tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post7684975517754100840..comments2024-03-28T18:40:05.789-04:00Comments on Writers Who Kill: Accidental Research Helps a PlotJim Jacksonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15090252530437277145noreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-39980965006061067662013-10-24T19:03:14.534-04:002013-10-24T19:03:14.534-04:00Your knowledge of factories and the way they opera...Your knowledge of factories and the way they operate is one of the things that makes your Jesse Damon novels so good, KM. That and working with cons and ex-cons. Your books ring true like many don't. <br /><br />You would think someone like a fireman would be more safety conscious, but then there may have been circumstances that made him unaware of the gas leak. Who knows, but it's sad when it happens.Gloria Aldenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13581719606924364447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-79816061989327449892013-10-24T18:59:20.877-04:002013-10-24T18:59:20.877-04:00E.B. that was a bit of a creepy coincidence. Still...E.B. that was a bit of a creepy coincidence. Still it worked well for you.<br /><br />Candy factories as a kid would be fascinating. I was in a small facility once at the back of a candy store where they made candy. Chocolate is one of my favorite fragrances. Yum.<br /><br />Gloria Aldenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13581719606924364447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-2811736664212924782013-10-24T18:54:40.430-04:002013-10-24T18:54:40.430-04:00You're right about that, Carla. Of course, it ...You're right about that, Carla. Of course, it takes a creative mind to think of ways something would work.Gloria Aldenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13581719606924364447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-54817970035471851382013-10-24T18:52:55.892-04:002013-10-24T18:52:55.892-04:00Pat, I would have loved to be at that talk. I thin...Pat, I would have loved to be at that talk. I think it would make an excellent plot for a story or book. I hope you pursue it.Gloria Aldenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13581719606924364447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-76722938896183305332013-10-24T16:33:45.626-04:002013-10-24T16:33:45.626-04:00I love tours of processing/manufacturing facilitie...I love tours of processing/manufacturing facilities. In Provence this last summer, we visited an olive oil press and a winery. I've worked in a few heavy industries myself, but to see the care with which Kellogg and other food processors operate is really interesting.<br /><br />There's a lot of apple (and other fruit) processing going on near where I live. A few years ago, a worker (who was chief of the local volunteer fire department, so you would think he was be safety conscious) was killed by a gas leak at an applesauce/juice processing plant. There's got to be a novel in there somewhere!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-33333626265437626322013-10-24T14:20:09.896-04:002013-10-24T14:20:09.896-04:00I turned a weird experience I had at our neighborh...I turned a weird experience I had at our neighborhood Sound beach into a short story. The weird experience turned out to have something to do with a crazy neighbor. But we later found out he often takes in renters with criminal pasts, so my fiction may have been more real than I thought.<br /><br />Gloria, I grew up in PA where there are a lot of factories. In school, we took field trips to the factories, which I found fascinating. Of course, many of the factories processed food like, Hershey's, York Peppermint Patty, Schmidt's Bakery, Reeses's.... What's not to like!E. B. Davishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16746747050278597888noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-50882478186686088302013-10-24T13:50:06.823-04:002013-10-24T13:50:06.823-04:00Gloria, this sounds like a fun adventure. It's...Gloria, this sounds like a fun adventure. It's interesting how almost any life experience can be fodder for our writing, isn't it? carlahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15985823239660829148noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-58508238598223410952013-10-24T13:20:45.759-04:002013-10-24T13:20:45.759-04:00Apple country, out here we think Washington, and n...Apple country, out here we think Washington, and now I realize that tours like yours are probably available here too. Hmmm.<br />I recently attended an event put on by the Extention Services of Oregon. I'm not a member, but my friend's mother in law is a director of one group AND so is my sister in law. Who knew? Not much of an outdoor person, and most assuredly not a farmer, I didn't think I'd find the speaker interesting. He was a TV personality that has a show, Grant's Getaways, locally. It covers Oregon's great places to visit and he has also written a book, 101 Fun Getaways in Oregon. Well, he was a very good speaker, so his talk went well, and he eventually mentioned something that made my ears perk up. Seems after WW2 women manned the fire towers in the Tillamook Forest. They had interviews with 2 of those women and they had interesting and funny stories to tell. A picture of one of the towers looked like the trunk of a 100-foot tree with a house perched on top, and the skinniest ladder going up the side with no protection around it. Brave women indeed. Of course, not a human interest writer, my mind moved to mayhem, mystery and paranormal. I hope I can think up a story THAT hasn't been told before, because I know there are many books and stories about these watch towers.<br />PatgPatghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01046665022709722606noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-53849555785109151492013-10-24T12:56:20.606-04:002013-10-24T12:56:20.606-04:00Nancy, what a wonderful place to research. I'v...Nancy, what a wonderful place to research. I've been to Great Britain several times, Italy twice, Israel, Greece and Spain once, but I've never been to Paris. I hope to go there someday. I think the shop with statues opens up all sorts of possibilities especially for a short story.Gloria Aldenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13581719606924364447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-54296700598573038912013-10-24T12:53:51.565-04:002013-10-24T12:53:51.565-04:00Shari, I love New England and have gone on a lot o...Shari, I love New England and have gone on a lot of vacations there. I've set numerous short stories in different sections of New England because of this. Right now I'm writing a series of short stories set in Vermont with the same protagonist. I'm working on the third now for our holiday short stories on Writers Who Kill.Gloria Aldenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13581719606924364447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-36599287767044420072013-10-24T12:35:44.408-04:002013-10-24T12:35:44.408-04:00Gloria, that sounds like such a fun day!
