Creative Draw of the Day: Seven of Swords

Confession: I love this card. Yeah, the character it portrays is a thief--but what's a story without a rogue?

I call this the 'Neal Caffrey Card,' in honor of the most charming con artist known to television (although Remington Steele is a close second). For those of you who aren't familiar with White Collar--shame on you! Remedy this immediately.

We're dealing with a smart, cunning rogue here à la Neal; swords represent mental prowess, after all. And, like Neal, this isn't a violent criminal. In fact, I love this blurb from Isabel Radow Kliegman in Tarot and the Tree of Life: 

The prankster . . . has come up with a creative solution to an embattled situation: it will be hard for the enemy to attack with five of their seven swords gone. With a little luck, they'll fight among themselves over who shall wield the remaining two.

I have only one issue with this card: how do I create a charming rogue who doesn't owe too much to Neal? I'll just have to remind myself that Neal has his predecessors too.

Matt Bomer as Neal Caffrey in White Collar

Creative Draw of the Day: Nine of Swords

I can't decide if the character in this card is male or female. Either way, it's someone experiencing nightmares, insomnia, depression and despair.

Cheerful card, huh?

As Isabel Radow Kliegman points out in Tarot and the Tree of Life,  the quilt on the bed features red roses and zodiac signs. Meanwhile, the bed  itself looks as narrow and hard as a coffin.

Really cheerful card, huh?

Perhaps the zodiac signs are there to remind us that everyone experiences despair at some point--it doesn't matter what sign you're born under. And the red roses? They're often associated with desire. I don't think, in this case, they represent only romantic desire. I think they represent an overwhelming desire for anything we can't have. The figure might be despairing because a friend is desperately ill--or because they're worried sick for a child. Or maybe the figure is facing his or her own mortality.

Once again, I'm not sure which character this card will end up representing for me. And, once again, it reminds me that I can't shelter my characters from pain. I'm not a big fan of angst--a little bit goes a long, long way. But if I try to avoid it altogether, my characters will be the poorer for it.

Creative Draw of the Day: Three of Swords

Confession: I didn't draw this card at random. It just exemplifies how I feel today. A beloved pet died this morning and I'm grieving her.

Some interpret this card to represent three separate sorrows that stab the heart. I don't think that's the case, and I've never been a believer in the idea that bad news comes in threes.

To me, this is a card of mental anguish. (Swords represent the element Air, which represents our minds. Hence I don't think there's any physical pain involved in this card.) That anguish is brought about, most likely, by loss--but the cause might also be betrayal or heartache.

I'm not sure how to weave this into one of my stories yet. But it reminds me that sometimes the stakes need to be high--each of my characters, at some point in their lives, have to face genuine anguish. The worst thing I can do as an author is protect them.

Creative Draw of the Day: Four of Cups

A young man--it could be a woman if you squint--is sitting cross-legged under a tree, calling to mind the Buddha under the Bodhi tree. He has three cups in front of him, and is contemplating a fourth held out by some sort of angelic hand. He seems  to be giving serious thought to the offer.

Is he hesitant and confused, not knowing whether to accept the gift? Is he trying to choose between all four cups? Or has he learned to be patient, waiting for just the right cup?

I'm not sure, but this is a card of someone who turns inward for answers-and a card of someone who has some mastery over his emotions. (Cups represent the element of water, which in turn represents the emotions.) He's not going to act on his emotions--not immediately, anyway.

I think I'll use this card to represent Sean Valencia from Not So Safe. Sean is rather shy and cautious, and he's definitely the contemplative type. He's almost the polar opposite of Zev . . .

Creative Draw of the Day: Nine of Pentacles

To me, this card represents an independent woman who is complete in herself and happy living on her own. She's unapologetically wealthy, with a rich gown and a fancy manor in the background. She also has a garden that's bursting with grapes and pentacles. Two animals are keeping her company; a snail at her feet and a hooded falcon on her hand. 

