Looking ahead to the new year

We've had yet another year filled with uncertainty and catastrophe of epic proportions. I watch the news and see millions of people who were stranded over Christmas at airports due to the crazy storm that crossed the country. For days! It's like one of those rom-coms gone wrong. I did, however, see an article about a group of strangers who rented a car together to get to their destination - a la Planes, Trains and Automobiles. That sort of thing shows that people CAN and WILL work together when they need to, and gives me hope for the upcoming year.

As I look forward to the new year, I'm excited about my new release coming in February. I'm looking forward to grandbaby #5 and wish my son and his wife all the happiness they deserve. I'm looking forward to a trip to Spain to celebrate my niece's wedding.

My New Year's resolution is to look for the joy and let go of the disappointment. Celebrate my blessings and look for ways to shine light on those who need it. 

Sharing hope for a bright, shiny new year to you all.

Merry Almost Christmas

Wishing you joy this holiday season. 

Holiday Presents

There are a bunch of holidays crammed into December! To celebrate, I'd like to offer my readers a gift.

I'm one of those silly, sappy people who watches Hallmark movies. You know what? I agree with those people who condemn them as all the same, and even my husband can now point out "the black moment," in all of them, which is pretty much the same overused cliche in most of them. It generally stems from a misunderstanding that is easily resolved. (I can hear you saying, "why don't they just talk to each other," Terry!) Some of the movies have irrational responses to force this moment, which irritates the life out of me, but overall, they are "feel good" movies that you know will result in a happy ending. Light. Fluffy. Hope in a dark world.

A couple of years ago, I set out to write my own "Hallmark" movie, which is how I got my dear husband to watch them with me. Researching the genre. The funny part was when I told him we didn't have to watch anymore, he still wanted to. I should add the disclaimer here that he is not a fan of the old standards (like Its a Wonderful Life, and White Christmas, and Christmas in Connecticut - "black and white movies? Who watches those?"). He figures watching the Hallmark movies saves him from suffering through the oldie moldies. I have to watch those on my own or with a friend (ready, Bobbi?).

Did I mention a gift at the beginning of this post? I DID! And in honor of the holidays, whichever one you celebrate, I'd like to share the e-book version of my "Hallmark movie" book, While We Were Shopping, with you. After you've read it, I hope you pop over to Goodreads and let me know how you liked it! 

Click here to download your copy 

 

Ta-Da! Sneak peek at the new book!

Here's the eagerly anticipated first look at my new book! What do you think?

Antiques dealer Elle Barclay is called to the Horned Owl Hollow mansion to evaluate an antique figurine collection. What should have been a simple assessment of the collection’s value takes an unexpected turn when Elle learns the house is haunted. Residual energy taps into Elle’s sensitivity telling her to protect the estate for Martin.

Martin who?

A violent pop-up storm engulfs the estate and brings a sailor to the front door seeking shelter—a man claiming to be Martin Foster, the heir to Horned Owl Hollow who was lost in the Bermuda Triangle a hundred years ago.

Suddenly, the current owner of Horned Owl Hollow is speaking in a voice not his own—an angry spirit determined to see his wishes carried out. Other souls who perished in the house return to reveal the mansion’s dark history of treachery and greed dating back to the Prohibition Era. Time is against Elle as she works to right the wrongs of the past.

I got the boot

Today's post is back to the ankle saga.

In good news, the doctor told me I could ditch the boot, so on Saturday, I did. The physical therapist suggested I ease out of it with an ankle brace. So I did that, too. 

I don't think my ankle got the memo. 

Sunday morning, my ankle was swollen and sore again, so I iced it and put the boot back on. Monday, I went to the physical therapist who cleared me to stay in the brace but to quit “overdoing it.”

You know what? If housework is overdoing it, I’m happy to hand that over to DH. I’m fortunate in that he is willing to do his part. In the meantime, the new book is close to finished - I'm spit polishing it for the editor. The cover is in production and I should be able to share that with you soon. 

Newsletter goes out tomorrow, along with a contest. Are you signed up?

That doesn’t make any sense

After finishing the first draft, I started in on making HORNED OWL HOLLOW readable. And ran into something startling.

They say when you don’t know what to write, just write. The words will come to you. I agree with that sentiment for the most part, and oftentimes that means I’m writing “notes” such as “…and then this happens, and then that happens.” Get the ideas down even if they aren’t proper prose. The theory is that even if you write garbage, you can always clean it up later.

As I was reviewing and “cleaning  the mess” that is the second draft, I confused myself. Wait. That doesn’t make sense. How can “that” happen before “this” happens? And here’s the thing. I know what needs to happen in the story, but I got it in the wrong sequence. The good news? The story is there, it just needs to be fixed. 

Write. Even when you don’t know what to write. You can clean it up later.

This week, I’m cleaning up. This is the first time I’ve made such a tangle of threads in a book, but hey, I like a puzzle. I’m moving chapters around, identifying which threads got lost in the tangle, and cutting those threads that don’t belong in the mess. 

Happy Thanksgiving! I’m thankful to all of you who have been on this writing journey with me. Without you, there would be no road to travel. 

Why authors should read

There's a sense of satisfaction that comes with writing "the end," and I'm once again at that stage with the new book. I should note this is "The End" of the first draft. I have a lot of work yet to do to make this book readable. 

So here I sit, with my fractured ankle elevated. My "out and about" is going to physical therapy, and while I took a jaunt to the grocery store in my fancy boot, I quickly discovered that my chair is the best place to be for another week or two. Plenty of time to address my notes for what's still missing in the book and work through the second draft, and plenty of time to catch up on my reading.

This last week I received a book in the mail from a friend. One piece of advice commonly shared among authors is to make sure you read other people's work. While I am an avid reader, I tend to be streaky, and in my race to the finish line, I've been streaking in the "not reading" category. This gift changed that. I'm reminded why the advice to read other books is so critical.

