Writing Inspiration: Punk Fanboys, College, and Vinnie Pies

Pittsburgh, view from the incline

I get inspiration from everywhere. Things stick in the back of my mind - blaring neon signs begging to be shared. They bother me until I have to write them into a story. Sometimes it's unexpected. Sometimes it's conscious and intentional.

I have this love of those indie and punk rock fanboys. Really. They're my not-so-secret crush. You know the ones - the kind who wear band shirts and low slung dark jeans. They are so adamant about their views and on the turn of a dime ruthlessly mock themselves. The ones who sing you lullabies, kiss soft, and stare with such smoldering intensity you can't wait to tackle them in a broom closet, on the playground, and under the bleachers.

Ahem. That's how my character Laran came to be in the KHLOE ALWELL series.

Then there's the places that make you into who you are - colleges and universities - the ones where you party with your professors and the lines blur between mentor, employer, and friend. They live in small towns that bend around the space of the university, and everything stops in summer.It's something between UCSB, Penn State, Juniata, and Bard. That's where Alisa meets Dr. Pierce in BELOW THE BELT.

But inspiration can be more than a specific place - it can be a complete culture, including everything from the food people eat to the entertainment they enjoy.

For example, my dad's family is from Pittsburgh. Whenever we visit, we always go to Vincent's Pizza. I frickin love that place. People on the west coast do NOT understand about pizza. They don't. Anyone who claims they know what good pizza is and then talk about a national chain is stupidly limited in their exposure to good pizza.

There are several styles. There is the Chicago style, which has a time and place. There is Sicilian, also a time and place. Then there is New York, which kind of migrates from NYS down into Jersey, Philly, and west all the way to Pittsburgh. Seriously (I've been to these places and lived there - trust me on this.). These are the kinds of places that have crust so thin in the middle it falls apart when you pick it up. The sauce has simmered for days, because health codes can't get in the way of taste. The cheese is piled high. Once baked, the crust bubbles and the grease settles in the center, threatening a coronary.

So yeah, every Rollins boy loves Vinnie's pies. And he loves the Steelers. And the Pirates. And the Penguins. Because that's what it means to be from Pittsburgh, something that only people with ties to Pittsburgh understand.

And I wanted to share these things, because they were so important to my own formation. They marked my days and nights and built me into the woman I am today. How could I not write about them? About smoldering eyes, fun colleges, and delicious pizza?

These are the things I pull from reality to give readers a glimpse. They are the details that build believable books.

Licking Wounds - Still Steeler Pride

I have to say something.  I can't ignore it any more and I think I'm done with my mourning period.  The Superbowl was embarrassing.

What I can take away from it is the following: Even when the Steelers (or just Big Ben) are having a bad day, they still play well.  If the Steelers had been in the zone, Madden's pick would have been correct hands down.  Troy beyond a doubt has magical islander skills which might be enhanced by his dark curly mane that streams behind him when he flies through the air.  I will be sad when Mr. Ward retires.

That out of the way, let me share something with all those who are not affiliated with Pittsburgh in any way.  Football is not just football.  The Steelers franchise is not just about the game, it's an approach of life.  It's the way the world is perceived.  Even though the factories are rusted, and high-end white-collar jobs have filtered in, Pittsburgh will never lose its blue collar sensibility.  Western PA has its own dialect (actually, a series of dialects) that distinguish its culture from the rest of the country.  So when someone says "it's just a game" they don't understand.  It's inherently part of the culture of Pennsylvania - a place where people keep tabs on high school teams and watch interviews with upcoming players as young as 15 years old.

For those of you who are not affiliated with Pittsburgh, I would advise you to be understanding of this cultural difference.  Football is important.  Don't say it is just a game. 

At the Superbowl party I went to, after the game finished I was morose (as much as I ever do in company). It was a strange party, because very few people present really cared who won or lost, with the exception of myself.  Few people present even had an interest in sports.  One of the host's other friends suggested that I use my terrible towel to clean my car.  My jaw dropped.  I said "Excuse me?" and probably gave him one of the steeliest looks a person can.  He backpedaled and tried to say that it was meant to clean the dirt from the previous year, but I still think he didn't understand that he had just said fighting words.  If he had said anything like that to a less calm fan, punches would have been thrown. 

We're not Oakland.  We're not going to beat up people because they support other teams.  If someone plays better than we did, or we didn't play well, we own it.  But seriously, don't provoke a Steelers fan.  That's just stupid.  So let us mourn in peace for a little while longer.  Hopefully Tomlin has a plan for next year.  Then I'll break out the black and gold once again.

Pittsburgh Pride - Culture and Lingo

Tomorrow is a big day.  Because it will be so busy, I thought I would put up some things today in order to get people into a Steeler spirit. My dad sent me an email that details some classic Pittsburgh culture and lingo. If you have ties to Pittsburgh then you will know what just about everything in this list is and hopefully it brings up some great memories.  If you're not from Pittsburgh, then good luck figuring out what all the lingo means!


1. You didn't have a Spring "Break" in High School.

2. You walk carefully when it is "slippy" outside.

3. You often go down to the "crick."

4. You've told your children to "red up" their rooms.

5. You can remember telling your little brother/sister to stop being so "nebby."

6. You've gotten hurt by falling into a "jaggerbush".

7. Your mother or grandmother has been seen wearing a "babushka" on her
head.

8. You've "worshed" the clothes.

9. I ask you to hand me one of those "Gum-Bands" an' you actually know what
I'm talking about.

10. You know you can't drive too fast on the back roads, because of the deer.

11. You know Beaver Valley , Turtle Crick, Mars, Slippery Rock, Greentree and
New Castle are names of towns. And you've been to most, if not all, of them.

