Laurie L.C. Lewis's Blog: Bloggin' It Up Here, page 19

FINAL TRAILER FOR "AWAKENING AVERY"

We've been tweaking and adjusting to get the tone, mood and message of this "Awakening Avery" book trailer just right, and I think we have it. Many thanks to my producer extraordinaire, Andie Rosenbaum, for making this wonderful video.

"Dragons" is in the hands of the first round of medical experts/beta-readers who are checking it for accuracy, and I started back in on "The Shell Game" last night. It feels great to be writing steadily again. I hope you enjoy the trailer. If it inspires you to try out the book, just click the cover image.

Thanks. Enjoy!



Copyright 2009 Laurie LC Lewis, (To obtain permission to copy or reprint any portion of this post, please contact the author at lclewis2007@gmail.com)

LDS AUTHORS BLOG HOP

It's been a while since I participated in a blog hop, but as always, many thanks to Kathy at "I'm A Reader, Not A Writer," and this hop's co-sponsor, ANWA, or The American Night Writers Association, for sponsoring this hop.

The LDS Author's Hop is a relatively new one, but LDS authors, authors who also belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, are producing novels with a punch that rivals national titles, while maintaining a commitment to keep their titles clean and family safe.

For those unfamiliar with The American Night Writers Association, ANWA is a peer network for women who belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and who are interested in writing. I am one of several hundred LDS writers, and aspiring LDS writers, who belong. ANWA's purpose is to encourage, assist, educate, and motivate members to write, and, if they desire, to publish their works.

It's a delight to celebrate the wonderful books LDS authors are producing. If you aren't sure whether or not you know any LDS authors, check out Kathy's link above and see a partial list of successful, LDS novelists.

As for me, I'm editing my eighth novel, a tender drama titled, "The Dragons of Alsace Farm." You can click on the link to view a trailer for it.

But this week I'm actually relaunching "Awakening Avery," a personal favorite of mine. "AA" was launched in the middle of marketing "Free Men and Dreamers," and I never had the time to get a trailer made for it. But this week, the new trailer was sent to me, and in celebration of its release, I'm offering a new, autographed copy of "Awakening Avery," and two other gently-read LDS titles I've  enjoyed.


You can enter up to five times, but all entries must be posted separately.

Here's how you enter:
1. You must be or become a follower of this blog
2. Friend me on Facebook
3. Post the "Awakening Avery" trailer on your blog, or facebook page and post when it's done. (2 entries for each). Visit the YouTube page and click "Share."


That's it! Thanks for helping me spread the word, and now please enjoy these other great stops on the hop. Copyright 2009 Laurie LC Lewis, (To obtain permission to copy or reprint any portion of this post, please contact the author at lclewis2007@gmail.com)

GRANDMA NUGGETS

Today's Grandma nugget:

I was doing a happy dance for the grandkids' entertainment. My grandson eyed my dance with curious attention which I acknowledged.

"Grandma isn't a very good dancer, is she, Brady?"

"Let me see it again," he suggested.

I took the movements down a notch, hoping to look less awkward. Still, he eyed me curiously with a dubious frown.
...
"I guess Grandma really can't dance very well after all," I confessed.

"No, Grandma. You're a good dancer."

A moment of deep reflection ensued, during which Brady replayed his family's most recent Family Home Evening lesson on the importance of honesty and repentance. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ItEsXGhcOEs

Afterwards, he gave me the best fake smile he could muster adding, "Sorry, Grandma. That was a lie."

So truth won out, and the vote came in. Grandma can still boogie, but she isn't very good. Copyright 2009 Laurie LC Lewis, (To obtain permission to copy or reprint any portion of this post, please contact the author at lclewis2007@gmail.com)

GRANDMA NUGGETS: OUT OF THE MOUTH OF BABES FROM 4 TO 79

Mom and I had a date with 4YO Brady. On the way to the apple orchard we stopped at a little place renowned for its fried chicken. Brady, a chicken nugget aficionado, was hungry, and here's the conversation that ensued:

"I got you a chicken leg."
 "A chicken LEG? This is a LEG?"
Realizing that I may have entered sensitive territory, I resort to subterfuge. "It's called a chicken leg because it looks like a leg and it tastes like chicken."
 
