The tickle of curiosity. The gasp of discovery. Fingers running across the keyboard.

The tickle of curiosity. The gasp of discovery. Fingers running across the keyboard.

The World of Iniquus - Action Adventure Romance

Showing posts with label John Dolan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label John Dolan. Show all posts

Monday, August 3, 2015

Are You Thinking of Co-authoring a Book? Info for Writers

Writing
 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
A few years ago, I met English ex-pat John Dolan on Twitter, of all places. He had doffed his Henry Higgins cap to explain to me the retweet concept when I was meandering around the Twittersphere as a newbie. Our personalities clicked, and we decided in short order to write a novel together via the Internet.

I thought I might lay out some of the barrels we needed to leap in order to help you make decisions should you ever find yourself wanting to co-author a work. If you are a reader you might appreciate the behind scenes foibles

Timing
I thought the hardest part of this experiment would be time. John and I had our personal constraints as well as the timing issues of a 9 hours difference between EST where I live and Dubai time where he was living. But that was the least of the issues. Technology issues were our #1 headache.

Trusting.
If either of us threw up our hands before we were done, then months of work would be down the drain. Make sure you have an exit strategy should one of you need to stop.

Picking a language.
John speaks British-English, and I speak American-English. Word choices, phrases, even spelling can become confusing, even if you are from different regions within a single country. Here’s a real-life exchange between John and I that actually made it into our book:

John: "Dagenham Dave" was a 'wide boy' in an Ian Dury song.

Fiona: OK I think this is fine but have no idea what a 'wide boy' could mean besides someone who enjoys too many pastries.

John: Continues Fiona's education in matters British: A 'wide boy' is someone who is an insincere person, a con-man, a snake-oil salesman, someone obsessed with making 'loads of money'. OK, Elisa? Yours, Henry Higgins.

Fiona: Thank you, professor. Can I take the marbles out of my mouth now?

Writing Style
I am a writer who has the characters and plotline basics in her head, and then lets the story unfold organically. John is a plotter extraordinaire. He kept sending me spreadsheets. To be honest, the first time I opened one, I broke out in hives. He had to coax me, like a wounded animal, into opening any others.

Specialties
Combining fortes produced what we think is a really interesting and unique work. I have a background in psychology, weapons, CSI, and fighting. John is a Shakespearean actor, musician, poet, who works with laws and numbers. We each wrote our strong points and did tutorials for the other. Once I even “killed” one of my adult children over Skype with a black magic marker. John needed to understand how the move worked and the victim's body mechanics. My kid #2 is a trained martial artist so she knows how to take a convincing fall.

A Meeting of the MindsBecause we discussed plot holes, characters, settings and all of the issues that make writers have to dump whole scenes, when we actually sat down to write, our first draft was pretty clean. We did do some rearranging and tweaking, but for the most part, we had already ironed the wrinkles out of the major issues.

Co-authoring CHAOS IS COME AGAIN with John Dolan was a fabulous experience. I had the most fun. I laughed so hard when we were working together that my sides hurt. Chaos Is Come Again is a psychological suspense, a mystery, and a love story, packed with irreverent humour, and viewed through the lens of obsession. You’ve probably never read anything like it
.







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Cheers,






Saturday, November 15, 2014

"Sin on a Plate" A To-die-for Chocolate Cake Recipe

___________________________________________
Those sentiments are understandable. I’ve had days like that myself. It’s a very human reaction, I think,” Avery said.
Sean smiled. “Was today one of those days?” 
Canting her head, Avery asked. “How did you know?”
Sean rubbed his index finger at the corner of his mouth. “You have a little chocolate icing, just there.”


In Chaos Is Come Again, Lola Zelkova can do little to make her friend Avery's life any easier. Lola's solution? A sinfully rich chocolate cake. It can cure almost anything that ails you. Here is her recipe.

I will warn you at the outset:
* This cake takes forever to make (but 
   I'll give you options along the way)
* This cake is HIGHLY ADDICTIVE
* Once you make this cake, no other 
   cake will ever be good enough. 
   Yup, this cake will ruin you for all
    cakes from here on in. 
* If you share this cake with others, they
   will insist on this cake to feel loved.
  