First, the book I got was Patience Griffin's To Scotland With Love. I've been following her career, because I'm a big fan of Scottish literature, even as written by an American. I was hesitant to pick this one up because the hero is a big, famous, dashingly handsome movie star. I don't go for the movie star/average Joe trope, generally speaking. Don't like the billionaire heroes. They tend to be the same personality types and the same "wound," and I was afraid of being disappointed by "just another fabulous rich person falling for the plain Jane." So a big thank you to my friend, Jennifer, for picking this up at the quilt show and sending it along. 

Second, the reason to read other books is because they highlight either a) how not to write your story (if the book is "subpar"), or b) what your book is lacking. Let me tell you, Patience Griffin's writing was amazing. It is a romance, and it is women's fiction, but it's also much more. It's an ode to a small village in Scotland and a lesson in how to (or how not to) deal with disappointment. It's a family drama (which I generally touch on in my books). The woman put me to shame. She also makes me want to be a better writer.

THIS is where reading other authors comes into play. I've finished my first draft, and its "okay." Yep. That's all. It's okay. There are details missing. Information that shows up late in the book (surprise! Didn't see that coming!) that needs to be foreshadowed. Sensory cues that I know in my head that didn't make it to the page. I know all this, and even in the excitement of finishing the first draft, there is the funk of knowing the book could be better. (Of course, it can be better. It's a first draft, for heaven's sake!) So as I begin work on the second draft, I now have an example of what's missing in my work, not just an intellectual exercise, but something to strive for. Depth that needs to be added. I want something that will grab my readers the way Ms. Griffin's book grabbed me. Hers and mine are two completely different stories, but the essence of storytelling is the same. Don't leave the details out. Don't rush to answer the questions as they arise. Life takes time. 

I'm reminded of another author who doesn't believe in revising and editing. He subscribes to a theory called Writing Into The Dark which suggests your subconscious knows what should be on the page. I agree with that, but only as far as a first draft goes. It would be easy for me to say "the end - and done," but I'm striving for a more connective reading experience. That means going back and making this story better than "okay." I want people to connect to my words. To have a response to my words (other than "egads, that was awful!"). I want people to feel the same way reading my books as I felt writing them. Too much gets passed over in the first draft. For me, the first draft is getting ideas on paper. It isn't until the second draft that those ideas make sense.

So on to the second draft with a renewed sense of purpose. I hope you're going to love Horned Owl Hollow - and the inspiration that led me to write it!

Research and pacing

I'm in the final stages of writing with the new book--and finding more research that needs to be done. I've done a family tree for my characters since the story references family from 100 years prior. Which generation is who? How are they all related? (Do you like seeing family trees in the front of your books?) I've also referenced historical events from 100 years ago, but some of them don't line up exactly, so I have to build bridges to fill the gaps. More research from "the roaring '20s" and before.

Another bump I'm finding is the pacing of this novel. As I uncover information while writing, I weave it into the story. That's good, right? Not necessarily. I'm letting stream of consciousness guide my writing, but as I ruminate on it overnight, I've been going back the next day to "fix" it. Sometimes, it's better to withhold information rather than dump it all in one place. When Jessica Fletcher goes out looking for clues, she doesn't stumble on them all at once. She has to find pieces and then fit them all together. Same principle. For instance, yesterday I discovered something important about one of my characters--a revelation, you might say. Later, as I was thinking about it, I realized that was something that might better be left for later. He doesn't know about it, and while it explains why he's reaching for one of his goals, it comes together too easily as written. With an adjustment to the pacing, the "when" he discovers the information might hold more impact later in the story. As one of my critique partners pointed out, why would anyone work in a job they were overqualified for? My character has his reasons, but what I uncovered yesterday in research puts an exclamation point on it. Or does he know sooner and that's his vested interest? Conflict for my narrator, because she doesn't know. Either way, it's too soon for "the big reveal."

Pacing is the gradual introduction of major plot points and teasing what's to come throughout the story. Foreshadowing. Backstory. When to include information and how much without slowing or rushing the flow of the story. Uncovering the clues one at a time to be assembled later. Half the fun of reading a story is the journey, which means following the trail of breadcrumbs and not being given the whole loaf of bread all at once.

I have an update on a release date! HORNED OWL HOLLOW is on my editor's calendar for the end of January, which means it should be ready for a February release date - I'll keep you posted.

Always look on the bright side of life ♫♬🎜

For those of you who aren't familiar with the reference - here you go.  For those of you who are, you can skip ahead (or watch the video for a bit of fun).

September and October have been challenging months. I dived back into the work in progress in October after many distractions filed under the heading of "life gets in the way." In a twist of fate, life has now decided to guarantee I have time to sit still and finish the upcoming book, tentatively titled Horned Owl Hollow. How? So glad you asked.

After a very busy week last week, my sister invited DH and myself to dinner to discuss an upcoming trip for a family wedding. We were happy to go, and after some chatting beforehand, we headed out to the restaurant. It was a busy Friday night, so we gave the host our phone number and went outside to walk around the block while we waited for our table to be ready. It was a pleasant night, with darkness just settling in. Halfway around the block, yours truly stepped off the edge of the sidewalk (because I'm clumsy that way) and did a faceplant on the cement. I never really believed I was going down - certain I'd catch my balance. Too much faith in myself. I got back up with an abrasion on my lip where I hit the ground, dusted off my hands and aside from hurting my pride, considered myself no worse for the wear. Yes, I had some sore spots, but nothing to prevent finishing our walk. We went to the restaurant, ate our dinner, and before we left, the abrasion on my lip had eased so that it was barely noticeable. No harm done, right?

We went on to my sister's home, where we talked more about the trip, and an hour or so later, got up to leave. My sister asked about my injuries, making sure I hadn't knocked any teeth out when my face had connected with terra firma, and I assured her my mouth was fine. My ankle, however, was beginning to throb. We exchanged a few thoughts about a sprain or a break and I determined I was fine, although I did find some swelling around the pain. DH drove us home, and as it was late at night, I wasn't inclined to make a stop at the ER to have it checked. An ER? On a Friday night? LATE at night? No thank you. The ER is never a quick trip in the best of circumstances. I decided to sleep on it, sure my offended body would feel better in the morning.

