Where Did I Put My Tiara

2007-02-16T06:02:00.000-07:00

Hi gang!

The image posted above is my new foreign bookcover from German publishing giant, Knaur. For more information about what the title means, you can check out the books page on my website. This is more or less a blog-by, but I wanted to let you all know about a contest I'm running.

Most of the German translations of American romance novels use recycled covers from older American books. I have a feeling based on the pose and art used for the new "Rescuer of my Heart" version of The Jewel and the Sword, that this is such a case.

But whose book did this cover originally bless? That's the contest!

The first reader to swing by my website and use my contact for to tell me the name of the book and author for whom this cover was originally crafted will win a copy of The Jewel and the Sword (American version). So hit those keeper-shelves, search those sharp-as-a-tack memories and let me know if you've seen this cover before! Enquiring minds want to know! Mine!

Permission to forward this post is granted and encouraged... the more the merrier (and the better my chances of gaining this little bit of trivia for my own peace of mind.)

Hugs and more hugs,
Marjorie

Getting down to basics

2007-02-02T08:54:00.000-07:00

I've been a very bad girl. I haven't been writing like I promised myself I would for the new year. I'm supposed to be writing at least 1000 words every day. To make up for lost time, I'll need to put in about 28,000 words before *looking at watch* lunch.

I have been working hard. But I haven't been working smart. I need to learn how to work smart. How do I post to various lists, complete interviews, promote my various titles, complete my edits, blog (I blog here sporatically and have recently signed on to Unusual Historicals http://unusualhistoricals.blogspot.com to post every month on the 13th) and remember what my children look like?

I don't get it. Twice in the last week the topic of 'balance' has come up. Balance? What balance? You mean there's someone out there who actually does this right? They have time for their family, job and writing? Oh, I get it. We're talking about those who have so many books in print that they've quit the day job and write full time. Sure, I could do that. Set a schedule and when I'm writing, pretend I'm not home. Hmmm... tried that. I didn't have a job outside of writing for almost 2 years... or was it 3? Anyway, even when I closed the office door, I could still hear my daughter's arguing, my husband still rapped on the door to ask where his keys might be, et cetera et cetera. So unless I actually leave the house, find myself a table at the library or park my bootie under a tree at the park, working for eight hours uninterrupted at home is a pipe dream.

And just how did those successful stay-at-home-writers get to be so successful. They must've found that magic-balance-feather at some point before then.

I'm still looking for it, personally. Someday, I'll stick my Dumbo ears out and fly away. In the meantime, I shall endeavor to be more organized with my time and my responsibilities. Right now, I'm off to do laundry.

While I'm climbing Mt. Laundry, how about spilling your secrets for balance. Whether you're a writer or a waitress, working moms fess up: How do you do it all?

Mountain Climbing for the Holidays

2006-12-02T08:12:00.000-07:00

Hello again :)

The Flyer is done and I get to concentrate on the holidays. My kitchen has been in a barely clean holding pattern for two weeks, so this morning I am going to clean it to sparkling, clean the dining room and living room etc, decorate for Christmas and put up the tree. Then, I'm going to do Grocery Shopping... which I haven't done in six months. It's been a trip to the store for necessities and one or two meals every week and of course, lots of fast food. No more. Today, I stock the pantry and the fridge like a bad boy. Then, I'm going to do laundry... I'll need some of those funky shoes and the claspy things the mountain climbers where, of course. Mt. Laundry has made it to biblical proportions. Wish me luck.

I'm notorious for waiting until the last minute to shop for gifts. I prolly won't go for at least another two weeks. Wish me luck there, too.

Hugs,

Marjorie

New Movie Every Writer Will Adore

2006-10-16T21:38:00.000-06:00

I wish I knew the title, but the new Will Farrell movie is one I will NOT miss.

This poor guy is walking through his normal, everyday existence when out of the blue he begins to hearing voices. Well, one voice. That of a woman who is basically narrating his life.

He learns that she is a very popular fiction author and slowly discovers two things...

She is writing his life.

She is trying to KILL him!

I can't wait to see this flick, and I'm not a movie goer, at all.

Why? Because it reminds me of my own writing life. My characters feel like real people to me. I don't take it to the same extreme that some writers do, that is: believing they are my babies and bad-editor better not screw with my artistic prose...

But they are real to me and I adore all of them like family.

For instance, when I was writing The Jewel and the Sword against a severe self-imposed deadline, I wrote all day, everyday, for five days. I needed to write roughly 15 chapters while my husband was out of town on vacation. So, I showered once, when I offended myself, and forgot to pick up my daughter from school. Err... Twice.

Still, on day four of this marathon from hell, someone started screaming at me. "Why are you writing Devlin's story? Everyone knows he is the boring one. I'm better looking, and I'm far more fun than that old whanker! Create a love for me, love."

He wouldn't shut up! I told him he would get his own story, something I hadn't decided before that. But in the end, I had to stop writing The Jewel and the Sword and start writing My Lady's Will right then and there. Instead of writing 15 chapters, I wrote 18 chapters. Once I'd completed the partial for his story, Will shut up long enough for me to finish the current project, which sold three month's later to Medallion Press. Yay.

Do characters talk to authors? Heck yea. This spin on author's interfereing in their characters' lives' should be a hilarious spin on things!

Hugs,

Marjorie

Romance...run for your lives!

2006-10-14T20:53:00.000-06:00

What is so terrible about romance novels? What is so terrible about romance in general?

I ask because of recent attacks on romance in public forums. Take Fred Head, for instance. He is a dem running for Comptroller down Texas way. His republican opponant once wrote a romance novel. Susan Combs acheived something back in 1990 that most of us only dream about. She published a category length novellette/novel for the now defunct Kismet line of books. Back in 1990, the romantica/erotic romance boom hadn't hit, so her book is a mainstream sensual romance. According to Mr. Head, that makes her book porno.

He says she is out of touch with the Christian values of Texas. hmm... I'm a christian. I write romance. I've even been known to have sex upon occasion. Ask my children. Don't ask my husband... he'll deny it based soley upon my writing schedule. Still, I don't see Mr. Head's point that Susan can't be christian and write romance novels. Keep in mind that she isn't writing anymore, anyway.

Some argue that her stand on an Abstinence Only sex-ed program while she wrote a *gasp* sex book almost twenty years ago makes her a hypocrit. Not so... just because she wrote a book a romance novel doesn't mean she advocates high school sex parties, or banging behind the gym.

Enough of that. Let's move on to offending ads in the subway.

The Greater Washington Initiative has decided that Washington DC is far too advanced intellectually for romance novels. They read Plato while only 'average' people read romance novels. Well, la-dee-da... The controversy can be read in more detail on SmartBitchesTrashyBooks.com . Mojocastle Press even made it into an article on the issue in the New York Times when the reporter quoted COO and head-editor Stephanie Kelsey's letter to the offending organization. Way to go, Stef.

And finally... What's up with some of the writers over at Nanowrimo? http://www.nanowrimo.org . See, someone over that way has decided that they want to take the easy way out of the annual writing challenge this year. The goal; write a 50K word novel in one month. This person's out? Write a romance novel, because they are so easy. And if she ends up with something HALF WAY DECENT, she'll even publish it. As if it were that easy. Any half-way decent romance will be published right? Of course, she doesn't have any idea what a romance novel is, or how to write one. She has explained that her heroine will have three possible love interests, but the real hero won't show up until half-way through the book... huh? What is this? The Dating Game or a romance novel?

