"Birdman": Art Imitating Life?

What can we take away from the Oscar Awards of February 22, 2015?  Is it just a lot of self-congratulatory film industry glitz or is there something more meaningful?

“Birdman” won the award for best film and best director. Although billed as dark comedy, in fact this film had depth in both characterization and theme. Interestingly, the story line concerns a supposedly washed up film star, Riggin Thompson, played by Michael Keaton. Riggin had achieved stardom in the 1990’s playing a superhero called Birdman—similar to Keaton’s own success as Batman. Perhaps Keaton was the perfect choice for this part since he could relate his personal experience to the character.

As a writer, I sometimes use life experiences in my work, drawing on reality in creating fiction. In fact, I often refer to some of my short stories and novels as faction—fictionalization of reality. It is a good way to approach writing in my opinion. If writers want readers to believe their work, they must create verisimilitude, the illusion of reality in fiction. This is done by creating realistic themes, plots and three-dimensional characters.

Your thoughts and comments welcome here.

Valentine’s Day: Why We Celebrate

I look forward to VALENTINE’S DAY each year.  I admit to being a romantic at heart. That’s probably why even my mystery novels always have a romantic element in them.

The day had its origin with the Romans. The fertility celebration known as the Lupercalia eventually became the Christian Valentine's holiday. The Lupercalia festival was partly in honor of Lupa, the she-wolf who in legend nursed the infant orphan twins, Romulus and Remus, supposed founders of the city of Rome in 753 B.C. The pagan festival was also in honor of the Roman god Lupercus who was the god of shepherds.

There are several different stories connected to three early Christian martyrs who came to be collectively called “Saint Valentine”. Besides becoming associated with love and romance, the holiday continued as a feast day.

Valentine’s Day is also the anniversary of my older son, Andrew Seewald, who is an attorney in New Brunswick, NJ. He and his wife met as grad students at Rutgers University. They were married before a judge on Valentine’s Day in 2003. My husband and I were their witnesses. After a lovely brunch at a local hotel, bride and groom drove a hundred miles so Andrew could defend a client in a courtroom in another county. They finally got a honeymoon several months later. It made no difference; they are still very happy together and in love. In fact, their wedding was the most romantic one I’ve ever attended.

No matter how dreary February might be, I always feel cheerful on Valentine’s Day.  I enjoy reading and writing romance novels and short stories year round. But Valentine’s Day is special.

And I really don’t need candy, flowers or fancy cards to enjoy the day—just the company of my husband.

If you would like to read a Valentine’s story for free that combines mystery and romance, check out this one at:

http://www.gumshoereview.com/php/Review-id.php?id=2130

Is Valentine’s Day special for you? What is your favorite holiday? Why?

Setting the Scene

Setting is an essential component of fiction writing, whether a novel or a short story. It’s generally indicated early in a novel or short story and usually developed through narrative description, but there are other means as well.  The details of setting are what make the reader accept the reality of the work.

Here are some suggestions for creating a viable setting:

One: Choose a place you know something about. Maybe you’ve lived there. Maybe you only visited.  But it helps if the writer has some sort of association because the place must have an aura of reality to be believable. My Kim Reynolds mysteries are set in Central New Jersey because that’s where I lived for most of my life. The township in THE BAD WIFE, for example, is based closely on the one I actually lived in.

                                      http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00J6PCKVW    

Two: If you are using an historical setting, make certain to do considerable research so that your background descriptions are historically accurate. Consider: how did people dress? How did they travel? What did they eat? What were the social, religious and political conventions and ideas of the period? How did people talk? Conversation and vocabulary differ in different time periods.  Also, check timelines to make certain you don’t have important events occurring in a wrong year.

My two published historical romance novels were carefully researched.  For example, TEA LEAVES AND TAROT CARDS is set in Regency England directly after the Napoleonic Wars. THE CHEVALIER is set in Georgian England at the time of the uprising in the Highlands in support of Bonnie Prince Charlie.  I read both fiction and nonfiction written in the time period as well as numerous historical accounts before I began to write the novels. This was something I enjoyed doing since I have degrees in English and history and taught English at both the high school and university levels.

