Subtleties of Setting: How Do I Avoid Triggering–or Creating–Stereotypes?
After high school, I went to a small, liberal arts college in Massachusetts (go Ephs!) that prided itself on diversity of every kind. This included geographic diversity, with students hailing from every state and a butt-load of countries. (A butt-load is a lot, by the way.) I always joked that I was the token West Virginian, but there was one other person from West Virginia in my class. We never actually met, so I don’t know if we were related. See, that’s the kind of joke you can make if you’re from West Virginia. (Or Kentucky; the token Kentuckian and I Read more…
Stories I Love, Onscreen and on the Page: Longmire
Another New Year, another binge-watching opportunity to discover. 😉 There is undoubtedly an abundance of crap on television, but “network” innovation in recent years (is Netflix a network? is Amazon?) has also given us some excellent shows. With limited viewing hours in a day, I often don’t find those shows until they’ve already come and gone. I’m glad to report this one [knocking on desk] is still around. Longmire is the story of a Wyoming sheriff who’s struggling with his grief over the loss of his wife. As the one-year anniversary of her death nears, Walt Longmire (who doesn’t love Read more…
Happy New Year! Don’t Forget Your Sub-Bucket List
Ah, yes, another New Year is hard upon us. If you’re not going out to celebrate, I hope you have all of your entertainment and dining options standing by, as well as any appropriate medications for your pets (and perhaps for you, to deal with them). Today my husband is picking up more Valium for our dog Fred, who—thanks to a few neighbors with more guns and fireworks than sense—has been working his way slowly but surely through the bottle and possibly toward doggie rehab. With the exception of sleep-disrupting dog anxiety, I’m not really feeling the New Year’s thing Read more…
Psychic Dogs, and a Holiday Treat for Sydney Brennan Fans (Shh–It’s a Free Short Story)
Well, I’m back in rainy Hawaii this week. My jet-lagged brain is still struggling to make complete sentences, but my sloughing skin has never been happier. 😉 I’ll be sharing more about my visit to West Virginia soon, along with whatever pictures I can filch from my husband and mom (my position in the back seat, along with my tendency to forget my phone/camera, left me photo-less). For now, I’ll just say it was cold (high temperatures in the teens) and dry. Did I mention the d-r-y? Traveling anywhere from the islands is always… let’s just say involved. But the Read more…
Back to my Roots with a Country Music Confession
This is a “pre-recorded” blog post because I’m currently in the midst of a quick visit back to my hometown in West-by-God-Virginia. (Not to mention, mostly without internet.) You may recall that my upcoming new series, the Dead Hollow Trilogy, is set in a fictional Appalachian town, so this visit isn’t just about potato candy and apple butter. (Mmm… potato candy. Apple butter.) As much as I’m looking forward to spending quality time with friends and family, I’m also looking forward to grilling them. Interrogating them. Picking their brains about all the random bits and bobs that have come up for Read more…
^