tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-292049322024-03-16T12:53:15.899-06:00Mysterious MusingsHow a Mystery Writer Views the World.Julia Buckleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270211923343731659noreply@blogger.comBlogger1106125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-16230384159212043462024-01-24T15:19:00.012-07:002024-01-26T22:04:37.564-07:00Tales of a Budapest Baker: Meet Judit Wolfe<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">by Julia Buckley</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigMgFC5iW9SAEQArrVgEIxUyAto2p1qxbMLS4DuTV5KxxpQVxqnexCXZNowscdXv1a1GjB0x91EntpThoKm6v-r_b2Kc7oj55wmexOPN_XLB8wTgwRjPwv4soNIuurEley0OOtzU7hJgmH96WvujTQd3gqEUNBLSDgcbo1_MvZJupZyJSzPcLc8A/s4032/366088436_880775456693480_1894763366777064894_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigMgFC5iW9SAEQArrVgEIxUyAto2p1qxbMLS4DuTV5KxxpQVxqnexCXZNowscdXv1a1GjB0x91EntpThoKm6v-r_b2Kc7oj55wmexOPN_XLB8wTgwRjPwv4soNIuurEley0OOtzU7hJgmH96WvujTQd3gqEUNBLSDgcbo1_MvZJupZyJSzPcLc8A/s320/366088436_880775456693480_1894763366777064894_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><i> Judit in Haiku, Hawaii</i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Judit Wolfe lives in Maui today. She and her husband run an Air B and B, and she has come to call her little town, Haiku, the home of her heart, filled with that Hawaiian spirit of Ohana. A long-time Lucille Ball fan, she named her vacation rental after the comedienne, so one can make an appointment to stay at "Lucy Fan Ohana" and spend vacation days cavorting in the surf.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Before this Hawaiian life, however, long ago and on another continent, she was Judit Homonoi, a young Hungarian girl who grew up in Lake Balaton. In 1956, before her birth, Judit's father was one of the many young Hungarians killed in the Russian Invasion of Budapest (now known as the Hungarian Revolution). This tragic loss was compounded by others: most of her remaining family had been killed in the Holocaust or in WWII. Judit's mother, a Holocaust survivor, died suddenly at age fifty-eight, and at twenty-four years old, Judit found herself alone. She wasn't sure how she would support herself, and the uncertainty was traumatic for her. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgik9ofxa_IX8lNjrUWHIEE_YrdbX3ucg0MY8SOeNOBbJG-cr-QIW_iO-tg2M0g5nqlEVIXWZDRLBL_nLe5-TNl_pGkBDVCO7YTNPsmCgR8aKeDgISuhQYO-yPkjrIx_DlE5xgU6c0ZKf1ghTFzv5Pe6JkTY6IcNNGkMelFHBri4_vn-i7sMBpaTw/s4032/386887908_745330907616455_7205342778065474819_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgik9ofxa_IX8lNjrUWHIEE_YrdbX3ucg0MY8SOeNOBbJG-cr-QIW_iO-tg2M0g5nqlEVIXWZDRLBL_nLe5-TNl_pGkBDVCO7YTNPsmCgR8aKeDgISuhQYO-yPkjrIx_DlE5xgU6c0ZKf1ghTFzv5Pe6JkTY6IcNNGkMelFHBri4_vn-i7sMBpaTw/s320/386887908_745330907616455_7205342778065474819_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><i><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Young Judit in Budapest</i></div></i><p>In 1987, she found out about a job as an au pair in the United States, so she got a temporary visa to fly to America and take the position in Boca Raton, Florida When her visa was about to expire, she obtained a six-month renewal and moved to New York, where she worked for the rest of her allotted time. There was no option to stay, as Hungary was still a communist country. She returned to Budapest not knowing what she would do next. As fate would have it, she learned that there was an opening at a legendary baker in Budapest called Rezso Hauer. He ran the Hauer Coffee House, which had been established in 1890, and is, as far as Judit knows, still there today. She applied at Hauer and got the job. "I was honored," she says today, "to get a job there."</p><p>But the Hungarian government had found another placement for Judit in Lake Balaton, so she was obligated to leave her Budapest job and return to her childhood home, taking a position as head pastry chef, armed now with the skills she had learned from Chef Hauer</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjbG8mC8cE4j_J8SG4gVMp-xj1ALJ90ClCwcgh4_IYy6uC2YBV1ATuloO8com4yJoGjH8nruSlOWVHygHVtFBaXNPPoJ-_SzpsADnzVIwUuydX5Oy7e8mno5zptehqGP7oGNBYaY8qDUW-aGYcdc7yVia6R6JGDEBLk4YZvIDdW1hyTQ_C9LO5CQ/s4032/405411403_888160542657772_8000194959890011474_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjbG8mC8cE4j_J8SG4gVMp-xj1ALJ90ClCwcgh4_IYy6uC2YBV1ATuloO8com4yJoGjH8nruSlOWVHygHVtFBaXNPPoJ-_SzpsADnzVIwUuydX5Oy7e8mno5zptehqGP7oGNBYaY8qDUW-aGYcdc7yVia6R6JGDEBLk4YZvIDdW1hyTQ_C9LO5CQ/s320/405411403_888160542657772_8000194959890011474_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i>Judit the baker, circa 1989 or early 90s.</i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">In 1992, Judit came to Maui to meet a pen-pal with whom she had been corresponding for a year. They had a brief relationship, but it was Maui that won her heart. She got a job there, and fewer than ten years later she had bought her house. She met her husband Timothy, an actor, when she went to see one of his performances, and they married in 2006.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">In 2011, she celebrated Lucille Ball's Centennial Year by visiting her museum in Jamestown, New York Her American experiences had been pivotal and positive moments in her life, and she knew this was her permanent home. She is now an American citizen.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcSGCGoogWVqa7fl7GQnVPwV5rmukBHL7x-9pWDs7WVeo8_nLzMQKoS_6_vryVreKEXYK0hZhlE_LXr8P4y0RSo8zaAVPG0T6MlxIg6FPui000hS7pfjHHuz1PY4FEB00Qsir3pFwYJXnSyox-ePUm8tMVZZ51nmlu76oACSUhMoMLRUfHaL6YFg/s4032/369896976_345968791372887_6751441335221836625_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcSGCGoogWVqa7fl7GQnVPwV5rmukBHL7x-9pWDs7WVeo8_nLzMQKoS_6_vryVreKEXYK0hZhlE_LXr8P4y0RSo8zaAVPG0T6MlxIg6FPui000hS7pfjHHuz1PY4FEB00Qsir3pFwYJXnSyox-ePUm8tMVZZ51nmlu76oACSUhMoMLRUfHaL6YFg/s320/369896976_345968791372887_6751441335221836625_n.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i>Judit at the Lucille Ball Desi Arnaz Museum in Jamestown, 2011.</i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><br /></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Judit had been in Hawaii for many years when she and I crossed paths. An avid reader, she was in a bookstore in her town, in quest of a different title, when she happened to see a book with the word "Budapest" in the title. This happened to be my book, the first Hungarian Tea House mystery, D<i>eath in a Budapest Butterfly</i>. Judit bought the book and read it in one day. Not only did it reference Budapest and Hungarian baking (both of which had been integral to her life), but two of the characters were from Lake Balaton, her first home. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Judit wrote to me, telling me that she had been a baker in Budapest, and that my book had brought back memories. From that point to this, we have chatted back and forth, and she has convinced me that I would love Maui. Meanwhile, I think of a nebulous train of events that led to our connection: the birth of my grandparents in different parts of Hungary, for starters. When they came to America, they sponsored at least one immigrant (my Uncle Steve) who wanted to escape the Hungarian Revolution. Their parenting of three children, one of whom was my father. My childhood filled with Hungarian culture from my father, German culture from my mother. My life-long love of reading and writing, and, when I became a published author, my desire to write something about my father's heritage.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And then, thanks to my publisher, my book ending up on a shelf in a little bookstore in Maui, and a transplanted Hungarian with memories of a distant life in Budapest and Balaton, buying that book and taking it home.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Life offers so many fascinating intersections, and Judit Wolfe and I have met at one of them. She has memories of the beauty of Lake Balaton and its environs, but is permanently immersed in the beauty of Haiku, where the sun dips low into the water each night, and rises each morning in a miraculous display of light and color, a reminder of the endless horizon which makes our borders a mere illusion.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8I9Zi7CDY2qUQwVkphnLtx5VzGo2QuaHc5c_9ZxBI3ojadfOumpnn1mNtxkdH-OCDGvwSf-0yXtBj1Z26h9eY0Ve-a2wqb5i4uRiQXqWTiVRjAUjBIBXMRgS91_-X8tkHPI9GtwYmCNHFVt3zE4MS5JZpauw4PnuHe_eyREdFmlI54Pv1md-EfA/s4032/405286534_1372206093423371_6825818820329162879_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8I9Zi7CDY2qUQwVkphnLtx5VzGo2QuaHc5c_9ZxBI3ojadfOumpnn1mNtxkdH-OCDGvwSf-0yXtBj1Z26h9eY0Ve-a2wqb5i4uRiQXqWTiVRjAUjBIBXMRgS91_-X8tkHPI9GtwYmCNHFVt3zE4MS5JZpauw4PnuHe_eyREdFmlI54Pv1md-EfA/s320/405286534_1372206093423371_6825818820329162879_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i>Judit the Hawaiian, 2000s.</i></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><br /><p></p><div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- Start of StatCounter Code -->
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<!-- End of StatCounter Code --></div>Julia Buckleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270211923343731659noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-31562014239901675402023-10-25T06:00:00.002-06:002023-10-26T17:48:27.381-06:00Revisiting Gordon Holmes: Yorkshireman, Amateur Archaeologist, and Loch Ness Investigator<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbjPNzhGtE8cw_0mbwG4gl7udn9by_5j8F-JGO1WBs1J4QmLMpBq2t6eoPn_JCj28LMkkmQX80GiOQgNH8ihpZhvvSxOadrTPSamofDSOKjtrxxJeYpUVePLZgFibivCb2xWbqqd0vV_T2UCc1F6pr6V8As1S8jG9B-mIg7UF6YrtBcm99sQpqPw/s4160/IMG_20210730_094035~2.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3120" data-original-width="4160" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbjPNzhGtE8cw_0mbwG4gl7udn9by_5j8F-JGO1WBs1J4QmLMpBq2t6eoPn_JCj28LMkkmQX80GiOQgNH8ihpZhvvSxOadrTPSamofDSOKjtrxxJeYpUVePLZgFibivCb2xWbqqd0vV_T2UCc1F6pr6V8As1S8jG9B-mIg7UF6YrtBcm99sQpqPw/s320/IMG_20210730_094035~2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>This lovely painting by Yorkshire artist Valerie Shepherd (used with permission) captures the imaginary view of the Loch Ness "Monster." The idea of an unknown creature swimming deep in a Scottish lake has fueled the imagination of many a mystery-lover, and blurry photographs of alleged sightings have made the monster, and her legendary Loch, a part of our cultural literacy. <b>Gordon Holmes</b>, too, has long been fascinated by Loch Ness and its legends, but he looks at the creature from a scientific perspective, and there is evidence, Holmes attests, that Loch Ness does, in fact, hold secrets yet to be revealed.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI3B9fW4uocK9uF5bR4po4A5A4hQy8Zoon43MPcdrJ55izZWYuoFLrIt-NsG4PpUeZKuqlLSS4exAO4IgOFptdu1NUpaZVDAKrQ7ygzltaWDXxpZCzH-pjFxPO3g-axI-9MeBQPx8q_JIlzEVtvrghHLcvinie1YEqZmnRdHzFGirRwPhSqliq3A/s2592/WP_20170706_024.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1944" data-original-width="2592" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI3B9fW4uocK9uF5bR4po4A5A4hQy8Zoon43MPcdrJ55izZWYuoFLrIt-NsG4PpUeZKuqlLSS4exAO4IgOFptdu1NUpaZVDAKrQ7ygzltaWDXxpZCzH-pjFxPO3g-axI-9MeBQPx8q_JIlzEVtvrghHLcvinie1YEqZmnRdHzFGirRwPhSqliq3A/s320/WP_20170706_024.jpg" width="320" /></a></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-size: small;">Gordon Holmes setting up Time-lapse camera at Dores, Loch Ness.</span></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; text-align: center;"><br /></div>Yorkshireman Gordon Holmes and I connected back in 2017 when his footage of a mysterious, fast-moving creature in Scotland's Loch Ness became a sensation. <a href="https://juliabuckley.blogspot.com/search?q=loch+ness" target="_blank">The footage in question</a> was widely viewed and discussed. You can find the<a href="https://juliabuckley.blogspot.com/search?q=loch+ness" target="_blank"> original post here.</a><div><br /></div><div>Gordon has been an amateur scientist for more than four decades, and he continues to pursue not just the Loch Ness mystery and "Nessie," but many of the mysteries that appear all around him in the Yorkshire countryside, where the land, first occupied after the retreat of the Ice Age, has historically been trodden by Romans, Early Britons, and Vikings. Gordon has developed a collection of artifacts, some of which are so valuable that they must be locked in a vault.</div><div><br /></div><div>In following his scientist's instincts, Gordon has accumulated a fair amount of evidence to support the idea of a heretofore-unseen creature in the depths of Loch Ness--a 30-foot creature that appeared on Sonar a year after he took his footage. Below are some pieces of evidence, along with his own diagrams based on previous descriptions and his own experience at the Loch. (Captions by Gordon Holmes). I've saved the best image for last.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkncBlft0qMYM70FMn6aYITOkIJlCNzWzJWNBL1qlj-9kiwHzHGS2qkAYI5G9gzKzKy7H5LMp2zbmMb94dtWurkbn-Hjc70VoVIGJgjUQ18K75RbJJIrXLHxNngyN8_4felmnwkziYRdzxUGMtQP_nzO5oTFSeMZ4u2ZoCSJVLksxWkmHGKz8unA/s3679/IMG_20210808_104923~4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2081" data-original-width="3679" height="181" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkncBlft0qMYM70FMn6aYITOkIJlCNzWzJWNBL1qlj-9kiwHzHGS2qkAYI5G9gzKzKy7H5LMp2zbmMb94dtWurkbn-Hjc70VoVIGJgjUQ18K75RbJJIrXLHxNngyN8_4felmnwkziYRdzxUGMtQP_nzO5oTFSeMZ4u2ZoCSJVLksxWkmHGKz8unA/s320/IMG_20210808_104923~4.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Nessie's side head view based on my latest research.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJ3IPlpFlPl7YK13Vfy_gwHEvJGP-DwvoKD8K5i3sYypaC_MNFN2-eVjxTeZlzFSDgYFkUlDMMRviITpDRkaQ5gyCs7_HVlj4BWSJHE5XBHIcqUdw3RKaD9ce3-xTeIRbKS71ghykPfezLGjd3R3pbwC6OYGYi91yZtTedCg5XjUQm9pFHZxJW_Q/s767/SONARNESS.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="767" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJ3IPlpFlPl7YK13Vfy_gwHEvJGP-DwvoKD8K5i3sYypaC_MNFN2-eVjxTeZlzFSDgYFkUlDMMRviITpDRkaQ5gyCs7_HVlj4BWSJHE5XBHIcqUdw3RKaD9ce3-xTeIRbKS71ghykPfezLGjd3R3pbwC6OYGYi91yZtTedCg5XjUQm9pFHZxJW_Q/s320/SONARNESS.jpg" width="320" /></a></div></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">My 2008 Sonar contact of a 30 foot unknown Creature in 65 foot depth of Loch Ness.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzRRAY8O532stfhu0aQ1TgYgi4rgLE5aWq88HwkHf4W3nwltOA1z_jYejsIWOjJhJSxm9myJhtk736RFzPVE_0cRZRH87rOKQFQxAKfRKOgDeLOpopLG13yI_5Qj4Hoect0ucn2QaT0QX1BInhdwmEpcl515tE8jzJKdNfW_eUj51BlNlDTYoB5A/s4001/IMG_20210808_194030~4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1442" data-original-width="4001" height="115" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzRRAY8O532stfhu0aQ1TgYgi4rgLE5aWq88HwkHf4W3nwltOA1z_jYejsIWOjJhJSxm9myJhtk736RFzPVE_0cRZRH87rOKQFQxAKfRKOgDeLOpopLG13yI_5Qj4Hoect0ucn2QaT0QX1BInhdwmEpcl515tE8jzJKdNfW_eUj51BlNlDTYoB5A/s320/IMG_20210808_194030~4.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-size: small; text-align: start;">Nessie's total length view (in black & white) based on my latest research.</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9OKDr0qPRu-mxZxMAOq2pjUHgMBEA2850hefXD62I1TbifKAj1ii2tBlDyB9mvzA2Fv5KrgLYY8jZd4XsqblSl3LtqVGGQV0CvaKRUqa1q7PPzm25lzzce24FStNPPYGx9VNV_YRrJoSQRWYH06WGFLYer3R77mDwH2X7cosS95wHAuKbiMvNxw/s4160/1698258883450_adobe.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3120" data-original-width="4160" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9OKDr0qPRu-mxZxMAOq2pjUHgMBEA2850hefXD62I1TbifKAj1ii2tBlDyB9mvzA2Fv5KrgLYY8jZd4XsqblSl3LtqVGGQV0CvaKRUqa1q7PPzm25lzzce24FStNPPYGx9VNV_YRrJoSQRWYH06WGFLYer3R77mDwH2X7cosS95wHAuKbiMvNxw/s320/1698258883450_adobe.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; text-align: left;">My hypothetical 1933 Spicer Image based on description of Nessie </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; text-align: left;">crossing road </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; text-align: left;">and then entering Loch Ness.</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiafw8L28HUSKe7FIn74EBO8HAre78m2jwFPYyZlu468hO4ZJ4RXcqCdVyEMqmhehScchxOlFvOY2THYxCqyz6eaJ1BqsGLQDBN9-BhjZ8kGY93II21Qa_47OsN-655VBhYRUIZL4df1amRVeiOGgNzRg-2IG6njTnWVQkykaRjeeV_j2ylFLJFnA/s4160/IMG_20231001_120346.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3120" data-original-width="4160" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiafw8L28HUSKe7FIn74EBO8HAre78m2jwFPYyZlu468hO4ZJ4RXcqCdVyEMqmhehScchxOlFvOY2THYxCqyz6eaJ1BqsGLQDBN9-BhjZ8kGY93II21Qa_47OsN-655VBhYRUIZL4df1amRVeiOGgNzRg-2IG6njTnWVQkykaRjeeV_j2ylFLJFnA/s320/IMG_20231001_120346.