Writing Books | Myperbole

Reliable Narrator

January 24, 2022

Admin Navel Gazing Am Writing, Authors, Books, Boy in the Blue Hammock, Narrator, PoV, Third Person Limited, Third Person Narrator, Writer Life, Writers, Writing Books Leave a comment

Who tells the story?

This question looms large when setting out to circumnavigate a novel. Indeed, it might be the most important question of all. The narrator is everything to a story. The lens for the reader’s view. The grasp of the reader’s hand. The whisper in the reader’s ear. Get the narrator right and a lot of bumps on the road may be smoothed out. Get the narrator wrong and you’ll end up in a ditch, calling for a tow truck.

In my previous work, the question of who tells the story tended to have ready answers. Kindling was always going to be the alternating voices of father and son. The fabulist fable of Infinite Blue would only ever be served by a Brothers Grimm-esque third person. In Most Valuable Potential and Munro vs the Coyote / Exchange of Heart, the narrator needed to be a guide for the reader as they engaged with experiences outside of the mainstream for many: those of the the immigrant and the disabled. Are You Seeing Me? wasn’t quite as straightforward — the original draft had much of the third act delivered from mother Leonie’s perspective; during it’s two and a half year struggle to find a home, that approach was abandoned in favour of focusing solely on the twins (a decision that played an enormous role in the work finally securing a deal).

Overall, choice of voice? Relatively painless.

Then along comes Boy in the Blue Hammock.

You See What I Did There?

July 17, 2014

Admin News Are You Seeing Me?, ASD, Authors, Autism, Autism Fiction, Autism Writing, AYSM, Books, Brothers, Daughters, Disability, Fathers, Fiction, Inspiration, New Books, New Release, New Work, New YA Lit, Random House, Random House Australia, Random House New Zealand, Siblings, Sisters, Sons, Twins, Writing, Writing Books, YA Lit, Young Adults 2 Comments

With Are You Seeing Me? having just hit the shelves in Australia, I’d like to share with you some insight into what inspired me to write the novel.

Anyone who’s spent any time with me knows I am Dad to a set of twins: one girl, one boy. My daughter is ‘neurotypical’, which is how people in the Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) community sometimes refer to regular, everyday kids who do not have autism. She is amazing. She plays trumpet, creates short animated films and adores The Hunger Games. My son, who is three minutes younger than my daughter, is diagnosed with autism. He is amazing, too. He is awesome at Minecraft, swims like a champ and enjoys Pixar films. They will officially be teenagers in 2014.

Are You Seeing Me? is a gift to my daughter. She was due a book – my previous novel, Kindling, was a gift to my son. (By the way, all of my books are gifts for my beautiful
wife). When I first started considering what to write, I kept coming back to a message I held dear for my daughter: ‘You should never feel like you must be your brother’s keeper. Love him, as he loves you, but live your own life to the full.’

‘Another’ Post About Book Diversity

May 15, 2014

Admin Arguwrite #WeNeedDiverseBooks, Another, Are You Seeing Me?, Authors, Autism, Autism Fiction, Autism Writing, BookCon, Books, Children's Books, Difference, Disability, Diverse Books, Diversity, Fiction, Kindling, New Work, Novels, Other, We Need Diverse Books, Writing, Writing Books, YA Lit, Young Adult Books 1 Comment

First, the good news:

The recent #WeNeedDiverseBooks Twitter coup was an admirable rebuff of the longstanding hegemonies in children’s and young adult fiction. It doesn’t look like a flash in the pan either, so that’s good too.

Now, the bad news:

The whole exercise has further illustrated – dare I say, reinforced – the pecking order of minorities in both the book debate and the wider society looking on.

How To Explain A Book Deal

February 8, 2014

Admin News Authors, Book Deal, Books, Novels, Oprah, Publishers, Publishing Contract, Publishing Deal, Random House, Random House Australia, Writing, Writing Books, Writing Success Leave a comment

I recently signed a paperback deal with Random House Australia for my novel, Are You Seeing Me?. It was exciting, especially after waiting for it longer than I cared to. Of course, I wanted to share the great news with friends and loved ones asap. But with the delivery of said news comes a challenge in helping people understand exactly what it is. Folks who don’t write novels and don’t receive publishing contracts and don’t read novels that have received publishing contracts generally have no real clue as to the true and appropriate level of significance to your achievement.

If you have good friends and you get on with your family, they’re instinctively happy for you. Oftentimes, they assume the deal is the ultimate life-changer; you’re quitting your job, moving to New York, buying a small island in the Pacific, rubbing elbows with Stephen King and JK Rowling and that raunchy bloke who wrote 50 Shades of Grey. Others have congratulations, but figure it can’t be too hard – look at how many books there are in the store we walk past at the mall! A few just smile and nod politely, wondering what the hell would possess anyone to want to write anything after the mandatory creative writing torture in Year 8. All need a little guidance in getting a proper handle on your modest ‘T’ triumph.

So, for authors perched on a similar rung of the publishing ladder as I, here’s three solid pointers to explaining your new book deal:

Fanning The Flames: ‘Kindling’ Released in North America

April 27, 2013

Admin News Amazon, Aussie Fiction, Aussie Literature, Aussie Writers, Authors, Autism, Autism Fiction, Autism Writing, Books, Darren Groth, ebooks, Exciting Press, Kindle, Kindling, Literary Fiction, Literature, Nazis, New Books, New Novels, Novels, Published, Suspense, Thrillers, Vampires, Writing, Writing Books, YA Lit, Young Adult Literature, Zombies Leave a comment

Courtesy of the fine folk at Exciting Press, Kindling is available for the first time in the Home of the Brave and in the True North, Strong and Free.

