Thriller Time

I love Halloween – the costumes, the candy, carved pumpkins, spooky decorations. Oh, and did I mention the candy? But today is really exciting. This year my oldest son is in middle school and will be able to participate in the Thriller dance. Yes, the entire middle school does a zombie dance to Michael Jackson’s Thriller at a special Halloween pep rally. So last night we shredded one of my husband’s white undershirts and got the face paint and fake blood ready to take to school.

Michael Jackson in the music video Thriller

The best part is: when I was the same age, I was learning the same dance. I was 11 when the video was released and my friends and I spent HOURS mastering every step. Watching him do the same thing is awesome. I hope I just don’t embarrass him if I bust a move in the back of the Gym. I may not can help myself.   

Location, location, location

I use real locations when I write. It's not a conscious decision, nor do I think of it as a hard and fast rule. It’s just what works for me. One day I could write a story set in some really cool fantasy setting that was created solely from my imagination, but for now, I find my stories in the quaint little towns that embody the southern charm that is Louisiana.

Now, don’t get me wrong – I’ll plop a restaurant or school or anything else I need where one really doesn’t exist but I strive to show the natural appeal of these neat little places. The photographer in me loves to have actual images to refer to when writing descriptions. I use maps, and Google driving directions if my characters have to visit another location. I try to incorporate local customs or food if at all possible. If you’ve never been to Louisiana – the food alone is worth the visit!



Crawfish and corn - Yum!

My husband knows this about me and is currently trying to talk me in to writing a story set in Costa Rica. And of course, we’ll have to travel there for “research” and then the trip will be a write-off, right? Not sure Uncle Sam will agree with that but it’s fun to talk about.

Actually, I’m thinking more about a "girls’ trip to New York" story. Shopping and plays on Broadway. Maybe a museum visit or two. Out on the town every night. 

I’ll definitely need to research that.

The 80s are calling...they want their hair back.

I almost hate to admit this…but I had my 20^th high school year reunion last weekend. Yes, 20 years. And honestly, I don’t know where all the time went because in my mind’s eye – I’m still 26.

But this is what I learned at my reunion (and I don’t do Facebook or anything like that nor do I live in the town where I graduated so most people were a surprise to me!):

1.      It really feels like you just left. Or for me anyway. There were a few girls I’d gone to school with from kindergarten to Senior year but haven’t seen them since. And I swear we picked up right where we left off.

2.     The guys have a lot less hair now – and some of them on purpose. Many a shaved head last Saturday night.

3.     My hubby is a super good sport! He listened to hours of “Remember when…” without any complaint. He really deserves a prize.

4.     High school nick-names stick. Quite a few guys probably wish that was not the case!! (You know who you are!)

5.     No matter how cute you want to look – 4 inch heels are a bad idea. Very bad.

And now for a really bad 80s pics:

Yes, that is a giant bow across my chest. My mother made me take this pic right before my date picked me up for prom my junior year. I look thrilled, right. And what's even worse is my hair looks the exact same! Maybe time for a new do.

Wandering around the Web

There are some really amazing people on the Internet. I’d love to share a few sites that you might not know about:

That Flighty Temptress – Blog by Kat Brauer. Kat is awesome. I found her blog earlier in the year after I finished the first draft of my manuscript. She was doing something really cool – a critique for a donation to her charity. You can find out all about it here. So I thought – why not? I need a critique and would love to help out a good charity at the same time. Win-Win, right? Her critique was spot on and helped me immensely. Love what she does!

The Intern – Blog by unknown intern in the publishing business. Now, Intern has been out of the country for a while – I think India – but she’s due back any day. It’s worth going through her archives – she has a ridiculous amount of information on the publishing business and one of the funniest sites I’ve ever read. Go snoop around over there – totally worth it.

Simply Nerdy Book Reviews – a blog that reviews young adult books by a young adult. She’s 15, I think. And this is why I love it! I stumbled across this site not long ago. Leah gives an honest opinion on some of the latest YA books out there.

There’s tons more, I know – not to mention the agent sites that are really helpful with everything from writing to revising to querying. These are just a few that I found really helpful. Enjoy!

100 Sentences

How well do you know your characters? It’s a good question. My first answer was: Pretty good since I’m the one that created them! But there’s more to it than that. I ran across this post by Mary Kole, agent with Andrea Brown Literary. The first part of it really caught my eye.

This is just a piece of the article:

 Brainstorms and Tips

This works best with a character or a setting that’s giving you difficulty. Concentrate on  this place or this person and write 100 declarative sentences about her, him or it. Sounds simple, right? Well, it really calls into question how well you know what you’re writing about.

