Write Behind You | Writing about writing or procrastinating from actually writing

Time 2020-12-27 21:06:52

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Write Behind You Writing about writing or procrastinating from actually writing The sporadic nature of the posts on this blog should be evidence enough that I don t write as frequently as I should.   Even writing blog posts is probably more of a distraction than purposeful writing, seeing as the audience is so small.If you believe everything you read, then writers have to write.  According to myth, famous writers couldn t possibly do anything else.   They are conduits for stories that have to be told and they ll do whatever happens to get them out.   Some of them describe writers who would die if they couldn t write.I think we need to file these as Mostly False .I think closer to the truth is the fact that writing is probably 80 to 85% discipline and getting stuff done.    The vast majority of people who start a writing project, particularly a novel, never finish it.   So, the good news is, if you finish, then you are miles ahead of most other people.   The bad news is, finishing your work doesn t mean it s any good.I seem to spend most of my time waiting around for ideas something to write about.  It s a form of procrastination.  It is rationalization for the part timer.    I work a full time job so I need to carve out time away from family and relaxation in order to write.  I d better have something to write about.Truth is, just about anything can be a story.  The thrill is in the writing of it.   How can I tell this story in a way that no one else could.  Can I make it suspenseful, or heartbreaking.   Can I make it funny or sarcastic?   How can I make the words connect with readers.   I m beginning to believe the how is far more important than the what . I m not talking about style over substance, not really.“The air is full of tunes, I just reach up and pick one.” Willie Nelson, when asked where he gets his ideas from.The air is full of stories.  All you need to do is pick one and write the hell out it.   Then write it again.  Then write it again, maybe until it s good.I sometimes get hung up on the idea of being a gigging , working writer, scrabbling to make a living, writing anything for a buck.   One of my mentors at a workshop wrote children s non-fiction and she a had a file of important anniversaries coming up in the next 5 years.   With this she was able to pinpoint when to propose a book to publishers knowing they could get it on the shelves perfectly in time for the anniversary of, say the end of World War I or the 50th anniversary of the Moon Landing.   She makes a really good living and is a good example of the how vs the what .   She ll write about anything and write it well enough to publish and meet the market at the exact right time.This is trickier in fiction.  Trying to write to the market is mostly guesswork, especially in YA fiction.   Look back to the glut of paranormal romances during the post-Twilight years and you ll see.   A lot of poorly written shlock gets published in the wake of a huge success, but trying to guess the next big thing is futile.   For awhile I thought it was going to be robots but I was wrong.   The thing now,  if there is a thing, is diversity.  As a middle aged white cismale writing YA fiction that does me no good at all.Write about anything, but finish it, rewrite it, and make it sing.My favorite advice about all this Neil Gaiman of course: Someone asked me recently how to do something she thought was going to be difficult, in this case recording an audio book, and I suggested she pretend that she was someone who could do it. Not pretend to do it, but pretend she was someone who could. She put up a notice to this effect on the studio wall, and she said it helped.So be wise, because the world needs more wisdom, and if you cannot be wise, pretend to be someone who is wise, and then just behave like they would.And now go, and make interesting mistakes, make amazing mistakes, make glorious and fantastic mistakes. Break rules. Leave the world more interesting for your being here. Make good art. Neil Gaiman Keynote address, University of the Arts, 2012 More than a year since the last blog post I guess it s clear I m not very good at this.   There are a million reasons I haven t kept up I suppose.First, there s that whole full time job thing teaching.  It tends to get in the way.   Theatre teaching especially a lot of suck on the disposable time.   Since the last post, there s been a lot of theatre performed, seen and written but that s for another blog.As far as writing goes let s update.   I finished and submitted a revised version of Matt and Alice to the agent and got another revise and resubmit -with a tight editorial letter with plenty of suggestions and a massive job to do.   I haven t done it yet.I also attended the Kenyon Review Writer s Workshop in Fiction which was amazing and inspiring but hard to convert to the current project.And now, I m avoiding writing by writing this .so back at at it.Until next time. Awhile back, I wrote a post reflecting on the fact that whenever I acquiesce and buy the Book de Jour I end up painfully disappointed  (Gone Girl, The Martian, etc).Well, I m at it again.  