Anyone working on their first novel should take a look at one written by Stephen King when he was a freshman at college. By this time, King had already written two other novels, a post-apocalyptic sci-fi tale, The Aftermath, and a pre-Columbine high-school thriller, Getting It On (later renamed Rage). But it’s his third novel, The Long Walk, that truly shows the skill and talent of a budding novelist.

The Long Walk is a short novel (a rarity for King) that takes place in the near future. One hundred boys take part in a marathon where the prize is, quite simply, anything you want for the rest of your life. The Walkers must keep up a steady pace of four miles an hour or else they receive a ‘ticket’, and by that I mean they’re shot dead by the soldiers who keep pace behind them.

And that’s the novel.

It’s a simple set up. The story doesn’t jump around or change to various points of view. It stays with the boys on the road, specifically the protagonist, Ray Garraty (”Maine’s own!” they crowd cries), as they march down the interstate, through small towns, with the soldiers following behind, ready to shoot them like dogs if they slow down.

And it works.

The novel is by no means great, but it’s entertaining and suspenseful and it carries you right to the finale. The focus is more on character — with Ray learning about the motivations of the other Walkers — than it is the details of a futuristic society where young boys are killed for sport. There are no descriptions of hi-tech weaponry, flying cars, or scientific breakthroughs. (The soldiers carry carbines, ride around in a halftrack, and their fanciest gadget is a wristwatch-like device that tracks the speed of each individual Walker.) Instead, the focus is on the evolved mentality of the society — why do the boys volunteer for the Long Walk (besides the Prize), why do the people watch them, showing equal excitement when one of them falls under a hail of bullets and when one makes it through another town alive. To deal with these kinds of questions, a writer needs to have a simple backdrop upon which to work. A hundred boys walking down a road wouldn’t have been my first choice, but it works for King.

Ian

The other day I was reading a short story that opened with a quote from some great literary work or another, and it reminded me of a guy I once knew who wrote poetry. He wasn’t a bad poet, not really, but he felt the need to bookend each piece with a set of quotes from Voltaire (I suspect he got a book of them for Christmas one year).

To me, this is quoting overkill. Poems, especially those by unpublished poets, should not open with a quote from another author. In my opinion, quotes should be reserved for longer works, like novels and novellas, where the inclusion is noteworthy and sometimes witty. Aha, look how clever I am! A quote at the beginning of a great novel is like the garnish on a nice steak dinner. A quote at the beginning of a poem is like dressing up your pet dog in clothes from Baby Gap. Yes, some people do it, but that doesn’t make it right.

Ian

It’s official. I am now in control of the CNIB Library’s web content. The PTB are still working out the details of the job description and salary (money, money, money), but come the new year the job will be mine.

While this isn’t directly related to my writing career, it is an important step forward in my day job, which pays the bills and gives me the security to pursue said writing career. Ahh, the circle of life.

Also, come the new year, the CNIB building on Bayview Avenue will be demolished and a new, spiffy, modern building erected in its place. Completion date is set for June 2004. For the interim, the Library staff (myself included) will be moved to temporary offices at Yonge and St. Clair — not quite the heart of the business district; more like the cerebral cortex of the business district.

Of course, this means my wonderland of a commute (roughly 45 seconds) is going to be on hiatus for ohhh, sixteen months. But I don’t mind. Yonge and St. Clair isn’t too far away, and all things considered, it could have been worse. They could have moved us to Mississauga, or even Scarborough. 

Ian

Watched Sleepless in Seattle and When Harry Met Sally on TBS the other night. I’ve always thought of those movies, along with You’ve Got Mail, as a kind of hedonist’s Star Wars trilogy. Also, I think that if there wasn’t an Annie Hall, there wouldn’t have been a When Harry Met Sally; and if there wasn’t a When Harry Met Sally, there wouldn’t have been a Seinfeld. Maybe I’m wrong, but to me these three in particular show a progression of movies and television that highlighted punchy dialogue and quirky relationship humor.

Another thing: Does anyone else think the Meg Ryan-Hugh Jackman romantic-comedy, Kate and Leopold, would have done better at the box office if it had been called When Wolverine Met Sally?

Ian

CNN.com posted their review of The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers today. It’s a good review, as I expect most of them will be, but the writer makes a dubious reference (twice, actually) to Sam and Frodo traveling to confront Saruman (Christopher Lee).

I haven’t seen The Two Towers yet, but I’ve read the books, and if this is true, then those poor hobbits are traveling in the completely wrong direction. I’m pretty sure Sam and Frodo were on their way to Mordor, and I suspect the writer got Saruman confused with Sauron. An honest mistake, I guess, but then you’d think someone working for a company like CNN would have a little more on the ball.

Ian

Note: I checked out that review again, and it looks like someone (probably several someones) gave CNN the headsup on that erroneous plot info.

Ahh, the system works.