Fired Back Up!

Writing news today, plus a mini-rant.

The good news is: I'm afire once more. Those peripherals I discussed in the previous post will have to wait -- a story burns!

More than once in the past I've discussed with Janny the idea of a series, centered around a container of some kind that the characters use to store mementoes in -- items that figured in, or remind them of, some sort of crisis of faith. The items can be anything: a rock found on the beach that day they prayed and got answers; a bead from Grandmother's paternoster; a note from a friend thought lost.

The concept was originally the Bag o' Religion, shamelessly borrowed, but it's morphed into an ancient reliquary. PEACEWEAVER, the piece I'm brushing up (and trying desperately to finish) will be the introductory story. After that I'm fleshing out a previously written medieval, set later in the period, for the second book. Working title: THE STRANGER GUEST.

Janny's question was, "Stranger than what?" That needs answer, but not right now!

Mini-rant follows. Those of you who don't care, now's your chance to opt out.

ACFW in their forward-thinking mode has decided that e-books are no longer acceptable as Book Club selections. They selected Shawna Williams' NO OTHER as their first ever e-book. All 'round cyberspace, e-authors were applauding. ACFW "gained face" as they say in the East.

Now that's all over. One e-book was permitted for discussion, but not any more.

C'mon, ACFW. Get with the times. Do we always have to be two years behind the industry? Or this once, can we put on our Big Girl Times-They-Are-A'Changin' Hat and try, at least, to get on a level playing field?

Pah!

Peripherals

It's a funny, sad, serious business, this writing thing. I find myself looking back at a week just past, and thinking, "Where did the writing time go?" Some weeks I can sit back and slam the keyboard like whoa, and some weeks (like this one), I self report my progress as...

Zip.

Nichts.

Niente.

The reasons can be many. I'm hungry. I'm full. I'm tired. I'm too full of energy. Name an excuse not to put in quality time on the work-in-progress, and I've used it.

But I find myself spending increasing amounts of writing time in activities that are peripheral to the Main Event. I blog. This is a good thing. I maintain my web site. Also a good thing. I check e-mails, which is a must-do good thing. I schmooze with my writing and non-writing buddies. I do the social network sites.

And what happens at the end of all that? Have I set down one word toward fulfilling my goal -- writing something that'll get me a bit closer to THE END?

No.

Time to consider. Time to think about whether to cut back. Do I need to be on fourteen different e-mail loops? Maybe not. Do I need to perform all these peripheral tasks? Or do I need to better focus on the stories in my head, and the talent to tell them that God gave me?

Thoughts?

A Very Merry Sale

That's right! I'm thrilled to tell you that SEASONS IN THE MIST is now available for the Kindle! And at a lovely introductory price. You cannot get hardly anything of mine this cheaply! Well, on some days I'd make you quite a deal on my teenaged daughter, but usually not so much...

Get thee to Amazon, plunk down $3 for the load to your Kindle or your pooter (Kindle software for your computer is free!) and settle in to enjoy (one hopes).

Down to the Wire

Did I mention I had a deadline? September 1, for the novella I started dog's ages ago. Desert Breeze expressed an interest in this short piece, called ALOHA, MY LOVE and we got to "yes" on it fairly quickly.

However, in this summer's, well, being SUMMER, the project took a back seat to a couple of other activities. Swimming. Art fairs. Hanging with friends. A trip to Nashville for Sheaf House business. A trip to Orlando for Universal Studios-with-friends business. Did I mention relaxing with tall, cool, fruit-juice based drinks?

So I had to get cracking on the tweaks ALOHA needed...and I had to hit myself over the head several times with the Righteous Nerf Bat to get 'em done.

Hallelujah! The tweaked manuscript went to the publisher today. This will be release #9, depending on how you're counting. It's all good!

Now I can go back to hanging out, drinking juicy drinks, and working on other stuff. Deadlines are my FRIENDS!

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.

Laughs for the Humor Impaired

Two short talking points today -- happy to announce that in edit, Marcus has found his sense of humor. Why did it not come out in first draft (where I usually do better work than in edit-mode--just ask my superb crit partner)? I do not know. I think the scut has been holding out on me.

But there is hope -- he's currently on trial for murder and he just compared the medieval "prosecuting attorney" to a housewife peering into the meat case at the various lumps of ground beef. Good on ya, Marc.

Also I recently posted as an invited guest on my marvelous agent's blog (Hartline Literary) and was taken to task on yet a third blog by one of those lingerers at the margins who knows everything about everything. I love when this happens. It's all safe, mostly anonymous, since the blogger didn't have the guts to post his rebuttal to my opinions on the Hartline blog or this one. No -- his comments resided safely on the owner's private blog. I found them by accident, and called him to account there, where it belonged. Hope my thread there dies a natural death.

Let me emphasize that I love the medieval centuries as fiction fodder. They sing to me. Their ways inspire me and give me plenty of literary meat to work with. That does not require that everyone love them as I do. Everyone should feel free to love what they love and confusion to the "shoulds"! After all, don't some folks like Amish fiction? Does that mean I must, also?

No. Nor do I travel around cyberspace telling folks their research is wrong, their opinions faulty, their "take" less worthy than mine. Life's too short.

Besides, I don't have time -- I'm too busy giving Marcus an intravenous humor-booster.

Season after Season

Halfway through edits on SEASONS OF RECKONING. I'm really captured by this hero. He's smart, sensitive, sexy...have I left anything out?

Well, now that you ask...

He doesn't seem to have a sense of humor. I'm editing and editing and I'm like, "Why doesn't he think this is funny?"

Some people are serious. I simply cannot believe I've written one. Marc's sense of humor must be in there somewhere!

(Scrabbling through Marc's large leather travel pouch, in his coffer, under the straw tick on his bed, under Brengy's saddle. I can't have left it out!)

Say it isn't so!

Linda Windsor's HEALER

Micro-review follows: HEALER is a terrific story that takes the reader into a poorly illuminated and endlessly interesting period of the past. And no, I do not call them the "Dark Ages" anymore. These were the centuries when a small band of committed Christians copied the Gospels out by candlelight and daylight, to make sure we would have the wondrous Word we enjoy so freely today.

Linda graciously consented to answer a few questions: here they are, so enjoy!

1.) Tell us about your book HEALER. What led you to this particular historical era and setting?

HEALER is a book of my heart that has been percolating in my mind for over ten years, morphing from a former sexy historical into a moving inspirational saga set in Arthurian Scotland. My Celtic Irish series, "Fires of Gleannmara" kicked off my interest in Dark Age history and early Christianity in the British Isles. Many of you know how MAIRE, RIONA and DEIRDRE’s research helped me to reach my daughter after she’d been stalked and assaulted in college, turned against God and to Wicca-white witchcraft. We as Christians could learn a lot from how our first through third century forefathers tamed barbarian Europe when Rome’s might could not. It was that approach that I used when speaking to my daughter, using history and tradition to reach her when she’d not listen to Scripture. It was a process that took five or so years, but then so did the early Christian witness take time to take root and grow.

HEALER is book one of the Brides of Alba trilogy, Alba being an early name for Scotland. And this is Arthurian Scotland—and King Arthur, for that matter—as never seen before. The series focuses on three brothers, their respective brides, and how love and faith grow to enable them to survive those trying times of the Saxon invasion and the church's desperate measures to ensure the survival of Christianity. These measures include matchmaking men and women from the Davidic bloodline passed on by royal Irish and the apostolic bloodlines established in Britain by the first century family and followers of Christ.

The historic Arthur in HEALER, one of at least two arthurs (a title) and definitely the last one, is a product of such matchmaking. So is the merlin (another title) Merlin Emrys, who in this case is a documented Celtic Christian bishop and druidic scientist. In fact most of the Arthurian figures were bred and raised by the Grail Church to become warriors, kings and queens of Britain to ensure the Grail Church's survival. Brenna and Ronan's conflict is a result of that matchmaking gone wrong.

Forced to live most of her twenty years in hiding from both her own clan and the clan who murdered her family, Brenna of Gowrys wonders how she can possibly fulfill her mother’s prophecy that their family's seed will divide the enemy O’Byrne’s house and bring about a peace beyond his wicked ken. Brenna’s clan remnant would have her lead them to certain death against the stronger O’Byrnes. But Brenna is a healer, not a warrior. Nor is she the shape-changing wolf-woman of the hills she’s rumored to be by the superstitious clans; although she does have a gift with wild animals, including her pet wolf Faol.

So when Brenna witnesses the ambush and attempted murder of a warrior during the annual O’Byrne hunt to find the wolf-woman, she does what she’s called to do. She brings him into her mountain hideaway to heal him, even if he could be her enemy. All she knows is that he is not just wounded in body, but in spirit; that he’d been there as a frightened child when her family had been slain; and that she has seen a future with him. But is her faith strong enough to follow the vision, no matter where it leads?

