Our America: The Latino Presence in American Art for the Smithsonian Date: April 4, 2015 by Juliana Aragon Fatula

This post from my website was posted in 2015.

Recognition, you better recognize: as a community of writers we reinforced and reinvigorated each other, shared our experiences and created an atmosphere of trust. We  gave the art a voice and wrote ekphrastic prose from our experience with the art.

It was my first time in Salt Lake City, and I was impressed with the beautiful gardens, architecture, Antelope Island, the University of Utah.  I arrived in SLC March 27th for a reception to meet the other writers. We met at Jane’s House and broke bread together. The energy in the room was palpable. The writers were alive with curiosity and anxious to chat. It was a wonderful experience to meet all of these Pintura Palabra writers, Fred Arroyo, the facilitator, and Francisco Aragón, the organizer.

March 28, and 29 we visited the art exhibit and workshopped our prose, written for this event.  As an educator, I’m extremely proud and honored to know we are changing history by including Latino Art as part of American Art at the Smithsonian. This was a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet and work with writers and scholars hand picked to collaborate and to create la familia de Latino Art.  The idea is genius, to combine Latino artists with writers and to create a conversation about what is Latino Art and to build a community of writers and artists with the same goal: to bring attention to the exhibit and to change the concept of American Art to include Latino art. Francisco has a vision and is bringing it to fruition through this project.

This traveling exhibit and writing project has already been in D.C. Miami, Sacramento, and now Salt Lake City.  It is a living breathing thing that just keeps getting bigger and better with each stop. In Salt Lake City, we had ten writers workshopping and as nervous as I felt, I was also exhilarated to be part of making history.

The facilitator, Fred Arroyo, guided me through the process of writing ekphrastic prose by providing plenty of reading material and art to accompany the writing. After the readings for Saturday and Sunday, I felt more knowledgeable about what I was about to take on. Spending time in the University of Utah Museum of Fine Art with the Latino art gave all of us participants a feeling of inspiration and a shift in the time/space continuum. Time seemed to stop for us as we sat on the floor, stood, or pulled up a seat. I was drawn into the painting, sculptures and altars. I forgot I was in Utah, forgot I was nervous about being included in this master writing class with master writers. I forgot that I was working.

I’ve never experienced anything quite like this workshop. It was so intense during our group work that I went home exhausted every afternoon. I studied and wrote and listened and gave feedback to writers and worked so hard my brain hurt. I hadn’t used my brain that much in a long time. I felt part of a community. I felt loved. I felt appreciated.

I met some young writers who floored me with their writing. I knew I was witnessing something incredible. I literally felt high on art. The chance to spend time with the Our America: The Latino Presence in American Art changed my life. I realized I needed to do more research, writing and workshopping with other writers. I feel empowered after this workshop. I can feel my social activism coming out of hibernation and ready to take on the way Americans look at Art and Latino Art. Latino Art is American Art and this exhibit displays the last fifty years of great Latino Artists. I’ll be talking about this event with my family and friends for a long time.  I’m so excited and honored to be included in this writing workshop of ekphrastic prose for Pintura Palabra.

Each location gets better and differs from the D.C. Miami and Sacramento workshops: the work transforms the writer and preserves Latino legacies. The Chicano Movement in the 60’s created a need for Latinos to showcase their art and share their history through their creations. Thus, Our America: the Latino Presence in American Art gave artists and writers with a common goal, a platform to start a conversation about what is American art.

On Sunday evening a reading was held at a great venue, Mestizo Coffeehouse, to share our ekphrastic prose with the community of SLC. This was my favorite part of the workshop. Giving the work a voice and hearing the response from the audience moved me down in my soul. I met some incredible people from the area and fell in love with the city. I will be returning someday, for now, I’m content to cherish my memories and move on to the next writing workshop. If they are anything like this one for Pintura Palabra, I will be rewarded for all of the time and effort I put in to it. I will be a master writer.

Post-Publication

By Bethany Maines

Me Before Publishing: I just love writing and I would never bother anyone to buy my books.  In fact, I prefer not to talk to people at all.  I’ll just stay in my writing cave over here and type some more.

Me After Publishing: BUY MY BOOKS!!!  REVIEW MY BOOKS!!! I NEED A STREET CORNER AND A BULLHORN STAT!  WHY DON’T YOU LOVE MEEEEEEEEE!!

