A question of coat and waistcoat

"Dignity, and even holiness too, sometimes, are more questions of coat and waistcoat than some people imagine." -Charles Dickens

Okay...so it's a random picture...but isn't this a gorgeous bird?!

 Description is so important. Description done well. There is description in excess. There is tacky description. There is description that is too heavy and golden and dripping so that it feels rather like a handful of honey getting everything sticky and running out through your fingers while you try to taste it. But then, there is description that is spot-on and leaves you knowing just what the author intended you to know.

I used to be a bare-bones writer in the Description Department, meaning that I counted on dialog and character strength and that sort of thing to beautify my plot. But through my last few projects I've grown to love describing things. As with any writer, my world and my characters are so very alive in my mind that there is a danger of forgetting the world at large doesn't understand. We are given the privilege of showing our readers the just-so parts of literature. Not only the plot, not only the characters, but what they look like. What the scenes look like. All that.
Jenny is a stellar example of How To Do Things. Somehow (and it seems without much groping about) she chooses just the right words so that you are transported not to her world but in it, as I'm sure you know if you've read anything she writes.

But how do you know it's good? How can you tell splendid description when you know it? I'll tell you.

Good description doesn't tire you to read. Good description is so enveloping and intricate that you hardly notice you are reading. The words have become a portal There and you quite forget Here in that moment. I know you have all emerged from reading a book only to be quite surprised it is summer outside--you'd been trapped in a snow-storm. Or else you raise your eyes from your book with a sudden realization of its being dusk and you've not stopped even to turn on a light.

That's good description. Description done right will transfix you and carry you into the book. It doesn't serve as a piece apart from the story. There should be no: "I'm describing it to you and then we'll have a conversation and then a bit of action and then the next scene I'll describe more to you!" No. Description ought to be so mixed up with the plot that you have those gorgeous chunks, but you also have unexpected bits of brilliancy lying about the meat of the chapter.
Paraprosdokian is a good word to describe what I mean, in a way. It means: "Figure of speech in which the latter part of a sentence or phrase is surprising or unexpected; frequently used in a humorous situation." 

Though of course it doesn't have to be humorous. It's the knack of tucking gems in amongst the hum-drum so that you are never looking for them when they appear. :)
 An example of a paraprosdokian is this: "To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism. To steal from many is research."
 I feel like I'm not making much sense, but I trust you to get the idea. I don't mean your description must be a paraprosdokian, only that it adds much it has that sort of unexpected appeal. :) But now I've diddled my mind with using such fifty-dollar words and I will leave you now!

Ashes to Ashes, Dust to Dust. :'(

I am sad.

Why am I sad?

Because...because...*tears coming into eyes*...

...Because Eponine, Gavroche, Combferre, Coureyfac, and most of all Enjolras just died at the barricade.

My wound is aggravated because Marius (whom I have no patience for) is rescued. He will go on and probably marry Cosette (whom I only have slightly more patience for) and have a happy life while poor Enjolras dies. And not only was Enjolras killed, but it was a sad, sad, heroic death. He was shot eight times and remained standing against the wall as if the bullets had nailed him there...only his head drooped. Yes, that's how Victor Hugo worded it in his book.

...Enjolras...the bravest and best of all those men...

This is me, going to weep a little weep over him and beleaguer my sister's ear with lamentations.

Full Cast: Anarchy.

There is one problem with character-driven fiction. The problem is one that I imagine every president, king, Sheik, and Tzar would feel: that dilemma of ruling your people. Yes, you must let your characters develop and you can't rule them with an iron-fist--your book would feel stilted. But there is something rather anarchical about character-driven fiction.
Let me start by saying, my books are character-driven. I unashamedly admit it. Perhaps this style was born of an early love for all the great characters in literature: Anne Shirley, the Pevensies, Sara Crewe, Hans Brinker, the Moffats, and so many more. This love was followed up by a self-inflicted crash course in Dickens who--as we all know--has more characters than anyone knows what to do with. [The beauty in this, of course, is that they all manage to play important roles, but that's for another post.]
I suppose I began on this topic because of my good-humored frustration with all the people in The Scarlet-Gypsy Song. This book is already over 60k words and they will not clam up! :D I am finding more and more characters to follow and though I am keeping the book focused, they will all have their part. It's madness how these book-people simply leap onto the page and demand I do something with them. Would you like to hear a (nearly) exhaustive list of all these sorts? I will pretend that you do, and therefore I introduce the cast of The Scarlet-Gypsy Song. Enjoy.

The Macefields:

Mr. Adoniram Woolcott Macefield--an author

Mrs. Macefield--a nervous invalid

Bertram: a twin

Adelaide: another twin

Charlotte: second first-twin

Darby: second second-twin

Eugenie: third first-twin

Fergus: third second-twin.

