Monthly Archives: May 2018

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Pops by Michael Chabon – A Book Review

If you visit this site regularly, you probably know I’m a bit of a Michael Chabon fan.  (I met him once, you know.)  His latest book recently released, and I could not wait to read it.

Pops is a very slim collection of nonfiction essays.  I particularly enjoy Chabon’s nonfiction because he is unafraid.  He addresses topics that would scare most authors.  Specifically, he has no issues admitting that fatherhood, and manhood for that matter, is a bit of a work in progress for him.  Even though none of us have it figured out, he readily admits that fact.

Remember, Chabon is a world-renowned Pulitzer Prize winner.  He should have an ego the size of a mansion, but he doesn’t.  His humility is both refreshing and inspiring.

At just 127 pages, Pops succinctly delves into Chabon’s adventures in fatherhood.  If I’m not mistaken, each of his children serves as the focus of an essay.  The themes range from discovering the true nature of a child to seizing upon missed opportunities to trying to teach boys not to act like assholes.  There’s much more, of course, but the unifying factor throughout is Chabon admitting to his own mistakes and simply trying to do the best he can.

The book ends, interestingly enough, with Chabon writing an essay about his own father.  If you are a consistent reader of Chabon, you understand that this is well-covered ground.  He is not mean when it comes to his own father, yet he also isn’t sugarcoating anything.  It’s obvious that he loves his own dad, but it’s also apparent that he didn’t always like the man.

If find it fascinating that in a book about his own trials, tribulations, and triumphs as a father, he ends on a note that helps us to understand the events that forged the sort of father he would one day become.  Now, I trust Chabon completely.  I’ve been reading him since 2004, and I’ve never had reason to doubt his honor or sincerity.  However, it is worth noting that in all his recollections regarding his father, we’ve only had his unique perspective.  And now, in writing about himself as a father, we only have his point of view.  What would his own children say about these essays?  Will they find Chabon’s writing compatible with their own personal experiences?

Chabon is incredibly intelligent.  It would not surprise me at all if he were to have his children participate in a podcast or an interview or something to serve as a companion piece to this novel.  It simply struck me as an interesting thought.

As always, Chabon delivers beautiful prose describing his escapades in parenting.  If you love his writing, you’ll love this book.

 

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(Did you enjoy this review?  Check out Scott William Foley’s short stories HERE!)

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Finding Your Character’s Voice

Oftentimes people come up with a wonderful story idea, plot it out intricately, and then get to writing.  After awhile, though, they begin to realize that all of the characters sound the same.

An important step got skipped — character work.

Two prominent opinions abound in the writing community.  The first opinion stipulates that the plot is the driving force of the story.  If the plot is sound, everything else will fall into place.  Plot and pacing will not be sacrificed in service of characters.

The other opinion is the complete opposite.  Plot is irrelevant.  If the character is rounded, well-developed, and real, a plot can’t help but occur.  These stories meander along, but, assuredly, by the end of the book you know that character inside and out.

I fall somewhere in the middle.  No matter what story I’m writing, even the very plot-driven ones, I firmly believe every major character should have a distinct persona and voice.

But what is voice?  Voice is literally how the character sounds.  What is their dialect, their speech pattern, their cadence?  Are they humorous, monotone, sarcastic, succinct, verbose?  Is their dialogue generally very relaxed, or are they typically agitated?  Do they have a complex vocabulary or do they keep things short and sweet?

Unfortunately, these are things that you can’t really figure out on the fly, well, not without wasting a lot of time.  It’s so much more efficient to spend a few weeks figuring out who your characters are.  Delve deeply into their background.  Even if you don’t actually use 95% of what you develop, they will feel, and therefore sound, so much more tangible to both you and the reader.  For example, a character who grew up poor in LA is going to talk and sound very differently from a character who grew up isolated from society in rural Maine.  They will have completely unique life experiences, and, if thrust together, will not act and talk similarly when their true selves appear.

I’ve written characters that were underdeveloped and I struggled with them from start to finish.  If you don’t know your character, then you don’t have a solid understanding of how they will react in different situations.  Readers are typically an intellectual group.  They will sniff out a shortcut in a heartbeat.

I know it’s hard to slow down.  I know you want to write that book now.  But trust me when I tell you that by thoroughly exploring your characters and giving them the time that they deserve, you will write a better book.