You would think that the amount of sales affected that post-publishing sentiment, but they don’t.  Not a bit. Publishing a book, or presenting any piece of artwork for public consumption, is to lay bare some piece of the soul in a very public way.  It’s very difficult to maintain any sort of equilibrium as reviews from readers trickle in.  Some of the reviews can be wonderful and have you floating high in the sky and others have you raging and stomping around the house.  But even the angry-makers are a validation of a kind.  Someone read my book and cared enough to leave a review!  Yes, they thought my main character was snarky, but they cared enough to comment, damn it!  The worst is silence.  You, you invisible people, you bought the book!  I know you did.  It’s right there in the sales report.  You didn’t read it?  You read it, but didn’t love it?  Why don’t you love meeeeeee? 

And we’re back in the loop.

Which is when it’s important to take a breath, step away from the computer and go for a walk.  Or talk to the dog.  And Kato says that it’s time for a walk, so off I go.

Erm… by the way, have I mentioned I have a new book out (and book 1 is still ¢.99)?

---

Bethany Maines is the author of the Carrie Mae Mystery Series, Tales From the City of Destiny, San Juan Islands Mysteries, Shark Santoyo Crime Series, and numerous short stories. When she's not traveling to exotic lands, or kicking some serious butt with her fourth degree black belt in karate, she can be found chasing her daughter or glued to the computer working on her next novel. You can also catch up with her on YouTube, Twitter and Facebook.

How Much is Too Much? The Art of Subtly --by T.K. Thorne

 

      Writer, humanist,
          dog-mom, horse servant and cat-slave,
       Lover of solitude
          and the company of good friends,
        New places, new ideas
           and old wisdom.

“Don’t give too much information” is one of the tenets of “good” fiction writing, i.e., writing that avoids the slush pile. A positive way to phrase this is—write subtly.

According to Noah Lakeman, author of The First Five Pages: A Writer's Guide to Staying Out of the Rejection Pile:

•    An unsubtle MS will have an inflated feel—inflated with superfluous words, phrases, dialogue, and scenes that are far too long.

•    Less is more; Leave some things unsaid; be a minimalist.

•    If you underestimate your reader, you alienate him/her.

•    Discipline yourself to withhold information.

•    Embrace confusion; leave a little mystery.

But now we are back to the dilemma—how much is too much and how do you know when to stop? For some people, that skill comes naturally, but others struggle with it. Recently, I was reading over my latest novel manuscript and decided I wanted to drop some back story in the first chapter of book three of a trilogy. Backstory is always risky because too much can pull the reader out of the story world. They “hear” the author “filling them in.”

Setup: Rose, a police detective, responds to a homicide scene where a construction worker has fallen seven stories to his death. She looks at the body and hopes she isn’t going to get sick. 

I inserted: “The only time I’ve been sick at the sight of a dead body was the night I had my first vision, a glimpse of the future that made me fire two bullets into a man’s back.”

Works.  Why? 

1. It’s relevant and fits the context. It’s a natural thought proceeding from her hope that she won’t get sick.

2. It doesn’t give too much information. It leaves the reader with questions—Why did she shoot a man in the back? Why wasn’t she fired or convicted of murder?

3. It adds to plot or character. We now know that Rose had a traumatic incident in her past and that bodies don’t usually make her nauseous. Important stuff.

What if Rose looked at the body and thought instead: “This reminds me of the time when I had a few drinks with Harry and got sick all over the floor.”

It’s shorter, so “too much” is not about question of how many words you use. This version also flows from her thinking about getting sick, but it is too much information, because–who cares if she got sick drinking with Henry? It is not important to the story and adds nothing to the plot or character development. Unless it is an important part of her character that her mind wanders willy-nilly, it pulls the reader out of the story narrative.

Not every piece of narrative has to do all three of these things, but if you have a suspicious piece of writing, analyze it to make sure it is (1) relevant and in context, (2) leaves questions open, and/or (3) adds to the plot and character.

P.S.  HOUSE OF ROSE, a paranormal mystery/thriller and the first book in a trilogy is coming out in November.  Rose is a Birmingham police officer who discovers she's a witch of an ancient House, the prey of a powerful enemy and the pawn of another.  I've had such fun writing this!  Sign up for my newsletter to stay in the loop and receive two free short stories.

