by Roseanna White | Jul 20, 2010 | Uncategorized
I’m gonna do that thing again–talk about a book you can’t buy yet. 😉 This isn’t my official review (which is written and will post in November when the book releases), but it’s a sneak peek to whet your appetite.
For a while now, I’ve been hearing my friend Sandi Rog talk about her Biblical fiction, which, unlike Stray Drop which integrates events of the Bible, is set in first century Rome with early Christians. I’ve always loved this time period, getting glimpses into Roman life, and putting myself in the sandals of some of the first members of the church. So I very eagerly raised my hand with an excited “Oo, oo! Me, me!” when Sandi asked for endorsers.
I’m going to unabashedly say that if you liked my book, you’ll love Sandi’s too. They’re nothing alike in plot, but I’d say they share the same spirit.
The Master’s Wall is about David, a Hebrew in Rome whose parents are killed for their Christian faith. He is badly hurt and then sold into slavery to a wealthy villa. From the first moment he realizes he’s bound to this place, he wants to escape, to run back to Rome and see what became of his little sister. But he’s not only bound by his word and the law–he’s also bound by invisible strings to his master’s young, fiery granddaughter Alethea.
Alethea has lost her father to this new faith called Christianity, watched him die for it, and it is too much for her young heart. She at once longs to know more about the God he served and wants those she cares about to stay far away from Him, lest they be killed too.
Tempted constantly by escape and something even more dangerous, David grows into a warrior and a strong Christian. But what will it take to right the wrongs that rule at the villa?
And seriously, put this book on your list NOW. In fact, ask for it for Christmas. It’s a small press book with an enormous spirit–one of those rare books that pulled me from my writing to keep turning those pages. Sandi is a fantastic writer, and the story . . . the story simply won’t let you go.
by Roseanna White | Jul 19, 2010 | Uncategorized
One of the hardest thing for me sometimes in a contemporary is deciding what in the world my characters should do for a living. Sometimes it’s so much a part of their character that it’s no decision at all–but other times . . . I find myself watching TV just to remember what jobs people have, LOL.
In one of my humorous contemporaries, the heroine is an advice columnist, which is where the inspiration for the book came from. The hero is an insurance agent. I don’t know that I’ve read a book with an insurance agent hero, but I worked in an insurance office for three years, so I knew how funny one could actually be. And it was a blast to have him react to everything in terms of deductibles and claims and underwriting. Trust me–it’s how you start to think, LOL. I wasn’t an agent, but even I started viewing life through that lens after a while. Like, I see a fabulous necklace on someone and think, “I sure hope they have an Inland Marine policy on that–it’s too much to be covered under Homeowners . . .”
In my more suspenseful contemp, the hero is by necessity an ex-SEAL. Again, it’s where the inspiration came from. But the heroine is from a culture where women were wives and mothers and nothing more. All well and good until she arrives on U.S. soil, sees women moving about with their male counterparts in the working world, and has this moment of, “I’m not suited for this world. I can’t drive, I’ve never used a computer, I have no skills. Now what?” She’ll find her place, of course, but it’s a driving force of the book.
There’s a big difference to me when reading between a character who must have whatever profession they do and one who happens to. Even when I have to take some time to figure out what a character ought to do, I want to make it so organic to who they are–or even make the not-knowing so integral a part–that you don’t put down the book and forget what so-and-so did for a living.
by Roseanna White | Jul 16, 2010 | Uncategorized
Today you’re in for a treat as Margaret Daley joins us to talk about her latest Love Inspired novel, Heart of a Cowboy. I have ready many, many a LI book by Margaret, and they rank among my favorites. So pull up a stool and sit a spell and get to know this lovely lady and her new inspirational romance.
Margaret has graciously offered a copy of the book to one lucky winner, so leave your comments below with a way for me to reach you.
~*~
About Margaret
Margaret Daley is an award winning, multi-published author in the romance genre. One of her romantic suspense books, Hearts on the Line, won the American Christian Fiction Writers’ Book of the Year Contest. Recently she has won the Golden Quill Contest, FHL’s Inspirational Readers’ Choice Contest, Winter Rose Contest, Holt Medallion and the Barclay Gold Contest. She wrote for various secular publishers before the Lord led her to the Christian Romance market. She currently writes inspirational romance and romantic suspense books for the Steeple Hill Love Inspired lines. She has sold seventy-four books to date.
