Every day I open my copy of the Washington Post to another story about Michaele and Taraq Salahi, the couple who famously (or infamously, depending on your view of these things) crashed the Obamas' first state dinner. Taraq seems to be getting his fair share of the drubbing, but his Barbie-doll wife, Michaele(aka Missy Holt) seems to be generating anger at approximately the same level as a nuclear meltdown.
I don't know what the world is coming to, but in the case of the Salahi couple, I can safely say the gravy train has left the station...without them. In fact, I'm pretty sure their Diner's Card has been derailed.
Here's the deal: You can mess with a lot of people and get away with it, but one day your chickens will come home to roost. And if you've irritated an entire flock, you're going to get a heaping helping of bird poop raining down on you. So the next time you decide to feather your nest at someone else's expense, better chicken out before someone calls, "Fowl," and serves you up on a platter with cranberry sauce.
I must admit, all this endless stream of problems makes for amazing reading. I can barely wait to grab my paper each morning, sip on my latte, and see what happens next.
My favorite story, so far, has been about Michaele passing herself off as a Washington Redkins cheerleader during a Sept. 18 rehearsal. (Full disclosure: I once was a Griffith High School Pantherette, so I feel a special kinship with girls who prance about the stadium at half-time. It might seem glamorous and oh-so-much fun from the sidelines, but to shake your booty in the right place at the right time, you have to put in a lot of practice.)
But of course, earning one's way into the spotlight was not part of the Salahi gameplan. Not ever. And gee, how hard could all that faffing about be? Um, harder than it looks. Michaela first tipped her hand when she couldn't perform one of the group's most basic cheers. (Who knew any memorization was required? Drat, drat, double-drat.)
Of course, there were other big red flags on the field. Michaele was the only cheerleader who brought her own film crew when she crashed the pompom party. And of course, the crew was mainly interested in getting photos of her good side. (Which is ... where?)
In fact the camera crew actually asked to have the other team members to shuffled off to Buffalo so they could get a better view of Michaele. Fortunately, the team choreographer put her foot down. (That's what's known as a stomp, kids.)
Not only was Michaele too tall to be in the front row, according to the team spokeswoman, "She can't dance."
Yeah, that really does matter. Trust me, it does.
Another cheerleader put it this way: "I'm so resentful... For her to get out there and think she can just shake her pompoms is upsetting."
Hear that, Michaele? Siss, boo, bah!
Author
Saturday, December 5, 2009
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Photos from the National Christmas Tree Ceremony 2009
Our seats were directly between the White House and the Washington Monument. From that vantage point, we could see the motorcade leave the front of the White House. At that moment, a cheer went up from the crowd.
I can't imagine a bigger thrill than hearing "Hail to the Chief," and seeing our 44th President walk onto the stage. His children were darling. He introduced his wife, the girls, and his mother-in-law, whom he called "Mamma Robinson." Michelle read "The Night Before Christmas." He was thoughtful of those who serve our country, and he said that this season has come to transcendent all religions as being a time when we join together to hope for peace.
From the left is Mamma Robinson, Our First Lady Michelle Obama, Malia Obama, The President, Sasha Obama, Common, Jordin Sparks and Randy Jackson (behind Randy is an unnamed musician).
Jordin Sparks was warmth and adorable, Randy Jackson personable--and he kept the production moving along. Sheryl Crow, was, well--she's Sheryl Crow and she's fabulous.
I can't imagine a bigger thrill than hearing "Hail to the Chief," and seeing our 44th President walk onto the stage. His children were darling. He introduced his wife, the girls, and his mother-in-law, whom he called "Mamma Robinson." Michelle read "The Night Before Christmas." He was thoughtful of those who serve our country, and he said that this season has come to transcendent all religions as being a time when we join together to hope for peace.
From the left is Mamma Robinson, Our First Lady Michelle Obama, Malia Obama, The President, Sasha Obama, Common, Jordin Sparks and Randy Jackson (behind Randy is an unnamed musician).Jordin Sparks was warmth and adorable, Randy Jackson personable--and he kept the production moving along. Sheryl Crow, was, well--she's Sheryl Crow and she's fabulous.
The President admitted that he is technically challenged, so he asked all of us to count along to help him push the button. The girls helped, which officially made it a family tree!
Here's my sweet husband and me in front of our National Christmas Tree. Our noses were nipped with the cold, and our toes were numb, but we were also pinching ourselves with our good fortune to be in attendance!
Here's my sweet husband and me in front of our National Christmas Tree. Our noses were nipped with the cold, and our toes were numb, but we were also pinching ourselves with our good fortune to be in attendance!
I'll Be Attending the National Tree Lighting Ceremony Tonight
I have to admit, I'm having a blast living here in DC. Tonight I'll be in the reserved seats at the lighting of the National Christmas Tree. I'll wear a red cap and scarf, so maybe you can spot me on tv!
Hint: Look for the blonde curls, a black coat with a twin poinsettia pin on the upper left shoulder. The "pin" is actually two enamel earrings from my Grandmother Marge, who passed away years ago. I'm wearing the "pin" so that my recently deceased mother and grandmother can attend "in spirit." There will be only 2,500+ of us in the reserved seating area. After the recent gate-crashing, I'm anticipating heavy security.
I'm proud that our National's Capital agrees that as the centerpiece of our country, no other piano besides a STEINWAY will do! That'll be our Steinway on the stage. It won't be the first time we've provided a piano for Sheryl Crow, nor is it likely to be the last!
Here's the lowdown on the ceremony:
Enjoy the sounds of the holiday season against the backdrop of the National Christmas Tree
and the smaller trees representing all fifty states, the District of Columbia and the
five U.S. Territories, model trains as well as the warmth of the yule log.
For 85 years, the American tradition of lighting a national Christmas Tree has continued, interrupted only briefly in its history during moments of great national travail.
In 1923, President Calvin Coolidge lit a “Community Christmas Tree” on behalf of “all Americans.” A Senator from Vermont, Coolidge’s home state,arranged for a cut fir tree from
Middlebury College to be erected in President’s Park (The Ellipse) for lighting. President Coolidge declined to speak at the ceremony, but he did push a button switch to light a 60-foot tree. Later that evening, the Marine Band performed in concert near the tree.
Sir Winston Churchill appeared on the South Porch with President Roosevelt for the lighting ceremony in 1941. Both men delivered Christmas messages to the gathered throng before sharing the official lighting duties. By the next year, Washington was under a war-imposed blackout. Lights were placed on the tree in 1942 but never lit, and the tree remained ‘dark’ from 1942 through 1944. In 1954, the lighting ceremony was named “The Christmas Pageant of Peace,” and a “Pathway of Peace” was established featuring smaller, decorated trees – one for each state and territory.
In 1963, the tree was not lit until December 22, after a service at the Lincoln Memorial, concluding a 30-day period of national mourning that followedthe assassination of President John F. Kennedy.
The beautiful Colorado blue spruce that serves as the current National Christmas Tree was planted on the Ellipse in the fall of 1978. Brought to Washington, DC by the National Park Service from a York, Pennsylvania farm, this 40-foot tree has proven to be a hardy specimen. In 2003, the tree celebrated a quarter century of service as the National Christmas Tree.
Hint: Look for the blonde curls, a black coat with a twin poinsettia pin on the upper left shoulder. The "pin" is actually two enamel earrings from my Grandmother Marge, who passed away years ago. I'm wearing the "pin" so that my recently deceased mother and grandmother can attend "in spirit." There will be only 2,500+ of us in the reserved seating area. After the recent gate-crashing, I'm anticipating heavy security.
I'm proud that our National's Capital agrees that as the centerpiece of our country, no other piano besides a STEINWAY will do! That'll be our Steinway on the stage. It won't be the first time we've provided a piano for Sheryl Crow, nor is it likely to be the last!
Here's the lowdown on the ceremony:
Enjoy the sounds of the holiday season against the backdrop of the National Christmas Tree
and the smaller trees representing all fifty states, the District of Columbia and the
five U.S. Territories, model trains as well as the warmth of the yule log.
For 85 years, the American tradition of lighting a national Christmas Tree has continued, interrupted only briefly in its history during moments of great national travail.
In 1923, President Calvin Coolidge lit a “Community Christmas Tree” on behalf of “all Americans.” A Senator from Vermont, Coolidge’s home state,arranged for a cut fir tree from
Middlebury College to be erected in President’s Park (The Ellipse) for lighting. President Coolidge declined to speak at the ceremony, but he did push a button switch to light a 60-foot tree. Later that evening, the Marine Band performed in concert near the tree.
Sir Winston Churchill appeared on the South Porch with President Roosevelt for the lighting ceremony in 1941. Both men delivered Christmas messages to the gathered throng before sharing the official lighting duties. By the next year, Washington was under a war-imposed blackout. Lights were placed on the tree in 1942 but never lit, and the tree remained ‘dark’ from 1942 through 1944. In 1954, the lighting ceremony was named “The Christmas Pageant of Peace,” and a “Pathway of Peace” was established featuring smaller, decorated trees – one for each state and territory.
In 1963, the tree was not lit until December 22, after a service at the Lincoln Memorial, concluding a 30-day period of national mourning that followedthe assassination of President John F. Kennedy.
The beautiful Colorado blue spruce that serves as the current National Christmas Tree was planted on the Ellipse in the fall of 1978. Brought to Washington, DC by the National Park Service from a York, Pennsylvania farm, this 40-foot tree has proven to be a hardy specimen. In 2003, the tree celebrated a quarter century of service as the National Christmas Tree.
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Great Post on Writers and Their Finances
Check it out at
http://whatever.scalzi.com/2009/11/09/writers-and-financial-woes-whats-going-on/
I have to say I hear a lot of writers who are shocked at the costs associated with the job. I guess most people dream of having a book published, and a part of that fantasy is a windfall like Stephenie Meyer or J. K. Rawling enjoy. Frankly, you're more likely to get hit by lightning than to hit the jackpot as they did.
Instead, it's much more realistic to view writing as a sort of entrepreneurship. We are small business owners. The start up costs include bookmarks, conferences, association memberships, setting up websites and travel expenses--just for starters. And the money takes a while to find its way to our doors because royalty statements come after publication and publishers subtract returned books.
So if you want to make this your career, be a smart cookie. Do your due diligence. Know what the costs are and how you'll be paid.
http://whatever.scalzi.com/2009/11/09/writers-and-financial-woes-whats-going-on/
I have to say I hear a lot of writers who are shocked at the costs associated with the job. I guess most people dream of having a book published, and a part of that fantasy is a windfall like Stephenie Meyer or J. K. Rawling enjoy. Frankly, you're more likely to get hit by lightning than to hit the jackpot as they did.
Instead, it's much more realistic to view writing as a sort of entrepreneurship. We are small business owners. The start up costs include bookmarks, conferences, association memberships, setting up websites and travel expenses--just for starters. And the money takes a while to find its way to our doors because royalty statements come after publication and publishers subtract returned books.
So if you want to make this your career, be a smart cookie. Do your due diligence. Know what the costs are and how you'll be paid.
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
More Links to Murder and Mayhem in Muskego
Murder and Mayhem in Muskego - Beyond Her Book - Blog on ...The afternoon began with a non-stop comedic affair with Joanna Slan Campbell, Denise Swanson, Shirley Dammsgaard, Julie Hyzy and Deb Baker as they discussed who they like to kill, where and how. Kudos to Tom Schreck for facillitating ...Publishers Weekly - Beyond Her Book - http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/880000288.html?nid=3383
Jen's Book Thoughts: Murder and Mayhem in Muskego VBy Jen Forbus And Tom's humor matched up with the wits of Joanna Slan Campbell, Denise Swanson, Shirley Dammsgard, Julie Hyzy and Deb Baker, literally stole the day. The audience was constantly laughing. It was a hit. I have to say that I especially ...Jen's Book Thoughts - http://jensbookthoughts.blogspot.com/
And of course, all of you, my dear readers, know my name is Joanna Campbell Slan. I was a Campbell for years before I became a Slan!
Jen's Book Thoughts: Murder and Mayhem in Muskego VBy Jen Forbus And Tom's humor matched up with the wits of Joanna Slan Campbell, Denise Swanson, Shirley Dammsgard, Julie Hyzy and Deb Baker, literally stole the day. The audience was constantly laughing. It was a hit. I have to say that I especially ...Jen's Book Thoughts - http://jensbookthoughts.blogspot.com/
And of course, all of you, my dear readers, know my name is Joanna Campbell Slan. I was a Campbell for years before I became a Slan!
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Mayhem and Murder in Muskego!
Here I am (below) with "my posse." These lovely ladies are my fans! I have to say, there's no better feeling than being at a large conference and knowing there's a group of people who came just to see YOU. In fact, one lady drove eight hours. I think these women are pretty special. And on those days when I think, "Okay, time to revise...AGAIN," I'll pull up my image of their shining faces and remind myself, "These wonderful people are my readers. I need to give them my best!"
Below is the photo we had taken of our panel. We roped Tom Schreck of the Duffy Dumbrowski series into being a moderator. (If you haven't read him, you'll fall in love with Duffy and his basset hound.) Tom was such a great sport. We really had the audience laughing. From left, Julie Hyzy, me, Tom, Deb Baker, my pal Shirley Damsgaard, and Denise Swanson.
I stayed at the Ironhorse Inn. Now, I've been in hotels around the world. A lot of five-star joints, but this is my favorite place so far. I'm serious. I loved the decor. It took full advantage of the remodeled warehouse. But most of all I loved the view.
Below is the photo we had taken of our panel. We roped Tom Schreck of the Duffy Dumbrowski series into being a moderator. (If you haven't read him, you'll fall in love with Duffy and his basset hound.) Tom was such a great sport. We really had the audience laughing. From left, Julie Hyzy, me, Tom, Deb Baker, my pal Shirley Damsgaard, and Denise Swanson.
I stayed at the Ironhorse Inn. Now, I've been in hotels around the world. A lot of five-star joints, but this is my favorite place so far. I'm serious. I loved the decor. It took full advantage of the remodeled warehouse. But most of all I loved the view.
What Does a Publicist Do?
I was reading my emails the other day. The writer suggested that I tell my publicist to do more publicity on the other side of the pond.
That was incredibly thoughtful...and lovely.
http://www.newyorker.com/humor/2009/10/19/091019sh_shouts_weiner?printable=true
That was incredibly thoughtful...and lovely.
http://www.newyorker.com/humor/2009/10/19/091019sh_shouts_weiner?printable=true
Thursday, November 5, 2009
A Beautiful Thought About Books...
I don't think people should burn books, ban books or throw books away but I do think they are meant to be used in a way that best suits the reader. I have books from university, graduate school especially, which are filled with my notes, thoughts, on related and even unrelated topics that come to mind.
