Great Contest For Writers - DUEL ON THE DELTA

Calling all writers! My local Romance Writers Of America chapter, River City Romance Writers is now accepting entries for their annual contest. 25 pages and NO synopsis. Well, you can send an optional 1-pager if you want but you don't have to!

Baby, it's cold out there. (The weather and publishing) Contests are a way to get your book in front of an agent or editor if you final. Being a contest finalist says, "My book is pick of the litter."

This is a great contest with good feedback and a great new score sheet, which I helped develop. ::Debra blushing demurely:: I'll also be coordinating the Paranormal category. Why do I say that? Well, because that means I'm going to be looking at and reading everything that comes in! That's like having an extra judge free! Plus I'm a first round judge in another category dear to my heart.

Here's a list of our final round judges:

Mystery/Romantic Suspense
Keyren Gerlach, Associate Editor, Silhouette Romantic Suspense

Contemporary (series)
Wanda Ottewell, Senior Editor of Harlequin Superromance

Young Adult
J.L. Stermer, Asst. Agent, Donald Maass Literary Agency

Paranormal
Deb Werksman, Sourcebooks, Inc

Historical
Deborah Nemeth, Editor, Samhain Publishing, LTD

Mainstream/Single Title
Margo Lipschultz, Associate Editor, Harlequin

Inspirational
Tina Colombo, Senior Editor, Love Inspired Historical and
Love Inspired Suspense, Harlequin

SO...what are you waiting for? Get the to the website and print out an entry form. (check the website menu on the left for clickable links to the entry form, last year's winners and scoresheet. Ya'll come! Entry deadline is 2/15. Got questions? Email me at:

BelleBooks AT Bellebooks DOT com

What’s the point? Plot point, that is.

Okay, most of us are writers, right? Whether we are well into a career, have a manuscript or two under our belt but haven’t cracked that ‘publication’ hurdle yet or are still in the ‘thinking about writing a book’ stage, we all harbor dreams of writing that perfect book.

And to write that perfect book, we need to have the perfect plot. Or at least we have to have A plot – someone, probably an editor – will notice if we don’t :o)

How to plot is the million dollar question. And for my money, plotting is the most single difficult issue. My writing friends often ask me – how do you plot? How do you get all those pieces working together in a seamless, cohesive story?

Now I love my writing friends. And I want to help them in any way I can. So I always answer them truthfully: I DON’T KNOW!!!

How can that be? But I really don’t know. It’s humiliating and embarrassing and ego busting. I mean really. I’ve been fortunate enough to have sold over 30 books, and currently have a publisher who is anxiously awaiting delivery of yet one more. Shouldn’t I know what I’m doing by now? Well, shouldn’t I? Shouldn’t I be able to sit down each morning to write, full of confidence as I merrily charge through plot point after plot point, guided by my carefully crafted blueprint that will lead me effortlessly to a stunning and brilliant conclusion? Shouldn’t I be able to write ten to twenty pages a day without batting an eye?

Well, I bat my eyes. A lot. Ticks develop. It ain’t pretty. And it’s demoralizing to look up from the PC that you sat down in front of at 8:00 am, realize it’s 2:30 pm and you’ve written all of two – count ‘em TWO – paragraphs.

Okay. So ALL days are not like that but more than I’d like to count – or admit to – are. And the really weird thing – given all of this turmoil, I still manage to get my books written, turn them in on time and make my publisher happy.

Is there a point to all of this? Well, actually, yeah. I’m a deeply disturbed writer – but that’s not the point today. The point is, we all struggle in this crazy business – with plot, with characterization, with carrying on. And because I know I’m not alone, I want to share something that I hope will help. NO, sorry, it’s not how I plot – that was just a ruse to get you reading. But we can talk about plotting sometime if you’d like. What I want to share are some affirmations that a dear friend shared with me and that have helped me through those two paragraph days so that I can get on to the ten to twenty page days and whip that elusive plot into shape.

