Pleased to announce that SEASONS IN THE MIST won this year's (2010) Grace Award in the speculative fiction category! I'm more honored than I can say. The Grace Award is an inclusive, reader-nominated, reader-voted award that spreads its arms to welcome small press, large press, e-published, and self-published works in Christian fiction. There's a lot of work out there that never gets attention from the more mainstream awards. So I'm cranked and thrilled!
Showing posts with label Sheaf House. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sheaf House. Show all posts
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Gotta Crow!
Pleased to announce that SEASONS IN THE MIST won this year's (2010) Grace Award in the speculative fiction category! I'm more honored than I can say. The Grace Award is an inclusive, reader-nominated, reader-voted award that spreads its arms to welcome small press, large press, e-published, and self-published works in Christian fiction. There's a lot of work out there that never gets attention from the more mainstream awards. So I'm cranked and thrilled!
Sunday, August 08, 2010
Setting It Free
Hallelujah! My publisher was kind enough to accept the half-edited SEASONS OF RECKONING this past week! She knows it's a first draft after chapter 10 and she was okay with that! Meanwhile I keep editing and will send her the other smoothed-out chapters as I get chunk after chunk done. Praise the Lord for a patient editor.
That said -- I released the document from my jump drive to her computer with no small degree of trepidation. Let nobody deny this -- it's hard to set your story free and hand it into someone else's keeping. The usual bugaboos lift their heads. This puppy is going to be read by another! What if she liked the first book in the "Seasons of Destiny" series (she did like it) and hates this second outing? What if my character's rather dry, low-key sense of humor doesn't work as well as Bethany's out-there one? What if she hates the way Marcus and Ebrel meet? What if what if what if--?
It's not easy.
In other news from Casa Chaos, I see on an e-mail loop we all know and love, what we'd change about CBA publishers. I did respond in my trying-to-be-the-voice-of-rational-thinking mode to the loop. What I wanted to say was: Why is this even a question? Who (except for those three or four remaining CBA publishers) cares what CBA does anymore? The Christian fic market has grown so vastly larger than these few, conservative, "let's ignore the world's need for Christ and push out more Bonnet Books" publishers that the conversation is all but irrelevant before it begins. Please!
Striking my blow for the larger market.
That said -- I released the document from my jump drive to her computer with no small degree of trepidation. Let nobody deny this -- it's hard to set your story free and hand it into someone else's keeping. The usual bugaboos lift their heads. This puppy is going to be read by another! What if she liked the first book in the "Seasons of Destiny" series (she did like it) and hates this second outing? What if my character's rather dry, low-key sense of humor doesn't work as well as Bethany's out-there one? What if she hates the way Marcus and Ebrel meet? What if what if what if--?
It's not easy.
In other news from Casa Chaos, I see on an e-mail loop we all know and love, what we'd change about CBA publishers. I did respond in my trying-to-be-the-voice-of-rational-thinking mode to the loop. What I wanted to say was: Why is this even a question? Who (except for those three or four remaining CBA publishers) cares what CBA does anymore? The Christian fic market has grown so vastly larger than these few, conservative, "let's ignore the world's need for Christ and push out more Bonnet Books" publishers that the conversation is all but irrelevant before it begins. Please!
Striking my blow for the larger market.
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
The End!
News hot off the press for all three of you -- I finished Book #2 in the "Seasons of Destiny" series! Well, at least I told the whole story. Isn't that what this blog pretends to be about?
Yeah, right.
Anyway, thanks to my superb crit partner who never lets a good turn of phrase go unpraised or a *clunk* go unpunished, I hit on a boffo ending (we think) and sat down and finished the book! I feel good.
However, its title is still a botheration. I originally called it SEASONS OF RECKONING, and changed the working title to APRIL'S PILGRIM because, at the end of the day, there really isn't very much reckoning going on in this book!
My Historical Writers yahoo loop is weighing in on the choice, and so far it's 3-0 in favor of RECKONING. I dunno what I'll do.
Anyone want to weigh in? I chose APRIL'S PILGRIM because it puns on a main character's name: Ebrel means "April" in Cornish. Also the point-of-view character does take a convoluted journey through various trials in the book--something like a pilgrimage. But now (perverse woman!) I find myself liking SEASONS OF RECKONING better.
How say you, minions?
Yeah, right.
Anyway, thanks to my superb crit partner who never lets a good turn of phrase go unpraised or a *clunk* go unpunished, I hit on a boffo ending (we think) and sat down and finished the book! I feel good.
