Helen B. Henderson's Blog, page 71

I'd Invent... #mfrwauthor

Welcome to week 9. This week's topic is something I'd invent if I was stuck on a desert island. After the theme to Gilligan's Island stopped playing in my head several things came to mind. Paper and ink so I could record my adventures, whether real or imaginary. Next creation would be paints from natural pigments so I could illuminate my works in the manner of medieval monks.

Then the light bulb went off. I'd just finished writing a sea rescue for my work in progress. If you haven't guessed it, I'd invent means of rescue. It might be a raft from Gilligan's Island or the flaming S.O.S. created by team Scorpion. Or a simple message on the beach made from shells and another on the mountain top out of tree fronds.


This is a blog hop so be sure to visit the other posts. ~till next time, Helen

Hooked on Windmaster, You Can't Return Home #mfrwauthor #mfrwhooks

Windmaster – choose between the sea, magic... or love.

Prophecy decreed Ellspeth marry the Archmage. However, despite the attraction to him, Ellspeth’s heart fought the announced destiny. For to be with Lord Dal meant she had to take all that came with him, including magic. Love meant the loss of her ship and crew because to a mage the sea meant death.

Excerpt:
 
     Dal looked beyond Ellspeth to the trail outside, its length still lined with stern-faced villagers. His thoughts kept going back to earlier, happier times. He had not expected his return to be acknowledged with a day of celebration, but he never thought he would be greeted with a death sentence. And not just for him. His anger threatened to erupt at the risk to Ellspeth. But what could he do? His magic prevented him from reaching the circlet. And Ellspeth was the only one in the world who had magic, but whose powers weren’t active.
    Ellspeth broke the deep silence that filled the room. “Eilidh, King Fraunces will be told. Yours is not the only clan being threatened.” Ellspeth hesitated then looked at Dal. “I am gathering weapons to stop the attacks.”
    “We need the amber,” Dal blurted out. “The teardrop that MarEilidh gave me. The one with the winged insect in it.”
    “Padraig has it. He claimed it for his dowry gift.”
    “We need it.” Ellspeth leaned forward on her stool. “Can you speak to him? Or should I?”
    Eilidh sat back in her chair. Her arms found their usual resting place. “I will do what I can. By rights it should be Dal’s. It was given him by his great-grandmother. In the meantime, eat and rest. No one will bother you in the place of sanctuary.”
    “Thank you.” Dal and Ellspeth replied in unison.
    “May the ancestors guide you and protect you.”
    At the obvious dismissal, they rose.
    Eilidh waited until Dal turned back. “And Dal, you have my blessing.” Although she had spoken to him, Dal saw his mother looked straight at Ellspeth. How did she know? At the door he framed his features into an impassive mask that hid his true feelings.

Windmaster  - Complete List of Ebook sellers
Paperback Available At: Amazon / Amazon UK

We're all hooked on books. Click on a link to hop to the next blog.

Be Still My Editor #mfrwauthor

 
Welcome to another week of the Marketing for Romance Writers 2018 challenge. Each week we're supposed to write a thoughtful post on the given topic. Hope you'll stop by each Friday for our thoughts on life, writing, and our books.  Today's topic relates to our writing craft--What is the Worst Writing Advice You've Received?

I could use the advice to go with publishers A, B, and C as the worst advice. That qualifies because they closed down either shortly before a contract was issued or a book released.


Instead I've chosen the commonly accepted maxim to "still the inner editor." We're told when writing not to correct typos or rearrange text. Just to dump our words as a steady stream of consciousness.

Now, authors have as many ways to create as there are books. I'm a plotter. My outlines are done more at the keyboard than paper and pen unless a computer is not available. The translation of scene notes, full scenes and dialog is usually done with paper and pen. That first draft is messy. The inner editor will number sentences and paragraphs to reflect a better order when the actual typing is done.

As writers we're told not to even correct spelling as we type. For me, that aspect of turning off the inner editor doesn't make sense. It takes less time to hit the backspace key once or twice to correct a typo or re-spell a word than to come back with a mouse, highlight the text, then still do the correction. Of course, if correcting while you type disrupts your train of thought that is a different story.

Another reason why I don't silence my inner editor when I'm writing is that it reduces the risk of a typo or some stupid grammar thing slipping through the crack during the editorial phase. With less things to catch in a clean draft, there is less potential for the error to make it into the final manuscript.


 ~till next time, be sure to visit the other posts in the challenge. 