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-size: small; text-align: left;">My Loch Ness (after the Ice Age) artwork. Just before Nessie's Ancestors moved in.</span> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-size: small;">F<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSijAoM-U_cjlmrLjCKiqlgtT517oW4g1G-7PxInRvJotUR8FKMwgmMkolT3wckoftK8_Ji3qemhUSAYy7MmA1vCQxWRGsTgqF0nOQMdLp-7TPCcOwmgxqMaq8mDQFAEbvD-GDAU0t98-ME_dwPfzpb0RmAkrYgIlltBLcDn7FWkuZ9UvY3JZrvg/s4160/IMG_20210702_191338.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4160" data-original-width="3120" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSijAoM-U_cjlmrLjCKiqlgtT517oW4g1G-7PxInRvJotUR8FKMwgmMkolT3wckoftK8_Ji3qemhUSAYy7MmA1vCQxWRGsTgqF0nOQMdLp-7TPCcOwmgxqMaq8mDQFAEbvD-GDAU0t98-ME_dwPfzpb0RmAkrYgIlltBLcDn7FWkuZ9UvY3JZrvg/s320/IMG_20210702_191338.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>Front view of my 2000AD possible Skull find at Whitby, Yorkshire (just 250 miles from Loch Ness as the Monster swims). Showing potential Nessie's Ancestor (early Jurassic). NOT FOR SALE below 4 million Dollars ; - )"</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-size: small;">Gordon plans to return to Loch Ness, perhaps in the spring, because he has new equipment. that he wants to try out in quest of Nessie--specifically, a cosmic ray detector and a magnetometer. Gordon Holmes, however, does not devote all of his time to Nessie research. The previously-mentioned study of the terrain in Yorkshire, something he has done seriously since age 25, has allowed him to </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-size: small;"><span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" style="font-size: small;">decode at least seven different carvings on the cup & ring stones.</span> one of which might include <a href="https://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/news/19207176.stone-ancient-star-map/" target="_blank">an ancient star map</a> (as covered in T<i>he Telegraph and Argus)</i>. In addition, his discovery of a fossilized skull in Whitby led him to theorize about a Nessie ancestor (see photo above), and a stone carving led him to finding what he dubbed "<a href="https://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/news/15022600.nessie-hunter-gordon-holmes-of-shipley-says-carving-on-baildon-moor-is-4000-year-old-self-portrait/" target="_blank">A Stone-Age Selfie."</a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2qqNbIHrkRPERUGRXamUZTaj-R0yPt1lfMrcXTGYK6Qo-aOmDmO3GnsEC9GtDJQe6BFUJ5LDerZuB3LtY2LW6JMsrcgis4EukmYUs3kH5y10kbRoHK6l2FwGtk-7Oulu6iJ_FxpuPYWPfhgGSbDqGxC-x1lIGqmOU_W3h4f64ScTq2qUxD_h2hQ/s4160/IMG_20210320_180556~2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2897" data-original-width="4160" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2qqNbIHrkRPERUGRXamUZTaj-R0yPt1lfMrcXTGYK6Qo-aOmDmO3GnsEC9GtDJQe6BFUJ5LDerZuB3LtY2LW6JMsrcgis4EukmYUs3kH5y10kbRoHK6l2FwGtk-7Oulu6iJ_FxpuPYWPfhgGSbDqGxC-x1lIGqmOU_W3h4f64ScTq2qUxD_h2hQ/s320/IMG_20210320_180556~2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="text-align: center;">Gordon Holmes has authored a number of books on his areas of interest. (All titles are now out of print).</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="text-align: center;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Gordon's dedication to history and to the spirit of discovery have made him a prominent figure, but he's in it for the science; therefore, he is willing to consider all possibilities.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMWEUCto6PYk4JNe2aKGLMjRgV3BvdHwtxfxuZMpW8en2mFd2Gc0sD2H1Ch4R9eX3ysTJStkOKqlalPKt5wnmpYCsSJIctCEkP-N0j_SJBASSHgZVycoCvNaUVmbANN0ndtIPFm5SYreR8fl2dXPgxzXr_QO_Rzbw3IiujBwwkMOfO80hhuC84Tg/s3947/IMG_20210410_103129%20(1).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1602" data-original-width="3947" height="130" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMWEUCto6PYk4JNe2aKGLMjRgV3BvdHwtxfxuZMpW8en2mFd2Gc0sD2H1Ch4R9eX3ysTJStkOKqlalPKt5wnmpYCsSJIctCEkP-N0j_SJBASSHgZVycoCvNaUVmbANN0ndtIPFm5SYreR8fl2dXPgxzXr_QO_Rzbw3IiujBwwkMOfO80hhuC84Tg/s320/IMG_20210410_103129%20(1).jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">A still photo taken from Gordon's 2007 video at Loch Ness.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The image is one of two moving things Gordon saw in the water.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Here are the theories, in his own words: "<span style="text-align: center;">It has taken me 20 years to reach the following conclusions based on my best </span><span style="text-align: center;">evidence, re; the still from my Holmes 2007 Loch Ness Sighting: [above] :</span></div><div dir="auto"><br /></div><div dir="auto">1 The Image was produced by freak waves forming the outline of two Creatures.</div><div dir="auto"><br /></div><div dir="auto">2 It was a quite by chance video footage of two unknown robotic submarines.</div><div dir="auto">.</div><div dir="auto">3 The shape, if proved to be the outline of a Creature, is unknown to Science.</div><div dir="auto"> Hence, this must be The Loch Ness Monster!!!"</div><div dir="auto"><br style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; text-align: start;" /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></div></div><br /><br /></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- Start of StatCounter Code -->
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<!-- End of StatCounter Code --></div>Julia Buckleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270211923343731659noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-13343180490133928222022-03-28T13:12:00.001-06:002022-03-28T13:12:53.810-06:00The Veronica Bond Novels<p>After the success of the Writer's Apprentice novels, I wanted to try something else in the cozy-Gothic vein. Soon enough I had dreamed up Castle Dark, the unlikely castle set in the middle of a rural Illinois suburb. I didn't want to have to feign knowledge of some European setting, so I brought the castle and characters to a setting I know well.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjjb2_Sc4vbG9pFQ6-O0H90MoA4bVeS-6X2JQ5wxaCuTMr1l3mNW7magLBYeY8YOfraeU-dXkic_QU0Kp6id5bmy9jmppOqTlq-e-DyVoU4roNEvknE6MBjVksBahkjMzMqunCr8w02g_aRoG-EbLP4H5vt02jpQE5ncey_LGOuMysQbMblwQs" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="217" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjjb2_Sc4vbG9pFQ6-O0H90MoA4bVeS-6X2JQ5wxaCuTMr1l3mNW7magLBYeY8YOfraeU-dXkic_QU0Kp6id5bmy9jmppOqTlq-e-DyVoU4roNEvknE6MBjVksBahkjMzMqunCr8w02g_aRoG-EbLP4H5vt02jpQE5ncey_LGOuMysQbMblwQs" width="149" /></a></div><br /><br /><p></p><p>Under the name Veronica Bond, I have written two Castle Dark mysteries: Death in Castle Dark, and Castle Deadly, Castle Deep. The latter will hit bookstores on July 5. I've explored some of the Gothic tropes in a fun way, not delving into actual Gothic horror, but keeping some suspense in the halls of Derek Corby's castle. The series follows the exploits of a theatrical troupe that performs murder mystery scenarios for paying guests. Sometimes life imitates art . . . .</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdwWYPzFA9mfEFW4eIg4juqgPuR7YK7cQGwFzZmU57TItPcJIfMMYqvXzbEXyVXZm33hKC-KIFGQuF60WFgK9XHIgcU3RRjzvniiMq_C70bfqcTWYzHMZETzJHwxRrrWS0gymKCF9JIAsDbLKnclE8Dq6u9AMONGDcbLy6yrAy6sODU2z6WY0/s2363/CASTLE%20DEADLY%209780593335901.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2363" data-original-width="1466" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdwWYPzFA9mfEFW4eIg4juqgPuR7YK7cQGwFzZmU57TItPcJIfMMYqvXzbEXyVXZm33hKC-KIFGQuF60WFgK9XHIgcU3RRjzvniiMq_C70bfqcTWYzHMZETzJHwxRrrWS0gymKCF9JIAsDbLKnclE8Dq6u9AMONGDcbLy6yrAy6sODU2z6WY0/s320/CASTLE%20DEADLY%209780593335901.jpg" width="199" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>The castle dog, Hamlet, is very much based on my own dog, Digby, who is large and black and potentially intimidating to strangers, but who acts like a gentle puppy around us. </p><p>You can meet him and a whole cast of fun characters in the Castle Dark "Murder and a Mystery" series.</p><div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- Start of StatCounter Code -->
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<!-- End of StatCounter Code --></div>Julia Buckleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270211923343731659noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-40286801632090836092021-12-24T12:46:00.000-07:002021-12-24T12:46:45.000-07:00Reflecting on a Year of Blindness<blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiUmIHGqnrM0gpNaFNbnGLSG7d4HtwFZIBKAbxTeNRBnAcl9c3IVY2Rx1x51VoPJCfTr2-BZdg7kEYNSWbPbpbfcjjJMBFUDj6pAXO8tg5kbGNhVBPwJbgy0PldHyaJeSTGDmGODsJyOHiaEBZm-b7ZUSWXxxHqkf_C58jI29vw7eqCp4aq5t0=s2048" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1611" data-original-width="2048" height="252" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiUmIHGqnrM0gpNaFNbnGLSG7d4HtwFZIBKAbxTeNRBnAcl9c3IVY2Rx1x51VoPJCfTr2-BZdg7kEYNSWbPbpbfcjjJMBFUDj6pAXO8tg5kbGNhVBPwJbgy0PldHyaJeSTGDmGODsJyOHiaEBZm-b7ZUSWXxxHqkf_C58jI29vw7eqCp4aq5t0=s320" width="320" /></a></div><p></p></blockquote><p style="text-align: left;"> In November of 2020 I began to lose vision in my left eye. It was gradual, expanding outward from a general grayness. I went to one doctor, who sent me to a specialist, who told me that I either had something very scary and life-threatening, or something less severe. She sent me for a blood test to rule out the super scary disease, and it was determined I did not have that. Instead, I had NAAION--or Non arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy. It was fairly rare, no one knew what caused it exactly, and there was no cure. Oh, and the vision loss was permanent. I was also told there was a "slight chance" that within ten years it might happen in the companion eye.</p><p style="text-align: left;">In December of 2020, I began to lose vision in my right eye. This time a third doctor sent me straight to the emergency room, after which I was admitted to the hospital and stayed for the next four days. I was given intravenous steroids to try to arrest the vision loss, and perhaps return some of it. Alas, I think the treatment came too late. The vision did not return in either eye. I was told by a fourth docotr, a top Chicago neuro-opthamologist, that my central vision was gone, but that I had "Pretty good" peripheral vision. "But you are legally blind," he told me cheerfully. I suppose he was used to delivering news like that. It was brand new for me.</p><p style="text-align: left;">For a year I've been adapting to legal blindness. I can no longer drive, which means no quick errands or trips to the store. I'm reluctant to walk alone, although I did just receive a walking cane from the Chicago Lighthouse that will help me to anticipate bumps and holes in the sidewalk. I bought an i-phone so that I could use the voice software which will read me my e-mail and messages. I bought dark markers and a giant pad so that I can make lists to organize my thoughts. Ironically, I can still write perfectly, but I can't read what I write. I can't read at all, and so I've discovered audiobooks. When I prepare to teach, I either have to listen to texts on audio or have someone read the material to me so that I can review it before class. This works well, but I do miss being able to make specific textual references, to point to a specific line that I've annotated for a particular reason. Worst of all, I cannot see faces. Not those of my family, my friends, my students. I cannot see my own reflection in the mirror.</p><p style="text-align: left;">There is a certain existential horror in being cut off from eye contact--perhaps our most essential way of connecting to other people. I miss that the most, I suppose. I also miss the autonomy that vision brings. I've sacrificed a fair amount of independence simply because I have to ask for help with so many things. Depending on others means I can't always set my own agenda, so my agency within situations is sometimes limited.</p><p style="text-align: left;">As a teacher and a writer, I find it almost unbelievable that this painless, silent condition would remove the very things I need most: the ability to read and connect. I have spent a year finding ways to adapt to my new situation, and, for the most part, I've been successful.</p><p style="text-align: left;">I should mention that there have been positives within this tough situation. I find that I listen more, and better, and that people appreciate that skill. The audiobooks I now listen to are a constant delight; I feel like a child again, listening to stories. I have been able, so far, to keep my teaching job with the aid of a T.A., (who happens to be my son, the perfect classroom companion)/; I find that I can still teach effectively and well, and I still find my job rewarding. Thanks to my high school typing teacher, I can type without being able to see the keyboard, so my writing career can continue. I am still surrounded by humor in the form of my husband and sons, and I laugh often. I worked with an occupational therapist who taught me many life hacks to help negotiate a blurry world: rubber band around the shampoo bottle, raised stickers on microwave and stove buttons, large lined pads and dark markers for writing. Neighbors and friends dropped off food, gifts, chocolates, gift cards, in a river of compassion that still warms my heart. People offered to read my work and help with editing, so I can still write with their help.</p><p style="text-align: left;">What I cannot do, unfortunately, is see the manuscript for editing myself . I have always prided myself on turning out clean documents and finding every little error with my eagle eye. Now I must ask others to edit for me, but I don't have the luxury of that final edit, where I can sign off on my own work. I regret this, and the fact that readers have already noticed some typos in my latest book.</p><p style="text-align: left;">The fact that other people are willing to help me, though, is most gratifying. I am finding some abilities that I did not know I possessed. For example, when I used to have to speak in public, I would compose a speech beforehand and read it at the podium. Now, without that possibility, I have to commit to a much more personal speech, memorizing the components in advance and then speaking extemporaneously. I have done this several times now, though I never would have done it before.</p><p style="text-align: left;">There is no denying that I would like to have my vision restored, but I am handling life just fine without it. Ultimately, in losing something, I find myself grateful for what I still have. Four others sense, some vision that can be enhanced with magnifying goggles so that I can type a post like this. It's like wearing the Hubble Telescope on my face, and it tires my eyes quickly, but hey--thank goodness for technology!</p><p style="text-align: left;">After a year of blindness, I am hopeful for new innovations, grateful for many blessings, and eager for a new year of writing and teaching. Life is good, my family and friends are healthy, I have three cat companions and a very loving Labrador, and sound software on my beloved laptop. :)</p><p style="text-align: left;">So it's a happy holiday season, and I hope that you are happy as well, full of plans for a new year and full of ideas for books to read. </p><p style="text-align: left;">Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays to one and all! May your days be merry and bright.</p><p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p><div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- Start of StatCounter Code -->
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<!-- End of StatCounter Code --></div>Julia Buckleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270211923343731659noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-4298125250907725262020-06-15T18:24:00.005-06:002020-06-15T18:28:34.198-06:00Join the Cozy Chat<br />
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<img alt="Read, Socks, Coffee, Morning, Woman, Lifestyle, Relax" height="223" src="https://cdn.pixabay.com/photo/2018/08/31/15/09/read-3644847_960_720.jpg" width="400" /></div>
<br />
Join host Angela Maria Hart and me for a cozy chat Tuesday, June 16, on her YouTube Channel, Books Are My Hart. We'll chat about books, writing, and my various series for Berkley/Penguin.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sxt2_CFK94Q&fbclid=IwAR2L3l5S5FOxZj9OVmgtvz4aiEMFmR5ttmKrVsGbxpIQJPuFbm3Y0w_FtCA" target="_blank">The link is here</a>.<br />
