Texas Rangers

Frontier Battalion Co. "B" about 1880, ©2009, TRHFM

From The Official Texas Ranger Hall of Fame and Musuem Website

My current manuscript has a Texas Ranger for a hero. I needed to know enlistment requirements, pay, companies, and rank. I also needed to know a little more about their behaviors and thought processes during the 19th Century.

Here's a list of interesting facts, which I found at this amazing website: http://www.texasranger.org/history/FrtBattGenOrd.htm

• Pay during the end of the 19th Century: $35 a month. They were paid at the end of their 12 month enlistment or earlier for a discharge. When they received their pay, they were given a receipt, showing their name, date they enlisted, date of discharge, pay for their months of service minus the amount for a state issued rifle, a Winchester Carbine worth $30. (This information came from uploaded, scanned, original documents on the website listed above.)


• During the 19th Century, Texas Rangers were called, Frontier Forces or Frontier Battalion. These peace officers referred to themselves as, "State Officers". (Information found in an e-book, uploaded on the website listed above.)


• Companies were organized to protect different areas of the state of Texas. The companies were Company A, Company B, Company C, Company D, Company E, and Company F.


• The rank of each company were: Captain, 1st Lieutenant, 2nd Lieutenant.


• Enlistment requirements: "As it is expected that this force will be kept actively employed during their term of service only sound young men without families and with good horses will be received.
  Persons under indictment or of known bad character or habitual drunkards will be rejected.
  Captains will make temporary arrangements to supply as economically as possible for furnishing the men with bread, beef, coffee, and sugar & salt: the receipts for which will be taken up by the battalion Quarter Master."


• On a side note, I did discover that during the end of the 19th Century, the Texas Rangers did muster married men for service. Married men enlisted for the War between the states. As in the account of Miles Biggs, Terry's Texas Rangers, http://www.terrystexasrangers.org/biographical_notes/b/biggs_mm.html who "According to family history, a different version of his enlistment states that during a trip to Shreveport, LA, to buy a load of lumber to be used as flooring for his home, Miles met and joined up with the Terry's Texas Rangers. He put his wagon into storage and sent his oxen back home with the message "I'll see you when the war's over." Miles was married in 1848 and enlisted in the Texas Rangers in 1862.


• Badges weren't worn by all Texas Rangers. Each enlisted man was given descriptive papers to identify the peace officer and to show by the power of the state of Texas he had authority to make arrests.


• For behaviors of the lawmen, I consulted the book, Lawmen of the Old West: The Good Guys by Del Cain.

Historical Research Book: The Women by Time-Life Books

The Women: The Old West Series, by Time Life Books is an invaluable book to own when researching women's lives of the 19th Century.

I first found this book at the library among the entire collection, The Old West Series, which included The Gambler, The Trailblazer, The Railroad Men, The Lawmen, The Gunslinger, and many others. I had read about half of The Women when I knew I must own this book.

The first five pages of the book are black and white photos of women performing their daily tasks. These are not the only images. Throughout the book there are other photos which are in full color. There are pictures of women riding, cooking, teaching, farming, and best of all my favorite...items from the past. Such as a box mill, china, quilts, a fluting iron which pressed pleats into cotton fabric, a "choke" used to catch mice and snakes, a candle mold, and a butter mold with a pretty picture.

There are pictures of dresses plains women wore. One dress, the owner boasted she had wore all the way to Oregon without repair. This woman was so creative. When she fashioned the dress, she took her pattern pieces and sewed the cotton fabric to canvas material (the material used for tents and wagon covers). Then she pieced the dress together to sew. No wonder it made it across the country without repair! The woman knew practicality and fortitude would be needed for the journey. Another picture was of a slat bonnet. Ever heard of it? Me, neither. Apparently, for a long, arduous journey west, plain bonnets didn't protect the eastern women's faces well enough. So, the clever seamstress would sew little wooden slats into her bonnet to strengthen the bonnet against wind. Other pictures include furniture (even ones from brothels), dishes, cookingware, and documents.

The second thing I love about this book, is the multitude of journal entries. I read of a wagon train heading west. Three women, all newly weds, wrote about their journey. Each woman had a different prospective of the same trip. I felt so sorry for this one woman. All she wanted to do was please her husband. If she tried to carry on a conversation with him, he would say she talked too much. If she tried to limit her conversation with him, he would say she had ill spirits. If she tried to talk in a group setting, he would reprimand her in front of everyone. In her journal, she believed the trouble with her marriage was all her fault, well mostly her fault, one couldn't discount her husband's roaming eye. She was convinced her husband was more pleased with their neighbor's wife.