So hand out the slices with caution.

Start with the chocolate mousse because this is a lovely dessert in and of itself. If you only get this far, it's all good - just pipe this into a martini glass add a garnish and call it a day.




RUM CHOCOLATE MOUSSE

Ingredients
1 3/4 cups heavy cream
12 ounces quality semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 c dark rum
4 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon flavorless, granulated gelatin

Directions

THE COLDER THE BETTER
* Chill 1 1/2 cups heavy cream in refrigerator. 
* Chill metal mixing bowl and mixer beaters in freezer.

* In top of a bain marie, combine chocolate chips, rum, and butter. 
* Melt over barely simmering water, stirring constantly. 
* Remove from heat while a couple of chunks are still visible. 
   Burned chocolate is nasty and ruins the mousse. 
* Allow to cool to room temperature.

* Pour 1/4 cup heavy cream into a pyrex bowl and sprinkle in the
     gelatin. 
* Allow gelatin to "bloom" for 10 minutes. 
* Carefully heat by stirring in a bain marie. A bain marie is just
    simmering water in a pot so the heat is diffuse. 
* Do not boil or gelatin will become a gloopy mess. 
* Fold into the cooled chocolate and set aside.

* In the chilled mixing bowl, beat cream to medium peaks. 
* Fold some of your whipped cream into the chocolate mixture to 
    lighten it. 
* Fold in the remaining whipped cream in two batches. 
* Do not overwork the mousse.
* Stick your bowl in the fridge.

RASPBERRY DRIZZLE




This too can be an excellent dessert in and of itself. Once made, you can spoon it over brownies, ice cream what-have-you.

* Mix one small jar of raspberry jam and a mini bottle of 
  Chambord. 

Tah dah!

Wasn't that easy?


CHOCOLATE RUM CAKE




Ingredients

1 cup room temperature butter
2 cups granulated sugar
4 large eggs
1/2 cup dark rum
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup unsweetened cocoa
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup hot water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract 





* Beat the butter at medium speed with an electric mixer until
   fluffy; gradually add sugar, beating well. 
* Add eggs, beating until blended after each addition. 
* Add rum; beat until blended.
* Combine flour and next 5 ingredients sift into sugar mixture 
* Add hot water and vanilla
* Beat at low speed until blended.

* Prepare pans by spraying with non-stick spray then dust with
    cocoa powder.

* Pour evenly into 2  9" pans then give a shake to smooth tops and
   release air bubbles.
* Bake at 350° for 27 minutes (cake will be slightly under done). 
* Cool in pans on a wire rack 10 minutes. 
* Remove from pans, and cool completely on wire racks.

Whew! Almost there. Did you give up? Slice the cake, drizzle with raspberry sauce, and add an ice cream scoop of mousse, garnish with chocolate shavings. 

But if you're still hanging in there...

Chocolate Rum Frosting




1 lb. confectioners' sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
12 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
3/4 cup  unsalted butter, room temperature
18 ounces bittersweet chocolate, melted and cooled
1 1/2 cups sour cream
2 tbs rum (you knew I'd have to do it)




DIRECTIONS

* Sift together confectioners' sugar, cocoa, and salt. 
* With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat cream cheese
   and butter until pale and fluffy.
* Add sugar mixture 
* Mix in melted and cooled chocolate and sour cream
* Beat until smooth. Leave out on the counter so it is room
   temperature.

Okay ready for the great construction -
Boo! The video failed us! But I know you can follow from these instructions


You need to make sure your cake is cool, and you work quickly to keep the mousse firm.
1. You have 2 cakes. Slice each one in half to form what will be
    four layers. You can use a serrated
    knife or dental floss if you don't have a cake cutter.
2. Place the one of the layers smooth side down spongy side up on
      your cake plate. 
3. Use strips of waxed paper of aluminum foil around the edge so
    your plate is clean when you're done icing.
4. Stab your sponge side with a fork. and spread 1/3 of the 
    raspberry mixture onto the cake. Stabbing your cake means the
    Chambord will seep down into the cake and infuse it with 
    moisture and flavor.
5. Add 1/3 of your mousse spreading it to the edges.
6. Repeat until you place your top layer sponge side down smooth
    side up.

