Writing as Improv
I love
writing fantasy because it gives me the freedom to make the rules. As a reader, however, fantasy works best for
me when I can easily relate to what unfolds on the page. As an author, then, I like to craft my worlds
with what I call the –ish. For example,
in Tournament of Chance, the world is
Earth-ish, and the era is Medieval-ish.
My historical accuracy is relaxed and fun, with a cinematic view toward
composition.
Tournament
of Chance began its life as a short story of about
8,000 words. At that time, I was looking
to place stories in magazines as a way to get some credits. To keep the length manageable, I concluded
the narrative a few scenes past the actual archery tournament itself. One might
say, I cut it off just when the story became the most interesting! Despite good feedback, I was unable to find a
home for the short story. I put it aside
for a while to work on other projects.
Eventually, I brought it out and started nibbling away at a full-length
novel.
Unlike other more disciplined writers, I
don’t plot. That’s not to say I careen
down a dark alley like a drooling, blind zombie, but admit I often don’t know
what’s going to happen next. This sort
of work ethic doesn’t serve well on a deadline, but it can be a great deal of
fun if you can trust yourself to pull a rabbit out of a hat. In Tournament,
I did not plan to write about
shape-shifters, time travel, trolls or fairies, but write about them I did.
It’s just a guess, but I suspect this
method of writing stems from my improvisation work in my acting days. The teacher would put two or more of us on
stage, give us a setting and an intention, and let the action play out. Over time, I learned what worked, what was
boring, and what was funny.
The late actor/dancer Gregory Hines used
“tap improvography” when he was filming some of his dance scenes in the movie White Nights (1985) (see film clip
HERE). In other words, he made it up as he went along… and it works. Perhaps
what I do can be called “write improvography.”
Hopefully, it has the right stuff.
~ S.G. Rogers
In
Tournament
of Chance, a hunter’s daughter
becomes the spark that ignites a revolution—in time.
Available in all e-formats from Musa
Publishing HERE.
Also available at Amazon
for the Kindle. Coming soon to BN.com and wherever fine e-books are sold.
Originally
from Southern California, S.G. Rogers has lived in Asheville, North Carolina
and Laurel, Mississippi. She earned her first black belt in taekwondo from
martial arts champion Billy Blanks. Later on, she earned black belts in
taekwondo and hapkido from Master Myung Kim. Currently residing in beautiful
Savannah, Georgia, S.G. Rogers writes fantasy and romantic fantasy stories.
She’s owned by two hairless cats, Houdini and Nikita, and lives on an island
populated by exotic birds, deer and the occasional gator. Although she’s most
often drawn to speculative fiction, she’s been known to break away to write
other genres. Tab is her beverage of choice, but when she imbibes, a
cranberry vodka martini doesn’t go amiss.
To learn more about S.G. Rogers, visit her
blog at www.childofyden.wordpress.com and follow her on twitter
Thanks for letting me guest on your blog, Tony!
ReplyDeleteHappy to help Suzanne - good luck with Tournament of Chance!
ReplyDeleteGood luck with it, Suzanne. I'm looking forward to reading it. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks so much, Juli. :-D
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