Mina Witteman – author | editor | teacher of creative writing

Welcome to Amsterdam

Posted on March 16, 2011

King of the Clamps

It was a warm and sunny day. A spring day, if you wish. Not the type that you immediately start rummaging through your closet for shorts and skirts, but a pleasant 15 degrees. Just enough to open your window, lean out and catch a ray or two, while watching tourists saunter by.

Tourists?
Yep.
And with them hunting season has opened.

One major player in the hunting game is the city’s parking management. When the sun shows and the tourists start pouring in, they hop in their nifty white vans. Like true bounty-hunters they roam the streets and canals, routing meter infringers, time offenders and the general parking knave.

Today they made their first catch. A sweet little Opel left by its inconsiderate owner without even so much as a parking tag. He got nabbed, that sweet little thing. Nabbed by the omnipresent Amsterdam parking wardens. The brakes of their van screeched as they came to a halt. By the way they jumped out of the van, you could see they were all ready. They got their Denver boots out and got to work.

Driving by

Their skills must have rusted away during the long winter break as it took them a tailback of eleven cars’ time. Diligence must be their middle name. They stoical ignored the honking, the impatient shouts, the construction workers’ quips and clamped the car. Front and back. Overkill? Hey, this was their first catch of the season, they had to make sure it wouldn’t get away before they could collect their bounty!

Content with their work they drove by one more time to admire the yellow boots on the car. Against traffic, sure, but who cares about that? Rules don’t apply to kings. And they are King of the Clamps!

Categories: A Bit of Everything, Amsterdam Views, Dutch Views, The Views

Warriors Of the Sun

Posted on March 8, 2011
Carmine buds

Limitless Skies

It’s a good day for waiting. Sun floods the city and brightens up every gable on my block. Trees are still bare, but the one in front of my writer’s residence, the elm that almost touches my window with its spiky branches, has formed carmine buds. It won’t be long before they pop and reveal tender green. Blue skies where ever the eye reaches. I know it just appears blue because the air scatters more short-wavelength light than longer wavelengths, but still, it’s a happy sight. A promising sight, for it seems limitless. Days like this make the writer’s waiting game a very bearable one.

Don’t worry, I don’t just sit and wait. My mind never sits and waits. It keeps me busy with plot twists and turns, with words, sentences, paragraphs and chapters. It’s the time that I weigh words, unravel motives of my protagonists and antagonists. On days like this I find solutions for translation glitches. These waiting days are important. They give a writer a chance to take a step back from the manuscript and look at it from a distance.
My American agent and I are preparing the sample translation of my adventure series Warriors Of the Sun for the International Children’s Book Fair in Bologna, later this month. While she scrutinizes my work, I let the story sift through my fingers, like sand on a beach. I feel the texture of the words and the sentences, feel if the story’s as smooth as a Hawaiian beach or rocky and sharp like the course sand of a Dutch beach. When my agent comes back to me with her suggestions, I have had the chance to review it as well and with joined forces we’ll deliver the most beautiful manuscript possible. My agent and I, we are the Warriors Of the Sun and one day our sky will be limitless.

What does a day like this bring you?

Categories: A Bit of Everything, Books, Children's books, YA books

Celeb encounter

Posted on February 15, 2011

While I was sitting in my usual quiet corner at Odette’s, enjoying my truffle-cheesed omelette, minding my own business, these two lads came in. Black-rimmed glasses were their main theme today, not just on the nose, but embroidered on their matching grey jeans as well. They peered around and, even though there was plenty of space, they choose to sit in the middle of the room, just next to the goodies fridge and spot-on in my view. I had fled the house and the Poles and THE WEED MAN, but didn’t have any company. That turned out to be a smart move, as it gave me plenty opportunity to listen, to observe and to so not minding my own business anymore.