12. A girl walks up to three of her girl friends and says, "HEY,YENZ GUYS!"

13. You hear the plural "you guyses" and don't think twice. Example: "you guyses hause is nice."

14. You know the three rivers by name and understand that "The Point" isn't just on a
writing instrument.

15. Someone refers to "The Mon" or "The Yough", you know exactly which river they're talking about.

16. You remember the blizzard of 1993 (or 1976 or 1950 or 1939) and you remember not being able to go outside because the snow was over your head....and mom said you would have suffocated.

17. Someone starts the chant, "Here we go Still-ers!" and you join in. Always in the proper cadence, waving the appropriately colored towel.

18. Bob Prince and "There's a bug on the rug!" hold special meaning for you.

19. You've either eaten a Farkleberry Tart or know someone who has.

20. At night, you drink pop, eat hoagies, love perogies and one of your favorite
sandwiches actually has coleslaw and French fries ON it.

21. You know what a "still mill" is.

22. You expect temps in the Winter to be record-breaking cold.....and temps in the
Summer to be record-breaking hot.

23. You know what Eat 'N Park is and you  frequently ate breakfast there at 2:00 AM
after the bars closed. And you made fun of people who were also there.

24. You order "dippy eggs" in a restaurant and get exactly what you wanted.

25. You spent your summers, or enjoyed a school picnic, at Luna Park, Kennywood,
West View, Sand Castle or Idlewild.

26. You've been to the Braun's Bread Plant or Story Book Forest for a school field trip.
Some went to the Heinz plant and the Isaly's plant as Cub Scouts.

27. "Chipped ham" was always in your refrigerator when you was growin'up.

28. You refuse to buy any condiments other than Heinz unless a Pittsburgh athlete's picture is on the side of the container.

29. When you call the dog or the kids you shout, "Kum-mere" and they come.

30. Franco, Roberto, and Mario don't need last names and you can recite their exploits by heart.

31. Food at a wedding reception consisted of rigatoni, stuffed cabbage, sauerkraut and
polska kielbasa. Chow down!

Try Something New - Break a Mold, Have an Adventure

As complex as our society has become, I am convinced that people who break out of molds are still considered completely strange, possibly fantastic (in the traditional sense of the word, coming from the root fantasy).  Despite all the different things we are able to do and be, humans have the tendency to put each other into boxes, and allow themselves to stay within them.  So when a person decides they won't be categorized, people can become shocked and frustrated, or they can have a whole new world open to them.

I am thinking particularly of the relatively simple juxtaposition of someone who likes art and football, or fashion and reading the Times.  These things are oppositional by all accounts to our society, but of course, there are people who like to do each set of things, and some who like all four (I'm thinking of myself...strange bird that I am). The more I interact with people, the more rare it is for me to find someone who enjoys multiple types of things, or who is at least willing to entertain something outside their own cultural sphere.

What does it matter? Why push one's self to read a reliable news source while at other times contemplating the far reaching impact of teal on Jimmy Choo?  Well, the less easy it is for someone to put you in a box, the more fun it is for everyone.  Necessarily you run into more kinds of people than you are likely to if you only race RC cars than if you also watch ballet.  You increase your likelihood of adventures, which is always enjoyable for you, and tends to lend some excitement to your varied group of friends.

In this world, it is easy to have varied interests.  Now you can access almost anything from almost anywhere (as long as you can pay for shipping to more remote locations in the worst case). However, it is just as easy to keep yourself in a rut.  You could do the same thing day in and day out, and your life would never get more exciting.  It would never change.  You would continue to read the same books, eat the same cereal, and wear the same bland dress clothes.  It would be predictable.  So isn't it better to change things up? Isn't it better to try something new and experiment with different interests when there is really nothing stopping you from taking a dance class or learning mountaineering?

It's better to try it rather than not.  What can you lose? At the very worst you have a story of adventure.  At the best, you open a new door to all kinds of wonderful things.  It sounds like a win to me.

Steelers v. Packers - A Dream Superbowl

It has happened. My dream superbowl is going to occur this February - the Steelers will play the Packers.

Some might wonder why this match? Is there something about the players? The coaches? But no, it is something much more fundamental than these things. When Bill Cower was coaching the Steelers, my dad began to follow the team more religiously. It was at that time I learned about football. I would still say I have a limited knowledge of the rules, but I learned alot about organizational culture. The Steelers had been family owned for a long time. As such, there is a philosophy as to how the team was meant to be built and function, in addition to game play. They don't have cheerleaders. Players can be found at dives in the Burg during off hours. They are not divas, or if a player becomes so, they may be kicked off the team. The game is played defensively, and the Steelers are known for repeatedly sacking quarterbacks as part of their "steel curtain." There is only one other team that comes close to that kind of approach. There is only one other team that has been a true people's team as a franchise, and that is the Packers.

Since I learned about this approach to the sport, I have wanted these teams to play against each other if only to see two like-minded opponents on the field. Now I get my wish. Here's hoping for an excellent game.

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.5