Serials and Scenarios - Jenny B. Jones' Big Picture

Jenny B. Jones popped in with some excellent answers to the Dregs. By the way, Jenny has been nominated for a Christy Award for her novel In Between. Pretty stinking huge. Congratulations, Jenny and thanks for dropping by.

Check out Jenny's blog and click on her book cover to learn more about Jenny. Read chapter one, here.



I'm really tempted to post one of the hilarious Jenny from the past pictures that she posted on her blog. But I'll be nice and post the provided regulation author pic.


If you could ask any person, living or dead, a random question -- what question would you ask of whom?


I would ask Jackie O. what she really knows about JFK’s death. You KNOW she had to know at least something.



Some out there in writing land have strange rituals. Share yours.



Go to computer. Open Word doc. Check email. Check phone for any texts. Think about my book for a few seconds. Check email again. Stare at blank Word doc. Phone has yet to beep, check battery. Check ETonline for latest news. Check CNN in case I have to act smart later in the day. Check email again. Check some blogs. Put my fingers on the keyboard. Repeat process—especially the emailing part.

If you could change something in any novel, what would you change about it and why?


I’d totally rewrite the movies (and books where applicable) to Fox and the Hound, Where the Red Fern Grows, and Old Yeller. Those movies scarred me FOR LIFE.


What crayon in the box describes you on a good day? Bad day? Which one do you aspire to be?

I would love to be the sharpest one…just once.


Pick one…..Pink iguana, purple cow, periwinkle giraffe. Which one and why? Can be negative or positive.


I would love to be a periwinkle giraffe and see what it’s like to be tall. But then again, giraffes eat a lot of leaves, and I do that already, so I would probably rather be the animal that doesn’t eat a lot of salads.


Favorite turn of phrase or word picture, in literature or movie.

Pretty much anything that Rick Bragg has ever written. Makes you die a little inside and think “I’m not worthy!”

If you were assured of writing a best-seller, what genre would it be? Give us a sliver of information, a characteristic or glimpse of a scene.


I don’t know, but one day I’d love to write a YA princessy story along the lines of Enchanted or Ever After. I’ve never outgrown that phase.


What period of history intrigues you the most?



I love history, so any of it. Love reading about royalty and such. The WWII era is really fascinating to me.


What would you write if there were no rules or barriers? (epic novels about characters in the Bible, poetry, greeting cards, plays, movies, instruction manuals, etc.)

I would write emails. And somehow get paid for it. When that gig opens up, I am first in line. Actually I have a friend who is a published composer. We have talked for a few years about putting our heads together and writing a campy musical. I would love to actually sit down and do that. Who has time? (Not me, I’m too busy emailing…)


What makes you feel alive?


The sun. I’m the palest thing ever and live in sunscreen, but I still love to be outside and see/feel the sun. I teach all day in a room with no windows, and it’s KILLING me. I KNOW it’s mood altering. My intake of chocolate has increased dramatically. Also music. LOVE it. Any of it.



How does something worm its way into your heart? Through tears, truth, humor or other?

Definitely humor. My students know that if they can get me to laugh, they can have pretty much anything. (It rarely happens..) I love to laugh and make others laugh. Things that also get into my heart usually involve some story of triumph—especially when it involves children.

Book, music, person, food you would take with you on a very long trip.

CD—the Broadway soundtrack to Wicked. Or just my ipod so I could listen to a bunch of things. Food? Mike and Ikes and chocolate covered raisins.

Where would you most like to travel ----- moon, north pole, deep seas, deserted island, the holy land or back to a place from your childhood, somewhere else? – and why.

I would love to go to the Holy Land. My church just took a group and their stories and pics were amazing. They say it’s an experience of a lifetime. Next summer I hope to travel to my dream destinations Ireland and Scotland. I think it’s gonna be beautiful! (like my credit card bill!)


Favorite season and why?

I love them all. By the time I get sick of one, it’s time for a new one! But as for winter—I am obsessed with snow days. School closing-snow is like nirvana. I spend a million hours a week tracking the weather during this time. It’s really time well spent, I’m sure. ; )


Favorite book setting and why?


