Renee Lynn Scott

Endless Revisions

2012-01-17T11:16:00.000-06:00

Have you ever thought you needed to call someone just to catch up and then you realize months later you still haven't called? The longer time passes, the harder it seems it is to make that call. That's how I feel about blogging.

There was a time when I lived for blogging. There was a time when I blogged on multiple sites every day. I'm not sure what has changed other than my priorities.

I have two stories that are in, what I hope to be, the final revisions. So much of my free time is wrapped up in them.

Speaking of revisions, I'm in the seventh round on one story. As you can imagine it's like listening to the same song over and over. After awhile it becomes--old. I mean seriously, I rarely read any book more than once, so, after the seventh time my eyes are beginning to cross.

But there is a scripture found in I Thessalonians 5:18 that says we should give thanks for everything. This includes revisions, no matter how frustrating the prospect of opening the file may be.

I'm trying to have an attitude of gratitude even through trials and tribulations. And trust me when I say we've been going through a few. So, when I look at a manuscript that I have prayed over multiple times, and know that it still needs work, I thank God and pray that this next round will be even better than the last. However, after this morning's little foray into my manuscript, I couldn't help but wonder if maybe I'm taking two steps backwards. And I remember feeling the exact same way with the last set of revisions.

How do I know I'm progressing forward and not backward? I don't. All I can do is invite God into my circumstances and trust in His guidance, even if the revisions seem endless.

Stealing Jake by Pam Hillman

2011-10-22T21:12:00.004-05:00

I just realized that I failed to post a review of a book I read back in July. It's another one of those books that I could not put down and read straight through.

When Livy O'Brien spies a young boy jostling a man walking along the boardwalk, she recognizes the act for what it is. After all, she used to be known as Light-Fingered Livy. But that was before she put her past behind her and moved to the growing town of Chestnut, Illinois, where she's helping to run an orphanage. Now she'll do almost anything to protect the street kids like herself.

Sheriff's deputy Jake Russell had no idea what he was in for when he ran into Livy—literally—while chasing down a pickpocket. With a rash of robberies and a growing number of street kids in town—as well as a loan on the family farm that needs to be paid off—Jake doesn't have time to pursue a girl. Still, he can't seem to get Livy out of his mind. He wants to get to know her better...but Livy isn't willing to trust any man, especially not a lawman.

Stealing Jake is not only well written, but the characters are beyond likeable and have excellent motives behind their actions. I believe Livy O'Brien is one of my all time favorite characters to date. She's confident in her newfound faith, caring, loving and bit brassy when it comes to rescuing those society would have thrown away.

I love the way Hillman counteracts the ugliness of child labor in the late 19th century with the goodness of Livy and Mrs. Brooks, the woman who runs the new orphanage. And of course, I love the romance between the former pick-pocket and the deputy. Stealing Jake is a must read and a definite keeper.

I only hope that Tyndale will one day decide to print Stealing Jake so it can sit on my bookshelf with the rest of the keepers.

*Tyndale House Publishers provided me with a complimentary digital copy of this book. Their generosity has in no way shape or form, yada, yada influenced my opinion of this product.

Oh, and by the way, Pam Hillman is holding a KindlePalooza curious? Go here.

Exciting Research Find

2011-10-13T11:38:00.000-05:00

As I was writing a scene yesterday I typed a word that I had no idea if it even existed during my time period. I was 99.9% positive it had, but I needed to be 100%.

scissors-origin 1350-1400 derives from the medieval Latin word cisoria (dictionary.com)

Dictionary.com wasn't my first choice for research, instead I typed 1850 sewing scissors into my google bar. And what to my wondering eyes should appear? The Graphics Fairy!

Oh, yes! I've mentioned her before. She is a treasure trove when it comes to all kinds of vintage clipart. Why would this matter to an historical romance writer? Because I'm very visual. I love to see things. And check this out!!

Aren't they fabulous? Yeah, I know, I'm a geek like that, but not only did I find out that scissors existed in the 1850s, but I get to see what they looked like as The Graphics Fairy found these in an 1850s catalog. And there are more here. I love these images so much that I'm trying to figure out what kind of art work I'd like to create with them, and of course, where I would put them since I don't have a sewing room. Although . . . we do own an upholstery shop. I wonder if hubs would be okay with these babies decorating his walls.

Anyway, instead of writing "She opened the bedside table and retrieved the scissors" I can now write, "She opened the bedside table and retrieved the fancy scrolled scissors". Of course, this is all part of my first draft, a bit of what we writers call 'vomitting on the page'. The fancy scrolled bit may not even stay, but at least I have a visual if I need it.

A Perfect Fit

2011-10-12T12:23:00.000-05:00

I'm trying to find a balance between writing the first draft of one manuscript and revising another. It's not easy. And for the last few days I've hit a dry spot on both. Right now, that's not an option. I have to have revisions done in a few weeks, and so it takes priority, but I also set a goal for myself on the other manuscript. 15,500 words for the month of October.

It doesn't seem like a lot but when you add in the revisions of the other, it really does add up. Plus, God has been speaking loud and clear in a few other areas of my writing life. Needless to say, I have a few balls I'm juggling and trying not to drop.

But I wanted to share something with you. My story is set in 1856 and the scene I just finished up is one filled with grief. My heroine is struggling with her faith, with her belief God will carry her and those she loves through this dark time. There is a moment when she is trying to sooth her friend who is delivering her baby too early by singing a song. Because of the historical nature I needed to make sure I found a hymnal that had been written prior to this time. As soon as I saw the title My Faith Looks Up to Thee, I knew it was the right one. The lyrics proved to be more than a perfect fit.

Me Again

2011-09-27T13:58:00.000-05:00

It's me again. Yeah, I couldn't come up with a better title. I was actually going to talk about the ACFW Conference, the one I didn't get to go to, but since conferences seem to be about pressing forward, I thought I'd share with you my new focus.

I know I've talked about moving on to the next project, at least I think I have. Anyway, I'm really excited. I've made a few decisions that I'm comfortable with for the time being.

1. I'm going to work on plotting a story set around 1860s. It's set here in Kansas in a town that was once a promising center. Now, it's little more than a ghost town, but the history is rich and colorful. I also can't wait to incorporate Bleeding Kansas.

2. While I'm plotting, I'll be hard at work revising my Biblical Romance. I was a bit hesitant. However, the story won't let me go and I believe God is urging me to see this one all the way through. I'll be blogging about that particular project at Christina Rich.

3. I have another project that is in the beginning stages. It's non-fiction and completely out of my comfort-zone. I have no idea if it'll end up being just a blog forum or if it'll turn out to be a full blown book. We'll see. Whatever it is, it is all at the urging of my Lord and Savior. I won't tell y'all what it is for now. Just know I'm super excited about this project. I already have pages and pages of notes and an outline. I need to find my scripture references and write it. ;)

4. All right, this is the biggie. I'm considering changing Renee Lynn Scott to my real name. I plan on keeping the blog template and blogger, but I'm not sure what all is involved with changing the domain name. I had wanted to keep RLS for my Westerns and Pioneers and use Christina for Biblical only. Now, I'm not so sure. And since every writer from here to Katmandu has an opinion, I'm not sure what is best for me. For now I'll keep RLS, but just be aware that it might change in the near future.

I love having a focus. It seems to make me breathe easier and my head not ache as bad.

Tonight I'm going to visit the library and load up on a few research books. And wouldn't you know it they have nothing to do with the eras I'm working on. Well, I might be able to get one or two.

I'll post in the next few days and let you know what books I'm reading for research.

It's Not About Me

2011-09-17T23:59:00.000-05:00

Every now and then I read a book and I wonder what in the world I am even thinking about writing. I read one of those books this week. AND it's a debut novel. Yes, there was one minor place where I had to suspend my disbelief and another where I thought the author should have wrapped up an incident a little better. BUT, all in all, this debut author may have just set the bar for those of us who pray will come behind her.

Who is this debut author? Karen Kirst. Her book, The Reluctant Outlaw, takes place in the refreshing setting of the Smoky Mountains. Her heroine, Juliana O'Malley, is a spunky, spit-fire who never wavers from her convictions or her love of her Lord, even when she's at the mercy of a kidnapper and a gang of outlaws. Evan Harrison is a man bent on justice, need I say more?

All right, I'm not going say anything else. You're just going to have to read it. To read the back cover blurb and an excerpt click here.

Anyway, I'm not writing this post to solely talk about Karen's book. Nope. I thought I'd share a bit of my growth.

When I first began writing and I'd come across a really good book, I'd find myself in a pit for days. "I can't write like that" "I'll never be good enough" "I quit". Of course, I always picked up my head. Sometimes it was with the help of friends others it was just because I can't not write. It's so much a part of me. And with each word, each sentence, each paragraph, each chapter I know I improve.

But there is more. I don't want to write just like Karen Kirst, Renee Ryan, Vickie McDonough or Karen Witemyer. I want to write like me however that is God would have me write. I was reminded the other night that none of this is about me. None of it is about the authors listed above. It's about God and what He does through each of us.

Acid Reflux Remedies

2011-09-15T10:46:00.000-05:00

Sometimes technology gets the best of me. Like to day, I wrote a fabulous post on Amish remedies for acid reflux and how sauerkraut actually came from the Chinese, and POOF! It all disappeared into cyber space. Not a single word was saved.

Oh, well.

The wind is out of my sails. Just know that I'm looking for a cure for my acid reflux. I've decided to try sauerkraut, and then a mixture of apple cider vinegar and ginger.

If you have any ideas I'm open to suggestions, but just know I prefer a more natural approach. All those over-the-counter drugs are wreaking havoc on my insides.

What Now?

2011-09-07T13:52:00.001-05:00

Now that LATP is out on submission, I don't dare stop. What I mean by that is I must move on to the next story. My dilemma, which one?

I already have another story in the revision process which is taking me a little longer than I would like, but that is all right. I'm after a standard of excellence. Besides, I thought I could give myself a few days off. Okay, maybe more than a few days.

Anyway, I've written in the past how I'd like to have three projects in various writing stages. I'm not sure that is a realistic goal, but I'd like to try and work it with two. Since I'll be polishing up my Biblical and sending out to my critique partners over the next few months, I thought I would work on something in the pioneer era, especially since I've been told by many people to never begin a second story in a possible series until you know if you can sell the first. I'm thinking I should shelve my ideas for book 2 and book 3 in The Heart of an Outlaw series. So, that leaves me with one of several ideas I've come up with surrounding a once bustling town about twenty miles northeast of Topeka.

Supposedly, one of the founders happened to be Wild Bill Cody's father. Cody's uncle owned a printing press and his aunt ran it. This all several years before the Civil War broke out, during a time known as 'Bleeding Kansas'.

With immigrants looking for the American dream and with anti-slavery Bostonian and pro-slavery Missourians settlers all moving into grab up land in order to earn the right to vote, the era is filled with all kinds of conflict, which makes for an excellent plot.

I have one in mind that I'm itching to plot out on my index cards. And although I know it's been done before I plan on using scriptures from Proverbs 31: 8-31with a bit of a twist. BUT, I have a story that I've already begun and I'd love to finish it. I just don't know if the publishing world is ready for it as it is a bit out of the box when it comes to writing inspirationals.

On one hand I want to write something that might be sellable and on the other I want to finish what I've started. Above all I want to glorify God with my words and after many prayers I have no leading on which direction I should go. Do I step out and just write or do I wait?

Golden Claddagh 2nd Place

2011-09-05T22:29:00.002-05:00

The results are in. Bewitching the Highlander took 2nd place in Golden Claddagh's Celtic category. Feedback is on it's way, hopefully it's something along the lines of keep pressing on.

A Little Girl's Dream

2011-08-31T22:57:00.002-05:00

Annie Oakley and I were brainstorming some ideas of how to increase her fundraising donations for her dance team. And she said, too bad I wasn't little anymore.

*sniff, sniff* Too bad. Those were the days when I helped her get ready for performances, when I brushed blush onto her pale cheruby cheeks, when I shoved her tiny arms through the armholes and slipped on her itty-bitty tap shoes. Those were the days when smiles came naturally and that all to infamous teenage scowl was nowhere to be seen.

Besides her curly red hair, her love for dance hasn't changed. If anything, her passion for the art has only grown deep and rooted into her soul.

She's no longer that adorable little dancer that received ooos and aaaahs. No, now she has a grace and maturity that only comes from one who feels the movements in her blood. And when it comes to ballet, instead of ooos and aaaahs, she now makes people catch their breath.

Ever since she sat enthralled at her first showing of The Nutcracker her dream has been to dance. She has since learned to appreciate the varying dance forms outside of ballet. Now it doesn't matter if she twirls with the fluidity of the classics, pops to hip hop, digs with the Roaring Twenties, or shuffling she loves to dance. She can't hear a song without choreographing moves in her head. She breathes and sleeps dance.

Her passion is no different than mine for the written word. It's so much a part of us we can't not do it. It's who God created us to be.

Simple Sunday Sermon

2011-08-07T19:43:00.000-05:00

I tossed things around and I kept coming back to a simple phrase. It's been my prayer over the last several months as I finished LATP. So, why not share?

Psalm 86:12 I will praise you, O Lord my God, with all my heart; I will glorify your name forever.

I know some may not understand my need to glorify God and to have his glory shine through my writing, but without Him I'm nothing. Without Him I have nothing. It is because of God that I've been called to write.

So I've poured prayers over my words that God may be glorified. Whether others understand or not, I only seek to do God's will so that He may be glorified.

While I'm sharing, that neat little image on the left was found at The Vintage Moth. I know I have some crafties following me, so be sure to check it out. I'd also be interested in seeing the creative ideas y'all come up with. I've got a few things in mind myself. I'll post pictures when I come up with them.

Another sharing note, I'll be at Susan Hollaway's blog tomorrow.

Blessed Sunday,

Renee

Getting Closer

2011-08-07T01:44:00.000-05:00

It's getting there. The tabs on the sidebar are driving me a little nutty as they open a new window and that isn't something I want. I'm sure it is a small technicality. I hope.

Anyway, it's Sunday and I have yet to lay my head down on the pillow from Saturday. My eyes are heavy and dry. I fully intend on once again bringing Sunday Sermon to the blog. Hopefully my brain will work a little better after a few hours of sleep.

Renee

Still Under Construction

2011-08-05T15:42:00.001-05:00

Between a slower than usual internet connection and the difficult task of making design decisions the construction process is moving at a snail's pace. I am getting there. Just beware that as you look around some links link to nothing and others need to be cleaned up.

Hope all is well with you.

Renee

Under Construction

2011-08-02T12:46:00.000-05:00

I've talked, not too long ago, about writing under mulitple names and in varied genres. I've put off blogging here as I've been working like mad on revisions. Now that I'm about ready to submit my manuscript I have the time to hopefully set my little space up in a more cohesive manner. So, please hang with me as I revamp this area.

Thank you,

Renee

Revising

2011-06-24T08:46:00.000-05:00

I thought I should give y'all a little update on what I'm doing. I haven't completely fallen off the face of the Earth, I've just been working on my manuscript. I think you'd be pleased to know that I've finally completed the first draft and have now moved on to revisions.

So far revisions have been rather painless, but then I'm only 1/4 of the way through, which has been revised, critiqued, revised and so on. I hope to get through the rest of the story in the next week so that I can send it off to my cps. The closer I get to sending it off the more excited/nervous I become.

I know over all they'll like the story, I just pray they don't find any major plot problems or historical inaccuracies.

Dueling Identities

2011-05-29T13:57:00.000-05:00

Have you ever met yourself coming and going? It seems that is all I have been doing. It's like my two identities are stuck in a revolving door.

I've been trying to figure out my place in this writing world, which has left me in the driver's seat wandering around aimlessly. That's not to say that I have been ignoring my writerly-self. I've just been making a lot of pit-stops along the way.

Some of those stops have been constructive. Others not so much. I guess all this confusion and aimless wandering is a consequence of my indecisiveness. If there is one thing I dislike, it's making decisions especially when the pros and cons balance out.

When I first began writing, I had decided, without a doubt, to use a pen name. Out of that decision birthed Renee Lynn Scott. At the time, I was dipping my pen into Scottish historicals. Not because they were popular. Not because I thought I could write them better than anyone else. No, I began writing them because I have a weird kind of connection to that magical land of Celts, both Scottish and Irish alike. The fables passed down through the ages thrum through my blood. It's a part of me. A part of who I am.

Ever since I can remember I've had visions of standing on the craggy cliffs as the mist from the frigid ocean bathed my cheeks, so it was quite natural for me to be drawn to Scotland.

(I'm trying to stay on track, but y'all know me. I'm the queen of rabbit trailing.)

Then one day (or I should say night), D paid me a visit. She stood on a hill with her back toward me. Her chestnut tresses whipped near horizontal with the steady gust of wind. Her ankle-length prairie skit tangled around her legs. She beckoned me. Not with her eyes, nor with her hands. No, she called out to me with her isolated silence. She asked me to write her story and to give her a happily ever after.

My dilemma? She wasn't in Scotland. No, she stood on a hill, virtually in my backyard. A place I had sworn to never use as a setting. So, before the ink on the Scottish historical was even dry, I hopped across the ocean, navigated the Mississippi and found myself in Kansas, a place I had thought was as drab and dreary as the cracked earth in the desert.

