 | Last login: 9 months agoLinda is a woman from Connecticut, USA. I am an author. My novel Belly of the Whale will be released in April 2008. A young woman with breast cancer gives up hope. The story takes place in twenty-four hours. The day Hudson Catalina gives up, the day she is taken hostage in an all-night market by a killer more deadly than her disease.
http://www.kunati.com/linda-merlino |
- Sep 3, 2008 7:05pm
- Every Three Minutes...
Every three minutes a person is diagnosed with breast cancer. This in a world of: wait-a-minute, give-me-a-minute, be-with-you-in-a-minute, and this-will-only-take-a-minute.
Sixty seconds multiplied by three is one hundred eighty seconds; that is all a woman has before her entire life is broadsided. Her drive home from the doctor, and the telephone calls to family, all will take longer than three minutes.
On August 13th I attended the Kickoff Breakfast for Making Strides Against Breast Cancer in New York City. Hundreds of people were guests of the American Cancer Society. There were many speakers on the program but the first, a woman who spoke from her table not from the podium pulled me to the edge of my seat and kept me there as her story unfolded.
The woman's voice was soft but strong, her name was Stephanie and she smiled as she spoke and her hair, a perfectly coiffed shoulder length wig made her appear younger than her years. Stephanie had grown children, one in Iraq and another living in New York City. Among other things she was an author with a book just released when her three minutes were up. Her orderly, well defined life was upended, and now she was a resident of Hope Lodge in New York City undergoing treatment for breast cancer.
As an author of newly released fiction, I was caught up in her heartbreaking story. I've written about breast cancer without being sure why. Now I know. As the daughter of a breast cancer survivor I have something more than words invested in this battle. Women like my mother, my character, Hudson Catalina, and like Stephanie deserve our respect. They need advocates and their message must be spread across the planet.
Hope Starts With Us - is the slogan for the American Cancer Society's 2008 Making Strides Against Breast Cancer. The message of Belly of the Whale is hope and survival. Together we will be in Central Park on October 19th under the Tent. Come walk with us. Every stride you take makes a difference.
Blog what you hear, see, think and feel...
Linda Merlino
lindamerlino.com [lindamerlino.com]
- Aug 17, 2008 5:13pm
- Writer's laryngitis, an ailment that on one level renders you unable to speak and on another level, unable to write, this condition is more severe than the common, ordinary: writer's block. The latter can be remedied by long sessions looking at a blank page and even longer days in your jammies. Writer's laryngitis requires medicine; the pharmacy kind of prescribed liquid that you pour onto a spoon and swallow with a grimace, then about thirty minutes later your whole body slumps over your laptop and you can't finish a sentence never mind a paragraph.
Communicating is out. Unless you are face-to-face with a pad of paper and a pen, you can not speak to the outside world. Sleep is the elixir. Long, uninterrupted lengths of dormancy that does not allow the REM state to be active. The golden liquid, that costs a week of lunches, has the ability to produce such a coma. Nothing else matters but the next dose of Tussionex.
For nearly three weeks I've had to be a listener, someone "up there" wanted me to be quiet, to sit on my opinion and to take notes. Protesting was too much effort. I sipped tea and curled up in a corner. But the world did not stop spinning while I was silent. No, it went on with or without my voice. My writer's laryngitis recovered quicker once I made peace with listening. Another reminder of what I need to do and what matters most. I've learned that writing words are never silent; their impact has sounds that vibrate octaves above the normal speaking voice.
Write what you hear, think and feel....
Linda Merlino
- Jul 14, 2008 8:47pm
- Hope Lodge in Blog
The siren of summer lured me off my writer's path and I went willingly to sit on the ocean's edge and contemplate. Stretched before me was the Atlantic, so far into the horizon that even squinting did not allow me to see its end. When these moments came there was no choice but to stop and raise a hand to shield the sun from my eyes, to pause for the solar rising or setting. All thoughts passed away and my mind was relieved of burdens and bundles of musts and must-nots.
