Nathan Henrion » Random

Thoughts On Criticism Part 2 (come on!)

Nathan H. — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 19:38:39 +0000

So I was reading about the death of Corey Haim today, mainly because it popped up on the Yahoo news blast on their home page. Link here

Now I don’t want to talk about the death of a childhood star. What I think is worth looking at are the comments under the article.

The first comment simply says “Rest In Peace”. Short, sweet, no problem…right? Right now it has 53 thumbs down votes! Really? Somebody is being shot down for simply saying RIP?

Another commenter stated “May God be with the family at this difficult time.” and has 76 negative votes.

“We are losing too many of our young people. My condolences go out to all of them” has negative 26 votes. I guess we should root for losing more young folks.

Wow.

What an age we live in when you can’t even express sympathy without getting criticized.

And by the way…I know this blog sucks…so you can stop with the emails people!

New Year’s Resolution 2010

Nathan H. — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 01:37:26 +0000

Like everyone else, I have been trying to think of different New Year’s resolutions that I can fail at by mid-February. 2009 was actually pretty good, so hopefully I can get a little more out of ‘10.

1. Drink more water: I switched to diet pop last March, and since then, all other variables remaining constant, I have lost 17 pounds. I dropped from 187 to 170. That means I was drinking a WHOLE LOT of Mt. Dew. I think adding a few more ounces of water to the diet will only help me out.

2. Exercise: I don’t have any plan for this. I just need to do something. Anything. Any type of movement will be an improvement.

3. Write another novel: I accomplished the first novel in ‘09, now have an agent, and am hoping that it will get sold this year. Now I need to follow that up with a second tale that hopefully meets with the same excitement.

4. Be a better husband: I’ve been slacking in this department a bit. We are closing in on the decade mark, and I think I have forgotten that my wife still likes to get flowers and compliments.

5. Read: I want to read 50 books this year. A low number by some people’s reading pace, but a goal which is about 1 a week.

What are some of your resolutions?

The Molecule of Inspiration

Nathan H. — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 01:01:10 +0000

Inspiration for art has been attributed to many different things. Women, nature, dreams, emotions, the list is endless. But inspiration can be broken down to the molecular level. Yes, the molecule of inspiration as diagrammed below:

Seems too easy doesn’t it? But yes folks, there it is. Add a little bit of this molecule into your life and you will start spitting out inspired works of greatness the likes of which the world has never seen.

According to Dimitri Pisarev, the 19th century Russian nihilist and crack-pot philosopher, the enlightenment and subsequent feats of human intellect can be directly attributed to the influx of tea from the far east, and the molecule of productivity which piggy backed its way around the world. Who am I to argue with a man who helped usher Bolshevism into Russia, leading to the deaths of untold millions.

What is this tiny cluster of pure awesomeness? Caffeine!

That is why, apart from my lovely wife and kids, I consider my greatest muse to be this green liquid of pure inspiration:

If I ever get my book published in the real world, I am going to acknowledge the benefits of mass Mt. Dew consumption.

New Site

Nathan H. — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 00:22:04 +0000

I switched over to a new site in case you want to keep following along. Go to www.nathanhenrion.com if you so choose too.

Later!

The No Name Site

Nathan H. — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 00:28:22 +0000

Seems like most people have really cool names for their blog. “Musings” or “Ramblings” included with a minor adjective of self deprecation.

No such luck with this blog. I’m going with no title for now until something strikes me. I am digging the theme though.

So the manuscript is out and about. I have received a lot of good feedback so far. Hopefully by the end of October I will hear back from one of the movers and shakers that I sent it too, and hopefully that news will be positive as well.

Anyway, let me know what’s going on with you. Its been awhile so I would love to hear how some of your projects are going.

The First Rewrite

Nathan H. — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 18:06:43 +0000

Following advice of a trusted person, I spent the past several weeks “simply writing” out the story I had in my head. I did that, and finished the rough draft last week. I then spent several days going through 2 red pens and marking the life out of the manuscript.

Now begins the first rewrite. Can I admit that I am not really looking forward to this? Blah!!

Not only the simple grammatical issues (i.e. typos, bad dialogue, etc…), but finding ways to close up some apparent plot holes.

I did like the “simply write” advice. That let me get the story out in one big swoop, and left me with a nice 65K script. Not all golden, but something I can look at and be happy with. I assume with the additional scenes and notes I scribbled in the margins, I am looking at about 75K potential. Alright, fine.

Any good advice on how to approach a rewrite? Tips or suggestions?

The Power of Networking

Nathan H. — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 02:08:53 +0000

So I just got back from a business trip, and made some killer connections…or I should say, used some connections to get more.

Working in the publishing industry I realize I have access that may seem preferential, but having worked from the basement up, I refuse to apologize for it. So I hit up two of my friends who have even better inroads than I do and I am sending my manuscript to them in mid August. Two big houses. Two big chances.

If you read agent blogs or this and that…most of them will tell the value of networking. Every business tip site will say the same thing. It truly is about “who you know”, which sucks at times, and kills the ideological idea that good things will naturally come about. But you have to work every angle and advantage you have 24/7.

Think about when someone asks you to do something. If you don’t know them very well, you tell them to stick it (or at least in your mind you do). Business is the same way. There is value in staying out late drinking beers with the right people…or at least I tell my liver that.

Anyway…not trying to rub anything in…just posting some personal news

Now We’re Rolling

Nathan H. — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 00:46:45 +0000

Ever get hit with a flurry of inspiration? It seems like you struggle to complete a single page, and then “bam!” you peel of a ton of material?

That happened to me today. 5K of keepable stuff. In the raw of course, needs some refinement. But just one of those days when everything clicked.

I guess you have to enjoy them when they come.

What was your most productive day?

Now We're Rolling

Nathan H. — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 00:46:45 +0000

Ever get hit with a flurry of inspiration? It seems like you struggle to complete a single page, and then “bam!” you peel of a ton of material?

That happened to me today. 5K of keepable stuff. In the raw of course, needs some refinement. But just one of those days when everything clicked.

I guess you have to enjoy them when they come.

What was your most productive day?

Opposite Gender Characters

Nathan H. — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 15:28:14 +0000

In the novel I am working on, I have been told that the male characters are pretty solid. However, the lead woman in the story has not received a warm reception. “Unrealistic”, “unsympathetic”, and “I hate her!”

Alright. So I don’t understand chicks…I get it.

I have read some bad sample chapters from some romance books we publish…and on the flip side, I don’t know where these readers think these men have come from…they don’t exist.

So how do you get the opposite sex right in your writing?