Writers in Heels

Annette Lyon: "City of Influence" Has Arrived

Annette Lyon — 2008-08-20T16:07:00+00:00

Nearly four years ago, my long-time friend Sarah (who I recently talked about here) gave me a call and asked if I'd take a look at a book she was working on for her job. She was (and is) a director at Corporate Alliance, a pretty cool institution that connects businesses to one another to help them all succeed.

I didn't know that at the time. All I knew was that Sarah wanted me to take my red pen all over her manuscript. Which I did. The book was unlike anything I'd ever read before: A fun story that actually taught real, helpful business principles without being dry and putting me to sleep.

Better yet, the concepts were clear, applicable, and the story was witty and well-written. I still remember lots of important lessons I learned reading it.

It's a sort of a fantasy business parable. She once described the book as, "Harry Potter meets How to Make Friends and Influence People." As out there as that sounds, it's a pretty apt description. I know I learned a lot just editing the thing back in '04, and that was several versions ago.

Sarah has slaved over this book for a very long time. At long last (yay!), The City of Influence is in print.

Check it out in all its glory here.

Congratulations, Sarah!

Writing on the Wall: Language Links and Helps

Annette Lyon — 2008-08-20T13:36:11+00:00

by Annette Lyon

A comment by Angela Michelle on one of my recent posts inspired me to post links to some great blogs that help with punctuation, grammar, and other English-language questions.

First off is the one I looked up after she pointed me toward it: Apostrophe Catastrophes (Great minds think alike; that was my post title!) After seeing enough funny wrong examples, you'll get more confident in using apostrophes correctly in your work.

Same goes with this humorous blog. It pokes good fun at misused quotation marks. I got plenty of laughs seeing signs where something very different than what is meant is implied by rogue quotation marks. The blog is appropriately called The "Blog" of "Unnecessary" Quotation Marks.

Now for a great resource: If you're unsure about a grammar, punctuation, or usage issue, consult Grammar Girl. She covers just about everything. (Her latest topic: misuse of the phrase, "begs the question." Bet you didn't even know that was an issue!) Subscribe to her newsletter, listen to her podcasts, and take her online challenge (a brief quiz). She's even got a new book out.

Not long ago, I stumbled upon another site that was not only educational, but it was great fun for word nerds like yours truly: Common Errors in English. I could spend all day surfing that site. Bookmark it; you'll want to go back to look things up when you're unsure. The man behind the site, Paul Brians, now has a book out by the same name.

If you're a total word nerd (celebrate with me!), you'll want to look into buying the Oxford English Dictionary (known as the OED) either on CD or by subscribing to it online. It's the most comprehensive dictionary in the English language and a boon to any writer's arsenal.

(Read about how it came to be in this book. The dictionary, a couple dozen volumes in length, is a truly remarkable feat.)

I rely on the OED to verify when words came into use (especially helpful with historical writing) by checking the printed quotes in a citation, which include the earliest known published usage of each word. You can also discover the history behind words, which has been loads of fun. The CD version gives you a word of the day whenever you start it up. (Mine today: familiarism.)

And remember, you can always e-mail a question to the editors here, and we'll post an answer. Find the address at the top right.

Heather B. Moore: Surprised & Humbled

Heather B. Moore — 2008-08-19T15:52:11+00:00

I just received my first official endorsement for ABINADI.

I sent a galley to Charlene Hirschi, who is the former director of the Utah State Writing Center and also a columnist for the Logan paper, The Herald Journal. That's enough to intimidate me right there.

So when she agreed to review the book, I was excited. She'd done an interview with me last year, and she was very gracious to take on yet another book.

Today she emailed me her endorsement. She actually sent me three to choose from. It made me emotional--not because I'm patting myself on the back for having a well-respected reviewer love my book, but because what she wrote really touched on the essence of the whole journey of creating a story around a man who I've come to admire and deeply respect.

Here are her 3 endorsements:

"Heather Moore once again establishes herself as the best Book of Mormon fiction writer in the business. She has created a flesh and blood Abinadi that will forever change my perception of this remarkable man, his influence on Alma, and the importance of his mission in Book of Mormon history."

"Abinadi and his mission spring to life under the pen of Heather Moore, as she once again rises to the top of Book of Mormon fiction writers. I can't wait for the next book in this series."

"Only Heather Moore could have written this book. Her Abinadi has put everything on the line for his God. This is a true love story—love of a woman, a family, and his Creator--risking all for the sake of the gospel. Even though I knew the story, I couldn't help wishing for a different outcome."

Charlene Hirschi—Regional Reads Column, The Herald Journal

Tristi Pinkston: What's Up with Families.com?

Tristi Pinkston — 2008-08-19T00:48:46+00:00

I have been a full-time blogger for Families.com for the last two years. I started out in Media Reviews, then added Movie Reviews, then LDS, and did guest blogging in Weight Loss. I love the company and I really enjoy working from home, doing what I love, writing. I also appreciate those of you who have come over to check out my blogs and see what I'm up to.

I thought I'd take a minute to explain some changes that have taken place over on the site. Many of the categories that were not getting tons of hits have been put on standby, meaning that no new content is being added at this time. You can still go and search the archives, which are fabulous -- after all, Families.com is the Internet's largest collection of family-related blogs. Two of these categories are Media Reviews and Movie Reviews, meaning that I am no longer blogging in those areas.

However, I'm still blogging in LDS and in Weight Loss, and you can come visit me there any time you like.

I haven't stopped doing book reviews, even though I'm no longer doing them for Families.com. I have a new blog, called "Tristi's Takes," and you can visit me there to see what I'm reading and what I thought of it. I'm also hosting virtual book tours over there, so be sure to add it to your list of favorites so you don't miss anything.

Again, thanks for your support over at Families.com. Things are a little different there now, but I'm still there and I still look forward to hearing from you.

Janette Rallison: How to make an impression on a panel

Janette Rallison — 2008-08-19T00:02:02+00:00

So I just got back from the children's book panel at Changing Hands. There was a nice crowd, good questions, and fun people on the panel with me. Afterward as I sat chatting with people and signing books I felt like such a professional. A real author. And then one of my friends told me that my fly had been open the whole time.

Yeah, I'll never run out of embarrassing stories.

Speaking of which I should be updating my website next week (translation--my daughter's coming home from college) and I'll put up the stories from my embarrassing moments contest.

Stay tuned!

Annette Lyon: The Mighty STET

Annette Lyon — 2008-08-18T21:55:00+00:00

I read a blog today that hit home in such a way that I wanted to jump up and down and yell, "YES! That's it exactly!" I can't explain it nearly as well, so after reading this, go check it out.

But here's my experience:

I've been at this writing thing a long time (it's been almost exactly 14 years since my first submission), and for a good chunk of that time, I've been getting critical feedback (probably 11 or so years since I got my first feedback form from a contest judge, and nearly 9 since getting major critiques by peers).

In that time, I've developed a thick skin, and I crave feedback to help me get better. A good reader or editor will point out problems in a manuscript, whether they're big (this subplot drags, and I hate this character) or little (your modifier is dangling, and you're using "just" way too often). When it comes to feedback, bring it on! I want all the warts pointed out and fixed.

So I believe every writer needs a good editor. And a good copy editor, too. (The former helps more with the big stuff, and the latter on the little, word-by-word stuff.)

But sometimes you get the occasional copy editor who, I believe, is really a closet writer, frustrated that they aren't getting published. So instead of smoothing out and polishing your book, they try to rewrite it. On top of that, they get things downright wrong.

To clarify, whenever I refer to "my editor," I'm not talking about anyone who did copy editing. Those are different people, and sometimes you'll get two or three copy editors going over the same book, none of which are my "editor." I've been fortunate to always have fantastic editors.

Almost never do I know who these contracted people are; I don't even learn their names. Some are worth their weight in gold, and I feel as if I owe them large sums for their expertise. Others . . . mmm . . . not so much.

Case in point: Not long ago I had a copy editor who added four misspellings and at least one ma-hay-jor grammar error. (Not on my watch, you don't!) This editor even questioned some of my vocabulary (he/she didn't think "pique" was a real word, for starters).

These kinds of these are a bit annoying, but they're fixable, provided I catch them before the book goes to press. (Although I'm always terrified I didn't catch something they added, and readers will assume the mistake was my fault.)

What becomes a real problem for me are those times when a copy editor tries rewriting the book in their voice. In this case, they took lots showing and replaced it with telling. Some of my best descriptions were watered down to almost nothing. Any bits of my personality and voice were stripped out and replaced with cliches and flat images. Even spots of humor were wiped out.

