I'm managing to write a little every day. On April 1st, I intend to start a 30-day regime, whereby I write something every day. I don't want to overburden myself and aim too high, so I will strive for at least 1000 words a day.
I've been doing better by writing by hand. It seems that the ideas flow better with a pen or pencil in my hand. I then type it onto my AlphaSmart--revising a bit as I go along. Once it's on the Alphie, I can easily let it flow onto the computer.
I've been making all sorts of notes to myself. As I go along in my thinking about the new track of Vengeance Is Mine that I've decided to try, I find myself using the Alphie for the notes and keeping track of them on the computer. I now have a seperate file for all my notes and am slowly printing them out.
I recently got an "all-in-one" HP printer and will try to copy some of the pages in the BOOK IN A MONTH--for my own use. They're different pages indicating ways to keep track of what you're writing. I think I might find them useful.
Everything is worth a try..............
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Reading to Learn
Although I've published three historical novels, I still continue to read writing books for the idea they present. Right now, I'm reading a marvelous book, MAKE A SCENE. It's one of the best books I've read on doing scenes. The author's style says many of the things I already know, but he says them in a different way. He provokes my imagination and, because of the book, I have made many notes for scenes in my Vengeance Is Mine. I'm determined to finish that book before going on to the second book of the Saratoga series.
I'm also reading BOOK IN A MONTH, which I mentioned yesterday. The book is interesting and I'm hoping that it spurs me on to write every day--no matter what comes up. I have surely been lacking in drive in the past year. A friend and I will be working the book together, starting on April 1st. We have agreed not to discuss our stories, but merely to consider how much we have put together in a given day or week. We both need to write and do little else.
Despite all the doctor appointments in April, to which I must drive to Bennington, I will write in each and every office. I find that I'm more confortable writing by hand, so once I have a scene started, I will put it on my Alphie and finish it. Then, and only then, will it go on my computer--AND I WILL NOT GO BACK OVER ANYTHING UNTIL THE FIRST DRAFT IS COMPLETED.
I'm also reading BOOK IN A MONTH, which I mentioned yesterday. The book is interesting and I'm hoping that it spurs me on to write every day--no matter what comes up. I have surely been lacking in drive in the past year. A friend and I will be working the book together, starting on April 1st. We have agreed not to discuss our stories, but merely to consider how much we have put together in a given day or week. We both need to write and do little else.
Despite all the doctor appointments in April, to which I must drive to Bennington, I will write in each and every office. I find that I'm more confortable writing by hand, so once I have a scene started, I will put it on my Alphie and finish it. Then, and only then, will it go on my computer--AND I WILL NOT GO BACK OVER ANYTHING UNTIL THE FIRST DRAFT IS COMPLETED.
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
30 Days to a Novel
A friend and I are going to start a 30 day novel-writing bit. We're going to be working through Book in a Month by Victoria Schmidt. We each work in different ways, but hopefully, our outcome will be a good start on a novel. Perhaps, we'll even have a first draft. So it's surely worth a try. April will be one busy month. I haven't decided how many words or how many pages, but I'm thinking about it. Not too sure that I should settle on a definite number...might defeat myself before I start.
I find myself thinking about a dear friend of mine, Alice Orr. She's not feeling up to par and for such a dynamic woman to be ailing is almost a crime. So, here I am, thinking about her and sending much New York ZEN to her.
I find myself thinking about a dear friend of mine, Alice Orr. She's not feeling up to par and for such a dynamic woman to be ailing is almost a crime. So, here I am, thinking about her and sending much New York ZEN to her.
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Sad News
Dear Authors,
I don't often share much personal stuff about myself or what is going
on with me, so I never thought I would be coming to any of you with
this but sometimes life comes at you and you have to deal with it,
and this is one of those times for me.
I could beat around the bush here but that's not me. You deserve the
truth even if it is painful for me to talk about.
I have found out recently, very recently, that my cancer has
returned. For those of you who do not know, this is my 6th time
around with this in a little over 10 years. It started as cervical
cancer 10 years ago and each time has gotten worse and spread to
other places. I will be starting chemotherapy and radiation
treatments shortly and as I have been through these same treatments
twice already, I can honestly say it isn't pretty.
