Non-cuss word cuss words

As I work on the next book, I was looking for a word that would be unique to my heroine, something she would use for people who offended her. You know, like a jerk. Except I've used "jerk" in other books, and I wanted her to have her own special way of referring to them.

Authors tread a fine line between giving their characters a true voice and offending their audiences. I like to be true to my characters, and Wolf in MIST ON THE MEADOW is a prime example of that. When he started going rogue on me, I let him have his head. That was his personality and I'd already portrayed him as "odd," so it seemed to fit. There are some minor cuss words in my books, as a rule, but since I don't use them in regular speech unless I'm highly annoyed, I generally stay away from them. Which is why I was so amused when I looked up synonyms for "jerk" and found some very funny off color ones.

I considered schmuck, but I'd already had another character use a Yiddish term (which might justify her going with schmuck), but I wanted something "fun." My Facebook community did not disappoint. Now I’m wondering if I shouldn't use a variety of alternatives since my heroine’s nemesis tells her she’s a walking thesaurus.

Final edits are in the works for THE SELKIE, the next in the Epitaph series, and I’m on track for the scheduled June 19 release date (you can preorder the e-book now! The paperback should be available for pre-order by next week).

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What's it all about, Alfie?

There comes a point in every writer's life (several points, actually) when they wonder why they're doing this.

I just saw where one of my favorite multiple times best-selling author's discounted her new release. A big name in the industry. And one of my other favorite authors has taken to begging for sales. Another big name in the industry. "Buy my books so I don't have to go to work at Taco Bell." Granted, that's her style, funny, snarky, self-deprecating, but with the news about the industry changing almost daily, and with the big names resorting to indie tactics, it raises concern to those of us "outside of the spotlight."

I recently saw another of my author friends asking her Facebook community, "What's the point? Does anybody actually read my books?"

Writers write for one reason. It's what they do. It's what they love. Whether they are best sellers or middle market or only their friends and family buy their books, they get enjoyment out of the process that they hope to share with the rest of the world. But there are limits.

Writing is an investment. Of time. Of money. Of energy. At some point in time, without sufficient feedback or return on investment, everyone gets burned out and throws their hands in the air, regardless of their occupation. Some days it becomes overwhelming.

Another of my favorite authors stopped writing altogether. She wrote for 20 years, produced more than 20 books, and she was a best selling author. She's still relatively young, and her books are still being re-released both here and abroad (most notably Germany). But no new books. I can't tell you why she stopped writing, although I have several guesses based on what I know about her.

How do you keep your favorite author writing? We need encouragement and support, just like everybody else. I met some friends for lunch one day and one of them bought a book from me. Another one at the table said, "Can I borrow it when you're done? I never buy books." The friend who bought then said she'd pass it around to anyone else who wanted to read it. While I'm grateful for the sale, and I understand when people share their books - hey, I'm a library lover, where I borrow books regularly - but authors gotta live, too. If you love a book, recommend it. If you borrowed it either from a friend or from the library and you loved it, buy it. "Support your local author." Leave a review at your favorite website (Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, etc.). Post it to your Facebook page or your Twitter feed or Instagram or Snapchat. Tell everyone you know what a fabulous book you just read. Without encouragement, it's hard to keep on keeping on. Yes, it's what we do, and yes, it's part of our DNA, but the difference in sales might determine whether we write for our own enjoyment or to share with the world.

Perry Mason

When I was a kid, one of my mother's favorite shows was Perry Mason. For those of you of a different generation, the character was based on novels by Erle Stanley Gardner about a lawyer who never lost a case. His clients were never guilty, and once in a while they refused to be defended properly, but in the end, they were always exonerated. The show was popular at the end of the 50's and into the 60's, and has been syndicated in reruns every since. Lately, my dear husband and I have been watching some of the old reruns, as much for nostalgia as anything else, and all the things my mother used to laugh at way back when are even more funny now.

via GIPHY
As an author, I am always tuned into "info dumping." How much of the background do you want to convey in a story? Certainly some needs to be presented so readers can know something about the character and the story, but there's a line between filtering the information in a little at a time and "telling" the reader everything. When reading, discovery is much more entertaining than being told what you need to know.

I finished reading a book recently where the author did an excellent job portraying a kind-hearted, champion to the downtrodden who is determined to help other people after surviving her own personal hell. The author could have said "as an abused woman, she spent her time doing good for others," but instead she demonstrates the character's traits. Over and over. The reader learns about this woman in the things she does for others, with only occasional reminders of the woman's own past and what motivates her to be this way. Very well done.

What does this have to do with Perry Mason?