Renee was no longer just a Scottish historical writer, she was now a Western writer.

And then, came this undeniable calling to write a Biblical Inspirational Romance (that is another story for another day).

So . . . you can see why I've been roaming around as if I don't have a clue. I've been torn between two identities and three-four genres. The good news is for the last few months I've been following a map. I've remained focused and haven't taken any pit-stops, which means I'm almost complete with one project, which means, hopefully, soon it will be out on submission.

Somehow I've got to find a way to share my time with myself. Not an easy thing to do when writing time always seems so very limited. But I'll figure it out a way to halt the battle between my two identities and bring them into constructive working order.

What Would Dee Do?

2011-03-18T00:43:00.002-05:00

I finished up a pretty darn good scene the other night. I love it. Every bit of it from beginning to end. But now I'm wondering what in the world my heroine is going to do next. I know who she is and I know how she'd act in most given situations but I need her to end up in a bad place. A place where the hero needs to ride in and rescue her, after of course he realizes that she needs rescuing. But she's not one to allow herself to get into the kind of trouble I need her to get into so I have to up the anty a little, give her a reason to go quietly and not kickin' and screamin'.

Are you with me? I thought so. *g*

So my gun toting heroine has to some how allow herself to get kidnapped, but why would she?

Because she doesn't have her pistol? No. I don't think that would stop her from putting up a fight.

Because she's not paying attention? Possibly, especially since she's discovering there is more to life than . . . well, whatever it is she's been doing all this time before the hero rode in on a menacing iron horse.

But, I think there has to be more. So what if it's because she doesn't want to risk someone or several someones to end up at the mercies of the villain?

I think I know what Dee would do, but I think I'll mull over it one more night.

To Pseudo or not to Pseudo

2011-03-08T10:59:00.000-06:00

It's been a long while hasn't it? Well, sometimes life gets in the way. I've also come to the realization that there are times in a writer's life when we slip into heavy contemplations. I say heavy because we often, (at least I do), sit in contemplation mode until I can make a decision. And decisions, no matter how minor, are one of those things I dislike.

I suppose you expect me to tell you here and now that I've quit writing, but that's not the case. In fact quite the opposite. I've just been working on a plethora of things that my time hasn't been conducive to blogging.

Which brings me to my contemplations.

When I first started writing I wasn't sure who I was. Over the last few years I've grown, not only as a writer but as a person. I no longer try to blend in with the wall-flowers (all right, there are occasions). I've also grown in my relationship with my God. But the journey here has been confusing, not only for me but I'm sure for my readers as well. You get what you see, right? I'm real. I'm not fake. Yeah, I might use a pen name but that has nothing to do with hiding and everything to do with branding.

Let me explain. My university novel, my first, was a Scottish set in 1603. My real name doesn't say Scottish Historicals like say Kathy Maxwell. And when I decided to start writing Westerns, my real name still doesn't say Cowboys and feisty damsels that don't know they're in distress. But writing Ancient Biblical romance, yeah, my real name works.

It took me a long while to decide whether or not to keep my pen name. When I asked for advice it often came down to one question: What do you have to hide? Well, nothing. At least not that I know of. But I just couldn't bring myself to do away with my pen name. I mean come on, I like it. And it means something to me. So I waited. In confusion. And I waited. And wondered, would I have to hang the pen name from the nearest tree?

Thanks to a discussion on one of my writers' loops and to a few industry professionals who answered, I've made my decision. Renee Lynn Scott is here to stay unless a future agent/editor asks me to do away with it.

Renee will continue writing romantice Westerns and Pioneer full of faith. And if you're interested in my journey writing Biblical Romance, you can find me here.

Hopefully now that I've made a firm decision about my writing there will be less confusion in my brain.

A Rare Sighting

2010-10-22T11:27:00.000-05:00

I saw something last night that I don't see much of around here anymore, unless of course the 4-H fair is in session. And by here, I mean in the city, not that Topeka is a big city but it's the biggest in these here parts.

I guess you're wanting to know what it is I saw. No, it wasn't a fox or a coyote, although they do tend to roam around in our little neighborhood. And it wasn't a bobcat. I've heard tales that they exist in our neck of the woods, but I have yet to see one. AND no, it wasn't a sasquatch (yes, I've heard those tales too)! Just to let you know, I sleep well at nights because we are surrounded by treeless fields, and I'm quite certain Bigfoot would not venture too close to a place he cannot hide from human eyes.

So what was it I saw, you ask? A cowboy. Not one of those I'm a hunter-wanna-be-cowboys, and not one of those I'm-a-hick-with-a-plot-of-land-and-a-four wheeler kind of cowboy, but a real honest to goodness cowboy.

Why is this of interest to me? A few months back I had an idea for a romantic suspense story. One that I want to set in Kansas, but I needed it to be unique. So I had decided that a cowboy would suit my hero nicely, but as I scoped out possible visual players for my hero all I kept coming up with was the typical Wranglers, t-shirt, baseball cap and boots. Not that there is anything wrong with that, but I wanted something more. Someone like a younger version of Mantracker.

But did someone like that exist in Northeast Kansas, or were the wide-rimmed-cowboy-hat, wrangler-wearing-cowboys found only in Hollywood and the ranches of Montanna? After several months of searching I found him, and it wasn't at my local Tractor Supply. Nope, this cowboy was driving a newer diesel pick-up extended cab, pulling a trailer behind it. And he had on a white wide-rimmed cowboy hat. In the few seconds it took him to drive by, I noticed a few other things too. In the middle seat was a baseball cap wearing cowboy, and next to him was another cowboy with a black cowboy hat. There was no need for him to pull over for me to investigate what kind of jeans he was wearing; they were Wranglers, no doubt.

The funny thing is, as much as I thought he was an oddity, he looked at me and my walking partner as if we had stepped straight off of the mothership. *grins*

Whether or not I had actually found my cowboy, I still would have used one in my story (only mine would be wearing a nice pair of Levi's), but at least now I know they do exist. They might be a rare sight outside of the local rodeo, but they're a real thing.

A Few Pictures

2010-10-03T22:42:00.006-05:00

Kansas Pioneer Encounters

2010-08-31T23:55:00.005-05:00

One of the best research tools I've found for Kansas Pioneers has been Books of the Kansas Collection. Most of them are diaries written by pioneers. Some are stories passed along. All the ones I've come across have been very entertaining.

The following excerpts come from one woman's account. You can tell from her musings she was a woman who knew how to find humor in even the worse of situations. I have a feeling, though, that with constant cannon fire and cholera, rattlesnakes were the least of this author's fears.

This first selection comes from Kansas: Its Interior and Exterior by Sara T. L. Robinson. The author, as you can see, seems to have been a guest of a state prison. For those of you who do not know much about this era in Kansas history, it was during a time known as Bleeding Kansas. A time when pro-slavery and anti-slavery factions warred fiercly. If Mrs. Sara Robinson was a prisoner at Lecompton, Kansas' first capital, a pro-slavery capital, then she most likely held the values of the anti-slavery camp dear to her heart. Bleeding Kansas deserves many, many blogs of its own.

Its pages were penned during a three months' residence of the authoress in the United States Camp, at Lecompton, with her husband, one of the state prisoners.
Preface

This first was written in the month of June possibly in the year 1856.

7th. -- Mr. H. was very ill with an attack of pleurisy. Doctor being absent, I felt anxious, yet did the best I could. A mustard plaster and some simples removed the difficulty of breathing, and he slept quietly. He said he never was as sick before, but I was thinking he imagined himself sicker than he was just before night, and as I was wondering where E. could be, she came in, pale and almost breathless, with just enough left of life to say, "O, that rattlesnake!" I laughed at her at first; but being convinced that seeing a snake of some kind was a reality to her, and not quite liking the idea of their making a home in our neighborhood, we started out with shovel and hatchet for a battle. The spot where she saw him was very easily found, as the pail she had in her hand, while coming up the path from the spring, she set down when she came upon him. She had heard a buzzing noise, like that made by a large grasshopper, for some minutes; but her attention was attracted by a small bird flying backward and forward across the path, and no great height above it, and did not, therefore, perceive the snake until she was within a foot of him. Hastily setting down the pail, as he lay there coiled ready to spring, she took another path to the house. We looked along both paths, above and below, and far out on the hill-side, but found nothing. His fright was undoubtedly equal to hers, not being particularly partial to the cold bath she gave him in getting down her pail so hastily.

10th. -- Was awakened by a little tree-toad on my pillow this morning. He must have climbed up the low roof of the ell part, and in at the window. I found a mouse in the tub, and a swallow came into the kitchen flapping his wings wildly, and seeming much frightened, as we were at breakfast. I am wondering if all the "four-footed beasts and creeping things " have appointed a place of rendezvous upon our premises; and suggest, laughingly, that "the rattlesnakes will come next." Scarcely had we finished breakfast, before the cry from near the wood-pile was, "Here's a snake!" It measured about eighteen inches in length, was ugly looking, and had four rattles.

June 12th

Many people were in, in the evening. The wind was blowing, and I heard a rustling near me. I looked, but saw nothing. An hour later, as I relinquished my seat, and went to make arrangements for extra beds, a gentleman very positively said, "I hear a rattlesnake." Near where I had been sitting, the yellow-spotted reptile had crawled in between the last floor-board and the siding, and already his head had reached the window-casing. We had serious objections to his farther progress towards the chambers, or to his greater length of days. After a moment's more envenomed rattling, all was still. Like the other, he had four rattles, and was undoubtedly looking for his lost mate. One of the gentlemen, Judge Conway, to whom the front room had been appropriated as a sleeping apartment, the mattresses being removed each morning, felt nervous about such companions for bed-fellows, and, to be prepared against the possible contingency of another similar visit, turned his boot-tops into one another upon retiring.

Although this one does not speak of an encounter, it is interesting as you will see.

18th. -- The morning sun never shone more brightly than now. We found everything in the house damp, but had taken no cold. The cholera patient was doing well. The gentleman of the house assured me he slept well, but it was a mystery to me where he found a dry nook. Had a fine ride home in the early morning light, which gives to every object a double value. "Old Gray" nibbled at the "compass plant," which always points northward in these prairies, occasionally cropping its bright yellow flowers with a satisfied air as he trotted along. The rattlesnake weed was also blooming in profusion. Nature is ever mindful of the needs of her children, and provides an antidote against the bane of rattlesnakes, and a sure guide over the wide prairie in the compass plant. When I reached home, found the doctor gone to attend upon a broken limb. A man, in rafting logs down the river, had met with this misfortune. The doctor has many calls professionally, and, though he assures them all that he is not now a practicing physician, he looks in upon many to advise them.

A note on the compass plant. First, the picture came from Oklahoma Biological Survey. Second, I have found several occasions where pioneers often believed off the wall tales, or remedies. Like how tying a raw chicken to your abdomen would draw rattlesnake venom from the body after having been bittern. So when I saw the little tidbit about the compass plant alway pointing north, I had to investigate further. And they were at least partly right. The flowers do point in a north-south direction. Most of the time.

Blogging Elsewhere

2010-08-30T00:14:00.000-05:00

Zoe Winters' is giving away a Kindle

2010-08-28T19:38:00.000-05:00

Check out Zoe's blog Blood Lust Blitz for a chance to win a Kindle. What are you waiting for? Go! NOW!

Kansas Rattlesnakes

2010-08-24T23:16:00.000-05:00

Then I had my first introduction to rattlesnakes. I was sitting in the door, and the children were playing just outside when I heard that horrible rattle. I did not have to be told what it was. I grabbed the children into the house and put them up on the bed, and took hold of a board, as it was all I could get hold of. By the time I had done that it was inside the house and running across the floor. I kept striking at it and missing it for quite a while; I felt I must kill it or some of us would be bitten. At last I killed it, although I nearly killed myself. Then I told the children that I would never live in a place where the rattlesnakes came into the house, that we would get to the timber where their father was and tell him so. Well, we had not gone a hundred yards when we saw another one, stretched out sunning itself, so we passed by on the other side, but we had not crossed the field until we say the third one, all of them large. The one we killed had seven rattles; that is as large as they generally are on the prairies. Although that was our first sight of a rattlesnake, it was not our last. For a number of years, they were plentiful. They were round about us, sometimes under our feet, sometimes gathered up in a bundle of something we were handling, sometimes in our houses. The strangest part of it was that none of us were ever bitten.
Nancy "Mary Ann" Davis Wisner's Recollections of Pioneer Life

I'm telling you up front there is no way on God's green Earth I'm getting close enough to a rattlesnake to snap pictures. Not even through a glass window.

So for sanity's sake, y'all can go here Great Plains Nature Preserve.

Kansas is home to three different species of rattlesnakes. One is found in the eastern half of the state. One is found in the eastern and central part of Kansas, and the last one is found only in the western part.

If you choose to use a rattlesnake in your book, then you need to be sure what part of the state your story is set.

Since my story is set in the eastern part of Kansas we'll look at the Timber Rattlesnake first and then the Massasaugas (what a name). And wouldn't you know that the Timber, the largest of the rattlers, would be found in my neck of the woods. *shivers*

This one's coloring is kind of a dull gray, but you can see the chevron markings.

This next one is vivid and you can clearly see the stripe down the center of its body. As far as rattlesnakes go, its kind of beautiful (never thought I'd say that)!

* I got this picture from Snakes of Lake Martin many of the snakes pictured on this link are similar to those I've seen in Kansas.

According to the Great Plains Nature Preserve, this baby is in need of conservation. Now, I'm all for conservation as long as its not in my backyard. If it comes down to me or the snake, the snake has got to go.

This next snake, the Massasaugas, is found throughout eastern and central Kansas. It also happens to be the smallest of the trio.

Again, this one has some beautiful coloring. They also tend toward browns, which I think would a little more difficult to spot in and amongst the brush. I think if I had a choice, I'd rather come across this one. It's smaller than the Timber and easier to see than its brown sibling.

*Picture from wikimedia

I can also say that this little rattler is doing just fine in the conservation area.

The last of Kansas' rattlers can be found in the western half of the state, and for that I'm very grateful.

As you can see by his coloring he probably blends in nicely with the prairie landscape, even more so than the Massasauga. *Picture from wikipedia

The Prairie Rattlesnake is also doing fine in the whole conservation area.

And, just in case you think these creatures are small, let me put it all in perspective for you.

The Massasauga, which is the smallest of the rattlers, measures up to 33 1/2 inches. Yeah, I'm thinking that's a bit too long myself, but compared to the Prairie and the Timber, it's a piece of cake. The Prairie, the one that takes up residence in the western half of Kansas measures up to 57 1/8. I suppose you're wondering what the Timber measure in at. No? Well, I'm going to tell you anyway, if I don't you'll google, so I'll save you the trouble. 63 1/2"! The record for the Timber is 74 1/2"

The Lawman's Redemption by Pam Crooks

2010-08-17T00:38:00.000-05:00

Grace Reilly is every inch a lady from Minneapolis’ High Society, but when her brother—her only living kin—seeks her help, little does she know he’s about to embroil her in his thirst for revenge against the man he believes responsible for their mother’s death.

Jack Hollister gave up his dream of being a lawman after he shot his outlaw father dead. Now he’s quite content living the cowboy life. But like any man with the law running through his blood he can’t walk away from an investigation. Especially when there is a damsel in distress. Even if she intends to shoot him dead where he stands.

“Grace, honey.” Jack smoothed her hair with slow, gentle strokes. “Reckon

you’re feeling about as low as anyone can get about now. But for what it’s worth to you, I’m here. And I’m not leaving until you feel better.”

She wanted him to go.

She wanted him to stay.

Mostly she wanted him to hold her.

“You d-don’t have to be nice to me, you know.” Grace hiccupped. “I just tried to shoot you dead.”

“Yeah, I know.” His thumb stopped a stream of tears and wiped them away. “I’m not real happy about that, but I guess I’ll have to forget about it for now.”

“Stay with me tonight,” she whispered.

“Don’t think you could keep me away.”

Sprinkled with historical figures, The Lawman’s Redemption is set in the Montana frontier. This Western is my first Pam Crooks book, and I am hooked. I love the world she has built around Great Falls, from the rutted snow covered streets to the small details of the barbershop. But let’s not stop there; Jack Hollister is one heck of a hero who knows how to get what he wants, and he has an eye for detail, especially where Grace is concerned. And Grace Reilly, well, she’s a perfect blend of outward composure and inner strength, even in light of her insecurities. She’s not afraid to face her adversaries, but of course, she knows Jack will come to her rescue.

The emotional strands of longing and forgiveness left me wanting more. The intimate details from simple hand holding to wiping away a tear wrapped around my heart and left me breathless. Even though The Lawman’s Redemption is the third in this trilogy, I hope Crooks continues to write stories set in Great Falls, Montana.

*On a side note, isn't that cover hot?

You can purchase The Lawman's Redemption here.

