Tag Archives: writing

My Date(line) with Keith Morrison

Posted on November 13, 2018 by mohawkvalleygirl

I think he is fine, yes.

This is going to be a fast post so I can get back to watching Dateline with Keith Morrison. Every Monday I have at least one good moment when I remember it is Dateline day on OWN. For a few sad weeks I had rehearsal for a murder mystery on Mondays. Now I am free and feel I should be happier about it than in fact I am. Then again, life is never perfect. We must do the best we can with the ingredients at hand.

Apparently woman cannot live by Dateline alone.

Yesterday I made up my mind that starting today I would up my game: my writing game, my running game, and my house cleaning game. Those were the ones I mentioned, but I daresay I have a few more games that could use work. Do you suppose I upped anything today? Of course not! And I am clearly not upping my blogging game. I haven’t even put in any pictures of monsters. What’s that all about, me?

I could use a haircut myself.

I am completely losing track of this Dateline episode while I type this foolishness (as Truman Capote famously said, this isn’t writing, it’s typing). I can only hope my man Keith narrates the next episode. Oh well, I like that Josh Mankiewicz too.

In the meantime, sorry to publish yet another foolish post. I’ll try to up my game tomorrow. As always, I hope you’ll stay tuned.

PS. It’s Dennis Murphy. He’s OK, too.

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Posted in humor, personal and tagged blog post, blogging, Dateline, Dateline on OWN, Dennis Murphy, house cleaning, Josh Mankiewicz, Keith Morrison, not writing, running, up my game, writing. Bookmark the permalink.

Ready for the Sweats and the Wine

Posted on November 12, 2018 by mohawkvalleygirl

I can’t have Sunday Cinema; I’ve only watched two movies so far and I’m on to Snapped. I suppose I could watch a third movie and then post, but I want to get this done. As I mentioned yesterday, I have knitting to do. I also want to get back into my sweats. Well, that is silly of me; I could put the sweats on and then make the post. No, make the post now before I talk myself out of it.

Some might advise me to stop being a daily blogger if it is such a chore. I would argue (if I was any good at argument, which I am not) that some things are worth doing even if they are a chore. They would no doubt reply (I told you I was no good at argument) that most of my posts are probably not worth the effort. I advise them to seek out more worthy blogs and to leave me alone. Yes, I have numerous arguments with imaginary critics.

As you may have guessed, it is Wrist to Forehead Sunday.

Sometimes I feel like this when I try to sleep.

Earlier, before I was ready to swoon on the chaise and was actually having a pretty good day, we watched The Tingler (1959), produced and directed by William Castle and starring Vincent Price. I LOOOOVE William Castle movies! I do not have enough of them on DVD.

She has got his number!

After The Tingler, Steven suggested His Girl Friday (1941). Rosalind Russell and Cary Grant, snappy dialogue, a fast moving script, it was an excellent suggestion. I missed parts of it while I fixed us something to eat then made my salad for the week’s lunches, but I have seen it many times before and will no doubt watch it again.

After the movie, I wrote some post cards and walked to the post office with them. I felt quite virtuous doing this, since I had gone for a long (for me) run this morning. Come December, I will OWN that Reindeer Run 5K. And by “own” of course I mean shuffle along toward the back of the pack and enjoy myself.

So I am feeling moderately less wrist-to-foreheady since I see I am over 350 words and I don’t feel this is too heinous of a post. I think I deserve to put on my sweats and maybe have a glass of wine. Happy Sunday, everyone.

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Posted in humor, personal, Sunday Cinema, Wrist to Forehead Sunday and tagged blog post, blogging, His Girl Friday, imaginary critics, movies, Reindeer Run 5K, running, The Tingler, walking, writing. Bookmark the permalink.

Why am I Smiling on Monstrous Monday?

Posted on October 30, 2018 by mohawkvalleygirl

Can I have a Monstrous Monday after having a Many Monsters Sunday? I think so, and not just because it is almost Halloween. I like monsters ALL YEAR LONG!!! And, blogworthy activities-wise, I ain’t got much. I will just mention that after last Saturday’s Haunted Historic Four Corners and the cancellation this Saturday’s murder mystery, I find myself in the rare and unfamiliar state of Nothing I HAVE To Do. No commitments. Nothing I need to work on and get done by a certain date. (Oh well, my article(s) for Mohawk Valley Living magazine. Let’s not talk about that; just let me savor this!)

My teeth are not this good, but I have a similar smile right now.

I have not idea who this wolfman is. I went to the Facebook page The Golden Age of Monster Movies and looked through the photos for a happy monster.

This is what I looked like a few weeks ago, when I was still trying to cast the murder mystery.

This, in case you didn’t know, is Elisha Cook, Jr., in House on Haunted Hill (1959). Full disclosure: I didn’t remember his name and had to look it up.

Since I do not have to begin writing another murder mystery till 2019 (for Morning Star Methodist Church in Ilion, NY in probably April), I can turn once again to writing novels. I tried it this morning, but things did not go very well. I have been jotting notes and inventing characters. I have a few ideas, so I will persevere. I will let you know how it goes.

