Jennifer Shirk's Blog, page 30

Harlequin Author Terri Reed--and a Giveaway!

Hi, all!   Happy Friday! I'm so please to have Love Inspired author Terri Reed with me today!
At an early age Terri Reed discovered the wonderful worldof fiction and declared she would one day write a book. Now she is fulfillingthat dream and enjoys writing for Steeple Hill. She is an active member of bothRomance Writers of America and American Christian Fiction Writers. She residesin the Pacific Northwest with her college-sweetheart husband, two wonderfulchildren and an array of critters. When not writing, she enjoys spending timewith her family and friends, gardening and playing with her dogs.

  Describe a little of your writing routine forus. Do you have a set amount of time that you spend on writing per week?    My routine varies depending on where in theprocess I am.  When I'm in the beginningstages, I do a lot of 'pre-writing' on a note pad and forms that I've gatheredfrom various different writing instructors. Then when I'm writing raw, I spend anywhere from four to seven hours atthe computer during the weekday. Sometimes this is all day, sometime the hoursare broken up with errands or appointments or volunteering at the kidsschool.  I'll make up hours on theweekend if I fall behind and the deadline is nearing.  Sometimes I'll make up hours lost during theday in the evening/after everyone goes to bed or early in the morning beforeanyone gets up.
Is there a different genre you would like to try and writesomeday?   I have some ideas for a few grittierthrillers and a few ideas for a couple of women's fiction books.  But they are sitting on the back burner fornow.  Love Inspired keeps me busy.    How do you reward yourself for finishing or selling a book?  
I buy a latte after I've mailed the book andthen I get a massage. 
What is the best advice you've evergotten and/or advice you'd like to give to other writers? There are several bits of adviceI've taken to heart from some big name authors.  
1)Nora Roberts said, I can fix a bad pagebut I can't fix a blank page.  Iremind myself that all the time when I'm writing and find myself stuck orspending too much time trying to come up with the words. 
2) Susan Elizabeth Philips said Protectthe work, whatever that mean for you. Protect the work.  For me protecting the work has been saying noto things I'd like to do when I have writing to be done.  It means ordering pizza instead of going tothe grocery store when I'm on deadline. It means preserving my voice when critique partners or editors want tome to make changes that aren't true to my voice and style.
3) Jo Beverly said—Justtell the story.  I know we're taughtto show don't tell when we're writing and that is very true and valid, however,when I get stuck I remember Nora's words and I remember Jo's words and I justtell the story.  I can go back later andshow the story but I have to have something to work.
4)My advice is never stoplearning, believe in yourself and your writing because if you don't who will? anddon't get so attached to the work that you're unwilling to make it better.Wonderful advice!!
Now for some fun questions! Favorite Christmas gift you just received?   Pilates Reformer classes from my husband. What are you reading right now?   Miracle Cure by Harlan Coben.  What do you like to do when you're not writing?   Pilates, Zumba and hang out with my family.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Links where readers can find you: http://www.loveinspiredauthors.com/http://www.craftieladiesofromance.blogspot.com/http://www.harlequin.com/
Here is a little bit about Terri's new book out now: The Secret Heiress:
A Shocking RevelationFinding out she is heir to a fortune shocks Caroline Tullyto her core.  And to "qualify" for theinheritance, she just has to visit her newfound grandfather's Mississippi homefrom Christmas to New Year's.  Adopted asa baby, Caroline knows nothing about her mother's family...and doesn't realizethey can't be trusted.  When attempts aremade on her life, there's only one man who can protect her.  Donovan Cavanaugh—a man who made her lonelyheart want to love again.  Posing as herfiancé, Don promises to find the would-be killer.  But will his protection-and his love-beenough to keep her safe?Protection Specialists: Guarding the innocent.

GIVEAWAY: Terri will be giving away a $10Visa GC for both blog host with most comments and one randomly drawn commenter duringthe tour. Please comment on today's blog for your chance to win!To increase your chances ofwinning, be sure to visit Terri's other blog tour stops here: http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2011/11/virtual-book-tour-secret-heiress-by.html
Thanks so much, Terri!

Another NEW Year and Another NEW Goal!

Hi, all! Long time no see, er, read.

Yes, I'm alive and well. Well...sort of well.

We went skiing over Christmas break and I kind of, um, landed on a fence. OK, I landed  in the fence.
It all happened so fast, who's to say, really, but just know that in the end I jammed my leg and have been hobbling ever since.

But I'm better. Again, sort of.