By the time you’re done, your characters will feel like permanent members of your reality.

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(Did you enjoy this article?  Check out Scott William Foley’s short stories HERE!)

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Need Writing Ideas? Let Me Help

People often ask me, “Where do you get your ideas?”

The answer is simple but rarely satisfying to the questioner: “Everywhere.”

Let me provide a little background information that will prove useful later on … I work full-time as a high school English teacher, and with that comes constant planning, educating, and assessing.  I have a nine-year-old and a six-year-old, and they are involved in many, many … many activities.  I’m married to a wonderful woman with endless responsibilities who also works full time.  We have a house and all the needs a house requires.  In other words, we’re busy …  I’m busy.

Yet, I write.  Regularly.

At the moment, I specialize in flash fiction, because that’s about all I can muster amidst a chaotic life that I love dearly.  However, I think I’m pretty good at these little five page stories, and I’m even better at conceiving, executing, and publishing within the span of a few days.  (If interested, you can find them all HERE.)

Novels still hold great appeal, and I have a few in the works, but those require prolonged, sustained effort, meticulous planning, and the willingness to invest years (if not decades).

The point is, with over 50 short stories, two books, and three novels in progress, I’m still finding things to write about — the ideas keep coming.

Here are four pieces of advice I’d like to offer to help you on your journey.  Follow these pointers, and I know new ideas will always be within reach.

    • Mind Wide Open
      Always be on the lookout for ideas.  No matter what you’re doing, keep that little writer in your mind awake and hungry.  Everything can be a story.  Inspiration is everywhere, but it’s not always easy to see.  When you see something that piques your curiosity, ask yourself why it may be happening.  Then, make up your own answer.  There’s your story.  This requires a certain willingness to observe, a bit of compulsive inquisitiveness, and an imaginative mind that never shuts down.
    • Take Note!
      Here’s where a lot of people get in trouble — they come up with an amazing idea in the shower, while driving, on the toilet, etc., tell themselves they will write about it later, and then completely forget about it.  Believe me, I’ve learned this lesson the hard way more times than I’d like to admit.  Always, always, always, ALWAYS have some tool at your disposal that allows you to take note.  Maybe it’s a text to yourself; maybe it’s using the note app on your phone; maybe it’s keeping a pen on you so that you can write on a receipt, a napkin, your hand; maybe it’s moving a ring to the wrong finger so that you’ll ask yourself later why that ring is on the wrong finger which reminds you that you put your ring on the wrong finger in order to remember that amazing idea!  I’ve slept with a notepad next to my bed for over ten years now.  I’m glad I got in the habit of doing this because what may turn out to be my greatest story — Dr. Nekros — literally came to me in a dream.  I woke up, took a few notes, drew a quick sketch, and then went back to sleep.  Imagine my surprise when I awakened the next morning!
    • Act Like a Worm
      The greatest piece of advice I read by Stephen King told writers that if they want to write prolifically, they must read voraciously.  It’s true.  If you are always on the lookout for ideas, and you read as much as humanly possible, new ideas will always be within reach.  For example, ever read a line in a book that got you thinking about a topic you never before considered?  There’s your idea.  I once read an article in Smithsonian Magazine about advances in artificial limbs.  This got my gears turning, and before too long “Thumb War” appeared.  Reading does so much for writers beyond providing creative inspiration.  It also exposes us to new vocabulary, helps us to experience various styles and mechanics, and generally educates.  There is no downside to being a bookworm.
    • Don’t Use the Force
      Finally, don’t force it.  Yes, always keep an open mind, but don’t try so hard to come up with an idea that you implode.  Forcing it leads to frustration, which leads to writer’s block.  I don’t know about you, but I can barely remember my own name when I get super frustrated.  If the ideas aren’t coming, accept it.  Go for a walk.  Read a little.  See a movie.  Play with your kids.  Take your loved one to dinner.  In other words — relax!  Take a break, get refreshed, and then come back and try again.

Believe me, if you commit to these four simple practices, you’ll have plenty of writing ideas in no time at all.  Thanks for reading, best of luck, and keep writing!

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(Did you enjoy this article?  Check out Scott William Foley’s short stories HERE!)