Blogging Elsewhere

2010-08-05T00:24:00.000-05:00

I haven't forgotten about those lovely, slithery, poisonous vipers, but I've had my head buried in the sand. I wish I could say that I've been revising, but I haven't. Not since Monday. And, if you saw my post over at New Kids on the Writer's Block, you know that I challenged my fellow writers to an eight thousand word challenge. Not well thought out by me, especially knowing I have several book reviews due in five days. Definitely not well thought out on my part.

Today, I'm over at Romance Roundtable talking about Musical Inspiration. I'd love it if you stopped by.

Dream Board

2010-08-01T00:05:00.001-05:00

Rattlesnakes

2010-07-26T23:15:00.002-05:00

The day before, a large rattlesnake, attracted by the genial warmth near the stove, had, without waiting for invitation, or being assured of a welcome, crawled in through a huge crack, and stretched out his three feet of length. With a scream or two on the part of the lady, and some dexterous and telling blows by a stronger arm, his snakeship was rendered harmless, though a most ugly object. I noticed a bottle of medicine on the little white-covered table, and over it pinned upon the wall a recipe for rattlesnake bites, and a sure cure.

Kansas: Its Interior and Exterior Life by Sara Robinson

Chapter V Kansas Homes

You might be wondering why I'm placing information about rattlesnakes on my blog. It's all in the name of research. I have a scene with a few rattlesnakes and I wanted it to be as close to realistic as possible. My findings, both with the snakes and the people who encountered them, amazed me. Poor dh has had an ear full.

*Picture taken from Herp Journal

Anyway, over the next few posts I'll be posting on rattlesnakes. So if they give you the hebbie jebbies, I'm giving you fair warning now.

Post 1- rattlesnakes indigenous to Kansas

Post 2- encounters

Post 3- popular treatments amongst settlers

Post 4- the round-up

Smithy Part 2

2010-07-26T03:22:00.001-05:00

See, I went and got distracted when I wrote my last post. I completely forgot to add my thoughts as to why the windows were so low. After searching through the Internet for other pictures of blacksmiths I realized not all blacksmith windows were made so low. Some shops were in the shape of barns with windows not only along the sides but at the top as well.

As I'm sure you can imagine, the temperatures inside the blacksmith can make a hot, humid Kansas day in June feel like a blistering cold day in icy January day.

And the smithy didn't shut down in extreme heat.

Not when wagon wheels could break on any day of the year, not to mention all the other items needed, during the warmer months, when homes and businesses were most likely built.

My theory on why these windows were built so low; hot air rises. If ventilation (open windows) were lower, this would ideally propel the hot air out of the already extremely hot smithy. Of course, my theory could be totally wrong. I'm sure many factors come into play such as the temperatures outside along with the humidity.

The Blacksmith

2010-07-18T23:51:00.000-05:00

It's been a while since I've done a post about the trip to Abilene. Obviously from the title of my post I've chosen to talk about the blacksmith.

I've read plenty of historical romances where a blacksmith played a part. Some made swords and armor. Some shoed horses and made wagons, others made wrought iron gates and tools.

Out on the western frontier a blacksmith was just as important, if not more so, than a sawmill. I won't go into the whole forging process etc, etc. I need to do a little more research. But I did find something interesting about the construction of the of the blacksmith building, something I had never even thought about.

Take a look at this original structure. I purposely had Little Annie Oakley pose in front of the window. Annie is kind of on the short side and she is standing a several inches in front of the window, which means the window is closer to the ground than it may appear. All the windows of the blacksmith buidling were close to the ground.

Now I know this isn't a grand discovery and it's not like I'll ever describe how low to the ground the windows are. Call me a geek if you will, but hey, I thought it was so very cool.

Teaser Tuesday

2010-07-13T06:49:00.001-05:00

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:
*Grab your current read
*Open to a random page
*Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
*Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Dakota Cowboy by Linda Ford

He held her tight both to calm her shudders and to still the blessed lurch of pleasure at the weight of her in his grasp; the alarming, unfamiliar way his heart swelled against his ribs as if it were reaching out toward her heart to calm it. To cherish it. pg. 100

Teaser Tuesday

2010-07-06T01:40:00.000-05:00

No matter. Though she was quite right to say he was insane to take on such a damaged bride, he had no regrets. (pg 51)

Back cover blurb-As the sole remaining heir to the Earl of Daventry, Alexander Randall knows his duty: find a wife and sire a son of his own. The perfect bride for a man in his position would be a biddable young girl of good breeding. But the woman who haunts his imagination is Julia Bancroft - a village midwife with a dark secret that thrusts her into Randall's protection. Within the space of a day, Julia has been abducted by her first husband's cronies, rescued, and proposed to by a man she scarcely knows. Stranger still is her urge to say yes. A union with Alexander Randall could benefit them both, but Julia doubts she can ever trust her heart again, or the fervent desire Randall ignites. Yet perhaps only a Lost Lord can show a woman like Julia everything a true marriage can be...

4th of July

2010-07-05T20:55:00.001-05:00

Come back tomorrow for Teaser Tuesday.

I hope you enjoyed your 4th of July. Y'all know how much I love to share pictures. Well, here are some from last night's fireworks.

All photos on this page belong to Renee Lynn Scott and may not be reproduced in any way shape or form without permission.

Silly Glaring Errors

2010-07-01T12:50:00.000-05:00

I'm siting here waiting for the finalists to be announce in one of the contests I entered. As the days came closer and closer, I began to doubt. Of course, I've gone back over my entries and fussed over them. And each time doubt pressed heavier.

This morning, I realized something, I have two characters with the exact same name. EEEK! You do not know how many times I've looked over this manuscript, or how many times my critique partners have gone over it with a fine tooth comb.

It's silly mistakes like these that drive me nuts. What in the world must the judges think? I know I would have been confused. Even though I only reference the one character once. It's funny how we see things in other manuscripts and don't see them in our own.

I no longer have hopes of finalling, and not just because of that particular glaring error, but because of a few others. And to make matters worse, I entered this manuscript in another contest. I'm embarrassed at such a stupid mistake. I guess the up side is, at least I caught it now.

Teaser Tuesday

2010-06-29T00:49:00.001-05:00

This weeks Teaser Tuesday comes from Debra Clopton. Cowboy For Keeps.

She suspected he was probably stunned to find out that he wasn't invincible. Over achievers often thought they were untouchable.

Backcover blurb:

Rancher and lawyer Wyatt Turner found both his younger brothers their wives. Now, they're sneakily trying to repay the favor--with the wrong woman. Amanda Hathaway is a too-young and bubbly physical therapist. And, yes, Wyatt is her too-stubborn, too bossy patient recuperating from a plane crash. Yet when Amanda shares some of her own invisible wounds, including the loss of her dream of having children, Wyatt realizes he doesn't know everything. But he knows he wants Amanda, for keeps.
You can find it at your local stores during the rest of June, or order it from Amazon here.

Look for my review of Cowboy For Keeps in the near future.

I Love You, I HATE You

2010-06-28T10:41:00.000-05:00

"Oh, I hate you." I thrust my fingers through my hair and pulled out the ends.

The perfectly formatted manuscript, the one I've spent months of to perfect, gave me a blank stare, as if asking, "Who me?"

My frustration deflated like a balloon. "I know. I know, it's not your fault. I'm wishy-washy. I loved you last week. But there is something not quite right."

I sat there reading over my manuscript. AGAIN. This time, with a different kind of eye. I wasn't sure what it was I was looking for, but I had just come off a several day stint of juding a few contest entries. And I had a renewed sense of hope that I'd find places I could tighten, places I could make come alive.

I mean, this wasn't my first ride at the rodeo, you know? Several weeks ago, I had looked at my manuscript with a sense of pride. It was good. I knew it was good. But this time, this one time, after reading other people's manuscript I couldn't help wonder if it was good enough.

Especially when I had come across a typo. All right there were several typos. There were also places that bogged the story down. Did I really need this bit of dialogue? Did it move the my story forward? Did I need this bit of introspection? Was it too over the top? Did it weaken my hero? Did it make my heroine petty?

I went on to cut a lot. Several pages worth. And it was hard. Those pages were good pages, but I needed something better. I needed something that would stand above the rest.

Did I accomplish my feat? I'm not sure. I have no idea if it will stand out. There's always something better out there. I guess the real question is, am I pleased with what I've done. And I can say, YES. I once again LOVE my manuscript. Will I hate it again next week? Possibly. But I believe in my manuscript, enough not to give up, which is vital to success. If you don't love your work, you can't believe in it. And if you don't believe in it, you won't go to bat for it, which most likely means it will remain on the bench.

You have to believe in your work.

A Surprising Research Find

2010-06-23T01:04:00.000-05:00

When I decided to have my heroine rob a train, I figured her lack of robbing skills would be a bit more effective is she had at least one pistol. The problem with having only one and a pistol, is she'd be lucky to get off her one and only shot. What if she needed two? Or maybe even three? And since my heroine is a bit on the brassy side, I figured she couldn't rob a train without pulling the trigger at least once, which meant she'd be in a lot of hot water when it came to high-tail it off the train.

As I was searching I continually asked myself if this what my heroine would use. I decided against any pistols. I needed her to have revolvers. My heroine pinches pennies, so I knew the guns wouldn't be anything she would have splurged on, especially since she really doesn't condone violence, except when necessary, of course.

I thought if she 'borrowed' the weapons from her deceased mentor that it would add more depth to the entire scene and possibly even into her character. Given the time frame my choices were somewhat limited but not too limited.

I chose the 6 shot 1851 Navy Revolver. It was a popular gun during the Civil War and among lawmen such as Wild Bill Hickok.

If you're a history enthusiast, you can imagine my excitement when we ran across one of the reenactors with this in his pocket. I can't remember what he said it was, for some reason I believe he said it was a '57 Colt, but I could very well be wrong.

It's tiny. Easy to conceal in the folds of a woman's skirt. Small enough for a woman's hand in the event she encountered blackguards out on the wild frontier.

Supposedly it was favored by newspaper men too. At least this one seemed to favor it. I never thought there would be too much of a need for a newspaper man to carry a weapon. But this was the Wild West. And if you think about it most presses contained their political standing within their names. If someone didn't like a point of view, most likely the printing facility would be burnt, or the press man would be shot. But that is a blog for another day.

(This picture taken by Little Annie Oakley)

A few doors down from Mr. Potter (that's not his actual name) was another man loading his gun with blanks. I didn't get a very clear shot of the gun, and although the man answered a few of my questions, I had a feeling I was bothering him. BUT, I did discover his gun was none other than my 1851 Navy.

I was able to watch him prepare his gun for a little while. It was interesting to watch.

You can kind of see him in this second picture (another taken by LAA) tapping the powder dispenser flask into the revolver. I wish I could have asked him a few more questions (or even got to take a closer look), but since he had a show to put on, I figured he was pressed for time so I left him alone.

I went to Abilene knowing I'd come away with some great research material, but seeing this was a surprising find, kind of like the whip cream. The train was the cherry.

If you'd like to see some more about the 1851 Colt Navy click here.

Teaser Tuesday

2010-06-22T11:12:00.001-05:00

From Never Let You Go by Erin Healy

Lexi was at home, tethered to the kitchen phone by a cord too short to reach a chair, and by the time he finished she was on her knees on the cold, sticky floor, pressing her brow into the cupboard door and gripping the overhanging counter above her head.

pg 123

Read a review here.

Pet Peeves

2010-06-21T00:25:00.002-05:00

Is there anyone out there that doesn't have a pet peeve or two?

Isn't she adorable?

I won't gross you out by posting disgusting pictures from the web. You know, like ones with the toilet seat left up, or toothpaste droppings all over the bathroom sink.

What's funny is I didn't realize how many pet peeves I really had until my son became a teenager. The girls' little idiosyncrasies never really bother me, at least not to the point where I want to gnash my teeth. My son would say I'm showing favoritism, but seriously, they don't leave the toilet seat up where mom just might fall into the toilet bowl in a half sleep state-of-mind.

I also don't have to worry about them drinking out of the milk carton. And, like normal people, the girls brush their teeth at the bathroom sink and not in the shower. I guess one good thing about him brushing his teeth in the shower is that I don't have to worry about all those toothpaste dropping in the bathroom sink.

I will say that my son doesn't scarf down his food, and he chews with his mouth closed. And he doesn't smack his gum (when the kids were little they weren't allowed to have gum if they smacked :)). Dh, on the other hand, isn't allowed to chew gum around me. Well, if he has it, I go to another room. He always says he's not chewing gum to impress anyone, and I can't stand the smacking. It's like nails on a chalkboard.

As I was searching for the toothpaste, I got to thinking, and then to wondering. I give my characters little things like a roll of the shoulders or tapping fingers. I know I give them fears and enjoyments. But I'm not sure that I have ever given any of my characters a pet peeve. I'm not sure that they would have to have any at all, but for some reason I believe it would give my characters a little more depth.

What do you think? Do your characters have pet peeves? Any you'd like to share?

Love On A Dime by Cara Lynn James

2010-06-08T14:14:00.002-05:00

In age of elegance and excess, Lilly Westbrook longs for a love both true and eternal.

Newport, Rhode Island, 1899, is a place of shimmering waves, sleek yachts, and ladies of leisure. Of opulent mansions that serve as summer cottages for the rich and famous. Home of railroad magnates and banking tycoons--dashing young men and the women who aspire to marry them.

But it's not the place for lady novelists. Especially not those who pen disreputable dime novels. This poses a problem for Lilly Westbrook, because that's exactly what she does.

No one in Lilly's social set knows she pens fiction under the nom de plume Fannie Cole. Not her family or the wealthy young man about to propose to her. And especially not Jackson Grail, the long-lost beau who just bought her publishing company...and who stirs her heart more than she cares to admit.

But Lilly must put aside her feelings and follow the path that will maintain her family's social stature and provide the financial security that everyone is depending on.

Now Lilly faces a double dilemma. Can she continue to protect her secret identity? And will she have the courage to choose the man who will risk it all just to win her heart?

With social rules to follow and the threat of being ostracized, Lily Westbrook walks a fine line between truth and lies. By keeping her secret from her family, she deceives them. But in her heart she believes she is doing the Lord's will by helping those in need.

Lily's conflict is realistic and one that crosses the ages. Remember how Michal chastised David for dancing before the Ark? In her eyes it wasn't proper and she felt embarassed. Her eyes weren't necessarily upon the Lord. Love on a Dime isn't just a story about Lily and Jackson's growth in the Lord. It's a story about how one women defies societal conventions, even if it is in secret, and reaches out to touch those less fortunate than herself. I'm not saying whether Lily's actions are right or they are wrong, and I won't give away any spoilers here, but she never once wavered in her belief that what society saw as wrong was what God willed her to do.

To be honest, I didn't know what to expect from Cara Lynn James, but I have to say Love on a Dime is quite the surprising debut novel. Although it isn't fabulously extraordinary, it will find its way on my keeper shelf once I've passed it around to my family and friends.

In today's market where many books are written with fast paced plots and pay little attention to detail, Love on a Dime is a delightful stroll on the beach. Set in Rhode Island during the Gilded Age, Cara Lynn James brings to life the social setting of the elite and those trying to gain entrance. I appreciate all the little accouterments that are so often left off the pages. I didn't feel robbed of the little details. And although there were plenty of twists and turns, I definitely didn't feel overstuffed with it. Whether a writer or not, one can' help but relate to the lovely Lilly Westbrook. And what an unlikely, and very captivating, hero Jackson Grail makes.

Now for the down side. There were a few times when I felt the conflict between Lily and Jackson could have easily been resolved. That being said, all in all the story is charming and very well written. I see a promise of fabulously extraordinary novels in the future and I will wait expectantly for James' next novel.

Sittings: 3

Hours: 4

Recommend: Yes

* this is cross posted

*Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Another Train Video

2010-06-07T15:28:00.000-05:00

About 35 seconds in the train lets out its whistle. Love it! It does it a few time through out the video. Enjoy

Steam Locomotives

2010-06-04T13:51:00.002-05:00

I used to be very uncomfortable around trains. Oh, all right, I was down right scared of them. My grandmother was hurt in a derailment back in 1970, and although I wasn't even born at the time, I remember hearing stories.

When Topeka began celebrating the railroad every year, I would admire the different locomotives from a far. To me they were dangerous, and I wouldn't even step foot on a stationary train. I regret allowing my fear to control my curiousity.

It wasn't until I began Cherish Me that really began to fall for these giant beauties. They are so magnificent and proud. About a year ago, the girls and I went to the Kansas Museum of History. One of their permanent displays is what is known as The Holliday. It was the closest I had ever gotten to a train.

Over Memorial Weekend, Little Annie Oakley and I got the chance to ride on one of ATSF's (Atchison, Topeka, Santa Fe)later models, the 3415.

If I remember correctly, I believe the conductor said that the 3415 took its first voyage in 1919, over fifty years after my story takes place. For some reason, I think the experience would be very similar, although 3415 is much larger than The Holliday.

So, when you go into an experience with an eye to research you try to encompass all of your senses.

I can't say that there was a distinctive smell beyond the normal smell of hot roadways. There may have been a slight charcoal smell, but it was not overwhelming. I've given you some visuals of the train itself. Now let's look at some outside the train while in motion.

Little Annie Oakley will probably kill me for posting this one.

puff, Puff, PUFF

Fields of Gold? Not quite. Give it another month and it'll look like gold silk rolling in gentle waves.