I must bear this thought in mind.

I’ll remember this dictum as well.

OK, that was my pep talk to myself. I will close with another monster, just because.

“Don’t forget about me!”

It was a choice between Michael Myers and Nosferatu. Jaime Lee Curtis, I love you, but for me, Nosferatu always wins.

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The Brain That Wouldn’t Blog

It has not been a particularly Monstrous Monday, so I’ve got that going for me. What I do not have going for me is much brain power. What’s that all about, head? Now is where I usually share the picture of The Brain from Planet Arous, but how predictable of me. Perhaps I could come up with something different.

Nice side eye.

How about The Brain That Wouldn’t Die? You can’t see her brain, but she does have one. It is also known as The Head That Wouldn’t Die, although I think either title is something of a misnomer. However, I suppose both are catchier than The Brain Whose Maniac Boyfriend Wouldn’t Let Die. This is why I don’t have a job writing titles for Hollywood movies.

“We want to eat your meager brain!”

Zombies can help demonstrate my current state of mindless. I am not really up on zombie lore; do they feed on brains or flesh? If it is brain, they would starve to death on me. Perhaps I could find a book at the library and find out before I actually meet any zombies.

“This is a good boy!”

And here’s a fellow that got gypped in the brain department. Igor got the brain for Frederick Frankenstein’s monster from somebody called Abby Normal. If you’ve never seen Mel Brooks’ Young Frankenstein, I highly recommend it.

So now I have rattled on for some 200 words. Not bad for a chick with no brain.

I Like My Husband on Lame Post Friday

I have observed many weeks that how ever many lame posts I have had all week, I cling to my beloved Lame Post Friday. In fact, I had hoped to make a “real” post today, perhaps a Friday Running Commentary. Well, I didn’t run. We went out and had a few bonafide (for heavens’ sake, that IS the way you spell it; I checked! Yet my computer underlines it) Mohawk Valley adventures. Can I write about them? NO! I want to sit here, watch TV, and knit. I even think my husband has gone off to bed, so what does that tell you? It tells me we’re old and Friday night does not last as long as it used to.

Be all that as it may, I have to make a blog post (NOTE: Steven has come back downstairs, so the evening is not over yet). The lightheadedness I was bitching about yesterday is still with me. Apparently I must learn to live with this problem, because nothing I have tried has done much. These things happen when one is over 50, I suppose.

I will just mention that it is the beginning of Steven’s and my Anniversary Weekend. As of Saturday, Oct. 20, we will be married 28 years. Isn’t that odd? I have now been married longer than I was single. That is especially striking to one who so rarely had a boyfriend when she was single. That’s OK, though. I like my husband. I like being married.

And that is not a bad conclusion to a Friday Lame Post. Happy Friday, all, and hope to see you again on Saturday.

But What About Joan Crawford?

So it’s another bad blogging week. Sue me. I’ll work on having some Mohawk Valley adventures this weekend and go for a better week next time. That is the beauty of blogging: you can try again tomorrow. The fact is, although I am feeling better than yesterday, the lightheadedness that plagues me continues to do so (my computer seems to think that lightheadedness is not word, but if lightheaded is, why not lightheadedness? Discuss among yourselves).

I don’t have a suit that spiffy, and to my knowledge, nobody has pointed a gun at me. I rather think a gun would have more of an effect on me than on an actual zombie.

This is from The Walking Dead (1936). It was posted by a Facebook page I Like, B-Movie Mania, and I said, “Ooh, that’s me!”

And that’s about all I have for this week’s Non-Sequitur Thursday post. However, I can’t let it end here. There must be other pictures that are appropriate. Let me look.

“…and soon they’ll come for you!”

Here’s a haunted look, if you like. It’s that guy from House on Haunted Hill (1959), produced and directed by my beloved William Castle. That actor was also in Rosemary’s Baby (1968), which was produced but not directed by Castle. Whenever I refer to him as merely “Castle,” I flash on the Nathan Fillon television show. I loved that show, especially the divine Susan Sullivan.

She is marvelous.

I may have crossed a line myself, blog-wise. No matter. I’m over 200 words. Once I think of a title, I have a blog post. Happy Thursday, everyone.

Was it a Killer First Draft?

Words to live by!

Of course, the first draft I just finished should have been done a week ago, but we cannot always live up to the ideals we set for ourselves. The important thing is, I wrote it, I typed it into the laptop, I printed it out, I will edit and polish it, I will email it to the cast. Then it’s on to rehearsals and performance, but right now I’m writing about writing.

Well, maybe a little about rehearsal and performing. The draft I finished was for A Trivial Murder, the interactive dinner theatre we are presenting as a fundraiser for Herkimer County Historical Society. The performance will be Saturday, Nov. 3, 6 p.m. at the Ilion Moose Lodge. For further information, you can reference the Facebook event.

I feel a little self-conscious admitting in public like this that I am just finishing the script. We are a month away from performance! Well, murder mysteries don’t take as much rehearsal as a full-blown play. Up north, where we had a company called Murder For Hire, we used to put them together in three rehearsals: Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and go on Saturday! I was younger and more energetic in those days. Now I feel more secure with a little more time.

However, I am feeling increasingly good about this show. After a few glitches, I got a really wonderful cast. I think everybody will fit their part fine and fill it out with little touches I didn’t even think of when I wrote the lines. That is why writing scripts is more exciting than writing novels.

Writing a novel, incidentally, is my next project. Why don’t I have a novel published yet? I am almost 55. I was about to say, time to get off my butt, but in fact it is time to sit on my butt in front of a notebook or keyboard and get going. I’ll write a few blog posts about it along the way.

Judge If You Want: It’s Wuss-out Wednesday

Sorry, folks, it’s Wuss-out Wednesday. What little writing I managed at work today was on the next murder mystery. I went to the Salvation Army Thrift Store in Ilion, NY, after work, looking for something I could modify into a 1920’s dress for an upcoming fundraiser. I thought I could do a post about the shopping or about the fundraiser. I could even do a post about the problems I am having writing and casting the murder mystery (one effects the other, you know). I find I can’t. I need my time sitting on the couch, knitting, and watching television.

Oh dear, it might have sounded better if I said something like, “I need my time for me” or “I need time to rest, relax and renew.” Well, judge me if you like;) I know some of you will anyways) (you know who you are) (oh, what do I care if people judge me? Don’t we all judge each other sometimes?) (Oh, I suppose YOU never do!) (again, you know who you are).

Where was I? Ah yes, posting quickly so I can pick up my knitting needles, not to mention a glass of wine (again, judge if you are so inclined). The important points about today: I worked a little on my murder mystery. I am having problems gathering a cast. I shopped at the Thrift Store. I have a fundraiser coming up with a 1920’s theme. I hope to expand upon all these topics in future blog posts.

I hope your mid-week is going well.

Writing About Writing for a Change

Looking through my notebook for something else, I came across the following I had written on an unknown date, and I do not believe I have used it. Since the only thing I can come up with now is more writing about not writing, I thought this would be a nice change of pace.

Having decided to concentrate on my writing once again, I further decided to start a new novel and finish it quickly. This is hazardous, given my long history of starting novels and NOT finishing them, but I am always one to take a chance. In my further defense, I did write the closing scenes of the last novel I vowed I would finish, so one could argue that I finished the first draft. However, I am no hand at argument.

So I was wondering what kind of a novel to write, and I had this idea to write a tale of romantic suspense. I enjoy some of those Gothics, you know, the ones that show a castle under a full moon with a woman in a long dress running away. Victoria Holt is the mistress of that genre. I love her. I do not feel equipped to write a real period piece, but romance and suspense, I can do, or so I think (perhaps I flatter myself, but let’s not disillusion me at this point).

I know romance publishers often have strict guidelines, so I did a Google search of romantic suspense publishers. I have been having better luck with Google lately, and I did find something.

One publisher said they wanted strong, smart heroines. I can do that. I hate having a weak, wimpy lead character (NEVER MIND how I may act in real life; I am not writing an autobiography). They want her to have clearly defined goals and meet with real obstacles. Hell, that’s just good fiction. What does your character want? What keeps her from getting it? Another thing they like is snappy banter, like from 1930’s screwball comedies. I love those old movies! And I am good at writing dialogue, even if I do say so myself.

Things they don’t want: when the only obstacle to love is fear from previous bad relationships. OK. Men who condescend or are meant to woman. Well, that’s good. I hate it when women fall for those creeps!

That was when I got tired of writing about writing and started taking notes on the novel I wanted to start. Full disclosure: it petered out before I got very far. However, now that I have typed all that in, I am anxious to try again. I’ll be sure to keep you posted as to how it goes.

Up Next: Murder Most Trivial

I went to work this morning determined to write on breaks and lunch, as well as right before the first buzzer rings. I usually get to work early. I used to always write my blog post at that time. Did I do so this morning? Alas, no. What the hell happened to me?

However, the news is not all bad. While I was working, I got a couple of good ideas for my next murder mystery. I quickly jotted them down when I got a chance. I was mysteriously unable to write any more, but one does what one can. Herkimer County Historical Society, beneficiary of the murder mystery, had asked for the premise and title for their Facebook page. I thought I could manage that much. This is what I messaged them:

The title of the mystery is “A Trivial Murder.” We’re all here for a taping of the game show, “Who Knows Herkimer History” with our host, Gary “Herk” Henderson. Gary is actually the new host. The original host died under mysterious circumstances, but let us not allow such gloomy thoughts cloud our evening! You should also just ignore those rumors that our returning champion has been given the answers in advance. There’s no scandal here! That journalist is here to do a puff piece, not a muck raking scandal-monger.

Looking over it again, I see where it could be improved. And improve it, I will! But not for this blog post. For one reason, this is Wuss-out Wednesday, and I am only slightly less brain dead than I was yesterday (which I just now realize I should have categorized under “Tired Tuesday”) (another indication of my brain dead condition). Then again, slightly less is still less. I bet I’ll have that murder mystery finished in no time! Can better blog posts be far behind?

Mohawk Valley Girl