Guest Post: "Art as Inspiration for Style" by Jay Province

Tiger: Hello, everyone! I'm happy to be introducing this guest post on art/inspiration from Jay Province, author of The Summer Set. Take a look at the book synopsis, then check out his awesome thoughts on Hemingway and on the inspiration provided by art!


"In the summer of 1956 two teenagers rescue a drowning woman from the Susquehanna�s turbulent waters, and their predictable lives suddenly veer towards a deadly detour. Shadowy men in black cars start tracking their every movement. A tall foreboding man clutching a snake-headed staff and chain-smoking through a hole in his throat seeks their names.

Fourteen year-old catcher Peter 'Chumbucket' Miller and his best friend pitcher Mike DeSorcier begin the summer on a mission to capture the World Series championship of their youth baseball league. Spying on a league meeting from a sweltering attic perch they uncover a group of extra-dimensional beings infiltrating the league. During their breathless escape, the boys discover two things: they are in mountains of trouble and they need help. Assistance (and more trouble) arrives in the form of two daring and mystifying girls � the unusual Karen Croft and the beautiful Jo Munro. Together, the teens must solve the mystery of the Noqumiut before a fateful August lunar eclipse.


Bizarre and comical events trail the foursome�s investigation: Santa and his merry elf magically appear in June running for their lives from a town hall fire; a teen girl flies her Cessna from the scene of a refinery explosion; and a dead body is left as a present on a leather couch � carefully wrapped in a mink coat and holding a red gift bow.

Unlikely sources aid their efforts. These include an Eskimo shaman, a magic stone carving of a lively seal, a ferociously loyal dog, and an opponent from Roswell, New Mexico whose talents (and origins) may literally be out of this world.

The Summer Set is a humorous, intense, action-packed story about friends, enemies and the pursuit of winning it all. The novel is for all story lovers ages twelve and up."
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Art as Inspiration for Style

Most readers easily recognize Ernest Hemingway�s famous economy of prose. The influences upon his writing style have been hotly debated over the past sixty years. Hemingway�s stint as a newspaper reporter is often cited as his primary style influence. He acknowledged the reporter�s lessons of using active verbs, short sentences, and precise word selection in his writing. Lesser known is the fact that his studies of turn-of-the-century artists, and their paring brushstrokes, challenged and changed his writing.

In his hungry days, Hemingway would amble through the Luxembourg Museum to study the works of Paul Cezanne. Hemingway was a great admirer of Cezanne, Pablo Picasso, Georges Braque, and Juan Gris. In Gertrude Stein�s salon he absorbed their paintings firsthand. Finishing �Big Two-Hearted River� Hemingway wrote with excitement to Stein: �"I�m trying to do the country like Cezanne and having a hell of a time and sometimes getting it a little bit."

Let�s take a look at a representative Cezanne and a Gris. We�ll contrast their works with a bit of Hemingway�s prose from �Big Two-Hearted River�:

        







Nick looked at the burned-over stretch of hillside, where he had expected to find the scattered houses of the town and then walked down the railroad track to the bridge over the river. The river was there. It swirled against the log spires of the bridge. Nick looked down into the clear, brown water, colored from the pebbly bottom, and watched the trout keeping themselves steady in the current with wavering fins. As he watched them they changed their positions again by quick angles, only to hold steady in the fast water again. Nick watched them a long time.

My interest in this essay is not to convince its reader of anything. I do not argue. I simply ask the reader to look at the painting thumbnails and try to see the lines, perspectives, and colors in the paintings and then find the congruence between the paintings and the prose. I do not suggest that Hemingway was looking at these particular paintings while writing his short-story. Rather, the suggestion is to see the similarities in style: blocks of images set hard against each other, clear statements of color and form, the movement among the static forms. Look for the �changing positions� and the �quick angles� that Nick observes from the bridge. Can you see Hemingway drawing from his studies of Cezanne and Gris in his word sketch of the bridge and trout?

The congruence lies in the fact that all great art speaks to the unconscious in images, just as dreams do. Whether an artist creates using words or pigments or sound vibrations is immaterial to the fact that an artist creates through the use of images. Look at this Winslow Homer trout:

 Close your eyes and visualize the trout. Now go back and reread Hemingway�s trout passage. Close your eyes. Do you see Hemingway�s words in your mind, or do you see the trout darting in the current? The point of the exercise is the recognition that the natural language of humans is imagery. We believe we use words, but we actually communicate in images. This is apparent in miscommunication. People see and feel differently in response to words.

