Remember last week when we kicked off our Debut Author series? Well, here's the reminder, if you don't remember. Today, we're pleased to have another debut author with us. Clarissa Yip! Clarissa debuted this Fall, and has since released two more books. I've reviewed Clarissa's books at the Pen & Muse blog and loved them. I'll include Amazon links in case you want to buy them for yourselves. But for now, please join me in welcoming our newest NKotWB Debut Author: Clarissa Yip!

I sit. I stare at the screen. My fingers are arched over the keyboard. My carpal tunnel is probably getting worse as I speak. But I'm determined to write. Sometimes words flow. Sometimes they don't. I have a pile of R forms next to my computer. My first one is framed. Some are good, some are bad. But you know what they mean to me?

Everything.

The road to publication isn't easy. There are many stepping stones, so much to learn and improve upon, but after receiving R after R, it pays to keep going.

My success has proven to me my hard work has not failed whatsoever. I remember when the first time I opened my email from a publisher. Instead of, "We're sorry to inform you….", it read, "We'd like to offer you a contract."

The first thought that popped in my head was, "Are they crazy?" LOL.

You feel it in your gut it's a great story, you know it's one of the best you got, but you wonder why all those R's never understood. It's okay. Sometimes your voice and your ideas don't fit certain publishers, but when that one editor or publisher sees your potential and want to invest in you, go for it.

My very first publication happened in August with Decadent Publishing. I was shocked. Amazed. And I didn't feel published. Shoot. I still don’t feel published, but I love when I hear from my readers and they help dissolve my doubts and reassure me that my writing is going the direction it needs to be. Each book cover I receive, my dreams start to turn into a reality. I sit for hours and gush over that cover, the people on there that represent my characters that have been tormenting me for months, years, are finally real.

I've just received my fifth contract. Publication is not easy, but it's also wonderful when you reach the stage you need to be. It'll happen when you lease expect it. No matter how new or old of a writer you are, there is always something to learn, something to improve on. I'm only at the beginning of my career and I hope to make it big like the New York Times bestsellers and maybe be an international author someday. See, I dream big. You should too. *wink *

As long as you keep faith, keep perseverance, and motivation, it'll happen. It could be different for everyone, but most importantly, keep writing! You need to have stories finished and polished in order sub and move through the author process. Write, sub, and wait forever, maybe twirl your thumbs a little in between and definitely grow thick skin. Publication is controversial, but it's also what you make of it.

So where are you in your career? Where do you want to be?

Clarissa will be by later today to answer any questions you have. If you'd like to read my reviews of Love By Auction or Unforseen Reunion, please click on the links. Also, if you'd like to interact more with Clarissa, head over to her blog. Otherwise, please respond to what you've read here. And feel free to ask any questions you have. One of the reasons we're running these series is so you can have access to new authors and ask those questions that burn on your heart. May we all realize our dreams someday!

~ Camryn Rhys

HAPPY HALLOWEEN! Here we go again with the great links of the week, for me. A couple of recs from other New Kids, which I love. So let's get to the great links.

** A couple of great branding articles this week that Renee sent me. They were great. Both were from Kristen Lamb's blog. One was on becoming a household name. The other was on how to brand yourself. Both were very well worth reading. Thanks, Renee.

** Epic Black Car is still reading Outlander. And if you haven't read about it yet, head over there. It's hilarious. Our very own Camryn Rhys is reading a military thriller in honor of his reading a romance novel. If you'd like to read her latest post, head here.

** Mary DeMuth wrote a great guest post on Rachelle Gardner's blog about using the internet to showcase your writing. Read it.

** Since I'm afraid every day that the big white envelope will show up on my doorstep, I found Tawna Fenske's post on rejection sweaters to be particularly interesting. Head over and read it.

** If you're still looking for an agent and haven't heard about the Baker's Dozen Agent Auction over at Miss Snark, you should check it out right now.

** In honor of Halloween, and the fact that Stephen King was the first author I remember reading who didn't rhyme, I'm shouting out to Write in the Shadows blog for doing an open letter to Stephen King.

** Also in honor of Halloween, and because I love this blog, here's a link to the Celtic Queens post on the history of the Jack O'Lantern. I knew *none* of this stuff! But it's awesome. Some freakin creepy music to listen to, as well, while you read! There are several good songs on that list. I just left it open for awhile. It was great.

Happy Halloween to all. And Happy All Saint's Day tomorrow. Please check back later today for our newest Debut Author Post, as well as Camryn's introduction to our big themed week! Any guesses what it might be?

~ Rebecca Lynn

When most people think of scary books to read for Halloween, they pull out Stephen King or another horror author. Not me, I think of Edgar Allen Poe. Do you remember the old movies with Vincent Price? What a chilling voice. If not, take a quick look at the U Tube video.



Poe was one of the first American’s who attempted to earn a living through writing alone. He took on issues we currently face today as writers. According to Wikipedia, Poe “was hampered by the lack of an international copyright law.[35] Publishers often pirated copies of British works rather than paying for new work by Americans.[34] The industry was also particularly hurt by the Panic of 1837.[36] Despite a booming growth in American periodicals around this time period, fueled in part by new technology, many did not last beyond a few issues[37] and publishers often refused to pay their writers or paid them much later than they promised.” Today’s technology presents similar issues with the click to print and send options of the Internet.

Mr. Poe not only faced these publication issues, but there was also a lot of tragedy in his life. His father abandoned him right before his mother’s death, he could not afford to attend college and was forced to join the military, his brother died, and his life-long financial struggles, not to mention rumors of substance abuse, plagued his life. Although, it has been stated in many resources, including biographies, that the rumor stemmed from his incredible first person writing about opium and other drug usage.

After all, his gift was in his creation of some of the most mesmerizing prose ever written.

Today, many writers still maintain second careers to pay the bills. The hectic pace of daily life and various distractions divert us from our beloved writing time.

What are some things that keep you from writing? If you are participating in NaNoWriMo have you thought about how to overcome those obstacles. If so, provide some suggestions to our other readers.

Good luck this month and write on!
Ciara

When I bought my first stick built home the one thing I loved was I could sit in my chair and see both doorways into the house. I felt safe. Growing up on the original Halloween, Nightmare on Elm Street and Dark Shadows, I knew there was evil in the world. An evil that wasn’t stopped when you think you’ve killed off the bad guy. An evil that lived on for the sequel.

