Category Archives: Holidays

Holidays

How do they live with this?

Holidays, Musings, Small towns, , , , ,

I cannot know or even guess what the parents who lost their children in Newtown must feel.    How can they put away the gifts bought for their children for Hanukkah?    Or those packages, unopened under the tree?  How do they face the closets filled with clothes their babies will no longer wear or the toys they played with only days earlier?

And those children who faced the horror of hearing other children being shot or who witnessed the murder of their teacher or ran past bodies as they escaped from that building full of death?  How do they live with those memories?

How can those who survived believe in safety?  How do they trust?  How do they react when they hear the Twenty-third Psalm:  Though I walk through the valley of death, I will fear no evil when they felt the breath of  evil?

We can discuss and attempt to find solutions so this will never happen again–but why didn’t we do that earlier?    And if they are told this horror was God’s plan, how can those who mourn turn to the God who planned these deaths? 

I don’t know.   I truly believe they are with God and that thought comforts but what are we doing to heal these families and make sure this is the last school shooting?   

If you have thoughts to share, please do.   Perhaps this prayer by Dietrich Bonhoeffer will help us all.

O God, early in the morning I cry to you.

Help me to pray

And to concentrate my thoughts on you;

I am restless, but with you there is peace.

I cannot do this alone.

In me there is darkness,

But with you there is light;

I am lonely, but you do not leave me;

I am feeble in heart, but with you there is help;

I am restless but with you there is peace;

In me there is bitterness, but with you there is patience. . .

What should I get George?

A question, Holidays, Musings, , , , , , ,

I have probably the best, wittiest, and most intelligent husband in the world.  I would say “sexiest” but I write the sweet books and don’t want to shock  anyone with that word.  ANYWAY, he is also, as I mentioned in my last post, wonderful at choosing gifts that I’d never have thought I needed.  He’s also creative, choosing gifts I’d never have guessed what they were before I opened the package.  For example, one Christmas he gave me a stuffed animal–a cocker spaniel because we had several live ones as pets-with a radio in its tummy.

But I’m terrible at thinking of great gifts for him.   He has plenty of T-shirts and has told me to buy him no more University of Louisville or Houston Texans shirts.  We’re retired so his supply of ties from  when he was a minister is sufficient to last until at least 2050, should we–and the earth–still be around.   He orders and reads whatever books he wants on his Kindle.   He’s not a smoker or a drinker and has plenty of Bibles and commentaries and meditations.    He refuses to wear those onesies retired men wear and prefers sweatpants.    He plays games on his computer and hates puzzles and does make stuff.  Keep in mind we live in an apartment and have little space.

He does like chocolate but there’s a  limit to how much I can get him.  The one present I give every year is food.  I go to a store with a nice display of gourmet foods and get him cheese and pickled treats and sardines.  He has mentioned he’d like a new mattress but that’s not very Christmas-y and it’s hard to wrap.

Time is getting short.  Please help me or George may find no packages for him under our tree!

The Perfect Christmas Present

Confession, Holidays, Musings, , ,

George comes up with the best ideas for presents.  Many years ago, he gave me a microwave oven when I didn’t really want one.  He knew me well enough to know I’d use it ten times a day.   He’s also much more romantic than I.  For our anniversary many years ago he gave me a pair of peach-faced lovebirds.  Beautiful creatures.  Sadly, they hated each other–that’s another story–but the idea was lovely.

In late November, he told me he’d ordered a present, a perfect gift, for me and not to open any packages that came by UPS.

First, however, I must explain that I am a TiVo addict.  I record programs to watch later so I can fast forward through commercials or rewind to see a great basketball play.   I do record programs at the time they start but wait twenty minutes to watch them.   Unfortunately, I have a bad habit of wandering off, putting the remote down, and not being able to find it again, a tragedy when one is as dependent upon one’s remote as I am.  I’ve considered having it surgical implanted in my arm.

A few weeks ago,  a package arrived.   I  checked the label to see if it was addressed to George or to me.  When I did, I also saw the return address.  It came from a company with the name “Where’s the remote?”  That really ruined every bit of surprise.   He had me go ahead and open it.  Together, we attached the receiver to the back of my remote.  It’s about the size and shape as the remote that unlocks your car. 

I used it once or twice to find the remote when it fell off the end table or found its way under the cushions.  One day when I couldn’t find it, I picked up the transmitter.  The remote beeped from my purse.  On my own, I wouldn’t have found it until I left the house days later. 

Thank you, George.  As usual, the perfect present.   

On Thursday, I need all of you to help me think of the perfect present for George.  Please–I’m really bad at this.

