It Doesn't Take a Genius

IT DOESN"T TAKE A GENIUS - No, really!

2011-03-14T09:12:00.000-07:00

I started this blog years ago when my short story of the eponymous title was first published in the Sisters in Crime anthology, LAndmarked For Murder. I meant it to be for writers and writing and later for artists as I was painting also.

But mostly I meant it to be an entertaining romp. However, when I was putting together my book, I had to back-burner the blog. Then, when the book was released, I was inundated with all the stuff that goes with a new book, stuff I guess I didn't realize would be so pleasurably time consuming.

But It Doesn't Take a Genius was, and remains, one of my favorite stories. You all know I like revenge stories, empowered women stories and twist endings that leave you grinning. I love it that all those elements are in this story.

When my collection, INHUMAN CONDITION, came out last year, It Doesn't Take a Genius was meant to be the anchor story. But the publisher did not like the language (it's not for kids) or the subject matter (uh, it's not for kids) and kicked up such a fuss that I pulled the story from the collection.

I regretted it. The book is a very good and representative collection of my work, but I wanted this story included. Oh, well.

All I needed to do was wait for Technology to catch up to my wishes.

IT DOESN'T TAKE A GENIUS - the short story - is now available through Amazon.com in Kindle format for only 99 cents. (You may also download it in readable form for your computer if you don't have a Kindle.)

And I really like the cover - that graphic design genius, Jerry Lerma, designed it for me.

As for what now - well, I have gone back to working on The Novel (boy, it that slow going!) and a space opera that's a sort of continuation of my loose series from several years ago. I don't paint any more, because I don't have the time or space.

I guess in a finite lifetime, we have to make choices about the best uses of our rationed time. Too bad you can't see this little truth when you are young. Sigh.

But it's beautiful here right now. Yesterday I was the reader at Sisters in Crime Los Angeles and even sold a few books. The featured speaker was a writer and story editor from Law & Order: SVU, Ken Storer. He was great! I love being tossed in with the Big Time folks, but that's what a great group like Sisters in Crime can do.

Drop me a line - I haven't heard from some of you in a very long time...

And be careful out there.

INHUMAN CONDITION by Kate Thornton

2010-10-25T08:54:00.000-07:00

Human beings tend to fear the things they don't know, and that is often sensible, given the lurking dangers that confronted our distant ancestors. But sometimes we need to examine carefully the things we think we know: the pet shop owner in town, the teenage girl who lives next door, the people with whom we work, or the nice man who walks his dog each evening in our neighborhood.

The stories in this collection will drive that point home, and perhaps give you reason to re-define the word "inhuman."

"Kate Thornton's imagination is only exceeded by her talent as a storyteller. From the sci-fi fascinations of Mare Tranquillitatus to the darkly provocative Working in the Suburbs, Thornton takes us on an impish joy ride through a mind field of criminal intents. Inhuman Condition is a rare and evocative find among story collections."

-Darrell James, Award Winning Author of Body Count

"In Inhuman Condition, noted short story author Kate Thornton has compiled some of her finest tales into one fun and exciting read. Whether you are a fan of science fiction, crime fiction or just good fiction, you will enjoy this diverse collection that smacks of the same juicy eeriness as found in classic Twilight Zone episodes."

- Sue Ann Jaffarian, best-selling author of the Odelia Grey, Ghost of Granny Apples, and Fang-in-Cheek mysteries

Now available through Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Digital Bookshop.
The Kindle edition will be available mid-November.

INHUMAN CONDITION IS NOW AVAILABLE!

2010-10-15T08:55:00.000-07:00

WRITING NEWS

Okay, I am officially thrilled - my new book, INHUMAN CONDITION Tales of Mystery and Imagination, published by Denouement Press, is out! It is available here at Amazon.com and at all the usual local retail outlets (if they don't have it on the shelf yet, you can order it - ISBN 9781603640336)

The KINDLE version will be available mid-November.

In time for Holiday gift-giving, I'll be delighted to sign trade paper copies for you. (There isn't any way to sign the Kindle editions, of course)

Here's a pic of the cover:

I'm hoping to schedule a book signing or two before I leave for the Mystery on the High Seas cruise, but anyone who is interested in a signed copy, just leave me a comment here and I'll email you to arrange it.

INHUMAN CONDITION: Tales of Mystery and Imagination

2010-09-20T15:41:00.000-07:00

NEWS FLASH! The book is going to be released on October 15th, but today I got my proof copy! And except for a few minor corrections (which is why we get proofs) it is exactly what I thought it would be. Let's be honest, it's a thrill to hold it in my hand and see my name on the cover.

Here's what it looks like casually tossed on the corner of my desk:

It's a collection of 21 previously-published short stories - my favorites, of course - including mystery, crime, speculative fiction and the just plain weird. A few of them were even nominated for prizes. I can't wait to see it in bookstores - it will be in all the usual places, including Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Borders and independent bookstores will be able to carry it, too. There will also be an electronic edition available for Kindle, Nook and other electronic readers.

Published by Denouement Press, the trade paper retails for $14.00, a good deal for 300+ pages of edge-of-your-seat stories.

The cover art is one of my paintings, Learning the Numbers, 1-10 exhibited a while back in the Childhood Dreams show at the dA Art Center.

A big thank you to all the editors who originally published these stories. I could not have done it without you. And another big thank you to the folks at Denouement Press. I am very pleased and proud to be the first author in this new imprint from the folks at Wolfmont.

Can't wait to sign a copy for you!

I'M NOT PAINTING, I'M...

2010-08-01T18:09:00.000-07:00

...working on my new book, INHUMAN CONDITION, Tales of Mystery and Imagination. (Here's the artwork that will appear on the cover:)

I just signed a contract with Wolfmont Press, and publication is expected by November of this year, in time for my participation in a Mystery Cruise, MYSTERY ON THE HIGH SEAS.

With a total of 20 stories, 19 of them previously published, the book is a collection of favorites of mine. I have over 100 short stories in print, in various magazines, anthologies and other ezines, but this will be my first single-author collection.

The book will be a standard trade paperback, available at all the usual places, with e-book format also for all you Kindle, iPad and other digital readers.

A big thankyou to Tony Burton of Wolfmont Press, and to fellow writers Sue Ann Jaffarian and Darrell James, who have so generously offered cover notes for me.

So I'm busy, busy.

I'm still volunteering at the SCA Project Gallery Store and hope to see you there Wednesday afternoons (Brad is there on Wednesdays, too!)

But mostly you'll find me walking on air....

Be careful out there! (click on pic for a larger version)

SHORT STORIES AND NO PAINTING

2010-06-19T12:27:00.000-07:00

Since the garage remodel took a left turn, the painting studio has temporarily disappeared. But not to worry - my back patio is a fabulous place to paint. The weather is gorgeous, the plants, umbrellas and pets are all beautiful and there is a refrigerator full of Coke Zero nearby.

I am committed to doing a work for the Ice Cream Show at Bunny Gunner Galleries - and I already know what it will look like, it's just a matter of hunkering down in the sunshine by the pool and making it so.

But the Big Project for me right now - now that I am back from Chicago and a memorable trip to the Chicago Art Institute (and the Chicago Museum of Contemporary Art) - is The Book.

I am putting together a collection of twenty of my favorite short stories - a couple of them brand new - for publication. Titled THE INHUMAN CONDITION: TALES OF MYSTERY AND IMAGINATION it is a big job and I'm running out of time if I want to have it ready for Mystery on the High Seas this November.

I am currently searching for a couple of the stories in my messy archives, editing them all, writing the bridge copy between the stories and carefully considering cover art. All while trying to complete my paintings outdoors and unpack from the trip. Oh, and work at the SCA Project Gallery Store, too.

Where did I get the idea that retirement would bring leisure?

It's a quick update I know, but I'm pretty busy. Be careful out there.

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

Chicago. It's a gorgeous city and I think I ate some of the best food in the world at The Gage, The Frontera Grill and Joe's.

Jeeves. He's just a wee bag o' bones now, but the little critter is eating and drinking and purring and doesn't seem too much worse for his week at the vet's. He is so glad to be home, though. Here he is when he was younger and stronger.

The Back Patio. I love it. I am so lucky. That's Coco in the foreground.

THE LEFT TURNS

2010-03-28T09:54:00.000-07:00

WRITING, PAINTING, FUN

I thought I was all set as a writer and painter. They sound like nice, quiet pursuits in the easy time of life, don't they.

Wrong.

My studio disappeared - actually it morphed into a beautiful office, the perfect place to write, but much too perfect to splash paint in. So the paints are all put away while the new studio is built. But studio-building is a big deal, a major project, not to mention a whopping expense, so that part of the picture is on hold until (a) all danger of rain is gone and, (b) there is money, time & the carpenter is available.

Now, the office is here - beautiful, serene, gorgeous. But I am busy - a volunteer at the SCA Project Gallery Store, and frankly that's the only place I can seem to get any writing done. When I'm at the workstation in the office, the lure of the computer game is way too strong for me and I succumb to the pleasures of difficult word games. But at the store, with my trusty little AlphaSmart Neo, I have been able to totally screw up the initial plot line of the novel and knock out a hundred pages of I-don't-know-what except it's gone from a cosy puppy story to a Jessica Fletcher-Meets-Jack Reacher thriller romance. Okay, that's fun, too - I really like the characters and where they are going, and the puppy is still in the story.

So the creative front breaks out no matter what happens. It just won't sit down and behave.

OMG - speaking of Jack Reacher and not behaving - I met LEE CHILD at Left Coast Crime and nearly wet my pants. Author and dear friend SueAnn Jaffarian introduced us. For those in the dark or the dark ages, he is the charming and prolific author of the Jack Reacher adventure series and I am a big fan. And did I mention he is tall, gorgeous, charming, and well, even for a writer words can fail. I'm sure I mentioned charming...

I also met Michael Connelly - author of my favorite L.A. cop series, the Harry Bosch novels. That was a treat beyond adequate description as well - and I got to be one of the first 3 people to ride the newly-redone Angel's Flight in L.A. - Now that was a spectacular experience. Mr. Connelly also treated us to a lovely lunch..

Okay, Left Coast Crime did what all mystery conferences are supposed to do - kicked me into overdrive with my writing. Woohoo!

But I just got a coveted invitation to exhibit a painting in July - so I guess I'd better get my behind in gear and figure out how to do one.

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

Jerry retired from Cal Poly and is now home with me full time. It is fabulous. We celebrated our 31st wedding anniversary with long time friend (and Maid of Honor!) Nancy Hoskins at Campanile, a lovely restaurant built on the site of the wedding chapel where we were married. It was wondeful!

SueAnn Jaffarian. She is a gem.

Being able to work. Well, being able to do anything!
Be careful out there, friends.

The SCA Project Gallery Store Blog is Up!

2010-03-03T09:02:00.000-08:00

News Flash! I just got the the SCA Project Gallery Store Blog up & running - please stop by for store info and upcoming special events. I hope to showcase a different artist each week - I know that's pretty ambitious since I haven't updated this blog since the passing of my precious Typpee girl. I'm there on Wednesdays and look forward to seeing you. Please stop by - the blog & the store - when you get a chance.

Pictured at left: Our logo tee shirts and works by Maddie Bean, Patricia Hagerman, Franz Keller and more!

Sale this month: Large Pashmina scarves/shawls in various colors

Only $20 each

Pictured below: Nina Jun's ceramic balloons

Pictured above: "Can Can" by Tomoko Suzuki

The SCA Project Gallery Store carries a full line of Tomoko Suzuki's charming figures, only $30 - $50.

Click here for The SCA PROJECT GALLERY STORE BLOG

IN MEMORIUM

2009-12-16T07:11:00.000-08:00

My Beloved Dog, Typpee

She was a Poodle-Something mix, blonde like me, and - also like me - with one gimpy leg.We sorta looked like the dog-human match that you see in cartoons, both of us limping along together.

I found her at The Pound - the Humane Society up the road from us. I wanted a nice little doggie girl, a companion I could lavish affection on and maybe even dress up. Well, she was a sensible critter, too sensible to allow the baby-clothes-routine, but readily amenable to lavish affection, which she returned in spades. They told me she was 13 years old when I got her, her right back leg withered from a possible coyote attack in her youth. But I think she was closer to 8 or 9...and that was 9 years ago. At any rate, she was pretty old, but as of last Sunday still dancing on 3 legs and with the sweetest disposition imaginable.

She had been asthmatic for the past few years, her familiar coughing and wheezing a comforting signal of her dear presence. Always the lady, she loved being groomed and would hold still for almost anything, including baths, clippers and baby kitties.

Yesterday she went to sleep as I petted her, and her labored breathing stopped.

We put her in the flower courtyard under a delicate kumquat tree that bears heavily every year. It's a pretty spot, one that we pass several times daily, and a good place to remember her.

I will miss her terribly.

TAKING A SECOND LOOK

2009-11-19T10:59:00.000-08:00

WRITING STUFF – LOOKING INTO THE TRUNK AGAIN

And ADVICE FOR NEWBIE WRITERS FROM A GUEST BLOGGER

A Second Look Into the Trunk

I pulled out a couple of "trunk novels" – you know, those things you wrote way-back-when that didn't go anywhere, usually because you didn't know how to write very well at that time – and took a second look at them. Yes, one is so painfully bad it cannot be salvaged, although I got a kick out of re-reading it. The other one has a nifty plot, but I think I'm going to let my Main Character continue to sleep in perpetuity in the trunk and switch her out for one I like a whole lot better. This might be the revision it needs to get going. Or it may just be more writing practice for me. Either way, I intend to have some fun with it.

The Effective Writer

Here is a piece written by BILL THORNTON. He sent this to me in a letter – as a letter, actually - and I got his permission to post it here for you. He calls it "The Effective Writer" but I want to call it "The Character Plays the Part."

The Effective Writer
In order to create a believable scene, one must take the reader to that specific place. The reader must sense the scene, its particular environment, its smells, flavors, sounds and colors, its season and atmosphere. Similarly, the reader must feel the raw emotions of the characters, the urgency of the moment, and the emotional or political climate of the particular scene. He must, in a very real sense, live in the scene if not as a player, at least as a present observing bystander.

Descriptions of the scene must be rich and vibrant, colorful and dramatic. The characters may even be a bit more than real in their ability to express their particular part in the story line. Given the need for realism, muted, subdued even melancholy effects are critical to tapping into the reader’s emotions. These are real sensations that real people feel and sense, and it’s that sensitivity and realism that make a scene believable.

A writer may express deeply committed love, raging anger, explosive happiness, or crushing emotional pain, any number of real human emotions complete with their character’s physical reactions and responses.

Anything less is not honest writing, and conveys less than the actual scene.

While the writer may have personally known these feelings and sensations, it’s his ability to convey accurately those very awareness’s to the believing reader that makes the scene work.

“Dry wiregrass rustled in the early afternoon breeze, buzzing cicadas and the rich scent of cinnamon and fresh peaches drifted over the well worn path to the creek just at the tree line.” Well, what color is the wiregrass? Describe “rustled”. Was it a light breeze, or a near wind? Were the cicadas bussing loudly, or were they a distant background effect? What kind of peaches were they? Was it a dirt path? Did it run through heady scent of lush green freshly mown lawn, or were they long creeping tentacles of aged and unkempt crabgrass? Was the creek silent and melancholy, rich with the pain of the widowed fly fisherman, or brightly babbling and filled with the memories of laughing children? Was that just a tree line, or was it a stand of rustling, quaking aspens, their brilliant trunks contrasting with deep, thick underbrush or heavy clumps of wayward field grasses?

Be in the scene to make it believable.

The writer need not actually be experiencing the emotions he conveys, though experience is the “real” of realism. It’s often said that the successful writer writes about things he knows. One cannot take the reader to rural Southern Georgia in the 1920’s unless he has been there and walked those well worn paths to the creeks, smelled that peach pie cooling on the window sill on a heavy, humid southern afternoon in the dog days of summer. He may not have actually been at the scene in those literal times, but that’s the stuff of research, and interviews, and imagination combined. Atmosphere is the stuff of creating realism. Raw emotion, drama and contrast are the stuff of the writer’s skills and talent.

When a scene is created that conveys these senses, does it leave the reader feeling angry, hurt, elated, melancholy, inspired? These are the meat of the writer’s fare. Listen to his footsteps echo, fading down a long, wet alley amongst towering brick walls rich with the sounds of unnamed apartment dwellers in the bowels of a rotting city, rife with tenements, screaming windows into the lives of those imprisoned in the confines of their own desperation. The stench of leaking sewer lines, greasy Chinese food, and diesel hangs heavy in the late afternoon stillness of a filthy, cracked and weathered doorway, its once bright and vibrant red now grease and dirt colored, thick with years of neglect and apathy.

Does the writer take you into his world to bring you into the scene and make you part of it, or are you just reading words on a printed page? The flatness of the print on the flat page is often the stuff of boredom. Living words and emotions are the stuff of writing.

Did I give you my anger, or the anger of the character? How different are they? It’s the character that plays the part. An angry scene does not reflect an angry writer. Nor does a happy holiday scene, filled with laughter, reflect a happy writer.

PAINTING STUFF – IN FRONT OF THE REAL THING

I'm continuing to work on my painting for the January exhibition jointly sponsored by the da Art Center and the Pomona College Museum of Art (pictured left), IN FRONT OF THE REAL THING. Here are a few pictures of the progress. I'm mixing up the reds now, and trying to get the balances right. I hope I'll be able to fill in the central pupate form by next week if the weather stays sunny and my oils dry properly.

The painting is based on a 14th Century Italian Madonna and a 1971 abstract by Sam Francis. A few of the titles suggested to me (yes, my friends are all comedians) are: "Franciscan Madonna" "Atomic Mother and Child" and my favorite "CSI: Madonna."

Needless to mention - it ain't done yet!

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

My old kitty Jeeves. My sweet Jeebee is still hanging in there, although thin and elderly (13-16 years old) he is eating well and active. And he doesn't take any sass from the younger cats & the 2 doggies.

Having lunch with friend Leslie Cole and then looking at mid-mod property in Claremont. It's no coincidence that four of my friends are in real estate. But lunch with Leslie always includes more: this time we talked about crock-pot recipes, cat recues and travel. I swear, we sound like old ladies in print, but the conversation was not of the sweet, cozy type – more of the speculative, adventurous type.

My sister-in-law Pris's 70th Birthday Party – what a blowout bash! With my husband's whole entire extended family there (except brother Charlie & his wife Joyce who live in Australia) and everyone Pris knows, it was an exceptional dinner for about a hundred people at Kellogg West at Cal Poly. A slideshow of Pris during her early years (like in a baby carriage!) and other family members (like my DH as a sullen-looking but still very smokin' 15 year old) was the highlight of the party. The cake was a work of art from Some Crust in Claremont, but looked like Duff and the folks at Charm City had made it.

Pris had a good time – everybody had a good time! – and the DJ was great, too. Many thanks to Pris's sons, Derek and Kyre, for putting on this terrific bash.

(That's DH's brother Art & sister Sandra - Pris was married to Art)

Be careful out there

VETERANS DAY 2009

2009-11-11T10:12:00.000-08:00

I first published this post in 2006 - but it holds up well. And here also is a reprint of a story I wrote which was published in Every Day Fiction a few years ago, too.

