Those Who Forget the Past by Connie Berry

A Journey Into Our Past

One of my favorite days this summer was a visit to Mount Vernon, George Washington’s home on the banks of the Potomac. My guide was Grace Topping, a good friend and fellow WWK blogger. I’d been in Alexandria for an author event, and since I had a late flight back to Ohio, I phoned Grace to see if we might have lunch and catch up. My last-minute thought turned into a memorable day.

I’d visited Mount Vernon as a child. My mother, a former elementary school teacher with a passion for history, made sure family vacations included lessons from the past—lots of them. We literally never passed a historical marker. Now, as an adult, I saw eighteenth-century America with new eyes.

Lessons From the Past

Washington’s decision to forfeit power and return to private life impressed me, as did the foresight of the Mount Vernon Ladies Association who, in 1860, purchased the near-decrepit house and opened it to the public. The day was beastly hot, and I pondered again how people lived without the comforts we take for granted—central heating, air conditioning, refrigeration, electricity, indoor plumbing. More than that, I thought about the many enslaved people whose job it was to make life as pleasant as possible for the Washington family while their own lives were considered unimportant—if they were considered at all.

With my mind very much on the past, we headed back to Grace’s car. On the way, we encountered a woman and a young boy, perhaps fourteen or fifteen, who were arriving for their visit. As we passed them, we heard the boy ask, “Does George Washington still live here?”

What?? 

Do we still teach history in our schools or had this boy simply not been paying attention?

Have We Forgotten Our Past?

“Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.” The quote has been attributed to a number of people, including the Irish economist Edmund Burke, the Spanish philosopher George Santayana, and Winston Churchill. How do we reconcile that statement with Thomas Jefferson’s quote about history being written by the victors?

The lesson I learned at Mount Vernon is that history must tell the whole truth, the unvarnished truth, or it isn’t history.

Using the Past in Fiction

Which brings me to fiction-writing. A few years ago I wrote a blog with my top ten tips for creating memorable characters. I talked about creating fully realized characters with skills and  abilities, disabilities and struggles, strengths and weaknesses, fears, failings, and flaws. The characters we create should also have a past—a personal history some call “the rich, full life” with secrets, regrets, successes, failures, and families who have shaped them for better or for worse. Much of our characters’ past histories will never make it onto the page—authors know a lot more than they tell—but our characters’ past lives are what motivate and enrich their present actions, thoughts, feelings, and responses. Giving our characters a personal and cultural history puts their lives in context and helps us reveal their uniqueness as human beings.

We're Not Doomed to Repeat the Past--Neither Must We Forget It

What lessons from the past, personal or cultural, have shaped your life?

How have you used the history of a fictional character to add depth and complexity?

An Interview with Connie Berry by E. B. Davis

In Connie Berry’s fourth Kate Hamilton mystery, American antiques dealer Kate Hamilton uncovers a dark secret buried in Victorian England.

As Kate Hamilton plans her upcoming wedding to Detective Inspector Tom Mallory, she is also assisting her colleague Ivor Tweedy with a project at the Netherfield Sanatorium, a former Victorian insane asylum, which is being converted into luxury townhouses. Kate and Ivor must appraise a fifteenth-century painting and verify that its provenance is the Dutch master Jan Van Eyck. But when retired criminal inspector Will Parker is found dead, Kate learns that the halls of the sanatorium housed much more than priceless art.
 
Kate is surprised to learn that Will had been the first boyfriend of her friend Vivian Bunn, who hasn’t seen him in fifty-eight years. At a seaside holiday camp in 1963, Will, Vivian, and three other teens broke into an abandoned house where a doctor and his wife had died under bizarre circumstances two years earlier. Now, when a second member of the childhood gang dies unexpectedly—and then a third—it becomes clear that the teens had discovered more in the house than they had realized.
 
Had Will returned to warn his old love? When Kate makes a shocking connection between a sixty-year-old murder and the long-buried secrets of the sanatorium, she suddenly understands that time is running out for Vivian—and anyone connected to her.

Amazon.com

Although The Shadow of Memory was set in the summer, I got a distinct chill while reading. While on holiday, bored teens participate in a detective game of whodunit. Sixty years later, they are being murdered one by one. Kate’s friend and landlord, Vivian, was one of those teens. It’s a haunting tale that disturbs Vivian’s happy memories of her camp days and of her long-lost first love. It also provides the basis for a great plot. I love how authors bring together old and new mysteries into a single story.

