Author Wednesday – Michele Shriver

Welcome to Author Wednesday. Today I interview author Michele Shriver. Michele stays busy as a lawyer during the day, but in her spare times she’s managed to write several novels. After Ten, Sixth South, and Aggravated Circumstances fall into the category of women’s fiction. On Book Review Friday, I’ll be reviewing After Ten.

Michele, I am so pleased to have you on Author Wednesday today. I’m always curious about an author’s voice. When did you first discover your voice as a writer?

Actually, that is something I am still working on and trying to improve all the time. Last year, I had an opportunity to attend a writer’s conference and one of the classes I went to was on finding and strengthening your voice. It was an amazing class, and it left me with a keen awareness that my voice was not yet as strong as it could be. I’ve taken a lot of steps in the past year to strengthen it, and I think I’ve had some success, but there’s still work to do. I think writers should always be actively trying to improve at their craft.

I couldn’t agree more with that philosophy. Describe your current projects.

I’ve got two that I am working on. The first is about a woman in a long-term marriage who wants to start over, so she files for divorce. She finds herself embroiled in a custody battle and then ordered into family counseling, forcing her on a journey of self-discovery. The second is a contemporary romance which is actually a sequel of sorts to my first book and will finally give one of the characters her happily ever after.

Your books fall into the category of women’s fiction. Are you planning to continue writing in the same genre?

Yes, I definitely plan to continue writing women’s fiction. It’s where my true passion lies. Lately, though, I’ve had an idea come to me for a book that might fall in the New Adult genre, so that is something I may be looking at in the future as well.

What’s the best thing said about one of your books by a reviewer?

That they truly felt as if they knew my characters and considered them friends. The most important thing to me is crafting believable characters that readers like and root for, because if people like the characters, they will want to read to the end to see what happens to them. If readers are able to connect with my characters, then I feel like I have done my job.

What’s your one sentence pitch for your newest release Aggravated Circumstances?

A family can be torn apart in an instant. Putting it back together is a harder task.

How did you choose the title? Has it been the title from the very beginning?

The book started out with a working title of The Line, which could have been either a reference to drug use or a reference to the line between right and wrong or ethical and unethical that sometimes is blurred. I was about halfway through the book, when the court case began to take center-stage with the pivotal question whether Devin would get another chance or not, when I began to think about maybe changing the title. Aggravated Circumstances is a legal term for one of the exceptions to the State’s obligation to provide reasonable efforts to reunify a family. With an aggravated finding, reasonable efforts are waived, effectively making it impossible for a parent to regain custody of their child. I asked a few of my critique partners, and their opinions weighed in favor of changing the title, so I did.

What is the message conveyed in Aggravated Circumstances?

Overall, I think it is a message of hope and second chances and that people can change. Sometimes they just need someone to believe in them.

 One of my favorite fantasies is to host a dinner party with several of my favorite authors.If you could invite two other authors over to your house for dinner, who would you choose and why.

I’d choose two famous authors who are always at the top of bestseller lists. Jodi Picoult, who writes upmarket women’s fiction and who I consider one of my inspirations. When I grow up, I wish I could be one-tenth the writer she is. It’s a dream that one day my books might be on a shelf next to hers. The second would be James Rollins, who writes in a completely different genre, but whom I had the chance to meet at a conference, and simply found him to be a wonderful person, down to earth, and very inspirational. And funny as heck!

Michele, after reading your first novel, I feel safe in saying you stand a good chance of having one of your books (or all of them) on the same shelf as Ms. Picoult. Thank you for stopping by today. It’s been my pleasure to host you.

About Michele: Michele Shriver lives in the Midwest U.S. where she maintains her law practice, in addition to pursuing a writing career. In her free time, she enjoys Zumba fitness, bicycling, and the NFL and NHL.

Links:

Amazon/Kindle:  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00C479UY4

Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/16xlk23

Kobo: http://www.kobobooks.com/ebook/Aggravated-Circumstances/book-x4_MarE7O0CtQInTYi4t_Q/page1.html?s=n-FXjxY1SEyjlbBvMTgzzw&r=1

Paperback: http://www.amazon.com/Aggravated-Circumstances-Michele-Shriver/dp/1483955087/ref=tmm_pap_title_0

 Website: www.micheleshriver.com

Email: micheleshriver@gmail.com

Twitter: @micheleshriver

Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/michele.shriver?fref=ts

 

 

“I want to write a book.” Sigh . . .

