Marshall vs. WVU

24-7: This is what happens when you fumble twice in the red zone.

Back to the C-USA schedule!

The Time Draws Near, The Writer Readies Himself . . . Kinda . . .

MFA application season approaches. I still don't feel like I have a great writing sample, but I've come to the conclusion I never will. I will never feel like I have written well enough until I get an acceptance letter, and even then I'll think, "whew, I snuck one past them." That's the trouble with finding your self-image as a writer in the opinions of others.

Honestly, I do think the stories I've written are good. The fact that not everyone agrees highlights the subjective nature of reading fiction. That's what makes me nervous about MFA applications. I can't be guaranteed a spot by just getting a certain score on the GRE (which I still need to take). I've been recently that I will just stop worrying about others opinions (within reason) and write what I believe God is leading to write.

The good news for today is that I finished the first draft of "Miracles for Americans." It needs a lot of work, but it's good to actually get to the end of a story. It's my longest story so far, coming in at 19 pages and around 7200 words, but I'm hoping to lop a bit of that off. So I'll be editing that and taking another pass at "Come on, Casper" to look over some changes I made a month or two ago. Hopefully I'll be able to communicate the humor I intended in"Miracles." I haven't had a lot of experience at humor writing, so we'll see how that goes. It'll never be a laugh riot, but I think it will have a lighter tone than "Casper."

Still Pluggin' Away

Just another productivity report:

I've been waking up at 5:30 am this week. On purpose. Mary Ann and I have been struggling to find a good time for me to write these days, and I think this is the best solution. I've tried to do the late night thing; it seems the more 'writerly' thing to do, right? Writers are supposed to stay up late to drink and be tortured by their demons. Unfortunately (?), my demons kept standing me up, so Mary Ann and I broke with our 1-2AM tradition and started hitting the sack at 11:00. Since then things hve gone much better in the writing department.

I FINALLY Got Arrested

So I finally gave in. After years of people telling me I should watch Arrested Development, Mary Ann and I rented the first DVD from the first season. The straw that broke the camel's back was the fact that the guys who do The Steelehouse Podcast named it as one of their top ten shows of the decade. You should check out that podcast, by the way. A thoughtful and enjoyable look at pop culture from a Christian perspective.

But back to the show: Typical. Really. I don't mean Arrested Development was typical. What's typical is that it was cancelled after three seasons. Good shows don't make it much longer than that. Mary Ann and I are joining the chorus. Arrested Development was quite hilarious.

For those of you who are slow to take recommendations like me, now is the time. Outside of 30 Rock I doubt there's a show that even approaches Arrested Development's level of hilarity. Quirky characters can get old quickly if poorly written, but the cast of Arrested Development, while quirky, never fail to surprise.

If you watch the show now, you can see how much of the writing and direction has pointed the way for comedies currently on the air. If you promise to watch the show that started the trend, then I promise to stop reviewing shows that have been of the air for six years.

A Breakfast Tragedy

I went to open my cereal this morning--a new box. Carefully, I pushed my finger underneath the cardboard tab. I gingerly scooted said finger to the right, in order to preserve the integrity of the cardboard tab. It helps in the resealing process.

But, as you might predict, my efforts were fruitless. My finger tore through that fragile box top as though passing through the air unimpeded. My cereal is compromised.

And THAT, my friends, is how you know that General Mills hates you.

Writerly Frustrations

If I could just write 1000 good words a day, I would be so happy that I would wet not just my pants, but everyone else's too.

Two Gross-Out Haikus

Here are two Gross-Out Haikus stemming from the same incident. I'm thinking of making these a significant part of my writing sample.

Finn's oranges, juice
and pizza revolt, dripping
down in my pocket

My Steeler's T-Shirt
Piled high with half-gnawed foodstuffs
The Superbowl one

He Thinks as He Types

I'm at the library right now. It's time to write, but I'm having a hard time bringing myself into the 'writerly mindset,' whatever that may be. It's that post-lunch energy dip, I guess. It's annoying because I have these times carved out to write every day, and if I don't do it now then I'll get nothing. But the ol' brain is in sleep mode.