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Why You Should Be Watching BBC America’s Killing Eve

Tonight, Killing Eve’s season finale airs.  If you’re not watching this show, you really should.  I heard about it on a few different podcasts, and so my wife and I checked it out and it immediately won us over.  Why?

Good question.

Let me see if I can answer it.

Sandra Oh plays Eve Polastri, and American born citizen who came to Britain and never left.  She works for MI5, which is England’s equivalent of the FBI.  A global assassin has come to her attention, and, to be honest — she’s a fan.

Jodie Comer plays Villanelle, the assassin.  She is young, brilliant, beautiful, athletic, and a total psychopath.  When she discovers Eve is hot on her trail, she becomes infatuated.

Do you recognize the beginnings of a very unhealthy relationship?

This is a quirky show.  At times it is incredibly violent because Villanelle loves what she does for a living.  At other moments it is quite dramatic as Eve’s relationship with her husband suffers due to her professional, and personal, secrecy.  It then becomes a flat-out thriller when Eve and Villanelle come face to face.  However, amidst everything, it is always darkly humorous.  This show has a weird, pervasive sense of humor that is always lurking just below the surface.

This is probably due to the series creator: Phoebe Waller-Bridge.  She also created and starred in Fleabag, an equally idiosyncratic show that I rave about at every opportunity.  She has a strangely captivating sense of humor, and it shines in this series she based on a novel.

Everyone gives a top-notch performance in Killing Eve.  The writing is crisp.  The locations are both beautiful and mundane.  Even the clothes are oddly interesting.

But beneath it all, the show has an electricity to it that I don’t detect in many other programs.  It just feels … different.  It strikes me as fresh, original, and a little dangerous.

With its eighth and final episode premiering tonight, it doesn’t require much of a commitment on your part.  They move fast and believe me when I say you’ll be entertained the entire time.  Be prepared, though, when Villanelle is on the job, she pulls no punches.

Give it a try and let me know what you think!

Sandra Oh and Jodie Comer in Killing Eve (2018)

(Did you enjoy this review?  Check out Scott William Foley’s short stories HERE!)

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Solo: A Star Wars Story – A (Spoiler-Free) Movie Review

Yes!  Yes!  Yes!

This is the Star Wars movie that I didn’t even know I wanted.

Solo: A Star Wars story is an action-packed heist movie that delivers ample nods to the past while absolutely solidifying itself in the present even as it provides electrifying hints of things to come.

I’ll be honest — I didn’t really want or need a Han Solo movie.  You can’t get any better than Harrison Ford, right?  So why even try?

But, oh, man, am I glad they tried.  Make no mistake — Harrison Ford has not been replaced, but Alden Ehrenreich is on his way to being a worthy successor.  Maybe it’s because I have no idea who this actor is, but he looks enough like Harrison Ford that I had no trouble with him in the role, and before too long, he undeniably made it his own.  Yes, he’s got similar cadence and speech patterns to what Ford used, but this is a younger, inexperienced, more optimistic Han, and so Ehrenreich gets to play with that a little.  And because I’ve never seen this actor before, I had no preconceived notions.  As far as I was concerned, I only saw Han Solo up there on the screen.

Though they hit all of the major touchstones you would expect, nothing unfolds quite the way we imagined.  I loved Han’s first time meeting Chewbacca.  I loved Han’s initial encounter with Lando.  I loved Han’s instant connection to the Millennium Falcon.  I loved the infamous Kessel Run.  However, even though you know these things are coming, all of it manages to surprise.

In fact, that’s the most wonderful quality of this movie — the entire thing is a surprise.  It’s thrilling, from start to finish.  They zig when you think they are going to zag, and somehow a character that’s been around for over forty years and recently died on screen still feels fresh and original.  They’ve pulled off the impossible!

The cast is absolutely the reason this movie is so memorizing.  The chemistry between everyone is indisputable.  Alden Ehrenreich’s Han and Donald Glover’s Lando are fantastic together.  (Of course, Glover’s got crazy chemistry with everyone in everything — he’s just got that kind of charisma.)  Han and Chewbacca are a team we immediately root for.  Emilia Clarke and Ehrenreich create real sparks.  Woody Harrelson and Ehrenreich work together very well as a sort of mentor and student, though, to be honest, I only ever see Woody Harrelson when he’s in a movie.  He’s kind of like Tom Cruise in that regard.  Even Lando and his robot partner, L3-37, connect with the audience in an unanticipated, authentic way.

