Books and the Holidays

 This is all about a happy holiday season and the things you give (up) and what gets done (or not)!

I'll start with what I've given and hope it makes a difference.  I've given a donation to my favorite charity, which helps domestic animals that are found to not have a happy life.  My hope is their lives are made better.  All animals should be spoiled.  

I also planted eight trees, maple, redwood, birch, and others, to help clarify the air.  Not to mention more shade and beauty all around.  

I compliment people for no reason at all.  Everyone should feel good about themselves, which can spread like a smile.

Moving on, I've given up trying to get a whole novel read this month.  Too many things keeping me busy.  By the time I want to sit down and soak in a great story, my heavy eyelids win out.

I always have a list of "Things to Do".  Now, this list can get out of hand.  I love to cross off what gets done, hoping to leave time to read or write.  Unfortunately, there's a pen laying around ready to keep adding necessary ideas.  The list never ends, and my lonely book or e-reader sits on the table glaring at me.  I think I made that up!

Overall, I've gotten a lot done and given my time resourcefully.  Yet, I won't give up on reading and writing or eventually getting another story read or written!

Keep your holiday season happy and peaceful!

Dawn 

A Romance Author's Vacation...Part III

As is tradition here on HEAT, an author speaks on Sundays with a giveaway!  Leave me a comment or a curious question and you’ll be in the running for an e-book of Inked (From the CIA 1)!

On with the journey of the United Kingdom!

After we traversed the lowlands and skirted the highlands of Scotland, a ferry scooted us across the North Channel between the Irish Sea and North Atlantic Ocean.  Sounds cold and frigid talking about deep waters and when I leaned over the edge of the ferry – had to do it – the churning waters below were mesmerizing.  I might have to kill someone in the waters in the next book!

Our next stop was Belfast, Northern Ireland.  Expecting to see destructed areas from the war with the IRA during the Troubles, instead we crossed a maintained and recreated city. 

We stopped at the Titanic Museum.  Really?  A museum built to honor the failure of what was supposed to be THE unsinkable ship of the times.  Okay, the story behind the museum is when the love story “The Titanic” was filmed and made oodles of money, Belfast, where the ship was built, wanted in on the cash. 

Let’s get back to the brilliant green pastures where we encountered a horse ranch, a very special ranch, The Irish National Stud.   This ranch is home of highly bred racing horses that have run the Kentucky Derby, English Derby, and other well-known races.  Owners pay some hefty fees to mate their mares with the handsome, sleek, and fast studs.

The ranch uses “Tommy the Teaser,” a tempting stud, to assure the mares are ready to mate with the paid for stud.  Prices range from 6,000 euros to a million euros for mating.  A euro is approximately $1.48 (when I was there) and constantly is in flux.

Attached to the ranch is a Japanese garden.  The garden is full of orchids, maples, streams, sculptures, and words of wisdom.  One of my Aussie friends decided to grab a piece of a statue, right between the legs…maybe she needs to read a romance

Time for a sip of Irish Scotch and a few hours of sleep before we continue.

Create an adventure and do something different!

Dawn 

A Romance Author's Vacation...Part II

Continuing up the road…We saw a lot of historical and fascinating scenes in London including Westminster, the Tower of London, Big Ben, and The Eye.  I also got a big thrill passing the MI5 and MI6 fortresses.  This is similar to the FBI and CIA of the US.  The US and England work closely together.  I’ll keep that in mind for my next book-that’s a hint!

Going north in England we stopped at Anne Hathaway’s home, complete with Old English roses everywhere.  The stop at William Shakespeare’s home was enchanting.  His home was anything but grand compared to today’s formula for an exquisite home, yet the small and simple style of life did hold its own charm.

Headed to Glasgow, Scotland brought a whole new meaning to witchcraft.  A book store represented itself with a devil sitting at a desk.  Hundreds of years ago, those who could read and write were considered possessed or having bad magic, so they were represented by the devil as so few people knew this great art.

A visit to Edinburgh Castle was mystical.  The cobbles and stones covering the ground between castle rooms and buildings were if varying styles, bricks, cobbles, and large stones.  The type of footing depicted the year they were laid. 

