Dawn Colclasure Allows Me to Give Away My Pick for Best Free Download of the Year

I am so excited to offer subscribers and visitors to this blog Dawn Colclasure's new FREE book as a Christmas thank you as well as just an #AuthorsHelpingAuthors gesture for #writersblock or just maybe #craftdisplasia--if there is such a thing. Ahem.  I want to help authors avoid one of my biggest booboo--that is I didn't find the "perfect first line" for my novel until it was out of print!

 Here is is more about her freebie. I vote it the season's best free download. But don't forget Dawn's
great newsletter, now more than a year old.  Information on subscribing to it below. Just keep scrolling!

Do Not Fear the Blank Page! Let a First Line for a Story Get You Writing

By Dawn Colclasure

One way in which writers can find time to write is if they get up early in the morning to have some uninterrupted time. But what happens if everybody else in the house gets up early, too? Things get busy, there’s the rush for people to get out the door, and kids need to be transported to school. The writer hoping to grab some time to write just so they can get the words in their head onto paper may have trouble finding that time.

This is where writing down that first line comes into play. By writing down that first line I plan to use for what I want to write, I can come back to it later, when I have more time, to pick up where I left off. 

But having that first line to get started with serves another purpose as well: It eliminates the dread of facing a blank page. 

The most seasoned writers can sometimes have a hard time putting all of those thoughts in their heads into words. They know what they want to write and do have the time to write it, but facing that blank page with all of that space to fill up with words can be off-putting. It can incite a sense of dread that the words you choose to fill that blank space with must be perfect. There is the expectation that everything written on that blank page will be the final draft which everyone will read.

Even as we know this is not true, these implied feelings can keep the writer from even putting that first line onto the blank page.

But if you already have a first line written, there’s nothing to fear. The writing has begun, and it’s up to you to finish it.

That’s where my new ebook, 30 First Lines for Fiction Writers, comes in. 

By having a first line of a story or a chapter for a novel written, the writer can approach the task of writing feeling better prepared to write a story. There is no blank page they must deal with and no sense of dread on how to start their story. That first line is already written. All the writer has to do is use their imagination to write the rest.

Of course, no first lines are written in stone. The writer has the freedom to take that first line and revise it according to their own ideas, style and needs. A first line is only a suggestion or an idea. The writer can take that first line and change the point-of-view, change the dialogue, add greater detail or rewrite it according to their trope of choice.

Whatever the writer chooses to do with that first line is up to them. The point of this ebook is to provide a first line to get the writer’s creativity going and spark some ideas. The first line of a story is written; now the writer can take it from there to create the story they want to write.


Here is the blurb:

Writers of fiction often struggle with how or where to start their stories. The idea for a story isn't enough to start writing a story; a lot of times, the writer needs to figure out that first line. Just as a first line of a story can pull a reader in, it can also spark a writer’s creativity to help them get started on writing a story.

This book contains 30 first lines which can be used to help you start writing a story. It may not be the same first line used in the final draft, but a writer hoping to get that first draft written can start with any first line they so choose. 

Select a first line from any of these options and get busy writing your story! Get your free copy of this ebook here:
https://dl.bookfunnel.com/r5om5ilasi 

More About the Author

 Dawn Colclasure is a writer living in Oregon. She is a freelance writer, book reviewer, and columnist. She is the author and co-author of over four dozen books, among them her horror novel, Shadow of Samhain. Her forthcoming titles from PsychoToxin Press include the YA horror story collection, The Worst Thing You Ever Did, and the psychological horror novella, All the Beautiful Things. She also has a magical realism novel, I’ll Be Ghosting You, scheduled for a November 2023 release by Gypsy Shadow Publishing. Her work has appeared in magazines, websites and anthologies. She writes a regular column for ReaderViews.com's "First Chapter Plus", also a downloadable freebie.  Her websites are https://dawnsbooks.com/ and https://www.dmcwriter.com/. She’s on Twitter @dawnwilson325 and @dawncolclasure.

Some of Dawn's books for writers include: 

BURNING THE MIDNIGHT OIL: How We Survive as Writing Parents 

https://booklocker.com/books/1743.html 
The Big Book of Writing Challenges

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B2MC4CFP/ref=sr_1_3?crid=1XBV6LO8EIDOK&keywords=Writing+Challenges&qid=1653786330&s=digital-text&sprefix=writing+challenges%2Cdigital-text%2C125&sr=1-3 
Free Stuff For Writers 
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BC6H8PDQ 
Write for Your Life!: The Health Benefits of Writing 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BZLVZ4G9 
The Newbie Author's Guide to Getting Your Book Published 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C9R8H3C7 

Dawn is also a book reviewer. She reviews books for her blog, Dawn Reviews Books, https://dawnreviewsbooks.blogspot.com/, as well as for Reader Views. 

As a freelance writer, her work has appeared in magazines, newspapers, websites and anthologies. She is also a self-publisher. 

