Osiyo~

It gives me such pleasure to introduce you all to fellow Wild Rose Press author, and my friend, Lyndi Alexander! 

                                                    Making the Connection: Where am I? What do I hear/smell/see/feel?

By Lyndi Alexander

Whenever I hear locusts keening, I am immediately transported to summer afternoons visiting my grandmother’s Indiana farm. Once I’m on that voyage, I can feel the humidity on my skin, hear the creak of the porch swing, see the beautiful rich green of the corn fields, and experience the feeling of that vacation freedom once again. That single sound can create a whole escape for me wherever and whenever I hear it.

[image deleted]

This is what we’re shooting for as writers; that ability to trip a trigger that takes a reader beyond just the description of words into a complete experience. Sense-memory is a great vehicle to get in touch with the human experience, so many of them that we share. Half the work’s done for you if you can hit the right trigger.

Imagine the smell of ginger cookies baking. What does that bring up for you? I’m sure it’s not the same for everyone, but it may trigger memories, rolling over into a complete experience that your reader will take along into your story. Is it grandmother’s kitchen, a feeling of safety, that childhood sense of expectation? Is that what you’re going for in your scene? Maybe that’s enough. Your character is nervous about living in a new apartment building, but stops outside the neighbor’s apartment to inhale the spicy aroma of fresh-baking cookies, allowing his senses—and the reader’s—to cuddle him into that safe, warm place.

[image deleted]

Maybe that’s not where you’re going.

Depending on the groundwork you’ve laid, it could be possible that your character connects fresh-baked cookies with something very different, perhaps something much darker. What if your character’s mother only baked after psychotic breaks when she viciously abused her children? Obviously his reaction will be very different. That probably plays against your reader’s comfort zone, which generates a new stream of thinking that helps them relate with your individual story.

That moment of connection often happens when we hear a particular song. Bonnie Tyler’s “Total Eclipse of the Heart” debuted during my first month of law school. All I need to hear are those first notes and I “reappear” on the U of Miami campus, a single mom beginning classes after six years out of school, unsure what the heck I’m doing with myself.  What about the songs they played at your wedding? At the reception, when you had your first dance? While you can’t print a song’s entire lyrics without proper permissions, titles are fair game, and can set a mood.

How about “Pomp and Circumstance”? Can’t you feel the pageantry of a graduation? Or any one of a number of athletic fight songs? Plop you down right in the middle of a sports event. “Here Comes the Bride?” Blessing or nightmare, depending on the marital status of your character and if she’s the one in the horrible orange bridesmaid dress!

All the senses apply—don’t forget the chill of an unheated basement, shadows dark in the corners, maybe damp walls with green mold growing on them, or a desert heat so hot the dry air sucks your breath away.  Good description of place and setting, using all the senses, increase the chances that you will reach right into a reader’s heart and background and create that full, rounded picture of a place and time.

In Lyndi Alexander’s latest urban fantasy book, THE ELF MAGE, she uses her setting, the Bitterroot Mountains of western Montana, to help create both blessings and obstacles for her characters as they deal with the environment and the frozen winter months, both humans and elves. Find out more at her blog http://lyndialexander.wordpress.com/  THE ELF MAGE is available in ebook and print at amazon.com, barnesandnoble.com and other resources—find them all here: http://www.dragonflypubs.com/dfp/elfmage.html

Excerpt:

An unknown time later, Daven’s attention wandered back into present focus when someone called his name.

            Daven….where are you? I need to find you.

            The voice was female, soft, whispery, like a lover. His thoughts wrapped around the voice, just a mental touch. Whoever called was not with him in the cave. He knew it, even without opening his eyes. But she was persistent.

            Daven, please!

            Who could be calling? Linnea’s spirit? Veraena? Djana? Who would seek him out? I am here.

            I’m coming. The voice was tentative, unsure. I need you.

            Daven considered the flavor of the voice, the tendrils of personality that attached to it. His earlier thoughts of Veraena didn’t fit with the tone of the request. Even in her younger days, she’d been a force to reckon with. This contact seemed much less sure of herself. Not Djana, either, then.

            Daven?

            He sensed a soul traveling through the woods, feet heavy in thick-soled boots, leaning on a heavy stick to help her through the deep snow over the rough parts. Where was she? He couldn’t see through her eyes, but he could feel her feelings. She was afraid, sure she was lost, far from home, and determined to find him. Then he knew.

            Iris.

*****

You can find Lyndi on the web at these locations; http://clanelvesofthebitterroot.com  or http://lyndialexander.wordpress.com

and buy her book; http://www.dragonflypubs.com/dfp/elfmage.html

Thank you for coming to the ranch, Lyndi! This is a great post. Don’t ya’ll agree? Care to share your inspirations with us?

Dodadagohvi~