Freshly mowed grass, long lingering evenings,
Picnics and BBQs,
Ice cream.
County fairs and carnivals,
bike rides,
and swimming.
Evening strolls,
daydreaming,
and stargazing.
Summertime…
AND SO WE DREAM
Summer
Category: Books and Reading
My short, short books.
My first two books, The Dreams of Youth and Seven Tales of Love, are also my shortest. They can easily be read in an hour or less. They are collections of short stories and sketches that, overall, tell a larger story.
Particularly with The Dreams of Youth. In large part inspired by my mom’s life (though with plenty of creative license taken), six interrelated pieces tell the story of a lifetime in 48 brief pages.
I have a soft spot for these two books. They were compiled years ago on discovering that I could publish my books through Amazon – no agent or publishing house needed (both were first published in 2012, then re-published with indie-author-friendly Bublish in 2016). My lifelong dream of being a writer was now possible, with me in full control! Because I originally wrote them under a pen name (Agnes Irene), I felt free to be a little more creative with the form, mixing sketches with poetry, sometimes using impressionistic language, and tapping into the other eras, particularly WWII.
And in The Dreams of Youth, I used lines from Longfellow’s poem, “My Lost Youth,” as chapter headings. I was always deeply moved by the refrain from that poem – “And the thoughts of youth are long, long thoughts” – and allowed that inspiration to shape the book. Most of my subsequent books are written in the traditional novel format – except for The Notebooks of Honora Gorman, which is also a compilation.
I don’t often promote my two short books because there isn’t much of a market for them (and to avoid getting negative reviews by people who are disappointed by their length). But for the month of June, I’m lowering the price of The Dreams of Youth to $0.99 in hopes that it will be read and reviewed by readers who are familiar with my style of writing. https://a.co/d/0nIjxUn
To all my readers who have already read and reviewed this book, THANK YOU! And to any new readers, I hope you enjoy it!
https://a.co/d/0nIjxUn – ebook on Amazon. Also available on Google Play, Apple Books, Kobo, and B&N. Soft cover available on Amazon and B&N.
Love stories –
In the heart of winter, Valentine’s Day. In the heart of winter, love.
Many of my books focus on love stories, such as the Christmastime series and the short story collection Seven Tales of Love. Other books have themes of love woven into the larger stories, as in And So We Dream, and The Garden House.
In The Notebooks of Honora Gorman, in addition to the “Cinderella” thread, several of the whimsical fairytales present romantic love: “Thaddeus and Emma,” “The Golden Blanket,” and “Natasha.”
For your mid-winter enjoyment, here are a few scenes from “Natasha” — a story within a story within a story (Iris-Sabine-Natasha). It features an undeveloped fictional character who has been frozen in time due to the creative failure of her author/s over the past century.
***
Natasha was a character long ago conceived but never developed, never completed. Someone had conjured her up nearly a century ago and then forgot about her. And Natasha had lingered in the ethersphere, just waiting, waiting for her story to continue.
The author Sabine wrote about the beautiful Natasha, living in 19th century Russia. The details piled up of her boudoir, her clothing and jewelry, the view from her window. Yet Natasha’s story failed to develop, and so the character remained in her room.
Sabine tried out different scenarios: Natasha running away from her repressive family and settling in Gdansk, where she becomes a trapeze artist. Natasha falling in love with a dashing explorer and sailing with him to the South China Sea. Or did she run away with the gypsies?
At each incipient possibility, Natasha would quickly rise to her feet, her dark eyes sparkling in excitement as vague visions took shape in her mind – then, as the ideas were nixed, Natasha would drop back onto her velvet chaise longue, or gaze out the window and sigh.
Nothing seemed to work. So the beautiful Russian character remained unfinished, languishing in her boudoir, bored, pampered, dreaming of the wider world outside her window in snowy Saint Petersburg.
It was true that Natasha was somewhat spoiled, and her pleasures were small and indulgent. She spent her time in idle pursuits: choosing between Parisian brocades and silks to be fashioned into gowns, cutting marbled paper into pretty shapes, improving her needlepoint, and trying her maid’s patience with new ways to style her hair or tie her sash.
But this latest author, Iris, could see that there was more to the girl – Natasha was just waiting to blossom.