Which brings me to my next point — Solo: A Star Wars Story is frenetic, suspenseful, charming, and funny, but it’s also got a lot of heart.  A lot of heart.  This is the first time I’ve every really cared about Han Solo as a person.  Yes, I worried about his safety in the past, but I never really thought about what made him tick.  In this film, he’s given actual motivation, backstory, and depth.  You get to see him evolve as a character.  You witness events that mold him into the space pirate we meet in A New Hope.  He enjoys a lot of victories in this movie, but he also takes some solid knocks — both physically and emotionally.

But, my gosh, the action!  Remember, Ron Howard has delivered some of our most revered movies that range from flat-out comedies to pure action films.  He’s done poignant moments amidst insane energy before.  This is the man who directed Backdraft, Apollo 13, Far and Away, A Beautiful Mind, and Rush, after all.

In the end, though, my favorite thing about Solo: A Star Wars Story is that it’s fun.  It’s really that simple.  This is a fun movie.  Even when things get dire, Han Solo is a fun character.  Chewbacca is a fun character.  Lando is a fun character.  Yes, there are a few heavy moments in this film.  Characters die.  The battles are intense.  But even during all of this, there is always an air of fun.

Furthermore, Ron Howard and the studio seem to understand what made us fall in love with Han Solo to begin with.  This is a youthful Han Solo, to be sure, but this is not a sanitized, clean-cut version of the character.  In fact, there’s a very specific moment near the end of the movie that tells the old guys like me that this is the Han Solo of my youth.  I won’t say any more than that, but if you were around for the originals, you’ll know it when you see it.

On that note, consequently, I would like to say that I took my nine-year-old daughter to see it and she loved it, too.  I think it’s really cool that I got to grow up with Han Solo, and now she will as well.  Harrison Ford will always be my first Han Solo, but for her, he was the old guy in The Force Awakens.  This man, Alden Ehrenreich, will be the Han Solo that she identifies with most, and that’s one-hundred percent okay in my book.  Today’s youth deserves these iconic characters just as much as my generation did.  I’m so glad they found actors who can carry the torches and maybe even outdo their predecessors.

I am all in with Alden Ehrenreich.  I will gladly watch him, Donald Glover, and Emilia Clarke in as many of these movies as they want to make, especially because they lay some groundwork for a story line that I’m DYING to see.  I won’t spoil it for you, but this movie ends on a note that will hook the Star Wars fan hard.

You might think there’s not much Han Solo story left to tell before he meets Ben, Luke, and Leia, but trust me when I say they have set him up magnificently for plenty of more adventure.

I can’t wait.

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(Did you enjoy this review?  Check out Scott William Foley’s short stories HERE!)

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Seeing Hamilton In Chicago – Our Complete Journey

My wife recently celebrated a milestone birthday, and so I thought it would be nice to mark the occasion with a special event.  Because she’s been dying to see Hamilton for years, I figured that would be something special for us to do.

However, tickets for Hamilton are always in demand, so I had to plan ahead if I wanted this to work out.  Way back in January, I bought tickets for the May 19th matinee.  (You can do the same by clicking HERE.)  Be prepared, the tickets range from ridiculously expensive to fairly overpriced.  Unless you buy at the very last minute, you’re going to spend a pretty penny.  But our loved ones are worth it, right?  Absolutely.

We originally planned to take the Amtrak train from Normal to Chicago.  We’ve done this in the past and it’s always been a simple endeavor.  Shockingly, Amtrak cancelled our train the week before departure.  Again, I scheduled these tickets back in January, so this proved unwelcome news.  I discovered when I called to find out what caused the cancellation that they had transferred our train tickets to bus tickets without telling us, so I immediately cancelled those and told them we’d be driving ourselves.  Oh, by the way — the reason for the train cancellation?  Line work.

I don’t mind driving into Chicago, but it does introduce a new set of challenges —  primarily the issue of parking.  Fortunately, this turned out to be easy.  I found a website called iParkit which allows you to reserve a spot.  This particular spot could be found in a parking garage near the theater.  I just had to mark the date, the arrival time, and the departure time.  They then sent me a QR code via email.  When I got to the garage, I simply scanned my code and drove in.  When it was time to leave, I scanned my code again and left.  We reserved our spot for ten hours and it only cost $13, which I prepaid.  It could not have been less complicated.  (If you want to reserve a space at the garage we used, click HERE.)

