Sound Effects – My Corner

A Sound Occupation #SixSentenceStoryThursdayLinkUp #WritingPrompts #Inspiration

My uncle Jon in California does sound effects for movies. He won an OSCAR years ago for a film about a German submarine during World War II.

In the summer of 2005, my late husband Bill and I, while in California on an early honeymoon, visited him in Valley Village. He took us to his studio and demonstrated how he creates sound effects. We were both fascinated, and Bill asked, in jest, if he could work for Uncle Jon. Now, I wonder how different things would have been if Bill had been serious.

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By the way, you can read more about me and Bill in My Ideal Partner: How I Met, Married, and Cared for the Man I Loved Despite Debilitating Odds. Thanks to Girlie on the Edge for inspiring the above with her six-sentence story prompt for this week, in which the given word is “film.” You can click here to participate in this week’s hop and read other bloggers’ six-sentence creations.

Photo Courtesy of Tess Anderson Photography

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New! Why Grandma Doesn’t Know Me

Independently published with the help of DLD Books.

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Two Pentacles Publishing.

Sixteen-year-old Natalie’s grandmother, suffering from dementia and confined to a wheelchair, lives in a nursing home and rarely recognizes Natalie. But one Halloween night, she tells her a shocking secret that only she and Natalie’s mother know. Natalie is the product of a one-night stand between her mother, who is a college English teacher, and another professor.

After some research, Natalie learns that people with dementia often have vivid memories of past events. Still not wanting to believe what her grandmother has told her, she finds her biological father online. The resemblance between them is undeniable. Not knowing what else to do, she shows his photo and website to her parents.

Natalie realizes she has some growing up to do. Scared and confused, she reaches out to her biological father, and they start corresponding.

Her younger sister, Sarah, senses their parents’ marital difficulties. At Thanksgiving, when she has an opportunity to see Santa Claus, she asks him to bring them together again. Can the jolly old elf grant her request?

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The Tantalizing Tale of Tarzan’s Trademarked Tones #Friday Fun Reads #Reblog

Have you ever wondered where Tarzan got his famous yell? Well, you can read all about it on the Commonplace Fun Facts blog and watch a video where you’ll hear that famous call.

Via The Tantalizing Tale of Tarzan’s Trademarked Tones #Friday Fun Reads #Reblog

By the way, for those of you who use the National Library Services for the Blind and Print Disabled, The Red Dress is available for download from their site here. No matter how you read it, please be sure to review it wherever you can. That goes for all my books. Thank you for stopping by. Stay safe, happy, and healthy, and may you always have positive experiences.

New! The Red Dress

When Eve went to her high school senior prom, she wore a red dress that her mother had made for her. That night, after dancing with the boy of her dreams, she caught him in the act with her best friend. Months later, Eve, a freshman in college, is bullied into giving the dress to her roommate. After her mother finds out, their relationship is never the same again.

Twenty-five years later, Eve, a bestselling author, is happily married with three children. Although her mother suffers from dementia, she still remembers, and Eve still harbors the guilt for giving the dress away. When she receives a Facebook friend request from her old college roommate and an invitation to her twenty-five-year high school class reunion, then meets her former best friend by chance, she must confront the past in order to face the future.

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From Wyoming to California #Open Book Blog Hop

This week’s question from blogger Stevie Turner is this. What elements of your life have you woven into your latest book? In The Red Dress, one of my characters, Jon, grew up in Wyoming but lives in California, where he does sound effects for movies. He’s based on my uncle, who has the same name, background, and occupation.

The following scene was inspired by a time when my late husband Bill and I visited my uncle and aunt in Valley Village. Here, Eve, my main character, gets to know Jon a little more.

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In the kitchen, she found Jon at the stove. Ashley and Brenda were sitting at a nearby table, eating.

“Hi, Mom,” said Ashley.

Jon turned from the stove. With a broad smile and a Southern drawl, he said, “How about some fresh–squoze orange juice? I done squoze it myself.”

Eve laughed and said, “I didn’t know you were from the South.”

“I’m actually from Wyoming,” he said, reaching for a pitcher on a nearby counter. “I got bitten by the film bug and ended up here.”

“And he’s tired of just doing sound effects for movies,” said Brenda. “He wants to get cast in a new production of Gone with the Wind.”

“Now, you hush up, girl,” said Jon, again in his Southern accent.

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Who is Brenda, and what is Eve doing in California? Read The Red Dress and find out.

By the way, from now until July 31^st, you can download My Ideal Partner and The Red Dress absolutely free from Smashwords as part of its annual summer/winter sale. Click here to visit my Smashwords author page.

Also, for those of you who use the National Library Services for the Blind and Print Disabled, The Red Dress is available for download from their site here. Thank you for reading. Stay safe, happy, and healthy, and may you always have positive experiences.

New! The Red Dress

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Thursday Book Feature: The Writer’s Pen and Other Poems

Since April is National Poetry Month, I hope you’ll take some time to read a good poem or two. This month, I’ll be reviewing some poetry collections I’ve enjoyed.

The Writer’s Pen and Other Poems

By K. Morris

This short collection contains poems mostly about human nature. When I downloaded the Audible version, I was surprised to discover that Alex Lee, the narrator, is a woman. She does an excellent job. Her reading of one poem about a clock and a refrigerator includes sound effects. Some poems remind me of Robert Frost and other such poets. I recommend this book as a delightful twenty-five minutes of poetry reading.