The third thing I love about this book, is its many topics. We begin the book reading of the wagon trains heading west. Then we read about the hardships of life and the reality of marriage of convenience. What I really love is how the book reveals occupations of women during the 19th century, which all seem to end in prostitution. If the woman was a laundress, she made extra money on the side. If the woman was a cook, she supplemented her income. (I can just hear the local, upright women saying, "She doesn't have no man. You know she just said she's a laundress. Why there's no telling what she does a night!") And even if the woman willingly became a prostitute, there was still money to be made by becoming an owner-operator. Madam's would make an agreement with seamstress' to allow her girls to charge to her account. Then the madam would hold the debt over the girls head, so they couldn't leave.

Whether a prostitute, an adventuress, or a woman with a cause, this book seems to to have it all. This book opened up the old west for me in ways other books could not. The only drawback to owning this book is that with it written in 1974 it is out of print. I bought it at http://www.amazon.com/ from a used book seller for $2. The shipping and handling cost more than the book.

19th Century Recipes

Today, I'm posting recipes often used in Texas during the nineteenth century. The amazing thing about Texas is that it had six flags flying overhead at one time or another. That means Texas cuisine has a plethora of flavors, which still has relevance today. Of course, dominating countries weren't the only ones who left their mark on Texas. Immigrants also influenced cooking, such as the Germans.

I'm quoting from the out-of-print book entitled, The Saga of Texas Cookery by Sarah Morgan. (I have found this book on Amazon.com. Amazon doesn't carry the book, but there are several people selling used editions of this book) Each chapter, showcases the prevailing ethnicity of the states flavors. I'm posting one recipe from each chapter, a recipe which was used during the late 19th century.

The French in Texas

Golden Cream - 1887 Style

Custards, which have always been an important part of the French cuisine, took many forms in the early days of our history, The following recipe found in an early edition of The White House Cookbook (first published in 1887), is a good example of how simple ingredients were turned into an elegant dessert.

A quote from The White House Cookbook:

Boil a quart of milk; when boiling stir into it the well beaten yolks of six eggs; add six tablespoons sugar and one tablespoonful of sifted flour, which has been well beaten together; when boiled turn it into a dish and pour over it the whites beaten to a stiff froth, mixing with them six tablespoonful of powdered sugar. Set all in the oven and brown slightly. Flavor the top with vanilla and the bottom with lemon. Serve cold.

The Spaniards in Texas

Rice Breakfast Cakes

This unusual mixture of yeast and rice is seldom found anymore except in homes where the influence of the forefathers is still felt and cherished. In the early days of our history the maids in the homes would make these, deep-fry them, and then take them out on the street, while they were still very hot, and sell them!

To make 6-8 servings: The night before these cakes are to be served, dissolve 1 package yeast in 1/2 cup warm water, Mash well 3 cups of cooked, moist rice, add the yeast and 1 tablespoon sugar. Cover this mixture and let rise over-night. In the morning, beat 3 eggs until light, add 1/2 cup sugar, 3 tablespoons flour, or a little more, 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg, and mix well. Set aside again to rise for about 20 minutes. Butter a hot griddle and drop by tablespoons, cooking as you would any griddle cake. Drain (on paper towels) and serve with bacon, ham, or syrup.

The Mexicans in Texas

The Story of Chili Sauce:

There was a time when the Mexicans, the Indians, and the early Texas settlers gave chili sauce a great deal of credit for a large number of important influences on the human race. Some of them believed that the sauce, providing it was quite hot and strong, would protect one against colds, malaria, aid digestion, and clarify the blood. There were other people who believed that it acted as a stimulant to the romantically inclined and helped to develop robustness and resistance to nature's adverse elements. Be that as it may, a basic chili sauce such as the following can serve many and varied purposes when cooking Mexican foods.

Chili Sauce

To make approximately 2-1/2 cups: Fry 4 tablespoons finely chopped onion and 1 chopped garlic clove in 3 tablespoons lard or bacon fat until tender. Blend 6 tablespoons of chili powder with 2 tablespoons flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon cumin powder. Add this to the onion mixture. Stir and cook for about 5 minutes. Gradually add 1-1/2 cups of hot water, stirring constantly. When the mixture is well blended and smooth remove from the heat. If a thinner sauce is desired add a little more water. Serve this sauce hot over meats, tortillas, tomatoes, noodles, rice or over other Mexican dishes.

The New Republic

Ash Cake, Hoe Cake, Corn Dodger

Life would have been intolerable many times for the early settlers had it not been for a basic food product, the corn. The pioneer cooks used this vegetable in countless ways and cooked it by many different methods, but one of the most satisfying and most often used ways was the bread, especially the simple and easy breads such as the Ash Cake, the Hoe Cake, and the Corn Dodger.

These three cakes are a great deal alike in that they are made of a corn meal batter, which is salted and made wet with cold or hot water.

