Drop by and read Author Linda Ford, one of my fellow Love Inspired Authors explain why she loves reading AND WRITING romance!
Pink Heart Society Blog
Saturday-Author Linda Ford Blogs about Romance
Author Donna Fletcher Crow & Her Take on Strong Women
This is Author Donna Fletcher Crow’s maiden voyage into Blogging! So give her a warm welcome. Here’s Donna on Strong Women:
“I love the title of this blog because Strong Women are so important for life and for stories. I believe women have always had to be strong for civilization to survive, but I have been in this business long enough (30 years) to remember when strength was not the primary characteristic portrayed by fictional women. Heroines were supposed to be sweet and let the hero rescue them. They were also a lot younger than today’s more mature heroines. In the early 80’s a nineteen-year-old heroine was quite acceptable for an adult romance, although even then I found them hard to identify with.
Strong women are not only more true to life and more interesting to read about they are also far easier to write about. I made that mistake initially when writing A VERY PRIVATE GRAVE, book one in my Monastery Murders series. Felicity Howard, my American heroine, is studying at a theological college run by monks in a monastery in Yorkshire when her favorite monk is murdered. Because much of the story (minus the murder) is modeled on my own daughter’s experience I started out with a sweet, agreeable Felicity. It didn’t take me long to realize this wasn’t working.
Felicity is now rash, headstrong and stubborn. (And, yes, those qualities can be attributed to my daughter, too.) Felicity’s rashness gets her into many exciting and even dangerous scrapes running across northern England and Scotland chasing and being chased by murderers. Only a strong woman could survive those escapades with humor and grace.
But perhaps most important is the fact that Felicity’s best characteristics are also her worst characteristics and that gives my character lots of room to grow.
Donna Fletcher Crow is the author of 35 books, mostly novels of the history of British Christianity, springing from her lifelong ardent Anglophilia. She and her husband live in Boise, Idaho. They have 4 adult children and 10 young grandchildren. Their daughter is married to a Church of England priest who serves as research assistant for The Monastery Murders.
Praise for A Very Private Grave:
“History and mystery and murders most foul keep the pages turning. . . A fascinating read.”
–Liz Curtis Higgs, bestelling author of Thorn in My Heart
To learn more about The Monastery Murders: http://www.donnafletchercrow.com/
To follow Donna: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Donna-Fletcher-Crow-Novelist-of-British-History/355123098656?ref=ts
To pre-order A Very Private Grave, UK June release: http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=A+Very+Private+Grave&x=16&y=18
To pre-order A Very Private Grave, US Sept. release: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_6_12?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=a+very+private+grave&sprefix=a+very+priva
For Donna’s backlist: http://www.amazon.com/Donna-Fletcher-Crow/e/B000APWGI4/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1271704088&sr=1-2-ent
I’m so happy that Donna chose my blog for her debut in blogging. If you want to hear something sweet to the ear, drop by her delightful website and listen to the Gregorian chant. Lovely. Thanks so much, Donna. Hope you sell GAZILLIONS!”–Lyn
First Page of Her Forever Family-Author Mae Nunn
Todays First Page is from Her Forever Family by Author Mae Nunn:
“Doctor Alison Stone dangled five hundred feet above the limestone canyons of Big Bend National Park, her harness secured to the bottom of a Bell Ranger helicopter. The roar from the engines was deafening, but with countless long line exercises to her credit Ali’s concern was not for the din from the ship overhead but instead for the boy who’d been discovered in the small clearing below. As they approached she kept her eyes on the motionless figure praying this mission would end in a patient rescue and not a victim recovery. Her heartbeat was normal, her hands steady where they clutched the basket litter to secure it in the sixty mile per hour wind wash from the props. She had complete faith in her crew, certain Harry and Sid would deposit her gently on the rocky ledge and then return when she called for pick up.
The search for fifteen-year-old Ethan Lamar had gone on for three days. Three days. Seventy two hours with the diamondbacks, bobcats and coyotes was a minor survival exercise for a normal hiker. For a boy with Aspergers Syndrome, being without supervision could be a death sentence. A tragic outcome she knew only too well.”
Mae Nunn
Her Forever Family, April 2010
A Season for Family, November 2010
www.MaeNunn.com
www.LoveInspiredAuthors.com
How It Works-Being an Author-How an Editor Buys a Manuscript
Some of you probably have never thought of this. But exactly how does an author sell a manuscript or idea for a book to an editor at a publishing house? If the writer is unpublished, the manuscript of the book must be complete. Starting a book and finishing a book are two very different goals. Many start; fewer finish.
