You Know You've Created a Good Villain When...

Got a call the other day from a lady who is interested in doing the final proof-reading for my latest novel, The Reunion.  She wanted to see a sample, so I sent the first three chapters to her.  When she called to go over it with me, one of the first things she said was, "That Ryan is a real S.O.B."

The Ryan she's referring to is a character named Ryan Knight.  Ryan is the first of many villains who appear throughout the story.  I'll admit, I had fun when I created Ryan.  He was inspired by an old boyfriend who was extremely moody, along with my ex-husband, a good friend's ex-husband, and every bad date I ever had.  With a cocktail like that you know you're going to have a good villain. 

So my soon-to-be proofreader tells me that she printed out the pages, and was going over them in the laundry room at her apartment complex.  She says she actually started yelling and cursing at Ryan, and then she laughed when she said she noticed some of the other neighbors in the laundry room were giving her strange looks.  I had to laugh as well.  This tells me that the character I created is three-dimensional, believable, and, most importantly, makes an emotional impact on the reader.  Hopefully, the rest of the cast will have turned out as well.

In the meantime, remember that a good villain is essential to create the conflict that drives your plot lines, and real people in your life whom you have had conflicts with can be good inspirations.  Just be sure not to make any of your characters, good or bad, a clone of any real person.  Be creative.  Give your villains a unique look and personality, and, most importantly, have fun while you're creating them.


I will keep you posted on updates for The Reunion.  I hope to have it available on Kindle by Christmas, and the printed version is scheduled for release sometime in March.

Enjoy.

GM

aka Marina Martindale

What is it That Makes a Woman a Lady?

Last night I watched the DVD of Julie and Julia, which is based on the true story of Julie Powell, a struggling New York writer, (I can relate), who decides to post a blog chronicling her culinary journey to create all 524 recipes in the 1961 edition of Julia Child's book, Mastering the Art of French Cooking, in 365 days.

The film depicts Mrs. Powell as a young, all-American wife with a fresh-faced girl-next-door quality about her.  How can we not like her as we watch her struggle to balance her day job and marriage while trying to complete the monumental task she has laid out for herself?  Throughout the film the audience goes back and forth between the lives of Julie Powell and Julia Child, and while they are indeed two very different individuals they do share some similar life experiences.  We also see Julie develop a close, personal kinship with Julia as her project continues, but her bubble is burst near the end of the film when someone close to Julia Child informs her that Mrs. Child didn't like Julie's blog.  We're told that she in fact, hated it.  Julie is crushed, but goes on to complete the project.  Assuming this actually happened, (and remember, movies "based on a true story" contain a lot of fiction), I couldn't help but wonder why. 

After I put the DVD in the return envelope I went on-line and looked up Julie Powell.  Was I ever surprised.  While a very brief mention of her using the "f-word" in her blog is noted in the film, her current blog is a real eye-opener.  The subtitle says it all, and it's hardly what one would have expected from the sweet girl-next-door that we saw in the movie.  Now I'm not going to knock Mrs. Powell or call her a bad person.  She and I probably have a lot in common since we're both writers and authors, but upon reading some of her writing I think I can make an educated guess as to why Julia Child wouldn't have liked her blog, assuming that she had read it.

Julia Child was a lady.  Her husband was a diplomat, and she associated herself with people in high places.  Now in order to do successfully that one must have a certain special quality that is sadly missing in our culture today -- class.  And class is what makes a woman a lady.

A lady doesn't use any of George Carlin's seven words that you can't say on television or radio.  At least not in any kind of a public setting, or in print, be it a printed page or cyberspace, nor would she ever use that kind of language in mixed company.  A lady is gracious.  She says, "please" and "thank you," and she doesn't swear at a man if he opens a door for her.  A lady also dresses appropriately for the occasion.  Now I'm not against casual wear, if it's worn in the proper setting, however a lady doesn't wear bare-midriffs and flip-flops in a business office, nor would she ever be seen anywhere in public dressed like a whore.  A lady also follows other social protocol, such as not chewing or cracking gum in public or sitting in a chair in a spread-eagle position.  You get my drift.  It's not about having a lot of money or lavish clothes or jewelery.  It's all about having dignity and a little bit of pride in oneself.  That is what makes a lady a lady.

