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Post Number: 43358 of 43510
Subject: Yachts, cars, and men--Lynda Maitland's questions.On 07/29/99 at 11:51PM JUDITH McNAUGHT said...
Okay, Lynda, let's see...
I've given due thought to your feeling that Matt Farrell would really have owned a Jaguar or an SUV, but not a Rolls. I have to disagree there.
Actually, though it seems a little foolish, I give a lot of thought to what kind of cars our heros drive/own.
In Matt's case, I considered his background, his ambition to prove himself and go all the way to the top...his ownership of modern art that was worth a fortune, and which he displayed in his conference room, but which he secretly regarded with amusement. This is a man (I thought) who would own a Rolls, not because he thought it was beautiful, but because it is, arguably, the best. He would buy a Jaguar for Meredith because a Jag is sleeker, and I think, very beautiful.
SUV's weren't as common as they are now when I wrote PERFECT, but if Matt had a vehicle at the farm, I think it would be a pickup, not an SUV. He was, after all, a man who was not ashamed of his roots. And his roots were pick-up trucks.
Next, how did I come up with the name Apparition for a sailboat? It was the name of a sailboat belonging to a man I know, and I thought it was a gorgeous name for a beautiful sea-worthy sailboat, which is what Apparition is.
Now, about men: I quite agree that men could benefit vastly from reading a few romance novels. Certainly it could go a long way to helping them understand what really matters to us. The problem is, that I'm not sure that they wouldn't admire Matt for his success, money, and macho...and miss the fact that we love him because *he* loved Meredith so completely.
However, I certainly am open to correction here. In any event, I thought you'd better make *that* topic a thread of it's own.
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Post Number: 43720 of 43813
Subject: Julie & Zack Benedict
On 07/31/99 at 4:58PM JUDITH McNAUGHT said...
I wouldn't dream of letting two of my favorite characters vanish into obscurity, never to be seen again. I know how much you like to meet them again as secondary characters.
I'd actually planned to have Matt and Meredith Farrell and Julie and Zack present at the party Noah gave for Sloan in NIGHT WHISPERS.
Because they would have had no real purpose in the plot of the novel, there wasn't, a "sleek" way to re-introduce them without slowing the pace of NW down.
Someday though...perhaps I'll find the right spot in WATER'S EDGE.
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Post Number: 43261 of 43261
Subject: More Miscellaneous answers
On 07/29/99 at 3:18PM JUDITH McNAUGHT said...
Sara and Jess Jessup from Night Whispers:
I haven't abandoned them. I planned for them to appear in WATER'S EDGE or even to write a short story for them. You know I wouldn't leave you to wonder eternally what happened to them. There just wasn't time or the right moment to do more with them in NIGHT WHISPERS.
ALSO--I haven't told you much about WATER'S EDGE because I'm leaving that for a later post. However, I think you'll be pleased and relieved to know that Courtney, Noah, and Sloan re-appear early in WATER'S EDGE, and have a significant role in it.
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Post Number: 43847 of 43924
Subject: A BOOK FOR COURTNEY MAITLAND?
On 08/01/99 at 5:22PM JUDITH McNAUGHT said...
Courtney has a key role in WATERS EDGE, as do Noah and Sloan, but Courtney is still the outspoken, glib teenager she was in NIGHT WHISPERS.
Everyone loves Courtney, including my editor who is very partial to her. However, your discussion on the board was correct: The things that make Courtney a wonderful and appealing character as a rebellious teenager, are not the qualities we look for and admire in a heroine. She has the raw material for an excellent heroine, but first I'm afraid she'd have confront some real adversity instead of merely basking in controversy.
Don't give up on her though. She might, with a little help from her creator, grow up to be quite a young woman. We'll see.
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~~ Judith McNaught on Simon & Schuster's SimonSays Discussion Board