If the writer has already sold a book for publication, then the writer sells “on proposal.” A proposal provides the prospective editor with the information that she/he will need to decide if the house wants to “acquire” the novel. Usually, the proposal includes a synopsis (an explanation of the characters and plot) and 1-3 chapters of the beginning of the novel. And in most cases, the editor must convince a senior editor or an editorial committee to acquire said proposal. (In most cases, an agent submits the manuscript or proposal. Most editors will not work directly with authors.)
I can’t give a complete proposal here, but I can give you just the beginning of my latest. This is just the introduction:
“Overview of Three Quaker Brides series, 1819-1865
Strong Women, Brave Stories
By Lyn Cote
In the years during the dramatic events in Texas 1821-1847 (The Texas Revolution and Mexican-American War), a quiet revolution was being fought in the east, primarily in Ohio and Pennsylvania. Abolitionists began the Underground Railroad (Levi Coffin, an Ohioan is called the Father of the Underground Railroad.) and used it as a way to lead Negro slaves north to freedom in Canada. Quakers were the group most involved in this silent insurrection and also in the cause of freeing women from unequal laws. Unfortunately at this time, women as well as blacks were thought inferior. Laws did not permit women to vote and prevented married women from owning property, among many others inequities that now seem far-fetched and an affront to God’s view of the dignity of women as co-heirs of salvation.
Three heroines, Blessing and her daughters Honor and Faith, each face new challenges in these years and in the causes of freedom. Each story is rich with the three elements of my brand, Strong Women, Brave Stories. First, each story sets my heroine and her hero dead center in the important winds of change in their period in history. Each story presents a heroine who is ahead of the prevailing prejudices of her time and a passionate participant, unwilling to sit on the sidelines. Each story is also filled with a multi-cultural cast of characters. And each story tells a unique romance of a strong woman finding the man she can love above all others and who will treasure her for her strengths, not in spite of them.”
What do you think? Will my editor say aye or nay?–Lyn
Next Tuesday: Final How It Works-Being an Author–The Stages a Book Goes through before the Bookstore!
Book Monday-Author Judy Baer’s The Cinderella List
The Book on this Monday is a romantic comedy The Cinderella List by a great lady, Author Judy Baer. See what you think!
Blurb:
Since she was a child, Marlo Mayfield has kept a list of traits her Prince Charming must possess. After a series of bad relationships, Marlo’s beginning to lose hope that her ideal man exists. But when she caters a party for Jake Hammond, Marlo realizes he could be the man she’s been waiting for. There’s only one problem: Jake is super wealthy, and Marlo’s not sure she fits into his blue-blooded world. But Jake is determined to show Marlo that with a little faith and a lot of love, he just might be the one.
First Page:
“Mr. Hammond was very explicit that he wanted us there on time. Successful men are like that.” The catering van took a right turn so sharply that Marlo Mayfield grabbed the handle above her door and hung on tightly. Marlo and her business partner, Lucy Morten, rushed to set up tonight’s catering job.
“Stop signs are not a suggestion, Lucy. They are an order.” Dressed in a pale blue blouse, with a Dining with Divas logo on it, Marlo tentatively let go of the handle and hoped for the best.
She studied the neighborhood through which they were driving. Lucy was right about their client’s success. No one lived in a neighborhood like this without a thriving business, a spot on a professional sports team or a hefty trust fund.
They drove up to a huge, castlelike English Tudor home. Sloping lawns led away from the house toward a maze of low shrubbery and a man-made pond. Statuary fountains of maidens carrying jugs were pouring water into the pool. There were seating-area vignettes scattered around the velvety grass, teak chairs and tables with brightly colored umbrellas and wrought-iron sets decorated with vases of flowers.
This was her dream home, Marlo marveled, the one she’d drawn sketches of in the backs of her notebooks as a child. Of course, in her drawings, a knight in shining armor always stood guard at the front gate. And she’d always depicted herself entering at the front of the house, not the service entrance, where they were headed.
“Are we serving outside? The lawn looks like a movie set.” Marlo expected F. Scott Fitzgerald’s Gatsby and his gang to stroll by any moment.
“No. The party is on the main floor of the house. Not every yard is a lawn ornament graveyard like yours,” Lucy commented absently.
Marlo had inherited a plaster donkey pulling a cart full of fake geraniums, and a windmill that tipped over in every breeze, from her great-aunt Tildy, who didn’t like them well enough to leave them in her own yard.”