Margaret is currently the Volunteer Officer for ACFW. She was one of the founding members of the first ACFW local chapter, WIN in Oklahoma. She served as vice-president for two years in WIN-ACFW and is still on its board as an advisor. She has taught numerous classes for online groups, ACFW and RWA chapters. She enjoys mentoring other authors.
Until she retired last year, she was a teacher of students with special needs for twenty-seven years and volunteered with Special Olympics as a coach. She currently is on the Outreach committee at her church, working on several projects in her community.
You can visit her web site at http://www.margaretdaley.com and read excerpts from her books and learn about the ones recently released and soon to be released.
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About Heart of a Cowboy
Ten years ago Jordan Masterson left her hometown heartbroken—and pregnant. Now, yearning for connection with her family, the single mother returns to Tallgrass, Oklahoma. But she’s shocked to find her son’s father—unaware he has a child—a vital part of the community. Zachary Rutgers owns the ranch that the local homeschoolers use for riding and recreation. Which means little Nicholas, Jordan and Zachary will be spending a lot of time together. Jordan must tell Zachary the truth about their son—and ask for answers herself. Hoping the heart of her cowboy will still be hers for the taking.
~*~
What’s your latest book?
Heart of a Cowboy is out this July. It is the second book in my Helping Hands Homeschooling Series for Love Inspired, Steeple Hill. The first book in the series is Love Lessons, Love Inspired April 2010, and the third book will be out in November called A Daughter for Christmas.
Oh, cool! I’ve just begun homeschooling, so I’m intrigued already. 😉 What do you hope your readers will get out of the story?
The power of forgiving a person—it is freeing when a person does it.
Amen to that. What’s your favorite genre to write? To read?
My favorite to write is romantic suspense. My favorite to read is suspense and adventure.
Romantic suspense is one of my favorites to read, so I’m grateful you love to write it, LOL. What would your dream office look like—and what does your REAL writing environment look like?
I would have an office with a large picture window overlooking a lake with a mountain in the background.
Reality: I have an office that overlooks my front yard and the flower beds. I watch butterflies land on the butterfly bush—also hummingbirds like butterfly bushes, too. My walls are hot pink with white trimming. I have a lot of flamingoes in my office as well as book shelves full of lots of books—thousands.
I could use some of those shelves–and I just relocated my office, so I get to look at our butterfly bush too. =) What lessons have you learned through the publication process that you wouldn’t have guessed as a pre-published writer?
I thought when I sold my first book I had it made. Selling the second book was as hard as selling that first one.
Are there any people (family, writing group, editors) who you rely on when writing?
I have a critique group I belong to, and we’ve been together for years. I also have several writer friends I brainstorm with, go to conferences together and discuss the publishing business.
Aside from writing, what takes up most of your time?
My church, family and friends. I have four granddaughters who are wonderful. I love going to lunch and a movie with a friend.
If someone were to give you $5,000 to spend on anything you wanted, what would you buy? (No saving or gifts to charities allowed!)
Taking my granddaughters to Disney World. I’m a kid at heart and would have so much fun with them.
Awww. I bet they would like that too! What are you writing right now?
I am writing the second book in my female bodyguard series (Guardians, Inc.) for Love Inspired Suspense. It is called Protecting Her Own and will be out next June.
Love the idea of that series! Any upcoming releases we should keep our eye out for?
I have several coming up:
A Daughter for Christmas, Love Inspired, November 2010
Christmas Bodyguard, Love Inspired Suspense, December 2010
Trail of Lies, Love Inspired Suspense, April 2011
Protecting Her Own, Love Inspired Suspense, June 2011
~*~
You’re a busy woman, Margaret! And we readers are grateful. Everyone, be sure and check out Margaret’s website at www.MargaretDaley.com and her blog at MargaretDaley.blogspot.com.
You can purchase Heart of a Cowboy from Amazon.
Void where prohibited. Entry into the contest is considered verification of eligibility based on your local laws. Contest ends 7/22/10. Winner will have two weeks to claim book.
by Roseanna White | Jul 15, 2010 | Uncategorized
What Am I Writing, Anyway?
