Rhobin Lee Courtright's Blog, page 19
July 19, 2013
Charging up and Unwinding
#rndrobn0713
This month's Saturday Round-Robin topic is about what you do to recover, recoup, relax, refresh, re-examine, or what ever, So how do you unwind from life's stresses, or re-energize from its mundane moments? In some way both extremes seem related to me. You change whatever you are doing to something you like to do, and I think this changes according to where you are in your life.
When I was very young I wanted to escape parental control while waiting to begin my 'own' life. I lived in books and daydreams. It must have showed because I remember my 10th grade art teacher telling me I looked like a dreamer. Hmm. Lost in my own world? It didn't sound so good then. I still do both today, they are still escapes, and I can't sleep without reading first, so for sure it is a great relaxer.
As I became a mother my most de-stressing time of day was putting toddler children to bed. We had a bath and book ritual. One long play bath followed by ten to twenty minutes of reading whatever book they selected. It was a blessedly peaceful time of day since I knew calm and quiet would rein after the noise and hassle of the day. Now I enjoy doing this with my grandchildren when they come to visit.
Vacation is supposed to be about getting away and unwinding, but I've always found it stressful. Planning and packing is a pain. Traveling is tiring whether by car or plane. I take many photos and enjoy doing it, but don't really enjoy standing in line to visit attractions. And camping? I don't think so, too much work. My air mattress is always the one that goes flat. Short trips are fine - a long weekend, great; a week or two? No. First off, I have to get a cat sitter, and second, my garden goes wild the minute I turn my back on it.
So besides reading and daydreaming, how do I unwind? Writing, which combines the best of both reading and daydreaming; but reading isn't supposed to be peaceful. A good story needs thought provoking, emotional, dangerous or adventurous situations to bring the catharsis readers desire.
Hopefully, my October release will provide some of that.
Please go on to the next author participating into today's topic listed at the bottom of the post.
Excerpt from The Nanite Warrior:
"Holy shit, sir, that's the pilot. We picked up the body tag." The pilot quickly tracked the crashed ship's pilot. "It's at fifty-thousand feet sir."
With Aginfeld's stronger gravity, it would be a faster transit than Earth training allowed, but the body continued to fall for what Ithan felt an interminable time.
"He's at three-thousand feet, sir. Looks like he's going to crash with Aginfeld, too," the copilot said.
The falling body suddenly jerked backward and upright as a parafoil deployed. His downward speed drastically changed and the shifting wind affected the parafoil's direction and trajectory. The sensors followed the parachutist down to his landing many kilometers from the crashed craft. With some satisfaction Ithan saw the winds dragged the man for some distance over the rough land before stopping. The body didn't move.
"Hard landing," the pilot said in satisfied amusement, "have the location pinpointed, sir."
Five minutes later his pilot fought the wind buffeting the craft to land his heli.
Four Enforcers stood, already suited for outside and preparing to leave the craft. After a thousand years of terra forming, Aginfeld remained a dangerous and untenable landscape, and according to sensors a windstorm brewed. "Get the body and bring it back on board asap, but take no extraordinary efforts, if the pilot cannot be collected easily, leave him," Ithan ordered.
Within ten minutes they returned with the body and the parachute. The creases in their suits scattered trapped sand and pebbles as they moved into the heli. The pilot they brought with them wore a silver flight suit and a high altitude-space helmet. The dark-lens view shield obscured the face. An oxygen tank hung from the chest straps of the flight suit, its tube running to the helmet.
"Strap in," came an order from the pilot, "It's going to be a bumpy takeoff." Everyone complied, leaving the body tethered to the heli's deck anchors. In a minute they were in the air.
"We are closer to Abode," Ithan shouted his order to the pilot as this area of the craft was far noisier. "Cancel the flight to Van Garth Habitat and head back to the Enforcer landing deck on Abode." He kept his attention on the pilot tied to the floor.
Noting the pilot's chest rose and fell in shallow breaths, he loosened his restraints despite a warning from Randall. Several hands reached out to restrain him as turbulence bounced the craft. Shrugging them off, he let his past medical training come to the fore. He heard numerous other restraint locks release. Ithan grasped the helmet's attachments and unlocked them, slowly removing the helmet. "Get an oxygen mask ready, Randall," he looked at his men, "find out our estimated time to landing and warn the port." Carefully removing attachments and hoses from the helmet, he finally pulled it off.
