When You Need to Recharge by Dora Hiers

Dora Hiers

Struggling to find a job? Feeling stomped on by co-workers? Going through marital problems? Family discord. Rebellious children. Financial challenges. Medical issues. Or maybe you just lost a precious family member or friend. All while trying to write.

You name it, and we’ve probably all faced it at some point. Pressure gains momentum as a culmination of events and issues take turns with their punches. Or it could be one major incident that knocks us until we’re staggering backward like a fighter in a boxing ring, squeezing the breath from our lungs until our vision blurs, the voices around us fading into oblivion. And words? They tumble through our head, round and round, but no coherent strings make their way onto the page.

We each handle stress differently. Some people thrive on it. Others tug the blanket back over their head and sleep. I tend to...

Run! Not run away because that doesn’t solve any problems. But run to the mountains. 

Peace speaks to my soul here. Whispers that everything’s going to be all right, that life is more than writing and books. That God is in control and that He’s infinitely greater than anything I'm facing. Being here brings God more into focus, and the pressure lifts. I can breathe deep again, liberated from the chains of worry that squeeze my chest.

If we can’t break away for a weekend, this is where I run…

Sometimes all I can manage is this...

Not quite the same, but it’s nice to escape my desk and the mountain of tasks demanding my attention and slip away for a few minutes.

This year has been crazy busy. Long hours hunched over my laptop, trying to keep the momentum going with my current work-in-progress and the extra writing related to market five books. You know how, at times, events just keep piling on your calendar until suddenly you've lost control? That was me this year, somewhere about April. I definitely needed a recharge, so we headed for the mountains over a long weekend.

How do you handle stress? Are you a "runner?" Where do you go to recharge?
I'll be in and out of Internet service for the next couple of weeks (recharging! :) ), but will check back and respond to all comments when I return. Wishing you a glorious weekend!

He will keep in perfect peace all those who trust in him,

whose thoughts turn often to the Lord! ~Isaiah 26:3 TLB

He's my yesterday, my tomorrow, my today.

He's my redeemer, my hiding place, my refuge.

He's the grace who covers a multitude of wrongs, the beauty in my ugly, the bridge to forever.

He's the restorer of my soul, the quiet in my storm, the still water of perfect peace.

He's my champion, my hero, my rock.

He's the sweet spot in my day, my reason for being,

my very next breath. ~Dora Hiers

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Deputy City Manager Burk Harmon has always been the strong one for his family, but recently those responsibilities have dwindled. When Lacie Heatherton, Assistant Director for Parks and Recreation, ropes him into a city-sponsored trip to the mountains with fifty seniors, Burk has two things on his mind: considering a possible promotion and wooing Lacie past friendship and into a future. Lacie has emotional scars and a thirteen-year-old daughter to remind her that men can be cruel and unforgiving. Can Burk convince Lacie to relax her "no dating" policy or will he surrender his dreams of family and love?

Dora Hiers is a multi-published author of Heart Racing, God-Gracing romances. She’s a member of RWA and her local chapter, Carolina Romance Writers. Connect with her on Seriously Write, Fiction Faith & Foodies, Twitter, Facebook or Pinterest.

Research – The Best Part of Being an Author by Mary Ellis

Besides a good story, there's nothing more thrilling for this reader than feeling as though I've been transported to a place or time I've never been before. Today, Mary Ellis stops by to give us some insight into the on-location research she did for her newest series. -- Sandy

Mary: Personally, I love to travel. As my husband and I investigate spots where we may someday retire, I find plenty of settings for my books. My newest series, Secrets of the South Mysteries, involves a variety of locations south of the Mason Dixon line. My current release, Midnight on the Mississippi, takes place in New Orleans and in the backwaters of Terrebonne, Lafayette, and St. Landry Parishes, Louisiana. In preparation we stayed in the French Quarter at least a dozen times, taking in the sights and sounds both pre and post-Katrina, and sampling every Cajun and Creole dish on the menu. Despite several hurricanes and bad-behaving partygoers, the French Quarter retains its age-old dignity. Utterly charming is the only way I can describe our favorite hotel, The Provincial. In my story, a New Orleans securities broker is accused of murder when his business partner turns up dead. Danger swirls like the mysterious dark water of the bayou as my stockbroker and his greenhorn P.I. encounter sophisticated shell games, blackmail and death threats in Midnight on the Mississippi.

