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What a treat is was to visit with and learn from David L. Robbins on January 10, 2023! Here’s a link to our visit on YouTube:
Here is the edited audio-only version of our visit!
Show Notes and Links:
David tells us what he’d like us to know about him after I suggest every aspiring and accomplished writer should read Isaac’s Beacon to learn writing craft.
He discusses the importance of writing as an art form.
He gives us the “elevator pitch” for Isaac’s Beacon (I give him 5 floors!)
I ask him why he wrote this book, the first in what will be a 5-book series called “The Promised Wars.” (The Shortest Road will be released on May 2, 2023, available for pre-order now)
He talks about what it was like to be raised by two WWII Veterans, and how his father and mother ended up together (a fascinating story!)
David reads Chapter 1 of “Isaac’s Beacon” and we discuss dialogue, subtext, Absolute Truth and Profound Truth.
We talk about character development and the limited use of interiority (because we both agree it cheats the reader!)
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Kathleen Kaska recently sent me her Five-Minute Writing Tips, and I had to share them with you this National Novel Writing Month! I’ve enjoyed several conversations with Kathleen during interviews about her latest books (she has many), and I hope you’ll enjoy the videos of our visits (see below Kathleen’s tips). And so, without further ado, her helpful tips! (Time to rewatch Throw Momma from the Train!)
Don’t Be Like Larry Donner: Seven R’s for Removing Writer’s Block
Was the night . . . humid, moist, or wet? Is the right word on the tip of your tongue, but you’re tongue-tied? Do you have a great scene for murdering a condescending convenience-store clerk, but can’t get his body into the beer box without being seen? Have your characters developed minds of their own, barricaded themselves in a bank vault, and refused to make an appearance on your computer screen?
What do you do now? Start by deleting the words “writer’s block” from your vocabulary, then remember the advice of Larry Donner. “Who’s he?” you ask. Remember the movie Throw Momma from the Train, a spoof on Alfred Hitchcock’s 1951 thriller, Strangers on a Train? Throw Momma from the Train stars Billy Crystal as writing instructor Larry Donner and Danny DeVito as his overzealous student, Owen Lift.
The plot in both films is based on the theory that if you eliminate the motive, you can get away with murder. In other words, “You kill mine, and I’ll kill yours.” In Throw Momma, Larry wants his wife dead, Owen his mother.
The sub-plot in the spoof has to do with writer’s block. Larry has a severe case of it, which is magnified by the murder charge against him, but the basic lesson to his students is: “A writer writes, always.” So, take Larry’s advice if the words won’t flow and follow my seven “R’s.”
1. Resurrect: Work on more than one writing project.
If you hit a roadblock while working on a story, just move to another. Allow your creativity time to process what you have written. In the meantime, continue writing. I keep several projects in the works: a proposal, an article, a blog post, or even an old-fashioned letter to a friend. This allows me to log several hours a day of writing and feel like I’ve accomplished something.
2. Rewrite: Edit what you’ve already written.
As a writer, you may like to ignore the left side of your brain, but that petty and unrelentingly critical hemisphere is your friend. While the right side of your brain allows the creative stream to flow unencumbered by rules of the English language, you have to tidy up the result with the left.
I set aside my first drafts to let them settle. When the time is right, I let my left-brain do the dirty work.
3. Research: Spend more time gathering information.
Being at a loss for words might mean you’re out of ammunition. There is no better way for me to get those juices flowing again than to delve deeper into my subject, searching for facts and anecdotes that add dimension to the piece.
While working on my article “Digging for Ancient Treasure: Agatha Christie in the Middle East,” I read Christie’s book, Come Tell Me How You Live, a humorous account of her life with her husband, archeologist Max Mallowan. This autobiographical story gave me a new perspective and added a twist to my article.
