Tag: #OpenBook

Is It Naptime? #OpenBook Blog Hop

  By Open Book

July 22, 2019

Does writing energize or exhaust you?

It’s only sitting down in front of a computer and typing, right? Or using a pen and a piece of paper. How can that be tiring? It’s not like you’re digging a ditch or anything.

But finding the right words to put on that piece of paper can be tough. Words are easy. Words that say what you mean are hard. Especially when you have to string them together not only in a sentence, but then a paragraph and a page and a chapter. Shoot, even putting the words together for a blog post can rough. And the a writer will do this day after day after day. Yes, it’s tiring.

But guess what? It’s exhilarating and energizing at the same time, like the ups and downs of a roller coaster. When the words on the paper are not only good, but perfect, it’s a thrill that can’t be beat.

 

Image by Paul Brennan from Pixabay

It might be a couple of paragraphs, or maybe only a short sentence. Here’s one of my favorites from Wolves’ Gambit, the third book in the Free Wolves’ stories. 

“Misfits, rebels, and malcontents.”

It’s not even a complete sentence. but read in context, it says so much.

In contrast, here’s a selection from The Marquesa’s Necklace, the first book in the Harmony Duprie series:

The bus ride home seemed longer than the morning’s trip as I studied each person getting on for a potential threat. Was the little gray-haired lady with the oversize purse and shopping bag packing a handgun? Did the teenage boy wearing a long black coat keep ninja stars in his pockets? And the woman in her mid-twenties holding a little girl’s hand? Was the child was just a prop, borrowed for the afternoon, solely to throw off suspicion? In reality, was the woman a super spy waiting for a chance to drug me and cart me off to her remote hideaway?

Yes, I know, neither seems like it was that much work. Simple words. But the second selection? That was probably the fourth revision. The apparent simplicity is deceptive. But when I finally got it right, it was sweet! 

I’m sure you get the point by now. Writing both exhausts and energizes me. But one part of writing that always energizes me and other writers are good reviews. So if you enjoy our work, please leave one! (We love comments on our blogs, too.) 

And it would be great if you will follow the links below and visit with the other writers in the group. Happy reading!

July 22, 2019

Does writing energize or exhaust you?

Rules:

1. Link your blog to this hop.

2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.

3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.

4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use #OpenBook when tweeting.

5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

 

It’s All Fun & Games Until Somebody Dies #Openbook Blog Hop

  By Open Book

July 15, 2019

What was your hardest scene to write?

Spoiler alert: I’ll be revealing a minor plot point that extends over a couple of books in my mystery series. I don’t believe it will decrease the pleasure of reading the books if you haven’t already.

Those of you you have read the Harmony Duprie books know she is a logical person. Logical almost to a fault, in some instances. When I set out to write a scene where she allowed her emotions to have free rein, it was tough.

The set up for the scene took place in an earlier book, and I thought the extended time frame would help me gain the distance I needed to do a good job of including the emotion Harmony felt without getting too emotional myself. Yeah, I was wrong.

I’ve written a number of murders into my stories and Harmony has dealt with them in a rather detached manner. They weren’t anyone she was close to, so she was able to view them thru a researcher’s eyes. When her own parents died (before the story starts) she had friends in the community to help her.

That included the mother of one of her best friends who became a surrogate mother to Harmony for a few years. And that’s who I killed off. She wasn’t the victim of any of Harmony’s villains, the bad guy was an enemy that Harmony couldn’t beat. Breast cancer.

For the story, I had to have Harmony stay strong for her friend and break down at the same time. And that was tough. At least I had about 1000 miles between them, which allowed Harmony to remain calm on the phone while falling apart. Of course, once she got home and behind a locked door, her sorrow was released.

From The Contessa’s Brooch

Naturally, I wasn’t in the mood to hang out with the guys even after I got done with as much as possible. All I wanted to do was go home, drink a glass or two of wine, and ugly cry. I didn’t even feel bad when I told Eli he’d have to do supper on his own.

I was on my third glass when someone knocked. I decided to ignore it. My eyes were swollen, my throat hoarse and my nose red from blowing it. No way I wanted company.

But the knocker was determined. And had a key. So, when Eli opened the door and held his arms out, I let him wrap them around me while I cried more.

The thread about the death runs through three or four chapters, while Harmony is busy solving the current mystery. Jumping back and forth between logic and deep emotion was rough on Harmony, and on me. I shed a few tears myself.