The second of my mystery series takes place in Memphis, Tennessee, home of the blues and plenty of tasty barbeque. I enjoyed plenty of both during my trips to study the after-hours life of a saxophone player and stage his untimely murder. People in both the clubs and in the Mississippi Blues Trail museums were eager to help another music lover. The landmark Peabody Hotel turned out to be so amazing, I wrote the subplot around a fictionalized version of the hotel. It fit well in with the romantic intrigue of What Happened on Beale Street, which will release in February.

The third in the series, yet unnamed, takes place in the sleepy town of Natchez, Mississippi. Perched high on a bluff above the Mississippi River, Natchez becomes the vortex of a murder veiled as a suicide and an elaborate scam to dupe unsuspecting non-profits of every dime they have. Two new private detectives, both burned badly in previous relationships, discover friendship can often be the first step to true love. In a couple of weeks my husband and I will return to Natchez for another go-round of research. So nice to stay in a town too small to get lost in, yet large enough to have friendly people willing to answer a writer’s nosy questions. Then we’ll travel down to Bay St. Louis on Mississippi’s Gulf Coast, perfect for the subplot of my mystery. Bay St. Louis has been almost totally rebuilt since that devastating Katrina, ten years ago this month.

Ahhh research…where it’s warm and sunny and a soft breeze blows in from the water to cool a writer’s weary brow. What a lovely way for a Midwest country girl to see the U.S. and be able to deduct part of her expenses along the way.