Hooked on First Change, The Fever, #MFRWauthor #MFRWHooks

Book Hooks - First Change
(Book 5 of the Dragshi Chronicles)
The dragshi are more than just a man or woman. Each are two beings–one a dragon, the other a human–sharing one body in space in time and able to change forms with the other at will. Their world and the adventures of the dragon shifters are recorded in the Dragshi Chronicles

Within each of the chronicles, the ceoltiers, the keepers of the past and teachers of the present, recount some legend. As with all such tales, some contain larger than life deeds. Others are the simple story of a man or woman doing what must be done, regardless of the cost. Sometimes embellished, the ceoltiers use the stories of times and actions past to educate and inspire.

Unlike the previous works in the series which related to the trader girl Anastasia and Lord Branin Llewlyn, First Change features the real story behind the legends told in the previous volumes. It contains five stories of duty and honor, love and loss, happiness and despair from the chronicles. As with all such tales, some contain larger than life deeds. Others are the simple story of a man or woman doing what must be done, regardless of the cost.

Excerpt from Between Swords and Sickness:

Geelneach sank back onto the bench. More than exhaustion kept him rooted in place. Before he retired for the night, he needed to see Maliyah, but feared what he would find. He pushed himself to his feet. Slow steps took him around the barricade built in front of the doors as a last line of defense. Silently, he shambled through the great hall and down the long hallway.

The sight of his wife's pale face above the covers and her sweat-dampened curls halted him at the entrance to a small room in what normally would be a private office. She tossed in the throes of a hallucination he prayed she would not remember upon awakening. As he had in the woods, he searched for Maliyah’s heartbeat beneath his. Reassured, he crossed the room and sank to his knees at the bedside.

“Easy, my love,” Geelneach whispered and took her hand in his. Her questing fingers tightened around his. “I’m here,” he murmured. “Sleep... rest.”

At his low words, the fevered movements quieted.

~ * ~

Buy Links:  OneClick Link to Major Ebook Sellers

More information on the other novellas and bonus short stories in First Change can be found here.

Notches on the Bucket #mfrwauthor

First of my apologies. Last week the browser was having some problems and in a fit of pique lost the change to reschedule the post to midnight. As a result it didn't publish on time. 

WEEK 7 OF THE CHALLENGE is officially Five Top Things On My Bucket List.  This post is going to be short. Despite my age, I try to tell myself I'm too young for a bucket list (just ignore the silver hair.) However, that topic was covered in the 2017 challenge. Rather than rehashing last year's post, I decided to take another tact and cover notches on the bucket.

As a result of my work as a correspondent and feature story writer, a few items have already been taken out of the bucket. I've had backroom tours of the collections of several major museums and attended some of the top antique shows in the country. 

Another notch went on the bucket while I sat in the exclusive pilots area and vintage aircraft perform.

Although unplanned, perhaps the first notch went on the bucket when Around Matawan and Aberdeen, my first history was published.

The next notch went on when Windmaster was released to the world. 


 

Hooked on Windmaster Legacy, The Proposal #mfrwauthor #mfrwhooks

Chose between magic, revenge... or the life of a loved one.
In honor of Valentine's Day, a proposal from Windmaster Legacy, Book 2 of The Windmaster Novels.

To set the stage, Lady Ellspeth has been called before her trading guild's ruling council and has been stripped of her ship and crew. Her mother, the council leader asks the group to witness a private matter. The petition from Lady Eilidh, chieftain of three holds in the Mtwan Mountains for a handfasting between her son, Lord Dal, Archmage of the World and Ellspeth.



With a lithe movement gained from turns of mercenary training and on the backs of half-wild horses, Dal dropped to one knee before Mirrim. Lifting the lid, he revealed a string of South Sea pearls. “My bride gift,” he said holding the box up for Mirrim’s approval. The guild leader, a quirk at the edge of her lips, took out the necklace and held it up for all to see.

The events of the day began to take their toll, and Ellspeth’s knees started quaking. She inhaled several deep breaths to calm her nerves. Although she knew it was only a few moments, it seemed as if her mother examined the pearls for a life span.Still reeling from the multiple shocks, she held her breath again when Mirrim finished her circuit of the table and turned to Dal and his mother. “I find the match suitable. Ellspeth—do you wish this union?”

AUTHOR's NOTE: Now this is where I usually end the reading. However, since it's Valentine's Day, here's the rest of the scene.

Ellspeth resisted the urge to smack Dal, now at his mother’s side, when he winked. Instead, in a voice pitched loud enough to be heard by all, she answered, “Yes, I do.”
 

* * * End of Excerpt * * *
 
Windmaster Legacy Available At:
Ebook and Paperback: Amazon Amazon.uk
One-click link to major Ebook sellers

Click here for another excerpt and a free read of the first chapter. And if you missed Windmaster, an excerpt for the first book in the series can be found here.

We're all hooked on books. Click on a link to hop to the next blog.