She publishes the free newsletter for writers, the SPARREW Newsletter, each month. The SPARREW Newsletter is a free monthly newsletter for self-publishers, authors, readers, reviewers, editors and writers! Stay updated with the latest industry news, read interviews with some of today's most prolific industry leaders, and receive a free ebook with every issue. Subscribe here: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/oQMfjTl/spring 
Her author site is at: https://dawnsbooks.com/ 
Check out the site for her latest release and to download free ebooks! 
You can check out Dawn's work as a freelance writer and read the latest issue of the SPARREW Newsletter at this link: https://www.dmcwriter.com/  
Dawn tweets as @dawncolclasure and @dawnwilson325. She is also on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dawn10325/

The SPARREW Newsletter is a free monthly newsletter for self-publishers, authors, readers, reviewers, editors and writers! Subscribe here: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/oQMfjTl/spring

MORE ABOUT THE BLOGGER

 Carolyn Howard-Johnson is the multi award-winning author of fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry. She is also a marketing consultant, editor, and author of the multi award-winning #HowToDoItFrugally Series (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BTXQL27T/ ) of books for writers including "The Frugal Book Promoter" (https://bit.ly/FrugalBookPromoIII), and "The Frugal Editor" ( https://www.amazon.com/dp/1615996001  offered in their third editions by Modern History Press. Others in that series are "How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically" (https://bit.ly/GreatBkReviews), and two booklets, both in their second editions also from Modern History Press. The booklets, "Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers" (https://bit.ly/LastMinuteEditsII) and "Great First Impression Book Proposals" (https://bit.ly/BookProposalsII) are career boosters in mini doses and both make ideal thank you gifts for authors. The one on writing book proposals is also available as an Audio Book. "The Frugal Editor "(https://tinyurl.com/TheFrugalEditor), was recently released in its third edition. It is the winningest book in this series for writers. 

 Carolyn also has three frugal books for retailers including one she encourages authors to read because it helps them understand what is needed to convince retailers to host their workshops, presentations, and signings. It is "A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques" (https://bit.ly/RetailersGuide). 

In addition to this blog,Carolyn helps writers extend the exposure of their favorite reviews at https://TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com. She also blogs all things editing--grammar, formatting and more--at "The Frugal, Smart, and Tuned-In Editor" (https://TheFrugalEditor.blogspot.com). Learn more and follow it to get news on her new releases directly from Amazon at https://bit.ly/CarolynsAmznProfile.

Great Writers' Courses--Frugally

I have been intrigued by a new product advertised in magazines like National Geographic, Time, Archaeology and the like. It is a series of courses offered by http://TheGreatCourses.com. All are taught by accredited college or university instructors—mostly colleges we would be familiar with. Their ads always publish a complete list of the individual lecture titles and give the name of the professor. These programs remind me of the ones I took a long time ago; we called them home study courses and everything was done by mail. I can remember typing up my lessons on a typewriter, folding them, and stuffing them into an envelope, licking it, and licking the stamps. Yes! Licking! 

This month the ad featured a course called “Writing Creative Nonfiction.”  I haven’t bought it—yet. The CD course is $49.95 and the DVD is $69.95, so they’re frugal enough. Lots more frugal that most courses from accredited universities. The teacher for this one is a full professor from Colby College. And the name of one of the lectures: “Writing the Gutter—How to Not Tell a Story” caught my attention. I also thought the one called “How To Not Have People Hate You” might intrigue writers who worry—a lot—about that! Perhaps I would pick up some tips for the presentations I do for writers' conferences. 

So, what’s keeping me from ordering the course? So, what is holding me back? Time. I’m still in the final throes of writing the third full book in the HowToDoItFrugally Series. It is How To Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically: The ins and outs of using free reviews to build and sustain a writing career to be released this fall. I’m through the fun part and am struggling with the Index. So maybe I need a break? What do you think?

BTW, if you are interested in checking this course out, go to http://TheGreatCourses.com/5TME. There may be some other fantastic ones that would interest you. The range of topics that would interest creative people is huge. And, if you buy one, let me know what you think, will you? 

ABOUT YOUR SHARINGWITHWRITERS BLOGGER

Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of This Is the Place; Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered; Tracings, a chapbook of poetry; and how to books for writers including the award-winning second edition of, The Frugal Book Promoter: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or by partnering with your publisher; The multi award-winning second edition of The Frugal Editor; and Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers . The Great First Impression Book Proposal is her newest booklet for writers. She has three FRUGAL books for retailers including A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques. Some of her other blogs are TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com, a blog where authors can recycle their favorite reviews. She also blogs at all things editing, grammar, formatting and more at The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor .

Valerie Allen Shares Help Naming Fiction Characters.

My guest blogger today--Valerie Allen--is an author who takes my #SharingwithWriters motto to heart. She directs several book fairs in Florida and her Amazon profile page offers a string of varied and fun fiction. She loves to help writers with their fiction, as you'll see in the article. You'll see, it isn't as easy as it appears. 

Ol’Whatshisname!

by

Valerie Allen

When naming your characters it’s tempting to give your friends, family, or coworkers a chance at their 15 minutes of fame. Before indulging in the name game consider:

1.  Names have many implications such as status, education, religion, nationality, culture, age, etc.

2.  Short names with hard sounds such as Max, Kurt, Nick, and Zena are often used for the bad guys (or gals)

3. Two syllable names and two part names are typically used for children or to portray child-like qualities: Bobby, Cathy, Jimmy, Lulu; Sally-Jean, Bobbi-Jo, Jimmy-Ray

4. Single names, multiple names, hyphenated names, and initials imply importance: Cher, Madonna, John Philip Sousa, Frank Lloyd Wright, Gertrude Hart-Taylor, Charles Miller-Wright, FDR, JFK,MLK

5. Names can indicate ethnicity such as,  Maria, Juan, Collin, Eileen, Anthony, Lisa, Nigel, Gretchen, Vijay, or Abdul

6.  The spelling of a name can imply age or character traits: Smith vs Smyth, Elizabeth vs Lizabeth, Rose Ann vs Rosanne, Lisa vs Liza vs Lissa, Carl vs Karl

7.  Names must fit the theme or time period of your story such as, biblical, Civil War era, southern, European, aristocratic, etc.