"My God!" Randall said as he returned. "He's a girl."
* * *
Next stop on the Round Robin Blog tour -- Please check out about relaxing in Vienna:
Lynn Crian's blog A Writer in Vienna
Other links to Round-Robin bloggers:
Western Romance author Ginger Simpson at Dish'in It Out
Mystery author Billie A. Williams at Printed Words
Mystery author Beverly Bateman at Blogging with Beverly
Fantasy & Scifi author A. J. Maguire
This month's Saturday Round-Robin topic is about what you do to recover, recoup, relax, refresh, re-examine, or what ever, So how do you unwind from life's stresses, or re-energize from its mundane moments? In some way both extremes seem related to me. You change whatever you are doing to something you like to do, and I think this changes according to where you are in your life.
When I was very young I wanted to escape parental control while waiting to begin my 'own' life. I lived in books and daydreams. It must have showed because I remember my 10th grade art teacher telling me I looked like a dreamer. Hmm. Lost in my own world? It didn't sound so good then. I still do both today, they are still escapes, and I can't sleep without reading first, so for sure it is a great relaxer.
As I became a mother my most de-stressing time of day was putting toddler children to bed. We had a bath and book ritual. One long play bath followed by ten to twenty minutes of reading whatever book they selected. It was a blessedly peaceful time of day since I knew calm and quiet would rein after the noise and hassle of the day. Now I enjoy doing this with my grandchildren when they come to visit.
Vacation is supposed to be about getting away and unwinding, but I've always found it stressful. Planning and packing is a pain. Traveling is tiring whether by car or plane. I take many photos and enjoy doing it, but don't really enjoy standing in line to visit attractions. And camping? I don't think so, too much work. My air mattress is always the one that goes flat. Short trips are fine - a long weekend, great; a week or two? No. First off, I have to get a cat sitter, and second, my garden goes wild the minute I turn my back on it.
So besides reading and daydreaming, how do I unwind? Writing, which combines the best of both reading and daydreaming; but reading isn't supposed to be peaceful. A good story needs thought provoking, emotional, dangerous or adventurous situations to bring the catharsis readers desire.
Hopefully, my October release will provide some of that.
Please go on to the next author participating into today's topic listed at the bottom of the post.
Excerpt from The Nanite Warrior:
"Holy shit, sir, that's the pilot. We picked up the body tag." The pilot quickly tracked the crashed ship's pilot. "It's at fifty-thousand feet sir."
With Aginfeld's stronger gravity, it would be a faster transit than Earth training allowed, but the body continued to fall for what Ithan felt an interminable time.
"He's at three-thousand feet, sir. Looks like he's going to crash with Aginfeld, too," the copilot said.
The falling body suddenly jerked backward and upright as a parafoil deployed. His downward speed drastically changed and the shifting wind affected the parafoil's direction and trajectory. The sensors followed the parachutist down to his landing many kilometers from the crashed craft. With some satisfaction Ithan saw the winds dragged the man for some distance over the rough land before stopping. The body didn't move.
"Hard landing," the pilot said in satisfied amusement, "have the location pinpointed, sir."
Five minutes later his pilot fought the wind buffeting the craft to land his heli.
Four Enforcers stood, already suited for outside and preparing to leave the craft. After a thousand years of terra forming, Aginfeld remained a dangerous and untenable landscape, and according to sensors a windstorm brewed. "Get the body and bring it back on board asap, but take no extraordinary efforts, if the pilot cannot be collected easily, leave him," Ithan ordered.
Within ten minutes they returned with the body and the parachute. The creases in their suits scattered trapped sand and pebbles as they moved into the heli. The pilot they brought with them wore a silver flight suit and a high altitude-space helmet. The dark-lens view shield obscured the face. An oxygen tank hung from the chest straps of the flight suit, its tube running to the helmet.
"Strap in," came an order from the pilot, "It's going to be a bumpy takeoff." Everyone complied, leaving the body tethered to the heli's deck anchors. In a minute they were in the air.
"We are closer to Abode," Ithan shouted his order to the pilot as this area of the craft was far noisier. "Cancel the flight to Van Garth Habitat and head back to the Enforcer landing deck on Abode." He kept his attention on the pilot tied to the floor.