In terms of writing—the south. Because I know it and love it. We are people who know how to cook, know what a front porch is for, and that sometimes the dog just needs to sleep in the house. Just kidding. I love to focus on small town life and the culture of the south. As a reader, I love to read about England (historical) and NYC (contemporary).


Which compliment related to your writing has meant the most and why?



When people tell me that the characters were real to them. Yesterday I got a message from a reader who said while reading the end of The Big Picture she had to collect herself from a crying jag before she went into church. It’s an honor that a reader has invested herself so fully into your fictional world and given up their time and attention and just jumped in.


What criticism has cut the deepest and why?


So far, so good…but I know my day is coming.




What would you do today if you knew you had only a week to live?


Eat. A lot. And hang out with my family. Maybe skydive. Try to think of who I need to apologize to. Write some letters. Check ETonline. Kidding.


What is your favorite word?

Redeemed. Not just for the meaning—I love the sound of that word.


What word annoys you more than any other?


LOL. I KNOW I’m in the minority, but I really can’t stand LOL. Wowsers is up there to. I read that word in books, but…don’t really know anyone who says it. (Have I managed to offend everyone now?)


Superhero you most admire and why?


My mom. She was a single parent and did an amazing job with two kids who weren’t the easiest. She was one of those parents who gave up everything for her kids.



Super power you'd love to borrow for awhile?

Super Memory Skills. Oh, to be able to remember birthdays, deadlines, where I put my shoes.

Favorite chore

None. Absolutely none. I hate anything that has to do with cleaning. When I was 16 I worked in a grocery store and got some strange thrill out of mopping the store by myself at night. I think the Clorox fumes did something to my brain.


Grammatical pet peeve…sound off.


I’m the opposite—overly correct drives me nuts. If someone asks me how I’m doing, and I say, “good,” I mean it! I’m not well. If I was well, I’d give you my temp and vital stats. I don’t care how grammatically correct it is! I’m GOOD! ; )




Societal pet peeve…sound off.



People who are too lazy to put their carts up and leave them in store parking lots. Next to my car. Where the new scratch is.


CREATIVE CORNER: Pick any of the following and have fun with it.



Swirling leaves riding the icy wind, danced up Liesel's skirt.
The leaves weren't the only things stirred up by the breeze which now carried the cloying scent of death.


I followed the trail into my house, trying not to wretch. My heart thudding with regret and fear, I opened the refrigerator door. And saw last month’s leftovers. Again.



I'm not so interested in boxers or briefs. I'm just looking for a good man to fill them. Heck, I find a good man and he can wear banana peels as far as I'm concerned.


Did you make that last one up? If so, take that off! That belongs in one of your books! That’s awesome!

Scribbles and Scrambles - Squirrel Harassment - Big Time

In my hometown we claim a special squirrel fame. Does that sound weird? Let me explain...we are one of the only natural, original homes of black squirrels. No, not grey, not rust, but black.


Because we have a unique squirrel situation, we have unique squirrel protection laws.


We are not allowed to harass black squirrels.



I don't know what squirrel harassment looks like.


However, the G.I. Joes' in the picture would be in big trouble if this squirrel's fur was a few shades darker.



I have no idea where this picture originated, but honestly, I just couldn't let it pass without comment.

The moral of this story: Hmmm. Don't harass ANY squirrels. Beware of the squirrel's revenge. Don't buy G.I. Joe action figures and leave them unattended. Keep your eyes peeled for roadkill for photo opportunities.

Scribble and Scrambles - Even Better than Laughing Babies...

Mid-week har, har, har. Haven't figured my sense of humor out yet? Here's a huge clue. This kind of stuff totally cracks me up.

I laughed. I cried. I yodeled.

Serials and Scenarios - Trish Ryan HE LOVES ME, HE LOVES ME NOT

Click on the book cover for more info, and here to visit Trish Ryan's site. Hmm. I tried to match the toad's lipstick. I think I got it.

Here's my review of this engaging book.

