FIFTY SHADES OF MICHAEL SEARS

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: Happy almost Valentines Day. And for some people, you know what that means:

Yup. The movie of Fifty Shades opens. (This Red will not be attending.)  And have you seen the Dave Barry column about the books? I think Deborah Crombie sent it to me...along with many other pals! My favorite lines are:

“If Jane Austen (another bestselling female British author) came back to life and read this book, she would kill herself.”

and

     “When so many women get so emotionally involved in a badly written, comically unrealistic porno yarn, what does this tell us? That women are basically insane? Yes. I mean no! No. Of course it does not tell us that.”

But neither the fictional Anastasia nor the fabulous Dave (love him!) is here today. We are so lucky to have a terrific thriller writer, the fabulously talented Edgar-nominated Michael Sears who, if Jane Austen came back to life and read his books—would be delighted.

His brand new LONG WAY DOWN is a smart, fast-paced, thoughtful thriller, which I devoured.  (He’s coming to Boston next Tuesday, and I am interviewing him at Brookline Booksmith at 7. Y’all come.)

And here’s why he’s especially perfect for today. Like Dave, he has a problem with sex scenes, too.

Why I No Longer Write Sex Scenes or How to Survive a Workshop

         by Michael Sears

My first three books were written entirely, or almost so, in a workshop.  It was a very good workshop, led by NYT bestselling author, Jennifer Belle.  When I acknowledge my debt to “my Muses,” these are the people I am talking about.  I have heard horror stories of workshops, and easily admit that even this one would not suit all tastes, but it worked for me.  The Muses input on character, dialogue, and voice will always be with me.  They were encouraging when I did well, and honest when I needed to hear disagreeable truths.  I owe them a lot.

That doesn’t say that the group was infallible.  I had to keep myself armored with the idea that only I knew what my book was about – even when I changed it.  Jenny allowed differences of opinion.  Not every idea presented was exactly what my scene needed.  But sometimes the discussion opened up exciting new avenues to explore.

Workshops need to be constructive and instructive.  They need not be kind, but they must not be mean.  But the writer who walks into any workshop with the most precious, and fragile creation held clutched to his or her breast, feeling both terrified to reveal the innermost and yet expectant of adulation, is in for BIG trouble. You can’t help bringing a bit of that in with you each week, but, heck, it’s just words on paper. Check your ego at the door.  You’re there to work.   If the group doesn’t like the words you brought them, you can always write different ones.  Keep a file titled “What They Hated Most” and go back and look through it every six months or so.  Odds are, you’ll find they were right and it won’t hurt a bit to admit it.  If you still disagree, bring it back in.  They might like it second time around.

The really great thing about a workshop is that you will quickly discover your strengths.  That is much more valuable than beating yourself up over your weaknesses.  If the group is not telling you what you’ve done well, they’re not doing their part.  It’s easier to point out the klunker sentence than it is to recognize the truth in a character’s emotional response, but that’s what you should expect from a good workshop.  If you’re not getting it, move on.

All of which brings me to sex scenes.  I don’t know why my sex scenes give women the creeps.  I think they’re funny.  I don’t think I’m writing something for Letters to Penthouse, but somehow that’s what comes across.  Maybe I need wider experience, but having been happily married for over thirty-five years, and with every intention of keeping things that way, I will forego the research.  So, I quit.  I will place the characters involved in the proper environment, complete with all their desires and dreams, and allow the reader to fill in all the naughty bits.  Or as one of the Muses said to me on this subject, “Even you can write a space break.”

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: So Reds? How about you? Do you read them? Do you write them?  Don't tell us any of that "only if it advances  the story" stuff. Or--would you rather talk about workshops? And are you going to see "the movie"?

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Michael Sears is the author of the Jason Stafford and the Kid series.  His first book, BLACK FRIDAYS, was nominated for five awards, winning the Shamus, for Best First Novel.  LONG WAY DOWN, the third in the series, is now out from G.P. Putnam.

LONG WAY DOWN

Two years in a federal prison has changed Jason Stafford, is still changing him, but one thing it has taught him is how to detect a lie.  He doesn’t think that Philip Haley is lying.  An engineer on the verge of a biofuel breakthrough, Haley has been indicted for insider trading on his own company, and Stafford believes him when he say he’s been set up.  Haley does indeed have enemies.  He is not a nice man.  Doesn’t make him a criminal.

It does make him dangerous to be around, however.  The deeper Stafford investigates the more secrets he starts to uncover – secrets people would kill for.  And that’s exactly what happens.  Soon it is Stafford himself who is under attack and, worse, his family – his fiancée, his young son – and he is a fugitive, desperately trying to stay one step ahead of both the killers and the law.