Just coming up for air for a few minutes. I've been buried in work and medical issues for the last couple weeks. I think the worst might be over - keep your fingers crossed and we'll see how it goes.
Nothing new to report on the book front, but tomorrow you get to look forward to a double dose of delectable delights from the vocabulary vault (say that five times fast).
In the meantime, today I'm burying my nose in a book and doing mountains of laundry. Doesn't that sound like a fun way to spend a day?
=) JB
7.18.2008
7.05.2008
Words for the Week
We spent a lovely Fourth yesterday at the lake, watching it rain intermittently and enjoying the company of family. Came home and watched the Nashville fireworks show on TV (in HD, which is, of course, fabulous) and called it a night. Yeah, our life is exciting, isn't it? ;)
Today is my one free day this week, so I'm working on a major to-do list. Second on the list is providing all you logophiles out there your weekly dose of wordage to chew on. My mind goes back to the WMVR's friend who said, "A word isn't part of your vocabulary until you've used it three times in everyday conversation." See what you can do with these, and enjoy the rest of your weekend ...
apogee \AP-uh-jee\ (noun) - 1 : The point in the orbit of the moon or of an artificial satellite that is at the greatest distance from the center of the earth. 2 : The farthest or highest point; culmination. [From Greek apogaion, from apogaios, "situated (far) away from the earth," from apo-, "away from" + gaia, "earth."]
atrabilious \at-ruh-BIL-yuhs\ (adjective) - 1. Gloomy. 2. Ill-tempered. [From Latin atra bilis (black bile), translation of Greek melancholia.]*
Note melancholia is also the root word for melancholy!
catholicon \kuh-THOL-i-kuhn\ (noun) - A panacea or cure-all. [Via Latin from Greek katholikos (general), from kata (according to, by) + holou (whole). Ultimately from the Indo-European root sol- (whole) that gave us words such as solid, salute, save, salvo, and soldier.]*
costive \KOS-tiv\ (adjective) - 1. Slow to act or speak. 2. Stingy. 3. Constipated. [Via French from Latin constipare (to cram together), from com- (together) + stipare (to pack or crowd).]*
delectation \dee-lek-TAY-shun\ (noun) - Great pleasure; delight, enjoyment. [From Latin delectation, from the past participle of delectare, "to please."]
linctus \(LINGK-tuhs\ - A syrupy liquid medicine, especially for treating coughs. [From Latin lingere (to lick). Ultimately from the Indo-European root leigh- (lick) that is also the source of lichen (apparently from the way it licks its way around a surface), and lecher, but not lingerie (which is from the root lino: flax).]*
peccant \PEK-unt\ (adjective) - 1 : Sinning; guilty of transgression. 2 : Violating a rule or a principle. [From the present participle of Latin of peccare, "to sin."]
preternatural \pree-tuhr-NACH-uhr-uhl; -NACH-ruhl\ (adjective) - 1 : Existing outside of nature; differing from the natural; nonnatural. 2 : Surpassing the usual or normal; extraordinary; abnormal. 3 : Beyond or outside ordinary experience; inexplicable by ordinary means. [From the Latin phrase praeter naturam, "beyond nature."]
roborant \ROB-uhr-uhnt\ (adjective) - Strengthening. (noun) A tonic. [From Latin roborare (to strengthen), from robor- (oak, hardness). Ultimately from the Indo-European root reudh- (red) that also gave us red, rouge, ruby, ruddy, rubella, robust, corroborate, and rambunctious.]*
vivify \VIV-uh-fy\ (transitive verb) - 1 : To endue with life; to make alive; to animate. 2 : To make more lively or intense. [From French vivifier, from Late Latin vivificare, from Latin vivus, alive.]
Extra points if you can use all these words in conversation this week!
=) JB
*This week's words from Wordsmith are terms connected with medicine, most of which are now used metaphorically. (All words not marked with an * are from ArcaMax.)
Today is my one free day this week, so I'm working on a major to-do list. Second on the list is providing all you logophiles out there your weekly dose of wordage to chew on. My mind goes back to the WMVR's friend who said, "A word isn't part of your vocabulary until you've used it three times in everyday conversation." See what you can do with these, and enjoy the rest of your weekend ...
apogee \AP-uh-jee\ (noun) - 1 : The point in the orbit of the moon or of an artificial satellite that is at the greatest distance from the center of the earth. 2 : The farthest or highest point; culmination. [From Greek apogaion, from apogaios, "situated (far) away from the earth," from apo-, "away from" + gaia, "earth."]
atrabilious \at-ruh-BIL-yuhs\ (adjective) - 1. Gloomy. 2. Ill-tempered. [From Latin atra bilis (black bile), translation of Greek melancholia.]*
Note melancholia is also the root word for melancholy!
catholicon \kuh-THOL-i-kuhn\ (noun) - A panacea or cure-all. [Via Latin from Greek katholikos (general), from kata (according to, by) + holou (whole). Ultimately from the Indo-European root sol- (whole) that gave us words such as solid, salute, save, salvo, and soldier.]*
costive \KOS-tiv\ (adjective) - 1. Slow to act or speak. 2. Stingy. 3. Constipated. [Via French from Latin constipare (to cram together), from com- (together) + stipare (to pack or crowd).]*
delectation \dee-lek-TAY-shun\ (noun) - Great pleasure; delight, enjoyment. [From Latin delectation, from the past participle of delectare, "to please."]
linctus \(LINGK-tuhs\ - A syrupy liquid medicine, especially for treating coughs. [From Latin lingere (to lick). Ultimately from the Indo-European root leigh- (lick) that is also the source of lichen (apparently from the way it licks its way around a surface), and lecher, but not lingerie (which is from the root lino: flax).]*
peccant \PEK-unt\ (adjective) - 1 : Sinning; guilty of transgression. 2 : Violating a rule or a principle. [From the present participle of Latin of peccare, "to sin."]
preternatural \pree-tuhr-NACH-uhr-uhl; -NACH-ruhl\ (adjective) - 1 : Existing outside of nature; differing from the natural; nonnatural. 2 : Surpassing the usual or normal; extraordinary; abnormal. 3 : Beyond or outside ordinary experience; inexplicable by ordinary means. [From the Latin phrase praeter naturam, "beyond nature."]
roborant \ROB-uhr-uhnt\ (adjective) - Strengthening. (noun) A tonic. [From Latin roborare (to strengthen), from robor- (oak, hardness). Ultimately from the Indo-European root reudh- (red) that also gave us red, rouge, ruby, ruddy, rubella, robust, corroborate, and rambunctious.]*
vivify \VIV-uh-fy\ (transitive verb) - 1 : To endue with life; to make alive; to animate. 2 : To make more lively or intense. [From French vivifier, from Late Latin vivificare, from Latin vivus, alive.]
Extra points if you can use all these words in conversation this week!
=) JB
*This week's words from Wordsmith are terms connected with medicine, most of which are now used metaphorically. (All words not marked with an * are from ArcaMax.)
7.04.2008
Let Freedom Ring
As our nation celebrates its 232nd birthday, I hope we'll all take the time to reflect on what our independence means ... we have what I consider immeasurable freedoms in this country, comparatively speaking. My Wonder Twin has posted an incredible essay on what boils down to intolerance and oppression of a right that a great number of Americans take completely for granted - being able to say or write whatever we want without fear of persecution. Robert D. Raiford, curmudgeon at large of the John Boy and Billy Big Show, often rants about how we live in the "United States of the Offended", and he's not far off the mark in my opinion. Just think about it, and when you get angry or upset about something someone has said or written, thank God and our founding fathers that you're entitled to speak your mind about it, and either do it or move on. Kudos to you, Sister.
I was trolling back through some of this week's posts on Murderati, and Thursday's post from Rob Browne hit home for me in a way that can only be understood when you take it in context of what today is all about. Last Sunday our church choir (of which my WGH is a part) did our 4th of July celebration, and when they played and sang the medley of the songs of the Armed Forces (complete with a video), I completely lost it.
As most of you know by now, I am the proud daughter of an Air Force veteran - Dad did two tours of duty in Viet Nam, flying F4 Phantoms in combat and earning a chestful of medals. The first eight years of my life were spent on Air Force bases around the US and in Southeast Asia. (The GP doesn't call me "the quintessential Air Force brat" for nothing.) This, in response to Rob's post, is what makes me cry. There are actually a lot of things that choke me up: movies (like that last scene in You've Got Mail - I'm a sucker for a happy ending like that and it gets me every time I watch it); books sometimes, if the scene is really well written (we won't talk about what Jo Rowling did to me when she killed off a certain beloved character in the 7th Harry Potter book); even - craziest of all - TV commercials. There's this one where a guy lands at an airport, gets in his rental car and drives with the help of some GPS system to a house he's only seen a picture of on his cell phone, and when the young man opens the door, he says incredulously, "Papa?" I bawled like a baby.
But nothing - and I mean nothing - makes me cry like I do when I hear the Air Force theme song ... it's gone through a lot of changes over the years, I've discovered, being first written for the Army Air Corps back in 1957, before the Air Corps branched off into its own entity and became the United States Air Force. To a lot of you, this won't mean as much, but for those of you who know me, you can only imagine what this song means to me on a very deep, personal level. So thank you, Dad, for serving our country, and today, we all celebrate you and your fellows for fighting to retain the freedoms our founding fathers set forth over 230 years ago.
=) JB
"Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains or slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take but as for me; give me liberty or give me death!"
-- Patrick Henry, US orator, patriot, & politician in American Revolution (1736 - 1799)
I was trolling back through some of this week's posts on Murderati, and Thursday's post from Rob Browne hit home for me in a way that can only be understood when you take it in context of what today is all about. Last Sunday our church choir (of which my WGH is a part) did our 4th of July celebration, and when they played and sang the medley of the songs of the Armed Forces (complete with a video), I completely lost it.
As most of you know by now, I am the proud daughter of an Air Force veteran - Dad did two tours of duty in Viet Nam, flying F4 Phantoms in combat and earning a chestful of medals. The first eight years of my life were spent on Air Force bases around the US and in Southeast Asia. (The GP doesn't call me "the quintessential Air Force brat" for nothing.) This, in response to Rob's post, is what makes me cry. There are actually a lot of things that choke me up: movies (like that last scene in You've Got Mail - I'm a sucker for a happy ending like that and it gets me every time I watch it); books sometimes, if the scene is really well written (we won't talk about what Jo Rowling did to me when she killed off a certain beloved character in the 7th Harry Potter book); even - craziest of all - TV commercials. There's this one where a guy lands at an airport, gets in his rental car and drives with the help of some GPS system to a house he's only seen a picture of on his cell phone, and when the young man opens the door, he says incredulously, "Papa?" I bawled like a baby.
But nothing - and I mean nothing - makes me cry like I do when I hear the Air Force theme song ... it's gone through a lot of changes over the years, I've discovered, being first written for the Army Air Corps back in 1957, before the Air Corps branched off into its own entity and became the United States Air Force. To a lot of you, this won't mean as much, but for those of you who know me, you can only imagine what this song means to me on a very deep, personal level. So thank you, Dad, for serving our country, and today, we all celebrate you and your fellows for fighting to retain the freedoms our founding fathers set forth over 230 years ago.
Off we go into the wild blue yonder,
Climbing high into the sun.
Here they come, zooming to meet our thunder;
At 'em boys, give 'er the gun!
Down we dive, spouting our flame from under,
Off with one hell-of-a-roar!
We live in fame or go down in flame.
NOTHING WILL STOP THE U. S. AIR FORCE!
=) JB
"Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains or slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take but as for me; give me liberty or give me death!"
-- Patrick Henry, US orator, patriot, & politician in American Revolution (1736 - 1799)
7.01.2008
The Fourth Watcher Winners
Once again I have enlisted the aid of an impartial judge (Little Bit, who was, like her sister, half asleep) to draw the names of 7 lucky folks who will receive an autographed copy of Timothy Hallinan's The Fourth Watcher. Thanks to all who entered - if you didn't win, you can click on the image under The Chef's Special to the right to purchase your very own copy. And since Tim has started his U.S. tour, perhaps he will be in your neighborhood and you can snag an autograph as well!
Congratulations to the following winners:
Kam Aures
Jan Boyett
J.T. Ellison
Kerry Hammond
Helen Kiker
Melanie King
Carol Swanson
We have a couple more great authors lined up for visits to the Lunch Room, but I'm going to keep their identities a surprise for just a little while longer. You know, I write suspense, so I have to use it on you guys every once in a while ...
