Monday Musings and Mumblings

I haven't blogged for a couple of weeks now. There was a book to finish and a publisher to keep happy by turning it in in a timely manner, which for me was eight days late. I'm telling you, my editor is so, so good to me. I had more shots in my retina, a major reason for being late submitting my manuscript and for not blogging. In addition, to my utter surprise, Microsoft gave me Windows 10 one night while I was sleeping. Imagine the screaming and swearing and storming at the Davis household when I turned on my laptop to find that mess!

AND I became a great-grandmother for the first time. Now, how that can happen when I'm barely thirty-nine is beyond me. Meet Benjamin, weighing in at 5lb. 11oz. Though he be small, he be brave and darling and kissable and strong beyond measure. He already holds Daddy's heart in his little hand.

I'll meet him in June when we travel to Ohio for our granddaughter's wedding. Eleni graduates from college a few weeks earlier and then marries a young man she's been dating for three years. Life keeps moving, doesn't it? Sometimes I'd like for it to stand still for a while...just so I could catch up.

Meanwhile, flowers need planted, the house needs cleaned, winter clothes need put away and spring and summer ones brought out. And I must keep writing. Book one of Black Eagle Ops--HER SURVIVOR--releases in July. I've just turned in the manuscript for book two of the series--HERS TO HEAL for a November release. And I've written chapter one of book three--HER FOREVER HERO--for the publisher to include in the back of book two. It was a great chapter to write.

A former SEAL attends a small cattlemen's convention at the same hotel as RWA's annual shindig. He's clueless, of course. I mean, what would a rancher, former SEAL commander, and leader of a black ops team know about those magic initials romance writers recognize in an instant? He thinks they stand for Regional Women Accountants or, after his wild experience in an elevator with several romance writers, Rowdy Women Accountants.

Until next time, here's a meme the fabulous Kelly Moran made me...

How Much Can an Old Dog Learn in Six Years?

About six years ago, I was eagerly awaiting the cover for my first book. After two completed, gawd-awful manuscripts on dusty floppy discs, I was finally going to be published (insert happy dance). Now, here I am, twelve active titles later, three books back in my possession for self-publication, an inclusion in a romance bundle with four other authors,  and I'm waiting for cover number seventeen. Frankly, I'm just as excited as I was back in 2010.

I never knew how much I had to learn until I--a self-proclaimed know-it-all--started writing on a serious daily level. Thank goodness for RWA online classes and those conducted by state and online branches. What they taught me was invaluable. In fact, I'm taking one on deep point of view as a refresher course. After all, a writer's learning curve is continual.

That's one thing this old dog has learned. I forget things. I slip into old patterns and my writing suffers. Deadlines loom and, in my rush to meet them, I turn out crapola. I get sick. So does Calvin. Life happens, as we say, and once again my writing weakens. I need to keep the basics fresh in my mind.

Before I start a new book, I read over those basics.

I need to plot more. Gone are the days where I can just type Chapter One and keep on going, making up names and characters as I go along. My "beginner's luck" has run out. Now I need to display more professionalism. Plan. Get my GMC straight for both the hero and heroine. Nail down the basic plot. I've yet to reach the place where I list the main points of each chapter, but I do have a clearer vision of the storyline.

And then there's time management. Now there's a concept for writers. We've got emails, facebook, tweets, chores for our street team to do (and boy, oh boy, am I grateful for mine!). As a member of other writers' street teams, I have things to do for them to help with their promo. A couple blogs to visit and comment on and--SNAP!--a few hours have evaporated.

Frankly, I'd sooner be writing. But, we have to keep our media platform strong and our brand (our writing names) in front of readers. I'm still learning how to do that. And darn it, as soon as I get a grasp on things, they become passé and something else is all the rage. Meanwhile, this ol' dawg keeps limping along.

But I've learned for the sake of my husband's happiness and my health, I need to balance my time better. I need to stop and smell the roses. In short, I need to be Vonnie, the person, more often and give Vonnie, the writer, a mental rest.

I'm still perfecting my opening hook. My characters need more development, especially my heroines. Sometimes my plots, like my hips, are too heavy. My endings need more emotion and resolution. ACK! The list goes on.

Basically, I've learned to keep on learning, experimenting, and deleting. Not only do I write a shitty first draft, but the second and third have a foul odor, too. As Hemingway said, "Writing is rewriting." I'm going to have to use the patience word here, aren't I? I've got to patiently fiddle with my manuscript until I work out the kinks, the faults.

FIRST, I'VE GOT TO IDENTIFY AND FACE MY FAULTS!

Why am I so concerned about all this? I read new authors. I feel their energy, sense their burgeoning talent, and think gosh how many years do I have to write to catch up? I read authors who take their time to write a deeply emotional book and turn pea-green with envy.