Aside from the overacting in many places -- in the end, the guilty party almost always stands up in the courtroom and very dramatically confesses after Mason's improbable leading of witnesses and conjecture and other legal no-nos -- the beginning tends to be a huge info dump. "So Paul, this is what we know..." and he goes on to "tell" the audience what they need to know to follow the episode/story. To be honest, I haven't read any of the books, so I'm not sure if Mr. Gardner's prose also follow that line. Old television shows, in the beginning, were entertaining merely by being something new and different, so they could get away with a multitude of sins. As I mentioned, even my mother used to laugh at the dramatics of the confessions. However, audiences are much more sophisticated these days. TV is no longer a novelty. Unlawful behavior in the courtroom is laughed at as unbelievable.

Layering in information, foreshadowing, has become an art form. Consider the movie The Sixth Sense with Bruce Willis. The writers very subtly give you clues to the truth of what you're seeing, but it isn't until the very end when you suddenly say, "Oh, I get it." To me, that's a much more satisfying feeling than, "Let me give you the details of the case." Which is not to say I don't still enjoy the old Perry Mason reruns, but maybe that's just nostalgia.

It was a dark and stormy night...

I'm in between books. Finished one, preparing to start the next one, and struggling to figure out where the next one begins.

I also need some recovery time.

Many people equate finishing a book to birthing a child. They're not wrong. Like a new mother, an author needs recovery time. Time to refresh the soul. I certainly need that this year! Still, while I'm waiting for the final edits from my editor, I can't help but consider where the beginning is, even if I'm not ready to start writing.

Books need a hook in the first chapter. Action that grabs the reader's attention from the start. The first try usually turns into info dumping as I get acquainted with the characters and the setting, adding in all the details that I want to include. That's fairly normal. The first try is introducing the story to me, the author. From there, I can start culling out the unnecessary details, things that should be filtered in later. Things that don't matter other than for the author's information. THE SELKIE, the next in the Epitaph series, opens in Ireland, and while I was doing my research, my first cut included all kinds of details about the landscape, the topography, the Celtic Sea, and (or course) seals. Most of that was cut from the final version, but I left enough to "show" the reader, the pieces that move the story forward without dragging the reader down in minutiae.

Epitaph 6 will return to the cemetery, and I'm fairly certain that's where it will begin. As the final installment in the Epitaph series, the ghost in this last one will be figurative rather than literal (channeling Monty Python, "and now, for something completely different..."). No, it isn't completely different.

Authors are always thinking about the writing, so I'll likely start toying with an opening, even if I'm not ready to dive in quite yet. Funny thing about that, once I get the opening down, the rest generally starts to flow, but until I get my final edits back for THE SELKIE, I won't be able to devote all my energy to the new story, so my writing schedule for the next couple of weeks will be random, at best.

Unless these characters carry me away in the meantime....

Coming up for air

The door on my cage is open! Deadline season at the day job is over, and now I'm looking all the things I've been putting off for the last several months in the eyeballs. One of those things is the release of the next book in the Epitaph series.

I'm very excited to share the new cover with you! The book will be out (oh heavens! I'm looking at the calendar and realizing it's MAY!) next month! I'll be sending out a newsletter as soon as its available for pre-order, so make sure you're signed up. What's the book about, you ask? Here's the back cover blurb.

Don’t mix pleasure with business…

Pro Soccer player Liam McCormick doesn’t date fans or groupies. The last thing he wants is a sexual harassment scandal shadowing his career. So, when his physical therapist makes a play for him, he quits therapy deciding he can rehab himself. Big mistake. When the coaches learn of his walk-out, they assign an athletic trainer to assess his condition before the exhibition game in Ireland. The fact the new trainer is a woman puts Liam on his guard. He’s not interested in a replay with another infatuated woman wanting a piece of him.

Emma Parrish has no time for relationships. She works 80 hours a week, but a free trip to Ireland to assess Liam’s recovery is something she will make time for. Unfortunately, a little too much Irish stout has Emma making a fool of herself in front of Liam, mistaking him for a Selkie—an Irish legend of seals rising from the ocean as humans—when she sees him stripping off his wetsuit after a swim in the Celtic Sea. She reasserts her professionalism, and when one of Liam’s teammates makes a pass at her, she demonstrates her self-defense techniques and shows she can take care of herself. Instead of being put off, her strength and independence attract Liam. The more time they spend together, the more the temptation grows until neither can resist.

But an unexpected visitor follows them home from Ireland. The ghost of Liam’s father has much to atone for, and when Liam refuses to listen to him, the ghost recruits Emma to help him make amends with his family. Is Emma in love with Liam, or is she under the spell of a Selkie?

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              Catch up on the rest in the series (each stands alone)

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