We took I-55 literally from Normal to downtown Chicago.  I think we only actually had to make three turns from the time we got on the interstate to the time we reached our garage.  Driving into Chicago from two plus hours away can be an unpredictable adventure.  The show began at 2:00 and we knew we wanted to grab lunch, so we left at 8:00 a.m.  We reached the garage in just over two hours.  I’ve never reached downtown Chicago so quickly!

After parking the car, we walked around a bit and got our bearings.  We specifically made sure we were clear on where to find the CIBC Theater — home of Hamilton.  We took a look at a few restaurants before settling on Miller’s Pub.  It had great reviews online and rightly so — we loved our meals.  If you have a chance to eat there, I recommend it.  It’s got a great atmosphere with a diverse menu.

By the time we were done eating, we had about an hour before we wanted to enter the CIBC Theater.  We shopped around a bit, then made our way to the show.

We arrived about twenty minutes before showtime.  A large crowd blocked the entire front of the theater.  We walked around them and made our way through the doors.  I’m still not sure if they didn’t realize they could go on in, if they were trying to buy tickets, if they were just gawking — not sure.  Once we got into an actual line, we moved indoors at a good pace.

Security checked my wife’s bag.  We noticed they were confiscating drinks and snacks.  Signs were posted clearly prohibiting such things, but it still caught us by surprise when we saw them throwing away people’s drinks.  Be aware — don’t try to sneak in any food or drink!

We climbed a few flights to the mezzanine.  Upon entering the actual stage area of the theater, a few things struck me.  First of all, I’m not sure there’s a bad seat in the house.  The theater is a relatively small space, but when one considers that it was built in 1906, this may not come as much of a surprise.  We were high up, yet we were still fairly close to the stage.  No need for binoculars, that’s for sure.  Also, the seats are very close together, both in terms of width and leg room.  Don’t plan on stretching out.  Luckily, I had my wife on one side of me and an average sized woman on the other, which afforded me plenty of shoulder and elbow room.  Had a man similar to my size or bigger sat next to me, it may have been uncomfortable.

My wife loved the actual show itself.  Miguel Cervantes starred as Hamilton.  He performed magnificently with a charismatic voice and fun comedic timing.  Cervantes aptly pulled off both song and rap, and could also deliver more sentimental moments.  His blend of charm, intelligence, and street toughness felt authentic.  I won’t run though the whole cast, but no one stuck out as performing poorly.  Everything seemed top-notch.  The voices, the dancing, the costumes, the choreography — perfect.  (If you want to learn more about the cast, click HERE.)

Theater is always hit or miss with me.  I’ve loved things I thought I would hate and hated things I thought I would love.  Hamilton fell somewhere in the middle for me.  I didn’t love it, but I also didn’t hate it.  My wife described it as a musical history lesson, and she did so affectionately.  However, in my view, that’s an apt description, but for a different reason than my wife’s.  Hamilton is a lot of standing around explaining.  There are few scene changes, few costume changes, few moments of actual action.  Dancing is happening all of the time by the background dancers, but Hamilton, Burr, Washington, Jefferson — they are all mostly standing still while singing to us about things that are happening.  As a writer, I believe firmly in the old adage:  “Show, don’t tell.”  I found all the explanation a little boring, to be honest.  Show me what’s happened and happening, don’t just tell me about it.

Even with that being said, though, I want to be sure to voice my appreciation at the genius of the writing.  The musical unfolded in complete song.  To deliver so much exposition in perfect rhythm and rhyme — it felt Shakespearean.  Seriously.

Speaking of Shakespeare, I’d like to make a few comparisons … if I may.  First of all, I love Shakespeare, yet I’m the first to admit that he also could lean heavily into explanation.  I feel that the more I study Hamilton, the more I’ll probably grow to love it.  Also, some are very troubled by the fact that Hamilton is not entirely historically accurate.  All dramatist are known for fudging facts a bit for effect.  Shakespeare also played fast and loose with historical fact if it meant a good payoff for the audience.  Let’s not get too bogged down with historical accuracy when seeing a musical, okay, folks?  Take a history class at your local university or community college if you want textbook precision.