"Step forward now, you soldier, you've borne your burdens well.
Walk peacefully on Heaven's streets, you've done your time in Hell."

Americans, remember all our veterans today - my Daddy was a naval officer, my brother Bill is a disabled Viet Nam vet, and that's a picture of me in my Army uniform during Desert Storm (I spent 22 years in the Army.) Make Veterans' Day the time you reflect on what so many gave - and continue to give - for you.

Put aside political and partisan differences and thank those folks who make your way of life possible. This day is not for blowhard politicians or policy makers or corporate profit-takers.

This day's BEAUTIFUL THING is that kid on front lines, the guy in the wheelchair, the homeless vet and the men and women who serve every day, in small and large ways, at home and in strange places.

And my Army buddies, pictured here:

VETERANS • by Kate Thornton

He looked across the breakfast table, knowing that soon he’d have to choose his words carefully. It was the same every year. First the flags popped out along their quiet suburban street. Then the television broadcasts of news, parades, observances and picnics, special sales on sheets and shoes and gardening implements. Finally, there were human interest stories, an interview or two, and then it would all be forgotten until Memorial Day.

Twice a year he had to watch his step, watch his mouth, not say anything he knew would upset her, not let the memories of war long past come between them.

Every year the war itself receded. It was someone else’s turn now, and young kids had their own war to think about, dread, and hope to return from.

Hardly anyone thought about the Gulf War, Desert Storm, with the horrors of the Iraq War on everyone’s mind. Gulf War vets were older now, most of them staring down their forties, although so many reservists had gone that there were plenty in their fifties and even sixties now. It had been a short war, so there weren’t that many disabled, not like the masses of disabled Iraq War vets. Not like the last of the disabled Viet Nam vets, either, with their hollow eyes, at the ragged ends of their ruined lives.

He looked at her with a mixture of affection, exasperation and pride. They had been separated during that short war, and both of them had done things they regretted, things they wished they could erase from their experience. He had been lonely and scared, looking for comfort and order, and some kind of reassurance. It had been his first real experience of war, as he’d been just a kid when Viet Nam was the nightly news.

Veterans Day and Memorial Day–they always brought back all the old pain and resentment.

He cleared his throat. “Want to visit the kids this weekend?” he asked with what he hoped was the right amount of casualness.

She looked up from her paper, over her steel-rimmed reading glasses and smiled. “Sure,” she said. “Let’s see if they want to go out to dinner or something.” Then her eyes clouded as she remembered it was Veterans Day. Everything came flooding back in a wave of pain.

He watched helplessly as her memories took her back to a bad place, to a desert road backed up for miles with trucks and family cars, the blades of her chopper whipping up children’s toys and the smell of burned bodies. The blinding heat and noise passed over her face and she was gone for a few minutes.

“Yes,” he replied. “Dinner. Let’s try that new sushi place, okay?”

She nodded. Okay.

_____________________

Be careful out there.

2009-11-05T08:39:00.000-08:00

THE TOUGH PROJECTS AND THE PASSING OF HEROES

PAINTING STUFF – THE TOUGH PROJECT

I had the pleasure of meeting with Pomona College Museum of Art Montgomery Art Center Assistant Director Steve Comba this week to experience something so intense I have to wrench back a word into real language and call it awesome. Nothing inspires awe like real art, but real art up close and personal, with the Museum's Assistant Director at your side and all the time in the world to look at it, to draw impact from it, to savor it at angles, under the lights, on a table, just you…yes, awesome is the word.

I am privileged to be among a handful of local artists chosen to participate in a joint da Art Center/Montgomery Art Center project called In Front of the Real Thing. This project allows the artists to choose an object in the Museum's extensive collection for private study. The artist may then produce a work inspired by the piece which will be part of a public exhibition at the da Art Center in January of 2010.

Not content with one masterpiece, I chose two – and the Museum graciously allowed me this extravagance. My two chosen works are from the Kress Collection, Madonna and Child, a religious painting in the School of Barnaba Modena, c. 1370-1380 and from the Modern Art Collection, Untitled, 1971, a lithograph by Sam Francis. I know they may look wildly different at first, but I see only the similarities when I look at them. My work, an oil painting, is inspired by the similarities I see.

After choosing a canvas in the right (for me) size and proportions, I then layered on fifteen coats of gesso, the last dozen in texture. This is not just homage to the Italian masters who gessoed their wooden boards, sanding them between coats to achieve that beautiful satiny finish, but also a way to achieve the raised splatter textures necessary to the work.

I met with Father Bill Moore to talk about what exactly halos are so I could get them right. I wanted to avoid the golden-plate-on-the-back-of-the-head concept while abstracting the image to its most basic form.

Then it was time to find an oil-based gilding medium (gold paint) that was in the right consistency for droplets to splash properly. After much experimentation, I found the right stuff, but it takes 21 days to dry. It's drying now.

More on the progress of the work as I finish it – the color will be transparent oil glaze thinned to the consistency of ink wash and will echo the reds, blues and yellows in both paintings.

I'll keep you posted on the progress of the work. Here are a couple of pics of the progress:

I have a bunch of new stuff up at the Sugar Rush Café & Gallery – it's worth a trip for their excellent food and artisanal coffee even if you aren't a big fan of the paintings.

WRITING STUFF - THE TOUGH PROJECT

I finished a Christmas story last week and sent if off to a magazine that has a tracking application online. Of course, I check it daily. Five days in slush and still not read – I may have to volunteer as a slush reader to get it going.

The really tough writing project I am working on is a novel I wrote in 1998. Back then, I thought I was a novelist and knocked out 3 or 4 long works - adventure/mysteries - that I thought were really good. Hah! Shows what little I knew! They needed a lot of work. So I shelved them (one was actually agented and had some interest from St. Martin's Press, only back then I didn't know enough about revisions to do the necessary rewrites.) But I had lunch yesterday with an old friend, a dear friend, who asked about that particular book and remembered it fondly.

So I am re-reading it first (I have a copy printed on my old laser printer) then doing a page-by-page rewrite into my computer. I used to have this work on an ancient five-inch floppy disc, but who knows what happened to that and what I could use to extract the info anyway. Also, I think it was in one of the very first iterations of Word Perfect.

I want to salvage the basic story, change the main character to one I have been developing, and update the technology (both in the storyline and what I use to write with.)

Maybe it will be a successful project. If so, I have three more "Trunk Novels" that could get the same treatment, if they're worth it.

THE PASSING OF A HERO

My friend and mentor, Colonel George Francis O'Connor, died last week of complications of esophageal cancer. He was 86, old to some of you, but still young to me.

George made my life in the Army an exciting trip through the world of Counterintelligence. He spotted & recruited me, then made sure I got the training and opportunities necessary to make me into an agent. I was privileged to work several missions with him. As one of very few women in units mostly made up of Vietnam War veterans, it was tough going at first, but gentlemen like Col. O'Connor, First Sergeant Eddie Scroggins and CW4 Artie Gibford made sure I got equal opportunities and they cut me no slack on performance. I loved them all dearly – even more when we were called to war during Desert Storm and I was one scared puppy. Okay, we were a litter of scared puppies.

I wish I could tell you all the funny stories of the things we did. I nearly laughed out loud at the funeral when LTC Glenn Miller leaned over and told me about the time they ran a convoy to the Madonna Inn. I told him about the time George "decorated" a few of us after a mission no one could talk about. He knew we were disappointed that no one could talk about a rather nice thing we had done (we were the Good Guys, after all) so he wrote up notional citations under the nom de plume "Col. Murphy" – I still have mine, neatly framed, citing us in the most incredible and very funny terms for something never mentioned.

There's not enough space here to outline his remarkable life – he was commissioned before I was born – but he was a real gentleman – and a real hero. He made me proud to serve. Good bye, George. A grateful nation will miss you, but no one more than I.

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

Terry O'Connor, George's son – remembering the good times.

The flowers, of course.

And the way real art – like time – can heal.

Be careful out there.

2009-09-25T08:44:00.000-07:00

A SHED AS A THING OF BEAUTY

PAINTING STUFF - A NEW STUDIO FROM OLD STUFF

Our 1955 Cliff May mid-century modern house is a delight to live in. But with Jerry's impending retirement, we need to convert that middle bedroom from a paint-splattered, fume-ridden mess of a painting studio into a sleek, modern office for two. That's not so hard – empty the room, scrub the floors, paint the walls and move in a bookshelf unit and two side-by-side desks with chairs. The perfect place for me to write and live in the cyber world and the perfect place for him to, well, do whatever he wants. My PC and his MAC, living in peace and harmony and the excitement of DSL, with a comfy reading chair (that Plycraft Eames-style lounger and ottoman!)

But where would I paint?

Well, I explored the idea of an offsite studio in the Arts Colony, and Terry and Rolo Castillo of the da Center for the Arts made a couple of very generous offers. Susie Eaton of Bunny Gunner Gallery even called a property owner to check on studio rentals and Vincent Blue sky of Blue sky Gallery and Steve Ruiz of Blue Core Gallery both steered me to a possibility, too.

After a short 3-week hiatus, I was painting again yesterday and realized that I don't want to leave here to paint. I like painting in these beautiful surroundings with the plants and pets around me. I like hearing the cacophony of the birds. I like painting in my nightie, the bathroom only steps away. I like it that my kitchen, with its little drinks refrigerator, is right here, offering cold water and a whole lot more.

We have been collecting the Cliff May window and glass door sets that people who don't know better throw away when they exchange their beautiful original construction for the abomination of vinyl windows, cheap curved-light doors and stucco over the beautiful redwood board-and-batten siding of these lovely homes. I can't stop anyone from turning their Cliff May into a stupid-looking stucco box imitation of a bastardized Tuscan villa, but I can collect the priceless pieces of their discarded architecture.

So we have decided to construct a studio in the back patio out of these items. It will keep the beautiful Golden Mean proportions of the house, with a facing area ten feet wide and a depth of eight feet. We will utilize a beautiful original glass door set and a window set on the 10 foot north facing-the-pool wall, allowing maximum north light into the small space. (Well, it will be roughly twice the size of the area I paint in now) With another of the 5ft. window sets in the east facing-the-patio wall, there will be lots of natural light. A slanting roof with – hopefully – clerestory windows, will allow more light. And I am looking at the possibility of a translucent corrugated Lexan roof for even more diffused natural light.

Add to this a wrap-around little deck on two sides and electricity for lamps, nightlight, small energy-saving Japanese air conditioning/heating unit and maybe a CD/MP3 player, and I think it will be perfect.

I could buy one, of course, if I want to spend $8,000 - $45,000. And they are very beautiful. Companies like Modern Cabana, Metro Shed, Studio Shed and Modern Shed offer gorgeous prefabricated modern studios which they construct on your site.

But I like the idea of matching my house, re-using materials from original Cliff May homes and building exactly what I want. Not to mention cost. I think we can build this – with some expert help – for less than $3000. It might take a while, but I think the result will be wonderful. I will post pics of the progress as we go.

Here's the site as it is now. The main patio is to the right, and there is a perfect concrete slab for the studio here (not to mention good light)

And here is what will be the view from the front – see how the view is an echo of a door set and window set? That's the Master Bedroom, with a bamboo obstructing the right hand window set. Doors & windows are each 5 ft wide.

And here are a couple of pictures of similar structures, but you have to imagine the door-and-window combo that we will use.That one on the left is closest in design, I think.

They are all very pretty, and I will take inspiration from them

Lovely fence on this one...

WRITING STUFF

The new mystery short story is coming along – I have the set-up and the characters, and there is a delicious little twist. But I'm struggling with the plausibility factor – sometimes truth is stranger than fiction, but that just makes it unbelievable, so it can't be used. Sometimes you gotta make stuff up to make it sound real.

The Short Story class will become a reality in Pomona – Terry Castillo and I will get together soon and nail down dates, format, etc. Maybe we need an introductory talk and a workshop. Maybe a couple of workshops…hmmm…this could be a lot of fun!

In the mean time, for great programs with other published mystery authors, including several hot short story writers, check out the free programs offered throughout the Southland by the Los Angeles Chapter of Sisters in Crime. They are the best at getting readers, writers and interested (and interesting!) parties together for a time so good it should be criminal.

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

Rescued architectural elements. It might look like old junk cluttering up my drive, but it's pure beauty.

Jerry getting his 30-year pin at Cal Poly Pomona. I listened in awe to his biography – I had no idea he had done so much.

Friend Leslie Cole came over for lunch and brought grilled salmon and salads from Dr. Grubb's in Claremont. Wow. It was terrific. We had a great afternoon talking about everything, but especially about this beautiful Millard Sheets designed house in Claremont that is for sale.

Be careful out there.

2009-09-11T09:05:00.000-07:00

NEWS FLASH! SHORT STORY WRITER PAINTS SELF INTO CORNER

WRITING STUFF – TRUTH IS GREATER WITH FICTION

I gave a very successful talk at the Burbank Public Library last week – "Writing the Short Story" was sponsored by the Los Angeles Chapter of Sisters in Crime and attended by about 50 people, ranging from beginners to published authors. Librarian Louise Paziak was terrific, providing me with a plush auditorium, cold water and copying my numerous handouts. Kudos to librarians everywhere for enriching the lives of writers.

I had a wonderful time, talked for 2 hours, and then schmoozed with some very interesting and really nice folks afterward. Many thanks to ARLENE for her delightful thank-you note – got it in the mail yesterday, Arlene!

Louise has contacted me about a couple of future presentations next year. Of course, I'll be delighted.

I spoke to Terrie Castillo at the da Center for the Arts (now partnerned with the SCA Galleries and Cheryl Bookout) about providing my Short Story Workshop to the Pomona Community. I have given the workshop (and its shorter talk/panel versions) dozens of times in the past few years, but never in my own community. Go figure!

I will plan an adult/all ages/all levels of writing experience talk similar to the one I gave in Burbank last week first, then maybe a workshop for young people who are just learning to write fiction. Details will have to be worked out, but a portion of any nominal fees will be donated to the da/SCA in support of Community Arts.

Inspired by my talk, I began work on another story and knocked out a few more pages on the novel as well. The publication of six of my stories this year by Flashshot brings my total short story publication numbers up over 100. Woohoo!

Every time I get "Painter's Block" I write. I've had Painter's Block for a couple of weeks.

PAINTING STUFF

I took four small paintings into Susie Eaton at BUNNY GUNNER to be framed together. I did these for the SUMMERTIME show at Bunny Gunner Gallery this summer, and have decided they would look better framed together, quatro-style, as "The Four Seasons" – hey, it's always summertime here, right?
(That's Time and Motion on the left)

I am still looking for studio space in Pomona, but I am also weighing the pros and cons of working offsite from my home.

Pros: More discipline, less turpentine and mess in the house (big concern – I'll have to repaint the studio/office soon, and not in "early spatter") and more room for larger works.

Cons: More discipline, can't work in underwear anymore, can't work at odd hours without getting out of the house, bathroom not steps away, kitchen not steps away, beautiful light at home.

Maybe I need to make studio space here at home work for me somehow. Maybe a garage remodel? Greenhouse or glass-framed shed? The patio would be beautiful, but I need a more controlled environment for drying/light/heat/ etc.

Life – it's one big happy dilemma.

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

The summer orchids bloomed and bloomed but are at the end of the blooming cycle and now must set growth for next year. I love the beautiful leaves, flat and succulent (phaelenopsis) upright and spiky (miltonia) and the long, strappy leaves of the cymbidium. Time to feed and prune and watch for root & repotting issues. Next February the first cymbidium spikes will appear, and maybe a spike from that big, gorgeous re-blooming purple phaelenopsis, the Valentine orchid I call it. Then it will be a constant show of big white, yellow, pink & red cascades, then the delicate miniatures, then the summer blooms again.

Jeeves, one of the elderly cats, is looking a bit better with a good appetite and is more active. He loves to be brushed. He's about half the size he used to be in his prime, but still a wonderful kitty.

A few days in Tucson with my brother. Ostensibly for a Birthday Celebration for him with a handful of cousins, the cousins backed out at the last minute and my brother, his wife and I ended up at a Tucson Denny's for dinner. I was very disappointed in the cousins, who are on my sh*t list right now, but delighted that we had a very good time anyway. My brother Bill – who is active in Veteran's Affairs and works tirelessly with homeless veterans – is truly a Beautiful Thing. (And Lori, his wife, is too!) Happy Birthday, Bill. (That's an old pic of us - we've both lost weight since then!)

PS I'm posting this on September 11th, but I want everyone to remember that it is not just tragedy that unites us. We are united in happiness, too.

Pictures of me then...

...and now (with orchids & tomatoes)

And be careful out there.

2009-07-28T09:18:00.000-07:00

BLOG FLASH - WRITING & ART STUFF

Sometimes it just happens. I woke up this morning and painted for an hour, then wrote a 4 part flash fiction story, sent it off to a magazine and wrote some more. You gotta do stuff when it strikes you.

2009-07-27T08:54:00.000-07:00

FICTION IN A FLASH AND PAINTING, UH, NOT SO FAST
WRITING STUFF
I placed three more flash fiction pieces with FLASHSHOT – no scheduled dates for publication yet, but look for these titles in September/October: ARTIST'S MODEL; IF YOU FEED THEM,THEY'LL STAY and WHERE DO YOU GET YOUR IDEAS?
I worked a bit on the novel this month, but it's slow going as I am stuck on one of those pivotal plot points and can't make up my mind. Sometimes you come to that literary fork in the road and can't decide which way to go. Yes, I know: I should write BOTH – but really, who has that kind of time? Oh, yeah, that's right - I do. Sigh.

Okay, maybe I'll write it both ways and see what happens.

The problem with that approach is that sometimes both ideas work out and you have to choose between 100 pages of something that works and 100 pages of something else that works. Worst case is the Time Wasting Effort in which you produce 100 pages of something that doesn't work and another 100 pages of crap. That's just plain depressing.

So it's back to 100 word flashes that either work right off or get deleted.
Here's a sample of one of my recent flash pieces – this was published in FLASHSHOT on July 6th 2009:

FLASHSHOT
Daily Genre Flash Fiction
==================================================
ISSUE TWO THOUSAND-SIX HUNDRED-NINE July 6, 2009
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
A SURE THING
By Kate Thornton

"Sorry, no casino," the man at the desk said.

Michele blinked. What kind of local tribe had no casino?

"Stay for lunch, we have the Breadbasket Buffet, Buffalo Grill, and Corn
Doll Café."

She chose the café and ordered soda, pizza and chocolate cake.

Her waitress smiled. The resort was the old Chief's idea, just something
to keep everyone busy.

From the top floor, the view was reservation land planted thick with corn.
A train of tanker cars stretched from the processing plant.

There was no need to build a casino, not with the ultimate revenge -
high-fructose corn syrup.

copyright 2009 Kate Thornton
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
That's a sample – quick and to the point, under 100 words and with a grin at the end if possible.

Pros of Flash Fiction:
It's quick and easy to read
It gives the writer immediate satisfaction

Cons:
It takes as much time to write short as it does to write long
It is a bitch staying under 100 words and still painting the whole beginning-middle-end picture
Characters must be drawn fully in only a few words

But I love the puzzle of it, the challenge. Sometimes I'll write a 500 word piece, then edit it down to 75 or 100 words just for practice. There's nothing as satisfying as a concise sentence with exactly the right words. It's hard to do.