2. What's your favorite part of the story?

I can’t say I have a favorite part, but I do have a favorite theme that ties in to teaching Christians a bit about Dark Age “magic” or proto-science versus and dark magic. Unfortunately some reviewers are already calling my heroine a witch. And in truth, I expected some controversy, even though I have Scripturally backed up the concepts and provided resources.

Brenna had been taught the proto-science of nature magic, which was knowledge of herbal remedies and of the electro-magnetic neurological circuits in our bodies used in in today’s chiropractic and acupuncture. The existence and efficacy of these is accepted even in the western world, although we’ve yet to find a way to quantify them.

To the common mind this was magic. Even someone who was charismatic and spoke with eloquent persuasion was considered practicing magic. In fact, our learned professionals of today (doctors, lawyers, teachers, judges, etc.) would have been dubbed magicians. She also invoked the power of the Holy Spirit as the apostles did, but gave all credit of healing to God. And she made it clear to others that healing from using herbs and nature magic was not usually a permanent cure. Only healing by the Holy Spirit was complete.

I list my research sources (great book called From Magic to Science, for one) showing that this nature magic was proto-science of the day and I contrast the use of that knowledge by my devout Christian heroine (who is also accused of been too good) by showing how that same knowledge can be misused for evil. Like arsenic. It’s used to kill cancer cells to save lives. It’s also used to murder people. And lastly, I differentiate between nature magic/proto science with dark magic, which involves the aid of spirits or demons. Readers, and my skeptical hero, will see a desperate battle against this type of magic with the triumphal power of the Holy Spirit.

Like I said. Controversial. Food for thought, but wholly intended to glorify how wonderfully made we are and what wonderful gifts we have at hand in creation, all from the Creator God and all to His glory, not that of the practitioner.

3.) What was the hardest part to write?

Differentiating between the two types of magic and showing that much medieval magic was no magic at all, but knowledge of God’s creation—His gift to us to use for good. Making it clear through Brenna’s profession that only God’s healing was complete. She didn’t heal like Jesus did, as one reviewer complained, and she never claimed to. That would be blasphemy to her.

I also gave Brenna the gift of visions, fully Scriptural based. They come at God’s will, not hers, and they prompt her to act against reason and on faith. She becomes dismayed when people, on hearing of this, come to her seeking their fortunes and turns them away, saying God gives her only what He sees fit, not what she asks for or even seeks, for that matter. She tells them their future is in God’s hands, not in her visions.

I prayed through and through this book because of broaching these topics. In it, God used Brenna’s willing heart to work His will, against all earthly odds. And she glorified Him for it.

4.) What's one of the oddest or most interesting things someone has ever said about you?

I fear that is to come, if readers don’t understand what I’ve tried to clarify. On a lighter note, my birthday is marked on the calendar of great historical moments as the day the Liberty Bell cracked. Now I don’t believe in omens, but hey…

5.) Can you tell us a little about the ups and downs on your journey to publication?

How about AFTER publication? It’s been like riding a carousel from my first book in 1999—HI HONEY I’M HOME—to HEALER. I joke that I will someday do a keynote speech title I Failed My Way To Success. Because I’ve been so wordy here, readers might want check out
http://www.lynnettebonner.blogspot.com on July 19th, where I tell the whole sordid ride from rescuing my first manuscript from the garbage, mistakes I made, and how God always took me from one failure or closed door, to a better place…every time. I hope it doesn’t overload her web space. Oh, and it’s has humor as well. The Liberty Bell isn’t the only thing a little cracked.

6.) What writing challenge do you find hardest, and how did you overcome it?

Writing with chemical depression is my best asset and worst enemy. Feelings give me a special insight into life and faith’s conflicts, lending power and inspiration to my stories. But they also discourage me when I am in that dark place. I stall and can’t think how to move on. And I have learned that every time I wait on the Lord, stick to Him like glue, rest, and read the Psalms. Misery loves company, especially company that always reminds me that no matter how low I go, God has never let me or the psalmist down. So while feelings can be great, they can not be trusted and they are temporal. God can be trusted to be there, even when it feels like one’s praying to the ceiling and He is eternal. God and my sense of humor (the cracked psyche) is my salvation in life and writing. He’s plotting the second half of THIEF right now and making me rest after a three-week headache/sinusitis/bronchitis bout. I’m a month behind my schedule, but He won’t let me move ahead until I’m well and ready for whatever is going to happen. All I know is that what I had plotted will not work now. And I have to wait on His time.

Great advice for anyone involved in projects, not just writers...

7.) What advice would you have for a new fiction writer?

I’ve failed my way to twenty-nine books. Get used to rejection and accept that the work wasn’t ready yet according to God’s time. I’ve had the same books rejected one year, published the next without a word changed. God’s timing. My books that grew dusty under the bed and in the attic have always had their day. Every one I’ve ever written has been published. I may have had to revise them or completely rewrite them, but the ideas were good. My craft and timing? Not so much.

Do everything you can to send out your best work and be ready to accept that God may have other ideas. Learn from your rejections if you can, even if it’s only to wait on God. Don’t stop writing. By the process itself, your work improves. I shudder to go back and read some of my first books. The stories were great, but I can’t believe how the craft itself has evolved into tighter, stronger work.
I’ve said this many times. Rejections are like footprints in the sand. If you don’t see any, you are not moving toward your dream.

8.) You’ve had many books published. Which was the “book of your heart” and why?

Before HEALER, I would have said MAIRE. MAIRE introduced me to the Dark Ages and early Christianity. That research helped me reach my daughter, plant the seeds of God’s glory and the idea to worship the Creator, not creation. God watered them until they filled the black void left by her pain and anger from her assault with the light of Christ.

The knowledge I gained of my own faith and of druidism—the root of most New Age philosophy (and old age), has filled me with a passion to inform others how to witness to their lost loved ones, especially those involved in New Age theories. I use history and science and build on what our beliefs have in common, just as the early Christians did. And I extend the grace to them to hear what they believe, without judging. In doing so, I pray they will see something of Christ in me, hear my historical and personal reasons for believing in Him. The rest is up to God. This has become my passion because of the heartbreak my daughter (and I) went through so many years ago. Most of those we are trying to reach have gone through similar heartache and been hurt horribly by an uninformed and judgmental church. Or they perceive their pain as such.

9.) Where can readers get in touch with you?

Please stop by my website at www.LindaWindsor.com and check out HEALER and sign up for my contest to give away a signed copy. Email me at Linda@LindaWindsor.com. I’d love a book report on HEALER!
Also you must see the gorgeous book trailer David C. Cook did on You Tube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F4jSufmR4us&feature=channel. It’s my first book trailer and I am over the moon with it and the cover. It so captures the essence of HEALER. Plus, the heroine on the cover looks like my new daughter-in-law. I received the proof as I was on my way to my son’s wedding rehearsal and everyone was blown away by the resemblance.

Thanks, Linda, for the insight into HEALER and your own journey!

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?

The Home Stretch

I'm getting close to the end of book #2 in this series, tentatively titled SEASONS OF RECKONING. The working title, which I don't greatly care for, is a botheration, but I cannot seem to come up with anything I like better. Pah! My crit partner and I tossed ideas back and forth throughout our two-day writing retreat last weekend, and came up with some titles that were beyond ridiculous.

Anyway, I digress. One of my besetting sins is the tendency, when wrapping up a story, to speed-write through the thing. Of course, it feels rushed. I need to s l o w d o w n and "just tell the story" without worrying about how long it takes! Don't I? Oh, you bet I do.

That said, RECKONING is at about 81K words, winding up nicely. One current issue is that I'm concentrating on plot points and not including enough emotion. Bad romance writer! Bad!

The other issue is that this one is NOT pointing toward a Happily Ever After ending. Oh no, it is not. What to do!? I think this one will have a bittersweet ending...that's what the characters seem to be driving toward, having taken over the story a long, long time ago.

Thoughts? Is a non-HEA ending even permissible for a writer who's always cranked out Happies?

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...

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.

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!

Books and Truth

All three of you who follow this blog are aware I occasionally review books.

What I haven't done is reviewed books I don't care for. If I post about a title, you can rest assured I thought it was pretty horking good, or I wouldn't bother posting anything at all about it.

However, this troubles me. Is not the "I didn't finish this" or "I finished it under the author's threat to have my children fed to sharks but I hated the book" review as valid as the one that explains why I loved it? Where is the line to walk between Momma's admonition to say something nice or nothing at all, and the truth?

Now, I don't expect anyone to like the same books I do. And I don't always like what other folks do. What a dull world it would be, if only one set of preferences were all that sells! In fact, I expect others to differ with me regarding my take on any given book.