Anyhew, it's nice to be back. I'm all energized and ready to start planning my year now.
Last year, one of my goals was to complete the P90x workout regime. DONE.

The hubby is really inspiring me for 2012. He's already started P90x2!!
Yes, he's insane.
Personally, a person has to know his/her limitations, and for me, P90x2 is it.

One of my goals this year is to repeat the old P90x because I did get in great shape and felt good too. I'm hoping to "bring it" even more.

The hubby has also bought himself a... guitar for Christmas and has downloaded lessons on our IPad. He's teaching himself to play and already has a jamming version of "Mary had a Little Lamb"going.His ultimate "goal" is to learn how to play Eric Clapton's "Promises"--long story--by the end of the year.

You gotta love his enthusiasm. :-)

Thus, here are a few of my own GOALS for the upcoming year:

1) Kick the caffeine habit.  *gasp* I know it's drastic, but I feel that my coffee consumption is up and I hate the dependency on it. So I went to my local organic health food store and bought some TEECCINO--which is an organic herbal coffee that is caffeine free. I'm mixing it with my coffee when I brew a pot in the morning. It's quite tasty. Over a few weeks, you're supposed to add more Teeccino and less coffee until your caffeine free. We'll see how it goes.

2) Write less daily but more regularly.
Sounds weird, huh?
Well, I was reading "See Jane Write" and in it, one of the authors mentioned a tip she had learned, and that was to set a small writing goal every day--even if it's just a page or two. 500 words a day can bring you to a completed first draft novel in 6 months.

The idea is that if you wake up every day and think, "I have a whole book to write"--it can be overwhelming and cause you to put off doing.
But if you wake up and say, "I have two pages to write", it's much more manageable in your mind.

3) Learn Dragon and Effectively Use it.
The Dragon software was a Christmas gift from the hubby. Still trying to train it, but I'm hoping it makes some of my computer tasks run more smoothly by the end.

And that's it for me. Kind of simple this year.
What about you? Are you keeping it simple too or are your goals for this year more lofty and aggressive?
Also, what was your favorite Christmas gift?
(Mine was my Ugg clogs and the Dragon software)

Merry Christmas!

Wishing you and yours a very blessed Christmas to the glory of our Lord and savior Jesus Christ.

See you all after the New Year!

Love,
Jennifer

Tick Tock Tick Tock

Cookies Left to Make: Chocolate Chip
Gifts left to Buy: FIVE
Gifts left to Wrap: SIXTEEN

Hi, all!
The kiddo was home sick with Step ALL WEEK last week so I was basically held hostage and could not get done my Christmas shopping. But I hope to finish up between today and tomorrow.

I had my COOKIES FOR CASH cookie swap last Thursday. I did NOT win. :(
I came in second. Again. Always a bridesmaid and never a blah, blah, I guess.

In case you're curious what I made, you can check out the recipe here. They're yumola. And they look so pretty to give too.

Anyhew, I need to leave now to go shopping so I can make it back home for an online seminar at 10AM.

I'll be checking out blogs after that. In the meantime, it's the all-important question of the day:

Heat miser?orCold miser?

Deja Vu Blogfest!

 How does Deja Vu blogfest work?  On December 16th all of those taking part will re-post their favorite blog offering, or one that never received the exposure it should have. For more info go to Nicole's blog HERE.

I chose one that was fairly popular but also fun. (Well, I thought it was fun) :-)

Anyway, and away we go...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Beyond Blonde and Brunette: The Redheaded Hero
Hey, all!
As you all know I was in Florida last week where I was able to relax and do a lot of reading. It's kind of funny the things that you start to notice when you're zipping through books--and one of them is the hair color of MEN.

Believe me, there are plenty of tall, dark, and handsome heroes going on. A few blonds I've seen. And then, of course, the sandy-brown colored hair, which naturally dips down (just so) where the heroine has that desire to brush it off his forehead. :-)

All very nice hair colors for men.

But where I ask you is the REDHEADED HERO?! (--interrobang)

Is there some kind of red prejudice going on? Are there certain images that get conjured up in our minds when we think of redheaded men?



Hmm....Well, maybe.
I'd like to think that there will be a resurgence in ginger-headed heroes, but maybe there is a certain stereotype that's automatically in our brain when we think of men with red hair. I know. It's terrible. But we women can't help it!! After all, look what we've been subjected to all these years:


Cute. (Sort of.) But not a romance readers typical "fantasy"type of guy. Nothing personal to those redheaded gentlemen, but romance readers are kind of... PICKY--opting for larger than life heroes over the guy-next-door type of hero.
Most authors tend to keep this in mind when naming their heroes. Romance readers LOVE masculine names for their heroes as well as masculine looks. It's just the way it is, because a hair coloring or a name conjure up images when we're reading.

