my blog
Shouting Out of Cars
I’ve been in Santa Cruz for several months now (you can tell by the shoes) and I can’t help noticing that people are nicer here. They make eye contact and smile, they chat with ‘strangers’ in groups, they offer quiet compliments in passing, they have...
Double Happiness
One of my great anxieties this past year was that both my daughters would graduate, one from high school and the other from college, on the same day 300 miles apart. I can do a lot of things, but being in two places at once isn't on that list. Generally a...
Log Jamming for Idiots
It's a lovely day in Santa Cruz and my husband, daughter, her boyfriend John, and I decide to take Thor from the RV to the 'dog beach' where he can run around, trouble is, it's high tide, which we don't yet know...
Why I Need to Get My Head Examined
You might think it's because I hang off the edge of cliffs, and that's probably a good enough reason. But then there's this. Three days ago, I get a call from my sister that my mom has fallen, smashed her head and has no memory of how it happened or what's going on....
The Courage of Kindness
The longer I live, the more I realize that only two things really count, Kindness and Courage. Frame it anyway you want to, if you just make those two character traits something you give a fuck about, it will change the world around you. Take today. We had to move our...
Surviving a Virtual Sh*t Storm
We’re into our second month of traveling trailer life, and for us newbies, it’s been a challenge, to say the least. Joseph and I are veterans at handling household emergencies ranging from forest fires and mud slides to living without heat or water for months...
Working Wounded
I don’t think I'm alone. It’s hard to throw myself into a new book while the world is churning with hatred and fear. Hell, with all the selfish ugliness that’s been unmasked in our society right now, it’s hard to keep any faith in humanity as a whole. I find myself...
The Long Kiss Hello
For twelve years, my family has lived in an amazing home, ten acres with mountain views cradled by the Angeles Forest, yet only minutes away from Los Angeles proper. Our daughters grew up here, able to spend their days outside in nature and beauty instead of...
Clawing my way to Happiness.
Wow, it's been a tough couple of months. This election is insanity itself, and as someone who is fascinated by human behaviour both individually and societal I'm having a hard time staying positive. It's not the...
The Baby in Black
Or how your memory fucks with you. One of my earliest memories is of standing next to my sister’s bassinette when she first came home from the hospital. It was Halloween, and in my memory, I can feel the weight of my candy bag in one hand. I was barely tall enough to...
Making Friends with Dragons.
This is about fear and loathing. Not that I have any, of course. Who would ever admit that? That would make me wrong, and don't we all loathe it when that happens! Except...I've been working on some meditations lately to help get down to the 'heart of the matter,' and...
My Many Talents.
Oh, where to begin, when there are so many things at which I excel. I mean I don’t want to brag, but even a quick list would include such rarified skills as—loosing my keys, burning toast, saying the wrong thing at the right time, falling down, smacking into...
The Infinity of Opinion.
You are absolutely alone. No one will ever understand you completely. Muhahahahaha. (that's my evil laugh.) And that's just fine. Because...you are also a part of everything, every molecule in the universe, every other living and non-living thing is made of the same...
The Waiting Room.
I finished a draft of a new book and got it out to my agent this week, now he submits to publishers and we wait. This is always a strange limbo-time for me, when the book is picked up, I will go back to work on edits with the editor, about a six month process on and...
Gods and Heros, Sprites and Humans.
When someone asks you who you admire, do you choose wisely? If I were to sit you down and ask you to name four archetypes that you try to exemplify in your life, would you have them ready? Would it be a rap star or Mozart? Betty Boop or Venus herself? Saint Francis or...
Rules of Engagement.
My husband was a bit grumpy when I got home from a recent trip to Northern California. Perhaps it's because he'd been working 12 to 14 hour days, perhaps it's because some of the jobs he's doing on our house right now are, well, disgusting. Okay, when you rip...
Between.
We call them goals. Those things we work toward and sometimes achieve. These 'goals' can be benchmark moments, work successes, projects finished, even amount of money made, and they can be good to have, but they are not now. What is now is everything in between, now...