Satisfied, Brady indulges, releasing a flurry of comments about this delicious new food that tastes like his beloved nuggets.  "This chicken is really good, Grandma, 'cept I found something in it."
 "What?"
 "I think it's a bone. It gots a bone inside it!"
 "It's like a handle, Brady. So you can hold it easier."
 "Oh. That's cool. Do you eat the bone?"  "No. Do Not Eat the Bone."
 A moment later he cries out, "Ow!"
 "What's the matter, Brady? Did you bite your finger?"
 "Two fingers."
 "Oh, dear. Sorry, Buddy."
 "Where do you get chicken legs?"
Now my mom, who has been a farmer, has dementia, and has not picked up on my efforts to avoid being the cruel fiend who first exposes Brady to the reality of a carnivore's food chain.
 "Farmers raise them on farms. That's where we get all our meat."
 "Chicken is MEAT?" asks Brady.
 "One kind of meat. There's beef from steers, mutton from sheep, chicken and pork."
 "What kind of meat is a fork?"
Mom jumps back in. "Not a fork, Brady. Pork. Pork. P-P-P Pork with a 'P'. A fork is something you use to eat your meat. It's not the meat."
 "Ohhh. Well, what do I do with my bone? My hands are greasy. Never mind. I just stuck it on your seat."
Yeah, next time we're going with the Happy Meal.

 Copyright 2009 Laurie LC Lewis, (To obtain permission to copy or reprint any portion of this post, please contact the author at lclewis2007@gmail.com)

OUT OF THE MOUTH OF BABES: FROM 4 TO 79

Mom and I had a date with 4YO Brady. On the way to the apple orchard we stopped at a little place renowned for its fried chicken. Brady, a chicken nugget aficionado, was hungry, and here's the conversation that ensued:

"I got you a chicken leg."
 "A chicken LEG? This is a LEG?"
Realizing that I may have entered sensitive territory, I resort to subterfuge. "It's called a chicken leg because it looks like a leg and it tastes like chicken."
 
Satisfied, Brady indulges, releasing a flurry of comments about this delicious new food that tastes like his beloved nuggets.  "This chicken is really good, Grandma, 'cept I found something in it."
 "What?"
 "I think it's a bone. It gots a bone inside it!"
 "It's like a handle, Brady. So you can hold it easier."
 "Oh. That's cool. Do you eat the bone?"  "No. Do Not Eat the Bone."
 A moment later he cries out, "Ow!"
 "What's the matter, Brady? Did you bite your finger?"
 "Two fingers."
 "Oh, dear. Sorry, Buddy."
 "Where do you get chicken legs?"
Now my mom, who has been a farmer, has dementia, and has not picked up on my efforts to avoid being the cruel fiend who first exposes Brady to the reality of a carnivore's food chain.
 "Farmers raise them on farms. That's where we get all our meat."
 "Chicken is MEAT?" asks Brady.
 "One kind of meat. There's beef from steers, mutton from sheep, chicken and pork."
 "What kind of meat is a fork?"
Mom jumps back in. "Not a fork, Brady. Pork. Pork. P-P-P Pork with a 'P'. A fork is something you use to eat your meat. It's not the meat."
 "Ohhh. Well, what do I do with my bone? My hands are greasy. Never mind. I just stuck it on your seat."
Yeah, next time we're going with the Happy Meal.

 Copyright 2009 Laurie LC Lewis, (To obtain permission to copy or reprint any portion of this post, please contact the author at lclewis2007@gmail.com)

LAURIE LC LEWIS: A VIEW FROM THE OTHER SIDE OF THE HILL: DISCOVERING MOTHER

LAURIE LC LEWIS: A VIEW FROM THE OTHER SIDE OF THE HILL: DISCOVERING MOTHERCopyright 2009 Laurie LC Lewis, (To obtain permission to copy or reprint any portion of this post, please contact the author at lclewis2007@gmail.com)

DISCOVERING MOTHER

It's a sobering truth to admit that most of what we know about our parents will be drawn from personal experience. History won't consider most of our folks important enough to warrant extensive research for books or films, so what we see will really be what we get. And yes. That's sad.

