The Character Must Die
April 22, 2024 by Veronica Jorge in category Write From the Heart by Veronica Jorge tagged as characters, letting go, Veronica Jorge, writing
I killed one of the characters in my novel.
(It was more like two, but I have no qualms about the second one.)
I came up with a death scene I really liked and just had to use it, so someone had to “go.”
I’m still not sure if it was in the best interest of the story, or if I’m just stuck on having to use a particular description.
As I reflect on the sequence of events and the wording, and debate the character’s fate; to live or not to live? I think about language in general and the nuances contained therein.
The English “goodbye”, like the characters in a book, can be so finite. Here today, gone tomorrow.
In contrast, parting words in other languages encompass a world of possibilities of that which is yet to be experienced. Whether it’s, auf wiedersehen in German, arrivederci in Italian, or hasta luego in Spanish, each expresses the probability, and the hope, that we will meet again. Even the Japanese rarely use sayonara, unless it really is “the end.”
In life, as in writing and in reading, I prefer the meanings that other languages provide for that interim we call separation. And I would like to think that the characters we create in our imaginations, that eventually inhabit the pages of a book, continue on, not only in our own minds, but in the minds, and perhaps the hearts, of our readers.
So, if I must terminate one of my characters, I’ll think of them as an old soldier who has faithfully served, and comfort myself with the words of General Douglas MacArthur.
“Old soldiers never die, they just fade away.”
And I realize that no matter how wonderful a story may be, as we grow and change, some of the characters we loved best as writers and readers do fade away and/or are replaced by others.
But, they never really die.
We meet them over and over again in the ways they have touched us and changed us, and have made us different and maybe, even better, for having met them.
See you next time on May 22nd.
Veronica Jorge
0 1 Read moreA Year Is An Ocean by Veronica Jorge
December 22, 2023 by Veronica Jorge in category Write From the Heart by Veronica Jorge tagged as beginnings and endings, End of year, Veronica Jorge
As the year draws to an end, preparing to close its final chapter, I think of the beach.
It might seem perfectly normal to those of you living in sunny climates, or to snow bunnies hastening away from the cold. But to those of us in areas that have already seen our first snow, it might sound strange.
To me, beginnings and endings can be like the ocean.
Like a rushing tide, every New Year, we rush toward new goals and hopes.
Sometimes shrinking back in fear, or drifting away into distant doubts and difficult memories.
Sturdy ocean rocks, like strong foundations, enable us to stand secure. And even walk on water, like faithful friends that make us believe we can do the impossible.
Our footprints in the sand are washed away like our past failings and errors. While a merciful new year, grants us another chance at life.
The 1960s song, Try to Remember, written by Harvey Schmidt and Tom Jones, plays in my mind. Emotion tightens my throat. My heart forms a prayer for the coming year.
May no one weep. Not even the willow.
Veronica Jorge
See you next time on January 22, 2024!
0 3 Read moreDiscovering Authors, Old & New
October 22, 2023 by Veronica Jorge in category Write From the Heart by Veronica Jorge tagged as Pearl S. Buck, Pearl S. Buck Historic House, Perkasie PA, The Good Earth, Veronica Jorge
Pearl S. Buck has always been one of my favorite authors. Most know her 1931 novel, The Good Earth, and film of the same name, for which she won the Pulitzer Prize in 1932. And in 1938, she was the first woman to win the Nobel Prize in Literature for her depictions of China, where she lived with her missionary parents.
A prolific author, she wrote more than forty novels, over twenty works of non-fiction, an astounding bibliography of short stories, and stories for children. Even a cookbook!
And while she’s famous to us today, her male contemporaries were anything but supportive, often disparaging her writing skills. This prompted her to write other works under the pen-name, John Sedges, which were well received and lauded. Thus, proving her point that the hostility was against her as a woman, and had nothing to do with her literary abilities.
So, this past summer, I treated myself to a visit to the Pearl S. Buck Historic House in Perkasie, PA.
I wanted to learn more about this author. Instead, I discovered a remarkable woman whom I admired all the more. She was an accomplished pianist. She wrote about and worked tirelessly for women’s rights, civil rights, and for the education and improvement of women’s and children’s lives all over the world. She was also one of the first to write about and champion the cause of the handicapped, chronicling her own personal experience in The Child Who Never Grew, a heart-breaking memoir of her daughter’s rare developmental disorder, originally published in 1950. (Reprint, 2017, ISBN 978-1504047968).
Her foundation continues to advocate for all of these causes today.
And just when I thought the trip couldn’t get any better, I learned that the Pearl S. Buck Historic House also offers writing courses and has its own press center to help authors self-publish.
In keeping with Buck’s work toward empowering women, I purchased the following two books in the gift shop.
