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A writer enters a studio . . .

Last week, I recorded myself reading one of my short stories for The Other Stories Podcast.

I guess I’ve always thought of writing in this solitary way. It’s me and my computer and my post-its and my thoughts. And sure, I bounce those thoughts off of trusted friends, but, generally speaking, my writing exists in my head. Reading it out loud to an audience–even just my audience of two–made me remember when I was in New York two years ago, listening to my short story More Class Than Custard being read by actor Michael Petrocelli for Liars’ League NYC. I sat there petrified as he read, my mind ping-ponging between amazement at the way he read my characters and mortification at the audience’s response. I remembered thinking, “That’s not how I hear that character . . .” etc, and here was my chance to get it right!

But I’m not really sure I did get it right, even as the writer.

I felt, perhaps more critically than necessary, that the writing came out stilted. I noticed painful repetitions of sentence structures. I noticed parts of the story that just, honestly, didn’t work.

I’ve always made a point of reading out loud certain drafts of short stories, especially when I feel like they are almost ready to send out into the world, but reading in a whispered monotone to myself is a very different experience than reading in a studio with a mic up to my face and two men sitting by listening for me to flub a line so they can stop recording.

It was still a fun experience, and I want to thank my friend Garth and his Del-Fi bandmate Steve for letting me steal their practice time in the advancement of my own art! More details on when that podcast will go live to follow in the next few weeks.

 

 

 

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2018 May in Review, June in Preview

Last week I attended a video release party for a local rap artist named Purple Queen. It was held at a little dive bar near my home that has recently put a stage in the back room and is showcasing local musicians. Everyone who came out to the party was friends, contributors to the project, and other local rappers showing their support.

Her new song is called “Giants” and the hook says, “How you root impacts how you grow.” (Watch the video here.)

It reminded me a lot of my experience at KGB Bar in the East Village two years ago when I flew out to New York for one day just to hear a short story I wrote read by an actor there for the online publication Liars’ League NYC. The local support was strong. Other New York City writers showed up just to connect and cheer on other writers.

I loved that feeling and didn’t realize until Purple Queen’s release last week that I was missing that in my literary life. And the thing is, the Twin Cities have plenty of these types of events for writers just like myself. It really renewed my interest in finding that community—those roots—here where I live and using it to help me grow as an artist.

In May I:

  • Wrote: About 3000 words between two new short stories
  • Read: The Hangman by Louise Penny and started The End of Everything by Megan Abbott
  • Met with a lawyer friend of mine to go over funeral law and insurance fraud to help solidify one of my mystery character’s backstory
  • Realized I had no clue about another mystery character’s backstory so I’ve started doing the character development exercises from the book The 90 Day Novel by Alan Watt
  • Shopped an unpublished story around to two paying markets; got rejected from both
  • Applied to the Loft Literary Center’s Mentor Program

In June I hope to continue shopping at least two short stories for publication, read another couple of mysteries, and begin re-outlining my mystery with the insight I hope to gain from these character development exercises. May saw me come out of my winter slump. In June I hope to be up and running fully!