Good morning!
I'm very excited to be writing my first ever issue of the Susan Meier ezine. I toyed with various titles like the MEIER CHRONICLES but ended up deciding to keep the name simple.
I've never done anything like this so there are going to be mistakes. But try not to notice them.
MAID IN MONTANA
My first book of 2009, MAID IN MONTANA is to be released this month! I'm excited about this book because from the first day I began working on it, I loved it. I love the story, the characters and the setting!
Here's an excerpt, taken from Chapter three!
Sophie watched television until eleven that night, hoping to make herself tired. But even after hours of mindless TV her upset over losing her job made her too restless to go to bed.
After checking to make sure Brady was in a deep sleep, she slid into her one-piece bathing suit and the matching terrycloth cover-up then grabbed the portable baby monitor from the bedside table and walked through the sitting room to the door of her suite. She opened it slowly, not wanting to run in to anyone since her cover-up was short and she felt uncomfortable walking around only half dressed.
Common sense told her she had no reason to fear. It was late. She was on the first floor. Her boss’s suite of rooms was on the second floor. Slim had a cabin behind the homestead. Only a few hands actually slept in the bunkhouse, but even they were so far from the house that no one would see her – if they were awake. She was perfectly safe.
She took a breath, stole down the short hall that led to the kitchen and then slipped into the family room with French doors that led to the pool. In another two steps, she was standing on the stone patio.
Silence descended on her like a warm blanket. The city always had sound. Background noise. A person might grow accustomed to it and not “hear” it, but it was always there. On this ranch, so far away from civilization, she learned the meaning of the word silence.
Removing her cover-up, she glanced around in awe. Except for dim lights illuminating the blue water of the pool, this world was also inky black. Remembering something about seeing stars in the country, she quickly glanced up and sighed.
“Oh, my gosh.”
“Oh, my gosh what?”
On gasp, Sophie spun around to find Jeb walking out of the shadows behind her. Anger rose like hot lava in her veins and her first instinct was to turn and walk away. But the closer he got, the more her anger was replaced by confusion. Water flattened his thick black hair and droplets cascaded from his shoulders and down his broad chest, making trails through whorls of dark hair leading to six-pack abs. Wet black swimming trucks clung precariously to lean hips and a butt made for a woman to sink her fingernails into in the throes of passion.
Even as her mouth went dry, she groaned inwardly. How could she be attracted to the man who had just fired her?
“Oh, my gosh what?” He repeated his question as he walked over to her, stopping within arm’s reach.
Awareness shimmied through her. With her cover-up in her hand and wearing only her bathing suit, she wasn’t quite as naked as he was, but they were both scantily dressed, alone, in the darkness.
She pulled in a breath, reprimanding herself. Not only were they were both sufficiently covered, but also she was furious with him and he clearly didn’t like her. She didn’t intend to continue their argument, but she wouldn’t cower from him either.
She forced herself to meet his gaze. “The stars. There are so many.”
“You have big city syndrome,” he growled, back to being the grouch boss. He looked up into the star spangled darkness and back at her. “The sky is always lit over a city, blocking one of nature’s greatest gifts. A starry night.”
He took another glance up at the sky and her gaze skimmed his broad chest and perfect tummy. He was, quite literally, the sexiest man she’d ever seen.
“Yeah. We certainly don’t have stars like this in the city.” She swallowed, desperately trying to will away her attraction. He was a self-centered grouch, who had fired her. He was the last person she wanted to feel anything for. But she couldn’t deny that being this close to him, her whole body hummed. She told herself it was just plain foolish to be attracted to a man she didn’t even like. Yet, here she stood, her breathing erratic, her nerve-endings on red alert, just from standing close to him.
“I’ll just go back to my room now.”
He snatched a huge green towel from a nearby chaise. “No, I’ll go. I’m done with my swim. In about ten seconds the patio will be all yours.”
A nervous laugh bubbled up from her. There was no way she’d let him leave his own swimming pool on account of her. No way she’d give him another thing to complain about. “No. That’s okay. You stay. I only came out here to get a breath of fresh air.”
She watched his gaze move from her face, down her one-piece suit, pausing on the length of leg exposed beneath the high-cut bottom.
“If you only came out for fresh air, then why are you in a swim suit?”
Her breathing, which had been erratic, stalled in her chest. His voice might have been strong, detached, but the look he’d given her had been long and slow. He’d taken in every square inch of her and lingered on the part of her that usually drew a man – her legs.
She swallowed.
