Margaret West Talks about writing the perfect plot

How to write a perfect plot


Good Morning. I am very happy to be here, on Sherry’s blog for the next seven days...yikes...I hope I don’t bore you all rigid lol. I like feedback, so any comments/questions you may have, feel free to ask. I’ll be popping in and out all the time.

So let’s talk about how I think you can write a perfect plot. I need input here. So anything you can add will go onto my writer’s blog, under the Author helpful hints page. So be sure to leave your website addy beside your comments for me.

In my other job as a medium, I observe people. So I apply that technique to those who like to read books. If a person stops, frowns, then re-read a sentence, it’s a warning that something is very wrong. It could be loss of viewpoint, failure to provide adequate settings or, worse still, an inconsistency in the plot. Whatever it is, it usually results from careless plotting compounded by either failure to double check each development, or a suicidal conviction that no one will notice! Trust me, a reader WILL notice.

I believe a first scene should have a good hook, which I will discuss in tomorrow’s blog. You set the pace and mood here. It’s all about making your reader care about your characters.

Non writers always ask me, where do you get your ideas? I believe that what sets a writer’s imagination apart from other types of imagination, is the way it collects and organises it. I read somewhere that a writer thinks of them self as a hunter gather. I like that phrase. A writers mind is where an impression can grow and spread into fully expanded ideas. It’s like having a personal filing cabinet inside your head. People’s lives are interesting. So be a hunter gatherer and grab any information that takes your fancy and store it away.

PLOTTING. I only chose the strongest ideas. Never some vague outlines that may form. You should have an idea of settings and conflict. So which comes first? In answer to that, both! The elements come at the same time, spurring each other on. Give your characters bones to fight over and a place to hold that fight. The hero and heroine are the most important members of the cast. Their backgrounds, personalities, and skills must make them come across as real. I always check and cross-check their histories as I build them. A heroine who has a lovely, but empty face, no wrinkles in her clothes, and no wrinkles in her spirit is boring. So don’t expect anyone to care about her. She’s not real enough. Let’s say my heroine is twenty – three, ought to be pretty, because if she is I don’t have to look too hard to get her noticed. But one character doesn’t make a novel. In steps the hero. Also secondary characters. Traits and agendas for them. I build them as carefully as I build my main characters. They are just as important. But not too many. In my experience, a whole crowd of characters with agenda’s make confusing reading.

The hero…let’s call him Edward, knows what he wants. He was born knowing that and he’s been going after it ever since. He’s honourable, loyal and smart and confident. Understanding women isn’t something he’s worked real hard at. He never had a reason to before he met Virginia.

She’s the woman he wants. She works at the office and he’s tried to get to know her but she doesn’t want to know. He hates that, but he can’t get her out of his head. It doesn’t help that she applied for the promotion that was given to him. He also heard that one of the firm’s biggest accounts is her ex-husband. Who still wants her. Can you see the hero developing here? He’s not perfect, but who is nowadays? This makes him more believable to the reader.

Major characters lead to secondary characters. Major and secondary characters lead to minor characters.

CONFLICT. When I work on characterization, I always work on conflict. I try hard not to get bogged down with silver eyes that shine like a polished kettle, and sardonic eyebrows that slash heavenward like dark thunderbolts prepared to challenge God. My rule of thumb is, only trouble is interesting. And if you want to capture a reader’s attention and hold it, your characters must be in trouble. The root of all this trouble comes from your characters wanting something they can’t have. BUT they must have it or be doomed to eternal unhappiness or, almost worse, a passionless existence.

MOTIVATION. I try hard to make my story real, but basically it’s a fabricated vision of a selected sequence from life. Here is where inconsistencies can creep in. But if you don’t catch the problem, you’re in trouble. As I write, I ask myself questions: Why? Where and how? Then I cross-check everything. I never leave a question unanswered a loose end untied. Everything needs to be as tight as a glass blowers backside!

