Links for Christopher Moore Fans

Christopher Moore Twitter - @TheAuthorGuy Bluesky - @theauthorguy Christopher Moore's Blog

You don't need to read the books of Christopher Moore in any order. I can say that from my own experience. I have read them in no order what so ever.

I read "The Stupidest Angel" first. I thought it might be a funny Christmas story so I added it to my over night bag when I visited my brother over the Christmas holidays (about 3 years ago). Sure, it was in the holiday theme.

I would not now claim it as a family friendly, warm hearted holiday tale. Don't mistake this to mean the book was anything less than great. From that first book I have searched and dug for Christopher Moore books until I have now read all but 3 of them (I've started reading Lamb so that will leave just two soon).

A Quick Interview with Christopher Moore

I read a review you wrote about Dracula. I haven't read it yet but was surprised you have it as a favourite. It's not a funny book! :)

I started out a horror writer, it's just that people laughed at my horror stories, so I went that way.

Your books overlap from humour to horror, historical and dabble in science fiction/ fantasy - which is your favourite genre to write?

I don't even think about genre because my stuff straddles so many. I do prefer writing historical for a couple of reasons. One, I usually learn something cool in the research, and second there were no cell phones. Cell phones can be a great device to get information between characters, but for suspense they can be a killer, and I'm finding a lot of writers are depending on the "no service" device to keep the suspense heightened. (Last episode of True Detective. Why not call back-up? No cell service.)

Your one liners on Twitter are great. How do you keep fresh inspiration and ideas flowing for your books and Twitter too?

Well, I tend to react to the world in a humorous way by default, so Twitter is easy because I can react to anything in the news, a quote, a meme, anything. Twitter is sort of the natural habitat of the nonsequitur, so if something comes out of left field, it's okay, it will probably work. For a novel, I'm usually reacting to the world that I've created in the book, and usually from the point of view of the characters, so I'm constrained by say, 19th century Paris, so I have to think in that context. There are times, though, when I'm working on a book and I just don't have anything to put on Twitter because I'm in the world of the book. I'm still not sure I know how to do Twitter, right, anyway. Cleverness doesn't necessarily translate to followers. I think I've discovered that people respond better to being nice and insipid than being clever and funny.

I loved the idea of vampires being turned to statues but what I really want to know - Is Abby Normal going to be back soon?

You read all three, right? She's sort of the star of Bite Me. She also has a cameo appearance in the book I'm writing now, the sequel to A Dirty Job.

Sacre Bleu was more than just a fun read. You did a lot of research for that book. I think it must have been tricky to bring famous people from history into life, as characters in your story. How did you decide on their personalities and how far to take them into your fiction?

The thing about the impressionists is we know a lot about them, unlike the characters in Lamb, from 1st Century Palestine, about which we know almost nothing. So you have letters by Cezanne, for instance, both to Bazille, and about Bazille. Renoir's son wrote a biography of him while the artist was still alive, and Renoir comments on the personalities of the artists. Most of the letters, of course, are much more formal than anyone would speak, so I have them being more casual in their speech, and probably more casual than they actually were. Toulouse-Lautrec was the one I really took a lot of liberties with because I needed a character who was naturally funny, but when you see the photos of him, he seems like he was a pretty playful guy. Ultimately, though, I crafted the book around the artists who I thought I would like, personally, like Bazille and Renoir, and I didn't have the ones who didn't resonate as much with me, like Degas and Cezanne, although I think that the latter two were probably the better painters.

I'm looking forward to your new book, Serpent of Venice. But, I'm partial to Pine Cove because I began reading your books with The Stupidest Angel. I've read them in backwards order, finished reading Practical Demonkeeping this Spring and read the Lust Lizard last year. Are the people of Pine Cove going to survive the next monster you drop in on them?

I really don' t have any plans to go back to Pine Cove. When I was writing those books I lived in a little coastal town in California that sort of mirrored Pine Cove, but I left there in 2003 and since then my "go to" location has been San Francisco. I just don't have new observations about a small town I could put in a new book.

I read Frankenstein this year and began short stories by H.P. Lovecraft over the summer. Do the horror classics inspire you and which (if any) are your favourites?

