Elizabeth Varadan's Fourth Wish

We Are Off to India!

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth Varadan aka Mrs. Seraphina) — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 02:16:00 +0000

Dear Blog Friends,

My husband and I are leaving Thursday, February 3rd, for a two-week trip to India. We'll return on Saturday, February 18th. We'll have limited access to the Internet while we are there, so I won't be blogging again until we return. But I will be taking lots of notes to share when we get back. I love India, and when I'm there, I can never get enough of it. I hope you will check back after the 18th.

Meanwhile, below are some posts you might like to read from an earlier trip we took two years ago. We went for two reasons: a long overdue visit with my husband's family, and his Golden Jubilee Class Reunion with his classmates from engineering college. Oh, what a great time we had! (We've taken earlier trips, too; but, alas, I wasn't blogging then, so all those notes are in notebooks in the filing cabinet.)

If you do click on these posts from two years ago, please comment, because I'll love to read your feedback when I return. Here they are:

Ah, India -- Where to Begin?
Blessed by an Elephant
The Reunion—First Day
Education and the Gift that Keeps on Giving
More About the Trip
Pongal and an Eclipse
Traffic in Chennai
The Food of South India

Meanwhile, do check back after February 18th; I have book reviews planned and updated blogs about this trip. Ciao for now.

An Interview with Gary Gauthier

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth Varadan aka Mrs. Seraphina) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 21:14:00 +0000

I had the pleasure of "meeting" Gary Gauthier online when I participated in Rachael Harris's Platform Building Campaign last fall. (She's doing a new one in February. You can go here to learn more about it, as well as enjoying her posts about writing.)

A couple of weeks ago I reviewed one of Gary's e-books, 50 Classic Love Poems in Rhyming Verse (you can read the review here if you missed it.) Many of you who have read my blog over time know how much I love art and poetry. I was particularly interested in how Gary matched beautiful art work to poetry and prose excerpts on his two blogs, Literary Snippets and Illustrated Basho Haikus. After reviewing 50 Classic Love Poems in Rhyming Verse and seeing more of his e-books at Amazon, I knew I wanted to interview him and get his take on what is happening in the publishing world today.

I am late on getting this posted, but for those of you reading this post today (Thursday, January 26th), it's not too late to get a free copy The Portable Bouguereau

Q: You have edited three beautifully illustrated, published e-books, The Art of Reading, Illustrated Basho Haiku Poems, and 50 Classic Love Poems in Rhyming Verse. How did you happen to start editing books?

A: First, let me thank you, Elizabeth for conducting this interview. I really appreciate the opportunity.

I wish I had a more exciting answer for your first question. It all started as an experiment. I wanted to learn the ins and outs of electronic publishing—what better way than to actually try to do it from scratch with your bare hands?

Let me clarify what I mean by electronic publishing. I mean taking a bunch of files and compiling them into the organized structure of a properly formatted ebook. I didn’t have a novel or short story ready for publication, so I decided to start with an anthology.

It took me a couple of weeks to fully understand what was involved. I gained some excellent insights as to what the available software could and could not do. It was a tremendous help that I had some background in coding with html and css.

Q: You’ve authored and published two more beautifully illustrated e-books, The Portable Bouguereau and Van Gogh for a Starry Night. In the first book, you do a thorough analysis of Bouguereau’s paintings. In the second, you provide a biography of the artist. Are you a painter yourself, or simply an afficianado of great art?

A: I’ve dreamed of being an artist—the truth is, I’m not an artist. But I do love all forms of art and I like paintings in particular. I’ve also spent some time reading about the history of art. Bouguereau is known for his accurate and almost life-like paintings of human subjects. Van Gogh is recognized for his creative use of shape and color to convey mood.

Q: You have a wide variety of interests: art, poetry, law, philosophy, and you speak French and Spanish. Have you traveled a lot?

A: I’ve done some traveling but not as much as I would like. I’ve visited places in South America, the Caribbean and Europe. Most of my exposure to the topics you cite came from pursuing my own curiosity and by way of books.

Q: Do you also read/speak Japanese? (You have mentioned that for the book of Basho Haikus you made some changes to the translations.)

A: This question makes me smile. I definitely do not speak or read Japanese. For the book you mention, I made changes to previously existing English translations of the original Japanese. Many translated haikus don’t strictly adhere to the 5-7-5 syllable structure we often hear about. As much as possible, I made it so that the haikus in my book keep this format.

Q: You studied law at Harvard and have an undergraduate degree in philosophy. That’s quite a combination. Do law and philosophy figure into the crime thriller you are currently writing?

A: The short answer is no, they don’t figure in the novel I’m writing. I haven’t really given much thought to using court-room scenes or creating a legal thriller. Believe it or not, a degree in philosophy helps you to avoid run-on sentences and to catch dangling clauses and modifiers. So, hopefully, these will be kept to a minimum in my upcoming novel.

Q: Can you tell us a little more about your novel?

A: I can tell you that the protagonist is a heroine who leaves an abusive marriage and, shortly afterwards, is transformed by unexpected events. There are a couple of bad guys who figure prominently. The heroine’s new boyfriend is unassuming and clumsy in person and serves as the narrator. As you correctly pointed out previously, the novel will be a crime thriller. Other than that, my lips are sealed.

Q: On your blog and on Facebook, you often discuss aspects of the publishing world today. Can you share with readers your take on the future of publishing?

A: I need to write an essay to do full justice to that question. The bottom line is that the bulk of publishing today is already in digital in format. Almost all my reading is done on digital devices. Many like to point out their intimate relationship with paper books. I certainly can understand that and I am very fond of paper books myself. But in the long run, the convenience of a portable library with search functions will outweigh the joys of using individual paper books.

If you want to read a couple of passages from Charles Dickens to your child one night, you are not likely to run out to buy a paperback. However, we do have immediate access to the works of Dickens, and thousands of other classics, without cost and without the inconvenience of leaving home. Project Gutenberg, along with other sites, provides this amazing service that is pretty much taken for granted.

Books are not going away anytime soon. If you insist on reading Dickens in hardcover, you can order it online and have it delivered.

Q: What is your writing schedule like? Do you have a quota for your output? So many hours/words per day?

A: I don’t have a set writing schedule. I wait until the creative idea dawns on me and then I put it in writing. The plot for my novel has grown increasingly detailed over time because I keep thinking about how I can develop the story’s theme and give depth to the characters. If I were a full-time novelist, I would probably maintain a writing schedule.

Q: You are also involved in a publishing project to get 250 e-books published by Landmark Publications. You are at 116 at present, and all these e-books deal with landmark decisions by the Supreme Court. Can you tell us a little more about this project? Are you the editor for each book?

A: This is where my law degree comes in handy. I select the titles and the cases included for publication. Many of the first titles we published were compilations of landmark Supreme Court decisions. We now publish a variety of casebooks in ebook format for law professionals. There seems to be a demand as this type of book is, traditionally, a very bulky hardcover and very inconvenient to carry around.

Q: Your blog is a member the Life List Club. Can you share with readers how this club works and what inspired you as a writer to become involved?

A: As a writer, blogging is important to me for two reasons. It gives me a convenient public outlet to publish short written pieces and it helps me build an audience.

The Life List Club encourages its bloggers to set public goals and report on their progress. The goals can be as weighty as the deadline to finish a novel or as frivolous as spending less time on twitter. On Fridays, we exchange guest posts on topics that interest us. Right now, it’s a small group and we are looking for new members. We are very happy that you will be joining us soon as a new member, Elizabeth.

Q: You both write and edit books. Which do you prefer?

A: I enjoy the editing work I do on a day to day basis. But the creative act of writing fiction is much more rewarding in the long run. I can’t wait to finish my novel and submit it to the editors.

Do you have any special advice for budding writers?