A Rose in a Ditch, by Julie Henning, (Pearl S. Buck Writing Center Press, 2019, ISBN 978-1-704786-438), who writes about her life in South Korea and being rescued and then raised in the U.S. by Pearl Buck as her own daughter.
And, Where the Stork Flies, by Linda C. Wisniewski, (Sand Hill Review Press, 2021, ISBN 978-1-949534-16-0). Struggling with relationship issues with her husband and her daughter, a librarian encounters a time portal and a Polish peasant fleeing her own unhappy marriage. Together, with a little magic help, they get their lives back on track.
And guess what? Turns out Wisniewski and I have several writer friends in common. How great is that!
I wish you all new and inspiring learnings and discoveries in your reading and writing journeys.
Veronica Jorge
See you next time on November 22nd!
APPLE, TABLE, PENNY… MURDER A REVIEW BY VERONICA JORGE
September 22, 2023 by Veronica Jorge in category Write From the Heart by Veronica Jorge tagged as Apple Table Penny .Murder, Book Reivew, Carol L Wright, Veronica Jorge
APPLE, TABLE, PENNY… MURDER:
A SUZY KEMP MYSTERY
by
CAROL L. WRIGHT
Cozy Den Press,
2023
ISBN 978-0-9742891-6-8
Transitions and downsizing are never easy, but after the loss of her husband, Suzy Kemp knows a retirement community is the best decision for her. Thankfully, she has her devoted son to help her through the process. And today she’s all set to move into the independent-living apartment she selected.
Suzy goes through the check-in process and final health assessments, but her mind is on her cute apartment with a patio and a garden, her furniture that should arrive tomorrow, and other details of her new life. Is it any wonder then that she missed a few of the memory test questions? It could happen to anyone.
Suzy finds herself being wheeled into a hospital style memory care unit instead of her own apartment.
She tries to adjust to what she hopes is a temporary situation, but making friends with people who can’t remember who she is, or who they are, is a challenge. Hearing screams in the night doesn’t help either.
Things take a turn for the worse when Suzy notices that Jeanette, one of the residents, is missing. Perhaps she’s gone home? Gotten better and moved into her own apartment? Like the one she should be in instead of here.
But when Suzy inquires about Jeannette, everyone pretends she doesn’t exist.
Suzy questions her memory and her sanity, but when another resident disappears, Suzy is convinced that something strange and criminal is taking place in the retirement community. But who’s going to believe her, a woman with memory issues? And who can she trust?
Suzy is determined to discover what’s going on. And it’ll take all of her deductive skills, and memory, to work out the clues that will hopefully prevent others from disappearing, including her.
Apple, Table, Penny…Murder, is witty and intriguing with just the right amount of suspense, mystery, and humor. A delightful and entertaining read.
Veronica Jorge
See you next time on October 22nd!
Other Books Reviewed by Veronica
The Witch Whisperer: A Review by Veronica Jorge
March 22, 2023 by Veronica Jorge in category Book Reviews by Veronica Jorge, Write From the Heart by Veronica Jorge tagged as Barb Delong, book review, Keepers of Magic Series, The Witch Whisperer, Veronica Jorge
THE WITCH WHISPERER
Book 1 in the Keepers of Magic Series
BARB DELONG
The Wild Rose Press, 2023
ISBN 978-1-5092-4722-6
Willow Gladstone, one of the Elite witches with healing hands, strives for and is obsessed with being perfect. When her magic powers go awry: plates flying out of cupboards, silverware lifting off the table, and worse, she panics. As a witch living in a world of regular mortals, it’s her responsibility to keep her magic hidden and in check. If she can’t control her powers, the Bureau of Magic will incarcerate her in the secret witch society’s Haven, which she is sure is anything but.
Willow’s only option is to entrust herself into the hands of a recluse, living out a sentence on a secluded estate for his past misdeeds; Never Ravenwood, a man known as the Witch Whisperer, for his skill at fixing broken magic.
In Willow’s dire case, the cure for her broken magic is Bilbane, a special herb found only in the forbidden other-worldly realm of Tae-wan.
Willow and Never butt heads and match wits and unknowingly spark the unexpected yet much desired magic of love.
Never must decide if he should enter the magic portal into Tae-wan to obtain the Bilbane and heal Willow’s magic. Is his love for Willow strong and true enough to risk his life and the safety of their world? Willow questions what she wants most: the safety of the man she has fallen in love with, or the herb that can make her magic perfect?
What would you choose?
Enchantment, mayhem, danger, and love make The Witch Whisperer an entertaining and exciting read.
Veronica Jorge
See you next time on April 22nd!
Read an interview of Barb DeLong here.
Book Reviewed by Veronica Jorge
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