Part II
This is a two-part post I worked up for Go Teen Writers, where it’s also up today.
Yesterday I introduced genre breakdowns and talked about those for young adults and younger and historicals. Today I’m covering contemporaries and few of the big categories.
A contemporary novel is anything set after World War II through the present. Futuristic, science fiction, and fantasy are grouped under the title of “speculative”–I imagine we all know what those are.
The most widely read genre is Romance. And yet many of us (myself included) have no idea when we set out that Romance has a few musts. First, the love story between hero and heroine must be center stage. If it shares equal billing with another element, it is most likely a cross-over genre like Romantic Suspense or the like. Hero and heroine need to be apparent from the get-go, and usually they must meet within the first few chapters. Hero and heroine must have some issues, must work through them, and must find a happily ever after (a.k.a. HEA) by the last page. Usually this means either marriage or the promise of marriage.
Now, having a book where you don’t know who the heroine will end up with can be an excellent story—but it’s mostly likely not a strict romance. Having a book where the heroine doesn’t meet the hero until the last ten chapters—the same. A book where it ends with the hero and heroine not together—not a romance. These can be love stories, they can be women’s fiction, they can be some other genre. But romance readers have expectations, and if you don’t meet them, an editor is most likely not going to touch you. And you know, that’s for a purpose. When I picked up a book by an author I knew wrote great romances and discovered that she killed the heroine two-thirds of the way through the book, I didn’t finish reading it to figure out how the hero picked up the pieces and raised their baby. I wanted a happy ending, and I wasn’t interested in a “satisfying” ending at the time. Had I been, I would have picked up a different type of book, one that did NOT say “Romance” on the back.
I mentioned women’s fiction, which is what many books are that have love stories but don’t fit the strict Romance definition. Authors like Nora Roberts are billed as women’s fiction writers, even though most of her books are romance. Some defy the conventional definition, so there you go. Other women’s fiction includes the books about a group of four friends who each come into their own, the story about a woman finding a second chance after a divorce, the wife dealing with infertility, with unfaithfulness, the woman whose mother has Alzhiemers, etc. These are books geared at women, which are dealing with women’s issues. They can have romance, but don’t require it. I have a manuscript right now that has a love story, but just as key is the facing-her-past story. I could take the romance out and still have a book. This is women’s fiction, not romance.
There’s a thing called Love Story, which is what Nicholas Sparks says he writes. It’s again not something a publisher will use a label, but it’s something readers and writers toss around. Basically, it’s a story where the romance cannot be removed, but which does not promise to follow Romance guidelines. Maybe it stretches all the way until death, like Sparks’ The Notebook. Maybe the hero dies saving the heroine. That sort of thing.
Other contemporaries include:
Mystery—a whodunnit. Usually murder, but there are “cozy mysteries” that are often about a less gruesome crime. A mystery has an amateur crime-solver as the main character.
Suspense—one of those stories with high stakes, danger, intrigue, and a professional as a main character. Think 24. Jack’s a federal agent, not an amateur. Military stories are usually suspense. The ones about police officers tracking down a serial killer. That sort of thing. (A Romantic Suspense is a story where the romance and the suspense are equal.)
Chick Lit—light and comedic, generally but not always in first person, may or may not have romance. Chick Lit is currently out of fashion. I suspect it’ll make a resurgence under a different name soon.
I’m sure I’m overlooking some, and feel free to chime in with other examples or questions about how to break these things down! They’re tricky—published authors can sit and debate this stuff to no end. But subtleties aside, you have to know what it is you’re pitching to an agent or editor. And most of them will roll their eyes if you say, “It’s a historical mysterious romance that takes place in 1980.” What they’ll take from that is that you haven’t done your homework and don’t know where your story fits.
So—anyone need help figuring out what it is they’re writing? =)
Roseanna M. White is a bestselling, Christy Award winning author who has long claimed that words are the air she breathes. Having successfully launched two homeschool grads, she now spends her time writing fiction, designing book covers, and pretending her house will clean itself. Roseanna is the author of a slew of historical novels that span several continents and thousands of years, as well as a fantasy series and contemporary mysteries and romances. Spies and war and mayhem always seem to find their way into her books…to offset her real life, which is blessedly ordinary.