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<!-- End of StatCounter Code --></div>Julia Buckleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270211923343731659noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-85591495185840414482020-03-22T21:45:00.000-06:002020-03-22T21:45:15.405-06:00A Beautiful Fragment of Memory<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<img alt="Night View, Landscape, Lighting, Republic Of Korea" height="225" src="https://cdn.pixabay.com/photo/2016/02/11/17/38/night-view-1194159_960_720.jpg" width="400" /></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The amazing little intersections of life.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Way back when I was about four or five years old, my parents took us kids to the house of my godfather, a man I've only met a handful of times in my life. Back then he was still married to his first wife, whose face I cannot picture and whose name I cannot remember. However, at one point in the evening she pulled me into her lap and started singing a song</span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline; font-family: inherit;"> to me that I had never heard: "Julie, Julie, Julie, do you love me?"</span></span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;"><div>
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Fast forward about forty-five years. I was driving to work, listening to Oldies radio, and I heard that song, which it turns out was sung by Bobby Sherman. The years fell away, and I remembered that moment, sitting in the lap of a stranger who sang softly in my ear.</span></span><div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">I don't know her name and can't see her face, but I remember her, thanks to a melody and a kind gesture.</span></span><div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Who knows how many people we influence in tiny ways? Who knows how many things we do will go into someone's permanent memory?</span></span></span></div>
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<!-- End of StatCounter Code --></div>Julia Buckleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270211923343731659noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-49928596953850433142019-12-28T16:58:00.000-07:002019-12-28T17:00:57.328-07:00A Decade's Worth of Books, and the Stories that Stayed<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<img alt="Pocket Watch, Time Of, Sand, Time, Clock, Clock Face" height="266" src="https://cdn.pixabay.com/photo/2018/02/16/02/03/pocket-watch-3156771_960_720.jpg" width="400" /></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Best
of the Decade<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Ten
Mysteries From the Last Decade That Stayed With Me<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Julia
Buckley</span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">The Stieg Larsson Series</span></b><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; text-indent: -0.25in;">
(Book 1, American printing, <b>2010</b>). </span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><br /></i></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo</i> had
tough subject matter, but Larsson was a storyteller and he lured me in to this
series with interesting characters and a plot which gave a strong woman a
chance for both revenge and rebirth. I read the entire trilogy, but have not
yet discovered the additional books written by David Lagercrantz (I might have
to re-read the original series first).<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
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<b style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">The Crossing Places (2010).</span></b><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; text-indent: -0.25in;">This moody and wonderful mystery by Ellie Griffiths is one of the most
entertaining books I’ve read in the last decade. Ruth Galloway is an archeologist
who lives alone in the gloomy Saltmarsh, and of course that’s where a body is
discovered, and the police need her help to determine whether it’s an
archeological find—or a recent murder.</span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<b style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Two Girls Down</span></b><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; text-indent: -0.25in;">
(<b>2018</b>) by Luisa Luna. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; text-indent: -0.25in;">This taut
thriller about the disappearance of two little girls is memorable for many
reasons, but what knocked me out was the wonderful narration by a kick-ass
heroine named Alice Vega.</span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> The Trouble With Goats and Sheep</span></b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">
(<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">2016</b>) by Joanna Cannon. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> Truly some
of the best writing I have ever read, and a powerful story that is part
mystery, part morality tale, part coming of age novel. In a small English town
in 1976, two little girls decide they must find out what happened to a woman on
their block who has simply disappeared. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> Ordinary Grace</span></b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">
(<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">2016</b>) by William Kent Krueger. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> Krueger has many fans because of his lyrical, insightful mysteries. While he’s
known for his wonderful Cork O’Connor mysteries set in Minnesota, this one is a
stand-alone murder mystery with powerful themes that lift it into the realm of
the literary.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> The Mystery of Mercy Close (2014)</span></b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">
Marion Keyes. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> This book had me in stitches on one page and close to tears on
the next. Helen Walsh is a</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> private investigator in need of business and an
ex-husband with a missing persons case, and </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> those are only two problems in her
very complicated life.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span><span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Far Cry (2009)</span></b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">
John Harvey. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> This one’s not officially in the last decade, but I still think
about the story of a missing girl, and the terrible pain her parents went
through as the police worked to find her. Harvey’s writing is both lyrical and
heart-wrenching.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: 13.5pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="color: #181818;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-weight: bold;">Rainbirds (2018)</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> Clarissa Goenawan. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: 13.5pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="color: #181818;"> This book was a pleasant surprise--spare and lyrical prose in what seemed part
Japanese novel, part mystery, part poetry.</span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> <b>The Widows of Malabar Hill (2019)</b></span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">
Sujata Massey. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> Set in 1920s Bombay, this mysery was culturally rich and
compelling.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> <b>The Longmire Series</b></span></span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; text-indent: -0.25in;">,
by Craig Johnson. (Book One: <i>The Cold
Dish, 2006. </i>Most recent title<i>, Land
of Wolves</i>). </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; text-indent: -0.25in;"> I have read just about all of the Longmire books, and Johnson’s
writing, both down-to-earth and literary at the same time, and ever-compelling,
is always worth the read.</span></span></div>
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<!-- End of StatCounter Code --></div>Julia Buckleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270211923343731659noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-90157113690509540122019-04-25T21:39:00.004-06:002019-04-25T21:39:53.559-06:00A ME TOO Fiction AnthologyI'm proud to have a story in Liz Zelvin's upcoming anthology, M<a href="http://www.metooanthology.net/" target="_blank">E TOO SHORT STORIES: An Anthology.</a> The volume has gotten some great early press. You can click the link to check out the various authors in the book.<br />
<br />
My story is called "Subterfuge," and it focuses on an eighteen-year-old girl in a dead-end town.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- Start of StatCounter Code -->
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<!-- End of StatCounter Code --></div>Julia Buckleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270211923343731659noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-4244614584415218802019-01-18T19:22:00.000-07:002020-03-22T21:59:04.845-06:00Suspense Author Louisa Luna on Her Kick-ass Female Investigator, Her Nail-Biter Plot, and Her Dream Writer's Retreat<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #0a0a0a; font-style: italic;">Louisa Luna</b><span style="background-color: white; color: #0a0a0a; font-style: italic;"> is the author of </span><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #0a0a0a;">Brave New Girl</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #0a0a0a; font-style: italic;"><b> </b>and </span><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #0a0a0a;">Crooked<i>.</i></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #0a0a0a; font-style: italic;"> She lives in New York City. </span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #0a0a0a; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-style: italic;">Her new mystery,</span><span style="color: #0a0a0a; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"> Two Girls Down</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #0a0a0a; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-style: italic;">, is </span><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Two-Girls-Down-Louisa-Luna/dp/0385542496/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=two+girls+down&qid=1547851925&sr=8-1" style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-style: italic;" target="_blank">available now</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #0a0a0a; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>; </i>Publishers Weekly<i> gave it a starred review, saying, "</i></span><span style="color: #333333; font-style: italic;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The brisk plot combines psychological suspense with solid action, while providing a realistic look at a family under siege, as it builds to a shocking finale."</span></span><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>The story line teams a tough former bounty hunter with a disgraced former cop, and they work well together, both in the novel and with readers.</i></span></span></span><br />
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<b><span style="background-color: white; color: purple;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="background-color: white; color: purple;">Louisa, thanks for visiting the blog. First and foremost, I’m sure readers want to know—is <i>Two Girls Down</i> a stand-alone, or will readers see Vega and Cap again? They both seemed to
have secrets that could emerge in later books. </span></b><o:p></o:p></div>
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Oh, they’ll both be
back. I’m happy to say the sequel is
done – it’s called <u>The Janes</u>, and it will be out in about a year,
published by Doubleday. There will also
definitely be at least one more book after that. </div>
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<b style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: blue;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: purple;">Alice Vega was a paradox—she broke rules, but she did it for
the right reasons. I would love to have her fighting on my behalf. Did you have
anyone, or any particular concept, in mind when you created her?</span></b><o:p></o:p></div>
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When I started writing, I just knew I
wanted a tough woman protagonist. Salander from <u>Dragon Tattoo</u> was an influence but I wanted mine to
be a little older and well-established in her career path. <o:p></o:p></div>
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The challenge was to
make her realistic – I wanted her to take no shit and do anything to get the
job done, and I wanted her to be the smartest person in the room. And I wanted it to be believable that she
could fight anyone at any time. All the
research I did about bounty hunters (Vega’s former job) indicated that there
are very few women in that line of work, and the women who make that their
livelihoods are physically built for the job – tall and burly and able to take
a bail jumper down through hand-to-hand combat. I wanted to build Vega average-size, but very strong but I knew in order
to sell it on the page, she would have to use every other tool at her disposal
as well – namely words and weapons. That
informed a lot of her character along with her ability to read people and
figure out what they need the most. <b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<span style="background-color: purple;"><br /></span></div>
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<b><span style="background-color: white; color: purple;">The mystery has a terrible reality at its center—the endless
narrative of missing girls. Did you do extensive research about abductions of
women and girls in America? If so, I imagine it was depressing.</span></b><o:p></o:p></div>
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I pulled a lot from
my own imagination to begin with. But
then I did a lot of reading about missing persons and children, both girls and
boys, which were all harrowing, deeply sad and disturbing stories. The grief that the parents and families of
missing persons/children feel is just bottomless and never goes away. The three books on the topic that stand out
in my memory are <i><u>Bringing Adam Home</u></i><u>
</u>by Les Standiford and Joe Matthews, <i><u>The
Last Place You’d Look</u></i> by Carole Moore and <i><u>People Who Eat Darkness</u></i><u> </u>by Richard Lloyd Parry. They are excellent reads, but tough subject
matter.<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: purple;">After immersing yourself in this content for so long, what
is your response to the recent and unexpected news that Jayme Closs has been
found alive?</span></b><o:p></o:p></div>
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I would not call
myself any kind of an expert on the topic, but this did seem like an unusual
case because such a small percentage of abducted kids are abducted by
strangers, as I recall. And even more
unusual that the abductee survives, I would think.<o:p></o:p></div>
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But honestly I think
I’m coming at it the way most people are, which is to say thrilled and happy
that she is alive and astonished by her bravery. She has already beaten incredible odds.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I hope she can get to
the other side of the trauma she’s been through; I saw that picture of her with
her aunt and her dog and read her aunt’s statement – she has a lot of people
who love her and who are pulling for her, which is all you can ask for in a
situation like that. <b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: purple;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: purple;">One of the things I love about Alice Vega is that she simply
refuses to be intimidated. Is this something she had to cultivate, or is it
innate to her character?</span></b><o:p></o:p></div>
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I think the key to
Vega is that she has no fear of pain or death. Once you take that away, there’s a great deal of freedom because she
literally has nothing to lose. She’s
also a pretty economical character, and I don’t mean in the monetary sense; I
mean she only deals in what is useful to her.
I think she has found that fear is not useful in her life and work so
she excised it at some point. Of course
she is a human so she’ll still experience fear and guilt and love but she’ll do
her best to stop it if it’s not serving her in some way.<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>I appreciated the fact that in creating your various law
enforcement officials, who faced some internal conflicts, you stayed away from
clichés and stereotypes and let the readers see some good in every one of them.
