Silence! I’m Writing Here!

Where do you write? Do you need a quiet place or can life go on around you leaving you unhindered? It’s a perplexing question in many ways. I’ve talked to several writers on this subject and the answers vary.

Some writers tell me that they need silence while writing. They don’t want any music or sound. It hinders their creative thoughts. Then others say they have to have music going to keep the creative juices flowing. Others can write with the television going and life streaming around them. It’s so different with every writer.

As for me I guess it’s the mood I’m in. Most of my writing happens at night while the television is blaring. I sit on one end of the couch and my son on the other and my hubby is in his recliner. When I’m in writing mode, usually the outside world disappears. What’s funny is I can keep up with a movie and writing at the same time. I learned how to multi-task when my son was a infant. Since I own a accounting business, he was raised up in my office. I had to answer phones while giving him a bottle, prepare a profit and loss statement while rocking him to sleep and deal with the colic while meeting a tax deadline. Yeah, I can multi-task with the best of them.

Of course I love my morning time writing. When my son is off to school and hubby has left for work, I sit in my pj’s and sip my coffee. This is my time to blog, check my sites and do a little intense writing. I try to steal a couple of minutes here and there during the day, but when you run a busy accounting office, that’s few and far away.

I do love to write with music playing softly in the background. When I have the house to myself, usually I have Pandora running. My listening pleasures vary drastically. My son laughs when he walks into my office. I have Pandora running all day in the office. The stations I listen to vary from Adam Levine Radio, Evanescence Radio, Luke Bryan Radio, Drunk On Country Radio to 80’s Love Songs Radio. I told you they vary. Some days I add in Classical Radio too. It’s all according to my mood. But my Pandora stations are always on shuffle. So you never know what will come up. Then of course I have my CD’s for when I want a more chiseled effect. That varies broadly. The one that gets my hubby and son is the Celtic Sounds CD that I play sometimes. They’ll roll their eyes and walk back out. I usually laugh.

So, how do you like to write? Do you need silence or music? If you use music as your muse, what’s you favorite writing sounds?

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Dusting off an old manuscript…

As most of you know I’ve been writing stories most of my life. Several of my books come from manuscripts that I wrote many years ago. I was cleaning out a drawer the other day and ran up on a spiral notebook. I didn’t think anything about it and set it on the table with some other papers to go through.

When I finished cleaning out the drawer and the one below it, I decided to see if the notebook was just a old one from my son. He’s bad about saving them from prior school years. As I opened it I was surprised to find one of my stories. Of course I dropped everything and sat down to read the story. The funny thing is I didn’t remember writing the story. As I read it I smiled thinking that it would make a great book, or at least a good book 😉

So, I put it in with my other manuscripts in the works and went about my day. But as any writer will tell you, the story started to fill my head. I kept going back to the words in the book. Soon the story came back to me and I couldn’t help but to sit down and write a few notes before I forgot them again. Yeah, it’s not fun to get older and lose your memory easily…

For now it’s still in long hand form. I plan to one day put it in my laptop, but it’s just a whim. It will be an interesting change from my normal writing. I will let you in on the story line soon, but for now, let’s just say I’m holding this gem close for a little longer.

Do you have manuscripts that are unfinished, but still in your mind? Have you put them away for another time? Tell me about it and share something from it.

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Love, the long road ahead…

Romance. It’s the time honored wish for most women. We read about it in magazines, novels and watch it in the movies. The search takes on a feverish turn as we get older, but do we find that elusive time held romance? Would you say you found that one man that curls your toes and leaves you in awe? Have you found your romance novel love?

Romance is not a myth, it’s real. But unfortunately we’re all so busy living life that we don’t stop to give it a chance. Romance is inside of all of us, but we don’t let it out. Some men are afraid that if they show their romantic side, then it means they’re weak. What they don’t realize is that romantic side is a indication that they’re in full control of their masculinity and know how to make their women happy. To me there’s nothing more masculine than a man that surprises his wife with a rose or just a simple, spine tingling kiss in public.

Romance can be found in so many ways. It just has to be explored, tested. If your relationship is lacking romance, then maybe you’re not trying hard enough. If your marriage has lost some of that honeymoon phase, then try a little romance. Light a candle at dinner, even with the kids at the table. Give him a look that says imagine we’re alone, he will get the message. Even a little note that simple says I Love You slipped in his lunch or wallet can spread a little romance his way.

I know I talk about romance a lot, but what can I say, I love romance. I guess that’s why I write romance. It’s a way I can spread romance to everyone who reads my work. Romance is a wonderfully, loving experience that everyone needs to have. So, as I always say, go out and spread a little romance.