Relevant
Who I am Now! What makes us relevant in life? Social media is a funny thing, so many people use it to try create some sense of worth about their ex-careers or their current lives, but it doesn't really change the fact that if they aren't— they aren't. That's a bit...
Overflowing.
There are times in your life when beauty shines undeniably around you, and there are times when you find it in something as simple as moss between stones. And then there are the times it flows up, spilling out of your...
Thirteen going on Thirty-eightish.
Not me of course. This is a blog about one of the very special people I've met in my travels, and accidentally, through being an actress. I guess she started out a fan, I call her friend. It won't be long now until I'm back in my favorite city, this time for five...
Speaking Second
A few days ago, I spoke at a fundraising luncheon for the La Canada Flintridge Orthopedic Guild. About three hundred or so people attended. It was lovely. Before my little ramblings, they played a short video that introduced our guests of honor. The video told the...
Shout, Laugh, Love.
My life may not be stress free, but it's never boring! A couple weeks ago I went to the gynecologist for what I thought was a minor check up, next thing I know I'm being biopsied for uterine cancer. That part wasn't bad, but between the time the nurse informed me they...
My Happy Wrinkles.
There are milestones in life that we look forward to. Mostly when we're younger, of course. When you are five it feels like Christmas or your birthday will never come. You wonder in July if it's too early to start the list for your Santa letter, and then comes the...
Walking in Water.
It's a funny thing about beginning a novel. Sometimes you swim, sometimes you're in over your head, and sometimes you have a slog for a while before you make that splash. The trick of course, is enjoying it all. Being creative comes easily to me, it's what I do. It...
The Funny Scary Thing.
Usually I try to include some helpful information in my blog, be it for acting, mothering, partnering or writing. Today I’m just going to tell a story, take from it what you will. It is, in a convoluted way, an explanation of how we function as storytellers. I’m...
But What I Really Want To Do Is Write.
In between laundry loads. Gussied up. So here we go, a new novel out tomorrow in stores and on line everywhere!! So I've spent many hours on FB and twitter, or addressing postcards or...
Her, Them, Me, Us.
The gang is back in town. Two of my three siblings live here in LA, so we get to see a good bit of each other and help out with kids, holidays, etc. My mom also lives here, so I'm used the the dynamics between us all, interesting to watch, experience, and sometimes...
My Inner Vixen
This one is hard to start. As a woman who grew up being considered traditionally 'sexy' (blonde hair, green eyes, long legs, etc) I had to deal with attention from men from a very early age. I hit the cover of Playboy when I was 17, (my mom signed a release). But when...
From Flames to Fabulous.
These are pictures of a young women I consider to be one of my ‘other daughters’ She’s a junior in high school. The photos were taken an hour apart. She is a fire cadet, and the first photo is her in gear on a ‘call.’ The second is her ready for prom an hour later....
Ch…ch…ch…ch…changes.
Turn and face the world. David Bowie's brilliant talent aside, this is something we choose to do or not to do every day. Every moment, in fact. I've had so many big changes in my life, living in different cities, married to different men, raising two very different...
Writing in Spite of…
It's hard enough to write sometimes when everything is going smoothly in life, hard enough to keep a cheerful face with the everyday responsibilities and pressures of paying bills, being a mom, and running a household. So what about in times of great stress or...
Leap of Faith
And so...I find myself beginning a new book, which leads me to the question, "Where does inspiration come from?" The truth is I don't know. I don't know who the characters will be, what they will say or do. I don't know the plot yet, I don't know if the message I want...
Sometimes I Scare Myself.
This image of me is a work of art featuring makeup by an incredible artist named Devan Weitzman. I realized when I looked at this picture, how my priorities have changed over the last trio of decades, and all I have to say is...what a relief! I spent my teen years as...
Trigger Happy
Did you know you have pathways in your brain? Learned reactions to physical and mental stimuli? Isn't that fascinating? Here's how it works. When your senses perceive something, (and perceive is the operative word, as we all perceive things differently) Certain...
