TV TIME: The Quiz Lady (Hulu)

 

The Quiz Lady with Sandra Oh and Awkwafina was a really cute movie about two sisters who have to come up with a way to pay off their mother’s gambling debts in order to save their dog. 

And Will Ferrell was wonderful! 

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INTERVIEW: Suspense Author Bruce A. Fleming

 

 Bruce A. Fleming

Medway, MAINE

 USA

 

Good morning, Bruce, and welcome to Vision and Verse. What have 

you written? 

A novel series set in the vein of old-school television dramas, Dallas

 and Dynasty, titled MillikenMills. Three novels in: Pressing Matt,

 Last Will & Punishment, and Battle Lines Drawn. I have also written 

some poetry and suspense novellas. 

What is your favorite genre to write? 

Soapy drama or suspense.

Favorite food. 

Sweet n Sour Chicken.                      

Tea or coffee? 

Coffee though I rarely drink it. 

Pizza or ice cream? 

Can’t have both? I do eat pizza more 

these days. 

Wine or beer or soda or what? 

Don’t drink alcohol but used to be a Diet 

Coke addict until I had open-heart 

surgery (unrelated). 2 ½ years “sober” 

now. 

Congratulations. That is no small accomplishment, Where would you 

like to visit? 

Italy, Greece, Ireland (but have never flown and probably won’t.) 

Go. Seriously. Go soon. Go now. Don’t put it off. 

Favorite musical artist. 

Kelly Clarkson and Miranda Lambert. 

Do you listen to music when you write? 

Yes. 

What? 

80’s music.It’s the best decade!

What makes you laugh? 

Pets doing stupid things. 

This is an Art and Author website, 

so I am obligated to ask: Favorite work 

of art or sculpture. 

I don’t really have one that is a favorite, 

but I am a fan of murals that can 

brighten a location.

 

How old were you when you started 

writing? 

I remember writing a “play” about 

finding a mysterious object at my 

neighbor’s house when I was in third 

grade.

 

Do you plan out your book with outlines and notecards? 

I often breakdown plot points ahead of time. For Milliken Mills I 

sometimes plot out “scenes” by chapter before jumping in to write 

them out.

 

Describe your perfect evening. 

A quiet evening snuggled with a good book and cats. (okay…that 

sounded a bit sad.) 

It depends on the cat, Bruce. Where do you get your inspiration? 

For Milliken Mills, it has been from decades of watching soap TV 

operas. Other stories can be from movies or crime shows on television.

What do you do when you get a writer's block? 

I’ll let myself take a break. I’ll spend evenings reading and eventually 

I will start thinking about how I would have written a particular part or 

chapter differently than it was. Then my mind will get back to what I 

was working on. Hopefully, with different ideas. 

Who is your favorite author? 

So many. I suppose I should say Stephen 

King since I’m a Mainer and lived in 

Bangor for many years while he did. My 

tastes vary from Agatha Christie to Dean 

Koontz to Jackie Collins to Jack 

Kerouac. Depends on the mood. 

Best book you ever read. 

“And Then There Were None” by 

Agatha Christie. 

Last book you read. 

“Boardwalk Empire” by Nelson Johnson. It’s about the growth and 

corruption of Atlantic City, New Jersey. I’m headed there for a few 

days in a couple of weeks. 

What would you do for a living if you weren’t a writer? 

I still have a “real job” now and that is in the hospitality industry. 

Who is the one person who has influenced your personal life the most 

and why? 

I try to influence myself the most by blocking out opinions of others. 

Other people lifting you up or knocking you down can be for their own 

reasons and have nothing to do with you. I try to focus on my own 

goals, small or big. 

If you could sit down and have a 

conversation with ONE person, 

living or dead, real or fictional, who 

would it be and why? 

Agatha Christie so I could find out 

how this sweet seeming lady was all 

about murder and mayhem. She 

would probably be fun! 

What advice would you give someone who aspired to be a writer? 

