Marian Allen's Blog, page 379
December 9, 2013
Building A Book Beginning
It was October. NaNoWriMo was approaching. I had joked with a friend that I ought to try a Romance, since they seem to be popular. It was a joke because I’ve never written a romance. Actually, I’ve written short stories that turned out to be romances, and I’ve had touches of romance in some of my novels, but I’ve never written a novel that was primarily focused on the romantic relationship(s).
This happened on the way to Cincinnati, where one of the exits was the Delaware/Worthington exit. And Tammi says, she says, “That sounds like a name for your romance hero.” So it is. And I said, “And Waddy Peytona is his cousin,” the Waddy/Peytona exit being somewhat famous in the Louisville area as an exit with a funny-sounding name.
So far, so good.
NaNo seemed to be the best time to try something different, because it’s the time you shake off your inner editor and just write hell-bent-for-leather.
So, I had my genre, which meant I had my general plot arc: boy and girl meet, approach/avoidance ensues, boy and girl either get together or don’t.
How would I populate the novel? I needed a couple, of course. They would be a mixed-gender couple because that’s the only kind I’ve been part of, and I would be writing in too much of a hurry to take time to make sure I showed respect for something I didn’t understand. And, because I enjoy books with two sets of couples, I needed a best friend for each person.
I have a list of occupations and one of meeting places that #4 Daughter and I have made over the years. We haven’t kept it up; we should update it. I used the True Random Number Generator to pick four occupations and two meeting places.
Male Main Character: actorFemale Main Character: odd jobs personMale Secondary Character: dog groomerFemale Secondary Character: hotel desk personGreyhound bus stationmotel
I liked the actor thing, and the bus station/motel thing made me think of an actor on tour or something. But why would his best friend/cousin be on tour with him? Oo! Oo! What if my actor had a dog, and liked to take the dog with him, and his best friend/cousin came to take care of the dog? And what if the female lead was odd jobs person for a bed and breakfast, and her best friend was desk clerk for it?
So I started writing, and my fingers typed that they didn’t work there; they co-owned it. And the actor was in town to direct a play to raise money for a local charity. And he used to be a star of a TV series that the female lead loved. And then the dog bit her, and the story took off.
I’ve been sidetracked by other business this month, but I plan to get back to WORSE THAN HIS BARK in 2014.
But this is how it started.
A WRITING PROMPT FOR YOU: Click on that list of occupations an the one of meeting places. Choose two from occupations and one from meeting places and write a scene. They don’t have to be a romantic couple, or of any particular gender. Or species, come to that.
MA
December 8, 2013
#SampleSunday Comedy Team
In an effort to shame myself into finishing and polishing the story I worked on during NaNo, here’s another excerpt from WORSE THAN HIS BARK.
WORSE THAN HIS BARK – excerpt
by Marian Allen
Mrs. Maplewhite stopped to chat, the glitter from her real jewels catching the early afternoon sun and making Parma wince. On her silver-blue hair, she wore a blue pillbox hat with a net veil scrunched up around it. Two dead minks bit each others’ butts in what Mrs. Maplewhite called a mink stole and draped over her meaty shoulders.
“What beautiful work you do! It was a blessing to the town when you two bought the place.” The Maplewhites were among the Original Settlers, but Parma knew for a fact that Mrs. Mapelwhite’s beautiful long red nails were fake and she did her own gardening. Parma liked her for it.
“It’s a great little town. We’re proud to be here.”
“No trouble fetching our exciting guest?”
“No, ma’am. He brought his cousin and a dog.”
“Oh.” Mrs. Maplewhite cast a doubtful glance at the front door. “Well, I’m sure she’s very nice, once you get to know her.”
“Who is?”
“His unattractive cousin.”
“He’s not so bad. And he’s a he.”
“Who is?”
Parma started to feel like half of a comedy team. She traced the thread of the conversation – if you could call it that – back to where it had gone off-track.
“Delaware Worthington brought his cousin, who is a man, and he also brought a dog. A woof-woof dog. Only it doesn’t woof, it chirps.”
“It’s a bird dog?” Mrs. Maplewhite cracked herself up.
Parma granted her a lopsided smile. “It’s a little bitty beagle. It bites.”
“Oh, dear! Thank you for warning me.” She settled the dead minks like a gunfighter loosening his pistols in their holsters. “Are you coming to tea?”
Parma lifted her gloved hands. “No, ma’am.”
Mrs. Maplewhite hauled herself up the front steps, her thick ankles looking swollen and painful today, and let herself in.
~*~
A WRITING PROMPT FOR YOU: Describe an elderly woman without stereotyping her.
MA
December 7, 2013
#Caturday Katya Does GIMP
Katya Graymalkin here.
Our rat terrier friend Kessie got cartoonified and solarized for Thanksgivukkuh, so I decided to mess around with The GIMP on Mom’s computer and fancy up a picture of me.