As I shake the sand from my suitcase and out of my shoes I am reluctant to return to the pace and routine I set aside. Vacation is a place where time stops, there is no calendar and no alarm clock. The beach beckons and you go, nothing else is required of your time. Nothing.
Days before I journeyed to the shore I was given a tour of a facility in New York City: Hope Lodge. There I met a team of persons dedicated to serving the needs of people undergoing therapy for cancer. Reminiscent of a five star hotel, Hope Lodge provides patients and their caregivers accommodations during the long treatments related to their disease. Individuals who live at a distance and require a commute over an hour are eligible to be one of the over sixty guests at the Lodge.
Walking along the shore with sea water lapping my ankles I thought long and hard about Hope Lodge. I prayed that I might never have to use the facility for the purpose it was intended and despite the beauty of its interior and the warmth of the staff, I mumbled to myself an entreaty to God that He might spare me that fate.
The people I met on my tour were extremely enthusiastic and excited about the subject of my book and how we could (I could) become a part of the fight against breast cancer. Without knowing a reason to write about a character with breast cancer other than the old stand-by, I had to; I discovered on that tour and during my subsequent meditations by the ocean, a more valid reason.
Perhaps another entity was at work, guiding my hand and my imagination, and perhaps that entity had a knowing that I would be introduced to Hope Lodge and when that day came, which it did, I would recognize the reason.
There is a place where we all must travel, a place along our path that is not illuminated, where darkness rules. The descent into darkness is not unlike being swallowed by the biblical whale. Hope and survival is the message of my story and hope and survival are the premise on which Hope Lodge was built.
Blog what you see, hear, feel and pray.
linda Merlino, author, Belly of the Whale
- Jun 22, 2008 5:48pm
- Blog a Flag...
The Fourth of July is coming up, the first official summer holiday. Memorial Day kicks off the spirit of summer but the Fourth is the main event. Both holidays mark our country's heroes; one honors those who fought to keep us free and the other honors independence.
The American Flag is the symbol of our great country, we unfurl it proudly most often during the summer months. Streets and town halls are decorated with the Stars and Stripes along with flag poles and schools. Many folk here in New England hang the flag outside their homes as way to show pride for the United States.
Up the street from my home is a small church, it sits on the intersection of two routes, one to New York the other to the Connecticut coast. The main street of my town is quite picturesque, a perfect Main Street that invites people of all ages to stroll, jog or power walk its sidewalk. Up and back it is a generous two miles, first one side and then the other taking in stately old homes, community center, storefronts, and the town's favorite fountain.
For the past several weeks, walkers, joggers and the like slow to a stop in front of the small church on the corner. Planted across the expanse of the church's lawn are close to 5000 American Flags, a field of flags. This small church appears to be one of several that have erected the flags. The image is startling and powerful.
Each time I pass the display of flags I offer a prayer to all the fallen soldiers that each flag represents. I am proud to be an American and I am most grateful to all the men and women that serve in our armed forces and with each prayer said, I wish God's speed home to those still serving and a heroes welcome in heaven for those who gave their lives so that I can walk Main Street on a beautiful summer day.
Blog what you see, hear and feel...
Linda Merlino, author, Belly of the Whale
Go to Linda's Virtual Book Tour on Author Day Wednesday July 25th for a chance to win a free book.
- Jun 14, 2008 6:10am
- Blog about Love
Where to begin? What is love? The question has been asked through the centuries, in poetry and sonnet, in music and in long soliloquies. To blog about love is to get in line with those that came before, the men and women in love, out-of-love, desiring love and unsure of love.
In Belly of the Whale, the main character asks her captor, Buddy Baker, about love. Hudson Catalina remembers that she did not say "I love you" to her husband Jack that morning and reprimands herself for being preoccupied. Buddy Baker answers Hudson. "There's no such thing as love like in the movies. The kind of love that someone is supposed to have for another, the kind that says no matter what or who you are I still love you."
There are people who feel that way, the ones who never had the love and support of family. Love is lost on folk like Buddy Baker who take love and twist it into hate and violence.