She exemplifes the suit of pentacles: she's wealthy, earthy and successful. She's also either reasonably cautious or over-controlling, depending on how you feel about her keeping the hooded falcom. I suppose she's being responsible--falcons can be dangerous, but she's made sure hers is restrained. But you can argue that a falcon belongs free in the wild, not in captivity.

Or perhaps the falcon is symbolic. Maybe she's restrained as a person, putting her energy and passion primarily into her garden.

At any event, she's another reminder to me to pay attention to my female characters--especially a female character who's comfortable in her own skin and thrilled to keep her relationship status on Facebook set to "single."

The Arkham Cafe, Part One

Author: J. Rosemary Moss
Genre: Character Exploration
Warnings: None
Feedback: Welcome!
Summary: The Arkham Cafe is a place for all my characters--no matter what story, series or genre they're from--to hang out. (See this post.) In this part, Ross Edmund from my Roxbury stories runs into Zev Moscowitz from my upcoming NaNo novel, Not So Safe.


The Arkham Cafe by J. Rosemary Moss is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

~oOo~

Ross unbuttoned his coat as he ducked into the café. He assumed it was new, as he had never laid eyes on it before--but nestled between the pharmacy and the Verizon store, it was easy to miss. Either way, though, he’d be able to sit down and figure out what the hell to do about his family.

He paused on the threshold and glanced around. It was an eclectic crowd; some people appeared to be in old fashioned, costume-like clothes, even though Halloween was another three weeks away. Others were wearing short sleeves and shorts, as if it were still summer.

Ross shrugged and looked around for a place to sit. There were no empty tables, so he walked up to a man who was sitting on his own. The guy looked safe enough: no costume, and his clothes were appropriate for the weather. As a bonus, he was about Ross’s age: late twenties or so.

“Are you saving this seat?” Ross asked.

The guy glanced up from his menu and smiled. “Not at all. Sit down.”

Creative Draw of the Day: Six of Swords

I've seen many different interpretations of this card--including one that casts the ferryman as Charon, and the seated figure and child as the newly dead crossing the River Styx. Death, in the Tarot, is symbolic rather than literal; at least in a regular reading. But if the card represents a fictional character, as it does here, all bets are off.

But I've never seen this as a death card, symbolic or otherwise. To me that huddled figure--it's impossible to know if it's male or female--has taken the child and fled from a terrible situation (see the troubled waters on the right side of the boat) to a place of at least temporary safety (see the smooth waters on the left side of the boat and the peaceful, if gray, island in the distance).

The suit of Swords represents the element Air, and therefore the mind and the ability to discriminate between a good situation and a bad one. That huddled figure is not willing to remain the victim of some awful circumstance. So to me, this is a positive card--even if the journey is painful and frightening.

I don't know how to fit this card into one of my stories yet. But that's ok--I'm willing to let it rest until the right character steps forward to claim it.

Under Construction: The Arkham Cafe

I read an excellent post today on the Sticky Notes Stories blog. The author takes a new character and plunks them down into a 'cafe' with her established characters, regardless of whether they're from the same story or even the same story world.

I love this idea! Has anyone else tried it? I've never allowed characters from different stories to hang out in a cafe and chat (or fight or debate or argue or flirt or . . . well, you get the idea.)

In honor of this brilliant notion, I'm going to open the Arkham Cafe on this blog, hopefully by Sunday. (Yeah, even if I opened up a cafe in real life I'd name it after the Arkham Asylum.) I'll allow characters from different stories to hang out and interact, and hopefully I'll get to know all of them better in the process.

Creative Draw of the Day: Two of Pentacles

I think I've found the card for Marc Jaffe, one of the characters for my NaNoWriMo. No, Marc doesn't wear a funny hat--he sticks with business casual wear. But this card exemplifies his state of mind as Not So Safe begins.

Marc is very much in line with the suit of Pentacles: he's down to earth, he has a good head for figures and he's a financial wizard. But, like the juggler in this card, he's off balance. He has been since his wife died three years ago.