I read a bunch of buzzy YA fiction this month and expected the same result BUT, instead I read some great books.The diversity issue is also going to raise its head here.  I have to admit, I m guilty of not always understanding or supporting the idea that diversity is an issue in YA publishing.  My fall back opinion is that great books are great books, period.   More and more I feel that isn t true.Our kids need books that reflect who they are and while, most of the time, that means teenagers, it also includes their race or ethnicity, their gender, their sexual orientation and everything else that makes up the palette of our cultural experiences.I m thrilled that these new books below happen to be (mostly) great books with diverse characters.City of Saints Thievesby Natalie C. AndersonRule 3: Thieves don’t have friends.Every thief has a mother, and maybe even a little sister if she’s lucky, but you can’t help any of that. You can have people like Boyboy’s mom, who I say hi to every day on my way home. That’s just keeping tabs on the neighborhood. She sells tea on the corner and tells me if cops are around, and I make sure the Goondas go easy on her boy. You can have acquaintances. But friends, people you care about, and who care about you . . .Well, you’re only going to get them into trouble.Essentially, City of Saints Thieves is a revenge story.  Tina, a Congolese refugee living in fictional Sangui City in Kenya uses her criminal connections as a way to ruin the man who killed her mother.It turns out to be more complicated than that, of course, as early on the identity of her mother s murderer is not as clear as expected.  Tina s search for answers leads her back across the border into the Congo to the village where she and her mother fled the militant groups in the first place.This is a fast paced thriller that highlights a lot of issues that really exist in Central East Africa and doesn t hold back when it comes to some of the more unsavory aspects of life in places like DRC.Tina as a character is somehow relatable, as her goal is a concrete one.  The voice is strong and readable throughout the book.  I enjoyed this one a lot pleasantly surprised.Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agendaby Becky AlbertalliAnd I don’t know how to do this. Ever since I told Abby on Friday, I kind of thought it would be easy to tell Leah and Nick. Easier, anyway, now that my mouth is used to saying the words.It’s not easier. It’s impossible. Because even though it feels like I’ve known Abby forever, I really only met her four months ago. And I guess there hasn’t been time for her to have any set ideas about me yet. But I’ve known Leah since sixth grade, and Nick since we were four. And this gay thing. It feels so big. It’s almost insurmountable. I don’t know how to tell them something like this and still come out of it feeling like Simon. Because if Leah and Nick don’t recognize me, I don’t even recognize myself anymore.Coming out is at the heart of this novel but it s much more than just that.   Coming out, coming of age many of the solid YA themes and voices are here, it just so happens that the protagonist is gay.The novel alternates between regular narrative and epistolary chapters between Simon and a mysterious online cruch with the screen name of Blue.   There are a few moments where the reader thinks they ve figured out Blue s identity, but it s not meant to be too great a mystery.Good solid characters and voice, and a good expression of a character interior thoughts on the page.Goodbye Daysby Jeff Zentner“For the most part, you don t hold the people you love in your heart because they rescued you from drowning or pulled you from a burning house. Mostly you hold them in your heart because they save you, in a million quiet and perfect ways, from being alone.”Full disclosure I am a huge fan of Jeff Zentner s first book, The Serpent King.  I m sure I wouldn t let myself be disappointed in this book even if I was.  Fortunately it s really good.The premise is simple enough.  Carver Briggs has just lost his three best friends in a single car accident.  Was he to blame?  Some people think so, and Carver almost believes it himself.This is a story about mourning and redemption.  It gets very tense at times, so tense I found it a little overwhelming, emotionally speaking.  It s not overtly sad or maudlin but, for me at least, it takes the reader to some dark places.Well worth reading.  Shit book cover.The Hate U Giveby Angie Thomas“I’ve seen it happen over and over again: a black person gets killed just for being black, and all hell breaks loose. I’ve Tweeted RIP hashtags, reblogged pictures on Tumblr, and signed every petition out there. I always said that if I saw it happen to somebody, I would have the loudest voice, making sure the world knew what went down.Now I am that person, and I’m too afraid to speak.”Probably the buzziest book on the list already purchased for a film adaptation before it was even released it is also the book that most exemplifies the diversity and need for diversity that we re talking about.Starr Carter, the protagonist, is the reader s gateway into the neighborhoods and communities we discuss every time a black teen gets killed by police.  This is THAT book.  And it s an important book for the kids in those communities, and it s an important for 46 year old white dudes like me.  