Update on Third Edition of First Novel

As I previously announced, I am working on a third edition of Out in the Garage, which isn't significantly different, but it is an improvement on the previous editions for a number of reasons. See my previous post, Indie and Proud!, for more details on the changes.

As it stands now, I am nearly finished with this final edition; however, I am considering making a couple of additional changes, which came to light while I was working on the ones previously outlined. I am considering changing the title back to the original, pre-published title, Escapes, as it hits on one of the main themes, and might help to open up the novel to more people.

While considering changing the title, I rewrote the description, and the new description really helps to elucidate the idea that I think was previously obscured, and it, coupled with the title, might also help to explain some of the more confusing aspects of the novel. That is not to say that I give anything away, but when a reader gets to those points, it will make a lot more sense.

Out in the Garage, while a good, and definitely a unique, title, might be a little misleading, since it only seems to focus on one aspect of the novel, and doesn't really seem to encompass all of it, which Escapes does a better job of doing.

Also, I have a new book cover design that I really like, and that adds to the artistry of the whole endeavor. I also think it is better than the original design, and it incorporates the change in title and the new description, as well.

What do you think about the new title/description/cover design?

Here are the (front and back) covers:

And here is the new description:

In many ways, Lance Adamson’s whole life has been defined by escapes: his dad escaping the responsibilities of parenthood through the bottom of a bottle, Lance and his mom escaping that drunken sperm donor and moving in with Grandpa Harry, and Lance, himself, escaping the bullying at school through playing drums. When Lance is sitting at his drum set, which he learned to play by way of jazz-loving Grandpa Harry’s careful instruction, the only thing that matters is the music—everything from the world outside the garage ceases to exist for a while. Seemingly, no matter what is happening in his life, he can be free from it—as long as the euphoria lasts. However, as Lance finds out, there are some things that you cannot escape from forever, no matter how hard you try. In fact, most things catch back up with you sooner or later, and, when they do, it can really turn your life upside down. Fortunately, someone as resourceful as Lance can always find a new way to escape.

If you need something to compare them to, check out the BOOKS Page for the originals.

I am really learning towards the changes, but I haven't fully made up my mind yet. When I do, I will announce it.

300 Words A Day

When it comes to finishing the draft of a novel, the task can seem daunting. The fact that I have previously written a novel fills me with more confidence than I had the first time around, especially since I have taken lengths to correct the mistakes that I made that first time.

In that regard, I have taken a lot of time to consider what I want to say and brainstorm it out in advance. I even have an informal outline, which will give me a basis to work from and a way to keep myself on track. These are all important things, but it doesn't mean much if you don't then work towards the goal at hand, which, for me, is to write a first draft this year.

Since I work three jobs and am looking for a full-time position, and have a life besides, it is difficult to find the time to actually sit down and get busy. Even when I do, it doesn't ever seem like enough. Since I started writing this one, I have written 2,837 words, and have had a difficult time motivating myself when I do have the time, since it seems like I am barely making any progress. 

Then, last night, it hit me--one of those late night revelations. If I write at least 300 words a day, that amounts to 2,100 words a week, and if I keep it up through the rest of the year, then that adds up to 96,600 words, for a total of 99,437 words, which leaves me just 563 words short of my 100,000-word goal (for the first draft).

So, as you can see, it is all a matter of perspective. If you change your perspective enough, you can change your approach and accomplish the task that you set out to do. 100,000 words undoubtedly is a daunting goal, but 300 words a day seems very doable.

It will take discipline, but if I push myself, I can accomplish the task. After all, I did write a novel once before, and with no experience, and far less planning or knowledge about the process. Now that I have studied writing, and have some experience and a solid working plan, I feel a lot better about the whole endeavor. Now, I just have to do it.

NOTE: This blog post is 386 words (minus this note), and it took me about 20 minutes to write. When you consider that, it makes 300 words a day on my novel seem even more doable.