Both lads had taken their dog to join them. Whereas — let’s call him V for the moment –V’s dog, a mix between a Jack Russell and an unknown multi-coloured creature that might or might not have had four legs and a snout, seemed the tough boy here, R’s dog — yes, R would fit him nicely — was way more delicate. The auburn dachshund was dressed in a black leather jacket with a woolen ‘teddy’ lining, that generously and softly covered his sausage body.
V, once settled with the dog safely under his chair, ordered a glass of water and an omelette. Did I hear him whisper ‘O My Gucci, no! No mustard mayo on the bread, please!’ when told the exact ingredients of what he so decidedly ordered? I wasn’t sure.
R, sausage on his lap, ordered Odette’s prized lentil soup and one of her refreshing mint teas. Odette almost bowed and hurried herself downstairs to pass on the gentlemen’s wishes to the chef. She must have been glad she was dressed in sober but elegant black.
The boys waited patiently for their food, each minding his own crackberry – although at one point I suspected their silence to be nothing more than a conversation held from us, innocent bystanders, by those nifty black gadgets. They were quick with their fingers, typing away like true writers. In between his messages R gave his auburn beauty little pecks on the nose.
They finished their lunch to the last crumb and sip. It seemed V’s turn to pay. He got up and asked for the bill. Odette handled the cash register cool and collected, like the pro she is, seemingly unimpressed by their godlike status.
Or sparkled her eyes just a teeny weeny more than usual?
Anyway, she swiftly added up their bill, while V’s eyes were definitely sparkling more than before now. Waiting for the bill he spotted the carrot cakes on the top shelve of the goodie fridge. Already licking his lips, he asked his companion if he fancied some. A stern ‘no’ was his share. Somewhat bewildered he took the change from Odette and put on his black cap. He was about to put on his coat, when R gently pointed to his half full cup of tea. It took R another two or three minutes. And then, within seconds, they were gone, shielded from our prying eyes by the steamed-up window.

With all the excitement gone – I did manage to text my dear and by now definitely envy-ridden friend L – I got up as well and paid for my lunch. It was Odette’s first time, she told me. She had had her share of celebs, like Frank de Boer and Rem Koolhaas, but not V&R. Not until this glorious day.

You have no idea how exciting my block can be! 🙂

Categories: A Bit of Everything, Books, YA books

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The Long Wait

Posted on January 30, 2011

It’s been a while, people, I know. It was hard work, finishing the Dark Fiber revision and it didn’t leave much room for anything else, but last Monday I hit those six keys I’m so fond of, the ones that give me that TGIF feeling: THE END. Dark Fiber is done and I’m very happy with the result. Now starts the long wait until my agent has read the new version and comes with his verdict.

Waiting is a constant in the life of a writer. We wait a good deal of our time and most of us have learned to live with it. Some waiting bouts are worse than others, though. The most agonizing one is when you wait for a positive reply to a query. I mean, J.K. Rowling had to digest quite some “no’s” before she finally hit a “yes”. I am quite lucky as it is, having agents for both my adult and my children’s books, here in the Netherlands and abroad. But there are more waits, like the one for your agent to come with a verdict. Is the manuscript solid? Well written? And most of all, is it salable? Again, an agonizing wait.

There are a couple of ways to deal with those long waits. You can either sit back and relax, you can stress out and bite your nails, or you can move on. I’m not good at sitting back or at relaxing. Too much energy flowing through my body. Stressing out and biting my nails, on the other hand, is something that –at least for a while– seemed to come natural to me, until I decided that it was so counterproductive, that I had to do something to get rid of it (or was it my husband who said those wise words?). Anyway, if sitting back and relaxing is not in your DNA, you’ll have to find other ways. For me it’s moving on.

A mystery solved

The 36 Cube

So I left the manuscript in the capable hands of my agent and moved on to the next projects: rewriting the sample translation for The Sun Spirit for my other agent and writing my YA thriller The Weed Man.
Oh, and in between, just to get my brain back in gear, I solved the 36 cube!

What’s your way to deal with waiting?

Categories: A Bit of Everything, Books, Thrillers, YA books

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What inspires me?

Posted on December 21, 2010

Sitting at my desk, trying to fight an ‘Oh god, will I ever be done with this manuscript?’-feeling, I searched for inspiration. I am in desperate need for a spark that will not only my light DARK FIBER, but my mind and my writing. It doesn’t have to be much, just a teeny weeny spark will suffice.