Nope. The pain increased during the night, and in the morning, I asked DH to drive me to the Urgent Care. Still didn't want to spend all day in the ER, and on a Saturday? Not much better than late night Friday. Good call, as it turned out. I got into the urgent care quickly, they did an x-ray, and... guess what? The PA showed me a fracture at my ankle. Shout out to Emily and Sharon at the Urgent Care - they were fantastic. They checked me thoroughly and treated me well before they sent me home in a boot with instructions to stay off my feet and make a follow-up appointment. 

Bad news, right? Or, if you look on the bright side, as Eric Idle sings, I've just eliminated a bunch of distractions in my path to finishing Horned Owl Hollow. Considering the book is more than halfway complete, 4-6 weeks off my feet should give me more than enough time to finish writing it. 

I'll keep you posted!

Excuses, excuses

Years ago, I tried out a different editor at the behest of one of my writing buddies. It wasn't an unpleasant experience, but I have to say I prefer the professionalism of the editor I've been working with for almost all my books (Thank you, Kelly!).

Why am I telling you this today? One of the things the other editor did/didn't do: She didn't give me a written contract and she built in a sliding schedule in case "life got in the way." I understand that. We all understand that. Sometimes events happen that move your schedule. In fact, that's the very reason I'm blogging about this today. I've had a month worth of "life events" that have interrupted my regular writing schedule, but more on that in a minute. So this other editor. She offered more passes on the book than my regular editor, which seemed like added value to me. Her price was slightly higher, but again, she offered other extra value to the process - or so it seemed. She offered marketing suggestions, too. When it came down to it, she did a good job, but it wasn't "I will get this to you by Friday." There was no definite "finish" date. And the extra passes? I didn't get the last promised review, and when I asked her about it, she tried to tell me my initial questions counted as a pass. To me, that isn't a pass, that's "I don't understand your comments." Again, I was pleased with the work she did, but I didn't feel the same level of professionalism, the set schedule, the promised extras that accounted for a higher fee. The book did reasonably well, and at her prompting, I did market it a little differently than other books. I would still recommend her, but she wasn't a good fit for me.

So when life gets in the way... From the end of September and through a good part of October, DH and I have been dealing with major life events and the aftermath. There are times it doesn't make sense to try to work through it. Too many distractions. When I worked the day job, we were given time off to deal with these sorts of things, but comparing to the day job, we had a limit to how much time we could take off, and then we had to show up for the job again. I'm well past that allotment.

I need to show up for the writing job again. I've been away from it, dealing with these life events. For a month. Yes, I've dipped back into the book in progress when I've had time, but the longer you get away from a regular routine, the harder it is to get back into it - and this week isn't going to be any better. The difference? I'm making more of an effort this week. I have a book that's more than halfway finished, and I want to get to the end. The only way to do that is to show up to the job and do it. Commit to it and be professional. The fact that it's a job I love should make it easier. 

Wish me luck.

It's October, after all

I'm in the mood for spooky movies/books. 

A million years ago, I watched a movie called The House That Would Not Die that stuck with me all these years. It was based on a Barbara Michaels book called Ammie Come Home. I tracked the made-for-tv movie down a few years back while I was writing Epitaph as reference for the seance Amy and Kevin sit through. Recently, as I work on my next series devoted more to haunted houses than ghosts, I've been thinking about it again, this time from the angle of the angle of the ghosts rather than the seance. Like I said in my post last week, they don't make scary movies the way they used to anymore. They're all about killers rather than tickling your imagination with the things beyond our five senses-- that sixth sense (anyone remember a show starring Gary Collins by that name?)

After watching the movie above, I tracked down the book to read, and have to say the movie was fairly true to the book. I went on to read several Barbara Michaels books, but they didn't all have that same punch. I went on to read other scary books - Bram Stoker's Dracula was one of my favorites, and of course no one does horror quite like Stephen King. Do you know, when I read 'Salem's Lot he had me guessing for half the book about what was going on? And this, from a devoted horror fan. I love the way he can keep you guessing. And then, of course, I read The Amityville Horror. That is the one book I couldn't have in the same room with me when I'd finished it! 

Do you have a favorite horror movie or book that sticks with you?

---

If you want a spooky book to read, try one of my first-in-series-free books.

Click here to find out more

Click here to find out more

More on haunted houses

It is October, after all.

As someone who grew up fascinated by ghost stories and “Creature Features” I think haunted houses have always been at the top of my list. From the old black and white movies - The Haunting, The Uninvited - to the next generation - The House That Would Not Die, The Amityville Horror - it wasn’t a huge leap for me to want to write about haunted houses, starting with LIVING CANVAS. I’m a little sad that more modern interpretations turn into slasher flicks, as if the only thing that can scare us now is being sliced and diced. I prefer to stick with the fear of the unknown.

As I write my next haunted house book, I’m trying to stick to “the rules” that I have established for my ghosts, which is often colored by the rules of other authors and screen writers over the years. Ultimately, I come back to my own limited (and probably questionable) experiences, and the experiences of “sensitive” people I’ve met. Those seem to be supported by the ghost hunter shows I’ve also been watching to get the mood. At a recent author event, a reader asked me if I’d had any encounters in the cemetery where I started the EPITAPH series. The simple answer is no, although I walked the cemetery in the middle of a crisp September afternoon. 

Which asks the question, why do ghosts only show up at night? And why do the ghost hunters only work in the dark? I suppose the easy answer is because it’s easier to see a “manifestation” in the dark. The hazy, misty, amorphous shapes that make up a ghost. However, the sensitive person I spoke with in my recent research saw her manifestations in broad daylight. So what are the rules?

1. The dead can’t speak. This is supported in the Bible when a dead man wants to go back to warn his family to straighten up. Similar to what Dickens references in A Christmas Carol. The Lord tells the dead man those he wants to warn have the information they need, the same as he did. The result is in what we do with that information.