She took a closer look at Sabine’s Natasha. There she was, idly fluffing the bunched rosettes on her lap cover. Natasha smoothed the glossy brown tresses draped over her shoulder and adjusted the jeweled combs, as she waited for her maid to return with her morning cocoa. She rose impatiently and stood in front of the gilded mirror, primping and pouting and trying different expressions for le bal for which she was forever preparing. She was outraged that maman insisted she wear the dull dove-gray dress to le bal tonight rather than the emerald gown that so beguilingly set off her eyes and hair.
As Iris watched Natasha, she realized that the girl was on the brink of womanhood. The way Natasha’s hands smoothed her robe over her hips suggested awareness – delight, even – in her curves, and Iris well understood the concerns of poor maman. One moment of unchaperoned freedom and this girl would indeed run off with the circus or into the arms of a dashing adventurer.
And yet, thought Iris, how sad for Natasha to be trapped in eternal youth, her potential never known. She watched Natasha saunter to the window, rub away the frost flowers, and gaze at the people on the street below.
Natasha longed to follow them, converse with them, discover what the world was all about. She touched her pale, warm cheek and imagined it crimson with cold. She blew out a puff of air and imagined it turning into smoke. She wanted to run like the children on the street below. Gallop like the soldiers on their fine chestnut horses. Stroll through the park in the springtime, lace parasol in hand, blossoms swirling all around her. She wanted to see how her own uniqueness would play out in the world, to be tried and tested, to be shocked or delighted or dazzled by her choices and decisions. Oh life, she would dream. Oh, life.
Iris resolved that, though she may not know where the story would lead, she would at least get Natasha out the door and into the world. Let her dance at the ball and experience the dream of romance. Let her know that first thrilling glance across a crowded room that would set her heart fluttering, the first press of warm lips against her hand. Let her breathe the cold air of winter, the scented air of spring. Let her come to know the dreams of future-heavy youth, so beautiful and brief.…
And so — Iris’s development of Natasha’s story sparks her own later-in-life development and enriches her life in the process.
(All images are from my Pinterest boards, which include scenes from the charming Russian movie: The Silver Skates.)
HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY!
Winter reading
Cold weather, long nights, snowy days – all help to create the perfect atmosphere for snuggling into a good story.
I like to imagine my readers settling in to read the Christmastime series with a hot drink close at hand,
whether at home
or in a cozy cafe,
in a favorite reading chair,
or a reading nook.
Outside,
or in front of a fireplace.
Whatever your reading habits,
I hope you include the Christmastime series as part of your winter reading –
which begins with the 1939 prequel and ends (to date) with the 1946 Valentine’s Day book.
Wishing you all a wonderful new year and the enjoyment of many good books!
The stars…
Stars and stargazing often make their way into my stories. Beautifully symbolic of hopes and dreams, purity and wonder, they help to tell the inner stories of many of my characters.
Stars play a key role in the fourth book of the Christmastime series, Christmastime 1942: A Love Story (https://a.co/d/j2wI35u). Beginning with the storyline of Gino, the merchant seaman, the topic of stars develops into a unifying connection between him, Tommy and Gabriel, and Charles and Lillian.
The ethereal quality of stars also reveals the quietly eccentric character of Edith. She is comfortable with both the dreamy and pragmatic sides of her nature — and she is in love for the first time.
She opened the drawer to her nightstand and reached for her tin of oil pastels. She lifted the lid, and ran her fingers over the colors, choosing deep Prussian blue and cobalt, gold, silver, and umber. … A sketch emerged of two large pillows, a rumpled comforter, a soft bed under a large window. The night world outside dotted with stars. “Colors of midnight,” she wrote beneath it. She studied the bed, and added a few more lines, and then sprinkled a dusting of stars onto the pillows and blanket.
The main character, Lillian, is under pressure from her demanding boss to submit an idea for a poster contest. With the deadline looming, and despairing over the war and Charles’s imminent return to battle, she awakens in the middle of the night, seeking solace and inspiration.
She quietly went into the living room and turned on the lamp behind the couch. There was the telescope, pointing up, as if in readiness to search the heavens. She was glad for the stars, for their high, untouched beauty that could not be sullied by war, by humanity. She took out her sketch pad and pencils and began to draw.
