Friday, November 16, 2018
Thursday, November 15, 2018
ART: French Landscape Artist Paul Madeline
Paul Madeline was a French landscape painter who lived and worked in Paris at a time when both the Impressionist and Post-Impressionist movements were very prominent on the French Art scene.
Paul Madeline studied painting under E. Chaly and became a member of the Societe des Artistes Francais in 1897, the same year he won his first honorable mention. 
Three years later, he won another honorable mention when his work was exhibited in the United States.
By 1910, he was a full member of the Salon Nationale des Beaux-Arts. He was known for his French landscape paintings with their sumptuous colors and with loose brushstrokes.
What impressed me most was Paul's use of light and shadow. You can almost feel the heat in some of his works displaying an almost Carribbean sunshine, but it is a sunny part of France.
I hope you have enjoyed
this tiny glimpse of French landscape artist Paul Madeline.
Please note I left out all the boring parts, just for YOU!
Wednesday, November 14, 2018
INTERVIEW: Meet Author Teresa Reasor
Teresa Reasor
Southeastern Kentucky
USA
Good morning, Teresa, and welcome to Vision and Verse, the site for Art and Authors. Can you tell us a little about what you have written?
I write Military Romantic Suspense, Paranormal Romance, and Historical Romance.
What is your favorite genre to write?
My Military Romantic Suspense is my favorite genre to write. It’s usually grounded in real life and since I write very emotional stories it can be just as intense to write them as it is for my readers to read them. So, when I need a break from reality, I write Paranormal Romance because with that genre, you can let your imagination fly and do really creative things in your plot and action scenes.
Favorite food.
My favorite food is chicken. I fix numerous chicken dishes. Even my family says I should have grown feathers. LOL
Tea or coffee?
Tea. I prefer green tea to others.
Pizza or ice cream?
I think Pizza should be its own food group. LOVE IT.
Wine or beer or soda?
I drink probably 3 glasses of wine a year. So, I have to go with soda.
Where would you like to visit?
I’ve been to Italy (Rome, Milan, and Florence) and I’ve been to Scotland and Ireland. I’d love to go back to England and I want to go to Canada and visit. I have friends there.
Favorite musical artist.
The Beatles. (They’re my all-time favorites)
My favorite contemporary musician is Lady Gaga.
Do you listen to music when you write? If so, what?
I can’t listen to anything with lyrics while I write because I’ll sing along and it breaks my concentration. But I do listen to Brain.fm which is like electronic music that has a pattern to it that helps you concentrate.
This is an Art AND Author blog, so I am obliged to ask:Favorite work of art or sculpture.
Bernini’s Apollo and Daphne is my favorite sculpture.
How old were you when you started writing?
I was in second grade when I wrote my first book. It was 17 pages long without pictures.
I was born into a military family and we moved about every 2-3 years. The first thing we did once we were settled was find the public library and get our library cards. We went to the library every Saturday and checked out books. Reading helped me settle into new places until I could meet people and make friends.
Do you plan out your book with outlines and notecards? Or just write?
I actually have a whole system I use to plot my books. I have character interviews I do to get to know them. I have a plotting sheet I fill out to get an overview of character motivations. And I have a story board I use as I write to keep track of point of view and plot turning points. Since I write romantic suspense, I have my romance turning points and my suspense turning points to keep track of, so my story board is color coded to reflect that.
Describe your perfect evening.
Everyone goes somewhere and I have the house to myself and it’s quiet and I get maybe six straight hours of uninterrupted time to write. LOL I’m obsessed.
Where do you get your inspiration?
I may see something on television that inspires me. I may see a news article or a documentary that sparks an idea. Sometimes I sit down and use my Deal A Story cards to brainstorm a plot. https://www.amazon.com/Deal-Story-Card-Game-Writers/dp/B00V5D2BQWAnd sometimes I just sit down and make up a character and that sparks an entire story.
What do you do when you get a writer's block?
I don’t really get writer’s block. I just turn down wrong street with my plot, or maybe I’ve started my chapter in the wrong spot and I have to stop for a little while to work things out. When I get stuck, I write other things. I love to write haiku poetry. It expands your grasp of creative description. Or I work on my book bible (which is my 3-ring binder that holds all the information that I’ve compiled about my characters, my plot, any research I’ve had to do about locations, weapons, transportation and etc. And it also holds a printed copy of my manuscript in whatever form it is at the time.)
Since I’m an artist as well as a writer, I also paint and do scrolled paper filigree which is called quilling.
Who is your favorite author?
It’s really hard to pinpoint one author.
I love Nora Roberts because she has a pacing to her work and a grasp of description that draws you into the story.
I love Michael Connelly. I’m crazy about his Hieronymus Bosch, character and how driven he is.
I like Stephen King. Mostly his short stories. That’s where Shaw Shank Redemption and the Green Mile came from. He’s a master at the gritty, visceral prose and can give you a glimpse into humanity that sticks with you long after you’ve reached the end of the story.
I like Sandra Brown because she has a lyrical tone to her writing that’s very romantic.
And there are too many others to list, all for different reasons.
Best book you ever read.
