Unexpected Fireworks by Shannon Moore Redmon

Like many Americans, over the fourth of July my family vacationed at our favorite lake spot for some fun, relaxation and fireworks. We enjoyed a calm couple of days on the water.

But our second night there, something unexpected happened. A neighbor’s boat dock, across the cove, caught fire.

At three-thirty in the morning, we awoke as trucks sped up and down the street. This was unusual for our quiet neighborhood. No one causes a commotion that late at night or the sheriff gets a call.

We thought perhaps a party had run late and people were leaving. Then my mother spotted orange flames glowing against the blackness of the water. We all ran outside for a closer look.

The men of my family wanted to help. They hopped in the boat to make sure everyone was okay. My mother and I stayed behind, watching from a distance.

Thankfully, no human life was injured or lost. Only the owner’s pontoon and his brand-new, just-purchased a few days ago boat, went up in flames. Nothing was left of the double decker dock except the metal frame.

The culprit? An overturned firework that wreaked havoc on the floating objects in its path.

No one expected the purchased sparklers to cause so much damage. The group wanted to celebrate Independence Day, see a good show and enjoy the fun. But instead chaos ensued.

We need to give our readers the same kind of unexpected fireworks on the page. Create chaos in our stories. Pull them from their relaxed lives into the tension and conflict of our characters.

How do we do this?

1) Unexpected Hook/Twist – Give them an unpredictable opening, clutching them into the story the same way our neighbor’s flames pulled my family out of bed at three-thirty AM. Even my college age son got up with interest. I haven’t seen that boy so alert since he finished high school.

2) Explode on the first page - Give the reader action and adventure, suspense and mystery or love and tension, depending on the genre. Something to grab them on the opening page and keep them turning until the end. No one wants to read about the color of the trees or flowers when an all-out fire is taking place across the bay.

3) Spread the fire - Each chapter needs fuel to keep the story burning. A bit of information or action to keep the adventure in motion all the way until the climax at the end.

4) Satisfying ending - Our neighbor plans to rebuild his dock and had insurance money to cover the boats. He will be fine. And so will your readers when a rewarding resolution ends the story.

Time to gather up those bottle rockets and Roman candles to create one completely satisfying pyrotechnic display of writing!

Give readers fuel in every chapter to keep the story burning @shannon_redmon @MaryAFelkins #amwriting #SeriouslyWrite

Shannon Redmon remembers the first grown up book she checked out from the neighborhood book mobile. A Victoria Holt novel with romance, intrigue, dashing gentlemen and ballroom parties captivated her attention. For her mother, the silence must have been a pleasant break from non-stop teenage chatter, but for Shannon, those stories whipped up a desire and passion for writing.
There's nothing better than the power of a captivating novel, a moving song or zeal for a performance that punches souls with awe. A rainbow displayed after a horrific storm or expansive views on a mountaintop bring nuggets of joy into our lives. Shannon hopes stories immerse readers into that same kind of amazement, encouraging faith, hope and love, guiding our hearts to the One who created us all.

Shannon’s writing has been published in Spark magazine, Splickety magazine, the Lightning Blog, The Horse of My Dreams compilation book, Romantic Moments compilation book, Seriously Write blog and Jordyn Redwood’s Medical Edge blog. Her current fiction novel was selected as a top three finalist of the 2018 ACFW Genesis Contest and she is represented by Tamela Hancock Murray of the Steve Laube Agency.

Connect with Shannon:
www.shannonredmon.com
The StoryMoore Blog, named in memory of her father, Donald Eugene Moore.
FB: https://www.facebook.com/shannon.redmon
Twitter: https://twitter.com/shannon_redmon
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shannonredmon/

Never Give Up by Patty Nicholas

Last week I had the honor of helping my mother clean out my late father’s office. We had gone through all of the important papers a few years ago, but this time was all about his books. Hundreds of books acquired over a lifetime of collecting.

My dad was a professional editor for several scientific publications, however his passion was the art of the story. He loved reading as much as he loved writing. While he supported his family editing for science writers, he always wanted to put together, and sell a great novel, and it showed in the multitude of books he had on the craft of writing.