LOCATION. This is where you decide on the scenes you will use to tell your story. I choose my locations for impact, not just for setting. Here I take the time to organise a few pivotal scenes that act as anchors to the entire plot. If I choose wrong the whole story could fall apart. Here I decide what the next scene must convey, how it will move the story forward, change the characters, complicate the plot. Then I decide what scene I will use as a tray to carry all these tasty morsels.

So to do a quick recap.

1. Flesh out my heroine and hero. Maybe take whole paragraph to talk about them. Make her three dimensional.

2. What do they want that will put them in conflict with themselves and with each other and with the world? Jot down notes.

3. Take the want you’ve developed, devise an action to get it, then motivate and qualify the action with the who, when, why, what, how sequence.

4. You need a scene to present the idea you gathered. To execute the scene, I use the heroine and hero I’ve fleshed out, and some of the want that stops them from leaping into each other’s arms and living happily ever after on page one of your book.

5. Read over the six points you’ve written.

6. Combine them into a paragraph that captures the essence of the story.

Now I have my workable plot line.

If you have any helpful tips or just want to comment, please do.

Blurb:
When Abigail falls in love with Justin she can’t begin to know the world of hurt she is heading into. Gorgeous, kind, rich – he’s the man we all dream to meet. BUT, all is not what it seems because Justin is a true demon from hell, disguised as a mortal being. He wants her and will do, kill or maim anyone who tries to stop him. Namely Shaun the real hero, who wants Abigail more! So what does a mortal man do against a demon? He enlists the help of a gypsy of course. But not any old gypsy. Rosa knows Justin very well and has the powers of the spirit world on her side to fight him. Using crystals as a powerful weapon, the light of the spirit world to lead them, they embark on a battle with the whole of the underworld. Many loved ones will lose their lives. This isn’t a book where everyone survives. In real life, bad things happen. In Abigail Cottage, terrible tragedies occur too. Believe... not every story can have a happy ending.

BuyLinks:  Abigail Cottage in e-book and print
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Abigail-Cottage-Margaret-West/dp/1907963049/ref=sr_1_7?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1292601645&sr=1-7
Publisher. www.hedge-witcherybooks.com

My links:
www.margaretwest.net
http://magsx.blogspot.com/
http://margaret-paranormalromanceauthor.blogspot.com/

Margaret, :-) thank you for sharing your ideas and blurb for Abigail Cottage with us today.  I enjoyed reading yours and will tweak some of them into my own routines.

Comma Chameleon

Today Kim rounds up her visit talking about  Comma Chameleon

The comma is, in my opinion, the chameleon of the punctuation family. And I don’t mean that in a good way, but rather that it reminds me of the chameleon Randall from the Disney movie Monster’s Inc. Why? Because despite the many grammatical rules about using the comma, they’re always changing or including exceptions that basically say, “This is the rule, but you can do it this way, or you can do it that way, or you can follow what this person does, or what that person does”. Sort of like a chameleon changes colors. It’s enough to drive you batty.

There’s no way in this blog post I can cover all the rules there are associated with the comma. But I’m going to do my best to cover two instances that create problems for authors.

INDEPENDENT CLAUSES: This is more commonly known as a sentence. So basically what this means is if you have two sentences that are joined by a conjunction (and, but, or, so, yet – just to name a few), you need a comma before the conjunction. You wouldn’t believe how many people omit a comma in this instance. I’m going to show you a couple examples to help illustrate how I remember this rule.

EXAMPLE 1
She abused this privilege by taking the information and using it to prevent her charge from dying.

EXAMPLE 2
Her feelings for Owen might have clouded her judgment but she would never stoop to sacrificing others for her own selfish desires.

Which one of the above examples needs a comma? If you guessed the second one, you’re right. In the first example, the first phrase can’t stand alone. It doesn’t make sense to say She abused this privilege by taking the information. The second clause is no better. Using it to prevent her charge from dying doesn’t make a sentence either. But in Example 2, Her feelings for Owen might have clouded her judgment is a complete sentence. As is She would never stoop to sacrificing others for her own selfish desires.