On a related note, I found the cast diversity thrilling.  I noticed it, but it did not bother me in the least.  I’m glad this musical is more than willing to give people of color their shot.  Talent should be the driving factor in doling out these roles, and let me tell you, the talent shined.  Again, for those crying foul, for those concerned that every major historical role in the play was filled by a person of color — relax.  I don’t think anyone but the severely uneducated are going to walk out of Hamilton believing that George Washington was black.  This is not a big deal.

Speaking of “shot,” I personally found the themes of seizing the moment and working against time interesting.  I think we can all probably relate to these themes, which may explain the musical’s popularity.  Knowing Hamilton’s ultimate fate, we could forgive his burning desire to achieve at the cost of his personal and family life, even as his friends and family couldn’t.  That’s called “dramatic irony,” by the way — when the audience knows things about the plot that the characters don’t.

For the financially minded — are the tickets worth almost $200 at the minimum?  Frankly, no.  It astounds me that the floor prices were over $500.  I saw some near the $1000 mark.  However, we are a economy that thrives on supply and demand.  I’m not going to begrudge the artists, management, or the theater itself for taking advantage of the musical’s fame.  It’s hard to make money in the art business — go for the profits while you can!

Including the intermission, the musical concluded at just under three hours.  My wife and I did not use the bathrooms, but from what I understand, there are not many of them in the theater and they are not very big.  Again, considering the venue’s time of origin, this shouldn’t come as a huge surprise.

Leaving the parking garage offered no problems.  I scanned out as easily as I scanned in.  Google Maps took us on kind of an odd route out of the city, but I think that was due to construction.  We still made it back home in just over two hours.

All in all, it was a wonderful time.  We had a ton of fun, my wife loved Hamilton, and it was nice to spend the day together as husband and wife.

If you’re thinking of attending the show, I hope this serves as a helpful guide.  Thanks for reading.

Hamilton

(Did you enjoy this review?  Check out Scott William Foley’s short stories HERE!)

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What’s In a Name?

I’ve noticed that authors have a great deal of difficulty doing something rather necessary — naming characters.  Names have such power that this endeavor should never be taken lightly.  After all, the name an author assigns a character will likely outlast the author him or herself, especially if the piece catches on.  Can you imagine Hannibal Lecter  by any other name?  Or Hermoine Granger?

On a personal note, I have struggled with this venture as well.  Here are four strategies I’ve developed over the years that have always proven helpful.  This doesn’t have to be limited to naming literary characters, by the way.  Feel free to take advantage if looking to name a pet or child.

  • Use Your Allusion
    Perhaps your character has something very much in common with another famous person or place.  For example, it’s rare to find a villain in popular culture named “Arthur.”  That name has become so synonymous with “good” and “noble” that the name alone can establish characterization.  “Paris” insinuates sophistication.  “Diana” connotes royalty.  Unfortunately, some previously established names are forever off-limits.  You’ll never get away with using “Einstein,” “Sherlock,” or “Beyonce.”
  • With a Little Help From Your Friends
    Along the lines of the previous advice, look to your own circle of friends or social network for inspiration.  If you have a friend who is incredibly intelligent and you correlate that name with intellect, tack it onto your character.  The subconscious connection will round your character out and ground them to your mind’s reality.  Conversely, let’s say you have a friend of a friend who is a total jerk.  The name of that person alone may be all the push you need to set that character’s creative tone.  Of course, tread lightly with this strategy.  Friends will read perhaps too deeply into characters named after them.  What may have been a relatively simple decision by you could severely alter a relationship if they don’t care for their namesake.
  • This Is Gibberish
    If writing science fiction or fantasy stories, nonsense words will likely prove very useful.  I remember a wonderful interview in which Neil Gaiman said “Coraline,” the name of his famous character, occurred simply due to a typo.  He meant to write “Caroline.”  This era has the distinct benefit of the internet, which provides countless “name generators” for every genre imaginable.  I also like to use the old school method of simply combining parts of words that describe the actual character.  Let’s say I have a science fiction character who is deceitful and murderous, yet also charming.  I may put together a name such as “Chare Itous.”  Be aware, though, that the more outlandish the name, the more likely you are to lose your reader.  Readers need names that standout and are easy to remember.  To this day, I can only recall a handful of the names from “The Lord Of the Rings.”
  • The Randomness Of It All
    If you want to avoid friends and family making any kinds of associations, and if you desire for your characters to remain free of any preconceived notions as the byproduct of an allusion, then I suggest allowing fate to decide for you.  Put a phone book in front of you, close your eyes, open it, and point.  Use the first name of the person you’ve selected as your character’s first name.  Repeat this process for the last name.  By doing this, you will truly allow your writing to establish the characterization of your creations.  This method dodges any shortcuts, crutches, or flat-out plagiarism.  It’s pure.  It’s authentic.  It’s random.  Of course, the internet has generators for random names as well, but it’s nowhere near as fun.

