Susan May Warren's Blog, page 29

New Books Coming Your Way!

Just thought I’d give you a quick update about some new books coming your way! First up?

When I Fall in Love: A fun story about a wanna-be Iron Chef who goes to Hawaii and gets involved in a cooking contest! She’s paired with an unlikely chef, hockey star Maxwell Sharpe, and discovers that they can create something delicious—in the kitchen, and out. But when she discovers a terrible secret about him, she’ll have to choose between her happily after ever and the only man she’ll ever love. It’s out in July 2014.

Evergreen: I just finished a novella for next Christmas, and it’s about John and Ingrid Christiansen who are in the empty-nest years of their lives . . . until they get an unexpected Christmas gift. Suddenly, they discover old wounds and fears resurfacing—the kind that could destroy their marriage. How do they keep their love Evergreen in the winter of their lives?

I loved this story because it resembled something that happened to my husband and me . . . and I loved sharing the truth that we discovered in it. I am very much like Ingrid Christiansen. Evergreen is out in September 2014.

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Wedding Fun!

This morning I sat outside, listening to the birds, nursing a cup of coffee, thinking through all the amazing moments of last weekend’s wedding. Thank you to all who worked so hard to create a beautiful day for Sarah May and hubby Neil Erredge! Here are some snaps from the celebrations:

 

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Behind the Scenes of ‘Reclaiming Nick’

In honor of Throwback Thursday tomorrow, I thought it’d be fun to take a trip back in time to . . . Reclaiming Nick! I grew up attending rodeos, and WANTING to ride horses, but I had to do quite a bit of research for this story. I did read a lot of westerns and modern day, non-fiction books about ranching to prepare my voice for this book, as well as to create the ranching world.

I actually went out west and stayed on a ranch for a week, getting my hands dirty and asking lots and lots of stupid questions. But I loved it, and the beauty of the Montana land is etched in my mind.

Here’s a bit about the characters in Reclaiming Nick:

Nick – I love his inner protector, the fact that he so wants to keep Piper out of trouble and help her, and yet not let her into his life. He’s passionate, and longs to be a good man, and I love the fact he can stay one step ahead of Piper and her craziness.

Piper – I love her guts. She isn’t afraid to tackle something unknown, and to go out on a limb for what she believes in.

Maggy – she is a woman who faithfully works the land and the life God has given her. She is a noble woman in every sense of the word.

Cole – He’s my quiet hero who picks up the pieces, who is dependable, who loves his family so much he’d sacrifice himself for them. He’s the kind of guy every woman wants to have standing behind her.

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‘It Had to be You’ ebook FREE today!

For a limited time only, get It Had to Be You for FREE! You can download it via BookBub, Amazon, ChristianBook.com, or Barnes & Noble. Enjoy!

4 Things to Do to Prepare for the ACFW Conference

The ACFW conference is a little more than four months away and I can’t wait! Even now, I’m gearing up to hang out with my favorite peeps, fellow authors, and the My Book Therapy community (The Voices.) And, just like you, I’m training for the day when I see editors and agents and pitch them my newest idea. I want to be on my game, to know my genre, my competition, my story and most of all, I want to leave them with a good impression.

Here’s my four recommendations on how to prep for the ACFW Conference (or any upcoming writing conference).

1. Familiarize yourself with the current releases of the editors you will talk to.

Don’t waste an editor’s time (or yours) buy pitching a book in a genre they don’t publish. Look at the newest releases from that house and read the ones in your genre. This also help you keep current with literary trends and publishers preferences. More than that, you’ll also learn their preferences in voice and subject matter. I sold my first book by reading everything published by Tyndale in contemporary romance. I dissected the stories, found the commonalities, the preferences, even the different voices. Then I a crafted a story I felt they would want to put their name on. Read up on your publisher and walk into the game prepared.

2. Read the submission requirements and genre preferences of the agents you will talk to.

When you approach an agent, know the kind of books they represent. Agents will clearly state on their website what they prefer, and frankly, it behooves you to know a few of the authors they represent. It will give you insight as to how you might fit into their repertoire of authors. If they have a blog, read it. Plan to attend their class, or a panel. Prep yourself on the people whom you will be asking to partner with you in this business.

3. Read the Carol award finalists for your genre.

I am shocked by the number of novelists who don’t read in their genre, and frankly, who don’t read inspirational fiction. You can’t write in a genre you don’t read, and you can’t sell in a market you don’t understand or even respect. Know the market you are writing for and learn from your peers. Only then will you know how to stay in the game.

