Words, bloody words
Welcome to One bloody word at a time
Writing requires a certain amount of suffering for the pleasure it gives back. Nothing you do will ever change that.
— Terry Brooks
Welcome to One bloody word at a time. This is inevitably how every one of my stories comes to be. Writing a story has never been easy for me. Especially the longer ones. There are many days of struggle, of doubt, of finally getting something out as midnight approaches only to delete every word upon reading it the next morning. There are also a few glorious days where the words just work, but for the most part it takes effort to make a story. Even when I know the scene, because knowing and making aren’t the same thing. Getting a story out relies on my stubbornness as much as my curiosity and ability to cobble words together into coherent sentences.
Getting the idea for a new story is like being flooded with something that can only be illegal. It’s all excitement and energy and buzz. Then I start thinking about it and doing research, which, apart from holding the book for the first time, is my favourite part. I get to talk to people who actually do the work of catching killers and see places that are typically closed to the public, like the dissection hall in the mortuary or where ballistic tests are conducted. And sometimes I get to experience the exciting consequences of an idea that seems good at the time but ends with a respiratory system that feels like it has been set on fire, because pepper spray does in fact work exactly as advertised.
But then the real work starts, turning all of that into a story with living characters. For me, that’s a slow, squirming and not at all cost-effective process. At times I don’t enjoy writing at all, so why do I do it? Because I always enjoy having written. There’s something about pouring all that time and effort into the creation of something that is ultimately unique to me. To finally hold that book in my hands and know that I made this. The glee of spying it on the shelf in a bookstore never ever gets old. And then there’s the warm feeling of receiving a message from a reader who got some enjoyment from my story. And so I continue to push on, one bloody word at a time. Somewhere along the way the magic works and that idea becomes a story. (Also, since I don’t plot beforehand, it is pretty cool to watch how it all unfolds, even if it does happen in slow-motion.)
One bloody word at a time
So what is One bloody word at a time? It’s about the toil and magic of writing the story, the part that is pretty much all on me. And it’s about the alchemy of transforming that story into an actual published book, the part that is a collaboration with many people in the publishing business.
Why am I writing it? When my dream first began forming as a teen writing my first wonky stories, I absolutely loved Stephen King’s short story collections. Obviously because of the stories, but also because he included a foreword and some behind-the-scenes insight into the creation of some of the tales. I read these paragraphs over and over, further feeding my dream. Later I would devour On Writing (naturally), and even after I finally became a publishing writer myself, I adored Sometimes the Magic Works by Terry Brooks.
I always assumed it was a writer thing—I wanted to be a writer, so obviously I would enjoy reading about other writers writing about writing. But as I’ve had interactions with readers over the years, whether in person at book launches or book clubs or via email or social media, I’ve discovered that many people who love stories are interested in how they come to be.
With my collection of short stories, Skimme en Spoorsoekers (directly translated, that’s “Phantoms and Track Seekers”, which definitely won’t be the title if it’s ever published in English), I copied Stephen King and included some ruminations on the stories. Many readers—and reviewers—mentioned these notes with appreciation.
So I’ve decided to write about it as I go through the process of creating my next book, all the way from an idea to a actual book in the store. For the most part you’ll be stuck with me as main character in this story—there’s no real way around that—but at certain points other cool characters will pop in and out to play their part. Even though I’ll be writing the manuscript in my mother tongue Afrikaans1, I’ll be writing here in English as well.
Thank you for joining me on this adventure. In my next post we’ll start where stories start: the idea.
Until then,
Martin.
—
1 I do translate my books, but we’re a bit behind in terms of publication.
References
Brooks, T. (2003). Sometimes the magic works: Lessons from a writing life. Earthlight.
King, S. (2000). On writing: A memoir of the craft. New English Library.
[AFRIKAANS]
Welkom by One bloody word at a time. Dit is uiteindelik hoe elkeen van my stories geskryf word. Dit was nog nooit vir my maklik om ’n storie te skryf nie. Veral dié wat langer is. Daar is baie dae waar ek sukkel, waar ek twyfel, waar ek uiteindelik iets uitkry terwyl middernag oor my skouer loer net om dit die volgende oggend deur te lees en elke woord uit te vee. Daar is ook ’n paar salige dae wanneer die woorde net kom, maar oor die algemeen verg dit werk om ’n storie te maak. Selfs wanneer ek weet wat in die toneel moet gebeur, want om te weet en te maak is nie dieselfde ding nie. Om ’n storie uit te kry, is net so afhanklik van my hardkoppigheid as my nuuskierigheid en vermoë om woorde in verstaanbare sinne saam te flans.
