Watch and Learn

There is only one trait that marks the writer. He is always watching. It's a kind of trick of the mind and he is born with it. - Morley Callaghan

Yes, I’m always watching…

I also take notes – copious notes. I may not ever use them, but by God, I take them!

I observe my fellow human beings under a variety of circumstances. I listen (without guilt) to conversations happening around me, because WHO KNOWS when I’m going to hear some lovely little nugget that I can use in a story. I’m not trying to eavesdrop; really, I just let conversations flow through my brain until I hear something worth listening to.

In various meetings and other locations, I watch the way people stand, the way they talk, the gestures they use and the way they shield themselves with their clothing or accessories. People who fiddle with their glasses, women who touch their hair or their blouses, men who adjust the knot in their tie, touch their belt buckles (in an attempt to make sure their fly is zipped, no doubt).

The way people act in big crowds and in small groups. I watch and learn.

I may have a character who has to speak in front of a large group. Will she pat her hair before stepping onto the stage, or will she check to make sure her blouse is buttoned and her skirt is straight? Will she clear her throat, touch her earrings to make sure they’re both still there, button and unbutton her jacket? What will she do?

Then I wonder, do other people do this?

I’ve always been a “people watcher.” Even as a young person, I enjoyed “watching” people in various situations. I used to travel to visit my grandparents from wherever my family lived at the time and one of the joys in that was sitting by myself in an airport waiting for my flight to be called and “watching” life happen around me.

You can tell the true “watchers” from those who are just bored. The true “watchers” aren’t worried about being caught watching – they look about with glee, sometimes taking notes, even if they are just mental notes. The bored ones usually also quickly get bored with “watching” and move on to some other activity.

True “watchers” can observe for hours. They always find someone interesting to watch. Possibly the mother and child playing a game in the corner. The business man watching them over his laptop as he writes a note to his own children. The single man kicked back watching all the women walk by. The single woman watching him and occasionally wanting to smack him for his perusal of other women. The young couple leaning toward one another, talking softly and holding hands. The older couple, sharing a muffin from the coffee shop. Life is happening all around us and sometimes all it takes to be a part of it is to watch.

Watch & learn.

Happy writing.

Cai

The Muddle...

“Many modern novels have a beginning, a muddle and an end.” - Philip Larkin

And, wouldn’t you know, that’s just where I tend to get bogged down – in that muddle. I can start off with a bang and I know just how I want things to end up – it’s all that “stuff” betwixt & between that slows me down, makes me doubt my abilities as a writer and causes me to gnash my teeth and pound my head against the desk in frustration.

I love creating characters. I can do it all day long. I can give them emotional depth, emotional baggage, backgrounds, families, and all the joys that come along with each of those particular fields. I can picture the perfect counterpart for that character, giving them the same life, breadth, etc., as the first character. I can picture interactions between them and know whether they’re going to “strike sparks” or “fizzle.”

I can take those characters and put them in a story. But then I seem to lose control of them. They go off and do their own thing, leaving me sitting at the computer saying, “But wait, that’s NOT where I wanted this story to go.”

They don’t seem to care, they just go along their merry way, taking the wrong exit off the freeway I’ve planned for them and ending up in a “muddle” somewhere neither of us expected! Granted it’s usually somewhere “interesting” and occasionally gives the story new depth – though sometimes it’s just somewhere “weird” and I have to gently or forcibly steer them back to the path originally planned for them. (Wow, that’s almost like raising a teen! )

It is entirely possible that THIS is why I get into a “muddle.” It’s not the story that’s the problem; it’s the willful characters themselves causing grief! So will I stop? I think not. Eventually we work our way through the muddle and make our way to the end. After all, what would the story be without the happy ending?

Happy Writing.

Cai

On Reading & Writing

Since this is the Cai Stephan blog, I figured I should at least make an appearance. I'm the Cai half...

Reading usually precedes writing and the impulse to write is almost always fired by reading. Reading, the love of reading, is what makes you dream of becoming a writer. - Susan Sontag

I would agree 100% with the above statement. It is my love of reading that has led me to pursue writing as a career choice. I have always loved to read – even before I could, if that makes any sense.

My parents would take turns reading to me when I was a child – my favorite book, was Little Brown Monkey. My father would try to skip pages or leave out whole sentences and even as a child of three (or maybe four) I would call him on it. Little Brown Monkey and his friends got into some very interesting situations – they went to the circus, LBM’s grandmother came for a visit, they went on a picnic and climbed trees – okay, LBM climbed the tree, his friends Turtle and Elephant merely watched. The point is that though more than 40 years has passed since I first heard the story of Little Brown Monkey, I remember those tales. I remember the pictures and could probably vividly describe them to you. I remember most of all, the joy of the written word and how it made me feel to have it read to me.

Imagine my unique happiness when as an adult I came across a copy of Little Brown Monkey in a bookstore that caters to “difficult to find” and “out of print” books. The price tag on the book dissuaded me from purchasing it, (way out of reach of my budget at the time) but I was nearly brought to tears just by holding it again.

Imagine more happiness when my parents made the trek to that same bookstore (the very same weekend, no less, and without my knowledge) and purchased that book as a gift for me and my daughter – oh, they SAID it was for my daughter, but I’m sure it was really for me. You see, that’s one gift I received from my parents that will never go out of style or grow old – the love of reading and the joy to be found in a good (or even just a familiar) book.

It’s a gift I hope I’ve also given to my daughter – the love of a good book.

Happy (writing) reading.

Cai