Cynthia Rogan's Blog, page 2
September 28, 2021
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A young woman with amnesia is discovered on the dock one morning. In her palm someone has written the words many and chance, so Minnie is summoned to help. Once at the hospital, the woman remembers that she must stop someone from doing something, but she doesn’t know who or what. The clock is ticking, and every avenue Minnie tries turns into a dead end. Who is this woman trying to save? Can Minnie solve the mystery before it’s too late to save them?
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September 27, 2021
DANGEROUS MEMORY by Cynthia Rogan
A young woman with amnesia is discovered on the dock one morning. In her palm someone has written the words many and chance, so Minnie is summoned to help. Once at the hospital, the woman remembers that she must stop someone from doing something, but she doesn’t know who or what. The clock is ticking, and every avenue Minnie tries turns into a dead end. Who is this woman trying to save? Can Minnie solve the mystery before it's too late to save them?
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September 21, 2021
Seedy Characters
I made these seedy characters from bean, peach, cantaloupe, avocado, artichoke, and chia seeds. Then I added a couple of googly eyes. The end product looked seedy indeedy. Well, they were made out of seeds (if that’s the same thing). I’ve always been in awe of seeds. To me they seem like the perfect tiny, sealed container of energy. Within them is everything they need. Just add water and light and presto chango—you get an entire plant. Sometimes that plant is a tree. Sometimes it gives us flowers, or fruits, or vegetables, or even something we humans have labeled a weed for one reason or another.
There are so many different seeds out there. If you were handed a container of mixed seeds how would you know what you were planting? How many seeds could you recognize? Corn, beans, sesame, sunflower, pumpkin? The Coco de mer has the largest known seed (largest recorded-55 pounds). Looks like a work of art, doesn’t it? The smallest seeds come from some species of tropical orchids and weigh just 10 billionths of an ounce—smaller than a typical orchid seed which is the size of a speck of dust.
Man with Coco De Mer seed
This is my garden. See the pole beans in the back?Seeds come in all shapes, sizes, colors, and attitudes. Although their growth is dependent on their environment, environment doesn’t determine everything. Each year I plant pole beans. Although they have the same amount of light and water, some of them sprout and vine around the ground until I train them up the pole. Some climb the pole, go as high as they can go, then flop down toward the ground again. Some climb the pole, get to the top, wind their way down and back up. I don’t know why. Each plant is different just like we are, I guess. I’m thankful for our differences, because they make us interesting.
All my characters begin as seeds too. After some light, water, dirt, and maybe some necessary fertilizer, parts of their lives grow into the stories I share with you. Different people. Different fertilizer. Different stories.
Sister Minnie Chance caused the death of a man who came after her with a knife. What path does that leave for you if you’re a nun? Symphony Weber hates knowing what’s going to happen in the future, so she goes to great lengths to turn off her abilities, only to discover she’s made a huge mistake. Pinky Harper’s never sure whether her schizophrenic father is on or off his meds. What happens when he’s actually telling the truth about something pretty dang important and she doesn’t believe him?
When we’re all so different, the possibilities are endless. So I’ll keep on planting character seeds.
Please keep reading.
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August 13, 2021
Cliffhanging
I couldn’t decide what to blog about this month and it didn’t become clear to me until I started working on the graphics. I started out with a background.
But what would make the picture more interesting? An old house?
Who do you think lives there? An old man or woman with lots of stories to tell? Or maybe someone who enjoys the isolation—a retired celebrity, perhaps. Or could it be someone hiding from the world for their own safety? Hmmm. Now it’s getting interesting. But, alone, the house and the field aren’t enough to pique your interest. Are they?
What about now? Is this child out here by herself? To be honest I’m a little worried, so I create a story to feel better: Her mother or grandmother are in the big house. They’ll call her in for supper soon.
But wait.
I must admit, adding this critter to the picture really makes my heart pound. Now I’m asking myself, “Where is her mother? Who will save her? And then I imagine her mother coming from the house and scaring away the huge cat.
But then—this. Is that the girl’s mother hanging from that cliff? Now THIS is a cliffhanger.
I put some images together in such a way to make you worry about a character (or two). That’s what writing suspense is about.
Are you worried about the girl? Are you worried about her mom? I’m worried about them both because I haven’t yet figured out an ending to the story that allows them to be safe. But I will, because that’s my job as a writer. And if worrying about the little girl and her mother keep you from worrying about your own big cat for a while, then I’ve achieved my goal.
I’ll keep writing (cliffhangers).
Please keep reading.
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By continuing, you accept the privacy policyJuly 19, 2021
Don’t Dog the Hot Days
How hot was it?Happy sauna day. It’s hot. In fact, where I live, we’ve had weeks of temperatures over 100 degrees. But it is almost July 23 after all—the exact middle of Dog Days.
As a kid, I heard stories about Dog Days from my dad and his siblings. The one I remember most had to do with my dad stepping on a nail and having to soak his foot in kerosene because—as if stepping on a nail wasn’t bad enough—he’d done it during Dog Days. There’s a certain amount of bad luck associated with Dog Days: heat, fever, lethargy, sudden thunderstorms, lunacy, mad dogs, and—according to my dad—infections were more likely.
“Why do they call it dog days?” I asked, baffled by the slur to our beloved canine friends (and family). I never got an answer. The truth is humans use quite a few words and phrases to dog dogs: He/She’s a real dog. Dog Face. You’re nothin’ but a cheatin’ dirty dog. You lie like a dog. You’re dog water. And the one you can use in just about any sentence—Bitch. So, I just assumed Dog Days was another one of those insults.