Trying to control my environment, trying to keep an eye on all entrances to my world, trying to make the best choice in a world full of pathways. I guess what really scared me was taking a chance. What if I take the path less traveled and it was the wrong choice?

As you can probably tell, this post is less about Halloween and more about the real life fears we share. Fears shared as writers and just living the daily life we’ve been given.

This month I won a contest. I was one of eight pre-published writers who got ten minutes in a chat room with Carina Press Editor, Angela James. Talk about fear. This is my second pitch; the first was at RWA Nationals. Am I saying the right things? Am I being polite and funny, showing myself to be an author she wants to work with? Is my book really a fit for the new, digital only model? Basically, all the teenage angst of trying to make a good impression with this new writing sorority I’m trying to rush.

Her questions for me included things I’d prepared for and some I hadn’t. What brought me to write a mystery? Is there romance mixed in with the mystery? What kind of marketing would I do when my book is published? What am I writing now?

And before you knew it, the ten minutes was over and I had a request for a full submission.

Now comes the really scary part. I have to send the manuscript, a synopsis and a cover letter.

And hope. Hope that she likes it. Hope that I didn’t send my baby out too fast or down the wrong path. And hope that optimism replaces the fear.

Now you know my basic fear. Rejection. And spiders. And mice. Vampires? Not so much, especially now that they’ve gone all cool rather than scary.

So dear readers, it’s your turn. What scares you?

(The picture is from a tour of the Lemp Mansion. A real haunted house here in St. Louis.)

Superstitions. What are they and where to do they come from? According to Wikipedia, "superstition is a credulous belief or notion, not based on reason or knowledge." Sometimes superstitions are referred to as folk tales, old wives tales, or urban legends. I'm not sure anyone can pinpoint with accuracy where, when, or why these handed-down warnings originated but some have been around since ancient times and many revolve around Halloween. 

Did you know that the tradition of pumpkin carving on Halloween came from the old belief that placing a burning candle inside a jack-o-lantern kept evil spirits and demons away? Have you ever heard that gazing into a candle on Halloween night will show you the future? And everyone should remember that if you hear footsteps coming up behind you on Halloween night, do not turn around because it could be DEATH following and looking DEATH in the eye hastens your own demise. Oooh, creepy.


So, why is Halloween associated with the dark and sinister more than any other time of year?   Some people believe that it is rooted in the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain (pronounced sow-in) which celebrated the end of summer--the time of light, and the beginning of winter--the dark time. The Celts believed that the veil to the Otherworld weakened on Samhain. This allowed spirirts, good and bad, to pass into their world. Friendly spirits of departed friends and family were welcomed into their homes, while the unwanted and capricious spirits were kept at bay with costumes and painted masks. Over the centuries, various customs and  religious rituals merged to become the modern concept of Halloween: costume parties, trick-or-treating, apple bobbing, and scary movies. But not many truly believe in the dead walking the streets except, maybe, for the zombie and vampire enthusiasts among us.

And yet despite our modern technologies, scientific advances, and a more "logical" world perspective we still hold on to old superstitions.

I'm an educated woman with a whole lot of common sense and sass, but I still "knock on wood" whenever I say something and don't want to jinx my luck. I also throw salt over my left shoulder if I spill some. Silly little actions, I know, but I can't help myself. Because in the back of my jammed-packed brain there is a sliver of the "what if". What if I don't and something horrible happens? Maybe it's something left over from the primordial evolution of cro-magnon man to modern man. Who knows. But I know I'm not the only one who harbors a bit of those old superstitions.

Soooo.....

I need some help here. Typically, I don't like to admit to any sort of weakness. In fact, I tend to go to extremes to keep from admitting weakness to myself, well other than grammar. I will never receive a rammar goddess of the year award. And quite frankly, I don't want it.

But as I was laying in bed trying to wrap my mind around this awesome book I'm reading, I kept catching a whiff of hub's cologne, which made me want to snuggle closer (don't worry there isn't any TMI he's usually off to snoozeland several hours before I lay my head on my pillow). Just as I got comfortable, I remembered that I need to write a blog. But I was comfortable, and I didn't really want to get out of bed, and then the cologne would entice me a little closer. But I really needed to write my blog.

Hmmm, what scent is hub's wearing? I know it's cologne, but I can't for the life of me describe it. I've often struggled with adding the sense of smell where my hero is concerned. Horses, hay, an outdoor pinesy smell, I get. But when it comes to describing what my mother-in-law calls liquid panty remover, I'm at a loss.

So there you have it, one of my weaknesses. Can you help a girl out? Can you give me some ideas on how to describe bay rum, or any of those other manly scents that are far from the fruity body sprays?

I'm so dizzy. My head is spinning. Those song lyrics kept buzzing through my head last week as I fought through a three day bought with vertigo. I had to call in to work on one day. The next, I took the medicine my doctor prescribed to get through the work day, and felt like a zombie. By the third day the dizzy feeling had lessened, but if I moved too fast it would hit me. I couldn't read, write or surf the web. The only thing I really accomplished was to make the decision that I would do NaNo again this year. This week my head will be spinning for a different reason. Since I made my decision so late, I now have only one week to decide on which story idea to write and do a little plotting.

I have two or three ideas far enough along that I could use them. The first is a 1920's romance set in Chicago. I've wrote two chapters of the story this summer. Another involves an immortal who has lived through many lifetimes. The third story has a gothic feel to it. The inspiration spark to this last idea came to me as I listen to a song from the 80's. So my mission for this week is to decide which story will be my life for the month of November. I'll let you know which one I chose in next week's blog.

What are other NaNo participants working on this November? Do you need another buddy? (My user id is freedomwriter60) And for those of you aren't doing NaNo, tell us about your current wip?

Forgot to announce yesterday that we'll be holding a Sugar Rush giveaway. So please comment on the blog this week to be entered. We'll hold the drawing on Friday and notify the winner.

Thanks again to Kimber An and Decadent Publishing for offering us a giveaway copy!

We here at New Kids on the Writer's Block are nothing if not supportive of new writers. Why? Because we're all new writers, too! So we want to bring you some stories from Debut Authors. Some might be the stories of their first sale, or their advice to aspiring authors. Whatever they want to tell us. (If you are a debut author and would like to be featured, please email Rebecca at rlcameron at yahoo dot com and we'll chat.) So without further ado, trumpets blazing, here's our very first Debut Author: Kimber An.

