Rain Trueax's Blog, page 39

Taking Charge

Invictus  Out of the night that covers me, Black as the Pit from pole to pole, I thank whatever gods may be For my unconquerable soul. 
 In the fell clutch of circumstance I have not winced nor cried aloud. Under the bludgeonings of chance My head is bloody, but unbowed. Beyond this place of wrath and tears Looms but the Horror of the shade, And yet the menace of the years Finds, and shall find, me unafraid. It matters not how strait the gate, How charged with punishments the scroll. I am the master of my fate: I am the captain of my soul. William Ernest Henley


Of all the messages of all the romances, the above probably represents the most powerful. It is the one I most aim to put into every one of my books. No matter whether the characters start out with pathos and a feeling of weakness, the purpose of what they experience in the book is that they will reach beyond and come to that place where they do feel they are the captain of their fate.When they are there, when they take charge in all ways, the romance novel usually ends, and their real life work begins.
It is the goal of our lifetime also. We might start out at the mercy of parents, of guardians but that's not where we want to stay. We grow and we learn. We take charge. We then begin the path of life for wherever we hoped to go. Sometimes we compromise because we face reality, but we make the decisions for ourselves and blame no one else. When we take on the choice of raising children, we teach them the same way for being responsible. It's what the bulk of our life will be about.
Finally, we want to live our lives in such a way that when we reach the end times, we will have control-- even if that control means we have given control of our body up to others because of debility, still it will be our choice. I know it can be that way because I saw it with my own elders. I will aim to make it so when I reach that point for my life.

being an individual

To be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best, night and day, to make you everybody else means to fight the hardest battle which any human being can fight; and never stop fighting.   e.e. cummings


This is equally true or perhaps even more true for creative people where publising houses, galleries want more of what they have already sold. That makes sense. They are operating a business.  The creative person can turn to operating a business also-- duplicate what is already out there. It can be tempting.

As a creative person sees other writers/painters/sculptors/photographers being more successful in sales, or getting nicer reviews-- or any reviews, one of the hardest things is to not want to do what they do. Cummings nailed the problem, but it doesn't make it easier.

Predictability or manipulation?

In the midst of the ranch's fox chronicles, I've been trying to think about my books-- the ones already out and those yet to be published. My thought right now is that the first Arizona historical will come out the end of July. It's mostly then because we have a trip planned for the middle of July; and I want to be around when the book is published. I also hope to bring this one out as a paperback which takes more advance planning.

This week I came across an interesting article for writers. Ginger Simpson mentioned it in the MOA, and I thought it was worthy of linking here.

Is your plot predictable? by Rita Karnopp  
What she writes about is an issue which I think most writers debate with themselves. My exploration of predictability and unpredictability in writing follows:

What have I learned?

For one thing--

you never stop learning. You'd think at some point you'd get it all but you never do. It's the one thing about life. Unless you purpose to shut yourself off from new information, refuse to assimilate anything you didn't learn at 13, you will never learn it all-- and that not even for those people who go out of their way to be perpetual school students.


never try to outguess a fox. I swear the fox family has literally driven me nuts not to mention at times depressed as I try to do what will be good for them but us also. Never works. Where that story is heading is beyond me and this is why I never liked Disney animal movies. An animal always died to work up the teary audience. Caring for wild animals is asking for a Disney movie in your own backyard.

trying to outguess readers is about the same. I had some time between starting the new book, research, and having a kind of health issue, so I tried reading other people's romances. This is something I don't do very often for obvious reasons-- not wanting to be influenced. What I read was top of the line. Why do readers want the same plots regurgitated with new settings and characters over and over? They want 'surprises' but predictable and often manipulated surprises? I've decided the secret to this knowing is beyond me like with the foxes and I should just understand people read what they need. I write what I need and maybe that isn't going to be the same but it is what it is. So maybe I've learned something there... maybe not.

doing videos has a big drawback if information can change. Back up to the fox story. For my other blog I did a two several videos intended to tell the story of the foxes as it was to date. Before I could ever use the videos, the story changed and (see above) in a not good way. When you write something, you just change the words before the due date. when you video tape it, there is only one thing to do-- delete. A major drawback to videos. Maybe I should stick to making them for the books.