2. In order to see a ghost, you need to be open to the possibility. As much as they need to expend energy and intent to be seen, we need to expend energy and intent to see them.

3. When a person passes, their energy remains. Sometimes only for a moment, and sometimes as residue, like seasoning in an iron skillet. 

Finally- do ghosts really exist? The answer is very subjective. For me, its a matter of entertainment. When my parents talked about dying, I asked jokingly if they would come back and be my guardian angels, which earned me a resounding “no.” I read a book not long ago about a woman whose little sister died, and she was so overwhelmed with grief that she wouldn’t let the spirit go. As a result, the dead sister’s ghost couldn’t move on and grew more grisly as time went on. When we keep the people we lose dear in our hearts, they always walk with us, whether we see them or not. More memory than ghost.

For more about spirits and haunted houses, I stumbled on this blog that you might enjoy. 

https://samanthagentry.blogspot.com/2022/10/7-signs-your-house-could-be-haunted.html

If it's Wednesday, it must be... Bread Pudding?

Funny, but I've only just realized I've used bread pudding in not one, but two of my books. So following that thread... (2 recipes, so make sure you read all the way to the end!)

We've spent the last few weeks "taking care of business" upon the death of my mother-in-law. Busy days. Sad days. Hectic days. Family days. With the time sensitive part of our personal business addressed, I'll be back to business as usual. 

While I was combing her cookie recipes, I came across a gem for "Bread Pudding for Two," which I'm sharing with you today. I haven't tried it yet, but you can believe I will VERY SOON. Consider this a gift from Madeleine in ENCHANTED MEMORIES.

Oh, and in case you forgot, there was apple bread pudding, a/k/a Opfenschlupfer, in MIST ON THE MEADOW. I originally posted a recipe when Mist on the Meadow came out (you can find it here). 

If you are on Kindle Unlimited, you can read all three of the MIST books there.

Recently, as luck would have it, a recipe popped up on my Facebook feed, so now I have to try THAT recipe. It's attributed to Lisa Walker, and while I'd love to link you to her website, I couldn't get there when I tried. So I'll just share it here.

APPLE PIE BREAD PUDDING

INGREDIENTS

8 cups bread, cubed

3 medium apples, peeled, cored and chopped

4 eggs

1 cup vanilla yogurt

1 cup milk

2 tsp cinnamon, divided

½ tsp nutmeg

½ c sugar + 2 Tbsp

½ cup raisin

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350°.

Spray a 9×13 baking dish with cooking spray.

In a large bowl, whisk together the yogurt, milk, eggs, 1 tsp cinnamon, nutmeg, and ½ cup sugar.

Stir in the apples, raisins, then gently fold in the bread cubes. Pour into the prepared pan.

In a small bowl, stir together 2 Tbsp sugar and 1 tsp cinnamon.

Sprinkle on top the bread pudding. Bake 30-40 minutes until puffed and golden brown.

SAUCE

INGREDIENTS

1 cup Unsalted Butter

1 cup Heavy Cream

1 cup Brown Sugar

DIRECTIONS

In a heavy saucepan over medium-low heat, stir together the butter, heavy cream, and brown sugar; bring to a boil.

Reduce heat to low, simmer until the sauce thickens, for about 5 minutes. Pour over bread pudding to serve. Top with vanilla ice cream.

* If you can, leave bread cubes out for a few hours so they get nice and dry. If not, just place them on a baking sheet and bake them at 350 for 10-15 minutes or until they’re dry but not toasted.

* You can make this the night before and pop it in the oven for breakfast – it actually gets better if it sits overnight!

Come say hello

A shout out to let you know I'll be at the Gail Borden Public Library on Sunday, October 9 from 2-4 pm. Hope to see you there! (Click the picture to find out more)

Newsletter goes out Saturday! Make sure you're signed up to get it.

Click here to sign up.

Requiem

Taking a moment to reflect on the loss of a loved one. 

Dear Husband's mother “closed her account with God,” and now he and I are both orphans. We were  blessed that we had our parents for so many years. We have years of fond memories to reflect on.

One of the things I'll remember most about my mother-in-law was the way she liked to bake. At one point in time, she worked for a caterer making pies, and she always baked fresh bread. In later years, she reverted to "bought-en" bread part of the time. Dear Husband made cutting boards for everyone for Christmas one year, and she used to brag about how she bet no one else used theirs. One of my brothers-in-law also likes to bake bread, so he uses his frequently, but the joke with my other sister was "you mean I can actually use this?" (because it was so pretty). Years ago when we visited, we could always expect homemade cinnamon buns and sticky rolls for breakfast. She was an avid gardener, so there were always fresh vegetables for lunch and dinner, and fresh raspberry treats from her famous raspberry bushes. She used to sell her berries by the quart, and I'm pretty sure she even had a deal with one of the local stores. Even in the winter, she would break out fruits and vegetables she'd canned over the summer. 

She was a quick learner with a curious mind, and very resourceful. She taught herself how to play the piano (and how to tune a piano!!) and played an accordion. She was industrious, never one to sit idle as long as she was able to move, and in her later years, she liked to enlist my help with the crossword puzzles and jumbles in the newspaper. 

A life well-lived.

To honor her, I'll be going through her recipes (although many things she made by rote). While cookies weren't her specialty, she had several recipes that I definitely want to hold onto. Her baking knowledge will go on...

Rest well, Betty.

Grandma's cookbook

Whenever we went go visit Grandma B, she always had cookies ready for us. Back in the day, women wrote down recipes, often in a notebook. Later, my mother had a recipe box which became the norm for her generation. I had a box for several years, and then a looseleaf notebook filled with recipes I'd photocopied. Now we live in the age of computers, and most of my recipes are digitized or snagged online. (Pinterest anyone?)

Grandma also had a wire egg basket that folded into a million different shapes. Entertainment for hours when one is a child. 