Sketch of P.C. Zick by Jae at Lit and Scribbles

By Patricia Zick @PCZick

People often say to me, “I or my [friend, cousin, father] want(s) to write a book.” The writer-in-waiting usually has no experience with writing. I also hear, “I told my [friend, cousin, father] that you might be able to help them get started.”

In the past, I’ve given either a weak two-cent reply or a lengthy discourse on writing and publishing. The last two requests I’ve ignored while I simmered on how to respond.

My hesitation comes from the frustration I feel when folks believe they are able to write a book just because they can put together a few sentences into a paragraph. It’s not fair for me to feel this way because fifteen years ago I might have asked a published author the same thing.

With that confession out of the way, I want to answer all those would-be-authors in this way:  I didn’t just wake up one morning and say, “I think I’ll write a book today.” I’ve been writing stories for most of my adult life. I’ve been a life-long reader. I have some training and experience with the English language. I’ve worked as an English teacher, journalist, publisher, editor, and communications specialist. I have nearly thirty years of experience with writing and being paid for my expertise. I’m not saying a person can’t write a book without my experience, but I am saying that writing a book requires a bit more than simply thinking you have a great story to tell.

I’ve spent years studying the craft of writing fiction and nonfiction. I don’t mean through formal training – although I have some of that – I mean through self-educating myself by reading other novels, seeking out conferences, studying books on craft, finding websites and blogs with writing information, and interacting with my fellow authors. When I entered the new world of e-publishing, I sought out every source I could to teach me how to proceed. I’m still doing that because I haven’t met my goals for success . . .yet.

I don’t want to discourage anyone, but I do want others to understand that it’s impossible for me to teach anyone else what I’ve learned. I can only point in the direction and the rest must be done through hard work. I stress that you just don’t sit down at the computer and write the instant best seller. Perhaps the Shades of Gray author did that, but I’m not interested in writing a poorly written smutty novel. If you are, then you don’t need to read any further. Open the cover on your laptop and begin.

Now for some more practical steps for beginning the journey to writing a book, if I haven’t discouraged you so far.

Why do you want to write the book? Are you interested in publishing for public consumption or do you want to provide a memoir for your relatives? If you want to publish for your family, that’s fine. You don’t need much more than desire. But you’ll still have to decide how you’re going to publish the book. That’s for another post.

What’s your ultimate goal for writing a book? If making money is at the top of your list, then I recommend you seek out employment elsewhere. Most writers I know write because they have to write. The stories don’t leave them alone. They write because there is no other choice. Chances are you won’t make a whole lot of money from writing a book no matter which method of publishing you choose. I remain hopeful that my passion will one day pay the bills

Are you willing to bare your soul on the page no matter what type of writing you choose? If you’re afraid of honesty, then perhaps you’re not ready to write. I don’t mean you have to confess the time you stole a cookie out of the jar. I’m talking about the type of honesty about life and people that makes your writing universal and enduring. I don’t ever give specific details of my own life in my fiction, but I do write about the emotions an event might have elicited. I choose different details to express it.

Are you willing to work hard learning and perfecting your craft with only the intrinsic satisfaction writing gives you? For many years in my writing career, I pursued the golden apple of success that grows from the limbs of those who read my books. I thought that would make me successful. In the past few years, I’ve left that type of temporary satisfaction behind and enjoyed success in a different way. That type of satisfaction and pride lasts longer than the time between good reviews.

Are you ready to put your work into the world for anyone to scrutinize and criticize? Here’s one of the dichotomies of being a writer. Most writers I know are rather reclusive at times and just a little bit shy in public. I know that some folks who know me might shake their heads and say I am not in the least bit shy. Those folks would be wrong. I may be sociable and even be the life of the party at times, but that behavior comes at a great cost to me either before, during, or after a social event. I’m much more comfortable attending one of the parties thrown by a character in a novel. But here’s the two-sided trouble. As authors, we usually want to publish, which means we’ve opened a bit of ourselves to public view. Over the years, I’ve had to develop a tough hide. It’s harmful when I start believing both the good and bad reviews. By far, the bad reviews – very few in comparison to the good reviews – stay with me and haunt me. However, they are easier to take now. I also stopped preening every time a childhood friend or colleague wrote a glowing review of my work. Now, I know the legitimate reviews from strangers are important, but not as important as the confidence within me that I’ve written a book just the way I envisioned it.

If my questions didn’t quell your thirst to write, then you’re probably ready, not to write the next Great American Novel, but to get busy educating yourself on the business of writing a book. I’ll save that for the next installment.

Besides doing research and study, keep writing. Start a blog if you don’t have one and set deadlines for yourself. Write down any ideas that come to you. Sketch out characters. Write dialogue. You won’t be wasting time. Some of the stuff you might use one day; some of the stuff may just serve as practice .