 

This is Connie Berry’s fourth Kate Hamilton mystery. The Shadow of Memory was released on May 10^th. You can read my interview with Connie on her third book, The Art of Betrayal, here.

 

Please welcome WWK blogger and author Connie Berry.    E. B. Davis

 

Would you humor us by telling a Beowulf joke?

 

Only if you insist! With a master’s degree in British history and literature, Kate realizes that a) no one will get the jokes, and b) no one cares. You’ve been warned!

Q: How did Beowulf defeat Grendel?

A: He simply disarmed him.

Those familiar with the eighth-century epic poem will get the punchline.

 

Kate seems skeptical and pessimistic in this book. She has doubts about the authenticity/value of a Dutch medieval painting that Ivor must appraise for no apparent reason. She wonders if anyone would want to live in a former lunatic asylum, even if luxuriously renovated. Having found the body of an elderly man, she re-visualizes the death of her husband. What’s at the root of Kate’s pessimism?

 

Well, I didn’t set out to portray Kate as pessimistic in this book, although she freely admits that unlike her mother, who is always sure things will turn out well in the end, Kate is always pretty sure they won’t. This stems from a history of losing three very important men in her life without advance warning—her Down syndrome brother, her father, and her husband.

What I did intend was a sense of tension and uncertainty on Kate’s part. Her life is at a crossroads. Is she willing to risk giving her heart again? Policing is a dangerous occupation, after all. And while she is in love with Tom Mallory, the question of where and how they will live as a married couple is undecided. They both have families and careers—on separate continents. There’s also the problem of Tom’s mother, who has done everything in her power to separate them. And on top of everything else, Kate is aware that her dear friend Vivian’s life is in danger.

 

What is the history of medical insurance in the UK? It was once private, like ours here in the US. And then they socialized it. Did the government buy all the private facilities? That sounds like a very expensive proposition.

 

The National Health Service in the UK was introduced in July of 1948. From that time, all UK residents were given the right to access health services offered by doctors, nurses, midwives, and dentists without having to pay directly. It’s not free healthcare. It’s shared healthcare, paid for by taxes. According to the original brochure: “Everyone - rich or poor, man, woman or child - can use it or any part of it. There are no charges, except for a few items. There are no insurance qualifications. But it is not a charity. You are all paying for it, mainly as taxpayers, and it will relieve your money worries in time of illness.”

There were health systems in place before 1948, helping low-income people pay their medical expenses, but after 1948, health care was nationalized. When my husband and I were in Northern Ireland a few years ago, he developed a bad cough and was treated at the local hospital. When he tried to pay, he wasn’t allowed.

The NHS didn’t buy all the private health facilities. There are still private doctors and facilities in the UK for those who can afford them. Some private facilities found they could no longer compete with the NHS and went out of business. Others, like Netherfield Sanatorium, gifted their assets to the nation.

Medical care in the UK isn’t as rosy as it seems. Along with an aging population, there’s a shortage of doctors and other medical workers, who are expected to work many hours for a very modest wage. There are also long waiting lists for surgeries like hip and knee replacements, which means those who can’t afford private care must wait and those who can afford private care often elect to have their surgeries elsewhere.

 

Tony Currie wears two hats that could be in conflict. What is the relationship between the Cliff House Board of Directors and Pyramid Development, the construction company renovating Cliff House, otherwise known as the former insane asylum.

 

As Kate learns, the renovation of Netherfield Sanatorium is an expensive proposition and not without its risks. As a savvy real estate developer specializing in historic renovation, Tony insisted that a group of local investors have skin in the game. The board of directors of the Cliff House project all have a vested interest in the success of the project, but the lion’s share of the risks (and potential profits) are Currie’s.

 

Where did the Cliff House board get the Jan Van Eyck painting?

 

The painting attributed to the Dutch master Jan Van Eyck was purchased in the mid-nineteenth century by the founder of Netherfield Sanatorium, self-styled doctor of homeopathy and a purveyor of patent medicines. Horace Netherfield saw the painting, “Christ Healing the Demoniac,” while traveling in France and purchased it with the intention of making it the centerpiece of the asylum. He was struck with the emotional power of the image and thought it would give hope to those with mental illnesses.

 

Kate has a special sixth sense. When an old artifact is the real deal, she knows it and gets an emotional vibe from it. Kate’s lack of a reaction to the Van Eyck painting causes her to doubt its authenticity. And yet, she does get a sense of treachery and danger. Doesn’t that sense count toward her ability?