My Norton Anthologies, Oxford and Penguin Complete Works, Histories of Art all have my scribbles in the margins along with arrows, highlights, underlines and circles, all precious memories.
There are the Dr. Seuss books from childhood filled with scribbles and an added face to the ones in the crowd and years later, my children added their own handiwork.
There is my Jane Austen with the bright orange fingertips across the back cover from the day Emma engrossed me much to my three-year-old' s irritation, I dated it a wrote his name underneath.
Some of my grad school books even have the forever outline of a tiny apple juice or squash covered hand, right across part of a picture of a Degas ballerina or a Caravaggio painting.
My Penguin anthology is stained green and red from a fresh rose I pressed between the covers one day, the rose long ago crumbled but I'll never forget it was once there. In my favorite history of art anthology, I have notes in the margins not only from the lectures but also from thoughts about being 20, married and an undergraduate, then about being 22, pregnant for the first time and a graduate student. The books are precious, the memories are precious and every stain, every dog-eared page, every crease, every written word added to a once pristine page tells a story from my life, and I like them that way. I like a lived in feel even in my books.
The books I won't keep I keep pristine because they aren't for me to imprint, they aren't for me to add a piece of my life but the books lining my shelves are well-loved and sometimes well loved things lose and eye or gain a stain but they are still perfect in their seeming imperfection.
Alison
(Alison is one of the many members of Cozy First Mysteries. Isn't this great?)
My Norton Anthologies, Oxford and Penguin Complete Works, Histories of Art all have my scribbles in the margins along with arrows, highlights, underlines and circles, all precious memories.
There are the Dr. Seuss books from childhood filled with scribbles and an added face to the ones in the crowd and years later, my children added their own handiwork.
There is my Jane Austen with the bright orange fingertips across the back cover from the day Emma engrossed me much to my three-year-old' s irritation, I dated it a wrote his name underneath.
Some of my grad school books even have the forever outline of a tiny apple juice or squash covered hand, right across part of a picture of a Degas ballerina or a Caravaggio painting.
My Penguin anthology is stained green and red from a fresh rose I pressed between the covers one day, the rose long ago crumbled but I'll never forget it was once there. In my favorite history of art anthology, I have notes in the margins not only from the lectures but also from thoughts about being 20, married and an undergraduate, then about being 22, pregnant for the first time and a graduate student. The books are precious, the memories are precious and every stain, every dog-eared page, every crease, every written word added to a once pristine page tells a story from my life, and I like them that way. I like a lived in feel even in my books.
The books I won't keep I keep pristine because they aren't for me to imprint, they aren't for me to add a piece of my life but the books lining my shelves are well-loved and sometimes well loved things lose and eye or gain a stain but they are still perfect in their seeming imperfection.
Alison
(Alison is one of the many members of Cozy First Mysteries. Isn't this great?)
Cut, Crop & Die Approved by Tigger the Cat
This wonderful email came the other day:
"Hi Joanna,
I have read both your books and love them. Keep them coming. I am an avid scrapbooker. I just wanted to share a photo of my cat with you. Her name is Tigger and she fully endorses your book and even reads it by osmosis.
Cheryl Nakayama"
So it's official! Tigger approves. +
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Does Pre-Ordering a Book Matter?
Great question popped up on one of the lists. The person asked, "Does pre-ordering a book help the author? Is pre-ordering more important than buying a book within the first 3 weeks it comes out?"
Here's my answer:
As I understand it, pre-ordering helps a lot. The publisher looks to pre-orders to determine print run--and early indications of popularity. The higher the print run, the more a publisher has invested in a book, and therefore, the more a publisher might "get behind" a book. That's incredibly important. Publishers allocate scarce resources based on which books they think will do well. So...if there are plenty of pre-orders, the publisher MIGHT instruct publicity to send out more ARCs (Advance Reading Copies) or to buy an ad somewhere or any number of activities that will help. And the publisher benefits when they publish more because each additional book costs less. The higher the print run, the more the cost of producing a book is spread out. (Cost of publishing includes advance to author, if any, as well as editing, pagination, cover design, and so on.)
Here's another way pre-orders help: I've known other authors who had contracts for Books #2, #3, whatever--and the publisher cancelled publication because sales were low. So, if the publisher looked to pre-orders, he/she might re-think cancelling a series. One friend got a cancellation notice, and then when her agent prompted the publisher for numbers, the publisher took a second look and said, "Whew, um, that book's doing better than we thought. Rescind that cancellation."
Any book purchase helps.
Every book purchase helps.
Especially for those of us launching a career. Lorraine Bartlett says that the first 3 weeks are critical for making the NYT list, and that's a whole 'nother story as I understand it. There was a recent article in RWR, the house publication for Romance Writers of America, about this. There's a lot involved in "the lists," and they're not exactly representative the way most consumers think. If Lorraine says 3 weeks, I'd believe her. She's a really smart cookie.
I ended my response with this--and it comes from the heart:
Thank you a zillion times over for considering my book, for reading my book, and for sharing it. I appreciate your faith im me and I'll continue to work hard to earn it.
j
Here's my answer:
As I understand it, pre-ordering helps a lot. The publisher looks to pre-orders to determine print run--and early indications of popularity. The higher the print run, the more a publisher has invested in a book, and therefore, the more a publisher might "get behind" a book. That's incredibly important. Publishers allocate scarce resources based on which books they think will do well. So...if there are plenty of pre-orders, the publisher MIGHT instruct publicity to send out more ARCs (Advance Reading Copies) or to buy an ad somewhere or any number of activities that will help. And the publisher benefits when they publish more because each additional book costs less. The higher the print run, the more the cost of producing a book is spread out. (Cost of publishing includes advance to author, if any, as well as editing, pagination, cover design, and so on.)
Here's another way pre-orders help: I've known other authors who had contracts for Books #2, #3, whatever--and the publisher cancelled publication because sales were low. So, if the publisher looked to pre-orders, he/she might re-think cancelling a series. One friend got a cancellation notice, and then when her agent prompted the publisher for numbers, the publisher took a second look and said, "Whew, um, that book's doing better than we thought. Rescind that cancellation."
Any book purchase helps.
Every book purchase helps.
Especially for those of us launching a career. Lorraine Bartlett says that the first 3 weeks are critical for making the NYT list, and that's a whole 'nother story as I understand it. There was a recent article in RWR, the house publication for Romance Writers of America, about this. There's a lot involved in "the lists," and they're not exactly representative the way most consumers think. If Lorraine says 3 weeks, I'd believe her. She's a really smart cookie.
I ended my response with this--and it comes from the heart:
Thank you a zillion times over for considering my book, for reading my book, and for sharing it. I appreciate your faith im me and I'll continue to work hard to earn it.
j
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Dealing with Depression
I thought I was handling my mom's death pretty well, until the other day. My sister sent me a photo of my mom's gravestone. I had asked her to, but somehow, seeing that stone with Mom's name and date of death, just...well...it sort of sent me over the edge.
Of course, this came at a bad time. A lot of my professional life is up in the air. I'm living in a rental house, and it doesn't always work for me. My husband is working a lot of hours. None of my family or friends are nearby.
There's this general feeling of emptiness that invades every cell. It's so hard to fill all those losses up.
I'm trying to stay positive, really I am. So I thought I'd do something positive: I'll write about how to help a friend or loved one with depression. Here goes a few caveats:
This is not intended to replace professional treatment or help. No way! In fact, here's step 1 and 2:
1. Of course, if they aren't on medication or they haven't had their medication checked, do so immediately.
2. Take any suicidal comments seriously. Never, ever dismiss a suggestion that the person wants to hurt him/herself, and do encourage them to share these thoughts with you.
Okay, let's assume you have all this in place. Now what can you do?
1. Monitor the person's medication. Depression saps energy and distorts thinking. Check to see that the person is taking his/her medication and taking it properly.
2. Discourage or help them avoid natural depressants such as alcohol, marijuana, and other drugs. I find that antihistamines make my depression worse.
3. Help them get a good 8 hours sleep. This can really make a difference, so adjust your sleeping schedule if possible.
4. Make sure they are eating healthy food at regular hours. Help them avoid sugar. It makes the highs higher and the lows lower.
5. Don't run away from them. Oh, yeah, I know. You are thinking, "I can't do anything." So you disappear or go off and do your own thing. Wrong, wrong, wrong. You can. And when you disappear the message you send is, "I like you when you are healthy but not when you are sad." That's really destructive.
Here's what's most important about all of this: A depressed person can NOT do for himself/herself the way they usually would. Depression deprives you of energy. You don't think clearly. You don't have the resources to care for yourself, and your natural inclinations (like grabbing a candy bar or not eating) may actually make your depression worse. So having a loving person spend a little of his/her energy looking after you means the world.
This is a great video--one that brought me to tears because of her honesty--
http://www.wikihow.com/Help-Someone-with-Depression
PS If that darned guy who is trimming our bushes doesn't stop soon, no one will have to worry about my depression. I'll be in jail for murder. ARgh.
Of course, this came at a bad time. A lot of my professional life is up in the air. I'm living in a rental house, and it doesn't always work for me. My husband is working a lot of hours. None of my family or friends are nearby.
There's this general feeling of emptiness that invades every cell. It's so hard to fill all those losses up.
I'm trying to stay positive, really I am. So I thought I'd do something positive: I'll write about how to help a friend or loved one with depression. Here goes a few caveats:
This is not intended to replace professional treatment or help. No way! In fact, here's step 1 and 2:
1. Of course, if they aren't on medication or they haven't had their medication checked, do so immediately.
2. Take any suicidal comments seriously. Never, ever dismiss a suggestion that the person wants to hurt him/herself, and do encourage them to share these thoughts with you.
Okay, let's assume you have all this in place. Now what can you do?
1. Monitor the person's medication. Depression saps energy and distorts thinking. Check to see that the person is taking his/her medication and taking it properly.
2. Discourage or help them avoid natural depressants such as alcohol, marijuana, and other drugs. I find that antihistamines make my depression worse.
3. Help them get a good 8 hours sleep. This can really make a difference, so adjust your sleeping schedule if possible.
4. Make sure they are eating healthy food at regular hours. Help them avoid sugar. It makes the highs higher and the lows lower.
5. Don't run away from them. Oh, yeah, I know. You are thinking, "I can't do anything." So you disappear or go off and do your own thing. Wrong, wrong, wrong. You can. And when you disappear the message you send is, "I like you when you are healthy but not when you are sad." That's really destructive.
Here's what's most important about all of this: A depressed person can NOT do for himself/herself the way they usually would. Depression deprives you of energy. You don't think clearly. You don't have the resources to care for yourself, and your natural inclinations (like grabbing a candy bar or not eating) may actually make your depression worse. So having a loving person spend a little of his/her energy looking after you means the world.
This is a great video--one that brought me to tears because of her honesty--
http://www.wikihow.com/Help-Someone-with-Depression
PS If that darned guy who is trimming our bushes doesn't stop soon, no one will have to worry about my depression. I'll be in jail for murder. ARgh.
Friday, October 30, 2009
I'm Too Old for Mall Hours
I woke up around 4 am this morning to the sound of Rafferty yelping. Turns out our little boy dog was thirsty. This often oftens after he gulps down his dry kibble late in the day. He's just fine for a couple of hours, even three or four, then suddenly he HAS to have water RIGHT now. So I was stumbling around in the dark, more asleep than awake thanks to the 1/2 of an Ambien tablet I took, and trying to get his leash on so he won't get hit by a car--and he's prancing like one of Santa's reindeer, making it nearly impossible to snap on the leash. Once I get him all rigged up, I turn to his little "sister", our girl dog Victoria, who is also thinking this is a grand lark: "Mommy's up! It's dark outside! Oh, boy! What joy!Can't wait! Let's go!"
I finally get the two of them clipped, but I can't make it to the water or the door or anywhere because they've now run circles around my legs. Effectively tying me up like a hostage in a bank heist. So I do this sort of mincing around while ducking under the leashes and stepping out of loops and knots. Fortunately, the leashes are long enough that the two of them can get to their water while I'm still fumbling about. They slurp it up.
Explanation: We don't leave water in their crate because a good pal who is a dog trainer suggested this was just begging (haunches down, paws waving in the air) for accidents. Lord knows, we have enough of those without putting a dish in the crate. Besides, they have access to all the water they want six or seven times a day--and of course, whenever they decide it's a grand time to howl at me.
From the water dish, we move to the front door and out onto the front stoop which is some sort of stone. Limestone, I think. Or shale. Here my body shakes with fear. Three nights ago, I stepped off one of our front steps because David and I came home late during a power outage. Our house was pitch black. I was leading the way, in a long skirt and boots and carrying most of our belongings. Then I went flying through the air, hit the wet grass and rolled.
David was so tired he sort of whooped, "You okay?" and once he got me back on my feet, he added, "Nice roll there. You hit the ground rather gracefully."
Uh, thanks, I think.
He opened our front door and toddled past me into the bedroom. With nary a "can I get you an Advil?" Or a "do you think it's broken?" He fell irrevocably asleep. On his back. With his mouth open.
This is a consequence of two entirely different sleep schedules which we've embarked on since he opened his new store--Steinway Piano Gallery--at Tysons Corner in McLean. He's zonked by 11 p.m. and up at 5 a.m. I'm usually not asleep until midnight or thereafter, and if I take an Ambien, I'm out until at least 8 a.m. So basically, it was Mr. Zombie Man and ME , and ME was hobbling about with a rapidly swelling foot. Gnashing my teeth and swearing under my breath.
So last night this whole ugly scenario came back to me as I froze on the stoop. An instant replay of my nose-dive into the wet grass replayed in my brain. I shivered and stopped right outside our front door. The dogs didn't care. They'd had their water. They wanted to water the grass. If they tugged hard enough, I'd have to come along for the walkies.
And I did.
Which is a very long way of saying: I need a different schedule. My fingers barely function this morning and my eyes are sagging at half-mast. My husband's mall hours are killing me. We're too old for this. Okay...I am. Maybe he's not, but I am. I need to ditch the Ambien, start going to sleep earlier, get the dogs on a schedule or something.
But what that something is, I'm just not sure.
I finally get the two of them clipped, but I can't make it to the water or the door or anywhere because they've now run circles around my legs. Effectively tying me up like a hostage in a bank heist. So I do this sort of mincing around while ducking under the leashes and stepping out of loops and knots. Fortunately, the leashes are long enough that the two of them can get to their water while I'm still fumbling about. They slurp it up.
Explanation: We don't leave water in their crate because a good pal who is a dog trainer suggested this was just begging (haunches down, paws waving in the air) for accidents. Lord knows, we have enough of those without putting a dish in the crate. Besides, they have access to all the water they want six or seven times a day--and of course, whenever they decide it's a grand time to howl at me.