I'm not saying that it's easy being a lady, especially in a society that wants to rob women of their femininity and turn them into second-class men.  I sometimes struggle with it myself, but when you're a children's book author acting like a lady comes with the job.  Julia Child was most certainly a lady, and she was a good, positive role model.  The world needs more like her.

My thought for the day,

GM

Oh the Perils of Studying Too Much History

I don't know if I've grown up, grown old, or have just studied too much history...

Back when I was a kid The Wild West West hit the airwaves. It aired on Friday nights, and I used to watch it with my brother. I thought it was way cool and different from the other westerns I watched, like Bonanza, The High Chaparral and The Virginian. Not that I didn't like the others, (in fact The High Chaparral will always be my all time favorite), but The Wild Wild West had that kind of surreal quality, and to a pre-teen kid, it was even a little bit spooky at times. And I really liked the characters. Jim West was okay, but I really liked Artemus Gorden.

Fast forward a few years. I'm in high school, my brother is in college, and The Wild Wild West is in syndication. I'm really digging the show now, and so does my brother and his best friend, who I also think is really cool, but I'll leave that story for another blog. Then, sometime after college, The Wild Wild West comes out with some updated TV movies, and again they're really cool. I later learn CBS had plans to bring the show back in the early 1980s, but that got derailed permanently with the death of Ross Martin, (no relation to me), in 1981. And Ross Martin really was the one who made the show work. The final season of the original Wild Wild West simply wasn't that good because Martin was sidelined throughout much of it due to illness.

So again we fast forward a few years. Well, maybe a little more than just a few years. We now have Netflix and DVDs, and many of the old westerns we all loved are available to us for a low monthly fee and a few clicks of the mouse. So what do I do? I decide to start watching The Wild Wild West again, only this time it's TORTURE to watch.

Yes, Jim and Artemus are still there, and yes they're still great characters. And Micheal Dunn is still the best as Dr. Loveless. But those story lines? They're so lame. Almost every episode of the show revolves around technology that simply did not exist in the 1870s.

I guess that's one of the hazards of studying history. Your standards of believability for historical fiction must go up. Or maybe it was the times the original show aired in. Back in the 1960s we were at the height of the Cold War and times were unsettled at home with civil unrest and the anti-Viet Nam War backlash while many in my generation were tripping out on drugs. Maybe what was needed back then was a western that delved into fantasy and a little surrealism.

My thought for the day.

GM

A Review of Billy the Kid

I stumbled upon this review of Billy the Kid and the Lincoln County War on a Billy the Kid forum. It really made my day. Please note that Billy the Kid and the Lincoln County War is now being published by Five Star Publications, Inc.

http://btkog07.angelfire.com/bookreview.html

GM

Wish I Could Take Credit for This One

Having a table at the Tucson Old West Round Up was a great learning experience. Sharing my table with my publisher and selling some of their other titles was like having my own miniature brick and mortar bookstore for a few days, and a great opportunity to observe buyers.

All the books at my table were top notch. Five Star Publications is very selective about the authors they accept, so every book on my table was high quality. That said, there were titles that stood out and got buyers attention, while others went virtually ignored. Part of it was the venue. This particular trade show was for Old West/western collectibles, so the books related to the theme got the most attention, while those unrelated to the theme went virtually unnoticed. With one exception.

There was one non-western themed book that got plenty of attention. It was a cookbook titled Potluck Survival Guide. But what really hooked potential buyers was the subtitle, The Care and Feeding of the Athletic Supporter. Great play on words, and several of the people who stopped by commented about it. This cookbook is aimed at people who get together at potluck events, including school and athletic events. It has a wonderful variety of recipes from entrees to appetizers and desserts, and you wouldn't have to go to a potluck to enjoy them. But it was about as removed from a western theme as you can get.

What made this book stand out was its title. While a well designed book cover is a must, a unique, descriptive book title is equally important.

GM