Inspiration and encouragement for your own personal journey of awakening …
Cyprus was an awakening for me on many levels. I lost everything I owned, escaped with the clothes on my back, and felt grateful to be alive. Others weren’t so lucky.
Cyprus taught me that doomsday can happen anywhere, at any time — a natural disaster, a financial disaster, the loss of a home. The important thing is to be aware and plan, so that your assets don’t all sit in one basket under one government.
Haven’t posted in a while. Busy writing scripts for TV and screen. Exciting to be learning a different way with words. I’ve completed a Masterclass with Aaron Sorkin on screen writing and one with Shonda Rhimes on writing for television. I recommend both. Next one is Steve Martin’s class on writing comedy. I’m having great fun! Have even done LIVE presentations of my elevator pitch and a ten minute detailed pitch. Getting great feedback and encouragement to Write On!
Only problem is an adorable pup who loves my chair. In the evening, when I want to relax, read, or watch a movie, our new guy occupies it and doesn’t want to acknowledge that it’s MY chair. Our animals have two couches to lounge on and we don’t have room for a third one.
Any suggestions?
I’ve just completed an assignment in a Screenwriting Master Class with Aaron Sorkin. Aaron teaches, “A character is born from the INTENTION and OBSTACLE—they want something, and something stands in their way of getting it.” How they overcome those obstacles, or what TACTICS they use, define the character.
The ASSIGNMENT: Write a scene where one character is asking another for money. The other character WON’T give them the money.
When it comes to giving money to others in need, I’m a soft touch. Here’s my take on the assignment. What would your take be? I’d love to read it. Please share.
My take: Money
Today I welcome Author, Interviewer, Musician, Screenwriter Graham Higson to my Why Create? interview series! Born in Huddersfield, England, Graham Higson spent his childhood in a country hamlet outside Halifax, attending The Clare Hall School before moving to Crossley & Porter School for sixth form work.
A seasoned professional writer for over 40 years, he holds a BSc (Honours) degree in technology (in which he managed to squeeze a course on writing for theatre), and an MA Professional Writing from University College Falmouth (in Cornwall), which specializes in media. For his last year, he chose to specialize in scriptwriting.
He enjoys swimming, reading, watching lots of screen drama, and searching for that elusive moment of self discovery. He’s also helping to republish the novels of British writer, Leo Walmsley.
Graham Higson hides in an outlying Pennine village. (The Pennines are a range of mountains in Northern England which separate North West England from Yorkshire and North East England.) Graham shares this blustery environment with his wife Margaret, a growing collection of books, and a workshop piled high with offcuts of oak. His two grown-up children are among his best friends.
A childhood fascination with television and radio turned into a teenage reality when he began interviewing celebrities for his school magazine. He said meeting them was like stepping through the television screen and getting to know the real people behind the public facades.
His eBook, “All Creatures Great and Famous” tells the story of meeting Gilbert O’Sullivan (my favorite) and many more. It can be purchased for just 99p on Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B018PWSMY0
Susan Joyce: Was music a big part of your early life? Writing? Reading?
Graham Higson: When I was 2, I played records on my brother’s Dansette record player. My mother bought one record per week and my early years were shaped by such people as The Seekers, Guy Mitchell, Elvis Presley, Dusty Springfield, and The Beatles. As a teenager I would record songs from the radio and I still have all of my cassettes. Getting rid of such things is a bit like ditching your past, and I can never bring myself to do that because I need to have the items that remind me of people who are no longer around; I may never actually use them again, just so long as I know they are there.
At secondary school I liked Gilbert O’Sullivan’s quirky lyrics and range of styles. His was the first chart LP I ever bought. I liked it so much I went and bought his other album the following week. Ten months later I interviewed him after a live show-stopping performance.
As a child I read a lot, and was particularly taken with The Magician’s Nephew, C S Lewis’s prequel to The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe in the Narnia series. From an early age I could see that this story had it all: boy and girl protagonists, visiting other worlds, bad things happening, and moral implications. Good triumphs over evil, and love wins in the end; that’s just as it should be.