Ah, I remember it well, my finely craft first book. I was four years old and desperate to learn to read and write, but no one noticed. So, I told the story in pictures. It was my very first and last non-fiction picture book.

Kimber An

P.S. Read to your babies! Don’t leave them to intellectual starvation!

Okay, back to my path to publication tale.

I quickly moved into writing The Bionic Woman fan fiction in elementary school.

After enduring a less than ideal adolescence, I launched into adulthood with nary a clue. But, I kept on writing my stories. Looking back, I think all this fun writing was necessary for developing my ‘writer’s voice.’

Easily the most vital parts of my adult education were attending The English & Governess School and my anthropology class at the University of Alaska. Learning grammar and all that annoying stuff was necessary and I’m still no goddess at it. Learning about the vast reaches of human nature and the development of our species was far more influential.

Finally in my late thirties, I was sitting at my computer trying to get a space opera off the ground. My hyperactive redhead and her star captain mom needed a father and husband worthy of their steel. One leapt out of my imagination as if from the sky and I thought, “Whoa!”

And I knew it was time to pursue publication.

Well, I didn’t know a darn thing about it, so I got online and found Critique Circle. www.critiquecircle.com And I started to blog. I blogged about everything I knew and loved, including books. The authors started noticing and I suddenly had real published authors to ask all my silly little questions.

P.S. The only silly question is the one you’re afraid to ask. The real stupid person is the one who ridicules the one who is trying to learn.

Okay, back to my tale.

Book reviewing quickly took over my personal blog, so I created Enduring Romance.

One of the authors told me to treat novel-writing like it was a real job or it would never become one. That’s what I did. I wrote a novel, polished it up, sent it into Queryland, wrote another, polished it up, and sent it into Queryland, lather, rinse, repeat. In fact, you can find the very first novel I polished up for submission and download it for as a free eBook. Pop over here to read how far I’ve come in my writing skills.

My real breakthrough on the learning curve was when I followed author Susan Grant to author Linnea Sinclair to legendary author Jacqueline Lichtenberg. Jacqueline helped save the original Star Trek and has a huge backlist of published novels. She’s mentored lots of authors and I’m proud to count myself as one of them. Structuring a story does not come easily for me. I’ve had to work very hard to learn how and I still have to do it very deliberately.



Kimber An's Debut

 By the time I launched Sugar Rush, I was so absolutely sick of Queryland that I was ready for it to be my last attempt and I kicked it out the door as fast as I could. I knew I wasn’t J.K. Rowling and I was okay with that.

In the end the three ePublishing offers came within days of each other. I examined each of their contracts, scoured all the advice I could find online about what constitutes a fair ePublishing contract, and Googled the publishers’ reputations. Decadent was so new it didn’t have a reputation, but the editors did. In the end, I liked Decadent’s people and contract best.

I signed with Decadent Publishing and I haven’t looked back. I’m happy to be ePublished. I have a very busy life with four children. I live on a Master Schedule. Writing for Decadent works with my life.

And that was my journey to publication.

How does it feel to be a published author? Exhausting. Terrifying. And wonderful.

Kimber An runs the Enduring Romance blog, and you can read a review and excerpt of her debut book, Sugar Rush, by following this link.

Thanks again, Kimber. It's a pleasure to feature debut authors on New Kids. For all those of us aiming in that direction, may we all make this feature someday.

~Rebecca Lynn

You know the drill, right? My best of the best of the blogs I read this week. For your reading pleasure. Hope you enjoy!

** The absolute BEST post I read all week. Lila DiPasqua's husband wrote a guest post on her blog about what it's like to be the husband of a romance writer. Fantastic. Go, read this. Even if you're not married. It's hilarious and excellent.

** Jody Hedlund wrote a fantastic post about the myths & realities of being a published author. Unpubs especially should read this. Very insightful.

** Those of us who are getting ready for NaNoWriMo are excited about the accountability. But one of my favorite people, Christy LaShea, runs regular accountability contests on her blog. And this month, she had offered to give us incentives, even. I'm about halfway through my word count for the month, but working on it. Come on over to her blog and check it out. Maybe enter next time. It's a blast.

** If you haven't heard about Miss Snark's December Agent Auction, you have got to get over there right now and check it out. Especially if you are finished with or are nearing the end of a great wip. You have one month to get it ready. Go!

** Steena Holmes wrote a great post about loglines, as she's deep into her Miss Snark contest on longlines, herself. I'd definitely recommend checking out this post if you've been waiting to start yours or need to learn a good technique. Great post.

** For some humor this week, check out Tawna Fenske's post about her crush on her dentist. Want to know what it means to have a unique voice? Read her blog. She has one. Don't copy it. But find yours. Okay, nevermind, read this post instead. Or in addition.

** You know me and my weakness for posts about food? You know me and my weakness for posts about Celtic stuff? Well, imagine what happens when there is a post that incorporates BOTH? Hop on over to the Celtic Queens blog and read what Donna Goode has to say about the upcoming Samhain holiday and how to celebrate it rustic-historical style and all.

** And in the Celtic vein, for our history post of the week, you should read Denise Alicea's post on the Celtic Rose about Celtic Women. It's a great jumping-off point, too, for additional research.

** Something I see consistently with new writers is the need to "follow rules". If you are a compulsive rule-follower when it comes to writing, check out this post by Rachelle Gardner. It's fabulous.

** And lastly, but not leastly, if you're interested in food writing, foodie romance, or how to incorporate food into your love story, please sign up for my November workshop. It's called "Romancing the Palate", and you can register here.

Have a great week, lovelies. Will be back next week with more links. :mwah:

~ Rebecca Lynn

I have been hearing a lot about 'hooks'. When I submitted my query to an agent she had even asked me what the hook for my book would be. In all honesty, I wasn't sure what it was she was looking for. So, I did some research.

A 'hook" can be done in two ways. First is on the front of the book. When you are in a book store and are looking for a book to read, you almost always look to the front cover before flipping it over to the back to read what the story is about. Usually on the front cover, there is one or two lines that draw you in. Here are a few examples I found from author Stephanie Lauren.

"Shipwrecked, wounded, he risks all to pursue his mission-only to discover a partner as daring and brazen as he."

