Jacqueline E. Smith's Blog, page 42

Falling into Place

I don’t want to jinx anything here, but things seem to be going very nicely, at least as far as the impending book release goes!  My cover designer emailed me a rough copy of the cover last night and OH MY GOODNESS IT LOOKS INCREDIBLE.  I can’t wait to share it with all of you!  I might even love it more than the first one…

(Shameless self-promotion)

So yeah, I am super excited about that.  I’m also excited because Cemetery Tours now has 38 reviews on Amazon!  My goal is to have 50 by the time the second book is released.  I think we can make that happen.  I only need 12 more!  

Recent reviews include…

Oh!  I also got my manuscript back from my third and final editor/beta reader.  Her comment on the last page…  

 

I’m so glad my readers are liking it!  No better feeling!  Now I just have to get the darn thing edited.  Again.  And again.  And again.  Yaaay.  

What are all of you working on?  

The Curse of Creativity

Last night, I was all alone in the house that I am watching while its owners are away.  This house is big and ritzy and, to be honest, a little creepy.  The other night, I was getting ready for bed and I noticed this doll sitting on the shelf across the room.  I’d never actually seen this doll before, and I have no idea how long it’s been there, but it might actually be the scariest thing I’ve ever seen. 

Anyway, as previously stated, last night, I was all alone in this big empty house and the power started surging and flickering.  It went off for a few seconds and then came back on again.  This morning, I noticed that the streetlights close by were flickering, so I’m guessing there was some sort of neighborhood power outage, but last night, I was freaked out.  That house is spooky enough without flickering lights, but being of the creative mind, flickering lights are not necessarily just faulty power lines.  They could indicate anything from ghosts to aliens to a serial killer lurking in the attic and messing with the wires.  

Creative minds are fortunate in the sense that possibilities are limitless.  We do see the things that other people overlook.  But because we are not burdened by logic, we are no protected by it either.  At least, I’m not.  I know logically that a power outage is nothing to worry about, but the creative mind immediately assumes the worst, even if the worst is impossible.  

I remember once, I was driving and I accidentally made eye contact with a guy waiting for a bus.  It would have been logical to think, “Oops… hope he doesn’t think I’m a creeper.”  Or maybe not think anything of it at all.  My first thought, however, was, “Oh no… What if that guy isn’t a guy at all?  What if he’s actually a demon and he latches on to the first person to make eye contact with him?  What if he follows me home and starts haunting me and torturing my family?”  

Sometimes, being a creative mind is exhausting.  Most of the time, though, it’s pretty awesome. 

In other news, here are a few fun and interesting things I have found around the internet and around town.

1) Gollum Sings “Let It Go”

No, seriously.  It’s on iTunes.  And this guy actually sounds like Gollum.

 

2) “The Fault in Our Stars” soundtrack to pre-order

I need dis.

3) A Sherlock Holmes play, directed by…

KEVIN MORIARTY.  

Yes, I created the meme.  I’m rather proud.  

Oh!  And if you’re interested, there’s a meteor shower tonight!  I wish I lived further away from city lights.  Maybe next time, I’ll be able to drive out to the country to watch.  

Have a great evening, everyone!  

Announcement!

Hear ye, hear ye! 

First of all, I’d like to wish everyone a delightful and wonderful Earth day.  I know it is rather late to wish someone a happy holiday, but every day is a good day to celebrate our beautiful planet. 

Secondly, the ISBN for the sequel have been assigned, both for the paperback and the eBook, so it is with great pride and excitement that I announce that BETWEEN WORLDS, the sequel to Cemetery Tours, will be available on July 1, 2014!  

Just so everyone knows, yes, I designed that.  Yes, I know I’m not a good graphic designer, but it’s the best I can do until my real graphic designer finishes the cover.  

Anyway, I am very excited to finally be able to share this with you annnnnd I’m really hoping that people enjoy it as much as the first one!  

Talk to you all soon!   

Back to Joy

I’ve been a dreamer and a make-believer as far back as I can remember.  Honestly, I always thought I was just a late bloomer, that my mental maturity developed at a slightly slower pace than my peers.  Then, during a talk with my mother shortly before my graduation from grad school, I told her how anxious I was about being a real adult and how I was afraid I was still so behind my friends in terms of “real world achievements.”  Instead of assuring me that I was completely normal and that I had nothing to worry about, however, she told me, “Well, maybe you’re just different.  You have always marched to your own tune.”  