4. Regroup: Join a writers’ critique group or enroll in a writing class or workshop.
I believe a good writer, like a good teacher, is always willing to learn. For me, groups and workshops increase my motivation and benefit my writing creatively and financially. Isolating myself with my thoughts and computer might be comforting, but I cannot live on my own words alone. I need feedback.
An effective critique group is made up of colleagues, not best friends, and objective criticism is the goal. Don’t go ballistic like Larry Donner did in the film when his nemesis (Momma) gave him the perfect word. “The night was wet” might be accurate, but “sultry” rolls off the tongue and adds more depth to Larry’s description, setting the tone for his story.
Learn from your peers. The day a writer feels that he/she has learned everything there is to know about the art and business of writing is the day that writer should hang up her pen.
5. Resolve: Solve problems that interfere with your concentration.
Well, at least make an attempt. You might not be able to convince your mother not to call during your writing time, or guarantee that your four-year-old won’t fall off his tricycle, but you can arrange and organize your day to ensure fewer distractions.
Maybe you can drop off your kids at your mother’s for the afternoon, turn off your phone, notifications, or even let your emails go unread. Just remove some obstacles so that your path is clear.
6. Read: Read your favorite author.
I have several books that I call my inspirational jumpstarts. They vary from the poetic prose of Beryl Markham’s West with the Night, to the comic dialogue of Elizabeth Peters’ Amelia Peabody mystery series, to my favorite poetry book, Nine Horses, by Billy Collins. Reading a great book or story inspires me to write. Likewise, if I am writing an article and am having trouble with that first line, I peruse magazines and read the first sentences of a few articles. This gets my mind off what is not working for me and allows me to focus on what works for other writers.
7. Relax: It might be time to let your mind wander.
Watch Throw Momma from the Train. While your conscious self-relaxes, your brain is still at work processing behind the scenes. As in the movie, everything resolves itself in the end, given enough time and a change of scenery. Larry’s wife is found alive, so the murder charges against him are dropped; Owen’s mother dies a natural death, giving Owen the freedom he needs to become himself; and both writer and student publish a book.
The moral of the story: whether you are running from the law or hiding from your mother, no matter if the night is humid, moist, wet, or sultry, a writer writes—always.
Visit with us here and learn about Robert’s amazing adventures!
I was honored to share a visit today with Dr. Robert G. Williscroft, a retired submarine officer, deep-sea and saturation diver, scientist, author of numerous books . . . and so much more!
Tips and advice to storytellers out there who want to share?
Robert and I (and many other authors) will be at this year’s Georgetown Christmas Market! Come find us!
Below, the push-up contest with author Todd Fahnestock (watch my interview with Todd here). Robert then showed us all up by doing push-ups on his fingertips! We were still wearing masks last year!
Readers can find you on Amazon and sign up for your newsletter on your website!
Laurel Stuff:
Meanwhile, I’m working on a new science fiction novel! (Photo Credit: Elise Sunday)
Please subscribe to Alligator Preserves on iTunes, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts, and tell your friends about it! I’d love it if you “liked” the episodes you listen to, and I’d love it even more if you’d post a quick comment!
I said it’s been 3 years since I last interviewed multiple award-winning author Kathleen Kaska, but I actually interviewed her in 2021 as well! Here’s proof: Kathleen Kaska Knows Sherlock Holmes.
Kathleen gives us an elevator pitch for her latest Sydney Lockhart Mystery: Murder at the Menger.
She talks about how her writing and habits have changed since the start of Covid-19, and how she interacts with her Muse.
We talk about her multiple fields of research (this novel is set in 1953) and some interesting things she learned that didn’t make it into her book.
Our fearless author at The Alamo!
Sydney Jean’s relationship with her mother (can’t we all relate, even if just a little?).
Keeping track of multiple characters and possible suspects (and “spoiler alert”–Taco didn’t do it)!
Kathleen reads a fun section about an interaction with Sydney’s crazy cousin Ruth (another wonderful character)!
Kathleen tells us what makes a murder mystery “cozy”!
