Geri Foster: Tips On Adding Tension To Romantic Suspense

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action, conflict, e-book, Geri Foster, Out of the Dark, Out of the Shadows, paperbacks, Ruby on Tuesday, tension, Texas Author, writing romantic suspense, writing tips

I first met Geri Foster when I joined Yellow Rose RWA. She is president of the group.  It’s with great pleasure that I welcome her to RUBY ON Tuesday. She writes Action-Romantic Suspense  and the first two of her books in the Falcon Security Series have just debuted.  OUT OF THE DARK and OUT OF THE SHADOWS are available on Amazon.com. Today she shares some of her tricks on how to keep up the tension  in the romantic suspense genre. Let Geri know you came by today by leaving her a comment. She loves to hear from readers.

Many people ask me why I chose to write strong, high suspense stories, with Alpha men. The answer for me is simple. I love action, in movies and books. I read a lot of thrillers and study their techniques for fight scenes and the weapons they use to convey action to their readers.

It isn’t always the action that pulls you in, it’s the tension and conflict you weave through the story that keeps the readers turning the page. That means I plot the story so I know when the characters hit a wall, I can turn them around and head them in another direction.

Tension heightens your senses like laugher, and being frightened. If you don’t know who’s going to walk out alive, you will finish a book to find out. Also, tension makes you think, what’s going to happen next. How much more trouble is the author going to get the characters in before it all falls apart. So, part of your internal tension is, can the writer pull this off. The answer is yes, if she’s planned everything just perfect and she saves a big surprise for the middle of the book that takes the story into a different direction. Often it’s a secret either the Heroine or Hero keeps hidden until the time is ready for disclosure.

So, tension involves the plot of the book, the pace and the outcome. Never give your reader the opportunity to put down your book, and you do that by making every page sizzle with tension and suspense.

How do you add tension? By looking at your story and asking, what would the reader least expect to happen next? What are they waiting for? What twist can I throw in that completely changes the story? That’s what tension is all about.

Don’t ever do what’s expected. Imagine ten things that might happen then chose the eleventh idea. It’s usually the most difficult to pull off, but it’s also worthy of your reader’s appreciation.

Make your reader wait. In fiction writing some authors tell you everything up front. That makes it too easy for your reader to figure out the entire plot. Once that happens, you’ve lost a reader by becoming too predictable. So, make them wait as long as you can. You do that by not slamming them over the head with something.  Subtlety is the best friend of a Romantic Suspense writer.

Lastly, to keep the tension, always think of conflict. Then plot your story so that at each turning point something happens that raises the stakes and gives the characters more to lose. Give them what they want. This coupled with the conflict  means that they will push harder and harder against each other until they reach the climax, the obligatory scene where they meet for the last time, at which point one of them will be finally and irrevocably defeated.  By that I mean everyone involved in the story must receive the right punishment or reward. The bad guys suffer and our Heroine and Hero get their satisfactory ending which should make us want for more and turn the page.  So try not to end with H/H going to sleep, have them keep the conflict alive to the last page with a good hook.

What helps you create and ignite that all important spark of tension? is it chemistry, intimacy, plot, or conflict? What makes it work, or not work, in your own writing or in books that you’ve read?

About Geri:                                                                                                           As long as she can remember, Geri Foster has been a lover of reading and the written word. In the seventh grade she wore out two library cards and had read every book in her age area of the library. After raising a family and saying good-bye to the corporate world, she tried her hand at writing. To her surprise, she won a couple of contests, hooked up with a really great critique group and her writing career was well on its way. She spent several years studying her craft and developing her voice.

Action, intrigue, danger and sultry romance drew her like a magnet. That’s why she has no choice but to write action-romance suspense. While she reads every genre under the sun, she’s always been drawn to guns, bombs and fighting men. Secrecy and suspense move her to write edgy stories about daring and honorable heroes who manage against all odds to end up with their one true love.