The bible says that love is patient and that love is kind. It also says to love thy enemy. Now that isn't easy. We strive are whole life to be loved, we search out that person or persons who will love us with our faults and failings. But then what? How do we keep love alive?
Perhaps love is blind; perhaps it is really a fairy tale, or a fantasy. Love can be elusive, like a butterfly. Maybe love is not in the places we are looking, maybe love is in front of our nose and we have to pay attention.
Hudson Catalina from Belly of the Whale tells us something about love. When Buddy Baker tells her that he never told anyone he loved them. She says. "Too bad, it feels good to tell people you love them."
Love advice from a blog.
Blog what you hear, read, see and write.
Linda Merlino, author, Belly of the Whale
Buy Belly of the Whale, today.
- Jun 6, 2008 5:02pm
- Blog an Excerpt
Excerpts often require ten minutes of reading out loud, that's probably two minutes over the normal attention span; but you go over anyway, because you need to finish your thought...
The Dark Phantom Review posted an excerpt from Belly of the Whale. This is day five of my Virtual Book Tour and the cyberspace train keeps chugging along inviting passengers aboard to browse, discover, read, buy and win prizes.
Chapter One of Belly of the Whale is the excerpt. No better place to begin then at the beginning. The reader meets Hudson Catalina, finds out who she is, where she came from and begins to understand that the story unfolding is not an ordinary tale.
Hudson is named after a car, the Hudson Jet, one of the last of its kind to roll off the line in 1955. To be named after such a unique automobile carries a timeless honor. I recently attended a Memorial Weekend Car Show. There were lots of Muscle Cars and 50's Drive-in classics along with Flat Heads and 65' Corvettes, but the one that stopped me, the one that put a smile on my face from earlobe to earlobe, was an ocean blue Hudson Jet.
As you read the first chapter excerpt you will get caught up in the turbulent twenty-four hours that surround Hudson Catalina's story. She is a thirty-eight year old woman, wife and mother with breast cancer. As she narrates the story from a gurney in Whales market you recognize that the Hudson Jet of so many years ago and this young woman will both, stop you in your tracks. She will pull you into her story, page after page, until you reach the end, and then Hudson Catalina will stay in your head long after you finish Belly of the Whale.
Blog what you think, see, hear, feel and write...
Linda Merlino, author, Belly of the Whale
- Jun 3, 2008 8:11pm
- Blog an Interview
"Who are you?" This classic line from Alice in Wonderland is what I think of when I think: interview. My Virtual Book Tour is entering day three and an interview with BCBooks by Mayra Calvani is posted for those stopping by.
Interviews allow a writer to squirt about him or herself. To reveal childhood dreams and paths less traveled. The inspiration for titles and characters all come alive when questioned. Once a solitary figure stooped over the computer keys this writer gleefully answers questions that probe sacred space and writer's block.
What scares me to death and what propels me to continue as a writer; my preferences when reading, my heroes, my favorites. Is there another book in the works? So many questions and so much food for the train of thought.
Thank you Blogcritics, for the perfect opportunity to talk about me. Me and my passion for writing and how fortunate I am to be a published author, and not only published but published by the Best Independent Publisher of 2008, Kunati, Inc.
All of the Kunati authors applaud the genius of Derek Armstrong and the Kunati Three. We are proud to be a part of the celebration. Look for more information about my publisher in today's interview with BCBooks.
The Virtual Book Tour Train is chugging into the cyber station, hope you can come aboard today and everyday through the month of June. blogcritics.org [blogcritics.org]
Blog what you think, see, hear and write...
Linda Merlino, author, Belly of the Whale
lindamerlino.com [lindamerlino.com]
kunati.com [kunati.com]
kunati.com/linda-merlino [kunati.com/linda-merlino]
- Jun 3, 2008 3:35am
- Blog a Reader's Review
You write and you write and some days you think, who will read this, and why? Writing is private and solitary, often not meant for others to view. But when a writer makes the leap, when a writer makes the move into public, then the writer expects someone, anyone to give a nod of approval.
