My book PINK ICE is about three sisters sharing a pair of pink diamond earrings. I've gotten a lot of feedback on the title, and some have asked how I came up with it.
When I thought of a novella collection about sisters sharing earrings, I ran the idea by my twin sister like I always do. Her first response? "Pink? Why pink?"
Coming from my sister, this was not a strange question. When I was growing up, I had to share a room with my twin sister. For some reason, my mother felt it was necessary to paint the room pink. I'm still not sure why. Neither my sister nor I were partial to the color, but we were girls, it was the 70s, and I sense there was a great discount on bright pink paint.
That's right. Bright pink.
But it didn't stop there. Perhaps my mother had lots left over because she painted the bedroom furniture the same color. The curtains were pink gingham. She even needle-pointed two quilts to go with the room.
In pink.
Remember the line Julia Roberts' character said in Steel Magnolias? "My colors are blush and bashful." Yeah, she was talking about my quilt.
When we were older, my sister and I tried to get a makeover for our room, but my mother was adamant that it stayed this way. We weren't allowed to hang up posters to break up the great expanse of wince-inducing pink. I don't know why since a lot of singers in the 80s would have blended right into that room.
I have to say, there was nothing quite like waking up in the morning to a very pink room. It was jarring. Nauseating. Or maybe the color always reminded me of Pepto-Bismol. That would explain my choice of words when I had to describe my bedroom for a school writing assignment. I got points off for writing "My room is so pink it makes me want to puke."
I told my teacher I was going for alliteration. She still didn't think 'puke' had any literary merit.
My guess is that she liked pink.
I slept in the bright pink room until I moved out of the house. Right after this, my sister manage to convince my mother that the room needed a new look. She would handle everything herself. The first thing she would do was get rid of the pink.
So she painted the room gray.
I'm not kidding. Gun-metal gray that only came as outdoor paint. And, oddly enough, it was refreshing change. Although once my sister left home, my mother immediately repainted the room to a neutral beige color.
Since then, I don't surround myself with a lot of pink other than the occasional shirt. So it came as a surprise when I was at a conference last year and I met a reader who said, "Oh, you're the one who writes those pink books."
Pink books? I immediately did a mental checklist of my books. Uh-oh. I did have more pink books than the average romance writer. How did this happen?
But then I thought about what the color pink symbolizes. That is, once I stop thinking of my childhood bedroom. Pink means fun and femininity. It can show a flirty attitude. I'm told the color traditionally represent love and beauty. This is what my books are about!
So when I put together the idea of three sisters sharing a pair of diamond earrings, I decided to purposely add some pink. After my initial research, I found out that naturally pink diamonds were rare and expensive. It felt like it was meant to be, and I was going to really push the pink (In my books, that is. I still don't have anything pink thing in my home.) That's how I got the title PINK ICE.
What do you think about the color pink? Do you love it, hate it, or are you indifferent to the color?
When I thought of a novella collection about sisters sharing earrings, I ran the idea by my twin sister like I always do. Her first response? "Pink? Why pink?"
Coming from my sister, this was not a strange question. When I was growing up, I had to share a room with my twin sister. For some reason, my mother felt it was necessary to paint the room pink. I'm still not sure why. Neither my sister nor I were partial to the color, but we were girls, it was the 70s, and I sense there was a great discount on bright pink paint.
That's right. Bright pink.
But it didn't stop there. Perhaps my mother had lots left over because she painted the bedroom furniture the same color. The curtains were pink gingham. She even needle-pointed two quilts to go with the room.
In pink.
Remember the line Julia Roberts' character said in Steel Magnolias? "My colors are blush and bashful." Yeah, she was talking about my quilt.
When we were older, my sister and I tried to get a makeover for our room, but my mother was adamant that it stayed this way. We weren't allowed to hang up posters to break up the great expanse of wince-inducing pink. I don't know why since a lot of singers in the 80s would have blended right into that room.
I have to say, there was nothing quite like waking up in the morning to a very pink room. It was jarring. Nauseating. Or maybe the color always reminded me of Pepto-Bismol. That would explain my choice of words when I had to describe my bedroom for a school writing assignment. I got points off for writing "My room is so pink it makes me want to puke."
I told my teacher I was going for alliteration. She still didn't think 'puke' had any literary merit.
My guess is that she liked pink.
I slept in the bright pink room until I moved out of the house. Right after this, my sister manage to convince my mother that the room needed a new look. She would handle everything herself. The first thing she would do was get rid of the pink.
So she painted the room gray.
I'm not kidding. Gun-metal gray that only came as outdoor paint. And, oddly enough, it was refreshing change. Although once my sister left home, my mother immediately repainted the room to a neutral beige color.
Since then, I don't surround myself with a lot of pink other than the occasional shirt. So it came as a surprise when I was at a conference last year and I met a reader who said, "Oh, you're the one who writes those pink books."
Pink books? I immediately did a mental checklist of my books. Uh-oh. I did have more pink books than the average romance writer. How did this happen?
But then I thought about what the color pink symbolizes. That is, once I stop thinking of my childhood bedroom. Pink means fun and femininity. It can show a flirty attitude. I'm told the color traditionally represent love and beauty. This is what my books are about!
So when I put together the idea of three sisters sharing a pair of diamond earrings, I decided to purposely add some pink. After my initial research, I found out that naturally pink diamonds were rare and expensive. It felt like it was meant to be, and I was going to really push the pink (In my books, that is. I still don't have anything pink thing in my home.) That's how I got the title PINK ICE.
What do you think about the color pink? Do you love it, hate it, or are you indifferent to the color?
1 comment:
I loved your post! It's always interesting to hear what everyone's favorite color is. I think it gives a lot of insight into their personality.
You asked what I think of Pink.... well, I love it. If you peeked into my wardrobe, you'd see it's dominated by pink. I have pink shoes, pink handbags, pink clothes, pink everything! I think pink speaks of love and gentleness. Pink is a color that encourages one to love and also promotes a sense of healing and soothing. It all depends on the shade of pink. I love wearing soft pinks and rose quartz accents when I'm mellow and feeling reflective. I reach for bubblegum pink or the HOT pink when I want to smile and laugh with friends or just go out and paint the town PINK!
That said, I think I could understand why you aren't too fond of pink. I have pink accents in my room as well but even being as PINK-minded as I am, I doubt I could have lived in a room where everything is pink. I think it needs to be broken down with accents in neutral colors to make me feel appreciative of the fun and fluffness it presents.
I've probably said way more than you wanted to know, but then again, pink does that to me! :)
I'm looking forward to reading your book, Susanna. It sounds like my kind of read!
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