It Begins with a Dream

I love figure skating not only as a sport that allows me to enjoy the music at the same time while watching the game but also as a window on artists. Because figure skaters' total scores consist of artistry and techniques, I consider them artists like writers. And I like one of the TV commercials during the break: "It begins with a dream and a pair of skates," says the voice-over as a pair of legs on skates appear. Then off the dreamer goes.

Yes, it begins with a dream.

My passion to express myself in words became a dream when I was a teenager in Vietnam, where there was no chance at all for me to fulfil that dream, being a Chinese Vietnamese who read books published in either Hong Kong or Taiwan; publishers in South Vietnam printed books written in only Vietnamese, a language I learned at school but was not proficient. My dream of being a writer was not only deferred but impossible. To avoid being ridiculed, I never told anyone about my dream, not even my mother, nor my good friends back there and then.

I held on to my dream.

Eventually, I saw my dream possible once I resettled in America, a great country that gives people a chance as well as a second chance at chasing their dreams if they have one. Having watched figure skating for years, I've seen athletes/artists, who, after trying for a while without going anywhere, some give up; others keep trying and keep improving their artistry and techniques and finally, they see their dreams come true.

The US man and woman champions of 2011 did, at one point, thinking of quitting, but decided to stay in the games. The woman, a one-time champion, failed to defend her title last year and didn't do well in the other competitions, was on the verge of being written off as a viable competitor; the man, having skated for ten years, was on the podium only once. Not giving up, they both won. And, before another woman skater started her long program, her coach told her, "Believe in yourself." What encouraging words! She became the bronze medalist.

I believe in myself and I am determined.

A Shared Experience

I came across a quote about writing by Winston Churchill. He said, "Writing a book is an adventure. To begin with, it is a toy and an amusement; then it becomes a mistress, and then it becomes a master, and then a tyrant." Immediately I agreed, "Yes! That is how I felt, too! Having an adventure as my relationship with the book I work on changes from time to time, from being simply delightful like a child playing with a new toy to getting more intimate and more serious." I know Churchill was talking about writing nonfiction, and I was thinking of fiction. Despite two different genres, he and I shared the writing process.

When I got an inspiration for my novel, I toyed with the idea and was delighted and started writing a book of fiction--my adventure--and of course doing it with amusement. When I finished several rewrites, and the novel began to take shape, I fell in love with it--the stage of its becoming a mistress, the way Churchill put it. Now that I'm recovering from my serious illness but still lack stamina to handle a long work that demands lots of my attention and energy, I reluctantly stall my beloved project and work on a couple of small pieces of writing that I can manage at the moment. My novel, although out of my sight, is absolutely not out of my mind. Just the opposite. I think of it every so often and jot down all the ideas that flash across my head. And, like a man who momentarily being out of touch with his mistress, I miss the writing of my novel, which I plan on revising later this year when I am 100% back.

When I rework on my beloved project, I think my writing adventure will reach the final two stages: my novel will become a master, and then a tyrant. After living in Communist rule in South Vietnam for ten years, I know tyranny, and I know I can handle the figurative tyrant.

A Writer's Resolution

On New Year's Eve, many people make resolutions. As a writer, for the past years since I started writing after graduation school, I made plans. Still waiting for my stamina to fully return, which may happen later next year, I think it more reasonable to make resolution that is part of my writing plan.

I'm resolved to write one sentence each day, at least five days a week, in addition to my writing projects. That one sentence I'll be writing for the coming year is a literary sentence modeled on writers, such as F. Scott Fitzgerald, Virginia Woolf, Joseph Conrad, Joan Didion. By the time I resume work on my novel, probably in August at the earliest, I'll have practiced quite some time for the literary writing. My novel, speculative fiction and also called genre fiction, defines me as a genre fiction writer. If I can write with style, which, I believe, can be trained, I will become a literary genre fiction writer--my resolution, my goal, my ambition.

To Follow or Not to Follow, That's the Question

The trend of vampire novels has saturated the market, and readers turn to some place else for something different, or refreshing. From what I read, what will be the next trend is the near future and the post-apocalyptic fiction, such as The Road. It does reflect today's mood--uncertainty everywhere we turn. Not a fan of this grim outlook on our world and our civilization, I myself won't follow the trend for two more reasons:

1) I have found my unique niche as a writer.