Here goes:

AFFIRMATIONS FOR WRITERS

* Every day, in every way, I’m getting better and better.
* I like and respect myself. I know I am a worthy, capable and valuable person.
* I guide my own destiny, and I’m accountable for the results of my decisions and actions.
* I reinforce my successes and correct for errors.
* I easily anticipate and experience events in my imagination before they actually happen.
* I am my own expert, and I am not affected by the negative attitudes and opinions of others.
* I easily balance the needs of my family with my own need to write.
* Creativity flows through me easily and effortlessly.
* I am a talented writer.
* I have a positive expectancy of big success, and I take temporary setbacks easily.
* I am a creative person and develop my plots with confidence and imagination.
* Images and words come easily when I sit down to write.
* I have unlimited potential; I have unlimited creativity.
* I happily accept the joys and responsibilities of being published and welcome success.
* I write daily with excitement, enthusiasm, and confidence.
* I am well-organized and have a vivid picture of my goals.
* I don’t wait for inspiration. Work inspires inspiration. If I succeed, I keep working. If I fail, I keep working. Whether I feel interested or bored, energized or tired, encouraged or discouraged, I keep working.
* I have the craftsmanship and creativity to successfully finish this book.

And yet a few more self-affirmations from Shad Helmstetter: (THE SELF-TALK SOLUTION)

* I have talents and skills and abilities. I even have talents and skills that I don’t know about yet. And I am discovering new talents inside myself all the time.
* I invest my time and energies where I choose. My time and energy are gifts which I guard and give by my choice - - but never by the demands, dictates, or the expectations of others.
* I am a winner. I am absolutely determined to achieve my aims. I am steadfast and persistent in the pursuit of my goals, and I will not give up.
* Each day my confidence in my self-expression grows stronger and even more positive. I express myself easily, without fear or uncertainty.
* Each day I consciously remove from my mind the imaginary bindings of self-doubt and the unnecessary limitations of uncertainty and fear.
* I am never afraid to try.
* I was not created to fail; I was created to succeed. Success is a part of who I am and a part of everything about me.

Okay people. These things only work if you use them. My advice – print them out, place them where you can access them at any time and READ THEM OUTLOUD until you start believing them.

Does anyone else have ‘props’ they use to help them through those tough writing days? Have you relied on affirmations before and have they been helpful? Am I the only one out here who doesn’t know what she’s doing???? Let’s hear it. Disturbed minds want to know.

Debra - Grading On the Curve

That's what we do. Grade what we see. Our experience. Our work. The work of others. (Which is way more fun. Usually.)

A thousand times a day we make quiet little judgments that steer our course. We toss a pebble and the ripple rocks a stranger. Often we aren't aware that we've made a rippling micro-decision. Other times we know what we decide will make a difference.

Judging contest entries by unpublished writers is one of those jobs that will rock strangers, perfectly lovely people who'd might not have ever entered a contest before and have just handed me their baby. Every time I agree to judge I swear I will be better. More lenient. Less blunt. And then the entries come and know that I can only be me. It's not an easy job. (Constructive judging, not being me.) Especially when a contest has a complicated score sheet, not a simple 1-10 scale. Instead of one judgment, I have what seems like millions.

Oh, I don't say evil things like, "A writer? Who you kiddin? Go back to day care." Nor to I subscribe to the hurtful useless Queen of the obvious remarks like, "I've never seen a more convoluted mess of a scene masquerading as a plot and so little understanding of grammar. Have you read a book or been to school at all?"

I don't subscribe to the theory that there is only one way to construct a book or a character. Every book is different. I have to remind myself that some books simply aren't books which will score well in contests but are fabulous books nonetheless. I probably value voice above all. And I've never given a critique that says, "Get that GMC book by Debra Dixon."

Sunday, I grabbed my large stack of entries, fluffed my favorite pillows, prepared to do my duty. I'd done several entries on planes recently but I still had over 10 to plow through. Critiquing is hard work. Start to finish, including my notes, it's about two hours per critique for me. Rare is the entry that you can simply lose yourself in their work, zoom through, and can award a perfect score. Also rare is the genuinely butt-ugly manuscript, especially in an RWA contest of some sort.

For my money, give me the fabulous entry or the awful entry. Give me a brilliant but fundamentally flawed manuscript. Anything but the middle-of-the-road-don't-hate-it-don't-love-it-perfectly-competent manuscript. This is such an industry of fairy dust. A writer needs something more than competency. For the awful manuscript an experienced judge can usually find something to suggest that will genuinely improve the manuscript. We can offer a light bulb moment. For the fabulous entry we can offer the kind of genuine delight in their work that might buoy them along in the hard times as they keep knocking on doors.

