Giveaway!

We all love giveaways and this is a book giveaway, so that makes it even better. Head on over to Angela Scott's blog and check out the books she's giving away. (Also check out her 60 word challenge - I thought it was AMAZING). Happy Monday, Good Luck, and as always, Write On my friends!

Bound, a novel, first 312 words

Title: Bound
Genre: Fantasy Romance
Status: WIP

Nafaeri bit down on her lip and climbed the thick plank steps of the castle’s northwest tower. Failure to find the amulet had plagued her for weeks. Today’s plan to ask the oracle, seer of all, had better work. She could think of no other option at the moment.

Time grew more critical with each passing day. Takeover plans had progressed but would soon halt, even collapse, if she did not attain the powerful talisman. It would ensure no one could stand in her way. Not even King Rannu, the most powerful elf in the land. A smile crept across her face stopping short of her eyes and then faded.

None of her disguises or informants had produced even a hint of its whereabouts. The king had either hidden it well or he had enchanted it to prevent others from locating it. Her fingers massaged the ache in her temples and the top stair came into view.

The water oracle, the elven king’s connection to the gods, could provide an answer if she reached it; but it lay ahead beyond the guarded tower door.

She glanced out a slit in the stone wall as she passed. The tops of giant cypress trees danced in their rows along the road to the castle. Her castle. Warm air swirled through the narrow stairwell of the enormous turret. It lifted strands of her flaxen hair offering encouragement and pushing her toward her goal.

She lowered her neckline enough to distract anyone and adopted a confused expression as she crossed the last few steps. Glancing back and forth as if lost she approached the two sentinels.

Their ogling amused her. Returning their smiles she whispered an incantation under her breath. Aaaah, she loved this spell. Their strength would disappear as soon as she touched their skin. Her heart leapt in anticipation of their fear and agony.

Ironman New Zealand

Today my beautiful sister (OK, all my sisters are beautiful, not just this one - yes, I took one for the team and opted for the brains, but even that is questionable sometimes) is competing in the New Zealand Ironman. She has competed there once before and also in St. George, Utah. I got to see her compete in Utah. Ah-Ma-Zing! Both she and her husband are competing (as they have previously). They started at 6:40 a.m. local time (which was 9:40 PST).

This is a short YouTube video of last year in NZ.



I just checked the stats on the Ironman website and she's finished the swimming and the first leg of the bike segment. I have to admit that she hasn't even finished and I'm already choked up. I am so proud of her. This is such a huge challenge and accomplishment. I think sometimes I forget we can do hard things.

Of course, I like easy things better, but accomplishing something difficult is so much more fulfilling. Take my writing. It's so much easier to write passive voice and use lots of adjectives and adverbs, but, it's so much better to read over something I've taken the time to work out and think, "Wow, I wrote that?" So, here's to meeting our writing challenges head-on, whatever they may be. We can do hard things, so Write On my friends.

If you'd like to check out the Ironman website with links to future races and to current race coverage, click here.

More YouTube here:

Ironman New Zealand 2011

Today my beautiful sister (OK, all my sisters are beautiful, not just this one - yes, I took one for the team and opted for the brains, but even that is questionable sometimes) is competing in the New Zealand Ironman. She has competed there once before and also in St. George, Utah. I got to see her compete in Utah. Ah-Ma-Zing! Both she and her husband are competing (as they have previously). They started at 6:40 a.m. local time (which was 9:40 PST).



I just checked the stats on the Ironman website and she's finished the swimming and the first leg of the bike segment. I have to admit that she hasn't even finished and I'm already choked up. I am so proud of her. This is such a huge challenge and accomplishment. I think sometimes I forget we can do hard things.

Of course, I like easy things better, but accomplishing something difficult is so much more fulfilling. Take my writing. It's so much easier to write passive voice and use lots of adjectives and adverbs, but, it's so much better to read over something I've taken the time to work out and think, "Wow, I wrote that?" So, here's to meeting our writing challenges head-on, whatever they may be. We can do hard things, so Write On my friends.

If you'd like to check out the Ironman website with links to future races and to current race coverage, click here.

The Artist in Us

I recently got an update from an artist friend, Tory Long. I first met Tory when I hired him to paint my fireplace. He was one of those people I felt an almost immediate rapport with and as I got to know him a little better I discovered he had never had any formal training. He is self taught and has developed his gift in amazing ways. Check it out for yourself at Artistic Wall Expressions. If you click on Portfolio and then Fireplace Refinishes, mine is the second picture featured. Spend a few minutes checking out his amazing work.

On a writing note, my progress in creating a masterpiece is coming along, albeit slower than I would like. I just have to remember that anything worth doing is worth spending the time to do right. This weekend I am  attending the American Night Writers Association conference in Phoenix and I am looking forward to learning more about becoming a great writer. So whether your craft comes naturally to you or you are learning step by step, Write On my friends!

The Star Prophecy Review

The adventure begins with the blog tour
for
The Star
Prophecy by Joan Sowards

We will be giving away THREE copies of The Star Prophecy.

It's easy to enter.
1. Visit the fabulous reviews and leave a comment letting us know why you're excited to read The Star Prophecy. Remember to include your email address.
2. If you tweet about the blog tour, or post about it on your blog or facebook, leave the link in the comments section and you'll receive an additional entry.

Good Luck! Entries close at midnight (MST) on January 28.


BACK OF THE BOOK:

"You are crazy. No Nephite has ever returned."

Most people laugh when they hear of Enoch's dream of returning to Jerusalem to find the infant Messiah. Even Enoch's future father-in-law mocks him when he asks for a postponement of his long-awaited wedding to his beloved Rebekah. A few take Enoch seriously - the shipbuilder Omnihah, Enoch's teacher David, and the prophet Nephi.

