DO YOU EAT WHAT YOU WRITE?

I have a question for writers: Do you eat what you write?

I realize that's a strange question, but in the interest of research I often drink or eat or at least sample what my characters are consuming. I do so as part of character development. I want each of my fictional people to have individual likes and tastes.

Years ago, I discovered all my heroines drove Ford Mustangs. I drive a Ford Mustang (I'm on my fourth). A rookie mistake is to give your protagonist all your preferences, so I studied other makes of vehicles to add variety to my writing. It's a little thing, but readers notice. My latest heroine (who is interested in reducing her carbon footprint) drives a Chevy Volt.

Same with food, music, shows, furniture, and clothes. I had to listen to or watch genres outside my comfort zone. I browsed magazines for photos of the latest in people and home fashions. And I tried regional and different cuisines to understand their appeal to my characters.

This morning, my heroine made a pitcher of sweet tea. Typically I drink mine unsweetened, but to get in the writer's zone I sweetened a glass of tea and drank it sweet. I totally get the appeal (and the calories). Now I can describe its taste.

I used to hate coffee and so did my heroines. But that's not realistic. The majority of people in the United States drink coffee. I sampled coffee a few different ways and a few different brews and now I drink coffee! I discovered I like it a little sweet and with half-and-half.

In trying to expand my characters' individual tastes and preferences, I've expanded mine, too. 

Crossing Romance Genres

Here's a question for readers. How do you feel when an author suddenly shifts to a different genre? I recently moved away from romantic suspense novels to sweet, contemporary romance novels and inspirational short stories. Now I've written my first historical romance, a novella titled THE RANCHER'S SPECIAL DELIVERY. Why?

 

Writers love to write. Otherwise, we'd have a different profession. To improve as writers, we need to stretch our creative muscles and go out of our comfort zone to try new genres. If I'm not growing as a writer, I should retire. Writing a historical (No, it's not an historical! I don't live in England.) provided new challenges, especially in research. I had to study train routes, dress styles, climate, and language from a century + ago. Avoiding anachronisms in dialog was the biggest challenge for me. I couldn't have my characters chatting in modern language using expressions that didn't exist at the time.

 

But I wonder if you as a reader get a bait-and-switch feeling when authors try new genres. If you purchase THE RANCHER'S SPECIAL DELIVERY, will you feel hoodwinked because your last Cheryl Norman book was a contemporary?

 

As a reader, I don't mind. I recall reading SKIPPING CHRISTMAS, a total departure for John Grisham from his legal suspense novels. Frankly, his holiday story delighted me. Yes, it was a different genre, but the cover art and tag line clued me in that this was a different John Grisham story. Not that I'm comparing myself to the talented Mr. Grisham! His foray into a new genre proved successful, judging from book sales and later a movie version (CHRISTMAS WITH THE KRANKS).

 

Some authors use pseudonyms for different genres, like Jayne Ann Krentz/Amanda Quick/Jayne Castle or the late Evan Hunter/Ed McBain. I used a pseudonym when I wrote erotic romance fiction. But my Cheryl Norman brand, whether it's a suspense or an inspirational, is the same. I write about characters learning lessons. THE RANCHER'S SPECIAL DELIVERY continues this theme in 1899 Colorado. It's a mail-order bride story, and I loved writing it.

 

 

THE RANCHER'S SPECIAL DELIVERY is a June release from Highland Press, both as a novella download or as part of the anthology HEARTS OF THE WEST, which will be available in both electronic and print versions. Let me know what you think.

Movie Talk

An author posted the question on Facebook re: books made into motion pictures. Are there any movies that you enjoyed more than the book upon which it was based? My first thought was Doctor Zhivago. I tried reading Pasternak's novel in college while studying Russian lit. Not at all readable. I made it through One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich, Anna Karenina, and Crime and Punishment just fine. But the movie Doctor Zhivago captured the horror of war, the ruthlessness of Lara's husband, the incredible Russian scenery, and the emotional battle within a man in love with two women. The book did not, at least not for me.