The way I remember when to insert a comma and when not to is: INDEPENDENT CLAUSES are IN NEED of a comma. DEPENDENT CLAUSES DEPEND on the contraction so NO COMMA!

INTRODUCTORY WORDS AND PHRASES: This is one of the toughest comma rules (and I use the word rules loosely when it comes to commas) because it doesn’t really give you a clear answer. The rule says that generally an introductory word or phrase is followed by a comma, but to use your best judgment. HELLOOOOO! If we didn’t want someone to come out and tell us what to do, we wouldn’t be reading the rules!

To be honest, this one stumps me the most. With this rule, there’s really no rhyme or reason that goes into an individual’s decision to use a comma or to omit it. I do have a little secret I’ll share that will make it easier. It’s a sure-fire formula you can use to determine if a comma is truly needed. It’s simple and it hasn’t failed me yet.

1. Ask yourself if the sentence can stand on its own without the phrase.
2. Is the phrase being used to insert a pause in the sentence?
3. Place the phrase at the end of the sentence to see if you would need to insert a comma for clarity.
4. Is the phrase essential to the sentence or is it added information?
5. Turn the sentence into a question and see if it makes sense with the phrase.

I know, I know. I hear you all groaning about having to do so much work. And YES you have to do it. If you’re serious about being an author, then you have to do everything possible to make your manuscript the best it can be. Now for a training exercise.

To be fair it hadn’t taken much convincing.

Step 1: take the introductory phrase away and see if the rest of the clause is a sentence. It hadn’t taken much convincing. Yes, it’s a sentence and it can stand on its own.

Step 2: Read the sentence aloud and see if you automatically insert a pause after the phrase. Yes, you should have inserted a pause.

Step 3: Place the phrase at the end of the sentence and see if a comma is needed for clarity. It hadn’t taken much convincing to be fair. Yes, in this instance a comma is definitely needed for understanding.

Step 4: Is the phrase essential to the sentence? This is a little trickier to answer, but we know it’s not essential to make the clause a sentence and we know it’s not needed to help clarify what’s being discussed, so it might make the sentence better but it’s not essential. So the answer is NO.

Step 5: Turn the sentence into a question and see if it’s awkward with the phrase. To be fair had it taken much convincing? Had it taken much convincing? It’s not hard to see that the sentence with the phrase is very awkward when turned into a question if you don’t have a comma.

In a nutshell, if you find that you answer yes to steps 1, 2, & 3 and that you answer no to step 4 and that when you complete step 5 it’s awkward, you need the comma. You might be thinking, “But I know that since steps 1 & 2 are yes that I need a comma so I don’t need to complete the other steps”. Wrong. Most people do steps 1 & 2 and still don’t get it right. Until you practice going through all these steps and truly have a grasp of using commas with introductory phrases and words, complete all five steps!

Now, PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE. You can start with the few examples I’ve provided. Which ones need a comma? Do you have a sentence you’d like to discuss?

PRACTICE SENTENCES:
With open arms she ran to him.
Before he could shoot the woman whipped the fire extinguisher around and sprayed the animal.
Slowly Kell stood.

Wayward Soul blurb:
When Zanna Seoul accidentally causes the death of a fellow spirit guide’s charge while trying to save the life of the man she loves, she is stripped of her position and banished to Earth to die. In the spirit world, one doesn’t mess with what’s written. With Zanna no longer guiding him and his memory of her erased, Owen Nash is left wide open as the target of the vengeful spirit guide who feels he’s been wronged. A guide who also happens to be a werewolf. Once on Earth, Zanna refuses to stand by and watch Owen die, so she intervenes again, setting off a chain of events that could mean death for all of them if she doesn’t go back and undo the mess she’s made. Can Zanna succeed before the werewolf does?


BIO:
Kim Bowman lives in Indiana, where she was born and raised. For the past eleven years, she has been married to her best friend, Tony. She has four wonderful, awesome children. Three she was lucky enough to inherit from her husband and one she was given by the grace of God. They live on a small farm with two of their four kids, five horses, and two dogs. Kim works as an editor for Evernight Publishing and indulges in her passion of writing when she can.

