Ask the Author: Gavin Oswald
Answered Questions (4)
Gavin Oswald
I'm tempted to make a joke about the dress code or the flexible hours, but the fact is that I just love the idea of people experiencing something I've created. Even better if they seek it out for themselves.
I believe that media of any sort will invariably modify a person's understanding and lexicon. It is truly an honor to know that people are willing to let my writing in, to add it to all the other ideas and narratives swimming around their heads. Something might rub off, someone might start using a particular phrase of mine, or change their opinions on some matter or other all because of a few words I put together. At the very least, they might just remember for a time, and that still feels like magic.
If I'm at all a proud man, it's because of my readers. They're the best part of writing. It's nothing without them.
I believe that media of any sort will invariably modify a person's understanding and lexicon. It is truly an honor to know that people are willing to let my writing in, to add it to all the other ideas and narratives swimming around their heads. Something might rub off, someone might start using a particular phrase of mine, or change their opinions on some matter or other all because of a few words I put together. At the very least, they might just remember for a time, and that still feels like magic.
If I'm at all a proud man, it's because of my readers. They're the best part of writing. It's nothing without them.
Gavin Oswald
My most recent is a collection of horror stories, so there wasn't one inspiration (unless you'd count the collection of horrors I drag around with me).
It's mostly driven by existential dread and latent nihilism; the idea of a finite existence in a universe beyond anyone's ability to fully comprehend.
That pervasive mystery has always excited me just as much as it terrifies me. I think that's why I deal with so many open-ended stories. Nothing is ever tied up nicely with a bow. Everything comes from something so much older and extends so much further than what can be experienced in a single life. I don't see why fiction shouldn't reflect that aspect of reality, especially if it's horror.
There's always a joke or a horror story lurking around somewhere. We just have to decide which type of story we want to tell.
It's mostly driven by existential dread and latent nihilism; the idea of a finite existence in a universe beyond anyone's ability to fully comprehend.
That pervasive mystery has always excited me just as much as it terrifies me. I think that's why I deal with so many open-ended stories. Nothing is ever tied up nicely with a bow. Everything comes from something so much older and extends so much further than what can be experienced in a single life. I don't see why fiction shouldn't reflect that aspect of reality, especially if it's horror.
There's always a joke or a horror story lurking around somewhere. We just have to decide which type of story we want to tell.
Gavin Oswald
Read. Read a lot. Then, when you have a story of your own, you'll have an idea of what to do with it.
Unless you're writing academically, you can't take your cues from a text book. Knowing when and where you're allowed to break the rules is a little more instinctual. You have to build that instinct.
Apart from the mechanics of it all, I really do believe that learning how to tell a story has to be personal. Only you can teach yourself that part. Your first few pages are probably not going to be worth keeping, and that's okay. When you try again, you can make it better, but you have to be able to see your mistakes to fix them. Learn by doing, but always back up your files.
Unless you're writing academically, you can't take your cues from a text book. Knowing when and where you're allowed to break the rules is a little more instinctual. You have to build that instinct.
Apart from the mechanics of it all, I really do believe that learning how to tell a story has to be personal. Only you can teach yourself that part. Your first few pages are probably not going to be worth keeping, and that's okay. When you try again, you can make it better, but you have to be able to see your mistakes to fix them. Learn by doing, but always back up your files.
Gavin Oswald
A change of routine usually helps. It's easy to get burnt out, so setting aside a day or two for decompression can do wonders.
If I start to feel like I'm slipping--if the words are awkward or it doesn't seem to mesh--I've found that reworking the passage from a different perspective can help to reveal what's actually important and what can be trimmed away or skipped entirely.
It's all a matter of flow. When it seems like you're fighting uphill, it might be time to change the topography.
If I start to feel like I'm slipping--if the words are awkward or it doesn't seem to mesh--I've found that reworking the passage from a different perspective can help to reveal what's actually important and what can be trimmed away or skipped entirely.
It's all a matter of flow. When it seems like you're fighting uphill, it might be time to change the topography.
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