T.K. has written two award-winning historical novels, NOAH'S WIFE and ANGELS AT THE GATE, filling in the untold backstories of extraordinary unnamed women—the wives of Noah and Lot—in two of the world’s most famous sagas. The New York Post’s “Books You Should Be Reading” list featured her first non-fiction book, LAST CHANCE FOR JUSTICE, which details the investigators’ behind-the-scenes stories of the 1963 Birmingham church bombing case. Her next project is HOUSE OF ROSE, the first of a trilogy in the paranormal-crime genre. She loves traveling and speaking about her books and life lessons. T.K. writes at her mountaintop home near Birmingham, Alabama, often with two dogs and a cat vying for her lap. She blogs about “What Moves Me” on her website, TKThorne.com.  Join her private newsletter email list and receive a two free short stories at “TK’s Korner.”

In It For The Money

By Cathy Perkins

In It For The Money releases next week. After several related-world novellas, it was fun to climb back into Holly's head--and heart.

This latest addition to the Holly Price Mystery Series definitely plays to my tag line--Mystery with a Financial Twist; Trust issues, Family Bonds. A CPA and amateur sleuth, Holly gets drawn into both her family's and clients' crises. In these stories, she usually has to figure out "why-dun-it" in addition to "who-dun-it?"

The books in the series combine mystery, a touch of humor, and a chunk of relationship issues that generate some interesting emails. (Note, JC is an imaginary character, but I love that you love him.)


Holly Price traded her professional goals for personal plans when she agreed to leave her high-flying position with the Seattle Mergers and Acquisitions team and take over the family accounting practice. Reunited with JC Dimitrak, her former fiancé, she’s already questioning whether she’s ready to flip her condo for marriage and a house in the ‘burbs.

When her cousin Tate needs investors for his innovative truck suspension, Holly works her business matchmaking skills and connects him with a client. The rockcrawler showcasing the new part crashes at its debut event, however, and the driver dies. Framed for the sabotage, Tate turns to Holly when the local cops—including JC—are ready to haul him to jail. Holly soon finds her cousin and client embroiled in multiple criminal schemes. She’s drawn into the investigation, a position that threatens her life, her family and her already shaky relationship with JC.

  Amazon      Nook     Kobo     iBooks


To celebrate the release of In It For the Money, book 1 of the series - So About the Money is on sale for only 99 cents!  Enjoy the romp across Washington state!


When Holly Price trips over a friend’s dead body while hiking, her life takes a nosedive into a world of intrigue and danger. The verdict is murder—and Holly is the prime suspect. Of course, the fact that the sexy—and very pissed off—cop threatening to arrest her is JC Dimitrak, Holly’s jilted ex-fiancé, doesn’t help matters.

To protect her future, her business...and her heart...the intrepid forensic accountant must use all her considerable investigative skills to follow the money through an intricate web of shadow companies, while staying one step ahead of her ex-fiancé. She better solve the case before the real killer decides CPA stands for Certified Pain in the Ass...and the next dead body found beside the river is Holly’s.

Amazon 


An award-winning author of financial mysteries, Cathy Perkins writes twisting dark suspense and light amateur sleuth stories.  When not writing, she battles with the beavers over the pond height or heads out on another travel adventure. She lives in Washington with her husband, children, several dogs and the resident deer herd.

Visit her at http://cperkinswrites.com or on Facebook 

Sign up for her new release announcement newsletter in either place.

She's hard at work on the next book in the Holly Price series.

May the Force Be with Me!

by Kay Kendall


Right now I need all the help I can get. So today I called down The Force to help amp up my super powers. In my case, The Force is Bob Dylan.

 Let me explain.

My second mystery published almost three years ago. Like the first one, it took its name from a Bob Dylan song title. I use Dylan to evoke the late 1960s when the stories take place. In 2013 came my first mystery in the Austin Starr series, DESOLATION ROW (see concert shirt at right). In 2015 came RAINY DAY WOMEN. And then came a lengthy hiatus.

 Now, at long, long last my marvelous editor and I are getting my third mystery ready for publication. Maybe you think I’ve been lazing around the house and doing nothing. Nope. Not exactly. Chez Kendall got hit by three major illnesses in a row. First my husband fought cancer. Then I did, and then I developed a rare bone disease from a botched dental procedure.