A: The advice is to keep at it. Just start and keep writing. Not everything you write has to be published immediately. At first, it helps to have two or three seasoned editors who look over short writing samples. I have found this experience to be invaluable.

Thank you again, Gary, for sharing your craft and knowledge. Good luck on finishing your novel soon and finding a publisher.

Readers, you can contact Gary for more information at the following locations:

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/gary.gauthier

Blog: Literary Snippets: http://garygauthier.blogspot.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/gary_author/

Amazon: Author Page:

An Interview with Connie Goldsmith

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth Varadan aka Mrs. Seraphina) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 17:39:00 +0000

Today's guest is Connie Goldsmith, an award-winning author of books on health issues. Since fiction writers often have health issues in their books, and since there is a wide market for nonfiction books for children and young adults, this is a wonderful opportunity for fiction and nonfiction writers alike to make contact with an expert.

Thank you, Connie, for being on my blog today to discuss your writing.

In addition to being published by a prestigious publishing company—Lerner Publishing Group’s Twenty-First Century Imprint—you’ve garnered impressive recognition for your books. A small sample: Booklist’s Top 10 Health Series for Skin Cancer in 2010; The National Science Teachers Association and Children’s Book Council selected Superbugs Strike Back and Invisible Invaders as Outstanding Trade Book for K-12 Students, 2008 and 2006, respectively. The Society of School Librarians International named Battling Malaria best science book for grades 7-12 for 2011, and Superbugs as best science book for grades 7-12 for 2007. Several of your books have been published by Lerner but also produced in collaboration with USA Today Health Report--Diseases and Disorders.

It’s a real pleasure to have this opportunity to ask more questions about your writing career.

Thanks for your kind words, Elizabeth, and for this opportunity.

Q: For starters, you worked full-time while going to college as a single mom in order to get your RN, BSN and master’s in health care administration. Obviously you have great persistence—a necessity in a writer! You also enjoyed nursing. Now that you are such a successful author, do you still find time for nursing of any kind, or are you completely focused on being a full time writer?

A: After working for about 15 years in hospitals, I went to work for several managed care organizations, i.e., health insurance companies. Many of the big health insurance organizations have large staffs of nurses. Some of the jobs I did in managed care included telephone nurse advice line and reviewing patient records in hospitals for quality assurance. I retired in 2011 from the “day job” but I write continuing education articles for nurses, and a pediatric health care column for a regional parenting publication. I’ll keep my RN license indefinitely because being a nurse is as much a part of who I am as being a parent or a writer.

Q: You have said that originally you wanted to be a marine biologist. Looking back, do you think that even as a marine biologist you might have gotten into writing books?

A: It’s really hard to say what might have happened had I chosen a different career. However, being a marine biologist certainly would have given me a lot to write about. Many nonfiction writers are scientists.

Q: Writing opportunities that came your way were related to your expertise in the field of health and nursing. Is it easier to break into non-fiction than fiction?

A: It may be easier to break into nonfiction than fiction, possibly because so much more nonfiction is published than fiction, and there are so many opportunities and markets. People who can write in their area of professional expertise may have additional opportunities.

Q: You’ve had articles published in Cricket, Highlights, the SCBWI Bulletin, Children's Writer, and Children's Writer's and Illustrator's Market, and you also write book reviews for California Kids and New York Journal of Books. How do you find time to write reviews for two organizations, articles for magazines, and still manage to turn out an impressive book every one or two years?

A: It actually doesn’t feel like I work hard enough! I wrote magazine articles at the beginning of my writing career twelve years ago, but I do that less often now. Most of my writing time is spent on research and writing one book at a time, and reading and reviewing books. Also, ‘writing-related activities’ take up a lot of time. I have fewer family responsibilities than many writers (kid all grown up), so I can use most of my time exactly how I want to. Also, I’m compulsively organized! That helps.

Q: Tell us a little about your writing routine: Do you outline a book first and then do the research? Do you research as you go? Do you have a particular time of day that you set aside time for writing? Or do you have a nine-to-five writer’s day?

A: My writing day – which is most days of the week – starts out with breakfast and an hour of exercise, followed by errands outside the house. Then lunch, and a brief rest if needed (okay – I admit to a short afternoon nap on most days). Writing time is in the afternoon to early evening. It seldom exceeds four hours a day. My last few books were by mutual agreement, i.e., my editor asked me if I’d like to write them, or I suggested them to her. Doing a good outline puts me well on the way to writing a nonfiction book. The outline and research go together. My current WIP is not yet contracted, and I’ve put together a formal proposal and am working on the first few chapters. You have to do a lot of research to complete an effective outline or proposal.

Q: I read some of your reviews at New York Journal of Books, and I noticed that many of the fiction books you reviewed were dystopian fantasies or science fiction. Do you think your background in science and health makes these especially interesting to read and review?

A: I don’t think my educational background makes these books more appealing to me. I’ve enjoyed science fiction since I was a small child when my father used to read sci-fi stores by Asimov and Heinlein to me. I enjoy fantasy and futuristic stories because I can easily “suspend my disbelief” and fall into a story. I like a lot of action in stories. Some of today’s best writing is YA literature and I very much enjoy most of it. While I don’t go searching for dystopian novels, there are a lot of them published, so I end up reading quite a few of them.

Q: In California Kids, I notice you have a regular column, “Notes from the Nurse” in addition to your book reviews, and your reviews are more oriented to educational issues for younger children. Do you see yourself writing books for younger children in the future?

A: My column A Note from the Nurse is directed to the parent readers of California Kids. I review all kinds of children’s books for California Kids, except YA, because the publication is for the parents of younger children. I write themed columns that may feature ABC books one month, books about animals another month, middle grade novels, nonfiction, back to school books, and holiday themes.

Q: You also wrote a historical book, Lost in Death Valley: The True story of Four Families in California’s Gold Rush. Do you think you will be writing more historically based books in the future?

A: Good question Elizabeth! My current work in progress is about a period of American history that is not well known by young readers.

Q: How about Fiction?

A: I do write fiction and have been working on two YA and one MG novels for a long time. I just can’t get them quite polished enough! Maybe one day….

Q: What advice do you have for writers who want to write nonfiction?

A: It helps if you’re naturally, even compulsively inquisitive. If I hear a new word or a fact I didn’t know before or someone mentions an event or animal I didn’t know about, I must find out everything I can immediately! I read with a book of maps and a huge dictionary readily available (well, these days, I Google much of it). If you’re interested in nonfiction, try children’s magazines. Try writing for your professional publications. My first published articles were in a nursing journal. Try community newspapers. Remember nonfiction covers everything from picture books to early readers to middle grade and young adult books. Don’t limit yourself to one media or genre. Writing is writing. Join SCBWI and attend conferences. We offered our first-ever nonfiction conference in Sacramento in January 2012 to a sold-out crowd. Recycle your research, i.e. use the same research in different ways for different markets. And read. Read. Read.

All good advice.

Readers can learn more about Connie by visiting her website. You can find her on Facebook by clicking here.

You can see her full list of books by browsing her author pages at Amazon and at Lerner Books.

As a side note, Connie has co-written with Jeanne Miller a wonderful article, 10 Tips for Internet Research, in the July/August, 2009 SCBWI Bulletin. You can read it here on p. 23

She also reviews nonfiction book proposals for a fee and can advise authors on how realistic their narrative is in a hospital scene, etc. And she blogs about health issues every 4 to 6 weeks on her website.

Readers, I know I have a few questions about the flu, since the influenza epidemic of 1918 figures in my WIP. How about you? Do you have health questions that need answering in your own WIP?

