Does a Character’s Past Weigh Them Down? by Traci Kenworth

Does a Character’s Past Weigh Them Down?

Traci Kenworth

Does a character’s past weigh them down? Is it necessary to bring all their known for into the next casting? Think of Dracula, for instance. Do we need to bring each element that he’s known for into a role? Or can we fiddle with events and tell a different tale? It’s interesting to consider, isn’t it? Whether you need to drag everything with a character to make them true.

What about Doc Holliday? There are so many incarnations of his character in movies and TV. Each one is different from the rest. Because they don’ t necessarily let past things he’s known for change what they want in that version. I saw a TV skit on SNL recently where Doc Holliday was sick and just kept blasting everyone with blood. It was a hilarious difference of how things went down.

Working with characters that have been done before in some form can leave you with fewer options to create something new. Sometimes, it’s all in the angle of how you look at things. Spiderman got twists in each movie, the current one being the closest to the comic book image. However, making him Iron Man’s protegee added a new angle to the character.

But what if you have a character that hasn’t been done before? You have to create somewhat of a past for them just the same, don’t you? You can start where they came from: their family, their upbringing, their friends. What age are they? Where do they go to school or are they graduated? A worker down at the mill? What kind of mill? The questions are endless.

Perhaps your character has a reputation as being a hardliner. This is true of a lot of western characters. It’s almost impossible to tell them apart. Unless you bring something new to the mix. A broken-down gunslinger with a soft spot for kids and widows? Someone who just wants to put the violence behind them and move on to peace. Can they do so in a world of chaos?

In some stories, there’s more pasts than just the one to consider. The so-called widow could be just pretending to be a widow because her husband has run off and left her and her young son to fend of the Native Americans on their own. A hardened drifter trying to warn settlers about the danger makes contact with them and gets involved in their lives, helping them with things. Chaos results when a Chief takes an interest in the young son.

Or how about someone who ventures to a new land to escape their past and yet somehow, it still follows. It’s in the way we view things, the way we interact with others, and the decisions we make about life. Our past influences everything. We can’t escape it no matter how hard we try. I wonder if Han Solo wouldn’t have liked not to have that bounty around his neck from Jabba the Hut. Maybe he’d like to be somewhere quiet, a drink in hand, and talking to Chewbacca.

Luke, on the other hand, was weighed down by his desert farmer’s past. He didn’t think he’d ever escape Tatooine. Isn’t that like a lot of us? Wanting to get out from the place we were raised? Sometimes coming home to it after years makes it look different in our eyes. That’s life. We grow. We change. And our past with us.

Happenings: My health seems to be improving still. I feel more energetic and able to do things than in a long time. They are trying to introduce a new med to help with the depression I think brought on by my heart issues but it is not going well. I am ill when I take it. Update on that: when I take a half doze it doesn’t bother me so we’re introducing it slowly.

In other news, we are looking for a new house! Yep, we hope to be out of here as soon as we can! The loan has been pre-approved and we’re looking with an agent. So far, the pickings are slim but we’re holding out hope.

Some happenings around the web you might like:

1. Writers in the Storm https://writersinthestormblog.com/2023/05/how-to-overcome-obstacles-to-writing-part-1/ All great relationships have obstacles, including the relationship we have with writing. Sometimes the muse loves us, other times…not so much. What to do When the Muse Stops Talking It’s hard to hear your muse when you’re worried. Worry is loud. It drowns out the wonderful inner voice that spurs your creativity. Instead of stressing because nothing is coming to mind try: Meditation. Freeing the mind for as little as five minutes can dredge up interesting thoughts that might be useful to your writing. Going for a walk. Physical activity is great for releasing stress and clearing the mind. Playing with a pet. Our pets, or if we are speaking of cats, our roommates, seem to have a sixth sense regarding our feelings and often know that we are stressed out before we do. Playing with them is freeing. Your inner voice will be back in rare form in no time. Dwelling on the inability to hear your muse is a waste of time. Step away from the keyboard, do something mindless, and the inner voice will return. Obstacles can be a problem for anyone. Time, responsibilities, you name it. This article has some good tips on how to deal with things. Give it a look.
2. Entertaining Stories https://coldhandboyack.wordpress.com/2023/05/19/next-adventure/ I’m writing this on a Thursday night. This is because I have to drive to Nevada after work tomorrow. I don’t want to be dark, because I’ve been moderately successful maintaining a Friday post. I woke up this morning from a reasonable dream. I could actually hear the voices as a strange caller dialed in to Night Bump Radio. This one needs some time in the fermenter, but it should make a fun bit for a future Hat tale. I need to make it more absurd, then find a way to blame Lizzie and the hat for all of it, but it’s a glimmer of something. Lorelei, the Muse hasn’t completely abandoned me this Spring. Nevada should be my last road trip for a few months. While I still have other things going on, this might allow me to get back to my works in progress. I’m seriously debating driving tomorrow in silence. That usually temps Lorelei to ride along.
3. Syl’s 65 blog https://syl65.wordpress.com/2023/05/19/friday-inspiration-%f0%9f%8e%99%ef%b8%8f-steffany-gretzinger-letting-go/ Amen!
4. Story Empire https://storyempire.com/2023/05/19/homonyms-with-harmony-part-3-the-origins-of-homonyms/ The origins of homonyms go all the way back to the development of speech and words and to the borrowing of expressions from various languages. Today, we’ll take a look at the ways in which homonyms are used in different language groups, as well as the importance of homonyms in communication, and how they help to make our writing more precise and efficient. Because homonyms have been around since the dawn of worded speech, we humans have used them in many different languages and cultures. The ancient Greeks, for example, used them, as did the Romans. Most languages, including English, employ homonyms. We can use such words to add humour and wit to our writing, as well as to distinguish different meanings. Here, I might refer back to the usage of ‘fanny’ we mentioned in our last post, Homonyms with Harmony, Part 2–American and British English Conventions … or, we could skip right past that bit of warped humour and look at another one I used for my Interludes books, where I deliberately misspelt ‘whet’ and used ‘wet’ for a fun pun and play on words in the slightly risqué tagline: A collection of short erotic fiction that will tickle more than your taste buds and wet [sic] more than your appetite. (Booklinker has stopped working, so instead of a universal link, here are the US and UK links in case it still isn’t working when you click on it. Sorry. I’ll do my best to find an alternative and change links on all my books as soon as I’m able.) She’s done great explanations that everyone can understand!
5. Writers Helping Writers https://writershelpingwriters.net/2023/05/character-type-and-trope-thesaurus-entry-sage/ DESCRIPTION: Sages are wise, always seeking knowledge, but they also are willing to impart their learnings to others. This makes them ideal mentors and parental figures. FICTIONAL EXAMPLES: Mother Abagail (The Stand), Merlin (The Once and Future King), Obi-Wan Kenobi (the Star Wars franchise), Mr. Miyagi (The Karate Kid), Mr. Keating (Dead Poets Society) COMMON STRENGTHS: Calm, Centered, Confident, Cooperative, Curious, Decisive, Disciplined, Discreet, Generous, Gentle, Honorable, Intelligent, Just, Kind, Loyal, Mature, Observant, Philosophical, Protective, Resourceful, Responsible, Spiritual, Studious, Talented, Uninhibited, Unselfish, Wise COMMON WEAKNESSES: ontrolling, Fussy, Know-It-All, Perfectionist, Possessive, Pushy, Worrywart ASSOCIATED ACTIONS, BEHAVIORS, AND TENDENCIES
6. Roberta Writes https://roberta-writes.com/2023/05/19/roberta-writes-thursday-doors-va-waterfront-cape-town-tanka-tuesday-thursdaydoors-tankatuesday/ Mom, Michael and I flew to Cape Town on Thursday, 4 May. It is approximately a 2 hour flight and its the first time I’ve flow domestically since before Covid. I don’t dislike flying, I just prefer to make road trips and stop off in funny little downs and investigate them. The flight was fine and we arrived at 12pm as planned. After settling into our hotel, we went to the V&A Waterfront which is the old Cape Town Harbour. It is still a working harbour but has been glamourized and has a large shopping mall, an aquarium, art galleries, the beautiful Victoria and Alfred Hotel, and lots of restaurants and watering holes. These are a few of the pictures I took for Dan’s Thursday Doors:
7. Angel Messages https://annetterochelleaben.wordpress.com/2023/05/20/angel-messages-may-20-2023/
8. Fiction Favorites https://johnwhowell.com/2023/05/19/friday-johnku-aka-tgif-fri-yay-good-news-45/ It was a rescue that police said had never been done before hanging off the edge of a Staten Island ferry boat. They were there because an emotionally disturbed man had inexplicably climbed out of the window onto a railing on the outside of the ship, seemingly ready to jump. Then, after trying to reason with the silent would-be jumper, Officer Gambino, who was roped to the boat from an anchor point above, moved like lightning to grab hold of the individual and press him up against the side of the boat. “Some people were in dry suits, and some were in rope harnesses in case he went into the water or stayed on the ferry,” said NYPD Emergency Service Unit Sgt. Darion Brooks. “We were prepared for both.” Brooks told ABC 7 news that this particular rescue strategy had never been attempted before but that the ESU trains for dozens of different situations, some of which have involved potential jumpers. The moment of arrest was captured in stunning detail by a news helicopter, and the man was transported to a hospital where he could receive psychiatric attention. That would’ve been something!
9. Chris the Story Reading Ape https://thestoryreadingapeblog.com/2023/05/20/7-effective-ways-to-integrate-setting-into-your-mystery-story-by-zara-altair/ In the realm of mystery writing, few elements hold as much power as a well-crafted setting. A thoughtfully developed and vividly described location captivates readers, luring them into the intricate web of your story while immersing them in an atmosphere that evokes intrigue and suspense. The foundation of an unforgettable mystery is laid not just through intriguing plot twists and complex characters but also by seamlessly integrating the story’s setting. The role of setting in a mystery transcends mere aesthetics or background detail. It serves as an essential component of the narrative, enhancing the plot, inspiring the characters’ actions, and eliciting emotion from the reader. 
10. Rosie Amber https://rosieamber.wordpress.com/2023/05/21/%f0%9f%8c%baenchanting-gardens-this-week-frdvils-garden-in-normandy-france-gardeningtwitter-lovegardening/ Over the next few months I will be adding to my regular #SixOnSaturday posts with Sunday spots for fellow gardeners. I always look forward to Fred’s Saturday post as he grows some unusual plants and has lots of good gardening advice. It was Fred who inspired me to try growing ginger and last year’s plant was a great success. This year I have had to try harder to get a ginger growing, but hopefully it is now on it’s way. It was always my dream to create little areas of garden at my house. I wish I could’ve but physical limits confine me from doing so. I can watch others though and enjoy!
11. Nail Your Novel https://nailyournovel.wordpress.com/2023/05/18/a-wild-imagination-a-shy-disposition-a-writer-im-interviewed/ When a message pops into your inbox and you think: I know that name. Didn’t I meet him years ago when I was speaking at a self-publishing conference? I did. And he was still writing and publishing, and building a body of work. His name is Harrison Hickman. He recently started a blog and asked to interview me. I love how writing is a long game. That years can pass, and a person you met on a creative afternoon pops out of the ether and says ‘Hi, I’m still here, I still do this. I’m working my groove, making my stuff. Let’s talk.’ Isn’t that wonderful?
12. Life in the Realm of Fantasy https://conniejjasperson.com/2023/05/17/layers-of-depth-the-uneven-distribution-of-information/ Plot points and conflicts are driven by the characters who have critical knowledge. The fact that some characters are working with limited information creates tension. In literary terms, this uneven distribution of knowledge is called asymmetric information. We see this all the time in the corporate world. One party in a business transaction has more or superior information compared to another. That inequality of information gives them an edge against the competition. In a story, as in real life, a monopoly of information creates a crisis. An idle conversation will bore your reader to tears, so only discuss things that advance the plot. A conversation scene should be driven by the fact that one person has knowledge the others need. The reader must get answers simultaneously as the characters, gradually over the length of a novel. When I am writing a scene, I ask my characters three things: The first question I ask is: “What is the core of the problem?” In the case of one story that was begun several years ago and never taken beyond the first draft stage, the core of the problem is Jared, my main character. The story is set in the World of Neveyah, and one of the canon tropes of stories set in that world is that all mages are trained by and work for the Temple of Aeos.
13. Books and Such https://teripolen.com/2023/05/17/where-darkness-blooms-by-andrea-hannah-bookreview-ya-supernatural-thriller/ Andrea Hannah’s Where Darkness Blooms is a supernatural thriller about an eerie town where the sunflowers whisper secrets and the land hungers for blood. The town of Bishop is known for exactly two things: recurring windstorms and an endless field of sunflowers that stretches farther than the eye can see. And women—missing women. So when three more women disappear one stormy night, no one in Bishop is surprised. The case is closed and their daughters are left in their dusty shared house with the shattered pieces of their lives. Until the wind kicks up a terrible secret at their mothers’ much-delayed memorial. I love creepy towns, I’ll give it a read.
14. Writers in the Storm https://writersinthestormblog.com/2023/05/ignite-your-readers-imagination-with-the-inciting-incident/ How do you, as a writer, capture your readers’ hearts and minds? With a spark that grabs the reader. No, that spark is not the first sentence, though it is important. The spark that grabs the reader is an inciting incident that ignites the reader’s imagination. Crafting the right inciting incident is crucial to laying the foundation for a can’t-stop-reading story. To create the best one for your story, you must understand what it is, why it’s a powerful piece of your story, and how to create one. What is an Inciting Incident? According to Merriam-Webster Dictionary, to incite means to move to action,stir up,spur on,urge on. So far, so good. But there’s more to what an inciting incident is. Let’s look at what some writing experts say the inciting incident is. Kathryn Craft at Writer Unboxed says: “A story exists because something happens in a character’s life—the inciting incident—that upsets her equilibrium and arouses her desire to restore balance.” According to Sara Letourneau on DIYMFA it’s “the launching pad that thrusts a character into the conflict.”

