Do you watch your favorite movies more than once?

… I do. As I sat watching Die Hard this afternoon I started wondering what it is about some movies that compel us to watch them over and over again. When that happens, I sometimes study the flow of the movie in the hopes that I can apply that special magic to my writing.

I’m a sucker for stories where the good guy wins out over the bad guy. I know I’m not alone in that, but I certainly won’t re-watch a movie where there’s no clear victory for the good guy. That theme isn’t easily applied to romances, but the happy ending is similar… isn’t it?

The Shawshank Redemption is one that I’ve watched many times. I read that when it first came out, it wasn’t well received in North America. Fast forward to today and it’s one of the most shown movies on television.

Maybe the “good guy triumphs over the bad guy” theme is why I enjoy The Foreigner so much. Jackie Chan is terrific.

In Spotlight, we find solace of a sort when the story is finally published. Michael Keaton is amazing, as are the rest of the cast. The subject is hard to take, but once in a while we need reminders of our past so we hopefully don’t repeat those mistakes.

How about The Martian? I spent a lot of time outdoors when I was young and I like to think I’d have a good chance of survival if I were stranded, but on Mars? Not so much. The Martian was the first movie where I noticed Donald Glover. A talented young man.

I’ve watched Sicario, Day of the Soldado more times than I can count. Okay, okay, the attraction is probably Benicio del Toro. I mean, who can blame me?

I regularly get caught up watching The Sound of Music. As I’m scrolling through the channels I pause and think “oh, I don’t want to watch this”, and a couple of hours later the credits are rolling. Same goes for Gone With The Wind. What can I say, happy endings are addictive.

We humans have always enjoyed a good story and these days satisfactory endings are more important than ever.
Stay safe. Happy movie watching and happy reading.
Mona

As I mentioned before, during the past year or so I’ve had a difficult time concentrating while reading and I’ve discovered that I’m not alone. Imagine my delight when I tried again a few months ago and re-discovered the joy of reading.
Even though I write romance, I don’t read a lot of it. But when I do, I invariably enjoy the stories, especially historical romances for some reason. Perhaps that’s because they often seem unrealistic, and when I pick one up, I want to be taken somewhere away from the stress we’re all undergoing these days. The one I recommend here has a real dose of realism which is why I’ve included it in this batch of favorites.
Here are a few of my recent choices:

The Cellist:

Daniel Silva never disappoints. I enjoy his Gabriel Allon character, who has evolved over time. For those who aren’t familiar with this series, Gabriel Allon is the chief of the Israeli intelligence service; there’s always an interesting plot, but more importantly, I invariably learn something. The books are meticulously researched and this one is au courant, even up to the recent American election. Highly recommended. THE CELLIST

Win:

Harlan Coben is one of my go-to authors. We were first introduced to Win as Myron Bolitar’s sidekick but in this story, Win is the protagonist. I always liked Win before but now I’m not so sure. Told with Coben’s usual skill, it’s not only a compelling whodunit, but it takes us inside the mind of Win… and that can be a dark place. Which is why I’m including this one. Does every hero need to be handsome, perfect and live a squeaky clean life? I’m not sure. You can decide for yourself. Win is the start of a series and I have no doubt I’ll try at least one more. WIN

The Heiress:

Now here’s a historical romance with a twist. It offers a peek into the life of a woman who has been kept compliant thanks to being given laudanum all of her life. The concept was refreshingly different, and of course enjoyed her journey as she fights for her freedom and ultimately finds love. THE HEIRESS

Brighton:

My first novel by Michael Harvey and it won’t be my last. I found myself immersed in the story line and couldn’t wait to get back to it. It’s described as a thriller and that’s exactly what it is. Compelling. BRIGHTON

Shootout:

Okay, okay, I’m a bit ahead of myself but I have to include the upcoming release in my friend Nick Russell’s Big Lake series because I know I’ll love it. Nick has created a community of people in this series who have become familiar to me and all of his many readers. Some characters we like, some we don’t, but there’s never a dull moment. Looking forward to this one; it’ll be released sometime in early August. Nick talks about the new book HERE.
ps: Nick and I are two of the many authors who use the services of the talented graphic artist ELIZABETH MACKEY for our book covers.

I’ve heard from a couple of people recently asking me why I share book information from other authors. Both inquiries asked if it’s a reciprocal thing.
Nope. There’s no quid pro quo.
I share information on books that either appeal to me – I read a lot of police procedurals as a break from romance – or that I think will appeal to my readers. It’s a simple thing to do, and if it helps the authors of those books – even if it only makes more people aware of them – then my posts have done their work.
I don’t do negative. There’s enough of that on the news these days.
So I’ll continue sharing and who knows? You might find a new favorite author.