In an entirely different thread, another writers says she's writing a fluff peice just to entertain a few friends, but since it's fun, she'll continue writing it for nano. Of course, she finds it silly on the whole and is afraid she is prostituting her artistic gift. Her words, not mine.

While I was composing a reply in which I pointed out that she must not have much of a gift if she's asking for help and support from the very writers she had just referred to as literary whores, SHE pulled the post, leaving out all of her insulting comments. I checked her profile. She's only 18 years old, so I pulled my scathing reply as well. But man... that irks the hell outta me.

What so you all?

The Case of the Missing Keys... or the 17K dollar paperweight

2006-09-26T17:41:00.000-06:00

My husband bought his dream truck a few years ago. A new-to-us F250 4x4 extended cab long-bed pickup. Forest Green with plush grey interior, trailer package, bed liner. The works.

A few weeks ago, his puppy, the little mastiff who weighs in at only 100 lbs so far, ate the keychain. It used to be one of those automatic remote door unlocker things, but now, it's just peices of one of those automatic door unlocker things. Well, that is, until we lost the keys a few days ago.

We don't drive the truck all the time. Not even close to every day. Just when we need to haul a horse or a boat or a camp trailer. You get the picture. Our front yard looks like a redneck's wet dream. Anyway, he asks me to leave the keys out for him the other night so he can go scout deer when he gets home from work. This is his way of saying, "Honey, I have no idea where I put the truck keys the last time I drove my must-have-dream-machine, can you find them for me."

The answer to that unspoken question, I learned three hours later, was, "No. I can't find them for you."

Gone. Gone. Gone.

We've finally given up. This morning, I called my favorite locksmith. (What? Doesn't everyone have a favorite locksmith?) He's out of commission for two weeks while his van, which is also his office on wheels and workshop, is in the shop. He says my truck more than likely has a transponder key thing feature or whatever, and I should call the Ford dealership. They could cut and program a key for less than he could have anyway.

Ford dealership quotes me prices on the key, the programming, the labor... then tells me the truck has to BE there when they do it. Okay... did they not hear me when I said I HAVE NO KEYS!

Oh, they heard me. They gave me the number for a tow truck service. Just so happened to be my FAVORITE tow truck service, too. (Don't say it. I know.)

Another 65 bucks for a local tow, on top of the key charges, oh--and the extra key they'll make for me that will ONLY unlock the steering wheel so the truck CAN be towed to the service center. How lovely of them.

I call my husband and break the news.

"It's not a transponder key."

"Yes it is dear. They said if the key has a black plastic tip on it, it's a transponder key."

"No. It's not. I promise."

"Fine. I'll call them back and have them look up the damn make and model."

So... the good news is, it's not a transponder key. (I really, really hate it when he's right, by the way)

All I have to do is call the dealership, give them my VIN (a long string of numbers and letters that looks like alphebet soup on crack) and they can give me the code my second favorite locksmith needs to cut the new non-transponderish keys.

"What year is the truck?"

"1996."

"Oh, man. I can try, but we can't always get that year. See, our records go back to 97."

What?... you just delete the VIN numbers from the universe after 10 years? No, I only thought that. I'm a polite consumer.

"I see... can you check."

"Sure.......... nope we can't give you a code. There's no record."

"What do I do now?"

"How about a new ignition. I can set that up for you..."

Click. I then called Ford Motor Company who thought this was rather odd. She told me to call a different dealer, who explained to me that the coding/VIN verification record system was actually STARTED about midway through 1996. My truck, having been manufactured in JANUARY of that year... you see where this is going, right?

So, my husband is at home waiting for the locksmith (the second favorite one) to come to our house and see if he can either rekey the ignition or do some old fashioned molding thing. Otherwise, I am the proud owner of a 17K Dollar paperweight with little matching paperweights all the way around it. You know the ones I mean... the paperweight shaped like a boat... the one shaped like a camp trailer... the one shaped like a horse trailer...

I'll keep you posted on where my darling husband is sleeping tonight when I figure that out. I hear the bed in the second paperweight from the left is kinda comfy.

Hugs,

Marjorie

Fingernails and Puttin' on Airs

2006-09-17T10:29:00.000-06:00

My mother lives in a 5th Wheel. Well, so does my father, who will celebrate marriage to my mother for hmmm... I think it'll be 40 years, next June. But I digress... the point is, they live in a camper. A few years ago, they sold everything (and I mean everything) and bought a King-cab, diesel, duelly, full length F350 pick up truck and a 36 (I think) foot 5th Wheel with three slide-out expander things. It's a very nice 5th wheel, but when the sun sets on the hitch every night, it's still a camper. They spend their days traveling the country... dad behind the wheel and mother snapping pictures with her digital camera. It's a life choice, and personally, I always knew they were hippies. Free spirits. Maybe a little nutz, but that's okay because they've certainly earned it.

Point number 2. I recently started wearing manicured nails again. I haven't worried about my nails pretty much since I started writing full time because I can't type on my laptop with long nails. But my laptop keyboard is kaput, so I have to use an external keyboard, and I can wear nails again. I like to wear nails because they make me feel a little glamourous. I don't wear the active square length. Nope, I go for the realllly loooong glamour tips that curve over, then cut them down to the perfect length for me. Sexy and strong... that's my motto.

It's all about the glamour.

Now to my point. Last night I stopped by my friend Judy's birthday party for about an hour. It was party night at her friend's house. He is an underground miner (you know, like Loretta Lynn's daddy), and he's a bachelor. I wasn't expecting a gorgeous home and a gormet feast. That'll learn me to stereotype, right? So, here I am, looking glamourous with my new nails and my hair 'just so', while Judy and I are talking with a couple of her other friends I hadn't met before when our host lays out a few platters of appetizers. Deviled Eggs (can't do a party without them) and olives, of course. Then a bowl of marinated shrimp wrapped with bacon slices with a Chile dipping sauce. My daughter had about 20 of them. But I don't do shrimp. Then a platter with tiny little rolled Anchovies, shredded crab meat (not imitation), and steamed oysters. In the middle, a tiny black jar.

Heather opens the jar and immediately replaces the lid. "Mom?" she asks, "Why is there bait on the table?"

Yep. Caviar. I just couldn't do it. I'm sorry. I'm not a seafood kinda girl anyway, but fish eggs? So my point is, I discovered I'm not a glamour girl afterall. I'm a Tony's Pizza Roll kinda girl.

When asked why I wasn't eating any Caviar, I simply replied, "I can't. It's against the law. My mother lives in a 5th Wheel."

Thanks, Mom!

Stress and the not-so-single girl

2006-08-24T20:06:00.000-06:00

Sometimes life is a barrel of monkeys. Have you noticed?

I still have several hundred pages to edit for Dawn of Redemption. Yep, the same several hundred I had the last time I mentioned it. And I still need to finish writing one single-title manuscript while another novella length story is waiting in the wings. There simply aren't enough hours in the day most days. Today, I had everything ready for a computer dude to come to my house and help me figure out some shopping cart software I need to install for a client. Looks like I'm going to have to call The Geek Squad on this one, however. Dude was a no-show.

When I was single, I would lament being stood-up. In fact, I thought my now-husband had stood me up on our second date, when he was supposed to meet my parents. I waited and waited and waited for him on the pier (or is it peir?) where his ship was docked (he was in the Navy) but he never showed up. I drove home in tears, to the point I had to pull over twice because I couldn't drive safely. When I got home, he was in my living room laughing it up with my Dad. That was almost our LAST date, I was so upset. But I was also relieved. He hadn't stood me up afterall.