Was this a conscious decision?<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0tK1JO_yC1g/Xngz7kdxrgI/AAAAAAAAgF8/36lfqnJs6HUOb0XJsmvj4V5wSv6QWBQ1QCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/91%252ByVvQGRPL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1055" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0tK1JO_yC1g/Xngz7kdxrgI/AAAAAAAAgF8/36lfqnJs6HUOb0XJsmvj4V5wSv6QWBQ1QCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/91%252ByVvQGRPL.jpg" width="211" /></a>Absolutely. I find character clichés so lazy, and I get
frustrated when I’m reading a book or watching a show/movie, and there’s a
c*ckblocking FBI agent or an-impulsive-yet-talented rookie or a bad girl with a
heart of gold. It’s not that these
people can’t or don’t exist; I just always want them to be full real
characters. That’s what I tried to do
with all the cops and Feds, give them faces, names, quirks, bad sides, good
sides. <b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
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Also I have a good
friend who is a cop who advised me a lot on procedural stuff, and from his
stories on the job, it was very clear that law enforcement is like other
workplaces in that some people are great and trying to do the right thing and
some people are jerks and absolutely not trying to do the right thing.<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: purple;">I am assuming you are a mom based on the way you wrote the
character of Jamie Brandt, and for this reason I am guessing her character was
the hardest to write. Was it rather terrifying to imagine how it would feel to
have your child abducted, almost under your very nose?</span></b><o:p></o:p></div>
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I am a mom! When I had my daughter, I felt like I
suddenly understood something beautiful and terrifying about life. I started writing the book when she was two,
and the plot kick-off was pretty much my deepest fears laid out on the page, so
I suppose it was therapeutic in a way. </div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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There were times when
we’d be at the playground or somewhere, and I’d be chatting with another mom or
looking at my phone and then I’d glance up and not see her for thirty seconds,
and well, there it is, that’s the fear, and every parent has felt it.<o:p></o:p></div>
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As for Jamie, I just
tried to get inside her head and walk through those moments. I wanted them to feel excruciatingly
real. <b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Your dialogue was a pleasure to read. It was sophisticated,
immersing me in the story, but it was also an opportunity to insert much-needed
levity into a grim tale. I especially love the dialogues between Cap and his
daughter, but also some that Cap had with his former colleagues. Is writing
dialogue something that comes easily to you?</b></span><o:p></o:p></div>
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It feels that way. I
love dialogue because it can do so much in such a small space. I think I also find out who my people are
through dialogue more than prose. I knew
Cap was going to have a teenage daughter who was sort of thoughtful but I
didn’t know who Nell was until she started talking. Now it’s like she could have her own
spin-off.<o:p></o:p></div>
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As for Cap and his
buddies, again, I tried to work against cop clichés and layer shop-talk with
humor and familiarity. But dialogue
definitely crystallized these characters for me – Junior, Em, Traynor – all of
their images sharpened up through the dialogue. <b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>What got you started writing in this genre?</b></span><o:p></o:p></div>
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I’ve always loved
mysteries/thrillers/noir. When I was in
my twenties I was lucky enough to publish three books in a row. The third one, published in 2004, was my
crack at a modern noir, and it was not particularly successful (narratively or
commercially-speaking), but I was just starting to play around with the format.<o:p></o:p></div>
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So I read a lot
between the time I finished that one and the time I started <u>2GD</u>, and for
some reason, I thought I could pull off writing a suspense novel. I didn’t know the ending when I started, but
I think one of the things the most successful mysteries have in common is
atmosphere, tone. And I thought if I
could get that along with good characters, I’d be halfway home and could figure
out the plot later.<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
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Are there any particular authors that inspire you, in the
mystery genre or elsewhere?<o:p></o:p></div>
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Oh, so many. I love a lot of authors are that can’t be
genre-ized, or that create new genres, or are just really good at what they
do. And as you see, they are all over
the map. Some are: George Saunders,
Rachel Kushner, Donald Ray Pollock, Carmen Maria Machado, Anna Quindlen, Lee
Child, Mo Hayder, Donna Tartt, Elizabeth Strout.<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: purple;">What are you reading now?</span></b><o:p></o:p></div>
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As I wrote above, I
recently finished the sequel which had an intensely complicated plot, and after
that, I just needed to cleanse my brain of fiction so I read a great
non-fiction book on a topic about which I knew absolutely nothing: <u>What The
Eye Hears: A History of Tap Dancing</u> by Brian Seibert. It is fantastic and totally accessible and
beautifully-written. Now I’m a little
obsessed with tap dancing.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Also I read a bunch
of short stories but there’s one I can’t stop thinking about: “Two Lasagnas” by
Elisa Albert in Tin House magazine. Talk
about tone. I was sad when it was over. I would have been up for reading a
Knausgaard-length autobiography in that character’s voice.<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>If you could go to a beautiful writer’s retreat anywhere in
the world, where would you go?</b></span><o:p></o:p></div>
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Bolinas,
California. My parents lived there for a
while while I was in college and in my twenties, and something about the ocean
and the beach and the fog just makes me want to slow down and let the ideas
come in. <b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Where can readers found out more about you and your books?</b></span></div>
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<span style="text-indent: 0.25in;"><a href="http://www.louisaluna.com/" style="text-indent: 0.25in;">www.louisaluna.com</a></span><span style="text-indent: 0.25in;">, and </span><a href="https://facebook.com/LouisaLunaAuthor/" style="text-indent: 0.25in;">https://facebook.com/LouisaLunaAuthor/</a><span style="text-indent: 0.25in;">. </span><br />
<span style="text-indent: 0.25in;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="text-indent: 0.25in;">Someday I’ll have a Twitter and an IG, but
that day is not today.</span></div>
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<b style="text-indent: 0.25in;"><span style="color: purple;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b style="text-indent: 0.25in;"><span style="color: purple;">Thanks so much, Louisa! I look forward to THE JANES.</span></b></div>
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<br /></div>
<br />
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<!-- End of StatCounter Code --></div>Julia Buckleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270211923343731659noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-51659218838386714552018-11-15T19:23:00.002-07:002018-11-15T19:23:54.606-07:00Feminism Can Be Funny<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-BFbioyT04NA/W-4p-EHaZVI/AAAAAAAAeiw/S_MMsUyDQW8X1dIiL6YugNV-ekLvbXItgCLcBGAs/s1600/51CoDesltIL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="346" height="200" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-BFbioyT04NA/W-4p-EHaZVI/AAAAAAAAeiw/S_MMsUyDQW8X1dIiL6YugNV-ekLvbXItgCLcBGAs/s200/51CoDesltIL.jpg" width="138" /></a>Penguin/Plume was kind enough to send me a copy of <i>New Erotica For Feminists</i>, a funny little book that looks at popular culture, dating, parenting, literature, and history through a distinctly feminist (and satirical) lens. Penned by four authors (Caitlin Kunkel, Brooke Preston, Fiona Taylor, and Carrie Witmer), this book has something for every reader who wants a good laugh, but the scenarios imagined within also give pause--why shouldn't a man offer a woman interesting conversation instead of a sexual proposition? Why DO we as readers tend to demonize Jordan Baker simply because we see her through the eyes of Nick Carraway?<br />
<br />
My favorite passage was a re-imagining of the dialogue between Paris and Helen of Sparta as he prepares to whisk her off to Troy.<br />
<br />
Helen tries to explain why this would be a bad decision, reminding him of some historical context around her beauty and things it has made men do, and the problems he would engender by angering Agamemnon, King of Mycenae:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b>Helen</b>: How do you not know this? It's like you haven't even read Herodotus. You really need to brush up on the geopolitical history of this volatile region, tiger.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b>Paris</b>: But you're so pretty!</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b>Helen</b>: (sigh) I wish I'd been born a centaur. </blockquote>
<br />
A fun little book, small enough to fit in a Christmas stocking, weighty enough to engender many fine discussions, and funny enough to make you laugh out loud<br />
.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
</blockquote>
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<!-- End of StatCounter Code --></div>Julia Buckleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270211923343731659noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-26849621305132994092018-10-19T10:39:00.000-06:002018-10-19T10:40:24.994-06:00The Joy of Talking About Books<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MsAza9AWF2s/W8oIOv4qALI/AAAAAAAAegs/pnFc0kkHlwgYjmDGqGIF3uNnQqs1mbWlACLcBGAs/s1600/teachers-23820_1280.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1056" data-original-width="1280" height="264" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MsAza9AWF2s/W8oIOv4qALI/AAAAAAAAegs/pnFc0kkHlwgYjmDGqGIF3uNnQqs1mbWlACLcBGAs/s320/teachers-23820_1280.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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“Nothing bonds two people so well as loving the same books.”<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: right;">
--Lena London, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A Dark
and Stormy Murder<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I am a
member of two informal book clubs. One is a four-times-yearly gathering of
interested faculty at the school where I teach. I am the unofficial “leader” of
the club because I always come with about 30 typed questions that I hope will
generate interesting discussions. These aren’t downloaded from book club sites;
I always write my own because that is more authentic to my reading experience,
and—well—I’m a bit obsessive.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>The group
has enjoyed many wonderful conversations, and in two cases we Skyped with the
authors themselves and directed our questions to them. Those were wonderful
experiences that allowed us to take our questions about text straight to the
creator, the generator of that text for some deeper insight. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>In every
one of our meetings, I find myself getting to a point at which my heart beats
faster, my face grows hot, and I become sort of <i>enraptured </i>by the way that
literature can lift us to higher understanding. We learn things, discover
things, TOGETHER—in a way that only this type of gathering can achieve. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>And so I
would conclude that for the same reason I love to discuss literature with my
students (who are themselves amazing, insightful observers of human nature), I
love to discuss a good book with my book group.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>My other
book group is a recent creation, born of an e-mail that I sent to people on my
block. It said, “Is anyone interested in starting a block book group? Not the
kind where people just use a book as an excuse to drink wine, but the kind
where we actually read and discuss a book?”<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>To my
great pleasure, many people responded. I have nothing against wine—my husband
sells it for a living—but when I have a book gathering, I want us to focus on
words, on chapters, on thematic meaning. And many other people wanted to do
that, too!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our first meeting was a
gathering of five women (a few more couldn’t make it). Our second had only four
people (again, schedules were a problem), but our third looks like it might be
a very large gathering because word has spread—we met to talk about books, and
it was fun!<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I don’t
always feel as if I have time in my schedule to prepare for book group. But
when I read the book and then meet with my book friends, I am always glad that
I made that time. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>If only
more people knew how much joy, how much deep satisfaction was at their
fingertips at any given time in the form of a good book, and how even more
wonderful that experience can be when enriched by the insights of other people
who have studied the same text.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>This
Thanksgiving, I’ll be grateful for many things, including (as ever) books, the people
who write them, and the people who read them, and the powerful culture of
learning, sharing, and insight we can build together.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!-- End of StatCounter Code --></div>Julia Buckleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270211923343731659noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-59389630842720803752018-04-05T18:40:00.000-06:002018-04-07T15:25:52.497-06:00An Enhanced Reading Experience: The Annotated Big Sleep<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I am thrilled to have received an advanced copy of THE ANNOTATED BIG SLEEP from Vintage/Black Lizard Books. Raymond Chandler died in 1959, six years before I was born, but I always feel connected to him when I read his mysteries. His words effect that special intimacy with a reader that only the best writers can achieve; in fact, his books are so alive with wit and intelligence and satire that a reader feels almost collaborative when encountering Chandler--reading is not a passive event, but a conversation.<br />
<br />
As the critical notes (written by Owen Hill, Pamela Jackson, and Anthony Rizzuto) make clear, Chandler was more than a mystery writer. His work was a commentary about a pre-and-post-war world that seemed to have been consumed by a general corruption, and his words contained such unblinking honesty that they can apply just as well to the depravity of the current era.<br />
<br />
The annotated version contains a foreword by Jonathan Lethem, and an introduction by the three annotators, who suggest that "If Superman or John Wayne is the Zeus of American myth, and Marilyn Monroe is Aphrodite, then Marlowe is Prometheus: the noble outsider, sacrificing and enduring for a code he alone upholds." Perhaps this is the biggest part of Marlowe's appeal for a world that had been battered by war and which descended into an existential abyss.<br />
<br />
One of my favorite details so far is that, in exploring an existential view of the world, Chandler achieved such spare and impressive prose that one might assume he had been influenced by the French existentialists--but in fact the reverse is true. "Albert Camus had pointed to American detective writers as a prime influence on his portrayal of the quintessential existential outsider, "L'Etranger," in 1942" (107).<br />
<br />
Marlowe, too, is an outsider. Readers generally love The Other for the very fact that the societies in question have cast him out. We love the literary orphan (Oliver Twister, Harry Potter), the fictional dream-seeker (Gatsby, Don Quixote, Lily Bart), the rebel in an oppressive world (Hester Prynne, Edna Pontellier, Huck Finn). But Philip Marlowe stands alone, as the man who was forced to create a law unto himself, because he had a vague memory of justice that shaped his understanding of rightness in a world gone awry.<br />
<br />
I will savor this book, first as a chance to re-read THE BIG SLEEP, and secondly for the rich textual notes that will deepen my understanding of the man, the work, and the time period.<br />
<br />
<i>(According to Amazon, THE ANNOTATED BIG SLEEP can be pre-ordered now).</i><br />
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<!-- End of StatCounter Code --></div>Julia Buckleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270211923343731659noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-70720000867487733982018-03-08T20:00:00.000-07:002018-03-08T19:01:21.230-07:00French Thriller Writer Franck Thilliez Chats About Sharks, Subliminal Messages and Syndrome E<br />
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><i>Since I was just re-reading SYNDROME E, I thought I'd share this interview from 2013. </i></span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span></b>
<b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><i>Franck Thilliez's new novel, SYNDROME E, is his first book available in an American translation. The movie rights have been sold to Paintbrush Films.</i></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Franck, thanks so
much for discussing your book with me.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="Paragraphedeliste" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">This novel introduced many themes:
neuroscience, police work, schizophrenia, parent-child relationships, a
computer-oriented world, violent video games, film technology, and subliminal
suggestion, to name a few. Do you start
a novel knowing all the themes you would like to discuss, or does your research
and writing lead you to more and more complicated plots?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="Paragraphedeliste" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Yes, I know, in a general way, the main topics I’ll talk about.
Concerning Syndrome E, I wanted to talk about all themes concerning pictures
and the impact they have on our brain. So, it concerned movies, video games,
subliminal pictures, brain studies… But you’re right: the more I researched, the more
I discovered plots that I could talk about, like neuromarketing or the way a
movie is made. So, I naturally included them in my story. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpFirst">
<br /></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpLast" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Lucie Hennebelle is a single mother of
twins; she is also a career cop. This
sounds like an almost impossible combination. Do you think that cops, male and
female, spend a lot of time feeling guilty about their family obligations?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpLast" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I know a few cops and I often talk with them about their
job. They are people really involved in their work, they like what they’re
doing and are proud of it. When you work in the violent crime department, here
in France, you can’t say: “I go to work at 8 am and come back home at 5 pm,” because it does not depend on you, but
on murderers! If you work on a big case, it will take all your time, day and
night, because, you know, the 2 or 3 first days after a crime is committed are
the most important: you can’t lose a minute. So, you’ll not be at home, near
your family, and your work will consume you. But, most of time, they do not
feel guilty, because this job is a part of their life, as much important as
their children. It’s not easy to be the wife of a cop (or the husband of a
female cop), because, adding to that, this could be a dangerous job…<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpFirst">
<br /></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Someone in the novel suffers from
hysterical blindness. I’d heard the term before, but had never really seen it
applied to a situation. How common is
this condition? How did you research it?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">It’s
an amazing condition. I heard about it when I talked with a psychiatrist. He
said to me: “One day, I treated a woman who did not hear her husband when he
talked to her. She heard her children, but she couldn’t hear him! This is what
we call hysterical deafness. She’s not really deaf, but her brain makes her
believe she is… ” It was amazing. By doing research, I discovered that there
were all sorts of such hysterical problems: people thinking they’ve lost a leg
or arm, people thinking they’re blind… All those conditions have a psychological
explanation and can be solved. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Franck Sharko is a great name for a detective.
Did he become Sharko because he is predatory to the bad guys? Or did you have other reasons for giving him
this name? (And is there a reason that you share a Christian name?)<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Here,
in France, most readers ask me : “Why did you call your detective Sharko ?”
