Naomi Dawn Musch

What sort of novel would you read twice? With so many new books releasing every day, it's not often I consider giving a book a second go-round. Yet, some stay on my shelf because I hope to revisit them someday.

I did that last week. I'm a big Angela Hunt fan, especially when it comes to her historicals. I first read Afton of Margate Castle at least ten years ago, and it's one of those books that will always remain in my library. But when it recently turned up as a free read for Kindle, I couldn't resist downloading. I took a glimpse, remembering the characters rather quickly, and before long I was hooked again.Caught in the story of a young, innocent girl dealt a harsh, evil hand, I was as bound by the tale as if I'd never read it before.

Why? What magic does Ms. Hunt imbue in her style that can hook a reader two times around?

Hunt is one of the reigning queens of Christian fiction, yet Afton of Margate Castle was her first novel written for adults. She'd spent previous years writing in other venues.

So how did Hunt so successfully craft Afton's story? She followed the first two rules of great story-telling.

***Hunt finds what is great and strong in her characters and shows it in large or subtle ways at the onset. Then as she continues rounding out their lives, giving them even further dimension, she drops them into bigger-than-life situations that are seemingly beyond their ability to handle. But the situations serve to nurture those seeds of greatness inside them and force them to grow.

Here is young Afton, a simple villein and eldest sibling in a large family on her lord's estate. Only a child, she is proven to be sweet natured, uncomplaining, and hard working. But her uncommon beauty and poise have caught the eye of the earl's wife, Lady Endeline, who desires to raise another child, a little girl. She takes Afton from her family, as is her right, and raises her as a companion to her own plain, stubborn daughter. But the lady's desire for Afton soon turns to jealous aggravation as Afton's noble nature doesn't seem to rub off on the true daughter, Leinor. On the other hand, it does catch the eye of the mistress's son. But Lady Endeline will not allow a bond to form between her son and the daughter of a plowman. The woman's desire for Afton soon turns to bitterness toward the girl, and before Afton is even a teenager, she is thrust into forced marriage to the town miller, a jealous, brutal man.

I don't want to give anything away. If you haven't read it, you should. But the point is, Hunt's characters are like gladiolas in a sea of dandelions. They stand out. They're vibrant, developed, alluring. Most of all they have strengths that may seem small or common, but dropped into tenuous circumstances, traits such as industriousness or compassion become determination and honor.

***The next rule of good story-telling Hunt follows once she drops her characters into a sea of untoward circumstances, is to send out scenes in rippling waves -- cresting, receding, cresting, receding. Each and every scene moves the story forward, but just as the protagonist seems to balance on the brink of certain joy, Hunt plunges her again into the abyss of misfortune. With each betrayal, heartache, and yearning, we care more and more so that we must keep reading, we must keep riding those waves, hoping for a favorable outcome.

As young Afton is enjoying both the familial chores and joys of carefree childhood, she is ripped from her home to live in the castle and her loving mother is forced to reject her. Then, as she learns to trust lady Elendine and love her son, Elendine casts her into a terrible marriage and her son is sent off to the crusades. When Afton finally finds some measure of peace and joy in raising her own child, Elendine interferes yet again.

And it doesn't stop there. Wars, revenge, secrets and betrayal, the passing of years -- all keep Afton from knowing forgiveness, trust, and true love. As each scene wave brings us closer to the shore of resolution, our tension grows.

Angela Hunt is known for her ability to bring the unexpected to her readers.

More, of course, is required to make a novel sing, but by hinting at greatness in her characters, and by moving the story forward to climactic moments within each scene then pulling back to leave readers breathless with anxiety and hope, the first two rules and perhaps the biggest are accomplished.

May we all learn such craft and technique as we--

Write On!

"...moving and powerful love stories that evoke your emotions and reduce you to tears." - Review

Amazon: http://tinyurl.com/7m5a5ah

Barnes & Noble: http://tinyurl.com/3gelmzp

Desert Breeze / Other Formats: http://tinyurl.com/43jbuvd

I can never ignore a new novel spin-off the ever-enchanting Beauty and the Beast story. Now Melanie Dickerson has put her own stamp on this timeless tale. It's one of the best I've read so far.  In The Merchant's Daughter, Ms. Dickenson doesn't adhere to a magical or fantasy telling of the childhood story, but sets it in a very realistic medieval village, in mid-1300s England.