 A final item for viewing pleasure before I let you go was the bagpiper.  Leading our group from a castle, down the cobblestone to the restaurant for dinner was an authentic bagpiper.  I couldn’t get a picture of the “authenticity” of his garment, but I assure you he said it was real!

I tried a sip of Scotch (smooth!) and a bit of haggis.  Who cares, right?  Haggis is a traditional dish literally made inside the skin of a sheep stomach.  The piper and a volunteer brought it on a platter to show the group.  Fortunately, when it was served the presentation overrode my distaste for the mixture of dark gut-meat and barley with wonderful seasoning.

The food got better the further from London and storylines brewed strong!

 

Every place can be an adventure, so go with it!

Dawn

 

So, whose story is this, anyway?

Okay, so Kayce got caught again with nothing to blog about and she cast about for something…anything that might be fun to talk about—maybe something writing-related this time?  Now there’s a new concept for a writer.  DUH!  Then she got distracted with the Awkward Family Photos site and wasted a bunch of time looking at…well, awkward photos.  If you’ve never cruised that site, you should some time…it will make your family look normal.  Didn’t do it for mine…but it might for yours.  LOL

That got me to thinking about writing and about stories and about how many stories there are out there.  How many stories are there, anyway?  Is there a limit?  When will we run out?  Is there only one way to tell a story?  And if there is only one right story for any situation, who’s the right person to tell the story?  These are all things that writers wonder about, things that keep us awake at night, things that make our lunch sit like a rock on our stomachs when we hit that proverbial wall.  So…what is the right answer?

That got me to thinking about my very first attempt at writing seriously (i.e., not a school assignment).  I’d picked up a library book…and don’t ask me which one…I’ve long since forgotten.  But the subject of the book was something along the lines of learning how to write and it had a very interesting experiment in it that I thought you all might be interested in.

So after an hour or so of head shaking and chuckling over the unfortunate pictures other families are still trying to live down, I decided to borrow a couple of those photos and try a new twist.  I call this the “What’s Really Happening Here?” game.  So I ran a few of my favorite awkward photos by my grandsons to see what they thought might really be happening in the picture.  What I got were some pretty good captions for these pics—captions that showed me there could be many different perspectives on the same picture.  As you read these captions, think about what kinds of things run through your head…what would your caption be?

·         What baby?  I didn’t see no baby.     

·         No one saw nuthin and I didn't do it.
·         You mean that's not a potted plant?
·         For Christmas I want…to be an only child.
·         The stork left it; now he won’t take it back.
·         I think it’s a Jack in the Box.
·         I think it’s Santa's fault.
·         Santa looked a lot like daddy.
·         Now I’m the favorite.

 

 

·         101…102 uses for duct tape.

·         I can’t hold the baby AND take the picture.
·         Single parenthood requires creativity.
·         How to avoid pictures of falling babies.
·         Honey, I had to; he kept blurring the picture.
·         Don't worry, there's no sound on this camera.
·         Honey, get the baling wire.

 

Can you see how any one of those would work?  How one picture can have many different meanings?  Did you come up with some new ones?  Of course you did…I know your twisted little minds!

So, after capturing those little gems, I decided to take the experiment another step further and see if a picture could provide not only multiple captions or situations, but different unrelated stories…entire stories. 

Remember that little exercise I mentioned above that was my first attempt at writing?  Well, the assignment was to watch five minutes of a television show with the sound turned off.  Then you write the scene, complete with whatever dialogue, action, and description you imagined was happening in that segment of the show.  It was my first attempt at writing a love scene which, by the way, will never see the light of day.  But it was a great way for me to learn how to develop a scene and I figure if it works with a TV show, it should work with a picture too.  Why not?

So…queue the next awkward photo and let’s see what kind of story lines we get.

Option one:  This woman is a serial murderer.  She kills brides and keeps the wedding dresses hidden in a secret compartment in the false wall of her walk-in closet.  But now she’s found the man she wants.  He’s a smokin’ hot game show host and with the money he makes doing television, she’s sure she’s finally found the man who can keep her in the style to which she’s become accustomed.  After all, it’s not every household that can afford a console TV and blue carpet.  What?  You don’t think you’d buy that book?  Really?  Well, I guess every book isn’t for everyone.  Maybe there’s another story (and another book) in this picture that works for you. 