To purchase, drop by http://www.eharlequin.com/storeitem.html?iid=21323&cid=236
Author Mae Nunn & Her Mama’s Bravery
My guest today is a great gal (I don’t call every woman a “gal.” To me that means, a good-hearted woman who always has a smile for everybody.”) I love this photo of her sitting in a field of Texas bluebonnets. She’s a Texas gal you see. GRIN
So today’s great gal guest is Author Mae Nunn. Here’s Mae:
“Mama was my spiritual guide. She brought me up to love Jesus and she prayed for me to return when I occasionally strayed from His will in my twenties and thirties. About a dozen years ago when I was writing my first book she called me one weekend to see what I was up to. Since Saturday was my only full day to write I said, “I’m working on my book, like always.” Mama shocked me by asking, “Are you writing filth?” After I picked my jaw up off the floor I grinned and answered, “No, Mama, I’m not writing filth. I could! I certainly know all the words. But I promise I won’t ever publish anything that will offend you.” She seemed satisfied and closed the subject by saying, “Well, I just had to ask to be sure.” I sold my first book in 2003 just a few months before my precious mama went home to be with our Lord. I’m grateful that she held me accountable for the words I was writing and I will always be thankful to God that she bravely asked the question that was worrying her heart.
Some form of my mama’s bravery shows up in every single one of my heroines, whether it’s asking the tough questions, taking a leap of faith or going it alone if that’s what God requires. In Her Forever Family you’ll cry and cheer for Doctor Alison Stone, a survivor of the most heinous of abusive backgrounds. Instead of stifling the brutal memories, Ali studied the psychology of abuse so she could help children overcome their victimization and let God take what was intended for evil and use it for His glory. I know you will enjoy meeting Ali, a woman so brave her friends call her The Rock! Until we meet again, let your light shine!”–Mae
That’s a wonderful story about your mama, Mae. I hope you’ll all seek out more about Mae and her stories,Her Forever Family, April 2010
A Season for Family, November 2010 at
www.MaeNunn.com
www.LoveInspiredAuthors.com
Did your mama ever ask you a question that stuck in your mind?–Lyn
First Page of Deliver Us From Evil–Author Robin Carroll
First Page of Deliver Us From Evil:
Where was backup?
Roark Holland squinted past the harsh streetlight glare to the vehicle that’d arrived only minutes ago. A van parked in a darkened part of the street. Parked at the curb of the old building housing the Pugsley family in Witness Protection. The family Roark needed to move to another safe house.
The family’s cover had been blown. With the Pugsley’s whereabouts known, their enemy would seek the total annihilation of anyone who could identify them, namely Mr. Pugsley.
Roark glanced in his rearview mirror. Still no team.
A light flipped on inside the van, just for a fraction of a second. But in that heartbeat, Roark took in the black jackets. The guns.
Grabbing his Beretta 98 in one hand, he pressed the transmit button on his radio with his other. “Demott, we have movement on the street. Where’s my backup?” He wasn’t prepared to go in alone—no tactical equipment, no comm, no extra ammo.
“Stay put, Holland. Team’s ETA, less than five minutes.”
The van door slid open.
“No time to wait. I’m going in.” Roark’s grip tightened on the Beretta.
Three men, decked out in black, stepped onto the road.
“Wait, Holland. Don’t go in without backup. That’s an order.”
But he could control the situation. “There’s three of them. No time.” Roark turned off the radio and slipped it into his coat pocket, eased open the door, and stepped onto pavement.
Author website: www.robincaroll.com
Deliver Us From Evil fan page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Deliver-Us-From-Evil-Fan-Page/251751772974
Deliver Us From Evil webpage: http://www.robincaroll.com/deliverusfromevil.html
Deliver Us From Evil (Feb ’10, B&H Publishing) “The kind of novel ‘Ripped from the headlines’ was meant to describe. Compelling.”–James Scott Bell, author of Deceived and Try Fear
Dead Air (March ’10, Steeple Hill Suspense) Fear No Evil (Aug ’10, B&H Publishing)
New Feature–First Pages
Hi Friends!
Starting tomorrow, I’m adding a new feature which will come EVERY WEDNESDAY!
I’m going to post just–JUST–the first page of a current inspirational novel.
If you’re like me, I often don’t have time to read an excerpt on a website, but I always have time for the first page.
And if you think about it, that’s about as much as you read of a book–in a bookstore aisle, looking over possible purchases.
I hope you enjoy this and find it beneficial when you’re looking for something good to read!
