Here's my last Edmonton Journal article. I had a blast writing the humour pieces. I had you had fun reading them.
December 2008 Archives
At 10:12 pm, Monday, December 22, Marty Chan, after several months of labour, gave birth to the second draft of his new novel, A Close Shave. The new draft is 111 pages long and about 7 ounces. Now Marty will judge, criticize and tear it apart until it is as neurotic as he is.
Only two more novels in the series to go. Originally, my plan was to write three short novels for reluctant readers, but somehow the first book ballooned into something a bit longer. The next two books are going to be a lot easier now that I have the foundation.
And now, I can really celebrate the holidays. I'm out for the next week.
Still plugging away at A Close Shave. I should have the revisions finished by Tuesday. But I'm going to stop blogging for the holidays. I wish everyone a wonderful holiday season.
Still plunking away at the revisions to the first book. Despite my funk and all the bad news this week, I've been chopping away at the revisions. I've been able to track about 5 to 10 pages per day, and I'm at page 65 of a 100 page manuscript. If I keep on pace, I should have a pretty solid revised draft for Christmas. Then I'll take a few days off and get going on the second novel. I'm starting to really enjoy the characters and the world. It's a nice escape from the reality of my real-life situation. Writing as therapy... who would have thought?
I'm trying to stay upbeat as I close out 2008, but it's hard when bad news dumps on my life like a winter storm. I just found out that the producer in B.C. won't be doing the show for the Winter Olympics. Thanks to the economic downturn, sponsors have severly curtailed their support of both the arts and the Olympic cultural component. As it stands now, the company is just trying to find enough money to keep their season alive. The thought of a spectacle show of Forbidden Phoenix scale is out of the question.
If I were a person who looked for signs and omens, I'd say this latest development is a cosmic nudge to tell me to give up on theatre. I'm thinking that might not be a bad idea right about now. I'm sure I'll feel less pessimistic in a few weeks, but right now I'm fed up and tired and cranky and just ready to throw in the towel. I think I'm going to use the holidays to do some serious re-examination of my career goals.
I'm feeling a bit blue this morning. I think my dad's illness is taking more of a toll on me than I want to admit. I'm staring at my computer screen trying to find the motivation to work, but I just can't. And just when I thought all was lost, guess who jumped into my lap. Max! He hasn't done this in months. Maybe he knew I needed a little bit of comfort. I know it's wrong to humanize a cat, but it's hard not to when a kittie is purring in my lap when I most need some support.
Found traction on A Close Shave. Yesterday, I was able to connect the new section with the old section of the manuscript. Now all I have to do is revise and polish the rest of the manuscript. Phew! I think there may be some major alterations in the climax as I try to set up for two sequels, but I think I have an idea of how to do it. I'm relieved to have cracked the nut on this one, because this book sets the ground for the series. Still don't have a publisher interested, but at least I have something I'm proud of.
Also, good news came in the mail. Playwrights Canada Press is publishing Maggie's Last Dance in an anthology. I have to make a few revisions before January 19, and then I'll have another published play.
Finally, good progress on True Story. I spoke with the representative at Friesens about the cost of printing the book, and we're just sorting out final details.
As for Dad, the cardiologist is setting up an appointment for my dad to see a Cantonese-speaking heart specialist so that he can go over treatment options. We won't know anything until January. While I'm not thrilled about the wait, I figure that must mean that his condition isn't life-threatening. Hopefully, Dad takes the doctor's advice and stops smoking immediately.
Watching my father go through his health problems has been a real eye opener. In the arrogance of my youth, I took my freedom for granted. I was free to live my life exactly as I choose. I could drink and eat what I wanted. I could take physical risks or I could lounge on the sofa for hours (I chose to be a couch potato). And all the while, there were no real consequences to my actions.
Now I see the consequences through my father's eyes. The doctor has told him to stop smoking and reduce his sodium intake. The two things he loves more than anything else in the world are his cigarettes and his salt. Now, that has been taken away from him. If he chooses to continue smoking and eating unhealthy food, he'll accelerate his heart condition. Maybe all this is too raw and recent for me, but it seems like as you get older, things just get taken away from you.
The parallel in my own life is the loss of my Edmonton Journal articles. The rise of the internet and the fall of newspaper subscribers means less work for freelancers. I'm starting to feel less relevant as I rely on the will and budget of others to determine my fate.
Maybe that's why I've opted to self-publish the picture book. The book may flop, but at least I'll be able to know that it failed or succeeded solely on my own efforts. Maybe that's why I'm starting to think that I have to embrace the life I have now... before the joys are taken away.
What a depressing blog to start off the week. I promise to be more upbeat as the week goes on. Great stuff to look forward to. The picture book is coming together. The Bone House is coming together. A Close Shave is well under way. Plus (big plus), I have a new idea for a y/a book. I have to do some research, but it will be a departure from my other work. I'll share more details as I get more confidence in the idea.
I'm one step closer to bringing the thriller Fringe hit back to Edmonton in 2009. I just met with the programming director at Fringe Theatre Adventures, and he really wants to bring the show to Edmonton to open their next year's season. We're looking at something around Halloween. More details as they come together, but I'm really hoping to put a scare in Edmonton audiences again.