Belly of the Whale is making the rounds with readers. There have been reviews and most are very positive, and encouraging. Today is the second day of my Virtual Book Tour and Review Your Book has given Belly a five star review.
What struck me upon reading Debra Gaynor's review was that she got it; she absorbed the story and found the core, the heart beat. There are readers that will like Belly of the Whale and to them I will always be grateful, but there are those readers who will understand with a pure heart what is being said.
Debra Gaynor is one of these folk. "Everyone can relate to this novel", she states, "For we have all faced the belly of the whale in some manner."
Blogging a reader review is humbling. My head is out, my neck too. Thanks to all my reviewers and especially to Debra Gaynor for joining me with such kind words on Day Two.
Blog what you think, feel, see and write.
Linda Merlino, author Belly of the Whale
reviewyourbook.com/review.cfm [reviewyourbook.com/review.cfm]
lindamerlino.com [lindamerlino.com]
- Jun 2, 2008 5:26am
- Blog a Book Trailer
This is the First Official Monday in June 2008 and my Virtual Book Tour has left the cyberspace station. The number one stop is a film, a book trailer to be exact. No time for popcorn or candy bars but if you press play again you could down some peanut m & m's.
Kam Wai Yu of Kunati, Inc is the genius behind my book trailer. He has portrayed the sentiment and emotion bound in the pages of Belly of the Whale. Kam is part of the Kunati Three which includes Derek Armstrong and James McKinnon. Not only has Kunati created an incredible book trailer for Belly of the Whale but my publisher has also just been honored to win Independent Publisher of the Year by Forward Magazine. All of the Kunati authors are thrilled to be a part of the celebration.
Today I hop on the Book Tour Express from Pump Up Your Book, I am handing out virtual m & m's and Kleenex, along with confetti.
When the train stops at your station take three minutes to view Belly of the Whale's Book trailer, then go to amazon.com and buy a copy and then check out Kunati's web site, after that get back on the virtual train because tomorrow's stop is a Book Review.
Blog what you think, see, write and feel...
Linda Merlino, author, Belly of the Whale
bookvideos.wordpress.com/2008/06/01/belly-of-the-whale-by-linda-merlino [bookvideos.wordpress.com/2008/06/01/belly-of-the-whale-by-linda-merlino]
kunati.com [kunati.com]
amazon.com/gp/product/1601640188 [amazon.com/gp/product/1601640188]
pumpupyoubookpromotion.com [pumpupyoubookpromotion.com]
- May 10, 2008 9:42pm
- Blog Out-of-the-Blue
Stuff happens. Thomas Carlyle once called it "the lightening bolt that comes out of a clear blue sky." Everyday we wake up and have no knowledge of how our day will transpire, or how it will end. Most days it is the same old routine, get up, go to work, take care of the kids, read the paper, take the train, traffic, on and on...a routine, a boring predictable routine called daily life.
But some times we get side swiped, something or someone comes "out-of-the-blue" to turn our ordinary life on its head. People we love can suddenly be taken from us. Our homes and all our possessions can be lost. Cyclones. Hurricanes. Our car gets totaled in an accident and we never make it to work. Instead we are in an ambulance praying that we won't die, not like this, not today.
Hudson Catalina is the protagonist in my new novel, Belly of the Whale, she decides that breast cancer will be her executioner. The beast will claim victory and Hudson gives up hope of surviving. But the story that continues unfolds in twenty-four hours and is about out-of-the-blue situations, it is about lightening bolts and thinking you know what is going to happen, but it doesn't.
Blogging out-of-the-blue days, resonates in me. I had a recent bolt come out of the sky that rocked my world and it is still sending shock waves. There is a lesson here, a life-lesson. Do not take anything or anyone for granted. Every day is a gift.
Blog what you think, hear, see and feel.
Linda Merlino
lindamerlino.com [lindamerlino.com]
kunati.com/linda-merlino [kunati.com/linda-merlino]
Belly of the Whale is available on amazon.com
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