Pondering the Ctrl Alt Delete

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By Bethany Maines

Date night this weekend involved going to see Star Trek:
Into Darkness.  For those who have
managed to enjoy the inundation of movie previews, the original Jim Kirk era of
Star Trek was given a “reboot” a few years ago, and Into Darkness was the
sequel. I’m enjoying this iteration of Star Trek, but it got me to thinking
about the entire concept of reboots.

The current reboot fad seems to have come mostly from the
comic book world, where characters must evolve with changing times and changing
teams of writers and artists and no one person “owns” the character the way a
novelist owns their inventions. However, anytime the words “comic book” get
uttered, people seem to become dismissive of whatever information surrounds the
words in that sentence, so let’s look at the example of Sherlock Holmes. It’s
been estimated that he’s the most prolific character in the history of cinema.
He’s been old, he’s been young, he’s been a cucumber. (Yes, a cucumber – InVeggieTales of course.)  The
character of Sherlock endures across the iterations and seeps into our
collective consciousness.  But how
does it work?  How can we, the
audience, accept a new Sherlock, or a new Spock? 
I think the number one reason audiences will accept a new
version of our favorite characters is that we love them.  It’s just that the original series of
Star Trek only lasted 3 years, and Sir Doyle only wrote four novels and a
handful of short stories about Sherlock. I think we all would like more about
our favorites, but “more” literally doesn’t exist.  Of course, if you screw up the reboot we will hate you
forever for messing with our favorite characters. (Yes, I’m looking at you,
Halle Berry, worst Catwoman of all time.) At the end of the day, a reboot is only
successful if it stays true enough to the character to feel right to the
audience.

Now here’s the question I’ve been pondering: Can reboots
work in literature?  Novels based
on the work of other authors has been not just panned, but hated.  Nancy Drew, our favorite Titian-haired
heroine, with her rotating cast of Carolyn Keene’s has been rebooted a few
times, but I would say that she is the exception rather than the rule. Perhaps
reboots only work when a character belongs to a corporation or is transferred to
a new medium. Are there any novelists who have rebooted their own characters?  What character from literature would
you like to see rebooted?

My Dad, My Hero

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By Evelyn David
 
Fatherhood is
pretending the present you love most is soap-on-a-rope.

I’ve always adored that quote from Bill Cosby. Over the
years I gave my father enough soap-on-a-rope to cleanse half the city of Baltimore. And every
single year, bless him, he acted like I had given him the winning ticket to the
Florida Powerball.

It’s Father’s Day on Sunday. But of course, we don’t need a
Hallmark holiday to celebrate the Dads in our lives. Both halves of Evelyn
David have been blessed with exceptional fathers. They were men who adored us,
encouraged us, taught us, supported us, cheered for us, laughed with us, comforted
us, and made us feel like our dreams were always within reach. I married a man
like my father and feel like the best gift I ever gave my kids was to give them
the best Dad in the world.

A DNA-connection is the least of the components of being a
good parent. It’s someone willing to put in the hard, often messy, work of
raising kids to be responsible, caring, loving individuals. My Dad traveled for
his job, gone probably three weeks of every month, leaving on Monday morning,
arriving home late Friday night. Yet, I don’t remember him being gone, his
presence in my life so very strong. What I remember are the weekly trips to the
library (no surprise, he loved mysteries!); the visits to the Baltimore Zoo (a
bag of peanuts for the elephants, mostly eaten by us!); and the birthday cakes
he ordered from Silber’s Bakery each year (my mother organized the parties, he
was responsible for the cakes!). I remember his “zingers” as he
called them – fast quips that were smart, never hurtful, and made you laugh out
loud. I remember that as a product of the Depression, he never spent money on
himself, but when he came with Mom and me to pick out my wedding gown, he
insisted that I buy the one I liked, even if it was the most expensive. He made
a pact with my fiancé on my wedding day – that they were both on the same
team, loving and supporting Marian. And when a short three years later, when
unbelievably he died way too young, I knew that the love he gave me,
unstintingly and without reservation, would be with me the rest of my life – as
it has.

So to all the wonderful Dads out there – regardless of how
you are connected to the children in your lives – we salute you, we thank you. And
we know that Dads stay in our hearts forever.

