A Take on Thoreau

by Jill Amadio

Yesterday I watched a three-hour TV documentary on Henry David Thoreau. The life of the writer, poet, essayist, photographer, and author of several books, including “Walden,” was laid out in phenomenal detail. His opinions, deep thoughts, and reflections later led me to realize, as I subsequently watched “Murder, She Wrote,” that I have no such thoughts. I rarely reflect on nature, as Thoreau did, although I appreciate and enjoy it tremendously when I look out my slider at the newly budding trees that look back at me. I greet them every morning, but unless there is a decent breeze to indicate some kind of response by shaking their leaves, they ignore my enthusiastic “hello, there!”

The longer I listened and watched the history of Thoreau’s output of 20 volumes, the more I came to realize that my own thoughts and reflections are quite shallow.

I have no profound insights to share with readers, no cutting-edge philosophy to present as my own, no Thoreau-style literary observations.

But all is not lost, I comforted myself. My brand new reflection after that three-hour devotion to one of America’s most revered writers (born 1817 in Concord, Massachusetts) is that it is acceptable to be shallow. I have quite a few friends I regard lovingly as shallow, at least by the way they write and demonstrate, by their talks with me.

Shallow is sometimes a reputation given to mystery writers who write solely to present a puzzle.  For this, they are to be celebrated and congratulated. Figuring out plots and sub-pots is, to my mind, quite an exercise in innovation, subtlety, at least a partial knowledge of forensics and weaponry, and, above all, a good grasp of human behavior. Yet these attributes and talents are not always appreciated.

Writers are urged to observe people in cafes, employees and bosses at work, and various situations that can provide grist for the mill.

A couple of blank faces stared back at me in my writing class last week when I talked about this, one of my favorite idioms. Grist for the mill that can provide an overwhelming preponderance of research we can’t use, or exactly the clue we are seeking to complete the puzzle.

I think that shallow thoughts are a gift. They prevent us from digging too deeply into a subject, wasting precious writing time on too much information.  Shallow thoughts, however, can become too simplistic when we write ridiculous plots and create absurd characters.

On the other hand, an advantage of shallowness is a sense of freedom that comes with writing whatever we like and to heck with traditional publishers. Hail Amazon’s KDP!

Admittedly, several books published on their site are a waste of money, but they can serve as a lesson in what not to create.

I have not heard the word “shallow” spoken anywhere, perhaps never, not even with regard to the ocean or swimming pools. Yet to my mind, the word sounds exactly like the condition it is describing: of little depth.

I am not offended by my shallowness. It affords a certain caché to a sentence when written for all levels of readers, especially foreigners.

Another writing exercise I sometimes enjoy is substituting “shallow” for a word, turning a sentence into a conundrum that requires more thought than originally written, simply by considering the replacement.

I read that Thoreau advocated abandoning waste and illusion to discover life’s true essential needs. I’m not quite sure what that all means, but it is probably extremely profound. A writer’s needs are, I am sure, infinitesimal compared to those of the great writer when he wrote in longhand, while we have the luxury of laptops.

Thoreau died in 1861 at the age of 44, but his wide-ranging output and influence spanned abolitionism, civil disobedience, and world figures, including Mahatma Gandhi, Tolstoy, and Martin Luther King. All I seem to influence is my neighbor’s Beagle when it wants a treat.

Among my shallow thoughts are those of finances. How would I ever be able to afford the clothes with which to meet King Charles III, George Clooney, or Ralph Lauren?  My shoe collection has dwindled to a few flat Mary Janes, and all my heels have gone to Goodwill.

Whither my latest mystery? Awaiting a bolt from the blue, or at the very least, a few shallow thoughts with which to proceed.

Redundancies and Series: How to Make Both Work.

by Jackie Houchin

A couple of weeks ago, Gayle shared with us about repeats and redundancies in our writing and how to avoid them. This is only one of the points she’s taught to keep our writing enticing and enjoyable for our readers. She used the TV show, Murder, She Wrote, to illustrate both the allowed and the frowned-upon redundancies.

“TV series like book series need formulas to stay consistent,” one person commented. “It’s why we keep going back.”

On the same note, I love books in a series.  When I find a well-written and fun series, I will begin with the first installment, read right through to the last, and then hope there will be more to come. They have the same main characters (which I’ve grown to love) and the plots, although varied, follow a basic plan each time. The settings can be here and there, I don’t care.

