#Fact vs #Fiction by Mackenzie Crowne

fic۰tion

/'fikSH(ə)n/

Noun

·         invention or fabrication as opposed to fact

The above definition may be technically correct but, in my humble opinion, imaginary events in literary fiction are based on fact. Or, more precisely, on our own unique version of reality.

Have I sufficiently confused you all? My bad. Let me see if I can explain what I mean.

The way I see it, fiction is a product of the imagination, but our imaginations are rooted in experience. From the day we’re born, we humans begin to observe the world around us. We can’t help it. The instinct is built-in. We learn by observing. In the process, we judge and categorize people, places and situations based on our personal perceptions and once we’ve learned something, that knowledge becomes a part of us.

In other words, our experiences are embedded in our subconscious where we tap into them as needed. For example, when a fiction author sits down to write. The following is true for every aspect of a story, such as season, language, point in history, and characters, but let’s focus on just one thing. Location. Whether the author describes a spot they’ve visited often or a fantastical imaginary world, the sights and sounds, smells and feel, all the distinct features of the location come straight from their mind’s eye – you know, where all those past experiences live.

Each one of us has a store of learned details tucked away in our minds. Yes, even you. They serve as the blueprint of our reality. They document our likes and dislikes, warn us away from repeating past mistakes, and form our biases.

Here’s a quick experiment. Two women are walking down the street toward you. One meets your eye and offers a polite smile. She’s a few pounds overweight with brassy red hair pulled into a bun. The other is tall and thin, her blonde locks combed back in a slick twist. Chin held at a lofty angle, she looks straight ahead, as if you don’t exist, passing by without a glance.

One of these women is a waitress, the other a senator’s wife. Quick! Which is which?

Got it? Okay, good.

So, if you all did as you were told, each of you imagined the women in the roles that most closely align with your past experiences. Now, I could be wrong but, based on my intentional description of the women’s looks and behavior, I’m betting most of you could easily picture the blonde holding a dry martini and fake smiling at the suckers attending the latest swanky political fundraiser.

However, since I purposefully flipped the stereotypes on their heads, hoping to expose your bias, you’d be wrong in this case. The blonde is the waitress. Her name is Margie, by the way, and she’s not one of those big-hearted women everyone who stops in the diner loves. Beneath her perfect exterior, she’s a bitter shrew who’s had a crappy life and has a sharp tongue she uses with far too much frequency.

Which sums up my point. As authors, we sometimes go with the obvious – like the big-hearted waitress and snooty politician’s wife. Other times we gleefully rub our hands together, slipping into our Dr. Frankenstein frocks to piece together unique characters or worlds. However, the details used to flush out the various elements of our stories are always drawn from the deep pool of experience that is our own unique reality.

When Mac isn’t confusing the crap out of the visitors to The Roses of Prose blog, she dons her Dr. Frankenstein frock to create unique characters like Cooper Reed and Riley Pierce, the hero and heroine of THAT DATING THING, Mac’s lighthearted Wall Street romance.

What Inspires Your #Romance by Mackenzie Crowne

If you were to poll one hundred authors on what questions their readers ask of them, “Where do you get your inspiration?” would most likely be in the top three. And “Everywhere” would be among the most cited responses. 

This is certainly true for me and those flashes of inspiration are one of my favorite parts of the writing experience. I can’t tell you how thrilling it is when a seemingly mundane sight or sound draws my attention and BAM! Bright and shiny possibilities swirl in my mind as the spark of a new plot line flares to life.

For example, news reports of the Bernie Madoff scandal are at the heart of ThatDating Thing, my light-hearted romance involving an assistant district attorney with political ambitions and the daughter of Wall Street’s most notorious stock swindler. 

Of course, not all my inspirations have been huge, game changer experiences. Most are of a far subtler variety. I’m telling you, I was definitely inspired by that super-hottie in line at the post office who, amazingly enough, looked exactly like Beau Walker, the sexy hero of my RONE award-winning romance, A Song for Sophie. In my small-town romance, The Billionaire’s Con, I wrote a heroine chef—right about the time my youngest brother was graduating from culinary school.

Then there is this guy. Murphy, my sister’s crazy but sweet dog was the inspiration for Gracie Gable’s trouble making canine sidekick in book 1 of my Players series, To Win Her Love. He is also the inspiration for today’s post. You see, this past week, those of us who loved Murphy said goodbye to him as he crossed the rainbow bridge. 

I naturally thought of Murphy when Gracie insisted she needed a dog. He was such a sweet boy, after all, with the added bonus of his crazy habit of… 

Well, I’ll let you experience his habit for yourself in the short excerpt below.

Enjoy, and thanks for the laughs, Murph. You were well-loved and will be well-missed.

Murphy landed sure-footed, only to skid across the hardwood floor. Momentum carried him strait for Jake’s long legs.
No stranger to dexterity, Jake danced to the side. He snagged the dog’s collar and halted his progress. Murphy wriggled wildly, the claws of his scrambling paws clicking on the hardwood floor. He bucked, and Jake pivoted his upper body sideways.
The move would’ve worked, too, if Murphy was a normal dog, intent upon jumping up to plant his paws to Jake’s chest. Gracie knew from experience that wasn’t the case.
“Murphy, no!”
Quick as a flash, he dropped his nose and whipped up his head. She cringed as his skull made solid contact with Jake’s unprotected crotch.
A loud oof accompanied the unexpected head butt. Jake’s briefcase clattered to the floor. Stunned pain etched his features.
“What the fu—” He bent forward and the duffle slid from his shoulder to join the briefcase at his feet. He cupped one hand over his injured crotch and shoved the dog away with the other. Jaw clenched and long legs bent, he crossed one knee in front of the other. His eyes slid shut on a pained moan.

