tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2802601138878132017.post5121199524808383494..comments2024-03-22T03:27:19.859-04:00Comments on Sourcebooks Casablanca Romance Authors: Writing about Real LifeAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12914920560584429315noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2802601138878132017.post-90513399138896802362008-06-26T14:58:00.000-04:002008-06-26T14:58:00.000-04:00Ladies it is amazing how similar and how different...Ladies it is amazing how similar and how different we are. I also have letters tucked away that were written to me when I first came to Canada. Must dig them out one of these days and look back. I know none of mine survived, but these I did keep.<BR/><BR/>Good for you Danielle. That warms my heart.<BR/><BR/>MicheleMichele Ann Younghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04014331460819358895noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2802601138878132017.post-40714565836417313052008-06-26T14:14:00.000-04:002008-06-26T14:14:00.000-04:00Wonderful post, Michele!Like Christina, little bit...Wonderful post, Michele!<BR/><BR/>Like Christina, little bits and pieces from my real life have a way of sneaking into my stories. In my book set in Venice, I have a line describing a "profusion of orange peels and cigarette butts" floating in one of the small canals. A friend who has family near Venice read that and said, "That was personal experience, wasn't it?" Yup. Sure was. :-)<BR/><BR/>I have saved letters I received from my nieces when they were younger, and I used to have about a dozen love letters my first husband wrote to me before we were married. Now I do almost everything via email, however, I have kept a journal for almost ten years, and maybe someday all those spiral notebooks will be discovered in some relative's attic. Samuel Pepys of the late 20th, early 21st century?Loucinda McGary aka Aunty Cindyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02217492654108300014noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2802601138878132017.post-48678155958781276872008-06-26T11:08:00.000-04:002008-06-26T11:08:00.000-04:00Great topic. I think as authors we get the questio...Great topic. I think as authors we get the question - how autobiographical is your story? And we know they are all a little bit, but it's the details you mention that are the best examples of how we incorporate "real life." Yesterday a friend recounted a conversation she'd had with her hubby and I immediately told her, "Wow, that's a great line. I'm going to use it in a future novel." Fortunately, her husband probably won't read my book and even better, she said okay. <BR/>I've been taking notes on things my toddler does and says because my next wom fic novel will have a toddler in it. Some things you just can't make up! <BR/>:-)Malena Lotthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17989944242640005848noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2802601138878132017.post-59250972106754685692008-06-26T10:42:00.000-04:002008-06-26T10:42:00.000-04:00I've found that I keep in touch much better with p...I've found that I keep in touch much better with people I email. I may have nothing left to show for it, but at least I maintain the contact. <BR/>My father was a great letter writer, and I wish I had more of the things he wrote. I think I get my desire to write from him. I remember every Sunday night, he'd sit in his room at his old typewriter, banging away as he wrote to his mother in West Virginia. I wish I were that diligent, but his life was more regimented than mine has ever been. Some nice thoughts there, Michele.Cheryl Brookshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11464377381132807409noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2802601138878132017.post-13107794131545873562008-06-26T09:48:00.000-04:002008-06-26T09:48:00.000-04:00I still write and keep letters! I have two really ...I still write and keep letters! I have two really good friends and we write pretty consistently to one another. It's fun to get something in the mail that isn't a bill or junk mail, and let's face it--there's something wonderful about sitting down and writing a letter to a good friend. <BR/><BR/>Email works too, but I prefer letters :)Danielle Jackson Dresserhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15293766728921704640noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2802601138878132017.post-83518164991450605062008-06-26T09:28:00.000-04:002008-06-26T09:28:00.000-04:00Thanks for this sweet and thoughtful post, Michele...Thanks for this sweet and thoughtful post, Michele. I too wonder at the lack of letters in our world, but maybe blogging is taking over that realm. Regardless of the medium, people do like to talk about their lives and days. Letters are more charming, though. <BR/><BR/>Yes, I put lots of experiences frm my real life into my writing, sometimes without realizing it. Imagine how sneaky that old subconscious can be.Christina Harlinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03573077374647045372noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2802601138878132017.post-11006679538989557122008-06-26T09:06:00.000-04:002008-06-26T09:06:00.000-04:00Great post, Michele. During all the coverage of Ti...Great post, Michele. During all the coverage of Tim Russert's death, I heard the historian Doris Kearns Goodwin lamenting the lack of letters in today's society and how shows like Meet The Press will help to fill in that void for future historians. The electronic age has robbed us of one of society's most important tools for communicating--the letter! Doris had uncovered a treasure trove of letters in Rose Kennedy's attic that were the foundation for much of Doris's writings about the Kennedy family.<BR/><BR/>It's great how you were able to use a wonderful childhood memory in your work. You are right--things like that are truly timeless!Marie Forcehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00550719567520289405noreply@blogger.com