I have never wielded my power of STET so ferociously as I did on that manuscript as I sat there, steam coming from my ears. On every page, I scribbled it: STET! STET! STET! I felt as if I were fighting for the life of my book, as if its very soul had been sucked out, and I was trying to perform CPR to bring it back to life.

My poor editor (my editor editor, not the contracted person doing the damage) got a serious earful when I turned it back in. Fortunately, she was patient and understanding and didn't even roll her eyes at me. I don't think.

But when I picked up the next copy edit on the same manuscript, it had a note from the new copy editor on the top that I don't think I was meant to see. Something about how, "I understand this author is rather particular about her voice, so I addressed only grammar, punctuation, and clarity issues."

Great, I groaned. I'm officially a "difficult" writer.

But that thought was quickly followed by, Hallelujah! A copy editor who is learning their job!

See, copy editors shouldn't ever mess with a writer's voice. As someone who has done lots of copy editing, I know that. I try very hard to maintain a writer's voice when I do editing work. I know what it takes to clean up writing so it shines and still sounds like the original author.

Ever since seeing that note (and enduring that STET session), I've been tempted to create a label for my publisher to slap onto all my manuscripts before they go out for copy editing.

Something like:

WARNING: This writer has serious control issues. Do not attempt to tamper with her voice. She is liable to blow a gasket.

Julie Wright: Struck by The Lightning Thief

2008-08-18T17:05:03+00:00

I admit I am arrogant enough to say I write great books. But every now and again, I run across an author that turns me ten shades of green (the envy kind).

My middle son wasn’t fond of books. His dyslexia put him behind in the reading area for a long time. We led him to graphic novels, which he seemed to do better with and every month he became a stronger reader, but he still didn’t enjoy reading. It was a source of agony to me, a writer, to have a child who doesn’t love reading like I love reading.

I decided to start reading aloud with him to help him along in school last year and we picked up the Lightning Thief (yes, I know we’re behind the times and should have done this three years ago). Most of our out-loud reading involved only one chapter a day. Time is a commodity and my voice doesn’t hold out for too long.

Then one day he came home, found the book, and begged for three chapters. He said, “Please.” He offered to mop the kitchen floor, clean his room, and go to boy scouts without complaint.

A chapter for each “chore” and he used the word please.

This is nothing short of miraculous. When we finished the third chapter (this is after chores were done and after dinner), he scampered to bed with the words, “You’re the best mom! Tomorrow we can do four chapters. I’ll even clean the bathrooms so you have more time.”

I was all astonishment. My child was doing chores and loving reading. I thought I’d died and gone to heaven. Something as miraculous as this needed to be shared, so I wrote the author, Rick Riordan, to let him know how fantastic he is. And do you know what? He was as kind and funny and gracious as an author ever could be. I hope when I write books cool enough to be chore-worthy, that I can behave like Rick.

Janette Rallison: Event tonight at Changing Hands

Janette Rallison — 2008-08-18T17:04:40+00:00

Okay, granted, I know I should have posted this announcement um, sooner than four hours before the event. But if you happen to be in the Tempe, Arizona area and you want to write for kids, here's a free event you'll want to check out.

Time: Monday, August 18, 2008 7:00 p.m.
Location: Changing Hands Bookstore

6428 S McClintock Dr
Tempe, AZ 85283
480-730-0205
McClintock at Guadalupe

HOW TO WRITE FOR KIDS AND TEENS 7pm

Explore the writing, marketing, and publishing process of creating first-rate children's literature with authors J. S. Lewis (The Fall of the Templar), Janette Rallison (How to Take the Ex Out of Ex-Boyfriend), Robert Mesta (Condor: Spirit of the Canyon) and freelance magazine writer Sara Fujimura. Joining them is Christianne Meneses Jacobs, editor and founder of Iguana, a bilingual magazine for children. Panel moderated by Changing Hands Bookstore’s children’s book buyer Brandi Stewart.

Annette Lyon: Frickin' Brackin' ARGH!

Annette Lyon — 2008-08-16T00:56:00+00:00

So that's a slight exaggeration. But it is frustrating.

I've been slaving away at my work in progress, trying very hard to get it fully drafted by the end of this week. It's been a 12-week goal of mine to get it done, and I'm so close . . .

The goal isn't a random one. It's pretty important I get the book done soon, because of certain scheduling difficulties and plans I have for getting it critiqued by trusted people and getting it back and revised and submitted and . . . you get the idea.

Much of that stems from the fact that I won't be able to write for much of September, so time is of the essence here. (I'll explain why soon. It's a totally rockin' cool reason why I won't be working then. I'll blog all about it afterward. Let's just say it deserves a big huge "WOOHOO!")

Here's the deal: I have five women who are all integral to the book. Each one faces her own issue. Their problems intertwine, and the women help one another. It's been neat to see how they get along and work things out among them.

But, um, problem. Part of the story just refused to come together properly. One character's arc was misbehaving in the worst way, and I couldn't figure out how to knock the puppy back into submission. It's been bugging me for weeks. My poor husband has gotten an earful of me whining about it. I've been trying to ignore it for weeks so I could get work done on other areas of the story.

So . . . if you haven't noticed, the week and my 12-week goal end, oh, TOMORROW. And as of today, I still had no resolution for my poor character, J.

I spent much of today trying to figure her story out. Right around 6:30 this evening, the answer came to me. It's an easy fix, as fixes go. And it'll totally do the job.

Basically, I was trying to do too much with her in this book. Two scenes of hers really belong in a sequel, if I ever write one. So out they'll go. Cut. Delete. G'bye.

Yeah. That's 2,318 words that are no longer in the story. (Each and every one of them counts, people, yes, even the 18.)

The word count on my sidebar doesn't reflect the cut, however. I'm still counting the grand total of words I've written for the whole book. Because it makes me feel better. And because I'm not brave like some people who have folders to hold their cuts. (Hi, Josi!) The final count will be 2,318 words below whatever the rest ends up being.

2,318 is a lot of words. They represent two scenes I really, really liked and worked hard on. My goal wasn't just to get it drafted, but to write 60,000 words over the 12 weeks. If I delete those words wholesale, I'm a couple thousand (and 318) words in the red. If I leave them in my wordcount, I technically make my goal even though the story isn't quite done.

So here's the deal: I won't get too annoyed about hacking them out if everyone promises to buy this book in droves so there'll be enough demand for a sequel and I can use them later. (This is a contemporary book I'm working on, not my upcoming historical . . . wanna make sure everyone knows what they're promising.)

Deal?

Good. Now I can go kick something and feel better.

Tristi Pinkston: The Books that Choose Us

Tristi Pinkston — 2008-08-15T10:28:26+00:00

Anyone who writes will tell you that they've all had at least one project that chose them, rather than them choosing it. It's generally a project of some importance to the writer and may or may not get the attention and respect it deserves in the market, but the author feels forever changed for having completed it.

As I look back on the things I've chosen to write, or the things that have been chosen to be written by me, I can see how each project has not only been a reflection of who I was when I wrote it, but how each project shaped me. Each book taught me and made me grow, sometimes painfully but always for the better.

When I first started writing, my main area of interest was historical fiction. My first two books were historical and they each took a lot of research, which left me feeling drained and not quite whole. When my next book idea came, I was rather shocked to discover that it was a contemporary mystery. Wasn't I a historical fiction author? Would I be denying my true self if I veered off my path and wrote something so different? But it was a book I needed to write. My first book included the bombing of Pearl Harbor and then the victims of the atomic bomb. My second book involved the Nazi concentration camps. The books only reflect the smallest amount of the research I did, and the pictures I saw and the accounts I read drained me of my inner joy -- I had to write something light in order to restore my internal balance. So I wrote that contemporary mystery, called it "Faith Beyond Fear," and am currently awaiting word from a publisher on its status.

Right now I'm working on a new series of comedic mysteries about elderly ladies who fancy themselves amateur detectives. This series also chose me. I needed something that would make me laugh. I needed to rediscover the joy of writing, of using words for words' sake. This series has been a blessing in my life, giving me a good chuckle as I sit down at the computer every day to see what those crazy ladies are up to now.

Have I turned my back on my historical fiction roots? No -- I've still got some great ideas for historicals to write in the future. But for right now, just this minute, I'm writing what I most need to write, and I hope that my stories will touch my readers as much as they've touched me.