Besides, I'm not sure what I'd write right now. I can always do VFO, but Rex is alerady working something I sent him a few days ago so I feel kinda 'caught up.' It's a dangerous feeling, but I'm going with it. I'd like to do some short story work, but I don't want to do any more editing on "Come On, Casper" until my group of readers give me their feedback (Thanks for yours, by the way, Mary Ann and Rex. You were both quite helpful). I could try and figure out a title, but I don't want to spend two hours on just that. I can brainstorm for titles while I clean at work tonight, or do my security runs.

I have a bunch of story ideas, but I don't want to work on another story where the protagonist is a jerk. I'd like to do something with a pleasant lead character, but I most of my ideas involve bad things happening big jerks. I do have one idea, though, that might fit the bill. But I've started on it before and it didn't feel right. All I have is a fairly bare concept. I guess I could work on plotting that story . . . I don't have to jump right into the first draft of the thing.

I think that's what I'll do. Thanks for helping me figure this stuff out, guys.

Joshua Duncan: Now with Productivity!!

It's only just June and already I feel like I've had a full summer. For one thing, I've been working a lot these days. Relatively speaking, I guess. My hours still don't equal full time employment. Still, it's more than I've worked (outside of class) since I got here. It's taken up a lot of time I would have liked to use for other good things (GRE study, writing, family time). But enough of the whiny stuff!

One great thing about this summer is the amount of time I've had to actually write--and the fact that I've utilized that time to do so. I've written the first couple of installments of the webcomic I'm doing with Rex Queems, and he e-mailed me today to express his excitement with them. That's always a bonus.

Not only that, but I've actually finished a story. An eleven pager, no less! I know of writers who could weave an eleven pager before breakfast, but nearly everything I've written fiction-wise has been fairly short. There were one or two longer pieces, but they got clunky and are in need of a good trim. So eleven pages is a good length for me. It gets me over halfway to a number of the page requirements for MFA applications as well, so that's bonus number two.

It's quite nice. After failing to write anything in the early months of this year I've made serious headway on a couple of long-standing projects. It's really a lovely feeling. I'm seriously reconsidering my love affair with procrastination.

"It's not you, sweetheart. It's me."

I like the sound of that.

Is Something Wrong With Me?

Mary Ann and I just watched the Tonys. Yes, the Tonys. That's the award show for plays and musicals and such. I can count the number of plays I've seen in my life on one hand. Maybe two if you count my elementary school glee club musicals. Why, then, did I watch the Tonys, which featured many people I've never heard of in my life? Dunno.

I liked it, though.

Except for the bit from Hair. I mean, I get it. Hippies were the greatest people ever. Can we move on now?

Wanted: Humidifier for Dry Text

I spent about an hour working on VFO tonight. I'd been doing background work, but today I actually wrote a scene. I've discussed this scene with Rex already, and I think it has potential to be a nice, mysterious beginning. As it stands, though, the passage is about 500 dry-as-dust words. I'll come back to it and try to make it a bit more vibrant.

Still, it's nice to get this thing going after about a million false starts. I think it just needed more time to percolate. I'm not saying it's ready for drinking yet, to continue the metaphor, but we're closer now than we've ever been.

Grand Achievement

I just finished reading through over 10 years worth of PvP strips. It's because of my awesome fortitude and willpower.

Thanks, Scott Kurtz!

I Didn't Even Have to Use My AK . . .

I'd have to say it was a good couple of days.

My goodness, it feels good to sit down at the computer and write. Blogging is fun and all, but I'm not passionate about it like I am about fiction (as evidenced by this being only the fourth post this month). It has been sooo sweet. So sweet, in fact that I'm going to describe it to you.

