A Poem at Month's End... And a Warning to Editors...

 In honor of National Poetry Month, I'm posting a revised edition of a poem I wrote a number (too many to admit to) years ago. At the time, it was a contest winner on the Write Side Out blog/website (which no longer exists). For everyone who's tried or is trying to get a traditional publisher, this is for you:

Mr. Mink is looking at you, Editor 

Dear Editor, I Have Your Cat

Dear Editor,

I have your cat.

What, no contract?

To Monserrat,

I'll ship your cat.

Refuse to deal?

There's no appeal,

cat's fate you'll seal.

I swear, for real.

Oh, change your mind?

Your cat you'll find

once contract signed

and deal we bind.

Don't want too much,

just fame and such,

fat check to clutch,

then lunch- NO DUTCH.

Ignore this note,

and this I quote,

cat packed on boat,

and then I'll gloat.

What can you do?

Except boo hoo.

Choose- cat or you.

My book debut...

Exclaimer here, I have two rescue cats currently and would never hurt any creature (except spiders that invade my personal space, i.e. inside my house and alligators in my pool). So I'd probably only steal the cats and secretly keep them. ;) 

Char

Beware the Hole!

I was relaxing, in my jammies, with a cup of tea and a cat on my lap, watching one of my favorite Hallmark movies. In the first 10 minutes.... Plot hole!

Photo courtesy of Anthony DeRosa, Pexels.

And it wasn't the only one. By the time I got to the end, there were 8 plot/situation holes. How did all of them get past:

author

agent

editor

copy/film editor

producer

director?

Here they are:

1- A minor character, a soldier, tells main character that he and girlfriend set wedding date. He immediately gets killed. Main character gives dog tags to 'widow.'

2- As the camera pans through the picturesque town, sometimes there is snow, sometimes not- and sometimes it's the same place, like a main character's home, on the same day. (not a plot hole, but a situational/filming hole. Still, someone missed it.)

3- Main female character's hair is perfect when she is in the office. She goes outside for a brief scene, hair gets wet from falling snow and looks droopy. Yet, walks into the office and wa-la! hair is perfect again!

4- A supporting character has a horse drawn sleigh, and mentions he wants to put wheels on it. Camera pans across sleigh, and... it has wheels.

5- It's a Christmas movie, so there shouldn't be little green buds on the trees....

6- This is more an acting thing, but director should have caught it- female lead doesn't close her eyes when kissing the hot male character, so I'm not convinced of the attraction. (I would have offered to take her place.)

7- People in the church are singing (really pretending) and their mouth movements don't match the words to the songs. At least the main characters seem to know the words. (The others have hymnals so they should have been able to fake it better....)

8- In the end scene, the main female character is chasing after the main male character, who's had a head start leaving town. And yet, she had time to run to a diner and get a chicken salad club with extra crispy curly fries to go, and bring it to him.

Don't get me wrong, I still love the movie, but careful editing is essential. I've read books where I stop and say, "Wait! That can't be!" It's even WORSE when it's my own book.

So Hallmark, call me, I'll be happy to watch and suggest edits. And, maybe, you could take a look at my manuscript....  ;)

Char

Ok, I'll Tell You....

I was interviewed by NFreads- this is a blog with interesting articles on all subjects: art, people, history, government, health, etc. Take a peek:

https://www.nfreads.com/

And if you're interested in what I have to say (well, you're here for that, right?) go to:

 https://www.nfreads.com/interview-with-author-charlotte-bennardo- and see/read my thoughts on writing, being an author, what quirks I have. I'm going to be lazy and just post the link....

But here's a pretty picture of my cat:

Mink

And no, I didn't photoshop his eyes (that is so beyond my skills set). They look different colors depending on light and his mood.

Till next Monday-

Char

Between Breaks...

I've finished roughing out the (almost) total re-write of my sci fi (I got to keep the first 50 out of 380 pages).

This is what I want to do:

This is what I should do:

This is what I'll probably do:

I need more chai, more mulch, ice cream for lunch, book for the kid's summer reading, and I'm sure something else...

But it's good to get away from the desk, writing,

Oh yeah, and I need to trim the cat's butt fur. *Runs to car...

Char