2 out of 5 quills A Review ‘Last Summer’ by Kerry Lonsdale
This could have been a good little story. But unfortunately it needs some serious editing. The tense of the writing switched, for no apparent reason, from current tense to past tense and back again. Very distracting and amateurish.
After the first couple of chapters I wondered why an editor hadn’t caught this. Most, if not all, books are written in past tense. And when the author chooses to write in present tense it is intentional and consistent.
The story couldn’t hold my attention due to this problem.
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MY BLOG features INTERVIEWS with best-selling AUTHORS! May: Boo Walker, June: Anne D. LeClaire and July — Catherine Ryan Hyde
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TS. I found Catherine when I stumbled across her stunning novel: Have You Seen Luis Velez?” By now most of my followers know that I am a voracious reader so it’s really something when I tell you, …Luis Velez is the best book I have ever read.
Catherine Ryan Hyde is the author of 39 published and forthcoming books. Of all of them, Pay It Forward seems to be the most important to other people. Catherine says it’s not the most important to her. She says she writes two books a year, because she has always written fast, and now, “I have a publisher who is willing to keep up with me. When not writing, I ride my horse, travel, and take photos of distant galaxies and nebulae (spoiler alert: this is not easy). I’m also learning to play the cello, but not well. Yet.”
Q. Where do you write? Do you have a special room, shed, barn, special space for your writing? Or tell us about your ‘dream’ work space.
CRH. I write in my easy chair in the living room. When my mom was alive, and shared my home with me in her retirement, and my sister and her kids came up to visit regularly, we created a writing studio for me. We had it built over the garage. But my mom passed away in 2012. My sister is also deceased, as is one of her children. The other is a full-grown adult. So now the main house is very quiet. I have a zero-gravity chair, which is better for my back than sitting up in a desk chair at a desktop computer. It has a sort of lap-desk arrangement, and I write on a notebook computer. There’s a seed feeder and a hummingbird feeder hanging right outside the window on my right, and plenty of light. So this is where everything gets done. The studio is now a guest quarters.
Q. Do you have any special rituals or quirks when you sit down to write? (a neat work space, a laptop at the ready, sharpened #2 pencils, legal pad, cup of tea, glass of brandy, favorite pajamas, etc.)
CRH. Nope. The only thing I need is a good enough sense of the next scene. I’m not putting down people who do. Whatever works. But I think we need to be careful about stating what we “need” to write. I just need an idea and I’m good to go. If I sat down with a cup of tea it would only get cold.
PS: What exactly would a #2 pencil have to do with writing a novel? (Kidding. Half. Well… mostly kidding. No, not kidding so much at all. It’s 2019.)
Q. Could you tell us something about yourself that we might not already know?
CRH. Hmm. Let’s see. I’m a big Randy Rainbow fan, and I know his mom. She’s one of my readers, which got me all fangirling, and then she was all fangirling because I’m a Randy fan, and we fangirled our way into a friendship. I ride classical English dressage with my horse, because I guess nothing is ever too challenging for me. I am a major glutton for punishment.
I spent a week in an ashram in Rishikesh, India, at the invitation of a very well-known and venerated swami who was (he is since deceased) a big fan of the book and foundation (Pay It Forward).
About three years ago I celebrated my 61st birthday by flying to Nepal, taking a small STOL plane to “the world’s most dangerous airport” (Lukla) and then trekking several thousand feet uphill for a stay at the Hotel Everest View. As previously stated, I like a good challenge.
Anybody who follows me on Facebook knows I’m learning astrophotography (speaking of being a glutton for punishment) but I’m sure there are also many people who don’t know.
Q. Do you have a set time each day (or night) to write?
CRH. Yes and no. If I have something ready to go, I’ll sit down in the morning. I get up in the morning, do some Yoga and deep stretches, a little bit of meditation, then one cup of coffee and I’m off. But there are mornings when I don’t write. It comes and goes in fits and starts.
Q. What’s your best advice to other writers for overcoming procrastination?
CRH. If you haven’t started the project, make a digital file for it. Put the title and author in the header. Number the pages. Type “Chapter One.” Then challenge yourself to write a first sentence. Nothing beats an inability to start like starting.
