Meander 1 - Poem - Mosaic Mind
I used to think of minds
As fragmented things. They're not.
Mosaic minds.With little bits and pieces
Put carefully together.
Mosaic mind - mine mosaic
There is a place for daily life
And one for times of joy.
There is a section filled with grief.
There's mortar in between.
The pattern that these pieces form
Makes me me and you you.
Meander 2 Undecorating the Christmas tree. - As a child, the tree always was taken down on January sixth. Not this year. It's now the thirteenth and the tree still sits in place all beautiful with lights and ornaments. I suppose I'll take it down, one of these days. The great thing is that there aren't needles dropping over the floor. So I'll delay and delay.
Meander 3 - Writing - I am finally back on track. I managed to fuse the last five chapters so they work with the first ones. Meant re-writing chapter eight and replotting chapters 9 through 12. Worked fairly well. Let's hope there are no more left or right turns before I finish this book. Hoping to make the March deadline.
Monday, January 15, 2018
Sunday, January 14, 2018
Sunday's Book -Murder and Bitter Tea #MFRWAuthor #Cozy mystery #Undercover nurse
Katherine’s newest tenant is estranged from her family and is the granddaughter of one of Katherine’s friends. When her friend falls and fractures her hip, the elderly woman is taken to Hudson House nursing home, an exclusive house.
Katherine’s friend becomes concerned about several recent and unexpected deaths. When she dies Katherine’s curiosity and suspicions send her undercover as a nurse. Soon she’s deeply involved.
Can she learn who is behind the scheme to end the lives of wealthy patients without becoming a victim?
Saturday, January 13, 2018
Saturday's Blurbs featuring Books by Diane Parkinson #MFRWauthor #Historical romance #New Brunswick
Blurb On a Stormy
Primeval Shore:
In 1784,
Englishwoman Amelia Latimer sails to the new colony of New Brunswick in faraway
Canada. She’s to marry a man chosen by her soldier father. Amelia is repulsed
by her betrothed, and refuses to marry him. Determined to defy her parent and
cultivate herbs in this wilderness, she then meets the handsome Acadian trader,
Gilbert, a man beneath her in status.
Gilbert must protect
his mother, once attacked by an English soldier. He fights to hold on to their
property, to keep it from the Loyalists who flood the colony—desperate men
chased from the south after the American Revolution. In a land fraught with
hardship, Amelia and Gilbert struggle to overcome prejudice, political
upheaval, while forging an existence in a remote country where events seek to
destroy their love and lives.
Purchase from BWL: http://books2read.com/OnAStormyPrimevalShore
Friday, January 12, 2018
Friday's Guest - Diane Parkinson #MFRWauthor #Historical romance #Canadian Bride Series
Am I a pantser or a plotter, or both? When I started writing
novels I was a terrible pantser, my first novel meandering all over the place.
Soon I had a 7,000-word behemoth of a manuscript. And I had no idea publishers
had word limits. I ended up doing massive edits and cutting that book into two
books. I still write by the seat-of-my-pants in some ways, but now I have a
semblance of a plot in mind, and I definitely keep my word limit in check.
Which comes first, characters or plot? A story idea comes
first, then the main characters emerge almost simultaneously. The characters
often tell which way the story will go after I get to know them better. Then I
try to make the plot more exciting, more structured, each scene with a
beginning, middle and end: or hook. Plus, each scene should advance the plot or
enrich—round out—the characters. No wandering off into historical details that
slow the flow as I love to do.
What am I working on now, and is it part of a series? I just
finished a novel, On a Stormy Primeval
Shore, set in New Brunswick, Canada in the eighteenth century. This story
is part of my publisher’s Canadian Historical Brides Series. I pored through
research books, helped ably by my research partner, Nany M. Bell; and I’m
thrilled to be part of this series. I learned so much about Canadian history,
the people who settled it, the Acadians and Loyalists who fled the American
Revolution. Each book showcases a different province in various eras.
I became so interested in the Loyalists that my next novel
is about a Loyalist female spy.
Do I use a particular object or place in my stories? I seem
to gravitate toward healing herbs. I’ve used them in at least three of my
books. I love the idea that these old-time cures can be found out in nature.
