This weekend, my wife and I are enjoying time spent in Southport, NC. It’s a lovely, quaint little village right on the edge of the Cape Fear River. From the shore, you can see Oak Island and Bald Head Island.
It just so happened that this is the same weekend as a huge vintage car show. I loved seeing a 1963 Ford Galaxie, similar to my the first car I ever owned. All metal, massive engine, big as a beached whale, no AC, no power windows, a radio that was only AM, and a steering wheel the size of a hula hoop.
Even the smell of the leather interior brought back memories. A new car smell is nice, but a car with some age to it is even better. I don’t know why.
Southport is also famous for being a location where movies and episodes for television shows have been filmed. Some of the movies include Firestarter, Crimes of the Heart, Weekend at Bernie’s, I Know What You Did Last Summer, as well as many others.
The town’s most favorite (yes, they seem to have a favorite) is Safe Haven adapted from a Nicholas Sparks novel. Now, admittedly, romance is not my genre, but we did watch the movie before we came to visit.
During the movie, they clearly identified the location as Southport, North Carolina. We took a golf cart tour of the town and our guide cheerfully pointed to where all the scenes were filmed. Of course, our guide also informed us that he’s met a few of the celebrities. One of them was Ryan Seacrest who was dating one of the actresses in town at the time. Mr. Seacrest’s bio states that he’s five feet eight inches tall. Our guide said he’s 5’7’’. The guide told us that he had doubts as to the veracity of the biography because standing next to him, he felt like an NBA player.
So, what does any of this have to do with writing mysteries? Nothing, really, other than I’m filing and cataloguing things that I see, sounds that I hear, scents I smell, and people that we meet. All grist for the mill.
Lesson for today, nothing is wasted on a writer. Enjoy everything and then use it in your next story.
One last thought, the Washington Post ran an excellent opinion piece about how novels are important now more than ever in difficult times. If you get a chance, take a look!
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2023/04/24/why-read-novels/
Opinion | Reading novels in times of trouble - The Washington Post