In summation, inspiration for both content and style may be found anywhere in the natural world and in the worlds of art � be they painting, literature, music, fashion, or pop-culture. Andy Warhol found beauty in a soup can. Inspiration for your writing material and style can be found anywhere your mind seizes upon it.

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Tiger: Thanks so much for the great discussion of art-inspiration, Jay! You've made me want to go back and re-read Hemingway, as well as scour the internet for some new artistic inspiration.

Readers, you can find Jay's book, The Summer Set, HERE at Amazon.com.

Guest Post: "Art as Inspiration for Style" by Jay Province Link Free Download

Guest Post: E.A. Rigg, author of "Casey Barnes Eponymous"

Tiger: Morning, everyone! Today, I'm hosting a guest post about sharing your fiction with your students (or not!), courtesy of E.A. Rigg, author of the YA novel, Casey Barnes Eponymous. Here's a book synopsis, followed by the post!

"Three weeks into the school year, music junkie Casey Barnes gets a second chance with the mysterious ex-boyfriend whose name she has not even been able to say. In hopes of saving studentkind from the hell that is high school, Casey has been slipping song playlists to fellow students while working in the library. When she gets another chance with her ex, she schemes to win him back by giving him one of the lists. Her plan works, but not quite in the way she hopes, and she realizes that truly winning him back will be a lot harder than choosing some killer songs. Namely, she will need to get the attention of the whole school in a way no one has ever done before."

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"N-O. No. No no no. You cannot do that."

Thus said teacher friend Nicky when I mentioned I was considering telling students about my book.

"The old librarian," she continued, "Remember him? His daughter wrote a comic book based on MacBeth. He didn't even tell the kids to buy it. He just laid out a few copies in the library and they fined him five hundred bucks."

She went on to talk about two gym teachers who got married a few years back. They called in sick for two days prior to winter break so they could have extra time to honeymoon. Each got fined fifteen thousand dollars.

"Fifteen THOUSAND dollars. You cannot tell your students about your book," she said, "Cannot. Conflict of interest. They'll fine you until the cows come home."

I teach at a public high school in New York City. I released my first novel, a YA book called Casey Barnes Eponymous, last week. I worked on it for years and, since releasing it, have spent every non-working minute promoting it. But I cannot tell my students about it.

It was my husband's idea that I tell them. I wasn't sure it was such a hot one given that the main character is a punk who's obsessed with music, hates school, gives teachers attitude, and fantasizes about pot and sex. I had my doubts about pushing this character on kids whom I chastize for not punctuating sentences correctly. But my husband, a born businessman who sells TV shows for a living, countered that I should be getting their feedback on it. Using the indigenous species of my work world for a little old-fashioned marketing.

That was before we found out about the librarian and gym teachers.

I wonder if they, the Department of Education of New York City that is, and a real 'they' if ever there was one, will fine me if, say, a student of mine comes to find the book on his or her own, buys it, and puts two and two together that I wrote it. E.A. Rigg is not how they know me at work but they know enough. Will that get me in trouble? If so for how much? Who decides how much teachers in the city of New York get fined? There is a massive disparity between $500 and $15,000. Never mind the fact that neither of these offenses was even remotely a big deal and that, after all, these are professionals who have dedicated their careers to educating young people. The real question is, how much will my offense be worth to them?

And if and when it happens, do I get to tell my students about the book?

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Tiger: Thanks for the thoughtful post, E.A.! It's pretty crazy how far authors have to go to stay in the "safe zone" of not talking about their own work that they've worked so hard to craft.


For interested readers, you can find Casey Barnes Eponymous HERE at Smashwords. or check out @CaseyBarnesEpon on Twitter.

Guest Post: E.A. Rigg, author of "Casey Barnes Eponymous" Link Free Download

Guest Post: "Going Forth with Resolution" by Marie Lamba, author of Drawn

Tiger: Good morning, everyone! I'm glad to be a part of author Marie Lamba's blog tour for her latest YA book, Drawn. Here's her awesome guest post on the subject of New Year�s resolutions. :-)

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Going Forth with Resolution
Guest post by Marie Lamba, author of Drawn

 

 

For a lot of us, January means more than just changing the way we date checks. It�s about change, pure and simple. New year, new goals. People quit smoking, hit the gym, start writing that novel they always vowed they�d write. They promise to change the way they view the world, or to take the world by storm in some way.

For me, for many years, my New Year�s resolution was: This year, I�m going to get a book accepted for publication. It was a silly resolution for many reasons. First of all, it was in too many ways out of my control. Sure, I could write the best book possible, and submit it to as many agents or editors as possible, but after that? Completely out of my hands. Second of all, it was a silly resolution because it could be seriously discouraging. How could I set a deadline for something that could take a month or 10 years to accomplish? Yet I made this resolution for myself year after year after year�after year. Until I just stopped making this, or any resolution at all.