After discussing the issues and options with Susan and Billi, and
then Gretchen and Brenda, it was decided for a few reasons that I
will discuss below, that the only option was to close Dark Eden as of
April 1st. I have to devote my energies and my time to getting
better, and to my daughter.
One reason for closing is the treatment plan itself. I will be in no
shape to run a company, much less take care of anything else.
Another reason is with Brenda having gone back to work fulltime, that
would leave just Gretchen to do it all and as great as she is, she
can't do it by herself. Billi works fulltime and does her part of
the business in the evenings and on weekends. Susan has health
problems that she didn't have when we started this company and
wouldn't be able to do the things that I do. It was hard enough
after the house fire to keep things running smoothly and even then
they were getting some help from me. They pitched in and ran things
beautifully after the fire but that was only for a few months, this
would be for the next 6 months at the very least.
The last reason is all of you. All of you deserve an owner who is
going to be here, who is able to get the things done that need to be
done. I don't want my authors trying to figure out why I haven't
answered emails for a couple of days, or why royalties are late, or
wondering when the things that need to be taken care of are going to
get done, when the reality is that I will be too sick to do it.
I will spend the next two weeks preparing letters to release your
book rights to you, doing March royalties, and closing the readers
group. I will then begin shutting down all the DEP email addresses
except for my own and forwarding all mail from that to my personal
email address. By May 1st, I would hope all payments have cleared
the bank, and on that date I will also close the author group.
On a personal level, I feel horrible that this has to be done to all
of you. I have come to know almost every one of you personally and I
feel as if I have let you all down when you trusted me with your
stories, and I am so sorry for that. You trusted in the fact that
DEP would be around for a long while and I am truly sorry that we are
not going to be.
If you have any questions or problems, please don't hesitate to email
me as I will be working to get last minute things tied up over the
next several weeks.
Please feel free to post this on your blogs or websites as you see
fit. I would rather have the truth out about why we are closing,
even if part of it is a personal issue, than to have DEP's name
trashed across the blog universe. Lord knows some of those people do
not have enough to do but sit around and pick their next victim. I
do not want it to be this company.
If I have not told all of you lately, it is and has been, a pleasure
working with all of you gifted writers and DEP's fantastic staff.
Debra Durham
President
I don't often share much personal stuff about myself or what is going
on with me, so I never thought I would be coming to any of you with
this but sometimes life comes at you and you have to deal with it,
and this is one of those times for me.
I could beat around the bush here but that's not me. You deserve the
truth even if it is painful for me to talk about.
I have found out recently, very recently, that my cancer has
returned. For those of you who do not know, this is my 6th time
around with this in a little over 10 years. It started as cervical
cancer 10 years ago and each time has gotten worse and spread to
other places. I will be starting chemotherapy and radiation
treatments shortly and as I have been through these same treatments
twice already, I can honestly say it isn't pretty.
After discussing the issues and options with Susan and Billi, and
then Gretchen and Brenda, it was decided for a few reasons that I
will discuss below, that the only option was to close Dark Eden as of
April 1st. I have to devote my energies and my time to getting
better, and to my daughter.
One reason for closing is the treatment plan itself. I will be in no
shape to run a company, much less take care of anything else.
Another reason is with Brenda having gone back to work fulltime, that
would leave just Gretchen to do it all and as great as she is, she
can't do it by herself. Billi works fulltime and does her part of
the business in the evenings and on weekends. Susan has health
problems that she didn't have when we started this company and
wouldn't be able to do the things that I do. It was hard enough
after the house fire to keep things running smoothly and even then
they were getting some help from me. They pitched in and ran things
beautifully after the fire but that was only for a few months, this
would be for the next 6 months at the very least.
The last reason is all of you. All of you deserve an owner who is
going to be here, who is able to get the things done that need to be
done. I don't want my authors trying to figure out why I haven't
answered emails for a couple of days, or why royalties are late, or
wondering when the things that need to be taken care of are going to
get done, when the reality is that I will be too sick to do it.