 

I suppose it does count, but the impressions Kate gets—a feeling, a word, a phrase—never help her solve crimes (there’s no paranormal activity going on), but these experiences do alert her to the possibility that all is not as it seems. Kate chalks up her “gift”—or as she sees it, her “affliction”—to her notoriously over-active imagination. Since Kate has never been able to fully understand or explain this sixth sense, I certainly can’t. I will say, though, that Kate suspects her father had the same ability.

 

Provenance, attribution, technique, signature, and scientific analysis are the elements that Ivor states that make up an appraisal. Is this true or are there more?

 

These five elements are the standard in authenticating fine paintings—at least they were. Attribution, a matter of the appraiser’s experience and expertise, was especially important. In today’s world, scientific analysis has taken the forefront. A number of paintings attributed to well-known artists have recently been proven to be forgeries. Sotheby’s, for example, sold a gorgeous “Frans Hals” painting, “Portrait of a Man,” to an American collector for ten million dollars. When subjected to scientific analysis, the painting was proven to be a forgery. Sotheby’s reimbursed the purchaser. After a lengthy court battle, the art gallery that sold the painting to Sotheby’s was forced to repay them more than five million dollars. The very sophisticated forger is now thought to have produced over twenty-five old masters, one of which, “Venus” by Lucas Cranach the Elder, was owned by the Prince of Lichtenstein. There are probably others, as yet undetected, in museums and private collections.

 

Why did Kate assume that Vivian was 80 years old? Although 74 or 75 isn’t that far off, does Vivian seem old fashioned or physically old? Does Vivian need a knee replacement?

 

Eighty is the new sixty—isn’t that what they say? People in their seventh and eighth decades of life can appear much younger than their age or much older. Vivian Bunn is an old-fashioned lady, which is probably why Kate assumed she was older than she is. She’s been the stout, sturdy, bossy type that some in the UK call “Boadicea in Tweed.” But in this book, Kate notices a slight unsteadiness in Vivian’s gate, which makes her wonder if her friend is in need of a hip or knee replacement. That remains unresolved.

 

Vivian makes Beef and Barley stew with brown bread and Wensleydale Cheddar. This sounds like a winter meal to me. Isn’t it August? Doesn’t swimming weather ever come to England?

 

Due to the Gulf Stream, the climate in England is far more temperate than it is in the United States, even though the British Isles sit at a higher latitude—which means the winters are milder and the summers cooler than they are here. Brits think nothing of wearing wool cardis and tweeds year round. The average temps in Suffolk in late August/early September (the book ends on September 11) reach a high of 65 degrees Fahrenheit and a low of 48. Yes, England can have very warm periods as well, but they are the exception rather than the rule. The last really big heat wave in Britain (2016) saw high temperatures reach more than 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Since few people have home air conditioning systems, hundreds of people (mostly elderly) died.

 

Although Tom is agreeable to live anywhere, he has essentially put the decision of where they will live on Kate. He isn’t really being helpful, is he?

 

Tom is head-over-heels for Kate—isn’t that nice?—and he truly wants her to be happy. That’s why he is willing to move anywhere. Besides, he now has an offer to work for an international private investigations firm operating out of Toronto, Canada, which means he has a job no matter where they end up. But Tom worries that without her antiques business in Jackson Falls, Ohio, Kate will feel like a fish out of water. Actually, Kate’s motivation is to make Tom happy, too, so they find it hard to come to a decision. Kate’s one non-negotiable—which she hasn’t yet laid out in so many words—is that she will not live with his mother in Tom’s farmhouse. The problem is, Tom’s mother, Liz, doesn’t have the cash to buy a house of her own, and Tom would never put his mother out on the street. Plus the farmhouse is where Tom’s daughter, Olivia, grew up. This dilemma weighs upon Kate’s mind.

 

Why does Kate question if she is suffering from pareidolia? And please define the term.

 

Pareidolia is the tendency to see recognizable images in random patterns—like people who see human faces in the grilles of old automobiles. Kate is good at noticing details and recognizing patterns. As she is contemplating possible connections between Netherfield Sanatorium and the abandoned house explored by the teens in 1963, she wonders if she is imagining the patterns—"like people who see the image of the Virgin Mary in a grilled cheese sandwich.” Scientists say we are primed to see faces in the natural world. Is there really a pattern in those long-ago events, or has Kate imagined one because she wants there to be a connection?

