Moby Dick

Call me Surprised.

Agree or not, these are the top ten, best first lines in novels.

See what YOU think! 

1. Call me Ishmael. —Herman Melville, Moby-Dick (1851) 

2. It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife. —Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice (1813) 

3. A screaming comes across the sky. —Thomas Pynchon, Gravity’s Rainbow (1973)

4. Many years later, as he faced the firing squad, Colonel Aureliano Buendía was to remember that distant afternoon when his father took him to discover ice. —Gabriel García Márquez, One Hundred Years of Solitude (1967; trans. Gregory Rabassa)

5. Lolita, light of my life, fire of my loins. —Vladimir Nabokov, Lolita (1955)

6. Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way. —Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina (1877; trans. Constance Garnett)

7. riverrun, past Eve and Adam’s, from swerve of shore to bend of bay, brings us by a commodius vicus of recirculation back to Howth Castle and Environs. —James Joyce, Finnegans Wake (1939)

8. It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen. —George Orwell, 1984 (1949)

9. It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair. —Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities (1859)

10. I am an invisible man. —Ralph Ellison, Invisible Man (1952)

Front page of Iowa Falls Times Citizen by Eric Mandel, September 11, 2010

(double click on the papers to magnify)

“Bouquet of Weeds”

I received notice today that my story, “Bouquet of Weeds,” has been selected to appear in Chicken Soup for the Soul: Devotional Stories for Mothers. This book will be in bookstores October 5th.

The Therapy Dog

My writing friend, Judy McFadden, a member of the Henderson Writer’s Group, self-published her book Life with McDuff. She has had wonderful success and I congratulate her. Judy won the Angel Animal Network Contest  AND McDuff is also being written as a Hollywood screenplay.  Mc Duff will be right up with the ranks of Lassie and Rin-Tin-Tin. (Am I dating myself?)

“McDuff taught unconditional love, forgiveness, looking beyond appearances, nonresistance, and being of service to others.  And, he didn’t stop – even after death.”

CONGRATULATIONS JUDY!

The tearjerker Dear John—which earlier this month became the first movie to unseat James Cameron’s Avatar from its No. 1 spot at the box office—depicts the decade-long star-crossed romance between two lovers who write each other letters over the years. While neither of the leads (played by Amanda Seyfried and Channing Tatum) in the film, based on Nicholas Sparks’ novel, has autism, the neurological condition hovers over the action as two supporting characters—a young neighbor and the titular John’s father (Richard Jenkins)—grapple with forms of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The weight placed on the dual autism storylines is a surprise in what is essentially an old-fashioned war weepy, but it brought a very modern context to Dear John’s love story. (More to read so go to the link ~ Kathie)

1. RF generated $1.37 billion in sales in 2008
2. 7311 new romance titles were released in 2008
3. In 2008, romance was the top category on the New York Times, USA Today, and Publishers
Weekly best-seller lists.
4. RF was predicted to be equally as robust for 2009.

Well, there you go. I have had one short piece of RF published by The White Rose Press of which I’m very proud. Shilo combined my interest and knowledge of autism with my love of writing. This is the story of two young adults with autism who fall in love. It is a Christian Romance. You’d love it and it is available for only $2.00 on line. at The White Rose Press.

I’ve learned a lot about synopsis writing that I want to share with you. One of the hardest parts for me is to keep it in the PRESENT TENSE. I don’t know why, but it’s difficult. All synopsis Must be written in the present tense. It must also be written in THIRD PERSON. That shouldn’t be hard for anyone.

I’m going to list some of the important things that I’ve learned in my research about writing a synopsis so that you don’t have to spend all of that time looking them up again.

open with a hook
present tense
third person
introduce MAIN characters – secondary only if contribute a great deal to the story
give a clear idea of your ENTIRE BOOK – include the ending
keep it narrative – quotes should be used sparingly if at all
tell any character changes
tell your plot lines as you weave through the story
check for grammar/spelling/punctuation/flow

Agents and publishers want to see if the writer can PLOT a story and create interesting characters that a reader can identify with in real life. Are they sympathetic to the characters?

My plan is to have 6 people read my synopsis and get their feedback. I am going to select 3 who already know my story and 3 who do not know the story so that I can get a judgement on what they would know after having read it. The synopsis is always written in the same style as the book itself, so that gives the unknown reader a glimpse of the writing flavor.

I’ll get those “6 victims” selected and send my synopsis off to them while my book continues to be edited. I’m also working on my query letter and have a person who is guiding me along with that process.

Now my favorite part, I’ll leave you with something from Audrey and Stephen ~ I think a bit more steamy this time as the town of Iowa Falls, IA heats up. Enjoy.