We discuss the challenges of having your 1st person POV character get amnesia!
The purpose of the recap in chapter 23 (so helpful)!
A most unusual twist ending!
We talk about our shared knowledge of Marfa, TX and a possible Sydney Lockhard Mystery set in the famous Hotel Paisano!
We talk about the many projects she has in various states of completion, and about her newly released Eagle Crossing, the 3rd book in her Kate Caraway Animal-Rights Mystery Series.
Please subscribe to Alligator Preserves on iTunes, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts, and tell your friends about it! I’d love it if you “liked” the episodes you listen to, and I’d love it even more if you’d post a quick comment!
“Irish Town” is set in the town of Ashton high in the Rocky Mountains. Ashton has seen its struggles and faces many challenges particularly from its wealthy and powerful rival, Cherry Ridge located across Powder Valley.
The novel’s protagonist, and first-person narrator, Jeremiah Connelly, tells us the story of his high school peers who hope to save Ashton from becoming a modern-day ghost town. The story deals with social issues, family problems, environmental challenges, and much more. The novel concludes with a high-stakes competition between the two towns.
Readers have enjoyed “Irish Town.” One saying, “This book is phenomenal. Very well written. Many characters that will blow your mind. You’ll love it.” Another said, “Irish Town engages the reader with a compelling setting and thought-provoking conflicts. The ideal book for independent-minded young adults looking for a cool plot and complex, relatable character.”
Visit with us here!
Listen to my interview with Matt and hear his writing tips!
Show Notes with Links:
Matthew Meagher gives us his “elevator pitch” for Irish Town!
We discuss inspiring individuals and Matt tells us about how his 5th grade teacher, Ms. Shoemaker, recognized his ability to write.
I ask him some personal questions about his teaching career . . . such a funny embarrassing moment!
How does he find inspiration for his characters?
So many wonderful awards!
He talks about rivalries and alliances and his opinion about if these things are inevitable.
He reads a passage from “Irish Town” and then talks about adding the “countdown” element.
Why does Matt mention The Great Gatsby more than once in his novel?
Please subscribe to Alligator Preserves on iTunes, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts, and tell your friends about it! I’d love it if you “liked” the episodes you listen to, and I’d love it even more if you’d post a quick comment!
He explains what applied anthropology means and how anthropologists exist in many fields of study. Applied anthropologists are solutions oriented and collaborative within diverse societies.
He mentions the podcasts Hidden Brain and Invisibilia (both wonderful scientific podcasts!).
We discuss how science fiction is sometimes predictive and I ask about his Chronicles of the Great Migration series (what might be predictive).
Michael teaches us about “polytopia” (as his series is not dystopian).
We discuss the current and past pandemics and how they might foster societal change.
With Michael and other authors discussing worldbuilding at Denver Pop Culture Con
Michael performs his spoken word poem It’s All Relative, which will be in his latest publication of art and poetry. Pre-order this sure-to-be stunning book soon! I’ll have a link to it soon.
We talk about mindreading, ESP, the senses (far more than 5!) and “Supernatural Agency.”
We discuss artificial intelligence and I ask when we might lose the “A” in “AI.” Listen to his wonderful response!
Michael talks about the troubles with communication today, and how not getting along with someone doesn’t mean you should actively hate them.
Find Michael Kilman and info about his eclectic creations on his website at loridianslaboratory.com.
Michael’s TEDx talk “Anthropology, Our Imagination, and How to Understand the Difference”
Laurel Stuff:
Meanwhile, I’m working on a new science fiction series AND a children’s picture book AND recently published my first coloring book for the Waterwight series! (Photo Credit: Elise Sunday)
Please subscribe to Alligator Preserves on iTunes, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts, and tell your friends about it! I’d love it if you “liked” the episodes you listen to, and I’d love it even more if you’d post a quick comment!
