BJ Hoff's GRACE NOTES

Notebook 2.1

Just a heads-up on a Mac program I highly recommend. Some of you Mac folks may already use it, but for those who don't, take heed. (*Note: you need to have Mac OS 10.3.9 or later for this.)

Notebook 2.1 from "Circus Ponies" (yes, that's the company name) is kind of like OneNote on steroids--without the klunk and the bugs, and much easier to use. It has so many features it's difficult to describe what it does--at the least, it's pretty amazing. It's a digital organizer, but more. You can take and record notes, store files, create various to-do lists, clip text from webpages or emails, outline writing projects and much more. You can drag and drop just about anything, including Word docs and photos. On-screen it resembles a spiral notebook in format, complete with tabs, contents, indices, etc. It also does voice annotations, comes with several templates for recipes, research papers, novel writing, etc. You can even save your notebooks and publish them on the web (I'm not sure why anyone would want to, but all the same it's doable.)

You can check it out at http://www.circusponies.com, take a video tour of the program, and also download a 30-day trial version from there. If you want to read a review, there's one here: http://www.maclife.com/article/circus_ponies_notebook_2_1?page=0%2C0

If you buy it, it's $49.95. You can also buy an Academic license if you qualify as a teacher, student, staff member of an academic institution for $29.95.

To give a brief example of its features, when you open the program from its "Starting Point," some of the tasks it offers include organizing your "to-dos," take notes, clip and collect information, write a research paper, manage a project, write a book or novel, organize a tv or film shoot, plan a trip, collect recipes, keep a journal. Those are some of the basic tasks it will manage. Each is divided into numerous sub-tasks. For example, if you choose "write a book or novel," some of the sub-tasks include "ideas and research," "character notes" (for as many characters as you need), outline and draft sections for each chapter, indices, etc.

You can keep a notebook for each book with all the information you collect on the project, including drafts.

Honestly? I think this is one of those programs that in itself makes it worthwhile to use a Mac. Not that I need another reason.

BJ

A Different Kind of Party

Thanks to the Columbus Dispatch, I came across what I think is a terrific idea and one worth all the "press" it can get.

Seems a nine-year old girl in Columbus recently enjoyed a very special birthday party--albeit a really different one. This is a child who loves toys and games as much as any other birthday girl, but she's also an animal lover and this year she requested, instead of presents for herself--items for a local cat shelter. So instead of showing up with more toys to be soon discarded, her birthday guests arrived with such gifts as cat litter, paper towels, and the like.

Don't you love it? But wait--it gets better. Apparently this sort of party is catching on. A young brother and sister, also in the Columbus area, have a "charity" birthday party at least every other year, collecting toys for the Children's Hospital. An eleven year old boy recently threw a "cash bash" to collect money to help build a basketball court for an area church. Another boy and his older brother hosted a similar party to raise money for the downtown center of the Salesian Boys &  Girls Club of Columbus, where tutoring and after-school activities are offered.

Too often only the kids in trouble make the news. It's refreshing to read a feature article about young people helping others.

Let's hope this is an idea that catches on. If anyone's interested, it's suggested that the party invitations include not only information about the charity, but some specifics as to what kind of items to bring, or, in the event of a "cash bash," a suggested amount and some detail as to what the money will be used for.

And for anyone writing children's books, maybe there's a way to plant the idea in a scene?   

BJ   

Research Redux

So ... the research I was talking about in my last entry? At this point I'm wading in it and loving every minute. It's going to call for a couple of brief trips very soon, however, and that means I won't be adding much to the web blog for a few days.

But bear with me. I'll be in touch off and on.

BJ

Reading and Writing and Research--Oh, My!

You'll notice I've been handling the questions and answers differently this week, drawing the replies out with longer posts than my usual four or five in one entry. That's because a couple of recent questions called for longer answers.

Here's the last one for the week:

The question was: wouldn't I find it easier to write contemporary novels instead of historical because of the extent of research involved in the latter.

Well--yes and no. Mostly no. While historical fiction might demand more research time and effort for some, because for years now I've read so much in the time periods in which I like to write I can reuse some my research. I've also used similar settings in several books: Ireland and New York City in my Emerald Ballad series as well as in Cloth of Heaven and Ashes and Lace. Also New York City in my American Anthem series. Appalachia (Kentucky) in all three books of the Mountain Song Legacy (and in the novella that was the precursor of that series, The Penny Whistle. Some information about the times and places tends to overlap.

And there's also the fact that I thoroughly enjoy the research.

But here's something else: most of the authors I know who are writing really great contemporary fiction probably do as much research in their chosen genre as those of us writing historical novels. And whereas they have to do a great deal of theirs "live," with interviews, personal visits, etc.--and as you can understand, that takes a lot of time and effort--other than some on-site research for setting, I have to confine mine to the public library, my own personal library, or the internet. Live interviews aren't usually an option for me! Other than snagging interviews with a few Irish musicians, the owners of Irish wolfhounds, and some interesting members of the Irish-American community, I have to rely heavily on biographies, journals, diaries, and the like. 