Practice it – take a "what if" idea ("Hey, what if that guy over there trying to operate his new Blackberry is really more than 800 years old?") turn it on a plot point ("The very old guy with the Blackberry discovers that his ancient fingers can text, if he goes slowly. But his messages can only be deciphered by other 800 year olds on the planet.") and write it out so it makes sense. Then trim it to 100 words.

See? Not easy…

PAINTING STUFF
Writing is difficult and takes a lot of time, but it's a breeze next to painting.

This month I will pick up 2 pieces from Bunny Gunner's SUMMERTIME show and 2 pieces from the da Center for the Arts WATER show. I will drop off 2 pieces for Ashley Ashley's GONE FISHIN' show. I am working on a larger piece for the HEAVY METAL show and a large piece for no show in particular.

I am still experimenting with my painting style, although I seldom stray from my compulsion shape, that ubiquitous circular thing I am forced to put in every painting.

But it has been so hot lately that I have had trouble with my paints – I work in oils and use a quick drying glaze medium to thin them for transparency. It means stuff dries too fast in the heat. If I thin with oil, then I lose the texture I need and the stuff never dries. I keep plugging away at it, though.

And I had an idea about the 2 pictures from the SUMMERTIME show. I did 4 pictures for the show, but only sent 2. I think I want to have all 4 framed on a black background – sorta like my "LEARNING THE NUMBERS 1-10" (shown in photo below between OBIE & AMY) only not vertically, but in quadrants. It won't be cheap, but I think it will look great. The pictures are about heat.

THE SOCIAL CALENDAR

We had a few friends over for drinks last week – it was fun. Here 's a pic of OBIE LOAGUE and his friend AMY. OBIE owns the Sugar Rush Café & Gallery and AMY bought one of my "NAM'S RED DOOR" series paintings.

Here's JER in the Eames chair and that's BRUCE EMERTON 's friend FREDDIE waving. That's BRUCE EMERTON and LINDA GARNER in the background.

Also present were BRAD LINDENBERG, AARON & LESLIE COLE and CHERYL SAVOIE.
I love having company – next time maybe a full-fledged party – or maybe just several evenings of different guests.

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

The Summer Orchids in full bloom. Okay, the whole patio – pretty in the daytime, a magical place at night.

Drinks at DBA 256 on Fourth Saturday – with Jer, Linda Garner, John Clifford of Pomona Heritage and of course Tibbi, proprietor extraordinnaire.

We dragged one of the large rubber tree plants into the house too – indoor/outdoor living!

Be careful out there!

2009-07-04T11:27:00.000-07:00

CRIME AND PUNISHMENT: The Last Few Months of Painting, Art, Writing and Surgery

I guess my twice-yearly update should be something momentous, but one of the reasons I have not updated since April of 2009 is that I have been busy with the minutia of life.

ART:

Okay, lots of painting. I had pieces at the dA Center for the Arts in the past few exhibitions. Someone nice bought my fund-raiser plate, "Jungle Chicken" before I had a chance to photograph it, but take my word, it was pretty weird. Someone else bought one of my very favorite paintings, "IN THE TIME BETWEEN", from the Members Show at the dA Center.

Over at SUGAR RUSH CAFÉ & GALLERY, I sold "NAM'S RED DOOR" which was exhibited at the dA's SIMPLY RED SHOW in February of this year. The buyer phoned me for the story on the painting and I was touched and delighted that someone wanted to know more about it.
Obie, the gallery owner at Sugar Rush, asked if I had more like it as it generated a lot of attention. As a matter of fact, it was part of a series I did on dreams of the red door of a Vietnamese bar across the road from Ft MacArthur in my old Army days. I'll be delivering 2 of them to Obie next week when I get the wires on the back.

Currently on exhibition at SUGAR RUSH are several paintings, including my PATTERN RECOGNITION series from the SQUARE FOOT exhibit at the FIFTY BUCKS GALLERY and my tribute to one of my favorite painters, Fr. Bill Moore, "EVENING WITH FATHER BILL."

Coming up: 2 paintings in the H2O Show at the dA, a couple of paintings at BUNNY GUNNER GALLERY for the Second Saturday opening of the SUMMERTIME show and paintings for Ashley Ashley's GONE FISHIN' show.

On the enjoyment front, I was delighted by the recent show at FIFTY BUCKS GALLERY, PET SYMMETRY with knockout works by Jen Wilkins and Juan Thorp. One of Juan's painting was his proposal of marriage to Susie Eaton – I hear they are planning a February wedding at the dA Center for the Arts, and the gallery show will be SIMPLY WED instead of the usual SIMPLY RED show. Sigh – ain't love grand?

I heard my DH, Jerry, bought us a painting by Jay Merryweather at BUNNY GUNNER GALLERY, a surprise birthday treat. (My birthday was the same day as the dA' s 25th and just a day or two from Susie Eaton's of BUNNY GUNNER.) I think we can pick it up this week!

It was a great birthday – I celebrated for weeks: tea at the Huntington Library with special friend Nan, lunch at Akbar's in Pasadena with special friend Chris, lunch in El Segundo with special friend Trollman, lunch with Jerry and Brad at Sugar Rush and a Swedish Midsummer Festival Party in Pasadena with hosts par excellence, Tama & Johan, under the Swedish moon. Here's Brad at Sugar Rush...

WRITING:

I wrote three flash stories for FLASHSHOT magazine.
A SURE THING will be published July 6th
MARK DECIDES ON A CAREER IN PLUMBING will be published July 19th
NOSE JOB will be published August 5th
Check out FLASHSHOT and get fresh microfiction delivered every morning for free! (And you can read stories you have missed in the ARCHIVES)
I am trying to finish a nice crime story or three by several anthology deadlines. My story, CELL PHONE did not make it into the Los Angeles Chapter of Sisters in Crime's forthcoming anthology, MURDER IN LA-LA LAND. They sent out rejections to everyone I know who submitted, but I have yet to see a list of who or what that got in. I've had a story in the past three out of four collections – it's blind submission, so there's no hanky-panky, just inexplicable editorial choice.

It will be making the rounds of all the usual places as soon as I get some time.

I'll be hosting a short story seminar at the BURBANK CENTRAL LIBRARY sponsored by the Los Angeles Chapter of Sisters in Crime:

BURBANK CENTRAL LIBRARY
110 N. Glenoaks Blvd, Burbank CA
Tuesday, September 1st
7 to 9pm
FREE and OPEN TO THE PUBLIC
Come and learn techniques for beginning as well as experienced writers!

SURGERY:

I had a septoplasty in May as my nasal passages were blocked (a congenital defect shared with my brother.) I had a wonderful surgeon, but it was painful, healed slowly, and was very messy – I'll spare you the blood-and-everything details. If I had known it was going to be that difficult, I probably wouldn't have done it. That's why my brother assured me it was a piece of cake – he knew I really needed to have it done. A six-week recovery was topped off by a virulent stomach 'flu and a blinding (literally) migraine. But now that it's all over, I feel great and breathe much better.

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS:

All the summer orchids are blooming, some for a second time! The phaelenopsis & oncidium beauties are gorgeous. My brother and his wife will be visiting over the Fourth of July weekend. They've been on the road for a vacation for the past month and we are the last stop before they return home to Yuma, AZ. When they go on the road, they go on the road! They visited Montana & Idaho, among other places.

Friends at the FIFTY BUCKS GALLERY – also friends at the American Legion Hall (yes I'm a Legionnaire!)

Be careful out there!

WRITING, PAINTING AND WHAT THE HECK WAS THAT?

2009-04-13T09:08:00.000-07:00

FIRST, the News of the Weird:

Okay, it's been a while since I updated the blog – mostly because so much has been happening and also because I forgot my password and Google makes it virtually impossible to recover a lost password.

I signed up for some serious physical therapy, and it seems to be helping me (although all PT is torture.) My Therapist, Brett Haslop, is not only cuter than a kitten's whiskers, he's also a real pro who understands what I want from the torture – namely, to get some strength back in the left side if possible. And it is possible – it's only been 2 weeks and I am already seeing a difference.
But here's the really weird part: my favorite TV show is NCIS and Brett, who has done lots of extra work in TV & movies, played a dead Marine in one of my favorite episodes! Here's a link to NCIS Season 6, Episode 5, NINE LIVES. He doesn't get name credit because he didn't have a speaking part (duh!) but that opening scene where they find his dead, tortured body is worth about a million looks. He says the makeup was so realistic that it creeped him out, too. There are other great scenes of him on the autopsy table.

WRITING NEWS FLASHES!

Last week I was a guest blogger on Every Day Fiction's FLASH FICTION CHRONICLES. Please check out this fabulous blog written by and for Flash Fiction aficionados. GAY DEGANI is the gatekeeper and driving force behind this endeavor, as well as a novelist and short story writer of note. But check out all the posts, as there is a multitude of viewpoints presented and very valuable information for every writer.

My post is really about who writes short stories when it's the novelists who get recognition, money and book signings.

And while you're at it, sign up to get a Short Story delivered to you inbox every day at Every Day Fiction. There's no fee, no hassle, and the stories are great.

NEWS FROM G.W. Thomas at FLASHSHOT: His fantastic email service – delivering a Flash Fiction micro gem of 100 words or less – to your email inbox daily has been converted to a blog where you may read these quickies daily at your leisure (and also go back and read any you may have missed.)

Bookmark it here: FLASHSHOT BLOG

PAINTING NEWS

The Sugar Rush

(Hanging right in the front lobby!)

I am currently showing a collection of my paintings at the SUGAR RUSH CAFÉ & GALLERY. This cozy spot is well-known for excellent food, terrific artisanal coffees (brewed individually with Chemex carafes) and the friendliest service around.

The Owner/Gallery Manager is "OBIE" (OBEDIAH LOAGUE) and his vision of a café/gallery has really taken off. PAUL LIU is the Assistant Manager, and in addition to being very personable not to mention gorgeous (how is it I am spending a lot of time these days in the company of attractive young men?) these gentlemen have an eye for abstract art.

Obie Loague Paul Liu

The clientele does, too – I have already sold a piece right off the wall! (Nam's Red Door, originally shown at the Simply Red Show at the DA Center for the Arts)

It is a fine piece, one of my best efforts, and I am proud to have it go to a good home.

Nam's Red Door

Here are more photos of the works at Sugar Rush:

I am delighted to have had such success in this past year – I have sold five works and have started painting a new series, Pattern Recognition. Many thanks to the DA Center for the Arts, Bunny Gunner Gallery, Vincent Bluesky Gallery, and Gallery 475.

Here's a preview of a work in progress:

And there's news on the Website Front, too – my new website will be at Katethornton.net – right now it points to the old website, but that will change as the new material is produced and uploaded.
So I'll try to keep this site updated on a more timely basis, too!

A BEAUTIFUL THING!

My friend Nancy at Louise's - we had a wonderful dinner and caught up on old times.

Be careful out there.

PAINTING STUFF: TIME IS LIGHT

2009-03-02T10:25:00.000-08:00

NEW PAINTING DIRECTIONS

Going from dark to light...
I have been painting in oil on canvas for more than a year - not long in the natural scheme of things, but long enough for me to have changed my initial rigid compulsive style.

I started with the tangible concept of Time - something that has bugged me for more than half a century, and which grew more tangible, more visible and more insistent after my cerebral vascular accident. The first three paintings I tried were direct visual representations of this, and I have them - framed and a constant reminder of where I started - on my studio wall.

I like them very much. (That's "Present" "Future" and "Past", left to right. If you click on any of the pictures here, you will get enlargements.)

They look almost monochromatic, don't they? I knew absolutely nothing about pigments, oils, paints, thinners, glazes, gesso, impasto, or anything else at the time. I just knew I had to paint these things and I had to do it right then.

The next paintings - still the same subject - were more complex in visualization and execution. You can see how deep they are, how layered and dark. I think I have painted about twenty in this style. (I have to collect 10 of them from local galleries this week.)

That's "Chinese New Year" on the left and "Untitled" on the right.

Today's paintings are a bit different.

They are still the Same Old Thing: visual representations of my concept of Time in its many forms, but I have discovered the lighter side of it, at least a lighter side, a side that is less about two hundred coats of thinned down black oil and glaze medium and more about reducing the conceptualization to a purer, lighter and more simple form.

See how the basic shape that defines my concept remains. (Untitled work in progress)

Here's another sample - different, eh? ("Blue #3")

I wonder what makes this compulsion evolve. I know pretty much where the compulsive behavior comes from, why it is that I feel pressed to make these paintings, no matter what (that's no matter that I don't know how, or have any time, or any history, or any rational reason.) But I can't figure out why it changes.

I have a painting hanging at Sugar Rush Cafe & Gallery right now - "Before the Moment" - and although it was painted horizontally, the gallery owner, Obie, has hung it vertically. He knows I paint in a mirror sometimes, or work on a piece sideways. But I always know which side is up. I think.

My brother who lives in Arizona visited me this past week and commented on the change. He thought the lighter colors reflected a lighter spirit, that they were less dark, therefore less unhappy. But I don't think that's it at all - there is no happy-unhappy to them, just as time itself does not reflect that sort of emotion. They may evoke emotion in a viewer, but to me they are more energy than emotion, more urgency than happiness. The lightness isn't happy-lightness; it's more transparency-lightness, I think. But what do I know - I just know which side is up. I think.

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

large yellow cymbidiums

The orchids are blooming. I grow cymbidiums on the patio and they are the usual February-March profusion of flowers in lovely cascading sprays.

pink cymbidiums

yellow cascading cymbidiums with red lips

The little "plumicot" tree out in the kennel is covered in tiny pink blossoms - the promise of delicious fruit this summer.

The weather calls for more light rain this week - but I heard there were sixteen inches of snow somewhere back east. My weather - even with rain - is a beautiful thing. It's all relative, isn't it?

Be careful out there.

ART STUFF - BUNNY GUNNER GALLERY KICKS!

2009-02-19T07:30:00.000-08:00

HOMAGE - IT'S NOT JUST FOR FILM MAKERS ANYMORE

I was painting this morning and I had an idea - well, I had about six bazillion ideas, it's how I paint, but I had one that made me laugh.

Yesterday I was in Bunny Gunner - the frame shop/gallery on Second Street with my DH & Susie Eaton, the proprietor. We were looking at the All You Can Eat Exhibition, a remarkable show of hundreds of small works by artists we know and love. We couldn't even get near the place on Opening Night, but the daytime is perfect for viewing the art.

While there, Ashley S. Ashley came in, gave me a kiss (love the way he does that!) and I noticed his beautiful wall art pieces. His stuff was over near the dozen or so tiny paintings by Fr. Bill Moore, one of my favorite painters, and there was a piece of Ashley's that looked like a Fr. Bill piece. He explained it was an homage, and frankly, my dear, I loved it.

I got to thinking - I have done a painting of my own that looks a bit like a Fr. Bill piece - I thought it would be fun to do one of my own signature glazed synesthesia-inspired time pieces as if Fr. Bill would have done it.

As I looked around I saw work by Thomas Stubbs, R.T. Pece, Amy Maloof, Cheryl Bookout, Juan Thorp, George Comer, Tom Pathe, Michael Maas, Tomoko Suziki and literally dozens of others, all favorites, all different, all with that unmistakeable fire that lets you know you're experiencing Art - the real thing.

Anyway, while painting this morning, I thought wouldn't it be fun if there could be an exhibition of work by All The Usual Suspects in the style of Fr. Bill Moore - or just in the style of any other admired artist?

Just a thought, Susie (and Terrie Castillo over at the da Center - maybe this would require a larger space.) But I think it would be fun. I'd love to see what everyone came up with.

Anyway, here's the piece I was working on when this hit and a picture of my studio - it's not a mess, that's just how I work...

And here's my "Ode to Fr. Bill" piece

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

Okay, Art is always beautiful, even when it's hard to understand

(Mark di Suvero's "Joi de Vivre" - I am a big Mark di Suvero fan)

The rain has let up for a few days and the place is starting to look like a home instead of an ark

The new Danish Modern setee is coming tonight! Okay - not new, period vintage like our house - even better! Michael from Futures Collide and Vincent Bluesky from Bluesky Gallery will deliver and stick around for Irish Coffee - now that's Beautiful!

(I like it from the back - it's a lovely piece indeed!)

WRITING STUFF - BIG CHANGES COMING

2009-02-16T09:15:00.000-08:00

Okay – It's Just My Website

I have several rinky-dink websites, one going back to 1997 or so – and they all cost me money, look terrible, don't provide you with much information about what I do, and in general are a point of sore embarrassment to me.

So I am going to change this situation.

I know, I know it's been more than six months since I've even updated this blog – what makes me think I can do something as complex as a new website when I can't even get the blog going? Well, I'm getting professional help. Several folks have suggested I get professional help. This may not be what they meant, but…

Since I write for publication and teach writing classes, one part of my bifurcated website will be all about My Writing Life. And since I paint and exhibit my work in galleries, the other part of the website will be about that, with lots of photos of my paintings and the places they are shown.

My Studio
Me at the Da Center Gallery

And who is that professional website designer? It's the incomparable Jerry Lerma who is busy designing websites for the State of California University system at CalPoly Pomona. He has announced his retirement plans as of the end of this year and I want to be the first in line for his services when he's available.

He has also promised to do the yard work and maybe paint the interior of the house. Yes, the shoemaker's children have long gone barefoot – Jerry is my DH.

BUT WHAT DOES THIS ALL MEAN?
Nothing Much, Except…

Now I will be able to spend some time getting back to updating the Blog here on writing topics – I have neglected this for too long.

For example, I taught a Short Story Workshop last month to 30 members of the Los Angeles Chapter of Sisters in Crime in Pasadena, CA. They were all preparing murder stories for an upcoming blind-submission anthology and I was able to tailor the workshop directly to their needs.

A couple of weeks ago I taught a workshop for short story writers of all levels of expertise, experience and interest at the Altadena Public Library. Chief Librarian Pauline Dutton was a joy to work with, and we had a turnout of nearly 50 people!

Altadena Public Library

MORE WRITING STUFF

My Writing Space

Here is an outline I used to teach the Altadena Workshop. Feel free to let me know if you find it helpfiul.

BASIC SHORT STORY WRITING
With Kate Thornton

1. Short Stories – What Are They?
a. A Guide to short story formats/lengths
b. We won't get rich writing them

2. Basic Story Structure
a. All stories – whatever the length – have a beginning, a middle, and an ending
b. Vignettes are not stories
c. Get a GRABBER!!

