by Roseanna White | May 2, 2012 | Remember When Wednesdays, Uncategorized
It’s been a looooooooong time since I’ve gotten to give a character a car. A horse, yes. Picking out a type of carriage, sure. But a car? I haven’t written a story with a car in years. So when I began to ponder turning my Victorian trilogy into an Edwardian one, one of my first thoughts was, “Oh wow–I need to pick out a car for Justin!”
Perhaps I should give you a little history first. Way back when I was twelve, I had this idea for a book. Which, I said, I would write until I finished it! A little over a year later, I scratched the words “The End” enthusiastically across the last of my hundreds of pages of notebook paper. The book was called Golden Sunset, Silver Tear. It was about Brook, who was raised as a princess in the fictional country of Bratinburg before discovering through the help of her best friend Justin, future English duke, that she was really British. Her bead necklace contained clues to what led to her parents’ deaths and her own fate.
Two years after that, I discovered Monaco. So Brook became an adopted Grimaldi. Another three years, and I gave the book a major overhaul to update the writing but kept the plot in place. Another three years and I was out of college, had my first baby, and was determined to make this book as good as the others I’d written in the intervening years. So I chucked pretty much every scene, kept the premise, changed names where necessary, and retitled the book Fire Eyes.
In 2007, the book landed me an agent. But alas, though a few publishers took it to committee, it always struck out. So fast forward back to two weeks ago, when my (second) agent said, “Do you have anything Edwardian?” and I said, “No. But I could.” =)
This is so much fun because I know these characters inside out and upside down. So tossing them into a world 50 years after where I first envisioned them leads me to all sorts of fun decisions. Would Brook still have been content with stolen solitary horse rides, or would the changing times have upped her rebellion? Would she now be borrowing cars for her stunts? Oh, you bet she would. So I open now with her sliding a gloved hand along the side of a Rolls Royce Silver Ghost. And, when its owner (Justin) catches her in the act of taking the wheel, she demands a driving lesson of her longtime friend.
Thankfully, I’m married to a man who can answer all my stupid questions about first-generation cars. Like, “Okay, so you crank it to start it . . . how do you turn it off?”
Hubby: “You switch off the magneto.”
Me: “The mag-what-o?” Oh yes. It required a bit of an education, LOL.
Thus far the automobile has found many fun places in the three chapters I’ve rewritten of Fire Eyes (which has been retitled yet again). Justin has just received his Silver Ghost from his father–who bought for himself one designed by “that Bugatti chap” as my Earl of Abingdon says. Justin’s best friend, once a rogue aristocrat who chose to sail the high seas instead of attend his estates back home, is now a race car driver in the first Grand Prix and rallies. The debut Indianapolis 500 will be coming up within the pages of my book, and you can bet Lord Thate will be there. =)
For historical writers, there’s nothing truer than “If you change the setting, you change the whole book–characters included.” It’s very true. And this change of setting will cause many, many a change to this first-ever novel I wrote. But oh, isn’t it fun to see how my characters adapt to the times!
by Roseanna White | May 1, 2012 | Uncategorized
Swoon-Worthy Historical Romantic Suspense!
I admit it–I love a reprobate of a hero whose journey includes redeeming him. I love a heroine who falls for him knowing it’ll lead to heartbreak. I love a couple at cross-purposes who must find the will of the Lord in the tangle of their own webs. And I love, love, love stories with a backdrop of intrigue and adventure. So it’s no great surprise that Heart’s Safe Passage took my breath away.
Phoebe may have been a pampered gentlewoman earlier in life, but after tragedy, scandal, and disappointment, she’s determined to forge her own independence through midwifery. But when her sister-in-law has a crew of British privateers kidnap her so she’ll travel with the pregnant woman to England to rescue her captured husband, Phoebe finds her determination matched–by the heartless yet compelling captain Raphael Doherty, who has far more secrets than any Virginian lady could possibly understand. Drawn to her though he may be, he cannot give up his quest for vengeance, even if it means refusing an all-consuming love. How, after all, could he live with himself if he lets go of the one thing that has given him purpose? Both Phoebe and Rafe must face their demons . . . or be consumed by them.
