tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6108295456914343991.post631810027813042157..comments2023-08-24T04:22:31.462-07:00Comments on The View From My Mountaintop: Invisible Ink by Tim HallinanJean Henry Meadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08146960738692672013noreply@blogger.comBlogger18125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6108295456914343991.post-86643185452365551302011-11-27T22:04:26.315-08:002011-11-27T22:04:26.315-08:00Thanks, Prentiss. I really appreciate that.Thanks, Prentiss. I really appreciate that.Timothy Hallinanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00551263887774445511noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6108295456914343991.post-80135027037711025402011-11-27T21:39:04.883-08:002011-11-27T21:39:04.883-08:00Love your books,Tim. Great post.Love your books,Tim. Great post.Prentiss Garnerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07843306525782167667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6108295456914343991.post-47351348991313594352011-11-27T14:58:02.983-08:002011-11-27T14:58:02.983-08:00Hi, Gary -- well, when I heard it read aloud, it w...Hi, Gary -- well, when I heard it read aloud, it was like part of a perfectly normal sentence suddenly went all fuschia and it clashed with the paper. I think it slowed a scene that shouldn't have slowed for anything.<br /><br />But I've written much, much worse, and I appreciate the sentiment.Timothy Hallinanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00551263887774445511noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6108295456914343991.post-81307825259709320342011-11-26T22:23:27.961-08:002011-11-26T22:23:27.961-08:00Good point about "fancy" writing, Tim, b...Good point about "fancy" writing, Tim, but I think you're being a little too hard on yourself. There's a difference between vivid writing and self-consciously fancy writing, and to me "low enough to scrape a nail against" falls just across the boundary into vivid.<br /><br />I can identify with the wince - in my case they're usually fragments that I wrote down one time because they sounded good, and then looked for a suitable spot in later writing to insert them. They stand out like sore thumbs, and need to be amputated accordingly.<br /><br />But I think your example falls outside that category.Garyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01833600842139256827noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6108295456914343991.post-49320386468035712832011-11-26T17:22:30.306-08:002011-11-26T17:22:30.306-08:00So much food for thought here today. (Okay, I stil...So much food for thought here today. (Okay, I still have the big dinner on my mind) This is really interesting and I agree with Tim but never thought about it like that before. Maybe that is why Mitch is so forceful to block me out completely. Hmmm.<br />Wendy <br /><a rel="nofollow">W.S. Gager on Writing</a>WS Gagerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02278366853908626596noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6108295456914343991.post-25366944866122370672011-11-26T15:26:10.945-08:002011-11-26T15:26:10.945-08:00Earl and Anne, exactly what I think. Prose should ...Earl and Anne, exactly what I think. Prose should be a window through which we see the action, and the author intruding into the story is every bit as bothersome to me as the actor who's playing a villain but insists on showing us that he/she isn't "really" like that.Timothy Hallinanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00551263887774445511noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6108295456914343991.post-10247073150996801072011-11-26T14:59:37.374-08:002011-11-26T14:59:37.374-08:00Great post, Tim. I once heard someone describe an ...Great post, Tim. I once heard someone describe an author's ability to write well as being like a pane of glass. You know it's there, but you can't see it.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6108295456914343991.post-60055017810564891952011-11-26T12:36:21.185-08:002011-11-26T12:36:21.185-08:00Tim, I think there are a lot of people who are goo...Tim, I think there are a lot of people who are good writers, but can't tell a good story because they can't keep themselves out of it. When I sense the author's presence, I'm pulled out of the story.Earl Staggshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13349667172813175960noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6108295456914343991.post-58639583580237777722011-11-26T12:30:39.309-08:002011-11-26T12:30:39.309-08:00Hi, Clairmca -- I would exempt Calvino and many ot...Hi, Clairmca -- I would exempt Calvino and many other literary writers from the responsibility to focus on character and story rather than words, although to tell you the truth, my favorite literary writers also tend to favor clear, clean prose over the baroque. I think you're right in understanding why 2nd person isn't more common; it belongs to an age of artifice that we've long abandoned and to which, I think, Calvino intentionally alludes.Timothy Hallinanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00551263887774445511noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6108295456914343991.post-48826833977319206672011-11-26T11:59:59.770-08:002011-11-26T11:59:59.770-08:00Interesting discussion and not sure that it is so ...Interesting discussion and not sure that it is so black and white, though I say that particularly because I have just finished reading and reviewing today Italo Calvino's 'If on a winter's night a traveller' where both the author and the reader (through his use of the second person narrative) are very present between stories.