My Blog
My Facebook
My Twitter
To Buy Links HERE ~ HERE ~ HERE
 

Thank you Kim for joining us at The Heart of Romance and sharing your editorial experiences and advice with us.  

Black Opal Books author Alyssa Lyons Talks about her debut Chick List book

Author Bio: Alyssa Lyons, like her character Jordan Davis, lives in Lynchburg, Virginia. The South is her playground. Its eccentricities fuel her stories. She specializes in “Solving Crimes Southern Style.” However, unlike Jordan, she is a cat person—rather she is staff to two cats she rescued. Like most cats, they believe they were the ones doing the saving and therefore she owes them. She taught high school American history and government, worked for the CIA and is a retired attorney. Or as she is fond of saying, “I am a recovering attorney.”
I didn’t know I could write until I was older. I was always a storyteller; that’s different from being a writer. I was a poet, songwriter, and playwright before if ever occurred to me could write novels. I know that sounds weird, but it takes more time and structure to write a novel. There’s all that pesky emotion and introspection and narrative that none of the other things I did required.
I started writing romance in the 1990s. I began to notice that romance was a part of every genre I read, from science fiction to thriller to historical to paranormal to mystery. Then I ran into a few books where I wondered how the person got that book published, and said, “I can do better than that!” After I completed the book, I realized it took ability to write poorly. And my book wasn’t fit to line a litter box.
People always ask me how long it took to write my first book. I always say, “Six months to write, and six years to rewrite.” I’m faster now.
My story, Last Wishes, is my first mystery. The subgenre is Chick Mystery, which is a cozy with a younger, hipper heroine and has some blood, action, and sex. (Miss Marple would never have sex!)
Last Wishes is a murder mystery and study of life in a small Virginia city. In the American South, the location is as much a character as the people in the story. The South has been shaped by the Civil War, sultry, humid summers, moonshine liquor, and Bible-thumping preachers. Its people are patriotic, suspicious of Yankees, and interested in everyone’s business. Southerners also revel in their eccentrics yet hide family secrets beneath layers of lies. As Last Wishes unfolds, the reader learns Jordan Davis is a perfect example of this dichotomy.
In Last Wishes, Jordan obeys the law when it suits her and fulfills the needs of her clients. Right now isn’t one of those times. She knows someone is killing older women in Lynchburg. Is the killer is sexy Judge Grayson Trent or is he her only chance of unmasking the real murderer before she becomes the next victim?
I want readers to have several hours of fun, while seeing if they can solve the mystery before Jordan does and chuckling at life in a small Southern city.

What books have most influenced your life?
I don’t have any specific titles, but rather genres. My ability to adapt and go with the flow, even in the face of “future shock,” comes from having read science fiction and fantasy most of my life. For example, I read a story by Arthur C. Clarke when I was just eight. It was about a communication satellite and control of the world. When the first one actually went up, Telstar I, I was shocked. I thought we’d had them for years. Another genre I love is mystery/thriller, from Nancy Drew and Perry Mason as a child to Daniel Silva and Tami Hoag as an adult. These stories teach and remind me to see beyond the obvious and open new ways to solve problems.
However, if I were to choose two titles I go back to year after year, they would be Jane Eyre and The Count of Monte Cristo. In Jane Eyre, true love is not only possible but triumphs over the most horrendous obstacles. Monte Cristo reminds me that there is justice in this world. This could explain why I write mysteries with romance.

If you had to choose, which writer would you consider a mentor?
Ray Bradbury, because of his sense of wonder, his embracing of the future, and his delicious sense of irony. He writes short stories, novels, screenplays, and stage plays. He’s also an excellent writer from a technical standpoint.

What are your current projects?
I have just finished Clubbed to Death and it should be released in late Spring 2011. In this story, Jordan’s half-sister is accused of murdering the president of the Junior League with a golf club. Now a private investigator, Jordan searches for the real murderer, uncovering a plot targeting foster children that puts her life at risk. Stabbed and Slabbed will come out a month or two later. In this book, Jordan and Gray, while on a honeymoon cruise from hell, must discover who killed an obnoxious comedian, and clear their own names before the ship limps back to port.