It’s great that you are American, because you immediately see that in Sharko,
there is the English word “Shark." Shark,
because Franck Sharko never abandons, he’s really a hunter of killers and will
work and work until he catches them! And for the first name, Franck, the same
as mine: I just wanted “Franck Sharko” to sound hard, like German. Because he’s
a hard guy!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><b>One of the many facts that stood out for me
was a film expert’s claim that Fran</b><b>çois Mitterand attempted, in 1988,
to subliminally influence voters by splicing his image into the credits of the
evening news. How did he achieve
this? Did he pay off a producer?<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">In
France, the “Chanel 2” is a public channel, so it belongs to the French State. A
president can choose the head of the channel, and he can decide to squelch
publicity, … I don’t know how it really happened with François Mitterand, but because
he was president since 1980 he had the power to put a subliminal image of himself
on the evening news a few weeks before the election of 1988 to re-elect him! You
must also know that during this period, there were no laws that forbade someone
to use subliminal images in films or advertising…<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Wow!
How worried should we be, in 2012, that we are being manipulated through
the medium of film or things that we see on computer and television screens?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">As
I say in the book, we must protect our children, who are always watching
violent pictures, in video games, on Internet or television. Most of them
(under 7 years old) can’t distinguish reality from fiction. With the new
technologies (phones, i-pads, Internet), times are changing; now our sons and
daughters are growing up with violent pictures around them. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">In
extreme cases, we can perhaps see the consequence of this in the news: look
what happened in Norway with Behring Breivik, look at the different massacres
in schools over the last years, or the awful killing in the cinema during the
broadcast of <i>Batman</i>, a few days ago. Some
killers even try to post their acts on the Internet. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">So,
I don’t think we are manipulated, I just want to tell people: be careful of all
those screen broadcasted pictures; they could be dangerous… <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Are you an old film buff yourself? Do you collect films?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<br /></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">When
I was 15 years old, and for many years later, I used to watch all
horror/thriller/suspense films that would be broadcast on TV! Sometimes, films
were broadcast late in the night, and I remember going to bed and setting my
alarm clock to wake me up just before the beginning of the film. It was also
the period I was a member of a small video club, near my house, so I could rent
of all the tapes I wanted. I used to collect video tapes, and then DVDs, but I
sold most of them when I grew up, because I needed money! I always loved Hitchcock’s
films, Dario Argento, Andrew Romero, David Cronenberg; and nowadays, David
Fincher, Christopher Nolan or Ridley Scott are some of my favorite directors. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><b>You must have loved <i>Inception</i>. :)</b></span></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Your description of Egypt, through Sharko’s
eyes, is not flattering—it talked me out of ever visiting Egypt. Have you travelled there? <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Talking
about the Egypt in tour guides with the Pyramids, Sphinx, nice places in Cairo
was not interesting me. A crime novel must be more than a diversion; it must
inform readers of the reality of our world. So, I wanted to show the country as
it really is. Most of people there are poor;
they have difficulties surviving and they live in awful conditions. There are
more than 8 shantytowns at the border of the Cairo, containing thousands and
thousands of people. I say in the book that the police and government are
corrupt. Revolution exploded in Egypt only a few months after the publication of
<i>Syndrome E</i> in France, and I proves
that I was not completely wrong…<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">And
no, I never travelled there, but did a lot of research on this country,
watching Egyptian films, reading books, talking by email with people there. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">A
small story : I tried to be in contact with the police there, just to ask
single things, like “how are you clothed?” or “what are the grades in your
police?,” but they never answered, they said top secret!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">At one point Lily and Sharko feast on
Kentucky Fried Chicken. Is this American
chain popular in France?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">It’s
starting to gain popularity, but it’s not as popular as McDonalds!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9wXcwgSldtU/UBirrSf0seI/AAAAAAAAINs/1dXjymHDQxQ/s1600/Syndrome+E.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9wXcwgSldtU/UBirrSf0seI/AAAAAAAAINs/1dXjymHDQxQ/s320/Syndrome+E.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><b>Ah, the ubiquitous McDonalds! :)</b></span></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<br /></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">There are many airplane journeys in the
novel—Sharko finds them wearying, almost existential experiences—and yet they
retain a certain glamour for the reader, linking the characters to far-flung
locales. What’s your attitude toward
airplane travel? Do you enjoy it? <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<br /></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">In
the last two years, I travelled a lot because of the publication of my books in
many countries. I really like airplane travel. I love being in an airport,
seeing people going abroad, and others coming back home. An airport is a
particular place where you can touch the world. I read a lot during my travels,
and sometimes I write. The most difficult is, of course, the jet lag, but it’s
such a good thing to discover new countries and people.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Great point! On to Lucie Henebelle. Lucie
is compared, by one character, to Jodie Foster.
Are you a Jodie Foster fan? Did
you see Lucie Henebelle as sort of similar to Foster’s Clarice Starling? Or do you just like Foster’s combination of
toughness and femininity?<br />
<br />
<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I’m
absolutely a fan of Jodie Foster! She’s a great actor and she would be perfect
for Lucie, the main character of my book, if she were slightly younger. When I
created Lucie a few years ago, I had in mind Jodie Foster as she was in <i>The Silence of the Lambs</i>, one of my
favorite films. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Who are your literary influences? What are
you reading now?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I
started by reading Agatha Christie, Arthur Conan Doyle, and classical
Anglo-Saxon crime novels. Then I had my period of Stephen King (and still do). He’s a great writer. I spent night after night
reading his books, trying to guess how he could frighten us so much. During my
studies, I did not read a lot (but was watching films!). I started reading
crime novels again 10 years ago. Nowadays, I read Dennis Lehane, Michael
Connelly, but also books by John Steinbeck.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">If I could make only one journey to France,
where should I be sure to go?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpLast" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Everywhere
! France is a beautiful country, with many cultures, great landscape, big towns
but also very quaint villages, where the time has stood still. French food and
wine are excellent; just spend time in a little restaurant of Paris or by the
sea at Deauville or Cannes!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="ParagraphedelisteCxSpLast" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Sounds lovely! Thank you so much for
a terrific read and for answering these questions.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div class="Paragraphedeliste" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">You’re
welcome. It was a pleasure. </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<!-- End of StatCounter Code --></div>Julia Buckleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270211923343731659noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-57894602046330931302018-01-01T12:49:00.002-07:002018-01-01T12:49:25.908-07:00Getting Lost in a Good Story<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ13LHFHhh7yo1N7ERuk4cBHPiOPaytJtf2iazk86fzIHEhIzKfnPDpp01HKCDHW_A1uS9kyHADYtTuwSavAZRgr_kLFN5H4IBtW9qr01oX1lvZrfvHPjyjhvIOgNVTPLZf6hq/s1600/36235196.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="310" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ13LHFHhh7yo1N7ERuk4cBHPiOPaytJtf2iazk86fzIHEhIzKfnPDpp01HKCDHW_A1uS9kyHADYtTuwSavAZRgr_kLFN5H4IBtW9qr01oX1lvZrfvHPjyjhvIOgNVTPLZf6hq/s400/36235196.jpg" width="257" /></a>On December 30 I received a book in the mail from Delacorte Press; they had kindly sent me a copy of <b>S.T.A.G.S,</b> a new novel, perhaps in hopes that I would read and review it. I am lucky enough to receive books with regularity, but not all of the stories catch my fancy, and often I start one and put it aside again.<br />
<br />
Who knows what sort of alchemy is involved when a reader and a book find that they are a good match? I only know that when I opened this book and read the first page, my brain said "Yes!"<br />
<br />
December 30 happened to be my birthday, and I sat down in the afternoon to enjoy the unexpected gift. For the first time in a long time, I finished a book in one sitting because I just couldn't put it down.<br />
<br />
Don't we all long for that very reading experience?<br />
<br />
<i>S.T.A.G.S</i> had an interesting premise: a middle-class British girl is accepted into the school known by the title acronym. It stands for St. Aidan the Great School, a prestigious boarding academy that is the realm of the very rich. From the start the heroine, Greer (named after Greer Garson because of her father's love of movies) knows that she is an outcast, but she's determined to keep her head down, do her work, and just get through the semester. She doesn't need to be popular. And yet, like any teenager, she does sometimes crave approval, and like everyone on campus she dreams of being noticed by The Medievals, the beautiful, privileged six who dominate the campus with their wealth and breeding. The leader of this group is Henry: tall, blond, charming as a prince. Or so it would seem.<br />
<br />
When Greer and two other misfits are invited to Henry's estate for a weekend of "huntin, shootin, fishin," the reader knows that The Medievals are up to no good, and deep down Greer knows it, too, but she can't resist the invitation and the chance to be popular.<br />
<br />
One has to suspend some disbelief in order to enter into the St. Aidan's world, but the book was well-written, capturing the tone of The Other as Greer tries to negotiate the exclusionary behaviors on campus. Although this is meant on one level to be fun suspense, the novel does a good job of interrogating wealth, white privilege, and arbitrary class distinctions.<br />
<br />
I'm sure it will be made into a movie, and I for one will go to see it.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- Start of StatCounter Code -->
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<!-- End of StatCounter Code --></div>Julia Buckleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270211923343731659noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-62828994896737595012017-12-03T19:16:00.000-07:002017-12-04T10:35:14.723-07:00Cozy Writer Kathy Krevat Chats about Sweet Treats, Ocean Views and Communities of Strong Women<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-indent: .5in;">
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-d7ZaSprG_rg/WiSsdulGqGI/AAAAAAAAd9o/EiR3jYxFFBwjqA2DVNfZzWH3vFB56z-uwCLcBGAs/s1600/K.%2BAarons%2Bphoto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1065" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-d7ZaSprG_rg/WiSsdulGqGI/AAAAAAAAd9o/EiR3jYxFFBwjqA2DVNfZzWH3vFB56z-uwCLcBGAs/s400/K.%2BAarons%2Bphoto.jpg" width="266" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 16pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">First things first: you write about chocolate in your Chocolate Covered Mystery series, so you are the expert: what’s the best chocolate treat
in the world?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-indent: 0.5in;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-indent: 0.5in;">Dallmann Fine Chocolates –
their Fleur de sel Caramels. They’re an amazing combination of sweet and salty
chocolate goodness. I use them in the Chocolate Covered Mystery books – my main
character, Michelle Serrano, gives away bite size pieces as a “gateway drug” to
get customers in the store.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 16pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 16pt;">Speaking of best in the world, you wrote on your blog that you
live near one of the most beautiful places in the world, The Torrey Pines State
Park. Tell us about it!</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Torrey Pines State Park is a gorgeous place with winding trails
through the bluffs filled with Torrey Pine trees (imagine that!) where every
time you go around a corner, you see a beautiful view of the Pacific Ocean. The
park backs up onto the Torrey Pines Golf Course – home of many golf tournaments
– that you’ve probably seen on TV. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I often walk when I’m trying to solve a problem in my book, and
somehow walking on the beach – the sound of waves or the sea air – usually does
the trick. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 16pt;">What made you decide to
write mysteries?</span><span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 16pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I started writing mysteries when I read Janet Evanovich’s <u>One for
the Money</u> and discovered that murder mysteries could be hilarious! I’d
worked in public relations and marketing and assumed that because I read a lot
and knew how to write ad copy, that I’d automatically know how to write a
novel. Hah! I floundered for quite a while until I joined writing organizations
like Sisters in Crime and Romance Writers of America. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif;">What I love about writing mysteries is what people like about
reading them – figuring out the clues, getting to know characters, learning
something new, and seeing that justice is done. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I was delighted to finally meet Janet Evanovich last year. I let
her know that she inspired me to write and that I have two series because of
it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 7pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 16pt;">Who are
your mystery heroes?</span><span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’m assuming you mean
authors and that’s easy. Terrie Moran, author of the Read ‘Em and Eat mystery
series has been a wonderful friend and mentor. Jenn McKinlay, Kate Carlisle and
Daryl Wood Gerber have answered tons of questions from me about the publishing industry.
Harley Jane Kozak was very inspirational to me as well.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The writing industry is pretty unique in the level of support,
knowledge and training most published authors offer new writers. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 16pt;">If you could choose a
“personal trainer” in the publishing world, who would it be?</span><span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 16pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> Anyone? J.K. Rowling. She’s a master author and plotter.
Hard working and committed to both her writing and to worthy causes. I admire
her a great deal. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 7pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 16pt;">Why did
you choose to write a series about chocolate (not that I’m complaining)?</span><span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Chocolate is something that most people like! Also, I wanted to
write cozies, but I’m not very crafty and I don’t cook. However, I can make
chocolate. Isabella Knack, owner of Dallmann’s Fine Chocolates, provides the
recipes in the books. The truffles I make are not the works of art she creates,
but even my ugly lumps of chocolate are delicious. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It’s also fun to describe chocolate – a lot of readers recommend
having chocolate nearby when reading the books. Chocolate has a long and rich history -- I use
the history of chocolate by the Mayan people
in <u>Truffled to Death</u>. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 16pt;">Your website says you are
obsessed with the Broadway Idiot documentary. What is that?</span><span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jFz3et0IP-I/WiStxZVnknI/AAAAAAAAd90/8aqmj2uekpQIQw8EjDt8AaSCbpsO1K5OwCLcBGAs/s1600/TheTroubleWithMurder%2B%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1067" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jFz3et0IP-I/WiStxZVnknI/AAAAAAAAd90/8aqmj2uekpQIQw8EjDt8AaSCbpsO1K5OwCLcBGAs/s320/TheTroubleWithMurder%2B%25282%2529.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 16pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 16pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It shows how the Broadway
musical <i>American Idiot</i> was made with
the initial approval and then enthusiastic input of Billy Joe Armstrong from
Green Day. Watching it makes me want to write a musical. (Which would be
impossible since I don’t play an instrument. Or write music. Or read music.) The
documentary shows the sense of community and collaboration it takes to create
theater, and I really admire that.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 16pt;">What books are now on your
nightstand?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 16pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I just finished writing the second book in the series – <u>The
Trouble With Truth</u> – so the To Be Read pile is even larger than normal.