Josi Kilpack: "It Worked For Me" Link list: chores

Josi — 2008-08-15T08:05:17+00:00

So I read Annette Lyon's blog today and it inspired me, so without her permission (repentance later) I've decided to do a link list based on her idea and I hope you guys will play along with me (and Annette whether she likes it or not). It's kinda a meme, but more a way for us to share our tricks and tips about home, family, kids, etc. I'm always looking over people's shoulders to see how they make things work. Maybe that means I'm more clueless than most--I wouldn't argue that point. Still, I wanna learn from you're brilliance. So, blog about something you do that could be a benefit the rest of us--maybe it's how you clean the bathroom without puking, or the pie you make that everyone dies over, or how you keep from running over the bikes in the garage--whatever it is that "worked for you". Off to the side of my blog you'll see a link list. For everyone that comes back here and tells me they've blogged under the title "It worked for me" I'll go to your blog, capture the link and list it here so other people can find it. Hopefully we all end up a little better off and this will be an ongoing thing.

IT WORKED FOR ME:

Chore schedules have been the bane of my existence for many years--basically since I decided I actually wanted my kids to do chores. I'd come up with something, it would work for a couple weeks and then it would fizzle. I have likely tried dozens of concepts--from earning points, to earning money, to earning TV, to earning a non-screaming mother. However, I've never had one that stuck--until now. And I didn't even come up with it myself. My friend Sam did and I promptly copied it, made a couple adjustments, and since implementing it I have had not one--NOT ONE--complaint from anyone, myself included, and the house is cleaner than it's been in a very long time.

HOW IT WORKS: Instead of each kid having three or four chores every day, each kid has one day a week where they do all the chores. In addition to doing all the chores, they each have an extra individual chore only they do on their day, they make dinner (they choose one meal and make it each chore day of the month--by the end of the month they can make it themselves), clean up after dinner, read the scriptures, say family prayer, and they get to sit in the front seat. On the days they don't have chores, they only have to do 10 minutes cleaning their room. On Saturdays they each choose 3 chores from the list, first come first serve, they get assessed extra time in their room if it needs attention (3 of my kids get an extra 30 minutes every week, the other one uses her 10 minutes a day well and gets out of extra cleaning). They get $5 a week in pocket money if they fulfilled all their obligations. If they didn't, I deduct accordingly.

BENEFIT FOR ME:

I have one child a day to keep up with. If I have to remind them several times I threaten to deduct money. I've actually deducted twice, and they were appalled and cleaned up their act the next week (pun intended)
On their non-chore day the kids can't do anything electronic til they've done their 10 minutes, but that's easy for me to keep up on cause it's only one thing.
I get out of making dinner 4 nights a week and they are learning to cook, but I only have to help one kid at a time.
I still get to cook 3 nights a week.
Although I'm not big on allowance, I've cut back on buying them treats at the store, movie tickets and other extras I used to buy because they didn't have any money. Now they buy their own treats and they haven't even noticed that I'm buying less cause they are excited to buy their own stuff. It's evened up to be about the same amount of money.
They are learning to pay tithing on a regular basis--fifty cents a week.

BENEFIT FOR THEM:

They only have to worry about chores one day a week
Six days of the week they are "off"
They know exactly what's expected of them each chore day (I have a list in a page protector that they mark off with a dry erase marker)
They get pocket money
Mom isn't screaming all the time
They don't get blamed for someone else not doing their job
They all got to choose the day that works best for them and they can plan it in advance.

Now my friend that came up with this idea has three kids, so they each got two days a week and the whole family helps out on Sunday. I have four kids, so I opted to take a day myself (Monday so I can clean up after the Sunday Hurricane) and each of the kids get one day. They have more chores than my friend's do because they only worry about it one day a week. Her youngest child has less chores than his sisters and gets less pocket money--my 6 year old has kept up just fine and loves that she's considered as 'big' as her brother and sisters.

These are the chores we do at our house:

Feed & Water dogs
Put Dogs in at night and out in the morning
Feed chickens & gather eggs
5 minutes upstairs bathroom
5 minutes downstairs bathroom
5 minutes straighting the basement
10 minutes misc. cleaning (ask mom)
5 minutes straightening mud room
Empty red basket (this is a basket at the top of the stairs where I put all the stuff that goes in their bedrooms downstairs)
Empty and sort recycling bin
Put away your own laundry (they each have their own shelf in the laundry room)

EXTRA CHORES

child #1--fill chickens water container & do own laundry
child #2--bring in milk & do own laundry
child #3--pooper scooper (he actually volunteered for this one)
child #4--organize mom and dad's shoes (this one was my idea :-)

NOTE: My kids get a laundry sorter for their 11th birthday and are expected to wash their own clothes from that point on.

Anyway--for all of us at the Kilpack house this has worked great for the last six weeks. I've done a little workshop each week on how to prioritize their time in each room and they are improving, and I'm yelling less, the daily things are getting done every day and I'm loving it. I'll be adapting it a little bit when school starts, but not a lot as the kids love that they get it all over with in one felled swoop and then don't think about it again for a week. I do still end up with plenty to do around the house--I'm basically in charge of the kitchen, other than dinner, and I do a lot of the deeper cleaning, but I was doing that anyway AND having to do a lot of the daily straightening while yelling at my kids and trying to figure out where we were on the old chore charts. This certainly hasn't made it so I do less, only that what I spend my time on is more effective. My kids are learning to manage their time, cook, clean, and stay focused. For now, that's good enough for me.

So, that's what's worked for us. I'm anxiously awaiting what's worked for you.

Annette Lyon: School Shopping: Ending the Drama

Annette Lyon — 2008-08-14T14:55:00+00:00

I always hate school clothes shopping. It's not like buying something for yourself. It's a miserable process from any vantage point, an epic saga drawn out by whines and complaints.

To make things easier on myself, I once tried spreading it out over the summer with my three who were in school, taking one in June, one in July, and one in August.

Slight problem: In June, you can't find much for school (like backpacks and lunch boxes, not to mention any SALES) and any clothes you do buy will probably be outgrown just as the snow starts to fall.

Other years, as I've tried sticking to the budget I set for the event, the kids whine and complain and BEG for just this one extra thing. Okay, or two or three extra things. PLEEEEEEASE? And either I say no and look like Cruella deVille, or I give in like a soggy noodle and spend too much.

Either way, I lose.

This year I did something a bit different. I wasn't intending to fix the problem, exactly. I just wanted to experience the fiery furnace a different way. You know, shakes things up for a new kind of miserable.

But lo and behold, shopping this year was easy and (virtually) pain free.

YES!

Flashback: When I was entering my junior year of high school, Mom was just too busy to take my little sister and me school shopping. She handed each of us an envelope with cash in it and dropped us off at the mall to do it ourselves.

At first, I was thrilled. I could buy whatever I wanted. Bwahahahahahaaa!

But then something happened. I found a sweater I loved. I checked the price tag. Yikes. I could get at least two pairs of jeans for that. Did I really like it that much? Hmm. I'd come back and later and decide.

Soon I gravitated toward the sales and clearance racks. I scoured the slightly damaged racks.

I had the power to decide how to spend a concrete amount of money. And I ended up being highly selective with every purchase. I came home with the biggest and cutest wardrobe of my entire high school career.

This year with my kids, I kinda sorta did the same thing, but unintentionally. I told each one exactly how much money they had allotted to spend on school clothes and that they could spend it however they wanted. But when it was gone, it was gone.

Their eyes went big at the sum. Yeah. Anything over twenty bucks is massive wealth as far as they're concerned. I smiled and assured them that the money wouldn't go as far as they thought.

I didn't drop them off at the store with a wad of cash. (They're not old enough for that.) I tagged along with the cart and watched them go, adding up their purchases with them as they tossed items into the cart.

We went in three shifts with the four kids, and the result was amazing.

First was #4, who is going into kindergarten. Over her life, most of her clothes have been gifts from Grandma, hand-me-downs from her sisters, or bought by Mom when she wasn't around. For the first time ever, she got to pick. And boy, did she.

More than once I pointed out a shirt I thought was mucho cute and said, "What about this?"

She hardly glanced over. "Nope." And then she raced off down the aisle and pointed to something else. "I like that one! And that one!" And flung them into the cart. She had fun. She also got a lot of mileage out of her money, because clothes for someone as small as she is just cost less.