Not sure what to think, she tried to fall back on humor. “All right. You caught me. I’m guilty as charged. I wanted a quick swim, but I didn’t realize you were using the pool or I wouldn’t have come out.”
He took a step closer. “I didn’t picture you as the one-piece suit type. I figured you more for a bikini girl.”
Another nervous laugh escaped her. If he made a pass at her, she wasn’t sure if she would melt or faint. They both knew she was leaving in three weeks. And maybe that was why he was suddenly behaving so different with her? If he made a pass at her, nothing would come of it but an affair.
She took a breath. One little look shouldn’t have her automatically assuming he was after an affair! She had to stop jumping to conclusions. So far he hadn’t said or done anything out of line. She might have even misinterpreted the look he’d given her. What if he wasn’t attracted at all, but actually confused by her choice of swimwear?
“Why a bikini?”
“Don’t you surf?”
“No.”
“Hum. A California girl who doesn’t surf. Another myth debunked.”
Relief skittered through her. She had been correct. He wasn’t attracted to her but confused by her. She could breathe again. “You think all California girls surf?”
He caught her gaze, his pale eyes soft and serious in the moonlight. “Yes.”
Realization of how close they were slid over her. He was a very different man when he wasn’t yelling at her. In fact, from the way he was looking at her she’d never guess he had a problem with her at all.
She licked her suddenly dry lips, feeling reactions and emotions that were more instinctive than conscious. Her eyes desperately wanted to move down again, soak in the beauty and masculinity of his chest, and she struggled to keep them locked with his. Her nerve endings sparkled like the stars overhead. Her breathing became forced, labored.
He stepped back, his gaze still locked with hers. “You’d do well to remember that I’m a grouch and check to make sure the pool isn’t occupied the next time you want to swim.”
Embarrassment poured through her in a rush of heat. Good grief! So much for him behaving differently! Why did she keep making mistakes with this guy? Normally, she was a better judge of character. Yet, this was the third time she’d totally misread him.
“I’m sorry. Next time I want to swim I’ll ask.”
“There’s no reason to ask. Just remember that I swim every night around ten-thirty and don’t come out and we’ll be fine.”
Though his words were appropriate, his voice went back to being soft, hypnotic, resurrecting the sprinkle of gooseflesh that covered her body. She peeked at him, confused again. What was going on here?
She took a breath, reminding herself it didn’t matter. She’d be gone in three weeks. Dropping her cover-up to the chaise, she turned to the pool. Before she dove in, she glanced over her shoulder and saw him walking toward the French doors. Her sigh of relief was swallowed up by the splash she made when she plunged into the water.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Monday, June 1, 2009
June 2009 Writing Tip!
Rather than post a writing tip this month, as a treat I thought I'd give you an entire lesson from one of my classes.
This is Lesson one from one of my most popular online classes, Journey Steps, Taking the Train to Somewhere.
Lesson One: What are Journey Steps?
Lots of speakers, writers and pundits define plot points as four or five major events of your story, pivotal points, points of change or twists that take the story in a different direction. High points of the story.
Couldn’t agree more. But when I would sit down to write a book, I’d come up with four or five “high points” and have no idea what to put in between those high points. So I dug deeper and that’s when I discovered “Journey Steps.” Actually, I might have made them up. But they work, so you might want to try them too.
What are Journey Steps?
In Susan Meier World – which is a little bit like a theme park but you have to “work” on the rides -- Journey Steps are the steps it takes your main character (protagonist) to get from who he or she is at the opening of the book – the inciting incident, the terrible trouble, the day/moment everything changed – to who he or she is at the resolution of the trouble and the satisfying conclusion.
Note that I don’t say it’s the steps from one plot point to another…though I could. I like to see the big picture of a story. The journey. Though obviously plot points do shake things up on the journey, they are still “steps” and if I don’t make a big deal out of them (LOL) I see my whole story unfolding as "steps." Plot points being more important steps, but still steps –
And steps are action, and action breeds a reaction and reaction breeds decision, which always breeds action, which breeds a reaction, which breeds a decision and on and on and on. When I discovered this action/reaction/decision sequence in books by Jack Bickham and Dwight Swain, I started calling it a magic formula for plotting because it is. If you follow action/reaction and decision, you can not only tell a story, you can tell it in a tight, focused way.
Which should be all of our goal!
But when I figured all this stuff out, I also realized that to be able to plot well, a writer also needed to understand story, scene and word. These are actually the three levels on which we write. If you want to write a good novel, you must be able to come up with a story, manifest that story through scenes and be able to build those scenes using words.
