Pop Culture Divas

Find out what Saving the Cat, Shannen Doherty and A League of Their Own have in common over at PopCulture Divas today.

Guest Blogger - Lisa Campbell

Schizophrenia and the Writer

or
What's that pervert doing behind the tree?

By Lisa Campbell


E.L. Doctorow once said, "Writing is a socially acceptable form of schizophrenia." As a reader, I never understood. Now, as a writer, I agree with part of that quote, as I tend to live inside my head more often than not. I'm just not certain the way I go about the writing process is socially acceptable.

Merriam-Webster dictionary describes schizophrenia as "a psychotic disorder characterized by loss of contact with the environment, by noticeable deterioration in the level of functioning in everyday life."

In the beginning, I had a problem with Doctorow's assertion until I dissected this statement and realized his quote wasn't too far off the mark. After all, those of us who write fiction, and romance in particular, spend a lot of time shaping characters, situations, and places in our imagination, agonizing over their fictional lives for days, months and sometimes years.

Now, before you shake your head in complete denial, check your concentration level the next time you study a couple sharing a passionate kiss. Ask yourself this question. Were you a bit more interested in cataloguing hand and lip placement for the upcoming first kiss scene in your manuscript, rather than giving the couple a passing glance? Uh-huh, thought so. Now that I have your attention, ask yourself another question. Do you find yourself falling off chairs, or skulking around corners to eavesdrop on private conversations for the sake of character development? What interests you more, the topic of the discussion, or the emotions behind it? If you have answered at least one of these questions, you, my fellow writer, are completely uninvolved within your external environment. Mmm-hmm… shocking, is it not?

A solitary person, I shy away from such behaviors in my un-writing life, and yet, I have no problem indulging in these dubious traits for the sake of my story. Therefore, I can safely assume this is writer's schizophrenia taking over. Now what, you may ask? Well, the next step should be admitting there is a problem, and finding a solution to correct the behavior before you wind up in an arraignment hearing.

Unfortunately, it's difficult to pin down such inappropriate actions if you're unaware of them. Enlisting the aid of family and friends is a proactive first step, though I have to admit my own husband isn't always useful in certain circumstances. He's a great help positioning himself between my subjects and me when he sees I'm sidling closer to a group, notepad at the ready, to record outbursts and the like. However, he's more than eager to parse a few love scenes when I want to confirm positions or pacing. In this instance, he supports my schizophrenia one hundred percent---and in the end that is all any of us wants; one special someone who understands, accepts, and supports the schizophrenic side of a writer's life.

Superstition's Desire:

The lush landscape of the Scottish Highlands holds great beauty, but also great peril. Therefore, when Lady Arabella Wyndmere is spirited away from her English home, she is right to fear for her heart and her welfare. Held to a deathbed vow, Laird Connal MacRae is honor-bound to deliver Lady Arabella unsullied, to his deposed older brother, as a prize to soothe his ego. Nevertheless, Connal cannot deny the burning ache the spirited beauty has awakened in him. However, something far more dangerous stalks from the shadows. And in a climate of treachery and betrayal; the greatest risk of all could be surrendering to the depth of feelings of unexpected love.

Bio: Lisa M. Campbell
I've traveled the world, lived on two continents and in eleven cities. I've met my childhood hero, twice. I wore a uniform during wartime, though I never fired a shot. Thanks to my husband, I've flown an airplane. I'm a wife, and mother. I'm owned by two crazy cattle dogs, both of which I rescued from puppy prison. Right now I live in the beautiful Black Hills, the Oglala Sioux call Paha Sapa. I have a Celtic Connection with a Gaelic speaking friend. I write what I love to read.

Guest Blogger - Sara Taney Humphreys

I'd like to welcome Sara Taney Humphreys. She's blogging today about the Musical Marketing Muse.

Musical Marketing Muse

Soundtracks for movies and television shows are standard. In fact, a really great movie or show is often instantly associated with kick ass music. Well thanks to my old college buddy and DJ John Campbell...I found the soundtrack for Book 2 in my shifter series.