A writer needs to realize there's an unattainable goal ahead of her or him. It's called perfection. Few of us, if any, will reach it. For what one reader adores, another refers to as "Meh."

So I've learned I can't write to please everyone. It'll never happen. My goal? Write to please myself and my editor.

Those one and two star reviews glaring neon orange among the pretty yellow four and five stars will have to shine on.

We all enjoy reading different things written in various styles. But, please, please let my stories be well-written.

What have you learned in your writing career?

Writing is a Solitary Profession Full of Long Distance Friends

Even if you do your writing in a houseful of people, you have to mentally isolate yourself from part of the action and conversation around you. How can you stay in your character's head while two kids are fighting over the last brownie? Especially when you were saving it as a reward for yourself for finishing this rough chapter? Can a brownie be cut into thirds?

Many writers get up early for their hour of quiet or stay up late. Noises and commotion around them are just too distracting. Others are able to block it out. We go inward with our characters. We step into their world, hear their words, feel their emotions.

Our children are grown, living in other states or countries. It's just Calvin and me here on Towne Crier Road. So, it's relatively quiet. I chuckled at that statement.

Right now, my nearly deaf husband is in the den with his Rosetta Stone playing on his computer, so I'm hearing both the program and him recite French as I write this. Oui, oui. He also has a basketball game playing on his TV AND the "Beatles Greatest Hits" blaring on his stereo.

Meanwhile, I'm trying to find my Zen zone.

I need to be in a solitary mental place to write. That's not to say a place of aloneness, but a place of mental solitude. It takes me a few minutes to block out noises, but I can. I'm able to write in restaurants, coffee shops and Micky-D's.

I also need friends who understand my needs. Thank goodness for the writer friends I've found online. Friends to whom I can zip off a quick question. Friends I can ask to read a scene and provide input. Friends I can complain to about the publishing world. May God bless them all. I've got almost a hundred of them all over the world. I've never met any of them, except for one in Paris. What a delight that was. We met in the Garden of the tulips, and I wish I could write that for you in French, it sounds so much prettier. Elegant. Romantic.

I'm eager for RWA in July. I'll get to meet a few of my writer friends there too. They have no idea how they can make a solitary profession less lonely and confusing.

You Belong To Me -- by Marlie Bridges

My guest today is lovely author Marlie Bridges. We both belong to From the Heart Romance Writers, a wonderful supportive online group of authors. She's doing the self-promotional thing we all hate to do, and I promised her I'd make her visit to Vintage Vonnie as painless as possible. Marlie, won't you tell my visitors a bit about yourself? But first, have a cup of coffee and a brownie. My Calvin grinds his own special blend of beans and makes the best java.

 

I am lucky enough to live in the rolling hills of upstate New York with my husband. Our two grown sons are out on their own, both living in or near NYC. I began writing in 2005 because a character jumped into my head and I had to find a way to make him come alive. I love writing about the wounded hero or heroine, their challenges in moving forward and their victory in overcoming life’s hurts, often through the power of love.

I joined Romance Writers of America in 2005 and belong to the online Chapter From the Heart Romance Writers, as you know, where I will be serving as VP of Communications for 2013.

For the past 25 years I've worked in information technology and project management and am a bit of a techno-geek.

 

1.   What is the story behind your book title?

 

You Belong To Me was not the original title of this book, but when I was working on a final edit, I saw an opportunity to use the words of one of the characters. By itself, it implies a romance, but in the context of the story, it is really a bit creepy when said by psychotic ex-husband. I liked the double meaning. When the cover was designed, it seemed to go quite well with the image – the couple in the light and the watcher in the dark.
 

 

2.   Do you ever dream of writing in a different genre?

 

I have a story in the drawer that is a paranormal set in the Mayan region of Mexico and in Egypt that doesn’t depend on the world ending in 2012. I was an anthropology major in college and did some archeological fieldwork, so the research was fairly easy. I still may dig it out some day and see if it can be revived. But for now, I love writing romantic suspense and romance.

 

3.   Oh me, too. Tell us, what part of the writing process brings you the most pleasure? The most angst?

 

Writing is hard when it doesn’t flow, and some days it just doesn’t. But when it does, I can write for days. And I seem to be able to write dialogue with barely an edit, so when the writing isn’t flowing, I just write scenes of dialogue. Then I have to go back and fill in details, action and description, but this seems to work for me and keep me from sitting there staring at the blank page.

 

4.   I find I usually work that way, also. I refer to it as writing in layers. What are you currently working on?

 

I’m writing Elizabeth’s story – she is the sister of Colin, the hero, in You Belong To Me, and we get to know her through her interaction and impact on him. But she is intriguing, quirky and someone I want to see get her happy ever after. So I think this will end up being a series, although I didn’t intend for it to be one when I wrote You Belong To Me.