Linda gives listeners her “elevator pitch” for the series, a brief and compelling sales pitch.
Her series won the CAL 1st place for science fiction!
She tells us how the idea of writing a sci-fi novel about Sasquatches captured her Muse and why she set the story in Salida, CO.
She talks about how the Sasquatch community she envisions (authors of fiction get to make their own decisions about this) differs from how most people might view them.
Linda at the 2021 FANEXPO Denver Halloween weekend! Everyone loved her banner!
Linda introduces us to her main characters and talks about how she was inspired to include them.
Her delightful settings are sometimes influenced by her world travels and adventures with her husband.
She talks about cultural differences one might find in a Sasquatch community, and how when an author is worldbuilding, there are many more things to consider and plan.
Will she continue after book 4? Listen/watch and hear her answer!
She talks about the importance of reading a lot, and highly recommends Steel Guardian by Cameron Coral.
Linda is working on a new sci-fi, and she will pitch it at this year’s RMFW Conference.
We talk about Andy Weir‘s work and how he crafts his novels. We would welcome Andy to visit our writing group in Salida!
She offers some wonderful advice to budding and established authors!
She also has a short story published in this year’s competitive RMFW Anthology! That and all of her books are/will be available on Amazon here: L.V. Ditchkus
Here’s Linda’s website, where you can sign up for updates!
If you’re in Salida, stop by Salida Books on F Street to find Linda’s books!
Read it! You’ll love it!
Laurel Stuff:
Meanwhile, I’m working on a new science fiction series AND a children’s picture book AND recently published my first coloring book for the Waterwight series! (Photo Credit: Elise Sunday)
Please subscribe to Alligator Preserves on iTunes, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts, and tell your friends about it! I’d love it if you “liked” the episodes you listen to, and I’d love it even more if you’d post a quick comment!
Meanwhile, I’m working on a new science fiction series AND a children’s picture book AND recently published my first coloring book for the Waterwight series! (Photo Credit: Elise Sunday)
Please subscribe to Alligator Preserves on iTunes, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts, and tell your friends about it! I’d love it if you “liked” the episodes you listen to, and I’d love it even more if you’d post a quick comment!
CCWE Vice-President Cam Torrens and I present Henry Dodson with his award!
Visit with us on YouTube and hear Henry read his winning entry!
Audio-only version of my visit with Henry Dodson
Show Notes with Links:
Henry Dodson took 1st place in CCWE‘s inaugural Young Authors Fiction Contest!
In addition to his cash prize and my book, I had the pleasure of interviewing Henry and having him read his winning entry (read his story “The Trees” below).
Henry talks about his motivation to enter the contest, and credits his creative writing teacher, Taylor Drusch, at Chaffee County High School with encouraging him to participate.
Henry’s favorite authors are Stephen King and Dean Koontz, and Koontz’s novel Lightning is a particular inspiration.
Henry used the main character as a Vietnam Veteran to honor his grandfather, a veteran.
Henry reads his psychological thriller “The Trees.”
Henry’s artwork of the vision of the stalking tree
He discusses his choice of Spruce trees.
He’s a “pantser,” not a “planner.”
He talks about how he ended his story, and when he discovered he was a good writer, and then gives us a hint about the first book he plans to write.
We talk about keeping track of ideas, and Henry gives advice to young writers.
“The Trees” by Henry Dodson
I awoke violently once again. The whispering which had taunted me constantly was becoming louder and louder, almost too loud to bear. I sat up and grabbed my rifle, loading it through the top, pulling the bolt, and aiming it at the door. Every single night since building my Cabin deep in the Appalachian woods, something has haunted me, following me, driving me insane. I moved into these woods after my discharge from the Army to try to escape the constant horrors that had plagued me since the ambush, but it seems that my demons are chasing me and won’t relent until they’ve gotten what they wanted, whatever that may be. I tense my finger on the trigger of my rifle. Whatever is chasing me doesn’t just want me dead, it wants me suffering. Both I and It know that it is more than capable of ending my life, but I haven’t the slightest clue why it’s waiting so long to put me out of my misery.
