Age and Progress
My birthday is looming, and I'll be fifty. Yes, FIFTY. 50. F-I-F-T-Y. Even as I write this, I don't believe it. How can that be right? Other people reach a half century (I see Gaimen pipped me to the post by a week) - but not me. How did this happen? And what do I do now? Do I have to stop spending money on fripperies, start listening to more appropriate music, and make sure I dress up warm before I go out?
No, I don't think so. I'll keep going to the gym, and try to pretend to myself my eyes are just tired and that I don't really need reading glasses (a recent development). I wouldn't let my wife organise a birthday party for me, and if she's gone ahead and arranged a surprise one I won't be amused. I think I'll just do the usual - get up late because I'll have been working the night before, then do some more writing. Life is never that bad when I'm in the middle of a story and it's going well. I'm sure it's just rank escapism, but I can scuttle off into my imaginary world, and I'm very happy there.
And after much fear, trepidation and hesitation, the new book Spiral is flying - I've written nearly four thousand words in the last four days, and that's unusually fast for me. Maybe I've hit the tipping point that comes with each book, when everything begins to click and the story feels like it's something you'd be prepared to show to other people. I'm a terrible word count watcher, and I'm nearly at thirty-five thousand now. The end is in sight.
Over and out.
Roderick (a very old person)
No, I don't think so. I'll keep going to the gym, and try to pretend to myself my eyes are just tired and that I don't really need reading glasses (a recent development). I wouldn't let my wife organise a birthday party for me, and if she's gone ahead and arranged a surprise one I won't be amused. I think I'll just do the usual - get up late because I'll have been working the night before, then do some more writing. Life is never that bad when I'm in the middle of a story and it's going well. I'm sure it's just rank escapism, but I can scuttle off into my imaginary world, and I'm very happy there.
And after much fear, trepidation and hesitation, the new book Spiral is flying - I've written nearly four thousand words in the last four days, and that's unusually fast for me. Maybe I've hit the tipping point that comes with each book, when everything begins to click and the story feels like it's something you'd be prepared to show to other people. I'm a terrible word count watcher, and I'm nearly at thirty-five thousand now. The end is in sight.
Over and out.
Roderick (a very old person)
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Hey, Keith, you're right! I'd completely forgotten about that particular milestone - can't even remember what I did to celebrate it. But I do remember feeling rather disappointed because I'd always promised myself I'd be a millionaire by then. Got that one wrong. Still got it wrong ...So glad you enjoyed Tunnels, and do let me know what you think of the sequels. Deeper is the really claustrophobic one, and probably far too long (despite many cuts), but still my favourite.
Hehe. Yes, the millionaire thing. My sights were set a little lower, but still, "retired by forty" was something I would have liked.I wanted to be published by forty too, and sorta-kinda am, but not "properly." I have an agent for a self-published trilogy (http://www.islandoffog.com) but no big publisher deal yet, although one is currently reviewing the Book 1 manuscript. In the meantime it's great to read the blog of a man who's made it in the publishing world. How much has your life changed since being published? Is it everything you hoped? (Lots of questions that you don't have to answer...)
Interesting that DEEPER is your favorite. Looking forward to reading it soon. :-)
Hi Keith, it's fantastic you've self-published too. I've been considering whether to do it again for another story I've been working on. In answer to your question, the main difference now is that I can now write without the constant, gnawing guilt that I should be doing something else to keep the family afloat. I'd been made redundant from my job and so was in a constant state of panic whilst working on The Highfield Mole. And I actually finished much of the second Tunnels book without a publishing deal in sight, but then I wasn't actively looking for one. I truly never envisaged a day that I might make any sort of living from writing, and I suppose it took a miracle in the form of Barry Cunningham and Chicken House to make it happen.
So that guilt has gone, and has instead been replaced with the feeling that I should be doing more - I wish I had the ability to work on more than one project at once, but I just can't. Or to work faster.
And another difference is that you set out on a new book with the knowledge that someone, somewhere, is going to read your work. That was all I wanted when I wrote The Highfield Mole, even if I had to leave copies of the book on park benches and propped on the branches of trees (the "Squirrel Copies") across London. It's still an incredible thrill to go into a book store and see the Tunnels series on the shelves. Back in 2005 Brian and I would reverse-shoplift. We'd target a few of the larger book stores in central London, and I'd wander in with copies of the Mole under my arm and hijack a shelf. Of course we were giving the books away, and I often wondered what happened when customers tried to pay for them!
