The Dream Team

by Gary Fearon, Creative Director, Southern Writers Magazine

What did you dream last night?  If you're like most people, you either can't remember any or don't think you dreamed at all.  The fact is, according to researchers, each of us dream every night, but the majority of them leave our memory when we wake up.  Why some dreams stick and others don't, I will leave up to the experts in physiology and psychology to explain.  I just know it has something to do with how much Taco Bell I had.

Particularly fascinating are recurring dreams, which are said to keep presenting themselves to teach us something or help us resolve some issue. For example, my most recurring dream takes me back to junior high school, where I am looking for my next class but wander the halls because I can't find my class schedule.  If, by chance, you have that same dream, please tell me where my locker is.

In any event, we tend to write off dreams as the figments of our imagination that they are, paying little heed to them.  But have you ever thought about taking a dream and turning it into a story?

These famous writers did just that.

Stephenie Meyer had no aspirations of becoming a writer until she had a vivid dream about the star-crossed lovers who became the stars of Twilight.  She merely wanted to capture the story for herself so she wouldn't forget these characters who fascinated her.

Stephen King was napping on a flight to London when he dreamed of a woman holding a writer prisoner and torturing him.  Excited by this premise, the first thing King did upon arrival was write the first 40 or 50 pages of what became Misery. 

In 1885, the wife of Robert Louis Stevenson woke him from a nightmare when he complained, "Why did you wake me?  I was dreaming a fine bogey tale."  Indeed, he was in the middle of a dream about a man transforming into a murderer, and The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde soon hit the streets.

Then there's the granddaddy of all thrillers, Frankenstein. Mary Shelley had been in the company of scientists and speculators whose conversation included the occult. The resulting nightmare involved a mad scientist trying to play God by creating a man.

Before you think that dreams have only been used to advantage by writers of the paranormal, other books as diverse as Stuart Little and Sophie's Choice are said to have their origins in dreams.  I know for sure that's true of Stuart Little, but I can't substantiate Sophie's Choice.  Maybe I dreamed that one.

The point is, the premise of your next dream could just possibly become the plot for a great novel by repurposing it as a story possibility.   

Dreaming of writing the next bestseller?  Consider teaming up with your dreams and perhaps they will do some of the work for you.

Creative Recalibration

by Gary Fearon, Creative Director, Southern Writers Magazine


So I was wandering around at Lowe's last week looking for a piece of white laminated wood to finish an office project.  My massive collection of CDs has grown into the need for one more shelf, which must fit the precise measurements of an existing bookcase, one with apparently uncommon dimensions, because this has been going on for awhile.

Finding the ideal type of wood in a slightly larger size than I needed, and having meticulously written out the precise cuts I could have Lowe's do, I proudly took both to the cutter man, who was quick to inform me that their machine can't make a lengthwise cut on any wood narrower than two feet.

Not to be thwarted, I tried my luck at Home Depot, a block away, where I found an even more suitable size of white laminated wood and proceeded to the cutting station.  Here they had the right kind of saw, but the cutter man said that a lengthwise cut on that type of wood would likely split it all to pieces because of the way it's made.  I asked if he would try anyway, that I'd be willing to take the gamble, but he said they're simply not allowed to cut that type of wood.

Well, shucky durn, I thought.  I left the store carrying not my prize shelving, but a sense of resignation (not to mention self-loathing for thinking "shucky durn"). Having already explored a number of stores and websites prior to this episode, I had now exhausted all avenues of success for my grand plan.

Then it occurred to me that a white laminated CD shelf might not be the best plan at all.  There were other options, but I had been so stuck on my original plan that I hadn't seriously considered them.

I thought back to two days earlier when I was returning home from a long drive.  My GPS insisted that I take the highway, but I knew it was under construction, so I chose an alternate route.  For some miles the GPS kept nagging me to turn around or to take this turnoff to get to the route it had chosen for me.  Finally, it gave up and recalibrated, aligning with my preferred route.

But this isn't about CD shelves or GPS systems.  The bigger picture is that the first route we set our sights on isn't necessarily the best.  It may just be the most obvious one, which is why we get stuck on it.  But there are always alternate routes which could be more to our advantage.