Drop by every Wednesday, starting tomorrow and take time to preview a book, you might find compelling enough to buy!
Also leave a comment if you like what you read. Authors take a lot of hits and a kind word is always appreciated.
Book Monday-Author Irene Hannon & In Harm’s Way
My guest today is Author Irene Hannon and her latest book is In Harm’s Way. I’ll be interested–What do you think of Irene’s choice?
Here’s Irene:
Just Say No
Early in my writing career, before the inspirational market took off, trying to sell romances without sex scenes was tough. Publishers were demanding more and more explicit romantic encounters, many of which happened outside marriage, and that’s not what I wrote.
On the other hand, I wanted to sell a book.
As time went by, I began to think that compromising my principles might be the only way I would become a published author.
I was more convinced of that than ever when I submitted one of my novels to a well-known publisher and got a serious nibble. The editor liked the story, liked the characters, liked the writing—but there was one little problem.
No sex scenes.
She sent me a letter, pointing out places in the manuscript where sex scenes could be inserted, and went on to say that if I added a few she’d love to take another look.
In other words, the book was fine as it was—except for the lack of sex. Put that in, and I was pretty much assured a sale.
Every writer who aspires to see his or her work in print knows how tempting it is to say yes to any offer. Writers have been known to make any requested changes, practically give their books away, or even go the vanity publishing route just to hold that printed volume in their hands. I was no different.
But I couldn’t compromise my principles. No matter how much I wanted that sale, the price was too high. If I did what the editor asked, I’d end up ashamed of the book. I’d know that the story had been perfectly fine before the sex scenes, and that I’d added them just to satisfy a boilerplate requirement. To me, this was gratuitous sex, plain and simple. And outside of marriage to boot.
So I said no. And resumed my search for a publisher.
It took a few years, but eventually I found one. And I sold that book—without the sex scenes. More than two dozen books later, I’m still selling books without sex.
I tell this story not to toot my own horn, but to encourage other writers to stick to their principles, despite the lure of publication. You won’t be sorry.
I’ll illustrate this with one final example. A few years after my moment of truth, I ran into a well-known inspirational author at an airport while we were waiting for our flights after a conference. We’d never met, and I was still very much a newbie. We chatted about our publication history, and she mentioned that early in her career, she’d tailored a number of books to the secular market (i.e., included sex scenes) and that she had always regretted doing that.
I’m glad I don’t share that regret. And I continue to believe that good writing will win out in the end. Maybe not in our time—but in God’s. Patience, hard work and integrity really do pay off.
RITA-award winner Irene Hannon is the author of more than 30 novels, including the bestselling Heroes of Quantico suspense series. A four-time RITA finalist (Book 2 in her Quantico series, An Eye For An Eye, is a current finalist), she has also been honored with a Reviewers’ Choice award from RT BOOKreviews magazine and a HOLT medallion. Her latest book, In Harm’s Way, has just been released. For more information, check out her website, www.irenehannon.com.
So did she make the right decision?–Lyn
Author Margaret Daley & Ruth
My guest today is Author Margaret Daley who has written over 60 books! Here’s the scoop about her latest and how her heroine reminds her of Ruth. Here’s Margaret:
“Alexa Michaels, the heroine in Love Lessons, my April Love Inspired book, is young and less than a year away from getting her teaching degree. But for her to even be a teacher meant she’d had to go against her father’s wishes. Her dad was a doctor and wanted her to follow in his footsteps. She couldn’t stand the sight of blood, so didn’t see how she could become a doctor. Besides, all her life she’d wanted to be a teacher. She’d always tried to please her father, but in this case she just couldn’t. Alexa ended up leaving home to pursue her dream, moving hundred of miles away and paying for her own way to college, which took longer for her to get her degree. But to her, she had done what she felt she was meant to do even if it took almost two years longer than if she’d let her father pay for her schooling and had gone to college full-time. It was important to her to do what her heart desired.”
Do you know a woman who had to fight the odds to do what she felt was her destiny? In the Bible I think of Ruth who left her country to follow her mother-in-law to a place where she was a foreigner. Life for her was a series of unfamiliar situations that couldn’t have made her feel confident, and yet she stayed with Naomi and fulfilled her destiny.”–Margaret
Here is more about Margaret and her books.
Cowboy Protector, Love Inspired Suspense, March 2010
Gold in the Fire/Light in the Storm, Love Inspired Classic, March 2010
http://www.margaretdaley.com
http://margaretdaley.blogspot.com