And so to prove to myself that I really know my characters – I took the challenge with the main character of my new WIP in mind. 

The first twenty sentences were a piece of cake.

By the time I got to sixty-five, I didn’t think there was anything else to say about her.

Mary warned me it would be hard, and it was, but I finished– and it was totally worth it. Through this exercise I learned so many things about her. And even though some of the sentences were - Her favorite dessert is Bananas Foster - it was important for me to know that she’s not a single scoop of vanilla ice cream in a cup kind of girl. No, she likes her desserts with a little flair. She likes a dessert that you have to ignite. And through this list making process, several other aspects of her personality showed themselves.

The entire post by Mary is great and has some really awesome tips. I’m moving on to the “Reading Aloud” exercise. I’m sure my family’s gonna love me after that one!   

And since all this talk of Bananas Foster has my mouth watering - I want to share this recipe from the website for Brennan's Restaurant (one of the best places to eat in New Orleans):

This is the actual Bananas Foster recipe from the original source and creator of this dessert: Brennan's Restaurant. In 1951, Chef Paul created Bananas Foster. The scrumptious dessert was named for Richard Foster, who served with Owen on the New Orleans Crime Commission. Richard Foster was a frequent customer of Brennan's and a very good friend of Owen.

BANANAS FOSTER

• ¼ cup (½ stick) butter
• 1 cup brown sugar
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon
• ¼ cup banana liqueur
• 4 bananas, cut in half
  lengthwise, then halved
• ¼ cup dark rum
• 4 scoops vanilla ice cream
  
  Combine the butter, sugar, and cinnamon in a flambé pan or skillet. Place the pan over low heat either on an alcohol burner or on top of the stove, and cook, stirring, until the sugar dissolves. Stir in the banana liqueur, then place the bananas in the pan. When the banana sections soften and begin to brown, carefully add the rum. Continue to cook the sauce until the rum is hot, then tip the pan slightly to ignite the rum. When the flames subside, lift the bananas out of the pan and place four pieces over each portion of ice cream. Generously spoon warm sauce over the top of the ice cream and serve immediately.

To plot, or not to plot

Funny how certain topics seem to be in the air. I’ve been thinking a lot about plotting the last few days and noticed several other blogs are chatting about it as well. Or maybe I’m just noticing it more since I have plot on the brain.

I’m a pantser. For my non-writing friends reading this – A pantser is someone who writes off the hip, no real planning involved. This does not surprise you about me, I know.  

In everything I do, I’m a pantser. I follow recipes half-heartily. I stroll down grocery aisles without a list. I wander around the gym, picking machines randomly. But I’m thinking about converting. I can hear the gasps now. And yes, I could do it. Probably. Well, maybe.

Okay, so to start acting more plottier (I know, not a real word) – I’ll make a list of the pros and cons:

Pros:

1.      It’ll make revision time shorter – I won’t write 10,000 words of backstory before realizing where the real story starts

2.      It’ll show my agent what the next manuscript is about – I can say, “See, I was worth the risk. Look at all these glorious ideas all neat and in order!!”

3.      Well, that’s all I have right now but I like things in threes so okay. Moving on.

Cons:

1.      Plotting is super scary to me – I have to actually know what’s going to happen before it happens. This seems like a no-brainer but that’s not how my brainer works. (I know, not a real word either)

2.      My characters are a mystery to me – and they like it that way.

3.      What’s the fun in knowing what’s gonna happen, anyway?

Well, that did nothing for me.

But I’m still going to try it. Hopefully, I can find a happy middle ground like hating broccoli but eating it covered in cheese because I know it’s good for me.

    

Brides, babies and all around cuteness!

I love pictures. And as you may notice a trend with this blog – I think a good visual aid is helpful in getting a point across.

I haven’t been a photographer for hire for the last several years. It was a hard decision to make, closing my photography business, but something had to give. Three kids, a very un-glamorous (I know, not a real word) day job of keeping books for hubby’s landscaping company and writing. I still take portraits of family and friends as a gift and that seems to satisfy that part of me.

And truthfully - taking pictures and writing are eerily similar pursuits. They both tell a story.

Now for visiual aid examples!

Love - My oldest (as in time, not age...she would kill me if I didn't clarify this!) friend that got married this past summer. 



They got married on this rock overlooking the Arkansas River. Awesome view!



New beginnings - My youngest on the day after he was born.

Look at those lips! Super kissable!

Mischief - These two are planning something. It's probably about how fast they can jump in that bayou before I catch them.



And they would do it, too.



A great writer creates stunning visuals in the reader’s head through words alone -weaving stories that grow into beautiful images. A story of love, or new beginnings or even creating a little mischief. This is my goal. What's yours?