Famous People...

There's a reason I write about famous people. It's because I have walked awhile with them and heard, in their own words, about some of the experiences that shaped their lives. Described so perfectly, that I usually feel as if I had been right there beside them. 

Some of these experiences have tugged at my heart (often moved me to tears), and I've come away having learned something so deeply profound that I wanted to make it a part of my own life. Never wanted to forget it. Most of all, these unique experiences have made me want to be a better person. To maybe do something worthwhile with my own life. At the very least, I have wanted to introduce them to others, so that others might experience these things, too. I didn't care that they were dead (these famous people). It didn't matter to me in the least. 

Because the experiences themselves are not dead. 

One day, a young woman (barely twenty-thee), wanted a job on one of the most prestigious newspapers in New York, so badly that she offered to get herself committed to the most notorious "insane asylum" of her day. In order to "get a look at it from the inside out." This because there had been rumors of the deplorable treatment of patients within those walls that were hidden away on Blackwell's Island, which stood in the East River of New York City. It was said, that even if you were put there by mistake (which an alarming number of people were, especially if they were vagrants), there was no way to get out, again. Oh, and what a sensation of a story that would make for the great newspaper!

The publisher said if she could actually pull it off, she could have that job.

She only required one thing. The famous man must do whatever it took to get her out, again, after two days. Which he promptly promised to do. Except he had no idea when he made that promise, that it was practically impossible to get anyone out of there, no matter how much influence they had in the city. Here, in her own words, is some of what Nellie Bly was feeling on the night she went out to get herself arrested, and subsequently committed...

"I remembered all I had read of the doings of crazy people, how first of all they have staring eyes, and so I opened mine as wide as possible and stared unblinkingly at my own reflection. I assure you the sight was not reassuring, even to myself, especially in the dead of night. I tried to turn the gas[light] up higher in hopes that it would raise my courage.

...when I thought of what was to come, wintery chills ran races up and down my back in very mockery of the perspiration which was slowly but surely taking the curl out of my bangs.

…who could tell but that the strain of playing crazy, and being shut up with a crowd of mad people, might turn my own brain, and I would never get back. But not once did I think of shirking my mission. Calmly, outwardly at least, I went out to my crazy business…"

Well, she barely did get out, and very nearly went mad waiting for that rescue. Because it was a whopping ten days (with no word from the outside) before the publisher finally succeeded in appealing to the highest authorities in order to get her released. But because of her daring mission, Blackwell's Island was exposed, laws for the treatment of the insane were changed, and Nellie Bly rocketed to fame. Which was only the beginning of her many audacious ideas.

To read Nellie Bly's writings is to be influenced all over, again by her daring and her nerve. Under which she had the golden heart of an amazing Christian woman. Which is why I wanted to introduce her to more readers by way of THE PANDORA BOX. Because, you see, I was wondering just what might happen if someone were to try and do such things, today. I might even go so far as to say I am making a small effort to do some of those things, myself. In my own way, of course. Except I found out I'm not half so brave! But more importantly...

I found out that part doesn't really matter.

Have you ever been influenced by a famous person? Tell me about it in the comment section to have your name (and email address) put into the Captain's Hat. The winner of a complimentary ebook copy of THE PANDORA BOX will be drawn out, next week (don't worry, he's very fair, and promises you won't be put on any lists for anything else).

The Story Behind the Story...

Week Two of 

THE PANDORA BOX 

release...

I don't always have such an interesting "story behind the story" for the plots I think up, but for THE PANDORA BOX, I do. It happened a very long time ago. A time when the Captain and I were, once again, living aboard a boat. That one was a forty-three foot sloop that we also shared with our three teen-aged children, and one derelict cat.

I never liked that cat. Mostly because it was some half-wild thing my daughter dragged home that she found living under a house one winter. It was not a kitten, just some scrawny feline that never trusted anyone but her. Ever. I won't go into why we even considered letting her bring that cat aboard the boat. Suffice it to say that when you have a tender-hearted daughter you do all kinds of things you never would have thought of.

Anyway, that left me as the cat caregiver when daughter was away. Which didn't amount to much more than leaving a porthole open so she could come in and out for food and such. However, once the glories of catching minnows off the docks was discovered, we didn't even cross paths for meals. Even the litter box was clean. Hmm... 

Which is why, one night, when I was coming home late from the newspaper (I was a journalist back in those days), I happened to see that cat come out of the porthole of someone else's boat. Not just any boat. A beautiful classic ketch from days gone by. Rather run down, but you could tell it had once been luxurious. So, there in the moonlight, I climbed aboard and peeked inside. Not that I could see much of anything. But I immediately got a horribly distinct whiff of cat. I felt mortified.

The next day, I hunted up the secretary at the marina office and confessed that my cat had been using someone else's boat as a litter box. So, what could I do to make things right as I couldn't exactly fit through the porthole. Could she give me a telephone number for the owner, maybe? 

"Oh, that old thing?" She replied after seeing the one I pointed out the window to. "Don't worry about it, honey. It's going up for auction, again, at the end of the month, but no one ever buys it because it used to belong to Hermann Goering. Everyone thinks it's cursed. Sailors are superstitious about things like that."

At which point, my writer antenna began to inch up like a periscope in dark waters. Which led me to some intensive research, and the discovery of the infamous man's strange fetish for hoarding stolen jewels. Of how he would even carry a vase of them around on his wartime travels during WWII. How he liked extravagant living, and would often charter local boats in various countries for several days at a time. And especially how most of those cases went unsolved because nearly all of the owners were dead. In fact, a lot of that stolen plunder was still missing. Not to mention there are still old Nazi war criminals being caught and prosecuted for their war crimes to this very day.

Anyway, that's how the story of THE PANDORA BOX got its beginnings. Of course, it immediately took off in directions of its own, but that's the mysterious part of writing fiction. Because for the most part, I really don't know where all these ideas come from.

Don't forget...

Did you get your free copy of NIGHT VISITORS, yet? It's the story of how Dee Parker (my heroine of THE PANDORA BOX) met the best friend she took along on her great adventure (they say there's safety in numbers). There's also a recipe in there for one of my favorite... oh, but I'll just let you find that out for yourself.

Meanwhile, my first winner of the four complimentary copies of the ebook version of THE PANDORA BOX is Kathleen. Congratulations,  Kathleen! I hope you enjoy reading this story that was more than a typical story for me... in many more ways than one!

The Big Day...

THE PANDORA BOX releases today... and I am very excited about that. It's the book that got me on a boat and sent me off on my next great adventure! 

   By way of celebration, I am giving away an ebook called NIGHT VISITORS. It's the story of how Dee Parker (the main character in THE PANDORA BOX) met the best friend she took along on her amazing adventure. 

You can download it, compliments of the wonderful Pelican Book Group (that I call "home of the great escape"). Just click on the book cover to go there, and get your free copy. Thank you ever so much for being one of my readers, and I'll look forward to hearing what you think about THE PANDORA BOX. 

Meanwhile, Here's the book trailer and a short excerpt to let you know a little more about the story...

A short excerpt...

1

The Assignment

"How will you get me out," I asked my editor, "after I once get in?" 

                                                                          ~ Nellie Bly

It was visiting day in the psychiatric hospital. Dee Parker sat at her usual table in the lounge, next to a foot-wide floor to ceiling window that allowed only a narrow view to the outside lawn. No need to attract any undue attention. It was not an opening window and there was no way of escape. There was that word again. Kept popping up every time she turned around. Honestly, if people could read each other’s minds, they’d all be staring at her right now.

Better get a grip. This was the day. The real deal.

Today, she was going to help Nelson Peterson escape from Wyngate State Hospital. Of course, that was not part of her original assignment, and her editor would probably hit the roof when he found out. But she would deal with that after she got Peterson safely out of here. For weeks now, she only had to come as far as this visitor’s lounge to talk with the old gentleman. Just the thought of having to live here was enough to give her nightmares. But it would soon be over.

Dee felt again for the sprig of miniature roses she had tucked into the band of her straw hat (the smell of roses was supposed to have a calming effect on people) and forced herself not to look around so much. There were too many people here who were getting used to her weekly visits and might engage in conversation if they caught her eye. Today, of all days, she did not want to stand out or be remembered. Except this afternoon, there was something troubling in the atmosphere. She could sense it...

The Next Big Thing...

I was blog tagged by Lynn C. Willis, last week (thank you, Lynn) and invited to participate in The Next Big Thing! So, here we go, dear readers, with some answers that pertain to my own soon-to-be-released novel...

THE PANDORA BOX

Another inspirational adventure from Pelican Book Group...

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

Hmm... I am from a previous generation, and (to tell you the truth) haven’t been to a movie theater in several years. So, I’m unfamiliar with most of the latest stars. However, my editor recently mentioned her choice of  Matthew McConaughey, so I would probably add Sandra Bullock. Then, again, I’d much prefer readers to “choose their own.”

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book? 

The confession of a dying Nazi war criminal sends journalist, Dee Parker on the treasure hunt of a life-time… oblivious to the fact that the CIA has been watching the case for years.

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript? 

First draft, about a year.  Many rewrites interspersed over several more. Final draft after I discovered the definition of a Christian worldview (thank you, Chip MacGregor)... six months.

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre? 

Having thought I came up with the “inspirational adventure” genre all by myself, I wouldn’t know. But if there are others out there, please pipe up, as I would love to read them!

Who or What inspired you to write this book? 

This book has been bubbling and simmering at the back of my brain for many years. The idea came to me one night as I was following an errant cat down onto some fishing docks in the Pacific Northwest, and stumbled onto an old relic of a sailing vessel that was rumored to have been chartered by the notorious Hermann Goering during WWII.

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest? 

Many of us are working at dream jobs that turned out not to be so dreamy. So, I was wondering how many would take a chance on treasure hunting if we suddenly got a hot lead no one else had ever heard about. Which is what I happen to be doing myself, in real life, at this very moment... if I were going to be perfectly honest about it.

Well, there you have it. Thanks so much for dropping by for this little “game of tag” dear readers, and I hope you’ll keep your eye out for THE PANDORA BOX when it hits the shelves. Meanwhile, I'm going to pass the baton to five of my own favorite authors, and hope you will join me in seeing what they have lined up next for their readers, too. I know I can't wait to find out!

http://www.jayneself.com/

http://www.eddiejones.org/

http://lindarondeau.com/

http://laurabriggsbooks.blogspot.com/

http://www.michael-duncan.net/

How I Write Adventure Novels...

Writing about an adventure is not nearly as hard as actually going on one. For one thing, the temperatures are more stable. You don't freeze to death should you happen to fall into frigid arctic seas, or die of thirst should you get lost in a jungle. Nor do you feel  an ounce of guilt if you happen to leave one of your characters stranded in such a situation while you make a trip to the refrigerator, or maybe take a whole weekend off before you get back to them, again. You don't even lose much sleep wondering how you will get them out of the fix. 

On the other hand, even waking up with rain pouring into your tent on a family campout can be a major catastrophe. Or having more grounds than coffee in your cup of a morning, because some enthusiastic camp cook wanted to make it "the old fashioned way." I know about these things. Because I have been on a lot of adventures over the years. To tell you the truth, I happen to be on one, right now. A big one. 

I have even had some thoughts that I might not make it home, again, this time.

I wish I could say I was on some quest for the Holy Grail, but I'm not. I'm out here for my health. More specifically, I don't want to die of gold fever without ever having found any gold. However, I have learned something very important, already. The reason gold is so valuable is because it takes an amazing amount of work to extract even a little of it out of the earth. That is, unless you get lucky and find yourself a nugget. I say lucky because I equate the pull of such thoughts akin to gambling. Just a chance at it has the power to send you places you would never even consider while in your right mind. Mostly under horrid conditions, too. The fact that it has a giddy sort of contentment attached to it is a paradox.

I can talk about this objectively, right now, because I am on a temporary break from high mountain elevations, deserted mines, and wilderness streams running swift with snow-melt. I am in one of the most beautiful places in the country: the Pacific Northwest. Rocky islands with forests that reach right down to the sea. So many of them, you could hop from one to the other (if you had a good boat) all the way up to Alaska. Our next stop. There is gold in every river up there, and I have heard of a particular one that is showing lots of "color" this year. Of course, it will take quite the long time to get there that way.

Which is perfect for writing adventure fiction.

Here's a peek at the book cover of my next inspirational adventure novel. It's called THE PANDORA BOX, and has to do with the hazards of treasure hunting. Four friends, who think it will be so easy when they first start off. Except for a few strings they don't even know are attached, yet. But -- hey -- not many people are looking behind them on an adventure like this…

Ask me how I know.

Friends for Life...

Lately, I've been traveling at night. Sometimes, even into the wee hours of the morning. This so I can visit with some of my most favorite people in all the world… my First Readers. Mostly because I am coming into the "home stretch" of my new inspirational adventure novel, THE PANDORA BOX, and their insights and opinions are invaluable to me. 

Which is why I would like to introduce them to you, and tell you a little bit of how much they have helped me. Their names are Fay and Ken, and they live on the Gold Coast in Australia. Oddly enough, I met them in Alaska, which happens to be one of their favorite places, as well as mine. You see, they happen to be adventurers, too. Another reason why I value their advice on my adventure stories.

In the coming days before I reach the finish line, I will be sharing some of the actual  things they have helped me with. Most recently, going back to hammer out and comb over those important first two pages until they shine. Which I most often do when I get close to the end, as motivations and characters are so much more clear to me by then. Night after night, I would sit down and (virtually) share coffee with these good friends as we looked through a magnifying glass to get rid of the dead parts and leave only what was alive. And PANDORA  is so much better because of it. 

So, my most heartfelt thanks to Fay and Ken, who put up with me at all hours, read everything over numerous times when they really didn't have to, and for some rollicking good laughs when we all worked too late and were still having a good time. Thank you, Fay, for your ever-constant prayers and encouragement (and for sharing bits of the manuscript with strangers and friends, just to get an outside opinion), and Ken, for that all-important perspective that only a man can give on the way men think and do things. You are the dearest and best friends a writer could have, and I will love you both forever!

Find out more about my First Readers Club by visiting my "About" page over at LillyMaytree.com  Or come back tomorrow, when I will be talking about it here on the blog.