The Writer's Mailbag: Installment 276

Hi Bill!

Just swinging through to wish you a Happy Thanksgiving. Off now to start prepping for tomorrow's feast.

Small memories are still in my mind. I did like the smell of fumes but don't anymore. Most relate to small memories and you made a good point of sharing this hub.

Bill

I've got some 'smell' memories, some good, and some not so.

For a good one it would be Jasmine, riding home from work some nights the streets I ride down are full of the Amazing smell, clean and healthy.

For the not so good and good at the same time, it would be fireworks! In a few days time it'll be 5th November, bonfire night when we remember someone trying to blow up Parliament, there'll be bonfires and fireworks. As a kid it was a great time with Mum's potato pie (truly so good the whole street would turn up at our door for a portion!) but it now reminds me of things I saw in the Middle East, and you can't 'unsee' them.

Smells evoke powerful emotions, and we writers can tap into them.

Hi Bill, thank you for sharing your article and as always, interesting! I don't particularly have a smell memory but maybe my mum's cooking works. It could be something I miss someday. What good news it is to publish more books! All the best in that! I'm sorry to hear about your friend.

Brute! How did I forget that one?

I know what you mean, Bill. We had an assistant manager once who went overboard on the cologne. We used it as an early warning system. One sniff and we would find stuff to do so we looked busy when he came by.

Thanks for another set of good questions and good answers.

I remember the age I was. Age nine. I had a male teacher who wore a pleasant musky scent. It could have been a cologne or an after-shave. What do I know? There were no males in my house. But for years after an occasional whiff of that scent reminded me of him.

Remember Brute? Who could forget it? LOL

I still love the scent of Old Spice. My dad and grandfather wore it, my husband wore it, and my sons both wear it sometimes. They all learned to wear it lightly, so it wasn't over powering.

OMG, Aqua Velva! I haven't heard that name for decades. Literally. For the longest time that, Old Spice and Hi Karate were the only scents acceptable for men. And maybe Right Guard, but that was a deodorant so I can't really count it. Do they make these anymore?

Coppertone tanning lotion takes me straight to the beach. One sniff and I can feel the sun shining on me and can smell the saltiness of the sea and hear the surf. You'd think all lotions smell the same but no so. I've smelled everyone single one available here and it's just not the same. Coppertone is the only one that does it for me.

My, my you've quite the writing schedule planned, haven't you? I wish you luck with it all and I'm looking forward to reading each and every one of them.

Hope you having a good day.

The smell of woodsmoke takes me back instantly to childhood and walking up a long hill to my grandmother's house.

The smell of sugar caramelizing is one that makes me go to the kitchen when I was growing up. As a child, I loved being on the farm so my mother always sent me to our relatives on the farm. There, I ate whatever was served and I was never grumpy. So the smell that made me know we were on the farm was that of a carabao wallowing in the mud. For younger kids now, it's obnoxious but for me, then, it was a joy.

I love the smell of charcoal when it is burnt and creates a very fresh smell with it’s smoke. It takes me back to the memories of corn being grilled inside charcoal heap near my home in 1995 when I was a kid.

I also love the smell of chicken being roasted in the grill machine and the smell of wet soil after it rains, madly in love with this last one, ‘wet soil’.

Blessings my friend!

I loved the smell of some savories that we as small children used to purchase from cafes on Sundays during the 1960s. And the smells of paddy farms that we roamed. I didn't found those smells after that decade.

Your writing targets are fascinating. A very nice schedule kept ready in advance. Wish you all the best in achieving those targets quickly.

The smell of the leaves brought back childhood memories of jumping into the pile before they were to be burned.

I guess my favorite smell is baking of chocolate chip cookies and fresh donuts...it takes me back to those Sunday afternoon drives to the bakery just in time when the new batch was to be removed from the oven.

I loved the smell of the stews that my parents made. They used a large container to make a stew, so it lasted for days. It became thicker and more flavorful as time passed.

Another set of great questions and answers. As for the smells, I love the smell of Earth after rain, incense sticks, fresh paint and flowers I also love the smell of books (be it old or new) and this is the reason Kindle is never as good as books.

Good afternoon, Bill. My grandparents had a farm, and my mom and I lived my first four years with them. I was more of a tactile person than a sniffer. But I guess favorite smells were fresh hay bales, the atmosphere after a rain, or the smells in the woods, especially around the creek bank where we swam. Anything baking on grandma’s wood stove, popping corn, Kool Aid, birthday cake all smelled so good. They definitely were not the cow barn or the pig pen. LOL

Repetitious words are a sore spot with me, and sometimes I find myself editing my emails because I find I’ve repeated the same word in them, especially if it is in the same sentence or contiguous paragraphs.

Other mentions: I don’t believe that all writers have a social responsibility. I think just making someone smile is reward enough. I can’t write about personal things that make me sad or that have hurt me. I don’t think I’d ever write a memoir, but I’m looking forward to reading yours. Have a great week, my friend.

Great questions and answers.

Fall is the best time of year for smells. I love the smell of soups and stews brewing in my crockpot, the smell of crisp fresh air, especially after a rain, and I like the smell of wood smoke but it stirs up allergies. I also love the smells on Thanksgiving. Today I am making a pumpkin spice to add to some foods. All of these take me back to childhood. I think often about how much I loved walking to school and smelling those smells. I loved to shuffle through leaves and hear that sound.