It s also a really, really good book.Starr actually has a foot in both worlds living in the ghetto but attends a swanky, private school where she is one of two black students.   Early in the novel, she is the passenger in the car driving home from a party with her childhood friend Khalil, who is killed by a white police officer during a traffic stop gone wrong.The novel goes on to delve into issues of advocacy, police relations, gangs, community and race as Starr and her family try to choose the best path moving forward.Amazingly good.Good or bad, finish what you write.This is a variation on advice I ve seen by most of my favorite writers.You have to finish things — that’s what you learn from, you learn by finishing things.-Neil GaimanYou can t publish or call yourself a writer unless you finish something.  There are so many excuses to stop and I know this because I have used them all at some point.I don t know what to write about.This falls in the self doubt category of excuses and quite frankly, if you are not at the beginning of a new project, this excuse is meaningless.   You started something, keep following it.  Your protagonist must be headed somewhere (or you have bigger problems I suppose), take them there.  What is the next step in the journey?  Put a random obstacle in their path and write your way out of it.  Get something down.   Fix it later.I have other work I am supposed to be doing. (and all other I m too busy excuses)Make the time to write.  Get up early.  Stay up late. Skip TV.  Read one less chapter.  Schedule your time if you have a dedicated time for family, for work and for writing, don t allow yourself to let one leak into the other.   Even if you can only find an hour or two a week, you can find some time.I m not good enough, or creative enoughLet s kill this one where it lies.  There are no muses.  Stories don t write themselves there are no lightning flashes of inspiration.  It s all about craft, not creativity.  One word at a time that s how a story gets written.   Maybe it won t be good, but you won t know until you finish a draft.   Some drafts can be fixed, some can t.   Unfinished drafts all fail .I ve stalled a number of times and I m coming to believe that motivation and momentum are fickle things.   The same momentum I m riding right now the one that keeps me excited for my writing sessions, can easily turn the other way and let me ride excuses.  Currently, I m rewriting my novel for a revise and resubmit to an agent.   I delayed this for months and got absolutely nowhere.  I was absolutely dragged off course by downhill momentum.  Excuse after excuse.    I can t be entirely specific as to what made the difference how I switched gears.  Perhaps it was a problem solved or a flash of an idea, but the key was in recognizing that momentum had switched in my favor and not letting it go.    I m currently overshooting session targets so often that I think I might need to raise them.   I have several days set aside next month for finishing up the project and I can t wait to get to it.I love having my session targets available to see when I m writing.  If you re serious about writing, consider getting Scrivener a fantastic writing app. Here are a couple of short reviews from the last couple of months:Salt to the Sea Ruth Sepetys      I scavenged through the Russian’s frozen pockets and took cigarettes, a flask, a large sausage wrapped in paper, his gun, and ammunition. He wore two watches on each wrist, trophies collected from his victims. I didn’t touch them.     Crouching near the corner of the cellar, I scanned the cold chamber for signs of food but saw none. I put the ammunition in my pack, careful not to disturb the small box wrapped in a cloth. The box. How could something so small hold such power? Wars had been waged over less. Was I really willing to die for it? I gnawed at the dried sausage, savoring the saliva it produced.     The ground vibrated slightly.     This Russian wasn’t alone. There would be more. I had to move.     I turned the top on the soldier’s flask and raised it to my nose. Vodka. I opened my coat, then my shirt, and poured the alcohol down my side. The intensity of the pain produced a flash in front of my eyes. My ruptured flesh fought back, twisting and pulsing. I took a breath, bit back a yell, and tortured the gash with the remainder of the alcohol.The girl stirred in the dirt. Her head snapped away from the dead Russian. Her eyes scanned the gun at my feet and the flask in my hand. She sat up, blinking. Her pink hat slid from her head and fell silently into the dirt. The side of her coat was streaked with blood. She reached into her pocket.     I threw down the flask and grabbed the gun.     She opened her mouth and spoke.     Polish.This is a great example of a multiple perspective narrative something I ve been experimenting with lately.   This is the story of WWII refugees getting to and boarding the  Wilhelm Gustloff.  The sinking of the Gustloff would become the largest Maritime disaster in history.The POV alternates between 4 main characters, some together, some separate a nurse, a blind girl, a soldier (sort of) and a Nazi sailor on the Gustloff (whose part is told largely in letters).   All have distinct voices and the reader can quite quickly accept the flow of the story, receiving information from a variety of perspectives and sources.I m not an avid reader of historical fiction whether or not it is YA, but WWII is popping up a lot lately.  