Take a Look, It's in a Book: Part 1

   I just realized that I've posted about a few art examples of things that inspire me, but I've never posted about some writers that really inspire me. So here is the first of my posts on the top five books that I pull inspiring bits from, on a daily basis.

Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood

      Just a short summary:

        

     The novel is set in a dystopian future. The world has been destroyed by something...we later learn what the something was and let me just put it out there that it was an amazing climax and I was very impressed with Atwood's technique. But back to the summary: Everyone is gone, leaving only Snowman, our protagonist, and a strange group of human-like beings, referred to as Crakers, alive. As readers, we follow the story of Snowman, who acts as a guardian to the Crakers, he reason for this we learn through the novel's use of Switchback Time. 

      The technique of Switchback Time is actually a term coined by Joan Silber in her book, "The Art of Time in Fiction." It is a process in which a writer develops two separate timelines in a story. One is set in the past, and the other is our current narrative. And as the name suggests, the writer will switch back and forth between the two. Usually, this is employed to create novels that have a certain level of mystery to them. The reason for this is the amount of significance that each timeline holds for the story. The timeline that takes place in the past will usually give the reader insight as to why things have progressed the way they have. However, the past timeline holds its own weight. It normally is a separate story from the current narrative. Yet, the two stories could not exist without each other. They balance the weight given to present and past to build up to a climax at which the timelines meet. At that point the story will finish in the current narrative, and the novel will end.

      Oryx and Crake was a great read, and like the cliche is too often said, "I could not put it down." But Seriously!!!! Atwood's characterization is astounding. I could really feel the deep anguish of Snowman, and seeing is development through his childhood to now was what made the book some much more powerful than if everything would have just been a flashback. His relationships with his father and his mother are very insightful. I also enjoyed seeing how Atwood views future society and their relationships with technology. It sort of morphs into a sick, strange way of living that is very frightening when we step back for a minute to reflect. 

        I plan on employing the technique of Switchback Time in my writing soon. Be on the look out!