I would usually interpret this card to indicate a problem juggling finances and debt, but I don't think that's the case for Marc. His finances are fine. True, he's a bit disorganized in his professional life, but that's why he has Zev as his administrative assistant. So Marc has a different problem.

Marc has never come to terms with his bisexuality; that storm-tossed sea behind the juggler matches his emotional turmoil when it comes to Zev. (Water in the Tarot is connected to our emotions.) He has an excellent working relationship and friendship with the man, but he's never taken the next step. He's left Zev to assume that he's thoroughly heterosexual.

But once Sean, Marc's ex-lover, enters the picture, Marc finds he can't put on a show anymore. That leads to all sorts of complications with both Zev and Sean.

The Two of Pentacles is a hard place to be. The card has promise--that green string surrounding the two coins is a symbol of infinity, a powerful symbol in the Tarot denoting holiness and eternity. If Marc can come to terms with his dualities, and his love for both Zev and Sean, he just might have a shot at finding happiness again.

Describing my NaNo Novel

Here's how I described Not So Safe (and my MC Zev) in the NaNoWriMo forums:

~~

Zev is my viewpoint character; he's the one driving the story. He's got a single minded crush on Marc, his painfully straight boss. Left to himself, Zev has no work ethic, but he has turned himself into a model employee to please the man. Marc is his perfect fantasy: a nice, successful Jewish guy who knows how to keep Zev in line--hell, if there were any way to make this crush a reality, even Zev's parents would be thrilled.

Finding out that Marc isn't as painfully straight as he thought changes everything. So does the fact that Marc has become re-entangled with Sean, a lover from back in high school. But Zev is undaunted, and sees no reason why he can't share Marc with Sean.

Zev is an optimist. He's also determined, proactive and good at getting his way. But sharing Marc with Sean may be more complicated than he realizes. If polyamorous bliss awaits the three men, it's a long way off . . .

~~

I'm happy with this description and I'm happy with Zev. He's damn pushy, though! He's insisting on narrating this story. That feels right to me--but I know a lot of romance readers don't like the first-person point of view. (Sigh.)

Meanwhile, I have to spend some time fleshing out Marc. And at least Sean--formerly known as 'high school fling' has a name! He's Sean Valencia; half Irish-American, half Columbian. He's a succesful therapist of some sort, but I have to figure out the details.

Moliere on writing

No 'Creative Draw of the Day' today--my apologies, but I'm just too close to crashing for the night. Instead, here's a writing quote I saw this afternoon:

“Writing is like prostitution. First you do it for love, and then for a few close friends, and then for money.”

~Molière

Creaitve Draw of the Day: Eight of Wands

I love this card. Eight wands flying through the air--either about to collide with something, or about to ground themselves. Either way, it's good news; perhaps a character will be slammed by the creative spark wands provide. Or maybe her seemingly out-there ideas will finally come down to earth.

Ok, ok. It's not always good news. A character can be slammed by someone's explosive temper--wands represent the element fire, after all. Or she can be slammed by a flash of insight that forces her to confront some unsavory truth.

In fact, I think I'll take that last option with this card, and apply it to Ross Edmund. He can experience a shocking revelation about his family . . .

Red Bull Theater NYC: Open submissions for 10 minute plays

I thought I'd pass this along. Here's the blurb from Red Bull's promotional e-mail:

Red Bull Theater seeks new 10-minute plays for our spring short play reading day.

New plays of no more than 10 pages, written in heightened language, in verse, with classic themes, adaptations of classics, or that otherwise fit our mission and history are welcome.

Click here for more information and guidelines for submission.

Creative Draw of the Day: The Chariot

Although I've never seen any book on the Tarot mention this, I believe this card is based on Plato's chariot allegory, found in the dialogue Phaedrus. Plato describes a charioteer who is trying to control two horses. One horse is a well behaved white steed, the other a troublesome, stubborn black steed. The charioteer represents the intellect and reason of our souls, the white horse represents the best of our passions, while the black horse represents the dark, dangerous aspects of our passions. The allegory ends up explaining how a soul incarnates.