Today’s Book Review—a Poetry Collection

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth Varadan aka Mrs. Seraphina) — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 15:50:00 +0000

50 Classic Love Poems in Rhyming Verse is a lovely collection of love poems edited by Gary Gauthier, who maintains two blogs: Literary Snippets (his main blog), and Illustrated Haikus. I was the happy winner of this exquisite little ebook, described at the Amazon site as a work “for romantics who enjoy rhyming verses.” Well, that's me. I have always loved poetry—rhyming verses, haiku, free verse, you name it. But reading through this collection reminded me again how much I love the sheer music of rhyming verse when it's done well.

Gauthier’s book is divided into six chapters, and each is about a different aspect of love:

Chapter one, Carpe Diem* (Latin for, “seize the day!”, a quotation from Horace, Oxford Dictionary)

These four poems describe the changes wrought by time brings and the brevity of the present. Some are more cynical than others, but the one I like best is Thomas Moore’s “Believe Me If All Those Endearing Young Charms,” a poem of assurance that while beauty fades, love endures. The poem was set to an Irish air, reminding me again that good rhyming poetry is musical. (Indeed, I heard that song sung many times when I was growing up. I’ve always loved it.)

Chapter Two, Love’s Obstacles

As you might guess, the ten poems in this section are all about why love can’t last or how it is thwarted in some way. Robert Burns, Andrew Marvell, William Shakespeare, Walter Savage Landor, Richard Lovelace, Percy Bysshe Shelley, John Donne, Robert Frost, and William Blake all have their say. But the one that moved me the most was Landor’s poem, “The Maid’s Lament.” A young woman grieves a man she spurned while he was alive, but realizes she loved him now that it is too late. The reason I like this poem is that it has such an intricate rhythm pattern—an abrupt, shortened second line in each couplet that renders the loss more keenly.

Chapter Three, Sonnets of Shakespeare

These thirteen sonnets run the gamut: advice to marry in order to pass on beauty; love and loss; intimations of mortality; the steadfastness of true love. I have to admit, though, I find the sonnets tough going, partly due to the formality of the structure, and partly due to the the language of his day. The combination makes for some dense reading.

Many pithy lines I’ve heard quoted through the years, though, still move me by their elegance:

“Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate:”

“Let me not to the marriage of true minds admit impediments.”

And here and there, many single lines are simply beautiful:

“Bare ruin'd choirs, where late the sweet birds sang.”

“Death's second self, that seals up all in rest.”

Who else can express such ideas so eloquently?

In general, though, I found these sonnets the most challenging read in this collection.

Chapter Four, Love’s Aspirations

These eight poems express more than love’s aspirations. They show love in a state of passion, of longing, or even of transcendence— sometimes obsessively, sometimes humorously.

The sweetest one, Ben Jonson’s “To Celia,” is one I remember from when I was a teen-ager entranced with love poems. This, too, has been set to music, and most people who read poetry would recognize the melody of the opening lines, “Drink to me, only with thine eyes, and I will pledge with mine.” What I never knew was that the original poem was by a Greek poet and Jonson merely translated it into English. (Maybe I shouldn’t say. “merely.” Who among us today can translate Greek poems into English?)

In contrast, I had to chuckle all through Theodore Roethke’s adroit poem, “I Knew a Woman.” Consider these lines:

“Of her choice virtues only gods should speak,

Or English poets who grew up on Greek

(I'd have them sing in chorus, cheek to cheek.)”
- or -

“She moved in circles, and those circles moved.

Chapter Five, Declarations of Love

Two of my favorites poems are included in these eight: Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s “How Do I Love Thee? Let Me Count the Ways,” and Robert Burns’ “A Red, Red Rose,” (a traditional Scots song set to music by Burns). Also I enjoyed the truly beautiful “At Last” by Elizabeth Akers Allen about love that has come to the speaker late in life, and Anne Bradstreet’s, “To My Dear and Loving Husband.” (The title speaks for itself.)

Chapter Six, Love’s Secrets

As the title suggests, these seven poems deal with love’s secrets in a variety of contexts—unspoken love, unrequited love, forbidden love, etc. Sara Teasdale’s opening poem, “I Love You,” is about an undeclared love taken to the grave. Thomas Campbell’s closing poem, “Freedom and Love,” suggests that love’s real secret is that love never lasts. (Thomas Campbell, shame on you! I bid you read Anne Bradstreet and Elizabeth Barrett Browning!)

But Gary Gauthier has done a masterful job of selecting these works. This is a book to be reread many times and treasured. You can find other books edited or authored by him at his Amazon page.

You can also learn more about him and follow him at: Google Plus, Literary Snippets (where he's hosting a fellow guest blogger from the Life List Club today), Illustrated Basho Haiku, and his author Facebook page.

How about you? Do you like rhyming verse? What is your favorite poetry? And who is your favorite poet?

Remodel? Or Revision?

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth Varadan aka Mrs. Seraphina) — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 17:32:00 +0000

Lately I've been a bit irregular in my blogging due to several interruptions. Christmas holidays, of course, but the most recent one is preparing our house for a modest (but disruptive) kitchen remodel. For the last ten days, while updating my Facebook page, my photo albums, while revamping my blog, I've also been packing up dishes, pots and pans, food and spices, etc., in order to empty shelves that are going to be ripped out Wednesday so that new ones can be put in. We are having a dishwasher installed as well, so we had to go purchase one. (Yes, all these years we've been washing dishes by hand.)

You never know how much you've accumulated until you have to empty your kitchen of every single item that isn't an appliance. This has also turned into a "down-sizing" event in general: I've been combing through drawers and closets in other rooms as well as the kitchen, sorting through items and taking bags and boxes to various thrift stores in the area--all the while wondering, what on earth makes us accumulate things we don't use or need? I actually started some of this purge before Christmas on the premise that someone else might have a happier Christmas as a result of my clean-out. One person's "cast off" really is another person's "great find". I know, because I hang out at thrift stores. The purge has also progressed to the basement and the garage; and I have to say, it feels great to be less encumbered.

But as I've been sorting, deciding what to keep and what to eliminate, I couldn't help noticing the parallels to revising and editing a book. (See? Once a writer, everything becomes relevant to writing.) Isn't that what we do in a rewrite? Pare down. Pull out what isn't essential to the story. Decide what to keep, what to eliminate. (In some cases, what to save for another story with a better fit--not too different from trundling items over to another location, like a thrift store, where they can be put to better use.)

Maybe it's the effect of the year turning--out with the old, in with the new--but I seem to be revising and editing everywhere I look: my WIP, my blog, my Facebook, our home. "Eliminate clutter" is becoming my mantra for the year--and it wasn't even on my list of New Year's resolutions.

Feels good, though.

How about you? What revisions are going on in your life at the dawn of this new year?

Cooking Up Some Changes

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth Varadan aka Mrs. Seraphina) — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 20:01:00 +0000

Dear Blog Friends,

As you can see, I've been busy revamping my blog. I've added some new pages. I'd really llike some feedback on how you like it or how you think it could be improved.

Looking forward to your comments.

Mrs. Seraphina

Some "Thank you's" and a Book Review.

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth Varadan aka Mrs. Seraphina) — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 21:28:00 +0000

As promised, I am back. Christmas was lovely, but I must say that December really got away from me. I am long overdue in thanking people for blog posts and awards, and way late for a book review I meant to write before now.

First, my gratitude to two kind bloggers:

On December 10th, Richard Hughes (Writing and Living by Richard P. Hughes) posted a nice review of my book, The Fourth Wish,on his blog. You can read it here. So, belated thanks, Richard. And for readers of today's post, Richard has an interesting blog that includes articles about the writing journey, book reviews, and snippets of his own fiction. It's a spot worth visiting often.