By and large, it means we will remember our parents as we see them, as adults headed towards middle-age and beyond. We will know them, not for their hopes, but for their realities. Not through the folly of youthful day-dreams, but in the acceptance of their choices, and steeped in the dutiful fulfillment of their responsibilities.

Except for the senior high school portrait of my mother, every image of her records her as a mother, surrounded by at least a child or two, dressed in the budget-conscious attire of a woman stretching a tight income across ever-increasing needs.

Mom had the senior photo taken, but she never walked across the stage and earned a diploma. A few weeks after that photo was taken she talked her mother into taking her and a friend to Fun Land in San Francisco. A cocky nineteen-year-old soldier, far from his home in Maryland, stood by the entrance that boasted a grate rigged to blow ladies' skirts up, Marilyn Monroe-style. Mom and her friend crawled through a fence to avoid the wind gust, and the soldier spent the rest of the day following her around until she gave him her address. Six weeks later, she married that soldier. Her mother ignored the threat an irresponsible rush to the altar could pose because life at home held an even greater threat from an alcoholic step-father with a history of physical abuse.

All we knew of Mom's childhood were stories of that abuse, and the regret that she never finished high school. She mentioned her abhorrence at having her photo taken because her Portuguese ancestry made her stand out since the family's return to Maryland. She spoke of a love of art, which was evidenced by the little drawings she sketched on everything from TV guides, to paper bags. She also expressed a love of reading and writing, and recounted how her teachers told her she was a smart girl who could be anything she chose to be. Those old stories went in and out of young ears attuned to curent concerns.  Even as children, we could see the irony of her choices, that she escaped an abusive father by marrying an occasionally heavy-handed husband.

Mom worked hard at home, turning dime store goods into a Christmas wonderland complete with baked goods by the dozens. She made a penny go as a far as a dime, and she drew great pride from the fact that despite the lack of a diploma, she was able to contribute to the family budget by driving a school bus.

As I grew up, Mom attributed all my scholastic accomplishments to my father, an electrical engineer, who escaped an abusive home of his own, and who successfully used the military as a stepping stone from a life of agricultural poverty. We bought the story. Mom couldn't do the "new math" our homework required, and Dad travelled a great deal of the time, so those who could figure the material out on their own survived, and those who couldn't, struggled.

It crushes me now to admit I accepted that image of Mom as a simple, uneducated woman. If I had had my eyes open, really open, I would have seen her bright intellect reflected in her choices and accomplishments.

She earned her GED in her fifties to encourage grandsons lacking in their scholastic interest. She wasn't a library regular. To my knowledge, she never had a library card, but she always accepted offers of free books, and she always seemed to have a stack of Readers Digest Condensed Novels on her nightstand.

Sometime in the sixties Mom came across a box of old historical books. I recall her her pride over this find--a series of diaries written during the Civil War, and a bio of an old pioneer and trapper--but my teen-aged mind was too preoccupied with new math and the latest edition of Teen Beat to be concerned about the details.

Years passed, Dad mellowed, he and Mom became devoted sweethearts, then he passed away leaving Mom depressed and alone.  After many difficult years helping Mom maintain her independence we received a diagnosis of early stage dementia, and we moved Mom off the farm. While cleaning out decades of collected memorabilia, we came across treasures squirreled away in corners long forgotten.

We found boxes of photos Mom was handed after her own mother's passing, photos of her as as chubby-cheeked child, and as a dressed-to-the-nines teen in home-sewn fashions that rivaled catalog vogue. In some, her eyes were bright and filled with playful anticipation. Family shots showed her as a timid, awkward young woman. I began to know my mother anew.

