My first adventure was our family trip to Expo 67 in Montreal, Quebec. My mother dressed my sister, Barbara and me in flowered pantsuits so that she wouldn’t lose us!
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Do you use any of the following ingredients when cooking for your family?
a). eggs b). oregano c). parsley d). salt
e). pepper f). mushrooms g). onions h). garlic
i). olive oil j). potatoes k). sugar l). chicken
Why is writing a book like preparing a meal?
Do not your simplest recipes require several ingredients?
Writing a book is similar to preparing a meal in the sense that various tools are utilized to intrigue, entertain, inform and, like delicious food, ultimately satisfy a reader.
The Inheritance is about a family disintegrating from conflicting loyalties and dialogue, similes, metaphors, coincidence, descriptive passages, action sequences and flashbacks help the reader connect to the story and understand its multi-layered meaning.
Why are memories powerful?
Like family mysteries, we all have memories that resonate with significance. They may be of loved ones we have lost, times we have shared with special people, events that have changed our life or places that we have visited. Memories are webbed with secrets that, if revealed, help explain who we are.
Why A Woman’s Past Is Key To Understanding Her Present
A flashback is a writing tool that introduces a memory, which interrupts action, provides backstory, delivers information, builds empathy for characters and creates suspense in a novel by foreshadowing future conflicts.
Anna Marino is Santo’s wife and the mother of their sons, Caesare, Benito and Lorenzo. She is introduced in chapter one of The Inheritance and flashbacks enable the reader to appreciate her precarious situation as well as foreshadow family conflicts.
In the first instance, Anna has just left the tragic scene that sets the stage for the conflicts that drive the novel. While returning to her home, the Villa San Michelle Estate, she revisits a memory that adds an unexpected twist to what has just happened.
A second flashback is triggered by her conversation with Santo at the Villa San Michelle related to the situation. Anna reminiscences about the early years of their marriage and her memories enlighten the reader as to how their family dynamics have changed over time. Their relationship is not what it once was and the incident has made her contemplate whether or not she wants to continue living according to the status quo.
What will happen next?
Flashbacks will ensure that this question will be foremost in your mind as the first chapter of The Inheritance comes to an end!
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What triggers your memories? I’d welcome your comments.
These photographs trigger special memories for me and I hope you enjoy them.
This 1974 photograph is from my first trip to Italy. Venice is one of my favourite places to visit.
This is the late Professor Vincent Mancinelli feeding pigeons in Piazza San Marco. He organized my 1974 Italy trip and helped me with genealogical research.
We rescued Mackie from the Humane Society. He knocks ornaments off our tree and this reminds me of Christmas with my family.