Happily, I didn�t stop working on my craft or submitting my work. (Note to the nearly discouraged writers out there�my first novel took 10 years to write and never sold, but my second novel DID sell, and pretty fast�so please take heart and stick to your dreams no matter how long they take.)

Nowadays, I still don�t make resolutions. It�s not because I don�t have goals or things I want changed. I think it has more to do with the fact that I have TOO many goals, and I�m already just too busy trying to make all of them happen. A big goal this year is getting the word out about my newest novel Drawn, which is a paranormal YA about a teen artist who draws and then falls for a medieval ghost with a sketchy past. My other huge goals include teaching others the craft of writing through workshops and classes and conferences, and working extra hard at my newest career: that of an Associate Literary Agent for The Jennifer DeChiara Literary Agency in NYC.

 

 

Plus I�m also trying to be a decent mom to my two daughters, to not neglect my rather nutty poodle Ella, and I�m trying to make SOME decent meals for my family so they won�t fade away while I�m lost hovering over my keyboard. Then there�s the war against the dust bunnies in my house. The bunnies are armed and dangerous, and are currently on the attack�hear that gacking sound in the background? That�s Ella the poodle choking a bit, alas.

Also, there�s that dreaded Y membership. The one my husband uses so much his membership tag has worn thin. The one I use so rarely, that when I do, people there say to me, �Oh, are you coming back to the gym now? Good for you!� The other day my dear husband informed me about a new study which proves that people who sit all day are much more likely to grow fat cells in their butt. When he told me this, I sat in front of my laptop blinking at him, trying not to ponder what, exactly, he was trying to communicate to me�

But ah well, right? No resolutions here. What will be, will be and all that!

EXCEPT, I would like to promise myself that this year I will come up with a brand new novel idea, and that I�ll actually start and finish said brand new novel. I�m tossing around an idea right now�sort of a Bridget Jones-ish type of character but set in Philly. I might call it The Temp�or not. IF I made resolutions, then this would be a good one. That I would squeeze between the dust-bunnies and the growing fat cells (so sorry for the unfortunate visual!) a new novel , and give it the time needed for it to develop and shape (stop thinking about those fat cells), and I�d clean the draft up (begone dreaded dust bunnies), and I�d send it out into the world, come what may.

Also, I would like to promise myself that I�ll actually get up from my laptop more often to step outside into the fresh air as a way of getting inspiration for even more writing.

But I don�t make resolutions. I DO NOT.

So, what sort of resolutions are you NOT making this year?

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Tiger: Thanks for sharing, Marie! I'm currently navigating my way around resolutions/non-resolutions, myself. Readers, you can look below for more info about this wonderful author and her newest book, Drawn!

 

 

Marie Lamba(marielamba.com) is author of acclaimed young adult novels including What I Meant� (Random House), Over My Head, and the new paranormal YA novel Drawn. When she isn�t writing or exercising like a maniac at the gym, she�s working as an Associate Literary Agent at The Jennifer DeChiara Literary Agency in NYC.

 

 

About Drawn:

Teen artist Michelle De Freccio moves to England in search of a normal life...instead she finds a hot medieval ghost with a sketchy past.

It all begins when a strange guy appears in Michelle's drawings. When she actually meets him at the town�s castle, she's unmistakably drawn to him. But something is definitely not right. For starters, he wears medieval garb, talks of ancient murders and tends to disappear each time they kiss.

Could he possibly be a ghost? Could Michelle be losing her mind? Or has she simply uncovered a love so timeless it�s spanned the centuries�

Buy the book at Amazon.com

Praise for Drawn:

�A lushly romantic ghost story�captivating and haunting. I didn�t want it to end.� �Cyn Balog, author of paranormal YA novels Fairy Tale, Sleepless, and Starstruck

"...a wonderfully spooky tale of romance and discovery. It�s a magical exploration of the unconquerable power of love. Highly recommended!� �Jonathan Maberry, New York Times bestselling author of Rot& Ruin and Dust & Decay

�In DRAWN, Marie Lamba deftly entwines romance and mystery, past and present, into a page-turning adventure. Buy it today and I promise you�ll be finished reading far too quickly!� �Joy Nash USA Today bestselling paranormal romance author of The Immortals series, The Grail King and The Unforgiven

Guest Post: "Going Forth with Resolution" by Marie Lamba, author of Drawn Link Free Download

Guest Post on Story Writing by John Michael Cummings

Tiger: Morning, everyone! Today I'm happy to be hosting a guest post on writing from John  Michael Cummings, author of the new book "Ugly to Start With". I hope you like it--it reminded me of the magic of story-writing, apart from just the mechanics of plot and conflict. Here you go...

