Monday, September 30, 2019

CRC Blog Analysis on Andrea Rothman's THE DNA OF YOU AND ME




*The images in this specific piece are granted copyright privilege by:  Public Domain, CCSAL, GNU Free Documentation Licenses, Fair Use Under The United States Copyright Law, or given copyright privilege by the copyright holder which is identified beneath the individual photo.

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CRC Blog Analysis
on THE DNA OF YOU AND ME
by Andrea Rothman
“Settling For One Box Is Overrated”

 Motherhood is overrated, if you ask me. Human company is overrated”
Emily Apell, The DNA of You and Me, page 156
Emily Apell always felt like the outsider for two reasons:  her mother abandoning her when she was only three months old; and her severe allergy to grass that forces her to stay in the family den looking out the window as the world passes her by, which results in her not being accepted by her peers and community, forcing her to live like a recluse.  
She finally outgrows her allergy by the time she reaches her teens, but still feels unaccepted.   She also feels a sense of abandonment not necessarily by her mother but by a part of herself she has yet to know that could only be found in her mother.  And she only discovers this part of herself when she has an imaginary encounter with her mother. 

her knocking on my door and me opening it and seeing her, and slowly coming to recognize in her something about myself that I didn’t quite know, or understand.
Page 24

There are three things, however, she is not allergic to and craves with all the passion she can muster: competition, looking through a microscope, and the memories of her beloved father, who was also a scientist. 
She always knew her choice of career would be science the only thing and the best thing she knows, which is not surprising to her or her own father.  Her whole life was within the four walls of her sterilized home and the four walls of her father’s lab. Science was her only faithful companion and the only thing she knows.

     Fresh out of graduate school from Illinois, she is hired by Justin McKinnon to conduct research in the McKinnon Lab, located in the heart of New York City, with the East River and the bridge as its focus and backdrop. Her assigned mission is to discover how olfactory sensory neurons reach their targets in the brain where smell is processed. 
As she walks down the halls of the McKinnon Lab, she finally feels she is on the cusp of greatness, but soon discovers she is not welcome and actually resented by scientists Aeden Doherty and Allegra Meltzer, both who happen be partners in researching the exact same thing she was hired by Justin to do, which she, as well as other experts in the field, deems to be unethical.  
          She approaches Justin who is unapologetic and convinces her to stay.  With each passing page the reader walks with Emily along this journey of scientific discovery that is easy to understand, not intimidating, not confusing, and yes, entertaining.       The DNA of You And Me is written by Andrea Rothman (http://www.andrearothman.com/); jacket design and illustration by Laywan Kwan (https://www.facebook.com/laywan.kwan); designed by William Ruoto (https://www.williamruotodesign.com/); and published on March 12, 2019 by William Morrow, An imprint of HarperCollins Publishers (https://www.facebook.com/WilliamMorrowBooks/).


     Andrea Rothman’s The DNA of You And Me placed second place in the category of Best Popular Fiction-English at the 21st International Latina Book Awards. (Left)  The DNA of You And Me has received top-notch reviews form Publisher’s Weekly (https://www.publishersweekly.com/) and Library Journal (https://www.libraryjournal.com/).  More importantly, Andrea Rothman knows her subject – she herself was a research scientist at the Rockefeller University in New York, where she was awarded two grants from the NIH to study the sense of smell. 

     But Rothman is unlike her main character Emily in her debut novel The DNA of You And Me – she didn’t confine herself and her life and her dreams to just one box of science, she is happily married with two children, and left her box of science for the box of fiction.

     The DNA Of You And Me is a novel about a great deal of many things:  ethics, science, a love story, entertainment, but more importantly it is about a woman named Emily and her inability to dream outside of that box known as the “science.”   Emily is too comfortable inside her science box to consider anything else, and the simple thought of anything outside her box scares the hell out of her. 
Fellow scientist Aeden Doherty makes her confront the idea of another box when the two fall in love and become more than just co-workers, friends and confidants but lovers, sharing their pasts and their dreams of the future.  Emily shares with him her painful childhood, her treasured memories of her father, the abandonment of her mother, and her dreams of someday owning her own lab. 
     Aeden shares with Emily his reason for being on the project is due to his mother, who has anosmia.  He shares with Emily that he witnessed his mother fall down the parking lot stairs four years ago.  The impact of the fall caused her shearing off of her nerve endings in her olfactory bulb making it impossible for her to smell. She has the lifelong condition of anosmia.  Aeden knows that the cure will not be made in his mother’s lifetime but he hopes to help find a cure out of love for his mother.

By her own choosing, she is closing herself to every possibility that does not exist in her box of becoming a scientist.  Is it impossible for her to have any other kind of world outside of her career, a mistake that many working women, and in fact, working men face.
And perhaps Emily’s greatest fear is the inability or reluctance to rationally discuss the possibility of living outside the box. Even the thought of having that kind of conversation makes her feel like the little girl running away from the grassy yard to the sterile den in her home, looking out of the window, feeling safe but at what expense is this safety?
     When Justin gives her vouchers to go to the Metropolitan Museum of Art she decides to go – more out of need from giving her brain a break after studying her gene over and over again than mere interest. It is at the Metropolitan Museum that she explores a world outside of science – that of art.  Emily is drawn to the painting Portrait of Writer Vsevolod Mikhailovich Garshin by Ilya Repin because the man in the painting looks almost identical to Aeden. An employee from the Metropolitan Museum of Art approaches her and she tells him the man in the painting reminds her of someone she knows.

“I hope your friend has better luck. This one threw himself down a stairwell and died when he was thirty-three years old.”
“That’s a sad story, “ I said, recalling what Aeden had told me about his mother.
“Are you an artist?”
“No,”
“Do you paint at all?”
“I wish I knew how,” I caught myself saying, and realized it was true.
Page 87
     Emily thinks the painting is a self-portrait but is surprised to learn that it is a painter Repin and painting subject Garshin are two different people.  Emily tells the man that she thought it was self-portrait and he tells her that if it were a self-portrait he would have to hold the mirror in a certain position.  At the mention of hearing him speak the word mirror, Emily realizes something about the gene she has been studying the whole time, and this new “something” leads her closer to the gene she has been trying to locate.  Justin is very pleased at this new discovery and what it could mean for the world of science and for his lab.
Later, in the book, Emily seeks Justin’s advice, not about Science, but matters close to the heart, such as life outside of science, a life of love.


“What about love?” I asked.
“Love?” Justin said chucking.  “You might find it, but it won’t last very long.  We may feel desperately alone but deep down what we crave is solitude.  Your best bet is here, academia.  This is where you stand the best chance of being happy, and making others happy.”
Page 187

It is possible to do both?  Emily has always been able to have dreams about her career in science; why can’t she make room in her dreams for a relationship and marriage and even motherhood?    Isn’t it possible for her to have both?  Or at least for her to consider the fact that she could have both?
And if she realizes she can have both and does desire both will she have a second chance of love?



To order The DNA of You And Me from HarperCollins click on the link below:

To order The DNA of You And Me from Amazon click on the link below:

To order The DNA of You And Me from Barnes & Noble click on the link below:

Visit Andrea Rothman’s Facebook Page
https://www.facebook.com/andrea.rothman.31

Visit Andrea Rothman’s Web Page:

Sunday, September 29, 2019

#82 Inside the Emotion of Fiction: "SEED OF CONTROL" by Lawrence Verigin



*The images in this specific piece are granted copyright privilege by:  Public Domain, CCSAL, GNU Free Documentation Licenses, Fair Use Under The United States Copyright Law, or given copyright privilege by the copyright holder which is identified beneath the individual photo.

**Some of the links will have to be copied and then posted in your search engine in order to pull up properly

***The CRC Blog welcomes submissions from published and unpublished fiction genre writers for INSIDE THE EMOTION OF FICTION.  Contact CRC Blog via email at
caccoop@aol.com or personal Facebook messaging at https://www.facebook.com/car.cooper.7

****Lawrence Verigin’s  Seed of Control is #82 in a 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? There were no other names worth noting

Has this been published? And it is totally fine if the answer is no. If yes, what publisher and what publication date? Seed of Control – November 2016 by Promontory Press
https://www.promontorypress.com/


Where did you do most of your writing for this fiction work? And please describe in detail. And can you please include a photo? I have an office in my home where I write, with a nice view of downtown Vancouver and Stanley Park. There is a desk with 2 screens, so I can write on my laptop and have my outline on a second screen. I have a binder that contains detailed notes on every character in the latest story I’m writing and a pad to take notes as I write. Also, there is a bookcase filled with books that I use for reference. There are a few pictures, trophies and three book awards I use as inspiration. 

