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Posts Tagged ‘Beauty and the Beast’

Reasons to Write a story

Posted in About the book, Beauty and Beast fanfic, tagged , , , , on August 2, 2012| Leave a Comment »

I don’t know about other writers but getting a story in my head is one thing, actually being able to create action without a character fascimile is difficult.  When I started writing for fanfic, I looked through hundreds of photos for a visual of what my young hero might look like.  He needed to be an amazing combination of Catherine (Linda Hamilton) and Vincent (Ron Perlman).

I started my search knowing that in the final year of the series, Vincent and Catherine have a child who is kidnapped.  As the story unfolds, and we see his son we knew then that the Man/beast and Catherine had produced a child who appears without any of the facial markings which characterize Vincent.

As the primary story developed, I would add some physical powers to ensure that he inherited something from his father and this story line evolved into an entire history.  As I searched for photos of someone who could inspire me to write, I finally came across a young Russian actor who was being celebrated for starring in a new movie entitled, Inhabited Island.

He couldn’t have been more perfect.  Vasily Stepanov became my ideal.  Every time a new photo came out, I would check and note how he changed, matured, dressed and acted (in videos of him).  He has been a true inspiration.  His eyes, hair, action and innocence portrayed in the movie allowed me to create a persona for my stories.

I can’t understand his language but he has a lovely booming voice and beautiful eyes which remind me of Vincent and a smile which could have come right from Catherine.  I continue to celebrate his looks, talent and hope that he is able to achieve the career goals in Russia and anywhere he choses.

In looking for something new today for my next story, I came across this video which I had never seen.  Clearly someone else has seen something in him which is inspiring musically and I thank the creator of the video.  Right away it got my mind thinking about when I wrote my first story, how much the character has matured and indeed, a new story line is already forming for the future.

I am grateful to him, have thanked him personally via Facebookand wish him all the best.  I thought that some of my fanfic readers who check out this blog would like to see him. And,  if you love the character Jacob, you will love this video.  I sure did!

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Writing a series

Posted in Beauty and Beast fanfic, Comments, tagged , , , , , , on July 30, 2012| 32 Comments »

Last night or rather early this morning, I completed chapter 19 of my 10th online book in the Beauty and Beast series.   After a few days, my mind will turn once more to another chapter which I hope will keep readers from all over the world coming back.  My thanks to fanfiction for allowing us to see where in the world people are enjoying the stories.
I don’t know what it is about series writing that I love but I think getting the chance to watch characters evolve, change and grow is exciting. Of course, having a sort of superhero and now heroine make for interesting challenges. I want them to be believable as people as well.
The original TV series Beauty and the Beast was inspirational to so many. It inspired me to write two published books and of course this series on fan fiction. I doubt that this love of writing could have returned to me without sensing someone elses underlying love of the printed word.
There are many who write in this genre in fanfiction.  There are some who revision or add to the stories which already exist in the time frame of the original series but my stories differ because they are current.
The idea that Catherine and Vincent had a child whose adult life could be remarkable drove me to create just such a character. And, because I am also a balanced person, he needed to have a wife/partner who could balance his energy.

The original series was chock full of interesting characters who provide fodder for ongoing stories.   I hope that Jacob and his amazing wife Cathy will continue to grow and find their full range of gifts even as their own love story grows.
I am always grateful to the backdrop of Vincent, Catherine and some of the original cast of characters who brought love to life in a way that moved all of us and when I can give them active parts in the new series I will do so to honour the originators of the series and the writers who produced the TV program from 1987-1989
Lastly, I have to thank that handsome Russian actor Vasily Stepanov whose face, hair and stature gave me the initial impetus to pursue this story line. He is the epitome of Jacob. I am still looking for a visual of Cathy but she is a remarkable woman, coming into her own.
This past year, I was able to add some Canadian content to the series. I have to admit being proud of my home having a place within the context of the story and one that didn’t feel contrived.
These plot lines continue to evolve from one another in the recesses of my mind. I can’t tell you how one will end until I write the last lines of each book.  This also  makes it fun for me and the readers who enjoy the cliff hanger type adventure.
Thanks to all who read and write me with your comments.

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Why I write fanfiction stories

Posted in About the book, Love, Suspect, tagged , , on July 2, 2011| Leave a Comment »

Writing, or rather story telling has always been a love of mine. Being a hopeless romantic, most of the stories I create will define my ideal of falling in love and overcoming life’s challenges to make it work. This fantasy fiction writing is a little different from the usual romance stories which I love to write. I have found that adding a little adventure and mystery helps me to enjoy the crafting of a story.