The story and technique pull this through.  It is compelling, suspenseful and thoughtful.It s difficult not to draw parallels to contemporary refugees and the journeys they face.  This is probably asking too much of what is a story firmly entrenched in time.  If I were discussing this book with kids however, I would certainly steer things in that direction at some point.Highly Recommended. Sister Rosa Justine LarbalestierBlurb copy Seventeen-year-old Aussie Che Taylor loves his younger sister, Rosa. But he’s also certain that she’s a diagnosable psychopath—clinically, threateningly, dangerously. Recently Rosa has been making trouble, hurting things. Che is the only one who knows; he’s the only one his sister trusts. Rosa is smart, talented, pretty, and very good at hiding what she is and the violence she’s capable of. Their parents, whose business takes the family from place to place, brush off the warning signs as Rosa’s “acting out.” Now that they have moved again—from Bangkok to New York City—their new hometown provides far too many opportunities for Rosa to play her increasingly complex and disturbing games. Alone, Che must balance his desire to protect Rosa from the world with the desperate need to protect the world from her.This contemporary YA novel is competent but not spectacular.  I don t think it is quite as dark and disturbing as the reviews make it out to be, but that could reflect more on me than the book.  It is certainly upsetting in places.  Rosa s actions are undeniably pretty horrific but things don t necessarily feel surprising.  There is a definite lack of suspense, here.There is a surprising twist at the end that makes up for some of the draggy bits in the middle.  The characters are fully drawn and the relationship between Che and Sojourner (I know, I know these names!) is enough to keep a reader interested.Recommended It s difficult to say whether the last 8 months have been eventful or uneventful.   In terms of productivity getting words on paper things have been rough.  The future looks bright, though; I ll try to explain why.July 2016I attended the OCCBWW again my third time.  My work got a great reception from my fellow participants as well as the instructors.  A few of the instructors told me I was hiding out in Oceanside, that my skills had moved beyond the scope of the workshop and I shouldn t attend again.   While that was heartening, it was also a bit sad as I ve grown to love Oceanside, the workshop and the faculty there.  If you get the chance, I highly recommend it.A sunset view of Oceanside beach.  The community centre where the workshop takes place has essentially this exact view.Look out for some of the great instructors there such as David Greenberg (of course), Jenn Reese, Margiet Ruurs, Deborah Hopkinson,  and the amazing Christine Fletcher.It was at the Oceanside workshop that I had a very positive meeting with an agent from a large NY agency.  She considered our little meeting the query and subsequently asked for a full manuscriptOctober 2016I heard back from the agent (and her assistant) who didn t take me on yet, but asked for an R R a revise and resubmit.  The assistant send a very large number of very good notes on my manuscript and said they were happy to wait for me.  As of this posting in February, I am still plugging away at the revisions.December 2016I took a writer s retreat.  Sort of.  Lisa generously suggested I carve out a couple of days from our Christmas holidays to go somewhere and write.  So I did.  I went to Hong Kong and got a room that overlooked Victoria Harbor one of my favorite sights in the world and started the revision process.The Star Ferry in HK one of my most favorite things in the world.February 2017I received an acceptance from the Kenyon Review Writer s Workshop.  I ll be honest that I really wasn t expecting it.   There are only 10 participants in the Fiction class (I m not sure how many classes there are I think two).   Now, I m excited, but also nervous as hell.Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio My home for a week this coming summer.More to come M Everyone deserves a 10 month vacation from their blog, right?Well I m back.  WriteBehindYou is back online for the 4 or 5 people who know about it. It s a habit I will keep.Speaking of habits check this out.  I was looking for ways to feel less distracted and to reward myself for reading more and I cam across Habitica.This is not my list.Basically, Habitica is a gamified habit builder/To do list app.  You can have it on your phone or on your desktop (or both).  You get little rewards as you check in whether or not you did something that day and send you notifications to get your ass moving.I m just simple enough to be amused by something like this and it works in the same way that a Fitbit makes you want to hit 10,000 steps for the little buzz on your wrist or the same way I get a little kick out of the badge I get for trying a new beer on Untappd.Anyway maybe it will remind me to blog. It s been a big month for reading here.  It probably signifies a lack of effort on the writing side, but it all feeds the same monster, really.  