But to be stood up by a computer geek? A computer geek I was going to pay? What a waste of my valuable time! I'm not going to cry about it, although not having this shopping cart installed is really ticking me off.

Nope. No tears this time around. I have a call out to a geekette (a very cute one, at that) and hopefully, she'll be able to help me. Until then, I'm going to make a dent in the edits on my desk.

I'll cry about my missing geek in the morning when I have time.

Hugs,

Marjorie

My brain has officially liquified and is falling out of my ears

2006-08-23T18:09:00.000-06:00

I have spent the last several days sweating deadlines. Not just in my writing, but as webmistress for a new publishing company and trying to find the right kind of software to deliver the ebooks to come. So I've cgi-binning, mySQLing, and editing programming code until all hours. Don't know what any of that means? Well, join the club. Neither do I. So I'm going to outsource this part of the project. Done.

In the meantime, I'm still in review edits for Dawn of Redemption and I really need to dive into The Flyer, which I now have four weeks to write. Hopefully, by this weekend, I can not only dive in, but dive in headfirst.

I sure hope there's water in the pool.

Hugs,

Marjorie

Time to Say Goodbye

2006-08-21T20:50:00.000-06:00

Well, it's been nice. No I'm not giving up on the blog quite yet, but I am giving up my membership in the RWA. This was something that I'd considered doing late last year, but since I suffer from "Cant-say-no-itis", I agreed to take over as president of my chapter instead.

Why had I considered leaving? It wasn't because I wasn't getting a benefit. Of course I was. Friendship among the top of the list. You can't complain to your spouse if one of your characters is misbehaving, right? Friends and family don't get it. Fellow writers do. It's that simple. It was worth my hundred or so bucks per year to have that kind of companionship.

I considered leaving because of TIME, and time alone. My trips to the monthly meetings were a full day adventure. I live over 100 miles from the meeting place. It was expensive, esp. with gas these days. So I admit that I wanted to leave almost a year ago.

But I didn't. I should have, but I didn't. I was the Pres. for a few months, then I received a lecture from my doctor, and the pathologist, about how 'can't-say-no-itis' is a real condition -- also known as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. I was running a fever for more than six months. No energy. Depressed. Didn't care about anything... at least not enough to make myself to my job. So, out of fairness to the chapter, I resigned as President. Broke my heart, but it had to be done. They needed someone to really rally the troops, and they got that in the form of the VP, Phyllis Campbell - http://www.phyllismariecampbell.com who has now taken over. The entire board is fabu!

However, that wasn't my only issue. I also have a daughter who decided to rob me blind right around the time I went to RT in Daytona. I thought I'd simply lost my mind and was incapable of balancing a checkbook, had to borrow over a grand to go on the trip I'd booked, and take a grand advance from my very part time gig at a cell phone store (which took two months to earn back -- read: no paycheck for two months). I just deleted the gorry details, but suffice it to say, I haven't a lot of pocket cash these days.

So I just received word from my local chapter that I'm on the outs, officially. I can't attend meetings and I'm not going to be in the yahoo groups anymore. Done. Finis.

I need to find a good spin here. I'm a writer. I write. I have lots of friends on email and in lists who commiserate that fact. I now have that expensive Saturday once per month to write!

And write I shall.

Hugs,

Marjorie

Questions for the Cosmos

2006-08-16T00:27:00.000-06:00

I should have been writing, but since I broke through a difficult scene earlier today, I decided to take the evening off and watch a movie with my husband. He wanted to watch the new King Kong with Jack Black, so yours truly made a trip to Blockbuster.

Natch, the husband was asleep before they even found Kong on the island, but that's okay. I enjoyed the movie anyway. He'd already seen it, which is how he knew I'd like it.

A beautiful girl falls in love with an ape, and vice versa. What's not to like?

Which brings me to the question... what is it about off the wall relationships that is so fascinating? I mean, it didn't really work out too well for poor old Kong. In the stories we love to read (and some of us write) our 'beasts' are generally shapeshifters (at least, I sure hope they are). But that still leaves the question of the animal influence.

Is it because animals are primal and therefore inherently innocent? Pure, if you will? A dog chews of shoes because that's what dogs do, not because they are 'bad', or they want you be barefoot when you head to Payless after they ate your last pair. (yes, that's a true story as of about three days ago, grrrr).

Or is it the taming of the beast that we're after? If a beast, a person with the heart of an animal, can learn to love on an intelligent level, with a purpose, does that somehow make them less animal and more human?

I dunno. I'm just asking.

Nobody actually reads my blog yet, so if, at some point, someone comes upon this cosmic question, feel free to give a shout. I'd love to understand it a bit better.

Oh, and for the record, my breakthrough scene was a love scene... Vampire hero, Witch heroine, complete with a bite. Breakthrough. I'm just not sure whether my beast became more human, or my witch became more beast.

We shall see on the morrow when I pick up the pen.

Hugs,

Marjorie

Mountains to scale

2006-08-14T08:37:00.000-06:00

That's mountains of laundry. Don't even get me started on the dishes! I have a cleaning lady that comes in twice a month, but I try to save the big stuff for her, and we really can't go that long without doing laundry anyway, and if we could, she sure as heck couldn't do it all in two hours. So, I got up early and started a load, then I had to work on a website for a bit. I work the dayjob today so I won't be able to clean house again until tonight at the earliest, and I still have looming deadlines.

I'll do a quick search for my superwoman cape when I get home from work. And I'll let you know if I reached the summit later. Crud... I have to shower this morning too. *sigh*

Hugs,

Marjorie

Okay, so here's the deal

2006-08-13T00:56:00.000-06:00

I'm am the WORST blogger in the history of ... well... blogging.

I'm gonna give this another try. I think my problem is, I try to hard to limit myself. I wasn't blogging inspiring or philosophical every day, so I decided to do writing tips. I ran out of time to pursue that, but in the mean time, I came up with all sorts of things I would love to chat about, but I'd changed the focus of my blog, so I couldn't.

Why not?

Cuz I couldn't, that's why LOL.

Bah.

It's my blog and I can blog if I want to... blog if I want to...

So, here I am ... giving it another shot.

I'm in deadline hell at the moment. I have just tacked on another 1000 or so words to my newest chapter of Dawn of Redemption for Champagne Books. I promised this book to my editor over a week ago, but I find myself with about three chapters to go. I defend myself with the fact that the same editor (waving to Ellen) sent my galley for my October release, My Lady's Will, for a final run through last week, as well. I tried to finish Redemption first, but had to stop writing so I could edit.

Tonight, I emailed my final changes so I'm back into Redemption. This is a very good thing. I want to have it done by the end of the week. If I can do that, then I'll have an ENTIRE month to write roughtly 315 pages on my next 20th Century Historical, also set in Australia (see The Lighthorseman). If you read The Lighthorseman, this next one is Paul's story. Cross your fingers. No contract yet, just a request to read the final product. I promised it in seven weeks, and I've burned about two of them.

It's been a pretty rough year for me, personally, but things are evening out, I'm very slowly catching up. I'm off to the post office first thing Monday morning to mail two contest prizes out... the Daytona package and my Alasdair Vampire bear... to the respective winners. Terribly sorry for the delay. It's been crazy around here.