Heart’s Safe Passage has an amazing setting, with non-stop action on the high seas. It has a fantastic premise of betrayal and treachery and redemption with a backdrop of the War of 1812. But what I absolutely adored about it was the compelling, believable love story. I’m not always convinced by stories of love that take place in a short amount of time, but I found this one not only believable but heart-wrenching. Eakes does a superb job of painting characters so very troubled, so very flawed, but so very needful of what the other can offer. Their love is quick, bright, but known by both to be less than enough to overcome all that is against them. Only love of the Lord can achieve healing like that.
This one goes on my favorites shelf with Laurie Alice Eakes’s other books!
by Roseanna White | Apr 25, 2012 | Uncategorized
I really meant to schedule posts for this week, while I’m visiting friends in the name of “Croquet!” But alas, I spent my early-week hard at work on a proposal and didn’t get to this.
Sorry!
But have no fear, I’ll be back on Monday with my wit and brilliance and insight and hysterical laughter at the thought of someone taking me seriously when I claim to have wit and brilliance and insight. 😉
Have a good one, one and all!
by Roseanna White | Apr 19, 2012 | Thoughtful Thursdays, Uncategorized
Last night the semi-finalists of the Genesis Contest (for unpublished authors) were announced. On Monday, the nominees for the Christy (Christian Fiction’s most prestigious award) went public. And as award season gets into full swing, I imagine we’ll see many more lists of potential winners and the results themselves.
I know quite a few of my readers are writers, so I wanted to talk about this today. And if you’re not a writer, you’ve presumably been in competition over something at some point or another, so it should still be relevant for you. 😉
I’ve been blessed with the fulfillment of my dream–I get to write for a living. I’m certainly not bringing in enough to support a family right now, but as a part-time job for a stay at home mom who’s home schooling, it’s a pretty sweet deal. =) So I have what I’d deem success–success defined as doing what I love. And hey, even getting paid for it! LOL
But I’ve never in my life won a writing contest. Never. Never even finaled in one. Even back in the day of short story contests against other middle schoolers, the best I ever did was Honorable Mention. Yet it was my thing. And I was the unquestioned Best at everything in school; valedictorian, first chair clarinetist, drum major . . . and I knew I was a good writer. I knew it, and my teachers all made a point of telling me so.
And yet . . .
A couple years ago I entered the Genesis contest. It was the only unpublished contest I’d ever entered (or have ever), and I entered with very high hopes. They didn’t publicize semi-finalists that year, just finalists, and I saw all the emails from my friends who finaled appeared on my historical list when they got their Call. I sat there, with the phone by my computer. I hoped, and I prayed, and I told myself it was okay, no matter what. That it didn’t determine anything about who I was.
Then when the list went up (absent my name), I went outside and let myself cry for five minutes.
I wanted there to be some reason to it. So when my agent, a week later, submitted the book I’d entered to an editor who really liked it, I got hopeful. See, we couldn’t have submitted had it still been in the contest. But that would have been perfect poetic justice! I could see myself now, winning the published contest instead of the unpublished, going up to make my speech . . .
The book was too like another the line had already contracted, so the editor passed.
I never had another chance at Genesis, because
A Stray Drop of Blood came out, and
Jewel of Persia after that. Right around then I emailed that editor who liked that book I’d entered, to follow up with a question I’d asked a while before, and she said, “Have you checked in with our other editor? She has
Annapolis penciled in.””
Whhhhh….aaaaaa…..ttttt?
Did that Genesis-rejected submission bear fruit after all, by winning over another editor at this house, one who could champion me as a writer when Editor 2 brought
Annapolis to committee? Maybe . . . maybe . . . who knows? But what I can tell you is that
Annapolis was published soon after that.