Unfortunately, he passed away before his dream was realized, but he never gave up. My mother mentioned how she used to fall asleep listening to the click of the keyboard as he wrote into the wee hours of the morning. I have fond memories of the different stories he would tell every time we would get together.

As I went through his books, my initial thoughts and emotions were of sadness. He worked so hard, and never saw his deepest desires of sharing his stories with the world, yet, after contemplating my time in my childhood home and with excellent counsel from a dear friend, I see how he stayed with his passion. He never gave up, he told stories until the very end, and there is no doubt that he passed his zeal, his hopes and dreams on to me.

If I have half his determination, drive, and half his desire to write well, I will have carried on his legacy. There have been a few times in my writing career that I wondered if it was worth it to keep going. When I think of how my dad persevered, I have to carry on.

If I have half his determination, drive, and half his desire to write well, I will have carried on his legacy

I was blessed to have the example of my dad. Someone who didn’t quit. Someone who never gave up.

~~~~~

Multi award winning writer, Patty Nicholas lives in the mountains of North Carolina. She is a busy event planner for the Billy Graham Training Center at the Cove, and is a member of the Blue Ridge Writers Group.

She is a mother of two grown daughters and grandmother of three. She writes Bible studies and devotionals as well as contemporary romance.

Devotions are published in compilations by Lighthouse Bible Studies.

facebook.com/patty.l.nicholas
twitter.com/PattyNicholas2

Overcoming TSTL by Amy R. Anguish

Amy R. Anguish

Have you received a great piece of advice during your writing journey? Author Amy Anquish shares a bit of wisdom she was given that has stuck with her since the beginning. ~ Dawn

Overcoming TSTL

T.S.T.L.

Know what those letters stand for?

If you haven’t heard them before, you’re where I was about fifteen or so years ago. I was fresh out of college. My mentor, an author who had come and spoken to my Advanced Comp class, and then taken me under her wing after finding out I wanted to be an author, too, agreed to read my manuscript and give advice. On one of the first pages, she wrote those letters about my heroine. Out to the side, she explained them—“Too stupid to live.”

That was near the beginning of my writing journey, a path that started back in high school, but didn’t get serious until later in college. After taking a creative writing class at my university, I was sure I knew all I’d need to know about writing, could go throw some of my story ideas onto the page, and send it off for instant contracts. Of course, it didn’t quite work that way.

Not when my main character was too stupid to live. It was a tale about a woman who was an author and agreed to run off on a family vacation with this guy she’d just met who needed a girlfriend to keep his family off his back. Looking back, I agree with my mentor. In this day and age, that girl would be dead. I’m pleased to say I’ve learned a few things since then.

Now that I have two books published and several more in rough draft stages on my computer, I am better at creating characters who think a bit more before they agree to run off on trips. I don’t put them into situations where they might die more often than not—at least not if I can help it. I write romance, after all. And I definitely know enough to realize that 30,000 words is not enough for a novel.

Someday, I’m going to go back and rewrite that story. I’ll have the heroine know the guy she agrees to travel with, so that she won’t be simply ignoring stranger danger. And I’ll fine-tune a few other quirks that were pointed out by my mentor. But right now, that story stays as it is to remind me.

On the days when I get discouraged, feel like I’ll never get as many reviews as I’m hoping for, never be able to publish more than one story every other year, or never have more than a couple hundred followers, I look back at how far I’ve come.

It took six years for my first novel to go from NANOWRIMO to published novel, but it did. It took almost that long for my second. I started this journey with just a handful of followers on Facebook, just a few reviews on Amazon. But you know what? I have more now. And they’re all good. And they’re not all from friends and family.

So, whenever you run across a friend’s comment, pointing out something stupid you’ve done in your manuscript, take the advice as it’s meant. Grow from it and move on. Someday, you’ll look back on it and see how far you’ve come. And then you can appreciate it even more.

Someday, you’ll look back on your writing journey and see how far you’ve come. #seriouslywrite #encouragementforwriters