I think that's about it.

oh... if you're looking for a fabulously wonderful ride through the old west (and believe me, you ARE), be sure to pick up Beth Ciotta's Lasso the Moon. I managed to read a whole book while waiting for doctor's appointments, reluctantly taking the family to Lagoon (its an amusement park), and getting my car serviced. It's fabulous!!

OHOHOH! I almost forgot... Dawn of Love is now available at http://www.champagnebooks.com YAY!!!!

Until next time,

Marjorie -- who can't decide if she should sleep, or shower... decisions, decisions.

No Backstory in Chapter One

2006-04-22T19:52:00.000-06:00

*big huge sigh*

I suppose it had to happen. Something I AGREE with. But in my defense, I wouldn't characterize this as a schmule, or even a rule. It's simply good technique.

When we write a novel, we have a finite number of pages to tell the story at hand. What happens to the characters before the novel starts might be paramount to their character, their ideas and behaviors, their motivations, and it may even have something to do with the actual story as it happens now. How you deliver that information, the information of the past, is the key. Telling the events of the past as 'real time' in the current novel proper isn't going to cut it.

As they say in Hollywood: Cut to the chase, folks.

There are several ways to deliver backstory pertinent to the current novel. Prologue, Weaving, and Flashbacks.

The Prologue

This is an unnumbered chapter set before the beginning of the book. It should be entertaining and pertinent to the book. Something in the prologue should lead to events in the book, build characterization, or pose a question that will be answered later. I have prologues in both The Jewel and the Sword and The Lighthorseman, but I don't have them in either Starla Child's Firelight nor Raleigh Kincaid's Tapestry of Wonders.

Slight side rant: Schmule: Never have a prologue - Readers skip them and editors hate them.

Response: Bite me.

Sorry, I digress. The second manner in which to deliver your backstory is the Weaving Technique. Throughout the course of the novel, you drop hints that something powerful happened in the distant or not-so-distant past that is guiding the characters decision-making process and actions. This is a wonderful technique because it builds the level of drama and suspense and keeps the reader turning the pages. I'm using this in The Flyer, the sequel to The Lighthorseman, which, thus far, has no prologue.

The final technique involves the Flashback. I've heard folks say they hate them. I have no opinion other than to say that I have used them in at least one book, Dawn of Love, slated to come out later this year. In fact, the flashbacks in this novel could be a novel of their own. It's the story of my Vampire hero's former life, and it has a beginning, a middle, and an end. But this wasn't "his story". His story involves the current heroine, his happily-ever-after comes much later, and his former story has much to do with it. Flashbacks were the best way to go about it in this case.

Ultimately, the decision of how to involve the characters' pasts is up to you. If the past has an impact on the present, we must deliver that information. Unfortunately, the first few chapters isn't the place to do it. In my opinion, a good novel will center on the present, then bring in the motivations of the past later on.

You all know I don't believe in schmules. But I do believe in good, solid writing.

Hugs,

Marjorie

Don't Use A Lot of Descriptions

2006-04-16T19:55:00.000-06:00

What?

This is a schmule I've heard occasionally and when I put out a call for so-called rules among my writer friends, this one caught my attention.

The general concept is that a lot of description bores the reader. Readers skip the descriptions and look for action and dialogue. Excuse me? If I spend my hard-earned money on a book, I'm reading every single word of it. If the story is boring or badly written, I simply put the book down and don't pick it up again. But I don't skip passages to get to the good stuff. That's just silly.

I suppose if the schmule were modified a little, it could have some merit. For instance: Don't include a lot of boring, insignificant descriptions in your book. Of course, we could just as easily say, "Don't include a lot of boring, insignificant dialogue in your book," or, "Don't include a lot of boring, insignificant action in your book," as well, so what would be the point?

Fact is, if the words we write are written well, people will read them. How can one create a whole world between the covers if we don't use description? What kind of descriptions is this schmule talking about? I'll tell you what kind: The boring kind.

The snow was white. Oooookay. We get it.

The snow glistened with tiny, sparking diamonds beneath the warmth of a mid-morning sun.

The snow shimmered, creating a blinding apocalypse undaunted by the warmth of a mid-morning sun.

Both of the sentences above are pure description. They both create a different idea of what the sun means. In the first, our heroine might be strolling along a country pathway, deep in thought, anticipating a bright future with her man. The second changes the face of the snow from a gorgeous, crisp winter day to a monster intent upon destruction. Why? Who knows. That's up to you. Perhaps the POV character has been in a plane crash in the Alps. Maybe the heroine is snowed in with the villian and the snow is a barrier keeping her from saving herself, or the hero from saving her.

Point is, we need description to offset and compliment our action and our dialogue. People only talk when they have something to say. If the heroine in the first example is alone, she's isn't going to say, "Gosh, the snow is glistening with tiny, sparking diamonds beneath the warmth of the mid-morning sun." At least, she's not going to say it aloud unless her hero is an orderly at the local mental hospital and she's cruisin' for a way to meet him.

I can see a conversation for the second example, thought. Bear with me:

"The snow is shimmering, Bob."

"Yeah, I know. It's creating a blinding apocalypse."

"You're right. It's completely undaunted by the warmth of the mid-morning sun."

Errr... NOT.

Description is a critical part of our novels. It creates the scenes in which our characters act and speak. It's all a balancing act. Description (the NON-boring kind) merges with dialogue and action to create the finished product.

No description? Puh-leeze!

Hugs,

Marjorie

The hero and heroine must meet in the first chapter ...

2006-03-27T12:22:00.000-07:00

Errr... says who?

If you think the only way you're going to be published is to have the hero and heroine meet in the first chapter, please raise your hand.

Put Your Hands Down!!! Honestly.

What about an enticing and fresh plot? What about a great story? What about sexual tension and all of the other things that go into writing a fantabulous romance? I'm trying to remember if my hero and heroine meet in the first chapter of either of my paperbacks and I honestly can't remember. Gonna have to look that one up. Why can't I remember? Because it really isn't that important.

The hero and heroine of your story should meet when it's time for them to meet. If that's chapter one, great. If it's chapter three great. I suppose I must explain that, at SOME point in the story, they are going to have to meet. And they are going to have to meet with enough time to fall in love. If they meet on the last page... well... you get the idea. But I'm not going to say that they have to meet by page 12, kiss by page 44, screw by chapter 4 or any of that other nonsense. These are people we're talking about. Imaginary, invented people, but people just the same. Carry them where they need to go. Let them carry you. Whatever your style, don't get bogged down in what someone tells you is a hard and fast rule to writing fiction.

And remember, if it were easy, everyone would be doing it.

Oh, and I looked it up. In The Lighthorseman, my newest release, the hero and heroine do not lay eyes on each other until Chapter Three.

Hugs,
Marjorie

Slobbering, my dog lumbered out of the room.

2006-03-22T12:30:00.000-07:00

The title of this entry is a true story. I have mastiffs, and good ol' Pistol Pete just dripped his way across my living room to promptly heave his ummm... massive self onto my sofa. If I ever get nice living room furniture, we're going to have to break him of that.

Additionally, the title of this blog is an example of one of our sinister broken rules.

Never begin a sentence with an 'ing' word, otherwise known as a gerund.

To understand this 'schmule', we must first know what a gerund is. A gerund is a verb, ending in the those three wicked little letters I N G, and used as a noun. Simple. Every website I visited had essentially the same definition.