Then there was the cupboard with the toys my dad had growing up - antique steel trucks and cars. My grandparents lived almost 400 miles away, and my sisters and I -- four of us -- were all jammed together in one bedroom, a double bed with army cots on either side. Alternatively, the neighbors had a camper that my grandparents borrowed, and we camped in the backyard.

Grandma B's cookbook

When my Grandma died, I asked for her recipe book. Mostly, it has stayed in the same place all these years. I've pulled it down a time or two mostly to reminisce. Recently I've decided to digitize some of her recipes for my cookie page. 

Dear Husband's mother also has a drawer full of cookbooks and recipes. On our recent trip to visit, I'd thought to grab some of her recipes as well, but we had other things to do while we were there, so I'm hoping to grab them (or photograph them) next time we visit.

Do you have recipes that have been handed down through the generations? Are they still in an old notebook, or a recipe box, or have you digitized them? 

You can search Grandma B's recipes on my cookies page!

Haunted House vs. Abandoned

Dear Husband and I took a trip up to his hometown last week, and while we were there, he took me to several places I haven't seen in all the years we've been married and visited there. We also walked "out and about" around the neighborhood, and as in most neighborhoods these days, there was a house that was empty. I stopped and took a picture for my "haunted house" files. We're back home this week, and while we were driving to the gym to exercise, we passed the same old empty house we pass every time we go that direction, one that never struck me as haunted. The property has several buildings that are falling down and in severely bad shape. It's more an eyesore than anything else. 

That got me to thinking. What's the difference between an abandoned house and a haunted house? Are there criteria?

One of the reasons this struck me this time, I think, is that the house where DH's grandparents lived was in sad shape for a long time, and while it wasn't abandoned, it housed some shady people for a while. There are "those" types of houses that don't strike you as haunted, just ill-used. Let me just say that the current residents in his grandparents' house bought it as a fixer-upper and have fixed it up. It's beautiful now, restored to some of its old glory (although they closed off the old coal chute and ice chute).

Back to the "haunted house." Even in our neighborhood, we had a house that sat empty for a long time - abandoned. Haunted? No. Ill-used. With that being said, the neighbor who lived next door pointed out the difference one day, telling us how "vampires" lived in the house on the other side of them. A creepy vibe, as opposed to the abandoned vibe the empty one gave off. 

There's a certain aura around a "haunted" house, to my way of thinking. Character. The most recent example on our walk had a clearly abandoned feel to it, not the least of which was a satellite dish still on the roof and a boarded-up front door. But there was something more. Maybe because it was an older neighborhood, an older home. Maybe it was the balcony over the front porch, where I envisioned a ghost keeping watch. A big, welcoming front porch. The sense it had been recently occupied. Whatever it was that perked up my imagination, I stopped to take the picture as inspiration for "what comes next."

When I was growing up, we had a big old Victorian up the street that we always designated as the haunted house. It had been subdivided into apartments, and while we were playing in the yard next door one day, one of the tenants came out on the balcony and did an "Igor" impression to scare all of us. We all screamed with delight, but it also took away some of the haunted feel after that.

Do you have a "haunted house" in your neighborhood?

Going dark this week.

Life is busy this week with outside distractions. Will be back next week with more musings. In the meantime…

Today is the last day to enter the booksweeps.

Looking for something to read? Like books set in small towns? Have I got a deal for you! Fifty books - including BEING NEIGHBORLY. Also up for grabs is an ereader. Contest runs August 15-August 31.

The ghost in the basement

I should probably adopt a Vincent Price tone of voice for this post (hint, I missed the mark when I tried). And speaking of Vincent Price, did anyone else ever see his appearance on the Carol Burnett Show years and years ago where they sat on the stage and had an innocent dinner together while he demonstrated the difference between a normal conversation and one where everything he said took on a different aspect when he turned down the lights and changed his tone of voice? (Does anyone know who Vincent Price was?) Maybe I should craft an alternate blog post, the way he did an alternate "dinner conversation." In the meantime...here's the "innocent" version.

The other night, I was having trouble sleeping. I got up to retrieve my iPad and send an email to my buddy, because that’s what she and I do when we can’t sleep. As I reached for my tablet, which was turned off (and not just sleeping), there was a flash of light--the size of a lightning bug, but no lightning bugs in the house--at the corner of the cover. Odd, but maybe just tired eyes. I fired up the tablet and found a notification from one of the “nanny cams” in the basement. Dear Husband has them set up to monitor his workshop when he leaves his machines to work without him. At night, in the dark, there absolutely should not be “motion in the basement.” So there I sat, in the dark (because I don’t need to bother DH just because I can’t sleep), debating if I want to know what’s in my basement.

For someone who writes scary stories, you’d expect my imagination to work overtime. I thought about it for about half a second, then called up the video. Let it be said I had watched an episode of Ghost Hunters recently that discussed orbs of light and energy, and all of that, which might have made me suggestible. So why did my thoughts immediately go to the rational explanation?  Not scared. Not concerned. I will say I watched the entire 90 seconds recording looking for a ghostly face to go with the orb. No such luck. (And that's a nightlight on the ceiling, so nothing odd there.)

The next morning over breakfast, I showed the video to DH, who absolutely does NOT believe in ghosts, just to see what his reaction was. His guess? Tinkerbell. 😂😆

What do you think? 

Who wants free books?

 

Looking for something to read? Like books set in small towns? Have I got a deal for you! Fifty books - including BEING NEIGHBORLY Contest runs August 15-August 24. 

Destination: Galena

We made it! We finally visited Galena. Between bad weather and other responsibilities, it wasn't as easy as it seemed.

Holograms of Ulysses S. Grant
and his wife Julia

Those rooms under the stairs...

Galena is a beautiful town and tourist destination. It has a wealth of haunted history, along with a wealth of history, period. I used it as a setting in one of my Epitaph books, when Garth takes Sandra out of town to get away from her psycho ex. It's the perfect place for a girls' weekend (I've done one there, myself) and this year they're doing a romance writers event in connection with their official girls' weekend in September. Since I'm always looking for an excuse to go, I signed up to be there next year. 