About her books:

OUT OF THE DARK: After a Russian mission goes south, Falcon Securities agent John ‘Mac’ McKinsey is stranded with assassins on his trail. His boss arranges for him to hitch a ride with corporate attorney Emily Richards, who is in Russia as a mediator and she isn’t too happy that Mac has entangled her in a life and death situation. Together Mac and Emily engage in a tumultuous ride to escape with their lives and capture a crazed bomber and a vindictive drug lord. More difficult is tearing down their own emotional walls. Can they succeed and admit love is the most precious thing in life.

OUT OF THE SHADOWS: Falcon Securities Agent Brody Hawke’s best friend, A.J, is help captive in a Mexican Jungle and attempts at his rescue are going nowhere. So Brody’s plan? Kidnap CIA agent Kate Stone and use her as bait. Kate is fighting for her job after a failed attack in Iraq. Her life is a mess. Then Brody kidnaps her and enlists her help. When she and Brody reach A.J., they learn the situation is much more serious than they thought. Brody and Kate must rescue A.J. and stop an attempt on the life of the President of the US. Can Brody and Kate find love in the midst of all the chaos? And can Brody accept details about his past and finally reach out for love?

Purchase Geri’s books in paperback and on kindle at Amazon.com

Ashley Kath-Bilsky: Writing A Book Is Like Making A Homemade Cake

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Ashley Kath-Bilsky, book, fiction, From idea to novel, Highlands, new release, romance, Scotland, Texas Author, time travel western

It’s my pleasure to welcome Ashley Kath-Bilsky to Ruby On Tuesday to discuss her approach to writing and how she went from an idea to a novel. If you like this post, please leave a comment when you finish reading.

Happy Ruby On Tuesday, everyone!

I want to thank Ruby for inviting me to her wonderful blog today to discuss how I approach writing and how I came up with the time travel angle for my new best-selling book, ‘Whisper in the Wind’.

Each writer approaches their work in a different way. Some are fast writers and others work in a slow, methodical manner. Some plot their books in great detail while others (like me) begin with a concept and take it from there.  I guess I could compare the way I write a book to making a homemade cake. Anyone who knows me will tell you, I love cake – so what better analogy? In a sense (work with me here), writing is like cooking an exotic recipe or baking a six-layer delicious cake with scrumptious fudge frosting. You are creating something from nothing but your imagination. You take some basic ingredients, add a pinch of this, a dash of that, and voilà – a book!

Unfortunately, it isn’t that easy. There are no shortcuts or Betty Crocker cake mixes for a book. Granted, the recipe may seem easy in theory, but once you start the procedure it can get downright complicated and take longer than you ever anticipated.  Since I write historical fiction, extensive research about the time period is necessary to paint an accurate visual picture that will transport the reader into the book. I’m detail oriented and love history. In fact, it’s easy for me to get lost doing research. However, I try not to be heavy-handed with historical data. Very much like measuring ingredients for a successful recipe, too much of one thing can weigh the product down. Ultimately, readers want to be entertained, not subjected to a history lesson. And don’t think just because the frosting (in this case, the book cover) may look delicious and enticing that people won’t care about the substance or quality of the cake itself.

Writing is a subjective process; what appeals to one person may not appeal to others. After all, there are people who don’t like chocolate either. And I strongly believe that if you don’t have a good story with characters the reader will personally care about, plot elements that are entertaining as well as compelling, and an understanding about the craft of writing, how good your book looks on the outside won’t matter.

Consequently, my goal is to write enjoyable, entertaining, heart-warming books that incorporate plot twists or intriguing elements from other genres. My base is historical romance; it’s what I write and what I read. However, I also love mystery and suspense, as well as paranormal elements, including time travel. I’m not a fan of the ‘formula’ romance with predictable plots. Granted, romance novels are expected to have that ‘happy ending’, but who says there cannot be twists and turns, and unexpected surprises along the way? As a reader, it’s that sense of “what will happen next” that keeps me in a story. So, I strive to write the kind of book I would like to read. Then I cross my fingers and hope the reader will feel the same way.