What other questions or issues should someone address before seriously embarking on writing a book?

Florida’s sea turtles saved from oil spill in Trails in the Sand

Author Wednesday – Jane Edacott

Welcome to Author Wednesday. Today I welcome Jane Endacott. She’s published Odious Seed and Other Stories, a collection of short stories, on Amazon Kindle. She’s currently writing a young adult fantasy novel. In her post, she discusses the writing of the new book in an unfamiliar genre for her as an author.

How to Write What You Don’t Know

By Jane Endacott

I am writing a YA fantasy novel, and I know nothing about fantasy.

When I started writing my book in 2007, I wanted to write about Otherization – the idea that people set themselves apart from others – because of a belief that others are fundamentally different from them.

I felt the story was best told in a fantasy setting.  It was a daunting challenge.  Not only was I writing my first book, but I was also writing for a genre about which I knew nothing.

The first lesson any writer is taught is to write what you know.  When you’re starting out, this is great advice because it helps you practice.

But whenever I did that, I came off as a self-absorbed sad sack.  My life is not at all extraordinary.  I have not built schools for young girls in Pakistan, and I have not trained in barefoot running with a Native American tribe.

Still, my mind went to places that don’t exist either on a map or in my memories, and I asked myself, “What if?”

In Odious Seed, my short stories tell of a developmentally disabled girl, nuclear scientists in love, the ghost of a stalker, a seed that begins to grow and sprout inside a man, and insects that consume a building.

I don’t know about any of those and even less about writing fantasy or magical realism.  Here are a few tips on how you can write what you don’t know.

Read, but not too much.  When writing something you don’t know, it often helps to read an author who has similar work.  It gives you a sense of how to do it successfully.  But it’s not the only way to do it successfully.  At some point you have to trust yourself and do your own thing.

Put yourself in their shoes.  Close your eyes and imagine that you’re watching the story from your character’s perspective.  What do you see and feel?  What are the smells and textures?  Answering questions such as these help make the world believable to our readers.

Experiment.  During the editing process, it’s easy to be fixated on one storyline, one characterization, or one description.  We sometimes approach the story with a single mind that limits our possibilities.  Trying different paths and variations opens our minds to discovery.

Make mistakes.  This goes along with experimentation. Never allow fear of failure to prevent you from trying something.  Don’t think it will work?  You don’t know until you try.  Even if you fail, you will learn something from it.

Remember, your characters are still human.  Even if you don’t know what it’s like to, say, grow up on a commune or be a race car driver, your characters are still part of the human condition.  They still argue with their siblings, have dysfunctional marriages, and say the wrong thing at parties.

If you practice with these things, you will be a stronger writer for it.  Writing what you don’t know helps you take risks and take your craft to new levels.  It allows you to explore uncharted territories. This is how you discover what you are made of.

About Jane Endacott – Jane Endacott is a blogger and fiction writer.  Her blog, “Word Savant,” helps other writers find connection and support in the creative process.  She recently released her book, Odious Seed and Other Stories, on Amazon Kindle.  She is also working on a YA series titled, The People of Fire & Water.  She also offers services as a writing coach.  She likes to read voraciously, run races, and eat food as if it were her last day on earth.  She lives in Portland, Oregon.

Blog: http://wordsavant.wordpress.com/

Book: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CLMABIG

Twitter: https://twitter.com/

Author Wednesday – Jennifer Donohoe

Welcome to Author Wednesday. Today I welcome Jennifer Donohoe, author of two fantasy novels, The Legend of the Travelers: Willow’s Journey and her most recent release, Fly Away.  Jennifer stops by today for an interview about her writing life.

Welcome to Author Wednesday, Jennifer. Rachel Carson (Silent Spring) said she never chose a subject because as a writer, the subject chose her. Describe a time when a subject chose you.

I always allow the subject to choose me. Most often I usually get inspiration from varying sources, then over weeks, months, or years I develop the story in my mind until I have a strong threshold for it. Currently, most of my stories are fantasy, but I have quite a few ideas that are not. They range from historical fiction to adventure to horror to thriller.

What messages or themes do you try to convey to your readers?

In whatever I write, I try to convey a message. In the two books, I have out now those messages are, “You cannot run from your life. You must face it,” and “We can’t choose the life we’re given, but we can do something about it.”

Fly Away was originally slated to be a psychological thriller. However, my characters decided differently about the whole thing. I combined some favorite themes like the Neverending Story and Dante’s Inferno to create a more unique story. I hope it worked out well.

