The end of April and beginning of May have been frustratingly slow in terms of writing progress. I wouldn’t call it writer’s block so much as being lost in the woods—figuratively for me, literally for my characters. It's not the type of situation where I don't know what to write, but I keep writing and getting deeper and deeper—and what's worse—more lost.
Read moreHow to Find the Perfect Name for Your Characters
No matter what genre of fiction you write, be it horror, mystery, YA, erotica, or more literary fare, there’s one very basic thing all fiction writers have in common—we LOVE coming up with perfect place and character names. I know some writers who seem to pull names of people, towns, rivers, roads, and ranches out of thin air, as if these fictional locales have always existed in the recesses of their minds. I can’t always do that, and maybe you can’t either, so here are some ways I go about gathering names for the characters and places in my own books and stories.
Read moreThe Mathematics of Revision
I enjoy re-reading Stephen King’s On Writing every few years. Not only is his personal, humorous, accessible prose in the book a pleasure to read, but as I grow older and more experienced in the writing world, I find so much of his advice to be spot on. But there’s one particular tip in his book that seems to have struck a chord in my writing life. In the long run, the piece of advice he offers is very true…but it took me a few drafts of one of my novels to see the light, and to develop my own equation for coming up with a book that, at least to me, is complete and satisfying.
That piece of advice? Put on your mathematician's hat and get out your pencil, because this is one equation you’ll want to write down and remember, and then revise and make your own.
Read moreThree New Poems in Kleft Jaw #5
My poems "Assurance," "Last Appointment of the Day," and "Three Bookmarks" now appear in Kleft Jaw #5, and I'd like to thank the staff over there for including my work for the third time. They're a real wild rumpus of a publication, and as they put it, "There is a magna-force of possibility teeming inside all of us, and that’s why we exist - to invoke the transcendental realist spirit in contemporary writing - to establish a new aesthetic, to make words dangerous again." I'm proud as hell to be a part of it.
Poem of the Week - The Bicycle Review
My poem "Seasick on 46th" now appears as the 'Poem of the Week' at The Bicycle Review. It's a huge honor as they've featured quite a lot of poets I admire and read. The poem also appears in my section of Lantern Lit, Vol. 1, a split-author chapbook of poetry that also features Mat Gould and John Dorsey from Dog On A Chain Press. Copies are still available at the publishers website (he even has copies that all three authors have signed!), and I think "Seasick on 46th" offers a great sample of what you can find inside. Take a look at "Seasick…" if you get the chance. I hope you enjoy, and thanks for all of your support!
Lantern Lit, Vol. 1 Now Available at Powell's Books
Lantern Lit, Vol. 1, which features my mini-chapbook "The Darkest Bomb," as well as the poetry of John Dorsey and Mat Gould, is now available at Powell's Books in Portland, OR. If you're in PDX, stop in and ask for it. If not, you can order it via their website. The book is also available in Quimby's Bookstore in Chicago, IL and Kulcher: Text, Art, and News in Cleveland, OH. And it's always available via the publisher, Dog On A Chain Press. Thanks for all of your support!!
** Update: It seems the book already sold out at Powell's. Granted there weren't a ton of copies, but still, that's great. The Publisher is planning to send more, but in the meanwhile you can still order the book from the publisher (link above) or try the other stores listed. Thanks! **
The Hustle Continues: Updates on Life & Writing
So far this new blog is mostly writing advice and a couple of new book announcements. In the hopes of appearing more like an actual human doing actual human things and not a PR spam-bot posing as a writer, here are some real, true, honest "life-things" for your optical intake receptors. Engage!
The new novel (the one fictionalizing a real missing persons case from 1945) was in a major slump over the last week, like a ‘Dostoevsky freezing at the train station I’ll never be able to write again’ slump. Then I finally broke through in the last 48 hours. Mostly because I told myself, “forget about description and action right now, the next 3-4 pages is all dialogue, so just do that and come back later and pick up a Crayola and jazz the scene up.” And that worked. Just stop worrying, thinking, planning, outlining, tinkering, and just write dialogue and revise later. So, like the Kool-Aid Man — KABOOM — breakthrough.
Read moreThe Five W's (and One H) of Soliciting Feedback for Your Novels, Short Stories, Poetry, and More
My newest advice column at Writer's Digest's blog is now live. It examines the Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How of soliciting feedback for your novels, stories, poems, etc.
On a related note, I also recently wrote about how writers can become publishers by creating DIY literary anthologies in my interview with author/publisher Bud Smith.
For all of my articles at the "There Are No Rules" blog, click HERE. Thanks!
My Roundtable Interview in Writer's Digest
The newest issue of Writer's Digest magazine (March/April 2014) contains my roundtable interview with some of the top literary magazine editors who are making great things happen out there in the writing community, including Dave Housley (Barrelhouse), David Lynn (The Kenyon Review), Emily Nemens (The Southern Review), Todd Simmons (Wolverine Farm Publishing/Matter Journal), and Rob Spillman (Tin House). We discuss what editors are looking for, what will make them reject a submission, common misconceptions about literary magazines, and a lot more. It was fun to write, they're all amazingly dedicated and passionate people, and I can't wait for you to read it!
Berlin: A New Chapbook from Maverick Duck Press
I'm very excited to announce that my chapbook of new poetry, Berlin, was just accepted by Maverick Duck Press, a great small press dedicated to featuring, as they put it, "cutting edge talent with an eye for detail and a powerful voice." This will be a limited-run printing, and as soon as I have a release date I'll let you all know. Between this new collection and the currently available Lantern Lit, Vol. 1, which features my mini-chapbook The Darkest Bomb, I'll have to get myself out the door to some readings this year, and I'll post details about that as well. But for now, a big thank you goes out to MDP editors Kendall Bell, Kayla Marie Middlebrook, and Bronwyn Haynes, the magnificent city of Berlin, and Marguerite Gisele for walking me down the cobblestone, lamplit streets and for helping me order beer at The Nordwind! And a thanks goes out to all of you for your support and for reading my work. It's deeply appreciated.