But what can you do for the competent manuscript? Writers will shoot you if you tell them, "Find your voice." "Bring something fresh to the table." "We don't fully connect with your characters."

Those are big rocks to throw and the fix always depends on the writer, the book, the genre. Not something I find easy to do in a contest entry scoresheet.

What are the critiques you hate to give? Which ones have you hated to get? For anything, not just writing. I'll tell you mine if you tell me yours.

ANNE STUART on SOUNDTRACKS AND THE WOMAN

Riders, she's here! Anne Stuart, diva of divas! Anne has written some of the darkest and most delectable heroes imaginable. ICE STORM, her third "Ice" book, hit the ground running last week. Take the link to Amazon for an excerpt. Hard-edged and mysterious Serafin can take a ride in our back seat anytime. But first, make room for the amazing Anne Stuart....

I love music. It’s always been a part of my life – my father was a jazz drummer when he wasn’t trying to be responsible, my bedtime lullaby was “Pennies from Heaven,” and music infuses my every moment.
So of course I need soundtracks. Every book has a different one, and I gotta say iTunes certainly makes life easier. Back in the old days I’d haul out the LPs and tape different cuts onto a cassette tape, play the tape over and over again until it died. (I wish to god I could still find the tape I made for Night of the Phantom – it was a killer). Nowadays I can just make an iTunes playlist to upload to my iPod or play right off my computer while I work.

Just one danger with that. If you’re writing a powerful scene and you’ve got Richard Thompson howling in your ear you can think it’s your words that are causing that emotional effect, not Richard Thompson’s. But in general soundtracks can get you right where you need to go, fast, like one of those magic words when you get hypnotized. Say “lightbulb” and you’ll squawk like a chicken. Listen to Chrissie Hynde and you’ll immediately be inside the head of your angry heroine.


My first contemporary (CHAIN OF LOVE, God help me) was written to Fleetwood Mac, and every time I hear “Say You Love Me” I think of my characters (whose names are long forgotten). NIGHT OF THE PHANTOM had Phantom of the Opera, of course, but also Stevie Nicks singing “Beauty and the Beast” (“where is my beast?”) and some other over-the- top, emotional songs.

I wrote PRINCE OF MAGIC (one of my lost Zebra historicals) to “INTO THE WOODS” (the Sondheim cast album) and the George Winston FOREST cd. LADY FORTUNE, a medieval, to Loreena McKinnett.
number one best soundtrack for writing is Last of the Mohicans, but then, I’m prejudiced. For writing medievals I have the soundtracks for Lion in Winter,The two best sources for soundtracks are new age music and, literally, soundtracks. I listen to a lot of Pacific Moon cds (Samurai, Healing Garden, etc.) plus George Winston, Celtic new age with penny whistles and fiddles. The Robin of Sherwood (Clannad --- sigh), First Knight (yeah, I know it’s ridiculous cheese but I love it) etc.
Sometimes one song can sum up an entire book, give you the key to what’s going on with your characters. Sometimes it’s a certain musician (the aforementioned Richard Thompson, cynic, brilliant guitarist, former member of Fairport Convention almost always does it for me).

And sometimes I just listen to whoosh-whoosh music which either affects my brain waves or, at the very least, provides white noise. (My favorite is Kelly Howell – HIGH FOCUS – I’ve written thousands and thousands of pages very quickly with that in my head). But the best books of all are the ones with the clear soundtracks.

ICE STORM was a piece of cake – my heroine was a gypsy flower child in her young womanhood (and the book has parallel stories – when the main characters first met and when they meet up again). For the past we had Stevie Nicks – the ultimate gypsy child. In the present we had a cross between the Pretenders – Chrissie Hynde full of rage and passion, and Sarah MacLachlan with grief and regret (“Fallen”). For Killian the mercenary we had Warren Zevon – Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner, Lawyers Guns and Money, Mutineer, Desperadoes under the Eaves. Plus the scenes with Reno had J-rock and Dragon Ash singing “Life Goes On.”

