Samhain Publishing Ltd. Weblog

Earworms in Romance

Um… did she say worms?

Well, yeah, I did.

One of my writing buddies shared a new term with me the other day: “earworms”. I’d never heard it before (and had to fight the compulsion to wash my ears out after I did!) but it means a song that gets stuck in your head after you hear it once. Which you all probably already knew.

But it got me thinking of which songs were my earworms (do you really want me to say it? Then it will be stuck in your head all day!) and I decided that there are books, stories, and characters like that too (would they be bookworms?! Ha! Come on, I had to do it). Those stories that get into your mind and don’t leave.

I would say for the most part, it’s the good stories and characters that really stay with you. But I suppose there could be some characters that you end up disliking so much that you can’t forget them (one particular really pathetic, needy heroine comes to mind for me but I’m too much of a lady to mention any names!)

I definitely have some ‘earworms’ myself –as far as books go… (get that q-tip away from me!)

Barking Mad

I want a dog. Not a big one, just one that’ll lie at my feet and keep them warm, or one I can pull up onto my lap and pet. A cat would do too – but it would have to be a cuddly one. Hmm, from what I’ve seen of cats, that’s not so likely. Cats are much more independent.

Lest We Forget

As a writer, I know the value of words. How words have the ability to take us places we’ve never been before—to share laughter and bring respite during times of sadness and pain. Some words help us remember.

In Flanders Fields
By: Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, MD (1872-1918)
Canadian Army

In Flanders Fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
———-

I’m too young to remember the effects of the World Wars. Too far separated from the current situations still waging to have personal experience. But I’ve heard stories—my father describing was it was like to live in a prisoner of war camp as a child in Indonesian. The gentlemen in the nursing home I volunteer at with my children sharing tales . From the Samhain authors, I’ve read stories by Denise Agnew and Elle Kennedy about military men and women—doing what needs to be done.

The words make me think. Make me wonder. Make me grateful.

Whatever your stand, or your memories of war, there are things we shouldn’t forget. Today as we stand in remembrance for two minutes of silence, at the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month…there are still people fighting for our lives. For our rights. For our happiness.

Maybe it’s you. If so, thank you.
————-
Vivian Arend is spending time today with family, and remembering.
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Public Displays of Affection

Have you ever visited the mall and seen a couple holding hands or kissing? That, my friend, is a public display of affection. PDAs (public displays of affection) are a more recent thing, something that has occurred with the relaxing of social rules and less stringent attention to etiquette. It’s quite common to see people getting frisky and many couples like to have sex in public places because it’s naughty and risqué and a bit of a turn-on.

That Ahhhhhh.... Moment

We all have them. You know what I mean. It can happen anywhere and at anytime. Sometimes when you least expect it. That single moment in time where you are watching something happen and when it does you get that gooey feeling inside…that silly grin on your face and you heave a big sigh of Ahhhhhh…

Silly? Not really. We all have them. Even those big tough guys we all know. Their Ahhhhhh… threshold maybe higher or different than ours, but they have one. And what makes you go Ahhhhhh… is different for everyone.

For example, I’m a sucker for Hallmark commercials. I’ll tear up in a heartbeat over something as silly as a kid making a valentine for his teacher, or a puppy trotting over to a young bride with an “I’m sorry” card from a repentant husband.

This blog came to be when I found one of the best Ahhhhhh… moments I’d ever seen online. It is a marriage proposal. One of the best I’ve ever seen and once it was done, I was Ahhhhhhing all over the place as were most of the people watching. Check it out…

Tools for Writers (and anyone else who works from home).

Lying in bed one night, thinking about what I’d do if my computer corner were destroyed by flood, fire or plague of electronics-eating locusts—is it just me whose imagination tends to the paranoid?—I found myself making a shopping list of the things I’d have to replace as soon as the desk, chair and computer were back in situ.
And I realized it’s actually quite a useful shopping list for any writer—or anyone who works from home. So I’m sharing it, together with the offer to join in my late-night paranoia.

Quirky and Thankful

This past week was Thanksgiving in Canada. I don’t know how other people do it, but we always tell some of our favourite stories around the table. The only requirement is that the stories are quirky and things for which we are thankful. I had two. One story was about how I met my friend, the other about how my cat found me.

Slow Rider

Make that Slow Writer. Now change the word “slow” to something more accurate. Meticulous, maybe. Or conscientious.

If your favorite authors don’t show up with good books as often as you wish they would, there’s a reason for that. They might be slow writers. They might be writers who won’t let go of a manuscript until they’ve assured themselves it’s as good as they can make it. They don’t want some sub-standard book appearing on the shelves with their name on it. A book that readers will ho-hum through, if they even bother to finish it. A book that will let down even one fan. If you read enough fiction you will soon discover that mediocrity runs rampant in the publishing world. The good books can sometimes be hard to find.

There could be a hundred reasons why there’s such a huge chunk of time between a writer’s last book and the next one. Writers are human beings and just like in your life, things happen. Family crises. Health issues. Computer crashes. Vacations. Rejections. Sometimes, life simply gets in the way of creating the next good book, even if that’s all a writer wants to do.

Perfect Coincidence

I’ve got a three-day weekend coming up. It’s also the same weekend of my RWA Chapter’s Conference. So, what did I do? I took the two previous days off, too. Five days off work, and heading to the mountains to play with my writing pals. Life doesn’t get any better than this.

Unless you count coming home and having an empty house to myself. Whoa! Life just got better.

Where Do You Find the Time?

The other day at school I mentioned that I found some old friends on Facebook and another teacher asked me when I found the time. Another teacher asked me recently how I have time to watch so much TV. I’m not sure if I’m insulted or just curious—what do THESE people do with their time that they don’t have any?