New Flash Fiction!

The Consumers and the Consumed

Carlos paused in the middle of a crowded boardwalk to open a bottle of Coke. Much to his surprise, a genie appeared out of an explosion of foam—although no one around him seemed to notice.

“YOU HAVE AWAKEN ME FROM MY SLUMBER!” the genie thundered, folding his arms across his chest. “For that, I will grant you ONE wish!”

“Only one?” Carlos said, “I thought it was three.”

“Well,” the genie replied, shrugging, “This ain’t Disney.”

With his hand to his chin, Carlos tried to think of the one perfect wish as the bottle of Coke continued spewing out foam on the ground between them, and people walked all around them in and out of the shops and cafés, going about their day, absorbed into their iPhones and Androids. Finally, after several minutes…

“I wish for…POPULARITY!”

The genie smiled and rose up to his full height, seeming to tower over Carlos.

“Your wish is my command,” he said, raising his arms in the air, twiddling his fingers in Carlos’ direction, “ABRA CADABRA!”

POOF! Carlos disappeared and in his place sat a bag of Cool Ranch Doritos, which was immediately scooped up by a passing stoner, who high-fived the genie, ripped open the bag, and popped some into his mouth.

“Mhm…Best Doritos ever!” he proclaimed as he disappeared into the crowd.

Art: The Be-All and End-All for Every True Artist

What makes a person an artist, or something art, has nothing to do with awards, sales, ego, etc. 

Of course, art might bring the artist accolades, and the luckiest might even be able to make a living off of their art, but there are many artists producing art who don't get recognized, and don't make money off of their art, but they continue producing it anyway. 

For me, that's what makes a person an artist and what they do art: an artist will make their art no matter the outcome. Art is a product of self expression and passion, not greed and egotism. An artist produces art for the love of art, first and foremost. There might be other factors involved, as well, but those are secondary to the art itself.

I am not going to mention any names, because I don't want to promote those individuals more than others already have, since, I am guessing, that is why this person did what he/she did: for him/her, it's all about staying in the spotlight and making money. 

Maybe this person and the people he/she was promoting are artists. I don't know. I believe it depends on their motivation as to whether that is true or not. It seems like these people are more interested in the spectacle than they are in just producing the product. It seems like their images, and the benefits they receive from maintaining those images, come first.

If their interest was in making art, then I would like to think it would be more evident that they were not just trying to maintain their wealth and fame. After all, you shouldn't have to proclaim yourself an artist. It is something you earn, and as much as you want people to consider you it, it doesn't mean that you are or will ever be considered one.

That being said, I believe my definition of an artist, as someone who produces art for the love of producing art, is fairly universal. If you truly are an artist, people will recognize it. People will see your genuine love of making your art, and you will not have to go around proclaiming yourself an artist in order to be labeled as such.

The person this person was protesting could also be considered an artist, and, indeed, is considered one, and has been considered one, by many. I don't know that this person's status as an artist has ever been questioned, especially when you look at his/her past work, and his/her level of involvement in producing the "art" itself.

This person also tends to stay out of the spotlight (as far as I am aware, anyways), and he/she has always pushed boundaries and made decisions that seem to go beyond a desire to be famous or to maintain a level of fame since what he/she has produced has never really fallen in with what is popular in the moment, necessarily. It seems to be more about the art itself and not the artist.

When it comes down to it, of all of these individuals, who would most likely continue making "art" if the fame, money, and recognition were all taken away? I can't answer that--only they can--but those who truly would are the artists.

Indie and Proud!

While I am not trying to be a best-selling author, and I am trying to focus more on my second novel, I am still a bit unsatisfied with my first novel, Out in the Garage, and feel that I need to make some changes to it, which might be a faux pas, but I don't really care.

