This Much is True

Okay, let’s face it, we’re all pretty tired of facebook changing things and making it hard to keep the things we post private but this last round of changes has really taken the cake. With this new ticker feature scrolling on the side of the screen all the time, I can see things about people I don’t even know about. From my facebook ticker, I can see things like “X commented on Y’s Post on Z’s Wall:” and I only know X. Not a clue who Y and Z are but somehow I’ve been dragged into a conversation between them because X chose to make a comment and facebook’s algorithm thinks I should know it. FYI, I do not care!

Now, I know that this won’t matter a bit in most cases, but there are cases where it could. Maybe I don’t want to know that my Aunt Fanny commented “ooh, love those hot buns” on some woman’s photo of a Chippendale dancer. And I sure don’t want my boss to know that I Liked the candidate his friend is running against in the next election. Ensuring our privacy on facebook can be pretty important. So, how to do it?

First, set your default privacy to Friends. Not friends of friends because you don’t know who they are, do ya?

Go to the upper right corner in facebook, next to your name and the word, Home and click on the arrow. Then Privacy Settings.

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My publisher, Breakwater Books, has a contest on facebook giving away copies of both my novels. Check it out on facebook.

Two things (I am not going to do the obligatory bad blogger post although I know I really, really, really deserve it):

1. I know I haven’t been posting much lately (damn, I did it anyway!) but mostly it’s because I haven’t had the time to take away from my life and other writing to write long posts, and because facebook and twitter provide me with other places to say things I want to say. I always think of blog posts as long, well thought out things and the thought sometimes is overwhelming but I’ve decided that it’s okay to post shorter things here too so that’s what I’ll be doing more of. Still some longer posts sometimes but I’m giving myself the option of putting shorter posts here when I want.
2. I have a new blog I’ve started called Never Eat a Dinosaur. You can find it, conveniently enough, at nevereatadinosaur.com. It’s something I’ve been thinking about doing for a long time now. Many times I find myself saying something, usually to my three-year-old, and think, how did I, a relatively normal, not horribly unintelligent human being, just say that? Things like “never eat a dinosaur” or “don’t put that plane in your ear” and I always think I should make a blog about saying such things. So I did.
   I’d love for you to check it out, maybe laugh, hopefully submit your own Never Eat a Dinosaur moment, like the site on facebook, and/or follow it on twitter. So come join in the fun. I have a contest going on this month and there’s a bunch of ways you can enter to win a great gift certificate.You know I always love to hear from you whether it’s here, via email, or at Never Eat a Dinosaur.

Four years ago, I wrote a blog post about remembering those lost on the Ocean Ranger. Since then, I have moved my blog to this place but the old one still remains. People still find that post, at the old blog, through search engines and some people have left lovely messages in the comments section. Some have been addressed to me but many end up being addressed to someone lost as a message to them. Every now and then I will get an email letting me know of another comment and it is quite moving to read things from the people who knew and loved someone who was on the Ocean Ranger on that terrible day. I thought maybe you might like to read them and know that these men are not forgotten, not by those who love them and not by thousands and thousands of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians and people the world over. Every year on this day, we feel their loss, although surely not as deeply as those who knew and loved them. So, take a moment and remember them today and look at the words of those that are doing the same. If you’d like to read the post that led to the comments, you can find it here on this site or on the original blog site here. (I did not include one comment pointing out that while there were 84 men lost that day, I only listed 82 in my post. I have tried numerous times to find the names that are not included and if you know, please tell me so I can rectify this.) Let’s never forget.

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Okay, so I’m going to have to put TiNoWriMo down as a fail. Obviously, I don’t do well without a solid goal, a challenge and a number I can see and measure. Of course, I did give myself the general goal to write more this month and I have but, as I told you in the last post, that’s not saying much. I think I was a bit burned out from writing a first draft of a novel in less than five months. Yes, I know I did one last year in one month but that one wasn’t as good a complete draft (but is a great idea and a book with real potential I need to find the time to get at since it is very timely and, as far as I know, has never been done before anywhere). The draft I finished in early September was much better and it should be because I got a grant from the lovely and fabulous Newfoundland and Labrador Arts Council to write that draft and now, I am pleased to say, just received another grant to complete the novel. This is a real show of faith when they give you money and think your project is worth funding. It is quite the morale boost for me and I am tickled and thankful. As for writing more, I know this will happen now because I have had a break away for a bit and been picking at Unnamed Fun Novel so getting back to work on Rewriting History will be great. I have a renewed passion for it.