The Ash Cake batter is cooked on either the hot hearth with hot ashes spread over the top, or out in the open spread between hot ashes. When the cake is brown the ashes are brushed off. Some of the ashes will penetrate the batter, but this only serves to enhance the flavor- or so the early settlers thought.

The Hoe Cake is the same batter cooked on a helveless (handle-less) hoe. The batter is spread on the inside of the hoe and then propped up against the open blaze or placed directly in the hot ashes until brown.

Corn Dodger is the same batter made into small or large cakes, patted into rounds or oblongs with the hands and baked inside an oven on flat tins of some type. As the settlers were able to get a variety of food supplies they added bacon fat and eggs to the Corn Dodger. And finally they added soda or baking powder or both, making a light and tasty bread.

German Noodles

The pioneer women taught their daughters to make these noodles as soon as they were old enough, or tall enough, to reach a work table. It was not hard work to them but great fun.

To make 6 to 8 servings: Sift 2 cups flour onto a pastry board and make a well in the center of the flour. Break one egg into the well, add 2 tablespoons warm water, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. With the fingers work the mixture together, gradually adding about 1/2 cup warm water or just enough to make a very stiff dough, but very smooth. Divide the dough into 2 equal parts. Roll out as thin as possible. Cut into ribbons or strips and let it rest for 30 minutes. In a deep kettle have a generous amount of salty water boiling, or you may wish to use meat stock instead of the water. Drop the noodles into the liquid, a few at a time, and boil just until tender. Drain them, toss with melted butter, and bread crumbs and serve hot.

To make green noodles, add 1/2 cup spinach puree to the first mixture and as much additional flour as is necessary to make a stiff dough.

Texas Under the Confederacy

Slapjacks - 1883

The slapjack was evidently one of the many forerunners of the modern-day pancake; however, this recipe which follows could be said to be the forerunner of just about anything. I found it in The Old Confederacy Receipt Book, 1863:

Take flour, little sugar, and water, mix with or without a little yeast, the latter better if at hand, mix into paste and fry the same as fritters in clean fat.

Fortunately, for today's cooks that method went out of style years ago. For a newer version I like the following recipe for Slapjacks:

Sift 2 cups flour with 1 teaspoon salt and 1 tablespoon sugar. Scald 1 cup milk and cool. Soften 1 yeast cake, or package, in 1/4 cup warm water. Combine the mixtures. Beat in 2 eggs and let rise for 20 minutes. Stir down, add 3 tablespoons melted butter and drop 1 tablespoon at a time on a hot griddle to fry as pancakes.

How many will this recipe serve? Who knows? Try it and see - that was the manner of cookery in the days of the Confederacy.

Grandma's Pound Cake

Only Grandma or Grandma's Grandma could follow this recipe without some misgivings. However, some of the romantic sounding measurements used during this period of Texas history were really quite practical and certainly familiar to the housewife of that day. It is given here as it is said to have come down from a very old "receipt":

First, stoke the fire and lay in some wood. You'll need a moderate oven. Take 1-1/2 teacups butter, 2 blue cups sugar, 5 eggs, dropped in one at a time, and 5 handfuls flour. The cake will be fine and close with not a suspicion of any toughness or heaviness, not porous like a cake made light with gas from soda and cream of tartar.

Now, for those not brave enough to follow the old "receipt" above, here is a modern version (and I can assure you it is excellent). Beat 1 cup sweet cream butter with 1-2/3 cups sugar until smooth. Add 5 eggs, one at a time, and beat well after each addition. Next stir in 2 cups flour to which 1/2 teaspoon of mace, 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar has been added. Stir in the grated rind of 1 lemon and blend well. Bake at 350 degrees in a well greased and floured tube pan for about one hour or until the cake tests done.

The Union Forever

Ranch-Style Beef Hash

To make 4 to 6 servings: Into 4 cups beef stock add 1/2 cup chopped onion, 1/4 cup chopped green pepper, 1 minced garlic clove, 2 tablespoons chopped fresh red pepper, and 2 small potatoes, peeled and cubed. Cook this mixture until the onion and potatoes are almost tender. Drop in 2 cups cooked roast beef (or stewed beef) cut and complete the cooking, about 10 minutes. Crackling cornbread goes well with this hash.

Fried Okra

Although okra is not native to Texas, it is one of the most popular of the vegetables found in our diet. It is also well known that people who like it claim to "love it" and those who dislike it say they "hate it".

