I have rituals to enter the ZONE of writing!

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My RITUAL for WRITING

Well, usually sitting in a chair outside in the fresh air watching the birds, which are the muses for my writing. These spirits squall, sing, dash about, rest in a tree, or quietly sit on a nest, maybe even watch me watching them. They could be shape-shifters, waiting.

 

I'm taken into their InBetween, my reality mixes with theirs - I find I'm flying, relaxed, cheerful, I'm ready.

So, in this feeling of the InBetween realms, gliding, swinging, sliding, singing, I head for my computer, turn it on, find the right blog or story/chapter on Scrivener and start writing.

If I need refreshing, I sat outside again. In the winter, I walk in the rain around my yard and wonder where the birds are. Usually, one or two appear. If there is a storm, I watch from my window, soon one flies by and looks at me, as if saying, "Write!"

My muses are always outside in their realm, cheering.

OOPS, well, there are the predators, the CROWS, who come in to eat and destroy the home of the JAYS, who eat and kill the smaller birds. Then the squirrels do their damage to my miniature MUSES.  And, hovering overhead can be an owl or hawk. I do hear this disturbance and horror. I am amazed the smaller birds, my muses, survive.

Then one smallest of a wee bird pecks on my window, I'm not sure what this symbolizes. The pecking happens when I'm busily typing. A camellia grows close to the window. The wee bird hops from branch to branch, pecking as a bird does on the leaves hunting for bugs.

My favorite genre to read, and the genre I write.

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Notice who is hiding.

NON-FICTION and ARCHEOLOGY are my favorite readings, and of course, all the information about writing and publishing.

What I write is FANTASY. I have always taken what is real and twisted around to show my opinions in the stories I create.  Non-fiction does allow this re-imaging and enhancement.

So, I am a writer who uses symbolized words to write analogy, similies, and metaphors about the possibilities of the real. We don't know what is real. Over hundreds of years, what was once believed reality has changed and still changes. Many theories exist about these changes. So I adapt, embroidery, modify, and elaborate on what I think reality is.

I believe we build on the dreams of the fictional, fantasy, and science-fiction thinkers. Then I carry this one level farther to the characters that float, flitter or walk around us that we do not see in our limited reality.

I use my feminine propective as an writer.

My feminine protagonists are the narrators in first voice and the present tense

BECAUSE as a child and young adult, I was a
--> female; second to a male;
--> lady; second to a lad;
--> woman; second to the man;
--> she or her; second to he;
---> heroine; second the hero!
Always second to male, lad, man, he, and hero, who were and still are the main narrators. He leads and solves the problems and dilemmas of our the world, unfortunately.

A girl and young adult pushed from the frame because of my sex. I needed a place in the story, in the plot. So I write from my feminine irrate voice - about strong maidens or older matrons, who battled against oppression by cause by 'him'.

I write about strong maidens or matrons who overcome tyranny and suppression by facing ignorant dominance. My protagonists make change in their worlds for us to witness so we can make changes in our feminine lives.

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In my last piece, PURSUED, a Russian Folktale, the ugly frog skin of a princess is burnt by a selfish prince, a fool. This young male needed to view what his enchantment was.The fool does not understand balance and equality in a partnership only that female's beauty is for his prestige.

A villain, a male antagonist, can devour a story. A heavy, destructive, villain dominates. I figure she or her needs to conquer his hateful messages as does Faery Rhyonna, who rids Zzuf from her realm.

Interview - Part 8, FIRE, the Hunger

Have you verbally told or written any of the fire stories before?

The FIRE stories came about when I went to Feather River Family Camp, 2005, the first week of August when the outdoors is hot and very dry. I told the stories around the first night's campfire to children and parents. Later, I presented more FIRE stories at night on the Open Stage. And I have a spot for evening stories in the Crafts Circle just before dinner, what better than FIRE stories.

After telling at Feather Family Camp, I told stories for Oaklandish, 2006, who were building pride in Oakland and having a campout at Oakland's Chabot State Park. The FIRE stories went well with the crowd of young adults.

Next, I told the stories for a birthday party, 2007. Parents of a young girl called me about stories; I asked if they could have a fire; the parents said yes. I narrated the FIRE stories around the pit and related how we must constrain FIRE because of the horror of eating everything, and that now FIRE was held in candles on a birthday cake and blown out for a wish. The young lady liked the stories.

The last story, Bertha Digby was published in an anthology organized by the 4th Street Studio's Saturday Salons, The Livermore Wine Country Literary Harvest, ©2006. 'Saving the Woods' is on pages 67 to 69. My folktale honors a squirrel and all animals (a metaphor for people) who restore burnt forests that other humans destroy by one means or other.