At the moment I am in the throes of a horrible upper respiratory infection, so the rest of the world is going to be put on hold for a little while. Enjoy your day, read a book and laugh - all of which are good for you. As for me, I'm going after some seriously good drugs ...
=) JB
Congratulations to the following winners:
Kam Aures
Jan Boyett
J.T. Ellison
Kerry Hammond
Helen Kiker
Melanie King
Carol Swanson
We have a couple more great authors lined up for visits to the Lunch Room, but I'm going to keep their identities a surprise for just a little while longer. You know, I write suspense, so I have to use it on you guys every once in a while ...
At the moment I am in the throes of a horrible upper respiratory infection, so the rest of the world is going to be put on hold for a little while. Enjoy your day, read a book and laugh - all of which are good for you. As for me, I'm going after some seriously good drugs ...
=) JB
6.28.2008
A Week's Worth of Words
Weird indeed, Billy.I've always been a bit of a stickler when it comes to grammar, spelling and punctuation (the BMWs can attest to this), and this week's words from the Wordsmith are affirmation of my abnormality, particularly when it comes to apostrophes.
The Wordsmith sayeth: "Sometimes we are not sure whether an apostrophe is needed, so we simply add one, as if considering pillars to support a roof. 'Well, let's add one here; it may not be needed, but it's there if necessary, and in any case it's not hurting anything.' This week we feature terms that use apostrophes, terms that do need them. These selections answer: Whose What? And remember, it's not: Who's What?"
Preach on, brother.
deadman's hand \DED-manz hand\ (noun) - In a game of poker, a hand containing two aces and two eights. [After Wild Bill Hickok, nickname of James Butler Hickok (1837-1876). Hickok was a legendary figure in the American Wild West who worked variously as an army scout, lawman, and professional gambler. He was shot dead while playing poker, holding a hand that had two aces and two eights.]
yeoman's service \YO-muhnz SUHR-vis\ (noun) - Efficient, useful, or loyal service. [From yeoman (servant or assistant), probably a blend of young + man, or from ga (region) + man.]
bum's rush \bumz rush\ (noun) - A forcible ejection from a place. [From the allusion to a bum being swiftly kicked out of a place.]
devil's advocate \DEV-uhlz AD-vuh-kayt\ (noun) - One who argues against something for the sake of argument, for example, to provoke discussion and subject a plan to thorough examination. [From Latin advocatus diaboli (devil's advocate). The Roman Catholic Church used to have a person appointed as a devil's advocate to argue against elevating someone to sainthood. The person arguing for the proposition was known as God's advocate (Latin advocatus dei).]
widow's walk \WID-oz wok\ (noun) - A railed platform atop a roof, typically on a coastal house, that was used to look out for returning ships. [In the 18th and 19th centuries sailors' wives used such platforms to look for signs of their husbands returning home.]
Sigh. Ah, bliss.
Now, the ones from ArcaMax don't have quite the same effect on me, but they're still worth enjoying. Another sigh. I love words.
satiety \suh-TY-uh-tee\ (noun) - The state of being full or gratified to or beyond the point of satisfaction. [From Latin satietas, from satis, "enough."]
punctilio \punk-TIL-ee-oh\ (noun) - 1 : A fine point of exactness in conduct, ceremony, or procedure. 2 : Strictness or exactness in the observance of formalities; as, "the punctilios of a public ceremony." [From Obsolete Italian punctiglio, from Spanish puntillo, diminutive of punto, "point," from Latin punctum, from pungere, "to prick."]
compunction \kuhm-PUHNK-shuhn\ (noun) - 1 : Anxiety or deep unease proceeding from a sense of guilt or consciousness of causing pain. 2 : A sting of conscience or a twinge of uneasiness; a qualm; a scruple. [From Late Latin compunctio, compunction-, "sting or pricking of conscience," from the past participle of compungere, "to prick severely," from com-, intensive prefix + pungere, "to prick."]
Hogmanay \hog-muh-NAY; HOG-muh-nay\ (noun) - The name, in Scotland, for New Year's Eve, on which children go about singing and asking for gifts; also, a gift, cake, or treat given on New Year's Eve. [The origin of the word Hogmanay is unknown.]
sporadic \spuh-RAD-ik\ (adjective) - Occurring singly, or occasionally, or in scattered instances. [From Medieval Latin sporadicus, scattered, from Greek sporadikos, from sporas, sporad-, scattered like seed.]
Today I'm off for parts south to spend the day with some friends at the Blackberry Festival in Pulaski, Tennessee. The WGH says if I don't bring home some blackberries and make him a cobbler, I might as well not come home (okay, no, he didn't really say that, but I have been promising him a blackberry cobbler and he would very much like it if I brought some blackberries home today).
Aside from the mandate to return bearing berries, my plan for the day is to enjoy the company of several friends I haven't seen in a while ... the GP among them. The rest of them don't know she's coming with me, so it's going to be a bit of a surprise for them (unless they read this ahead of time, of course - but what are the odds?). All in all it should be a fun day. Unless the storms come through early, in which case we may be abandoning the berries and seeking shelter at the house of the friend who lives there.
What are you doing with your stormy Saturday? Might I suggest you, oh, I don't know ... read a book? ;)
=) JB
Something else that's good for you: Laughter. (from ArcaMax Trivia) "Laughing lowers levels of stress hormones and strengthens the immune system. Six-year-olds laugh an average of 300 times a day. Adults only laugh 15 to 100 times a day." Sigh. What's wrong with this picture? Life has a lot of things to laugh about. Go find one and do something good for you today. Considering which friends I'll be spending my day with, I can guarantee you I'm going to get more than my quota!
6.25.2008
There's a study under here somewhere ...
I have spent a good part of the past 2 days on a cleaning spree of sorts. The top of my desk is now mostly visible, and the floor has more free space. The bookshelves, however, are a bit more full than they were. I had a supply of strips of red paper (from whence they came, I couldn't tell you), so I decided to use them to flag all the books in Mount TBR so that I could put them on the shelves and get them off the floor and out of the way. The RTE books are in their own box, very near my recliner, which is of late serving its original purpose, which is to allow me a comfy spot to relax and read.
In cleaning off the desk, I discovered something. I am a pack rat.
No. Ya think?
I found stray receipts dating back to 2006 ... birthday cards from last year ... brain teasers I'd printed off months ago, intending to work them out in my spare time ... an envelope full of Christmas receipts (at least those were only six months old) ...
It's funny how we keep things, thinking, "Oh, I'll do something with that someday" or "I might need that in the next [insert span of time here]". The first thing I said to myself when I came across those stray receipts was, "If I haven't needed them by now, I'm not going to" and into the shredder they went.
I've accomplished a little bit every day, which is the highest of achievements for me, given my recent issues with staying focused. So when I sit in my recliner, cozied up with the latest Meg Langslow mystery by Donna Andrews (Cockatiels at Seven, soon to be reviewed and given away as a draw book over at Reviewing the Evidence), I could look around my study and not feel guilty about not having done something constructive.
It does bolster the spirit a bit.
Read a book - it's good for you!
=) JB
"The man who doesn't read good books has no advantage over the man who can't read them."
-- Mark Twain (1835-1910) US humorist, novelist, short story author, & wit
In cleaning off the desk, I discovered something. I am a pack rat.
No. Ya think?
I found stray receipts dating back to 2006 ... birthday cards from last year ... brain teasers I'd printed off months ago, intending to work them out in my spare time ... an envelope full of Christmas receipts (at least those were only six months old) ...
It's funny how we keep things, thinking, "Oh, I'll do something with that someday" or "I might need that in the next [insert span of time here]". The first thing I said to myself when I came across those stray receipts was, "If I haven't needed them by now, I'm not going to" and into the shredder they went.
I've accomplished a little bit every day, which is the highest of achievements for me, given my recent issues with staying focused. So when I sit in my recliner, cozied up with the latest Meg Langslow mystery by Donna Andrews (Cockatiels at Seven, soon to be reviewed and given away as a draw book over at Reviewing the Evidence), I could look around my study and not feel guilty about not having done something constructive.
It does bolster the spirit a bit.
Read a book - it's good for you!
=) JB
"The man who doesn't read good books has no advantage over the man who can't read them."
-- Mark Twain (1835-1910) US humorist, novelist, short story author, & wit
6.24.2008
Let's Do Lunch! Interview with Timothy Hallinan
I'm just a little excited - our guest author today is the terrific Timothy Hallinan! Tim has stopped by the Lunch Room today to talk about his new series featuring travel writer Poke Rafferty, and to give away copies of the second book in the series, The Fourth Watcher!
About Tim: Timothy Hallinan has lived, on and off, in Southeast Asia for more than 25 years. He wrote songs and sang in a rock band while in college, and many of his songs were recorded by well-known artists who included the platinum-selling group Bread. He began writing books while enjoying a successful career in the television industry. Over the past fourteen years he has been responsible for a number of well-reviewed novels and a nonfiction book on Charles Dickens. For years he has taught a course on "Finishing the Novel" with remarkable results – more than half his students complete their first novel and go on to a second, and several have been, or are about to be, published. Tim currently maintains a house in Santa Monica, California, and apartments in Bangkok, Thailand; and Phnom Penh, Cambodia. He is lucky enough (as he puts it) to be married to Munyin Choy-Hallinan.
About the series: A Nail Through the Heart introduces Poke Rafferty, a "rough-travel" writer who has settled in Bangkok with a former go-go dancer named Rose, whom he's trying to marry, and an eight-year-old street child named Miaow, whom he wants to adopt. His Looking for Trouble books (Looking for Trouble in Indonesia, Looking for Trouble in the Philippines, and Looking for Trouble in Thailand) are designed for travelers who want to go beyond the temples and tourist traps and experience life at street level – including the streets no travel guide ever mentions. Writing these books requires skills that come in handy when life in Bangkok gets rough for Poke, as it frequently does.
The Fourth Watcher: Travel writer Poke Rafferty is ready to let go of his "Looking for Trouble" series of travel books and settle down in Bangkok with his fiancee, Rose, and his newly adopted daughter, Miaow. But trouble isn't ready to let go of Poke. Enter the one person Poke least wants to see in the entire world -- a person whose emotional hold over Poke is absolute. And with him comes a box of rubies, a wad of fraudulent identity papers and -- in pursuit of those things -- one of the most dangerous gangsters in China. Add to that Rose's innocent involvement in a North Korean counterfeiting operation and an off-the-tracks agent of the American Secret Service who's dying to put Poke behind bars, and Poke and his family find themselves in a complicated and potentially deadly situation. Getting them all out alive will take every skill Poke has.
JB: First of all, congratulations on the great press for The Fourth Watcher - a nice Kirkus review, a starred review in Publishers Weekly, and it's just been chosen as Mystery of the Month by Bookpage. It really is a terrific book. Of course, now I have to go back and read A Nail Through the Heart so I'll be caught up! So, tell me, Tim - who is Poke Rafferty? Where did he come from, and what makes him tick?
TIM: Poke first came to me on New Year's Eve, 1998. I was in Bangkok, and I essentially walked the city from about ten PM until it was time for coffee, maybe 9 AM. I walked through both the tourist areas and the little back-street villages that make up Bangkok, or used to, and it came to me that I might enjoy writing a character, a travel writer who specializes in the back streets, where the bright lights aren't, and writes about life as it's lived off the tourist itineraries. I sort of parked that in the back of my mind for a few years, and he developed into someone who had made a career of bouncing from culture to culture, sort of in a detached, wise-ass way, who suddenly falls in love with an entire country, as I did when I first went to Thailand. From there it was a small step to his trying to create a Thai family, and the story of that family runs through all the books. For a variety of reasons, the family is brought into especially sharp relief in The Fourth Watcher.
JB: Okay, let's get something cleared up right off the bat - for those of us floundering in ignorance (i.e., me), how do you pronounce Miaow's name? Is it mee-ow like a cat or my-ow (my-oh?) like I hurt my toe?
TIM: Miaow is my spelling of a common Thai nickname for girls that's usually spelled in English translation as Meaw. But it's pronounced exactly like the sound a cat makes. And you're the first person ever to ask that question.
And by the way, for those who haven't read the books, Miaow is the street orphan Poke and his fiancée-and-later-wife, Rose, adopt. She's eight, going on thirty (as one reviewer said) in the first book, nine in the second, and a perilously insecure ten in the third. I love to write her – I never have the slightest doubt what she'd say, feel, or do in any conceivable situation.