From the water dish, we move to the front door and out onto the front stoop which is some sort of stone. Limestone, I think. Or shale. Here my body shakes with fear. Three nights ago, I stepped off one of our front steps because David and I came home late during a power outage. Our house was pitch black. I was leading the way, in a long skirt and boots and carrying most of our belongings. Then I went flying through the air, hit the wet grass and rolled.
David was so tired he sort of whooped, "You okay?" and once he got me back on my feet, he added, "Nice roll there. You hit the ground rather gracefully."
Uh, thanks, I think.
He opened our front door and toddled past me into the bedroom. With nary a "can I get you an Advil?" Or a "do you think it's broken?" He fell irrevocably asleep. On his back. With his mouth open.
This is a consequence of two entirely different sleep schedules which we've embarked on since he opened his new store--Steinway Piano Gallery--at Tysons Corner in McLean. He's zonked by 11 p.m. and up at 5 a.m. I'm usually not asleep until midnight or thereafter, and if I take an Ambien, I'm out until at least 8 a.m. So basically, it was Mr. Zombie Man and ME , and ME was hobbling about with a rapidly swelling foot. Gnashing my teeth and swearing under my breath.
So last night this whole ugly scenario came back to me as I froze on the stoop. An instant replay of my nose-dive into the wet grass replayed in my brain. I shivered and stopped right outside our front door. The dogs didn't care. They'd had their water. They wanted to water the grass. If they tugged hard enough, I'd have to come along for the walkies.
And I did.
Which is a very long way of saying: I need a different schedule. My fingers barely function this morning and my eyes are sagging at half-mast. My husband's mall hours are killing me. We're too old for this. Okay...I am. Maybe he's not, but I am. I need to ditch the Ambien, start going to sleep earlier, get the dogs on a schedule or something.
But what that something is, I'm just not sure.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Brown Bag Lunch at Hagerstown (MD) Library
Brown Bag Lunch at Hagerstown Library features Author Joanna Campbell Slan
Join international scrap-booking celebrity Joanna Campbell Slan for a brown bag lunch and fun craft-making session on Nov. 18, 2009 at 12:15 pm at the Central Library located at 100 S. Potomac St., Hagerstown. Come prepared to "get crafty" as we'll be making small folding albums. Joanna will provide all materials needed for the craft. Seating is limited to the first 25 to register. Please call 301-739-3250 ext 136 and let us know you will be attending. Bring your lunch. The library will provide dessert and beverages.
Joanna is the author of the acclaimed Kiki Lowenstein Scrap-N-Craft Mystery series. Joanna will speak about her books and the writing experience during the lunch session. The first book in the series--Paper, Scissors, Death--was nominated for the prestigious Agatha Award. Joanna will be bringing along her books to sell and sign. (They make a terrific holiday gift!) To learn more about Joanna, go to her website www.JoannaSlan.com
The Library strives to make all programs accessible. Please inform us of special needs two weeks prior to the program.
Contact person:
Patricia Wishard
Public Relations & Adult Program Librarian
Washington County Free Library
100 S. Potomac Street
Hagerstown, MD. 21740
pwishard@washcolibrary.org
301-739-3250 ext. 186
Join international scrap-booking celebrity Joanna Campbell Slan for a brown bag lunch and fun craft-making session on Nov. 18, 2009 at 12:15 pm at the Central Library located at 100 S. Potomac St., Hagerstown. Come prepared to "get crafty" as we'll be making small folding albums. Joanna will provide all materials needed for the craft. Seating is limited to the first 25 to register. Please call 301-739-3250 ext 136 and let us know you will be attending. Bring your lunch. The library will provide dessert and beverages.
Joanna is the author of the acclaimed Kiki Lowenstein Scrap-N-Craft Mystery series. Joanna will speak about her books and the writing experience during the lunch session. The first book in the series--Paper, Scissors, Death--was nominated for the prestigious Agatha Award. Joanna will be bringing along her books to sell and sign. (They make a terrific holiday gift!) To learn more about Joanna, go to her website www.JoannaSlan.com
The Library strives to make all programs accessible. Please inform us of special needs two weeks prior to the program.
Contact person:
Patricia Wishard
Public Relations & Adult Program Librarian
Washington County Free Library
100 S. Potomac Street
Hagerstown, MD. 21740
pwishard@washcolibrary.org
301-739-3250 ext. 186
Monday, October 26, 2009
Most Structural Problems Can Be Fixed...
This is from an interview featured in Shelf Awareness. Go to info@shelf-awareness.com to learn more. It's about a new book called "Alice I Have Been." The subject matter is a bit tough to take for me at least--the overtones of a grown man's obsession with a child creep me out. This book centers on the relationship between Lewis Carroll and Alice Liddell, the girl who inspired him to write "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland." The book's author is Melanie Benjamin. Here the article discusses what made Kate Burke Miciak, v-p and executive editor, the Bantam Dell Publishing Group, snap the book up--despite the fact Miciak thought the subject matter had been covered before:
"What grabbed her? The voice, Miciak said. After years of editing suspense, she knows that most structural problems can be fixed so long as the voice is true."
Very interesting, and something we authors should take to heart.
"What grabbed her? The voice, Miciak said. After years of editing suspense, she knows that most structural problems can be fixed so long as the voice is true."
Very interesting, and something we authors should take to heart.
Sunday, October 25, 2009
How to Make a Contest Judge Very, Very Grumpy
The organizers of the contest I was judging sent an urgent email saying that a few of the judges had opted out at the last minute. Would I review two more entries?
Of course, I said, "Yes."
One of those is still upsetting me.
You see, this particular entry featured a charming and highly original story idea. To my mind, it was "high concept." It was a big idea that causes people to smile and say, 'Ahhhh!"
But the writer didn't proof her work. The 30 pages were riddled with extra spaces between words, lack of indentation for paragraphs, missing spaces between words, extra periods at the end of sentences, misspellings, verb tense mistakes ("lead" for "led"), and a total disregard for common usage of commas. At first, I simply marked these using the yellow highlight function. Toward the end of the piece, I started to get hacked off. Really annoyed.
You see, a contest entry or a query for an agent should represent your BEST work. You are consciously, and by definition, trying to set your best foot forward. To ask anyone to read your work when you haven't gone through it and polished it to perfection is like asking a guest to come over for Thanksgiving dinner to a dirty, messy house. A house festooned with wet towels, cans overrun with garbage, dirty toilets, and a grubby floor.
Wow, you are thinking, Joanna, you've really gone off the edge on this.
Maybe. But then again, maybe not.
You see, writing is my profession. I worked 40-hours a week in college to put myself through school. I went into massive amounts of debt to buy an education. Despite my full-time job, I still graduated cum laude, and it would have been summa cum laude had I not gotten tripped up in a statistics class. I take my work very seriously. I believe that publication is an honor. A privilege. I take my readers very seriously. Their attention is an honor. Their time--and mine--is a nonrefundable resource that is precious.
Even today, I struggle to improve my writing. Recently I asked an English teacher for clarification on "which" and "that" usage. I'm still working to perfect my skills with those words! And even in this article, I will stop and look up spellings and meanings of words as I go along. Every piece I write is edited many times over. That's just part of the job.
So when someone submits a piece for evaluation, I give that piece hours of attention. Yes, you read that right: HOURS. I was told to expect to spend 45 minutes judging each piece. I spent 2 and 3 hours per piece. I did not give them a cursory look and then assign numbers to the heuristic grid. I highlighted comments as I went along. I line-edited the submissions, and used the strike-through function to show wordiness. I noted missing commas, missplaced modifiers, faults of logic, and sequencing errors. Such editing in the marketplace is valued at $5 a page, on the low end of the professional editing scale. Each contest piece was 30 pages long. So I offered each contestant $150 worth of my time.
Which in this case was wasted. I say "wasted" because this particular entrant obviously didn't take the contest seriously. Didn't spend the time necessary to master the basics of our craft. Didn't put in the baseline effort needed to prepare a story for a contest, much less for publication.
In short, I guess I'm miffed because I was willing to "waste" my valuable time...but the person submitting that particular entry wasn't equally willing to spend his/hers!
Here's the shame of it: He/She had a wonderfully creative idea for a story. He/She was gifted with a delightful imagination. These are God-given talents. All this editing stuff can be learned! But those talents are gifts.
Then there's the underlying premise of any competition: The entrant promised me his/her best work in exchange for my time and attention.
And I was cheated.
What a shame.
Is it any wonder that I'm still sort of grumpy about that particular entry?
Of course, I said, "Yes."
One of those is still upsetting me.
You see, this particular entry featured a charming and highly original story idea. To my mind, it was "high concept." It was a big idea that causes people to smile and say, 'Ahhhh!"
But the writer didn't proof her work. The 30 pages were riddled with extra spaces between words, lack of indentation for paragraphs, missing spaces between words, extra periods at the end of sentences, misspellings, verb tense mistakes ("lead" for "led"), and a total disregard for common usage of commas. At first, I simply marked these using the yellow highlight function. Toward the end of the piece, I started to get hacked off. Really annoyed.
You see, a contest entry or a query for an agent should represent your BEST work. You are consciously, and by definition, trying to set your best foot forward. To ask anyone to read your work when you haven't gone through it and polished it to perfection is like asking a guest to come over for Thanksgiving dinner to a dirty, messy house. A house festooned with wet towels, cans overrun with garbage, dirty toilets, and a grubby floor.
Wow, you are thinking, Joanna, you've really gone off the edge on this.
Maybe. But then again, maybe not.
You see, writing is my profession. I worked 40-hours a week in college to put myself through school. I went into massive amounts of debt to buy an education. Despite my full-time job, I still graduated cum laude, and it would have been summa cum laude had I not gotten tripped up in a statistics class. I take my work very seriously. I believe that publication is an honor. A privilege. I take my readers very seriously. Their attention is an honor. Their time--and mine--is a nonrefundable resource that is precious.
Even today, I struggle to improve my writing. Recently I asked an English teacher for clarification on "which" and "that" usage. I'm still working to perfect my skills with those words! And even in this article, I will stop and look up spellings and meanings of words as I go along. Every piece I write is edited many times over. That's just part of the job.
So when someone submits a piece for evaluation, I give that piece hours of attention. Yes, you read that right: HOURS. I was told to expect to spend 45 minutes judging each piece. I spent 2 and 3 hours per piece. I did not give them a cursory look and then assign numbers to the heuristic grid. I highlighted comments as I went along. I line-edited the submissions, and used the strike-through function to show wordiness. I noted missing commas, missplaced modifiers, faults of logic, and sequencing errors. Such editing in the marketplace is valued at $5 a page, on the low end of the professional editing scale. Each contest piece was 30 pages long. So I offered each contestant $150 worth of my time.
Which in this case was wasted. I say "wasted" because this particular entrant obviously didn't take the contest seriously. Didn't spend the time necessary to master the basics of our craft. Didn't put in the baseline effort needed to prepare a story for a contest, much less for publication.
In short, I guess I'm miffed because I was willing to "waste" my valuable time...but the person submitting that particular entry wasn't equally willing to spend his/hers!
Here's the shame of it: He/She had a wonderfully creative idea for a story. He/She was gifted with a delightful imagination. These are God-given talents. All this editing stuff can be learned! But those talents are gifts.
Then there's the underlying premise of any competition: The entrant promised me his/her best work in exchange for my time and attention.
And I was cheated.
What a shame.
Is it any wonder that I'm still sort of grumpy about that particular entry?
Friday, October 23, 2009
Kiki Lowenstein World Tour--Will I Visit YOU?
I'm starting to plan my Kiki Lowenstein World Tour (May 2010)--and so far I have a lot of nice invitations to consider. After all, I'll be celebrating the release of Photo, Snap, Shot (Book #3 in the Kiki Lowenstein Mystery Series) and National Scrapbook Month.
My goal is to start out from my new home in the Washington DC area and drive west. Once I get as far west as I can go, I'll fly home. I'm thinking of traveling through Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri and Kansas. At least, that's the plan so far!
Of course, I'd love to meet YOU and your friends.
What will determine where I stop? If I can find a library to visit, a bookstore to host a signing, a scrapbook store to stop by, or a cropping group that's meeting, I'll do my best to show up. I can't promise, of course, until I see what my options are.
Would you like me to stop by? Send me an email at joannaslan@aol.com Put "World Tour" in the Subject Line. Tell me the name of a local scrapbook store, library, and/or bookstore. Tell me how we can get a number of people together who might want to buy my books or have me teach a class. In other words, help me plan my tour.
I look forward to hearing from you!
My goal is to start out from my new home in the Washington DC area and drive west. Once I get as far west as I can go, I'll fly home. I'm thinking of traveling through Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri and Kansas. At least, that's the plan so far!
Of course, I'd love to meet YOU and your friends.
What will determine where I stop? If I can find a library to visit, a bookstore to host a signing, a scrapbook store to stop by, or a cropping group that's meeting, I'll do my best to show up. I can't promise, of course, until I see what my options are.
Would you like me to stop by? Send me an email at joannaslan@aol.com Put "World Tour" in the Subject Line. Tell me the name of a local scrapbook store, library, and/or bookstore. Tell me how we can get a number of people together who might want to buy my books or have me teach a class. In other words, help me plan my tour.
I look forward to hearing from you!
Speaker Net News
A wise man once said there's no such thing as genius, only good ideas transferred from one discipline to another.
That's why I've added a link to Speaker Net News.
It's a lonely world being an author or even a scrapbook designer. You need great ideas to help you sell yourself. And Speaker Net News has them.
I first started reading it years ago when I became a member of National Speakers Association. Now, I often hear authors say, "It's so hard to sell my books," but if you think THAT is hard, try selling nothing but the words you speak. People can touch a book. They can't touch your speech. So professional speakers are probably the BEST marketers in the world--and Speaker Net News is the premier resource for those speakers.
I urge you to go to the link, click on it, and give Speaker Net News a try. I own many of their podcasts, which I consider to be money well spent, because these are insightful interviews with the top marketers in the world.
Give it a whirl. I'd love to hear what you think!
That's why I've added a link to Speaker Net News.
It's a lonely world being an author or even a scrapbook designer. You need great ideas to help you sell yourself. And Speaker Net News has them.
I first started reading it years ago when I became a member of National Speakers Association. Now, I often hear authors say, "It's so hard to sell my books," but if you think THAT is hard, try selling nothing but the words you speak. People can touch a book. They can't touch your speech. So professional speakers are probably the BEST marketers in the world--and Speaker Net News is the premier resource for those speakers.
I urge you to go to the link, click on it, and give Speaker Net News a try. I own many of their podcasts, which I consider to be money well spent, because these are insightful interviews with the top marketers in the world.
Give it a whirl. I'd love to hear what you think!
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Julie Hyzy's Apple Tart--And A Chance to Win One of Her Books!