 

                                                    

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00JFHMXWW    

                                                                                   http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00GY95RTU/

                                                  

Three: Choose place names that fit the times. Place names are constantly changing. Decide whether or not you should use real place names or imaginary ones. In DEATH LEGACY, real places were used and described.  Manhattan and Washington D.C. are prominently featured, as are actual streets and landmarks, appropriate in this case to lend authenticity to a mystery suspense thriller that is also a spy novel.

                                                  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OGTMGLM

Four: Consider the weather or climate as a component in setting. For example, winter weather works well for a murder mystery novel. Snow and winter can be used to symbolize death. This is true for THE BAD WIFE.

Weather helps to create tone, mood and atmosphere. For instance, a paranormal novel might be dark and foreboding. Thunder and lightening can create tension. Poe is a great one to study in this regard.

Five: Sense impressions are important in the narrative description of the setting. You need them to create a sense of reality. As they say, the devil is in the details. But balance is needed as well. Writers can overload their writing with too much detail or info dumping. Even some very famous authors are guilty of that. Setting details may also be part of characterization, existing in dialogue, action and a character’s thoughts.

What suggestions would you make in regard to the creation of setting?

Your thoughts and opinions welcome here.

Interview With D.K. Christi

I am interviewing D.K. Christi, journalist and author. D. K. is a journalist for the in-print and online Southwest Spotlight www.swspotlight.com, AXS.com, Examiner.com and more.  Her short stories are published in seven anthologies and in Amour found at Amazon.com Kindle.  She has published three novels, Arirang, Ghost Orchid and Bamboo Ring with several more in the works.

As a journalist she has enjoyed interviewing celebrities such as Marlo Thomas, Whoopi Goldberg, and Rob Reiner.  She is a professional platform speaker available and mobile to present at conferences and workshops. Previous activities included founding board member and CEO of major philanthropic corporate entities with equities in the millions of dollars and community advocate for those needing special help to claim economic stability.  You can contact Christi at www.dkchristi.com and www.dkchristi.webs.com. 

Question: What is the title and genre of your latest novel?  Why did you select them?

Answer:  Bamboo Ring – General Fiction Romance

Bamboo and Bamboo rings figure significantly in the lives of the main characters, Melani and Jack.  Bamboo represents strength of character against great odds. The rings are rings that bind an obsession.  Melani arouses strong emotions from readers; some find her with little admirable, others sympathize and identify with her weaknesses and choices. 

Question:   What inspired this novel? How did it come about?

Answer:  Bamboo Ring is the prequel to Ghost Orchid.  It is the back story that details Melani’s experiences that lead to the birth of her daughter.  A woman of the seventies generation, during and following Vietnam, Melani reflects the struggles for women in a changing U.S. culture and magnifies them by setting Melani’s life in South Korea.  Her international adventures take the reader to the sights and sounds of exotic, foreign countries while her passionate love affair becomes an obsession that unravels her life forever. 

The power of love cannot be underrated.  It is the force that makes the world go round.  Love is the force in what I write, from short stories to novels.  Love swirls around the characters.  Love motivates and inspires me as my muse sets my pen in motion and allows the words to flow.  The richness of living in a world of infinite change and variety is also another theme in my novels.

Amazon.com says of my work, “Themes of friendship surviving tragedy, love conquering adversity and the triumph of the human spirit over the hardships of life serve to uplift and inspire.”

Question:  Could you tell us a little bit about the heroine and/or hero of your novel?

Answer:  Melani is the perfect wife and mother, attractive and intelligent, supporting her spouse’s rising career that takes the young family to foreign assignments.  Her marriage is rocky but stable initially.  A tragic loss her spouse’s infidelity leaves her vulnerable to the attention of a charming military officer that sets her on a path of passionate obsession that unravels her life.  This officer provides such brief encounters, that the novel offers the question of reality or fantasy?  Where will Melani’s obsession take her and will she find serenity at last?

