I made up the bit about "earnest remarks," because I don't have any. As I mentioned in a previous blog, unread, of course, I am at loose ends, having finished my very first mystery novel. What to do?
A scene came into my head. A woman in a care facility of some kind had a craving for a piece of apple pie with a small chunk of aged cheddar cheese. She pushed a call button on the arm of her chair. An Aid dressed in white knocked on the door and entered. Aid's name is Martha. The name of my character is Lorna Ritchie.
The vague smile on the Aid's face is one Lorna has seen many times before. A pity for the demented patients in the facility but she dislikes the look of disgust that she has to deal with women who are not "all there."
Lorna is certainly not demented and knows it. She is incarcerated against her will. She pushes the limits. "I want a piece of apple pie with a chunk of old cheddar cheese to go with it."
"But it's tea time, Mrs. Richie. We don't have apple pie. We have small cakes, cookies and crackers with cheese." "Crappy cheese," snaps Lorna."
This is a strange start to a story. I have no idea where it's going. I shall follow it and see what happens.
In the meantime. Continue to purchase my romance novels. A VERY DIFFICULT MAN,
ISABELLE'S DIARY, ISABELLE'S STORY, RING AROUND THE MOON,
TOO YOUNG TO DIE. Sometime in the future I'll be urging you to purchase my mystery novel. Stay tuned.
Anita
My web site is in transition
Saturday, August 10, 2013
Tuesday, August 6, 2013
Anita Birt's Note Book and various trivia
I have finished editing my mystery novel and await to hear from the professional editor who will read and comment and make suggestions. In the meantime, what am I to do? I've been busy writing day after day I'm feeling a bit lost without something to do.
I have an idea or two. A novella appeals to me. I don't want to tackle another full length novel. My Ghost Writer Mystery came in at 85,000 words. Not a long book but I'm not as young as I used to be and something short appeals to me.
I might add another adventure to Tilly. Remember her. "The Misadventure of Tilly, a Swan." Or pick another animal, like a little goat or little donkey.
Anyone wanting a copy of The Misadventure of Tilly, a Swan, leave your e-mail address in the comment section below. I cross my heart never to keep your address on file.
Big article in the newspaper about the making of a hamburger in a lab from a cow's stem cells is yucky. No thanks. Too freaky for me.
I shall return. It's time for lunch.
Anita
My web site is being changed, refreshed and intriguing. Stay tuned.
I have an idea or two. A novella appeals to me. I don't want to tackle another full length novel. My Ghost Writer Mystery came in at 85,000 words. Not a long book but I'm not as young as I used to be and something short appeals to me.
I might add another adventure to Tilly. Remember her. "The Misadventure of Tilly, a Swan." Or pick another animal, like a little goat or little donkey.
Anyone wanting a copy of The Misadventure of Tilly, a Swan, leave your e-mail address in the comment section below. I cross my heart never to keep your address on file.
Big article in the newspaper about the making of a hamburger in a lab from a cow's stem cells is yucky. No thanks. Too freaky for me.
I shall return. It's time for lunch.
Anita
My web site is being changed, refreshed and intriguing. Stay tuned.
Thursday, August 1, 2013
Anita Birt's Note Book and things of interest
On my July 4th blog I mentioned my daugher-in-law's father's Al Smith whose aircraft had been shot down over France on July 4, 1944. The crew all survived thanks to the French farmers who sheltered them before someone in the network betrayed them to the Gestapo. Al, his crew and other captured airmen were thrown in Buchenvald concentration camp.
Al was in the RCAF, 419 Moose Squadron. Their motto was Fear The Moose.
He and the others who were shot down in flames, eventually walked out of the camp (Russians were coming and he German guards ran away) The men walked to the Baltic Sea, Al weighed 90 lbs when he was rescued.
The men who survived and escaped were awarded the Caterpillar Pin. A much prized pin. Al was 92 when he passed away. Not many survivors left to tell the tale.
As he floated down that night he saw Chartres cathedral.
As for me. I am progressing with editing of my book. Adding bits, taking out bits. I like my story whether a publisher will is a moot point. Great Summer weather. Great for walking by the sea where there is always a cool breeze.