Are you planning to continue writing in the same genre?

I’ll write wherever my characters take me, but I do plan on moving from fantasy to other genres at some point.

How did you choose the title? Has it been the title from the very beginning?

My titles often come to me prior to the book being written. I move from that title on to the idea of the story. Fly Away came to me for NaNoWriMo [National Novel Writing Month] for 2011, and it smoothed its way into the story it is now.

How long do you estimate it took you to take the book from an idea to a finished, published?

I only had a few weeks to formulate Fly Away into a story, then I wrote the first 50,000 words in a month. After that, the book was completely written within a year (October 2012). From there, I revised it and sent it to a beta reader. I finished revising it in March 2013 and sent it to an editor at that point.

That’s quite an accomplishment. If you listen to music while you’re writing, what is it?

The type of music I listen to completely depends on the type of story I’m writing. For instance, The Legend of the Travelers: Willow’s Journey was written listening to true Celtic music. Fly Away was written to more modern music. I prefer to listen to music without words. The reason behind this is so that the words don’t disrupt my thoughts.

What book are you reading right now?

I am a die hard fantasy reader. I do read other genres too, but fantasy is always my first choice. Currently, I’m reading A Clash of Kings by George R. R. Martin. You may know it by the title, Game of Thrones.

Thank you for stopping by today, Jennifer. It’s always very interesting to hear from other authors about their process. Somehow you manage to do it all while still working at a day job. Congratulations to you for a job well done.

About Jennifer: Jennifer Donohoe currently lives in Northeast Ohio. She works as a In-Home Counselor to Felony Juvenile Offenders. She loves taking landscape photography as a hobby and uses the photos as descriptions for some of the settings in her stories. Her passion is writing and enjoys the company of her characters.

Purchase links for Fly Away:

Amazon Kindle:
http://www.amazon.com/Fly-Away-ebook/dp/B00CEGHLPA

Paperback Link:
http://www.amazon.com/Fly-Away-Jennifer-Donohoe/dp/1480114146

Author Central Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Jennifer-Donohoe/e/B008CTFQGO

About Fly Away:  Robin Sullivan is given a magical book where she can
experience a better life in a new world called Tearmann. She can
finally escape the terrible reality of life with an abusive, alcoholic
father, her mother’s schizophrenia, and her best friend’s Leukemia.
Robin must choose between deserting her real life or living in a world
promising a better one. Events come into play forcing Robin to make a
decision. Will she be able to save those she loves and still save
herself?

Enter Giveaway On My Virtual Book Tour

April 22-29 – Trails in the Sand goes on a Worldwind Virtual Book Tour

I’ll be out on “tour” April 22-29 to celebrate the forty-third anniversary of Earth Day and to celebrate the publication of Trails in the Sand. At each stop, you’ll be able to enter a raffle for an exciting giveaway at the end of the tour. I’m giving away a package of autographed copies of both Live from the Road and Trails in the Sand, along with a Route 66 baseball cap, a Trails in the Sand magnet, all wrapped in a “green” grocery bag donated by fellow blogger Betsy Wild at What’s Green with Betsy. The bags were designed by Where Designs.

The Tour Schedule – Check out these blogs and my posts and enter to win the tour giveaway.

April 22 – Earth Day

Melissa’s Mochas, Mysteries More blog features an excerpt from Trails in the Sand.

Author Richard Stephenson interviews me on his blog.

Bookingly Yours blog features my guest post about the anniversary of Earth Day and the connection to Trails in the Sand.

April 23

Words Unlimited features my guest post on how I came to write Trails in the Sand on Back Story page.

The blog Bless Their Hearts Mom will publish a review and excerpt of Trails in the Sand.

April 24

Freda’s Voice features my guest post “Love Those Writers” about why I chose writers as the main characters in my books.

April 25

I Read Indie blog features my guest post “Why I love sea turtles” about my first interaction with the ancient creatures and how they became a central part of the plot in Trails in the Sand.

Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers features Trails in the Sand and my guest post “Subject Chooses the Writer.”

April 26

A Page Away features my guest post “Saving Sea Turtles One Nest at a Time” about my job on the team to rescue sea turtle nests during the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

BestsellerBound Recommends features an interview with me using “M” words to describe myself.

April 27

Create With Joy – Live With Passion features a review of Trails in the Sand and an excerpt.

April 28

Bex ‘n’ Books features Trails in the Sand.

April 29

Jody’s Book Reviews features my guest post “Tikkun Olan Found Its Way into the Novel.”