Do you combine your novel research with your travel? If you don't actually have a book in mind, do you take notes during a trip anyway ... just in case? Do you tend to set your books only in those places you're familiar with?

~~~~~

Mary Ellis has written twelve award-winning novels set in the Amish community andseveral historical romances set during the Civil War. Her latest, Midnight on the Mississippi, first of a new mystery series, Secrets of the South, is set in New Orleans.Mary enjoys traveling, gardening, bicycling and swimming, and lives in Ohio with her husband, dog and cat. She can be found on the web at: www.maryellis.net or
https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Mary-Ellis/126995058236

Step Out of Your Comfort Zone by Dora Hiers

Hi everybody! Terri and I are swapping spots again today. She'll be back on Thursday, July 23. Meanwhile, I hope you're encouraged and inspired to Step Out of Your Comfort Zone! :)




It may come as a surprise to you, but I’m a routine kinda gal. I eat the same cereal for breakfast and wake up and go to bed every day about the same time. Wait staff from our favorite restaurants don’t bother asking for my order; they just confirm it. I write only from my quiet office and take breaks in regular intervals. Interruptions throw me off kilter, and it takes a while to regain my balance.

But being a writer is slowly eroding my routine. That, or my husband is. :)

He’s always testing the boundaries of my comfort zone. He prodded me to write my first book and encouraged this shy introvert to join a writers group. When our local librarian invited me to address their readers, hubby rattled off a list of possible topics and practically shoved me into the public speaking arena when I would have been perfectly content to hide out in the obscurity of my office, pecking away at my laptop. Eventually, readers would find my stories, right?

Now, he’s at it again. Prodding me to expand my horizons. Travel. Food. Where does it stop?

Three years ago, he convinced me that a European cruise was cheaper than some of our US vacations, and we’ve cruised there every year since. We’ve craned our necks to stare up at the Eiffel Tower, climbed the Colosseum in Rome, and explored ancient walled cities in Tuscany and volcanoes in Iceland. We devoured pizza in Belfast, gobbled down granitas and cannoli’s in Sicily, guzzled espresso in Barcelona, and tasted authentic fish and chips in London.

And you know what? I actually enjoyed it. Not necessarily every new meal or city, but the experience. He doesn’t have to sell me on it anymore. When he mentions a cruise, I’m totally on board. :)

We all need someone like that, don’t we? A friend or spouse to push us to achieve more, to reach for our dreams, to fill a hole with something that we’re passionate about, or to force us to face our fears. For me, it's usually fear of the unknown.

What are you afraid of? 

Join that writers group. Attend a writers conference. Write the story that's burning in your heart. Submit it to publishers or agents. What's the worst that could happen? Is a rejection letter really that bad? Conversely, what's the best that could happen? A published book? Landing your dream agent?

Embrace life. Surround yourself with people who love you enough to shove you out of your comfort zone. Give your dreams wings to become reality and discover yourself.

Just wait until hubby starts messing with my bedtime. Or leaving brochures for Antarctica on the kitchen counter… :)

Who shoves you out of your comfort zone? 

Name your fear. How did you try to overcome it?

“Risk, then, is not just part of life. It is life. The place between your comfort zone and your dream is where life takes place. It's the high-anxiety zone, but it's also where you discover who you are.” ~Nick Vujicic

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Burn survivor Savvy McCord doesn't blame her best friend for running away. She can't even look at her scars without wincing. When Beck's disappearing act spans years, she relinquishes dreams of love and marriage. Unable to face Savvy's expectations of happily-ever-after, Beck Harmon deserts her, far away from the rumors that he's just like his father. When the wanderer returns, dreams of forever blossom in Savvy's heart, but she worries he'll leave again. Can Beck convince Savvy that her true beauty comes from her inner strength and faith? Will his idea to help burn victims regain their self-confidence restore Savvy's trust in him? Will love be what the wanderer needs to find peace for his hurting soul?

Dora Hiers

Dora Hiers is a multi-published author of Heart Racing, God-Gracing romances. She’s a member of RWA and her local chapter, Carolina Romance Writers. Connect with her on Seriously Write, Fiction Faith & Foodies, Twitter, Facebook or Pinterest.

10 Writing Location Research Tips by Janalyn Voigt

Author Janalyn Voigt's introduction speaks for itself, so ...

Janalyn: If you’re like most writers, being an introverted soul, you would rather plant yourself in front of the computer to write than go somewhere for anything but necessities. At the prospect of a research trip to a location you’re writing about, however, that magically changes.  Images of your jotting notes on the fly, gazing awe-struck at scenery, or photographing an artifact jockey in your mind.   

It can be like that, except of course when it’s not. Failing to prepare for a research trip can result in missed opportunities, wasted time, and a lot of frustration.

How to Prepare for a Research Trip

1.      Outline your book ahead of time. This helps you identify the research questions you need to answer for the story.

2.      Isolate the areas of research you need to tackle on this trip. If you are writing a series, for example, you may need to whittle down your research to that required for your current book and save investigating for the next book until later. You have only so much time and energy, so use it well.

3.      Identify people you want to talk with and set up an appointment in advance. Believe me when I say this becomes a herculean task when you are living out of suitcases while traveling about. Be sure to provide your phone number and ask for one you can call if plans change. Doing this can mean the difference between a lost connection and an informative meeting.

4.      Create an efficient itinerary. Lay out your stops in a logical order with little-to-no backtracking. Start with the most important location and work from there. Then, if the unexpected happens and you experience delays or have to curtail the trip, you will at least have spent time at the most important site.

5.      Make hotel reservations in advance. Having an itinerary helps you determine where you’ll be spending the night. Don’t, as my husband and I once did, leave finding a room in a partial ghost town to chance. We discovered on our arrival, and with many miles to the nearest town, that the town was closed for the season. Fortunately, one proprietress let us sleep in a converted shack. Lesson learned.

6.      Make sure of admission prices, times, and special arrangements. Arriving at closing time means you will either return or skip the site. Some historical sites are kept locked, requiring special arrangements to be viewed. Work this out in advance.

7.      Check news for the location you plan to visit. A ghost town I planned to visit was shut down following a flash flood. Had I gone when I’d originally planned, I’d have been turned away from my main research site. Fortunately, I rescheduled the trip for a later date, and only then discovered the closure.

8.      Allow for having less energy. Accept that travel is tiring, and you will give yourself grace if you can’t accomplish everything you planned to do.

9.      Don’t rely on memory.  I’ve done this more times than I care to admit. When you are standing in a place, it seems like you will never forget it, but that’s not the truth. Your memories will become sketchy or fade. This is why capturing the essence of a place in writing, images, or audio is so important. Remember especially to record the impressions you pick up with your senses.

10.  Schedule your research trip efficiently. Being able to complete your project as soon as possible afterwards is best. If you let too much time elapse between your trip and writing the story, it will be harder to immerse yourself in detail. It’s not possible to record every impression while on location, so moving right into your project when you return home is the smart thing to do.

Having a sense of humor eases the stress of traveling for research. Even when you’ve prepared to the best of your ability, your plans can go astray for reasons outside your control. I once planned to visit a historic ranch, only to find it closed due to a budget stalemate. There’s not a lot you can do about something like that, so why not give yourself permission to see the humor in it? Move on, and you may discover one of the nicest things about travel to a writing research location--serendipity.

Now that’s worth leaving home for.

Any tips to add? How far have you traveled for the sake of research? What is the most inspiring/interesting/surprising place you've visited while researching a novel?