Roderick
Roderick, thanks so much for your reply. I totally "get" the guilt-trip thing. Even though I'm not exactly raking it in, I've not lost anything either; I've sold enough copies of my self-published books to make a (small) profit. And of course it's not about the money anyway. Yet. :-)You're going to regret answering me so thoroughly because now I have other questions... :-)
Both my wife and I were wondering how authors co-write a book. (She's reading TUNNELS as well.) I'm guessing only one actually writes but both brain storm, edit, etc. That seems obvious enough, but in your case, who came up with the idea? Who urged whom to work on it? Who put together the chapter summary or detailed outline? Who approached agents, publishers, etc? I can imagine there's a lot of good to come from co-writing because you can encourage each other and work as a team, whereas normally writers are very lonesome and I for one lack the enthusiasm to send query letters!
In my case, an agent approached me. Piers Anthony reviewed my books on his website, and I was approached by an agent who happened to be a Piers Anthony fan and read the reviews. But he's a TV/film agent, and while that's great in the movie sense -- he's been pitching to studios for a year -- it's not so good in the publishing sense because that's not his field. Still, he's been querying publishers lately and one of his first queries was to HarperCollins, who wanted to put the book through a review process (mentioned in my previous post). Unfortunately they declined a couple of days ago, so the agent has moved on to another publisher.
But if I hadn't been approached by an agent, I'm afraid I would have been extremely lazy in this respect... hence why I self-published! I just can't stand trying to sell myself.
Back to your answers: I had to laugh at the idea of reverse-shoplifting, and especially the idea of people trying to buy the books. I wonder what the shopkeepers did? Either they shrugged and took the money, or they refused to sell them. Probably the former.
If I still lived in England, I would definitely have queried Chicken House by now. I've heard good things about them.
Keith
PS -- Your answers are excellent blog material for writers, but I don't want to hijack your life, so please don't feel obliged to answer all my inane questions unless you have a couple of spare moments!
Hi Keith, Sorry for the long silence but I have to shut myself off or I'd spend far too much time on the internet and not enough writing. Piers Anthony - wow! I went through a huge SF phase in the seventies and read a load of his books - I remember Ox, Omnivore and Orn, and another trilogy - Sos the Rope/Var the Stick/Neq the Sword. Can't recall the titles of all his other books but they made a big impression on me - I've got them stored away somewhere (I never let any of my old books go). At the time I also loved Samuel R. Delany, Robert Heinlein and Clifford D. Simak. But in answer to your question about how two people can write together, it's never easy. It sure overcomes writer's block, but I've never suffered from that anyway (only indolence). When we started Tunnels, we'd come up with the ideas together and I'd write the first draft, which Brian would take away and work on in longhand (he hates editing on screen). Then I'd edit his revisions as I re-input the copy back into the machine. This process might go on many times - from him to me and back again - so ideas somehow evolved along the way, and the book developed its own voice - I hope! Then I spent at least another six months editing the book again, and brought in a copy editor and two proof readers to help me with it. The last thing I wanted was to self-publish a book with a load of typos. I'm not sure I'd advise anyone to try to write with someone else unless they're extremely good friends - the process can become pretty fraught along the way.
Roderick
Roderick, once again, thanks for your response -- very interesting to see how the co-authoring process works! I have to admit I'm intrigued by the notion, but there's really only one buddy author I'd consider, and we'd probably have to fight about who has the last say on everything. Co-authoring it may be, but I still think one of the two has to stand out as the "main" author, with HIS voice coming through strongest.I remember Piers Anthony co-authored with Robert E. Margroff on the Dragon's Gold series, but they might as well have been Piers Anthony books... although in some ways they did read a little more relaxed than Piers' usual work, so that particular co-authoring seemed to work out well!
I finished DEEPER and found it even better than TUNNELS, with an increasingly gigantic underground world so well realized that it makes me wonder if you've actually been down there. Are you... are you in fact Dr. Burrows...?
Anyway -- get back to writing! :-)
Keith
PS -- I sent you a private message too.
Well! I remember when I turned 20 (yep, I still have a bit to go), people told me I was supposed to be an adult now. Nothing changed, I'm almost 23 now and I feel 16 or so. Deeper was my favourite one as well (I think it's going to stay that way), and I've just started the fourth one. You know what I love about these books? Right now, they're probably the only thing that can suck me in so much that I wouldn't hear the noises around me. I get completely immersed. I was very glad to hear there's more to come!
