#OpenBook - P.J. MacLayne

What Subjects Am I Good At? #OpenBook Blog Hop

By P.J. MacLayne June 18, 2023 June 18, 2023 Open Book

June 19, 2023

Besides writing, what other ‘subjects’ are you good at?

Now that I am retired, there are a lot of things I don’t care as much about as I used to. Math is one of those. I used to be a math whiz – I could do fairly complicated mathematical problems in my head. Now, my needs are more basic and I rely on a calculator for most of them. Shoot, the program I use for taking credit cards at book signings will calculate sales tax for me now, instead of me having to figure it out. I prefer making my prices a round number. That way I don’t have to deal with change!

On the other hand, I am learning and relearning skills I had when I was younger regarding gardening and nature. I never knew that robins sunbathe (It’s good for their wings) or that blue jays eat butterflies. But the butterflies know, because I’ve watched them try to hide when a blue jay is nearby. Other birds don’t like the blue jays either, and larger ones will chase them off.

Spring was a joy. I spent a lot of time wandering my yard to find out what new flowers popped up. At one point, I counted over fifteen varieties of wildflowers – and then I lost track. If you follow me on Instagram, I posted them on that platform. I don’t remember seeing that many kinds when I lived in this area growing up.

But the number one subject I’m getting better at? The art of relaxation. I’m no subject matter expert yet, but I’m learning to take more moments to just breathe.

pink forget-me-nots

What subjects are the other writers on this blog good at? Find out by following the links below.

Until next time, please stay safe

June 19, 2023

Besides writing, what other ‘subjects’ are you good at?

Rules:
1. Link your blog to this hop.
2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.
3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.
4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use #OpenBook when tweeting.
5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.

To Sit and Think #OpenBook Blog Hop

By P.J. MacLayne June 11, 2023 June 11, 2023 Open Book

June 12, 2023

How do you keep from overthinking your story?

“No problem can withstand the assault of sustained thinking.”—Voltaire

Recently, I had an old acquaintance describe me as “intense.” I can’t disagree, and that bleeds into my writing. Overthinking my story? I plead guilty.

Even minor details can become sticky points as I consider whether they belong in the story.. Does it matter what posters are on the walls of the gym? They could be a nice touch to the setting, but they could also just be a distraction and slow down the pace of the action. It’s possible that I will spend ten minutes creating them, only to rip that section out and move it to my outtakes folder. Overthinking at its finest.

When I write by hand, I don’t have the same problem. I may spend more time pondering a single word, but less time trying to figure out the plot. It seems to flow more naturally. (But then editing takes more time.)

In my current work in progress, I’ve been spending energy trying to figure out the romantic subplot. When will I introduce it? I know I want there to be one, and who should be involved, but I’m not sure how to make it happen without seeming forced. Yes, I am overthinking it.

But it shouldn’t be a surprise, because I overthink life in general. Expecting overnight guests? I figure out which set of towels to wash and set out for them a week in advance. Trip planning is a whole production, and I won’t share the appalling details.

Still, I can be laid-back and spontaneous, and when I tap into that side of me I do perhaps not my best writing, but my fastest writing—the most words in a sitting. I love those times, when I can stop overthinking and just write. Sadly, I have no hints on how to achieve that state.

What about the other authors in this hop? Find out how they battle overthinking by following the links below.

Until next time, please stay safe.

June 12, 2023

How do you keep from overthinking your story?

What Muppet Would I Look Like? #OpenBook Blog Hop

By P.J. MacLayne June 4, 2023 June 4, 2023 Open Book

June 5, 2023

If you were a muppet, what would you look like? Are you a person, monster, animal, something else?

There was/is so much talent in the designs of Jim Henson and his team, as well as the many folks who emulated his designs, that I can’t imagine that I could come close to their greatness. From Sesame Street to Fraggle Rock (I still have a plastic Fraggle on my desk) to the Dark Crystal, the genius lives on.

But I can tell you about my favorite, which I would design myself after. But first, the runner-up.

Janice from the Electric Mayhem band. She’s sweet and kind, a little naïve, and extremely talented. What’s not to love? There are parts of her that remind me of what I’d like to be but I could never match her amazing talent. I even named a character after her in one of my never-to-be-published books.

But the character I’d like to be modeled after? Animal. His overwhelming energy and enthusiasm is role-model material. How he tackles problems head-on. (Although sometimes he doesn’t get all the facts first) And he never has a bad hair day. .He understands what is important in his life and strives to honor it. All of this while never saying a word.

I’d have to change that part to be me, of course. I’d have to have words.

What would you look like if you were a muppet? I’m curious to find out what the other authors on this hop would look like. Jin me in finding out by following the links below.

Until next time, please stay safe.

June 5, 2023

If you were a muppet, what would you look like? Are you a person, monster, animal, something else?

I Never Learned How To #OpenBook Blog Hop

By P.J. MacLayne May 21, 2023 May 22, 2023 Open Book

May 22, 2023

What skill do you wish you had, either as a hobby or career builder?

As a teenager, I never got the hang of knitting. I learned how to crochet, but it wasn’t something I ever cared about. My thing was needlepoint, and I was good at it. But now that I am old, I have no desire to try knitting again.

I tried to learn how to split logs, but couldn’t aim correctly. Now I’m no longer strong enough. Besides, the new house has a gas fireplace, not a wood one.

Back in the days of singer-songwriters, I wanted to learn to play guitar and started teaching myself. That was in pre-internet days, and there were no YouTube videos to watch. It was a matter of looking at diagrams in books to figure out where to place my fingers on the strings. I mastered one chord before I had a bicycle accident and started to lose my hearing in one ear. I also had an arm in a sling and that made holding a guitar impossible. Then, I moved halfway across the country to go to college and my guitar got left behind.

But that’s what I’d like to do. Learn to play a musical instrument – even though my hearing is getting worse as I get older. I don’t know if there’d be something easier, but I’d be happy with a guitar. I’d start with “Sitting on the Dock of the Bay.” The chording for that is fairly simple. Even with my bad ear, I could play it. With today’s electronic tuners, i should be able to tune the strings!

Of course, the hearing loss has also made it difficult to sing in tune. So, I’d have to be content is being the backup for people who can sing.

I’m looking forward to hearing from the other authors on this hp about what skill they wish they had. You can find out by following the links below.

Until next time, please stay safe.

PS Don’t forget, The Rise of Jake Hennessey is now available!

May 22, 2023

What skill do you wish you had, either as a hobby or career builder?

Which Crayon Am I? #OpenBook Blog Hop

By P.J. MacLayne May 14, 2023 May 14, 2023 Open Book

May 15, 2023

People are like a box of crayons, which crayon would you say that you are?

You know that crayon stuck in the back row? The one that’s cracked, but is still wrapped in paper? There are days that I feel like that crayon. Damaged, but useable.

That crayon can be hard to get out of the box, and is rarely gets pulled out. You may have to empty the entire box to get to it.

The point may be dull but once in a while, you think it’s your favorite color. Until another color distracts you and you stick it back in the box. There it stays until you need it again. That’s me.

And you? Which crayon are you? Tell me in the comments. And don’t forget to check out the other authors by following the links below.

Until next time, please stay safe.

Don’t forget, The Rise of Jake Hennessey releases May 17th!

May 15, 2023

People are like a box of crayons, which crayon would you say that you are?

Something to Eat, Drink, and Listen To #OpenBook Blog Hop

By P.J. MacLayne May 7, 2023 May 7, 2023 Open Book

May 8, 2023

How do you get ready for a long writing session?

I thought this would be an easy question to answer until I stopped to think about it, and how long it’s been since I had a really long writing session. I’ve lost my focus. All the changes I’ve gone through in the last year have messed with my internal equilibrium. Even writing these blog posts takes me forever as I start, get distracted, and have to come back to them.

My current distractions? Too many to list, but they include identifying the flowers and birds in my yard. Spotted what I think was an Eastern meadowlark today, but it flew away before I got a good look at it. And my yard is filled with pinkish-white flowers that I think are cuckoo flowers. I can’t find much information about them in my locale, so I’m not sure. The plant identifier sites barely mention the possibility of them in my area.

I’m also getting ready for the release of The Rise of Jake Hennessey and having fun creating memes, spending time on free photo sites and manipulating them in Canva. Have you seen one of them on social media? Here’s the latest.

Okay, back to business. After I check my email. All three of them. And check the view out my window as the daylight fades. Where were we?