However, its title is still a botheration. I originally called it SEASONS OF RECKONING, and changed the working title to APRIL'S PILGRIM because, at the end of the day, there really isn't very much reckoning going on in this book!
My Historical Writers yahoo loop is weighing in on the choice, and so far it's 3-0 in favor of RECKONING. I dunno what I'll do.
Anyone want to weigh in? I chose APRIL'S PILGRIM because it puns on a main character's name: Ebrel means "April" in Cornish. Also the point-of-view character does take a convoluted journey through various trials in the book--something like a pilgrimage. But now (perverse woman!) I find myself liking SEASONS OF RECKONING better.
How say you, minions?
Sunday, May 09, 2010
A Tasty Read?
Fellow Desert Breeze author and ACFW member Shawna Williams is waiting to read SEASONS IN THE MIST, but is in a holding pattern. Her 13 year old apparently got to it first.
She reports, "My oldest daughter likes to read outside, so she took the book with her to the goat pen. We love our goats...anyhow, she has this goat named Precious, who was happily sitting next to Lexi while she read. Lexi got distracted by a bug and set the book down to swat it. When she turned around, Precious was walking off with the book in her mouth, and Lexi had to wrestle it away. The book is fine, only slight teeth impressions. But now it seems that not only am I having to fight my daughters for a turn to read it, the goat's trying to weasel in, too."
I'm honored & humbled that a goat loves my book. But a tad bit bummed, alongside.
See, I had visions of fans reading it, not eating it...
She reports, "My oldest daughter likes to read outside, so she took the book with her to the goat pen. We love our goats...anyhow, she has this goat named Precious, who was happily sitting next to Lexi while she read. Lexi got distracted by a bug and set the book down to swat it. When she turned around, Precious was walking off with the book in her mouth, and Lexi had to wrestle it away. The book is fine, only slight teeth impressions. But now it seems that not only am I having to fight my daughters for a turn to read it, the goat's trying to weasel in, too."
I'm honored & humbled that a goat loves my book. But a tad bit bummed, alongside.
See, I had visions of fans reading it, not eating it...
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Early in the SEASONS
I'm pleased to announce that reviews are beginning to post for SEASONS IN THE MIST. So far, every one I've seen has been 5 stars, and I'm getting some great comments as well.
Today, Dina Sleiman posted an interview on Inkwell Inspirations, her blog. It was fun to dig a little deeper into the question: "why Christian medieval time-travel?"
A good and interesting question, and quite valid, but you could just as easily ask, "why Amish?" or "why Regency?" First, a writer does well to write what interests her most. If I were passionate about the Amish, I suspect I would dig into everything I could find about them, learn all I could, and then write what I love most.
So it is with me, with the medieval era. SEASONS has never been anything but a time-travel story from its earliest (shuddering at the quality) versions. So when I re-wrote it with a hope toward publication, it seemed natural to tell of the 14th century through the eyes of a passionate, prejudiced, backslidden medieval historian. With thanks to my editors, it became what it now is: what I hope will be a fun, stimulating, and may I say mildly educational romp into a fascinating era.
I'm working on the sequel. I hope it will be everything it should. If passion alone can make it so, I won't have too much trouble.
To God the glory.
Today, Dina Sleiman posted an interview on Inkwell Inspirations, her blog. It was fun to dig a little deeper into the question: "why Christian medieval time-travel?"
A good and interesting question, and quite valid, but you could just as easily ask, "why Amish?" or "why Regency?" First, a writer does well to write what interests her most. If I were passionate about the Amish, I suspect I would dig into everything I could find about them, learn all I could, and then write what I love most.
So it is with me, with the medieval era. SEASONS has never been anything but a time-travel story from its earliest (shuddering at the quality) versions. So when I re-wrote it with a hope toward publication, it seemed natural to tell of the 14th century through the eyes of a passionate, prejudiced, backslidden medieval historian. With thanks to my editors, it became what it now is: what I hope will be a fun, stimulating, and may I say mildly educational romp into a fascinating era.
I'm working on the sequel. I hope it will be everything it should. If passion alone can make it so, I won't have too much trouble.
To God the glory.
Thursday, April 01, 2010
Doubly Blessed
...to say that it's release day -- not for one book, but two. Has ever an author gotten such a terrific blessing?
Here's the cover for the first (in no particular order):
And here's the second.
They're both lovely, aren't they? DAMAGES is an e-book from Desert Breeze Publishing, and SEASONS IN THE MIST is available now in print from Sheaf House (most large booksellers seem to be carrying it).
