“To touch readers on an emotional level, you’ll need your main characters to desire something your readers also desire.” Steven James from Story Trumps Structure. Today, as I stood in line to vote, I read a craft book. After about fifteen minutes, I casted my vote and felt satisfied that this election is almost over. More than any election, I’ve …
Do you know the beauty in your story? Sometimes, especially if you’re a novelist, you don’t write or share anecdotes about your personal history, family history, and inspiring story. We’re creating unknown worlds and characters, so why leave the world of daydreams and fantasies to dive into our autobiography? I recommend we do. Helps us to understand ourselves and our …
Lately, my husband and I have been reading poetry together. Usually at the dinner table. We take turns reading a short poem out loud. Poetry is the language of symbols. Depending on the type, it can elicit violent feelings and emotions. Or linger into your soul like a melancholy thought. Or it can inspire with its beauty and rhythm. And …
How as storytellers do we tackle the issue of brokenness? Can we tell a story without giving absolutes and solutions to every tragedy or unknown? It’s tempting to provide answers to every philosophical and even spiritual questions our story poses, but is that the author’s responsibility? Or is art showing life in its true form? Art is what is, even what …
“A bridge of silver wings stretches from the dead ashes of an unforgiving nightmare to the jeweled vision of a life started anew.” ― Aberjhani, Journey through the Power of the Rainbow: Quotations from a Life Made Out of Poetry Two elements in every story are a death and resurrection. Death to a dream. Death of a loved one. Death to a …
To conclude with this month’s focus on Love At the Mayo, I wanted to provide notable events from 2018, the year my novel takes place. With the ongoing pandemic of 2020, 2018 feels like light years away. Since my novel starts May 2018, I’ll list some historic or notable events that occurred from that date to the end of that …
Today on a vlog, I collaborate with my husband, Robert Ward. He has played an important role in my work in progress, Love At the Mayo. He not only encouraged me to write this story, but he also intertwined our love story to the iconic Mayo Hotel. Check out the vlog to learn more!
Continuing on my introduction to my work-in-progress novel, Love At the Mayo, if you’re not from Tulsa, you might wonder, What is the Mayo, anyway? Why the Mayo? The Mayo Hotel is on the National Registry of Historic Places. Located in downtown Tulsa, the Mayo has endured a colorful, and at times, tumultuous history, starting in 1925 when it opened …
The very essence of romance is uncertainty. -Oscar Wilde Last week we dived into recovering from a broken heart and my character’s, Celine Monroe, healing journey. You can …
What would you do if you saw your significant other holding hands with someone else at a restaurant? Someone who isn’t family? That’s the dilemma my protagonist, Celine Monroe, faces in my work-in-progress novel, Love At the Mayo. Although Celine and her boyfriend’s relationship is on life support, she still feels betrayed, confused, and hurt. Here’s an excerpt: …