I am an old TV baby, growing up in the 50’s. I can remember when we didn’t have TV and the excitmement of getting our first black and white screen back in 1954. Serialized stories were still a big part of radio and early television. I have loved the ‘cliff hanger’ ever since. It allows the imagination to run wild while waiting for the sequel.

I have been a big fan of Beauty and The Beast since the inception of the TV show in 1987. The recent release of the DVD’s was instrumental in motivating me to write into the present time to give Jacob his mother back. The story line was inspired by a friend who took a similar journey. I hope I have done her justice while remaining true to the characters in her life and those of BATB. The concept of lost and found has a great deal of resonance for me. I believe that in birth we lose something of our connection to a greater world and our time spent on earth consists of a yearning to reconnect either with people who drive our life story or a desire to find a higher energy power which to some is known as ‘God’. I did not have the heart to rewrite what others have done in the past. We can’t alter history but we can refashion the future from our vast store of knowledge.

When the show first aired, I was so taken with the love story, it pushed me to fulfill a life long dream of writing my own book. I find it strange that the book was not published for twenty years. I put down the manuscript when the show ended. When I was able to sit and soak up the BATB stories on DVD, I was again inspired to refine and complete that book. At the same time, I felt an obligation to create online BATB stories of my own using some characters from the past as well as new ones who invade my dreams asking for release.

Last year, I was able to publish my book, The Will to be True/In the Shadow of the Blackbird. It is also crafted as a complex love story and set locally in Southern Ontario.

July/2011 update My new novel, Suspect, Love published in May 2011 is also now available from Authorhouse.com or Amazon.com.

 

 

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New novel – Suspect: Love

Posted in Suspect, tagged , , , , , , , , , on June 13, 2011| Leave a Comment »

On the 26th of May, 2011, AuthorHouse published my second book, Suspect: Love, A Profound Prophecy.  I am very excited about its release.  Like The Will to be True/In the Shadow of the Blackbird, it was written some time ago.  The draft of it sat for years on the shelf waiting, like Cinderella,  for the right time to be turned into a soft cover novel.  I received my first copy in the mail last week and with its completion, I feel that I have fulfilled a promise to a couple of  people who were  instrumental  in encouraging me to write stories from my heart.  They have both passed away now but their spirits were guiding me all along.

What took me so long?  I don’t know.  I love both the stories and I hope that readers will too.  I am thankful to my brother-in-law Bryan Davies for providing me with lovely photographs of Italy which grace the front and back cover.  He has an extraordinary talent for capturing the right moment, or the right spirit, or both, in everything he photographs.  I am also grateful to my family and several close friends who have been very supportive and of course my sister Gertrude who helps me to edit all my work.

A couple of quotes from Suspect: Love….

‘Rosanna knew her thoughts were unworthy, but fear of an unknown circumsatnce flickered along nerve endings, sending a clear signal that, if she continued, her life would never be the same again.  Fate and free will warred witin her.  In a heartbeat, fate had taken over.  The elevator landed with a soft whirr on the ground floor ending any thought of retreat.’

‘Love can remove many boundaries, including and especially those built by fear.’

Here is a synopsis of the story.

Rosanna, a highly educated, professional nurse in her mid-thirties is hoping for a promotion from a dead-end supervisory night job.  She is on the shelf as far as her old fashioned Italian family is concerned.

During a crisis, she ‘meets’ Angus Howard, a dedicated pediatric specialist who leads a dynamic research project close to her heart.
Stepping outside of her comfort zone, she spends a passion-filled weekend with him, engaged in some unexpected research into her own long dormant feelings.  Before the relationship gets off the ground, a long awaited promotion comes through.  It is the opportunity of a lifetime!  As part of her new duties, she is appointed, as a lone female, to participate on a powerful hospital executive committee whose mandate is to investigate a charge of fraud by the very man who has already engaged her heart.  Her sudden defection from his life leaves a trail of pain and suspicion in which he believes she used him to further her career. 

Their large and remarkable families try to intervene and help save the relationship but Rosanna knows that she has no choice but to fight to preserve the integrity of his career.  Her decision only serves to keep them apart.

The title will soon be available for purchase at AuthorHouse or any of the other online book sellers.  I keep thinking that I will not write another book but since I decided to get cracking and finish these two books, I have written 9 full length adventures for Fanfiction.  Online stories count.  I thank the many people around the world who enjoy the Beauty and the Beast series and encourage me to keep finding challenges for the characters in an updated version of the original 1987 TV show.