I call that constructive dialogue. Unlike a few other places, I want to encourage such dialogue. If we do this, we may run the risk of disagreeing with one another or something equally terrifying.

I submit that we're all big grown-ups and we can take it.

That said, along the lines of "what's in it for you" -- where do you stand? Would you like to see all reviews on this blog, for books I loved and books I read muttering, "You have got to be kidding!"?

Do you value honest comment (which may lead to controversy) over being nice?

Weigh in, please.

Sing With Me (The Danger Theme From "Jaws")

You know how it goes...duh DUHH...duh DUHH.

Right, this means Kinnard is swimming about, fin showing just above the waves, daring to approach...

...with another book review. FTC, I was sent this book without charge, for review, so here goes.

Yes, just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water. Deb's been reading again.

This time it's a real treat. I have few nits to pick with this one, and I'm happy as a hog in slop to say so.

The book in question was written by Lisa Wingate, and its title is NEVER SAY NEVER. The piece departs from Lisa's general narrative style by alternating back and forth between two unforgettable characters: Donetta, a senior with spunk to spare, and Kai, a twentysomething who's security deprived.

A sudden hurricane ties these two strangers together. Donetta yearns to know her husband cares that she's gotten lost with two of her age-mates on the way to the Gulf coast to take a cruise in which he wasn't interested. Kai, rootless and friendless except for two abandoned dogs, evacuates her endangered seacoast town and runs into the lost ladies, a church on the run from the storm, a handsome but enigmatic nephew of Donetta's, and a cat from the Lower Reaches of Hell. And will Donetta ever find out the long-ago story of the mysterious Macerio?

It's a heady, yummy brew. I thought it might dwell too much on the "escape from the hurricane" portion of the story (actually two intertwined stories), but the true crises come when the entire motley mob arrives in Daily, Texas.

It's a fully realized love story in both characters' points of view. Wingate has a flair for local language mannerisms that caught me from the first sentence. More importantly, she layers a story delicately, flavor by flavor, so that at the end she leaves the reader sighing in replete satisfaction.

My grade: A. I'm a picky eater/reader but found nothing that could be improved upon. All three of you blog readers know how rare that is! I heartily recommend it.

First Day of Spring - Where?

The weatherman claims the Vernal Equinox hit Chicago about 20 minutes ago. So, technically, astronomically, and meterologically it's spring.

Yeah, right. My back yard says differently. And this is NOT a black-and-white shot, folks -- it's full color.

Whatever happened to global warming? Bring a tiny piece back here, please.

Explanation Points

Just a housekeeping chore or two...

I don't accept anonymous comments, so those of you who've been posting them: I delete them all. If you have something to say here, give yourself an identity.

Just good 'net manners.

More Cover Wonderfulness!

Got my cover art for my April e-book release, DAMAGES, from Desert Breeze Publishing. I love it like whoa.

Desert Breeze just does an awesome job with covers. If you hit their website, www.desertbreezepublishing.com, you'll see what I mean on every page of the site.

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.

Interview with One of the Up-and-Coming

Just when you thought it was safe to venture back onto my blog...

Another entry!

Today we're chatting with rising author Lisa Lickels. I posed a few little questions:

Deb: Want to tell us the title of your new book and what it's about?
Lisa: The title is MEANDER SCAR. Tag line: Love can heal even the deepest scars... Just when Ann is ready to move on with a new love, she learns the truth about her husband's disappearance.

Deb: What makes your book stand out?
Lisa: Besides the title? LOL. There's the idea of what happens to all those people who go missing and are never found, tied in with an over-the-top wonderful young man in love with his former next door neighbor lady, outrageously dysfunctional family life...a boatload of generational issues to address. My theme is "what makes a family?" I held my husband's youngest brother, then a USC psychology professor, hostage on a car trip in California to discuss the topic. Then I plotted the book while sitting at a picnic table in Yosemite while they bonded, crawling around on rocks.

Deb: What a visual! If you weren't writing in your current genre, in which would you write? And why?
Lisa: I'm not currently having that issue, as I have yet to discover what genre I'm really supposed to be writing. As a historian, I should like writing historicals, but I don't. As a HUGE Anne McCaffrey and Star Trek and Star Wars fan, I might consider writing fantasy/SF, but the thought scares me to death, even though I'm often told I live on my own planet. I'd like to move toward the literary side of life, but don't tell anyone, 'cause nobody wants to represent or publish literary as it doesn't sell and only gets Pulitzers. MEANDER was supposed to be more literary, but they made me change the ending, except for the last line.

Deb: If you could grow up to write like someone else, who would it be (i.e., what writer do you most admire)?
Lisa: Me, looking toward the ceiling, "May I never grow up, please, God." I adore Ray Bradbury who also happened to publish the best book of the twentieth century in the US.

Deb: Were you born in the right century? If you could pick another era, which would you choose?
Lisa: I think I could handle being a pioneer woman, except for slitting the goat's neck and things of that type (Cold Mountain reference) and butchering, but I guess I'd have to get used to it, since vegetarians didn't do very well over the harsh prairie winters. And not being able to vacuum cobwebs would kinda drive me nuts, but that's why God made brooms and low ceilings in soddies.

Deb: Describe your ideal G-rated romantic evening.
Lisa: Nice meal we make together, well, he grills. Venison in his special marinade. Mushrooms. A walk on the pier at Port Washington as the sun goes down. A turtle sundae at Culver's. A slow ride back through the Kettle Moraine. Listening to Prairie Home Companion and having a beer. Oops, can I say that for "G"?

Deb: Sure! This isn't a stiff sort of blog...Does your book have a heart-thumping hero? What makes him heroic?
Lisa: Oh, absolutely. I have a wonderful fantasy life. Ann, the heroine, thinks Mark's eyes are the color of bluebird feathers in the sunshine (really, the feathers are black unless the sun shines on them), and dimples that probably turn his secretary's knees to pudding every morning. He is still a virgin at age 35 because he thought being married was worth the wait, and he's a great, kind, gentle lawyer. Oh, yeah, and smart - got a full scholarship to Georgetown. And rich. Did I say that already? And has great manners, and drags Ann to church. Sigh. Besides the fact that he's not really much of a Plan B kind of guy, he might be perfect.

Deb: Sounds heavenly. What's your next project (the one you're either currently writing or canoodling)?
Lisa: I'm pretending to work on the third book of the Buried Treasure (or Judy Winters if you've seen it on Amazon) cozy mystery series that no one wants since Heartsong Presents: Mysteries folded. Actually I'm about 2/3 of the way through the draft. Also I'm editing another romance with some great suggestions from some new friends. THE LAST DETAIL was originally written a couple of years ago to pitch during Heartsong's wedding year, but I had to kill someone. Heartsong doesn't really approve of that bumping off characters, so I rewrote the thing for a couple of other markets who still weren't taken with the body count. Now I'm just rewriting it like I always wanted it to turn out and we'll see what happens.
"Can real love survive a tumultuous courtship and marriage between a business woman and a busy pastor? Amalia, a sheltered young woman, and confirmed bachelor missionary Merit learn to accept God’s interference in their plans when he throws them together in an unlikely romance."
I'm also tinkering with a story line I pitched at a conference a couple of years ago. My local crit group likes it. I'm really gonna get stuck writing romance, aren't I?
Oh! Except for the radio drama series I'm writing for FreeQuincy Radio Theater. "As the Neuron Turns," a radio soap opera, will be out on Podcast in the fall. We're recording the vocals now and doing sound effects over the summer. Sometimes I can't believe myself.

Deb: Wow! And I thought I was busy! Where can fans buy your book, and in what format(s)?
Lisa: MEANDER SCAR releases on February 15 from Black Lyon Publishing. It will be available in print and e-book formats, including Kindle. The first chapter is posted on my website for your previewing pleasure. Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Fictionwise, and Target.com will carry the book.

http://www.blacklyonpublishing.com/Lickel.html
Author: Lisa J. Lickel
ISBN: 978-1-934912-23-2
Price: $16.95 paperback
Price: $8.00 Ebook (PDF format)
Pages: TBD paperback

Deb: Sounds great. Do you have a blog and/or website of your own?
Lisa: Sure do. http://lisalickel.com
http://livingourfaithoutloud.blogspot.com

Lisa, thanks for a fun interview. MEANDER SCAR sounds fun and different.

For You, Part Two - Another Book Review

Yes, I know...what's Kinnard about? TWO in a WEEK?

Yes. Get a lawyer.

Today's confection is Betsy St. Amant's A VALENTINE'S WISH (Love Inspired, Feb. 2010, ISBN 978-0-313-87581-8). And for all you FTC types, I bought this book with my hard-earned, so there.

A VALENTINE'S WISH tells the tale of Lori -- broke, unemployed and boyfriendless as V-Day approaches. It's Andy's story also, a youth pastor who's told by his church board that he'd better look for a wife toute suite because of another local youth pastor's scandalous conduct with one of his young flock.