Finally I thought this was interesting as this lady (who has quite a few videos on YouTube) took viewers through her home and studio to show her work. Neat-- a studio tour

Sky Daughter discussion

Working on learning to use the webcam or a camera to discuss the energy behind a book has been an experience to say the least. What I am working to get across is not the plot, but more why the book was written. There always is something that goes beyond they fell in love.

So with Sky Daughter, a contemporary romance, I discussed a few of those energies in this video.

The Scent of Roses-- blog hop

PROMOTE YOUR BOOK/PROMOTE MINE BLOG HOP

The purpose of this blog hop is to promote award winning author Charlene Raddon’s latest release, The Scent of Roses , as well as the work of each of the participating bloggers. Be sure to read to the end of this page so you don’t miss out on the grand prize. Visit each blog and comment to qualify for the individual giveaways, and the big prize.
Charlene Raddon has been writing historical romance novels for over thirty years. Her work has won several awards and much well-deserved praise. Here is what she has to say about her newest release.
 
Any day when a new book is released is exciting for the author. I’m thrilled to announce that my eBook, The Scent of Roses , is now available.


The Scent of Roses is a sequel to my last eBook, To Have And To Hold, but stands alone and does not need to be read in order to be enjoyed. Whip Kincaid, from The Scent of Roses, is the half-brother of Buck Maddux from To Have and To Hold. Whip also has a twin, Cale, who readers met in Buck’s story, which gives me an excuse to write a third book for this series. 

The added touch of paranormal elements made The Scent of Roses a fun story to write. Who doesn’t enjoy haunted houses with hidden passageways? When I first moved to Utah, I lived in this house. No, there weren’t any secret passageways, but in every other way, my description of the old house is accurate. The third element new in this book is the subject of polygamy.

Rosalyn Delaney came to Whisky Ridge, Arizona expecting to receive aid from her estranged husband, Josiah Bullock, in escaping the crazed leader of a polygamist cult determined to have her. She’s broke and has nowhere else to go. But Josiah is dead, murdered the very evening of her arrival. The town is in uproar, searching for the suspected killer, Josiah’s business partner, Whip Kincaid. Rosalyn also learns that Josiah has taken a second wife. 

Whip is innocent but to prove that, he needs to stay out of jail. He hides in secret passageways in the old house he and Josiah shared. Smythely, the elderly butler who came with the house, is the only other person aware of the passageways. Lurking between spiderwebbed walls and using the abundance of peepholes provided allows Whip to keep up with what’s going on. Sneaking out at night allows him to investigate. He’s particularly interested in Rosalyn Delaney, and for more than one reason. Besides being attracted to her, he’s sure she knows something about the murder.

But does she? Is she safe at Rose House? Will she be safe from Whip Kincaid?
I hope you enjoyed this peek into The Scent of Roses. Find it here, at Amazon.com. 
BE SURE TO LEAVE A COMMENT WITH CONTACT INFORMATION. AT THE END OF THE HOP, A NAME WILL BE DRAWN FROM THOSE WHO VISITED AND COMMENTED AT EVERY BLOG. PRIZE IS A $45 GIFT CARD FOR AMAZON OR B&N, WINNER’S CHOICE. Other bloggers are also offering giveaways so make sure you hit them all.

**********************************
 As part of this blog hop, there is the option of other giveaways to commenters. Mine, at Rain Trueax, will be my contemporary, romantic western-- From Here to There ,  the story of a woman with a dream and a man without one. It is a love story of two couples, Montana, and the ranching way of life. If you wish a chance in the random drawing (your choice Kindle, ePub or PDF), be sure to comment here or on her blog and leave contact information.