Celtic Lady’s Reviews features a review of Trails in the Sand.

Confessions of an Inner Aspen features an interview with me.

Author Wednesday – Jade Kerrion

Welcome to Author Wednesday. It’s my pleasure to welcome author Jade Kerrion to my blog today. Jade writes science fiction. With an undergraduate degree in biology and philosophy, becoming a science fiction writer was a logical next step in a multifaceted career path. I hope you enjoy reading her post today about the importance of critique groups to the writing process.

Finding the Right Critique Group

By Jade Kerrion

A few weeks ago, I went on a date with three older women. We split a 16″ pizza with 8 toppings and talked about the men we had married (and in some cases, divorced.) We also talked about the novels we were writing. Through the entire meal, my heart pounded. I knew the three women were evaluating me. It was, in effect, a first date.

At the end of the meal, I had apparently passed muster and was deemed worthy. I was invited into their critique group – which was exactly what I’d wanted ever since I’d heard of the Attic Girls – a play off Stephen King’s reference to his muses, the “boys in the basement.” (Actually, my muse is male and looks like Orlando Bloom, but that’s not the point.)

I’d joined many critique groups before, but why did I want to join the Attic Girls so badly? What makes a critique group good? Obviously, you want to be with strong writers whose feedback can help you grow, but it turns out, the volume of work you can get critiqued over a realistic timeframe is equally important.

Before I joined the Attic Girls, I was part of a critique group that met once a month. The group was large, about twenty to thirty people. Given the size, you could only read about three pages of your work. Let’s see . . . I can write a novel of 85,000 words in three months, and in three months of the critique group, I’d be able to share nine pages of my novel? Out of 200+ pages? That’s hardly enough feedback to make a difference to the novel.

I then found another group. This one met twice a month, and it was about half the size of the first group. You were encouraged to bring five pages of your work. Much better. Even so, over three months, I’d be able to share only thirty pages of my work. Better than nine pages, of course, but still a far cry from 200+ pages.

The Attic Girls, on the other hand, meet every week. Each week, two days before the meeting, we send our work to each other by email. We read the documents on our own time, and then spend the meeting itself providing feedback. The volume of the work you send out is up to you. The Attic Girls didn’t seem to flinch at the fifteen-page document I sent out last week. Think about it, fifteen+ pages a week . . . sixty+ pages a month . . . 180+ pages in three months. That’s almost my full novel. The Attic Girls provide timely feedback that allows me to keep up with my publishing schedule of three books a year.

In addition, the beauty of a small and consistent critique group is that your fellow writers grow with you. They figure out your style. They know if you’re writing hard and trying to find the best turn of phrase or if you’re just coasting along with acceptable but mediocre sentences. Best of all, because we meet in person, we hold each other accountable. If someone doesn’t offer something up for a reading two weeks in a row, we call her out.

The Attic Girls don’t replace my faithful cadre of beta readers, but where my beta readers enjoy the whole story and are tasked with calling out major plot holes or character lapses, my critique group focuses on the details that well-trained novelists notice, like POV shifts. The Attic Girls are the people running beside me in that endless marathon instead of just cheering from the sidelines.

If you don’t already utilize a critique group, I strongly encourage you to join one. It doesn’t matter if it’s large or small, online or in-person. It’s important to connect with other writers and to learn how to give and receive feedback. Perhaps one day, you’ll head out, as I did, on a nervous first date with a fabulous critique group.

About Jade: Jade Kerrion started out in fan fiction. She developed a loyal reader base with her fan fiction series based on the MMORPG Guild Wars, and was accused of keeping her readers up at night, distracting them from work, housework, homework, and (far worse), from actually playing Guild Wars. And then she wondered why just screw up the time management skills of gamers? Why not aspire to screw everyone else up too? So she made the transition to writing and publishing books that aspire to keep you from doing anything else useful with your time.

Jade unites cutting-edge science and bioethics with fast-paced action in her award-winning Double Helix series. Perfection Unleashed and its sequels, Perfect Betrayal and Perfect Weapon, have been described as “a breakout piece of science fiction” and drawn rave reviews for their originality and vision.

Her novel, When the Silence Ends, is a Young Adult spinoff the Double Helix series.

She is also the author of Earth-Sim, a compelling and whimsical view of Earth’s history through the eyes of the two students assigned to manage our planet.

She lives in Fort Lauderdale, Florida with her wonderfully supportive husband and her two young sons, Saint and Angel, (no, those aren’t their real names, but they are like saints and angels, except when they’re not.)

