Category Archives: Writing

Characters in the new murder mystery dinner party I’ve written

  • Sir Yale Kristof Oratorio – Winner of 2018 Lifetime Achievement Award~~Hollywood Producer and Director Sir Yale Kristof Oratorio is one of the most feared and revered persons in the Industry. He is known for his obsessive commitment to excellence and tyrannical control of the minutest details not just in his movies but on the entire film set. Rumor says he once ordered a caterer to be executed for failing to provide enough sesame seeds on his bagel. Nobody actually killed the guy, but he never catered in Hollywood again. His latest movie, Try & Die 5: Keep on Trying, hit number one the first weekend it was released and stayed there for three weeks, pushing his lifetime earnings well over a billion dollars and already garnering Oscar buzz. Sir Yale has hinted that the movie he currently has in production will be the pinnacle of his success and his farewell gift to the industry before he retires.
  • Alison Andretti – Top female director and producer in the U.S., Alison is known for being fast talking, hard working, tough as nails, but with a soft heart. Her most recent film, To Bridge The Space Between Us, was the movie that knocked Try & Die 5 out of the top spot. Alison is quickly making her way to the top of a very male dominated industry and not everyone likes that. But she has a quick smile and has always said that her motto is “Kill them with kindness”.
  • Craig Daniels – The star of the Try & Die movie franchise, Craig Daniels is everything a movie super spy should be. He’s suave, cultured, and can kill with more than just his looks. Although he had some success in years past, it was his breakout performance in the first Try & Die that garnered him a People’s Choice Award, which was followed up by an Oscar for Try & Die 2, Try A Little Harder, and nominations for each film since.
  • Dexter Mascherada – This self-made studio mogul learned Hollywood from the ground up and knows every facet of the industry, plus he is good to the people who work for him. This has made him one of the most popular directors in Hollywood over the last decade. Known for the lavish spreads he insists upon for his cast and crew, and extravagant gifts for his movie stars, Dexter is the epitome of the hard working, down to earth guy who happens to be a millionaire.
  • Ephraim Joaquin – Although he was raised in Southern California, Ephraim prefers to play up his international heritage to demonstrate how worldly, sophisticated, and intelligent he is. His striking good looks carry most of his movies, as the large majority of them are done in Hebrew or Yiddish with English subtitles, something he has the luxury of doing thanks to his earnings and Oscar for his first English speaking role in The Silence Speaks a Thousand Words.
  • Fiona Plie – From Broadway to Hollywood, Fiona has danced her way into the hearts of movie viewers everywhere. Her lithe and nimble steps and classic beauty belie the steely will that has forged her career. With a body as strong and flexible as her mind, Fiona is known for doing all of her own stunts, even going as far as learning martial arts to star in Sir Yale’s 2010 action flick Backlash Baby.
  • Gracie Encanta – Considered by many to be a modern day Marilyn, Gracie has long been type-cast as the ditzy bombshell, a role which she doesn’t seem to mind. She’s beautiful, flirtatious, and not above using her charm to get the things she wants. Her string of ex-personal assistants tell a different story though, of a dark fury hidden behind her stunning looks. And Sir Yale once hinted that he fired her from his movie Crazy Daizey when she proved too crazy for his standards.
  • Heather Sunshine – Heather inherited her fortune when both hippy-minded parents died in a tragic tuba accident on the set of Band of Misfits, one of Sir Yale’s first directorial attempts. Although he never claimed responsibility, the director made sure that Heather would never need to worry about money after that. Since then Heather has found a permanent place in Hollywood’s society where she considers herself “an influencer with a conscious”.
  • Ison Yu – Celebrity blogger and professional gossip Ison Yu makes his living by turning up the secrets stars don’t want revealed. Some celebrities hate him for this, but enough of them try to ingratiate themselves to him that Ison is able to keep tabs on much of the Hollywood scene. He often shows up at celebrity events, movie sets, and even private gatherings without an invitation, knowing that most people won’t question him.
  • Jennifer Goodhouse – She’s everyone’s favorite girl next door. An actress from childhood, Jen has grown up filming Sir Yale’s action comedy movie franchise Dandy Candy. The latest (and rumored to be last) installment, Dandy Candy 8: Gumballs of Steel, did poorly in the theater but Jennifer didn’t let it get her down. She went on to star as Craig Daniels’ love interest in Try & Die 4: Try, Try Again which got her an Oscar nomination and a star on the Walk of Fame.
  • Steven Sebold – Reality TV host Steven Sebold has spent the last year trying to make the leap onto the Silver Screen but has so far only landed small parts, and all of them thanks to his family connection to Sir Yale. His youthful good looks and boyish charm make it difficult for fans to take him seriously in roles such as “Rich Cousin #1” in Try & Die 3: Try As I Might. However, rumor is that Steven is up for a part in Alison Andretti’s upcoming film Softly Rings the Workman’s Hammer.
  • Tony Zamboni – Hollywood producer Tony Zamboni is brusque, fast talking, and Italian to the core. His quirky superstitions, (for example, he insists on eating spaghetti with gravy and wearing checkered socks to bed before every opening night,) keep the general public thinking of him as fun-loving. But those who work closely with him will tell you that Tony is ruthless and calculating, with a heart as cold as ice.
  • Valentina Vergucci – Fashion designer to the stars, Valentina has dressed all the hottest celebrities. She is known for her use of flamboyant colors and unusual fabrics, such as the orange burlap dress that Heather Sunshine wore to the Golden Globes last year. Valentina got her start designing costumes and hit gold when she won a design Oscar for Sir Yale’s 1930s period piece Canary College. For good or bad, her crazy looks for the red carpet are here to stay.