Nowadays, I am guessing by the massive amount of money that goes into publishing books, authors, especially ones who are published by the big-time publishers, don't tend to make changes to books once they are published; however, that has not always been the case. Novels such as Ulysses and The Picture of Dorian Gray have both had changes made to them by the authors to improve them in some way. While I would not put myself in the same category as Joyce or Wilde, if they can get away with it then so can I.

Perhaps I have tried to focus on being business-minded in the past, but I am moving away from the idea of seeing my work as products to be sold and moving toward the perspective of seeing them as works of art. While some people out there might think that is bullshit, or whatever--just an excuse to write in a crappy or obscure way--I believe that current publishing standards tend to place style over substance and saleability over originality. Not that the people who are making big bucks on best-selling books don't deserve it, it's just that I don't believe that I will ever be among those people, so rather than continuing to try to fit that mold, I am going to go in my own direction.

That is why I am not getting my MFA. I won't disparage those that do have them, or those that are pursuing them--as I do know some great writers who have them--but I don't believe it is really necessary to have one to be a great writer. In fact, from what other great writers have told me, including some with MFAs, the real trick to is to study closely how your favorite writers do it and then apply what you learn to your own work. That is what I am doing instead. Reading a lot, and closely, and attempting to learn from what I read.

If I do get another degree, it will be a Ph.D. in literary theory, which is why I am working to finish my thesis (for those that don't know, I graduated by taking extra classes). However, I did take my thesis hours, and they are technically still in progress, and I feel like I owe it to myself to finish it--if for no other reason. Maybe I won't ever get a Ph.D., but I still want to be able to put my finished thesis on my resume. I also have some papers that I want to fix, polish, and try to get published in some peer-reviewed journals, as I believe I have some good ideas, and now, from teaching and grading, I am honing my editing and polishing skills. 

For now, I am hoping to find a full-time job, settle into that for a while, and see what happens. Maybe I will like it and never go back to school, but maybe in five or ten years, I will be ready for a more advanced degree. I don't know, but one advantage of working full time is having more of a clear-cut division between work and free time, so that when I am not at work, I am free to work on whatever I want, like my thesis or my fiction.

Anyways, I have been considering changing Out in the Garage for a while, and even had that second edition published for a while. That was my attempt to appease people. Now, I want to appease myself. I have considered other, vastly different, versions of the novel, but instead I have settled on making some small changes to the existing text to cut out some distractions and to make it flow a bit better. In fact, I have more or less already made the changes. There might be a few more coming, but what I changed was fairly straight-forward and did not require a lot time. Here is a list of what will be different in the new version (when it is released):

• I cut out some unnecessary description from the first couple of pages as it was distracting and didn't really fit with the narration through the rest of the story
• I cut out the flashbacks from the first two chapters, as they added what is, essentially, unnecessary background information that is more or less implied by the plot
• I made some other small changes here and there that will probably be unnoticeable unless you do a side-by-side comparison
• I divided the book into three parts instead of the two "sides": the sides things was too gimmicky and there is a natural division in what used to be Side B of the text, which, by making the division clear, it helps make the plot and time-frame clearer 
• I am making some formatting changes to reflect higher professional standards, including putting only one space between sentences

That is pretty much it. I am toying with the idea of changing the cover, but we'll see if that happens or not. I am going to leave the description the same, as I am more or less happy with it and it does a pretty good job of catching people's attention and setting up the plot. This approach, to me, makes the most sense, since it won't change much for those who have already read it or are reading it, and they hopefully won't feel cheated; however, it will hopefully entice more people who check it out to buy it.

This way I can make myself happy and finally lay the project to rest, which is my goal by making these changes. Rather than let it continue to nag and bother me, I am going to make the effort to do something. Maybe this makes me a revisionist, or whatever, but I figure that, since I have already put like ten years into it, putting another few hours of work isn't going to make much more of a difference time-wise, and it will, in my opinion, make the book a bit more accessible without selling out my principles. After all, I am indie and proud!