Ricciotti Ensemble performing near Keizersgracht

You would say that the lady in white, that beautiful snow-covered oldie outside we call Amsterdam, would be enough to get me back on track, but it’s not. Not today.
What else is there to inspire me? Fiddling around at my desk, I stumbled upon a picture from way back. It’s a photo of the Ricciotti Ensemble and it features one of my two dearests. He played the violin in that somewhat anarchistic street symphony orchestra. The picture reminded me of the concert last Sunday, when my other dearest performed with his orchestra in the Westerkerk, wishing all who were there happy holidays, not on his electric guitar, but on his bassoon this time.

I realized it was music that would get me going again. So I opened my music library and searched for that one mind-blowing song or that one tune that would light my fire. I hesitated at Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier. That’s a good one, but it only keeps up the typing speed, it doesn’t light any fires. I contemplated RATM, but Zack de la Rocha makes my antagonist even angrier than he already is and that guy needs to tone down a bit or my protagonist will not make it to the end. Even good old Jim won’t ride me through the storm today.
It took me some time, but I found it, that one song: ‘Give In To Me’ by Michael Jackson. It’s not Michael that kindles the fire, it’s Slash. I love the speedy riffs, the metal, the way he hits the frets on his Les Paul. Yep, I am back on track!

And you? What music inspires you? Which song or composition kindles your fire?

Categories: A Bit of Everything, Books, Thrillers

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Revisions

Posted on December 13, 2010

What is it with revisions that they tend to make a writer’s life harder and at the same time light as snow?

Light as snow

I am working on the revision of DARK FIBER or TURING’S DECEIT –still haven’t decided on the title– and it goes well. I do the revision in my own well-tried and proven way. I open the manuscript and place it on the left side of my screen. I open an immaculate document right next to it, which I title REVISION.
Next I simply start writing from the very beginning. I retype the entire manuscript and along the way I rewrite and rethink, I change and tweak and kill some of my dearest darlings –some of the life one’s as well I must admit *blushing with shame*. The guiding notes from my agent are right next to my keyboard and so is my Moleskine, which contains every snippet of detail on my characters, every twist and turn in plot line, as well as the different time lines. It works well that way. Better than when I start fiddling around with the original manuscript. If I would do that I would get lost in no time and if I get lost, I can assure you that my characters too get lost. But this way I ensure consistency, balance and logic.

There is a downside to this method as well. It takes me far longer to finish a revision. The main reason for that is that I not only change what my agent wants me to change, but I scrutinize every chapter, paragraph, line and word as I pass them. Every bit of prose gets weighed again, and since I –totally involuntary– always give in to my perfectionist’s tendencies, you can imagine that this method takes a little time…

Anyway, the end of this revision is nearing. I plan to finish it before the end of next week. I can only hope that it will be enough. It was already a good book, my agent tells me, it just needed that little bit extra so that you all will love it too! And hey, that’s worth the struggle, eh? 🙂

Categories: A Bit of Everything, Books, Thrillers

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Brothers

Posted on December 2, 2010

Find the Westertoren

When I looked out of the window this morning and saw cold and wintery Amsterdam, I couldn’t help but think of Hodur, the Nordic God of Winter, the one who was tricked by Loki into killing his brother Baldur.
Hodur was blind and it dawned upon me how apt this was for the God of Winter. Snow and mist do diminish your sight. I tried to locate the Westertoren, as I always do when I start my day. You live in Amsterdam if you can see the Westertoren from your window, real Amsterdammers say. I know it’s right there, behind the tree, just a notch left from the tallest building on the other side of the canal. But… I couldn’t find it. It vanished, not into thin air, but into the grey winter mist and into the snow.

While I was trying to figure out what those Amsterdammers would have to say about that –do I still live in Amsterdam if I can’t see the Westertoren from my window?– I suddenly realized that my writing life is about brothers.
In DEEDEE’S REVENGE, Deedee takes revenge on her ragging brother. In THE SUN SPIRIT and in THE SOUL SNATCHER, Tom finds his blood brother Jay.
Even in the two thrillers I am working on right now, it’s about brothers. Not the literal ones, though. In DARK FIBER Jonathan finds his –rather antagonistic– double. Dorian, my protagonist in THE WEED MAN, is desperate for a brother and he adopts Pepto Bismo as his big brother.
Yes, my writing life is definitely about brothers. I wonder what that says about me.

A sturdy sprig of lavender

Categories: A Bit of Everything, Books, Thrillers, YA books

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