Joshua Vise
I find that the creativity in a different medium makes me think about my own creativity.
Tell us about yourself and your most current project/s?
My name is Joshua Vise, and I have been writing on and off for my entire life. For the past two years, I have been actively writing short horror stories. I am most frequently published in anthologies by Wicked Shadow Press and CultureCult Press, though my work has appeared in other places as well. My biggest current project is working on an anthology called Bewitched Whispers, which is part of a collaborative publishing project I participate in called Signus Magnolia.
Where did the inspiration/idea come for this project?
Signus Magnolia came about because a publisher that a lot of writers and I worked for folded. Along with seeking out new publications in which to appear, several of that publisher’s most prolific writers and I decided to try our hand at collaborative self-publishing. Our goal is to release two anthologies a year, with the next one, Bewitched Whispers, due to be released in early October. This particular anthology deals with dark fairy tales and folklore, and our writers adapted that topic into their own works. My own story in that anthology is called “Cassia and the Crescent Moon”, and it is my attempt to write a completely original fairy tale, or at least something that seems fairy-tale-esque.
What does the writing process look like for you?
When an anthology puts out an open call, they generally have a topic or theme in mind, and the first step in my process is to try to imagine what I feel everyone else’s take on that topic might be so that I can avoid those ideas. The first positive step towards writing is when I find an idea that I haven’t heard before, something that seems original (at least to me). It could take the form of a unique plot point, character, setting, or a unique twist, but it rarely presents itself to me as a complete story idea.
Once I have some ideas from which to work, I get to writing. I don’t do very many drafts before submitting, so I really try to produce clean copy. I use an online thesaurus quite a bit, because I don’t like to repeat words unless it is necessary to the story. If the story is short enough, I may be able to get through the whole thing in one sitting, but it usually takes several sessions to produce something that I am happy enough with to submit. Once I’ve submitted it, it is out of my hands, unless it is for Signus Magnolia, in which case I have other responsibilities involving the production of the book.
How do you handle writer’s block?
For me, writer’s block is often the result of trying too strenuously to force an idea to be something that it may not want to be. When I feel stuck, time is always the best cure. Looking at a work with fresh eyes generally allows me to fix whatever I was unhappy with. Sometimes, it is good to start over completely. I don’t mean I throw away what I was working on, but instead I just try a different attempt at the same theme. For example, if my publisher is asking for short stories incorporating the idea of ‘possessed animals’, and my first attempt isn’t going so well, I ask myself what I would write if I had to write two stories for that anthology, and then try to write them both. Whichever one ends up being better is the one I submit.
How do you feed your creativity when feeling drained?
There are times when I don’t feel particularly creative or inspired, but I don’t know if I would attribute that to being drained. My feelings of being drained are usually associated with burnout at my day job, and so getting the chance to write is often my antidote to feeling drained. When I feel uninspired, I think it is a really good idea to experience other kinds of art outside of writing. If I read another person’s short story, I find myself saying “If this were my story, I would have…”, but that is not very useful because I don’t want to write someone else’s story. But if I see a live band, or look at a painting or photograph, or watch a good (or even bad!) movie, I find that the creativity in a different medium makes me think about my own creativity.
What advice would you give writers’ who feel stuck or uninspired?
I think the best advice, aside from what I said above, is just try not to force yourself to accomplish something. Write something completely for fun, and tear it up. Write a silly haiku or the like, something where you have no expectations and there are no consequences. Allow your love for words to reestablish itself. Also, going for long walks seems to help me a lot.
Have you ever thought about giving up writing? If so, what pulled you back?
I did give up! I’ve started and stopped many times in my life. I shouldn’t actually say that I gave up because I never purposely decided I wanted to quit doing it. Rather, I think I just found other priorities in my life that would take me away from it for a while, but I always knew that it was there for me as soon as I felt the urge to go back to it. One thing that keeps me coming back is that I feel that it is something I do well, or at least for me it is the thing I do better than any of my other hobbies. Moreover, since I’ve been fortunate enough to publish a lot over the past two years, I can see myself developing a style and a voice that seems consistent throughout my work. You only get to see that if you stick with it.
How do you keep your voice or ideas fresh over time?
One thing that I like about my approach is to consciously try to predict what others would want to write and avoid those ‘easy’ ideas. I really make an effort to make my stories something unlike anything else I have read before. I am not always completely successful at this, but just by making the effort, it seems to steer me in a direction where I will be both challenged and inspired.
What do you wish more people understood about the creative process?
Good writing and good typing are not the same. Sometimes it feels like, because everyone seems to have Microsoft Word or Google Docs, they think they can write. I will never put anyone down for attempting to write something, and they should be proud of their efforts and continue to improve. However, it takes a substantial amount of thought and effort to really craft a strong story. Everyone knows what bad writing looks like, because it seems to jump out at you. Good writing may not be that obvious immediately, as you hopefully cease to be aware of the process of reading and instead find yourself immersed in the story. Creating a rhythm, finding the right word, crafting a setting and characters that feel right, avoiding cliché and other pitfalls, all these things take a lot of work. Writing is work.
What is the most honest thing you’ve ever written - and did it scare you?
The most honest thing I have ever written was a short story called “Tombo”. It is a story about a straight man who, for very complicated reasons, finds himself feeling comfortable and accepted in a gay bar. It was inspired by my experiences as a straight man who was sometimes invited to gay bars by my gay friends. I found that I actually enjoyed my time there, and made friends, but I often wondered how appropriate it was for me to be there. The story itself was published in an anthology of queer horror stories, so there is a lot more going on than just ‘straight guy in a gay bar’.
Where can our audience find you and/or your work?
All of my work, including “Tombo” can be found on my personal website, www.joshuadvise.com. Additionally, our collaborative publishing effort can be found at www.signusmagnolia.com.