Category Archives: On Writing

Discussions of writing, self-publishing, my books and other writings, the occasional review or other related content

Kept: Top Ten Locations in Upcoming Novel

Top Ten locations in my upcoming novel “Kept.” With photos! You Betcha! One of the things I liked most about writing my other two books, Benediction and The Forest Dark, was that they (at least I think this) are inseparable from their locations, San Francisco and Los Angeles, respectively.

The project I’m working on now is set in the Palm Springs, California area. Some of these locations are real and some are just made up but set in the desert city. In those cases I looked for a photo which I feel captures the spirit of the story.

Palm Springs Tramway – ever see Where Eagles Dare?

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Greco & Greco — successful Palm Springs Real Estate Office, like the one I found here on North Palm Canyon Drive.

Desert Sun offices — This is the Palm Springs newspaper.

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Spa Resort Casino — Native American casino in downtown Palm Springs.

Deepwell Home of the Grecos — Sy and Pilar Greco live in a house like this in the Deepwell neighborhood.

Trailer out in Mecca — Jorge Gomez, aka George Gomes, is from a poor trailer park like this in the east valley.

Empty house where George lives, in Southridge — once George hooks up with Connor Hurst, he starts living in an empty house like this, while it’s being remodeled.

the Res — part of the Agua Caliente reservation in Palm Springs, where Jacy Martin and Kaya Bellardo tryst.

the Dinosaurs — in Cabazon, just off the Interstate 10. These are really there.

O’Donnell Country Club — a real golf course and country club, where there’s a pivotal fundraising event.

More to come!

More on Why We Write: Authors’ incomes collapse to ‘abject’ levels

Wish I had a beauty like this again. Photo copyright shordzi (Flickr)

Here’s more on why we write – cause like hell, it can’t be for the money. At least not for most creative writers.

This Guardian (UK) story talks about the dismal situation for novelists in the UK — and I’m sure it’s the same here or possibly worse. I have the assumption that the UK has more readers of things English, which is probably just a prejudice I have that their accent makes them smarter, thus more likely to be readers. I’m probably terribly wrong, and they’re all spending many leisure hours at the pub or the match or whatever it is they do over there when it’s raining.

Though the one thing we know they’re not doing is paying writers. So it’s sad, really, like most creative endeavors, from a monetary standpoint. And likely, getting worse than it’s been for some time.

I suppose the day may come when writers and artists will again look for wealthy patrons, maybe people like App developers in San Francisco, or hedge fund managers on Wall Street, though I suspect that works better for visual artists than for novelists. But who knows — you could auction off the right to have your name be used as a superhero protagonist in a novel series — which could mean immortality or it could mean absolutely nothing.

And that I think is why we persist, at some level. Because “it” could always happen. Your next book, story, part, song, etc., could be the one that takes the world by storm. Money and fame will follow.

But probably it won’t.

So we write because we either enjoy it or because it’s all we know how to do and can’t not write. I suspect that’s the truth for the vast majority of people who choose that lonely, often isolating existence, staring down that empty page.

If you feel like helping me earn some small income:

Character Biography: George Gomes from “Kept”

Today I’m sharing another small biography of one of the main characters in my in-process novel “Kept.” I refer back to these quite frequently when writing a character; I’ve found that it really helps them come to life for me. Hope you find it helpful/entertaining. Writers, please feel free to use the categories to invent your own characters.

Jorge Gomez: This is his legal name. He’s changed it, anglicized it (effectively, or so he thinks, into George Gomes). (When I think of George physically, I think of the marvelous Mexican actor Gael Garcia Bernal.)

