Ruth Ann Nordin's Blog, page 100
September 1, 2012
How To Get Your Resistant Son to Marry: Excerpt from A Most Unsuitable Husband
This excerpt is a little longer than what I usually post, but I thought to get the full appreciation of the entire scenario, it was necessary.
Lady Catherine (our heroine) was waiting to be introduced to Lord Clement (Perry) from The Earl’s Inconvenient Wife. So that is the gentlemen Catherine is referring to, and Ethan doesn’t believe her. I knew I was going to pair Catherine and Ethan up when I wrote the scene where Nate (Lord Roderick) was waiting to dance with her. ;) So most of the time, people get paired up in my books without me planning on it.
Perry will be getting his own book, but he has to wait for Lord Hedwrett’s widow to be out of mourning before that can happen. That puts us around 1816. A Most Unsuitable Husband takes place in 1815. So Perry will have to wait a while longer.
Okay. Enough rambling. Here’s how Ethan’s mother finally trapped her son into marriage…
***
Ethan glanced over his shoulder and cringed. Good heavens but Mrs. Duffy and her daughter were a persistent pair! Ever since he walked into the ballroom, the two had sought him out like two hounds hunting a fox. It left him feeling horribly vulnerable. He hurried around a group of gentlemen who were talking and almost ran into the Duke of Rumsey.
“Pardon me, Your Grace,” he quickly said.
The duke stiffened but offered him a polite smile. “It’s fine, Lord Edon.”
“Oh, there you are, you sneaky devil you!” the ghastly mother called out from behind him.
Ethan’s grimace wasn’t lost on the duke whose lips twitched in amusement. “Mrs. and Miss Duffy,” he began, peering around Ethan, “I see you are acquainted with Lord Edon?”
“Only an acquaintance at the moment,” Mrs. Duffy replied and gave Ethan a wink. “Though we hope to change that soon.”
The duke chuckled. “I’ll leave you three to talk then.”
Ethan scowled at the duke as he left him alone with the two hounds who circled about him. During the two Seasons he’d been polite to Lady Catherine and never once made a lewd comment in her presence, he thought the duke might be more appreciative than to leave him when he needed intercession the most. Well, that only went to prove how little he could count on someone when he needed help.
“Lord Edon, we happened to see you earlier today while we were shopping,” the mother said.
“Oh, did you?” Ethan stepped back, not paying attention to where he was going, but knowing he had to back up since the mother and daughter were making it a point to close in on him.
“Yes,” the daughter replied, fluffing her blonde curls and batting her eyelashes at him. “You were riding your horse in Hyde Park.”
“I thought you said you were shopping,” he said.
The mother took another step toward him. “We were, but we thought we’d go to the park to see if you were there.”
He stepped back again. “You were looking for me?”
“Well, we were there to see which notable gentlemen were there, and we happened to see you among them. As soon as we saw you here, I told my daughter that we must come over. She’s been bred to be a lady for a gentleman such as yourself.”
He inwardly cringed as he continued to back up. “There are many gentlemen here, and besides, I’ve been in the gossip papers. I’m not exactly suitable for a lady with delicate sensibilities.”
“We know better than to believe everything in those papers.”
Her daughter let out a high-pitch laugh that caused him to inwardly shudder. Goodness but there was no way he could bear to listen to that irritating sound for the rest of his life!
“Besides,” the mother continued, still creeping toward him, “you’re a titled gentleman. You’re entitled to a few indiscretions.”
Oh great. Just his luck. His title was very much his undoing. Without it, he could slip quietly away from the ambitious mothers who sought to marry their daughters off. If only he could give the blasted thing to his cousin and be done with it!
“Perhaps you and my daughter might partake in a dance?” the mother suggested, still creeping ever closer like the Grim Reaper who was out to escort gentlemen to their eternal abodes before their time.
“Um…well…” He took another step back and bumped into someone. Surprised, he turned around and saw Lady Catherine who was sitting in a chair. Inspired, he helped her to her feet and pulled her toward him. “Mrs. and Miss Duffy, I want you to meet Lady Catherine.” He lifted her hand and kissed it. “Did you miss me, dearest?”
Lady Catherine stood as still as a statue for a moment before she tried pulling her hand out of his.
He chuckled and squeezed her hand so she couldn’t get away from him. “I’m sorry I was gone for so long. I had to discuss the latest happenings,” or whatever it was called, “with the Parliament. But I’m back now and can dance with you.” Glancing at the mother and daughter, he added, “My intended gets lonely if I leave her for too long. I trust you understand.”
“Intended?” The mother’s eyes widened as she glanced from Ethan to Lady Catherine. “Forgive me, my lady. If my daughter and I had known…”
“Think nothing of it. We’ve been keeping it a secret until her father approves,” Ethan lied.
Before Catherine could protest and give his ploy away, he steered her away from the two ladies and ushered her to where couples were dancing. Knowing her sense of duty would compel her to dance with him, he waited for the music to start and bowed. She glanced around, let out a frustrated sigh, and curtsied. Good. As he expected, she accepted a dance with him.
“What are you doing?” she muttered under her breath as they began the dance.
“I had to escape from the meddlesome mother and daughter somehow, and you were the only lady I could find who wasn’t doing anything.” As soon as he said those words, he realized he could have worded it better.
“For your information, I was waiting for someone to return,” she replied, a bitter edge underlying her polite tone.
“I apologize, my lady. I didn’t mean to imply you don’t have any friends.”
“Who said I was waiting for a friend? I could’ve been waiting for a gentleman.”