I like to connect this card to the Jewish teaching of the good impulse (the yetzer ha-tov) and the evil impulse (the yetzer ha-ra). We all have both--and we all need both. The good impulse is our moral compass and moral sensitivity; the evil impulse is our ambition, willpower and chutzpah. The evil impulse is dangerous--if we don't strenuously regulate it, we become monsters. But without it, we'd never have the gumption to accomplish anything.

An old Star Trek episode--The Enemy Within--illustrates this. Kirk is split into two people, one exemplifying his yetzer ha-tov, and the other exemplifying his yetzer ha-ra. His 'good' side is benevolent and compassionate, but incable of making a decision or leading effectively. His 'evil' side is proactive and determined but a thorough bastard. See Sum of His Parts by David Holzel for a more detailed analysis of the episode and its (accidental?) relationship to the teaching of the good and evil impulse. (A nice Jewish boy like Shatner must have made the connection, right?)

The lesson I'm going to take from this card is to examine my characters and see how well each balances the two impulses. They'll be more intriguing, I suppose, if they haven't got the balance right . . .

But that's my take on The Chariot. As I said above, I've never seen a book that links it to Plato's chariot allegory. I've never seen a book that links it to the Jewish teaching of the good impulse and evil impulse either--although some have said essentially the same thing without mentioning the yetzer ha-tov and yetzer h-ra. But I'd like to hear other interpretations. What's your take on the card?

My Characters Want to be Polyamorous

Not So Safe, my NaNoWriMo novel, was supposed to be a Male/Male love story, with a bit of a triangle. But then I scanned the romance section of the NaNoWriMo forums, and I spotted a Poly Romance thread under the Romance topic. That's all my guys needed to see.

Now, instead of a triangle between Zev, Marc and an as yet-to-be-named high school fling of Marc's, Zev and High School Fling want to agree to a truce. They can share Marc--as long as they can convince him that this is a good idea.

I'm not opposed. But I don't know if Marc will maintain separate relationships with both men, or if the three of them will end up together. Zev and High School Fling will need more than a truce for the latter to work, so I'm thinking the former is more likely. (Plus it leaves the door open for more tension.)

Sigh. So this is what happens when you let your characters boss you around . . .

The NaNoWriMo Blog Chain

Must . . . Control . . . Jealousy

White Collar

No 'Creative Draw of the Day' today--I'm miserably under the weather.

I've been cheering myself up watching White Collar. But my sheer joy in that show is tainted by the fact that someone wrote a piece of fan-fiction for it that is superb.

Normally, that wouldn't be a problem for me. I'd be overjoyed. I love good fan fiction. But the piece was in answer to a prompt I was thinking about answering. Now I know I can't top what this author wrote. I am madly jealous.

On the plus side, jealousy isn't always a bad thing. I gained one of my best writing buddies by being madly envious of her work. I sent her a private message letting her know that I despised her for writing something I wished I had written. She took that as a compliment and before long we were real-life friends. So maybe my current bout of writing-envy will lead to another friendship . . .

Creative Draw of the Day: The Ten of Swords

All evidence to the contrary, the Ten of Swords does not represent death by murder--or physical death at all, for that matter. The death here is symbolic. Excruciating, perhaps, as someone is forced to let go of something he's not ready to let go of. But still only symbolic.

But I'm using this card for creative inspiration, not for a reading. So I'm going to allow it to stand for a brutal murder after all.

Swords represent the element Air--and Air represents our minds, our intelligence, our curiousity and our capacity to cut through the crap and get to the heart of the matter. But--no surprise--the blades we use are sharp and dangerous.

The victim of the murder, then, would be someone too smart for his own good. Someone who cut straight through to the heart of a matter--but ended up with more information than he bargained for.