Susan Joyce: I love the story of you interviewing Gilbert O’Sullivan. You were only sixteen. That must have been awesome.
Graham Higson: Whenever I hear Get Down, I remember him performing it live at Batley Variety Club in 1974. My father drove me there to interview Gilbert and for over an hour we stood in the smoky night club atmosphere, watching his spectacular performance. Later that night I met the man himself (no pun intended – Himself was the title of his first album): 27 years old, outselling Rod Stewart and Elton John. What a memorable experience.
Susan Joyce: What age were you when you did your fist interview?
Graham Higson: I was 15, a “fourth-former”, or “year 10” as it is now in the UK. I believe this is 9th Grade in the US.
Susan Joyce: Did you interview James Bond?
Graham Higson: No, I didn’t get to interview Sir Roger Moore face-to-face, though I put a question to him as a member of the audience, and when I was 15. I had a front row seat at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford when Timothy Dalton (who became Bond #4) was playing Romeo. So that’s two Bonds I’ve seen. Other entertainers? Let’s see… off the top of my head I can think of Shirley Eaton, the Bond girl in Goldfinger, David Soul (Starsky and Hutch), Alan Davies (who plays Jonathan Creek), Robert Beltran (Star Trek: Voyager), and others who are known mostly in the UK.
Susan Joyce: Do you still enjoy interviewing?
Graham Higson: Yes, I do enjoy meeting famous people and getting to know them. This why I’ve recently begun interviewing authors for eBook Showtime. We’re using Skype which, after all the technical things that can go wrong, and all the background chatting that goes on behind the scenes in preparation, by the time we have a working 15-20 minute show it feels as though we have known each other for years. I like to count my victims-sorry, I mean subjects as my friends. I only hope they feel the same about me. No one’s said otherwise… not yet they haven’t.
Susan Joyce: Do you play a musical instrument?
Graham Higson: I played the trumpet at school, but wanted to be a keyboard player, so in my teens I began playing the piano and organ. I learnt a great deal about technique by watching professional theater organists at weekly concerts in the 1980s and bought a massive theater console with full keyboards and pedal-board. It was almost too large for the house we lived in. Around 25 years later it began smoking one night, and it had to be scrapped. I’ve not played since. Now I’m left with a comb and paper–does that count as a musical instrument?
Susan Joyce: Of course it counts. I can remember being taught how to make a comb and paper instrument. Fun! I’ve since learned how to make my wine glass sing.
Graham Higson: I was joking about the comb and paper—I’ve not been able to find a comb for years. I can’t even find the hair to use it on. 😉
Susan Joyce: (laughs) When and how did music hit you big time? What music inspires you most? Do you have a favorite era? One you are still exploring?
Graham Higson: When Freddie Mercury died in 1991, I rather took to Queen; it started when the BBC screened a tribute documentary about Freddie and, at the very end, played the video of Days of Our Lives (the first time it had ever been seen on TV). In this, his last video performance, it was obvious he was terribly ill. At the end he looks straight at the camera and says, “I still love you.”
That was what did it for me. My interest in Queen was something my wife and children had been waiting for, so we went all-out and bought the whole collection of CDs and videos. In my mid-teens I had also taken a liking to the Carpenters–so you see my tastes in music are a right old mix. In answer to your question, this looks very 70s-based, doesn’t it, as that’s the decade when Queen started? But really I take whatever I like from wherever I find it.
I particularly like the inventiveness of the Queen videos. But if there’s one pop video that really makes me feel happy it’s Michael Bublé’s I Just Haven’t Met You Yet. It gets me every time. And no, I’m not a romantic. Well, I wasn’t the last time I checked.
I rather like television theme music; have done since the late-60s when I used to record them on 5-inch tapes using a hand-held microphone. Still got them too, and my dad’s tape recorder. Theme music has since become a multi-million dollar industry, and I like to think I was one of the first to recognize it as a serious commercial genre.