Then there are motion pictures that borrow the title of a book and little else, like Ian Fleming's The Spy Who Loved Me. I enjoyed the book, but except for the James Bond character, it bore no resemblance to the movie. Alas, the movie was more entertaining. Then there's Jean Shepherd's In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash, which is a delightful read (not a novel. More of a collection of vignettes from Shepherd's childhood) but not quite as entertaining as its film version, A Christmas Story. Who doesn't enjoy A Christmas Story, with Ralphie's quest for the ultimate boy's Christmas present, a Red Ryder BB gun?

I could write a post every day about movies that fail to do the book justice, but that's been done to death. Borrowing from my colleague's question, is there a film you thought was an improvement on the book?

Small Town Holiday Stories

I'm a sucker for corny holiday stories. When George Bailey races through the snowy Christmas Eve to the town square of Bedford Falls yelling "Merry Christmas, Mr. Potter" I choke up. It's a Wonderful Life is a wonderful lesson in appreciating what we have.

Shopping for books, I'm drawn to cover art featuring a snow-covered town square decorated for Christmas. During November and December, my default channel on my TV is Hallmark because the network shows holiday films every day. Some I've watched a dozen times, like November Christmas, and I still boo hoo when the town pulls out all the stops to move up the calendar for a leukemia-stricken little girl (Spoiler alert: She lives. I couldn't watch it if she didn't).

Sure, good holiday stories are set in large cities, too, none better than Miracle on 34th Street. My first trip to the Big Apple included a shopping trip to the Macy's on 34th. Of course. Unfortunately, it was August and St. Nicholas wasn't there yet. Most of my favorites, though, take place in small towns.

My writing colleagues (and now my good friends!) and I put together an anthology of inspirational stories featuring feel-good Christmas stories set in small, Southern towns. Over the next few days, we'll give you a tour of each story's community.

We believe Christmas Blessings makes a good gift for the readers on your list. You may enjoy our previous anthology, The Heart of Christmas. The set would make a doubly good gift. Be sure to enter the giveaway to win a free copy of The Heart of Christmas. You can enter every day!

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Political Correctness in Writing

If you write contemporary fiction, this post is for you. If you write only historical fiction, please ignore. 

A colleague recently asked me about the blond vs. blonde conundrum. While I've addressed this on The Grammar Cop (Blonde is slang, used as a noun; blond is an adjective), it occurs to me the issue resolves itself with political correctness. No longer do we refer to females as stewardesses, waitresses, or actresses. They are flight attendants, servers, and actors, same as their male counterparts.Your will has a personal representative, not an executrix or executor. 

Blonde is defined as a woman who has blond hair. It's slang for a sexy or glamorous woman with blond hair. There is no word for a man who has blond hair, so why do we need "blonde?" Short answer: We don't. Lose it.

Please don't buy into the explanation that women have blonde hair while men have blond hair, at least if you live in the United States. While the "e" denotes gender in some languages, it doesn't apply to English. I have a daughter named Lynn. Not Lynne. And she's as feminine as any woman I know. My nickname is Cheri (Originally French), not Cherie. I am a female, but I live in America. Gender distinctions are outmoded.

(Too bad Starbucks didn't get that message. They refer to their light roast coffee as "Blonde Roast." But I overlook the name since it's my favorite brew.)

Other politically incorrect or obsolete terms include master bedroom. It's now owner's bedroom. Master is mindful of serfdom and slavery. Again, obsolete. 

If you use MS Word, enable your spelling and grammar review programs (under Options). Any outdated or insensitive word or phrase should be underlined for your attention.

Happy writing, authors (no more authoresses!).

SPRINGING INTO A NEW SERIES

Hi folks!

It's spring. Finally! I've finished writing the first two books in my Drake Springs category romance series. I've even finished edits on the first, RETURN TO DRAKE SPRINGS, and it's scheduled for an October release. The line Boutique Collection ~ Next Door is eBook only, available in all popular formats for your reading device. 

