"WHAT IF" IS THE WRITER'S SPARK!

What sparked my story idea for BRAZOS BRIDE? So glad you asked. The answer is several things.

I love family series and trilogies. So, I wanted to write about brothers who’d shared tragedy and good times that strengthened an already strong bond between them. What I came up with is the three Stone brothers and the Men of Stone Mountain trilogy. I'm a gentle soul, really I am, but I prefer murder, kidnapping, or some sort of intrigue even in romances.

While researching my contemporary time travel romantic suspense, OUT OF THE BLUE (available from The Wild Rose Press at www.thewildrosepress.com/caroline-clemmons-m-638.html), I came across a couple of historic events that sparked “what if” thoughts. “What if” is a writer’s blessing because the question launches us into characters and plots.

Over the years, I’ve read a lot of books with poison as the murder weapon (especially in Agatha Christie’s books), and wanted at least two of the books to include poisons found growing naturally in the Southwest. I had needed a natural poison for a cozy mystery I’m soon to publish on Kindle, DIGGING FOR DEATH. In that book, I did quite a bit of research and discovered the plant I needed to fit the story, but also discovered many other native poisonous plants.

Foxglove, from which digitalis comes, is an example
of a plant that can heal or kill. Foxglove grows wild near
where I live in Texas.

Research is never wasted for writers, and I loved playing around with those plants. Mentally, that is, not the actual poison! Naturally I couldn’t use the same poison in each book or there would be no suspense. I need not have worried because there are many Texas plants that are harmful or lethal. Even some healing plants are lethal when misused or given in too large a dose.

Oleander, a deadly plant when any part is ingested.

As a result, I came up with three very different stories (in my opinion) for the Men of Stone Mountain that contain different native plant poisons used in BRAZOS BRIDE, HIGH STAKES BRIDE, and BLUEBONNET BRIDE. The first book, BRAZOS BRIDE, is Micah Stone’s story and is on sale now for only 99 cents at Amazon Kindle at http://www.amazon.com/Brazos-Bride-Stone-Mountain-ebook/dp/B007HS10SY/ref=sr_1_18?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1331156267&sr=1-18 (Soon, I'll have a print version available from CreateSpace.) I’m writing HIGH STAKES BRIDE now, which is Zach Stone’s story with Mary Alice Price as the heroine.  Joel’s story, BLUEBONNET BRIDE, will be the final for this trilogy. Then I will have Storm Kincaid’s book to write. Of course, my muse is busy conjuring up the next series. I just love writing and hope never to stop.

What kind of romances do you enjoy? I'll give away a copy of BRAZOS BRIDE to one person who answers this question in a comment.

Thanks for stopping by! Y'all come back.

Joy Of Writing

I'm excited about a new WIP (work in progress) and am fortunate to have friends whose encouragement propels my enthusiasm. I love writing my stories,escaping into someone else's life, and creating the appropriate outcome for each character--depending on whether it's a hero, heroine, or villain. When I'm writing, it's as if these are real people whose life I'm recording, not something plucked from my imagination. Other days, writing requires delving deeper and a fair share of daydreaming.  I love the quote from Meg Chittendon that goes:

"Many people hear voices when no one is there. Some of them are called mad and shut up in rooms where they stare at walls all day. Others are called writers, and they do pretty much the same thing."

Along the same line, I've saved a copy of the Sunday funnies that shows the character Shoe sitting at his desk staring off into space for several frames. When someone speaks to him, he says, "Can't you see I'm writing?"

It's true that along with the joy of creating, writers face times of planning and plotting. We arrange parts of the story in our minds so that the ideas will flow to our fingers. One of my critique partners, Jeanmarie Hamilton, and I tease one another that we have to keep our fingers flying across the keys. Many days that's more easily said than practiced.

I try to write at least five pages each day. Some days I far exceed that--my all-time record being 48 pages in a very, very long day. Other days, life jumps up and grabs me by the throat. Those days are lost for my stories with zero productivity. I try not to dwell on the interruptions life presents--and there are a lot of those. The important thing for me is to keep my tush in my desk chair and my fingers flying across the keys.

To qualify for my May 31st prize give away, leave a comment. If you also sign on as a follower, that counts as an additional entry. Be sure to include your email address in your comment.

