Rock ‘n Roll!!!
Who was talking about live rock ‘n roll concerts and venue startups for the last several months? Not my husband and boys, who actually—successfully—hosted a live concert with 4 bands in our garage! We now claim a bonified, underground performance venue dubbed “The Shop” tucked safely into Boise’s North End.
“Mom, I want a rock ‘n roll concert.”
“Where are you going to go, honey?”
“In the driveway. It’ll be awesome!!!”
Visions of my trampled vegetable garden, police handing out tickets by the fistful, and a line of strangers inside MY house waiting for the bathroom ran through my head.
But then… “Wait, I guess I could use this as research?”
Life imitates fiction: How many times did I tell my family that Roseberry Tea’s ending is at a huge concert which MJ, the main character, coordinates to start her new career? The First Annual Roseberry Music Festival (I can’t wait!).
Manifestation. Co-creation. I’ll be thinking about this for a while.
Back to the concert: I liked the idea of research, so I tried to chill out and hang back. A bit.
I wondered, “What’s the worst that can happen? And what descriptions, surprises, or issues will I see that I can write into my main character’s experience? Will there be Hot-Girl-Summer concert-goers… or Crazy Neighbor arriving… or just some surprising logistics, lessons like The Donation Jar, to make my story more authentic?”
Well. Yes, the police did arrive. Twice. (Once during Thursday’s soundcheck and once at Friday’s show.) They were super professional and very nice!
We do have Crazy Neighbor, who earned the name “Old Baldy,” and despite our every accommodation, continued to walk by pulling a sourpuss face at teens having fun.
We also nailed the logistics! (There are some benefits to being over 40 like better planning skills and resources.) We rented a porta-potty, I stocked a large cooler with water bottles—no dehydrated concert-goers on my shift!—and The Donation Jar sat just stage right collecting cash that helped cover the porta-potty.
And responsible, cool adults ensured teens were drug-free, having fun, and NOT harassed by Old Baldy. In fact, at one point, there was literally a line of adults between the street and the audience area so kids could feel free to just express themselves in a safe space.
Generally, our neighbors were all super supportive and many came by to watch. Before the concert, my son spoke to or dropped flyers at our surrounding houses, and some of these neighbors even sat out on their patios to listen. Also, my son met a woman on the hill who recently lost her husband, a professional trumpet player whom we used to love listening to playing from his patio Sunday afternoons. My son and she had a very touching conversation about musicians and the value of music. 💕🙏
Another finding: My role ended up being that of on-site PR and audience coordinator. This will be half of MJ’s job in Roseberry Tea. My husband did the other half: Staging the show, organizing bands and equipment, and mentoring newbies. I was pleasantly surprised by how hard the teens worked to prepare the venue, learn about live sound, and play to a live audience in addition to writing and practicing their 3-song sets before the show. My musician friend said it was “tight.” 😎
It was awesome!!! A good time was had by all (except Old Baldy), including the police who were straight-faced talking with us but laughing all the way down the street after seeing how peaceful, clean, and fun the event was.
How to Stage a Romance?
Newsletters for authors cover writing sex scenes at least once a year (right around now, in fact, as summer starts with skimpier clothing and beach reads, I suppose!). Sex scenes aren’t super easy for me—I actually find it hard to tone down the details!—as an industry tech writer with years under the belt producing very literal how-to and troubleshooting guides. ;)
Yet… I started reading historical romance around age 11 or 12. My poor Mom, who told me at age 13, that I shouldn’t attempt to read such books, until I explained I’d already read everything my older sister had and then some.
“I guess you already know about everything, then?”
“Yep. Sorry.” I am Gen X, after all.
Note that, using my first adult library card at age 14, I read up on Transcendental Meditation (not sex, critical racial theory, or how to build weapons). I haven’t regretted it yet!
Romance is challenging writing for me. Really it’s about personal connection, and how two people come to be intimate—not physically—but through love.
I was stymied by this, both in Roseberry Tea, to get MJ and Lucky together in time for the show (and he must decide she’s not a murderer, and she must overcome her trust issue), but also in Root Bound, to get Bridget and John to see something special in one another legitimately before she gets an annulment from love-to-hate villain Etienne.
For inspiration, I began observing others around me. (Great advice for any struggling writer: Become a good observer of humans. Did I mention I also offer developmental editing to others?)
Then coincidence struck: My family camped at Bruneau Sand Dunes, which I reserved with the original intention of rewarding my son’s hard work during the school year. We were going to host a bunch of kids camping, but when it came time to pack, it was just our family and cat (that’s another story!).
When we got to the dunes, the kids asked all about the history of the dunes and when we started going there.
It happened to be one of the first places my husband took me on an adventurous date that turned serious in terms of love. To this day, I still have a little jar of salt-and-pepper sand that fell out of my shoes when we returned to our tiny apartment (and slathered aloe vera all over each other).
We were also invited to attend the very first wedding to happen at the Bruneau Sand Dunes State Park.
Our two friends, cavers who were remarrying, chose the Sand Dunes because it was their first overnight date. They had camped at the dunes, stargazed, and fell in love…
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