Secret Messages
Guest Post: Gila Green on Lessons Learned While Writing
Gila Green, author of Passport Control, shares a few important lessons–for writers and for readers–learned while tackling her newest novel, Passport Control (S & H Publishing 2018). On Green’s new novel, Steve Stern (The Book of Mischief) says, “Many novels have attempted to orchestrate the impossible marriage of politics and human relations in the state of Israel, but few have presided over that perilous ceremony with the grace, affection, and emotional clarity of Gila Green’s Passport Control. A stunning achievement.”
At the end of her guest post, enter the giveaway for a chance to win a copy of Green’s new book (courtesy of S & H Publishing)! *Please note: an ebook is available for a winner living in the US or abroad, but a print version is available only for US readers.
Three Things I Learned from Writing Passport Control
by Gila Green
“My back straightens at the word pig. I am used to French Canadians complaining against discrimination in the workplace, in the government, in the media, but somehow Farzeen disarms me with her accusations against a state I’d lived in only for two hours in a taxi, except, of course, I have that vein that connects me with my Jerusalem-born, Arabic-speaking father, but I’m cutting him out of my life. Still, as jet lagged and disoriented as I am, that vein begins to pulse.”
~ Excerpt from Passport Control
I won’t make you wait. Here are three things I learned from writing my second novel Passport Control.
1. You can deviate from the traditional coming-of-age structure.
Classically, protagonists in coming-of-age stories encounter a singularly painful experience that make them realize once and for all that they are alone in the world. They soon discover they must struggle to a place of safety—physically or emotionally—though they are companionless, or at least without the adults they are closest to around for guidance.
The protagonists go on to mine formerly unknown inner strengths in this newly discovered raw space and sometimes develop outer hardiness, too.
In the last act, the world is the same planet it always was; it is the hero or heroine who has grown strong enough to navigate it.
But not all novels tread a straight path.
There’s nothing wrong with this structure and I am a fan of coming-of-age novels, but my heroine Miriam Gil embarks on a journey that does not fit precisely into this neat pattern. While she does have a painful experience that makes her feel as though she must strike out into the world on her own, the more she scratches beneath the surface, the more confused she becomes.
Each drop of clarity brings her to a messier more bewildered state. The conventional transformation from innocent and naive to mature and wise does happen, but not on every level as readers have come to expect from this genre. There are layers that deliberately mislead both Miriam and the reader. Similarly, neither Miriam nor the reader will attain total balance.
For one, this is far closer to real life and my own experience of writing this novel, which leaped from a short story to a novella to a novel over a period of years and went through more than one publisher along the way.
It also reflects the landscape of my novel, a key player. It weaves the location even deeper into the bones of the characters to provide the effect of as little separation as possible. There is nothing orderly about this area of the world.
2. You can’t have enough foreshadowing.
I’m a big foreshadowing enthusiast. I used to teach an online literary devices class and foreshadowing remained my favorite, no matter how many times I restarted the course. I enjoy the more obvious hints in fiction, as well as the subtle ones for readers unraveling the pages at different levels.
I was certain I had enough foreshadowing in Passport Control in my final draft, but with each editorial reading empty pockets I could fill with more of this device were pointed out to me.
Tighten your story with foreshadowing.
I came to appreciate this literary device is not only a tension builder, but a genuine way to weave the story until it’s a snug, close-fitting read. And so, the more dangerous incidents are preceded by milder ones throughout the novel. The desired effect on the reader is they are more prepared to believe the events that unfold as they increase in intensity. It increases their trust that that this is an authentic story and, indeed, that it could not have happened any other way.
3. Love your characters.
Really let go and allow yourself to fall in love with them. If you feel a tenderness for your characters the result will be vivid, sharp dialogue and effortless character arcs.
I didn’t fall in love with every character overnight; it was more of a slow waltz with some and a head over heels plunge with others.
Take Guy, for example, Miriam’s boyfriend in Passport Control. He is purely imaginary. I conjured him up out of my own female fantasy land, the one I didn’t even know I had. And it’s worked big time. Aside from my Palestinian character, Farzeen, the number one comment I’ve received so far from readers is how much they love Guy.
You know you love them when you miss them.
And I think I’ve unlocked the secret: I love him, too! I’ve found myself sitting on a packed train leaving Tel Aviv after a long work day teaching English to Israeli college students or at a bus stop in Jerusalem after a morning of shopping in the mall, gawking at real-life soldiers.
Within two minutes I catch myself imagining which soldier could be Guy in Passport Control, an idealist, a builder, a young man who dreams of nothing more than changing the whole world, or at least the region he lives in. All of this, months after I submitted my final draft on the last proofread. I admit, I miss him, as absurd as that sounds.