JB: Your previous series (featuring LA private eye Simeon Grist) consisted of six novels (with such fabulous titles as Everything but the Squeal and Incinerator) published each year from 1989 to 1994. After you put Simeon to rest, what brought you back to novel writing and the creation of Poke Rafferty 10 years later?
TIM: Well, I didn't actually put Simeon to rest. My publishers did. The books got great reviews, stars, lots of hyperbolic adjectives, predictions of breakthrough, and everything else a writer could want, except for sales. After book six, the people at William Morrow looked at the numbers and pulled the plug. I would have done the same – the series had been given six books to find its audience, and it hadn't. So poor old Simeon went wherever it is that the heroes of discontinued series hang out, probably carping all day long about the injustice of it all. Maybe someday I'll write a book in which three or four of them resolve to team up for a comeback and take over the consciousness of some poor writer. It could be pretty funny.
After the Simeon series went down in flames, I looked at my life and decided that I was devoting too much energy to making money and not enough to writing. So I spent about five years setting things up so I could write full-time, and then I sat down and wrote the first Poke book. And I put it into a drawer and left it there, and went on to write the second. When I wrote the Simeon books, I was given a three-book contract within about six weeks of finishing the first book, and there were aspects of his character and his relationships that I would have changed if I'd written another book about him before the first one was published. So this time I decided to write a book that I wouldn't even try to publish and then move on to one I'd give to an agent. As it happened, I wrote one and a half books before sending the third one to an agent, the one that was eventually titled A Nail Through the Heart. So there are one and a half Poke Rafferty stories that will never see the light of day, although I have to admit that I've cannibalized them pretty extensively.
JB: Bill Cameron recently did a piece on you for the ITW online feature THE BIG THRILL, in which he said you "[look] forward to writing about Poke, Rose and Miaow for the rest of [your] life." Do you have any ideas at this point where Poke, Rose and Miaow might end up in the years to come?
TIM: None whatsoever. In the book I'm writing right now, which is tentatively titled Misdirection, I actually kill a continuing character. I think that in this series, everything should be on the table, just as it is in life. I'd like to think that they'll be celebrating silver anniversaries and going to Miaow's wedding, but I have no idea. There's always the potential for disaster to knock on the door.
And I never have any idea where a story is going as I write it, so it would be extremely out of character for me to know where the series is going. I've always seen plot as what characters do, and I let my characters reveal the story to me one book at a time. I'm sure they'll do the same with the series, if we're lucky enough to go into six and seven books.
JB: I sincerely hope it does. Poke has a sharp wit and a very dry sense of humor. (I've noticed in our correspondence that you do too!) Personality wise, is Poke a lot like you?
TIM: You know how, when you're in front of a mirror, and the light's just right, there's a certain way you can turn your head that makes you look, well, almost okay? I think all thriller writers are writing that guy in the mirror. It's them, edited down to the best bits, with a few admirable traits Photoshopped in. I'm not as brave as Poke or as witty in conversation, although I could be if the people I talked to would let me say, "Wait. Ask that question again," and then I could hit them with a better answer. Unlike Poke, I come from a highly functional family. But he shares my wanderlust and my fascination with different ways of looking at the world, whether it's the material world, the world of human relationships, or the world of spirit. And he's endlessly curious, which I am, too.
JB: The Fourth Watcher implies shades of violence, but it's really very subtle and toned back, which I think adds a lot to the suspense - there's not a lot we actually 'see' on-screen, and you leave a lot to the reader's imagination, which leaves us wondering what's going to happen when we turn the page. I've read others who seem to think the bloodier, the better. Was it an intentional tactic on your part to pull back the on-screen violence and concentrate more on the intrigue (which, by the by, I happen to prefer)?
TIM: It's very important in a thriller that the reader (a) likes the protagonist and (b) hates the villain. Violence is often one way to make the villain more despicable: the sort of boil-the-rabbit scene you come across once in a while. I like to write action but I don't particularly like to write violence. And I reserve a special loathing for the glib, giggling kind of sadism one gets in some serial killer books, especially since most real serial killers would be hard-pressed to hold up their end in a conversation with a toadstool. What I prefer is a kind of generalized dread that's caused by knowing that the protagonist and/or other characters we like are up against people who have absolutely no reservations about using any level of force. I think it's possible to write a villain who's capable of driving a spike through someone's tongue without actually writing the scene in which he or she does it. Colonel Chu, the primary villain in The Fourth Watcher, commits an act of unspeakable psychological violence in the book, and I think we can intuit on our own that anyone who could do what he does in that scene – without ever touching his victim – is capable of doing absolutely anything to anyone at any time. In general, with both heroes and villains, I'm more drawn to those who show me they're capable of violent or explosive behavior, than I am to those who demonstrate it at every opportunity.
JB: You spend half the year in the US and the other half in Southeast Asia, working on your novels. Does your wife travel with you? And how much get-out-and-go research do you actually do when you’re working on a book?
TIM: My wife is Chinese, and Asia doesn't hold a lot of interest for her. Also, since I literally write all day, I'm no fun to travel with on those trips. By and large, I've done my research before I leave, although I did some Cambodian research for one of the backstories in A Nail Through the Heart. Asia is not only the setting of the Poke novels, it's sort of a character, too. I want to write the books where, when I look up from the keyboard, I'm actually there. I can look around and borrow a face, a gesture, body language, the name of a business. (There's a shop in Phnom Penh called The Lovely Hours that sells clocks. How cool is that?) I'm in the climate, I'm dripping from the humidity, I'm eating the chilies in the food. I'm there, and that frees my imagination to work on characters and story instead of frittering away a bunch of energy on making the setting convincing.
JB: What are the biggest cultural differences you have to deal with in living on two continents (e.g., talk a bit about the food, the people, the general ambience, etc.)?
TIM: The things I love best about Southeast Asia are the relative lack of irony and the absence of "cool." I wrote a blog on my website a while back called "Irony-Free Zone" that focuses precisely on that. I hate a cultural attitude that puts air-quotes around emotions. I hate cool because it's based on an assumption of superiority to all that is not-cool. By and large, Southeast Asians say what they believe and do what they say they'll do. I suppose you can credit Buddhism with some of that, but I also think it's because they haven't grown up surrounded by all the greasy bounty of the West; they don't feel entitled yet. This is changing as the place grows more Westernized, but once you get past the moneyed elite and get to know actual people, most of them are – by contrast with some of the people in New York and California, at any rate – real rays of light.
JB: For writers who might be interested, there's a fabulous section on Tim's website called "Writers' Resources", with some very helpful information on finishing your novel. Tim, how did you get started teaching other writers, and where can we get more information on your course?
TIM: I started to teach because it occurred to me one day that I knew something most people didn't – how to finish a book. Anybody can start a book, but not many people ever actually finish one, which is probably good for those of us who attempt to make a living by writing. But finishing a novel is a transformational experience, and I wanted to help people get there. The class was eight three-hour sessions, or twenty-four hours in all, and it was absolutely jammed with information – how to get started, how to test-drive an idea, how to develop a character, how to learn to listen to the characters you've developed (or who have been nice enough to present themselves to you), how to shape a story, how to create a setting, how to rewrite, and, most important of all, HOW NOT TO QUIT. And that means, among other things, how to beat writer's block, how to get out of the corners you paint yourself into, how to revive a book that seems to have lapsed into a coma, and how to deal with the internal critics, the malign imps that tell you you haven't got it, you never had it, you never will have it, you probably wouldn't know it if it bit you on the calf, and all the rest of that.
The information on the site is all practical. The writing experience is woo-woo enough all by itself not to build some sort of metaphysical scaffold of creativity every time you sit down to check your punctuation. Virtually all the material I developed for the class is presented on the site in different form. But if you want to boil the whole thing down, it comes to: Write daily, or at least five days a week; write for a minimum of three hours or 500-1000 words each time (more if you can), trust your characters and don't expect the book you ultimately write to be the book you thought you were going to write. And don't quit, no matter what.
JB: What happened to the Dickens Challenge?
TIM: Ah, well, mea culpa. For those who don't know, the Dickens Challenge came about when I got caught in an online crossfire between planners – writers who work to an outline – and "pantsers," or those who write by the seat of their pants. Some people in the planner camp felt I was dismissive of their approach because I said something like, "Plot is what characters do, not a box you cram them into." I pointed out that Charles Dickens, when he died, was halfway through The Mystery of Edwin Drood and that there wasn't a single sentence or sentence fragment to suggest that he'd plotted out the rest of it. So he was pantsing – and, what's more, he was publishing as he went along. In other words, he had to live with whatever he wrote – there was no going back and tidying it up as we pantsers generally do. So I challenged people to write a novel online, a chapter a week, and to live with whatever came out. A bunch of fine writers accepted – in the States, Pakistan, South Africa, New Zealand, you name it. And I dropped the ball. First, a new novel, not a Poke book, presented itself to me and took over my life for six weeks, at which point I had 95,000 words and the beginning of a new series. Second, I went to Cambodia, where online speeds are slower than the rock cycle, and it became virtually impossible for me to read everybody's story. Third, I got into trouble on Misdirection, and it ate me alive for six weeks. So my Dickens Challenge book, which was called Counterclockwise, went out the window. The Challenge is still ongoing, but with a smaller number of writers, and they're doing it more privately, on a closed site where they can post their new chapters and critique them. They're writing great, and if they'll have me, I'll be starting Counterclockwise again sometime in the next month, once I finish Misdirection.
JB: Thanks so much for stopping by the Lunch Room, Tim. It's been a pleasure having you, and we'll see you in Nashville in September!
Now, as I've mentioned about oh, a thousand times (okay, maybe more like six), Tim has been gracious enough to offer up autographed copies of The Fourth Watcher for 7 lucky winners. So enter today! Just click on the link below to send me an email, and be sure to include your full name in the body text of your message. Deadline to enter is midnight Monday next (June 30, 2008), and we'll draw the 7 winners at random first thing Tuesday morning. I'll contact you for a mailing address if you've won, and we'll post the winners names here.
Keep in mind, even if you've entered one of the drawings here at the Lunch Room before (and even if you won!), that doesn't disqualify you from entering this one - but only one entry per person for each giveaway, please! Good luck!
Click to register: I want to win The Fourth Watcher!
You can learn more about Tim and his books at www.timothyhallinan.com.
About Tim: Timothy Hallinan has lived, on and off, in Southeast Asia for more than 25 years. He wrote songs and sang in a rock band while in college, and many of his songs were recorded by well-known artists who included the platinum-selling group Bread. He began writing books while enjoying a successful career in the television industry. Over the past fourteen years he has been responsible for a number of well-reviewed novels and a nonfiction book on Charles Dickens. For years he has taught a course on "Finishing the Novel" with remarkable results – more than half his students complete their first novel and go on to a second, and several have been, or are about to be, published. Tim currently maintains a house in Santa Monica, California, and apartments in Bangkok, Thailand; and Phnom Penh, Cambodia. He is lucky enough (as he puts it) to be married to Munyin Choy-Hallinan.About the series: A Nail Through the Heart introduces Poke Rafferty, a "rough-travel" writer who has settled in Bangkok with a former go-go dancer named Rose, whom he's trying to marry, and an eight-year-old street child named Miaow, whom he wants to adopt. His Looking for Trouble books (Looking for Trouble in Indonesia, Looking for Trouble in the Philippines, and Looking for Trouble in Thailand) are designed for travelers who want to go beyond the temples and tourist traps and experience life at street level – including the streets no travel guide ever mentions. Writing these books requires skills that come in handy when life in Bangkok gets rough for Poke, as it frequently does.
The Fourth Watcher: Travel writer Poke Rafferty is ready to let go of his "Looking for Trouble" series of travel books and settle down in Bangkok with his fiancee, Rose, and his newly adopted daughter, Miaow. But trouble isn't ready to let go of Poke. Enter the one person Poke least wants to see in the entire world -- a person whose emotional hold over Poke is absolute. And with him comes a box of rubies, a wad of fraudulent identity papers and -- in pursuit of those things -- one of the most dangerous gangsters in China. Add to that Rose's innocent involvement in a North Korean counterfeiting operation and an off-the-tracks agent of the American Secret Service who's dying to put Poke behind bars, and Poke and his family find themselves in a complicated and potentially deadly situation. Getting them all out alive will take every skill Poke has.JB: First of all, congratulations on the great press for The Fourth Watcher - a nice Kirkus review, a starred review in Publishers Weekly, and it's just been chosen as Mystery of the Month by Bookpage. It really is a terrific book. Of course, now I have to go back and read A Nail Through the Heart so I'll be caught up! So, tell me, Tim - who is Poke Rafferty? Where did he come from, and what makes him tick?