Actually, I had been in a major writing rut. Completely blocked. Book 2, Amoveo Heart was not coming to me as easily as the first book did. At any rate, John wanted to interview me on his weekly radio show and had gotten some musicians who were willing to let me use their music as an intro for the interview. He sent me the links and the second song I listened to stopped me dead in my tracks. I couldn't believe it. It was as though this song was written just for the heroine in Book 2. Amazing! The combination of the lyrics and her hauntingly beautiful voice were absolute perfection. I immediately contacted the artist and asked if I could use her song for Amoveo Heart's book trailer. Gratefully both she and her record label said yes!

Then I had an idea to take it a step further. Luckily, she is located not far from me and as a new musician is looking for new opportunities for exposure. Why not have her play at my book launch/signing? Gratefully she agreed. Amy played at a couple of my book signing events and it really brought a great bit of texture to the signings.

The song that sparked my creative juices and woke up my muse is called "Honey on the Skin". You can find Amy Petty and her spectacular music on her website .
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John connected me with another awesome musical muse. The Strike Nineteens. TSN are a band of adorable guys from Scotland. Ladies...think William Wallace/Braveheart accent....yummy. Their music is gritty and intense. These darlings actually wrote me two songs! One of which will be on their new album "Screams for Denver" which will be released this Spring. I look forward to checking them out LIVE when they come to the USA later this year.

You can check out their music at here.

Cross marketing with music is fun and a little outside the box...just the way I like it.

Sara Taney Humphreys

Busy Little Bee

I’ve had a very productive writing week and finally feel like I’m making some headway. Using Blake Snyder’s Beat Sheet, I worked out the scene by scene outline for my YA novel, Fractured Sight. Then I moved on and did the same with one of my historicals awaiting revision, Invitation to Scandal (which turned out to be in pretty good shape) and the second book in the Brimstone series, Saving Grace (needs work).

Next week is when the hard work starts. I have to go in and using the tools I learned from Donald Maass’s Putting Fire In Your Fiction, start my scene by scene revisions for Fractured Sight.

Thankfully, doing the Beat Sheet allowed me to see where I had some issues, make a few scene changes and additions, juggle things around and realize the ending I had should be the ending in Book 3, not Book 1. I wondered why I couldn’t figure out where things went after Book1…well, that’s why. I need to do the story in increments, saving the big finish for Book 3. Book 1 and 2 will be the lead in to getting there, the build up. Each will have a stand alone story in it that builds up to the final book.

I’m hoping I can finish the revisions in eight weeks, but it will mean a lot of head down, nose to the grindstone, hard work.

By the way, just a heads up. I’ll have two guest bloggers next week: Sarah Taney Humphreys and Lisa Campbell so stay tuned for that.

Give Me Freedom

We have had a beautiful stretch of weather. And when I say stretch, I mean 4 days in a row, which in Nova Scotia is akin to a miracle since the weather has a way of changing every five minutes. The problem with this is that you can sense Spring in the air.

That's right, I said problem.

You see, as soon as the weather improves, I get antsy. Big time antsy. As in I want to quit my day job, jump in my car and just drive and drive and drive until I’m so far away I don’t know where I am anymore. Granted with my sense of direction that would take me all of five minutes to achieve but you know what I mean. I want my freedom. I crave it. And it is a daily chore to not say ‘to hell with everything’ and chase after it like my very life depended on it.

That’s not to say I’d chuck everything. I’d keep my house and the hot guy living in it. The dog would stay. Maybe what I really crave is the freedom from responsibility. I know I’m a Capricorn and responsibility is deeply encoded into our astrological DNA, but I must have a recessive gene in there somewhere. The psychic I go to every year told me I have a progressed Sagittarius in my chart which makes me a bit of a gypsy. Maybe that’s what causes this need to throw caution to the wind and hit the open road.

Whatever it is, once the weather even hints at getting warmer, or someone mouths the words 'my crocuses have started to bloom' I have to start reminding myself that I have a mortgage to pay and debt to get rid of and a car payment due and until I can make a living from writing I have to keep slogging away at the salt mines.

But I’m not happy about. Not happy at all.

I think if I had it to do all over again, I wouldn't have tied myself down so much. I would have left my ability to get up and go where and when I please more open.

Sigh...hindsight...it's a hell of a thing.