Question:   Can you tell us about some of your other published novels or work?

Answer:  Ghost Orchid, set in the Florida Everglades, has a touch of the paranormal as the exquisitely beautiful Neev sets out in search of family roots and finds more than she imagines through a series of mysterious coincidences that unfold as a mystery, one clue at a time in the aura of an exquisite and unique ghost orchid.  NPR reviews says the beauty of the Everglades shines through on every page, the ghost orchid the heart and soul of the story.  Ghost Orchid is one of four novels in the Bamboo Rings series that begins with Bamboo Ring.

Question:   What are you working on now?

Answer:   A Civil War romance adventure based on my great, great, great grandfather’s Civil War heroism leading a group of men who dig escape tunnels, escaping from POW prison in New York and returning to the front lines.

                 The third novel in the Bamboo Ring series, Caribbean Odyssey – a sailing adventure with Melani.

Question:   What made you start writing?

Answer:  Teachers always praised whatever I wrote from an early age and I read everything I could, favoring historical fiction, myths and fairy tales.   I believed I had the talent and pursued journalism to start.

My career path included grant-writing, marketing and promotion writing, technical journal writing, curriculum development at state levels and national platform presentations for conferences and workshops.  Adding fiction was fun.

I also lived and worked in many states and cultures including Asia, Europe and the Caribbean.  I sailed for three years with my family in the Caribbean on our family yacht after selling all we owned in the world for the adventure.  I kept diaries from the age of sixteen.

Question:   What advice would you offer to those who are currently writing novels?

Answer:  Work with a critique group and perfect the novel without being overanxious to see it in print.  Know the work is marketable unless selling books does not matter.  Have a platform from which to sell books and a marketing plan laid out long before publication.  A celebrity endorsement for the book is a plus.  Enjoy the process as much as the final publication.  When facing a creative slump, still write a page a day.  In 365 days, that’s enough to find something within those pages to turn into value.

Question:  Where and when will readers be able to obtain your novel?

Answer:   Bamboo Ring will soon be available at all online book sellers, local book stores and libraries and gift shops.  Currently, www.blackrosewriters.com

Ghost Orchid is available at all of the above.  I recommend reading both novels, Ghost Orchid first and Bamboo Ring second to fill in the back story.

D.K. is available for comments and questions.

How to Increase Your Creativity and Productivity

What to do when you need to spark your life force, rev up your engine? I’m not just talking about the creative arts. Every human being needs revitalization at some point. If you’ve become discouraged,  overwrought, and suffered a loss of productivity in your field of endeavor, there are ways to deal with it.

Get started by making some life changes. Get out of your normal rut or routine. Consider doing things you’ve never tried before or haven’t done lately. They don’t have to be dangerous or extreme either.

Here’s one suggestion:

The lead story in the January 11, 2015 edition of PARADE Magazine is entitled:

 “The #1 Health-Booster in 2015.” What is it? Meditation. Not something new but certainly beneficial. It’s referred to as “mindfulness.” Apparently, it creates “body-building for the brain.” It is both “anxiety-busting” and “attention-boosting”. I would refer to it as awareness and focus. By its very nature, meditation encourages creativity.

Here are some of the suggested activities that increase mindfulness according to this article (which I would urge you to read in its entirety):

·        Breathe deeply concentrating on the act itself

·        Hug someone, focusing on the interaction

·        Eat slowly while paying attention to what you are eating

·        Take a walk somewhere each day—engaging in awareness of your surroundings

The key is to keep focus on the activity and not let your mind wander or worry.

This is just one positive method of increasing your creativity which can lead to increased productivity. 

Have you tried meditation? Would you like to do so if you haven't? What suggestions do you have for boosting creativity and productivity?