 

5.   (Rubs hands together) Now for the good stuff. Tell us about your current release. Did you bring along your blurb? But first, do you think I could tempt you with three or four of these? Honest, my chocolate is calorie free. And fresh fruit is great for the creative mind.

 

(Marlie winks) Oh, you know I brought along my blurb. Really, I shouldn't have more than two of those!

BLURB:

 

Erin Reilly wants to live life on her own terms far away from her psychotic ex-husband, Daniel. However, when she moves half-way across the country, pulls her life together, and falls in love with corporate lawyer Colin Marshall, Daniel follows her.

Colin's belief in love and desire for a family were abandoned with a woman's betrayal. And he questions his own capacity for love, until he meets Erin and is willing to test the boundaries of his heart.

Through a series of devastating events engineered by Daniel neither of them believes they can ever achieve their dreams.

But Colin proves he is willing to make the ultimate sacrifice for love and help Erin discover the strength and courage she needs to conquer her fears and the monster who tries to destroy them both.

Erin wants the American dream. Colin wants to give it to her.
But can they escape the nightmare that threatens their very lives?

 

Excerpt: 

 

Could he trust her? He wasn’t sure, but he knew as he drained the last of his drink, that somehow, she was his last hope. If there was ever a woman who made him want to take another chance, it was Erin. And as much as it scared the hell out of him, it scared him more to think of just walking away from her. Hell, he was even willing to take it slow, let her know he cared about her, that she wasn’t some one-night lay. One night would never be enough.

 

The decision was clear, so he drove over to the gallery and sat inside the car for a few minutes, trying to decide what to say. Finally, he went to her door and rang the bell. Erin’s voice came through the intercom. “Yes, who is it?” Her voice sounded shaky.

 

 “Erin, its Colin.”

 

“What do you want?” she said, her tone cold now that she knew who it was.

 

“Let me in. I want to talk to you.”

 

“I don’t usually conduct business at nine-thirty at night,” she said, an edge to her voice.

 

“This isn’t business, this is about you and me,” Colin said.

 

She didn’t say anything, but a few seconds later she buzzed him in. He ran up the stairs as she opened the apartment door for him and stepped aside to let him in. She wore slim-legged jeans and a white tank top, her hair pulled back and clipped, and she looked good enough to eat. She closed the door behind him and motioned toward the couch.

 

“Can I get you something to drink?” she said.

 

“You don’t have any scotch, do you?” he said, sitting down on the couch where she had directed him.

 

She turned and walked into the kitchen without answering him. Oh, she’s pissed. How was he going to explain this to her? He’d never been able to talk about his feelings. Ha! Not a manly thing to think about. He hadn’t even been allowed to express much emotion growing up. Anger was the only acceptable emotion for men in his house. He’d learned to rein in any other kind of feeling or be called to task for being weak.

 

A few minutes later she came back with a straight up scotch for him and a glass of red wine for herself and sat on the couch at the far end from him. She grabbed a throw pillow and hugged it, pulling her knees up.

 

Stretching his arm across the back of the couch he leaned toward her. “Listen, I’ve been an ass. I’m sorry about how I treated you today. I was trying to do what I thought you wanted; keep this strictly a business relationship. But I wasn’t just business-like; I was cold.”

 

“You can say that, again,” she said. “I didn’t know what I had done to deserve that from you.” She still didn’t look at him.

 

Moving closer to her he put his hand on her shoulder. “You didn’t do anything wrong. I was confused. I’m still not sure what the hell I’m doing, but we need to talk about this thing between us. I know you feel it, too. I can see it in your eyes.”

 

She took a deep breath and picked up her wine glass, holding it and swirling the wine. “I’m not sure what to say. I don’t know what I want.” She finally turned her head and met his gaze. Those green eyes of hers would be his undoing, especially when they glittered with unshed tears.

 

He moved one finger back and forth slowly across her shoulder. “I think you do, but, like me, you’ve been burned, and you’re not up for another one of those.” This was so much harder than he’d thought it would be. He wasn’t used to laying his feelings out on the table like this.

 

“I didn’t know…” she said, her voice soft, now.

 

“Know what?” he said.

 

“That you’d been burned.”

 

He didn’t want to talk about Kelly right now. “Sometime I’ll tell you the gory details, but what it means is that you and I don’t trust each other – right?”

 

“Yeah, I guess.”

 

“So, let me make a suggestion.” He moved over next to her and tentatively put his arm around her. She didn’t move away. “We take this one day at a time. We get to know each other. We can start over. I’ll call you up and ask you out. We’ll date; go out to dinner, to the theater, spend a Sunday afternoon together, all the things you’d expect to do to get to know someone. What do you think?”