Julie Hyzy is the author of Hail to the Chef and State of the Onion. Here she shares a perfect recipe for this time of year--Apple Tart. In her books, Mercel is a pastry chef at the White House, and Ollie, her protagonist, is the chef in charge of the kitchen. If you like knowing the inside scoop (pun intended!) about life in the executive mansion, this rollicking, fun series is for you!
If you'd like to win one of Julie's books, send me an email at savetales@aol.com with your name and postal address. Put "Julie" in the Subject Line. On November 10, I'll draw two names, and Julie will mail you an autographed copy of one of her two books.
Julie's books have won both a Barry and an Anthony award. Visit her at www.JulieHyzy.com
Apple Tart
1 pie crust (Marcel makes it from scratch at the White House, but when I make this at home, I cheat and buy the rolled, refrigerated ones)
Roughly 2 pounds of tart, sweet apples; Granny Smith or McIntosh, generally about 5 or 6, depending on size
1/2 C. sugar
2 T. fresh lemon rind, grated
Juice of 1 lemon
3 T. sweet butter, cut into small pieces
1 t. cinnamon
1/2 C. clear apple jelly
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Place pie crust in a 10 inch pie or tart shell with a removable bottom.
2 T. fresh lemon rind, grated
Juice of 1 lemon
3 T. sweet butter, cut into small pieces
1 t. cinnamon
1/2 C. clear apple jelly
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Place pie crust in a 10 inch pie or tart shell with a removable bottom.
Peel the apples and cut them into quarters. Cut away and discard the cores. Slice thinly.
Place apple slices in a bowl, add lemon juice, toss until the apple slices are coated (this will keep them from browning).
Arrange the apple slices on the tart pan in a pattern like fish scales, in overlapping layers. Continue until all apples are used.
Sprinkle the apple slices with the sugar and lemon rind. Dot with butter. Sprinkle with cinnamon.
Place on a baking sheet in the preheated oven and bake for 15 minutes. Reduce the oven heat to 375 degrees F. Bake 25 minutes longer. Keep an eye on the tart for the last fifteen minutes of baking. If necessary, cover with foil to keep from browning too much.
While tart is finishing baking, melt the apple jelly over low heat, stirring until liquid.
Gently brush the top of the hot tart with the melted jelly.
Serve hot or cold, as preferred.
**
Julie Hyzy is the author of Hail to the Chef and State of the Onion, which feature a White House chef named Ollie. Have I told you Julie's a sweetheart? Well, she is. You meet some really nice people in the mystery business, and she definitely qualifies for that honor.
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Almost Seems Like Home
Yesterday I drove to the grocery store and back without thinking. Not a big deal to you. But it was to me. You see, I'm feeling at home.
This has been a year of tumult. In January, my mother's exam found spots in her lungs. However, the spots didn't light up, so the doctors were convinced it wasn't cancer. "Probably scar tissue," they told us. By June we knew the truth: She had terminal lung cancer.
Still, Mom clung to hope. After all, last time she had cancer, the chemo and radiation zapped it. She'd had two, almost three good years in between. "I just need to get through this treatment," she told a friend. "I think I have five more years. Okay, maybe two." But she never gave up hope.
When the doctor scoped her, he didn't tell my sisters how advanced the cancer was. Mom insisted on taking her chemo. Despite the fact it made her sick.
When I visited her on Mother's Day, I was shocked at how frail she'd become. Even before we were told the cancer was terminal, she lost fine motor control. She dropped things repeatedly. Her legs had become extremely bowed. When we drove places, she read the signs as though she were trying to ground herself in the here and now. Her conversations were erratic. She forgot things. She wasn't herself. Now I know...even then, she was dying. Even before the diagnosis, she was slipping away.
My sisters and I worked out a plan. I flew down in July to have a turn taking care of her. My plane landed late on a Saturday in Miami, so I was going to drive up to Stuart on Sunday. My son and husband were already there--my son needed a place to live for college. The guys planned to make a father-son weekend of it. Somehow their plans got confused. They visited Mom on Saturday night. She was barely lucid. They said their goodbyes. My husband David didn't think he'd ever see her again.
He was right.
By the time I arrived on Sunday, she was in a coma. For the next eight days, my sisters and I cared for her. We called upon hospice. I shall forever be grateful to them for all they did. Sally Lippert was an absolute angel. Connie, the other hospice worker, was kind, helpful and thoughtful.
But it was an ugly, painful way for Mom to go. The morphine didn't completely assuage her pain.
I won't think about that now...but I will say that at the end, we were happy for her release. These earthly bonds no longer served my mother's spirit. And when she died, the lights in that room strobed on and off, on and off, on and off, until Sally got up and turned them off at the switch. She's seen thousands of deaths, but never seen anything like that.
I came home and tried to pack to move to the Washington DC area. Actually, I wandered around my home in St. Louis like a ghost. I tried. I really tried. But I was lost. I was exhausted. I would pick up things, look at them, put them back where I found them and wander around some more. In between, real estate agents would call asking if they could show the house. That's their job, after all. So, I'd scoot everything into some semblance of order, grab the dogs, toss them in the car, and go drive around for an hour or two. I was a mess.
Finally I told David, "You'll have to pick out a house for us. I can't do it. I don't have the time to fly to DC. I trust you."
So he did.
We had a memorial service for Mom, and we moved Michael into his new condo. He loves it. David flew back to DC, leaving Michael and me to buy towels, furniture, cleaning supplies. I'm not sure he's used the latter yet! Oh, well. He's happy--and I think I've never been happier than pushing a grocery cart with him by my side and loading it with food for my boy.
Two weeks later, the packers came. I tried, really tried to organize our belongings, but I couldn't. The two women who did most of the packing were enormously kind. One took my husband aside and told him to tell me not to work so hard. Bless her. I remember wandering (again with the wandering!) from room to room, thinking, "This is the house where I raised my son. Where my mother came to visit. Where we had friends stay the night. Where we celebrated the holidays. Where my dog Kevin lived. Where I wrote my first book. How can I say, 'Goodbye'?" But I did.
We drove for two days. My dogs--Vicky and Rafferty--sat beside me in the passenger's seat. They were very, very good. Almost as if they knew I needed them.
We arrived in the DC area at 8 at night. I drove, for the first time, on the notorious Beltway, aka Highway from Hell, with its uneven lanes. I was sooo tired. At one point, my wheels bumped the uneven asphalt, and my car careened back and forth in the lane. But I made it. We drove to this house.
It's a good house.
I can live here.
And now I can go to the grocery store, all by myself. Without the help of GPS.
It's going to be all right.
This has been a year of tumult. In January, my mother's exam found spots in her lungs. However, the spots didn't light up, so the doctors were convinced it wasn't cancer. "Probably scar tissue," they told us. By June we knew the truth: She had terminal lung cancer.
Still, Mom clung to hope. After all, last time she had cancer, the chemo and radiation zapped it. She'd had two, almost three good years in between. "I just need to get through this treatment," she told a friend. "I think I have five more years. Okay, maybe two." But she never gave up hope.
When the doctor scoped her, he didn't tell my sisters how advanced the cancer was. Mom insisted on taking her chemo. Despite the fact it made her sick.
When I visited her on Mother's Day, I was shocked at how frail she'd become. Even before we were told the cancer was terminal, she lost fine motor control. She dropped things repeatedly. Her legs had become extremely bowed. When we drove places, she read the signs as though she were trying to ground herself in the here and now. Her conversations were erratic. She forgot things. She wasn't herself. Now I know...even then, she was dying. Even before the diagnosis, she was slipping away.
My sisters and I worked out a plan. I flew down in July to have a turn taking care of her. My plane landed late on a Saturday in Miami, so I was going to drive up to Stuart on Sunday. My son and husband were already there--my son needed a place to live for college. The guys planned to make a father-son weekend of it. Somehow their plans got confused. They visited Mom on Saturday night. She was barely lucid. They said their goodbyes. My husband David didn't think he'd ever see her again.
He was right.
By the time I arrived on Sunday, she was in a coma. For the next eight days, my sisters and I cared for her. We called upon hospice. I shall forever be grateful to them for all they did. Sally Lippert was an absolute angel. Connie, the other hospice worker, was kind, helpful and thoughtful.
But it was an ugly, painful way for Mom to go. The morphine didn't completely assuage her pain.
I won't think about that now...but I will say that at the end, we were happy for her release. These earthly bonds no longer served my mother's spirit. And when she died, the lights in that room strobed on and off, on and off, on and off, until Sally got up and turned them off at the switch. She's seen thousands of deaths, but never seen anything like that.
I came home and tried to pack to move to the Washington DC area. Actually, I wandered around my home in St. Louis like a ghost. I tried. I really tried. But I was lost. I was exhausted. I would pick up things, look at them, put them back where I found them and wander around some more. In between, real estate agents would call asking if they could show the house. That's their job, after all. So, I'd scoot everything into some semblance of order, grab the dogs, toss them in the car, and go drive around for an hour or two. I was a mess.
Finally I told David, "You'll have to pick out a house for us. I can't do it. I don't have the time to fly to DC. I trust you."
So he did.
We had a memorial service for Mom, and we moved Michael into his new condo. He loves it. David flew back to DC, leaving Michael and me to buy towels, furniture, cleaning supplies. I'm not sure he's used the latter yet! Oh, well. He's happy--and I think I've never been happier than pushing a grocery cart with him by my side and loading it with food for my boy.
Two weeks later, the packers came. I tried, really tried to organize our belongings, but I couldn't. The two women who did most of the packing were enormously kind. One took my husband aside and told him to tell me not to work so hard. Bless her. I remember wandering (again with the wandering!) from room to room, thinking, "This is the house where I raised my son. Where my mother came to visit. Where we had friends stay the night. Where we celebrated the holidays. Where my dog Kevin lived. Where I wrote my first book. How can I say, 'Goodbye'?" But I did.
We drove for two days. My dogs--Vicky and Rafferty--sat beside me in the passenger's seat. They were very, very good. Almost as if they knew I needed them.
We arrived in the DC area at 8 at night. I drove, for the first time, on the notorious Beltway, aka Highway from Hell, with its uneven lanes. I was sooo tired. At one point, my wheels bumped the uneven asphalt, and my car careened back and forth in the lane. But I made it. We drove to this house.
It's a good house.
I can live here.
And now I can go to the grocery store, all by myself. Without the help of GPS.
It's going to be all right.
Photo, Snap, Shot
Now available for pre-ordering at Amazon! Book #3 in the Kiki Lowenstein Mystery Series will be out this May (2010) in time for National Scrapbooking Month!Go to http://tinyurl.com/ylors6d
Monday, October 19, 2009
More Things That'll Keep You Unpublished
Today I finished judging the romance contest entries.
I hope the writers who submitted their work learn half as much from my comments as I have learned from reading their pieces. Here are some more reflections:
1. You have to have a sympathetic protagonist. Sorry, but a perfect woman will not make me want to keep reading. Want to hear the single biggest compliment readers send me about Kiki Lowenstein? Stand back...
They like her.
They like that she's slightly overweight. They like that her mother-in-law doesn't like her. They like that she's struggling with self-esteem. They really, really like the jams she gets into.
You can't have a likable heroine who is physically flawless, who drives a fancy car, and who cares about nothing but her job. Sorry! I just won't care about HER.
Instead, humanize her. Let her have trouble parallel parking. Give her a bad hair day. Make her a sucker for candy like Brenda is on The Closer. Make her a klutz like Bella is in Twilight. Or a self-centered brat like Scarlett O'Hara. But don't make her perfect.
2. You can't dump a lot of people in the story all at once. Unless you plan on writing a Russian novel, spare me. Also, go easy with the nicknames. In one entry, the lead was called by three different names! Argh. Especially at the start, give the poor reader a break.
3. You can't tell me all your backstory in one fell swoop. Three anecdotes about the male lead are two too many. Especially if it's written in expository form. Instead, let a part of the backstory come out in dialogue. Make the character tell a story to another character. Here's an example...
Ron's boss didn't want him to take time off for the funeral.
"She wasn't blood kin," grumbled Police Chief Dickens. "Just some old lady from your neighborhood."
A twitch began along Ron's jawline. He fought to stay calm. Dickens was right, technically. But Miss Lena had been more to him than a neighbor. She'd been his personal angel, the woman who taught him right from wrong after his mother died and his father hit the sauce, big time. Ron forced himself to count to ten in Latin--after all, Miss Lena was a devout Catholic--and said slowly, "Call it a vacation day. I've got two months racked up."
Police Chief Dickens rocked back in his leather desk chair. "Tell you what. You explain how come she matters to you, and I'll consider it. Tell me why a tough guy like you is all broken up about an old neighbor. Why I saw you staring off into space yesterday like your pet dog died." With that, the chief gestured to the chair across his wide polished oak desk.
Ron folded himself into the small chair, which he suspected was uncomfortable for a reason. Dickens didn't want anyone to hang around his office too long. Not that Ron wanted to hang around. He wanted to get on the road. He checked the weather forecast: Not good. If he was going to make it to the services on time, he needed to hop a plane.
Well, he'd make this short and sweet, "She fed me. She...she...bailed me out of jail when my own dad wouldn't even make the trip downtown to see what I'd done."
Dickens gave a low whistle. "Tell me more..."
And Ron did.
See? You learn a lot about Ron, our male protagonist, and a whole lot more about Miss Lena, don't you?
I hope the writers who submitted their work learn half as much from my comments as I have learned from reading their pieces. Here are some more reflections:
1. You have to have a sympathetic protagonist. Sorry, but a perfect woman will not make me want to keep reading. Want to hear the single biggest compliment readers send me about Kiki Lowenstein? Stand back...
They like her.
They like that she's slightly overweight. They like that her mother-in-law doesn't like her. They like that she's struggling with self-esteem. They really, really like the jams she gets into.
You can't have a likable heroine who is physically flawless, who drives a fancy car, and who cares about nothing but her job. Sorry! I just won't care about HER.
Instead, humanize her. Let her have trouble parallel parking. Give her a bad hair day. Make her a sucker for candy like Brenda is on The Closer. Make her a klutz like Bella is in Twilight. Or a self-centered brat like Scarlett O'Hara. But don't make her perfect.
2. You can't dump a lot of people in the story all at once. Unless you plan on writing a Russian novel, spare me. Also, go easy with the nicknames. In one entry, the lead was called by three different names! Argh. Especially at the start, give the poor reader a break.
3. You can't tell me all your backstory in one fell swoop. Three anecdotes about the male lead are two too many. Especially if it's written in expository form. Instead, let a part of the backstory come out in dialogue. Make the character tell a story to another character. Here's an example...
Ron's boss didn't want him to take time off for the funeral.
"She wasn't blood kin," grumbled Police Chief Dickens. "Just some old lady from your neighborhood."
