If you're looking for Pamela Foster, please go to:
http://pamelafosterspeakerwriter.wordpress.com/
I'll see you there.
Pamela Foster Secrets and Vices
Sunday, August 19, 2012
Monday, July 9, 2012
But, I Didn't Pinkie Swear
How much of
what we experience do we have a right to share?
Or to put it another way–
I’ll keep your
secret. Unless it’s funny. Or profound.
Or quirky. Or sad. If the personal revelation you share calls
forth any of those aforementioned emotions?
Well, then, sooner or later, you’ll probably see a twisted version of
the tale in something I write.
For me, this
creates the biggest challenge when it concerns one particular person in my
life. See this person is funny and
profound and quirky and, sometimes, sad.
And he has been very clear that he does not want me to ever use anything
he’s said in anything I write. Which,
because I love and respect him, I agree to do.
But, I’m here to tell you, it just about kills me. Just yesterday he made the funniest
observation I’ve heard in years.
Which I’m
not going to share with you.
Do you think
God will give me extra credit for keeping this confidence? You writers out there, how do you handle it
when a person with whom you share an experience is adamant about not wanting
those insights or feelings shared on the written page?
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
Fourth of July
I got
thinking about just what we’re supposed to be celebrating on the Fourth of
July. The signing of the Declaration of
Independence. An illegal protest against
taxation without representation.
History’s
a bitch, ain’t she?
I wondered
how many of the grand thinkers and philosophers who came up with the bright
idea of taking a stand for that particular cause actually fought for its implementation. Turns out about half. Fifty-six men signed the Declaration. Seventeen fought in the American Revolution. Five were captured. Eleven more had their homes confiscated.
The reason
this all came to mind is that, as we submerge deeper and deeper into the
increasingly muddy waters of another presidential election year, I am more and
more irritated by those who wave flags.
On both sides of the aisle.
There are all kinds of ways to be
patriotic. And shoring up a fallacious
argument by jumping over the cerebral cortex and coming directly from the amygdala
is a time honored way to appeal to voters.
I get that.
So, I don’t
mind someone wrapping themselves in the bloody flag to make a political
point. Except it maddens me when the blood
on that flag is not their own. It pisses me off when the blood of warriors is
called upon to justify what is simply a point of view and, not content to end
the farce there, anyone with an opposing opinion is demonized as an ingrate not
worthy of sacrifices of real patriots.
Here’s what I think.
If we want to honor those who fight in wars our government sends them to fight, let us stop behaving like selfish children. Let’s reach out to one another, work to hear each other’s words, and find a way to allow the country we profess to love to grow and to find, again, a righteous path to greatness.
http://pamelafosterspeakerwriter.wordpress.com/
Sunday, July 1, 2012
Southern Women
I've moved my writer's blog to http://pamelafosterspeakerwriter.wordpress.com/bigfoot-blues/#comments It'd be great if you followed me there.
This blog is going to become my rift and rave spot. The blog is named Secrets and Vices, afterall. What's posted here has virtually nothing to do with any of my books. It's just a place to post observations and opinions and see what y'all think, hopefully get some feedback.
This blog is going to become my rift and rave spot. The blog is named Secrets and Vices, afterall. What's posted here has virtually nothing to do with any of my books. It's just a place to post observations and opinions and see what y'all think, hopefully get some feedback.
One of the
differences between Southern woman and the rest of us heathens is that Southern
women, as a rule, do not cuss and swear.
I mean, unless they’re fighting with a computer. Or quilting.
During those two activities, all bets are off, but otherwise, nary a
crude utterance will pass their lips.
Yes, there are exceptions. A
dear southern friend and I once had to pinkie swear not to say the ‘f’ word in front of
another friend’s eighty-year-old mother.
But, by and large, woman from below the Mason/Dixon do not use profanity. They especially do not take the Lord’s name
in vain.
This is a
challenge for me, a Pacific Northwest Redneck transplanted to Northwest
Arkansas. I’m telling you, it’s a hard
and trying cultural adjustment.
The worst
thing I ever heard my dad say about a woman was, “She wouldn’t say shit if she
had a mouthful.” Now, I ask you, is that
not a clear demand for a girl to call it like she sees it?
I phoned my
sister the other day and asked her what she was doing. “I’m standin’ in my Goddamn garden,” she said
sweetly, “looking at my first water-fuckin’-mellon.”
I don’t know
what to tell you. It’s how we talk if
left to our crude Yankee tendencies.
The other
difference between a southern woman and an old Humboldt Honey like myself is
that a southern woman will hang herself before leaving the house without a
bra. Hell, most of em couldn’t be paid
to walk out the front door without foundation makeup, eyeliner, mascara and
painted nails. Me? I do shave my legs, though since menopause
it’s more habit than anything else and I do wear a bra. Though that last deal is more about the
vanities of old age than a defense against a lynching.
All that
said, my best friends in the world are from the south. Nobody is better at wearing a soul to
submission with pure-dee graciousness or knocking the argument plum out of a
body with words sweeter’n tea. I may not
be from around here, but I am de-damn-lighted to buckle up that bra and censor
my words a tad. It’s a small price to
pay to live peaceably in this neck of the woods.
Monday, May 7, 2012
Bigfoot Blues Lurks in Woods
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Coming soon from High Hill Press: Bigfoot Blues!
The
daughter of a longtime Bigfooter enlists the help of her redneck
friends to teach a sweet-talking city slicker a backwoods lesson in this
rollicking tale by novelist Pamela Foster (Redneck Goddess, 2011).
Samantha is a pretty, spirited bartender who manages VD’s with her on-again-off-again boyfriend and business partner, Hawk. Although the bar is named for their dads (Victor and David), “half the kids in the county phone at least once to giggle some perceived original query.” The Indian, as Sam calls Hawk, is half Yurok and all philanderer, with an appetite for loose women and booze that threatens to ruin any chance of a relationship between the two. Still, Sam isn’t ready to give up on Hawk—yet.
