I Should Have Been in Vegas…

May 18, 2019 ~ JodiLea

I was at the wrong place at the right time.

This is better than being there at the wrong time, but not being there at the right time can be Really* annoying. To the 8th power annoying, even.

I can almost hear Pirates in the background complaining, “ARGgggggh!”

Isn’t that the most beautiful sight, on a video poker machine?

I only had the Ace and the Queen. The rest of the Royal Flush was dealt to me. At first I did not realize what happened, probably because bells and whistles were not blaring. Of course not – I was not in Vegas.

I was in my comfy chair, sipping my first cup of coffee of the morning – at home.

The machine paid out 4,000 credits (a.k.a. nothing). Oh well. The perk is, when I lose all my credits, it gives me 100 more – no questions asked. No swarthy bouncer type stalking me either.

And, the best perk of all, I can play poker in my pajamas with my puppy at my feet.

So, Caesars Palace? Bellagio? Venusian? Wynn? … can any of you make me that comfy and happy while I play poker?

Dare you.

♥ TTFN ♥

* Based on the 0 to 10 ‘Really’ Scale, that measures non-measurable things. Like Passion, Irritation, Annoyance, Cuteness and Urgency.

15 Seconds of Fame, Sort of

March 29, 2019 ~ JodiLea

I say “sort of” because I personally was not on TV, but someone mentioned me during their TV interview. Not by name however, so
only a handful of people know it was I who was mentioned, but that doesn’t bother me. The point is – I am thrilled and very proud!

The interviewee is my granddaughter that plays football. I may have mentioned her once or twice in this blog over the years – HA! If you are bored with my talented granddaughters, you don’t have to play the video…

Why My Novel Remains a Draft, and Other Insights

March 7, 2019March 5, 2019 ~ JodiLea

Dear readers of “Through the Door”,

I’m not trying to tease you. Believe me when I say that I am wanting to get back to Mollie* and Travis even worse than you do. Life (good and bad) keeps getting in my way, but I am organizing my Draft-5 editing plan (i.e. to-do-list), so when I do have time to dedicate to the novel, I will be ready to go.

* Oh, yea – I changed Chloe’s name to Mollie, due to privacy issues. Same girl, different name.

I’m thinking seriously about changing the title as well. Titles are one of the more difficult challenges I have with my writing. I over-think it. I try too hard to think of the perfect title and it does not enter my head. “Through the Door” was originally a great title, but it has lost something over time.

When “Accidental Tourist” popped into my head, I knew it had been a movie in the past, so I dropped it. Only 2 days later, because it was so perfect, for Mollie’s story, I did some research to find out just how many things were titled the same.

I was encouraged to find that 16 out of the 19 titles for film and TV I found were episodes titled “Accidental Tourist”, but they were part of various TV series. There were 3 films. 2 short films, in 2010 & 2015, and one feature film, 1988, with Kathleen Turner and William Hurt.

So, not being over used in the film industry, I hoped against hope that there were just as few Books in circulation.

Anne Tyler wrote a Novel titled “The Accidental Tourist” published in 2007. It has been published in several Anne Tyler Collections of stories, as well as being an Intro title (i.e., The Accidental Tourist: more title words go on…) I read a review, by The Washington Post. It was long and wordy, but this phrase struck me “A fresh and timeless tale of unexpected bliss” What a relief! Totally does not describe Mollie’s travel at all.

“Accidental Tourist” is now the (nearly final) Title. It’s not that I can’t commit, it just leaves room for an Editor to make title suggestions, right?

Well, what a relief about the title issue. Now I can concentrate on being an Editor on this story. The most difficult part of writing (aside from perfect titles) that one can encounter. A prayer, if you are so inclined, would be appreciated!

♥ TTFN ♥