(Oops!  Yes, I know that for some readers, the PLACE where the series happens is the ‘sweet spot,’ as in outer space, a certain beloved city, or on a cruise ship. It’s why they keep returning for book after book. Sorry!)

Anyway, in a series, I know what to expect, even though I don’t know what to expect, if you get my meaning.

…

One series I enjoy is Canadian author Iona Whishaw’s Lane Winslow Mysteries. They are set in British Columbia (with a few side excursions) shortly after WWII. Lane was a British spy during the war, and she uses her “secret” skills to help the local police inspector solve crimes.

The author has written 13 installments, so far, with a little prequel thrown in.  I’ve read all but the last, and have just purchased it. It’s a series that can keep going with the same characters and slightly altered plots.

…

I have also enjoyed Gabrielle Meyer’s Timeless series, which combines mystery, light romance, and history across a dozen settings and eras. She uses a “time-crosser” or two in each book. These gals (and sometimes guys) are in one of two settings every other day until they turn 25. At that point, they must choose the one they wish to remain in.

While the plot is essentially the same (a choice between two lives, weighing the costs and benefits of each), the era and places, along with the wonderfully researched history, make each book different. They do not follow one another chronologically, like the Lane Winslow Mysteries.  It’s a series that can continue as long as the author wants, but each story stands alone. They repeat only in form.

…

The other series that hooked me was Ashley Weaver’s Electra McDonnell Mysteries. In these, Electra is a skilled safecracker from a family of thieves who is coerced into working for British Intelligence to avoid prison. Of course, a handsome Major is her handler. Sparks happen, but she is SO “not fitting” for a high-born Brit. Very exciting, suspenseful, and FUN. 

The books in this series follow a close chronological order and have a natural ending in book five.  If I want to read more in this series, I will have to re-read from book one.

…

Where was I? I guess I segued from redundancies, repeats, and formulas to book series. But these examples show that YOU can write a short or long series that grabs and holds your readers without resorting to boring repetition or copycats.

(And for my faux pas about setting, there IS a series I love set on the cruise ship, Siren of the Seas.  It’s Hope Callighan’s Millie’s Cruise Ship Mysteries.  Set aboard a luxury cruise ship, now as familiar as my own house, or at a port o’ call, the books feature recurring characters and similar plots. The story advances chronologically with each book, and there are multiple dozens of books in the series.)

I’d love your comments on the book series you love (and why you love them – characters, settings, plots?).  I have hundreds more I couldn’t list.  Let’s compare!!

Cats in Mysteries

by Maggie King

Want to make a good mystery even better? Add a cat.

Seriously.

Many mystery series feature feline companions. The most famous one is The Cat Who … series, created by the late Lilian Jackson Braun. The stories feature reporter Jim Qwilleran and his Siamese cats, Kao K’o-Kung (Koko for short) and Yum Yum. Koko has a “sixth sense” that gives him stellar powers of detection.

Shirley Rousseau Murphy also anthropomorphizes her feline detective, Joe Grey, P.I. I was on an Alaskan cruise a few years back and borrowed Cat Pay the Devil from the ship’s library. I had to return the book when the cruise ended but purchased a copy as soon as I got home. It’s a truly charming series.
Midnight Louie is the late Carole Nelson Douglas’s feline super sleuth. Rita Mae Brown’s Mrs. Murphy even speaks. I loved Jennifer J. Chow’s Sassy Cat Mystery Series, and was sad when she didn’t continue it.

Some cats leave the detecting to their human companions. Lydia Adamson, Susan Wittig Albert, Linda Palmer, Gillian Roberts, and Rosemary Stevens are just a few of the authors who feature cats as “window dressing.” Often literally, as cats like to perch on window ledges, watching the world go by.

Just as my Olive stole my heart, she also stole the heart of Hazel Rose, the title sleuth in my Hazel Rose Book Group series. Shammy, Daisy, and Morris, now enjoying eternity together across the rainbow bridge, live on in my series. They don’t detect (Olive hunts down mice and voles, but shies away from killers).

I haven’t forgotten our canine friends–Linda wouldn’t forgive me if i did! The Robbins Library in Arlington, Massachusetts features an impressive list of mysteries with pets, cats AND dogs.

The cats of my life. Top: Marie, Shammy, Daisy; Bottom: Olive, Morris

Originally published in 2018 on the now defunct Pets, Paws, and Claws blog.

PART 3 – Always Ask Yourself

                                Does it advance the story?

                                Does it enhance the story?

                                Is it redundant?

