tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-422555164465305734.post6306378097318602398..comments2024-03-11T16:14:49.158-07:00Comments on Don't pet me, I'm writing: The wine between my legsTAWNA FENSKEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11468819219529035563noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-422555164465305734.post-4749019970859661862011-04-08T07:40:09.064-07:002011-04-08T07:40:09.064-07:00I pretty much feel like rules are written for othe...I pretty much feel like rules are written for other people, so yeah. You're better than me. If I have a "good reason" (according to me, of course) for breaking a rule I will do it and (maybe) think about the consequences later. <br /><br />Which is perhaps why I don't think I could be a successful romance writer. And also because I like people to die tragic deaths in my books.Trisha Leighhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00356610648183348015noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-422555164465305734.post-19058842046731292292011-04-08T02:10:10.740-07:002011-04-08T02:10:10.740-07:00I am, sadly, pretty much a goody two-shoes, drivin...I am, sadly, pretty much a goody two-shoes, driving the speedlimit,etc. So no good stories about transvestite hookers or similar.<br /><br />Can give you a tip from a friend of ours who owns a wine shop selling good-to-excellent quality French wines (which, over, are not all that expensive). Of course, whites and rosés generally don't need to breathe. Reds are better if they do. Our friend says, just opening the bottle is sufficient to serve the purpose. If you want, have a small nip, lets a bit more air in. Can let the bottle stand for an hour or two, but then you can recork and take it along. Voilá, no more worries about spending the evening in jail instead of partying...<br /><br />He does not decant his reds. Nor do we. But we always open the bottle an hour or two ahead of time.<br /><br />FWIW. Of course, I should tell you that we do look across the Rhine Valley onto the vineyard where we buy our white wines. The light dry wines from the Rhine sparkle on your tongue and cost almost nothing. You guys in the States get the icky sweet white German wines that we won't drink over here. Hahaha. Come visit, we'll show you.German Chocolate Bettynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-422555164465305734.post-91202411713224833752011-04-07T21:52:35.468-07:002011-04-07T21:52:35.468-07:00White wine in a box. Problem solved. Including the...White wine in a box. Problem solved. Including the cop one--no one wants to know what's in the clear plastic bag sitting near your bladder. Transvestite hookers are partial to wine of the boxed variety too... or so I hear. And who really cares what your friends think? If they love you, they won't judge.Trinahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16362212786375884146noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-422555164465305734.post-6476905298855496302011-04-07T14:16:56.920-07:002011-04-07T14:16:56.920-07:00When I'm done laughing about how one explains ...When I'm done laughing about how one explains red wine in a decanter and a transvestite hooker in the backseat to the cops I'll get back to you about writing rules!Heather M. Gardnerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07232419331422866247noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-422555164465305734.post-4987241410714771662011-04-07T12:14:31.554-07:002011-04-07T12:14:31.554-07:00I think you can break any rule you like, as long a...I think you can break any rule you like, as long as you're good enough to get away with it. That goes for both life and writing. ;)<br /><br />Now I think I have to go look at naked football player butts at Geoffrey's blog. Who can resist a tease like that?Linda G.https://www.blogger.com/profile/04576828490765434497noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-422555164465305734.post-53659231909001106812011-04-07T09:11:14.738-07:002011-04-07T09:11:14.738-07:00"Show don't tell." It's like th..."Show don't tell." It's like the open container law. Noble in intention, but occasionally someone very <i>classy</i> needs that direct, intrusive narrative voice to move a scene without getting overwrought.<br /><br />If I ever find that someone I'll let you know. My blog's mostly been naked football player butts lately.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-422555164465305734.post-47444889134225731912011-04-07T09:11:05.183-07:002011-04-07T09:11:05.183-07:00Sigh. As an editor and a teacher, I spend a lot o...Sigh. As an editor and a teacher, I spend a lot of time thinking about this question. The thing is, in order to be GREAT, you have to break a few rules. For instance, the one that says you don't write a 1,000 page-per-book 7-book epic for children (Harry Potter) or the one that says your character can't have two great loves in one romance (The Outlander series).<br /><br />BUT the fastest way to write a train wreck of a book is to break rules willy nilly.<br /><br />I say: Know the rules before you break them. Then break just one biggy. It's like dressing for a job interview: Do just ONE unusual wardrobe thing, and do everything else "right."<br /><br />And speaking of rule breaking, I like to give advice on other people's blogs when they haven't asked for it. <br /><br />Eek!Alexa Ohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09980266579954005906noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-422555164465305734.post-34887848434666163762011-04-07T09:09:20.734-07:002011-04-07T09:09:20.734-07:00Hadn't thought about it until you brought it u...Hadn't thought about it until you brought it up, but I guess I did break a writing rule.<br /><br />In my latest Regency, the hero shags a bee-yotch to get her father to commit to a business deal but never lays a finger (only his lips) on the heroine. <br /><br />Wonder if that will be a deal breaker.Anne Gallagherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05816355522284492131noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-422555164465305734.post-70206603993374845122011-04-07T08:55:43.225-07:002011-04-07T08:55:43.225-07:00Turns out I've been breaking the Write What Yo...Turns out I've been breaking the Write What You Know rule in a couple of crucial scenes . . . luckily, I have wonderfully smart readers who are inexplicably willing to save me from embarrassment!Sarah Whttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13265589529909793312noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-422555164465305734.post-81775839210991776532011-04-07T08:17:11.587-07:002011-04-07T08:17:11.587-07:00Personally I'll take a pass on the MD 20/20, t...Personally I'll take a pass on the MD 20/20, there are just too many bad memories associated with that, though none of them say transvestite hooker. I have relaxed in my old age and now I opt for the fruity goodness of a cold bottle of Boones Farm, no decanting required.Shain Brownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01908810007467259885noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-422555164465305734.post-12389583860474119382011-04-07T07:38:44.034-07:002011-04-07T07:38:44.034-07:00Personally, I drink Franzia or Gallo out of a pint...Personally, I drink Franzia or Gallo out of a pint glass, with ice.Matthew MacNishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03264738483763244969noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-422555164465305734.post-3921758092191079092011-04-07T07:20:29.871-07:002011-04-07T07:20:29.871-07:00I'm an elitist brat.
I gleefully break rules ...I'm an elitist brat.<br /><br />I gleefully break rules left and right and centre. Biggest one I've broken with this novel is the POV-switching rule.<br /><br />For example: my main character is a cocaine addict who got on a Tube train to go home and wound up getting off at a stop in a fairy tale. She's a wee bit cranky about this fact.<br /><br />So she indulges in her secret stash that she has about her person, to the point where she has a little freakout, and the POV swings wildly all over the page.<br /><br />It was an exhilarating, terrifying chapter to write. I found it horribly difficult to pull a string between the POV of someone who's really on a drug binge and the (presumably sober) reader without veering into Bret Easton Ellis or Trainspotting.<br /><br />But oh my, it was so worth it!<br /><br />I actually wrote a blog post about this exact chapter, which with your indulgence I'll link here:<br /><br />http://maybeandthewolf.wordpress.com/2011/03/08/music-and-writing/Alicehttp://maybeandthewolf.wordpress.com/noreply@blogger.com