Meredith Allard's Blog, page 19

July 11, 2019

Down Salem Way Review Copies Now Available

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While I’m getting back into work mode after a couple of
difficult months, I wanted to share some updates.





Down Salem Way is here! Normally, I’d send out review copies in the weeks prior to a book’s release, but as I said in this post, I fell behind on just about everything this summer. You have to go with the flow, right? Here’s a belated offer for digital review copies for any reader who would like one. If you’re interested, contact me via email at meredithallardauthor(at)gmail(dot)com or through the form on the Contact page. If you do request a review copy, let me know if you’d prefer a mobi, epub, or pdf version. For those of you who have already bought copies, thank you! There will be other promotions and giveaways for Down Salem Way in the coming weeks and months.





The initial feedback for Down Salem Way has been positive, for which I’m thankful. Down Salem Way is different than the other Loving Husband Trilogy books for a few reasons: 1) it’s strictly historical fiction, taking place in Salem in 1692, so there’s no back and forth between the past and the present; 2) it’s James’ journal and the narration feels different since these are James’ thoughts and experiences as he describes the madness of the witch hunts in his own words; 3) James is the James we know and love, but he turns 30 here, as in actually 30 years old. He’s not a 300+-year-old pretending to be 30. His journal reflects the thoughts and experiences of a young man still finding his way in the world; 4) James may seem to have a modern view of the witch hunts, but he isn’t the anomaly he seems to be. Many in the late 17th century, many in Salem itself, believed the Salem Witch Trials were a travesty of justice. John Proctor spoke aloud of his disbelief in the witch hunts in 1692, and he was accused of witchcraft and hanged as a result. You don’t need to dig far to find examples of others from that time who believed as James and John do—that it was the dark side of human nature, not a supernatural evil being, that caused the suffering of innocent people.





Just for fun, I thought I’d share the beginning section of Chapter 1 that I’ve shared here before. If you read all three examples, you’ll see that I had everything I needed in the first draft, but I whittled away at it until I had the final version that ended up in the book. How do I know when something is finished? I know when something is finished when I can read it without needing to tweak anything. There’s not a lot of change from version to version, but if you read all three you’ll see how sections, words, or sentences were whittled down or deleted. A few mistakes were caught and fixed (some by me, some by my editor). This part of writing, what I call my “whittling down” phase, is the best part for me since this is when I can finally see the story I meant to write all along.





It looks like I had three drafts for Down Salem Way, but it’s impossible to say how many drafts I wrote. What constitutes a new draft? Is it changing sentences around, rearranging the same comma 10 times, or deleting entire passages?





Here are the three main drafts from 10 January 1691 (Chapter 1) for your reading enjoyment.





First Draft of Chapter 1— Down Salem Way





Second Draft of Chapter 1— Down Salem Way





And the beginning of the final draft of Chapter 1…





10 January 1691, Monday





The winters are colder here, I’m certain of it. I feel it so in my bones, which feel brittle, as though they shall shatter like a hammer against icicles. The sky looks nearly as it does in England, gradations of gray from near-black to tinder-slate that shed wind, sleet, or snow depending on its mood. Whilst England grows cold enough in the sunless months, in Salem the sky disappears beneath a woolen blanket. I cannot step one foot outside without feeling liquid ice in my veins, but such is life in Massachusetts in January. 





This morn Lizzie laughed as I piled on layers of clothing in an attempt to stay warm: my woolen flannel underdrawers, my linen shirt, my thickest worsted leggings, perhaps not the most fashionable, but they are my warmest; my woolen suit of doublet, jerkin, and breeches, and my heavy coat, the deep blue one Lizzie says matches my eyes, though what matters my eyes when I cannot see for the blizzard? Lizzie pulled my coat close to my ears and knotted my scarf near my throat so I might keep whatever warmth I take with me. I would cover myself in ten coats if I could without looking ridiculous. Even as I was, Lizzie could not stifle her giggles. 





“Good heavens, James. You look like a blue onion ready for the peeling.” 





“And shall you peel my layers away?” 





She blushed in that way I love, red-hot along her jaw. She pushed me toward the door as though she could not be rid of me soon enough. 





“Perhaps when you return home. If you’re lucky.”





I pulled my dark-haired, dark-eyed beauty closer and basked in her warmth. I ran my lips along her red-stained cheeks. “I have been lucky thus far. I cannot imagine that my luck shall not continue.”





Lizzie tugged my coat closer round my neck, then opened the door and pushed me toward it. She shivered in the cold, kissed my lips, and pressed me outside.





“Go. Father waits for you.”





“Shall you wait for me?”  





“What other man might I wait for who is tall and strong with hair the color of spun gold and eyes like the bluest, brightest jewels?”





I stepped into the unfriendly gloom and the door shut behind me. I had lost the battle to Lizzie, which is as it usually goes. 





I quivered in my boots as I walked toward the shore, warming my mind with thoughts of Lizzie, her wondering dark eyes, her dark hair, her luscious, berry-like lips. I needed something else to occupy my mind, but there was nothing. I’m still struck by how sparse tis in Massachusetts. 