Being under deadline doesn’t stop me from buying books, just reading them. Kate
Carlisle’s <u>Eaves of Destruction</u> and Jenn McKinlay’s <u>Death in the
Stacks</u> are on the top of the pile.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I help to coordinate a writing conference for high school students
which is my excuse for reading a lot of young adult books. I’m currently
reading John Green’s <u>Turtles All the Way Down</u> at the same time as Maggie
Stiefvater’s <u>All the Crooked Saints</u>. And there are about twenty more in
the pile. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 16pt;">You live in San Diego;
what’s the best thing about this place? Do you think you’ll live there forever?</span><span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 16pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The best thing about San Diego really is the weather. My husband
and I walk most mornings, and we can do that at least 335 days of the year. (I
might even be underestimating that number.) I love walking on the beach – it’s
always changing. One of the surprising things about San Diego is the amazing
theater community we have. Lots of Broadway shows get their start here and
there’s so much quality work being done. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’m not sure if we’ll live here forever, but even if we move
somewhere else for a while, I’m sure we’ll come back. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 16pt;">You’ve lived on both the
east and west coast. Which has made a bigger impact on your personality?</span><span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 16pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Since I’ve been in California longer, I’d have to say the west
coast. But I also think that my personality and my views on life have always
fit in here. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 16pt;">What would you like readers
to know about your books, and where can they find out more?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 16pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Both of my series feature strong women who run their own
businesses and solve mysteries on the side. In <u>The Trouble With Murder</u>, single
mom Colbie Summers is struggling to grow her Meowio Batali Gourmet Cat Food
when she discovers the dead body of her friend and fellow entrepreneur. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In the Chocolate Covered Mystery series, chocolatier Michelle
Serrano and book store manager Erica Russell manage their store – Chocolates
and Chapters – while they solve mysteries in the small town of West Riverdale,
Maryland.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Check out my website at <a href="http://www.kathykrevat.com/">www.kathykrevat.com</a> or follow me on Twitter or
Facebook. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>Kathy Krevat is the author of the GOURMET CAT MYSTERY series
featuring cat food chef Colbie Summers and her demanding cat Trouble, the
culinary muse behind her recipes. Kathy also writes the bestselling CHOCOLATE
COVERED MYSTERY series under the pen name, Kathy Aarons. <o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>
</i></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>Kathy lives in San Diego with her husband of twenty-five
years in the perfect location – close to Philz Coffee and the beach, and within
visiting distance of her two grown daughters. When she’s not writing, she’s an
advocate for youth arts education and president of Partners in Crime, the San
Diego Chapter of Sisters in Crime. <o:p></o:p></i></div>
</div>
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<i><br /></i></div>
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<br /></div>
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<!-- End of StatCounter Code --></div>Julia Buckleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270211923343731659noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-6409355427529406042017-10-04T19:23:00.000-06:002017-12-03T19:19:04.005-07:00Why I Can't Watch Horror Movies<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwiD_CxEmhtOOP_P4gwU0KCcj2pPskKRCa9Dge0F4eT7qoxcytAQvoppbUuiDAB6MGhy7bHAhMmHf_9Is6OoN3NXVgfHuNqtsR7oRXChrxnsYwDVkJ92oZ6pbPMgenAldw3PkQ/s1600/Raquel+Welch+-+The+Last+of+Sheila+%25281973%2529+2.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="394" data-original-width="688" height="183" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwiD_CxEmhtOOP_P4gwU0KCcj2pPskKRCa9Dge0F4eT7qoxcytAQvoppbUuiDAB6MGhy7bHAhMmHf_9Is6OoN3NXVgfHuNqtsR7oRXChrxnsYwDVkJ92oZ6pbPMgenAldw3PkQ/s320/Raquel+Welch+-+The+Last+of+Sheila+%25281973%2529+2.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Raquel Welch in THE LAST OF SHEILA. (Dusty Video Box)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
My husband and sons love horror movies, and they plan to watch a whole bunch of them this month in anticipation of Halloween.<br />
<br />
I will, as always, be in another room, reading or surfing the Net or watching a video more appropriate for me. I love wholesome oldies like <i>The Sound of Music</i> and <i>That Darn Cat.</i> :)<br />
<br />
To prove my low threshold for horror, I can share the movie that truly horrified me as a child: a campy 1973 production called THE LAST OF SHEILA. It starred James Coburn, Raquel Welch, Ian McShane, Dyan Cannon, James Mason, and Richard Benjamin. Truly an all-star cast for a cross between an Agatha Christie novel and a horror story.<br />
<br />
In 1973 I was nine years old; I remember that my mom used to watch the afternoon movie (after she had spent the morning doing chores) and I would hang around watching it with her. She watched this one, and several of the scenes just scared the life out of me, particularly one gruesome one that took place in an old monastery. I had nightmares about it.<br />
<br />
Decades later, I confided this in my horror-loving husband, who was eager to watch the movie for its horror elements. He watched it, laughing through most of it, and when we reached the scene that had made such a drastic impression on my young mind, he turned to me with a blank face. "That's it? That's not scary."<br />
<br />
It was a little scary, but no, it wasn't the way I remembered it.<br />
<br />
So I made it through a second showing of the movie, able as an adult to appreciate some of its finer points.<br />
<br />
But it was a great reminder that people should not expose children to potentially frightening images until they are ready to handle them (as little Julia's experience demonstrates).<br />
<br />
By the way, if you want to know more about TLOS, <a href="http://dustyvideobox.blogspot.com/2013/07/non-singing-detective-last-of-sheila.html" target="_blank">here's a blog that reviews it.</a><br />
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<!-- End of StatCounter Code --></div>Julia Buckleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270211923343731659noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-3333094069478136512017-09-10T14:43:00.002-06:002017-09-10T14:43:48.542-06:00Weathering the Storm<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hnAkOYaq7qU/WbWj5b1vOOI/AAAAAAAAdwI/Xxrz8u9__ogLVuqMhh473heKfZHs6kiawCKgBGAs/s1600/IMG_8304.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1182" data-original-width="1600" height="235" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hnAkOYaq7qU/WbWj5b1vOOI/AAAAAAAAdwI/Xxrz8u9__ogLVuqMhh473heKfZHs6kiawCKgBGAs/s320/IMG_8304.JPG" width="320" /></a>I am amazed by the strength, courage and resilience of my friends in Florida in the wake of Irma. Many of them, for varying reasons, have stayed in their homes, ready to wait out the hurricane. They are already enduring a loss of electricity, empty stores, a lack of resources like gasoline, and an unrelenting forecast.<br />
<br />
Yet they are finding ways to be positive, and this is inspiring. One of my friends just wrote that she has total peace of mind. <br />
I can't claim that, and I don't have a hurricane barreling toward me!<br />
<br />
Thank you to all of you for teaching me a lesson in courage, and I wish healthy and safety to you and your families.<br />
<br />
(Art by my son Graham).<div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- Start of StatCounter Code -->
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<!-- End of StatCounter Code --></div>Julia Buckleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270211923343731659noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-78044571352361094332017-09-02T04:00:00.000-06:002017-09-02T04:00:08.660-06:00How Long Before the Next Novel? Jess Lourey and Shannon Baker on Creativity, Bad Breakups, and the Restorative Power of Writing <br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-LukiAriORSM/WVKDWrUinhI/AAAAAAAAdrM/5GkB3NXzfhoaYpGtrWS_kiJQTHGcjQO8wCLcBGAs/s1600/Jess%2BSigning.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="638" height="400" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-LukiAriORSM/WVKDWrUinhI/AAAAAAAAdrM/5GkB3NXzfhoaYpGtrWS_kiJQTHGcjQO8wCLcBGAs/s400/Jess%2BSigning.jpg" width="265" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jess Lourey at a recent book signing.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b>A conversation with Jess and Shannon:</b><br />
<br />
She was your <i>everything</i>.
You woke up with her on your brain, scribbled notes to her throughout the day,
fell asleep wondering how to make her happy. And now, after she consumed your
life for an entire year, drove you crazy, and fulfilled you on levels you
hadn’t known were possible, she’s left you. Just like that, she’s moved on to
someone else.<br />
<br />
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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Actually, if you’re lucky, she’s moved on to thousands of
someone else's. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I’m talking books and readers, of course, and that day when
your sweat and tears moves from your brain and computer to to bookshelves and
e-readers all over the country. So, how long until you move on, too? When is it
okay to start writing that next novel?<o:p></o:p></div>
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Today, the lovely Shannon Baker and I would like to share
our experience on that front. Shannon and I have written over 20 books between
us, and we’re on our second national blog tour, Double-booked Round Two.
Shannon is promoting <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Dark-Signal-Kate-Shannon-Baker/dp/0765385473/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1489160916&sr=8-1&keywords=dark+signal+kate+fox">Dark
Signal</a>, the second in the fabulous Kate Fox series, and I’m shilling for <a href="https://www.amazon.com/March-Crime-Murder-Month-Mysteries/dp/0738752630/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1489160931&sr=8-1&keywords=march+of+crime">March
of Crime</a>, the 11<sup>th</sup> (gasp!) in my Murder-by-Month mysteries. Pull
up a chair, dip into your favorite ice cream flavor, and relax while Shannon
and I share our book break-up, moving on stories.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Shannon Baker, you amazing soul, how are you?</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVZTl9oJ0iwKAxYrK7ifs_x_KYQwrDa6GX5K7eI-ZEOECED_s8Bjg-re9Z7d80Amy3qTu6h3xTbTDyKt5MZ0R0gj81Svuf_J-s9G_ObskaCUMOy2aVi_fRFpM2PFLPiYDx5LJH/s1600/Shannon1884-4x6-web.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="576" data-original-width="384" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVZTl9oJ0iwKAxYrK7ifs_x_KYQwrDa6GX5K7eI-ZEOECED_s8Bjg-re9Z7d80Amy3qTu6h3xTbTDyKt5MZ0R0gj81Svuf_J-s9G_ObskaCUMOy2aVi_fRFpM2PFLPiYDx5LJH/s320/Shannon1884-4x6-web.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shannon Baker</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<b>Shannon</b>: I’m stoked (does that term make me sound old?... or
fat?) because I’m plotting a new series. To pick up on your analogy, it’s like
the first blush of a romance. We’re flirting and kissing, I can barely think
about anything else, and I’m waking up at night with a flutter in my heart.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Jessie</b>: That’s fabulous. Also, “stoked” makes you sound
“stoned,” so I’m cool with it. So, I’ve been churning out two books a year
since <i>May Day</i> released in 2006. How
about you?<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Shannon</b>: Slut. And I mean that in the best way possible! I
mean, look at all the fun you’ve been having, while I stayed true to a novel
that I should have left years earlier. I worked on that one book for over 10
years, finally had it published in 2010 with a nano-press, and then—only then—moved
on. Since 2013, I’ve published one book a year, though I’ve had affairs with
short stories and experimented with other unmentionable genres.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Jessie</b>: Sweet naughtiness, that’s a lot of book break-ups.
How long do you wait after sending one book off to your publisher before you
start writing your second book or short story? Or do they overlap?<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Shannon</b>: I am at a writer’s retreat right now with a friend
who is working on three books simultaneously. Unfathomably, she seems pretty
normal. I don’t work on more than one book at a time. So it’s unusual for me to
have an idea for a new series while I’m working on line edits from my editor
for an ongoing series, AND, last week finished revisions on another book. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I’m afraid of waiting too long to jump into another book
because for me, writing is like exercise. If I let it go too long, it’s painful
to get back into shape. It’s a habit and I don’t want to disrupt the routine
I’ve established.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IuvC0Bc4V98/WVKDW8pgL_I/AAAAAAAAdrQ/Chbo7BuTdQUOFhDmn3sO8HqDXjqVASNwACLcBGAs/s1600/index%2B%25281%2529.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="293" data-original-width="191" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IuvC0Bc4V98/WVKDW8pgL_I/AAAAAAAAdrQ/Chbo7BuTdQUOFhDmn3sO8HqDXjqVASNwACLcBGAs/s1600/index%2B%25281%2529.jpeg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jess's latest Murder-by-the-Month novel</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<b>Jessie</b>: Makes sense. When I finished <a href="https://www.amazon.com/May-Day-Murder-Month-Mysteries/dp/0738708380/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1489161052&sr=8-1&keywords=may+day+jess+lourey">May
Day</a> back in 2003, I immediately began to shop it around. It hadn’t occurred
to me to start another book until about rejection 376 (I received a total of
423), when an agent told me she liked what I was doing but couldn’t sell it
unless it was a series. I began writing <a href="https://www.amazon.com/June-Bug-Murder-Month-Mysteries-ebook/dp/B007JYFQFO/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1489161080&sr=8-2&keywords=june+bug+jess+lourey">June
Bug</a>. That agent didn’t sign me, but someone else did. In a perfect world,
I’d still have that kind of time (and blissful ignorance about the industry),
enough so that I could dedicate complete brain time to one project. </div>
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Now, with
multiple series plus my author marketing commitments, I usually give myself 7
days after finishing one book to celebrate, make poor food choices, and relax
before I start writing a new novel. Any less than that and I don’t feel like
I’m honoring the work and energy I put into the manuscript. Any more than that
and I start to go a little crazy. I need creative writing. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Shannon, do you carry around a notebook or something else to
keep track of those random, buzzing story ideas for a future project that pop
into your brain when you’re working on a current project?<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk2TF5xWlXtIlJ2nllMJlUGoS2lIo0w2xHWycK6tRGGmUCDuwKTcEoMLkoaReOWjhWolLbb2VQ78sXTh4XDKFb_bD7zLr4SZtAwKMSWAbDdzU-h7UyFtQyrAgNPR4Mt6_rkVTS/s1600/Dark+Signal+final5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1082" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk2TF5xWlXtIlJ2nllMJlUGoS2lIo0w2xHWycK6tRGGmUCDuwKTcEoMLkoaReOWjhWolLbb2VQ78sXTh4XDKFb_bD7zLr4SZtAwKMSWAbDdzU-h7UyFtQyrAgNPR4Mt6_rkVTS/s320/Dark+Signal+final5.jpg" width="215" /></a><b>Shannon</b>: Gaa! I hate that I don’t a) carry around a notebook
for ideas, and b) have so many ideas I need to. Maybe if carried a notebook I’d
have ideas to write in it. But, maybe
I’m turning over a new leaf, because as I write this, I remember being at a fun
event last weekend and suddenly thinking how great it would be for a mystery
series. *runs off to get that cool journal someone gave me*<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Jessie</b>: Yes! Write it down. I text myself notes and then
transcribe them all at the end of the week. I also try to keep track of any
writing hacks that I learn as I go, so I can remember to use them in the future
but also so I can share them with others. A lot of those made it into my how-to
book, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Rewrite-Your-Life-Discover-Through/dp/157324693X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1489160961&sr=8-1&keywords=rewrite+your+life">Rewrite
Your Life</a>. (Yes, that was a shameless plug.) (<i>Editor: View Jess's whole TED-x talk below</i>).</div>
<br />
Since today we’re talking about book break-ups, and
specifically that moment when you move from writing one book to the next, it’s
only fitting that we end by sharing our real-life break-up remedies. Back in
the day when I was dumped by or did the dumping of boyfriends, my go-to was Ben
& Jerry’s Chunky Monkey ice cream and red wine out of a box. Those huge
shards of dark chocolate from the ice cream would get stuck in my back teeth,
and when the red wine would rush over them, it’d create an explosion of rich,
bitter deliciousness. Who needs boys when you can make that sort of fun
yourself? Shannon, what was your break-up go-to?<br />
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<b>Shannon</b>: It took me over a decade, but I got the best
break-up remedy possible. My husband of 20 years had a long-lasting affair in
our town of 300 people and I left him to start a new life. Took me a while to
get my sense of humor back about the whole thing and my appreciation of the
place, but when I did, I got a whole mystery series out of it, starting with <i>Stripped Bare</i> and now <i>Dark Signal</i>. They say living well is the
best revenge, but I have to say, writing is pretty sweet, too!<o:p></o:p></div>
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Please join Shannon and Jessie as they continue their blog
tour. They will each be giving away three books this tour, and every comment
you leave at a blog stop gets you once chance to win.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Jess Lourey</b> (rhymes with
"dowry") is best known for her critically-acclaimed Murder-by-Month
mysteries, which have earned multiple starred reviews from <em><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Library Journal </span></em>and <em><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Booklist</span></em>, the latter calling her
writing "a splendid mix of humor and suspense." She is a tenured
professor of creative writing and sociology, a regular <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/discover-your-truth">Psychology
Today</a> blogger, a sought-after workshop leader and keynote speaker who
delivered the 2016 "<a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/discover-your-truth">Rewrite Your
Life</a>" TEDx Talk (below) and a leader of transformative <a href="https://www.creativewritingretreat.com/write-that-book-in-greece">writer's
retreats</a>.</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><b>Shannon Baker</b> is the author of