But that isn’t the toughest scene I’ve ever written. In a story that will never be published, I killed off the main character. Writing her death and her funeral took several boxes of tissues. I knew readers would hate me, and  rewrote the story with a happy ending. Even that version won’t ever be published- it simply isn’t good enough.

Now, I’m going to take a deep breath, shake off the doldrums, and head over to see what the other authors participating in the blog hop have to share.

 

July 15, 2019

What was your hardest scene to write?

Rules:
1. Link your blog to this hop.
2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.
3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.
4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use #OpenBook when tweeting.
5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

https://fresh.inlinkz.com/p/1c38625e53c14049ac41aaa0f3e856f3

Seasons in Writing #OpenBook blog Hop

  By Open Book, Uncategorized

July 8, 2019

Despite the recent snow in the Rocky Mountains, it’s summer in the Northern Hemisphere. Do your stories and worlds reference seasons and do they play into the plots of your books?

 

Did you hear about the snow sculpture contest in the park?” she asked.

“No,” I said. How did I miss that? “Who’s sponsoring it?”

“Oh, it’s unofficial.” She put more grated cheese on top of her spaghetti and passed the container to Freddie. “Started with some little kids building old-fashioned snowmen, and then a bunch of high schoolers got involved. Pretty soon parents got into the spirit of things as well. Now there are dragons and castles and all sorts of creations scattered on the shore of the lake. Makes me hope the cold weather sticks around so they last longer.”

That’s a short snippet from Her Ladyship’s Ring, the second book in the Harmony Duprie Mysteries. This is the first scene that came to mind when I saw this week’s topic. Since Oak Grove, the town where she lives, is located somewhere north of Pittsburgh, it seemed only natural to bring the weather into the story. 

I could likely find at least one weather-related snippet from every one of my books. The out-of-doors is important in my life, so it’s natural to include it in my stories.

Here’s another from Wolves’ Knight, the second book in the Free Wolves series.

The storm clouds rolling in from the west made the night seem even darker than normal, bearing the promise of an early snow. Tasha had her window down, hoping the cold air would help her stay awake. When she caught the first trace of smoke, she assumed that someone had been smoking in the car, never wondering why she hadn’t caught the scent sooner. When the odor got stronger, she pulled over to the side of the road, thinking the car had developed a problem.

But it’s not just bad weather that get featured, I also set scenes on  picture-perfect summer days, crisp fall nights and rainy springtimes. a few happen in the sweltering heat of Florida.

But maybe I have it easy because all my books are set in the real world. (Well, mostly. Do you believe there are shifters among us?) Other authors may not have it so simple. Let’s go find out! 

July 8, 2019

Despite the recent snow in the Rocky Mountains, it’s summer in the Northern Hemisphere. Do your stories and worlds reference seasons and do they play into the plots of your books?

Rules:
1. Link your blog to this hop.
2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.
3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.
4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use #OpenBook when tweeting.
5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.

 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

 

It’s a Trap! #OpenBook Blog Hop

  By Open Book

July 1, 2019

What are common traps for aspiring writers?

At some point in the distant past, storytellers discovered they could be paid for their writing and became writers. Not long after that, other people figured out how to take advantage of them. And so it goes today. With the advent of the digital revolution for books and other forms of the written word, scams have adapted and changed to the new market.

It doesn’t matter if a writer is going indie or the traditional publisher route, there are traps in both methods. I’ll concentrate on traps for those of us who write indie.

The biggest one I know of (And I haven’t ever been caught in!) is vanity publishing. That’s where a company charges a hopeful writer to publish their book. They may hide the price behind editing fees or setup fees or cover design, but the end is the same. The writer ends up with overpriced physical books to sell and not much else. As tempting as it may seem, my advice to an aspiring writer? Don’t do it. There are ways to get your book published without signing a long-term contract with a fly-by-night company. I could write a whole post about it!

Contests are another area that often catch as aspiring writer. Sure, some  have been around forever and actually can assist an author in getting noticed. But others charge large fees and then give out minimal prizes. Then there are the contests that charge no fees but put all the “winners” (Everyone!) in a book and charge an outrageous amount of money to purchase copies. Or invite the winners (Everyone!) to an awards ceremony at their own expense.

There are other scams that could catch both the experienced as well as the inexperienced writer. I’ve read the stories about editors and cover designers taking an author’s money and disappearing. Then there’s the small press publishers who were legitimate in the beginning and after a number of years fail, leaving authors with no way to get their money or their rights back. It’s hard to avoid those.