He resisted the urge to laugh. It wasn’t that he intended to even think something so rude about her, but it was no secret that Lady Catherine was destined to be a spinster. Sure, she was nice, but no one really knew anything about her, and ladies like that tended to be uninteresting, though he realized it was better than being a lady who was known for questionable activities.
When he didn’t reply, she added, “I was waiting for a gentleman, in case you were wondering.”
“I’m sure your father will wait for you to return,” he replied, mindful to keep his movements in time with the music.
She gasped. “It wasn’t my father.”
He glanced at her to see if she was joking, but her face remained as serious as could be. “Really?”
“You needn’t act surprised,” she replied through gritted teeth.
He shrugged. “Actually, I am surprised. I mean, I know you’ve danced with gentlemen besides me, but even so—”
“One can hardly call you a gentleman,” she muttered.
Ignoring her, he continued in a pleasant tone, “I know you’ve danced with gentlemen. Your father does a good job of scouting them out for you.”
“He didn’t scout you out.”
“Oh, he wouldn’t. I’m not your type. He has the sense to realize it.”
“Thanks…I think.”
“I assure you that it’s a compliment. I am a rake. Ladies with fine upbringing such as yourself know better than to marry me.”
She rolled her eyes. “You sound proud of that.”
“I am. Do you know how hard it is to cultivate the rumor? It’s not as easy as it seems.”
“Somehow I doubt it.”
“Well, it’s true, and it makes you safe. I know there’s no danger of your father trying to talk you into pursuing me.”
“Nor would I choose you, of all gentlemen, to pursue.”
“And that is also a relief. Your being alone when I needed you most was wonderful timing.”
“I was waiting for a gentleman.”
He chuckled.
“I have a mind to go right over to that mother and daughter and tell them the truth.”
She started to leave, so he reached for her arm and stopped her. “I apologize. You were waiting for someone.” Maybe there was an uncle or cousin she meant to talk to. That was probably the case. “We should at least finish the dance before we avoid each other for the rest of the night.”
Her jaw clenched, she settled down and followed his lead as they turned.
“I must admit I’m shocked,” he continued. “Usually, you’re so docile. You smile, say yes or no, and listen to whatever I blab on about.”
“Perhaps if you said something of interest, I’d be more entertaining.”
His eyebrows rose in interest. Who knew Lady Catherine could be so witty? He glanced across the room and saw her father frown at him. Simply for amusement, he grinned at him, knowing it would irk the gentleman to no end. Her father would never come out and tell him to get away from his daughter while they were at a ball, but the older man’s glowering stares never went unnoticed. And that made Lady Catherine the safest lady he could dance with. Marriage was an impossibility with her.
The music ended, and both breathed a sigh of relief. He bowed, she curtsied, and they bolted off in opposite directions, glad to have the horrible dance over with.
Ethan made it ten steps away from Lady Catherine when his mother ran up to him with a huge smile on her face. “I just heard the good news!” She gave him a hug.
“Mother!” He pushed her away, wondering what she was doing.
“I’m sorry, Ethan, but I was so overcome with joy, I couldn’t help myself.” Then raising her voice so everyone in the immediate vicinity could hear, she continued, “I can’t believe you and Lady Catherine—the Duke of Rumsey’s daughter—have been secretly engaged this entire time!”
Her words stopped conversations all around them, and Ethan could swear he heard a pin drop somewhere in the room. Refusing to look to the right or left, he focused on his mother and swallowed the lump in his throat. “If you’ll join me outside, I’ll explain everything.”
“What’s there to explain?” she asked, again using a high pitch that would wake the dead. “You just told Mrs. and Miss Duffy that Lady Catherine’s your intended.” She clasped her hands together and sighed. “It’s so romantic. Just like Romeo and Juliet, except your mother heartily approves of the match. It’s time to tell her father, so you can Lady Catherine can finally be together. Even he can’t deny true love.”
“I wouldn’t call it true love, Mother,” he protested, heat rising up in his face. Everyone—and that meant every single person in that room— was watching them! Didn’t they have anything better to do?
His mother giggled and slipped her arm around his. “Let’s talk to her father. Perhaps he and I can work something out. After all, your little secret is out. Everyone knows.” She motioned to the stunned expressions on the onlookers’ faces.
He felt sick to his stomach. He prayed for the floor to open up and swallow him, but no such relief was going to come. She led him forward, but halfway to the Duke of Rumsey, he dug his heels into the floor and shook his head. “I’m sorry, Mother, but I can’t do it. It would break her dear father’s heart. The gentleman is insistent she find someone more deserving of her.”
“You will be deserving of her. From this moment forward, you will stop doing the dastardly things mentioned in the Tittletattle. You will be a respectable gentleman.”
She pushed him forward, so now they were within a few feet of the duke. Panicked, he whispered, “I was lying to Mrs. and Miss Duffy to get away from them. Lady Catherine and I hardly know each other.”
“Well, we’ll resolve that soon enough.”
She shoved him again, and he was so stunned that she was still insistent on talking to the duke that he lunged forward and ended up tripping. The world went spinning around him as he toppled to the floor. He was barely aware of the giggles and snickers around him as his mother hovered over him.
“Oh, my poor son,” she said in a loud voice, glancing at everyone who turned to look at them. “I keep telling him the Duke of Rumsey is a reasonable gentleman. He’ll understand that true love must flourish. His daughter and my son are in love. What could be nobler than that?”
To Ethan’s horror, the duke stopped talking to Lord Roderick and looked at Ethan’s mother.
“Mother, please,” Ethan hissed through his teeth. “You’re embarrassing yourself.”
She raised an eyebrow in a silent challenge, and with a wide smile, she swirled around to face the duke and curtsied. “Your grace, I hate to bother you in a middle of such an exquisite ball—one of your finest, might I add—but I just learned of a secret engagement between my son and your daughter.” Glancing at Ethan, she motioned for him to stand up.