My second goal for TiNoWriMo was writing every day and that has been an epic fail. Completely measurable and for sure I didn’t do it. What else is there to say? Excuses, yeah, I have them but so does everyone and I had way worse get in my way last year during NaNoWriMo and succeeded so excuses don’t matter now.

I hope all the NaNoers out there are doing better than I’ve been doing and, if you’re behind, don’t give up. Now is the time to change your main character’s name to something long and unwieldy. The longest name ever, according to the websites I searched this morning, is Adolph Blaine Charles David Earl Frederick Jack Gerald Hubert Irvin John Kenneth Lloyd Martin Nero Oliver Paul Quincy Randolph Sherman Thomas Uncas Victor William Xerxes Yancy Zeus Wolfeschlegelsteinhausenbergerdorft Senior. If you really need it to catch up, take it and run. And if people say you’re not playing fair, ask them where their novel is.  Write on!

Last year this time, I was starting NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) as thousands of others are this year. I made it clear last year that I didn’t think I’d ever do it again. Not that it wasn’t a great thing to challenge myself and to force all my writing muscles to work hard but it just didn’t seem the best use of my time. This may change if I ever get around to editing the book I wrote then and it goes anywhere but for this year, I am content to not paricipate in NaNoWriMo. But, I have decided to start my own writing goal this year and it’s TiNoWriMo–Tina’s November Write More. I gave myself a goal of writing every day in November and writing a lot more than I have been of late (which, quite frankly, wouldn’t take much). I was going to give myself the goal of writing 50,000 words this month in my various works in progress but decided against it. A word count goal means typing which takes away time from writing or means I have to type while I write which stifles me. I could count all the words I write in longhand but that seems a giant waste of time. This writing every day thing works for me as I would usually write a couple of thousand words at a setting anyway so it should work out. Finding extra time to write is my goal and also getting those writing muscles built up again. So if you’re doing NaNoWriMo, good luck and don’t give up. You can do it! And if you just would like to write more, feel free to join up for TiNoWriMo. Or make your own NoWriMo. It’s about what works best for you so get at it!

Well, Word on the Street in Halifax was a blast. The first night we got there, there was a VIP reception for those participating in the literary festival. It was at Brussels Restaurant and Brasserie. What, you may ask, is a brasserie? Well, it’s a French word and means a place that serves beer and food. And boy, do they serve beer. At the brasserie, there were 17 different draft beers and over 130 imported and Belgian beers by the bottle. No, we didn’t try them all but we did quite a lot of sampling, we’ll say and were among the last to leave the reception (actually long after the official reception was over). I had a great time chatting and laughing about all things literary and non-literary with fellow panelists the next day on the main stage, Russell Wangersky and Darren Hynes. As well, got to meet and have a few laughs with a local publishing force and her niece, along with some members of the Word on the Street organizing committee, who were all warm and welcoming, and, of course, my husband who came up to Halifax with me. We all walked back to the hotel the Word on the Street people had put us up in, in gorgeous suites, and stood around outside chatting some more on what was a beautiful and warm September night. Next thing I heard someone say, “Tina Chaulk” and turned around to see a friend from Aspen Cove I haven’t seen in many years. She just happened to be in Halifax for the night and happened to be walking by that hotel at that time. There were screams and hugs and I guess I should apologize to the guests at the Radisson for all the noise.

The next day was a bit cooler but still fairly nice for the actual festival which took place in beautiful Victoria Park. Having it there, in tents for various venues, meant lots of foot traffic and curious people. I did a book signing and a reading with the panel on the main stage and then another signing. I’m happy to say that my fabulous publisher, Breakwater Books, had sold out of my first novel, this much is true, and only had a couple of copies left of A Few Kinds of Wrong when I left the festival around 2:30. I enjoyed signing all the books and meeting the great people there who obviously love books and reading. All in all, it was a great festival.