Social media and buy links:

Connect with Jade Kerrion: Blog / Facebook / Twitter

Perfection Unleashed: Amazon / Apple iTunes / Barnes & Noble / Smashwords

Perfect Betrayal: Amazon / Apple iTunes / Barnes & Noble / Smashwords

Perfect Weapon: Amazon / Apple iTunes / Barnes & Noble / Smashwords

When the Silence Ends: Amazon / Apple iTunes / Barnes & Noble / Smashwords

Earth-Sim: Amazon / Apple iTunes / Barnes & Noble / Smashwords

 

777 Novel Day

By Patricia Zick @PCZick

Today I’m participating in the 777 Novel project.

I’m gearing up for Trail in the Sand‘s virtual blog tour, starting next week on the forty-third anniversary of Earth Day. I’m visiting fifteen different blogs in seven days, which means I’m writing guests posts until my fingers are nearly raw. I’m still attempting to keep up with my own blog.

Worldwind Virtual Book Tour

I thought this exercise sounded like fun to do with my new manuscript for my novel Safe Harbor - working title only. If you have any suggestions for a different title please. . . Also, this was an easy and fun post to put together. Hope you enjoy it, too.

Here are the rules: Share 7 lines from page 7 or 77 of your manuscript or go to page 7 or 77 and count down 7 lines and copy the next 7 lines of your manuscript.

I chose to go to page 77, which happened to be the start of a new chapter:

“Daniel drove into Venice Village, carefully avoiding the potholes in the dirt streets filled with water from the rains that drenched the area after Hurricane Charley exited the state the week before. Tall cranes stood motionless on the site where 120 condominiums would soon rise to meet the claws of the machines. As dusk approached, Daniel imagined the machinery as dinosaurs waiting to pounce on their prey, not heeding anything but the need to fill an empty and large stomach.

Some of the bridges over the canals were still under water, but Daniel knew Rob and his buddies would be staying near the bridge at the back of the compound  where a rise in the landscape provided relief from the flooded canals. Daniel noted as he drove that drainage culverts and retention ponds, while not fully complete or functional, still had not performed in any way that gave him confidence this folly of creating the Floridian Venice would work.

He saw Rob and Jeremy walking toward the car so he slowed down, careful to not get stuck in some of the muddy ruts in the road, which had been carved by the trucks and machinery of the crews working diligently to bring the perfect housing complex to St. Johns County.

Rob climbed in the front seat and Jeremy climbed in back behind him.”

Safe Harbor examines the folly of man when he transforms nature for his benefit. Nature always wins in the end. A group of ordinary citizens form an odd group as they attempt to stop an international conglomerate from destroying the natural world they treasure.

Why don’t you give it a try? This was fun to see where the 777 took me. Let’s hear yours!

 

Author Wednesday – Hazy Shades of Me

Welcome to Author Wednesday. I’m very excited to host a new, but solid friend and author, Alana Agerbo. When I started this blog last year, Alana was one of my first followers and one of the first to comment on my posts. I remember how excited I was when she posted one of my blogs to Facebook. I began following her blog, Hazy Shades of Me, and discovered a writer with extraordinary talent and a woman modest about her craft. I also made a friend, even though we’ve never met in person. To me, she will always be “Hazy” in name, but clear and poetic in her prose. I present to you with great pride and joy, my friend and author, Alana Agerbo AKA Hazy.

I Can Be Silver

By Alana “Hazy” Agerbo

I am gray.

Dappled Gray. I’m unconcerned whether we see a drama or a comedy, have pasta or potatoes, drink red or white. Not for indifference, but because I consider it food for creativity and know I will well digest whatever we end up with. When you choose, my status quo is removed. You can run the show, should you so desire. Shrouded in many shades of black and white. I am gray.

I am medium.

In recent years, I’ve realized it’s OK to be a jack-of-all-trades, master of none. This has stopped me in the past from following dreams and admitting goals. When a medium is supposed, a want for large is tough to declare. Resentment for succumbing to this weakness is fruitless. Instead, I trust in time and place. My number has now been called, and I’m answering in slow, stuttering spurts. I am medium.

I am guilty.

A mother of three who works freelance, not in writing, but in make-up, I am responsible for tucking my passion between freshly laundered piles of clothes or at the bottom of my brushes and creams. I have let others’ feelings sway me. I have spent years telling myself it wasn’t meant to be, my own discourager and dissuader. I am guilty.

I am stubborn.

Now forty-two, I admit I am seeking to nab a spot on your local bookshelf. I want to be published. There, I said it. It’s taken me this long to stop writing in the backs of lost journals or pages torn from old coloring books and begin writing for all to see, or in reality, whomever grants a visit to my heart blog. I am stubborn.