A twitch began along Ron's jawline. He fought to stay calm. Dickens was right, technically. But Miss Lena had been more to him than a neighbor. She'd been his personal angel, the woman who taught him right from wrong after his mother died and his father hit the sauce, big time. Ron forced himself to count to ten in Latin--after all, Miss Lena was a devout Catholic--and said slowly, "Call it a vacation day. I've got two months racked up."
Police Chief Dickens rocked back in his leather desk chair. "Tell you what. You explain how come she matters to you, and I'll consider it. Tell me why a tough guy like you is all broken up about an old neighbor. Why I saw you staring off into space yesterday like your pet dog died." With that, the chief gestured to the chair across his wide polished oak desk.
Ron folded himself into the small chair, which he suspected was uncomfortable for a reason. Dickens didn't want anyone to hang around his office too long. Not that Ron wanted to hang around. He wanted to get on the road. He checked the weather forecast: Not good. If he was going to make it to the services on time, he needed to hop a plane.
Well, he'd make this short and sweet, "She fed me. She...she...bailed me out of jail when my own dad wouldn't even make the trip downtown to see what I'd done."
Dickens gave a low whistle. "Tell me more..."
And Ron did.
See? You learn a lot about Ron, our male protagonist, and a whole lot more about Miss Lena, don't you?
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Mourning the Passing of Stuart Kaminsky
I was so sad to hear of the passing of Stuart Kaminsky. He had written many, many mystery books and was honored numerous times by the Mystery Writers of America. He was a gentleman, a brilliant writer, and a generous colleague to all in our profession.
We met at Sleuthfest, oh, three years ago? He stepped in to fill a short story class after Elaine Viets had her stroke. I asked him after the session what he thought about outlines. He told me that he could never have been so prolific if he didn't outline first. I took that to heart.
He also mentioned that he regularly writes letters to his granddaughter, as a matter of course, and as an ongoing part of their relationship. So, in his own way, Stuart was a scrapbooker of the highest order!
His wife Enid is a lovely and gracious woman, and a delightful person in her own right. I very much enjoyed meeting her at the conference. She was kind enough to remember me the next time we met, and that means a lot.
My condolences to his entire family.
Here is a link of his obit from the Sarasota Herald-Tribune in Florida where he had lived for more than twenty years before moving to St. Louis earlier this year while hoping for a life-saving liver transplant.
http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20091011/ARTICLE/910111085/0/article
Thanks,
Rev. Mike
Here is a link of his obit from the Sarasota Herald-Tribune in Florida where he had lived for more than twenty years before moving to St. Louis earlier this year while hoping for a life-saving liver transplant.
http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20091011/ARTICLE/910111085/0/article
Thanks,
Rev. Mike
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Things That'll Keep You Unpublished
Probably the LAST thing I should be doing with my time today is writing a blog post. Nevertheless, I am compelled to share what I'm learning.
See, I'm judging a contest for writers, new and hopeful authors. There's a wonderful set of criteria which guides me. Very helpful. Very insightful. But mainly, I'm calling upon what I've learned over the past five years.
And I'm using up far too much time doing this...except...except...it comes at an important juncture in my own career. I have two novels under my belt, and my third has been accepted but for the final edits. So reading these submissions, I can certainly see how my own skills have improved.
Here's what I'm seeing in these entries, problems that I believe will keep the books from seeing publication unless they are corrected:
1. Lack of specificity. Instead of having your protagonist say, "I went to college with her," tell me which college. MIT is very different from University of Illinois. A tiny specific tells the reader LOTS about your protagonist.
2. Simple grammatical mistakes. Common on, people. Learn to use a comma. All right, I still have trouble with "that" versus "which," but I keep looking up the difference and trying to get it right. And it's a subtle difference, one that may even go the way of "who" versus "whom," because proper usage almost becomes, uh, snotty. BUT...the major rules for comma usage are golden. Check this out, if you are unclear: http://www.eslbee.com/sentences.htm
3. Tighten up. I'm going to wear out my strike-through function. Here's an example of a sentence that needs to go on a diet: "I thought the words to myself." Uh, we only think to ourselves unless we are suffering from multiple personality disorder. Here's another: "Unexpectedly, I threw up my hands because I was startled by the surprise." ARRRGHHH. (I can't even start to fix that one!)
4. Delete the word "was" and write cleaner, clearer sentences. "I was tired, lonely from the long drive, and feeling sleepy as I pulled into town." How about "Tired, lonely, and sleepy from the 13-hour drive, I pulled into town." What I'm discovering is a real need for people to improve their technical ability, their basic repertoire of sentence structures. (Yes, "was" can be used perfectly. When you want to show that the subject was acted upon, then "was" does a brilliant job.)
5. Simple spelling and usage errors. I just looked up the spelling of "repertoire." That's part of my job. I always look up "lay" and "lie" because they are confusing. That's also part of the job. See, it's not just about writing--it's about knowing what my faults are as a writer and working to improve.
Okay, back to the judging.
PS I've re-read this and corrected it twice since originally writing it. That's another problem with beginning writers: They think their job is done once they have a first draft. (Sad to say, I'll probably find other corrections to make once this goes up. Still, the point is that you can't knock it out fast and walk away!)
See, I'm judging a contest for writers, new and hopeful authors. There's a wonderful set of criteria which guides me. Very helpful. Very insightful. But mainly, I'm calling upon what I've learned over the past five years.
And I'm using up far too much time doing this...except...except...it comes at an important juncture in my own career. I have two novels under my belt, and my third has been accepted but for the final edits. So reading these submissions, I can certainly see how my own skills have improved.
Here's what I'm seeing in these entries, problems that I believe will keep the books from seeing publication unless they are corrected:
1. Lack of specificity. Instead of having your protagonist say, "I went to college with her," tell me which college. MIT is very different from University of Illinois. A tiny specific tells the reader LOTS about your protagonist.
2. Simple grammatical mistakes. Common on, people. Learn to use a comma. All right, I still have trouble with "that" versus "which," but I keep looking up the difference and trying to get it right. And it's a subtle difference, one that may even go the way of "who" versus "whom," because proper usage almost becomes, uh, snotty. BUT...the major rules for comma usage are golden. Check this out, if you are unclear: http://www.eslbee.com/sentences.htm
3. Tighten up. I'm going to wear out my strike-through function. Here's an example of a sentence that needs to go on a diet: "I thought the words to myself." Uh, we only think to ourselves unless we are suffering from multiple personality disorder. Here's another: "Unexpectedly, I threw up my hands because I was startled by the surprise." ARRRGHHH. (I can't even start to fix that one!)
4. Delete the word "was" and write cleaner, clearer sentences. "I was tired, lonely from the long drive, and feeling sleepy as I pulled into town." How about "Tired, lonely, and sleepy from the 13-hour drive, I pulled into town." What I'm discovering is a real need for people to improve their technical ability, their basic repertoire of sentence structures. (Yes, "was" can be used perfectly. When you want to show that the subject was acted upon, then "was" does a brilliant job.)
5. Simple spelling and usage errors. I just looked up the spelling of "repertoire." That's part of my job. I always look up "lay" and "lie" because they are confusing. That's also part of the job. See, it's not just about writing--it's about knowing what my faults are as a writer and working to improve.
Okay, back to the judging.
PS I've re-read this and corrected it twice since originally writing it. That's another problem with beginning writers: They think their job is done once they have a first draft. (Sad to say, I'll probably find other corrections to make once this goes up. Still, the point is that you can't knock it out fast and walk away!)
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Craft Room Spots Still Available at Bouchercon!
A SPECIAL EVENT
THE CRAFT ROOM
THU - SAT
55-minute sessions
So many of today’s cozy mysteries involve a craft such as scrapbooking, knitting, candle-making, etc. Register for a session in the craft room (Vision Room, 3rd floor) as authors demonstrate their craft and introduce themselves and their books. You'll have hands-on experience making your own craft, too!
This idea comes from author Joanna Campbell Slan, author of a scrapbooking mystery series.
The Craft Room
Participating Authors and their Crafts:
Maggie Sefton--knit a simple scarf
Cricket McRae--make an oatmeal milk bath salts/fizzing bath salts
Betty Hechtman--crochet a "Molly Pin Dishcloth"
Penny Warner--create a Nancy Drew Sleuth Kit with secret compartments OR make a "Killer Party Pop-Up invitation/memory book/favor"
Beth Groundwater--mystery-oriented designer gift baskets
Camille Minichino (Margaret Grace)--miniature flowers in a vase made from flower soft product
Joanna Campbell Slan--scrapbooking page craft
Sally Goldenbaum--"Knit a Square" Squares will be assembled into quilts and shawls and donated to needy children and mothers in Africa.
Mary Monica Pulver (Monica Ferris)--hand stitched simple bookmark designed in black and orange colors
Schedule:
Thursday
10:30 - 11:25 Monica Ferris - cross stitched bookmark
1:30 - 2:25 Margaret Grace - miniature flowers
3:00 - 3:55 Betty Hechtman - crocheted dishcloth
Friday
9:00 - 9:55 Maggie Sefton - simple scarf
10:30 - 11:25 Penny Warner - Nancy Drew sleuth kit
3:00 - 3:55 Penny Warner - party invitation
Saturday
9:00 - 9:55 Sally Goldenbaum - quilting project
10:30 - 11:25 Beth Groundwater - gift basket
1:00 - 1:55 Joanna Campbell Slan - scrapbooking page
2:30 - 3:25 Cricket McRae - oatmeal silk/bath salts
Location: Hyatt Regency Indianapolis, Vision Room, 3rd Floor
Cost: Free Ticketed Event
How to register:
Go to RegOnline at www.regonline.com/bcon2009. Add the event when you register for Bouchercon. If you've already registered for Bouchercon, select the "Existing" option and type in your e-mail address. RegOnline will ask for your password. If you've forgotten it, click "Forgot your password?" and it will be sent to you in about five minutes.
After keying in your password, under the Registration List, find your name and click on "Agenda (Fees)" and you can add any auxiliary events that are available.
You must be registered for Bouchercon to attend.
THE CRAFT ROOM
THU - SAT
55-minute sessions
So many of today’s cozy mysteries involve a craft such as scrapbooking, knitting, candle-making, etc. Register for a session in the craft room (Vision Room, 3rd floor) as authors demonstrate their craft and introduce themselves and their books. You'll have hands-on experience making your own craft, too!
This idea comes from author Joanna Campbell Slan, author of a scrapbooking mystery series.
The Craft Room
Participating Authors and their Crafts:
Maggie Sefton--knit a simple scarf
Cricket McRae--make an oatmeal milk bath salts/fizzing bath salts
Betty Hechtman--crochet a "Molly Pin Dishcloth"
Penny Warner--create a Nancy Drew Sleuth Kit with secret compartments OR make a "Killer Party Pop-Up invitation/memory book/favor"
Beth Groundwater--mystery-oriented designer gift baskets
Camille Minichino (Margaret Grace)--miniature flowers in a vase made from flower soft product
Joanna Campbell Slan--scrapbooking page craft
Sally Goldenbaum--"Knit a Square" Squares will be assembled into quilts and shawls and donated to needy children and mothers in Africa.
Mary Monica Pulver (Monica Ferris)--hand stitched simple bookmark designed in black and orange colors
Schedule:
Thursday
10:30 - 11:25 Monica Ferris - cross stitched bookmark
1:30 - 2:25 Margaret Grace - miniature flowers
3:00 - 3:55 Betty Hechtman - crocheted dishcloth
Friday
9:00 - 9:55 Maggie Sefton - simple scarf
10:30 - 11:25 Penny Warner - Nancy Drew sleuth kit
3:00 - 3:55 Penny Warner - party invitation
Saturday
9:00 - 9:55 Sally Goldenbaum - quilting project
10:30 - 11:25 Beth Groundwater - gift basket
1:00 - 1:55 Joanna Campbell Slan - scrapbooking page
2:30 - 3:25 Cricket McRae - oatmeal silk/bath salts
Location: Hyatt Regency Indianapolis, Vision Room, 3rd Floor
Cost: Free Ticketed Event
How to register:
Go to RegOnline at www.regonline.com/bcon2009. Add the event when you register for Bouchercon. If you've already registered for Bouchercon, select the "Existing" option and type in your e-mail address. RegOnline will ask for your password. If you've forgotten it, click "Forgot your password?" and it will be sent to you in about five minutes.
After keying in your password, under the Registration List, find your name and click on "Agenda (Fees)" and you can add any auxiliary events that are available.
You must be registered for Bouchercon to attend.
Sunday, October 4, 2009
I'm So Behind, I Look Like I'm Out Front...
Sigh. Today I slept until 3pm. Yes, 3 in the afternoon. Which I think is some indication of how incredibly tired I've been. The move, my mom's death, all the running around to New York City and to Minneapolis, and back finally caught up with me. Of course, maybe there's also the new trick I've learned. See, I've learned to sleep through the sound of acorns pelting our house. Yeah, at first, David and I thought a neighborhood kid was shooting our house with B-Bs or tossing a softball against our siding. We looked at the house from the front and couldn't see any branches scratching. We looked from the back and nada.
But what we couldn't see was the oak tree at the side of the house, strategically positioned between the windows at the side of the house. That was the problem. Plus, our bedroom has a vaulted ceiling, so the sound in our room versus the other rooms on that side of the house was different.
So, maybe I've just learned on some deep psychological level to ignore the acorns.
Or maybe it was the half-a-pill of Ambien that I finally broke down and took before bed.
Who cares? Whatever it was, it worked.
**
Here's my schedule for Bouchercon in Indianapolis as of today, October 5. If you plan to attend, let's meet up and say, "Howdy!"
Thursday, Oct. 15
9-9:55am
Killer Hobbies Panel—Five crafty authors discuss the hobbies that drove them to murder. Moderator with Sally Goldenbaum, Margaret Grace, Beth Groundwater, and Betty Hechtman.
4:30pm
Librarian’s Tea: SinC into a Great Mystery
**
Friday, Oct. 16
7:30am
SinC breakfast at Hyatt Regency
10:30am
MWA Hot Ticket Author Carolyn Hart
Featured authors: Joanna Campbell Slan and Beverle Graves Myers
5:30-7pm
Indiana Authors Reception
Central Library
40 East St. Clair Street
Indianapolis IN
**
Saturday, Oct. 17
1-1:55pm
Craft Room—“Scrapbook Page”
With gifts, prizes, and a wonderful exclusive customized scrapbook page by EK Success.
Sunday, Oct. 18
9-11am
Book Bazaar
But what we couldn't see was the oak tree at the side of the house, strategically positioned between the windows at the side of the house. That was the problem. Plus, our bedroom has a vaulted ceiling, so the sound in our room versus the other rooms on that side of the house was different.
So, maybe I've just learned on some deep psychological level to ignore the acorns.
Or maybe it was the half-a-pill of Ambien that I finally broke down and took before bed.