Vince and I stayed in the Radisson another night and then went off to another hotel we had booked that was much farther away from downtown (we would have stayed on at the Radisson but they were booked up–we’ll know better next time). At this time, the cold I had been battling for more than a week, set in. My body held out until my duties were done and then hit me with a cold, two ear infections, and a sinus infection. As I sit here, I am on the second round of antibiotics trying to get rid of the ear infections which were well rooted by the time I got back home and got a doctor’s appointment. It’s hard to hear and even harder to know how loud I am talking all the time so be glad you just have to read this post and not listen to it or else you’d probably hear shouting or mumbling too low. Anyway, the rest of the trip to Halifax was mostly just relaxing, a bit of sightseeing and walking around, and some shopping. It was nice to have time to ourselves without the kids but we missed them a lot and were eager to get back home. Halifax is a great place with a waterfront that St. John’s could take some cues from. It was a fun and productive trip and I’d do Word on the Street again in a heartbeat. Thanks to the organizing committee for all their hard work.

I am so excited that I’ll be off to Halifax this weekend to take part in the Word on the Street Book and Magazine Festival in Halifax. I’ll be flying in on Saturday and then taking part in the festival on Sunday. I’ll be on the Nova Scotia Main Stage at 12:30 on Sunday, September 26th and am thrilled to be sharing the stage with Russell Wangersky and Darren Hynes. Of course, you know me, I’m already nervous too but strangely a panel situation makes me feel a little less nervous than just straight standing up and reading. I’ll be terrified on Sunday, I know, but once it gets going, I’ll be fine. I know Russell and just his being there will probably make me feel more relaxed (one can only hope). Plus, my husband is going with me too and he’s the best in the world at calming me down when I’m nervous. So, if you’re in the Halifax area, come on by and say hi. I’ll be signing copies of A Few Kinds of Wrong (and this much is true, I assume) after the event as well.

I’ve always written with music in mind, even if I don’t always write to music. All my books have soundtracks full of songs that inspire me or make me understand a scene or character. Early ones were on mixed tapes, then CDs and now there is the oh so easy to change, iPod (Touch) playlist. One of the novels I’m writing now has become firmly planted in my soul now because I have a playlist for it. That’s how I usually know that a novel is working for me–when I find myself hearing music and thinking of the characters and can then make a playlist.

Last week we were listening to music over supper preparation and eating and I put my new novel’s playlist on shuffle. My husband listened and, after keeping quiet for a while (we’ve had many discussions over my odd and varied tastes in music over the years, some out loud and some said with surly looks at me), he finally said, “what is this?” I told him it was the playlist for Rewriting History and he seemed satisfied with that. A few songs later though, he spoke up again. “Um,. I don’t get this playlist at all. The songs don’t really seem to have anything in common.” I smiled and told him he didn’t understand how I make playlists.

As I’ve explained here before, I often write internally, frequently while on a treadmill or elliptical machine while listening to music. Many scenes, and almost all pivotal scenes, have a song or two associated with them, almost a music video that I can picture while I listen. But some songs on a playlist are more about a mood. They are sad and I can feel my character being sad through them, even if the lyrics don’t match a scene. Or they are upbeat and I can think of my character driving too fast while listening to them on a sunny day. Rewriting History has three main characters and the story is told through each of them so the Rewriting History soundtrack also includes songs I think each of them would like. Since the main characters are quite a bit older than me, they are not necessarily the songs I’d like but I think I can imagine my characters listening to them so that lets me understand them more. So, you can see how listening to a playlist that includes The All-American Rejects, Kris Kristofferson, Cher, the Tragically Hip, the Dixie Chicks, The Killers, and Billy Idol, (to name a few) might be confusing to my husband but for me, and for the people who live inside Rewriting History, it makes perfect sense. I just wish one of them didn’t like the Beatles so much. Maybe she’ll force me to become a fan yet if I listen to them enough. Maybe you will find that creating a playlist like this for your writing will help bring your characters new life.

The sad facts are that women in Newfoundland and Labrador have one of the highest rates of cervical cancer in the country and the number of women who die from cervical cancer  is double the national rate. Screening is vital to catch this disease early or to prevent it by finding precancerous signs. Dr. Roxanne Cooper has created a mobile pap clinic which will be going to several communities over the summer. Check it out and see if it’s in your area and pass the word on.If you’d like to know more about the great work Dr. Cooper is doing in pap screening, check out this article from the NLMA newsletter. And, most importantly, get your regular pap test and encourage the women you love to do the same.