Ethan shook his head. No way was he going to face the wrath of the Duke of Rumsey!
With an exaggerated sigh, she returned her attention to the duke. “It’s a simple thing, Your Grace. Everyone knows about the engagement, so it seems proper to allow the two to finally marry.”
The duke’s face paled. “Uh…” He scanned the large room where most of the people had stopped talking and dancing to watch them. “Where’s my daughter?”
From among the crowd, someone pushed Lady Catherine toward Ethan. She looked horrified. Absolutely and completely horrified. Ethan couldn’t blame her. He felt the exact same way. And worse, he was the reason this was happening right now. Who was to know one simple lie could result in such a catastrophe?
“What’s going on here?” her father demanded, looking from Ethan to her.
Lady Catherine gulped. “Nothing.”
“Now, now, my lady,” his mother began in a soothing voice, “there’s no need to worry. My son is one of the wealthiest earls around. He will provide very well for you.” Glancing at the Duke of Rumsey, she added, “He can even buy her a separate house if she desires. But—” she wrapped her arm around Lady Catherine’s shoulders and urged her over to Ethan—“I don’t think it’ll come to that. They are deeply in love. Can’t you tell just by looking at them?”
The room was tilting around Ethan. He was aware that a few people were chuckling, and he thought he heard Lady Catherine mumbling something about not knowing what any of this was about. But everything was starting to grow dim around him, except for the grave disapproval on the duke’s face. He knew the duke was trapped. His mother was going on and on about the beauty of love, going so far as to quote William Shakespeare. It was too much to take. The room was whirling around him, and the next thing he knew, everything went black.
August 29, 2012
Figured Out What I’m Writing Next
It wasn’t an easy decision because I had to choose between six books (not including A Most Unsuitable Husband which was already on the list. Finally, I sat down today to figure out what books were itching at me to write the most.
Before I get into them, I just want everyone to know that Her Counterfeit Husband and Bound by Honor, Bound by Love are being looked over by another editor. She doesn’t work as fast as the other one I have, but that is due to the fact that she has a couple of grown autistic sons she has to tend to. She used to be an English teacher, which is why I think it’s beneficial to wait for her. I’ve been working with her on and off for over a year. It depends on how much she has going on in her personal life. (Or to put it another way, I write books too fast for her. :D)
Anyway, it looks like the soonest I might get Her Counterfeit Husband back is Monday. At the very least, it’ll be halfway done. Then she’ll look at Bound by Honor, Bound by Love.
So with that quick update aside, here’s what I’ve decided to work on next:
A Most Unsuitable Husband
Yep, we all knew about this one, so there’s no surprise. :D I managed to pick up where I left off in the story after scanning through it for a “refresher” and to my surprise, our hero (Lord Edon) fainted in front of everyone when he realized his mother managed to corner him into marrying Lady Catherine. Lady Catherine held up better and didn’t faint, though she felt like slapping Lord Edon for coming up with the lie that got them into the pickle they’re now in. Who knew Lady Catherine had such passion? In The Earl’s Inconvenient Wife, she barely said anything. It just goes to show that you can’t assume anything about a character until you’re in her story. ;)
Clayton’s Win
This doesn’t come as a total surprise either, but this one is very iffy. I’m not sure if I can pull it off. The story stalled before, and I had to put it on hold since I didn’t know where to go with it once I reached a certain point. I think I figured out the missing link to connect where I am with where I want to be because I know what Heather’s (the heroine’s) brother is going to do. He plays an important part of the book.
In the meantime, I have given an update on Emily and Isaac, but the main focus has been on Lizzie (Emily’s younger sister) who will be the heroine in Lizzie’s Gamble. In other words, I’m setting the stage for that book while also writing this one. I love to connect characters between books, and Lizzie is turning out to be a lot of fun and a great friend of Heather’s. I’m also setting the stage for Boaz’s book. Boaz is Clayton’s brother who lost his wife in childbirth and hasn’t recovered from her death yet. He’ll end up with one of Dave and Mary’s daughters (not sure which one yet). Usually, I know which character will end up with someone else before I come up with a suitable plot. I don’t know why it works that way; it just does. :D
The Write Husband
This was the hardest one to decide on, and I admit part of me wanted to write it because I really like the cover. The color red has always appealed to me at first glance. That’s why Bid for a Bride is one of my favorite covers, even though it’s simple.
But the other reason I chose this one was because it happens the same time A Most Unsuitable Husband does, and there will be some overlapping between the two books. It’s easier to do that overlapping if I can work on both at the same time. While Lord Edon is trying to get his marriage figured out, Agatha (the woman who writes under a man’s name for the Tittletattle on Lord Edon’s behalf) will find herself in her own dilemma when her sister thinks she’s been secretly corresponding with a suitor. I’ve decided Agatha will be a 21-year-old widow (her husband died the day after their wedding because-to put it bluntly-he was an idiot).
Now Agatha is enjoying her freedom of being on her own to write her books under a man’s name which Lord Edon (Ethan) takes to a publisher on her behalf. She can’t do this if she’s married, or so she thinks. So she doesn’t want to be married. But she will be and who better than Mister Robinson (the mischievous ward who was 17 in The Earl’s Inconvenient Wife) who will be 19 in this book? Lord Clement will be more than happy to let him marry Agatha even though he’s under 21. I’m not sure of the details yet, but I expect a lot of humor will be involved.
