Point Counterpoint offers literary discussions on various topics. This one discusses authors comments on writing.
Point Counterpoint offers literary discussions on various topics. This one discusses authors comments on writing. Authors Comments
POINT
by: S.L.Kotar and J.E.Gessler
Some thoughts on the series and writing in general
Why does an author decide to write a book? There are many answers, each specific to individual writers. Speaking for myself, the answer is always the same: somewhere in the forefront of my mind I start hearing voices. Soon, a scene begins to develop and before I know it, I can’t ignore (with respect to Jack London, one of my favorite writers) The Call of the Characters. I sit down and start to type.
Typically, I have scant idea where these, as yet unknown people, are going to take me. I have no plot in mind. But they do. It’s their story I’m telling. I listen and they dictate. An opening paragraph, a page of text and then a chapter and we’re on our way.
The most important thing in the early stages of writing are the names. Rarely, they come to me out of the blue; more often, I have to struggle to find the exact right names. For me, giving a character the right name is the most important piece of writing a book. If the name is wrong, nothing clicks. Like people, the characters are influenced by what they’re called – and worse, how I perceive the name. Going over what I know of the character (and early on that’s not much), I review names I personally like for the protagonist. The accepted format is odd first name, simple surname. That makes the character stand out, while being easily remembered.
And then there are names with which I have a close association.
James: James Kirk; James Arness
Matt/Matthew: Matt Dillon
Richard: Richard Kimble; Richard Kiley
Emma: Emma Peel
Amanda: Amanda Blake
Some names I’ve already used. These I try to avoid because they belong to other, beloved characters:
Robert
Samuel
Toby
And finally, there are names I just feel comfortable with. Some do have strong associations but I’m able to divest them from their source; others just fit, and with due respect to their namesakes, I use them. And finally, I repeat a name from one book to another simply because I don’t realize I’m doing it. “Ward” comes to mind. I’ve used it for two major characters and was shocked when I finally realized what I’d done. For me, “Ward” originates from Wagon Train. Ward Bond. The wagon-master. A huge influence in my early development. A father-figure; steady. Reliable. Strong, yet sensitive. Trustworthy. “Seth” and “Adams,” too. Seth Adams. Doc Adams.
All the people from my past, coming together to make a whole. That would be me. I’m GUNSMOKE (always in caps) and The Fugitive and Star Trek (William Shatner gave me my nickname, “Captain.”). With Ellery Queen (Jim Hutton and David Wayne); first year Mission: Impossible (Steven Hill); The Big Valley; I Spy; and, significantly, my earliest influences, The Lone Ranger, Wagon Train and Maverick. Books, too. I am an avid reader; mostly 19th century novels. Herman Melville; Feodor Dostoyevsky; Joseph Conrad; Victor Hugo; the Bronte sisters (each wrote one perfect novel); Jack London. More recently, the one author I tend to read and re-read because he has captured my imagination is John LeCarre. George Smiley is a character for the ages; I don’t read LeCarre’s other work. It doesn’t touch me. And Dean Koontz. His early work left me stunned. Same comment.
Occasionally I can get away with a generic “Jim.” Or “Richard” or “Sam,” but I try to avoid that as much as possible.
I’ve started one science fiction book three times and never finished any version because I couldn’t get the name right and I was subtlety influenced by the three different names I chose. Each took me in the wrong direction. Normally, I don’t mind letting the character guide the action but when I know I’m uncomfortable using the name (either first or last, or both), I suspect it’s not going to work out to anyone’s satisfaction.
In the Conundrum series, I started out using different names and then somewhere along the line I stopped and asked the voices in my head: What do you want to be called? Pick your own names. Over the course of a week, several male and female names popped into my head. I wrote them down and when I felt I had enough choices, I put it to them.