Some Reflections on Holiday Shopping

The where and how of holiday shopping plagues most of us. Nothing can quite compare with the yearly ritual of holiday shopping, which theoretically begins on the day after Thanksgiving, Black Friday. However, in actuality it begins much earlier, of late right after Halloween. In fact, the way things are going, pretty soon the stores will start putting up tinsel on the 4^th of July.

The frenetic pace of shopping madness increases unabated throughout December. The shopping itself takes on such dimensions that with many people the material supersedes the spiritual aspect of the holidays.

But before the shopping can even begin, there is the business of finding parking at The Mall. Holiday shoppers know when they are nearing this location because traffic becomes as thick as an ant colony, and jockeying for position starts in earnest. Inevitably, a type "A" personality loses patience and aggressively pulls out on the shoulder of the road, speeds ahead, then forces his/her way into the regular stream of traffic. This individual manages to gain perhaps four or five car lengths to ultimately beat the traffic light, forcing other drivers to slam on their brakes and come to an abrupt halt. A cacophony of horns proceeds to announce the general agitation.

Arriving at the mall, one is treated to a breathtaking sight—an unending sea of automobiles. There is quite literally not a parking spot to spare. And so begins the art of cruising for a space. This can be compared to the choreography of a ballet. Automobiles pirouette and arabesque around the lot.

Inevitably, there is a car waiting in each aisle for someone to pull out. Often there are two vehicles set to swoop down like vultures. The poor driver who must pull out of the spot has a serious dilemma: which way to go? One or the other of the waiting drivers must be disappointed, only to drive off angrily, perhaps offering the middle finger salute. Definitely not showing proper holiday spirit! (More like the gunfight at Okay Corral)

Drivers keep cruising, ready to dive like kamikaze pilots when they find a likely target--barely avoiding fender benders--a holiday miracle in itself. No matter how many spaces exist, there are never enough.

Another technique involves following those who are leaving. Sometimes these shoppers are merely putting away their packages and return to the Mall for further exploration. Then there is the individual, fully aware someone is waiting for his/her parking spot, who decides this is a good time to sit and light up a cigarette, fiddle with the car radio, or begin a philosophical discussion on the meaning of life with someone they've conjured on a cell phone.

Most amazing of all are those who decide to grab the closest parking spot. I'm talking here about nabbing the spaces set aside for the handicapped. These artists fall into several categories. First are those who have no physical impediment whatsoever but park illegally because they don't want to continue cruising. We have no trouble spotting them as they run out when the police start ticketing. The second category: those who somehow obtained handicapped stickers yet can move like gazelles, either had some impediment but are over it and kept their stickers, or obtained them illegally in the first place. There seem to be a growing number of these talented artists who we may refer to as prima donnas. With so many people claiming the right to place handicapped stickers in their automobiles, I am waiting for the time when non-handicapped signs will be issued instead.

After managing to obtain a parking spot and reaching the Promised Land of the Mall, we are greeted by a chorus of Hallelujah from the sound system. Unfortunately, by this time, we are almost too weary to shop.

When Christmas and Chanukah come and all the gifts are finally handed out, matters are not in the least resolved, as a good portion of those gifts will end up being returned soon after. (The heaviest shopping day of the entire year is December 26^th) So just when we think our holiday shopping is finally done, it's only just begun!

Then there's the matter of re-gifting. That's the most bizarre ritual of all. This refers to presents that don't come with any clue as to where they were purchased. Even Sherlock Holmes would scratch his head in perplexity.

These are gifts that no one in their right mind would want to keep: purple plaid socks, perfume that would make a skunk turn up its tail in disgust. Well, you get the picture! So what does one do with such odious presents? Naturally, we save them and give them to those who have given us their re-gifts. You know you've gone full cycle when one of your re-gifts is gifted back to you.