8.  Names reflect public figures or famous families during specific time periods: Franklin or Eleanor, Elvis, Shirley (Temple), Douglas (MacArthur), Amy (Carter)

9.  Nicknames are used for extroverted characters: Barb, Liz, Bill, Joe, Rick.  They can also be used to reveal characterization: Shorty, Babe, Honey, Slim, Hot Stuff

10. Use only one common name (Jack Jones) and only one exotic name (Theodora Ginasia-Peacock) per story

11.  Use unique names for each character, not: Jack, Jim, Jon, or John in the same story, nor Mary, Marie, Maria Marla, Maureen

12.  Last names follow the same rule, do not have: Jamison, Johnson, Jenson, and Jepson in the same story.

13.  Names can add special meaning or importance, as with grandfather/father/son; Sr, Jr. The III; use of family names as a first name (Fulbright, Hathaway); unisex names (Taylor, Parker, Madison); flowers (Azalea, Buttercup, Lily); gems(Ruby, Pearl); nature (Summer, River, Plum); days or months (Tuesday, Friday) (April, May, June)

If you are stuck on a name two helpful resources are The World of Baby Names and the US Census of Common Names

Readers make an association with names based on their unique experiences, however, stereotyping is alive and well. Who do you picture when you hear the name Bertha?

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Valerie Allen, author, playwright, and speaker, writes fiction, non-fiction, short stories, plays, and children's books. She is a popular speaker at writer's conferences, libraries, and community events using her book: Write, Publish, Sell! Quick, Easy, Inexpensive Ideas for the Marketing Challenged 2^nd Edition.

She is a co-founder of Authors for Authors, which supports new and experienced authors with book fairs, book launches, book displays, and writing seminars. Authors from across the US have had their books displayed at two Florida book fairs held in March and November sponsored by AuthorsforAuthors.com.

Valerie Allen can be contacted via FB, Twitter, Google+ and at VAllenWriter@gmail.com or ValerieAllenWriter.com

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 Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of This Is the Place; Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered; Tracings, a chapbook of poetry; and how to books for writers including the award-winning second edition of, The Frugal Book Promoter: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or by partnering with your publisher; The multi award-winning second edition of The Frugal Editor; and Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers . The Great First Impression Book Proposal is her newest booklet for writers. She has three FRUGAL books for retailers including A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques. Some of her other blogs are TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com, a blog where authors can recycle their favorite reviews. She also blogs at all things editing, grammar, formatting and more at The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor .

Revealing Superheroes' Secrets for Better Storytelling

My husband—sweetie that he is—brought me a copy of The Smithsonian from his dermatologist's office. So thanks to Lance and Dr. Mantel, I am now a diehard fan of the magazine.

One of the articles was inspired by the new movie, Man of Steel. They take up how "superhero origin stories inspire us to cope with adversity."

The elements that make superheroes so popular can work with characters in any kind of fiction you may write (or read). Here are the ones that Smithsonian writer Robin Rosenberg found in several of the most popular superhero tales. Check your stories and novels to see how these themes (or "life-altering experiences") might be capitalized on to further pique the interest of your readers.

~Destiny—is your character "chosen" in some way?
~Trauma—has your character suffered trauma that increased his strengths or weaknesses?
~Sheer chance—Sheer chance is usually not as compelling as an action that has been caused or motivated, but sometimes a writer just has to resort to it. If an author makes that choice, he or she should put more emphasis on how the character deals with it.
~Choosing "altruism over the pursuit of wealth and power."

My own takeaway from Rosenberg’s piece is that literary criticism of the last decade has relegated backstory in novels as pretty undesirable, something that should be minimized at all costs. In my gut, I've always disagreed. Of course, we can't let backstory get in the way of momentum, but backstory is often part of your hero’s path to character building so they very well may deserve more attention.  I’m also reading Wally Lamb’s new novel and I’m pretty sure from the evidence that he agrees with me—at least in regard to literary fiction.

Backstory helps your readers relate and find meaning in loss, and it provides models for coping. If you are a write of nonfiction, you may find ways to use superheroes' themes anecdotally in your work.

In either case, understanding the psychological underpinnings of why we are so affected may benefit us all by "tapping into our capacity for empathy, one of the greatest [super?] powers of all."

There’s one more that Rosenberg missed. I think we're all searching for connection—human to human. If that happens to be human-to-alien or human-to-superhero, so be it. It's part of what we all need as readers.

Note: Rosenberg, a clinical psychologist, has written several books about the psychology of superheroes. Search for her on Google.

-----
Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of This Is the Place; Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered; Tracings, a chapbook of poetry; and how to books for writers including the award-winning second edition of, The Frugal Book Promoter: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or by partnering with your publisher; The Frugal Editor: Put Your Best Book Forward to Avoid Humiliation and Ensure Success; and Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers . The Great First Impression Book Proposal is her newest booklet for writers. She has three FRUGAL books for retailers including A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques. Some of her other blogs are TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com, a blog where authors can recycle their favorite reviews. She also blogs at all things editing, grammar, formatting and more at The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor .

When Writers Must Kill A Character: The Craft and Emotional Strain

This guest post is about a subject that's rarely discussed--in writing classes or on the blogosphere. Aaron Lazar is a mystery writer, but "killing off" someone in a piece of fiction isn't a subject that only applies to mystery writers. It isn't just the writing of it. It's dealing with our own emotions as we do it. The great classicists did it all the time. So do writers of sci-fi, historical fiction, romance, and more. Some of my favorite short fiction in the New Yorker has done away with one or more characters. Besides Aaron has a special freebie offer for you. So keep reading.

Writing the Tough Stuff (Or Killing the One You Love)

By Aaron Paul Lazar, copyright

It’s not easy writing a scene where you kill the one you love.

Of course I don’t mean your actual spouse or lover. I mean the wife, husband, or sweetheart of your main character.

I’ve done it in my book FOR KEEPS. Thinking about it tears my heart out every single time.

That’s what I mean by “writing the tough stuff.” Sam Moore—a retired family doctor who is our resident hero in Moore Mysteries—is very much like me, except he’s twelve years older and retired with enough money to putter around in his gardens all day. Let me repeat that. All day!

I hate him for that.

Okay, so maybe that’s a little extreme, considering he’s fictional. Shall we say, I am exceedingly jealous of his lifestyle? Although Sam was a family doctor and I am an engineer, we’re still a lot alike. We both love to plunge our hands into the soft earth and grow things. We both love our grandkids so much it hurts. And we both have spouses with multiple sclerosis. There are plenty of differences, too. I cook, I write, and I take photos. Sam doesn’t. But of course, it’s not a competition. At least I don’t think so…

In spite of the fact that he’s not real (at least not in the traditional sense, LOL), I relate to this man and feel his pain when he’s hurting. Sure, you say, writers should feel ALL their characters’ pain. We have to, to get into their heads and nail the characterization. Don’t we?

But I’ll bet some characters are closer to your heart than others.

Sam’s wife, Rachel, shares many qualities with my dear wife, Dale. They both endure MS, they both love to read, they are both chair-caning artists. Some of their symptoms are the same, but that’s where they split apart. Rachel loves to cook (that’s my job in our marriage), she’s in a wheelchair, and she stays pretty upbeat, considering her challenges. They both adore their grandchildren and both love to read. Rachel’s a tribute to Dale, in all honesty. But she also has morphed into her “own woman,” too, and I love her deeply. Er... through Sam, of course. (Honey, don’t be jealous!)

In the first two books of the Moore Mysteries series, Rachel sticks by Sam’s side, supports him when he’s overcome with grief and is plagued by strange paranormal events, and loves him deeply enough to keep him sane.

That’s why it really hurt when I had to kill her.

In For Keeps, the third book in the series, life takes an awful turn. When Rachel is murdered by a serial killer, it puts Sam back in the psych ward, the same place he was thrown when his little brother disappeared without a trace fifty years earlier. Desperate to fix things, he calls on the power of the green marble, the talisman his little brother Billy controls from afar that whisks him back and forth through his past.

Unlike those of us in real life, Sam gets a “do over.” He flies back in time to desperately try to fix the problems that lead to this gruesome act, and over and over again, he attempts to tweak the past to bring his dear Rachel back to life.



How do you write such a scene without losing it? How do you make it feel authentic to your readers? How much is too much? And how can you be certain that your character’s reaction will ring true?

It’s not easy. Matter of fact, since I loosely base Rachel on my own wife, and since Sam and I are really quite alike, it was close to torture.

I called upon my darkest, most powerful emotions experienced when my father died and also when my own dear wife almost died several times in the past few years. I’ll never forget the time the nurse in the ER called the nun on duty to bring me to a little room where no one would see my reaction to her impending news that Dale might not make it. She carried a box of Kleenex under one arm and a bible in the other. She was so sweet. Yet it was one of the scariest moments of my life. Thankfully, my wife pulled through and is doing okay today.

That hollow-gut, black-sludge-in-your-heart feeling is horrible when you lose someone dear to you, isn’t it? It’s all encompassing. Sometimes you just want to deny that awful truth, and pull away—far away—like Sam does in the following excerpt. I tried to channel those feelings when getting inside Sam’s head. Let me know if you think it worked.

Here’s the setup. Sam just picked up his son, Andy, from the airport and they enter the house after arriving home. Andy’s just arrived from his second tour of duty in Iraq, and this is his long-awaited homecoming. Rachel’s been cooking all morning to welcome her boy home. All day, Sam has ignored the insistence of the green marble, which has been pulsing, glowing, and searing his leg all day from his pocket; little brother Billy—who communicates from beyond through this talisman—was trying to “warn” him that something was terribly wrong.

For Keeps is book #3 in Moore Mysteries, and is now available through Twilight Times Books and Amazon.com. The series can be read in any order.

***

Sam raced toward the laundry room in a panic. Rachel’s wheelchair sat abandoned in the hall, and his son froze in the doorway, hands clenching and unclenching at his side.


Andy’s voice thickened. “Maybe you shouldn’t come in here.” He spun and tried to hold Sam back.