Color me thrilled!
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Apparently I Told the Story
I gave the full edited MS of SEASONS IN THE MIST to my crit partner Janny over the weekend. Mind you, she's seen pieces of it as it's grown, but never the full.
I'm tearing up now, because here is her assessment of the part she has read so far:
"...your characters have a relaxed sense of humor that shines through; I think that many historical romance writers are so cognizant of the necessity to put in crackling sensual tension that the characters almost end up being too intense and focused on those things, to the exclusion of being balanced human beings (unbalanced, unrealistic human beings in romance books? Surely I jest!).
"And, of course, because there's a spiritual content to yours that is more straightforward and wholesome than secular medievals tend to have, the entire world and the people in it 'hang together' better. One temptation that contemporary writers always have to fight is the tendency to forget that their heroines cannot be modern women in costume dramas--they have to sound, as much as possible, like women of that time WOULD sound, act, and yes, even think. This is hard for most of them to do, especially in the area of faith, religion, and/or the Church.
"In that sense, your characterization of Michael is especially wonderful--he balances the hard (and sad) reality of clerics who don't do their jobs and/or aren't educated properly and/or are lazy against the spiritual reality that, in fact, this is all the people HAVE and that no servant of God is gonna be perfect anyway. There's an almost tender regard he has for the human weaknesses of the priests and other clerics in this book that I think would ring much truer to the time period than the more cynical, jaded, or sarcastic viewpoints that so often show up on the part of characters in other medievals. In that sense alone, you've already risen above the crowd.
"And it goes without saying that as a Catholic, I'm thoroughly sick of reading contemporary liberal anti-Church speeches coming out of characters who wouldn't have made those speeches in the times in which they lived. You not only stayed out of that trap, but you made the character come alive as a man of faith as a result. To which I can only say, 'Brava!'"
As I say, this gets me, like, all misty. I've aspired to something and apparently in my crit partner's eyes, achieved it. All glory to God. This is a story I've wanted to tell for years, and it seems to me a very wondrous and humbling thing that it'll be coming out to the world in general.
If there's a point to this post is: they say, "Write the book of your heart," and it's true. I was told this piece would never sell. I put it away assuming the industry was right and I was all wet, that it would never find a home and I alone would travel this road along with my characters. I guessed wrongly. A most humbling thing.
I'm tearing up now, because here is her assessment of the part she has read so far:
"...your characters have a relaxed sense of humor that shines through; I think that many historical romance writers are so cognizant of the necessity to put in crackling sensual tension that the characters almost end up being too intense and focused on those things, to the exclusion of being balanced human beings (unbalanced, unrealistic human beings in romance books? Surely I jest!).
"And, of course, because there's a spiritual content to yours that is more straightforward and wholesome than secular medievals tend to have, the entire world and the people in it 'hang together' better. One temptation that contemporary writers always have to fight is the tendency to forget that their heroines cannot be modern women in costume dramas--they have to sound, as much as possible, like women of that time WOULD sound, act, and yes, even think. This is hard for most of them to do, especially in the area of faith, religion, and/or the Church.
"In that sense, your characterization of Michael is especially wonderful--he balances the hard (and sad) reality of clerics who don't do their jobs and/or aren't educated properly and/or are lazy against the spiritual reality that, in fact, this is all the people HAVE and that no servant of God is gonna be perfect anyway. There's an almost tender regard he has for the human weaknesses of the priests and other clerics in this book that I think would ring much truer to the time period than the more cynical, jaded, or sarcastic viewpoints that so often show up on the part of characters in other medievals. In that sense alone, you've already risen above the crowd.
"And it goes without saying that as a Catholic, I'm thoroughly sick of reading contemporary liberal anti-Church speeches coming out of characters who wouldn't have made those speeches in the times in which they lived. You not only stayed out of that trap, but you made the character come alive as a man of faith as a result. To which I can only say, 'Brava!'"
As I say, this gets me, like, all misty. I've aspired to something and apparently in my crit partner's eyes, achieved it. All glory to God. This is a story I've wanted to tell for years, and it seems to me a very wondrous and humbling thing that it'll be coming out to the world in general.
If there's a point to this post is: they say, "Write the book of your heart," and it's true. I was told this piece would never sell. I put it away assuming the industry was right and I was all wet, that it would never find a home and I alone would travel this road along with my characters. I guessed wrongly. A most humbling thing.
