March 2006 Newsletter

BLUE MOUNTAIN BACKROADS

It's the first day of March and the temperature is supposed to reach eighty. The back door of my office is open, and Rosicat is stretched out on the top step, sleeping in the sun. Last week we had four inches of snow and very low temperatures. This is the Ozarks. If you don't like the weather today, just wait a while and it will change.

It's still very dry here, and we're under a burn ban. Some idiots are setting fires, endangering homes and livestock. I really don't believe in evolution, being a dyed in the wool Creationist, but on the extremely off chance that we really did spring from monkeys, it's easy to see that some of us didn't spring quite far enough. It takes a particularly dim bulb to deliberately set fires to destroy someone else's property, just to see it burn.

The first day of March is opening day at the Roaring River State Park, or Trout Day, as we call it. When I was in high school back in the "olden days," it was a tradition to skip school on opening day and go to the park. I understand kids still do this. Not having a car, I usually didn't take part in this practice. In fact, the only time I remember skipping school I was strolling around the town square with a friend, and the first person I saw was my daddy. We had a short conversation and I made a fast trip back to school and I don't remember ever trying that again. My daddy was a man of few words, but he had a way of getting his point across. I've been toldI'm a lot like him.

Every month I'm sure I'll not have enough news for the newsletter, but I'm happy to report that once again, our writers are doing great. You can read about them below.

WRITING NEWS OF THE MONTH

Need a public relations expert? Check www.GlassRoadPR.com Your novel is finally headed for store shelves—but how will others know that your masterpiece is available for purchase? Glass Road Public Relations exists to provide effective, affordable publicity for novelists writing from a Christian worldview. Rebecca Seitz, founder and president of GRPR, is the former publicist for WestBowPress, the fiction division of Thomas Nelson Publishers. GRPR represents authors from many major publishing houses, including NavPress, Broadman and Holman, Multnoma, Zondervan, Steeple Hill Café, Howard Publishing and RiverOak. To learn more, visit www.GlassRoadPR.com

Colleen Coble's Alaska Twilight, a Women of Faith selection, will be released in March. Sounds like a good one, Colleen.

Carrie Turansky's Along Came Love, A Steeple Hill Love Inspired, will be released in April, but will begin arriving in stores in mid-March. "Single mom, Lauren Woodman, returns to her Vermont home to make a new life for herself and her six–year old son. When she meets ex-missionary Wes Evans, her past and present converge, forcing Lauren to learn how to forgive, heal, and love once again." Along Came Love will be featured in the book review section of the newsletter in April.

Cathy Elliott's first novel, a cozy mystery titled A Vase of Mistaken Identity, will be released by Kregel Publishing and will be in the bookstores by late March. It is already up on Amazon.com, Christianbook.com, Barnsandnoble.com, and Kregel.com. A Vase of mistaken identity? Now that's an intriguing title. Congratulations, Cathy. Proud of you.

Carol Cox's Copper Sunrise will be released this month. This is the fourth and final title in her series spanning Arizona's territorial years. Also, she has just signed contracts for books two and three in the series A Fair to Remember, set during the 1839 Worlds Fair. Book one, Ticket to Tomorrow, is scheduled for release in May. Way to go, Carol. That's enough to keep a girl busy.

Rhonda Well's inspirational contemporary romance, Harvest of Hope, placed second in the Oklahoma RWA Finally a Bride 2005 contest, and the full manuscript was requested by Steeple Hill. Great news Rhonda and congratulations.

Kathy Atwell has been given the privilege of running the Parenting Blog at the ezine Dot Com Women. She is excited about this new endeavor and hopes to build an online presence with some faithful readers. To read Kathy's blog, go to www.dcwblogs.com and click on Parenting. You're doing a great job, Kathy. Keep it up.

Anita Higman has signed a contract with Barbour for their new Spyglass Lane Mysteries. Her novel, Another Stab at Life, will be released on March 13th, 2007. Great, Anita. Can't wait to read it.

Lena Nelson Dooley's book Pirates Prize, which was reviewed in the February newsletter, will be available on Amazon in June. Be sure to check that out.