Gael Garcia Bernal

Sex: Male; age 26, height and weight: 5-6, 140.
Coloring: Black hair, brown eyes, light brown skin.
Appearance: he’s got good posture, he’s very attractive when he wants to be, it’s like a transformation from a campesino to a hot latino gay man! He’s lean and muscular. He works at being attractive, which is different from Connor Hurst who just naturally exudes sex.
Heredity: Mexican = mestizo, but looks more European than Indian, a little different from his siblings. They’re from Jalisco state, the Guadalajara area.
Sociological:
Class: from lower working class migrant workers, illegal immigrants.
Occupation: He’s done farm work; when he realized he was gay and good-looking he figured out he could use that to rise above. George is looking for a mentor to help him decide on an “anglo-style” career. His first “gay” job in Palm Springs is as a barback. He works a second job washing old queen’s heads at a hair salon—in addition to the work he does for the Greco & Greco company.
Education: It’s been sporadic. Learning good English is a priority, and he’s pretty good, except for occasional slip-ups. He’s a smart kid. He has a Mexican accent. But, he’s studied a lot of English at night, especially by watching American soap operas. He loves geology, because no matter what happens, the rocks will be here (so he loves the geography in and around Palm Springs.)
Home Life: It was horrible in Mecca, CA! The family lives in a trailer. He’s abandoned them and they are angry, mad as hell. They’ve sent a brother, a cousin, to find him. Both parents are alive, yes! Father (estranged) works in the fields in eastern Coachella and Imperial Valley. Mother sometimes too, but she is sick a lot. Of course, there’s no health insurance. It’s squalor, but better than it was in Mexico. Just barely. Father drinks some, but not ridiculously a lot. He doesn’t live there, which is good, and Alma (mother) is always scheming, trying to escape this life. So far she hasn’t figured out how.

They are very religious, a very Catholic family, and consult the priest a lot. Jorge was an altar boy and is heavily influenced by the legacy of Catholicism.
Place in Community: He’s an outsider in the gay community. White gays see him as either a low income laborer, or a sex object, or some combination of the two but he’s immediately pigeonholed and finds it VERY frustrating. He’s angry about that. He’s also not an American citizen and constantly afraid of being deported: he’s an illegal.
Political affiliations: He can’t vote. He’d side with Republicans, which puts him at odds with Connor and almost every other gay person in PS. Why? People in his family liked George W. Bush (although that’s hard to fathom) and he’s absorbed that.
Amusements: He likes hiking the mountain (his interest in rocks) also he’s interested in movies. He likes taking care of himself and learning how to be an American, which is his great interest.
Psychological:
Sexuality: he’s gay exclusively. He’s a bottom to Connor’s top. He’s had lots of furtive teen experiences with other Mexican boys but he’s pretty new to the gay community, pretty green and too trusting. He likes to please. He learns fast.
Personal premise, ambition: He’d like the stereotypical American dream of material success. He’s never even been remotely close to that. Beyond that, a lover/partner to look up to.
Frustrations, disappointments: he’s not learning English fast enough or becoming American fast enough. He’s ashamed of his parents and his siblings. He doesn’t mention them if he can avoid it.
Temperament: Mostly even, but he does have a latin temper if provoked. He’s friendly, a little naïve. Somewhat secretive.
Attitude toward life: he’s optimistic about his future. He wants to forget and bury the past.
Complexes: Obsessed somewhat with labels and branding. He’s very materialistic and he and Connor do get along on that point. He’s quite anti-Catholic if pressed. He believes in ghosts and spirits that haunt the mountains around Palm Springs, and he has that in common with the tribe.
Extrovert/introvert: He’s much quieter than Connor. A bit shy. Conniving.
Abilities: He speaks two languages (Spanish and English). He’s good at playing soccer. People feel sorry for him like a puppy and that’s their downfall.
Qualities: Not the best judge of gay men, as he is not practiced. His “picker” is not seasoned. He has very bourgeois taste, which Connor tries to help. He’s got more poise than most Mexicans “just off the ranch,” thus his ability to “pass” in Palm Springs’ white gay community. Plus, he’s cute.
IQ: he’s every bit as smart as Connor, just not as overtly devious—but covert, watch out.

“The Forest Dark” L.A. Locations: Echo Park

I originally moved to Los Angeles in 1981, and the first neighborhood I lived in was Echo Park, just off Echo Park Avenue on Effie Street. Most of my initial impressions of what L.A. and Southern California were like emanated from my experiences there, as I had no other frame of reference.

So, when I wrote “The Forest Dark” 30 years later, I was really happy to set some scenes there. Here’s a quick video of those locations. There’s more to come — many other neighborhoods and landmarks appear in “The Forest Dark,” and I hope to visit them all with my camera.