I will spend the next two weeks preparing letters to release your
book rights to you, doing March royalties, and closing the readers
group. I will then begin shutting down all the DEP email addresses
except for my own and forwarding all mail from that to my personal
email address. By May 1st, I would hope all payments have cleared
the bank, and on that date I will also close the author group.
On a personal level, I feel horrible that this has to be done to all
of you. I have come to know almost every one of you personally and I
feel as if I have let you all down when you trusted me with your
stories, and I am so sorry for that. You trusted in the fact that
DEP would be around for a long while and I am truly sorry that we are
not going to be.
If you have any questions or problems, please don't hesitate to email
me as I will be working to get last minute things tied up over the
next several weeks.
Please feel free to post this on your blogs or websites as you see
fit. I would rather have the truth out about why we are closing,
even if part of it is a personal issue, than to have DEP's name
trashed across the blog universe. Lord knows some of those people do
not have enough to do but sit around and pick their next victim. I
do not want it to be this company.
If I have not told all of you lately, it is and has been, a pleasure
working with all of you gifted writers and DEP's fantastic staff.
Debra Durham
President
Monday, March 24, 2008
Interview with Patricia Guthrie
Wanted to post this early in the morning but wound up taking two dogs to the Vet's. Abbey has a stomach ailment and is on one kind of medication and Barney is on another, for sore and stiff back end. I finally got back to the office and it is now after ten.
But here is the interview with Patricia Guthrie, who wrote In the Arms of the Enemy.
This story is dedicated to those horses lost to man’s greed and inhumanity and to those humanitarians whose mission is to save and protect them.
Questions;
1) What gave you the idea of writing about horse racing fraud and its outcomes?
The seed was planted around those horse show scandals. I had horses in a couple of barns in the northern suburbs of Chicago. I showed a little. Not much. When I moved to the south suburbs I moved into a great barn that specialized in dressage. I’ve ended up in western pleasure. But, believe me everyone knew about the Helen Brach disappearance and the murder of the show horses.
2) What kinds of horses are you writing about and what kind do you ride?
The prologue is set at a race track. Maggie is a trainer and Adam’s father owned many of the horses Maggie and her fiancee trained. The rest of the story takes place at Maggie’s father’s boarding barn. Maggie rides an old quarter horse named “Playboy”. A horse she rescued from the track.
3) Tell us about your main character, please. Is it a horse?
This is a romantic suspense, so there are two protagonists. Adam Blakely and Maggie O’Brien. Adam thinks Maggie had a hand in killing his father’s race horse and its trainer, thus causing his father’s fatal heart attack. The police already have made up their mind that his father was responsible, so Adam goes undercover to try and catch a killer. Only problem, he falls in love with her. This is a story about greed, murder, deception, love and horses. Its motto: Keep your friends close; but your enemies closer.
4) Are you aware of the scandal that went on in the Horse Show business over the deaths of horses, several years ago?
Yes. That’s the seed that planted the story in my mind.
5) Do you intend to write more about the horse business? Yes. I’m plotting another one out right now. It should take a while to get it together.
6) If so, what phases are you going to explore next?
My next book that will be coming out in the spring is called Waterlilies Over My Grave. This is about a woman who leaves a career and an obsessive ex-husband to take a job in a resort town, only her ex follows her with deadly intentions. It’s a romantic suspense. There is a collie in this book named Lady. (I have three collies at home who help me write) and she helps get the bad guys. She’s in quite a few of the scenes.
After that, I’m working on another romantic suspense where the heroine inherits a castle in Romania inhabited by drug dealers. This one has a horse in it that belongs to a nine-year-old boy. The horse wears a straw hat. I haven’t worked out her name or breed yet.
For much more information about Patricia Guthrie and In the Arms of the Enemy, please visit her virtual book tour page at http://inspiredauthor.com/promotion/Patricia+Guthrie
But here is the interview with Patricia Guthrie, who wrote In the Arms of the Enemy.