3. Where Do You Get Ideas?
a. Use your head. And your hands and feet, too – and everything you've ever read
b. The Idea File

4. Getting the Story Written
a. The BIC Concept
b. The Blank Screen of Death
c. Putting together scraps – and what did I do with that Idea File?
d. Just do it now vs. Lemme get it absolutely perfect

5. Are We There Yet?
a. How do you know when it's done?
b. Formatting – what is Standard Manuscript Format?
i. Fonts, spacing, indents, electronic formats

6. Now What? What To Do With a Finished Story
a. Revise! Or, it's never really done, is it?
b. Critiques – Or, who are all these people and why are they trying to hurt my feelings?
i. Groups, Individuals and Your Sisters (in Crime, that is) Online and offline
ii. Your family & friends who are not writers
c. Submit
i. Pay vs. No Pay – why they both work
ii. Anthologies, ezines, magazines, your church bulletin and the garden club newsletter
iii. Don't forget non-fiction venues

7. QUESTIONS, ANSWERS, SPECULATION and Are You Ready To Get That Story Ready?

REFERENCES

SHORT STORY LENGTHS:

These are guidelines; numbers vary

Flash: up to 1000 words (includes Micro Fiction – 500 words and below)
Short Short: Under 2,000 words
Short story: USA 2,000--7,500 words
Short Story: UK and Commonwealth 1000 - 12,000 words
Novelette (General Fiction): 7,500--15,000 words
Novelette (SF & Fantasy): 7,500--17,500 words
Novella (General Fiction): 15,000--30,000 words
Novella (SF & Fantasy): 17,500--40,000 words
Novel (General Fiction): Over 30,000 words
Novel (SF & Fantasy): Over 40,000 words

SOME OF MY FAVORITE ONLINE GROUPS:

Short Mystery Fiction Society - http://www.shortmystery.net/
Crime & Suspense Mystery Magazine - http://www.crimeandsuspense.com/
Absolute Write Water Cooler – http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums/index.php
And their main site - http://www.absolutewrite.com/
Sisters in Crime Los Angeles - http://www.sistersincrimela.com/

A SHORT STORY BY THE MASTER HIMSELF, EDWARD D. HOCH (the most prolific mystery short story writer, well known for his regular appearances in Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine):
http://www.mysterynet.com/Christmas/mysteries/three/

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

Getting the Blog going again. Yes, it's been waaaay too long.

DH agreeing to do the websites. It feels like a whole new online life!

The rain. Okay, I am sick to pieces of it, but we need it and it gives me a great excuse to stay indoors and write or paint. And the light in the studio on a rainy day is just magnificent.

It's good to be back.

2008-08-31T06:50:00.000-07:00

PAINTING AND WRITING AND WHERE DO YOU GET THOSE IDEAS ANYWAY?

Okay, so I'm updating the blog every six months whether it needs it or not...

In the past six months, I have been painting a lot and writing a little. I guess I can't really do both at the same time, although I am convinced that the urge or drive or - well, let's face it, compulsion - to do both comes from the same place in my head, that not-too-well-ordered spot where the cups all runneth over and the glasses are never half empty or even half full, but brimming like silent fountains. It's the constant jackpot in the slot machine of my life.

Oh, yeah, I discovered casinos - "Indian Gaming" is the really polite word for what goes on in these absolutely vast gambling palaces. Full of smoke, noise, mirrors, drinks, music, over-the-top waterfalls, costumes and glitz, they are fascinating, repellent, beautiful and crazy. There are no clocks, and very little sense of time. Step through the doors into a different world, and live a science fiction vignette.

It can get pricey, though - the video slot machines can cost you if you don't win at least part of the time. And for me, it's a long drive at high gas prices. But the people I see and the ideas I get in the two casinos I have frequented make the trips and the cost worth it. And I have won a couple of times, so I am breaking even on the money.

The other big gamble I took this year was giving in to the painting compulsion. I began painting in oils even though I didn't know anything about painting, oils, equipment, technique or, well, anything at all. Also, since I don't have the use of my left side & I was left-handed before the stroke, I didn't have anything to paint with. I took an online class in how to mix oil pigments, what turpentine is for and how to gesso a stretched canvas. Actually, I learned a lot more than that, but when I felt ready I bought paints, oil medium, brushes, canvas, - a ton of stuff is needed - and started my first paintings. I already knew what to paint as I had been having obsessive visions of these paintings for quite some time. I started off using the brush in my mouth, but finally got the hang of using my right hand for much of the actual application of color. I got a beautiful easel for my birthday and turned the office into an office-studio.

I am delighted to report that my first ever public showing was at the DA Center Art Gallery in the Childhood Dreams show where I had two paintings on display. I can't tell you how thrilling it was to see my stuff on the wall right next to established artists.

This new direction has led me to at least think about updating my website to include links to the painting side of things, so over the course of the next hundred years I'll be working on that, too.

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

The clean smell of oil & turpentine making the house somehow seem more expansive.

The bits and pieces of green shrubs defiantly growing up through the blackened and charred remains of our beautiful hillside which burned this year.

The new babies this year - my niece Bekki had a boy and my niece Susie also had a boy. Two boys! Woohoo!

2008-02-28T07:13:00.000-08:00

WRITING STUFF: Non-Fiction for the Fiction Writer

Every now and then I find myself researching details for a short story - you know, how tall the Empire State Building really is, what color the suit was that Jackie Kennedy wore in Dallas or if Hyperion and Sunset Boulevard ever meet - when I come across something I really want to write about.

Sometimes it's an opinion I have, a strong one, and I want to tell the world how I feel and exactly why my feelings on the subject are the right ones. Sometimes it's a discovery, either in the natural world or about human nature - and I want to share it as badly as any Nobel Prize winner or Times reporter.

What are these weird urges? What do I do with them?

Well, I can use them in fiction, but that's the easy answer as I can use anything and everything in fiction. It's one of the reasons I love writing fiction.

I can also write something entirely different. But it takes a tremendous push to get me to stick my toe in the icy waters of non-fiction. Non-fiction has so many forms, outlets, venues, and rules!

But Non Fiction PAYS A LOT OF MONEY! (When compared to Short Fiction, which is what I usually write.) Once, I wrote a 4,000 word story, one of my favorites, and it took me two months and a lot of rewrites, editing and work. I got paid about $100 for it. During that same time, I wrote an article on how to choose the right cookware for your kitchen, and included two photographs. I got about $1500 for that one.

So here are my methods for Painless Non Fiction:

(I'm not including journalism or news reportage here as that's way beyond my experience, and probably not anywhere near painless!)

Know What You Have and then Decide Where it Goes

1. Is it your opinion?

If it's your opinion, think about it for a while. Then try writing a coherent document based on what you think. Do you feel passionately about politics? Religion? Animals? Okay, tell us what you feel or think and why. Why is this idea - the central idea of your piece - so important? What can you do to make a difference? How can others help? Are there consequences to the reader if they do not see your point? Make it concise, with every word contributing to the persuasion of your position.

And if it's your opinion on a controversial subject, do you want to post it on your blog where a potential employer/your mom/a federal agent will see it? Know the line between bravery and foolishness. Bravery is good and you should have the courage of your convictions when you write for publication. Okay, do you want to publish it in the local paper? That's what the Op-Ed page is all about. Essays and opinion pieces can be the best form of writing and the most absorbing form of reading. They can inspire thought and action. Think Thomas Paine.

Or think Your Blog, if it is just musings and advice like what you get here - this type of opinion is primarily for entertainment, and there's no money coming in, let me assure you!

2. Is it an article?

If it's an article, make sure you have done all your homework. You may think you know everything there is to know about model railroads, beekeeping, how to create a quilt in a day, or how to appreciate modern art. But make sure you research more than just your experience - get a well-balanced article by exploring other experiences too. You may need photos or drawings to make your article more clear or approachable.

Articles are everywhere - increase your chance of publication success by carefully reading the guidelines for every magazine or journal to which you submit. Do they want clips of previously-published pieces? Do they take electronic submission? Do you need to submit a proposal for the article first? Check them out - read the periodical to which you submit. Is what you have what they publish? What are their rates? Do they pay by the line, word, inch or whole piece?

3. Is what you have an original or academic piece of research?

Okay, this is where university and professional journals get their articles. Take the time investigate the procedures involved in publishing original research. Do you have your research well-documented? Is it ready for public consumption? Do you need peer-review processes?

Chances are, if you have original academic research you already know how to get it published in the proper places.

This is just a quick overview of making the transitions between Fiction and Non Fiction - there's no rule that says you have to write one or the other - many successful writers support themselves with magazine articles while slogging away at their Great Novel.

So, if you haven't tried writing a non-fiction piece, why not part those waters with your big toe - or computer keyboard? Take a chance on a Letter to the Editor of your local paper, or a how-to for your local gardening club journal. Or go for the big time and see the vast markets for professionally-written articles and fillers in magazines, papers and journals of all types.

Good luck!

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS - All in Pomona!

Bruce Emerton, my neighbor who also has a beautiful Cliff May mid-century modern house. His tenants, Justin & Michele, are a lovely young couple busily doing the restoration on the house, and I was lucky enough to see them all yesterday. Bruce had to go to court over the landscaping in the front yard, but the judge dismissed the case when he saw the photos of the house - it really is a lovely xeriscape garden, like mine. The local Code Compliance person doesn't know squat about our type of garden, and cited him. She didn't know the difference between a banana tree and a bird of paradise flower, for example. Oh, and she thought the dormant red fountain grass was "weeds." That's Pomona for you - and our city is even named for the goddess of fruits and plants!

Bruce's house

Lunch at Tropical Mexico - it's my favorite local joint for excellent Mexican food. It's a hole in the wall in an industrial area, and it has been in business for years. They have the very best soups, which come with a tray of chopped onions, limes, cilantro and chilis. It's one of the great things about Pomona.

When Futures Collide and Bunny Gunner. When Futures Collide is my favorite furniture store in Pomona. It's a fabulous collection of mid-century stuff, from iconic to the just plain weird. The proprietor, Michael, can tell you stories about this city from the early days when he and his brothers were growing up and went to high school with my husband.

Photograph of Second Street Pomona by Sally Egan

Bunny Gunner is the framers next door, where proprietor Susie and artist Juan Thorpe both reside and work. Susie is a master framer who has done practically every piece of art in my house. Both places are on Second Street, where the Mall used to be. The fountains featuring Betty Davenport Ford, Peter Voulkos and Millards Sheets are still outside, working and looking beautiful. A truly Beautiful Thing.

Photographs of Peter Voulkos and Millard Sheets fountains by Sally Egan

2008-02-20T09:36:00.000-08:00

WRITING STUFF: HEY - LOOK WHAT I FOUND!

I know, I know, I haven't been around for awhile – that's because when you're not working, you don't have any time. It's the writer's paradox – the less time you have available in a structured setting, the more writing you can squeeze in. But a completely unstructured setting, one filled with friends, family, volunteer ideas, shopping, chores, pets, online games and email correspondence leaves very little time to actually write.

Okay, that's my story and I'm sticking to it. I'm also looking forward to working again, albeit part time, in a couple of months. It will be good for me in so many ways.

But in the meantime, I discovered something pretty nifty – two somethings, actually. I discovered a couple of stories I put away to "cool" and which I had completely forgotten about. Re-reading them now is like a shot of excitement. They're not bad, not bad at all, pretty much ready to submit, in fact. Wow, it's like a cosmic reprieve for my deplorable lack of discipline.

Maybe that partially-written novel on the thumb drive can get a little attention, too. Don't waste those second chances.

SOUTHWEST ARIZONA STAND DOWN, March 14, 15, 16 – Yuma, AZ

I will be spending a few days with my brother in Yuma, AZ next month, volunteering at the SOUTHWEST ARIZONA STAND DOWN, an annual event aimed at assisting veterans, particularly those who are homeless and in need, but also all veterans. It will be three days of food, entertainment, medical assistance, legal assistance, job opportunities, supplies, counseling, shoes, clothing, haircuts, hot showers, a place to sleep, child & pet care, you name it – all free to veterans. This year there will be a new feature, the Women Veterans Resource Center, where I will be volunteering.

I am so proud of my brother, Bill Thornton, a disabled Viet Nam vet, who is a prime force behind this annual event. He has arranged an amazing array of sponsors and donors, as well as speakers, entertainment and organization. But I am devastated by the need. It hurts me to think of people who offered their all to our country going without basic needs. And now we are seeing women vets in dire need, too, many of them survivors of sexual trauma and with children. If you think the government provides for them, you are mistaken. The lack of government support for veterans is a national shame.

Here is a link to more information – please take a look. And support this worthwhile effort if you can. At least remember to thank a vet for their service. They did it for you.

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

Sue Ann Jaffarian with her new Odelia Grey mystery novel. Catch her at the Yorba Linda Public Library in Orange County on Saturday, March 1st at 1pm. Also appearing will be award-winning mystery writers Naomi Hirahara and Aileen Baron. I'll be there to cheer them on!

Here's a pic of Sue Ann (right) and our mutual friend Susan (left) who is having a birthday the same day as the library program, so I think there will be a bit of a party afters!

Mischa Adams and her granddaughter, Maggie. Mischa is writing the hilarious Two Old Bats at the Will Reading while toddler Maggie is already adept at sign language and is starting to speak, too. Hooray for articulate women!

Steve Zurian and his scary first lines. Steve, who has been threatening to collaborate with me on a thriller for years, started without me and has sent me the opening for a slam-bang mystery set in scenic Santa Barbara. Well, as scenic as the body of an old archaeologist in a man-made cave can be. I'm not sure I can write up to his standard (I know I can't match his inimitable style!) but it's there on the burner for me, waiting for my discipline to kick in and remind me how much I love being immersed in the story, particularly when I'm writing it.
Be careful out there, folks. And keep writing.

2008-01-11T08:30:00.000-08:00

AFTER A LONG HIATUS...

I'm back.

Well, sort of.

I had a wonderful time in December – a cruise (my first ever) with Sister in Crime Sue Ann Jaffarian and New Friend Susan G. It was a fabulous time – who'd a thought there was a place with non-stop entertainment, food, service, fun and a gentle roll to put you to sleep? But it wasn't all pleasant - who'd a thought there was a gaudy, noisy, commercial trough full of pigs and their ill-mannered piglets, all binge eating, binge drinking and being simultaneously obnoxious? If you didn't pay much attention to the other 2600+ guests, it was a wonderful time and place.

(At one point, the indomitable Susan told the people sitting behind her in the fancy dining room that their children – a pair of screaming nine-year olds – were disturbing our conversation. Three women at the offending table of twelve promptly broke into tears and the kids were stunned into silence. Susan is one tough lady – I like her!)

One of the highlights of the cruise was Sue Ann's talk on writing mystery books and book publishing. There was a nice turnout and lots of questions and interest from several incipient as well as a couple of experienced writers. Sue Ann generously donated books to the ship's library, too. (That's me, steering the ship...)

January hasn't been that great – I suffered a fall this week, the first fall I have had in a couple of years. Looks like I'm going to have to wear my leg brace with my nightie now for stability (Jeeze, there's a picture!) I wasn't seriously hurt, just a wrenched foot and a bruise the size of Nebraska on my left leg. Got a doctor's appointment today for the all clear – I know there were no broken bones. (Thank you, Fosamax.)

Sigh. Oh, well. Just gotta be more careful.

On a lighter note, I got a terrific present for Christmas from my DH – an Alphasmart NEO. Sue Ann had one with her on the cruise and I was much taken with it. It's an electronic notebook, weighs less than a magazine, fits in my capacious purse and holds a book or two or three. Perfect for writers on the go (I saw Sue Ann working up on deck without any visible means of connections or heavy laptops or anything but this nifty device.) It is also ideal for someone like me who has the use of only one hand, not the old writing hand, and cannot write with a pen but can tippy-tap a keyboard like crazy.

I am looking forward to writing more and more, but now it means off the computer, so I won't be cruising the Absolute Write board or my favorite word game sites as much. Well, that's the idea, anyway.

I hope 2008 brings us a world of delightful change – everything from weight loss (you go, Sue Ann, and I myself have dropped 20 lbs!) to publishing to finishing that project, novel or story. Good days ahead, fellow writers! Exciting days, interesting days, what more can you ask for?

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

The rains stopped. Yes, we needed the water. No, we didn't need the flooding and mudslide danger.

My Uncle Jimmy's funeral. He was a great guy and I wish I had known him. But my Cousins Barb & Janet and their Mom, my Aunt Gerri (my Mother's sister) came out for the funeral and I got to see them along with my brother, who lives in Arizona. I also got to meet Uncle Jim's wife, Virgie. It was like getting a whole new wing of family I never knew existed. I guess a funeral can be a beautiful thing. I will detail the high-speed chase of the hearse on the 91 freeway in a future post…

Before the funeral with my brother Bill. Doesn't he look nice in a suit?

My brother's work with Homeless Vets in Arizona. I'll be devoting a whole post to the Arizona Stand Down in the future too.

Be careful out there.

2007-12-07T13:00:00.000-08:00

Writing Stuff: Novel Ideas – The Heart Stopping Newbies

I have a friend who – for the past ten or so years – has been talking about the great epic novel we should write together. I always treated this as something that in theory sounded like a lot of fun, but in practice would be some kind of writer's hell in which I would be constantly either trying to make sense out of his ideas or cringing at the prose.

Funny how we practicing writers get these self-important ideas about how good we are in relation to people who just talk about writing.

Well, this week, Steve Zurian sent me his idea of opening lines for the epic. And it is maybe the best opening paragraph I have ever read.

So now I have a whole other dilemma, or rather several. Do I try to write a second paragraph that picks up? Do I try to plot based on this first line? OMG, do I even go there when he is so obviously full of the kind of talent I have only dreamed of?

Sigh. For a long time, I have waited for his first line. Be careful what you wish for. I know he's a genius of a particular type – witty, funny, interested in a lot of disparate things, exasperating, and well-read – and he listens to the Red Army Chorus and Mannheim Steamroller with equal enthusiasm.

But I never thought he would write the perfect opening lines. They are so good I wish mightily they were mine. I can't post them here, as they belong to him, but let me assure you that they combine snap, wit, and the California freeway system.

I heard another person deliver an excerpt from their first novel at the recent Los Angeles Sisters in Crime Holiday Bash and pre-published writers' party. Mischa Adams read from her novel, Two Old Bats at the Will Reading and I damn near split a gut. I had to stifle my laughing so I could hear each line.

Now I'm really in trouble – how do I slog on with my so-called novel when there's all this incredible talent out there? Will hard work be enough? Who's gonna read my stuff when there's Steve Zurian and Mischa Adams out there?

How do you handle the doubts that crop up – the legitimate ones and the ones that are your own worst enemies?

How do you get back to your writing when real genius puts it to shame?

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

Good news on the weight loss front (and sides and back) – slower, but it's still coming off. I'm used to the meal plan now, but maybe my metabolism is used to it, too.

The Pomona Heritage Holiday Dinner – Several people in the historic Lincoln Park District opened their lovely craftsman homes to a progressive dinner. The food was excellent, the company diverse and the houses beautiful. Check out your own local Historical Society or Heritage group and see what beautiful surprises are lurking in your neighborhood.

The rains – it rained last week and this week. In spite of the mudslide and flash flood dangers - especially in the fire-torn areas - and the absolutely abominable traffic, the rains are so beautiful and we need the water.

Be careful out there.

2007-11-26T08:24:00.000-08:00

WRITING STUFF: JUMP START YOUR WRITING

Chapter Two – Find Yourself a Place

Remember Jessica Fletcher? She wrote all those murder mysteries – presumably cozies – in the comfort of her turn-of-the-century, meticulously-restored virtual mansion in the mythic and friendly New England village of Cabot Cove. In reality, it was a California coastal exterior and a rather nice studio interior, and of course, she wrote nothing as she was a fictional character herself, although the fiction persists and there is a whole mystery series written by "Jessica Fletcher" and available today.

