Stories on Roads East and South
Taking roads east and south this summer gave me the opportunity to spend time with family, act in a feature film, and contemplate my next steps. Nothing like a road trip to stimulate those writing juices and come up with new stories.
Ontario and Quebec
At the end of June, Rob and I visited our daughter Robyn and family in Toronto. There, we heard our eldest granddaughter sing in the final performance of her opera camp and saw our son-law, Diego Matamoros, perform in August Osage County, a Soulpepper Theatre production. Then we went with our Eastern family to Wakefield, Quebec for Canada Day. Afterwards, we took a side trip to Ottawa to visit our magnificent National Art Gallery and Museum of Civilization.
We finished off with an overnight at a cottage on Lake Simcoe and a weekend at the Mariposa Folk Festival where both granddaughters performed at open mic.
Mississippi and Louisiana
After that exciting time, we had a few weeks back home to catch our breath. Then we flew to Greenville, Mississippi to see our grandson, Michael Stevantoni. He and his friend wrote the screenplay for the feature film, The Banality and offered me the role of Mrs. Webb. I had a number of scenes, which went well. But what was also exciting was getting a taste of the deep south. Southerners are the most hospitable people I’ve ever met. The history of Mississippi though is marked by racism that I can’t get my head around.
When my days on set were finished, Rob and I drove down to New Orleans. We could’ve done without the intense heat. The heat index was up to 110 and 115 degrees Fahrenheit but we managed, thanks to AC in both cars and the places we visited.
National WWII Museum in New Orleans
One of the highlights was the day we spent in The National WWII Museum. I’m not big on looking at military equipment and hearing war stories but I wanted to learn about the Italian campaign. Two of my uncles fought in Italy. Canadians were in the war from the get-go in 1939 along with the Brits, the Aussies, and the Kiwis. The attack on Pearl Harbour in 1941 brought the Americans in.
Thankfully, with all their efforts, the war was won but not without tremendous cost. The first person stories I heard at the museum were heartbreaking.
Sunflowers Under Fire up for Awards
On a brighter note, I have so many more stories from our time down there but I have to get back to writing my own. The days ahead are promising. With my novel Sunflowers Under Fire both a finalist for the 2019 Whistler Independent Book Awards and a semi-finalist for the 2019 Kindle Book Awards, I’m feeling so honoured and grateful.
And if you haven’t heard the recent podcasts I’ve done for both Author’s Lab and the Alliance of Independent Authors, you can check them out here.
Comments
Thank you for visiting my site. Your comments are always appreciated.
Congratulations! I’m thrilled to hear of another notch on your book’s belt.
Thank you, Jo-Anne. Feels good to ride the wave. 🙂
More kudos for you! I had heard one interview with you and was delighted to find the video where you discussed “A Cry From the Deep.” I am glad you survived the summer heat of NO – one can never NOT have a good time there.
Thank you, Jo. Glad you found that earlier video too. It was so much fun to do. Hope you summer is lasting. We seem to have quickly veered into fall. Heavy rain today.