William Blackburn
by Ba'al
Here
are my answers to your interesting questions. I enjoyed thinking about each
one, and I hope my answers make sense!
Will They did, indeed, Master Blackburn and I am sure that other folk will enjoy them as much as I did. ~ Ba'al
The backgrounds of your two "selves" as outlined on your profile page are incredibly divergent but the underlying personalities seem to share a certain delightfully irreverent streak. Was that intentional? And does the "hand behind the Williams" share it with his creations?
*grinning* I guess on a subconscious level it was intentional. It's the same character, just in different times and spaces. I subscribe to the idea of reincarnation, and believe that we maintain the same basic personality through many lifetimes, affected by many experiences. I write William as the same personality in both genres (17th century buccaneer and 19th century American gambler), but he has different experiences to react to. And yes, *smiling* William has a lot of my personality in him. I do tend to be irreverent when things like convention and authority are taken too seriously or too far. Rules and structure are good for society, but I don't believe in squelching individual expression.
Second question: do you sail? Being as I'm a Sun God I can make sure you have good weather. ;)
No, I don't sail, and I've only been out on the open water maybe twice in my life. But I have friends who are serious sailors: they crew on some of the tall ships that sail the coast of California. One is a bona fide sea captain. For them, please, fair winds and following seas under a sunny sky!
You have awards for prose and poetry which shows a joy of writing in many forms. Have you a favorite "style" or maybe a better way to ask the question: is there one particular style or form of writing in which you are most at home?
I struggle with poetry, maybe because I feel restricted by structure and meter--or maybe because I'm not comfortable expressing feelings and emotions that way. I haven't written very much of it, but because I'm so ambivalent about it, I want to keep trying until I get past my self-imposed censor. I'm more at ease writing prose, in a narrative style from a character's viewpoint. I tend to write as if I were watching a movie. I visualize the scenes in my head as I write them: the set, the actors and how they deliver their lines. Describing what a character looks like, and what he or she is doing in his or her environment is as important as relating what he or she is saying, thinking or feeling. Facial expressions and body language can convey a lot about a character that speech alone can't. So I try to include descriptive tidbits about dress and mannerisms unique to that character.
If you were free to invent a novel here at Pan, what would you create?
Something film noir-ish, set in the 40's. I'd be either a jaded detective or a cynical reporter/writer. Other characters would include gangsters, racketeers and bookies, corrupt politicians, gold diggers...and a few upstanding citizens and public officials for balance. *s* I haven't looked to see if there's already anything like that, since the novels I write in now keep me pretty busy. But I'm always open to new writing opportunities.
Now, the dreaded musical question: If your character were to find himself walking along a long Caribbean beach on a beautiful day in his pirate guise or as the gambler strolling down the for once dry and not muddy streets of old El Paso would he be singing? And if so, what song or kind of song would come naturally to him?
*grinning* Yes, he'd be singing. The pirate would probably be singing a tavern song he'd just learned, most likely about drinking and women. The gambler, in a similar vein, would be singing a popular song he'd heard performed in one of the dance halls. *laughing* Just another example of art imitating life. I enjoy going out to blues clubs now and then for a leisurely drink and some good music, although rather than strolling, you're more likely to find me singing along with a blues CD in my car while I'm stuck in L.A. traffic!
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