7 Tips for Revising a Novel
*Previously published at the Writer's Digest blog, There Are No Rules. I blog there once or twice a month. Take a look!*
I spent my December revising a noir/crime novel (I seem to spend most Decembers revising a novel) and I also had a recent discussion with two other writers about the revision process. Both occurrences brought to mind some tips you may find useful. Mind you these are rather simple pieces of advice, and everyone has their own process that works for them, but they might help you feel a little less like you’re swimming upstream during this vital step. I hope they help. Happy revising!
1. Use One File — This is especially true in fiction, but I advise all writers to write the early drafts in one Word file (or whatever software you use). Not only does it help keep a sense of continuity as you progress, but if you make a change that affects an earlier chapter, all you have to do is scroll up. It also makes a key word search much easier without having to open multiple files. I’ve seen novelists use a new Word document per chapter (I did with my first novel way back when) but it can become a confusing jumble of files once you get up to chapter sixty, seventy, eighty…
6 Writing Lessons From Alfred Hitchcock's 'Rear Window'
It's often said that the book is better than the movie, but sometimes a movie can help you write a book, especially if that movie is directed by cinema legend Alfred Hitchcock! Granted, he was working with some exceptional material, with a dynamite screenplay by John Michael Hayes, based on a short story by Cornell Woolrich - something I forgot to mention in the article I wrote over at the Writer's Digest blog, "There Are No Rules," where I offer six lessons a writer can take away from the classic film Rear Window. Enjoy!
Why I Write for Children, Too
A lot of people know that I'm a fan of noir fiction, crime, mystery, and old pulp stories. Many of my short stories and novels focus on these genres, but I also dabble in horror, sci-fi, and even westerns. And those closest to me know that poetry has pulled me through the worst events of my life and made the best events even better, but when people ask me what I write, one of the first things out of my mouth is, “I write children’s books.”
Read more8 Things Star Wars Can Teach Us About Writing
This is just a quick note to say I have a new post at Writer's Digest on how the lessons learned in Star Wars can help writers stay productive! It's a take off a previous author's Star Trek related post, and as a Star Wars guy, I couldn't allow myself to be outdone. I hope you find it useful!
My Top 10 Books of 2013
As usual, my list is formulated as such: The books don’t have to be released in 2013, but I must have read them in 2013, and it must be the first time I have read them. I stick to fiction for these lists, usually novels but not always.
10. The Whisperer in the Darkness by H.P. Lovecraft
This is a short novella that is also available for free for your e-reader (it’s in the public domain), which is how I read it. The story concerns a New England scientist who scoffs at the claims of strange, monstrous bodies found floating down rivers after a major flood in Vermont. Soon, a man living in a remote section of Vermont reaches out to him via letters, claiming that these bodies are not old wives' tales, but are clues to a secret that has plagued humanity for centuries. The man in Vermont has witnessed the cult-like, otherworldly beings who live deep in the woods. The beings are aware they're being watched, and they're closing in. The letters escalate in intensity and strangeness as the story unfolds, and our scientist eventually makes the trek to rural Vermont himself, with horrific results. The tale is spooky, fun, and skin-crawlingly wonderful.
Read moreUp The Staircase Quarterly's Book Review of 'The Cards We Keep'
Author, poet, and Up the Staircase Quarterly editor April Michelle Bratten has posted a great review of my collection of short fiction, The Cards We Keep. In part she says, "Duncan’s characters are genuinely interesting and relatable in all of these ten stories, no matter what strange or dangerous predicaments they might have gotten themselves into… (continued)
Read moreBest of the Net Nomination, 2013
I'd like to thank Thick With Conviction editor Danielle Masters for nominating my work, "The Young of Stray Dogs," for the 'Best of the Net' award. Poems selected by the 'Best of the Net' committee appear in their annual anthology (produced by Sundress Publications). I've received a couple of nominations in the past, but not since my attention has shifted more toward fiction in the last couple of years, so this is much appreciated.
Writing a Novel Is Like Being In Love
The last few months have been a beehive of activity, both good and bad, but one thing has seen me through all of these terrible and uplifting events — a new novel I’m writing, which has a very temporary working title "The Beacon Novel."
It tells the interconnected stories of five or six people in Beacon, a small city in the Hudson Valley Region of New York, just a short train ride outside of New York City...
Read moreShould I Self-Publish? (A Blog Trilogy)
I recently published a trilogy of blogs at the Writer’s Digest website offering advice on whether or not writers should self-publish (Part One), how to go about doing it if you choose to do so (Part Two), and what to do when you’re done creating your book and you're ready to sell it (Part Three). My general thoughts on whether or not self-publishing is a good idea is YES, you should give it a shot . . . but it does mean a certain amount of responsibility, hard work, and technical skill is needed to do it "right." Hopefully these blogs will help you along the way.
Why I Love the San Antonio Spurs
I’m a San Antonio Spurs fan and I have been for life, even before I knew it. I spent a good deal of my childhood in San Antonio, Texas, both before and after my parents divorced when I was three-years old. I spent every summer there between the ages of 8 and 19, then a year of college, and later three years in my late 20s, with little trips in between. My father’s side of the family has lived in Texas for generations (and generations), so the roots go deep. My dad was a fan and so was my grandfather. It's in the family, in the blood.
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