In my first novel, The Sense of Honor, set in Regency England, strong elements of mystery and suspense were incorporated into the historical romance. With Whisper in the Wind, I pursued another interest – the possibility of time travel. Incorporating an element like time travel is challenging. As a plot device, I didn’t want to be so abstract or far-fetched with the method that it pulled the reader out of the story.  The process should be feasible to be believable. Time travel is simply the means to take a character forward or backward in time. In The Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens, spirits appeared to take Scrooge into the past and the future. For Molly Magee, the 21^st century heroine in Whisper in the Wind, she finds herself at a specific place and time where nature and the unknown simultaneously combine to transport her physically back in time.

Here is a brief blurb about the book:

When Molly Magee is suddenly swept back in time, she finds herself in the Old West with gunslingers, high stakes gamblers, Victorian ideology toward women, and a Pinkerton detective named Jordan Blake. As she tries to understand what happened to her and find a way home, danger exists at every turn. Survival is a daily challenge, but it’s a hundred times worse when–to avoid answering questions from a persistent and seductive Pinkerton–she fakes amnesia. She soon realizes the biggest threat of all is the one Jordan Blake poses to her heart.

Jordan Blake has lost everyone he’s ever loved. As a Texas Ranger turned Pinkerton detective, Jordan has become a cynic about people and justice, and is ready to walk away from a life that has lost its meaning. He never knew that a prayer whispered in the wind would bring him an angel of mercy, and a love he’d never hoped to find.

From the open splendor of 1885 Texas to dark decadence and murder in New Orleans, Molly and Jordan learn that when fate takes a hand, finding the love of your life is often just a matter of…Time.

Whisper in the Wind, an Amazon best-selling sensuous Historical Time Travel Romance is the first book in the ‘Windswept Texas Romance’ series. The novel is available for Kindle at Amazon.com, as well as e-reader format for Apple iBook/iPad, Nook, Kobo, and Smashwords.  The print version of the book will be available on May17, 2013.

Ashley Kath-Bilsky is a best-selling, award-winning author of Historical Romance with Mystery, Suspense, and/or Paranormal elements.  She also writes Historical Gothic Young Adult Fiction. For more information about Ashley and her books, please visit her website (www.ashleykathbilsky.com) , personal blog (www.ashleykathbilsky.blogspot.com ), Twitter (https://twitter.com/AKathBilsky), and Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/pages/Ashley-Kath-Bilsky/302554710513).  Ashley is also a contributing member of the Sweethearts of the West blog at: www.sweetheartsofthewest.blogspot.com.

What keeps you in a story and reading to the very last page?

3 Elements To Improve A Story

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conflict, improving stories. writing, object, story elements, Texas Author, ticking clock

Want to know three quick things to improve your story?  Try Object, Conflict, and the Ticking Clock.

Object is something found throughout a story that the reader can follow. The Object may be an actual thing (like a amulet) or a place (like a church) or it can even be a secondary character ( like a best friend or pet). Usually the Object is important to the plot or the theme.

Conflict comes through several ways. We all know the English definition — Man vs. Man, Man vs. Nature, Man vs. God, etc. — but , Conflict is simply when a character wants something and can’t get it. An easy way to create Conflict is to add another character into the scene/story.

 The Ticking Clock is similar to Conflict but it adds instant tension. However, it doesn’t hinder the character’s goal. It merely adds urgency.

Here’s an example of what an Object, Conflict, and Ticking Clock can do:

James ran to  his lab at the CDC.
James ran to the lab at the CDC to find the vial of Navarro virus.
James ran to the lab at the CDC to find the vial of Navarro virus before Brandon.
James ran to the lab at the CDC to find the vial of Navarro virus before Brandon could sell it to a terrorist group. 

Don’t you think the last sentence is more exciting than the first?

Not every scene/story is going to have all 3 elements, but if you ever find yourself stuck, try looking for an Object you can weave throughout the story, or try putting one in. Try inserting another character (or two) to the scene. Try a Ticking Clock. You might be surprised at how quickly things get interesting, and interesting stories are the ones that suck us in, both as writers and as readers.

What  makes a story more interesting to you?