"Fiery, tempestuous, a queen in her own realm, she rescues a warrior-only to find her heart under siege."

"Bound by passion, linked by need, together they must brave the enemy's gauntlet to win all their heart's desire."

These are the things that will help pull you in and make you want to find out more. The second kind of 'hook' is in the chapters. How a chapter begins and ends, will keep you reading. I was told once that a newbies mistake in writing is to always begin a chapter with weather and waking from sleep. I will admit I had done this. I also learned that a chapter should begin with action and end with a question.

A writer can begin the paragraph with either a conversation, an actual action like fighting, or a description about what is going on. Here are a few examples.

1) "I want you to do it again."
"What did you say?" he asked as he leaned against the wall. His chest rose and fell with his labored breathing.
"You heard me. I want you to do it again." She crossed her arms over her chest, giving him a stern look.

This leads you into the story wondering what they are talking about. What was he doing that, why was it causing him to breath hard, and why must he do it again?

2) His arm vibrated with the first hit as his sword met his opponents sword. Metal clashed against metal. It was a battle of wills as they both strove for the upper hand.
Johnathon turned, swinging the sword above his head then bringing it down in an arch to strike against his enemy's armour. The other man stumbled back.

This brings you right into a scene with action. It leaves you wondering who will win. It makes you cheer for the hero, hoping good will defeat evil.

3) Jenna knelt down on the dewy grass, partly hidden by the tree. Fog rolled across the valley like a white blanket. Her eyes were glued to the scene below; her heart beat with every strike of metal.
She had begged Johnathon not go go today. The dual that took place in front of her, because of her was not of her choosing. She wished now, that she had not told him about the other man's advances.
She watched as Johnathon turned, striking the other man. Her hand flew to her mouth to stifle a scream as she watched him fall to the ground. Johnathon stood above the man, poised to kill. Would he deliver the final blow? How would she deal with the knowledge that the death was of her doing? She would never know what happened next. Blackness surrounded her as the ground came up to meet her.

This is what I think about now as I am writing. Did I capture my audience in a way that makes them want to stay and read on? Did I end the the paragraph in a way that makes my reader want to move on and see what happens next? Hopefully so. As I keep writing, I keep this advice in my mind. Always at the forfront, reminding me.

Next week I'll be attending my first ever Jane Austen Society National Conference. Here's the conference site if you're at all interested, although it's for society members only, I believe: http://www.jasna.org/agms/portland/index.html I'm excited, but I can't help but feel some trepidation. I always do when attending a conference I haven't been to before. This one is in Portland, so a pretty short flight from here in Nor Cal, but it'll be a good twenty degrees colder and probably raining :) so that's a small concern. Ah well, I'm sure it'll be fun anyway. I'll get some good information for my WIP, meet with some writers, and talk up some academics and other lovers of Austen.

I also actually bit the bullet and bought a Regency dress for the ball they'll be hosting the last night of the conference, and I have to say that it looks pretty good. I won't be the best dressed, but I won't be the worst either. One of the things I realized in my quest for a costume, is that it is very difficult to find period dresses that aren't really expensive and still look good. I ended up finding a passable burgundy "ball" gown on etsy.com and I'll be dolling it up with some accessories (feathers for my hair, some costume jewelry). I'll definitely take some pictures and update you all in two weeks when it's my turn to blog again. Wish me luck!

Jennieke

NaNoWrMo!

No, it isn't Mork crank calling from his home world, Ork. It's National Novel Writing Month and it starts November 1st.

NaNoWrMo began in 1999 with 21 aspiring novelists in the SF Bay area with a mission. Okay, so part of the mission might've included expanding their dating opportunities, but the point is that they stumbled upon something that has struck a cord with writers world-wide: "a fun, seat-of-your-pants approach to novel writing."

So, what is NaNoWrMo exactly?

Well, it's a challenge to write a 50,000 word novel in 30 days.

The organizers of this event state that NaNoWrMo values "enthusiasm and perseverance over painstaking craft...[and is] for everyone who has thought fleetingly about writing a novel but has been scared away by the time and effort involved. Because of the limited writing window, the ONLY thing that matters in NaNoWriMo is output. It's all about quantity, not quality. The kamikaze approach forces you to lower your expectations, take risks, and write on the fly. Make no mistake: You will be writing a lot of crap. And that's a good thing. By forcing yourself to write so intensely, you are giving yourself permission to make mistakes. To forgo the endless tweaking and editing and just create. To build without tearing down."

In 2009, NaNoWrMo had 167,150 participants and 32,178 winners.  And, the number of words officially logged was 2,427,190,537. Holy guacamole, Batman! There was a whole lotta of typin' goin' on.
 
Now, I know that there are skeptics. But the purpose of NaNoWrMo isn't to produce a polished manuscript worthy of the NYT bestsellers list. It's simply to motivate you to get done with your first draft. You can't get published if you can't finish the story.

For me, I need this challenge. The past year has been a frustrating turn of spinning my writing wheels in the mud. I'm looking forward to the pressure of a time crutch and the competition to finish the race. My goal is simply to have a completed manuscript by November 30th. I'm dedicated to putting the words on the electronic paper and hold the editing until "The End." I'll try to abate my OCD with Hemingway's inspirational words. "The first draft of anything is sh**!"

If writing a novel in 30 days sounds like a challenge you're willing to undertake, visit NaNoWrMo to sign up. Then, come back here and click on the icon below to "Buddy Me."

If you're already registered for NaNoWrMo, you can "Buddy Me" too. The more the merrier!

Buddy Me

Happy Tales, yall!
~kristal lee 
http://www.kristalleeromances.com%20/

I've heard it said that family stories don't make good fiction. But I beg to differ, at least in some instances.

Uprooted from her beloved Ireland, Bridget Harkins never thought she'd be horsewhipped for practising her faith, especially by the one man who has befriended her, but that's exactly what is about to happen when her family settles on an island in Lake Michigan ruled by Mormon Jesse Strang.

Seeing the prejudice against the new Irish settlers, Harrison 'Tip' Miller begins to question his Mormon faith, and when he refuses King Strang's order to publicly whip two young women with no just cause, Harrison is asked to leave the colony.