Additionally, Ann Best mentioned my book on her December 10th post at her wonderful blog site. Thank you, Ann! Ann's memoir, In the Mirror has earned 24 five-star reviews at Amazon, and she has published two other books. You can learn more about them here:

If that wasn't enough, Richard included me on his December 3rd list of recipients for the Great Comments Award, a very nice award indeed: A condition of the award is to pass it on to the top 20 commenters on my blog. Well, that's very hard to sort out, as so many people do leave great comments, but here are 20 who come to mind:

Rosi Hollinbeck Joanna Marple
Rachna Chhabria Tanya Reimer
Richard Hughes Lauren Boyd
Carol Riggs Lydia Kang at The Word Is My Oyster
TGayer Julie Musil
Ann at Inkpots and Quills Kenda Turner at Words and Such
David Powers King Gary Gauthier at Literary Snippets
Ann Best Robyn Campbell
Jayne at A Novice Novelist Theresa Milstein
Kimberly at Meetings with My Muse Michelle Fayard

I hope you will visit their sites. You are in for a treat at each one.

Next, the Book Review:

This month I had the opportunity to read Andrew Leon's middle grade novel, The House on the Corner, a “haunted-house tale” with a different twist.

When the Howard family moves from Denver, Colorado to Shreveport, Louisiana -- a military move because the father is in the Air Force -- their new home is a creepy old house with what turns out to be a mysterious garage. And it seems the former inhabitants of the house disappeared years ago with no explanation.

As the three siblings, Tom (12), Sam (10), and Ruth (6), explore the house and neighborhood, they meet some strange neighbors and find a secret cache of odd weapons in a tool shed under the garage apartment. The garage apartment itself soon becomes the “Imagination Room”, due to unusual adventures that occur when the children meet in it. I don’t want to be a spoiler by giving away the kinds of adventures they have. I will say that the adventures kept me turning pages, although the first adventure doesn’t happen until Chapter 15.

For this reader, the book could have benefited from some strong pruning. The early chapters bogged down in description and ongoing arguments between the kids, slowing the pace and sapping suspense. The children were believable, but they always seemed to be squabbling. Some variety in how they behaved toward each other would have rounded them out more for this reader. The narration was rotating first person point of view, through the eyes of each of the siblings. Then for some reason the last forty-five pages suddenly switched to third person narrative, sometimes close third, sometimes distant, but always from an adult point of view.

Still, the story line is quite unique. The Imagination Room and the worlds it borders are intriguing, and the book ends with some unresolved issues that will lead into the second book of this author’s series. The book jacket by Rusty Webb is nicely spooky.

The House on the Corner is available at Barnes and Noble on Nook for $2.99.

'Tis the Season!

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth Varadan aka Mrs. Seraphina) — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 21:41:00 +0000

Dear Blog Friends,

Sorry I haven't been blogging lately. I have been soooo busy with all the holiday stuff: baking, cards, lights, decorations, parties, etc. and getting ready for a Christmas feast with our wonderful extended family.

BUT -- I'll be back next Friday with a couple of book reviews. Until then, my best wishes for a lovely Christmas or Hannukah or any other holiday you celebrate at this time, and a wonderful year ahead that involves good news regarding agents and publishers.

Enjoy the days ahead!

A Book I Want to Recommend for Writers

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth Varadan aka Mrs. Seraphina) — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 18:05:00 +0000

If I have not been blogging recently, blame it on Martha Alderson's THE PLOT WHISPERER. This paperback book has broken me out of my writing doldrums and has helped focus and align my re-write of a book that had me stumped for awhile—a more serious book than I've written before, dealing with how a family copes with tragedy.

What is so unique about THE PLOT WHISPERER?

For one thing, Alderson has a spiritual approach—and by that, I don't mean religious. She asks you to commit to yourself, to define your own goals, even while defining your main character's goals and commitments. She asks you to examine the deeper themes of your own life, so that you can tap into the deeper themes of your characters' lives.

She also takes the concept of "plot" far beyond the usual focus on story trajectory (rising action, building tension, climax and resolution), tying it into what she calls "The Universal Story", the story that unfolds in each of our own lives and in nature itself. She points out that there are really three plot lines in every great book: the dramatic action plot; the character emotional development plot; and the thematic significance plot. These themes interact with one another and affect each other throughout the entire book, and each has their own resolution.

A word about Alderson's approach to character development: it goes far beyond character description, hobbies, hopes, fears, family constellation, etc. It brings a fresh slant to the question, "What does your character want, and what is keeping him/her from it?" Alderson takes all of this to a deeper dimension; What does the character bring to the point where the story unfolds? What is the history to why your character wants what he or she wants? What is the past "wound" driving the character's goals, giving them such urgency? And how does that affect your MC's reactions to events—reactions that will, in turn, affect the plot?

Alderson counsels you to know those issues about all of your characters, the main ones and the supporting cast. She suggests you must know the themes of their lives as well, their lietmotifs, because—just as in real life—when characters interact, their issues affect each other and the ensuing action. Themes, character and plot interweave and interact throughout the book.

I haven't finished THE PLOT WHISPERER, because Alderson offers thought-provoking exercises that make it a slow and careful read. But, even after reading and applying the first three chapters, disparate parts of my own book are coming together and I can visualize the whole more clearly. I wake up every morning excited to write, completely committed to finishing this draft.

If you feel stuck at any point in your own WIP, I heartily advise getting this book. It's reasonably priced, and you can get it here, and also here (among other sites.) Alderson also has a great blog with tips on plot development. And you can find her You Tube videos in a post by Jill Corcoran. (As a side note, Corcoran posts helpful information about querying and submitting, among other issues that concern writers. Hers is a blog worth visiting regularly.)

How about you? Do you have a writing book to recommend that has worked wonders for you? If so, please post the title here. And let me know if you get Alderson's book or see her videos.

Happy writing!

Do You Believe In Magic?

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth Varadan aka Mrs. Seraphina) — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 17:44:00 +0000

Last June I blogged about a great radio site for listening to interviews with professional magicians, called The Magic Broadcast. (You can read the post here.) The Magic Broadcast is hosted by Steve Johnson, a local (Sacramento area) magician, who owns the fabulous magic shop in Carmichael, Grand Illusions. This shop has everything that would interest a budding magician: Books, tricks, costumes, juggling lessons, puppets. . . . For those of you in the general area, you can read reviews of the shop and get driving directions here.

But I'm personally excited, because on Monday this week, Steve interviewed ME on his magic broadcast station. Normally his interviews are with professional magicians, like Lee Asher. Why me? Because I wrote a book that featured a fictious local magician, and Steve was interested in how tips on fiction writing could translate into the story patter all good magicians use in order to fool audiences with their tricks.

It was an enjoyable interview for me. I always love talking about writing, but I've never had to think about how writing might pertain to a magician's performance. The more I thought about it, the more parallels I could see. You can listen to the interview here. Just scroll on down to November 28th interview, and click the play button.

There was an added enjoyment for me when Steve told me that the magician in my book was believable. I'm used to people telling me the kids in the story are believable, but I was especially pleased to hear that about the magician as well.

Which brings me to the book itself. The story takes place over Christmas vacation, so this is a good time for eight-to-twelve-year-olds who like magic to get this for a Christmas present. (Can't resist that little plug!) It's available in paperback (in the U.S.) and on Kindle (in U.S., England, Spain, France, and Germany.) You can check it out and read reviews of it here .

(By the way, you have to go to the site to look inside, or peek in the widget up in the right hand margin.)

Meanwhile, DO you believe in magic? If so, what kind? Do you like to do magic tricks? What about friends and kids? Do they? And, have you ever wondered about a magician's personal life when they are not performing at parties and theaters and such?

Post Thanksgiving Musings

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth Varadan aka Mrs. Seraphina) — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 16:00:00 +0000

Thanksgiving has come and gone. Well, not quite gone. The feel of the week-end lingers, perhaps because I didn't take part in the Black Friday feeding frenzy. Instead my husband and I took time off from our busy lives and enjoyed slowing down and savoring the splendid fall we are having.

