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Character Study – Havah Cohen
Published March 15, 2015 by rochellewisoffIf one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he
has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours.
–Henry David Thoreau
Friday morning as I decorated cakes at work, I received a text message and an email from my agent, Jeanie, that began with, “I hope you’re sitting down” turned my world upside down. With several hours left to my work day, I tried to keep focused on tasks at hand while vacillating between smiles and tears. A nine-year-old dream that began with a story and nascent writing skill was about to come true.
***
Click here to read all about it.
HAVAH COHEN GITTERMAN Original artwork © Rochelle Wisoff-Fields
Barefoot, wearing only a nightgown, Havah Cohen escapes the brutal massacre that takes her parents and two brothers on a frigid November night in 1899. To keep her mind off her razed village as she runs through the woods in search of safety, she recites the Kaddish, the prayer said in memory of the dead. Who else will perform this mitzvah, blessing, for them? Just before sunrise she collapses on the synagogue steps in a nearby village called Svechka, Moldavia.
Havah is the daughter of a free-thinking rabbi who saw nothing wrong with women having the same education as men. To avoid the inevitable disapproval in her new surroundings, Havah tries to keep her knowledge a secret. However, Arel, Rabbi Gitterman’s son, finds her irresistible because of it. If only Arel wasn’t betrothed to Gittel, Havah’s adopted sister.
Both PLEASE SAY KADDISH FOR ME and FROM SILT AND ASHES revolve aroundHavah, her life, her loves and her challenges which she faces with stubborn passion. Althoughshe has a strong faith in God, she pushes the boundaries of religion and traditions.
Represented by Loiacono Literary Agency
Another Step Closer
Published February 24, 2015 by rochellewisoffAs much as I’ve always loved FIDDLER ON THE ROOF, I knew that it was a watered down version of the persecution the Jews in Eastern Europe before the turn of the last century. My family suffered at the hands of the Czars. The history of what happened to them has always haunted me.
Nine years ago I started my first novel, equipped only with the desire to tell the real story that few really know and a minimal amount of writing experience. In a matter of months I had written a one-hundred-and-fourteen thousand word manuscript. It was a beginning, the first manifestation of a dream. A dream that many told me was a pipe dream, but I felt compelled to keep going. I continued to work on the first manuscript and wrote a sequel.
Standing: Nettie Weinberg, my maternal grandmother. I don’t know the other woman’s name, but I’m pretty sure she was my great grandmother.
I had no idea where to go from there. A fellow student in my Hebrew class, writer Annie Withers, read my first manuscript and told me it was a story that needed to be told but needed a lot of work. She invited me to a small critique group of experienced writers who met every other Monday night. I came to look forward to these meetings with happy anticipation and dread. It can be painful to hear that your baby has warts. For the most part these dear ladies encouraged me.
Annie introduced me to Kansas City Writers Group and to Ozarks Writers Group (OWL). Going to workshops and networking with other writers helped me hone my skills. It was also at OWL that I learned how to pitch to an agent.
The first agent turned me down with “This is just excellent, Rochelle, but…” he went on to say that he wasn’t working in a market where my book fit. I wasn’t surprised since I’d gone to his website and checked out his clients. Nonetheless, I framed that letter. It was the first of more than one rejection.
Meanwhile the novels have gone through many revisions.
Three years ago I pitched the first novel, PLEASE SAY KADDISH FOR ME, to agent Jeanie Loiacono and she accepted it with enthusiasm and, this past week she took on the sequel, FROM SILT AND ASHES. I’m thrilled to have an agent who believes in my works and is committed to finding an publisher for them.
http://www.loiaconoliteraryagency.com/authors/rochelle-wisoff-fields/
2014 in review
Published December 30, 2014 by rochellewisoffThis is one of the things I really love about WordPress. It’s kind of fun to look back at the past year. As you can tell from the pattern most of my postings have been on Wednesday.
Thanks to all of the Friday Fictioneers and followers for a great year.
Shalom,
Rochelle
Here’s an excerpt:
Madison Square Garden can seat 20,000 people for a concert. This blog was viewed about 62,000 times in 2014. If it were a concert at Madison Square Garden, it would take about 3 sold-out performances for that many people to see it.
Aging ~~~ A Poem
Published September 14, 2014 by rochellewisoffDear Jackie,
To let go of your dreams is to be the true walking dead. Lovely poem. Don’t think of getting old but as more life experience to write about.
September’s a grand month, eh?
Shalom,
Rochelle
Aging
I sit, looking at my reflection in the mirror
One year older, another year added
Age is just a number they tell me
Nothing to be concerned about
It’s how you feel inside that matters
Then some days I must be 105
I see the silver in my hair
New lines in my face
Wondering how did I manage to get this far
What happened to all my plans? Dreams?
