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Writing Sketch 3: Fidel Castro, Beijing, Yo-Yos.
Running a fine-toothed comb through his beard, Fidel smoothed out the smog knots that clung tightly to his hair. If only he hadn’t visited Beijing. What a terrible waste of a weekend, Fidel thought coldly. He recalled the city’s buildings poking above the clouds like the eyes of a hungry Cayman staring down its prey. Disgusting.
He sat irritated in the newly reupholstered leather chair that tucked beneath the awning of his stately mahogany desk. With a few squeaks he inched the chair closer to feel more at ease in his solitary office. Perhaps that was when tranquility should overcome him, but instead Fidel felt an itch. Stretching across the matted top, he reached a calloused hand for the specialty box of Cuban’s that lingered just beyond his finger tips.
A dense, musky smell taunted him as its phantom scent tickled Fidel’s nose. As the perfume seeped into his nostrils and blanketed his tongue with the heavy taste of unbridled pleasure, his craving intensified and he required immediate access to his cigars. Kicking back his chair, he found it blockaded by a pesky floorboard. He was stuck, imprisoned from gratification. “What luck”, he grumbled.
But, alas! The Yo-Yo from Beijing! Rustling a hand deep into his pocket, Fidel retrieved the meager souvenir. A bright sheen came over the polished wood as Fidel jostled it in the light. His skills were amateur at best, but a proper throw would result in the repossession of his beloved Cubans. Cocking his arm back like a gun hammer and preparing the yo-yo as a bullet, Fidel let off a shot that swung parallel to his desk. The novelty kicked back with a fury, grazing the cigar box and bouncing aloft before squaring Fidel in the jaw. If only he hadn’t visited Beijing.
National Novel Writing Month
A true challenge in writing is the annual program NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) that encourages writers to start a new project on November 1st and complete it by November 30th. There are no prizes as it is not a contest, but your final product must be a minimum of 50,000 words although anything over that is acceptable. That is one tall order, if you ask me. Granted, my first novel is around 90,000 words, but it took me a few months to write and several years to plan (and I’ve been working on its sequels ever since). I adore the concept of NaNoWriMo as it supports authors and promotes them to dig deep and uncover one of the stories hidden within.
Even though this task may seem daunting, I would gladly be an advocate for this exercise. Are you going to come through the month with a polished final draft? In all likelihood, no. Regardless, you will have a solid draft that is completed! And in the process you have the opportunity to network with other writers from across the country and the globe. For a new writer or struggling author, this is the precise atmosphere You Are What You Write endorses.
If I wasn’t already undertaking two other projects, I would try my luck at the NaNoWriMo. I could finally get the idea written that could be best described as a Disney novel. There are so many classic tales out there that could be developed into a Disney themed story. Red Riding Hood for example…well that might be tough to get around the murder and grandmother-consumption. Few tweaks here and there and it could work. Or maybe my long-desired prequel to The Lion King. Did you know Scar’s real name is Taka. That’s a fact, look it up. What made him so sour and delectably disgusting? Coming up with the idea is half the battle. Spending November writing your novel is the other half of the journey.
Take the chance and see what you come up with. If you’d like, share what ideas you have for NaNoWriMo.
Writing Tips: Weather
When it comes to creating a believable setting for your narrative, weather actually plays a significant role in determining the location and its atmosphere. It’s fairly straightforward that a rainy day on a tropical island would be described categorically opposite to a sunny day in the tundra. Just as the lighting inside a room or its contents gives the reader a deep sense of their location in the story, external conditions function similarly but with an additional touch of symbolism. Most writers would agree that weather is an integral piece of setting the scene. So much so, that in films or television, you may even become blind to the setup due to the expectation of weather. Quick– what are the conditions in the climactic scene of Titanic? The opening sequence in LOST? Takes a minute or two to remember, doesn’t it? But once you recall the weather, I’ll bet you envisioned the rest of the scene down to minor details. Now I’ll direct your thoughts to how these decisions operate on a subconscious level.
Sun: Along with providing brightness to the landscape, this otherwise bland forecast can offer your reader with optimistic feelings and visceral connections to their own fair-weather memories.
Partial Sun / Cloudy: Not every day is perfect, even in an ideal location like the tropical island. Some locations may be overcast 9 out of 10 days (i.e. London, Seattle). Clouds can signify a looming conflict or confusion in addition to implying a transitional period. Rain: It’s slightly cliché to set a depressing or end-game scene in the rain, but it does give emotional credibility to the situation. I am more partial to setting cheerful scenes in the rain for a juxtaposition of moods.
Stormy: This is quite an adaptable category. Storms could range from natural disasters to an every-day blustery gust or snow. Generally, Mother Nature’s storms are seen as a form of anger or fury, but it could also mirror an internal conflict.
Final Note: Time of day and the yearly shift in seasons offers another complex layer onto the weather your characters and readers’ experience. Be careful to note these climate deviations when painting your location to gain an extra dose of compelling realism.
The Road to Discovery
To start this off right, I might as well explain the story of how I became a writer. Or well, discovered I was a writer. It’s a long story that spans several years and barring the passing of a few cornerstone moments, my future could have swung in an entirely different direction. I once wanted to be a vet (says the girl who faints at the sight of blood), but to keep the tale simple, it happened something like this:
On a bright afternoon trip home from preschool my father peered into the rearview mirror, his mustache twitching as he spoke, “What’d you do today, Rachel?”
“First we played games, then we had snack. I was going to nap but the school was attacked by a huge green dragon! It broke everything. We ran into the playground and got to play the rest of the day. The dragon played too,” I explained, giddily kicking my feet together.
Dad’s brow arched as his eyes questioned me from the front seat, “What’d you really do today?”
“I swear, daddy, the dragon came and then we got to use his tail like a slide,” I declared emphatically.
Noting my earnest smile, he replied the following comment as tenderly as possible, “You’re going to have to call these ‘stories’, honey, or else you’ll get in trouble for lying a lot.”
This was one of many moments before middle school that lit my path as a writer. Sure, entering a poetry contest could be dubbed “the moment”; or maybe it was when I wrote my first short story, but hindsight allows us to assess our furthest memories to determine where and when our road began. Mine was on the road home from preschool the day a dragon attacked. I swear it happened…well, something like that.
How did you discover you were a writer? Leave a comment and let me know.
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