Autumn came late to Sacramento and its surrounding areas. The air has only recently turned nippy. Consequently, the leaves have been turning colors slowly, steadily becoming more brilliant against the gray sky before they fall. Their leaf litter on sidewalks or piled in gutters makes a walk through Midtown an uplifting experience. No matter how much I like spring and summer (even winter with it's own beauty carved from branches splaying the air in webby patterns), autumn has become my favorite season.

It seems ironic that in such a cool season, the colors are from the warmest tones of the palette: yellow, gold, bronze, orange, every shade of red and brown. The colors both cheer and sooth—comfortable colors associated with pumpkins and pumpkin pie, with yams and carrot cake and corn on the cob. Or roast chestnuts. A glowing fireplace. Bouquets of golden mums by a window.

Spring may burst out in a rainbow of blooms and promise. Autumn is a promise kept, a season of harvest and sharing the bounty, a sharing that doesn't require standing in long lines at midnight in order to grab the latest bargain, but instead calls us back to fellowship and the abundance in our hearts.

Time Out

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth Varadan aka Mrs. Seraphina) — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 20:29:00 +0000

Dear Blog Friends,

I won't be blogging again until next week, due to the holiday week-end. But I do want to wish all of you a Happy Thanksgiving.

Ciao for now.

What I Have Learned About Perseverance

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth Varadan aka Mrs. Seraphina) — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 22:19:00 +0000

Learning the market and submitting takes so much time and energy! This is not a whine, just a realization. When I decided to write full time, I didn't have a clue.

Oh, I belonged to writing groups, revised my manuscripts, studied my copy of Writer's Market or Children's Writer's Market, Guide to Literary Agents, and sent my manuscripts out. But I was pretty naive. I didn't expect to have to revise so many times, study the market so many times, submit my stories/books so many times, write so many cover letters, etc., etc.

And then I started getting published -- mostly stories, poems, and flash fiction in magazines, both print and online, both for adults and for children. I won "honorable mention" in some contests. And I was still . . . pretty naive. I thought I had broken into the market, so to speak, and it was going to be much easier to get everything published.

But, I learned about blogs and networks in addition to my writing groups. I picked up terms like "pitching" and "beta readers" and "WIP", etc. And I revised and revised, and studied Writer's Market and Children's Writer's Market, Guide to Literary Agents, and sent things out again. And again.

And that's what I've been doing for the last few weeks: Sending things out again.

But, I know some things I didn't know before. I have a keen appreciation now for the word "perseverance," and what it r-e-a-llllly means.

Even my husband, my chief emotional support through thick and through thin, who always has had faith in my writing, shakes his head at how much perseverance it takes to be a writer. He says he couldn't do it. But I know why. The reason he couldn't do it is that he is blessed not to be a crazy writer.

If you are a crazy writer, you have to persevere. It's impossible not to. You can set the writing aside for awhile (and sometimes to great benefit and perspective), but sooner or later, the fingers itch, the imagined scenes well up, a character's voice has a particular lilt that makes you wonder who he/she is, or would be, if you can nail it just right in a story. And there you go again, noticing the way light hits maple leaves in the fall, the way ginko leaves scatter like gold coins on sidewalks, and you have to write about all of it.

Once you've done that, well -- it's not like that manuscript can ever be happy just sitting in the file cabinet. It nags and nags at you until you make it better and go research the market to find it a good home. Perseverance is nothing more than being beholden to a manuscript that will NEVER LEAVE YOU ALONE until you get it through those gates to the reader beyond.

I sleep better, knowing that.

How about you?

Life Returns to Normal

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth Varadan aka Mrs. Seraphina) — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 00:55:00 +0000

So, now I'm over jet lag and getting back to my routine. Well, sort of my routine. Normally my routine would involve writing for two or three hours a day in addition to house chores, email, and studying Spanish. But, I haven't been doing the writing part of it at all except for journaling. My writing time has been spent studying the 2012 Writer's Market and querying or composing cover letters for snail mail submissions. I have to confess great guilt over not working on revising and rewriting my novel for some time. Trips and visits seemed to take priority.

On the other hand, these visit were spent in heartfelt talks with friends and and family, filling my mind and heart with memory and insight, tapping heartwise into some of my deepest feelings. An outcome that can only enrich my future writing, I would think.

Last year I had the opportunity to interview an author whose writing I admire quite a bit, Kirby Larson, author of Hattie Big Sky and The Fences Between Us, as well as many other books. You can read the interview here. I asked at one point how her busy life impacted her writing. In addition to writing award-winning books, she teaches, presents at conferences, does school visits, etc.. Her answer was:

"I am reminded every day of Katherine Paterson's powerful words: "The very persons who take away my time and space to write give me something to say." (Katherine Paterson is another author I greatly admire.)

So I take solace from the words of these two marvelous writers whose books shimmer and reach into the heart of things. After all, if we had no life outside of writing, we'd have nothing to write about. In fact, writer's block may often be about living too much in your head and not taking renewal from the life going on around you.

What do you think?

Back and Home, Remembering the Trip

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth Varadan aka Mrs. Seraphina) — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 00:39:00 +0000

Mont Blanc

Julien and Camille

What a lovely week I had with my nephew and his family in France. They live just outside the village of Moisin in a rural area with several small farms and breathtaking views of the Jura mountains on one side, and the Salève mountains on the other. It was a trip long overdue. The morning after I arrived, my grand-niece, Camille, and my grand-nephew, Julien (who visited us in March), took me to the top of Salève where I was able to get a good view of the French alps and Mont Blanc.

Later that afternoon, I took a walk through the village of Moisin to the road that is a French part of the road to Santiago in Galicia, as I mentioned last week. The road goes up to a little chapel that the pilgrims visit, although I was too tired to walk up that far.
Here are a couple of pictures of the icon marking the road, though:

Notice the clam shell motif on the blue background.

My nephew, David, had been away on a business trip when I first arrived Tuesday evening, but he returned Thursday. He works in computer technology, and Brigitte teaches English and also has a hypnotherapy business. One day we went into her office in Geneva.

Brigitte in her office.

Both are wonderful cooks. I felt spoiled with wonderful dishes like quiche, and fondue, and salmon with a lemon bechamel sauce, and some increidible baked cheese dish called Mont d'Or, as well as beans and potaoes persillade, a treatment that basically cooks vegetables with parsley and garlic. (Sigh.) David cooks a pretty great tomato pie, too.

Most of the week was really spent in catching up on news and sharing books and interests in the ways you never really can on Facebook or emails -- although I'm glad there are those ways, because one can't always bridge the miles any other way. But face to face and hugs to hugs are unbeatable.

Nicolas singing.

David and their kids have a band (that includes other friends as well). David plays guitar and sings. Both sons play guitar; the older son, Nicolas, and the daugher, Camille, both sing, and the younger son, Julien, pays drums. His girlfriend, Jessica, also sings, and another friend, Valentin, plays bass. Here are some pictures of them rehearsing Sunday in the basement for a gig they'll play next month:

Valentin on Bass

Camille singing.

Julien on Drums

The whole shebang.

Jessica singing.

And afterwards they gathered around the table to enjoy the pumpkin pie David baked.

Yum!

The week slipped by, listening to music, reading, talking, and eating great food. The day before I left Brigitte and I went into Geneva, and she showed me around the old town with its historical buildings before we had lunch at a cafe, sitting outdoors and people watching. Unfortunately I forgot to take my camera. But that afternoon, I took another walk through the village, and here are just a few pictures of this picturesque place.

Wouldn't it be great to be able to paint such lovely buildings? Trees were just turning despite the late fall and the mild temperatures. Hillsides werebursting with beautiful colors. Too soon, too soon it was over, but I came back with a treasure of memories.