 

Election Day

Holidays, Musings, ,

With today being election day, I decided to ponder the  occasion and reminisce about the many elections I’ve participated in.n   I PROMISE not to tell you to vote or ask for a donation for the party.

Way back when I first voted, a voter had to be twenty-one.  This meant reaching that milestone truly was an entry to adulthood.  However, even at twenty-one and in graduate school, my parents’ party choice and my brother’s political beliefs guided me.   I voted for a man who  lost hugely.

But my political stance changed as I worked and joined the world.  George’s family was in the “other” party.  My parents never forgive George (actually, they didn’t hold this against him–much) for converting me.  He didn’t.  I came to the decision to change parties on my own but I’m certain that marriage and life together are easier if political beliefs line up.    We are both somewhat stubborn and vocal.   I’d hate to live with us around election time if we didn’t agree.

As we considered the candidates in the first election after we were married, we didn’t know who to vote for in the US House race.   We didn’t like either man  so voted for the candidate we didn’t know both in protest and because we couldn’t vote for the chairman of the House Un-American Activities sub-committee or his opponent.   When the results were posted, we discovered to our HORROR that we’d voted for a member of George Wallace’s racist party.   Mortifying.  Last time we went into an election that ignorant!

I believe the right to vote and protecting that are incredibly important.  A democracy encourages voting by all its citizens.   I also believe strongly in supporting and working for the candidate of my choice.   I’ve worked phone banks dozens of times, walked the neighborhood, organized districts.   I consider myself a political junkie.  George considers me slightly wacko but even when I disagree with the winning candidate, I find the process fascinating. 

Do you have an memories–good or bad–about elections and voting?   Please share.  I’d love to know.

Goodbye, dear friends

Church, Holidays, Musings

Our beloved minister of eleven years has been called to serve another congregation.  It is a wonderful opportunity for him, a blessing for the new church.  For us, there is sorrow and hope.  We will miss Tim, Amy, Ben, and Mary-Austin but we also know a new minister will challenge us and lead us down new roads.  Soon we will love him or her very much because they are welcome in our open and affirming family.

Yes, we will miss Tim.  Life changes but God is eternal.

 

Soccer or badminton: you have a choice

Holidays, Musings, Olympics, , ,

When the Olympics began, I had every event taped which pretty much cut down on watching anything else.  When I culled the huge number of hours I’d saved, I looked at the description of each.  If the information described a sport I didn’t have much interest in, I erased it without even viewing.  I mean, so many events, so little time! 

Then I discovered most of the information about what was on at a specific time was wrong.  I’d erased events I wanted to see because, instead of women’s soccer they were labeled badminton.   Please, all you fans of badminton, I apologize for insulting your favorite sport.  We used to play it all the time in our backyard but we looked nothing like those who play it on an Olympic level.  However, it is not an exciting sport to watch.  The only exciting part was that eight players were kicked out for cheating and did it so badly that the spectators booed them.   But, due to the incorrect information, I had hours of that and little of the first soccer games.

This mislabeling turn me to a more philosophical frame of mind:  the way we expect certain behavior or talents or attitudes  by the way we label people.  We often don’t give them a chance because of how we’ve labeled them.   One of the most  exciting part of the Olympics to me was watching women from countries that had never sent a woman to the Olympic compete.   None of them moved up so some might say this proved nothing other than they couldn’t compete.  To me, the important and exciting part was that those countries allowed them to be there.  The same is true of women’s boxing.  I truly have difficulty with women hitting other women, especially now that we know so much about brain damage, but if men are allowed to inflict injury on each other, don’t the athletes deserve that choice? 

What’s your opinion about labeling?  And what’s your favorite sport?  Did you get to watch as much of it as you wanted?

Craft Tuesday: Query letter Part 2A

Craft Tuesday, Holidays, , ,

 You’ve got your list of editors/agents who are interested in what you write, so let’s start the letter.  When you submit a query,  what better place to to prove your talent and professionalism than with  a well-written letter?          

The letter should be only one page long.  Publishing professionals are very busy people.  Send a one-page query with lots of white space on it, and they’ll probably glance at it.   Send either a two page query or a one-page letter with narrow margins and they’ll probably think, “I don’t have time for this.”   

The query letter will contain three paragraphs and a closing.  This format is true whether in a written letter or an email. 

PARAGRAPH ONE:   Introduce the proposal   

1.            Mention if you’ve met this editor/agent before and/or if this was requested.      

a.            Start with a hook, a  concise, one-sentence tagline for your book. It’s meant to hook your reader’s interest, and wind them in.  Think of description of programs in TV Guide or something like a short blurb that would be used on the back of your book.