Deborah Vogts has a new blog and she's holding drawings for prizes. Last month she gave away CHOCOLATE!!! Now look me in the eye and tell me you're not interested in chocolate. The March contest is for a book of tea goodies including two gift books, herbal tea and a few surprises. Sign her guest book to enter. Being a tea drinker supreme, I've already signed up. Her web address is www.deborahvogts.com and while you're there check out the cute puppies. Chocolate, puppies and tea, what more could one ask.

WHACKY NEWS OF THE MONTH.
(News too weird to make up)

For all of you romance writers here's a "love at first sight" story for you. Kanchana Ketkaew set a world record for spending 32 days in a glass cage with 3,400 scorpions. She wed Bunthawee Siengwong, who set a Thai record for enduring 28 days with 1,000 centipedes. They met, while performing their respective stunts, at a snake farm on the resort island of Koh Samui, and in the best romantic tradition, looked into each other's eyes and knew at once that Cupid had plannedthis meeting.

The couple married in a haunted house on Valentine's Day in a ceremony dubbed "Till Death Do Us Part" in Thailand's Rippley'sBelieve It Or Not Museum. The bride's gown was adorned with live scorpions while Bunthawee enticed her by placing a centipede in his mouth. (Which just might make a cautious bride tend to skip the traditional kiss)

I am happy to report that my invitation came too late for me to attend.

WRITING TIP OF THE MONTH

SHOW, DON'T TELL

 The first time I heard this I was at a writer's conference in Eureka Springs, Arkansas. The speaker, Fred Bean, said that one of the major problems for new writers was telling the story instead of showing it. I thought it was the silliest thing I'd ever heard. I'm a storyteller, for goodness sake. Of course I tell it. 

Now I understand what he meant and he was right.  Telling the reader what happened; instead of letting the reader see it through action, dialogue and internal monologue is indeed the number one problem for beginning writers. It was a problem I had too; I just didn't realize it. The good thing about this habit, is once you learn how to break it, you don't do it again.

The process of showing instead of telling can be broken down into four steps.              

1.  Select and stay with a single character point of view throughout the scene.

2.  Remember your reader can only know what your viewpointcharacter can see, hear, touch, etc. If she can't experience it, you can't use it.  

3. Let your reader know what the reader is thinking.               

4. Visualize the scene the way your viewpoint character wouldsee it and experience it and then reveal it to your reader through the way your character acts, speaks, and thinks. 

Don't tell your reader Bobbi is nervous. Instead have her brushing her hair back, twisting the ring on her finger, glancing at something and then looking away. That shows the reader that Bobbi is nervous without you ever having to tell the reader anything. You just showed her that Bobbi is nervous.

Don't say Susie was afraid of storms. That's telling. Instead show her standing at the kitchen window, watching blue-black clouds boiling across the horizon, rolling toward her. A gust of wind tossed the brittle branches of the old elm, and a flurry of raindrops splattered against the windowpane. Susie cringed as twin forks of lightning split the sky. The following blast of thunder rocked the house. She bit down on her knuckle to keep from screaming. Neal! Come home. I need you.

Compare that with "when the storm clouds rolled in Susie was scared and she watched the thunder and lightning wishing Neal would come home. She was afraid of storms. She spent the next hour huddled in the living room and the storm finally passed over leaving a lot of damage behind." That's telling.

Your goal as a fiction writer is to draw the reader into your story. So show the reader the sights, sounds and feelings you want them to believe. Show your character's happiness, fear, or worry, and your reader will identify with those emotions and remember your character long after she has finished reading the story.

NEED TO READ BOOKS OF THE MONTH

 

Circle of Honor by Carol Umburger

 In 2001 Carol Umberger won the Golden Heart Award from the Romance Writer's of America for her manuscript Circle of Honor. After reading the book, I understand why. Set in the 14th Century in Scotland, Circle of Honor is a beautiful story of love and honor, ofmevil and the quest for power, and of two broken people who must learn to trust each other.