Of course, now I’m in the realm of published contests. I now know nothing of mine that came out in 2011 was nominated for a Christy, which was no big surprise (though it would have been nice!). There are only two other contests I’d entered, and we’ll see how those go. Am I hopeful? Well yes, a bit.
But you know what? I’m also finally getting to the point where I just don’t care about wins. In part because I learned that one of my all-time favorite authors, Francine Rivers, will not enter a contest and requests her publishers not enter any on her behalf. She’d walked that road while in the ABA and refused to walk it again when she moved to CBA. And I really admire that.
I haven’t gotten any clear direction to avoid contests, and having an “award-winning” before my name would certainly be nice (although I’d be just as happy–even happier!–with “best-selling” LOL), but as I look back on this stuff this week, I have to wonder if I ever will win. Not because of what I write, but because of who I am. Because I’m a competitive person, and staying humble is something I have to focus on to achieve. Because God knows way better than I how I might handle a big win . . . and maybe He doesn’t want that for me.
Is this a lesson in humility for me? Could be, wouldn’t be surprised. But more, there’s a lesson for me about focus and determination. My goal cannot be to write a book that wins awards–it must be to write a book that wins hearts. My determination must be to keep on the path I’ve been set upon no matter how many twists of disappointment, not to keep walking only when flower petals are showering down upon me.
When I was in high school, my cross-country coach had a saying: If it were easy, everybody would be doing it.
Mr. Brown’s wisdom can apply to pretty much anything worth working at, can’t it? It isn’t easy, this thing you’ve been called to do. It has its moments of triumph when you finally cross that finish line, but it also has a lot of moments along the way when you step in a dip and twist your ankle, when a stray tree branch smacks you in the arm, when you can’t seem to draw in enough air to keep those sides from stitching.
No, it isn’t easy. But something else Mr. Brown passed along that will always stick with me is that verse that perfectly sums up both my writing story and this running analogy–we have an Author. We have a Finisher, a Perfecter–and it isn’t us, you know. I might write a book, but I don’t write my own story.
That’s for Him.
I might enter a few contests, but I don’t determine where I finish.
That’s for Him.
And I don’t look at those awards as any kind of goal to reach, not anymore.
That’s for Him.
But I don’t give up. I will run with endurance. And just like with cross country (at which I was never any good, let it be noted, LOL), those races won’t be about winning. They’ll be about growing.
Let us run with endurance this race that is set before us; looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith.
If you entered the Genesis and indulged in a few moments of tears last night, chin up. And look at me–I didn’t final and was published before quite a few folks who did. And if you did end up on that semi-finalist list, big congratulations! I have friends whose publishing doors were opened by that.
Just know that, no matter where you end up this contest season, your story is your own, between you and God. Win or lose, He knows how to get you where you’re going. And He knows what you need–and what you don’t–along the way.
by Roseanna White | Apr 17, 2012 | Uncategorized
Newsflash! I actually bought a book for myself that had nothing to do with research. This doesn’t happen often! LOL. The book that got that honor was Sanctuary for a Lady by my good friend Naomi Rawlings. Naomi may just be one of the most hilarious-yet-sweet young women I’ve ever met. She’s encouraging, loving, enthusiastic–and one talented author! I seriously enjoyed her debut novel, so of course you will too. 😉
This is an April title for the Love Inspired Historical line, which means it’s inexpensive–always a plus. I was really surprised by the depth and punch she squeezed into it though, as that isn’t always Love Inspired’s MO. It read like a full-length book–and a fabulous one, at that.
Amazon Link for Paperback
Amazon Link for Kindle
My official review:
WOW. I don’t know how else to begin this review.
Sanctuary for a Lady
combined all the elements I love most in a story–high stakes,
fascinating history, sincere faith, and such intense sparks flying
between the main characters that I thought they might ignite the
rain-sodden countryside of Revolutionary France!
