MY THREE-LEGGED STOOL
OF WRITING by Karla Stover
Puget Sound has a lot
of mystery writers—writing is a good thing to do when it rains—and, for years, I
went to meetings of the Mystery Writers of America. They were well-attended and
exciting. Then, one of the writers decided people who hadn’t been published
by MWA-approved-publishers should be banned. Now, if 20 people attend, it’s
a good turnout. However, during the heyday of smooshing with Ann Rule and Earl
Emerson, I learned about the three-legged stool: characters, setting, and action, and giving
equal space to each.
I am currently editing Tahuya Daze (ta-who-ya) the second of my
Puget Sound Mysteries, which takes place on Hood Canal. At the book’s
beginning, the heroine, Mercedes, comments on madrona trees. They’re unique to the Pacific Northwest. Supposedly, Captain George
Vancouver thought their color was like that of strawberries, but then, he’d
been at sea for a long time.
Goeducks are also indigenous here. Halfway
through the book, Mercedes goes over to the Skokomish Indian Reservation and
sees one of these. For those interested, they’re very hard to dig and the skin
peels off the neck. (Not to be crude, but it is similar to removing a condom).
Ground up goeduck necks and breasts make great chowder. On the TV show, dirty
Jobs, Mike Rowe visited a goeduck farm and dug one up. Sadly, he broke its
shell, a big no-no.
Since my book takes
place in July, my husband and I have been photographing. When Mercedes is
captured by the bad guy and forced to walk through some clear-cut land on the
hills above the canal.
I remember reading Phyllis Whitney’s books, each of which took place in a different country. As
someone on Goodreads wrote, “Her novels are set in interesting locales that often become a character themselves.”
Not everyone in my critique group likes the
three-legged stool: too many people and too much physical “stuff”. I, however,
want a sense of place and an opportunity to know the characters. Aren’t well
all lucky there’s no right answer?
I tried very hard to make this blog pretty and to have the photographs next to the appropriate paragraph. Unfortunately, it didn't work. Thanks for any comments you care to make. Karla
Just getting to this week's blogs. I quite agree with making the three plot, characters and setting. Settings is what i find the hardest to write. I'm not a visual person and looking at pictures generally bores me.So I must find other ways to get my settings and make them as powerful as the other elements in a story.
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