Noting the pilot's chest rose and fell in shallow breaths, he loosened his restraints despite a warning from Randall. Several hands reached out to restrain him as turbulence bounced the craft. Shrugging them off, he let his past medical training come to the fore. He heard numerous other restraint locks release. Ithan grasped the helmet's attachments and unlocked them, slowly removing the helmet. "Get an oxygen mask ready, Randall," he looked at his men, "find out our estimated time to landing and warn the port." Carefully removing attachments and hoses from the helmet, he finally pulled it off.
"My God!" Randall said as he returned. "He's a girl."
* * *
Next stop on the Round Robin Blog tour -- Please check out about relaxing in Vienna:
Lynn Crian's blog A Writer in Vienna
Other links to Round-Robin bloggers:
Western Romance author Ginger Simpson at Dish'in It Out
Mystery author Billie A. Williams at Printed Words
Mystery author Beverly Bateman at Blogging with Beverly
Fantasy & Scifi author A. J. Maguire
Charging up and Unwinding #rndrobn0713
This month's Saturday Round-Robin topic is about what you do to recover, recoup, relax, refresh, re-examine, or what ever, So how do you unwind from life's stresses, or re-energize from its mundane moments? In some way both extremes seem related to me. You change whatever you are doing to something you like to do, and I think this changes according to where you are in your life.
When I was very young I wanted to escape parental control while waiting to begin my 'own' life. I lived in books and daydreams. It must have showed because I remember my 10th grade art teacher telling me I looked like a dreamer. Hmm. Lost in my own world? It didn't sound so good then. I still do both today, they are still escapes, and I can't sleep without reading first, so for sure it is a great relaxer.
As I became a mother my most de-stressing time of day was putting toddler children to bed. We had a bath and book ritual. One long play bath followed by ten to twenty minutes or reading whatever book they selected. It was a blessedly peaceful time of day since I knew clam and quiet would rein after the noise and hassle of the day. Now I enjoy doing this with my grandchildren when they come to visit.
Vacation is supposed to be about getting away and unwinding, but I've always found it stressful. Planning and packing is a pain. Traveling is tiring whether by car or plane. I take many photos and enjoy doing it, but don't really enjoy standing in line to visit attractions, and camping? I don't think so. My air mattress is always the one that goes flat. Short trips are fine - a long weekend, great; a week or two? No. First off, I have to get a cat setter, and second, my garden goes wild the minute I turn my back on it.
So besides reading and daydreaming, how do I unwind? Writing, which combines the best of both reading and daydreaming; but reading isn't supposed to be peaceful. A good story needs thought provoking, emotional, dangerous or adventurous situations to bring the catharsis readers desire.
Hopefully, my October release will provide some of that.
Please go on to the next author participating into today's topic listed at the bottom of the post.
Excerpt from The Nanite Warrior:
"Holy shit, sir, that's the pilot. We picked up the body tag." The pilot quickly tracked the crashed ship's pilot. "It's at fifty-thousand feet sir."
With Aginfeld's stronger gravity, it would be a faster transit than Earth training allowed, but the body continued to fall for what Ithan felt an interminable time.
"He's at three-thousand feet, sir. Looks like he's going to crash with Aginfeld, too," the copilot said.
The falling body suddenly jerked backward and upright as a parafoil deployed. His downward speed drastically changed and the shifting wind affected the parafoil's direction and trajectory. The sensors followed the parachutist down to his landing many kilometers from the crashed craft. With some satisfaction Ithan saw the winds dragged the man for some distance over the rough land before stopping. The body didn't move.
"Hard landing," the pilot said in satisfied amusement, "have the location pinpointed, sir."
Five minutes later his pilot fought the wind buffeting the craft to land his heli.
Four Enforcers stood, already suited for outside and preparing to leave the craft. After a thousand years of terra forming, Aginfeld remained a dangerous and untenable landscape, and according to sensors a windstorm brewed. "Get the body and bring it back on board asap, but take no extraordinary efforts, if the pilot cannot be collected easily, leave him," Ithan ordered.
Within ten minutes they returned with the body and the parachute. The creases in their suits scattered trapped sand and pebbles as they moved into the heli. The pilot they brought with them wore a silver flight suit and a high altitude-space helmet. The dark-lens view shield obscured the face. An oxygen tank hung from the chest straps of the flight suit, its tube running to the helmet.
"Strap in," came an order from the pilot, "It's going to be a bumpy takeoff." Everyone complied, leaving the body tethered to the heli's deck anchors. In a minute they were in the air.