If I have something in process, but can’t seem to get the next chapter or scene going, I’ll get into the file to just add one sentence or paragraph. In almost every
case I end up with several new pages before I close the file again. If that doesn’t do it, it might be time to look at what you’re writing. Have you lost interest in it? This may surprise you, but my advice might be to dump it. You may have lost interest in it for a reason. Don’t throw it away. Never throw anything away. Just give yourself permission to work on something new. If it’s not inspiring you to write it, it may have trouble inspiring total strangers to read it. Try to find a project that’s exciting, and that calls you back to work.
Q. Where/when do you first discover your characters?
CRH. When I have finished a novel and turned it over to my agent, and I know I need a new idea. I open up for a new idea, and I meet a character. I generally just see a glimpse of them, having some sort of life experience. Then I spend a few weeks in my head, with nothing down on paper yet, coaxing them to tell me more.
Q. Q. Where did the concept for ‘Have You Seen Luis Velez?‘ come from?
CRH. Oh, how I wish I knew. I have no idea where any of this comes from. Sheer imagination, and anyone who understands it has a better brain than mine.
Interviewer: I so understand. Most of my stories I can identify where they have their Origins. My mother and her equally outrageous sisters are the basis for that fiction. But I also write rather bloodthirsty True Crime Mysteries and I have no idea where they came from. I just hang on for the ride.
Mass shootings are a part of our current culture. Not until now did I have something to say (write) about the mass murders that plague our nation. One day after the horrendous mass shooting at the Virginia Beach Municipal building did I begin writing.
Synopsis:
This ten minute play for teens (in the classroom) is to honor and memorialize the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting. It focuses on a small class of students hidden away in safety by their English teacher and what happens while they wait for the shooting to stop. But the question begs will they ever be safe again?
The murdered victims:
My character, Mr. Hale is fashioned after Scott Beigel, 35, a geography teacher and the school’s cross-country coach. He was killed after he unlocked a door to allow students in to hide from the shooter,
Alyssa Alhadeff
Aaron Feis
Martin Duque Anguiano
Nicholas Dworet
Jamie Guttenberg
Chris Hixon
Luke Hoyer
Cara Loughran
Gina Montalto
Joaquin Oliver
Alaina Petty
Meadow Pollack
Helena Ramsay
Carmen Schentrup
Peter Wang
Want to see more one act plays? Click here
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MY BLOG features INTERVIEWS with best-selling AUTHORS! April: Poet, Joe Albanese, May: Boo Walker, June: Anne D. LeClaire and July — Catherine Ryan Hyde
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On the home page, enter your email address. Thanks!
BW. Persistence and butt-in-chair time hone a writer’s craft but I do believe some have an inherent ability to see life in interesting ways, which leads to the fresh voice we all crave to read.
Q. and the all-important: What does the process of going from “no book” to “finished book” look like for you?
BW. I write an outline first, using Scrivener’s corkboard feature. I find I’m faster and crisper when I follow a storyline. Of course, I’m always open to following my characters if they want to take a detour. Once my outline is in place, I write each chapter without much looking back. I want to get the bones onto the page. Sometimes I feel like writing detail, but sometimes, I’m almost writing a sketch. Whatever feels like coming. Then I go back and edit and edit and edit. I add flesh and clothes to the bones.
Q. How has your life experiences influenced your writing?
BW. I think a life spent behind a desk can be dangerous for writers. I have traveled a good bit in my life, and I think it helps me climb into other character’s minds with an open heart.
Q. What’s your down time look like?
BW. What’s downtime? If I do get to enjoy some of this so-called downtime, I love being with my family.
Q. Have you or do you want to write in another genre`?
BW. I started out writing thrillers but have most recently been writing book-club fiction. Something about the challenge of writing page-turners without a mystery to solve or someone to chase intrigues me.
Q. I see your guitars on the wall of your studio. Tell us about your music and Nashville.
Just for fun!
BW. My first connection to the muse was when I started writing songs in college. I fell in love with the five-string banjo, and it became all-consuming for many years. I moved to Nashville from Charleston with a band called The Biscuit Boys, and we enjoyed some great success, playing with Travis Tritt, Sam Bush, John Michael Montgomery, Ricky Scaggs, The Dixie Chicks, and many other heroes. Along with playing banjo, I found my creative stride writing lyrics. My career was cut short by a hand disorder called Focal Dystonia. I moved back to Charleston and tried to figure out the rest of my life. I needed to find a more grown-up job and joined a day-trading firm. But my muse still spoke to me. That’s why I started writing novels!