 

What is with the AE in Æthelric?

 

The letter Æ is a dipthong, introduced into Britain by Norse settlers during the Anglo-Saxon period, three centuries before the Norman Invasion. It was used in Old English to represent a vowel that’s pronounced in Modern English as aah (ash, fan,  happy). Today we mostly just spell that vowel with the letter “a” because of the Great Vowel Shift. The Great Vowel Shift was a change in the pronunciation of English vowels that took place in the late Middle English period—think roughly Chaucer to Shakespeare. This shift, which coincided with the introduction of the printing press, had a profound effect on English phonology—the way the English language is actually spoken. Why did it happen? Scholars have theories, but no one really knows.

 

What is treacle bread?

 

Treacle bread is a dense, brown bread made with coarse, wholegrain flour and unsulfured molasses. It’s a country loaf, easy to make—even for me! Martha Stewart has a wonderful and very simple recipe, which you can find here:  Treacle Brown Bread Recipe | Martha Stewart

 

Why were the Victorians crazy for taxidermy? I remember my grandmother having a mink stole that closed using the paw/claws as hooks—very creepy!

 

I remember the same thing and felt so sorry for the little animal. But the Victorians took taxidermy to ridiculous extremes. In their passion for natural history and whimsical fantasies, they collected anthropomorphic tableaux set in glass—animals posed in human-like situations: hedgehogs ice-skating, kittens at a tea party, foxes teaching a class of bunnies. Victorian women perched stuffed birds and small animals on their hats. Death was an ever-present reality in the nineteenth century, and in addition to taxidermy, Victorians cut hair from the corpses of their loved ones and wove it into jewelry. They also frequently had photographs taken with dead relatives before burial, propped up with wooden frames or other family members.

 

Why doesn’t Tom’s mother like Americans?

 

That’s a good question—one which Tom has never adequately explained. My theory is that Liz Mallory enjoyed her relationship with Tom’s dead wife, Sarah, because Sarah was malleable and easily handled. And, of course, after Sarah’s death, Liz moved in to take care of their daughter, Olivia. Slowly, she began to think of the household as her own. Kate represents a threat because she is definitely her own person—and now the most important person in Tom’s life. Liz also fears that Kate will talk Tom into moving to the U.S.

 

Is Tom from an aristocratic family? Who is Uncle Nigel? What happened to Tom’s father?

 

Tom’s background has been a bit of a mystery to Kate. When they met in the Scottish Hebrides, he told Kate he spent his summers with his Uncle Nigel Hartley in Devon—“summer camp in a castle.” When she questioned him further, Tom said the house merely looked like a castle to him as a small boy. Later he told Kate that Uncle Nigel paid his fees when he went up to Oxford.

But there’s been an estrangement in the family. Nigel disapproved of Tom’s mother’s marriage to Tom’s father—on solid grounds as it turned out, since Tom’s father was after what he hoped would be her fortune. Liz was so incensed at her brother’s interference that she cut off all ties with him and refused to take a penny for herself. With his hopes of wealth dashed, Tom’s father had an affair and abandoned the family. He is now dead. To date, Kate has not met Nigel or visited his estate, Fouroaks.

 

What’s the story on the ring Tom gave to Kate for their engagement?

 

The ring is a family heirloom. The center stone, a square Assher-cut diamond, was purchased by Tom’s great-great-grandfather Hartley in South Africa in the 1880s. In 1921, his son (Tom’s great-grandfather) had it set into a ring for his bride. It’s been passed down to each generation. Since Uncle Nigel could never settle on just one girl, the ring now belongs to Tom.

 

What is dendrochronology? Infrared reflectography? Craquelure? Mass spectrometry?

 

These terms are all part of the scientific process of examining old paintings.

·      Dendrochronology is the process of examining tree rings in old wood to accurately pinpoint the date when the tree was felled. It’s remarkably specific. Since many old masters were painted on wooden planks, dating the wood helps date the painting.

·      Infrared Reflectography is a non-destructive imaging technique that detects the presence of specific pigments in a painting. The process can also reveal what lies beneath the surface of a painting—underdrawings, for example, or pedimenti, the revisions an artist might make during the process of creation.

·      Craquelure refers to the natural pattern of cracks that develop in the paint or varnish of a painting over time. This is a great way to detect a forgery because natural craquelure is almost impossible to reproduce, although there are some techniques involving formaldehyde and a special baking process that produce results that appear genuine to all but a trained eye.