Advertisement

Everyone Thinks the Beautiful Character is Where It’s At. It’s Actually the One with More Working Against Them. by Traci Kenworth

Everyone Thinks the Beautiful Character is Where it’s At. It’s Actually the One with More Working Against Them.

Traci Kenworth

Beautiful people in stories shovel in by the mile. After a while, none catch the attention of the reader. They’re looking for more than just a flawless face and perfect everything. They want substance. They want spark. They want something that goes beyond appearances. So, what is it? Well, sometimes it’s hard to determine. It can be something simple like a swagger and a drawl. John Wayne made this famous in his movies.

Or look at Debbie Reynold’s naivete in her Tammy movies. She was the poor girl from the swamp who wasn’t supposed to turn heads but she did and ended up winning quite a few beaus. This is why we do development for our characters. We are trying to get at that spark, to ignite the character’s path of success. By the way, I’m using screen characters at first just so you get a visual of what I’m suggesting.

The beautiful can be boring and snobbish. What’s beyond that door is refreshing and timeless. Think of Disney stories. Before they were famous movies, they were books. Bright, beautiful, beloved books. A little mermaid who came ashore to find the prince she rescued at sea. A small deer who lost his mother to a hunter’s bullet. And then at last, came Anna frightened for her sister Elsa, torn between Hans and Kristoff, learning how to grow up with the loss of her parents.

Things change. People change. But at their heart, they want a good story. A story about people who touch their lives. Who bring them joy and honesty. Who wrench their hearts and make them care. That’s the magic we’re searching for. That’s what we want to bring to the forefront again and again to win over our reader’s attention.

Dr. Seuss cleverly captured a generation of children with his dapper characters. The Cat in the Hat. Herbert and his Hoot. The Hoos in Hoo-ville. So many characters came from his pages. Not even just children’s stories fared well in Hollywood for authors.  There’s  S.E. Hinton’sThe Outsiders. Who doesn’t remember the Socs versus the greasers? Pony Boy’s story inspired many a youth to wear those leather jackets. Are You There God, it’s Me, Margaret made every teenage girl feel like she found an author (Judy Blume) who understood her and the moods our bodies sometimes put us through.

None of these characters are particularly beautiful. In fact, some are the downright opposite. However, they still catch our imagination. They still pull us in. James Bond came from the written page. Today, the screen would be lost without his movies. In fact, it’s funny that a lot of onscreen characters have been transferred to the pages of a book. Star Wars or Star Trek anyone? Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

The stories pass back and forth widening and narrowing as they go. Luke Skywalker might be the focus in one film, Rae another. Same with the Avengers. They rotate who the story belongs to at certain points on the spectrum. That’s why they have such a great range of characters. DC would do better to do the same. Move the focus, tell more than one story. The audience has a big attention span. You can make it work.

Except when you want to narrow in on a certain character in a story. In Sarah Maas’s epic series about The Throne of Glass for instance, there are a LOT of characters throughout the books. Everchanging, growing, falling to the wayside. Sometimes there, sometimes gone. However, the main character is Caelena Sardothien aka Aelin Galathynius. The story revolves around her at all points. Why? Because she is the Queen. Without her, the pieces don’t move.

There are other series out there where that is true too. One character pivots the action. From beginning to end, they mold the story. Their actions, their desires bring things to pass. And without them, the story would be dull indeed. So, you see. Your character doesn’t have to be the most beautiful person who ever walked the earth. Give him a limp or for goodness sakes, a mole. Make him one of us. He’ll fit right in and carry the story with honor.

Happenings: So apparently, because some idiot threw paper towels, grease rags and other such things down the toilet at the manufactured park, they say they have to penalize us all with another fee. This is getting to be routine. Every month or two they come up with a charge to add to our lot rent. Ridiculous.

The kids’ jobs have been busy. Overtime is buzzing. Sometimes there’s a downtime of a day like this weekend and then back to the grind.

Our oldest kitty passed his physical and blood work! I’ve changed their food to the Halo Sensitive Stomach Whitefish variety through Chewy. I tried the medley version through Amazon but they didn’t seem to like it. I also switched to a pate version of Halo wet food, the same flavor. Salmon seems to really make them sick so try to stay away from that.

Some links around the web you might find interesting:

1. Nail Your Novel https://nailyournovel.wordpress.com/2023/04/16/nothing-new-under-the-sun-why-originality-is-always-possible/ Here’s something to think about. Around 97% of the time you ever spend with your parents will be before you are 18 years old. Maybe you’ve already heard this statistic, and apparently, there’s more than one variation. But I heard it just this week. Dave heard it first and told me.  We boggled. Then, after a moment’s marveling, we thought about it properly. Of course. That period 0-18 is so intensive. It’s even obvious. But still, we were flabbergasted, and so we told friends, who marveled also, and so did we, all over again. Then we all talked ourselves through the facts. This is one of the things art can do. We all live on the same planet, and we tread through the same constants of life, and there’s nothing new under the sun, blah blah, but at the same time, there is. There are inventive people, billions of us, with language and A truly brilliant post that makes one think!
2. Angel Messages https://annetterochelleaben.wordpress.com/2023/04/16/angel-messages-apr-16-2023/
3. Fantasy Book Cafe https://www.fantasybookcafe.com/2023/04/women-in-sff-month-hannah-kaner/ Today’s guest is fantasy author Hannah Kaner! Her debut novel, Godkiller, became a #1 Sunday Times bestseller after its UK release earlier this year and will be published in the US on September 12, 2023. It’s described as being set in “a land where all gods have been banned, and one young woman is paid to kill those who still hide in the shadows,” but she “discovers a god she cannot kill: Skedi, a small god of white lies.” I’m thrilled that the author is here today with “Don’t damsel your fury.”
4. Fiction Favorites https://johnwhowell.com/2023/04/16/views-of-the-neighborhood-fairy-trail-in-lakeway/ Today we will go to the Activity Center and walk on the Fairy Trail. This is a display by Parks and Recreation to celebrate spring. We are catered by Zaza Mediterranean of Austin, and our entertainment is Little Big Town Menu Z1. Zaza Platter (Mix) Beef, lamb, and chicken. Comes with tomato, lettuce, onion, white and hot sauce. Z2. Gyro Platter (Beef & Lamb) Comes with tomato, lettuce, onion, white and hot sauce. Z3. Beef Shawarma Platter Comes with tomato, lettuce, onion, white and hot sauce. Z4. Chicken Fajita Platter Comes with tomato, lettuce, onion, white and hot sauce. Z5. Chicken Shawarma Platter Comes with tomato, lettuce, onion, white and hot sauce. Z6. Zaza Garden Platter Falafel, grape leaves, and cauliflower. Comes with tomato, lettuce, onion, white and hot sauce. Vegetarian. Z7. Falafel Platter Tahini sauce. Comes with tomato, lettuce, onion, white and hot sauce. Vegetarian. Z8. Chicken Kabob Platter Shish tawook. 2 skewers. Comes with tomato, lettuce, onion, white and hot sauce. Z9. Lamb (Kabob) Platter 2 skewers. Comes with tomato, lettuce, onion, white and hot sauce. Z10. Kofta Kabob Platter 2 skewers. Comes with tomato, lettuce, onion, white and hot sauce. Z11. Mixed Grill Signature Platter Chicken, lamb, and Kofta. Comes with tomato, lettuce, onion, white and hot sauce. Signature platter. Too much hot sauce for me, lol.
5. Fantasy Cafe https://www.fantasybookcafe.com/2023/04/women-in-sff-month-maya-deane/ Today’s guest is fantasy writer Maya Deane! Her Greek mythology–inspired debut novel, Wrath Goddess Sing, was released last year and is coming out in trade paperback on June 13, 2023. Focused on Achilles, her book is described as “drawing on ancient texts and modern archeology to reveal the trans woman’s story hidden underneath the well-known myths of The Iliad.” I’m excited she’s here today to discuss literary realism and fantasy!
6. Fantasy Cafe https://www.fantasybookcafe.com/2023/04/women-in-sff-month-vida-cruz-borja/ This week’s first Women in SF&F Month guest is science fiction and fantasy author Vida Cruz-Borja! She is the author of the excellent IGNYTE Award–winning essay “We Are the Mountain: A Look at the Inactive Fantasy Protagonist,” which appears in the new essay collection Letters to a Writer of Color. Her short fiction includes “Odd and Ugly” and “Have Your #Hugot Harvested at This Diwata-Owned Café,” and she has two collections: Beyond the Line of Trees and, most recently, Song of the Mango and Other New Myths. Her latest is described as “stories woven from elements of classical myths and folklore from the Philippines and other parts of the world, as well as from visions of the modern and of the future”—and I’m thrilled she’s here today with “‘New myths’ and the people who tell them.” Interesting. New myths are created by twisting within the old ones sometimes.
7. Smorgasbord Magazine https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2023/04/16/smorgasbord-blog-magazine-podcast-poetry-birthdays-by-sally-cronin/ We have celebrated quite a few birthdays in our family in the last couple of months and here is a garland Cinquain about these special days.
8. Chris the Story Reading Ape https://thestoryreadingapeblog.com/2023/04/10/monday-funnies-15/
9. Fantasy Cafe https://www.fantasybookcafe.com/2023/04/women-in-sff-month-leslye-penelope/ Today’s Women in SF&F Month guest is fantasy and paranormal romance writer Leslye Penelope! She is the author of Song of Blood & Stone, which was selected as one of Time Magazine’s 100 Best Fantasy Books of All Time, and the rest of the books in the Earthsinger Chronicles, as well as Savage City, described as “a dystopian, enemies-to-lovers, portal, shifter fantasy romance.” Her latest novel, The Monsters We Defy, is a heist story described as “historical fantasy that weaves together African American folk magic, history, and romance,” and it was one of NPR’s Best Books of 2022. In addition to writing, she talks about working as a traditional and self-published author in her weekly podcast, My Imaginary Friends. I’m thrilled she’s here today to discuss fantasy writing and computer science in “When Fantasy and STEM Collides.”
10. Fiction Favorites https://johnwhowell.com/2023/04/15/stream-of-consciousness-saturday-prompt-starts-with-mono/ he only sound this morning is the dignified monotone of the coffee machine, indicating the cup is ready. Feeling mononucleosis-like exhaustion from the previous week’s mayhem, the cup offers the promise of relief. A few sips bring me to the point of recognizing the silence surrounding my inner sanctum. As my interior monologue about the serenity of the place comes to a close, the intrusive sound of the Klaxon horn connected to the doorbell shatters the momentary peace. Twiggy and Lucy take up their Hounds of Baskerville impersonation while the security shutdown procedure is begun. A quick glance at the security camera screen shows the presence of a monolith on the front porch. The claymore mines are disarmed. The tower machine guns are placed on standby. The boiling oil vat is secured. The moat net retracted. The concertina wire rolled back. The trebuchet secured. The gate lifted. The locks and deadbolts reset. The front door opened. A tall box stands before me. An envelope with the words OPEN ME FIRST is taped to the front. Ripping it off and tearing it open reveals two messages. The first tells me to pull the handle marked OPEN on the box. The second is from Linda Hill and says Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “starts with mono.” Find a word that starts with “mono” and use it in your post. Enjoy! If you want to enjoy go to Linda’s blog and read how simple it is. You will also find other idiots’ author’s versions of the prompt. Here is the link. https://lindaghill.com/2023/04/14/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socs-april-15-2023/ He sure has more exciting mornings than I do around here. Not that I’m complaining. That circus can remain at his place. Lol.
11. Chris the Story Reading Ape https://thestoryreadingapeblog.com/2023/04/16/sometimes-were-the-scared-teen-other-times-the-bold-hero-how-our-writing-perspective-changes-with-each-character-guest-post-by-traci-kenworth/ For me, writing a teenage character was my first attempt at writing. I could relate to teens as I was fast approaching that age. The teens in my world didn’t deal with a world like we see now. Oh, no. It was sort of a mixture of one of those apocalyptic/survival stories. There were dinosaurs as well as things the government had let off (hey, it was the eighties, after all, and the Cold War was fresh on our minds), and of course, instead of adults being in charge of things: the teens were the leads. Crazy world, huh? Well, it was filled with all my favorite things at the time. And I admit, heavily influenced by the shows I watched on TV. I didn’t realize it at the time but on that training ground as I think of it now: I was learning to blend things together. Genres crossed with no problem. Things publishers at the time were saying were a no-go, in these days, have become more consistent. You take what you want to be in your story and run with it. Make it make sense. Or at least, make us believe it’s possible. Graduating to more adult characters didn’t take long. After all, what teen isn’t itching for the freedom they think adulthood brings? I wrote scripts based on the soap opera-type shows popular at the time like Days of Our Lives or General Hospital. I invented my own soap world and populated it with as many characters as I could think of. Couldn’t resist to toot my own horn.
12. Entertaining Stories https://coldhandboyack.wordpress.com/2023/04/15/resting-and-making-an-odd-discovery/ I have no intention of cracking one of my manuscripts this weekend. I want to recover from my recent adventures, and learned I have to report for jury duty on Monday morning. What I wanted to do was view some fun movies about the places I visited. I wound up renting Close Encounters of the Third Kind and enjoyed the heck out of it. It’s been decades since I saw it and it was a blast. Wasn’t precisely what I wanted. Last week I visited Little Bighorn, Devil’s Tower, Mt. Rushmore, Deadwood, Salem, Lexington, and Concord. Passed through parts of Boston, too. Aside from those, we drove through a bunch of country that could be considered as the Last of the Mohican territory. Basically, I wanted something historical.
13. Story Empire https://storyempire.com/2023/04/14/birth-order-and-character-development-the-lastborn/ Hello, Story Empire friends, Gwen with you today. Together we’ll focus on birth order as it relates to character development. We’ve considered the traits of the firstborn, linked here. And we’ve reviewed traits of the middleborn. Here’s a link to that post. Today, our target is the lastborn. Before we dive in, let’s review a few basic points. (1) Every family is unique, and multiple factors affect our development. Divorce, remarriage, adoption, gender, and location are just a few of those factors. (2) Importantly, if there are three or more years between siblings, the child may be a middle child but have traits similar to the firstborn. I’ll share a family story and hopefully offer some clarity about character traits. I’m the eldest of seven, and there are nine years between me and the youngest – a brother. One day, six of us were inside the house when my little brother crawled in from the yard and sobbed that his leg was broken. My other two brothers immediately responded, “No it isn’t. Stop whining.” The youngest tearfully protested, “It is! I heard it pop.” By then, mom came into the room and checked his leg. She turned to me and said to watch the kids. “I’m taking him to the doctor. I think it might be broken.” And, sure enough, it was. The lastborn in a large family can feel that no one listens to them. They might feel inferior, because everyone is bigger and more capable. But on the plus side, parents often have a special attachment to their youngest. Researchers claim that lastborns have some of the following traits when they are adults:
14. Books and Such https://teripolen.com/2023/04/13/the-jump-by-brittney-morris-bookreview-ya-contemporary-adventure/ From the acclaimed author of SLAY and The Cost of Knowing comes an action-driven, high-octane novel about a group of working-class teens in Seattle who join a dangerous scavenger hunt with a prize that can save their families and community. Influence is power. Power creates change. And change is exactly what Team Jericho needs. Jax, Yas, Spider, and Han are the four cornerstones of Team Jericho, the best scavenger hunting team in all of Seattle. Each has their own specialty: Jax, the puzzler; Yas, the parkourist; Spider, the hacker; and Han, the cartographer. But now with an oil refinery being built right in their backyard, each also has their own problems. Their families are at risk of losing their jobs, their communities, and their homes. So when The Order, a mysterious vigilante organization, hijacks the scavenger hunting forum and concocts a puzzle of its own, promising a reward of influence, Team Jericho sees it as the chance of a lifetime. If they win this game, they could change their families’ fates and save the city they love so much. But with an opposing team hot on their heels, it’s going to take more than street smarts to outwit their rivals. I’ve read and enjoyed two previous books by this author, so it was a no-brainer to request her newest release from NetGalley. Team Jericho has been together for several years as a scavenger hunting team. They’re very good at what they do, and each member brings a specific skill to the table. Being a fan of puzzles, I really enjoyed that aspect of the story and watching the characters work together to figure them out. The characters are very distinct and diverse (this is only the second book I’ve read with a nonverbal character), which makes the multiple POV chapters easy to keep up with. Each of these characters’ families are threatened in some way by the new oil refinery, so winning this competition that promises power is important to them. The plot moves along at a brisk pace as the characters race from one clue to another – try to keep up. As with all this author’s books, several important and timely issues are tackled – gentrification and racism to name a couple in this one.

Book Review: Only the Monster by Vanessa Len Reviewed by Traci Kenworth

Book Review: Only a Monster

 by Vanessa Len

                                           Traci Kenworth

From Amazon: The sweeping romance of Passenger meets the dark fantasy edge of This Savage Song in this stunning contemporary fantasy debut from Vanessa Len, where the line between monster and hero is razor thin.

Don’t forget the rule. No one can know what you are. What we are. You must never tell anyone about monsters.

Joan has just learned the truth: her family are monsters, with terrifying, hidden powers.

And the cute boy at work isn’t just a boy: he’s a legendary monster slayer, who will do anything to destroy her family.

To save herself and her family, Joan will have to do what she fears most: embrace her own monstrousness. Because in this story…she is not the hero.

Dive deep into the world of Only a Monster: hidden worlds dwell in the shadows, beautiful monsters with untold powers walk among humans, and secrets are the most powerful weapon of all.

“Olivers see. Hunts hide. Nowaks live. Patels bind. Portellis open. Hathaways leash. Nightingales take. Mtawalis keep. Argents sway. Alis seal. Griffiths reveal. But only the Lius remember.”

We believe that if people belonged together in the true timeline, then our timeline tries to repair itself by bringing them together. Over and over and over. Until the rift is healed.” “Like soul mates?” Tom said. Jamie smiled at Tom. “Yes. If you believe in fairy tales.”

“He was very good,” Nick said again. “But I was trained from childhood.” “Trained to do what?” “To kill monsters.”

Review

“This book grabbed me by the throat. Vanessa Len’s world of monsters and heroes is like nothing I’ve ever read, utterly fresh and unique. Put down everything you’re doing, and read it!” — CS Pacat, USA Today bestselling author of the Captive Prince trilogy, and the Dark Rise series.

Mind-bending, heart wrenching, and unputdownable! Don’t feel bad if this book tricks you into rooting for the monster instead of the hero. Vanessa Len has written a masterful debut novel—I loved the time-travel, the star crossed romance, and the monsters.  — Stephanie Garber, New York Times bestselling author of the Caraval series

An absolute page-turner. Only a Monster paints another vivid world inside the one we know, and uses a deft hand to bring it utterly alive. Vanessa Len blurs the age-old lines between good or evil, hero or monster, in the most captivating way. — Chloe Gong, New York Times bestselling author of These Violent Delights

What a fantastic, immersive read – I couldn’t stop turning the page! An exciting, original and complex fantasy about monsters, heroes, and all the people in between.   — Naomi Novik, New York Times bestselling author of the Temeraire series

“Equal parts fantasy, adventure, and caper… Unique plotlines and characterization will have readers rooting for the monster; this is a must purchase.” — School Library Journal (starred review)

“A fast-paced thriller that blurs the division between villain and hero and features a deeply conflicted protagonist caught in the middle… an exciting urban fantasy.” — Kirkus Reviews

“Vanessa Len’s Only a Monster is captivating and unique and – dare I say it – utterly monstrous (in the best possible way). This engrossing debut will have YA readers longing to steal time just so they can devour the pages over and over again!” — Lynette Noni, author of The Prison Healer

“Only A Monster is a wonderfully clever and intriguing take on the classic tale of hero versus monster. Vanessa Len has crafted a rich and immersive world filled with unique magic, thrilling action, and a heart-wrenching star-crossed romance. A marvelous and twisty debut that will pull you in right from the start!” — June CL Tan, author of Jade Fire Gold 

“Exquisitely crafted, this riveting read opens up a multitude of dimensions and turns the notion of heroes and monsters on its head. Vanessa Len has woven a spellbinding tale laced with mystery, magic, humor, and heartbreak.” — Cindy Lin, author of The Twelve

“A deeply imaginative debut.” — Publishers Weekly

About the Author

Vanessa Len writes YA fantasy about girl anti-heroes, monsters, and enemies who are maybe in love. She’s read every Diana Wynne Jones book more times than she can count. She’s a graduate of the Clarion Writers’ Workshop, and she lives in Melbourne, Australia. Only a Monster is Vanessa’s first novel, and you can visit her online at http://www.vanessalen.com.