What Your Favorite Punctuation Says About You

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comedy, Noah Baird, Punctuation, Ruby on Tuesday, writing

by Noah Baird

Colons: List creators of the world unite. Colons are used after a main clause to list off a series of items (For my birthday, I want: two monkeys jousting on the backs of Golden Retrievers, a stripper dressed as a clown, and a carrot cake). Colons can also be used to clarify the main clause (Buddy Guy and The Rolling Stones played a Muddy Waters song: “Champagne and Reefer”.

What it says about you: You’re a woman.

Dash- The dash – formally called the Em Dash because it is the width of the letter “M” – is generally not recommended for formal writing. Probably because the dash can be used instead of commas, colons, and semicolons. Dashes are used to give emphasis to the content between them.

What it says about you: You are a rebel who can’t be bothered to learn the different pauses associated with other punctuation.

For the rest of this post go to:

http://tinyurl.com/cbd8wjx

Noah Baird is the author of Donations to Clarity.

To purchase go to http://goo.gl/jd6bK

Investigating Things That Go Bump In The Night

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Boneyards, Catfish Plantation, demons, Fort Worth Paranormal, ghost hunting equipment, haunted houses, Hill House Manor, Kevin Bryan and Justin Erik, spirits, Texas

Investigating Things That Go Bump In The Night

Very few of us can say that we haven’t experienced something in the dark of night that scared us or made us uncomfortable. Recently, I attended a lecture given by two men who researched their own experiences and decided to help others who experienced paranormal phenomena.

 

Kevin wears a visible cross around his neck and Justin, his partner in Fort Worth Paranormal, speaks of his past study for the ministry.  These are men that are vocal about their strong faith in God….but also about their belief in the unexplainable, in spirits that have lingered here, good or evil.

Justin said his first paranormal experience occurred when he was twelve years old. He described himself as being in a half-conscious state where he couldn’t breathe and he could feel what he thought was a dark entity pushing down on his chest. He had a choking feeling as his terror escalated. Then he heard his grandmother’s voice saying, “Call on Jesus.”

When he uttered “Jesus,” a light entered the room and dissolved the dark figure.

Why do these men investigate unusual and unexplained phenomena? Both Justin and Kevin said experiences they couldn’t explain led to research on the topic and the discovery that others had similar experiences. These experiences have led them to investigate houses where possible paranormal activity has occurred. Investigations are free and service  based.

“Who are we to think we are the only ones here,” Kevin asks. “As long as there is a need, we want to help.”

The process for investigation begins with:

• an in-depth interview of those requesting help in order to get an idea of the experiences and the client’s mental and emotional status.
• Clients allow them complete access to their homes and/or business for three to four hours. Trust is a big factor.
• During that time they use recordings(video cameras, photos, audio) electromagnetic field detectors, parascope sensors, thermometers and other equipment to determine any changes in electromagnetic energy.

• Kevin and Justin don’t claim to be experts and they say there are no experts in this field. They validate what they can and use notes, interviews, data collection and other evidence to prove/disprove spirits existence. They put the clients in contact with experienced people who can resolve the situation if warranted.

What you may encounter if you decide to visit a haunted house:

• A change in temperature if a spirit is there-a room may become very cold.
• Two types of spirits 1)Good spirits were human but have remained on this level. Spirits are believed to have the same personality as they did when alive. They may inhabit residences because they have unfinished business there. 2)Evil spirits and demons-An evil spirit could be something trying to hurt you. A demon is considered its own entity or a fallen angel. The chances of encountering one is very slim on a ghost hunt.

Local Houses to Ghost Hunt:

If you have even the slightest interest in ghosts, chances are that you know of a haunted house somewhere near you. In Texas, there are several recommended that are not too far from the Dallas/Fort Worth area:

The Bone Yards

2921 E. Division St.

Arlington, Texas 76011

This is a very popular venue

Hill House Manor 

Gainesville, Texas

Owner says no renter has ever stayed long.

Tours between 9pm-6am

Catfish Plantation

Waxahachie,Tx.

For more information contact Fort Worth Paranormal at www.fortworthparanormal.com

                              Now a question for you……Have you had any paranormal experiences?