It wasn’t long after my injury in Vietnam that it first appeared. I initially thought I was just experiencing PTSD, or shock, as any person exploded by an RPG would. The doctors could explain away what I was seeing and experiencing and would say it was just a result of the attack on my psyche. When I told the doctors about the whispers, they explained to me that “my brain’s just rattled,” and that it would subside before long. They told me the creature outside my window was an effect of losing my eye, and that my brain was attempting to “fill in the gaps.” I should never have believed them.
I blindly searched the floor next to my cot for my prosthetic leg. Dawn had broken and I was safe, at least safer than I was before the sun had appeared. The whispers of the trees had returned back to a tolerable murmur, however they never stopped. I attached the peg, which was carved out of Red Spruce, to the stump just beyond my knee and departed my cabin to carry out my daily dues. During the days I would hunt animals and gather berries and mushrooms for food,picking up firewood along the way. Most of these trips would go without much incident, aside from the odd rustle among the leaves or distant scream from the forest that seems to be common around these parts. Today’s hunt was different. The areas of the woods I had familiarized myself with had now felt wrong, as if they weren’t the same woods. I was no more than fifty feet into the wood before my skin began to crawl and the trees began to whisper again, whispering like last night. I turned around on my heels and began to sprint back to my cabin; I knew that my time was coming soon, but I sought to prolong the inevitable.
As I tore through the unrelenting forest the whispering of the trees turned into yelling, then into deafening screams. No matter how hard I looked or how fast I ran, the woods continued. I knew how far I was, I knew which direction my cabin was, I had been into this section of the woods every single day. Something was wrong, I had moved miles away from where I began. I had no chance, it had caught up to me. The only thing I could do at this point was pray that my death would involve minimal suffering. I dropped to my knees and began sobbing as the trees fell silent. I heard the sound of massive amounts of earth and lumber moving, rushing towards me like a river of mud and stone. As the sound of snapping roots and flowing earth approached, it fell silent before me. As I held my head in my hands, sobbing, I heard a solitary whisper, frail and like sandpaper against my ears.
“Look to me…” It beckoned. I was trembling with fear. It was the creature that had been pursuing me since the ambush. I lifted my head from my hands and looked up to meet its gaze.. In front of me was a gargantuan spruce tree, hundreds upon hundreds of feet high. In its trunk were the withered bodies of hundreds of tortured men, whispering, screaming, begging. The bodies of these men, their skin fused into the bark of the trees, were all faces I vaguely recognized. Trapped within this tree was the soul of every person I had killed in the war. The tree’s voice, rough like it’s bark, called again.
“Look upon me, look upon the souls you’ve damned.” I continued to weep as I watched the tortured souls of the Vietnamese Army grab and claw at me, begging for mercy. “You were responsible for the loss of these men, freedom fighters for their homeland,” The tree’s voice tore against my ears. “The gunshots, explosions and fires that led to their deaths all came from you. You are responsible. You did this. You are the monster, not I.” The voice of the tree had become too much to bear, the pain of what it had told me became too much to deal with. I continue to sob as I look upon the tree of souls. I feel its roots wrap around my prosthesis and drag it into the earth, and then I am urged by the tree into a deep sleep.
I awake outside my cabin, my clothes torn and dirty. As I attempt to pull myself off of the ground I fall. My leg is gone, but so too is the whispering of the trees.
Laurel Stuff:
Meanwhile, I’m working on a new science fiction series AND a children’s picture book AND recently published my first coloring book for the Waterwight series! (Photo Credit: Elise Sunday)
Please subscribe to Alligator Preserves on iTunes, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts, and tell your friends about it! I’d love it if you “liked” the episodes you listen to, and I’d love it even more if you’d post a quick comment!
