Terry's Blog: Uncensored
Terry’s Blog: Uncensored is about fiction. Writing it. Editing it. Publishing it. Marketing it. Reading it. Discussing it.
Terry’s Blog: Uncensored is about my novel, Soda Springs: Love, Sex, and Civil Rights. It’s an intriguing place, Soda Springs, staffed with folks aching to share their stories as they struggle to find themselves in the chaotic, changing America of 1963.
The blog is also about the novel’s author as he expands beyond creative artist to entrepreneur, seeking to entice serious readers into the fictional world that is Soda Springs.
If you’re a writer . . . or a reader . . . join me in my writer’s journey. Let’s explore the ’60s for their relevance today. Let’s talk about books and current events and writing . . . and whatever comes to mind.
To keep in touch, simply click that cute little orange RSS button at the left.
May 21, 2013
Beverly Hills Book Award winner Soda Springs
Terry Marshall’s novel, Soda Springs, won first prize for Multicultural Fiction in the 2013 Beverly Hills Book Award contest.
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Nov 01, 2012
End the Cuban embargo . . . and let us travel freely to that country
The U.S. blockade of trade with Cuba has gone on for more than 50 years. It’s time to end the Cuban embargo, as well as repeal the laws that prohibit Americans from traveling freely to Cuba.
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Oct 29, 2012
All-inclusive Cuba: pointers on living the good life
Melia las Dunas, an all-inclusive resort 240 miles from Havana, delivers up carefree, sun-drenched vacation. It’s a land all its own, a world apart from the Cuba that Cubans know.
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Oct 25, 2012
Che Guevara:
a “living” hero in today’s Cuba
Che Guevara’s image is everywhere in Cuba, but nowhere more than at his monument in Santa Clara. The pilgrimage takes us to his 19-foot-high bronze statute, mausoleum, and a museum honoring his life.
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a “living” hero in today’s Cuba"
Oct 18, 2012
Cuba today; life after 53 years of Castro’s revolution
Cuba after 53 years of Castro: a collapsed economy; classic American cars; crumbling buildings, but renovation in progress. For tourists, no political minders, no visible AK-47s, freedom to expore
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Oct 18, 2012
Cuba today after 53 years of Castro’s rule
After 53 years of Fidel Castro’s brand of socialism, how has Cuba fared? We see progress and promise . . . but also decay, hardships, poverty, opportunity lost. Here’s what we saw on our trip to Cuba.
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Oct 15, 2012
Cuban life: visiting with the locals in Havana and Hanoi
Cuban life surprises us with monuments to both John Lennon and Vladimir Lenin. More striking are the doors it closes to outsiders . . . particularly when compared with Communist Hanoi
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Oct 03, 2012
Cuban people welcome Americans to their island
We found Cuban people to be warm, helpful, and friendly . . . especially to Americans. We’ll introduce you to some of them.
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Oct 01, 2012
Cuba classic cars used to hustle tourists in Havana
Day one in Havana: classic car hustlers are on us in a flash. But Cuba isn’t Marakesh or Mexico: no pushy vendors, beggers or swarms of pleading kids. Best of all, we meet a delightful Cuban.
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Sep 26, 2012
Cuba has its own Holocaust memorials and exhibits
Cuba has a small Jewish community, but it keeps memories of the Holocaust alive with an excellent exhibit in Havana, and a small memorial in Santa Clara. This blog introduces you to those exhibits
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Sep 23, 2012
Jews in today’s Havana; a small, but increasingly vibrant community
In 1959, nearly 15,000 Jews lived in Cuba; today, only 1,500 do. Why the decline? Anti-Semitism? Economics? How do Cuban Jews fare today? We’ll explore those questions three Havana synagogues
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Sep 20, 2012
U.S. travel to Cuba: intrique sizzles in the air
Day one of our mission. Our first stop: mojitos, fine dining, romance, and lessons on Judaism.
We’re in Vista del Mar, a tiny upstairs restaurant in a former mansion overlooking the bay. What’s for lunch? Mojitos. Wine. Swordfish in lemon sauce. Black beans mixed with rice. Paper-thin home-made potato chips. Lemon flan. Robust coffee.
But food is merely the appetizer; intrigue, the main course. Inches away from me, a willowy beauty turns the bay view to an afterthought. She had zipped into the last parking spot as we drove up and flounced into the restaurant like a model on the runway, hair bouncing, clingy dress displaying each luscious curve.