On another note, Eve E. (who has a very enjoyable blog) passed the One Lovely Blog Award back to me about a week and a half ago, but I was too busy packiing and unpacking to acknowledge that. thanks Eve!

All Roads Lead to . . . . Santiago. The Santiago Connection.

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth Varadan aka Mrs. Seraphina) — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 21:47:00 +0000

I am visiting my nephew and his family in France. Their home is just on the edge of the small village of Moisin, about 20 minutes away from Geneva. I'm able to make this visit because I had mileage with United—miles I had to use before October 31st or lose them. I hadn't seen my nephew's family for some time, so it seemed a wonderful opportunity.

The flight route was from Sacramento to Chicago, then from Chicago to Frankfurt, then Frankfurt to Geneva. The last leg is an hour long flight, and I had the good fortune to be on the side of the plane that looked out onto the wonder of the Alps. Like Galicia and California, this part of the world has had an unseasonably warm fall. But there has been snow on the highest mountains. Consequently, I looked out onto an endless, white craggy range of mountain peaks with pale blue shadows, peaks that seemed to rise out of an ocean of clouds. It was a scene of white on white. Everywhere I looked there were sharp angles of white, rolls of foamy white, wisps of white, and all of it under a blue sky that was deepening toward dusk. I don't think I will ever forget it—and much to my frustration, even though I had my camera hanging on a strap from my neck, it didn't even occur to me to take a picture! My return flight won't be through Frankfurt, it goes from Geneva to Washington instead, so I won't be able to recoup my loss. But, above, I've made use of two free photos of the French Alps. Imagine these rising out of clouds upon clouds instead above of the scenery you see in the pictures.

As it turns out, a small chapel at the top of a hill in the village of Moissin is one of the pilgrim stops for pilgrims walking to Santiago de Compostela. A road edging the village has the familiar clam shell icon that signifies St. James and the pilgram's road. I must say, having looked at similar sign posts on roads in Galicia less than a month ago, I was quite moved by this connection.

I was also pleased to find out earlier this year that Martin Sheen (one of my favorite actors) has a personal link to Galicia. His father came from Galicia, near Santiago. Sheen's real name is Ramon Estevez, and he's made a movie with his director son, Emilio Estevez, called The Way. It's a fictional tale that takes place on a pilgrimage (often called El Camino de Santiago, or The Way of St. James). I am so looking forward to seeing this movie.

I'm not sure exactly where the French pilgrimage begins, just as I'm not quite sure where the pilgrimage in Portugal starts. Obviously there are more roads, and I'll be interested to find out how many more countries have a pilgrimage walk to Santiago. Meanwhile, tomorrow I plant to wander up the hill to the chapel where pilgrims walking this leg of the journey stop. And, who knows, one day I might actually go on the walk myself, or at least a portion of it.

Rachael's Third Challenge

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth Varadan aka Mrs. Seraphina) — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 17:41:00 +0000

Rachael's third challenge for the campaign has come round, and once again it's quite a challenge. Here are the rules:

Write a blog post in 300 words or less, excluding the title. The post can be in any format, whether flash fiction, non-fiction, humorous blog musings, poem, etc. The blog post should show:

that it’s morning,
that a man or a woman (or both) is at the beach
that the MC (main character) is bored
that something stinks behind where he/she is sitting
that something surprising happens.

Just for fun, see if you can involve all five senses AND include these random words: "synbatec," "wastopaneer," and "tacise." (NB. these words are completely made up and are not intended to have any meaning other than the one you give them).

So here goes: It's a flash fiction, exactly 300 words, using all 5 senses, all 3 made-up words, showing instead of telling. Whew!

Cry of the Synbatec

Opal finger-combs her straggly gray hair, wriggling her toes in the sand. She stares at the rose and golden clouds, trying to imagine faces in them the way she did as a girl. No luck. She turns her head and watches Ralph wading in the dawn-flecked waves. A scene meant to recapture earlier days, along with last night’s bonfire and roasted hotdogs, along with sleeping under the star-powdered sky.

“Opal!” Ralph waves a flabby arm. Opal sighs and looks farther up the shore, where a young couple in tank suits and flippers stride toward the waves. The salt in the air has a sulfurous undertone, probably from seaweed strewn along the sand, although it seems behind her as well. Behind her, too, a shrill cry cuts through the rumbling surf and lapping waves.

Damn seagulls. Last night they kept pacing around their hot-dog roast, and Ralph would throw pieces of bun!

Frankly, Opal would like to go home and shower off all the sand. She swallows, thinking of buckwheat pancakes drenched with sweet, viscous honey, topped with foamy Cool Whip. Then she’d stretch out on the sofa and watch re-runs of Tacise. Morning after morning, criminals prove no match for Tacise. No thief is wily enough. No drug lord’s hideaway secure. The actor who plays Tacise is a Republican, too. Opal nods to herself. She has read his biography on Wikipedia.

“Opal!” Ralph calls, louder this time, hands cupped around his mouth. His face crinkles with worry. A breeze swallows his next word. It sounds like wastopaneer! Or maybe, what’s it near? But that makes no sense.

“Watch out! It’s nearer!” he almost screams.

The shrill cry behind her comes again. Opal turns in time to see the Synbatec’s wings billow wide before enfolding her.

If you like this, it's #35 on the linky list.

Belated Award Passes

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth Varadan aka Mrs. Seraphina) — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 19:03:00 +0000

We are back from Galica -- got in late, late Saturday night -- and now I'm playing "catch up". Just after arrival in Galicia I received two nice awards from Michele Helene at A Wanderer in Paris . My apologies for dragging my heels on passing them on, but I didn't spend a lot of time on the Internet this trip.

Here are the awards:

The 1st Award (Liebster Blog) is for someone who has less than 200 followers. This award has five rules:

1. Show your appreciation to the blogger who gave you the award by linking back to them. That's Michele Helene (see link above).
2. Reveal five picks more pics, let them know by leaving a comment on their blog. (Done; see below.)
3. Post the award on your blog. (Done; see above.)
4. Bask in the camaraderie of the most supportive people on the internet. (So true. Bloggers ARE supportive.)

5. Have bloggity fun and spread the love. (Siempre!)

The Second Blog Award (One Lovely Blog Award) has only two rules.

1. Thank and link to the person who nominates you: Michelle Helene, merci and gracias! (See link above.)

2. Pass this Award along to 15 recently discovered blogs and let them know about it! (Done. See below.)

The Liebster Blog Award goes to:

1. J. A. Bennett at A Book, A Girl, A Journey

2. Jess at Write. Skate. Dream

3. Gail Shepherd at Paradoxy

4. M. G. Higgins at M. G. Higgins

5. Máire Rua at Máire Rua Writes

The One Lovely Blog Award goes to these recently discovered sites:

1. First and foremost is Rachael Harrie's blog, Rach Writes, a super blog designed to help other bloggers discover each other. It's through her blog I've discovered so many of the sites below.

2. Ashley Nixon

3. Ali Cross

4. Eve.E at Clueless Eve

5. Jessica Therrien

6. Theresa Milstein

7. K. T. Hanna

8. A. E. Martin

9. The Old Geezer

10. Kelley at Between the Bookends

11. Lauren Boyd at My Path to Publication

12. Brooke Rousseau

13. F. E. Sewell

14. Sheril Swift

15. Jennifer Burke at Jen's Bookshelf

And there you have it. These are all good sites to visit, do go and enjoy the reads and information these bloggers share.

Meanwhile, I am eagerly looking forward to Rachael's third challenge which is supposed to be posted sometime today.

From Imagos to Vendimias and Burras

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth Varadan aka Mrs. Seraphina) — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 14:21:00 +0000

The Campaign and a cold have bumped my blogging a little on this trip. (So many entries, so little time to read them!) It’s been quite a pleasure clicking around, seeing the various takes on Rachael’s challenge. The stories and poems have been truly impressive. (I will never look at any of those challenge words the same way again!) And one good thing about a cold is that it gives you permission to loll around and read books loaned by friends.

