The Journal Keeper

You know that when Elizabeth Gilbert and Naomi Shihab Nye positively gush over a book, that it's going to be good. And so far, The Journal Keeper, by Phyllis Theroux is wonderful.

Here's a quote I just had to share with you:

When people say something changed their life, I think they usually mean, upon deeper examination, that something had revived their imagination. A door we didn't know existed, or always thought was locked, suddenly swings open. Old ambitions, which we were too timid or thought we were too unqualified to realize, are gathered up and reconsidered. A talent judged too small is reevaluated.

Lovely, isn't it?

More later,
Tammar

Hello little pineapple

Look at it! Just look at it. Isn't it the cutest little thing? It's about the size of a softball, and it won't get much bigger. We'll know it's ripe when it turns a bit golden and then, we'll eat homegrown pineapple! And here's the really cool part. Each pineapple plant only produces one pineapple during its lifetime. But to get more pineapples, all you have to do is take that leafy top and stick it in the ground. A new pineapple plant will grow from it, along with a new pineapple. Just like that, simple as pie. Ah, the circle of life. Although this is more of a line, isn't it?

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Tammar

Kindred!

I know I've been pretty closed-mouth about my up-coming novel, Kindred. I've learned the hard way is baaaaad ju-ju to talk about a work in progress and then, even when it was all finished, it was just easier to smile mysteriously and promise that good things come to those who wait. (Read: I really hate talking about what my books are about. I could made JR Ward's Brotherhood series seem dull, it's a curse.)

But now, I don't have to mumble and bumble, Kindred is available for pre-order on Amazon and comes with a nice, concise description, all ready to go.

Here's what it says:

The first time I meet an angel, it is Raphael and I am eighteen.

Miriam is an unassuming college freshman stuck on campus after her spring break plans fall through. She's not a religious girl—when pressed she admits reluctantly to believing in a higher power. Truth be told, she's about as comfortable speaking about her faith as she is about her sex life, which is to say, not at all. And then the archangel Raphael pays her a visit, and Miriam's life will never be the same. Chosen to save two of her contemporaries, Miriam begins a desperate race to fulfill her mission. But why has she been chosen? And what is the real purpose behind her mission?

Pretty cool, huh? And that first paragraph, that's my opening line. I am so proud of that line! I can't wait to share Kindred with you.

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Tammar

High Dive on New Hampshire Public Radio

High Dive was mentioned on New Hampshire public radio last week. A nice blog (and radio) shout-out for High Dive for its portrayal of the Iraq War, below:

http://www.nhpr.org/node/32400

In other news, I've been plagued by technical difficulties the past month. Intermittent internet service, a busted power drive, and just in general twitchy-ness among my mechanical devices. It might be heat (regularly in the 90's), perhaps the humidity? Plus we have this creepy new type of mosquito, as thick as a fly, black with a red bump on it's back, kind of where it's shoulders would be, if a mosquito had shoulders. That thing looks like it would make you anemic if it bit you. Oh, and someone's been feeding the alligator that lives in our pond, so now it comes when it sees us on the dock. This is cute when a duck or a squirrel does it. It's bad news when an alligator does it since it means they've come associate people with food. Which means they come to believe that people=food. Which means we have to call the county and they'll send someone to deal with it. And deal with it means killing it. All because some stupid neighbor thought it would be fun to feed the local 'gator.

So please, if you live in Florida or Louisiana, please DON'T feed the alligators. They're really not that dangerous as long as it isn't mating season and as long as people haven't fed them. It's not fair to them. Or to those of us who want to stay as respectful neighbors.

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Tammar

Stories

I recently judged a short-story competition for the National Society of Arts and Letters. The NSAL, by the way, is this amazing organization whose sole mission is to support young artists as they begin their careers. To that end, they hold several competition throughout the year with very generous cash prizes to help support young talent. I was really proud and happy to be part of this literary contest. And the winners, whom I met at the award luncheon on Saturday, were wonderful and very deserving of their prize.

I have been a contestant of literary competitions many times but this was my first stint as judge and it was really an eye opening experience. Some of the stories were wonderful, really unique and well written and beautiful. And some...hmm. Some were not.

It got me thinking about what is important in a literary piece. So here are some tips that I've compiled to all future contestants:

Grammar: I'm not a stickler for grammatical rules. I think that as a writer you use whatever you need to make your story and if that means tinkering around with sounds, with tenses, with dangling participles, fine. But don't be sloppy and don't be lazy. So that if your story is in present tense, make sure you don't forget half way through the paragraph and switch to past tense. You would be amazed how often that can happen.

Story: as in, please tell one. Even short stories are still stories. So make sure you're actually writing one, not a scene or a journal entry.

Unlikeable protagonists: Not everything needs to be sugar, spice and everything nice. Not every story needs a happy ending. But be careful that you're not writing a story about a total jerk. There needs to be growth, or change, or insight about what created such a creature and not just that they're mean and rude for the sake of it. You really need to think about your readers when you write.

And last but not least: Keep writing. We all need to keep writing, to keep practicing, to try new things, and yes, to fail sometimes. So if you didn't win this competition or any other, pick yourself up and try again. Write another story, try to make it better, and find another contest, a magazine, a school paper. Every one of us fails about a hundred times before we succeed. Success is the difference between those who gave up and those to stuck with it.

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Tammar

Superwomen

After a seven months deployment in the Middle East and Far East, my badass sister-in-law of eight-months is in American waters and steaming to her home port of San Diego. On her way home, however, she stopped in Seattle to pick up a couple of guests. That's right. The famous Nimitz aircraft carrier is now carrying a few extra passengers, my mom being one of them (the one on the left). Molly's mom is the other intrepid guest on the right. I should mention here that they are not the ONLY guests on board. They are Tigers, guests of service members, who join them on the last few days of their cruise at the end of deployment.

I mean, really, is that not the coolest thing ever??

I'm so excited for my mom and even more for Molly and Dan's reunion. A million thank yous are not enough for all the sacrifices and dedication of our supermen and superwomen of the military.

You guys rock.

Mom, I hope you're having a great time.

And Molly, me next. Okay?



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Tammar

Predictable

There was a study done recently about just how predictable people's days are. Participants agreed to have their location tracked at all times through their cellphones and within a few weeks, researchers could predict their location 93% of the time. The most unpredictable subjects, those who labeled themselves without a regular routine, were predictable 83% of the time.

I found this study amazing, and yet unsurprising at the same time. I guess I always knew that I was boring and predictable, I just didn't realize everyone else was too.

More later,

Tammar