I am selfish.

I want. I need. I love. I write. I sit down blank, empty, and somehow, it comes. Tentatively, I’m getting to know my muse; a trigger from the day before . . . a conversation, an event . . . maybe a memory from long ago, sometimes an emotion from something, somewhere. Other times simply a word or an outcome my imagination has altered, realities morphed into metaphors. Whatever it is, it feeds me, and I set the table, an eager, welcoming host.

Delaying chores, responsibilities and obligations, I write. In my defense, I sincerely believe it will be but an hour. Most always, it is more than a few. I am selfish.

I will be silver.

I have found, that with any luck, elbow grease, and a little polish, I begin to sport spots of shine. As with most things, purpose, persistence, and practice prosper and with nourishment, they grow. I’ve grazed on knowledge with which only the tenacious and committed are blessed. Gray is a version of silver. I will be silver.

A little bit about Hazy 

Alana Agerbo writes out of Vancouver, Canada. She began her blog in March 2012 in an attempt to pin the words skittering through her mind, and it has inspired her to write on an almost daily basis. She does have a dusty old manuscript lying in drawer, complete with more than a few letters of rejection, but is hopeful to see her work on a shelf one day, not a speck of dust to be found. Alana has had some works published on Ezine.com.  

She blogs here and here, tweets here and is on Facebook, just like the rest of the world.

A Writing Gift to Myself

Suwanee River – Florida’s only whitewater

By Patricia Zick @PCZick

In the past few weeks, I resurrected the first draft of a novel I began in 2006 and then left when I accepted a job with the state in Tallahassee, Florida, in 2007. It’s tentatively titled Safe Harbor. The protagonist, Emily Booth, and the antagonist, Julia Curry, are names from another novel I started thirteen years ago, but forgot about until I started working on Safe Harbor. I thought I’d taken most of the stuff from the older work, The Learning Curve, and melded into Safe Harbor.

But all last week, scenes kept popping into my mind about a house on the Suwannee River where an artist comes to live and soon enough is embroiled in the town politics when he starts teaching art at the local high school. I remember spending many lovely afternoons sitting on the banks of the Suwannee River writing scenes for the novel. Then as happens, life intervened and the novel was put aside . . .until this week. I wasn’t even certain if a manuscript existed from that first draft or if I had a word processing program that could read it. I wrote most of it in 2000 on an old Mac computer. Yesterday, I begin searching and on the external hard drive, attached to a newer but still old Mac that I keep around for its graphic capabilities, I found twenty chapters and 27,000 words in a file titled The Learning Curve. My new PC with Word 2010 opened the file with lots of silly little marks, but in between those funny squiggles lay the text.

Today I glanced through the pages, and there were the scenes I’d been thinking of this week. My writing is a little immature – particularly with the dialogue – but it’s a still a workable manuscript waiting for my return.

I consider it a wonderful gift. It’s ironic that now I write in Pittsburgh, the home of Stephen Foster who penned the song that made the Suwannee River a known quantity in the world. Stephen Foster never saw the river he made famous, but I’ve visited many times and crossed it even more times in my travels throughout north Florida. I’ve swam in its waters and paddled down its flow that leads to the Gulf of Mexico and I’ve sat on its high banks and breathed in the beauty of my beloved north Florida.

Here’s an excerpt, I particularly like, and which I discovered needed very little editing before I felt it ready to share. It’s also an excerpt without dialogue. How wonderful to see how much I’ve learned as a writer throughout the years.

I present to you the readers of my blog, the first ever reveal of The Learning Curve:

Most folks imagine the Atlantic Ocean when they think about Florida’s sandy beaches. However, except for a song by Stephen Foster, very few know that the Suwannee River, which flows from the Okefenokkee Swamp in Georgia down to the Gulf of Mexico in north Florida, boasts some of the sandiest beaches anywhere. From the high sloping hills down to the beaches caressing the wide expanse of river, the shores of the Suwannee contain some of the finest sand in the state.

Paul looked out at the sparkling river and the bare branches of the cypress trees hugging the shore. The house sat on a bend in the river, so in either direction he looked, the river disappeared around a bend. To the south lay the Gulf of Mexico and to the north lay much of the same as the river traversed through secluded rural Florida, an undiscovered jewel in this sunshine state. He sat on the porch and remembered all the times he tried to paint this scene from memory. He hadn’t been able to do it, not even from a photograph.