Meanwhile, life moves on in Galicia. Our neighbors finished their vendimia (grape harvest) Saturday. It was a two day process, as the grapes have been plentiful this year. Friends and relatives pitch in with one person's harvest, and then it's reciprocal. After Saturday's vendimia, quite a few gathered at the bench at day’s end, pleased to be done with the picking. I could understand some of what they said, but we are learning Castiliano. When our neighbors get together, they lapse into Gallego, a language similar to both Castiliano and Portuguese. I could pick up bits of vocabulary I knew: “grapes”, “yet”, “field”, “town”, "tractor", etc. But it’s always a pleasure just to listen to the musical rise and fall of their voices, their good-hearted laughter; to watch their mobile expressions, their gesticulations. And they have a way of making you part of the gathering from time to time with a sweeping glance, an arm pat, or by throwing out a question they know you can answer.

This has been one of our warmest trips. (We come in spring and fall.) Evenings and mornings are temperate, when normally they would be quite cool during this season. Days are downright hot. We’ve had to use a floor fan for long periods. There was only one day when we had a bit of rain. And the flies and mosquitoes, alas, are plentiful. I have a fly swatter on a hook in every room, and at night we leave a small lamp on to keep the mosquitos away.

Earlier last week we went with friends to a beautiful coastal town called Baiona, a bay town on the Atlantic coast (farther south than Fisterra, where we went during our spring trip.) Baiona has an interesting “old town” with stone columns supporting walkways under 2nd stories, colorful tiled walls, a stone church full of carved saints, narrow cobbled streets at angles. Cafés overlook the sandy beach and tde wall across the road and the colorful fishing boats beyond. Several islands dot the pale blue waters. On the southern curve of the bay an old castle has been transformed into a parador with a hotel and restaurants. The main building, the part with hotel rooms, looks modern, but there is still the ancient tower and a crenelated wall surrounding gardens lush with red and orange lantana and angel trumpet bushes. It was an all day trip and we finished up with a late dinner at our friends’ house, getting home around 2:00 a.m.

Usually we rise around 6:30 or 7:00 (when it’s still dark then in these parts). But after late nights, we sleep later and are wakened by Miguel’s burra from one of his outbuildings across the lane, hee-hawing for her breakfast. When we first started coming here, Miguel kept his sheep in the building and we would wake to their pitiful bleating. This year he’s moved them to another outbuilding to make room for the donkey. She’s a beautiful creature; deep gray with a black mane, a thin black line down her spine, and a black stripe down each shoulder. And, I must say, a sweet expression on her long face.

Meanwhile, we've been visiting friends and having friends over for Indian food, and a week and a half ago we took in the local fiesta in Toiriz:: I’ll write about that later, as well as another fiesta we are going to in Lugo this Sunday, since fiestas deserve their own posts.

I am sorry to say we haven't downloaded any pictures from this trip yet. The two pictures above are from previous trips, one of the burra, and one of an early stage of our neighbors' winemaking process a couple of years ago, after the grapes were all picked. Meanwhile, today they are all pruning the vines to get ready for next year.

More to come, so stay tuned. Hasta entonces, and ciao for now.

Campaign Challenge #2 -- The Imago

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth Varadan aka Mrs. Seraphina) — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 11:01:00 +0000

So here goes for the 2nd Campaign Challenge Rachael Harrie gave us at Rach Writes. The challenge was to write a blog post in 200 words or less, excluding the title, that includes the word "imago" in the title and in the body of the post includes the following 4 random words: "miasma," "lacuna," "oscitate," "synchronicity". For an added challenge make reference to a mirror in the post. For an even greater challenge, make the post 200 words exactly. All criteria are met (after much gnashing of teeth and pulling of hair.)

The Imago

Arms folded, Nyla stares through the beveled glass door into the galería. Somehow, the glass is both mirror and window. Superimposed on the polished floors of the sunlit galeria beyond, her reflection stares back, as if bemused.

When Nyla was younger, in the miasma of grief that pervaded her home, she sometimes caught mental glimpses of who she might become away from her family’s confused dynamics. These glimpses led her on, in hopes of escaping the pain that oscitated inside her, as one family member after another went down dubious roads to disaster. Now, through some synchronicity, her decision to teach English in Spain has allowed her to catch up the person she hoped to be.

Or has it? When Nyla raises a hand to brush a wisp of hair back from her face, her reflection remains motionless, arms folded. How can that be?

Uneasily, Nyla forces a smile—a smile that isn’t returned. Is the woman in the glass not a reflection after all? Is the beveled glass in the door some lacuna opening into another dimension? Nyla’s thoughts whirl and scatter, reaching for an explanation.

The imago beckons, then reaches a hand through the glass, and Nyla screams.

This is linky entry # 128.

We’re Here in the Land of Mist and Mañana

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth Varadan aka Mrs. Seraphina) — Sat, 24 Sep 2011 11:27:00 +0000

We left Sacramento Sunday morning, and already the week is drifting by. How can Saturday have come so soon?

It’s a long flight from Sacramento to Santiago. We changed at Dallas and again at Madrid, with generous wait times between flights to make sure any delayed flight would not make us miss the next. Our friends met us in Santiago. By the time we picked up our baggage, it was 6:30 in the evening. They drove us to Monforte, a drive of about an hour and a half, where we shopped for basic groceries. Then we all had dinner around 8:30 at a cafe-bar-restaurant called O Pincho. (Dinner at 8:30 or later . . . . That’s when you know you are in Spain.)

After trudging through airports and lugging carry-ons around for close to 26 hours, we practically fell into bed Monday night and had a good long sleep. One of our last, I might add, because jet lag kicked in the next day and is only starting to fade: we become sleepy or wide awake at very odd hours.

It’s wonderful to be here, taking short walks with our neighbors in the village, driving into Escairon for café con leche, or into Monforte to sit at an outdoor table in the big plaza, enjoying a glass of wine. Or going to Adega do Carlos for raciones at lunchtime (which is between 2:00 and 4:00 p.m. in these parts.) Or meeting our neighbors again, late in the day, at the bench down the lane, sitting and talking with them until clouds turn pink and the air turns suddenly cool. Already these lovely friends have loaded us up with potatoes, figs, tomatoes, peppers, and home-made wine. In addition, we’ve been setting up lunch and dinner dates with friends we haven’t seen since our last trip, and tomorrow night is the Fiesta in Tuiriz (a village/town within walking distance, although we will drive, since we won’t go until around 9:30 or so.)

Meanwhile, the mist rises each morning in the lowlands beyond the pastures below our gate—rises and disperses in wispy curls before a new misty layer forms below. It’s a procedure that repeats with variation for much of the morning. I watch it from the galería window as I study my Spanish.

But I have other homework on this trip, thanks to Rachael Harrie at Rach Writes and her Challenge #2 for the Platform Building Campaign. I have to figure out how to come up with 200 words, using miasma, lacuna, oscitate, synchronicity, sneaking in a reference to a mirror, and including the word imago in the title. It certainly is an interesting and fun assignment, but thank goodness she is giving us a week-and-a-half for this particular challenge!

Hopefully I’ll have come up with something in a couple of days, so keep tuning in. In addition, you can connect at Rachel's site to the versions all the other writers come up with, and it's really wonderful to see the creativity in the different responses to the same challenge.

Ciao for now.

WHAT WAS I THINKING????

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth Varadan aka Mrs. Seraphina) — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 17:26:00 +0000

What was I thinking when I said I would post again Monday? Argh! Saturday we went out of town to visit old friends, right after I posted that. Then Sunday I met with my two writing groups, and, as always, I left with homework, because my beta readers always have such insightful suggestions. Monday I had book reviews to turn in to Sacramento Book Review -- and I was working on some of those suggestions. Then yesterday (Tuesday) I had a radio interview with Renee Hand. So. Now. A moment to catch my breath. And post.