What I liked most about this book was the way she managed to bring the original story elements into this realistic setting:

**The heroine, Annabel, is a merchant's daughter whose father's ships were destroyed. After his passing, she lives with her very slothful brothers and her rather vain mother. I liked that Ms. Dickerson included this family element. Many versions of the tale over the years have included various numbers of "Beauty's" siblings. Did you know there were 12 in the original? Nothing like the Disney version, huh?


**Readers are given a valid reason for Annabel to wind up at the beastly Lord Ranulf's estate. She's indentured to pay the fine for her family's failed responsibility to do their share of work during the village harvest. She goes willingly, knowing that her family ought to have worked.

**Anabel is pursued by an underhanded bailiff who is thought of highly by the villagers, but who is a threat to Anabel's future and personal safety.

**Lord Ranulf is scarred both physically and emotionally by his past. His countenance is dour and his mannerisms brusque, giving him a terrifying reputation.

**Ms. Dickerson slips in the rose from the original story providing a symbolic correlation to Ranulf's death becoming imminent if Anabelle won't save him.

**Ranulf's utter transformation at the end from "beastly" to "princely" was beautifully written, and I loved the way the author managed to keep this element in the story without the magic of the fairytale.

The only criticism from a writer's perspective, and one which I doubt will matter much to most readers, was an occasional slippage from the deep point of view usually desired, with an occasional indulgence in telling and be-verbs. But such occurences were slight and easily overlooked by the rest of the story's dynamic plotting and dialogue.

I thought the major theme of discrimination was handled adroitly in The Merchant's Daughter, but my favorite story premise emerged in the line, "...love is greater than justice." Even though justice was served in the end, I found it a resonating truth that it's better to show mercy than to be right.

Ms. Dickerson's novel provides readers the pleasant escape we all need now and then. I enjoyed being carried away into it. That, at least, was magical.

Write on!

Once again, Patti Lacy writes a book that proves she is a writer's writer. She never takes on small challenges, and in her latest novel, Reclaiming Lily, she mines the rich veins of story involving a family whose foreign adoption involves intrigue and heart-wrenching drama.

The layers to this story come down one atop the other, turning this way and that until they're woven tighter than a grass tatami mat.There's the adoption from China seen both from the side of the woman whose heart has long ached for a child, and through the eyes of the child's older sister who hoped to reclaim her sibling from the orphanage and bring her back to her birth family. Finally, it's seen through the eyes of the teenager who remembers the loss, abandonment, fear, hatred, and displacement she struggled through being left at an orphanage during turbulent times, and then adjusting to growing up in a new country.

As writers, we know that effective layering creates an unforgettable story. With each layer and sub-theme a writer puts down, there's another reason for that character and story to weave into a reader's subconscious and stick there. But weaving those layers seamlessly is an art. I guess that's why we call it "craft". Crafting layers takes practice and a great deal of thought. This is where plotting is especially helpful. SOTP-only writers surely must have more difficulty with layering.

As writers of Christian fiction, we are challenged to write about realistic situations without using a preaching voice. Reclaiming Lily speaks to the tragedies of civil unrest, culture clashes, self-mutilation, teenage rebellion, and the devastating effects of genetic disease. Ultimately, it's a story that weaves the faith factor in so realistically, especially for Kai, Lily's unbelieving sister, I couldn't help but be moved. 

As writers, we know what Patti accomplishes is no small task. Her research seems to have been impeccable. Writing a story with such breadth and depth as this requires patience as well as skill. The urge to tell a story while skimping on the research is often a temptation. We want to get to the emotional stuff, the action, those scenes we hope will fill the reader with angst and titillation. But Patti must have taken a great deal of time to explore the many avenues of research this story required. Without it, the telling would have fallen flat and left us doubting.

As writers, we have to tie the knot. Ms. Lacy brings about a huge twist in the plot eventually providing a superb "Ah-ha!" moment, and the ending is both dramatic and satisfying. It's definitely women's fiction worth reading. It will stay with you. It will show you how all those thematic elements come together.

Write on!

I just finished reading Susan May Warren's terrific WWII novel Sons of Thunder from her Brothers in Arms series. It's a compelling story, fraught with tension, layered like a theme-and-character-deli sandwich, and structured on an aching love triangle involving a pair of brothers and the woman they both love.

