Writer in Residence Karl Schroeder

Which kind of writer are you? --Part 1

Writing is not one activity.  It is many.  Knowing this can be key to your growth as a literary artist.

There are a lot of myths about the writing process.  One of the worst is the myth of talent--which is a catch-all word that seems designed to stop any further questioning.  Talent, you see, is self-contained, impenetrable:  opaque.  "Well, he's talented."  With that statement, we dismiss the possibility of looking inside the box, of finding out what it is that a writer does that makes him or her look talented.

Talent, like the words skill and experience, is useless when you want to learn how someone does something.  Each of these terms takes something complex, multi-faceted and ultimately visible--if you know where to look--and makes it mysterious and opaque.  So if I used any of these words in conversation or on this blog while I'm writer in residence here, please feel free to call me on it.

Underlying the apparent seamlessness of talent and skill are many different activities, all coordinated. Writing is not one activity but many, and each of us is not just 'a writer' but many different kinds of writer. 

We are all a mixture of many different kinds of writer; but some of us start out being more one or two of these:

• The dreamer has a whole universe in his head, but can’t get that first scene written.
• The draft horse has nine different versions of chapter 1, but no chapter 2.
• The academic has lots of file folders crammed with notes, but hasn’t started the story yet.
• The editor never finishes because the story “just isn’t quite right yet.”
• The biographer has two hundred pages of dialog and character development, but nothing has actually happened yet.
• The plotter has a lot of action going on, but there are no people in this story.
• The essayist uses the story to make a point, and woe to any character or drama that gets in the way.

Recognize any of these traits?  Chances are you have some of them.  In my next post, I'll talk about how it is enthusiasm, and not some mythical trait like 'talent' that blends these personae in us; and I'll discuss how to dampen down the traits that you are over-emphasizing, and turn up the volume on the ones you tend to neglect.  A good writer knows when to switch between these roles, and is willing to do it.  We'll explore how that works, and how it can improve your writing.

Reading Tonight!

I'll be reading in the Beeton Auditorium at the Toronto Metro Reference Library tonight.  The event takes place between 7:00 and 8:15 p.m. and will include a question-and-answer session after for anyone interested in the writer in residence program, or just curious about writing or science fiction.

I'm going to be reading from the latest book in my Virga series:  Ashes of Candesce.  This is the fifth book in the series, but I'll introduce everything for those not familiar with the stories.  --In fact, why don't I do that here?  Virga is an ancient, artificial world in which humans live.  It's basically a balloon, five thousand miles in diameter, that orbits a distant star by itself.  Since it's hollow and contains little significant mass, its interior is a weightless, shirt-sleeve environment, full of clouds, drifting plants anchored to weightless clods of dirt; balls of water ranging from droplet size to oceanic proportions... and the many cities and habitations of humanity.

The Virga books are essentially nautical adventures in a world without gravity.  The ships fly, but they also hover weightlessly firing broadsides and sending boarding parties at one another.  Gravity is a municipal utility in Virga, made by the simple expedient of spinning big hoop-shaped "town wheels."  The books are full of intrigue, vendettas, lying, back-stabbing, and general fun.  In my Ashes reading I will be returning to some characters from previous books, and hinting at what happened after the end of the last book, The Sunless Countries.

So come on out!  The event is free for everyone, and we can talk afterward.

Off and Running!

The reception on Monday afternoon went very well, and I was able to meet some of the authors who are submitting manuscripts to the program, as well as the hardworking Toronto Public Library staff members who made it all possible.  Thanks to everybody for the good food, good conversation, and general boost to my ego.

Manuscripts are arriving fast and furious right now, so I will be starting to read them immediately, and will be scheduling meeting times over the next week or so.  I've been pleasantly surprised and slightly alarmed at the size of the flood coming in.  One thing I would like to emphasize, however, for authors submitting to the program:

Please ensure that your name is prominently displayed on the front page of the manuscript.  I have received several files where the name in the file is different from the name on the email, and one so far that has no name on it at all.  

Next up, I'll be reading from my current work-in-progress, Ashes of Candesce, this coming Saturday night starting at 7:00, in Beeton Hall at the Toronto Reference Library.

As a first blog post, this one is necessarily a bit primitive and simple.  I'll be relaxing into this process as I go, so expect much more--and much more interesting news and commentary, to come.  (Authors:  rest assured, I will not be talking about your work online, either here or anywhere else.  The confidentiality of our work together is guaranteed.)