Character Biography: Connor Hurst from “Kept”

Desert windmills and a Connor Hurst-esque character

Today I’m sharing my small biography of one of the main characters in my in-process novel “Kept.” I refer back to these quite frequently when writing a character; I’ve found that it really helps them come to life for me. Hope you find it helpful/entertaining. Writers, please feel free to use the categories to invent your own characters.

His name is Connor Hurst. Physical: 32, White Male. 5-10, 170, dark brown hair, blue eyes. He’s quite muscular, yet hungry looking rather than buff. A stunner! Stands up straight, and he has a swagger. Connor’s fastidious about appearance and perhaps a little vain. He has no defects – at least physically.

Heredity: he is from a WASPy stock, let’s say Scotch/Irish, more Irish, but like everyone he’s a mutt. Will have heart disease problems — if he lives that long.

Social:
Class: White Trash!
Occupation: Connor’s a con man. He’s had various “normal jobs” but had to quit them when he realized how “demeaning” they were. Always involved in off the books type of economy – he’s been a gigolo, escort, drug dealer, bookmaker, small-time theft when absolutely necessary.
Education: Connor’s a high school drop out. He thinks that school is for suckers. But he’s very smart, very street-smart and he can and does read.
In school, he had an attitude problem and was so self-centered.
Home Life: his parents are alive but he’s estranged from them. He often lies to new acquaintances about where he’s from. Originally, it was Little Rock, Ark. Of course, parents are also white trash. Father (Gregory Hurst) is alcoholic, mother (Violetta Gamble) is also a small-time crook. Father provided little guidance and little support. Odd jobs always. Mother was a domestic, she worked in hotels. Now she’s a drug dealer. Has one full-blooded brother Locker Hurst, and one half-brother Duane Gamble. Connor got beat up all the time. His father eventually abandoned the family, and is in Texas or Mexico or dead. They don’t really know.
Religion: Protestant. Southern Baptist.
Race: White, Scotch/Irish.
Place in Community: He has none. Connor Hurst is the ultimate outsider and relishes this and hates it at the same time.
Politics: He avoids politics, but would not trust politicians from either party.
Amusements and hobbies: He likes to gamble. When he goes to casino meetings with the tribe in Palm Springs, he always stops at the tables. He reads the newspaper. Knows how to work a computer as a means for his ends. He likes to shoot things—with guns—target practice. He goes out into the high desert to do that.

Psychology:
Sex life: Connor prefers men but can be convincingly bisexual when it serves his needs, and can get around a woman pretty easily; after all, he has that charisma.
Personal premise, his ambition: is to have lots of money and ultimately control over his life, and have no one ever fuck him over again or outsmart him. He’d like his “own private island” and would like to buy it.
Temperament: He’s a cocky, occasional jokester type. He’s manipulative but his intelligence shines through.
Attitude to life: Connor thinks he will prevail and is very confident. Perhaps too much.
Complexes: He’s afraid of heights. He’s prejudiced against the Indians, has his fair share of usual white trash prejudice and racism—although he is smitten with Jorge (George), at least in a sexual way. He stuttered as a child. Connor’s still embarrassed about it and angry about the tease, or being teased for anything. He’s an extrovert.
Other abilities: He’s very quick, witty. Speaks some Spanish. Can lie very convincingly. Obviously, knows how to operate a gun—any kind of gun. Knows how to fight with his fists or other handy objects. He’s had some martial arts training.
Other qualities: Can easily judge anyone and “read” them. Doesn’t have a lot of imagination beyond the “get me some money” thing – about what his life could be – hasn’t got that far.
IQ: High. He’s highly intelligent, just not traditionally schooled.

Check back for more bios. The book, “Kept,” will be released near the end of the year.

Vonnegut Writing Advice

imgres Even though written in 1973, the “advice” given to writers is just as relevant today (if not more so). I really loved this.

“Once I understood what was making America such a dangerous, unhappy nation of people who had nothing to do with real life, I resolved to shun storytelling. I would write about life. Every person would be exactly as important as any other. All facts would also be given equal weightiness. Nothing would be left out. Let others bring order to chaos. I would bring chaos to order, instead, which I think I have done.