Joan is an ordinary girl living an ordinary life. Or so she thinks. One day at the coffee shop, she accidently touches a man’s neck and steals time from him. She wakes up a day later, having missed her first date with Nick, a boy who works with her at the museum in Britain. Panicked, she tries to tell her family what happened but can’t locate any of them. Gran always said they were “monsters,” but she didn’t believe it. She also used to tell tales about the hero, the enemy to all monsters. When she arrives at the museum, things turn into chaos as the Olivers arrive and threaten to kill her and Nick while Aaron Oliver turns aside from it all. Joan begs him to helps them; but he just leaves. She manages to start to send an emergency signal to her family but Aaron’s father breaks her phone. When Aaron’s father draws a sword and slices her side, Nick erupts in a fury revealing himself to be the hero. He plans to kill all the monsters. Even her family. He tells her to stay in the room or he won’t be able to protect her. And he warns her if she steals time again, he’ll have to kill her. When she flees to help her family, she discovers they received her message after all and all but Ruth lay dead or dying. Gran sends Ruth to open the window while she warns Joan that Joan is the only one who can stop the monster. She thought she’d have so much more time to train her, she says drawing harsh breaths. She also tells her that she has a secret power that doesn’t come from the Hunt line. Tell no one, not even family. Gran dies and window open, Ruth shoves Joan through, staying behind to cover her retreat. Joan rushes through the maze and gets lost inside until she comes to the aid of Aaron Oliver, killing one of Nick’s men who pursues him. Together, the two battle time and enemies to try and rescue their families and each other but will getting what they want, leave everything lost to time?

This was a real page turner for me. I love what she did with having Joan the monster and Nick the hero. You feel sympathy for the majority of players in this book. There’s just so much history and trauma for most. I was torn between wishing Joan would somehow find a way to make things work with Nick or stay with Aaron Oliver. The ending, I won’t lie, has wrestled with me for weeks. I just don’t think I would’ve ended it that way but then again, it’s not my story. I do understand, in one way, why the author did so, it just was a hard ending for me. However, that didn’t keep me from enjoying the book. If you read it, let me know your thoughts although, please don’t post spoilers.

Happenings: The car is fixed for now. However, we picked up some damage to our skirting under the manufactured home with the storms that moved through the past couple of weeks. To both ends and the back. On the one end, it’s twisted up underneath so not sure if any damage was done to any pipes or anything under there. Contacting the insurance adjuster. We were gonna try and get quotes first but can’t find anyone who does skirting so hoping the insurance knows people. At least the health’s doing better! Also, we had the HVAC people out and the A/C is all set to go which is great since it’s 75 degrees out there today. Sigh. Have a great week, everyone!

Some links you might like around the web:

1. Fantasy Cafe https://www.fantasybookcafe.comhttps://www.fantasybookcafe.com/2023/04/women-in-sff-month-malka-older//2023/04/women-in-sff-month-malka-older/ Women in SF&F Month continues today with a guest post by Malka Older! She is a Campbell Award finalist and the author of the Locus and Neukom Award–nominated novel Infomocracy, as well as the other two cyberpunk political thrillers in the Hugo Award–nominated series The Centennial Cycle. Her work also includes the collection …and Other Disasters and writing for Orphan Black: The Next Chapter. The Mimicking of Known Successes, her latest science fiction novel and the first book in the series The Investigations of Mossa and Pleiti, is described as “a cozy Holmesian murder mystery and sapphic romance, set on Jupiter”—and I’m thrilled she is here today to share how Watership Down had an influence on some of its themes! Always interesting to discover how another author was influenced by a book. You can see the thought and consideration that went into the author’s story from what she discusses.
2. Writers Helping Writers https://writershelpingwriters.https://writershelpingwriters.net/2023/04/need-organization-help-try-trello/net/2023/04/need-organization-help-try-trello/ Staying organized as a writer can be a huge challenge. We all have other responsibilities, and the crazier life gets, the easier it is for stuff to fall between the cracks—important stuff we can’t afford to forget. Angela and I are constantly juggling a thousand things, so organization is kind of vital for us. We’ve done a couple of things over the past few years to help with this. First, we hired Mindy, our amazing blog wizard. She’s incredibly capable and enthusiastic, and the work she’s taken off our plates has enabled us to keep on chugging. But we recognize that this isn’t an option for everyone. Heck, it’s why we took so long to do it ourselves. So I’d like to share another idea with you that anyone can use to stay organized. It’s free and has been a game-changer for us. Trello, for the Win! Trello is an online visual tool that allows you to organize projects and track tasks. It’s meant for teams, and Angela and I do use it for our projects, but it has been just as useful for me personally, to keep my own jobs and responsibilities organized.
3. Life in the Realm of Fantasy https://conniejjasperson.com/2023/04/03/the-business-side-of-the-business-budgeting-for-in-person-sales-events-amwriting/ Spring and summer are conference and convention seasons. Regardless of your publishing path, indie or traditional, you must budget for certain things. You can’t expect your royalties to pay for them early in your career. And just so you know, many award-winning authors must still work their day jobs to pay their bills long after becoming bestsellers. At first, getting your books in front of readers is a challenge. The in-person sales event is one way to get eyes on your books. This could be at a venue as small as a local bookstore allowing you to set up a table on their premises. Or it could be as large as a table at a regional conference or convention. Signings at writers’ conferences are usually a bit pricy for the number of books you might sell, but they are great ways to network. What are the minimum costs for working a table at a signing event? The bare minimum expenses: You must have a stock of books on hand. You can’t sell books that you haven’t ordered. I order well in advance, as it can take three weeks for an order to arrive via the least expensive shipping method. Paying for overnight shipping of fifteen to twenty books is well out of my price range. Coins, Microsoft content creators We must consider the table fee. A bookstore might not charge you anything for the table, but they may take a small cut if they run your sales through their cash registers. However, large conferences and conventions will charge table fees ranging from $70.00 to as high as $300.00 or more. This varies with the size and type of conference, the venue where the convention is being held, and the vendors you will be competing with. Sci-fi and Fantasy fan conventions can be quite pricy. You will be in an immense, crowded room, competing with big-name RPG game franchises and movie franchises, plus all the vendors of memorabilia and collectibles that are available in the vendors’ alley. If you are able to get a table at a major fan convention, you must pay for transportation, food, and lodging. These costs could be gas, parking, airfare, hotel, etc. if you don’t have friends or family in that area. If you are planning to stay in a hotel, take simple foods that can be prepared without a stove. Being vegan, I tend to be an accomplished hotel-room chef, as most coffee bars don’t offer many plant-based options. While that bias is changing, I still go prepared. Bring at least one pen for signing your books. I bring four or five because sometimes the pens don’t work as advertised. Looks like some extremely useful advice!
4. Fantasy Cafe https://www.fantasybookcafe.com/2023/04/wohttps://www.fantasybookcafe.com/2023/04/women-in-sff-month-elisa-a-bonnin/men-in-sff-month-elisa-a-bonnin/ Today’s guest is YA fantasy author Elisa A. Bonnin! Her first two novels were both released late last year: Dauntless, described as a Filipino-inspired book in which “a teen girl must bring together two broken worlds in order to save her nation,” and Stolen City, in which “twin thieves attempt to pull off a daring heist.” I recently read Dauntless and adored the setting with its dangerous beasts and settlements amongst the branches of large sprawling trees, as well as the main character’s journey as she discovers there’s more to her world than she thought. I’m thrilled the author is here today to discuss writing characters and defaults in “Breaking the Mold, or ‘What even is neurotypical anyway?’” Interesting. I often wonder if my character’s emotions are heightened on the page due to my bipolar. The characters we write are often an exploration of ourselves as well as others we perceive in the world around us.
5. Writers in the Storm https://writersinthestormblog.com/2023/04/what-can-you-do-with-book-awards-and-reviews/ It’s common knowledge in the publishing world that book reviews and awards are essential pieces of the author success puzzle. Authors know it’s important to get reviews and win awards, but may be left to wonder:             “What can you do with book awards and reviews?” After your book gets reviews and wins awards, there are several steps you can take to make the most out of your book’s praise. Read on to learn what you can do with book awards and reviews, and how they can work together to increase your book sales, generate opportunities, and streamline book marketing. What can you do with book awards and reviews? From boosting book sales to impressing industry experts, book reviews and awards are powerful ways to establish yourself as a notable author. Here are some innovative ways you can leverage book awards and reviews: You can sell more books One of the more obvious benefits of receiving reviews and winning awards is the positive effect both have on book sales. Book buyers see an award seal on the cover of your book and think, “Wait a minute, this one must be really good. It’s won an award!”. This validation of your book’s quality compels readers to purchase your work. Winning awards and selling more books? Quite literally a win-win!
6. A Dalectable Life https://adelectablelife.com/2023/04/04/setting-up-the-guard-ccc-229/ I haven’t done a CCC in a good long while.  When I saw this one (and surprisingly, I am only a week late!) I knew I could play. I have LOTS of cat photos and figured I would have a matchy-matchy but it appears, not quite (or possibly, but I’d have to go digging further into my archives that are not quite as well organised)  So, I kept myself to those uploaded to my Google.  Then I had so many I had to force myself to cut back to these.  I could have stretched this utter silliness for much longer but didn’t want to fall into anyone’s disgraces 😉 Allora, on to my completely silly “story”. Setting Up the Guard Okay guys, listen up!  We have a serious job to do. We have been tasked with guarding the perimeter.  So, so cute!
7. The Write Stuff https://marciamearawrites.com/2023/04/05/tenthingsyoumaynotknowabout-author-suecoletta/ Today, I’m very happy to announce that our guest author is mystery writer Sue Coletta. Sue is well-known to many, many of us in the writing and blogging community, but I’ll bet there are some things in her post today that will make your jaw drop! 😁  With that in mind, let’s get right to it. Take it away, Sue!
8. Writers in the Storm https://writersinthestormblog.com/2023/04/characterization-one-of-the-most-vital-writing-skills/ This is the fifth article of the article series The Yin and Yang Relationship Between Psychology and Storytelling. The first article is about reader investment and reader engagement. In the second article, we covered how to create story experiences that feel real to life. The third article shows how to tap into your readers’ subconsciousness and engage them in your story. The fourth article dives into characters’ goals, motivations, wants, needs, and objects of desires. This article covers psychological engineering, aka characterization. Why Do Writers Need to Know Psychology? Writers need to know psychology for four main reasons: Know how readers think and feel and use that knowledge to engage them. Understand the psychology of experiencing so they can create story experiences that have a real-to-life feel. Design characters with plausible traits, flaws, talents, motivation s, etc. Know themselves — why they write, what they really want to write about, and how to get out of their own way. The Eight Crafts of Writing This article is written with the eight writing crafts in mind. The eight writing crafts are: Big Idea (aka theme) Genre Narrative Story Outline (aka plotting) Characterization World Building Scene Structure Prose (aka line-by-line writing) Note: To avoid confusing readers, the author of these articles avoided the alternation of she and her and he and him. Instead, he uses the nonexclusive she and her to mean writer and reader. A lot of detailed info to pick up as you advance in your career. Some of this might be too much for a beginner at this point but good to keep for when you’re ready and for sure you can learn something.
9. Syl’s 65 blog https://syl65.wordpress.com/2023/04/07/fridaymusic-%e2%98%80%ef%b8%8f-il-divo-everytime-i-look-at-you/ What an amazing career!
10. Books and Such https://teripolen.com/2023/04/06/i-will-find-you-by-harlan-coben-bookreview-thriller-suspense/ An innocent father serving life for the murder of his own son receives evidence that his child may still be alive, and must break out of prison to find out the truth in #1 New York Times bestselling author Harlan Coben’s latest breathtaking thriller. David and Cheryl Burroughs were living the dream life when tragedy struck. Now, five years after that terrible night, Cheryl is remarried. And David is serving a life sentence in a maximum-security prison for the brutal murder of their son. Then Cheryl’s sister, Rachel, arrives unexpectedly during visiting hours and drops a bombshell. She’s come with a photograph that a friend took on vacation at a theme park with a boy in the background who has a familiar, distinctive birthmark … and even though David and Rachel realize it can’t be, they both just know. It’s David’s son, Matthew, and he’s still alive.
11. Writers Helping Writers https://writershelpingwriters.net/2023/04/character-type-trope-thesaurus-entry-jester/ In 1959, Carl Jung first popularized the idea of archetypes—”universal images that have existed since the remotest times.” He suggested that every person is a blend of these 12 basic personalities. Ever since then, authors have been applying this idea to fictional characters, combining the different archetypes to come up with interesting new versions. The result is a sizable pool of character tropes that we see from one story to another. Archetypes and tropes are popular storytelling elements because of their familiarity. Upon seeing them, readers know immediately who they’re dealing with and what role the nerd, dark lord, femme fatale, or monster hunter will play. As authors, we need to recognize the commonalities for each trope so we can write them in a recognizable way and create a rudimentary sketch for any character we want to create. But when it comes to characters, no one wants just a sketch; we want a vibrant and striking cast full of color, depth, and contrast. Diving deeper into character creation is especially important when starting with tropes because the blessing of their familiarity is also a curse; without differentiation, the characters begin to look the same from story to story. But no more. The Character Type and Trope Thesaurus allows you to outline the foundational elements of each trope while also exploring how to individualize them. In this way, you’ll be able to use historically tried-and-true character types to create a cast for your story that is anything but traditional.
12. The Write Stuff https://marciamearawrites.com/2023/04/07/meettheauthors-smorgasbord-sallycronin/ This morning, I discovered I had the very good fortune to be included in one of Sally Cronin’s lovely “Meet the Authors” posts, along with Debby Geis /D. G. Kaye, and Sharon Marchisello. What a super post, with Sally’s reviews of books by each of the three of us. Hope you’ll stop by to check it out, and perhaps pass it along, too. (I know Debby and Sharon would appreciate that as much as I would.) Thank to Sally for all she does to promote her fellow authors, and for this wonderful post today, too
13. Legends of Windemere https://legendsofwindemere.com/2023/04/08/spring-break-has-begun/ I thought I knew how I wanted to start this post, but my mind is shot.  This is only the third day of Spring Break and I’m tired.  In fact, I think I may be more exhausted than when I started.  Can’t say I’m surprised because it’s been a busy week even with the last two days being off. First, those last three days of work/school leading into break was utterly crazy.  Not that I was surprised.  It was also the end of the third quarter, which means everyone was scrambling to get work done.  I faced this on two fronts.  One was at work when I was in the Testing Center and handling a large flow of test takers.  Really happy that those times were only the last two periods of my day while I spent the rest with our Life Skills kids.  A little off there due to the schedule, but it was fine.  The second front was as a parent with my son having to get a lot of work done.  This . . . Had some issues that I found out about later and will have to consider for the future. Of course, this left me too exhausted to write that final section of Darwin & the Demon Game chapter 11.  I haven’t had a chance to even remotely tackle it since and I doubt I’ll get a chance until Tuesday evening.  I’m going to have to extend my timetable given that 99% possibility and at least one day where I don’t have my son being taken by hanging out with people.  I’m thinking I’ll only get 4 of 7 chapters done if I’m lucky.  That means I won’t be finishing this book in April, but by mid/late May.  I won’t start writing the next one until mid-July either.
14. Fiction Favorites https://johnwhowell.com/2023/04/07/friday-johnku-aka-tgif-fri-yay-good-news-39/ Today’s good news is a local story about an American hero who lives here in Lakeway. Alan Babin was excited to become a Lakeway resident for many reasons, not the least of which is that he is able to leave his home independently in his wheelchair. The Gary Sinise Foundation gave Babin and his family a smart home in 2018 adapted to his specific needs, a significant gift for the injured U.S. Army corporal who served as a medic in the 82nd Airborne Division. Due to the wounds, he received 20 years ago, he has had to work hard to be able to do many everyday tasks. On March 31st, the city declared it Alan Babin Day in honor of the 20th anniversary of surviving catastrophic wounds during his service in Iraq. Alan was awarded the Bronze Star with Valor and Purple Heart for his actions to save another. The proclamation issued by the city tells more of the story. I love to hear these kind of stories!