Option Two:  Perhaps this woman has a dreaded disease but these two love each other madly so the wedding has to take place long distance because her house is enclosed in a bubble.  If she goes outside, she dies.  No?  Yeah, you’re right…can’t put any sex in that story…well, not the hands-on kind anyway.  : - )  And that's a whole different story.

Option Three:  This was a failed prototype for a TV show that was the forerunner to internet dating.  But the prototype was thrown out because no one could believe anyone would consider dating someone they’d never met.  It’s a hit, right?  No?  Alright…back to the drawing board. 

Option Four:  The groom was a stinking cheapskate and wouldn’t spring for the cost of plane fare to actually be there for the wedding, so he convinced his co-dependent fiancée to do it remote.  Yah, I thought so…that one worked for you, didn’t it?  Don’t lie now!  Okay, then I’m gonna pull out the big guns.  This next one was my 14 year old grandson’s interpretation of what was going on in this picture.  You ready for it?  Huh?   Wait for it…it’s pretty good.  Here it is…

Option Five:  Switch channels for a new husband.  Yep, I knew it…that one did it for all the women reading this article.  : - )  Easy peasy.  He gets lazy, he cheats, he lies, he leaves the toilet seat up…a couple of batteries, a good remote, and life’s good again.  Yeah, baby!

 

Okay, are you getting the point here?  Are you getting that there is no limit to the number of stories out there?  That there are many different ways to tell the same story, even if you think it’s already been told before.  There can be many very different stories coming from different perspectives but all originating from the same picture or core concept.  All it takes is stepping outside the box and looking at the same old picture from a new perspective or through the eyes of someone new.

So…let’s try this one more time…because I just love this next picture and I have to give this one a shot.

Option One:  The FBI is hiring operatives younger these days; easier to train and they work cheap.  But, clearly, some are better than others.  (Notice, it’s the girl that’s still standing.)

Option Two:  Never piss off a woman with pretty new red shoes and a weapon in her hand.  It will NOT end well for you!

Option Three:  She has told him and told him to watch where he’s walking, but he just didn’t see that concrete step.  Well, you can’t protect a man from himself.  Sometimes all you can do is just let him make his own mistakes and then put on a smile and go on.

Option Four:  It was a very late night for the midget in the background.  Wait…is that a banana by his head?  Oh, what we could do with that!  No wonder she clobbered him with the lunchbox.

 

So, what have we learned?  Stories come in all shapes and sizes, from many different sources, or all from one source.  There is no limit, there is no right perspective, there is no right person to tell the story.  Change the perspective, change the storyteller, and you change the story itself.  So if you ever find yourself stuck for a solution or in need of a new story, just step to the side and put on a different hat.  Look at the story through the eyes of a different person or a different character.  I guarantee you a colonoscopy scene looks a whole lot different from the perspective of the person in the gown that opens in the back than it does to the person at the other end of the scope!  Which story do you tell?  Which solution do you choose?  It doesn’t matter.  Because not every story is for everyone, but there is someone for every story.

So go write your story, go tell it however you want, through whatever lens works for you.  I guarantee you that somewhere there is a pretty blonde with cute new red shoes and a fun new weapon that really loves that last picture.   So what if the guy with the banana doesn’t like it?  He’ll have his own story one day…as long as he doesn’t keep pissing off the girl in the red shoes. 

So…your turn to tell the story.  Here’s your challenge…here’s your sign…er, I mean picture.  Now, notice that the little girl has a knife in her hand, a grenade strapped to her waist, what looks like ammunition magazines tucked in her belt, and a bunny clutched in her other hand as she cries. 

What’s the story here?  You got one?  I do…I’m wondering where her big brother is.  : - )

 

That’s my story, crazy and cockeyed, and I’m stickin’ to it.  Hang on tight now ‘cuz we’re gonna go real, real fast!

Love ya,

Kayce

 

 

 

 

 

 

My thanks to the Awkward Family Photos site for sharing these pics with us.  Go check them out!
http://awkwardfamilyphotos.com

Behind the Scenes at RWA Nationals-past experiences (Part II)

Behind the Scenes at RWA Nationals-past experiences (Part II)

Reliving the current Romance Writers’ of America’s conference got me to think about past conferences and the scenes I fondly remember.  Didn’t realize how funny some of them were until I looked back.