So, take a look at the title of this blog entry. Is "slobbering" a noun? I don't think it is. The more I look at it, I can't assign it a person, place or thing definition. I suppose I could stretch it and say it's a thing, but I'm not convinced. "Slobbering" in this instance is a verb, pure a simple. It's an action. So it's not a gerund, anyway. Is this infamous rule that we can't start sentences with ING words, or gerunds?

Next point. On every website I visited (and mind you, I didn't read every word on every page), I found reference to the fact that a gerund can be the subject of a sentence.

Example: Finding a needle in a haystack would be easier than what we're trying to do.

I stole this example from the Purdue Online Writing Lab, but you can plainly see that the gerund 'finding' and 'a needle' enhance one another. "A needle" is the direct object of "finding". This sentence is grammatically correct. If its grammatically correct, then we can use it in our writing. In this particular case, the sentence is awkward and clumsy, and I would choose to write : "It would be easier to find a needle in a haystack," but that's an awkward and clumsy choice, not a grammar choice.

I'm fairly sure that many of the hits we receive in contests or from crit partners, however, refer to the first example. (Yep, Pete is still sprawled out all over my sofa.) A writer with little or no more experience than ourselves comes along and says that we can't start a sentence with a gerund (or any ing word), and they strike out the poor slobbering dog.

The fact is, you can start your sentences however you want to. You can have gerunds in your manuscript. Like everything else, use moderation and your best judgement. It really is that simple. Vary your sentence structure. Don't start EVERY sentence with a gerund.

And for heaven's sake, don't over analyze!

Peace,

Marjorie

Writing Tip #1 - Rules Schmules

2006-03-19T10:17:00.000-07:00

Writing Tip Number 1 is more of a disclaimer. Since this blog is dedicated to the process of writing, and I'll be filling the entries with my own writing style, techniques and knowledge, I want to begin with a few words about the rules of writing.

There are none.

There are rules of grammar, of course. End sentence with a period or other punctuation mark.

There are formatting rules. Set margins to one inch all the way around the page, indent paragraphs, don't use extra spaces between paragraphs. That sort of thing. I'll have a post regarding proper formatting later on.

But there are no rules for writing.

Fiction writing is a creative process that depends on many factors. To write well, one must blend the technical with the artistic. Our voice, our style, and our stories must merge into a fascinating novel that will capture the attentions of our audience. Rules, as we've come to know them, only serve to drown the all-important artistic ingredient.

So, what are these rules?

If you have no idea I'm talking about, please, please, please, do NOT read the rest of this entry. I don't want to be responsible for putting these rules into heads that aren't yet familiar with them. But, if you're like me and you've been inundated with 'the rules' since you entered the topsy-turvy world of the romance novelist... read on.

Rule #1 : You can only have two Points of View : Hero and Heroine. Maybe the Villian, but you better have a damn good reason.

Response: Bunk. Bunk. Bunk, bunk, bunk, bunk, bunk. Keep in mind I'm a "Single Title" author, so I have more words and pages to play with than a category author, so this may be a publisher's guideline for certain lines, like the Harlequin Series books. I can't speak to that, because I've never submitted anything to Harlequin, nor have I ever spoken with their editors or followed their series books. However, when speaking to the single title romance, you can have as many point-of-view characters as your story calls for! I once read a book where one short scene was in a sub-characters point-of-view, and it was the only scene in his point-of-view in the entire book. But it gave insight to that character that the author believed was needed. I was happy to read it. It entertained me as much as the rest of the book.

Rule #2 : No Passive Voice.

Response: Okay, this one isn't ALL bad. It's the "NO" that I have issues with. Certainly, the active voice in writing is more emotional, more ... well ... active. It draws the reader into the story better. But absolutely nothing is absolute. Passive voice is a part of our language, therefore, eliminating it entirely from a manuscript can weary the reader. Passive voice, used correctly, is perfectly okay ... and here's the kicker ... in moderation.

Rule #3 : Eliminate 'THAT'

Response: The problem with this rule is that it isn't even a grammar rule. Listen to how we talk to each other. We use 'that' in sentences all of the time. There is nothing wrong with it. Strunk and White, as well as Stephen King, mention in their writing books that superflous words have no place in books. Just like this blog is full of my opinions, so are their books. It's their opinion. If you agree with it, great. But the hard and fast rule regarding 'that' is one of the writer's voice. If you write a sentence that includes 'that' and it sounds good to you ... keep it. Don't let well-meaning crit partners remove them. You might be making extra work for yourself if your editor puts them back in, like mine did. (The first 'official' writing tips post will concern this very issue)

Rule #4 : "Was" is a four letter ... errr... three letter word.

Response : Was is not bad. Was is a part of the English language. Certainly, if one can find a more powerful verb to use in its place, go for it. I do. But if the sentence calls for 'WAS', don't be afraid to use it.

These are just a few of the "rules" I've come across. There are plenty more.

So, it's your turn. What are some of the rules you've found? Do you have questions concerning these rules? Opinions? Shout it out!

Peace,

Marjorie

Philosophy 101

2006-03-18T12:54:00.001-07:00

Before I post an endless list of my own writing tips, I figured I'd toss in a bit about myself. First, I'm not a snob. At least, I try not to be but the fact I feel compelled to actually tell you this leads me to believe I may have some pride issues. Don't we all? So I'll start out by saying that the tips I include on this blog are my own opinions, things I've learned over the years, things that work well for me (they may not work well for you), and given with the best of intentions at heart.

That said, this is my blog and I can say what I want. Ohhh... shades of Miss Snark! No, I'm not her.

I do encourage a bit of debate. I welcome questions and comments. No flaming, of course. That's my job. Juuust kidding.

So on the off chance anyone stops by my little internactive home on the web, those are the ground rules.

And now, we're off to the races!

Peace,
Marjorie

Philosophy 101

2006-03-18T12:54:00.000-07:00

Writing Tips ... I surrender

2006-03-17T08:32:00.000-07:00

I haven't blogged in a while. I know, I know, I'm a bad, bad blogger.

I've tried to find interesting things in my life to share with others, but I've come to a conclusion that precludes that particular blogging manuever. I am really, really boring!

I don't go anywhere or do anything terribly exciting. I rarely watch movies I can brag about. I suppose this is why I am a writer. I can create exciting (hopefully) places and people who live much more interesting lives than I do. And I've been told I'm fairly good at it.

So this blog has a new focus. Writing. I'll talk about one of the things I love most in my life. I'll pick a topic and write my little dialogue (I'll try not to write a diatribe) and open the issue for debate. Sounds like fun.

My next post will concern the use of the word "that" or other superfluous words versus writing style and telling a good story. Hopefully, this post will come later today. But I've posted once, so I may need a nap.

Peace,

Marjorie

Ahoy, Maties... arrrgh...

2006-01-01T15:37:00.000-07:00

Last week when I took my daughter to see The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, I was uber-excited to see a preview for Pirates of the Carribean, Part II. YAY! Jack Sparrow... errr... I mean CAPTAIN Jack Sparrow, is back!

The daughter and I have a movie date for July 7 and we can't wait.

But this post is about another kind of pirate... the not-so-sexy kind.

Ebooks are gaining in popularity every day. New readers are logging on and filling their handhelds with more and more fabulous books, but as with any new technology, it's only a matter of time before someone gets their grubby hands in there and tarnishes the shine.

Ebooks are different than traditional books because they are a licensed computer file, like a computer program. When a person buys an ebook from Amazon or a publisher, or the authors themselves, they are buying a license to read the book contained in the file. While it's perfectly legal to sell, share, give away or trade a paperback or a hardcover book, it is 100 percent illegal to do any of these things with an ebook.