Watch my corn pop up in rows...

I don't even want to know what is going through your head right now. I can only imagine. I want to show you something though. I hate posting pictures of myself but for the sake of sharing my research I will. See this 1903 dining car? See how closed in it is, all nice and cozy? We didnt' actually go inside, I glanced and noticed they had restaurant style seating. It looked comfy, but since it was hot outside and the dining windows were dinky. I didn't argue when Little Annie Oakley suggested we sit in one of the open cars.

I will say it was nice and cool with the breeze blowing when we were in motion. As you can see we had a good time.

Even with a bit of embarassment. See the tiny black dot? Yes? No? Maybe?

Now? I'll tell you, that ain't mascara. :)

I've uploaded videos to my Youtube. I'm posting one here. I'll post a few more over the weekend too, so that you get an idea of all the sights and sounds.

Jesse Chisholm~Hero Worthy

2010-06-03T12:51:00.000-05:00

One look at Jesse Chisholm and you can see he's not your ordinary white man. Born around 1805 in Tennessee to a Scottish father and a Cherokee mother, it's no surprise Jesse was a good business man. When the Cherokees began moving themselves to Arkansas, Jesse and his mother went. Later, and I can only imagine the circumstances, they moved into what is now known as Oklahoma.

Jesse set up a trading post in Council Grove, OK (near Oklahoma City). From all accounts, Jesse was a friendly man, and very diplomatic. One of the things I found very interesting about Jesse is that he spoke many languages. Somewhere there is an account that he spoke over fourteen of the tribal languages, making him an ideal man, not only for trading, but for diplomacy when it came to negotiations among the various tribes.

One thing of note here, when we think of Indian tribes and treaties we tend to think of those treaties in terms of the white man. But sometimes issues arose between the tribes. Jesse was known for listening to both sides, really listening, before seeking out a solution.

Although Jesse had left TN well before the Trail of Tears began, you should understand that it still could not have been easy for him. There was a distrust of the white man, as well there should have been, and there was a lot of prejudice against mixed breeds (sounds harsh, but it was the reality). I'm pretty sure Jesse's friendliness and willingness to listen gained him a lot of trust with those he encountered.

Jesse wasn't only a trader, and negotiator, he was also a trail guide. It was during one of his trail guiding trips in 1836 that led him to Wichita, KS where he set up another trading post. It is this trail he used between Council Grove and Wichita that would become known as the Chisholm Trail.

Some believe the Chisholm Trail had begun and ended as a cattle drive to Abilene, but that isn't the case. When the Civil War threatened to tear apart the United States, it also divided many of the Indian tribes. The greatest division seemed to be amongst the Cherokees themselves (this topic deserves a blog of its own). The result of the division was a mass exodus of Indians to the north, settling into Kansas. Jesse used his trail to Wichita to bring those who wished to flee the south.

I hadn't a second thought about the Chisholm Trail, until the conductor of our train ride mentioned Jesse. My attention grew as the conductor spoke about Jess and his death. It was during my research of his death that I discovered what a wonderful man Jesse Chisholm was. During a time when kidnappings and ransoms were common place amongst the tribal nations, Jesse often ransomed hostages himself, especially when children were involved. His actions spoke his heart. He cared for people, no matter who they were.

Jesse died in 1868, only a year after the Chisholm Trail was used to drive cattle all the way to Abilene, KS, the first real 'cow town'.

As for Jesse's death, he died of accidental food poisoning. Supposedly, Jesse's favorite meal was bear grease and honey. I've searched around to find exactly what this was, but no luck. From what I gather it was bear meat, honey, and possibly nuts. Jesse's wife, of Cherokee blood, often made this for him in a brass pot. It was after one of their travels where she had bought a copper pot that she made Jesse's favorite meal. Something in the food had a chemical reaction with the copper pot and poisoned him.

Jesse Chisholm was one of a kind. And very hero worthy.

Abilene. . .More to Come

2010-06-01T12:54:00.001-05:00

As promised, I have my own pictures to share from Old Abilene Town. Well, some of them are Little Annie Oakley's. I knew we'd have a good time, what I didn't know is how much blog material I'd end up with. I may even get Little Annie Oakley to write a blog.

Here's a list of topics I'll be blogging about over the next few weeks.

1. This first picture is obviously not my own, but there was an interesting story told to us about Jessie Chisholm, one I can't pass up.

2. Colorado has the Rockies, and Missouri has the Ozarks. Kansas has the Flint Hills. This one may be down the line as I want to gather more pictures from various places. This entire area is breath takingly beautiful.

3. Of course, I'll be blogging about this iron horse and the Abilene & Smokey Valley Railroad. Another blog will be written on steam engines and the part railroads played in settlement towns.

4. I can't very well blog about our trip and not blog about the legendary lawman Wild Bill Hickok.5. This was actually an interesting place. Inside were several printing mechanisms, including a printing jobber. I hope to gather enough research on settler printing to provide you with an awesome blog. (This is one of those unexpected research treasures.)

6. Now this one is really cool. Yeah, I know the picture isn't the best. But I was so excited when I saw what this reenactor was doing. And even more excited when I discovered the make and model of history. Obviously, this blog will be on western firearms.

7. This is one of Little Annie Oakley's pictures. And yeah, there is a blog here.

8. Spinning? This is another of Little Annie Oakley's pictures. It was neat watching people use these contraptions. Ma even got to try the Navajo spindle, which I didn't get a picture of, but spinning will be another blog on my list.

9. And who can forget the whole reason we went to Abilene? These little gals are as cute as can be. The Alpaca blog will probably take place before the spinning, and if we're lucky maybe Ma will have one of her Alpaca projects complete.

Oh, Little Annie Oakley had such a good time, she wants to return. I'm trying to convince her there are other places to see too.

I almost forgot one. Well two, actually. First, you should be able to tell by looking at this picture that this building could use a little repair. During this particular blog, I hope to cover restoration and the importance of keeping history alive and what you can do to help.

Next, I can't believe I forgot about this one. There were a few things I found interesting about this blacksmith shop that I'll share at a later date.

Old Abilene

2010-05-28T15:05:00.000-05:00

It looks as though Little Annie Oakley and I will be headin' out west with Ma to Old Abilene. And boy, am I hootin' excited! According to Old Abilene's Facebook page, there'll be Gun Fights, Can Can dancers, Alpacas and that baby right over there on the left hand side of the page.

Dh thinks I'm nuts, but hey, I'm a history geek. And, guess what? If all goes well, I'll get a chance to ride on this beauty of a locomotive.

Little Annie Oakley is, of course, primed for a good gun fight. And who could blame her. There's just something about a smokin' gun.

Ma'll be hanging with the Alpacas. She claims they're cute, but I'm bettin' she'll be sizing up their coats for a new pair of stockings. Seriously though, they'll be holding workshops and demonstrations on dying, spinning, and weaving, right along with crocheting and knitting. She'll have a blast!

In case you didn't know, Abilene was the original 'CowTown'. After the railroad pushed through it held the largest stockyard west of Kansas City, becoming a den of lawlessness. Whenever I hear the name Wild Bill Hickok, I think of Abilene, KS.

I hope to bring you my own pictures, and experience from Old Abilene, Lord willing I make it out alive. But, if I don't reappear for a time, I'm probably holed up in my writing cave. I've been waiting for just this very kind of research opportunity so that I can write my black moment.

Abilene, here I come.

Annie Oakley?

2010-05-17T17:18:00.000-05:00

It's been one of those weeks. Just when I thought I got off easy with the cold it came back and smacked me hard. Remember those few pounds I lost the week before? Well, even though I didn't eat anything at my niece's graduation party, and I didn't eat much beyond grapes and one of those small cups of ice cream, AND I've been hacking pieces of my lung, I seem to have added all those pounds back on.

Not good.

When I woke this morning I felt so much better, but as the day wore on, so did I. I honestly can't believe my ribs haven't given way under the full body convulsions.

Yes, I'm a bit on the cranky side. It's difficult to get move forward when all energy is expended on household chores. Oh, and I've been working on a synopsis and most of you know how much I looooove those. But it can't be helped, can it?

And the DOGS won't quit barking!!!! Making my head ache a little more.

Okay, so on to the cool thing and the entire purpose for my blogging today.

Check out my little Annie Oakley! :)

2010-05-11T00:21:00.003-05:00

I'm reading, writing and revising. No time to blog since I goofed off over the weekend. But I have cute hair, a slight sunburn and I'm a few pounds lighter. :)

Weekly Goal

2010-05-07T14:27:00.000-05:00

I'm going for it. One week from today I will have 18,000 words revised on Cherish Me. I will also have four new chapters written for Hope. You can watch my progress on the side bar.

Amish Cold Remedies

2010-05-03T14:33:00.000-05:00

It is that time of year. Somehow we made it through the year with only two out of the five us having the tummy flu, and no colds. But here we are, the first of May, and the colds have hit home. Hard.

I thought it would be interesting to look at some remedies. The following come from Plain & Happy Living Amish Recipes & Remedies by Emma Byler.

*Anything that will make you sweat is good for colds and flu. I'm sorry but when I'm sick I'm not sure I want anything making me more uncomfortable. Boneset tea is one of these. Crumble the dry herb fine and keep it in a tightly closed jar out of direct light. I've been thinking a lot about those root cellars lately. If I could get past the idea of snakes congregating there, they'd be nice to have. This will keep several years and stay nice and green. If it keeps this long then it should be very cost effective. Brew 2tsp. of herb in 3 cups boiling hot water and drink boneset tea as hot as you can stand it at the first sign of illness.

*Brew boneset, sage, and catnip into tea. Isn't catnip something you put in cat toys? Sweaten with honey. I can tolerated just about anything as long as it has honey. This causes a sweat to break up a feverish cold.

*Combine 1 tbsp. honey, 1 tbsp. whiskey and a little melted butter. Add 3 whole lemons, skin and all, sliced thin, 1 cup sugar, 2 cups hot water, and 2 cups flax seed. Cook all together in double boiler for 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Strain and cool. Add 1/2 brandy. Bottle and use 1 tsp every hour until relief is found. I can see why this works. :) Actually, I've heard of the use of lemon, honey and whiskey mixed with tea to cure just about anything from colds to strep. I actually tried it a few years back and it broke the cold in less than two days.

There are a few other remedies listed in the book, my favorite concoction (not that I'd try it) is the garlic tea.

Have you ever used a home remedy? If so what did you use if for? Did it work?

*To purchase your copy go to Amazon.

Wordle-Procrastination Tool

2010-04-30T00:19:00.000-05:00

I let me youngest play with Wordle and this is what she came up with.

If you click on the picture it will bring up a larger image.

The Bradford Stench

2010-04-28T22:01:00.001-05:00

A favorite thing of mine during Spring are all the blooming Dogwoods. The blooms, no matter if they are pink, white, or red, bring a cheerful atmosphere to neighborhoods. I always wanted to plant a Dogwood or two in my yard. And why not? Dogwoods have character and they blend well with their surroundings. They can make a shack look like a mansion and a mansion look like a trillion dollars (yeah, I'm kind of stretching it here).

But there was one small set back for me when it came to purchasing a Dogwood for that bare spot in my backyard. You see, for the longest time, I was under the impression that Dogwoods carried a nasty stench. All right, the nasty stench is an understatement. We're talking cover-your-mouth-don't-breath-and-still-gag-stench. The stench would carry my feet to the other side of the street during my daily walks. Sometimes, I'd even change my path to one that contained the fewest Dogwoods. I'd even applaud, much to my shame, when one of these poor trees would succumb to the wind and split in two.

For you horticulturalists, before you think to correct me, you must understand that I haven't always been the most observant person. And even though it did occur to me to consult one of those pocket field guide books to discover what kind of tree released a stench worthy of a trash dumpster, I still wouldn't have figured out that these beautiful flowering Dogwoods weren't the culprit. (Yes, now I see the Dogwoods have four petals on their flowers and the Bradford has five).

A few weeks ago, I ran across a good dozen of then trees. The stench was unbearable. My gag reflex was in overdrive. I couldn't get out of the area fast enough, but once I left one area and went to a place several blocks away, I encountered the exact same smell. I became puzzled as to why anyone would plant a tree that smells so awful? What purpose is there in offending the nasal passages of their patrons? I didn't find the answer to my questions, but what I did discover is that this offensive tree is none other than the Bradford Pear. It originates from Asia and wasn't really available to the US commercially until the mid 1960s.

As with any plant there are always pros and cons (I love peonies but they attract hoards of bumble bees), so far I've given you the cons. The pros are that these trees provide spectacular coloring in the fall, and the Bradfords are a good nesting place for birds. But let's go back to the cons, they are messy when their flowers fall and their life span is very limited. Oh, and they don't bear pears. If they did, I think I just might be able to bear the smell during it's budding season.

Now that I've been enlightened and understand that Dogwoods don't stink, I think I'll be able to appreciate them a bit more.

Oh, I suppose you'd like to know how all this relates to writing, because you know it does. Well, I had considered using what I thought to be the stinky Dogwood in my story, but now that I know the stink doesn't come from the Dogwood and, in fact it comes from the Bradford Pear, and that the Bradford didn't exist during my era, I won't be using it at all.

Did You Know

2010-04-26T07:42:00.003-05:00

I am absolutely, positively kissing one of my critique partner's feet in gratitude. Actually, I should be kissing all of their feet. They alway rise to the occasion and go above and beyond the call of critique partner.

But this one saved me from making a huge error.

Do you know the definition of bugger? I sure as heck didn't. I've only ever heard it used as British slang bugger off, or in context of being little, cute, mostly rascally small children. And given that terminology I shouldn't have used where I had put it in my sentence anyway. My hero isn't little, he's a hunk, not cute in the way a small child is, and he's not ornery, at least not in my first chapter.

And he's definitely not a sodomite. Yes, I said sodomite. I'm hoping I don't get hit with the spam, but according to dictionary.com bugger is exactly that.

It's kind of funny that my critique partner pointed this out to me because I tend to look up a lot of iffy words used in my manuscript. For some reason, I didn't with this one. Maybe because I liked how it flowed within the sentence. I'll have to change the word, there is no way around it. I could use rotter, but I've already done so a few times in the first chapter.

Here's to fabulous critique partners that help keep us from possible embarrassing situations.

Sunday Sermon

2010-04-25T13:47:00.000-05:00

I'm curious about how you preceive yourself, so I have one simple question for you. Do not dwell on the answer over much, just answer the first that comes to mind.

Are you an exceptional woman?

Now that you've answered yes, tell me what makes you exceptional.

If you've answered no, it's most likely because you suffer from insecurities (don't we all). Those insecurities could be something resulting from your childhood, a bully from school, abuse, or just never knowing that you reached that bar that was set so high that it was unattainable. You don't have to tell me why, but since this is Sunday and it's been a while since I've offered up a serom, and I do hope to resume them next week, if you simply just raise your hand, I'll vow to you that I'll pray for you this week.

My prayer is that you will begin to see yourself as an exceptional woman.

Stop here if you don't want to feel as if you're being preached at, because I'm pretty sure that's what I'm about to do.

I suppose you want to know how I see myself. I guess it depends on any given moment. Right now, I know I'm exceptional. I'm pretty darn secure about who I am in Christ. Does that mean I'm being prideful? No. Because when I'm secure, I'm not self-obsessing. I'm not wondering what that person is saying to her friend about me behind my back. I'm not worried if I stepped on toes when I know I didn't. When I self-obsess about whether or not my hair perfect or what people will think about my extra pounds or my crooked teeth, my focus is not where it should be. When I self obsess about whether or not a judge will hate my God given gift of writing, I'm not trusting in God's power and ability. When I self obsess I make others around me feel uncomfortable. When I self obsess I push others away. When I self obsess I'm easily offended. When I self obsess I don't offer the same grace God gave me, because even though I may have forgiven an offense, I block any further relationship-I hold onto bitterness because it's much easier than allowing any further hurt. Where bitterness remains, hearts harden. When hearts are hardened grace is lacking. Why would I deny to anyone what God gave me, does He not have much more to forgive? When we deny grace have we really forgiven?

There may be some who read this that say, "Whoa! Don't be preaching at me."
There may be some who read this and begin self obsessing, they may say, "Why are you pointing fingers at me."

And yes I might be self-obsessing a little here, but the truth of the matter is that writing this was just as much for me, if not more so, than it is for anyone. Besides, when God prompts me to do something, shouldn't I obey? Ouch! If only I obeyed all the time.

Speaking of obeying, I've got a book to finish, one that I believe, for whatever reason, God wants me to write.

Appreciating the Barn

2010-04-22T23:26:00.000-05:00

On an occasion we go to the in-laws for hot dogs. Like during the fall we took the kids out to the farm and they all carved pumpkins. The lay of the land is different from my every day suburban home. The fields are dotted with grazing cattle, not duplexes. Bales of hay are stacked neatly next to the big tractor inside the barn, where as I have boxes of our life shoved inside a small shed next to our lawn mower.

I've never really paid much attention to the structure of the barn, other than it was large enough to hold a tractor and a car or two. It's purpose is to shelter farm equipment, feed, horses and what not. Like I said I've never really paid attention.