Today, for the purposes of understanding journey steps, words don't concern us. But scenes sure as heck do. Why? Because the basis of every scene should be a journey step. But even scenes don’t yet concern us because before you can come up with scenes that manifest your story, you have to have a story.
Lots of people groan at that, but you have to know your story. For the pantsers among us, you don't have to get fancy and/or specific and do an outline that ruins your fun. In fact, the less fancy or specific you are the better. Having a one sentence or one paragraph description of your story is enough to begin figuring out journey steps. From there you can write each scene individually and come up with your journey steps as you go along. So your pantser fun isn’t ruined!
But you have to know at least the bare bones of your story to come up with the “correct” first journey step. The important one that starts the book.
Okay, so what does a one-line or one-paragraph story description look like?
How about this: Hero and heroine must catch a killer but she's already been arrested for the crime and he's the DA prosecuting her.
Short, succinct, no fun spoiling, but enough to come up with a great opening scene.
Here's another: Driving home from Vegas, where the heroine ran when she realized she didn't want to marry her fiancée, the hero and heroine realize they are incredibly attracted. But the hero won't do anything about the attraction because the heroine's ex-fiancée is his BOSS.
(By the way, I call this a story summary and it's one of those things we'll work on at the end of the workshop, when we discuss tools!)
Once you have your one paragraph or one sentence idea, the "steps" or journey steps, are the way you tell that story. And basically you illustrate those "steps" in scenes.
(I actually give a workshop on story, scene and word. Writing on 3 levels because writing a novel involves three distinct abilities. The ability to come up with a great story. The ability to tell that story in scenes and the ability to create those scenes using words.)
Anyway… You now know that in order to figure out your journey steps, you need to know your story -- at least the bare-bones idea.
And that’s it for lesson one. For your assignment, I’d like you to see if you can condense your story down to one line or one short, succinct paragraph that tells the kind of story it is and the overall GMC.
One caveat is that you never want to say the words…The hero’s goal is…or the Heroine’s motivation is…You want them to blend seamlessly into your sentence.
Remember our example? The hero and heroine must catch a killer but she’s already been arrested for the crime and he’s the DA prosecuting her?
Do you know what their goal is? Yes, to catch a killer.
Do you know what their motivation is? Yes…they’re trying to save her. Well, she’s trying to save herself. He’s trying to make sure the right person is prosecuted for the crime.
Do you know what their conflict is? Sure. They are on opposite sides of a battle; but also, they’re running against the clock. They can’t be attracted because of being on opposite ends of a battle. He WILL prosecute her if the evidence turns him in that direction.
Do you see how I took all that “stuff” and turned it into one sentence?
THAT’s what you need to do with your book!
This is Lesson one from one of my most popular online classes, Journey Steps, Taking the Train to Somewhere.
Lesson One: What are Journey Steps?
Lots of speakers, writers and pundits define plot points as four or five major events of your story, pivotal points, points of change or twists that take the story in a different direction. High points of the story.
Couldn’t agree more. But when I would sit down to write a book, I’d come up with four or five “high points” and have no idea what to put in between those high points. So I dug deeper and that’s when I discovered “Journey Steps.” Actually, I might have made them up. But they work, so you might want to try them too.
What are Journey Steps?
In Susan Meier World – which is a little bit like a theme park but you have to “work” on the rides -- Journey Steps are the steps it takes your main character (protagonist) to get from who he or she is at the opening of the book – the inciting incident, the terrible trouble, the day/moment everything changed – to who he or she is at the resolution of the trouble and the satisfying conclusion.
Note that I don’t say it’s the steps from one plot point to another…though I could. I like to see the big picture of a story. The journey. Though obviously plot points do shake things up on the journey, they are still “steps” and if I don’t make a big deal out of them (LOL) I see my whole story unfolding as "steps." Plot points being more important steps, but still steps –
And steps are action, and action breeds a reaction and reaction breeds decision, which always breeds action, which breeds a reaction, which breeds a decision and on and on and on. When I discovered this action/reaction/decision sequence in books by Jack Bickham and Dwight Swain, I started calling it a magic formula for plotting because it is. If you follow action/reaction and decision, you can not only tell a story, you can tell it in a tight, focused way.
Which should be all of our goal!
But when I figured all this stuff out, I also realized that to be able to plot well, a writer also needed to understand story, scene and word. These are actually the three levels on which we write. If you want to write a good novel, you must be able to come up with a story, manifest that story through scenes and be able to build those scenes using words.