WHEN CHARACTERS CLASH

Tags

characterization, dialogue uses, Earl Staggs, Justified Action, mystery, new release, Texas Author, thrillers

It’s my pleasure to welcome Earl Staggs to Ruby On Tuesday. Earl is an award- winning author of mysteries and thrillers. Earl would love to hear from you so kindly leave him a question or comment at the end of the post.~~~Ruby

By Earl Staggs

Rather than letting a narrator describe how characters think and feel, I prefer writing scenes in which my characters express their opinions, and if they disagree, so much the better.  Such scenes are an opportunity to reveal something about the characters along with their beliefs and also can move the story forward with plot points and complications.

To illustrate, the following excerpt is from my newest novel, JUSTIFIED ACTION, a Mystery/Thriller.  The novel is primarily about the main character’s personal journey after someone close to him is murdered and his determination to find the killer.  The background for the story, however, is a secretive agency which tracks terrorist groups.

Tall Chambers is the main character in JUSTIFIED ACTION.  In the following scene, Tall has captured international terrorist Anatole Remski, whose father was Russian but who was raised as an Iranian.  In a firefight the night before, all of Remski’s group who were there were killed, and Remski is being held at a nearby Army base in Afghanistan.  Tall is anxious to interrogate the man to learn the names of the rest of his group.

 *****

 Tall smiled when he entered the room and sat across the table from him. “My name is Chambers, Mr. Remski. I have some questions for you. If you give me the answers I need, I’ll see that they go easier on you in court.”

Remski grinned, but didn’t speak. He held the grin and his eyes narrowed. He seemed to be studying Tall, sizing him up. “That’s very kind of you, Mr. Chambers,” he said in a soft voice with a distinct Arab accent, “but I’ll do fine without your assistance. I advise you not to waste your time or mine.”

“I’m not wasting my time. I need the names of your associates. You’re responsible for bombings which killed many American soldiers. The authorities will make you pay for that. If you cooperate, I’ll do what I can to help you.”

Remski’s grin faded, and he turned his head away. He sighed, almost as if bored. “All they have is hearsay with regard to my participation in those events, Mr. Chambers. As to actual proof, they have nothing. Besides, the killing of American soldiers in this country is not considered a crime by many people here. Weigh that against the many thousands you have slaughtered, and it amounts to very little.”

“You’re wrong,” Tall said. “Regardless of how you feel about our presence here, those who judge you will be bound by international law to sentence you in accordance with the crimes you’ve committed. As for the casualties we’re responsible for, no one regrets them more than I do, but they’re the unfortunate consequence of war. That’s very different from what you do.”

Remski turned back to him “Is it, Mr. Chambers? Why is it different?” His voice was strong and harsh now. His blue eyes had taken on a hardness that wasn’t there before. “Is it because you shout words like freedom and democracy while you murder innocent people? You Americans think you have a right to invade other countries and force them to change. Where is it written that your way is the way for all people? How do you rationalize killing innocent people to force other countries to do everything the American way?”

“That’s not what we do. Our goal is to help people gain their freedom and govern themselves.”

Remski smirked. “You think you’re qualified to tell others how to govern a country? Your country is bankrupt financially and morally, Mr. Chambers. Take your soldiers home. Take care of your own problems and let us take care of ours. Stop waving your red, white and blue flag while you slaughter our citizens in the name of freedom.”

“We don’t slaughter people. We’re only here to help.”

With fierce anger burning in his eyes, Remski shouted, “Do this for me, Mr. Chambers. Go to my village in Abuzak. Stand over the graves of my parents, my wife and my son. Tell them how you marched into their village to help them by lining them up and shooting them. Tell them they were killed for their freedom.”

Tall was caught off guard. He knew of the massacre at Abuzak. A squad of American soldiers marched into the small village looking for subversives and killed every man, woman and child they found. “I’m sorry about what happened to your family. That was a terrible tragedy and never should have happened. The soldiers who went into that village were wrong. They were tried and punished for what they did.”

Remski leaned over the table. He lowered his voice, but not his vehement anger. “Tried and punished? The soldiers who slaughtered my family, my entire village, were discharged and sent home to their own families. Their leader was sentenced to ten years in prison and was released after three years. Do you consider that adequate punishment for what they did?”