Interestingly enough, I began reading this as my own novel The Red Fury is about to release from Desert Breeze Publishing (10/15/11). It's also a story spun on the heels of post-war trauma, of past regrets, of searching for meaning --and most similarly -- of a love triangle involving a pair of brothers and the woman they both love. http://tinyurl.com/3qkt4c9

The love triangle is a center-piece theme found often in fiction, whether it's women's fiction, romance, suspense, or just about any genre you can come up with. Why? Because it works. It's a natural ramp to tension. We're told there are only so many plots in the world, and since this one is a biggy, the real trick is to write it in a new way that will make a reader's heart sizzle.

Sons of Thunder and The Red Fury both tackle the classic problem of torn love. While the reader may understand the direction the love relationship ought to go, he or she should deeply feel the plight of all involved. It isn't really a love triangle if one of the parties doesn't truly ache with love and commitment.

Picture a physical triangle for a moment. An object with three straight sides and three angles. The sides and angles don't have to be equal,or they could be. Triangles can be shaped as differently as story plot itself. Character relationships can differ in degrees of love, passion, faithfulness, yearning.

But the closer they are to being equilateral, the bigger the quandary of the characters will be. Building a love triangle's shape will depend somewhat on how you intend to solve the problem -- pulling out one leg (character) of the triangle and allowing the other two legs to fall together and intertwine.

Ways to solve the love triangle problem vary. They might include:

• The death of one lover
• Distraction of one lover by another party
• Unsolved - One party merely goes away, perhaps finds love in another book

Whichever means you use to solve the love triangle problem, it has to make sense. It has to be satisfying. It shouldn't be plainly expected. And it must tear at the heart.

Option #1 - You know how it is when you kill off a bad guy in a book. Sometimes it causes rejoicing. But sometimes the bad guy is redeemed or at least reconciled to the opposing characters, and you feel a sort of sorrow in killing him off. Well, if the death of a bad guy can cause an emotional bump, think of the emotions likely to roil if you're killing off a party in a love triangle. It's going to be a lot more wrenching if he's likeable or heroic. So give him those qualities. Give him some redeeming feature that will help the lover feel the stab of his loss while at the same time finding even greater solace with the love interest that remains.

Option #2 - If the choice for one party in the love triangle is to become distracted by another party (a new love) it shouldn't be that the party being left is utterly relieved to not have to make a choice. Make the reader care that something important has been lost, even though something new and good can now grow. That's just how it is in real life. Seriously, haven't you ever been an eye-witness to the heartache of a true love triangle? Letting go is hard, even if there's someone else to help ease the pain. Pieces of broken heart can mend, but they can never be returned.

Option #3 - It can be compelling if one character simply goes away to nurse his/her wounds. It peels at the heart to watch someone lose at love if they have no other love to turn to. In series stories this is a likely option because it helps readers see growth and maturity in a character who will likely find even greater love in another book.

Writing the love triangle and solving its nuances takes some delicate balance and a real ability to see the situation from all angles. And that, of course, is what makes it so much fun to write.

Write on!

I have an interesting combination of guests today. Crime Fictionista, Nike Chillemi is here along with the two protagonists from her historical romance mystery, Burning Hearts.

Welcome to Secrets Sunday! To start off, tell us something readers might not know about you, Nike.

Nike: I'm often called the Crime Fictionista. That's due to my passion for murder mysteries, detective stories, and thrillers. However, I'm also a lady, implied by "fictionista," and I also like some romance in my stories. The novels I write are known for equal parts mystery, action, and romance.

You write a romance and Burning Hearts is also Historical. What is it that particularly draws you to Inspirational Romance, and do you usually write in the historical sub-genre?

Nike: My break-out novel, Burning Hearts, is set at the close of World War II (1946) on the Great South Bay of Long Island, NY. I've been intrigued by that era for quite a while and decided to put my hand to writing about it. It's a time when America came out of the pain and loss of a war that they hoped would end all wars. The nation pulled together, became a little wiser about evil in the world, and America rose up to even greater heights. I admire the America of that era and wanted to look back at it. I don't think of myself particularly as a Christian writer or an inspirational writer. I write fast-paced murder mysteries with a strong romance element and they have Christian characters. I try to make all my characters as believable as possible. My Christian characters talk and act, as I know Christians do. My bad guys also behave quite badly and you may find an occasional mild profanity in my stories.