One of Rachel’s shoes lay beside the doorjamb. The brown clogs. Slip on. With lambswool lining. She loved them so much she wore them even in summer.

Sam drifted closer, terror pooling in his stomach. As if in anaphylactic shock, his throat tightened and threatened to close off his air. His heart beat wildly now, in his throat, ears, chest.

Sam barreled past his son and stumbled into the room, his voice hoarse. “What happened?”

Rachel lay on a basket of laundry, her eyes wide open, looking with blank surprise at the ceiling. Sam’s garden shears protruded from her heart. The image danced before him like heat waves on tar, shimmering with unreality. Blood ran from Rachel’s floral print blouse to the sheets stained red in the basket, pooling on the white linoleum floor.

The room tilted. A series of screams of No No No No No resonated in his head. Or maybe he yelled it aloud. He couldn’t tell as he shoved Andy aside and collapsed beside her, checking for the pulse that evaded him like a cruel tormentor. Neck. Wrist. Ankles. No beating met his probing fingers.

“NO!” He drew the shears from her chest, sickened by the soft sucking sound it made, then wadded up a compress of pillowcases and held it over the wound to stem the flow. More blood dribbled from the wound and curled around her pearl buttons. He realized with a start that she was still warm.

He looked wildly about the room, as if a solution lay beneath the neatly folded piles of towels and linen. “Call 911. Hurry!” He cradled Rachel in his arms, smearing the blood between them, and feeling her arms dangle away from him, as if she didn’t have the strength to return his embrace.

Andy cried out, his anguish pinging across the small room. He squeezed between his mother’s body and the washing machine, holding his hand out to his father. “Dad. It’s too late. She has no pulse. I checked, too.”

“NO!” Sam’s mind reeled, his vision clouded, and the scent of blood tasted metallic on his tongue. “Who did this? Is he still here? She’s still warm, Andy. Find the bastard!” He stiffened when his brain repeated a phrase he’d heard during some of Rachel’s favorite shows.

Don’t disturb the evidence.

 Panic slewed over him, boiling inside his head, freezing his arms and legs.

 My garden shears. The killer took them from the barn. Used them on my Rachel. And my prints are all over them.

 A great gulping scream filled his throat, tearing out of him like a primal scream. “RACHEL!”

Her head slumped sideways when he moved away, as if she was rejecting him. He checked her pulse again, muttering under his breath. “No way. No. No.” In a sudden manic thrust, he stood and reached for the marble, searching his pockets, patting madly at his pants and shirt. “My God. Where is it? What did I do with it?” Sam asked aloud. “Billy! Why didn’t you warn me?”

 Inside the double-stuffed world that batted him between reality and nightmare, he remembered the marble’s insistent throbbing all morning. Billy had tried to warn him, had tried hard.

 "Dad, come on. You can’t help her now.” In spite of Andy’s two tours of duty in the heat of battle in Iraq, the bodies he had seen and possibly created, and his soldier-toughened soul, he wept. Loud and strong, he wept and choked on his words. “Dad. Please. Leave her be. It’s over.”

 Andy pulled him to his feet. Sam stared at his son as if he’d never seen him before. His eyes widened, trying to piece together a puzzle. Who is this nice young man? And why does he look so familiar?

 Andy took him by the elbow and started to shuffle him toward the living room.

“Come on, Dad. Let’s go sit down.”

 “No. Please. My wife needs me. She has multiple sclerosis, you know.”


Andy’s eyes popped open. Tears still streamed from them, and he shook his father’s shoulders as if he could not only snap him out of it, but maybe bring back his mother, too.


“Dad! Come on. Hold it together. Don’t do this.”

Sam stopped and stared at his bloodied hands. His legs weakened to jelly. He stumbled, then braced himself against the wall as sobs wracked him in waves of increasing amplitude. He slid to the floor and buried his face in his hands.


Rachel.

 Dear God.

 Not Rachel.

 ***

 Thanks for reading! I hope you were drawn into Sam’s world, and that you might want to see how our favorite retired family doctor gets out of this one.



FREEBIE! The FOR KEEPS Kindle eBook will be free to all readers on Sept. 14^th, 15^th, and 16^th 2012, as well as on October 12^th and 13^th. Please stop by for your free download here. Also, all of my other books in my three mystery series will be priced at $1.99 during this sale. Check them out at http://www.lazarbooks.com.


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Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of This Is the Place; Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered; Tracings, a chapbook of poetry; and how to books for writers including the award-winning second edition of, The Frugal Book Promoter: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or by partnering with your publisher; The Frugal Editor: Put Your Best Book Forward to Avoid Humiliation and Ensure Success; and Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers . The Great First Impression Book Proposal is her newest booklet for writers. She has three FRUGAL books for retailers including A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques. Some of her other blogs are TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com, a blog where authors can recycle their favorite reviews. She also blogs at all things editing, grammar, formatting and more at The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor . If your followers at Twitter would benefit from this blog post, please use the little Green widget to let them know about this blog:

Six Tips to Awaken Your Inner Muse from Kala Ambrose

Today's guest on SharingwithWriters is Kala Ambrose who will be a fellow presenter at the Book Em book fair in North Carolina in February of 2012. It's always exciting to network with authors, grow friendships with those who share our passion for writing. Today she gives us her favorite six tips for keeping that passion going.

