Writing Out of Darkness by Billie Jo Turner

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I’m probably the most inexperienced writer currently with BWL. Out of Darkness is my first published work. I’ve had minimal experience with writing a blog. I’ve only participated once in a blog spot offered by Janet Lane-Walters, Eclectic Writer (https://wwweclecticwriter.blogspot.com/).  Janet kindly offered a question and answer format. 

 Since publishing Out of Darkness, I’ve struggled with promotion and social media as these are things that don’t come naturally for me. I’ve never been a big presence online.  Facebook has always been a means of connecting with family and for little else. Instagram is my go to for Tasty recipes. So being a newbie, I haven’t felt like I have much to offer for a blog. Everyone start somewhere and  I’ve come to realize that being new, my beginning is still pretty fresh. What I can offer is my experience along with the trials and errors, my journey.

When I wrote my novel Out of Darkness, I was writing for me. I think at the back of our minds, at some point we’ve all dreamed of writing a book and having it published. But that wasn’t what inspired me to write my novel. Completing  Out of Darkness was an accomplishment, a goal I wanted for myself. I’ve always been an avid reader. I loved being taken away into other worlds. I would often imagine stories that I would like to see written. My English teachers always encouraged me to write and I’ve written many short stories over the years but I never had the courage to take on such a large project. 

A friend of mine is a writer and we often talked about her projects and her writers group. She encouraged me to come to some of the  meetings. I was already well on my way to writing my novel but there was so much I still didn’t know. I became a member of the writers group and tried to soak in the advice, knowledge and experience from the group and  from the workshops they offered. I was learning  the tools I needed to complete my book. 

I was thrilled to complete it. I thought I’d done a great job (I had learned humility yet). I gave my finished work to my friend to read and she gave it back to me with notes in the margins and a page of notes and suggestions. You can imagine my surprise to find out that the first draft of my amazing accomplishment was not the prize-winning literary art I expected it to be. I joke about my lofty expectations but I did think it was pretty darn good for a first attempt. I gratefully accepted her suggestions and notes and got straight to work at improving my work. When I figured I was done I sighed with relief and set it aside.  I wanted to give it some time before I looked at it with fresh eyes again. And it sat. 

My friend eventually published a series of books. I attended one of her book launches at the local library. I enjoyed chatting with other writers and artists of other kinds as well that attended. During the event, I visited with another writer. I told how her I’d also written a novel but  that it’d been sitting for a while.  We were discussing my difficulty in deciding  which genre my novel belonged due to the multitude of subgenres, so she asked me to tell her a bit about my book.  I told her how my hero Kai, accidentally stumbles into an immortal existence and finds himself bound to protect the mortal world  until the night everything changes when he rescues a university student from a brutal attack.  She agreed that my novel would fit the paranormal romance category. To my surprise,  I’d been talking to the publisher at the BWL Jude Pitman. She said my story sounded interesting and she invited me to email her my novel. 

Well damn, now what. It’d been quite some time since the last time I took a look at my novel. So over the next few days I went through it with a fine tooth comb and tweaked it yet again.

I sent it off to Jude and a few days later, I got a response. In the email, Jude explained that while BWL usually works with experienced writers,  she liked the way I handled the premise of my story. BWL was going to accept my novel with some conditions of course. She explained how BWL has high expectations from their writers and how the final onus is on the author to deliver a Ready to Publish manuscript. 

While they rarely do this, she was going to see if one of the editors would be willing to give me a little extra help. I was so excited. Then came more blows to my pride. While she felt my story had been handled well and had a good premise it needed some work when it came to the craft of writing. Some helpful suggestions were made and I went through my work once again. Something was just not clicking for me. I will tell you that working with an editor is not for the faint of heart. You need to have a thick skin. And I tried. There were times where I felt completely demoralized by the comments of my editor but I am very grateful regardless. As my editor told me, the comments were not meant to be personal but to make me a better writer. While it was hard to see that during the process, I took the criticism as constructive and carried on until I finally had that finished, ready to publish product.

One of most valuable things I’ve  learned is that everybody has a different method. I had one mentor telling me the importance of the rules while another mentor was telling me that there are times to throw the rules aside. The hard part is learning when the rules apply them when they don’t.  There are rules you need to follow for grammar and structure but everybody gets there in their own way. Some writers all about the structure while I write more freestyle. That isn’t to say that I have no structure or direction. I know when I start writing in the direction I want my characters to go as well as the general plot. I don’t have it all blocked out and mapped on a piece of paper like some writers. I have it blocked and plotted in my mind. Sometimes I let new ideas flow while I ’m writing and then I go back to make sure the continuity isn’t affected but that works for me. 