Die idee vir ’n nuwe storie is soos om iets in te kry wat net onwettig kan wees. Dis opgewondenheid en energie en ’n brein wat gons. Dan begin ek daaroor dink en navorsing doen, wat met die uitsondering daarvan om die boek die eerste keer vas te hou, my gunstelingdeel is. Ek het die voorreg om met mense te praat wat regtig die werk doen om moordenaars te vang en om plekke te sien wat nie gewoonlik toeganklik vir die publiek is nie, soos die disseksiesaal in die lykshuis of waar die ballistiese toetse op verdagte vuurwapens gedoen word. En soms ervaar ek die opwindende gevolge van ’n idee wat goed in my kop geklink het maar eindig met oë, mond en neus wat voel asof dit aan die brand gesteek is, want pepersproei is een van die rare produkte wat presies werk soos wat die advertensies sê.
Maar dan begin die regte werk, om dit alles in ’n storie met lewende karakters om te bou. Vir my is dit ’n langsame proses wat aan geen definisie van koste-effektiwiteit voldoen nie. Daar is tye wat ek dit glad nie geniet om te skryf nie, so hoekom doen ek dit? Want ek kry altyd plesier daaruit om te geskryf het. Daar is iets geweldig bevredigend daaraan om al daardie tyd en moeite in te span om iets te skep wat uniek is. Om uiteindelik daardie boek in my hande te hou en te dink: Ek het dit gemaak. Die geheime vreugde daarvan om dit op ’n rak in ’n boekwinkel te sien, raak nooit oud nie. En dan is daar die warm gevoel ná ’n boodskap van ’n leser wat plesier uit my storie gekry het. Dis hoekom ek aanhou, een bleddie woord op ’n slag, al is dit soms soos om bloed uit ’n klip te probeer tap. Iewers werk die magic en die idee word ’n storie. (Ook, aangesien ek nie vooraf die storielyn uitwerk nie, is dit lekker om te sien hoe dinge ontvou, selfs al gebeur dit teen ’n slakkepas.)
One bloody word at a time
So, wat is One bloody word at a time? Dit gaan oor die werk en wonder daarvan om ’n storie te skryf, die deel wat grootliks my werk is. En dit gaan oor die metamorfose van daardie storie in ’n gepubliseerde boek, die deel wat in samewerking met verskeie mense in die uitgewersbedryf gebeur.
Hoekom het ek besluit om dit te skryf? Toe my skryfdroom destyds begin vorm aanneem en ek my eerste wankelrige stories geskryf het, was ek versot op Stephen King se kortverhaalbundels. Natuurlik oor die stories, maar ook omdat hy ’n voorwoord en ’n bietjie agter-die-skerms-insig oor die stories se ontstaan ingesluit het. Ek het hierdie paragrawe oor en oor gelees, en my droom verder gestook. Later het ek On Writing verslind (natuurlik), en selfs nadat ek uiteindelik self ’n publiserende skrywer geword het, het ek Sometimes the Magic Works deur Terry Brooks geweldig geniet.
Ek het altyd gedink dis ’n skrywersding—ek wou ’n skrywer wees, natuurlik sal ek graag lees hoe regte skrywers oor skryf skryf. Maar soos wat ek die afgelope klompie jare met lesers te doen gekry het, in persoon by bekendstellings of boekklubs, of in e-posse of op sosiale media, het ek besef baie mense wat lief is vir stories stel ook belang in hoe dit ontstaan.
In my kortverhaalbundel, Skimme en Spoorsoekers, het ek Stephen King nageboots en ook opmerkings oor die stories ingesluit. Baie lesers—en resensente—het met waardering na hierdie notas verwys.
Dus het ek besluit om oor die proses te skryf soos wat ek my volgende boek bou, al die pad van die idee tot die boek in die winkel. Jy sal grootliks met my opgeskeep wees as hoofkarakter in hierdie storie—dis nou maar hoe dit is—maar met tye sal daar ander interessante karakters opdaag om hulle rol te speel.
Dankie dat jy saam met my op hierdie avontuur gaan. In my volgende artikel begin ons waar stories begin: die idee.
Tot dan,
Martin.
Verwysings
Brooks, T. (2003). Sometimes the magic works: Lessons from a writing life. Earthlight.
King, S. (2000). On writing: A memoir of the craft. New English Library.