In addition to a cute downtown area with all kinds of specialty shops, Galena has outdoor activities. Golf. A zipline. Hunting, for those hunter/provider types. Fair warning. It's a tourist destination, so as charmed as you are by the corner candy store, they're going to charge you twice what you'd pay for that saltwater taffy than you would at home. They have ghost tours every night -- not ghost hunting expeditions, mind you, just historical tours with ghost stories. And the history is rich. If you're walking down the main drag, make sure you look up. You might see a horse looking down on you from a second-story window. I've never been there when there wasn't a significant amount of foot traffic. And did I mention the recreational options? 

We went specifically to see the holograms in the history museum, which we'd seen before, but which had new appeal for me with my current project. You'll note in the photo I took that you can see through Julia Grant--sort of like you might expect to see through a ghost. Galena is a day trip, so we had to justify the time and gas to get there. I would have preferred to go for a weekend but will save that for another time (maybe next year!). 

While we were there, we toured the home Ulysses S. Grant occupied when he wasn't in St. Louis or Washington (after he was elected president). There are also homes of other historical notables available to tour, and a mansion - Belvedere - that is as much a museum as anything else. When nearby Dubuque failed to build their art museum, many of their treasures were sent to the mansion, where they are on display. 

The town has a wine tasting room, and there is a bourbon distillery in addition to the vineyards. They also had (and I wish I'd remembered this while writing my Hillendale books!) mystic shops. Herbology. Tarot readings. When I was writing THE TWINS (Epitaph 2), I'd been trying to find a place to buy Palo Santo so I could accurately describe the scent. I ended up mail ordering some (not sorry, because I have an adorable cat carved from the wood). In Galena, I found Palo Santo sticks packaged with sage smudges in a store that also sold spell books. 

Going from one block to the next.
Good cardio!

As with most tourist towns, the specialty shops come and go, so there's always something different. We had lunch at a little pub called Durty Gurt's, filled with fun, snarky signs to read while we were waiting. There's an Italian restaurant with a front door on the "low" street. When you walk up the stairs to the next block (the elevation between blocks is significant), there's a terrace for the restaurant halfway up the hill. Some of the streets between blocks aren't navigable by car and consist of staircases or brick-paved ramps. 

The trip accomplished what I'd set out to do, and then some. The weather was beautiful, and it was nice to get out of the house for the day.

Ghost Busting

I've always been intrigued by "ghost" shows. Sometimes they're fun, and sometimes they're just silly.

In my research for the new series, I've searched out a couple of the more popular ghost hunter shows. Permit me a minute to digress before I tell you what I've seen.

Digression #1: When I was writing my novella, LANDSLIDE, I watched a Bigfoot hunting series. Pretty sure I told you all about that before - you can read about it here. Long story short, there were more holes in their data than science. As a result, the Bigfoot in the novella is more of a joke than a flight of imagination. (PS: Sign up for my newsletter and you can download Landslide FREE!)

Digression #2: Once upon a time, there was a ghost show on television with Linda Blair and that creepy lady from Poltergeist (Scariest Places on Earth). The show was shot "dark," which meant creepy voices in barely visible film to enhance the experience. I found the show interesting at the time, even with my Dear Husband making fun of it. 

And back to today's point. I actually contacted a local ghost hunter -- or tried to -- as a reference for the new series. We traded emails and texts but never actually connected. As I research HIM, I discovered a YouTube channel and a blog. Turns out he had one "maybe" ghostly encounter at a Halloween haunted house that is supposedly a portal to hell. Beyond that, his YouTubes entail driving by great big houses and saying "gee, I bet there's a ghost or two in there! I'd really love to get inside." He lost me when he sat outside one of the houses I actually toured in my own research. Hey buddy, if you want to go inside, why don't you? In our brief correspondence, he'd mentioned Ghost Hunters. So I DVR'd a couple episodes of that. What did I think? Jury's still out. I have a few more to watch this coming weekend, but the one I did watch (with Meatloaf as a special guest star) was silly. Yes, I blogged about it already, about ghosts that push people downstairs, and yet the "team" determines the ghosts aren't dangerous. The data they collected was sketchy. And these new-fangled boxes they have that are supposed to help us "hear" the ghosts speaking? If I have a radio that changes frequency every three seconds (or whatever time interval), I'm likely to hear a voice or two, too. That doesn't mean they're a ghost, it means someone else is using that radio frequency. Phooey! But hey, that's what these shows are meant to be. Entertainment.

I grew up reading Stephen King. I like his deliciously creepy vibe and the way he weaves the extraordinary into the ordinary. Not sure any of his books ever "scared" me, per se. Some grossed me out, but in the end, I always enjoyed the entertainment. That's what I'm striving for. The extraordinary in the ordinary. I can't dig as deep as Mr. King does. Sometimes when I'm writing spooky stuff (like in the EPITAPH series), I scare myself. I admit it. The imagination is a fertile thing, after all, but as the series tagline indicates, some things are scarier than ghosts.

Rule #1 when corresponding with authors

As a lot of authors will tell you, they didn't just wake up one day and decide to try their hand at writing (although that is true for some of them). For me, I started writing stories when I learned to write. Then, when I learned to address an envelope, I sent my story off to Random House Publishers. Needless to say, they turned me down.

I continued to write stories, graduating to my mother's typewriter. Eventually, I bought a typewriter of my own, but my stories were nothing more than wild ramblings of my imagination. Playing Barbies with words. I eventually sent a proposal to a publisher, but I still wasn't seasoned enough. The stories weren't developed enough. I went back to the books that inspired me, Gothic romances by Victoria Holt, and tried to figure out the recipe for success. Still, I was missing something.

