A dungeon in Lleida, Catalonia, Spain. Might work it into a new novel. Beginning a new novel is both exhilarating and scary. I enjoy the new ideas for plot details, setting, and characters that pop willy-nilly into my brain. Old characters poke their heads in to say, “Can I be in this one? You saidContinue reading “Starting the Whole Dang Process over Again”
Tag Archives: The Gate House
Never Say Never
If you have read my first two novels, you are familiar with Nara Blake, the protagonist in both The Gate House and Lydia’s Story. In my new novel, due out this summer, we go back to Nara’s experiences in the fictional Caribbean nation of Saint Clare. In a sense, since the other books came outContinue reading “Never Say Never”
How About a Slice of Papaya Bread?
In my first novel, The Gate House, Nara laments the lack of tropical fruit as she prepares a typical English breakfast at her aunt’s bed and breakfast. I lived in Costa Rica for seven years, where I, too, learned to appreciate the huge variety of exotic fruits available year round. Although Nara’s home, St. Clare,Continue reading “How About a Slice of Papaya Bread?”
A Full English Breakfast with Variations
On the first page of my novel The Gate House, the main character, Nara, bemoans having to prepare a full English breakfast at her aunt’s bed and breakfast. If you have not had the opportunity tuck into one of these artery clogging delights, I will describe it for you. A full English breakfast consists ofContinue reading “A Full English Breakfast with Variations”
The “Nature” of Setting
I have always wondered how a person’s surrounding affect they way they live. How is it different to grow up on the flat land of Illinois in the midst of corn fields and soy beans, compared to a city overlooked by an ancient castle (Edinburgh, Scotland), or the lushness of tropical trees and flowers. DifferentContinue reading “The “Nature” of Setting”
Seeing a Project Through to the End
I am currently working on finishing a writing project that I began at least nine years ago. Yes, nine years. It was the project I was working on before my trip to England and the inspiration for The Gate House, my first published novel. After that I wrote Lydia’s Story, a follow-up to The GateContinue reading “Seeing a Project Through to the End”
Forward to the Past
Writers never throw anything away, or at least they shouldn’t. This week I pulled out an old “almost novel” that I wrote before my first one, The Gate House, was published. This one, tentatively titled Nara of the Islands, is really the original story of my protagonist who appears in both The Gate House andContinue reading “Forward to the Past”
Giving Birth to “Lydia’s Story”
My newest novel, Lydia’s Story, is now available all the major book sellers. If you are a writer, you know what a wonderful rush comes along with writing those words. If you are not a writer, just think of any major project you have embarked on in your life — giving birth to a child,Continue reading “Giving Birth to “Lydia’s Story””
Why Set My Story in World War II?
My newest novel, Lydia’s Story, is a sequel/prequel to my first novel, The Gate House. It is a sequel because the same main characters, Nara Blake and her family, continue their story of life in a small English town, where too much seems to happen. It is a prequel because the book also tells theContinue reading “Why Set My Story in World War II?”
Too Many Ideas
Writers are often asked, “Where do you get your ideas?” I believe most writers would answer the same as I do — it’s not a matter of coming up with ideas, it’s a matter of weeding out the ideas and deciding which ones I really want to develop in a short story, a novel, orContinue reading “Too Many Ideas”