He moved to his truck as if propelled by some outside force. He pulled out his case of paints, canvas, and easel. Without stopping, he moved to the yard that sat on a high bluff above the river and began to set up his equipment. He thought of nothing but capturing the essence of what lay before him. He wanted to preserve the sparkles of the winter sun as it began its slow descent over the river. He wanted to capture the dullness of trees, which in a few short months would overpower everything around it, even the river. He felt the current of life flowing through his veins and the power of nature attacking his hands. This moment was why he had come, and he knew he couldn’t leave it for so long ever again. He painted until the sun began to dip behind the trees on the western bank of the Suwannee and gave its last gasps on the water.

P.C. Zick books set in Florida

Florida’s sea turtles saved from oil spill in Trails in the Sand

wild and crazy world of Florida politics in Tortoise Stew

Author Wednesday – Chantel Rhondeau

Welcome to Author Wednesday on Writing Whims. Today, Chantel Rhondeau stops by to talk about her newly released romantic mystery/suspense novel Crime & Passion.

Welcome to Writing Whims today, Chantel. I love both the title and cover of your book. Both definitely convey your genre. I’m always curious about author voice – I believe it’s one of the most difficult things to find. When did you first discover your voice as a writer?

I think finding your writing voice is actually one of the tougher aspects. I really wanted to be a fantasy author, and tried several failed attempts to make that work. I’ve always loved reading mysteries, and no matter what genre I read, I love a little taste of romance. When I read my first romantic suspense, I was hooked and knew my genre. After that, I had no trouble with my voice.

That’s great that you’ve found it and know that it’s what you want to do. What messages or themes do you try to convey to your readers?

The themes of my book seem to creep up on me. Always & Forever is about an abused woman running from a crazed stalker. However, it ultimately became a story about the aftermath of abuse and her rebuilding her life. Crime & Passion is essentially a murder mystery, but the subject of child abuse is important to the story line. I’m not trying to be preachy or force a message on my readers, but it seems the subjects most dear to my heart find their way into my writing.

Do you have a favorite character that you created? Who is it and why is it your favorite?

Madeline Scott from Crime & Passion is my favorite. She’s tough and sassy. She doesn’t back down from a fight and her sarcastic wit had me and my critique partners frequently laughing.

What’s the best thing said about one of your books by a reviewer?

I love it when they say my characters are compelling and the book is a page-turner. This is exactly what I strive to create.

What is the message conveyed in your book?

Beyond my anti-abuse themes, I love the idea that love heals all. I like flawed characters who have to face their past in order to embrace their future.

What is the best thing someone could say about this book?

I love hearing, “I didn’t know who the killer was until the end. I suspected one character, but you convinced me it was someone else.” To me, that’s the perfect mystery, and the kind I like to read.

What type of research did you do in the writing for Crime & Passion?

I had to do a lot of research about court proceedings and police procedures to make things realistic.

Who or what is the antagonist in your book? Did you enjoy creating this character?

This book included more than one. I loved them all. It was fun exploring their motives. One of the “bad guys” is my second-favorite character in the book.

What else do you want readers to know about Crime & Passion?

I’ve talked a lot about the mystery aspect, which was fun, but the romance between Madeline and Donovan is central to the plot. I had a lot of fun exploring their relationship and watching as they fell in love. I hope you do, too.

I’m so glad you stopped by today, Chantel. I wish you abundant book sales and success in all you do.

About Chantel Rhondeau – Chantel once thought a great mystery or fantasy book with strong romantic themes was the highest level of reading bliss. After reading her first romantic suspense novel, she never looked back. Before long, the need to create her own stories took over. She spends her daytime in the clinical profession of medical transcriptionist, but her passion is in the blissful hours she spends with her characters in the evenings.

Chantel lives in the western United States. When she isn’t writing, she loves playing cards with her family and snuggling with her lazy kitties.

Read the first three chapters at Chantel’s blog: http://www.chantelrhondeau.com/2013/03/crime-passion-romantic-suspense-and.html

Connect with Chantel

Website: http://www.chantelrhondeau.com

Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Chantel-Rhondeau/e/B008ZSM1KQ/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_pop_1

Twitter http://twitter.com/ChantelRhondeau

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ChantelRhondeau

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6444354.Chantel_Rhondeau

Email: ChantelRhondeau@gmail.com

Buy the book

Amazon Kindle: http://amzn.to/Z24vsP

Amazon Paperback in Createspace Store: http://bit.ly/ZJDjOp

Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/Ys0lHs

KOBO: http://bit.ly/Y8qWNB

All Romance eBooks: http://bit.ly/YnS2iX

Add it on Goodreads: http://bit.ly/14ZgyHW