Question of the Day, Wednesday, March 11, 2020

[Mamanyt1953]

Since I am currently reading THREE books at once, books are on my mind.

If you were going to write a book, what genre would it be? What would it be about? And by all means, be as specific as you'd like to be! I'd love hearing that one of you would write a book a different methodologies of scratching fleas in a group of 150 cats! Heck, I'd BUY that book!


I'd write a cozy mystery. That's my go-to genre for relaxing with a book. There would be a primary cat theme, and probably a secondary paranormal theme, with maybe a twitch of culinary thrown in. I'd set it in a small town, probably in the mountains of North Carolina, North Georgia, or Tennessee. And my heroine would be in her mid-60's, single and happy that way. In fact, she would be a lot like me, heavens help us all.

 

[verna davies]

They say there is at least one book in everyone but someone else got my share. I struggled writing essays in school. If I were to write one it would be a psychological thriller based in a busy city, lots of twists and turns and with an ending no-one would guess. There would only be a few main characters in it as I find multiple names confusing. I would try to make it as realistic as possible and a page turner. Not going to happen though.

 

[Mia6]

They say there is at least one book in everyone but someone else got my share. I struggled writing essays in school. If I were to write one it would be a psychological thriller based in a busy city, lots of twists and turns and with an ending no-one would guess. There would only be a few main characters in it as I find multiple names confusing. I would try to make it as realistic as possible and a page turner. Not going to happen though.

Same answer but maybe I'll give it a try

 

[Elphaba09]

My master's thesis was an experimental novel that was sort of a prequel to The Scarlet Letter. I have written three additional novels (mostly completed) and am currently playing around with two new ones. I am much better at academic work. I have several published academic pieces, mainly pertaining to feminist deconstruction theory and the Jungian Shadow.

My three unfinished novels are "historical" magical realism, a feminist hero's journey set in a parallel universe, and retelling of Little Red Riding Hood.

The first new idea is about four chapters in rough form. It is another "historical" magical realism story about a man and woman who suddenly arrive one day in a small village called Lyvmora in the county of Windshipshire. The house that they plan to live in sits on the other side of a rock wall that separates the village from the moor. The house had been abandoned for more than 70 years, and the oldest woman in the village recognizes the man and tells everyone that he is from a long line of werewolves. Obviously, the man is the grandson of the man she remembers, not the actual man. It is based on Welsh legends.

The second new one currently little more than a rough outline in my mind. It is loosely based on my house and involves time travel. Our house is just about to turn 100-years old, and we have done a lot of work on it over the last five years. As you can imagine, we have lath and plaster walls. Plaster likes to come away from lath. (We are getting ready to repair two cracks in the ceiling where it has started to come away.)While working on the wall in our bedroom, we found a little note in a space behind one of the bookshelves we repaired. It had the initials J and L with a heart around them. Because we know the granddaughter of the people who built the house, so I asked her about the J and L. It stands for James and Lucille, her grandparents. We gave her the paper.

The whole thing made me think about time travel. So, I have a loose idea about a man who builds a home in the 1910-1920s and leaves a note for someone. He knows that the letter will be found by a certain person 100 years later because he is a time traveler and needs that person's help. I kind of threw in the concept of the Weeping Angels from Doctor Who and the standing stones form Outlander to somehow put limits on when and where the time travel can take place. Not that I am going to use standing stones or Weeping Angels, but I want something to limit the ability to time travel.

As I said, it little more than a rough outline in my mind.

 

[Koveshnikov]

Since I am currently reading THREE books at once, books are on my mind.

If you were going to write a book, what genre would it be? What would it be about? And by all means, be as specific as you'd like to be! I'd love hearing that one of you would write a book a different methodologies of scratching fleas in a group of 150 cats! Heck, I'd BUY that book!


I'd write a cozy mystery. That's my go-to genre for relaxing with a book. There would be a primary cat theme, and probably a secondary paranormal theme, with maybe a twitch of culinary thrown in. I'd set it in a small town, probably in the mountains of North Carolina, North Georgia, or Tennessee. And my heroine would be in her mid-60's, single and happy that way. In fact, she would be a lot like me, heavens help us all.

absolutely identical

 

[Katie M]

Definitely historical fiction, set in the late nineteenth or early twentieth century. All of my story ideas seem to involve artists, poets, vagabonds, or some combination of the three. I'd also like to write something about film in the twenties and thirties.

 

[Margret]

I'd write a cozy mystery. That's my go-to genre for relaxing with a book. There would be a primary cat theme, and probably a secondary paranormal theme, with maybe a twitch of culinary thrown in. I'd set it in a small town, probably in the mountains of North Carolina, North Georgia, or Tennessee. And my heroine would be in her mid-60's, single and happy that way. In fact, she would be a lot like me, heavens help us all.

You "Mary Sue," you!

Well, it isn't going to happen, but I have a premise for a comic science fiction novel (or novella, or short story). The problem is, I can't figure out what to do with it. I have the basic idea, but not the characters, and I can't quite see where it would take us, if that makes any sense at all. If I had the characters, that would drive the direction of the story, and if I knew where the story was going that would tell me who the characters are. But without either one of those, the premise just sits there, nagging at me.

If anything ever comes of it, the people here will be among the first to know.

Margret

 

[DreamerRose]

I would write a historical novel based on the life of my great great grandmother. She lived into the 20th Century and had a very interesting life. She lived with her grandson late in life and told him many of her stories, which have come down to us. She was born in southwestern Virginia, immigrated to Tennessee, and married there. Then she and her husband moved south to Alabama, which at the time was still Indian territory. They "squatted" on a piece of land until the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek, which resulted in the movement of the Indians to Oklahoma - the Trail of Tears. Her husband died in 1857, but she continued to live on and manage their plantation until after the Civil War. She then moved west with the rest of her family. Most of them went on to Arkansas, but she remained in Mississippi with a daughter. She lived well into her nineties.

