Category Archives: Music, Movies, and other Muses

A line from a song, an image from a film, an unexpected moment of beauty in everyday life – my mind absorbs them all

When the Movie is Better than the Book, Part 2

Posted in Music, Movies, and other Muses by

As a writer of books, I often feel guilty when I like a film adaptation better than the book that inspired it. I feel sort of like a traitor to my craft, as it were. But ultimately, I like a good story—and sometimes, the movie tells a better story than the book. In this post, I explained in detail why I think that the 1939 movie The Wizard of Oz told a better story than Baum’s original classic book.

Here is a list of some other movies that I think are better than their original book inspirations. In most of these cases, I feel that the movie version told a more cohesive story—whether it be fewer extraneous sub-plots, better pacing, fewer minor characters, or just plain easier to follow. In some cases, the movie ending was more positive or satisfying than the book ending, which is something I’m partial to. Continue reading →

Advertisement

Decopunk Aesthetic: #ThursdayAesthetic Images

Posted in Music, Movies, and other Muses by

With the recent social media trend of sharing aesthetic posts or mood boards for books, I thought I’d join in.

Below are some images that I feel help to set the stage for my current 1920s historical fantasy series. Glamour, intrigue, and danger are a part of Cornelia Jones’ life. Magic and advanced technology flourish in her Roaring 20s world!

 

Continue reading →

Coming this Sunday! Historytellers Scavenger Hunt!

Posted in Music, Movies, and other Muses by

This is just a quick post to give you a heads up about the HISTORYTELLERS Scavenger Hunt coming this Sunday. You are all invited!

13 authors of historical fiction set in the 1910s, 1920s and 1930s are joining together to offer a bundle of their books to one lucky reader, and that reader could be you, don’t you think?

Head over HERE to see how you can play the hunt. It’s easy, I promise! And please share! The more people we have, the more fun we’ll have!

Continue reading →

New Fairy Gardens

Posted in Music, Movies, and other Muses by

Some time ago I wrote a few posts about a fairy garden that I was creating in my back yard. It was a fun venture, building the door, sculpting the mossy yard. I’m not sure what it looks like now – I moved over a year ago. Probably the forest has taken over, which is fine with me – there’s something almost magical about nature re-claiming something that has been built.

Now that I have a new house and a new yard, I’m slowly getting to work on some new fairy gardens. My yard is very different from the previous one – much less shady and wooded, for starters. I love my new yard, but since this was actually my first full spring and summer in this house, I spent most of the time simply learning what was in my yard and how it changed through the seasons. Continue reading →

Book Nerd Problems: Organizing Your Bookshelf

Posted in Music, Movies, and other Muses by

For us book lovers, there are probably as many ways to organize a book shelf as there are people who do it. There’s no right or wrong way – I believe that as long as you can find the books you want when you want them and are generally happy with the overall appearance, then that’s all that matters.

I’m currently facing a new and exciting problem – having more space than I’ve ever had before in which to organize and display my books. Ultimately, I’d love to have a giant Beauty and the Beast-style library – but until I marry a rich bookish prince with castle, I have to make do with the four bookshelves I’ve got. My bookshelves are all different sizes (1 large, 2 small, 1 teeny), and are in three different rooms in my house. Of course I can add more bookshelves if needed, but right now I have enough shelf space with a little to spare. The main issue I’m having now is deciding how I want to arrange all my books. Continue reading →

What I’ve Learned about Writing from Watching The Librarians

Posted in Music, Movies, and other Muses by

Even though I’ve blogged plenty about older sci-fi shows like Babylon 5, Star Trek, and Stargate, I occasionally watch newer shows, too (it’s rare, actually, but every now and then I find a show that I consider worth my time to watch).

The Librarians just wrapped up its fourth season (and, sadly, final season, unless another network picks up the show). The Librarians is about a magical Library that is the repository for all the magical and supernatural artifacts in the world, and the Librarians protect the Library and jaunt around the world gathering artifacts and fighting bad guys. It’s clever, campy, family-friendly adventure.

Since I’m a writer, I can’t help but look at things from a storytelling point of view and analyzing everything, even as I’m being entertained. (For anyone else who wishes to be entertained, all four seasons are currently on Hulu).

I believe the practice of watching/reading things from a writer’s perspective helps me to become a better writer. And so, here are some things that I’ve learned about writing from watching The Librarians: Continue reading →