My time travel romantic suspense OUT OF THE BLUE is now available from The Wild Rose Press and Amazon. Please let me know if you enjoy it. Okay, also let me know if you do not enjoy reading it.

Courting You Muse

Gene Fowler said, "Writing is easy. All you have to do is stare at a blank sheet of paper until the drops of blood form on your forehead."

What activates your muse? Do you have to court it? Darling Daughter 1 gave me a magic wand to help with my writing. Some days it works; some days it's broken. Okay, maybe I don't really believe the want is magic, but it is pretty.  I keep it by my monitor. After all, it couldn't hurt a person, could it? Each of us needs a little magic in our writing, right? Maybe a fairy would shower that extra sparkle into our work?

Many writers use music to set the mood for their particular work in progress. One friend downloads songs that she feels set the mood for her day's writing.  I find that anything with lyrics detracts from my concentration. Classical music, especially Mozart, sets a nice rhythm for my keystrokes. In fact, I am a fan of Don Campbell's book, MOZART EFFECT, and have the accompanying Cd's. I also listen to chakra aligning CD's, again strictly instrumental. By the time I finish a day's writing, my chakras should be a hundred percent on target.

Experts have stated that music imparts a rhythm to our text that communicates to the reader. Who knows? Each individual responds differently. Pachelbel's "Canon" soothes me. My favorite copy is on a two-CD set entitled "The Most Relaxing Classical Music in The Universe." Isn't that a lofty claim? The Cd's are so enjoyable, however, I have a spare set for the time when these Cd's expire from overuse.  After all, I can't risk displeasing my muse.

Getting away from the computer for a couple of hours might revitalize your creativity. Or do you need a few days away to contemplate? Stress can suffocate our muse. A little R and R never hurts, does it?

Reading also stimulates my muse and gets her contemplating new possibilities. Now, I do NOT mean that I am copying anyone! In fact, when working on a project, I read the opposite type of literature so even my subconscious can't plagiarize. Rather reading relaxes me by taking me away so my creativity surfaces. If a book is particularly well-written and captivating, I read it a second time to analyze the craft techniques.

A muse is not just for writers. No matter what the artistic endeavor, a muse is needed for inspiration. Each of us has a method for courting our muse. What works for you?
  

Art Reflecting Life or Life As We Wish It Could Be?

During the past, I have read posts from writers about how anger they thought they'd dealt with, had buried, or had forgotten surfaces surprisingly in their work. Their comments made me think about our subconscious and the fodder for our stories.JoAnn Ross recently wrote an article about her early loss and trail to finding her half-sister. Her search and happy reunion forced her to realize that all of her stories deal with family unity in one way or another. Whatever the cause, her books are always wonderful.

I believe my historicals came about from stories my father (in his fifties when I was born) and my maternal grandmother (in her sixties when I was born) told about their childhoods and family history. I hadn't considered that characters might sometimes grow out of frustrations with family members. Sure, I knew writers killed off in print the people they hated--one of the cathartic joys of writing! I hadn't thought of other characters as manifestations or desires. One writer mentioned a sociopath mother who had humiliated and tormented her childhood. Not until she was editing a work did she realize the heroine's mom was based on her own, right down to an event she'd included. What a shock!

Another friend whose book was edgier than any of her other books admitted it was because of all she went through when her mother was ill and dying while my friend was writing the book. As writers and as humans, we are the sum of our experiences, both good and bad.

This reminds me of a quote about television in the 1940's and 1950's. Nick Clooney, brother of singer Rosemary Clooney and related to George Clooney, said, "People wanted to see life, not as it was, but as they wished it could be." I suppose the same is true for readers of popular fiction. It certainly is for me as a reader and as a writer.

We write not so much as life is, but as we wish it could be fore everyone. For every heartache, a healing. For every good person, victory. For every bad person, redemption or swift and painful retribution. Our lives, and our dreams, are reflected in our Art.

Writing Is A Great Job!

Starting a new book. How exciting! The outline is mapped out, the first chapter is finished, and ideas are popping into my head. Do others feel the same way about launching a new project? I hope so. It's an adrenaline rush, which makes it hard to concentrate on the mundane tasks of everyday life. All I want to do is write. Who needs clean laundry or groceries, right?  Not me. I can sit at my keyboard in my sweats or robe and live in my characters' minds for hours at a time.