Note to Self: (a life lesson you’ve learned.)
BW. Enjoy the ride.
Did you miss the first part?Click here
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MY BLOG features INTERVIEWS with best-selling AUTHORS! April: Poet, Joe Albanese, May: Boo Walker, June: Anne D. LeClaire and July — Catherine Ryan Hyde
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We continue with part II of an interview with
Cowboy/winemaker/musician Boo Walker.
Did you miss Part I?
Q. What’s your best advice to other writers for overcoming procrastination?
BW. I think so much about procrastination. It gets us all. Like I mentioned, I love the Be Focused app. That and setting a word count. I have word counts that I force myself to hit, and I don’t allow myself to enjoy much more of the day until I hit my count. In other words, once I clean my room, I can go out and play! Hit the word count and the rest of the day is mine.
Q. Where/when do you first discover your characters?
BW. They come to me on walks and in dreams. Often, they start as real people and begin to morph into a more exaggerated persona. I find that when I try the least to find them is when they come to say hello, and that can be any time of day. The muse is full of characters, but she waits until you’re quietly listening to share.
Q. What first inspired you to write?
BW. I read Plum Island by Nelson Demille while trekking across Ireland in the late nineties. From that moment on, I wanted to create a character as cool and funny as John Corey.
Q. What comes first to you? The Characters or the Situation?
BW. Depends on the book. I’m open to both, whatever the muse leads me toward.
Q. Do you ‘get lost’ in your writing?
BW. Totally. That’s what keeps bringing me back. If you sit long enough typing a story, you’ll enjoy such a feeling. It’s the best in the world, better than any drug. You’re writing and suddenly you’re pulled in and become the character. When I wake from this daydream thirty minutes later and realize my fingers have been flying over the keys, I know I’ve written something special. But it wasn’t me at all, was it? My best writing is when the muse is the one writing. I’m just a conduit with fast fingers holding on for dear life.
Q. Are you working on something now? If so tell us about it.
Bed head ignored. Busy writing!
BW. I can’t share much, but I’ve recently moved to St. Pete, Florida from Washington State, and I’m in love with this place. The next two stories take place in St. Pete and will be chock-full of familial dysfunction, love stories, and characters searching for meaning. I like throwing difficult circumstances at characters and seeing how they overcome.
Q. When did you begin to write seriously?
BW. Perhaps ten years ago, but what led me to becoming a pro is reading the life-changing book The War of Art by Steven Pressfield.
Q. How long after that were you published?
BW. Until recently, I’ve always self-published. It took me a few years to write my first book, Lowcountry Punch. I did a lot of reading at first, learning the craft. And I interviewed the Charleston DEA and did some serious research. Then I wrote and rewrote and burned drafts. Finally, four years later, my book hit the shelves.
Q. Do you think we will see, in our lifetime, the total demise of paper books?
BW. No, I don’t think so. I suspect there will always be a place for them. How sad to think there would be a world without bookstores. But for me personally, I have gone almost entirely digital.
Q. What makes a writer great?
Don’t miss the conclusion to this wonderful Interview ~~ May 31st.
Watch for my review of Red Mountain Rising (sequel) Coming soon!
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MY BLOG features INTERVIEWS with best-selling AUTHORS! February: Rick Lenz, March: Patrick Canning, April: Poet, Joe Albanese and May: Boo Walker, June: Anne D. LeClaire, July: Catherine Ryan Hyde To receive my posts sign up for my
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PERFECTION!! A masterpiece of a story. Every word impeccably placed.
I don’t write spoilers, (as my fans already know) so I will write about the universal message of this story. It begins with the improbable friendship between Raymond Jaffe and Mildred Gutermann, two of the most unlikely people to ever meet and develop a bond. But it’s about more than that. This is a story about ‘us’ and ‘them’. About all of ‘us‘ and the kindness that runs deep in every one of us. The instinctual compassion for one another that transcends the differences, the tribalism, the fear, the suspicion.
