Tracey Cramer-Kelly's Blog, page 23

Stars Collide Hollywood Romance Novel: Similar or Not?

I’m 44K words into the draft of my next novel (Take Two), in which the hero and heroine are a Hollywood actor and director. It’s a Hollywood romance novel … with a twist.

When I stumbled across Stars Collide, in which the heroine is a famous TV-show actress in love with her co-star, I couldn’t very well ignore it, could I? Right! So here goes…

I found the start of Stars Collide to be a little rough. Three chapters in, I was wondering who the novel was really about, the young heroine (Kat) and her man … or her grandmother. And when the “big kiss” happens that early in a book, it makes you wonder where the author is going!

Luckily I stuck with it, because it was a fun read.

And the answer to the above question is: both. The author created some touching circumstances, especially for the eccentric ex-Hollywood starlet. The characters were well done, the personality quirks different and interesting (the author obviously knows her old movies!), and the “life imitates art” plot line was a refreshingly funny way to approach the story.

Stars Collide is a light (I’d call it “sunny”) read. There’s never a time when the younger actors’  relationship comes into question; in fact, they seemed to have it a bit too good to be true. Even the grandmother’s painful past isn’t a heavy topic.

In Take Two, the characters have some baggage, some bias, some assumptions about each other. They fight their attraction. The actor (Zac) struggles with his own past and his conflicting desire for F-A-M-E and a stable relationship/family. The director (Gina) uses her teenage daughters as an excuse to opt out of life’s challenges. Oh, and there’s a “bad guy” (well, actually a girl) and my signature medical emergency.

In sum, Take Two is decidedly heftier (how’s that for a word?). It’s fascinating to see how different authors take an idea like “Hollywood romance” and do such different things with it.

Men of the Military Book Giveaway in Honor of Veteran’s Day

Hello and welcome to my first ever “Blog Hop” and the Men of the Military Book Giveaway!

This endeavor  involves over 100 authors and bloggers who share either military heroes and heroines they have created, or ones they have read and loved. (I can’t say I’ve personally checked them all out yet, but I love a character in uniform, so this should be fun!)

Oh, and there are prizes for you, the visitor! I’m personally giving away an eBook copy of True Surrender along with a “Freedom Isn’t Free” memory bracelet (the proceeds of which support The Warrior Project) if you are in the USA. The Hop administrator (Vanessa) also has additional prizes you can check out here.

The blog hop runs from now until November 15th. Give yourself a break and spend it with some hot military heroes (and heroines)! Please note that you do need to leave comments with your email in order to qualify for the giveaways. Click here to start!

True Surrender is the story of Army officer Aaron Bricewick, who is rescued from a hostage situation in Afghanistan only to find that his personal journey is just beginning… a journey that includes adapting to life as an amputee, facing a struggle with PTSD, and ultimately finding the strength within himself to accept redemption…and love. It is a story about faith, courage, duty, and honor. It was inspired by the true-life trials of wounded veterans and has received outstanding reviews. Read free excerpts here!

Cool Rider Music Video: “The Biker in the Mirror”

As I’ve mentioned before, I had a great time with the cast and crew of the Cool Rider music video. Here’s another prime example…

In an earlier post I mentioned how much trouble I had “hitting my mark” in the Ordinary Guy scene. I joked that my co-star, Tracy, had no such problems.

And here’s the proof! The scene in which our lady biker is checking out the Cool Rider by watching him in her rearview mirror.

To this day I’m in awe of how Tracy could ride that tight circle, park the bike exactly where it needed to be, walk around the motorcycle AND toward the camera – all without moving out of the frame.

I had trouble when all I was doing was walking! The scenes I was in, we shot five times (maybe six). This scene we shot twice (and believe it or not, this is the first take!)

So he’s not only hot… he’s “right on the mark”!

Cool Rider Music Video: Sneak Peek of “Pink Ladies”

I spent this past week immersed in editing the video for “Cool Rider.” I spent every spare moment on it (and even stole some moments from my work schedule). The main goal was to choose and place the desired scenes into the timeline and get the lips moving in tandem with the audio.

I had committed to blogging about the entire process of creating a music video, but I thought, this is boring, no one will want to read a blog post about video editing!

For me, the exciting part is the video shoot itself, because it’s a chance to work with creative people (I like to describe it as a creative “burst”) as a team. Even the planning and prep time leading up to the video shoot gives me the opportunity to work with creative people.