So while Ethan is getting adjusted to being married to Catherine, Agatha will be finding herself married (despite her big plans not to) to Christopher Robinson. Since Ethan and Agatha have been working back and forth with the Tittletattle and her books in secret, the two books work pretty much as a set, but both stories would be too long to put into one book and I don’t want to share the spotlight between the two couples. So each one gets their own book. :D
August 28, 2012
Scenes That Never Made It Into The Book: Citlali and Onawa’s Marriage is Arranged (in Restoring Hope)
Please note: I did not proofread this scene.
This is a scene that never made it into Restoring Hope. It takes place right after Woape realized Gary was alive, so her engagement to Citlali was broken (for a second time). At the time I wrote Restoring Hope, I didn’t want to give away what Citlali thought of the situation because I wanted him to remain a mystery. Now that Bound by Honor, Bound by Love is done and will be published next month, I figure it’s safe to let everyone know what he was thinking. :D
***
News that Gary was alive had spread through tribe, and with it came Citlali’s broken engagement. Citlali wasn’t sure how he felt about the situation. He understood Woape had no interest in him. If she had, she wouldn’t have run away to avoid marrying him. And to make matters worse, everyone in the tribe knew happened. In fact, he had to admit that was the hardest part of the whole ordeal. Wherever he went, he noticed the way people snickered or shot him pitying glances. The only thing he could do was what he always did: pretend it didn’t bother him.
He was relieved when the chief let him go to his lodge so he could get away from everyone. Ignoring the stares from his aunts and mother, he sat down in the spot reserved for men who didn’t want to be disturbed. He already knew what they’d say. They sympathized with him but thought he could have put forth some effort into talking to Woape. But he did try talking to her in the past, and it seemed that she was either avoiding him so he had to chase her down. And when he finally caught up to her, he got the impression she didn’t want him around. How was he supposed to talk to someone like that?
Frustrated because no one appreciated the fact that he had tried to make things work with Woape, he picked up the knife and one of the tree branches his father made it a habit of leaving there. His father said carving wood helped to clear his mind, but Citlali thought it would help him forget the past year. It wasn’t that he loved Woape, but he thought she was pleasant enough and would be a good wife. Her opinion of him, however, had been disappointing. He cut into the wood, willing his emotions to slide off of him with the same ease he was able to remove the bark. Despite what she thought, he could feel. Despite what everyone thought, he could feel. But as the chief said, it was better if they didn’t know their words or actions could affect him. After a few minutes, he began to feel better.
To his surprise, his father and the chief walked into the lodge and asked the women to leave. His father motioned for Citlali to join him and the chief. Setting the knife and wood down, he nodded and joined them at the fire pit.
His father smiled at him. ”We have talked to Woape’s father, and he said Woape is willing to let Onawa possess their lodge’s sacred bundle.”
Citlali glanced at the chief who said, “It is good that her father has two daughters. We can still arrange for your clan to take possession of their lodge’s bundle if you marry Onawa. You will be pleased to know her father has agreed to the arrangement.”
“Has she agreed as well?” Citlali asked.
“We did not ask her. We asked her father,” his father replied.
Citlali hesitated to say anything in case he displeased his father or the chief, but after a moment, he decided to might as well say what was on his mind. ”What if Onawa doesn’t want to marry me?”
“It doesn’t matter what she wants,” the chief replied.
“But Woape ran away from the tribe because she didn’t want to marry me. We should at least see if Onawa’s willing to marry me.”
“Woape doesn’t appreciate our traditions,” the chief said. ”She didn’t run away from you. She ran away from her heritage. She ran away from all of us.”
No, she didn’t. She ran away from him. Citlali could insist on it, but the chief wouldn’t agree. Citlali took a deep breath and ventured, ”Perhaps we should talk to Onawa.”
“The marriage is already arranged,” the chief argued.
“You have nothing to worry about,” his father assured him with a pat on his shoulder. ”Her father assured us that Onawa isn’t like Woape. Onawa values the way we live. She understands how important it is to marry within our tribe.”
The two had made up their minds, and the marriage was arranged. Time would tell if Onawa would find a way to avoid marrying him like Woape did.
August 26, 2012
3rd Generation Larsons (and their friends)
I’m getting the page started for the 3rd generation timeline for the Larsons and their friends. I have included some notes for easy reference for when I check through Clayton’s Win. It looks like I can make the transition from Mitch’s Win to Clayton’s Win. This timeline page is incomplete. I just needed to get it started in order to get my thoughts organized for when I look through Clayton’s Win this week and see what I can do with it.
Clayton is Isaac Larson’s good friend, so it also leads into Heather (Clayton’s wife) meeting and befriending Lizzie (aka Elizabeth) Craftsman (Emily’s younger sister). Lizzie will be the heroine who likes Greg Wilson (for the rewrite of The Keeping of Greg Wilson which I renamed Lizzie’s Gamble).
Wiley is Isaac’s other friend who had a crush on Emily. I made a brief mention of Mrs. Ritter whose husband fell off the roof and died, leaving her pregnant and working in a factory. I plan to pair the two of them up for a marriage of convenience plot.
Isaac Larson – Emily (Craftsman) Larson
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| | | |
Esther Lisa Jerry Amos
(Nov. 5 1893) (1895) (1898) (1901)
Clayton Grady – Heather
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Leroy (1898) Hannah (1899)
Notes: Clayton Grady was born in the fall of 1875, so he’s 25 at the beginning of Clayton’s Win; His younger brother Boaz had two children (Leroy and Hannah), and his wife died in childbirth with the second child. Boaz drowned the loss of his wife with alcohol and became unable to take care of his kids. At that time, Clayton took over the farm and quit working at the newspaper so he could take care of his ailing mother and take care of Boaz’s kids.