A few weeks ago I came across a scene where my heroine must repair storm damage to the barn roof. As I was going into the scene I realized that in order to make it work I needed to know a little more about barns, especially the roofing material mid 19th century. I googled, but my answers came up dry. Whenever I drove to town I began looking for barns. I started paying attention to their structure, their designs, and the materials used. Looking and googling just weren't getting me the definitive answer that I needed. But it gave me something else; an appreciation for the artwork of barns. New ones, old ones, restored ones, rustic ones.

If you look close enough you can tell each has a story. There is something that makes them unique. Take the one above set before what looks to be the Rockies, it's seen better days, but it still stands proud in the landscape it was built upon.

This one has a twist to the typical red barn, it's round. This one, because of its completely circular shape, was most likely built in the late 1800 to mid 1930s. According to Wiki, round barns were considered more efficient. Unfortunately, most farmers didn't feel the need for progressive farming and stuck with the tried and true. If you happen to actually see a round barn take a moment and appreciate the work that went into building it.

I'm not sure about this one. The landscape escapes me, its not anything I've seen before. What do you think, does it have a story? Something different than the one above with the Rockies as the background? Which do you think has been shown more tender care?

There is a barn just west of us that looks similar to this one. Besides have a silo beside it and the white picket fence, there is something else in this barns characteristic that makes it stand out separately from the others.

Do you see it?

It has a limestone base. I haven't been able to find much on when farmers began using a limestone foundation (I'm assuming the floor is still dirt). I see quite a few of these around Kansas. Some have the original wooden structure attached, others you can tell have been rebuilt. Either way, there is just something very striking in the contrast of materials that appeals to the eye.

This one is my favorite.

Yeah, it's crumbling, but it has character. The roof is tin (post Civil War according to the f-i-l) but that doesn't mean the actual barn is post Civil War. I think what I like best about this barn is the scenery. I just love the rolling green hills in the background. It reminds me of Kansas.

I hope you enjoyed this little tour of barns. The next time you are out galavanting around the country side you might take a closer look at the barns. Do you have any interesting barns in your neck of the woods? If so you should send me a picture with what you know about it and if you'd like I'll post it here on my blog, we'll call it The Great Barn Hunt.

Here's a cool link that talks more about the History of Barns.

And another on Roofing for Historic Buildings.

Contest vs. Priest

2010-04-21T22:42:00.000-05:00

I know I said I was going to share with you about Priest on the contest circuit, but after reading it over I know it's far from ready to hit any contests. Ironically, I have a synopsis written for this story. It was the easiest synopsis I had ever written. Go figure.

As much as I would have loved to enter Priest in Virginia's Fool for Love contest, I'm just not willing to rush it. I want to put my best out there.

Contests vs. Cherish Me

2010-04-16T01:06:00.001-05:00

Before I decide on a contest I take a good look at the final judges. You know, just in case I final and my manuscript happens to plop onto their desk. The first thing I want to know, are they even interested in the genre. If I'm writing a Western and their publishing house only deals with Regencies and Victorians, you can bet I'm not going to enter.

I firmly believe that if we are to succeed in this business we need to take every opportunity seriously. That includes not wasting the time and effort, as well as the nerves, it takes to enter a contest if the final judge won't look twice at your manuscript because it's not the right genre.

So, let's look at Cherish Me.

Western
80,000

She's a cigar smoking, gun toting, train robbing gambler, but when he calls her bluff, love deals a hand they both can win.

The Virginia Romance Writers Fool For Love contest final judge for the historical category is Lucy Gilmour, Harlequin Editor. Although Harlequin's guidelines state a manuscript should fall in between 70,000-75,000 words the contest is open to manuscripts between 40,000-110,000

The Tampa Area Romce Authors contest final judge for historical is Deb Werksman. (I'm a big fan of Sourcebooks.The following comes directly from their submissions page. If you'd like to submit directly there is some additional information that isn't pertinent to the contest)
*90,000-120,000 words
*a heroine the reader can relate to

*a hero she can fall in love with
*a world gets created

I'm pretty sure CM meets that criteria, at least I hope it does.

Last, but not least, is The Lone Star. There are two final judges in the historical category. Alicia Condon of Kensington and Sara Megibow of Nelson Literary Agency (Did anyone watch Sing Off during the fall? Sara is just absolutely awesome and she wasn't even one of the singers).

After looking at each of the contests, there's really not a whole lot to say here, I mean Alicia Condon has been in the business for a while, she knows her stuff and Kensington publishes a few Westerns. I also like the fact that The Lone Star offers not one judge, but two. And who wouldn't want Sara to judge their entry?

So, it looks like if I can get Cherish Me polished up real nice and pretty it'll be going to The Lone Star. I'll then spend several weeks biting my nails waiting for what I hope to be positive feedback.

Tomorrow, I'll take a look at all the Inspirational judges and see if Priest has a chance.

Breaking Down The Fool For Love Contest

2010-04-14T09:41:00.000-05:00

I got a little excited when I saw this contest..

*Electronic entries only. Definite plus!

*1st chapter (up to 20 pages) This is where I scrath my chin and say hmmm. Although 20 pages is plenty long for a chapter, especially when you are judging these contests and you have about 7 entries. But, I tend to go over by a page or two. Optional synopsis (up to 5 pages). I'm loving the word optional here.

*Entry fee $25.00 for non-VRW members. Typical, could be worse.

*Each entry will be judge by two qualified judges. A discrepancy judge will be used if there is more than a 35 point differenct. This is where I really need to weigh the pros and cons. I prefer contests with three judges and the lowest score dropped, but having a discrepancy judge makes up for it.

*Final round Judges

Short Contemporary - Jonathan Clements, Agent, Wheelhouse Literary Group

Long Contemporary - Katelynn Lacopo, Literary Assistant, BookEnds, LLC

Historical - Lucy Gilmour, Harlequin Editor

Paranormal/Futuristic/Fantasy/Time Travel - Amanda Barnett, Senior Editor, The Wild Rose Press

Inspirational - Elizabeth Mazer, Assistant Editor, Steeple Hill

Romantic Suspense - TBA

I'm really liking the final judges.

Overall The Virginia Romance Writers contest has promise. For more details on the contest click here

Tomorrow, I'll break down my manuscripts and how they might or might not fit into each contest. .

.

Breaking Down the TARA Writing Contest

2010-04-11T22:26:00.000-05:00

On Friday I broke down the Lone Star writing contest. Today, I'm breaking down the TARA (Tampa Area Romance Authors).

*Entry fee will is $25.00. This is for non-TARA members, it's a typical fee for writing costs these days.

*Electronic entries only. As I said on Friday, this is a plus.

*1st Chapter 4,000 words max. Required synopsis 1,500 words max. The 4k is a bit of a bummer, but I totally understand the need to be different from the rest of the contests. I don't like the required synopsis, but such is a writer's life. I'll get over it.

*A minimum of 2 judges read and score each entry. Judges will be either published authors or TARA-trained and certified judges. I much prefer three first round judges with the lowest score thrown out. Havin no more than a promise of a minimum of 2 judges gives me a huge pause.

*Final Judges
Series Contemporary Wanda Ottewell Harlequin

Historical Deb Werksman Sourcebooks

Paranormal Leah Hultenschmidt Dorchester

Single Title Jhanteigh Kupihea NAL

Women's Fiction Amy Pierpont Grand Central

Romantic Suspense Peter Senftleben Kensington

Inspirational JoAnne Simmons Barbour Books

Over all this is a decent contest. And I've had really good experiences with the TARA coordinators in the past. But will my working manuscripts fit well with the final judges if I were to final? I'll answer that question on Thursday. Yeah, I know I said I'd break down my manuscripts on Wedneday, but I found another contest that just might be the ONE I enter.

Breaking Down The Lone Star Writing Contest

2010-04-09T09:36:00.003-05:00

Yesterday, was an absolutely wonderful day. Even though I'm still not up to par I was definitely feeling more like my old self. I visited blogged at one of my groups and visited a few other blogs (which I haven't done in some time). Loki, my muse, really started talking to me, and we got all excited about what is in store for our future.

Also a few contest announcements came across one of the e-loops I belong to, which kind of got me excited. These are contests I've wanted to enter in the past or have entered and had really good experiences with. Now I just have to figure out which one if any, and which manuscript if any I'll submit.

The first is the Lone Star Writing Contest.

*Entry fee will be $20.00 for non NWHRW members if submitted before May 23. After the 23rd it increases to $25.00. But still in the world of contests that's not a bad fee.

*Electronic entries only. This is such a plus! I never realized how expensive snail mail contests can be until I was required to send four copies of my manuscript to a contest. When you're sending over a hundred pages through the post, it gets to be expensive. Not only for postage but for copies.

*Three first round judges-two published, one unpublished. Lowest score gets dropped. I'm really liking this contest now. Whenever I look at contests I check to see how many first round judges and if the lowest score is thrown out. This is an absolute positive!

*Categories and final judges
Inspirational Category:
Editor - Lindsay Guzzardo – Guideposts Books
Agent - Tamela Hancock Murray – Hartline Literary
Young Adult Category:
Editor – Kat O'She – Leap Books
Agent –Tina Wexler – International Creative Management
Romantic Suspense Category:
Editor: Leis Pederson – Penguin
Agent: Tina Tsallas – Great Titles, Inc.
Contemporary Series Category:
Editor: Wanda Ottewell, Harlequin
Agent: Pam Strickler with Pam Strickler Author Management
Single Title Category:
Editor: Deb Werksman – Sourcebooks
Agent: Lois Winston – Ashley Grayson Literary Agency
Historical Category:
Editor: Alicia Condon – Kensington
Agent: Sara Megibow – Nelson Literary Agency
Fantasy, Futuristic and Paranormal Category:
Editor: Tara Gavin – Harlequin Nocturne
Agent: Alexandra Machinist with Linda Chester Agency

Not one final judge, but two. I want to say something here. I write in a few different categories and I was pleased to see an Inspirational category. Not all contests have it. I am unfamiliar with the editor, but I do know of the agent and she has a good reputation. The other category I would consider entering is the Historical. Again, although I've heard of the editor I'm not real familiar with her. But I have heard of the agent and from everything I have heard, it would be an honor just to have her read my manuscript if I were to be one of the finalists.

I suppose you'd like to know if there is anything that I don't like about this contest. Well, there is one small, tiny, little thing. This contest is somewhat opened to published authors. Maybe you think I'm afraid of stiff competition, but that's not really the case. I guess I just feel that if an author is published then they have a leg up already when it comes to getting their manuscripts in front of agents and editor..BUT, I also completely understand the publishing world is one tough place to break through, even if you've already broken through. And like I said, it's only a tiny, little thing so I won't count it against them in my decision as to whether I enter or not.

On Monday, I'll break down the TARA.

On Wednesday, I'll begin breaking down the two manuscripts I'm considering entering.

Blogging Elsewhere

2010-04-08T00:12:00.000-05:00

I'm over at Kansas Word Warriors today, and I would love it if you stopped by.

I'm slowly trying to get back into the swing of things. I hope to start visiting all my favorite blogs again and soon.

2010-04-05T09:15:00.001-05:00

Hi! It's been a while since I've last posted. I've been a bit under the weather, but I'm feeling much better. Hopefully, I stay on the up and up.

I noticed that my last post was about my funk and how seeing similarities to my story in a book just really got me down. I had definitely gotten beyond it and decided to write the story as it comes out. What else can I do, it's not like there are any original ideas. Not really.

What is interesting is I watched a movie last night based off a very popular Christian author's book. There was a scene that was very, very similar to a scene in that particular book that had bugged me. It's just further evidence that I should write my book the way I think I should.

I did manage to revise four pages last week. Up next on my agenda is a total rewrite of my next scene.

In A Funk

2010-03-22T12:03:00.000-05:00

So I put meself in a funk. Spring break is a time for lazy days and vacations. I put the school books away and went to work at the shop. I don't know how women do this working all day and then making dinner and making sure the house doesn't fall apart. Fortunately, I had done all the laundry the Sunday before the work week, but now it's all piled up again. Today, when we should be getting back to the book, we're going to have to gear ourselves up to start tomorrow.

I got very little revising done last week. I guess I'm okay with that. I did read a book, the last in the After The Storm series-The Founding Years (and that is what has put me in a funk). And now, it's time to focus on taxes and get them done (and I know it will take every thing out of me).

I suppose y'all would like to know about my funk. Well let's just say that many, many months ago I had planned a story set in a frontier town. My story was based on a town that was founded on Christmas Day. And that Christmas Day plays a big part in my story. The book I read also had their town founded on Christmas Day. Even though the story only mentions the founding day, I still wonder if I have to change the details of my story. I don't know and the weird thing is I'm not even working on that story right now. I really shouldn't let it bother me, but it is.

Don't worry though. I'll get over it and I'll get back to work. Hopefully tonight.

Hope y'all are having a blessed day.

2010-03-18T23:24:00.000-05:00

I know I promised y'all a review for today, but I've been so busy that I haven't had time to even open a book.

I'll save it for next week and hopefully I'll have two for you. But with tax season in full swing, I'm not making any promises.

Hope y'all are having a wonderful day.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

2010-03-17T01:24:00.000-05:00

When Irish eyes are smiling,

Tis like a morn in spring.

With a lilt of Irish laughter

You can hear the angels sing

When Irish hearts are happy

All the world is bright and gay

When Irish eyes are smiling

Sure, they steal your heart away.

Go mbeannai Dia duit

*green fountain photo taken by dd during her trip to Chicago a few years ago.

Teaser Tuesday

2010-03-16T00:02:00.004-05:00

'I thought it would be rude to leave without saying hello.'

'You've said it. Duty accomplished.'
pg 109 The Accidental Princess by Michelle Willingham

An inspirational romance.

"We exchanged two letters."

"And not once did you mention your gender."

pg 128 Kansas Courtship by Victoria Bylin

Privy Treasure Hunters

2010-03-14T22:48:00.000-05:00

When I was younger, a lot younger, (so young that my memories are very faded) my mother took me, along with a Girl Scout Troop, hiking. I remember the excitement of finding arrow heads in the dirt. As vague as my memories are, I seem to recall how numerous they were. Years later, Grandma took me to a museum in Kansas City where a few live buffalo roamed among the teepees. I was absolutely fascinated with the artifacts on display.

I used to dig in the dirt with friends from the neighborhood. You might say that's pretty typical for children, but we dug holes. Big holes. Our goal was to dig ourselves to China. But I couldn't help thinking that somewhere along the way I'd come across some cool ancient artifact. Even at that young age, I knew the thrill of the hunt, even if it was only a small rock.

I guess my fascination with the past was pretty evident early on in my life. I think that is one thing that draws me to writing historical set romances. I love the research and I'd jump at the chance for hands on exploration. I should have been an archaeologist, but I'll settle for writing.

As much as I love the idea of digging through the dirt to discover artifacts, I don't find this partticular past-time of interest.

Outhouse Diggers

You really should take the time to read the article. At first I couldn't believe what I was reading, and then. . .well you'll see when you open the link.

Now, I've come across a lot of eccentric hobbyists, but this one so far takes the cake.

What think you? Would you go digging around for outhouse holes?

Sunday Sermon

2010-03-14T01:06:00.000-06:00

". . . even amid the pain of confessing his major mistakes, David realizes that the miracle of God's redemption means good can rise out of the ashes of his sin. By honestly sharing the sin and forgiveness chapters of his story, he can motivate others to repent and run back to God's loving embrace:

Then I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will return to you. Psalm 51:13 "

Lisa Harper, A Perfect Mess, Chapter 4, page 65

I absolutely love David. He was so--human. And he loved God so very much. So you can probably imagine the brokenness David felt as he confessed his transgressions. It's probably similar to confessing to Grandma that you broke her favorite trinket handed down to her by her grandmother, handed down by her grandmother and so forth.

Confessing transgressions can bring about pain, especially a betrayal of some sort, whether it's a betrayal of confidence or even worse.

I don't want to focus on the negative here but the positive. There are some in this world that would snub their noses at me for wanting to write mainstream romances. I don't expect everyone to understand it, or anyone for that matter. What I do is between God and I as long as I'm not infringing on other people's will. And I believe He would want me to share His grace and mercy to the world, not just to a nice queit congregation. Most likely a nice quiet congregation wouldn't understand the depth of God's grace and mercy, because they'd be too busy judging me for my past sins, that is unless they've experienced God's mercy too. The world on the other hand, although they might shy away, there might be just one person out there that can relate to my transgressions, and realize that if God can love me, then He can, and does, love them too.

The ultimate transgression is a separation from God. He doesn't want to be separated from us. He wants to have a relationship with us. He wants us to accept the love He has so freely given. Even in our messed up lives, and trust me I'm so very far from perfect, He wants us to walk with Him. To call upon His name. To call him 'Abba' Father.

Tidbits

2010-03-12T22:35:00.000-06:00

Happenings

-I thought today would be a good day to point out a cool blog I found thanks to Laurie - The Naked Hero .
It's definitely worth checking out. I especially like how they strip down heroes from books and tells us what makes him a great hero. Something this writer needs to pay close attention to.