Finding a soundtrack for your life can also be handy. As you can probably tell I have a weakness for Celtic influenced music (along with J-rock). The problem with Celtic music is that it can be quite mournful. Many years ago I was dealing with infertility (we eventually adopted two fabulous children) and my doctor was 70 miles. Twice a month I would drive that long distance, listening to Celtic music and sobbing. Finally I decided this was not productive, and sat down a made a happy tape. Starting with the Beach Boys and “Wouldn’t it Be Nice?” and filling it with other songs that made me sing along and smile, and I played it over and over again during those long drives. Occasionally I’d still cry, but mostly I soothed myself with the power of music.

Those of you who are writers – what have you used for soundtracks? And for those of you who don’t write – do you have a song that can immediately put you in a certain mood? (Give me Marvin Gaye singing “Sexual Healing” and my husband is toast).

Triumphant Or Tragic, History Is Fascinating

I dare say one of the things we Riders have in common is a love of history. I'm betting most of us got into it early on. It's like any other story; the characters draw you in and your imagination does the rest. You wear the clothes, ride the horses, live in the castle or the tipi, talk the talk and walk the walk--all from the safe vantage of your ever-lovin' mind.

When I was growing up, history and geography were given equal and distinct focus from about the fourth grade on. I was in love with the the Aztecs, Greeks and Romans by the time I reached double-digit age. Movies helped tremendously. Westerns became my passion, but the big 3-hour Hollywood sagas about any period held my attention from beginning. Back then the facts were less important than the pagentry, but you got a feel for the past. We moved around a lot when I was growing up as an Air Force brat, and I know that seeing all those places helped to fan the flames of my fascination. I learned that people are different in some ways, but, remarkably, across time and territory they're essentially the same. Libraries, museums, historical sites were (and still are) not to be missed. "This is where it all happened," Daddy would say. (Mama wasn't big on history unless it starred Clark Gable or Richard Burton and Liz Taylor.)

Nowadays some of the best historical movies are made by HBO. It's great that they come out on DVD, but I subscribe because I can't wait for the good stuff. Loved Elizabeth. Loved Rome. There have been so many, but now I'm really looking forward to May 27 and Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee. It's based on a book that made a deep and lasting impression on me, not only because it's about my husband's people--the Lakota Sioux--but because it reads almost like a novel and it's about a period in American history that mainstream America has only just begun to get honest about. And getting honest about our history is good for our national soul.

Two really important things happened in South Dakota in 1890. Sitting Bull was assinated, and the U. S. Army committed a terrible massacre. I've dealt with this period in at least two of my books: Fire and Rain and Reason To Believe. They're both about the past touching the present, and they're both love stories. They were inspired in part by Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee (c 1971).

The HBO movie stars two actors who are very easy on the eyes. Aidan Quinn--oh, those blue eyes--is Senator Henry Dawes, architect of the Dawes Act, which made Indian reservations what they are. He probably meant well, but Manifest Destiny was the order of the day, and, as Tony Soprano might say, Whadda'ya gonna do?

Adam Beach plays Charles Eastman. I've blogged about this actor before. He reminds me of The Young Clyde (my DH). Eastman was Dakota (eastern Sioux) but he worked in Lakota country as a medical doctor. He treated the wounded after Wounded Knee. (I own a signed copy of Eastman's Indian Boyhood. We found it ina used/vintage bookstor in Stillwater on our 25th wedding anniversary. How woo-woo is that?)

Oh, yes, there's a love story in BMHAWK. Eastman married a white teacher. Elaine Goodale Eastman (Anna Paquin) was teaching at Pine Ridge when Eastman went to work there. She wrote about her experiences in Sister To the Sioux. Her very worthy mission was to provide local day schools so that Indian children wouldn't be sent away to boarding school. She was way ahead of her time. Indian kids were sent away to mission or government boarding schools throughout most of the 20th century, but that's another story.


Sitting Bull was a fascinating man who's rarely portayed accurately. (Actor, left, is August Schellenburg.) He was accused of encouraging the Ghost Dance, which did not originate with the Lakota. He didn't practice it himself, but he did nothing to stop his followers from giving it a shot. What did they have to lose? His "crime" was his refusal to sign the agreement that put the Dawes Act into effect and shrank Indian Territory dramatically.

One more look at the two principles. Irresistible, aren't they? I can't wait for the May 27th premiere.

What's your favorite historical period? Most interesting historical figure? What makes them so interesting? How about book? Movie?

Did you get into history when you were in school? Are we doing a decent job of teaching history? How could we do better?