"We are closer to Abode," Ithan shouted his order to the pilot as this area of the craft was far noisier. "Cancel the flight to Van Garth Habitat and head back to the Enforcer landing deck on Abode." He kept his attention on the pilot tied to the floor.
Noting the pilot's chest rose and fell in shallow breaths, he loosened his restraints despite a warning from Randall. Several hands reached out to restrain him as turbulence bounced the craft. Shrugging them off, he let his past medical training come to the fore. He heard numerous other restraint locks release. Ithan grasped the helmet's attachments and unlocked them, slowly removing the helmet. "Get an oxygen mask ready, Randall," he looked at his men, "find out our estimated time to landing and warn the port." Carefully removing attachments and hoses from the helmet, he finally pulled it off.
"My God!" Randall said as he returned. "He's a girl."
* * *
Next stop on the Round Robin Blog tour -- Please check out about relaxing in Vienna:
Lynn Crian's blog A Writer in Vienna
Other links to Round-Robin bloggers:
Western Romance author Ginger Simpson at Dish'in It Out
Mystery author Billie A. Williams at Printed Words
Mystery author Beverly Bateman at Blogging with Beverly
Fantasy & Scifi author A. J. Maguire
When I was very young I wanted to escape parental control while waiting to begin my 'own' life. I lived in books and daydreams. It must have showed because I remember my 10th grade art teacher telling me I looked like a dreamer. Hmm. Lost in my own world? It didn't sound so good then. I still do both today, they are still escapes, and I can't sleep without reading first, so for sure it is a great relaxer.
As I became a mother my most de-stressing time of day was putting toddler children to bed. We had a bath and book ritual. One long play bath followed by ten to twenty minutes or reading whatever book they selected. It was a blessedly peaceful time of day since I knew clam and quiet would rein after the noise and hassle of the day. Now I enjoy doing this with my grandchildren when they come to visit.
Vacation is supposed to be about getting away and unwinding, but I've always found it stressful. Planning and packing is a pain. Traveling is tiring whether by car or plane. I take many photos and enjoy doing it, but don't really enjoy standing in line to visit attractions, and camping? I don't think so. My air mattress is always the one that goes flat. Short trips are fine - a long weekend, great; a week or two? No. First off, I have to get a cat setter, and second, my garden goes wild the minute I turn my back on it.
So besides reading and daydreaming, how do I unwind? Writing, which combines the best of both reading and daydreaming; but reading isn't supposed to be peaceful. A good story needs thought provoking, emotional, dangerous or adventurous situations to bring the catharsis readers desire.
Hopefully, my October release will provide some of that.
Please go on to the next author participating into today's topic listed at the bottom of the post.
Excerpt from The Nanite Warrior:
"Holy shit, sir, that's the pilot. We picked up the body tag." The pilot quickly tracked the crashed ship's pilot. "It's at fifty-thousand feet sir."
With Aginfeld's stronger gravity, it would be a faster transit than Earth training allowed, but the body continued to fall for what Ithan felt an interminable time.
"He's at three-thousand feet, sir. Looks like he's going to crash with Aginfeld, too," the copilot said.
The falling body suddenly jerked backward and upright as a parafoil deployed. His downward speed drastically changed and the shifting wind affected the parafoil's direction and trajectory. The sensors followed the parachutist down to his landing many kilometers from the crashed craft. With some satisfaction Ithan saw the winds dragged the man for some distance over the rough land before stopping. The body didn't move.
"Hard landing," the pilot said in satisfied amusement, "have the location pinpointed, sir."
Five minutes later his pilot fought the wind buffeting the craft to land his heli.
Four Enforcers stood, already suited for outside and preparing to leave the craft. After a thousand years of terra forming, Aginfeld remained a dangerous and untenable landscape, and according to sensors a windstorm brewed. "Get the body and bring it back on board asap, but take no extraordinary efforts, if the pilot cannot be collected easily, leave him," Ithan ordered.
Within ten minutes they returned with the body and the parachute. The creases in their suits scattered trapped sand and pebbles as they moved into the heli. The pilot they brought with them wore a silver flight suit and a high altitude-space helmet. The dark-lens view shield obscured the face. An oxygen tank hung from the chest straps of the flight suit, its tube running to the helmet.
"Strap in," came an order from the pilot, "It's going to be a bumpy takeoff." Everyone complied, leaving the body tethered to the heli's deck anchors. In a minute they were in the air.
