Local
We have snow again. Sigh.
If you are a fan of John Birmingham's work then chances are probable that you have read Without Warning. If you haven't, go to the bookstore or library, buy a copy, read it and come back to see me. I'll wait.
Back already?
There is a passage in the novel where a GlobalHawk drone is flying recon over the now deserted United States of America, notably the Kansas City Metropolitan Area. Unlike many major metro areas, Kansas City did not erupt in a firestorm of failed power nets, running appliances and the like due to the weather in March 2003 per the alternate timeline. The reason is due to the "schizophrenic weather" of the region.
Which is what we are experiencing now. Technically today is supposed to be the first day of spring. Yesterday before three in the afternoon it was shirt sleeve warm and sunny, enough so that Trinity and I went for a walk around North Kansas City (you'll notice a QuikTrip burning in the novel which is a stone's throw from where we live today). By time we made it back home, the clouds had moved in and the temperature had fallen through the floor.
So another blanket of the white stuff for us. Just great.
The Writing Front: Projected Plans
I looked over two stories yesterday and I plan on getting moving on a third in the next day or so. If I play my cards right and get enough writing time in, I think I can have two of my stories ready for market in addition to the Joint Writing Project.
So my goal is pretty simple.
I want three new stories ready for market by May 18th of this year. In addition, I'll pull Maternal Soldier out and send that story out to market again. That will make four stories with my name on it and a fifth as part of a dual header if you count JWP-02.
I had been working on a project in the second person. I don't like this approach but I still like the story. So I'll start over on that one.
Reading: The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro
I'm almost through with The Remains of the Day which follows the reflections of Mr. Stevens, a British Butler to the late Lord Darlington. Told entirely from the first person point of view, Ishiguro effectively establishes characterization and conflict within two pages of his introduction. It is the first book in years that I felt compelled to sit and read to completion in one sitting. Unfortunately my life is such that extended stretches of reading do not seem to be possible anymore.
I've already seen bits of the film and read reviews and summaries of the novel so I have already had it spoiled. Mr. Stevens is someone who is deeply invested in the concept of maintaining one's dignity as one carries out their duties as a butler. In the pursuit of this dignity, an ever fleeting sense of total perfection which is unobtainable, he loses a bit of his humanity it seems. And he also misses his chance at true love with one of his peers, the housekeeper Miss Kenton, who eventually leaves the Household in search of happiness with another man.
Deluded, a bit defensive and certainly a little snobbish, Mr. Stevens is a quirky man who strives never to give overt offense. Unfortunately, he is so wedded to the avoidance of offense that sometimes he misses the point, which is what makes him human in spite of the fact that he has lost some of his own humanity. I found him to be refreshing to read, to explore his mind, though I suspect I would not care to have a drink with him.
I think I'll check up on more of Ishiguro's work to see what I can learn.
They say that writers read, especially the good ones. I agree, unfortunately, I am an incredibly picky reader. My patience for most of what passes as literature these days is slim at best. I dislike political novels intensely and style monkey stunts do not interest me either. What we have in The Remains of the Day is a solid, interesting and novel character study.
It would be nice to find more such work out there.
So it goes. It has my recommendation.
Respects,
Steven Francis Murphy
Author of The Limb Knitter and Tearing Down Tuesday
North Kansas City, Missouri
15 hours ago