She sits tall, shoulders back, perky nipples unfettered by a bra. Her knee pushes against . . .
Read the full blog to dine with us.
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Sep 10, 2012
Pearl and Angela, an old-time tale of life among the “colored”
Pearl and Angela is a throwback to the 1940’s in a small town of “colored folks.” It’s archaic. It’s melodramatic. It’s full of characters straight from Dickens. It’s a slow read. But it's engaging.
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Sep 03, 2012
Autumn Shadows is grist for a good novel, but it falls short
In Autumn Shadows, a mid-life Wasp protagonist and his Japanese wife retrace his youthful vagabondage through places remote and exotic, Good grist here, but the book reads more like a travel journal
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Sep 03, 2012
Book reviews by Terry Marshall, author of Soda Springs
Terry Marshall, author of Soda Springs, offers book reviews of both fiction and non-fiction works. No shilling here; merely insights into each book’s themes, setting, characters, and writing style.
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Aug 28, 2012
Plant Teacher: a Global eBook finalist well-worth reading
Plant Teacher by Caroline Alethia was a 2012 multicultural lit finalist in Global eBook Awards. Read it if you like: crisp language, flowing story, sharp dialog, vivid scenes, flights of imagination.
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Aug 21, 2012
Hystera: this Global eBook Award winner is a great read
Hystera by Leora Skolkin-Smith is the 2012 multicultural literature winner in Dan Poynter’s Global eBook Awards. It’s a vivid, compelling journey into the delusional reality of a young woman’s mind.
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May 25, 2012
Soda Springs synopsis of the story.
Soda Springs synopsis, a rollicking novel that weaves love, sex, and Martin Luther King's 1963 campaign into the untold story of the Mexican-American fight for civil rights.
May 09, 2012
El Filibusterismo: a long-tailed route to Soda Springs
Jose Rizal’s El Filibusterismo and the Philippines are a long way in time and space from Soda Springs, but there’s a clear path between them. Thanks to Bookingly Yours for reminding me.
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Apr 17, 2012
No Pulitzer Prize for Soda Springs . . . or Terry Marshall
They awarded the 2012 Pulitzer Prize today, but not for Fiction. No one got it. Not Terry Marshall. Not Soda Springs. At least I’m in good company.
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Feb 29, 2012
Terry Marshall named Global eBook Awards judge
Author Terry Marshall, whose novel Soda Springs: Love, Sex, and Civil Rights, was a winner in the 2011 Global eBook Awards has been named a judge for multicultural literature in the 2012 contest.
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Feb 24, 2012
In The Help, the stories of hard-working women take center stage
The Help resonates because its stories are about ordinary women coping with life – and in the end, demonstrating that maids, too, can have a meaningful voice in Civil Rights.
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Feb 21, 2012
Media coverage of Soda Springs and author Terry Marshall
Media articles about Soda Springs: Love, Sex, and Civil Rights, and its author Terry Marshall. You’ll find background on the novel, how it came about, and other personal tidbits.
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Feb 21, 2012
Terry on the air features Terry Marshall radio interviews
This page presents video excerpts from Terry Marshall’s radio interviews on Soda Springs: Love, Sex, and Civil Rights, and contemporary issues raised in the novel.
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Feb 19, 2012
Review: my visit to Soda Springs
My recent visit to Soda Springs was a delight! Through Terry Marshall’s characters, I was reminded of how racial hatred can be manifested in most communities—often
Feb 17, 2012
How both The Help and Soda Springs honor Medgar Evers
The 1963 murder of NAACP leader Medgar Evers is a pivotal event in Kathryn Stockett’s The Help, as it is in Terry Marshall’s Soda Springs. This article shows why.
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Feb 15, 2012
A Soda Springs review:
It offers hope for acceptance and tolerance
I’m not a book “critic.” I read a lot -- best sellers, beach books, junk, fiction, nonfiction, etc. and I don't always agree with what the critics say.
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It offers hope for acceptance and tolerance"
Feb 15, 2012
Secrets from Soda Springs
This Las Vegas Examiner article on Soda Springs digs into some intriguing secrets as to why Terry Marshall wrote this novel.
Feb 11, 2012
The Help: Why I’m in love with the novel and its author, Kathryn Stockett
The Help relives’60s Civil Rights with stories of Black maids in Mississippi. The novel,Soda Springs, set in the same years, charts a lesser known Civil Rights struggle--that of Mexican-Americans.