“If all writers would do that, then perhaps citizens not in the literary trades will understand that there is no order in the world around us, that we must adapt ourselves to the requirements of chaos instead.

“It is hard to adapt to chaos, but it can be done. I am living proof of that: It can be done.”

–Kurt Vonnegut, Breakfast of Champions (1973)

Reasons Why I Rejoined Facebook

How embarrassing.

There I go with my anti-Facebook Manifesto, all righteous and everything, and now here I am telling you I’m back.

Go head and snicker. Surely, I deserve it.

Not that I still don’t think it’s generally a pretty bad idea, but here’s the deal kids:

basically everybody is on Facebook, and unfortunately, many of them are using the message protocol there as their de facto email. I don’t like it, but there you are.
I know many people and have lots of family in far away places. I’ve lived in San Francisco, Milwaukee, Palm Springs and have many friends on the East Coast as well. It’s unrealistic to keep up with them in person and this is really just the path of least resistance (especially for a lazy person).
I miss getting invited to things. Facebook has become the way people invite you to parties, events, personal meetings, etc. and I was missing that big love! Not that it can’t happen in other ways, but. . . see first point above.
Honestly, there were a couple of personal relationships that really blossomed in real time due to Facebook, and now those have waned. That’s the thing I liked most about this social media journey, and I want those people back in my life on a regular basis (and it wasn’t just virtual).
I do need the visibility. There’s still the remote possibility that people will look for staff or, heaven forbid, find out about books on Facebook. Again, like I said in my Manifesto, people don’t go to Facebook specifically to find books or writers, but the impression could be made. It could happen.

So I’ll rejoin, after all, it’s free. Still. Sort of. Though it’s not an equal trade at all. This time around, I’m going to try to:

“friend” or accept as friends only those people I know and like in real life.
avoid politics as much as humanly possible, though my fingers may get itchy.
I’ll just ignore the gross pictures of your food.
I’ll still share stuff, but hopefully this will be highly curated and mostly stuff from here (the blog) that I’d like to see distributed; I know Facebook will try to thwart that as much as they can, because they’d like to make money on wider distribution.
Will only share the barest minimum of digital assets — meaning photos, in particular. Naturally, I’m on Instagram as well, and Facebook owns that, so. . . any suggestions there?

OK, so now it’s Arnold 0, Zuckerberg 1. Don’t know how long I’ll be back, but stay tuned.

Answerman Returns: Jim Arnold answers readers’ questions

author under duress

Today, Jim answers readers pressing questions! (If you have a question, please submit it in the comments or by email.)

How did you get the idea for “The Forest Dark”?

I wanted to do an “if these walls could talk” kind of story. Originally I envisioned it quite literally, i.e. I’d tell the story of successive generations of renters at a single apartment (what became Shirley Knolls in the book). That pretty much morphed into a story of friendship over time, and how people change from youth to midlife. Also, a big part of the story is acceptance of where one finds oneself in midlife. You might say that’s an ongoing personal challenge, so it resonates with me.

Are your characters based on real people, such as yourself or others?

When I’ve written mid-life white gay male characters, like Ben Schmidt in “Benediction” or Noah Baldock in “The Forest Dark”, of course there’s a lot of me in those characters. With Noah in “Forest Dark,” I tried to model a lot of the character’s behavior on someone I knew in the past who died fairly young, and extrapolating what I thought that person would’ve ended up as in midlife. That process was actually easier than writing from what your own motivations and reactions would be. And how much more refreshing, it is, too, for the writer to be invested in someone outside of him or herself. My other main characters in both books are based on a conglomeration of friends and relatives—sometimes enemies, too.

Have you ever thought about writing a novel series?

I never did until recently. I’ve gotten a bunch of comments from fans of “Benediction” wondering what happens with Ben Schmidt after the end of that book. And, more recently, I’ve had a couple of people express interest in my character Louis Ronald Reagan von Eiff White—thinking there should be more. I think it would be fun to revisit the characters—but the story and the situations have to be compelling and stand on their own. I’ll likely make a decision soon on what to write once “Kept” is finished— later this year.