-If you've missed it, I have a Reading Room where I highlight the book I'm currently reading. This past week I read Patricia Davids' Katie's Redemption. An inspirational from Steeple Hill. Up on the shelf this week is Michelle Willingham's The Accidental Princess.

-Revision update, I'm almost through the first 100 pages. By this time tomorrow, I'll be in fresh territory and the rewrites will begin.

Coming up-

Sunday-Sunday Sermon
Monday-Privy Treasure Hunting (research)
Tuesday- Teaser Tuesday (I'm stepping into a meme)
Wednesday-To be determined
Thursday-To be determined
Friday-The Accidental Princess review

What I learned from Patricia Davids

2010-03-12T00:40:00.000-06:00

A good book, whether mainstream or inspriational, will make you cry--more than once.

I just read one of the best Love Inspired books I've ever laid my hands on. It's called Katie's Redemption by Patricia Davids.

After two years away, Katie Lantz returns to her Amish community nine months pregnant-- and unmarried. With nowhere else to turn, she nervously knocks on her family's door, fearing she'll be shunned. Yet the handsome stranger who now owns the farm welcomes her in-- just in time for Katie to give birth.

Carpenter Elam Sutter and his kindly mother care for Katie and her newborn in a loving way she never dreamed was possible. But in the face of a heartwrenching choice, Katie learns just what family, faith and acceptance truly mean.

I've read a few Amish stories over the past few months and although they were decent, many of them had a disconnect to them. Davids' pulled me in to her world and into her characters' lives. Even if you've never experienced the uncertainty and fears of being an unwed mother, you can't help but immediately care for this young woman and wish for the best for both her and her child, and hope that whatever decision she makes for her life that it will lead to that happily ever after, even if it means going it alone.

The Amish heroes I've read about in the past have been characterized as a men of faith, reliable and hard working, quiet and distant. The sense of protectiveness has been there but, more in the way of an overgrown child protecting his hamster from the barn cat (if that makes any sense).'True' human emotions were nothing more than words on a page. In reading other Amish stories it was almost like reading about mechanical robots.

That is not the case with Elam Sutter. Sure, Davids characterizes him as a strong man of faith, completely reliable, hardworking and quiet, but distant is not an issue. His motivations ring true making the emotions fly off the pages and into your heart. He is definitely a flesh and blood man.

Sitting: 1
Hours: 2 1/2

The Race Is On

2010-03-11T01:33:00.000-06:00

Not really. Not like you might think. On Sunday, after much hesitation and procrastination, I opened my files for Cherish Me. It had been so long, that I had to start from the beginning. All right, fine. I started from the beginning. The beginning that I have rewritten and revised, and rewritten and revised, and . . . surely, with as much rewriting and revising that had occurred the beginning should not have been an issue. Surely, the beginning should have passed with flying colors. WRONG. It took me several hours to get through Chapter One. Several hours to get through the first scene of Chapter One. After the end of those several hours, I decided the chapter was long enough and couldn't carry the second scene, which meant the second scene received a new name, Chapter Two.

This new Chapter 2, which had been the second scene in Chapter 1, should have been an easy go over. I mean it had been rewritten and revised and rewritten and revised. But it wasn't. It took me several hours on Monday. Several hours on Tuesday. And several hours on Wednesday. I kind of have this obsessive compulsive mindset that refuses to let me mark it and move past it. I'm too worried that I'll end up with a huge mess at the end of the road, and I don't want that. I've been there. Done that.

I guess you're wondering if I made it through, if I finally finished the new Chapter Two. The answer is yes. And after several days of several hours sweating over Chapter Two. I also made it through Chapter Three. And in record time. Chapter Three took less than a half an hour.

I'm kind of pumped. And I'm so ready to hit Chapter Four later tonight.

What do you do when you get stuck? Do you just keep fussing with it until you get it right, or do move on and come back to it later?

Purposefully, Omitting (shhh) Adverbs

2010-03-09T23:43:00.000-06:00

I have a friend (not mentioning any names here) who loves her adverbs. We have this hate-love thing when we go over her writing. I mark the -lys and she, like a mother bear, fights to keep them. I will admit that she has given up her fair share of -lys.

Maybe I should start at the beginning. The place where I began to dislike adverbs. Yep, you guessed it. It did have something to do with a contest judge's remarks. Remember I'm a rule follower (for the most part) so when a judge (who I thought should know better than me) dinged me for adverbs, I did away with them. No if ands or buts, they were gone. Kablooie. Vanished.

It wasn't until much later that I began to understand the concept of moderation. By then it was too late. I had gotten rid of those pesky little critters. And since I got rid of them like yesterday's garbage, I thought I would do my part in ridding every one else of them too. :) It's a flaw.

Now I don't want to get into the whys or why nots of using adverbs. I really don't care. Keep them if you like, but be ware!

Let me tell you why; I'm reading a book aloud to the kids for history. And I'm constantly tripping over my tongue. There are more -ly words in this book than you can find in a dictionary. At least every other sentence has a gratefully, graciously, thankfully, proudly, miraculously. . .

All right, so maybe I'm exaggerating a little. Maybe. But let me tell you it is pretty darn annoying. To be fair, I don't think I would have noticed it if I hadn't been reading aloud. But there's nothing more annoying than hearing yourself monotonously repeating what seems to be the same word over and over.

She gratefully accepted the apple and graciously curtsied. Thankfully the plump child proudly maintained her footing, miraculously not falling to her nose.

Are you a keeper or a saver when it comes to -lys? Is there anything that drives you bonkers when you're reading? (Notice I purposefully left out absolutely right before drives.)*grins*

Branding

2010-03-08T22:38:00.000-06:00

You're probably thinking that I'm going to talk about branding cattle, but that's not the case.

Where does your mind flash to when I mention Stephen King? What about Nora Roberts or Karen Kingsbury? Sherrilyn Kenyon or Francine Rivers? Janet Evanovich or Don Brown? Debbie Macomber? Eloisa James? Nicholas Sparks?

If you're familiar with anyone of these authors then you know exactly what genre to find them in on the shelves. If not, then most likely your bookstore attendant will.

When you see the Nike symbol on a jacket, you know it's Nike. When you see a red square with a white squiggly through it at the drive up window, you know they serve Coke. Right? Right.

So why and author brand? First, go here. Here is where Deb Werksman, acquiring editor for Sourcebooks, talks about branding. In there, she references an article written by Theresa Meyers, which you can find here.

If you haven't read them already, I highly recommend doing so. And if you don't, you'll wish you had as you move closer toward your publication goal. I especially like what Meyers says, "Branding is more than a logo, color scheme, tagline or message points. These are just tools to help you in creating a solid brand that you can then build and make people aware of."

However, because they are tools they are important. I'm working on my brand, as you can probably tell by the new look. And as you might have guessed I'm working toward Western Romances. That is about as far as I've gone. If you read Deb Werksman's blog you would have read this; "Once you're established in a subgenre, and are building readership there, you can branch out into other subgenres, or you can build more than one simultaneously but the key word here is "build"--you can't jump around."

Because I have different subgenres that I absolutely adore, and that I feel comfortable writing in, it's difficult to narrow it down. Right now, I'm going to work on building my Westerns, mainstream (which will be a bit sweeter) and my inspirationals. As for the others, I'll take it as it comes, although, there might be a need at a later date to separate the mainstream from the inspirationals. For now, hopefully, we'll get the best of both worlds. :)

What are your thoughts on this whole branding thing? Did you get any light bulb moments from the articles?

A Real Twist to An Original Plot

2010-03-07T17:41:00.001-06:00

Most little girls have heard the tale of The Frog Prince. I think it was some impish youth's way of getting a girl to kiss a frog. Either that or it was a mother's story with a moral to it. How many Prince Charmings actually start out that way? There's bound to be some unpleasantness between a new couple until the frog turns into a prince.

But I'm not writing this blog to talk about fairy tales. Not really. What I really wanted to talk about was taking something old and adding a twist to it to make it new.

Aspiring romance writers are often told to write something different. Yet, at the same time, typically, only tried and true plots really make it through sieve.

How do you take something old and make it new all the while keeping the plot tried and true? In the following link you'll find different variations of The Frog Prince, including the one most of us know from Grimms.

Frog Kings

On Saturday, dd and I went to see The Princess and The Frog with my mom and my niece. I'm not going to review the movie, I'm going to talk about the twist.

*Warning possible spoil ahead.

If you've seen the previews of The Princess and The Frog you know that when the princess, who acutally isn't a princess but dressed for a masquerade ball, kisses the frog she turns into a frogette. Surprise, surprise. It's also set in and around New Orleans during, what I believe would have been the roaring 20's. Surprise, surprise. And instead of being cursed by a witchy hag, the prince is cursed by a vodoo shadow man and carried out by the prince's aging, balding servant.

What do we have?

1. It's in New Orleans, not Europe

2. It's in the 20th century not eh 15th, 16th, or 17th

3.. We don't actually have a princess

4.The non-princess kisses the frog prince (this brings about conflict

5. We have a horn playing alligator.

6. Frog Prince learns to mince mushrooms.

7. The Prince decides to kiss and marry a real princess to save his frogette from a life of eating insects.

8. The real princess (again not a real princess only a wealthy Southerner) eventually kisses the frog to change him back for her friend's sake-love has been confessed between the two. But of course it doesn't work

9. The Prince Frog and his frogette go down to the Bayou and have themselves a wedding (overseen by a vodoo woman).

10. They kiss after they're married and they are no longer Frog and Frogette. Oh, because he finally kissed a 'real' princess.

11. They open a gumbo restaurant in New Orleans and live Happily Ever After.

Twist after twist after twist, and it obviously worked.

Can you think of any authors who've put a twist on an old fairy tale? Judi Fennell comes to mind with her Mer series. But what about a non-paranormal story?

Above the Bar

2010-03-07T10:05:00.002-06:00

"On our worst days, when we're trying to hide our misery or conceal our failures, our perfect God doesn't stand at a distance, waiting for us to pull ourselves together. He crawls right in beside us, amid the dust bunnies and clutter of our lives, to show that we're never alone in our messes." Lisa Harper Chapter 3, A Perfect Mess

Have you ever had one of those days? You know the kind where you want to crawl into a very dark place and wish the world away. Usually, in the past when I've felt this way, it was because of some great wrong I thought I had committed. There are just some things that are completely beyond our control, no matter how much we would like to think otherwise.

I spent years seeking the approval of other people. Seriously, what was Junior High and High School all about? Too bad it took many years beyond my diploma to figure out that I couldn't please everyone, even those the closest to me, no matter how good-hearted my intentions were. Have you ever baked a cake for someone to cheer them up only to be reprimanded for using the last of the eggs? I haven't either, but I kind of imagine it's like that.

Lack of approval meant disappointment. I hated disappointing anyone.

Disappointing people to me was the worst. When I disappointed people, when I felt like a failure in other people's eyes, I loathed my very being. I would close in on myself and think of all the ways I deserved to be punished for whatever wrong I had done to another. My mind was definitely not sound (and who knew in all actuality I was suffereing from an auto-immune disorder).For most of my life, I've held the sort of paranoid mentality that told me anything and everything that went wrong in the world was somehow my fault. I felt like this bad luck charm to those around me, because it always seemed as if I brought out the worst in them, no matter how hard I tried not to. It goes to show you how dark my places were.

But no matter how dark my little corner was, somehow God broke through and I knew He was right there with me. I began to understand that my approval rating with people was always going to waver depending on a multitude of variables, but most of the time depending on the mood of the day, or the minute. But with God, my approval rating will always be above the bar. Always. Because He removes our sins (His displeasure) as far as the East is from the West.

Psalm 103: 9-12

The LORD is compassionate and gracious,

slow to anger, abounding in love.

He will not always accuse,

nor will he harbor his anger forever;

he does not treat us as our sins deserve

or repay us according to our iniquities.

For as high as the heavens are above the earth,

so great is his love for those who fear him;

as far as the east is from the west,

so far has he removed our transgressions from us.

It's such a comfort to know that God will never leave us or forsake us, even in our darkest places. Deuteronomy 31:6 And what a greater comfort it is to know that God knows our hearts, even when others would think our intentions are ill thought out. "I, the LORD, search the heart, I test the mind, Even to give to each man according to his ways, According to the results of his deeds." Jeremiah 17:10

1 Thessalonians 2:4 On the contrary, we speak as those approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel. We are not trying to please people but God, who tests our hearts.

"Search me, O God, and know my heart;" Psalm 139:23

Under Construction

2010-03-06T10:53:00.000-06:00

Excuse me while I play. Unfortunately as I moved things over and switched my domain over I lost all comments. Fortunately, I did not lose posts.

A Lesson From Love Inspired Historical

2010-03-04T23:23:00.004-06:00

It's the end of the first week of March, and our day time temps have been in the mid 50s. I've enjoyed watching kids playing basketball as I've driven through neighbors. Spring Break is around the corner, and before we know it school will be out for the summer. But that has nothing to do with this post. I wanted to share with you a series I've been reading from Steeple Hill Love Inspired Historical. The first was released in January by Valerie Hansen.

Emmeline Carter was prepared for danger on the new frontier. But she didn't foresee the tornado that tore their wagon train apart. Now her father is dead, her mother and sister are injured and their twin wards are missing. There's nowhere to turn but the fledgling Kansas settlement of High Plains. Town founder Will Logan steps in to search for the twins and house the Carters…for now. He's not cut out for family life long-term. But Emmeline's got her own ideas, and when this high plains bride chooses her groom, nothing will get in her way!

The second was released in February by Renee Ryan. I've listened to Renee speak in person, and I heard her lovely voice as I was reading this story.

Rebecca Gunderson's fresh start in High Plains, Kansas, is destroyed when a deadly tornado wrecks the immigrant's new home—and her reputation. Everyone knows Rebecca rode out the storm with the town's blacksmith, and no one believes her time with Pete Benjamin was totally innocent. To protect her, Pete offers Rebecca his hand in marriage…but the grieving widower can't give her his heart. Is Rebecca trusting her happiness to a man trapped in the past? Or will faith and trust finally bring them through the storm to a brighter future?

And the third, by Victoria Bylin, is out on the shelves now. I haven't picked it up yet since my shopping day is on Saturday, but I promise you I will. I'm really looking forward to the hero in this book for several reasons. One, I've liked the glimpses that I've seen of him so far. Two, I have a special connection to his surname. And, three, he reminds me of my own hero in Cherish Me.

Town founder Zeb Garrison is finally getting his wish—a qualified physician is coming to High Plains. Yet when Dr. N. Mitchell turns out to be the very pretty Nora Mitchell, Zeb is furious. The storm-torn town needs a doctor, but Zeb needs someone he can trust—not another woman who's deceived him. If Nora's going to change his mind, she'll have to work fast. All she has is a one-month trial to prove her worth…to High Plains, and to Zeb.

Now, don't worry about whether or not you can find these books on your bookshelf, because you can still get them from Harlequin.

If you take a closer look you can see the all the books have a similar logo on the front cover. In that logo is says After the Storm, The Founding Years. I know you probably can't read them, but each book has a tagline on the front, just above the logo and to the left.

High Plains Brid- She sought a new life. . .and found a new love.
Heartland Wedding- A marriage born in scandal. . .bound for true devotion.
Kansas Courtship- She came to heal the town. . .she stayed to win his heart.

On the back cover of all three of these books is the series tagline.

A tornado can't tear apart the fabric of faith and love in a frontier Kansas town.

The best way for new writers to learn is by example from those that have succeeded. I know of at least one editor who wants the author, when they submit their query letter, to include an author plan. She wants to know that you have more than one story planned. I realize these stories are by different authors, but they are in a series, they are related. Do you see how their taglines tie together? And then look at the series tagline, that one line, those sixteen words wrap the series up in a nice little package.

Have you ever tried to write a tagline for your books? It's actually kind of fun, even if it can be frustrating. Take some time and think about your story and see if you can do it. It's not as easy as it looks, unless you're absolutely gifted at this sort of thing.

Valerie Hansen
Renee Ryan
Victoria Bylin

Bargain Finds

2010-03-02T23:13:00.003-06:00

Being that we have always been a one income family, I've learned to shop for bargains, especially when it comes to those extras. Now that we own our own business I still have to be careful with the finances, which means research books aren't always a top priority, and I must depend more on the internet. But when I found. . .

a bargain, I just couldn't help myself. The week prior to Valentine's Day I went into our local LifeWay store to pick up a CD for dh. While I was browsing, which I shouldn't have been, I found what I thought would be a cool research tool.

The backcover price was listed at $14.99, a little out of my price range, but there was a yellow tag below marking it as one of the monthly bargains for $7.00. I hemmed and hawed over it, debating with myself whether or not I could take the extra from our grocery bill. Since I had five dollars tucked away, I decided that I could spare the extra two.

Besides, if I had the $14.99, this book would have been totally worth it. For those of you who don't know, I wrote a biblically based inspirational back in November, and have been thinking about another one.

Here's the back blurb:

The Bible can be puzzling and even intimidating because of its sheer size and its contents. In the Holman Illustrated Guide to the Bible Mike Beaumont provides and easy-to-grasp overview of the entire Bible story in wonderfully eye-catching detail. Each two-page spread is a visual feast combined with clear description and explanation.