“They call this a town?” I said aloud, to no one. I struggle to think of this place as civilized. Salem Town grows livelier toward the harbor since tis the hub for shipbuilding and the merchant trade. Tis even more provincial at the Farms. There is so little of everything here, and tis still a shock to walk amongst nothing but seashore to one side, farmland on the other, and wilderness all round. 





“Is this all there is?” I said, again to no one. A seagull cawed overhead, but then I doubted what I heard since even seabirds must know to stay away from Salem in winter. 





I shook myself as far as the sea and stood at the edge of the white-gray bay, the tips of my boots licked by the lapping waves, the ocean spray splattering my exposed face with bitter water like pinpricks along my cheeks. Again, I thought the cold in England was not ever this cold. I squinted into the expanse of water, slapping my forehead when I realized I left my spectacles at home. What a confounded fool I can be. Twas an excuse to return home to Lizzie, I knew, but Father waited for me at the wharf so I pressed forward. If I concentrated enough, so that my temples squeezed, I could see well enough. If I pinched my brain that much tighter, I thought, I could see past the ocean to England, and home.





A sharp spray of salt water brought me back to myself. The air is even colder at land’s end. With my hat pulled over my eyes and my face turned from the wind, I bumped into a man in a leather coat, a fisherman, I think. The man’s Monmouth cap fell to the ground, his leather pouch flung from his shoulder, and he grimaced with severity.





“My apologies,” I said. “I did not see you there.”





“Blind, are you?” The man spat in my direction. “A Pox on you!” With a hmph! he skittered away, his gray doublet and breeches blending into the slate of sea and sky. Indeed, I am blind. I cannot see my own hand before my face without my spectacles, which were at home with Lizzie, where it was warm, where she was warm, her embrace warmest of all. I wanted to be in my cushioned chair before the hearth reading Samuel Pepys’ Memoirs of the Navy with Lizzie beside me knitting, mending, or chatting to me about her day, but instead I was there near an unforgiving shore whipped by the angry weather like a thief in the stocks. Still, I pressed forward. I stared into the distance, struggling to make out Father’s short, slight shape. Then I had a fright brought on by one word: “Pox.”





I did not need that ill-tempered man to remind me of the Pox running rampant along the shore. There has been another outbreak, and those living closest to the port suffer most. I pulled my scarf closer to my mouth, as though the meager movement would keep the Pox where it belonged, over there, away from me and mine. 





My head ached with the clinking of nails hammered into wood and the grunts of strong-backed men in heavy coats hauling barrels on their shoulders. The woody scent of fresh-made lumber, salt, and fish lingered everywhere. I stopped near the port, squinting into the distance, still searching for Father, until I thought my head would burst into a star-like pattern from the effort. With some struggle, I saw a vague outline of men and guessed Father was amongst them…

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Published on July 11, 2019 17:31

June 25, 2019

Down Salem Way is Here!

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All right, friends. The day is finally here! After years of waiting, Down Salem Way, the next installment in James and Elizabeth/Sarah’s story, is now available in ebook and paperback versions from Amazon. The novel will become available through all major online retailers over the next two weeks.





As I said in this post, I’m feeling a little verklempt these days realizing that this version of my journey with James and Elizabeth is done. I’m thrilled that those of you who have been waiting so patiently for the next installment of the Loving Husband series will have a chance to see what life was like for the Wentworths in Salem in 1692. Fans of the Loving Husband Trilogy already have a sense of what to expect from Down Salem Way. You know that James and Elizabeth share a love that will transcend time, and you also know there are joys and sorrows ahead.





Some of you have requested autographed copies of the paperback version of Down Salem Way. Thank you! You can purchase signed copies from the Down Salem Way page. Just scroll down the page for directions.





[image error]Tillie



Things have been interesting around here for the past couple of weeks with my mother’s surgery and the subsequent complications she faced. Then, while my mother had to be hospitalized a second time, my beautiful 14-year-old Tillie became ill suddenly and we lost her a few days later. Fans of the Loving Husband Trilogy know Tillie by name. I named Sarah’s cat after her. Since I began writing the Loving Husband Trilogy 10 years ago I can’t recall writing anything without Tillie sitting on the arm of the chair where I work.





Getting back into the swing of things has been hard, especially since my mother still needs a lot of help, but we go on. There will be tours and promotions for Down Salem Way, but we decided that it would be best to go with a soft launch, which means that promotions, giveaways, and other goodies will occur over several months instead of all at once around the publication date as we originally intended. This allows me time without feeling overwhelmed by all the launch activities we had planned. Sometimes, we have to be flexible since things don’t always work out the way we expect them to, and that’s okay.





Today we celebrate Down Salem Way. My greatest wish is that those of you who have been waiting for this book are as touched by James and Elizabeth’s story as I have been.





So here’s to James and Elizabeth. Happy reading!

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Published on June 25, 2019 09:22

June 20, 2019

Down Salem Way is Five Days Away

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The publication of Down Salem Way is just five days away. I’m in that nostalgic mood that always comes for me at the end of a project, especially a years-long project like this. I’m feeling even more shattered than usual since writing this story has been such an emotional roller coaster.