Sunday, November 08, 2009
A Change of SEASONS
That's right--SEASONS IN THE MIST, the time-travel romance that's been percolating through the writing/submission/ publishing process for many months, is just about revised and ready to send back to Sheaf House. I finished the substantive work yesterday, so the coming week is for tweaks, polishes and a final re-read.
Why rewrite, do you ask? Good question. The publisher thought the middle was "flat."
So I rewrote. It's the first time I've done such a thing, though I've heard other authors moan about rewrites. I did feel their pain, but since I'd never been asked, it didn't affect ME, now, did it?
God uses such things to keep us humble.
Since that's true, SEASONS has morphed into something a little different. There is now a political subplot to the story, and the tension between Lord Mike the Hunky, Lady Bethany Who Tells Lies, and Hairy-Nosed Git Brother is now ratcheted way, way up.
I think it's a better book now.
Stay tuned. The new, improved version is already available for preorder on Amazon and CBD. It'll be released in April.
Why rewrite, do you ask? Good question. The publisher thought the middle was "flat."
So I rewrote. It's the first time I've done such a thing, though I've heard other authors moan about rewrites. I did feel their pain, but since I'd never been asked, it didn't affect ME, now, did it?
God uses such things to keep us humble.
Since that's true, SEASONS has morphed into something a little different. There is now a political subplot to the story, and the tension between Lord Mike the Hunky, Lady Bethany Who Tells Lies, and Hairy-Nosed Git Brother is now ratcheted way, way up.
I think it's a better book now.
Stay tuned. The new, improved version is already available for preorder on Amazon and CBD. It'll be released in April.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Taking My Own Advice
A bit more "what's in it for YOU"ish stuff. Today, while laboring diligently in the Revision Pit, I got permission from my publisher to post a teaser excerpt from SEASONS IN THE MIST. It's on my web site. Take a look--tell me what you think.
And remember: it's for YOU and it's free! LOL.
Interested? Get thee (as Janny recommends) to my site, www.debkinnard.com and click on the "sneak preview" button on the lower left hand side.
And remember: it's for YOU and it's free! LOL.
Interested? Get thee (as Janny recommends) to my site, www.debkinnard.com and click on the "sneak preview" button on the lower left hand side.
Friday, August 28, 2009
SEASONS IN THE MIST Gets a Cover!
This is what we arrived at (less me than the incomparable folks at Sheaf House). I'm thrilled, awed, happy, humbled, thankful. Isn't it beautiful?
For me, they captured exactly the right mood. Good fiction ought to evoke the same strong emotions as good music -- they ought to make you feel. This cover does. I hope the book lives up to its skin. I trust in God that it will.
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
A Cover-to-Be!
My publisher sent the proof of the cover for SEASONS IN THE MIST. They want the cover done early, because the spring catalogs need to get whipped into shape now. Who'd have believed it?
The cover is a honey. Truly. The designer got the mood just exactly right. She wants to tweak it a little more, so I can't share it quite yet. I'm so pumped, though, that if I could post it, you'd be admiring it with me. As soon as I can, I will.
Rejoice with me!
The cover is a honey. Truly. The designer got the mood just exactly right. She wants to tweak it a little more, so I can't share it quite yet. I'm so pumped, though, that if I could post it, you'd be admiring it with me. As soon as I can, I will.
Rejoice with me!
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
SALE!
Except for my DH, you guys are the first to know:
I'm pleased as spiced ale to announce that Sheaf House has offered to publish SEASONS IN THE MIST. SEASONS, as all two of you blog fans will no doubt recollect, is a time-travel romance set (mostly) in 1353 Cornwall.
We're mulling a spring '10 release for it. Due to the awesome nature of Sheaf House's previous covers, I hope & expect a really bodacious cover for this book.
Though I've known about the possibility for some months, my agent advised me to keep mum until released to announce by the publisher. Well, today we all agreed it could come out! As in, SQUEEEE!
Still grinning almost wide enough to split my face.
I'm pleased as spiced ale to announce that Sheaf House has offered to publish SEASONS IN THE MIST. SEASONS, as all two of you blog fans will no doubt recollect, is a time-travel romance set (mostly) in 1353 Cornwall.
We're mulling a spring '10 release for it. Due to the awesome nature of Sheaf House's previous covers, I hope & expect a really bodacious cover for this book.
Though I've known about the possibility for some months, my agent advised me to keep mum until released to announce by the publisher. Well, today we all agreed it could come out! As in, SQUEEEE!
Still grinning almost wide enough to split my face.
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