I read those when I was coming up, in my teens, and with both of those, Frankenstein and the Lovecraft stories, you have to take them as products of their time. The stories and mood of Lovecraft stick with you, the feeling of dread, but his writing was very formal and sort of dense, I think largely because he was getting paid by the word, but also because of the 19th century stories that inspired him. So you learn very early on that you can't and shouldn't write like Lovecraft. Shelly is similar. She was brilliant, sort of beyond of my ability to comprehend of someone who was 19 year old, but she was of her time. Frankenstein is extraordinary in many ways, but I think I knew by the time I was 17 that I'd never be able to write that way and make a living, and that's what I wanted to do. So yes, you HAVE to read those classics. You have to know what has come before. (What T.S. Eliot calls "the poetic tradition") Otherwise you're going to do something that was done better a hundred years ago and you may not even put a good spin on it. There used to be a running joke among sci-fi writers that everyone, at some point, would write a "the star was a spaceship and Jesus was an alien" story and think they were the first one to have the idea. (I know I did.) If you don't know that's a non-starter, you just pile on. You read that stuff and you take what you can from it. You'll go back years later, after you know more, and Frankenstein will be a new book.

I wrote a story or two imitating Lovecraft and Poe in my teens and they were terrible, but that said, The Serpent of Venice is partly based on an Edgar Allan Poe story, so having read those classics have served me pretty well. I could probably do with a refresher read on a lot of them.

Why I'm a Fan of Christopher Moore's Books He writes horror, fantasy, and humour all some how rolled up into one winding yet believable story. The key is, believable. No matter what he writes about: vampires, monsters, drug dealers, serial killers, or ageing porn stars - the stories will keep you reading more and laughing along with him.

Writing may be the loneliest profession. We begin alone with a blank in front of us. Alone, we must come up with something from inside our well of experience, knowledge, intellect to fill the void and create something which someone else can enjoy and understand. You may never literally bleed onto a page (outside of papercuts) but we do leave something of ourselves imprinted in everything we write, non-fiction included.

No wonder we get writer's block. Writer's burn out. Writer's run dry and writer's can lack inspiration. Writer's can lack motivation too but often the necessities like bill paying and the onslaught of a deadline will help with motivation.

Is there a Cure for Writer's Block?

Are you so stuck you can't imagine writing another word? Ever?

Of course not. You can write as easily as you can read. So write a grocery list. Give it a spin. Write something else ordinary next.

After awhile you'll be itching to write something less ordinary again

What do you do when you can't find the inspiration to write?

Inspired Creative Writing is more than 52 short writing prompts. There are 52 chapters written around each of the 52 ideas to give you writing inspiration. There are writing related quotes, questions from writers and answers too. Each chapter gives you ideas to encourage you and get you writing again.

As I read through the book I keep wanting to put it down so I can make notes, write down a great idea or just get back to work on this or that writing project. I've gotten new slants to give to old ideas which have been gathering dust bunnies on the shelf or in my file cabinet.

I've thought about changes to the structure of my story and how I use narration, or don't use it all. Should I change the point of view to another character? I've thought about great ways I can mess up a character who has become too good to be true. I've written about how I feel about writing in notes to myself. I'm making an effort to vary sentence length in fiction and non-fiction - something I was working on but forgot about.

Every writer goes through a dry spell. We all need to have some inspiration at some point. It helps all those times we are alone, sitting with a blank, empty page in front of us, depending on our wits to fill it with greatness.

Sarah Domet wrote a book for Writer's Digest, about writing a novel in 90 days. I started reading the book when it was new out in the bookstores. Then, I got sidetracked and it began gathering dust bunnies on my bookshelves like so many other books I bought with such good intentions. But, Sarah's book, 90 Days to your Novel, stuck in my mind. Her methods were not fluff, or talking about writing like it was a nice job someone else could do.

One reason I don't finish writing the book I want to write is a problem with staying focused on one thing and seeing it through to the end. Sure, you can take breaks, visit family, make dinner, all those ordinary things. But, I tend to make great progress, write up notes for characters, plots and descriptions of scenes and then... nothing. They are all just great notes I made during that hour I let myself actually work at it.

The dust bunnies think I'm wonderful. I give them plenty of fodder. They've built whole villages around my attempts to write a book.

90 Days to Your Novel is a Challenge from Sarah Domet to Every Writer to Commit to Doing the Work of a Writer

In Sarah's book she explains how to outline a plot, how to make progress beyond the notes and ideas and scattered elements (enough for a series of books) I have tucked away. She writes about writing your book scene by scene rather than starting with characters and actions. This is one of the things which made so much sense to me when I first started the book. It gave me so much hope for my own writing because I could see the structure forming rather than dissolving around my bits of paper as it usually does when I try to pick up and work on my ideas again.