Too Many Books... Too Many Authors #mfrwauthor

Welcome to week 6 of the 2018 challenge. I have enjoyed so many great books over the years that this topic basically came down to writing down my favorite authors on a wheel. Five spins, five selections.

Before I list the five authors to share a meal with, a caveat. The list is at this moment. It is a combination of my interest in books both as a reader and an author. And as we age our interests change so would the authors classified as our favorites.


Drumroll please...The five authors I'd like to meet are:

Anne McCaffrey, mistress of Dragonhold
Louis L'Amor, he walked the ground he wrote about
Barbara Hambly, magic, Star Wars, and Star Trek, three of my favorite things
Katherine Kurtz, of course I'd want to meet in the land of Scotland where the Adept series took place


And although it is officially a list of five, a pair of authors that have been a large part of writing life, but who I have never met in person, earned a special place in the list. First is the Nova Scotian pixie Carol McPhee. Her romantic suspenses taught action to share my works with romance. Then there is Judy Griffith Gill, who through sharing her editorial expertise (and me listening) improved my craft beyond measure.

~till next time. To see who the other authors in the hop would like to meet, visit their posts. The links follow.

See Dick and Jane #mfrwauthor

It's Friday, time for the next post in the 2018 challenge. As soon as I saw the list of topics, I knew that unlike the earlier challenge, I was not going to do all those this year. And this topic was one I immediately dismissed.

If I picked a religious book as one that influenced my life, I risked being labeled a fanatic--or a heretic, depending on the book and the reader's leanings.

I could chose a book on craft, then I'd have to duck the rotten produce thrown my way when the book was not his or her favorite. So I won't go with the Golden Rule or the Rule of Three. 

I am an author and used to make my living with words. Before that I was a reader. This post won't be about a book of literature or poetry, nor one of heroism at which I cry and salute the fallen hero at the end. It was probably inevitable that I went into a technical field. It used to be joked that I learned my letters and numbers by updating manuals. At the time I was not even in school, but I knew three words Add / Change / Delete.

So I've chosen as a book that influenced that part of my life.


The Dick and Jane books were written by William S. Gray and Zerna Sharp and published by Scott Foresman. They were used to teach children to read from the 1930s through to the 1970s in the United States. So how did Fun with Dick and Jane influence my life? It was a reader, and like the predecessors in the classification, was a book by which I learned to read. And that skill translated to the ability to write.

What book influenced your life? Leave a comment below and visit the other posts in the challenge. ~till next time, Helen

Come for Tea and Books

In the mid-South? Love romance? You're invited to tea and treats at a Romance Reader Valentine's Tea as talented authors discuss their books and genre.



Saturday, Feb. 10th  1-4 PMM. R. Davis Library, Southaven MS (an easy drive from Memphis TN)

Angela Kay Austin                         Linda Rettstatt    
Suzanne Rossi                                 Patricia Potter
Kim Smith                Jodi Vaughn
Debra Parmley                            Jessica Patch
And I'll be there also. For more on my books, click on the covers in the banner for excerpts, a free read of the first chapter, and buy links.

 ~till next time. And I hope to see you at the Romance Readers event.

Follow-on Career is... #mfrwauthor

Many of the prompts in the 52 posts in 52 weeks challenge dare the participating authors to reveal something personal about themselves. This week I am supposed to reveal what I would do if I couldn't be a writer. That topic has been on my mind a lot recently. Several authors I know quite writing last year or at the start of this one. Among the reasons they give are the ways sales sites discriminate, the gaming of their systems, constant algorithm changes that reduce your opportunities, and the top two reasons given are the small return on ebooks and pirates stealing more than we make.




So what would be the follow-on career of choice. At first I pulled out a couple of old dreams -- starship officer, interstellar explorer, or time traveler. Even with today's technology, none of those are feasible. So I'll go in another direction.
Without writing, I'd need another creative outlet. Beadwork, crocheting, knitting, and cross-stitch embroidery would provide that. I've dabbled with photography over the years. I would love to do it professionally, but my talents lie elsewhere so I would just do it to decorate my office and as an excuse to explore the outdoors.

I would miss the research I do for my writing. A follow-on career as an archaeologist would handle that need as well as my interest in history. If you've read my posts from last year's challenge, I've been involved with historical museums in various capacities. I've donned period costumes to give tours, coordinated events, and managed the museum and its collections. And of course, wrote material for the organization such as interpretive programs and documentaries. And been involved with a few archaeological digs.

While I hope it won't be necessary for many, many years, for my first choice as a follow-on career if I could no longer write. Drum roll, please....



I'd be a Reader.
For more on what I do now when I'm not writing, here's a post on my hobbies from last year's challenge. And be sure to check out the posts of the other authors who have challenged themselves to reveal their inner selves and their writing lives.

~till next time, Helen