This story is dedicated to those horses lost to man’s greed and inhumanity and to those humanitarians whose mission is to save and protect them.
Questions;
1) What gave you the idea of writing about horse racing fraud and its outcomes?
The seed was planted around those horse show scandals. I had horses in a couple of barns in the northern suburbs of Chicago. I showed a little. Not much. When I moved to the south suburbs I moved into a great barn that specialized in dressage. I’ve ended up in western pleasure. But, believe me everyone knew about the Helen Brach disappearance and the murder of the show horses.
2) What kinds of horses are you writing about and what kind do you ride?
The prologue is set at a race track. Maggie is a trainer and Adam’s father owned many of the horses Maggie and her fiancee trained. The rest of the story takes place at Maggie’s father’s boarding barn. Maggie rides an old quarter horse named “Playboy”. A horse she rescued from the track.
3) Tell us about your main character, please. Is it a horse?
This is a romantic suspense, so there are two protagonists. Adam Blakely and Maggie O’Brien. Adam thinks Maggie had a hand in killing his father’s race horse and its trainer, thus causing his father’s fatal heart attack. The police already have made up their mind that his father was responsible, so Adam goes undercover to try and catch a killer. Only problem, he falls in love with her. This is a story about greed, murder, deception, love and horses. Its motto: Keep your friends close; but your enemies closer.
4) Are you aware of the scandal that went on in the Horse Show business over the deaths of horses, several years ago?
Yes. That’s the seed that planted the story in my mind.
5) Do you intend to write more about the horse business? Yes. I’m plotting another one out right now. It should take a while to get it together.
6) If so, what phases are you going to explore next?
My next book that will be coming out in the spring is called Waterlilies Over My Grave. This is about a woman who leaves a career and an obsessive ex-husband to take a job in a resort town, only her ex follows her with deadly intentions. It’s a romantic suspense. There is a collie in this book named Lady. (I have three collies at home who help me write) and she helps get the bad guys. She’s in quite a few of the scenes.
After that, I’m working on another romantic suspense where the heroine inherits a castle in Romania inhabited by drug dealers. This one has a horse in it that belongs to a nine-year-old boy. The horse wears a straw hat. I haven’t worked out her name or breed yet.
For much more information about Patricia Guthrie and In the Arms of the Enemy, please visit her virtual book tour page at http://inspiredauthor.com/promotion/Patricia+Guthrie
Sunday, March 23, 2008
Saturday and Sunday
The Cambridge Fiction Writers' group met on Friday at the usual time. Since I was just beginning my Vengeance Is Mine again for nth time, I mentioned that I did not want a line to line critique--it was a first draft. I wanted them to be readers and see if what I wrote made sense or if it confused. Doing a line by line doesn't help when you're just writing a scene for the first time. The meeting went well and I came out of it encouraged rather than discouraged. After the meeting we had a pot-luck birthday party for two of the gals who were born in March.
Saturday, I spent a good part of the day helping the neighbors with cleaning out our cellar. There was water-damage and we sent two truck loads to the dump. Our neighbors were fantastic and helped immeasureably. Shel and I couldn't have done it by ourselves.
AND TODAY: I want to tell you that I will be hosting author Patricia Guthrie. who wrote In the Arms of the Enemy, a book about what's often done to horses for the insurance money. I read the book and enjoyed it tremendously. Hope you all like the interview............
Saturday, I spent a good part of the day helping the neighbors with cleaning out our cellar. There was water-damage and we sent two truck loads to the dump. Our neighbors were fantastic and helped immeasureably. Shel and I couldn't have done it by ourselves.
AND TODAY: I want to tell you that I will be hosting author Patricia Guthrie. who wrote In the Arms of the Enemy, a book about what's often done to horses for the insurance money. I read the book and enjoyed it tremendously. Hope you all like the interview............
Thursday, March 20, 2008
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080320/ap_on_bi_ge/borders_group_sale
For those interested in what is happening to Borders Book Store.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080320/ap_on_bi_ge/borders_group_sale
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080320/ap_on_bi_ge/borders_group_sale
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