Six Tips for Inspired Writing

By Kala Ambrose

The ancient Greeks spoke of nine Goddesses called Muses who ruled over the arts and sciences and provided inspiration to all who called upon them for assistance. As writers, we can appreciate the opportunity to receive an extra dose of inspiration in our work. Perhaps it’s time to ask the Muses to bring forth insight from the depths of your imagination and personal experiences in order to create enchanting tales.

Here are Six Tips to Awaken Your Inner Muse:

1.     Look Within and Ask Yourself These Two Questions

Who Am I and Why Am I Here?  When you can identify who you are at the core level, your authentic voice becomes clear in your writing. When you understand the reason you write, your words will resonate with power, purpose and conviction.

2.     Discover the Secret of Persistence and Tenacity

As writers, we often want to wait until inspiration strikes before we write.  A common theme among best selling writers is that they dedicate time to writing every day, even when they don’t feel inspired, even when they have no idea what to write and even when they aren’t in the mood to write. The commitment to the work establishes a habit that leads to better writing.

3.     What Do All Great Writers Have in Common

They all love to read, read, read. Read daily. This serves as a reminder of why you want to write in order to deliver this same experience to others using your words.

4.     Be Open to Receive Flashes of Inspiration

The creative side of your brain is in constant communication with your Muse. Together they are always tossing around new ideas and when they hit on a good one, they send it out to you as a flash of inspirational thought. They deliver the message as soon as they receive it, so it may come to you in the midst of a conversation or even while in the shower. Keep a notepad nearby so you can jot these inspirations down as they arise in order to reflect later in greater detail.

5.     See the World with New Eyes

Everyday something interesting is happening around you. The key is to observe the magical forces at work in nature, in people and in the rhythm of daily life. When you can slow down long enough to observe the symbiotic interactions, there’s always a story waiting to be told.

6.     When All Else Fails, Walk Away.

If your Muse is has disappeared and you find yourself writing for several hours only to find nothing is coming together, take a break and walk away. Go do the most mundane activity, make a sandwich, do the laundry, or go for a walk. This allows your mind to relax, creating an opening for your Muse to reappear with new ideas. When you return to your desk you’ll find that the words flow, when they were blocked only hours before. 

About the guest blogger:

Kala is the author of four books including the award-winning 9 Life Altering Lessons: Secrets of the Mystery Schools Unveiled, Ghosthunting North Carolina, The Awakened Aura: Experiencing theEvolution of Your Energy Body and coming September 2012, Spirits of New Orleans: Voodoo Curses,Vampire Legends and Cities of the Dead. A highly interactive teacher on a mission to educate, entertain and inspire, Kala writes for the Huffington Post, the Examiner, AOL, Yahoo and Fate Magazine and presents workshops nationally on the Mind/Body/Spirit connection including Auras and Energy Fields, Developing Business Intuition, Haunted History and Wisdom Teachings at the Omega Institute, John Edward Presents Infinite Quest, the Learning Annex, LilyDale Assembly, and the Daily Om

Noted wisdom teacher, author, intuitive, inspirational speaker, and host of the Explore Your Spirit with Kala Radio and TV Show (www.ExploreYourSpirit.com), Kala Ambrose's teachings are described as discerning, empowering and inspiring. Whether she’s speaking with world-renowned experts on the Explore Your Spirit with Kala Show, writing about empowering lifestyle choices, reporting on new discoveries in the scientific and spiritual arenas or teaching to groups around the country, fans around the world tune in daily for her inspirational musings and lively thought-provoking conversations. Kala is the author of four books:

Follow Kala on

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http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/exploreyourspirit/id412793161?mt=8#

----- Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of This Is the Place; Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered; Tracings, a chapbook of poetry; and how to books for writers including the award-winning second ediction of, The Frugal Book Promoter: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or by partnering with your publisher; The Frugal Editor: Put Your Best Book Forward to Avoid Humiliation and Ensure Success; and Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers . The Great First Impression Book Proposal is her newest booklet for writers. She has three FRUGAL books for retailers including A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques. Some of her other blogs are TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com, a blog where authors can recycle their favorite reviews. She also blogs at all things editing, grammar, formatting and more at The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor . If your followers at Twitter would benefit from this blog post, please use the little Green widget to let them know about this blog:

Staying Out Of Hot Water While Improving Your Craft

Valerie Allen is a writer who does much for other writers, including guest posts like this one.  Details in writing, rather than the general, is so important. Having said that, we both suggest that you take your concerns about trademarks and other legal issues to a copyright attorney.

 

Facts in Fiction

By

Valerie Allen

All fiction is not fictitious. To write good fiction, you must get your facts right and add interesting details to lure your reader further into your story. Below are some of the most common questions about facts in fiction, and although this is not legal advice, it is common information within the publishing industry. When in doubt, it may be best to check with a lawyer with specific questions.

Names of Real People

Can you use the names of real people? The answer is of course, yes and no. Yes, if it is a public figure with a known and accepted reputation. This would include: Jesus Christ, Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King, Jr., Bill Gates, Princess Diana, Mother Theresa, and similar persons living or dead. The answer is no, if it is your mother, brother, neighbor, coworker, or classmate. You can reference the names of those in public office, entertainment, and sports. Still, you must be cautious. Just because a person is well known, doesn’t mean it is open season to use his or her name.

