A Writer's Preface

The written word is a form of expression that is like no other ability possessed by humans. I know this from personal experience. Writing was what helped me cope with my own voicelessness that came from fear of judgement and the unwillingness to display vulnerability. I was able to write the words only to keep them to myself. They were nobody's business but my own. I didn't write to become rich and famous. I wasn't even that good at writing when I started doing it regularly in my teens. The reason I did it was to help generate my own imagination, where I thought of myself as a person experiencing a plethora of adventures, living as a hero, having confidence, being with people who admired me, and examining the deeper questions that we all ask ourselves. The art of writing fiction was what helped me fill my emptiness. College changed me for the better, but the writing stayed. In fact, it grew as I did. A greater sense of realism came to play. I wrote stories about everyday life with elements of my own life. None of it was perfect. It was a reflection of the human experience. Even now, my work is still evolving.

My name is Bryan Beach. I'm a writer. This is something I've been doing now for almost half of my life. The style and direction of my work has changed since the beginning, but many parts have been quite consistent. I primarily write literary fiction. It amuses me how so many people think that writers only work in particular genres of fiction like mystery, romance, or fantasy. When I'm asked what kind of writing I do, I'll answer and then typically get a blank stare because many just don't know what literary fiction is and how great it can be. I'm all for writing about life. Most commercial fiction holds little interest to me. I don't care for popular fiction and the institution of books in series form. I write what I like, which includes the everyday life of people that offer up examples of the human condition. I also tend to write about Asian American characters whose ethnicity is not the driving force of the story. In this way, the whole idea of the ethnic American experience doesn't have to be about race and identity, but about how people experience life. Perhaps this can border on a level of colorblindness and negates the purpose of stories about ethnic identity, but what I try to do is find a balance to neither exploit nor suppress the existence of people who are outwardly different from the majority of the population. Anyway, I like to think that my work speaks for itself.

In recent years, I've written stories that center on violence, the absurd, and how these two can come together to offer insights about life. Such stories can help show people the deeper truths of what it means to be alive. It's something I've given much thought to and intend to explore in future work.

My purpose for this blog is to help organize my own thoughts though practical exercise. Writing about the writing process often helps me get myself together before I work on a story. At the same time, I enjoy sharing such thoughts with others, even if they don't write themselves. The discussion of writing is never-ending. There's always an aspect to talk about in a different way, even if it has the same meaning as something that was said thousands of other times before. This is why I still write about writing. Several of the characters in my writing have been writers. Beyond writing what you know, I think writers as characters are a great driving force, especially if it's their voices telling the story. Alas, I could talk about this long enough to come up with a book and sell it to universities as required course reading.       

The postings to follow will include theories and insights about writing, and perhaps excerpts of my work. Comments are encouraged. We won't agree on everything, but all I request is don't be an asshole. There's a difference between criticizing and bashing.

Enjoy the words.

Midori, the magic machine.