It’s been two years since I shared this delightful story.
Seems to me we could all use a chuckle about now, so here it is again:
A Michigan woman and her family were vacationing in a small New England town where Paul Newman and his family often visited.
One Sunday morning, the woman got up early to take a long walk. After a brisk five-mile hike, she decided to treat herself to a double-dip chocolate ice cream cone.
She hopped in the car, drove to the center of the village and went straight to the combination bakery/ice cream parlor.
There was only one other patron in the store:
Paul Newman, sitting at the counter having a doughnut and coffee. The woman’s heart skipped a beat as her eyes made contact with those famous baby-blue eyes.
The actor nodded graciously and the star struck woman smiled demurely.
Pull yourself together! She chides herself. You’re a happily married woman with three children, you’re forty-five years old, not a teenager!
The clerk filled her order and she took the double-dip chocolate ice cream cone in one hand and her change in the other. Then she went out the door, avoiding even a glance in Paul Newman’s direction.
When she reached her car, she realized that she had a handful of change but her other hand was empty. Where’s my ice cream cone? Did I Leave it in the store? Back into the shop she went, expecting to see the cone still in the clerk’s hand or in a holder on the counter or something. No ice cream cone was in sight..
With that, she happened to look over at Paul Newman. His face broke into his familiar, warm, friendly grin and he said to the woman,
‘You put it in your purse.’

… or the unsavory aspects of e-book publishing

This is for my author friends who have discovered every one of their books posted on a website. This is outright theft but fortunately there are ways to counter these sites. The following is a repeat from a 2015 article. I’m posting it here so my author friends can read.

From The Book Designer / 27 February, 2015

A Step-by-Step Guide to Dealing with Content Theft
Posted: 27 Feb 2015 12:05 AM PST
By Helen Sedwick

Content theft is big business, whether it’s illegally downloading movies or reposting blog posts without attribution. Every month Google receives more than 30 million requests to remove search results that link to allegedly infringing material. Thirty million a month!
Sooner or later, every blogger and writer will find her work reposted or republished without permission. Or she may find websites offering free PDFs downloads of her books.
The good news is writers have various options for dealing with content theft, and 99% of the time, they will not need an attorney. A little research and a few emails may do the trick.
Dealing with Online Piracy
1. Contact the site directly.
In most cases, if you email the infringing site and demand they remove your material, the site will comply. You may even get an apology. Believe it or not, some people still think everything on the internet is free to use.
2. Send a takedown notice.
If an email request does not work, or you are dealing with a site that is offering free downloads, the next step is to send a “takedown notice” under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). All writers should learn how to send takedown notices. Like locking your car or home, it’s easy and sensible.
Social media sites like YouTube, Tumblr, Pinterest, and Facebook have online forms for reporting infringement and sending takedown notices. Typically, you’ll find them under links titled Legal, Copyright, Report a Problem, or Help.
If you are dealing with an infringing website, then you send the takedown notice to the ISP hosting the infringing site. Go to https://www.whoishostingthis.com/ or http://whois.net/ and type in the domain. Many ISPs have online forms for sending takedown notices.
Penny Sansevieri recently wrote an excellent post about sending a takedown when her work was stolen. What to do When Someone Steals Your Stuff. Also look at the comments for great information.
3. Notify search engines.
Next, contact Google Copyright Infringement Reporting Tool and request that the infringing site be removed from their search results.
4. Contact advertisers. (optional)
Jennifer Mattern, a top blogger on freelance issues, suggests you contact the site’s advertisers as well. I would not do so unless you are 100% certain the site is actually infringing your work (See Take A Deep Breath below).
Once the social media site, ISP, or Goggle receives a takedown notice, it contacts the alleged infringer. If the infringer does nothing, then the infringing material is taken down. End of story.
5. If that does not work…
If the infringer disputes your claim, they may file a Counter Notification. If that happens, the online service will repost the infringing material unless you notify them within 14 business days that you have filed a legal action against the alleged infringer. Also, if the ISP is not based in the United States, it may simply ignore the takedown notice. In either of these cases, skip to When to Hire an Attorney.
Dealing with Piracy in Books and Ebooks
Stolen content in print and ebooks is particular upsetting. Amazon has an on-going problem with books and ebooks intended to trick buyers into purchasing the wrong product. According to Fortune Magazine, both Thirty-Five Shades of Grey and I am the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo sold thousands of copies before they were removed from Amazon’s site. Here are some options for ebook authors.
1. Set up Goggle Alerts.
I asked Mark Coker, founder of Smashwords, for his advice. He suggested that “writers set up Google Alerts for their book titles and for unique text strings that appear in the first 10% and last 10% of the book. For example, if a book has a sentence such as James picked up the salamander and gazed at its iridescent eyes… that sentence will probably never ever appear in any other author’s book, so create a Google Alert on it. Writers could create an additional Google Alert leaving the character name out of the string in case someone simply tries to change character names and republish the book as their own.”
2. Contact Amazon, Smashwords and other retailers.
If you find an infringing book, then both Amazon and Smashwords will work with you to remove infringing materials or confusing knock-offs. Amazon’s copyright claims procedures can be found at Notice and Procedure for Making Claims of Copyright Infringement. For Smashwords, contact them through their website. I suspect every distributor has a similar process to assist authors.
3. Register your copyright.
If you have not already done so, registered the copyright in the work being infringed immediately. You cannot file a lawsuit unless the work is registered with the US Copyright Office. If you threaten to sue, and the infringer searches copyright records and doesn’t find your registration, they may call your bluff. For more on how to register your copyright, see Joel’s post How to Copyright Your Book.
When to Hire an Attorney
If the infringement continues despite your efforts, then consider hiring an attorney. A cease-and-desist letter on lawyer letterhead may be taken more seriously. Attorney Kathryn Goldman wrote a helpful two-piece article on Molly Greene’s blog on what to do if your ebook is pirated.
However, I would not hire an attorney or jump into litigation without asking yourself whether it will be worth the effort. Sure, if you sue and win, you may be entitled to collect damages, but your damages (lost sales) may be small and difficult to prove. The infringer may be overseas and unreachable. And litigation consumes money like wildfire, not to mentioned time, attention, and sleep.
Take a Deep Breath
Before you accuse someone of infringement, keep in mind:
• Titles are not copyrightable. If someone uses a title similar to yours, you cannot claim infringement. Sorry.
• Ideas, themes, facts, and historical events are not protected by copyright. If someone publishes work covering topics similar to yours, that is not automatically infringement. Infringement implies close copying how you expressed ideas and information, not the ideas and information themselves.
• If someone is quoting your work for commentary, education, or review purposes, or creating a parody of your work, that is fair use and NOT infringement, no matter how scathing. Fair use is protected by the First Amendment, which trumps copyright law.
• Those sites offering cheap or free PDFs are typically scams downloading malware or stealing credit card numbers. Anyone who clicks through on those sites was unlikely to buy your book anyway.
• Don’t get caught up in a game of whack-a-mole. While it’s upsetting to see your work stolen, the theft may have little economic consequence to you. You could waste a lot of time chasing these low-lifes. As soon as you deal with one, others may pop up. Your energy may be better spent creating new work and finding new readers.

