Lisa Q. Mathews

The One with the Lion, the Lamb, & No Snakes

It’s March in the Northeast, the blustery month that comes in like a lion and out like a lamb. Smack in the middle are St. Patrick’s Day, the Spring Equinox, and–for one of us Chicks this year–another ever-green holiday, Christmas…

This past weekend, my family celebrated Christmas together in Brooklyn. And yes, we are well aware that it’s mid-March. Just a wee bit late. No Rockefeller tree, no ice skating, no smell of warm chestnuts from the vendors’ carts on Fifth Avenue. But we did see plenty of green.

My son got married in December, so we decided to postpone Christmas until a more convenient time. In our old neighborhood in Brooklyn, the official celebration of Paddy’s Day is held the Sunday after the 17th. It just so happens that I’m working on a cozy series set in an Irish-themed town where it’s St. Patrick’s Day all year long. And I’m in the home stretch of the final draft for Book One, so what better time to celebrate St. Pat and St. Nick?

Here are a few pix from the festivities. I snapped the Grand Marshall of this year’s parade because he looks a LOT like the mayor of Shamrock, my fictional town.

And where else can you get a Bagel Wheel at $17 per foot?

Both a local tavern and an Irish dance school feature prominently in Book One. The young woman leading the littlest dancers (“Babies”) group below has no idea she’s a dead ringer for one of my main characters. Neither did I, until I spotted her at the parade.

Directly after the parade, the parties begin. See the tiny lads checking out the impromptu jam session over the fence? The dark-haired one is my grandson Fionn. He enjoyed the St. Patrick’s Day carols.

So now that the lion of March has hopefully roared its last, may the spirits of St. Nick and St. Pat and the soft(ish) spring rains bring shamrocks and flowers and lambs to your fields. But, of course, no snakes.

And may I type “The End” on my manuscript.

Slainte, All!

Readers, what is the last thing you did for a bit of extra inspiration?

27 thoughts on “The One with the Lion, the Lamb, & No Snakes”

  1. Thanks for sharing, Lisa. I love the image of the children peering over the fence at the drummers — too cute! For inspiration, taking a class on making a video course proved a worthy challenge and fun.

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    1. They were completely mesmerized, Grant! We’re not sure who took that pic, but it got to us somehow. And good call on that course. Smart choice!

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    1. Gardening—perfect! I’m not sure I find it as relaxing as some people do but I am working on that. Especially this year. I bought some little cups of mini shamrocks to take home with me.

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  3. Happy St. Patrick’s Day to you, Lisa! I spent the day listening to traditional Celtic music by The Chieftains, The Wolfe Tones, and a dash of The Pogues. Then, I finished the day by watching a presentation of Irish history by song on PBS. Sláinte!

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  5. Sooooo looking forward to read your new book, Lisa! So I’m glad you’ve been finding inspiration to continue writing it!

    As for me, being now back in Santa Cruz where my WIP takes place (Sally Solari no. 6) is a great inspiration. I went on a bike ride yesterday which passed by many of Sally’s favorite spots in town, which was a lovely way to get in the mood for writing. Now to sit down at the computer and actually do so…

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    1. It’s funny how being in your setting inspires, doesn’t it? I am sitting at the gate for FL right now—home of the Ladies Smythe & Westin!

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  9. This is fantastic!! I miss St. Patty’s Day in NY. It’s a big bore out here in LA. I love these photos. What did I do recently for inspiration? Um… make a book club guide for my upcoming release?

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    1. That book club guide is fantastic, El! It will be a huge hit with groups and libraries and readers in general, I’m sure.

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  11. Such a fun post, Lisa! Denver theatre has opened back up and I get a lot of inspiration from Broadway. I love how they can weave musical motifs through a show as teensy reminders of characters and ideas. I’ve also been inspired lately by good TV. I’m halfway through the second season of Ted Lasso and I love how richly those characters are drawn. As I get deeper into the outlining of my enormous cast in my next series, I find myself thinking about how they did that and how I can make readers care as much about my characters as I care about the Ted Lasso gang.

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    1. Hi Becky, Wow, I never thought about Broadway musical motifs that way—but that is very cool. And I love, love, love Ted Lasso. I have Ted’s “Believe” poster on the back of my office door. And one little green soldier on the windowsill.

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  12. The parade looks like great fun, Lisa! It’s not fair that you taunt us with a pic of Fionn from so far away! I’d like to see some close-up shots of that baby soon.
    Oddly enough, because of a series of delays, my husband’s office finally held their office Christmas party. Because of the timing they went with a Mardi Gras theme. Food included crawfish Mac ‘n cheese, gumbo, catfish tacos, and battered and fried alligator bites. Of course we had beads and masques — and I scored an Amazon gift card, which means a new book for me! It was fab!

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    1. I think we’re onto something here—holiday “mashes” will be as popular soon as book genre “mashes.” What’s not to love? And the Amazon gift card—the gift that keeps on giving!

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