Writing Down Salem Way has been a true labor of love. As Robert Frost said, “No tears in the writer, no tears in the reader. No surprise in the writer, no surprise in the reader.” Believe me, there have been many tears shed and a lot of surprises felt in the writing of Down Salem Way. I’ve always said that writing fiction and acting have a lot in common. I can’t write about characters’ experiences unless I’m following them right through it. I can’t explain something unless I feel it myself.





It’s always an interesting time for me when we’re categorizing my novels because they don’t fit easily into genres. Are the Loving Husband books paranormal romance? Paranormal fantasy? Historical fantasy? Historical romance? Historical and contemporary romance? Historical contemporary paranormal fantasy romance? Down Salem Way is even harder to categorize. On the one hand, it’s definitely historical fiction since it takes place from 1691-1692. And there are paranormal elements to be sure. Is it a romance? It’s romantic, certainly. But there are pretty strict guidelines about what constitutes a romance, and I’m not sure Down Salem Way meets them. Never fear. The love between James and Elizabeth is always front and center in this story, and it’s the love between the Wentworths that carries us through to Her Dear & Loving Husband.





The truth is, I’m sitting here twiddling my thumbs. It’s almost like I don’t know what to do with myself now that Down Salem Way is done. This story was on my mind for four years, but it was put on the back burner while I went to school for my PhD. Last year, after I finished my degree, this book became my obsession. For the past six months, I have thought of little else. Now I have to find something else to occupy my time. Luckily, I have other writing projects on the horizon. After a much-needed brain break, I will begin something new. And for those of you who are wondering, yes, there will be more Loving Husband books, as well as a new Hembry Castle story.





What am I going to do for the rest of the day? Maybe I’ll catch up on some TV shows I’ve been wanting to watch. Maybe I’ll color in one of my coloring books. Maybe I’ll continue reading some of the books I began but set aside when it became crunch time. Maybe I’ll just stare at the wall. It’s an odd feeling, having nothing to do. But I will be writing again soon enough. When you’re a writer, you have to write. Life is funny that way.

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Published on June 20, 2019 17:45

June 3, 2019

Writing an Epistolary Novel

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As I said in this post, I like to give myself a new challenge with every novel I write. For Down Salem Way, the challenge was writing my first epistolary novel.





If you’re unfamiliar with the term, an epistolary novel is simply a fancy-pants way of describing a novel written as documents such as journals, diaries, letters, newspaper clippings, even emails, blog posts, and post-it notes. I used elements of an epistolary novel in the Loving Husband Trilogy. Sarah documents her dreams in a journal in Her Dear & Loving Husband. James and Sarah learn about the growing problems for vampires through blog posts and newspapers in Her Loving Husband’s Curse. Dracula, which is itself an epistolary novel, was my main inspiration in using documents as a way to show the increased public paranoia over vampires. 





I decided to write Down Salem Way as James’ journal after rereading Marilynne K. Roach’s The Salem Witch Trials: A Day-by-day Chronicle of a Community Under Siege. This was one of the books I read for research when writing Her Dear & Loving Husband, but I felt a reread was necessary for Down Salem Way. Once I decided that Down Salem Way would be James’ journal, I had to learn how to write an entire novel as a series of his private contemplations and experiences.





The first thing I did (which is the first thing I do whenever I’m tackling something new) is find examples from other writers. The Color Purple by Alice Walker is written as letters to God. Dracula is written as diaries, letters, newspaper clippings, and ships’ logs to tell the story of the aristocratic vampire. Bridget Jones’s Diary by Helen Fielding is a great humorous example and one of my all-time favorites. After I read a few epistolary novels (or reread, since I read most of them before), I found a few articles about how to write epistolary novels.





I’m always wary of how-to articles. My intention when I write posts like this is never to say this is how you must write or you will die, which is how a lot of how-to articles come across. Over the years I’ve learned to take the advice that works for me and leave the rest aside.





For example, in some of the how-to articles the authors made declarations about what people absolutely never write in their private journals. People do not write dialogue in their journals, they said. People do not describe other people in their journals. People do not describe places in their journals. Unless you’ve read every private journal ever written, it’s hard to make such declarations. I write conversations in my journal all the time. I describe people, events, places, and pretty much everything else.





Then there’s the problem with showing versus telling in an epistolary novel. Most people have heard the old saying, “Show, don’t tell.” Some argue that there’s no room for showing in an epistolary novel, again, because people don’t write that way in their journals. But if you read primary sources such as historical letters and diaries, you’ll see that people did go into detail about what they did, who they saw, what people looked like, conversations they had, places they visited, etc. In old-timey days, if people wanted to remember something, or if they wanted to share an experience, they couldn’t snap a photo to share on Instagram. They wrote about it in exacting detail.





And then there’s the plot, which can be problematic in a novel written as a diary or journal. I discovered that in an epistolary novel there’s some wiggle room as far as moving the plot forward. Normally, I’d say the plot needs to move at a steady pace—fast enough to keep the readers interested but not so fast that it’s hard to keep track of what’s happening. In an epistolary novel, however, readers expect more interior monologue from the character who writes the letters/journal/diary. You can take a breather and allow the character to share thoughts and opinions in a deeper way when sharing that character’s journal. But events still need to happen. The plot still has to go somewhere or else what is the point of telling us this story? Really, it’s a balance between allowing your character his or her say while helping readers see where the story is taking them.