Writers find ways to advance their story by dropping new bits of information or enhancing the story by giving a terrific description of a person, place or thing, but do they ever check to see if they visited the same place too many times or discussed the same bit of business in their story with way too many other characters?  When that happens too often it starts feeling like the writer ran out of material and is just filling up a few blank pages.

In the old Murder She Wrote episodes, good ol’ Jessica Fletcher would drop a clue early on during any given episode only to remember that incident later and realize it was, indeed, a clue to the killer. Now you might call that procedure “redundant” since it happened in every episode, but if you were a fan and watched a lot of the re-runs you would probably be looking for those hints at the beginning of the show and see if you can catch the clue before Jessica does.

I’ve been watching the old episodes and actually watch for those subtle hints so I can beat Jessica to the killer.  They do a good job having all the actors in any given episode give subtle looks that might indicate they are the bad guy, but since all of the actors do it, you have to pay closer attention to what each person says both before and after the killing. But they seldom trudge over the same clue or drag in the same person more than once. Therefore, there is no redundancy as such.

As for what a writer should do, unless you’re writing a TV series where every episode is a carbon copy of the previous one, don’t keep throwing out the same bits of information. Figure a way to move the story along with something innovative like a new character or take the main characters in a different direction even if it’s a dead end. That’s a better use of those words you’re putting on paper.

Even redundancies as simple as having all the conversations happen around the same dinner table or office desk or even the neighborhood bar or restaurant gets old. Maybe try taking your characters for a walk in the woods or for a drive in the country. The fresh air or different scenery will be a nice background for new revelations.

Even if the characters are trapped in a cabin in the woods during a snowstorm, let the people find a quiet corner, or the sofa in front of the fireplace, or maybe have your characters climb a ladder up to the attic for some quiet conversation. Just don’t have them constantly returning to the same place. As they say: “Been there. Done that.”

Your goal isn’t to say the same thing in half a dozen different ways. It’s to say new stuff. See new things. Meet new characters. Say new stuff…See new things…Meet new characters…Say new stuff…See new things…Meet new characters…

Remember the point of this post: Don’t repeat yourself.  Write On!

Topics

by Linda Johnston

Hey, I’m up again this week at The Writers in Residence. So what’s my blog topic? Blog Topics!

How do we decide on what topics to write about in our blogs? Well, we’re all writers, and we write about sometimes similar but always different things related to writing and reading. As I was trying to determine what to write about this week, I checked on my own most recent topics as well as those of my fellow Writers in Residence.

Some of my most recent involved how fast we write, and events around us that stimulate our writing. Some of my fellow WinR authors wrote about books (of course), book events, dream jobs, including writing, paper that we use to write, and otherwise, favorite phrases, favorite seasons to write…and more.

The common thread is, of course, our writing and that of others that we enjoy reading. How to decide on the topic to write about? Read, study, consider possibilities—then do it.

One of my favorite topics is dogs, but I can’t always write about them. I do so whenever I can, though. Like here. I just got to mention dogs!

So, what will be the topic of my next blog here? Something related to writing, but I still have to ponder what.

My Paper Trail

                  By ROSEMARY LORD

D’you ever forget what you’ve ordered online? I ordered a ream pack of copy paper. I was surprised because about 2 hours later a ream of 500 sheets of white paper was delivered. “That was quick” I thought. Even for Amazon Overnight. Except it wasn’t.  I’d ordered that paper two days ago – and promptly forgot. Oh well, so now I had two reams of copy paper. A writer can never have enough paper, I told myself.

As a writer, there is nothing better than to hold a fat wad of copy paper in one’s hands and know that, like magic, it is suddenly going to be covered in your very own words.

But I think I’m becoming a bit of a “clutterholic” where stationary is concerned. It was when I thought I was running out of paper – then discovered that I wasn’t – that I realized it was high time to de-clutter my stationary stash. Where does one start? Hmmm.

With great enthusiasm, I began to pull items off the shelves onto the floor. The idea was that I could sort through it all and put back only that which I really needed.

There was a lot of it. Knee deep in assorted packets of Easy Address labels, a box of hanging files, another stuffed with manila folders, a slew of tabbed sheet protectors, ‘Avery Clean Edge Business Cards’, and so on. I had many brightly colored folders – with the plan to color code and use specific colors for certain subjects.  But I hadn’t got that far yet, so there they sat. I found five packets of photographic paper – never used.