So how do we avoid mall madness? More people than ever are turning to online shopping. I would like to suggest that e-books are excellent gifts to give. You don’t have to run around. You can make your selections in comfort. And you don’t have to spend your life savings. There’s a perfect book for everyone, whether nonfiction: perhaps a cookbook, a book on home repairs, or fiction such as romance, mystery, or thriller.

Naturally I’m going to recommend some of my own books that are currently available:

My prize-winning Highlands historical romance THE CHEVALIER available in all e-book formats:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00GY95RTU/

http://steamereads.com.au/product/the-chevalier/

TEA LEAVES AND TAROT CARDS my paranormal Regency romance endorsed by bestselling author Jayne Ann Krentz/Amanda Quick is available in all e-book formats including Kindle:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00JFHMXWW

My e-book of short stories BEYOND THE BO TREE offers stories for every taste:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DTV0750

My co-authored family mystery novel THE THIRD EYE is A Five Star/Cengage novel:

http://www.amazon.com/Third-Pine-Barrens-Mystery-ebook/dp/B00G5K7VXI

My latest novels available as e-books are:

THE DEVIL AND DANNA WEBSTER, published by Astraea Press, a clean read that’s not just for teens!

http://www.amazon.com/Devil-Danna-Webster-Jacqueline-Seewald-ebook/dp/B00JZYXW7K/

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/433530

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-devil-and-danna-webster-jacqueline-seewald/1119365486?ean=2940149550449

 THE BAD WIFE: A KIM REYNOLDS MYSTERY

Readers of GONE GIRL may enjoy THE BAD WIFE, an adult suspense thriller, full of surprising twists.  From Perfect Crime Books:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00J6PCKVW

Published in a new, updated edition, DEATH LEGACY is now available as an e-book from Amazon, Kobo, Apple, or Google. This romantic mystery suspense thriller received excellent reviews in hardcover edition from Publishers Weekly and Booklist among others. You can check it at:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OGTMGLM

There is a book for every taste available for ordering online. What are your feelings regarding holiday shopping? Do you give books as gifts? Do you consider books good gifts? Thoughts and comments most welcome!

What We Can Learn from Taylor Swift by Jacqueline Seewald

Taylor Swift was labeled by Barbara Walters as one of “The Ten Most Fascinating People of 2014.” There is no doubt that she has an amazing following of teens and pre-teen fans who adore her and her music. She is also ubiquitous—one sees and hears her everywhere.  I recently watched my ten-year-old granddaughter performing one of Swift’s songs, in perfect imitation down to the hair toss, for her seven-year-old sister and six-year-old cousin.

Swift’s life story and incredible success at only twenty-five years of age is well-known. She recently had the cover story for TIME Magazine. The journalist praised her highly. Swift knew from an early age what she wanted to do with her life. She convinced her parents to move to Nashville where she signed with a country label. She had and had the courage of her convictions and the determination to work hard at her career. I think Taylor Swift is an excellent role model for young girls.

As a writer, I also see Swift’s energy and effort as an example for those of us who write and pursue careers in publishing. As in music, there is stiff competition. If you want your writing well-published it is necessary to have focus, drive and expect to work hard, just as Taylor Swift has done. A “can do” attitude is required.

In my writing I create such heroines, women of strong character. For instance, in my YA novel THE DEVIL AND DANNA WEBSTER published by Astraea Press, Danna is a girl who is searching for her own identity and must build the self-confidence needed to choose the right path for her life. The novel is romance, allegory, and coming-of-age, a good choice for the holidays and for mothers to share with their daughters.

http://www.amazon.com/Devil-Danna-Webster-Jacqueline-Seewald-ebook/dp/B00JZYXW7K/

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/433530

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-devil-and-danna-webster-jacqueline-seewald/1119365486?ean=2940149550449

If there’s anything we can learn from Taylor Swift’s phenomenal success it is that we need to express what is unique to ourselves in our own way. By writing an exceptional work that stands out from the herd, I believe writers can also gain recognition and acclaim.

Your views welcome here.