Sisters Noire - Ed Evans

Check out Ed's site.   http://goo.gl/iXW3m  

A malady creative?

Isn't it strange how some poets, songwriters, artists, etc., can do their best work whilst suffering some form of angst, depression, relationship problem or other malady. For instance, being ditched by a girlfriend or boyfriend can open up a channel of creativity that the spurned lover never knew existed within them. That first hesitant slash of paint on canvas suddenly becomes an onslaught, the blocked poetic mind suddenly overloads with verse, the lyricist who may have rhymed 'Moon' with 'June' is suddenly coupling phrases like 'name tag on it' with 'plate tectonic' * - and the writer whose offering was without feeling suddenly overflows with emotion.

What about alcohol and other mind-altering drugs - do they have a place in opening this channel too?

* Kaiser Chiefs brilliant album Employment is used here as an example of inventive coupling.

Shame on them!

I wonder how many more so-called personalities are quaking in their shoes hoping we don't find out that they have been thumbing their noses at us, the public, who put them where they are - the public who have no choice in the matter of paying tax.

Circle of Deceit

Three months ago Harry Miller decided to leave a lucrative directorship in business to write children's stories. His wife, Veronica, isn't pleased - she misses the high life. She nags him to go back. But Harry can't go back - and he can't tell her why. Veronica's efforts to push him into returning open a Pandora's box of intrigue and recriminations which has Harry questioning his marriage and his future.

My short-story Circle of Deceit (15,000 words) is on Kindle - you can read the beginning under the 'Pages' section to the right of this post. I hope you enjoy it.

Friends ...

One of the most important resources a writer can have is friends. Friends are there when self-doubt creeps in - and it does with creative minds. Friends are there to say where you're going wrong - where that story needs tweaking - why the character you just spent a week creating, and think is brilliant, - isn't working. Friends look at your manuscript and tell you why a scene, which you absolutely love, doesn't move the story forward. 

Friends are there when you can't write, because life has just erupted, the car's just failed its MOT and you need to ferry the kids to dancing / judo / fencing / extra maths lessons - or your washing machine / freezer / central heating system has just gone down and it's Saturday night and no tradesman is going to call on a Sunday unless you raise a mortgage for the call-out charge. 

Friends are there when the people around you don't understand why you want to curl up in a ball and cover yourself with a duvet, because an agent has just told you that your story is not what he / she or anyone else in the western hemisphere is looking for. 

Friends are there when you see a TV mini-series which has the same storyline as the book you've been working on for the last three years - and it gets bad reviews. 

Friends bolster, boost, encourage, cajole, listen, but, above all, friends are people who tell you the truth, because they want you to be the very best writer you can be.

The Olympic torch visits Plymouth.

The Olympic torch made my wife, Jill, and I feel a wonderful part of this special and historic event.

The torch arrived on Plymouth Hoe at around 9.20 this evening. Overseen by statues of Sir Francis Drake and Queen Victoria, the atmosphere from the thousands present was tremendous and created a magnificent start to the rest of the torch journey.

70 days to go to the Olympics in London.  

To preach or not to preach ...

In The Paradigm Culture, my main character, Tom (working name), has a hatred of injustice and believes the judicial system needs beefing up - a feeling close to my heart.


Now, as a writer, it would be very easy to get into preaching mode and, through Tom, bring out all my pet hates and frustrations with the justice system as if they were his. Of course, Tom can have feelings like mine, but they would need to be as a result of his upbringing - his insecurities - his need for stability and fair play - not mine. If I created a character purely as a vehicle to promulgate my own views then the reader would very quickly see through him and realise what was going on. 

A character's actions and thinking are motivated by many elements - fear, love, justice, money, etc. Tom's motivation centres on rules. He feels comfortable with rules - society needs rules - and those who break the rules have to be dealt with. For Tom, failure to deal with them brings chaos.

So imagine, when Tom is granted the power to bring to justice these people who think they are outside the law, what his reaction will be. What would yours be? What would you do if you had the power to invade minds?