My favorites were lines that had started my thinking about  books but I had to cut from the novels because  they didn’t fit once I’d written the book. 

From The Path to Love:    “Francie Calhoun met Jesus and the devil on the same day”

From Second Chance Bride:  “Annie MacAllister buried herself in the hills of central Texas  one warm October afternoon.”

Some great hooks are descriptions of your book as a combination of popular themes or plots like King Kong meets The Black Knight.    This is probably how Abraham Lincoln:  Vampire Hunter  started.

Used a marketing idea you know is popular with the line you’re targeting:  cowboy, hidden baby, vampire, amnesia, etc.   This shows you have done your research.

If you can’t think of a hook, just give the information and move on:  Tootsie’s Terrible Trek is a humorous 100,000-word contemporary novel set in Chicago.

b.            ADD the reason you chose this editor:   “I have read many novels in your Twinkle-Toes series and believe this would fit well.”  “This story is targeted for the Twinkle Toes line.”  Again, this shows you’ve done your homework  and are targeting this editor and line. 

With an agent, mention exactly why you’re approaching him/her.  Compare your book with others they have  represented in the past.  For example, “Because I know you like novels set in Chicago, I would like you to consider representing this book.”  Or,  “I read many novels by your client Tasmin Butler.”

c.            The first paragraph MUST include:  word count,  line, type of book. 

d.            You may mention a main character if needed for the hook as I did with Francie Calhoun and Annie MacAllister.    You might use, “When Annie Smith discovers her fiancé . . . .

If necessary in the hook, you may mention time or place but that information is probably better in the second paragraph. 

Either here or in the final paragraph, for an editor, you may mention if complete (I never did because they usually weren’t).  For AGENT, the manuscript must be complete.

I’m often asked, “Should I mention if this is a part of a series?   I always answer, “Why?”  I believe it’s best to choose the best book you have for this line/editor/ agent and try to sell this ONE.   If the editor likes this one, mention the rest.  If not, why would he/she care about more?  An agent may like fact you’re prolific but an editor might think you haven’t been successful if you’ve completed a couple of books and haven’t  sold one.

However, I’m also told that today editors are looking for a series.  When I sold The Welcome Committee of Butternut Creek, I had only vague ideas for a second and third book.  Amazingly, my editor gave me a three-book contract without even asking about the second or third.  know if I had even a tiny idea of the other books. 

This means, I don’t know if you should mention this is a series.  I’ll leave that up to you.

PARAGRAPH TWO:           This should be a SHORT synopsis, only a few sentences.  You should be sending a synopsis with the query.  If the editor/agent wants to know more, you’ve enclosed that. 

For a reason I’ve never understood, you must use all PRESENT TENSE—or almost all.  There will be some thoughts that don’t work well in present tense, but attempt to do that.

Do not end the short synopsis without wrapping the plot up.  “You’ll just have to buy the novel to find out what happens next” will make the editor toss the letter in the REJECT basket.   “After they escape, Matt and Tootsie declare their love.”

Show your voice through word choice.   If you write humor,  instead of, “The two women traveled through France,”  write, “The two women wreaked havoc on Western Europe” or “Millie and Sara danced their way from Paris to Cannes.”    

Make sure you set the mood and the time.  “In a fetid swamp in seventeenth century Louisiana. . . ”

Show the conflict that will carry the book.  I  “When shy Ann Smith meets the flamboyant Pookey Reynolds–”   “After a hard life as a mod hit man Bob  Benson discovers the woman of his dreams is a cop (nun). . .”  Sketch in conflict but you have no room to explore in this paragraph. 

Use few names because they’ll need explanation and you don’t have room.  Instead of Mary Davis, Bob’s boss, use “mob boss”. 

Here’s an example of the second paragraph, one I just and very quickly wrote about my first book, The Mad Herringtons.  Look it over.  What works here?  What doesn’t?  What’s missing?  Learn from it and write a better one!

“During the glittering Regency period, Aphrodite, the eldest and most level-headed of The Mad Herringtons,  attempts the impossible task of controlling  her headstrong younger siblings who seem determined to misbehave.   Before she is able to announce her engagement to the reliable Frederick, she must meet his mother.  For that reason, she and two sisters attend a house party at Frederick’s  estate.  When they arrive, she finds Warwick, the rake whose kiss she has not been able to forget, is also a guest.  As they present Midsummer Night’s Eve for the house party, Aphrodite discovers she truly is a Mad Herrington finds happiness with Warwick.”

See you in August for information about the next two paragraphs