A sketch began to take shape of a wounded soldier and his sweetheart looking at the same night sky, though thousands of miles apart. [Lillian] added more stars to the skies, trying to convey the belief that high above a war-torn world, the glittering firmament shone benevolently over earth, and that in the end, all would be well and whole again. Simple, humble, human love would help to piece the world back together again.
In The Notebooks of Honora Gorman: Fairytales, Whimsy, and Wonder (https://a.co/d/8Z1Igqu), the stars also offer inspiration for an artistic deadline, this time, a writing assignment.
Though Honora missed the stars, the lights of the city at night made up for it. She loved the contrast between the workaday gray of Manhattan and the magical, sparkling nights. The city, especially when viewed from afar, shone like a glittering firmament. A reversal of sorts, as if the starry night sky had been flipped to earth. She would never forget her first arrival, approaching the massive metropolis at night – entranced by the wide expanse of twinkly lights, a galaxy of stars that stretched as far as she could see.
Struggling to find an idea for her children’s writing class, Honora hits upon an idea.
What was that seedling trying to root in her story – something about the sky? The night sky. And how she missed it. Stars! She flooded with inspiration. And the fairytale, “Fallen Star” flows from her pen.
And So We Dream (https://a.co/d/0iM4uab) In another connection to the stars and the artist figure, the young dream-filled actress, Vita Vitale, also connects with the stars. In the beginning of the story, she and her older sister tell their younger sister about swimming in the lake at night.
“Did you guys go swimming—and not tell me?”
“We didn’t plan it,” said Anne. “After Diane’s we went out to the lake and . . .”
“In the dark?”
“Under the stars and a crescent moon,” said Vita. “A Pierrot moon, full of dreams. It was wondrous! Absolutely magical.”
Beth looked around the back seat to see if she was sitting on anything wet, then checked the floor. “Where are your swimsuits?” After a moment’s silence, she gasped. “You went skinny dipping?”
Anne shot Beth a warning glance in the rearview mirror. “Don’t you dare say anything about it at home.”
“I won’t. But I can’t believe it. Were there any boys there?” After no answer, she said, “You guys! Weren’t you embarrassed?”
“It was dark,” said Anne.
“Except for the glimmer on the water. It was like swimming through a thousand tiny stars.” Vita turned around to face them. “It was so beautiful…Like swimming in a fairy world.”
Later, far from her dreams, and weighed down by disappointment and a sense of failure, she taps into the beauty and magic of the night sky.
The warm summer night held the faint scents of grass and flowers. Vita inhaled deeply and filled her eyes with the inky sky aglitter with stars….Vita was alone. But didn’t feel at all lonely. This is what has been missing, she told herself. An infusion of beauty. And here it was. Right overhead. A fragrant summer night filled with shooting stars. Vita lay back and filled her eyes with the starscape….This is the counter to sadness, she thought. Beauty. Wonderment….She felt a profound sense of connection, and a reconnection to her dreams. It all came from the same deep place of beauty and love and yearning.
And a closing thought:
“The star-filled wonder of the night sky makes me magnificently small.” – Honora Gorman (from one of her many scraps of writing)
Holiday coziness and a sense of well-being
It’s easy to create the feeling of contentment that comes from coziness and simple pleasures. Fresh flowers, the scent of baking pervading your home, music softly playing in the background.
The colder weather — especially with the approach of Christmastime — lends itself to creating such an atmosphere. It can start with using a favorite cup for your morning tea, or a piece of toast with jam, or the scent of coffee and a warm muffin.
I like to think that my Christmastime series captures, to some degree, the sense of pleasure and comfort: the scent of pine, a fire crackling in the fireplace, a radiator hissing and filling a cold apartment with warmth, the laughter of children.
Though the backdrop to the series is WWII and life on the home front is full of struggles and hardship, the overall tone of the series is uplifting and comforting.
Sad things happen, shocking events take place, but the characters roll up their sleeves and do their part to make the best of things. Love, family, friendship, and neighborliness are in the forefront and shape the stories.
Celebrating life — its holidays, the seasons, small day-to-day beauties, the quest for meaning — fill the pages of Christmastime.