My father believed in slides and their semi-annual projected showing, but we found a few dozen rare, secret candid photos from our childhood that featured a beautiful, svelte Portuguese-American woman surrounded by children. Her eyes spoke volumes. She was a study in contrasts. Shy, confident. Soaking up happy moments like parched ground in some photos. Grim-lipped and stoic in others. We remembered those days. Our own maturation revealed more of Mom.

We also found the old books, which have provided some of the most remarkable insights into who our mother really was, and probably still is, deep inside.

The diaries are difficult to read. The penmanship is flowery, as is the vernacular of the eighteen sixties. As a historical researcher and writer, I struggle with it, working hard to translate a few sentences. My mother read every page, even taking the time to insert slips of paper with her own notations within the pages. Her notes have been invaluable to me.

The old bio of the pioneer is likewise a challenging read. It features hundred of characters, many Shawnee or Iroquois, with the difficult spellings of those languages. It features the unfamiliar names of places changed by treaties and statehood, and yet, she read every page, many times I'd venture to say. Again, she inserted her own notes, written in her lovely hand, along the margins.

I begin to picture her, lying on her bed in the evening after we were all asleep with her books opened and her pen and slips of notebook paper beside her. On nights when Dad was having adventures in far away lands, Mom was having her own adventures. She was taking advantage of the opportunities available to her to learn.

The author in me is incredibly aware of the importance  of these discoveries, that Mom's treasured books were historical. She is likely the unrecognized root from which my love of history and the written word grows. Mom didn't write short stories or novels. She wrote about her life, her testimony, her walk with God. We found notebook after notebook filled with her grateful recounting of miracles wrought in response to prayer, and of those provided in a moment of urgency. Long notes were tucked into cards and letters to friends and children and never mailed. We have them all now.

We are finally discovering Mother, who she actually was in her heart, and what dreams she drew upon as she raised us. She left a silent, secret key to her heart in these letters and notes, cards and slips of paper. They are sacred now. I'm scanning them for the family.

She can't know that she's still teaching me, providing unspoken encouragement to do better in my personal writings, to commit more of my effort to the legacy I'm leaving for my family. I don't want the majority of that legacy to be scraped off Facebook pages and blog entries. Except stories like this one.

Thanks, Mom. Yes, you're still teaching. I guess you always will.Copyright 2009 Laurie LC Lewis, (To obtain permission to copy or reprint any portion of this post, please contact the author at lclewis2007@gmail.com)

DELIGHTED TO BE SPEAKING AT MT. AIRY'S HISTORY WEEK

Historic Mount Airy, Maryland's annual celebration of American History Week is a week of family fun and learning, with a wide variety of activities and speakers. I'm honored and delighted to have been asked to present on Tuesday. I'll be speaking about Francis Scott Key and the events that influenced his writing of "The Star-Spangled Banner."

I hope you'll come and enjoy some of Mount Airy's festivities the week of September 7th through the 14th.

Copyright 2009 Laurie LC Lewis, (To obtain permission to copy or reprint any portion of this post, please contact the author at lclewis2007@gmail.com)

YES, I SIGNED THE LETTER, AND HERE'S WHY

You may have heard or read about the issue storming the LDS publishing market and firing the media outlets right now. I live far away from the scene here in Maryland, and I've never worked with the publishing house involved, but because this issue has potential to tarnish all LDS authors, and the LDS community at large, I felt I needed to stake a stand.

In short, a novel that was contracted by an LDS publisher, and ready to go to print, was pulled because the author's bio included mention of his same-gender partner. The publisher knew the author was gay, and accepted that, but preferred to not have him disclose that information in his bio fearing it would offend the company's primarily LDS market.

I won't rehash the details here. Instead I'll direct you to my good friend Braden Bell's blog. Braden does work with the involved publisher and he offers a voice of compassion and justice tempered with reason.

When the public became aware of the fracas sides were taken and unkind generalities were being assailed. A letter supporting the legal rights of the author was issued by members of the LDS writing community and I agreed to sign it for a variety of reasons.

Again, Braden expresses these so well, and is so close to the issue that I'll allow his words to explain these points.