Names of Places

Again, if it is well known or a generic place, you are probably safe to use the exact name. Such places as Las Vegas, New York City, Disney World, The Rocky Mountains, and so on. Be careful of using trademarked or copyrighted names.

If the place named is specific or you are using it in a negative sense, better to create an entirely different name. For example, you may use Miami in your murder mystery, depicting it as a high crime city. However, the citizens, Chamber of Commerce, local and state governing bodies may take offense. They may discourage readership with boycotts, ban or limit it from their libraries, protest to the publisher, or bring a lawsuit. Likewise, do not use the name of your hometown if it has a population under 50,000. The people in small towns may claim your story is libelous, your fictionalized characters are too similar to real people, and your plot too close to reality in a small town. Create a new name for your small town, perhaps, Pintsville.

Names of Companies or Agencies

If you are going to write a story about insider trading, do not use the name of a real financial planning firm. If you are going to write about deliberate medical malpractice, do not use the name a real hospital, medical company, or physician.

If you create a new name, be sure it is significantly different from the original. The words, spelling, and phonics must not be confused with the actual name. For example, do not use American Air Lines, America Air Line, or American Aero Lines. Do not use Raymond James Stadium, Ray James Stadium, R. James Stadium, or Raymond James Sports Arena.

There are specific names, which are so common they have become generic, and are usually safe to use. For example, there are likely hundreds of George Washington High Schools throughout the United States. The same is true of Main Street, Riverfront Park, the First Christian Fellowship, and The National Bank.

Names of things

Careful here. Most objects are trademarked and/or have copyrights. You are safe to use a general descriptor instead of the brand name.  Here are some common items we know by brand name, but should describe as follows:  cotton ear swabs, facial tissue, inline skates, copy machine, an American made motor cycle, and cola soft drinks. When writing fiction, you can use the actual name, but must identify it as the brand name by capitalizing it, such as, Kleenex, Xerox, Harley Davidson, Coke, and so on.

Check your Facts

When including directions, landmarks, distance or time check for accuracy. New Hampshire is West of Maine and East of Vermont. Palm Beach is about 50 miles north of Ft. Lauderdale. Disney World and Disney Land are two different places, in two different states.

Use exact street names or specific places to add interest to your writing. When your characters are traveling to and from locations, some things you could include are a landmark, waterway, annual festival, or product that might draw their attention or create a plot point.

Facts in fiction can add intrigue, enrich the scene, move the story forward, and/or reveal character. A geographic location or topography can ease or complicate the story line. Research is done quickly and easily via computer.  Find details that are correct and will add richness to your writing—without getting you into a legal dispute.

~Valerie Allen, psychologist and author, has published novels, short stories, and mid-grade children’s books. She teaches writing workshops using her book, Write, Publish, Sell! Quick, Easy, Inexpensive Ideas for the Marketing Challenged. She also sponsors two book fairs each year in Brevard County, Florida. Her self-help book, Beyond the Inkblots: Confusion to Harmony is pending publication. Valerie is founder of Authors for Authors, and is member of the Space Coast Writers’ Guild and the National League of American PEN Woman. Valerie can be reached at www.ValerieAllenWriter.com  or VAllenWriter@cs.com. You can follow her at  www.Facebook.com/Valerie.Allen.520

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Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of This Is the Place; Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered; Tracings, a chapbook of poetry; and how to books for writers including the award-winning second ediction of, The Frugal Book Promoter: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or by partnering with your publisher; The Frugal Editor: Put Your Best Book Forward to Avoid Humiliation and Ensure Success; and Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers . The Great First Impression Book Proposal is her newest booklet for writers. She has three FRUGAL books for retailers including A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques. Some of her other blogs are TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com, a blog where authors can recycle their favorite reviews. She also blogs at all things editing, grammar, formatting and more at The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor . If your followers at Twitter would benefit from this blog post, please use the little Green widget to let them know about this blog:

Crafting a Distinctive Writing Voice

I love to occasionally revisit basic craft on this blog. I think we always learn something from it. Take today's subject, as an example. Many of the readers of this blog have developed a voice, of course, but what of the time they run into a topic or theme that seems to call out for something else.  How about examining the tone of your "usual" voice to see if it can be tweaked? Today's guest Nadia Jones is new to this blog. Enjoy!

How to craft a distinctive writing voice

Guest Post by Nadia Jones

The late Christopher Hitchens wrote often about the art of writing. In his early years as a journalist, he found writing to be a laborious task that felt forced and left him feeling uninspired. In one of his last essays he spoke about the simple yet lasting bit of advice given to him by Sam Hoggart of The Guardian that changed his writing style forever. He told Hitchens to write “more like the way that [he] talk[ed],” and he found writing to be much more natural thereafter. Had he never realized the power of his writing voice, we may have never had the opportunity to read some of his best works.

As a writer, you should strive to find that same “aha!” moment where you come to realize the power or your individual voice as a writer. Almost all writers start with the same generic narrative voice, the one that blandly depicts thoughts, events, dialogue, and characterization through basic description. This is the voice that children employ in elementary and middle school writing exercises, the kind of voice that you would expect to read if the average person were forced to write about their day—just the facts.

Writers, of course, could never sustain any kind of fruitful career with that kind of bland writing style. No one wants to read uninteresting stories with little to offer in the way of imagination or depth of meaning. So how do you hone a style that communicates your individual perspective, whether you’re writing fiction or otherwise?