To find out how things worked out between Jake and Murphy,

pick up your copy of To Win Her Love at

Kensington Publishing, Amazon, 

and wherever books are sold.

Beating #Writer’sBlock with a Good #Book by Mackenzie Crowne

Writer’s Block. Gah! Just typing the phrase makes my skin crawl — a reaction I’m sure makes perfect sense to those for whom writing is compulsory. It is for me and finding myself frozen in front of the keyboard without a clue as to why the words won’t come is a nasty, horrible, utterly frustrating state of affairs. Unfortunately, I’m not a novice when it comes to the phenomenon, having found myself staring at a blank screen a number of times over the years. Yet, knowing I’ll eventually make it through to the other side is of little help while I’m waiting. I want to write. I NEED to write and none of the countless tricks I’ve used in the past to overcome this painful lack of creativity seem to be working.

So, I’ve decided to go back to the beginning. Back to those stories that first touched my heart and lured me into the world of romance when I was little more than a girl. Back to those paperbacks that claim a permanent place on my re-read shelf. Here’s the plan: For the next seven days, I will be spending my free time with some of my all-time favorite characters — old friends I’ve neglected for far too long. I plan to immerse myself in sweeping adventures that came from the creative and talented minds of none other than Linda Howard, Susan Elizabeth Phillips, Johanna Lindsey, Nora Roberts and Elizabeth Lowell to name a few. I’m talking classic romance, written in the 70s and 80s before I’d ever heard of such things as plot development, linear vs non-linear, character arcs, head-hops and dialog tags.

With a little luck, these old friends will remind me of why I started writing romance in the first place, and if not, who cares? Re-reading a favorite romance used to be one of my most enjoyable ways to pass an afternoon. It’s time I got back to that bygone pleasure. I’ll let you know how the plan works out, but in the meantime, what about you? Do you ever re-read or do those new adventures waiting to be experienced claim your heart?

When Mac isn’t bashing her head against the keyboard and cursing the dreaded writer’s block, she spends her time providing happily-ever-afters for her sassy characters like Rylee Pierce, heroine of

THAT DATING THING 

Guest Mackenzie Crowne is Turning the Tables

Mackenzie Crowne

Come on, admit it. When a book delivers an entertaining conflict, you gleefully devour the ending pages to discover how it’s resolved. I know I do and when the resolution involves an alpha male hero turning the tables on his heroine… oh, yeah. I’m in reader heaven.

Here’s a little slice of heaven from my lighthearted contemporary, That Dating Thing.

 

Despite the flashing cameras, Coop’s grin was genuine. Damn, she was something else. She would make the perfect district attorney’s wife. As he’d listened to her, working the press with her typical mix of sarcasm and wit, disbelief warred with respect. Underlying both was relief she hadn’t skipped town after all, along with an urgent need to hustle her away, sit her down and coach her through the minefield of media interest—after he kissed her senseless.

Though she’d been holding her own with the others, handling their questions with exactly the right lack of concern, she’d made an enemy of Wallis. Coop knew from experience, the network hopeful didn’t take kindly to being made the fool. And Rylee managed the feat while the competitor’s cameras were rolling. Wallis wouldn’t let the hit to his colossal ego go unanswered.

Because of Coop’s clumsy handling of Tim’s report, the press, led by Wallis, was in full-out attack mode, with both Rylee and he caught in the crosshairs. It would take some fancy footwork to turn the attention to their advantage. Professionally, he’d done what he could to minimize the fallout, officially submitting Tim’s investigation to District Attorney Burns. Personally, he still had his work cut out for him. Sizing up the situation, he saw an opportunity to repair the damage with Rylee, while serving up a twist to the story the press wouldn’t be able to resist. All he needed was a little bit of luck.

“Now, baby,” he crooned. “These people don’t know your sense of humor the way I do. They’re going to think you don’t like me.”

To his utter surprise, he witnessed the rare sight of a speechless Rylee Pierce. Her mouth gaped open, but no sound emerged. His grin widened as he enjoyed the novelty of an experience he wasn’t bound to face again anytime soon.

Draping an arm across her shoulders, he addressed the press. “I see you’ve met my fiancée.”

All eyes flicked to Rylee, who stilled after her attempt to dislodge his arm had failed.

“I’m not… He’s not…” She clenched her jaw and gritted her response to their avid audience. “We are not engaged!”

“She’s stubborn,” he said, winking at Melody. “She won’t say yes until she sees the ring.”

“I haven’t said yes because I was never asked a question,” Rylee growled. “He’s an idiot,” she told the crowd, turning to glare up at him. “You’re an idiot.”

 

So, what do you think? Will there be wedding bells for Rylee and her charming idiot?

 

I love making new friends. Stop in and say hi at my home on the web: mackenziecrowne.com

That Dating Thing is available in digital format and print at Still Moments Publishing, Amazon, and Createspace.