TIM: Poke first came to me on New Year's Eve, 1998. I was in Bangkok, and I essentially walked the city from about ten PM until it was time for coffee, maybe 9 AM. I walked through both the tourist areas and the little back-street villages that make up Bangkok, or used to, and it came to me that I might enjoy writing a character, a travel writer who specializes in the back streets, where the bright lights aren't, and writes about life as it's lived off the tourist itineraries. I sort of parked that in the back of my mind for a few years, and he developed into someone who had made a career of bouncing from culture to culture, sort of in a detached, wise-ass way, who suddenly falls in love with an entire country, as I did when I first went to Thailand. From there it was a small step to his trying to create a Thai family, and the story of that family runs through all the books. For a variety of reasons, the family is brought into especially sharp relief in The Fourth Watcher.
JB: Okay, let's get something cleared up right off the bat - for those of us floundering in ignorance (i.e., me), how do you pronounce Miaow's name? Is it mee-ow like a cat or my-ow (my-oh?) like I hurt my toe?
TIM: Miaow is my spelling of a common Thai nickname for girls that's usually spelled in English translation as Meaw. But it's pronounced exactly like the sound a cat makes. And you're the first person ever to ask that question.
And by the way, for those who haven't read the books, Miaow is the street orphan Poke and his fiancée-and-later-wife, Rose, adopt. She's eight, going on thirty (as one reviewer said) in the first book, nine in the second, and a perilously insecure ten in the third. I love to write her – I never have the slightest doubt what she'd say, feel, or do in any conceivable situation.
JB: Your previous series (featuring LA private eye Simeon Grist) consisted of six novels (with such fabulous titles as Everything but the Squeal and Incinerator) published each year from 1989 to 1994. After you put Simeon to rest, what brought you back to novel writing and the creation of Poke Rafferty 10 years later?
TIM: Well, I didn't actually put Simeon to rest. My publishers did. The books got great reviews, stars, lots of hyperbolic adjectives, predictions of breakthrough, and everything else a writer could want, except for sales. After book six, the people at William Morrow looked at the numbers and pulled the plug. I would have done the same – the series had been given six books to find its audience, and it hadn't. So poor old Simeon went wherever it is that the heroes of discontinued series hang out, probably carping all day long about the injustice of it all. Maybe someday I'll write a book in which three or four of them resolve to team up for a comeback and take over the consciousness of some poor writer. It could be pretty funny.
After the Simeon series went down in flames, I looked at my life and decided that I was devoting too much energy to making money and not enough to writing. So I spent about five years setting things up so I could write full-time, and then I sat down and wrote the first Poke book. And I put it into a drawer and left it there, and went on to write the second. When I wrote the Simeon books, I was given a three-book contract within about six weeks of finishing the first book, and there were aspects of his character and his relationships that I would have changed if I'd written another book about him before the first one was published. So this time I decided to write a book that I wouldn't even try to publish and then move on to one I'd give to an agent. As it happened, I wrote one and a half books before sending the third one to an agent, the one that was eventually titled A Nail Through the Heart. So there are one and a half Poke Rafferty stories that will never see the light of day, although I have to admit that I've cannibalized them pretty extensively.
JB: Bill Cameron recently did a piece on you for the ITW online feature THE BIG THRILL, in which he said you "[look] forward to writing about Poke, Rose and Miaow for the rest of [your] life." Do you have any ideas at this point where Poke, Rose and Miaow might end up in the years to come?
TIM: None whatsoever. In the book I'm writing right now, which is tentatively titled Misdirection, I actually kill a continuing character. I think that in this series, everything should be on the table, just as it is in life. I'd like to think that they'll be celebrating silver anniversaries and going to Miaow's wedding, but I have no idea. There's always the potential for disaster to knock on the door.
And I never have any idea where a story is going as I write it, so it would be extremely out of character for me to know where the series is going. I've always seen plot as what characters do, and I let my characters reveal the story to me one book at a time. I'm sure they'll do the same with the series, if we're lucky enough to go into six and seven books.
JB: I sincerely hope it does. Poke has a sharp wit and a very dry sense of humor. (I've noticed in our correspondence that you do too!) Personality wise, is Poke a lot like you?
TIM: You know how, when you're in front of a mirror, and the light's just right, there's a certain way you can turn your head that makes you look, well, almost okay? I think all thriller writers are writing that guy in the mirror. It's them, edited down to the best bits, with a few admirable traits Photoshopped in. I'm not as brave as Poke or as witty in conversation, although I could be if the people I talked to would let me say, "Wait. Ask that question again," and then I could hit them with a better answer. Unlike Poke, I come from a highly functional family. But he shares my wanderlust and my fascination with different ways of looking at the world, whether it's the material world, the world of human relationships, or the world of spirit. And he's endlessly curious, which I am, too.
JB: The Fourth Watcher implies shades of violence, but it's really very subtle and toned back, which I think adds a lot to the suspense - there's not a lot we actually 'see' on-screen, and you leave a lot to the reader's imagination, which leaves us wondering what's going to happen when we turn the page. I've read others who seem to think the bloodier, the better. Was it an intentional tactic on your part to pull back the on-screen violence and concentrate more on the intrigue (which, by the by, I happen to prefer)?
TIM: It's very important in a thriller that the reader (a) likes the protagonist and (b) hates the villain. Violence is often one way to make the villain more despicable: the sort of boil-the-rabbit scene you come across once in a while. I like to write action but I don't particularly like to write violence. And I reserve a special loathing for the glib, giggling kind of sadism one gets in some serial killer books, especially since most real serial killers would be hard-pressed to hold up their end in a conversation with a toadstool. What I prefer is a kind of generalized dread that's caused by knowing that the protagonist and/or other characters we like are up against people who have absolutely no reservations about using any level of force. I think it's possible to write a villain who's capable of driving a spike through someone's tongue without actually writing the scene in which he or she does it. Colonel Chu, the primary villain in The Fourth Watcher, commits an act of unspeakable psychological violence in the book, and I think we can intuit on our own that anyone who could do what he does in that scene – without ever touching his victim – is capable of doing absolutely anything to anyone at any time. In general, with both heroes and villains, I'm more drawn to those who show me they're capable of violent or explosive behavior, than I am to those who demonstrate it at every opportunity.
JB: You spend half the year in the US and the other half in Southeast Asia, working on your novels. Does your wife travel with you? And how much get-out-and-go research do you actually do when you’re working on a book?
TIM: My wife is Chinese, and Asia doesn't hold a lot of interest for her. Also, since I literally write all day, I'm no fun to travel with on those trips. By and large, I've done my research before I leave, although I did some Cambodian research for one of the backstories in A Nail Through the Heart. Asia is not only the setting of the Poke novels, it's sort of a character, too. I want to write the books where, when I look up from the keyboard, I'm actually there. I can look around and borrow a face, a gesture, body language, the name of a business. (There's a shop in Phnom Penh called The Lovely Hours that sells clocks. How cool is that?) I'm in the climate, I'm dripping from the humidity, I'm eating the chilies in the food. I'm there, and that frees my imagination to work on characters and story instead of frittering away a bunch of energy on making the setting convincing.
JB: What are the biggest cultural differences you have to deal with in living on two continents (e.g., talk a bit about the food, the people, the general ambience, etc.)?
TIM: The things I love best about Southeast Asia are the relative lack of irony and the absence of "cool." I wrote a blog on my website a while back called "Irony-Free Zone" that focuses precisely on that. I hate a cultural attitude that puts air-quotes around emotions. I hate cool because it's based on an assumption of superiority to all that is not-cool. By and large, Southeast Asians say what they believe and do what they say they'll do. I suppose you can credit Buddhism with some of that, but I also think it's because they haven't grown up surrounded by all the greasy bounty of the West; they don't feel entitled yet. This is changing as the place grows more Westernized, but once you get past the moneyed elite and get to know actual people, most of them are – by contrast with some of the people in New York and California, at any rate – real rays of light.
JB: For writers who might be interested, there's a fabulous section on Tim's website called "Writers' Resources", with some very helpful information on finishing your novel. Tim, how did you get started teaching other writers, and where can we get more information on your course?
TIM: I started to teach because it occurred to me one day that I knew something most people didn't – how to finish a book. Anybody can start a book, but not many people ever actually finish one, which is probably good for those of us who attempt to make a living by writing. But finishing a novel is a transformational experience, and I wanted to help people get there. The class was eight three-hour sessions, or twenty-four hours in all, and it was absolutely jammed with information – how to get started, how to test-drive an idea, how to develop a character, how to learn to listen to the characters you've developed (or who have been nice enough to present themselves to you), how to shape a story, how to create a setting, how to rewrite, and, most important of all, HOW NOT TO QUIT. And that means, among other things, how to beat writer's block, how to get out of the corners you paint yourself into, how to revive a book that seems to have lapsed into a coma, and how to deal with the internal critics, the malign imps that tell you you haven't got it, you never had it, you never will have it, you probably wouldn't know it if it bit you on the calf, and all the rest of that.
The information on the site is all practical. The writing experience is woo-woo enough all by itself not to build some sort of metaphysical scaffold of creativity every time you sit down to check your punctuation. Virtually all the material I developed for the class is presented on the site in different form. But if you want to boil the whole thing down, it comes to: Write daily, or at least five days a week; write for a minimum of three hours or 500-1000 words each time (more if you can), trust your characters and don't expect the book you ultimately write to be the book you thought you were going to write. And don't quit, no matter what.
JB: What happened to the Dickens Challenge?
TIM: Ah, well, mea culpa. For those who don't know, the Dickens Challenge came about when I got caught in an online crossfire between planners – writers who work to an outline – and "pantsers," or those who write by the seat of their pants. Some people in the planner camp felt I was dismissive of their approach because I said something like, "Plot is what characters do, not a box you cram them into." I pointed out that Charles Dickens, when he died, was halfway through The Mystery of Edwin Drood and that there wasn't a single sentence or sentence fragment to suggest that he'd plotted out the rest of it. So he was pantsing – and, what's more, he was publishing as he went along. In other words, he had to live with whatever he wrote – there was no going back and tidying it up as we pantsers generally do. So I challenged people to write a novel online, a chapter a week, and to live with whatever came out. A bunch of fine writers accepted – in the States, Pakistan, South Africa, New Zealand, you name it. And I dropped the ball. First, a new novel, not a Poke book, presented itself to me and took over my life for six weeks, at which point I had 95,000 words and the beginning of a new series. Second, I went to Cambodia, where online speeds are slower than the rock cycle, and it became virtually impossible for me to read everybody's story. Third, I got into trouble on Misdirection, and it ate me alive for six weeks. So my Dickens Challenge book, which was called Counterclockwise, went out the window. The Challenge is still ongoing, but with a smaller number of writers, and they're doing it more privately, on a closed site where they can post their new chapters and critique them. They're writing great, and if they'll have me, I'll be starting Counterclockwise again sometime in the next month, once I finish Misdirection.
JB: Thanks so much for stopping by the Lunch Room, Tim. It's been a pleasure having you, and we'll see you in Nashville in September!
Now, as I've mentioned about oh, a thousand times (okay, maybe more like six), Tim has been gracious enough to offer up autographed copies of The Fourth Watcher for 7 lucky winners. So enter today! Just click on the link below to send me an email, and be sure to include your full name in the body text of your message. Deadline to enter is midnight Monday next (June 30, 2008), and we'll draw the 7 winners at random first thing Tuesday morning. I'll contact you for a mailing address if you've won, and we'll post the winners names here.
Keep in mind, even if you've entered one of the drawings here at the Lunch Room before (and even if you won!), that doesn't disqualify you from entering this one - but only one entry per person for each giveaway, please! Good luck!
Click to register: I want to win The Fourth Watcher!
You can learn more about Tim and his books at www.timothyhallinan.com.
6.23.2008
A Sad Day in Comic History
As controversial as this guy was, I was a huge fan, and I'm greatly saddened today to learn that he has left us ...