But there’s a website out there that’s on the side of writers. It’s a good place to start if there’s a question about a company’s services. The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America have run it for years. I strongly suggest that all writers check it out HERE.

When you’re done, come back here and head on down to the links below to see what the other authors are sharing. That’s where I’m headed! 

 

July 1, 2019

What are common traps for aspiring writers?

Rules:

1. Link your blog to this hop.

2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.

3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.

4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use #OpenBook when tweeting.

5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

It’s All In the Name Open Book Blog Hop

Link

  By Open Book

June 24, 2019

How do you select the names of your characters?

A long time ago, I was introduced to the concept that some cultures hold that names hold power. Different cultures interpret that in different ways, but I have used the idea to help come up with the names of my characters.

But there are a number of other factors that come into play. I previously worked a job where I dealt with names. Every know and then, I’d run across one that was just so unique I had to explore its background. And the really cool ones I’d write down in a notebook to refer to later. I’d never use a someone’s whole name for a character, but the process gave me some cool first and last names.

Speaking of not using real names, Google is my friend. When I come up with a name, I search to see if it belongs to a real person. If it does, and I really want to use the name, I’ll change the spelling of the name. Sure, I can’t avoid using someone’s real name once in a while, but I cover that with the copyright statement.

I also try to uses names as an indicator of ethnic background. (You know that research I referred to earlier? That’s where it comes into play.) In my first book, Wolves’ Pawn, I decided my main character would have a Native American background. That led me to research traditional names for members of various tribes. That’s where Dot, the main character in Wolves’ Pawn,  last name come from.

In Wolves’ Gambit, I dealt with feuding wolf-shifter packs. Because they limited their contact with the outside world, I decided to use old-fashioned names for one of the packs. On top of that, I used alternative spellings.

But sometimes a name just comes to me. That’s what happened with Harmony Durpie, the main character in my mystery series. I don’t know where it came from, it was a name that found me. Eli, on the other hand, came to me because I was listening to the song “Eli’s coming” one day when I was writing!

One thing I try really hard to watch for is that I don’t give characters names that use same first letter. That makes it easier for readers to keep them straight. I do make exceptions though-calling twins similar names, for example.

I will admit to using the names of people I’ve met once in a while. I enjoy naming my villains with the names of people I don’t like. Of course, I still disguise the names so they can’t be connected to real-life people.

I haven’t used any of the name  generators that are out there-yet. What I do refer to are the baby-name sites that exist. If I have an idea for a name, they help me narrow down my choices based on sex and ethnic background.

The truth is, I never know where the next name will come from. I ran across one recently that I need to add to my list of potential names Liam. It’s been around for a while, but I ‘found” it again recently. Which makes me wonder if it will show up in my next book!

Now, let’s check out all the other authors to see how they name their characters.

June 24, 2019

How do you select the names of your characters?

Rules:

1. Link your blog to this hop.

2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.

3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.

4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use #OpenBook when tweeting.

5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

https://fresh.inlinkz.com/p/e7beb9483e3443fc80bcef612ea7da0a

The Power of Words

  By Open Book

June 17,2019

What was an early experience where you learned that language had power?

I learned to read in the golden age of Dick, Jane, and Spot. See Jane run. Obviously, that didn’t teach me a love of language but it was a start.

By sixth grade I was reading a book a night. No, not 1000 page novels, but a lot of history and biographies written for my age level. Okay, I confess, I read above by age level by at least of couple of years.

In seventh grade (I think) I wrote a short paper about the Mafia. I don’t remember what the assignment was, but I got an A—and was invited to read the essay over the PA system to the seventh and eighth grades., a first for the school. But that wasn’t the event that showed me the power of words.

And it wasn’t when I won an award from the Daughters of the American Revolution for my essay on Molly Pitcher in eighth grade. No, that event was ruined for me when they first announced a classmate with a similar name as the winner, and then discovered the mistake. To make it “fair”, I had to share the award with her and felt cheated.

No, I learned the power of words by failing a writing assignment. We were tasked with writing a short story- I forget how many words. Influenced by a book I’d read recently, I ended my story with the main character ready to throw himself from a cliff to evade capture by the enemy. My teacher thought I hadn’t finished the story, and gave me an F.  I tried to explain to her the motivation behind the ending, but she wasn’t listening. or wasn’t satisfied, I’m not sure. 

