zone type stories with odd/inexplicable stuff happening. The novella will start off the book, and it’s a sci-fi story about humans with enhanced powers.

I’ve been reading more short stories by Shirley Jackson, and am about 60% through the book Just An Ordinary Day. The last story I read was a fun and lighthearted read. Entitled About Two Nice People, it has a surprising twist at the end which made the overall story a comedy though I thought it might’ve gone in a darker direction given the stories in part 1 of the book.

It’s about two tenants who live on the same floor and begin to have a feud. It begins with phone calls that Ellen receives which are intended for Walter, her neighbor. When she tries to get him to answer it, the person hangs up.

Later, Walter receives a parcel for her at his doorstep, and when he shows up at her door to drop it off, she believes he’s come to apologize about the phone calls, but that’s not the case.

The misunderstandings escalate to the point where they sneak into each other’s apartments to cause mischief (she leaves rotten eggs in his slippers, and he leaves rotten smelly cheese in her apartment). Then the landlady intervenes, thinking that the feud was actually about Ellen wanting to court Walter, who is her nephew.

The story is humorous, and takes a turn I didn’t see coming. Like many of her short stories, they end with a twist or a bit of irony that leave you surprised and quite amused.

The stories in part 2 of the collection have mostly been comedies so far. Another story I’ll mention is The Wishing Dime, which is about a man who finds a dime on the street and gives it to two girls, telling them that it is a wishing dime. Throughout their day, the girls carefully decide who they should ask to make wishes. In each case, the wishes come true, but in very unexpected and comedic ways.

Short Stories

Fallton Havenstonne

I’ve been writing some short stories since I published THE INVAS10N. They’re not all connected stories like THE INVAS10N, but some of the stories are. I took a different approach to writing them where I waited until after I finished all the stories before editing them. Usually, I edit a story right away when the ideas are still fresh in my mind. But I had so many ideas stirring in my mind that I wanted to get them out first.

I’ve been reading Shirley Jackson’s Just an Ordinary Day, a collection of her unpublished and published short stories. Many of the short stories are like vignettes: a story of a scene or what happens in a day or so. I’m halfway through the book, having finished her unpublished stories (the first section of the book). They’re a mix of dark psychological tales with comedic ones.

In the short story Come to the Fair, a woman is invited to a fair and is unwittingly asked to partake as a fortune teller at one of the stands. Since she knows the people in the community, she actually pulls it off with surprising success. In The Story We Used to Tell, a woman disappears, and later, her friend finds out that she had been pulled inside the world of a painting.

In the introduction of the book, Shirley’s children write how they landed upon their mother’s unpublished short stories, which Shirley had filed away. Many of her other stories were found in the archives of the San Fransisco Public Library. She was a voluminous writer and it’s great that her body of work is seeing the light of day since she last published.

Reading the short stories in the collection, I’m inspired by the creativity and imagination that went into them. I had read her other stories years back, but it’s great to read her unpublished works and see the range and scope of her work.