CHILL - to firm up your mousse

FROST - 


Please note: This is not a smooth pretty frosting. It is more a thick layer of chocolate deliciousness that wants to look a little wild and free. The kind of cake that you can slice right into and don't need to remark of its beauty. Nope this is just a decadent gluttonous cake that needs to lay on your plate and be spooned into your mouth.

It's like crack. One taste, and you'll be addicted. This is your warning. Make this cake at your own risk.

And if you do. 

Well, you are entirely welcome. 

Read all about the Lola's chocolate cake panacea in our new novel CHAOS IS COME AGAIN.




Thank you so much for stopping by. And thank you for your support. When you buy my books, you make it possible for me to continue to bring you helpful articles and keep ThrillWriting free and accessible to all.



Sunday, November 9, 2014

Is that Even Possible? A Writing Experiment: Chaos Is Come Again with John Dolan and Fiona Quinn

First, a Scientific Question

Could two writers who had just met on Twitter come together and write a novel? 

Hmmm.

Some considerations:
* The writers had never met, never even spoken to each other. Only
   tweeted. Though the question was posed in an e-mail. 
* They write in different styles.
* One writes in English- English; one writes in American-English.

   And thus, spelling, vocabulary, and phrasing differences - some
   of them quite significant - some quite funny.
* One writer lives outside of D.C. in the U.S. and the other is an
   English ex-pat splitting his time between Thailand 
   and Dubai so a time difference of 11 or 9 hours respectively.
* They were both very busy. Dolan was running a power company,
   and Quinn was homeschooling her brood. Both were already
   working on their own writing projects. 
* One was a plotter who has a love of spreadsheets, the other a
   pantser who actually broke out in hives the first time she saw a
   Dolan-spreadsheet.

The catalyst for the science experiment.

Fiona Quinn, a newby to Twitter, meets John Dolan, a Twitter proficient, because she did not understand what an RT was. 

This lead to Dolan putting on his much doffed Henry Higgins cap as he tried to explain the workings of Twitter. 

And then, there was a Twitter exchange of a story - line by line - which lead almost immediately to the question - is this possible in a larger format? Could we write a novel?

Background Research

* First, each subject had to read each other's work and see if
   they felt their possible writing partner could string more that 140
   characters together in a cogent fashion.
* Then there was the Skype session - to actually "meet."
* This was followed by ideas thrown about to see if the minds
    could interact as a team.

Hypothesis

Two strangers from different backgrounds and different parts of the world can bring their own talents and knowledge to the table to create a unique and interesting work of fiction.

Test Your Hypothesis

Fiona Quinn
Quinn and Dolan began the experiment in the spring of 2013. Within a couple of months of daily Skyping and numerous emails, they had constructed their characters and plotline. Dolan took time off on a sabbatical, and they came together to finish the project spring of 2014.

Decisions were made about spelling, language, and process and all were documented ad nauseum into spreadsheets (that Quinn had to be coaxed into opening).



Language/cultural barriers were broken down with exchanges such as these:

Dolan - You are a cheeky cow.
Quinn - I'm a cow? 
              I think we could start with a dictionary of weird
              English words - Yonks, Cow, Fanny, Shag, Twee,
              Loo... 
Dolan - The "cow" thing btw. In English the term "cheeky cow" (of
              which "cow" is a shortened version) is almost a term of
              endearment directed at someone who has made a comment
              which is critical but in a non-threatening/insulting way.
              Just so you know.
Quinn - I took it with a spoonful of endearment.

and...

