Category: Uncategorized

The Rhythm is Gonna Get You

Posted on by Sarah A. Hoyt

The Rhythm is Gonna Get You

In haste, because I’m actually still trying to write – it’s been a very odd day – and I have my Greek and Latin mid terms tomorrow, for which I’m somewhat less than prepared. (By which you should understand I’m flying by a prayer AND the seat of my pants.)

A brief exchange with my husband – who came in to find me playing Mika and rolled his eyes :D – reminds me that I had meant to write briefly about music to write by.

I don’t know if other writers have it. I know a few who do. I also know at least one who writes in front of the tv or movies. (I confess the only time I have written in front of the TV was my third Shakespeare book which was written in its entirety in about the month after 9/11. I didn’t feel I could take my eyes off what the world was up to just then. And writing only happened when sitting in front of the news.)

Now, as I believe I mentioned sometime before, when I’m asked if I’m a plotter or a pantser I always have to say "both." Because I write lovingly intricate plots, ahead of time. Then I sit down to write and ten chapters in I find the characters are not who I thought they were, or everything has gone strangely awry. Which forces me to sit down, unpick my plot and rethread it in a way that makes sense for where I am now. This happens every ten chapters or every fifty pages, whichever comes first.

Continue reading “The Rhythm is Gonna Get You” →

Treat Your Writer Well

Posted on by Sarah A. Hoyt

Particularly when you’re the writer.

I don’t remember where I read that beginning writers antecipate that their career will be — as their school career often was — a series of people, overawed by their amazing writing ability, patting them on the back and instead it most often resembles a series of kick in the teeth.  I do know after twenty years of trying to be a writer and watching people try and many drop by the way side that those who don’t get used to the kicks and learn to heal from them don’t last.  This is no field for wounded souls, even if we are all, more or less, emotional walking wounded.  (Not sure why, but that’s a consideration for another post.) Continue reading “Treat Your Writer Well” →

The kitten who came in from minigolf

Posted on by Sarah A. Hoyt

So what’s the last thing a Sarah needs on a month with two cons?  You guessed it.  Another Kitten to train, right?  And integrate into the house?

Just before RWA and World Con we went minigolfing.  On the course was a little cat — starved, FILTHY (I’ve never seen a cat that filthy.  The "then" picture was after baths with normal kitten shampoo, Gojo AND Dawn dish soap (All recommended by our vet.)  Before that he looked yellow.  Take kitten, dip him in vat of corn oil.  Let him dry.  Rub some crisco on him.  When we got him, he looked about like that.  It further took three rubbings with corn startch and brushing out to make his fur stop clumping.  He was, our vet said, seven to eight months.  He’s been with us… three?  And he is a total brat.  He lives, as my older son says, in a permanent state of hunger, but then he’s grown a lot (both directions.)  He has a permanent purr and thinks EVERYTHING and everyone is a toy.  He has some sort of fight going on with D’Artagnan over Euclid’s affections.  (I’m SO not going there.  There are TWO girl cats in this house.   Well, they’re all NOMINAL girl and boys, but still…)  I think I’m breaking them of NOISY fighting.  A clap of hands usually does it.  NOT ON the cats, you sillies.  Just mid-air. Though I’ll admit particularly when they’re doing their fighting while I write "I have HAD enough of this," also brings instant, wide-eyed silence.

Anyway, attached are pictures of Havelock, aka Mr. Ridiculous Plume (his tail has a kink in the midle, so when he walks, it rotates.)  It’s really hard to get him with his eyes open these days, unless he’s begging for food. Continue reading “The kitten who came in from minigolf” →

I told you to watch this space

Posted on by Sarah A. Hoyt

Everyone, attention, please!

Those in your various alternate forms, please resume human shape. 

Listen up.  I told you to watch this space.

I’m honored and humbled to announce that I’m part of a group blog with some wonderful writers:

Dave Freer

Laura Resnick

Louise Marley

Rowena Cory Daniells

The blog is called Mad Genius Club — writers division.

