I’ve posted before about the differences in writing fiction and non-fiction and with my latest book, To Play on Grass Fields, I’ve had several questions since I have a note in the book about how it was inspired by my experiences in Haiti during Operation Uphold Democracy (1995).

The reason it took me 20 years to actually write this book is because 1) the main theme is very complex, 2) I wanted to be cautious of the technological, economic, and social elements I included and that required a lot of research, and 3) I wasn’t certain of what approach I wanted to take. Ironically, one of the original angles I wanted to use for the climax of the book I decided to change because I didn’t think it would be credible, and yet, something similar is currently occurring with the resistance in Iran. Setting that aside for the moment, some of the more brutal aspects depicted are sadly based on events that have taken place in other continents. Third-word countries, and especially those considered virtually hopeless for any chance of development, face a very different reality than do those of emerging nations. Have I personally experienced it? No. Have I worked with/known people who have traveled in some of those places? Yes. If you watch movies such as, “Hotel Rawanda” or “The Last King of Scotland”, they are based on true stories.

The lengthy discussion in the one chapter about transforming the military of the fictional Malathos is quite valid. This is one of the areas that was discussed by the Task Force in Haiti and is being implemented in a few (too few) countries to try to lessen the possibility of future change of government by coup.

I debated for quite some time about including the final segment “Excerpt of Lecture by Dr. Byrne”. There were, however, points I wanted to make I could not and keep the dialog/pace moving as I wished and that’s why I created the final segment as I did.

There is nothing wrong with still liking a flip phone, and actually, there are still a few models that precede those. When I say “nothing wrong” I mean in having a preference. The issue, as often happens, becomes the problem of maintaining older technology no matter what the item is. Try finding someone to repair an eight-track tape player these days.

With all the gadgets that will be unwrapped tomorrow, those who know how to use them will probably squeal/smile with pleasure. In some cases, the recipient will politely respond, not certain of what on earth they are going to do with “this thing”. For older people, there is a range of, “I’ll give it a try”, to “I really don’t want to mess with this.” That kind of reaction is genuinely nothing personal, but it is something to keep in mind when looking for technology that will make an older person’s life easier. That can very well be true or it can be a source of frustration. The point is that first, the individual has to want whatever the result is supposed to be. Let’s take the e-book reader as an example. The features of being able to increase the size of the font at a press of a button, order something within a matter of minutes, and not need more bookshelf space are great. But if an individual is not comfortable with ordering on line and can’t quite figure out how to use the functions without someone there to help, that’s not such a good deal. And yes, the phrase, “If I can do it, anyone can,” is simply not always correct. Each person has their own way of learning, and more importantly, retaining new information. Spiffy technology might be just the thing, but you do have to be prepared that it also might not be the answer.

It’s been a while since I posted about this topic, but a recent discussion brought it to mind. Independent authors are very much like out-of-the-way restaurants. You know the kind – they can’t afford to be in a prime location, the food critics aren’t likely to know about them, and they aren’t going to have a robust advertising budget to blanket their target market. Yes, social media is a tool, but if you’ve never tried to actually use social media for promotion, you will find that what marketers will happily point to as successful campaigns usually equally ignore those that fall flat. The simple fact is word-of-mouth combined with actual quality are still the best ways for any “unknown” to become known

Book reviews, even if they are only a few words, on Amazon, Good Reads, or whatever you’re preferred on-line book seller is continues to be especially important to little-known authors. People can find a lesser-known author through various means, but when they do, their question is  – “Why should I take a chance on this?”. As most of us know, the description of a book only gets you so far. When they see positive reviews though, that can make a difference in taking a chance on an unfamiliar author. You hope the outcome is a new fan who then helps spread the word.

The downside of course is people can and certainly do post negative reviews; some of which can be painful. It’s part of the life of an author to accept this risk and read those reviews to see if there is a valid point. There is a saying, although I don’t know who to attribute it to, of something like, “No two people ever read a book in the same way.” I  have been quite surprised over the years when speaking to groups to have characters or scenes interpreted in different ways than I intended. It too, is something you learn as an author.

In costume for Trepek with one of the other guest performers

There was a time when I barely gave the ballet, “Nutcracker”, little if any thought. I mean, I appreciated it as a holiday tradition and I remember the year my nephew was old enough to attend. They were in Houston so of course it was a highly professional performance and my sister still fondly recalls the event. It is indeed a great way to introduce a child to ballet with the wonderful array of characters and the variety of dance. Since son has been in the dance world I have come to more appreciate the other value of Nutcracker.

It is the money-maker for a lot of studios, but set that aside for the moment.What I’ve learned is that as a private studio grows, it’s expansion can be related to the quality of the Nutcracker performances. Can it be held in some sort of theater? Can they bring in one or more professional dancers to ply thea key roles? If so, these two points can be used in advertising their ballet programs.

The performing company our son dances with ends their fall season early enough in November to allow the dancers to take on guest roles for those studios who can bring in professionals. Since he does the Russian Dance so well, that has been a staple for him although he’s done many of the other parts, too. His first real contract was to perform the Russian Dance with the Delta Festival Ballet in New Orleans. Several years ago I put together a family trip to see him and it may be  time to do so again. They almost always schedule their Nutcracker for the weekend before Christmas which means like this year, he will be flying home Christmas Eve. It will be his third performance of the season (one Christmas Carol and two Nutcrackers) and this is why we don’t bring them for Christmas. Since rehearsals and sometimes an extra performance begins right after Thanksgiving, they are generally exhausted by the time the last one is over. The couple of days of rest before we fly them in gives them all a chance to catch their breath.