My third book got written along the way, but it took a super long time. As I contemplate the work still to be done, my supply of oomph feels drained. The revision I face on this continuation of the Austin Starr mystery saga seems taxing. That's why I call on Mr. Dylan to lend me some of his special sauce—just a pinch of his enormous creativity, pretty please—to prepare me for the arduous journey ahead.

Heck, I may need to wear this Dylan tee shirt every day for the next month. Well, if so, it will be worth it. I look forward to bringing my third mystery, AFTER YOU'VE GONE, to its publication date, later this year.

This third mystery is a prequel featuring Austin Starr's Texas grandmother. And wouldn't you know it, she too loves to solve puzzles. In 1923, inspired by her emersion in the Sherlock Holmes stories of her era, she chases down the murderer of a relative when everyone else believes a peculiarly awful death was merely an accident. She runs into rumrunners, bootleggers, gangsters, and genuine flappers—even floozies. Headquarters for this activity in Texas during Prohibition was the wild city of Galveston on the gulf coast. Al Capone even sent his goons down from Chicago to try to muscle in on the action. Suffice it to say, Austin’s grandmother has many eye-opening experiences.

Of course, Dylan wasn't writing songs 100 years ago so I use another song title instead, one that stands the test of time. Popular in the Roaring Twenties when this prequel is set, the song "After You've Gone" has been covered by many famous singers every decade since. I especially recommend the versions by Ella Fitzgerald and Fiona Apple. Find them on YouTube.   

And then, some months from now when Stairway Press publishes my new mystery, I hope you will read it—and then conclude that some things are worth waiting for. Just please do wish me luck in the meantime.

==============

Meet the author

Kay Kendall is a long-time fan of historical novels and now writes mysteries that capture the spirit and turbulence of the sixties. A reformed PR executive who won international awards for her projects, Kay lives in Texas with her Canadian husband, three house rabbits, and spaniel Wills. Terribly allergic to her bunnies, she loves them anyway! Her book titles show she's a Bob Dylan buff. In 2015 Rainy Day Women won two Silver Falchion Awards at Killer Nashville. Visit Kay at her website < http://www.austinstarr.com/>

or on Facebook < https://www.facebook.com/KayKendallAuthor>

Checking Out Some Great “How To” Writing Guidelines

by Paula Gail Benson

 

Lately, I’ve been coming across a number of online articles that express succinctly how certain forms of genre fiction should be written. Here are a few I’ve discovered:

 

Dennis Palumbo wrote “Taking the Mystery Out of How to Write a Mystery” (https://www.writersstore.com/taking-the-mystery-out-of-writing-mysteries/). He lists three important elements: : “1) establishing the unique character of the protagonist, 2) making narrative use of the world in which the story takes place, and 3) planting clues (remember, only a few) that derive from the particular aspects of that world.” Palumbo recommends that writers consider what makes them unique and their own backgrounds in developing their protagonists and settings.

 

Chuck Wendig provides “25 Things Writers Should Know About Creating Mystery” (http://terribleminds.com/ramble/2012/05/08/25-things-writers-should-know-about-creating-mystery/). He describes a mystery as an incomplete equation. Even though readers know the answer will be revealed by the end, “[a] good story traps us in the moment and compels us by its incompleteness.” Readers want to be part of the process. “[S]ometimes creating mystery is not an act of asking a question but the deed of providing a clearly incorrect answer. Let the audience seek the truth by showing them a lie.” And, it’s important for plot and character to be intricately intertwined. “Plot, after all, is like Soylent Green — it’s made of people.”

 

Ginny Wiehardt gives us the ten “Top Rules for Mystery Writing” (https://www.thebalancecareers.com/top-rules-for-mystery-writing-1277089). Her article is written about mystery novels, but the suggestions are easily adapted to short stories. She points out that people read mysteries for a “particular experience.” They want the opportunity to solve the crime and they expect all to turn out well in the end. Reading many mysteries to see how “the rules” have been applied in those stories will be helpful to a writer, and understanding “the rules” in order to better meet reader expectations will help a writer craft a better mystery story. Among her recommendations are to introduce the detective, culprit, and crime early and wait until the last possible moment to reveal the culprit.

