I fell off the face of the earth after I graduated from college.
At least, that’s what it looks like on my blog and bibliography. What really happened is I had a novel I wanted to write and so–before the ink was even dry on my diploma–I set off on this wondrous journey to write Hold Your Breath.
The thing is, I didn’t know anything about writing fiction–I’d never even taken a creative writing class. I spend a lot of time making false-starts, researching dead-ends, following well-intention (but bad) advice, and throwing away hundreds of pages. If this book didn’t mean so much to me, I would’ve given up long ago.
But something amazing happened: With every chapter I wrote I could feel myself growing as a writer. As soon as I finished a draft and typed “The End,” I tossed the book into the closet, opened a new Word document, and started fresh. There were so many cool, new things I’d learned that I couldn’t wait to try them out on a new draft. I wasn’t an expert in writing fiction, but I knew enough to see that my early drafts were flawed at a fundamental level; it was best to start over with a new outline, an empty page.
Learning how to write fiction felt like being in a dark room where, at first you’re thrashing blindly, but after a while you start to discover your surroundings–a wall, a chair, a fire place, a vase, a person–and it gets to the point where you have a map in your mind so clear you can almost see the color of the fabric on the Rococo Italian sofa. You become attuned to your new, inner world with heightened senses that feel superhuman.
I fell in love with fiction writing. Which is why, in 2011, I decided to go back to school to get a graduate degree in Creative Writing.
I currently write contemporary mainstream fiction, but I’m also beginning to branch out to my childhood favorites: science fiction, fantasy, and horror.
- Emanuella Martin Fiction Bibliography – Here is where you’ll find a list of all the fiction stories I’ve published and links to stories available online. I realize this list is kind of short right now, but it’s going to grow in the upcoming years. Stay tuned!
- Writer’s Notebook – This is where I blog about everything related to writing. Some of the topics I cover are:
Toolbox – To steal a metaphor from Roy Peter Clark, “Think of writing as carpentry, and consider this [...] your toolbox.” Stephen King uses this metaphor too. This is where I’ll share everything I’ve learned about writing, plus exercises. Please note: I’m not claiming I’ve mastered these tools, but it’ll give you an idea of what I’m working on.
Resources for Writers – These are Web sites, blogs, and books on writing that every writer should read.
Moments of Beauty – Anecdotes and character studies.
Work-in-Progress – This is where I’ll post teasers of novels and short-stories I’m working on.
Word count – I’ve heard that a writer’s first million words are like an apprenticeship–you feel stupid all the time and everything you write sucks, but at the end you’ll have learned something…and maybe even found your stride. I’m going to try to post my daily word count on my journey to a million words. (P.S. According to Malcolm Gladwell, it takes ten-thousand hours to get good at something…Phew! I’ve got my work ahead of me.)