Jan Scarbrough's Blog, page 8
October 27, 2016
Perspective: we’ve always had it hard
Christmas 1968 & 1969
In 2012, I wrote a blog called Recalling History Gives Meaning to Today. The blog reflected on my book A Groovy Christmas and the history of 1968 I had researched when writing it. I won’t lie. I remember 1968 vividly. I was a carefree teenager back then.
I thought about that blog recently because A Groovy Christmas is on sale for November and December. Also the blog had a profound message: no time has been easy, but humans have survived a heck of a lot.
And that message came to mind this year especially. In the USA, we’re all tired of “the election games.” No more needs to be said. Man-made events such as ISIS-inspired attacks in Europe and the United States, and a wave of homicides in major cities, including my own, dominated the news. Natural occurrences, usually called weather, such as hurricanes and earthquakes made life miserable for some. Personally, it has been a year of family and health issues.
Bottom line: Life is tough. Nobody tells you that when you are a kid. As bad as this year has been, other years have been just as bad. Or worse. It is a matter of perspective, or degrees. Was 2016 worse than 2001? Or 1942? What about the Great Depression years?
In Sunday school this week, the lesson was about the Book of Job. The message? In essence bad things happen to good people, but God is always with us.
Faith is important for humankind simply because life is so hard and uncertain. Faith gives you hope, something to believe in that is greater than yourself. That’s the way I see it.
October 14, 2016
American Cowboy, the Legend
Why do we love the legendary American cowboy?
Answer: Because he (or she) is who we want to be.
Real cowboys (and cowgirls like Annie Oakley) became romanticized in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, because the public admired the qualities they represented. A book by Duncan Emrich entitled Folklore in the American Land lists these common attributes.
Individualism
Independence
Freedom
Not given to bragging (I’ll insert “humble” here)
Courage
Cheerfulness
Pride
Loyalty
True to his word
Generosity
Kindness
Unbeatable
Women readers love a good cowboy tale because a true cowboy esteems women. Emrich points out, “One of the strictest code of the West was to respect women. No other class of men looked upon women with greater reverence.”
So when you see the hunky cowboys on the covers of modern romance novels, remember they represent the real men who embodied an American ideal.
October 7, 2016
Prequel: Bluegrass Homecoming (book 1)
Limited time only – Kindle Unlimited!
Preorder Soon
Grace Baron had always been the good wife, in spite of a marriage based on a careless indiscretion, and sustained not by love, but by old-fashioned morality. She’d raised her daughter, bit her tongue, and silently lived with her guilt. Now that she’s a widow, she can’t help being glad for her sudden freedom. She’d never live her life like that again. Without a sense of control. Without deliberately making a choice about her future. And that future would never involve getting married again.
Small town lawyer Howard Scott has buried two wives. His steadfast belief that it’s never too late to find true love keeps him open to whatever joy life has to offer. He doesn’t want another socialite wife. This time he wants a hometown girl. Someone stable, maybe a little naïve, but feisty enough to keep him on his toes. Someone like Grace Baron.
Howard’s gentle, old-fashioned courting makes Grace feel alive again. Would marrying Howard be the trap Grace fears, or would it finally give her a kind of freedom she’d never imagined?
September 15, 2016
Welcome Nancy Fraser! Big Cover Reveal: Eye of the Pharaoh
The idea for Eye of the Pharaoh came about following a trip to the Field Museum in Chicago. For the longest time afterward, I couldn’t get the images of ancient Egypt out of my head. Then, out of the blue, I received a gift from a relative who had passed…a gorgeous necklace fashioned like an Egyptian collar. The late relative had no way of knowing about my recent fascination with Egypt so I took it as a sign. There was obviously a story inside me begging to come out.
Blurb
Publicist Teri Hunter has her hands full promoting Professor Joshua Cain and his new non-fiction book, The Pharaoh’s Mummy. She’s not convinced it’s even possible to turn this absent-minded, modern-day, Indiana Jones into a best-selling author.
Dr. Cain’s PhDs in archaeology and art history have prepared him for almost anything on the lecture circuit and among ancient ruins. He’s just not sure about a book tour…or the sexy publicist sent to monitor his every professional move.
When an odd request falls in their laps while in New Orleans, Josh and Teri find themselves transported to 1920’s Egypt where they must resolve an ancient curse in order to be sent home. Will the dangers facing them hinder their success and threaten their very lives? Or will help from an ancient guardian keep them on-track and safe?
Bio
Author Bio: Like most authors, Nancy Fraser began writing at an early age, usually on the walls and with crayons or, heaven forbid, permanent markers. Her love of writing often made her the English teacher’s pet, which, of course, resulted in a whole lot of teasing. Still, it was worth it.
Published in multiple genres, Nancy currently writes for four publishers. She has published twenty-two books in both full-length and novella format. Nancy will release her 25th book in early 2017. She is currently working on her next Rock and Roll novella and two other equally exciting projects.