To make 2 to 4 servings: Wash 1 pound of fresh okra thoroughly, by taking the pods in the hands and making sure they tiny, sticky, leaves are removed. Slice each pod into 1/3 inch rounds, snipping away the ends. Dip the pieces in a mixture of cornmeal, salt, and black pepper. Drop the slices into a frying pan of shallow hot bacon fat. Fry over medium heat, turning to prevent sticking until the pods are tender and slightly brown, about 15 minutes. Prick with a fork to test tenderness. A tablespoon of grated onion is often added to the cornmeal mixture to enhance the flavor.

Empowering Characters' Emotions

EMPOWERING CHARACTERS' EMOTIONS

Presented by Margie Lawson

We over at Books To Write By (http://www.bookstowriteby.blogspot.com/) are avid fans of Margie Lawson's courses. Most of us has enrolled in more than one of her courses. The month of March was no different than when three of us joined the online course, Empowering Characters' Emotions.This class is a benefit to all writers who want to advance their writing skills. Ms. Lawson explores empowering emotions through her EDITS system. This system color codes your manuscript so you can actually see if your writing is layered with the essential keys to a great read.

• Look forward to learning:
• The EDITS System
• Basic, complex, empowered, and super empowered passages
• Backstory management
• Kinesics, Haptics, Proxemics, Facial expressions, Paralanguage
• Proprioceptive stimuli, Involuntary physical responses
• Ideomotoric shifts
• Mirroring, Communication Accommodation
• Levels of intimacy, Love signals
• Nonverbal gender differences
• Emotional authenticity
• Backloading
• In-trancing the Reader
• Writing fresh . . .
• Projecting Emotion for a Non-POV character
• Carrying a Nonverbal Image Forward
• Objective Constructs
• Empowering Characters’ Emotions Checklist

At first, I became overwhelmed with the course and I think many people did, too. However, once I grabbed my highlighters and applied the EDITS system to my own writing...I got what I paid for. I discovered that I write no dialogue cues and that I hardly ever write setting information. There are also some minor things I noticed, which needs to changed. But now I know how to correct it.

I highly recommend any of Ms. Lawson's courses. In fact, another online class is coming up in May.

Here is the information:
MAY 1 -- 30 Deep Editing: The EDITS System, Rhetorical Devices, and More Offered by Writer University: http://www.writeruniv.com/

You want regret enrolling!

I'll see you in class.

Hard to Believe

It is so hard to believe that it has been three months since my last post. I feel almost guilty. :O)

The last three months I have been plodding slowly through my current novel. I say slowly because I'm having such a hard time. I've created some really great characters and I love them! However, my plot has sagged seriously. So, after hearing a recommendation on my ACFW loop, I visited Marcher Lord Press and bought a couple of e-books by Jeff Gerke.

(http://marcherlordpress.com/store/product_info.php?cPath=9&products_id=18)

The one I'm reading at this moment is How to Find Your Story. I'm halfway through his system for creating adventurous plots and am feeling some better about my novel. But not completely better, because I've come to a halt in the process with trying to discover an emotional knot for my character. And then if I add the obvious one, then I'll have to begin my story all over from the very beginning and I'm not wanting to do that since I'm halfway through the story. I'd like to find another knot, but finding one isn't that easy.

I have critique coming up next week and need to really buckle down and decide on something so I can present an offering at the table of critiquers. Not that I'm trying to rush it, but I am tired of this rut I'm in. I haven't written anything in this novel for weeks.

On to good news, since my last post I am now employed. Sorta. I'm writing reviews of websites for a webdesigner. You know what that means. Yes!!! I'm actually getting paid to write!!!! Whoo-Hoo!!!

Also, I'm still loving my Christian Writer's Guild class. I'm in the second year of my Apprentice Level Course. This month we are beginning to outline an non-fiction book. I've been leary of beginning this quest because my one true passion is fiction. However, after some brainstorming I think I know what I want to do. I've always wanted to write a Bible Study, but never though I had it in me. Well, I'm going to do it! Prayerfully it will turn out well.

Since my last post, I've also reunited with my very first critique partners, Pamela and Kay. Kay Swanson is a published author who has written Contemporary Romance and Japanese Historicals with a romantic element. We have been meeting monthly for lunch. It has truly been a blessing for me to have them back in my life. I've also created a yahoogroup so we can critique online. All three of us need gentle pushing to get the creative juices flowing, so hopefully this will help.

Well, until next month...may peace and blessings flow throughout your home.

CWG, Shoutlife, and other notions

I really can't say enough good things about the Christian Writers Guild Apprentice Level Course. I enrolled this year and am on Lesson 19. Since I began this course, I had Lesson 7 printed in our local newspaper, I have had an extremely nice rejection letter from a major magazine who requested that I submit to them again. And now Today's Christian Woman has requested my Lesson 8. So, far all my lessons have pertained to non-fiction, however my fiction has benefited greatly from what I've learned. I guess you can say this is my humble plug for CWG. If you have wondered about joining, stop wondering and just do it. I think the absolute best thing about this course is the mentor-mentee relationship. I adore my mentor, Judy Bodmer.