Here is the original picture:
And here I am as the Ancient Egyptians would have shown me in mosaic:
And how I would look if Picasso had immortalized me in cubist style:
Finally, here is Steampunk Katya:
How cool is that? As Mom would say, “Way, that’s how!” (My mom is kind of weird. But I guess you knew that, already.)
A WRITING PROMPT FOR ANIMALS: How would you like to be immortalized?
KG
December 6, 2013
Raphyel Jordan Says Aliens Get Bullied, Too
Aliens as in people on other planets. It seems that some things just may be universal. Things like insensitivity and cruelty. Things like courage and compassion.
~*~
Raphyel Montez Jordan grew up in a household sensitive to the creative arts. As a child, his hobbies were drawing favorite cartoon and video game characters while making illustrated stories. This passion for art never left and followed him all the way up to his high school and college years.
It wasn’�t until college when he underwent a personal �renaissance� of sorts that Jordan took his interest in writing to another level. When he was 19, he started writing a novel for fun, taking inspiration from the constant exposure of different ideas and cultures that college showed him while staying true to the values he grew up to embrace. However, when the �signs of the times� influenced the story and the characters to spawn into universes of their own, he figured he might possibly be on to something.
Even though his novel is not necessarily a religious book, Jordan utilizes his Christian faith by urging people to encourage, not condemn, in his story. Best known for ending his PSFC newsletters with �Unity Within Diversity,� he hopes �Prossia�’s� success will inspire people to consider and support the positive outlook in the difference human kind can share, whether it be race, religion, or any other cultural difference.
Tell us about your new prequel to Prossia, Raphyel.
~*~
Aly’s a seventeen-year-old Goolian who can charge into the street, exposing herself to enemy fire, because she’s a good soldier. She’s willing to do what needs done for the greater good, and I must say, she looks pretty epic when she does it too! She’ll keep an entire platoon of enemy soldiers at bay on her own if she has to, only with the aid of two Goolian blades and an alien blaster. Yes, as the novel, “Prossia” says, “Aly is a sight to behold.”
So, it might come as a bit of a surprise to know that Aly used to walk to school, eyeing the ground, being too nervous to look anyone else in the eye. At one point in her life, she would hunch over a little, so she could appear as short as the other girls in her class and village. Why, she even had a stuttering complex whenever people spoke to her! That was Aly, not long before the events in “Prossia” took place, when her main concern was proving her worth so she wouldn’t be bullied anymore in “Evaluations of the Tribe.”
In this story, we don’t see an Aly who’ll put a guy in his place, if he crosses his boundaries. Instead, we see an insecure, low-self esteemed, severely troubled young girl who wants nothing more than the kids in her class to leave her alone. It’s not like she ever did anything to them. Still, Aly finds herself facing that ultimate adversary many children – and even adults – must face on a day-to-day basis. She knows all too well what the grounds to being bullied are:
· Not having anyone to stand up for you
· Having parents or guardians who can’t seem to help
· Having parents or guardians who only make matters worse when they try to help
· Wondering what you possibly did to deserve being born different, the reason to your harassment
· Wishing that you were either dead, or better yet, had never been born at all
· Hating yourself along with those who make your existence miserable
· Dreading every morning you wake up, knowing “that person” or “those people” are just waiting on you, and you can’t do anything about it
Regardless of the circumstances, having to deal with the 
constant harassment, both verbal and physical, of the people you must mingle with is not acceptable. Like Aly, you do not have to simply “cope” with it. If you do, you might break, just the way she did one day in “Evaluations.” Still, there is hope. I know it’s hard to believe, but it does get better. Take it from someone who’s gone through the trenches, himself.
And what about those of us who now get to watch the travesty from the sideline? It is in our power to act and stand up for those who cannot defend themselves, much the way Aly’s best friend, Catty, does for her in the story. That means you’ll have to go out of your comfort zone. It means everyone around you will look at you, as if you’ve lost your mind. It means, at times, you might lose the support of some friends, and yes, even family.
Thing is, we’re all stuck on this tiny blue dot in the vast universe, so it’s way past time we start standing up for ourselves, and those around us. No, it doesn’t mean you have to do something as epic as a March On Washington every single day. But maybe we can learn a thing or two from Catty, who took the time to help Aly pick up her things when someone knocked her down. Who knows how that small gesture will come back in good favor. You might just save a world, at least for a day. One down. Over 7 billion to go. Good thing there’s a bunch of us around ready to do our part, eh? 
Goodreads Book Giveaway
Giveaway ends December 31, 2013.
See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.
~*~
Thanks, Raphyel!
Author website: http://www.raphyelmjordan.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/RaphyelMJordan
A WRITING PROMPT FOR YOU: A character of whatever age you choose sees someone else being bullied. Does the character join the bullies, defend the target, ignore it, or what — and why?