Naming a character can sometimes become an overwhelming endeavor.  I hope these four strategies are useful so that you can get on to the most important thing — actually writing!

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The College Tuition Bubble Burst?

Perhaps you read the article over at CNBC entitled “The Scary Amount That College Will Cost In the Future.”  It addresses the rising cost of college and the projected cost eighteen years down the line.  According to Wealthfront, the article says that the average cost of most public universities is currently $101,000.  This is consistent with the price of my community’s local college, Illinois State University.  Obviously, that’s a very large amount of money.  However, Wealthfront projects that by the year 2036, public universities will cost an average of $184,000.  As a parent of two children under ten years of age, that number induces paralysis.

Because I teach seniors in high school, we always take a few days and explore the options available upon graduating.  I ask them to review their financial situation and then to investigate the cost of the junior college and the university.  I next ask them to research the projected earnings associated with the kind of career their degree will procure.  We also discuss the pros and cons of entering the work force directly upon graduation.  I’ve done this twice a year every year since 2010.

The cost of a four-year university astounds them … every time.  For some, they immediately give upon on the idea.  They don’t want to take on the debt.  Honestly, I can’t say I blame them.

I believe we have both an ideological problem as well as a practical one.  A typical public university should not cost two or three times as much as a staring salary of its graduates.  It simply shouldn’t.

Once upon a time, a college degree guaranteed employment.  It proved a valid investment that would assuredly pay you back a hundred times over throughout the course of a career.  Undergraduate degrees are now the norm, however.  Most careers require an undergraduate degree for even an entry-level position.  Unfortunately, salaries do not seem to be keeping pace with the rising cost of tuition.  As a result, we have college degrees that are not only taking far too long to pay the graduate back, but also, in many cases, failing to do so at all.

Frankly, I’ve felt confident that the tuition bubble would burst.  I believed, as I’ve witnessed with my students, that the cost would prohibit the demand.  People would simply stop going to college.  My logic dictated that tuition would consequently decrease.

According to these projections, though, my thinking is not only flawed, but flat-out wrong.

Practically speaking, this can’t be good for our nation.  I’m not an economics expert, but it seems clear to me that a country full of people in debt due to tuition costs that outpace most average salary schedules puts an undue burden on the populace.  People in debt can’t spend money.  An economy has a hard time functioning well without money flowing.  The college degree is meant to empower the individual and actually afford them the ability to make more money and thus spend more money.  The inverse seems to be occurring.

Ideologically speaking, I take tremendous issue with the trend.  I believe in education.  I wholeheartedly believe in the power of learning and bettering oneself.  I also believe everyone has the right to an affordable education.  What happens to our nation when the average person can’t afford college anymore?  How many doctors, teachers, and other vital roles are we going to lose due to college costing more than most people can pay?  Are even public universities only going to be possible for the affluent?

I’m not saying college should be free.  I don’t mind paying for my daughters’ higher education.  However, I also don’t think it’s right that families have to pinch every penny for over a decade if they hope to send their child to college for a degree that likely will not pay them back anytime soon.  It seems as though Americans are being taken advantage of by the tuition system.  We tell children they need to go to college if they want a good job, if they want to make their families proud, and so young adults do whatever it takes to go to college — even if it means taking on decades of debt.  We are made to fear the idea of not going to college, and so, as a result, tuition keeps going up and up even as salary increases stagnate.  It doesn’t seem fair, does it?

Though it doesn’t appear that the tuition bubble is going to burst anytime soon, believe me when I say that  I’ve seen the hopes and dreams of many students burst these last several years.

It is my sincere hope that we can find a balance between the undeniable value of education and the appropriate amount of tuition fees.

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