~If that was confusing, just say it this way: There are 3 sets of twins. They seem to be a disease with me. ;)~

Men of Gildnoir:

Sir Randolph Fitz-Hughes--clan chieftain and self-styled "prince"

Diccon Quarry (Diccon Wanderlands)--Half-brother of Fitz-Hughes

Crimp--grubby fellow (body and mind) who stylizes himself Diccon's "chum"

Host of Soldiers--unnamed. :)

The former Chief of Gildnoir: Diccon's father--a cruel, unjust, but marvelous warring man.

The former Queen of Gildnoir: Diccon's mother--a bride stolen from her betrothed husband, King Octavian of Scarlettania.

People of Scarlettania:

King Octavian: The king of this realm

Lady Cecelia: The princess of Scarlettania--known to the Macefields as Cecily Woodruff

Lad: the court-jester

Dear-Heart: Lad's daughter--a dwarf-girl, and a chamber-maid

Agnes: Plump, pressing, efficient, petting castle-keeper

Windteeth: The highland pony that falls into Diccon's possession.

Captain Phillip Sparrow: Darby's ideal--a noble, valiant soldier

Peter Quickenhelm: A Benedict Arnold of the blackest dye.

Kingdomers: The fill-in-the-blanks people in the tale who make appearances at banquets, festivals, and the like, and who would make you feel a void if they were left out.

Miscellaneous Characters:

The Scarlet-Gypsy: A beautiful enchantress whose power is still felt through the work of her favorite...

Growlbeard: The favorite--a traitorous, black panther with the ability to change his voice.

Mr. Garrison: The Editor. A very important personage.

Yes. You read that correctly. A full two-dozen characters, each of which has a particular part to play. I make it a rule never to put in a character "just because." I mean, of course you must write a throng, but let at least one of the throng have a distinct face! :)

Some of these characters were not there from the beginning--particularly Phillip Sparrow and Peter Quickenhelm; one I have a growing love for, the other I was glad to surrender to his fate. Sadly, two more of these characters mentioned are slotted to die during The Battle. :'( But it must be done, and I am sure it will be for the best.

It is not easy writing a book driven by characters and keeping it on task. I will have loads of rewriting to do, I know, but I have been keeping rein on these book-people of mine and finally brought the 6 plot threads down to 4 by reconnoitering the various characters and making Alliances. Oh mercy. What a job it is to be an author! :)

A Taste of Anne-spelled-with-an-E

Miss Dashwood is having an Anne of Green Gables week over at her blog, and as Anne and I are almost twins, I thought I'd better join in the fun! :)

                                                                

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1. How many of the Anne books have you read, and how many of the films have you seen?

I've read all eight of the Anne books and both of the movies...somehow I can't find it in myself to count that third one as part of the Anne-series...they ought to have just gone ahead with all the Ingleside bunch and made movies about them. :)
 
2. If someone yanked your hair and called you carrots, what would you do to him?


Let me think about this. First off, I would probably laugh--I mean, seriously, why call a brunette "carrots"? I would laugh, but I know I'd be embarrassed that he'd humiliated me in that way in front of a lot of people...I don't think I'd break my slate over his head, but you never know. My wit would probably eventually come to my rescue and I'd say something scathing to him that would redeem the moment in my favor. ;)

3. What would you do if Josie Pye dared you to walk the ridgepole of a roof?

You know...I'd probably try. I'd not get past the first few shingles, I daresay, but I would try. I'm not particularly scared of heights, you know.

4. If you had the opportunity to play any AGG (I'm abbreviating from now on because I am a lazy typist) character in an AGG play, which role would you choose?

Ooh! Well, I suppose physical characteristics must be thought about and I would not fit the part of Anne, though I'd love to play her. Let's see...I think it'd be fun to play either Mrs. Lynde, or (if I could choose from some of the other Anne books) one of the girls in Patty's Place...I've always loved the notion of that sweet little four-some living in that house and going off to college. :) I might choose Phillipa Gordon, though I'm not as pretty as she.

5. If you were marooned on a desert island, which AGG character would you want to have as a companion? (Anne, Gilbert and Diana are not options.  Let's keep this thing interesting.  Not that they're not interesting.... oh, yay, now the disclaimer to this question is longer than the question itself.  Lovely lovely lovely.)

Haha! Davy Keith. He'd know what to do, and even if he didn't, he'd keep me laughing and probably invent some way to get us out of our predicament.

6. If there was going to be a new adaptation of the Anne books and you could have any part in making the movie, what would you choose to do? (screenwriting, acting, casting, costume-making are a few possibilities)

Casting and costume-making...also set-finder-person-who-travels-all-over-and-sees-gorgeous-places. :)

7. What are, in your opinion, the funniest AGG book/movie scenes? (choose one from the books and one from the movies)

Funniest book scene? Oy vay. Um...I've always loved the part when Anne is talking to Mr. Harris and finding herself contradicted at every point. Also when she and Diana are soliciting for their A.V.I.S. society and Anne gets stuck half-way through the roof of the duck-house and has to stay there. She starts scribbling down a story while waiting for help--I love it! It sounds like something I might do in a desperate moment. :D

 

In the movies? I do love her argument with Mrs. Lynde over Dolly. Also the scene where she and Diana hop onto Miss Josephine Barry in the bed, and where she and Diana are walking through the Haunted Wood and faint. :D

8. What are, in your opinion, the saddest AGG book/movie scenes? (choose one of each again) 

In the movie, the scene where Anne realizes she loves Gilbert and he is in mortal danger...the might-have-been in that scene is so sad!

