C. David Belt's Blog, page 12

MTC Tour Day 4:

June 21st, San Francisco, CA

Not much to tell about today.  We rode busses from Newport Beach to San Francisco.  The ride was uneventful for me (especially since I slept almost the entire way) and lasted about eight hours. 

When we arrived, the Marriott Marquis San Francisco folks were fantastic.  Everything was ready for us.  We had a great welcome dinner and went to our rooms.  Cindy and I have a corner room with TWO windows. 

We rested up.  Boring, I know, but I needed the time to recover. 

And yes, Cindy is an amazing wife! 

 

MTC Tour Day 3: God is Good

June 20th, Newport Beach, CA

The Walt Disney Theatre in downtown Los Angeles!  What an incredible venue!  The acoustics were magnificent! 

In the morning, I slept in and we chilled.  In the afternoon, Cindy went shopping.  She knew I would need some carbonation after the concert, so she bought me not one, but TWO root beers!  She texted me and said, “I am an amazing wife!”  After all these years of marriage, I have finally convinced her of the truth!!! 

As for myself, the concert was a near disaster.  You see, I have a bad knee—my left.  I’m getting a full knee replacement next month, but for right now, I’m taking a lot of pills—no, I’m NOT taking oxycontin—and trying to endure.  But during the fourth and fifth set of the first half of the concert, my GOOD leg (my right) suddenly just gave out.  It was as if it had fallen asleep.  It wouldn’t support my weight.  All I could do was hang onto my good friend Alex Lindstrom on my right and have my good friend Brad Winn hold my left arm.  These two good brethren supported me until the intermission. 

During the intermission, I felt better.  All seemed well.  I did the two numbers that involve choreography fairly well.  But during the second set, where we sing five numbers without a break (and finish with some choreography), my good leg gave out again. And again, with the help of those two brethren, I made it through.  Barely. 

God is good.  He sustains me. 

 

MTC Tour Day 2: There Be Whales Here! (Oh, And a Concert Too)

June 19th, Newport Beach, CA

Yesterday, I joked about a whale-sighting (my own bloated carcass on the beach), but this morning, we went on a whale-watching cruise.  In the immortal words of Commander Montgomery Scott, “There be whales here!”  We saw TWO blue whales!  TWO.  The largest creatures to ever inhabit the planet, and we saw TWO.  The larger was probably 75 feet long.  I even got a picture of the tail.  These magnificent mammals were no more than 20 feet away at times.  We also saw hundreds (literally) of dolphins.  They came right up to the boat.  We also saw some sea lions.  It was a very successful cruise. 

I had some very expensive fish and chips for lunch… and found a fishbone. 

Next, it was off to Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa.  The hall was magnificent, and the sound was incredible.  The concert (our first) went very, very well. 

Tomorrow…  Walt Disney Theatre!!!!

 

MTC Tour Day 1—Cindy Goes Back to the Beach, a Whale-Sighting, and a SERIOUS Complaint!

July 18th, 2017 – Newport Beach, CA

Today, we began our sixteen-day tour with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.  Cindy and I had to get up at 4:00 AM to catch an 8:25 AM flight.  Needless to say, it’s been a LONG day.  But it has been fun. 

I’m always amazed at how well Marriott takes care of us.  Even though we weren’t supposed to be able to check into our rooms until 5:00 PM, the hotel had our room ready when we arrived before 10:00 AM.

Cindy was raised down here in southern California.  She spent many summers on the beach.  She is the epitome of the California girl (in all the good ways).  “I wish they all could be California…”  So, on our first day on Tour, we went to Newport Beach for an hour or so.  She didn’t actually go swimming (she barely got her feet wet), but I did.  We saw a sea lion swimming nearby and seagulls that would glide by, almost in arm’s reach.  The weather was perfect—not too hot, a light breeze, and clear skies.  The water wasn’t cold (one you got in it).  I had fun playing in the waves.  Then, when it came time for me to crawl out, I told Cindy she didn’t have to go whale-watching, because she’d seen me.  (You know, me, crawling out of the water like a beached…  Never mind.  If you have to explain the dumb joke…)  Anyway, it was fun. 

So, tomorrow is the first of seven concerts.  Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa, CA.  Touring with the Choir IS a lot of fun, but it is also a LOT of work.  And I’m looking forward to every single minute of it!

One VERY SERIOUS complaint!  I’m 19 miles from Disney Land.  Just 19 miles!  And I don’t get to go to Disney Land!  AAARRRRGGGGGHHHHHHH!!!!!  How do you got to southern California and NOT go to Disney Land??????