Leave a comment if you feel like it.
Anita Birt
Al was in the RCAF, 419 Moose Squadron. Their motto was Fear The Moose.
He and the others who were shot down in flames, eventually walked out of the camp (Russians were coming and he German guards ran away) The men walked to the Baltic Sea, Al weighed 90 lbs when he was rescued.
The men who survived and escaped were awarded the Caterpillar Pin. A much prized pin. Al was 92 when he passed away. Not many survivors left to tell the tale.
As he floated down that night he saw Chartres cathedral.
As for me. I am progressing with editing of my book. Adding bits, taking out bits. I like my story whether a publisher will is a moot point. Great Summer weather. Great for walking by the sea where there is always a cool breeze.
Leave a comment if you feel like it.
Anita Birt
Wednesday, July 31, 2013
Anita Birt's Note Book and other stuff
Hard to believe it's August 1st tomorrow. I am editing my mystery novel, making changes as I go along, adding bits here and there to make the story move along. Hard work. When I was writing my romance novels in early 2000 and onwards I could write three or four hours at a time. Now I am much older, one hour and a half is enough. I'm not the woman I used to be so I have to slow done to a more measured pace.
My web site is having a major face lift in the next week or so. It's in dire need of up dating. My fault for not keeping my eye on it. I want to give it a kick start, something like this.
Anita Birt: Author of romance novels. Writer of a mystery novel. A story teller for children. Book Covers. Reviews.
I'm sure I mentioned my children's story, suitable for 3 - 6 year olds. "THE MISADVENTURE OF TILLY, A SWAN."
If there's someone out there who would like a copy of the Tilly story, send me your e-mail address and I shall e-mail it to you. I promise to cancel your e-mail address when I have sent you the copy of Tilly.
I don't like working in the evening so shall not do much editing. Must do some though to have it ready to send to a professional editor. I want to have my book published! The dream of all authors, large and small.
We haven't had rain on Vancouver Island since June27. The weather has been gorgeous. Warm and sunny, not too warm. Living by the sea means it never gets hot, hot, hot and humid.
Anita Birt
My web site is having a major face lift in the next week or so. It's in dire need of up dating. My fault for not keeping my eye on it. I want to give it a kick start, something like this.
Anita Birt: Author of romance novels. Writer of a mystery novel. A story teller for children. Book Covers. Reviews.
I'm sure I mentioned my children's story, suitable for 3 - 6 year olds. "THE MISADVENTURE OF TILLY, A SWAN."
If there's someone out there who would like a copy of the Tilly story, send me your e-mail address and I shall e-mail it to you. I promise to cancel your e-mail address when I have sent you the copy of Tilly.
I don't like working in the evening so shall not do much editing. Must do some though to have it ready to send to a professional editor. I want to have my book published! The dream of all authors, large and small.
We haven't had rain on Vancouver Island since June27. The weather has been gorgeous. Warm and sunny, not too warm. Living by the sea means it never gets hot, hot, hot and humid.
Anita Birt
Saturday, July 20, 2013
Anita Birt's Note Book of fascinating stuff.
This is a question to you who are writers. I'm closing in on the last chapter of my mystery novel and damned, if the villain I'd chosen is not the villain. Talk about mysterious writing when me, the author, is upstaged by a character and forced to make changes,
Has that happened to you who writes? I'd really like to know. I find the writing process endlessly interesting. I hope it's not endlessly boring! When a character takes over and decides who is guilty, I have to justify the change and make it work.
That's what happened to-day. Apart from that life goes on. A spider bit me! I wakened on Tuesday morning to find a bright red spot, about the size of my thumb nail, just below my left collar bone. I could feel a tip. I won't go into all the details but there was a little infection I've cleaned and am now treating with an anti-biotic cream. The spider, probably a little devil must have got in or on my bed. How a spider reached my third floor apartment is a moot point. The redness is fading.
The weather gods are playing hell with the weather in parts of Canada and the States. Not fun for those whose homes have been flooded or had giant trees fall on their houses. The clean up goes on and on in High River Alberta.
