Terry Odell's Blog, page 115

A Day in the Life of Cowboy Derek Cooper

Dru, of Dru’s Book Musings, managed to corral Derek Cooper, head of the Triple-D Ranch, long enough to get him to describe a “typical” day at the ranch–if there is such a thing as a typical day. Trot on over and see what he has to say. And because Derek was kind enough to take time out of his busy day, I’ll be giving away a copy of In Hot Water to one lucky commenter.

 

 

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Character Interview — Margaret Mendel’s Aon She Beng

Thanks for letting me interview you today, Aon She. First, a few introductory questions.

Your name:  Aon She Beng
The book you’re in:  Pushing Water
Your author’s name:  Margaret Mendel
Your role:  Landlady of Sarah, the protagonist

And now, on with the interview:

What was your favorite part of being a character in this book?
I am a wealthy, respected woman with much property. My character is very wise and knows many important people. Sarah saw how special I was when so many people came to my...

Character Interview – Margaret Mendel’s Aon She Beng

Thanks for letting me interview you today, Aon She. First, a few introductory questions.

Your name:  Aon She Beng
The book you’re in:  Pushing Water
Your author’s name:  Margaret Mendel
Your role:  Landlady of Sarah, the protagonist

And now, on with the interview:

What was your favorite part of being a character in this book?
I am a wealthy, respected woman with much property. My character is very wise and knows many important people. Sarah saw how special I was when so many people came to my...

Keeping it Short

My “let the manuscript marinate” phase ends today, and I plan to delve into edits. Even though it’s only been a week since I finished, this WIP had a lot of interruptions, so it’s been a LONG time since I’ve looked at the opening chapters. They should read like “new” work.

One of the things on my to-do list while I let the manuscript sit was to work on another Horace and Grace short story. (And if you haven’t read the first one, then you’re not a newsletter subscriber, because “One Night of G...

The Time In Between

Part of the editing process is to let the work sit for a while so you can have fresh eyes when you start working on it.

What do you do while you’re waiting?

First, I compile my list of points to check on the read-through. I need to look for unresolved threads, unanswered questions, and things that come up that I’ve forgotten, or never thought I’d need to know, so I didn’t track them.

Some examples from my notes:

Does Holly’s apartment garage use key cards or a gate code? What floor is their...

What’s Cooking Wednesday — Mango Salmon Ceviche

Hubster was on a ceviche kick after the Food Network Magazine ran several variations last month. I think this was our favorite.

Mango Salmon Ceviche

Ingredients:
1 pound skinless wild Pacific salmon, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 cups fresh lime juice (from about 12 limes), plus more if needed
2 T finely chopped fresh cilantro  *we leave this out, since I’m a cilantro “taster”
2 T rice vinegar
1 t sugar
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1 mango
1 avocado
1 tart green apple
1 t toasted sesam...

What’s Cooking Wednesday – Mango Salmon Ceviche

Hubster was on a ceviche kick after the Food Network Magazine ran several variations last month. I think this was our favorite.

Mango Salmon Ceviche

Ingredients:
1 pound skinless wild Pacific salmon, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 cups fresh lime juice (from about 12 limes), plus more if needed
2 T finely chopped fresh cilantro  *we leave this out, since I’m a cilantro “taster”
2 T rice vinegar
1 t sugar
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1 mango
1 avocado
1 tart green apple
1 t toasted sesam...

Character Interviews — Lala Corriere’s Harlan Coal

Thanks for letting me interview you today, Harlan. First, a few introductory questions:

Name:  Harlan Coal
The book I star in:  Coverboys & Curses
My author’s name:  Lala Corriere
My role:  Villain

And now, on with the interview:

What was your favorite part of being a character in this book?
It felt absolutely succulently delicious to be a false prophet. I loved sashaying across my grand stage in the loose white linen pants and long flowing tunic. My following became enormous. Intoxicating. I...

Character Interviews – Lala Corriere’s Harlan Coal

Thanks for letting me interview you today, Harlan. First, a few introductory questions:

Name:  Harlan Coal
The book I star in:  Coverboys & Curses
My author’s name:  Lala Corriere
My role:  Villain

And now, on with the interview:

What was your favorite part of being a character in this book?
It felt absolutely succulently delicious to be a false prophet. I loved sashaying across my grand stage in the loose white linen pants and long flowing tunic. My following became enormous. Intoxicating. I...

Don’t Obsess About Word Count

You would think that after writing 19 novels, I’d understand, accept, and anticipate my process. I start by getting to know my characters and their GMCs (Goals, Conflicts and Motivations), and come up with some basic scenes and plot point to get going. Normally, I’ll revise several times until we get comfortable with each other. I’ll also cut large sections because even though I need to know more about my characters backstory, my readers don’t. At least not this early in the novel.

Next, I’ll...