The LAST Word

    It's Labor Day weekend, the end of summer. When I was young, we didn't go back to school until the Tuesday after Labor Day. We did have to go into the second week in June, but summer still began on Memorial Day weekend. That was when all the shops opened in Cape May, N.J. My parents opened the house that weekend or the weekend before Memorial Day, so we officially started summer days then. The last two weeks of school were much in the learning department anyway.  On Labor Day weekend, we would go the beach one final time. Then, we would close up the house for the fall and winter. Although autumn in Cape May was nice, we had too many activities to do during the school year that we rarely went down there. We also had season tickets to the Eagles games, so weekends were booked. Having one last holiday weekend before the craziness of back to school was pleasant. It allowed us to get ready for the school year refreshed. We weren't thinking about how hot it was. Septembers ...

 Libraries, college alumni associations and book clubs offer summer reading programs. Here are some options for your summer reading program. The newest book, Coastal Voices and Visions , came out this year with an essay I wrote in it. The anthology includes stories of living in Florida or Carolina coastal waters. Common Sense by James E Razzino is a thought-provoking book to cut through the noise about issues affecting the United States. The government is chipping away at our rights. As authors and business owners, we should protect our freedoms and rights to say whatever we want. The book also will help you decide who to elect for Congress, president, governor, state legislatures and councils. Go to https://www.amazon.com/author/jameserazzino to get your copy. Are you having back pain? You should read this book before you agree to have surgery on your back. Michael Ahearn went through four back surgeries, and now his back doesn't align correctly. He has had issues stem...

 Summer time is great for eating watermelon, writing by the beach, and enduring thunderstorms. Many times after the storms, a rainbow appears in the sky. It is beautiful to see in the gray sky. It adds colors and should give you a sense of inspiration and peace. Unfortunately, the beauty of the rainbow has been altered by how people use it. Instead of using rainbows as symbols for something ugly, try using rainbows for inspiration for your writing. 1. Beautiful Colors -- If you have ever seen rainbows after a storm in the sky, the colors are vivid against a dark stormy sky . These can make you think of colorful descriptions for your settings. Everyone knows the seven colors of a rainbow (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple and indigo). However, the colors of the sky can range from a bluish gray to a deep charcoal when a rainbow appears. Those bright colors against the deep charcoal can be impactful.  2. Resilience -- They also can represent resilience of your...

 For this year's Earth Day, I plan to write tips on how small businesses can help the environment and still save money. Usually, I debunk myths about the environment, but I have done a few of those blogs. If you want to read about those myths, you can click on the link. Buy Remanufactured Electronics -- Computers, cell phones, electronics and old gadgets are filling up landfills at a high rate. Most computer components and cell phones can't be recycled. With cell phone companies, they ask consumers to replace their phone every two or three years. Then, they choose not to support the older software, which means people have to throw away their phones for a new one even though they have one that works fine. Small business owners can buy remanufactured computers or toner to save money and the environment. These computers put newer components in older casings, which means they do not end up in landfills. They are usually several hundred dollars cheaper than those that are brand ne...

    Authors have to figure out their characters first before they begin plotting or creating a setting. Sometimes, the characters and setting come at the same time, such as a lady in Regency England. When authors determine the characters, they are able to fit a setting around them. Here are things to consider when writing characters . Sometimes, authors are unsure how many characters are enough for a story. The answer depends on the type of fiction and author's taste. Fantasy authors often use 10 to 12 main characters to build out a world while romance authors can stick to about four or five. Children's authors use one or two. You need interaction, world-building and suspense, but you also do not want to confuse your reader with two many characters. This confusion often shows up in movies when directors pack a movie with characters and fail to develop them. If you are unsure, let someone outside your genre read it to tell you.  The most believable characters have ...

  Authors get inspiration for their characters from many locations. The more relatable your characters are, the more likely you will be successful as business owners and writers. For example, the above character was created for a client of mine who needed to talk to entrepreneurs about technology so they could understand it. I created Joe Entrepreneur who asked the author direct questions that were answered in each chapter. In this blog, I delve into some common traits of characters to make them relatable.   1. Transfer What You Feel to Characters -- Some people have asked me what led to me writing my first novel. I answered that I was lonely, and the main character was lonely. As I wrote, she absorbed my loneliness. Then, it was gone from her too. Have you noticed that sometimes our characters take on what we are feeling at the time of writing? Fiction is a great way to release those anxieties and fears we have every day because we can put them into the characters. ...