Today’s interview is with fantasy author Charles Gull.
LQ: What does your writing process look like?
CG: I am not sure if I can call it a process quite yet. I am still on a steep learning curve of my own. I have no formal training in writing and only started doing it seriously about two years ago. I certainly wouldn’t recommend anyone do exactly as I do right now because I am continuously trying to improve my methods.
However, the big blocks are as follows:
A. Plotting – Because I have a very technical engineering background, I like to plan things in advance. I have developed my own plotting procedure that borrows heavily from both many well known plotting schemes and also from engineering design theory and methodology. It formulates both wide, series level arcs and also scene-level action. I am rather proud of it and if my books eventually demonstrate its efficacy, I’ll probably publish it one day. However, please understand, the initial plotting stage took about 25 years and generated a set of potential stories of utterly stupendous scope. This may actually be the absolutely worst way to go about it.
B. Outlining – Though my published prose are in first person present, I generally outline in 3rd past. Working from the plot arc, I aim to write about one paragraph per scene. At this stage I focus on creating the outline, for better or worse. My internal editor is switched absolutely off. The grammar is terrible. The descriptions are crude. The dialogue is clunky and sparse. I write at speed, trying to capture the ‘stream of consciousness’ as I imagine the plot, all in a single session. It’s a bit like a virtual ‘fly-through’. I usually end up with an outline that is about 1/5 the word count of the final script.
C. Voicing – I often advise other writers that the fundamental difference between 3rd and 1st is – 3rd is journalism, 1st is acting. In my opinion, to write well in first, the author must submerge themselves into the being of the character. The character must take over the world view. This is in no way easy. I consider myself a reasonable amateur actor, but I often struggle to get it right. However, the payoff is enormous. It is so easy to write bad first-person and this is why it has gained a bad reputation in recent years. However, I feel that good first-person can be transcendent. For the purposes of research, most of my googling, YouTubing, Wikipeding, and forum chatting happens at this stage. I cram the knowledge or stimuli that the character would have plausibly been exposed to in its back story. I spend long minutes staring into space, imagining myself as the character. With reference to film and theatre this is probably a very ‘character acting’ approach.
D. Transcribing – I set to work on the outline, converting each paragraph to 1st and also expanding it into a full scene. This is quite laborious, especially as my internal editor is back on at this stage. I like the prose to be aesthetic at this stage. Dialogue must flow. Action must sweep. Details must be remarked upon. Interestingly, at this stage I may begin to diverge from the exact, precise plot arc that I initially spent so much time creating. Though a story must be functional like an oiled mechanism, I feel it also needs the spontaneous curl of an artist’s brush. I don’t force the story to follow my plot but rather make recommendations. Generally, the side tracks curve back to the mainline anyway. This is the stage at which I include most of the emotion. Again, using the acting metaphor. This is most like method acting where I reach back into my own experiences to manifest feelings in particular situations. By the end of this stage, I generally expect the manuscript to be about 10% to 20% longer than my intended final word count.
E. Editing – I am perhaps odd or unusual in that I actually enjoy editing the most of all the stages. In engineering, iterative design is commonplace. Nobody creates the final perfect product in one go. There is always trial and error. Prototypes, laboratory tests, user questionnaires, and so on. I use several different editing techniques. I read the script forwards and comb out kinks in the action or dialogue. I read backwards to improve descriptions and tighten prose. I read it out loud to improve readability. I get a machine to read it out loud to me so I can better notice odd punctuation or word choices. I get feedback from fellow writers and professional editors. I go over the text again and again until I am sick of reading it and then I put it to one side for a week or so and then start from the very beginning again. All this time I am reducing word count. I trim, condense, polish, and reject everything that is not adding maximum value. Whole paragraphs might collapse into a single word. I keep my knives sharp and (to paraphrase a writer’s proverb) kill so very many of my darling babies. It is dirty and brutal work but every time I shorten a sentence, I celebrate a little bit inside.
F. Publishing – I am a self-publisher, so publishing is a part of my writing process. Though this is a whole subject area in itself, I shall mention just one point here. It is important to keep the target audience in mind during the creative process. No book appeals to everyone. Readers are individuals with individual tastes. This does not mean a writer should simply write for others. This is about finding your voice and staying true to it. The worst thing that a writer can do is write one story but market a different one.
LQ: What was your favorite book to write so far?
CG: Probably my third and most recent release to date, Borderlands: Act 2. I generally write at novella length and target a finished manuscript between 30k and 35k words. I was a little nervous that I might not find enough to write about to get over 30k words. As it turned out, the story flowed out of me so smoothly that I ended up with a first draft over 40k words! It then took many many edits to get it back down to under 35k. I am very pleased with the result.
LQ: Who is your favorite character to write about?
CG: Generally? I find all characters intriguing to write. However, I do like dark pasts and damaged psyches.
Specifically? Of my characters so far the angry young woman Pas is turning into a real wonder. As a middle-aged man, I am a little nervous about portraying her character convincingly. However, though she was originally only conceived as a side character, she has won me over and I have even adjusted my plot slightly to enable her to get her own book!
LQ: Who are your favorite authors?
CG: I have very eclectic tastes. I enjoy all sorts of genres and writing styles. I really couldn’t pick an absolute favourite.
LQ: Have any of them influenced your work?
CG: I am very sure, every single one has shaped me in some way, either as a writer or as a person. If you let good writing inside you, in your mind and heart, it is impossible not to be influenced by it.
LQ: How are you doing during the current pandemic?
CG: I am doing well, still healthy but a little frustrated. Though I am working from home and am complying with all lockdown curfews and restrictions, I am actually finding I am getting LESS time to write than normal. Everybody else in my household is stuck in the same house too. There is nowhere to withdraw to for some peace and quiet!
LQ: What are you currently working on?
CG: I am currently working on my 4th novella, Borderlands: Act 3. I have currently got about 12k words in the manuscript, about half of which is the outline, so I have a little way to go to get the first draft finished.
LQ: Anything else you would like to share?
CG: Readers interested in finding out more about the BronzePunk genre can visit www.charlesgull.com to be re-directed to my Amazon Author page and read free samples of my work.
Best wishes and lots of health to everyone I do and don’t know.