When a finely-dressed, big-city author named Mark Nielson wanders into the bar one evening for a meeting of the believers, the locals expect trouble. But Sam can’t help but be swayed by the sexy stranger with “eyes the color of that variegated moss along a late summer river,” especially after the shabby treatment she’s received from Hawk. Sweet talk and flowers wear down her guard, and soon Sam has a new beau.
When the relationship suddenly takes an awkward turn, Sam’s allegiance to her beloved father is placed in doubt. Filled with misplaced guilt, Sam begins to question her own beliefs, while fiercely rushing to the defense of her dad. Armed with her .38 and a plan to set things right, Sam leads her city-born suitor into the backwoods wilderness, with Georgia-bred Bubba and childhood friend Lefty trailing behind for support. But none of the four suspects the enormity of the adventure that awaits the group—and the discoveries that will forever change them.
Full of humorous asides and swelling with redneck pride, Bigfoot Blues blends together an eclectic group of believers and nonbelievers for an offbeat but delightfully satisfying tale.
Note: Bigfoot Blues is coming summer 2012 from High Hill Press! In the meantime, hop over to High Hill to find out about a contest to find Bigfoot…and to submit your own story to the Bigfoot Blues Confidential anthology.
Samantha is a pretty, spirited bartender who manages VD’s with her on-again-off-again boyfriend and business partner, Hawk. Although the bar is named for their dads (Victor and David), “half the kids in the county phone at least once to giggle some perceived original query.” The Indian, as Sam calls Hawk, is half Yurok and all philanderer, with an appetite for loose women and booze that threatens to ruin any chance of a relationship between the two. Still, Sam isn’t ready to give up on Hawk—yet.
When a finely-dressed, big-city author named Mark Nielson wanders into the bar one evening for a meeting of the believers, the locals expect trouble. But Sam can’t help but be swayed by the sexy stranger with “eyes the color of that variegated moss along a late summer river,” especially after the shabby treatment she’s received from Hawk. Sweet talk and flowers wear down her guard, and soon Sam has a new beau.
When the relationship suddenly takes an awkward turn, Sam’s allegiance to her beloved father is placed in doubt. Filled with misplaced guilt, Sam begins to question her own beliefs, while fiercely rushing to the defense of her dad. Armed with her .38 and a plan to set things right, Sam leads her city-born suitor into the backwoods wilderness, with Georgia-bred Bubba and childhood friend Lefty trailing behind for support. But none of the four suspects the enormity of the adventure that awaits the group—and the discoveries that will forever change them.
Full of humorous asides and swelling with redneck pride, Bigfoot Blues blends together an eclectic group of believers and nonbelievers for an offbeat but delightfully satisfying tale.
Note: Bigfoot Blues is coming summer 2012 from High Hill Press! In the meantime, hop over to High Hill to find out about a contest to find Bigfoot…and to submit your own story to the Bigfoot Blues Confidential anthology.
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Wednesday, May 2, 2012
A Confused Sea
A small boat in a rough
sea. I identify, lately, with that
image.
For five years I fell off the
side of a panga boat into the Caribbean Sea on a daily basis. Winds from the east flattened the waves and
we skimmed over turquoise glass on our way to the dive site. West winds ruffled the water and made for a
choppy ride. A storm blowing in from the
south or north created ripples or mountains depending on the wind speed.
The local boat captains
navigated all of this. As long as the panga motor
could outrun the waves before they swamped the low back of the boat on the way
into shore, the captains powered out through the watery mountains and we fell
backwards off the boat and sunk below the surface chaos.
Well, yes, there were those
occasions on returning home when we leaped over the side the instant the panga
cleared the opening of the cove and drug the boat to shore hoping to outrun a threatening wave. There was even one memorable time
when the waves caught us and the boat sunk in plain sight of the dive shop and
the sunbathers on the beach.
But, for the most part, as
long as the wind was consistent, the little boat bobbed on the rough seas and
was waiting to bring us home at the end of our dive.
In a confused sea, the wind
can’t make up its mind what direction it wants to blow. Waves kick up from all
directions with the occasional rogue to make the boat captain’s life even more
interesting. A confused sea left a boatload of disappointed divers standing on shore cussing the weather
while a Mayan boat captain shook his head no and no and hell no.
So, in this time of my life,
when nothing seems constant, I remind myself that the weather will change. But mostly, I remember dropping down through
roaring waves into a world of such contrasting peace it always put a smile on my face big enough to leak salt water in around my regulator.
Peace is here. I just have to fall backwards into it.
Monday, April 9, 2012
I'm happy for you . . .
In the movie ‘Midnight in Paris’, Hemingway tells Gill, the young novelist,
“You don’t want the opinion of another writer about your novel. If is bad, I’ll hate it. If it’s good, I’ll be envious and hate it even more.”
There’s a large element of truth there. I pretend happiness in the success of other writers, but I’m seldom truly glad for them. For the exact reason Hemingway mentions.
Writers are notorious for possessing that inner child prone to tantrums.
“Me, me, me. What about me? I’m just as good a writer as they are.”
And, truthfully, if I don’t know you and read about your success as a writer, I’ll be a teeny tiny bit happy for you but mostly I’ll be jealous as a three year old at her sister’s birthday party.
Except, right in the muddled-middle of my tiny, selfish life, a funny thing has happened. I find myself with a group of increasingly successful writer friends for whom I am genuinely, joyously happy.
And here’s the surprise, my life is richer, my joys are multiplied. Their success really does feel like my success and I know they share in my joys as well.
Ain’t life grand?
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