The video editing process, however, is rather solitary. But it’s a creative process nonetheless, and as usual, I’ve learned a lot (and I don’t mean just the software, which I’m getting much better at). I also discovered how weird it is to watch yourself over and over when you’re the one making the editing decisions. (I’d much rather watch my hot co-star!)

Perhaps this “solitariness” is part of why I like to share Sneak Peeks of the video ahead of its full release.

So here is Sneak Peek #2, titled “Pink Ladies.” Unlike the first (“Ordinary Guy”) which was captured directly from the raw footage, this Sneak Peek video is from the eventual finished product.

The “Pink Ladies” scene came together relatively late in the planning process, and I’m so glad it did. It really adds to the story. But I know what you’re thinking: when do I get to see THE Cool Rider? The hot biker that the singer is after during the song…does she get him in the end? Watch for the next Sneak Peek!

Movie Review: What Happens After the War

I picked up the movie “Memorial Day” on a friend’s recommendation, surprised to find it was filmed here in my home state of Minnesota. I have to say, it was one of best movies about soldiers and war that I’ve seen.

I’ve always been interested in “what happens after.” After the bullets fly, after the IED explodes, after the soldier leaves the war. How does what they experience impact their relationships with spouse, children, family… and themselves? These are the things I explore in much of my writing (especially as pertains to wounded veterans and PTSD).

This movie has it in spades.

I’ve tried writing a novel with flashbacks. It’s hard to do well. Same with a movie. I have never seen a movie able to move from present to past the way Memorial Day does. And does it to great effect!

In the opening scene, we watch the main character (Kyle) get injured in the line of duty. On his last night in recovery an officer/doctor persuades him to talk about his past.

That past is a story of himself as a 13-year-old. He finds his grandfather’s old locker and confronts him with it. His grandfather, who fought in WWII, agrees to tell Kyle the story behind three (and only three) items from the locker. In the process, we get three poignant stories in flashbacks, juxtaposed with both characters’ tight, reined-in emotional delivery.

We go “forward” to see Kyle having parallel experiences in Iraq. Different war, similar experiences. And because of his grandfather’s stories, Kyle has a wisdom about him… an ability to hold onto compassion and learn to live with his decisions a lot earlier in life than his grandfather did.

I’ve seen some reviews that mentioned the acting. I personally thought the actors did a great job. It’s almost easier to shoot an action scene than to show the kind of emotion these characters do. If you want to see an excellent movie that will tug on your heart strings, this is it. Rated a solid 5!

Cool Rider Music Video: Sneak Peek of “Ordinary Guy”

Time for an update on the “Cool Rider” music video. The shoot was completed nearly three weeks ago, but I’ve been unable to start on the editing process.

For those who don’t know, my mother-in-law was diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer on Aug 15. What followed was a shockingly rapid decline complicated by pneumonia, and ultimately she passed away on Sep 28 … the day before the video shoot.

It was a difficult time, trying to keep all the usual balls in the air, often as a single-parent… and still complete the video shoot for “Cool Rider,” which had been planned for some time.

When I was finally able to sit down to work on the video edits, I discovered that I had a corrupt copy of the Adobe software I intended to use. After a 4+ hour battle with Adobe (I have very little nice to say about the company) it seems my issues have been resolved. Whether the lost time was worth it is debatable, but in the last week I’ve been able to complete three short demo videos for our motorcycle business (Leader Motorcycle).

This weekend I intend to start working on “Cool Rider” in earnest. I can’t wait to see it come together; we have such great footage. In the meantime, I took one of my favorite “takes” and turned it into a Sneak Peek for you (I hope to do several of these, so subscribe to be alerted or become my FB fan).

We call this the “Ordinary Guy Scene.” This was the fifth or sixth take, partly because I kept overshooting my mark (which happened to be a piece of gum on the sidewalk!) and getting slightly out of frame. So you see the thumbs-up as Tracy also rejoices that I hit it (he had NO problems with this, but that’s a story for the next Sneak Peek!). I also like how Brett played the “ordinary guy” part in this take.

One more note: I had intended to release the song and video together, but because of the delay, the song is out already! You can listen to a clip here or download from iTunes or CDBaby.

Making a Music Video: Real-Life Women Bikers

My original intention with the “Cool Rider” music video was to emphasize women bikers (on their OWN bikes). To that end, I put out a call to women bikers, asking them to share photos of themselves riding with their man.