When Robert the Bruce kills Sir John Comyn and destroys his family home, Gwenyth Comyn, Sir John's daughter, vows to never rest until her father's murderer is dead. Her cousin, Edward claims to be the rightful heir to Scotland's throne in open defiance of Robert the Bruce. Gwenyth promised to marry Edward, which will cement his claim to the throne.

Adam Macintosh, a follower of Robert the Bruce, is with him when he kills Sir John Comyn. Bruce's followers declare him king, setting off a bloody war among the highland clans. Adam is seriously wounded in an ambush by Sir John's kinsmen and goes home to Castle Moy to recuperate. Although he lives, he never completely recovers the full use of his left arm. The woman he loved rejected him as a hopeless cripple.

Angus Macintosh, Adam's father, is dying and has named Adam as the next laird, a title coveted by his cousin, Leod Macpherson, who intends to be chieftain of the Macintosh and Macphereson clans. Leod claims Adam is not man enough to lead the clans because of his crippled arm.

Gwenyth, who has been taken captive, is a servant at Leod's keep. The Macintosh and Macphereson men have met to honor Adam. She is one of the serving girls at the feast and Adam is instantly attracted to her. That night Gwenyth is brutally assaulted and she accuses Adam.

On the table in front of her is a length of a hangman's rope, a sword, and her mother's ring. She must choose Adam's fate, death or a sham handfast marriage. She chooses marriage and the newly wedded pair leave for Castle Moy. Gwenyth has been badly beaten as well as assaulted. She's afraid of the handsome young laird. What will he do when he finds out who she really is?

Adam on the other hand is furious at being falsely accused. Morogh, Adam's kinsman, points out that the woman actually saved his life, but he refuses to accept the obvious; if Gwenyth had chosen anything except the ring he would be dead.

Can a knight of Robert the Bruce and the daughter of Sir John Comyn live in peace? Circle of Honor will grip the reader from the first page to the last. This one is a must for your Need to Read List.

 

 

Lessons From the Heart by Dorothy Clark

               When in high school, Erin Kelly had a terrifying experience with a teacher, which left her afraid of any personal contact with men, including one as handsome as David Carlson. Erin teaches kindergarten at the Living Hope Christian School. She's heard about David Carlson, man about town and a reporter who occasionally appears on Channel Four News. 

David also dates a super model named Brandee. They are each ambitious, striving to be seen at the right parties with the right people, cutting the right deals. The last thing he needs in his life is a born again Christian like Erin Kelly, even if she does have dark green eyes and hair the color of chili powder.

David's mother died when he was four, and his missionary father and his new wife didn't want to bother with a child who would get in the way of their "call" to serve the Lord. David grew up bitter, rejecting God. Then he witnessed a mob related murder. The police need his testimony in court to identify Benny Vida as the killer, but Benny's brother Angelo is determined not to let that happen.

Erin knows she is falling in love with David, but her Bible warns not to be unequally yoked with an unbeliever and David has no use for religion. Erin begs God to change David, but she knows he is in danger. Will she have to give him up, or will an assassin's bullet take him from her?

Lessons from the Heart is a fast paced story of two people with entirely different lifestyles racing full bent down a collision course. Only God can untangle the mess they have made of their lives, but will David allow God to help?  Lessons from the Heart will be a good addition to your Need to Read List.

The Bachelor Club Four Novellas

 Four young boys don't like girls so they start a club for guys who won't ever get married, at least until they're real old, like thirty. They agreed to put half of their allowances into a bank fund to draw interest. Anyone who marries before he is thirty will forfeit his share. However, little boys do grow up. So do little girls, and the fund keeps on drawing interest. 

"The Rescue"  By Kathleen Y'Barbo

Adam Chambers had a problem. Why, after all these years, would Amy Foreman plant herself in his rocker, on his porch? With less than two months to go until his thirtieth birthday, the last person he needs in his life right now is the one woman he'd ever been willing to give up his share in the Bachelor's Club Fund to marry. And yet, here she is, and what is he going to do now? 