Five years before, a Lamanite named Samuel had stood on the wall of Zarahemla and prophesied that "five years more cometh" and the Christ would be born in Jerusalem. Time is running out! Enoch knows he must set sail across the great waters in search of his dream - to see the face of the Messiah.

The Star Prophacy is a surprising story of courage and love, faith and fortitude. Sail with Enoch and his
friends across the sea through hardship and adventure in search of the Christ child.

MY THOUGHTS:

Walnut Springs Press graciously sent me a free copy of this wonderful book by Joan Sowards but that does not sway my opinion one way or the other. I will admit that I generally steer away from religious fiction - we won't go into the 'why' because I'm pretty sure it delves into the weird way my brain works. But enough on that.

I enjoyed this book immensely. Immensely. I will admit that it took me past the first chapter to get into it, but then it unfolded into this amazing tale. The characters are heartwarming and I loved that she chose the name Enoch for the main character. When I hear that name, of course I think of the city of Enoch and the goodness of those people. The Enoch of this story is right in line with that. Doing what's right because it's the right thing to do but still being very human in the process.

I thought the other characters were also very relatable. I love second chances when the character recognizes that change is necessary and turns to goodness, or in this case, seeking the Messiah. Kumeni is one of those characters and turned out to be one of my favorites in this story. I also really liked the focus on simple 'faith' things like praying together daily - so important but sometimes we take is for granted. I will be recommending this book to my friends and family and to you. Follow the blog tour and win one of the three copies OR go HERE to buy your very own copy.

Michael Knudsen Interview

My heart goes out today to all who've served in our country's military. Memories of my few visits to Pearl Harbor fill me with sadness of the ravages of war and deep gratitude to the men and women who have fought for our freedoms or directly supported those people. May God bless you always.

On a lighter note, I have a super cool interview today and one I'm so excited about. Michael Knudsen's book 'The Rogue Shop' comes out TOMORROW! That's right, the last day for pre-orders is today, so go HERE and get your copy. Then check out Mr. Kundsen's website. It's a fun website and I highly recommend 'The Rogue Shop' teasers. So, on to the interview - which is the best part of this post:


PU  What do you like best about your character Chris?

MK  I like that he wants to redeem himself from the awful mistakes he made as a teenager. At age 20, he is still suffering mentally and spiritually due to a car accident he was responsible for at age 16. What hurts him the most is that his own parents were killed by a drunk driver when he was just 3. It's heroic that he tries to atone for this by improving his own life, but during my story he learns the limits of what he can do by himself.

PU  A good lesson for all of us, too. What is your favorite line from the book?

MK  "I scanned the contents of my cerebral quarry for the bedrock of my convictions and came up with a load of sand."

In writing that line, I was looking for just the right metaphor for Chris to realize that despite his efforts at walking a straight and narrow path, his refusal to find foundational principles and live by them is severely limiting his progress--and is also creating distance between him and the girl he's falling in love with.


PU  Do you outline or let the fingers fly?

MK  An outline is critical to start with, but after letting the "fingers fly" for a few thousand words, the outline is pretty much out the window and I wing it until I get stuck again. Then I revise the outline and take off for another flight. This process is repeated several times, and the finished product is never very close to what the outline was. Even the ending tends to change dramatically. I know, it sounds awful, but that's how it happened with The Rogue Shop.

PU  I don't think it's awful. I think having a basic idea of where your story is going is valuable. Especially for me when the process is so long that I forget where I had originally gone with it even though, as you said, it changes as you go anyway. What are some ways you work through writer's block?

MK  I see the presence of writer's block as evidence of 1 of 2 things:

1) I'm feeling lazy and don't really want to write a novel as much as I want to have written a novel.

2) I don't have a good enough story idea or outline and need to spend a little more time in preparation (but not too much).

The best block-breaking motivation for me is to go visit a bookstore or library, just browsing around. After about an hour of seeing all the millions of words other people have written and published, I am
anxious to get home and back to work.

PU  What was your favorite genre and/or author growing up and has that changed?

MK  I grew up on speculative fiction. Tolkien, Brooks, Mervyn Peake and his delightfully wordy Gormenghast Trilogy, tons of science fiction and horror. In college I enjoyed many of the classics of American literature, particularly Hawthorne and Faulkner. I learned a great deal from Shakespeare and Dickens. As an adult, I read it all. I like to go back to the fantasy and sci-fi, and when I get sick of that
I pick up a classic, or mainstream fiction. I've read a lot of LDS fiction lately and have loved what I've found. I also enjoy a wide range of non-fiction on many different topics.

PU  Who has been your greatest influence as a writer?

MK  #1 is my 12th grade English teacher, Ms. Argus. She is the first person (besides my mom) who read my papers and told me she thought I was talented and could be a good writer. I've never forgotten that.

PU  Any words of advice for aspiring authors?

MK  There are a million distractions these days that take away from your writing time. Even things we consider important like keeping up on a blog and maintaining your place in the writer's community can take away from what you really need to do, which is finish your novel. Just today I looked at my blog stats, and saw that in November 2009, I made zero posts and had zero visitors to my blog. How pathetic, I thought. Why was that such a lame month? Then I realized: November 2009 was the month I finally finished The Rogue Shop. I wrote over 200 pages that month. Sometimes the level of intensity required to finish something big requires the sacrifice of smaller things.

Thanks Peggy for hosting me today!

PU  Thank you Michael and best of luck. Remember to check out Michael's cool website and order your own copy of The Rogue Shop.