So as the temperatures drop and the holidays approach, experience a sense of well-being for yourself. Fix a cozy hot drink, turn on a lamp or light a candle, and grab a warm blanket. Then nestle into your favorite reading chair and snuggle up with CHRISTMASTIME.
(Images from Pinterest)
The Charm of Beatrix Potter
“Helen Beatrix Potter (1866 – 1943) was an English writer, illustrator, natural scientist, and conservationist.
She is best known for her children’s books featuring animals, such as The Tale of Peter Rabbit, which was her first published work in 1902.
Her books…have sold more than 250 million copies…Potter [left] almost all her property to the National Trust. She is credited with preserving much of the land that now constitutes the Lake District National Park.” (wikipedia)
“Peter lost one of his shoes among the cabbages, and the other shoe amongst the potatoes.“
Beatrix Potter’s first book “was rejected by several publishers, so she privately printed 250 copies of it herself. The Tale of Peter Rabbit was a great success with family and friends. In 1902, Frederick Warne & Co agreed to publish an initial quantity of 8,000. They sold out instantly and Beatrix’s career as a storyteller was launched.” – Beatrix Potter National Trust
Beatrix Potter spent much of her childhood in Scotland and the north of England where she could indulge in her love of animals and the natural world.
“I used to half believe and wholly play with fairies when I was a child. What heaven can be more real than to retain the spirit-world of childhood, tempered and balanced by knowledge and common-sense.” – Beatrix Potter
“Thank goodness I was never sent to school; it would have rubbed off some of the originality.” – Beatrix Potter
Later in life she settled in the Lake District and purchased thirty-four-acre Hill Top Farm, the perfect place for her to paint, write, and garden.
Among other portrayals based on her life, is the 2006 film, Miss Potter.
“If I have done anything, even a little, to help small children enjoy honest, simple pleasures, I have done a bit of good.”
(images from my Pinterest boards)
Vintage Books
When I come across vintage books, I am often surprised by the beauty of the covers – and the amount of time and effort and creativity that went into them.
It reminds me of how important artwork and photography were for the record album covers of my generation and how people lamented the loss of “creative space” when cassettes and then CDs replaced them. Which isn’t to say that covers are not still extremely important, even in this digital age. I have spent countless hours working with designers on my own book covers to try to capture the mood and tone of the stories inside.
But there is something immensely appealing in the original artwork of those old hardback covers that evoke the aesthetics and charm of an earlier era.
Like other people, I sometimes use old books as decorations around the house, just to enjoy the vintage feel and beautiful colors of these little works of art.
The next time you’re at a used book store, or a garage sale, or at an odds and ends shop, keep you eyes open for these beautiful treasures from another time.
(All images are from my Pinterest boards.)
Christmas Shopping
Ah, the bustle of Christmas! Decorating your house for the holidays, cooking traditional family favorites,
shopping. Braving the crowds, the weather, the choices —
and returning home to relax with a mug of hot chocolate or a cup of tea.
In the Christmastime Series, Christmas shopping adds a sense of merriment and celebration to the season — whether it’s Lillian preparing for Christmas Night at the Brooklyn department store where she works (Christmastime 1939),
or Mrs. Murphy taking a store escalator up to the “North Pole” toy section to do some shopping for her nieces and nephews (Christmastime 1941),
or Izzy stopping to enjoy the window displays as she walks to work (Christmastime 1943),
or the sisters Ursula and Jessica browsing at the small-town stores in rural Illinois.
Christmas shopping. The sparkle of lights and tinsel, the scent of pine and cloves, the sounds of bells ringing and Christmas caroling heighten enjoyment of the season and deepen the pleasure of gift-giving.
Then —
And now.
Springtime reading
Now that it’s officially spring, reading outdoors has even more appeal. Opening a new book amid the first flowers of spring or under blossoming trees speaks of new beginnings, a sense of well-being, and hope.
There’s the promise of longer days and milder weather, and hopefully, more free time to indulge in the discovery of new books.
And if it’s still too cold where you live to read outdoors, bring a bit of springtime inside with a few blossomy sprigs or some fresh-cut flowers to remind you of what’s up ahead.
All images are from my Pinterest boards.
Linda Mahkovec - Author 