As a well-off widow with means, she had the time to be a busybody and the money to pursue not only the murderers, but also a life of ease when it came to tapping out her tomes on that gorgeous old typewriter.

Okay, that's fiction. What do we do in real life?

In real life, we work at other jobs, take care of the house and kids, and deplore the lack of space, time, money and machines. We write in the kitchen, the dining room, a corner of the bedroom or the garage. We write at Starbuck's or in the park, or on the bus or at work. We use a pen or pencil, a big work station, a laptop, or even a typewriter.

We write cozies, hard-boiled noir, police procedurals, character studies, science fiction, film scripts, short stories, memoirs, journals, magazine articles and blogs. We write for money, for fun, for everything in between, and for our readers and ourselves.

I have been absent from the blog for almost a month – and guess what I've been doing: what, writing, you say? How about procrastinating and looking for a place to write that feels as good as the one I had back when I was working and had little time and a lot more discipline.

I needed to find myself a place, the way the dog turns around countless times on that old blanket, or the cat scratches that worn out chair pad to ribbons before settling in with a sigh.

It's got to feel right and not get in the way of writing. Pleasant, but neutral, no big distractions to block out, no spectacular views or the sound of running water (a hundred trips to the bathroom taught me this one) or the distracting smells of bread baking, dirty diapers or an incipient electrical fire.

Gotta admit, I found it – it's not to so much just the place, but the combination of the right time and a good place. For me, it's mornings in my old corner of the guest room office, with the diffused light behind me and the comforting distant sounds of the dryer and the trash guys picking up the garbage.

So try to find yours – it's half the battle.

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

CHAIR CUSHIONS Okay, here's the promised photo of the new cushions on the Danish chairs. In fact, here's a before and after shot, with just the edge of the old, worn out brown cushion visible – the new mid-mod pattern is beautiful, no?

WEIGHT LOSS And one more beautiful thing: my blood sugar seems to be in the normal ranges and I have lost 15 pounds.

The "before" picture is me 15 pounds ago, but the "after" picture – one of me last weekend taking pictures at an old Joseph Lautner-designed motel in Palm Desert – is a work in progress. I am determined to lose all the weight I gained a few years ago when I had the stroke. I know, it's a tiny image and I need to get a better one, but I want to lose another 10 pounds before I take a "real" picture of myself.

A Truly Beautiful Thing: Thanksgiving Dinner with my friend Nancy's family. We have had Thanksgiving with them many times over the years – and have lived through the loss of parents, in-laws and friends. But this Thanksgiving we celebrated the marriage of one of the nephews and the whole cycle of renewal and thanks.

Hope your Thanksgiving was memorable and happy.

2007-11-05T07:28:00.000-08:00

WRITING STUFF: JUMP START YOUR WRITING
Chapter One – Find Yourself Some Ilk

Okay, I tell myself – enough slacking off! The dishes/housework/gardening/basket weaving/doctor's appointment/video game/TV show is done. Now write. Awww, do I hafta? I don't wanna!

Back when I was working the day job from dark dawn to darker dusk, I managed to cram in a minute here and a minute there, eagerly budgeting my limited time to do something I really felt compelled to do. But there's nothing like a block of free time to make you want to do something – anything – but write.

So I broke down and did something yesterday that I haven't done for nearly a year: I attended a Sisters in Crime L.A. Chapter meeting. "Hello, my name is Kate and I'm a writer."

Okay, it was more like "Whoa, look, it's Kate – I wondered whatever happened to her!" and "Hey! I remember you!" (peers at name tag) "Oh, uh, maybe not…"

The speakers were great (check out the website for the program – the slides were grisly, but Mr. Nicholson was the nicest guy in the world) and the camaraderie was even greater. Afters, Sue Ann Jaffarian and I went out to dinner and brainstormed about short stories, novels and ideas for stories. The latter ranged from the ridiculous to the truly sublime. I came away eager to write and back on track.

So maybe what we solitary time-wasters really need is the occasional personal interaction with others of our ilk. This is great if the ilk is local. But if all your ilk are too far away for you to get to, then perhaps email and internet contact can help too.

Sue Ann's witty banter was terrific – but what really helped me was to sit there and tell her my story. "Well, there's this woman who's on vacation…" By the time I got to the guy in the Toyota with the Glock, she had all kinds of questions and suggestions. And by the time she told me about a Young Adult book she was thinking of, I was excitedly interrupting with, "Yeah, and maybe she could have an interest, like Ancient Egypt or dinosaurs or statistics or something…"

So today's blog is a bit short because I am eager to get on with my story. After all, there's got to be a connection between the guy with the gun and the lost puppy…

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

Gary Hamilton's party last Friday night. He's the best party host I have ever met and a genuinely nice guy.

The puppies and kitties all sleeping together in the kennel this morning. The weather has turned chilly with the loss of Daylight Savings time. The season has changed from Summer to Holiday.

I picked out the kookiest mid-century modern fabric for the new cushions on my Danish modern chairs – I'll photo them when they're done. The place is a real Jetson's house!

2007-10-24T11:39:00.000-07:00

NEWS FLASH!

FLASHES OF SPECULATION is back! Go have a loverly (and free) read today!

2007-10-24T09:17:00.000-07:00

WRITING STUFF: WHAT SCARES US TO DEATH?

Last weekend I was on a panel at the Burbank Public Library with a group of interesting writers from Sisters in Crime. Gayle Bartos-Poole coordinated, and Gay Degani was our moderator. But there was no moderation among the other participants: Mari Sloan, Christa Faust, Lori Wolf and myself.

We were there to discuss what makes a story scary – and what scares us in general.

Before I go any further, I want to add that right up front, sitting with her Daddy, was a delightful ten-year-old writer named Lynette, who graciously allowed me to critique one of her own stories about poisonous plants from outer space. The inclusion of a child in the audience forced us to moderate our language, probably a good thing with me there.

Gayle brought props, so across the table we had an assortment of bones, skulls, a ghost and vintage (and handmade) Hallowe'en gear. Gayle knows how to set the scene.

Mari based much of her story, Beaufort Falls, on her Southern upbringing, which included odd relatives like a jail-matron great-granny. Her characters included a cross-dressing serial killer with a fondness for decapitation.

Christa Faust is well-known for her hard-boiled and noir work – the only female writer (so far) to have a book published by Hardcase Crime. With her diminutive figure encased in fishnet tights, a black lacy bra and a little bitty dress, her now-platinum pixie hair done up in barrettes resembling horns and her winged tattoos, she looks like the epitome of a naughty girl. She is, in fact, a sharp cookie with an even sharper wit and a tremendous amount of publishing and writing savvy (she was the only full-time writer in the group.) Put me on a panel – or in a room – with her anytime. She holds the audience spellbound and knows how to sell books, too.

Lori Wolf is a sweet and unassuming lady with a quick smile. Her books, Parrot on a Limb, and Gothic Doo-Wop blend magic realism with quirky humor. There was nothing frightening about Lori, but her books send shivers up my spine. And she knows how to tell a ripping good story.

Gay Degani was a bang-up moderator – she and I will co-host a short story panel at the San Dimas Public Library on November --. Funny, frightening and a skilled writer, her stories have recently appeared in Landmarked for Murder (with me!) and in the new Little Sisters in Crime anthology.

So what scares us to death?

Well, zombies and vampires and creatures (or plants) from outer space.

Stephen King, Dean Koontz and all the usual suspects, of course. And Edgar Allen Poe.

And we discussed the current vogue of over-the-top violence movies and stories, the disgust-me-with-gore trends which feed a different sort of appetite.

But there's something else. The scariest things are not the ones busily going bump in the night. The scariest things of all are what Christa called the Adult Fears: loneliness, the fear of betrayal, and failing health. The loss of a loved one, a child or beloved partner. War and its inevitable and appalling consequences. Financial destitution. And this week, in my area, the great equalizer of rampaging and indiscriminate fires. The things that really scare us are sometimes too difficult to write about in our usual stories.

Our scary stories offer us a way of dealing with the real horror of our everyday lives in a way that lessens the real fears even as we are reaching for a light to snap on while enjoying Stephen King.

So enjoy the season of scary stories, and the thrill of bumps in the night that can't really hurt you.

And temper your own scary stories with hope.

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

Being diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes. Now I can deal with it. I was so afraid my symptoms were of something much, much worse (see above.) I am enjoying my new meal plan and have lost 7 of the pounds I so desperately need to lose. And I feel terrific!

Being back to the blog – I have been gone for three weeks of mostly medical stuff. Now I'm looking forward to getting back to my writing.

A flock of Canada geese flying overhead yesterday, escaping the smoke of the fires. Film of people rescuing horses from the flames. A kind and generous soul who opened her several acres in a fire-free zone to house and care for animals endangered by the fires.

The best in people always comes out in adversity.

2007-09-25T15:22:00.000-07:00

WRITING STUFF: WHERE YOU AT?

Where do you do your writing?

I try to write at work sometimes, but it just doesn't work out. I need to write in the area I have created for myself at home. Non-writers don't always understand how this works.

"Why don't you just write at work?" they ask. "You know, when things are slow…"

Well, things are seldom slow, I need peace and quiet, I like my own keyboard, and where's my drink? Oh, and I don't like to be interrupted, especially by email, the phone or my boss.

And I don't want it to bite me, either, somewhere down the line when someone throws it up snottily with a, "Well, we were working, but Kate, you know, was writing." It's pretty much right up there with conducting your own home porn business from work - even though everyone is secretly interested and almost all of them think they could do it.

So I write at home. I have a nifty little setup in a spare bedroom with a desk and a nice chair and enough space for the computer, a drink and a snack. No one bothers me in there, either.

My space will become even niftier when I get the garage remodel done and move my "office" out there where I can construct a mammoth desk and have immediate access to the outdoors, a small refrigerator and the laundry area. I get ideas while doing the laundry, okay? Nothing like dirty clothes to get the brain working…

But we are not all the same. I have seen other writers on the go: at Starbuck's or the local coffee shop, at the Library, the park and the Mall. I have seen them sitting in their cars, laptops balanced between bites of some kind of fast food, or typing away waiting to pick up their kids.

So, tell me. Where do you write? And what would your dream writing space be? And would it include the sweet, gentle sound of the dryer?

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

The flight of the big and little birds. I saw three herons in flight this morning. Yesterday I watched the Hummingbird Wars at the new feeders.

Tiny flowers creeping through the garden, most of them deliberately planted, but a few interesting volunteers.

A cocktail party at my friend Linda Garner's beautiful mid-century house. Exquisite house, fun guests, lots of great food and drinks!

2007-09-17T07:09:00.000-07:00

WRITING STUFF: DID I FORGET TO TURN OFF THE STOVE?

Well, maybe I just forgot to have my character complete an action which - if left unaccomplished - would have catastrophic or unintentionally funny consequences in the real world. Or maybe I rewrote something, forgetting that everything in the known universe is connected, and when I didn't correct everything down the line, the whole thread of existence was threatened.

Loose ends need some tying up, or at least a sort of gathering and tucking.

Some memorable examples from personal experience:

The Romance That Went Nowhere. In this scenario, a Main Character or a strong supporting character has a romantic twinge or encounter of some sort. In the real world, they would follow up on this, but in The Book (you know, the one you're writing) you forgot all about it and it just disappeared. Wait a minute - that kiss meant something, didn't it? Didn't it?

The Zombie Subplot. You are just typing along, doing revisions and edits like crazy, and that subplot you decided to get rid of gets excised thanks to highlight and delete. Well, most of it, anyway. But the reference to it three chapters on is still there, a lonely undead reference to confusion…

I Love You. What's Your Name Again? Naming characters is such a personal thing. Baby books, phone books, your relatives and favorite writers, characters and pets can all provide inspiration. But if you decide to re-name someone, remember to change all references to that particular name. I have read real, published books where the MC starts out with one name and inexplicably has another midway through the action.

Only Her Hairdresser Knows for Sure. It was like the name - when you changed your MC's name from Betty Sue to Magdalena, you changed her golden locks to raven tresses. Or maybe you just forgot what color her hair was when you referred to her shiny brown bob in Chapter Two, but had the handsome and daring Brash Hardly grabbing her long, titian hair in Chapter Four. Oh, and was Brash always bald?

The History Time Forgot. Sometimes I do a little data dump of history up front, getting warmed up for the real story later. Parts of this historical essay can be important later on, but other parts, like her father's occupation or the story about a childhood trauma, might just be me, setting the stage for myself. If they stick out and have no relevance to the story, go back and get rid of them or they'll distract your reader, who somewhere is still wondering about those historical incidents that never showed up again.

The Stuff You Left Out Went Bad. Sometimes it's the other side of the coin you have to worry about. Don't leave out the important details because you know them. If it doesn't get written, how can your reader know?

Now, did I forget to turn off the printer before I left the house? You know how those old bits of electronics heat up…

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

A fabulous dinner party at my friend Nancy's. Five of us celebrating with excellent food, a wonderful lime cake, and a promise of more celebrating in a few weeks.

Getting all the laundry done throughout the day and ending up with everything clean and folded. Clean sheets on the bed!

Happy Birthday to my friend Bill Sanders - an icon of the furniture design world, raconteur extraordinaire and all-around great guy. And I loved his new haircut, too!

2007-09-11T08:43:00.000-07:00

WRITING STUFF: GETTING ABSORBED IN THE STORY

The writing is so good it absorbs me.

I am walking the Cornish seacoast, choppy wind in my hair, thinking about hot cups of tea. Thank you, P.D. James - you put me right in there, eyes welling with tears.

Or maybe I am thrown back into my old Counterintelligence days, thinking about how interconnected tradecraft techniques are, especially when peripheral people are drawn into a job, or when you recognize something on the other side of the fence that you always thought was yours alone. Thank you, William Gibson - you got my stomach in knots, sweating over the old paranoias.

Getting drawn in is what it's all about. Losing yourself in the story - it's why you read, isn't it?

And isn't it why you write, too?

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

The Calendar that tells me I only have thirteen more work days left.

The dish of M&Ms on the coffee table. Only a few at a time are disappearing - DH & I are both being very controlled and sensible. Besides, I remember that time I went face down in 5lbs. of them.

Rum cakes from Tortuga Rum. I just ordered a chocolate one for someone special's birthday.

I know it's September 11. I'll remember the past, but I won't let it stop me. The future is too important.

2007-08-31T09:46:00.000-07:00

WRITING STUFF: PLAYING THE "WHAT IF" GAME

I'm stuck again on my ms - this is a recurring problem and it makes me restless and irritated and sends me out looking for something - anything - to do that doesn't involve writing.

So I play the "what if" game. I make myself play at least ten times a go. Here it is, as I played it this morning:

What if my MC, a nice middle-aged lady sorta like me only much more brave when it comes to looking in peoples' windows or talking to strangers or going off into the woods alone at night than I am, knocks on the door of the dilapidated house and:

1. Nothing much happens. No one's home.

2. The little girl who lost her dog answers, is delighted to be reunited with Fluffy, and the music for happy endings starts to play.

3. No one answers, so she looks in the window and sees that the house is empty.

4. No one answers, so she looks in the window and sees some pretty awful furniture and a living room really ready for Candace Olson's Divine Design or Trading Spaces. Clear plastic slipcovers are on the 1970's orange crushed velvet couch, and an overflowing olive green ceramic ashtray is still smoldering. A paisley caftan covers the part of the body visible on the floor. A pair of scarred and veiny legs stick out from it, with ugly, misshapen toes painted in chipped layers of Revlon's Fire 'n' Ice nail polish.

5. No one answers, so she looks in the window and sees the words "Go Away Doggies" scrawled in blood across the far wall. A tiny headless mannequin slumps in a corner, awash in more blood. At least it looks like a mannequin...

6. No one answers, and the front windows are curtained, so she goes around to the back door, which is wide open, and swinging off its hinges.

7. No one answers, so she goes around to the back. There is no back door, and the two small windows are high off the ground and appear to be painted shut. The unpainted cellar door is chained and locked with an old rusty padlock. She hears the whimpering of a small animal, and realizes it is not the little dog in her arms. She puts the little dog down and it runs through the waist-high weeds, yipping at the noise which seems to be coming from a shed.

8. A pretty lady in an apron opens the door and smiles. Our MC is swept in on a cloud of fresh coffee and Chanel 19 into a spotless living room. Music plays softly and the coffee table is set with an old-fashioned coffee service, china plates and freshly-baked scones. Sunlight streams through the windows, and our MC wonders why the outside of the house is such a mess when the inside looks like the cover of Better Homes and Gardens circa 1959.

9. A sound of crashing and shouting is heard, then a woman in sweats with her hair tied back in a scarf answers the door. "Well? What do you want?" she demands. "If you're selling something, just turn your butt around right now and get the hell out!" The woman looks behind her into the dim, foul-smelling gloom. "And you just stay right where you are Missy, if you don't want another taste of that switch! Little bastard, you drive me crazy!"

10. She waits for a few minutes, then knocks again. A shuffling noise can be heard inside, a sort of slow dragging. Then the locks on the door are undone slowly, one by one. She counts five. That's a lot of locks for one run-down little house at the edge of nowhere, she thinks. What do you need all those locks out here for? The door creaks a little as it opens, just a tight hinge, not a full-fledged Halloween scary noise. But enough to give her an involuntary shudder.

Okay, if that doesn't get you started, I don't know what will. Which one do you think I went with? Or maybe I just kept on going and wrote something completely different.

The point is, I wrote something. And once you get going, you just keep on until you run out of steam or have to go to the bathroom.

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

We put some low-voltage lighting in the back this week - the timber bamboo lit from underneath looks beautiful.

I checked the calendar - only four more weeks at this job, then off to new things.

We had a short but intense electrical storm Wednesday night. It is a highly unusual thing to happen here, but the sky was very beautiful. And the little dogs got to come in and hide under the covers.

2007-08-22T10:25:00.000-07:00

WRITING STUFF: DOING THE RESEARCH - REAL PLACES

I got asked a question the other day - someone wanted to know if it was okay to use a real town, with real places and real people, in a work of fiction.

Well, yes, it is.

But if you are going to use real stuff, you need to get it right. Here are a few hints.

SETTINGS: Real places can lend a lot of verisimilitude to a fictional work. I used to live in Pasadena, CA and I loved seeing landmarks in print. Wow, I thought, they're on the corner of Del Mar and California! What a thrill! These characters are in my town!

But wait - Del Mar and California run parallel - there is no corner of those two streets. The irritation I felt was out of proportion to the booboo, and it made me want to put the book down. A simple drive-by - or look-see at a map - would have fixed it. The author lost credibility with me in that instant.

If you are setting your story in a real place, it's okay to make up the details: Smokey Joe's Bar and Grill might be a figment of your imagination. Your characters may live in buildings that don't really exist in the real town. They might work at fictional shops, factories, offices or clinics, or eat at fictional taco stands or drink in fictional hotel bars. They might shop in real stores, though. They might pull into the real gas station or the real dry cleaners or the real post office.