Then I read A DRAGONFLY IN AMBER by Diana Gabaldon. I was so enamored that I began email correspondence with Ms. Gabaldon who, at the time, was just taking off. She was very gracious and responded promptly. I wanted to write like her, but by this time, I didn't have the confidence that I could string words together properly, so I pitched my story idea to her. This is when I discovered Rule #1 about corresponding with authors--don't try to pitch ideas. She very kindly told me she had plenty of her own ideas and told me to write the story myself. I was too embarrassed to continue sending her emails. She also went on to be fabulously famous and no longer has time to correspond with just anybody.

So I wrote the story myself.

I went back to school, enrolled in classes, and wrote the story that had insisted it needed to be written - TOUCHED BY THE SUN, previously titled THE TREASURE OF ST. PAUL. The book is currently out of print as it is hopelessly outdated, but I had the most fun writing it! I spent hours in the library, learned Italian, interviewed several people who have visited Pompeii. One of those people told me I couldn't possibly write about a place without visiting it--until she read what I wrote. I had done EXTENSIVE research. Travelogues. Guidebooks. I'd done a creditable job. Years later, I did visit Pompeii. I might have included other things after living the experience, although what I wrote held up. Most importantly, the extra effort I put into writing paid off. I learned the things I'd been missing in all my earlier attempts. 

As I continued to practice my art, I learned more things. Like, just because I have a large vocabulary doesn't mean I should use it. Like, figure out what genre you're writing. Find your theme and stick to it. Twenty-five books later, I can rein in the ideas buzzing around inside my head into coherent stories, all thanks to Diana Gabaldon. I'm grateful to her for giving me the push I needed.

Moral of the story - stick to your guns. Learn everything you need to know about the things that you are passionate about. As Joseph Campbell said, Follow Your Bliss.

Ghost stories. Next stop, the Holodeck

I've spent the last month working to finish my latest projects. The home stretch is always intense. With BEING NEIGHBORLY out in the world, and the audio for FAMILY ALCHEMY finished, it's time to redirect my focus to the new series.

Abraham Lincoln Hologram

If you've been following along, you know I've made several field trips ahead of the new series to visit some spectacular places. I've started the next book, but there's one more stop I'm planning to help with the research -- the Galena History Museum. When you walk in, you're greeted by a hologram of Ulysses S. Grant. For my friend Sarah who asks how I research ghosts, here's an example. 

I've also been tracking ghost hunters as research for the new series. For those of you with a healthy dose of skepticism, I'm right there with you, especially based on the shows I've watched and gadgets these people use. I watched an episode of Ghost Hunters and was unimpressed by their findings, and how they regularly talk about "friendly" ghosts, even after they've been called in to investigate ghosts that push people down stairs. Doesn't sound so friendly to me, but what else are they going to say? I also contacted a couple of local ghost hunters. Let's just say I'm again unimpressed. I prefer to think of these people as opportunists. 

When it comes to "real" ghosts, I've found you have to draw the stories out of people who have had encounters. For myself, I've had a couple of experiences that could be within the realm of ghostly. They're unexplained, for sure. Have I "seen" a ghost? Can't say I have. However...

I did talk to someone who witnessed a "manifestation." In fact, she told me about two. (I need to go back to ask her about the second one!) Is she telling me "ghost stories" as entertainment? Certainly, that's a possibility, but she doesn't have a reason to dupe me, and she had several stories at the ready the first time I talked to her. When she has these encounters, she looks for validation. When the ghosts carry a message, what proof can she give to people? If you can't back up what you see/hear, why share it? (Well, in this day and age, there are plenty of people who tell stories with no substance, so I suppose that question is better suited to the type of person you're talking to and what they have to gain from their story.) In talking to Fran, we discussed the desire to see ghosts. Neither one of us would choose that experience, which I think is true of most people. Without us extending the energy to invite them to reveal themselves, spirits don't have enough energy on their own to make themselves known. Or at least that's the theory. It requires energy extended from the receiver as well as the sender. An open mind and a willingness to communicate. 

Or there's the theory of hypnagogic hallucinations. These are dreams you have upon waking, or when drifting off to sleep. Hearing voices. Seeing things. For the most part, they are associated with an illness, but 35% of the population experiences them even when they're healthy. At least one of my personal experiences can likely be written off to this phenomenon. 

Whether ghosts are real or imagined, they make for good stories, from the campfire and beyond. 

The Making of an Audiobook

There's a school of thought that says readers want to hear their favorite authors narrating their books. While this may or may not be true for all authors, I figured I'd give it a shot.

Even though I've ventured into podcasting and other audio projects, I was grossly unprepared for the enormity of what I was taking on when I decided to record FAMILY ALCHEMY. I started it some time back, and with the help of my Dear Husband, found some excellent production software and a mic and screen that would filter out the popping noises some letters make. I got through about ten chapters when I started to notice some other annoying "tics." A clucking tongue or a dropped consonant, for example. "Cleaning" the audio became a lesson in the new production software. Fading and muting and normalizing. The difference between wav files and mp3 files.

Despite all the frustration, I am not one to give up. The audiobook production became a challenge. With that being said, I did have to set it aside for a while considering just how frustrating it was becoming. Ever persistent, I went back at it a while later. Decided what I'd done wasn't so bad and pressed onward.

Another obstacle I came across was lack of a professional studio. I'd read how some people record in their closets where clothes mute the background noise. Fortunately for me, I live in a relatively quiet neighborhood. That doesn't help, however, on garbage days. Or on hot days with the air conditioning cycling on regularly. Or a variety of other unexpected noises. The spin cycle on the washing machine. Lawnmowers. Being in the runway pattern for the airport. The wind blowing from the train station. 

I reached a point where I was "in the home stretch." Ten chapters to go. I could do this! As I was listening to one of the last chapters, I heard background noise, despite my best efforts to record around outside noise. In trying to filter the noise out, it became even MORE noticeable, so I had to rerecord parts of that chapter. In between air conditioning cycles. Yes, I know, I could turn the air off while I'm recording, but considering the heat wave we've been experiencing, that wasn't practical (and my husband would have something to say about it). 