Who cares? Whatever it was, it worked.
**
Here's my schedule for Bouchercon in Indianapolis as of today, October 5. If you plan to attend, let's meet up and say, "Howdy!"
Thursday, Oct. 15
9-9:55am
Killer Hobbies Panel—Five crafty authors discuss the hobbies that drove them to murder. Moderator with Sally Goldenbaum, Margaret Grace, Beth Groundwater, and Betty Hechtman.
4:30pm
Librarian’s Tea: SinC into a Great Mystery
**
Friday, Oct. 16
7:30am
SinC breakfast at Hyatt Regency
10:30am
MWA Hot Ticket Author Carolyn Hart
Featured authors: Joanna Campbell Slan and Beverle Graves Myers
5:30-7pm
Indiana Authors Reception
Central Library
40 East St. Clair Street
Indianapolis IN
**
Saturday, Oct. 17
1-1:55pm
Craft Room—“Scrapbook Page”
With gifts, prizes, and a wonderful exclusive customized scrapbook page by EK Success.
**
Sunday, Oct. 18
9-11am
Book Bazaar
Monday, September 21, 2009
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Contest on Spotted Canary
It's up! You'll want to learn all about the new Spotted Canary Contest. You could win naming rights for a character in Book #3 of the Kiki Lowenstein Scrap-N-Craft Mystery Series. Go to...
http://tinyurl.com/lyru9n
And while you're there, check out what a super site this is for crafters. You'll find everything you need to put FUN back into your hobby world. Here's the site: http://www.spottedcanary.com
http://tinyurl.com/lyru9n
And while you're there, check out what a super site this is for crafters. You'll find everything you need to put FUN back into your hobby world. Here's the site: http://www.spottedcanary.com
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
News and Appearances
MINNEAPOLIS VISIT--Sept. 18-20, 2009
Joanna will be appearing at Scrapfest at Mall of America in Minneapolis to sign copies of PAPER, SCISSORS, DEATH (Book #1) and CUT, CROP & DIE (Book #2). Be sure to stop by the Archivers store at Mall of America, and visit me on Friday (September 18) from 9am to 1pm, and Saturday (September 19) from 9am to 1pm, on Sunday (September 20) from 11am to 3pm. On Friday after 2pm, she'll be signing at the Barnes & Noble store there at MOA. That evening at 6pm, she’ll stop by Uncle Edgar’s Mystery Bookstore in Minneapolis to sign books. In the evening on Saturday, she'll stop at a crop at Scrapbooks Too, 10518 France Ave S, Bloomington, Minnesota.
ONLINE AT SPOTTED CANARY--Sept. 17, 2009, and every Monday for six consecutive weeks.
Join Joanna every Monday at 8am EST, starting on September 21, at http://www.spottedcanary.com/ in "The Cat That Ate the Canary" Forum. She'll be dispensing clues that may win you prizes or a chance at IMMORTALITY. Yes, you could win the chance to be a character in Book #3 of the Kiki Lowenstein Scrap-N-Craft Mystery Series.
FREDRICK, MD--Oct. 3, 2009
On October 3, Joanna will visit "In the Streets" at the Frederick, Maryland city-wide festival--details will be in our blog, but she's planning to team up with Queenie D, who runs Queenie D's Book Club Blog. There will be prizes!
INDIANAPOLIS, IN--Oct. 15-18, 2009
Meet the Killer Hobbies Blog Sisters at Bouchercon, October 15-18 in Indianapolis IN. (Go to http://www.bouchercon2009.com/ for registration details.) On Thursday, Oct. 15 at 9am, Joanna Campbell Slan will moderate a panel featuring Margaret Grace and Betty Hechtman from our blog http://www.killerhobbies.blogspot.com/ ! Then join us and learn the crafts we love so much: Visit the Bouchercon Craft Room on Thurs./Oct. 15 from 10:30am to 11:25am, Monica Ferris will teach "How to Make a Cross Stitched Bookmark"; 1:30pm to 2:25 p.m. Margaret Grace will teach "How to Make Miniature Flowers"; 3pm to 3:55pm Betty Hechtman will teach "How to Make a Crocheted Molly Pink Dishcloth." On Sat./ Oct.17, Joanna Campbell Slan will teach "How to Make a Scrapbook Page." Join us on Sunday, October 18 for the Book Bazaar--Joanna will be giving away copies of one of her Kiki Lowenstein Scrap-N-Craft Mysteries.
Joanna will be appearing at Scrapfest at Mall of America in Minneapolis to sign copies of PAPER, SCISSORS, DEATH (Book #1) and CUT, CROP & DIE (Book #2). Be sure to stop by the Archivers store at Mall of America, and visit me on Friday (September 18) from 9am to 1pm, and Saturday (September 19) from 9am to 1pm, on Sunday (September 20) from 11am to 3pm. On Friday after 2pm, she'll be signing at the Barnes & Noble store there at MOA. That evening at 6pm, she’ll stop by Uncle Edgar’s Mystery Bookstore in Minneapolis to sign books. In the evening on Saturday, she'll stop at a crop at Scrapbooks Too, 10518 France Ave S, Bloomington, Minnesota.
ONLINE AT SPOTTED CANARY--Sept. 17, 2009, and every Monday for six consecutive weeks.
Join Joanna every Monday at 8am EST, starting on September 21, at http://www.spottedcanary.com/ in "The Cat That Ate the Canary" Forum. She'll be dispensing clues that may win you prizes or a chance at IMMORTALITY. Yes, you could win the chance to be a character in Book #3 of the Kiki Lowenstein Scrap-N-Craft Mystery Series.
FREDRICK, MD--Oct. 3, 2009
On October 3, Joanna will visit "In the Streets" at the Frederick, Maryland city-wide festival--details will be in our blog, but she's planning to team up with Queenie D, who runs Queenie D's Book Club Blog. There will be prizes!
INDIANAPOLIS, IN--Oct. 15-18, 2009
Meet the Killer Hobbies Blog Sisters at Bouchercon, October 15-18 in Indianapolis IN. (Go to http://www.bouchercon2009.com/ for registration details.) On Thursday, Oct. 15 at 9am, Joanna Campbell Slan will moderate a panel featuring Margaret Grace and Betty Hechtman from our blog http://www.killerhobbies.blogspot.com/ ! Then join us and learn the crafts we love so much: Visit the Bouchercon Craft Room on Thurs./Oct. 15 from 10:30am to 11:25am, Monica Ferris will teach "How to Make a Cross Stitched Bookmark"; 1:30pm to 2:25 p.m. Margaret Grace will teach "How to Make Miniature Flowers"; 3pm to 3:55pm Betty Hechtman will teach "How to Make a Crocheted Molly Pink Dishcloth." On Sat./ Oct.17, Joanna Campbell Slan will teach "How to Make a Scrapbook Page." Join us on Sunday, October 18 for the Book Bazaar--Joanna will be giving away copies of one of her Kiki Lowenstein Scrap-N-Craft Mysteries.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
To Plot or Not to Plot
I'm 10,000+ words into Book #4 of the Kiki Lowenstein Scrap-n-Craft series. Now's the time to stop and plot.
Groan.
I've already written a synopsis, I know who died, how my victim died, and what's up. But in order to do my best work, this is the point where I drag out trusty pencil and paper and start making charts. Yep. Good old fashioned charts.
I'll chart out what's happening in Kiki's life, in Sheila's life, in Mert's life, in Dodie's life, in Anya's life, in Detweiler's life, in Gracie's life...you get the picture. I see myself as an orchestra conductor trying to get all those instruments playing together in harmony. Of course, Kiki is sitting at the Steinway grand. She's the spotlighted soloist. But all the others have their part to play.
I'll also consider all the comments I've collected about the series. What readers like. What they want more of. What they THINK will happen. What they WANT to happen. How they'd like to see my characters evolve. Of course, it' s my job to keep throwing curve balls. And I will. Still, I really appreciate everyone's feedback. I'm not so hidebound or so egotistical that I think I have to come up with all the answers myself. I'll very willing to listen.
In the end, it has to be my creation. But along the way, only a fool would ignore what other invested people have to say about characters they love.
So...goodbye whizzing along and typing on the computer. Hello, eraser and pencil. Odd to think that sometimes by slowing down, you can actually go faster, but it's true!
Groan.
I've already written a synopsis, I know who died, how my victim died, and what's up. But in order to do my best work, this is the point where I drag out trusty pencil and paper and start making charts. Yep. Good old fashioned charts.
I'll chart out what's happening in Kiki's life, in Sheila's life, in Mert's life, in Dodie's life, in Anya's life, in Detweiler's life, in Gracie's life...you get the picture. I see myself as an orchestra conductor trying to get all those instruments playing together in harmony. Of course, Kiki is sitting at the Steinway grand. She's the spotlighted soloist. But all the others have their part to play.
I'll also consider all the comments I've collected about the series. What readers like. What they want more of. What they THINK will happen. What they WANT to happen. How they'd like to see my characters evolve. Of course, it' s my job to keep throwing curve balls. And I will. Still, I really appreciate everyone's feedback. I'm not so hidebound or so egotistical that I think I have to come up with all the answers myself. I'll very willing to listen.
In the end, it has to be my creation. But along the way, only a fool would ignore what other invested people have to say about characters they love.
So...goodbye whizzing along and typing on the computer. Hello, eraser and pencil. Odd to think that sometimes by slowing down, you can actually go faster, but it's true!
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Queenie D's Review of Cut, Crop & Die
It's not often you get reviewed by royalty. Queenie D gives her take on Cut, Crop & Die here http://www.book-club-queen.com/cut.html
Here's an interview we did together: http://www.book-club-queen.com/cut.html
I must admit, I shared a lot more about my characters with Queenie than I have in the past. I'm curious to hear what my fans think about my future plans.
After we corresponded by email, I learned she and I are almost neighbors! So I'm planning to visit with her and her friends at the "In the Streets" celebration in Frederick MD on September 26. Stay tuned for details.
On Thursday at 8 a.m. EST, check out the forum at http://www.spottedcanary.com/ I'll be announcing details of a new contest where the winner gets to name a character in Book #4 of the Kiki Lowenstein Scrap-n-Craft Mystery series.
I'm heading out this Thursday for Scrapfest at Mall of America, Minneapolis. I'll be signing up at the Archivers store on Thursday, Sept. 18, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m, on Friday, Sept. 19, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m, and on Sunday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. I'll also be stopping in at Scrapbooks Too for the evening crop Saturday night, as well as dropping by Uncle Edgar's to sign books. For details, visit http://www.booktour.com/ and put in my name.
Meanwhile, I'll try to get my Fall 2009 newsletter out to all of you. Be sure to sign up at my website http://www.joannaslan.com/Have a great fall!
Here's an interview we did together: http://www.book-club-queen.com/cut.html
I must admit, I shared a lot more about my characters with Queenie than I have in the past. I'm curious to hear what my fans think about my future plans.
After we corresponded by email, I learned she and I are almost neighbors! So I'm planning to visit with her and her friends at the "In the Streets" celebration in Frederick MD on September 26. Stay tuned for details.
On Thursday at 8 a.m. EST, check out the forum at http://www.spottedcanary.com/ I'll be announcing details of a new contest where the winner gets to name a character in Book #4 of the Kiki Lowenstein Scrap-n-Craft Mystery series.
I'm heading out this Thursday for Scrapfest at Mall of America, Minneapolis. I'll be signing up at the Archivers store on Thursday, Sept. 18, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m, on Friday, Sept. 19, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m, and on Sunday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. I'll also be stopping in at Scrapbooks Too for the evening crop Saturday night, as well as dropping by Uncle Edgar's to sign books. For details, visit http://www.booktour.com/ and put in my name.
Meanwhile, I'll try to get my Fall 2009 newsletter out to all of you. Be sure to sign up at my website http://www.joannaslan.com/Have a great fall!
Monday, August 24, 2009
Robert Redford...or Better Than Sex Desert
Thanks to Sue Ellen Harrell for sharing.
Now ladies, we can lick Robert Redford off a spoon!
**
Jone’s Chocolate Delight
(Or Robert Redford or Better than Sex )
1 stick of melted butter
1 ¼ c. flour
1 c. chopped pecans or walnuts
1 8oz. pkg. cream cheese
1 c. powdered sugar
1 9 oz. container of Cool Whip
2 pkgs. of chocolate instant pudding
3 c. milk
Preheat oven to 375 degrees; blend together butter and flour with a fork, mix in nuts and spread evenly in 9 X 13 pan. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool.
Blend cream cheese and powdered sugar and ½ of Cool Whip. Spread on cooled crust. Chill in refrigerator.
Prepare two packages of instant pudding; reducing milk to 3 cups. Spread on top of cream cheese layer.
Refrigerate ½ hour. Top with remaining Cool Whip and sprinkle with nuts, if desired.
Now ladies, we can lick Robert Redford off a spoon!
**
Jone’s Chocolate Delight
(Or Robert Redford or Better than Sex )
1 stick of melted butter
1 ¼ c. flour
1 c. chopped pecans or walnuts
1 8oz. pkg. cream cheese
1 c. powdered sugar
1 9 oz. container of Cool Whip
2 pkgs. of chocolate instant pudding
3 c. milk
Preheat oven to 375 degrees; blend together butter and flour with a fork, mix in nuts and spread evenly in 9 X 13 pan. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool.
Blend cream cheese and powdered sugar and ½ of Cool Whip. Spread on cooled crust. Chill in refrigerator.
Prepare two packages of instant pudding; reducing milk to 3 cups. Spread on top of cream cheese layer.
Refrigerate ½ hour. Top with remaining Cool Whip and sprinkle with nuts, if desired.
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
The Monroe City Book Club
I asked Marlis Day to tell all of you about her extra-ordinary bookclub. I visited, and it was quite a treat! That's me with Marlis at the Blue Jean Center.
In 2003 we started a book club in our little town of Monroe City, Indiana. Women from all over the area came to join. We joined the greater "Oprah Book Club" and ordered T-shirts. In the beginning we read the books Oprah picked and made the online connections for discussion questions. She even pictured our group on her web site for a while. We were so proud. Then Oprah's book choices became less frequent and we wanted to read a book every month, so we veered off on our own and began choosing titles. We read local authors, classics, and best-sellers.
We meet in the Blue Jean Center, the old school turned community center, on the first Thursday of each month at seven. We take turns choosing titles, leading discussions, and bringing snacks. It's a women's book club and a few men have inquired, but we tell them they wouldn't want to read the books we choose. We like books about strong women and prefer women authors.
Every year we have an author night. When we host an author, we send press releases to the local paper, order a box of his/her books and read. We invite the author for dinner, prepare a wonderful home-cooked meal, and everyone brings a friend to meet the author. Our group of twenty usually ends up hosting a dinner for fifty or more. After the dinner, the author has an hour to discuss her book. This is followed by a Q&A time and book signing.