MA
December 5, 2013
Friday Recommends on Thursday
I have a special guest tomorrow, so I’m doing my recommendations today.
In this season of Advent, what could be more timely than The Worst Things For Sale? Buy the person who has everything a bag of perfume candy so their body will exhude scent. Or a “fort kit” which consists of a blanket and some clothespins and some rope.
I haven’t done a recommend for Steven Saus’ Ideatrash for a while, so I’m doing it today. Steven is a writer, publisher, editor, formatter, panelist, geek, and all-around good guy. I likes ‘im. He’s irrascible. He doesn’t suffer fools gladly, but he makes an exception in my case.
Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to introduce you to my new YouTube imaginary boyfriend, CrazyRussianHacker. Learn how to open jar with duct tape — BOOM!
A WRITING PROMPT FOR YOU: What would you like to know how to do that you have no idea is possible?
MA
December 4, 2013
A #Vegan Sweet Potato Dish
Personally, my favorite sweet potato dish is loaded with butter, maple syrup, brown sugar, nuts, and anything else bad for you. But this was interesting, and our vegan daughter liked it. Everybody else liked it, too!
You can make this ahead of time and heat it up just before you serve it.
Sweet Potato Dish
sweet potatoes (duh)vegan “buttery spread” – hereafter to be referred to as “margarine”red onion, choppedrecipe calls for thyme, I used crushed cardamomraisinscrushed pecanssaltbrown sugarBoil sweet potatoes. Cool enough to peel. Peel. Cut into rounds and arrange in a buttered casserole dish.
Heat margarine in a skillet. Cook onion, raisins, pecans, and spice (or herb) until onion is translucent. Add sugar and salt.
Pour over sweet potatoes. Heat through.
I didn’t put amounts, because you can use whatever amounts you like. You can leave the sugar out, or use more sugar, or whatever. You know, “to taste.”
A WRITING PROMPT FOR YOU: Write a story with a sweet potato in it.
MA
December 3, 2013
Fruitcake Cocktail, Courtesy of #BlogCrawl
I know Wednesday is Food Day, and I’ll have a recipe or two tomorrow, but I had to share this.
Holly Jahangiri and Cairn Rodrigues invited me to a blogcrawl on Twitter last Saturday. According to the invitation:
A monthly Twitter event for bloggers to mingle over cocktails. Once the buzz sets in, we set a silly topic and blog like drunken fools. You don’t technically have to blog or drink to join the fun, every party needs a designated driver after all.
This was the first one I was able to attend. I remembered that, at a prior one, attendees were challenged to create new cocktails and, mistakenly believing that this was still a part of the festivities, I made one up.
I was making fruitcake that day, so I created the Fruitcake Cocktail. Here are the ingredients:
So Holly says, “What’s in the measuring cup?” and I says, “Apple juice.” And she says:
Good God, that’s a half cup of bourbon!! Apple juice my butt. #blogcrawl
— H Jahangiri, Author (@HollyJahangiri) December 1, 2013
But it actually was apple juice.
Fruitcake Cocktail
fruitcake mixraisinschopped pecans and walnutsbourbonapple juicecinnamon stickCombine fruitcake mix, raisins, nuts, and a bit of bourbon and let it sit for a couple of hours. Put some of this mix in the bottom of a wine glass. Add a jigger of bourbon and top it off with apple juice. Put a stick of cinnamon in.
It doesn’t look pretty, but it tasted great! Plus, the nuts float, and that was fun.
Another part of the crawl is for participants to take prompts and blog on them. Here is Holly’s. Here is Cairn’s. I left before things got that far.
p.s. I’m posting today at Fatal Foodies with a delicious vegetarian dish.
A WRITING PROMPT FOR YOU: Dracullama.
MA
December 2, 2013
Hero, Cursed Cover Reveal
I’m pleased and proud to be part of Diantha Jones’ cover reveal for HERO, CURSED. The following post is one she constructed and sent me, so I claim no credit for its exceeding cooliosity.
Before he knew the Oracle…Before he knew the Quad…Before the Great Unknown threatened his world…He was a hero, cursed forever.