 

Erin smiled and nodded. “Yes. I think I’d like that a lot.”

 

God, thank you for a second chance. “Good. But I have some conditions or maybe they’re ground rules.”

 

She eyed him with suspicion. “Like what?” He didn’t want to blow this now. He just hoped he could say what he wanted to without sounding like a he was prepping for a negotiation.

 

“First, we don’t play games with each other…like I did this afternoon. We’re honest, open with each other. If you’re mad, say so. If I need a break, I say so. Whatever it is, we deal with it, straight up.”

 

She swallowed. “Okay, that’s fair. Anything else?”

 

His studied her face, her beautiful eyes, her sexy mouth. “I don’t know how to say this, but…I’m going to have a hard time keeping my hands off you and I don’t know what to do with that.”

 

He thought he’d crossed the line. Honesty was one thing, but that was just plain stupid. She just stared at him, and he couldn’t read what was going on in her head. Then she smiled. “Okay, I’ll keep that in mind,” she said.

 

Oh, I love it. Tell us where we can find you online.

Website/Blog: http://marliebridges.com

Facebook: http://www.faceboo.com/MarlieBridgesAuthor

Twitter:  http://www.twitter.com/mariebridges

BUY LINK: You Belong To Me on Amazon http://amzn.to/UrqEfg 

Blog of 2012 Award -- by Vonnie Davis

I’m thrilled to receive this blogging award from talented writer and friend, Calisa Rhose. I can’t think of a better way to ring in the New Year on Vintage Vonnie than to honor Calisa. This is a woman who consistently opens her blog, also known as the ranch, at http://www.calisarhose.wordpress.com as a place for other writers to promote. In addition to interviewing other writers, she also does cover, banner and video reveals to pay forward to other authors.

We met online via the yahoo loops for authors with The Wild Rose Press. She’s fun, interesting and talented…and knows how to sit a horse. Whereas I know how to sit a recliner, but we don’t need to go there. She also possesses a heart as big as I hope mine will be one day. If she knows you, she loves you. How lucky for her family, whom she loves without reserve. She’s fabulous.

This award is unlike other awards that you can only add to your blog once. This award can be updated with additional stars. For every time your blog is nominated, you get to add an additional star. How cool is that?
 

There are a total of “6” stars to collect. Which means that you can checks out your favorite blogs—and even if they have already been given the award by someone else—you can still make your opinion count and pass it on to them again and help them (or me) reach the maximum of “6” stars.

The rules of the award are simple:

1.      Select the blogs you think deserve the 2012 Blog of the Year Award.

2.      Write a blog post and tell us about the blog(s) you have chosen—there’s no minimum or maximum number of blogs required and present them with this award.

3.      Please include a link back to this page: Blog of the Year Award. http://thethoughtpalette.co.uk/our-rewards/blog-of-the-year-award/ and include these rules in your post. (Please don’t alter the rules or the badge!)

4.      Let the blogs(s) you have chosen know that you have given them this award and share the rules with them.

5.      You can now join our Facebook page – click the link here. ‘Blog of the Year 2012’ Award (http://www.facebook.com/groups/BlogoftheYear/) and then you can share your blog with an even wider audience.

 

And now it’s my turn and a thrill to pay this honor forward by giving the award to the following bloggers:

 

Angela Adams blogging at http://www.authorangela.blogspot.com/  Here’s a lady—and I mean that in every delightful meaning of the word—who loves promoting other writers. She reviews many books and stories on her blog. I met her through RWA’s online site, From the Heart Romance Writers. She’s truly a delight, full of encouragement and support.

 

Then there’s delightful, spirited Mackenzie Crowne blogging at Mad Mac’s Mania, found at http://mackenziecrowne.com/wp/ . Mac and I met on The Wild Rose Press’s yahoo loop. We refer to it as The Garden—not a thorn in the bunch. Mac is like sunshine in a jar of honey. She’s talented and, in my opinion, an up and coming romance writer. I just love her style. I love the design of her blog and get serious blog envy every time I visit, which is often. Her blog is as open to visitors as her heart is to more friends.

 

I don’t want to forget another up and coming author, Rachel Brimble. Rachel blogs from her home in England at http://rachelbrimble.blogspot.com/ We also met in The Garden and are now represented by the same agent. Rachel has opened her blog to me several times and also to my husband, Calvin. She’s full of energy and encouragement.

 

THANKS TO THE THREE OF YOU FOR SUPPORTING MY JOURNEY AS A WRITER THESE LAST COUPLE YEARS. ENJOY YOUR BLOG OF 2012 AWARD.