On that note, I have decided to go back to the OCCBWW again this summer puts some pressure on to get more written.On with the reading A Whole Lot of PlaysStill searching for possibilities for next year s productions, I went hog wild on plays.  Most are unsuitable, but a hell of a lot of fun to read.Between Riverside and Crazy Stephen GuirgisThe Beauty Queen of Leland Martin McDonaghOne Flew Over the Cuckoo s Nest WassermanClybourne Park Bruce NorrisThe Laramie Project Moises KaufmanBy The Way, Meet Vera Stark Constellations Nick PayneQuite a few more I forgot to list.  Reading plays is a great option by the way.   You can get through one in one or two sittings.Peter and The Starcatchers by Dave Barry and Ridley PearsonThis is a Middle Grade or young YA novel that escaped me a while back.  This should probably be with the play list as I read it because the new play version was unavailable on kindle.Having said that this was really enjoyable.  An unofficial origin story for Peter Pan that works on a lot of different levels.  Great adventure and familiar characters for developing readers and sly jokes and wit for adults or more proficient readers.  It s a lot of fun and I will likely read the rest of the series no matter what the Barrie estate thinks.Avenue of Mysteries John Irving.I love John Irving.  I m going to let that bias just sit there at the beginning of this review.  I love his works are called populist despite being full of freaks and kinky sex ( to say nothing of wrestling and bears).There s something great about approaching an Irving novel knowing that even if some of the rich little details aren t going anywhere in terms of the plot, they are developing the overall tone and Irvingness of the book.Set in Mexico, The Philippines and several airplanes, this another full life explored from childhood through to the later years.  Everything in the protagonist s  life has an antecedent in his childhood of course.  Typical of Irving, these events are grotesque, religious or sexual.This doesn t sit quite up there with Cider House or Owen Meany but it is completely readable and feels like a close cousin of A Son of the Circus (one of my favorite Irvings).Hollow City Ransom RiggsI let a lot of time pass between the first book Miss Peregrine s Home for Peculiar Children and this sequel, which was a bit of a mistake at least at first.  I was a little bit lost in terms of which peculiar child was which and what their particular peculiarity was.  Riggs does a particularly good job of easing you back into the world and reacquainting you with everyone, so I was rescued from confusion fairly early on.This has shades of classic second book/movie elements to it without ever feeling like merely a stepping stool to the finale.   In the same way that Empire handled the job in the Star Wars saga, so does Hollow City.  It stands on it s own as having a credible reason to exist, moving these character through an important journey to the conclusion of their adventure.   It s dark and delicious and easy to read quickly.Thanks for the Trouble Tommy WallachI m on the fence about this book.  I liked Wallach s first book We All Looked Up, with the exception of the ending.  This one ends better, but has some pretty clunky parts as well.I can t help but feel Wallach overdoes it sometimes and it seems artificial and dishonest.  I feel comfortable making this criticism as I recognize a lot of my own tendencies (ones I dislike) in this writing.Having said that, this is a really good YA book with some clever ideas in it as well as pockets of interesting writing.The Serpent King Jeff ZentnerI m going to come right and and say it.  I haven t enjoyed a YA novel this much since The Fault in our Stars.  This one hit me right in the feels and I know I m not going to do it justice with this little blurb.First this is not a fantasy novel.  I m sure there were editorial discussions over the marketing of this book and how the title is confusing.  This is contemporary realistic YA fiction with no magic serpents or dragons.  Trust me.This is the story of Dill, Lydia and Travis, three equally unpopular teens in Forrestville Tennessee and their own journey s of escaping the past and finding their way out.Dill is saddled with his family s history, particularly the town s attitude toward his imprisoned father, a pastor at an arsenic drinking, snake-handling old time church who is arrested for possession of child pornography.Travis is a disappointment to his drunk father who beats him for not being his dead older brother.  Travis escapes into the online forums and fanfiction of his favorite fantasy novel series.Lydia is the clever, smart ass, too hip for this crappy town fashion blogger who wrestles with her feelings for real life friends when it comes to communicating with her online audience.Ignore all that, that s terrible summary which is why I almost never try to tell you what the book s about.   I m not going to delete it, but I regret this review already.This book deserves to be huge.  Though I hope it doesn t get huge because that will ruin it and there will suddenly be a shitty sequel and a shitty movie.  I hope it is huge enough that the right people love it and the writer makes enough money to feel rich and loved.  How about that? Some good news to report  Matt and Alice and the Butterfly Lovers   is being read by someone actually in the publishing industry.When querying agents, a writer may be asked for partial manuscripts or full manuscripts.  