Now, apart from continental accessibility, what’s different about this publication compared to the original Aussie release in 2010?

Exclusively e-book (Kindle for the first 90 days, then in other formats subsequent)
Hawt new cover
Cheap as chips ($4.99 in the US; $5.12 in CAN)
Much less ink
Zero chance of paper cuts
Author is slightly older (though still sexy)
Every single copy downloaded has a different ending
Nazi zombies
Vampire zombies
Zombie zombies

As you can see from this extensive list, the work is TOTALLY different, barely recognizable from before. So, grab the new and improved Kindling while internet stocks last!

(Warning: Some of the statements above may be the product of author hubris and/or inebriation…)

Kindling in Kindle format for North America – buy the US version here and the CAN version here.

Billy, Don’t Use My Number

March 13, 2013

Admin Arguwrite Authors, Books, Daily Words, New Work, Numbers, Quality Not Quantity, Word Counts, Words, Writers, Writing, Writing Books 1 Comment

Writers love to tell you their word counts.

“Just did 500 words before breakfast!”

“Got my 1,000 words done for the day!”

“30,000 words done on the new novel!”

We take great delight in passing on the numbers we produce. I have been no exception. If you trawled back through my Facebook and Twitter posts, you would find statements similar to those above (though probably not without profanity).

Well, I’m here to tell you that’s all in the past. Aside from those punching the keyboard, no digits will ever again offer any implied measure of my authorial efforts. And if my colleagues on the shelves have a high regard for the craft – as I know they do – they will avoid any future reference to word counts, too.

Exciting Backlist Deal

January 22, 2013

Admin News Authors, Backlist, Book Deal, Books, Digital Publishers, Exciting Press, Fiction Novels, Indie Publishers, Kindling, Most Valuable Potential, Nick Earls, Novels, Publishing Contract, The Procrastinator, The Umbilical Word, Will Entrekin, Writing, Writing Books Leave a comment

(Pic Source: James Hibberd)

Exciting Press figures my venn diagram is a little more adjacent than Snooki’s.

In a deal announced by Exciting’s Creative Director, Will Entrekin, the cutting edge US indie publisher and I have signed a four book deal, encompassing my backlist quartet of novels – Kindling, The Umbilical Word, Most Valuable Potential and The Procrastinator. The deal permits me to join a stable of wonderful writing talent that includes James Brown, Kurt Wenzel and Aussie literary icon, Nick Earls.

I’m really thrilled about the opportunities ahead with this partnership. It represents a new lease of life for all my once-upon-a-time-in-print works. Particularly gratifying is that, for the first time in any format, Kindling will be available in North America.

Stay tuned for release details and dates. And if you’re a fan of Snooki, I’m sorry this post was so long.

The Real Writer – A Do’s and Don’ts Guide #6

January 8, 2013

Admin Real Writer Authors, Books, Constructive Feedback, Criticism, Critique, Do's and Don'ts, Emerging Authors, Honest Opinion, Manuscript Appraisal, Negative Feedback, Real Writer, Self-Awareness, Writing, Writing Books Leave a comment

Real writers do recognize real criticism.

Emerging authors: Someone saying your story is great rather than garbage is more preferable, yes?

For about ten minutes, it is. After that, you’re pretty much left with the same lingering question: “How come?”

Truly worthy criticism doesn’t leave that poser unanswered: in an ideal writing world, an author’s ear would only ever be attuned to constructive feedback; the hater guff and airhead fluff would be as comprehensible as Charlie Brown’s teacher. Alas, this is not Utopia – attempts to kick a literary goal often get foiled by a swift-handed Lucy – so it falls on the writer to identify useful opinions of his/her work. Easier said than done when it’s your heart and soul laid bare on the page.

The Real Writer – A Do’s and Don’ts Guide #5

October 30, 2012

Admin Real Writer Authors, Books, Do's and Don'ts, Emerging Authors, Real Writer, Turning Up, Word Counts, Write Every Day, Writing, Writing Books, Writing In Your Head Leave a comment

We’ve finished the four Don’ts – time now to have a look at the corresponding Do’s. First up:

Real writers do the trade every day.

Any number of author voices more resonant than mine have extolled the virtues of turning up. Stephen King advocated “bum glue”. Jane Yolen referred to “exercising the writing muscle”. Lawrence Kasdan suggested “being a writer is like having homework every night for the rest of your life”. No doubt engaging with your story on a daily basis is a must. But what’s the deal for emerging authors: the folks who are chasing creativity behind jobs and kids and mortgages and slush piles and rejection slips, whose days are invariably full while their pages are often empty?

The Real Writer – A Do’s and Don’ts Guide #4

October 10, 2012

Admin Real Writer Authors, Books, Do's and Don'ts, Emerging Authors, Finishing a Book, Real Writer, Self-Criticism, Starting A Book, Woody Allen, Writing, Writing Books Leave a comment

Real writers don’t leave work unfinished.

During my emerging author days, a noted publishing industry insider told me: “You’d be amazed at the number of writers you get ahead of just by finishing.” Another informed me: “There is only one truism in publishing – if you never finish the story, you’ll never see the book.” Finishing is important, just as important as starting. And many argue it’s a lot tougher than its ‘creative honeymoon’ counterpart.