In the book, I would have to say when the Ingleside bunch finds out that Walter was killed in the war...or else when Anne's baby dies. :(

9. Which AGG character would you most like to spend an afternoon with? (again, Anne and Gilbert and Diana are not options for this one--think secondary characters)

Phillipa Gordon--she and I would get along brilliantly, I think. :)

10.  What is your definition of a kindred spirit?

A kindred spirit is the person you can just look at and know they are a friend. There is something electric in their manner that captivates you. I have a blood-hound's nose for finding kindred spirits. When you meet a person you will know they are a kindred spirit by the way they laugh or talk or stand...I can't describe it, but it's there. If you doubt this definition, you have not heard the story of one of my dearest friends and I. I saw her at a mutual friend's graduation. She fascinated me but I was too shy to meet her. We never exchanged a single word. I went home and wrote about the graduation in my journal and mentioned her as a girl who I knew I would love and I said I wished I'd summoned my courage and introduced myself. Over a year later we began emailing (through a series of events) and finally officially met at the same friend's barn-dance. We have been inseparable ever since. :) It was my greatest success! ;)

Soup or Salad? A Boxing Match between Hugo and Dickens. :)

I have only about 500 pages of Les Miserables left, which means I am just about 2/3 of the way through that elephantine book. It has been an Olympian task, I will admit, reading this 1463-page giant! I am not finished, of course, but I have found it to be a great stimulant to my mind. It demands me to think.

Think? The nerve!

I am reading the un-abridged version and I will admit that I know why they abridge the book. You see, Victor Hugo, in my opinion, did not decide whether he was writing a book of essays or a novel. Indeed, if you summed up all his dissertations on Waterloo, Napoleon, Convents, Bishops, the Parisian gamin, young love, beauty, guilt, prison, poverty, and everything else, you would find that bit far heavier in page-weight than the actual plot.
This, of course, got me to thinking--if Les Miserables was intended to be a social commentary (as I can only assume it was) what possessed Victor Hugo to write a novel? Okay. Let me first explain myself. I am a Dickens-girl. Every one of Charles Dickens' books are loaded with political, social, and occasionally spiritual commentaries and parallels. They can only be classified as Social Commentaries. So what is the difference between Victor Hugo and Charles Dickens?

Hugo--what a comely old bird!

Dickens--hair brilliantly askew. ;)

The difference is this:
                Victor Hugo made a salad, Charles Dickens made a brew.
               Victor chopped his words up coarsely, Charles stirred and stirred his stew.
               Flavors sep'rate, flavors mingled; both a mighty turn of phrase,
                But the stew will go down quicker--Hugo puts me in a daze.

Ahem. Forgive the lapse into poetry. :P That little ditty is the definition of these two authors in my opinion. Victor Hugo, while an amazing author, bewilders me with his constant division. He carries the plot for a few pages, then casts it aside while he lectures. You almost begin to wonder if his characters serve only as lackeys to carry his social-dissertations. I like his lectures. I like his plot. But in my opinion, he did rather a careless, clumsy job of mingling the two.

Charles Dickens, on the other hand, took his social ideas, his morals, his lectures, and mixed them into his plot and characters so seamlessly that, to speak childishly, "You can't find the pill amongst the jam." I have seldom felt the weariness in reading Dickens that I feel in finding myself at the brink of yet another 30-page ramble through a random history with Victor Hugo for an overly-zealous guide.
Now, please understand that I am not hacking on Les Miserables--I am actually enjoying the book and I will do a review once I am finished. I am merely commenting on Victor Hugo's style and the way he executed all the brilliant things kerbobbling around his mind.

I think it's a case of two men, one who loved his country best, the other his people. Victor Hugo's beloved is France--the country--and though he loves the people, his patriotism outshines his plot. Charles Dickens loved his people--social commentary comes through because he cared about what was happening to his countrymen and wished to set things right. Both men have noble motives--both are fabulous authors.

I suppose you just have to decide on a given day whether you'd rather have a salad or a bowl of soup. :)

Bits Of Laughter. :)

Anne Shirley: "I'm a teacher...I'm a writer...actually, I write books."

Friedrich Bhaer: You know, when first I saw you I thought "ah, she is a writer".
Jo: What made you think so?
[Friedrich indicates her inky fingers]

Beatrix Potter: There's something delicious about writing those first few words of a story. You can never quite tell where they will take you. Mine took me here, where I belong.

Beatrix Potter: Stories don't always end where their authors intended. But there is joy in following them, wherever they take us. 

Katherine Brook: Authors are such kittle kattle. I wouldn't trust your description of any of us. 

~Have a lovely weekend, everyone! :) ~