#WritersCoffeeClub March 2: Does your overall goal differ from project to project?

The goal of each project is, "get it done." But each project has different challenges: voice, pacing, transitioning, character development, motifs, research, themes, etc. So yes, each one is different, but the methodology should be consistent even while developing that methodology.

I am an academic, so this is how I work. :)

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#WritersCoffeeClub March 4: Share a recent experience where something just "clicked."

Realizing that my Funny One supporting character deeply wants to be a Sexy Hero. He doesn't get how loved he is for who he is.

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#WritersCoffeeClub March 5: How do you make sure you don’t leave plot holes?

Lot of stewing. Some obsessing. I would love to say, "brooding," but that requires a level of sexy cool that I don't possess. [sigh]

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#writerscoffeeclub March 6: Is there a local writing community near you? Do you participate in it?

There are a few big writers' group in Vancouver. I formed my own small group that meets twice a month.

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#WritersCoffeeClub March 7: What have you given up in order to write?

Anxiety.

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#WritersCoffeeClub March 8: Do the seasons influence your writing? (content? topic? volume?)

I'm allegedly not as busy in the summer, so I ought to get more writing done, but the first thing isn't actually true, so neither is the second.

Inside the stories, I mostly think about seasons in terms of what will look cool. :)

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#WritersCoffeeClub March 9 Do you prefer to write complex, intricate plots, or more straightforward ones?

So far, I keep it pretty simple. We'll see what mood strikes me in the future.

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#WritersCoffeeClub March 10. How informal is your prose? Is there a limit to informality?

It's about a 7/10 for "informalness." I don't use "you." That's my hard line.

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#WritersCoffeeClub March 11: Does your work reflect your morals?

Absolutely. It's anti-cop, anti-fascist, anti-racist, anti-colonial, and feminist. I have plans for anti-ableist and queer-inclusive stuff in the future. I could not put my name on something that didn't carry my values, and if the text betrays my values, I change it. I refuse to be a so-called leftist who then writes a series of stories about an amoral, right-wing jackbooted cop enforcer. (Not that anyone's banging down my door.)

#WritersCoffeeClub March 12: How do you stress test your work?

I show it to my writer's group. Occasionally, I show it to my friends, but that's been less and less since it's legit hard for them to get emotional distance from it because they *know me too well*.

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#WritersCoffeeClub March 14: Do you think readers want new experiences in structure or narrative, or do they prefer what's familiar?

Yes. It's both. The simplest version is new characters, settings, and plot points within a given formula (eg, spy thriller). Pushed a little further, you can start subverting the formula. A little past that, you can critique the formula. Personally, I think the breaking point is *structure*; if it's not three acts, a lot of people will get lost.

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I should say, if you read a lot, especially across times and cultures--as in, you don't just watch Hollywood productions or read books that are structured that way--then you're less likely to have that ingrained expectation of a three-act structure and less likely to be shocked by something that's not, so as always, "it depends."

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#WritersCoffeeClub March 15: An experience you had sharing your writing with a group.

I have a writing group that meets every fortnight, so I have many experiences. In one of the most recent, someone commented on a short I've been working on for several years as, "Reading like a first draft." Most of my experiences with that group are very positive, so this one stood out. :)

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#WritersCoffeeClub March 16: What's the largest cast you've ever written?

Like eight or nine named characters. I'm still pretty new. :)

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#WritersCoffeeClub March 17: What's an experience or sensation you've struggled to convey to a reader?

I had a very specific image in my head of a man partially trapped inside of a statue beating his face against the stone he's imprisoned with to get his face free but without moving the statue itself.

I think the image can't exist, and yet I can see it. Alas.

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#WritersCoffeeClub March 18: What's a writerly gift you've received?

My wife gives me time to write. :)

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#WritersCoffeeClub March 19. Do you need to finish a work before starting another?

Yes, because if I don't, I won't finish the first one.

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#WritersCoffeeClub March 20: Who is your ideal reader?

A very leftist SFF nerd. Someone who knows the genre and will get it when the Jedi are the bad guys. :)

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#WritersCoffeeClub March 22: How do you organize your notes?

In Scrivener, you can create directories of texts outside the manuscript for setting, characters, worldbuilding, all that kind of thing. It has outlining features, but I haven't typically used those. I might in the future, though. It sounds like it might cause less aggravation than writing a whole damn draft that I just have to rewrite anyway. [sigh]

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