And many modern medicines are derived from herbs or other plants, such as
aspirin came from birch bark. My current heroine in the Canadian book uses
herbs and makes tinctures and syrups from them for healing. As for place, I’ve
used Cornwall, England in many of my books. The rough country and independent
spirit of the Cornish appeals to me. I’m edging my way to this side of the pond
for future novels.
Do I write every day or when the spirit hits? I try to write
every day. But often inspiration will strike me when I’m away from the
computer, and I must jot down ideas, send myself an email, or if I’m home, rush
into the office and write. I really hate it when I’m in the shower and an idea
pops into my head. I told my husband I need to invent a waterproof writing board
to hang in the shower. He gave me the strangest look at that idea.
Thursday, January 11, 2018
Thursday's Third Scene - Murder and Herbal Tea #MFRWAuthor #Murder #Herbal Tea
When Dana
knocked on the door, Joyce let her in. Unlike her mother, the young woman’s
hair hung straight. She looked stressed. “Problems?” I asked.
“Bad day.”
“What
happened?” Joyce asked.
“One of my
students ended in the emergency room. Spaced out on uppers.”
“Will she
recover?” I knew the toll amphetamines took on the body.
“I think so. Zach
asked me questions about her and wanted me to talk to her."
“What did he
want to know?” Joyce asked.
“About drugs
on campus. I didn’t think they were prevalent. He said the student refused to
say where she got them. As if she’d tell me. All I know is she decided to pull
an all-nighter to finish a paper due tomorrow.”
For a short
time we let her talk. Dana was only a few years older than her students, but
being a teacher kept her out of their loop.
When she
wound down we went to the kitchen and ate pie.
“Thanks for
bringing me a piece.”
“Wouldn’t
have been fair if we hadn’t.” Joyce turned to me. “Where are you and Lars going
to live?”
“We bought a
house on the river.”
“You’re
giving up that magnificent Victorian?”
“My apartment
was too small and his house too large.”
She grinned.
“You’ll love the river view.”
“Definitely.
The house is on the left side of my favorite viewing place. It’s across the
road from the doctor’s huge house.”
Dana leaned
forward. “Where are you honeymooning?”
“That’s under
consideration and one of the reasons I bolted. We’ll eventually reach a
compromise."
My Places
http://wwweclecticwriter.blogspot.com
BUY MARK
http://www.bwlpublishing.ca/authors/lane-walters-janet-romance-fantasy-usa/
Wednesday, January 10, 2018
Wednesday Hook Bast's Warrior #MFRWBookHooks #Alternate Egypt @Adventure #MFRWAuthor
Join me along with other great writers while we tell you about our books here http://mfrwbookhooks.blogspot.com
My book is an alternate Egypt book
BLURB:
Tira flees a threat to her life and encounters two elderly women who offer her the chance to be sent to an alternate ancient Egypt with no thought of return. She has had a fascination with Egypt and can even read hieroglyphics. Once there she will be given a task. Failure could mean death. Dare she take the chance and can she find the lost symbols of the rule before an enemy finds them?
Kashe, son of the nomarch of Mero is in rebellion. His father desires him to join the priesthood of Aken Re, a foreign god. He feels he belongs to Horu, god of warriors and justice. He decides to leave home, meets Tira and joins her in the search for the symbols of the rule. Will his aid bring good fortune and will their growing love keep them from making a fatal mistake?
Previously published as The Warrior of Bast
"This engaging voyage into an ancient Egypt that includes power-hungry priests and hazardous treasure hunts entertains from page one. Familial intrigue heightens the tension, as does a kidnapping or two. The cast of characters is dynamic and complements the well-conceived plot." ~ 4 Stars, Susan Mobley, Romantic Times Magazine
EXCERPT:
Tira wanted three things in life and she had little chance of gaining any
of them. She wanted to be financially independent. She wanted to go to Egypt
and study the ancient ruins. And she wanted her sister to stop using drugs.
The last desire brought memories of this morning’s quarrel. Luci had
taken the money Tira had squirreled away to see them through the rest of the
month. “Luci, why?”