Is there anything you find particularly challenging in your writing?
Keeping track of the characters and the timeline. In Clubbed to Death, I just knew who the killer was. After all, I plot everything. Then halfway through, I realized she wasn’t the killer. Someone else was. Thank goodness, my subconscious knew before I did, because all the clues were there and I only had to rewrite two sentences.

Can you explain the rising popularity of eBooks?
I have been published in print and electronic formats since 1999. Over the years, I have watched it grow in fits and starts. There is an ongoing need to conserve resources. Space is at a premium. The ability to store thousands of books in one device solves both of these problems. Even with the current e-readers, books are available in regular and large print and audio. Large publishers are like oil tankers, they can’t change their business practices on a dime. This opens the gates for small press and independents that have a lower cover prices. There will always be a place for printed books, art, coffee table books, and photography. I predict by the next generation, the small paperback will be largely replaced by the downloaded eBook.

How did you come up with the title of your book?
My heroine, Jordan Davis, runs a funeral boutique named Last Wishes: You Wish It—We Guarantee It. One of her clients is a murder victim. She leaves a last, secret wish for her godson, which is revealed when the will is read. This wish challenges his sense of self and turns the lives of all those around him inside out.

Please tell us a little bit about Last Wishes?
It is a murder mystery and study of life in a small Virginia city. In the American South, the location is as much a character as the people in the story. The South has been shaped by the Civil War, sultry, humid summers, moonshine liquor, and Bible-thumping preachers. Its people are patriotic, suspicious of Yankees, and interested in everyone’s business. Southerners also revel in their eccentrics yet hide family secrets beneath layers of lies. As Last Wishes unfolds, the reader learns Jordan Davis is a perfect example of this dichotomy.
In Last Wishes, Jordan obeys the law when it suits her and fulfills the needs of her clients. Right now isn’t one of those times. She knows someone is killing older women in Lynchburg. Is the killer is sexy Judge Grayson Trent or is he her only chance of unmasking the real murderer before she becomes the next victim?

Blurb: He was a judge. He didn’t break the law…at least not until he met her. Judge Grayson Trent never suspected the woman his Aunt Becca hired to handle her funeral arrangements would be the very same woman who has consumed his fantasies from the moment he saw her standing before him in court. He soon discovers she hasn’t changed her ways. Not only does she still ignores the rules when it suits her, now she’s a target for murderer. Unless she is the murderer herself.
She wasn’t really breaking the law, just bending it a little…and all for a good cause. Jordan Davis sees nothing wrong in disregarding a silly city ordinance, especially when it interferes with fulfilling the last wishes of her clients. To her Judge Trent is a narrow-minded, overbearing stick in the mud—a very sexy and hot stick in the mud. Until it seems as if he’s responsible for several murders. Maybe the hunk of a judge isn’t as law abiding as she thought. Or maybe, they’re both in danger of being a killer’s next victim.