On to other thoughts, I recently joined Shoutlife. this is a great community. I felt really welcomed upon joining. However, the only thing I didn't like about it is being inundated with requests from people I don't know who are in the entertainment business requesting to be my friend. I felt like I was being spammed. On the flipside, I like having access to all the ACFW'ers and requesting their friendship, with the added bonus of people who are regular people who like to read wanting to be my friend. I like having something in common with people.

I'm on facebook.com also. I don't like it as well as I do Shoutlife. It's so plain. I can't seem to figure out how to dress it up. I also don't like that you can't search for people with common interests. It's only work, community, or school. What's the deal with that?

Here is a truthful fact about querying: December is the lowest month for queries. Do yourself a favor and send out some queries this month. (Information provided from: CWG)

Critique Group Idea

My critique discussed and decided to jump-start our sluggish writing juices.

For the month of October, we are meeting once a week, instead of our usual once a month to critique each others work. We each are expected to bring one chapter of fiction, and or a non-fiction piece.

We are doing this on a temporarily. I am hoping I will be able to get back into the practice of writing on a daily basis.

Wish me luck!

I'm Too Old for Homework!

Yesterday was the first day of school.

I sent my children off with mixed emotions. On one hand, I am anxious to get back to my writing, excited to get back to my exercising, and thrilled to re-unite with my writing friends. On the other hand, I'm feel lonely at home and miss my kids.

As the school bell rang, Bethany eagerly met her dad and walked to the car. She had a cat-ate-the-canary smile on her face. She entered the car and proudly announced, "Guess what, Mom? You've got homework and I don't."

Now I'm thinking, yeah she's probably talking about that mountain load of paperwork I have to fill out every year.

Oh, no. She flicked out of her binder a paper, "Look Mom, you have to write an essay!"

Thank goodness, it's not math!

Writing I think I can handle.

So, I wrote a six-paragraph article on who my daughter is in my eyes. On my family blog, I will display it.

As most of you know, I still have homework. I'm enrolled in the Christian Writer's Guild Course, so I have bi-monthly homework.

However, who knew at this age I'd end up with Junior High Homework?

Query Letters and Helpful Resources

One of my critique partners and I are hard at work this week, writing the dreaded query letter.

Even though my strengths are in synopsis and taglines, I'm still learning the ropes with the query. You'd think since it is so low in word countage that it'd be easy to write. Wrong! The query letter needs to hook the person reading it right off from the get-go.

Now, I've bought books on the best selling queries and such, however I'm a streamline girl. If I can find an article on how to write a great query and not have to read a 300 page non-fiction book...I'll do it in a heartbeat. I'm just being honest.

I've found an outstanding article on the Internet about the craft of writing a query. This author's ability to write a query letter has garnered the praises of leading people in the industry.

So, here is Mary Demuth's blog address where you can find her pdf nine-page article on writing a best selling query letter: http://wannabepublished.blogspot.com/.

Another great small book on the subject is Agent Noah Lukeman's short on query letters. You can go to Amazon.com and download a free book. Here is Mr. Lukeman's website, which can direct you to the downloadable link: http://www.lukeman.com/greatquery/index.htm.

New Beginnings

Ah, there is nothing quite as exciting as beginning a new novel.

I am in love with my hero and heroine. I love the setting and the historical research.

There's one hitch, though.

I have no clue what is to become of the plot.

I have tried so many different plot devices, exercises, the snowflake, and outlining. Nothing. Nada. Zip.

This time I thought to myself, "Girl, you just gotta write." So, I put away all my plot helps and worked on my goal, motivation, and conflicts of my characters. I get my heroine in trouble (drawing her away from her goal) and then I get her outa trouble (drawing her closer to her goal).

Whether wrong or right I have no clue. But I'm enjoying reading what happens next.

Check out my Slide Show!

Check out my Slide Show!

The Life of a Writer

Writing is hard work.

Period.

So, when it is already hard why do we put ourselves through even more hardship by listening to harsh criticism, frustrating ourselves by learning all the rules, or convincing ourselves that we are not good enough to write?

In one of the High School Musical songs, Breaking Free, the lyrics say, "We’re soarin’, flyin’, there’s not a star in heaven that we can’t reach. If we’re trying, we’re breaking free. Oh runnin’. Climbin’. To get to that place. To be all that we can be. Now’s the time. So we’re breaking free."

I have been reading, Dwight Swain's Techniques of the Selling Writer. Truely, it is changing my way of thinking, concerning writing. Before reading this book, I was a proponent of writing exercises to get those juices flowing, but now I'm seeing that a discipline regiment of writing everday provides the same boost of juices. I wished I had read this book years ago. But then maybe I wasn't ready for it yet.