Now, I know, if you go to ebay you'll find ebooks starting at one cent. I've seen auctions end with ebooks sales at 15 and 20 cents as the final winning bid. The author, however, gets none of this. And even if they did, it would amount to less than a dime! Nope, these sellers have purchased an ebook and are reselling the file, over and over and over again, illegally.

In fact, there are entire websites that have been set up that sell pirated copies of ebooks (and hard copy books that have been scanned into digital files). This is even worse, however, when one considers you give your credit card numbers to criminals when you buy from these sites. Seriously... if the website owners have no compunction about stealing from the publishing houses and the authors, do you think they have any qualms about stealing from you? These are generally phising sites set up to do nothing more than steal your personal information. Gads!

So the next time you're looking for a bargain on an electronic read, please consider the folks who earn their living writing books for your enjoyment. Buy only from legit websites like Fictionwise or Ebookad, or buy from the publisher's website themselves.

Captain Jack is about the sexiest pirate there is... let's keep him at the top of the mast and relegate those other pirates to Davy Jones's Locker!

Hugs,

Marjorie

The Chronicles of Narnia

2005-12-30T22:13:00.000-07:00

All I can say is, they'd BETTER make all seven movies!

I took my youngest daughter to see The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe tonight. I started crying during the opening credits and I cried until we left the theater. I've been waiting for this film since I was twelve years old. Honestly.

I first discovered Narnia when I was twelve and had a regular gig babysitting for two adorable little boys. Halfway through the summer, their mother gave me a collector box of all seven books -- you probably the know the one I'm talking about; white box, white books with amazing artwork on the cover. She gave them to me with the words, "I think you'll like these. They're great books, but a little too Christian for us." They were a Jewish family.

It took me several read throughs before I was old enough to understand what she meant, and I have forever thanked her for introducing me to the children and to Aslan.

Once I married and started my family, I continued to read the books, eventually moving on to reading them aloud to my kids. My children grew up with Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy -- not to mention Caspian, Rillian, and the gang. We went through many copies. Those first books were read to death, but I still have my tattered copy of Voyage of the Dawn Treader. Currently, we own a combined volume where the stories appear in C.S. Lewis' recommended reading order, starting with The Magician's Nephew and ending with The Last Battle. But we still read them in the original order. It's a habit I can't seem to break.

I've seen 'movies', and television adaptations, of the books before, but they have all been sadly lacking in the majesty that is Narnia. This movie FINALLY did it justice. I love that King Peter resembles the once and future King William! And Lucy couldn't have been more perfectly cast. Edmund was just rotten enough and Susan was amazing! Even the old professor was just as I'd imagined him all these years. But the kicker, the most wonderful suprise in all of the Seven Isles was Aslan... don't know about you, but I could listen to Liam Neeson all night long!

So tonight, I learned two very important things. One, I already knew (but needed a reminder) and the other was news to me.

1. I need to read the stories aloud with my youngest again. It's been too long and she was sadly lacking in her knowledge of Narnia this evening. *shaking head*

and 2. It's not as if Aslan is a TAME LION.

Hugs,

Marjorie

You thought I forgot I had a blog, right?

2005-12-28T00:40:00.000-07:00

Nah. I didn't forget. But like most of you, I'm sure, I've been busy up to my eyebrows with the holidays. This blog is so 'new' that I sometimes forget even a paragraph is better than nothing. And I suppose I'm stuck on 'profound' and I'm just not a profound kinda gal most of the time. I read other people's blogs and I find them incredibly profound.

Surprisingly, I'm posting this not only when I'm not feeling profound, but while I'm icky. I have a cold/flu-y thing. I stayed in bed most of the day, except for a rather necessary trip to the credit union and the grocery story. Of course, this is the first day I've had to write on my current works-in-progress, so naturally, I didn't write a single word. In my defense, I did open the document in my word processor. But that's as far as I got. I can't remember now what, exactly, distracted me. I think it might have been a call from my nephew letting me know he made it back to his place in the city safely. He'd come down for Christmas weekend and while it was a balmy 50 degrees on Christmas Eve and Christmas day, it started snowing like crazy about two hours before he was able to head home. I left a message on his cell phone that he was more than welcome to stay the night with us rather than drive the treacherous canyon that is our only route to civilization, but he elected to brave the infamous Highway 6.

I'm not the only one who's sick, by the way. My poor Black Lab, Dozer, has gout. I'm not exactly certain it's called Gout in animals, but that's the best way I can describe it. A couple of months ago, her front paws swelled up something awful after a weekend of bird hunting with my husband, youngest daughter and our dear friend Mike who visits annually from California. Her poor feet were so swollen, they'd more than doubled in size. She snapped and cried when I tried to examine them. At first, it was only one paw and we were certain she'd picked up a thorn or something. We were worried about blood poisoning, so even though it was a Sunday, we called our vet (the incredible Dr. Boyd Thayn) at home and he agreed to meet us at his animal hospital. A few anti-inflammatories and antibiotics later and Dozer was good as new. Poor thing.

I'll be calling Doc tomorrow for a new prescription.

Our other dogs are fine. Especially Lady of Lyonesse. "Lea" is almost five months old now and has officially 'outgrown' Dozer. She outweighs Dozer by probably 10 or 15 lbs now and they are exactly the same height. Lea's forelegs are so thick, we can no longer wrap our fingers around them. She's going to be HUGE. Most Mastiff's are huge, of course, but the females are usually smaller than the males. We're thinking there's a possibility that she will be larger than Pete when all is said and done. Of course, she is the daughter of the great Dopper Madala, and he's quite a large dog himself.

Pete is still growing too. When he arrived, I did a little measurement comparison on his head. Dopper Madala's head was so large that when I placed the heel of my palm just over one of his big, floppy ears, my fingertips couldn't reach his other ear. When I tried this on Pete the day he flew in from Oklahoma, I could touch both of his ears. Not so any longer. There is a good inch or so to spare.

So what about you? Are you a big dog person or a little dog person? Cat people are great too, but I'll save my cats for another entry. In the meantime, I'd love to hear about your dogs!

Hugs,

Marjorie

On Prologues

2005-12-02T20:49:00.000-07:00

I am a member of a large romance writer's group on Yahoo. Recently, the topic of prologues came up and I have learned there are several strong opinions on the matter. I had no idea. I personally like them and write them most of the time.

Apparently, however, there are several folks who don't even read them when they buy a new book. This is curious to me. As one participant mentioned, why would one spend hard-earned cash on a book and not read the whole thing? I mean, if it's a wall-banger, then sure, don't read it and chalk one up for experience. But if it's a good book, why not read the whole thing?

It got me to thinking about the rules of writing. More specifically, the rules for writing romance. (The original subject came up because one of the participants 'heard' that prologues were 'against the rules'.)

Who came up with these rules? The readers? The editors? Agents?

I have my own theory about this. I think the rules came from the mill. The rumor mill. Writer A told Writer B their own ideas about anything from character development, to prologues, to Points of View per scene. Writer B told Writers C, D, and E. By the time Writer X hears about it, it's a die-hard rule. Enter RWA contests and the internet and suddenly, the alphabet of writers affected by said 'rule' is multiplied exponentially.

What ever happened to entertaining our audience? I'm speaking about the 'rule' that every word must count and every scene must pull the reader futher to the end of the book.

