One Helluva Week

 

Photo by cottonbro from Pexels

Been a rough week, right? I'm not getting political because no one cares what my views are, I don't want to hear criticisms for my views, and I don't care what anyone else thinks; how I vote is private. All I'm going to say is that I'm exhausted from the turmoil and tuning into the news through the day to see what tragedy has now happened or is expected to happen. 

With all that, it's hard to think of what to blog about, so let's take current events in contemporary books. I wonder how many authors are writing, or will write, about the Covid-19 pandemic. Not me. Nor will I read any books about it because I'm living it and really, going on a year of lockdown and/or limited movement in public spaces, dealing with selfish people hoarding, the foot dragging of officials, and the devastating economic results, I want to forget this as soon as possible. It's like writing off a losing season when I was on my high school track team. Or my beloved Patriots missing the playoffs- I just want to put it in the rearview mirror. Now I did write a book (FYI looking for an editor or agent...) called the Frankenstein Vendetta which has a scene where the monster comes across a town dying from the plague- but it's set in the 1700's when those things happened more frequently, and I wrote this before the Covid pandemic.

I'm not going to read or write about coups either because I don't write politically based novels anyway, and I'm still scared/angry/disgusted/shocked etc. over the treasonous events in our Capitol. I can't imagine any story line in this whole nightmare of death, destruction, treason, and upheaval that would make me want to write or read about it. No doubt someone can, but this is too close to home for me. It's different when it's Tom Cruise taking on shadowy government figures because that's fake.

Honestly, I rarely write novels based on current events. A lot of my friends do, whether fiction or non-fiction. By the time the books come out in droves, I've already noted and moved on. If vampires are the hottest thing, I write anti-vampire or avoid it all completely. I like going against the grain, the expected.

In general I don't write about a lot of 'hot button' contemporary issues because either I don't feel I'm in a position to, i.e. diversity, gender, or social justice, and being white, straight, and middle class, I feel that there would be outrage. And if you know me, you know I don't do hand-wringing or angsty novels, I'm more of a humourous or snarky writer, although I do have non-humorous novels. I don't even write about issues that my family has faced- death by cancer, mental illness, alcoholism, bullying, etc., preferring to choose historical, mythical, fantastical, or romantic subjects which are far removed from my life.

So I hope you're safe, taking care of yourself, and taking a break from the stress and strain of these days.

Char

Drawing the Line in the Blood...

Not writing a murder mystery, but there may be some scary stuff here. I'm going to list why I won't watch certain Halloween movies.

1. Halloween (2005 remake). The original was scary. The danger of doing a remake is that we know what's going to happen. Throwing in gratuitous sex, nudity (funny, only women were nude, you sexist jerks), and cursing doesn't improve the movie. You need to do better than that. And, while it's a nice idea to give us background on Michael Meyer's childhood, I felt the movie copped out: he was subjected to bullying in the home by his stepfather and sister, and by kids at school. He lived in poverty. His mother was an exotic dancer. The house was a slum. He kills little animals before moving onto the school bully. Serial killers, psychopaths, and sociopaths don't necessarily have these disadvantages. Think of Ted Bundy, John Wayne Gacy, etc. It felt like the writers and producers wanted to give Michael an excuse for his psychotic behavior. Most of the time, remakes suck.

2. Leatherface, Texax Chainsaw Massacre, Saw, et al. These movies, while they achieve scaring the crap out of people, do it by pure gore. I know it's based on a true story, but the intense gore is totally nauseating, especially as special effects get more realistic.

3. Sequels 2,3,4.... I'm laughing at Jason and Michael after the second sequel. Ghosts, demons, vampires, and other supernatural characters can be hard to kill and/or can be resurrected. In the original premise, Jason and Michael are fully human. There needs to be an arc for them to move from human to supernatural. (Can anyone say PLOT HOLE?) At least Freddie kills in your dreams, which allows for sequels (even though they were pale ghosts of the first movie). And enough with the sequels. No one cares about Freddie, Jason, Michael, and other very tired villains. There are wonderful writers out there. PICK. SOMETHING. NEW. (Pssst, I have an idea....and a ms.)

4.  "Homemade" movies. While I thought the Paranormal Activity movies were excellent, Blair Witch was too shaky (looks like my hubs's videos at Christmas) making some people queasy. There was little tension because the camera bolts all over the place and it disorients the viewer. At least, I felt that way. And then they made a sequel? Didn't bother to watch that one.