Wiley Greene – Lilly (Mrs. Ritter)
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Philip (1893) Aaron (1899)
August 25, 2012
Updates
These are still being edited. This puts me behind where I wanted to be, but it’ll be better for it so I chose not to rush things. I will have Her Counterfeit Husband out around September 15 for sure. Bound by Honor, Bound by Love is probably doing to be late September. So it’s not too much of a delay.
I did get a trailer up that works as a prelude to Her Counterfeit Husband. I’ve never done a trailer like this. It’s in Anna’s point of view, and she explains her past. It serves as a lead-in to the book. I didn’t want to get too dark, but parts of her past are very dark. In the book, I didn’t go heavily into it because I didn’t want it to get too serious. Plus, I wanted to focus on her romance with the guy she found in the forest, and he was the opposite of her–while she was serious, he was light-hearted. So my aim was to reach a balance between the two personalities. :)
Anyway, here’s what I came up with:
Still Deciding What to Write Next
Well, I already know A Most Unsuitable Husband is on the list, but there’s some debate on what the other two books will be. I started looking at Mitch’s Win today, wondering if I could make Mitch “Clayton”. In Isaac’s Decision, Clayton was working at the newspaper, but if I have his father die so he has to go back to the farm to take over and if I date it around the time when Elizabeth (Lizzie) Craftsman is 18 or so (because Lizzie ends up with Greg Wilson in another book), then it could be doable. So I’m thinking of what I need to adjust to make it happen. I’d like to get back to this book because I’m already almost halfway into it. We’ll see how things progress as I keep looking it over.
I’m still undecided on what books I’ll work on in addition to A Most Unsuitable Husband. I’ve spent most of my time editing, working on covers for my paperbacks (Her Heart’s Desire, Bound by Honor, Bound by Love, and Her Counterfeit Husband), and cleaning up my house now that the kids are back in school. I haven’t written anything new in a month, and when it’s been that long, it’s hard to write anything. I told myself if I grant myself a vacation from writing so I could read, watch TV, and do other things to relax, I’d be refreshed when it came time to write again.
But the sad reality is that I don’t feel relaxed. I actually feel like a part of me is caged in and getting restless. It’s the writer in me that wants to create, and since I haven’t allowed for anything creative in a month, it’s been draining. I know. Weird. I thought I needed a break from writing, but I’m starting to suspect what I need is to get back to writing. I’ll make that my mission this week. I know it’s going to be slow going. It always is when it’s been a long time since I last wrote anything.
August 17, 2012
Updates
Her Counterfeit Husband is coming along on schedule!
I’ll be going through it this weekend and sending it back to her for another look. In the meantime, I also have a proofreader looking it over. Then I’ll be correcting whatever they find before handing it off to another proofreader. I expect the book to be published around the end of August to early September.
Bound by Honor, Bound by Love is still in the second draft stage.
I’m now at the end of chapter 11 (out of 17 chapters). I expect to be done with the second draft some time next week, and then it’ll be going to the editor and proofreaders again. I expect it to be published around the first or second week of September.
Extra Scenes of Already Published Books
What I’d like to try out is a series of very short stories that are scenes that never made it into my books. I was telling Mary in a comment that I came across an idea book of scenes that I’d like to write on my blog. These would be 500 to 1000 word scenes like Tom telling Dave to get himself a wife (which would take place right before Eye of the Beholder) and a scene where Mary gives birth to Isaac. I know I can come up with other scenes involving other characters from other books, but those were the two I had written down. Oh, and I had an idea for the day Eliza and John found Brian (this would take place after Loving Eliza ended). I think these could be a lot of fun scenes similar to deleted scenes you see on DVDs. 
I plan to write the scenes from time to time, like I do with character interviews and posting excerpts from works in progress. So this will be an ongoing thing.
New Idea and Cover Idea for Another Book
While I was reading Bound by Honor, Bound by Love, I got an idea for Mister Robinson who is Lord Clement (Perry)’s mischievous ward in The Earl’s Inconvenient Wife. I started A Most Unsuitable Husband (am 7000 words in right now but not working on at the moment), and in this book, I introduce Lord Edon’s partner in crime (of sorts). This partner in crime is not Lord Edon’s love interest. She’s a writer, and she writes under a male pen name for the Tittletattle. In exchange for reporting scandals on Lord Edon’s behalf, he takes her stories to a publisher. So no one knows her secret, except for him.
Anyway, her sister happens to stumble upon a part of her book, and in fear of exposing her secret, she says a gentleman wrote it. The sister, eager to see her married then spreads it around that she has a suitor. So one lie tumbles into another (after all, she can’t risk her family knowing the truth), and before she knows it, everyone wants to meet this gentleman. In comes Mister Robinson who (somehow) learns of the ordeal (probably from Lord Edon who is trying to help her out), and Mister Robinson (the happy mischievous sort he is) happily plays along as the doting suitor.
I don’t have any more than that at the moment, and I can’t remember the heroine’s name (my husband has the computer with A Most Unsuitable Husband on it). However, I do have a title, and I decided to morph the contemporary story I decided not to write and call the book The Write Husband because she pretty much writes him into existence with her lies.
I realized the Regencies I’ve been doing have either “husband” or “wife” in the title, so I decided to keep the trend going. I’m also trying to keep the covers similar enough so that anyone browsing my books can tell right away it’s a Regency. Without further ado, here’s what I came up with for the cover:
I decided to use the red background that I had thought about using for The Reluctant Wife. I don’t have a plot for The Reluctant Wife yet, and I might change the title at a later date. But I think the cover for The Write Husband works, so I expect it to stick around. *fingers crossed*
August 15, 2012
A Very Long Post About How I Write, Revise/Edit, Publish, Etc My Books
A couple questions came into my FAQ page, and I thought some of you might be interested in the answers so I decided to make a post on it. If the topic doesn’t interest you, feel free to ignore. :D
1. How long does it take me to write a first draft?
It depends on the book. Some books are easier to write than others because the characters in some books let me know what to write next. Other characters seem silent at times, so I have to take breaks and work on something else while I’m waiting for them to get back to me.
For example, Her Counterfeit Husband was easy. It took me about two months to write the first draft. I averaged 1000-1500 words a day. The first draft’s total word count was about 74,000 words. (As I’m editing, close to 2000 words have been removed, which is normal for me.) I had set the word count goal to 1000 words a day, but the characters were so easy to work with that the story pretty much wrote itself. I love it when that happens. :D
However, I just finished Bound by Honor, Bound by Love (which I started late last year). I believe it took nine months to finish (get this) 52,000 words. I know. 74,000 in two months versus 52,000 words in nine months. I don’t get why Bound by Honor, Bound by Love was so difficult, except maybe my total word count goal for the book (65,000) was forcing me to try to get more into the book than was meant to be there. As soon as I lowered the word count goal to 50,000 (in June), the book took off and finally wrote itself. Lesson learned: don’t force a book or the characters in it into a box. You see, one of the subplots was supposed to be that Onawa was supposed to be tempted to leave Citlali for his brother. There was even supposed to be a kiss between her and the brother. However, as the story progressed, Onawa was not tempted at all, so I couldn’t force her into that subplot. This threw me off track in the book, and it cut my word count down 15,000 words. I had a buffalo hunt planned and everything during all of this drama, but since Onawa said, “No way, Ruth,” I couldn’t use the hunt either. A lot of stuff depends on the characters, and if they aren’t willing to play along, it’s no use.
The longest time it’s ever taken me to write a book was 1.5 years, and that was Return of the Aliens. For one, it wasn’t romance, so it was new territory. Two, I did a good year’s worth of research while writing it, and that probably amounted to 4-5 hours a week. Then I had to map out how I was going to connect all the dots between the multitude of subplots I had weaving throughout the main plot, which was Autumn’s desire to find to her sister. This book had Biblical prophecy mixed in with a variety of conspiracy theories, and while it is one of my favorites, it was also the most intense book I’ve ever written.
My average length of time to write a romance is 2-3 months.
2. How many edits/revisions do you do?
Early on, I did way more than now. Most of it was adding things to enhance the plot. Like in Falling In Love With Her Husband and An Inconvenient Marriage, I probably added 20,000 – 30,000 words to flush them out better. Falling In Love With Her Husband was actually a combination of Todd’s Bride and Ann’s Groom, and since I didn’t like having the two books separated, I brought them together, added some scenes and deleted others. I went through five revisions of the entire book before I was happy with it. I went through two full revisions for An Inconvenient Marriage. I did go through three full revisions of The Cold Wife and Romancing Adrienne (which was originally titled Winning the Heart of Adrienne). Those were my first romances, and I was going through the stage of figuring out what worked and what didn’t and if I wanted sex in my books or not.
Diversion from the post: Early on, I got a little more preachy than I do now as well, but that was also part of the process. I was deciding between the Inspirational Romance market and the Mainstream Romance market. I did a ton of reading in both venues to figure out which type interested me the most and finally decided on Christian-based Mainstream Romances. So I decided for the middle because I couldn’t leave out my faith (which is why historical westerns are awesome–the historical US was Christian based), but I also thought sex between the husband and wife enhanced the romance by showing the tenderness and development of the love between them. Without the sex, I can’t properly show it, and that’s why I use it. It’s also why I chose to self-publish. I didn’t settle for self-publishing. Looking back, I can see how God led me down this path. And I should give a huge shout-out to Carolyn Davidson (who writes for Harlequin) for being my inspiration. She writes books like I do (mainstream Christian-based romances). :D
Back to the post: These days, I typically don’t need to do revisions for my books. I did with my first Regency (The Earl’s Inconvenient Wife). I made four revisions of that one, and it was very grueling. But that is rare. These days, once I get the first draft, I just polish it up.
Editors: The reason why I stay sane during the editing process.
If I didn’t have editors, I’d go crazy because once I finish my second draft, I don’t want to read my book for a very long time. LOL Why? Because I already know what happens; there’s no surprises.
Once I do my initial read through (which takes about one month), I send it to an editor. I have two main people I go to for edits. One is an ex-high school English teacher. The other is one who is establishing her LLC for her editing services as we speak. In addition to this, I have two proofreaders who also serve as beta readers. I used to have more, but I ran into one whose husband turned psycho on me and have backed off from allowing “just anyone” to beta read my work. So I have a very closed group of people I trust with my work. I’ve learned the hard way that you have to be careful.
3. Who makes my covers?
In the past, I’ve used Joleene Naylor, Stephannie Beman, Dara England, and Bonnie Steffans (a generous reader who designed the covers for Isaac’s Decision, Restoring Hope and Brave Beginnings; she did do the original for Bound by Honor, Bound by Love, but I changed the plot enough where it required a different cover and did the new one myself). Joleene Naylor did my four fantasy covers, but when iUniverse (a vanity press) decided to put those original versions up in ebooks, I removed the ones with Joleene’s covers because I didn’t want to confuse Amazon. After two copyright violations in the past, I try to be careful. Dara England did the covers for Shotgun Groom, To Have and To Hold, and Her Heart’s Desire. Stephannie Beman did a couple of covers I ended up not using and the header on this blog. I LOVE my header, btw. 
I have made all my other covers. I use GIMP for ebook covers and BookCoverPro for paperback covers.