“No, in all honesty, I do not. Is that why you kill Americans? Because a small group of them went out of control and did a horrible act? Nothing can compensate you for your loss, but what you’re doing is just as wrong. Seventeen of your associates were killed tonight. Give me the names of the other members of your group. They don’t have to die like the others.”

Remski hung his head and wagged it. When he spoke, he seemed more in control of himself. “No, Mr. Chambers, I will give you no names. The people you murdered tonight are in the arms of Allah and will be rewarded for their sacrifice. Those who remain will continue our war against you as long as you invade our country and slaughter our families. If they give their lives, they, too, will be rewarded. You cannot stop them from doing what they were born to do.” He looked squarely into Tall’s eyes with more hatred and defiance than Tall had ever seen. “And you can’t stop me.”

“Look around,” Tall said. “We have stopped you.”

 

*****

Tall was wrong about Remski being stopped. Shortly after their confrontation, he escaped. and the chase was on again.

I used dialogue in a confrontation between the two characters to reveal the differences in their idealogies and philosophies.  I could have let the narrator tell Remski’s backstory, what happened to his family, and why he hates Americans, but I felt it was more effective to let it come out in dialogue.  To me, it was interesting to write and, I hope, more interesting to read.

What do you think?

Earl Staggs earned a long list of Five Star reviews for his novels MEMORY OF A MURDER and JUSTIFIED ACTION and has twice received a Derringer Award for Best Short Story of the Year.  He served as Managing Editor of Futures Mystery Magazine, as President of the Short Mystery Fiction Society, is a contributing blog member of Murderous Musings and Make Mine Mystery and a frequent speaker at conferences and seminars.  Email: earlstaggs@sbcglobal.net Website: http://earlwstaggs.wordpress.com

WHY MY BAD DAY IS LIKE A GOOD CHARACTER

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broken down appliances, characters obstacles, identitiy theft, income taxes, Ruby on Tuesday bad days

WHY MY BAD DAY IS LIKE A GOOD CHARACTER

There’s a technique novelists use to plot. They chase their characters up a tree and throw rocks at them or the old adage “when in doubt, make it worse.” Writers use this when they think perhaps their scenes are becoming predictable or boring. Make life worse for the character.

This week I understand the poor character’s dilemma.Three major appliances failed. My dishwasher motor gave up. The washing machine has a bad bearing and is rapidly failing. It is so loud I can hear it through two doors. And, of course, the microwave oven needs a new megatron. Bad enough?

The next day my tax accountant called and said, “You have a huge tax bill this year.” We’re talking thousands of dollars. By the way, I am not a wealthy woman. Then this morning I got a call and someone from Houston is opening accounts in my name. That is what I call making it worse for your characters.

Create obstacles

While my obstacles are real and I’m not likely to win the lottery to pay for all these things, authors can create obstacles and make things worse for characters. Making their day worse means creating situations which increase the difficulty the protagonist faces in reaching his or her goal.

What if your protagonist feels fear and anger because he doesn’t have the money to pay the government more taxes and has a new baby in the house. He needs that washing machine.  The characters may feel anger like I did today when I discovered I had to pay additional taxes I feel are already too high. But I’d almost rather have the huge tax bill than know an identity thief is out there running up bills in my name.

We create problems for our protagonists in order to solve problems in our scenes.

With compelling problems characters may struggle to solve them and that’s more interesting for the reader. What if the protagonist doesn’t have enough money to pay the taxes? What is he to do? Will his wages be garnished? Will he be forced to work two jobs? What if he decides to steal to get the money? All problems with decisions he must make. However, the character must struggle for us to stay interested.

Today, I placed a call to my stockbroker and sold stock in order to pay taxes. I then went to the police station and filed a police report about identity theft. Oh and I signed up for lifelock. Not very interesting if you’re reading about a character, but I’m not that kind of character.

 What was your worse day or week? Share your thoughts.