DAY ONE:

I got a bit of a late start in the morning. Still working out the kinks in the schedule. Still, I sat down and worked on VFO. I actually sat down and worked on Vintage Furniture and Oddities for the first time in ages. It was all character background and concept development, but it was a lot of fun and it's pushing me in the right direction. I don't want to start a project like this without understanding my characters or having a decent plan as to where I'm going.

As an aside, I think that's been one of the problem's I've had with VFO. It started as a writing excercise I gave myself. I wanted to write 500 words and make up the story as a I went along. That became a problem once Rex Queems and I talked about doing VFO together. It was no longer a thing I could play with whenever I want and with no pressure. But those days are over! Developing the concept in more detail was nigh unto exhilerating.

Then I ate lunch.

After lunch, Day One took a downward turn. I worked for a couple of hours on the stuff I want to use for my MFA writing sample. HORROR. I couldn't write a word. "Come On, Casper" didn't flow at all. I actually tried my hand at a bunch of the stories I have unfinished on my laptop. Nothing. That was a discouraging afternoon.

DAY TWO:

I decided to do "Come On, Casper" in the morning this time, hoping that my mind would be a bit more fresh. What I didn't realize, though, was that the 'freshness' wasn't the issue. The issue was that I was so worried about theme and structure that I got stymied. I've been reading John Gardner's On Becoming a Novelist, and it really helped remind me that I was primarily doing this to tell stories. After that, a new direction for the story emerged and I worked happily through the morning.

Lunch again!

More VFO in the afternoon, and it just kept getting better. I got a handle on something that will be integral to the storyline; something that will provide direction and (I hope) suspense as the strip continues. Hopefully I'll be able to actually get to some of the writing soon. Anyway, day two was excellent.

DAY THREE:

Day three was a bit of a problem because I had to do some work this morning. That meant the morning session was out so we could get school and everything in.

And lunch.

The afternoon was truncated as well because I had a work meeting, but once that meeting ended I got right to it. I decided to go with "Come On Casper" rather than VFO because I wanted to keep yesterday's juices flowing. Happily, the story continued very well. I'm not cranking out tons of pages, but the story is moving along and I like the language and the direction (right now at least . . . ask me again tomorrow).

Tomorrow will be DAY FOUR. I'll miss the morning session again, but I'm looking forward to another couple of productive hours tomorrow afternoon. It'll be VFO, I think, so I can keep things moving.

Creating makes me happy. Doing that for a living . . . that would be a beautiful life.

Attention: All of My Devoted Fan

And yes, I left 'fan' singular on purpose. All I do, I do for comedy.

Anyway, I added a new feature to the blog. Anyone who loves me should 'follow' my blog by clicking on the little widget on the right of the screen. After you do so, you will receive your 'Joshua Duncan' decoder ring and t-shirt in 8-10 epochs. Absolute proof of identity is required, so don't use a pseudonym, unless I already know you by said pseudonym.

Again, if you TRULY care for me, follow my blog and forward this message to ten friends.

Absentmindedly yours,

Anonymous, aka 'Josh'

The Rich, the Vivid, and the Beautiful: Priorities in Reading and MFAs

A friend of mine recently made his Facebook status something like, "You know you're a nerd if, once you've finished your semester, your first thought is, 'what books can I read now?" I laughed because that was exactly what thought I when I was walking away from my last final this semester. I have a long list of novels and short story collections that await my attention.

I started getting back into The Best American Short Stories of the Century before the semester actually ended. I'm still dedicated to reading through in order, and I've only just hit the 1940s. I enjoy getting samples of some of the best authors of the 20th Century in such a quick succession. Somehow it satisfies my truncated 21st Century attention span. You'd think the short story would be more popular these days, but I guess no matter how much you shorten a story it's still not a video game.