·      Mass Spectrometry is so complicated that describing it is definitely beyond my mental ability. I can tell you that, among other things, the process can isolate tiny amounts of the radioactive isotopes unleashed across the globe after 1945. If these isotopes are found in a painting that is said to have been painted in the sixteenth century (or even the nineteenth century), that painting is forgery.

 

Is it true that at the turn of the nineteenth century, people wore small portraits of their lover’s eyes?

 

 

Courtesy of the Smithsonian Museum

Absolutely true. The fad started in 1785 when England’s Prince George (later King George IV) sent a tiny portrait of his eye to Maria Anne Fitzherbert, the Catholic widow with whom he’d fallen in love and was trying desperately to marry. According to English law at the time, such a marriage was not allowed, and although the couple actually did marry in a secret ceremony, the wedding was declared invalid. George later married his cousin, Caroline of Brunswick. Anyway, for the next fifty years or so, Lover’s Eyes were a fad. Lovers would exchange portraits of their eyes, painted on bits of ivory no bigger than a fingernail and set into gold frames, sometimes surrounded by precious gems or pearls, and tucked close to the heart or worn openly for all the world to see. Both men and women wore them, with the identity of the subject a mystery. All part of the fun.

 

Does Ivor know hypnotism?

 

Ivor knows all sorts of amazing things from his travels around the globe with the Merchant Marine. While in northern Mongolia, he learned a technique, akin to hypnosis, to take someone back to a previous time through recovered memory. Since Vivian’s life depends upon her memory of what she and the other young teens found in the abandoned house fifty-eight years earlier, Ivor takes her back to that place and time so she can mentally relive the experience. Remember, this is fiction.

 

What’s next for Kate?

 

It appears Kate is heading for a wedding, but we’ll have to wait for the next book to find out. You never know!

 

Playing to Your Audience: Five Simple Strategies by Connie Berry

We all want to sell books, right?

A long time ago in a world that has almost vanished, I was a student at Lincoln Junior High School in Rockford, Illinois—seventh through ninth grades. In addition to the novelties of switching classes and finally meeting at least a few boys who were as tall as the girls, my junior high also offered the thrilling privilege, beginning in eighth grade, of leaving the school grounds for lunch. 

My favorite option was Hedlun’s Drug Store, just across the street from school. Hedlun’s had a lunch counter and a long-suffering staff who steeled themselves for the daily hordes of young teens who invaded their premises for approximately an hour and a half, demanding lunch. I can’t imagine how they did it.

Every school day for two years, three friends and I showed up at Hedlun’s and put in our order, which never varied: three cheeseburgers and one tuna salad sandwich; three chocolate cokes and one vanilla coke. Guess who was the odd girl out?

I bring this up because I’ve been thinking recently about the variety of tastes people have in literature.

Some people read only non-fiction (“Why bother with something that never happened?”). Others read only fiction but focus on certain genres—historical, literary, romance, traditional mystery, cozy mystery, suspense, international thriller, legal or medical drama, police procedurals, psychological thrillers, fantasy, science fiction, Christian, domestic suspense. Some people read widely. Some read only bestsellers. Others use those lists as a reliable what-not-to-read guide.

Here's my point: not every type of book is everyone’s cup of tea. That’s something writers must accept. Not everyone will read your books. Not everyone who reads them will like them. The trick is to identify your audience—those who want to read the kind of books you write—and reach out to them. How does that happen?

In case you’re not a marketing expert (I’m not), here are five simple strategies to try:

1. USE AVAILABLE TOOLS to identify your target audience. 

This is a huge and complicated subject, but even a cursory dive into online statistics tells me that readers of mystery and crime fiction (what I write) tend to be older female adults. In fact, a recent Nielsen survey revealed that a whopping 63% of my readers are over the age of 50. This makes a difference when I’m deciding how best to use my time on social media. Statistics tell me my peeps are most likely to be found on Facebook, Goodreads, and Pinterest. That doesn’t mean I shouldn’t use other platforms. It just helps me set priorities. In addition, most social media platforms offer targeted demographics, like “Audience Insights” on Pinterest and Instagram—showing your followers according to age range, gender, and location. That leads to the next strategy. 

