The Story in a an Author's 1st Novel Represents Many stories Never Seen

A conversation about my venture into the world of creative writing and the time being taken can lead to the question, “You mean you are still writing your first book?” The answer is yes and no.

The letter I received from the extensively published author regarding my first manuscript, page and a half of good, nine and a half pages of bad, was like the assessment from the insurance company after the hurricane. It would be easier to rebuild from scratch.

My first manuscript has joined, from what I read, hundreds if not thousands of other first efforts filed away in a drawer, a box, a closet, or the attic. Each time I read about the discovery of a “lost” manuscript, written by a long dead, but still famous author, a question arises. “Wonder if the “lost” manuscript was a first effort filed away, with no thought of it seeing the light of day?”

So, yes, I’m still working on my first book, but not my first manuscript. I am into my second, my third, my…. I’ve quit putting numbers on the manuscript. As my knowledge has grown as to how things should be written, the changes have been so many that it’s not realistic to say it’s still the same manuscript.

That has been one of the big differences discovered between creative writing and historical non-fiction. The type of non-fiction I write is what I call popular history. It’s event driven, connecting the dots (external facts) in some orderly fashion.

I make the distinction to set what I write apart from the historians who write, “The senator always wore a gray suit, white shirt, and red tie.” A simple statement followed by five pages of psychological analysis of the man’s life back to prep school as an explanation as to his choice of attire.

There are no dots of external facts to connect in creative writing. It’s all fiction, or as one writer say, “All facts in creative writing are lies.” Even historical fiction, creative writing built around actual events, places and things string those elements together with “lies.”

Jumping to creative writing has led to understanding a comment made by Dorothy Parker (no relation) who said. “I can't write five words but that I change seven.” That is a succinct summation of the curse of rewriting.

I don’t know the time of day this lady of letters wrote. but my writing, split evenly between early morning and evenings had led me to the conclusion that my brain functions differently during the two periods. I will complete a scene or chapter, and be satisfied with the result before going to bed.

The next morning, a review of the previous evenings work lead to the the urge to change much of what was written. I have learned his urge to constant rewrite is a curse. I’ve asked several published authors, “When do you know when to stop rewriting?”

The answers have been both consistent and consistently depressing. All have said the urge to rewrite continues until the manuscript is beyond the point in the publishing system where further changes are not possible.

One published author told me she finds it impossible to read her previously published works. That leads, she said, to finding so many things she wants to change that it becomes depressing.

Getting the elements in a mystery story aligned in the proper flow and the curse of rewriting only two of the time consumers in the effort to write that first book. And there is more, for next time.

An Attempt at Creative Writing......... Should be Kept a Secret

I blew it. Big time. Naive. Ignorant. Dumb. Over confident. Clueless. All of that, plus any other synonyms you want to throw in. In other words, I had no idea what I was saying when I opened my big mouth some four years ago. Nor did I realize the problem I was creating for myself.

I’ve been hanging around the same town for 45-plus years, and over those years folks in some circles came to know me as a word cobbler. It started when I was a sports writer for the local newspaper, followed by years of writing local history articles and books.

At a point after finishing the last book, a biographical history of seventeen men who formed the first civic club in the city, folks around town started asking, “What are you writing these days?” I said I was trying my hand at creative writing, a mystery story.

“Good,” which was the response at first, has turned into lots of different questions like, “Where’s that book?” or “why is it taking so long?” I know some who read this will be chortling at my predicament, but I’m finding most folks do not understand the process when I say, “It’s takes time.”

The answer is too long and complicated to answer during a chance encounter at a local restaurant, grocery store, or street corner. If the people who ask the questions have Internet access⎯and 99.9 percent say they do⎯I’ve decided to start a new approach to answering the answers that are being asked.

When asked questions about the book, the response will be to give them my card, which includes the web address for my Blog site, with the suggestion they can read my explanations, or excuses on the site at their leisure.

None of the people I’ve talked with have been more shocked than I have been as to the time involved. It been a process of first unlearning a half century of one style of word cobbling and learning a new one.

I find it has a lot in common with an experience I shared with a friend several years ago. He and I were both accomplished amateur carpenters, but got the idea we wanted to learn the craft of masonry.

Walls built from lumber or brick or cement blocks have a few things in common. Both need to be plum, straight, and level. But the commonality stops there. Step one is to forget everything learned about building a wall out of lumber. The techniques and tools used to build a masonry wall are totally different.