I have to also say that being accepted as a part of the BWL family is a blessing. The encouragement and support given by the writers of BWL has been amazing. I see a group of people who are dedicated to not just lifting up their own works, but the works of their fellow writers. 

This past year has brought many changes to my life. I published  my first book. Shortly after, my mother was diagnosed with breast cancer and underwent a double mastectomy. My daughter went off to college and is just now moving into the dorms. I got married and moved to the country. My oldest stepdaughter moved away and my youngest stepdaughter moved in. I am still chipping my way through my next novel tentatively titled Snow Bound and working through ideas for a sequel to Out of Darkness. It has been a very eventful whirlwind of a  year.

Peggy Shippen, beautiful British Spy, by Diane Scott Lewis

While researching my novel Her Vanquished Land, I came across many women who spied during the American Revolution. I wanted my heroine Rowena in the thick of the war, spying for the British, in what would become a lost cause.

Margaret 'Peggy' Shippen, the second wife of Benedict Arnold--a man whose name would become synonymous with the term 'traitor'--was reportedly also a spy for the British and a force to be reckoned with.

 

Born in Philadelphia in 1760, Peggy's prominent family were Loyalists (other sources refute this), the people who stood behind George III and the British government when war broke out in the colonies. Peggy met Benedict Arnold when he was military commander of the city. She and Arnold married in 1779. Arnold, feeling underappreciated and underpaid by George Washington, began conspiring with the British to change sides. Peggy, it's been reported, played a major role in convincing her husband to desert the Americans, ask for command and weaken the Fort of West Point, to turn it over to the British.

Arnold

 

According to Aaron Burr (lawyer, politician, and third vice president of the U.S.), Mrs. Arnold, "was disgusted with the American cause" and "through unceasing perseverance, she had ultimately brought the general into an arrangement to surrender West Point."

British documents from 1792 show that Mrs. Arnold was paid £350 for her handling of secret dispatches.



However, the surrendering of the fort was discovered, and she fled with Arnold to England. There, she supposedly received payment from the king for her involvement.

She returned to America after the war, in 1789; but in spite of her family's influence she was treated coldly and called a traitor. Arnold died in 1801 leaving Peggy in debt. She died in London in 1804, probably from cancer.

Some say the charges against Peggy aren't true. Joseph Reed, the nominal head of the government (lawyer, military leader, and statesman), resented Arnold's rise to importance and spread ugly rumors about both him and his wife. Reed even called George Washington an incompetent commander. It's hard to know what to believe.

History and Women gave Her Vanquished Land Five Stars: "Diane Scott Lewis has penned a passionate tale about a brave young woman, often in the guise of a lad, who will do anything to save her family and demonstrate her loyalty for the Brits as they lose. It is a novel of loss, of strength, and the love of family. You must read this book! Well done!" 

Blurb:

In 1780, Rowena Marsh decodes messages for the British during the American Revolution. When the rebels overrun her home state of Pennsylvania, she flees with her family. Are the people loyal to England welcome anywhere in the burgeoning United States? Rowena struggles with possible defeat and permanent exile, plus her growing love for an enigmatic Welshman who may have little need for affection. Will the war destroy both their lives?

 

Purchase Her Vanquished Land HERE

Diane Scott Lewis grew up in California, traveled the world with the navy, edited for magazines and an on-line publisher. She lives with her husband in Western Pennsylvania.

Why I Write by J.Q. Rose

Dangerous Sanctuary by J. Q. Rose

Cozy Mystery

Pastor Christine Hobbs never imagined she would be caring for a flock 

that includes a pig, a kangaroo, and a murderer.

Find more mysteries by J.Q. Rose at BWL Publishing

Welcome to the BWL Insiders Blog. You'll find a variety of blog articles written by the BWL Publishing authors. Please take your time and visit them.

Thoughts on Why I Write by J.Q. Rose

I’ve been writing non-fiction articles since 1996 and mystery novels since 2006. Sometimes when stories aren't flowing onto the keyboard, I wonder why I write. 