Today, for the purposes of understanding journey steps, words don't concern us. But scenes sure as heck do. Why? Because the basis of every scene should be a journey step. But even scenes don’t yet concern us because before you can come up with scenes that manifest your story, you have to have a story.
Lots of people groan at that, but you have to know your story. For the pantsers among us, you don't have to get fancy and/or specific and do an outline that ruins your fun. In fact, the less fancy or specific you are the better. Having a one sentence or one paragraph description of your story is enough to begin figuring out journey steps. From there you can write each scene individually and come up with your journey steps as you go along. So your pantser fun isn’t ruined!
But you have to know at least the bare bones of your story to come up with the “correct” first journey step. The important one that starts the book.
Okay, so what does a one-line or one-paragraph story description look like?
How about this: Hero and heroine must catch a killer but she's already been arrested for the crime and he's the DA prosecuting her.
Short, succinct, no fun spoiling, but enough to come up with a great opening scene.
Here's another: Driving home from Vegas, where the heroine ran when she realized she didn't want to marry her fiancée, the hero and heroine realize they are incredibly attracted. But the hero won't do anything about the attraction because the heroine's ex-fiancée is his BOSS.
(By the way, I call this a story summary and it's one of those things we'll work on at the end of the workshop, when we discuss tools!)
Once you have your one paragraph or one sentence idea, the "steps" or journey steps, are the way you tell that story. And basically you illustrate those "steps" in scenes.
(I actually give a workshop on story, scene and word. Writing on 3 levels because writing a novel involves three distinct abilities. The ability to come up with a great story. The ability to tell that story in scenes and the ability to create those scenes using words.)
Anyway… You now know that in order to figure out your journey steps, you need to know your story -- at least the bare-bones idea.
And that’s it for lesson one. For your assignment, I’d like you to see if you can condense your story down to one line or one short, succinct paragraph that tells the kind of story it is and the overall GMC.
One caveat is that you never want to say the words…The hero’s goal is…or the Heroine’s motivation is…You want them to blend seamlessly into your sentence.
Remember our example? The hero and heroine must catch a killer but she’s already been arrested for the crime and he’s the DA prosecuting her?
Do you know what their goal is? Yes, to catch a killer.
Do you know what their motivation is? Yes…they’re trying to save her. Well, she’s trying to save herself. He’s trying to make sure the right person is prosecuted for the crime.
Do you know what their conflict is? Sure. They are on opposite sides of a battle; but also, they’re running against the clock. They can’t be attracted because of being on opposite ends of a battle. He WILL prosecute her if the evidence turns him in that direction.
Do you see how I took all that “stuff” and turned it into one sentence?
THAT’s what you need to do with your book!
Bringing Up Babies...and kids of all ages
I write a lot of baby books. Which means I spend a lot of time researching babies. I don't have to go far though. I come from a family with eleven children and right now my nieces and nephews are becoming parents. There's always a baby to observe and a new mom ready to answer technical questions.
This month, though, my sisters, nieces and I were discussing sleeping habits of kids. One of the hardest things to do is get your kids to accept that it's bedtime.
In our discussion we came up with five things that will help at bedtime.
1. Set a regular time. And stick to it. My oldest son liked going to bed early. So when his sister came along, she saw him going to bed at 6:00 and must have figured that was normal because she never fussed, simply got her blanket and followed suit. When child #3 came along, he also saw the bedtime ritual and followed his brother and sister to bed at 6:00. I'm sorry to say that didn't last past elementary school. (My kids were the most rested in their classes! LOL) But it does prove that systems and structure work! Set a time, stick to it, and make it appear as "normal" as possible. Six is ambitious! (And I was lucky.) But eight or eight-thirty isn't!
2. Have a ritual. Picking up the toys, then having a snack, kissing daddy (or mommy goodnight), getting a bath, putting on pj's sets the mood for your child. Rituals are very comforting. And a comfortable child is a child who will relax and fall asleep!
3. Read a bedtime story. Get your child adjusted to being in his or her room and comfortable by spending a few minutes reading a story. Show him you're not deserting him, but tucking him in for the night. Saying prayers at bedtime is also a great way to ease a child out of his active life and into bedtime.
4. Cut out sugar, caffiene and chocolate hours before bedtime. This eliminates fights over bedtime! A child who isn't revved up on caffiene or sugar may fight a bit, but if he or she has been up for hours they'll be tired enough to drop off. Not so, if they're revved up on caffiene or sugar. Put those things away around three o'clock in the afternoon!