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

P.S.: Finding The Right Time made it to Barnes & Noble for preorder. Here’s the link: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/finding-the-right-time-stephanie-hurt/1118861344?ean=2940045730792

Are you using your voice?

Ok, I know that’s a strange question, but hear me out. I’m talking about your author’s voice. That voice that speaks to you and drives you to write. You know that voice, it’s the one that wakes you in the middle of the night, the one that keeps your mind off everything around you, and it’s the one that nudges you to write that next chapter before bedtime. Yeah, you know it. All writers hear it, some ignore it, but you hear it.

But the question is, are you using your voice? Have you listened to others and changed to suit them, but not you? Yes, we need to listen to our critics, but if we totally change our voice aren’t we denying our inner talent. When you write from your heart it shows. When you listen to that voice in your head you use your writer’s voice.

If you change that and don’t listen to your own voice, then where does the story come from. Well, it would have to come from somewhere outside of your head, which means you’re not using your voice. It’s your writer’s voice that makes you the writer. It’s that voice that gives you the stories you write, the emotions, the complexity of characters. So, if you don’t use your own voice, then what next?

Did you know that your voice determines the genre you write in? If your voice leans toward romance, then you write romance, if it leans toward science fiction, then you’ll write science fiction. You get the picture, right? Well, I’ve talked to writer’s that listened to critics and other people and they changed their voice. But it wasn’t a good change, it was a tragic change. Their writing went downhill. Yes, we all need to edit our voice, I mean we’re not perfect in no means, but we don’t need to edit our voice.

I had a reviewer tell me one time that I needed to add some tequila shots to one of my books. She went on to explain that she thought it needed to have more heated love scenes. Well, I’m sorry, but that’s not my voice. She liked the book, but wanted more steamy sex scenes. My writing voice leans more toward the calmer romance voice. I have no problem with steamier books, but it’s just not my voice. That’s why we have authors that write in that voice. I lean more toward the heart warming romance. But that’s just the way I write. I have many great author friends that write steamy romance and I love their books. They in turn read mine and appreciate it also. We understand that all of us has a different voice.

So, are you following your voice? Are you listening to that inner part of you that makes your writing exclusively yours? Remember to follow your heart and not follow what’s popular now. You never know, you could start a new voice or popular culture.

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Character lists, organizing them…

As a writer you learn many tricks of the trade. For me I outline almost every book from start to finish. Of course as the story develops so does the outline. One of the most important factors in the writing process is the character list. It helps keep you from renaming a character mid book. Yeah, I did this. *Grinning* Also helps you remember the different aspects of the characters that don’t take forefront in the story.

Of course I didn’t learn this nifty little practice until about 5 books in. It really stinks when you’re in the midst of writing and suddenly you can’t remember what one of the side characters does for a living. I always keep my character outline at the bottom of my screen. It sits there ready for action when I need it. I just pull it up and get the info and bam, I’m back to writing.

The book that I used this the most was ‘Victoria’. She had 5 brothers and they had wives and children too. All of the characters played a part in the story so I had to remember what wife went with what brother. Also, in this one I had a timeline beside me too. I’ll get into that in another blog. But if I didn’t have that list, it would have been a nightmare.

This outline started out on paper, handwritten, but after I lost it once I put it in my computer so that it was available at a moment’s notice. This also helps with series. That way you can pull from this all the way throughout. You can add new characters and new additions to old characters. It’s a wonderful tool and so easy to set up.

So, if you’re writing a book and don’t have a character list, then I suggest setting one up. It helps immensely to have a mini bio on your characters. List their likes, dislikes. If your character has blonde hair, put it down. If they are vegetarian’s thats important to make a note of. Also if they have a scar or disability, definitely worth a mention in the bio. This also helps if you decide to do a question answer session with your characters. These are really fun!

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Don’t forget that “Finding the Right Time” is available for Pre Order on Smashwords.com. It should be up this week on Barnes & Noble, Kobo and Apple iTunes. It’s only .99 while on Pre Order, but will go to $3.99 on March 31st when the official release date hits.

Finding The Right Time is on Pre Order…

The Pre Order is now officially up on Smashwords.com. It should be available on Barnes & Noble, Kobo and Apple iTunes in a couple of days. Here’s the link: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/413534. Remember, it’s only .99 for preorder, but after the release on March 31st it will go up to $3.99.

Here’s a excerpt for you to sink your teeth into:

As they neared the tree line she could make out a well-traveled pathway. It opened up as they entered it. The trees were gently swaying with the light breeze. She watched sunlight making its way between the branches. She noticed several large oak trees with moss hanging almost to the ground. She could smell the musty scent of the moss and old trees.