When not writing (which is almost never), Nancy dotes on her five wonderful grandchildren and looks forward to traveling and reading when time permits. Nancy lives in Atlantic Canada where she enjoys the relaxed pace and colorful people.
Website: www.nancyfraser.ca
Blog: http://nancyfraser.ca/wordpress/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/nfraserauthor @nfraserauthor
Facebook: http://facebook.com/nancyfraserauthor
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7206382.Nancy_Fraser
Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B004AOL61Y
Contest
First prize: $10 gift card to book retailer of their choice
Second prize: (3) Digital copies of Time and Again, futuristic time travel
August 18, 2016
I was a reader before I was a writer
Sometime after second grade and by the time I discovered Black Stallion books in the fourth grade, I started loving to read. My ninth grade teacher Mrs. Neff encouraged us to buy and keep books. You can see I have many of them in my library today.
Mrs. Neff also introduced me to the joys of creative writing.
By the time I went to college, I decided to become an English teacher because I loved reading and writing. Flash forward many years—I’m currently a technical writer by day and at night, I write romance novels.
Sadly, because of time constraints, my reading time is often limited to my lunch hour on my iPhone.
Much of my free time these days are spent working on books. So here is a list of my future plans.
Contemporary Romance—Bluegrass Homecoming
Prequel—complete and with editor (coming soon)
Secrets—re-release with location change of older novel (coming soon)
Nom de Plume—book 3 in the writing stages
Medieval Romance—Knights of the Royal Household
My Lord Raven—re-release with re-edit and new ending
Raven’s Vow—future, very far in the future
Contemporary Western Romance—Ghost Mountain Ranch
Hank, the wrangler from The Montana McKennas gets his own story
The series is in the very early stages, inspired by my recent Montana vacation
August 7, 2016
Montana vacation spurs romance novel ideas
When my husband and I discussed a summer vacation, I suggested Montana. I wanted to see the state where I’d set four books in the The Montana McKenna’s series with Maddie James.
Before writing my books, I had researched the Internet for the setting, a dude ranch in Southwestern Montana near Yellowstone National Park. I had also researched professional bull riding for an earlier book. But most of the setting and characters were made up and came from my imagination.
After more Internet research for a vacation dude ranch, I discovered The Covered Wagon Ranch in Gallatin Gateway, Montana. We made reservations and planned our trip for three days in July.
OMG! It was fun—two days on horseback riding into the mountains, gourmet meals prepared by a professional chef eaten in a rustic dinning room with other friendly “dudes.” The owners, wrangles and staff were super friendly. Like many of the returning guests, we felt right at home.
And yes, there were real cowboys working at the ranch, men and women who make a living wrangling horses and caring for us city slickers. Their knowledge, love and respect for the land, and their devotion and caring for the horses impressed me.
I was given my own horse for the two-day stay. He was a six-year-old Tennessee walking horse named Mr. Black. He didn’t trot, but racked. We never got up enough speed to go that fast because we were climbing up the sides of mountains! The view from the top looking down over the ranch property was scary. Believe me!
I could have had more fun trail riding, but acquired a case of altitude sickness. The 6000+ feet of Montana Mountains were very much higher than the 500 feet Ohio Valley where I live. I began to feel better on the second day, just in time to leave.
We also took a day trip to Paradise Valley, the actual setting of the McKenna ranch in the series, and ate lunch at a place called Chico Hot Springs near Emigrant, Montana.
On the trip, I got to see firsthand the mountains, canyons, and valleys that make that part of Southwestern Montana so beautiful. Sagebrush is real. And so are lodgepole pine trees and aspens with their green and silver leaves shimmering in the wind. You can bet I came home pondering another Western series set in this beautiful part of the United States of America
July 10, 2016
Write what you know: single moms
In my last blog, I explored how novelists put their experiences into what they write. I also examined the idea in a blog for Gems in the Attic called “Write what you know. It’s fun!”
Most of my Bluegrass Reunion Series are books about single moms. The heroines were divorced, unwed mothers, widows, or aunts. I was able to write about being a single parent, because I had experienced it first hand.
Ex-jockey Alexis Marsden in Kentucky Woman can’t give her son what he needs, so she agrees to a marriage of convenience.
In Kentucky Flame, Horse trainer Melody O’Shea comes home to a famed American Saddlebred farm that is also the home of her daughter, the secret baby she gave up for private adoption.
Carrie Mercer in Kentucky Groom can’t possibly be falling in love with the groom at her daughter’s stable. She’s a widowed mother with heavy responsibilities.
Veterinarian Mandy Sullivan in Kentucky Cowboy has custody of her sister’s child. She doesn’t count on trouble showing up next door in the form of her ex-boyfriend, now a champion bull rider.
Kate Lawrence in Kentucky Rain is a recently divorced, single mom who is ill prepared to make it on her own.
I put single moms in other books too. In The Montana McKenna’s Prequel, I portray the feelings of a divorced mother, who has mixed feelings about dating again:
But Nate Caldera was late.
As usual.