the </span><a href="https://www.indiebound.org/book/9780765385444">Kate Fox</a><span style="color: #222222; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> mystery series (Tor/Forge). Set in the isolated cattle country
of the Nebraska Sandhills, the series has earned great reviews. Kirkus says, “Baker serves up a ballsy heroine, a
colorful backdrop, and a surprising ending.” She also writes the Nora Abbott
mystery series (Midnight Ink), featuring Hopi Indian mysticism and
environmental issues. Shannon makes her home in Tucson where she enjoys
cocktails by the pool, breathtaking sunsets, a crazy Weimaraner, and killing
people (in the pages of her books). She was voted Rocky Mountain Fiction
Writer’s 2014 Writer of the Year. Visit Shannon at </span><a href="http://www.shannon-baker.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: #1155cc; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">www.Shannon-Baker.com</span></a><span style="color: #222222; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!-- End of StatCounter Code --></div>Julia Buckleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270211923343731659noreply@blogger.com34tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-30401568741616560682017-08-19T18:59:00.001-06:002017-08-19T18:59:26.599-06:00Feast on This<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8cnUu846fotYIPG6HEVeGCr7qfY67-fz9ljiOcYE6Bu8MGBu74iQOnRlupDQDhJ9iQIzM1UCk5vp5AQPIJnqbKB9aDFSp7f0OEjg2unp9JBAnJKKzGajxlDLcA_lh5B2vfN05/s1600/20901763_1253074544818121_3274100130863578464_o+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="806" data-original-width="1090" height="293" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8cnUu846fotYIPG6HEVeGCr7qfY67-fz9ljiOcYE6Bu8MGBu74iQOnRlupDQDhJ9iQIzM1UCk5vp5AQPIJnqbKB9aDFSp7f0OEjg2unp9JBAnJKKzGajxlDLcA_lh5B2vfN05/s400/20901763_1253074544818121_3274100130863578464_o+%25281%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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The final book in the Lilah Drake Undercover Dish mystery series hit shelves on September 5th. Have you pre-ordered your copy today?<br />
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Click here for <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Pudding-Murder-Undercover-Dish-Mystery/dp/0425275973/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1489896314&sr=1-1&keywords=pudding+up+with+murder" target="_blank">the Amazon link.</a><br />
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Happy Eclipse!!<div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- Start of StatCounter Code -->
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<!-- End of StatCounter Code --></div>Julia Buckleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270211923343731659noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-83246412408606975292017-07-03T16:39:00.003-06:002017-07-03T16:39:52.695-06:00My First Foreign Cover<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NTNc3JjUzvg/WVrHjL61JyI/AAAAAAAAdsE/SniO4OFp5xkaWDMrF-yJzPFKw8pPvoRtwCLcBGAs/s1600/IMG_1199.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1084" height="400" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NTNc3JjUzvg/WVrHjL61JyI/AAAAAAAAdsE/SniO4OFp5xkaWDMrF-yJzPFKw8pPvoRtwCLcBGAs/s400/IMG_1199.JPG" width="268" /></a>I am excited to unveil the cover of <i>The Big Chili</i> from my Japanese Publisher. The book is now available on the website harashobo.co.jp, and I am thrilled with the whimsical artwork!<br />
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If you look closely you will see that the artist used not lines, but tiny dots, to create Lilah, Mick and all the dishes.<br />
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If you're a reader in Japan, look for it on bookshelves!<div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- Start of StatCounter Code -->
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<!-- End of StatCounter Code --></div>Julia Buckleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270211923343731659noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-69088177463739217032017-06-14T13:30:00.000-06:002017-06-14T13:30:07.473-06:00The Nuances of Genre<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xShydiE9YNk/WUGOiK5ofQI/AAAAAAAAdqM/V7PEEeuKxoglmHsMiMvNXN3YLaViveDnQCLcBGAs/s1600/16387950_1068141173311460_6714248367729719822_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="533" data-original-width="690" height="306" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xShydiE9YNk/WUGOiK5ofQI/AAAAAAAAdqM/V7PEEeuKxoglmHsMiMvNXN3YLaViveDnQCLcBGAs/s400/16387950_1068141173311460_6714248367729719822_n.jpg" width="400" /></a>I currently have two cozy mystery series on store shelves. They have both been generally well received, but some readers have expressed dismay that one series (which begins with the book <i>A Dark and Stormy Murder</i>) is not a traditional cozy. The book and its sequel, therefore, disappointed them.<br />
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This is fair; the traditional Classical mystery which eventually birthed the "cozy" genre does have certain distinctive features. Because writers are creative and like to put their own spin on things, however, there are diverse definitions of <i>cozy</i> these days, and genres have formed within genres as authors seek new territory and topics that haven't been mined by others.<br />
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These books in the Writer's Apprentice series have many cozy elements; small town, "cozy" relationships between characters, an isolated setting, picturesque scenery, a romantic entanglement, cute animals, and a "cozy" occupation for the main characters (writing).<br />
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In addition to being cozy, though, the books were meant to be an homage to the great romantic suspense novelists of the mid-twentieth century, particularly Mary Stewart, Phyllis A. Whitney, and Victoria Holt. Elements of the Gothic have been woven in as a part of this tribute, and so some people were disappointed to find that the books felt more like romantic suspense than like cozy mysteries. Other readers never noticed any deviation from the cozies they've read in the past; I think it all depends upon the reader's focus and criteria.<br />
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In any case, writers can only write their vision and hope that people enjoy the story that emerges. There will be at least one more Writer's Apprentice novel, and it will continue the romantic suspense tribute-based style (the final book is dedicated to Victoria Holt). The next book, a culmination of the story that has been building over two novels, will be titled <i>A Dark and Twisting Path</i>.<br />
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<!-- End of StatCounter Code --></div>Julia Buckleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270211923343731659noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-59308533477892128372017-06-06T16:08:00.002-06:002017-06-06T16:08:19.630-06:00Transitioning into Summer<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7pxFnQR5Kck1PY9sKm-gSgrkGLzrxxlS_oUGupt2sUgwAd6u9Em_HBOv6SqXK11kNQCFpC_Oms3l6gLxym5tWC_N-UVSRGJIaCT6Z-xxtsD4S3wEYd3ybuVhO6m-OkdwiC6h5zg/s1600/IMG_0948.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7pxFnQR5Kck1PY9sKm-gSgrkGLzrxxlS_oUGupt2sUgwAd6u9Em_HBOv6SqXK11kNQCFpC_Oms3l6gLxym5tWC_N-UVSRGJIaCT6Z-xxtsD4S3wEYd3ybuVhO6m-OkdwiC6h5zg/s400/IMG_0948.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Last Sunday my husband and I attended our final high school graduation. We listened, in blistering heat, as almost 900 names were read and the young people, dressed in black suits and white dresses, approached the dais for their diplomas. It was bittersweet, as these events always are.</div>
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Sweet because my son and his classmates worked hard to get to this day, and they were proud.</div>
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Sweet because it's wonderful for my son to contemplate the wide open future and the limitless possibilities for his life.</div>
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Sweet for his parents because we succeeded in guiding him to this milestone and helping to form him into the nice, funny, smart person he is today.</div>
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Bitter because I will never drive him to school in the morning again, chattering with him about silly things and discovering new pieces with him on the Classical music station.</div>
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Bitter because two of the students who should have received diplomas with my son did not live to see their graduations; their parents were there to accept their diplomas for them. How brave of these parents to come to this event in the midst of their grief, and how humbling to the rest of us and our inconsequential problems to see this reality of life: that nothing is guaranteed to us, not even those we love.</div>
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This summer will be a transitional one for our family. My eldest son will visit Europe for the first time (the first in our family to do so!), and when he returns he will be looking for a job and an apartment. My younger son will be working to claim the space his brother leaves behind and to gear up for his college career. And my husband and I, like zillions of parents before us, will have to get used to a house that is quiet far more often, and a life that is so, as well.</div>
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This, too, will be bittersweet. But just as the future is limitless for those graduates, it is limitless for all of us. </div>
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We just have to ride those waves of transition and find the peaceful waters we can enjoy.</div>
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<!-- End of StatCounter Code --></div>Julia Buckleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270211923343731659noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-31655405079362039422017-03-30T17:28:00.000-06:002017-03-30T17:28:46.075-06:00Two Wonderful ReadsThanks to Soho Press and Skyhorse Publishing, I enjoyed two wonderful spring reads.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-t4hm3iujA2g/WN2No7Kq8kI/AAAAAAAAdaY/a_Le5X7AzZw5lB55QLRQMXHMJdKcJ_3HwCLcB/s1600/%257BBEE2089D-9174-43CC-9257-D2A8084FC996%257DImg400.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-t4hm3iujA2g/WN2No7Kq8kI/AAAAAAAAdaY/a_Le5X7AzZw5lB55QLRQMXHMJdKcJ_3HwCLcB/s320/%257BBEE2089D-9174-43CC-9257-D2A8084FC996%257DImg400.jpg" width="240" /></a>The first, WHAT MY BODY REMEMBERS (Soho Press), by Danish mystery author Agnete Friis, is a chilling and atmospheric suspense novel about a twenty-seven-year-old woman who is unmarried, unemployed, and suppressing a major trauma that is making it hard for her to function in her everyday life and putting her in grave danger of losing her son.<br />
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The main character, Ella, witnessed the murder of her mother when she was seven years old, but remembers nothing about the incident. Instead, her body does, and she suffers seizures whenever something reminds her of the night she lost everything--her mother to death, and her father to jail, for killing her mother.<br />
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Author Agnete Friis takes readers on a fairly predictable ride into Ella's past, but the book is compelling because of Friis' gift for description and characterization. Ella is prickly and vulnerable, and the ghosts of a twenty-year-old crime loom over her throughout the story, ready to emerge at any moment.<br />
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The book also raises some interesting questions about the nature of poverty, welfare, trauma, and essential humanity. Ella cannot hold a job, and she is judged harshly by a world that did little for her when she was broken by a terrible event.<br />
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-F0MeSrizwOI/WN2Ohrz4L5I/AAAAAAAAdag/D-5W0E5L6c8lvIRFUe1lz17h47ozHPdGACLcB/s1600/1510720839.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><br /></a><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-F0MeSrizwOI/WN2Ohrz4L5I/AAAAAAAAdag/D-5W0E5L6c8lvIRFUe1lz17h47ozHPdGACLcB/s1600/1510720839.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"> </a><br />
While the novel holds few surprises in terms of the plot, it is stylish, compelling and hard to put down!<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-F0MeSrizwOI/WN2Ohrz4L5I/AAAAAAAAdak/r4KVjwFdtdAIyCsA-q-69TWHh4NmW5cXwCEw/s1600/1510720839.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="261" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-F0MeSrizwOI/WN2Ohrz4L5I/AAAAAAAAdak/r4KVjwFdtdAIyCsA-q-69TWHh4NmW5cXwCEw/s320/1510720839.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
A totally different reading experience was Julian Lennon's beautiful TOUCH THE EARTH (Skyhorse Publishing). This book seeks an audience of very young readers who have the potential to save the earth by learning of our inextricable relationship to the environment.<br />
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I always loved BLUE'S CLUES because of the way it allowed young viewers to feel that they were taking an active role in the adventure. Lennon does the same here (along with his co-writer, Bart Davis) by letting young readers sit inside the White Feather Flier and take control of the instrument panel. He teaches them the four directions, and the way to use a compass. And then he lets them fly up and down, all over the earth, learning about the importance of water all over the earth--for people, animals, and the maintenance of all life on earth.<br />
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The book, in a simple and entertaining format, with beautiful illustrations by Smiljana Coh, includes young people in the important questions that face humanity. It encourages them to see that clean water is crucial to life, and that we can do things to help make the world a better and more ethical place.<br />
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<!-- End of StatCounter Code --></div>Julia Buckleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270211923343731659noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-51445312120236177232017-03-20T17:08:00.002-06:002017-03-22T06:25:07.459-06:00Amateur Scientist Gordon Holmes on Scotland's Loch Ness, The Legendary Monster, and The Scientific Unknown<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5ZJ0g1lqjpWDBZWE2xdPM11-aSUwbH0UWlkhQ6xBdnjQa5r313mW2BxUoVcMKau1D6ZnP1BWDf29Td2kzFAcGIAXc6mzDBGnhODhiW0feaOKGurOsNxqCDBM-WE4h2Iw1QOno/s1600/WP_20170228_002.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5ZJ0g1lqjpWDBZWE2xdPM11-aSUwbH0UWlkhQ6xBdnjQa5r313mW2BxUoVcMKau1D6ZnP1BWDf29Td2kzFAcGIAXc6mzDBGnhODhiW0feaOKGurOsNxqCDBM-WE4h2Iw1QOno/s320/WP_20170228_002.jpg" width="240" /></a><i>Back in 2007, I wrote <a href="http://juliabuckley.blogspot.com/2007/06/my-favorite-mystery.html#.WNBYnTsrLIU" target="_blank">this blog post </a>about the Loch Ness Monster, in which I referenced Gordon Holmes, the man who took footage of a mysterious creature in the Loch. Recently I had the pleasure of chatting with Gordon, who provided many insights into the world's fascination with both the Loch and its reputed "monster." Here's our interview--all photos supplied by Gordon Holmes.</i><br />
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<b>Are you a scientist by profession?</b><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;">For twenty-two years I worked my way up from a Machine Tool Craftsman to a Design Engineer.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;">Then, when manufacturing went duff, I worked at Bradford University, Yorkshire, as an IT/Media Technician for another 22 years. Now I've retired early, so I have much more freedom. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;"><b>What got you interested in searching for Nessie?</b></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;">Like most people, I have always been interested in the scientific unknown. So in 2003, I decided to finally investigate the so-called Loch Ness Monster phenomena. During the next four years, I visited the Loch on six occasions, armed with 7 X 50 Binoculars and Video Camera. However, there was no sign of Nessie.</span><br />
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<b>Do you live near Loch Ness?</b><br />
<br style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;" />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;">I live in a Yorkshire town called Shipley. Which is about 350 miles South of Loch Ness in England via roads and motorways. Journey time is about 10 hours, having several stops on route.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></b></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"> You seem to have invented a great deal of sophisticated equipment. Do you have patents on your inventions? Do you work with a team, or alone?</span></b></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;">No, I cannot patent anything on the equipment side since, I basically am utilising several units into a complete assembly. Anyone can do this, it just needs a bit of imagination and some technical know-how in mechanics, dynamics, electronics and, say, instrumentation. I have been fortunate to have experience in these topics during my career and hobbies. Most people could achieve all this; the main challenge is overcoming the fear to attempt it in the first place. Belief in the force, Luke or Lucy!</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;"><b>On the day that you got your famous footage, were you taken by surprise? Or were you expecting to find something?</b></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;">On Saturday 26th May 2007 at about 9 PM </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;">(British Summer Time) I began to have doubts about my past 4 years and approx 160 hours attempting to observe the Loch Ness Monster, but with no luck. I had virtually decided not to investigate it in future. Although, one hour earlier I observed a good omen, a rainbow across the Loch. Then, whilst I was sat in the car, 70 foot above the loch (parked in a small parking area), around</span><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5cz-aC1Oku6w6IL02uERK_PmlPwmcJ4dMa1jTR5frmqb0RP0V_D1u2T2-J9Hy9pRvpcUhoQczTeGf7OWBga_IiJIuk88sPnJTdeGBbN4tVX1QpQWz9lGMWZeFwzAEWnJgBmBt/s1600/unnamed.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5cz-aC1Oku6w6IL02uERK_PmlPwmcJ4dMa1jTR5frmqb0RP0V_D1u2T2-J9Hy9pRvpcUhoQczTeGf7OWBga_IiJIuk88sPnJTdeGBbN4tVX1QpQWz9lGMWZeFwzAEWnJgBmBt/s320/unnamed.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;"> 9: 30 PM,</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;"> I noticed something moving tangentially across my line of sight about 150 yards away. I grabbed the camcorder and dashed next to the edge of the parking area. </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;">It took me about 20 seconds before I caught in through the camcorder viewfinder. For the next 2 minutes, I recorded, panned and zoomed in and out on the moving object. It seemed to be moving about 6mph. During this time, I also looked at it with just my eyesight. It was jet black but, appeared to be a couple of feet above the loch level with the water flowing over it. It was very aerodynamically shaped, like a Dolphin or a Big eel's head. Finally, it went out of visible range. When I stopped filming, I started shaking, for I knew this was going to be a massive sighting. A year later, Scottish TV told me their webpage showing my sighting, had about 1.8 million hits in the first 2 weeks!</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;"><b>DId you read about the Loch Ness Monster as a child?</b></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;"> I was aware of the Loch Ness mystery from about the age of 10 years (1962) when my Mother bought me a small glass-like Nessie (actually, it was probably meant to be a stylish swan). My oldest Brother took me camping in Scotland during the early days of Skylab. For I remember seeing a large solar flare flowing off the low down, hazy sun. We had stopped near the shores of Loch Ness when it happened. (Note: Gordon warns that people should not look directly at the sun. :) )</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;"><b>Why do you think the legend of the Loch Ness monster is so enduring?</b></span><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0_tcU9MNFZML1vAOExXfkWM1HQ8ia49xojm49E-9o7qoEDbksErutUvx3iu0yVsVv-4gJQ5R-OYnEMUhjoSoeYun6wU-zyI1ttyVssPZcs01b0JmoElL7a6j4_i-PDbqn-1Qw/s1600/unnamed+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0_tcU9MNFZML1vAOExXfkWM1HQ8ia49xojm49E-9o7qoEDbksErutUvx3iu0yVsVv-4gJQ5R-OYnEMUhjoSoeYun6wU-zyI1ttyVssPZcs01b0JmoElL7a6j4_i-PDbqn-1Qw/s320/unnamed+%25281%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;">When you observe tourists standing next to the Loch, they are praying to see Nessie. Whether they are from the US, Canada, Japan or Europe, they all are desperate for a Sighting. They want to believe, but should Nessie move quickly towards them, everyone would scream and quickly vanish, not surprisingly. </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;"><b>Do we really want mysteries like this to be solved? Or is the joy in the quest?</b></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;">As you say, it is the quest to solve the mystery that brings out our efforts. If we then solve it, the challenge has dissipated. I suppose if we knew all the Universe's biggest mysteries, then what would we search for? Fear not, though, is it likely we Humans will solve everything? Very unlikely, since we will probably be extinct long before then.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;"><b>You've been to Loch Ness many times, but to most of us in America it's just the name of a famous body of water. What is the most striking thing about Loch Ness?</b></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;">Since 2003, I believe I have had seventeen visits to investigate the Loch and Nessie. One year I visited four times. Usually, it is for a one week duration.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;">Loch Ness has many different aspects/treasures to it. One of the major influences is the weather. </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;">A foggy, murky loch has a mystical, frightening feel to it.</span><br />