Trained by all the great books and movies that have gone before, we expect story lines to follow certain formulas: when there is this cause, there will be this effect.  Having these mile markers to work from can be an excellent writing tool.  They have stood the test of time because they work. 

But limiting ourselves to something tried and true (and predictable) can induce its own brand of writer's block.  When we realize in horror that our story is commonplace and has turned into drivel, we will question whether it's worth writing.  Or if we develop a scene or plot that is getting nowhere fast, or has boxed us into a corner, we believe we're wasting our time.

That's the time to ask, Are we taking the best route?  We may have enthusiastically jumped on our first impulse, overlooking a road less traveled the story or characters could have taken.  It's a personal challenge to give up an idea we were excited about, but the reward comes when we recalibrate and our next idea solves all our problems.

And as for my CD shelf idea?  I decided I have way too many CDs.  eBay, here I come.

Three's Company

by Gary Fearon, Creative Director, Southern Writers Magazine

Everyone knows that if you had a genie in a lamp, he would grant you three wishes.  A fair question would be, Why is it always three wishes?  The correct answer is, Because the number three is magic.

We all grew up on fairy tales and fables that reinforced the number three repeatedly: Goldilocks encountered three bowls of porridge, three chairs, three beds, and, ultimately, three bears. Jack climbed the beanstalk and collected three golden objects. Cinderella had a fairy godmother who evidently attended the same school as the genie, granting three wishes.

The Three Little Pigs matched wits with a big bad wolf who also knew the power of three, declaring that he would do three things: "I'll huff, and I'll puff, and I'll blow your house in."  He didn't include "and by the way, I'm gonna eat you," because that would have thrown off the rhythmic flow and was probably a given anyway.

Before crossing the street, we are taught to stop, look and listen. On the day that the fireman comes to our school, we are taught to stop, drop, and roll.  We are wired to remember things more easily when they come in threes.

No less than Solomon himself offered the phrase. "Eat, drink and be merry." The Declaration of Independence grants us the right to "Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" here in the land of the Red, White and Blue. And isn't there romantic poetry in the pledge to "love, honor and obey"? 

Having grown up with an inherent affinity for trilogies, the audience finds reassurance in stories and quotations that deliver the goods in threes.  It took three ghosts to show Ebenezer Scrooge the error if his ways via visions of his past, present and future. Dorothy met up with three companions on her road trip to Oz, seeking a brain, a heart, and courage. The Three Stooges were a virtual three ring circus unto themselves.

The very storytelling structure of beginning, middle and end owes a debt to the rule of three, although it seems fairly impossible to have a middle without having a beginning and an end, when you stop and think about it. Nonetheless, we consciously build stories with the basic formula of 1) setting it up, 2) telling the story, and 3) wrapping it up.

There are, of course, other numbers that made their mark in literature and lingo, like the seven dwarfs or the Twelve Days of Christmas.  One could bring up the nineteen rings in Lord of the Rings, but technically the elves were allotted three, so there ya go. 

In any event, my observations today are merely a celebration of the number three.  Use its power however you see fit, inspired by its ability to add a little extra magic to the story you put your blood, sweat and tears into.

Speaking of stories: A cowboy, an astronaut, and a politician go into a bar...

The Spice of Life

by Gary Fearon, Creative Director, Southern Writers Magazine


This weekend, a friend shared his childhood memories of the "family movie night" that was a weekly ritual in his home.  Each member of the family got to take turns picking the flick of the week at Blockbuster.  As you can predict, the kids always picked out movies geared toward children, while the adults chose more sufferable fare.

For every Ninja Turtles movie they watched, my friend's dad had them sit down to a classic like On the Waterfront. Or A Streetcar Named Desire. One week it was even Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. (Don't worry, grade school exposure to these mature themes didn't scar the young boy for life; in fact, he went on to become a youth pastor).

It harkened me back to thoughts of my youth, which included a lavish movie house with a balcony, curtains that opened and closed, and where you could buy expensive souvenir programs for the epics being shown. I think even more than the movies themselves, my parents enjoyed introducing their children to edifying entertainment.  So I too grew up on a well-balanced diet of comedies, dramas, romances, musicals, as well a couple of movies my parents made us walk out on.

Looking back, I'm especially grateful for this early education, which gives me a pretty good understanding today of the elements that go into a comedy, a drama, a romance, a musical, not to mention movies my parents would still walk out on. And no doubt you can say the same. While we may have a favorite genre of movie—let's say spy thriller—that doesn't keep us from attending the occasional romantic comedy that catches our interest.

Which brings me to this question: Do you read more than one genre?

Variety is a good thing, for storytelling and for painting

Do you always read the same genre, or do you mix that up too? Granted, committing to an entire novel requires a greater time investment than a two-hour movie (unless you're Susan Reichert, who can read a book a night).

Just as we moviegoers have cut our storytelling teeth by watching a variety of film genres, veering from our usual reading course and picking up an author who writes the kind of tale we're unfamiliar with could introduce us to other ways of telling a story. The intricacies specific to another genre could be eye-opening.  They could help add a new dimension to the genre we normally write in.

Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Mary Schmich said, "Good art is art that allows you to enter it from a variety of angles and to emerge with a variety of views."  I look forward to adding a little more variety to my library, and I hope new ideas will emerge for you too.

For now, I can't let a mention of Mary Schmich go by without sharing one of her greatest achievements, a laundry list of advice that director Baz Luhrmann turned into a music video.  It could change your life.  I at least guarantee it will change the next five minutes of your life.

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTJ7AzBIJoI

Instant Inspiration

by Gary Fearon, Creative Director, Southern Writers Magazine

Much like our own bookshelves, I've always considered the magazines in a doctor's waiting room to be a reflection of the person running the joint. I appreciate a physician who caters to multiple ages and interests by supplying a broad selection of periodicals.  While waiting for a dental checkup this week, I had just such an opportunity to choose from a fair variety.

Being both a movie and news junkie, I'll often reach first for an Entertainment Weekly or a Newsweek if they have it.  But today I decided to broaden my horizons and look at magazines I would never normally read, purely in the interests of inspiration and enlightenment.  And perhaps fodder for a blog post.

The first magazine, which dealt with outdoor adventure, was a radical enough choice to start with, since my loyalties firmly lie with the great indoors. Pledging to read whatever article I randomly opened to, I found myself learning about the Beer Mile, a fad from Australia which encourages runners to attempt a five-minute mile around a four lap track, downing a brewski upon each lap. Few apparently succeed upon consuming all that ale, and I must admit that I bailed on the article when I saw that it consumed eight pages of the magazine.  But it left me interested in the fact that the organizers of these events almost have to do so under the radar because they are fraught with the potential for negative publicity.

Another magazine—and one I really had to bite the bullet to pick up—was a golfing magazine.  The first page I came to was a Q&A with an expert on country clubs across America.  A reader asked what course he might recommend for a vacation spot based on his preferences for a warm climate, nearness to a historical site, and whatever.  Before I put the mag back, I considered the value of planning a trip based on very specific criteria, such as researching a city one might want to set their next novel in.

My third magazine was devoted to living in trailers (which made me wonder a little about my dentist).  The page I opened to happened to be an ad for a race track where their spring weekend event will include entertainment provided by Beatles tribute band Ticket to Ride.  The next night will feature a Neil Diamond tribute band.  I had no idea there was such a thing as a full-fledged Neil Diamond tribute band, and it made me wonder what other tribute bands might exist that I don't know about.

Soon after that I was summoned for my appointment, but not before I took stock of the new insights I had gleaned from this free source of inspiration.  In that short amount of time I was given the nucleus of a story idea that might involve a fan who is so infatuated with their favorite singer that they move to his city and organize a questionable event that they know the singer will want to be a part of, and mayhem ensues.  In fact, if you'd like to write it, go for it because I'll be busy working on my tribute band.  I do a mean Gilbert O'Sullivan.

Which is all one way of saying that I recommend branching out and reading something from the road less traveled.  You might indulge in similar pages of offbeat randomness while standing in a checkout line, but the opportunity to take your time and expand your mind in the relative comfort of a waiting room could be just what the doctor ordered.