Amy is on the run. When she left Tierra Verde, she'd counted on Adam following her. When he didn't, she made the best of it, pursuing a career in Hollywood. Now, billed as the next Grace Kelly, she should be rich and famous, with great scripts hers for the taking. But there's an unforeseen problem. Ed Moore, her business manager, respected by the Hollywood crowd and with connections in the right places, has systematically looted her bank accounts. When she confronted him, he threatens to tell everyone she had a hidden drug habit and drained her own accounts to support it. 

Adam doesn't want to get involved with Amy again, but she needs his help. She's made it clear she only plans to stay in Tierre Verde until a good script comes along. Adam let her go once and is still dealing with the hurt. He doesn't want to go through that again.  The attraction is still there, but can a small town veterinarian and a famous Hollywood star work out their difference? Does Adam really want to be the first to break away from the Bachelor Club? 

"Stealing Home"  By Rhonda Gibson

Will Lovelace dated a lot of girls in college, but Charisma Diner wasn't one of them. He doesn't even remember her, but she's never forgotten him and the way he dated all of her friends, but never looked at her. Back then, when a girl got too serious, Will moved on. After all, he was a charter member of the Bachelor Club, and not about to forfeit his share of the fund. He figured he could love them and leave them until he turned thirty. 

Since their parent's death, Charisma has been responsible forher young brother, Joey. Her floral business demands more and more of her time, and she didn't realize she was neglecting Joey, until he met Will Lovelace at the ball diamond and an instant friendship developed between the two of them. Charisma doesn't want Will in her life, but how can she deny a lonely little boy the relationship he craves with his new hero. 

Will stopped dating when he became a Christian, realizing his attitude toward women was wrong, but he is still determined to remain single until he's thirty. It's not that he wants the money from the Bachelor Club; it's the principle of the thing. He wants to win. Unfortunately, he can't stop thinking about Charisma.

Charisma, on the other hand, has never stopped thinking about Will, but given his track record with women, she's reluctant to trust him. Even if Will decides to forfeit the Bachelor Club money, how can he convince a woman who knows him only too well that he has changed? With only three members of the club unmarried, does he really want to drop out?

"Right For Each Other"  By Bev Huston

Isaac Brooks has always been the prankster of the Bachelor Club, but a terrible tragedy left him prone to panic attacks. He doesn't do well in stressful situations. When he stopped by Montague Studios to keep an appointment with Mr. Montague, he is mistaken for a constant for the Right For Each Other show.

Before he can explain, he finds himself on the set with a woman named Debbie, whom he's never seen before. She whispers that he's her fiancé and his name is Anthony. Isaac wants to tell the truth, but no one gives him a chance. In spite of himself, he is attracted, not to Debbie, his supposed fiancée, but to Brook Hart, the show moderator. 

When Brook learns Isaac was a fake contender, she is not impressed. Isaac apologizes, but Brook is not in a forgiving mood. She finally relents and over coffee reveals she's here on a work visa. Unless she can get it renewed, she will have to return to London.

Isaac doesn't want to lose her, but what woman would want a man who breaks out in a sweat when he has to be around people? Brook is attracted to Isaac, but he's a hard man to pin down. She can't understand his moods and while she thinks he is interested in her, he never comes right out and says so. In fact, he never says much of anything, so what's a girl to do? 

Isaac loves Brook, but there's the Bachelor Club. Only one other member is still unmarried. Will he try to over come his emotional problems, or will he play it safe and give up the woman he loves?

"Joyful Noise" By Janet Spaeth.

  Joseph Montoya, lone holdout member of the Bachelor Club, can't sing a note. Never could. Can't even whistle on key. So why did he sigh up for voice lessons? Could it be new voice teacher, Rosa Cruz, with long black hair and night dark eyes and a smile that warmed him to the heart? He showed up for the lessons all right, but so far he's managed to get by without actually singing. 