Wanting to leave on a positive note, here are some of my faves and why:

1. Dracula (1979, with Frank Langella). It had suspense and no plot holes, and seriously, Frank Langella is the sexiest vampire. (no sparkles). He is the epitome of an alluring villain- he doesn't even have to use his 'come to me' mojo to get the gal. 
2. Paranormal Activity. In the style of Hitchcock, these movies kept you on the edge of your seat, just waiting to see a shadow- you never had to see a ghost, demon, etc. Just footprints crossing a barrier of powder on the floor scared you. And, NO GORE! They used the barest minimum special effects, but it felt realistic enough to make you sleep with the lights on.
3. My favorite Frankenstein movies are Victor Frankenstein (2015) with Daniel Radcliffe and James McAvoy, and the original b/w Frankenstein (1931). Not scary, but just so well done. Radcliffe and McAvoy bring freshness and twists to the original story. And the first is always a classic. Even over 80 years later, the purity of the original is unbeatable; Karloff is the best monster.
4. Although not scary, The Mummy (1999) with Brendon Frasier and Rachel Weisz had humor, a few made-you-jump scenes, romance, history, and was all around a fresh take- we see how he became the Mummy and the set up for his return.
5. The scariest movie ever- one that I will never watch again, is The Exorcist. If you've seen it, enough said. If you haven't, then you're afraid.....

Other faves: Blade series, The Mummy Returns, Alien, Jaws, Rosemary's Baby, Silence of the Lambs, Salem's Lot. While not all "Halloween" movies, these had tension and scenes that made you almost wet your pants. Non-scary movies: Practical Magic, Hocus Pocus, Young Frankenstein. 

I could list tons more, but you get the gist.

Wishing you Happy Haunts and Halloween!

Char

What Ever Gave You That Idea?

I'm still giddy over my Team Patriots win, that's why this post is late (plus I had to clean up after the party).

When I do author panels, or meet readers at signing events, I get asked, "How did you come up with the idea for your novel?"


For Blonde OPS, our editors at St. Martin's, Peter Joseph and Kat Brzozowski had the original idea of a 16-year-old hacker girl who goes to Rome, works on a fashion magazine, thwarts an attempt on the First Lady's life. They'd read Sirenz and liked our style. We wrote several drafts, filling in characters, plot, and details, and they offered us a contract.

Sirenz is a long way off from how it originally started... as a vampire book. With the success of books like Vampire Academy and Twilight, Natalie and I figured we could write a funny vampire book. But then we saw how many vampire books there were. And the Percy Jackson series was so popular... We decided to do a Greek mythology book for girls, only we didn't want to be similar to Percy. So we chose to focus on sirens. Of course a number of the Greek gods had to saunter through the story.

Which left us with plenty of opportunities to bring the two main characters, Meg and Shar, back. And, being that he was such a hit, Hades, the Underworld bad boy delish, was central to the plot again.

Now that I'm focusing on my solo novels, I can tell you my ideas come from a lot of places. For my sci fi novel, Lethal Dose, I watched a Discovery Channel special about space travel and the possibility of humans being able to live on other planets which intrigued me. Then I saw another program about a murderous poisoner. My devious mind put them together. (Sorry, no cover yet- I'm in the midst of revisions for my agent. Stay tuned.)

Last month I sent a my agent a middle grade manuscript based on Robert Louis Stevenson's The Strange Case of Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde. (Sorry, I can't give any more details and I don't have a cover yet...). I got the idea thinking about all the popular books that were mashups or 'rethinks' of popular stories, like Wicked and Dorothy Must Die for the Wizard of Oz. Or Pride, Prejudice, and Zombies. Or Cinder for Cinderella. I browsed through my library and wondered, which one hasn't been done...?

My two year project is another middle grade novel, but this one is historical (hence the 2 year timeline- research). It's set in 1937, at the Berlin Zoo. I saw a program on the History Channel about one of the many disturbing programs the Third Reich instituted involving pushing science past then currents limits for nefarious purposes. (I love that word and never get to use it.) Of course I can't tell you more because that would give away my twist. "Truth is stranger than fiction" is a phrase I've come to endorse, so I watch scientific, historical, and technical shows. (I can fix a lot of stuff.)