With Down Salem Way, the plot was taken care of for me since it’s the events of the Salem Witch Trials that move the story toward its inevitable conclusion. This is why Marilynne K. Roach’s day by day summary of events was crucial to the writing of James’ diary. Her work allowed me to see what happened in Salem in 1692 in real time, so to speak, as though I were looking at a calendar. It’s up to James to fill in how and why these events are important to the Wentworths.





One piece of advice I found helpful was this article about writing in deep point of view from Well-Storied. Writing in deep point of view isn’t so different than writing in first person point of view, but it intensifies the experience for both the writer and the reader. In deep pov, you need to limit your character’s knowledge. James only knows what’s in his head, not Lizzie’s. He can take a guess based on her words and actions, but since words and actions aren’t always reliable, he’s still only taking a guess at what she thinks or feels. I liked the article’s suggestion about cutting filter words like “he saw” and “they felt.” This goes along with what I call my “no extra words” rule when I’m fine-tuning my writing. If a word or phrase isn’t essential to reader understanding then it needs to go bye-bye.





Rather than worrying about what James would or would not write in his journal, and rather than worrying about how to move the plot forward, I focused on getting deeply into James’ head. Fortunately, that part was easy for me since I know James pretty well at this point (we have lived through the Loving Husband Trilogy together, after all). Of all the characters in the Loving Husband Trilogy, James has always been the one I identify with most. We’re both bookish scholars who prefer solitary contemplation to the real world. My main goal with James’ journal is to pull readers into the moment with James. If readers feel as though they stand by his side as he experiences the madness of the Salem Witch Trials, then I have done my job.





At a certain point, I had to put the how-to articles aside and figure things out for myself. I discovered that for me writing an epistolary novel is a balancing act—finding the right balance between James’ interior monologue and moving the plot forward, or, in other words, finding the right balance between thoughts/feelings and description/action. Everything comes down to the story. What is the best way to tell this story? Finding the answer to that question is always the challenge, and the reward, of writing fiction.

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Published on June 03, 2019 08:40

May 22, 2019

35 Days Until Publication!

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All right, friends, the galley copy of Down Salem Way has arrived. Here’s the proof:





[image error]The galley copy of Down Salem Way



We’re just 35 days away from publication. Check this space for more information as it becomes available.





Are you excited about reading the next chapter (or really the first chapter) in the Loving Husband series? I can hardly wait to finally share it with all of you!

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Published on May 22, 2019 16:27

May 20, 2019

A New Writing Challenge: Down Salem Way

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Every time I write something new I set myself a challenge to do something I’ve never done before. As an artist, I like pushing myself past my comfort zone. I like experimenting and seeing what works (and what does not). Writing is like other forms of art in that once you think you’ve got it all figured out it’s time to put it away. I don’t want to limit my writing in any way. I want to allow my imagination freedom, and I want to grow as an artist. One way I accomplish that is by setting myself new challenges with everything I write.





With Her Dear & Loving Husband, the challenge was figuring out how to work the past and present storylines together in a way that made sense yet kept readers on their toes as the storylines began to intertwine. I had never written a story with past and present storylines before, and it took some time (and help from a great beta reader) for me to figure out how to take the story I saw in my head and get it down on paper.





The challenge for Her Loving Husband’s Curse was to keep everything readers loved about HDLH while expanding the story into new territory. Her Loving Husband’s Curse was the most heart-rending book I had written to that point, so I had to learn how to write a story that was properly heartbreaking without leaving readers cold. There was also a new historical background, the Trail of Tears, to bring to life. There were similar challenges with Her Loving Husband’s Return in that it had a new historical period—the Japanese-American internments during World War II. Mainly, the challenge for the final book in the trilogy was my intention for readers to be pleasantly surprised with the, well, surprise at the end. I wanted to leave enough clues so readers wouldn’t be blindsided, but I also wanted people to say “Look what James did!”





When It Rained at Hembry Castle brought its own challenges. Hembry, a Victorian sweet romance, was inspired by my love for Downton Abbey as well as my love for Dickens, and the story has a larger cast of characters than I had ever worked with before. Bringing the various storylines from the various characters together into a cohesive narrative was definitely a challenge.





With Down Salem Way the main challenge was that I never intended for this book to exist. I had planned James and Sarah’s story as a trilogy, and when I finished Her Loving Husband’s Return I felt that the story was pretty well wrapped up. Somehow (thank the literary gods), the Loving Husband Trilogy found a devoted audience of readers, and many of you sent emails, left messages on this blog, and contacted me through social media (keep the messages coming—I love them!) asking, pretty please, if there would be any more James and Sarah books. For awhile, maybe as much as a year, I said no, the story is wrapped up, that’s all folks. Then I realized that maybe there was more to say about James and Sarah, so I started writing Down Salem Way in 2015.





