c. t. kavanagh
  • Home
  • Connect
  • Who Am I?
  • Dear Diary
  • books

Dear Diary,

New Name Game :)

4/21/2021

 
Picture
Recently I decided to pick a new name for a character in my YA novel Lucy Bound in Lyrics. Readers were getting the two characters Sully and Simon confused. Instead of just picking a new name myself, I thought the readers might be the best ones to decide, so I put it to a vote for Beta Readers and my book club Beta Readers to weigh in because they know the characters already.

It ended up being so much fun, and it was interesting to hear what their thought process was. Names seem like a small detail, but there's so much behind a name and everybody's experiences flavor the impressions differently. So much fun! See the votes below:

- - - - - - - - - -
"My vote is for Jacob only bc I have a Noah and Mason at school right now and that's what I associate those names with.  I honestly do like them all though.  Can't wait to hear what you pick!"
 
"My vote is Mason. 😊"
 
"I like Mason
It's funny how names can root you into a specific time period (or can cause a visceral reaction in someone - I wouldn't like a character named Regina).  Interestingly both of my kids share names (or nicknames) with other book club members' children.  I am/we are either trendy or risk-adverse if that has any impact on how you view my vote."

 
"My vote is Mason"
 
"Mmmmmm…..
I like Jacob first and best, it’s innocuous and slightly average. You could easily look over a kid named Jacob and not give him or his name a second thought.  He’s a shade of grey until you look closer and see the nuances, greys can be cool or warm and usually consist of other colors.
I dislike Noah for no particular reason.
Thanks, this was a fun little brain break."

 
I like Simon but if you have to change it, I vote for Mason.

  
"Funny, the names didn't bother me in the book.  Maybe at first I thought, now which one is this, but generally I think boys are all the same so Sully/Simon, whatever.  Ha.  If I had to pick I'd go with Mason. Still seems like a nerdy name like Simon.  Jake is too cool and Noah is too biblical.  Ha."
 
"I'd go with Mason because it sounds like Simon and so I can picture that name being the same character. 

Hunt for Humor Everywhere!:)

4/17/2021

 

Thou Art Spring!

4/9/2021

 
Picture of tulips
​Spring in New England is like fishing--not that I fish all that often. But, I've done it before and I've watched Jaws. You cast the hook and hopefully something bites. Spring? You start to reel in. If it's a big strong spring you let the line out a bit. Let it run so you don't snap it. Then reel. Then run. Warm. Cold.
Finally, the fish.
The warm.
Stays.
 
Spring creates a conundrum for me. In or out. Dirt or paper. Where and with what should I work. Rain makes the decision easy. Sun makes it impossible. Some people go to the gym, but I go to the garden. I dig and pull roots and lug wheelbarrows and imagine color, snapping peas and figure out how to keep bunnies away.
Raised garden beds.
Chili pepper flakes.
A cat. 

Form is so fun. I think it's what draws me to the written word and to the garden. Interesting shapes and intriguing colors are the goal for both. It's art--all of it--in the end. If we could just admit that art is everywhere then we wouldn't be so hesitant to call ourselves artists: in the kitchen, the garden, the page, the clay--life.
You are an artist. Even if you can't admit it.
Embrace it. It's a good thing.
Now, go create!

Picture of colored Easter eggs

    Author

    My true love is poetry, but a contemporary Young Adult novel and a couple of fun Middle Grade novels have swept me off my feet in recent years. 

    Archives

    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020

    Categories

    All
    Challenge
    Community
    Deadlines
    Deep Thoughts
    Distraction
    Draw
    Faith
    Garden
    Ideas
    Journal
    Just For Laughs
    Perseverance
    Poetry
    Professional Development
    Publication
    Restoration
    Revision
    Room For Passion
    Textile
    Writer's Block
    Writing

    RSS Feed

c.t. kavanagh in orange handwritten text surrounded by green dots and orange dots with green circles around them
​                     
Website design and all images by 

  • Home
  • Connect
  • Who Am I?
  • Dear Diary
  • books