Next was the trip with the older girls, #2 and #3. Normally, we try to get backpacks every other year, so #2 wasn't up for a new one this time. But she opted to spend some of her clothes money on a new bag for school. And Mom let her. The power! She also got some earrings for her newly pierced ears in addition to the typical jeans and shirts and socks and shoes.

She also decided to use some of her school clothes money on a swimsuit for the rest of the summer. I wasn't sure about that one, but heck--it was her call. If she whined mid-year about not having enough jeans, it would be her fault. Into the cart went the suit.

#3 decided to not get a new lunch box, because it would give her a little more money to play with, or, er, spend. Her old one wasn't stinky, she said. It would work for another year. She thought long and hard about every purchase and got a great variety of items she was pleased with. (I think she takes after her mother . . .)

For my oldest . . . well, he wasn't able to stretch his dollars quite as far, reason being that he's getting so dang tall. (Next year I may have to allot more to him than his sisters just to be fair . . . and so he'll have enough clothing to cover himself.)

The thing that's freaking me out is that he's now straddling the boys' and men's sections. Most of what we found in the boys' section was too small, but the men's section is still mostly a bit too big. We had to go to both for what we were looking for.

And his shoes? Holy mackerel . . . they're bigger than mine. They're the same size one of his grandpas wears. Yeah. And in a few months, he'll be taller than his mother.

(I officially have a teenager. Pray for me.)

The best part of this year's shopping was that when the money was gone, it was gone. And everyone got that. No one whined or complained or begged for just one more thing. They knew it was gone. The end. Let's go check out.

This year, I don't think I got an ulcer or even an extra zit from the stress. I'll definitely be doing the same thing next summer.

Writing on the Wall: Apostrophe Catastrophes

Annette Lyon — 2008-08-13T17:28:43+00:00

by Annette Lyon

My latest editorial peeve: possessives that . . . aren't.

You know the kind of thing I'm talking about:

"Banana's were on sale."

"We visited the Smith's."

"How many book's have you read?"

ACK! Each of those are trying to be plural, meaning more than one. Try again:

Bananas

Smiths

Books

Ding! Ding! Ding!

Why no apostrophe? Because the bananas don't own anything. Neither do the group of people with Smith as their the last name. And what exactly do the books own? Nothing, at least, not in that sentence.

A lot of writers should have their apostrophe allotment removed, the way they abuse them. Plain old plural doesn't take one of those curly marks. You just add an S.

Instead, use apostrophes to show ownership:

Heather's

Josi's

Lu Ann's

If you want to discuss something the book possesses, then you'd say:

The book's cover is blue.

Or if the Smiths (there are several of them, so no apostrophe) own something, you could say:

The Smiths' car broke down.

Note that in this case, it's both plural (several people named Smith, such as an entire family) and possessive (they own the car). So you add the S and then the apostrophe.

Don't let possessive pronouns trip you up. Even though they're possessive, you never add an apostrophe. Of course, the only pronoun that ever really causes trouble in this area is ITS (being mistaken for its friend, IT'S, which means IT IS).

But you wouldn't say M'Y or HE'R or THEI'R, so you wouldn't say IT'S when you mean the thing owns something, as in, "the book and ITS ugly cover."

To keep it simple, I won't go into the debate about whether to add "es" to names for plurals when they already end with "s" (Dickens/Dickenses) or how you deal with possessives there (Dickens'/Dickenses'). That's another post.

For now, have mercy on your reader.

Ask yourself:

Do I mean more than one thing?
If yes, use JUST an S:

the books were stacked
the houses along the street
the Smiths came to the party
the tables were round

Do you mean the thing owns something else?

If yes, use an apostrophe and an S:

the book's publisher
the house's front yard
the Smiths' baby
the table's shape

Easy as pie. Or pies. Or as yummy as the pie's filling. Or something.

Just keep those apostrophes in check. Don't let them out of their cage unless they behave.

Lu Ann Brobst Staheli: One of the Reasons I Love the Osmonds

Lu Ann Brobst Staheli — 2008-08-13T17:26:07+00:00

In case you didn't see the Osmonds 50th Anniversary concert on PBS or the Pioneer Day Concerts from Salt Lake City, I wanted my visitors to have a chance to at least hear one of the songs I love from my favorite group. It's been my pleasure to work with Alan Osmond since 1988, and he is a great man who stands as an example to me in so many ways. Enjoy the song!

Julie Wright: I know it’s been a month, but . . .

2008-08-13T04:24:53+00:00

I’ve been incoherently busy this last month. With work, several tradeshows for my store, and random writing and editing that had to be done, I can’t believe I found time to breathe. I wrote nearly 20,000 words which is no record breaking number but is still progress towards a completed novel.

It all comes back to normal life monday afternoon. I am in Vegas right now. Last week I was at the LDSBA in Salt Lake City. I had a great time at that convention hanging out with good friends. It was fun to get to see Michael McLean and hear the Tabernacle Choir resonate throughout the Tabernacle in downtown Salt Lake. Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing brought me to my feet as applause thundered all around. What an amazing performance.

My release for the novel, Eyes Like Mine, has been pushed back to July. It’ll be better for sales in the long run, but it is sooooo hard to wait that long.

It’s been a trying month as a mother. I’ve spent several nights staring into my sleeping children’s rooms and wondering if I really wept for all those years I thought I was infertile. Beyond the regular drama that comes with parenthood, the dog got hit by a truck. It isn’t just any dog, it’s Rae’s dog. My nephew was staying at my house and came in while I was packing to tell me that the dog had been hit. I ran outside to a horrible scene. My thirteen year old daughter cradled the limp bloody body of her dog in her arms as she screamed, “My dog! my dog! They hit her! They killed her!” In my entire life, I have never heard anything more jarring and disturbing as her shrill screams.

I took the dog from her to hurry and assess the situation. The dog didn’t move, but she was stil breathing. I kept assuming that each breath was the last. There was no way an animal bleeding so violently from the mouth and so limp in the body could survive.

But I looked up at my daughter as she chanted, “Fix her!” over and over again. How it reminded me of all the times when she has come to me throughout her life and demanded I fix something that I just couldn’t. The cookie that broke in half when she dind’t feel like eating a broken (and therefore less-than-worthy) cookie, the doll missing a leg due to puppy chewing, the glass tinker bell that fell and shattered.

Meeting Rae’s eyes and seeing the trust she placed in me to fix this, to make it better, to bandage it, and kiss it and make it all okay was more than I could handle. I looked back down and found that the dog was looking at me with the same demand as I’d found in my daughter’s eyes. “Fix it! Fix it!” I went in and called the vet with absolutely no hope that the dog had any chance to live, but unable to handle the insistence of both child and animal. After a few moments on the phone with the vet (who left me with even smaller hope that the dog would live) I decided to take the dog in.

I made Rae go with me.

And it turns out the dog was fixable for a very high price tag, a tag I couldn’t see how we’d be able to pay. But there was my daughter and the dog staring at me with those demanding eyes. There were the shrill screams still bouncing off the insides of my skull. I consented to the surgery. Copper (the dog) gave me a feeble flick of her tail in gratitude. Later, Rae hugged me so tight I almost couldn’t breathe. “Thanks for making it better.”

By saving the dog, I saved my daughter’s faith in me, for a little while longer, that I can still make the world better. That’s something I can’t put a price tag on.

Lu Ann Brobst Staheli: Good News for Joey + Rory

Lu Ann Brobst Staheli — 2008-08-12T16:24:07+00:00

Vanguard/Sugar Hill Records has announced that Joey + Rory have signed a recording contract and plan to release their debut album in the fall of 2008. Better still, “Cheater, Cheater,” a song they performed on the show, will be the first single and a video should be out soon.

You can download the song already from iTunes.

Tristi Pinkston: Didn't Know I was a Princess, Did Ya?

Tristi Pinkston — 2008-08-12T14:39:49+00:00

You Are Cinderella!

Dignified and hard working. With a gentle and soft-spoken manner you have something many people don't. Patience. Even through the moments of heartbreak you're still able to hold onto all of your hopes and dreams. Bide your time; your dream will come true.

Which Disney Princess Are You?

What I find most interesting about this is that I have to be one of the least patient people I know... and that soft-spoken thing? Just ask my kids...

Heather B. Moore: WIP: 23,672

Heather B. Moore — 2008-08-12T12:34:54+00:00

So the novel I'm writing now is called "Alma the Elder"--you guessed it, it will be the second book in my new series.

