A Thumbs Up

The last time I was interviewed was before a camera. The days proceeding the interview were worse than the actual interview. I remembered all sorts of horror stories my friends had shared with me. I imagined spinach stuck between my teeth and no one telling me, until afterwards. I imagined the interviewer asking me "trick" questions. I conjured up images of myself not being able to answer his questions. Suppose he asks me about some of the research I did, and I can't remember. My Grandmother Neff used to tell me, "girl you are your own worst enemy." I had no idea what she meant back then. Oh, the wisdom and insight that comes with age. I'm not saying I don't still get nervous when I'm being interviewed, because I do. Am I devastated? No. I take a deep breath and relax. It's fun now. I've never had a bad interview. What I'm saying is the interviewer has never been bad. They have all been kind, and helpful to me. I have been blessed to be interviewed by kind people. When my friends call, or email and tell me how worried they are about their upcoming interview, I just smile and say. I know what you mean, but you'll be fine. Take a deep breath and think of me sitting right beside you, giving you a "thumbs up."

WHAT A TRAGEDY

I only heard part of the newscast. A 93 year old gentleman died in Michigan. That's probably not that unusual. A 93 year old gentleman, at the end of his days, passed away. I'm sure his family is grieving tonight. As well they should be. I'm sad to say, I know very little about this gentleman. I learned that man died a slow painful death. Neighbors discovered his body on January 17. They said the indoor temperature was below 32 degrees. The story goes on, a city utility worker had installed a "limiter" device to restrict the use of electricity at Schur's home on January 13. The device limits power reaching a home and blows out like a fuse if consumption rises past a set level. Power is not restored until the device is reset. Is this sad? It's an outrage. This 93 year old man couldn't pay his electric bill. I don't know if his is the case, where he had to choose prescription medicine over utilities, or perhaps food over utilities. But what has happened? How can we spend billions of dollars to bail out conglomerates, and let a 93 year old man freeze to death?

Nestled in My Cocoon

One of my favorite things to do is write. If I'm awake, I'm writing. If I'm not writing, I'm reading. Maybe I should qualify that with, when I have the time. In my ideal world, that's what I would be doing, writing, or reading. People have told me they would rather do anything in the world than sit down and write. Writing is a joy to me. It's my form of relaxation. It's the only way I know to express myself. So then, why can't I just sit and write? After producing 100,000 words, having them published, and holding you book in your hands; isn't it time to start writing 100,000 words again? That's what I thought. No one told me, after I wrote all those words, now it is my responsibility to hawk my wares. In other words, now it's time to attend book signings, public speaking, interviews, and any other means of meeting and greeting the public. I am very happy nestled in Cocoon. I enjoy being secluded in my very own office, writing one word at a time. I enjoy sipping coffee, laughing at myself, or scaring myself with the words I have written. Now it is time for me to step outside the box and try to sell what I have written. At first, I didn't think I could do it. Now, it's almost as much a joy as writing. Why you say? Because I am meeting the most fabulous, interesting people in the world. The people who read what I write.

Extraodinary Characters

It seems I'm spending lots of time reading other peoples blogs. In fact, I finally had to limit the amount of time I was spending. I have subscribed to so many great blogs, that it seemed most of my time was reading about what I should be doing, instead of actually "doing" it. Some of my favorite blogs are those of other authors who share with us how they develop characters in their novels. It's heartwarming to learn they aren't that unlike me. Most of the people I write about are a compilation of several people. I start with a simple premise, and the character begins to take on a life of his or her own. My characters are people I fall in love with. To me, they are living, breathing creatures with problems, joys and concerns just like my next door neighbor. I always makes me feel good when people tell me that they have fallen in love with my characters too. When I finish a manuscript, I miss the characters. I find myself thinking of them later. My solution? Write a sequel!

The Breakout Novel

One of the best books I have read lately is "Writing the Breakout Novel." When my writing coach, Tiffany Colter, suggested it, I hesitated to purchase another "how to book". The first night I picked it up, held it in my hands and wondered what Donald Maass could possible tell me that I haven't already read. Reading through his bio, I learned he is the President of Donald Maass Literary Agency in New York City. So maybe this man does know what he's talking about. I have read page by page, writing tips and suggestions in a notebook. He shares information with us, in this novel, that he has shared with his clients. One of the things each of us need to do as a writer is practice. I suppose that is true of any craft. The more you practice, the better you get. So, as Stephen King would say, if you don't have this "tool" in your "tool box", you're missing out.