Susan Joyce: Is Leo Walmsley a writer you admired? Were you introduced to his work in school?
Graham Higson: My wife and I came across Leo Walmsley when we visited the rather picturesque village of Robin Hood’s Bay on England’s North Yorkshire coast in 1989. There was a commemorative plaque on the house where he lived as a boy, but it was 1995 before we bought one of his books, then when we returned home I just had to order the only other two books that were still in print at that time. It feels strange that in recent years I have re-edited and republished these very titles – and most of his other books too. They tend to be classed as “semi-autobiographical”, a term I don’t think he much liked, but which I would call fictionalized memoir, not unlike Gerald Durrell’s My Family and Other Animals, the James Herriot vet books, and my own How Much For a Little Screw? Hmm, come to think of it there could’ve been some influence at work there.
Susan Joyce: I know you enjoy screen drama. Have you written any screen scripts? I’m taking a screen writing course and absolutely love this unique form of writing.
Graham Higson: I did a 2-part mini-series of Flither Lass (that later I turned into a novel), a little 1-hour fun romantic comedy called Good Cop, Bad Girl, and a 10-minute short set in a Victorian coal mine, The Trapper Boy. This year I mean to get back to screenwriting and get my screenplays seen by production companies. One of the issues, especially in the UK, is that a company can accept a script, set the writer on a course of re-working and editing, and even find a broadcaster, but then one of the executives can dump it for no apparent reason. As a TV writer you never know where you are, and if your story does go all the way, it can take years for it to be produced and eventually shown.
Susan Joyce: What inspired you to write your first book?
Graham Higson: Creating a supernatural story was my means of getting to sleep when I was in hospital in 1988 whilst having eye surgery. I’d always wanted to write fiction, and over the next three years did some in-depth research–and there was no internet back then, so it meant wearing out shoe leather–and the book became Quercus Necromancer, eventually re-titled Oak Seer.
Susan Joyce: What is the most important life lesson you have passed on to your children?
Graham Higson: I hope I have passed on the value of a close family. That means a lot to me.
Susan Joyce: One last question. I love making something unique out of my thoughts and imagination. Why do you create?
Graham Higson: I like making things out of raw materials-whether that’s a log store from a pile of lumber (such as I’ve been working on this past week), or a story from a bunch of disparate ideas. I also like painting pictures, which just about confirms it. Maybe I was always meant to make stuff. So whether it’s tangible or virtual, it still provides a great deal of satisfaction.
Susan Joyce: Thank you for sharing your thoughts and creative adventures! Good luck with all your projects!
Graham Higson: Thank you, Susan. It’s been a pleasure speaking with you.
You can see all of Graham Higson’s books on his website:
http://www.grahamhigson.com/
http://grahblog.blogspot.co.uk
http://grahblog.blogspot.com.uy/
Oak Seer: A Supernatural Mystery – adventure novel
http://smarturl.it/OakSeer
Flither Lass – historical novel
http://smarturl.it/Flither
How Much For a Little Screw?: Tales from Behind the Counter – fictionalized memoir
http://smarturl.it/littlescrew
All Creatures Great and Famous – 99c/p
http://smarturl.it/allcreatures
All Mod Cons: How Much For a Little Screw Book 2 – $1.81 / £1.49
http://smarturl.it/AllModCons
Over the years, I have had the privilege of interviewing a variety of interesting people. They were interesting to me, not because of their positions in life, but rather because they were curious souls with a sense of adventure, a yearning to learn and explore—to play. Remembering how much I enjoyed doing these interviews and getting to know these interesting people, I interviewed an author friend in February and enjoyed it so much, I decided it was time for me to PLAY and interview curious, creative people again.
Welcome to my “Why Create?” interview series!