2. JOIN SOCIAL MEDIA GROUPS with interests that overlap with your writing. 

 Since my books take place in England and appeal to people who like history, travel, and antiques, my favorite Facebook groups include British Book Club, I Heart Britain, English Cottages, and British Mystery Series Readers. I also follow mystery groups like Sleuths in Time Book Club, Readers’ Café, Cozy Mystery Crew, and Diva’s Cozy Mystery Group. I also follow certain Twitter hashtags and favorite sites on Pinterest, like English Country House and Antique Trader Magazine. When appropriate, I let other followers know about the books I write.

3. JOIN THE ONLINE CONVERSATION.

It isn’t enough to log onto social media sites and lurk. Be part of the conversation. Get to know the other people who follow those sites and/or follow authors who write in your genre. Respond and comment. Follow them and they will follow you. Offer interesting content and comments. Share ideas. This doesn’t need to eat your life. If you tend to be an organized person, set a daily schedule—one hour for social media first thing in the morning, for example—and stick to it.

4. COLLABORATE WITH AND SUPPORT OTHER WRITERS.

I love the Malice Domestic motto—“No one needs to fail so that I can succeed.” If you support and promote other authors, chances are they will reciprocate. Joining with other authors, Especially those who write in your genre, can be lots of fun when planning events, either online or in person. Panel discussions, conversations, joint events—you are not only reaching out to your own fans, but you are also getting to know their fans. It’s called cross-marketing, and it’s a smart idea.      

5. INTERACT PERSONALLY WITH READERS WHO LIKE YOUR BOOKS.

Invite them to review and recommend. Let’s face it—interacting with readers has been difficult during the pandemic—conferences cancelled, no in-person author events, no book signings. Nevertheless, we’ve gotten creative with Zoom, and there has been an upside. This year I’ve appeared at a number of book clubs in places I couldn’t easily have reached in person. And I’ve participated in several multi-author events, one from our car on the way to Florida. Don’t be afraid to ask for reviews. Give followers an opportunity to sign up for your newsletter or blog. Include links whenever possible. Develop a mailing list and keep readers up-to-date on what you’re doing in both your author life and your personal life. Hold or join with others in giveaways of ARCs, books, or e-books. Ask for your followers’ opinions on book covers or logos. Lately I’ve had bookplates printed, which I will mail to readers who preorder my latest book, The Art of Betrayal (out June 8). The bottom line? Be creative and be personal. Statistics are informative, but real people buy books. I love meeting and interacting with readers, and there’s nothing like word-of-mouth advertising. 

NEW WRITERS are routinely thrown into the world of publishing with little or no help in terms of publicity and marketing. Nevertheless, they are expected to learn quickly. I hope these five very simple strategies will help.

AUTHORS, what is the best marketing tool or strategy you’ve ever used? (I want to know!)

READERS, where is your favorite place to meet and interact with authors?

 

I Want To Know Everything by Connie Berry

 

I love information. It’s the only reason I would ever join an organized tour while on vacation.

My husband and I were married three months before he was scheduled to report for duty in the Air Force. Rather than doing something sensible like getting temporary jobs and saving money, we pooled every cent we had and headed for Europe. In the interest of full disclosure, my contribution to “everything we had” was two hundred dollars I’d received when my Irish grandfather died; my husband supplied the rest—literally every penny he’d ever earned, starting with his paper route when he was eleven. Yes, he’s a saver. 

The reason I mention it is because we were on a strict budget. To make our money last for three months, we could spend only so much a day. That meant when we got to Pompeii, a dream-come-true for this ancient history lover, we couldn’t afford the tour. Instead we wandered around on our own, wondering what we were looking at. He still owes me a trip back to Pompeii—this time with a tour. 

As a writer, my love of information is a blessing and a curse. Research is a joy for me. In my current WIP, I got to research bee venom, Early Netherlandish painting, Victorian lunatic asylums (yes, that’s what they were called then), British holidays camps of the 1950s, and Steamship Moderne architecture, a form of Art Deco (picture several of the “modern” houses in the Hercule Poirot television series). 

Unfortunately, I don’t always end up where I intended to go. I get distracted by information. Last week I was supposed to be researching the Gypsy fairs in rural England (another element in my WIP). But I soon found myself reading about San Francisco’s hidden cisterns, Queen Elizabeth the First’s real cause of death, and the Cave of the Swimmers in the desert region of southwest Egypt, so named because of the petroglyphs which appear to show people swimming. Cool! 

I clearly need more discipline. 