When I first started thinking about Down Salem Way, I imagined it as part prequel, as in it would take place partially during the Salem Witch Trials, and it would be part sequel, taking place after Her Loving Husband’s Return ends. I don’t want to say too much about that storyline because I’m going to turn it into another Loving Husband story (yes, readers, there will be more Loving Husband stories after Down Salem Way). I wrote a first draft of the prequel/sequel. I wrote a second draft. After wrestling with the second draft a bit I realized that the story, in that format, wasn’t working for me. I put Down Salem Way away, knowing that I needed to rethink what I was doing. I’ve talked before about how sometimes we need to set our writing aside so that we can look at it with fresh eyes.





Like many of you, I’ve been enjoying the Outlander series, both books and TV show. I discovered both in 2014 after the TV show premiered. I guess I had been living under a rock because I wasn’t familiar with the Outlander phenomenon until after I started seeing publicity for the TV show. After I put DSW away for a rethink, I went onto Amazon to buy the next book in the Outlander series (I think I was reading Drums of Autumn at that time) and I noticed the novellas. I bought Virgins and I loved it. As a writer, I loved the concept behind it—seeing an aspect of Jamie’s life before he met Claire that had been touched on in the books but not described in great detail. And then I thought—you can do that? You can go back and add more about something that had only been briefly touched on in the book? And that was my lightbulb moment.





Even when I was writing Her Dear & Loving Husband I knew I wasn’t delving into the Salem Witch Trials in as much depth as I would have liked, but there wasn’t room for it in that story. Her Dear & Loving Husband is about how James and Sarah find their way back to each other. The novel is not a treatise on the Salem Witch Trials. Her Dear & Loving Husband is a love story, and the history serves as the means through which James and Sarah find their way home. After reading Virgins, I thought, well, why not go back and visit James and Elizabeth in the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1692? Why not look at the life that James and Elizabeth had before the madness of the witch hunts? And why not examine how the madness affected them?





In Down Salem Way we watch a wealthy merchant’s son and a poor farmer’s daughter fall into such a passionate love that it transcends time. Loving Husband Trilogy fans know what I’m talking about. DSW is strictly an historical novel—it takes place in 1692—so there’s no jumping back and forth between the past and the present as in the other Loving Husband books. It’s also told entirely in first person point of view—James’ POV, in fact. The other Loving Husband stories were written primarily in third person POV, with flashes of first person from either James or Elizabeth, but James is the right person to tell the story of Down Salem Way. The novel is his diary, after all. John, James’ beloved father, plays an important role in Down Salem Way. Geoffrey and Miriam also make appearances. While Down Salem Way has the main element fans love about the Loving Husband stories (namely, the love story between James and Elizabeth/Sarah), it is also its own being. I was asked recently if Down Salem Way is a stand-alone book, and my answer is yes, I think it is. I think it adds some depth to James and Elizabeth’s story if readers have read the Loving Husband Trilogy, but I don’t think it’s necessary for understanding.





I had never written an epistolary novel before (simply put, an epistolary novel is a novel written as letters, a diary, or a journal), so that became my main challenge in bringing James and Elizabeth’s story to life. Writing out James’ journal has been my greatest joy in writing Down Salem Way. I’ll have more to say about writing an epistolary novel in a later post. For now, I’ll say that writing an epistolary novel is indeed a challenge, but it’s one I’m glad I took on.

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Published on May 20, 2019 11:17

May 13, 2019

Hygge For Writers and Other People

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While I like social media, I love Pinterest. Pinterest is not considered social media since you’re not actually being social. I call Pinterest selfish social media. You see something you like and you keep it. If you want people to see what you’ve kept, you can, but if you don’t you can keep your boards private. Pinterest has become my go-to source for ideas for recipes, writing inspiration, quotes, art journaling, and gardening. I am right now trying to grow my own avocado tree based on a pin I saw on Pinterest.





These days I get most of my book recommendations from Pinterest. I love to share books that I’m reading or books that have caught my eye for one reason or other. My historical fiction board is one of my most followed boards and I love getting ideas from other pinners.





I’ve been seeing a lot of pins about hygge (pronounced hue-guh or hoo-gah—I’ve seen it both ways) and I became curious about what this happiness concept was all about. I read articles like this one from Country Living and this one from The New Yorker. Finally, I went direct to the source, the book The Little Book of Hygge: Danish Secrets to Happy Living by happiness researcher Miek Wiking. Sounds like a cool gig, really, researching happiness.





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Wiking’s book isn’t groundbreaking in the sense that it presents new ideas. The book’s power comes from the way it simplifies an age-old concept—doing things that bring us comfort may make us happier. Hygge won’t pay the bills. It won’t eliminate illness or stress or traffic or deadlines. But by participating in activities that promote hygge, a feeling of comfort or well-being, we can, for that moment at least, find some much-needed joy in our lives. The Danes embrace the concept of hygge wholeheartedly, which may be why they are often at the top of lists that name the happiest people in the world.