Keep working at it. There are so many ways to get your writing out 

there now blogs, literary magazines, self-publishing. Always take steps 

to improve your writing. It can be grammar tips online, reading articles 

in writer magazines, or reading what established writers have to say 

about writing.

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NEW BOOK RELEASE: Shards of Faith by Cherime MacFarlane

  

Amazon Buy Link: https://www.amazon.com/Shards-Faith-Tundra-Inspirational-Romance-ebook/dp/B0CZJFJ1HK

Excerpt:

Andy is an ex-military man with PTSD and daddy issues. He took the unpaid position of caretaker for Nadia's property because he had to get away from people. A fly-in lodge in eastern Alaska on the slopes of the Wrangell-Saint Elias range is about as far from people as you can get. He falls in love with the peace and hoped to convince Nadia to allow him to stay on in any position he can get. Pastor Jim found the job for him and Andy needs to talk with the pastor to run his idea by someone with Nadia's interests at heart. Instead of Pastor Jim, he has a conversation with a missionary who goes up and down the Yukon River in summer, ministering to the villages. 

"I had Pastor Jim’s phone number; I’d checked. Not that I’d used it before. But there was a first time for everything. I needed someone removed from it all to tell me if I was going overboard or not. 

I punched it in. 

“Hello, there. If you're looking for Jim, this ain’t him. What can I relay?”

That took me back a couple of paces. “Ah, is he available?”

“At the moment, he’s up to his ankles in moose guts.”

“Not a bad place to be if you shot it instead of hit it with a vehicle.”

“Shot it fair and square.”

“Em, find out who it is.” I heard Pastor Jim call out.

Em? 

“Junie, hun. Why don’t you go grab that hind hoof for him?” Em asked.

“Ha. If I do, maybe there won’t be any backstrap for you when we get back to camp.”

June and Em? I had a suspicion I knew who had answered the phone. 

“Might this be the Reverend Emile Hite?”

“Good guess, son. Who are you? We should probably tell Jim.”

“Andy Andrews, the man helping Mrs. Rosskopff out.”

“Well, we should be back at camp in a couple of hours, you can call back then.”

“Reverend Hite, if it’s all the same to you, maybe you can answer my question. I listened to your podcast about being in the wilderness.”

“First off, Rev Em will do. Did you get anything from that?”

“Yes, Reverend, er, Rev Em, I did. I need to know if I’m getting a little out of line, and I’m sure you can help with that.”

“Okay. Hang on a minute. Hey, Jim. Not to worry, I’m going to handle this one for you. Tell me, Andy, what’s on your mind?”

I laid it out. What I hoped to do and why. Explaining that it would help both Mrs. Rosskopff and me. He listened without asking questions until I finished.

“Sounds as if you thought this through. If the lady in question is good with it, I don’t see any impediments. There may be one caveat. She needs help to keep the business going and you need to stay out of the city. Providing you don’t dive off into something detrimental to you both, it sounds like a win-win.”

“Detrimental to us both? I don’t follow.”

He laughed. “Let’s see. You’re a man and she’s a woman. A widow with a child and she will probably feel lonely, vulnerable. You get the picture?”

“Ah. Yes, sir. I do. But I’m not about to push on her. I’ve got enough hassles of my own. I figured to build myself a separate place to stay and there are cabins here which I can use until I get something knocked together.”

“I asked to see what you would say. If you won’t try to take advantage, there’s no reason I can see to stop you two from trying a partnership. I want a promise from you.”

“Sir?”

“No dropping the woman flat if she doesn’t like the way things are going. Furthermore, no attempting to get into her bed for scratching that infernal itch. You know the one I mean.”

“Yes, sir. I do know that one. I’ve been a victim of it a time or two. You have my word, Rev Em. On my honor, and I have some, I swear to abide by my word to you.”

“Good man. I’ll let Jim follow up with you on that. Now, I’ve got to help these two with that moose or they won’t feed me. Bye, son, don’t forget.”

The connection vanished, along with the Reverend Emile Hite. I wanted to meet the man." 

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ART: April Showers… Need Umbrellas

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