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Feb 08, 2012
On the air again
What, you say you missed Terry’s radio interviews on and around Martin Luther King Day?
No sweat – we’ll be posting some of them in the weeks to come.
In the meantime, you can catch Terry this Friday, February 10 on The Norm Jones Show, WTCM NewsTalk 580 in northern Michigan. Terry will come on at 7:35 a.m. (pacific); 10:35 a.m. (eastern). There will be plenty of volume -- 50,000 watts from Lansing to Canada . . . or just click onto their website and catch it live on your computer.
The topics: Soda Springs, racism, civil rights, and political incorrectness
Feb 01, 2012
U.S. immigration reform begins with a proposed waiver
A proposed change to U.S. immigration rules offers a hint of compassion: it could help undocumented workers remain here legally without breaking up their families in the process.
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Jan 28, 2012
Judge 44's verdict:
Soda Springs is “A great showcase”
A Writers Digest judge calls Soda Springs “A great showcase for author Terry Marshall’s delightfully different characters and (Chuck) Asay’s delightful illustrations.” But read on . . .
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Soda Springs is “A great showcase”"
Jan 24, 2012
Why MLK Day should be celebrated by both Whites and Blacks
Martin Luther King Day is a holiday with meaning for all Americans, white as well as black. MLK Day is a day we can all celebrate together the legacies he left us.
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Jan 15, 2012
MLK's birthday: a day to celebrate
Today is Martin Luther King's birthday. Let's celebrate . . . by reading "Pilgrimate to Nonviolence," "I Have a Dream," and "Letter from Birmingham Jail"
Jan 07, 2012
Up against The Wall in Calexico
The Wall in Calexico, California, neatly separates Mexicali from America, 700,000 Mexicans on one side; 40,000 Americans on the other. Terry stands on the American side looking in . . . or out?
Jan 04, 2012
The Wall: Something there is that doesn’t love a wall
“The Wall” separates the U.S. from Mexico, keeping us safe . . . from what? Terry Marshall visits The Wall near the tiny California town of Jacumba, chats with a Border Patrolman, and wonders.
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Oct 16, 2011
MLK’s Washington memorial . . . official at last
48 years ago MLK's "I Have a Dream" speech captivated the nation – not only for those in the Mall that day, but out there in rural America as well. Here's how it hit Rick Sanders in Soda Springs
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Sep 14, 2011
Contest judge: "a well-told story . . . great dialog"
(Soda Springs) is a well-told story revealing a different side of racial prejudice in the sixties and inviting questions of the present. Great dialog,
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Sep 13, 2011
Good news for teens from Global eBook Awards
They forgot to tell us when they announced the finalists for the Global eBook Awards: Soda Springs was a finalist both for "Teen Literature" and "Adult Multiculture Literature."
For confirmation, Global eBooks put out a nifty little video on Soda Springs. Copy this address and paste it into your browser: http://youtu.be/Ufq40J8bvjQ
Sep 13, 2011
Good news for teens from Global eBook Awards
They forgot to tell us when they announced the finalists for the Global eBook Awards: Soda Springs was a finalist both for "Teen Literature" and "Adult Multiculture Literature."
For confirmation, Global eBooks put out a nifty little video on Soda Springs. Copy this address and paste it into your browser: http://youtu.be/Ufq40J8bvjQ
Sep 06, 2011
Soda Springs illustrations win Global eBook Awards contest
Chuck Asay's art in Terry Marshall's Soda Springs won first place for illustrated fiction in Dan Poynter's "Global eBook Awards" contest. The novel was a finalist in multicultural fiction.
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Aug 28, 2011
August 28 . . . MLK's dream lives on
48 years ago MLK's "I Have a Dream" speech captivated the nation -- not only for those in the Mall that day, but out there in rural America as well. Here's how it hit Rick Sanders in Soda Springs<
Aug 28, 2011
And the winner is . . . Soda Springs!
Good news for Soda Springs: Love, Sex, and Civil Rights! And for illustrator Chuck Asay!
The Soda Springs electronic edition won first prize for illustrations in a fiction book in Dan Poynter’s "Global eBook Awards" competition.
The novel itself was a finalist in both the "Adult Multicultural Literature" and the "Teen Literature" categories . . . though not, alas, the winner in those categories.