"We are closer to Abode," Ithan shouted his order to the pilot as this area of the craft was far noisier. "Cancel the flight to Van Garth Habitat and head back to the Enforcer landing deck on Abode." He kept his attention on the pilot tied to the floor.
Noting the pilot's chest rose and fell in shallow breaths, he loosened his restraints despite a warning from Randall. Several hands reached out to restrain him as turbulence bounced the craft. Shrugging them off, he let his past medical training come to the fore. He heard numerous other restraint locks release. Ithan grasped the helmet's attachments and unlocked them, slowly removing the helmet. "Get an oxygen mask ready, Randall," he looked at his men, "find out our estimated time to landing and warn the port." Carefully removing attachments and hoses from the helmet, he finally pulled it off.
"My God!" Randall said as he returned. "He's a girl."
* * *
Next stop on the Round Robin Blog tour -- Please check out about relaxing in Vienna:
Lynn Crian's blog A Writer in Vienna
Other links to Round-Robin bloggers:
Western Romance author Ginger Simpson at Dish'in It Out
Mystery author Billie A. Williams at Printed Words
Mystery author Beverly Bateman at Blogging with Beverly
Fantasy & Scifi author A. J. Maguire
July 12, 2013
Reading and the Space-Time Continuum
Some people don’t like fiction, saying, “It’s all just make believe, I prefer biography,” or “I’d rather watch a movie.” Whatever, they are still experiencing a tale. We do not know when the oral traditions of storytelling began, but probably long enough ago that fiction became entrenched as the biological need it has become. Biological need? Yep. In biology, survival tends to get rid of anything unnecessary, yet fiction continues. We have a need for it and spend countless hours in other worlds of fantasy (all fiction is fantasy), which might be better spent doing something else, so why? In some ways it remains a mystery, but Joseph Campbell, Carl Jung, and Vladimir Propp showed in their respective researches how stories might serve some deep spiritual and mental need for both the author and the reader.
Fiction isn’t just a way to relax and to pass time, or a method to relieve stress, or to help a person fall asleep, but an ongoing collision between fantasy and reality that takes the reader on a journey of some sort, whether an adventure tour, a voyage of growth, a drive to change entrenched viewpoints, or an expedition to achieving a long sought goal. A story always contains a problem that needs solving, which provides an experience that calls for the reader’s personal interaction, learning, and maybe his or her personal change. If that interaction doesn’t happen, neither does the story.
Each of us lives in a finite space and time, and physics, even philosophy, have indicated the possibility of multiple universes. So maybe that’s where reading takes us--a junction between biology and the space-time continuum fueled by imagination. Maybe imagination is where infinite universes intersect and all those stories are true in some other time and reality.
Available from Champagne Books.Cross posted at Writer's Vineyard
Fiction isn’t just a way to relax and to pass time, or a method to relieve stress, or to help a person fall asleep, but an ongoing collision between fantasy and reality that takes the reader on a journey of some sort, whether an adventure tour, a voyage of growth, a drive to change entrenched viewpoints, or an expedition to achieving a long sought goal. A story always contains a problem that needs solving, which provides an experience that calls for the reader’s personal interaction, learning, and maybe his or her personal change. If that interaction doesn’t happen, neither does the story.
Each of us lives in a finite space and time, and physics, even philosophy, have indicated the possibility of multiple universes. So maybe that’s where reading takes us--a junction between biology and the space-time continuum fueled by imagination. Maybe imagination is where infinite universes intersect and all those stories are true in some other time and reality.Available from Champagne Books.Cross posted at Writer's Vineyard
July 7, 2013
A Friend in the Peace Corps
I have a friend, Bonnie, who joined and left on a mission for the Peace Corps. She is blogging on her experiences, some of which like this ONE, are hilarious, but certainly intriguing. Please pay her a visit and make a comment -- let her know there are people interested. This is an adventure I'm sure you will like to share, and Bonnie will probably need encouragement.
A Book in Six Weeks
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April 26th I started a new story. Granted it takes place in an already established world (Home World ~ Aginfeld), but I finished it in mid June and have a contract on it for publication in October. That gives me several months to read through it again. Here is the working cover so far -- but it might well change.
I've never done a story so fast, but the idea formed and then everything just came together. Very strange, for me at least. I've never participated in a NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) where someone writes 50K in a month, so I found the experience interesting.