Non-fiction and creative writing have a few things common. Both require the proper use of language, spelling, and punctuation. But beyond that, there’s a whole new world of techniques and tools that must be mastered.

I was made painfully aware of the difference when I was lucky enough to have an author with nearly two dozen published novels review my first attempt at writing a mystery story. He sent me an eleven-page, single spaced letter. The first page and a half were complimentary as to what was well written. The next nine and a half pages listed all the things I needed to learn to master the craft of creative writing.

There’s more to the story, but enough for now. There will be another day and more comments on the differences between a wooden wall and a masonry wall.

Mislabled Pixs do not Hurt US President; They Damage the Fabric of U.S. Society

The Old Cobbler may not agree with President Obama on a few things, but he is the President of the United States. Any individual or organization that addresses the actions of the President of the United States has a responsibility to do so in a fair and accurate manner. The following prompted me to yell, "Enough is enough!"

The following photo is currently circulating on the Internet with the slanderous title, “The Crotch Salute."

One story states it was taken at the November 11, 2009, Veterans Day memorial service at Arlington National Cemetery. Another story places the site for the photo at the Fort Hood Memorial Service after the tragedy at the military base in November 2009.

Both stories are incorrect. The photo was taken during the Memorial Day service at Arlington on May 25, 2009. But it is just one of two photos, which does not tell the true story. Look at the following photo, and then read the explanation that came from Michael Robert Patterson, the Webmaster for the privately owned web site Arlington.net, dedicated to those buried at Arlington.

“This photo was taken as the president was entering the ceremony stage at Arlington. Traditionally, the President walks in to the tune of "Hail to the Chief" as military personnel salute their Commander in Chief. The civilian on the stage with his hand over his heart is John Metzler Jr., Arlington's superintendent of 19 years. Bareheaded, Metzler has always made it a tradition to salute the President in this manner at Arlington events.”

President Obama’s alledged “Crotch Salute” was nothing more than the President following normal protocol at the May 25, 2009 memorial service. He stood reverently until the music stopped.

By the way, President Obama and Vice President Biden did attend the November 11, 2009 Veterans Day memorial. Below is a photograph showing the President and Vice President as they salute at the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington.

The occasion was reported by the Associated Press on on November 11, 2009. "Earlier at this national burial ground for war heroes, Obama placed a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns. Wearing a black raincoat, the president placed a flower-laced wreath on a stand and stood over it silently for several moments. He placed his hand on his heart as a bugler played taps."

Thomas Jefferson said in 1787: “Were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers, or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter.”

Jefferson based his statement on a fundamental principle that once existed among newspapers. If one published an untruth, there would be others who would step forth and set the record straight. That seems to be a concept that has fallen by the wayside in the day of the Internet.

"Love, Honor, and Obey"................... Wrong Words for Marriage Vows?

“Love, honor, and obey.” That promise, repeated an average of 12,400 times a day, is not being kept at a rate that is approaching the fifty percent level. A lot of folks are scratching their head, trying to figure out why so many marriages are ending in divorce.

Maybe those three words, “Love, honor, and obey,” are part of the problem. They are outdated in our current society, and do no convey the message needed to clearly establish the ground rules for a successful marriage.

I have no quibble with the word “Love.” While it has multiple definitions and descriptions, a marriage cannot last if two people do not love each other in a mutual manner. It is the cornerstone upon which all else rests.

“Honor” is one of today’s most overused words. No segment of our society is immune from being honored, repeatedly, for something. By the time a man or a woman approaches marriage, the word has been heard so many times, it has lost all significance. It has no meaning.

Why not replace “honor” with “respect.” Respect is one of the meanings of honor, but one reads down to the seventh or eighth definition in an unabridged dictionary to find it.

The word “respect” carries a lot of weight in meaning: "admiration, courteous expression, high regard, courteous conduct, friendship and esteem, and courteous regard for feelings." Is there anyone who would challenge these words as essential ingredients in a successful marriage?

Now the word “obey,” meaning, “submit to the authority of,” “be obedient to,” “do what you have been ordered to do” Somehow, none of these definitions have a place in marriage.

Instead of “obey,” why not “protect.” There are not a whole lot of definitions for this word, and they all present the same message: “keep safe from harm and injury, shield from danger.”

So think about it. Instead of “love, honor, and obey” being the trinity of the marriage vows, why not make it “Love, Respect, and Protect?” Would it make a difference? Would it stop and make people think a bit more before they say them as a lifetime promise to another person?