It was weird how comfortable she felt with Anthony. Any other time she would have been a little leery of walking in the woods alone with a stranger, but he didn’t feel like a stranger.

Then she started to see a clearing ahead. He turned to her and smiled. “It’s just ahead in the clearing. I think you will be surprised.” The excitement showed on his face.

As they neared the clearing she noticed a tall wrought iron entranceway. It was amazingly ornate and beautiful. The cemetery was large. It was graced with a huge old live oak in the center of the graves.

“My great-great grandfather planted that oak the day he buried his wife. It’s funny the similarities between you and her. Her name was Lilliana and he called her Lily. I didn’t mention it the other day because I didn’t think you’d be interested, but I can see you would.” He couldn’t help but stare at her. The resemblance was amazing.

She was in awe of the beauty of the place. It was so peaceful. The only sound was the wind whispering through the trees and the slight tinkling sound of a wind chime, but where was it coming from.

“I hear a wind chime. Where is it coming from?” She looked around the trees expecting to see it hanging somewhere among the sprawling limbs.

“It’s on a stand beside the head stone of my great-great grandmother. It’s been there for as long as I can remember. Uncle Thomas has rethreaded it several times. Of course with age it has dry-rotted several times, but it was the dying wish of her husband to keep the wind chimes blowing.” He watched her expression as she looked stunned.

“What’s on your mind? I can tell you are deep in thought.” He wondered what he’d said to affect her so.

“Your uncle said you believe in previous lives. Can I tell you something?” She was still looking at the old oak tree.

“I have some crazy thoughts I know, but I just always feel different from everyone around me. I guess that’s why I’m considered a recluse.” He laughed to himself. “What did you want to tell me?”

“I’ve always felt like I was an old soul. It’s weird but I feel like I’ve seen the house and yard before. You even look familiar to me, but I know I’ve never met you before the other day. Does that sound weird?” She finally chanced a glance at him. The sun was shining down on his dark hair and it glistened. She was struck again by the similarities in him and the man in her dreams.

Well, that’s just a little snippet. I’ll be posting little hints all of March. Also, keep watching for some giveaways. I’m also offering 5 ARC copies to the first 5 people that direct message me. This book has been a long work in progress and I’m really excited about it. The cover is the brain child of my cover designer and myself. I’ve had in my mind what I wanted since I typed the first word. It turned out to be an awesome cover that expressed the way I feel about this book and the characters.

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Throwback Thursday Post…

I am revisiting an old post from almost 2 years ago. Wow, it’s hard to believe I’ve been blogging this long. Anyhow, this was one of my more popular posts from my blog over at CreateSpace. If you’re a fan, try to figure out which book I was working on. It was one of my favs. Also do you notice a phrase missing from this post that is always on my posts?

Third Cup of Coffee!

Posted by SHurt on Sep 13, 2012 1:29:57 PM

Well, it’s Thursday morning. My son is at school and my hubby has gone to work. My mind in swirling with words to put into my current book. I am so excited about this new one.

I just can’t seem to type fast enough to get the words out of my head. I can see the whole ending and I am chomping at the bit or keys as it would be. I worked last night in between watching “The Voice”. My son kept looking at me like I was crazy. I was actually smiling and chewing my lip as I typed.

Have you ever been so into a manuscript that your every thought was focused on it? I had a new thought yesterday for a new spin that has totally rocked my manuscript. One of my characters is going totally on another direction from the original thought.

It is funny how your mind works when you are into a manuscript. You think you have the right answers, but as you type your mind goes ahead of your fingers and totally changes everything. It is so cool how the process just develops on the scope of the work. I can’t tell you where the idea is going, because that would be a “spoiler”. I can tell you that my editor/assistant read up to what I had finished yesterday and she is now not speaking to me. She said she could not believe that I let her read it to that point and left her hanging over a cliff with no reprieve. I just smiled and knew I had accomplished what I wanted.

I know I have said other books were my favorite, but I can honestly say this one has taken 1st prize in my heart. I have honed my writing skills and took into account different reviews of my other books. I have changed techniques and ways of describing characters and places. Just can’t wait to type the end, but then again it has been such a big part of my life for the past month or so that I will probably have withdrawals. LOL!!!?

Funny questions writer’s are asked…

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Ok, if you’re a writer you know the questions I’m talking about. Sometimes I just have to laugh and try my best to answer the question in the best way I can as I laugh. It’s funny the things that people think about writers. I had to post this picture because you know I love horses and these questions make them laugh too.

