Category: writing

by Rosemary Lord

I always wanted to be a writer. I just didn’t know it. Or admit it.

As a child I read voraciously. And I re-read the same books over and over again.               ‘Heidi’ by Johanna Spyri was my favorite. I wanted to live on that mountainside with ‘Alm Uncle,’ her grandfather, and wander on that mountain grass with Peter the goatherd.

“A Girl of the Limberlost” was another favorite, by Gene Stratton Porter. Published in 1915 and set in America, it was described as: “A young girl’s quest for knowledge and self-worth.”  It tells of a poor girl, Elnora, desperately wanting to attend school, she collects moths to pay for her education! (Now you’ll have to read it to find out what happens!)  As a child, I got lost in that far away world deep in the heart of America.

I was always reading. So were my siblings.  Our parents loved books, encouraging us to read from a very young age.

And I always wrote. About a little girl escaping hum-drum everyday life as she escaped through the window into a magical world.  I wrote fairy-stories, the mystery of a missing cake and about a Magic Armchair! I was always too embarrassed to show anyone my scribblings, as I thought they were silly and not ‘proper writing.’ Writing was my secret world that I did not want criticized or invaded.

Our Mum was a ‘proper’ writer and got paid for it – albeit modest amounts. But she was a professional writer and member of the NUJ: The National Union of Journalists.  We were loath to disturb her as she tapped away on her typewriter – just like Jessica Fletcher in “Murder She Wrote.”   

I didn’t feel that I could ever aspire to Mum’s level of ‘proper’ writing. As a young girl I kept my dreams of writing to myself. I never felt my writing would be good enough. Ever. I stuffed down those ambitions.

But what else could I do when I grew up?

I watched the old black-and-white Hollywood movies on TV: Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, Humphrey Bogart, Joan Crawford, Greer Garson, Rosalind Russell.   I realized then that I wanted to live in Hollywood and somehow work in movies with Greer Garson and Ginger Rogers. That was my dream since I was about 8.

I got laughed at and ridiculed at school when, in class, the teenage me finally confessed my dream of a life in Hollywood. I was a skinny, asthmatic kid. “Oh yes,” they laughed hysterically, “Rosemary thinks she’s going to live in Hollywood, meet movie stars and work in the movies with them!”

But I got the last laugh. I accomplished all of that and more.

I’ve lived and worked in Hollywood most of my adult life – longer than I lived in England. I’ve met, got to know and worked with some of the biggest names in Hollywood’s celestial realm. From Cary Crant to Betty Davis, Jimmy Stewart, Deborah Kerr, John Huston, Alfred Hitchcock and, yes, Greer Garson. I’ve attended the Oscars more than once, the Emmys, the Golden Globes, the Cannes Film Festival, many film premieres and theatrical First Nights.

I have travelled across America, earning my living as an actress and a journalist for many years. I’ve had dozens of different ‘temp’ jobs in between – mostly when I lived in London and was trying to figure out how to get to Hollywood!

But I always wrote. I wrote daily in my journals. I started, but seldom finished, several novels. I earned a living when I wrote pieces on Old Hollywood and interviewed the actors, directors, producers for women’s magazines and newspapers. They were gracious and friendly – and introduced me to their fellow stars to interview, because they trusted me to write fairly and honestly. 

It wasn’t until years later, after I had written two best-selling books on Hollywood and Los Angeles history, that I realized how much I loved writing. I remembered that that was what I had always, secretly, wanted to do. No longer living in my writer mum’s shadow. No longer thinking I wanted to be an actress. I just love writing!

I am a happy member of this writers’ blog and relish creating some magic when my turn comes around. I still write daily in my journal about my hopes, dreams, disappointments and realizations. I’m currently writing the new version of Los Angeles Then and Now for Harper Collins. They bought the ‘Then and Now’ titles and seem excited to work with me on this and other ideas.

And so, I am a very happy writer. And now I finally recognize what I want to be when I grow up:  A writer! A professional writer! And I am!

What about you? Did you always aspire to be a writer?

………………………

By Gayle Bartos-Pool

The writing class I teach might be based on Aristotle’s Sage Words from his classic work, The Poetics, but I do add my own thoughts. The main one is a simple reminder. I hand out a 5 x 5 inch card that reads:

Always Ask Yourself:

Does it Advance the story?

Does it Enhance the story?

Is it Redundant?

The first point is actually something new writers don’t see until it’s pointed out by their editor or their friends or writing group that gets a chance to read an early draft of the story. It might be the result of the writer trying to beef up the number of pages in the book so it looks like a novel and not a short story. Actually, several good short stories can be published in a collection if the writer has a bunch of those shorter works. Nothing wrong with that. I’ve published several myself.

But if the writer wants to turn out a novel, those sections that just take up space don’t help the story. In fact, they slow it down because the reader starts wondering what is the point of the book if it’s full of stuff that doesn’t add anything to the plot except pages.