Isabelle, a
duc’s daughter, and Michel, a farmer with a dream of furniture making,
are incredibly compelling characters dropped into a time where the whole
world seems to be stacked against them. Both may be dealing with guilt
and stalled goals, but what else could the two have in common? In a time
when the Terror could snatch both their lives–Isabelle’s for being
born an aristocrat and Michel for harboring her instead of handing her
over to the soldiers–how could this star-crossed love possibly find a
path through the dangers surrounding them?
I confess, I had no
idea how the author would overcome the odds, and I flipped those pages
fast as I could to figure it out! This book packs a lot of punch in its
pages–you don’t want to miss the suspense, faith, and heart-racing
romance of Sanctuary for a Lady!
Official blurb:
Running to freedom, she finds love.
The injured young woman Michel Belanger finds in the woods is certainly
an aristocrat. And in the midst of France’s bloody revolution,
sheltering nobility merits a trip to the guillotine. Yet despite the
risk, Michel knows he must bring the wounded girl to his cottage to
heal.
Attacked by soldiers and left for dead, Isabelle de La
Rouchecauld has lost everything. A duke’s daughter cannot hope for mercy
in France, so escaping to England is her best chance of survival. The
only thing more dangerous than staying would be falling in love with
this gruff yet tender man of the land. Even if she sees, for the first
time, how truly noble a heart can be….
by Roseanna White | Apr 12, 2012 | Thoughtful Thursdays, Uncategorized
As long as I’ve been writing, I’ve been drawing. Back in primary school, whenever I wrote a story I’d illustrate it. Princesses and bunnies and unicorns, singing flowers . . . yep. The norm. 😉 When I started on novels in middle school, I always tried to draw my characters and would play around with sketching book cover designs.
I’m not the artist my sister is, but it wasn’t about that–it was about making a visual for myself. Something to look at, something to inspire me. It’s why I’m liking Pinterest, and it’s also why I’ve been playing a lot over the last year or two with digital design. Am I a rock star at it? No. But I’m learning. And I’m having so much fun!
I’ve started handling the covers for WhiteFire titles, and it’s been like a treat. Gives a break to the word-crafting part of my brain but still lets me be creative. Everyone by now probably knows I designed Sandi Rog’s Walks Alone. I’m also doing Christine Lindsay’s second British Raj (can’t show ya yet because we haven’t done the photo shoot, but plugging in the perfect model shot will be a breeze). And I just tossed together one for our first contemporary that turned out really well. (Haven’t bought the images yet, so no sharing that one either, LOL.)
So last week when Harvest House sent me a cover questionnaire for
Ring of Secrets, I was pretty giddy. I
love this stuff! I got to answer questions about what my characters look like and provide links to images that match what I had in mind. I got to explain the fashion of the day, the setting, the time period. I even got to give them ideas for cover design!! Will they use those ideas? Eh, who knows. But I certainly had fun sharing my thoughts, and my editor had fun reading them and browsing the fashion sites I’d linked to. =)
Yep, in my mind this cover stuff, the images, the sketches are as enjoyable as writing. Well, for the hour or two they take, LOL. I wouldn’t want to do it all day, but I’ve discovered that it fulfills a need for me. Lets me flex my little brain in new ways and create something that I can see, right away. So much fun. And it leads to a book cover. Which is, hands down, one of the best moments of publishing. Opening up that file for the first time and going, “Wow. There she is. My baby. And oh, isn’t she lovely!”
Eagerly awaiting that moment with
Ring of Secrets. Must be patient, must be patient, must be patient . . . =)
Roseanna M. White is a bestselling, Christy Award winning author who has long claimed that words are the air she breathes. When not writing fiction, she’s homeschooling her two kids, editing, 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. Spies and war and mayhem always seem to find their way into her books…to offset her real life, which is blessedly ordinary.