My experience with producing audiobooks -- it's a commitment. Much like editing a print book, there is the initial "getting it down" phase, then the reviewing phase, then the final editing phase. When all that is finished, one last listen to make sure each chapter sounds as good as you can make it. The professionals can complete an audiobook in a month. It took me A LOT longer. Maybe now that I know what I'm doing, it would be faster, but I also have other projects on the fire. New books to be written.

So now, several months after I began this experiment, I've completed the audiobook! It will take another week or so before it hits the outlets, but if you want to hear this author reading her book, you will be able to. Considering this is NOT my strong suit, I plan to offer the audiobook at a deep discount. My Author's Direct page usually has the best prices.

I'm hesitant to try another book. It's time-consuming, especially without the proper equipment and with other projects competing for attention. (Did I mention I'm working on my new haunted house series? 😁) But never say never. If you are so inclined to have a listen, I hope you'll let me know how I did. Positive reinforcement might persuade me to venture into the next Hillendale novel (there are five). If my performance detracts from the story, I'd like to know that, too. In a nice way, of course. 

---

By now you all know about BEING NEIGHBORLY. Did you get your copy? Can't wait to hear what you think.

A sneak peek

I've spent the last week combing through editor comments and making sure I haven't missed anything. BEING NEIGHBORLY is ready to make its debut next week. You can still get it for the early bird, bargain basement price of $0.99, but the price goes up July 13. Need more incentive to buy it? How about a little snippet?

She pulled into her garage, and when she walked to the back door, Heath was bent over his iPad with earplugs in.

“I told you to stay out of it,” he said, his voice low and threatening. “Don’t want to raise any red flags.”

Sue’s breath caught. Was he on the phone? What happened to the guy who was worried about being a dork?

Heath looked up, smiled, and tugged out his earbuds. “How was your day?”

They’d questioned him about his roommate’s death, which meant they must have had a basis for assuming he could be a killer. He seemed harmless, but after what she’d just heard, she wasn’t so sure. Sue crossed her arms and faced him, trying to decide what to say.

“Bad day, then?”

She was dying to ask him about his roommate. Dying to know what made his roommate’s death suspicious. It didn’t help that the book currently on her nightstand was a whodunnit, triggering her imagination with all the possibilities.

---

BEING NEIGHBORLY - Coming July 12
Special preorder price $0.99

Finding the perfect resource

I've taken a couple of false starts on the new book. Starting with a lot of boring detail and unnecessary backstory. That's usually the way. Then I cut the detail so the action would be more immediate, but even that wasn't working right. First chapters are always a challenge. As an author, I need to grab your attention from the get-go. But I still had research to do, and until I was able to get out and do that, I kept writing so at least I'd have something to fix.

And then I got out for research.

I went out to meet people last Friday, to find out how people in the occupation my main character works do their jobs. It took me three stops to find someone who is now my best friend. 

My first stop was a "market," an indoor venue with approximately 35 booths, and when I walked in, the ladies at the door seemed uncertain as to how they could help me. So they said to walk through and talk to the people at the booths that had merchandise I was researching. The only problem with that was there were very few vendors actually at their booths, and certainly none at the booths that were relevant to my story. Halfway through the market, I ran across another woman who was very pleasant and asked if I had planned a visit to a shop "downtown." When I told her yes, she told me that was a great idea and the woman in the shop would be very helpful. As opposed to the 35 booths that weren't. The stop did reinforce one thing. Narrow my focus. Instead of a very broad vendor, I'd be wiser to have my main character specialize in one area. 

My second stop was a shop "downtown." I walked in after visiting the Farmers' Market, mid-afternoon, and the proprietor was just having lunch. She had a consignor with her and they were in conversation. She greeted me, but I felt like I was intruding, so I told her I'd just look around and stop with questions after I'd seen what she had. The store was sprawling--unique and interesting--but there was also a store next door. After I'd looked at her inventory, probably fifteen minutes later, she was still eating and still had the consignor at the counter with her. I asked her a few general questions, then moved on to the next shop. Dear husband was with me and growing impatient that I hadn't said much. I pointed out she was clearly distracted and not forthcoming or interested in conversation at the moment. I steered DH to the next shop with the intention of circling back. Maybe the guy at the counter would be gone by then, at least.

In the next shop, Whatnots and Whimsies, I found a very friendly proprietor (shout out to Fran), and as we started to talk, the consignor from the previous shop walked in with a box of things to sell. I tried to excuse myself to give her time to deal with him and said I'd look around, and she said, "No, stay and talk to me! This is just a regular seller, blah blah blah." But I felt I was intruding, so I said I'd come back after I'd seen what she had. Again, she had a lot of interesting inventory, including some of the things that I'd targeted for my character. After we'd toured the store and neared the front, she stopped me and said, "Go ahead, pick my brain." With the consignor at the counter and customers in the store. I asked a few wide-ranging questions and she steered me back in and asked what the project is about. When I told her, her eyes brightened and she said, "Have I got stories for you." I spent the next hour talking to her, with customers stopping to join in the conversation and one of the employees as eager to chat as she was. 

I'm not a very pushy person (as you might have surmised), so this woman's willingness to draw me in despite her outside distractions appealed to me, as well as the stories she told me... Let me just say I found my new starting point in the manuscript. Am I using her stories? Not as a main theme, but perhaps I might incorporate one or two in the "work history" part of the book, as my character goes about her job. In talking, she helped me organize my own ideas into a more cohesive structure, taking what I have and weaving it into a more compelling start to the book - or so I hope. 

I have the perfect reference for my new series. This woman could well BE my main character, except, of course, the facts don't always fit the stories. There's quite a bit of "made it up along the way" to deal with. 

Sometimes doing the research is as much or more fun that writing. Can't wait to share the new series with you.

In the meantime, editor comments are back on BEING NEIGHBORLY, so need to knock that out to make sure it's on time for release day. (Don't forget, you can buy it at a discount, but only until July 13th).