The reader will come away with a clear grasp of key characters, major themes, and subplots that make the Bible a library of sixty-six books that continues to transform lives, cultures, and world civilization. The Holman Illustrated Guide to the Bible can be read from start to finish or can serve as a reference tool to which on goes for essential information on the various eras of the biblical history. It strikes just the right balance between biblical understanding and application of truth to the details of life.

I've been reading through the pages, and gearing up for rewrites. Oh, by the way, when I went to the counter and purchased the book and CD, the $5.00 CD came to $3.14 and the book came to $5.23. :)

On Monday, I went back to Lifeway, just to look around. It's a new store to me, I've only been there three of four times. I was quite happy to see a bargain rack. There were a lot of books on the shelves. A lot of fiction books, which were tempting. But then I found this-

absolutely perfect! It even has descriptions and drawings of homes from the time of Ur. Oh and I was so excited to see tools, tools like what they used to mortar homes. And how they drew water from the well. . . . As you can see it's a wonderful find and all for only $2.97.

What a blessing! Even though I'm not working on that particular manuscript at the moment, it's still great to have all this wonderful research. Have you ever come across awesome bargains to use for research?

A Mythical Mystery

2010-02-28T23:29:00.000-06:00

I love a good mystery as long as I don't have to work too hard to solve it. Like with murder mysteries, I would never make a good detective. For one I think I'd pay closer attention to my gut, and less attention to forensic science. And then there is my patience. . .

I don't have much patience when it comes to trying to figure out the answers. Give me a puzzle and I'll sit for hours, for weeks on end trying to find where one piece goes. Give me a long two hour wait in the doctors office, and I'm the one who continues to say, "just a little while longer, gotta have patience And I love to research.

Give me an algebra problem and it's difficult for me to tread through the muck to find the answer. But give my daughter X= Y+6, X+3Y=-2 using the substitution method to find Y but first having to find X and the girl says, "tight," with a grin. Oh, tight is a good thing.

Back in November I wrote an historical. It's placed in ancient Israel, and my hero is obviously from one of the twelve tribes. Each of the twelve tribes were represented by a stones on a breastplate worn by the High Priest. It just so happens the stone representing my hero's tribe may not exist. Or at least not anymore. But there are stories about this mythical stone that leave an open ended mystery. Did it or did it not exist? Did the bible actually mean a different stone?

The stone in question is called the carbuncle. Some say it's a ruby, some say it refers to any red stone. But according to some ancient writings, the carbuncle was of a red color, but it is said that when it is held up to the sun it becomes like that of burning coal. That isn't totally unusual, what is, are the stories of the stone lighting up like burning coal in darkness.

After looking up the passage from Exodus and then in Strong's Concordance, "And thou shalt set in it settings of stones, even four rows of stones: the first row shall be a sardius, a topaz, and a carbuncle: this shall be the first row." The word origin for carbuncle from the Hebrew is baraq, which means lightning, flashing.

How awesome. I can't wait to incorporate this mythical bit into my story.
Have you ever come across a possible probability that others may deem otherwise?

Removing the Red Ink

2010-02-28T00:39:00.001-06:00

"I used to think that, along with trying to impress others, I had to try to win God over with a "good girl" routine. And because my behavior is so often flawed--sometimes laughably abysmal--I assumed He was sitting on a golden throne of judgement, looking down at me with pursed lips and holding a red pen."

Lisa Harper, A Perfect Mess, Chapter 3

As writers we totally get the red pen picture. Our famiy is a homeschooling family. One of my favorite tools when I first began was a red pen. To me a red pen was like dh getting a new table saw. But it wasn't as if I went overboard on the check marks and the marking, like dh might on wanting to saw away. In fact, I didn't get much of a chance. You see. . .

The first time I graded my oldest child's paper with a red pen, she had a temper tantrum of monumental proportions. At the time, she was 12. At the time, I did not understand. What I did know is that she was utterly distressed by the whole red pen thing. So, I tucked it away and pulled out a blue pen.

It wasn't until she was 16 or 17 that I pulled out that red pen again. Sheer panic blanched her face at the sight. Tears welled up in her blue eyes. In my mind, I thought jeeze kid you're about to go out on your own and live in this great big world and you can't handle a tiny red pen?

If you ask her what her phobia of the all mighty red pen is about, she'll tell you that she sees it as being unfixable. Even though it is a tool to show you what needs to be fixed.

I love what Harper says, "My glaring imperfections caused me to doubt that a perfect God could ever really accept a defective girl like me."

Too many times religious legalism sets standards of obedience. If you don't stay above the bar, you're out. There's no three strikes, like in baseball, no penalty box, like in hockey. There's a red mark scratched through your name, never to be removed.

It is this very attitude among many in the body of believers that sends hurting people from the altar. It is this very attitude that keeps the world from knowing God's love.

Fortunately for us, God isn't religious legalism, He's God. Unfortunately, religious legalism forgets what 1 Peter 4:8 says, "Above all, love each other deeply because love covers a multitude of sins." They also seemed to have forgotten Romans 3:23. "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."

Jesus didn't come into the world to condem it, he came to save it. John 3:17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.

1 John 1:7 ". . . the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin."

Remember John 3:16

Man, God is awesome. "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."

The red ink is replaced by the blood of God's Son.

I rabbit trailed off of what I really got out of Harper's chapter, but I couldn't pass up the red ink.

Next week, I'll try and get to the heart of it. If at all possible, I suggest you find this book. Find it at the library or purchase it because I'm sure it will bless you.

*I want to say there are many wonderful churches and Christian believers out there that believe in second chances. They don't just believe in the second chances but they also embrace the hurting and the struggling with open arms and without the stench of judgements.

2010-02-25T16:07:00.000-06:00

I'm kind of having one of those days where I feel like I just can't do it anymore. It's not so much that I want to throw up my hands and quit writing, just that maybe quitting would be best all around. I'm sure it'll pass and I'll be back to my 'gotta write' self by the time this evening rolls around.

Making the Time

2010-02-25T11:11:00.000-06:00

I absolutely, 100% love the burn of a darn good workout. So why don't I do it more often?

You know, I'm not really sure. Other than time constraints tend to keep me forgetting that "Oh, yeah, I need to workout." In all honesty, it doesn't take that long to warm-up, get some cardio pumping, and run through a couple of reps.

But there's always something to do. Those 'somethings' always have more priority. And when those 'somethings' are complete, it's time for bed.

Health is important, too, especially when you're taking care of other people on a constant basis. Dh is constantly reminding me that I need to take care of myself, but when? I already cram so much into my days that my sleep suffers, and by the time I do lay down my mind tends to refuse to move into shut down mode. I've tried all kinds of things from watching a bit of television to reading to taking a shower just right before I lay down.

How do you priortize? How do you make time? Over the last few days, I've decided that I just have to. We have a punching bag in our front room, along with a weight bench and two exercise balls. I'm liking the boxing, and yesterday the boy put me through a semi-tough work out. I had wondered if I would even be able to lift my arms today, but I'm feeling great. I'm feeling that burn that tells me I did work hard yesterday. I'll take today for recooperation, and then tomorrow, I'll start all over again.

Hi, There

2010-02-22T13:15:00.000-06:00

You know it's like, hmmm, when the sun finally begins to thrust through the gray clouds after days on end.

I've been a bit down technologically wise. A few weeks back some of those frustrating things started happening. Things that made you wonder if you had somehow contracted a virus. Things like the IM no longer working. Things like your entire word processor disappearing.

WHAT?!

Yes, my entire word processor disappeared. Fortunately, I have an external hard drive. And I faithfully, downloaded everything I worked on.

Thanks to my wonderful father, I am borrowing his hard drive, but since it is a temporary fix I'm not downloading certain things, like Firefox. And, it has Works for the word processor. I did download OpenOffice since I was concerned whether or not I could transfer works back to word at a later date.

I have been working my way back into writing. First I had to work on paperwork for the shop, that is way past due. Now, I need to kind of get started on taxes. So not a good time to try and write another first draft. If I write 5k a day, I should be able to get it completed in two weeks. But a friend of mine is doing something called Book In A Week, I figured that if I wanted to accomplish that I'd have to write near 8k a day. I'm just not sure that is probable for me, especially since I have all this other stuff going on too.

Hope y'all have a very blessed day.

You Good Girl, What A Mess You Are

2010-02-14T10:05:00.001-06:00

". . . wearing a happy face and hose to church doesn't make us good girls any more than. . .

painting racing stripes on a Yugo makes it a sports car." The previous quote comes from Lisa Harper's chapter two of A Perfect Mess. Her words struck a chord within me. She goes on to say "Walking in faith means trusting in God ALONE, not in what we say or do or wear(the bold caps is my doing).

How true is that? Sadly though, many others, especially within the walls of Christian Legalism, don't see it that way.

I remember the days when white was only worm after a certain day. There used to be what was called an "appropriate" attire for church and everyone wore there best on Easter Sunday. Gosh, what if so and so didn't have a jacket and tie? What if all they had were the sweats donated to them from the Salvation Army? Thankfully, dress codes are relaxing. (Oh, I don't want to hear it, yes Mr. Brown should at least take a shower before church, but did you ever think he just may not have water?)

As typical Renee, I got off the track. I adore what Harper says in her next sentence about trusting God and not what we wear, "It means being honest about the fact each of us is a mess and we need God's mercy."

How true, how true. Some of you may recall the time when you first wanted to wear makeup, (everyone else was doing it)but boy howdy, if Mama caught you, all Hell was going to break loose. I mean she did raise you better, right? Sometimes we inspect our lives and we see things in it that we believe Christian believers wouldn't approve of, it's our excuse for not attending church, right? What does God think? Does he approve? Maybe he does, maybe he doesn't.

What I do know is that ". . . all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." Romans 3:23. So what then, if all of us fall short of God's glory, where is our hope? Well, verse 24 says that we are "justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus." Remember John 3:16?

It's not my job to tell you what you are doing right or wrong, just like it isn't your job to tell my I'm not above reproach (that'll never happen, not in the eyes of man). I've been hurt by religious legalism, and I'm not about to (at least I hope not) commit the same offense. But and I want to shout it out loud, religious legalism isn't GOD. You see God's mercy is greater than anything man can give to his own brother. We tend to think we know it all, all the rights and wrongs, and when we don't we go to someone who we think does, like another man. The thing is, that man is in much the same boat we are, he's a man. A man can not know all the things of God. I know from experience that as soon as we think we have it figured out God shows us there is much more. So where should we go? Simple, to God.

He doesn't always show us immediately, but He does. Sometimes His showing can take days, months, and even years.

All right so once again, I got off track. That's okay.

We can never be good enough, not even if we wear hose every Sunday for the rest of our lives. We can never out give or out love God. Never. What we can do is draw near to Him and he'll draw near to us.

I love Psalm 62, which Harper uses as inspiration for chapter two.

My soul finds rest in God alone; my salvation comes from him. He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken. Psalm 62: 1-2

You know, verse 5 says, "Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from him. He is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be shaken."

The words are obviously important enough to be repeated. God alone, God alone, not man, but God alone.

As hard as I try, I'll never be able to please everyone. I'll always fall short of their expectations, but that is okay, because I know God will be smiling down upon me because He knows my heart, He knows my thoughts and my intentions.

Inspirational vs. Mainstream

2010-02-12T00:01:00.001-06:00

It's no secret that I read mainstream historical romances as well as inspirational romances. And I write both. When I mentioned what I was working on this past week at a writer's meeting, I was surprised by the reaction.

In the past, inspirational novels would brow beat the reader. A good third of the word count seemed to be scripture. (I'm not saying there is anything wrong with that, but I also believe everything has it's place.) I've just begun reading inspirational romance novels again in the last year and noticed a drastic change. There is a definite natural flow in the relationship with God. Yes, sometimes you'll find scripture references, other times, mostly, there are the internal thoughts like what many of us have ourselves. Lord save me from myself. Lord open the earth and swallow me whole, please. Lord, help me with the right words to say that I may not stumble over my bumbling tongue. Everything else that you would find in a mainstream romance novel is there, well, besides the open-door sex. (Yeah, I know, many of you want it steaming the pages.)

Why do we read romance novels? Escapism. Most likely, but we can get that through all kinds of things and in other genres. Sex? Steaming, curl-your-toes, take-you-to-the-stars sex? If that is what you want, then there are other venues out there to read.

When I decide to read a romance novel, it's generally because the back of the book has given me a storyline and characters that I want to know more about. And I'm often curious as to how the hero and heroine will resolve their issues and find that happily-ever-after.

I read a book because I want to be swept away into another time and place. I want to experience the journey of falling in love all over again and everything it entails from the hurts to the triumphs. I want to feel the excruciating black moment, and I want breathe the happily ever after.

A good author can sweep us into this emotional roller coaster without those steamy love scenes. A good book can stand without the sex. (As I said, I don't buy a book for the steam. I buy a book for the relationship.)

The following book is one that I read recently that given more emotional depth could have been found on the mainstream market. It was a good story about a relationship between two people that just should not have been probable.

It didn't need a love scene.

The author created an unexpected sexual tension between the hero and heroine without crossing the rigid guidelines for writing inspirationals.
As far as I can tell this was only the second book from Capshaw, so I give her kudos and look forward to more from her.

The Duke's Redemption~ by Carla Capshaw

He came to the colonies for one reason: revenge. Drake Amberly, Duke of Hawk Haven, won't leave South Carolina until he's unmasked the colonial spy who killed his brother. Yet the more he sees of spirited Elise Cooper, the more he's moved by the happiness she brings him...never suspecting the dangerous secret she hides.

Her faith drives Elise to spy for the rebels, dreaming only of freedom for her homeland. Then she meets Drake, and learns that love could be hers, as well. When his pursuit of "The Fox" brings him dangerously close to the truth, she'll risk everything to prove that love and forgiveness are all they need.

So, do you expect the steam to rise off the pages when you pick up a book?

An Opportunity

2010-02-09T23:47:00.000-06:00

If you read A.C. journal post that I entered yesterday (in all actuality I was showing off Bloggers' new pages) you would have seen that at the top of the entry there was a scripture from Hebrews. It speaks of continually offering God the sacrifice of praise. As my hero states in his journal, offering God isn't always easy. It's funny actually when you think about.

Most of the time we keep God out of our lives . We push Him aside and ignore His voice when he draws us near to Him. Yet, when something bad happens, we call on his name (I heard somewhere this week that we use prayer like 911~God, it's bad, it's real bad and I need you now). And then there are the times that we do curse and rail at Him (WHY? WHY, GOD?). We want to know why He wasn't there for us during our darkest hours.

(Okay, how many of you have had somebody come to you only when they need something? It's a little irritating, isn't it?)

It's not always easy to offer up a sacrifice of praise. When my mother-in-law had been life-flighted several hours away, it was easy to pray for her. It was easy to recognize God as being in total control. And when hubs slid underneath a semi-truck, it was easy to praise God that He allowed my husband to come home to us in one piece. But when we were left without a vehicle for a few months it wasn't easy to praise God, it was natural to ask why.

After writing my post yesterday, I figured something would happen that would test my ability to offer up that sacrifice of praise. And before I made that little journal entry public, I said, "Okay."

You see, for me, my biggest temper tantrums where God is concerned is when my material things break, or are lost. When my dishwasher caught fire, it was a why? I've asked why many times over the last few years as I hand-washed my dishes. When my camera was dropped, I asked why? In all my adult life that was the one thing I had splurged on. I don't even get my hair cut but once or twice a year, I don't buy new clothes, settling for hammy-downs. When there is extra money in the kitty, it goes to the kids, and well books. Gosh, I sound so, so petty. It's really not that way.

So, today, when my Microsoft Word decided it would no longer work, I had the choice to ask why or to offer up a sacrifice of praise. I sat staring at the computer, dumb-founded. But I didn't ask why. I cried. I know to most of you crying over broken software is highly ridiculous. But my life is in Word. Well not my entire life, but a huge part of my life is there. Fortunately, I've been backing up files. But those files don't do me a bit of good if I have no way of accessing them. I can't open my critique partners' work to leave feedback. And I can't make my revisions either.

Anyhow, after I dried my tears, I praised God anyway. This is a learning process for me. I used to believe when things happened that I was being punished for some horrific sin, blame it on legalistic religion, not God. I think for the first time, ever, I realized that wasn't the case.

I know it isn't like someone died, but God does care even in the smallest of things, especially when those small things matter to us. Somehow, someway I'll learn to adjust. I've gotten to where I enjoy writing in notebooks, but I'm quite certain an agent or an editor wouldn't appreciate my handwriting skills. I guess I'll cross that bridge when I get to it. There is also a thing called opensource, not sure if it is user friendly. Hopefully tomorrow I'll be able to play with it a bit to see if it is something I can work with. Beggars can't be choosers, right?

I hope y'all have a blessed day. Oh, btw, I added another page, this time it is from Hezekiah.

OH Heck, Yeah!!!

2010-02-09T01:33:00.000-06:00

This is totally squeeeee worthy. No, I didn't get a contract. I did have two of my writing buddies have their books released in the last week, and one of those writing buddies landed and agent and a 4 book deal with Sourcebooks. So, YEAH, HECK YEAH!!!