At first, I really wasn’t sure that was a compliment, though now that I’m older, I’m pretty sure it is.  I like being me.  I like the things that I do and the way I see the world.  Somewhere along the line, though, I’m afraid a vital part of me got lost.  Even though I’ve made it a priority ever since I was a teenager to hold on to the dreams and ideas that have always brought me so much joys over the years, I can feel the harsh demands of money and status and reality striving to pull them away.  Above all, the artistic soul craves freedom, and in a world where money and power are the Alpha and Omega, true freedom is hard to come by.  

Like several new adults, I’ve let the idea that “I have to do this” and “I have to do that” in order to be successful get in my head.  Guess what?  It’s made me miserable.  That’s not how it’s supposed to work, is it?  

I’ve never believed that there was only “one true path” to success or happiness, though I’ve met several people who begged to differ.  I’ve decided that I’m going to take the next few months to see if I can prove them wrong.  The new book (the title of which I will hopefully be able to reveal soon) will be out on July 1.  Along with editing, formatting, and working on new manuscripts, I’m going to try to get back to what it means to be joyful, to be confident, and to live each day the way I’m meant to live it.  

To be honest, I don’t really want too much out of life.  I like being outside.  I like blue skies and green fields and forests and rivers and oceans.  I want a good book to read.  I want to get healthy, in mind and in body.  I want to do good and take pictures and write.  I honestly don’t care if anyone knows my name or if I get a fancy car or designer jewelry (though a lake house would be AWESOME).  Or maybe the truth is I want everything out of life, it just doesn’t seem like all that much by today’s standards.  

Regardless, I’m going to try to make it all happen.  Wish me luck! 

All Photographs Copyright © Jacqueline E. Smith 2014

Easter Stories

Happy Easter, everyone!  For those who celebrate this Holy Day, I hope you had a wonderful time with friends and family, bunnies and chocolate, and the grace and love of our Risen Lord and Savior.  For those who do not celebrate, I hope you had an equally wonderful Sunday filled with just as much love, friends, family, and chocolate.  

As High Church Episcopalians, Easter is a fairly extravagant to-do in our church.  My family actually celebrates the resurrection on Saturday night at the Great Vigil of Easter.  It’s my favorite service of the year.  It starts off in total darkness, there are some readings, a few Baptisms, and then a priest stands up in front of the church and declares, “Alleluia!  Christ is Risen!”  The congregation responds with, “The Lord is Risen Indeed!  Alleluia!”  Then, all the lights come on, brass orchestra music fills the church, and the triptych above the altar is opened to once again reveal Jesus.  It’s all very beautiful and moving and it reaffirms my faith each and every year.

 

Then, after the service ends, there is always a big break-the-Lenten-fast party filled with food and yeah, okay, lots of wine.  We are Episcopalian, after all.  

As wonderful and beautiful as the service is, however, it rarely goes off without a hitch.  Last year, I served as an acolyte throughout the two-hour-long service (yes, we are crazy, but the promise of chocolate and alcohol gets us through).  My job at the beginning of the service was to stand in the back of the church while the priest lit the Paschal Fire (a huge bowl full of holy fire that symbolizes the Holy Spirit and new life of Easter).  Each church member had a small candle that we use while the church is still dark and as acolytes, we were supposed to take fire from the Paschal flame and go through the aisles and share the fire throughout the congregation.  

Well, I’m not sure what happened last year, maybe someone doused the bowl in lighter fluid, but somehow, we ended up with a regular bonfire in the back of the church.  I’m not kidding.  The flames were huge.  The priest who was supposed to light the Paschal Candle would get close to the fire, then she’d back away going, “Hot… hot…”  

Finally, everyone’s candles were lit, but the fire was still blazing, and no matter what anyone did, it would not go out.  By this point, we knew we were holding up the service, but we couldn’t go anywhere.  It was impossible to get around the fire without catching something on fire and technically, we weren’t supposed to go anywhere until the fire was extinguished.  At one point, a man came forward with the top to the bowl and, very bravely, slammed it down on top of the fire.  For a few brief moments, we thought it had worked, but then, we all heard that familiar WHOOSH and a doughnut of fire began burning around the lid, through the cracks between it and the bowl. I won’t lie to you, for a minute, I thought we may have accidentally ignited the flames of hell.     

By that point, the priests were all pretty desperate, so they started signaling for us to just go around the flames.  Each and every one of us stayed planted firmly where we were and shook our heads.  No way were we going anywhere near that fire!  We were in robes!  My hair was down!  Something was going to catch on fire.  

Thankfully, a few minutes later, they did finally get it extinguished for real, but that is something I will never forget.  It’s actually a pretty funny story, and at the after party last year, we were all laughing so hard about it, I had tears running down my face (of course, a few glasses of wine may have been involved by that point). 