I love your series! Me and my fourth grade taecher are having an all out war trying to finish the series before one another. I' m waiting for the sixth one to come out. Do you have anything written on that one yet? I odered Spiral from England because I didn't want to wait for the American version to come out the next year (why does it have to come out later in America?). Right now, my fourth grade teacher is on Closer, my second favorite one. My favorite one is Spiral. Speaking again of Spiral, I just about cried when Drake died. He was my favorite. Since he's been through a lot, I wonder whether or not he or Rebeca one is dead. Most important of all, please tell me this, does the story end well? I hope so.
Hi Roderick!I have read the four first books, and can't wait to read the next book. I live in Norway so right now im reading them on norwegian, but want to read them on english as well. I'm a 15 year old boy, and i love the tunnels books. I have a question: The fifth book "Spiral", is this the last book? I really dont want the books to end :D Please answer if you got time :)
When is your birthday. Mine was four days ago.
Pfft.... why does everyone care about age so much? Just a number.
Beth wrote: "whens terminal out?"Patience is a virtue. (don't pressure Mr. Gordon, or the book might not be as good as it could be when it DOES come out)
With an awesome author like him, im sure itll be just fine
:3 well.... yeah :) I guess your right
im just so exited 4 terminalis there going to be a movie?
Roderic is the best auther ever i am obsesed with the series
Haha, yaaaaay!! My brother refuses to read the series because he thinks they look boring!! Fool...
Ahaha He will reegret not reading them lol
Definetly! maby tell him about all the people who get shot or blown up he will probably want to read it then
Haha... :DTried that... =/
I guess he'll just have to miss out on the epicness. Fool XD
Bless :D or maybe I'll just have to nag him some more XD
I'm a big fan of tunnels series book in Thailand ! and I have been waiting for the closer to be published for 2 years :( it's so disappointed everytime I went to book fair and ask for the tunnels #4 then the publisher told its translating! They told like this for 2 years :( however I just want to let you know i really love your books and enjoy it everytime I read :)
Hi Samay! Thank you for your really kind message, and sorry that you're still waiting for the next book - the translation always seems to take quite a while but as long as they get it right in the end!!!!
Hi Roderick!, Dont want to distract you from your precious writing time, but could you tell me how far you are in writing Terminal and when u expect it will be out in America
Silverwolf wrote: "Bless :D or maybe I'll just have to nag him some more XD"i cant understand why someone wouldn't want 2 read tunnels
have you seen the tunnels movie trailer on u tube its AMAZING!!!!!!
Beth wrote: "Silverwolf wrote: "Bless :D or maybe I'll just have to nag him some more XD"i cant understand why someone wouldn't want 2 read tunnels"
Mmmm... I think the only thing missing was London. But I think I'll need to see the film before I judge it any more than that... :)
yeah it looked like America, it said state baseball in the background, England has counties not states
Omg I saw the trailer on youtube soooooo many times hahaha I loved it beth!
And I REALLY hope it hasn't got actors with strong american accents. Nothing is wrong with that, but I like Tunnels as an English thing :/
Hahahaha as an American, you may find this weird but I agree with you silverwolf. Yeah, its odd but ya know it would sound cool lol. Roderick, do you know what the actor's accents are?
Yupppp lol I wish I lived in Britain :((((((( lol
i wish i was in America because black veil brides and dio are (or were in Dio's case) American and i want to see Yellowstone super volcano and my parents dont want to go to America :-(
Hahaha beth, personally, I have never been to Yellowstone, but I heard it was beautiful! You should definately convince them to come.
yeah yellowstone could erupt soon (in geological terms)
Beth wrote: "yeah yellowstone could erupt soon (in geological terms)"EEEEEP! Lol, not a huge threat to America at the time, but still the possibility is scary :0! Have you ever seen the show doomsday preppers *not sure if they play this in England*?
Ooh, well its a cool show and iin this one episode, this so guy was prepping for yellowstone and stuffs
Awesome! :P I might look on youtube :) . Also, I'm re-reading Deeper, because its my favourite. XD
nah not seen it WHEN IS THE MOVIE COMIN OUT? I NEED IT
Hi I'm Morgan I'm 15 and I absolutely love your Books. Reading is my all time favorite thing to do, I practically have a library in my room. I LOVE Drake he was and STILL is my favorite character!!! I just wanted to tell you that I really love the Tunnels series. :)
Cerberus wrote: "yeah yellowstone could erupt soon (in geological terms)"This is soo significantly, yellowstone could erupn whenever. It almost seems as we are on some weird spaceship that can "take off" anytime !! O.o Terminal book was the best book i ever read althrought i don't like "unfinished endings" :))
PS: Sorry for English... not soo advanced :)
I'm a big fan of TUNNELS and am about to rush out and get all the rest of the books. Keep up the good work, you ancient relic. :-)