A large stack of manuscript sized envelopes – no longer needed because we send manuscripts by email nowadays. But I had liked the satisfaction of putting my sacred, written pages in an envelope with a carefully worded cover letter, beautifully addressed and stamped and the satisfaction of taking it to the post office and sending it off with a silent prayer and crossed fingers. Most satisfying.  It is still not quite the same as eventually pushing ‘send.’ There’s no tactile interaction there. Sorry, manuscript-sized envelopes: out you go.

I filled a large box with dozens of superfluous folders, hanging files, the afore-mentioned envelopes, see-through plastic folders. And what was with the multicolored copy paper?    A ream of lime green, another of yellow. Aha! I had a plan! I remember thinking I would print my Lottie Topaz novel on lime-green paper, which would catch the eye of the editors who could not resist pulling my green-colored manuscript out from the ever-growing slush pile of submitted manuscripts.  Of course, this never worked. And I still had a lot of colored paper left over. Into the charity box it goes.

The eleven spiral notebooks I could comfortably justify. I start my writing projects scribbling in such a notebook and fill it with the outline, a plot line, then many pages of character developments, colorful backgrounds, relevant plot through-lines and dénouement thoughts.  But these were all empty. So, eleven times I bought the notebook and had not used them, so that they ended up on the shelf next to the others.  Although, in my defense, on another shelf I discovered a whole stack of well-filled such notebooks, from cover to cover crammed with handwritten ideas, characters, names to use. I did something right.  Except, why were they sitting on a shelf in the cupboard, instead of on my desk, ready to be used in my next book? But eleven abandoned, empty notebooks? Not good.

As a writer of historical books and novels, I do a great deal of research. I was smugly satisfied with the idea that I had organized my research and kept copious copies of articles on historic figures, historic buildings, historic happenings. Problem was that I had obviously found these subjects so interesting that I just had to print them out, save them and file them.  Now I was faced with two boxes of such printouts. On closer examination, many of them were duplicated. Besides, with today’s technology, I can find a lot of what I want on the internet. I saved only a few of these – in the bin with the rest of them. I said a quick “sorry” to all the trees who had given their lives to support my paper clutter addiction.

I found a whole stack of papers marked “for filing.” Glancing through them, they were clearly not interesting enough to have been filed, and I could not see why I kept them. So, they were gone, too.

And then I looked into the box-files, where I had stored many years of handwritten notes, hastily scribbled on old envelopes, paper scraps, on the reverse side of something else I’d written. What was I thinking?!  That investigation into my stationary cupboard was quite overwhelming and I knew I had to get a grip on it.

I have a new friend at the Woman’s Club who is the ultimate in techie-nerdiness. He persuaded me to get a scan-copy machine and showed me how much easier and quicker it is to scan things I need to keep, or interesting articles I want to read when I have time. Now I can access those papers, research articles, my copious writing notes and half-finished books wherever I am – on my laptop or even on my phone. And they only take up a quarter-of-an-inch-square on my desktop. Who knew? And, because I am still a bit leery of all this techno-wizardry, I still copy everything onto flash drives, just for safe measure.

I hate to admit it, but my endless trail of paper collecting has forced me into the scary world of technology, if only to save the trees.   But I still cannot resist a lovely clean notebook or legal pad, with pencil poised, so I can unleash my imagination and create a whole new world for myself and my readers. And this is where the paper trail continues.

BOOKS, BOOKS, BOOKS!

by Miko Johnston

After spending the better part of a quarter-century writing about how the world has changed, I can’t help but envision similar scenarios in the future. Imagine if humans had to start all over again. What would you preserve?

For me, books would top the list. Books would teach the necessary lessons of how to do everything, how to live, and how to learn. Books provide food for thought, whether on who we are, why we’re here, or what we can do. We read books for entertainment, stories that tell tales both familiar and foreign. Books remind us of places we’ve been to and transport us to places we’ve never been. Books can ensure our salvation.

I know which books give me pleasure, but if I had to create a repository for a new world, I’d have to consider more than which books I enjoy. For starters, I’d have to think of how to organize my selections – do I catalog them, like the Dewey Decimal System, or go with something more instinctive, like by subject headings as you’d find them in a bookstore?

Once I picked my system, I’d select books based on what future generations would need, at every reading age and level. Baby board books. Early learning books and age-appropriate stories for the young. Textbooks on critical subjects: math, the sciences, history, the social sciences, language, and literature. Medicine. Mechanics and engineering. Religion and philosophy. Law and criminology. Biographies, memoirs, and essays. Sheet music, plays, and poetry. Books that have influenced us since their publication. Learning who we’ve been, what we’ve accomplished, and I suppose in this scenario, where we may have failed, ought to guide us into the future.