But now that this phenomenon has come to my attention, I feel the need to write a hero with red hair. Yep. Those men deserve their props. And who knows?
There might be some hero hope for them yet. :-)


How about you? Have you read (and liked) any romances that had a redheaded hero? If you're a writer, have you written a book with a redheaded hero?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

**on another note, the winner of the Sweet Sunshine Cookbook is...

Karen Walker!!

Please email me at jennifer--at--jennifershirk--dot--com and let me know where you want it sent.

Christmassy Stuff--and a Giveaway!

Hey, all!

I went away on a little bus trip with my mom on Saturday. We decided to do something for Christmas and go to Bethlehem.

Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, that is. :)

It's actually called The Christmas City, christened "Bethlehem" on Christmas Eve 1741. We went shopping, had lunch, took a light tour and saw a short film on the city. We had so much fun! We actually bought Christmas gifts for each other. LOL

I soooooooooo needed that little getaway. And it was so nice to have so much fun with my mom. We try to do these little mommy-daughter getaways at least once or twice a year.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

More Christmassy stuff: It's COOKIES for CASH time again. What's that? It's a cookie swap my friend hosts that gets pretty darn serious because the winner gets the pot of cash everyone chips in on entry. This year I'm changing it up, but in case any judges are reading this, I won't post my cookie recipe until AFTER the swap.
Wish me luck!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
And now since I'm in such a Christmassy mood, I figured it's the perfect time to do a little cookbook GIVEAWAY!

Sweet Sunshine is a Charity Cookbook, with all proceeds going to the Sunshine Foundation of Canada www.sunshine.ca.

Within these pages, several featured authors have shared a childhood memory, some pictures of us as little kids, recipes, and a few have written a story, complete with artwork and coloring pages. Recipes include; Cookies, Cakes, Pies, Desserts, Fudge & Smoothies!

Available in print and ebook.

So if you would like a copy of this cookbook chock-full of yummy recipes, then ENTER to win by commenting below and telling me what your favorite Christmas treat is!
**contest will run from now until Thursday 11:59 PM EST.**
**anyone can enter to win, however if you live outside the U.S or Canada, you will be eligible for the ebook version only.

Tis the Season...

Oh my gosh, I feel out of touch with everyone.
This has been an INSANE week. That's all I can really say.
INSANE.
So I will leave you with Happy Thoughts while I'll try to regroup and play catch-up.


Da Christmas Tree:
Da Kitchen with my new ginormous poinsettia. Isn't it pretty?
Here's a closeup:

Anyhew, I promise to be back next week in right mind. :-) I'll also be doing a little cookbook giveaway for fun--and just in time for the holiday season. Have a great weekend!
Have I missed any big news? Please tell me I haven't.

Gone Shopping!

Hey, all!

Well, the Christmas Tree is officially up and the house is decorated. FINALLY!

I had a little bit of trouble getting into the spirit initially. I think it's because it's been so unseasonably warm.
But for someone who's been a bit of a Grinch, I sure bedazzled my house!! I had no idea I had it in me!:)

Anyhew, my church's Advent Luncheon went off wonderfully, thanks for asking. I actually had four women request my Caesar dressing recipe. Yes, it's THAT good.

So now, I'm off to get some shopping done...um, since I have yet to start.

Catch up with you all later.

How about you, is your tree up yet?

And we have a winner...

Happy Friday!!
Thank you to everyone who stopped by and commented on my guest blogger Melissa McClone's guest post! We both really appreciate it!

Right now I'm up to my ears in extensive copy edits for my Avalon release coming out in April.
Did I mention how extensive they are? Sheesh.

I'm also preparing to speak at my church. Our Women's Ministry is having their third program on the subject of PRAYER this Saturday, and I happen to be the closer. :-) (PS. I'm also in-charge of making enough salad dressing and croutons for 50 women. ) More sheesh.

Anyhew, I wanted to pop in and announce the winner of Melissa's giveaway.
The winner of one $10 Amazon Gift Card is...

Theresa Milstein!! Congrats, Theresa! Please email me at Jennifer AT jennifershirk DOT com with the email you would like to use and I will have Melissa get your prize out to you. Have a great weekend! And see you Monday!

Guest Blogger: Melissa McClone and a Giveaway!