Last month we hosted Agatha Nominee for Best First Novel, Joanna Campbell Slan. We read her first mystery, Paper, Scissors, Death, and loved it. Everyone agreed she was a wonderful speaker, making us laugh all evening. Many members bought her second mystery, Cut, Crop, and Die. Our member are anxious to discuss it at our August meeting. If you need a good speaker, contact Joanna. Her books are intriguing and she is delightful!
-Marlis Day
Author of the Margo Brown Mysteries
and The Secret of Bailey's Chase, a tween novel.
http://www.marlisday.com/
Joanna responds: I just want to say that I'd drive all the way back to Monroe City just for the food! They have this dessert called Robert Redford. Believe me, you'll want to lick Robert off your spoon.
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Accepting (and Giving) Criticism--Some Great Guidelines
Criticism is part of being an author. In fact, we even have a special name for one type of it: editing. I mean, think about it. Editing is, in its broadest form, a type of criticism. However, the best editors manage to share their suggestions in such a way that they don't seem like criticism at all! And those are the types of editors we all hope to work with--compassionate to our self-esteem yet focused on helping us create a better product.
But some criticism comes out of the blue. From readers, from other authors, and from reviewers. Some is valid and useful. Some criticism, however, is downright destructive.
Recently, a site for motivational speakers fielded a question. Seems this particular speaker finished a presentation and someone unknown to her offered a on-the-spot critique. She wondered how she should have responded.
I thought Paul Radde's comments about how to handle that situation were worth re-posting here--yes, they were intended for a speaker, but every writer can benefit from this as well:
***
If the feedback has begun and you are momentarily blind-sided, and they (the persons offering feedback) are adamantly continuing with the feedback, you can deflect what they are saying by referring to the rules of feedback: coming from a contractual source, e.g. a supervisor when requested, or when in a position to receive it, in private. With presence of mind, you could request that you would be much more able to receive what they had to offer when you could concentrate on their comments completely.
Should they persist anyway, you could ask that colleague what his/her intention is in providing the feedback right now.
Even so, there are only two kinds of legitimate feedback:
* confirming: specific and detailed description of what the recipient did right in recognition of their accomplishment, or to recommend that they continue.
* corrective, re-directive, focusing: specific and detailed description of a better direction, practice, or how to get back on track.
The other kinds of feedback are not appropriate:
* demanding: stated regarding something that the recipient cannot correct or change, and so constituting a denial of reality...
*denouncing: stated with the intention of belittling, demeaning, or putting down the recipient.
It’s the intention, tone, and content.
* general: so lacking in specificity and precision as to leave the recipient lacking in any direction, correction, or value to take from the statement. General feedback is worthless.
***
Here are a few ideas of my own:
What is the person's intention? Is the person offering feedback because he/she really has something to share that he/she thinks you can use? Or does the person have an agenda?
What is the person's background/training? Okay, you don't have to be an expert to offer an opinion, but someone with a very narrow scope of experience might not have the best platform from which to offer a thoughtful opinion. I especially shudder when someone starts a criticism with "I do a little blah-blah-blah and I wanted to offer you some feedback." Usually, it's a veiled attempt to play "I can one-up you."
How does the person support the criticism? Can he/she point to an example? Can you confirm what he/she is saying or give it accurate consideration?
How emotionally charged is the criticism? Is it a rambling attempt to put you down? Look for emotionally worded critiques. An example might be, "That book will NEVER..." or "You don't EVER..." or "I can't BELIEVE that..." Those capitalized words are all clues that the speaker/giver of criticism is responding to an emotional issue and not to your work.
How willing is the speaker/critic to defer criticism to another time? In my opinion, anyone who keeps hammering home a complaint or who doesn't take timing into consideration, is probably someone with an ulterior motive. I've noticed that if the person just can't stop criticizing or can't wait to tell you his/her opinion, it has more to do with that person that with the project.
What's the language the criticism is couched in? For example, if you tell me, "I think I'd feel more emphathetic to your protagonist if you did such-and-such," that's a lot different from "I hated your protagonist because..." In one case, the critic is offering me a way to improve. In the other, he/she is leading with a strong emotional response.
Our work is out there for all to see and remark upon. But some remarks are worth hearing and some are meant to be daggers in the heart. You can't give both sets of information equal attention. If you do, it will seriously hamper your ability to keep writing!
**
Paul Radde is the author of the definitive book on meeting environment, available at www.Thrival.com Once there click on "Products," scroll down to "Books" click on SEATING MATTERS.Want a preview? Click on "Articles" and read "How to Get YourAudience the Best Seats in the House," from Professional Speaker Magazine.Workshop advised for meeting professionals, CPE, affiliates, chapters.
But some criticism comes out of the blue. From readers, from other authors, and from reviewers. Some is valid and useful. Some criticism, however, is downright destructive.
Recently, a site for motivational speakers fielded a question. Seems this particular speaker finished a presentation and someone unknown to her offered a on-the-spot critique. She wondered how she should have responded.
I thought Paul Radde's comments about how to handle that situation were worth re-posting here--yes, they were intended for a speaker, but every writer can benefit from this as well:
***
If the feedback has begun and you are momentarily blind-sided, and they (the persons offering feedback) are adamantly continuing with the feedback, you can deflect what they are saying by referring to the rules of feedback: coming from a contractual source, e.g. a supervisor when requested, or when in a position to receive it, in private. With presence of mind, you could request that you would be much more able to receive what they had to offer when you could concentrate on their comments completely.
Should they persist anyway, you could ask that colleague what his/her intention is in providing the feedback right now.
Even so, there are only two kinds of legitimate feedback:
* confirming: specific and detailed description of what the recipient did right in recognition of their accomplishment, or to recommend that they continue.
* corrective, re-directive, focusing: specific and detailed description of a better direction, practice, or how to get back on track.
The other kinds of feedback are not appropriate:
* demanding: stated regarding something that the recipient cannot correct or change, and so constituting a denial of reality...
*denouncing: stated with the intention of belittling, demeaning, or putting down the recipient.
It’s the intention, tone, and content.
* general: so lacking in specificity and precision as to leave the recipient lacking in any direction, correction, or value to take from the statement. General feedback is worthless.
***
Here are a few ideas of my own:
What is the person's intention? Is the person offering feedback because he/she really has something to share that he/she thinks you can use? Or does the person have an agenda?
What is the person's background/training? Okay, you don't have to be an expert to offer an opinion, but someone with a very narrow scope of experience might not have the best platform from which to offer a thoughtful opinion. I especially shudder when someone starts a criticism with "I do a little blah-blah-blah and I wanted to offer you some feedback." Usually, it's a veiled attempt to play "I can one-up you."
How does the person support the criticism? Can he/she point to an example? Can you confirm what he/she is saying or give it accurate consideration?
How emotionally charged is the criticism? Is it a rambling attempt to put you down? Look for emotionally worded critiques. An example might be, "That book will NEVER..." or "You don't EVER..." or "I can't BELIEVE that..." Those capitalized words are all clues that the speaker/giver of criticism is responding to an emotional issue and not to your work.
How willing is the speaker/critic to defer criticism to another time? In my opinion, anyone who keeps hammering home a complaint or who doesn't take timing into consideration, is probably someone with an ulterior motive. I've noticed that if the person just can't stop criticizing or can't wait to tell you his/her opinion, it has more to do with that person that with the project.
What's the language the criticism is couched in? For example, if you tell me, "I think I'd feel more emphathetic to your protagonist if you did such-and-such," that's a lot different from "I hated your protagonist because..." In one case, the critic is offering me a way to improve. In the other, he/she is leading with a strong emotional response.
Our work is out there for all to see and remark upon. But some remarks are worth hearing and some are meant to be daggers in the heart. You can't give both sets of information equal attention. If you do, it will seriously hamper your ability to keep writing!
**
Paul Radde is the author of the definitive book on meeting environment, available at www.Thrival.com Once there click on "Products," scroll down to "Books" click on SEATING MATTERS.Want a preview? Click on "Articles" and read "How to Get YourAudience the Best Seats in the House," from Professional Speaker Magazine.Workshop advised for meeting professionals, CPE, affiliates, chapters.
Friday, July 17, 2009
70 Library Holds on Cut, Crop & Die
That's me and Marsha Ramey, from Sachs Library here in Chesterfield. Marsha was kind enough to set up a meeting with her book club, a lovely group of ladies.
Here's an email from an attendee:
> Joanna,
> Thank you for your lively and informative talk with all of us at
> Sach's Library on Wednesday,the 15th of July.
> It was so interesting to hear about the publishing industry and your
> own personal experiences as an author.
> And what fun your Kiki books are! I am patiently waiting for the Cut,
> Crop and Die which is on hold at the library- I am 40 of 70 holds!!
> Thank you again and I wish you and your family all the best in your
> new adventure to Washington, DC.
> You will love it there, too.
> Nancy Stratte
I wish there were more copies of my book, but...
An author friend told me, "Joanna, you don't WANT them to have a lot of copies. That way people will be forced to buy them."
Maybe.
But I see it a bit differently. The more people who get "hooked" on my series, the better the sales of each successive book will become. And that's my focus...future sales and fans.
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Report on the Digital State of the Book Nation
Gordon Burgett is a publishing industry sage. Here's a link to his discussion of a report on the future of digital publishing.
http://www.gordonburgett.com/digitalfuture.htm
An important point--the report notes that any digital product will be able to stay current, because it can be updated quickly and easily. But, a print product will become dated.
This is very important. If you are writing a book with a lot of links, or even with an addendum with references, these can quickly become obsolete. Even product references can become antiquated. I've experience this as people who own copies of Scrapbook Storytelling have emailed me trying to find various suppliers who, alas, are no longer in business.
Now that doesn't stop me from adding product references in my books, but it does mean that the public's ability to contact you or to visit you on your website takes on new importance. People do know how to contact you, right? Make it as easy as possible, is my mantra. Even when I email people back to to say, "Sorry, those suppliers are no longer in business," I've taken the time to further my relationship with the person writing the email. Usually people will tell me how surprised they are that I personally have responded.
Why shouldn't I? Oh, sure, it takes time, but I figure it's the least I can do. They spent money and time with my product. I owe them a response.
Also note that POD (print on demand) technology continues to improve. Many years ago, a Japanese concept call JIT (Just In Time) sourcing revolutionized the auto industry. With JIT, a car manufacturer such as Toyota could order parts and know they'd arrive "just in time." This saved the cost of warehousing. Now, you might think, "So what?" But let's use a little imagination, shall we? Suppose are an American manufacturer who has ordered all the parts to build a month's worth of cars. You have to unload those parts from a carrier (+ labor/workman's comp for a job prone to injuries), warehouse them (+ labor, + insurance on the building, + inventorying supplies, + knowing where the supplies are, + rent), store them until used (+ cost of overhead and any damages if there's a leak in your roof, insurance), then ship them to your factory floor. Compare this to: the parts arrive and are taken directly to the factory. Hello!
It's the same with books. If you print them all in advance, they must be boxed and shipped to your warehouse. If the warehouse is damp, if the books get rained on during shipment, if the number of books in the book isn't the correct amount to send out in any one order (and they need to be repacked), you have incurred costs in addition to publishing your books.
Oh, don't look for everything to change overnight. Some time ago, the music industry introduced kiosks where folks could order sheet music and have it printed as they waited. The prediction was that there'd be a kiosk in every music instrument store. It hasn't quite happened. But on the other hand, more and more scrapbookers are storing their photos digitally and printing them out as they need them, either at home or through vendors.
There's a change coming to this industry. It bodes well for all of us...but as to who will be the big winners and losers, well, we'll just have to wait and see.
http://www.gordonburgett.com/digitalfuture.htm
An important point--the report notes that any digital product will be able to stay current, because it can be updated quickly and easily. But, a print product will become dated.
This is very important. If you are writing a book with a lot of links, or even with an addendum with references, these can quickly become obsolete. Even product references can become antiquated. I've experience this as people who own copies of Scrapbook Storytelling have emailed me trying to find various suppliers who, alas, are no longer in business.
Now that doesn't stop me from adding product references in my books, but it does mean that the public's ability to contact you or to visit you on your website takes on new importance. People do know how to contact you, right? Make it as easy as possible, is my mantra. Even when I email people back to to say, "Sorry, those suppliers are no longer in business," I've taken the time to further my relationship with the person writing the email. Usually people will tell me how surprised they are that I personally have responded.
Why shouldn't I? Oh, sure, it takes time, but I figure it's the least I can do. They spent money and time with my product. I owe them a response.
Also note that POD (print on demand) technology continues to improve. Many years ago, a Japanese concept call JIT (Just In Time) sourcing revolutionized the auto industry. With JIT, a car manufacturer such as Toyota could order parts and know they'd arrive "just in time." This saved the cost of warehousing. Now, you might think, "So what?" But let's use a little imagination, shall we? Suppose are an American manufacturer who has ordered all the parts to build a month's worth of cars. You have to unload those parts from a carrier (+ labor/workman's comp for a job prone to injuries), warehouse them (+ labor, + insurance on the building, + inventorying supplies, + knowing where the supplies are, + rent), store them until used (+ cost of overhead and any damages if there's a leak in your roof, insurance), then ship them to your factory floor. Compare this to: the parts arrive and are taken directly to the factory. Hello!
It's the same with books. If you print them all in advance, they must be boxed and shipped to your warehouse. If the warehouse is damp, if the books get rained on during shipment, if the number of books in the book isn't the correct amount to send out in any one order (and they need to be repacked), you have incurred costs in addition to publishing your books.
Oh, don't look for everything to change overnight. Some time ago, the music industry introduced kiosks where folks could order sheet music and have it printed as they waited. The prediction was that there'd be a kiosk in every music instrument store. It hasn't quite happened. But on the other hand, more and more scrapbookers are storing their photos digitally and printing them out as they need them, either at home or through vendors.
There's a change coming to this industry. It bodes well for all of us...but as to who will be the big winners and losers, well, we'll just have to wait and see.
Friday, July 10, 2009
Guest Blogger Neil Plakcy
Please welcome my friend, Neil Plakcy--1. Tell us about yourself. I know you teach, Neil. What do you teach and where? How does that work with your career as an author? What sort of impact has this had on your writing schedule? What have you learned through teaching that you apply to your work?
Though back in 1988 I signed up for the new Master of Fine Arts program in creative writing at Florida International University just to learn to write better, I can see that my classes also taught me how to teach writing. Taking workshops with great writers like Les Standiford, James W. Hall and Lynne Barrett forced me to write and rewrite. I also learned how to take a more analytical approach to writing as I came to understand the basics of character, dialogue, scene, plotting and so on.