I don’t have a copy of that story anymore, but when I think back, I still think I was in the right. I’d explained the character’s motivation, I had put him in a situation with no way out, and I even had him looking skyward as if reaching out to his god. I thought the ending was clear without describing it in gory details.

Image by astize from Pixabay

And that’s when I learned the power of words. And the power of no words. 

I’ve also learned how to take away the power. You see. I believe words only have the power you give them. Call me a nasty name? It may hurt momentarily, but it’s only words, after all. Sticks and stones …. I can even read bad reviews and decide if they are helpful or nonsense.

There is one word that is often misused but I hope never loses its power. It’s the word that represents the best of all of us, the hope for humanity. It’s a simple word, only four letters. You guessed it, the word is love.

Now, let’s head over and find out when everyone else discovered the power of words.

June 17,2019

What was an early experience where you learned that language had power?

Rules:
1. Link your blog to this hop.
2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.
3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.
4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use #OpenBook when tweeting.
5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Writing Characters of the Opposite Sex #OpenBook Blog Hop

  By Uncategorized

June 10, 2019

What’s the most difficult thing about writing characters from the opposite sex?

You know those silly on-line quizzes that tell you what superhero you are? Or which Star Trek character? Or whether you think like a male or a female?

So, according to those, I’m Spock and I think like male 70% of  the time. Since I grew hanging around with five brothers, it doesn’t surprise me too much. I’m also employed in a field comprised mostly of males, and get along well with my coworkers. I guess that gives me an advantage when writing my male characters. It doesn’t mean I know everything that goes on in a male mind. 

When a reviewer complimented me on how well I wrote my female characters, I was puzzled. So, I asked her about it. Turns out she thought I was a guy based on how well-written my male characters were! I’ll take that as a compliment.

Here’s the catch: I rarely write from a male point of view. I like strong female characters, and that’s what POV I write from. That means I don’t have to dive too deeply into the male psyche. The males are written thru the eyes of my women. I have plenty of experience in observing males in their natural habitat and can easily translate that to my books.

What I have to be careful about is making sure my men are not cookie-cutter replicas of people I know and that they each have their own personality. I have to make sure that their motivations and desires reflect what is right for the plot. 

The hardest part is making sure my female characters react to each male character as suits their personality. Obviously, my female sleuth can’t respond to her friend , a police detective, the way she does to her lover. I also have to make sure the men don’t all treat her the same way. That wouldn’t be realistic. The most important thing to remember is that they are just people, too. 

The one thing I’d have the most difficult time writing would be a man’s thoughts during sex. Obviously, my brothers and coworkers don’t talk about that to me! But I don’t write sex scenes, so I’m off the hook.

There’s one male character who I have a real hard time writing, and that’s Jake, my anti-hero in the Harmony Duprie Mysteries. Or is he a villain? I’m not sure, he has secrets he’s not telling. 

Now, follow the links below to see what the others in the hop find the most difficult about writing their “opposite sex” characters.

June 10, 2019

What’s the most difficult thing about writing characters from the opposite sex?

Rules:
1. Link your blog to this hop.
2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.
3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.
4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use #OpenBook when tweeting.
5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Best Money #OpenBook Blog Hop

  By Open Book

June 3, 2019

What was the best money you ever spent as a writer?

When I started the journey as an indie author, I had no idea how expensive the process could be. Editing. more editing, formatting, the cost of buying author’s copies, publicity…

Yeah, that’s a lot, and if you have an bottomless pocket, there are plenty of people willing to take more of your money. I don’t have one of those. The bottomless pocket, that is.

Throw in the cost of advertising and writing courses and fees to sell your books at events. Oh, and business cards and a website.

But what’s the best money I’ve ever spent?

The first big event I did was a ComicCon. That was back in 2016. I spent a lot of money getting ready- I needed business cards, postcards, a tablecloth. But the one purchase I made that I didn’t really need? A banner.

That’s Tasha from Wolves’ Knight, larger than life. She’s my best purchase ever. When I go to events, she’s got my back. The greatest part is how she draws attention. Even if a passerby doesn’t stop and buy one of my books,  she catches their eye. She makes me feel powerful.

One of these days, I should get a banner for the Harmony Duprie Mysteries. But I’m in no rush. As much as I love her, I don’t know how Harmony could compete with Tasha. 

Now, I’m going to head on over and find out how our other authors spent their money. You can too, by following the links below. 

June 3, 2019

What was the best money you ever spent as a writer?