4. Breakdown of my writing-revision/editing-publishing process.
Step One: Cover
I usually do a cover before I write the book because it motivates me to see the cover while I’m working on it. For some reason, the book isn’t “real” until I get the cover. The reason why I love to make my covers is so that I can modify anything if I need to.
Step Two: Write the book
Usually, this is 2-3 months. I used to never change anything until I finished it. For the last two books, I’ve stopped writing to adjust the book to where it needs to be to save myself time in the second draft stage. This is part of what held me up on finishing Bound by Honor, Bound by Love was going back and tweaking things over the nine months I was working on it. So these days, revisions happen during the writing stage.
Step Three: Editing
I do the initial edit when I make the second draft. This can take a month or a little more. Then I hand it to one of my editors. This takes a week or two to get back to me. Then I go through it again, and depending on what the editor says, it can take a week to two to go through it. Then I hand it off to proofreader/beta reader #1 and then #2. This part is the quickest. Then I do light touch ups and publish it.
Step Four: Publish
This take a full day, believe it or not. Amazon, B&N, and Smashwords requires their own formatting. CreateSpace to make paperbacks is usually delayed, but takes a while to do, too. I’ve finally gotten to the point where I only need one round of proofs from CreateSpace to approve the book, except if I have a typo or glaring error in the cover. Then it’s two. But with Amazon Kindle, B&N PubIt, and Smashwords, formatting takes about five hours, and uploading about another two hours. Part of it is checking the formatting on the site. So yes, it is a full day, and I’m exhausted when it’s done.
Step Five: Register My Copyright
This is the most important thing I do in the whole process, and I do this immediately after I publish the book. That way if any legal issues pop up, I’m protected, and I have a great copyright lawyer who works with me. If anyone lives in the Omaha area and needs a good copyright lawyer, let me know and I’ll give you his information. His card is right with my driver’s license, so I always know where it is.
Step Six: Announce the Book is Out
I do this when it’s live on Amazon, B&N, and Smashwords. I announce it on this blog, my newsletter, Twitter, and Facebook (my main page and my author page). I don’t keep an email list because in the past, I ran into a couple of people who no longer wanted to be on it but were too afraid to hurt my feelings and let me know. I opted for the newsletter blog where people can follow or unfollow my once-a-month posts as they wish. It makes life easier for them. I only do this once for Amazon, B&N, and Smashwords (when I get those links). I don’t do it again. I will put the link up on this blog and the front page of my website for a while in case anyone missed my announcement. Other than that, I go back to my usual posts.
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I’m sure that’s more than anyone wanted to know, but when I get started on writing and publishing, I tend to ramble.
August 13, 2012
Stuff on My Mind: Cover for Forever Yours (Light Modification) and Still Editing
Thanks for all the feedback. :D I stayed with the original cover but modified where I put my name and added that it was Dave and Mary’s book.
Regarding the edits:
As I’m going through the book, I realize the heroine is one of those women who needs a man to rescue them. I kept thinking she would stop being that way at some point in the book, but she never did. So for anyone who likes kick-butt women, she won’t be your cup of tea. And yes, I really do know women who are just like the heroine in this book, and one is a really good friend. I love Anna. She is who she is. I had no trouble writing her because her personality came through on the first page of the book. However, I am nothing like her. LOL For those of you who read An Inconvenient Marriage, I’m the Sue Lewis of the world, except I don’t like to ride horses. More power to anyone who does. I rode a couple horses, never liked it, and almost fell off of one when it darted off (without my command). Anyway, the last adventure when I almost fell and broke some bones was the last time I ever got on a horse. Okay, another honest moment. I don’t have Sue’s startlingly awesome looks either. But personality-wise, yep. I’m pretty much the complete opposite of Anna.
I don’t know if anyone else has noticed it, but it seems that the two personalities (Anna and Sue) tend to attract each other. You have your Type A personality (me) and a Type B personality (the majority of close friends I’ve ever had, including my husband). I even get along best with my Type B personality kids, and my husband gets along better with the Type A kids. Being a psychology major (got a degree I have yet to use), personality types fascinate me.
And being a Type A, I would be whacking Citlali over the head with my purse to knock some sense into him if I was Onawa, but Onawa’s a Type B so she doesn’t, though I will say she comes to the point where she says “enough is enough”. Speaking of Onawa’s book…
Which brings me to an important point:
I don’t always agree with my characters. Something they do stuff that makes little sense to me at the time when I’m writing, but I’ve learned to trust my instinct and let the characters do what they want and be who they want to be. The book always turn out better when I do. So characters (much like kids) have a mind of their own, and there’s no use in forcing them to be who they want to be.
Hmm… I was just thinking of how strange it is that I wrote about two Type A’s that managed very well together: Jake Mitchell and Sue Lewis from An Inconvenient Marriage. I don’t often mix characters that way–one is usually a Type A and the other a Type B (out of instinct), but hey, if it works, go with it, right? :D
August 10, 2012
Interview With Lord Edon and His Mother (Hero in A Most Unsuitable Husband and His Poor Mother Who Suffers Daily From What The Tittletattle Will Report Next)
This interview is based on the scene I posted a couple days ago.
Ruth: Fortunately, Lord Edon and his mother have agreed to come in for an interview.
Lord Edon: About that. I want you to remove that part in the scene about me reading Shakespeare.
Ruth: But it’s the truth.
Lord Edon: Maybe, but no one needs to know it.
Ruth: Even your mother?
Lord Edon: Especially my mother.
Ruth: Why?
Lord Edon: Seriously? You have to ask me that? You’re the one who gave me such a rakish reputation in The Earl’s Inconvenient Wife and Her Counterfeit Husband. Granted, I had no actual dialogue in Her Counterfeit Husband, but I believe my reputation speaks volumes about the kind of guy I am.