Author Patricia Steele was born in Woodland, California to an English/Dutch mother and a Spanish father, Patricia has always felt like a gypsy. She began writing short stories while her young children were napping. After working in the health insurance industry for over 30 years, she retired in 2011 and became a full time writer. She has written mysteries, travel memoirs, and a “Cooking Drunk” cookbook. Pursuing her passion in genealogy, Patricia researched her Spanish heritage and followed her ancestor’s trek walking across the miles of Spain, through the flowers and sugar plantations of Hawaii and into the state of California.
Susan Joyce: Welcome Patricia Steele! I write to make sense of my life and the world around me. Why do you create?
Patricia Steele: Because the words won’t stop coming and I can’t NOT create. Creating stories is second nature to me and my brain thinks that’s what I was born to do.
Susan Joyce: I know you have written books in a variety of genres. Which genres do you especially enjoy reading?
Patricia Steele: I love adventure entertaining me WITHOUT using the F word, intense love scenes or blood.
Susan Joyce: Are there genres you avoid?
Patricia Steele: Yes – Paranormal, books filled with blood and guts and books filled with sex sans story.
Susan Joyce: Do you have a regular writing schedule?
Patricia Steele: No — I think me and my computer are connected at the hip…whether it’s right after my coffee or at 4 a.m. when words flow and sleep stops.
Susan Joyce: What has been seminal in your development as an author?
Patricia Steele: Reader’s responses to my stories have been the most positive and uplifting part of my love of writing
Susan Joyce: What is your strongest childhood memory?
Patricia Steele: My strongest childhood memory is when my mother and step-father uprooted me from California to Oregon when I was nine. The feelings I had at that time helped me write The Girl Immigrant — the immigration story about my abuelita (grandma) when she and her family fled Spain in 1911. She was also nine years old and my memories became her feelings in order to write the book from her viewpoint. I never quite got over losing all my family when I left them behind to move to Mars (smile).
Susan Joyce: Mars?
Patricia Steele: When I was a child and my parents moved me from California to Oregon, I was nine. I had no idea where I was going and Oregon could have been Mars for all I knew. That feeling of intense loss helped me stand in my grandmother’s shoes when she was yanked out of Spain when she was nine. Mars is defined as any place you have no idea what waits for you.
Susan Joyce: What inspired you to become an author?
Patricia Steele: I have always loved words, words and more words. Telling stories to my children became second nature and when I decided to actually write my first book, it was after the death of my daughter (2 weeks before her 9th birthday) See? That number follows me still. I took several creative writing classes over the years and absolutely loved writing. I am still trying to write my book about Chrissy and the memoir is half finished. Now, after 39 years, I can write about her without crying. Maybe this year?
Susan Joyce: What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given?
Patricia Steele: (1) Successful writers are the people who are amateurs who never gave up. (2) Believe in yourself and write with passion or not at all.
Susan Joyce: Patricia Steele thank you for sharing your creative thoughts and adventures!
Follow Patricia Steele’s blog at:
http://onspanishsoil.blogspot.com.uy/
http://www.patriciabbsteele.com/
Welcome S. J. Francis, author of Shattered Lies –a suspenseful story of deceit, bigotry and a family’s deep dark secret.
Susan Joyce: Greetings! Knowing that Writing is your passion, but animals are your world, I’m curious to know more about your childhood. Where were you born?
S. J. Francis: In the city that never sleeps: New York, New York. The most unlikely place for an avid animal lover.
Susan Joyce: Did you have a horse? Other animals?
S. J. Francis: No horse in NYC, but later on, lots of animals beginning with a cat. Fish, turtles, salamanders, parakeets and more quickly followed. My parents indulged my love of animals, especially since they loved them, too.
Susan Joyce: Who were you as a child? Shy, curious, or did you always have that adventurous spirit?
S. J. Francis: As a child, I have to say that I was a bit of everything, but first and foremost, I loved animals more than anything. I definitely have an adventurous spirit, which led me to my love of traveling and my love for the outdoors, culture, sightseeing, and museums, and, of course speaking up for animals.
Susan Joyce: How many animals share home with you?