Burning Hearts is an eBook. What drew you to an eBook-only publisher?

Nike: Desert Breeze was open to publishing a romance that had equal time for murder/mayhem, and action in its plotline. So, it was a natural fit for me. They give their writers a lot of creative freedom, which I appreciate.

In a sense, writers "meet" their characters like we meet anybody. We see them at some place (imaginatively speaking) and we approach them, get to know them; how did you first meet  Lorne and Erica, your protagonists?

Nike: I wish I could come up with something exotic to tell, but it ain't so. I get ideas for novels all the time. Some of them are quite bad ideas. I put them all into a file that's kind of a think-tank for plots. The plotline for Burning Hearts kept jumping out at me. Many moons ago,when I first started this writing adventure I took the Harlequin free writing course that was offered then. It consisted of many in-depth weekly lessons. I still use a version of their characterization outline. So, I started a biography folder for the book and, using that outline, started fleshing out my hero and heroine. My hero rode a Harley and my heroine sported slacks in the village and it outraged some. Their names came to me and I began fleshing out their life story.

Well, let me ask your main characters  a few questions. Lorne, you roll right into the opening chapter of Burning Hearts on your Harley and become a local hero, though a number of people resent you for it. Yet you seem a humble sort. How did you feel about Nike deciding to write your story? Were you comfortable baring your soul to her?

Lorne: Thank you for having me here, Miss. I wasn't entirely comfortable with having my life spread out over the pages of some electronic kind of book. I'm a private sort of fellow. But it turned out all right and people seem to enjoy reading it.

Your Harley is your pride and joy. Tell us about it. Did you let Nike have a ride?

Lorne: I functioned basically as a courier in France during the war and rode a Harley Davidson WLA which was produced to US Army specifications. It was a fine machine. When I returned to the states, I was lucky to find one that was the civilian model and I bought it. I don't allow anyone to ride my Harley, but if I were ever to make an exception, which is doubtful, it would be for Nike.

Here's an even more serious question for you, Lorne. Did you arrive in Sanctuary Point with any profound regrets or secrets from your past?

Lorne: I arrived in Sanctuary Point running from my past. I had more regrets and secrets than anything else. I didn't like to talk about them then, and I don't like to talk about them now. Sorry, but your blog followers, and I'm not too sure what a blog is, but they'll have to read the book to find out more on this subject.

Well, that is secretive! But I'm sure you can tell us, what was your faith like when you arrived?

Lorne: To tell the truth, my faith was nearly nonexistent. I knew there was a God. I wasn't totally ignorant. It's just that I was very angry with Him. I even pretty much knew it was okay to be angry with Him. The hard truth about life is that it's not always pretty and my life hadn't been pretty. My faith had to mature for me to be able to see a portion of the larger spiritual picture.

Thank you for being so candid, Lorne. I'll put the spotlight on Erica now.

Erica, can you relive for us, for a moment, your first reaction to meeting Lorne? (Oh, I think she's blushing.)

Erica: Well, I knew right away he was cute, but I couldn't take any time to focus on that. My friend and employer was trapped inside her burning house. Looking back on that first moment, you could say I fell for him. Actually, I was so crazed with fear for my friend that I tripped and fell right in front of his motorcycle. He stopped short so as not to hit me and helped me to my feet. Then he went into the blazing house and brought Ada out. It still breaks my heart to say this, Ada died at the hospital.

I recall that tragedy. I'm so sorry! Maybe you can tell us how you met Nike and what it was like sharing your story with her.

Erica: I became aware of Nike little by little. She set up things that were to happen in the story and I told her how I would react in those types of situations.

Are the two of you anything alike?

Erica: Oh, yes. Well, we're both of Czechoslovakian extraction. I adore fashion and can get lost in the pages of a fashion magazine. Nike is a graduate of the Fashion Institute of Technology and worked for many years in the bridal industry. We both like to wear pants. I envy Nike because in your era, pants are acceptable at all times for women.

What was your faith like on the day you walked into that burning house to search for your friend?

