The days of Christmas Trees have officially begun. Each day I'll be posting a decorated tree from my house. Yes, my husband John lives in a forest worthy of Santa's North Pole.

I'm beginning with this trio. My mother bought the middle one, a fiber optic white poinsettia tree years ago. Its sisters were a recent yard sale find. How could I pass up five little trees for a dollar! You'll see their green brothers later.

Writing:

The challenge here is to combine Christmas trees with writing insights. Obviously the trio depicts the first law of fiction: There must be a beginning, middle and end. Taking that further, the middle is the bulk of the story. The beginning poises a question or dilemna. The middle works through the problem and the ending comes when the character, or characters evolve, the mystery is solved, etc. Like the beginning and ending of a good story, the two smaller trees reflect the other. They are alike, yet different.

First blog

Okay, this is my first blog. First thing, I need a better picture. My other choices are dressed up for my town's Halloween parade or for Philcon. Dancing with the Stars? Star Trek? Evil Fairy?

Writing--I find that watching television can help with writing--the screen amplifies bad writing, and occasionally good. Right now I'm watching the movie "Lady in the Lake", it's a Philip Marlow mystery. It was mentioned in last week's episode of NCSI and is playing this week on TCM. What is interesting about this movie is how it's filmed. The camera acts as Marlowe, showing only what Marlowe see. The detective is visible only when he (the camera) looks at a mirror. This reminds me of writing in the second person--you. Reading a book written in second person can be unsettling. Watch "Lady in the Lake" and see what I mean. The actors talk directly to the audience, Marlowe speaks unseen for us--the you, second person. We watch Marlowe's hands pick up objects as if they are ours. Another character slaps at the camera, us. (sorry no 3 D glasses). The movie is good but I find the format jarring and occasionally getting in the way of the story. This is why they (other writers, teachers, your friends, etc.) tell you to write in third or first person. Second is for a genius to try.