What is your best experience with self-publishing?

Seeing “Benediction” start selling quite a bit of time after its launch—which would never have happened in traditional publishing because it would have been pulled from bookstores early on for not selling. I think that’s one of the advantages of internet selling and publicity—you have a lot more time to make your case, so to speak. In fact you might have practically forever in some sense.

And your worst?

Honestly, it’s probably the realization that I have to do everything with my books—yes, writing them but also marketing them—and coming up with continuous and hopefully fresh and cheap ways to do that. There’s an incredible amount of noise out there and certainly no right answers for all of that. I think you just hope that occasionally something you do will attract a reader. When that happens, it’s worth all the sweat.

Top Ten L.A. Locations in “The Forest Dark”

When I wrote “The Forest Dark,” I wanted to make L.A. as much a character as any of the actual human ones in the book — which takes a snapshot of Los Angeles in the 1980s yet is mostly set in 2009.

Only the reader can judge if it succeeds in evoking the real personality and feel of the place, but I’d say these are the top locations in the book:

Shirley Knolls – the apartment building where Noah lived for most of the time period, where Eden also lived (characters in the book). Unlike Eden and Noah, this is a real place, on Franklin Avenue near Commonwealth in Los Feliz.

The Tiki-Ti — This little shack has been on my L.A. radar for as long as I can remember, though I think I’ve only been inside once and certainly never hung out there. A certain person might, such as those characters in this book. It seems to have undergone a renaissance in recent years as the immediate area has gotten more of a hip cachet.

Hollywood Park — the race track, the horse race track! And it’s now closed, though it hadn’t when I wrote the book. Good thing, and good thing I got to go when I did research. Very historical location, now it belongs to the ages and I think it’s going to be a condo development – what else?

The Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel — Great and again historical location, I believe this is the location where the Oscars were first presented. Supposed to be haunted, it’s got a David Hockney art as part of the pool. That’s where Eden would want to stay on her trip to L.A., even though there are many newer and fancier places to stay in Hollywood these days.

Channel Road – Will Rogers Beach. In the book, one character works at a store near the beach, and later in the book, another character gets a beach rental close by. Many of my early summer days in Los Angeles as a twentysomething were centered around this street. (good good memories!)

Bourgeois Pig — always loved the name of this place and used to write here on occasion when I rented fairly close by in Hollywood, on a street called Ivarene. The Forest Room in back used to be kind of a casbah room, where I’d occasionally meet blind dates, men I found on the internet. Also some good memories!
Convent of the Precious Blood — Made up institution and features, but the location is based on a real place, which happens to be just down the road from the La Bianca House (Manson murders) in Los Feliz. The real joint is called the convent of the Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, on Waverly Drive. (no picture yet)

Glendower Place, Perelson Mansion. Off of Vermont Avenue near Griffith Park, a real location and a real story. A murder suicide that occurred in 1959, and a house that has never really been lived in since then. Fascinating story which I incorporated into my fictional narrative.

KCET Building on Sunset – originally Monogram Studios and Allied Artists studios, home of “The Bowery Boys” and possibly where “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” was filmed, or certainly where the production company was located. In 2011 KCET sold the studio to the Church of Scientology (and so it begins another bizarre chapter in its existence).

Hollywood Boulevard and Gramercy – location of the little store where Noah is asked to commit a crime. I write at a coffeehouse on that corner, Sabor y Cultura. There’s this fantastic art deco building across the street – perhaps it used to be a car dealership or something of that nature back in the day — but it certainly gets the creative juices going for me.

One of the most fun things for me as the author of “The Forest Dark” was figuring how to weave these places into a story. If you’re not familiar with Los Angeles, perhaps some of these locations will be new to you.

“The Forest Dark” wins Second Place in Reader Views’ Literary Awards

Happy St. Patrick’s Day, everyone – and yes, the awards were announced today and “The Forest Dark” came in Second Place in the Gay/Lesbian category for the Reader Views’ Literary Awards!

Big congratulations to all the winners in all the categories. I know how difficult it is to write a book, just finishing it is quite an accomplishment. Having written one and then getting some recognition for it, well, it’s icing on that cake.