I'm ready to break free and write with all liberty.

Romantic Comedy

For awhile now, I've been studying the art of comedy. I've read how-to books, articles, and studied movies to figure out the whole "formula" of the romantic comedy.

Today, I'm pooling all my resources together to post what I've learned. Granted, some people are tired of formulaic plots, but if you look at all the successful romantic comedy movies you can't help but think that it works.

Often I've asked how can I make my manuscript funny? Embarrass the characters? Twist the plot with irony? Give the character a sarcastic voice?

Finally, what I've have noticed from my search is a truth when this statement is compared to all successful comedies.

True comedy is the result of the character "over-reacting" to a normal situation. They devise fantastic plots and schemes to achieve their goals.

The hero and heroine never laugh at their situation. Their plight is real and their emotions of loss and pain are great. Romantic comedies help their protagonists "cowboy-up" to face their emotions and expose them to the world. Romantic comedies are about courageous people.

There is so much to learn about the characters in these comedies. The writer will need to focus more on an internal plot, engrossing their characters in spectacular emotions. However, today I want to focus mainly on the structure of the comedy.

1. Let the audience see the introduction of the hero and heroine.

2. Allow the reader to see the protagonist's goal and conflict before the end of Act II. Slowly feed the reader the protagonist's motivation little by little.

3. Introduce the rival character after you have allowed the reader to examine the hero's personality.

4. In the middle of the book, the main character must commit to a relationship with the protagonist. This moment will be a no-turning-back moment for our hero. His/her emotions will never be the same again.

5. Always allow the reader to have superior knowledge. The reader needs to know what the character doesn't. Do not surprise your reader. Allowing the reader to know more, creates tension for the reader.

6. The wonderful romance between protagonists must end by the 75% mark of the novel. Usually, some secret or some type of deceit is uncovered. Then the trust is broken and the relationship is dissolved.

7. Characters then have the last fourth of the novel to figure out that their life is meaningless without their romantic counterpart and will go to unknown ends to find their way back into love. Most importantly, the romantic comedy always has a happily-ever-after.

Just because your romantic comedy portrays love in a light-hearted manner with outrageous, over-reacting characters, it doesn't mean that you can't layer-in suspense, history, murder, science-fiction, and any other elements that will make your novel truly unique and yours.

Brands and Taglines

I attended a local writing group meeting this last week. I so enjoy getting together with like-minded writers. I especially love my critique partners. Somedays, I wished we met more often.

This last meeting, we discussed the importance of brands. For instance, when you think about Stephen King...what genre or brand do you think of...thrillers? We become more marketable when we zero in on one particular genre to write.

For many years, I detested the thought of singling out one genre. I felt that it would stifle my creativity. I wanted to try out all the genres and see which one fit me best. However, I have since realized that approach is a waste of time. (Truly, I never thought I'd say that!)

I must tell you since I know my brand now, I am much happier. Perhaps you are like me and don't know where to start, trying to figure out what you write? Well, I can certainly steer you in the right direction today. This little exercise is what I used to help me figure out what type of writer I am. Are you ready? Let me give you what I wrote. (If you use this example, please link it back to my blog or use my name)

First, list your top five favorite books and genre:

1. Men of the Saddle Series by Lori Copeland Historical Romantic Comedy
2. Yellow Rose Trilogy by Lori Wick Historical Romance
3. Yellow Rose Bride by Lori Copeland Historical Romantic Comedy
4. Bride Most Begrudging by Deanne Gist Historical Romantic Comedy
5. Courting Trouble by Deanne Gist Historical Romantic Comedy

(Some of these books may not be listed as comedy, but they made me laugh out loud.)

Second, list your top five favorite movies and genre:

1. Pride and Prejudice Historical Romance
2. Emma Historical Romance
3. Support Your Local Sheriff Historical Romantic Comedy
4. Bringing Up Baby Historical Romantic Comedy
5. Counterfeit Countessa Romantic Comedy

Third, list the genre most commonly found on your list.

Historical Romantic Comedy

Fourth, list favorite words that describe this genre:

Historical: antique lace, treasure, days of old, dusty, ancient
Romantic: love, interest, fondness,
Comedy: giggles, laughter, grins,

Last, take these favorite words and dream up a tagline. Here is mine. I've chosen to use words from historical and comedy adding in a word to describe my Christian market.

Grins, Grace, and Antique Lace

Now it's your turn!

If you get stuck and need help...post a comment with your email addy and I'll contact you.

So, go find your brand!

In Between

Ah, man...I don't know what to write.

I'm like in between a rock and a hard place. I've started rewriting two older manuscripts of mine, but now I've lost my desire to continue.