Does anyone else fall into the black hole of research? I’ll meet you there—we can share information.

Can Dreams Help You Write Your Novel? by Connie Berry

Years ago the Everly Brothers told us to dream, dream, dream. Some of us dream more than others. Some people remember their dreams; others don't. My dreams are usually vivid, often bizarre, and frequently funny. Some I'll never forget. Others dissolve with the morning light, leaving only a visceral feeling of delight or fear or adventure or stress. 

One dream many of us share is the "unpreparedness dream." That dream can take many forms but often harkens back to our schooldays. Facing a final exam and realizing you've forgotten to study. Forgetting your locker combination when all your books are inside. Searching fruitlessly for the location of a classroom. For twenty-five years I lectured on theology, and every August I'd have my annual nightmare—failing to prepare for the first lecture; realizing the class location had changed and no one told me; losing my place in my notes and never finding it again. When I'm feeling stressed, I often dream I'm trying to steer a speeding car—from the backseat. 

Dreams are stories we tell ourselves. Experts say dreams proceed from our emotions, especially those we refuse to acknowledge and process on a conscious level. Everyone who dreams is a storyteller. I know writers who keep a pad of paper and a pen on their bedside table in case a wonderful plot unfolds in the night or the solution to a story problem presents itself. That's never happened to me. But can we learn anything from the tales we weave in the night? I think so. Here are five ways our dreams can point the way to a successful novel. 

1. Central Conflict

Dreams revolve around a central conflict. Will we keep the speeding car on the road? Escape from the alien invaders? Find our lost classroom? Conceal the fact that we're wearing no clothes? Rescue someone from doom and disaster? Conflict is not only the centerpiece of our dreams; it is the generator of them. The same is true of our works in progress. No conflict, no story. To paraphrase Donald Maass, The cat sat on the mat is a statement; The cat sat on the dog's mat is a story. Conflict is the central principle of any novel. Conflict is what captures readers and keeps them turning pages. What do your characters want, and what is preventing them from getting it? How can you add conflict to every scene, every page?

2. Character Count

Pick a dream you remember. How many characters were pivotal to the action? Besides yourself, probably one or two. We may dream about crowds, but the cast of characters (those whose actions determine the story) are limited. In my dreams, the main characters often play dual roles—morphing from one thing to another—but they are always directly involved in the central conflict. The same is true in a novel. Readers have a hard time keeping a huge cast of characters straight. Do you really need them all? Which can be eliminated without changing the outcome? Can some characters do dual duty?

3. Core Concept

Dreams can be divided into broad categories: unpreparedness dreams, flying dreams, dreams of death, romantic dreams, chase dreams, dreams of frustration (trying over and over again to dial a phone and failing, for example), dreams of paralysis (like trying to run through thick molasses). Each type of dream delivers a clear and vivid emotional impact. In your work-in-progress, can you identify the core concept or impact you're trying to create? If not, that impact will be diffused.

4. Creative Circumstances

In dreams, anything can happen, right? And there's often a plot twist. Once I dreamed I was spraying flowers with insecticide—until the insects developed sweet human faces and asked me why I was trying to kill them. Dreams regularly take surprising and game-changing turns. A person who has died returns—but is it really him? The car you're riding in rounds a curve and skids off the road into space. Yikes. The person you're chasing suddenly becomes your pursuer. Is the story you're writing too predictable? What unexpected circumstances will keep your readers engaged? If you're never surprised at what your characters say and do, neither will your readers be. 

5. Critical Connections

Dreams, like novels, deal with the important stuff of life. They are invariably timely, addressing the underlying issues impacting our lives right now. Dreams connect with our lives—and our writing—because they address universal themes like survival; loss; living up to expectations; fidelity in romance; death; fears; insecurities; hidden secrets and embarrassing truths (dreams of nakedness, for example). Agents and editors frequently ask writers to identify the underlying theme or themes in their work. Can you? "If you want your novel to touch readers, long after they’ve turned the final page, it needs a deeper layer of meaning that only theme can provide." (Harry Chapman, "What Is Theme and Why Does It Matter?" Novel Writing Help, August 16, 2018). 

BOTTOM LINE: we're all natural storytellers. Every night (whether we remember them or not) we create tales filled with conflict, populated by characters who matter, dealing with core concepts, energized by unexpected circumstances, and facing the critical themes of life. Should the stories we write do less?

What's the scariest or craziest dream you've ever had? Has a dream ever helped you with a plot line?