How do they meet, you ask? Oh, don't worry, they're already best friends. Though for some couples this is an easy slide-in to True Love, for this pair it's anything but. Andy's gotten used to seeing Lori as a pal. Lori's accustomed to being the Invisible Woman as far as romance is concerned. These two have a bit of heavy sledding before arriving at Hearts and Flowers Bliss!

Ms. St. Amant has crafted a tale that reads as slick and smooth as some of those chocolates her heroine's been consuming. (Though Lori does gain 4 lbs. during her work at a candy store, never a zit to be seen! It's not fair!) The book is a treat for the reader and will go down as easy as Cadbury's Royal Dark. Though I don't often buy Steeple Hill, this one is the exception sort of book that always catches me as a pleasant surprise.

Five stars.

For You, a Book Review

Just finished Linore Burkard's THE COUNTRY HOUSE COURTSHIP and enjoyed it very much. Here's my review--I give it four stars (five's my max and I don't do halfsies unless I'm REALLY conflicted):

ISBN # 978-0-7369-2799-4
Harvest House, January 2010

Genre: historical romance (Regency)

Beatrice Forsythe is guilty of the sin of envy. Her sister Ariana is happily married to Philip Mornay, “The Paragon”, a gentleman of ton with extensive properties. All Beatrice wants at age seventeen is a husband as rich as her brother-in-law, who can give her all the same material benefits The Paragon offers her sister.

To a wintertime house party at the Mornay estate arrive a husband-candidate with a sister in disgrace, plus a worthy but wary applicant for the vicarage in Mornay’s gift. Mr. Barton, the ideal society husband, has his own agenda—the Prince Regent wants to ennoble Mornay with a viscountcy, and it’s Barton’s job to get Mornay to agree, and quickly! At Aspindon, the Mornays’ country home, guests with secret agendas, well meaning relations, Beatrice-on-the-husband-prowl and a dangerous fever making rounds among the locals, make a dangerous and exciting brew. Beatrice finds that the prime candidate for her affections is not all he appears to be...

Ms. Burkard’s historical romances are new to me. I felt the novel’s opening was a bit slow, but the quality of the writing made me dismiss this as merely a matter of style. Ms. Burkard uses Austen-era literary conventions to make THE COUNTRY HOUSE COURTSHIP read very authentic to the time. I loved the parenthetical explanations and mental squirming written in, even within dialogue. It added a fresh dimension to a story that could have felt predictable, but was not. The ending was neither rushed nor drawn out too long. The secondary love story was somewhat thin, and at times I itched to slap Anne into some of Beatrice’s backbone. She has plenty to spare despite her early lack of maturity. I was very pleased with Beatrice’s character development, for she felt shallow in the early pages. I also liked the fact that the house party took place in winter—so many authors ignore the fact that the English of other eras had to find some way to entertain themselves through a cold season!

Ms. Burkart’s backlist is now on my TBR list, and I look forward to reading future titles from this very able author. If you’ve never read a Regency romance before, this is the book to start with.

Four stars.

Stolen Goods, Part II

Why is this important, you ask? After all, doesn't "every generation/blame the one before"? Isn't it just human nature to get revisionist about history and claim that THEIR age is the one that has sole possession of The Light?

Human nature, maybe. Resistible, definitely. If we counter, at every possible opportunity, the human tendency to dismiss an entire millenium as unenlightened, backward, all those terrible adjectives...I think there is hope to redeem the middle ages as fiction-fodder.

The marketing wunderkinder claim if we want to tell historical tales, they must not be set in the medieval era. Why is this? Because "it doesn't sell." Are they really saying, "we can't feel the love for this era because the characters, no matter how fervently Christian, must be Catholic"?

Horrors! We cannot honor THAT! Didn't we spend decades and buckets of martyrs' blood to get away from all that? Yes, the Reformation was necessary, though I think in places, particularly England, it went way out of hand. It also got out of control because of the aforementioned human nature. "What!" says sin-prone humanity. "Some children are bad? Throw them ALL away!" And from this mindset we get excesses of all horrific kinds.

We who read and write in the Christian market can reject this "throw it all out" mindset. We can refuse to accept the "no medievals" position on the part of the publishers, and write (and request, as readers) books that will be Entirely Unrejectable.

Recent events have shown that some publishers are ready to consider medieval-set fiction. Witness Michelle Griep's superb GALLIMORE and several other titles I have not yet read. I have hope.

Stolen Goods

In keeping with the "what's in it for YOU" feature of the blog, I offer the following mini-rant and some food for comment/thought.

A few years back I saw in the bookstore William Manchester's A WORLD LIT ONLY BY FIRE. Woot! thought I. A new research/enjoyment tome about the middle ages! So I yanked out the gift card and it was mine.

Surprise. I never finished reading the book (and those of you who know me are aware I ALWAYS finish a good medieval nonfic book). Here's why. It did not deliver on the unspoken promise to be a scholarly, thoughtful look at those centuries we call medieval. Oh, no. Instead it claimed that people in the middle ages "invented nothing" and were shackled to superstition, starvation and stupidity.

Hence the problem listed above: that of Stolen Goods. See, I've been canoodling this for a while, and I propose the following conclusion: the middle ages have been "stolen" from Christians due to the fruitbasket of biases Manchester so ably enunciated.

The medievals did nothing, accomplished nothing, knew less. They were one step up from Saxon/Viking/name your barbarian paganism. Barely Christian, right? After all, they weren't Protestants. Never mind that fervent believers spent almost a thousand years making sure the Gospels and other Writings were not only preserved, but enhanced. They found better source documentation in the Arabic and Greek writings as they came to light. They worked by candlelight in freezing or damp monasteries, hand-copying the Word of God one letter at a time. They dedicated their lives to doing this.

But they aren't worth writing about. They were pre-Reformation, therefore Beyond the Fictional Pale.

I submit otherwise. I find them very worthy of admiration. More so, the more research I do for the medieval fiction I seem stubbornly determined to write. My ancestors survived the Black Death, feudalism, probably slavery. They were admirable people despite they believed in a religious system to which I do not adhere.

Please, readers. Let not this fascinating time period be stolen from us by those who say that only the recent centuries matter.

A Time for RECKONING

Happy New Year. Hasn't been a great one for us so far, due to family illness and associated challenges. But my husband and kids are healthy and enjoying their school and work vacations.

For my part, work continues on SEASONS OF RECKONING, the planned sequel to SEASONS IN THE MIST. Marcus, the main character, has just been found guilty of murder in a medieval (literally!) trial.

Trouble is--how much do I know about medieval trial procedure? How much do you, my would-be reader, know? Eh?

Realizing I'd written a whole ten pages of trial-fiction without actually knowing one iota about what I wrote. Aargh! This can't be good. So I went to the 'Net, which didn't find much, but I found there's a book. I got it on Interloan at the library, and let me tell you, it's tough slogging. Already in page 4 it uses terms I'm supposed to know but have never heard. Maybe I should've gone to law school before writing this one! Eh?

Then a small voice reminds me: "Hey, Kin, it's a ROMANCE. Get as much of it right as you can and don't sweat the rest." Now I want to understand as much as possible but follow this plan.

Blog Contest Winners!

Now that the Blog/Loop contest is ended, it’s time to award prizes. I’m pleased to announce there isn’t one winner of the African coffee – there are three!

Congratulations to Mindy, Michelle Sutton and Janny Butler who answered the scavenger hunt questions 110% correctly and won. Woot!

Coffee will soon be winging its way to you. Mindy, I’ll need your snail address. I have the others.

The rest of you -- next time I announce a contest, I reserve the right to award prizes as liberally as I want. So--enter next time. You've been warned. Aloha.

Desert Breezes Blow a Contest Your Way

Those of you who know my writing already are aware that most of my characters are coffee-a-holics.

This isn't bad, it's GOOD! We who enjoy coffee know there are a few primo varieties in the world, and the rest of the time we buy at the grocery store.

Now, for anyone brave enough to come here to this blog, or savvy enough to know my Desert Breeze stories, here's your challenge: answer either one of the following questions and win a nice sized bag of ground Kenya AA coffee (best there is IMO)

1) why is my blog named www.justtellthestory.blogspot.com ? Short answer is good enough.

2) name any "pair" of the lovey-dovey characters in my Desert Breeze books. They don't have to be the coffee-chugging ones.

Okay, get crackin' and win some Joe!

Time to Hunt!

This month I'm participating in Desert Breeze's "Scavenger Hunt." What fun!

Now, if you've been following this, you already know my buddy Michelle Levigne posted my question: Who is the "angel with the ray gun?"

And those of you who've read that book already know the answer is: Matt. Hee heee. Bet you thought it'd be a GIRL angel, right?