Next, I’d focus on DIY/how-to manuals, everything to support the necessities of life: food, clothing, and shelter, safety, and health – physical and mental. Knowing how to raise, grow, cook, and preserve food. Weave cloth, sew, and knit. Build a house or a table and keep it functioning as well as clean, fix a leaky faucet, or rewire a lamp. How to play a musical instrument, write a play, or a story. How to interact with people. I’d do everything I could to preserve our acquired knowledge, with the same urgency as preserving humanity.

Last but certainly not least, I’d add a section of fiction, with a variety of eras, genres, and styles. Classic literature mixed with modern fiction. Books about the human condition, at least as it existed in the past. About growing up and becoming an adult. About growing old and facing mortality. About doing good and being bad. Books about human emotions. Adventures to thrill, mysteries to ponder, suspense and horror to send chills down the spine. The hybrids – science fiction, historical fiction, and creative memoir.

I don’t know if the new world will be brave, cowardly, or complacent, but as long as people are living and can read, there ought to be books.

Am I being alarmist with this scenario?

Years ago, I visited the Benaki Museum in Athens, essentially a repository of Greek culture. As I went through the chronological display of objects dating back to prehistoric times, I noticed with each passing century a gradual sophistication and technical advancement in the articles on display, including some that would be at home in modern times. Then suddenly, the objects turned primitive again. No explanation was given, but I assumed some catastrophic event, either natural or man-made, caused the change. Over the thousands of years covered in the exhibit, it happened twice.

***

If you had to create a library for the future, what books would you include?

 

Miko Johnston, a founding member of The Writers in Residence, is the author of the historical fiction series, “A Petal in the Wind”, as well as a contributor to several anthologies. Miko lives in Washington (the big one) with her rocket scientist husband. Contact her at mikojohnstonauthor@gmail.com

 

GROUP QUESTION: What is your favorite season to set a story in, and why?

 

Jackie Houchin — I like setting stories in the Fall. There are all those warm colors, of course, like red, gold, rust, brown, and even olive. I can (at least in Southern California) have my characters wear any style of clothes, from shorts, a tee-shirt, and sandals to jeans, boots, a jacket, and a hat. Hot Santa Ana winds blow. Nights come sooner. Dried leaves crunch and reveal secrets, but also hide things. Bare branches look spooky. And there is an urgency to action (before the frost comes). Also, Autumn characters can be older, wiser (or more foolish), and willing to make one last effort.

I wrote a short story titled Autumn Gold set in Central Park & San Francisco, in the Fall. It won 4th and was published in an online magazine. Autumn Gold

 

Rosemary Lord — I grew up with the cold and wet of England’s summers, longing for just a few days of no rain and some sun. So I am happiest writing about sunny summers, endless days of sun, and light evenings. I guess I just feel better writing about warm or hot places! I shut down when it’s too cold.

In Lottie Topaz and the Flicker Murders, I have also used the extreme heat of Hollywood in the 1920s, and I loved creating that atmosphere. 
 
During the cold weather of most of my English childhood, I would hibernate, so that does not feel at all creative.  My dad was in the Royal Navy, so we lived on the Mediterranean island of Malta for a while when I was tiny. It was blissfully sunny and hot. We had grapes growing in the garden, and spent days on the beach. Moving to Hollywood, California, I found a similar climate. So I stayed! 
 
 
 
Gayle Bartos-Pool — A Little Seasoning to Your Story
As writers, we can add characters, dialogue, and settings to the plot, but how about a particular season? Maybe you have a favorite one.
 
Having lived in California for decades, I got used to no seasons at all, but here in Ohio, boy, do we have four distinctive times of the year. And they can be a great background or even part of the plot. A snowstorm in winter or a beautiful autumn when leaves really do change color, or a spring when buds start to pop after one of those long winters, can be just what the characters need to tell their story.
 
I never thought about writing an entire book in a particular season, but I have used a rainy day or snow as a background in a short story. At least that’s a start.
 
 
 
Miko Johnston — I don’t have a favorite season to write about. Instead, I incorporate aspects of the seasons into my writing for atmosphere (no pun intended) – the frigid winds of winter, the springtime beauty of cherry trees in bloom, summer heat shimmering over the pavement, a bird of prey’s last hunt before migrating in autumn. Each change of season creates a natural transition in time.
 
I also use the seasons as a metaphor. By pairing or contrasting them to the emotional upheavals my characters must endure, I can enliven the story with vivid imagery or negative space (see this post).
 