So how do you know what to make fictional and when to use the real thing?

If you are using a real town for your setting, use just enough detail to set the mood. You don't need to describe every single thing, but there should be something about this place - a mood, a season, its geographical position or history - that makes you want to set something there in the first place. So be accurate geographically and with any major landmarks. If you use real streets, be familiar with them and know where they go. Know which neighborhoods are residential and which are commercial or deserted or where the wharf is. Know why you want to use it as a setting.

If you use real stores or businesses, remember they are your background, not your story. Don't bad mouth real businesses. If your character has a bad experience in a store or diner or somewhere, make it fictional. You don't want to libel anyone's business. Your fictional story does not depend on absolute reality of setting, so only use it as a seasoning.

PEOPLE: What about using real people in your fiction? Can you do this? Well, yes.

Public and historical figures may be used in your fiction. Keep in mind that these were/are real people and as such, may be used for mood. But be careful - you do not want hordes of lawyers screwing up your story.

You may mention public figures: "Mayor Quimby's office was in the historic City Hall, and the Mayor was strolling the gardens. He was an imposing figure and he waved to us as we passed." No problem there. "He eyed my companion and I suddenly remembered all the gossip about his sex-offender status." Okay, not so good. Don't malign public figures as they can sue you.

You may mention celebrities: "We hoped to see Brad Pitt, but all we got were glimpses of Dr. Phil and Scarlett Johanssen." "I thought it was Melanie, but it turned out to be Cher walking a small dog." Watch what you say - a lot of celebrities make a lot of money by suing folks who print inaccurate or awful stuff about them. If you need to be mean, make up a celeb.

Historic figures: Okay, here you have much more leeway as most of these folks are dead. The dead can't sue you for libel. You can have them in lots of situations, by name.

TRADEMARKS & CORPORATIONS: In the movies, this is known as product placement. It's tricky!

If the product must be named - Coke ™ instead of cola, Kleenex ™ instead of tissue, you gotta use that little trademark symbol and use the product name correctly. If you refer to companies, use their corporate names correctly and watch what you or your characters say about them. If you need to crash a plane, poison a town or expose a scandal, use a fictional company. If you attribute unsavory things to a real company, they can sue you.

And keep in mind the world changes. Remember 2001: A Space Odyssey? Pan Am was the carrier. Uh, Pan Am is long gone.

So, you can use reality in your fiction to help make it believable. I love reading stories set in places I know, with reality sprinkled in liberally in the form of real cars and real foods and other real stuff. It gives me a connection with the characters and the story. But your writing needs to be so good that everything in your story can be made up and still make me suspend my disbelief for the whole satisfying experience.

I look forward to reading your story - but don't have anyone meeting on the corner of Del Mar and California in Pasadena, okay?

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

The irrigation ditches, drying up from the weeks of high temperatures and drought, and choked with duckweed, but still providing a weird sanctuary for the few remaining water birds.

The new glass in our clerestory windows - it's so clean!

The chocolate cake at the local fast food joint. Heaven!

2007-08-15T08:34:00.000-07:00

WRITING STUFF:

Are you an Honorable Recipient of Freedom?

I know it's not a holiday - but I was taken with the writing and the sentiments of this article published in the newsletter of a veteran's group.

My brother is a disabled Viet Nam veteran - yesterday was his birthday, and he gave me a present! He wrote this article for South West Arizona Stand Down, a veteran's group in which he volunteers. He wrote this in response to some folks in his town who were saying unpleasant things about a homeless person.

Are you an Honorable Recipient of Freedom?

by William J. Thornton

In America, on any given night there are as many as 275,000 American Military veterans without a place to sleep. Nearly all have Honorable Discharges from Military Service to our country defending our freedoms. 23 to 40% of all the homeless persons in America are veterans of military service. Nearly 500,000 veterans experience homelessness every year. Many are veterans of the War on Terrorism. You’ve seen them here in town.

They are the few, the proud, the soldiers, sailors and airmen that suffer from flashbacks and nightmares from their war experiences. Others are crippled, disfigured and helpless. None will ever be well again. Many will never get better.

What’s the government doing about all this? Our current administration has tried to cut their benefits, deny them mental health care, and can only provide beds for about 10% of the veterans sleeping on our streets.

Would you appreciate it if a complete stranger were willing to listen to your concerns without being judgmental? How would it feel if your life were a mess, and someone you don’t even know offered to help? Ever been hungry and wished you had a simple meal? Ever seen someone on the street in filthy rags, and wondered how it would feel if you could hand them fresh clean clothes, then point them toward a shower? Would it matter if he’d saved your son’s life in combat?

Could you spare ten minutes of your time once a year to listen to a veteran who had fought for your own freedoms? Would you be big enough to serve that veteran a meal?
Could you be appreciative enough to shake that veteran’s hand? Could you smile into his empty eyes?

The men and women who earned your freedoms appreciate these small gestures.

If you don’t care about the men and women who fought for your freedom, just stop reading this letter and throw it away.

This isn’t a government issue. It’s a local community issue. These veterans live in your town, on your streets and in your doorways. They dive in your dumpsters, and beg for your change. They exist in the midst of folks living the American Dream, like you. They are ignored, shunned and cursed as lazy, worthless and shiftless. “They’re filthy, no-good bums.” ‘They expect something for nothing”. We hear this everyday from people who take their freedoms for granted.

We’ll go to the Veteran’s Day Parade and wave a flag on the curb. We’ll wear red, white and blue. We’ll eat hot dogs on the Fourth of July, and drink beer. Then we’ll forget those who gave so much that we could enjoy these freedoms.

Just once, see if you have what it takes inside to be an Honorable Recipient of Freedom.

Look into the face of a veteran, if you dare. Try to convince him that what he’s done really means something to you, personally. War gets pretty personal when you’re out there in it. Can you return the favor, or do you just take it for granted that you deserve these sacrifices?

Just once, make a difference in the life of one veteran. Just tell a veteran, any veteran, “Welcome home”… and really mean it. Shake his or her hand. Dare to show them you appreciate their sacrifices.

Show respect for those who earned your liberties.

Be an Honorable Recipient of Freedom.

I am a 100% disabled Vietnam Veteran. I remember 9/11. I’ve stood before the awesome spectacle of Rolling Thunder at Arlington, and I cried at Veterans Memorial Park in Washington, DC. I led the Pledge of Allegiance at George Washington’s Tomb and I fell to my knees at the Flight 93 Memorial in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. If a simple veteran can do this much in appreciation for his brothers and sisters, why can’t you?

Today, I serve my fellow veterans in any way I can, because I can. Because it’s right.

What have you done for a veteran today?

---William J. Thornton

South West Arizona Stand Down is a non-profit Association serving veterans of Yuma, LaPaz and Mohave Counties, Arizona, and may be contacted at (928) 503-0552 southwestarizonastanddown@yahoo.com

My brother - he's a good brother and a good writer, too. I'm very proud of him.

(If you wish to reprint this, you may as long as you reprint it in its entirety and give the author his credit.)

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

Well, obviously, my brother is top o' the list today. Actually, today he's all Three Beautiful Things rolled into one... happy birthday, Bill!

2007-07-31T13:34:00.000-07:00

THE DAY JOB:

WORKING ON THE DORK SIDE

Back when I first started working in the Defense Realm - not my Army Days, mind you, which I have always viewed as just something you give back for all the other opportunities you have in this country - but when I started working in the Defense Contractor World, it was a strange and wonderful place.

My first jobs were at Lockheed and Hughes, two of the biggest contractors of that time. I was a junior security rep on several interesting programs, but mostly I was the kid who made up charts, did briefings to the cleared folks about not committing crimes or getting into debt or otherwise making themselves vulnerable to blackmail, and helped everyone with their voluminous and complicated security clearance forms. I met lots of interesting people and got to see some truly spectacular things.

Once, outside the Lockheed buildings in Burbank, a bunch of us looked up into the sky to see a missile launch failure of some sort out of Vandenberg turning the sky a thousand different colors. Another time, I got to see the Chairman of the Senate Joint Services Committee when he came for a meeting and I was badging visitors.

I had previously worked in libraries and for financial institutions, so this was a new and fascinating world. I really liked it, and was pleased that it paid so much more than what I was used to making. I had bounced around various jobs before, but I knew I would make this my career.

And for nearly twenty years I did. I still bounced from job to job, but this time it was because contracts come and go and in the contractor world, you follow the work. Also, companies merge, split, swallow up other companies and change their names. During one job that lasted a good nine and a half years, I worked for four different companies from the same desk. The next position - in the building next door - sent me to four locations for the same company, which changed its name three times during my three years with them. I even spent three years at a manufacturing company which had a government contract.

But it is coming to an end. The Dork Side - the Defense Contractor World - has changed dramatically since 9/11. Heck, it changed dramatically after the Wall came down and the Soviet Union broke up, too. But this is different. My world is darker, scarier.

My physical limitations are making it difficult for me to continue working in this field. I gave up being a soldier with some reluctance, but no regrets. I guess I'm going to have to give up the Dork Side as well.

The good news: I will be writing more, taking better care of my health, and having a healthier and more positive view of the world.

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

The red Eames DCW - Dining Chair Wood - in the living room. It's a vintage beauty.

My friends Nancy & Joan at dinner at the house. My Dear Husband pulling up photos on the MAC and everyone talking. The warm summer evening.

Running into old and new friends at the vintage furniture store.

2007-07-25T08:00:00.000-07:00

WRITING STUFF: GENRE DOESN'T MATTER; STORY MATTERS

TELLING THE STORY

It's good to know grammar. It's good to have a wonderful vocabulary, use it properly, and know when to be concise and when to throw it all up in the air at one time. It's good to listen to your teachers: Strunk & White, Roget, Oxford English.

But nothing beats telling the story, except telling it well.

Miss Snark - bless her pointy stilettos - used to say "Good writing trumps all." She was right about this just as she was gloriously right about a lot of other things. But she made it clear that the good writing needed something to tell.

This post is really aimed at fiction, although there may be a good morsel or two for the non-fic writer as well. But this story is about stories.

I have recently read two very good stories: A Year of Pleasures by Elizabeth Berg and The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield. The first one, a woman's story of widowhood and getting through the days immediately after her husband's death, is slow-going at first, but pulls you into her changing life a piece at a time until her story is told. The second, a story-within-a-story of a biographer and her unusual subject, sucks you into the dual plot immediately and just doesn't let go.

Both stories had the requisite beginning-middle-end, but there's more to good storytelling than the mechanics. Don't get me wrong - the mechanics are vital. I don't care how great your story is, if you can't spell or don't have at least a rudimentary grasp of grammar, I'm not going to read it. If you distract me with inaccuracies, or take me out of the story with intrusions, I'm not going to read it. If your writing is sloppy, your story isn't going to be neat and I won't read it.

But the story is the key and central part of a work of fiction.

Lots of people think they can write a book when they don't know anything about telling a story. These are the same folks who will look at your book and remark vaguely, "Yeah, I could write a book too, if I had the time…" implying both that your achievement is pretty ordinary and you have way too much free time on your hands.

No. They couldn't. What they are really saying is, "I could write a book, if I had a story worth telling and knew how to tell it in an interesting way. But I don't."

When your novel starts edging up to that hundred gazillion word count, check to see where your story is - did it get buried in the details? Is it squished flat under your heavyweight characters? Could you take your main story - your primary plot line - and tell it to me in one page? You know, like you will have to eventually do in a query letter?

Could it make a wonderful and interesting short story?

Or is it just a chronicle of your character's doings, a slice of life with drippy edges…

Read it over - does it have an end? Stories need a logical, satisfying conclusion. Make sure your book gets put down with a smile or a sigh or a poignant gaze after all the words have been read.

Leave 'em full, but wanting the next one.

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

My new closet. My Dear Husband built it for me over the past weekend.

Mango sherbet. I wanted watermelon, but mango is what they had. It was terrific.

Susie Eaton, my framer, who has opened her own shop and looked happy to bursting at her own counter with her own work displayed, and dozens of orders lined up.

2007-07-18T09:06:00.000-07:00

WRITING STUFF: LAST NIGHT IN L.A. - INDEPENDENCE IN LOS FELIZ

INDEPENDENT BOOKSTORES

Last night I was on a book panel at the Los Feliz Public Library, just down the road from the Griffith Park Observatory and just up the street from Skylight Books, site of the former literary institution, Chatterton's, a raucous, beat, hip and oh-so-charming bookstore now long gone. But Skylight, now celebrating four years, is a wonderful bookstore, with many of the things that made the old Chatterton's attractive to me in my long-gone youth. Beloved independent bookstores, how I seek you out and spend as much time (not to mention money) as I can in your comfy nooks. Skylight hosted a book signing a couple of years ago in which I was a participant. It's one of my new Hillhurst landmarks. I won't miss Chatterton's anymore: I have Skylight.

INDEPENDENT LIBRARIANS

Cheers for PEARL YONEZAWA, the Library Manager of the Los Feliz Public Library. In an eclectic Los Angeles neighborhood which is also home to the local Public Television Station (KCET) and a myriad of fab little ethnic eateries, this library has expanded from a one-room building across the street to two rooms and finally the magnificent modern structure that it is today, serving a diverse and literate community.

Pearl booked us in for an evening of chat about LANDMARKED FOR MURDER and how to write short stories and where do we get ideas and how do we do research. All writerly stuff, and so much fun! Up in front were mystery writers Michael Mallory (who also moderated), Gayle Bartos-Pool, Jinx Beers, Darrell James, Pamela Samuels-Young, A. H. Ream and Susan Kosar Beery. And me, too.

And there was icy cold water and fruit salad (!) for everyone. Even though there was a heated local political thingy going on at the same time elsewhere (groups for and against the serving of liquor at the new restaurant at the Griffith Observatory) which took a few of our expected participants away, we still had nearly a full room. It was fun and lively and Pearl did things like reserve parking spaces for the participants.

INDEPENDENT RESTAURANTS

The magnificent SARNO'S was once just around the corner on Vermont, a knock-your-socks-off Italian restaurant and bakery. Opened in 1946 by Umberto Sarno of Naples,.. Alberto, brother of Umberto, joined them in 1964, after years of voice studies in Italy, stood up one day to sing to the customers, and the coffee shop was turned into Sarno's Caffè dell'Opera. Alberto "served up Puccini nightly with the pasta, drawing a clientele that included Sophia Loren, Jimmy Durante, Gina Lollobrigida, Tony Bennett, Mario Lanza and—when he was in town—Alberto's friend, Luciano Pavarotti."* The pastry chef in 1960 was Antonio Neiviller - who in 1987 opened Il Capriccio on Vermont, just down the block. Sarno's closed in 2000 and is now the Vermont Restaurant. I will miss SARNO'S.

*quote from "In Los Feliz, Life Will Be a Little Less Sweet," by Beverly Beyette, Los Angeles Times Southern California Living; Part-E, Aug 1, 2000, pg. 1

INDEPENDENT PARTICIPANTS

Okay, there's always one in every crowd. Once last year at a similar book talk in a library auditorium in Burbank- a large one - it was raining and a lot of the people sitting before us had just dashed in for shelter. One guy sitting up front looked homeless: unkempt, scraggly beard, old Army jacket, plastic bags at his feet.

He asked a lot of interesting questions, though - and he turned out to be a famous screenwriter.

But last night the guy in the old Army jacket with the plastic bags at his feet turned out to be a Scientologist with a persistent interest in Hermann Hesse's Steppenwolf. Sigh.

Aside from him there was a great assortment of interesting people who nodded and smiled when we up on the stage mentioned our favorite authors.

Let's hear for the odd ones out - even if they don't want to talk about the stuff you want to hear. Even if they need a bath, a new focus or a new plastic bag for their notebooks, they're the ones I remember, the ones who will make a repeat appearance in a story someday.

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

RICK'S BURRITOS in Pasadena. It's the home of the best taco burgers on the planet, but they're going to close down and move. Maybe they'll re-open. I have been reveling in their food for more than 30 years. They have been in business for 40 years. I had my last Rick's Taco Burger last night - hope it'll hold me until they get back up and running.

Rick's burrito - the famous "Spuderito"

ALL LIBRARIANS. How can they not be beautiful? They keep the world of books and information flowing, giving access to the world to everyone. Let's hear it for them all, and particularly Nancy Hoskins and Joan Schipper (two of my favorite private firm librarians) and for Pearl Yonezawa of the Los Angeles Public Library, Los Feliz Branch.

Loz Feliz Branch Library

APPLE PIE. It's what's for breakfast sometimes. There are three tiny apples on the Fuji tree this year. We transplanted it at the wrong time of year, but had no choice as the concrete went in and it had to be moved to its new permanent home. Not enough for pie this year, but next year should be glorious!

2007-07-07T07:21:00.000-07:00

RECIPE ALERT!

EASTER BUN

It is a Beautiful Thing - thanks to all who were interested in this delicious Caribbean treat.

Here's a source online for purchasing a real Jamaican Easter Bun:
The 17th Street Market in Tucson, AZ

And if you want a whole panoply of Caribbean treats, hop on over to SAM'S CARIBBEAN ONLINE STORE - there's a whole assortment of EASTER BUNS in the BAKERY section!

Here's a recipe for those who are culinarily gifted:

(Compliments of COOKING CARIBBEAN STYLE)

Jamaican Easter bun

Ingredients:

1 1/2 ozs margarine
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 Tbs honey
1/2 cup stout
1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 tspn baking powder
1 egg
4 Tbs raisins
4 Tbs Currants
1 Tbs mixed peel
2 Tspns mixed spices

Method:

Melt margarine,sugar, honey & stout on a Low flame, stirring.
Sift flour and baking powder and spices
Add beaten egg, fruit and cooled melted mixture.
Mix well.
Pour into a greased and lined 1lb tin and bake at 350 for approx. 45 minutes or until done.

*************************************

2007-07-05T07:37:00.000-07:00

WRITING STUFF:

THE NOVEL APPROACH

I write mostly short stories - concise, complete, beginning-middle-end pieces with one or two plot points, one or two (or at the most three) main characters and maybe a satisfyingly twisty ending. I take a week or so to get one out, sometimes longer, sometimes much shorter. The "thought time" - the time I spend ruminating about an idea - can be much, much longer, years even. The end product is usually no more than a page or two for flashes, and not much more for the rest.

But I have been thinking about a novel. Yes, it's a big project. Yes, it makes putting together a precise if not precious little short story collection look easy, and yes, I must be out of my mind. But the idea is there, lurking in my head like a well-behaved child, quietly playing in a corner, smiling when I look directly at it.

I did start something, a first page of a mystery set in Connecticut, I think, with lost dogs and lost children and at least one spooky old house full of secrets and dread. I like my Main Character and I like the vacation premise, a nifty device which limits the amount of time that MC can hang around and get the meat of the story on the table. I like the setting as I myself have recently vacationed in that part of the world. I like lost people and lost stuff and old secrets and spooky houses.

But writing a novel is hard. Even the "thought time" is hard. I know I just want to tell a story, and when I tell the story in short form, I get to the point pretty quickly. But in a novel, I have all this room. It's like being a container gardener who enjoys the little pots of color and scent but is now thrust onto an acre and told to grow food. I *did* write that first page, it *is* intriguing (well, to me, anyway) and I really do want to push forward. But the landscape is daunting.