As for m...Gloria, that sounds like such a fun day!<br /><br />As for my writing, after numerous trips to Paris over the years, I finally came up with a story that I could set there, hopefully the first book in a series, although it then turned out that there were many details where I needed further research. Yes, it's nice when that research is something we enjoy already.<br /><br />Then, just a few weeks ago we visited a crafts festival in a nearby town and walking back from the festival came upon an incredibly cool shop that sells stone sculptures. Most of them were outside, and it was such a magical collection of dragons and saints and all kinds of wonderful statues that I thought "I really have to find a story to set here!" I guess that's when you know the writing has gotten in your blood.<br /><br />Glad you're having fun with the books!Nancy Adamshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18297847904669598557noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-22888572622629037002013-10-24T10:49:50.573-04:002013-10-24T10:49:50.573-04:00What a nice time you had, Gloria! Now I want to go...What a nice time you had, Gloria! Now I want to go apple picking.<br />I used a beach town setting for my short story and WIP, a combination of the things I liked best from my New England youth and places I've lived and visited.<br />Paula - I hope you find that gold!Shari Randallhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16425493627354028820noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-38275060970514564902013-10-24T10:24:46.205-04:002013-10-24T10:24:46.205-04:00Even in historical novels an author can use the cu...Even in historical novels an author can use the current landscape of the setting. It may not show directly in the writing but knowing helps the writer feel in control. I've written about Manhattan, Kansas and I've learned about the environment.Warren Bullhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07789270258599769915noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-67744873846487561392013-10-24T10:04:26.188-04:002013-10-24T10:04:26.188-04:00Paula, what a wonderful trip that must be. I agree...Paula, what a wonderful trip that must be. I agree there would be a great story or novel to be found there. It would be a time of year for me when spring hasn't yet arrived here. I've thought of taking an early spring trip to Savannah, Georgia, because I hear that's a beautiful town, too.Gloria Aldenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13581719606924364447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-44739911438833778742013-10-24T10:01:57.755-04:002013-10-24T10:01:57.755-04:00Kara, the only apples I pick are from the old appl...Kara, the only apples I pick are from the old apple trees around my house. They're mostly small and blemished ones, but they're good for applesauce and I used them in a pie or two back in the day I still baked. They're hard to mow around and under because I leave the branches hanging to the ground so my little great-grandkids can pick them, too. Almost all the apples are put into buckets in the barn for my ponies.Gloria Aldenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13581719606924364447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-17733688597064329392013-10-24T09:59:42.270-04:002013-10-24T09:59:42.270-04:00Jim, I've thought of sending Catherine somewhe...Jim, I've thought of sending Catherine somewhere else sometime so she isn't always finding bodies in Portage Falls. In my next book, I will be having a subplot with Martha, the mother of the police chief, telling her story, including a murder, from her backpacking trip she took in book two. It will use an area I backpacked in numerous times. You have or are living in three locations that make it good for you to move Seamus around in.Gloria Aldenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13581719606924364447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-82275613350846594272013-10-24T09:24:11.881-04:002013-10-24T09:24:11.881-04:00What a great experience, Gloria! You definitely di...What a great experience, Gloria! You definitely did the right thing by going. Your description made me feel as if I got to go along, too. I'm sure you'll find a story idea stem from the event.<br />Jim, I'm looking forward to reading about Seamus' trip to Columbia.<br />Each year, I try to go to the Washington, Georgia, Spring Home Tour. Washington is called "the town where the Confederacy died" because it is where the gold from the Confederate Treasury can last be traced. I think there's a story to be found there.Paula Gail Bensonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08843350597811462936noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-74459054269702460132013-10-24T08:44:15.511-04:002013-10-24T08:44:15.511-04:00How fun, Gloria. I went apple pickng two weeks ago...How fun, Gloria. I went apple pickng two weeks ago and there was a group of energetic children on a school field trip running around picking apples like they were on a treasure hunt. I loved their enthusiasm.<br /><br />I visited the Badlands of South Dakota last year and plan to use that setting in a couple of historicals.Kara Cerisehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16484336785514235707noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-55914712121509168412013-10-24T08:18:09.803-04:002013-10-24T08:18:09.803-04:00I prefer using locations I have personally experie...I prefer using locations I have personally experienced, but I never know when a place I’ve visited or an experience I’ve had will be just the right thing for a story.<br /><br />When I was in Columbia, SC for the SC Bookfest earlier this year, fellow WWK blogger suggested I use Columbia in one of my Seamus McCree novels. That got me thinking and in my current WIP, I have a few scenes set in Columbia, because it worked for the plot.<br /><br />~ Jim<br />Jim Jacksonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15090252530437277145noreply@blogger.com