First, I want to mention how much I enjoyed being interviewed by Renee Hand on her new radio show, http://www.Blogtalkradio.com/storiesfromunknownauthors . She has an easy style that relaxes you and gets rid of your nervousness. You can still hear the interview if you click on that site and then scroll down. You can also hear an earlier interview with Nicole Weaver, author of My Birthday Is September 11, and you can read about the coming interview September 19th with Britt Menzies, author of The Stinky Kid Series.

As a follow-up to the interview, Renee is holding a new give-away of my book, The Fourth Wish, ending on October 15th. If you go to her site, you can read the rules in full in a coming post. But, basically, if you follow both of us, your name goes on the list that will be submitted to random.org. So, if you are following me, and want new chance at a free copy, please go to The Crypo-Capers Review and follow her blog.

Second, I was pleasantly suprised to find that I received The Versatile Blogger Award from Elizabeth at elizabethannewrites. Elizabeth is a cool blogger I met on the Platform Building Campaign hosted by Rachel Harrie . Rachel will be hosting another one in January, and I would really advise getting in on it. For one thing, it's fun. She gives you some writing challenges. (The first one was to write a flash fiction. I'm eagerly awaiting the next two.) For another, you increase your circle of good blogging and writing friends.

The rules for award recipients are as follows:
1. Thank the person who gave it to you and link back to them. (done)
2. Tell seven things about yourself. (See below. Way below.)
3. Pass the award along to 15 recently discovered blogs and let the bloggers know. (Doing that one before #2, and it's a chance for you to meet some new bloggers, too, so do go visit them. Here they are:

1. Shallee McArthur 10. Brenda Sills
2. Gary Gauthier at Literary Snippets 11. Susan Kaye Quinn
3. M. G. Higgins 12. Joanna Marple
4. Ron Smith at Prince Balthazar 13. Gail Shepherd at Paradoxy
5. JR-Williams 14. Rebecca Bany at
6. J. A. Bennett Memoirs of Me and Mine
7. Katharina Gerlach 15. Donna K. Weaver at
8. Robyn Campbell at Putting Pen to Paper Weaving a Tale or Two
9. David Powers King

As for Seven Things About Me . . . .
1. My husband and I met through a cat named Meathead. Meathead (who is no more) has
a very special place in our hearts.
2. I am not sporty at all, but I used to love to rollerskate. (Forget ice-skating!)
3. I love the Greek Festival, and I love Greek circle dancing.
4. I have attempted several times to learn Tamil (the language spoken in the part of India
where my husband is from.) Attempts at this finally joined attempts at ice-skating.
5. Neither my husband nor I are campers. We tried to be, but everytime we went, it rained.
Camping friends learned not to ask us to go with them. We cook Indian food for
them instead. Everyone is much happier.
6. To my surprise, I am becoming absolutely enamoured of technology. Adept at it? Well,
that needs work . . . .
7. I have read so many good books by good writers in recent months (years?), that I can no
longer say I have a favorite author. I have too many favorites! And what a pleasant
problem to have.

Everyone have a nice week. I'll try to post before Sunday, but Sunday we are on a plane to Galicia again, so the next post may be next week from Galicia.

Meanwhile, enjoy the new sites; please follow Renee's blog, and October 15th (okay, probaby the 16th), we'll announce the winners of the give-away.

And The Winner Is . . . .

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth Varadan aka Mrs. Seraphina) — Sat, 10 Sep 2011 14:36:00 +0000

Good morning everyone. The winner of The Fourth Wish give-away is Jess at Falling Leaflets. Congratulations, Jess.

And thanks to all of you who participated in the contest. It was certainly fun for me.

I'll keep this short, because we are going out of town to visit old friends. But I'll be blogging again Monday.

Everyone have a good week-end.

Renee Hand's Exciting New Radio Show

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth Varadan aka Mrs. Seraphina) — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 21:07:00 +0000

Before I share the exciting news at Blog Talk Radio, just a reminder that the give-away contest for a free copy of The Fourth Wish ends tomorrow, Friday, September 9th, at midnight (my time -- California time). To find out how to win, check out the rules here:

Okay: Big Announcement:

Renee Hand of the Crypto-Capers Review is starting a new venture on Blog Talk Radio called Stories from Unknown Authors. Renee's purpose is in the very title of her show. She interviews unknown and undiscovered authors about their books and their writing aspirations. Renee has always been supportive of other authors, and she regularly reviews children's books on the Crypto-Capers Review. (I subscribe to it and always look forward to the next e-mail with its latest book review.)

In addition, Renee is an award-winning author of the charming, interactive Crypto-Capers mystery series, where mysteries have to be solved by solving puzzle clues -- and kids do love puzzles and mysteries. You can learn more about Renee and her books here.

I'm partly excited about Renee's new radio show, because I'm going to be interviewed on it next Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. EST. (If you are interested in listening in on it, you'll have to work out the time zone differences. For me, it's 2:30 p.m., since I live in California.) But I'm also excited to be part of such a great line up of authors she has slated for September and October.

The first one was scheduled for today. (I'm sorry to be late posting this. Unfortunatley today I had a doctor appointment following up on my recent foot surgery and I just got back awhile ago.) But -- if you tune in late, or if you miss that interview, you can still find and listen to any interview you missed, including Renee's introductory program Tuesday. The shows are always at 6:30 EST, and you can work it out from there. Just go to the main website for the show and scroll on down to see upcoming shows and her main introduction.

Oh, yes, you can also call into the show with questions: (619) 566-0945
Here are some of the authors lined up for September:

Nicole Weaver - My Birthday Is on September 11th.
Me (Elizabeth Varadan) - The Fourth Wish.
Britt Menzies - The Stinky Kids Seriess
Larry Peterson - Slipper Willie's Stupid, Ugly Shoes

Meanwhile, go to Renee's Tuesday post to get more information about the authors and about the books.

Happy reading. Happy listening. Happy writing, too, because we might be listening to your interview on her show one of these days!

The Campaigner Challenge # 1

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth Varadan aka Mrs. Seraphina) — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 19:54:00 +0000

I'm taking part in the platform building campaign, and today Rachael Harrie posted her first challenge at her blog, Rach Writes: Write a flash fiction, 200 words or less, that opens with "The door swung open." If possible, close with "The door swung closed." My sample is below.

BUT FIRST: Don't forget the contest to win a free copy of my book, The Fourth Wish, in either paperback or Kindle format (winner's choice). The contest ends this Friday, September 9th. To follow the rules for getting points, please go here, and any comments you have regarding the contest, please leave at the same site (here), so that I can keep your points straight.

Here's my flash fiction -- 200 words exactly (not counting the title).

Dare You

The door swung open. Darkness lay beyond. A slivered moon and powdery stars shimmered above. Trees along the street were ghostly shapes.

Cassie bit her lip. The deal was that she had to come alone. At midnight. Justin would be watching from someplace nearby to make sure.

Why did she take his dares? Wading up the Truckee River after school. Cutting classes to hang out in Idlewild Park. (That one got her sent to the principal's office.) But, Justin was cool. And when Cassie went along with each new challenge, he made her feel she was cool, too. It was worth getting into trouble just to see the envious stares from other girls as he walked her down the hall between classes.

Cassie shivered. This was the first night-time dare. The abandoned house was creepy enough even in daylight. Shutters hung lopsided from the front windows, like broken wings. A loose board near the threshold creaked under her foot. She should turn back.

But, an image of Justin walking down the hall with Angela Black -- the most popular girl at school -- instead of her, made Cassie swallow her fright. She stepped into the waiting darkness.

The door swung shut.