Excerpt:
“There she is! That’s Jordan Davis! The woman ruining our lives!”
Judge Grayson Trent winced at his mother’s uncharacteristic outburst. Normally her voice never rose above a genteel drawl, except when yelling at him. As he slanted a glance to his right, the idling engine of the motorcycle beside them drew his attention—a red Triumph Rocket III. The rider wore a one-piece red-leather catsuit that he’d swear was painted on the long-legged figure of a Sports Illustrated swimsuit cover model. A full face red helmet shielded her head from view, except for an enticing curly black ponytail brushing her lower back in the breeze.
Attached to the bike’s back, where the second seat should have been, was a red metal cage with rollbar.
He grinned at the panting black miniature Schnauzer, his front paws on the edge of the cage. He wore a custom-made red crash helmet with faceplate and a small black leather jacket. Emblazoned in red letters across the back was “Born to Ride.”
Gray chuckled. “The pooch looks capable of handling the controls.”
“It’s a trap. That sweet animal is just another one of her weapons.” Libby inched forward until they were even with the driver. “You don’t understand. She’s a charlatan! She draws in unsuspecting old people who have money with promises she’ll make their last wishes come true.”
“And this ruins our lives how.” Unable to stop himself from feasting his eyes on that red catsuit, he stared at the dog’s mistress. “Have you been fighting about Becca?”
“Gracious, no. We don’t even talk.”
“So what’s the problem?”
Then she raised the face shield on her helmet.
Their gazes met.
He groaned. “It’s her.”
She was a she-demon, a succubus. He’d seen her once, three thousand miles from here and been on fire since. He couldn’t go to sleep without seeing her dark blue eyes with touches of purple staring at him, beseeching him. Every night he imagined her splayed in his bed, her long, wavy black hair spread over his pillow filling his dreams with heat.
He hadn’t imagined he’d ever see her again. But he’d hoped he would. If he wanted his life back, he had to exorcise her from his mind, and what better time to start then now, on her home turf. That way when he left to return to California, he’d be free of her.
His eyes widened at of the look surprise on her face. Or was that interest? He hoped the former, yet both dreaded and desired the latter. As a judge and knowing what she was, he should have nothing to do with her. He snorted. Yeah, tell that to the fantasies kept up at night and put her face on every woman he was with.
Narrowing his eyes, he returned her look with his most judicial glare, the one guaranteed to put the fear of God into criminal defendants appearing before him.
Except for her.
Surprise lit her eyes. Then she did the damnedest thing—gave him a slow, sexy smile and winked.
God help him. He thought she’d learned her lesson in San Francisco when he almost tossed her in jail for twenty-four hours for defacing public property. Instead, he’d let her off with a fine and warning. If his mother was right, she hadn’t learned a thing.
The moment the light turned green, she shot him a sassy grin, tapped the shield back into place, and peeled off down Boonsboro Road, the schnauzer hanging on for dear life.

My website and blog: http://www.alyssalyons.com
Publisher: Black Opal Books
Last Wishes Released: March 1, 2011

Sale Locations:
Black Opal Books: http://blackopalbooks.com/wordpress/?page_id=626
Amazon US: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004PGO27W
Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B004PGO27W
B&N http://productsearch.barnesandnoble.com/search/results.aspx?WRD=Last%20Wishes,%20Lyons
Nook:
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/44399
ARe: http://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-lastwishes-519477-173.html

Cenora talks to Caroline Clemmons today

Interview with Cenora

Hello, this is Caroline Clemmons back again at Sherry’s blog. Today, I invited Cenora Rose O’Neill, heroine of THE TEXAN’S IRISH BRIDE, for an interview. It’s only fair, since the hero was here yesterday. 

Caroline: Cenora, please come in and sit down beside me. 
Cenora: Sure and I’m happy to be here. (She looks around, nods to Sherry.) Ma’am. You shouldn’t have worn a green dress, ma’am. It’s bad luck, you know.
Sherry - Hi Cenora, Caroline,  I understood that applied to wearing green at weddings.  I'll keep your advice in mind in future, thank you :-)

Caroline: I don’t think Sherry is superstitious, Cenora. Won’t you tell us about your early life?
Cenora leans forward: Ack, didn’t we have a lovely wee plot o’ ground and cottage? Like as not you’d think it too small, but we were that happy, we were. Then, because of a situation I’d rather not discuss here, we were forced to leave with only the things we could carry. It was a sad time, I can tell you. Probably taking down that swallow’s nest caused the bad luck. Or mayhap it was when me brother Mac tipped over his chair.

Caroline: Yes, I imagine the time was sad, but I don’t think superstitions caused your misfortune. Readers can learn the reason from the book, so let’s move on. How did you come to be with the Irish Travelers?
Cenora: Weel, we had no place but the ground to sleep, did we? Winter was coming and we were that worried I can tell you. The Travelers offered to let us come with them, for the leader then was a kind and wise man. Soon we had our own wagon, and then a second one. And you can doubt me sayings if you wish, but I know they’re true.

