​1633-1634  Smallpox  70% of Native American population dies.
1793 Yellow fever  centered in Philidelphia  5000 died 17,000 fled city
1832-1866 Cholera in 3 waves  - 1 million dead
1906-1907 “Typhoid Mary”  10,771 died
1921-25 Diphtheria epidemic  206,000 cases
1916-1955 Polio 57,628 cases  3145 deaths
1950 - 1960 Measles outbreak  762,000 cases
2010, 2014 Whooping cough
1980 to Present  HIV/Aides  1.2 million cases
2020 Covid 19    ????
 
History teaches us two lessons.  First, we need to change ourselves and our society to avoid repeating disastrous events.  Second, we do survive.  This too shall pass.
 
 

​All Americans have been asked to socially isolate themselves and I believe it is both our moral and civic responsibility to comply.  My calendar has gone from chock full to empty in a single day.  At first all that white space was terrifying.  My life felt blank just like my calendar.
I decided to pause and give myself time to reflect on what to do with all my new found free time.  After just one evening my three rules came to me.
 
3 RULES
 
Rule #1  Read every day
 
Rule # 2 write every day
 
Rule # 3  get outside every day
(hike, walk, birding etc.)
 
In my last job before retirement I worked for a health care organization during the H1N1 virous outbreak.  I volunteered for pandemic training to help our organization complete continuity of operations plans.  Watching all the measures unfolding now I am assured that they are all a part of a well thought out response to minimize the spread of the virus.
It is sad that there is social disruption to families, especially with school. Library and event location closing.  We need to become creative and learn the patience needed for our new togetherness.

I didn’t attend a single author event in 2019 due to our decision to down size.  I also suspended working on the manuscript of my fourth novel and didn’t begin again until the last week of December. 

I knew I would need to get back to marketing and decided I would sell books at the 2020 UW Madison Writer’s Institute in March.  I am presenting a class in How to Improve Your Writing with Cinematic writing.  I will be using selections from my third novel as examples.  I hope this may generate moderate sales.

In mid-January through the Henschell Haus Author Success Circle I learned the new Waunakee Library would be hosting their first ever author signing event in late February.  There was a limit of 20 authors so I zapped off an email to the librarian organizing the event and was selected.
I have all my book materials in one corner of the basement and knew it wouldn’t take me long to organize a travel kit.  I amazed myself at how well prepared I was.

The event was from 1:00-3:00 on a Saturday afternoon in a room in the library far off the beaten path of patrons.  I was pessimistic about sales and took only five copies of each book.  I also discounted sales - $17.00 for 1 book  $20.00 for 2 books and $30.00 books.  My hook was a bowl of mini hersey milk chocolates in the center of the table.
​
Traffic was very light.  People walked in a clockwise direction and I was the next to the last table if they made it that far.  I counted about 10 customers in the two hours.

The Friends of the Sun Prairie Public Library are sponsoring the second annual writing contest.  This year there will be three cash prizes for each age category.  First place - $50; Second place - $30 and Runner-up $20.
There are three age categories with a theme to write about in each category.

 Grades K- 5  “When I walk into the library I feel . . .”
Grades 6-12  “Libraries help me become . . .”
Adult  “The Library is important to Sun Prairie community because . . .”

All genres of writing are accepted including:  narrative, memoir, poetry, graphic, autobiography.

Each submission is limited to 500 words.
​
Submissions begin March 1 and end April 17.
Winners will be notified on Friday May 8, 2020.
Winners will be announced at a special ceremony Saturday May 16, 2020 at 2:00 pm.
For more information go to:  sunlib.org/friends-sun-prairie-public-library
 
 
 

I have broadcast a radio program from our local low power station for more than three years.  While the broadcast signal barely stretches 20 miles the show is live streamed which means it is worldwide.

I began wanting to produce a talk show and have not introduced music into my show except to open and close the show.  My show has had three different names and for the last year I’ve stuck with “My World and Welcome to It”, which I stole from the James Thurber book My World – Welcome to It and the television program “My World and Welcome to It” (notice the minor difference in names).

I invite the audience to share my world of the arts by talking with writers, musicians, composers, teachers, playwrights, singers, and actors.  To date I’ve done 74 interviews.  Initially, I wanted a call-in show but I couldn’t entice anyone to call except the station staff and I didn’t think that was honest.
I ask each guest to provide a bio of 100 words or less that I read on air to introduce them to the audience.  My policy is not to share questions with my guest prior to the show.  I don’t want any “rehearsed” answers.  I have a reputation for an easy going conversational style interview.  I tell my guests it is like meeting an old friend for coffee and catching up.  Most of my guests feel it is a “fun” experience.

I have won the Best of the Midwest Media Fest Achievement Award for three consecutive years.
​
I close every show with a list of events at the library the next week and a thank you to the station’s primary underwriter.
Check it out:  www.sunprairiemediacenter.com
 

I have a six year old grandson in kindergarten.  He loves school and loves having a lot of friends.  Recently he has taken to knowing addition.  Last weekend he told us that sixty minutes plus thirty minutes was 90 minutes.  I was thrilled that he shared his knowledge and how he arrived at the right answer.
Yet, he is also still a child.  Every time he stays for the weekend he insists on bringing his blue blankie and his stuffies (stuffed animals and other creatures).  The boy sleeps with no fewer than six stuffies.
The last time he stayed for the weekend he spread his blue blankie on the living room floor as the first step in building a sofa cushion fort.  He went to his bedroom for something and when he returned our cat, Ivy, was stretched out on the blanket and rubbed her face in it.
Lee shrieked with joy and made sure all of us knew that Ivy had taken over the soon to be built fort area.
Later in the afternoon Lee asked for some paper and my good pen.  He sat down at the coffee table and began writing letters. I asked him “Lee, are you writing?”

“I am writing a book.  This is chapter one.”  The first two letters were ‘BL’ which meant ‘Book Lee’.  Next were a string of letters – ‘GR, R, P, V’ which are symbols for Gram, Ross (his brother) Papa O 9 (me) and V (Vivian – his cousin).  That was it – chapter one was finished, he taped the page to a piece of furniture.

The next day he asked for a piece of paper and the special pen and told me he was writing chapter 2 of his book. He sounded out ‘Lee and Ross with us and a few more letters I don’t understand.  He taped the second chapter to a piece of furniture.

When it was time for Lee to return to his home I asked if he wanted to take his book home.  No, he taped it to the refrigator door to work on it the next weekend he had a stay over.
​
Guess we’ll have another writer in the family.  He has a fantastic start.     

Growing up parental control watching TV was very easy – either I could or I couldn’t.  The TV was the largest piece of furniture in our small living room and Mom & Dad had complete control over what programs I watched.  In those days I only recall having four channels so the choice was limited.  Choice was also determined by the direction the antenna on the roof was facing.  In my case the antenna pointed northwest toward Chicago.  I still recall the first innovation in having more TV channels was to install a motor on the antenna so you could rotate it.

We had a Saturday night TV watching routine.  In the early evening Dad would make a huge pan of popcorn smothered in real butter and salt accompanied by a glass of Pepsi.  We would gather together in the living room with our popcorn and watch TV.  One of the Saturday night favorites was Perry Mason.  This TV program led me to want to be a lawyer when I grew up.
Today, METV is replaying the black and white Perry Mason episodes.  I can’t remember any of the episodes from my elementary school days – so for me they are fresh.

 The writer in me has noticed there is a pattern or formula to each episode.  The first scene sets up a conflict and Perry isn’t involved yet.  The second scene somebody dies as a result Perry shows up or someone goes to his office to get his help.  Perry is always involved in the investigation.  His strategy is simple – find the real killer – not his client.
The series ran for nine years, I believe, because viewers new what to expect.  Yes, it was a formula – so what.  I thought about a few of the most successful commercial authors – Patterson, King, Rowling, Picoult, and others.  Readers know exactly what their books will be – the style, the language, themes, even topics.

While I have published the Irish Troubles Trilogy the protagonist and the setting are consistent but the rest varies by theme, style and point of view.
Honestly, I have never aspired to be a successful commercial author.  I don’t have the desire or interest for that writing path.  It requires complete devotion to only writing.  I have other important activities like grandchildren, volunteer work, being in a play reading group, European travel and many others.
​
While I learned an important lesson watching Perry Mason, I’ve chosen not to follow it in my life.  

Growing up parental control watching TV was very easy – either I could or I couldn’t.  The TV was the largest piece of furniture in our small living room and Mom & Dad had complete control over what programs I watched.  In those days I only recall having four channels so the choice was limited.  Choice was also determined by the direction the antenna on the roof was facing.  In my case the antenna pointed northwest toward Chicago.  I still recall the first innovation in having more TV channels was to install a motor on the antenna so you could rotate it.

We had a Saturday night TV watching routine.  In the early evening Dad would make a huge pan of popcorn smothered in real butter and salt accompanied by a glass of Pepsi.  We would gather together in the living room with our popcorn and watch TV.  One of the Saturday night favorites was Perry Mason.  This TV program led me to want to be a lawyer when I grew up.
Today, METV is replaying the black and white Perry Mason episodes.  I can’t remember any of the episodes from my elementary school days – so for me they are fresh.

 The writer in me has noticed there is a pattern or formula to each episode.  The first scene sets up a conflict and Perry isn’t involved yet.  The second scene somebody dies as a result Perry shows up or someone goes to his office to get his help.  Perry is always involved in the investigation.  His strategy is simple – find the real killer – not his client.

The series ran for nine years, I believe, because viewers new what to expect.  Yes, it was a formula – so what.  I thought about a few of the most successful commercial authors – Patterson, King, Rowling, Picoult, and others.  Readers know exactly what their books will be – the style, the language, themes, even topics.

While I have published the Irish Troubles Trilogy the protagonist and the setting are consistent but the rest varies by theme, style and point of view.
Honestly, I have never aspired to be a successful commercial author.  I don’t have the desire or interest for that writing path.  It requires complete devotion to only writing.  I have other important activities like grandchildren, volunteer work, being in a play reading group, European travel and many others.
​
While I learned an important lesson watching Perry Mason, I’ve chosen not to follow it in my life.   

While morning temperatures dropped well below zero this weekend I was working on preparing my presentation “Let Cinematic Writing Improve Your Book” at the 2020 Writers’ Institute (3/26/20 at 2:30 pm) uwwritersinstitute.wisc.edu www.uwwritersinstitute.wisc.edu.

In the presentation I will explain how I write.  My experience is that every writer has their own unique method of writing.  I am not trying to be prescriptive and tell you how to write.  Instead, I will explain my method and suggest you give it a try.

I begin every scene in my head.  I literally “see” a scene in my mind like you are watching a video.  By seeing the scene I snare the action that is going to take place.  When I write I add physicality to the scene with scent, heat, touch, weather and etc.  Sometimes in my mind I even imagine dialogue but  that is rare.  The reason I don’t hear dialogue in my mind is because the visual and language centers are in two different parts of the brain.  I seem to be limited to one part of my brain working at a time.
​
I always write the first draft without editing.  With the manuscript I’m working on now I made the mistake of taking a weekender class on editing.  Damn near destroyed my process and cost me weeks of productive time.
Once the story is finished I give myself a week or two off to let the story “get cold.”  Then I begin craft editing to prepare to send it off to an editor.
Want to learn more about cinematic writing.  Attend the 2020 Writer’s Institute March 26-29 in Madison, WI (see link above).