Author Archives: Deb Gorman

About Deb Gorman

Deb Gorman is an author, blogger, and speaker who escaped from a 9-5 job in the medical field to pursue what she really loves—words, words, and more words. A lifelong resident of the Pacific Northwest, she writes fiction and non-fiction in between long walks through orchard country with her husband, Alan, and playing with Kimber, their German Shepherd/Malinois mix. You can catch up with Deb on her website, debggorman.com, and email her at debster145@gmail.com

Reader Friday-Show, Don’t Tell…Sort of

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Good Friday morning, Killzoners! The topic under consideration today is Show Don’t Tell…with a twist!

As writers, we do wax eloquently about this subject, don’t we? But, how about as readers?

Hmm…why, whatever do I mean?

Here’s the deal. Today we, as readers, are tasked with sharing our favorite genre to read. But there’s one rule:

Do not, under any circumstances, name the genre. You must describe it without naming it.

Get it? Show, don’t tell!

And then, the rest of us will try to guess your favorite reading genre. Sound fun?

Here’s mine:

Picture me standing at my stove stirring a pot of savory somethings. Each ingredient I drop in adds flavor and a pinch of surprise.

But wait! As I stir, I see a face float to the surface. Tom Cruise. Oooh!

And what is that he’s holding? A cell phone, with a message staring at him. His glance darts upward as he hears the roar of a helicopter, three gunmen hanging out the doors with automatic weapons trained on him. With the speed of a Tom Cruise move he disappears from view, helicopter hot on his tail.

Are you getting the picture? So…what do you think? What’s my favorite genre to read?

And thanks for playing What’s My Favorite Reading Genre?

 

 

 

Reader Friday-You Might Be A Redneck If…

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Happy American Redneck Day! (And you thought this might be a Fourth of July post. Well, maybe tomorrow…)

Oh, you didn’t know today is Redneck Day? Click on the link above to learn all about it.

Here’s an excerpt:

How to Celebrate American Redneck Day

This is the day when rednecks and the redneck culture is acknowledged and celebrated. Get on down and participate in American Redneck Day with some of these ideas. It’s time to “git ‘er done”!

And my favorite paragraph on the website:

Learn Some Redneck or Southern Phrases

One of the funniest bits that many comedians who poke fun at rednecks do is to consider their unique, evolved vocabulary. In honor and celebration of American Redneck Day, it might be fun to learn a few interesting words.

  • “I’m happier than a tornado in a trailer park!”
  • “He’s nuttier than a squirrel turd”
  • “I was as happy as a dead pig in the sunshine”
  • “You took off runnin’ faster than a hot knife through butter”

Room for one or two more?

 

 

Feel free to jump right in and share how you will celebrate today.

Me? That Redneck Sauna looks good!

 

 

 

And, last but not least…happy to be back, and thank you to the Killzone Team for filling in for me while I’m getting acquainted with my new knee.  🙂

 

 

Reader Friday-And Did You Know?

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Today is a special day. What? you ask.

Military Spouse Appreciation Day, that’s what.

May is traditionally the month that our esteemed military is celebrated. Here is a link you can follow, or just read the excerpt I included below.

https://www.military.com/spouse/military-spouse-appreciation-day

From the website:

“You don’t need a dedicated Military Spouse Appreciation Day to make sure you acknowledge the military spouse in your life. Service members know that their spouses are the ones who keep the home fires burning. And military spouses know that those around them also walking through military life are more than just friends and neighbors: They are family.

What is Military Spouse Appreciation Day?

Military Spouse Appreciation Day is a day set aside for us to pause to recognize the military spouses around us who have the greatest impact on our lives and our military communities.

When is Military Spouse Appreciation Day?

The Friday in May before Mother’s Day, this special day was first recognized by President Ronald Reagan in 1984. The sitting president typically issues a proclamation in recognition of the holiday, while celebrations are held on and near U.S. military bases around the world.

May is also host to a series of other military holidays, including Military Appreciation Month, established in 1999; Victory in Europe (VE) Day, commemorating the end of WWII in Europe on May 8, 1945; and Armed Forces Day, designated in 1949. Memorial Day, the only official federal holiday in May, is celebrated the last Monday of the month.”

***

There you have it. We probably all have military folks in our lives, so let’s make sure they know we appreciate their service, either in the field or on the home front.

Comments welcome!

***

I’ll be MIA (do you see what I did there?) for a few weeks, rehabbing from surgery. A huge “thank you” to those from the Best Team Ever who are filling in for me. I’ll be lurking and reading, though, never fear!

🙂

 

 

 

Reader Friday-May Day or No Pants Day?

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From Wikipedia:

Now, be honest! Doesn’t this look like fun?

“No Pants Day is an annual event in various countries that became more widely celebrated in the 2000s. It is most often observed on the first Friday in May and involves publicly wearing only undergarments on the lower part of the body, not nudity. Except for making people laugh, the holiday typically serves no other purpose or agenda, but some organizers later used it to raise social issues.”

(No agenda…how refreshing!)

“May Day is a European festival of ancient origins marking the beginning of summer, usually celebrated on May 1…

International Workers’ Day, also called Labour Day in some countries and often referred to as May Day, is a celebration of labourers and working classes…and occurs every year on May 1 or the first Monday in May.”

* * *

So, TKZers, what’s your pleasure today? Would you rather celebrate May Day, International Workers’ Day, or No Pants Day?

Me? Hands down, No Pants Day, every day and twice on Sunday . . . way more fun than the other two!

 

Reader Friday-WordNerds Unite!