Now I seem stuck, here in the land of numbers
Neither can I go back nor forward, yet.
Life has not been easy, still I have been blessed
I am alive, able to see dreams become reality
No matter the number in my age
My dreams never fade, not really
Some just become more important than others
They shift, like the sands in my internal hourglass
I may be older, we all age if we are lucky
It’s…
View original post 168 more words
12 September 2014
Published September 10, 2014 by rochellewisoff
Below is the PHOTO PROMPT. Take time to think and reflect. How does it make you feel? What do you see?
Copyright – Janet Webb
Genre: Smoke and Mirrors
Word count: 100
HARRY’S FIRST TURN
“Things were supposed to be better in America,” said Rabbi Weiss. “’Too old fashioned’ the congregation I built says, and just like that, I’m a pauper with nine mouths to feed.”
“It’s because you don’t speak English, Papa.” Ehrich looked up from his book.
“What’s this you’re reading?”
“The Book of the Sacred Magic.”
“Better you should study the Torah.”
“That didn’t do you much good, did it?”
“Impudence! To your room!”
Half an hour later Ehrich strolled into the parlor smiling triumphantly.
“How?” Rabbi Weiss gasped. “I locked you in.”
“My brain is the key that sets me free.”
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Click link for more info- Harry Houdini 1899
Voice of a Spanish Dancer-Birthday Strokes
Published September 4, 2014 by rochellewisoffIf this looks familiar, it’s because I posted it a year ago on my birthday and feel like it bears repeating. 😉
Shalom,
Rochelle
With each swim stroke I stretch and roll my body from side to side, releasing tension into the water. It’s my birthday. Number six-oh on the hit parade. At the end of the first length I somersault, flip onto my back and push off the side of the pool wall.
My parents gave me a Chatty Cathy for my sixth birthday. Ever notice she had the same voice as Talking Tina on the Twilight Zone?
I reach the opposite end of the pool, turn slowly and deliberately, allowing the water to suspend me. The sun shines through the liquid ceiling and bathes the concrete and mosaic lines with refracted light. I push off the wall with my feet.
On my tenth birthday, my dad opened a bank account for me with a dollar for each year. I felt very grown up with my passbook in hand.
…
View original post 398 more words
29 August 2014
Published August 30, 2014 by rochellewisoff
Below is the PHOTO PROMPT. This photo from Madison Woods sent a few squeamish writers running from their keyboards. If you’re an FF veteran, you may already have braved this slimy picture and written a story. It’s perfectly legal to repost or write a new one if you like.
PHOTO PROMPT – Copyright – Madison Woods
By the time this page goes live I will be on a farm in upstate New York visiting my son and daughter in law. To learn more about what she does click here. I’m told the internet connection isn’t very good up there so chances are I won’t be doing much reading or commenting.
My story is from August 2012 when Madison was queen of this tangled grapevine.
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Word Count: 99
WILD LIFE
Half naked Himba people in Nambia, a sweaty camera crew and millions of TV…
View original post 85 more words
15 August 2014
Published August 13, 2014 by rochellewisoff
The next photo is the PHOTO PROMPT
Let it speak to you. Does it tell you a story?
PHOTO PROMPT -Copyright – Jan Wayne Fields
Genre: Historical Fiction
Word Count: 99
HOME FIRES BURNING
“Nights are long and my bed ever so cold…”
She stopped writing, crumpled her letter and recalled their conversation the day before he left.
_____
“The last time you went for six months it turned into four years.”
“I am needed there.”
“You are needed here.”
“Debbie, my dearest.” He placed his hands on either side of her face. “Accompany me. You will love London.”
______
Deborah Franklin laid another sheet of parchment on the desk, dipped her quill in the inkwell and wrote.
“Dear Benjamin,
I love you so. Had it not been for my ridiculous fear of the sea…”
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Writing Communities Connect Bloggers Across WordPress.com
Published May 19, 2014 by rochellewisoffWhat an honor for us as a blogging community. A nice surprise to find this morning.
We blog because we have something we want to express and we hope it will resonate with someone else. Blogging enables us to build powerful connections with people we might have never met otherwise.
There are lots of blogging communities and challenges aimed at fostering those relationships and inspiring more blogging. These three, all writing-focused, are building global networks of blogger-writers — maybe you’ll find a home in one!
Today’s Author
The mission of Today’s Author couldn’t be simpler, or more powerful: to foster a community of creative writers through a healthy and supportive environment.
Today’s Author is an open, flexible community of writers focused on helping each other kick-start their pens (or keyboards). Their prompts work for a variety of bloggers, while their “Writers’ Circle” posts explore everything from what to do when inspiration dries up to strategies for editing your own work to how we incorporate our traditions and…
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Rochelle Wisoff-Fields-Addicted to Purple 