The Beauty of Accepting Ourselves and Others As We Age Within the Pages of Life by Traci Kenworth

The Beauty of Accepting Ourselves and Others as We Age Within the Pages of Life

Traci Kenworth

Wherever we begin in life, whatever our journey, the beauty of accepting ourselves and others as we age within the pages of life comes after a lifetime. When we’re a bright star burning along that path in the beginning, we don’t consider the whole of it. That is, we don’t think about what we’ve learned, what we’re still learning. We just keep going. Faster and faster. Always the need to keep moving.

But as we relax along that pathway, as we learn to turn the tide, we begin to slow and think about our movements. Where we’ve been, where we’re going. No longer do we thrash about in any direction. We choose one with purpose. Now, we study our whereabouts and begin to plan. That’s how life works. Learning bit by bit as we go. We stumble at first then we eventually learn to hit our stride.

It may take a while, but it’ll happen. When we’re in school, we begin to draw into cliques, into groups of those more like us. Or perhaps, those who can fake it as well as another. We’re all just trying to get by, just trying to find that rug to pull us up to the next level. We do what we can to get into a good college and hope and pray it was the right choice. That we picked the right major.

Nowadays, well at any time, it’s uncertain. Jobs change as fast as light bulbs. One moment we’re one place then another. We’re always searching for security but somehow that never comes. It’s lost alongside anything these days: relationships, dreams, and mortality. We never see a lot of it coming. We just wing it. Sometimes life’s like that bartender you see in the movies, the one who’s always willing to lend an ear.

Except, you don’t quite find those irl. In real life, you rely on a close friend, a good neighbor, or a family member. In years past, it might’ve been a clergy person. Although some of us might still attend church, we don’t often confide in another there for fear of reproachment. I’ve had a pastor wife condemn me after finding out that I write horror. It turned me off the whole church experience.

Not that I don’t believe in God or Jesus if you’ve read any of my other posts. I just remember that he said that his church is not confined by a building but by the people within. So, maybe that’s what we should do: take a look around at the people around us. Consider who’s trustworthy. Although, hopefully, they wouldn’t be in your life if they weren’t.

Accepting those around us may take a bit of time. Just the same as it does for accepting the flaws about ourselves that linger despite our best efforts. It takes work. I do think it’s easier to accept weakness in others rather than in ourselves however. Maybe because it doesn’t take us as much work. Instead, we either agree or don’t with the other’s changes.

It may be hard to get past the hurts they’ve caused. And I’m not suggesting if they’ve done something reprehensible to stick around. No, I’m talking about smaller things. Arguments. Disagreements on politics, religion, whatever. Things that can be talked through. Or, at the very least, set aside. Sometimes, it’s not possible to discuss these with individuals. You have to decide whether to just move on to dropping that piece from your get-togethers.

You might not like the subject but you’ve got to let go of the block if you want a relationship with that individual. Because, at some point, you need to realize you’re not going to change their mind. They are going to be who they’re going to be. Just like you. It’s here where you decide whether to support each other no matter what.

The beauty of accepting others as we age within the pages of life is up to us, win or fail. No matter what happens, we must agree to that. Each of us is allowed our own mind, our own thoughts, our own rules. Come what may. We take what comes and move on with our lives, knowing we’re at peace with our decisions.

Happenings: It’s been a while. Sorry about that. A lot has happened. For instance, the stress tests showed there was no evidence of congestive heart failure. I did have fluid on the heart and legs though. And although they said my tests were “perfect,” there was still a concern. My heartbeat was really, really fast. They put me on a beta blocker in addition to the water pills and Jardiance. Also, during all these tests, they mentioned that the tests showed I’d had a heart attack previously. I believe that all went back to the end of Jan. when I was in bed for days. I had flu-like symptoms but I knew there was something more going on with my body, it just didn’t feel right, and that is a sign of a silent heart attack. I also think it all came about because of a decongestant someone I knew recommended I take because I was having trouble with my sinuses at the time. Turns out, decongestants can spike your heartbeat, my heart doctor said. He also said there was no sign of damage to my heart which is good news. From the end of Jan. on, my head had been so confused and foggy and I found myself dazing off quite a bit, unable to hold a conversation, this is what caused me to seek medical help in the first place. Turns out this was a side effect of the decongestant as well. It was so bad it had roughened up my lungs and brought on the cough which made them think I had water on my lungs. Once that was out of my system, I felt like myself more and more. It’s been different getting used to the new meds and no-salt routine but I’m getting better and better. So, yeah, another loop in what I thought was going on and had been told was going on, now straightened out.

Some things around the web to check out:

1. Writers Helping Writers https://writershelpingwriters.net/2023/03/fear-thesaurus-entry-conditional-love/ Debilitating fears are a problem for everyone, an unfortunate part of the human experience. Whether they’re a result of learned behavior as a child, are related to a mental health condition, or stem from a past wounding event, these fears influence a character’s behaviors, habits, beliefs, and personality traits. The compulsion to avoid what they fear will drive characters away from certain people, events, and situations and hold them back in life. In your story, this primary fear (or group of fears) will constantly challenge the goal the character is pursuing, tempting them to retreat, settle, and give up on what they want most. Because this fear must be addressed for them to achieve success, balance, and fulfillment, it plays a pivotal part in both the character arc and the overall story. This thesaurus explores the various fears that might be plaguing your character. Use it to understand and utilize fears to fully develop your characters and steer them through their story arc. Please note that this isn’t a self-diagnosis tool. Fears are common in the real world, and while we may at times share similar tendencies as characters, the entry below is for fiction writing purposes only. Fear of Being Loved Conditionally Notes Conditional love has to be earned through performance or achievements. A character who has experienced love in this way is likely to develop certain habits that they believe will ensure the acceptance of others. They may also perceive their value as being tied to certain behaviors or successes. These thought patterns and actions may continue to plague the character even after they’ve recognized that this kind of love is unhealthy and they want no part of it.
2. Smorgasbord Magazine https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2023/03/11/smorgasbord-book-promotions-book-review-ya-dystopian-the-insurgent-the-colony-series-book-2-by-teri-polen/ If a megalomaniac threatened your family, would you give up your freedom for them? Would you give up your soul? Asher Solomon is faced with that choice. And makes the ultimate sacrifice. Exactly as Director Silas Reeves expected him to. Unable to live as the Colony’s premier assassin, Ash retreats to a corner of his mind, ceding control of his body to the alter-ego he was engineered to be—Subject A36. As he’s unleashed to battle the Insurgents, the only family he ever knew, the tide of war shifts in Silas’s favor. Combined with his expansion into new territories, the director is poised to take over the world. But the Insurgents don’t give up easily. Not on their cause, and not on their people. With the help of a few double agents deep in the Colony, they stand a fighting chance at ending Silas’s reign. In order to shut down the program, they face almost insurmountable odds. And their most dangerous foe—their former champion turned killing machine, A36. Still have to get around to reading these! Sounds terrifying!
3. Entertaining Stories https://coldhandboyack.wordpress.com/2023/03/11/still-fumbling/ I decided to work on Percy the Space Chimp today. Getting both of these stories flowing has taken me more time than I anticipated. Honestly, since Percy involves a sequel, I thought it would be up and running a little faster. I feel the need to at least do some minor reintroductions of the characters because there could be someone out there who reads them months apart. Prejudice is one thing that kind of sets Percy off, so that’s where I went. It allowed me to revisit his relationship with Buffer Dole, and the clones got some page time, too. They managed to obtain their course from the spy network and avoided throttling the crap out of some people. All I have to do is get them to their ship and send them into the unclaimed part of the galaxy.
4. Chris the Story Reading Ape https://thestoryreadingapeblog.com/2023/03/11/how-to-slay-others-with-your-writing-guest-post-by-traci-kenworth/ How to slay others with your writing comes with practice and confidence in yourself and in your writing. When you’re younger, you stumble down the road not sure where to go, or what to see in life. That’s why experienced writers have always recommended to those coming after them, for the others to take their time, and watch the swans in the pond. Dream. Dreaming helps whet that appetite. What appetite you ask? Why the one for making writing more than just a pit stop. The more you do something, the more you learn. That’s a truth universal. We don’t want to believe it’s that easy. We insist there must be some secret that the big writers are keeping from us. Some magic they found along the way. And there is: it’s called butt-in-the-chair. You keep at it. Even when it’s tough. No matter how much you feel like giving up. You don’t. You go on. You keep on. Even when it’s hard. Despite wanting to throw away the manuscript, you fight the urge. And gently tuck it away. Wait. Pull it forth. Begin again after you’ve given it some distance. The distance helps. It helps you take stock of things you couldn’t when you were too close to things. That’s how you get through. Make progress. One step at a time. Sort of like life. You learn new techniques as you go about the process. Marketing. Interviews. Small time at this point, of course, but hey, they lead to notice and notice is what you want and someday those small times will come in handy. Blogging is a good thing to have a go at. Couldn’t resist!
5. Nail Your Novel https://nailyournovel.wordpress.com/2023/03/10/your-first-pages-5-manuscripts-critiqued-at-litopia-by-literary-agent-agentpete-aj_dickenson-and-me/
6. Syl’s 65 blog https://syl65.wordpress.com/2023/03/12/3-12-23/ He has such beautiful, soulful poetry!
7. Myths of the Mirror https://mythsofthemirror.com/2023/03/11/the-zone-2/ I don’t know about you, but for me, the creative process requires a lengthy visit to “The Zone.” If you’re an artist of any kind, you probably know what I’m talking about, surely sense the obsessive urge, the quiver of excitement at the prospect of exploring undiscovered shores. My creative muse resides there, tantalizing and intoxicating, and she demands my undivided attention. I love each foray into the Zone—despite its consumption of my life. It’s creative gluttony, stuffing my face with words, gobbling down characters, disgorging pathos. When I dive into the Zone, I’m not myself. I’m immersed in my craft, drowning in a taste of pure manna like an addict. The rest of the world fades into the hazy horizon as the Zone awakens that right brain craving. As a writer, this is especially true during my first draft when a story takes shape. Within the Zone, unfamiliar scenes tap from my fingertips and uncooperative characters demand a voice. A fickle wind pushes my plot, requiring vigilance to stay on course. As an adventurer, I’m on my own, trying to make sense of an untold tale before I return to my ordinary life, take a long overdue shower…wash loads of stinky laundry…vacuum blankets of dog hair…make dinner for a gaunt spouse surviving on snack food. Oh, I SO LOVE the zone! It is candy for writers! A place where literally anything can happen and does in creation and the writer is frantic to get said down.
8. Angel Messages https://annetterochelleaben.wordpress.com/2023/03/12/angel-messages-mar-12-2023/
9. Stream of Consciousness https://johnwhowell.com/2023/03/11/stream-of-consciousness-saturday-prompt-mat-met-mitt-mot-mutt/ My cup runneth over mainly because an accidental hit of the brew button brought three instead of two 5 oz servings. Luckily the machine has a drain, or the tsunami of caffeine would be on the floor. So the absorbent mat that is in reserve will not be necessary. Sipping the life fluid reminds me of last week’s arrival of too many Warner Brothers look-alikes for comfort. The grey rabbit said there was going to be a circus. An inquiry to the city assured me that no permit was necessary if it was held on my property, and no entrance fees were charged. We met in person so that the possibility of talking them into a restraining order could have happened. The mutt of a compliance officer refused to prevent what will no doubt become mayhem. In deep thought, the thirty-story falling piano crash of the doorbell jerked me back to reality. It also set off a round of barking, cracking every mirror in the house. A toss of my old baseball mitt causes Lucy and Twiggy to think a sheep is loose in the place and brings the silence of chasing the lambs. “Who is there,” is the inquiry through the Ring doorbell.” “C’est Moi. Phiil Harris.” As I told John, I really enjoy these Looney Tunes scenarios.
10. Chris the Story Reading Ape https://thestoryreadingapeblog.com/2023/03/12/writing-female-characters-in-fantasy-guest-post-by-jaq-d-hawkins/ It has become cliché that male writers are notoriously bad at writing female characters, especially in the Fantasy genre, but are female writers any better? This question came to mind because I often find female characters in novels written by women writers this century as either totally airheads or unrealistically badass. Two of my own free-spirited female characters (in different books) have taken some review criticism for behaving, quite honestly, more realistically. One was a goblin character, Talla, who comes from a culture where there is a shortage of females and a need to breed more younglings. It seemed only natural to me that in such a circumstance, the female goblins would be given sexual choice and would be free of the restrictions that human religions impose on women and girls. These are people who live close to nature. Observe any species in the wild and the goblin society reflects similar characteristics, including a certain freeform breeding culture. As suggested, culture as well as weather matter. Someone in a snowfilled environment would wear layers. Unless, of course, they had some type of jewelry or armor that melted the snow.
11. Writers in the Storm https://writersinthestormblog.com/2023/03/5-reasons-your-amazon-ads-arent-drawing-in-readers/ With new books of every genre being added to Amazon daily, it’s crucial that you understand what makes for good book promotion on the platform and what you can be doing better. A lot of authors begin an Amazon ad campaign without learning trends, updates, and all that goes into a well-performing campaign. Through the thousands of ad campaigns I’ve managed, I’ve learned quite a bit about this specific marketing art form. And I’ve pulled the top reasons that authors’ ads fail to draw in more readers or end up costing more than they’re worth. You Don’t Have Enough Keywords In order to gain traction, you need to start with a high number of keywords. Just five keywords aren’t going to cut it. My recommendation is 300 – 400 keywords, and if that number made you gasp, then consider this: I don’t need you to find 400 unique keywords. I need you to find 100 – 150 and save them as different match types. So, you’ll be saving them as broad, exact, and phrase matches, which will allow you to watch and see how the same keyword does under these different match types. You’re Using the Wrong Keywords or Keyword Blends Whenever I pull together keywords for an author’s ad campaign, I do so with keywords I find right on the Amazon site. I don’t use software or shortcuts. Finding keywords that are already trending on Amazon is a great way to dip into consumer trends, too, which is something that software often doesn’t capture. The other issue is the blend of keywords versus book titles and author names. If I’m working with a fiction book, I’m doing 80% book titles and author names and 20% of keywords. If I’m working on an ad set for non-fiction books, the numbers are reversed. So, I do 80% keywords and 20% book titles and authors. My reasoning is that a consumer searching for a non-fiction book is searching for a specific topic or benefits of a topic. A reader looking for their next great fiction read is looking at genre (and this is where your product placement ads can really do well), but they’re also looking for authors similar to ones they’ve already read work from.
12. Story Empire blog https://storyempire.com/2023/03/10/celebrate-the-day-of-awesomeness/ Hi SEers. John with you on this TGIF Fri-Yay. This is the second time in a row I had planned to do more on humor but found something a little better. Do you know what day this is? This is the Day of Awesomeness. That’s right, March 10 is a day to recognize and celebrate awesomeness wherever you find it. For those of us who still work at home, awesomeness might be found on that beautiful couch that calls our name at about two o’clock. Or maybe it’s that special cup of coffee that can only come from the most awesome beans and machine. It could even be super quiet that descends upon your workplace after all those annoying co-habitues depart for the day. For those of us who work at an employer’s location, awesomeness may be found in catching the elevator and finding it empty. Or maybe the last person actually made a new pot of coffee, and it is fresh and hot and waiting for you. How about the boss approving your request for one work-at-home day a week and will leave the choice of the day up to you? Those of us who don’t work awesomeness might be found enjoying an extra cup of coffee while finishing a blueberry scone. Maybe it’s going to the store and being the first person in the checkout line. Could also be going to the library and finding that number one best seller is available to check out. For we writer’s awesomeness can be found in a finely turned sentence. Or maybe in that plot twist just created. Or how about seeing your latest book for sale on Amazon.
13. Rosie Amber https://rosieamber.wordpress.com/2023/03/10/%f0%9f%93%9aa-time-travel-fantasy-adventure-with-a-strong-fairy-tale-theme-rosies-bookreview-of-grimm-diagnosis-matt-golec-booktwitter/
14. Meeka’s Mind https://acflory.wordpress.com/2023/03/09/backup-backup-backup/ I confess, I’ve been very, very lucky. I haven’t been doing my backups as often as I should, but last night I backed up ALL my most important works-in-progress. Lady Luck must have been looking out for me because when I booted up my pc this morning, the hard drive on which I usually save all my data was…’ inaccessible’. When I looked at the map of my hard drives [I have two], my data drive didn’t even have the NTFS operating system structure. I had to format the drive in order to be able to use it again. Needless to say, I won’t be using it for anything critical from here on in. Once I can afford to have another one installed, it’ll be gone. I have lost some data, including the most recent pics used in my blog, and a heap of raw footage from videos I’ve worked on, but at least all of that stuff was completed. The pics were uploaded to WordPress and the finished videos were uploaded to Youtube so I haven’t lost anything critical. That’s why I say I’ve been so lucky; if this had happened a few days earlier, I would have lost a week’s worth of video-in-progress. And if I hadn’t backed up last night… -shudder- In case you’re wondering, I backup periodically to an external harddrive that can take masses of data. In between times, I backup work-in-progress data to a thumb drive that sits on my desk all the time and is quick and easy to use. Unfortunately, I don’t back up data often enough.

Book Review: The Girl From the Well Rin Chupeco by Traci Kenworth

Bookcover

Book Review: The Girl From the Well Rin Chupeco by Traci Kenworth

Book Blurb: “[A] Stephen Kinglike horror story…A chilling, bloody ghost story that resonates.”― Kirkus

From the highly acclaimed author of the Bone Witch trilogy comes a chilling story of a Japanese ghost looking for vengeance and the boy who has no choice but to trust her, lauded as a “a fantastically creepy story sure to keep readers up at night” (RT Book Reviews)

I am where dead children go.

Okiku is a lonely soul. She has wandered the world for centuries, freeing the spirits of the murdered-dead. Once a victim herself, she now takes the lives of killers with the vengeance they’re due. But releasing innocent ghosts from their ethereal tethers does not bring Okiku peace. Still, she drifts on.

Such is her existence, until she meets Tark. Evil writhes beneath the moody teen’s skin, trapped by a series of intricate tattoos. While his neighbors fear him, Okiku knows the boy is not a monster. Tark needs to be freed from the malevolence that clings to him. There’s just one problem:  if the demon dies, so does its host.

Suspenseful and creepy, The Girl from the Well is perfect for readers looking for

• Spooky books for young adults
• Japanese horror novels
• Ghost stories for teens
• East Asian folklore

Praise for The Girl from the Well

“There’s a superior creep factor that is pervasive in every lyrical word of Chupeco’s debut, and it’s perfect for teens who enjoy traditional horror movies…the story is solidly scary and well worth the read.” ― Booklist

“Chupeco makes a powerful debut with this unsettling ghost story…told in a marvelously disjointed fashion from Okiku’s numbers-obsessed point of view, this story unfolds with creepy imagery and an intimate appreciation for Japanese horror, myth, and legend.” ― Publishers Weekly STARRED review

“It hit all the right horror notes with me, and I absolutely recommend it to fans looking for a good scare. ” ― The Book Smugglers

My Review: The book opens with a serial killer snatching a young Tark. His cousin joins the search for him. When she discovers his location and frantically tries to get him away, she discovers that Tark is not alone. Something haunts him. A young girl who saves both their lives in her vengeance for victims that’ve gone before.

The cousin watches Tark in the months that follow worried over the presence within him. She doesn’t realize that an even darker force rules the boy due to his mother. Okiku, the ghost, is determined to keep Tark save from the same. When Tark’s father invites the cousin to Japan where his mother was from to delve into the sickness that has grown in the boy, she jumps at the chance to keep him safe.

Okiku begins to reveal to the cousin her past in Japan as they journey along to the mountain village Tark’s mother is from. Once there, they learn secrets about Tark’s mother, what she was trying to do, and what must be done to save him if possible. Because there’s a curse deeper than the one his mother cast on him, one that could cause Tark to die.