JEFFREY W. TURNER : A BABY DOLL FOR JANE

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children, dads, dolls, inspirational, Jeffrey W. Turner, mothers, non-fiction, Notes To My Kids: Little Stories About My Grown Up Kids” A Baby Doll For Jane, Ruby on Tuesday

From “Notes To My Kids: Little Stories About My Grown Up Kids. ” A Baby Doll For Jane is one of the stories in Jeffrey W. Turner’s newest book. Did you play with dolls as a child? Let us know how you like this article by leaving a comment or sharing it with someone.

A dad talking about a baby doll? Well yes, a very important baby doll my daughter had.

To Jane…..

All little girls love baby dolls and you were no different. From when you were a baby to your pre-teens you had an army of dolls, and later Barbie’s, that filled your closets. And still do I might add seeing the box filled with Barbie’s in your room at my house. These little likenesses of kids, babies, and moms came from many stores but one of them came from a store that was more than a cookie cutter Toys R Us or discount store. Instead the source of it was a magical little doll store near our old house on Monterrey Drive in the Handley area.

On a stretch of Lancaster a few old buildings had been restored and were filled with small businesses. One of them was Enchanted Dolls. I do not know how we found out about it but I took you there to look a few times. We would drive down Handley, swing onto Lancaster, go past the Red Rooster lumber yard your granddad Tom liked to shop at, and park in front of the store. We would go inside and would be in a different world. That world was one of fine custom made dolls and not the ones that were made by the millions overseas that flooded the look-alike stores. These dolls were sometimes very expensive. Being little the price was not your care, but the huge array of these sometimes lifelike dolls was. You walked around the store in wide-eyed silence tugging at their clothes, stroking their hair, and holding them too. The lady that ran the store was obviously enthralled by your interest, of course she wanted to sell some dolls, and helped you try to find the perfect baby doll.
You mom took you there too and on at least one Christmas you got a fine doll from there. It was not cheap, nor was it the most expensive, and looked like a real baby girl in appearance. You named “her” Alice and she became your favorite doll. You dearly loved and adored Alice and played with her so much MeeMaw had to sow her back together at least once.

Like all of your dolls you treated Alice like a real child when it was in your little arms. You would play like she was getting a bottle and tried to make her burp. Or sing her a lullaby. These simple actions imitated life and time went on around these playful times as you got older. And get older you did and finally stopped playing with your dolls having outgrown them for sports and boys.
Since Alice from Enchanted Dolls is not at my house I assume she is at your mom’s in a box or maybe standing in a corner staring at your now empty room. Regardless of where she and your other dolls now lie they are an allegory of life in a way. As I said above, you played like you fed and cared for Alice and her fellow doll-mates and that play taught you how to care for a real baby of your own. Maybe that is why girls are more natural with babies than boys sometimes.

The boys play sports or army but not with dolls when they are little. Of course what boys play with teaches them other things that are just as important and valuable too – things a man shows a boy to be a good man. But the doll play, again, shows a little girl what to do with an infant when she is a mom. Hence that little doll named Alice from Enchanted Dolls cast a magical spell on you, one that will make you a better mom simply by having cared for it like a child so innocently and lovingly now so long ago. 

Jeffrey Turner

Jeffery W. Turner is an IT project manager by trade who started writing non-fiction books centered on his personal experiences and what he learned from them. His in-print books are:

• Notes To Stephanie: Middle Aged Love Letters And Life stories
• Notes To Stephanie: Days Remembered
• Notes To My Kids: Little Stories About My Grown Up Kids is a collection of tales about his two children.

All of his titles are available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

How Authors Set Their Stories

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Bluebonnet Bride, Caroline Clemmons, fiction, historical romance, historical settings, new release, Womens History Month.

It’s my pleasure to welcome Caroline Clemmons during Women’s History Month to my blog . She is a prolific  and …

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Kari Lee Townsend Talks: Fortune Teller Couples

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author, cozy mystery, fiction Quirky Characters, fortune teller mysteries, Kari Lee Townsend, new release

This gallery contains 3 photos.

 It’s my pleasure to welcome Kari Lee Townsend. I first met Kari when she was a début author. Now she’s …

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Where’s The Rest Of The Story?