 

Peter Derk explains the “The 8 Keys to a Good Heist Story” (https://litreactor.com/columns/the-8-keys-to-a-good-heist-story). “A good heist has a planning stage, execution stage, and an escape. They can be in different proportions, but if your story is missing one of the three, it won’t pass muster.” Derk says there must be complications and a reason to root for success. Also, he suggests taking care in putting the team together and having a reason behind the operation that is greater than monetary gain.

 

Dr. David Lewis Anderson gives a good description of “Time Travel in Science Fiction” (http://andersoninstitute.com/time-travel-in-science-fiction.html). He offers a historical analysis of science fiction stories that have used time travel, but he also explores the elements writers have developed through those stories.

 

In his “6 Secrets to Creating and Sustaining Suspense,” (http://www.writersdigest.com/online-editor/6-secrets-to-creating-and-sustaining-suspense) Steven James evaluates how to add suspense in mystery, thriller, and literary stories. He suggests the key is to give readers something to worry about, then explains how to do that.

 

Finally, Jan Ellison offers “9 Practical Tricks for Writing Your First Novel” (http://www.writersdigest.com/online-editor/9-practical-tricks-for-writing-your-first-novel). Two of her recommendations that I found interesting were to set writing goals that are completely within your control and keep working on a poem while writing your novel. The poem allows you freedom of expression and provides a way to get started with your writing.

 

Have you read any writing “how to” articles lately?

Finding Your Writers Tribe

My friend Dianne Freeman visits the blog today. We met through a miracle called Authors 18, an online group of writers who are all debuting novels in 2018.  I'm so pleased she's here to talk about finding, or sometimes making, your own writers tribe. --Shari Randall

Before the ink was even dry on my book contract I had a crisis of confidence. I must be crazy, I couldn’t do this. It took almost two years to write my first book and they wanted the second in eleven months. What if I couldn’t do that? And they wanted an outline. I never wrote an outline. And publishing, and promotions, and all the things I didn’t even know about yet. How was I going to get through this? I needed help—lots of help! 

I decided to look for writers who were in the same position as me—new to publishing and not really sure what we were getting into. I didn’t know any local authors, so I turned to social media. There was already a group for authors whose books released in 2017, but so far no one had formed one for 2018. Unless I wanted to go through all these new and slightly terrifying experiences alone, I’d have to form one. 

I started stalking agents on twitter, waiting for one to announce a book deal for a new client. I poured through the deals section of Publishers Marketplace. Once I’d found a debut author, I’d have to make contact—would you be interested in joining my group to help prop each other up while we go through this publishing experience? Please? I was so relieved whenever they said yes. It finally dawned on me to post a notice on Twitter for debut authors to join us and member by member, Authors 18 was born.

That was March of 2017. Now we have 120 members in our Facebook group and I don’t know how I’d get by without them. We are one another’s fans, confidantes, advisors, and sounding boards. Those who published earlier in the year were able to share their experiences with the rest of us. When one of us finds a new marketing tool or promotional opportunity we share it with the group. If someone is having a crisis there’s always another member to talk it out. From cover reveals to launch parties, copy edits to cover blurbs, we have friends on this publishing journey who know what we’re going through, and I think we’ve all gained confidence from that.

Writing is a very solitary occupation, but you don’t have to go it alone. There are so many writing groups online and maybe even in your neighborhood. The camaraderie and support a group can provide is priceless. They can also be a source of critique partners and beta readers. If you can’t find an existing group that fits your needs, form one. It was the best thing I ever did for my writing career and my sanity. More importantly, it brought some wonderful new friends into my life.

Dianne Freeman is a life-long book lover who left the world of corporate finance to pursue her passion for writing. After co-authoring the non-fiction book, Haunted Highway, The Spirits of Route 66, she realized her true love was fiction, historical mystery in particular. She also realized she didn’t like winter very much so now she and her husband pursue the endless summer by splitting their time between Michigan and Arizona.

Her debut novel, A Lady’s Guide to Etiquette and Murder is scheduled for release with Kensington June 26, 2018.

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Etiquette-Murder-Countess-Harleigh-Mystery/dp/1496716876/

Website: https://difreeman.com/

FB: https://www.facebook.com/DianneFreemanAuthor/

Twitter:https://twitter.com/Difreeman001

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/diannefreemanwrites/