Here are some of the zingers that have been asked of me:

1: My favorite is “Did you write that book from an experience you had in your own life? That’s where most writers get their stories right?” Well, some of them have been from experiences but if my life was like a fairy tale, wow how would that be. Then I think of murder mystery writers and have to cringe. If all writing was strictly from personal experience the police would tail all writers obsessively!

2: Can you introduce me to your cover model? Really, you’ve got to be kidding me. I’ve never met any of my cover models. I did get a repin on Pinterest from one of them thanking me for using his picture on a couple of my covers. I was pleased, but I don’t know him personally so no, I can’t introduce you to my cover models.

3: You must be rich, huh? This one makes me laugh hard, really hard. Most published writers do it in their spare time and have a regular job. If not, we’d be really hungry artists. So, no, I’m not rich, not even close. I’m happy with my royalties and thankful to my wonderful fans, but I’m not quite ready to quit my day job.

4: So you can’t get published for real? This one ticked me off the first couple of times I heard it, but then I realized that there are so many people who don’t realize that a lot of authors do consider this a real business and take it seriously. This is a personal choice and I have been approached by publishers, but I am happy where I am for the time being. Then if it’s someone I’m close to I stick my tongue out at them in a very unladylike fashion and laugh. It’s become a really funny question as self publishing becomes the norm. So to me it’s a funny question.

5: Can I have your autograph? Now this one stunned me. Then I laughed because I’m not famous and this seems a little crazy, but I was humbled by it too. But I did laugh because I don’t think of it as being famous because I have several published books, but it’s really funny when someone comes up to me in a store and says, hey you’re that writer.

What funny questions have people asked you? Some people might not think some of them are funny, but to a writer you’ll find the humor in them.

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Monday Morning Wake Up Post

If you haven’t realized it yet, yep it’s Monday folks. School started back today after a very long break due to the ice storm and then Winter Break. The alarm clock went off at 6:00 this morning and it was rough. I’m working on my second cup of coffee and contemplating my third.

Of course with Tax season in full swing my day is full of appointments for drop offs and pick ups. But for another hour I get to sit and enjoy my coffee, work on my upcoming book release and relax. This is my time when I can quietly work on things in the house. I already have a load of laundry and a load of dishes going. But more importantly I have a book to finish.

Since I’m working on my first time travel romance, I’m excited about the upcoming release. I’m doing this one a little differently than my other books. It’s going to have a pre-order available through Smashwords. The pre-order will be on Barnes & Noble, Apple iTunes and Kobo. I will be running several giveaways and some free books to select people that win the drawings. The contest will be announced this week so keep watching. Several of my books will be up for grabs to those that pre-order my book and send me a picture of their pre-order confirmation, but I’ll announce the rules soon.

As for the book that’s coming out, I think my fans will be surprised. I’m hoping it will be a pleasant surprise. This is a little step away from my normal writing, but of course there is still a handsome cowboy and horses, I have to keep that going. But I’ve never delved into the time travel genre. It’s been a great experience and I think it’s a story that will make you think and wonder all the way to the end, which is an interesting ending.

So, how are you spending your Monday morning? How many cups of coffee does it take to get you going? Let me know I’m not the only coffee addict…

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Smashwords Preorder – A Great Thing!

I’ve been publishing with Smashwords for almost two years and it’s been a wonderful experience. As always they’re constantly adding new things to help authors. The Preorder choice has been available for several months. I tried it with Victoria, but I didn’t give it much time and wasn’t very successful. Totally my fault. I didn’t allow enough time to gather interest.

But as always, we learn from our mistakes and try again as I will do with my newest book “Finding The Right Time”. Mark Coker has written a great post to help with the logistics of marketing your Preorder, setting it up and anything you’d need to know. It’s a wonderful tool and every author should try this out. I will be following his every instruction and look forward to how it works out. I will update this post when I know more.

For now, here’s a link to the post from Mark Coker. If you’re an author you need to read it. If you’re a reader it could help you gather up some new books and have them as soon as they come out.

<div style=”margin-bottom:5px”> <strong> <a href=”https://www.slideshare.net/Smashwords/hit-the-ebook-bestseller-lists-with-preorders-a-guide-to-preorder-strategy” title=”Hit the Ebook Bestseller Lists with Preorders: A Guide to Preorder Strategy” target=”_blank”>Hit the Ebook Bestseller Lists with Preorders: A Guide to Preorder Strategy</a> </strong> from <strong><a href=”http://www.slideshare.net/Smashwords” target=”_blank”>Smashwords, Inc.</a></strong> </div>