Can Tip rescue Bridget before it is too late without risking his own life? When King Strang ends up murdered and the Mormons are forced to leave their tiny island will Tip stay and make a life amongst the Irish settlers, or will he fight for his place by Bridget's side? Will Bridget choose her heart over her family? Can Tip and Bridget cross the barriers of language and religion and find a common ground in their hearts? Or will they allow their tiny fishing community tear them apart?

Let me introduce you to my great, great, great grandmother Bridget Harkins and my great, great, great grandfather Harrison 'Tip' Miller.


What we know from history:

1. James Strang met with Joseph Smith while Smith was at Nauvuu, Illinois before Smith's death.
2. Both James Strang and Brigham Young claimed Smith left them head of the Mormon church.
3. Strang and Young split ways. Brigham took his followers to Utah. Strang eventually ended up in Michigan with his group of 150+ followers.
4. Strang set himself up as king.
5. Strang began to force all inhabitants of Beaver Island to pay taxes.
6. U.S. Government tried and failed to have Strang arrested and removed.
7. Strang, who at once disagreed with polygamy, now openly practiced it.
8. Strang forced the women in his community to wear bloomers instead of ankle length skirts.
9. A man was horsewhipped, 79 slashes, for being found in bed with a married woman.
10. Strang was assassinated in 1856

What I know from genealogy resource:

1. Bridget Harkins was born in Milltown Lock, County Donegal, Ireland about 1843.
2. Thomas 'Paddy' Harkin, Bridget's father, was a cooper.
3. Her father died shortly after arriving in New York.
4. Sophia Harkins, Bridget's sister, married Captain 'Black' John Bonner April 28, 1856 a man who was born in Milltown and lived on Beaver Island.
5. Bonner named his schooner the 'Sophia Bonner' *sigh*
6. Bonner ran away from home at the age of 12 for the sea.
7. Strang and Harrison's father stole all the land and homes from the Irish settlers, including Bonner's.
8. Harrison 'Tip' Miller was baptized a Mormon at Nauvuu, Illinois
9. Harrison and Bridget married, unsure of date.
10. Bridget was disowned by her surviving family.
11. Harrison and Bridget had around ten children. ALL were baptized Catholic.
12. Harrison became a lighthouse keeper and was well liked by the community.
13. Harrison earned his nickname 'Tip' because he liked to 'tip his cups'. ;)
14. Harrison and Gallagher were the first to create a Life Saving Station.
15. Miller's Marsh is named for Harrison.
16. Bridget was fourteen maybe fifteen when she married Harrison.

What I heard from Grandma:

Great grandma and her sister Sophia had been caught wearing their long skirts while out shopping. They were horsewhipped for breaking King Strang's law. With two weeks, Strang was found murdered. Since many wanted Strang dead, everyone conveniently turned a blind eye. No one had ever been arrested for Strang's murder.

My question: Why did Bridget risk being disowned by her family for a man so far from her Catholic faith? Given that she had all of her children baptized in her faith and not in Harrison's makes me believe that her faith was very important to her. I wonder what the initial attraction was between the two.

Another question: Why was 'Tip' accepted into a community that so obviously hated anyone and anything to do with King Strang's followers, a community that had forcibly removed every Mormon from Beaver Island?

I guess it's my romantic heart that wants to believe that Harrison rode in on a white horse with Bonner on his black horse and rescued Bridget and Sophia. I guess it's my romantic heart that wants to believe that they had something to do with Strang's death. I guess it's my romantic heart that wants to believe that 'Tip' earned a good deal of respect from the Irish community for ridding Beaver Island of the fire breathing dragon.

So what about you? Are there any family stories in your genealogy that you can glamorize into an awesome romance book? Do you think family stories make good fiction?

*For more information about the unique history of Beaver Island, visit their website.

As I stated in last weeks blog, I attended the Muse Online Writers Conference. The workshops provided some good information. At the start of the week,I was disappointed when one of the workshops had to be canceled due to a family emergency, but the ones I did participate in were really good. I came away feeling inspired and invigorated.

In the suspense workshop we worked on a 250 project. We started out with a writing prompt and went from there. I thought my finished product looked pretty good. It was okay, but when one of the presenters gave me a critique, he suggested that I add one word at the end. That one word made all the difference in the suspense of the piece.

Another workshop focused on bringing your characters alive. We started out with a character's first memory. Mine came out of the wheat field. It was the memory of a tornado. We then took a first line from a book. I chose To Kill a Mockingbird. The assignment was to develop a scene using our character and that first line. The next assignment involved dialogue and only dialogue. Do you know how hard it is to write pure dialogue without out tags or description? Finally we put it all together. We had 1000 words to take our previous exercises and create a short story. I think this was my favorite workshop. My character ended up to be completely different from my usual characters. It came out of nowhere like a tornado and swept me away.

Other workshops included one on promoting myself online. Many of the social media recommended were ones I already participate in, but our presenter gave us information on finding free resources for creating banners, animated gifs and other objects for creating our brand. Along with that workshop I took one on creating a website for the technophobe. I do well with technology, but I'm not well versed in website building. I gain useful information from both workshops, and soon world domination will be mine! Bwa ha ha! Oh I meant to say, I may have a awesome looking website soon.

So that was pretty much my week at the Muse Online Writers Conference. It was an awesome opportunity and it was free. If you are interested in next years conference, it will be held from October 10-16, 2011 and registration is already open. Here's the link: The Muse Online Writers Conference

So what did you do last week?

I'll never forget the first foodie romance novel I read. It was Bet Me by Jennifer Crusie. The heroine was a little overweight, and had to be very careful about what she ate, but she was in *love* with this little Italian restaurant somewhere in Ohio (because I think that's where all Jennifer Crusie novels are set). She was also in love with Chicken Marsala.

And part of what made her fall in love with her hero was his making Chicken Marsala for her. Min had been making it with margarine and spray oil and Cal was dumbfounded that she expected it to taste good without real butter and olive oil. It was a beautiful scene, him in her kitchen, playing with her food, feeding her, watching her eat, reveling in her love of food.

I read that book twice, straight through. I even listened to it once--amazing. The concept of a woman's love for food being attractive to a man was new to me. I'd always been raised to think that men liked women who ate salad. (Please, don't ask about that...) And from the moment I read Bet Me, I decided that I was always going to write women like me, and the men who love them. Women who love food. Women whose love for food is integral to their love story. Women who may (or may not) look like they love food--because, of course, the unfortunate part of our human experience is that not all of us women who love food look the same. It's not necessary for me to have overweight women, although I am, myself, overweight. But it is necessary to have women who love food, falling in love with men who also love food and/or just love them for who they are.