So far I've written about 90 pages (23,600 words) and my goal is 85,000 words for the first draft. If I can keep up writing at least 1,000 words/day then I should have the first draft finished before Halloween. Usually I can write pretty fast, then I have to go back through the book and add in some historical details.

Today is the first day that I've felt like I have "writer's block"--not that I don't know what is going to happen next, but I have some later scenes that I'm excited to write. So I have to get through the in-between scenes first and somehow make them exciting too. My critique friends would tell me to write the scenes out of order--to write what is most inspiring first. So I might just have to do that.

Oh yeah, and I do have a pretty good outline going for my non-fiction book. When the kids get back in school I should be able to get more done. I'm doing it backwards from my fiction writing. I'm getting all of the research sources FIRST, instead of as I go, or after the first draft.

Writing on the Wall: Drawing From Personal Experience

Julie Wright — 2008-08-12T09:29:34+00:00

At a conference I attended in my early years as a writer, I heard an author say that when people chose to become writers, they chose to be witnesses to life rather than participants in life. He said that writers observe the world around them and silently record what they see. He said that by choosing writing, they choose to live outside of the world--in a sense.

I agree and disagree with this author. I am a chronic eavesdropper. I love to hear dialogue play out around me. I love to watch people interact together. I do watch life; I do silently record the events happening around me. Yet, I also participate. I do not allow the world to move around me and without me. In the name of research, I've learned all kinds of new things and traveled to all sorts of new places. I definitely participate in life. And much of that real life I live finds it way into my novels.

But how much real-life experience is too much in a novel?

They say to write what you know and I believe that sometimes writing your own personal experiences can be therapeutic, but sometimes novelizing your personal life can pose a problem. They say most first novels are autobiographical. If this is the case with your work in progress (and before hanging your laundry in front of the world) you should ask yourself some questions:

Are you using information that is sensitive to someone else?
Are you using information that may be the intellectual property of someone else?
Will this come back and bite you in the backside at a later date?
Does your personal story have significance to anyone outside your personal family (who is your audience)?

If a novel involves characters based on real people, you should contact those people and get permission to use their story. The last thing an author needs is to have their friends reading about themselves in a novel. This is a great way to lose friends and strain relationships among family members. If you don't want to ask for permission, you'd better change the character enough to not have it become a liability.

If the story or idea for the story is based on someone else's experience, you may want to get written consent to utilize the story rather than face a lawsuit later on. There are all sorts of different circumstances for this, but for the most part, there isn't a reason not receive permission beforehand in writing (always in writing).

Your story is interesting to you, but will it be to someone else? Why will readers want to willingly hand over their hard earned dollars on your book? What will they get from the story when they close the book?

I'd hate to think that authors might not live life, but merely be content to record it. But I'd also hate to think that a writer wrote a reality too closely lived. Be sure to really consider your motivation for writing personal experiences and make sure not to alienate the people you love in the process.

Josi Kilpack: Sleepwalking Child--Need Help!

Josi — 2008-08-11T08:36:10+00:00

So, as a kid I sleep walked and sleep talked. I'd sometimes find myself asleep in front of my parent's door, or on the living room couch. After sleepovers with freinds they would tease me about thing things I said. Stuff like "Oh no, I dropped the drunk!" And "I'm awake, I'm awake!" I never remembered any of these episodes.

Child #2 is much like that. We'll find her on the couch, curled up with a coat she got from the closet for a blanket, or she'll giggle and tell nonsensical jokes in her sleep. There's been times we've talked to her and she communicates with us, does what we ask, and remembers nothing about it in the morning. It's cute.

But child #4 is changing the way sleepwalking and talking is done at the Kilpack house. She gets up and starts walking around, but in a panicked state. She starts to cry, then scream, and is sometimes nearly inconsolable for a few minutes. Other times, I go running to her and tell her she's okay, to calm down, and she does--immediately. She'll get back in bed and go right back to sleep. Sometimes once she's back in bed, that's the end of it for the night, other times we go through it again an hour later. In the morning she has no memory of it, in fact I'm not sure she believes us when we tell her about it. It's been happening nearly every night for about two weeks and I'm exhausted. A few nights ago she was up three times, one of the times she came into my room crying because she needed a screen. I was in some lovely REM sleep and between the two of us we were not making a bit of sense.

"I need my screen!" she said, crying.
"You're what?" I ask without even opening my eyes--I was so tired.
"My screen?"
"A screen? You mean like a piece of paper?" I have no idea why this made sense to me.
"Yes, a piece of paper would work."
"Then why are you crying?" I'm starting to wake up now myself.
"I don't know!"

I led her back to bed and she climbed right in. An hour later she's sobbing again. In the morning when I told her she giggled about it.

So, anyway, I'm asking if anyone has some advice. Some details to perhaps help with the diagnosis (yes, you are all my panel of experts).

*She'll be 7 in a few months.
*She has always had a tendancy to wake up at night, usually 2 or 3 times a week because she has to go to the bathroom, but we've pretty much trained her to do it herself, without calling for help, so we haven't done that much in the last year.
*She's the youngest of four kids
*She has always had a tendancy to be whiny and cry over small things
*She's super affectionate and cuddly
*She recently changed bedrooms, going from a room upstairs where mom and dad sleep, to a room downstairs. She's dealt with some fears about this, even though it was her idea, but we've gotten her a new night light, we leave the door open, we say special prayers. Last week she said she wanted her old room back. Her dad (bless his little pea-picken, Las-Vegas livin heart--which means he doesn't have to do the work) agrees this is what we should do and thinks it's the reason for her night issues. I, with stark memories of packing up her room, moving her room, unpacking her room, paint-planning her room, and other uses for her old room, would much rather find a way she can stick it out. But I'm definitely the hard line parent and, much as it pains me, I accept I might be wrong about this one. I certainly don't want to put her in a situation that's somehow traumatic, but it's better for all of us (yes, I do think it's better for her to be downstairs with the other kids) for her to stay put.

So, anyway--shed your brilliance on me! I'm ready.

Josi Kilpack: My turn to give away a copy of Farworld!

Josi — 2008-08-11T08:19:01+00:00

I’ve been reading the other interviews on the other blogs and been very impressed by everyone’s creativity. Alas, I am not so creative at the middle of the summer with four kids at home who are driving me slowly insane . . . but that’s another blog. The good news, is that I have a couple kids who love to read, and thanks to be involved in this blog tour—I have a book for them! (and for me) So, without further ado, here is my interview with the amazingly talented J. Scott Savage, otherwise known as Jeffy. By leaving a comment on this blog you will be entered into a drawing where you too can win a copy of Jeffy’s new book, Farworld. If you leave no comment, you get no such chance.

1--Assuming that you liked to read as child, is there a particular book or series that really inspired you, specifically in regard to Farworld?

I was probably the readingest kid you ever met. I used to cut school to go to the library. (Not that I'm recommending that or anything!) I would have said that there was no book that specifically inspired me with Farworld, but when I first read the question, the first image that popped into my head was sitting on the outdoor balcony of a friend's cabin in the Sierra Nevada
Mtns, eating apples and reading Aesop's Fables. So may that is my subconscious coming into play. I loved that book, and as I think about, you have talking animals, unusual settings, strong messages. So, who knows? Maybe.

2--Who is your favorite Farworld character to write? Why?

Chet. Okay, maybe not. But it's actually really funny that you ask that right at the same time that Crystal is having me do an interview with Chet, how he was misunderstood, miscast, etc. It's been a hoot.

Honestly, it is whichever one I am writing at the same. I don't know if you feel the same way when you're writing, Josi, but when I begin writing a character it feels like I am taking them on like a role in a play. I feel myself slipping into their skin. I think it helps make them more real to me.

3--I read an article once by Dave Wolverton. He said that Mormons might be the best qualified people to write fantasy because we have a true belief in other worlds and therefore can create new ones in our imagination easier than most people. What are your thoughts on that?

Nah. I think we're all just looking for a way to make a buck. (Kidding--mostly)

I think that's true, but I think it even goes beyond that. We believe that this Earth is a temporary way station in the grand scheme of things. It makes this life seem no less important, but perhaps more less substantial. In order to be a good fantasy writer, there has to be a part of you that firmly believes that if you pulled away the curtain of what we think of as
reality, there would be whole universes of knowledge we can't even comprehend. I wouldn't limit it just to Mormons though. I think a lot of people of many faiths look at this world and this life the same way.

4--If you could have one magical gift attributed to any of the characters in Farworld, what would it be?