But onward & upward! Your next question is: what make and model Oldsmobile is Shawna Williams? Find out, and keep hunting: http://shawnawilliams-oldsmobile.blogspot.com/

Keep hunting & have fun!

Prairie Dogging

At last, this rodent pokes her head out of the burrow. She blinks at the bright morning sun. "Wha--? Whaaaa??"

That's right -- Rewriteville is now in my rearview mirror. All I need to do is a quick re-read this morning, and this afternoon SEASONS goes back to the publisher.

I mentioned earlier I'd never done a major rewrite before. Looking back, it wasn't quite as fraught as I feared it would be.

That's not to say I wish for MORE opportunities to gut the entire middle of a book and rework the plot. Oh, no, that'd be untrue. It was a hassle...

Just not the extreme hassle I thought it would be.

As requests for changes come from a publisher, though, there are times to graciously accommodate and times to dig in your heels. I had both in this rewrite. The publisher wanted me to include a plot to overthrow the king of England, crafted by an earl who was an actual historical person. I did some digging on this guy and realized I couldn't blacken his name this way. He started out loyal to Edward III and stayed so, and enjoyed high favor, throughout his life. That particular request for a change I had to decline. So instead I rewrote to tell how one of this earl's vassals attempted to draw the earl into a plot, and failed.

I think it'll make it a better book. But as my very first editor once told me, "If a suggestion I make goes *clunk* in your heart, mind, or spirit, skip it and move on." Good advice.

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.

A Freebie!

More coming up for YOU. My publisher, Desert Breeze, encouraged all its authors to send recipes in--either dishes our characters enjoy in our books, or stuff that just tastes good.

The great part is, starting Sunday 11/1, our compiled cookbook will be available free of charge on the Desert Breeze website (www.desertbreezepublishing.com).

Get over there and see what's cooking!

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.

On Giving It Back

One of the most meaningful sessions at the recent conference I attended was Chip MacGregor's talk on mentoring. He says we often get this "woo-woo" thing going on that makes us think we cannot serve one another in this way.

To be a mentor, one must be up on a high pedestal? Wrong.

To become a mentor, you must formally enter into such a relationship? Wrong.

He said, and this is my paraphrase so it's only what I heard, maybe not what he said: we must only be a step or two ahead on the path, in order to give a hand to someone climbing it.

I like that idea. Okay, I'm not one of those "name" authors everyone recognizes when she walks into a room. I haven't got a swackload of big-publisher credits.

But I recognize I am a step or two further along the path than some other folks. So, in the spirit of the "what's in it for YOU" thrust of this blog, I may scoop out some experience or knowledge and serve it up here.

Chocolate, vanilla or strawberry...I hope you will find a scoop to your taste.

Why a Conference?

As part of the "what's in it for YOU?" refocusing of this blog, I'm here to offer some reasons to consider attending one of the major writers' conferences.

Yes, there's expense involved. Yes, the logistics of getting-there-and-back can be daunting, given the travel environment that certain Radical Elements have gifted us with since 9/11/01. But I submit that the benefits can outweigh all this.

First, at a conference such as ACFW's just-concluded annual event, you can learn how to take your writing to the next level. No matter what abilities as a writer you already have, there is a session or seminar that talks to YOU, where YOU are at in your craft-acquisition mode. Beginner? Fine. There are plotting sessions and "up the tension" sessions and even sessions (can I yerk now?) on creative ways to write the Dreaded Synopsis.

Have you sold a book or two? Sessions are offered which will tell you what to expect next. That talk of marketing, of publishing-as-business, of promo and blog-savvy and website development.

Are you multi-published? Sessions discuss how to give back to the writing community, how to mentor newer writers, how to "pay it forward" in creative ways. It's humbling to listen to writers more accomplished than I, talk about how to pass along what they have learned, to the benefit of others.

If you get the chance, go. It can be stressful but so are all good things. My take is that it's worth it.

Just Sell the Story

Next week (can it be so soon already? Yeeks! I'm not done!), a large number of authors, publishing industry representatives, and newcomers to Christian fiction writing will gather in Denver at the American Christian Fiction Writer’s annual conference to compare notes, learn from each other, and encourage one another in the pursuit of publishing goals.

This year’s conference theme, "Standing Firm/Moving Forward", is intended to inspire the full range of talent and dreams in the ever-changing publishing world today.

The conference features epresentatives from major publishing houses like B & H, Guideposts, Zondervan, Harvest House, Barbour, Steeple Hill, Summerside Press, Bethany House, Waterbrook Multnomah, Marcher Lord Press, Tyndale House, and Thomas Nelson, and top literary agents who will meet with writers and identify promising proposals from both new and veteran novelists. Conferees will have access to publishing panels, professional critiques, and customized workshops based on skills and interests.

The keynote speaker is New York Times bestselling author, Debbie Macomber, who has more than 100 million copies of her books in print worldwide.

Learn more about the American Christian Fiction Writer’s Conference by visiting www.acfw.com. Click on the left sidebar on Annual Conference.

I have to admit, I attend this conference primarily because I always learn a great deal. Add in the friends I've made, both across the nation and locally, and it's a big hit with me and my buddies.

Anyone with questions, post 'em here -- as part of the What's In It For YOU campaign on this blog, I'll answer 'em or find someone who can.

Now where did I put that pitch sheet for my hope-to-sell-book?

What's In It For YOU?

What I need is one more thing to do...LOL. But I've been mulling this blog. Wondering about you, my readers. What do I do on this blog that's for YOU?

Not so much. Yet. But my thinking is leading away from talking so much about me and what I'm doing. I want to get into things YOU want to hear about, maybe even open up some fruitful discussion.

Look for changes.

Autumn Reflections

In my part of the world, spring is an elusive maiden and summer a short-tempered brat. We look forward to the warm seasons through all the dark, cold months. When spring hits, it lasts about twenty minutes. Right after that it gets HOT!

Autumn comes more gradually, like a gentle and kindly aunt. It encourages us to take time to catch our breath, to look back a little, to take stock on what we've done, where we've succeeded and failed. We reflect on what we wanted to accomplish during all those glorious days of summer, and didn't get done. When the leaves turn and life closes in a bit, it offers opportunity to reflect, consider.

When the leaves hang heavy and red, when the air smells like apples and holds a tang of the coming chill, it is time for a picnic. Fried chicken, salad and a pie don't seem so much of a hassle to whip up. The salads and cold fruits of summer yield to more robust fare, but we can still take it outdoors and enjoy before the weather nips at our cheeks and makes outdoor life less desirable.

Our hardwood trees take a two-week breath as summer ebbs, hold their green a second longer, then burst into glorious tan, gold, russet and every hue in between. If the giant trees can take a breath for a moment, why shouldn't I?

When autumn comes, I regain my spark to create. This tendency is a hangover from my school days, when everything in September became new and challenging. Stories form in my head and beg for life on the computer screen. Characters I thought abandoned whisper new perspectives. "Come on!" they whine. "It's fall now, time for us to shine!"

This year I'm building a medieval lighthouse for my front yard. I have no formed plan for this impulse, but I know it will come together once I find a concept and choose materials. I am determined it will shine its gentle solar-powered light before the dark, long nights of winter. I believe it will tell me a story, before it's done.

John Denver, in one of his songs, said, "To change is to be new. To be new is to be young again." Come on, autumn! Time to celebrate.

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.

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!

Milestones

This weekend I hit a mental milestone on THE PEDDLER'S PACK: 20,000 words.

Never mind that I have not yet figured out how to give my hero a life as a peddler. Oh, no--the locals all think he's a knight who's lost most of his gear in a shipwreck off the rocky coast of Cornwall. How do I get him from swordless chevalier to competent merchant? I have no idea, though bubbles of a solution are beginning to form in my brain.

Plotting is always a challenge for those of us who write seat-of-the-pants. What about the rest of you? How do you get your charming characters from point A to point B, and beyond, when you've written X amount of the story, hit your milestones, and you've no idea how to get them to "the end"?

Light and Dark

Life is like that, isn't it? Just when you're cranked and excited about some good news (see previous post), the Dark Side kicks in.

I was thrilled a few months ago when a rather high-profile romance review site agreed to review ANGEL WITH A RAY GUN. Today the review appeared.

The grade? C. The remarks? "Disappointing" and other such. The story didn't work for the reviewer, I get that. But I hope this won't sour others on the book.

I had high hopes for this review. Alas, one woman's A+ is another's C. Them's the breaks.

ANGEL flies to the Eppies!

I'm humbled and honored. My publisher, Desert Breeze, has decided to enter three books in EPIC's "Eppie" awards for '09. ANGEL WITH A RAY GUN will be one of the three!

Sandra Sookoo's WINNER TAKES ALL and a vampire title by Jay Morgan are the other two titles. This is major even if one of us finals, and I'm so grateful for the chance.