Who am I NOW?
Who am I now? I haven't been on my website for a week or so or posted anything new, and so I was surprised to see that I had 3000 hits in a single day hits a few days ago. This was, to quote Zoolander when his message machine tells him he has 12 hundred messages, "A...
Building with Words.
It’s great to have "Invisible Ellen" out all over the country, it’s great to have the sequel to that book written, turned in and accepted by the publisher. But now comes what I call the dreamy-between time, when I wonder...what do I write next?I am asked quite often...
Hiding Behind the Real Me.
The lady behind the ARC's of Invisible Ellen So...last Wednesday, I'm booked to do a radio show. It's been set up by the Putnum publicity department in NY, and communicated to me by email. The show, "Connie Martinson Talks Books" is 'taping' in Santa Monica at 11:00...
LIfe’s Little Sequels.
Three times now I've been asked to write sequels to books I hadn't planned. Now that I'm just finishing up a sequel for "Invisible Ellen" which I really hadn't originally planned, I realize, once again, that there is almost always more to say. Returning to characters...
I’m Write and You’re Wrong.
As the publication date of "Invisible Ellen" looms ever nearer, and the premier screening of "Scream at the Devil" is less than two weeks away, I find my focus turning to two things, reworking the book's sequel, "Emerging Ellen," and making time for my neglected...
An Energetic Life
Recently, and not for the first time, I had someone contact me and ask about maintaining what appears to be my high energy level. (Thank you Whitney.) It is true that I always seem to have had more than my share of energy, hence my propensity for running, jumping and...
Charity without Cheering.
For years, as a semi-celebrity, I attended many charity events. Some of them, I wasn't even sure what cause was being supported until I arrived, having been invited by whatever-sho- I-was-on's publicist. What always hurt my heart was the way that so many of the...
Voice versus Vision.
It's been a while since I published a blog, and there's a reason for that. I've been finishing up a first draft on the sequel for my new novel "Invisible Ellen" titled, "Emerging Ellen." When I am deep into a manuscript, I use up my words. I literally, (and that is...
Walking on Water.
So, you want to write a book or make a film? Welcome to two of the world's most popular clubs! We're so pleased to have you as a member!! Ours is an inclusive club, one where the process means as much as the result. Where the novices are every bit as respected as the...
The Lull before the Storm.
The lull and the storm. I love them both. With a new book and a film coming out I find myself suddenly required to leave my personal lull and calm of writing and venture back out into the world of traffic, airports, hotels, and a slew of new people. When my primary...
It’s All in the Details.
It's all the same. In acting, writing, life, the real indicators, the emotional movers, the things that forward the story and touch our hearts are the little things. Here's an example. The scene above from "Scream at the Devil" was a culmination scene. That means of...
Mom, Daughter, Aunt, Sister, Friend, Caregiver.
These are the words that best define me, and I feel honored to use all of them not only as nouns, but as adjectives. But those labels come with a responsibility, a joyful one, as far as I am concerned. In the last couple of weeks, I've done a good bit of caregiving....
The Shari Action Doll
That's me! 'Shari Action' is a nickname that a modeling friend gave me when I was sixteen. I was always moving, talking, jumping, taking chances, trying new things, and filled with energy. Always ready to try something new, and constantly busy creating or doing....
The Most Beautiful People.
Yesterday I watched a short clip of Dustin Hoffman speaking at AFI about the making of Tootsie. He told the story of asking the movie studio to do makeup tests before they got into production, he said that if he couldn't look acceptably like a woman, there was no...
The Now on which the Shadow Stands.
This is one of my favorite quotations. As far as I know the author is anonymous, and this poem is inscribed on the base of a sun dial at a University. The shadow by my finger cast Divides the future from the past: Before it, sleeps the unborn hour, In darkness, and...
Sleep and Other Luxuries.
Well, it's official, the film "Scream at the Devil" is, as they say, 'in the can.' Though of course, 'on card and logged into the computer' is more accurate these days. It's strange to make a film without actual film, but hey, times change. And speaking of change, and...