Faith and Hope

Faith and Hope

Two sisters. One summer. Multiple problems.

Younger sister Hope has lost her job, her car, and her boyfriend all in one day. Her well-laid plans for life have gone sideways, as has her hope in God.

Older sister Faith is finally getting her dream-come-true after years of struggles and prayers. But when her mom talks her into letting Hope move in for the summer, will the stress turn her dream into a nightmare? Is her faith in God strong enough to handle everything?

For two sisters who haven't gotten along in years, this summer together could be a disaster ... or it could lead them to a closer relationship with each other and God.



Amy R Anguish grew up a preacher's kid, and in spite of having lived in seven different states that are all south of the Mason Dixon line, she is not a football fan. Currently, she resides in Tennessee with her husband, daughter, and son, and usually a bossy cat or two. Amy has an English degree from Freed-Hardeman University that she intends to use to glorify God, and she wants her stories to show that while Christians face real struggles, it can still work out for good.

Follow her at http://abitofanguish.weebly.com or http://www.facebook.com/amyanguishauthor

A Time to be Tough By Patti Jo Moore

If someone used only one word to describe you, what do you think that word might be? Talented? Funny? Kind? Outgoing?

I can guarantee that one word that would not be used to describe me is TOUGH. 😉

As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, I was a kindergarten teacher in my other life (before writing full-time) and I absolutely loved working with young children. I especially loved working with them when they were nice to each other, and I didn’t need to intervene with little talks about the importance of playing nicely, sharing, and treating others the way we want to be treated.

Maybe that mindset of “wanting everyone to get along” is why I struggle with adding conflict in my stories. Yes, I know that without conflict and strife in our characters’ lives, there’s not really a story (or one that others want to read!). And even though I’ve been writing a while, I still find it difficult to - - as one of my author friends phrased it - - “be mean to my characters.” That goes against my kindergarten-teacher nature! I don’t want to be mean, even if those characters aren’t real people (although we writers know they seem very, very real to us).

Yet, since I enjoy writing stories, and want my stories to be entertaining and have a meaningful message, I must have conflict, and in my stories the conflict must be resolved by (or before) the happy ending.

So - - being a seat-of-the-pants writer, I make myself pause at certain places in my writing, and check to see if I’m being “tough” and adding conflict that will make my story stronger. If I’m not, then I take a break, pray some more about my writing, and then later return to my project with a renewed spirit - - determined to be as tough as necessary. Yes, it’s an ongoing struggle, but one I’m working on. 😊

What about you? Do you struggle with having enough conflict in your stories?

In Tune With Romance 

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Meg Mills is thankful she relocated to Coastal Breeze after becoming widowed two years earlier. As she makes plans to achieve her dream of owning a small bookstore, she begins doubting herself after being harassed by her late husband’s stepmother. She’s also confused at her strong attraction to the shy, lanky piano tuner who arrives for an appointment one day.

Todd Davis is grateful for his aunt’s encouragement to move to Coastal Breeze after a painful divorce, and is soon captivated by an outgoing piano tuning client. But he’s an introvert, and feels certain the pretty widow wouldn’t be interested in him.

When Todd is hired as the local church’s choir director, he hopes this will help him get to know the attractive widow better—if he can come out of his shell. When the cousin who bullied Todd as a youth unexpectedly arrives in Coastal Breeze, Todd must confront his greatest fear, while getting past the pain of his memories. Meg worries that her exuberant personality has driven Todd away—until she learns the truth about his past.

Can two people who are polar opposites help each other & find romance in the process?

Patti Jo Moore is a retired kindergarten teacher and lifelong Georgia girl. She loves Jesus, her family, cats, and coffee, and is blessed to be published with Forget-Me-Not Romances. When she’s not spending time with her family (including her sweet grandbaby) or writing her “Sweet, Southern Stories” Patti Jo can be found feeding cats—her own six and local strays.

She loves connecting with readers and other writers, and can be found on Facebook at Author Patti Jo Moore or her personal blog at http://catmomscorner.blogspot.com