I'm not saying that every scene doesn't need a purpose. I'm saying the scenes, the collection of words we write for the benefit of our readers, should serve a variety of purposes.

A scene, whether it be a prologue or not, can build characters, build tension and suspense, add to the developing love story, or set the stage for something. It may even simply set the stage. The important thing is that the scene engage the reader and draw them into the world we've created.

But what is the MAIN purpose the scenes should serve?

Simple. They should entertain. Period. If we do that, haven't we done our jobs?

What do you think? If you're a reader, I'd love to hear your thoughts on whether you read prologues and what you look for a in a great read. If you're a writer, what is your opinion of 'the rules'?

Hugs,

Marjorie

Another Year Down

2005-12-01T11:54:00.000-07:00

I wish I could say that I haven't blogged in a while because I've been so immersed in NaNoWriMo that I simply didn't have time!

Unfortunately, that's not the case. I was working, though. I had some edits and rewrites to complete for an anthology that is coming very soon from eXtasy Books. After that, I fell out of my groove.

Which brings me to my thoughts on the past year. Wow... what a ride. Some of it good. Some of it bad. My son got married. My son got divorced. I finally made it to a Romantic Times BOOKlovers Convention and met some great friends, some of whom I'd spoken to online for a while.

I finished The Lighthorseman. I started Dawn of Redemption. I signed four or five book contracts with two publishing houses.

My daughter fell ill, but is making great strides to recovery.

I made the leap to homeschooling my daughters and I took a job outside of the home, working part time for a friend who owns a cell phone distributorship and showroom. Its nice because she tells me to write when we're not busy <grin>.

My husband embarked on his life-long dream of owning and breeding rare breed dogs and we now have two fabulous additions to the family, Pistol Pete and Lady of Lyonesse, South African Boerboel Mastiffs.

It makes me think. The world really is a scary and magnificent place and it really is up to us to make it better. To create a home within the topsy-turvy confines of our own atmosphere. I could have lost it over the course of the past twelve months. I almost did once or twice between illnesses and divorces. But in the end, I can't imagine trading a single moment. My daughter has finally started to find herself and the divorce made my son a stronger man, I think. The bad times make us appreciate the good times. It's cliche. But it's true.

What about you? Have you found any great insights over the past year? Feel free to share your insights. I'd love to hear them!

Hugs,

Marjorie

100K typing writers must be crazy

2005-11-01T10:38:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I don't know how many writers have actually signed up for NaNoWriMo, but 100K sounded good.

I'll be madly writing this month is many others in a challege to produce 50K words in a month. Notice, I didn't say a 50K word novel in the month of November, because that's not my personal goal. My books are way longer than 50K words and therefore, completeing a 50K word novel from beginning to end isn't much of a benefit for me. So, every year, I continue to work on my current project during National Novel Writing Month.

This year's project is Dawn of Redemption, the sequel to the upcoming Dawn of Love from Champagne Books. I started writing it about two weeks ago. The current wordcount stand at a shade under 30K. This means, if I successfully complete NaNoWriMo this year (and if I remember to actually add the appropriate figures to my wordcount chart on the NaNo site) I should have an 80K word novel by the end of this month.

That's the plan. Actually... a bit more. I want the final word count to be roughly 90K because there's a good chance this book, as well as it's predecessor, could see mass market paperback and if I want to see it in print, it must needs have a certain word count. Any shorter and it will in e-press exclusively, and I kinda like the idea of a book being available in both formats.

So... it's time for me to get to work. I have 60K words to write!

Peace,

Marjorie

The Griswalds meet the Tool Man

2005-10-25T17:48:00.000-06:00

My front door stopped working yesterday. I know! It's like it's overworked or anything. We come in. We go out. How hard of a life it that, really? Apparently harded that we think, because yesterday, my door went on strike.

I'm not a carpenter so please forgive my lack of industry terms here, but the metal peice that extends from the door and moves in and out when you turn the knob stopped turning. Of course the door was closed at the time, so the door was stuck closed. We tried to wedge it free, but that didn't work. We came close to seriously damaging the molding around the door.

So, this morning after Church, I finally removed the doorknob thinking that I could then pull the extended mechanism free, but no such luck. Apparently, that peice is slid in from the outside.

No amount of wedging, shifting, begging, banging or pleading was going to loosen this thing.

There was only one thing I could do... I went into my husband's sanctuary... His Tool Room and found what I believed to be that reciprocating thingy with the blade for cutting metal. I plugged it in and after several attempts that left me shaking in my Pradas... I won.

That's right. I sliced through that broken doorknob mechanism thingy between my door and the frame like a hot knife through butter. Okay, so it was more like the Titanic through an ice feild, but the door did open when I was finished. I was going to have to buy a new doorknob anyway, right? So, no harm, no foul.

I don't know what you're doing this afternoon, but I'm going to Wally World to get a new doorknob before my husband gets home.

Hugs,

Marjorie

The Griswalds meet Tool Man Taylor

2005-10-23T13:17:00.000-06:00

So, this morning after Church, I finally removed the doorknob thinking that I could then pull the extended mechanism free, but no such luck. Apparently, that peice is slid in from the outside.

No amount of wedging, shifting, begging, banging or pleading was going to loosen this thing.

I don't know what you're doing this afternoon, but I'm going to Wally World to get a new doorknob before my husband gets home.

Hugs,

Marjorie

And the wheels turn ...

2005-10-21T06:21:00.000-06:00

Or they don't, depending on who's driving.

Yesterday, my 17-year-old daughter wrecked my car. Now, in her defense, the sun was glaring in her eyes something feirce and the accident occured at an intersection that has been begging for a stop sign or an accident for years. But, she also cut the corner (something very easy to do at that particular intersection) and I've told her not to cut that corner more times than I can count.

So, my beautiful 99 LeSabre has no front end. Okay, it has half a front end, but one side is so beat up, we can't even open the driver's side door all the way.

It got me to thinking though, about how precious we all are. Especially our children. See, she was on her way to choir practice in the morning so she could learn the music for a funeral that afternoon. She just started singing with the choir and this was supposed to be her first practice. So, when she left the house, I was in the kitchen with her sister looking over a homeschooling assignment. Staci called her goodbyes from the front landing and we both answered her. "I love you!" "I love you too. Be careful!"

Same old, same old.

But what if the accident hadn't been a really slow speed collision? What if she'd been hurt? Heaven forbid, what if it had been even worse? What if the last things I ever said to my daughter were, "I-love-you-be-careful?" Recited like a script or an obligation...

So, here is a mission for today. I know I'm going to try it and see how it feels. Speak to those you love from your heart to their heart instead of from your lips to their ears. Look them in the eye when you say goodbye, hello or I love you. Mean it more today than you did yesterday and more tomorrow than you did today. Memorize their eyes.

That's your challenge.

If you feel like it, post a comment here or email me to let me know how it felt. I'd sure hate to think the only reason my daughter had an accident was to increase my insurance rates and bring a ton of stress down on her poor mother. I'm much happier knowing it happened because her poor mother needed a wake up call.

Hugs,
Marjorie

I'm back!

2005-10-15T21:36:00.000-06:00

*whew* That was a close one.

Today was my deadline for turning in edits on The Lighthorseman and I'm happy to say that I did it. I almost didn't, however, because my dog ate my homework.

No, really. I'm serious. The new puppy chewed through the power cord on my laptop and I had to find one I could borrow in order to pull the manuscript out of this little black box and email it to my editor. Thankfully, I did find one and was able to meet my deadline. So, like I said . . . "whew".