Rosa is worried about Joseph's cold, which seems to linger on, preventing him from taking the lessons he arrives for each week. At choir practice she notices an odd sound coming from the men's section, but surely that can't be Joseph, can it? Although she thinks he's a really outstanding guy, Rosa resists when her best friend, Ella, tries to set her up with him. Somehow he always seems to be around though, and they fit so well together. 

As the last member of the Bachelor Club, Joseph is home free. All he has to do is stay single until he is thirty and the money is his. Will his love for Rosa win out, or will the monetary lure of the club sound a sour note in their growing relationship? 

The Bachelor Club, presents four very entertaining stories with characters you'll enjoy. It's a good addition to your Need to Read list.

The Potluck Club—Trouble's Brewing

by Linda Evans Shepherd and Eva Marie Everson

 

 The Potluck Club has six members, Donna, Lizzie, Vonnie, Goldie, Lisa Leann, and Evangeline or Evie. By the time you finish reading the book you will know these women and their problems as well as your know the members of your Sunday school class. They'll be so real you'll want to pray for them. 

One other character is prominent in the story, Clay Whitefield, investigative reporter for the  Gold Rush News, is hot on the trail of their secrets. You can usually find Clay at his favorite spot in the Higher Grounds Café. Sooner or later, everyone in Summit View, Colorado, will pass his window. He plays closest attention to his favorites, the six women who call themselves The Potluck Club. 

There's Donna Vessy, town deputy, and the woman Clay has loved since high school. Unfortunately, she only sees him as a friend, and sometimes enemy, as she strives to keep him from learning anything about her Potluck friends.

Donna has a painful secret, one she'll never tell Clay, or anyone else. Lizzie Prattle's life has been progressing as usual, until her son, Tim, arrives at her house, apparently intending to stay. He has left his wife, Samantha, and his children. Lizzie has to do something to save her son's marriage, but what? And how can she keep Clay Whitefield from learning about this family problem? 

Vonnie Westbrook had never told Fred, her husband of thirty-five years, she'd been married before. When the baby she thought had died at birth, shows up on her doorstep, there's a very real chance her secret past will destroy her marriage. Vonnie has to figure out how to make David, her son, a part of her life, without losing Fred. But how can she keep her secret from Clay Whitefield? 

Goldie finally walked out on her husband, Jack Dippel, after years of putting up with his womanizing. She has a job, a new look, and an apartment of her own. Jack swears he's a changed man. He wants Goldie back, and their daughter, Olivia, thinks her mother should move back home.

Goldie, however, has met a new man. She wants to do what's right in God's sight, but it's hard to think straight when tall, dark, and gorgeous Van Lauer is gazing into her eyes. Lisa Leann Lambert moved to Summit View from Texas. She owns a bridal boutique and has recently added a dating service. She plans to make her shop on  Main Street the information center of the town.

Clay Whitefield has talked her into writing an advice column under the pseudonym of Aunt Ellen. It's not that Lisa Leann actually gossips; she's really just concerned about her fellow Potluck friends, bless their hearts.  She can't understand why they would be so upset about her column. After all, she's giving good advice if they'd just take it to heart. 

Evangeline Benson, or Evie, as her friends call her, has never married. It's not that she didn't want to, but that no-good, Doreen Roberts, stole Vernon Vessy right out from under her nose when they were in high school, and she never wanted another man.

Now Doreen and Vernon are divorced and Evie finally has a chance to win him back, if it wasn't for Deputy Donna, Vernon's bratty daughter. Evie's road to love is full of potholes, some of them she dug herself 

I usually prefer stories that have one main character I can follow all the way through. But each of the women in Trouble's Brewing is so real, so alive and compelling, I was pulled into the story from the first page. Linda Evans Shepherd and Eva Marie Everson have a special knack of creating characters that capture your imagination. You'll remember them long after you finish the book. All that and recipes too. I'm looking forward to the next Potluck Club story. This one is a must for your Need to Read List.

Just As I Am By Virginia Smith

Mayla Strong has purple hair, a nose stud and a labret stud below her lower lip, definitely not the kind of convert the Salliesburg Independent Christian church was used to. Mayla didn't intend to make any changes in her life. She only came to church to get her Mama to stop hassling her. But Pastor Paul was a hard man to ignore and at the end of the sermon her feet started toward the front of the church, taking the rest of her along.