4. Prepare business cards, your one sheet and your pitch.

The key to pitching is to know your story so well you can talk about it easily. However, getting to this place takes practice and an understanding of the dramatic irony and selling points of your story. You can read about the essentials at My Book Therapy. The most important product you have is your ability to think on your feet and be prepared with an answer. Take the time to warm up for that moment.

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Painting the Blues Away

Okay, we really didn’t have any blues. I was looking back through some of my old posts and photos and found this from back in 2008. Rachel and I sat there for four hours and painted away! Now I understand why people take up painting as a hobby. And all I did was paint this little mug. What a fun day. So I’m curious: What do you all do for hobbies? Anyone have a particularly interesting hobby? 

What's your favorite hobby? Share with @SusanMayWarren!
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Creating Story World

Why, why, why is JK Rowling’s Harry Potter series so popular? What is it about her stories that capture us so, that make us—and roughly 500 million other readers—stand in line for days to get their hands on the latest 800-page offering?

Aside from the depth of characterization, the twisting, detailed plot, the epic good versus evil theme, I think there is one thing that makes Rowling’s books (and other classics, such as Tolkien and C.S. Lewis) riveting and a story we can lose ourselves in for hours or days.

It’s . . . story world.

What do I mean?

It’s that world the reader enters into in the book. EVERY BOOK HAS A STORY WORLD. Whether it’s a fantasy book, a contemporary romance, a historical suspense. Every book must have a backdrop against which the readers engage in the story.

It’s more than time period. It’s more than scenery. How do we create story world that envelopes our readers?

My current Craft book is one I’ve read over and over: Writing the Breakout Novel by Donald Maass. Maass says story world is “capturing not only place but environment, and the people interacting in that environment.”

Environment: It’s not just architecture or period fashion. It’s attitudes and cultural norms of the time. Colloquial speech and the spiritual mood. And not just in a broad sweep but in the finite details, as well.

Along with excellent ideas to creating story world, Maass suggests one in particular that resonated with me: details. “A setting can not live unless it is observed in it pieces and particulars.” In short, it’s in the five senses, the small things, that a person sees a scene.

That’s why, when we walk into a classroom at Hogwarts, Rowling takes the time to list the details of the room, including the obscure (and hilarious) names of the books on the shelves, or the headlines in the current issue of The Daily Prophet. She’s creating story world.

Try it! Find two or three rich details using the five senses to put into your scene today and see if it doesn’t make your scene deeper, your story world more compelling.

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I had tea with the KGB (and have a book to show for it!)

 

Valentina met us at the door with a bit of a stern look, as if we were late. Andrew seemed oblivious as he pulled off the kids’ valenki (Russian boots).

Valentina stood aside and held out her hand, ushering me in. Stout, with a wizened face and sharp eyes, she eyed me up and down, barely a hint of smile on her face. A severe bun tucked back her long gray hair, dyed cranberry on the ends, and she hustled about the kitchen with a no-nonsense aura about her that would have made my grandmother proud. She wore a shapeless gray polyester dress over her barrel body with an antique topaz pin fastened to her collar and she looked every inch like the matrons I’d seen in old Communist Party pictures.

In fact, she was a former KGB Colonel.

Of course Andrew didn’t tell me her lifelong profession until after we’d sat down to tea with pickles – which had been soaked in vodka – boiled potatoes, tomatoes and brown bread. She even sliced up some cheese and sausage – a lavish spread for a pensioner.

She told me she’d been a translator. I wanted to make conversation, so I asked her what kind of things she translated. She hesitated, and we fell into a pregnant pause…then, “Let’s not talk about it.”

At that moment Andrew realized that I had no idea who I was talking to. I was drinking tea with someone who ten years ago would have had me under bright lights for asking such a question.

“What did you expect her to say?” he teased me later, “that she had translated the wire taps in President Kennedy’s office?” Oops.

But the realization that we were in the home of a former KGB Colonel made drinking tea with her like old friends and talking openly about who we were and why we were in Russia, that much more profound. She asked why we had come to Russia and I told her plainly, “To tell the Russians that God loves them.” Amazingly, she looked interested.

My children sang a song for her, recited a poem and David told her about Christmas. As we were leaving, she pulled me aside and asked where and when we were having Bible studies. She said she wanted to send her granddaughter, but I wondered if she wanted to send herself.

Valentina invited us back. This was only significant in that, to her, this was a complete embracing of the enemy. She told me that although she could speak fluent English she was never allowed contact with foreigners. Ten years into Perestroika, we were the first. I expected her to be wary. Instead, she welcomed us like we might be friends.

My friendship with Valentina taught me much about God, and His grace. Some might think that Valentina doesn’t “deserve” heaven. She has spent her lifetime denying its existence. But God doesn’t operate that way.