EPIC, the Electronic Publishing Internet Connection, runs this award program. The Eppie is really the only major award for e-books. ACFW doesn't want them and we all know RWA turns up its collective nose. So I'm really thrilled for all three of us. It's incredibly heartening just to know our publisher thinks our books can stand against many another great title.

Woot!

Time Portals, Cats, etc.

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see more Lolcats and funny pictures

Pity, isn't it, that cats weren't generally kept as pets in the middle ages. Dogs, yes, although those were mostly working animals. In my reading right now I'm concentrating on medieval ways that were NOT of the upper class, and learning a great deal. See, the heroine in THE PEDDLER'S PACK is not going to be a fair lady with a delicate silken veil and well-kept hands. I'm not sure yet what she will be, but she'll be a yeoman's daughter, or a middle-class farmer's, or a merchant's. Someone who's used to hard work, and very practical. So I doubt she'd have a cat.

I miss Cat Kelly Kinnard very much. In June Cat Kelly went to that big Tuna Feast in the Sky. I do miss her. Maybe my heroine will be iconoclastic and a bit defiant, and keep a kitteh just because she likes it.

Hmm...

DK's Muse, a Fickle Brat

If ever there was one...mine takes the prize.

I got an idea for a new story. Fine, say I, and go open a new Word document to start making story notes. I use MS One-Note when I want virtual 3x5 cards, but when an idea germinates I'm not ready for those yet, so I just scribble down random thoughts.

Good, huh?

Not so fast. My husband is sometimes very good (read: TOO good) at giving me story ideas. I wish he'd warn me when something's brewing in his head, though. It's always timed wrong. Anyway, along comes this same husband and starts talking about an idea for ANOTHER time travel, and this time it's a guy who does the traveling. The character's a medieval re-enactor in this day, and thinks he's cool and competent. But he gets to the middle ages and is VERY surprised at what he sees. The locals are Not Impressed. My main character, though passionate about his re-enactment efforts, is nowhere near as authentic as he thinks he is.

Wham! Scuttle project #1 and start scribbling notes for time travel project #2, which in the process morphs to a time travel piece that's a sequel to SEASONS IN THE MIST.

How in bejabbers did that happen?

Don't ask me why. This muse is a fickle brat and that's for sure. But I'm making character notes and writing furiously now, have it well into chapter 2 in first draft, and by the Rood this thing is humming!

Working title: THE PEDDLER'S PACK. Wish me bonne chance!

A Book Sale

Pleased to report that my contemporary "second chances" book, DAMAGES, will be released by Desert Breeze Publishing next April.

I love this story. It's about its sixteenth incarnation, where a man recovering from the loss of his disastrous first marriage, embarks on a second for all the wrong reasons. Probably this "mistake" factor is the reason it didn't sell in the mainstream Christian markets. That's fine. Sort of. In any case, I'm glad to see this book get a chance out there, and hopefully engage some readers in a story I like a lot.

There are thematic elements I'm told the Christian reading public won't tolerate. In ANGEL WITH A RAY GUN an early reader told me the main character should be shown praying more. I considered this, but didn't change it much. You see, a "more prayer" theme didn't actually advance the story. And story rules all. In DAMAGES, I was told the marriage-by-mistake theme would turn off readers.

Do Christians make mistakes? Sure. I do, and I don't think I'm atypical. It's how I show the Lord working through these characters' lives that matters. The development of the characters, getting past their less savory decisions, growing in Christ -- that's the story. If the idea that believers make mistakes, even in major life-decisions, turns off some readers, so be it.

Writing What You Know

We've all heard this one, haven't we? "Write what you know about." Good advice in all circumstances, right?

Right?

What happens when what you know about is boring?

I'll shed a little light here. I'm smarting (well, not as badly as earlier on) due to a "no-thanks" from a publisher I hoped would pick up PEACEWEAVER. Its problem was apparently not the writing, or I expect the editor would've mentioned that. The problem was the setting. Nobody is going to read a novel set in Wales in 973.

Um. I would.

Anyway, getting past this a bit--my contemporary novels are "write what I know" as far as setting. Now, I don't live in a sleepy southern town with lots of tradition and "hey, how y'all doin'?" feeling. I live in a suburb of a congested, irritating big city. My burb is where I was raised. It's what I know. I can get around on foot or on my bike, and I know where the best bike routes are, the wet places after it rains, and why you shouldn't trust the forest preserve at night.

But this isn't interesting! I'm wondering now whether my contemporaries are being turned down by larger houses simply because of setting. I've made up my own Illinois small town that I use in two published books, and I love going to DeBrett. For my WIP, it's Shelley, Iowa, which also lives only in my mind, but is modeled on a small town.

But the romantic settings? The small town with a native's feel for how people there live and interact? Those are not mine to offer. I do, of course, have my very own burb...

Progress!

No, not a new sale. But possibilities. I'm back working on A ROSE IN LATE OCTOBER, the central-Iowa set two-unwilling-partners-in-a-landscaping-business book. I'm into third (or sixteenth?) round edits on it, hoping to flesh it out from an unfinished 45K words to a nicely rounded 75K. I know what the plot is, and how the subplot will develop. I'm reading it now for nitpick edits and for story, both, and that's tough for me to do. Since this blog is out here to urge people to concentrate first on STORY, I need to take a dose of my own advice. My job now is to get a handle on story: what I've already written and what I still need to write in order to tell this particular tale as it should be told.

Oh, and did I mention I have an entire chapter or two (which I need) on a 3" floppy that the pooter will no longer read? Aaargh!

The question here is: does this story still interest me enough to finish and put it out on proposal? Reading along, I'm finding areas that could be fun if better developed, and I'm finding I still like the story. Enough to go the distance? I don't know. What does an author do who is on a deadline, who's sold a three or six book deal and finds that her story ideas just aren't that riveting just now?

I don't know. Not sure I want to find out. I suspect I already have an idea...she girds her loins, so to speak, and sits down to WRITE...

A Sale, and the Abuse of Power

Smile with me! A previous release entitled MY SILENT HEART has been picked up for reissue. ANGEL WITH A BACK HOE will come out October 1 with Desert Breeze Publishing. I couldn't be more thrilled. In many ways this was the book I thought might sell first, and it didn't, and I really never got a sense of why. Now it has a chance to fly once more, and I'm smiling.

As far as topic #2: recently a person known to me was abused by an organization I will not name. Now, I don't know both sides of the story, so I cannot know all the facts. But the fallout made my mouth drop. I will say this much and then hold my tongue: no professional organization, or those in power within it, should feel they have the right to intrude on a private conversation, and abuse or blackball the speakers. They have no RIGHT even to weigh in with comment on that conversation, since they were not party to it and cannot know the facts.

The law has a provision called "standing." In our legal system, you must have an interest in an issue, in order to be heard by the court. This interest creates legal "standing", and once you have it -- and only then -- have you the right to be heard.

These people abrogated that right to themselves, and in so doing, and their subsequent actions, violated the trust that leaders must maintain. I must comply with the bylaws of this organization, but in my heart these individuals no longer have my trust. They are leaders in name and not in spirit, and in my heart they will not be trustworthy again, absent a public and sincere apology.

I wish those involved nothing but peace. But God's law is not mine, and I feel there will be justice in His timing and in His fashion.

The Way Things Are, or, Earning the Right to Be Heard

This is going to be a long post, longer than some, but I hope all three of you will bear with me. It'll be worth it, I hope.

Recently I visited a writer's blog. No names...I'd heard from this writer on a different blog some time ago. I read a current post or two, which seemed to contain writing advice. Some of it seemed, well, a bit hinky, some not well phrased, some rather authoritative about the small press world.

Hmm, thought I, better go & check who publishes this writer.

Turns out: no publisher as yet. She is totally self-published.

When I was a kid, we talked a lot about our Christian witness. About how it wasn't enough to stand on a street corner and yell about Jesus. We might want to grab someone by the lapel, shake them, and screech, "You need to hear about this wonderful Lord I serve!"

We agreed that wasn't the way. No--instead, we had to earn the right. We needed to bear witness AFTER we had established our good faith, with/to folks we knew. There should be some mutual trust. Mind you--handing out tracts on streetcorners is great in its place. But a deeper witness should result in a life-change for our hearer, and before this happens, we should earn the right to speak.

This author, IMO, has not yet earned that right. Before you tell me about The Way Things Are, particularly in a marketplace I've learned so much about in recent years, particularly in a small press world where I have sold books and you have not...

You get the drift. I won't be visiting her blog again. Your mileage, of course, may vary, but to me she has not earned me as an auditor.

Thoughts?

Free Books!

It's official -- ANGEL WITH A RAY GUN will fly once more as an e-book, from Desert Breeze Publishing. Target release date is May 1, but I'll get firmer information out to you as I receive it.