I call these (and I think they should be called) foodie romances. And I love to read and write them. I think there are more of them than are intentional. I don't think, for instance, that Jennifer Crusie intended to write a foodie romance. I think she just wrote a romance novel, and her character's (or her) love of food was just natural to the story. It was beautiful.

Partly because of my love of teaching, and partly because of my love of foodie romances, I'm teaching a workshop next month on Food Writing and Romance at Dunes & Dreams RWA. It's called "Romancing the Palate", and you can register here. If you love food and writing, I think this will be a very fun workshop for you. We're going to cover food professions and home cooking. We'll do exercises about food, senses, sensuality, and cooking. I really hope you'll join me.

What about you? Do you love food? Do you incorporate food into your writing? Do you love to cook? Do you love to eat? :-) Tell me about how you incorporate the things you love into your writing.

~ Rebecca Lynn

How many of us have stuttered through a rehearsed pitch face to face with a terrifying agent? Well, okay, some are extremely nice and generous. Other’s just short and blunt.

During some research I came across the following blog post by Janet Reid. I hope you find it as interesting as I did.

So, it seems that not only writers but agents have issues with pitches. This year was my first face to face pitches, but after several under my belt I am a LOT less nervous. Dare I say, I even enjoy meeting the agents/editors during these fast paced sessions. They don’t yell at you, bite or pinch. BUT, I have been told in the first thirty seconds, “That’s overdone, what’s next?” Yes, I pitched an Angel/Demon story and did not make it past the line stating word count and topic before I was shut down. Oh, and by the way, that was my first ever pitch at RWA nationals this year. Good news, I picked up a no-show and went right back out, which lead to a full request.

The pitch part isn’t difficult to me, but the questions are. To better prepare writers for the Q&A portion of pitch sessions, I would love people to leave a comment with questions agents/editors have asked.

Here are some of the most recent questions I’ve been asked:
1) How do you come up with ideas for your stories?
2) Why are five traits that the hero likes about the heroine of your story?
3) What are some of the character flaws of your heroine?
4) How many books have you written?
5) What made you decide to become a writer?

So those are a few of mine. I’m looking forward to reading yours!

I know I’m attracted to new ideas. I love the promise of a new story, a bolt of bright colorful fabric or a ball of soft fluffy yarn. Unending potential.

Yesterday, while pushing paper at my day job, a book idea came to me. A great idea for a new story. Now, mind you, I don’t need a new project. I have a novella half written with a deadline at the end of the month. I’m writing a new short contemporary. I have a cozy I’m hitting final revisions for and starting to send out into the world. And I have another completed romance that I’m trying to salvage.

And a paranormal I haven’t gotten past page one.

But this story wouldn’t let me go. So I wrote the blurb running through my head, found the characters names – I can’t go on if the name isn’t right – and wrote the first couple pages.

Then I went to bed and told my hubby about the wonderful new book I was going to write.

“It’s already been done.”

He rattled off the plot of a television series that he thought was close to my idea.

I still think he’s wrong, but it forced me to look at the idea and see where I can make it my own. The Same But Different – all the publishers and agents are looking for that magic combination. Twilight but not. Harry Potter but different. The girl with the ….

Well you get the idea.

Last week I went to the movies with my BFF. Girl’s night – which I really needed. While watching the promos waiting for the chick flick to start, I was struck by one thing. Same But Different.

Gnomio and Juliet. The classic love story told through the eyes of Garden Gnomes. The reds versus the blues. How many versions of Shakespeare’s tale can there be? West Side Story? And how many versions was there before Shakespeare wrote what we view as the original?

So maybe my story is a lot like Highlander, the series, without the immortality or the Scottish flair. But if it’s the same, is it different enough to be my own?

How are you using the classics to inspire your work? And can anyone name another R/J rip off?

Lynn

Renee Lynn Scott has guest Rebecca Lynn over at Romance Roundtable today talking about what-in-the-world-is-a-writing-coach types of questions.

If you're interested, here's the link.

I’m a paranormal writer. Not because it’s the hot ticket right now, but because I have a dark, ghoulish side that revels in the supernatural and fantastical. Lately, I’ve heard the buzz that paranormal is a saturated market, that it’s a fad, and that it won’t last in today’s changing market.

Hmmmm. That’s something to consider, but I’m not worried. Why? Because if paranormal is truly a fad, it’s a very loooong running fad.

Last weekend I attended a paranormal workshop sponsored by the Central Florida RWA chapter. In attendance was NYT Best Selling Author, Heather Graham, and upcoming author Susan Blexrud.

One thing that I took to heart is that paranormal is not a new genre. Susan pointed out that the forerunners of paranormal fiction include Charles Dickens, Herman Melville, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Edgar Allen Poe, Mary Shelley, and Virginia Woolf.

Whoa! That means paranormals aren’t the new kids on the block after all. They have substance. They have staying power. They influence us more than most give credit.

Yesterday I read a blog article at The Hot Word Blog that talks about a newly discovered fish species called “dracula minnow.”  It’s only 1.7 centimeters in length and has fangs. And, the Danionella dracula is known to stab other fish. Geez, even scientists are getting into the paranormal, naming their discoveries after Bram Stoker’s infamous character.

Television shows such as Ghost Hunters, The Vampires Diaries, True Blood, and Merlin pull in a large audiences each week ~a testament to the voracious fascination our society has with things that go bump in the night.

And authors such as JK Rowling and Stephanie Meyer have sparked the next generation of paranormal enthusiasts, leaving me to believe that the naysayers spouting the demise of the paranormal in the world of fiction are mistaken.

I’m happy about that.
Werewolves and vampires and dragons, hurray! It seems they’re here to stay. And faeries and ghosts and gargoyles galore. Who knows what else is in store!

Are you a paranormal fan? Or not-so-much? Have any paranormal stories  inspired you?

I’d love to hear your thoughts.
~kristal lee

When I was but a wee mite, I spent my summers with Grandma, which meant I spent my summers picking tomatoes, plucking chicken feathers, and watching game shows.