2) I am not a fast writer. I tend to take time to work on my writing and along the way enjoy the process to my heart's content.

I think writers who like to jump on the band wagon, nothing is wrong about that, are fast writers who churn out 50,000 words in one month because the trend comes and goes like waves of the sea, only fast writers can ride with them.

Here comes the question, a famous Hamlet's line in different wording: To follow or not to follow, that's the question. If you like the concept of near future and post apocalyptic stories and are a fast writer, hey, what the heck, give it a try. You might end up getting a nice deal with a large publishing house. Well, you may argue: I hate to follow the trend, I prefer to write what I want to write. Certainly, I agree with you 100%. And you may even argue that you want to create a trend. I, too, agree with you on that. I believe there's nothing unachievable under the sun. If we, human beings, can send men to the moon; we writer, too, can reach the moon. It's a matter of luck, timing, and hard work. Whatever the choice you make, it's your own decision, and no one else's business.

Sudoku and Writing

i picked up Sudoku months ago and was hooked. Ever since, I've spent fifteen to thirty minutes each day on the game. I like solving puzzles not because they help sharpen my brain, but because I love "mystery."

As a writer, I like to draw parallels to writing from things I do or watch. Here are the things I've learned from playing Sudoku that can be applied to writing and rewriting:

First, see what is there, and what is not, and what is missing.

Secondly, spot the problem early. Don't wait until you get stuck.

Thirdly, if you get stuck, look at the big picture.

Fourthly, don't hesitate to move things around.

Fifthly, put one right number in the right place, one at a time, and everything will fall into its place.

Sounds simple? Not really. Like writing, it takes practice, and it takes time to be good at. And like writing, if you do it every day, you'll savor the fruit of your persistence.

Back to Life

I know my blog has been screaming for an update.

Three months ago today at around midnight I was admitted to Northwest Hospital's emergency room for pneumonia and a heart failure. That night I was treated at the ICU with a ventilator because my oxygen level was only 85, and my heart function was only 20 %. I could have died.

Fortunately, after standing on the verge of death, I returned to life.

Altogether I stayed at the hospital for eight days: three days at the ICU with no food and a little of water for the medications; five days at the CCU--Critical Care Unit. For seven days, I was on oxygen twenty-four hours a day, and sometimes I had to wear the mask when the oxygen I got from the tube was insufficient to keep me breathing normally. For the whole time, Wes was with me except at bedtime. I was happy and blessed to have him there for me.

Since I resettled in America in 1985, I've never been hospitalized. The pneumonia that knocked me down just hit me like lightning. It might have sent me some warning signs, but I didn't see them coming. Like a blitzkrieg, the sudden illness almost subdued me. I fought back with the help of equally rapid treatment. I survived.

What an experience to see Death so close to me! When I was discharged from the hospital, I was extremely weak with a heart function of 40% and had to continue taking the antibiotics for eight more days for the vicious pneumonia and medications for the broken heart syndrome. Despite the frailty, I was overjoyed to be alive, feeling as if I were reborn.

Now I'm homebound recuperating. It'll be months before I can resume my normal life. As I'm feeling better, I've returned to my writing since the 1st of this month, writing for half an hour at each session, two sessions a day. I look forward to being able to write three/four hours in one sitting; it won't happen any time soon.

But, when Yin is on its way out, can Yang be far away?

Firework

July is over. Why am I talking about firework? Am I really talking about the firework displayed to celebrate 4th of July? Of course not. I'm talking about the firework in writing. I learned it at graduate school. When my playwriting professor first said it, I scratched my head. I knew what firework was in real life, but not when it was used metaphorically. Later, when a classmate commented on my play, she said, "Where's the firework?" Omnigosh, I had a vague idea of what she was asking for. Happily, I finally got it. It took me sometime to understand firework in writing.

Without firework, our writing will be dull, and will have no life. I'm glad I finally grasped the concept and put it into use.

Tomorrow, August 12, Thursday, at 6 pm, I will read from my novel at Ballard Branch Seattle Public Library for It's about Time Writers' Reading Series http://itsaboutimewriters.homestead.com/ I will read a chapter of my novel, which, I believe, has firework.