Valentina an inescapable reminder that salvation does not come to the worthy, but to the unworthy. If the Lord can change the heart of a woman like Valentina, a modern-day Saul, then there is hope for anyone – including me, that God will not stop His flow of grace into my life and that He will soften all my calloused places, if I will only let Him.

All we have to do, to receive grace, is to step out in faith and accept it. No games. No deception. No hidden cost. Just life.

Just freedom.

 

*******

I’m so excited to announce the re-release of Nadia, one of my favorite books in this series.

This second title in the Heirs of Anton series takes place in 1970, when former CIA spy Nadia “Hope” Moore must sneak behind the Iron Curtain, spring her estranged husband from a Russian gulag, and prove to the CIA that Mickey Moore isn’t a traitor-at least, not to his country. Mickey has secrets that will save American lives, but a double agent isn’t about to let the spy duo escape, even when her well-placed father attempts to help. Will Nadia be able to resurrect a love she thought had died? God is her sole ally, and only He can give her the wisdom to save her husband, her father. . .and her country.

When I wrote this book, I had just finished 10 years of living in Russia as a missionary. It’s one of my first books…so hopefully I’ve grown as an author since then. Still, I love the story and I hope you do too.

Nadia landed the honor of being a 2005 Carol Award finalist, and RT Reviews had this to say: “This second in the series thrusts the reader along a fast track of adventure with all the elements of vintage romance.”

You can find it here!

And, if you missed book 1: Get Ekaterina!

Creating Living, Breathing Characters

There you are, you’ve got a blank computer screen, and the smallest tickle of an idea, something you’ve read, or seen, some question you think might be interesting tackled in a book. But where do you go from there? How do you turn a blip of an idea into a full novel, one that will resonate with readers?

Regardless of the genre — suspense, romance, historical, or chick lit — stories can touch our lives, even change us. And, while plot lines are important…it is characters that drive stories. When we think of The Hunt for Red October, we think of Jack Ryan. When we think of The Fugitive, we think of Dr. Richard Kimball. Characters drive the plot. So, how do we create characters that live and breathe and drive a story into our hearts?

Throw away the list!

When I began writing, I did what seemed logical – I filled out character lists. Answered hundreds of questions. But my characters still felt flat, and more than that, their actions, dialogue and conflict didn’t seem to connect. At the time, I was home schooling, and as I looked at developing my children’s self-esteem, it hit me. People reveal themselves from the inside out, based on how they see themselves, or want others to see them. And discovering how a character defines himself is the key to making them come alive.

Who am I?

I have an identity – as a wife, a mother, an author, and by those three words, I’ve given you a glimpse into who I am, based on your understanding of what those words mean to you. Everyone has an identity, a way they describe themselves. Knowing how our character defines him or herself will help us understand his/her motivations and values. And knowing those will help us figure out what their greatest fear and dreams are, and help us craft internal and external conflict.

Let’s take the characters I mentioned above:

Jack Ryan — a CIA analyst, rising in the ranks who hasn’t had much field action. He’s a family man who wants to keep the world safe. His greatest fear in this movie is misinterpreting the actions of a Russian sub that has gone AWOL and accidentally igniting WW3. His greatest dream is to be right…and gain access to this sub. His motivation is his family…keeping them safe.

Dr. Richard Kimball — in the Fugitive. He’s a doctor who has been wrongly accused of murdering his wife. His greatest fear is never having her murder solved. His greatest dream for the purpose of this movie, is apprehending her killers. His motivation is his love for his wife, and his freedom.

Knowing a person’s identity makes their actions believable. So, how do we discover our characters?

First, as you create a character, ask how he defines himself. For example, I’ll create Joe, who calls himself a drifter. Why does he call himself that? Because he has been on his own for year. Why? Because he left home as a teen. Why? Because it hurt too much to stay there. Why? Because his father left them after his little brother was born with Down Syndrome. Why? Because he’d been close to his father and his heart was broken.

See the pattern? Start with an identity and start asking WHY. The key is to keep asking until you get to the underlying motivations behind your character’s identity. Once you’re there, it’s not too hard to discover the three things that will give your character resonance:

Your character’s values
Your character’s greatest fears
Your character’s greatest dream

Values drive actions.

We do things because we believe in them. For example, if my character has a broken past, maybe he values trust and family. And maybe he’ll do anything to protect the ones he loves – i.e., his brother and mother. But maybe he also values his privacy? One way to create internal conflict in a story is to pit a character’s values against each other. What if this character has to sacrifice his privacy to earn someone’s trust? Or sacrifice his family to keep his privacy?

A person’s values also lead to mannerisms and ancillary information. For example, my character might carry a picture of his family in his glove compartment.

Make them suffer.