I introduced my heroine in RECLAIM MY LIFE when she helped the sheriff and his love interest treat a poisoned golden retriever. Little did I know this minor, walk-on role would later lead to a starring role in a future book!

Here's the blurb for RETURN TO DRAKE SPRINGS.

      Lance George debates his decision to return to his hometown, but the price is right on the abandoned veterinary hospital he hopes to buy. He’s saved his money to open his practice by living frugally and purchasing wisely. There’s no room in his life for wasteful spending. His alcoholic mother squandered everything she had when he was growing up, leaving him with an obsessive motivation to achieve financial security.

      Iris Porter is unaware that she broke Lance’s heart in high school. She’s too busy trying to earn a living in a tough economy. She hopes to reclaim her old job as a veterinary assistant when Lance reopens the town’s only animal clinic. Popular and friendly, Iris is known to be generous to a fault. When a friend’s baby is stricken with leukemia, she organizes fundraisers and enlists Lance’s help.

      Lance’s feelings for Iris rekindle when he realizes how much she’s changed. The high school snob is at odds with the caring, sensitive woman who wants to help a family in need. But can he reconcile Iris’s generous spirit with his overpowering need for penny pinching? 

The fun in writing a series is the abundance of characters and stories that emerge with each book. In Book 2, FOSTER CARE, I hint at a couple of potential romances that I feature later in the series. As soon as I turn in Book 2, I can begin A DOSE OF ROMANCE, Book 3. Stay tuned!

The Spirit of Giving

During this season, we sometimes lose our way. Parties, gift buying, family stress, all interfere with the joy of the spirit of the season. Take time for yourself, for quiet reflection. Take a moment during shopping trips to help someone struggling. 

It may surprise you (unless you're a writer) to learn most writers earn little from their writing. So why do we write? Here's an example of the joy that comes simply from knowing something I wrote touched another's life.

During my struggle with breast cancer treatment, I wrote RECIPES FOR RECOVERY and self-published it for an affordable price just so I could help other patients deal with the nutrition challenges of serious illness. I've given away many copies. My profit margin is tiny, but the rewards are great. People buy it to give as get-well gifts, too. One writer friend asked me to send a copy to a friend's friend. Both she and I received thank-yous from the woman, a two time survivor (colon cancer and leukemia). She wrote:

Thank you for the cookbook and for your dedication to inspire cancer patients like me. It is so helpful to have friends who care when my energy is so low.

This is why I wrote RECIPES FOR RECOVERY. This is why I write. I feel blessed to have my writing impact others in a positive way.

Remember this post as you rush through the holidays. There is no joy like the joy that comes from doing for others. Many blessings to you.

NaNoWriMo

I've tried National Novel Writing Month challenges before, but this is the first year I successfully finished the draft of a book in one month. Even taking off for Thanksgiving (I'm the family cook) didn't deter me. Have any of you writers written a book via the NaNoWriMo challenge? Some famous fiction began life as a NaNoWriMo draft, including WATER FOR ELEPHANTS, a favorite read. 

Now it's December and time to decorate and send cards. And time to take a short break from writing!

It's October!

October is a special month for me. It holds good and sad memories (both my parents died in October). My husband and I moved into our first house in October, and Halloween--my favorite holiday because it brings out my inner child--is in October. Many years we held costume parties at Halloween. Oh, what fun.

Our first Halloween party.

 

For many, depending on where you live, October marks autumn, with colorful leaf changing and fall festivals, pumpkins and colorful gourds, and football games. I live in Florida, where it's still summer weather, but we do have some fall color. And football is celebrated everywhere and on every level, from high school to professional teams.

My alma mater--UL Cardinals

October is Breast Cancer Awareness month, too. While I've always supported the pink movement, I took a more personal interest when I battled the disease in 2010. Now I'm celebrating three and a half years as a breast cancer survivor.