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Book two…Suspect, Love

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , on January 16, 2011| Leave a Comment »

I wrote ‘The Will to be True’ and finished it with every intention of putting the darn thing away. It was nicely bound in a three ring binder (ugh!) with some old black and white graphics as a cover. The idea was to write and not necessarily publish. Publishing came later…much later. It took twenty years in fact to get that book to press. For one thing, the story was incomplete, too short, and the characters were not well rounded. Now a days, I consider that merely a draft.  then,  I thought my life was complete.  Writing for Dummies says that there may be many drafts before the final product is ready to go to market and in hindsight, they are right.
Taking two years to get to a final product was the best thing that could have happened. I wrote 7 other stories in the meantime and got a feel for how I would really like to present a book to the world.
Another book which I wrote soon after The Will to be True is also now complete and on its way to the printer.
I don’t have the same angst about sending Suspect, Love out. It is not as long as the first book. It is complete and a story which I have longed to tell. Fated love! I believe very strongly in that principle.
I was deeply inspired to flesh out that draft and get it to press by thoughts which come to me from some other source. In book 8 of the Beauty and the Beast stories on fanfiction, I wrote this exchange between two of the seconday characters.
‘Because, I firmly believe in the power of fate to draw the right people together at the right time and I truly believe that fate and faith takes us to certain places in this life which will provide the opportunity to grow and learn. If you had a clear vision when you first saw your wife, you will know what I am talking about. Do you remember the moment you felll in love with her?’

‘The instant I saw her on a horse. When I watched her ride, she was without equal. It was as if she and the animal were one. The raw potential of it generated feelings in me which I had never experienced.’

There may not be many people who experience that kind of love at the outset, but if we think about it, many of us know in the instant when the love is for real if we open ourselves to it the insight.  I will never be able to craft a story which doesn’t have some secondary issues of trouble or trauma but the love will always transcend the setbacks. 

My dear brother in law has provided me with the most fitting photos for the cover.  I am very excited about seeing the finished product.

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Bloggin’ vs writin’

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , on July 28, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Now that my book(s) is finally in my hands in a sizeable quantity, I am wondering why I don’t spend all my time pushing to get it out to market. Every day the publisher sends out loads and loads of opportunities to sell at show, parties, conferences which all sound good but cost money. Spend to sell sounds kind of weird to me. The first month I had this story up online it had a thousand hits, and 300 readers. I was quite staggered, not by the numbers but by the places in the world where people logged on to read. Even now, the stories I write for Beauty and the Beast, an ongoing series of stories taking the old TV show in to the present time, has quite a nice following. I am definitely interested in the numbers, there’s no money involved, but what I love is seeing the different places in the world where people read it. I would love to connect with those folk in Egypt or Finland who have taken the time to read a few chapters, love the stories and come back to read another book.
My 20 yerar odyssey to write The Will to be True has its own value and will be a legacy for my grandkids etc but on a daily basis, my world travel list is just as exciting. I hope the effort that goes into writing those stories will continue to be appreciated just as much as much as the effort which culminated in the book.

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Inspiration from the past

Posted in Musings, tagged , , , on June 18, 2010| Leave a Comment »

I started writing again because the dream I thought was my destiny did not materialize. I was thrown off course. While standing at the crossroads of indecision, I thought myself lost. Just about the same time, the DVD collection of Beauty and the Beast the TV series came out. That was another dream which finally came true: a full copy of all three seasons. I never thought I would see the whole three seasons again.  I didn’t think anyone cared about the show.  Boy was I wrong!

A chance encounter with an online group got me thinking about a storyline that I would like to write, inspired by my best friend who had passed away. I found Fanfiction or it found me. While writing there, I remembered another twenty year old story of mine which had been inspired by the original series. I pulled it off the shelf, retyped it, edited the writing a bit and then got it published. So, one door closed and another opened. Perhaps feeling lost at the crossroads was just what I needed to step out of the abyss of self pity and get on with life.

There are still dreams about doing what I had planned but as the years pass, I realize it is perhaps better to fulfill my own destiny and not something which feels like destiny but in reality is a self imposed obligationhich serves no one. I can do something similar or do things differently. I learned that teaching and learning doesn’t always have to be in a traditional format.  There are many ways to learn. 

The Dream

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