Thoughts: This was a decent horror read. I had a bit of trouble getting into the book because of all that I didn’t know about the Japanese culture. At times, it did distract me from the story. I liked when they arrived in Japan versus the American part better. Learning about Okiku was interesting. Also, diving into Tark’s mother’s history.

I think I liked the Japan part of the story because it seemed more grounded, more relevant. While in America, the background wasn’t as well drawn in and therefore, harder to get into. This won’t stop me from reading the sequel, however.

         I have other book reviews to deliver next as part of my getting back into things. At some point however, I do have to go in for a more complicated surgery and I’m not sure how that will play out as far as recovery. I plan to get back to two books by Indie authors that I owe a review for asap. In the meantime, the Netgalley ones have to be gotten through as I go along to keep with their time schedules. This happened to be a Netgalley one. The opinions are my own given in exchange for a free review copy.

Here are some products you may like. I do receive a small compensation from the site for posting them.

1. The Girl From the Well by Rin Chupeco https://amzn.to/3uNfQ5B
2. The Shadow and the Bone Trilogy by Leigh Bardugo https://amzn.to/3K01lSa Highly recommend!
3. The Cursebreaker Series by Brigid Kemmerer https://amzn.to/3IVlGXG Another highly recommend!
4. The Caravel Series by Stephanie Garber https://amzn.to/3DsZjaJ Still another highly recommended!
5. The Catcher and the Rye by J.D. Salinger https://amzn.to/3wRz5O3 A classic!

Below are some links you may enjoy:

1. The Indie Spot https://beemweeks.wordpress.com/2022/04/02/the-hat-is-humorous-and-original/

Lizzie St. Laurent is dealing with many of the struggles of young life. She lost her grandmother, and her living arrangements. Her new roommate abandoned her, and she’s working multiple jobs just to keep her head above water.

She inherits an old hat from her grandmother’s estate, but it belonged to her grandfather. This is no ordinary hat, but a being from an alternate dimension. One with special powers.

Lizzie and the hat don’t exactly hit it off right away, but when her best friend’s newborn is kidnapped by a ring of baby traffickers, Lizzie turns to the hat for help. This leads her deep into her family history and a world she’s never known.

Lizzie gives up everything to rescue the babies. She loses her jobs, and may wind up in jail before it’s over. Along the way, she and the hat may have a new way of making ends meet.

Humorous and fun, The Hat is novella length. Wonderful escapism for an afternoon. Craig’s work is always worth a read!

2. Entertaining Stories https://coldhandboyack.wordpress.com/2022/04/02/word-count-and-future-ideas/

I closed my iPad, then leaned back in my lounge chair. “That’s a wrap for today, folks.”

Lisa Burton, my robot assistant picked the twin ponytails from her hair. “Back to more Cicis tomorrow?”

“Probably.”

“You really need to get these girls some better clothes.”

“I did, but they tend to wear jumpsuits while they’re on the ship. We’re deep into the mission right now.”

Percy, the Space Chimp, perked up. “Not bad, dude. I’m finally in the shuttle and weapons are hot. I’m expecting to kick some major ass tomorrow.”

“Me, too. We’re nearly finished. You have two adventures left in this book and I should easily break eighty-thousand words.”

3. Word Craft Poetry https://wordcraftpoetry.com/2022/04/02/shareyourday/#comment-113240

Okay, I’ve finally found a theme that works for me. Whew! WP definitely upgraded the editor again, because everything looks different in the post template. I also had to change my browser to Chrome. Not my favorite, but everything seems to be working on WP. Fingers Crossed!! Many thanks to David for his theme inspiration… the Libre2 theme is working. 🙏🏻 🌸

This week for #TankaTuesday, I’m sharing the spot where I do all my writing and creating. Sophie spends the day (and nights) with me most of the time. I’m not ashamed to say that I’m still in my jammies as it’s been another wintry day here in Michigan. I’m looking forward to spring!

4. Kill Zone Blog https://killzoneblog.com/2022/04/up-front-money.html

Not long ago, (but before the lockdown) I was invited to speak at a library down in Mason, just west of San Antonio. That little south Texas town was where Fred Gipson lived, one of my favorite authors who wrote Old Yeller and Savage Sam.

They put me up in a quaint old hotel down there in the hill country, overlooking the town square that wasn’t much more than an intersection of two lane roads. It was one of those little perks I enjoy as an author. I spoke that night and signed my latest novel, then retired to the balcony and sipped a gin and tonic under the stars, thinking about an elderly woman who came to me after the talk, asking if I could help her with a problem.

I’d signed my last book and was getting ready to leave when she took a chair beside me. “You’re a famous author.” She spoke with a German accent, which isn’t unusual in that part of the Lone Star State. The German-Texan culture began here in 1831, five years before the Alamo fell, and significantly increased after the close of the Civil War. It’s estimated that over 40,000 emigrants moved to Texas by the close of the nineteenth century.

“No ma’am. I’m far from famous, just a pretty good writer who entertains people.”

“Well, you surely have an agent.” A note to anyone thinking of publishing. Read this!

5. Smorgasbord Blog Magazine https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2022/04/02/smorgasbord-blog-magazine-memories-music-and-movies-1993-40th-mr2-m-people-mrs-doubtfire/

It is 1993 and in the February I hit the big 40. At the beginning of the year, I looked at my wish list as most of us do before hitting a milestone birthday. One of my top ‘things to do before I am 40’ was to own a racy little number.

As a teenager I had a number of boyfriends who owned sports cars. Whilst they may have anticipated something a little different when I suggested that we adjourn to the car park at Clarence Parade after a date, they were disappointed. I only wanted their car keys! I had spent many a happy hour in a Triumph Spitfire or a later model TR4 doing circuits of the car park.

I did not get my official driving licence until 1980 and had driven for both work and pleasure in the intervening years. We had enjoyed many road trips when living in Texas including across from Houston to New Mexico, a distance of 650 miles without stopping except for gas.

Writerly Things 8/32/2020 Traci Kenworth

Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay

Writerly Things 8/31/2020: What We Do in the Shadows

Traci Kenworth

Have any of you watched the TV series: What We Do in the Shadows or read the books? I find the series extremely kooky and funny. There are four vampires but basically three of them ignore the fourth, an energy vampire, Collin. A familiar who wants to become one of them serves the Master, Nandor the Relentless. The female vampire is Nadja and her husband, Laszlo.

They make fun of themselves and other vampires. Nandor who when the Barron came to town, wanted to layer himself with glitter to get that Twilight effect. Nadja has a former lover who keeps getting reborn and beheaded over the years. She longs to be with him but is bored with the latest rebirth. His name is Jeff and she just can’t get interested in someone named Jeff.

Laszlo has a row with vampires who according to an ancient scroll have to fight on an ancient neutral turf. A roof top. There, each is to choose their best warrior. A huge beast is chosen for the werewolf pack, the vampires chose, Nandor, of course. He wins the battle by aid of a chew toy.

One episode has them facing the Vampire Council after the Barron is killed. The familiar tries to take the blame but the council does not believe him despite his insistence that it’s true. Instead, Nandor confesses the three killed him. They are sentenced to die by sunlight. When they are left in a pit to die, the familiar and Collin rescue them.

There are just such hilarious turns in this show. It’s on Netflix if you’re interested. So far, there are two seasons. It may be a bit racy for children.

Bestselling in Writing. Multifunctional Desk 43 inches with Drawers. Ateboo Writing Desk with Drawers. OFM Functional Writing Desk with Drawers. Omfa Computer Writing Desk with Drawers. Adorneve Writing Desk with Drawers and Hutch.

Book Talk 5/22/2020: Kiersten White’s Chosen Traci Kenworth

Book Talk 5/22/2020: Kiersten White’s Chosen

Traci Kenworth

Chosen by Kiersten White. Simon Pulse. Jan 2020. YA.

Amazon’s blurb: A Seventeen Best YA Book of 2020 So Far
A Hypable Most Anticipated YA Fantasy Sequel of 2020
“Will get Buffy fans up in their feels.” —Entertainment Weekly on Slayer

Nina continues to learn how to use her slayer powers against enemies old and new in this second novel in the New York Times bestselling series from Kiersten White, set in the world of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Now that Nina has turned the Watcher’s Castle into a utopia for hurt and lonely demons, she’s still waiting for the utopia part to kick in. With her sister Artemis gone and only a few people remaining at the castle—including her still-distant mother—Nina has her hands full. Plus, though she gained back her Slayer powers from Leo, they’re not feeling quite right after being held by the seriously evil succubus Eve, a.k.a. fake Watcher’s Council member and Leo’s mom.

And while Nina is dealing with the darkness inside, there’s also a new threat on the outside, portended by an odd triangle symbol that seems to be popping up everywhere, in connection with Sean’s demon drug ring as well as someone a bit closer to home. Because one near-apocalypse just isn’t enough, right?

The darkness always finds you. And once again, it’s coming for the Slayer.

My Review: Most of this book I guessed wrong at. Lol. Always a good thing. Nina and her sister, Artemis, are at odds. Artemis has joined Sean’s cult group and is trying to help a god get back his glory. She sneaks into the castle at night and steals a book. Although Nina catches her, she allows Artemis to leave with the book hoping Artemis will realize she can still come home. Out on a hunt with Doug, she is shocked to discover Leo still alive, a fractured shell of himself who is dying because he won’t feed like his mother did. She also picks up three other slayers from Buffy’s fold and takes them back to the castle. Meanwhile, Artemis, hungry for power, attacks the castle with Sean’s minions to retrieve something they need. When Nina realizes the extent her sister is willing to go to, to bring her and the Watchers down, will the prophecy at last come true?

It was a nice edition to the slayer universe. I like how everything ended up. Fighting the darkness within is sometimes the hardest thing to do as evident by both Artemis and Nina. I did find the bit pertaining to Oz’s portrayal weird. It didn’t seem like him at all. Faith was dead-on. Buffy—off in the time she was shown.

Five Links 3/27/2020 Traci Kenworth

Image by JacekBen from Pixabay

Five Links 3/27/2020

Traci Kenworth

Writing:

1. https://writershelpingwriters.net/2020/03/conflict-thesaurus-bad-weather/ “Conflict is very often the magic sauce for generating tension and turning a ho-hum story into one that rivets readers. As such, every scene should contain a struggle of some kind. Maybe it’s an internal tug-of-war having to do with difficult decisions, morals, or temptations. Or it possibly could come from an external source—other characters, unfortunate circumstances, or the force of nature itself.

It’s our hope that this thesaurus will help you come up with meaningful and fitting conflict options for your stories. Think about what your character wants and how best to block them, then choose a source of conflict that will ramp up the tension in each scene.

Conflict: Bad Weather”

2. https://megdowell.com/2020/03/20/10-signs-writing-success-is-actually-closer-than-you-think/

3. https://nailyournovel.wordpress.com/2020/03/24/how-to-plan-a-novel-ep-6-free-podcast-for-writers/

4. https://jamigold.com/2020/03/writing-craft-basics-how-to-format-dialogue/ “If your brain is any amount of scattered like mine, now might be a good time to cover some of the basics of our writing craft. So let’s tackle a subject I haven’t dug into here before: dialogue formatting and a few do’s and don’ts.

I originally started this post intending to dig deeper into a dialogue point-of-view question a reader asked, but the introduction of these formatting basics took up the whole post. Oops! So rather than shortchanging either topic, I’ll cover the basics today and we’ll come back to the more advanced stuff on Thursday. *smile*

Most of us who want to write also love reading, so we might think we already know everything about dialogue formatting, but sometimes a tricky situation can catch us by surprise. So let’s make sure we know all there is to know about dialogue formatting.”

5.  https://rubyslipperedsisterhood.com/brainstorming-by-yourself/ “All across the nation, people are staying home, socially distancing, and generally isolating themselves. Which means, getting together with your critique partners has become a national no-no, unless you’re FaceTiming or using one of those conferencing aps like Zoom.