I think I know where I want to go with this idea. I'll get started tomorrow, and try to get it out of my system before NaNoWriMo.

I need Stewie to badger me about my writing . . .

I saw this on Dragonfly Scrolls and couldn't resist sharing it:

NaNoWriMo is Coming!

NaNoWriMo is coming! It starts November 1st. Fifty thousand words in thirty days.

I've participated every year since 2005, but I've never won. I'd like this to be the year. But if I end up with 20,000 words I can use, I'll be a happy loser.

Here's my idea for a story: Zev Moscowitz has a safe, fun crush on Marc Jaffe, his straight boss. But when he learns that Marc had a secret boyfriend back in high school--a boyfriend who's back in town--suddenly the crush doesn't seem so safe . . .

And that's all I've got so far. But I'm ok with that. I'm going to work on the characters in yWriter, but I'm not going to do much else until November. Too much pre-writing works against me. Back in 2006, I outlined a story for NaNoWriMo in excruciating detail. By the time November rolled around, I was sick to death of it. This year, I'll take my chances writing by the seat of my pants!

Edit: I have a working title for this story: Not So Safe. (Ok, I didn't say it was a great title--but knowing me, it's the one I'll stick with.)

The NaNoWriMo Blog Chain

Creative Draw of the Day: Three of Cups

I'm grumpy about this card. Yes, it's a gorgeous, happy picture--but it's taking me to task.

Cups grew up to be the hearts of our modern deck; they represent the element of water, which encompasses all of our emotions. In this case, the emotions have to do with joy, warm-heartedness and friendship as three women come together to dance and celebrate.

Sigh. That's a glaring reminder that I neglect my female characters. Yes, as a female writer, it's tough for me to admit this: I like my guy characters better. Time for me to start listening to the women in my stories so I can figure out what makes each of them tick . . .

Creative Draw of the Day: Nine of Wands

This is a complicated card. Here's this beat up figure who is bravely--or stubbornly--holding his ground, guarding the wands behind him. Is he wisely preparing for the next attack? Or is he overly defensive, getting himself psyched up to confront a blow that will never come?

Wands are worth guarding. They represent the element of fire, which stands for our courage, our energy, our ambition, our creative spark and our chutzpah. Those are all postitive traits--but all dangerous ones if we misuse them.

Personally, I think this guy has anger issues. That description works for one of my new characters: Scott Edmund. Anger issues fit in well with someone who has aspects of the Emperor: Scott is definitely the leader/authority figure type, but he's also ruthless and too quick to take offense. Now I just have to delve into his past and figure out why he's so damn touchy . . .

Creative Draw of the Day: The Page of Pentacles

Pentacles correspond to Clubs in the modern deck of playing cards: they represent the element earth. (According to some traditions, reality is, mythically speaking, composed of four elements: fire, earth, air and water.) Earth represents--well, earthiness. You know: practicality, pragmatism, wealth, security, artisanship. Pentacles imply all of these.

The page represents a young man or woman--in this case, I'm going with a man. So we have a level-headed but inexperienced young man who's practical and, in all likelihood, a good number cruncher. Perhaps he's fresh out of grad school with a degree in Economics.

Ok, his name will be Ross Edmund. I'm going to make him the younger son of Stephen Edmund for my Roxburg stories. He can clash with both his father and his older brother as he vies for his own position in the family business.

Two Characters fit the bill . . .

Yesterday, I drew The Emperor. I have two new characters in mind who both reflect aspects of that card--a father and son team, in fact, that will be joining my Roxburg stories: Stephen and Scott Edmund. With two such strong, controlling personalities, there should be plenty of tension between them . . .

Creative Draw of the Day: The Emperor

I've studied the Tarot for a while now--I think the cards are a marvelous aid to creative writing. So I've decided to start drawing a card at random each day for inspiration.

I'm using the Universal Waite Tarot Deck. Ok--I have lots of issues with Waite's deck, but it's the closest thing to a standard, so I'm sticking with it.