Poynter is one of the gurus of self-publishing, the author of 127 books, and an acclaimed international speaker on publishing. He established the Global eBook Awards competition this year.
The ebook edition of Soda Springs is available from Powell's Books, http://bit.ly/p26ZAO
Aug 18, 2011
New Terry Marshall-Speaker website up and running
Check out the new http://www.TerryMarshall-Speaker.com website. It's got a new "About Terry," a variety of presentation topics, a nice little summary of each of my four books, as well as a video and slideshow. Take a look.
Aug 15, 2011
Soda Springs named Global ebook finalist
Good news for Terry Marshall’s Soda Springs: Love, Sex, and Civil Rights! The novel’s electronic edition is a finalist in the multicultural literature category of Dan Poynter’s "Global ebook Awards" competition.
Poynter is one of the gurus of self-publishing, the author of 127 books, and an acclaimed international speaker on publishing. He established the Global ebook Awards competition this year.
The ebook edition of Soda Springs is available from Powell's Books, http://bit.ly/p26ZAO
Aug 05, 2011
We all benefit from reading novels
blogpost by Ann Marshall
If you are feeling sad, which of the following is most likely to cheer you up:
- Watching reruns of your favorite sitcom
- Reading a novel
- Tuning into the news.
Answer: reading a novel, according to researchers at the University of Maryland, as reported in Parade Magazine (7-31-11). "People who read are often happier than those who watch more TV -- even if the plot of their paperback is depressing." Read a novel. Be happy.
More good news for fiction readers: the more you read, the more empathy you tend to have, according to Keith Oatley, a cognitive psychologist (formerly at the University of Toronto) and a fiction writer.
He and his research team found reading fiction, in most cases, opens you out to the world. When reading a novel, you’re living with other people — often inside their heads.
Rx for the mugwumps: read Soda Springs: Love, Sex, and Civil Rights. You won’t be able to put it down. (And don't worry: it's anything but depressing.)
Jul 23, 2011
Mass transit, race, and inequality
More than half a century after Rosa Parks refused to move to the back of the bus in Montgomery, Alabama, prompting an 11-month boycott that led to integration of that city's bus system, African Americans and Latinos are still struggling with an unequal transit system.
“Back of the Bus: mass transit, race, and inequality,” an hour-long NPR show by Transportation Nation is a sobering study of how mass transit systems not only isolate and destroy minority communities, but work against low-income people in general. The story looks at mass transit projects in St. Paul, Atlanta, Washington, Denver, and Oakland. Take a look at it:
Jun 14, 2011
Rape: it’s too, too common
Rape is a nasty word . . . and a despicable act.
But it’s all the news these days . . . what with the allegation that Dominique Strauss-Kahn tried to rape a maid in a fancy New York hotel. (Before this incident, this guy was a big-time hot-shot: head of the International Monetary Fund, and odds-on favorite to be the next president of France.)
The shocking fact is that rape is all too common. Not only that, most rapists get away with it. Look at these figures—from Marianne Mollmann, women’s rights advocacy director at Human Rights Watch (in the Los Angeles Times, June 7, 2011):
- In the U.S. someone is sexually assaulted every TWO MINUTES.
- Only an estimated 40 percent of the victims report the assault.
- Nationally, police arrest a suspect in only half the sexual assault cases filed.
- After “justice is served,” only an estimated one of 16 rapists spends time in jail.
No wonder Flor Hardwick agonized over what to do in Soda Springs. Report it? Why risk community disgrace . . . only to have the criminal go free? And no wonder Odell Andrews shrugged her off. Here’s his mocking response:
“Odell laughed. ‘You’re a cocktease, gal. No one rapes a cocktease. I came to the church to help you fix the youth problem. You invited me home. Made coffee. Fed me. Kissed me. One thing led to another. Consensual sex, as they say. Besides, who you gonna tell? . . . Chief Zeigler? He’s got a whore in Mexican town. And who would believe you over the football coach? Especially when there’s been no harm done, nothing broken or bruised. Sorry, gal . . . thanks for that delicious taste of paradise.’”
—from Soda Springs: Love, Sex, and Civil Rights
What to do if you or a loved one has been raped?
No easy answer.
We can only be thankful that the New York maid has the courage to stand up to power. And that women like Flor Hardwick will risk reputation to fight for justice.