It seems most of the agents I ve queried ask for a partial (three chapters, 10 pages, 50 pages) as part of the original query submission.  I think the key point here is don t start querying unless you are prepared to pony up a complete edited manuscript. Thankfully, mine is ready.  I can t imagine the stress if it wasn t.  Rumor has it, it does happen often.Last week I received what is known as a full manuscript request from a literary agent.  This doesn t mean I m getting published, it just means someone has agreed to read more than the first three chapters, which is heartening.  There are some good things about my later chapters that aren t indicated in the first three.This is actually quite problematic.  When submitting to agents and publishers, a writer has to make sure those first pages or chapters are in great condition and are good enough to motivate the reader to request more.  This means that pretty much anything that doesn t advance the story gets cut.   Unless you are an established writer, you have no room to faff about in the early chapters of your novel, regardless of the quality of the writing.  I think the opening is probably the better for it, but I do miss some of the things that I took out.  It s hard to stand on principle when you re trying to sell a book.This is a little bit of a cheat as the agent that requested the full manuscript is one that I ve met personally.  We met last year at the OCCBWW in Oregon.   She wasn t obliged to ask for a full manuscript though, so I think that could be a good sign.   It is no guarantee of anything of course.  An agent could decide that the first 3 chapters were great and then it falls apart.  She also might decide that the book turned out to not be the kind of thing she s looking for (even if it is good).So the waiting begins again.  Hopefully there are other requests for full or partial manuscripts.  In the meantime, still working on the new project. Oh my, it has been a long time.   I haven t abandoned you, my precious dozen readers.  I ve just been bogged down.My pleasure reading has been dramatically slowed by drama Arthur Miller in fact.  My student production of The Crucible has just wrapped up.  Successful, but exhausting.  I m ready to crawl back into reading now, I hope.Here s what I did manage to read since last we met.The Handmaid s Taleby Margaret AtwoodI d never actually read this or I had and I d forgotten.  I remember finding it quite astounding that my previous school didn t have it on the reading list for IB Lit (we were the Canadian school after all).Thematically, this wasn t too far from my planning of The Crucible, though this wasn t a conscious decision.   We ve lived through a lot of dystopias, I reckon, with more to come in the future.This hasn t lost any of its bite all these years later.  It might be Atwood s best.  I m going to try tackling the MaddAddam trilogy soon and may have to eat my words, but for now, I ll get behind this one.City on FireGarth Risk HallbergThis 900 page monster took me 6 weeks to finish.  In all honesty, it might have taken even longer had I not start turning 3 pages at a time.This book allegedly started a bidding war amongst publishing houses landing the author a cool 2 million dollar deal.  I think, if I were Mr. Hallberg, I would hide that in case they ask for it back.There is a really good 300 page book in here somewhere, but it would take a more patient man than me to look for it.  Set in Manhattan in the 1970 s, City on Fire follows the somewhat related lives of a dozen or so characters.There is some beautiful writing in here, but they support ideas that are merely good and a plot that is tedious.  I found myself getting drawn in during one reading session, only to be bewildered and bored in the next, putting the book down for days at a time.There was an attempt here to intertwine the lives of far flung characters that has been so satisfyingly accomplished in better books like Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann.  It doesn t really work though as it is all too tidy.Probably the biggest failure of this book is that nothing happens.   It is implied that Great Big Things are going to happen, but nothing really happens.Last year s other Big Book A Little Life is sitting on my bookshelf waiting to be read, but it might have to wait a little longer.  I m not quite ready to invest in another 900 pager right now.The Curious Incident of the Dog in The Night Time (play)by Simon Stephens (based on the novel by Mark Haddon)When one play closes, you start looking for the next one.  This has a lot of potential, though the licensing is restricted while it still plays in the West End.For non, theatre folk, this is a quick interesting read just to see how one adapts a novel with so much interior monologue for the stage.  The use of Siobhan as a sort of narrator is quite a brilliant trick.   I can see lots of room for creative staging and effects.This play really cuts out the thematic heart of the book and expands upon it in an emotional and visceral sense.  I read it in one quick sitting and will read it again soon as plans for next year get under way.  (feel free to add play suggestions in the comments by the way I m always game for new ideas) Privacy Cookies: This site uses cookies. 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