I've never done a story so fast, but the idea formed and then everything just came together. Very strange, for me at least. I've never participated in a NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) where someone writes 50K in a month, so I found the experience interesting.
June 21, 2013
What I Love to Read
This is the first topic in a blog round robin, with several authors writing about the same topic. This month's topic is: What I love to read and why. At the bottom of my post are links to other participating authors.
I clearly recall reading my first book by myself in my second grade, but can’t remember anyone but teachers ever reading to me. I stuck to picture books for a long time until I read Boxcar Children. Shortly afterward I discovered horse books. I loved horses! Wow! I think I read Black Beauty first, followed by novels by Margarite Henry, Walter Farley, and Will James. Smokey with horse breaking cowboy looking for his stolen mouse gray horse continues to be one of my favorite books. The public library was a mile or so away and I walked there at least once a week to get two or three books. My family complained I always had my nose in a book, and it was true I could get lost in a story.
Once my Mom called and told me to take the roast out of the oven at a certain time. I said sure, and went back to reading. Yep, you guessed it, the time clicked by, and Mom came home to an overdone roast.
I went through a period where I read all the Edger Allen Poe, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes mysteries, and moved on to those of Ellery Queen. I loved getting lost in those worlds.
In my sophomore English we were required to read Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. This was when I also started working in a drug store and discovered the paperback racks. Suddenly I was reading historical romances by Emily Loring, Georgette Heyer, Mary Stewart (loved the romance-mystery crossover); Victorial Holt, Jean Plaidy, and Phillippa Carr – who the last three I discovered later were all pseudonyms for author Eleanor Hibbert.
Once I picked up a novel by Andre Norton, and I was off and running on fantasy. Which seems a strange genre because all fiction is fantasy. Norton wrote so many books! Fantasy led to science fiction.
My reading preferences are still all over the place. I still love historical and historical romance novels, mysteries, and I still adore good science fiction and fantasy. The newer urban fantasies also interest me. I still read printed books, but must admit I love my Kindle and all the books available.
Take a short tour and a look at other takes on why I love to read:
Ginger Simpson
Beverly Bateman
Joel Jurrens
Kay Sisk
Billie A. Williams
Is the round robin only for authors? No, if you have a blog and want to participate, let me know!
I clearly recall reading my first book by myself in my second grade, but can’t remember anyone but teachers ever reading to me. I stuck to picture books for a long time until I read Boxcar Children. Shortly afterward I discovered horse books. I loved horses! Wow! I think I read Black Beauty first, followed by novels by Margarite Henry, Walter Farley, and Will James. Smokey with horse breaking cowboy looking for his stolen mouse gray horse continues to be one of my favorite books. The public library was a mile or so away and I walked there at least once a week to get two or three books. My family complained I always had my nose in a book, and it was true I could get lost in a story.
Once my Mom called and told me to take the roast out of the oven at a certain time. I said sure, and went back to reading. Yep, you guessed it, the time clicked by, and Mom came home to an overdone roast.
I went through a period where I read all the Edger Allen Poe, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes mysteries, and moved on to those of Ellery Queen. I loved getting lost in those worlds.
In my sophomore English we were required to read Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. This was when I also started working in a drug store and discovered the paperback racks. Suddenly I was reading historical romances by Emily Loring, Georgette Heyer, Mary Stewart (loved the romance-mystery crossover); Victorial Holt, Jean Plaidy, and Phillippa Carr – who the last three I discovered later were all pseudonyms for author Eleanor Hibbert.
Once I picked up a novel by Andre Norton, and I was off and running on fantasy. Which seems a strange genre because all fiction is fantasy. Norton wrote so many books! Fantasy led to science fiction.
My reading preferences are still all over the place. I still love historical and historical romance novels, mysteries, and I still adore good science fiction and fantasy. The newer urban fantasies also interest me. I still read printed books, but must admit I love my Kindle and all the books available.
Take a short tour and a look at other takes on why I love to read:
Ginger Simpson
Beverly Bateman
Joel Jurrens
Kay Sisk
Billie A. Williams
Is the round robin only for authors? No, if you have a blog and want to participate, let me know!
April 16, 2013
Poor George
We've struggled with our cat George's long-haired coat all winter. The more I plucked and combed, the more matted it became. (I wasn't as regular as I should have been.) He hated it, too. He has lost some teeth along with his desire to groom himself. Since I couldn't stand it any longer I took him to a pet groomer in Scottville, Michigan, called Waggin Tails, and took Andy along, too.