I highly recommend 90 Days to Your Novel. The only odd thing I found this second time around with the book is the disappearance of Sarah Domet herself. I found an old Twitter account and an old website, abandoned since 2011. There were several interviews about the book when it was new out and then... silence. So, where ever Sarah is, I hope she is (also) still writing. Her book is one of very few who don't tell writers to be more creative but to actually work at writing, because it is work not a fantasy we are living as the writer from some story someone else has written.

Thanks for your book, Sarah. I'm putting my outline on paper and will start Day One of our adventure together (without finding you) on Monday. Hope you're well.

Sarah Domet - Instagram

Deciding on a dream reader means thinking about who actually does read here. Other than myself.

Time to put your writing caps back on, and start honing your blogging focus.

We often create posts hoping that someone in particular will see (and appreciate) our work. Today, publish a post for that person — whether they’re a real-life figure or not — and stretch your blogging chops as you do.

Today’s Assignment: publish a post for your dream reader, and include a new-to-you element in it. Why do this?

Writing with a specific reader in mind is a great way to focus your thoughts. Exploring new elements and post styles adds more tools to your storytelling toolbox. Publishing different types of posts and media adds visual interest and keeps people reading. Even if you’re simply blogging to have a place to practice writing, there’s someone you’re hoping will read. Maybe it’s your dad, so he’ll finally understand your life choices. Maybe it’s the head of Random House, so she’ll skyrocket you into literary limelight. Whether serious, frivolous or purely hypothetical, focus on your dream reader and write a post — about anything — aimed at him or her.

This doesn’t need to be the Greatest Blog Post of 2014 — it can be on any topic at all. The key is to keep your dream reader in mind as you write, and see how that influences what you create.

In your post, include one new kind of element. If you’re a photo blogger, try add context to your images with some haiku. If you’re a parenting blogger, add a photo. If you’re discussing current events, embed the tweets of other folks chatting about the same topic. If you’re an Instragram or Pinterest user, embed one of your own shots or some pins. Embed a song that resonates with what you’re posting about, or a map of a place mentioned in your post.

Trying something new brings an interesting twist to your blog, and thinking about what you post from a different angle is a useful exercise for any blogger. And the more tools you have at your disposal as a blogger, the more effectively you can tell your story.

Here are embed instructions for WordPress.com bloggers:

Upload and insert images. Embed Instagram photos. Embed video clips. Embed a tweet. Embed from Pinterest. Embed tracks from Spotify or Rdio. All the other things you can embed and more ideas for using them. Before you hit “publish,” make sure you’ve added the blogging101 tag to your post — it’s the easiest way to make sure other participants can find you. (Still not sure how to add tags? Read this.)

Questions? Hit us, or share your works-in-progress in The Commons.

I haven't re-named any of my sites but I have gone through and put more thought (and some humour) into giving them new bylines. I can't promise they will still be the same a month from now.

Today's challenge:

You set your blog’s address when you registered at WordPress.com, but your blog’s title — what readers see on your site when they visit — can be changed at any time. Today, let’s make sure you love yours.

Today’s assignment: edit your title and tagline. Why?

The title is the first thing most readers will see. Your title and tagline work with elements like like your address and theme to give visitors context and help them decide to stick around. Your title doesn’t need to be the same as your blog’s URL — there’s no need to call it “maryjanesmith922.” Your title should reflect you.

A title is typically only a few words, so consider adding a tagline — a phrase that appears under your title and helps flesh it out. Think “Burger King: Have It Your Way,” or The Daily Post: The Art and Craft of Blogging.” Look at the post your wrote yesterday. Why are you here? Let us know in your tagline.

Here are the details on editing your title and tagline, along with some accumulated wisdom from other WordPress bloggers. Here’s one of our favorite nuggets of advice:

Try listing adjectives that describe your personality, and play around with the words until you can tweak them into a name that’s catchy but uniquely “you.” Puns always work well. Start with certain common phrases, songs, and literary titles, and then mix the words up. Or use your own name in a clever way. She’s a Maineiac If you’re already thrilled with your title or you want to do more, feel free to publish a post, too! Let readers know what inspired your title and tagline, or, If you need want writing inspiration, take a look at today’s prompt.