One such show was called Name That Tune. If you're not familiar with it, the object of the game was to name a particular tune in a short amount of time. If the contestant was good, six tunes could be named in less than 30 seconds.

Name That Tune is a game I play with the kids while we are in the car. It doesn't matter what we're listening to, we always have a good time. And of course the winner always gets to have bragging rights. But in order to get those bragging rights you have to be able to recognize the first few notes of the song.

What does all this have to do with writing?

Voice.

If you follow agent blogs much you'll know that they often list voice as one of the things they're looking for. Voice is a bit complex, but there is an agent out there that I've seen explain it well.

"So what is it? To me, your writer's voice is the expression of YOU on the page. It's that simple—and that complicated. Your voice is all about honesty. It's the unfettered, non-derivative, unique conglomeration of your thoughts, feelings, passions, dreams, beliefs, fears and attitudes, coming through in every word you write.

Voice is all about your originality and having the courage to express it."


Rachelle Gardner, literary agent

Now that we have an idea of what voice is, at least according to one agent, how does one go about recognizing voice?

Well, much like a classically trained musician recognizes the difference between Chopin and Beethoven, or like a rock guru recognizes the difference between Van Halen and The Who.


Did you notice that I used words like 'classically trained' and 'rock guru'? Yeah, I think you get the picture. Voice is such a difficult subject that it almost seems like a copout when an agent or editor tells you that your voice isn't for them. But believe me, just like the classically trained musician and the rock guru, the publishing professional has their ear tuned to your voice. If it strikes a chord and makes them want to sing er, read on, they'll let you know. Readers can also recognize and relate to voices. That's why some of us like Nora Roberts and others prefer Debbie Macomber.

A strong, unique voice sets writers apart from the mediocre and puts them on top of the charts, like Janet Evanovich, Cathy Maxwell, Nora Roberts, John Grisham, Stephen King and many other novelists.

So how do you get your voice? WRITE! I heard it said that it takes a million words to hone your voice. That is why I believe no word is wasted. That is why I believe every word is a step in the right direction. It has been only within the last year and a half that I've begun to recognize my own voice.

How will you know when you get it? You'll know.

Now, I'd like to share something with you written by my youngest daughter. I'm so excited to 'hear' a voice!

The following is a reluctant writing assignment.

So Not Happening is a great book. It's by Jenny B. Jones, one of her A Charmed Life series. It's about a girl named Bella Kirkwood and her life. Okay, long story short, her dad traded her mom in for a newer model, and then her mom went to an online dating service where she fell in love with a hillbilly with two sons, eeeewwww! Oh yeah, did I say that Bella lived in New York with her dad who's a plastic surgeon. And . . . now, her new step dad works at a pad company (you know where they make girl stuff). And her mom moved in with him, in Truman, Oklahoma. So not happening! And Bella's boyfriend back in New York cheats on her with her best friend. Oh yeah, the editor of the school newspaper is hot. I mean at her new school in Truman. Her old school didn't have boys, hot or any other kind of boy because she used to go to an all girls school in New York. Something cool about Bella, she discovers something weird and freaky about the Truman football team, and decides to investigate, which leads her on a wild adventure. Well, there's much more, but you kind of need to read the book yourself, so stop hacking me about it! Gosh.

Oh, and I do recommend this book.

From Dancing to My Own Beat

So, can you hear your voice in your writing?

*Parts of the upper portion of this blog are reposted from Romance Roundtable.

This week will be a busy week. I’m attending the Muse Online Writers Conference, plus I work several days this week. At the conference I signed up for several workshops so I can learn to add more suspense to my wips in one workshop, and bring my characters alive in another. In two other workshops I'll be learning to promote. create and brand myself for free and get information on how to build a website. And finally I’ll learn about the Twelve Stages of the Writer’s Adventure. There are a dozen other workshops I might look in on, but I have officially registered for five. I’m not familiar with any of the workshop presenters, but I'm excited to learn what I can.

I also start my regular work schedule. I'm scheduled for Monday, Wednesday and Saturday with a possibility of working a couple of afternoons. I’m hoping this regular schedule is less intense and less tiring than my training schedule was. For the past three weeks I have felt wiped out. Finding the energy to write has been the biggest issue, but yesterday I was able to get my workshops organized and write one homework assignment. I also started this blog entry.

On my agenda for the hour I have left before work is to post this entry, check on my workshops, and post my homework assignment. How about the rest of you? Is anyone else attending the Muse Online Writers Conference? Is your week filled or will you be writing at your leisure?

from deviantart.com

I am a huge fan of Pandora. Huge. In fact, I credit Pandora with making me able to write in the genre I do (erotic romance). And it's all because of an itty bitty little thing I call, the luvah scene. (Go ahead, say it out loud, you'll see what I mean.)

It wasn't too long ago (more than 1 year, less than 10), that I tried to write my first luvah scene. I figured, since I'd been reading erotica and erotic romance for years, I'd rock this out.

In fact, I'd just read a great book about writing sex scenes, specifically for writers. (I would cite it here, but it was not at all helpful... in fact, since taking workshops from Nicole North on the subject, and reading Angela Knight's book Passionate Ink, I've given it to the library.) I thought it was going to be great.

Normally, it takes me about an hour to write a 1500 word scene. I'd planned for the sex scene to be roughly 800 words, and thought it might take me 30-45 minutes to write. Holy Lord, I was wrong.

It took me eight days.

Not eight solid days, of course. Eight days of writing and cutting, rewriting, researching, editing, rewriting, reading aloud, sending to friends, rewriting, re-reading, cutting, watching TV, reading other sex scenes, and reading several blogs on the topic. At the end of eight days, I had a sex scene! Yay!

But the sex scene I'd written (my first one) was horrifying. It was the typical "Tab A in Slot B" writing, and it wasn't even good mechanical writing. I was trying too hard. I wasn't feeling it.

Then, for some reason, I changed the radio station. Typically, when I write, I listen to some version of classical music. It relaxes me. Makes my brain come alive. But it was making my sex scenes very ho-hum. So I went into my iTunes, picked out the sexiest song I could find, and made a Pandora station out of it.

The song is called "Gravity of Love" by Enigma, and it's a sort of pulsing electronica song with lots of whispered, breathy lyrics. It made writing sex scenes so much easier. After this, I started making Pandora stations for all of the different genres that I write. What I've discovered is, this makes it completely unnecessary for me to do any kind of "getting into the mood" re-reading, like I used to.