Ready to write!
Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay 

When I wrote non-fiction articles, I really enjoyed meeting the folks I interviewed or delving into the story of a business or place to visit. I wrote for me in a sense of learning about new places and great personalities I met along the way. Yes, I wanted to inform, educate, and entertain readers with my stories and derived satisfaction when my articles really helped the reader.

When I began writing fictional stories, it definitely was fun for me to escape the real world and develop characters and their situations to amuse myself. I delighted in posing the question “what-if” as I expounded on the plight of the beleaguered characters. Chasing down all possibilities and pushing them further was like a game. But the most challenging part of the game was trying to wind up all the loose ends to make sense of the story. I relished discovering the ways to use my wits to win the game. I hoped the reader would play along with me.

About two years ago we attended a concert by Joseph Martin, a master pianist and composer of sacred music. When he played the piano, the music was so beautiful, tears surprised my eyes. Emotions of joy, inspiration, power, thankfulness filled the night as Mr. Martin shared his mastery of the piano and his anthems sung by our church choir. One selection after another fed my heart. What a gift he had for blessing others with his music.

The grand piano played only the way Joseph Martin can!
Photo courtesy of freedigitalphotos.com by nuchylee

Joseph Martin--Master of the Pia

As I listened, I realized this is what I want to do for readers. If a reader finishes my book, and the story is one she will remember for the entertainment, the surprises, the humor and the emotions that played through her as she read, then I have accomplished my reason for writing.

Readers, what are you looking for in a book?

Writers, why do you write books?

Please leave a comment below. 

We'd love to read your thoughts on this topic.

Thank you.

Click here to connect and like JQ's Author Facebook page.

The Fine Artistry of Citizen's Arrest by Stuart R. West

Click for Zach and Zora Book #2

"Halt! You're under citizen's arrest!"

Well. That's not the best catch-phrase, but by the time I pull a citizen's arrest, I'll come up with one. I will, oh, yes, I will. Something catchy. See what I did there? "Catchy?"

I'm a bit excited about this. The act of performing a citizen's arrest tops my bucket list, especially after researching the ins and outs of it for my next Zach and Zora comic mystery novel.

There are many worthy recipients of a citizen's arrest. I'd love to enforce my brand of martial law onto horrible and dangerous drivers. I mean, the other day I saw an idiot swerving lane to lane with his phone held in front of him. And there's the prob. How do I chase the offending moron down without Starsky and Hutching everyone else on the highway?

A bigger problem might be what to do with the guy once I catch him.

"Excuse me, sir, but I'm placing you under citizen's arrest. Um, could you come get in my car while I drive you to the police station?"

I don't see this working out in my favor. 

I need a better plan. Of course I certainly don't want to start lugging around guns, even though practically everyone in Kansas has one (and dang proud of it! Ram tough!). Not in this day of commonplace, nightmarish shootings. I could see myself adding to the problem. I've got that addictive sort of personality.

Frankly, I might not know where to draw the line in my impending career as a citizen's arrester. What do I do with those buffoons who wear shorts and t-shirts in thirty degree weather? Do I slip handcuffs on everyone who wears two different types of plaid? I'd be maxing the jail cells out with major fashion faux-pas offenders, a wardrobe-angry Charles Bronson. 

According to Ms. Google, my research assistant, I'm allowed to use "reasonable force" should I find it warranted. I'd say the above offenses definitely warrant a good kick to the hind-end. 

The law doesn't make it easy on we citizen arresters, either. The onus is on the arresting citizen to provide probable cause. Not a problem. One look at my captive's mesh see-through shirt and mullet, the police force will hand me the key to the city.

Now all I've got to do is detain the offender until the cops show up. Easy-peezy. I'll sit on him. I can sit like a champ!

There you have it. My solid plan is in effect. Don't cross me citizens! Stuart's on the job!

I'd probably arrest Zach, the "hero" of my Zach and Zora comic mystery series for being such a dolt. Find out if that arrest is warranted by clicking here!

Working with an Editor by Nancy M Bell

Click on the cover to find out more about Nansy's books.

This is part of a workshop I have presented to a number of groups. I hope you find it helpful.

WORKING WITH AN EDITOR

Do you need an editor?
In a word ~ yes. Everyone needs an editor.

Why you need an editor.
As authors we know our story inside out, what may be blatantly obvious to us may not be so obvious to your reader.
We read what we ‘think’ we wrote not always what is actually on the page. It’s easy to skip over words like ‘the’, ‘a’ etc which may be missing from the text.