LIST OF ORIGINAL PARTICIPATING BLOGS
May 31,  http://www.heartoffiction.blogspot.com/  giveaway
May 31  http://www.hurricanereads.blogspot.com
June 1  http://www.charleneraddon.blogspot.com - Official blog tour for Kat Flannery (not part of PUB/PM blog hop)
June 2, http://authortammieclarkegibbs.blogspot.com/   giveaway
June 3  http://carolineclemmons.blogspot.com/     giveaway
June 4  http://writingdreams.net/          giveaway
June 5  http://ciaragold.blogspot.com/  giveaway
June 7, http://peggylhenderson.blogspot.com/  giveaway
June 8, http://alisonhenderson.blogspot.com /    giveaway
June 9, http://www.pamelaforeman.com/  giveaway
June 10 http://annettedrake.com/annettes-blog/
June 11, http://elizabethdelisi.blogspot.com/  giveaway
June 12, http://www.patyjager.blogspot.com/ giveaway
June 14 http://www.wittyonlineeditor.com  giveaway
June 15  http://blog.cathymansell.com/   giveaway
June 16, www.katerobbinsauthor.com/  giveaway
June 17 http://tinafosterspageturner.blogspot.com/  giveaway
June 19   http://lynhorner.blogspot.com/   giveaway
June 21  http://ketaskeep.blogspot.com/  giveaway
June 22, http://www.raintrueax.blogspot.com   giveaway

June 23, http://bethtrissel.wordpress.com  giveaway

From Here to There

With the promotion for Charlene Raddon's new book Friday and my eBook set for a give away to one commenter, I thought I'd repost From Here to There's trailer.

A giveaway

Saturday I am participating in a blog hop with a guest writer, Charlene Raddon, who will be promoting her newest book, Scent of Roses. Visit here Saturday to read what her book is about; then go to her site where my book, From Here to There, will be featured. Comment either here or at Charlene Raddon (where she is also sponsoring a giveaway) and one random commenter will win From Here to There in a PDF or an eBook format--their choice.

Does that sound confusing enough? Well since I am new to blog hops, that won't be surprising to me. I am doing the best I can to get it across how it works... I think... The point that matters is one eBook copy of From Here to There will be free to someone selected randomly from the commenters-- leave contact info in your comment. I think I got that right.

The following video discusses the energy behind From Here to There.

Yaquina Head June 14th

The Oregon Coast June 14th-- always an inspiration especially the lighthouse at Yaquina Head because of the life those old light keepers had. Even though this one is quite close to Newport, it was resupplied by boat. They led an isolated life as well as a very important one for early shipping. With ships often not far offshore, it was all too easy to crash into rocks without these steady beacons at night or in a fog. There were no nights off.

Years before them, the Native Americans lived on the headland where they had sheltered coves in the rock as well as plentiful food supplies from the sea, hunting, and roots to dig. Their archaeological evidence was left behind.

Friday the harbor seals were basking on the rocks below but photographing them was tough with their whiteness against the dark rocks. The murres were all over the rocks with no interest in fishing for themselves or performing acrobatics. I did see a few swimming and one eating something but without a better telephoto, it's guesswork what-- orange colored; so maybe a starfish?
 


Some years back it was as though I saw two imaginary people. They were the light keepers; and whether it was from a dream or the energy they left behind, I cannot say. I did a quick digital sketch. This would be looking south toward the lighthouse from the beach.

True West

Whenever I was in Tucson, I'd head for the used book store and pick up some copies of True West. I didn't subscribe because I was already taking a couple of other magazines. Finally I realized I was no longer reading my art magazines and the old photos alone in this magazine would make it worthwhile getting.

So the first issue came and I'm pleased. It is light fare. Some are fun. Some new tweaks on old stories. A few have been extensively researched like one on the Bloody Siege at Milk Creek in Montana where the Meeker Massacre is more widely known and this story not so much. If you haven't seen the magazine and have a love of Western history and entertainment, you might check it out.


Some of the stories were ones I knew but some are about characters new to me. An example would be a story on Dave Mather as it asked the question if he broke the law or served it-- and where did he actually end his life. As a writer, I find it interesting to learn these tidbits about the real people who lived in the West during the years I have based my own stories.