It took me two days to write the original Passport Control, a 12-page short story for a writing class. It took me another year to write Passport Control, the 100-page novella. It took me two years to write the novel into a state that is at least recognizable as the final draft.
Just as I felt compelled to continue chiseling away at this story until it evolved from its short form to its final long form. I hope you feel compelled to try a few pages and then continue through this tightly-woven, not so neat and tidy journey, and maybe even fall in love along the way.
About the Book
Miriam Gil knows little about Israel. Her father won’t talk about his life there or the brother he left behind when he came to Canada. Hurt and angry when he tells her to move out to make room for his new girlfriend, she enrolls in an Israeli university. She falls in love with Guy, a former combat soldier who dreams of peace. Miriam is caught off guard when her visa and passport application are rejected on the grounds that she’s suspected of being a Syrian Christian. In rapid order, the university boots her out, her one friend is killed in a brawl, and Miriam is accused of murder by Israeli police. Despite troubling revelations about her father’s past, Miriam must reconcile with him if she is to prove her innocence, reclaim her life, and hang on to her newfound love.
About the Author
Canadian author Gila Green is an Israel-based writer, editor, and EFL teacher. She is the author of Passport Control (S&H Publishing, 2018) and White Zion, a novel in stories forthcoming from Cervena Barva Press. Gila’s short fiction appears in dozens of literary magazines in the U.S.A., Canada, Australia, Israel, Ireland, and Hong Kong including: The Fiddlehead, Terrain.org, Akashic Books, Fiction Magazine, and Boston Literary Review. Her work has been short-listed for the Doris Bakwin Literary Award (Carolina Wren Press), WordSmitten’s TenTen Fiction Contest, twice for the Walrus Literary Award, and twice for the Eric Hoffer Best New Writing Award. She has lived in Ottawa, Winnipeg, Vancouver, Johannesburg, Tel Aviv, Haifa, and Jerusalem. Visit her website for more on her work and books.
DON’T FORGET! Enter the book giveaway for a chance to win a copy of Passport Control. The giveaway closes on Tuesday, December 18th at noon.
*Please note: an ebook is available for a winner living in the US or abroad, but a print version is available only for US readers.
Remington Roundup for #Readers & #Writers
It’s been a while since the last Remington Roundup, but that doesn’t mean there’s been little to share. Here are links gathered over the last few months for readers and writers.
Roundup For #Readers
Fiction in Solstice Magazine: Middle-Aged Woman Rethinks Her Sexual Orientation While Breakfasting at a Cafe by Mia Caruso
You don’t have a sexual orientation, you realize. You were just swept along, without ever having a chance to know. Awkward is your sexual orientation.
Nonfiction in Carbon Culture: Unanswered Questions by Julia Poole
Time was limited. People like Ralph, the men, and women who had lived during WWII, would soon be gone. I didn’t want their stories to die with them. Sites of remembrance, including concentration camps, are part of their stories, part of history not to be ignored or forgotten. Such places act as persuasive and effective teachers. Are people still willing to learn?
Must-Read Books by Indigenous Authors (post by Kaitlin Curtice)
I’m constantly asked for resources on how people can move forward learning about Indigenous culture, and I’m often repeating the same thing: read books. . . . Indigenous peoples cannot do the work for you. You must dig in and learn yourself, and the best way to do that is lean into our cultures. Learn about us. Do your research, and then we can have a conversation that isn’t a one-sided history or cultural lesson.
Roundup For #Writers
On Publisher’s Weekly, Writing Tips from Barbara Kingsolver
Writers work successfully in so many different ways, I never assume that what works for me is best for someone else. But if a common denominator exists among us, it might be attitude: the enterprise of writing a book has to feel like walking into a cathedral. It demands humility. The body of all written words already in print is vaulted and vast. You think you have something new to add to that? If so, it can only come from a position of respect: for the form, the process, and eventually for a reader’s valuable attention.
An In-Person Workshop: Diving Into the Details
Details play a significant role in our writing, whether we write poems, essays or novels. Details build story, deepen story, and provide more ways for readers to connect with story.
Meets Saturday, November 10th, 9:30am-noon. Come read examples of authors who master details and practice technique with several writing prompts. Register through Red Oak Writing.
Or an Online Meet-Up at Study Hall: #AmWriting
…with space, an invitation, and a gentle push from another writer facing similar challenges, we are more likely to show up at the table and set pen to paper. We are more likely to encourage the writer across from us and–together–create more art.
Our next Study Hall meets Sunday, November 11th, 3:30-5pm CST. Register by Friday, November 9th!
An Updated List for Flash Nonfiction Submissions curated by Erika Dreifus
…a guide to journals and magazines that publish flash nonfiction/micro-essays.
Because after all that writing you’re doing, you’ll be ready to submit!