~~~

Janalyn Voigt is a writer and professional speaker with a photography habit and a passion for travel. She blends adventure, romance, suspense, and whimsy to create worlds of beauty and danger for readers. Beginning with DawnSinger, Janalyn’s epic fantasy series, Tales of Faeraven, carries readers into a land only imagined in dreams. Novelist Linda Windsor has described Janalyn’s unique writing style as bardic prose. In a marriage of location, genre, and writing voice, Janalyn is developing a romantic suspense series set in Ireland.

Janalyn is represented by Sarah Joy Freese of Wordserve Literary. Her memberships include American Christian Fiction Writers and Northwest Christian Writers Association. She maintains separate websites for her Creative Worlds author brand, Literary Wayfarer travel writing identity, and for mentoring other writers at Live Write Breathe. 

Visit Janalyn Voigt at her author website.

The Price of Success As A Writer by Christine Lindsay

Christine Lindsay

Is it possible that some of us writers are workaholics because we like it?

At the start of my fifties I began my long-desired writing and speaking career. While things were challenging, God gave me the strength to rise to that challenge, and I thoroughly enjoyed reaching those long-sought-after goals.

OH MY, I FELT FULFILLED. I was woman. Hear me roar…or better still…maybe I was getting close to becoming that Proverbs 31 woman.   

But fifteen years after the fact, after my first two books had been published, and with contracts for more, I also discovered that it was hard to shoehorn leisure into my schedule. When was the last time I relaxed or took a day off? Sometimes months would go by.

AND THE BIGGER COST:

This past spring it dawned on me that my dear husband was suffering from loneliness due to my extremely busy schedule. The wrongness of this hit me between the eyes.

Around the same time I ran into two different sets of women. Six of one and half a dozen of the other, you might say.

The first group warmly reminisced about the wonderful holidays they had camping with their husbands over the years. The other group shared that quite recently their husbands had passed away, unexpectedly, suddenly, and all these dear husbands were around the age of sixty.

My husband was sixty.

A GOD-INSPIRED SOLUTION

The question echoed in my mind. What am I waiting for? That week we purchased a brand new, little travel trailer. My husband didn’t take much convincing.

On our first trip in July we drove through the majestic Canadian Rockies, and at the summit of Roger’s Pass I noticed a large artillery gun. My husband explained that avalanche control experts shot artillery shells into the snowcaps to trigger avalanches, to control the snows from building too high and thick and thereby causing a fatal avalanche.

WHAT I LEARNED DRIVING THROUGH THE ROCKIES

I compared this controlling of avalanches to my own life. My marriage had to come first, even at the expense of my writing and speaking ministry. So, like the avalanche control experts, I chose to cut back on my writing so I could spend more togetherness time with my husband.

My little Christmas novelette Heavenly Haven is the culmination of that thinking.

Dora here. As writers, it's difficult to shut down for the day. How do you unwind? Do you find your relationships suffer?

`

Heavenly Haven  ~ Purchase Link

Heavenly Haven by Christine Lindsay

Avalanches happen to other people, not us. Marital problems happen to other people, not us, especially nine days before Christmas. At least that’s what Jack and Shaina Burke thought. Married for ten years, avalanche control expert Jack, and Shaina, only wanted to celebrate their December anniversary in a romantic way, until the shifting snows on the mountain bring havoc tumbling down upon them.

Heavenly Haven is available as an Ebook on Amazon Kindle, Barnes & Noble Nook, and Kobo.

About the author:

Christine Lindsay was born in N. Ireland and is proud of the fact that she was patted on the head by Prince Philip when she was a baby. Her great grandfather, and her grandfather—yes father and son—were both riveters on the building of the Titanic. Tongue in cheek, Christine states that as a family they accept no responsibility for the sinking of that great ship.

It was stories of her ancestors who served in the British Cavalry in Colonial India that inspired her historical series Twilight of the British Raj of which Book 1 Shadowed in Silk has won several awards. Book 2 Captured by Moonlight is so far a Finalist for the 2013 Readers Favorite Award. Christine is currently writing the final installment of that series called Veiled at Midnight to be released August 2014.

Also coming out February 2014 is Londonderry Dreaming, a romance novella set in Londonderry Northern Ireland.  

Christine makes her home in British Columbia, on the west coast of Canada with her husband and their grown up family. Her cat Scottie is chief editor on all her books.

Christine Lindsay would love to connect with you on her website www.ChristineLindsay.com, or drop by her blog for inspiration www.ChristineLindsay.org or follow her on Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest