Matthew Pallamary’s The Small Dark Room of the Soul

Matthew Pallamary’s The Small Dark Room of the Soul is a great collection of short stories.

These are primarily stories about situations arising from human greed, or in one instance, sorrow. Sometimes the hero or anti-hero wins, and other times he or she comes to a horrific end. Some have supernatural elements while others take place in the mundane world shared with the reader. Most have a twist at the end. One story, about a car problem, was just funny.

I liked the voodoo story best, the story whose title is also the title of the collection.  The next story that stood out for me was “Rusty,” and I’m not a dog person.  Neither, of course, was the young lady at the center of the story.

It was an intriguing collection featuring lean writing, without an unnecessary word anywhere. An enjoyable read that I highly recommend.

Have you read this book?  Do you like short stories?  If so, who is your favorite author?

Mermaid Bookmark Giveaway!

Local artist Karen Bagnard creates a fantasy realm I have always longed to visit.  She brings mermaids, fairies, and other storyland inhabitants to life in our world through her art.

I first found her magical work at a friend’s house when I moved to California.  I’ve been collecting her images ever since.

Now I want to share this world with you.  I am going to do a giveaway of mermaid bookmarks I have picked up from her collection to those who sign up for an e-mail subscription to this blog.  After signing up, please post in the comment section below which bookmark you want.  Show first, second, and third choices.  I will update the available images as selections are taken.

This first lady, Urban Mermaid, Karen told me is one of her favorites.  It features a cosmopolitan mermaid, her long hair artfully arranged on top of her head, posed in front of a moonlit cityscape across a bay.

This next bookmark is one of my favorites.  Karen’s catalogue lists this lady as Danish Mermaid, and I have always imagined her to be the mermaid from Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tale.  She has a much more innocent look than her sophisticated sister above.

Beaded is someone else who might be the Little Mermaid.  The ornament for her long hair is a starfish, and she’s looking directly at the viewer.  With her tail curled next to her, she seems to be inviting you to sit for a chat.

This final bookmark, Sea Flowers, features a teal-tailed mermaid hugging a bouquet of roses underwater as bubbles rise around her.

These are but a few of the beautiful images from Karen’s amazing catalogue.

So please sign up, so that I can send you your choice of a bookmark!

To see all of Karen’s imaginative creations, please visit her website:  http://morethanmermaids.com/

Meeting A Character in the Real World

Part of a writer’s mission is to create characters, someone a reader can relate to and feel passionate about.  I find I need to have a clear image of these fictional friends in my head, so it helps to write out physical descriptions of each one in a style sheet.

Imagine meeting one of your characters in the real world!

I met Millicent, a lawyer from one of my stories, the other day in an elevator.  I recognized her immediately.  Fortunately she was on her cellphone, so I doubt she noticed me staring at her.

She was a little older, maybe tweny years older, than I expected.  Her hair was styled more simply than I had imagined, and her suit was a bit more flamboyant, with a fish-tail cut skirt in a tweed pattern.  Her affect not quite as warm, but then, this was a real person, after all.  She also had a longer face than I had expected.  She was about 5 foot5 inches.  Not quite as tall as I imagined.

But she was Millicent, from head to toe.

To my surprise, the real life model I saw that day got off of the elevator at a law firm.

I went home and made the necessary adjustments to the character of my story.

Stay strong, Millicent!

Have you ever had a surprise meeting with one of your fictional characters?  Please share below.