HE LOVES ME, HE LOVES ME NOT is a well-written and engaging memoir along the lines of those penned by Donald Miller, and reminding me very much of Lauren Winner's Girl Meets God.

Trish Ryan lays out her journey from stars and crystals to a tentative step forward, three-step- back, and final two-handed grasp of the truth of Jesus as her source of spiritual fulfillment. The road is winding and full of poetic sarcasm and sweet, struggling surrender.

Miller fans, women who despair of finding that perfect Christian man, those on the brink of a spiritual journey, or ones beaten down by religion and empty promises may find soul-balm in this book. Baby-steppers in Jesus, wheel-spinners, spiritual quicksand dwellers and ditch rollers may find fresh air and relief from the struggle in the truths that Trish discovered while wrestling spirituality.

However, warning to the sensitive. Trish is transparently generous with her thoughts and not all will please more conservative readers. Trish has embraced freedom in Christ and though I highly recommend and sometimes long for that path, my Baptist upbringing cautions me far too often. So, if you are easily offended by the idea of a Christian drinking alcohol or sharing thoughts that wouldn't pass the prim Sunday School teacher appropriateness test....do yourself a favor and don't go there. Because, if you do go there you are going to not glean the truth from the book but get hung up in the details.

Sensitive parents will also want to review the book before allowing OLDER teens to read it because Trish delves into dysfunctional relationships, including her own issues.

The chapters covering Trish's growth into wife material really should be must-reading for all females who love Jesus and want a husband real bad.

Serials and Scenarios - Athol Dickson Worth the Wait

Thanks, Athol. These were worth the wait, and you were very generous. I appreciate the time you invested in the Dregs.

Fiction character you would most like to be or most identify with and why?

The protagonist of Patrick O’Brian’s series, Captain Jack Aubrey, comes to mind. O’Brian is a wonderful writer, and I’d be a full-time sailor in another life. It blows my mind that guys really used to do the kinds of things O’Brian describes Aubrey doing.

If you could ask any person, living or dead, a random question -- what question would you ask of whom?

How could I possibly narrow this down to one person? “Jesus” is too obvious. So are “Abe Lincoln,” and “Alexander the Great” and so forth.

Maybe I’d go back in time and ask my high school sweetheart why she broke up with me. Sniff.

Some out there in writing land have strange rituals. Share yours.

A fifty-fifty mix of grape and peach juice in a coffee cup, a set of good headphones dialed into Mozart, an easy chair and a laptop. That’s all I need.

If you could change something in any novel, what would you change about it and why?

There was a line in my first novel, WHOM SHALL I FEAR?, that goes something like: “Christians don’t despair.” I’ve lived a little since writing that, and I know it isn’t always true. It would be great if is WAS true, but it’s not. So I’d take it back if I could, and try to be a bit more realistic.

What crayon in the box describes you on a good day? Bad day? Which one do you aspire to be?

These are good questions. I’m not smart enough to answer most of them. Will you be grading on a curve?

Pick one…..Pink iguana, purple cow, periwinkle giraffe. Which one and why? Can be negative or positive.

“Periwinkle giraffe”, for two reasons. “Giraffe” is a strange word if you stop to think about it. There are words that sound normal but look weird, and “giraffe” is one of them.

Plus, I’ve never been quite sure what color “periwinkle” is, so this way I get to find out. Is it kind of like chartreuse?

Favorite turn of phrase or word picture, in literature or movie.

“Rosebud.”

If you were assured of writing a best-seller, what genre would it be? Give us a sliver of information, a characteristic or glimpse of a scene.

Genre, schmenre! I just write, and the marketing guys figure out how to sell it. They say it’s “suspense,” so I say, “okay, it’s suspense.” But mainly I just try to keep the reader interested. One thing you can count on: I’m going to do my best to come up with SOMETHING in the story that I have never seen or heard of anybody else doing before. It’s good to be original!

What period of history intrigues you the most?

