#FridayNight – A Night on Broadway

After 9/11 New York City was suffering in a variety of ways, including economically. My family made a point of trying to help out by coming in for more touristy things, like going to Broadway. Preview tickets back then were relatively affordable and so we went to a Broadway show fairly regularly. As things stabilized and prices started to go up, we found that we couldn’t go as often, but we still tried to go for shows that really called to us. Tonight Beetlejuice called and we answered. I can’t wait to see the show and I wonder if it will be able to capture the fun of the original motion picture. How about you? Any special plans for your Friday night?

Original Image by Ed Judkins from Pixabay

Sharing My 15 Seconds of Fame on Cafe CNN

Okay, so maybe it was more than 15 seconds. I was on air for about 5 minutes discussing romance novels and they showed the covers for the SINS and SIN HUNTER series a number of times. Very exciting. I tried my best to talk about why romances and paranormals were popular, although the discussion kept on trying to turn to the sensuality of the novels. I hope I managed to get it back on point to why we love getting involved with the characters, especially heroes and heroines who save the world, and of course, the happily ever after.

The morning started with us clearing security and then heading up to the green room to wait and go to the make-up area. This is me waiting in the green room.

After that, I was rushed into the make-up room for a touch-up. As I walked in to the room, who was there? Alexis Bledl, best known for being Rory on GILMORE GIRLS, and America Ferrara from UGLY BETTY.

OMG! Alexis had stunning blue eyes and was a beautiful girl. America was adorable and so petite. Unfortunately, they were escorted out to go to their event just a couple of minutes later. Apparently several shows were taping/being aired at one time in the studios.

Next I was ushered down to the studio where I got miked up and spoke to the producer in Atlanta who prepped me for when the anchor from Cafe CNN, Lucia Navarro, would come on board. Barely seconds later, the anchor came on and we started chatting.

Here’s a picture of me on the air with the studio in Atlanta. I was on for about 4 to 5 minutes discussing romance novels and I managed to get a plug in for my books. Hopefully I’ll have a link for the interview to share with you shortly.

And then it was a big sigh. It was done. Wow. It was so exciting and I was so nervous, but I thought it went well. Here’s a photo of me on the set after the big gig!

Hope you enjoyed this!

Mark Valley – Guilty Pleasure Monday

Mark Valley by DGreenleeI’m not normally a fan of blonde men, but please tell me what there isn’t to like about Mark Valley! He’s been catching my eye for years in assorted shows, more recently in FRINGE (one of my favorite shows!). Did you know Mark married Anna Torv, his co-star in 2008?

Mark has a new show — HUMAN TARGET. I haven’t had a chance to catch it, but have it on my list of shows to check out. If you’ve watched the show, please take a moment to share with us if you liked it or not.

This week I’ve got some fun things for you – visits from two friends! Look for Autumn Jordon on January 27th and Misa Ramirez on the 28th!

Show, Don’t Tell

Click here for more on the Liberty States Fiction WritersBesides attending the monthly meetings of the Liberty States Fiction Writers, I have a smaller group that meets once a month at a local bookstore.

Last night we were discussing an oft-used phrase: Show, Don’t Tell.

One of my friends asked, “How do you know you are doing telling and not showing?”

My friend Anne Walradt is an expert on the subject and does a wonderful workshop on the concept. I can only offer some very basic advice and examples.

First, if you read it aloud and it sounds like a laundry list — You’re telling. An example of telling:

The alley was dark. It smelled of old garbage. There was movement at the end of the alley. It was a large man. He looked like a criminal. Fear gripped her. She ran away.

Was that interesting at all? Did you get involved in what was happening? Did you impart any of your knowledge to the scene, thereby becoming involved in the story?

If you answered “No”, then you understand what’s bad about telling rather than showing. So how you do write the above scene by showing? Here’s a shot at it:

Darkness swallowed her up as she entered the alley. Days old garbage filled a dumpster, making the air rank with the smell of decay. Shadows shifted at the end of the alley. A man stepped forward into the muted pool of light cast by a security lamp. Blue-black prison tattoos covered his arms and his face had the look of a boxer who had lost one too many fights. Her stomach clenched and a cold sweat erupted across her flesh a second before she whirled away.

A little better? Do you impart your own experience to what decay smells like? Did you wonder what the shadow was? Did the description of the man show you he was a criminal and/or trouble without telling you? How about the fear aspect? Didn’t use the word fear, but her reaction demonstrated it and you as the reader, recognized it.

That’s the biggest difference. When you show, the reader becomes involved in the story by interpreting what you are writing. With a laundry list, there’s no involvement on the part of the reader because it’s plan and simple. Of course, that does not mean that you should so confuse your reader with how you show something that they are lost.

So, that’s a very quick rundown on the concept of Show, Don’t Tell. I hope this Tuesday Tip was of help!