Category: Thoughts on Writing

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gregarious green

There’s something about going green…I mean, it’s not like it’s strange these days to see people with wild colors in their hair.  On a daily basis I see blues and pinks and purples in a variety of shades and styles.  But green isn’t as common.

I’ve always loved the color, from a faded mint to a dusty sage to a deep emerald to a dark hunter…it reminds me of the earth, of things that grow, things that are natural.

I tried it out back in February, when I wore a green wig to a convention.  I got so many compliments that I determined that one day I’d just do it. Go green.

Of course, it wasn’t as easy as just grabbing some green hair dye.  No, not when I’ve been dying my hair some shade of red for at least 6 years (since the last time I decided to go nuts, bleach it and do fun things with it).  I took me 3 bleachings and a color stripping to get to a blond enough blond that I could dye it green.

I had some moments of apprehension.  What if my work place wasn’t as progressive as I thought it was?  What if I hated it once it was done?  Didn’t stop me though.

Funny thing, this green hair.  I find my self-confidence bolstered,  I find myself happy when I look in the mirror, I find my anxiety levels a little less than they were.  And, people seem to like it.  Sure, I’ve had a few people look at me as if I’m nuts, but most of them smile and nod.  Some even tell me they like it.  People at work love it.

That too makes me smile.  Sure, I’ll be forty-nine in September, but numbers will never prevent me from seeking out what makes me happy.

I hope you can say the same.  Be yourself and put a little color in your life!

In the sequel to Through Shade and Shadow, we meet Zero, a teenage character who expresses herself through wigs that range from the mundane to the outlandish. None of them have been green yet.  I may have to fix that!

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and that, as they say, is that…

My Goodreads giveaways ended last night.  A total of 2512 people joined in the fun, and 4 of those lucky people won a copy of my books!  Congratulations to them!  I will get those in the mail over the weekend.  I will probably do more giveaways in the future, but if you wish to purchase signed copies of either book, head over to my shop on Facebook where you can do that.

I really do love giving books away.  And I love connecting with people who have read my books and talking about the stories and how they came to be, whisper hints about what is to come.

I’m really glad I will have a few opportunities to do that this year, live and in person.  The next such event is at the Bay Area Book Festival in Berkeley, California on the weekend of June 3 & 4.  I will have an author table on the Sunday of the event where I will have books for sale and signing.  I hope that readers in the area might make it out to say hello.  I will be able to take cash and credit cards at the table.

Now, with the sun finally out of my eyes, after nearly blinding me as it rose from behind the exit ramp of the Bay Bridge, I will wish you all a pleasant Thursday, exhort you to acts of kindness toward others and yourself, and turn my eyes, and fingers, to words of a more technical nature.

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happy Wednesday

Wednesdays are hard, aren’t they?  It’s all hands on deck to push this week up over that hump and we’re already tired from Monday and Tuesday, so it feels like twice as much work.

Today, in San Francisco, the air is wet.  It isn’t exactly raining, but the fog lies low and it feels like walking through a raincloud.  That doesn’t help with the whole feeling like getting the work done.  It feels like the kind of day I’d like a fire in a nice fireplace, a cuddly kitty, a cup of tea and a good book to read.

But, that won’t pay the bills.  So, here I am in the office, getting a head start on the day.  I’m the first one here most of the time, which means I spend most of the first hour alone.  It’s great for catching up on emails, and finishing up the loose ends from the day before.

As luck would have it, this particular Wednesday is your last chance to jump in on the two giveaways I’m hosting over on Goodreads.  I’m offering up two signed copies of both of my books.  To enter, just pop on over here or over here (or do both).

I’m going to go refill my coffee cup and see about a re-write on some technical documentation before the office gets busy.  Hope your Wednesday is a day filled with kindness and the good coffee.

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the joys of public transportation

As a writer, I am a people watcher.  I love finding spots where I can sit an unobtrusively observe the world around me.  I find the lives of others endlessly fascinating, even in the most mundane activities.

Each person has their own story.  Some of them more than one.  They all come from somewhere.  They all are thinking about things I can’t know about.  I live in an area where people watching can be a very rich sport.

Some of the most stand out people though are those I observe on my daily commute.  I live east of San Francisco, and I take the BART train into the city 3 to 5 days a week.  Most of the time the ride in is quiet.  Everyone is busy catching up on Facebook and email or trying to catch a few more minutes of sleep before the day really begins.

The ride home though…that is a treasure trove of people watching.  Young mothers with small children, teenagers with their backpacks and music banging out of their earphones, construction workers looking tired and worn, business people in their suits….it’s like a microcosm of the Bay Area.

When it’s really crowded, like the scene above, and my agoraphobia ratchets up,  I pick out a single face and I start to tell myself a story about that person’s life.  That guy in the suit looking like he just spent an hour at the gym…it was his third interview that week, but so far nothing had panned out and he was tired, exhausted really, but he knew he needed something better.  He’s crammed into that corner trying to study the text book in his hands so he’ll be prepared for class that evening, after he goes home and feeds his baby and kisses his wife and promises her that things will get better.

Some of those little stories create characters so vivid for me that they end up in a book I’m writing. There are a few of them in Through Shade and Shadow.  Can you spot them?

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where do we go from here?

I’m sure a lot of writers get repeatedly asked the question about where our inspiration comes from, how do story ideas start. I can’t answer for others, but for me they literally come from everywhere.

A snippet of overheard conversation, a random image, a song lyric, a picture can all feed my imagination. Even random words can be the catalyst for a poem or story.

I see almost everything like it’s a starting point, a place to begin a new journey or carry on with a journey I’m already on.  I feel a need to create a story for things, like this fellow on this road in this picture.

wheredoigo

There’s a reason he’s there. There’s a reason he’s walking and walking on this road.  What’s behind him?  What lies ahead?  What kind of person is he? What does he want?

Lots more questions of course, but it starts me off and I immerse myself into the questions…

Theodore Dane walked out the door one morning in early spring, his hood pulled up, his hands in his pockets.  The screen door slammed shut behind him and his worn sneakers scuffed along the gravel driveway as he walked to the quiet, two-lane country road that ran past the house where he had lived his whole life.  There was nothing left holding him to the place but memories. He turned right and set off down the road.  The hills rose in the distance and somewhere beyond them was a world that was still waking up, a world that he had only glimpsed through books and the rare treat of time to watch the television.  A world he was ready to fall into, sink or swim.

I think provocative images provide some of the best story inspiration.  I think maybe I’ll start posting a story image and original short story once a week.  Have an image you’d like me to tell you a story about?  Email me at natalie@nataliejcase.com.