Once again The Washington Post has published the winning submissions to its yearly neologism contest, in which readers are asked to supply alternative meanings for common words.

The winners are:

1. Coffee (n.), the person upon whom one coughs.

2. Flabbergasted (adj.), appalled over how much weight you have gained.

3. Abdicate (v.), to give up all hope of ever having a flat stomach.

4. Esplanade (v.), to attempt an explanation while drunk.

5. Willy-nilly (adj.), impotent.

6. Negligent (adj.), describes a condition in which you absentmindedly answer the door in your nightgown.

7. Lymph (v.), to walk with a lisp.

8. Gargoyle (n.), olive-flavoured mouthwash.

9. Flatulence (n.), emergency vehicle that picks you up after you are run over by a steamroller.

10. Balderdash (n.), a rapidly receding hairline.

11. Testicle (n.), a humorous question on an exam.

12. Rectitude (n.), the formal, dignified bearing adopted by proctologists
13. Pokemon (n.), a Rastafarian proctologist.

14. Oyster (n.), a person who sprinkles his conversation with Yiddishisms.

15. Frisbeetarianism (n.), (back by popular demand): The belief that, when you die, your soul flies up onto the roof and gets stuck there.

16. Circumvent (n.), an opening in the front of boxer shorts worn by Jewish men.

The Washington Post’s Style Invitational also asked readers to take any word from the dictionary, alter it by adding, subtracting, or changing one letter, and supply a new definition.

The winners are:

Bozone (n.): The substance surrounding stupid people that stops bright ideas from penetrating.

The bozone layer, unfortunately, shows little sign of breaking down in the near future.

Cashtration (n.): The act of buying a house, which renders the subject financially impotent for an indefinite period.

Sarchasm (n): The gulf between the author of sarcastic wit and the person who doesn’t get it.

Inoculatte (v): To take coffee latte intravenously when you are running late.

Osteopornosis (n): A degenerate disease. (This one got extra credit.)

Karmageddon (n): It’s like, when everybody is sending off all these Really bad vibes, right? And then, like, the Earth explodes and it’s like, a serious bummer.

Glibido (v): All talk and no action.

Arachnoleptic fit (n.): The frantic dance performed just after you’ve accidentally walked through a spider web.

Caterpallor (n.): The color you turn after finding half a grub in the fruit you’re eating.

And the pick of the literature:

Ignoranus (n): A person who’s both stupid and an asshole.