Another book I've given a second shot is Marilynne Robinson's Housekeeping. I bought it last year at the Trinity Arts Conference because I enjoyed Gilead, but for some reason I got bogged down early with Housekeeping. It fell by the wayside and I moved on to other things.

Later, as readers of this blog are well aware, I began sorting through MFA programs. The list has changed repeatedly, but an early entry was the University of Iowa, where Marilynne Robinson teaches. Like Housekeeping, though, Iowa fell by the wayside. I wasn't sure about funding, so I took it off my list.

Recently, however, a couple of factors combined to put Iowa back on my list. First, I reread The Creative Writing MFA Handbook, and the ever-helpful Seth Abramson wrote that at Iowa they do whatever they can to make sure their students have the funding they need. That doesn't guarantee fully paid tuition and a stipend, but it means that there's at least a chance. So the money question was answered.

The other factor was a brief conversation I had with Jerram Barrs about MFA programs after class one day this past semester. It wasn't a momentous thing; he just pointed out that Marilyn Robinson was the head of the program there and that she was a Christian. I realized I that in the quest for funding I had lost sight of something important: A place for connection. I don't reckon Marilynne Robinson is in the PCA or anything, but there is a definite worldview connection there. I felt it when I read Gilead. I happily added Iowa back to my list.

My renewed interest in Iowa and Marilyn Robinson lead me to a renewed interest in Housekeeping (the book, not the activity). I began reading, and I have had a much different experience this time. I think I must have been impatient with it last year. Most of the fiction I enjoy conjures vivid images in my imagination, but Housekeeping does that less often. I am on chapter five and the images of the characters are still developing in my head. That is usually not the case for me, and it would normally drive me away from a book, but the treasure in Robinson's writing does not lie in the vivid image as much as the beautiful sentence. The story is compelling, but the joy of staying with Robinson is the unusually lovely turns of phrase she uses. It's makes for a slow read, but it's worth the time. Why run through the forest when you can stroll, touch the trees, and smell the growing greenness around you?

So thanks to Marilynne Robinson, for reminding me that there's more to an MFA than funding. And thanks for helping me understand that there's more to reading than the vivid image. Thanks from the bottom of my slightly-less-truncated 21st Century attention span.

This is How the Semester Ends . . .

I took my OT History Books test today. That means that I officially have one more year to go at Covenant Theological Seminary. I'm gearing up for a busy summer, so pray for us!

The To Do List:

1. Get a good writing sample ready
2. Take the GRE
3. Find three people to be references for me
4. Write VFO webcomic with Rex Queems
5. Make some rent money somehow

And finally . . .

6. Actually be there when, y'know, my wife has our fourth child

OK, so six things doesn't sound that big, but most of these aren't 'one-off' type things. I'll keep everyone posted.

One Last April Post

I'm entering the home stretch. The semester will be over soon, and I will be one year closer to finishing my MDiv. Then comes the summer, in which I will apply to MFA programs and play the most painful waiting game I've ever played . . . g'night.

Bonus Post!!!

Just to let you know, according to google my blog contains the only reference to 'airbrushed catkin' on the internet.

Something That Could Probably Stop Now

Any story, strip, article that begins 'In which . . .,' as in 'In which Waldo receives an airbrushed catkin.' It's usually done in sort of a playful, ironic, pseudo-Victorian way, but it's over. It needs to stop. I enjoyed it at first, but it's become a substitute for an actual clever title (as my 'airbrushed catkin' line demonstrates).

Of course, Wondermark is exempted from the 'in which' ban because the cleverness of the strip, but also because the 'in which' bits are not featured prominently.

In the Cool of the Morning

Today we rejoice in the most explosive, unlooked for, eucatostrophic event the universe could have ever longed for.

The stiff-knuckled hand of Death had its bony fingers peeled back; his power melted away while his brother Sin was made bankrupt.

The world was shattered, but the centerpiece of history came into place two thousand years ago--

--when Christ walked the garden in the cool of the morning.