I'm thinking I need to let go of them and continue moving forward. What do you think?

I keep mulling over possible plots and themes, but none of them excite me. Is it just me or have you gone through this too?

I love historicals, but am in no mood to research one. So, that leaves contemporary. I want to create some characters, throw in some conflict, and sit back and watch them react.

I've done the normal beginning stuff...looking through newspapers, reading magazines, watching sensationalized TV, and journaling ideas. Still nothing.

I'd be more than happy to entertain your thoughts. Post me some ideas or email them to me whichever. (((shrug)))

Perhaps next week, I can post I have a start of something?

Plots

This week, I've posted a review of Plot & Structure by James Scott Bell over at a blog I share with my critique partners, http://www.bookstowriteby.blogspot.com/ . Go over and check it out.

In keeping with this theme, I decided to write down 20 of the most common plot patterns for fiction. If you'd like to read along, I'm taking my information directly from the book, 20 Master Plots (and How to Build Them) by Ronald B. Tobias.

Plot Pattern #1- The Quest

A quest plot should be about a search for a person, place, or thing; develop a close parallel between your protagonist's intent and motivation and the object he's trying to find.

Plot Pattern #2- The Adventure

The focus of your story should be on the journey more than on the person making the journey.

Plot Pattern #3- The Pursuit

In the pursuit plot, the chase is more important than the people who take part in it.

Plot Pattern #4- The Rescue

The rescue plot relies more on action than on the development of characterization.

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Pattern #5- The Escape

Escape is always literal. Your hero should be confined against his will (often unjustly) and wants to escape.

Plot Pattern #6- Revenge

Your protagonist seeks retaliation against the antagonist for a real or imagined injury.

Plot Pattern #7- The Riddle

The core of your riddle should be cleverness; hiding that which is in plain sight.

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Pattern #8- Rivalry

The source of your conflict should come as a result of an irresistible force meeting an immovable object.

Plot Pattern #9- The Underdog

The underdog plot is similar to the rivalry plot except that the protagonist is not matched equally against the antagonist. The antagonist, which may be a person, place or thing, clearly has much greater power than the protagonist.

Plot Pattern #10- Temptation

The temptation plot is a character plot. It examines the motives, needs, and impulses of human character.

Plot Pattern #11- Metamorphosis

The metamorphosis is usually the result of a curse.

Plot Pattern #12- Transformation

The plot of transformation should deal with the process of change as the protagonist journeys through one of the many stages of life.

Plot Pattern #13- Maturation

Create a protagonist who is on the cusp of adulthood, whose goals are either confused or not yet clarified.

Plot Pattern #14- Love

The prospect of love should always be met with a major obstacle. Your characters may want it, but they can't have it for any variety of reasons. At least not right away.

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Pattern #15- Forbidden Love

Forbidden love is any love that goes against the conventions of society, so there is usually either an explicit or implicit force exerted against the lovers.

Plot Pattern #16- Sacrifice

The sacrifice should come at a great personal cost; your protagonist is playing for high stakes, either physical or mental.

Plot Pattern #17- Discovery

Remember that the discovery plot is more about the character making the discovery than the discovery itself. Focus your story on the character, not on what the character does.

Plot Pattern #18- Wretched Excess

Wretched excess is generally about the psychological decline of a character.

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Pattern #19- #20- Ascension & Descension

At the heart of your story should be a moral dilemma. This dilemma tests the character of your protagonist/antagonist, and it is the foundation for the catalyst of change in her character. Character and events are closely related to each other. Show your character progressing through successive changes as a result of events. If your story is about the fall of a character, make certain the reasons for her fall are a result of character and not gratuitous circumstances. Always focus on your main character. Relate all events and characters to your main character. Show us the character before, during, and after the change.

The author expounds on each one of these plot patterns and helps the burgeoning author relate each variation to their work in progress. At the end of each chapter, he list a checklist for the writer to know if he is on track with that particular plot pattern.

Also, know that you can combine each plot pattern to make it uniquely your own.

What Concerns You?

I've had the opportunity to write an essay on what concerns me globally and then I had to write a piece on my local concerns.

Sometimes, I find this hard because I seldom read the paper and only watch the news to get the weather. However, when you look through news article, magazines ariticles, and internet news you will find certain subjects will leap out to you.

Write what concerns you and then you can submit these pieces to the op/ed of your local newspaper or donate them to a magazine. In this way, you can earn by-lines for yourself and thicken your portfolio.

Here is my latest offering:

The article entitled, First Catholic Church Opens in Qatar, Sparking Fear of Backlash Against Christians, By Sonia Verma, concerns me. I wonder what will happen as Americans continue to cover the Arabian nations with our missionary efforts. Will this provoke an already much touted tolerance message here at home? Will we be force-fed Muslim doctrine on our televisions, newspapers, and schools?