So maybe I need to do something I have never done before: outline. Outline the big story, and then fill in the smaller stories, maybe. Make character lists in which I describe them so they don't change hair color or family ties or gender mid-story. Sketch out locations, descriptions, where the tension is, where the body is. Okay, *who* the body is - and why they are now just worm-fodder.

But I am afraid to outline and then lose interest, because once I know the whole story, what's the point in telling it? Is this what all novelists face? Do they plod on anyway? Is it really more work, more trouble, more tedium than it's worth?

Maybe. Maybe I'm just really a short-story writer with a screwy idea. Maybe the novel form is more difficult than I imagined, harder than anyone who hasn't tried it knows. For all those folks who sneer and say, "Huh, I could've written this!" after reading a novel, I just want to publicly say, "Oh, yeah? Well, show me!"

Because it's hard. But it's not impossible. At least, I don't think so yet.

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

My new Florence Knoll couch. Okay, not new - used. Very old in fact, and re-upholstered and really modern looking. Sort of a purpley color, little pointillism dots of red and blue. Very firm, and just the right height. Long enough to stretch out on for a nap, too.

The fireworks last night. We always pick up a chicken dinner and drive to a parking lot and watch the fireworks show put on by a local high school. It was really nice, complete with patriotic music and a local band playing, inexplicably, old Jefferson Airplane hits.

The "Easter Bun" our friend Greg gave us. He lives in the Cayman Islands and gets all kinds of cool Caribbean foods. The Easter Bun turned out to be a particularly delicious kind of fruit cake, perfect for slicing, toasting and slathering with butter. Ideal with cups of tea. What a treat!

2007-06-28T08:27:00.000-07:00

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS
LIVING IN HAPPYSTAN

Well, it's time for me to list THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS at the beginning of my sporadic essay about writing instead of at the end. I realized yesterday that I am rich. No, I don't have a lot of money, but - here's the revelatory part - I have what I need to be happy. I read a New York Times article yesterday about "Richistan" - that foreign country where US folks go when they become wealthy, but don't necessarily gain any sense or wisdom with their dollars. I decided that I live in Happystan, a much better place.

I celebrated a birthday yesterday - not one of the great big milestones, but the sort that draws you up short and makes you wonder where all the years went.

Ten years ago, I thought that by now I would be winding down a successful career, in the last two years of satisfying work for that same company where I was working, with the prospect of retirement in sight. But things don't always work out the way you think. Shortly after that I was laid off from my job and bought a little house in a different town next to the one my husband had bought. They were too small for us both, but we joined the backyards and lived in both. It was an unusual but really great arrangement. I found work at a different company, and started to plan again. Being a homeowner was fun, but I missed living in Pasadena where I had spent 28 wonderful years.

Shortly after that, 9/11 happened. I retired from the Army and had a stroke. You just never know when that strong body will stop working. It made the other milestones pale in importance.

Okay, I pressed on and went back to work. Different company, closer to home. In 2005, I took a job that didn't work out and went through the trauma of a lawsuit in 2006. I had to sell my sweet little house.

But the real estate market had changed a lot - my husband and I found a beautiful mid-century modern house and sold our two little cottages to buy it. We lucked out - those little houses had really appreciated.

Now I had the house of my dreams, but no job. Then, just as my unemployment insurance ran out, I got a job offer. I am working in that job still, although the contract will be ending shortly and I'll once again be out of work on September 28th.

Or will I? Just when I got used to the idea - was looking forward to it, even - I got a lead on a wonderful job. Okay, it's a long drive, but I've driven that far before. I am definitely going to check it out, at any rate. I know they want someone sooner than I am available, but maybe I can help them recruit someone. I know lots of folks in my biz, after all.

Our beautiful house is almost paid for. We enjoy working on it and in October, it's going to be on the Pomona Heritage Home Tour - the only modern house on the tour this year!
I have to say, the house is certainly one of my BEAUTIFUL THINGS.

I had a wonderful birthday yesterday - my Dear Husband brought me a weird-looking plant which I love. It's a bromeliad, and he is always one of my BEAUTIFUL THINGS.

After a really nice phone call, a prestigious company sent me a great email along with an application and a list of their benefits. Getting job interest at my age - and in my physical condition - just made me grin the whole day. Maybe I'm not ready for the rocker yet.

Even if you can't dance, it's still great to be asked. That recruiter's email is certainly a BEAUTIFUL THING. I'm going to go talk to them in person as soon as I can. I think I'm all excited about my work again.

I look at it this way. I am living in Happystan. I have enough to stop working when this contract is over and spend more time writing and gardening and improving my health. (Physical therapy is difficult and time-consuming, but it sure makes a difference!) I am not rich - but I don't need much, either.

But Happystan's borders are not limited to retirement; I love the idea that my last job before retirement might be something I really love, something where I really fit in and where the work is right up my alley, unlike my present job. I don't need a gold watch, but I'd like a retirement lunch, again unlikely in my present contract job. Just the possibility of this has set me to daydreaming about making the long commute and wearing an access badge and working in a place where we all know the same acronyms.

So maybe I am rich. I have choices I never considered before. I have opportunities and offers and new horizons, as well as the security of my home and family and garden. I have almost enough to get by without working, but I love my work. I make time to write, and I love that, too.

Maybe this euphoria will wear off - maybe the job will fall through and my electric bill will shock me out of complacency. But I will still be living the good - and simple - life in Happystan.

2007-06-11T10:48:00.000-07:00

WRITING STUFF: THE SHORT STORY WORKSHOP

Over the weekend, I attended the Sisters in Crime Los Angeles NO CRIME UNPUBLISHED Conference and co-hosted a short story workshop with writer Gary Philips.

It was fun, but we were strapped for time and only had an hour. An hour is not enough, so I want to not only hit the highlights of the workshop for you here, but also to expand on it a bit and give you some of the information I did not have time to impart to the live class.

The Craft of Writing: Short Stories

Okay, how long is a short story?
Here are the official lengths from the Short Mystery Fiction Society (the folks who award the Derringer prizes each year)

Flash Story Up to 500 words
Short-short Story 501 to 2000 words
Mid-length Short Story 2001 to 6000 words
Longer Short Story 6001 to 15,000 words

Bear in mind that every venue in which you wish to publish will have their own idea of what lengths they will accept.

What makes it different from a chapter of a novel?
A short story has a beginning, a middle, and an end. It is limited to one main plot point and the cast of characters is of necessity short. It tells a complete story with a resolution or revelation of some sort at the end.

A written scene without these completing elements is a snapshot or vignette, not a short story.

You may certainly use characters, settings, chapters or scenes from your novel in a short story, but your short story must stand alone as a complete story all by itself. It must have an ending, even if you – or the reader! – do not agree with the denouement or ending.

What's more important, setting, plot or characters?
They are all important. But while you may have the luxury of exploring settings in great detail in a novel, using multiple plot twists and turns, and an array of characters right out of Cecil B. DeMille, in a short story you must narrow your focus. The shorter your story, the more important it is to write concisely and to keep the telling of your tale simple while retaining its color, premise, style and voice.

First person? Third person? Omniscient Narrator?
Whatever works for your story. I have read beautifully-written short stories comprised entirely of dialogue. Beware when using a narration technique that you do not just dump the story on the reader by telling, not showing. Even a very short story must be interesting enough to hold the reader's attention, to make the reader care about the story. I like the way first person makes the reader an immediate part of the story. But I like the way third person omniscient can make the reader privy to every secret, every action as it unfolds.

I want to write a short story. Where do I get ideas?
Good – let's try writing a short story. Ideas come from everywhere, but I find that themed contests and exercises ("Write a story based on this picture!" or "Write a story about sheep!" or "Write a story with a lemon, a goat and an alien princess in it!") can be very good jump-starters.

Other ideas can be a childhood incident or other real-life event. Remember you are writing a short story – a piece of fiction – not a memoir, so make sure you have that old beginning, middle and end.

One of the best exercises you can do if you want to write short stories is read them. Read in the genres in which you want to write - and the ones you don't. Read the masters: O. Henry, Saki, Sommerset Maugham, Edgar Allen Poe. Read Guy de Maupassant, Ambrose Bierce, Shirley Jackson.
Go here for some great classics

You will not only get ideas, you will get a feel for the short story form. You will also see how language has changed over the last hundred years or so.

Now read some contemporary shorts: Ed Hoch, Stephen King, Raymond Carver, (here's a link to one of his, "Vitamins" in Granta) Jhumpa Lahiri, Alice Munro, T. Coraghessan Boyle, Michael Chabon, Annie Proulx, Lorrie Moore.

Look at the differences, but more importantly, look at what is the same. Look at the "bones" of the story, the structure as well as the sheer reader's delight of total immersion in a good story.

Now, try to write a short story of your own. Don't hesitate - start writing now. Write until you have all three elements (beginning, middle, end.)

Tinker with that first sentence until it makes you want to read more. This is your "hook" - hook those readers up front. Remember those classic stories?

Help! I wrote a story, but…
You knocked out 180,000 words? Okay, maybe your wrote something between 100 and 10,000 words. Well, congratulations on writing a story - now let's tighten it up. Every first draft of a story can use some improvement. Take your newly-finished work and put it away for a few days. Write something else in the meantime. Remember - there is no limit to what you can write.

Some time later, take it out and read it aloud. You'll probably find a few things you need to fix right away.

Here's how I tighten a story - I have been known to successfully reduce a rambling 2,000 word story to a succinct 500 word short-short - without losing the essence of the story. I go through it and take out all the -ly words first. Adverbs are not your friends. (Okay, maybe I leave in one or two. But what do they contribute to the story?) Next, I look at the dialogue tags - the "he said, she saids." Do they make sense? Are they monotonous? Too colorful? Confusing?

Next, I read for extraneous phrases which do not advance the story. They may be beautifully-written pieces of deathless prose, but if they do not advance the story, out they go.

Finally, I read for pacing and continuity. Does the story unfold smoothly and at the right pace? Does stuff happen in the right order? Did I forget a name, change a hair color by mistake, forget that it was night in one part and day in the other? Do I need to change a few sentences around to make them clearer, smoother, more readable? Do I need to ditch a sentence or two entirely? And why did I name the heroine Gypsophylla when Lisa is a better fit? (Yippee for find-and-replace!)

With any luck, skill & effort, your story is now a better one.

Marketing your finished work
I want to devote a whole day in the future to marketing short stories, so this is going to be very short:

1. Know your genre. Do you write mystery? Science fiction? Romance? Contemporary literary? I write mostly mystery and science fiction, but I firmly believe that if you can write, you can write anything you want to. Look at your story and figure out where it might belong. Chances are, it could fit into more than one category.

2. Research your markets. Know what they want. Every magazine, anthology or contest has submission guidelines. Read them carefully and give them what they want. If they say under 1000 words, don't send 1001. If they say snail mail only, get out those envelopes. If they say no vampires, robots, brunettes, or cats, don't send your epic space opera vampire story about the furry dark robot cats. Keep on looking for a market that fits - or revise your story to fit the market. Either way works.

3. Polish your story again. Give it one more read, made sure it looks great and is in the right format.

4. Submit. Go on, do it. And keep a record of your submissions. A simple Word or handwritten document giving title, market, date of submission and date/type of response is perfect. That way you don't miss a market or submit the same thing twice to the same market.

A note about cover letters.
Short stories are usually sent with a short cover letter (not a query letter, which is something else entirely.)

Cover letters usually say something like this:

Dear Editor,

Attached (or in the body of this email) please find my original 750 word short story, "Lost in the Woods."

I am an avid reader of your magazine, and have had work published in "Sewage Monthly," "Cat Lovers USA," and "Coal Digest" (or leave credits out if don't have any - it won't matter if you don't have any.)

I look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,

Avid J. Reader
123 Writer Lane
New York, NY 10000
(212) 555-5555
avidjreader@wtf.com (Your name, address, phone number & email are important!)

Then you wait. But while you are waiting, write something else. Keep on doing that.

Where? Where do I submit?
Here are the links to 2 of my favorite online market guides.

Ralan's (look over on the far right for market listings)
Duotrope

There are others, of course. And if you post to any writers' forums (or fora for you linguistic purists) you will also find market info. Try these:

Absolute Write
The Mystery Writers' Forum

Okay - that's the Short Story Course for today - like I said, I'll cover marketing in more detail in the future (you can check the archives for a few more markets - and a lot more advice!)

***

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

The faces of everyone at the No Crime Unpublished Conference. Rochelle Krich, the keynote speaker brought me to tears. Sometimes that is a very sweet thing.

Two Barbara Karst bougainevilleas in my garden. Every week I see something new and wonderful.

No lines at the ladies' room at the conference. I really dislike waiting in line at a ladies' room when there is no line at the men's room. I have been known to dash into the men's in an emergency. There are more urgent needs for this as I get older…

2007-06-04T08:25:00.000-07:00

WRITING STUFF: SHORT STORIES, or WRITING INSIDE THE LINES

SHORT STORIES
I write primarily in this form, anywhere from 100 words to 5,000 words (although I have written a 55-word mystery for Mr. Andreychuk's Bullet Points and a 23,000 word epic for Mr. Moriyama at Aphelion.) I am most comfortable in the 500-word flash category and the 2,000 standard short story realm.

Because I write mostly mystery and science fiction, I am constrained not only by the short story form, but also the conventions of my genres. Within these self-imposed structures, I prefer to create entertaining puzzles and character-driven stories. I don't usually write romantic fiction (although I have done so) or literary fiction (that too) but I think writing is writing and if you can master the craft, then you have a shot at creating the art.

So what is this Art and Craft business, anyway? Well, the Craft of Writing is something that can be taught and learned and everyone who calls themselves a writer or aspires to be a writer needs to learn the basics. These include grammar, sentence structure, spelling, and punctuation. Add to this skills in vocabulary and common usage. Mix in sentence and paragraph flow and pacing.

The Art comes in the story. You might have all the tools with which to re-write someone else's work, but nothing with which to craft an original piece of your own fiction. The Art is in the ideas.

You need both pieces to write fiction – you need the ideas and you need the means of executing these ideas into readable, sensible stories.

Short stories are not vignettes or snapshots or pieces of a larger work. They are self-contained works with a beginning, a middle and an end. The beginning should hook the reader with that first sentence, and introduce both characters and conflict. The middle should develop both characters and story, while the ending should provide a satisfying conclusion to the preceding events. (This is not to say all loose ends are tied up, or that the reader agrees with the denouement, only that the writer has provided closure or the means to a conclusion for the reader.)

A short story is more than a heartfelt romp through the writer's disorderly psyche. It is an orderly display of the writer's ideas conveyed through a specific form. These ideas may be horrifying, grisly or perverted – or they may be tender, sweet or poignant. The ideas can be disorderly; the execution cannot.

NO CRIME UNPUBLISHED
This coming Sunday – June 10th – the Los Angeles Chapter of Sisters in Crime is hosting their annual NO CRIME UNPUBLISHED Conference in Alhambra, CA. Details are here. If you are in the Southern CA area and want a day of murder, mayhem and solid publishing advice, check it out. I'll be co-hosting a Short Story workshop in the Craft of Writing Track with Gary Phillips. It doesn't get any better than that!

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

One of the puppies in the spa, wanting to jump in, but not knowing how deep it might be, gingerly standing on the top step, one foot raised out of the water.

A yellow Western Oriole at the bird feeder – first one I have ever seen.

A barbecued Tri-Tip Roast. My Dear Husband barbecued it according to his brother-in-law's recipe and it came out perfectly. I love these summer barbecue days!

2007-05-22T08:09:00.000-07:00

WRITING STUFF: GOODBYE, MISS SNARK

I got back from my wonderful trip to the Hudson River Valley and Connecticut to find one of my favorite blogs, MISS SNARK, ended.

Miss Snark, a New York City literary agent, has been blogging for a couple of years, dispensing valuable information, extraordinary assistance and incredible wit and wisdom to the clueless. Her snarkisms have entered our vocabulary: Dear Dog! Rabbitania, the clue gun, nitwits, not to mention the delights of her poodle, Killer Yap, and Grandmother Snark's wisdom. Miss Snark's infatuation with George Clooney and gin in pails gave us hours of speculation and amusement.

The archives will stay up for a while and be an invaluable resource tool for all writers. Be sure to check them out. But Miss Snark's daily dose of urbane wit and stiletto-heeled advice will be sorely missed.

I have wondered idly who this funny and intelligent woman might be – the mystery of anonymity on the internet can be intriguing. It would be both wonderful and terrifying to have Miss Snark as your agent: wonderful because she only takes on projects she thinks she can sell and terrifying because her standards are high and her advice acerbic.

I know the net can burn you out. I am glad Miss Snark is taking a well-deserved rest. I just hope she comes back once in a while to jolt us out of our clueless states. I raise my glass to you, Miss Snark: thanks so much for all you have given.

But don't weep, writers. We still have EVIL EDITOR. He too is an anonymous literary professional who dispenses wit, wisdom and genuine laugh-out-loud funny. He invites writers to submit their query letters to be skewered, shredded and put back together. He also invites us all – his evil minions – to write "continuations" to other writers' first paragraphs, make delicious fun of their titles with his "Guess the Plot" and participate in writing exercises and contests designed to make you laugh until you cry. He has even produced books of these efforts, perfect stocking-stuffers for those writers on your list. (I confess to being a contributor.)

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

Coming home. I had a great vacation, but what can beat coming home? The pets were so happy to see us.

The kangaroo paws out front grew three feet while I was gone and burst into bloom. They are yellow and orange-red and the shorter ones are a brilliant purple-red.

That dinner at the CIA. (The Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY. Yes, I have eaten in the cafeteria at the *other* CIA, but that's a different thing altogether.) I had roast chicken with wild mushrooms at the American Bounty restaurant. My waiter, Paul, was nervous, but did well – his instructors were watching!

2007-05-07T08:29:00.000-07:00

WRITING STUFF: RESEARCH IN EXOTIC PLACES

I live in California, in the Los Angeles/Orange County part. (No one calls it "The O.C." here – except a couple of news & traffic reporters from New York)

Now, there are many folks who think just living in the heartland of sun and fun, right next to the mean noir streets of L.A., with all that film history, the beaches, Disneyland, Hollywood, and other interesting stuff should count as a sort of permanent vacation. And for me it does in so many ways. I have a 1954 mid-century modern house with patios plural and a spa. We have fruit trees, with something always ready to pick (okay, mostly lemons.) It's the good life in spite of property taxes being more than a regular mortgage anywhere else.

So why would I want to go anywhere else to write?

Because somewhere other than your home – no matter where you live – is going to yield different thoughts, different adventures, different sights, sounds, smells and characters.

And I need a vacation. I haven't taken any time off work for a year (being terribly sick over Christmas doesn't count.) I need to have some time in an exotic locale, with a bunch of my rowdy-aesthete friends. I need to see and smell and hear odd things (well, odd to me, anyway.)

One year it was The Spiral Jetty and the Sun Tunnels with a trip to Wendover, Nevada.

One year it was Marfa and Big Bend National Park. Many times it has been Death Valley.