I want Kyja's magic. I want to be able to look at someone else's hard situation and know how to make it better. Kyja's magic makes me happy.

5--What are your plans for the future, be it with Farworld or any other projects?

Well, the one thing I know for sure is that I love telling stories. For most of my life I didn't know I wanted to be a "writer" per se. But I always loved telling stories. So I guess my goal is to get to the point where I can make a living doing something I love, be that with Farworld or some other series. I've got lots of stories to tell, but you know how hard it is to find the time to tell them all.

6--You've been married for over twenty years and you've often attributed much of your success to your wife and yet, having met her, she certainly has not 'given herself over' to your goals and ambitions, what advice do you have for anyone pursuing their own talents, and married to someone else who is. How can couples grow individually and yet together at the same time?

Wow, deep. If you're asking me how the hack I managed to get Jen to marry me, and stay married to me for twenty plus years, I'm going to have to claim ignorance. Dumb luck? She's dumb and I'm lucky? What I would say is that you have to be delighted at the other half's success. When something great happens to or for Jen, I'm every bit as happy as if it had happened to me, and the same with her. We honestly don't ever see ourselves in competition
with each other over anything (except Sudokus, which she kicks my butt at.) We are a team in everything we approach.

What? That's all? No questions about how I came to be such an amazing writer or which Hollywood hunk I'm most often compared to? Ooookkkaaay. Thanks, it was a lot of fun. Good luck with her Good Name. I'm sure it will be awesome. (And yes, Jeffy really wrote that last part, not me—but it was my decision to keep it in ☺ )

Janette Rallison: My Wonderful editor

Janette Rallison — 2008-08-10T01:40:56+00:00

Okay, I have to give major kudos to the bow-tied one. In fact, I take back all of those things I'm going to say about him during my next book's revisions. He asked me a long time ago who I wanted to blurb my book and the first name I said was Ellen Conford.

Right now Ellen Conford is best known for her Jenny Archer and Annabel the Actress series but back when I was growing up she not only wrote middle grade novels she also wrote some dang funny Young Adult books. She was hands down my favorite author. I loved reading about her quirky heroines because they always made me laugh. I pretty much wanted to be her when I grew up. In fact, after I'd written my first national market novel, Playing the Field, Tim mentioned that my main character didn't have a last name and needed one. So I gave my character the last name of Conford in her honor.

Now the thing about Ellen Conford is that she is not easy to get a hold of. Go ahead and try to google her. She doesn't have a website. I know it took Tim a long time to get a hold of her and even longer to get her to read my book and blurb it, but he did--and SHE DID!!!! (Those are exclamation points of a rabid fan. Imagine me waving my hands around and squealing.)

Here is what she said about my next book for Tim, Just One Wish.

Rallison's manuscript was a pleasant surprise, humorous and unsentimental in spite of its serious underpinnings. I especially appreciated the scheming and machinations the girls devise to see Steve Raleigh. . . With sympathetic characters and a charming teen aged hunk I think that Janette Rallison's book will appeal to many young teenagers.

I am so going to put this quote somewhere on my website. And there will probably be dancing cats or something surrounding it just to draw people's attention to it. Because yeah--how cool am I--my idol liked my book. Wahoo!

Tristi Pinkston: My Precious . . .

Tristi Pinkston — 2008-08-09T22:10:02+00:00

For Gollum, it was a ring of power, a ring that could give him anything he wanted in the world. For some, it's money. For others, it's jewelry. For some, it's fame. Everyone has their passion. Everyone has that one thing that makes their hearts beat faster, their breathing come in ragged bursts, at the thought of possessing it.

This is my precious:
School supplies.

Yeah, you heard me, school supplies. Note the crayons. Behold the pens. Cast your eyes upon the glue sticks. Are they not the most lovely things you've ever seen?

Only one thing is missing from this picture. One thing and then my life will be complete -- spiral notebooks. Wal-Mart was all out tonight. But I did get some composition notebooks that will tide me over for now.

All my children are artists. They get that from their daddy. All my children are writers. They get that from me (and my husband too -- he wants to write as well). With four little budding Hemingways/Monets, I need all the art supplies I can get, and I love to buy them at this time of year, when they're all on sale. The crayons were twenty-seven cents a package. That was for Crayola, people -- the good stuff. Don't try to sell me any of that Rose Art garbage -- I don't care if it's seventeen cents a box. We need the real stuff. We're serious about our crayons over here.

Of course I'm delighted to get all this stuff for the sake of my children, but let's talk about me for a minute. You know it always comes back to me. Did you notice those beautiful pens in the foreground? Shall we all heave a happy sigh together? Those pens represent words. Beautiful, beautiful words. Books will be written with those pens. Love notes, cute pictures, and grocery lists will be created with those pens. They'll also get lost under couches and stolen by Pen Gremlins, but the possibilities are endless.

I could go on and on about my love of school supplies. Folders, glue. . . POST-IT NOTES!! Yes! POST-IT NOTES!! But I shall try to calm down. Really, I shall.

Just know that I am very, very happy right now.

Michele Holmes: Don't You Marry The Mormon Boys

Michele Holmes — 2008-08-08T20:38:10+00:00

Over the past couple of months as I've been resting a lot, trying to keep my breakfast down and this baby inside where it belongs, I've had some time to catch up on my reading. The stack of books on my night stand has now dwindled to a reasonable half dozen, and I've crossed several "must reads" off my list.
Unfortunately, a lot of the books I'd looked forward to for a while, were . . . less than appetizing when I finally got to them. I'm sure this had to do with my real appetite at the time and the constant nausea I was dealing with. My usual pickiness tends to intensify with pregnancy. However, there were a few books that captured my attention and held it, transporting me from my misery for the time I spent with them. To those authors, I say a heartfelt thank you. Your talents and hard work became, for me, just what the doctor ordered when I needed it most.

There are three such books I want to blog about, and I'll try to spend a little time doing that over the next couple of months. These blogs are not intended to be thorough reviews, but rather a recommendation to friends for books I feel are worth both your time and money. As you might have guessed, the first book I'd like to tell you about is Janet Kay Jensen's Don't You Marry The Mormon Boys.

It took me all of a half page to become engrossed in this delightful, interesting story about Dr. Andy McBride and his ex-girfriend of sorts, Dr. Louisa Martin. Some quick backstory---Andy and Louisa met while attending medical school at the University of Utah. Though each had strong feelings for the other, there were some pretty intense obstacles in their way---like the fact that Louisa is from a polygamist family, and Andy's father is an attorney who prosecutes polygamists (ouch- love it!). The reader learns this, and a lot of other interesting tidbits through both Andy and Louisa as they each reflect on the past as they live their current, very different, lives.

By choice, Andy has landed in a small community in rural Kentucky. The chapters entailing his life there---everything from his home with the wrap-around porch, to the characters (and they are characters!) he meets---were so vivid I found myself yearning to visit. I love that the author spends time building his life there. From the funny---being awoken from a lovely dream about Louisa to find himself being kissed by a horse---to the poignant---his association and friendships with the local band and one of its members he is ultimately unable to save---I enjoyed getting to know Andy and seeing the details of his life.

While Andy is in Kentucky, Louisa is back at home in Gabriel's Landing, the small polygamist community she was raised in. Though her mother has passed away, Louisa has two other "step-mothers" and a very loving father. It was with both the blessing and financing of the elders in the community that Louisa attended medical school, and now she has returned, hoping to improve health care for those she knows and loves. But it isn't long before she runs into trouble. Louisa's knowledge doesn't mesh with the old ways of doing things, and her attempts to improve life---especially for the women of Gabriel's Landing---soon get her into trouble. But Louisa isn't the only one in her family struggling with obedience. Her father's refusal to force her to wed brings additional problems and repercussions.

Without giving away the ending, I'll just say that early on, it is apparent Andy and Louisa both still have feelings for the other. But for much of the book it seems that any lasting relationship will be impossible (ah, the makings of a good romance :D).

Overall I thoroughly enjoyed the twists and turns these intertwined stories took. I appreciated the time the author must have spent researching modern day polygamy, and I felt I had a good look inside what must be reality for many of those sects still practicing today.

I also enjoyed all the intricate details and subplots woven into the story. That Andy has a service dog due to past problems with seizures, was intriguing, as were the folks he met in Kentucky and their stories. I thought the author did a great job showing us Andy's life as a small town doctor and Louisa's agonizing struggles back in Utah.

One of my favorite characters in this book was, surprisingly, Louisa's father (and equally surprising, I really didn't care for Andy's dad). The author made him human, and his choice--to live the life he'd been raised in and committed to for so long or to do what he knew was really best for his daughter--was deeply moving. Though the story clearly showed many of the evils of modern day polygamy, it also showed at least some of its followers as kind, loving, and concerned parents.

As I read Don't You Marry the Mormon Boys
I discovered the author and I have something in common. We both enjoy writing long, complicated stories. When it comes to reading a good book, I've always thought, "the longer the better," but I actually felt a little differently this time. SO much happens at the end of this book, that I was left feeling a little dizzy (okay, so maybe that was the pregnancy thing), and I would have much preferred the author saved the events at the ending for a sequel---which I would have eagerly bought. As it is, the ending is surprising, to say the least, and I felt a bit too much happened. And yes, this is definitely the pot calling the kettle black here :D I've been criticized for doing the exact same thing with my own stories, but I didn't get it before now. Thanks Ms. Jensen for the lesson---and for the fine read.

Andy and Louisa are characters that will stay with me for a long time. And I have hope that maybe I'll see them in another book someday soon.

Heather B. Moore: Book of the Month!

Heather B. Moore — 2008-08-08T12:21:09+00:00

Land of Inheritance was selected as Book of the Month on the Osmond Family blog. Check it out! (scroll down on the sidebar)

Also, Lu Ann Staheli posted an interview she did on me for Land of Inheritance here.

Tristi Pinkston: Giant Blow-Out Book Sale!

Tristi Pinkston — 2008-08-08T11:18:25+00:00

If you've been dying to get your hands on a copy of "Nothing to Regret," my first novel, now is the time to do it! I'm now selling copies for $5.00. It just doesn't get any cheaper than that, folks! Stock up for Christmas gifts, birthdays, Father's Day, Mother's Day, Thanksgiving (what, you mean you don't give presents at Thanksgiving? Well, you should!) This sale price is not yet reflected on my site, so for now, if you want to place an order, just leave a comment on this blog and I'll be in touch. Shipping and handling will apply unless I know you and will be seeing you at some point.

Annette Lyon: Today: A List

Annette Lyon — 2008-08-08T02:21:00+00:00

1) People treat you differently when you're wearing a blazer, slacks, heels, and even lipstick instead of your usual mommy uniform of a t-shirt, jeans/capris/sweat pants and sandals. They look at you different and speak to you differently. The entire attitude is something I don't get in my day-to-day life. It was very odd.

(I spent much of the day at the Whitney booth at the LDS Booksellers Convention and ran a couple of errands before and after in my more dressed-up clothes. After having several moments like this, I wanted to yell, "Really, I'm a mom! I don't usually look like this!")

Contrast that with the sweats, ponytail, and zero makeup I had on when Josi from Sundial in the Shade dropped by to pick up some Whitney stuff last week. You know you have a true friend when they don't notice (or, more likely, don't mention) that you look like a drowned rat.

2) While at the convention, I discovered a painting that I just might beg and plead for Covenant to license to use on the cover for Tower of Strength. Al Rounds, the artist whose temples grace my other historicals, has only one Manti Temple painting, and it's a winter scene. That won't work for this book. So unless he paints something new (and quick!) I might not have him on my next cover, and that makes me sad.

The picture I found would be the next best thing. It's by Cortney Lunt, and they told me that it's a brand new painting, so you won't find it online, but you can get an idea of her style at that link.

Since my editor wasn't there today (I missed seeing you, Kirk!), I dragged his colleague Kat over to show it to her. She agreed it would be great on a cover. After that, I had a ball chatting with both Kat and Rachel. They're awesome gals, and Covenant is lucky to have them on board.

3) I'm on the countdown. If I'm estimating right, I'm within 10,000 words of finishing the first draft of my work in progress. The pieces that have been circling are slowly coming together. I really hope I can pull this one off the way it's in my head. The story, characters, and entire concept mean a lot to me, but I'm not sure if it's working on paper as a whole. Yet.

4) While walking out of the library yesterday with my kids (wearing my trusty mommy uniform), a man in the parking lot stopped me and said, "I listened to one of your books and really enjoyed it."

Whoa. That's NEVER happened to me before. No one ever recognizes me unless I'm standing next to a table with my books on it at a signing or I'm at a writers conference with a name badge.

I was so (pleasantly) surprised, that I came back with, "Really? Cool. Thanks! Which one?"

He rather sheepishly couldn't remember the title or even the cover. So that leads me to a few questions:

Do I know this guy? (He looked familiar, but I couldn't place him. He hadn't seen my children before, though. Hmm.)

Did he somehow recognize me in my mommy uniform based solely on my author photo at the back of the book?

Or did he mistake me for another writer? (And it was their book he'd listened to?)

I'll never know the answers. But the moment was a nice ego stroke regardless, even if I had zits all over my face, a stained shirt, and fly-away hair.

Lesson learned: When someone says they enjoyed you work, take the compliment and move on.

Tristi Pinkston: New Book Review

Tristi Pinkston — 2008-08-07T22:38:25+00:00

Do you have a freshman heading off to college this year? Check out this review of "How to Survive Your Freshman Year" at Tristi's Takes.

Heather B. Moore: LDSBooksellers

Heather B. Moore — 2008-08-07T11:33:42+00:00

This is Julie Wright (author extraordinaire) and me at the Whitney Booth at the LDSBooksellers convention.

It was great to see people from my publishing house and several LDStorymakers!

Writing on the Wall: BEFORE you submit

Heather B. Moore — 2008-08-07T07:58:46+00:00

by Heather Moore

In follow-up to Annette's submission advice yesterday, I'd like to share a few things that I've done BEFORE submitting.

When I research an agent or publisher, these are the steps I take:
1. I contact a few of the authors and ask how their experience was. I can usually find email addresses or websites by googling their names and books.
2. I see if the company has a viable website with proper contact information.
3. I check their ratings on Preditors and Editors and Writers Beware
4. If they are a small press, I ask them about their wholesale company or distributor.
5. I ask for a list of their recent books published (or recent books "sold" if it's an agent). I contact a few of those authors.

I learned this the hard way. Several years ago, I received a publishing contract from Harris Literary. I was so excited! I signed it and was ready to mail it back. Then something nagged at the back of my mind and I decided to do a little research--more than I had before. I contacted some of their authors and all of the ones that wrote back gave me the same feedback. Do NOT go with this publisher. One was even in a lawsuit situation with them.

Last year I was contacted by an agent who used an email that I don't normally query with. So I was a little surprised. Upon further investigation, I found that it was a scam artist. Here is the full story.

Also, for a list of some red flags, go here.

Please do your research, and do it thoroughly before submitting to an unknown.

Tristi Pinkston: I Remember

Tristi Pinkston — 2008-08-06T17:20:14+00:00

Writing on the Wall: Making Contact

Annette Lyon — 2008-08-06T13:47:48+00:00

by Annette Lyon

In response to some reader questions I've had recently, here's a basic refresher course on how to contact editors or agents about your work.

For more in-depth information, dig around. Find books and blogs about it. Lots of literary agents have great information about these things.

Literary agent Nathan Bransford's blog is worth looking at. (Be sure to check out his sidebar, which has links to posts about manuscript formatting, query letters, and much more.)

Another is the famous (and, alas, now retired) Miss Snark. Search for "query letters" or any number of other topics on her blog, and you'll find a ton of great information straight from the horse's mouth.

When communicating with editors and agents, the basic rule of thumb is simple: Know what's expected, and deliver it. In even simpler terms: be professional.

Some basic dos and don'ts:

Dos

Use white bond paper.
Print on one side.
Keep your query letter to one page. Technically you can go over, but the longer it is, the less chance the whole thing will be read.
Use the editor/agent's name and spell it correctly.
Get others to read your letter and offer feedback.
Make sure your personality and voice shine through. This is the editor's/agent's first introduction to you and how you write. Don't hide your voice.
Proofread your letter.
Proofread your letter.
Proofread it again.
Include whatever the particular publisher or agency requests. If they ask for three chapters, give 'em that. If they ask for a synopsis, yep. Give 'em a synopsis. Or a SASE (self-addressed, stamped envelope). Whatever they ask for.
On your SASE, be sure to include stamps rather than a metered sticker, which doesn't work in all areas if it's being mailed back after the date on it.
If your work has been requested, say so on the outside of the envelope. That way you avoid being dumped into the slush pile.
If you met the editor/agent at a conference, feel free to mention it to help jog their memory. (Unless you were the one who spilled ketchup on them. Then jogging their memory might not be in your best interest.)
Mention what your book is about, how long it is, and what genre it fits into.