As a Church, we support traditional marriage and families. I personally support traditional marriage and families. But as a people, we are also taught compassion, love, civility, and kindness whch have been sorely lacking in so much of this debate.

As an LDS author, I believe in the law and in binding contracts. I respect the right to free speech, and the right of a publisher to choose what they will invest in and place their name on. In this instance, contracts were violated, and characters were assailed.

This is why I signed the letter.

Copyright 2009 Laurie LC Lewis, (To obtain permission to copy or reprint any portion of this post, please contact the author at lclewis2007@gmail.com)

Book Nook Review: "PRIDE'S PREJUDICE" by Misty Dawn Pulsipher

PRIIDE' PREJUDICEbyMisty Dawn Pulspher  Pride’s Prejudice is debuting author, Misty Dawn Pulsipher’s, mature, contemporary treatment of Miss Jane Austen’s beloved coming of age novel about class distinctions and false assumptions. While many authors are attempting Austen adaptations, particularly of Pride and Prejudice, Ms. Pulsipher has a rich writing style and the honest courage worthy of such an effort.
College coed, Beth Pride, and her roommate Jenna, meet two wealthy businessmen at a college charity auction. Lighthearted Les Bradford bids on Jenna and sweeps her off her feet, but William Darcy’s mind is preoccupied with family problems, and aside from being roped into attending this charity function, the only thing he’s less interested in is paying to dance with a college coed. Enter Beth, the shanghaied auction “item” and last coed left standing. William bids on Beth as an act of mercy, which he thoughtlessly reveals to her, wounding Beth’s pride. In retaliation, she fires off a cutting reply, and the unhealthy dynamic between Beth and William, and their best friends, Jenna and Les, is set early on.
Pride’s Prejudiceis a romantic pleasure fest. Technically, Pulsipher’s dialogues are crisp and believable, and her economical use of words moves the story along, while painting clear settings and building her characters into rich satisfying friends you care deeply about. Pulsipher doesn’t tell us a great story. She paints one for us, using beautiful lines like these:
The house fell behind them like a sulky child left standing in the road.
. . .it was clear to Beth. The connections we share in this life are fragile—wispy spider webs, easily swept aside with the crass bristles of circumstance.
But there’s so much more here.
It is no easy task to adapt Austen-era situations to our day while still remaining relevant, clean, and honest. Pulsipher’s writing sizzles with romantic tension and pleasure while remaining a clean read that doesn’t insult a thinking woman’s sensibilities, such as these passages:
A sick feeling laces through her insides like a parasite. It takes up residence in the dark recesses of her heart and mind. Could he have possibly done this to her?  . . .The glimmering castle of her girlhood hopes burns down, leaving a heap of smoldering ash in its place.
Liquid fire saturated her body, incinerating any trace of coherent thought.  . . Time seemed to ebb, as if the earth had slowed its rotation. As if they were in another dimension. . .  When her fingertips grazed the skin of his waist at the sides, he pulled her in tighter for an instant, pressing his palms into the small of her back. Then he froze. Somewhere, perhaps in that other dimension, an invisible switch had been thrown.
Pride’s Prejudicewas self-published by Ms. Pulsipher, and admittedly, it contains a few more editing and formatting errors than most commercially-published novels, but only a few, and stylistically, the characters’ occasional internal conversations distract from the power of the well-crafted dialogue, but no worries. The quality of the author’s writing easily triumphs over these minor distractions. The Prologue nagged at me through the first half of the book, but set it aside. Pulsipher ties it in beautifully at the end.
Pride’s Prejudicenearly caused some marital discord in my own home. I seriously stole away to read this book every chance I got. It's that good. In fact, I'll be nominating "Pride's Prejudice"  for a 2014 Whitney Award. As I said, it’s that good.

(Better yet, Ms. Pulspher is giving the ebook away for free until July 30th.  Here's the link. Grab a free copy.)Copyright 2009 Laurie LC Lewis, (To obtain permission to copy or reprint any portion of this post, please contact the author at lclewis2007@gmail.com)