Once it has been Ferndale and the Redwoods. Twice it has been Italy (just me & the DH on these trips.)

This time it's the Hudson River Valley – just north of the 212 (New York City for those of you who haven't been introduced to the Divine Miss Snark.)

My rowdy-aesthete friends (bird watchers, photographers, architects, librarians, art critics all) and I are going to spend a week eating, sailing, touring gardens, castles, museums, architectural wonders and at least one hot cemetery. We're going to such fabulous places as the Village of Sleepy Hollow, Hyde Park and New Canaan, Connecticut. We're going to stay in lovely bed-and-breakfasts, except for the night in the modern conference center in Catskill. It's going to be such fun.

I am going to take notes. I think it's time to start a new story, and a creepy mystery set in Connecticut is percolating through the coffee grounds of my brain.

So next week I'll be on the road – well, on the river to be more precise. I'll be missing home after the second day, especially my little doggies and the 3 cats and the garden and the house. My amiable sister-in-law will be minding the place while we're gone, so I needn't worry, but I really do like being home as much as I like traveling and seeing the sights. I hope to get some writing time in, too. I'll take the laptop and see what happens.

What about you? Do you ever do "research" in exotic locales?

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

The back landscaping. It's been a long time, but it's almost done. So nice to look out the window and see order and plants instead of the rubbish that has been out there for a year.

A package arrived from my friend Nancy – she sent me 2 bird watching books. They are beautiful. I'll turn into a birdwatcher yet.

The indoors. It's cool and peaceful and quiet in the morning. This is a picture of Sunday morning. (Before the back landscaping – it looks *much* better out those windows now!)

2007-04-24T08:19:00.000-07:00

WRITING STUFF:
IS IT GOING TO BE THE WRITE TIME SOON?

When is the write time?

For me, it's early in the morning, before work. But that may change soon – I'm on the layoff list at work (along with over 1,000 other people.) Yep, they're closing this Boeing location and as I am a Boeing sub-contractor my contract will end and that will be that. We're looking at sometime between July and September for unemployment.

Okay, for everyone else, that's pretty scary. For me, it's a relief.

I *thought* I was retired last year, but I got this great job offer I couldn't refuse. It was a little out of my line (senior security engineer) but was very good money and I have been diligently saving half and using the other half to improve our house and pay off bills. I knew it wouldn't last forever. In fact, I thought it would end this time next year. But if it ends now, well, I'll be okay with that. I can't collect my Army pension for another couple of years, but that's okay.

I sincerely hope all the other folks affected by the relocation and layoffs will find the jobs they want and need.

As for me, I will be able to write as much as I want.

Now, that's both delicious and scary. Delicious, because isn't it every writer's dream to have the time and means to write? Isn't it what you want? Isn't it what I have wanted all these work-weary years? Scary, because now I really will have to do this. I will have to structure my time, set a schedule, actually get some writing done. Hmmmm. Is that what I wanted? No excuses?

Well, yes and no. I like writing in the little time-box I have always found for myself – an hour in the morning, a few minutes here and there. I am used to it. I'm not used to a blank screen and a whole day stretching out before me. I have tried it twice before: once in 1998 I was laid off from my aerospace job (I was at Northrop Grumman then) and for six months I wrote. I got a lot done before I ran out of money and had to go back to work!

Then in 2005, I once again was among the ranks of the unemployed for 6 months. But I got little writing done as I was busy moving into the new house and overseeing structural repair work and trying desperately to get another job. Just when it looked like that wasn't going to happen, I got this great job.

So now it's going to happen. I won't have to go back to work again (the chances of getting hired at my age and with one-half of my body not working due to a stroke a few years ago are pretty slim) so I will have all the time and opportunity to write. But is that what will happen? Don't I need some discipline? I've worked my whole adult life. It's a habit I'm gonna miss.

What's gonna make me get up every morning? What's gonna make me write?

I have cable TV, for crying out loud! What's gonna keep me off the tube?

Well, I guess when it happens, I'll let you know. Maybe I'll come back to this post and laugh about it, as I slog through the re-writes on an as yet undreamed-of novel. Maybe I won't have time, as I pound out essays for NPR, flash stories for Flashshot and another brilliant whodunit for Ellery Queen.

So tell me – if you had all the time to write, would you? Or would you miss the structure of a job?

How do you do it? Let me know. I gotta make some plans.

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

The new spa is finished and we tried it out last night. Wonderful! I slept better than in recent memory.

I made a cake in the shape of our front yard for Earth Day – I used crushed graham crackers for the decomposed granite. Very artful, but a little dry.

My friend Joan brought me a bouquet of sweet peas – they smell so good!

2007-04-09T11:19:00.000-07:00

WRITING STUFF: ACCOLADES, PRIZES, & WINNINGS

Prizes and Awards give value to works – value beyond that which we assign to it or that which Amazon statistics and royalty statements assign.

The Pritzker Prize is given annually to architects. It is an international prize.

Specifically, "The purpose of the Pritzker Architecture Prize is to honor annually a living architect whose built work demonstrates a combination of those qualities of talent, vision and commitment, which has produced consistent and significant contributions to humanity and the built environment through the art of architecture."

Winners have included Philip Johnson, I.M. Pei, Frank Gehry, Robert Venturi, Rem Koolhaas, Thom Mayne and this year's Richard Rogers. A Pritzker not only recognizes staggering talent, but human qualities.

In 1974 Avery Fisher established Lincoln Center’s Avery Fisher Artist Program, which includes the Avery Fisher Prize and Avery Fisher Career Grants to give outstanding musicians significant recognition. The program is recognized as one of the most prestigious in the music world.

This year's winner is violinist Joshua Bell. (See Miss Snark's blog for an outstanding story about Joshua Bell.)

The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation annually awards fellowships – commonly referred to as "Genius Grants" to all sorts of folks in the United States of America.

Specifically, "The MacArthur Fellows Program awards unrestricted fellowships to talented individuals who have shown extraordinary originality and dedication in their creative pursuits and a marked capacity for self-direction. There are three criteria for selection of Fellows: exceptional creativity, promise for important future advances based on a track record of significant accomplishment, and potential for the fellowship to facilitate subsequent creative work."

Recent winners have included:

Mattias Zaldarriaga, Cosmologist analyzing faint signatures of the Big Bang and developing valuable interpretive tools to piece together the early history of the cosmos.

Edith Widder, Deep-Sea Explorer inventing technologically innovative, unique devices for observing and collecting data from the ocean’s depths to reverse the worldwide trend of marine ecosystem degradation.

Terrence Tao, Mathematician bringing technical brilliance and profound insight to a host of seemingly intractable problems in such areas as partial differential equations, harmonic analysis, combinatorics, and number theory.

George Saunders, Short Story Writer satirizing and humanizing the moral dilemmas faced by Americans in the twenty-first century.

Oh, wait a minute – a writer! George Saunders is a writer!

Yes, writers are eligible for some of the most prestigious prizes in the world. These prizes are career-makers and guarantee the recipient fame and fortune. Specifically, the Pulitzer Prize includes a Gold Medal in the Public Service category and cash awards of $10,000. The Nobel Prize in Literature includes ten million Swedish kronor (about $1,437,000.00.) Mac Arthur Fellowships are $75,000 in unrestricted funds. The Pritzker Architecture Prize includes a Bronze Medallion and $100,000!

Okay, there are some pretty big prizes out there. There are prizes which include publication and a tee shirt, too. Some prizes you can be nominated for (the Derringers for short mystery & crime stories, for example) and some which have selection committees you never see (the Nobel is one of these.) Some writing prizes are genre-specific, like the Hugo and Nebula Awards for science fiction, the Edgar, Anthony, Macavity and Silver Daggers for mystery, the RITA & Golden Heart and RNA awards for romances, the Spur for westerns, and the Newbery and Caldecott for childrens' literature.

Some prizes, like the James Tiptree, jr. Award, which is presented annually to a work that explores and expands gender roles in science fiction and fantasy, are even more specific.

Of course, the Man Booker Prize has for thirty-nine years been one of the most prestigious prizes for authors of literary fiction. Restricted to authors of the British Commonwealth, Republic of Ireland and Zimbabwe, US citizen authors are ineligible for the Booker Prize and its 50,000 pounds sterling cash award.

Every piece you write and submit has the potential to be a prize winner. Whether you write novels, short stories, plays, poetry or non-fiction, there is a prize committee out there waiting to see your work. You can be the best in your field or the best in your genre of the best in your town. Never forget that you can be the best for that one shining moment, and that every work of yours can be the one that gets the blue ribbon.

I have never won a major prize for anything, but I did get nominated twice (years ago) for a Derringer. The new short list for the Derringer was announced yesterday and although my eligible story did not make the cut, I am delighted to see the names of many of my friends and acquaintances. I will vote with pleasure for my favorites.

Let me see your name on the short lists next time. Write the best you can each time. Strive for improvement in your craft and polish those gems until they shine. Then submit – you can't get published if you don't submit.

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

The desert garden in bloom – the new grevilia and the baby-blue feathered rosemary at the end of the drive.

The new elliptical trainer – it hurts, but is so good for me. I am strengthening my left side daily – in very small doses at first.

A small falcon on my fence. The cats were surprised and alarmed.

2007-03-26T13:36:00.000-07:00

WRITING STUFF: CONTESTS AND COMPETITIONS AND FUN

WOO HOO! I got Third Place in Miss Snark's 100 word Idols of March Writing Contest!

The rules were: 100 words exactly, and you had to use these words

Reacher

Helicopter

snazzy

moonbeam

Dan Lazar

griffin

In addition, there was a narrow time window in which you could submit your opus.

There were 200 entries and they were all a scream. Go to Miss Snark's Blog to read them all for a real treat.

Here's my number 92 along with Miss Snark's fab comments.

Entry 92

"Hey,Toots, you look pretty snazzy in those stilettos."

I turned, startled. It was Dan Lazar.

"You too," I lied. His Hawaiian shirt sported nude wahines and moonbeams on a purple background. "Are we waiting for the same helicopter?"

Dan threw his chewed stogie over the railing. "Guess so, just you and me, Baby. Reacher's with Barbara Bauer and Griffin signed with Publish America."

I heard the sound of the Fox News chopper. I once told Dan if he was the last agent in America I still wouldn't date him. Funny how wrong you can be when push comes to shove.

Miss Snark is rolling on the floor. Killer Yapp swallowed his stogie. Even Grandmother Snark, genteel to the end, is laughing like a loon. (Miss Snark's own comments!)

I really had fun writing this little bit – and it was free to submit. The prize for the winner was an Advance Review Copy (ARC) of the new Lee Child Jack Reacher novel, BAD LUCK AND TROUBLE. It went to entry #170, and well-deserved.

This is the second contest I have entered this year – I won a prize in the first one, which was a film tie-in for Warner Brothers' "The Good German". My prize was a poster for the film, quite nice. Again it was Flash Fiction and there was no entry fee, and the contest was sponsored by Tony Burton over at Crime & Suspense.

So what's the deal with contests? Are they writing credits? Are they worth it? Are you supposed to pay an entry fee? Do you get prizes?

Writing contests can be fun. I like these short & sweet flash fiction contests. It's sorta like writing Guess the Plots for Evil Editor, where the prize is getting your one-liner published on Evil Editor's blog. They're not writing credits, they're more like fun writing exercises. They are free to enter – you lose nothing if you don't win, and you get some good practice. If you do win, you get the thrill of seeing your words somewhere. Sometimes you get a token prize – a book, a poster, some little item.

Some writing contests are full-blown wonders with legitimate publication and/or money as the prize. Sponsored by big magazines or publishing houses, they require only your best effort and may secure you a publishing contract, international exposure and maybe a fat check as well. If you have something to enter one of these contests with, by all means go for it.

Other writing contests require an entry fee. This usually works in small venues, like magazines or ezines, where you send in money with your contest entry. The money is then used to provide the prizes for the stories chosen. Many of these contests can be fun and are on the up and up, but I rarely (read never) submit to anything that wants me to pay. After all, that same story could be submitted to a paying market and maybe get me a legit publishing credit and a check. However, there are some very well-known and prestigious writing competitions which require an entry fee.

Writer's Digest has a very good writing competition. There's a $15 entry fee for short stories. The Lorian Hemingway competition charges $15 for stories postmarked by a certain date. WritersWeekly ezine sponsors a 24-hour short story competition which requires only a $5 entry fee.

If you want to pay and take a crack, by all means, go for it. Especially with smaller and free 'zines, sometimes there just isn't any other money to pay for prizes. I think I would think twice about paying a lot of money for a contest entry fee, but then everyone has a different idea of what too much and not much at all are. My advice is to investigate competitions thoroughly and go for those you feel strongly about or those you think you have a shot at winning.

And never underestimate the feeling you can get from seeing your work – even 100 words of fun nonsense – in print. I know Miss Snark made my day!

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

A nandina filamentosa – tiny little plant! – in my new flowerbed. So feathery and light, it looks like it might fly.

My friend Nancy at the Cliff May lecture Friday night, eyes lit up, big smile, brown hair flying – it's always good to see your friends.

The two big kitties, Jack & Jeeves, who pretend not to get along when you're watching, sleeping together on the bed when they thought no one was looking.

2007-03-14T08:47:00.000-07:00

WRITING STUFF: LET'S TALK ABOUT NO MONEY

No money – as in giving your work away for free.

Now, I know there are pretty strong opinions on this subject, and I don't really want to tangle with anyone over the concept. But here's why I have done it.

First of all, let me say right up front that I am a short story writer (of average height, it's the stories that are short) not a novelist, so my perspective is that of someone who writes lots of fiction that can be placed in a variety of venues.

Back when I first started to write I didn't know the difference between a tightly-plotted epic and a rambling mess, so I wrote a few of the latter thinking they were novels. They weren't, but they were great practice for using words and developing characters and plots and scenes. They went mercifully nowhere and reside in yellowing glory on the bottom shelf in the closet. Like I said, they were great practice, and I went on to learn how to write short and tight and I learned to love a few of my first characters enough to bring them back in different stories through the years.

But the first short stories I wrote needed good critiques. Real bad.

Back in those days, the idea of the Internet was just getting off the ground. A few hardy souls experimented with online magazines (the term "ezine" came later) and as I was experimenting in several genres, I was attracted to the science fiction online 'zines. They didn't pay anything at first – and I threw my few stories around the net to see if anyone was interested. I had a couple posted and got the crits I needed to improve my writing.

I didn't know any other writers. I was not in school nor did I know about writing groups.

I even found an online mystery magazine, the remarkable DAVID FIRKS' BLUE MURDER. And it was a paying venue of very high quality, so I worked on that first submission until I was exhausted. "Just Like in the Movies" was accepted, my first paid acceptance and my first mystery. I can't describe the joy of receiving a contract and a check, but suffice it to say I startled the neighbors with my squeals and chicken dance.

So why did I continue to submit stories to non-paying venues?

Well, two big reasons – okay, maybe more. I still needed to improve my writing to get my fiction skills up to par. I submitted to all the usual suspects: Omni, Fantasy & Science Fiction, you name it and got lots of nice rejections. But the big print mags don't critique your work, so I turned back to the online venues.

BLUE MURDER was an anomaly. High quality, a superb editor and a paying mystery venue, it was unique. And for the duration of its online life, I placed a story there about every quarter. Then Mr. Firks suffered a terrible medical event and publication ceased.

A couple of other paying venues sprang up at this time: Handheld Crime & Plots With Guns, a quasi-joint venture which also eventually took its place in the history of spectacular ezines, as well as a nice handful of others. But venues for mystery shorts have always been scarce and now they are even scarcer. (They still exist – WOMENS WORLD paid me $500 for a short story and GREAT MYSTERY & SUSPENSE sent $$ too.)

So I continued to submit to online sci fi venues and managed to get stories published in quite a few. Now some of these, like Rigel Chiokis' SPACEWAYS WEEKLY and Jack Egan's THE SPIRAL SEA paid well during their publication runs. But they are gone now too. Others didn't pay, but gave excellent critiques or had wide circulation or were run by people I knew & liked. That last played a big part in why I published so much with APHELION, a non-paying zine.

I still give some of my work away. I am not a professional in the sense that I do not expect to make a living writing short stories. I am not a novelist, looking for that big advance or mass market exposure. And I like to experiment with edgy stuff sometimes.
So I search out venues that offer me exposure and fun. That means a few of the places where I showcase my fiction don't pay me anything.

But not paying doesn't mean I get nothing. I get nominated for awards. I get pieces grabbed for anthologies. I get foreign publishers who contact me for reprints. I get production companies who want to make short films of my stories.

If I can sell a story to a paying publication, I will. But if Jim Stitzel or Dan Hollifield emails me asking pretty-please for a short, I will do something for them – because I know them. (Same thing for BJ Bourg who pays a small stipend to writers for their work.) And writing for blogs like EVIL EDITOR is just plain fun – and also led to anthology work.

So for me it is a matter of personal choice and a history with some editors.

I have heard criticism – some of it vehement – from writers who think giving away work cheapens it and makes it more difficult for them to find paying venues. The idea here is that with people giving away work, why should anyone pay for it? But it doesn't really work that way. The venues for short stories have been drying up since the 1950's, but there are still big-paying venues out there if you are good enough and if you actually submit to them.

The Internet is the new coffee table full of ever-changing magazines. Some pay, some don't. By all means submit exclusively to paying venues if you want to. But be aware that to some of us, the non-paying venues also have value.

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

Philip Johnson's GLASS HOUSE in New Canaan, Connecticut. I hope to see it on my vacation later this year.

The doggies at the fence when I get home from work. They just love you no matter what.

California red finches at the bird feeder. So tiny, so energetic, so pretty!

2007-02-21T09:44:00.000-08:00

WRITING STUFF: UPCOMING EVENTS, or DID I VOLUNTEER FOR THAT?

THE MYSTERIOUS EAST MYSTERY PANEL DISCUSSION

On March 3, 2007, at the Temple City Library from 2 - 4PM, I will be moderating a panel called The Mysterious East. The panelists are Naomi Hirahara, Bruce Cook, and Eric Stone. This is my first stab at moderating a panel of well-known mystery writers and I am excited. I hope all of you in the Southern California area will be able to attend.

What makes me volunteer for book signings when (due to the loss of mobility in my left side) I can no longer sign my own name? What makes me volunteer to moderate a panel when there are those who claim I don't know the meaning of moderation in my daily life? What makes me get up in front of a crowd of people and talk when my young and beautiful days are long gone and I have a voice like a high-pitched amphibian?

I don't know.

I like people in general and people who read in particular, so maybe I'm always looking for that spark, that connection, that bonds a writer to a reader through the beauty of the word. Okay, so lots of my words have to do with crime, but that doesn't mean they can't be precise and well-chosen all the same, and carry the beauty of language with them.

And I love to see that spark in the eyes of strangers over cookies and coffee in a library community room.

So I hope this goes well. See you there!

THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

The beautiful Danish modern chair in my living room. A piece of sculpture, a thing of comfort, a joy forever.

My Dear Husband's scar from his hip surgery – a thin red line that meanders gently over his smooth landscape like an Auto Club vacation map. I know there's a titanium socket thingy under it, but he says it feels just like the old hip, only without the pain.

Bookworm! My latest addiction…