While you’re asking your character the whys, also ask him about his greatest fear, and greatest dream. Because, your goal is to make him suffer. For example, if my hero loves family, maybe his greatest fear would be to lose the family he has left. And maybe his greatest dream is having a family of his own? By asking these questions, you’ll then learn how to torment them. (And authors are all about the torment, aren’t we?).

What about the extras?

Oh, you mean the kind of car he drives? The clothes he wears? Your character’s identity, motivations and values will make them reveal the “list” questions. My character might drive an old pickup . . . maybe unconsciously the same kind his dad did. Or maybe he’d drive something completely opposite. Maybe his hobby is fishing . . . reminiscent of the old trips with his father. Once you know your character’s identity, he’ll fill in the gaps. Your job is to listen.

Creating a character doesn’t have to be about mining your brain for interesting quirks. Simply sit down with your hero/heroine and have a little chat. (Preferably in a room with a closed door where no one can hear you.) Hopefully you’ll discover a character who leaps from the page and into your reader’s hearts.

Learn to create living, breathing characters with @SusanMayWarren's help!
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Throwback Thursday — Get the Russia Book that Started it All (for FREE!)!

It all started in Siberia . . . with a birthday greeting . . . from published author Susan K. Downs.

We all dream of that moment when someone “discovers” us and partners with our dreams.

Happy Birthday, Susie May. Would you like to write a book with me?

Published author Susan K. Downs knew me from a small fiction email loop we both participated in, but the day she wrote those words changed my life. She’d read my infrequent short-story postings on the loop and knew I lived in Russia. More, she’d worked as an adoption coordinator in Russia for years.

I worked in a hospital for kids going to America to be adopted.

Would you like to write a book with me?

I had already written three books, knew the basics of novel writing, but they had yet to be published.

Yes. I wrote back. What about?

We threw a plot back and forth, and I dove in, writing the third book first: Marina. Meanwhile, she had other contracts to fulfill, so when I finished Marina, I asked her if I could write the first book, Ekaterina.

We would send chapters back and forth—I’d write the rough draft, she’d polish it. We began to call ourselves Spit and Polish. (I’m Spit.) We wanted to write a family generational saga about a woman who had been adopted out of Russia, searching for her ancestry. And we added a twist: The story started in the present, asking the question, then wove through each book to find the answer in the past.

Much like how someone might discover their generational history.

I finished Ekaterina, and by this time, we discovered we loved our method so much, we continued it for books two (Nadia) and four (Oksana). But the magic happened when I arrived stateside for furlough and met Susan. We pitched the books together. We sold them. And we’ve been dear friends ever since.

Susan now works as an editor for Guideposts, mentoring and believing in more young authors. Changing their lives.

The books, Ekaterina, Nadia, Marina, and Oksana, came out in 2003–2005. They won awards, hit the best-seller list, and launched my writing career. Although they went out of print recently, I was able to acquire the rights, recover them, and I’m excited to announce that they will launch again, on Kindle, this month.

Do you like stories of intrigue from the past, with romantic heroes, set in foreign lands? I invite you to take Ekaterina’s journey with me again.

GET it NOW for FREE!

Get the book that launched @SusanMayWarren's #writing career for #free!
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About the Book:

Upon receiving an unusual package in the mail, Ekaterina “Kat” Moore boards a plane to Russia, her ancestral home, to seek some answers. What she finds leads her on a perilous journey through time as Kat must flee the Russian underground. To further complicate matters, she finds herself falling in love with FSB Captain Vadeem Spasonov, a man trying to forget the nightmares of his own past. When Kat’s secrets lead to the answers Vadeem needs, the treasures they find unleash an avalanche of God’s design.

Read the First Chapter!

Awards

2004 Runner-up American Christian Fiction Writers Book of the Year (now the ACFW Carol award)

What people are saying:

“Susan K. Downs & Susan May Warren tell a vivacious tale full of romantic suspense in this first of the Heirs of Anton series.” —Romantic Times Magazine

“Warren and Downs team up to create a masterful story of intrigue. I was hooked from the very first scene and couldn’t put it down until the end. This is a must read if you enjoy a great mystery that takes hold of you and won’t let go!” —Tracy Peterson, best-selling author of the Desert Roses Series

“Riveting! I couldn’t put this book down! Heirs of Anton: Ekaterina is a best-seller!” —Debra White Smith, author of the Seven Sisters series

“Get ready for an exhilarating adventure through modern-day Russia. International intrigue and a handsome stranger combine in this moving romance from Downs and Warren.” —Jefferson Scott, author of the Operation Firebrand series

Thank you for reading and joining me on the journey! If wanted to share this offer with your friends, I wouldn’t be sad. Blessings to you!

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