The easiest way to understand hygge is to think of comfort. Reading a good book while sipping a hot cup of coffee, tea, or cocoa while we are covered by a soft blanket is hygge. Soft, fluffy socks are hygge. Sitting near the open window listening to the rain is hygge. Eating cake is hygge (yeah, man, hygge gets me!). Lighting candles is hygge. Walking in nature is hygge. Wiking talks about how hygge brings people together in a positive way. You don’t need to spend a lot of money, or really any money, to experience hygge. Sitting outside on your patio enjoying the sunset is hygge and doesn’t cost a thing. Wiking’s book reminds me that focusing on comforting things can have a healing effect.





Instead of having the fluorescent overhead kitchen light glaring in my face, I light candles and turn on my fake fireplace. I live in an apartment, so I have a plug-in fireplace. The flames are still pretty but I don’t have to worry about my flat buring down around me. I love coffee, and hot drinks are high on the list of hygge-things. I love tea too. I love reading good books. I love listening to music (my Pandora app has a lot of yoga and classical stations, as well as Paul McCartney and The Beatles. Paul McCartney is comfort listening for me). I love putting on my comfy jammies and my fluffy socks and covering myself with a soft blanket while I read. I love using my slow cooker to make healthy, delicious meals.





And don’t forget the cake! I’m into health and wellness, like a lot of you are, but I appreciate that Wiking says it’s okay to eat cake and pastries when the mood strikes us. If you want cake, eat cake! Not the whole cake, but enough to satisfy the craving. We have to indulge ourselves now and again. Life is too short to live like toddlers in the time-out corner because we were naughty for wanting to indulge our sweet tooth. And it’s too short to live like a baker version of the Soup Nazi from Seinfeld—“No cake for you!” Yes, cake for you. And cake for you too.





I was doing a lot of what Wiking talks about anyway—reading, lighting candles, cooking good food, drinking coffee, and eating cake. But Wiking reminds me to do these things with consciousness; in other words, I need to be in the moment with what I’m doing and why I’m doing it. I’m wearing my fluffy socks because they bring me comfort. I’m writing because it brings me joy.





Writing can be hygge for me, especially when it’s going well. I love writing. I love telling stories, both fiction and nonfiction, and when I’m writing I feel most at home in the world. On the other hand, preparing a manuscript for final edits, stressing over deadlines, settling on a publicity schedule–none of that is particularly comforting, but still, it must be done. I have to make a deliberate effort to make writing time more hygge friendly.





The usual hygge activities apply to writing as well as other parts of life. I light candles and turn on my electric fireplace. I listen to music. I turn down the main lights, and I put soft-glow bulbs into the lamps near my writing nook so there’s no glare. I use the blue-light filter on my computer screen even during the day. Sometimes I’ll handwrite ideas or passages instead of typing them. In this post I talked about how I use notebooks now instead of typing everything into a computer file.





As I write this I have Mozart playing on Pandora, a lit candle on my desk, my electric fireplace going (without the heater since it’s 85 degrees Fahrenheit in Vegas), and my blinds are open so I can see the greenery and the hummingbirds poking their delicate beaks into the sugar water I leave for them. One cat is nearby taking a bath and the other cat is staring out the window. So even while I’m working I’m still creating an environment that, while it isn’t always stress-free, it’s still pleasant. And then when I’m done with my work it doesn’t take much for me to find the comfort that hygge promises.





For me, hygge is about doing things that bring me comfort for no other reason than they bring me comfort. That is an important lesson for writers and other people.

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Published on May 13, 2019 10:10

May 6, 2019

Finding My Writing Flow

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It took me some time to get back into writing after finishing my PhD. I busted several synapses (actually, most of my synapses) finishing my dissertation. Then I worried that I used up every ounce of creativity I had, which of course is silly. As Maya Angelou said, “You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.” Other life stresses got in the way, as well, and before I knew it an entire year passed and I thought I had little to show for it.





After some nudging, I remembered to be kind to myself. In fact, I did get some important work done. We created brand spanking new editions of all three books of the Loving Husband Trilogy. And after four years, Down Salem Way is nearing final edits and it will be published this summer. So, yeah, I did okay.





Here’s some of what I learned about finding my writing flow (as opposed to daydreaming about writing). These are my lessons. Your lessons are your own to discover.





I Have a No-Routine
Routine





This isn’t really a lesson, but that’s part of what we must become comfortable with when we choose to live a creative life. We can look at examples from others we admire, but in the end, we need to decide what works for us. We can read lists about the routines of famous writers like this one from Medium.com and this one from Brain Pickings. I love to see how these crazy-talented humans crafted routines that allowed them to create brilliant works of art. 





Of course, my favorite is from my main man, Charles Dickens. Here’s what Medium.com said about Dickens’ unvaried writing routine:





Dickens’s working hours were invariable. His eldest son
recalled that “no city clerk was ever more methodical or orderly than he; no
humdrum, monotonous, conventional task could ever have been discharged with
more punctuality or with more business-like regularity, than he gave to the
work of his imagination and fancy.”





He rose at 7:00, had breakfast at 8:00, and was in his
study by 9:00. He stayed there until 2:00, taking a brief break for lunch with
his family, during which he often seemed to be in a trance, eating mechanically
and barely speaking a word before hurrying back to his desk.