After reading about cutting off mats and how cat skin stretches making it dangerous, I felt rather than buy clippers, it would be easier and safer for a professional to do the boys. They both seemed to have behaved themselves, which they didn't do with me. They even had baths and their ears cleaned. So now they are mat free. With Andy the groomer was able to pull out the mats, so he came home with his fur intact. George, however, had to be shaved.
He was quite embarrassed for a short period, but now he is very happy, even seems to walk around the house wearing a smile . I waited until now so he wouldn't have to wait so long to go outdoors. It will be warm enough for him outside very soon, even without his fur. It must feel great to get those hard mats off his back. I am now using a brush daily to get him used to it. Cats... always something.
George now looking somewhat lion-like.
After reading about cutting off mats and how cat skin stretches making it dangerous, I felt rather than buy clippers, it would be easier and safer for a professional to do the boys. They both seemed to have behaved themselves, which they didn't do with me. They even had baths and their ears cleaned. So now they are mat free. With Andy the groomer was able to pull out the mats, so he came home with his fur intact. George, however, had to be shaved.
He was quite embarrassed for a short period, but now he is very happy, even seems to walk around the house wearing a smile . I waited until now so he wouldn't have to wait so long to go outdoors. It will be warm enough for him outside very soon, even without his fur. It must feel great to get those hard mats off his back. I am now using a brush daily to get him used to it. Cats... always something.
George now looking somewhat lion-like.March 25, 2013
Specific Choices
In March with the whole lion and lamb thing coming and going, we expect sudden changes of weather, from calm and mild to ferocious winds and cold, so it's a good time to talk about fighting chaos or enjoying clarity, in other words, choices. In this case, specific and concise wording in writing. My students, who are learning non-fiction academic writing, not fiction, still need to learn how one word can add layers of meaning. A meaning they don't have to explain, because the word has done the work for them. One of my favorite examples follows.
A chain link fence surrounds my girlfriend's(boyfriend's) house--change the pronoun to fit yourself accordingly:
Scenario 1) As I reach the gate and lift the latch, a dog comes charging and growling out of the shrubbery. It lunges against the gate, snapping.
Choices, choicesScenario 2) As I reach the gate and lift the latch, a Chihuahua comes charging and growling out of the shrubbery. It lunges against the gate, snapping.
Scenario 3) As I reach the gate and lift the latch, a Rottweiler comes charging and growling out of the shrubbery. It lunges against the gate, snapping.
What is your reaction to each scenario?
Probably: 1) potential risk; 2) limited perhaps comic hazard; 3) imminent threat.
This happens because one word changed. Each situation raises specific responses in the character the reader intuits. Yes a Chihuahua can bite, but a Rottweiler can rip off your face. The character will act accordingly. The more specific the situation, the greater the visceral reaction the reader has. Like the winds of March, nouns and verb choice can dramatically change a situation. One other benefit occurs: elimination of unnecessary explanation makes the writing more concise.
(Cross Posted with Writer's Vineyard)
A chain link fence surrounds my girlfriend's(boyfriend's) house--change the pronoun to fit yourself accordingly:
Scenario 1) As I reach the gate and lift the latch, a dog comes charging and growling out of the shrubbery. It lunges against the gate, snapping.
Choices, choicesScenario 2) As I reach the gate and lift the latch, a Chihuahua comes charging and growling out of the shrubbery. It lunges against the gate, snapping.Scenario 3) As I reach the gate and lift the latch, a Rottweiler comes charging and growling out of the shrubbery. It lunges against the gate, snapping.
What is your reaction to each scenario?
Probably: 1) potential risk; 2) limited perhaps comic hazard; 3) imminent threat.
This happens because one word changed. Each situation raises specific responses in the character the reader intuits. Yes a Chihuahua can bite, but a Rottweiler can rip off your face. The character will act accordingly. The more specific the situation, the greater the visceral reaction the reader has. Like the winds of March, nouns and verb choice can dramatically change a situation. One other benefit occurs: elimination of unnecessary explanation makes the writing more concise.
(Cross Posted with Writer's Vineyard)
March 21, 2013
Spring?
Today -- Spring has come. Sort'a.
Today -- Spring has come. Sort'a.
Today -- Spring has come. Sort'a.
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