The difference between content edits and line/copy edits.
A content editor looks at the over- all structure of the story. Does it make sense; is it following the plot in the correct timeline; are facts correct; over use of words i.e. that, then, given names; passive voice vs active voice; does the plot move at a good pace or does it drag; does it make sense or are you confusing your reader; are the names of characters, places etc. consistent. The list goes on.
A copy/line editor looks at things on a more granular level. This is a check missing or reversed quotation marks, missing punctuation over all, formatting issues, grammar errors etc.

Choosing an editor.
If you are traditionally published the publishing house will assign you an editor, often two, one for contents and one for lines, this depends solely on the house and your experience. In this case you have little say in the choice of editor.
If you are self-publishing you will have to search out an editor for yourself. You can look at trade publications [like Quill and Quire in Canada or Writers Digest (US)] where you will find free-lance editors advertising for clients. If you are a member of your provincial guild there will be listings on their website- Writers Guild of Alberta. You can also look at The Writers Union of Canada site and there are numerous other places. You want to ask for references and titles of books they have edited, do your due diligence before committing yourself.

What if you hate your editor?
This is a two sided question as well. If you are with a traditional publisher your only recourse would be to contact the publisher and explain the problem. Depending on the house and the nature of your complaints, they may or may not be willing to mediate for you or assign a different editor.
If you are self-published and have entered into an agreement with a free-lance editor it may well depend on the agreement you signed or verbally agreed to. If there is no opt out clause, you can of course fire your editor but that may mean you have no way to get any monies already paid back. To protect myself when I free-lance I ask for half of the agreed fee up front with the remainder payable upon completion of the project to the author’s satisfaction.

Open Dialogue and Open Mind are key.
Your editor has your best interests at heart. They want to help you polish your work and show it in the best possible light. If you are a new unpublished author (and this has nothing to do with chronological age) be prepared to approach the experience with an open mind. You are not always going to like what the editor says. Remember, if you confuse your editor with aspects of your plot then you will also confuse your reader and the last thing you want is for them to put the book down and never buy anything else you’ve written.
Conversely, don’t be afraid to defend elements of the plot that may be essential to something that happens further on in the story, or in subsequent books if you’re writing a sequel. It is important to feel comfortable discussing things with your editor. At the end of the day it is your name on the cover.

Resolving Conflicts
This is hand and glove with what we just talked about. Keep a cool head and your temper under check. Flaming your editor is not conducive to a good working relationship. On the other hand, if you’ve not been careful with your choice you may find yourself with an editor who refuses to compromise.
In most cases the editor should explain why they think something should be different than what you’ve written. The editor should be familiar with the genre you’re working in and they will know the market much better than you, in most cases it will be in your best interest to listen to their advice. Very often compromises can be reached. If I encounter an empasse, I state my case and then let the author make the final call. There are always exceptions to the rule, of course.
The difference between a beta reader and an editor.
A beta reader is NOT an editor and should not be used as such. A beta reader is usually a friend or acquaintance who is willing to read your rough draft and offer comments or ask for clarifications in places where your plot may be weak or suffering from plot holes.

We’ve already discussed earlier what an editor is.

If you’re self-published ~ how much is too much dollar wise

This will depend on your budget of course, but be wary of paying thousands of dollars. The length of your work will help dictate the cost as well as the topic. Non-fiction will be more expensive as your editor will want to check your data and sources.

Be sure you know what you’re paying for.
Know what you are agreeing to and set a mutually agreed upon timeframe for the completion of your project.


You can visit me at www.nancymbell.ca Follow me on Twitter @emilypikkasso On Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/NancyMBell/

Contemporary or Fantasy Janet Lane Walters #MFRWAuthor #BWLAuthor #Fantasy #Contmporary

Fantasy vs Contemporary

 

I recently finished a contemporary romance and am now working on a fantasy. Bothof these books are either part of a series or part of a trilogy. Been thinking about what happens in my head when I enter these worlds. What changes?

When writing contemporary stories, I’m familiar with the world. Much depends on finding a location for the stories but… I generally use a fictitious town I’ve created. One for each group of stories. I seldom use places that exist. Once I did and that was Santa Fe but I only used enough to give a sense of being there.

When writing fantasies, the worlds are completely made up. Here is where creativity and research comes into play. There are features in ancient civilizations that can be turned into fantasy worlds.

So the difference between the two is working with the familiar and with the imagined world.

