A Writer's Moment: It's what composes 'a stealth philosophy'

A Writer's Moment: It's what composes 'a stealth philosophy':   “Fantasy allows you to bend the world and the situation to more clearly focus on the moral aspects of what's happening. In fantasy you...

It's what composes 'a stealth philosophy'

 

“Fantasy allows you to bend the world and the situation to more clearly focus on the moral aspects of what's happening. In fantasy you can distill life down to the essence of your story. “ – Terry Goodkind 

 

Born in Omaha in 1948, Goodkind is best known for his epic Fantasy series The Sword of Truth and his  contemporary suspense novel The Law of Nines. The Sword of Truth series has been translated into 20 languages, selling over 25 million copies worldwide.

 

Initially a violin maker and marine and wildlife artist, Goodkind decided to try his hand at Fantasy writing in 1994.  The end result was Wizard’s First Rule, an immediate hit that changed his career trajectory.   Writing almost steadily from that point on, he produced 32 bestselling novels and one novella before his death in late 2020.  His final book, The Children of D’Hara, wrapping up his 6-book D’Hara series (the other 5 were released in 2019 and 2020), was published posthumously in 2021. 

 

Goodkind said Fantasy allowed him to better tell his stories and convey the human themes and emotions he desired to share. 

 

“I've always said Fantasy is sort of 'stealth philosophy',” he said shortly before his death.  “It allows you to say things that sound very dramatic and get away with it. If you had characters in modern fiction say the same things as they're driving down the street in an Oldsmobile, they'd sound ludicrous!”

A Writer's Moment: 'And then what happens?'

A Writer's Moment: 'And then what happens?':   “There's a village in my computer - friends, fans, readers, and colleagues. It's a populous, sometimes chaotic little burg always ...

'And then what happens?'

 

“There's a village in my computer - friends, fans, readers, and colleagues. It's a populous, sometimes chaotic little burg always bustling with news, gossip, opinions and potential excitement.” – Lisa Unger

 

Born in Connecticut on April 26, 1970 Unger spent her elementary school years in The Netherlands before returning to the U.S., and eventually moving to New York City where she worked in publishing for 10 years before diving into a full-time and award-winning writing career.   

 

Today she is an international bestselling author of 23 novels – primarily psychological thrillers – on the market in 26 languages, her most recent being Secluded Cabin Sleeps Six and The New Couple in 5B.

Also a successful essayist, Unger's writings have appeared in the New York Times and Wall Street Journal and (with her narrating) on National Public Radio. Unger says she loves writing just to see where each story is going to take her.   

 

“I write for the same reason I read, to find out what's going to happen,” she said.  “I don't think of my characters as people I create, I think of them more as people I have met and whom I'm exploring on the page.”

A Writer's Moment: 'It creates a communal nature'

A Writer's Moment: 'It creates a communal nature':   “A novelist writes a novel, and people read it. But reading is a solitary act. While it may elicit a varied and personal response, the com...

'It creates a communal nature'

 

“A novelist writes a novel, and people read it. But reading is a solitary act. While it may elicit a varied and personal response, the communal nature of the theater audience is like having five hundred people read your novel and respond to it at the same time.  I find that thrilling.” – August Wilson

 

Born in Pittsburgh on April 27, 1945 Wilson wrote 20 plays, highlighted by the 10-play Pittsburgh (or Century) Cycle..  Each of the 10 plays is set in a different decade of the 20^th Century, depicting both comic and tragic aspects of the black experience.

 

Over his career, cut short by his death from liver cancer, he won 8 New York Drama Critics Awards, two Pulitzer Prizes (for Fences and The Piano Lesson) and a Broadway Tony Award, also for Fences, which then was made into an award-winning movie.

 

Wilson, who died in 2005, said his aim with The Century Cycle was to sketch the black experience and "raise consciousness through theater.”  He was fascinated by the power of theater as a medium to bring community together to bear witness to life.  

 

And, he added, “I think my plays offer white Americans a different way to look at black Americans.”

A Writer's Moment: 'That makes you think'

A Writer's Moment: 'That makes you think':   “The book to read is not the one which thinks for you, but the one which makes you think.” – Harper Lee   Born in Alabama on this date...