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bad ending, happy for now ending, How to end a book, last lines., sad ending, stupid ending, writers tips

Mickey Spillane once said that the ending sells the next book. Have you ever read a book where you got to the last page and the book just seemed to abruptly end?

Have you ever read a romance novel where the novel ended with the hero going to jail and the heroine has another nervous breakdown. A novel is out there like that. Not very satisfying is it?

Have you ever read a book where others swooped in like the special forces and solved whatever problem the hero and heroine had? That’s not nearly as satisfying as a story in which the hero and heroine must figure it out themselves.

Have you ever read a book ending where you felt the hero and heroine had Divorce Court Or a Psych Ward in their near future?

ENDINGS THAT DON’T WORK FOR READERS:

1. CLIFF HANGER ENDINGS WHERE NOTHING IS RESOLVED and the reader is supposed to wait several months to buy the next book to find out what happened.
2. ENDINGS THAT HAPPEN TOO FAST and comments such as these are left in reviews: The book drops off, ends, and you are left with the feeling of “Where’s the rest of the story?”
3. A ROMANCE WHERE THE ENDING IS NOT HAPPILY EVER AFTER. The hero dumps the heroine, has sex with someone else, goes to jail, and the heroine has a nervous breakdown is a prime example.
4. HAPPY FOR NOW, LIVING TOGETHER, WITHOUT MARRIAGE ENDING is not liked by some readers because it is open ended, and not happily ever after as in the traditional romance which is about love, marriage and family. The ending needs a wrap up.
5. MYSTERY ENDS WHERE THE DETECTIVE EXPLAINS ALL THE CLUES. The reader should not have to be told.
6. A SAD ENDING WHERE ONE WONDERS HOW THE STORY WILL REALLY END. “Tomorrow, I’ll think of some way to get him back. After all, tomorrow is another day.” –Margaret Mitchell, Gone with the Wind (1936)

TIPS THAT MIGHT HELP YOU AVOID A BAD ENDING:

1. RESOLVABLE CONFLICT. Remember to set up your h/h’s conflict so that it is something that CAN be resolved without seeming impossible. The DA/SERIAL KILLER analogy sounds intriguing on the outside — but if the character TRULY is a SERIAL KILLER with a criminal mind and problems that accompany this behavior, then a romance simply won’t work. It could possibly work as a psychological thriller, however.

2. IN ROMANCE THE FOCUS OR MAIN PLOT IS AWAYS THE RELATIONSHIP. IN MYSTERIES, THE EMPHASIS IS ON THE CRIME. Everything in the book is tied to that Focus. This means that the subplot must be resolved before the romance is resolved whereas in mystery, the crime must be solved. The emphasis should always be the main plot— the developing romance between your hero and heroine or the collection of clues to solve the crime.  Never have your hero and heroine in a romance declare their love or detectives solve the crime then go on for another 50 pages tying up the sub plot. The last major peak in a romance, the black moment, should relate to the romance. By this point, their desire should have shifted from what they’ve been wanting (their goal) to each other. The interest of the reader lessens once the hero and heroine declare their love and all is forgiven. In a mystery, the crime is always solved. If it isn’t, it becomes a wall clunker.

3. DEMONSTRATE THE CHARACTER’S CHANGES. A suggestion Alicia Rasley makes is to look for a concrete event or action a character can take to show the set of changes he/she’s been through.

5. FORESHADOW YOUR ENDING. What you want to strive for in your ending is a sense of the inevitable. You reader should know based on who your characters are at the beginning, the ending you’ve written as the only one that could occur.

6. REWARD THE ROMANCE READER WITH AN EPILOGUE. Once you’ve resolved the plot and romance complications, your readers want to know that whatever future problems the hero and heroine encounter, their relationship will survive. They want a chance to see the hero and heroine in the happiness they’ve found. In Classical Greek Structure, they refer to this as the ‘after’ world. You want to allow your readers at least a page or two to explore how their world is after they’ve found each other.

Do you have a favorite last line or ending to a book? What do you think of the trend toward cliff-hanger endings with serial books?