I like it all. There are some places and times were I would NOT want to go…it would be a drag to hang with the Aztecs, for example. All those body parts on the dinner table, you know. But other than a few exceptions along those lines, I think it would be wonderful to travel around in time. I’d love to witness a Beethoven premier, or see a Titian or a Monet unveiled. But if I had to narrow it down, I think I’d like to tag along with the Israelites during the Exodus. Can you imagine seeing those walls of water? Wow.

What would you write if there were no rules or barriers? (epic novels about characters in the Bible, poetry, greeting cards, plays, movies, instruction manuals, etc.)

I’m writing it. Seriously, I don’t see rules and barriers as a problem in art. They’re a necessary framework, and art is only good if it works within them. A musician might as well complain that there are too few keys on a piano, or a sculptor that limestone is too heavy. A major part of doing art is working within the world as it is to make it something more.

What makes you feel alive?

My wife. And Jesus, when I’m not too focused on me.

How does something worm its way into your heart? Through tears, truth, humor or other?

A good comedy is fun, but it’s the sad stories I remember.

Book, music, person, food you would take with you on a very long trip.

Bible. Enya. My wife. Ritz crackers.

Where would you most like to travel ----- moon, north pole, deep seas, deserted island, the holy land or back to a place from your childhood, somewhere else? – and why.

The Holy Land would be great. I think the “why” is obvious for a Christian. Other than that, I’ve always wanted to hang out in Scotland. My father’s side of the family comes from there, which is why I was named “Athol”.

Favorite season and why?

Winter is the least favorite. I hate being cold. But favorite…I guess I’ll have to go with Spring, because of the promise of a new beginning and all that.

Favorite book setting and why?

I love Dickens’s England. I love Twain’s Mississippi. I love the high seas in Patrick O’Brian’s novels, as I already mentioned. Really, any well drawn setting is a wonderful place to go in literature.

Which compliment related to your writing has meant the most and why?

Getting a Christy Award made me feel like I really was a writer. I don’t think I had quite allowed myself to believe it before that.

What criticism has cut the deepest and why?

An editor once told me I couldn’t save a rough draft, because it was too flawed. I still plan to prove him wrong one of these days.

What would you do today if you knew you had only a week to live?

Pray, and hug my wife.

What is your favorite word?

Love.

What word annoys you more than any other?

It’s two words, but I find “No problem,” very annoying when it’s substituted for “You’re welcome.” It betrays a self-centeredness that really bothers me.

Superhero you most admire and why?

I was a huge fan of Spiderman in my youth. I think it was because Peter Parker was a regular guy. Also, I thought it would be groovy to spray that web stuff everywhere.

Super power you'd love to borrow for awhile?

The ability to fly.

Favorite chore :

Washing my boat.

Anything you'd do but don't because of fear of pain? What is it? Ex.

Bungee jumping, sky diving, running with scissors.

All of the above. But it’s not fear of pain so much as fear of death.

Grammatical pet peeve…sound off.

There’s that “no problem” thing. Other than that, I get really frustrated by all these improper apostrophes we’re seeing on plural nouns. You see it all the time anymore, like: “No dog’s allowed.” How come people all of a sudden started thinking that you have to hook an “s” onto words with an apostrophe? I don’t get it.

Societal pet peeve…sound off.

Again with the “no problem” thing. It’s really a very serious scourge, which I fear will be the ruin of us all.

CREATIVE CORNER: Pick any of the following and have fun with it.

This is too much like showing off!

Scribble and Scrambles - Nada Post

Just zipping through. We held a honken garage sale today and had loads of fun...if you can call that fun. Our "nephew" Josh came all the way from Minnesota to experience an Iowa garage sale.

There we are.

We are heading out to see the movie Expelled so I'll do a review soon.

And good news, Athol Dickson sent his Dregs answers so I'll post those next week.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

Serials and Scenarios - Athol Dickson's Winter Haven

I'd love to be able to give you more personally gleaned info. But alas, I've not read the book, though I want to, and Athol had an ugly deadline so he wasn't able to get to the questions.

As per usual, click on the book cover to see more from Amazon. Here to find out more about Athol and here to see what Kim had to say about it all.

Since Athol has the questions he may just pop in and surprise us some day.

Have a great weekend everyone.