What's even nicer, if you go to the Desert Breeze web site and sign in as a reader (it's free), before April 30, you get into the free book giveaway.

Reading -- good books -- no charge -- what could be a better combination?

ANGEL Takes Wing!

Woot! ANGEL WITH A RAY GUN has found a new home! Desert Breeze Publishing will release it on or about May 1 (this year!) as an e-book.

I'm pleased as can be. I told myself not to get my hopes up too high. Reissues are notoriously difficult to place. My agent says so, and she knows.

E-publishing: been there before, and the upside of this book's release is that e-books are much higher profile now than when I first sold one in '02. The big publishers are starting to realize the potential of this market. And then there's Kindle.

So watch for bigger things from e-publishing. With the economy so uncertain, publishers seem to be re-assessing how they get content out there, and the future of the e-book looks brighter than before.

Valen Times Day

more animals

My contribution for your enjoyment.

What! you say. It's a day late!

Get a lawyer.

ANGEL Flies Again (Maybe)!

More excitement here at Casa Chaos. An e-press to which my cherished editor referred me, is okay with the idea of reissuing previously published books! I finally cobbled a query together for my "fun book", ANGEL WITH A RAY GUN, and the publisher liked the excerpt! She asked for the full, which I duly and obediently sent off today.

So ANGEL may stretch her wings yet again. I'm hopeful, but in this economy, not banking too much on the idea of a deal.

However, it would be nice to make a sale in this run-up year before SEASONS IN THE MIST releases. Very nice indeed.

Hope for me!

It's the Time of the "Seasons"

Hurray! I got all required edits done on the sold book, SEASONS IN THE MIST, and sent it off to the publisher.

My pub has given me such good suggestions on this book--they have made it a much better story. I declined one recommendation 'cause I didn't really feel it was needed, but otherwise I incorporated everything she said. I like this book. I really like it.

Done enthusing now. Until further suggestions come, or until I get my galleys, this book is now put to bed...time for further work on PEACEWEAVER, methinks.

Although I DO have a germ of an idea for a SEASONS sequel...

PEACEWEAVER in Progress!

PEACEWEAVER is moving along. It's gratifyng to realize that if I hit a wall in my historical-detail research, there are loads of folks on the 'Net who know a lot about 10th century Wales. I put out a question, and in less time than I dreamed possile, I get a well-reasoned, useful answer.

I've reached the spot in the story where Anmair's husband, his father, and their levies ride out to help Anmair's family resist the usual summertime Viking raids. Someone will not return alive...but who? I don't know yet. All I know is that I wait pacing, like Anmair, to see who will ride back into Mostyn and who will be carried back over the saddle-bow.

As they might've said at Mostyn: bide thee in patience.

Action, Reaction, Life...Stuff Like That

Doing mini-edit on PEACEWEAVER. There's a natural lull in the action. My main character is trying, with more or less success, to settle into her new life as lady of the manor. I don't want this next section to lose impetus, so, hmm: what next shall I do?

I'm tempted, strongly, to let her have it: WHAM! How about a nice Viking raid (this is 973 England, after all)? Some pillage? Burn down the family holding? Or maybe the action should be part of the internecine warfare between her family and her family-in-law?

In fiction, I'm told that the surest way to prevent a Sagging Middle (a thing to be avoided at all costs) is to throw catastrophe after catastrophe at your main characters. I've resisted doing this 'cause I don't write action/adventure, I write romance. But in this young lady's case, I think a Major Challenge, and her reaction to it, would be compellingly consistent with the way people lived in 973.

As support for my fictional endeavor, I'm reading a nonfic book set around the year 1000, called BLOODFEUD. It deals with a certain late Saxon family-with-political crisis and the charges, countercharges, treachery, and murder that resulted. It's been a really good insight into the instability of life in the early middle ages.

Life was tenuous. They dreaded winter because late winter and early spring were the hungry times. Had they spared enough animals from fall slaughter to provide for the spring increase? Had they slaughtered enough animals, put up enough non-meat foodstuffs to last through the cold, till the next harvest?

They dreaded summer because that was the time for war. From my readings I've decided there were maybe 6 weeks all year that early medieval countryside folk might, maybe, feel safe.

Such is my characters' world.

North Wales, 953...or Is It?

Buzzing comfortably along on my WIP, PEACEWEAVER. Set in Clywd, North Wales, in 953, when Edgar the Peaceable was King in England...

Or was he?

Thought I had my chronology down pat. You historical fans may know how fusstrating this is. You've read swackloads of material in your chosen era. You KNOW this stuff.

Until you stumble upon a fascinating new history book that you didn't already own, set smack-dab in your era of interest. You buy it, read it with interest, and discover YOU'VE GOT YOUR CHRONOLOGY WRONG!

Aaargh!

It can't BE 953 Wales if Edgar is king in England. It has to be 973. Gacck! I hate when this happens.

However: better in draft than in edit. Can you imagine the agently phone call: "Um, Deb, you know, hon, Edgar didn't ascend the throne 'til 959. You wanna make some tweaks...?"

How embarrassin' to have someone besides ME catch this!

You folks know, but (psssst): don't tell anybody.

The Waiting Game, Part XXIV

We're on our wait yet again. Heard from Publisher #1 about the proposal for PEACEWEAVER. Apparently they like it well enough to see it again next spring, if we haven't sold it by then. Drat! I wanted a deal now...

Did I mention I'm not too good at waiting?

DAMAGES, the full manuscript, is wending its way to my agent for submission. I have good hopes for this story because a publisher contacted ME (not the other way 'round!) and said they liked my voice, and wouldn't we like to send in something for consideration?

You bet your sweet bippy we would. So my matchless agent, Tamela, told me to send her the full printed MS plus proposal. It's in the hands of the (gulp) US Postal Service as we speak, and I hope the publisher likes it well enough to give Tamela a call and me something to rejoice over.

Now, if anyone knows ways, other than chocolate, to ease the waiting time, I'm all ears and available taste buds.

Rodent with 'Tude

more animals

You say you needz interruptz me in Revision Pit? You not knowz I wurking on propozzalzzz? No?

Then I send angry rodentz to bitez you...

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.

The Home Stretch

Vacation's come and gone--way too fast for my taste! Sometimes I think the best part of getting away is the anticipation.

Work on DAMAGES is going quite well. After a kick in the slats from my crit partner, I realized what I want to do with this is a semi-rewrite before submission. All I have to do is reorder some events in the book, go through one last time (staying focused all the while), and whip it into shape.

Rewriting, though I've done it in the past, is a real challenge for me. Some authors love doing it. That's not how I'm wired together. I think in me, it's a hangover from childhood. I've seen it in my kids: once they WRITE SOMETHING, put it down on paper, it has a life of its own. "Change this," I advise my daughter, "put in some punctuation, tell us his name..." She looks at me like I've gone bonkers. If it's down on paper, it exists as it is. Change it?

I'm thinking that's my mindset. Once I type it in, easy-edit computer function notwithstanding, I tend to get a prejudice to keep it intact.

This isn't to say I don't edit. But on occasion I've been advised to make a love story into a mystery, or change everybody's motivations, or whatever. I keep wanting to respond, "But that's not what happened!"

Once I write it, it lives, somehow. Very difficult to tweak it then. I just thank God I cued into this misguided mindset at all. It took my kids to teach me.

Toiling Onward

A Faithful Reader (hi to all three of you!) reminded me I hadn't posted in ages. I'll rectify that.

First & foremost, thanks to all of your good thoughts & prayers. I am no longer stuck. Instead, I'm working on agent-suggested revisions for the piece, DAMAGES, we want to send to Steeple Hill. I'm also working on editor-suggested revisions to SEASONS IN THE MIST, the time-travel story. I'd tell you who the house is who's interested, but my agent says then I'd have to shoot you.

Work on PEACEWEAVER is also perking along. My crit partner actually likes it! More reason to celebrate.

Next month I'm off to American Christian Fiction Writers' annual conference, along with several of you. I'm very cranked for this event, and as usual, I have to warn myself not to set my expectations too high. That way lies a major bum-out.

In other news, my web site is being nicely redesigned. I had to get a new domain name 'cause the old host played dirty with my old one. So if you get a chance, take a peek at www.debkinnard.com, currently under construction but shaping up to be very cool indeed.

That's it for now. Gotta go write something. Cat Kelly Kinnard says "mip".

Stuck in the Middle With You

Since last post, I've decided to turn more attention to contemporary novels than historicals. That's not to say I won't finish PEACEWEAVER; since that tale's in my head, I most likely will finish it. Just not right away.

So I went back to a story I started 2-3 years ago, called A ROSE IN LATE OCTOBER. I like this story...