The Emperor is part of the twenty-two cards that make up the Major Arcana; these cards are also known as 'trumps.' They speak to the big issues in our characters' lives; while the cards of the Minor Arcana speak more to everyday issues.

To me, The Emperor is a benevolent authority figure who estabishes boundaries, gives you rules to follow and expects instant and, generally, unquestioning obedience. Basically a Dom Extraordinaire. On White Collar, Peter Burke has a bit of The Emperor in him in: he sets boundaries for Neal and tries to keep the kid out of trouble. But, unlike The Emperor, Peter has learned to be flexible.

So for me, The Emperor represents a character in authority who doesn't have that kind of flexibility yet. He (or she--I'm all for gender-bending with the Tarot) knows how to keep order and wants the best for everyone in his domain. Unfortunately, he also wants to control every aspect of their lives. His intentions are good, and he usually knows what's best for the people under his thumb, but he's too rigid, controlling and uncompromising.

Hmmm. I have plenty of stories in mind with room for just such a character . . .

Universal Waite Tarot Deck **ISBN: 9780880794961**

Kohlberg's Stages of Moral Development

Kohlberg's theory of the stages of moral development gave me a lot to chew on. I saw the link to this article on Alexandra Sokoloff's blog--she claims a knowledge of Kohlberg's theory is indispensable to writers. She has a point; I can see how this theory can heighten our understanding of our characters. Especially the characters who, for whatever reason, never develop past a certain stage . . .

A Stark Reminder of 9-11: Springsteen's "Empty Sky"

I live near the skyline (on the Jersey side), so I see that empty sky every day. I don't think it will ever look right to me again.

Who Shall Live and Who Shall Die?

On Rosh Hashanah it is written and on Yom Kippur it is sealed:

How many will pass from the earth and how many will be created; who shall live and who shall die; who will die at his appointed time and who before his time; who by water and who by fire, who by sword, who by beast, who by famine, who by thirst, who by storm, who by plague, who by strangulation, and who by stoning. Who will rest and who will wander, who will live in harmony and who will be harried, who will enjoy tranquility and who will suffer, who will be impoverished and who will be enriched, who will be degraded and who will be exalted.

But repentance, prayer, and deeds of loving kindness can alter the severity of the decree!"

~From the Unetanneh Tokef, part of the traditional Rosh HaShanah liturgy

Rosh HaShanah services pack a punch. They're full of hope and wishes for a sweet new year on one hand, but a stark reminder of our mortality on the other. Add challenging passages from the Torah to the mix and you have the recipe for a powerful experience.

The services got me thinking about my issues with Judaism and G-d, about how the heck I'm supposed to carry out "deeds of loving kindness," and about recommitting myself to my writing. I don't have forever, after all. Life is fragile.

Fresh Carrots

Since the plot bunnies for my new urban fantasy stories aren't cooperating, I've decided to check up on some old bunnies. I've been ignoring them for a while, so they're probably starving for attention. I suspect they'll respond well to fresh carrots.

Huh. No wonder all those books on writing advise you to keep every story idea you've had and every scrap of a story you've written on hand! Never can tell when you'll need to fall back on them . . .

Re-Introduction: Ready for Arkham

Cillian Murphy as Dr. Jonathan Crane

 If you've visited this site before, you'll notice a little change in title: yes, this blog is now named after the Arkham Asylum. And, yeah, that's Cillian Murphy playing my favorite inmate--Jonathan Crane--in Batman Begins. I love that straight-jacket screen cap.  It represents how I feel about my writing at the moment: it's driving me crazy.

It's going to get better, right? A few days of frustration don't mean the plot bunnies won't start biting soon, right? RIGHT?!

Oy.

Ok, no more outbursts. I don't want to scare the plot bunnies away.

A Shortcut To Stronger Writing

Here's another good article on writing: Writerisms and other Sins: A Writer’s Shortcut to Stronger Writing by C. J. Cherryh. Enjoy!