To Jump Ahead or Not Jump Ahead?

Camp NaNoWriMo begins tomorrow and I'll be working on the fourth installment in the Crystal O'Mally mystery series. However, I'm still writing the third book, so I'll be working on two books at the same time. Part of me thinks that isn't such a good idea, because one book is suppose to pave the way for the next book. Do you think it's a good idea to 'jump ahead' like that? Or should I take it one book at a time?

100, Wow!

Wow! Took a long time, but I've finally reached one hundred posts on this blog! It hasn't been easy, there were times I wasn't sure what to write about. And I'm sure there will be more times when I won't know what to write about. However, I'll do my best to keep my readers updated and blog about stuff. What do you do when you want to blog and yet don't know what the topic should cover? Do you ponder and ponder and ponder some more? Any suggestions on how to get past 'bloggers' block?

How Do You Like Them?

When you're first writing your book, do you already have the cover design picked out in your mind? Or does the idea of the design come to you while you're writing? I know illustrators usually design the cover, but it's fun to get a general idea of what you want before the illustrator sends you a design. Something I've learned is that your cover is an important marketing tool. If someone is walking through a bookstore and they see your book on the shelf and the cover grabs their interest, they'll take the book off the shelf and read the synopsis on the back. And if the synopsis catches their fancy, then it's to the check-out line with your book.

I know some people like their cover designs to 'pop' (be bright and vibrant) while others prefer their designs to be darker in color to add to the mood of the book. I've seen some designs wrap all the way around the book, to where it stretched from the front of the book to the back where the synopsis is. However, some books limit their designs to just the front of the book. How do you prefer your book designs? Do you like them to wrap around the book or just stick to the front? Also, what's your preference for cover designs? Do you like them to pop or darker in color? 

Camp NaNoWriMo 2014

Happy First Day of Spring, folks! Thankfully the sun's shining, making it feel more like spring time. With the new weather can bring new inspiration and new writing opportunities. Here's a writing opportunity that's proven to be most interesting, and helpful to me when it comes to writing my novels, it's called Camp NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) It's a writing challenge where your goal is to write a novel composed of 50,000 words (or more) in one month. Those hosting Camp NaNoWriMo are having these 'camps' in April and then again in July. It's lots of fun and it helps to give you an incentive to reach a writing goal each and every day. I'll be doing Camp NaNoWriMo and keeping you all updated on how the novel is going. Here's a link if you're interested in signing up. https://campnanowrimo.org/sign_in 

Getting outside your usual writing zone

We all have different genres that we like to write. Such as non-fiction, historical fiction, romance, and so on and so forth. But what if you wanted to take a break from writing your usual genre and try something new? For example, your usual genre is mysteries and you want to try your hand at writing picture books. How hard do you think it would be to make the transfer? I know my two genres are mystery and historical fiction. I'm currently branching out and trying something along the lines of a romantic comedy. It isn't easy, because I'm not weaving clues or historical accuracy into the storyline. But it's a challenge that can help broaden what I write. What was it like when you stepped out of your usual writing zone to try something new? Was it frustrating to the point of wanting to make you give up? Or did it push you to see if you could do it?

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

May the raindrops fall lightly on your brow.
May the soft winds freshen your spirit.
May the sunshine brighten your heart
May the burdens of the day rest lightly upon you.
And may God enfold you in the mantle of His love.
                                                                       
                                                                             -An Irish Blessing

Fly or Think? How do you write?

I attended an authors panel a few weeks ago and one of the questions an audience member asked was, "How do you write? Do you write by the fly or do you sit and think?" Even though I wasn't on the panel, I so wanted to answer that question! And now, in a way, I can answer it. It depends on what genre of fiction I'm writing. If I'm writing something like a modern day mystery novel, then I write by the fly. I don't really have to do in depth research and I can write what comes to mind. However, if I'm working on an historical fiction novel, even if it has a mystery thread weaving through it, I have to really think about what I'm going to write. There's so much research involved and I have to make sure the character's dialogue is in accordance with the time period he/she is living in. Even though it can be a challenge to sit and think about what I have to write, versus just sitting down and writing without having to pause and ponder, I like the challenge of doing it either way. So how about you? How do you like to write and why? Does it help keep your creative juices flowing?

Hallee Bridgeman’s Interview

All right, here it is! My interview with Ms. Bridgeman.

1)      Where did the ideas for the Anthology come from?

I only had an idea of a book about a young woman who had to work two jobs to help support her younger sisters.  It wasn’t until I actually started writing that the stories themselves emerged.

2)      Why did you choose stones like a sapphire, emerald, or even a ruby as titles for your novels?

