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Monthly Archives: August 2015

Tear it out!

25 Aug

If you own a home and you are reading this post, you have some form of plant material in your yard that needs to be torn out and replaced. In unison, you all responded with, “yes, weeds”. And that is most likely true, but I’m talking about trees, shrubs, grasses, and flowers that you planted. Yes, you!

I’m not talking about the hostas or daylillies that need to be split. Though they probably do. I’m talking about the tree or shrub that turned from the pretty little thing that looked so nice up against the corner of the house, to the monster that now appears to have eaten that same corner and half of the garage as well!

Too much Willow!

Too much Willow!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A few years back I planted two Arctic Blue Willows on either side of the waterfall in my back yard. “What waterfall?” you may ask. That is precisely my point! The willows, which I was informed would only reach three feet in height turned into real monsters, six feet high and six feet across. Sure I trimmed them twice a year so I could see my water feature. But, then the willows didn’t look so good.

I try to create a “maintenance-free” garden, at least as much as possible. So, I decided to tear out the willows. initially the plan was to transplant them to the cabin. However, because the roots took such a pounding during removal from under the rocks, and the travel time to the cabin would make it difficult to keep the remaining roots moist, we decided to scrap them altogether. I was not happy about this but it had to be done.The result was nothing short of amazing

Clean palette

Clean palette

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now I can see the waterfall and have a chance to rebuild the planting beds the way they should be, You see, tearing it out isn’t such a bad thing after all.

Note to self: Have the Domestic CEO weed the walkway.

 
9 Comments

Posted by on August 25, 2015 in Garden Walks

 

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Mistakes Happen.

24 Aug

Speak no evil

 

 

 

 

Well. it finally happened. It took a few years but I finally put something on the web that wish I hadn’t. I will not say what, when, or where as it doesn’t really matter at this point. Just that I said something without all of the facts and without considering the context in which it would be taken by other readers. unfortunately I cannot take it back or remove it. Looking back on it, I should have just kept my mouth shut and let others, who also did not have all the facts, spew forth their opinions. This was not my finest hour. However, it did reinforce my decision to not use this blog to stand on a soapbox. Don’t get me wrong, I have opinions on most topics. And a few of those opinions are based on experience and first hand knowledge. It’s simply not what I want for this blog. I hope those who read my comment, won’t hold it against me.

Can you imagine what the world would be like if the everyone followed one simple rule: If you don’t have anything nice to say, say nothing at all? The silence would be deafening.

Uh, oh. Caught myself trying to step up on that soapbox.

 
8 Comments

Posted by on August 24, 2015 in Other Strangeness

 

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Plot Twists in Short Fiction

06 Aug

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A panel topic at this year’s 4th Street Fantasy convention dealt with using Fake outs, False Fumbles,and Misdirection to spice up standard plot tropes. It was a lively discussion as you might expect. The part of the discussion that interested me the most was the Set-up. Those sentences, paragraphs, and even whole scenes that are used to purposefully send the reader down a dead-end or straight into the surprise plot fake out. The Set-up is the clue(s) the author provides the reader that the plot trope they know and love may get thrown for a loop later in the story. Usually, the clues go unnoticed at first as just lightly related information used as world-building or characterization. The number of Set-ups can vary from story to story but as a rule there should be at least three: one towards the beginning, another somewhere in the middle, and then a last one just before the big surprise ending.

During the panel discussion, a comment was made that this is a little harder to handle in short fiction. The clues would be included in at most a “throw away” sentence or two. Frankly, what shocked me more was that the accomplished short fiction writers in the audience did not jump up and scream at the top of their lungs at this comment. Since when is there “throw away” sentences in a 3,000 word short story?

As I stated previously, the initial clue(s) may go unnoticed. But, can they really in a short work? Can you afford to insert a “throw away” line. just to set up a plot twist later? It seems to me that those “throw away” lines are nearly as important and require at least as much consideration as your opening line. These sentences need to fulfill at least two and maybe three or four purposes. One of which is to give the clue that the reader needs to remember, on some level, so that the surprise ending doesn’t seem contrived. Also, keep in mind that the clue should not be too obvious that it jolts the reader out of the story.

So, I would like to hear from you short fiction writers. How do you handle Set-ups in your short works? Or, do you stick with the tried and true plot tropes?

 

 
4 Comments

Posted by on August 6, 2015 in Thoughts on Writing

 

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777 Writer’s Challenge

03 Aug

It is hard to ignore a challenge. Especially one laid down by the lovely and talented owner of Sara Kjeldsen Writes. The challenge is pretty simple. Just open your current work in progress, go to the seventh line of the seventh page, and post the next seven sentences. Easy, peasy. Then tag seven other writers and challenge them to do the same. Not so easy.

After I read these seven sentences, i laughed. I was surprised that it took seven pages to get my protagonist into this much hot water. Anyway, He has a habit of biting off more than he can chew. So, here goes.

I stopped in mid-stride and slowly turned to face the most powerful wizard west of the Mississippi. She still stood behind the bar. Her eyes were wide with surprise but, she quickly recovered her composure.  Red sparks flashed from her casting rod. She flicked her hand and I heard the front door locks slam into place. Some of the patrons began to object, preferring to leave before two wizards began dueling. But, it was way too late for that.

Now a few author’s who should have something to offer up:

Kate Johnson

Scott Weber

Matthew Wright – He says he has some new fiction in the works, which I’m dying to read.

Corey MP

AnnMarie Wyncoll

 
9 Comments

Posted by on August 3, 2015 in Actress and the Warlock, Journey into Fantasy

 

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