On an ordinary day he could complete about two thousand
words in this way, but during a flight of imagination he sometimes managed
twice that amount. Other days, however, he would hardly write anything;
nevertheless, he stuck to his work hours without fail, doodling and staring out
the window to pass the time.





Promptly at 2:00, Dickens left his desk for a vigorous
three-hour walk through the countryside or the streets of London, continuing to
think of his story and, as he described it, “searching for some pictures I
wanted to build upon.” Returning home, his brother-in-law remembered, “he
looked the personification of energy, which seemed to ooze from every pore as
from some hidden reservoir.” Dickens’s nights, however, were relaxed: he dined
at 6:00, then spent the evening with family or friends before retiring at
midnight.





Just so you know, I’m not walking for three hours through the dusty, desert streets of Las Vegas, especially not in the 110-degree summertime heat. I had to find my own way of creating. 





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Unlike Dickens, I don’t like doing the same thing at the same time each day. Some days I get to work early. Some days I like to try out new coffee shops. Some days I head down to the Strip (this is Vegas, baby). I get to work when I get to work, and that works for me. Anne Lamott says we should write at the same time every day because it tricks our brains into kicking into gear. Maya Angelou said something similar. Bully for them. And bully for you too if such a routine works for you (remember, this is about what works for you, not anyone else).





I mean, I really dislike routines. I have an inherent recalcitrance which means that I can’t be told what to do, even if I’m the one telling myself to do it. I had that problem a number of times this year. Someone would say to me “Do this” and my response was generally, “Yeah, that’s not gonna happen.” So I don’t do well with hours blocked out on a Google Calendar saying what time I’m supposed to work on my essay, what time I’m supposed to feed the cats, what time I’m supposed to edit a chapter. There were times when I’d create the events on the calendar and then never look at the events since I didn’t care what the calendar said. I’ll feed the cats when I damn well feel like feeding the cats. So there Google Calendar!





Instead of plotting out my hours, I give myself one or two tasks per day. That’s it. When I get my tasks done, life is good. Two tasks a day might not sound like much to the Productivity Gurus, but I’ve seen a lot of blog posts wondering if we’re actually using our time to our best advantage, which to me suggests a backlash against all the productivity rules shoved up our hoo-haas for a few years now. We need to get our work done, of course we do, but we also need to live our lives, spend quality time with our families, read good books, watch the sunset, or even stare at the wall if that’s what we need to do to recharge. We are not hardwired to work constantly, every day, all day. We are not created to have every last minute of our days scheduled (unless you’re Charles Dickens, in which case, keep doing what you’re doing).





Today my two tasks were first, to edit three chapters of Down Salem Way. This is my last run through before the manuscript goes off for final edits so I’m in the fiddly stage where I add and subtract the same comma for an hour. Since I know this stage of editing is a task that takes a long time, my only other task for the day was to write this blog post. I accomplished what I wished and though you can’t see me I’m doing a happy dance. It’s a Grandad happy dance, but still, it’s a happy dance. It’s nearly 8 pm as I’m writing this, but I tend to have my better ideas later in the afternoon and early evening so it’s all good. All is well with my soul and now I have time to read, color in my new paisley design coloring book, brush the cats, and watch the white-pink-gold desert sunsets we’re lucky enough to have here in Vegas (the sun is still setting at 8 pm during these longer days, a cool thing indeed).





I Use Notebooks





I mean real notebooks, the real kind with real paper that you write in with real pens. In Writing Down the Bones, Natalie Goldberg talks about getting goofy notebooks with cartoon characters and funny pictures on the covers. Her rationale is it’s harder to take yourself seriously when you’re writing in a Peanuts notebook. I’ve always loved that idea. Writing Down the Bones was originally published in the 1970s, long before technology invaded every aspect of our lives; for me, Goldberg’s message resonates even more strongly today.





I gave up pen and paper for a few years. I’m a hippie tree hugger and I wanted to go entirely digital, thinking that journals and notebooks took up too much space (and trees) and the world is digital now so let’s do that instead.





Recently, I realized that my thoughts were getting lost. I was losing ideas (currency for an artist) and my concepts weren’t fitting together. I had a sense of what I wanted to accomplish, but the Google calendar didn’t work for me and I had too many cluttered files on my computer. But I had to keep track of my tasks. What did I want to add to social media this week? What was the research question for my article on storytelling as pedagogy? What is the publicity schedule for Down Salem Way? What interviews do I still need to respond to? A lot was getting lost, but it still needed to get done.





A few weeks ago I found some notebooks in a desk drawer (they were given to me as gifts). Finally, I started using them and it’s like a whole new world opened up. I think my problem with notebooks (perfectionists understand exactly what I’m talking about) is I’m afraid of making mistakes and having to cross out things and leaving ugly scratches whereas in a digital file I can delete the mistakes without ever having to look at them again. But maybe that’s a lesson I have to learn—it’s okay to cross things out when I need to. I have one notebook for fiction and nonfiction writing ideas, one notebook that acts as a to-do list which is where I write in my daily tasks, and one notebook that acts as a journal. In my to-do journal, I don’t add my daily tasks until the night before after I finish working so I can see what I’ve accomplished and what still needs doing.





