Ask the Author: Patsy Hand
Answered Questions (6)
Patsy Hand
I was walking the streets of Rome and saw a large dalmation walking down the street. No one paid one whit of attention. About that time a group of students handed me pamphlets about animal neglect. I wandered on to a sanctuary next to the coliseum which took in cats whose owner asked me to write about the animals. And then being a suspense writer I did my research and met a woman who was an international courier of antiquities... My Francesca! I love to write about strong women. And she was all that. This part of research is magical.
Patsy Hand
As a young girl wandering in the mountains and on the wide yellow fields of the ranch, I had plenty of time to use my imagination. I began to weave stories about the hired men, who were often quiet about their past. And then there were my uncles who were powerful and mysterious. What you don't know for sure, you make up. I am positive we all do that to an extent.
Patsy Hand
Two projects. A memoir of my life on a ranch visited by a whole host of odd drifters and sometimes famous people. I am naturally a bit private so it's a stretch for me.
I am also working on a story that has a basis in reality about a young girl who has been cast out of her home and as she is persued by those who would do her harm, she comes upon a large white dog tied to a tree and an abandoned army tent in the woods, and then so it goes.
I am also working on a story that has a basis in reality about a young girl who has been cast out of her home and as she is persued by those who would do her harm, she comes upon a large white dog tied to a tree and an abandoned army tent in the woods, and then so it goes.
Patsy Hand
I taught creative writing for years and I think resolve is at the core of success. Students who weren't naturally talented but really really wanted to write succeeded. Naturally gifted students were sometimes complacent figuring talent would out. Well, it doesn't. It's good old effort. Anyone can learn to do it. But it takes work. Never, ever give up if it means that much to you. You will and can succeed. But remember, you have to truly love the art of writing.
Patsy Hand
I love it when I am just going through my day and something triggers a bit of story and then I begin to think of how that would work and so it grows into something I noodle about for weeks. I guess my truth is trying to make a difference by telling a story. Life really is about story anyway, isn't it? We all carry them in our heads. I just go the next step and write them down.
Patsy Hand
I have only experienced writers block one time and I handled it by free writing (just whatever comes to mind-no expecctations) and somehow produced a half-way decent fairy tale that I still consider publishing. I realized I had begun to demand perfection and there is no such thing in writing. Days of just noodling can produce the best lines. So now I am kinder to myself and sometimes just let whatever comes to mind stand---at least for a while.
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