I vividly recall a pitch to an agent in San Francisco.  I encouraged myself that ten minutes was a minute amount of time to talk about my novel and convince an agent that he really needed me on his roster.  He finished our ten minutes by telling me to kick out a character, change the relationship, and a host of other minor changes, then we can be successful.

Kill me with the word successful.  That made me think he had the perfect resolution to my story’s placement.  I wandered from the “pitching den” and relayed my story to other authors to see what they thought.  As I approached the escalator, I stated “I need a hunk of chocolate and a sexy story to read.”  No sooner did I get to the bottom of the transit when a group of erotic writers had a table set up with Ghirardelli chocolates and erotic novels.  Then I wondered what else I should wish for!  

One more short story…In Washington D.C., the writers shared the hotel with a police convention and service men on leave.  I was oblivious of this until during a break on the outside patio at dusk.  Two Marines sauntered up to me and my friend.  “Do you have a cigarette we can bum?”  My friend and I glanced at each other, and before we answered, the men forgot their quest and proceeded to tell us their titles and that they had purposefully come to the hotel to find their soul mates-they thought romance writers could help them.  

How touching.  When I relay this episode to other women, they are touched also.  When I tell men of the meeting, a smirk creases their faces until they can’t help but laugh. 

What?!?  Apparently the Marines were hitting on us.  Call me oblivious and I don’t write inspirational (no offense, of course).  Maybe I should, but I think I’ll stick to suspenseJ

Happy

Writing Distractions

Today’s post is a little different than what I normally write about but I thought you all might like to see what I’m sometimes up against when I’m trying to write.

            This is my beautiful baby. Her name is Schatzie. She’s a German Shepherd and will celebrate her birthday in August. She’ll be a year old. The thing in her mouth? Oh, well, that’s a stuffed animal that does not contain stuffing (yes, they’re sold that way). This particular one is a lion. She also has a skunk, a parrot, and a squirrel. They come with squeakers that don’t last more than a week.

            This is what I see when I’m trying to write (incidentally, this is also what I see when I wake up in the morning). Her. Right there! Trying to give me that much loved toy. Actually, shoving/tossing it at me. If that doesn’t work, she’ll nudge at my hand until I take it from her and throw it down the hall. This is not a silent process, either. She makes noises, too! Soft woofs and little cries and this growl-groan that comes from deep in her chest (I’ve written a dog very much like her in one of my books…actually, Sarge, from A Good Man for Katie is a compilation of all the German Shepherds I’ve had over the years). I will admit, there are some days I’d rather throw the parrot or lion or skunk for her than try to pull words from my brain. It’s much easier and much more fun.

            This is my other beautiful baby. She’s seven and also a German Shepherd. Her name is Daisy. Notice how nicely she lays on the floor behind my chair, hanging on my every word and telling me what a fabulous writer I am. No stuff-less stuffed animal for her. She is too dignified for that; however, she, too, will nudge at my hand, making it impossible to type. Or concentrate.

            So, there’s my excuse…..why it takes me so long to write a story…..I have such lovely (and persistent) distractions. And I wouldn’t have it any other way!

As always, happy reading!

Marie

PS. My apologies for the picture quality. Picture taking is not one of my strong suits!

Introducing Kayce Lassiter

Introducing Kayce Lassiter

Not too long ago, I had the honor and privilege of introducing Lexi Post, a dear friend, to all HEAT’s fabulous readers. Well, today, I get to do it again…I have the pleasure of introducing another dear friend…Kayce Lassiter. I’m so glad she’s joining us here on HEAT! She’ll be sharing her thoughts on life, love and laughter. Alexis, Dawn, Lexi and I are thrilled she is joining us – a funnier (she’s made me cry from laughing so hard), more wonderful person you’ll never find and she writes wonderfully, too!

Kayce took part in an anthology with several other writers called Twice Upon a Time to benefit another friend who suffered an AVM incident.She is currently working on Loons of a Feather, a ChickLit in Cowgirl Boots romance involving a wild, motorcycle-riding fairy godmother and the couple she’s trying to help fall in love.

Please join me and wish Kayce a warm welcome!

As always, happy reading!

Marie