Phyllis Whitney reveals novelist's sleight of hand

Image from amazon

A master of romantic suspense novels as well as books for young people, the late Phyllis Ayame Whitney was born in Yokohama in 1903. She died in Faber, Virginia at the age of 104, after publishing over 70 novels.

This writer's guide is clear and eminently readable. As well as going over the nuts and bolts of plot, theme, problem, conflict, purpose and more, the author talks of what she refers to as The Force, and explains how this author got the subconscious mind to help with problems that cropped up as she wrote.

Other delightful gems in this work include Whitney's discussion of reader reaction to writerly ploys, and the need for a writer to learn constantly, feeding the mind to encourage new inspiration.

New year projects

It's the new year, the time to clear out the old and get on with new projects.

This Christmas season, I got inspired to tackle my recipe box. Since I moved the recipes into this larger tin a couple of years ago, I hadn't got round to labelling the bigger cards, so had to delve down to find the old index cards in order to find a recipe. Made some slight adjustments too. Cheesecake now has its very own category.

Did the new address book too. It's amazing what changes with contacts in a dozen years. Sadly, I'd lost some relatives since the last book, which dated back to a trip to the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, made with my then teenage daughter in 2003. Unlike its tattered predecessor, this one is clearly inscribed with up-to-date information. Thanks, Santa!

Life on the Wet Coast

Its winter on the wet coast. No snow, no sun.

At this time of year, the ceiling is low, the days short and the rain nearly unrelenting.

But our coastal climate has its compensations.

This picture of daffodil shoots springing from the ground was taken on the sixth of January.

I'd say they'll bloom some time next month. 

Belcher Glacial Tunnel, Devon Island, Nunavut, Canada

Image by Alex Gardner

This is an enormous ice cave within a glacier. It was formed by the flow of meltwater deep inside the glacier. This phenomenon is also known as an englacial melt channel.

Devon Island, the 27th largest island on Earth, is over 55,000 square kilometres, comparable in size to Croatia.

This desolate island lies at 77 degrees north. A third of it is covered by an ice cap, and enjoys fewer than two months of snow-free days per year.

In certain areas, Devon is occupied by a few musk-oxen and a few lemmings; however, no human lives there all year round.  It is the largest uninhabited island on earth.

Hubbard Glacier

Image from Princess Cruises

The Hubbard Glacier in Alaska is the largest tidewater glacier in North America. It is over 122 kilometres long and plunges 365 metres into Disenchantment Bay. Because of its rapid progress toward the Gulf of Alaska, this mass of ice has been nicknamed the Galloping Glacier. Twice it has temporarily dammed Russell Fjord. As seen in this video, it also frequently calves, causing loud noises and huge waves as it births enormous icebergs.

Grand Pacific Glacier

Image from wikimedia commons

The Grand Pacific glacier lies at the end of Tarr Inlet, straddling the border between BC and Alaska. Since the Harriman expedition in 1899, when the Margerie Glacier was still its tributary, the Grand Pacific has retreated by ten miles. Most of the ice is located in British Columbia's Tatshenshini-Alseck Provincial Park, but the toe lies in Glacier Bay National Park in Alaska.

Peyto Glacier

Image from janrik

Near the Bow and Crowfoot Glaciers, Peyto Glacier in Banff National Park can be seen from the Icefields Parkway. The silt it carries melts into Peyto Lake, dyeing it a startling azure blue. Located at the Continental Divide, this glacier is much studied by scientists, who have survey data on it going back to the 1890s. Like many others, it's receding.