This year, I didn’t have to acolyte, for which I was thankful.  I really like being able to relax and enjoy the service.  Last night’s Vigil was just as beautiful and moving as it always is (though I would have preferred a few different hymns, but whatever), but it will inarguably go down as one of my favorite Easters ever.  

A few rows ahead of us sat a mother and her two young kids, a son and a daughter.  The little boy can’t have been more than three or four, but he was the cutest thing I’ve ever seen in my life.  He had dark curly hair and wore a plaid shirt and a little bow tie.  He would have been cute enough just as he was, but at the very end, during the last hymn of the service, he started laughing and dancing around.  Then, every time the church would ring their bells and sing “Alleluia,” He would ring his bell, jump around, and stick out his tongue.  He was clearly enjoying putting on a show, not only for the little girl behind him, but for whomever happened to be watching and laughing.  I was definitely one of them.  That little boy made my entire night.  

That’s the kind of joy Easter is supposed to bring us.  Those kids who dance and laugh and jump around get it, and I hope his happiness stays with me, not only throughout these next fifty days of Easter, but throughout the entire year. 

Happy Easter, everyone!  

 

Music and Poetry

I’m not sure if I’ve ever mentioned this on my blog before, but long before I realized I wanted to be a writer, I was something of a musician.  I played piano, flute, piccolo, and sang in just about every choir I could from fifth grade all the way up through Graduate school.  I took so many music classes and put in so many hours of choir and musical theater that I actually earned a minor in music, something for which I did not set out, but hey, I’ll take it!

Sad to say, I really haven’t been all that involved in music since I graduated.  Most of my time has been dedicated entirely to writing and getting my book out there.  I don’t regret it, because that’s what I love, and I want to write for the rest of my life.  Still, performing in musicals and Broadway reviews was a lot of fun.

We even got to perform with the King’s Singers.

That’s me with the black dress and the stupid face.

As a cheerleader in Selections from Best Little Whorehouse in Texas

As Bird Lady in Sideshow. For the record, I really hated that costume. They had promised me sexy and elegant. That dumb outfit is neither.

However, I do occasionally still play with a friend of mine.  She’s a harpist and we play a lot of harp and flute duets.  She’s also actually one of my sister’s professors at college.  She’s studying for her doctorate and hopes to one day run her own harp department at a University.

If you ever need a harpist, by the way, you can find her at http://harpbyrachel.com.  And yes, I took that picture.

Anyway, we’ve recently been revisiting the Christmas music we used to play together in church, so I decided to dig out my old flute and play.

I’ll be the first to admit I’m still a little rusty.  After all, I haven’t really played since college, and even then, I didn’t play regularly.  Just for a Broadway review here and there.

Not a great picture, but the only one I have!

It’s weird how many things we let ourselves forget.  Music, my flute, these shows, they were all such a huge part of my life at one point.  Now, they’re barely memories.  Maybe I can start to bring some of them back.  They’re good memories, and they’re worth treasuring.

As I was exploring the Black Hole of Useless Stuff that is my closet, however, I came across a few other gems; poems and papers from old classes.  I’ve always been jealous of my friends and fellow authors who can write poetry, because they truly have a gift.  One of my favorite poets is a friend of mine.  Her name is Susie Clevenger and her poetry is just so beautiful and thoughtful and real.  I am truly envious of her.  If you enjoy poetry, you should definitely check out her collection, Dirt Road Dreams.  http://www.amazon.com/Dirt-Road-Dream...

I, as I believe I have mentioned before, am a terrible poet.  I’ve tried.  Believe me, I’ve tried for years to write a decent poem, and yet the only one I’ve ever truly liked is the one I wrote about a cockroach that my friends and I slaughtered on a camping trip (You can read that one here: https://jackiesmith114.wordpress.com/...).

After rereading a few poems I wrote in college, I’ve reached the conclusion that I thought I could just string choppy sentences together and call it poetry.  One poem I found makes absolutely no sense at all.  It’s called My New Name.

My New Name

Music in my ears used to travel to my toes.

Whenever I’d walk to class, my feet would march in rhythm

To the song of my choosing.

Alas, my iPod’s batteries have failed me.

The vending machines are unappealing.

A bottle of water costs seventy five cents.

Water should be free.

“That’s a capital Omega! You can’t use capital letters!”

A professor scolds his perplexed class.

The smell of dry erase markers

resurrects repressed memories of math classes past.

That’s right, sinners.

You have to do calculus.

I want to get away from that room.

Specks of dust dance in the sunbeams

That pour in through the glass.

Outside, the festivities are about to begin.

I see my friends.

They don’t see me.

Through a tornado of color, music, and laughter,

I think I’ll change my name.

Seriously, though, what the heck was that?  It’s the weirdest poem ever.

Before I end this note, there is one other poem that’s actually sort of worth sharing.  It’s a poem I wrote for a class about how terrible I am at poetry.  Enjoy.

I cannot write poetry

The process is a mystery

Rhythms, rhymes, alliterations

All are lost on me.

I cannot write the words you’d like

Of scarlet sunsets, velvet night

Or the larks sweet serenade

As darkness turns to light.

I cannot write the melody

Of diamonds on piano keys

No use for painted harpsichords

Or gold viola strings.

So you see it’s for the best

I lay my poetry to rest

Poetry’s just not my thing

As surely you’ll attest.

So yeah, out of all the classes I took and all the hours I slaved trying to learn how to write a good poem, I only have one I’m proud of and two that are weird enough that I just had to post them on my blog.  And on that note, I hope everyone has a pleasant day!  Take time to remember the things you used to love, and not just the things you love now.  You might be inspired.

 

Blood Moon Rising (and Other Exciting Things)

These last few weeks have been incredibly busy, but they’ve also been very exciting.

For one thing, ten copies of Cemetery Tours sold over the weekend!  I was thrilled and, at the same time, stunned.  That’s the most it’s ever sold at a time.  My first thought was, “Uh-oh… that’s a typo.”  But after a few days and it still says that those books sold… well then, I think I’m going to believe them!  

http://www.amazon.com/Cemetery-Tours-Jacqueline-Smith-ebook/dp/B00F7CHQ08/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1397600465&sr=8-1&keywords=cemetery+tours 

 

The next bit of exciting news… I am officially participating in my first book signing event!  It will feature seven other authors (I think) and it will begin with a book reading event on Friday, May 2 and end with an all day thing on Saturday, May 3!  I’m super excited and super nervous.  I’m not a very good public speaker at all, but I’m hoping that, when I’m talking about my book, I’ll be a little more confident and articulate.  

http://www.denisonlive.com/events/save-date-free-comic-book-day/

Finally, the edits for CT2 are well underway.  My goal is to have them mostly finished by next week so I can start formatting and hopefully have the ISBN assigned by the end of the month.  Then I can FINALLY release the title!  I know there will still be editing to be done (yaaaaay), but at least the process can really begin.  The editing is probably my least favorite part.  I really actually love the actual publishing and creating a book process.  

In other news, Blood Moon was incredible last night.  I saw the very first bit of the eclipse, but it was really cold outside, so I just went outside at the beginning, middle and total eclipse.  I was sleepy when I woke up this morning, but it was worth it!  

 

Back to Titanic

When Titanic was first released in 1998, I knew as much about the disaster as any other ten-year-old.  In other words, I didn’t know all that much.  All I knew was that it was a famous shipwreck and that I was scared to death of shipwrecks.  I knew immediately that if they were going to show any footage of the actual ship on the bottom of the ocean floor, then I was not going to see that movie.  And I didn’t.  In the theater anyway.  

As soon as it was released on video (VHS for all you cool kids who remember those days) my mom, a big movie and historic tragedies fan, just had to see Titanic.  I still didn’t want to see anything underwater, but my curiosity and unwillingness to be left out of seeing the biggest movie of the year outweighed my irrational fear of sunken ships.  

Needless to say, I became obsessed.  Titanic was the best movie I’d ever seen.  To this day, it remains my absolute favorite.  I fell in love with everything, from the history of the magnificent ocean liner to Jack and Rose’s tragic romance.  I even owned my own replica of the Heart of the Ocean (which has since disappeared… I might have to buy myself a new one…)

 

I loved Titanic so much that throughout my fifth grade year, I insisted on watching it every Friday night.  It became a tradition.  My family would make popcorn, my dad and I would play chess, and we’d all watch Titanic.  I’m not sure how the chess playing got worked in, but it did, and sometimes, I still bring out my grandfather’s old chess set whenever it’s on television.  Just for old time’s sake.  Yes, Titanic is still my movie.  

Like Brock Lovett in the story, however, I was totally seduced by the grandeur, the luxury, the tragic tale too beautiful and too heartbreaking to remain lost in the depths of the Atlantic Ocean.  To me, it was a disaster, but one that had inspired great storytellers and adventurers all around the world. Titanic was the perfect tragedy.

Then, last year, I attended the Titanic Artifacts Exhibit.  If you’ve never been, but have any interest in the ship and the history at all, I highly recommend it.  It’s incredible, sad, and very moving.  Before you go in, they give you a boarding pass and a name of an actual passenger on board the Titanic.  At the end of the Exhibit, you find out whether your passenger survived or perished.  

The artifacts on display ranged from plates to portholes to shoes to jewelry.  It was hard to wrap my head around the idea that all of those items had sat, trapped at the bottom of the ocean, for a century.  Here they were, actual pieces of history, and of the story that I thought I knew and loved so well, when in reality, it was the story of Jack and Rose I’d treasured.  Those artifacts told a whole different story.  

It wasn’t until I found myself standing over the journals and postcards of passengers that I realized just what I’d been missing all those years.  Those passengers, those people who boarded the Titanic for its maiden voyage in 1912 had no idea, absolutely no clue at all, that in 100 years, their personal letters and possessions would be on display in a museum, but only after spending all those years on the ocean floor.  The ship was supposed to be unsinkable.  They had no reason at all to think that.  It was then, and only then, that the tragedy became real to me.  It was as though those souls were there, reminding me that they had existed, that they had actually lived through it, and they were begging me to remember them.  

The artifacts exhibit ended with an area devoted entirely to exploring the wreck.  I had thought, or at least hoped, that I would be able to simply bow my head and not look while I waited for my friend to finish exploring.  After all, I was 25, far too old to let some weird, childhood phobia get the better of me.  At first glimpse, however, I knew I’d overestimated my capacity for bravery.  Wall to wall images of the Titanic on the ocean floor filled the entire room.  I couldn’t avoid the wreck even if I tried.  

Now, I’m not one for public displays of any sort of emotion, but the moment I set foot in that room, panic set in.  An irrational, and yet totally crippling sense of fear and anxiety.  Again, I don’t like making scenes or drawing any sort of attention to myself whatsoever, but there, in that room, I completely shut down.  I held my hands up to my eyes like a child cowering in the face of an evil monster.  To the observer’s eye, I must have looked like a basket case, and I guess, in that case, I sort of was.  Images of shipwrecks aren’t usually the sort of thing that send people spiraling into full blown panic attacks.  My friend actually had to take me by the hand and escort me out of the room and into the final area of the exhibit.  

There, in that room, you found out about the survivors.  More journal entries and letters, some jackets, shoes, and handbags.  I discovered that my passenger, a first class lady, and her son both survived.  

Tonight marks the 102nd anniversary of the Titanic’s demise, and as usual, I do plan on staying awake and watching the movie for what will probably be about the thousandth time (and in case you’re wondering, no, I’ve never seen the parts where the ship is underwater… I just listen).  But I will also be thinking about those artifacts in the museum, the diamonds and shoes and journals and handbags, and the real people to whom they once belonged.  

Easter Flowers

Hello, friends!  

Today is going to be spent marking up the sequel’s manuscript and ever so enjoying the long and grueling fun and exciting process that is editing.  

To make up for the lack of interesting post, here are some pictures of beautiful Easter Flowers that I took at the Arboretum yesterday.  

Happy Almost Easter! 

Grown Up Stuff

Hi, all.

This has been a very busy week.  House-sitting, regular job, one friend is in the hospital (on the mend, thank goodness), and another friend, I just found out, is going through a divorce… crazy, I tell you!  Life is weird.

With all of this going on, I haven’t had a lot of time to concentrate on either promoting Cemetery Tours, editing the sequel, or writing the new manuscript.  That’s the only problem with being an independent author.  Along with regular life, you have to figure out how to get all of that done too.  What I wouldn’t give for the luxury of being able to just work on my books and focus on writing!  The good news is that it is almost the weekend.  I plan on devoting the next few days to getting the sequel marked up, edited, and printed off again next week so I can start going over it myself and formatting it so I can finally move forward with ISBN and PNC.

That’s not to say I’ve gotten nothing accomplished this week.  I did FINALLY manage to get my two Pinterest accounts Verified!

Unfortunately, it was simply impossible to verify through my company website, http://www.windtrailpublishing.com , so I added two new blogs to my WordPress account.  I haven’t had time to really spruce them up yet, but once I get them up and running I will let you know.

I am also thrilled to announce that A) Cemetery Tours reached the top 200,000s in Amazon’s Bestselling Paperbacks.

Cemetery Tours has also reached over 500 likes on Facebook!

https://www.facebook.com/CemeteryTours

In preparation for the sequel’s release in June, I’ve also set a new goal.  I want Cemetery Tours to have 50 reviews on Amazon by the time the second book is out.  It has 37 reviews right now, so I only need 13 more.  I’m really hoping we can make that happen.  I’ve even started up a Review Party Event that people can RSVP to on Facebook.

https://www.facebook.com/events/793721513991057/

Anyway, I realize that this post has mostly been me, me, me, but I am super excited about the sequel and future projects.  What are y’all working on right now?