I intentionally sought out the stones that matched the lead character’s eyes.  For instance, Robin, in Sapphire Ice, has bright blue eyes; Maxine, in Emerald Fire, has vivid green eyes; and Sarah, in Topaz Heat, has light-brown eyes. The men in their lives each gave them some form of jewelry that “matched their eyes”.

When I wrote Greater Than Rubies, it was about Robin’s marriage to Tony.  Because I’d already titled a book from her eye color, I went ahead and titled it after the Bible verse, Proverbs 31:10: Who can find a virtuous woman? For her worth is far greater than rubies.  I worked a ruby necklace into the storyline so that I would have a reason to title it that way.

3)      After reading your jewel anthology, I’m guessing you like your leading men to be tall and have Italian accents or be former football players? Have you ever had a leading man that was under six feet tall? Didn’t play football? Or didn’t have a European accent?

Actually, Tony is the only character I’ve ever written who has an Italian accent.  Barry is an ex-football player who is huge by anyone’s standards, but Derrick is short, under 6 feet (or right at it) and has what used to be a South Boston accent that was perfected over the course of hours with a personal trainer to remove the accent.

In A Melody for James, James is a southern boy from Atlanta, Georgia.  In An Aria for Nick, Nick is a Special Forces soldier turned secret agent from southern Georgia.  In A Carol for Kent, Bobby Kent is a Virginia horse farm boy turned country music sensation. None of those men are football players or Italian.

From my perspective of being a woman who is 5’11”, with the shortest man in my family being 6’4”, any man who is under 6 feet tall is short to me.  It’s likely that if all of my leading men aren’t over 6 feet, they’re going to be right at it.

4)      All three of your leading ladies have different personalities. Robin’s independent and, Maxine’s feisty, and Sarah’s stubborn How did you manage to not get their personalities mixed up?  

My characters are real in my head.  I can hear them, see them, know them.  They’re completely different.  I don’t just plug a new name into “female lead” and have everything else be the same.

In a series of books I wrote about triplet brothers, I worried that their characters wouldn’t be distinguishable from one another because they had kind of similar personalities and were raised in the same environment.  However, the end results were three completely different men.  I was pleased.

5)       You write romance novels with realistic situations. The characters go through situations and experience emotions that a real person would go through in a lifetime. Why’d you choose that particular genre of romance?

I have always written “real” characters.  I believe that is a hole in the Christian fiction market.  It is certainly something that fans of my writing say – that it’s hard to find real characters in real situations. I didn’t “set out” to write that way – it’s just the way I write.  I do believe that the Holy Spirit is leading my writing, and that I write what He wants how He wants it.  If a conversation is likely not to happen in real life, I probably won’t write it.  I like my characters to react the way a real person would – good or bad.  And, my characters are far from perfect – they react badly often.  It’s how they’re redeemed in the end that makes it realistic and inspirational.

6)      Who was your favorite/least favorite character to write about and why?

I did not like Sarah in Topaz Heat so much that I stopped writing the book, wiped everything clean, and started again.  The end result was the exact same character.  I apparently had no control over her. Nick Williams in An Aria for Nick is, by far, my absolute favorite character I’ve ever written. I have always loved the “tortured hero” character anyway.  Added to that, my father and husband are both Special Forces soldiers, and I pulled from their personalities to weave together the traits of Nick Williams.  He was a joy to get to know.

7)      Anything new to look forward to from you in the near future?

I will be releasing A Carol for Kent, book 3 in the Song of Suspense Series, in April.  Right after that release, I will start releasing a 7-part serial novella series about female spies in World War II called the Virtues and Valor series.

 Thank you for taking the time to let me interview you, Ms. Hallee. By the way, want to know something else about Ms. Bridgeman? She doesn't just write fiction. No, she writes cookbooks as well. By the way, don't the titles look familiar? 

      

Here's a link to Ms. Bridgeman's website. Be sure to check it out and check out a couple of the other books she's written. http://www.bridgemanfamily.com/hallee/love-is/

Update

I know I said I'd have Hallee Bridgeman's interview posted shortly, and it's taken longer than anticipated. Sorry about that. A friend of mine passed away a week and a half ago, and her passing threw me for a loop, so to speak. She was a wonderful friend, gentle but firm, and always had a smile on her face. It was hard not to pass by her without stopping to say hello, she had such a friendly personality. As mentioned in a previous post, I'd like to honor her in one of my books. Not sure which one, but I'll know which one when I start writing it. Thank you for your patience and I'll have Ms. Bridgeman's interview posted as soon as I can.

Suggestions?

When a friend passes away and you want to honor him/her in your book, how do you go about doing it? Do you create a character after him/her? Dedicate the book to that person? A friend of mine recently passed away and I'd like to honor her in one of my books. What are some of the ways I can go about doing it without seeming disrespectful to the family? Should I create a character after her? Or find some other way to honor her memory?