A Slice of Orange

We’ve all heard of those theme park rides based on movies – Harry Potter rides, Spiderman rides, etc—but a while back I read that the first Pirates of the Caribbean movie was actually inspired by the Disneyland ride of the same name. Yes, the ride I last traveled on as a twelve-year-old, which was, um, some time before the movie came out. It was the movie-to-theme park journey in reverse.
Wow, a whole movie inspired by a theme park ride! Which got me thinking, why not a whole novel inspired by a theme park ride? I guess Pirates of the Caribbean is kind of taken. But what about, say, It’s a Small World? If, say I wanted to bring new saccharin levels to the concept of “sweet” romance? Or for an action novel, I guess I could use Space Mountain or the Matterhorn as inspiration. I see there’s a new attraction called Sleeping Beauty’s Castle Walkthrough…now that sounds promising!
Or maybe I’ll just a book about a strange town populated by oversize, benevolent, cartoonish characters… But where’s the conflict, folks, where’s the conflict?
My current preoccupation with Disneyland isn’t solely because Up just won the Best Animated Feature Oscar. It’s because in a few weeks’ time we’re taking the kids to Disneyland (Anaheim) for the first time. I can’t wait to reacquaint myself with the place, and draw whatever inspiration I can from letting my imagination out to play!
If you have any favorite Disneyland experiences or tips, let me know!

I have some quotes hanging on the wall around my computer, and in times when I am lacking inspiration, I find these help me find the way back to the path.

“Everything comes to those who hustle while they wait.” – Thomas Edison

If anything sums up the business of publishing, that one is it for certain. Publishing is a business of hurry up and wait.

– Hurry up and get that proposal in on time, then wait for feedback from the agent/editor.
– Hurry up and get those revisions in on time, then wait for the check.
– Hurry up and get that manuscript in, then wait for it to be released as a finished book.

But what if, while you are waiting, you hustle to start a new book or send out another proposal or query a new agent? Then that wait time becomes productive time, and you have a better chance of achieving your goals.

“Only those that risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go.” – T.S. Eliot

This one can easily be applied to the craft of writing. Someone once said that there are only about fifty plots in the world. How is it possible then that so many books are published every year? (Way more than 50!) Because each author brings the uniqueness of voice and character and a twist to the plot that can make the same basic story sound completely different from another person’s version of the same.

But how far is too far? How much risk should you take? That becomes a personal decision, based on where you are in your writing career. A very successful author might be able to take risks a newer author might not. But then again, these days it is very hard to break into publishing, so maybe your work has to be riskier than others in order to be noticed and sell? This is a good one to contemplate. Sometimes taking the risk could simply mean submitting the work at all. If you never submit, you never have the opportunity to be successful.

“Inspiration usually comes during work, rather than before it.” Madeline L’Engle

This is my favorite quote of all and probably the one that makes the most sense to every writer. Basically, if you are looking for inspiration, look to your own work and your own words and you will find it. Facing the blank screen isn’t easy. It never is. But just the process of putting words on the page gets your creative juices going, and the next thing you know the words are flowing like water from your fingertips.

Any time I am blocked or stuck I look up and see these quotes on my wall. They remind me that I am not the first writer to be going through this, nor will I be the last. I hope they help you as well.

I am a fan of James Patterson and I like both his Alex Cross and The Women’s Murder Club series. I even like his flying children. I was happy when I got two Alex Cross books for Christmas.

I started the book, Alex Cross’s Trial. The book opened with a forward written by Alex Cross. That stopped me. I closed the book and looked at the front. Then I read the inside of the cover. Alex Cross had written this book about one of his ancestors in Mississippi in 1906. The main character was a white lawyer investigating the Ku Klux Klan. Cross’s ancestor helped the lawyer and they both nearly got killed. It was an interesting book, but I would never have picked it up to read on my own. I wanted to read an Alex Cross book, not a book by Alex Cross.

If you hold the book and cover up James Patterson’s name at the top, the bottom looks just like a cover with Alex Cross as the author.

I find the concept of having a character write a book very interesting. Especially when the character is not writing a book about his own adventures. I have read other books where the character was a writer and wrote books, but those books were never published for the masses to read.

I’m not sure if an author could pull this off unless the character was someone like Alex Cross who is well known and has starred in several books of his own. However, it does seem like an interesting concept if you are writing a series and want to write a book that does not fit into the normal series. It would be away to do that. People would buy the book not realizing it is not the usual book about the character. I don’t have any characters that are well enough known to do something like this, but I am thinking of starting a dark, urban fantasy series. One of those characters may some day write a book.