Post about swing dancing, jitterbug, Lindy hop, Balboa, Collegiate Shag and music, Big Band, Jazz Swing, Hot Jazz, Western Swing, Jump Blues
The Girl in the Jitterbug Dress Dances in the Dark The novel is finally available in paperback and ebook. I had wanted to do a much bigger event, but since things really aren’t turning a corner yet with the Covid-19 pandemic, and I’ve had so many requests, I finally, let the novel go into the […more…]
Mind or Body As a writer who uses music and dance in her stories, I’m always studying, analyzing, and exploring the best way to capture the essence and metaphysical connection we have to music and dance. I’ve also ran into too many dance/music snobs who value melody/composition over beat/rhythm, intellectual listening over visceral feel. One […more…]
Halloween is my favorite holiday. As an actor, writer, director, I love all the make-believe and drama, and as a vintage fashionista, it feeds my passion to dress-up! I sat down and listened to all my fave vintage or retro songs and found this list to be the most danceable for Lindy Hop, Balboa Swing, […more…]
In my novel, The Flapper Affair: A 1920s Time Travel Murder Mystery Paranormal Ghost Romance, I include some fact and fiction tidbits that I used to inspire my writing journey. But you can read those in my novel. Today, I thought I’d share 13 1920s fun facts about the jazz era that influenced my writing and made […more…]
Dressing the Part: A Vintage Swing Dance Ghost Story Ghost Story Fiction by Tam Francis from Ghostoria: Vintage Romantic Tales of Fright Ghost Story PART ONE Lizzy closed her eyes and tried to find her partner’s rhythm, that technique often helped when dancing with a stranger. She didn’t know what possessed her to sign up for […more…]
Vintage Sewing Pattern Plus Montage Dance & More For many years my family and I have participated in Vaudeville at the Baker, an old-fashioned variety show. This year’s theme was Rat Pack Vegas a la 1950s style. We were involved in three acts as well as my hubby playing Frank Sinatra and myself as a cigar/cigarette girl. […more…]
As I work on my new collection of short stories: Swing Shorts (look for release in late 2017 or early 2018), I came across this short story I’d written. Since temperature across the country are hitting the 100s and higher, I thought this the perfect start of summer blog posts. I’ve used Phoenix as my […more…]
I was recently inspired by Chronically Vintage’s 40 Random Beauty Questions Tag, and thought it would be fun to do the same and have readers weigh in on random swing dance questions. Before you get started, if you haven’t stopped by Jessica’s blog, make an effort. She’s got tons of great vintage tips, and she’s […more…]