Ruth: Well, yes. It’s true that you are notorious.
Lord Edon: Yes, I frighten young virgins everywhere and terrify their fathers even more. Sometimes I wonder if the fathers are afraid for their daughters or that I might win all their money in a game. Not that I try to win. For the life of me, I can’t lose, no matter how bad of a hand I think I got.
Ruth: The curse of being lucky.
Lord Edon: I have been up to now. What with you exposing my secrets and all, I might as well hang myself.
Ruth: Oh, stop being dramatic.
Lord Edon: If you were in my shoes, you wouldn’t be so quick to judge.
Ruth: You can’t be a bachelor forever. The sooner you face up to it, the better off you’ll be. Besides, you knew your book was coming when I introduced you in The Earl’s Inconvenient Wife. You were so adorable with the way you skirted around Lord Roderick’s questions about pleasing his wife in bed.
Lord Edon: I skirted nothing. I just knew a book would be better. It even had drawings and if anyone needed help, it was him. I figured since he loves maps so much, the drawings would help him understand the female body better.
Ruth: Maybe it would have helped you, too, if you took the time to have read it before giving it to him.
Lord Edon: *gasp* What are you implying?
Ruth: I think we both know what–
Lord Edon: You know what? It doesn’t even matter what you think. Who are you anyway? You’re just a writer. You’re not a duchess or countess or even the daughter of a titled gentleman. If you were anyone important, others would have heard about you. Even Lord Roderick who is totally lame when it comes to knowing anyone outside of politics doesn’t know who you are. I mean, you’re not even in the Tittletattle. Show up in a scandalsheet, and I might pay attention to what you have to say.
Ruth: Funny as you’re trying to be, I’ll have everyone reading this know that you pay someone to submit false things about you to the Tittletattle.
Lord Edon: You wouldn’t!
Ruth: I just did.
Lord Edon: That’s it. The gloves are off. I’m not sitting still for the way you’re ruining my reputation as a rake!
Ruth: Oh yeah? Bring it.
Lord Edon: Don’t think I won’t!
Ruth: And while you’re at it, be sure to say hi to your mother. I decided to bring her to the interview.
Rhonda (Lord Edon’s mother): Ruth, please tell me you’re going to finally marry my son to a good, respectable lady.
Ruth: I can, but I need your help.
Rhonda: I’ll do anything it takes.
Lord Edon: What in the world happened to you, Mother? Did some hideous creature throw up on your clothes?
Rhonda: When I’m not in the book, I can dress any way I want to.
Lord Edon: You mean you’re not being forced to wear that awful thing? Someone isn’t standing behind you with a gun to your head?
Rhonda: I could ask the same about your hair, spike boy. And aren’t you supposed to be a blond?
Lord Edon: Point taken. I won’t insult the clothes you wear when you’re not in the book. Besides, I like being a brunette. Everyone knows they’re sexier.
Rhonda: *closes her eyes and shakes her head* Ethan, you must stop worrying about the “s” word and focus on getting married so you can have an heir.
Lord Edon: I hate to break this to you, but doing what you want requires me to think of about sex.
Rhonda: You see what I have to deal with? There’s no stopping him. Ethan, even if that’s true–
Lord Edon: It is true. Babies aren’t born any other way.
Rhoda: *sighs* Even though that’s true, you aren’t supposed to enjoy it. Or at least, you wouldn’t dare mention it in my presence.
Ruth: Are you saying he mentions enjoying the “s” word now when you’re around?
Rhoda: No, he doesn’t, thank God.
Ruth: Well, you have no need to worry him enjoying it at all because–
Lord Edon: Don’t you have another character you can suffer? Whatever happened to Dave Larson? Aren’t you going to write another book about him? One in which he gets impotent?
Rhoda: Ethan!
Lord Edon: Oh, Mother. It slipped out. I didn’t mean to say it in front of you. *whispers to everyone but his mother “I’m fully capable of doing it. I’m not impotent, so don’t think that’s what Ruth plans to do with me”*
Rhoda: *sighs* I don’t even want to know what Ethan said, so no one tell me. Ethan, you will get married. If I have to cause a scene in public to force your hand, I’m going to see to it that you’re married. Even if I have to drag the poor lady down the aisle of the church–
Ruth: It won’t come to that, though there will have to be some public situation that forces his hand.
Rhoda: Whatever it takes, I’ll do it. That boy needs to settle down. If I see one more of his indiscretions mentioned in the Tittletattle, it’ll be the death of me.
Ruth: Don’t worry. Just send him to the next ball, and I’ll tell you what to do. You’ll have a good, respectable lady to marry before the end of the night.
Rhoda: What a relief.
Lord Edon: I’d like to go on record as saying that females are the most meddlesome creatures known to man.
August 8, 2012
Janet Syas Nitsick Announces the Winners for Her Giveaway and Some Cover Ideas for Forever Yours
Congratulations to Lorna Faith and Crystal Young who won a copy of Janet Syas Nitsick’s new historical romance, Lockets and Lanterns, and either a copy of Eye of the Beholder or Shotgun Groom (by me). Please go to Janet Syas Nitsick’s post for more information. :D
As for the covers, I have two new ideas. I’ll add the original cover here as well. Anyone have any thoughts on one that looks better than the other? I can’t show Mary’s face because she’s plain, and though I hate to say it, plain heroines don’t appeal to people who are browsing books. So I had to make it so that you couldn’t tell the models I used were attractive. That’s not to say that Mary is ugly, but being plain, she just wouldn’t catch someone’s eye.
Cover 1
Cover 2
Cover 3