I urge you to celebrate October. Host or attend a tailgate party. Support the local school's fall festival. Donate to one of the breast cancer research causes and wear pink. Schedule your mammogram if you haven't done so. Dress up in a fun costume for Halloween. Bake chocolate cupcakes with orange frosting--or orange cupcakes with chocolate frosting.

Happy autumn!

Now I must get back to writing my latest Drake Springs romance, Return to Drake Springs.

A CHANGE IN DIRECTION

I have exciting news. I've changed directions, or rather my writing has. I enjoy romantic suspense and crime dramas, but lately I've yearned for a good romance story without the blood and terror.

It began a few years ago. I wrote two sweet romance novellas for the ROMANCE ON ROUTE 66 anthology. It was fun, and readers gave me encouraging feedback. Then I tried inspirational romance for a Christmas anthology, a short story titled The Christmas Prayer. I like inspirational romance, but I'm more comfortable with the latitude offered by "sweet" romance. The final trigger to my career shift came when Debbie Macomber's Cedar Cove series aired this summer on the Hallmark Channel. I love it, and loved those books. I want to write those kind of stories.

I already have the town, Drake Springs, Florida, in fictional Foster County. The town is full of interesting characters, some quirky, all endearing. I approached my publisher with the series idea, and she urged me to write, write, write. Apparently readers are hungry for series.

So if you've been to Drake Springs via my romantic suspense novels RECLAIM MY LIFE or REBUILD MY WORLD, or my short story VEILED THREAT, welcome back. Expect to see many more stories. If you haven't read those titles, you don't need to. Each book stands alone, and you'll soon feel right at home in Foster County, Florida.

Now, back to the keyboard . . .

The Quintessential Flapper

This week, when I heard that the talented Mindy McCready had killed herself after a troubled career and personal life, I was reminded of other troubled celebrities who met a tragic end. Zelda Fitzgerald immediately came to mind.

Born in 1900, she was the baby of the family and used to spoiling and attention. She never outgrew her need for attention, it seems.

In the 1920s, when Zelda Sayre married the newly published novelist F. Scott Fitzgerald, she was the epitome of post-war hedonism. Dressed in the latest style with her hair bobbed and her skirts shortened, she was the quintessential flapper. Her chaotic and fast-lane living was the stuff of tabloids, and the journalists of the day never ran out of fodder. The Fitzgeralds left damage wherever they went. They drank to excess, partied and flirted, publicly quarreled, and danced on tabletops. The antics of Lindsey Lohan or Britney Spears don't hold a candle to the outrageous Zelda Fitzgerald.

By the mid-twenties, she was living abroad with her husband, part of the Lost Generation. By the great depression, she'd experienced her own and descended into mental illness. She died when the hospital in which she was institutionalized burned.

But the fictional Zelda, the one we read in the persona of Daisy Buchanan (and other Fitzgerald heroines), endures, leaving a trail of collateral damage. 

What makes a woman who craves the spotlight self-distruct? It's tragic and senseless. Sadly, as with Mindy McCready, it happens still.
 

WHY GROUNDHOG DAY WORKS

It's Groundhog Day, and what better way to celebrate than by watching the movie, Groundhog Day?

This story (written by Danny Rubin and Harold Ramis), about a conceited weatherman who relives the same day over and over until he gets it right, works for the same reason A Christmas Carol works. Both are stories of redemption. That's right. I'm putting Rubin and Ramis in the same class as Charles Dickens, and I suspect Dickens had a strong influence on their writing.

Groundhog Day is Phil Connor's story. Much like Scrooge, Phil scorns tradition and has little compassion. He's an insufferable jerk.
(spoiler alert!) At first he struggles with his curse of reliving the same day, even resorting to several suicide attempts. He uses what he learns about people to manipulate them and to score points with Rita.

When Rita suggests he consider the curse a gift, he starts to take advantage of reliving the same day as an opportunity to improve himself. He helps others avoid calamities he witnesses, and he learns ice sculpting and piano playing. Most of all, he learns to put others' needs first. We see the homeless man on the sidewalk Phil ignores later sitting at a lunch counter with Phil, eating hot soup. We all cheer at the reformed Phil, the man Rita can love. And his love for her finally breaks the spell.