Short Poems I’ve Written

  • a place of my own
    sunlight settling
    dappled on my deck
    pale drops puddling
    across worn wooden slats
    solace and solitude
    and peace
  • ABCDenial
    absolutely everybody (except for those who knew)
    believed the lie (even when forced to dodge the truth)
    choosing to turn an eye (blind, of course)
    downcast in humility (however false it is).
  • Shelter
    Do you remember that day
    bruised sky and
    us with no umbrella?
    Splash dashing to the treeline
    and huddled laughter
    while you reached your jacket over
    us like a soggy canvas cover
    to shield me from the unlikely event
    of a tree branch falling on my head,
    and even though
    we knew
    it was so silly,
    for those few moments I honestly believed
    that your love
    was all I needed.
  • Solitude
    solitude becomes me
    it calms my heart
    it slows my speedcar thoughts
    yellow flag flapping in the wind
    telling me to take it easy
  • Meanwhile
    I have intended for some time
    to get on with this thing called my life
    but meanwhile living
    keeps getting in the way.
  • Dessert
    hot sun breathing on my skin
    you, the sprinkles on my cone
    dripping delicious trails across my fingers
    i lick you up
  • Sentiment
    Dry those wasted tears
    Shore up your unstable heart
    Love’s horizon glows
  • Happy
    Laughter dances in his eyes
    Smile plays upon his lips
    Joy is heard in every sigh
    Happy words and clever quips
    He winks, he grins, his heart is light
    Just the way he used to be
    Loves shines forth and all is right.
    Too bad it isn’t still for me.
  • Red
    feasting on tomorrow’s steak
    with a gleaming bottle of History at the table
    and though it ought to be bitter
    it goes down smooth with a
    surprising bite
    right at the very end
    so pop the cork and pour the wine
    wrought from my own vineyard
    of experience
    each grape a drop of pleasure
    from a past i should regret
    but don’t
  • Road Trip
    in the center of my universe
    standing ground
    looking round
    full tank of gasoline to get me
    anywhere
    everywhere
    away from here and to somewhere
    but where is there
    and there is where
    so many roads snake out from here
    i don’t know
    where to go
    every road untraveled in my life
    but for the one
    i’ve just been on
    how do i know which one to take
    greener grass
    doesn’t last
    i guess the choice is up to me
    spin around
    moving ground
    pop a licorice stick in my mouth
    signal on
    and i’m gone

Books About Writing That Are On My Bookshelf

  • On Writing, Stephen King
  • How Not To Write A Novel, Howard Mittelmark & Sandra Newman
  • The Forest for the Trees: An Editor’s Advice to Writers, Betsy Lerner
  • Writer’s Market
  • Revision & Self-Editing, Bell
  • The Writer’s Digest Guide to Query Letters, Burt-Thomas
  • Thanks, But This Isn’t For Us, Jessica Page Morrell
  • Characters & View Point, Orson Scott Card (Elements of Fiction Writing series)
  • Description, Monica Wood  (Elements of Fiction Writing series)

bookshelf

Sections on my Bookshelf

Top Shelf 
Paperbacks
Margo Series
Faith based
Classics
Nerd series
Travel books
DVDS by genre
VHS by genre

Second Shelf – right side
Writing
Novels
Psychology
Faith based

Second Shelf – left side
Adult fiction
Sets
Shel Silverstien
“Children’s Bookshelf”
Blue “Classics”
Green “Classics”

Third Shelf
Business
Textbooks
Marketing
Management / Non-profit management
Business Law
Computer science
Aquatics
Science
Economics & Math
Languages
Psychology
Self-help
Children’s picture books

Fourth Shelf
Holding shelf – Keys, paperwork to go
Novels that can be given away
Very old books
CDs
Cookbooks

Fifth Shelf
File storage
Magazines
Educational
Architecture
History
English
Science
Apologetics
Bible Study
Music & Song books

Bottom Shelf
Dictionary
Large book storage
Yearbooks
Photo Albums
Atlas
Art books
Personal – Planners, Files, etc.

Reasons to Write

  • To think on paper
  • So the story will let you rest already
  • Because the characters insist on it
  • As a distraction from your real life
  • To create yourself a better life
  • To “taste life twice”
  • To live vicariously
  • Because beautiful words taste so good
  • To give meaning to an experience
  • Because you have no other choice

We write...