<br style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;" />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;">A bright, sunny loch would be wondrous and delightful.</span><br />
<br style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;" />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;">Four days of continuous rain at Loch Ness would obviously be depressing.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;">Your 2007 webpage blog mentioned a romantic legend, which is something I never thought of, Julia. </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;">A child would be excited, but would also experience a scary-like sense.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilHf_3EAdNMu2rzjhNezqwK5IiZ5KQnfjxiwxbAcf7IItYqpYJ0A_ebK6OuFw4EOEkMbeGMWUdXbkPYPIBOAZlaUjI6bzlZMHeCnwpv9t3NGB9k6O776hyKEkJ4nHPlaX60Kit/s1600/unnamed+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilHf_3EAdNMu2rzjhNezqwK5IiZ5KQnfjxiwxbAcf7IItYqpYJ0A_ebK6OuFw4EOEkMbeGMWUdXbkPYPIBOAZlaUjI6bzlZMHeCnwpv9t3NGB9k6O776hyKEkJ4nHPlaX60Kit/s320/unnamed+%25282%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;">To me it's a vast expanse I know well, a sort of friend, a second homecoming. The weather can change within minutes, so its never boring. However, the Real Monster of Loch Ness ia the Midge, a tiny biting fly thing. If the loch is calm and it is about to rain, beware of the Midge - aaarr!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 14.6667px;"><b>Do you believe in the Loch Ness Monster?</b></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 14.6667px;"><b><br /></b></span></span>
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 14.6667px;"><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;">Reports of Monster sightings at Loch Ness go back centuries, even to Saint Columba - 565 AD. For many years the locals would not discuss, if they had a sighting, since, they were very superstitious. However, based on hearsay, they describe a horrible looking Beastie. From the 1930s, there have been many hoaxes, and unfortunately it still happens up to the present day. The Experts agree that my footage was genuine, but they do not agree what it was. There is a TV Programme called, 'River Monster' and the Chap it is based around, catches very large and rare fish all over the world. He proves the local legends are indeed, true. </span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 14.6667px;"><br style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;" /><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;">Therefore I believe one or more large, scary looking Monsters could exist in Loch Ness over the centuries. Based on my footage, I would guess I filmed two large eels or dolphins (about 8 to 12 foot long), although, I don't believe anyone else has observed Dolphins in the loch before.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 14.6667px;"><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 14.6667px;"><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;"><b>Thank you so much for chatting with me, Gordon!</b></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 14.6667px;"><b><br /></b></span></span>
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 14.6667px;"><b><br /></b></span></span>
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 14.6667px;"><b>Finally, here's an interview with Gordon on YouTube from the time of his sighting.</b></span></span><br />
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<!-- End of StatCounter Code --></div>Julia Buckleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270211923343731659noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-63526208617334561382017-02-19T16:23:00.000-07:002017-02-21T07:27:08.163-07:00English Thriller Writer Jane Corry Shares Her Thoughts About Serpentine Plots, Sea Views, and Second Marriages<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9pQ2lbMFKbM5HPOcgE-gee5jGl3LAxLp3UHbCw0NH86oSKJnrd3ay56fpVLScTUim4uLpYKgohJJLMrCkxGQOHJq7yRYks95sRz6-5Mtzlnha-b722A8zMCGAv3wy6q2FykRe/s1600/jane+corry.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><i><b><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9pQ2lbMFKbM5HPOcgE-gee5jGl3LAxLp3UHbCw0NH86oSKJnrd3ay56fpVLScTUim4uLpYKgohJJLMrCkxGQOHJq7yRYks95sRz6-5Mtzlnha-b722A8zMCGAv3wy6q2FykRe/s320/jane+corry.jpg" width="320" /></b></i></a></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333;"><b>Jane Corry</b></span><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-weight: 700;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">is a writer and journalist and has spent time as the writer in residence of a high-security prison for men—an experience that helped inspire </span><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333;"><b>My Husband’s Wife</b></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">, her debut thriller, published by Pamela Dorman Books. Corry runs regular writing workshops and speaks at literary festivals worldwide, including The Women’s Fiction Festival in Matera, Italy. Until recently, she was a tutor in creative writing at Oxford University.</span></span></i></div>
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<b>Jane, thanks for chatting with me!!</b><o:p></o:p><br />
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<span style="color: blue;">Thank you.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<b> This is a complex story; it spans many years and
alternates between two points of view. Every character <span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">has secrets.</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">What gave you the initial idea for the novel</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">? </span></b></div>
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: red;"> </span></span><span style="color: blue;">Three things! Working in a high-security male prison for
three years. Getting married again
during that </span></span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="color: blue;">me. And my love of twists. I couldn’t help wondering about the
relationship between first and second wives. Everyone assumes they shouldn’t
get on. But what if a second wife had to ask the first wife a big favour? And
suppose that involved a criminal who might actually be innocent. The book leaps
forward fifteen years in the middle. So almost anything could happen….</span></span></div>
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<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;">You’re a journalist as well; what made you want
to delve into fiction, specifically the thriller format? </b></div>
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<span style="color: red;"> </span><span style="color: blue;"> I always wanted to be a novelist. I started writing little stories and poems
from the age of three. I only became a journalist because I needed to earn my
living and journalism seemed the best way because it involved writing. But then
I had my own columns and was also bringing up three children – so had to put my
original plan on the back burner until now. But it was worth it! </span><span style="color: red;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;">The title is intriguing; we don’t really get to
know its significance until later in the book. Did you go through several
titles before you decided on this one, or was this always the one you had in
mind? </b></div>
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<span style="color: red;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: red;"> </span><span style="color: blue;"> It started out in my head as ‘My Husband’s New
Wife’ but then evolved into ‘My Husband’s Wife’. I like contradictions! It
makes people think twice….</span><span style="color: red;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Y</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">our characters are all flawed in one way or
another.</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Is it easy to guide your
creation into making the wrong decision, or are you tempted, as the author, to
let them have a different (and potentially more positive) outcome? </span></b></div>
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="color: blue;">I love flawed characters because it makes them more
realistic. We all have flaws. I certainly do. As a reader, I don’t want a
perfect character. I believe we are all here on earth to learn lessons and that
means making mistakes along the way. Having said that, I do want them to have a
positive outcome at the end!</span></span></div>
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<b><o:p> W</o:p><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">hat sorts of books do you like to read? Which
authors are your role models? </span></b></div>
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="color: blue;">At the moment I’m reading
Christobel Kent’s <i>The Loving Husband</i>. I chose it because I met her when we were
both speaking on a panel recently. I’m enjoying her style of writing and the
riddles. Normally I don’t read psychological thrillers because I like to keep a
distance from my own genre. I adore Anne Tyler and also Fay Weldon. I was lucky
enough to meet Fay when I interviewed her as a young journalist and we’ve
remained friends ever since. </span></span></div>
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="color: blue;">I’m also a huge fan of Alice Munro. I came across
her when my now grown-up daughter was at school. I always used to read my
children’s texts so I could test them – preferably in the car where they
couldn’t run away!</span></span></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><b>Several scenes take place in prisons, and you
were once the writer-in-residence of a men’s prison. How did this come about?
How long did this experience last? What were your most prominent impressions of
the experience? </b></span></div>
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<span style="color: red;"> </span><span style="color: blue;"> I started working as writer in
residence in a high-security male prison when my first marriage ended. The
original contract was for two days a week for two years but they asked me to
stay on for a third year. I was very struck by a number of factors. Although I
was scared at first, I lost that fear when I was inside, working with the men
and helping them to write life stories, poems, novels and short stories. Words
are a great leveller. </span></div>
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<span style="color: blue;"> I was also surprised by the fact that many criminals
don’t look like they’ve done something awful. Some could have been a next door
neighbor whom I might ask round for dinner. It wasn’t considered polite to ask
what their crime was but sometimes they told me. Then I wished they hadn’t. It’s
one thing to help a man write a story. But when they’ve confessed that they’ve
killed or gang-raped, you can’t help but look at them in a different way. I was
also struck by the amount of writing talent in prison. I entered some of my
men’s work for competitions and many won prizes. </span></div>
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<span style="color: blue;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue;"> Writing can improve
self-confidence and self-worth. It’s been proved that this can reduce the risk
of re-offending. I am now a life story judge for the Koestler Awards which give
prizes for writing and art to men and women in prison and mental institutions.</span><span style="color: red;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><b>You are very good at withholding facts from your
reader without them realizing, at the time, that the facts are missing. Is it
difficult to plot this way? </b></span></div>
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<span style="color: red;"> </span><span style="color: blue;"> Often the twists occur to
me when I’m writing. Sometimes they come as I do the research (which I often do
during the actual writing process). Then I go back and sow the seeds. So to
answer your question, it’s complicated rather than difficult. But there’s
nothing like that electric thrill when you suddenly think of another twist!</span><span style="color: red;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: red; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">In which environment can you write most
productively?</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Do you have any writing
rituals?</span></b></div>
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<span style="color: blue; text-indent: -0.25in;">I need complete peace. I’ve just about trained
my new husband not to interrupt me! This is easier now the children are older
although I also look after my granddaughter for two days a week.</span><span style="color: blue; text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="color: blue; text-indent: -0.25in;">I write at the top of the house, overlooking
the sea. I live in the UK so it’s quite cold although I love to swim for most
of the year (in a wet suit!). I also write in the morning after a dog jog along
the beach and breakfast with my husband over the crossword. If it’s a grannie
day, I’ll</span><span style="color: blue; text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="color: blue; text-indent: -0.25in;">catch up by writing in the
evening instead.</span></div>
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><b>That sounds wonderful! I am envious of your sea view. How long did it take you to write MY HUSBAND’S
WIFE? </b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1M7g6uLCV44OFiU46vGsd4VTX3w6d8QJ_iCQ_RrZ9TxDTZgUsgCsz70vE6G9azE-ltqTzVVVjcAdGN8wcNGy50m4bJxNB__qXnquTQNKouqnn93y8grCPWb_8uMxeknLYdU7H/s1600/31227076.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1M7g6uLCV44OFiU46vGsd4VTX3w6d8QJ_iCQ_RrZ9TxDTZgUsgCsz70vE6G9azE-ltqTzVVVjcAdGN8wcNGy50m4bJxNB__qXnquTQNKouqnn93y8grCPWb_8uMxeknLYdU7H/s320/31227076.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="color: blue;">Three and a half months of writing every day for
the first draft. Then another four months for the whole editing process. I’m a
journalist. I write fast. It’s what I was trained to do. But after so many
years on the keyboard, my handwriting has suffered!</span></span></div>
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><b>You do not live in the United States. Have you
ever visited? </b></span></div>
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="color: blue;">Absolutely! I have been to New York four times. Once with
my first husband. Then on my own with my youngest son which was a real learning
curve as it was my first time alone. We stayed with friends in Connecticut and then
went to visit my older children who had summer jobs in upstate New York. </span></span></div>
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="color: blue;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="color: blue;">Then I
did a road trip with my second husband and visited Margaret Mitchell’s house in
Atlanta – this was on my wishlist as I adore <i>Gone With The Wind</i>. The last trip
was a transatlantic crossing on the Queen Mary 2 which my second husband
surprised me with! Amazing. I’d love to do it again one day…. </span></span><span style="color: red; text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span></div>
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<b><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">For those of us who might visit England, what is
a sight that we absolutely must see before we leave? </span></b></div>
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="color: blue;">The
sea. There’s nothing like it. I’d suggest going round the whole coastline! If
you could only go to one place, I’d suggest the Isle of Skye. I went there
three years ago with some cousins to visit the Macdonald ‘family castle’ which
is now in ruins. I had an uncle who married several times so I have lots of
wonderful cousins from a variety of nationalities ranging from Chinese to
Canadian. Most of us have parents who
died young, but we are all very close and extremely proud of our heritage. Skye
has some amazing scenery and people.</span></span></div>
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<b><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">Thank you! I will remember that. H</span></span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">ow can readers find out more about you and your
writing? </span></b></div>
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<span style="color: red;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="color: red;"> </span><span style="color: blue;"> Through Twitter and my author page. Do check
out <a href="http://janecorryauthor/" target="_blank">@janecorryauthor</a> on Twitter </span></div>
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</div>
<span style="color: blue;">and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100010669391643&hc_ref=SEARCH&fref=nf" target="_blank">Jane Corry </a>on Facebook. Thank you for having
me! Meanwhile, I hope you enjoy MY HUSBAND’S WIFE. No one is quite who they
seem!</span><span style="color: red;"><o:p></o:p></span><div class="blogger-post-footer"><!-- Start of StatCounter Code -->
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