Happy Monday, all! Hope you all had a lovely Thanksgiving!
I actually ended up losing weight on Thanksgiving (long story. More on Friday)

Anyhew, my friend Melissa McClone, who writes for the Harlequin Romance series, has a new romance out now just in time for the holidays and to put you in the mood for Christmas. It's a sweet romance called Firefighter Under the Mistletoe.

When she told me the title, I was immediately interested in how she knew enough information about firefighters to write the story and thought it would be neat for her to share it with you all.
So, Melissa take it away!!

Thanks, Jennifer, for hosting me. I always have fun being at Me, My Muse and I.
I want to tell you about my November Harlequin Romance release, Firefighter Under the Mistletoe, and the research I did for my heroine, Leanne Thomas, a firefighter paramedic and volunteer mountain rescuer.

Back when I was writing Rescued by the Magic of Christmas (Harlequin Romance November '98), I took four male members of Portland Mountain Rescue (PMR) out to dinner at a local brewpub to learn more about mountain rescue and their camaraderie. A fun and educational time, but shades of my time as an engineer days kept flashing back. I knew I needed a woman in my fictional mountain rescue group to balance out all the testosterone.

Enter Leanne Thomas. She was female, but one of the guys, too. I made her a paramedic due to plot necessity, never thinking at that time she would end up the heroine of her own romance.

When the time came to write her story, I was a little worried about making Leanne realistic as well as relatable to readers. Here was a woman who was surrounded by men both at work and at play. She worked at the fire station with male firefighters. She could climb and ski as well (and sometimes better) as the men she hung out with. She was one of the guys, but I still needed to be a romance heroine. That meant I needed help.

Three women came to my rescue—Fran and Kellie, two climbers who are members of different mountain rescue groups in Washington State, and Karyn, a firefighter paramedic who works in Oregon. I never had a chance to meet them in person, but after initial phone calls with two of them everything else was done via email. Lots and lots of emails!

Fran and Kellie answered so many questions about mountain rescue and being a female climber. The technical stuff helped so much, but just as important, if not more so, was hearing about their experiences both as climbers and rescuers. They told me about the dynamics of being on a mountain rescue unit with a group of men. It was interesting to hear the similarities between the two rescue groups as well as the differences.

Their experiences helped me shape Leanne. Fran is married to a fellow mountain rescuer. I thought about making one of the rescuers as trying to figure out who would be the perfect hero for Leanne. But given the first two books in the series as well as the ones I want to write next, I decided against having another mountain rescuer hero. Kellie provided an itinerary for my hero's climbing road trip based on a trip she took. She also told me about her platonic relationship with a climbing partner that helped me with Leanne's working relationships and friendships.

Karyn gave me so much information about firefighting and being a paramedic. (Thirty-nine email replies answering my many questions!) I knew nothing about this part of Leanne's life/character. Karyn helped me understand life at a fire station (i.e. how does cooking work, where does she sleep, what does she wear to bed, etc.) and what she does on a call. She went so far as to read scenes to help me make sure what I wrote was plausible.

She also helped me figure out what kind of hero would be a good match for Leanne—a fellow firefighter! Karyn is married to a firefighter. They don't work in the same city so I often received two views of how things worked since each department and station can operate differently.

If you'd like to meet Leanne, she makes an appearance in Snow-Kissed Romance , a free on-line read at eHarlequin.com. The novella was used to promote the second book in the series, Christmas Magic on the Mountain, released in November 2010. In case you were wondering, the stories share the same setting and secondary characters, but each is standalone.

I can't thank Fran, Kellie and Karyn enough for all their research help. Leanne Thomas is a better character because of the assistance I received from women who live and play in the same world as her.

Are there careers and/or activities that you would like to learn more about?


Christmas magic in Hood Hamlet...
For Leanne, infuriatingly charming firefighter Christian Welton is out of bounds. Not only is he too young for her, but his trail of broken hearts is legendary. Leanne's fought hard to be one of the boys, and won't let anyone see that Christian's smile makes her want to melt into his arms!

Christian wanted to discover the softer side of the tough-talking paramedic, but hasn't counted on how much the real Leanne affects him. He's vowed never to settle down, but under the mistletoe it's certainly the season to be tempted....

Available on Amazon and Kindle, Harlequin.com and other book stores.

For more information on Melissa, check out her website HERE.

CONTEST: Melissa has generously offered to giveaway a $10 Amazon gift card to some lucky commenter!
Contest runs from now until Thursday, December 1, 2011 11:59 pm EST.