Now that I've been through two rounds of edits, I think I've determined a couple of things about myself.

I, have, no, idea, how, to, use, commas.

I have serious comma issues. I put them where they don't belong and I forget to use them when I should. Most of my edits in both books consisted of moving commas from one part of the sentence to the other.

I also need to utilize my thesaurus more. Most of the wonderful writers I've met over the past couple of years have stated plainly that we, as a species, have 'trigger' words that stick with us for the length of the manuscript. These are words that we fall in love with for one reason or another and we keep using them, over and over and over again. I think I may have taken this to a new level as I've sworn a vow to no longer use about five words in the English language. Ever.

Finally, I want to include a special thanks to my editor in this post. Without her caustic wit and oh-so-sensible commentary, the book wouldn't be nearly as good. So, to my editor and all editors, the reader in me thanks you and the writer in me worships you.

That's about it for now. I'm going to switch gears and get back on the spicy story I was writing before my edits came in. Hopefully, I can have that wrapped up by the end of the month. Nanowrimo startes November 1 (November is National Novel Writing Month -- NaNoWriMo) and I want to start Dawn of Redemption and have it done by the end of November. Wow... 90K words in a month. Is it possible? We'll see. Be sure to check back for updates and I'll let you know how it goes.

Hugs,

Marjorie

Let the Games Begin

2005-10-09T09:23:00.000-06:00

We are now in possession of our brand new, 9-week old South African Boerboel female, Select's Lady of Lyonesse. You can see pictures here: http://www.marjoriejones.com/dogshome/index.html . She's a super sweetie and the spitting image of her pops, Dopper Madala.

Puppies are so much fun and they smell sooo good. I love that puppy smell. Lea is eager to learn and thanks to the superior breeding standards and attention to detail of Cammie (the owner of Select Boerbeol's where Lea was whelped) she is already crate trained and practically housebroken.

Lea is a black and tan (aka Fawn) colored Mastiff and we'll be breeding her to Pistol Pete in a couple of years. Pete is Brindle, so we'll expect a mixture of pups. In the meantime, I'm watching my toes (Lea has really sharp little teeth lol) and we're having a great time.

Also, I'm deep into edits for The Lighthorseman and as soon as I post this, I'll be getting back to work on it. My next blog entry, when I'm finished with edits and I've turned them in, will be titled "What I love about my editor." Things like her sense of humor and how it's quite obvious that the further she read into the manuscript, the more pressure she applied to her red pen when she made her comments. Ouch.

Until next time,

Marjorie

Back from the wilds of Utah ...

2005-10-05T16:49:00.000-06:00

With sanity intact. Sort of.

I came home to find my edits for The Lighthorseman on my doorstep, so truth be told, I've been home all week. We had a wonderful time in the mountains. The first night, it rained and the sounds of the wind through the trees was amazing. Later in the week, everything dried out and the nights were deathly quiet. Like spoooky quiet. My poor husband couldn't sleep a wink because there was no noise.

So, I come home to my edits. Not too bad, really. I've spent a couple of days moving commas from one part of a sentence to another. I do not get along with commas apparently.

But I'm enjoying myself! I love this whole writing professionally thing. People are paying me to move those commas and that makes it all worth while. Of course, it was worth while to write before I was published, too. I wrote for myself and some friends. But I never 'had' to move a comma.

Oh... we're picking up our new puppy on Friday evening. Her name is Lady of Lyonesse and we can't wait. She's a 9 week old South African Boerboel Mastiff. Eventually she'll be huge, but right now she's about 14 lbs. She'll ride home on my lap, I'm sure, and my legs will be numb from the trip, but I don't care. I love this breed.

Lea (as we'll call her) is our second. Our first is a male/stud named Pistol Pete. Right now he's lounging on my living room floor - his meaty, black jowls contrasting with my champagne colored carpeting. He's a brindle, so he matches the carpet almost perfectly. And he's really sweet, too. Unless he doesn't know you and then he growls and barks and is really skeery.

I need to get back to those commas... I mean, my edits. I'll write again soon.

Hugs,
Marjorie

Ahhh... the beauty of ... nature?

2005-09-25T17:14:00.000-06:00

We're going camping. In a little over 48 hours, I'll be tucked away in some beautiful mountain glade surrounded by pinion pines, babbling creeks and the sweet scent of autumn. With barely enough electricity to run the camp-lights, let alone my laptop!

Panic is starting to set in. We're going for a week, at least. From Tuesday to Monday. That means one full week without email. Without my laptop. I'm considering driving down the mountain to my mother-in-law's place to charge my computer every few hours, but I don't think that's going to work. It's about twenty miles over ungraded roads, another forty or so miles of graded, but still dirt, roads and then another fifteen miles of winding mountain pass just to get off the mountain. Then I'd have to make the two hour journey back.

We have a generator, but like I said, that's barely enough to handle the lights. And my husband's television and DVD player. Not that that's a luxury or anything. I mean, how can we watch The Blair Witch Project and the St. Francisville Experiment if we don't have power for the DVD player? And we have to watch those two movies, inside the trailer, lights out. Then we dare our daughters to go out to the generator, tucked waaaay back into the treeline, to turn it off, with nothing but the moonlight for company.

Of course, my husband has to scare the beetlejuice out of them on their way back inside.

This year, we're taking the horses. It seems like every year something happens, right before our annual foray into the wilderness, to prevent us from taking them. A few days ago, our older horse (a lineback dun named Zeke) tangled himself in some barbed wire. A couple of nasty cuts and several scrapes later, we'd cut him free. Nothing too damaging and the hubby says we can still ride him. Good.

That's the best part about a trip to the mountain. Hours and hours in the saddle.

But I'm still going to miss my email. Desperately. And I'm NOT turning off the generator after the movie.

The Life Unglamorous

2005-09-24T20:26:00.000-06:00

When I was a little girl, I thought the life of a romance novelist was full of pink feather boas and tiaras. I was going to live in New York City, in a highrise apartment building, preferably the penthouse, and spend all day madly writing manuscripts and scheduling television appearances to promote my latest masterpeice. I'd have a maid. I'd have the perfect looks, the perfect body. The little people would swoon when I walked into a room. I would always be fashionably late.

I suppose that might have been possible. Heck, everything is possible, right? But I didn't pursue writing professionally until just a few years ago and the wheels of my station-wagon life had already begun to turn. I married a great guy when I was just seventeen years old. (We're happier than most but this in no way recommends early marriage -- we both agree it would have been easier if we'd been older). We settled in the deserts of Utah and after almost ten years finally bought our first horse. I continued to write, for my own peace of mind, on and off for all those years. But mostly, I changed diapers, mowed lawns, held various full-time jobs including telemarketer and legal secretary, and relegated the penthouse and the tiara to the realms of fantasy and daydreaming.

Then it happened. I'm a romance novelist. For real. I get paid for this. It's amazing! Even when I don't feel like writing, on those days when writing feels just like any other 'job', I am still amazed that this is what I do. But the glamour is still a myth. I don't sit around in silk pajamas typing the next great American novel. I spend my days cooking and cleaning, raising our children, tending our horses. And I write as much as I can, but since I'm not paid by the hour and I have no set schedule, it's more difficult than I'd thought it would be.

There is no penthouse. I don't have a maid. Heck, I am the maid. But it's okay. Because I love my family and I love what I do, even if I have to remind myself of that fact on those days when I can't remember where I put my tiara.