Eventually nature calls and I have to visit the restroom. On the way back to my pink cave (office), I get a glass of water or a Dr Pepper. Probably I'd get hungry after a day or so if Hero didn't stick his head around the door of my office and ask the question that strikes dread in many hearts, "What's for dinner?" At least he's supportive and adds, "Are you cooking, or should I just find something on my own?" Some days, he even says, "Your dinner is ready."  What a guy!

The point is, writers lose themselves in their stories. Literally sometimes, because I often lose track of time. As Celia Yeary wrote today in her blog, we are passionate about writing.  We can exist on the stuff of our dreams. Doesn't explain my waistline, but you probably understand what I mean. I love to write, and a new story that is going well is like a dozen Vitamin B-complex shots to my system.

I am a godess! I create worlds! I envision characters and give them life! And I don't even need a special wardrobe to work. Is this a great job or what?

Which Character Are You?

Mel Brooks said, "Every human being has hundreds of separate people living under his skin. The talent of a writer is his ability to give them their separate names, identities, personalities, and have them relate to other characters living with him."

People frequently ask an author, "Which character in your book are you?" The answer is, of course, all of them. Sure we want readers to identify with the hero/heroine, but each of the characters comes from within the author. The late Elmer Kelton said that on only one occasion did he use a real person in one of his books, and that he never put himself through that agony again. Everyone in his town recognized the character for who he was--except, fortunately, the man himself.

My characters are a fictional, but my heroes always have those qualities I admire most in my Hero Husband. They're also always tall, as he is. But he's never been a policeman or rancher or business mogul or con man. He's not able to leap tall buildings at a single bound--except, of course, in my heart.

Would that I could be one of my heroines! Nope. Not even close. After being a skinny anemic child, for most of my adult life I've battled my weight. So, my heroines are always in the enviable (by me) position of having terrific metabolisms that allow them to eat whatever they want and never gain weight. They have lustrous hair instead of fine, thin stuff that has a mind of its own. This is fiction, remember? Hey, it's my book, so I can make them better than real life!

Novelists write, we create. That's our job. How, you ask? We let our imaginations bloom and pull characters from a well deep inside our subconscious. If we're lucky, we don't have to dig for the characters--they just pop into our heads and speak.

Yes, our research has to be credible. A fictional rancher has to engage in actual deeds that a real rancher would. A police station has to appear realistic even if the detective is imaginary. If a character is ill, the disease's treatment and diagnosis has to make sense for the era in the book. I've tossed books which got those things wrong. At our house, we call books like that "wall bangers." We don't literally hurl them against the wall--think of the paint and furniture--but we don't finish them either. And we don't buy that author's books again.

So, who is all the characters in a novel yet none of them?  The author. No, it's really not a riddle. It's a writer's life.

Telling Your Story

"A good writer is basically a storyteller, not a scholar or a redeemer of mankind." Isaac Singer

Each of us has many stories to tell. Whether we want it to be family related, memoirs, or create it into fiction. I love each of those three forms, but have chosen most often to write romanctic fiction.

My father was a great storyteller. After dinner he would often talk about events from his childhood or that of his parents. I felt sorry for my grandparenst with seven rowdy sons and only one daughter. Dad's stories held my attention from his opening words until the end of his tale. He and his brothers lived near Denison, Texas. They were hard workers who played hard, too. I treasure the stories he related to my brother and me.

Writers follow that same style whether writing fiction or non-fiction. Open with The "hook," a phrase or paragraph that pulls the reader into our story. We pace ourselves, keeping the action moving forward at varying speeds to the conclusion. The big finish in which our protagonist or hero/heroine barely save the day  has to leave the reader satisfied, yet wanting more stories from the author.And I have lots of stories still to tell. Writing is a passion for me. But I know that if you gave the same set of events to ten writers, you'd come up with ten very different stories. We create from within, drawing on all the things that makes us individuals.
Some of us writer comedy, some noir, some suspense, some contemporary, some historical.

What part of you feels compelled to create? How do you fulfill that need?