Saturday, October 19, 2019

#91 Inside the Emotion of Fiction "TENDER CUTS" by Jayne Martin



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****Jayne Martin’s TENDER CUTS  is #91 in the never-ending series called INSIDE THE EMOTION OF FICTION where the Chris Rice Cooper Blog (CRC) focuses on one specific excerpt from a fiction genre and how that fiction writer wrote that specific excerpt.  All INSIDE THE EMOTION OF FICTION links are at the end of this piece. 
Name of fiction work? And were there other names you considered that you would like to share with us? “Tender Cuts” is the title of the collection and also the title of the first story, which is about a six-year-old beauty pageant contestant trying to please her demanding mother. Titles have never been my strong suit, so to come upon one I liked was a big accomplishment. I wasn’t going to press my luck.

Fiction genre?  Ex science fiction, short story, fantasy novella, romance, drama, crime, plays, flash fiction, historical, comedy, movie script, screenplay, etc.  And how many pages long? Flash fiction: Thirty-eight stories, all but two under 300 words, with illustrations. I’ve nicknamed it “Tiny tales for the time challenged.” The book is 92 pages in total.


Has this been published? And it is totally fine if the answer is no.   If yes, what publisher and what publication date? The publisher is Vine Leaves Press (https://www.vineleavespress.com/) and the officially publication date is November 4th, but it should be available for pre-order at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Powell’s any day now.  

What is the date you began writing this piece of fiction and the date when you completely finished the piece of fiction?
I believe the first story was written in 2011. But is wasn’t until about 2016 that I began to glean through all the stories I’d written to create this collection. It was finished in 2017 and then the search for a publisher began.

Where did you do most of your writing for this fiction work?  I live in a tiny house high on a hilltop in the rural part of Santa Barbara County, California. It’s very peaceful there. I’m not one of those who can write in busy places. I can’t even have the radio on.

What were your writing habits while writing this work- did you drink something as you wrote, listen to music, write in pen and paper, directly on laptop; specific time of day? I tend to write best in the early morning, before the demands of the day begin to wear on me. By afternoon, I’m spent. When I wrote movies for television I would write the first drafts in longhand, but now it’s directly into the laptop. I’ve got to get thoughts down fast these days before I forget them.

What is the summary of this specific fiction work? In these 38 tiny tales, everyday people do their best to manage the wounds life inflicts on all of us: A six-year-old beauty pageant contest strives to please her demanding mother; a woman marries a 1985 Buick LeSabre; in a laundromat bored wives fall under the romantic spell of a lobster, a grown woman is still being fat-shamed by her deceased mother via a Ouija board; a widow carries her husband’s ashes around in Baggies. With pathos and humor, all of the characters in this collection will speak to the reader’s own wounded heart.
Can you give the reader just enough information for them to understand what is going on in the excerpt? It’s hard to give excerpts from these stories as some of them are under 100 words, but here are a few:
From “Pinky Swear,” A story about a dying woman’s memories of a summer spent with best high school best friend:
We stroll the sandy boardwalk, smoke cigarettes stolen from my mother’s purse. Our bodies distort in fun house mirrors and we wonder who we will become.

From “I Married a 1985 Buick LeSabre,” a story where car becomes a metaphor for a woman’s marriage:

He was solid, dependable, and had a spine of steel. Never a small woman, I felt dainty when I sunk into his embrace, his ride snug and gentle.


From “Family Time,” a story of domestic abuse:

My father’s fury thunders down upon us as we cower on the cracked and cold linoleum floor. He says he is going to kill us, but it is our terror he most enjoys.”

As you can see, there is quite a variety in the type of stories, and each has a minimalist illustration with a tiny heart somewhere in each drawing.  


Why is this excerpt so emotional for you as a writer to write?  And can you describe your own emotional experience of writing this specific excerpt? Every story in the book is about some type of heartbreak. None of us gets through our lives without these tender and sometimes not so tender cuts and I relate to and love each one of these characters. Writing these stories reminded me to be kind to people. We never know what burdens someone else carries.

Other works you have published? I have a collection of humor essays out called, “Suitable for Giving: A Collection of Wit with a Side of Wry” that’s also available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Kirk Douglas (yes that one) sent me a lovely note saying he found a laugh on every page. Who am I to argue with Spartacus? 

I also have a movie I wrote for Animal Planet called Big Spender about a prison program where the inmates take care of unwanted and abused ex-racehorses, giving both the men and the horses a second chance at life. If you like horses, you’ll love Big Spender.

Anything you would like to add? I hope your readers will visit my website at www.jaynemartin-writer.com where you can read more excerpts and see some of the illustrations from “Tender Cuts.”

