Broken Mirrors, Dark Secrets, and the 7×7 Link Award

My daughter Beatrice has nominated me for a 7×7 Award.  Her blog, Adventures for the Faint of Heart, is funny, fresh, an inspiration to writers, and especially young writers, as you will see when you read her tagline.  I’m a big fan of hers, and I’m not just saying that because I’m her mother.  Thank you, Bea, for the nomination, kind words, and especially for the  original illustration.

To accept the nomination, after thanking the person who gave it to you, you must tell something about yourself no one else knows.  So here you go…

Since 7×7 is the theme, I’ll tell you I’m one of seven children, that it took seven years to write and sell my first novel, The Keeper of the Crystal Spring, and seven more to complete my newest novel, Real Troopers.  Bea says I must have broken a couple of mirrors in my wild and wicked youth.

Next, you have to choose seven of your posts that fit the criteria below. When the doctor asks me how much it hurts on a scale of one to ten, I say, “How should I know?”   This decision was so subjective, and once again I ask, “How should I know?”   Please feel free to decide which is which for yourselves.

Most Beautiful Piece: Editing Monet’s Garden—It’s Monet’s Garden, what else can I say?

Most Helpful: The Secret Object I Keep Hidden in My Underwear Drawer—Because.

Most Popular Piece: Befriend the Ides of March—Party time!

Most Controversial Piece: The ‘S’ Word—You know what I’m talking about.

Most Surprisingly Successful Piece: The Real Thing—And the moral is, see for yourself.

Most Underrated Piece: Remembering Fort Detroit–Social studies.

Most Pride-worthy Piece: Survival Stories—Proud of my sister the artist, proud of the people of Ptigliano, and proud of some pretty good storytelling.

Now, it is my privilege to nominate seven other worthy blogs…

The Urge to Wander–An exceptionally classy travel blog with great photos, history, and stories.

She Kept a Parrot–Lovely photos, and thoughtful personal stories.

Annika Ruohonen Photography–Stunning photos of Finland, and gentle observations of life.

The Obamacrat–A passionate blogger with a strong sense of justice and a good heart.

Talinorfali–Musings every day of the year from my  first follower.  Thanks for the warm welcome!

Musing by Moonlight–Intelligent and varied, and because I like it.

Crossroads-Cathryn Wellner–Two sixtysomethings’ journey, and also funny animal videos!

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The Real Thing

Last weekend my sister and I happened into Langley, an artsy little town on Whidbey Island.  Tourists scurried about like cockroaches at a crumbfest, only in broad daylight.  A cheesy salesman draped with gold chains leaned over the counter of a jewelry store, talking too loudly.

“A bit over the top,” I thought.  And then, “This guy can’t be for real.”

Well, he wasn’t.  He turned out to be a suspect in an organized murder mystery, with town folk playing the suspects and tourists racing around town in search of clues, for which privilege they paid a lot of money.

I prefer self-directed treasure hunts, only I call it ‘research.’   I’ve always loved travel, but it was in England, searching for the perfect setting for The Keeper of the Crystal Spring, that I truly felt the thrill of the hunt.  Research lent a sense of purpose as I absorbed all I could of the Norman Conquest and life in Anglo-Saxon times.  At the Weald and Downland Museum, I learned the mechanics of charcoal burning, and which stone originated where throughout England, details I put to good use.  At a Dorset heritage breed farm I learned how shepherds were buried clutching a tuft of wool, so when they got to Heaven St. Peter would understand and forgive their long absences from church.  Of course our shepherd was buried with a tuft of wool in his hand!

My family has accompanied me to many destinations chosen for research purposes, others for pure pleasure.  But what do ancient streets of Pompeii, a grassy square in Prague, a dusty trail in Walnut Canyon, AZ, and the Hanseatic Old Town of Bergen, Norway hold in common?

As my kids and I took in the smells, colors, and unique histories of those places, each inspired group brainstorming that resulted in a rough outline of a novel.  Some were merely exercises in creativity, a fun way to internalize information. Others were keepers, and took their place in our Writer’s Egg Chain, where they will gestate until we are ready to return to Prague in search of more hidden story gems to lend light, color, meaning, and authenticity to our embryonic novel.

But your search needn’t involve expensive travel.  In fact, I just finished a manuscript and am ready to crack open the next egg on the chain.  It’s set in the funky Fremont neighborhood of Seattle, only minutes away.  Bea, co-author on this project, and I will explore Fremont’s streets, shops, dives, parks, events and hotspots—like the Fremont Troll, the nude Solstice Parade, and Theo’s chocolate factory.  I am sure that some of them will find a place and help breathe life into our story.

We won’t sign up in advance or pay to participate, and there’ll be no checklist of items to collect.  This treasure hunt will be of our own invention.  We aren’t even quite sure what we are looking for, but we’ll recognize it when we see it.  And when we do, I promise it will be the real thing.

Are there things you look for when you are doing your research?  Have you had an experience researching a project that you would like to share?

See what Bea’s blog post says about research and “Writing what you know.”