5. White noise can be a comfort to a little mind. I remember one night when I was about six, I couldn't seem to fall asleep. All of a sudden I heard this horrible noise and I was positive a giant cow was on her way to ram down our house. I was terrified! It took me at least an hour to realize my sister was snoring! But by that time I was so anxious and nervous that it took another hour to fall asleep. Children have wonderful imaginations. They see and hear monsters everywhere! A night light and a cd of soothing sounds that block out the kinds of sounds that might awaken their imaginations can be very handy to get a child to relax and fall asleep.
This month, though, my sisters, nieces and I were discussing sleeping habits of kids. One of the hardest things to do is get your kids to accept that it's bedtime.
In our discussion we came up with five things that will help at bedtime.
1. Set a regular time. And stick to it. My oldest son liked going to bed early. So when his sister came along, she saw him going to bed at 6:00 and must have figured that was normal because she never fussed, simply got her blanket and followed suit. When child #3 came along, he also saw the bedtime ritual and followed his brother and sister to bed at 6:00. I'm sorry to say that didn't last past elementary school. (My kids were the most rested in their classes! LOL) But it does prove that systems and structure work! Set a time, stick to it, and make it appear as "normal" as possible. Six is ambitious! (And I was lucky.) But eight or eight-thirty isn't!
2. Have a ritual. Picking up the toys, then having a snack, kissing daddy (or mommy goodnight), getting a bath, putting on pj's sets the mood for your child. Rituals are very comforting. And a comfortable child is a child who will relax and fall asleep!
3. Read a bedtime story. Get your child adjusted to being in his or her room and comfortable by spending a few minutes reading a story. Show him you're not deserting him, but tucking him in for the night. Saying prayers at bedtime is also a great way to ease a child out of his active life and into bedtime.
4. Cut out sugar, caffiene and chocolate hours before bedtime. This eliminates fights over bedtime! A child who isn't revved up on caffiene or sugar may fight a bit, but if he or she has been up for hours they'll be tired enough to drop off. Not so, if they're revved up on caffiene or sugar. Put those things away around three o'clock in the afternoon!
5. White noise can be a comfort to a little mind. I remember one night when I was about six, I couldn't seem to fall asleep. All of a sudden I heard this horrible noise and I was positive a giant cow was on her way to ram down our house. I was terrified! It took me at least an hour to realize my sister was snoring! But by that time I was so anxious and nervous that it took another hour to fall asleep. Children have wonderful imaginations. They see and hear monsters everywhere! A night light and a cd of soothing sounds that block out the kinds of sounds that might awaken their imaginations can be very handy to get a child to relax and fall asleep.
What you missed...
If you didn't read the Home Cooking Blog at susanmeier.com these past few months you missed some great stuff!
At Eastertime, I made a dessert I found on Pillsbury.com! The recipe is up on the blog.
During Lent I posted my family's recipe for periogis and also my niece's recipe for sesame noodles!
There are plenty of recipes for you to try. Lots of older recipes from my aunts and my mom! But what I like best about that blog is the opportunity to talk about some of my family's traditions.
so check out susanmeier.com ... home cooking blog!
At Eastertime, I made a dessert I found on Pillsbury.com! The recipe is up on the blog.
During Lent I posted my family's recipe for periogis and also my niece's recipe for sesame noodles!
There are plenty of recipes for you to try. Lots of older recipes from my aunts and my mom! But what I like best about that blog is the opportunity to talk about some of my family's traditions.
so check out susanmeier.com ... home cooking blog!
Cat Tails
That's Sophia. My cat. Her real name is Sophia Maria Lolita Conchita Chequita Banana. You can understand why we call her Sophie. She's really not as grouchy as she looks in that picture. Actually, she's a very lovable cat. She's a snuggler. Which is probably why I adore her.
Sophie is infamous in our neighborhood. She never met a squirrel she didn't want to chase into the first available open door. She's angered the bird community more than once. But there isn't a rodent around because Sophie is a hunter. Unlike Fat Fluff. My daughter's cat isn't much on hunting. He never was but now that he's older he doesn't even like to come downstairs for food. We usually have to bring it to him.
Sophie and Fluffy are the bright spots of my day. (Even if I do have to bring Fluffy room service.) My kids are older so I'm turning into the crazy lady in the gray house with the odd cats.
I thought Sophie and Fluffy would be a good way to end my first ezine.
Next time I hope to be better with the technical stuff!
So until then, happy reading!
Don't forget MAID IN MONTANA!
susan
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