Don't

Use colored paper or perfume or send trinkets or do anything else "cute." Sure you'll stand out, but not in a good way.
Flaunt the publisher/agency guidelines because you think you're special. (If they don't take e-queries, they won't take yours. If they want something between 70,000 and 100,000 words, don't send something that's 150,000.)
Criticize or judge the publisher, agent, or the industry.
Or offer suggestions for the same.
Insist that your book is going to make them millions of dollars and that you're the next Brown/Rowling/Grisham/fill in the blank.
Include biographical information that isn't relevant. Unless you're writing about pit bulls, the fact that you own one is irrelevant. If this is your first attempt, no need to mention that, either. It might work against you to say so.
Submit something that isn't right for the publisher/agent. If you've done your homework, you'll know what kinds of things they're looking for. You may have written the best cookbook ever, but sending it to someone who works only with speculative fiction and romance is useless.

Heather B. Moore: Booksellers Convention

Heather B. Moore — 2008-08-05T13:12:17+00:00

This Wednesday, I'll be at the LDS Booksellers Convention from 8:15-1:30 p.m. at the Whitney Booth. If you remember, last year I was nominated (and won) for a Whitney Award for Best Historical Novel. Pretty cool. So I wanted to help to continue promoting this great awards program for LDS authors.

If you are a bookseller, buyer, or an author who is going, stop by and say hi! I'm sure we'll have some candy at the booth and we'd love for you to sign up to be a part of the voting academy.

Last year, the category winners were:
Jessica Day George
Brandon Mull
Josi S. Kilpack
Shannon Hale
H.B. Moore
Coke Newell
Michele Paige Holmes

Lifetime achievements went to:
Dean Hughes
Anita Stanisfield
Jennie Hansen

Annette Lyon: Contest Time!

Annette Lyon — 2008-08-04T18:14:00+00:00

I have a post I'm thinking about doing, but I'm not sure whether I dare write it or put it up here. It might get me a lot of hate mail. But then, I'm so opinionated, I'm not sure I'll be able to not talk about it.

You probably already know the topic. Yeah. That one.

Hmm. Still on the fence.

In the meantime, I've got a new contest up on my website. You'll want to enter this one. Really, truly.

Whitney Award-winner Josi S. Kilpack has a new book coming out next month. I had a chance to read it awhile go, and it's most definitely another keeper.

I can state my opinion on this one, because Josi's on the Whitney committee this year, and therefore her book isn't eligible to win an award. So yay for opinions! I loved the story! Read it!

Josi's known for taking issues that are big and working awesome plots around them. If you recall, her last book, Sheep's Clothing, was about internet predators. The plot of that one still freaks me out.

This time, Her Good Name even has its own blog addressing the latest issue.

So here's the deal:

Visit the Her Good Name blog at the link above. Poke around a bit and see what it's all about. Then go to this page of my website and answer the question you'll find there in the form provided.

All correct answers will be part of drawing to receive an autographed copy of the book later this fall. (One entry per person. And yes, I do pay attention to them.)

Enjoy!

Tristi Pinkston: Let the Memory Live Again . . .

Tristi Pinkston — 2008-08-04T09:39:29+00:00

I got this from Kimberly at The Bennett Family, and it sounded fun so let's give it a whirl.

1. As a comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you knew me a little or a lot, anything you remember! I guess good or bad, but be nice!

2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you.

Janette Rallison: Pictures from my daughters that make me nervous

Janette Rallison — 2008-08-02T12:47:25+00:00

Lately I've been getting pictures from my daughters that make me . . .well, just a tad bit concerned.

Here are a series of drawings that my youngest daughter drew in comic book like procession. As you can tell they are pictures of her happily riding her bike singing, "La La La" when along comes her older brother, humming, and runs her down with a car. We, her parents, look on in horror. Her older brother does not drive the car, by the way, nor has he ever made plans to flatten her. At least not that I know about.

One just wonders if her teacher is reporting us to CPS.
Scene 1

Scene 2

Scene 3

Scene 4

I have to say the expressions on her drawings are quite good. I actually look like this drawing sometimes. She obviously takes after middle daughter who surpassed my drawing skills in about third grade.

Then here are pictures of my oldest daughter falling to the earth. Yeah, that's a little bit scary.
Skydive

Skydive with Hawaii

Annette Lyon: My Favorite Room: Tada!

Annette Lyon — 2008-08-01T17:21:00+00:00

I've been promising forever, and I finally dug through the digital photos we've taken over the last year to pick out all the ones from my office makeover.

As I think I've mentioned before, when we moved into this house, it was originally #4's bedroom, being as she was still in a crib. Now that she's an official big girl, she's moved downstairs and shares a room with #3. My old office is now #2's bedroom.

I love spending time in my new office, complete with a gorgeous view outside and plenty of sunlight . . . neither of which you'll be seeing in the photos, because the blinds are closed because of the glare.

Finally, without further ado, the transformation of my office, with waaaaay more pictures than you probably care to see!

First, the beginning of the demolition. The carpet is gone, the trim all ripped out. The walls look a bit pink here, but the color was really more of a cool taupe.

Honey ripped out the closet shelves, bars, and trim, leaving this:

Then he built in bookshelves just how I wanted them: most of the shelves are built to hold novels and research books, but a few on the lower right are really tall so I can fit in big binders that are filled with research fun. And below that is room to store boxes of my books and stuff:

I primed the walls and the bookshelves, then painted the shelves a yummy chocolate brown:

Time for the wall color to go up. Again, it doesn't come all that accurately in a picture. The room doesn't look like a tub of margarine. It's more of a golden tan.

The paint looks pretty cool next to the shelves, huh?

Next up: installing the walnut laminate floor:

Ain't it purty?!

Trim work begins. I think my honey's knees and back about gave out doing this one because of all the extras I picked out for him that required that much more time on his knees and bending in awkard positions. I still feel a bit guilty for inflicting that on him . . .

With the trim all done, I volunteered my exceptionally lame handy skills and caulked it all. Be impressed people. Be very impressed. Here's some of the cool molding honey put in, along with some of the less-than professional caulking I did:

When it was time to move in, these books went in first. Anyone who knows me knows right away what they are. (Can you make out the first edition Windy Poplars? Volume V of the journals isn't pictured, as it's still on my night stand.)

Tada!!!

Some day I'll get curtains and do a few other touch-ups, but for now, it's pretty darn awesome.

I purposely didn't bring in all my books. I left a lot downstairs where the kids can read them. Okay, and to leave room for future books. I didn't want the whole place chock-full right away.

A couple of notes about the stuff on the wall: When my first book came out, part of the celebration was getting a poster of the cover framed, so that's the big picture. My BYU diploma is on the bottom. The 4-picture frame will eventually have pics of the kidlets.

And the wooden sign is something I got from Josi Kilpack that brings me joy. It reads, "I will NOT live like a NORMAL person. I AM A WRITER!"

Truer words were never spoken. Or put on a sign. Whatever.

And below is the view from the door, where you can almost sort of see the rugs (the one on the right I featured in my "closer look" photo meme).

One fun thing to note: See the wooden name block on the desk? Below my name, it says, "Writer." I love it, not only because it's pretty, but because my husband bought it for me years before my first sale. Even during all the rejections, I kept it on my desk as a reminder, a symbol of what I was and where I could be someday.

When you've got someone who believes in you, it really helps you get through the rough times in this writing gig. He always has believed in me.

Oh, and the stack of papers are critiques from my weekly group that I hadn't gotten to when I took the picture. That stack is smaller now. Not gone, but smaller. I think I'm down to three or four weeks' worth of notes rather than twice that.

What you can't see in these pictures is the wall to the left of the door, where there's yet another bookcase (of course). Some day I might get a reading chair to go next to it.

And right below the window (you can just make out the black edge) is an electric fireplace Honey got me for Christmas to put in my future office to keep my toesies warm. (I freeze year round. It's really sad. Today might be August 1, but I'm wearing a wool sweater.)

The left wall also bears this print on it from my sister that's very much me. It shows a street with a cafe named after Shakespeare and a chocolate store. Oh, yeah. I could spend all day there.

As it is, I spend plenty of time with the print in my spiffy new office. Honey did a ton of work on it just for me. Yes, I married a keeper.