“You don’t understand,” Luci screamed.
True. Tira didn’t understand why her sister needed to escape into a
drugged stupor instead of studying and working to step onto the road leading
from the slums. Tira’s hands stung with the memory of slapping her sister. And
the words she’d shouted as she slammed out of the apartment echoed in her
thoughts. “I hate you. I wish you were dead.” Tira shuddered. She hadn’t meant
those words. As soon as she reached the apartment she would tell Luci.
With a sigh she turned back to the museum display. The Egyptian artifacts
awed her. For a short time she allowed the beauty of the objects to carry her
into dreams of pyramids and temples, of gods and pharaohs and of digging in the
earth to uncover treasures of the past.
The dream hovered beyond her grasp. Her chances of gaining a position on
a dig in Egypt
were slim. Positions were avidly sought by students who had chosen the right
colleges and the right professors. Those choices had been beyond her
financially. She sucked in a breath. Instead of adventure, when the summer
ended, she would take her place in front of a classroom teaching history at an
inner city high school.
A glance at her watch said
dreamtime was over. She had to reach the apartment in time to change for her
evening shift as a restaurant several blocks from the cramped fifth floor
efficiency she shared with her older sister. Once again flash moments from the morning’s
quarrel exploded in Tira’s thoughts. She’d been so upset she’d missed her
morning martial arts session at the local center.
Tira cast her dream self aside and donned the role of practical sister.
She hurried to the exit and stepped from the past into a steamy August day.
Heat shimmered from the sidewalk. The air hung heavy and filled with the odors
of the city and the noises of traffic. She strode along the crowded area taking
advantage of every opening.
Ten days to dream. Ten days to walk the halls of the museum. Ten days
to study the artifacts that had become her lodestones. She breathed the
aromas of real time, spices of cooking foods, metallic scents of passing
traffic and the odors of people, some pleasant and some not.
Several blocks from the apartment building the crowds thinned. In an
alley she glimpsed furtive movements in the dark shadows. She hurried past. On
the corner across the street a group of gang members gathered. She sucked in a
breath and held her head high. For all her twenty three years she’d avoided the
gangs. As she strode past she heard the usual crude remarks about her body and
her attitude.
Get a life, she wanted to scream.
When she saw the ambulance and two cop cars in front of the building
where she lived she halted so abruptly she stumbled. A hand caught her arm.
Tira saw the gray-streaked beard of one of the winos who slept in the doorways
or the alley. “Get your hands off me.”
“Don’t go home,” he whispered. “Lose yourself in the crowd and keep your
head down.”
Tira saw a keen intelligence in the man’s dark eyes. Who was he? He
wasn’t as old as she had imagined either. “Why?”
“Your sister’s dead. Cops’ll be looking for you. They heard about the
fight.”
Tira’s stomach clenched. She blinked away a rush of tears. Though hearing
about her sister’s death wasn’t unexpected another dream shattered. There would
be no rehab for Luci. “Junkies O.D. every day,” she said.
“She was murdered.”
A chill slithered down Tira’s spine. A rush of acid burned her throat.
What? Why? Who? Keeping her eyes on the ground she inched away from him.
“Murder. Murder.” The murmured word spread through the crowd gathered on
the sidewalk and stung like attacking wasps.
MY PLACES:
http://wwweclecticwriter.blogspot.com
BUY MARK
http://www.bwlpublishing.ca/authors/lane-walters-janet-romance-fantasy-usa/
Tuesday, January 9, 2018
Tuesday's Writer's Tip - Which Genre For the Idea #MFRWauthor #Genres #Ideas @writing lesson
You really like your idea but what kind of book are you going to write. Your idea is for a romance or a murder or some new invention or something from a fairy tale that made you think. The problem is your idea could fit into any number of genres or sometimes by combining ideas.
Take the murder that you read about in the newspaper or saw a snippet on TV. That story could be a straight mystery or you could add some romance and a bit of suspense. You could take that book and set it in the present or in the past. The murder could happen in space or on a world where magic rules.
After the idea pops into your head, what kind of story are you going to write? The mystery, the romance could fin in different times and genres.