S. J. Francis: Currently, I’m blessed with three dogs and three cats. All are rescues. I also have two fish tanks, and all the wildlife that visit us on our property in the country regularly.
Susan Joyce: At what age did you start writing? Who encouraged you to continue?
S. J. Francis: I wrote a great deal in school. I wasn’t always crazy about writing assignments, but when given one I always attacked my assignment with fervor. It wasn’t until high school, though that I realized my love for writing. Thanks to a good friend who listened to my stories and encouraged me to submit my stories that I began my writing career.
Susan Joyce: What inspired you to write “Shattered Lies”?
S. J. Francis: That’s not an easy answer. It all began with one question, “What if?” What if a young woman with a perfect life found out a secret that changed it all?
Susan Joyce: If you could tell every single person one important “something” what would that something be?
S. J. Francis: Always give yourself a chance. No matter what the odds are, you must never allow yourself to fail by failing to take a chance. I believe that if nothing is ventured, nothing is gained.
Susan Joyce: Thanks S. J. Francis for giving me a chance to ask you questions! Wishing you great success with your writing projects and blessings for speaking up for animals!
To learn more about S. J. Francis and her projects visit her author site:
http://www.sjfranciswriter.com/
https://www.amazon.com/Shattered-Lies-S-J-Francis-ebook/dp/B016H9HAXC
AS children we sang of the “sweet by and by”
and a beautiful shore in heaven on high.
We were taught if we lived by the “good book” rules
we’d inherit a mansion with gold and fine jewels.
Older, I questioned many things I was taught
by asking myself if they rang true … or not.
My dear brother “Bud” loved a lively exchange;
be it religion, karma, or how molecules rearrange.
Whatever the topic, he had researched and threw
ammunition to start a feisty interview.
Our discussions revealed the importance of living,
of loving each other, of taking and giving.
A husband, a father, grandfather, and son,
a brother, an uncle all wrapped up as one.
Bigger than life with huge hugs to share.
My memories of Bud will always be there.
He made the world brighter and better by far.
For me, he will always be the most brilliant star.
When I learned of Bud’s death, I saw a circle of light;
souls connected together—twinkling bright in the night.
Here today, gone tomorrow? For me, that’s folk lore.
The energy of souls dances on … forevermore.
Susan Joyce
We witnessed horrendous storms in Uruguay end of October. Our sandy beach became cliffs—impassable for several days. This weekend we visited friends (who have a beach front home closer to the outer shores of the Atlantic Ocean) in Aquas Dulce. Their home got pounded when a powerful cyclone hit and more than 50 homes were destroyed.
Happy to report, no lives were lost because people were warned, shuttered their homes, and moved inland. It was sad to see the loss of so much property. Fortunately for our friends, extra sandbags and rocks brought in before the big one saved their home from destruction. Their neighbor on the left lost the front third of his house. Neighbors, to their right, were not so lucky. They lost everything.
Walking along the beach at low tide, I saw destruction everywhere. I was reminded of the power of nature and how lucky I was to survive so many horrendous storms in the Indian Ocean in monsoon in 1974.
This Thanksgiving, I count my many blessings. I am grateful to be alive and to have a place to call home. Happy Thanksgiving to all!
Surrounded by family, my Aunt Wilmoth died peacefully in her sleep, in her home in Gonzales, Texas on May 26, 2016 around 4:30 AM local time. She had suffered a massive heart attack a few days before and was taken by ambulance to a hospital in San Antoine, where doctors operated … but told family members that she wouldn’t last long because the dye used to do the angiogram had adversely affected her kidneys and other organs. Following surgery, knowing life was failing, she requested an ambulance to take her home to die.
I spoke with her the week before she passed. When she answered her telephone, she sounded out of breath but assured me she was fine and had spent hours that day pulling weeds from her beloved yellow rose garden. We talked and laughed about life and death. She told me she was ready to go and longed to see her husband (my uncle), her sons, and other old friends who had passed on over the years. She told me she would tell family members that I was excused from attending her memorial service in Oklahoma (I live in South America.) because we would see each other again—on the other side. I promised to help her cross over and I did.