So what’s a writer to do when you’re staring a new book, and that writer’s retreat that you scheduled where you were going to plot it out with friends has been postponed indefinitely? Short answer: you gotta suck it up and figure it out on your own.

Here’s something I do whenever I get stuck, or I’m just starting a book, and my critique partners and brainstorming posse is unavailable.

Step One: I get a piece of paper and at the top I write the character’s name. And right under that I write down his/her major external goal or problem.

Step Two: For ten minutes I write down stuff that could happen that would make it harder to achieve that goal, or which would make the goal more important. I write down everything including dumb ideas, cliches, and stuff that’s just silly. When the timer goes off, I usually have a list of at least 20 things that could happen, and usually the last few are kind of interesting.

Step Three:  I get a second piece of paper, write down the character’s name and his/her goal at the top.  And then instead of thinking about things that would make the goal more important or harder, I think about all the things that could happen that would make the character’s goal more important/problematic for the community in which the character operates.  In my case that’s always a small town, but for a police procedure it could be the local government or police force.

Step Four:  I get a third piece of paper, write down the character’s name and his/her goal at the top.  And then I list out all the things that might happen that would make achieving the goal or solving the problem a life or death proposition.  This one is harder than the rest because of the kind of books I write.  But I always find ideas when I do this.

When you’re finished with this exercise you will have more ideas on how to “raise the stakes” in your story, and add conflict, which is what people want to read.”

Research & Fun Bits:

1. https://franceandvincent.com/2020/03/20/found-mounds-the-call-of-albion/ “‘…Maybe it is because it is our third visit or maybe it is because there are three of us, or maybe we had to work out the St Andrew thing before we were allowed to ascend, who knows?

Whatever the reasons, we re-convene on top of the man-made-conical-mound which hides behind the Church of St Nicholas, High Bradfield and Wen has an interesting take on proceedings.

“If St Andrew of Scotland is Andrew the Disciple of Christ then he may have come over here with Joseph of Arimathea.”

2. https://legendsofwindemere.com/2020/03/20/types-of-spying-in-war-of-nytefall/ “Now, this may be a better topic for War of Nytefall: Ravenous, but I felt like I couldn’t risk forgetting it.  Spying and gathering intelligence is still very important in Eradication, especially when you see one of the big moves that Leo Kandrel makes.  In fact, the Dawn Fangs and their enemies have come to see that gathering information is more important than battles.  This is where the real struggle comes from since many events come down to who knows what and who learns of things first.  The side that pinpoints the location of the Fist of Durag could very well turn the tide of the slow-moving war.

Now, I’ve noticed about 6 types of spying that goes on in War of Nytefall.  It’s actually 3 to each side.  There is a 7th that I can’t talk about though because of spoilers.  Let’s leave that one alone and dive right into the methods.”

3. https://jenanita01.com/2020/03/20/smorgasbord-cafe-and-bookstore-new-book-on-the-shelves-shortstory-horses-satin-and-cinders-by-jan-sikes/ “A wild black stallion has cautiously watched a beautiful white mare, from the safety of the forest for many years. He longs to be with her, and ventures close to the barn nightly to communicate with her. They share their deepest desires and secrets. Now it is winter, and the rest of the wild herd has moved on, but the stallion stays. He cannot stand the thought of being so far away from her. The scent of sweet alfalfa hay and the enticing lure of the white mare is too much for him. He must find a way to be with her. But will it be worth the risk? Satin and Cinders is a story of courage and determination.”

4. https://scvincent.com/2020/03/21/dignity-and-memories/ “We were supposed to be in Scotland this week, revisiting a magical place. However, that cannot happen at the moment. As things are rather up in the air, I thought I’d revisit a past trip this week and share a bit of history from a past adventure… and a Yorkshire parish church with an awful lot of history:”

5. https://marciamearawrites.com/2020/03/23/character-archetypes-the-trickster/ “If you’ve been following my reblogs of C. S. Boyack’s series on archetypes, you’ll really enjoy his Story Empire post today on Tricksters. What are they and how can writers use them to add surprising elements to their stories? Just head on over and check it out. You’ll be glad you did! Oh, and please don’t forget to share so others can learn more about archetypes, too. Thanks, and thanks to Craig for such an interesting and helpful post. 🙂 ❤”

Some Things More Serious:

1. https://www.booksandsuch.com/blog/what-does-this-pandemic-mean-for-writers/ “his is the question I’m getting over and over again from my authors. COVID-19 has changed everything. How is this going to affect us? What’s going to happen to publishing?

The short answer is: Nobody knows. But there are a few truths we can point to.

First, people are going to continue to read. If you’re a writer, keep doing what you do, because we need you.

Second, publishing has already survived pandemics, recessions, the Great Depression, two world wars, the advent of television, the growth of the Internet, and the proliferation of ways to entertain ourselves. Publishing has changed with the times and will continue to do so. My best guess is that books will still be published and people will continue to read them.

In the short term, there may be fallout. Some independent bookstores, which have thankfully been doing well lately, might not survive. That would be a big loss. (You can help by supporting your local indie right now!)”

2. https://conniejjasperson.com/2020/03/23/writing-through-the-perilous-times-amwriting/ “We live in difficult times. You might be temporarily unemployed unless your work is the sort where you can telecommute. My husband falls into the “work from home” category. My brother does not. Like many others, he is mostly unemployed once again.

If you live in Washington State, you have some help available. They’re small, but better than nothing. Our governor immediately put our fallback resources in place, trying to help our struggling workers and our healthcare system.”

3. https://chelseaannowens.com/2020/03/23/11100/ ““Every persons’ definition of happy may hold a different meaning. I feel it’s important that you recognize what that meaning is for you and once you have defined it, understand that it is up to you to walk toward it.

“It’s so very easy to blame those around us or circumstances we find ourselves in for our happiness. What we do not always realize is that we have control of nothing but our inner voice and a choice. A choice to make our lives more amazing than we thought possible.

“Your happiness depends on you, and while it may not always be clear or it may seem like a dark path to walk, when we realize the light comes from within, the search for it elsewhere is no longer required.”

4. https://whenangelsfly.net/2020/03/23/6-ways-to-help-anxious-children-during-coronavirus-behaviour101/ “Do you have an anxious child right now? Will they benefit from direct strategies to combat this feeling or will a subtle approach work better? This article provides both.

via 6 Ways to Help Anxious Children during Coronavirus — Behaviour101”

5. https://megdowell.com/2020/03/23/when-you-learn-writing-gets-lonely-the-blank-page/ “The Blank Page is a new weekly series on Novelty Revisions dedicated to any writer who is just beginning their journey or starting again after a long pause. Check back every Monday for more tips and inspiration.

Writing — and being a writer — is as fulfilling and worthwhile as it often sounds. There are downsides to every hobby and profession. Writing is also exhausting, sometimes overwhelming and frustrating. But that just makes the entire experience worth the occasional struggle.

Something that isn’t talked about enough is writing and its relation to socialization — mainly that you don’t always understand how lonely writing can be until you experience it firsthand.

It must be discouraging to finally dive into the hobby that could one day become your dream job, only to realize how isolating and lonely it can feel. Especially on days writing is more of a struggle and you wish you had someone to talk with about your frustrations.”

Teaser Fiction & Poetry:

1. https://janedougherty.wordpress.com/2020/03/20/there-are-mowers-mowing/

2. https://kittysverses.wordpress.com/2020/03/21/choice-2/

3. https://www.djranch.org/2020/03/20/flash-fiction-the-storm-to-pass/

4. https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2020/03/21/smorgasbord-short-stories-whats-in-a-name-whats-in-a-name-vanessa-in-a-dilemma-by-sally-cronin/

5. https://susansplace.blog/2020/03/23/thank-you-for-all-that-you-do/

Book Reviews, Cover Reveals, & Author Interviews:

1. https://www.thisishorror.co.uk/news-round-up-week-ending-20-march-2020/

2. https://pitchwars.org/happy-book-birthday-to-the-derby-daredevils-kenzie-kickstarts-a-team-by-mentor-kit-rosewater/ “A highly illustrated middle-grade series that celebrates new friendships, first crushes, and getting out of your comfort zone

Ever since they can remember, fifth-graders Kenzie (aka Kenzilla) and Shelly (aka Bomb Shell) have dreamed of becoming roller derby superstars. When Austin’s city league introduces a brand-new junior league, the dynamic duo celebrates! But they’ll need to try out as a five-person team. Kenzie and Shelly have just one week to convince three other girls that roller derby is the coolest thing on wheels. But Kenzie starts to have second thoughts when Shelly starts acting like everyone’s best friend . . . Isn’t she supposed to be Kenzie’s best friend? And things get really awkward when Shelly recruits Kenzie’s neighbor (and secret crush!) for the team. With lots of humor and an authentic middle-grade voice, book one of this illustrated series follows Kenzie, Shelly, and the rest of the Derby Daredevils as they learn how to fall—and get back up again.”

3. https://mariacatalinaegan.com/2020/03/24/gods-and-dragons-the-dragon-of-time-book-1-by-aaron-dennis-genre-epic-fantasy/ “Gods, Dragons, a mercenary with a blade and no memory of his past…. The world of Tiamhaal is alight in war. Men ruled by kings slay their opposition in the name of their God, but there are others who claim the Gods are little more than scorned Dragons of ages past. Scar has come to find the truth, but is the truth an absolute certainty, or is it just the skewed memory of a forgotten kingdom?”

4.

5.

In need of some post-its?

What about printer paper? Pens?

What about an inspirational book to keep you company during your down time?

Or a good YA title?

Book Talk 3/19/2020: What I'm Reading in YA Traci Kenworth

Image by Ronny Overhate from Pixabay

Book Talk 3/15/2020: What I’m Reading in YA

Traci Kenworth

I’m reading Kalona’s Fall: A House of Night novella by Kristin and P.C. Cast, Uglies by Scott Westerfield, So Fierce and Broken by Brigid Kemmerer, Through The Nethergate by Robbie Cheadle, Chosen by Kiersten White, Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas, Subject A36 by Teri Polen, The Girl from the Well by Rin Chupeco, The Vine Witch by Luanne G. Smith, The Book of Dust by Philip Pullman, How to Write a Children’s Book by the Children’s Institute of Literature, Sightwitch by Susan Dennard, How to Write Kidlit by Mary Kole, and How to Write & Sell YA by K.L. Going.

How are you doing amid the crisis? Do you have all the supplies you need? Cleaning supplies: one, two, three, four, and five.

Baby supplies: one, two, three, and four.

Hygiene Care: one, two, three.

Pets: one and two.

Grooming: one and two.

Beauty: one.

Books: one, two, three, four, and five.

Art: one, two, three and four.

Music: one, two, and three.

Movies: one and two.

Thinking of starting your own website? Try Bluehost, link to left, WordPress, link to left, or Rubix, link to left. I use Bluehost and WordPress, they’re both easy and reliable. Then there’s Jetpack, link to the left, security for your website. Definitely use this!

Stay safe and peaceful! There’s a lot of craziness out there, don’t let it get to you, or worse, become you. Take a deep breath. Remember, we’re all in this together. Take care and God bless.

Book Talk 2/26/2020: What I’m Reading in YA Traci Kenworth

Image by Enrique Meseguer from Pixabay

Book Talk 2/7/2020: What I’m Reading in YA

Traci Kenworth

Nefertiti’s Curse (a House of Night novella) by P.C. Cast and Kristen Cast, Bloodwitch by Susan Dennard, Sightwitch by Susan Dennard, The Book of Dust by Phillip Pullman, How to Write a Children’s Book from the Institute of Children’s Literature, The Vine Witch by Luanne G. Smith, The Girl from the Well by Rin Chupeco, Dark Alley by Mike Anka, Nameless Queen by Rebecca McLaughlin, and Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas. I will shortly be adding to this list and hope to add, an arc by Robbie Cheadle. #reading #book #books #dark fantasy #fantasy #craft