A Defense of Sam Smith (by a Tom Petty Fan)

Admittedly, I am not a fan of Sam Smith--not that I dislike his music, it's just not my thing. Now that it has come to light that the popular British singer has to pay royalties to Tom Petty and Jeff Lynne for the similarities between Smith's song, "Stay with Me" and Petty's song, "I Won't Back Down," it doesn't really set me against Smith, either.

(follow the link to hear a comparison between the two songs.)

Now, don't get me wrong, I am a Tom Petty fan, and as such, that is where my loyalties lie; however, it is entirely possible that Smith and his co-songwriters didn't know that they were plagiarizing the Petty/Lynne composition, and that it is an honest coincidence. After all, this was entirely settled out of court, and they readily acknowledged the similarities.

There are Only so Many Notes

As a songwriter myself (though not nearly as good or as successful as either party involved), I can surely relate to this situation. You want to think that what you are writing is your original idea--your lyrics, your melodies--but, with a limited number of notes, scales, and chords, there are only so many melodies out there to capture and call your own.

In fact, western music is structured around only 12 total notes, so there is bound to be some overlap--especially when only certain combinations of those 12 notes seem to really widely connect with people. According to this Ultimateguitar.com article, there are literally thousands of songs based off of four chord progressions.

Not to mention, with the inception of hip hop, sampling others' songs--that is, actually taking a snippet of someone's song and using it in your own--has become a tradition. While some purists are against this, many would argue that there is an art to it, and in fact, even though a song features a sample from another song, it doesn't make it any less musical. Just don't let P. Diddy (or whatever the Hell he goes by nowadays) sample any more Led Zeppelin songs.

Seriously though, if Diddy can get away with that, and sampling is generally considered okay, why vilify Smith for an honest coincidence?

He is (By Far) Not Alone

It's not like he pulled a Vanilla Ice.

As you are probably aware, Vanilla Ice's song, "Ice Ice Baby," contains a sample of the Queen and David Bowie song, "Under Pressure." However, he didn't get permission to use it, and in spite of Vanilla Ice's denial--at the time--he was still successfully sued by Queen, and has to pay royalties to the band for his obvious copying of their song.

And Vanilla Ice is by far not the first to be accused of plagiarism. In fact, some of the biggest rock stars of all time have also been accused of it.

For example, Led Zeppelin has been accused of plagiarizing the opening to "Stairway to Heaven" from the Spirit song, "Taurus." While the courts have yet to make a ruling on this case, one can listen to the songs and see where the comparison is justifiable.

While not discussed very much today, in 1976, George Harrison, a freakin' Beatle, was sued for the "subconscious plagiarism" of his song, "My Sweet Lord." He claims to have used the melody of an old, uncopyrighted Christian hymn, "Oh Happy Day"; however, as the courts ruled, there is a definite similarity to the Chiffons song, "He's so Fine"--written by Ronnie Mack.

Of course, they probably both have the same source material, but Ronnie Mack was the first to do it, which is why Harrison ran into trouble.

Wait Until the Dust Clears

Maybe due to his reaction, and the obviousness of the act, Vanilla Ice is the only one of those three examples whose reputation has really suffered long-term effects due to the plagiarism accusation.

While Led Zeppelin has long been accused of the act, only recently has it gone to court (see this NPR story on the case), and the band is still one of the most popular rock bands in the world, which is evidenced by the fact that, as recently as last year, it was rumored that the surviving band members were offered $800 million to tour (which Robert Plant, supposedly, rejected).

Harrison's case was widely publicized at the time, but his reputation hasn't really suffered, and I would argue that his song, "My Sweet Lord," has probably even eclipsed the Chiffons' song in lasting popularity.

So, before you go and judge Sam Smith--if that is your inclination--just remember that he is by far not alone.

(Note: while familiar both the Vanilla Ice and George Harrison examples, I did use the "Ice Ice Baby" and "My Sweet Lord" Wikipedia pages to verify my information and find specific names/dates.)