 

More Advance Praise for “The Witch of White Lady Hollow”

From Jenny Flake Rabe, author of Playground Treasures:

C. David Belt has done it again! In the Witch of White Lady Hollow, Belt has outdone himself, expanding himself in his writing, including another fantastical mystery for readers to explore. He doesn’t disappoint with his sympathetic, relatable characters and dialogue that pulls you in and has you laughing one minute and crying the next. He is one of my favorite writers and authors to follow and is a gem to the writing community.

Characters (and Picard-Fans) are Complicated

I am not a plotter or an outliner.  I cannot sit down and map out each chapter in a novel, outlining what will happen.  I can’t write that way.  I’m not criticizing anyone who DOES write this way—it just doesn’t work for me.

The reason is simple—characters are complicated.  They have faults, fears, and foibles.  They are self-deceptive.  They have doubts.  They love and hate.  They like and dislike.  They have political views.  They have religious beliefs.  They have biases.  They do good and bad.  They commit sins and transgressions and sacrifices.  They are noble and petty.  They are debilitated by childhood trauma and ennobled by overcoming tragedies.  Their families and their relationships are imperfect—sometimes wildly so.  Characters are quirky and boring, exceptional and ordinary, talented and clumsy.  They are intelligent and stupid.

And all at the same time.

In other words, they are human.  (Even if they are Vorlons, Narns, Centauri, Vulcans, Klingons, Ferengi, or Picard-fans, they are still human.)

Heroes and heroines are not exclusively heroic.  Villains are not exclusively evil.  The throwaway character on the street is not simply a device used to ask a question of our hero or get our heroine to save a kitten up a tree or a turtle in a sewer.  They are collections of WHATs—they are a glorious mishmash of WHYs.

I enjoy theatre.  I most enjoy theatre when I’m part of the cast.  I’ve had BIG parts and small parts.  And if I am the lead with hundreds of lines and a dozen songs or if I am a spear-carrier without a single line, I still need to understand who my character is and what makes him tick.  We’ve all seen the mocking commercials where some overwrought actor whines, “What’s my motivation?” and all he’s being asked to do is to drink a soda out of a can.  We laugh and say, “How ridiculous!  Just drink the soda already!”  But it’s true.  As an actor, I need to understand WHY I’m doing what I’m doing.  Otherwise, I’m just a model.  Otherwise, I’m just there to look pretty.  (Stop laughing, Cindy.  It’s just an expression!)  And yes, I do realize that models sometimes need to portray an emotion and therefore might need a motivation, but you get the point.  (Seriously, Cindy, it wasn’t THAT funny.  And it was more than a sentence ago.  You can stop laughing now.  Breathe.  Breathing is good.)

Back to characters.  Characters have to be human and relatable.  Even villains must be sympathetic (at times) or at least understandable.  Otherwise, they are BORING and PREDICTABLE.

And for me, characters drive the story.  They aren’t just there to move us from Plot Point 17 to Plot Point 18.  Characters DO stuff.  And that STUFF changes the story.  We might go from Plot Point 17 to Plot Point ZZZ93XXX, because Moira Morgan gave £100 to a “throwaway man-on-the-street” character who looked down on his luck, just for taking a picture of Moira and Carl at Stonehenge.  (Yes, folks, Moira and Carl are BACK!!!)  When I wrote that scene in my current work-in-progress (WIP), I certainly hadn’t plotted it that way.  But it was exactly what Moira would do.  And it CHANGED EVERYTHING.  That’s right—a simple act of charity, done in typical Moira-style, sent the plot off in a completely unexpected direction with unintended consequences.  Last night, as I was rehearsing with the BeOne Celebration Choir, it came to my WHY I had named another “throwaway” character… what I named him.  (Possible major spoiler for students of Celtic Mythology, so I’m not going to use his name here…)  Suddenly, his motivations became clear.  And it CHANGED EVERYTHING.  When I finally understood who Branwen is in my current WIP, it CHANGED EVERYTHING.  My beta readers said, “I did NOT see that coming.”  (And frankly, neither did I!  And that is what’s so COOL.)

So, even if you are a plotter or an outliner, don’t get so locked into your plot or outline that you don’t let your characters take over.  They know who they are better than you do.  I know that sounds insane, since they come from the author’s head, but… you gotta listen to the voices in your head.  I know I do…  By listening to your characters, you can allow the plot to go off in a different direction than you originally planned.  And who knows, it could be the RIGHT direction.