<br /><br />I found it strange to begin with but approached it with an open mind and while it's not a style I will be copying and I understand why it isn't at the forefront in the 21st century, I don't think we need to be closed to any form of literary style, there are niches for all.<br /><br />Thank you for the interesting discussion.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6108295456914343991.post-29783164022231213222011-11-26T11:54:06.885-08:002011-11-26T11:54:06.885-08:00I once heard an actor describing Shakespeare's...I once heard an actor describing Shakespeare's language as so hypnotic that the speaker can forget that he is actually saying something. That is not good acting. I suppose that applies to flowery language as well. It's fun to read, but takes you right out of the story. Fun to see you here.lil Glucksternhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09288522126331817172noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6108295456914343991.post-19643053617376420542011-11-26T10:16:53.294-08:002011-11-26T10:16:53.294-08:00As with all 'rules,' there are exceptions,...As with all 'rules,' there are exceptions, but I think you're relatively absolutely right. :-) I have never been particularly fond of flowery language in books, and if there's going to be a cute turn-of-phrase, I want it to come from the mouth of a character and usually in the course of a conversation. But then, that's just what you said, isn't it? :-) I guess that makes mine a great mind, since we think alike.Everett Kaserhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12371555243187874414noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6108295456914343991.post-45806175938909033302011-11-26T09:23:24.778-08:002011-11-26T09:23:24.778-08:00Thanks so much for hosting me, Jean. The air is s...Thanks so much for hosting me, Jean. The air is so clear and crisp up here. And Brrrrrrr, while I'm at it.<br /><br />Thanks for the nice response, Jackie; like you, I can hit the "Irish button" without even knowing it; it's not till I read it out loud that I realize it's blarney. Or my wife, to whom I read everything, will say, "That's nice" because she's so good-natured, and I draw a big question-mark in the margin.<br /><br />Marilyn, so glad to know you liked QUEEN. I could read that sentence in your comment all day, and probably will.<br /><br />Thanks to you, Madeline. When the muse of poetry seizes hold of me, I write a sonnet. Although I have to admit I intentionally let some of it get by. I preach better than I practice.<br /><br />And thanks to you, John, and sorry if I maligned you slightly over at Wendy's site. (It's nuthin' -- don't look.)<br /><br />Great to see you all here.Timothy Hallinanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00551263887774445511noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6108295456914343991.post-78879801799371502472011-11-26T08:46:33.481-08:002011-11-26T08:46:33.481-08:00Good advice, Tim. There's nothing so annoying ...Good advice, Tim. There's nothing so annoying or so transparent as an author waving a flag that says "Writer at Work."john M. Danielhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00175415154857919353noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6108295456914343991.post-1830610748230337012011-11-26T08:43:30.069-08:002011-11-26T08:43:30.069-08:00"Stays out of the way" is so right! (I&#..."Stays out of the way" is so right! (I'm working on it...)<br /><br />Good thoughtful post. <br /><br />MadelineM.M. Gornellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05610211516010193111noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6108295456914343991.post-40042596853167650442011-11-26T07:16:52.826-08:002011-11-26T07:16:52.826-08:00If you haven't read the Queen of Patpong yet, ...If you haven't read the Queen of Patpong yet, please do, it's a wonderful book. Hi, Tim, this was a great post.<br /><br />MarilynMarilyn Meredith a.k.a. F. M. Meredithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04179984154939161530noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6108295456914343991.post-22178264322669282242011-11-26T04:39:29.879-08:002011-11-26T04:39:29.879-08:00Tim, I think this is one of the best pieces of adv...Tim, I think this is one of the best pieces of advice on writing that I've ever read. I totally agree, AND I'm going to do my best to follow your instructions. (It's hard, though. I have a bit of Irish blood myself.)Jackie Kinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16276062715832103428noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6108295456914343991.post-9877271464123394592011-11-26T03:32:47.856-08:002011-11-26T03:32:47.856-08:00Tim, it's great to have you join us here, and ...Tim, it's great to have you join us here, and I couldn't agree with you more about "fancy" writing. :)Jean Henry Meadhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08146960738692672013noreply@blogger.com