ARTISTE – AUTRICE
tips about a creation of a plot, characters, places and other information.
Radio is an important vector of information and culture. Before writing the first draft of my book Fantastic L.A, I supplemented my research by reading books on California history, articles and also by listening to the California Dreamin podcast series.
Internet link :
The plot of my new book named Fantastic L.A takes place in Los Angeles. Because I never visited the city, I asked myself many questions about the history of L.A and the geography of its neighborhoods. I did not hesitate to seek advice from an artist living there. Pleasant Gehman has drew up a plan and answered my questions in writing. Collaborating with other professionals is a rewarding experience. Similarly, when I was researching numismatic, I called on a specialist in this field who worked in a Museum of the Pyrénées-Orientales. This allowed me to have a precise idea on the historical level. Then for the plot part, I let my imagination free to plunge the readers with me into a fantastic universe.
Internet links :
When I’ve written a story, go to the places that inspired meaning. And very often, my visit reveals supposed elements that I had not thought of. As part of “duel in Albi”, after a walk in the park and in the city, I discovered several historical monuments as well as two museums, one dedicated to Toulouse Lautrec and one dedicated to fashion. It immediately made me think of fairy tales and theater stage costumes.
All authors have their writing habits. Some like to write quietly in their home, others in a park or any other place that inspires them. For my part, I like to write in my office and from time to time in another place. It’s like a kind of exercise that allows me to learn to adapt to different writing conditions. I sometimes go to a tea room where the decoration of objects fascinates me. Then, I need a little time to adapt to refocus. The type of writing is different from my office. I invite you to change your habits in writing in another places. Here are some photos.
Internet allows you to research a lot of data and to save time. However, they need to be verified for each project and to go deeper is necessary. Very often, I follow specific training courses. Let’s take the example of detective stories and mysteries. Taking a few forensic science courses gave me some insights. Just like listening to authors of historical fiction expose their problems of writing. I have always thought that being opened to new knowledge and perfecting oneself in one’s profession were essential. Exactly as to teach them afterwards. All these exchanges are humanly enlightening.
Very often, it is our visual sense that is the most solicited. As far as I’m concerned, I like to experience the following from time to time during a walk: I watch and describe the landscape. It is a field where the hay has been cut, all around the trees and in the sky the birds. Then I close my eyes and listen. I hear their singing, the sound of a vehicle in the distance, the blowing of the wind.
Then I feel a cool breeze on my skin that gives me goosebumps.
Now I smell the multiple smells all around.
Then I touch a blade of grass. What gives me the most difficulty is the use of taste so I drink some water that I brought on my bike.
To improve the description of a text, I like to perform this exercise. It is possible for any chapter or scene.
When I write improvisation grids for the guitar, I use libre office. Sometimes I need to draw chords diagrams. There is a useful extension that I would like to share with you:
https://extensions.libreoffice.org/en/extensions/show/chorddiagrams
As a professional, I think about the evolution of writing. And, of course, I ask myself all kind of questions to which I try to find a solution. They are not necessarily the best but having a vision of the future allow you to anticipate.
Here are three issues we should think about :
As an author we can facilitate accessibility by offering files whose content is structured through the use of style sheets. Publishers will then be able to continue the accessibility process.
Regarding the recycling of paper, there are labels that are more compliant than others, similarly vegetable inks are possible. That said, print on demand seems an alternative.
Finally, DRM does not seem to me to promote the dissemination of a book for the public. Similarly, the multiplicity of formats according to a particular type of equipment restricts reading.
When you have an idea about a subject that requires accurate historical information, it’s not always easy to know where to search. Here are some tips that I learned. They could be useful to you. The documents come from several types and are not all in the same place.
People houses:
Letters, intimate correspondence. Testimonials from the era or descendants (stories passed down within the family or heard)
Archives: (national archives etc.)
Medical reports
Minutes
Birth certificates
Period newspapers
Theses: (specialized websites, universities etc.)
History student theses
Books :
Current authors who have written on or around the same topic
Local fund:
Public Library
When you began to write to publish, this question comes to you. What are the reasons for using an alias? I think, they are of two kinds. The first is to preserve your anonymity, the other one to create a second identity.
There are situations where authors feel a danger by publishing under their real name. Let’s take the case of the denunciation of illegal or violent acts through a book, thus providing testimony as a victim (illicit activities within a company, by example).
In a different case, opting for a pen name is also the possibility of publishing texts in a new style. Some authors do this with the aim of testing a new audience. For my part, I wrote a first short story under a pseudonym. I didn’t want to reveal my name when posting at that time. Then I realized that I felt it was important for me Several years later, I replaced the pseudonym (used for my novel) with one of my surnames.