George Carlin Dies
One of my favorite of his routines was the bit about the differences between football and baseball ("Football is played in a STADIUM! Baseball is played in a [skipping merrily about the stage] park.").
Rest in peace, George. You will be missed.
George Carlin Dies
One of my favorite of his routines was the bit about the differences between football and baseball ("Football is played in a STADIUM! Baseball is played in a [skipping merrily about the stage] park.").
Rest in peace, George. You will be missed.
6.21.2008
V for Vocabulary
As usual, my sources for our weekly words are ArcaMax.com and wordsmith.org.
You learn something new every day, right? Well, here's your somethings new for today. Make the rest of it a good one.
From ArcaMax:
termagant \TUR-muh-guhnt\ (noun) - A scolding, nagging, bad-tempered woman; a shrew. (adjective) - Overbearing; shrewish; scolding. [Termagant comes from Middle English Termagaunt, alteration of Tervagant, from Old French. Termagant was an imaginary Muslim deity represented in medieval morality plays as extremely violent and turbulent. By the sixteenth century, termagant was used for a boisterous, brawling, turbulent person of either sex, but eventually it came to refer only to women.]
euphonious \yoo-FOH-nee-uhs\ (adjective) - Pleasing or sweet in sound; smooth-sounding. [Euphonious comes from Greek euphonos, "sweet-voiced," from eu-, "well" (hence "sweetly") + phonos, from phone, "voice, sound." The noun form is euphony.]
voluptuary \vuh-LUHP-choo-er-ee\ (noun) - A person devoted to luxury and the gratification of sensual appetites; a sensualist. (adjective) - Voluptuous; luxurious. [Voluptuary derives from Latin voluptarius, "devoted to pleasure," from voluptas, "pleasure."]
pandemic \pan-DEM-ik\ (adjective) - Affecting a whole people or a number of countries; everywhere epidemic. (noun) - A pandemic disease. [Pandemic ultimately derives from Greek pandemos, "of all the people," from pan-, "all" + demos, "people."]
microcosm \MY-kruh-koz-uhm\ (noun) - 1. A little world. 2 : A smaller, representative system having analogies to a larger system. [Microcosm comes from Greek mikros kosmos, "small world."]
From the Wordsmith:
This week we'll look at toponyms, words derived from the names of places. The word toponym is from Greek topos (place), the same word that gave us topic, topiary, isotope, and utopia.
balbriggan \bal-BRIG-uhn\ (noun) A knitted, unbleached cotton fabric, used in hosiery and underwear. [After Balbriggan, a town near Dublin in Ireland, where it was first made.]
brummagem \BRUM-uh-juhm\ (adjective) Cheap and showy. (noun) Something that is counterfeit or of inferior quality. [After Brummagem, a dialectal form of Birmingham, UK, where counterfeit coins were produced in the 17th century. Brummie is a nickname for someone from Birmingham.]
sardonic \sahr-DON-ik\ (adjective) Marked by scorn, mockery, and cynicism. [After Sardinia, a large island in the Mediterranean. Eating a Sardinian plant was believed to produce facial convulsions as if in a maniacal laughter.]
waterloo \WOT-uhr-loo\ (noun) A crushing or final defeat. [After Waterloo, a village in central Belgium where the Battle of Waterloo took place in 1815. That was Napoleon Bonaparte's last battle. He was decisively defeated by the British and Prussian forces and exiled to the island of Saint Helena.]
fescennine \FES-uh-nyn, -nin\ (adjective) Obscene or scurrilous. [After Fescennia, a town of ancient Etruria known for its ribald and scurrilous songs sung at festivals and weddings.]
Tim Hallinan should be here early next week - more details on our giveaway of The Fourth Watcher then. In the meantime, read a book!
=) JB
"I like people who refuse to speak until they are ready to speak."
-- Lillian Hellman (1905-1984) US writer
You learn something new every day, right? Well, here's your somethings new for today. Make the rest of it a good one.
From ArcaMax:
termagant \TUR-muh-guhnt\ (noun) - A scolding, nagging, bad-tempered woman; a shrew. (adjective) - Overbearing; shrewish; scolding. [Termagant comes from Middle English Termagaunt, alteration of Tervagant, from Old French. Termagant was an imaginary Muslim deity represented in medieval morality plays as extremely violent and turbulent. By the sixteenth century, termagant was used for a boisterous, brawling, turbulent person of either sex, but eventually it came to refer only to women.]
euphonious \yoo-FOH-nee-uhs\ (adjective) - Pleasing or sweet in sound; smooth-sounding. [Euphonious comes from Greek euphonos, "sweet-voiced," from eu-, "well" (hence "sweetly") + phonos, from phone, "voice, sound." The noun form is euphony.]
voluptuary \vuh-LUHP-choo-er-ee\ (noun) - A person devoted to luxury and the gratification of sensual appetites; a sensualist. (adjective) - Voluptuous; luxurious. [Voluptuary derives from Latin voluptarius, "devoted to pleasure," from voluptas, "pleasure."]
pandemic \pan-DEM-ik\ (adjective) - Affecting a whole people or a number of countries; everywhere epidemic. (noun) - A pandemic disease. [Pandemic ultimately derives from Greek pandemos, "of all the people," from pan-, "all" + demos, "people."]
microcosm \MY-kruh-koz-uhm\ (noun) - 1. A little world. 2 : A smaller, representative system having analogies to a larger system. [Microcosm comes from Greek mikros kosmos, "small world."]
From the Wordsmith:
This week we'll look at toponyms, words derived from the names of places. The word toponym is from Greek topos (place), the same word that gave us topic, topiary, isotope, and utopia.
balbriggan \bal-BRIG-uhn\ (noun) A knitted, unbleached cotton fabric, used in hosiery and underwear. [After Balbriggan, a town near Dublin in Ireland, where it was first made.]
brummagem \BRUM-uh-juhm\ (adjective) Cheap and showy. (noun) Something that is counterfeit or of inferior quality. [After Brummagem, a dialectal form of Birmingham, UK, where counterfeit coins were produced in the 17th century. Brummie is a nickname for someone from Birmingham.]
sardonic \sahr-DON-ik\ (adjective) Marked by scorn, mockery, and cynicism. [After Sardinia, a large island in the Mediterranean. Eating a Sardinian plant was believed to produce facial convulsions as if in a maniacal laughter.]
waterloo \WOT-uhr-loo\ (noun) A crushing or final defeat. [After Waterloo, a village in central Belgium where the Battle of Waterloo took place in 1815. That was Napoleon Bonaparte's last battle. He was decisively defeated by the British and Prussian forces and exiled to the island of Saint Helena.]
fescennine \FES-uh-nyn, -nin\ (adjective) Obscene or scurrilous. [After Fescennia, a town of ancient Etruria known for its ribald and scurrilous songs sung at festivals and weddings.]
Tim Hallinan should be here early next week - more details on our giveaway of The Fourth Watcher then. In the meantime, read a book!
=) JB
"I like people who refuse to speak until they are ready to speak."
-- Lillian Hellman (1905-1984) US writer
6.18.2008
When the mouse is away ...
Smokee has taken up residence in my study and found herself a new hiding/napping place. We've decided she apparently has latent literary tendencies ...
I actually got down on the floor to take this picture - from a standing position, she's hidden from view so that all you can see is her tail. When she stretches a bit, you can see her little white feet sticking out!
My Wonder Twin suggested I put this on the blog. (I'll find a more permanent home for it eventually ... we just have to make sure the health inspector doesn't drop by the Lunch Room!)
Today's just a quick drive-by. So much to do, so little time. So read a book - shall I have Miss Literary Kitty select one for you? She seems to have found a few she likes ...
=) JB
P.S. - Amidst all of my busy-ness, I did manage to register the fact that today marks exactly 4 years since I left my previous job and came home to be a writer. Keep that in mind for future reference, because today might just turn out to be significant in other ways. More later.
I actually got down on the floor to take this picture - from a standing position, she's hidden from view so that all you can see is her tail. When she stretches a bit, you can see her little white feet sticking out!
My Wonder Twin suggested I put this on the blog. (I'll find a more permanent home for it eventually ... we just have to make sure the health inspector doesn't drop by the Lunch Room!)
Today's just a quick drive-by. So much to do, so little time. So read a book - shall I have Miss Literary Kitty select one for you? She seems to have found a few she likes ...
=) JB
P.S. - Amidst all of my busy-ness, I did manage to register the fact that today marks exactly 4 years since I left my previous job and came home to be a writer. Keep that in mind for future reference, because today might just turn out to be significant in other ways. More later.
6.14.2008
A Word Aptly Spoken (again)
I have been up to my elbows in words all week (of course, that's my normal life, considering what my 'day job' is), but as promised, here is this week's treasure trove from Wordsmith and ArcaMax:
Intro to the Wordsmith list for the week: "On June 16, James Joyce aficionados the world over celebrate Bloomsday. The day is named after advertising salesman Leopold Bloom, protagonist of Joyce's novel Ulysses. The entirety of this book recounts an ordinary day, June 16, 1904, as various characters go about their ways in Dublin, Ireland. If those 700+ pages are too much, here's an illustrated and irreverent summary of the book: http://home.bway.net/hunger/ulysses.html. To mark Bloomsday this week we'll examine five words borrowed from the Irish language."
shebeen \shuh-BEEN\ (noun) - An unlicensed drinking establishment. [From Irish sibin, diminutive of seibe (mug/mugful). The word is popular in the south of Africa and in Scotland and Ireland.]
dornick \DOR-nik\ (noun) - 1 : A piece of rock small enough to throw. [From Irish dornog (small stone, literally fistful).] 2 : Stout linen. [After Doornik, the name of a Flemish town where the cloth was first manufactured.]
hubbub \HUB-ub\ (noun) - Excited fuss or tumult of a crowd. [Perhaps from Irish ubub (an interjection of contempt).]
cosher \KOSH-uhr\ (verb tr.) - To pamper. [From Irish cosair (feast).]
smithereens \smith-uh-REENZ\ (noun) - Tiny fragments. [Probably from Irish smidirin, diminutive of smiodar (fragment).]
Lovely. And as if that weren’t enough of a treat, here are this week’s gems from ArcaMax:
inveigh \in-VAY\ (intransitive verb) - To rail (against some person or thing); to protest strongly or attack with harsh and bitter language -- usually with "against." [Inveigh is from Latin invehi, "to attack with words," passive form of invehere, "to carry or bring into or against," from in-, "in, into" + vehere, "to carry."]
defenestrate \dee-FEN-uh-strayt\ (transitive verb) - To throw out of a window. [Defenestrate is derived from Latin de-, "out of" + fenestra, "window." The noun form is defenestration. Note: In medical terms (courtesy of Dorland’s Medical Dictionary), fenestration (without the ‘de’ prefix) is the presence of perforations or windows, or the surgical creation of a new opening in the labyrinth of the ear for the restoration for hearing in cases otosclerosis. Always wanted to know that, didn’t you?]
crapulous \KRAP-yuh-lus\ (adjective) - 1 : Suffering the effects of, or derived from, or suggestive of gross intemperance, especially in drinking; as, a crapulous stomach. 2 : Marked by gross intemperance, especially in drinking; as, a crapulous old reprobate. [Crapulous is from Late Latin crapulosus, from Latin crapula, from Greek kraipale, drunkenness and its consequences, nausea, sickness, and headache. Hmmm … s’pose that’s why people say they feel like ‘crap’ after they’ve had too much to drink?]
avoirdupois \av-uhr-duh-POIZ; AV-uhr-duh-poiz\ (noun) - 1 : Avoirdupois weight, a system of weights based on a pound containing 16 ounces or 7,000 grains (453.59 grams). 2 : Weight; heaviness; as, a person of much avoirdupois. [Avoirdupois is from Middle English avoir de pois, "goods sold by weight," from Old French aveir de peis, literally "goods of weight," from aveir, "property, goods" (from aveir, "to have," from Latin habere, "to have, to hold, to possess property") + de, "from" (from the Latin) + peis, "weight," from Latin pensum, "weight." (from whence we get the word ‘pensive’)]
contradistinction \kon-truh-dis-TINK-shuhn\ (noun) - Distinction by contrast; as, "sculpture in contradistinction to painting." [Contradistinction is contra-, from Latin contra, "against" + distinction, from Latin distinctio, from distinguere, "to distinguish."