When it comes to real life, however, we cannot be plotters and outliners.  However, sadly, we too often are.  Because people are HUMAN (even if they are purple Drazi).  If we think we have someone else—anyone else—all figured out, if we put them into neat little boxes based on their apparent political affiliation or their religious headgear or their eye color or the fact that they think Picard is in any way superior to Kirk or their need to drink human blood to survive, we have sold them (and ourselves) short.  We have given up on getting to know them.  And when we do that, we don’t allow the plot (life) to move forward in the direction it SHOULD go.

And remember, don’t let fact that a Picard fan is completely and utterly delusional cause you to treat that poor soul as less than human—they’re mistaken, not evil.  That delusional and wrong person is more complicated than their choice of the wrong starship captain.  Remember the most important thing here—John Sheridan can kick any Star Trek captain’s butt.  And even if you believe (mistakenly) otherwise, I can still treat you like a child of God.

 

Another Advance Review of “The Witch of White Lady Hollow”!

Written with his customary clear prose, C. David Belt has crafted a knock-your-socks-off paranormal novel set in the late 70s in Missouri. Tabitha Moonshadow and her divorced mom, Molly, are trying to start over as disparaged Mormons in a small, rural town, but overwhelming obstacles keep them on edge, dealing with forces of evil they had never even imagined. With delicate language, Belt handles the touchy issues of secrets, sexual assault, incest, and magic, while deftly guiding Tabitha in her journey involving the defense of her best friend and wielding mysterious power. Highly recommended for mature LDS readers.

Marsha Ward, author of The Owen Family Saga

Another Advance Review of “The Witch of White Lady Hollow”!

“I’m almost done with this chapter.” That’s what I told the impatient flight attendant who asked me to get off the plane so she could get to her hotel. Be prepared to say that to your family, friends, your boss, or a police officer because this book grabs you and doesn’t let go until the very last page.

C David Belt, one of the premier voices in LDS paranormal fiction, delivers again with this tale of witchcraft, love, magic, and power. You’ll be enchanted with Tabitha and her mom, Molly, as they try to begin life over again in rural Missouri in 1978 only to find a new evil waiting for them. Tabitha must navigate a new high school, new friends, and new powers. Powers that Magnus, the High Priest of the Circle wants to control. Tabitha and her mom must learn who they can trust before it’s too late.

Belt deftly weaves in themes of control, sexual abuse, and the abuse of authority with magic, humor, and one young woman’s journey to discover who she really is. While certainly not graphic in nature, this book addresses rape, incest, and sexual assault and is written for a mature audience, but a mature LDS audience.

So, grab your mug of hot chocolate and get ready to settle in, y’all’re about to go one hel-, er, heck of a ride.

Dan Earl – DeWitt, MI

More Advance Praise for “The Witch of White Lady Hollow”!

I’m not a horror fan, but I do love a story where the characters overcome overwhelming odds. Tabitha’s father made bad choices that destroyed her family. Tabitha and her mom are trying to start over and find themselves in a little town that is quite un-hospitable to Mormons. Tabitha is trying to understand who she really is now that life has changed so much and wondering how she might put her life back together. Those who befriend her want to use her, and she finds herself in the middle of a trap that is truly unique to her and seems to offer somethings that she has always wanted. The trap blinds her to the reality and the temptations that she is facing. She has to fall back on her faith and learn to trust others, which after being betrayed by her father is incredibly difficult. She discovers things about the past that help her to remember how to rely on inspiration from a loving Heavenly Father. This is truly a unique story. David Belt is a masterful story-teller and had me wondering how things could possibly work out from the very first chapter.

Dean R. Giles, Author of “Dragons Restored” – Provo, UT

Yet Another Advance Review for “The Witch of White Lady Hollow”

This book was not afraid to tackle some hard questions. I loved the exploration of how a teenage girl might reconcile her magical powers with a Christian-based faith. Though it’s set nearly 40 years ago, I found Tabitha’s journey to find her place as a woman extremely relevant today. The Witch of White Lady Hollow examines some pretty complex issues. While not graphic in it’s portrayal, the story addresses sexual assault and rape with raw honesty and vulnerability. I stayed up far past my bedtime to see how Tabitha and Molly were going to fare as they navigated their new move, new friends, Tabitha’s new magic, and new romances, and I was not disappointed.

Crystal Brinkerhoff