Erica: It wasn't as strong as it had been as a child.The loss of so many boys I'd grown up with in the war had shaken me. I began to doubt God -- not that He was God, but that He cared. I had to grow up and face that evil was a real force in the world. Just as God was good, the devil was real, and he was evil and causing evil occurrences. I could no longer blame God for bad things happening to good people.

Nike, what themes did you recognize in the lives of Lorne and Erica that you thought would be compelling for others to read about?

Nike: In a way, it was a romantic coming of age story. Two young adults who have little experience with the opposite sex fall in love and have to face some huge challenges. As their love grows, they mature into full adulthood and are able to face the more perplexing challenges of life, but they do it together.

So a terrible murder took place in Sanctuary Point,and you both faced some pretty perilous situations. Lorne, you were set up for murder, and Erica, you were nearly killed. Is there anything about those experiences you'd like to share with readers here (without giving too muchaway)?

Lorne: I felt caught in the cross hairs when it looked as if it would be a whole lot easier for the village establishment if I went down for Ada's murder. But what really shook me to the core was the thought of facing life without Erica.

Erica: To put it quite simply, I had no doubt that Lorne would turn every stone and do everything in his power to save me.

Thank you, all three of you, for joining me. Do you think you'll work together again, or Nike, are you going to spend more time with some other folks in Sanctuary Point?

Nike: I've given Erica and Lorne quite a long honeymoon. A week in Myrtle Beach and then an extended stay visiting Erica's dad's relatives before Lorne has to come back and start state trooper training. So, they're conveniently away when the next murder occurs in Sanctuary Point. 

Goodbye Noel, which is a Christmas themed historical romantic suspense is the second book. The main characters in book two are more mature and socially experienced and so I'd have to rate it a "warm romance." But it's also a Christmas murder mystery, much authors such as Mary Higgins Clark, Susan Wittig, or Carolyn Hart might enjoy penning. One of the sub-themes in Goodbye Noel is to show how Christmas was so universally celebrated across America in the mid 1940s.

Sounds interesting! I love sub-themes. How can readers connect with you and where can they buy your debut novel?

Nike:I'm on Facebook and Goodreads under my name, Nike Chillemi.

My blog: http://crimefictionandfaith.blogspot.com/

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Sanctuary-Point-Book-One-ebook/dp/B0050PJSTY/ref=ntt_at_ep_dpt_1

Barnes & Noble: http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Sanctuary-Point-Book-One/Nike-Chillemi/e/2940012411747/?itm=1&USRI=nike+chillemi

Desert Breeze: http://stores.desertbreezepublishing.com/-strse-167/Nike-Chillemi-Sanctuary-Point/Detail.bok

A sure way to ramp up tension in a novel is incorporate more than one antagonist and to give the reader a glimpse into their psyche. I prefer to do this on several levels by using man vs. man, man vs. self, and man vs. nature -- all three if possible. As a reader, I enjoy a story more when there are a variety of antagonists as well.

T.L. Higley did this extremely well in her 2011 release, Pompeii: City on Fire. I was spellbound by the number of antagonists in her story, every one of them ramping up the tension with evil presence.

Of course the primary antagonist is Mount Vesuvius itself. But even in this man vs. nature aspect, Higley gave Vesuvius character, telling portions of the story through the eyes of the volcano viewing itself as a mother-god whose children have been ungrateful and would receive the recompense for their neglect. Higley incorporates two very heinous political antagonists whose depravity knows no bounds. She also created antagonists in the gladiator arena who give the main character reasons to worry on several levels. Finally, there is the antagonist of self, which, without it, the story would contain no character arc, no growth.

As I implied earlier, it's important that readers have glimpses into the psyche of some of your antagonists. They should understand what makes them tick, even if it (hopefully does) make them despise or fear the antagonist more.

• Antagonists may be ultra-evil, and if they are evil at all, ultra-evil is even better.

• Antagonists may be merely annoying, but then they should be annoying to the point of causing upset.

• Antagonists can be weak-minded but able to cause huge stumbling blocks to the protagonist's goal.

• In the case of the "self" antagonist, there has to be continued reasons for the character to continue in a pattern of wrong thinking or misunderstanding.

 

Examine your WIP for clearly defined antagonists. Is there another way you can ramp up their hindering ability? Can they become more menacing? Is there another antagonist who can enter the plot? You can deepen your story conflict and provide more layers by considering more antagonism.