The Boy is on a trip to Europe with a school group, which happens, by interesting circumstance, to consist of most of the gang he hangs out with, including Milady and six of their friends. My son, his girlfriend and their cronies descend on Rome and Paris. It boggles the mind - poor Europe won't quite know what hit it.
The WGH, the girls and I watched The Bucket List last night. This was not at all what I expected from all the previews I saw on TV when it first came out, and I think they must have been a bit misleading, because the movie was just really wonderful, very touching and heartbreaking and funny (I mean, sure, it looked funny, but you didn't see the heart of the movie from the previews). Even the WGH, who has completely different tastes from me when it comes to movies, said (and I quote), "That's a great movie." If you haven't seen it, rent it. And keep a box of tissues handy.
Book of the Day: The ladies' book club from our church is coming to my house (my house! she squeaked) on Tuesday evening to discuss Refined by Fire, a first-hand account of the tragic events of 9/11 as told by Army LTC (ret) Brian Birdwell and his wife. Lt. Col. Birdwell was walking along the corrider of the E-ring at the Pentagon when it was hit by American Flight 77. He suffered life-threatening burns over 60% of his body and survived to tell his story. The book was published in 2004 but is, of course, still available, and it's a wonderful story of faith and healing.
When I finish reading it, I have to clean my house. Sigh.
Read a book - it's good for you!
=) JB
"In all ranks of life the human heart yearns for the beautiful; and the beautiful things that God makes are his gift to all alike."
-- Harriet Beecher Stowe (1811-1896) US writer
Intro to the Wordsmith list for the week: "On June 16, James Joyce aficionados the world over celebrate Bloomsday. The day is named after advertising salesman Leopold Bloom, protagonist of Joyce's novel Ulysses. The entirety of this book recounts an ordinary day, June 16, 1904, as various characters go about their ways in Dublin, Ireland. If those 700+ pages are too much, here's an illustrated and irreverent summary of the book: http://home.bway.net/hunger/ulysses.html. To mark Bloomsday this week we'll examine five words borrowed from the Irish language."
shebeen \shuh-BEEN\ (noun) - An unlicensed drinking establishment. [From Irish sibin, diminutive of seibe (mug/mugful). The word is popular in the south of Africa and in Scotland and Ireland.]
dornick \DOR-nik\ (noun) - 1 : A piece of rock small enough to throw. [From Irish dornog (small stone, literally fistful).] 2 : Stout linen. [After Doornik, the name of a Flemish town where the cloth was first manufactured.]
hubbub \HUB-ub\ (noun) - Excited fuss or tumult of a crowd. [Perhaps from Irish ubub (an interjection of contempt).]
cosher \KOSH-uhr\ (verb tr.) - To pamper. [From Irish cosair (feast).]
smithereens \smith-uh-REENZ\ (noun) - Tiny fragments. [Probably from Irish smidirin, diminutive of smiodar (fragment).]
Lovely. And as if that weren’t enough of a treat, here are this week’s gems from ArcaMax:
inveigh \in-VAY\ (intransitive verb) - To rail (against some person or thing); to protest strongly or attack with harsh and bitter language -- usually with "against." [Inveigh is from Latin invehi, "to attack with words," passive form of invehere, "to carry or bring into or against," from in-, "in, into" + vehere, "to carry."]
defenestrate \dee-FEN-uh-strayt\ (transitive verb) - To throw out of a window. [Defenestrate is derived from Latin de-, "out of" + fenestra, "window." The noun form is defenestration. Note: In medical terms (courtesy of Dorland’s Medical Dictionary), fenestration (without the ‘de’ prefix) is the presence of perforations or windows, or the surgical creation of a new opening in the labyrinth of the ear for the restoration for hearing in cases otosclerosis. Always wanted to know that, didn’t you?]
crapulous \KRAP-yuh-lus\ (adjective) - 1 : Suffering the effects of, or derived from, or suggestive of gross intemperance, especially in drinking; as, a crapulous stomach. 2 : Marked by gross intemperance, especially in drinking; as, a crapulous old reprobate. [Crapulous is from Late Latin crapulosus, from Latin crapula, from Greek kraipale, drunkenness and its consequences, nausea, sickness, and headache. Hmmm … s’pose that’s why people say they feel like ‘crap’ after they’ve had too much to drink?]
avoirdupois \av-uhr-duh-POIZ; AV-uhr-duh-poiz\ (noun) - 1 : Avoirdupois weight, a system of weights based on a pound containing 16 ounces or 7,000 grains (453.59 grams). 2 : Weight; heaviness; as, a person of much avoirdupois. [Avoirdupois is from Middle English avoir de pois, "goods sold by weight," from Old French aveir de peis, literally "goods of weight," from aveir, "property, goods" (from aveir, "to have," from Latin habere, "to have, to hold, to possess property") + de, "from" (from the Latin) + peis, "weight," from Latin pensum, "weight." (from whence we get the word ‘pensive’)]
contradistinction \kon-truh-dis-TINK-shuhn\ (noun) - Distinction by contrast; as, "sculpture in contradistinction to painting." [Contradistinction is contra-, from Latin contra, "against" + distinction, from Latin distinctio, from distinguere, "to distinguish."
The Boy is on a trip to Europe with a school group, which happens, by interesting circumstance, to consist of most of the gang he hangs out with, including Milady and six of their friends. My son, his girlfriend and their cronies descend on Rome and Paris. It boggles the mind - poor Europe won't quite know what hit it.
The WGH, the girls and I watched The Bucket List last night. This was not at all what I expected from all the previews I saw on TV when it first came out, and I think they must have been a bit misleading, because the movie was just really wonderful, very touching and heartbreaking and funny (I mean, sure, it looked funny, but you didn't see the heart of the movie from the previews). Even the WGH, who has completely different tastes from me when it comes to movies, said (and I quote), "That's a great movie." If you haven't seen it, rent it. And keep a box of tissues handy.
Book of the Day: The ladies' book club from our church is coming to my house (my house! she squeaked) on Tuesday evening to discuss Refined by Fire, a first-hand account of the tragic events of 9/11 as told by Army LTC (ret) Brian Birdwell and his wife. Lt. Col. Birdwell was walking along the corrider of the E-ring at the Pentagon when it was hit by American Flight 77. He suffered life-threatening burns over 60% of his body and survived to tell his story. The book was published in 2004 but is, of course, still available, and it's a wonderful story of faith and healing.
When I finish reading it, I have to clean my house. Sigh.
Read a book - it's good for you!
=) JB
"In all ranks of life the human heart yearns for the beautiful; and the beautiful things that God makes are his gift to all alike."
-- Harriet Beecher Stowe (1811-1896) US writer
6.13.2008
Let's Do Lunch! Interview with Sheila Lowe
I've been more than a bit fascinated with all things British since I discovered the Beatles when I was in about the 3rd grade - I have very little recall from that point in time, but I do remember a few years later being able to mimic a British accent pretty well by the time I hit 6th grade, thanks to John, Paul, George and Ringo, and a Monkee named Davy Jones.
Not that that has anything to do with anything, but my Lunch Room guest today is a native Brit - a transplant to the States some years ago, she still has that token British charm, and I know you'll enjoy getting to know her as much as I have. She's a delightful lady and a pretty darn good writer to boot.
Sheila Lowe is a court-qualified handwriting expert who testifies in forensic cases. She has more than thirty years experience in the field of handwriting analysis and holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology. The author of Handwriting of the Famous & Infamous and The Complete Idiot's Guide to Handwriting Analysis, her analyses of celebrity handwritings have appeared in Time, Teen People, and Mademoiselle. Her articles on "Personality Profiling and Handwriting Analysis for the Attorney" have been published in several bar association magazines.
Sheila's clientele includes a wide spectrum of corporate clients, mental health professionals, attorneys, private investigators and staffing agencies, among others. Her award-winning Handwriting Analyzer software is used around the world, and her profiles help uncover important information in background checks and pre-employment screening. She enjoys analyzing handwriting for individuals, too, helping them understand themselves and others better.
I invited Sheila to the Lunch Room to talk about her foray into fiction with the first book in her Claudia Rose series, Poison Pen, and its follow-up, Written in Blood, due out in September, as well as her fascinating career as a handwriting analyst, and as we got to chatting I discovered a lot more about this very entertaining and interesting lady ...
JB: You have something like 40 years experience in handwriting analysis. How did you get started?
SL: Back in the Dark Ages, when I was in high school, my then-boyfriend's mother analyzed my handwriting — she'd read a book about it. I was astonished by what she told me about my personality, so when I saw a 25-cent Dell pocket book on handwriting analysis at the supermarket, I bought it and immediately immersed myself in my studies. Okay, so there wasn't much immersion to be had in those few pages, but it did get me started checking out library books on the subject. Suddenly, I was sought after at parties — all the girls wanted their boyfriends' handwritings analyzed.
JB: You've had the opportunity to analyze over 10,000 handwriting samples over the years. Can you explain to our readers what role your analysis plays in the different spheres in which you work (i.e., legal, medical, mental health)?
SL: The biggest part of my practice is my work with employers who are hiring. They send me their top applicants' handwriting, along with a job description, and I focus the report on how the applicant stacks up personality-wise with their requirements. I don't have to recommend whether or not to hire the person (thank heavens!), but just provide an objective personality profile. On the legal side, I analyze handwriting for authenticity. In other words, did Mr. X sign this will, or was it really the bimbo stepmother who wanted her kids to get all his money and cut his kids out? I also analyze couples for compatibility, to help them understand what motivates them and how they might head off potential problems. Stuff like that.
JB: You mentioned to me that you often speak in interviews about your daughter - would you mind sharing your story with us?
SL: No, I don't mind at all. Jennifer was 26 in 1999 when she met and fell madly in love with Tom. He worked as a special agent for the Immigration and Naturalization Service, teaching border patrol agents hand-to-hand combat, etc. He wanted me to analyze his handwriting, which I found contained some alarming red flags. I saw in the handwriting a controlling person with the potential for explosive behavior. There were also indications of possible head trauma. When I asked if he'd had a head injury, Tom said that he had suffered a blow to the head on the job, which resulted in violent headaches. We discussed the problems the two of them might encounter in a relationship — Jen was headstrong and would not allow him to control her. I hoped she would pay attention. Okay, she'd never listened to me before, so why would I expect her to now? Tom moved in with her shortly after they met. Less than a year later, Jen was dead, the victim in a murder/suicide. So, while I was able to see the potential for problems, I was unable to prevent a tragic end to her story.
JB: I really admire how you've accepted what happened and are so willing to talk about it. Did that experience have any impact on your decision to write your series? Does it continue to influence your writing?
SL: I had begun writing Poison Pen long before Jennifer's death, but until then, just meandered along. It seemed as if what happened to her impelled me to get it finished and start sending it out. Maybe I needed something to concentrate on that would take the focus off the waking nightmare of her death. As far as the experience influencing my writing, the character of fourteen-year-old Annabelle in my second Claudia Rose story, Written in Blood, is in some ways a lot like Jen, to whom I've dedicated the book.
JB: That's so touching. Now, you also have two sons, right?
SL: Yes. Erik is 33, a tattoo artist, and Ben is 30. He was a Chippendale's-type dancer, but he's just changed jobs and is now a bartender at Universal Studios. They're both 6'3" with shaved heads. I'm 5'6" and feel dwarfed between them.
JB: I have that same problem with my kids. Let's talk about Claudia - she's a great character, not too flawed, not too perfect, and very easy to like. Other than your profession, what do you and she have in common?
SL: Um ... lessee ... we're both handwriting analysts, both bull-headed, independent women who often do things that are probably not in their best interests. But on the other hand, Claudia is far braver than I am, and she likes coffee. I'm glad you find her easy to like.
JB: Do you often get the same kinds of skeptical reactions in your line of work that Claudia does in Poison Pen?
SL: Skeptical reactions are less common now than when I started analyzing handwriting in 1967, but occasionally people ask do me to read their palms, or they'll ask if I'm going to give them their horoscope, which is really annoying! An example: I worked at a San Francisco medical convention, analyzing the handwritings of hundreds of doctors (no, it's not true that all doctors have bad handwriting). [She's right - I used to work for doctors, and one of them had the most beautiful writing I've ever seen!] Most were stunned at what their analysis revealed, but one doctor made a comment about it being "quasi science." I guess I gave him an earful, as he said, "I think I've offended you." I suggested he download the Annotated Bibliography of peer-reviewed handwriting research from my web site, after which he apologized. Okay, so it was defensive of me, but most people don't have to explain why their career is not part of the occult sciences (she said, leading with her chin).