Marian, the Northern half of Evelyn David

——————–

$0.99 SALE! – Ending June 16

The Ghosts of
Lottawatah – a boxed set of E-books of the first four in the Brianna Sullivan Mysteries series

Sullivan Investigations Mystery
Murder Off the Books Kindle – Nook – Smashwords – Trade Paperback
Murder Takes the Cake Kindle – Nook – Smashwords – Trade Paperback 
Murder Doubles Back Kindle – Nook – Smashwords – Trade Paperback
Riley Come Home (short story)- Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Moonlighting at the Mall (short story) – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords

 


Brianna Sullivan Mysteries – e-book series
I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
The Dog Days of Summer in Lottawatah– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
The Holiday Spirit(s) of Lottawatah– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Undying Love in Lottawatah- Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
A Haunting in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Lottawatah Twister – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Missing in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Good Grief in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Summer Lightning in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords

The Ghosts of Lottawatah – trade paperback collection of the Brianna e-books
Book 1 – I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries (includes the first four Brianna e-books)
Book 2 – A Haunting in Lottawatah (includes the 5th, 6th, and 7th Brianna e-books)

Zoned for Murder – stand-alone mystery

Romances
Love Lessons – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords

That’s Not Coaching…

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The incredible Harlan Coben (love his books) recently posted
an essay called “That’s Not Coaching.  It’s
Child Abuse,” in which he detailed the kind of coaches that exist today in
youth sports and why they do more damage than one might think.  If you want to read his take, go here:  http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-05-30/that-s-not-coaching-it-s-child-abuse-.html.  This essay resonated with me because we have just finished out modified lacrosse season here, child #2 having had a wonderful year playing for a nurturing and communicative coach who wanted nothing more for the kids to learn, have fun, and become solid teammates.
And to top it all off?  The team had an 8-3 record, something that hasn’t happened in a long while in modified lacrosse.  We won.  Many games in a row.  Something we are not used to doing.
I’ve been through the gamut of youth sports’ coaches from the weekend warrior dads (some good, some not so good) to the moonlighting middle- and high-school teachers to the rabid almost-made-it-to-the-professional-level-but-blew-out-their-knee guys.  I have also coached sports myself, namely co-ed baseball at the second-grade level and girls’ softball at the fourth-grade level. Coaching children on a sports’ team is not for the faint of heart; just ask my teacher-husband who had to take over for me when I was relieved of coaching kindergarten T-ball due to a cancer diagnosis.  (And believe me, that’s the ONLY way you get out of coaching kindergarten level T-ball.)  He’s still tired, eight years later.
I took a decidedly “it’s not about the winning” stance when coaching, something that put me in bad stead with some parents but one that I stuck to. Hey, I like to win more than anyone on the planet; just ask the husband about the time I turned a square dance into a competitive event. But when you’re dealing with kids, it’s better–in my opinion–to help them develop a love of the game and an aptitude for its finer aspects than pushing winning at all costs.  That, to me, is just not healthy.
Nor is the “everyone is a winner” philosophy that is so prevalent in the suburbs these days.  That is just as harmful.  You have to learn to be a gracious winner as well as a gracious loser.  You’re not going to win everything in life so why not learn how to suck it up and congratulate your opponent while playing baseball or soccer or basketball with your friends?
I think you can strike a nice balance between the crazy-competitive and the laissez faire coaches of the world and I’m glad to say that child #2 had a great experience with one of those coaches this year. So, in addition to giving you a link to a very well-written essay on youth sports, I wanted to thank Coach C for his dedication to modified lacrosse and for bringing the proper mix of competitiveness and compassion to a really violent sport.  (Boys with sticks hitting each other?  Not my kind of game.)
Oh, and by the way, Coach:  I owe you that clean jersey.  
Maggie Barbieri

My Writing Took a Back Seat

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The last two weeks have not been good for my writing at all. I’m about 1/3 into my next Rocky Bluff but many, many things have interfered with the writing.

I had to judge some manuscripts for a contest–and that was interesting. The first one I read was marvelous. Excellent writing, different plot and a joy to read. Second book was great too, some minor errors but not much. Then came the not-so-good–and one that’s was just plain awful.

I’ve judged a lot of books and unpubbed manuscripts over the years. Some of them make me wonder if they’ve ever read a book–or even the guidelines of how to format a manuscript. Did they look up words to make sure they used the right one for what they meant? Have they ever heard that an exclamation point after nearly every sentence doesn’t make things better? And elllipses covering every page–what’s that about?