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I sometimes teach writing workshops to children, and I have to laugh. Who am I to do this?

Yes, I�ve published a lot of short stories, but I think I could live to be 150 and publish 1000 stories and, when asked to run these workshops, still feel like a common parishioner asked to be a biblical scholar.

I mean, doesn�t everyone instinctively know the basics of a story? Haven�t we all seen 1000 movies if not having read one story? Character and conflict equal plot and story, right? Develop it and resolve it. The end. How can one mess that up? If you want to know more, ask Steven Spielberg or Ray Bradbury, not me.

In front of these small groups, I talk about creating scenes that illuminate characters and their conflicts. I state tenet number one: create a sympathetic character, someone we can relate to, and want to follow through the story. Put forth: what�s the character�s problem? How does he or she solve it. Above all, make us care.

I have them take out paper and start writing on the spot.

"Get your story going with an event," I say. "Hit the ground running."

Start the adventure from sentence one. Remember, work on cause and effect. Each decision and action by your hero leads to the next. Each is a link in a chain, and the chain is your plot.

A few minutes in, I have them stop and read their passages aloud. Invariably I ask: Who are the villains trying to stop your hero? Who�s the Darth Vader in the story? Does your hero have an ally, as Batman has Robin? Is there a mentor, like Obi-Wan Kenobi in Star Wars?

They continue scribbling.

"Keep your hero in the driver�s seat. But don�t be nice to him."

Stack obstacles in your hero�s face. Stakes are higher, rewards greater.

My advice is endless. Show, don�t tell. Make dialogue advance the story. Don�t forget, my twinkle-eyed youngsters, revise, revise, and revise.

Then I come to stop inside. I say to myself�wait a minute, are we building a radio or writing a story? Is this a popsicle and paper mache project or writing? Prose? Composition? Information?

I look around the room at the boys and girls. Her skin is brown. His white. She could be of Korean descent. He is black. She looks "Jewish." He is a little Arab boy.

"The best stories," I say, surprising them, "bring cultures together. Inform us of people we don�t know about."

They look at me.

"Stories are another world to enter. A way to share and let others step out of their lives."

Now I have their quizzical stares.

"Remember, your stories help us understand the �other,� the one who seems different from us, but we find out really isn�t. He or she really has the same issues�wanting to fit in, wanting to be happy. Those things."

They go on scribbling. I go on from there.
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Tiger: Thanks for the great thoughts on writing! I think I'm going to co-opt a few of these discussion points to share with own middle-grade writing students. :-) 

Readers, here's some information about the author, as well as a rundown of his latest book, "Ugly to Start With"!

About the Author

John Michael Cummings' short stories have appeared in more than seventy-five literary journals, including North American Review, The Kenyon Review, Alaska Quarterly Review, and The Chattahoochee Review. Twice he has been nominated for The Pushcart Prize. His short story "The Scratchboard Project" received an honorable mention in The Best American Short Stories 2007. He is also the author of the nationally acclaimed coming-of-age novel "The Night I Freed John Brown" (Philomel Books, Penguin Group, 2009), winner of The Paterson Prize for Books for Young Readers (Grades 7-12) and one of ten books recommended by USA TODAY.

For more information, please visit:

http://wvupressonline.com/cummings_ugly_to_start_with_9781935978084


http://www.johnmichaelcummings.com/


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Michael_Cummings

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Ugly to Start With

Jason Stevens is growing up in picturesque, historic Harpers Ferry, West Virginia in the 1970s. Back when the roads are smaller, the cars slower, the people more colorful, and Washington, D.C. is way across the mountains�a winding sixty-five miles away.

Jason dreams of going to art school in the city, but he must first survive his teenage years. He witnesses a street artist from Italy charm his mother from the backseat of the family car. He stands up to an abusive husband�and then feels sorry for the jerk. He puts up with his father�s hard-skulled backwoods ways, his grandfather�s showy younger wife, and the fist-throwing schoolmates and eccentric mountain characters that make up Harpers

Ugly to Start With punctuates the exuberant highs, bewildering midpoints, and painful lows of growing up, and affirms that adolescent dreams and desires are often fulfilled in surprising ways.

John Michael Cummings is a short story writer and novelist from Harpers Ferry, West Virginia. He is the award-winning author of The Night I Freed John Brown.

Guest Post on Story Writing by John Michael Cummings Link Free Download