What are genres of fiction? There are many. Romance, Mystery, Historical, Fantasy, Science Fiction or what can be called Paranormal. So you take that idea and decide which genre or combined genres are you going to fit your who killed Joe, or who does Mary choose as her mate. The possibilities abound, but you really need to choose a direction before you start the book.
Next time, we'll start looking at the six elements or a story or the 5 Ws and the H.
Monday, January 8, 2018
Meandering on Monday with Janet Lane Walters #Poem #Meeting #Writing #MFRWAuthor
Meander 1 - Poem Writer
I did not choose this path.
I walk, yet I must go
Along the tortured days of life
Sinking deeper into living
With thoughts of lives not my own.
I take this way with open eyes
And hope to find an ending
If not happy at least satisfactory.
Meander 2 _ Meeting. - On Saturday I met with other members of Hudson Valley RWA. For a bitter cold day, the attendance was good. Eight of us gathered around and talked about out contest, and the plans for our spring retreat. We shared where we were on out writing projects and what good or not so great happened in our writing careers. I read a short scene and received so few comments. Made me happy since the story is now on track.
Meander 3 - Writing. I'm finally back on track with my latest opus, Leo, Aquarius Connection. Yesterday morning, I finished a lengthy scene and neglected to write the last part since I'm not sure how the love scene will go. I'll accomplish that on the next round of work.
I did not choose this path.
I walk, yet I must go
Along the tortured days of life
Sinking deeper into living
With thoughts of lives not my own.
I take this way with open eyes
And hope to find an ending
If not happy at least satisfactory.
Meander 2 _ Meeting. - On Saturday I met with other members of Hudson Valley RWA. For a bitter cold day, the attendance was good. Eight of us gathered around and talked about out contest, and the plans for our spring retreat. We shared where we were on out writing projects and what good or not so great happened in our writing careers. I read a short scene and received so few comments. Made me happy since the story is now on track.
Meander 3 - Writing. I'm finally back on track with my latest opus, Leo, Aquarius Connection. Yesterday morning, I finished a lengthy scene and neglected to write the last part since I'm not sure how the love scene will go. I'll accomplish that on the next round of work.
Sunday, January 7, 2018
Sunday's Book - Murder and Herbal Tea #MFRWAuthor #cozy mystery #Herbal Tea
Katherine’s wedding day has arrived and she and Lars make their vows. When she notices one of her best friends hasn’t arrived, she begins to worry. Her friend owns a shop where tea and accompaniments are sold. Her friend’s partner is a micromanager. Katherine’s friend has wanted to dissolve the partnership. A call to the New England town brings the dreadful news of a murder. Kate’s protectiveness factor takes hold and she leaves a note for Lars and heads to rescue her friend. Though she has promised to leave murders alone, she feels she has no choice. Lars follows to help her solve another murder.
Editorial Review
Long-time beau Lars has finally convinced Katherine Miller to become Katherine Claybourne. But fans won't be surprised that even on her honeymoon, Kate can't stop herself. She's a magnet for murder. ~ Writer Gail Roughton
Reviews:
http://wwweclecticwriter.blogspot.com
BUY MARK
http://www.bwlpublishing.ca/authors/lane-walters-janet-romance-fantasy-usa/
Saturday, January 6, 2018
Saturday - Reviews for The Twisted Climb by J C Kavanagh #MFRWauthor #YA
The Twisted Climb is a great read for young adults and adults alike. The premise of 'climbing to sleep' is an interesting notion in and of itself. J.C. Kavanagh craftfully pieces together the real-life and pseudo-dream journeys of the characters in a way that both offers life lessons and also leaves the reader wanting more. And that ending?! Sequel please!
Awesome book. Couldn't put it down. Recommended for all ages but in particular young adults. Great story with positive underlying life lessons. The kind of book that you don't want to end and when it does, you hope there's another one coming. Would make a great movie.
A unique and creative plot for a book or movie! kept me interested right away. loved the character development on the three main characters as well as the crazy scenario in which they all met up. very descriptive and paints a great visual picture. cant wait for the sequel!!! I've got to find out what ends up happening!
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