I've put a lot of thought into this, but never put pen to paper.

 

[Jemima Lucca]

I have gathered, in my experience as a caregiver, inside knowledge from every perspective (caregiving, loved ones, other caregivers etc. etc.) of caring for a person diagnosed with dementia in every form.
My book would begin by giving a very brief description of dementia; the reason for brief is because there’s a lot of information about the medical aspects of dementia. I will have chapters addressing helpful caregiving, things that hinder successful caregiving and explore the way we handle our dementia people can help them or, at its worst, is harmful.
The next part (I’m going to divide the book in parts and chapters) will address loved ones. This will follow the same format as the caregivers part. Families and friends of their loved ones with dementia often don’t understand and/or comprehend that they have the ability to support them in ways that embrace the dementia. This part will also include supporting the caregivers, which in turn, supports their loved ones. The next part will address management. This part will be somewhat “touchy” because, of course, they hold the purse strings. The last part will knit all of this together for the future success of caring for someone who has a diagnosis of dementia. These people need a team of advocates because they can no longer advocate for themselves. I forgot, this includes things like hospice, letting go of expectations, meeting their loved ones where they’re at etc. I have the feeling that many things I’m going to stumble upon will also be included. I’m hoping to appeal to caregivers, family, friends and people who want to be there for our fellow human beings with a very debilitating disease.

 

[Graceful-Lily]

I'm actually writing one right now but I haven't touched it in over a year.

It's a fictional retelling of the violence and poverty in the area I'm living in.

I guess I didn't finish it because I thought no one would care to read about stuff like that.

Might scrap it.

 

[MonaLyssa33]

I'd write memoirs. I feel like I've lived many different lives in my 33 years. I was mute from age 3 until I was 10, then I was depressed in my teens and again (and worse) in my 20s. I was diagnosed as autistic when I was 27. I also have Tourette syndrome, but that is actually kind of minor compared to other things in my life.

Other than memoirs, I'd like to write fiction based around mental illnesses and autism.

 

[maggiedemi]

Either poetry, romance, autobiography, or a cookbook.

 

[Jemima Lucca]

I'd write memoirs. I feel like I've lived many different lives in my 33 years. I was mute from age 3 until I was 10, then I was depressed in my teens and again (and worse) in my 20s. I was diagnosed as autistic when I was 27. I also have Tourette syndrome, but that is actually kind of minor compared to other things in my life.

Other than memoirs, I'd like to write fiction based around mental illnesses and autism.

Monalyssa I hope you write your book! I have a 27 year old with the same things. He’s autistic, although at the higher end of the spectrum. He was diagnosed with Tourette syndrome when he was 9. He’s bipolar and has had extreme anxiety along with the Tourette’s. It is a great many life times with these challenges! I get it (although from a moms perspective. I’d like to read it) thanks for your bravery

 

[Jemima Lucca]

Either poetry, romance, autobiography, or a cookbook.

I love reading poetry as I too write it. It’s a great outlet for expressing yourself!

 

[Norachan]

I'd like to write a series of short stories, semi autobiographical, based on interesting things I've done or heard about on my travels.

 

[Margret]

I have gathered, in my experience as a caregiver, inside knowledge from every perspective (caregiving, loved ones, other caregivers etc. etc.) of caring for a person diagnosed with dementia in every form.
My book would begin by giving a very brief description of dementia; the reason for brief is because there’s a lot of information about the medical aspects of dementia. I will have chapters addressing helpful caregiving, things that hinder successful caregiving and explore the way we handle our dementia people can help them or, at its worst, is harmful.
The next part (I’m going to divide the book in parts and chapters) will address loved ones. This will follow the same format as the caregivers part. Families and friends of their loved ones with dementia often don’t understand and/or comprehend that they have the ability to support them in ways that embrace the dementia. This part will also include supporting the caregivers, which in turn, supports their loved ones. The next part will address management. This part will be somewhat “touchy” because, of course, they hold the purse strings. The last part will knit all of this together for the future success of caring for someone who has a diagnosis of dementia. These people need a team of advocates because they can no longer advocate for themselves. I forgot, this includes things like hospice, letting go of expectations, meeting their loved ones where they’re at etc. I have the feeling that many things I’m going to stumble upon will also be included. I’m hoping to appeal to caregivers, family, friends and people who want to be there for our fellow human beings with a very debilitating disease.

Please let me know when this book is available; I want a copy!

I'm actually writing one right now but I haven't touched it in over a year.

It's a fictional retelling of the violence and poverty in the area I'm living in.

I guess I didn't finish it because I thought no one would care to read about stuff like that.

Might scrap it.

I believe you're mistaken about what people want to read. I just bought a book this evening about the death of an unarmed black man at the hands of a cop, and it's not because I'm black (I'm not), it's because I'm always concerned about injustice.

However, if you want to make sure your book will get good reviews, make sure that some of the characters in it respond to the violence and poverty with courage, integrity, and maybe even some ingenuity. That keeps the book from being only about poverty and violence; it also makes it a book about the human condition, and about the ability some people have to thrive in the most appalling conditions.

Margret

 

[posiepurrs]

I have had an idea for a book for several years but haven't done anything with it. Right now, I am writing my history down. I want to leave something to fill in the blanks for my kids and my grand daughter. My kids only know me as Mom and Isabelle knows me as Grandma, but we are all much more than one or two roles in life.
All I have ever written before were a few articles for Cat Talk Magazine.

 

[aliceneko]

I've written a couple of historical books before including one alternative history.

 

[Mamanyt1953]

OK...I want to read EVERYONE'S BOOK! GET WRITING!