November 2006 Newsletter

BLUE MOUNTAIN BACKROADS

Well, the days are colder, we've had several frosts, the leaves that haven't fallen are still beautiful and in the stores it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas. Obviously it's November. We're having a fire in the fireplace now and I enjoy dozing over a good book and enjoying the special warmth of a wood fire. We live in an old farmhouse and our fireplace isn't pretty. It's brick, goes all the way to the floor with none of the fans and doors of modern fireplaces. If the electricity goes off in an ice storm I can place a cast iron pot of beans and ham on the hearth and in few hours we have a hot lunch. It works for stew and chili too. I like to decorate the wide mantle with blue-berried branches of fresh cedar and red candles in crystal holders at Christmas.

Now that the rush of summer is over I hope you all have more time to work on your writing. I'm looking forward to quiet winter days spent in front of the computer. Probably won't happen, but I can dream.

May everything you write be pure gold, and may you have a wonderful, God blessed Thanksgiving spent with your favorite people and eating your favorite foods. And may next be the year you hit the bestseller list.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

A SPECIAL WARNING

I'm not as good about backing up my work as I should be, but last Wednesday, I kept having this niggling little feeling I should back up everything on my flash drive. So late that afternoon, I did back up. At 7:30 Thursday morning I turned on my computer. It started just fine, I could hear it running, and then it stopped and a horrible smell of something burning filled my little office. The computer wouldn't start again. I took it into my favorite repair shop, and the thing had caught fire, burned all the wiring, fried everything, blew a hole in the biggest chip in my motherboard, and shot the hard drive. I had to buy a new tower, everything had to be reinstalled.

Since I had backed everything up, I didn't lose anything, but my e-mail address book was gone. Vanished, every name in it. Fortunately I keep a printed copy of my e-mail addresses. I hadn't updated it, so I did lose a few names. Cheryl Hodde sent me quite a few I needed, and between the two of us I was able to replace most of the names.

According to the computer shop, the fan (at the back of your computer, right at the top) had quit working. I do check it occasionally, but hadn't for a few days. However, I don't really think the thing had been running long enough to overheat (five seconds, tops) but whatever happened, it would have been a disaster if I hadn't had back up.

So back up those important files, your books, your research, whatever, on a flash drive, zip drive, or floppies, but get copies of everything somewhere separate from your computer. Print hard copies too, and store them in a safe place. And print out an updated list of your e-mail addresses every so often. You may never need them, but believe me, if you do need them, having them on hand will certainly ease that sick feeling in the pit of your stomach. It only took an instant for my computer to lose everything in it. Your writing can never be replaced. Take care of it and do back up.

WRITING NEWS OF THE MONTH

Kim Sawyer, Lena Nelson Dooly, Lisa Harris, and Debby Mayne, signed for a Christmas novella set called Montana Mistletoe... Sounds good and I'm looking forward to reading it. I'm familiar with their work and they're good.

Kim Sawyer's Waiting for Summer's Return was #19 for 2006's Top 20 Fiction Sellers at CBD. Kim says, "I was pretty awed by that." So am I. Congratulations, Kim, but I'm not surprised. It's a good book.

Lena Nelson Dooley's November interviews on her blog are: Diane Moody; Robert Elmer; Rachel Hauck; Linda Windsor

Check out Lena's blog for these interviews. She does great work. http://lenanelsondooley.blogspot.com -

Lena Nelson Dooley

Characters who grip your heart

Author/Editor/Speaker/Reviewer

http://www.LenaNelsonDooley.com - a free copy of one of my books every month to someone who signs my guest book. mailto:Lena@LenaNelsonDooley.com

Cherie Japp won a copy of One Small Spark by Muncy Chapman.

Linda Rondeau has published a short article, Santa's Reluctant Helper, in Adam's Media recent release of Christmas Classics.

Linda Rondeau

According to Daisy/Abundant Living for Moms

A humorous and practical devotional for moms

Proceeds to benefit Hospice

Illustrated by Kevin Scott Collier

DiAnn Mills and Rebecca Seitz are on their way to Africa. Remember to lift them up in prayer while they are gone, that they will have a safe, happy, God blessed trip.

Molly Noble Bull reports that Steeple Hill is reprinting The Winter Pearl in mass market paperback on February 1, 2007. As you know, this means that The Winter Pearl with be in every Wal Mart and other book stores all over the country in about four months, and this will get Molly's name out there for Sanctuary her September 2007 release.

Also in March 2007, Molly's short story, "The Day God Walked Me Home From School" will come out as part of an anthology titled Scriptures to Live By, by Aaron Chambers.

Molly says, I really feel blessed of the Lord because He is the one that made this all happen, and I give Him all the honor and glory.

Barbara says: "I've read The Winter Pearl and it's good. Congratulations Molly. Proud of you."

Patty Smith Hall recently sold her article 'Love in a Mason Jar' to Guidepost magazine. It will be featured in the Comfort Foods section of the March, 2007 issue. Love that title. Way to go, Patty.

WRITING TIP OF THE MONTH

Characters 4 (background)

There are many things that influence the way your characters behave. That's why it is important to create a background for them. You don't need a lot, just a touch to give the reader knowledge of what has caused the character to be the way they are. Some things to consider are:

Environment: A character raised in the city may be street wise, savvy about city life, but be at loss if placed in a rural area. On the other hand, a person with a rural background will be at a big disadvantage in placed in a large city. Take that character out of familiar territory and place him where he doesn't understand what is going on and it will affect the way he behaves.

Upbringing: a person who grows up in an abusive home will behave differently from one who was brought up in a loving home.

Health: A person who suffers from a serious health problem reacts differently and behaves differently from one who is healthy. A handicapped person has problems to deal with that non-handicapped people don't understand.

I am deaf. With strong hearing aids, I can manage well enough, but I don't always hear everything and I've had to adapt to fit my circumstances. My hearing loss affects the way I behave in public. It affects my daily life. I react differently than a person would who has normal hearing.

Sex:  Like it or not, men and women are different. We react differently and think differently. A man and a woman can be involved in the same situation but have an entirely different view of that happened.

Personality Traits:  Some people are outgoing and confident. Others are shy and retiring. Some are filled with anger, some are ambitious while others prefer a quiet life. (Some are white water, others are a placid pool)

Social Standing: A person who grew up in a prosperous, powerful family will have a different outlook on life than a person who grew up in a poor family and had to make every penny count. A person who grew up going to church will see religion differently from a person who seldom attended.

So, is you're character a young woman, pampered, rich, a little spoiled, or a young woman who worked nights in a grocery store during her senior year in high school to earn money to pay her graduation expenses?

Have you created a man who failed at every thing he's done and is finally beginning to achieve a little success? Or did he inherit his wealth?

Is your main character a middle-aged woman who lived in a city all her life and is now being forced to live on a farm?

Background helps shape your character and determines the way he sees the world and the way he reacts in any given situation. So spend a little time thinking about this character you have created. What's in her background that determines the way she reacts to life?

QUOTE OF THE MONTH

Morality, like art, consists in drawing a line somewhere.

RECIPE OF THE MONTH

SOMBRERO DIP

Two cans of pinto beans, cooked, drained and mashed
1 lb ground beef, browned
1 onion chopped and sautéed with beef
1 Tbsp. Chili powder
1 can chopped green chilies
1 cup grated cheese
1 16 oz jar of Taco sauce.

Mix all and put in Crockpot to keep warm. Serve with tortilla chips.

Barbara

Blue Mountain Editorial Service

www.barbarawarrenbluemountainedit.com

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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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