Quinn - How do you envision Sean?
Dolan - * He's not a homeschooled vegetarian
             * He doesn't like anchovies
             * Size 9 feet
Quinn - Size 9 feet? That's unfortunate.
Dolan - Why?
Quinn - Oh... Hmm... Well there seems to be a mythological 
             correlate --
Dolan - I have size 9 feet
Quinn - ACH! I'll stop typing.
             NO WAIT!
             You have size 9 feet in European size?
Dolan - Yes. Well UK size
Quinn - Okay then I'll finish. A correlate between the man's foot
              size and his uhm “endowment.” And here, size 9 is rather 
              small...
Dolan - Ah, but my foot is only a size 9 when it's not aroused. 
             Whenever my feet get excited, they bust out of my shoes.
Quinn - Too early! I just woke up. 
              That's a frightening thought, Mr. Dolan.
Dolan - It's like a scene from Alien.
Quinn - OK, that's enough thank you. I'm off to wake the kiddos.
              L8r G8R.

There were lots of technical difficulties - a typical exchange.

* OK, I've been through it and accepted all your yellows and put a couple of red expansions. Wanna
    talk about the big blocks of green under Sean and Teagan?
* 2:00pm Quinn - yup.
* 2:02pm Dolan - On video? 15 min warning: I need to get something to eat shortly, OK?
* 2:03pm - John missed a call from you.
* May 24 - You missed a call from John.
* 2:04pm Quinn -  try again  it didnt ring.
* May 24 You missed a call from John.
* 2:05pm Dolan -retrying
* May 24 You missed a call from John.
* May 24 John called you.
* May 24 John called you.
* May 24 John called you.
* May 24 You missed a call from John.
* May 24 You missed a call from John.
* May 24 John missed a call from you.
* 2:10pm Dolan - 1 more try
* 2:10pm Quinn -  k u go
* May 24 You missed a call from John.
* 2:11pm  Dolan - Tried. It's not playing. Let me eat and we'll try later if that's OK with you
* 2:12pm Quinn -  Yup

* 4:07pm Dolan - You try
* May 24 You called John.
* May 24 John called you.
* May 24 You called John.
* May 24 John called you.
* 4:09pm Quinn - one more time for good luck - you or me?
* 4:10pm Dolan - you call but give me 1 min first. I thought I'd try headphones and see if it makes a
               difference. OK ready
* May 24 You called John.
* 4:14pm Quinn -  Whoop! I can see you... BOO! I can't hear you.
* 4:15pm Dolan - Can you see my lips moving?
* 4:15 pm Quinn - Sigh. Maybe the book will just write itself????

Description of Outcome:
In Chaos Is Come Again, authors John Dolan and Fiona Quinn step away from their usual writing styles to create a twisted dark comedy for the Internet generation. Pulling back the curtain on the messiness of their characters’ issues, the authors take a satiric look at the juggling act of modern life.

In America, dread propels literary agent Avery Goodyear out of bed each morning. She’s panicked about losing her job if she doesn't get Travis Bishop – the coke-addicted author of the blasphemous Nosferatu, the Lost Gospel – to complete his sequel.

In England, Sean’s schizophrenia meds aren’t doing their job, and the voices in his head are getting louder. To make matters worse, he is being harassed by a predatory girlfriend, and a conspiracy nut who thinks the way to catch the London serial killer is through the magic number 23.

A chance meeting on Twitter connects Sean and Avery. As their relationship deepens, they each try to conceal the chaos that defines their lives. But secrets can be deadly.


 For readers who enjoy works such as The World According to Garp and MASH


Analyze Your Data and Draw a Conclusion

* I am holding the end result in my hand. 
* It has a beginning, a middle, and an end.   
* Words form sentences, sentences form
   paragraphs which in turn form chapters.

Yes, by jove! 

I do believe that this experiment produced a book!







Commnicate Your Results

This is what people are saying:

“Readers, get ready for a hysterical, wild, whacky read that
  will keep you biting your nails till the end. ” 

“The characters in this book are diverse, complicated and
  fascinating.”

“The ending will simply blow you out of the water.”


and Quinn's personal favorite:

"A book this weird shouldn't work, but this one does, magnificently."


To read all of our reviews click on this LINK 


Thank you so much for stopping by. And thank you for your support. When you buy my books, you make it possible for me to continue to bring you helpful articles and keep ThrillWriting free and accessible to all.