Write on!

Book Two: THE RED FURY coming October 15th!

Have you written your book's back cover blurb? How about a tagline? Tackled that synopsis yet? What about a book endorsement? Still trying on that query letter? There's a whole lot more to being a fiction writer than writing fiction. It seems that the closer you come to publication and beyond, the more you must develop a variety of writing skills.

I was pleased recently to be asked for my endorsement on Lisa Lickel and Shellie Neuemeier's new book A SUMMER IN OAKVILLE just released a few days ago from Black Lyon Publishing. Many novelists are old pros at this, but, while I'd endorsed books before through my own reviews and blurbs, I'd never written an official endorsement designed for potential cover use.  

It's kind of like a mini-review though, right? Well, sort of. More than a mini, it's a flash review, really. What could I say about the book that best captured my impression in a mere capsule of words?

If you're writing an endorsement or any other short piece designed to instantly draw a reader's attention, a lot of the grip lays in using strong verbs. An endorsement doesn't really mean much to areader unless it can immediately offer them the promise of an emotional experience. Excitement. Comfort. Laughter. These kinds of emotions and reactions come to mind. Readers want to know what the book will do for them. The rest means pulling out an impression that impacts the reader with the story's core meaning. 

As I reflected on A SUMMER IN OAKVILLE, what really struck me was how this group of 4 stories representing four people, struggling together to save the family farm, could speak to the way families understand one another, or completely misunderstand.

There's a tempted wife whose estranged marriage already hangs by a thread; her grown daughter striving to find purpose and love but falling for the enemy; a widower afraid to let go of the past and begin again; and his son, a young man trying to right his world gone rebelliously wrong.

We can all relate to such dynamics. Here are 8 words I used to describe the impact:

“A SUMMER IN OAKVILLE transports readers deep into the soul of family.”

From there, I wrote another couple of lines, but I spent time carefully crafting this first statement using the very specific verb "transports" because readers are hoping to be carried into a story, and I wrote "the soul of family" because, to me, the novel took a group of people and knitted them together into one unit, one entity, one soul. And anyone who has experienced the complications yet oneness of family knows what that feels like.

One of the best ways to get a feel for writing endorsements is to study them. Watch for verbiage and emotional impact or gut reaction. There were a number of other well-written endorsements for Lisa and Shellie's book. You can see them on the Black Lyon website:

http://www.blacklyonpublishing.com/A%20Summer%20in%20Oakville.html

Write on!

Book 2, THE RED FURY, coming October 15, 2011

If lollygagging on a hammock with a book or an eReader is your idea of perfect summer bliss (there aren't really people who dream of doing something better on vacation, are there?) then I have 4 books to suggest for your escapism pleasure before the season ends. The genres are highlighted and purchase links listed.

1.      One of my top picks for the year so far has been Lady in the Mist by Laura Alice Eakes. If you don't actually live near the sea, get a feel for the beach in this historical work that has you feeling the sand and sea salt on your skin. Romance and danger abound as Ms. Eakes explores the adventure and drama surrounding British conscription of American citizens in the early 1800s. Throw into the mix a debonair, British, indentured servant whose reasons for being in America are highly suspect, and the town's midwife who's lost her betrothed to the British ships and who also knows the townfolks' deepest secrets, and you've got a romantic adventure that will sweep you away. http://tinyurl.com/42yjgrk

2.      Fellow Wisconsinite, Lisa Lickel captured my attention big time with her themes in Meander Scar, a contemporary novel involving an older woman still married to her missing husband, and the much younger man who's come into her life. Ms. Lickel used a deft hand in taking on this edgy, taboo subject, layering the story in weavings of mystery as the heroine tries to discover the truth about her husband, and desire as the younger man, a one-time friend of her son's, makes his love and longing for her known. There are no easy solutions, which made the story a romantic and realistic read. And... the ending took me by surprise! http://tinyurl.com/4x4n7xj

And I really hope you'll download my books if you haven't checked them out yet.

3.      It's a perfect time to read The Green Veil because book 2 in the Empire in Pine series, The Red Fury, will release in October. You will just have time get swept up in this generational, historical saga before it does.

The Green Veil tells the story of Colette Palmer, a woman who makes her vows to the wrong man, just before the right one finds her.