While the rest of the congregation sat in a state of shock, Mama practically jogged down the aisle to prepare her wayward lamb for baptism. Even Mama wasn't prepared for Mayla's tiger stripped blouse that would show through the wet baptism robe, or the hot pink "hooker" panties her daughter wore. She hadn't raised her baby to dress like that.

Mayla knew she'd been changed that day, but she wouldn't give up her purple hair and her face jewelry, not even to please Mama. She really wanted to live for God, but she wasn't sure how to go about it. She didn't know how to pray, or how to tell others about what had happened in her life, so she just plunged in and did the best she could.  In the process, she made a lot of mistakes; like the children's church lesson she taught that scared the little darlings so much their parents wanted her barred from teaching forever.

Pastor Paul kept trying to find a place where Mayla could serve, but somehow she just couldn't fit in. Not only did her fellow church members have a hard time accepting this refugee from the wild side, her friends weren't happy with the new Mayla either.

Just As I Am is a funny, touching, and serious story of one young woman's attempt to live an obedient life. Mayla's struggles reminded me of my own spiritual failures and of the blessed assurance that God truly loves me just as I am. It will make a delightful addition to your Need to Read list.

Cowboy By Staci Stallings

Beth McCasland lost Kevin, her husband in a fatal fire. She ended up in a minimum wage job with a small daughter to support. Then one night at the diner, a man stumbles in out of the rain looking for a cup of coffee and a place to cry. She talks to him and discovered his wife has died and he's having a hard time dealing with the pain.

Beth understands all too well. She sits in the booth talking to him, even telling him about Kevin. Beth is worried about the stranger, who says his name is Timothy. She gives him her phone number and tells him if he needs someone to listen to call her. He leaves and she doesn't really expect to hear from him, but she had to do something to try to help.

Ashton Raines is an extremely well known country singer. Once music was the most important thing in his world. Then Sharon, his wife died and his world ended. People depend on him, people tell him what to do. Everywhere he goes there is someone wanting something from him. He never has time to be alone, never has time to grieve.

One night, unable to handle it any more, he just got in his car and ran away. Aston ended up in a scruffy little diner, talking to a woman who didn't know who he was, and didn't want anything from him. She gave him a plate of food, a cup of coffee and her time.

He told her about Sharon and she listened. For the first time in a long time someone listened. The only thing he didn't tell her was his name. He couldn't remember the last time someone saw him as a person, not as Ashton Raines, superstar.

He told her his name was Timothy, which was true, Timothy Ashton Raines. She gave him her phone number and said if he needed someone to listen, she'd be there. No one really listened to him anymore. He left the diner clutching the crumpled napkin with her phone number, feeling he had taken a step away from the brink of self-destruction.

Timothy did call Beth and that was the beginning of a developing friendship across the miles. It was also a relationship built on deception. What would Beth do when she learned Timothy was really Ashton Raines?

Cowboy is a story of loss and grief and of a growing love story between two people who never expected to love again. It is also a beautiful story of God's eternal love and grace. Cowboy will make a good addition to your Need to Read List.

ANY AUTHOR FEATURED

IN THE BOOK REVIEW SECTION OF THE NEWSLETTER:

You have permission to use your book review any way you please. It can be reprinted, published, used on your website etc. You also have permission to use my name if you wish.

QUOTE OF THE MONTH

Christians never meet for the last time.

RECIPE OF THE MONTH

Seven-Cup Fruit Salad

1 can Mandarin oranges

3 cups miniature marshmallows

1 carton sour cream

1 cup pineapple tidbits

1 cup coconut

Drain juice from oranges and pineapple. Combine all ingredients. Chill

Barbara

Blue Mountain Editorial Service

www.barbarawarrenbluemountainedit.com

 

 

But they that wait upon the lord shall renew their strength: they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary: and they shall walk, and not faint.

    - Isaiah 40:31 KJV

 

 

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