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Good morning, and welcome to all my WordNerdy friends and family!

Quick question to get the fun ball rolling:

Can you add to this list?

(Credit for this meme goes to Chip MacGregor–saw it on his FB page, and almost snorted coffee!)

I did an internet search on “WordNerd”, and boy howdy, did I get some fun stuff to read.

Your turn…and, go!

 

 

Reader Friday-Let’s Talk Billets…

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Okay, Killzoners, let’s be up front with each other…and have some fun while we’re at it.

 

Be it paper delivery, fast food shenanigans, kiddo-sitting, or shoveling out your neighbor’s chicken coop . . . what was your first paying billet (or J.O.B.)?

I like to think of my first job as the First Draft of My Life.

 

Remember these?

 

I was the advanced age of fourteen when I was hired in my mother’s office. I worked after school three days a week, filing real estate cards—way before the digital age—and answering the black dial phone. Not exciting, but I could start buying my own clothes!

 

We won’t talk about the other job I had . . . intermittently dog-sitting for our neighbor’s twin St. Bernards . . . actually, I don’t know to this day who was sitting who. (Whom?)

Two of them!

 

Your turn—what was your first experience with a paycheck (and, dare I say, taxes?)

And, second question: How has that first paying job influenced your writing–such as plot, character development, etc.?

 

 

Reader Friday-Dinner’s On!

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As we approach the summer cookout season . . .

How many chefs do we have amongst this august group? Do you like to cook for your family or guests?

As I threw a casserole together on the fly (so to speak…) the other day, it occurred to me that cheffing styles are somewhat akin to writing styles. What in the wide world am I talking about?

Just this.

I am a Pantser Chef. Most of the time, I have no recipe, no plan, just the glimmer of an idea. Like my casserole.

This is me…sigh…

As I wondered what to fix for dinner that night, I thought of the boneless chicken thighs I had packaged in the freezer. I got them out, put them on the counter to thaw, then went about my day.

As dinner time approached, I looked at those thighs and wondered what to do with them. I decided to brown them. When they were done, I thought, “Now what?”. I opened the refrigerator and spied some carrots. Ah! Diced carrots!

Before you get bored with my culinary adventure, I’ll just say that when the casserole was released from the oven, it was a divine combination of pasta, chicken, Alfredo sauce, carrots, and Parmesan. As there are only two of us, it fed us for about 3-4 days…the perfect food creation in my book.

So, TKZers, the question for you today is: 

Are you a Pantser Chef like me? Or are you a Plotter Chef—do you always start with a detailed recipe and plan your whole day around that recipe?

 

 

Or, you might be a Plantser Chef—you have a recipe, but as you go, you substitute this for that and that for this until it’s your recipe, not someone else’s.

What say you?

Bonus Question: Does your cheffing style match your writing style, as mine does?

 

 

 

Reader Friday-The Hobby Horse

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In honor of Good Friday, please share a hobby/activity you enjoy.

The only rule is this: it must have nothing to do with publishing or writing. Not to say your hobby/activity doesn’t feed your storytelling brain cells, but if you have one unrelated to writing, this is the day and the space to share it.

And . . . go!

Oh! Me first? You got it!

Target shooting’s my game–if it fires a bullet, I’ll try it.

 

Okay–your turn, TKZers. What do you do when you’re not writing/reading/editing/marketing?

 

 

 

 

Reader Friday-What’s In Your Bucket?

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Let’s talk about buckets. Or, more specifically, bucket lists.

From Wikipedia:  “The term “bucket list” refers to a list of things a person wants to accomplish before they die, derived from the phrase “kick the bucket,” which is a euphemism for dying.

“Nuff said there, I think.

 

Next, what does your bucket look like?

The one above? Or this…? If you’ve got a lot left you want to do, this might be the one you need.

 

To the point, what’s in YOUR bucket that you want to accomplish before you move on to the next sphere?

 

 

Me: I hate flying, but when I was about 12, my friend’s dad was a pilot and owned a small plane. He took us up one day and flew around our small valley here in central Washington. At one point, he handed over the controls to me. And I’ve always wanted to do that again.

TKZers, it’s your turn. What’s inside that bucket you’ve been carrying around?

And, just because I couldn’t resist . . . isn’t she cute?

 

 

 

Reader Friday-Life Rewound

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Entertaining question to kick around today.

If you could rewind your life to any age or year and relive it, what would it be?

I’ll go first. (Mine might have something to do with rewinding back to public civility and party lines…)

But, I digress.

When I was 10, I got to do two things I’ll never forget. If I could go back, I would in a heartbeat.

I got my first real bike. My dad gave it to me by riding it out of one of the bays at the service station he owned at the time.

 

Picture big guy riding small blue girl’s bike. Priceless memory.

 

 

The second thing we did was visit the Space Needle for the first time. My parents had a birthday tradition back in the day. They didn’t have a lot of money, but on your day, the birthday boy or girl got to pick the place for dinner.

Yours truly picked the Space Needle. (The Space Needle was only ~two years old in 1964.)

You should’ve seen their faces when I announced that’s where I wanted to go. But, it was tradition, so we all piled in the car on my birthday and drove the 150 miles to Seattle. We rode to the top, and had steak dinners—all five of us, plus one on the way.

Another precious memory I’d like to relive, more so now since there’s only two of us left.

Okay, Killzoners, your turn. What does your Life Rewound look like?

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How would you live today if you knew you had no tomorrows left?

Follow Annie Lee as she navigates what she believes is her last day on earth.

Walk in her shoes . . . and ask yourself the same question. Will your answer be the same one Annie discovers?