Whether it’s a mystery, thriller, adventure or romance novel be sure to have each section add something important to the story. Every Murder: She Wrote episode has a part in the beginning where characters are introduced but there is always that one thing that happens or is said or is pointed out in those first ten minutes of the show that points to the killer. Good ol’ Jessica Fletcher doesn’t recognize it then because the murder hasn’t happened, but she sees the light in those last few minutes of the show when she puts all those earlier pieces together. But the clue was there.

So, when you’re writing those scenes in your book make sure the scene is relevant. Maybe it introduces a few characters, one of whom might be the killer in a mystery or the new man in the leading lady’s life. Each subsequent scene or chapter can add a few new details or roadblocks to solving the murder or finding the love of the gal’s life. But a gaggle of gals in a tearoom or a bunch of boys at a neighborhood bar talking about a new dress shop in town or a bargain at the local hardware store might not add anything to the underlying story.

If the ladies talk about a gal in town who seems to frequent a certain divorce lawyer’s office a little too often or the guys mention a neighbor who seems to have come into a little extra money right after a bank robbery, then there’s a reason for the scene. But I have read books where there are scenes that provided nothing to the book at all. Personally, I never make a point of trying to figure out the killer ahead of time in a mystery, but I do like to keep track of the characters so I can make sure the clues were given even if I didn’t figure out “whodunnit” by chapter five. I just like to make sure the plot makes sense and the clues were really there.

I recently read a book by a famous author who writes an equally famous series. Names won’t be mentioned just to be nice, but this particular book had so many characters I needed a scorecard to keep track of them. To top it off, three people had contact with the deceased. One pushed him down a hill and thought they killed him. One actually killed him. One moved the dead body thinking that would protect who he thought did the deed. None of these people knew about the others. I thought yet another person, a woman, had done the deed. She didn’t though she had good reason to bump off the bum. Several others had a motive and might as well have done it since nobody liked the dead guy in the first place. The killer basically got away with it, not that nobody discovered the actual facts, but the killer was mentally challenged and he needed hospital care not a jail cell…

Overall, I was disappointed that the plot was so bloody confusing with way too many suspects and some other stuff packed into the plot that really didn’t add to the story at all. Did they advance the story…No. And they lowered the likability of the main character as well.

In Aristotle’s Poetics he listed the “Five Basic Elements of a Story.” Those Elements are Plot, Character, Dialogue, Setting and the Meaning of the story. I’ve discussed this in previous blog posts. Aristotle wants you to make sure you have some good characters in your story. I added my own requirement to the “character” qualifications. I want there to be at least one character you’d want to invite into your own house. This “famous writer” didn’t have a single character I’d invite over for a beer…Not even the hero.

Others may see the book in an entirely different light and like it. I will still write my books with a bunch of characters that most people would invite into their homes. I want those characters to have values and standards, but with some of the things I see on television I’m afraid a lot of those standards have disappeared. I’ll still craft my heroes with the standards I grew up with. I’ll continue subtly passing them along to readers through my stories because I learned things by reading good books, watching good movies, and a bunch of the old television shows that had those same standards.

As my characters learn things through various encounters at the beginning and the middle of my books they can solve the crime or make it to the destination they are seeking and the readers can enjoy following that journey because I kept advancing the story chapter by chapter because that’s the goal of a writer: Get the reader to the end of the book…and look forward to reading the next one.

So, this is part one of a three part series. See you later for part two. Write On!

from Gayle Bartos-Pool

The holidays come fast. School gets back in session in September, then it’s Halloween and then Thanksgiving. We all see Christmas decorations pop up in stores along with the ghosts and goblins and before you know it…It’s Christmas.

Do I have a problem with that? No. I start decorating right after I take down the Halloween tree and stocking.

Since I’ve been collecting Christmas decorations, especially Santas, I have a lot to unpack. I’m glad this new house in Ohio has a finished basement so I can keep some of the things out all year.

So, enjoy the season…family, friends, decorations and especially the Reason for the Season. You might celebrate this time of year in a hundred different ways, but we can all take time to wish everyone Peace on Earth, Good Will to All.

                                    By ROSEMARY LORD

            Do you ever feel that you’ll never catch up before the year ends?

Meanwhile all around, folks are panicking at not having enough time to complete their yearly goals, year-end deadlines, working to bring in much-needed last-minute, additional income after a slow financial year and wrap up assorted 2025 ventures.

At the same time, people want to make the most of the Holiday Season: Hanukkah, Christmas and New Year’s Eve.

            Many are adding travel to their already over-packed timetables, to visit relatives, distant friends, escape to warmer climes as winter weather encroaches – or just a New Year getaway on the schedule.

Some of us are asking ourselves, is this all a bit overwhelming? Have I taken on too much? Have I added too many incidental items to my accomplishment wish-list?

As writers are we pushing ourselves to finish that book before the year end, when we really need to give ourselves more time to investigate the timelines, plotlines, deepen our characters? Are we rushing to complete that article before the January 1^st deadline, just to get it out of the way?

