Well, dear readers, this month of October is winding down. Or I suppose you could say it’s winding up. Up or down, November is flying by, like a gazelle with gingivitis. Does anyone still have gingivitis? It was all the rage when I was growing up, although I’m not sure I ever actually had it. What the HELL am I talking about? Oh, the fact that October is winding either down or up, depending on your state of mind, interpretation-wise.
Yesterday, in a post, dear reader Michael Shayne brought up my two standalone mysteries, Writer’s Block and Rewind, saying he’d like another like those because he likes them and has revisited them a few times. It’s an interesting notion but I’d really have to come up with an idea that really piqued my interest and that was something unique like those two books are. Writer’s Block was my very first mystery and I very much wanted to write a very unconventional mystery, and I suppose I succeeded at that, whether one liked it or not. It got very good reviews but didn’t sell all that well, although it sold lots more copies than Rewind. When I began formulating what Writer’s Block would or could be, the only thing I really knew was that I wanted it set in 1969 during the tryout of a new musical. I don’t outline at all, but I just started making notes and as I made them I began to see a sort of form. The first part of the form was to begin each chapter with a press release or article or gossip item. I thought that would be stylish and fun and also get me into each chapter easily. But the real part of the form came to me when I happened by chance to look at a page I’d written a few months before, when I was having trouble even thinking what kind of book to write. And what I’d written on that page was the key to Writer’s Block. I thought, what if there was an entire book of Chapter Ones? It was a joke on my part, but I thought it could be funny – you know, an author who had to keep starting over because he couldn’t figure out where to go in the story he was telling. Seeing that gave me what became my Chinese Box for the book – you know, you open one box and there’s another box inside that and another inside that.
Writing the first half was pretty easy, actually. I had to create a musical for the book and even write a few songs for it, two of which are on the new Sandy Bainum CD. But once I got to the halfway point, then the first Chinese Box kicked in and then it not only became fun, but headache-inducing, keeping everything straight as new Chinese Boxes were added. That went on for a while, and then I had my final Chinese Box to present and that one went quickly and by the end of about ten weeks I had the book. I gave it to former dear reader Pogue to read. He loved it until the first Chinese Box presented itself, then he didn’t like it at all because it wasn’t his kind of mystery. And that was fine. He was willing to blurb it, but I would never do that. Thankfully, I trusted completely my muse Margaret – it had taken a bit of time to get the first three chapters right so that she didn’t lose interest, but once those were fixed she absolutely loved the Chinese Box aspects of the book – and she’s not a mystery buff, just a reader. Then I started hearing from theater folks who loved the book, the intricacy of the plotting, and the theater stuff. Then we got our nice reviews, too. My darling daughter, who adores my books, could not get through Writer’s Block – it was just too complicated for her and she gave up. And I totally understood that. That was a decade ago. I rarely go back and read anything I’ve written – maybe a passage here or there, but not an entire book. But someone asked me about it and I really couldn’t remember a lot of stuff, so I kind of skimmed through it again and was surprised how much I liked it, especially how convoluted it was and how everything, in the end, was explained and made complete sense with no loose ends.
Rewind was a work of fiction. It was a book I had sort of devilish fun writing, and, of course, it was a cleansing thing to write, like an exorcism of sorts, and emotionally very satisfying. The fun of it as a writer was that after the first third of the book, each chapter was written in the first person by a different character. It was kind of exhilarating to do it up until the last chapter, which I thought turned out very well, but which Muse Margaret thought almost ruined the book. She couldn’t articulate why, which was frustrating for me, so I took a day then reread it and still liked it. She did the same and still didn’t like it, but still couldn’t articulate why.
I happened to be having dinner that evening with our very own Mr. Nick Redman, so I asked if I could spoil the ending for him and get his opinion because for the first time I just wasn’t agreeing with Muse Margaret. So, I told him what the basic story was, how the first person chapters worked, and then what the last chapter was. He told me he really liked what happened in the last chapter, that it felt right to him. So, I wrote down all the reasons he thought it worked, got home and called Muse Margaret and gleefully told her that Nick had really liked the last chapter and read her what he’d said about what I told him. She told me to tell her what I’d told Nick, and so I did a repeat of explaining the last chapter. There was a pause, and then she said, “I like it, too – but it’s not what you wrote.” Bingo. I went back immediately and read it again and she was so right. I told it perfectly and wrote it in a smarmy way – I just hadn’t seen it. I rewrote about six paragraphs, let Muse Margaret read them and voila, she was completely happy with it.
The shocker with Rewind was that everyone who was around these here parts back then had really wanted to know that particular story, and yet most of those folks who wanted to know that particular story didn’t even get the book. It sold fewer copies of any book I’ve ever written, including the book of short stories. And I have no idea why. The people who HAVE read it gave it high marks but to this day I am baffled by the dear readers who showed it complete indifference. Something I will never ever understand and I’ve stopped trying to.
The point of all this is that I am open to trying another standalone mystery IF I could come up with an idea as good as Writer’s Block or Rewind. And to those dear readers who’ve read neither book, you might just want to give them a try. According to Michael Shayne, they’re pretty entertaining.
Yesterday was a day that just sort of came and went, not necessarily in that order. I think I got about seven hours of sleep, got up, and then we had our little work session, which took about two hours. Not as much arranging to do as usual so that was nice. I think it’s going to be a fun show and, being Jerry Herman, it is VERY tuneful. After that, I went and had a cup of creamy tomato soup and a chicken salad sandwich with no fries or onion rings. Then I picked up a couple of packages, then came home. I did some work on the computer, had some telephonic calls and then I finally sat on my couch like so much fish.
Last night, I watched a motion picture on the Flix of Net entitled The Debt. I’d never heard of it (it’s from 2012) but it stars Helen Mirren and it sounded interesting, so I gave it a go. I enjoyed it very much. It’s a thriller about the finding and attempted capture of a notorious Nazi doctor. Jessica Chastain plays the young Helen Mirren and both she and Miss Mirren are terrific, as is the rest of the cast. I don’t think the film made much of a stir, but if you’re in the mood for an efficient little thriller I think you might enjoy this one.
I then began watching Return of the Fly on Blu and Ray, but will report back when I finish it. After that, I went to Gelson’s and bought about half of what I need in terms of Halloween candy and a few other toiletries I was out of. Then I just relaxed for the duration of the evening.
Today, I will try to jog, but mostly I’m staying in to do some writing and organizing for the New York Kritzerland shows – and really, I am ever so hopeful that all those who’ve been asking us to bring the shows to New York will actually make their reservations soon – right now only about three or four people from this here site have done so. Then I’m having an early dinner with our very own Rob Stevens somewhere in the land of NoHo.
I’m not sure what the weekend holds in store. Maybe a movie at the DGA – have to see what they’re showing – and there’s the possibility of attending a concert thing on Sunday, but we’ll see how that pans out. Then on Monday we begin our Kritzerland rehearsal week.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, try to do a jog, write, organize and then sup. Today’s topic of discussion: It’s Friday – what is currently in your CD player and your DVD/Blu and Ray player? I’ll start – CD, a new musical that someone wants me to hear. Blu and Ray, Return of the Fly, then The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. Your turn. Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, after which I shall ponder the mysteries of the Chinese Box.