Kathleen Woodiwiss’s Flame and the Flower. Not because it’s the best writing I have ever read, or the best plot I’ve dissected, but because it was the book that told me I could be a writer.
I was a Junior in high school and hid the book in a text book because the teachers didn’t like us reading romance novels. (God forbid) I’ve probably learned more from romance novels than I have some text books, but I digress. There was just something about Woodiwiss’s voice that reached out to me. I was in a creative writing class then too, which probably played some part in my response to the book.
During high school I wrote some of the worst poetry ever penned. And during my college days 9 of the worst romance novels ever written. Then, while I was doing my masters, I took a class that allowed me to write the first 5 chapters of a novel. By the end of the class my college professor told me he hoped I’d finish the book and submit it. I didn’t, but I did start really studying my craft and wrote 2 historical romances that were published.
Last book you read.
Laurel K. Hamilton’s Crimson Death.
What would you do for a living if you weren’t a writer?
I’d like to paint full time. I write so much I neglect that part of my creative drive. I’d love to have more time to paint and draw.
Who is the one person who has influenced your personal life the most and why?
My father. He was a Marine for 24 years. When he retired from the military, he went back to school and got a degree in architectural drafting and went to work for another 25 with Arch Mineral and US Steel. He was always learning, always striving to do more.
His death inspired me to continue to write when I was holding down two jobs to pay for my children’s college educations and writing on the weekends.
Life is too short to put your dreams on hold. And though it’s sometimes difficult, and life sometimes gets in the way, if you pursue your dreams, it fulfills something inside you that no one person can.
If you could sit down and have a conversation with ONE person, living or dead, real or fictional, who would it be and why?
I’d want to sit down with God and ask him to help us out with quite a few problems our world is having.
What advice would you give someone who aspires to be a writer?
1. Study your craft.
2. Read as much as you write.
3. Write every day.
4. Don’t expect the first draft of anything you write to be perfect. (I wrote 9 books before getting one published and even now my books are not perfect even when I send them to my editor.) Homophones are my arch-enemy.
5. Develop your self-discipline and set a writing schedule. When I worked 2 other jobs, I took Saturday as my writing day. Everyone in the house knew that was my day and that I would throw shoes at them if they disturbed me. Sometimes when you’re trying to accomplish something important to you, you have to be selfish. A few hours each day or a full day once a week is not too much to ask from your family or friends.
I set my alarm for 7:00 and I get up and start writing. Without a timeclock to punch, lack of self-discipline is the only thing standing between you and not finishing a book.
6. Never give up. I had numerous rejection letters from big and small presses. Every one of them hurt, but I looked for the thread of truth in them, addressed what each one said and pushed on.
Happy writing and reading,
Teresa Reasor
My newest book is:
Hot SEAL, Rusty Nail
(SEALS in Paradise Series)
Released October 16, 2018
A broken engagement followed by six months of grueling work has Sloane Bianchi ready to hit the beaches of Hilton Head, South Carolina for some R and R. She isn’t looking for romance, but when she catches the gaze of a stranger at a local restaurant, her attraction is immediate. But he turns out to be just another guy who can’t follow through.
Karma isn’t always a bitch. Navy SEAL Connor ‘Hammer’ Evans decides a fender bender is a small price to pay for finally meeting the woman who got away. Even though he’ll only be on the East Coast a short time, he’s convinced he and Sloane can enjoy a sexy, no-strings adventure together while he’s here.
Their first kiss ignites a hunger for each other they can’t seem to quench. As their relationship deepens, Sloane realizes she has to be honest with Connor and share the reason behind her broken engagement. When he learns the truth, will he go wheels up and leave her behind? Or will he follow through?
BARNES AND NOBLE: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/hot-seal-rusty-nail-teresa-j-reasor/1128936386?ean=2940155303619
GOODREADS:
Adventures of A Witchy Wallflower
(Have Wand, Will Travel Book 3)
Released October 3, 2018
After 50 years of teaching magic-challenged witches, Madeline’s found the perfect male witch to share a different kind of magic in her life. But his curse has another idea….
For fifty years Madeline Montgomery has taught magic-challenged witches how to cast spells. And she’s good at it. When she loses her job at the college, she’s thrown into an identity crisis. If she can’t teach what will she do?
Broke and desperate, Jake Cunningham has borrowed money from the wrong witches. With a moniker like Jake The Rake floating around, he hasn’t a chance of finding his next mark. Until he’s made an offer he can’t refuse—meet Madeline and he’ll be a hundred thousand dollars richer.
When Jake shows up on Madeline’s doorstep asking for her help, it’s a goddess-send. While she teaches him to spell, he brings a different kind of magic into her life. For the first time she wants to throw caution to the wind and let her heart lead the way. But Jake insists he has a curse and if she gets too close, she’ll end up hating him.
But she’s an expert at magic and a curse can be broken. Or can it?
This series is listed in Kindle Unlimited.
Links to follow Teresa Reasor:
Website: http://www.teresareasor.com
Amazon Author page: http://amzn.to/1j6OYPg
Twitter- https://twitter.com/teresareasor
Facebook- https://www.facebook.com/SEAL.Crazy
Pinterest- http://www.pinterest.com/teresareasor/
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