I supply the mad part of it, in case you wonder.  {G}

Monkey has his first post up, in advance:

http://madgeniusclub.blogspot.com/

And no, I’m in no way abandonning this blog, which will continue to be its normal mix of personal stuff (with occasional outbreaks of mini-onions (NOT MY mini-onions) in reply to it, videt multi-culti-tuttifrutti.  (And yes, Russell, if you are reading this, I AM very mean. : D ) writing, cats, and absurd events with occasional writing advice or complaints about how it is going.

HOWEVER the Mad Genius Club will be MOSTLY writing, so you might want to check it out.  This week, we’re introducing ourselves.

Go on, take a look.

Sarah

Holy Tectonic Plates, Batman!

Posted on by Sarah A. Hoyt

So, you’re thinking, as you sit out there in the audience, chewing your gum – yes, I see you, did you bring enough to share with everyone? – and reading my blog so you can avoid getting any writing done,  you’re thinking "Once I get published, that’s it. I’ll know exactly what I’m doing, and everything will be perfect forever and ever amen."

Of course, if you’re already published, you’re probably aware that no elf came by with a magic wand and endowed you with the ability to write effortlessly. (If one did I don’t want to hear it. Lalalalalalalala.)

The truth is not just that it never ends. The truth is that it never stops being weird and painful. I’ve published now – counts on fingers – one, two three, seven, ten (removes shoes) fourteen novels, if you count a couple that are absolutely secret (if I told you they wouldn’t be secret, now, would they? However, the first bright boy or girl to come to my house, do the litter boxes, dust, sweep and cook dinner for the next week gets told the names and author name) and I’ve always been aware that there were things I didn’t do right.

Oh, come on, admit it, those of you who are writers know this. There’s things you can do, and things you can’t. You start out and – if you’re honest with yourself – you see all these huge flaws. You look at published stories and you wonder how the hell they do it. You know your stuff is not just different quantitatively – it’s not just "he does more of this" – but qualitatively. It’s a different beast altogether. You gape in wonder at the grownups stuff and you go "Oh, wow, if only I could write a story like THAT I’d be happy."

And you read and you study, you learn, you look for hints. And you collect your kicks in the… er… I mean rejections, advice letters and critiques. And you sit up in the cold, dark night and wonder if you’ll ever be a real writer and you know that when you get there, you’ll do everything perfectly and it will be EASY.

Continue reading “Holy Tectonic Plates, Batman!” →

Bowl of fruit

Posted on by Sarah A. Hoyt

As some of you know, I’ve been taking art classes. Mostly because it forces me to use a completely different part of the brain. I’d got to a point in writing where I was SO tired nothing worked to rest . Not sleep. Not vacation. My mind was still fully occupied by whatever story had taken possession. (And sometimes it does feel just like that. They move in.)

One of the things I like about art class — other than being able to write again when I come out — is that it gives me some insight into how writing works, particularly for when I’m trying to teach others. Because, you see, I started so long ago that I’ve forgotten the process. In a way I’ve always been telling stories. (No, seriously. Ask my mom.)

Like… contrast. I’m a contrast wuss in art, which is apparently normal for beginners. It’s the same in fiction, if you think on it. Beginners avoid the extremely dark and the very light and PARTICULARLY avoid the very dark and the very light in close juxtaposition. Real pros, let alone the real artists use it all the time. Read your Shakespeare if you doubt me.

Continue reading “Bowl of fruit” →

Sorry I haven’t been blogging. Watch this space

Posted on by Sarah A. Hoyt

a quick overview of our last two months would run somewhat like the end of Soap in the old times (though not with exactly these same questions, of course!  Er sort of.  Except the one about alien squirrels, natch.  That one is a hundred percent accurate.)

Will Sarah manage to escape the elevator where she’s been trapped by rabid alien squirrels?  Will Dan manage to hunt down the wild caribou infesting the house network?  Will Robert create the teleporter that will save the world from the giant black hole?  Will Eric manage to figure out how to brush his hair before being suffocated by dreadlocks?

Tune in next episode, for more on the Hoyt life…