I have to admit that I don't envy much of the research some of my contemporary fiction writer-friends do. For example, among her many "interesting" ventures, Angie Hunt did some first-hand research on funeral homes (for her Fairlawn series) and visited the Amazon (and I don't mean the internet bookstore)! As much as I admire her spunk--I'm content among my dust-covered books!

So I think it all evens out. Whatever genre an author is working in, if she wants to give her readers the best, most authentic experience possible, she can't escape the responsibility--and in some cases, the fascination and enjoyment--of in-depth research.

BJ

Ending on a Grace Note

In my previous post, I mentioned that a reader had asked me why I so often use prologues and epilogues in my novels. I talked in that same post about prologues, so here's one for epilogues.

I use them because--they're important to my own feelings of closure and satisfaction in my stories. Like prologues, epilogues are meant to be outside the story, separated by time or place, and told from a different perspective or point of view from the rest of the story. There are a number of uses for the epilogue, but one of my personal choices is to use it to suggest the future. Because I write almost entirely in series, this is especially important to help give the reader a sense of satisfaction at the end of the current story while pointing to or providing a hint about the next story in the series.

It's common for many authors to use the epilogue as a kind of summary, and there's a creative way to do that without stumbling into the trap of allowing it to be trite or dull. It can be a "wrap-up" without wrapping it up too neatly, especially in the case of  a series.

However it's used, I believe an epilogue should be fresh, to the point, and brief. When it's over, it's over. Don't kick a dead horse and all that. In addition, be careful not to treat it as a sewing basket. Don't dump all the loose ends of the story here and pull off a "miracle ending" or a deus ex machina. Tie up those dangling threads before the epilogue so your readers don't end up tripping over them.

As is the case with prologues, the intent and purpose of epilogues need to be different for different genres. An epilogue for a thriller will vary from that of a character-driven historical novel, and a romance novel epilogue will take a different tone and focus than you'll find in a mystery. Also, an epilogue should blend well with the novel itself, even while stepping outside the story to add and enhance.

I suppose it's fair to say that my epilogues usually end on a "high note." (Could be the musician in me, and in fact, many of them do have a musical scene or something to do with music.) That doesn't mean  that every single plot thread is neatly resolved and tucked away never to be seen again. As I mentioned before, it's important in series writing to provide a fair measure of satisfaction while pointing toward the next book and the future. Some of my epilogues can probably be said to have a bittersweet flavor. The ending might be satisfying--but not without a hovering cloud because of past events.

I like what John Gardner said about endings in his book, The Art of Fiction:

"A novel is like a symphony in that its closing movement echoes and resounds with all that has gone before ... It is this closing orchestration that the novel exists for. If such a close does not come, for whatever theoretically good reason, we shut the book with feelings of dissatisfaction, as if cheated."

I try never to cheat my readers. The Amen that I whisper to myself at the close of each book isn't so much a feeling of "The End" as it is a prayer for blessing on those who make it that far. (And a prayer of thanks for the goodness of the God Who continues to bring me that far.)

BJ

It's a Setup

A reader asked me not long ago why I often use prologues and epilogues in my novels.

Regarding prologues: first, I'll admit I enjoy this particular literary device. Prologues serve different purposes for different books, but whenever and wherever used, they have specific jobs to do. I've employed them in a number of ways: to point to the story itself, providing a hint of the problem or suspense or conflict to come; to offer a glimpse of some significant facet of characterization that would be difficult to present later on; to acquaint the reader with an experience from the character's past that's pertinent to his actions in the story; to introduce an "icon"--an object or symbol that will continue throughout the novel or the series; to pose a question or hint of intrigue that will lead the reader into the story; to set the tone or the atmosphere of the story.

Some examples: in Prelude, the first book of my American Anthem series, the lead character of the entire series, Michael Emmanuel, is introduced as a young boy aboard a ship in New York Harbor as he prepares to leave for his home in Italy. He has an experience in which he "hears" a glorious music that he longs to catch and hold--an impossible feat. This experience, this desperation to "catch the distant music," informs Michael's ambition, his aspirations, and even his faith walk throughout his youth and his adulthood. In the second book--Cadence--a pivotal moment in his career on stage points to a drastic change that will affect not only Michael's life, but his wife's as well. And in the third book--Jubilee--the birth of his daughter poses not only a question about the future but also offers a bittersweet promise. Each event occurs "outside" the world of the story, a feature of any prologue, yet is intended to take the hand of the reader and tug her into the story.

In my Emerald Ballad series, the prologue of each book had to do with the "icon" of the series--the Kavanagh harp, which was passed down across the centuries from one generation to another. Each prologue progresses chronologically from century to century as the reader follows the role of the harp in the lives of the main characters, both in America and in Ireland.

In A Distant Music, the first book of my Mountain Song Legacy, the "stage is set" to introduce the icons of the series--a silver flute and a penny whistle--and their significance to the main characters ... and an entire town. 

Perhaps you've noticed that many writers of mystery and suspense novels use the prologue to show the commission of a crime or hint at the suspense element of the novel. In women's fiction, a prologue might depict a past event, setting up its relation to the story to follow. Some romance novels might depict a scene in the past of two characters, perhaps their "last good-bye," then begin the first chapter with the story unfolding to show the return of one of those characters to his or her hometown and the first encounter or reunion with the former sweetheart.