JB: Good for you! There's a darker element at the heart of this otherwise seemingly cozy mystery. Was that your intention when you started writing it?
SL: Actually, I never intended to write something cozy, so I'm glad the darkness shone through ... in a manner of speaking. But I did want the story to have a meaningful theme, and what emerged dealt with childhood sexual abuse and Claudia's evolving view of a woman she had strongly disliked. As she uncovers some of the experiences that molded this woman into who she became, the message hits home for Claudia that behind every handwriting is a human being.
JB: Talk a little about Written in Blood. What do we see Claudia up to next? Are we going to see more of the sexy Detective Jovanic?
SL: Jovanic is definitely back in Written in Blood. He and Claudia butt heads again (and other parts) when she becomes involved in the life of Annabelle Giordano, who is a student at a girls' school run by Claudia's client, Paige Sorensen. Annabelle comes on scene already having been in trouble with the law. She's lost her mother at a young age and has a distant father, and has recently attempted suicide. Claudia, who is unable to have children of her own, reaches out to Annabelle and loses her heart to this prickly kid. Written in Blood really is Annabelle's story, but it also centers around Paige, the trophy wife of a much older man who has died. His children have accused her of forging their father's name on his will, giving most of his estate to Paige, and that's how Claudia enters the story.
JB: Okay, let's switch gears a bit. How long have you lived in the States, and how difficult was it for you to adjust after moving here from England? How often are you able to visit your hometown of London?
SL: I was fourteen when my family came to the U.S. to stay. At that age it was a tough adjustment, leaving my grandparents, school friends, and everything familiar. But I got by with a little help from the Beatles, who showed up on the Ed Sullivan Show shortly after we arrived in Los Angeles. We all know what happened next — anything British was "in." It just so happened I'd brought the first two Beatles albums over from England, so I was now in big demand at Fremont Junior High. My fishnet tights were a big hit, too. In the more than forty years (Yikes! can it be that long?) since then, I've gone home only three times, most recently in May of this year, when I was invited to lecture to handwriting analysts in London. While we were there, I visited the ancient church in Somerset where my ancestors got married about 250 years ago — fab!
JB: Fab, indeed. What's your favorite thing to eat when you go home that you can't get here?
SL: Scones with clotted cream and jam. They're just not the same here. On this last trip, we ate our way across England, so I got to taste all my favorites — bangers and mash, steak pie, and my old favorite sweets, Smarties (which are like M&M's, but not quite). The sticky toffee pudding with Bird's Custard was also memorable, and spotted dick, and ... I think I'd better stop here, I'm getting carried away.
JB: By all means, carry away! After all, this is an eatery. You're making me hungry, and I've had to get clarification on what half the stuff is you're talking about - certainly not anything you could get in the Lunch Room without special ordering it! ;) For those of you not familiar, here's a rundown of what all these delightful dishes she's talking about are, straight from the source:
SL: Clotted cream is like a cross between cream and butter. It has an indescribably wonderful flavor, and when you put it on a scone with raspberry jam - okay, I'm drooling. I don't think there is an equivalent here. It's also called Devon cream. I guess that's where it comes from.
Bangers and mash - bangers are large pork sausage links that have a lot of breadcrumbs in them. Mash is mashed potatoes. You have them with onion gravy or Bisto (a gravy brand that everyone uses there) and peas.
Smarties look just like M&Ms, but the shell is a bit more delicate and the chocolate has a different taste.
Sticky toffee pudding - Dessert in general is referred to as pudding. Sticky toffee pudding is a pie-like dessert. Also, steamed pudding could be any number of things. A steak and kidney pudding, for instance, is like a stew with a steamed pudding on top - like spotted dick, only savory instead of sweet. It's always made with suet, which is probably equivalent to Crisco or could be beef suet (suet being fat). Yes, kidney really means the organ - ugh! Spotted dick is a [sweet] steamed pudding. The way my nanny (grandmother) made it was a steamed very moist suet cake with raisins (that's the spots). The batter is put into a heavy mixing bowl with muslin tied over the top, and that's put on a double boiler until it's cooked - if I remember correctly, that could be a couple of hours. It's then served with a creamy pudding called custard. It's also known as spotted dog.
JB: Yummmmm ... argh! Where is that no-account kitchen help?? Ahem. Okay, moving on. I love Flare, Claudia's neighbor's German Shepherd, and the part she plays in Poison Pen. Are you a pet person?
SL: Flare was a real dog belonging to my first husband's family (the husband who gave me the "Lowe" name). She was a fierce guard dog, but she tolerated me, even though I'm really a cat person. As for my own pets, one day, I came home to find two tiny kittens playing on the stairs in my apartment. One had a light brown back and pure white tummy, with blue, blue eyes. The other was grey all over. Jen had brought them home knowing there was no way I would make her take them back. Sugar, the brown and white one, who was as sweet as her name, lived for fifteen years. Fritz will turn 18 in July and is still going strong.
JB: How sweet! Thank you so much, Sheila, for dropping by the Lunch Room - it's been a pleasure having you!
SL: Thank you, JB, I love an excuse to go out to lunch, and the chance to combine it with such good company makes it a true pleasure.
JB: Aw, thanks.
To learn more about Sheila and her books, visit her professional website at www.sheilalowe.com and her Claudia Rose series website at www.claudiaroseseries.com. Written in Blood will be released in September, and Poison Pen is now available in paperback from your favorite bookseller.
Not that that has anything to do with anything, but my Lunch Room guest today is a native Brit - a transplant to the States some years ago, she still has that token British charm, and I know you'll enjoy getting to know her as much as I have. She's a delightful lady and a pretty darn good writer to boot.
Sheila Lowe is a court-qualified handwriting expert who testifies in forensic cases. She has more than thirty years experience in the field of handwriting analysis and holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology. The author of Handwriting of the Famous & Infamous and The Complete Idiot's Guide to Handwriting Analysis, her analyses of celebrity handwritings have appeared in Time, Teen People, and Mademoiselle. Her articles on "Personality Profiling and Handwriting Analysis for the Attorney" have been published in several bar association magazines.
Sheila's clientele includes a wide spectrum of corporate clients, mental health professionals, attorneys, private investigators and staffing agencies, among others. Her award-winning Handwriting Analyzer software is used around the world, and her profiles help uncover important information in background checks and pre-employment screening. She enjoys analyzing handwriting for individuals, too, helping them understand themselves and others better.
I invited Sheila to the Lunch Room to talk about her foray into fiction with the first book in her Claudia Rose series, Poison Pen, and its follow-up, Written in Blood, due out in September, as well as her fascinating career as a handwriting analyst, and as we got to chatting I discovered a lot more about this very entertaining and interesting lady ...JB: You have something like 40 years experience in handwriting analysis. How did you get started?
SL: Back in the Dark Ages, when I was in high school, my then-boyfriend's mother analyzed my handwriting — she'd read a book about it. I was astonished by what she told me about my personality, so when I saw a 25-cent Dell pocket book on handwriting analysis at the supermarket, I bought it and immediately immersed myself in my studies. Okay, so there wasn't much immersion to be had in those few pages, but it did get me started checking out library books on the subject. Suddenly, I was sought after at parties — all the girls wanted their boyfriends' handwritings analyzed.
JB: You've had the opportunity to analyze over 10,000 handwriting samples over the years. Can you explain to our readers what role your analysis plays in the different spheres in which you work (i.e., legal, medical, mental health)?
SL: The biggest part of my practice is my work with employers who are hiring. They send me their top applicants' handwriting, along with a job description, and I focus the report on how the applicant stacks up personality-wise with their requirements. I don't have to recommend whether or not to hire the person (thank heavens!), but just provide an objective personality profile. On the legal side, I analyze handwriting for authenticity. In other words, did Mr. X sign this will, or was it really the bimbo stepmother who wanted her kids to get all his money and cut his kids out? I also analyze couples for compatibility, to help them understand what motivates them and how they might head off potential problems. Stuff like that.
JB: You mentioned to me that you often speak in interviews about your daughter - would you mind sharing your story with us?
SL: No, I don't mind at all. Jennifer was 26 in 1999 when she met and fell madly in love with Tom. He worked as a special agent for the Immigration and Naturalization Service, teaching border patrol agents hand-to-hand combat, etc. He wanted me to analyze his handwriting, which I found contained some alarming red flags. I saw in the handwriting a controlling person with the potential for explosive behavior. There were also indications of possible head trauma. When I asked if he'd had a head injury, Tom said that he had suffered a blow to the head on the job, which resulted in violent headaches. We discussed the problems the two of them might encounter in a relationship — Jen was headstrong and would not allow him to control her. I hoped she would pay attention. Okay, she'd never listened to me before, so why would I expect her to now? Tom moved in with her shortly after they met. Less than a year later, Jen was dead, the victim in a murder/suicide. So, while I was able to see the potential for problems, I was unable to prevent a tragic end to her story.
JB: I really admire how you've accepted what happened and are so willing to talk about it. Did that experience have any impact on your decision to write your series? Does it continue to influence your writing?
SL: I had begun writing Poison Pen long before Jennifer's death, but until then, just meandered along. It seemed as if what happened to her impelled me to get it finished and start sending it out. Maybe I needed something to concentrate on that would take the focus off the waking nightmare of her death. As far as the experience influencing my writing, the character of fourteen-year-old Annabelle in my second Claudia Rose story, Written in Blood, is in some ways a lot like Jen, to whom I've dedicated the book.
JB: That's so touching. Now, you also have two sons, right?
SL: Yes. Erik is 33, a tattoo artist, and Ben is 30. He was a Chippendale's-type dancer, but he's just changed jobs and is now a bartender at Universal Studios. They're both 6'3" with shaved heads. I'm 5'6" and feel dwarfed between them.
JB: I have that same problem with my kids. Let's talk about Claudia - she's a great character, not too flawed, not too perfect, and very easy to like. Other than your profession, what do you and she have in common?
SL: Um ... lessee ... we're both handwriting analysts, both bull-headed, independent women who often do things that are probably not in their best interests. But on the other hand, Claudia is far braver than I am, and she likes coffee. I'm glad you find her easy to like.
JB: Do you often get the same kinds of skeptical reactions in your line of work that Claudia does in Poison Pen?
SL: Skeptical reactions are less common now than when I started analyzing handwriting in 1967, but occasionally people ask do me to read their palms, or they'll ask if I'm going to give them their horoscope, which is really annoying! An example: I worked at a San Francisco medical convention, analyzing the handwritings of hundreds of doctors (no, it's not true that all doctors have bad handwriting). [She's right - I used to work for doctors, and one of them had the most beautiful writing I've ever seen!] Most were stunned at what their analysis revealed, but one doctor made a comment about it being "quasi science." I guess I gave him an earful, as he said, "I think I've offended you." I suggested he download the Annotated Bibliography of peer-reviewed handwriting research from my web site, after which he apologized. Okay, so it was defensive of me, but most people don't have to explain why their career is not part of the occult sciences (she said, leading with her chin).
JB: Good for you! There's a darker element at the heart of this otherwise seemingly cozy mystery. Was that your intention when you started writing it?
SL: Actually, I never intended to write something cozy, so I'm glad the darkness shone through ... in a manner of speaking. But I did want the story to have a meaningful theme, and what emerged dealt with childhood sexual abuse and Claudia's evolving view of a woman she had strongly disliked. As she uncovers some of the experiences that molded this woman into who she became, the message hits home for Claudia that behind every handwriting is a human being.
JB: Talk a little about Written in Blood. What do we see Claudia up to next? Are we going to see more of the sexy Detective Jovanic?SL: Jovanic is definitely back in Written in Blood. He and Claudia butt heads again (and other parts) when she becomes involved in the life of Annabelle Giordano, who is a student at a girls' school run by Claudia's client, Paige Sorensen. Annabelle comes on scene already having been in trouble with the law. She's lost her mother at a young age and has a distant father, and has recently attempted suicide. Claudia, who is unable to have children of her own, reaches out to Annabelle and loses her heart to this prickly kid. Written in Blood really is Annabelle's story, but it also centers around Paige, the trophy wife of a much older man who has died. His children have accused her of forging their father's name on his will, giving most of his estate to Paige, and that's how Claudia enters the story.