I surprised to discover that diēs caniculārēs (coined Dog Days by the English in the 1500s) have been around almost forever, or at least before the rise of Roman Empire, and there’s a very creative reason behind the name. Sirius (sometimes referred to as The Dog Star), the brightest star we can see from anywhere on Earth, is part of the constellation Canis Major, The Greater Dog. In the summer, Sirius rises and sets with the sun. On July 23, Sirius completely aligns with the sun. Because Sirius is so bright, the ancient Romans believed it radiated heat in addition to the Sun, making the days even hotter. So Dog Days run 20 days before the alignment and 20 days after—July 3rd to August 11th each year. I feel better knowing the real reason.
I am a dog person. There are many dogs in my life, including the ones I use in my ads.
I gave Minnie Chance my dog, Creo, after I had to let her go. She got to start over as a puppy and Minnie named her Oreo. Now, she’s in a story that will go on forever. I have Sadie Mae, who is 10 and Pokey McGee who is going to be a year old this month—during Dog Days. They don’t appreciate the fact that I’ve been writing so much lately, but they love me anyway—I think. Sometimes, when I enter a room, I could swear they’re talking about me. I wonder if dogs have slurs that dog humans?
I can hardly wait to start work on the next chapter of Dangerous Haven. I’ll keep writing.
Please keep reading.
June 21, 2021
Dangerous
I can’t remember how old I was when I decided to roller skate down our steep driveway. In retrospect, it was a bad idea and I have the facial and emotional scars to prove it. Then there was the time (a few years later) that I decided to try crossing my arms while riding my bike. “What could go wrong?” Well, everything. For some reason, my brain didn’t connect that my left hand was on my right handlebar and vice versa. I survived the bleeding, the pain, and the embarrassment and decided never to try that again. And I didn’t. Not in a physical way. But I do it all the time with my writing.
There are people who study how to do something over a period of time before they attempt it. I have never been one of those people. I decide I’m going to do something, then I jump right in and learn as I go. Sometimes, jumping in without instruction can be dangerous. But these days, writing and character relationships are about as dangerous as I get. Still, every time I work on a new project, I feel like I’m crossing my arms on the handlebars.
Go ahead. Jump right in.When I hit the “SUBMIT” button on a publication, my heart beats as if I’m in mortal danger. But I’m just skating down that steep driveway once again.
On June 15, 2021, I hit the “SUBMIT” button for Dangerous Habit, my short novel introducing the Minnie Chance Mystery Series.
Dangerous is not something Sister Minnie Chance has chosen. It seems to have chosen her. One minute she’s coaching Little League pitchers, the next she’s trying to explain to the police why she deliberately hit a man in the head with a baseball, killing him. The day after that happens, Minnie is summoned to the bedside of her ill father, where she realizes that not everything she believes about him is fact. He’s been keeping secrets and Minnie is driven to uncover the truth, so she puts on her Dangerous Habit and begins to dig.
I need to share what happens with Minnie next, so I can’t stop writing.
Please keep reading.
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First name or full nameEmail By continuing, you accept the privacy policyJune 15, 2021
DANGEROUS HABIT by Cynthia Rogan
Sister Minnie Chance just killed a man—an act that challenges the faith on which she’s built her life. The police, believing Minnie acted in self-defense, allow her to escape the Sister Slayer—Death by Baseball headlines to be with her sick father in Florida, but before she’s been there twenty-four hours, her father’s secrets begin to explode everywhere, and she’s forced to wonder how much of her life was built on truth and how much was built on deception. As she uncovers the facts, she begins to realize how much danger she’s in. Someone is trying to kill Minnie. But who? And why?stumbles onto a deep well of family secrets and danger she could never have imagined. Someone is trying to kill Minnie. But who? And why?
The post DANGEROUS HABIT by Cynthia Rogan appeared first on cynthia rogan.
DANGEROUS HABIT | Get your copy today!
Available June 15, 2021:
and other online retailers.
Sister Minnie Chance just killed a man—an act that challenges the faith on which she’s built her life. The police, believing Minnie acted in self-defense, allow her to escape the Sister Slayer—Death by Baseball headlines to be with her sick father in Florida, but before she’s been there twenty-four hours, her father’s secrets begin to explode everywhere, and she’s forced to wonder how much of her life was built on truth and how much was built on deception. As she uncovers the facts, she begins to realize how much danger she’s in. Someone is trying to kill Minnie. But who? And why?
Get your copy today!
Available June 15, 2021:
and other online retailers.
May 18, 2021
It Ain’t Just a River in Egypt
Several years ago, I wrote a short story called “One Last Time” about a young woman who couldn’t seem to stop lying. Whenever she lied, she promised herself it would be the last time—that she would always tell the truth going forward. But if someone asked her a question, she couldn’t seem to resist the urge to fabricate a life she wished was really hers using a story she made up on the fly. When she told one of her doozies, her life was elevated for that moment. As the story unfolded, she actually began to believe what she was saying. She lost touch. For a while, she was living in denial of her real life—the life where she really existed.
Whether you’re admitting defeat, coming to terms with the end of a relationship, or shocked that the size 6 pants you’re trying on are way too snug, at some point we all find ourselves in denial.
Well, you can tough it out in Difficult, Tennessee or disappear to Nowhere, Colorado. If you live in Neutral, Kansas, you might be able to resist making decisions—at least for a while. You can avoid Accident, Maryland, dance your way through Funk, Nebraska, or blow your nose on every street corner in Boogertown, North Carolina.
But there is no town named Denial.
[image error]For a place that doesn’t exist, some of us spend an awful lot of time there. And sometimes the return trip takes A WHILE. That’s been my experience, anyway.
For the moment, I’ve left that dreaded spot and, as a result, I have an abundance of clarity.
Although spending time in Denial is not ideal, it has given me much to write about.
So, I think I’ll keep writing.
Please keep reading.
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