Recently, I’ve had the honor of being interviewed by Emily Wenzl of Literary Fort Collins. Wenzl discusses (as you might guess) everything literary about this fabulous Northern Colorado city. I talk about . . . ah, me pretty much. Okay, a bit about how friggin’ hard writing can be, and I also dote on my critique group a little too. Anyway, check out Wenzl’s great blog if you get the chance.
Happy New Year!
If you’re not completely sick of me, then I’m sure you’ll be thrilled to know that I’ll be a regular contributor to the Northern Colorado Writers blog, The Writing Bug starting January 14th. I’ll be sharing Wednesdays with the talented JC Lynn. I’m excited for this new endeavor and I hope you guys can find the time to stop by and visit me, JC, and the other amazing authors at The Writing Bug. (In case you’re wondering, I’ve already been told that I have to keep my trucker mouth in check while I’m over there.)
And if you’re really not sick of me yet, you can see me with my fellow Conference Creative Team members in a trailer for the 2015 NCW Conference on March 27-28. Have you signed up yet? It’ll be a smashing good time! (Click above, not on the video pic).
I suppose it’s time to announce that my second book—this time, a novel, will be published in March 2015 by Hot Chocolate Press. Remember when I talked about what fun it is to revise an old manuscript? Well, it wasn’t all for naught. Bobbing for Watermelons, my women’s fiction is finally going to be real book. If you’re in the area, stop by the Hot Chocolate Festival at Boardwalk Gallery in Windsor, CO January 10, from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. for readings, art, and hot chocolate.
And if all goes well, I’ll be revealing the book’s cover as early as next week. In the meantime, check out (and Like) Hot Chocolate Press on Facebook. I hope you all had a great holiday and getting lots written. After two months of no snow, we received several inches last night, so I’m spending the day cozy-ing up and writing, well . . . editing actually.
My view today.
Who doesn’t love a good Christmas story?
Oh, there’s always one in the group . . . Well, that’s okay because these prompts can not only be the start of a Christmas classic, but also the spark for that sinister tale that happens to take place under the mistletoe. Hell, one of these could jump start that Christmas screenplay you’ve had in mind. By this time next year, we could all be watching “Miracle in Malibu,” starring Mario Lopez and Tori Spelling on ABC Family. It could happen . . . (and don’t forget about who got you on the road to Christmas Special Stardom).
Have a wonderful holiday and happy writing!
Okay, we’ll get there; just not as quickly as we thought. Baby Shoes, the flash fiction anthology that I’m taking part in, didn’t quite get off the ground as expected, but we’re not giving up. This Kickstarter project will launch again in January, so be on the lookout for updates. (I’ll be making sure you won’t miss a thing. 😉 ) There are a number of talented authors—many of whom you probably know—who are taking part in this anthology, so you won’t want to miss out. Stay tuned.
Usually when you hear “Photoshop,” you think of unrealistic waistlines and impossibly perfect skin tone. It’s always nice to see Photoshop being used for good, not evil. A few months back, I came across these remastered and colored Civil War pictures that I felt gave them a whole new meaning. Funny how color can do that, right? I don’t know if they used Photoshop, but you get where I’m going here. My son has been playing around with the program and wanted to see what he could do with one my Folsom’s 93 mug shots.
I think it turned out pretty amazing. I’ve always found this shot to be particularly haunting. His name was William M. Gray, Folsom’s 22nd execution. Given all the research into Gray’s case, I’m not entirely convinced he committed the crime for which he hanged. I’ll leave you with his final words in 1906:
” . . . there could be no God, else an innocent man would not be hanged.”
You may have noticed I get a little uptight about certain usages of grammar, which is strange, because I’m not at all a grammar expert. However, there are a few things I feel confident about ranting about. One of them is the word “snuck.” (For the record, in admin mode, WordPress underlines it in red, indicating it’s misspelled.) So ha.
For me, this goes way back . . . to the classic movie, White Christmas. That’s right. This is where it all began. You see, there’s a scene (30 minutes into the movie) where the Haines sisters have to explain to the famous Wallace and Davis why the sheriff is in the office with a warrant to arrest them both! *GASP!*
Judy: “Oh, the landlord is claiming we burned a hole in the rug and he’s trying to hold us up for two-hundred dollars.”
Phil: “Oh, no. Not that old rug routine.”
Betty: “On top of that, we sneaked our bags out of our room.”
(Another thing I’m confident about: The dialog is spot on. It’s sad cool that I know every like to this movie, right?) That’s what happens when you grow up watching this movie nearly every day from Thanksgiving to Christmas for about 20 years. I remember asking my dad, who really was a Grammar God, why Ms. Clooney said “sneaked” and not “snuck.” (Again it got underlined in red, just so you know.) He explained it was the proper usage. Good enough for me.
If you need anymore convincing, Brian Klems at Writer’s Digest agrees with me. So please, stop using “snuck” (I LOVE that red squiggly line!) and follow Betty’s lead. Smart lady.
Welcome to Wednesday, as well as another edition of “Writing Prompt Wednesday” where I hope to get you over the weekly hump and into the land of writing. Try these on for size:
Happy writing!