JB: Okay, let's switch gears a bit. How long have you lived in the States, and how difficult was it for you to adjust after moving here from England? How often are you able to visit your hometown of London?
SL: I was fourteen when my family came to the U.S. to stay. At that age it was a tough adjustment, leaving my grandparents, school friends, and everything familiar. But I got by with a little help from the Beatles, who showed up on the Ed Sullivan Show shortly after we arrived in Los Angeles. We all know what happened next — anything British was "in." It just so happened I'd brought the first two Beatles albums over from England, so I was now in big demand at Fremont Junior High. My fishnet tights were a big hit, too. In the more than forty years (Yikes! can it be that long?) since then, I've gone home only three times, most recently in May of this year, when I was invited to lecture to handwriting analysts in London. While we were there, I visited the ancient church in Somerset where my ancestors got married about 250 years ago — fab!
JB: Fab, indeed. What's your favorite thing to eat when you go home that you can't get here?
SL: Scones with clotted cream and jam. They're just not the same here. On this last trip, we ate our way across England, so I got to taste all my favorites — bangers and mash, steak pie, and my old favorite sweets, Smarties (which are like M&M's, but not quite). The sticky toffee pudding with Bird's Custard was also memorable, and spotted dick, and ... I think I'd better stop here, I'm getting carried away.
JB: By all means, carry away! After all, this is an eatery. You're making me hungry, and I've had to get clarification on what half the stuff is you're talking about - certainly not anything you could get in the Lunch Room without special ordering it! ;) For those of you not familiar, here's a rundown of what all these delightful dishes she's talking about are, straight from the source:
SL: Clotted cream is like a cross between cream and butter. It has an indescribably wonderful flavor, and when you put it on a scone with raspberry jam - okay, I'm drooling. I don't think there is an equivalent here. It's also called Devon cream. I guess that's where it comes from.
Bangers and mash - bangers are large pork sausage links that have a lot of breadcrumbs in them. Mash is mashed potatoes. You have them with onion gravy or Bisto (a gravy brand that everyone uses there) and peas.
Smarties look just like M&Ms, but the shell is a bit more delicate and the chocolate has a different taste.
Sticky toffee pudding - Dessert in general is referred to as pudding. Sticky toffee pudding is a pie-like dessert. Also, steamed pudding could be any number of things. A steak and kidney pudding, for instance, is like a stew with a steamed pudding on top - like spotted dick, only savory instead of sweet. It's always made with suet, which is probably equivalent to Crisco or could be beef suet (suet being fat). Yes, kidney really means the organ - ugh! Spotted dick is a [sweet] steamed pudding. The way my nanny (grandmother) made it was a steamed very moist suet cake with raisins (that's the spots). The batter is put into a heavy mixing bowl with muslin tied over the top, and that's put on a double boiler until it's cooked - if I remember correctly, that could be a couple of hours. It's then served with a creamy pudding called custard. It's also known as spotted dog.
JB: Yummmmm ... argh! Where is that no-account kitchen help?? Ahem. Okay, moving on. I love Flare, Claudia's neighbor's German Shepherd, and the part she plays in Poison Pen. Are you a pet person?
SL: Flare was a real dog belonging to my first husband's family (the husband who gave me the "Lowe" name). She was a fierce guard dog, but she tolerated me, even though I'm really a cat person. As for my own pets, one day, I came home to find two tiny kittens playing on the stairs in my apartment. One had a light brown back and pure white tummy, with blue, blue eyes. The other was grey all over. Jen had brought them home knowing there was no way I would make her take them back. Sugar, the brown and white one, who was as sweet as her name, lived for fifteen years. Fritz will turn 18 in July and is still going strong.
JB: How sweet! Thank you so much, Sheila, for dropping by the Lunch Room - it's been a pleasure having you!
SL: Thank you, JB, I love an excuse to go out to lunch, and the chance to combine it with such good company makes it a true pleasure.
JB: Aw, thanks.
To learn more about Sheila and her books, visit her professional website at www.sheilalowe.com and her Claudia Rose series website at www.claudiaroseseries.com. Written in Blood will be released in September, and Poison Pen is now available in paperback from your favorite bookseller.
6.11.2008
Please Stand By ...
You might not see me for a little while. I'm in the midst of a few major things, and they're going to require most of my time and attention. I'll surface every once in a while to say hello, and we do have Lunch Room interviews coming up - at least one a week for the next 3 or 4 weeks if I play my cards right - Sheila Lowe will be here either tomorrow or Friday. And of course, the weekly words of wisdom from the vocabulary vault will be posted on Saturdays. But as far as waxing philosophic or witty or whatever I'm supposed to be from time to time, I probably won't be. But just for a little while.
So don't miss me too much if you don't see me, and don't go far - there will likely be periodic items of interest on the menu here. I'm just hiding in the kitchen, and I'm perfectly okay - and hopefully by the time I emerge again (very, very soon) I'll have some really great news to share.
In the meantime, read a book!
=) JB
So don't miss me too much if you don't see me, and don't go far - there will likely be periodic items of interest on the menu here. I'm just hiding in the kitchen, and I'm perfectly okay - and hopefully by the time I emerge again (very, very soon) I'll have some really great news to share.
In the meantime, read a book!
=) JB
6.07.2008
A Way with Words
JT and I had dinner before BMWs Wednesday night at her favorite Chinese place. When the fortune cookies came, we both picked up the one nearest us. Karma. Hers said something about making her fortune (which I know she is already on her way to doing), and mine said (and I quote), "You have a charming way with words and should write a book."
We both laughed ourselves silly. I think this might be called irony.
Anyway, this week's vocabulary words tie nicely in with that concept (a way with words), as the Wordsmith has given us colorful and tactful (as opposed to vulgar) ways to insult people. For some reason this tickles me.
jackanapes \JAK-uh-nayps\ (noun) - An impertinent conceited person.
[Probably from Jack Napes, from "jack (man) of an ape". This word was the nickname of William de la Pole (1396-1450), Duke of Suffolk, as his badge was a clog and chain, as might be tied to an ape.]
gundygut \GUHN-di-guht\ (noun) - A voracious eater; a greedy person.
[From gundy, of unexplained origin + gut (belly).]
praetorian or pretorian \pree-TOR-ee-uhn\ (adjective) - Corruptible; fraudulent.
[From Latin praetor, an elected magistrate in ancient Rome.]
quisquilian \kwis-KWIL-ee-uhn\ (adjective) - Worthless, trifling.
[From Latin quisquiliae (waste, rubbish).]
flibbertigibbet \FLIB-uhr-tee-jib-it\ (noun) - Someone who is regarded as flighty, scatterbrained, and talkative.
[Apparently from the imitation of the sound of idle chatter.]
The words from ArcaMax aren't quite as inflammatory, but a few of them are still quite palatable and could possibly be used for the same purpose. Enjoy, but use wisely.
supererogatory \soo-puhr-ih-ROG-uh-tor-ee\ (adjective) - 1 : Going beyond what is required or expected. 2 : Superfluous; unnecessary.
[Supererogatory comes from Latin supererogare, "to spend over and above," from super, "over, above" + erogare, "to ask for," from e-, "out" + rogare, "to ask, to request."]
ennui \on-WEE\ (noun) - A feeling of weariness and dissatisfaction arising from lack of interest; boredom.
[Ennui is from the French, from Old French enui, "annoyance," from enuier, "to annoy, to bore," from the Latin phrase in odium, "in hatred or dislike."]
palimpsest \PAL-imp-sest\ (noun) - 1 : A manuscript, usually of papyrus or parchment, on which more than one text has been written with the earlier writing incompletely erased and still visible. 2 : An object or place whose older layers or aspects are apparent beneath its surface.
[Palimpsest is from Latin palimpsestus, from Greek palimpsestos, "scraped or rubbed again," from palin, "again" + psen, "to rub (away)."]
constitutional \kon-stih-TOO-shuhn-uhl; -TYOO-\ (noun) - A walk taken for one's health.
[A constitutional is so called because it is taken for the benefit of one's constitution.]
acrid \AK-rid\ (adjective) - 1 : Sharp and harsh, or bitter to the taste or smell; pungent. 2 : Caustic in language or tone; bitter.
[Acrid comes from Latin acer, "sharp."]
The BF and I did a little bookstore browsing yesterday. She gets a kick out of me walking up and down the aisles and saying, "I know him. I've met her, she's lovely. I know him and her and her. I know her - she's a complete hoot. Interviewed him ... and him, and he's just had this book nominated for a bunch of mystery awards. I did a panel with her once. I've had dinner with him - twice." Yeah, it's a little like bragging on my part, but the thing I get excited about is the fact that my buddies' books are on the shelves of these major bookstores. It's just really cool.
I'm not sure what's on our agenda for today. All I know is that I'm having a really great time just spending time with my friend.
Why don't you do that today? That's good for you, too.
=) JB
"Intimacies between women often go backwards, beginning in revelations and ending in small talk."
-- Elizabeth Bowen (1899-1973) English writer
We both laughed ourselves silly. I think this might be called irony.
Anyway, this week's vocabulary words tie nicely in with that concept (a way with words), as the Wordsmith has given us colorful and tactful (as opposed to vulgar) ways to insult people. For some reason this tickles me.
jackanapes \JAK-uh-nayps\ (noun) - An impertinent conceited person.
[Probably from Jack Napes, from "jack (man) of an ape". This word was the nickname of William de la Pole (1396-1450), Duke of Suffolk, as his badge was a clog and chain, as might be tied to an ape.]
gundygut \GUHN-di-guht\ (noun) - A voracious eater; a greedy person.
[From gundy, of unexplained origin + gut (belly).]
praetorian or pretorian \pree-TOR-ee-uhn\ (adjective) - Corruptible; fraudulent.
[From Latin praetor, an elected magistrate in ancient Rome.]
quisquilian \kwis-KWIL-ee-uhn\ (adjective) - Worthless, trifling.
[From Latin quisquiliae (waste, rubbish).]
flibbertigibbet \FLIB-uhr-tee-jib-it\ (noun) - Someone who is regarded as flighty, scatterbrained, and talkative.
[Apparently from the imitation of the sound of idle chatter.]
The words from ArcaMax aren't quite as inflammatory, but a few of them are still quite palatable and could possibly be used for the same purpose. Enjoy, but use wisely.
supererogatory \soo-puhr-ih-ROG-uh-tor-ee\ (adjective) - 1 : Going beyond what is required or expected. 2 : Superfluous; unnecessary.
[Supererogatory comes from Latin supererogare, "to spend over and above," from super, "over, above" + erogare, "to ask for," from e-, "out" + rogare, "to ask, to request."]
ennui \on-WEE\ (noun) - A feeling of weariness and dissatisfaction arising from lack of interest; boredom.
[Ennui is from the French, from Old French enui, "annoyance," from enuier, "to annoy, to bore," from the Latin phrase in odium, "in hatred or dislike."]
palimpsest \PAL-imp-sest\ (noun) - 1 : A manuscript, usually of papyrus or parchment, on which more than one text has been written with the earlier writing incompletely erased and still visible. 2 : An object or place whose older layers or aspects are apparent beneath its surface.
[Palimpsest is from Latin palimpsestus, from Greek palimpsestos, "scraped or rubbed again," from palin, "again" + psen, "to rub (away)."]
constitutional \kon-stih-TOO-shuhn-uhl; -TYOO-\ (noun) - A walk taken for one's health.
[A constitutional is so called because it is taken for the benefit of one's constitution.]
acrid \AK-rid\ (adjective) - 1 : Sharp and harsh, or bitter to the taste or smell; pungent. 2 : Caustic in language or tone; bitter.
[Acrid comes from Latin acer, "sharp."]
The BF and I did a little bookstore browsing yesterday. She gets a kick out of me walking up and down the aisles and saying, "I know him. I've met her, she's lovely. I know him and her and her. I know her - she's a complete hoot. Interviewed him ... and him, and he's just had this book nominated for a bunch of mystery awards. I did a panel with her once. I've had dinner with him - twice." Yeah, it's a little like bragging on my part, but the thing I get excited about is the fact that my buddies' books are on the shelves of these major bookstores. It's just really cool.
I'm not sure what's on our agenda for today. All I know is that I'm having a really great time just spending time with my friend.
Why don't you do that today? That's good for you, too.
=) JB
"Intimacies between women often go backwards, beginning in revelations and ending in small talk."
-- Elizabeth Bowen (1899-1973) English writer
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