Comments on Pens Fatales: The Wrath of Rachael

Who the hell would ever be mean to you? That's...

2010-02-23T17:17:56.544-08:00

Who the hell would ever be mean to you? That's the part I don't get. It would be like being mean to a litter of puppies on a bed of bunnies.

I used to nurse resentments like they were mother&...

2010-02-23T14:20:42.524-08:00

I used to nurse resentments like they were mother's milk.

then I grew up a little. really. Just a little!

I haven't quite worked out if treasuring resentments is a gateway drug to full blown maniacal revenge-lust. I think the latter comes from some weird wiring, quite frankly, or is perhaps unavailable to those of us who have trouble completing tasks ;)

I've really deeply hated just a few people, and when I see them now, ruined amid the inevitable karmic paybacks, I really do feel sorry for them (in the sort of dead-skunk-on-the-highway-shoulder way)...

I have some of these same issues. And while my fo...

2010-02-23T10:06:16.407-08:00

I have some of these same issues. And while my forgiving nature has served me well through much of my life, there have also been a few times when a little conflict might have made for better outcomes for me. I am going to try to remember this in my writing. Because I don't think my readers will have the patience for my heroine's weaknesses that my friends have had for mine! :-)

I completely agree Rach -- and well said, of cours...

2010-02-23T09:20:10.512-08:00

I completely agree Rach -- and well said, of course -- about anger and meanness stemming from sadness and insecurity. My problem is when one is faced with horrors and horrific behavior, how do you respond to the immediate awfulness and still see the humanity in the perpetrator? Like child molesters and the like, people who hurt others continually in order to assuage their own hurt. Therein lies drama and...dare I say it? A story with a whole lot of emotional depth. ;-) Smiley faces, for sure;-)

that was so dear and so true! i think you are ex...

2010-02-23T07:41:24.762-08:00

that was so dear and so true!

i think you are exactly right about dark behaviors - fury and vengeance and violence - all stemming from hurt. elizabeth george is a genius at tracing that path, and that can be the basis of a beautiful book. but in its milder forms...run-of-the-mill cruelty and hurt feelings...it's still plenty interesting, and its resolution is so much more satisfying the more you dial it up.