Dear to my heart is a faery story (yeah, I know, there are a lot of faery stories out there), but I like mine because it deals with murder, the Mafia, art forgeries, angry fae kings, and a conniving little backstabber out to make trouble for my main character, Breena. This idea came from... I don't remember because I've been working on this story for so many years. (I refuse to give up on it.)

There is a rough manuscript about a girl who gets a heart transplant and wakes up so very different from the operation. That idea came from an article I read in Reader's Digest about heart transplants and how one woman emerged changed more than just physically. (There's no magic or super powers involved.)

I can walk down a street and see a couple arguing--and make a story around them. I got an idea for a horror novel from watching my cat. Other inspirations? A news story about a runaway. Driving in my car and passing a twisty, unkempt street. Walking in the woods on a snowy day and seeing footprints wander off... So many things spark story ideas that I wish I had time to write them all. (Well, I would if I could just write them and not have to revise, revisit, rework them.)

So if you're stuck for an idea, watch a show that normally you wouldn't- Underground Cities. Biography Channel. Foreign news. Muscle car fix ups. Hoarders. Explore a road you've never been down (you have GPS, so don't sweat it; just get out before dark.) Rummage through an antique store and imagine the history of weird and wonderful things. Visit a hospital/nursing home and listen to people's stories. Make your worst nightmare come true. Trace your genealogy. Take two unrelated things, like a sock without a mate and the squirrel in a tree and think how they ended up together in the neighbor's yard. Harvest your dreams, especially the weird ones. Sniff your grandmother's favorite perform. Listen to a symphony you're unfamiliar with. Taste a food that grosses you out. Feel the softness of a milkweed seed.

Ideas are all around you; use your senses and your imagination. You can find a story.

Char

Bwahahahahahahahaha! Did I Scare You?

It's time for Halloween!

Some of us love it, hate it or are obsessed with it. In the spirit of a happy medium. I'm taking a simple poll: What are your fave scary/Halloween movies? The categories, and my humble opinion, are:

Vampires: My absolute is Dracula, with Frank Langella (1979). Why? Because he made evil attractive, and death a nuisance- a trait I think humans maybe too gladly embrace. (But I was torn with Underworld Evolution (2006- loved Kate Beckinsale!)

Werewolves: Without a doubt, The Howling (1981). Dee Wallace is blithely ignoring danger signals--we know what's lurking in the woods. The best scene is when someone is in the psychiatrist's office, spying, and a werewolf hand reaches over to take the file. OMG.

Zombies: This is a toss up: I adored Warm Bodies (2013) because no matter how evil a person is perceived to be (aka R in the movie) we all think (and hope) that there is a spark of humanity in the worst of us. The other choice is Zombieland (2009). It shows that it's not always might--but basic common sense--that determines who lives. And, I like how the gals are not screaming, helpless twits who constantly need to be saved or are the victims.

Mummies: Without a doubt I don't think there is any competition--it has to be The Mummy (1999) with Brandon Fraser. Although, I would love to see a movie of Anne Rice's Rameses The Damned. I think it has potential to be the best mummy movie ever.

Witches/witchcraft: This is a hard one because you have funny movies like Hocus Pocus (1993, and the sequel coming!) or dramatic ones like Practical Magic (1998), but I'd have to choose The Witches of Eastwick (1987) because again, it all starts out so innocently...

Ghost: I could go the romantic route with Patrick Swayze in Ghost (1997), because we'd all love to believe our loved ones could touch our lives once more before moving on to a paradise. But for pure scare I nominate The Woman In Black (2012) with Daniel Radcliffe because of the ending. Others, like the Paranormal series, made me squeal, but I think this movie portrayed the essential elements of a ghost story- fright, uncertainty, doubt in one's mental state- and the important twist at the end.

Haunted place: The Legend of Hell House (1973) ties with The Shining (1980). Both creeped me out because you never knew if the person next to you was caught up in the weird occurrences--until it's too late.

Now there are lots of movies that were more frightening, but I chose these for the overall feel of believability (although I don't think there ever will be zombies, vamps, werewolves, etc.), because sometimes we're not sure if it's real or just our imagination...

Boo!

Have a Happy Halloween!

Char

(All pics courtesy of Microsoft)