In silent sadness, Liz watched her son. She didn’t want Brody disappointed—again. She had no control over her ex-husband and his broken promises.
Tonight, though, proved especially problematic. James McKenna was coming to dinner at eight.
Liz bit her lower lip and returned to her galley kitchen. She had an empty feeling in the pit of her stomach. What if Nate didn’t pick up Brody in time? How would she explain the presence of her son to James? It would be awkward, but surely he’d understand.
As a single mother, she faced this predicament every time she wanted to date. She wasn’t about to bring a man into Brody’s life if there was no chance of long term. Brody didn’t need that. She didn’t need it.
So mostly, Liz didn’t date. It wasn’t worth the hassle. Besides, not many men wanted anything to do with a woman who had a kid. She didn’t blame them. Not really.
So you see how I’m able to take one experience from my life and use it for my characters.
June 30, 2016
Do you put people you know in your books?
How many times have friends asked me that question?
Once the ladies in accounting asked my husband (then my boy friend) if he was the inspiration for my love scenes. He blushed and ran quickly out of the cubicle where they were working.
Robert McKee (author of Story: Substance, Structure, Style, and the Principles of Screenwriting) talks about this very thing in his presentation at the Chicago RWA convention in 1999. I recently listened again to the tape.
Writers watch people, he said. They gather material through observation, assembling characters from the bits and pieces of people around them. Sort of like Dr. Frankenstein creating his monster.
More importantly, writers find characters in themselves, because the only person they can truly know is himself or herself. We understand other people the more we know ourselves, because we’re all fundamentally human. McKee points out that if we are thinking it, feeling it, others are experiencing it too. Self-knowledge is the key to all great writing.
Okay, I’ll buy all that. I don’t have one person in mind when I create a character, but I admit to putting myself into each one of my characters.
In coming blogs, I will give examples of how, when you read my books, you may find some autobiographical material.
June 26, 2016
The Montana McKennas Boxed Set
Welcome to McKenna Ranch!
Meet Brody, Callie, Mercer and Parker—the four siblings in the clan of James McKenna, a Montana rancher, and their mom/step mom, Liz.
Growing up on the ranch was a great life, until Callie and Parker’s mother passed away, leaving James a widower. It wasn’t long, however, before he remarried, bringing Liz into their lives, along with her son, Brody. Soon, James and Liz added a new McKenna to the family, when daughter Mercer was born.
All books are included in The Montana McKennas Boxed Set:
The Montana McKennas: Prequel, Book 1, by Jan Scarbrough and Maddie James
Brody, Book 2, by Jan Scarbrough
Callie, Book 3, by Maddie James
Parker, Book 4, by Maddie James
Mercer, Book 5, by Jan Scarbrough
Liz, Book 7, by Jan Scarbrough
Book 6 is Corporate Cowboy by Maddie James. This is a highly erotic story and not included in the boxed set.
June 9, 2016
Remembering Muhammad Ali
Living in Louisville, Kentucky, I can’t escape the hoopla surrounding the death and funeral of native son, Muhammad Ali. It’s taking place downtown where I work. The Muhammad Ali Center is three blocks from my office building.
On Monday when I went to my favorite spot for lunch, a crew from ABC was picking up lunch. It was a beautiful, bright shiny day, so I walked to the Center and snapped pictures of the memorial to the champ outside. Reporters and cameramen surrounded the area. On Wednesday, I crossed the lines of devoted fans waiting to pick up free tickets to Friday’s memorial service. I park in the garage below the KFC YUM! Center where the funeral will be held.
I remember Muhammad Ali as a kid. I was particularly impressed when he took pictures with the Beatles in 1964. I was a Beatlemaniac, you see. I remember when Ali lit the Olympic Cauldron at the Atlanta 1996 Olympic Games.
In Louisville, the media talks about the champ nonstop. We will be treated to live coverage of the procession to the cemetery, through Louisville, and we’ll be able to see the memorial service on television. In one audio clip of Ali, I heard him ask the reporters surrounding him if they believed in God. Imagine that! So, I searched the Internet to find out more about Ali’s faith. In The Winding Spiritual Path of Muhammad Ali, you will find a succinct explanation of Ali’s changing faith.
Ali once said, “The man who views the world at 50 the same as he did at 20 has wasted 30 years of his life.” He certainly modified his views over time.
About his diagnosis with Parkinson’s disease, he said, “Now the things that once were so effortless — my strong voice and the quickness of my movements — are more difficult. But I get up every day and try to live life to the fullest because each day is a gift from God.”
The article points out Ali’s daughter, Hana Yasmeen Ali, said in 2005 that her father moved away from the staunchly religious ways of his youth. “His health and his spirituality have changed, and it’s not so much about being religious, but about going out and making people happy, doing charity, and supporting people and causes,” she said.
I’ve come away from this week of memorials to Muhammad Ali with a greater respect for the man. Most of my life he’s been there, coming in and out of my awareness. I never took time to learn about the man. I’m glad I took the time this week.