I think that sometimes today, in our busy, rather overwhelming lives, we miss the point of the satisfaction of totally immersing ourselves in the creative pleasure that we’re privileged to do for a living. Just writing. Be it with pencil and pad, or the latest computer programs. Without the cacophony of social media expectations and the fear-of-missing-out, we would calmly (well – not always…) focus on the task at hand. We could focus on what we were writing, even when the deadlines loomed. We did not get distracted by today’s outer craziness. We researched, we wrote, we completed the assignment in a more centered way.

We were at the helm. None of the pressure from outside nudging us to keep posting things on social media or keeping up to date by reading everything on Facebook and Instagram, so we know what everyone and their cousin is doing or thinking. Being sure to read the ‘right’ blogs, attend the ‘right’ events, use the ‘right’ words, keep in touch with the ‘right’ people that may be able to boost our career or our ‘online presence,’ – or not.

What happened to the basic, simple goals we had carefully planned?

Our aim used to be to write an (almost perfect) article, book, novel, investigative report, children’s book. Something we would be fastidious in researching, writing and editing. Maybe running it by our beta-reader friends before sending it off.

But today we seem to have become distracted and overwhelmed by the outside influence of a thousand chattering voices telling us we’re not doing enough. That we should have this ‘online presence’ and become a social media darling so that everyone recognizes our faces and our logo. Everyone should have a distinctive logo, they say. Who is ‘they’?  

Yes, I appreciate that is today’s way to sell more of our books, our articles, get more advertising revenue. But I can’t help thinking that, if it’s the money you’re after and if your goal is to become a millionaire and get a million ‘clicks,’– there are a lot easier ways to do that than through the writing world.

When we started out, it was our writing that we wanted people to read, enjoy, appreciate, even applaud. Somewhere along the road that seems to have gotten lost.

Originally, we each felt we had something to say. A voice to be heard and enjoyed. But then some got caught up in the rush of outside influences, instead of listening to that calm, still voice inside our writers’ brain.

Some of us got too busy listening to everything and anything and lost our way, then found ourselves thinking, ‘Is this how I really want to spend my life?’

And this is a wonderful time, over these festive holidays, to calmly step back and remember what we came in for. Where is our time best spent? Rushing around following the crowd? Or finding our way back to our original writing goals?  

So, as we have our overfill of eggnog in the next couple of weeks, let’s take a deep breath and quietly plan for a wonderful year ahead of writing what WE want to write, in the way WE want to write it. Dust off our writing dreams – and tell Santa Claus what we really want for Christmas…

Happy Hanukkah, Merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year to all of you writers and readers out there.

by Miko Johnston

The end of December. A good time to review what’s transpired throughout the year, including all the information and revelations that came from our WInRs in 2025.

WInRs may be women of a certain age, but we keep up with the times, as evidenced by several posts – including Jill’s – on AI. I expect this subject will be revisited as the technology progresses … or perhaps takes over?

When Gayle posted Characters: Real and Imagined, I could relate to her reflections on using famous people in our writing. As the author of a historical fiction series, I had to include actual people to balance the historical with the fiction. Her tips on incorporating the famous with the fictitious will help all writers.

Maggie’s Get Those Details Right! also struck a chord with me. I’d had to research locations in Prague during Covid, which meant canceling my planned in-person trip. I learned the limits of Google Maps firsthand when certain information I got from it turned out wrong. Fortunately, other ways to research locations exist (see this post).

Being an author means you never have to retire, a point made by Linda’s post, Retirement? Even if we stop writing for publication, we can continue to pen (or type) notes, keep a diary or journal, or log our family history for future generations.

Jackie’s piece on Mystery Books to TV Series inspired me in a reverse way. I selected a few series I’d enjoyed watching and bought the books, one of which I’m reading now.

Readers of this blog know I love to travel and often do, another reason I always enjoy the journey I take whenever I read one of Rosemary’s posts. London’s World of Words and Stories not only brought me back to a city I hadn’t been to in many years but reminded me how much travel has inspired and informed me about life outside my bubble, not only as a writer but as a human being.

Possibly the most controversial post this past year came from me. In A Contrarian View of Cozies I explained why I won’t read the sub-genre. Some of the responses softened my opinion. A little. Interestingly, when I wrote about cliches in mysteries in an earlier post, I never expected life to imitate art. After the recent jewel heist at the Louvre, a photo of policemen standing guard at the facility included a very dapper man, which raised questions as to who he was:

                                                                                                         Photo by Thibault Camus/AP

According to one pundit*: “Never gonna crack it with a detective who wears an actual fedora unironically. To solve it, we need an unshaven, overweight, washed-out detective who’s in the middle of a divorce. A functioning alcoholic who the rest of the department hates.” I couldn’t have said it better myself. Turns out he had nothing to do with the investigation, but it proved my point.

Our purpose at The Writers in Residence is to entertain, inform, and encourage our readers. If you follow this blog, or recently found it, have we achieved our goal? Did any posts help or influence you as a writer?

*Melissa Chen, a tech executive based in London, wrote this in an X post that has been viewed more than five million times.

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, including the recently released “Whidbey Island: An Insider’s Guide”. Miko lives in Washington (the big one) with her rocket scientist husband. Contact her at mikojohnstonauthor@gmail.com