I had just gotten some feed back from a friend who is an avid reader.  And one of the things that was interesting were the questions she’d written on post it notes, placed along the pages of my book.

She had immediately asked questions about what certain things looked like, questions about the culture of my fantasy world, time line, etc. All of this within the first few pages.

There’s a couple ways I can take this. A writer should always ignite questions within a reader’s mind.  That’s a good thing. Create interest.  Reward them by giving the answers or enough to at least spark debates like the movie Inception.

A writing example would be the Davinci Code. Robert Langdon always comes across plot elements that forces us, and him, to ask questions. Why was he called to aid in a murder investigation?  He’s symbologist and the victim has a symbol carved into his chest. Did he do it?  We only met him when he got the call to help, so we’re not sure.  But we find he didn’t because of the victim’s granddaughter. She confirms the French sergeant is trying to pin the crime on Langdon . Who’s the nameless teacher?  We find out at the climax.

On and on with the questions but we eventually find out the answers.

So am I saying I’m just as great a writer as Dan Brown?

As I’ve lent my book out to people, they first see the book as not published and, therefore, not done by a professional.  They’re judging the book not by it’s cover but by it’s credibility.  As a result, they’re not patient enough to let their questions answer themselves, as I’ve made sure to do.

If she had placed the post it notes late in the book, then there would have been storytelling issues I would need to fix.  You can have certain questions linger on, like leaving the butler did it till the climax. Questions that either build the world or help move the plot along should be answered as we move along.

When we look at The Road by Cormac McCarthy, a post apocalyptic novel, we can’t help but ask questions of time, setting, and what brought this disaster? But they’re not answered.  I assume because McCarthy only wants the reader to focus on the father and the son, letting us be the judge of what brought the “flash”. But would my friend question him?  Probably not. McCarthy is, after all, a Pulitzer Prize winning novelist.

So perception is key, and I did ask her to just read it and tell me if she enjoyed it. She said she did, but the post it notes stopped abruptly. Either her questions got answered or she didn’t finish the book. Knowing her, she didn’t finish. And I’m all right with that.  I can’t make everybody happy. I can only make me happy.

And no.  I can’t compare myself to Brown. How can one perfect cherry blossom be better than another?

One of the things I had to be clear about was the cultural elements of my fantasy.

Is marriage a common thing like it is in our world?  Are there family dinners?  Or do people fend for themselves?  Or is it more like a socialist society where the bounties are shared?

In creating my world, I borrowed from different cultures.  Not that I studied any one of them in depth.  I didn’t need to.  The elements I chose were used to convey an overall philosophy without explicitly writing it.  A couple of examples:

In the Matrix, the real world is not the real world.  And the world after being awakened was due to a choice of taking the red pill.  The whole movie is about choice. 

In Karate Man, aka Karate Kid, the man who believed in himself and was of pure heart won out.  Not the one with the bigger muscles and or more experience.

Fast and Furious is interesting.  If you gots the most fastest cars, the bestest finest chicks, and the deepestest voice with big ass muscles, then a plot or a message need not apply.  This is kinda true for Transformers.

Age just happens to be an important element.  For example, a toddler is referred as someone who’s in the morning of their lives.  As they move into the coming of age, which just happens to be different for every one, they’ve entered the afternoon of their lives.  And as you may have guessed, once wisdom settles in, the person strolls into the evening of their lives.

There is a reason I refer to age this way.  And it ties neatly into the culture of the provinces.

I think about age a lot because so many people place some sort of limitation due to age.

Look up a guy named Randy Couture.  He’s a UFC fighter who’s currently 46 years old.  He takes on guys over a decade younger and wins.

One of my ex-employers said once he hit his thirties, his metabolism slowed, he got fatter, and felt tired.  He failed to see that as he grew older he did less and less.  When he dated his wife, they went out a lot, went on vacations, took walks.  Now that they’re married with kids, they stay home a lot more, barely take any vacations, and any type of physical exertion has been removed.

Age had nothing to do with his physique.

I’m 37 years old.  I workout four times a week.  Yes, I like to look good.  So I’m a bit superficial.  Nothing wrong with that.  There is a more pertinent reason why I exercise.  When I studied kinesiology, one of my teachers was a physical therapist.  All of his clients were senior citizens, his specialty.  He said something that never left me.

“There’s one truth about human beings.  You’ll leave this world the same way you came in.  Bald, drooling, and pooping in a diaper.”

I pressed my lips together, pondering what it’s like taking a dump in diapers.  Then he said something that totally changed my view on exercise.  Exercise will improve the quality of life as we enter the evening of our lives.  I’m not sure if I’ll do a number 2 in diapers.  I don’t spend much time thinking about that.  But I’ve made sure exercise has become a part of my life.

Luckily, my family, my mom included, has embraced that as well.

One last thing about age.  I’ve now encountered about half a dozen men who shy away when asked how old they are?  WTF?  It’s one thing that women shy away from this subject.  But men?  Is this a growing trend?  Have they become sensitive about their age?  Grow a set of brass balls.