          Jayne Martin is a Pushcart, Best Small Fictions, Best Microfictions nominee, and a recipient of Vestal Review’s VERA award. Stories in New Flash Fiction Review, Spelk, Crack the Spine, Midwestern Gothic, Barren, MoonPark Review, Blink-Ink, and Bending Genres among others. Her flash fiction collection, “Tender Cuts,” from Vine Leaves Press is available now. She lives in Santa Barbara, California, where she rides horses and drinks copious amounts of fine wines, though not at the same time. Find her at www.jaynemartin-writer.com
Facebook: Jayne Martin-Author
Twitter: @Jayne_Martin
Instagram: jayne.martin.writer


INSIDE THE EMOTION OF FICTION links

001   11 15 2018 Nathaniel Kaine’s
Thriller Novel
John Hunter – The Veteran

002   11 18 2018 Ed Protzzel’s
Futuristic/Mystery/Thriller
The Antiquities Dealer 

003   11 23 2018 Janice Seagraves’s
Science Fiction Romance
Exodus Arcon

004   11 29 2018 Christian Fennell’s
Literary Fiction Novel
The Fiddler in the Night

005  12 02 2018 Jessica Mathews’s
Adult Paranormal Romance
Death Adjacent

006  12 04 2018 Robin Jansen’s
Literary Fiction Novel
Ruby the Indomitable

007  12 12 2018  Adair Valerez’s
Literary Fiction Novel
Scrim

008  12 17 218 Kit Frazier’s
Mystery Novel
Dead Copy

009 12 21 2019 Robert Craven’s
Noir/Spy Novel
The Road of a Thousand Tigers

010 01 13 2019 Kristine Goodfellow’s
Contemporary Romantic Fiction
The Other Twin

011 01 17 2019 Nancy J Cohen’s
Cozy Mystery
Trimmed To Death

012 01 20 2019 Charles Salzberg’s
Crime Novel
Second Story Man

013 01 23 2019 Alexis Fancher’s
Flash Fiction
His Full Attention

014 01 27 2019 Brian L Tucker’s
Young Adult/Historical
POKEWEED:  AN ILLUSTRATED NOVELLA

015 01 31 2019 Robin Tidwell’s
Dystopian
Reduced

016 02 07 2019 J.D. Trafford’s
Legal Fiction/Mystery
Little Boy Lost

017 02 08 2019 Paula Shene’s
Young Adult ScieFi/Fantasy/Romance/Adventure
My Quest Begins 

018 02 13 2019 Talia Carner’s
Mainstream Fiction/ Suspense/ Historical
Hotel Moscow

019 02 15 2019 Rick Robinson’s
Multidimensional Fiction
Alligator Alley

020 02 21 2019 LaVerne Thompson’s
Urban Fantasy
The Soul Collectors

021 02 27 2019 Marlon L Fick’s
Post-Colonialist Novel
The Nowhere Man

022 03 02 2019 Carol Johnson’s
Mainstream Novel
Silk And Ashes

023 03 06 2019 Samuel Snoek-Brown’s
Short Story Collection
There Is No Other Way to Worship Them

024 03 08 2019 Marlin Barton’s
Short Story Collection
Pasture Art

025 03 18 2019 Laura Hunter’s
Historical Fiction
Beloved Mother

026 03 21 2019 Maggie Rivers’s
Romance
Magical Mistletoe

027  03 25 2019 Faith Gibson’s
Paranormal Romance
Rafael

028 03 27 2019 Valerie Nieman’s
Tall Tale
To The Bones

029 04 04 2019 Betty Bolte’s
Paranormal Romance
Veiled Visions of Love

030 04 05 2019  Marianne Maili’s
Tragicomedy
Lucy, go see

031 04 10 2019 Gregory Erich Phillips’s
Mainstream Fiction
The Exile


032 04 15 2019 Jason Ament’s
Speculative Fiction
Rabid Dogs

033 04 24 2019 Stephen P. Keirnan’s
Historical Novel
The Baker’s Secret

034 05 01 2019 George Kramer’s
Fantasy
Arcadis: Prophecy Book

035 05 05 2019 Erika Sams’s
Adventure/Fantasy/Romance
Rose of Dance

036 05 07 2019 Mark Wisniewski’s
Literary Fiction
Watch Me Go

037 05 08 2019 Marci Baun’s
Science Fiction/Horror
The Whispering House

038 05 10 2019 Suzanne M. Wolfe’s
Historical Fiction
Murder By Any Name

039 05 12 2019 Edward DeVito’s
Historical/Fantasy
The Woodstock Paradox

040 05 14 2019 Gytha Lodge’s
Literary/Crime
She Lies In Wait

041 05 16 2019 Kari Bovee’s
Historical Fiction/Mystery
Peccadillo At The Palace:  An Annie Oakley Mystery

042 05 20 2019 Annie Seaton’s
Time Travel Romance
Follow Me

043 05 22 2019 Paula Rose Michelson’s
Inspirational Christian Romance
Rosa & Miguel – Love’s Legacy: Prequel to The Naomi
Chronicles

044 05 24 2019 Gracie C McKeever’s
BDMS/Interracial Romance
On The Edge

045 06 03 2019 Micheal Maxwell’s
Mystery
The Soul of Cole

046 06 04 2019 Jeanne Mackin’s
Historical
The Last Collection:  A Novel of Elsa Schiaparelli and
Coco Chanel

047 06 07 2019 Philip Shirley’s
Suspense/Thriller
The Graceland Conspiracy


048 06 08 2019 Bonnie Kistler’s
Domestic Suspense
The House on Fire

049 06 13 2019 Barbara Taylor Sissel’s
Domestic Suspense/Family Drama
Tell No One

050 06 18 2019 Charles Salzberg’s
Short Story/ Crime Fiction
“No Good Deed” from Down to the River

051 06 19 2019 Rita Dragonette’s
Historical Fiction
The Fourteenth of September

052  06 20 2019 Nona Caspers’s
Literary Novel/Collage
The Fifth Woman


053 06 26 2019 Jeri Westerson’s
Paranormal Romance
Shadows in the Mist

054 06 28 2019 Brian Moreland’s
Horror
The Devil’s Woods

055 06 29 2019
Epic Fantasy
Wings Unseen

056 07 02 2019 Randee Green’s
Mystery Novel
Criminal Misdeeds

057 07 03 2019 Saralyn Ricahrd’s
Mystery Novel
Murder In The One Percent

#058 07 04 2019 Hannah Mary McKinnon’s
Domestic Suspense
Her Secret Son

#059 07 05 2019 Sonia Saikaley’s
Contemporary Women’s Literature
The Allspice Bath

#060 07 09 2019 Olivia Gaines’s
Romance Suspense Serial
Blind Luck

#061 07 11 2019 Anne Raeff’s
Literary Fiction
Winter Kept Us Warm

#062 07 12 2918 Vic Sizemore’s
Literary Fiction-Short Stories
I Love You I’m Leaving

#063 07 13 2019 Deborah Riley Magnus’s
Dark Paranormal Urban Fantasy
THE ORPHANS BOOK ONE:  THE LOST RACE
TRILOGY

#064 07 14 2019 Elizabeth Bell’s
Historical Fiction
NECESSARY SINS

#065 07 15 2019 Lori Baker Martin’s
Literary Novel
BITTER WATER

#066 08 01 2019 Sabine Chennault’s
Historical Novel
THE CORPSMAN’S WIFE

#067 08 02 2019 Margaret Porter’s
Historical Biographical Fiction

BEAUTIFUL INVENTION:  A NOVEL OF HEDY LAMARR

#068 08 04 2019 Hank Phillippi Ryan’s
Suspense
THE MURDER LIST

069 08 08 2019 Diana Y. Paul’s
Literary Mainstream Fiction
THINGS UNSAID

070 08 10 2019 Phyllis H. Moore’s
Women’s Historical Fiction
BIRDIE & JUDE

071 08 11 2019 Sara Dahmen’s
Historical Fiction
TINSMITH 1865

072  08 19 2019 Carolyn Breckinridge’s
Short Story Collection
KALIEDESCOPE & OTHER STORIES

073 08 21 2019 Alison Ragsdale’s
Emotional Women’s Fiction
THE ART OF REMEMBERING

074  08 22 2019 Lee Matthew Goldberg’s
Suspense Thriller
THE DESIRE CARD

075 08 23 2019 Jonathan Brown’s
Mystery/Amateur P.I.
THE BIG CRESCENDO

076 09 02 2019 Chera Hammons Miller’s
Literary Fiction w/ suspense, concern with animals & land management
Monarchs of the Northeast Kingdom

077 09 09 019 Joe William Taylor’s
Literary Mystery
The Theoretics of Love

078 09 15 2019 Linda Hughes’s
Romantic Suspense
Secret of the Island

079 09 19 2019 Max Elliot Anderson’s
Middle Grade Adventure/Mystery
Snake Island

080 09 22 2019 Danny Adams’s
Science Fiction
Dayworld: A Hole In Wednesday

081 09 24 2019 Arianna Dagnino’s
Social/Historical/Adventure
The Afrikaner


082 09 29 2019 Lawrence Verigin’s
Thriller/Suspense
Seed of Control

083  10 05 2019 Emma Khoury’s
Fantasy
The Sword And Shield

#084 10 07 2019 Steve McManus’s
Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
SEVEN DEVILS

#085 10 08 2019 Sheila Lowe’s
Mystery/Psychological/Suspense with Scientific Bent
PROOF OF LIVE

#086 10 10 2019 Jess Neal Woods’s
Historical Fiction
THE PROCESS OF FRAYING


#087 10 11 2019 Karen Odden’s
Historical Suspense
A TRACE OF DECEIT

#88 10 14 2019 Kate Maruyama’s
Love, Loss & Supernatural
“HARROWGATE”

#89 10 17 2019 Sherry Harris’s
Mystery
“LET’S FAKE A DEAL”

#90 10 18 2019 Linda Mooney’s
Science Fiction Apocalyptic/ Post Apocalyptic
“THE TRUNK”

#91 10 19 2019 Jayne Martin’s
Flash Fiction Short Story Collection
“TENDER CUTS”