Now I was sitting in a board room which I call a bored room. The smell of something came over me. I startled the suits around me by blurting out "Deja Vu Smell".A soup I studied in Hanoi. They call it Pho' here. The sounds and smells of back alleys I walked in that place came flooding back.

Of course my outburst and verbal contemplation or revelry brooked some ice for the stodgy folk.The million dollar deal was signed with back slaps and cajoling

I don't reckon I know a darned thing about smells. Except I know my boy Gabe stinks. .

free me

sc:juanespinoza400

was craccen flecha lowk

I have so many odors, sounds that take me back to my childhood, the whistle of a train when my mother fed the transit bums who hopped off the train ( by our house ] She fed them all on our front porch, and it spread, new ones arrived daily. The smell of coal burning in our potbelly stove in the wintertime. Perking coffee on top of the kitchen stove that burned coal my mother cooked on, summer and winter, Chicks chirping in box in the kitchen getting ready for spring when they could run lose. Oh the happy days of yesterday!

Great question, Bill! I'm sure there are plenty, but now that I'm trying to specifically recall them, they aren't coming to me haha! My husband and I will reminisce about our grandparents occasionally when something strikes our memory, usually over dinner. Those are some of my most treasured conversations. Excellent mailbag this week! I love the section about specific words. Definitely something for me to keep in mind. Thank you for all that you do! I hope you have a wonderful week!

The smell of rain hitting the dry desert. I lived in the South for about 10 years, and when I came home to the desert and it rained for the first time, it hit me how it smelled so much different when it rains. When it rains in the South, it has a different scent and I did not realize until that moment how much I missed it.

Happy Monday Bill! So, I've been thinking now about smells...so many to choose from... Popcorn is a top favorite for me. It reminds me of my mom popping the corn on the stove top and the whole family gathering around the little tv (big family, we weren't going to the theatre) and watching Saturday night programs (Love Boat and Fantasy Island, lol). Man, I really want some popcorn now (and not the easy pre-packaged microwave popcorn!).

Hope you have a great and productive week!

I especially liked Elsie's question, and I agree with your answer completely. Although I do repeat a word from time to time, I do my best not to. As far as smells from my past - well, there are some that I just care to think on. I remember a skunk on . . . Have a great week, Bill!

Happy Mailbag Monday!

Re: Smells. Cinnamon coffee cake and Pillsbury cinnamon and orange rolls my mom used to make. The smell of coffee being ground at the A&P store when I was a kid (but I drink tea as an adult). Are you seeing a theme here?

Re: Specific Words. I see this often. It's called a verbal (or writing) tic. I worked on one manuscript where the word "however" started almost every paragraph.

Re: Therapy, Social Issues, and Goals. Honestly, I have a hard time writing for either personal therapy or social good. My goal is to provide insight and understanding. Different strokes, I guess.

Hope your week is filled with glorious smells, sounds, and success!

The thesaurus is available online, but I still keep my Roget's on my desk. It's my best friend.

Ah smell memories, I love the idea of this. For me, most are from my childhood. The waxy smell when you open a new box of 64 Crayola crayons. The smell of Play Doh, as well. I think I associate these with relaxing play times.

I also have fond memories of diesel fumes. When we used to go to the county fair once a year, all the engines of the rides were jugging out fumes. We lived out in the country and didn't go to 'town' often so, it was a big deal for us.

Interesting question about word repetition. It is something that irks me when I'm reading. I stop, read the passage again, annoyed the writer didn't opt for a thesaurus.

Have a wonderful week.

Ah, smell memories. Some of my favorites are freshly mowed grass, the smell of fallen leaves after a rain (especially when you jump into a pile of them), the sulfur scent of a lit wooden match, Lily of the Valley, and lipstick. My mom always wears lipstick. I remember snuggling up on her lap as a young child, listening to her heart beat and the way her lips smelled. It was very comforting.

I'm thrilled to hear you're writing a sequel to The 12/59, Bill. Can't wait!

I love the smell of the earth when you dig into the soil to plant. The smell of a baby's skin, holding that little one up to your cheek. Hot buttery scones at the Fair. Strolling on the beach and smelling the briny waves, driftwood fires. Camping in the forest with the fresh smells of trees and campfires. The bearded iris in my mother's flower garden. The scent of yeast dough.

I loved the smell of roses from my garden as sometimes the ones delivered from a florist do not have much smell. I love the smell of bread baking as you mentioned, and other baked food with spices like cinnamon and nutmeg. When I was young in Ohio I loved the smell of the air after a hard rain.

I also have a thing about using a variety of words. I like to use social issues in my writing too. This is a full mailbag today and I found every topic interesting. Have a fantastic week my friend. with love.

My great grandmother always loved makeup, perfume and anything smelly and kept a big box of her stuff neatly packed under her bed. I still have one box of her smelly stuff and when I open it I am transported back decades to her old house. She was the most loving person I’ve ever met.

Hmm smell memories. I did write a poem called “Grandpa’s Chair” where I mentioned the smell of a kerosene lamp bringing back memories at staying at my grandad’s house as a child. Fresh baked bread, as you mentioned, the smell of welcome rain on the earth after a long drought. Good mailbag again.