Rules:
1. Link your blog to this hop.
2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.
3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.
4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use #OpenBook when tweeting.
5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Telling Secrets #OpenBook Blog hop

  By IWSG

May 27, 2019

Do you hide any secrets in your books that only a few people will find?

You mean you haven’t found them yet? 

When I wrote Wolves’ Pawn, my first book, I included some symbolism I thought everyone would catch. I wasn’t secretive about it at all, and worried I’d made it too glaringly obvious. Here we are, almost five years later, and not one reader has mentioned it. So, maybe it was so obvious it wasn’t worth saying anything about it.

Then I wrote The Marquesa’s Necklace, and, just for fun, put some subtle references to Wolves’ Pawn in the story. Surely, some sharp-eyed reader would catch them and point them out. I got crickets.

 

 

 

 

I was in the middle of writing Her Ladyship’s Ring when the inspiration for Wolves’ Knight struck. Yes, that event is blatantly documented in Ring. No one has ever asked about it.

Sure, I know that people who read urban fantasy/paranormal don’t necessarily read my female sleuth mysteries. I get that. And I’m probably overthinking the whole thing. After all, my books are written as entertainment, not to convey some deep dark secret or life lesson. That doesn’t stop me from hoping someone will pick up on the secrets.

It’s been five years, so I’ll share the secret from the Wolves’ Pawn. 

Dot, my female MC, has a Native American background as well as being a wolf-shifter. I wrote in frequent references to crows being around her.  Here are a few:

A crow cawed overhead, breaking her musings. It was good timing—or maybe a warning.

Still, she delayed going to the house. A large crow landed near her and cocked its head, staring at her. She wondered what message it carried.

A noise broke her meditation, and she opened her eyes to find a large crow sitting in front of her. It cocked its head, uttered a single caw, and flew away. One large black feather drifted down from the sky. Dot picked it up and stuck it into the scarf wrapped around her arm. In a mirror she had brought along, she painted four pink stripes on one cheek, symbolizing the wolf. On the other cheek, the design was a blue and green globe, in honor of the Earth Mother. On a whim, she added two arcs over the circle—the crow. She knew the painting was not traditional, but thought her ancestors would forgive her.

What I was trying to insinuate was that the crow was Dot’s spirit animal. She may not recognize it, but  the crows do. Which is a bit weird, for a wolf-shifter to have a spirit animal, but in my mind, it works.

So that’s one of my secrets. There are more, but hopefully you’ll read my books with a ‘different’ eye and try to find them.

Have you stumbled across any of my secrets? You can share them in the comments and see if anyone else has found them, too.

May 27, 2019

Do you hide any secrets in your books that only a few people will find?

Rules:
1. Link your blog to this hop.
2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.
3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.
4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use #OpenBook when tweeting.
5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.

 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Favorite Character

  By Open Book

From all the characters you’ve created, which is your favorite and why?

I bet you think you know the answer. After all, how many times have I talked about wanting to spend an afternoon with Harmony from the mystery series, drinking ice tea and and chatting?  Well, you would be wrong.

And if you guessed Dot, the main character from Wolves’ Pawn, the first book I ever published, you would be closer, but still wrong.

No, my favorite and probably least-known of my main characters is Lori Grenville of Wolves’ Gambit.

Yeah, she’s an underdog. And that’s one of the reasons I’m so fond of her. Despite her small stature, she doesn’t let anyone push her around. Instead, she finds ways to use her size to her advantage. She’s found a way to turn a personal tragedy into a lifelong-mission to help others.

Of course, that isn’t the way I’d planned her. She was supposed to be a smart aleck, take nothing too seriously spy of dubious loyalties. While I managed to retain some of that in her personality, it isn’t her main focus.  Her loyalty is to herself and her cause, and she’ll tell you so.

What I love most about her is her creativity. I didn’t believe her at first when she told me the story of how she killed a wolf using a snow shovel. But it’s in writing now, and on the internet, so it must be true.

If you haven’t read Wolves’ Gambit yet, here’s your chance. It’s a standalone story, so you don’t have to read the other books in the Free Wolves adventures first. Here’s the link to the page on this website that will lead you to everywhere you can buy the book. Wolves’ Gambit 

Once you get done with your purchase, don’t forget to check out the other blogs and see what their authors favorite characters are. Maybe I’ll see you there!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

From all the characters you’ve created, which is your favorite and why?

Rules:
1. Link your blog to this hop.
2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.
3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.
4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use #OpenBook when tweeting.
5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.