“Oh,” you might say to yourself, “who needs another feel good book?” This book is not another feel good book. The story represents us and the unique characteristic in the human species. Empathy. An emotion that bubbles up easily or sometimes unwillingly in spite of ourselves. The message is so subtly and cleverly woven into such a terrific story-line that you don’t even realize there’s a message until the last few pages.
If I hadn’t read this book and then I discovered how good it was but wouldn’t have an opportunity to read it, I would be profoundly bereft at the loss. Exaggeration? No. It’s that good. You can’t go through life and not read this book.
I hope to announce soon that I will be interviewing this special writer…so stay tuned.
Release date: May 20, 2019 To Purchase click here
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MY BLOG features INTERVIEWS with best-selling AUTHORS! February: Rick Lenz, March: Patrick Canning, April: Poet, Joe Albanese and May: Boo Walker To receive my posts sign up for my
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How do I write a review, for this book, without giving away the twists and turns of the story and end up writing a spoiler? I can’t. This beautifully written book has plenty of twists and turns. It’s a love story sort of, a story of intrigue sort of, a story of grief, revival and survival in huge doses. The threads of this tale are so tightly woven that to write about the plot is a spoiler x ten. I just can’t do it.
The writing is superb.The characters are well drawn and I cared about every one of them. If I had one tiny criticism (and it disappeared within the first six pages) it was that it had too much narrative for my taste. But after page six, I understood how the author constructs her story. So I was immediately drawn into the story so much so that long descriptions (rather than the dialogue telling the tale) didn’t bother me.
MY BLOG features INTERVIEWS with best-selling AUTHORS! February: Rick Lenz, March: Patrick Canning, April: Poet, Joe Albanese and May: Boo Walker To receive my posts sign up for my
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The Little Teashop on Main by Jodi Thomas is a lovely story about three best friends (from cradle to grave) brought together when a play-date turns into a tea party. Their friendship is not without troubles but the light of these women’s love for each other shines through every page. Forging careers, finding love and finally the ultimate test of their friendship.
Jodi Thomas’ writing is flawless. Her stories are interesting. The characters are well drawn and the reader cares about what happens to them. The highest praise I can give a writer. This is a good summer read and I highly recommend it.
Release date: May 7th. Pre-order now!
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MY BLOG features INTERVIEWS with best-selling AUTHORS! February: Rick Lenz, March: Patrick Canning, April: Poet, Joe Albanese and May: Boo Walker To receive my posts sign up for my
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A charming story in a style that is all RaeAnne Thayne. The Cliff House takes the reader on a journey of discovery and healing (hearts) with four major characters, Daisy, Beatriz, Stella and Gabe. Each chapter is titled with a character’s name. A great study in POV (point of view), fellow writers.
As you know by now, I am not a reviewer that includes cliff notes or spoilers. But I will say this story weaves through a rock star’s life, a single mom’s challenges, a buttoned up accountant’s fear of her wilder side, and a reluctant hero. With a surprising mystery artist thrown in.
The characters are deep and well-developed and that leads to a satisfying read. The setting is northern California along the cliffs of the Pacific Ocean which is, for those few of you that have never visited this part of the world, a must see for anyone.
There were a couple of under-developed sections of the story but the overall journey of these fine protagonists abundantly made up for it. I recommend this book to all my readers!
Release date: March 26th
To Purchase, click here
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MY BLOG features INTERVIEWS with best-selling AUTHORS! December: Jayne Ann Krentz (Amanda Quick) January: Molly Gloss. February: Rick Lenz, March: Patrick Canning and April: Poet, Joe Albanese To receive my posts sign up for my On the home page, enter your email address. Thanks!
Newest in the collection of ten minute plays for teens and the classroom.
What would happen if you put down your phone for a half an hour and had a real conversation with another human being? Now lets mix it up further; sit down and talk to someone in your class who you don’t really know that well or at all. Are they who you thought they were? Were they surprised about who you are? This one act play, styled for the classroom (no sets, no costumes, no props), has a group of teens who do not tweet, email, Facetime or chat on their mobile devices for one half hour. They must TALK to each other, face to (real) face. What did you learn about the person? What did you learn about yourself?
MY BLOG features INTERVIEWS with best-selling AUTHORS! February: Film Maker, Rick Lenz, March: Patrick Canning and April: Poet, Joe Albanese To receive my posts sign up for my On the home page, enter your email address. Thanks!
