S.A.D. Writers

harp S.A.D.
Today’s blog about S.A.D. is guest-written by Katheen Corcoran

We’re seeing a return of warmer temperatures and thawing ground as winter comes to an end in the Northern Hemisphere. As the days lengthen and crocuses (and people) start to poke their heads out, many people dealing with Seasonal Affective Disorder start to see a reduction in symptoms. From this warmer and sunnier vantage point, it’s nice to look back and appreciate some bleak winter weather. Some authors seem to have truly embraced the winter spirit, and it shows in their writing.

(Note: I am not trying to diagnose these authors with S.A.D., simply appreciating their wintry writing.)

S.A.D. Poetry

Poetry, with its focus on imagery and flexible word usage, is ideal for evoking atmosphere. These poets have embraced all the cold, dark, bleakness of wintry S.A.D. and turned it into beauty for the rest of us to enjoy.

S.A.D. frozen forest

Snow falling and night falling fast, oh, fast
In a field I looked into going past,
And the ground almost covered smooth in snow,
But a few weeds and stubble showing last.

Robert Frost ― “Desert Places”

In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan,
Earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone;
Snow had fallen, snow on snow, snow on snow,
In the bleak midwinter, long ago.

Christina Rossetti ― “In the Bleak Midwinter”

S.A.D. frozen river

Wynter wakeneth al my care,
Nou this leves waxeth bare;
Ofte I sike ant mourne sare
When hit cometh in my thoht
Of this worldes joie, hou hit goth al to noht.

Nou hit is, and nou hit nys,
Al so hit ner nere, ywys;
That moni mon seith, soth hit ys:
Al goth bote Godes wille:
Alle we shule deye, thah us like ylle.

Al that gren me graueth grene,
Nou hit faleweth albydene:
Jesu, help that hit be sene
Ant shild us from helle!
For y not whider y shal, ne hou longe her duelle.

Anonymous Winter poem (around 1310, maybe in Leominster, Herefordshire)

S.A.D. Prose

Not surprisingly, authors at higher latitudes, where winter brings the longest nights, have a tendency to reflect this in their writing. Swedish, Russian, French, and Northern American authors often include winter almost as a character in their works, including themes of cold, isolation, and deprivation.

“Six months passed. White winter had set in the cruel stillness of cloudless frosts, with its thick crunching snow, rosy hoarfrost on the trees, pale emerald sky, wreaths of smoke curling above the chimneys, steam emerging from momentarily opened doors, with those fresh faces which look bitten by cold, and the hurried trot of shivering horses. A January day was drawing to its close; the evening cold pierced keenly through the motionless air, and a brilliant sunset was rapidly dying away.”

Ivan Turgenev ― Fathers and Sons

“It was bitter cold. The streets were covered with a thick, black, glassy layer of ice, like the bottom of beer bottles. It hurt her to breathe. The air was dense with gray sleet and it tickled and pricked her face like the gray frozen bristles of her fur cape. Her heart thumping, she walked through the deserted streets past the steaming doors of cheap teashops and restaurants. Faces as red as sausages and horses’ and dogs’ heads with beards of icicles emerged from the mist. 

Boris Pasternak ― Doctor Zhivago

Although it was only six o’clock, the night was already dark. The fog, made thicker by its proximity to the Seine, blurred every detail with its ragged veils, punctured at various distances by the reddish glow of lanterns and bars of light escaping from illuminated windows. The road was soaked with rain and glittered under the street-lamps, like a lake reflecting strings of lights. A bitter wind, heavy with icy particles, whipped at my face, its howling forming the high notes of a symphony whose bass was played by swollen waves crashing into the piers of the bridges below. The evening lacked none of winter’s rough poetry.

Théophile Gautier ― Hashish, Wine, Opium

When the cold comes to New England it arrives in sheets of sleet and ice. In December, the wind wraps itself around bare trees and twists in between husbands and wives asleep in their beds. It shakes the shingles from the roofs and sifts through cracks in the plaster. The only green things left are the holly bushes and the old boxwood hedges in the village, and these are often painted white with snow. Chipmunks and weasels come to nest in basements and barns; owls find their way into attics. At night, the dark is blue and bluer still, as sapphire of night.

Alice Hoffman ― Here on Earth

Writers Readers Want to Be

50 shades of cabernet facebook hop writers readers want
This past weekend I participated in a Facebook Hop to help promote the 50 Shades of Cabernet mystery anthology which is about to be published. It was a first for me. People were encouraged to hop from one FB page to the next and register for whatever that person was offering. It seems to have been very popular.

 

vivian lawry books writers readers want
My giveaway was signed copies of my books. In order to qualify, I asked people to answer the question, “If you could be reincarnated as any writer, any time, anywhere, who would it be? Why?” Given that this was associated with a mystery anthology, it isn’t surprising that many people cited mystery writers. But not all! Here, in alphabetical order, are all the writers mentioned.

 

emma jane austen
Jane Austen—who can count the reasons?

 

agatha christie then there were none
Agatha Christie—a classic choice by several for reasons from youth reading, to she went to exotic places, to she solved crimes before technology
Beverly Cleary—even though she’s still alive
Blaise Clement—b/c her pet sitting books are great
Jackie Collins—b/c her books are fun
Michael Creighton—b/c the reader learns something new in every book
Tim Dorsey—b/c he seems to really enjoy his life
James D. Doss—writes clean mysteries with hilarious acerbic asides
Jessica Fletcher—b/c she is fictional and will live forever!
Dick Francis—b/c he got to ride horses, worked for the Queen, and lived a long life

 

complete poems robert frost
Robert Frost—b/c his poetry is wonderful
Homer—and who needs a reason?
Colleen Hoover—b/c she is just damned AWESOME
P.D. James—insert your own reasons
Carolyn Keene—b/c she was a favorite youth read (for more than one responder)

 

alexander mccall smith the woman who walked in sunshine
Alexander McCall Smith—b/c he’s charming, witty, and down-to-earth (listed here b/c his last name is McCall Smith)
Margaret Mitchell—b/c of Gone With the Wind and loving the Civil War
L. M. Montgomery—b/c she lived on Prince Edward Island

 

complete stories poems edgar allen poe
Edgar Allen Poe—b/c of his fascinating imagination
Mary Roberts Rinehart—b/c she was such an interesting woman
Nora Roberts—b/c I love her book

 

harry potter sorcerer's stone j.k. rowling
J. K. Rowling—right before she became famous for Harry Potter
Ann Rule—b/c she has a really special mindset
Dr. Seuss—b/c of his wonderful imagination
Anna Sewell—wrote Black Beauty, etc.
J. R. R. Tolkien—b/c he has a rich imagination
Laura Ingalls Wilder—b/c she wrote what she lived

 

mrs. dalloway lighthouse virginia woolf
Virginia Woolf—b/c she felt so deeply and expressed those feelings wonderfully
I’ve edited some of the responses to fit the “because” format, but tried to keep the meaning. All of these come recommended. Why not pick up an author you haven’t read?