I got more than photos; I got stories. One in particular touched me because this couple’s story is about two things near and dear to my heart: motorcycling and wounded veterans. Here is the story in Laura’s words (that’s her man to the left!):

“George and I served together as Army parachute riggers at Ft. Bragg in the mid-90′s.  We were very young and close, but lost touch for about 13 years. One day, about 3 years ago while I was living in NY, out of the blue, I just happened to be thinking about him, so I typed his name in the searchbox on facebook, and I discovered he was in some serious PTSD-related trouble due to being the sole survivor of the worst roadside bomb attack on Idaho’s 321st in Iraq.  I learned of his circumstance through a group that had been erected that very day.  Talk about timing!  How weird is that??

In spite of his brain injury-related memory issues, he remembered me, and we began corresponding. I came out to support him, we fell in love again, and after flying out for several NY to ID visits, I moved out to be with him permanently.

The journey to understanding the scope of how his PTSD and mild TBI affected him hasn’t been an easy one, at times, but ever since I found George again, I felt an unquestionable destiny. The mystery of why he popped into my head when he did… It was for a reason.  I believe that wholeheartedly. Anyway, aside from us both being active in Vet- related activities, we love our adventures riding together, and we’re making plans to ride to Rolling Thunder in Washington, DC in May.”



Although the scope of the video had to be tightened (you can’t tell too many stories in three and a half minutes) and we won’t be able to use the photos on the “Cool Rider” music video, I love ALL the photos I’ve received and want to share them.

So, on my Facebook page, you can find photos of women bikers and their man. The ones shown here are just a few of my favorites. Thank you ladies, for sharing with me!

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Gold Medal for True Surrender Military Romance Novel!

I was humbled and proud to receive a Gold Medal for True Surrender, which was awarded at the Military Writers Society of America 2012 Awards Banquet on September 29.

This award is particularly meaningful to me because this is a nomination process, which means that people unbeknownst to me felt strongly enough about True Surrender to nominate it in the first place.

True Surrender was chosen as the top title in the Literary Novel category. Although there is a strong romance element in True Surrender, this award recognizes that the main character’s personal struggle with his amputation and PTSD is of equal importance to the relationship aspect. It is great validation that I succeeded in telling the soldier’s story.

True Surrender is the story of Army officer Aaron Bricewick, who is rescued from a hostage situation in Afghanistan only to find that his personal journey is just beginning… a journey that includes adapting to life as an amputee, facing a struggle with PTSD, and ultimately finding the strength within himself to accept redemption…and love. It is a story about faith, courage, duty, and honor. It was inspired by the true-life trials of wounded veterans and has received outstanding reviews. True Surrender is also an Indie Award Finalist. Read more here.

The Music Video Shoot: the Importance of the Team

Wow. What to say about the video shoot for “Cool Rider,” which took place this past Saturday? I’m still in shock…awe…exhilarated…exhausted…

I’m in awe that once again, I got a great cast and crew to work with. Here’s a photo of some of them. Brett did double duty as manager/co-director as well as the “uptight executive.” Clint stepped in as Production Assistant only days before the shoot when my original hire dropped off the face of the earth, and he did double (maybe triple) duty with that bright sunlight bouncing off all that chrome. (When my friend Mike showed up we put him to work too!)

Mark, the cameraman, was so concerned that I like the end result that he spent extra time going over the script in person ahead of time. It paid off, and he got to do some fun things (from a camera guy perspective) like shoot video in a mirror and out the back and side of a moving van.

The “Pink Ladies” (not shown here) also came into the project late, and what a great addition! I can’t wait to put those scenes together. And then there’s my co-star, Tracy (yeah, that’s right, a Tracey and a Tracy, who we had to dub “TC” so we’d know which of us was getting direction). He was funny, he was sexy, he was supportive… and because of that I had the confidence to really ACT the part (thank goodness I didn’t have to memorize any dialogue!). For not being an actor, I think I did okay (I worked hard to get into the “Diva” persona) … I guess I’ll find out soon!

Special thanks go to my husband, who ferried bikes to the shooting location in the morning despite the fact he’d been up very late dealing with serious family crises. The only major blip in the road was the timing/schedule. We had to scrap the idea of shooting riding couples (which was my original desire). I hope the changes we made to the story will make up for it. And we went much later than expected – fourteen hours total!

The video shoot was a huge creative “burst” and it took an incredible amount of energy. Now comes the longer (more boring) job of reviewing all that footage and putting the story together in the video editing software…