Reality Check
My husband often tells me I don't know how to suspend notions of reality when I am watching a movie. I disagree. But if he means that when a story is in a contemporary setting and I find the holes, he would be right. Nothing ruins a movie faster for me than the hero driving on a street that does not lead to his destination, or the hero taking a train to a stop that I know does not exist, or, well you get the idea.
I have a similar issue with contemporary novels. Usually it's the timeline that doesn't work. Recently I read a book and I actually had to re-read it to try to make sense of the timeline. The way I counted, for the action to fit as written, September and October had to have been a combined 12 weeks in length. In another book, a main character would have had to have left home while still in high school for the action to play out as described. I know that wasn't the case or it would have been a plot point in the story, or at the very least discussed.
In Hollywood Princess, I faithfully respect its contemporary setting. Set mostly in Los Angeles and on a college campus, the standard college semester calendar is strictly adhered to. Locations are trickier. When I wrote Hollywood Princess, the locations existed, but who knows what the future will bring. Please don't get angry if later on you find a location has closed. Similarly, when I am specific regarding driving directions, I am accurate. You can ask your GPS. Finally, for anyone wanting to attend Donnelly College or dine at the Lake House restaurant, these are both fictional, but you may be able to find close substitutes elsewhere in New York State.
I have a similar issue with contemporary novels. Usually it's the timeline that doesn't work. Recently I read a book and I actually had to re-read it to try to make sense of the timeline. The way I counted, for the action to fit as written, September and October had to have been a combined 12 weeks in length. In another book, a main character would have had to have left home while still in high school for the action to play out as described. I know that wasn't the case or it would have been a plot point in the story, or at the very least discussed.
In Hollywood Princess, I faithfully respect its contemporary setting. Set mostly in Los Angeles and on a college campus, the standard college semester calendar is strictly adhered to. Locations are trickier. When I wrote Hollywood Princess, the locations existed, but who knows what the future will bring. Please don't get angry if later on you find a location has closed. Similarly, when I am specific regarding driving directions, I am accurate. You can ask your GPS. Finally, for anyone wanting to attend Donnelly College or dine at the Lake House restaurant, these are both fictional, but you may be able to find close substitutes elsewhere in New York State.
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