Caroline: I see. How did you all come to be in Texas?
Cenora heaves a sigh: Through Da’s talking to a wealthy man, we were able to come to the United States. We thought we’d find land, but everywhere people chased us or told us to keep moving. It was just the same as in Ireland. Then, our kind leader died and a brute forced his way in charge. We wandered here and there, always moving west, until we ended up near Bandera in Texas.

Caroline: Heavens, I’ll bet you were tired. How did your family feel?
Cenora brushes away a tear: Poor Ma was getting weaker and weaker. And that brute I told you was our new leader--he wanted me for his wife. Sure and weren’t we in a panic? Like as not, we forgot to make three crosses on the bread the first time we moved into the second wagon. 

Caroline shakes head: What was wrong with your mother?
Cenora: We didn’t know. The doctor we asked said it was “women’s complaints” and told her to take laudanum. Oh, but she needed more and more to ease the pain, and she grew weaker and weaker until we thought she’d surely die.

Caroline: I’m so sorry your mother suffered. What about the man who wanted to marry you?
Cenora: That boyo? Ha, I’d stab the man before I’d wed him. Didn’t his first two wives die after he’d beat them to death? And him calling each death an accidental fall. Accident, me eye. We saw the bruises on each one, and each growing old before her time from his mistreatment. Oh, I could tell you a thing or two about that man.

Caroline: But why would you stab him? Why not just say no to his proposal?
Cenora: That man wouldn’t take no. Didn’t he threaten to burn our wagons if I refused? I used Ma sickness as an excuse and said I couldn’t wed until she was well. She needed almost constant care, you see. Oh, but it was a terrible time. 

Caroline: How did you meet Dallas?
Cenora: Ah, that sweet man. Weel, I was watching the young ones while their fathers traded horses and their mothers begged door to door. Two men kidnapped me and would have had their way with me if Dallas hadn’t come to my rescue. 

Caroline: Thank you, Cenora. That brings us to the opening of THE TEXAN’S IRISH BRIDE.

Readers, don’t forget to leave a comment that you’ve subscribed for my Mostly Monthly Newsletter at http://carolineclemmons.blogspot.com to be entered in the drawing here for a PDF download of THE TEXAN’S IRISH BRIDE or one of my other books.

Please welcome author Ashley Dawn

First off, a special ‘thank you’ to Sherry for having me on your blog today! I really appreciate it.

Why writing and not something else?
I was asked not too long ago by a friend why I bothered writing when I have a full time job and two young children. I was so surprised by the question that I had to take my time in answering. Honestly, when there are so many more things I need to do with my extra time, why write? The answer is simple….I love it. I absolutely love writing stories and using my imagination as an escape from my every day life.

Do you use your kids and the rest of your family in your books?
Absolutely. I love to slide little stories that have happened in real life into my stories, as it just makes the story even more real to me. I hope my writing touches people the way the stories I write touch me. I was told soon after I started trying to get my first book published ‘always be passionate about what you write -- if you aren’t passionate about it, no one else will be either’. I have found that to be true through the whole process of writing and publishing and also just in life in general. So that is what I want to share with everyone reading the blog today, be passionate about what you love and the rest will just fall into place.

Blurb:
Shadows From The Past:

“…It is the price you pay for choosing to be a cop. Your brother’s life…”
Those words haunt her dreams, and her waking moments. LAPD officer, Aurora Kavvan cannot rest until she finds her brothers killer. Digging into the past always brings back unpleasant things: memories, guilt…the hit man. Now she is in a race against time to find the murderer before he finds her.
“Kill her. I don’t care how, and I don’t care where, but I want her dead now!”
Someone was trying to kill his dead partner’s sister. FBI agent, Jordan Reiley will stop at nothing to protect the woman he loves. Even if it means going against her wishes; putting himself between her and the man who murdered her brother.
Will God keep them alive long enough for them to find the truth?

Available from: - http://www.amazon.com/Shadows-Past-Ashley-Dawn/dp/1602472513/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1295532429&sr=1-1

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Thanks for coming by Ashley and best wishes with your book.