If you've missed this movie, watch it. It's twenty years old but timeless.

Happy Groundhog Day!

The Next Big Thing!

Many thanks to Pam Ripling for adding me to her blog hop. Pam is a multi-published, multi-talented lady. She designed cover art for my first four novels (Including the Quasar finalist Full Moon Honeymoon) and first two cookbooks. We were two of the launch authors (She wrote as Anne Carter) in 2001 for Wings ePress and have stayed friends and colleagues since.

I'll admit I'm a blog hop virgin. As I understand it, I follow her format and answer a few questions. Then I'll name a few of my author friends and invite them to join in the fun. Here goes!

What is your working title of your book (or story)?

Running Out of Time is the title of my May, 2013, release from Turquoise Morning Press. It's a time travel, which is a bit of a departure for me. I wrote a novella (Twilight Time) for the Romance on Route 66 anthology (and now a single release) and had so much fun with it, I decided to write another, longer story. Time travel is fun!

What genre does your book fall under?

Running Out of Time is a paranormal romance. There's a bit of intrigue, a bit of magic, and a lot of romance.

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

It's always fun to cast my characters. I can see Miley Cyrus (especially with her new look) as my heroine and Josh Hutcherson as my hero.

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

An elderly woman finds the perfect mate for her son...fifty years too late!

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

My publisher is Turquoise Morning Press, which was founded by author Maddie James. TMP published Rebuild My World, the third in my Mustang Sally series that began life with Medallion Press.

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

About ten weeks, which is fast for me. I completely rewrote it last year because I wasn't happy with the original version.

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

Hmm. Most time travels jump back or forward more than fifty years, like the film Kate and Leopold. I was told there wasn't a market for a 1960s setting, but then I read about "Boomer lit" and decided I would try the older reader demographic. So if you're into retro, check out Running Out of Time. Of course, the younger readers should enjoy my twenty-one year old characters.

Who or what inspired you to write this book?

My husband. He told me stories of his active duty in Germany in the 1960s while serving in the U.S. Army. He brought out old slides and photos to help with my research. With his help, I was able to nail the setting--West Germany in 1963.

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

While time travel stories are fantasy (deliberate anachronisms), they are educational, too. Readers interested in history and life during the Cold War should find Running Out of Time suitable reading. Also, it's tame enough for young adult readers.


Check out these talented authors I’m inviting to the blog hop party. I hope they’ll join in the fun and become part of The Next Big Thing!

Judith Leigh--author of inspirational romance and sweet romance (and my co-author: Romance on Route 66), including her latest story The Christmas Cake.

Maddie James--author of contemporary romance, including her latest, Broken.

Jan Scarbrough--author of contemporary romance, including her holiday novella, Santa's Kiss.

Dolores J. Wilson--author of Southern humor, romance, mystery, and women's fiction (as D.J. Wilson), including the paranormal Little Big Heart.



Elizabeth Sinclair--author of contemporary and paranormal romance, including the Hawk's Mountain series.

I hope you will check out these fine authors. Thanks for stopping by for a chat!

Guilty Pleasures

If you're a subscriber to my FaceBook page, you already know about my mid-afternoon guilty pleasure. It's French Vanilla coffee (iced in summer, hot in winter). I usually sip it while taking a break from writing or housework. Typically my break coincides with Rachael Ray's 30 Minute Meals, another guilty pleasure.

We should reward ourselves, celebrate the little victories in life (like finishing the laundry or writing the next scene or chapter). We deserve it!

What are your guilty pleasures? Leave a comment (but please keep it PG13!).

RIP Nora Ephron

We lost a wonderful writer/director/producer this week with the passing of Nora Ephron. My condolences to her family and friends.

Read my tribute at the Red Room.

Rest in peace, Nora.