Oh yeah, how do I settle in for a long writing session? First, I have to refill my water bottle. Water is my choice of beverage, although it gets boring. Then, I need to choose a snack. Reese’s Pieces are a good option, but I have to limit my intake. Cheese cubes are a healthy alternative. Next, I put on my headphones and pick an artist or playlist. John Denver remains a top choice, along with classic rock. Something I’ve heard enough that I don’t have to concentrate on the words but can only half-listen to without feeling like I’m missing anything. It helps block the urge to hop on the internet and browse. Although I’ve been listening to 80’s music as a background for my WIP and getting distracted because I’m discovering artists I didn’t pay attention to back when the music was popular.

Where was I? How about the other authors on this loop? How do they get ready for a long writing session? Find out by following the links below.

Until next time, please stay safe.

May 8, 2023

How do you get ready for a long writing session?

Teaching A Lesson in Fiction #OpenBook Blog Hop

By P.J. MacLayne April 30, 2023 April 30, 2023 Open Book

May 1, 2023

Does every book have to have a moral?

Early in the story, I had a beta reader ask me what the moral of my coming-soon ‘The Rise of Jake Hennessey’ was. I admit, I had to stop and think about it. Did the story have one? I didn’t plan on it. All I set out to do was bring the story of Jake, Eli, and Harmony to a satisfying conclusion. There’s no moral. I wrote it for entertainment only.

Could I stretch things to find a moral? I can find lots of platitudes – right over wrong, love will find a way, crime doesn’t pay — although this is Jake we are dealing with, so the last one doesn’t count. But a moral?

But Jake is an anomaly. A good man with an illegal hobby. Let’s talk about some of my other books. Do they have morals?

Not on purpose. Again, I can come up with lots of platitudes. Love conquers all. Everybody needs someone. He who laughs last, laughs best. But a moral?

Again, I am writing for entertainment. The Free Wolves have some underlying themes that are ‘heavier,’ but they aren’t the major thrust of the stories. The Harmony Duprie books are more lighthearted. They are mysteries, but there isn’t a murder in every book. I do like breaking rules. I guess that’s why Jake and I get along.

So no, I don’t believe every book has to have a moral. What about our other authors? Find out by following the links below.

As always, until next time, please stay safe.

(if you haven’t seen it yet, here’s the cover of The Rise of Jake Hennessey, releasing on May 17th.

May 1, 2023

Does every book have to have a moral?

Where to Find It? #OpenBook Blog Hop

By P.J. MacLayne April 23, 2023 April 23, 2023 Open Book

April 24, 2023

What are your favorite resources for research?

It all depends. It changes depending upon the book I am writing. Now that I’ve moved, it has changed again.

I’m no professional when it comes to various types of guns. Some guys I used to work with were heavily into hunting, and they would help me with various aspects of weapon use in my stories. (I wouldn’t know the difference between an AK-15, and AK-17, and a fancy paintball gun.) I’d just walk down the hall and talk to them. Since I’ve retired, that resource is gone. But in my last couple of books, guns haven’t been a major part of the story, so it hasn’t been an issue. (Jake Hennessey, my hero, doesn’t carry a gun. Never has.)

My current WIP (work in progress) is set in Pittsburgh around 1985. That’s changed everything as far as resources. I’ve been chasing rabbits to find the information I need. Although I survived the 1980s, I am looking for the details. What were the top songs and the favorite drug of choice? Those were easy. Trying to find a description of the Penguins’ owner’s club in the Civic Arena was another story. I spent hours watching old videos on YouTube and haunting Facebook groups. I finally got what I needed through one of my brothers, who knew someone who’d been there. Shoot, trying to determine the color of the uniforms the Pittsburgh cops wore back then was a challenge, and it wasn’t that long ago. I should have called their public relations department and asked, but I didn’t think about it.

As the story writes itself, I keep discovering more details I want to incorporate, but there’s no single website that offers me everything. I keep bookmarking additional sites so I can find them again. Remind me – I’ve got to check out the resources of the Pittsburgh Public Library system and see what they offer on-line.

The internet is a wonderful starting point for research, but there’s so much more. I’ve always believed that people are our greatest source of information, if you can find the right ones to talk to.

How about out other authors? What are their favorite resources? Find out by following the links.

As always, until next time, please stay safe.

April 24, 2023

What are your favorite resources for research?

Any Place, Any Time, Any Where #OpenBook Blog Hop

By P.J. MacLayne April 16, 2023 April 16, 2023 Open Book

April 17, 2023

If you could live in any place, any time, any world, where would you live?

There’s the emotional response and the logical response. It might be fun to visit the Middle Ages, but the lack of decent food, sanitation, and medical knowledge would make it a dangerous time to live. It’s fun to think you’d live in a castle and be part of nobility, but chances are, most of us would be peasants. I’ll pass.

I’d also like to explore the culture and knowledge of Native Americans before they were in touch with Europeans. So much of what we think we know has been filtered through unreliable narrators. It would be interesting to experience a world that developed with minimal outside influence.

Anne McCaffrey’s Pern would also be interesting. Dragons, you know. There would be drawbacks, based on the social class. Not sure I’d want to stay there.

I would love to visit the world I created in my books and have a chance to meet my characters. I’ve often said I’d like to sit on the steps with Harmony Duprie, sip on some of her ice tea, and enjoy a fine spring afternoon. Or maybe I could get a job at the library where she works. Or, since her world overlaps with my Free Wolves stories, I might have the chance to watch a human transform into a wolf or some other creature.

But if I’m being realistic? Although I’m an old fart, I wasn’t old enough to truly take part in the hippie era. I’d love to be born a few years earlier, and to go to Woodstock, make a trip to San Francisco, and perhaps live in a commune. It would also allow me to get into the computer field earlier than I did. On top of that, I’d be able to get into indie book publishing before the market got crowded.

How about you? In what time, era, and place would you like to live? Tell me in the comments. And to find out about our other authors, follow the links below.

As always, until next time, please stay safe.

April 17, 2023

If you could live in any place, any time, any world, where would you live?

The Food They Eat #OpenBook Blog Hop

By P.J. MacLayne April 9, 2023 April 9, 2023 Open Book

April 10, 2023

What does the food your characters eat reveal about their personality?

She longed for a rare steak to satisfy the blood lust licking her paw had awakened, but she hadn’t found a gas station yet selling them. She sighed. Beef jerky would be on the menu.
Wolves’ Pawn

What do wolf shifters eat? Raw meat, of course, when they have the option. Except they have a human side, and a no-nonsense doctor that insists that pack members include fruits and vegetables in their menus. I played with the concept throughout the Free Wolves’ series. In Wolves’ Knight, there is a community celebration that includes steak and casseroles, and in Wolves’ Gambit, steak is mentioned several times as a part of meals.

I took it farther in Wolves’ Gambit, joking about how a Wyoming pack can’t raise cattle because the cows can sense the dual nature of the wolf shifters, and are skittish around them. Chickens, however, don’t seem to care.

The wolf part of my shifters leads to many minor plot points around food. They have rules about what they can hunt and when. Pregnant does are never to be killed. A large stag is considered off-limits because of his potential to expand the local herd of deer. Who says a wolf shifter can’t be an environmentalist and understand their impact on a future food source? Also, there are other rules about verifying if an animal is another shifter or not before attacking them to make them a meal, which would be unethical. (Attacking them in battle is a different set of values.)

It makes sense. The closer you are to nature, the closer you are to your food source. So my wolf shifters and food are tied together.

How about the other authors. What does food reveal about their character’s personalities? Follow the link below to find out.

As always, until next time, please stay safe.

April 10, 2023

What does the food your characters eat reveal about their personality?

1. Link your blog to this hop.
2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.
3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.
4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use #OpenBook when tweeting.
5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.

Tag: #OpenBook

What Subjects Am I Good At? #OpenBook Blog Hop

To Sit and Think #OpenBook Blog Hop

What Muppet Would I Look Like? #OpenBook Blog Hop

I Never Learned How To #OpenBook Blog Hop

Which Crayon Am I? #OpenBook Blog Hop

Something to Eat, Drink, and Listen To #OpenBook Blog Hop

Teaching A Lesson in Fiction #OpenBook Blog Hop

May 1, 2023

Does every book have to have a moral?

Where to Find It? #OpenBook Blog Hop

Any Place, Any Time, Any Where #OpenBook Blog Hop

The Food They Eat #OpenBook Blog Hop

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