Today I teach writing at Broward College, #3 in the country in the number of associate’s degrees granted. (My campus is halfway between Miami and Ft. Lauderdale, with a very multi-cultural student body that ranges in age from teenagers to mid-life career changers.) Over 60% of our students enter lacking basic writing skills, so I teach two levels of developmental writing—sentence to paragraph and paragraph to essay. I created my own approach to freshman composition, using writing about food to build skills in narration, description, and research. I’ve also taught writing about literature and creative writing.
My favorite is a literature course on mystery fiction, where we read academic essays about the mystery as well as short stories and novels in three genres: amateur sleuth, private eye, and police procedural. The students love the chance to read great contemporary stories, and I enjoy exposing them to the mystery and hearing what they have to say about it.
Teaching is a great gig for a writer. Three of my courses are fully online, so my schedule is very flexible, and I can carve out writing time every day. And guiding students to write better has impacted my own writing—I hear that “teacher voice” in my head saying things like “Wait—you’re changing point of view!” or “This paragraph is awful long.”
2. Tell us about your new book--the characters, the setting and a bit about the plot. How does it fit in with your other works?
The elevator pitch for my first mystery, Mahu, was “gay cop gets dragged out of the closet while investigating a dangerous case.” Once I’d finished that book, though, my hero, Honolulu homicide detective Kimo Kanapa’aka, told me that his journey had just begun. I came to see “coming out” as a process, rather than a single event, and looked for cases Kimo could investigate that would challenge him and move him forward.
In subsequent books, Kimo has traveled paths common to many gay men, particularly those who come out in their 30s, as he does. In Mahu Surfer, when he went undercover to discover who had been killing surfers, he began by making gay friends and getting more comfortable with himself. In Mahu Fire, he met fire inspector Mike Riccardi while investigating a bombing, and fell in love.
In Mahu Vice, the newest in the series, he’s discovering that the path to true love has more than a few twists and turns. Called to an arson homicide at a shopping center built by his father, he is forced to work with Mike again, nearly a year after they broke up. Tension rises as the case gets more complex and he and Mike rekindle their attraction.
But will the same things that drove them apart a year before doom this renewed relationship? What was going on at the acupuncture clinic where the victim, a teenaged Chinese illegal immigrant, was working?
Prostitution, gambling and immigration are all hot-button issues in Hawaii, as in many places, but the isolation, multicultural community, and tropical heat in Hawaii conspire to raise the tension level for Kimo and Mike as they figure out not only whodunit, but where their relationship can go.
3. Your books feature gay characters. In the beginning, did this make it harder to get a publisher? Or was it easier because you had a niche market? Has this influenced your marketing attempts, and if so, how? Does this ever pose any challenges at signings?
I didn’t realize I was writing for a niche when I started. I didn’t even know that the niche existed! Like many beginning writers, I was woefully undereducated about the business side of publishing. But I learned. When I approached agents at first, many thought that the idea of a gay detective was too radical. So I had to do my research, and discovered a thriving niche. (There were 18 nominations last year for the Lambda Literary Award for best gay men’s mystery, for example. Mahu Fire was a top-five finalist for that award.)
My first agent targeted all the publishers she thought would be interested, and every one of them turned me down. When I’d just about given up, I met an editor at the Miami Book Fair who told me his press was expanding their gay genre fiction line (mystery, romance, horror, etc.) and encouraged me to send the manuscript to him directly. That’s why I say my career has benefited from both hard work and luck. And of course, the harder I work, the luckier I get!
Booksellers tend to have an idea, even if it’s narrow, of the audience they can bring in for signings. For example, I’ve tried without success to convince a chain bookstore that I know a lot of older gay men who read who live in a neighborhood south of Miami. But they say gay books don’t sell at that store, so they won’t offer me a reading.
Maybe the books aren’t selling because they aren’t bringing in authors and marketing to that community. Or maybe they’re right, and I’m wrong.
It was much harder to set readings up with my first publisher, a small press; one independent bookstore owner told me “You’re one step above self-published,” even though that press published 200 books a year, had a big marketing department, and offered co-op advertising. Now that I am lucky enough to be published by the biggest GLBT press in the country, Alyson Books, I get great distribution and booksellers know my titles.
Interestingly enough, I got much more negative reaction when I was in graduate school writing about Jewish characters than I’ve ever gotten writing about gay ones. When I wrote humorous stories about dumb Jews (I have a lot in my own family, so I’ve got lots of material) people were really offended.
4. You have a robust online presence. Tell us about that. How do you compare the online community with other writing communities?
I started coming out myself just as the Internet began to boom, so the ability to seek out GLBT people, news, and online communities has been important to me for years. While I love volunteering with the Florida chapter of Mystery Writers of America, and attending mystery conferences like Bouchercon, Sleuthfest, and Left Coast Crime, the ability to stay in contact with other writers more than once or twice a year, or even once a month, is very important. I belong to a local critique group, but I also email stories and chapters to more far-flung colleagues, and I enjoy being part of their lives through Twitter and Facebook, too.
I think there’s also a degree of intimacy you can develop with an online friend that harder to duplicate face to face. Even with my closest writing friends in Florida, we might meet only at events or exchange the occasional email or phone call, because we all have busy lives. I can spill my heart out over a rejection to an online friend, though, and get commiseration back right away, as well as suggestions on where to market next.
5. You recently won a "Lefty." Tell us what that's meant to you and your career.
I was absolutely thrilled to win the Hawaii Five-O award for best police procedural at the 2009 Left Coast Crime festival. I grew up watching that show, and it still influences my writing. It was fun to receive the award in Hawaii, because my books are set there, but the best part was that the voters were fans rather than critics. My publisher donated copies for the book bags, and throughout the conference I had people come up to me and say, “I just started reading your book and I love it!”
As far as my career goes, I don’t think it means much. If it had been an Edgar…. though now I can be introduced as “Award-Winning Author Neil Plakcy!”
6. You've been very involved with SleuthFest. How has that benefited you? What would you say to someone considering coming to the conference?
Any writer’s conference is a great chance to network, learn, and be energized, and I think Sleuthfest does a great job on all those fronts. Inspiration is a funny thing; it often comes when you’re not expecting it. I’ve gone to seminars and workshops just out of a sense of duty or obligation, and walked out with fresh ideas and a desire to get back to my computer as fast as possible. I’ve also loved meeting the writers, published and unpublished, who attend, and swapping stories about writing. So personally and professionally, Sleuthfest has been a great event for me.
Sleuthfest has a terrific core of volunteers, so just walking in the door you know you’re going to be welcomed into a wonderful group of writers. And how can you beat South Florida in February?
**
About Neil Plakcy...
Neil Plakcy is the author of Mahu, Mahu Surfer, Mahu Fire and Mahu Vice, mystery novels set in Hawaii, as well as the romance novel GayLife.com. He edited Paws & Reflect: A Special Bond Between Man and Dog and the gay erotic anthologies Hard Hats and Surfer Boys. Plakcy is a journalist and book reviewer as well as an assistant professorof English at Broward College's south campus in Pembroke Pines. He is vice president of the Florida chapter of Mystery Writers of America, and afrequent contributor to gay anthologies.
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Writing Scenes that Create an Emotional Body Blow
Note: I was so impressed with this that I asked Christine if I could share it with all of you. Okay, even if you are writing mysteries, you still need to move your readers.
Is your pencil ready to take notes? Should be, because this, my friends, is a master class in the art of writing well. joanna
by Christine Wells
I think all of us writing romance have heard of emotional punch, haven’t we? One of the most important tasks of any romance writer is to evoke emotion in the reader. Today, I’m going to talk about the mother of all techniques for evoking emotion–the emotional body blow.
This is a crucial moment in your story where an event floors your hero or heroine emotionally. There are many ways to set up an emotional body blow.
WARNING some of the examples below might be SPOILERS:
The character longs desperately for something they can’t have and then has to stand by and watch someone else get it.
Examples:
In WICKED LITTLE GAME, my heroine, Lady Sarah, desperately wants a baby and can’t have one, then finds out her blackguard husband has fathered a child with another woman.
In SENSE AND SENSIBILITY, Elinor is in love with Edward, then not only does Lucy Steele tell her she is engaged to him but she treats Eleanor as a confidante.
The character has a secret fear about themselves confirmed by someone else.
Examples:
In Georgette Heyer’s DEVIL’S CUB, Mary, who believes she is not good enough by birth and breeding for the Marquis of Vidal, hears Vidal’s mother say exactly that.
In Susan Elizabeth Phillips’s LADY BE GOOD, Kenny Traveler lets everyone thing he is lazy and irresponsible, but when Emma jumps to the wrong conclusion about him abandoning his own child, it cuts him to the core.
Something the character fears and anticipates actually comes to pass.
This often precipitates the ‘black moment’, where it seems that all is lost.
Examples:
In PRIDE AND PREJUDICE, while Lizzie defends her family against Mr. Darcy, she is secretly afraid he’s right about their vulgarity. Her fear is realized when Lydia runs away with Wickham.
Someone they love sees them as they truly are.
When a love interest zeroes in on the truth of a hero’s character–what Michael Hauge calls their “essence” as opposed to the “identity” they’ve built for themselves, this can come as a severe blow. You would think it would be a good thing, but for a character who has repressed his or her essence for so long out of a need to protect themselves, it can be terrifying.
Example:
Dain in Loretta Chase’s LORD OF SCOUNDRELS. When Jessica tells him she loves him despite every effort he makes to push her away, Dain cracks open inside. It’s a very powerful scene because it leaves this big, hard man totally vulnerable.
In Georgette Heyer’s VENETIA, when Damerel tells Venetia the story of his disgrace, she strikes at his heart when she takes his side.
The hero or heroine reverts to their identity when the going gets tough, dealing their love interest a body blow.
Example:
In VENETIA, Damerel has shown Venetia in a thousand ways that he’s a rake and not to be trusted but she has seen beneath that exterior and falls in love with him. When the outside world closes in and tells him it would be a disgrace for her to marry him, he pushes her away, resuming the persona of the heartless rake. The devastation Venetia feels is underscored by a sense of unreality. She knows the real Damerel. Why is he behaving like this?
A great technique to use when delivering the body blow to your character is to do it when it seems the character is making progress toward their internal or external goal.
In the PRIDE AND PREJUDICE example, the blow comes at the point where Darcy and Lizzie begin to understand one another during her visit to Pemberley. It’s like that technique actors use when they answer a phone on television. If the news on the phone is bad, they are smiling when they answer it, so the viewer can experience that powerful change in emotion when suddenly, the smile slips from the actor’s face.
As an exercise, try writing a scene where your character is dealt an emotional body blow. Ask yourself what they want most and show someone else receiving it. Ask who they want to be inside and have another character confirm to them that they can never be that way. Give them a disaster that strikes at the heart of who they are. This will often be a turning point in the story, the time when your character decides to be brave and take a step toward their goal, or thinks that it has all become too much to deal with, and retreats.
This isn’t an easy technique to do well, but it is enormously satisfying when you do!
Christine Wells is the author of Wicked Little Game. You can learn more about her at http://www.christine-wells.com/
Is your pencil ready to take notes? Should be, because this, my friends, is a master class in the art of writing well. joanna
by Christine Wells
I think all of us writing romance have heard of emotional punch, haven’t we? One of the most important tasks of any romance writer is to evoke emotion in the reader. Today, I’m going to talk about the mother of all techniques for evoking emotion–the emotional body blow.
This is a crucial moment in your story where an event floors your hero or heroine emotionally. There are many ways to set up an emotional body blow.
WARNING some of the examples below might be SPOILERS:
The character longs desperately for something they can’t have and then has to stand by and watch someone else get it.
Examples:
In WICKED LITTLE GAME, my heroine, Lady Sarah, desperately wants a baby and can’t have one, then finds out her blackguard husband has fathered a child with another woman.
In SENSE AND SENSIBILITY, Elinor is in love with Edward, then not only does Lucy Steele tell her she is engaged to him but she treats Eleanor as a confidante.
The character has a secret fear about themselves confirmed by someone else.
Examples:
In Georgette Heyer’s DEVIL’S CUB, Mary, who believes she is not good enough by birth and breeding for the Marquis of Vidal, hears Vidal’s mother say exactly that.
In Susan Elizabeth Phillips’s LADY BE GOOD, Kenny Traveler lets everyone thing he is lazy and irresponsible, but when Emma jumps to the wrong conclusion about him abandoning his own child, it cuts him to the core.
Something the character fears and anticipates actually comes to pass.
This often precipitates the ‘black moment’, where it seems that all is lost.
Examples:
In PRIDE AND PREJUDICE, while Lizzie defends her family against Mr. Darcy, she is secretly afraid he’s right about their vulgarity. Her fear is realized when Lydia runs away with Wickham.
Someone they love sees them as they truly are.
When a love interest zeroes in on the truth of a hero’s character–what Michael Hauge calls their “essence” as opposed to the “identity” they’ve built for themselves, this can come as a severe blow. You would think it would be a good thing, but for a character who has repressed his or her essence for so long out of a need to protect themselves, it can be terrifying.
Example:
Dain in Loretta Chase’s LORD OF SCOUNDRELS. When Jessica tells him she loves him despite every effort he makes to push her away, Dain cracks open inside. It’s a very powerful scene because it leaves this big, hard man totally vulnerable.
In Georgette Heyer’s VENETIA, when Damerel tells Venetia the story of his disgrace, she strikes at his heart when she takes his side.
The hero or heroine reverts to their identity when the going gets tough, dealing their love interest a body blow.
Example:
In VENETIA, Damerel has shown Venetia in a thousand ways that he’s a rake and not to be trusted but she has seen beneath that exterior and falls in love with him. When the outside world closes in and tells him it would be a disgrace for her to marry him, he pushes her away, resuming the persona of the heartless rake. The devastation Venetia feels is underscored by a sense of unreality. She knows the real Damerel. Why is he behaving like this?
A great technique to use when delivering the body blow to your character is to do it when it seems the character is making progress toward their internal or external goal.
In the PRIDE AND PREJUDICE example, the blow comes at the point where Darcy and Lizzie begin to understand one another during her visit to Pemberley. It’s like that technique actors use when they answer a phone on television. If the news on the phone is bad, they are smiling when they answer it, so the viewer can experience that powerful change in emotion when suddenly, the smile slips from the actor’s face.
As an exercise, try writing a scene where your character is dealt an emotional body blow. Ask yourself what they want most and show someone else receiving it. Ask who they want to be inside and have another character confirm to them that they can never be that way. Give them a disaster that strikes at the heart of who they are. This will often be a turning point in the story, the time when your character decides to be brave and take a step toward their goal, or thinks that it has all become too much to deal with, and retreats.
This isn’t an easy technique to do well, but it is enormously satisfying when you do!
Christine Wells is the author of Wicked Little Game. You can learn more about her at http://www.christine-wells.com/
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