The characters’ names and language are things that can be different when going between contemporary and fantasy. I try to make the names sound not of this world but I don’t do what some fantasy writers do and mane the names of the characters unable to pronounce. With the language, I try to make things common to the contemporary world easy to identify. Like choca for cholate and kafa for coffee. My entomology and my foreign dictionary often come into play here. In some of my fantasies, things exist that don’t occur here such as bihorns rather like huge horses or dragons.

So slipping from the modern world to the fantasy world means creating things that are unusual and also familiar to people.

The Beetle Battle, by J.C. Kavanagh

Award-winning sequel, The Twisted Climb - Darkness Descends

I often use personal experience when writing - if it's something I've heard or empathized with, or witnessed with my own eyes, my own heart, then I can write about it from my perspective. Personal experience often lends a more credible telling of the tale and hopefully lead to a closer connection with the reader. I use my home and sailing experiences in both The Twisted Climb and Darkness Descends. For example, shortly after we bought our property, we discovered 20-year-old vines twisted around many of our pine trees. They had slowly died a 'strangled' death. I used that twisted vine experience in the 'Drunk on a Slinky' chapter of Darkness Descends. Another example is from my sailing vacations. We sail to a gorgeous place called The Bad River, home to the Devil's Door Rapids, and I used these places as dream world locations in Darkness Descends.
 
My home is in a rural area surrounded by thousands of trees and nature in all its forms - birds, deer, racoons, porcupines, skunks and our neighbour's Guinea Hens, chickens and geese. So when I came home from our August sailing vacation, I was saddened to see a good number of our pine trees in distress. The needles were reddish-brown and the bark was splitting. My partner and I were walking around the property, wine glass in hand, when we stopped to listen to an unusual sound. It was a crunching sound and the source was one of the pine trees beside the man-cave/shop.
 
My heart wrenched.
 
I'd heard about this sound.


Adult pine bark beetle


This munching sound. The sound of hungry mouths chewing and chewing and destroying.
 
It was the sound of ten thousand hungry pine bark beetles.
 
These are voracious little fother-muckers that destroy swaths of trees. From Mexico all the way to British Columbia and now, Ontario, these pests are destroying pine trees wherever they fly and lay eggs.
 
We live near a provincial forest and are also surrounded by Christmas tree farms. Many of the tree farm properties have been decimated by these pests and, until now, I felt badly for them but never once thought that the trees on my property would be subject to the horrible critters. The provincial forest had a controlled burn this past spring in an attempt to halt the pests from spreading.
 
Yeah, well, that didn't help me or my trees.
 
I'm researching ways to halt the spread of these destructive insects and save the healthy trees. This is what I've learned from the 'Net:

Bark beetles kill the host tree when the adults bore holes through the tree’s outer bark and

into the inner bark layer of the tree. The adult beetles then

excavate tunnels where the female beetle lays eggs.

When the eggs hatch, the grub stage (larvae) further damages

 the inner bark layer as they construct feeding galleries.

Eventually, the combined excavation by adults and larvae will

girdle  or encircle the tree’s inner bark and cause death.

 
Further to the above, it seems that the best way to eliminate the beetle is to cut the tree down in the winter. And then 'chop and burn.'
 
My partner and I are on a new mission: Beat the Beetle. And take care of our forest.
 
This is a battle we don't want to lose. Our trees are counting on us :(

Several of the pines along our driveway are plagued with the beetle.
Note the reddish-brown needles.

My favourite twisted pine is also infested.

Looking upward, this pine tree is 'home' to thousands of the beetles.
It's where we first heard the 'munching' sound.

Note the tiny entry/exit holes in the bark. The crystalized insect (centre) appears to be a June bug.
When the tree is first attacked by the beetle, it exudes sap in a defensive effort. This June bug is a casualty.

 Mother nature...

J.C. Kavanagh

The Twisted Climb - Darkness Descends (Book 2)
voted BEST Young Adult Book 2018, Critters Readers Poll and Best YA Book FINALIST at The Word Guild, Canada
AND
The Twisted Climb,
voted BEST Young Adult Book 2016, P&E Readers Poll
Novels for teens, young adults and adults young at heart
Email: author.j.c.kavanagh@gmail.com
www.facebook.com/J.C.Kavanagh
www.amazon.com/author/jckavanagh
Twitter @JCKavanagh1 (Author J.C. Kavanagh)