Friday, March 23, 2018

Another Look Back

If you read my post from last week, you already know that the new book R.J. and I are working on (which will be published late this year) focuses on relating Walt Disney's legacy and how it is reflected in Walt Disney World.

We are finalizing our chapters and an outline for our publisher, and for those who have read our earlier books about WDW, R.J. and I will alternate chapters, with new personal stories about our years working there, as we've done before.

In addition, we will begin each chapter with a quote by Walt that relates to the content of that particular chapter. That is an important part of this work because we think it will introduce the genius of the man.  Although his name is a household word, many people do not know about his visions, his love of nostalgia and his life.

Choosing a title for a book is always difficult, and more so when the book is still being written. In our minds, we know what we want to convey with the title, but for now, not even a working title has been agreed upon. I'll let you know when we have it. Keep in mind that our other "final titles" went through several changes before publication.

We're delighted that readers are asking for more of our remembrances about the past at Walt Disney World, and each week, I'll give you a small peek at our progress.

A program note: R.J. will not be doing a vlog today, as he is working to finish a painting that requires all his attention. Look for him next Friday.

Friday, March 16, 2018

Loving the Nostalgic

 The title of my post today refers to two things: my own reflective self, and a quote by a man I am still learning from - Walt Disney: "I love the nostalgic myself. I hope we never lose some of the things of the past."

I've been researching and gathering many Walt quotes for our new book, because the theme of that book, as with our first two, is recreating for our readers what Walt Disney World was like in it first few decades. Since my husband, R.J. and I are aware that many who are now followers of all things Disney were not even alive when Walt was, we've decided to begin each chapter with a quote by the man whose legacy still lives on.

I'll be sharing more about our in-progress writing next week, but, for now, I just wanted to explain how important we feel it is to not only learn from the present, but revere what came before us, and never lose sight of our sentimental remembrances. Walt never did, and we don't plan to, either.

Nostalgia, sentimentality, wistfulness are all words that express a longing to remember our past, and, by doing that and sharing our memories and stories, we have been buoyed by the responses of our readers who want to hear more. It is what spurs us to keep writing, knowing others want to experience those times with us.

We really can't imagine doing this newest book without making Walt the center of it all. Check back next week for a more complete description of our newest draft.


Friday, March 9, 2018

"Never A Dull Moment In This House"

Oops! Must apologize for missing two weeks of Friday blog posts - but I have good excuses.

Actually, I should use the title for this blog as my defense. There really is never a dull moment in this house, and no day is the same. Of course, R.J. is always working on paintings and keeping up with all his social media contacts and followers, and I am always at the computer or my desk with a wide range of regular tasks. And, we also have our writing projects.

However! We both have calendars, and a third is in the kitchen, to keep track of the myriad of commitments, family responsibilities, interviews, podcasts, theatre rehearsals, social dates, trip plans, etc., etc., etc. The list is endless.

It is the life we thrive on, and would definitely not want to change, but it does mean there will also always be glitches, last-minute surprises and "too much to do in one day" happenings! The best part about all this chaos is that we are constantly challenged, both mentally and physically, and that keeps us young and involved, no matter how "mature" we get. We recommend it to anyone with a creative bent, who is not interested in ever being rich - because that is never guaranteed when you are "self-employed".

In the past two weeks, we had a trip into Chicago that made me miss my blog time, and an unexpected family situation that took precedence over writing. Let me just say, I wasn't idle. I just had to rework my priorities, and there weren't enough hours.

So, if you look for a future entry here and see only the previous week's post, trust that I am attending to an equally important something, and I will be back. It's not my plan to miss my weekly session, but I'm certain there will be unavoidable weeks when it just might happen.