So why is it STUCK? Man alive, if I knew that I'd tell ya. I got it to 35K words and it's just sitting there, glaring at me, daring me to find a path for it to travel.

So far that path hasn't revealed itself to me. I told my crit partner I need to glare back, and drink another pot of coffee, before I get an inkling where it should go.

External disaster? No, just did that. Internal gut-gnawing? Did that, too. Up the conflict? I'm thinking yes, though I can't tell which of the Main Characters needs to have his/her anguish-level intensified at this point in the story.

Gaargh! Did I mention I hate when a story sticks somewhere and won't budge?

Where Ya Been So Long?

Been working. Well, that's my excuse, anyway, for not blogging.

It's been an eventful two months since my last entry. I've finished edits on SEASONS IN THE MIST, the medieval time-travel, and started a second medieval romance that doesn't involve time-travel. PEACEWEAVER is going very well. It's set in north Wales in 953, and needless to say, research is a big challenge with this one.

In the interim, also, I've contracted with an awesome agent. Tamela Murray agreed to represent me, and I couldn't be more tickled.

Since I signed with Tamela, another exciting thing happened: an acquisitions editor at a house whose name you'd recognize, contacted me via e-mail. Seems she'd seen excerpts of SEASONS IN THE MIST on Tina Helmuth's THE INK'S NOT DRY critique blog. Though the editor says a time-travel isn't a good fit for their house, she liked my writing style and invited me to send them something!

Will I send them something? You bet your bippy I will. At this writing, Tamela and I are planning what to send them, and whether I concentrate on contemporary romances or historical. Since I have more books finished in contemporary than historical, we've decided on the former.

I reserve the right, however, to morph into a historical writer at any future moment.

So things are perking along, and I have lots of hope for good things to come.

Good News for the SF Fans

I always like to cyber-party when a new author breaks in, particularly in the science fiction realm. There is never enough!

That fact makes me happy to announce that my cyber-bud Sharolyn Wells has sold her first novel, PLYMOUTH COLONY II, to release March 14 from E Treasures Publishing (www.etreasurespublishing.com).

Here's the blurb: "Earth is gone—destroyed by a group of lizard-like aliens called the Novari. Before they send their meteor ships to destroy Earth, another group of humanoid aliens arrive—the Kelkani. They will save some of Earth’s young people. Are they doing it for themselves or is the group of Elitists doing it for their own reasons?"

Sounds like a winner to me.

They'll Take Anything

On chat with my wonderful editor (two houses, five books), Michelle. We got to talking about the Small Press Paradigm. We wonder whether the small press sales you rack up are an asset to the agent-hunt? or possibly even a liability?

See, I'm not hearing it specifically from agents, but by and large there's a perception out there that if you're published by a small press, it means automatically that your work is substandard, because small presses are all the same. They will publish anything sent to them. They do no screening nor do they do any editing. They put out rubbish, so that's why it's necessary to screen small press titles out of some review sites, many award competitions, RWA type contests, and the like.

This is rubbish. Small presses have standards. They DO screen the fiction that is sent to them. They reject a high percentage of the submitted material. They DO edit. There is nothing basic that prevents small press books from competing on any playing field you choose--save the perception out there that these are second class work that must be suppressed at all costs.

So, Virginia, do not send a small press your 600,000 word epic fantasy or your angst-ridden memoir. They're looking for better things.

Searching for a Mood

SEASONS IN THE MIST is semi-officially, sort of, done. I finished the final edits this past week, and put it to bed 'til I feel like re-reading it for more edits, or 'til it sells, or 'til an agent wants the full manuscript. Sometimes when you work on a book it starts to pall, after a while. So I've put this book to bed and I've started the next one.

PEACEWEAVER will be a medieval also, set in a time period earlier than that of SEASONS. It's set in north Wales, amid two warring clans who try to unite to repel the Saxon and Norse incursions, and use a young girl as a pawn in their search for an end to the warfare. I really like the idea, I know exactly where it's going and who the characters are.

What I'm after is a "feel" for the time. Little removed from the Dark Ages, I'm sure 958 Wales had its own tone and flavor, different from 14th century England. My first five pages lack the flavor. I'll tweak, edit, and up the emotion and detail until that taste is very apparent, even from page one. But at this point it's frustrating when I know I ALMOST have it...but not.

Wish me luck on the new project!

The Waiting Game, Part Twenty-Two

Having finished SEASONS IN THE MIST, and been told that I need an agent for this one ("this could be your breakout book!"), I sent proposals to two agents this week, via e-mail. Now it's waiting time.

Did I mention I don't do waiting very well? My options are: 1) chew nails; 2) clean house; 3) finish edits on the last few pages of SEASONS; 4) start PEACEWEAVER, the next book. I have the story roughly in my head, along with some very romantic twists and turns, and my main character's name has come to me. I don't know my historical setting, though, as in what year? what part of Britain? Gotta have those things. Anmaire (my main character) will have to compose her soul in patience 'til I know where she belongs.

Forget option 3. Dust is a wood preservative.

Did I mention I hate waiting?

Why Cats Say "Blurt" and Other Mysteries

Cats do say "blurt" not "meow". Robert A. Heinlein says so, and that's good enough for me.

Now--why do I mention this on a writing blog? Because there has been some talk about "old-fashioned" writing on some of the writers' loops. Old-fashioned in this case can mean practically anything--writers who are in their 60s trying to give their 20-something characters authentic voices; Jane Austen's style as opposed to modern; and historical writers attempting to get their characters talking right for their age and still be understandable to a modern audience.

Always, when writing in another era, there will be something lost in translation. My just-finished WIP is a case in point. In the 14th century, the upper classes spoke either middle-English or Norman French. I can't write in either language--it wouldn't communicate. Even if my skills were up to it, it wouldn't work. Writing is, after all, primarily about communicating.

That said, my characters can't sound 21st century. Not having been there in 1353 to hear how folks spoke, the best I can do is an approximation of a 21st century author's guess at medieval usage and speech patterns.

(I refused throughout the book to use 'tis. Just my prejudices coming through. I'd rather throw in an obscure French term, or even Cornish, than use that tired old contraction. To me, it shouts "Hey, this is a piece of historical fiction and I'm too lazy to guess how they REALLY talked, so here's 'tis' to tell you so!")

Now, some folks are not going to like the guesses and choices I've made. That's fine. If they get the gist of the story, I figure I've done 99% of my job. If my cat says "blurt" instead of "meow," I hope you will enjoy my story anyway, and forgive the fact that my choices aren't quite what you would've chosen.

All Done!

Yay! I got the first draft done on SEASONS IN THE MIST, my (probably unsellable) medieval time-travel romance. My goal was to have it done by the end of the year, and I wrote "the end" on January 1. Can't get much closer than that!

I'll take 2-4 weeks to do the second-draft, which for this book means a complete read-through, spotting goofs, gaffes, "huh?" places, and all of my myriad bad writing-habits. Then I assess for story, add more content as necessary, and consider it pretty well done.

Then the scary part...sending it out into that Big, Bad Publishing World. Don't ask me if I look forward to this step in the process.

But I feel as though I've told one of the stories of my heart, and finishing it feels really, really good.

Life's Poetry

I heard today about Dan Fogelberg's passing. Now, before someone screams at me for being from the 70s--guilty as charged.

This guy's tunes inhabited my heart, and still do. He was that rarest of people, an artist who was a musician who was a poet. He celebrated life--can you get much more connected than that?

In a way his tunes informed my writing. I sit here listening to my iPod with every DF tune I can load, loaded on it, and playing. I celebrate his genius, his gentle way of telling the truth, his life. Too young--I daresay there was music in him yet to be strummed on the 4700 instruments he played. I'd be ready to bet there were still stories to tell, life to be explored, poetry to set to the notes of a score.

Farewell for a while, Dan. You'll be missed here.

Seasonal Changes

Been a while since I've blogged. I proposed SEASONS IN THE MIST to a well-known and lots-of-fun agent. He said it was good stuff, well written (!) but not his thing. What we call a "good rejection."

I'm really happy with the progress I'm making on SEASONS. It's been excerpted on Tina Helmuth's THE INK'S NOT DRY blog, with mixed results and some comments that I truly did not understand. Some of them seemed to indicate the commenter hadn't actually read the excerpt...enough.

I'm also glad to say I've got not only my extra-valuable crit partner brainstorming it with me, I have an editor doing so as well. They're both making great suggestions, stuff I want to do and know I can work into the MS seamlessly. I'm still perking right along, and my target date for finishing the draft was December 1, but it's looking more like I'll complete it after the holidays.

I hate it when I make a change to a book and it messes up the story further along. The additions/deletions these precious ladies are suggesting are totally different...they're going to enrich the story, not mess it up.

Books should grow and morph into something greater than the original concept. They should stretch the reader, too. Ideally SEASONS will do both.