Cover Designed by: Colin F. BarnesPublication Date: March 18, 2014Genre: YA MythologySeries: Mythos: Stories from Olympus #2/Oracle of Delphi #3.5 *WARNING* To be read after Prophecy of Solstice’s End (Oracle of Delphi #3). Contains MAJOR spoilers! Shunned by a family that doesn’t understand him, demigod Lenka Tahile aka “Swindle” is a complete loner and he likes it that way. Then he meets the hero, Ace Remedy, the brother of an infamous demigod Prince, and his life goes from bad to worse. Ace is loud, rude, and disruptive to his peaceful existence in every way. He’s also hilarious and daring, and Swindle ends up finding a friend just when he thought he’d never have another. But little does he know, becoming friends with Ace was all part of the Fates’ plan. Now his past is slowly coming back to haunt him and there’s nothing he can do to stop it. Nothing but try not to bring to light the lost love, the failed hopes, and the cursed existence that he would kill to keep in the dark. Add to GoodreadsFive Facts about Hero, Cursed 1. Lenka Tahile is a South African name. The MC was born in South Africa.2. “Swindle” is Lenka’s celestial name. He is a son of Hermes. Figure it out.3. The hawk on the cover is not a tattoo. His name is Bill and he’s Swindle’s Fauna Morph, an animal that morphs into a weapon on command.4. Though it isn’t showcased on the cover, Swindle has extremely curly hair. Out of control, I tell you.5. Just like Solar, Defeated, this novella switches back and forth between the present and the past, and reveals what life was like for Swindle before the Oracle of Delphi came along.
Mythos: Stories from Olympus #1Amazon | Barnes&Noble | Goodreads
Diantha Jones was born the day thousands of turkeys sacrificed their lives to fill millions of American bellies on November 22 which also happened to be Thanksgiving Day (Her mother says she owes her a turkey). She is a Journalism graduate who wants to be a career novelist (of books, not Facebook posts). When not writing or working, she is reading on her Nook, being hypnotized by Netflix or on a mission to procure french fries.
The Oracle of Delphi fantasy series is her first series. She is also the author of Mythos: Stories from Olympus, a companion series, and there is another fantasy series in the works. She also writes (new) adult fantasy/paranormal romance under the name A. Star. Invasion (An Alien Romance) is her first title released under this pen name. Future releases under A. Star include, Mythos: Gods and Lovers series, the Love & Steampunk series, the Purr, Inc. stories, and more.
Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Amazon | Pinterest | DJ’s Book Corner
~*~
How cool is that? Way, that’s how!
A WRITING PROMPT FOR YOU: What animal would you keep by you to turn into a weapon, and what weapon would it become or be used as? I would keep Katya, and I would use her head like Thor uses his hammer, because her head is JUST THAT HARD.
MA
December 1, 2013
December 13 Update #SampleSunday
It’s the first of the month, so there’s a new Hot Flash on the Hot Flashes page.
It’s also Sample Sunday. I’ve paused in working on my NaNoWriMo Romance because I got my 50,000 challenge words and I’m waiting to get a copy of Scrivener to organize it, but here’s another sample of it.
In this scene, Feisty has been dognapped.
WORSE THAN HIS BARK – excerpt
by Marian Allen
Waddy said, “Poor li’l guy. He must be scared to pieces.” Grimly, he said, “They’d better not hurt him, that’s all I have to say.”
Jo said, “They won’t hurt him. Surely.”
Mavis said, “You think criminals give a rat’s ass if a dog is cute? Dream on.”
While Mavis recovered her balance from Jo’s having poked her, Parma said, “Of course they won’t hurt him. They want a ransom, don’t they? They wouldn’t dare hurt him.”
Del clung to that hope, but said, “They say on television and in the movies that kidnappers usually k-kill their victims, even if the ransom is paid.”
“That’s for people.”
“What’s the difference? The penalty for killing people is worse than the penalty for killing animals.”
“But animals can’t testify against them in court.”
“Duh,” said Mavis. “But she has a point.”
“So you think I should just wait?”
Waddy pushed back from the table and stood, pacing the width of the small room.
“I should never have brought him here and left him. What was I thinking? I know what I was thinking: I thought he would be safe here.”
“He was safe here,” Del snapped. “You probably left the gate open.”
Waddy looked as stunned as if Del had struck him. “Maybe I did.”
“No,” Del said. “You didn’t. You didn’t. I should have had a lock on it. I didn’t expect anybody to come into the back yard and steal my dog. In America’s heartland?”
Mavis snorted. “For somebody who makes a living off small towns, you don’t know much about them, do you? Don’t you ever read Miss Marple? I could tell you stories that would curl your hair.”
He didn’t doubt it. What surprised him was Jo and Parma nodding in agreement.
~*~
Don’t worry. I plan for the dog to be unharmed. It’s a light romantic comedy, after all.
A WRITING PROMPT FOR YOU: Two people close to one another face a shocking loss.
MA
November 30, 2013
#Caturday Katya Up Close and Personal
Katya Graymalkin here.
Mom left her camera lying around, so I decided to get with the program and take a selfie. Mom is always taking pictures of me, but I never let her get close enough to show the details, like my eyebrows, the way the fur outlines my eyes, the subtle mauve of my nose, or the understated sneer of which I’m so justly proud.
What do you think? 
A WRITING PROMPT FOR ANIMALS: If you could take a picture of anything other than me, what would it be?
KG
