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VISION AND VERSE DISCLAIMER
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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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Excerpt:
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."
VISION AND VERSE DISCLAIMER
Note:
Vision and Verse does not store any personal information like email addresses, home addresses, etc. We do not give any information to third parties. And cookies? We eat cookies.
VISION AND VERSE DISCLAIMER
Note:
Vision and Verse does not store any personal information like email addresses, home addresses, etc. We do not give any information to third parties. And cookies? We eat cookies.