Colette loved Manason as a girl. But as a woman in Wisconsin's virgin pine country where lumber barons rule private empires, and the wilderness dishes out its own form of justice, her vow is to his enemy. Forced to choose between them, Colette's faith and an empire in pine hang in the balance. http://tinyurl.com/3nynthp    Also, here's an excerpt:

http://www.naomimusch.com/excerptthegreenveil.htm

4.      Lastly, if you want to gobble up a book in an afternoon at the beach, try Heart Not Taken, my contemporary novella (70 pages) about high school teacher Sean Heart who's tried to put aside an indiscretion in his past while also struggling to forgive his mentor's betrayal. But just when beautiful landscaper Jordyn Delaney seems about to set his world aright, his worst fears are realized. The past is back.  And she's brought his secrets with her. http://tinyurl.com/44pdrd3

I hope you add some or all of thesebooks to your list. There's plenty of summer left to relax and float away on a great story!

Creating a page-turner is every writer's dream, a book that readers can't put down until dawn winks on the horizon and exhaustion claims them. But how do you do that? I've given a great deal of consideration to what makes a page-turner. The result of that contemplation is that we writers have to explore the core of our stories.

Starting with a good idea and traveling the discovery stage is like drawing a line through a puzzle maze from the beginning to the end. But is winding our way through a good plot enough to create a page-turner? To do that we need to create a matrix, a multi-dimensional story grid. We need to study and expose themes that matter to our characters and will resonate with readers.

We need to explore the core of our idea and ask ourselves: what are the larger issues our character is facing? Are they issues of loneliness? Guilt? The loss of a dream? Bitterness and resentment? Humiliation? Fear? Abandonment? Being caught up in an historic event? Then we need to do the same thing for lesser characters in the book. It's when these characters meet and interact, with each of their core issues exposed, that conflict is heightened. (As an excellent example, make sure you read to the end of the post to note the diversity of themes dealt with in the novel I just finished reading.)

The same thing can be said of plot. What is the plot? What will make it richer? Is the question or dilemma we are raising enough to sustain a high level of anticipation on the part of the reader? Do we need to raise more questions? That's probably certain.

Recently, I read an opening that set up the main character having trouble with nightmares. Hopefully, as the book goes on, there is much more to it than that. While her nightmares were horrible, I wouldn't be much compelled to read an entire novel to find out how she gets over them. I paused on page five. I hope that the problem of her nightmares is going to lead to some further revelation soon, or I will have to abandon the novel.

When it comes down to it, story core is established by unearthing its themes and aiming at them while we write. There are many ways to explore your story's core to discover untapped themes. You can use a story-building method like Randy Ingermanson's Snowflake Method (http://www.advancedfictionwriting.com/art/snowflake.php) or you can "storyboard" using note cards or post-its to arrange scenes. You can even use an old-fashioned outline. Just ask yourself a list of questions to discover whether each scene contains distinct conflict and whether or not it is outward or internal, loud or subtle, and whether or not it is strong enough to keep a reader going further.

You can do the same thing with character worksheets.There are plenty of them available on the internet. Or you can make up your own questions. You might start by asking your protagonist and then your antagonist, What do you most care about? What's your biggest fear? What was your darkest moment? What is your deepest desire -- Physically? Emotionally? Spiritually? What is keeping you from reaching your goal or desire?

Exploring the Core will help you nail down the important themes of the story. Without a strong main theme, and several sub-themes, it won't stick to a reader for long. It'll be nice, but forgettable.

I just finishing Elizabeth Musser's The Swan House. Her prose is rather long-winded and I found aspects of some scenes, especially near the beginning, to be repetitive. It would have been hard to stick with except that she does a superb job of building themes into her story core that created a slow but firm gripping process. In fact, she did it so well that I cried near the end. I loved the way the themes picked up like unbound threads here and there, but wove together into a perfect tapestry at the end. She made me wonder what her first thoughts were as she began conceiving ideas to write this book. Maybe they went something like this:

• I want to write a story about... a young girl coming of age in Atlanta during the civil rights unrest in the early 1960s in which she is torn between her wealthy white upbringing and her friendship with - and attraction to - a poor, young black man.  
• I want to incorporate the tragic plane crash that occurred in Paris in 1961 affecting the lives of thousands of Atlanta's citizens. I'm also intrigued by the famous, historic Swan Mansion and want to somehow include it in the story - even as an image.  
• How does the protagonist meet and develop a relationship with Carl Matthews, the young black man? Ah... through her family's maid whom she'd mostly not given much consideration toward while growing up.  
• Why does she meet him? Oh, yes, her mother is killed in that plane crash. She was a well-known artist, touring in Europe. The protagonist, Mary Swan Middleton  begins going to the inner city with her maid to "help out" at a mission as a means to focus on other people's problems and assuage her grief.
• Oh! And her mother had secrets... she'd been institutionalized and the girl had never been told the truth about her mother. She finds out during a party when another student blurts out that Mary Swan's mother was "crazy".
• It turns out Mom suffered severe, cyclical depression which affected her art.
• Mary Swan is confused about faith, and comes to discover who Jesus is through the work of an inner city mission and a woman who left luxury beind to serve others.
  
• How does she discover the truth about her mother and other secrets harbored in her family's past? Oh, a dare. A tradition of her elite private school -- a mystery that has to be solved by a selected junior classman each year, it's a mystery that winds deeper and deeper and is intricately connected to her own life.
• And on, and on...

Of course, Ms. Musser's thought processes may have worked completely differently, in a dissimilar order entirely, or maybe the complete idea just burst upon her in a dream -- I'm merely guessing. Likely, she wrote pages and pages of notes just to squirrel out the details. But the point is that one thing usually leads to another in a matrix-like novel. Themes emerge, in this case themes of racial injustice, the fragile emotions of teenage girls, the anguish of coping with death and tragedy, depression as an illness, evolving class structure in America, fractured families, salvation and faith, first love, discovering gifts and passions, and others. Ms. Musser surely must have ferreted out these themes and aimed toward them for her book to have come to such a tightly woven finish that it could produce tears! I'm pretty tough.

As writers ask questions of their characters and plant themselves deeply into their story situation, as they imagine all the nuances of era and personalities, as they consider larger issues and deeper human needs, themes and conflict will layer in grid upon grid until a story matrixe merges and a page-turner evolves. So, don't be satisfied with a simple, linear plot, and characters who have no depth of personality . Explore the core.

I'm getting all keyed up with summer's Write Reason guest line-up and going to do some visiting around blog land myself. But if, like me, you're also soaking up summer by catching up on some reading then be sure and head on over to the Edgy Christian Fiction Lovers site http://edgychristianfictionlovers.ning.com/. Monday's, Wednesdays, and Fridays all summer long members will be choosing 4 Hot Summer Reads to talk about on a tour around the blogosphere. The first post will be hosted on July 6th by Joy Tamsin David at http://www.edgyinspirationalromance.com/

By the way, have you been taking advantage of the boat load of Free eReads that are offered for Kindle, Nook, CBD Reader and others?

Right now I'm reading the free download of The Swan House by Elizabeth Musser. It's a big one, just right for digging into during the long hot summer. I admit that I had a hard time getting into it at first. Ms. Musser spent a lot of pages with her protagonist mourning over the loss of her mother in the fiery plane crash that happens in the first couple of pages. But I stuck with it, and guess what? It's a gripping coming of age story set in 1960s Atlanta. One of those that pulls at your heart. 

It's definitely not fast paced, but like a slow, southern day in July, it soaks into your bones and wraps like a vine around you. I'm liking the story of 16 year old Mary Swan Middleton who is grieving her mother, a famous and disturbed artist, and torn between the upscale world she lives in and that of her friend Carl Matthews, a black boy from the inner city who's beginning to mean a lot to her. I haven't figured out the outcome, though I'm over half way and I'm starting to have inklings. It's making me nervous. This book definitely qualifies for a Secrets Sunday. The story winds around a bunch of them, including The Raven Dare, a mystery she's been elected solve about some famous missing paintings.

I've got 7 or 8 other free reads waiting in the Kindle line-up, and a couple that I just had to buy because I couldn't take it anymore! What are you reading right now, and what's next on your list?

Oh,and since it's we're swinging up to the July 4th holiday, my sweet, summertime novella Heart Not Taken should definitely be on your list! http://www.amazon.com/Heart-Not-Taken-ebook/dp/B004EEOKAE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1304804937&sr=1-1