Prologues are extremely flexible; they can occur in the past or in the present--or even in the future. They can introduce, set a stage, show an act of violence, hint at future events, provide brief backstory, pose a question that needs to be answered, establish the narrator, show an experience that influenced a character, or--one of my favorites--set the mood or tone of the story.

More than anything else, I consider a prologue important for the purpose of intriguing the reader, luring her into the story. It's a setup, you see.

As for the role of an epilogue ... well, that's another story.

BJ

Q & A

Q. Do you read fantasy and science fiction?

A. No--with some exceptions. I do read Ray Bradbury and a few others whose work transcends genre. I've simply never been able to get my mind and my imagination around sci-fi or fantasy, though I'm aware that beautiful writing exists in almost any genre. I have the same difficulty with movies. I'm a big disappointment to two sons-in-law who read and watch both and never stop trying to convert me to their side.   

Q. Do you use the internet or the public library for most of your research? 

A. I use both, and although a wealth of information can be found online, it needs to be approached with caution. Anyone can put almost anything on the internet, and there's way too much that's misleading and inaccurate. I've always enjoyed going to the library, and we're fortunate, for a small town, to have an excellent one. I've also tried to build a good personal library over the years to keep as much information as possible close at hand.

Q. What's on your amazon.com wish list?

A. I don't keep one on the site, but I have an ongoing book list that I keep on my "smart phone." I haven't added it yet, but I know the companion book for the new Ken Burns World War II series will soon be right at the top. I think I'd like a copy of the new Literary Study Bible (ESV) when it's released. A couple of Lynn Johnston's collections from her cartoon strip, "For Better or Worse" are on the list. Actually, it's a very long list, so I'll stop here!

Q. What's your favorite "spectator sport?"

A. Just so you know, almost any sport for me is strictly  of the spectator variety. That would be college football and horse racing. I also enjoy baseball--a lot--but only if I'm watching it with my husband, because I still need a lot of stuff explained. 

Q. How many hours a day do you write?

A. It varies, depending on life. Let's just say it's a full-time job, often with overtime, and "real" vacations are few. 

BJ

9/11

In remembrance ...

Madeleine L'Engle

Madeleine L'Engle died this past Thursday at the age of 88.

Best known for A Wrinkle in Time, she wrote more than sixty books, including children's stories, meditations, and science fiction. One of my personal favorites from her gifted pen is Walking on Water: Reflections on Faith and Art.

From her own words: "The important thing is to recognize that our gift, no matter what the size, is indeed something given us, for which we can take no credit, but which we may humbly serve, and, in serving, learn more wholeness, be offered wondrous newness. "

She understood the significance ... and the responsibility ... of gift.

BJ

A Friend I Never Met

When I learned of the death of Luciano Pavarotti, I experienced a deep and heartfelt sense of loss. To think of that magnificent voice--according to some, the greatest voice of our time, perhaps of all time--forever silenced seems almost incomprehensible.

Over twenty years ago, my husband and I discovered this incredible voice on an album loaned to us by a friend. The first aria we heard the great tenor sing was "Nessun Dorma," long a favorite of ours--but we had never heard it sung quite like this. We never stopped listening. I think we probably own nearly every album he ever recorded.

If you never had the good fortune of hearing the younger Pavarotti sing--before age and failing health began to work against him--I'm truly sorry for you. You missed one of the great wonders of music. 

His talent was breathtaking, his voice a glory. This son of a singing baker, often lauded as "King of the high C's," was often criticized, especially in his later years, for breaking with classical tradition and defying its critics to take classical music, especially opera, to the world. Critics assailed him for his "commercialism," his "showmanship," his "superstardom." Pavarotti routinely shrugged off their jibes and went on singing what and when and where he pleased. 

He was a part of "The Three Tenors," which became an industry. He performed at charity concerts with rock stars, claimed a platinum record of "Volare," and drove audiences wild, moving them to tears and cheers at the Met with some of the most challenging roles opera could present, all the while fighting a continuing battle with an increasing weight problem that contributed to his poor health. There was also the reality that a number of questionable decisions in his personal life led former admirers to turn from their earlier adulation to scathing criticism.

He could toss off nine perfect high C's in quick succession and make it sound easy. He took on roles that other tenors shied away from--and turned them into triumphs that gained him unprecedented international fame. Yet he gave new meaning to the Sinatra classic of "My Way" as he went right on singing and taking his music and his personal magic to the world, nation after nation, year after year, decade after decade.

The Maestro's last aria turned out to be the first one my husband and I heard him sing--"Nessun Dorma." His final operatic performance was another personal favorite, Puccini's "Tosca."

He was called to task for many things--never for the wonder of his voice, but often for his quick willingness to share it. It's been said that his was a voice that moved the world. There simply is no way to measure the beauty and the joy he brought to millions of lives--including my own--during his unparalleled career.

That's why today I feel as though I've lost a friend.

BJ