Star Trek – My Corner

My Other-Worldly Fantasies #OpenBookBlogHop #Inspiration #WritingPrompts

Welcome to another edition of Open Book Blog Hop. This week’s question is: “Have you ever written fanfiction or a story that was part of someone else’s ‘world’? How does it differ from writing a story entirely on your own?

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I’ve never written stories about other worlds, but I had plenty of fantasies while growing up. As a tween, I imagined I was adopted by Nancy Drew and her boyfriend, Ned Nickerson, who were married, and we solved mysteries together. In high school, I envisioned myself as the bionic girl, our country’s most secret weapon, fighting crime while attending classes and participating in speech team and concert choir.

In college, when my younger brother and I were Star Trek fans, I fantasized about him being captain of the USS Enterprise, while I lived in George Orwell’s 1984 world. The Enterprise’s transporter beam miraculously rescued me just as a hive of killer bees was about to attack me in Room 101.

I suppose I could write these stories down. But if I did, I might be accused of plagiarism. Maybe I’m paranoid, but my motto has always been “Better safe than sorry.” So, I’ll stick to writing stories about my own world.

How about you authors out there? Have you ever written stories about other worlds? You can click here to participate in this week’s hop and read what other bloggers have to say. Alternatively, you can leave your answer in the comment field below. I hope to hear from you.

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You’re invited to my state poetry society’s virtual open mic poetry reading on Sunday, December 12^th at 5 p.m. mountain time. You can share some poetry or just listen. See below for details.

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WyoPoets is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

This event is open to anyone who wants to share or listen to poetry. You
don’t have to be a member of WyoPoets, you don’t even have to be in Wyoming
to participate. So, feel free to invite your friends!

Please sign up to read using this Google Form:
https://forms.gle/aRFLvfXSxJn3FF5F8
The first 20 poets to sign up will get to read, additional poets will be
allowed based on time.

Topic: Poetry Night
Time: Dec 12, 2021 05:00 PM Mountain Time (US and Canada)

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81527317416?pwd=VDZyTENmQ1VZM2pZaWowbUovc21GUT09

Meeting ID: 815 2731 7416
Passcode: 813443
One tap mobile
+12532158782,,81527317416#,,,,*813443# US (Tacoma)
+13462487799,,81527317416#,,,,*813443# US (Houston)

Dial by your location
+1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)
+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
+1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)
+1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC)
+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
+1 929 205 6099 US (New York)
Meeting ID: 815 2731 7416
Passcode: 813443
Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kbpMPXDmU0

New! Why Grandma Doesn’t Know Me

Independently published with the help of DLD Books.

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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Books

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You Can Beam, but You Can’t Hide #Six-Sentence Thursday

When I was in college, I was a Star Trek fan. Although the idea scared me, I like the concept of the transporter, a device that converted your molecules and atoms into light and beamed you from one place to another. Whenever I was in a situation in which I didn’t want to be, I imagined myself unclipping a communicator from my belt and saying, “Scottie, beam me out of here!” In a flash of light, I was gone. Oh, if it only were that easy. Unfortunately, our problems always find us, no matter what method we use to escape them.

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The above is in response to Girlie on the Edge’s six-sentence prompt for this week. The idea is to write a story or poem of no more and no less than six sentences, using the prompt word, “beam,” at least once. If you’d like to participate in this on your own blog, click here. Otherwise, you can leave your six-sentence creation in the comment field below.

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.

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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My Books

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Facebook

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Would You Give Up Your Television Set? #Writing Prompt

When I was a kid, I enjoyed watching television, even though I couldn’t see much of what went on unless I sat close to the set. In my teenaged years during the 1970’s, my favorite shows were The Bionic Woman, Little House on the Prairie, The Walton’s, and Dallas. I also enjoyed such situation comedies as Alice, The Jeffersons’, and MASH.

When I graduated from high school, my parents gave me my very own television set. It sat on a table next to the armchair in my bedroom, so I could see it more easily. Although it was a black and white set, it opened a new world for me. I could see what my favorite characters looked like and could take pleasure in watching Lawrence Welk’s dancers perform.

Six months later, Santa brought me a color television set. By that time, I’d become a fan of Star Trek reruns. For the first time, I discovered that Captain Kirk wore a gold shirt. Mr. Spock wore a blue shirt, and everyone else wore red shirts.

When I went away to college, I took my TV set with me and watched in my dorm room when I wasn’t studying or participating in extracurricular activities. But over the years, I developed more of an interest in books than television. When I married my late husband in 2005, I was forced to give up TV altogether. Although we had a set, Bill didn’t watch and didn’t want cable. This was fine with me because by that time, there wasn’t much on television I liked. We watched movies on videotapes, but that was it.

After Bill became incapacitated as a result of his strokes, and we moved to another house that could more easily be made accessible to his wheelchair, we got cable television because it was one way he could tune into his beloved Colorado Rockies games and other sports events that weren’t always available on the radio. I occasionally watched news and other programs, but that was the extent of our television-watching.

After Bill passed, I discontinued the cable service and relegated our television set to the garage. I suppose I could subscribe to NetFlix or some other streaming service I could use on my computer or tablet, but I don’t see the need. I have books, podcasts, and social activities to keep me entertained. There’s nothing on television I need to watch.

How about you? Did you have any favorite television programs when you were growing up? Would you get rid of your television set now? Thanks to blogger Cindi for inspiring this post, and thank you for reading and responding.