 
Maggie King — My stories are set in all seasons, my favorite being autumn. I love walking under trees ablaze with the reds, golds, and oranges of the season, hearing the sound of leaves crunching under my feet, pulling my jacket tightly against the chill in the air as temperatures drop. The earthy smell of decomposing leaves and burning wood from fireplaces evoke memories from childhood—sipping apple cider, coming home to the heavenly aroma of my mother’s beef stew, celebrating Halloween and Thanksgiving. 


My novels Death Turns the Page and Laughing Can Kill You are set in autumn, as is a short story I’m currently writing.

 
 
 
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Three Simple Words

 

by Jill Amadio

Three simple words. Three common sentences.

I love you!

I hate you!

Leave me alone!

A world of emotion is expressed in each of the above and spoken or written countless times a day. Writers add drama, suspense, surprise, and expected reaction with similarly timeless ways to characterize fictional and non-fictional inhabitants of our books. The phrases are translated into practically every language under the sun – even, perhaps, Mars – because they provide us with a succinct, precise, and in some cases ruthless attention-getting way to pinpoint the exact feelings we wish to evoke in the reader or listener.

Even inanimate objects can be subject to the love or scorn of the writer. On rare occasions, I have shut down my laptop in disgust when I have failed to figure out how a sub-plot could end.

Yet, there they rest, those three-word declarations, ready to serve you. Needs if we can only make a decision or two.

In one of my favorite and frequently consulted books, the International Thesaurus, there are more than 30 categories of love, including many forms to express it, such as infatuation, and how to describe a character who is a philanderer.

As for the opposite emotion, hate, the Thesaurus offers a plethora of nasty versions from which to choose.

It is not unusual to read the first like of a book using a love or hate expression. It can lead to further reading as one wants to know who is talking, and to whom, and the reason for the love/hate word.

It is tempting to write the beginning of Chapter 1 as: “I hate you!” Bang!

This could end the book there and then if the protagonist is shot by the antagonist. There is no puzzle to solve, no cliffhangers to ponder, no flashbacks to urge one on.

Yet, do the simple sentences, “I love you,” “I hate you,” seem too pat, too worn-out?

Can’t we be more creative? Certainly, shooting someone dead is one way of expressing dislike of that person, and locking up one’s beloved in a room or elsewhere can be construed as going a bit overboard, but in fiction, all solutions are possible, if not creative.

Dullness is the death of a mystery. It can cause irritation and frustration, and the reader claiming they can write a far more interesting book than the author. Can this be true?

Agatha Christie writes in her autobiography, which incidentally reads more like a travel guide than a writer’s life, that she began concocting and writing her first mystery as a dare. Happily, she had connections to gents and a publisher and went on to write several dozen more. In her memoir, she tends to flip off her success and says she preferred to go with her archaeologist husband to digs in Syria, where they had a second or third home.

I often wonder if writers in other parts of the world have more descriptive nouns and verbs than English-speaking countries. Perhaps their foreign forms of thriller are more gripping, compelling, or surprising. I have to admit, some of these translations sometimes lack commonsense answers to all the questions aroused in their book, in my opinion, although there are plenty here, too. .

However, it is fascinating to read the translations and, if need be, try to figure out the plot. Occasionally, the rhythm and flow of the writing is unexpected, a good way to grab one’s faltering attention or its opposite. Resonance can also be a neglected area, yet our three simple short sentences fit the bill in those cases perfectly. Some writers struggle to express love/hate declarations differently, and often succeed, but why mess with those three wonderfully descriptive words needlessly?

Yes, we are free, thank goodness, to write as we wish without, I hope, government interference or discipline. All writers need is their own sense of compelling writing that offends few book buyers, to say nothing of agents, publishers, and marketers.

The most magnificent, powerful three words?

“We the people…”

 

Holding your breath!

by Jackie Houchin

 

I’m sorry this is late.

I forgot.

I had medical tests on my mind.

I had to get an MRI early Wednesday morning, and it was the only thing on my mind.

Not a fun experience.

But neither was the breast cancer surgery I had two years ago. This was merely a deep scan of my left side to see if….

I held my breath.

Things are different on that side of me now with scars and after radiation, so it’s hard to tell what’s okay and normal.

So I held my breath.

A message from Hoag Hospital…

“Benign.  No malignancy. Congratulations.”

Whew.  I let out a long breath.

Thank You, God!

I can breathe again.

.

Thanks for your patience.