The FIRE stories were bridged together by the desire for warmth and light and told monthly at a storytelling swap in 2008, which I helped run at the Orinda library.

The folktales were written out for the April 2017 NaNoWriCamp were enhanced, modified, elaborated and bridged together around one of the worst predator, who eats everything, 'FIRE, the Hunger.'

Now, the segued folktales are on wattpad, a great platform to connect with readers while writing and editing. Soon 'FIRE, the Hunger' will be posted on Bublish with 'bubbles' that appear on Twitter and Facebook for publicity.

Interview - Part 2 - FIRE, the Hunger

FIRE, the Hunger

Why did you pick the FIRE stories you selected?

I wasn't sure if there were stories that talked about the beginnings of FIRE. I knew there were ancient stories about discovering the wheel. So I went the online library and came across about 10 suitable stories. Plus, a few stories about FIRE gods:  Pele and her anger, and Greek and Roman gods, and a story from South America about the god that protected FIRE in the heath. Some worked and most did not. Then I came across stories from the Native Americans about who spread FIRE: Hummingbird, Beaver, Spider, and then the Monkeys who helped a lost Hunter with FIRE. Finally, I found a warning from the bushmen God Kaang, who "If humans had FIRE no harmony would last between trees, animals, and the humans. No longer could they speak with each other." That became the premise, the theme, for the plot - the dangers of FIRE and fear in animals. And as a child, when camping we had FIRE contained in a pit, and it was dangerously hot and tried to continually escape to eat whatever FIRE could.

FIRE, the Hunger

Interview - Part 1 - 'FIRE, the Hunger'

FIRE, the Hunger

What made you decide to tell fire stories with the intriguing title ‘FIRE, the Hunger’?

When I was a child, I grew up in Colorado and loved the mountains. My Dad, cut timber up Highway 24 by Woodland Park, which at that time was not a city. My intrigue with Fire started then we kept it in the pit and burned our garbage and everything, tin cans, and shoes. Fire was very feared because it would burn the forests and take my dad’s job of cutting timber for buildings and making telephone poles.
When my Dad retired from that job because lumber was scarce in Colorado, we went camping every summer. I think every weekend. My Dad loved the outside so did my Mom; she was from the small farm in Limon, Colorado.
At camp, at night, my uncles made this big fire in a rock pit. They built the pit making sure no trees and no roots were near. They brought their wood or cut the dry wood for the trees. Cutting fire wood is not allowed today, too many fires burnt too many forests. 
We had a beautiful warm, actually hot, Fire at night with dancing sparks. When I looked into the air, the flames danced in the darkness. We were never allowed to start the fire or to feed it the wood. However, we could to roast hot dogs on long sticks and after wards melt or burn marshmallows.
 After the camp dinner, the men sat around the fire while the women cleaned up the dishes and put away the foods. Like a hunter's camp only in the summer with the kids and women could come. The men fed the fire and talked about their fishing adventures they had during the day. Now and then, they would drop into their hunting adventures. As the kids, we got to listen.
When the fire ate all the wood for that night, it was put out. Either smothered with dirt or drown with water on the glowing embers. The men killed Fire, so as not to have it escape into our camp or the forest. Sometimes the kids killed the fire.
Fire did burn if touched, always entrancing, magically, and ate all we gave and could turn into a monster taking what FIRE wanted eating everything in its path. As happened in our neighborhood about 20 years ago; 3,000 homes burnt. Now in North Bay in San Francisco where many friends and relations live. FIRE is a HORROR!
Children should know FIRE's charms and dangers.
FIRE, the Hunger

Describing fantasy characters or beasts!

in the air, a seed spirit floats

landing, the spirit  grows

When describing a fantasy character think movement. Move their wings, feet, arms, faces, ears, eyes, heads around in your mind as you see the beastie. Then think of the voice or noise it makes. Best of all, become the creature; you are the actor: stand up, and talk, move as you want the creature to act. The more you move, the more you speak as the character or beastie, the better your description of the character in your verbal telling as well as your written words. When you charge the looks or emotions of a fantasy character, put in hints of the movements and voice, you visualize. Seed us clues along the way to create surprise. (Remember, do not describe all at once, which is boring and has no suspense). All of us have some idea how to visualize a griffin, dragon, monster, wizard or witch, warrior or princess in our minds; we need just a bit of your imagined details and off we go into our minds to enjoy your story.