Over the years, we had talked about our beliefs; God and the hereafter. Knowing that no one knows exactly when they will die and who will die first, we agreed to let the one left behind know if their spiritual beliefs were valid. And we agreed to communicate our findings after death. It was the same agreement I had shared with my friend Michael and my sister Leah before their deaths.
My aunt’s death, and frequent appearances of her in my visions since, have piqued my curiosity. I am busy exploring the importance of coming to terms with life and death; and inviting an exchange of information between souls on earth and in the great beyond.
When I lived in Patzcuaro, Mexico (2006-2009) with my husband Doug and son Jesse, one of my favorite celebrations was “Dia de los Muertos” (Day of the Dead). Dating back to Aztec and pre-Columbian times, it is a joyous tribute to life and loved ones who have passed on. November 1 and November 2 are the observed dates when many Mexicans believe that the gates of the afterlife open and spirits are free to mingle with the living. Loving family and friends clean and decorate graves and visit local cemeteries where they leave offerings of flowers, favorite foods (corn tortillas aplenty), drinks (lots of Tequila), and cherished objects to welcome the deceased.
The living, dressed in colorful masks and skeleton costumes hold candlelight vigils as they await a whisper of wind to blow the spirits back to earth.
The intent of this event is to honor the dead and encourage communication between souls. By engaging the living, this celebration teaches all who observe not to be afraid of death, but to enjoy and take advantage of every living moment on earth.
What comes after death? Who knows? When I helped my aunt cross over, I encouraged her to follow the light and reminded her of our agreement. She is onto another journey. So glad she had a quality life, a good death, and is sharing the beyond with me. She lives on in my heart and soul, and always will because we are connected.
Do you feel a soul connection with family or friends? Do you communicate with those who have gone on before? I would enjoy hearing about your experiences.
Buen día from Atlantida, Uruguay, South America! It’s winter in the southern hemisphere.
I’m delighted to participate in this event featuring talented authors from all literary genres—from all over the world.
Four winners will win eBooks for this stop. Your choice of:
The Lullaby Illusion: A Journey of Awakening
OR
Good Morning Diego Garcia: A Journey of Discovery
In order to win, you must comment on this post. Be sure to visit other blogs on the tour to be eligible for more prizes.
Born in Los Angeles, I spent most of my childhood in Tucson, Arizona and returned to LA as a young working woman. Inspired as a child by postcards from my globe-trotting great aunt, I left the United States at age 20 to see the “great big wonder-full” world.
I planned on being gone for a year, but ended up living my 20s and 30s in Europe and the Middle East. A Jill of all trades, I worked as a secretary and a freelance writer, taught computer classes, wrote songs, and became an accomplished artist while writing my first children’s book, Peel, the Extraordinary Elephant. A charming man who I met at a dinner party in Germany illustrated my book and later became my husband. Serendipitous events showed us that Universe had plans for us together.
After many years of writing and editing children’s books, the 2013 release of my first memoir, The Lullaby Illusion: A Journey of Awakening, represented a profound personal transformation and a new phase in my career. My second book in the ‘Journey’ series, Good Morning Diego Garcia: A Journey of Discovery is a psychological and psychic exploration forged in the chaos of horrendous storms in the Indian Ocean during monsoon season. Following the loss of a child, war in Cyprus, and with growing suspicions that my husband has a secret life, I confronted the elements, and viscerally realized that nothing is as it seems.
My third memoir is about soul connections and the force of pure energy which moves us to the unique place we belong in the universe, and how we fit into the bigger picture of life.
Doug and I love to explore different countries and cultures, learn about their history, and enjoy their distinct traditions and cuisines. We’ve just returned from a trip to Peru and Bolivia where we visited ancient civilization sites, saw alien skulls, and the mysterious Nazca lines in southern Peru.
Thanks for stopping by. Hope our paths meet again.
Susan Joyce