Somewhat paradoxically, I think the best method of discovering your distinctive writing voice is by studying the prominent writers that inspire you. If you’re an aspiring short story writer with a penchant for the sparse prose of Raymond Carver or Ernest Hemingway, look to their works as sources of inspiration. Write stories as if you were their ghostwriter, imitating their style and word usage. Eventually after you do this for a while you’ll find that you run into areas that don’t quite sound right to your writing ear, or you’ll have a desire to tweak the written aesthetics of a piece. This is where your distinctive writing voice comes into play, at the point where you have to stop and tweak an imitation piece so it better fits your preferences. Before you know it, you’ll start writing stories in a style that’s entirely your own, and you won’t need the crutch of imitation to keep you afloat stylistically.

While you may very well develop a unique writing voice, it’s important to bear in mind that you’ll never be free of stylistic comparisons. Any work in fiction, nonfiction, or journalism by a prominent author will inevitably spark a comparison to some earlier forbearer whose work will seem foundational to the present author’s writing style or content. And this is to be expected of all writers; you’re not reinventing the English language, you’re simply furthering its tradition.

Author Bio:
This is a guest post by Nadia Jones who blogs at online college about education, college, student, teacher, money saving, movie related topics. You can reach her at nadia.jones5 @ gmail.com.

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Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of This Is the Place; Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered; Tracings, a chapbook of poetry; and how to books for writers including the award-winning second ediction of, The Frugal Book Promoter: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or by partnering with your publisher; The Frugal Editor: Put Your Best Book Forward to Avoid Humiliation and Ensure Success; and Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers . The Great First Impression Book Proposal is her newest booklet for writers. She has three FRUGAL books for retailers including A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques. Some of her other blogs are TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com, a blog where authors can recycle their favorite reviews. She also blogs at all things editing, grammar, formatting and more at The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor . If your followers at Twitter would benefit from this blog post, please use the little Green widget to let them know about this blog:

Writing Noir: Bogey, the Maltese Falcon and You

Guest blog from the ever-great researcher Mindy Phillips Lawrence.  She really digs up the resources on any subject she covers!

Noir and You
By Mindy P. Lawrence

Think BOGEY in The Maltese Falcon and you’ll know the gist of Noir Writing. It’s a dark, somber, unsentimental depiction of violence and sex pioneered by writer Carroll John Daly in the 20s and perfected by Raymond Chandler in the late 30s. Characters such as Sam Spade and Philip Marlowe depict hardboiled detectives who look at their gorgeous female clients but are not blinded by them. These men are tough, have an attitude and solve crimes at the drop of a hat while facing incredible danger.

Noir is French for “dark” and fits the writing style perfectly. In John D. MacDonald’s story Darker than Amber, a sentence reads, "We were about to give up and call it a night when somebody threw the girl off the bridge." BAM! You are in the middle of the shadows of noir fiction. And you KNOW the main character won’t stop until he finds out who tossed that girl in the water.

There are women writing noir as well. Sara Parensky, Dorothy B. Hughes, Vera Caspary, and Sue Grafton at times, use this sinister method of story telling. Women can be hardcore, too.

If you enjoy reading this kind of writing, and love Bogart, maybe you should try to pen your own dark novel or screenplay. Sounds like a plan to me. Here’s writing at you, baby.

LINKS

Rules for Writing Noir Short Stories

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080707174403AADDDt9

The Crime Time Café

http://crimetimecafe.blogspot.com/2006/07/writing-noir.html

A Rendezvous in Noir with Neal Pollack

http://www.mediabistro.com/courses/salon/noirwriting.asp

Film Noir

http://writinginwonderland.blogspot.com/2011/04/notoriously-noir-and-writing-today.html

Oscars for Noir

http://www.oscars.org/events-exhibitions/events/2010/noir.html

The best noir writing on Berlin, Paris, Venice, Amsterdam, London and Dublin ever?

http://thecity-litcafe.typepad.com/the_citylit_cafe/2011/02/the-best-noir-writing-on-berlin-paris-venice-amsterdam-london-and-dublin-ever.html

Donald E Westlake

http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/fiction/article2930115.ece

Noir Writing

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hardboiled

Women in Noir

http://www.bookslut.com/features/2008_12_013763.php

~ Mindy Phillips Lawrence, www.freewebs.com/mplcreative, is the author of the poetry collections One Blue Star and Above and Below. She is co-author of The Complete Writer and a publicist. She is in the process of researching a novel titled Alone is Where We Begin. Blogging at: http://mplcreative.blogspot.com/.

Her specialty is helping writers with their media releases. Reach her at mplcreative1@aol.com.

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Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of This Is the Place; Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered; Tracings, a chapbook of poetry; and how to books for writers including, The Frugal Book Promoter: How To Do What Your Publisher Won't; The Frugal Editor: Put Your Best Book Forward to Avoid Humiliation and Ensure Success; and Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers . The Great First Impression Book Proposal is her newest booklet for writers. She has three FRUGAL books for retailers including A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques. Some of her other blogs are TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com, a blog where authors can recycle their favorite reviews. She also blogs at all things editing, grammar, formatting and more at The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor . If your followers at Twitter would benefit from this blog post, please use the little Green widget to let them know about this blog: