Author! Author!

Paying Attention

by Fredric M. Ham

I cannot count the number of times that I heard my high school history teacher say, “Not another word out of you, or you’re off to the Principal’s office. You’d better pay attention.” However, I could have probably blamed my situation on Marsha who sat next to me in history class. She was very distracting. But that’s another story.

So what does this have to do with writing? I say everything. I think the best writers are those who pay attention to everything that’s going on around them no matter where they are or what they’re doing, and they can shut off the world around them when it’s an absolute necessity (this is also paying attention, but introspectively).

I will begin with the former premise, and cite an example. Let’s say I’m sitting on a wood and wrought-iron bench in a small park somewhere in New York City. Fall is in full force, there’s not a cloud in the sky, and the leaves have changed color. What was once lush, green foliage topping the trees is now yellow and crimson clusters everywhere I turn. There’s a nip in the air and I am so deeply engrossed in a novel that I’m off in another dimension. However, out of the corner of my eye I notice two men, probably in their early twenties, plop down on an identical bench opposite mine. They begin speaking, and it’s my trained mind that tells me to stop reading and start paying attention to them. Now I pretend that I’m still reading, but really I’m listening in and peering over the top of my paperback that I’m holding chest high.

I sense that there is going to be something said that will be of interest to me. So I tune in. I’m paying attention for the sake of building my DIALOGUE database for writing fiction. I believe that listening to others engaged in conversation (I’m not suggesting eavesdropping; face it, I was on my park bench first.) can truly serve to improve the writing of realistic and gripping dialogue. The exchange between these two individuals is so rich in dialogue potential, it’s like being in Häagen-Dazs conversation heaven.

It goes like this:

One of the men on the bench is leaning backwards, his hands are locked behind his head and he’s peering skyward (he is Mr. Upright), the other has his elbows planted on his thighs and his forehead resting on the palms of his hands (he is Mr. Uptight).

“What’s up with you, Man?” Upright asks.
“Man, I don’t know,” Uptight says, then exhales heavily.
“What’s it been, a couple of months now?”
“Yup, I quit about three months ago,” Uptight explains. “Haven’t had a crack attack for weeks now.”
“Then why are you so uptight?”
“I don’t know, I’ve been off everything for months and I’m still disturbed.” Uptight straightens up, leans back on the bench, and then runs his right hand through a mop of thick black hair. “Damn!” he moans.
Upright’s eyes sadden. “That’s messed up, Dude.”

I overheard this conversation in a park in Greenwich Village three years ago. Even though this is a very sad situation, it’s rich in true-to-life dialogue. For me it reinforces the importance of realism that must be at the core of any dialogue that I write. I have never directly used these lines in anything that I’ve written, but I certainly recall the conversation (among others that I have written down over the years) when crafting dialogue that I want to ring true with titillating and intoxicating realism. I try to listen in and write down what I hear. I carry a small spiral notebook and an ink pen with me wherever I go and jot down what I think are interesting snippets of conversation.

Then when is it time to stay in my own world and shut out the real world? When I’m writing, of course. I climb into my story and experience it, and in some cases even discover it, as I’m writing. What do the following cities have in common?

Maeva Beach, Tahiti San Francisco
New York City Chalkida, Greece
Hudson, Florida Seattle
Montreal Washington, DC
San Diego Cancun
Honolulu Kailua-Kona, Hawaii
Paris Indialantic, Florida

These are the various locations where I have had the opportunity to write, and in many of them I wrote parts of Dead River. When I wasn’t enjoying the sights, sounds and conversations around me, I was in my hotel room (or my study at home) writing, in my world.

Fredric M. Ham was born and raised in a small Iowa town. After graduating high school, he served in the U.S. Navy which included three tours of duty in Vietnam. After the Navy, Fred attended Iowa State University earning B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Electrical engineering. He has traveled extensively throughout the United States and around the world. He has explored the Far East and studied various cultures. His many years of research and writing experience have led to over a hundred published technical papers, a textbook on artificial neural networks, and the holding of three United States patents. He is currently an Endowed Chair Professor of Electrical Engineering at Florida Institute of Technology where he has been on the faculty since 1988. Dead River is his first novel. He has written several short stories and is currently working on his second novel. He resides in Indialantic, Florida with his wife.

Dead River, by Fred Ham: Adam Riley’s world is suddenly shattered when his seventeen-year-old daughter, Sara Ann, mysteriously vanishes from a small Florida beach community on a sweltering afternoon in late summer. Three days after her disappearance the abductor calls the Riley home, and when he doesn’t demand ransom money it quickly becomes apparent to everyone that his sole motive is to torment the family. The horror is only beginning.
With no clues evident to the local authorities they turn to the FBI for assistance. The clock is ticking and the kidnapper must be found. Who is this person? What motivates him? Who could be next? The FBI profiler tries to answer these questions, but the terror sweeps through the beach community like a hurricane and soon it spreads to a near-by town.
What happens to a man whose daughter has been kidnapped? To what lengths will Adam Riley go to ensure justice is served? Can his religious beliefs provide a moral compass and guide him in the right direction? Only time will tell.

Dead River, by Fred Ham and published under the PulpBytes Imprint (2006) is available in eBook format at the DPPstore (www.dppstore.com) for $8.95

Please visit Fredric Ham's website: www.fredricmham.com