I wearied my brain reading a long article in the Globe and Mail titled. "Canadians helping to unravel secret of universe's existence." Think about "the first time a muon neutrino was seen transformed into an electron neutrino - something never witnessed before."
Physics was never my strong suit never having studied it at the country Ontario high school where I spent time as a teenager. Basic math, some algebra and some geometry left my math skills sadly lacking. I have read The Stardust Revolution, learned a lot. I am fascinated by the latest news from the team of physicists studying the cosmos and the stars and the planets circling some stars and it goes on and on. It's fun for me although I don't understand the finer points about muon neutrinos and particles and leave it at that.
If you're a writer and one of your characters decides to take over, let me know.
Anita
www.anitabirt.com
Has that happened to you who writes? I'd really like to know. I find the writing process endlessly interesting. I hope it's not endlessly boring! When a character takes over and decides who is guilty, I have to justify the change and make it work.
That's what happened to-day. Apart from that life goes on. A spider bit me! I wakened on Tuesday morning to find a bright red spot, about the size of my thumb nail, just below my left collar bone. I could feel a tip. I won't go into all the details but there was a little infection I've cleaned and am now treating with an anti-biotic cream. The spider, probably a little devil must have got in or on my bed. How a spider reached my third floor apartment is a moot point. The redness is fading.
The weather gods are playing hell with the weather in parts of Canada and the States. Not fun for those whose homes have been flooded or had giant trees fall on their houses. The clean up goes on and on in High River Alberta.
I wearied my brain reading a long article in the Globe and Mail titled. "Canadians helping to unravel secret of universe's existence." Think about "the first time a muon neutrino was seen transformed into an electron neutrino - something never witnessed before."
Physics was never my strong suit never having studied it at the country Ontario high school where I spent time as a teenager. Basic math, some algebra and some geometry left my math skills sadly lacking. I have read The Stardust Revolution, learned a lot. I am fascinated by the latest news from the team of physicists studying the cosmos and the stars and the planets circling some stars and it goes on and on. It's fun for me although I don't understand the finer points about muon neutrinos and particles and leave it at that.
If you're a writer and one of your characters decides to take over, let me know.
Anita
www.anitabirt.com
Wednesday, July 10, 2013
Anita Birt's Note Book
So many disasters besetting Canada this year. Floods in Alberta. The monstrous train accident in Quebec. It never should have happened. A series of human errors, one after the other, leaving the engine teetering on the top of a hill before it plunged down with its load of tank cars to burn a pretty little town to pieces. So many people dead.
Toronto had a deluge two days ago that flooded the city, the subway, the underpasses, basements of houses. power outage, a proper mess.
To turn to me and mine. Books I mean. In a previous post I mentioned the enormous changes in technology since I wrote my contemporary romance, ISABELLE'S DIARY. Cell phones were on the market but not in the numbers they are now and not in the sophisticated I-Phones everyone seems to be using. Not me!
ISABELLE'S DIARY takes place in Wales. My heroine uncovers family secrets. She sees a ghost. Believe her. The ghost is her ancestor who suffered a broken heart, eventually healed when truth is revealed.
There's a twist in my story revealed in the last few pages. My book is e-published. Read it and let me know what you think. Does the lack of a cell phone make it bothersome? A friend suggested I re-write it and bring it up to date with I-phones, I-Pads, I-pods and the like. Should I?
I have to finish my mystery before I tackle another thing. Stay healthy. Eat well. Go on walks if you can. Smile.
Anita
www.anitabirt.com
Toronto had a deluge two days ago that flooded the city, the subway, the underpasses, basements of houses. power outage, a proper mess.
To turn to me and mine. Books I mean. In a previous post I mentioned the enormous changes in technology since I wrote my contemporary romance, ISABELLE'S DIARY. Cell phones were on the market but not in the numbers they are now and not in the sophisticated I-Phones everyone seems to be using. Not me!
ISABELLE'S DIARY takes place in Wales. My heroine uncovers family secrets. She sees a ghost. Believe her. The ghost is her ancestor who suffered a broken heart, eventually healed when truth is revealed.