Jack Merrick was the first to respond. He picked his name almost immediately. I wrapped it around in my mind, listened to his voice and I knew he was right. That was easy. Ellen came second. The last name was chosen first and then we played around with various first names. “Ellen” seemed OK. I don’t think of her as Ellen but that’s OK, too. Hugh came last. His surname was easy. There are two famous actors with that last name, each pronounced differently. I opted for Curr because that’s how the English say it. Hugh was Hugh. That ended that discussion. I was looking for an easy alliteration for the district attorney. BB seemed to work. I chose “Bond” despite the fact there’s James Bond. I ran Timothy Dalton’s authorized web site for over ten years. I never thought Timothy and Bond were a good match.
The police detective’s first name came from my Dad: Henry. He just became Hank. I’m not sure where Wade came from but I suspect it originated with Wade Hampton. I used to call Mike Hampton, the MLB pitcher Wade Hampton. Wade Hampton was a Civil War general. I liked the pitcher. He had a good career although he was never a Cardinal (Whitey Herzog era ONLY) or a Pirate (Jack Wilson era). Geraldine was named after a little girl I’m very fond of. Those are the main characters.
As I mentioned, I didn’t know where I was going when Hugh and Ellen and Jack first started talking to me. They already knew the place and time period: Los Angeles, circa mid-1950s. It was a time I wasn’t particularly comfortable with. Although I lived in L.A. for ten years, that was in the 1970s. A lot of what I remembered about the city and the Valley I incorporated into the story, with a nod toward two decades earlier.
I had never written a lawyer before, either. My penchant is pre-Civil War, the War itself (read The Kepi, also on this web site, if you want some iconoclastic views) and the Western era, roughly until 1876. After that, you start getting into telephones and electricity and none of that appeals to me. I’ll be honest with you: I didn’t look up a lot of law. Hugh told me most of what I needed to know. After I had written the court scenes, for example, I’d do some research to make sure I was on the right track. I needn’t have bothered. The same thing with Hugh’s extensive background: he knew all about it. All I had to do was listen.
All my writing is character driven. I want the reader to see, feel, taste, smell and hear the experiences of the people living the scenes in my books. The plot comes second. I never know how a plot will work out; in fact, of all the books I’ve written, I only knew the ending of one book. The rest come as a surprise. Along the way I may have to gnash my teeth over a scene, or work in a clue, but I’m doing no more than the people in the book are doing. We’re all along for the ride together. The book ends when the story’s finished.
The one sin I try not to commit is the “I have to finish this book” syndrome. You probably know what I mean. You’re reading a book and its plodding along and all of a sudden the action zips along to a predestined conclusion. It’s apparent the author either has a word count to meet or more likely, he/she is plain sick of the story and wants to get it over with. That’s never my problem because I never want to end it.
That’s where discipline comes in. I don’t know how other writers work, but as I trained myself from my earliest efforts to write in teleplay (four acts and either a prelude or a tag), I see chapters as acts and the end as the conclusion of an episodic drama. I write from the perspective of a director: transcribing to paper what the camera would reveal, and then adding the actor’s thoughts and emotions.
If you’re interested in books heavy with characterization (I have often been accused of writing 19th century novels), by an author who loves their work and whose aim is not only to entertain but to bring to life and give a voice to those souls who speak to me and want their stories told, I hope you will sample the Hugh Kerr Mystery Conundrum series. To date there are eight finished novels and the ninth started, so you’ll have plenty to read. If you like these books, I would recommend my other series: The Kansas Pirates (set before the Civil War) and the Hellhole trilogy, a Western centered on a young lawman. Both there trilogies are available from Amazon and published by Tirgearr. And before I go any further, I would like to extend my great appreciation to the good folks at Tirgearr for giving me the first chance to see my novels “in print,” as it were, and to BearManor Media for publishing the first Hugh Kerr novel, as well as my non-fiction text on the TV series Riverboat, a loving tribute to Darren McGavin, for whom I still own and operate his and Kathie Browne’s authorized web site (www.darrenmcgavin.net)
Until next time.