You can check out the details over at Romance Roundtable.

On to more exciting news. . .Last weekend I spent the bulk of it gearing up to switch my blogging over to another host. My reason--I wanted pages. I wanted to run my blog like a website. It had not been an easy decision because I love Blogger. I find it very user friendly. My only complaint was the lack of pages.

Eh, hmmm. Blogger must have known what I was up to, because guess what showed up? Yeppers, you guessed it, the ability to add pages.

Seriously, I'm not fibbing you. Just check it out. Look in the middle column at the top. Do you see where it says HOME, then below it says something about a page from Reverend A.C.'s journal- that's my page. Well, I don't think it will be permanent. Not yet, anyway. I wanted to play around, and well, I'm also doing a 100 word challenge, and I, uh, really needed to get my words in there, and uh, since I like to do journal entries for my characters before I begin writing on a book, I thought I'd write one here. Let me tell you, it wasn't easy, because I needed to make it real enough for my hero but I didn't want to give anything away, if you know what I mean. So, don't go putting my head on the chopping block, it's short and I'm sure there are several mistakes.

Squeeeeeee!!! Blogger has pages!!

SuperBowl Prediction

2010-02-07T13:28:00.000-06:00

Hubs will be sleeping on the couch tonight since he's cheering for The Saints. I don't have anything against them, they are obviously an awesome team to have made it this far.

BUT

I'm a Colts' fan!!!! Go COLTS!!!!!!!!!!!

Hubs' predicts Saints win by 4. Oh, and that

Manning will be a very gracious loser. Uh, duh!

It's Manning, of course he'll be gracious.

Have a wonderful, blessed day!

Sunday Sermon

2010-02-07T00:37:00.001-06:00

I'm reading this book by Lisa Harper called A Perfect Mess-Why You Don't Have to Worry About Being Good Enough for God. The title was enough for me to run out and pick up the book, because even as a young child I always believed I could never be good enough for God to love. If someone else felt the same way, then maybe there was hope.

Yeah, I know, the very first memory verse they teach you in Sunday school as a child is John 3:16. But to me, instead of "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.", I thought it should say "For God so loved the world, except for Renee. . ."

You see, I believe that God did love the world, I believe He still does. It's all that theological thinking. . . All right I won't go there, yet.

At the beginning of the first chapter Harper shares a quote, which I found to completely true where my walk with God is concerned.

God's words, creating and saving words every one, hit us where we live. by Eugene H. Peterson

Throughout the first chapter she shares verses from my favorite book in the bible, Psalms. If you've never read Psalms, then you don't know what you're missing. The book is filled with real words for real people to a Loving God. Most of them written by David an imperfect man, but a man after God's own heart (Acts 13:22).

I think God set David apart because when he came to the Lord, he came in honesty. When he was depressed, he didn't try to hide it from God. "How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever?" Psalm 13:1 When he was faint. "O Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger or discipline me in your wrath. Be merciful to me, Lord for I am faint;" Psalm 6:1-2. David even made demands. "Answer me when I call to you, O my righteous God. Give me relief from my distress; be merciful to me and hear my prayer." Psalm 4:1

Some of you may know that David was a perfect mess. He committed adultery, and he committed murder, and not just as a warrior king. Yet, God said he was a man after His own heart.

How great is our God that he can look past our faults and love us anyway?

Stay tuned next Sunday, as Harper's second chapter is titled Leaping over Legalism. It aught to be interesting. Legalism in the church is one of the things that just breaks my heart.

The Cuts

2010-02-04T01:27:00.000-06:00

I just wanted to throw this out there, when I talk about revisions I tend to talk about what page I'm on, or what chapter I have progressed to. The other day, one of my critique partners mentioned that in the next round I'd probably have to cut a lot. You know to get rid of all those unnecessary things that I'm holding on to.

Well, she knows me all too well. BUT! I have been cutting. A LOT. In only 5 chapters I have cut almost 10,000 words. I'm not sure if that is typical or not since I didn't keep track of what I had cut with my first manuscript.

Things are different with this one. My eyes are opened a bit more, and I kind of know what I'm looking for and I kind of understand that it's all about moving the story forward. And that is how I'm revising, with that in mind.

I did start on Chapter 6, but where I cut about three paragraphs, I wrote 5 new pages. Today, I'll hopefully finish that chapter up. I'll feel more at ease when I've reached the 1/3 mark.

Have a blessed day!

Revision Update

2010-02-03T00:58:00.000-06:00

5/21 Chapters

It took be a bit longer to finish chapter 5. The first half, was easy peasy. The second half took me near three days, two of those days involved contemplation. I didn't like the way things were flowing and needed them to come together in a more woven fashion.
Have a blessed day!

I'm leaving you with a youtube video featuring BarlowGirl. I love the lyrics to this song.

You're Important Too!

2010-02-01T20:12:00.000-06:00

My time is rarely my own.

You so know what I mean, don't you? Especially if you're a mom. Even more so if you're a homeschooling mom.

My list could go on and on. I know we are busy, we're all busy. Some of us are up at 5:00 AM getting the kids ready for their day as we get ourselves ready for work. Some of us are just hitting our R.E.M sleep.

Sometimes we are so busy that we are overextended and it makes it hard to keep our commitments. When we fail to keep our commitments, even the minute ones, it reflects on our accountability.

And it's not that we aren't standing by our word because we're being asses (yeah, how many of you all thought this about someone else?). I'm guilty of letting people down, but I'm trying to make an effort to change that. When people think of me, I don't want them to think "Oh, Renee will do it because there is nobody else." I want them to say, "Oh, I'll ask Renee because I know if she says yes, it'll get done."

I want you to know, that I include myself in this as well. If I tell myself that I'll do something, like to have Cherish Me ready for submission by mid March, then I'll do it. And I'll be ready. I'll be prepared, not late, not rushed.

So when you're telling your husband that you'll make that phone call, or the kids that you'll take them to their lessons, or tell a friend you'll be there at a certain time, don't forget to do the same for yourself. Set that time aside for tea, or workout, or writing. DON'T BE AFRAID. JUST DO IT. Because you are important too!

Ambitious? Just A Little

2010-02-01T00:19:00.002-06:00

I'm starting a brand new adventure this week.

Not only will I continue working on revisions for Cherish Me (5 new pages tonight), but I'll begin plotting on a brand new series. This one will be an Inspirational Western Romance.

Something that I'm doing right along side my plotting is writing journal entries from my hero. I haven't decided whether or not I'll do them with my heroine too, but I just might.

Of course, the setting is Kansas, Territorial Kansas. My word count goal is 70,000 words. It's totally doable. I just don't want to put Cherish Me, my mainstream Western Romance, down. And I know if I get overwhelmed I just my be tempted to toss one of them aside for a little while.

But I have plans, big, big plans. A great amount of determination. And a double portion of support from family and friends! Y'all rock, you know that don't you?

Cue music-

So yeah, in case you're wondering I have this cycle going.

Cycle One (current cycle)

Cherish Me           Hope              Priest
Revisions              First Draft      Resting

Cycle Two

Priest Love Me          Hope
Revisions First Draft    Resting

Cycle Three

Hope Sacrifice    Love Me
Revisions First Draft Resting

That is three different series.

Western Romance    Inspy Western    Inspy Ancient
Cherish Me    Hope    Priest
Love Me    Love    Sacrifice
Hold Me    Faith    Redemption

And of course, there is my first love~my highlanders. One day I'll revisit them. Maybe sooner than I think.

Collapse Under Extreme Pressure

2010-01-31T00:18:00.000-06:00

I've quite ignored my revisions this past week. And although I've been writing every day, I've probably set myself up for a tiny failure. You see because I felt extreme pressure to perform revisions I began to unravel a little. Who am I kidding, I collapsed. I folded. I closed up shop. I didn't even want to open the file. I knew what was in there, and I knew the knots that I had to untangle. Or so I thought.

While I was ignoring my revisions, I knew that I had a 100 words for 100 days challenge that I needed to continue with. Mainly because I was somewhere in the 80s and it is just plain stupid to quit with less than twenty days to go. My words had been new words on my revisions (see above). Because I didn't want to quit, and I refused to open my revisions (see above), I wrote on something I've had in the planning for months. The only problem is, the planning never made it too far into the plotting, which means what I've been writing, hasn't been plotted. Which means what I've been writing just might make things a mess. Or it would have if I hadn't intended this to be the first chapter, and it would have if I would have continued writing.

So what did I do? I quit writing on the new project and went back to my revisions. And the knots weren't as bad as I had thought. Not at all. In fact, I had already fixed the knots when I rewrote the scene a few months back. All I had to do was write a transition piece and add the new stuff.

Over all I have 15 brand new pages, I cut 7 old. Tomorrow, I'll cut a lot more and write some more new ones. I'm very pleased with the continuity. I'm taking it in a slightly different direction, but it totally works!

70 pages down 197 left to sift through (of course I'm adding word count to this)

2010-01-28T01:21:00.000-06:00

I think I'm liking this shift from young misses to more mature women in romance novels.

What Kind of Junk Food Are You?

2010-01-27T07:57:00.000-06:00

Over at Romance Roundtable, Laurie Faelen posted a junk food quiz. Imagine my surprise to discover what kind of junk food I am.

You are very traditional -- but that's not necessarily a bad thing! It means you're organized, efficient, dependable and stable. And who's to say you can't spice things up with a little chocolate sauce!

I like the idea that I'm sweet and probably melt when I get too hot, (there's some deeper meaning there I'm sure). I love the part about adding a little chocolate, although in my case it'd be butterscotch. But there is no way in this world I am organized. Well, maybe I am organized in a chaotic sort of manner.

Numbers In Writing

2010-01-24T23:06:00.000-06:00

I had intended on following up my pre-planning post with how I use index cards to plot, but I got stuck yesterday researching Kansas liquor laws in the 1860's.

So, I'm going to talk about something else. No, not Kansas liquor laws.

As much as I absolutely hate numbers and equations, I live by them when it comes to writing.

Now, I'm going to start throwing numbers out here. If you recall in my previous post, the target word count for Steeple Hill is 70,000-75,000. I heard from a published author that there is a 60/40 formula for romance novels. That is 60% in the heroine's point of view and 40% in the hero's point of view. Approximately 42,000 words in the heroine's and 33,000 words in the hero's. This is give or take, and of course they are only guidelines and not set-in-stone rules.

Since I'm long winded, I'm going to use the 75,000 word count. Now if I want 20 chapters, I'll aim for 3750 words (guideline only). Remember some chapters may be longer than others, some may be shorter. And remember too, this isn't necessarily the right way to do it. But I'm such a freak about it, because if I don't have some kind of formula in mind then I write all over the place and it comes out like crap!

Okay-

75,000 divided by 20 is 3750, which gives me 2250 for my heroine and 1500 for my hero, give or take per a chapter. I have been known to write one chapter in only one pov, so it's not cemented.

I don't always do it this way. Each project is looked at with fresh eyes and geared toward target. The chapters in the project I'm currently revising run closer to 4,000, and when I first wrote it the split wasn't a 60/40 it was more like 50/50. :)

Finding Clarity

2010-01-21T01:34:00.000-06:00

I'm actually working on a post to follow up on the pre-planning, but as I was working on a fake premise, I discovered that the premise would work great for a future story related to what I'm currently revising. So, I went into writing notes and spot researching. I'm looking forward to it, because I'm building this tidy, little world. Well, not so tidy since the roads aren't paved.

Anyway, I have this absolutely wonderful writing partner that totally gets technique, which I don't. AND, she has this way of pointing out things that just don't mesh.

If you ask my husband what the one thing I'm good at when it comes to arguing, it's rabbit trailing. When it comes to writing, I'm like the Tasmanian Devil in the center of a Venn diagram.

My heroine, her parents abandoned to the villain her for gold. The villain sold her, a good Samaritan bought her only to end up abandoning her when he's murdered, leaving his son in her care.

Now, I wanted to give my hero a good goal, a goal that somehow would cause him to meet up with my heroine. Well I knew all this stuff about my heroine, and I knew one detail about my hero-he was a prisoner of war.

Sometimes I use web diagrams to help me sort things out. With my hero, I had eight main circles and three items attached to one circle.

For me the prisoner of war thing is necessary. But then I had things like, he was a Union spy, a Pinkerton detective, looking for his orphaned nieces, and working for the villain. Of course there were plenty of other things that had to do with external and internal wounds.

When I passed my first round of revisions to this wonderful writing partner, she sent them back pointing out places where it was just too much. After reading back over my ms, I was almost out of breath thinking about all that I had my hero doing.

Here is part of what she said, "I think he's got a lot going on being on a mission...trying to find his nieces and later on he has some association with (villain). Would it work to streamline. . ."

Once I hit the streamline, I recalled something she had told me only a few months back. It wasn't a familiar term for me, but it has stuck in my head ever since.

K.eep

I.t
S.imple
S.tupid

The reminder made it a lot easier to cut out the unnecessary details.

I struggled with when to ask my critique partners to look over my work. I've come to the conclusion that for the most part, I want to wait until it is as polished as I can get it. But after revising the first three chapters, I knew that I needed an initial reaction before I could go much further. I think that's because I knew I had too much going on. I'm still in this learning process of writing, and her input helped me to see where it was too much. And now, I can continue on with revisions with more confidence, knowing that I've cut some of the crap and have gotten back to the heart of the story.

2010-01-20T23:58:00.001-06:00

Pre-prep

2010-01-18T00:29:00.003-06:00

The following information comes from the Avon Books Submission Guidelines.

INSPIRE

(60,000—90,000 words)

Inspire is a new line of inspirational romances from Avon Books. These stories and their characters are primarily Christian, and promote traditional values and beliefs. They also are first and foremost stories of the heart, romantic novels about learning to trust; to open ourselves to love, not only to the men in our lives, but ultimately to God. Set in America, both contemporary and historical settings will be considered, as will romantic suspense and romantic comedy. There should be no alcohol, drug use, or premarital sex for the main characters. For non-Christian characters, these subjects can be explored but primarily to show their destructive nature and how a virtuous life is the better path. Foul language should be avoided at all costs.

Steeple Hill's Love Inspired Historical is pretty much the same, except for the word count (70,000-75,000).

I've learned that when I begin a new manuscript it helps me greatly if I have some sort of guidelines to go by. Since I'm currently working on a few inspirationals, I thought it would be good to know what I'm looking at. The best way for me to go about this is to hit a target word count that would broaden my options-70,000-75,000.

Having this starting point gives me an idea at about how many chapters I'm shooting for, which helps me in the plotting process. And while I'm writing, I know that I am shooting for a certain word count for each chapter.

For my work-in-progress Hope, I am aiming for 3,000-4000 words per a chapter, which means 18-25 chapters.

As for Priest, it's a bit different. Right now in the first draft it's sitting at 63,190 word and thirty chapters. Most likely the chapters will stay the same but I want to increase my word count.

A Gluten-Free Recipe

2010-01-18T00:00:00.000-06:00

For almost a year now, my diet has consisted of Tacos, Chicken Alfredo over rice, and soup. Occasionally I'd roast a whole chicken. Two weeks ago I added pizza back in, thanks to my mother and Namaste Foods. Not that I didn't know about the gluten-free pizza crust because I did, but at $7.00 a bag and the high probability of an icky taste, I just didn't think it was worth the try. My mother, however, did. On Christmas, she gifted me with a pizza crust mix. I guess you could say I was totally shocked. At first I thought I enjoyed it because I had only had two personal pan pizzas from a local pizzeria, Via's, over the last few years. And although I did like those take outs personal pans, I could definitely taste the rice flour, which is something I've become accustomed to and would have been all right if the crust hadn't been soggy as well. Surprisingly, it was absolutely delicious. I even made the family try just to make sure, and they loved it too.

So this week, I stepped out of my tried and true norm. When I went to the grocery to purchase my pizza mix, I found a tortilla crumb mix (I can see some of you rolling your eye, why didn't I just buy milled corn) with two interesting recipes on the back.

Here is the first:

Breaded Ranch Chicken

1 cup Tortilla Crumbs*

3/4 cup grated Pepper Jack Cheese

1 egg

1/2 cup melted butter

1-2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts

In a shallow bowl, combine Tortilla Crumbs, cheese and melted butter. Dip chicken pieces in egg that has been lightly beaten. Roll in Tortilla Crumb mixture to coat (this didn't look like any coating I've ever seen and it didn't stick to the chicken real well). Place in greased, shallow baking dish. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees 30-40 minutes until done (I baked at 375 for 1 hour).

I think corn is an acquired taste, one that I am still working on. But I have to say this wasn't too bad. Although two of the kids didn't like it (they're picky eaters) hubs and the youngest did like it. I'd eat it again, and it wasn't too hard to make.

As to why I didn't buy milled corn, uh, it didn't cross my. I think next time I just might give it a try and add my own seasonings. This whole thing of learning how to cook outside of boxed dinners is taking some getting used to.

Gluten Free Post The picture of the pizza crust mix was taken from the Gluten Free Post, with their review of the pizza crust, which I'll tell you they didn't like.

*Tortilla Crumbs is a product made by the Soynut Butter Company