Audrey tilted her head to the left as she exhaled with a deep, breathless sigh. Her heart was thundering as loudly and boldly as an Iowa thunderstorm and her fingers were flawless as they rapidly met Stephen’s halfway up the front blue plaid shirt. The air between them was heavy with the impatience of their longing. After 26 year of withholding passion’s fire, they were ready to explode and the time was now. Their lips locked in raw physical hunger.
Stephen unbuttoned one button of his shirt and with a powerful yank, the rest of the buttons burst at his command, flying in all directions like the fireflies of the night. Audrey swiftly unfastened his belt, snap and zipper of his shorts. She tugged his shorts and briefs forward, over his swollen penis, allowing them to fall to the floor. Stephen took one-step and kicked the other foot free with a fury. As he feverishly unfastened Audrey’s bra, she slid her panties down her legs. Their naked bodies, enfolded in the rapture of each other, left no room for air or night or fear to come between them. They connected as one in the desire of their love and longing.

Kathie and her To Dance with Fireflies manuscript

I am sorry for not keeping up with this blog better but I’m not sorry for the writing I’ve been doing on To Dance with Fireflies! Wow, I have finished it! AT least for now that is. On September 27th I handed “my baby,” (tied it up in pink/blue/yellow ribbon) over to my professional editor). Leslie will be doing line editiing and some content as she goes along. We have a 45 day contract so that means I will get it back around the middle of November.

What am I doing in the meantime ~ working on the dreaded synopsis. I have my first draft done so at lease I have something to change. I did a great deal of research about how to write a synopsis first and the time spent on the research is worth it. I would recommend it for all writers. One of the best tips that I read – too late – is to write the synopsis first – before writing the novel. I think that might have been easier and what I plan to do with novel #2. Another great suggestion is to have friends read the synopsis when you have it completed – friends who don’t know a great deal about the plot – and see if they can follow the plot lines.

I’m also working on my query letter. Here again this has to be tight and ready to go to agents and pulishers when the time is right ~ and that time will come.

So, again, I’m sorry that I’ve been lax on the blogging end but I’ve been busy on the writing end. If anyone is reading this, let me know.

Here’s your new quote for Fireflies: Audrey really did not know the man she was going to have dinner with tonight. She knew him as a boy on his way to manhood. A boy with a slight cleft, not a deep one — a shaven face without a mustache — a lanky build not as muscular or filled out — a gentle person who still seemed like he was — a boy who didn’t like to study American literature but whose house was now filled with classics. Could Stephen Grant be the same person she had loved so many, many years ago? Was she the same person who had loved Stephen Grant so long ago? So many rhetorical questions in search of answers Audrey could not begin to know.

Phyllis and me

Fireflies takes place in my home town of Iowa Falls, Iowa. Of course I know Iowa Falls like the back of my hand and the inside of my soul but never-the-less, I talk to old friends, revisit places ~ physically or in pictures, keep momentos close by on my computer desk; things that make me think of Iowa Falls and transport me back there when I’m writing. These all give me the sense of wonder and the joy of being a part of my own novel. I am there on the bridge. There at the Princess Cafe. There on Washington Ave. I’m everywhere in Iowa Falls that I can be when I’m writing about it. I’m loving every minute and enjoying the process of writing even more.

A week ago I vacationed with a girlfriend of mine since we were in second grade at West Side School in Iowa Falls, Iowa. We will always be the best of friends and we share so many, many memories through grade school, middle and high school, college, marriage, children and now grandchildren. How fast life has gone. On my visit to North Carolina, we talked and talked until all of our oral muscles were fatigued from the use or abuse they enjoyed so much. In doing so, however, I was reminded of many details of Iowa Falls ~ her people and her places along with her events, her joys and her sorrows. That, my friends, is called life.

So, what ever you are writing about, find out more from your friends. Perhaps they are your most valuable source of detailed information.

Now from Fireflies ~
Audrey held thoughts of French fries piled high and smothered in catsup along with a Cherry Coke or what made The Princess Cafe famous, a Green River. That’s what Audrey would order today, a Green River. She recalled how Stephen had introduced her to Green Rivers.

So join local writer’s groups, get to know people in your own community, and be willing to listen to what they have to say about your work. It will pay off and you will be a better and more inspired writer for it.

Now from Fireflies ~
Stephen was solemn and Audrey sensed something deep and very sad in his voice. It went far beyond the image of a hog swirling in the Iowa River on either side of the dam. She knew there was a shadow lurking in the corners of his soul and because of what Doug had said at the Princess, Audrey was sure it had to do with Vietnam.