Have You Ever Wanted to Run Away From The "Shoulds?"
I should put the laundry away instead of letting it pile up on the couch. I should go over my galleys one more time and look for typos. Instead of doing any other those things, I had the bright idea of putting together a book of postcards to illustrate the various settings in my forthcoming short story collection, BONDS OF LOVE & BLOOD.
What inspired this effort was my grandson Peter. He told his mom he didn't like to read because he wasn't sure he pictured things right. I know Peter can't be the only one, and that a short story collection may demand more of a reader than a novel.
Readers of short story collections can't "sink into" a long tale about the to-ings and fro-ings of the people who inhabit the book. Instead, readers may hear a cacophany of voices or feel as if they're on one of those extended European vacations, where it's Brussels on Tuesday, Paris, on Wednesday, and Rome on Thursday.
So, here is my bright idea. A book of postcards called POSTCARDS HOME. It will take just a sec for the file to download, but then, it's all yours. Drop me an email and let me know how this strikes you.
What inspired this effort was my grandson Peter. He told his mom he didn't like to read because he wasn't sure he pictured things right. I know Peter can't be the only one, and that a short story collection may demand more of a reader than a novel.
Readers of short story collections can't "sink into" a long tale about the to-ings and fro-ings of the people who inhabit the book. Instead, readers may hear a cacophany of voices or feel as if they're on one of those extended European vacations, where it's Brussels on Tuesday, Paris, on Wednesday, and Rome on Thursday.
So, here is my bright idea. A book of postcards called POSTCARDS HOME. It will take just a sec for the file to download, but then, it's all yours. Drop me an email and let me know how this strikes you.
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Kathryn
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Nov 16, 2015 01:10PM
I love this idea, especially for those who are more visual. Will love to see it.
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Click on the link that says POSTCARDS HOME (above), and it will show you the entire little book. I'm thinking that producing a book like this could be a pretty cool way to visualize the main events of a novel.
So Marylee, where did you get these images? Are they postcards? Some of them look photoshopped. Are they actual postcards? I seem to need to know more about them.
Mary wrote: "So Marylee, where did you get these images? Are they postcards? Some of them look photoshopped. Are they actual postcards? I seem to need to know more about them."They are postcards that I made up, and some are old postcards. All of them went through the Corel Paintshop Pro and a program that's an add-on called Topaz Studio. It allows you to create various art effects, from works that resemble Impressionism to works that are more like line drawings. All of the images except one were in the public domain or licensed through Creative Commons. I was just goofing around with all of these, mainly looking for things that would fit the story. I couldn't believe how well some of the images matched the picture in my head. I see images like this when I write, and actually I had another ten or so that I would have liked to include. If you go to Creative Commons you can sort by images that have no copyright vs those that have various copyright restrictions. Searching on Google Images also yields up a ton of visual material. If this is interesting to you, maybe I should do a blog post with screen shots or even a YouTube video. (Learning curve with that, but I think I can do it.) Anyway, it was fun, and it certainly reminded me of the way you have played with words and images over the years. It's FUN!
Thanks, Marylee. I didn't know about Creative Commons. I have fooled around with my own images with PhotoShop which also has a lot of those options. Your "postcards" really do enhance the stories. I'm also thinking that now that you can do ebooks, using color won't quadruple your printing costs, making all sorts of things possible.By the way, getting to your comment meant working through about four windows. It occurs to me that my son has just done a program that allows easier access to discussions via email. You can find him at cyberhobo.net.
Mary wrote: "Thanks, Marylee. I didn't know about Creative Commons. I have fooled around with my own images with PhotoShop which also has a lot of those options. Your "postcards" really do enhance the stories. ..."Oh, that's a terrific suggestion. I will check out cyberhobo.net right now.
Writing and Caregiving
My novel, MONTPELIER TOMORROW is about a mother and daughter trying to resolve old grievances, while caring for a dying man. The book won a Gold Medal for Drama from Readers' Favorites' International
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