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 wake up every weekday at 5:30 a.m. and write from 6:00 to 8:00 a.m., directly onto a laptop. On weekends I can sleep in until 7:00 a.m. and usually write for 3 hours. Evening are spent on the business of being an author.

What is the summary of this specific fiction work? The trilogy is about regular people who uncover an immoral plot that affects the world’s entire population and wreaks havoc on the environment. They risk their lives to stand up to the most powerful people in the world and expose their destructive plan - which has been created for their own personal gain and control.
Please include the excerpt and include page numbers as reference. The excerpt can be as short or as long as you prefer. The excerpt is from Seed of Control, pages 313 and 314.
I held on tight to Morgan. She stared straight at me and I didn’t want to lose eye contact. Her sharp blue eyes seemed to be turning dull.
We drove around another steep, sharp switchback. Then the road became two lanes. Lee opened it up.
Ivan’s head and mine hit the ceiling as the Tahoe became airborne over a rise and then we were pushed to the side around a corner. That didn’t faze us as we hung onto Morgan to keep her as still as possible.
There was a long, rolling straight stretch ahead of us with forest on either side. At the other end was a police cruiser with its lights flashing coming toward us. It disappeared for a few seconds as it went through one of the dips in the road. Lee hit the brakes hard, turned into a driveway, and cut the engine. The trees and underbrush were wild and thick, so we were hidden. We all looked out the back window. In a few seconds the police drove by at speed.
Just after it passed the car’s siren went on. Lee started the engine and backed out. We could hear tires squealing and saw the cruiser move to the middle, forcing the gray SUV off the road and to a stop. Lee accelerated and got us out of there.
“That’ll slow them down.” Jack pulled a cell phone from his pocket and selected a contact number. “Sam, what time did Lorraine relieve you?”
We were entering a residential area, so Lee had no choice but to slow down.
“Meet us at … what’s the name of that hospital?”
Lee stared straight ahead. “Lions Gate.”
“That’s it,” Jack said, into the phone. “Meet us on the street outside the emergency entrance of Lions Gate Hospital in fifteen minutes.”
Jack made another call. “Can you have the plane ready to go within the hour? We need to leave as soon as we get there. Same destination.”
Morgan’s breathing had become more labored. I brushed back the hair that had fallen over her cheek. “We’re almost at the hospital.”
Why is this excerpt so emotional for you? And can you describe your own emotional experience of writing this specific excerpt? The excerpt was about one of the main character’s and the love interest of the protagonist, being shot. When I wrote it, it was very sad that it had to happen and it upset me for days. I still have reader’s that send me messages wondering why I did that to her. One reader even stopped reading the book at that point, because she liked the character so much.
















Were there any deletions from this excerpt that you can share with us? And can you please include a photo of your marked up rough drafts of this excerpt. Sorry, everything is written on my laptop, so there are no deletions to share. I found that after the first manuscript that there was no need to print it off.
Anything you would like to add? I am now writing a series about digitally gathering all information about everyone in the world and what that will mean. The title of the first book is – Everything on Everyone, They Are Even Working On Your Soul
Lawrence Verigin is the author of the multiple award-winning Dark Seed trilogy - DARK SEED, SEED of CONTROL and BEYOND CONTROL
Lawrence's goal is to entertain readers while delving into socially relevant subjects that need more attention brought to them. 
In his spare time Lawrence enjoys cooking good food, rich red wine, travel, running, reading and numerous rounds of golf.
Lawrence and his wife (Above Left), Diana, live in beautiful North Vancouver, Canada.
Facebook: Lawrence Verigin
Twitter: @LawrenceVerigin


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
https://chrisricecooper.blogspot.com/2019/09/82-inside-emotion-of-fiction-seed-of.html