There's a twist in my story revealed in the last few pages. My book is e-published. Read it and let me know what you think. Does the lack of a cell phone make it bothersome? A friend suggested I re-write it and bring it up to date with I-phones, I-Pads, I-pods and the like. Should I?
I have to finish my mystery before I tackle another thing. Stay healthy. Eat well. Go on walks if you can. Smile.
Anita
www.anitabirt.com
Thursday, July 4, 2013
Anita Birt's Note Book and whatever comes to mind.
To all my American friends, HAPPY JULY 4th. Enjoy the day.
On July 4th, 1944, Al Smith, age 23, a navigator with the RCAF (Royal Canadian Air Force) parachuted from his aircraft, shot down over France. It was dead of night. Al didn't know where he was or whether a German patrol was nearby prepared to shoot and kill him.
Al landed partially on a tree but freed himself from his parachute. He removed his pistol and threw it as far away as he could. Caught with a fire arm and he'd be a dead man.
Al Smith is now 91 years old. He's the father of my daughter-in-law, Alana. Al's crew all survived, taken in and sheltered by French farmers who risked their lives to save the airmen. However, someone reported them to the Gestapo who rounded up the crew. They ended up in Buckenwald (forgive my spelling) concentration camp. This was against all the "rules of war." Captured aircrew were supposed to be sent to special prison camps supervised by the German air force. Instead there were fifty or more British, American and Canadians in the concentration camp.
To this day, Al can't stay in a small room with the door closed.No special treatment for any of the captured airmen. No post traumatic stress treatment. They got on with their lives, married and had children.
As for me. I have enjoyed the day but tired myself out by doing too much. I'm not the woman I used to be and my energy level has to be cranked up after a busy day.
My mystery novel has reached a crucial point. I'm looking forward to writing the scene tomorrow because I'm not sure what's going to happen.
My historical romance, A VERY DIFFICULT MAN, is selling, not hugely but selling. Try it if you like a good historical romance. So is my time travel, RING AROUND THE MOON, set in magical Cornwall and my contemporary mystery where murder and mayhem swirls around my heroine who is on the run with a three month old baby. The title is TOO YOUNG TO DIE. Imagine being lost at night in the Cascade forest in Washington. Cougars? Bears? The men hunting her.
The three books mentioned are available in trade paper back and in e-book format.
Anita
www.anitabirt.com
On July 4th, 1944, Al Smith, age 23, a navigator with the RCAF (Royal Canadian Air Force) parachuted from his aircraft, shot down over France. It was dead of night. Al didn't know where he was or whether a German patrol was nearby prepared to shoot and kill him.
Al landed partially on a tree but freed himself from his parachute. He removed his pistol and threw it as far away as he could. Caught with a fire arm and he'd be a dead man.
Al Smith is now 91 years old. He's the father of my daughter-in-law, Alana. Al's crew all survived, taken in and sheltered by French farmers who risked their lives to save the airmen. However, someone reported them to the Gestapo who rounded up the crew. They ended up in Buckenwald (forgive my spelling) concentration camp. This was against all the "rules of war." Captured aircrew were supposed to be sent to special prison camps supervised by the German air force. Instead there were fifty or more British, American and Canadians in the concentration camp.
To this day, Al can't stay in a small room with the door closed.No special treatment for any of the captured airmen. No post traumatic stress treatment. They got on with their lives, married and had children.
As for me. I have enjoyed the day but tired myself out by doing too much. I'm not the woman I used to be and my energy level has to be cranked up after a busy day.
My mystery novel has reached a crucial point. I'm looking forward to writing the scene tomorrow because I'm not sure what's going to happen.
My historical romance, A VERY DIFFICULT MAN, is selling, not hugely but selling. Try it if you like a good historical romance. So is my time travel, RING AROUND THE MOON, set in magical Cornwall and my contemporary mystery where murder and mayhem swirls around my heroine who is on the run with a three month old baby. The title is TOO YOUNG TO DIE. Imagine being lost at night in the Cascade forest in Washington. Cougars? Bears? The men hunting her.
The three books mentioned are available in trade paper back and in e-book format.
Anita
www.anitabirt.com
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