Using every synonym in the dictionary for said and asked drives me crazy.  And boring dialogue that does nothing to move the story along.

And of course, the biggest problem so many new writers have, point-of-view. Head jumping from one character to another–and none of the characters have been developed enough to be more than a name.

Anyway, that took up lots of time. I had to decide which ones would win  and write something encouraging for each–and tell them what needed to be fixed.

And then family events came along. Not complaining about them because they were beautiful, heartwarming and fun. Grandson Nathan (youngest son’s oldest boy) married his love, Amanda, weekend before last.

This was a three day event in a beautiful mountain setting. Family and wedding party stayed in the lodge and cabins. We had a great time.

This past weekend, we headed to the coast for another grandson’s wedding: Gregg (youngest daughter’s middle son) and his love, Caitlin.

This was in a gorgeous garden in Montecito (Gregg’s uncle’s backyard). Beautiful wedding and like the one before, got to see lots of relatives. Loved every minute of both weddings and receptions.

Now it’s time to put my fanny in the seat and get to work on my own book.

Marilyn

One Size Fits All

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By Evelyn David

I’ve been thinking a lot about The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares. The premise is that there is a pair of
magic jeans that all four best friends can wear, despite their being disparate
sizes and shapes. It’s a sweet tale, but mine is true.

Many (many) years ago, when I was pregnant with my first
child, my mother took me to Lord and Taylor’s (a big department store) to shop
for a layette. (I don’t even know if they call it a layette anymore.) But since
we didn’t know the gender of the baby, ultrasounds were not routine back in the
dark ages, we bought everything in pastel shades of yellow and green – and added
a little white footed onesie. Long sleeves, long pants, snaps all the
way down the middle and one leg – easy on and off.

Now Son Number One was born at the end of July. It was a
minimum of 100 degrees, but on the day we brought him home from the hospital,
he wore an undershirt, the little white long-sleeved footed onesie, and two
receiving blankets. He weighed six pounds, nine ounces and the outfit fit
perfectly.

Fast-forward three-and-a-half years and it was time to bring
home Son Number Two. This time it was New Year’s Eve, and he too wore the little
white onesie, minus the undershirt which I’d forgotten, as well as without any
receiving blankets. I’m pretty sure my husband warmed up the car. Son Number
Two weighed eight pounds, seven ounces.

And a tradition was set. When Son Number Three, born
three years later at eight pounds, two ounces, and then six years after that when
Darling Daughter arrived on the scene, six pounds, six ounces, regardless of
the weather or weight, each came home in the little white onesie.

I am a sentimental wuss, so I couldn’t bear to part with the
outfit, along with a few other cherished baby clothes, so I tucked them away in
the attic.

Fast forward even further in time, to the arrival of
adorable granddaughter (who turns three tomorrow!!). At seven pounds, two ounces,
the little white onesie fit her perfectly for the trip home from the hospital.

And then two weeks ago, delightful grandson, all 9 pounds,
3.8 ounces of him, rode home in style in the little white onesie that his Daddy
had worn all those years ago.

There is a Jewish expression, meant for more serious things,
but seems right for this tale: L’Dor V’Dor – from generation to generation.

Evelyn David, the Northern half who is also known as Grandma

 
 
 
 

Sullivan Investigations Mystery
Murder Off the Books Kindle – Nook – Smashwords – Trade Paperback
Murder Takes the Cake Kindle – Nook – Smashwords – Trade Paperback 
Murder Doubles Back Kindle – Nook – Smashwords – Trade Paperback
Riley Come Home (short story)- Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Moonlighting at the Mall (short story) – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords

 


Brianna Sullivan Mysteries – e-book series
I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
The Dog Days of Summer in Lottawatah– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
The Holiday Spirit(s) of Lottawatah– Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Undying Love in Lottawatah- Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
A Haunting in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Lottawatah Twister – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Missing in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Good Grief in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords
Summer Lightning in Lottawatah – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords

The Ghosts of Lottawatah – trade paperback collection of the Brianna e-books
Book 1 – I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries (includes the first four Brianna e-books)
Book 2 – A Haunting in Lottawatah (includes the 5th, 6th, and 7th Brianna e-books)

Romances
Love Lessons – Kindle – Nook – Smashwords