Also, the academic in me wants you to know that there is a lot of research out there that argues that writing things down the old-fashioned way with pen and paper helps us learn better, remember more, and all that sort of good stuff. By the way, I’m still a hippie tree hugger. I buy notebooks made with recycled paper, and I recycle old notebooks I no longer need.





I’ve seen ideas for bullet journals on Pinterest and I’d love to try one. I think I’ll have some of the same anxieties with the bullet journal—the bullet journals on Pinterest are created by professional artists and I’m afraid I’d be too worried about what the journal looks like rather than the usefulness of the journal itself. One of these days I shall try it.





Finally…





I Now Have a Plan





I’ve been carrying writing ideas around in my head for a year now. Novels I want to write. I know the next Hembry story as well as the next Loving Husband story. Nonfiction books I want to write. I’ve had thoughts about how we teach writing since I began my PhD. Scholarly articles I want to write about what role creativity and storytelling might play in our day to day lives. But having the ideas floating around in my head is not the same as making a plan to actually get those ideas written into novels and articles.





Perhaps this contradicts what I said earlier about not having a routine, but not really. I’m not talking about scheduling tasks into neat little hour blocks. What I mean is I’m looking at the ideas for my next writing projects (written in my handy-dandy notebook, of course). Then I’m deciding what I want to write next, and then I schedule one or two tasks a day that allow me to reach that goal.





Oddly enough, I’ve become more productive by doing less. By having one or two specific tasks to accomplish each day, I can look back on my day (while brushing the cats and watching the sunset) and know I’m making progress. My work is getting done, and, for a creative person, that is the most important thing.

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Published on May 06, 2019 08:57

April 19, 2019

Down Salem Way Preorders are Here

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The day we’ve all been waiting for is here! In honor of James’ 357th birthday, the ebook edition of Down Salem Way is available for preorder from Amazon. Click on the image above to go to Amazon’s Down Salem Way page. The official publication date is Tuesday, June 25, 2019.





Some of you have been asking about paperback preorders. The paperback order date will be closer to the official publication date. June 1, 2019 is the day paperbacks will become available.





Also, some of you have asked whether there will be signed copies of the paperback available. But of course for my fans (who are the best in the world)! Signed copies will be available on this website after the 6/25/19 release date. There will be an order link then.





Thanks for your questions. Keep them coming!

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Published on April 19, 2019 07:12

April 15, 2019

What I’m Reading

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My reading has been eclectic lately (as it always is, actually). I’ve completed my research for Down Salem Way with two of these books, though I will always have a fascination with witch hunts and witch trials.





The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare





I loved this book when I was a teenager and I still love it. Though Speare only wrote three books for young adults, each of the three are classics. More than any other book I read for research, The Witch of Blackbird Pond pulled me into life in 17th century Puritan Connecticut. One of the things I had been struggling with was finding what day to day life in Puritan New England looked like. The Witch of Blackbird Pond helped me discover that daily life in detail. Also, the main character, Kit Tyler, grows a lot during this story, as strong protagonists do. I related to her as a teenager, and in fact, I still do. This is a great book for readers with an interest in 17th century New England life.





Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl





This was another favorite book from my younger years that I’ve recently reread. I had forgotten how powerful this book is. My main reason for rereading it was because Down Salem Way is an epistolary novel written as James’ journal. I wanted to read someone’s real-life diary (besides my own). I read articles about how to write an epistolary novel, you know the ones: Do this! Don’t do that! Don’t even think about that! Mainly, I had been reading that there are things that we should never include in epistolary novels because people don’t actually write those things in their diaries. I’m pleased to say that Anne’s diary proved all that advice wrong. Her diary is beautifully written with attention to detail and deep thought. Beyond using it to help me create James’ journal, it reminded me how precious life is and how we should never take anything for granted.





The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom





This is not my usual type of reading, but it just goes to show that sometimes we need to push ourselves past our comfort zones. Corrie Ten Boom was a Christian missionary who, along with her father and sister, helped to hide Jewish people in Holland during World War II. The Ten Booms are discovered, and Corrie and her sister suffer the same fate as many Jewish people–they are sent to a concentration camp. The courage shown by the Ten Booms is amazing. It’s also sobering to realize that Anne Frank was in hiding during the same time the Ten Booms were hiding others. Though it covers a dark time in history, it is an uplifting book in its own way.





A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle





I’ve been on a young adult literature kick lately, but that’s okay. Some of the greatest books ever written were meant for young adults. I love that quote from Madeleine L’Engle: “You have to write the book that wants to be written. And if the book will be too difficult for grown-ups, then you write it for children.” I believe that is true. I recently saw A Wrinkle in Time on a bookshelf, picked it up, and I’m glad I did. A Wrinkle in Time is one of my all-time favorites, and I still enjoy it whenever I read it. It’s a sci-fi adventure, a story about family and friendship, and just plain fun. I recommend it for kids of all ages.





It’s strange, realizing that I’m done researching the Salem Witch Trials. But now I can study different areas of history that are equally interesting to me. That’s why I love writing historical fiction–it allows me to learn and grow. What’s next? A novel set during the pioneer days. I’m looking forward to the research.

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Published on April 15, 2019 11:12