Finally, the talented Edwina Cowgill joins us! See her website and blog here! From Edwina: My husband, Dave, and I went on a “mini-vacation” over the Memorial Day weekend. We drove to Savannah, Georgia, which is about a four hour ride from where we live. Needless to say, the radio was on for the entire trip. Dave loves the ole’ time radio programs – those mysteries that are “acted” out over the microphones. Programs such as Dragnet and Sam Spade. Personally, I don’t care for the programs that much. I’m more of a visual person – I want to either read the story and visualize it in my...
Story Behind the Story: Heidi Chiavaroli
Here is the “Story behind the Story” from my fellow WWII-writer, Heidi Chiavaroli! Visit her blog here! From Heidi: At the age of nineteen, I remember grieving my great-great-grandmother’s death. She was 102, born in the year 1898. I was sad for the loss, of course, but sadder still to think I hadn’t taken advantage of the time I’d had with her. Asked her questions. What was it like to be a child in 1908? How did it feel to be married during the turbulent times of WWI? To watch a grandchild be born with a second World War raging overseas? She was history. Personal history that I...
Story behind the Story: Sandra Ardoin
This week, I’m featuring the “Story Behind the Story” of my three critique group partners. First up – going alphabetically – is the marvelous Sandy Ardoin! Visit her blog and website here. From Sandy: How does a novel take over twenty years to write? I admit to being slow, but that’s a bit ridiculous, don’t you think? Shortly after I first started writing twenty-three years ago, I gave myself an assignment to be read by my class. I wanted to “practice” writing mood and description, so I created a nineteenth century mysterious, slightly shady character who rides into town and checks into a hotel without revealing his name or...
News and announcements
First off, I’d like to announce that my wonderful critique partner, Heidi, has started up a blog with a very interesting story – how her training for a marathon is like writing a novel. 🙂 Check it out at: http://heidichiavaroli.blogspot.com As a side note- here are the links to my other awesome critique partners! Sandy Ardoin – http://www.sandraardoin.com/ Edwina Cowgill – http://musingsofedwina.blogspot.com/ Next – I’m excited to say my rewrite of my NaNoWriMo manuscript is completed (now for little edits here and there). It has been retitled – “Beautiful Pretense” and I’m now preparing the manuscript proposal for the Oregon Christian Writers Summer Conference. Finally – I have to highlight...
The journey of revision
I was planning on writing a blog about another Arabian horse legend, but I thought I would let you all know where I am with my novel, In Dawn’s Shadows. This week, I am currently suffering the worst case of writers block. I hate it. Thanks to my fabulous critique partners (you know you are!) the novel has undergone many changes and improvements. Most writers will tell you no story is ever finished; there could always be one more edit, revision or tweak. Well, with In Dawn’s Shadows, it desperately needed the closer look and adjustment. Because I started this story as a freshman in high school, the manuscript has...