So what about you? What do you listen to while you write? How do you get yourself into the mood of your novel, whatever that mood is? How do you change moods? Do you have a Pandora station you'd like to extol publicly? Here's mine if you're interested.

-Camryn Rhys

Have you been following the Epic Black Car blog, and one-man's-quest-to-read-a-romance-novel? Then you'll be interested to know that I have taken him up on his challenge to read his favorite book. Since he's reading mine.

So come on over to my post and read the snarky (or just sexual) explication. If you want to, anyway. Of course, there's some coarse language, so be prepared. But it'll be a fun ride... you'll get that later.

What is immortality? When I looked it up in my writer's thesaurus, it describes it as eternal life, everlasting life, deathlessness,; indestructibility, imperishability. If I was talking about a book or movie, as in, "This page will achieve immortality," it gives the meaning of legendary status, lasting fame/ renowned.


The first part, a person having immortality, is something a writer loves. The life of those living with immortality is priceless, regardless if it is good or bad. The things they have seen, heard, and discovered would be amazing. To watch the world change before their eyes and see the wonder of things man can create. If a person knew they could not die, would they then lead a reckless life? Maybe go into a battle head on? And in doing so, change the course of history? Of course, the downside would be watching all of their loved ones pass on. Knowing they would walk forever alone in the world. Maybe witnessing some of the things man had created wouldn't be such a blessing, and maybe going head long into battle, hoping to change the course of history and realizing they couldn't, would be hard to take.

Could a person who was immortal also achieve immortality? One would think that if a person had more than one lifetime to do something, they could could do something worth being immortalized by. Would you want to be immortal? What would you do to be immortalized for or would you want to be? If you could write a character, would you make him immortal or have immortality and why? Inquiring minds want to know!

(Okay, so my title is shamelessly ripped off from a Sex and the City episode. Please forgive. )

More than two months have past since I attended the 2010 RWA National Conference. I'm still digesting information from the fabulous workshops and my learning of the craft continues. One of the books I picked up while there is Angela Knight's "Passionate Ink: A Guide to Writing Erotic Romance."

You don't need to be an erotic romance writer to benefit from AK's how-to guide. It's written in an easy, down-to-Earth style that seems more like an afternoon tea with a writing mentor than a textbook.

One of the gems that I plucked from it's pages is a simple tip to avoid sagging middles. Ms. Knight's solution to this problem is "making a bad situation worse." In other words, up the conflict ante'. The middle should be the place where everything goes to he** in a hand basket. "[T]he action needs to ramp up with every scene so that each crisis is worse than one before."

In romantic fiction, love may conquer all in the end but until then it should throw everything into chaos. Love needs to complicate the external conflict so that it is much harder to defeat or overcome. If your story is sagging in the middle something must force the hero/heroine to jump from the frying pan into the fire. AK suggests to consider "the worse possible thing that could happen to [the] hero--given his particular emotional hangups--that he could still survive...[t]hen do it him." Be ruthless with your characters. Misery loves company and the readers will rally behind them.


The middle is also where lust begins to give way to love. As the pressure of the external conflict builds, a moment comes when the hero/heroine experiences an eye opening moment and realizes that he/she is in love and has much more to lose than when the story started. Falling in love should make the problem the hero and heroine are facing much more difficult to overcome and add unexpected consequences.

If your middle is sagging, take a hard look at the story's conflict. Conflict should drive the plot. If it doesn't, you're likely to experience a sputtering of your story. Check out your villain. Is he/she as three dimensional as your hero and heroine? Or a cardboard flunkie?

A weak villain undermines the conflict and sucks the ooomph right out of the plot. Your villain shouldn't be too easily defeated, unbelievable, and/or suffer motivational anemia.  His motivation should be as strong or stronger than the hero/heroine. One trick to creating a worthy villain is to remember that he is the hero in his own mind. He isn't evil for the heck of it. Something deep, dark and sinister motivates him to that end.  He has a cause, he has goals, and he can up the ante' if you let him. And, like a pair of big red suspenders, he can help hold up that sagging middle.

"Passionate Ink" is packed full of useful information and is an excellent resource for romance writers of every genre. If you're interested in winning a free copy of "Passionate Ink," please visit my website (www.kristalleeromances.com) and enter to win. The contest runs through midnight Saturday. Hope to see you there.

~kristal lee

Last year I was living near Austin, Texas when I heard rumors of a nearby town being rebuilt into a Hollywood set for the remake of "True Grit". The first famous name to snag my attention was Jeff Bridges (as Rooster Cogburn, of course). After my heart slowed down to a normal beat again, I learned the cast also included Matt Damon and Josh Brolin.

It took all of ten minutes to grab my hubby by the arm and demand we take a Harley cruise to Granger, Texas for a little hobnobbing with the Tinsel town folks. The journey turned even more exciting when I realized the town was being renovated into a wild West version of Fort Smith, Arkansas. Growing up in northeastern Oklahoma, I was very familiar with Fort Smith and had visited the famous gallows of "Hangin'" Judge Isaac Parker and his frontier jail, nicknamed "Hell on the Border".

I was like a kid in a candy store when we parked our bike that Sunday afternoon and strolled around town. Filming was not scheduled for that day, and alas, no movie stars mingled with the curious throngs milling about the set but it was thrilling just the same. The once paved streets were now packed with dirt and straw. Wagons and buggies were staged in front of buildings that had been covered with facades to replicate an 1800's setting. There were friendly security guards making sure the sightseers exercised their best behavior and answering questions about the set. I was surprised to learn almost all of the work had been handled by local craftsmen instead of bringing in crews from California.

The visual effects were awesome, down to the smallest detail. It made me realize how important it is to "set the scene" when we write our books. Instead of building sets with hammer, nails and a paintbrush, we build worlds with our words. Writers insert readers into a story just as surely as if they were watching a movie. Using the senses to blend richly woven tapestries of sight, smell, sound and touch, we enable our fans to experience the story with their minds.

I've included some photos of Granger just for fun. If you have the opportunity to see the movie, which is scheduled for release around Christmas, see if you recognize any of the storefronts.

Until next time, BICHOK! Make those sensory details come alive!

Deb Sanders
www.author-debsanders.com