Christmas is early this year. I'm meeting with the picture book illustrator (Lorna) this afternoon to see her colour proofs. The last stage were her black and white sketches and they looked awesome. I can only imagine what the colour versions will look like. We still get to tinker a bit here and there, but the book is moving along very well. I will try to scan the sketches to show the book's progress. Instead of posting them here (I'm thinking of redesigning the website), I will post any info and images on the Facebook Fan Page for True Story. If you want to find out more about the book and get a notice for the launch, please add this page to your profile. Here's the link.
What I lose in motivation for exercising I gain in momentum for writing. Looks like I have a bit of imbalance between personal stuff and career stuff. I'm happy to have the inspiration to work through A Close Shave, but boy is my butt going to be huge. I'll gladly add a couple of pounds if it means I get a few extra pages done. Looks like I'm on a roll... finally.
Just finished my last round of school visits yesterday. Yay! It's been a busy year for school visits, and while I've had a great time talking to students about writing, I am a little sick of hearing the sound of my own voice. It'll be nice to have a break from the visits. I might even use the time off to build new stories to tell. Maybe I'll start paying more attention to my cats and see what trouble they can create. It'd be nice to come up with a few new Buddy and Max stories to go with the picture book coming out in February.
Well, Canada's government is on hold, while the Conversatives try to right the ship with a not so leaky budget, and the NDP, Liberal, Bloc coalition try to chart a course through untested waters. I'm not sure where we'll end up come the end of January, but I do know that a lot of cannons will be fired and the next month will be less about dealing with Canada's economy and more about fishing for public support. The arrogance and ambition of politicians never ceases to surprise me. As leaders of our society, I think almost every politician has failed to lead by example.
The fear mongering that has gone on from both sides is appalling. I don't appreciate the kind of rhetoric that promotes hatred of a specific group, and I'm especially worried about how a government can function when the parties are so divisive right now. I think all the parties should take a good look at the lowest voter turnout in Canadian history and stop blaming the voters and start looking at themselves to figure out why the people have lost confidence not just in one party, but all the parties.
To the politicans, dial down the volume of your petty asides so you can hear what the voters are saying. It's time to deal with the economy, and not your political careers.
Just when I started to find some momentum on the book, things are about to come to a screeching halt again. My dad is going through some health problems. It's his heart. He's going to see a cardiologist for treatment options. I know medical technology has advanced enough that he has a fighting chance to deal with this problem, but the news is still hard to digest. I'm finding myself less focussed today than I've ever been. Weird how parents (whether you get along with them or not) tend to be anchors in our lives. Right now, I feel like I'm drifting. I barely remember what I said today at a school visit. Hopefully, I didn't suck.
Anyway, I'm going to bash away at A Close Shave for a couple of pages. Maybe sliding into the world of Barnabas Bigfoot will take my mind off the reality of the situation.
I have to say that this year has not been a good one all around. Lots of setbacks in my career and personal life. I'll be philosophical about it all in a little while, but today I just want to say that 2008 sucked.
Nothing like a constitutional crisis to get my blood boiling and the creative juices flowing. I'm almost thinking of writing a political satire for theatre... almost... I still have to finish A Close Shave. Today, I was able to make a few more strides. A page or two. Not much, but hey, at least I'm moving forward instead of backward.
The sisters in the book are coming to life for me, and I'm starting to have the same kind of fun I did when I wrote The Mystery of the Graffiti Ghoul. That's a great sign. Now I just have to shake off the rust and get my writing output up to speed.
Very interesting day today. I did a presentation at the Young Offenders centre. At first, I thought wow are these kids enthusiastic and well behaved. For just a second I thought their reactions had to do with my brilliant presentation... and then I found out that the students get points for how well they participate in sessions. The more points they get, the more time they get to spend outside of their cells. The visit certainly opened my eyes to a different world. The wheels were already spinning for a new story... another good sign. I'm getting creative again. Yay!
Yesterday was a hard slog, but I cycled through the first chapter of the book again. This time, however, I found better traction and I feel like I can head into the second chapter with some momentum. And the big reason why I know I'm back is because now instead of just wanting to sleep and veg out, I want to procrastinate by reading all I can about the latest NDP/Liberal/Bloc coalition. Whenever I get obsessed by something in the news, it means I'm back in a writing frame of mind, and all I'm doing is playing my usual procrastination tricks. Let's see how far I get today. Phew! I'm relieved to be mildly interested in writing again... maybe in a month I'll be excited again. Small steps.
I'm sort of rested from the weekend. I made the mistake of going to see Quarantine at the cheap theatres. The Blair Witch style of shooting was way too hard for me to handle. Halfway through the movie I tried to listen to the movie, because if I looked at the jumpy images one more time I was going to puke. I liked the concept of the movie, but I couldn't handle the shaky cam. I also can't handle first-person perspective video games.
Today, I'm forcing myself to cycle through A Close Shave. No more excuses. I have to finish the revisions to the first draft by the end of the week. Here we go.