Reciprocity is the word used to describe this new movement. Among Muslim leaders, the idea of mosques accepted in the west should encourage their governments to accept Christian churches in the east. If this movement happened in any other country, and involved any other religion, I would applaud this great missionary success. However, I wonder will Americans be pulled into a religious war not unlike the wars of the past? Will Muslim militants seize Christian church buildings, murder priests, pastors, or teachers, igniting rage in the west?

During the crusades, English men of great courage fought the Muslim armies to regain control of Jerusalem. Twelve crusades and thousands of deaths later, the English retreated. How did this cause benefit them? It didn’t. Women lost not only their fathers and providers, but also 15,000 children died while they marched to Jerusalem. The fighters who returned infested their country with non-Christian beliefs much to the dismay of the papacy.

I understand that missions work must persist if we are to see our Lord’s glorious appearing, my caution is to be wary of the tolerance message. Our missionary efforts will be tainted in whole if we do not protect our gospel message at home. Great steps toward above ground churches are taken daily in such places as the Arabian nations and China. We need to not allow these advances to soften our domestic missions by allowing other religions to persuade us to accept their beliefs as truths. For we know the truth lies in knowing the one God, the one cross, and the one peace giver.

Dangerous Curves Ahead

Sensory writing elevates the emotions in a story. Readers turn pages to feel the next emotion. Observing sensory perceptions in daily living will intensify every story told.


Every morning, much to my body’s dismay, I enter the gym. Music blasts me awake as I hear an electronic woman’s voice say, “Please change stations now.” I slide my membership card under the red light, hearing a high pitched beep. I’m clocked-in with the computer nagging me to weigh-in.


I find my favorite station. As I run in place, I feel my jiggles wiggle, and for a brief moment, I appreciate a gym with no mirrors. Looking around the circuit, I’m relieved to find other women in pursuit of replacing their winter coat.


Change stations, please…oh, thank ya, Jesus. My thighs ache from the squats. My heart pounds in my throat. My breaths are shallow. What’s that smell? I look to the lady next to me doing sit-ups. Could she have released a frog? I frown and hold my breath; surely it will pass in a moment.

As I move to the next station, the circular fan dries my wet skin. The odor is back. I quickly look around the room to see if anyone watches me and then I wipe my face with my t-shirt. I hope no one notices me sniffing myself. Oh, the horror of it all. No frogs were released. Mental note…stay away from the fans.


Second time around, the torture is over. I find a trash can and spit out my cardboard tasting gum. I stumble, reaching for pure refreshment, my water bottle on a shelf. Cold, crisp, liquid seeps down my throat. I wonder how something with no taste can taste so good? I pop a new stick of cinnamon gum in my mouth and head for the stretching circuit.


I grip the rubber handrails and stare at the second hand. I’m quite relieved I’m the only one stretching. I extend my legs. Three women attack the jungle gym. All of us monkeys clamor for more space. Someone ahead of me is not watching the clock. I now place my hand on my soft, velvety, sweats and wait. Their incessant talking irritates me. C’mon with it girls. Get a hitch in your giddy up. I’ve got things to do. Namely take a shower…I think the lady next to me is sniffing for frogs…in my direction.

Who's Head is it Anyways?

I recently spoke with someone having trouble with point of view. So, I decided to post my response to her email on my blog because maybe there were other writer's out in cyberland who would benefit from this information.

Imagine yourself at a party holding a video camera. Everything you film is what your two hands move the camera to capture. Your voice is the only one speaking into the microphone. No one else can film your party like you. You film what you want, say what you want, and zoom in on what you want.

And then you pass the video camera to your husband. Now he films what he wants, says what he wants, and zooms in on what he wants. His story and everything he captures will be nothing like yours. The only way we can go back to your point of view is if the camera is handed back to you.

Now imagine you have two characters and their scene is their camera. They have to pass a scene back and forth between them so, the audience can understand their side of the story.

Sara, the heroine, begins the book in her POV. Everything she feels, sees, hears, tastes, thinks, and touches are written here. If anyone interrupts her internal monologue with their five senses or thoughts will throw her point of view off. Because it's all about her and her thoughts and her emotions and her five senses. No one else is allowed.

Sara, pass the camera, please...next scene.

Now after we space down a couple of times, we introduce our hero, Sam. This scene is told from his side of the story. His thoughts, his emotions, his five senses are recorded here. However, if Sara jumps in and her internal monologue appears, telling the reader her five senses, thoughts, or emotions while it's Sam's turn...she should feel guilty and be banished for the next 20 pages. Because as our mommas always told us it is rude to butt in on someone else's business. Besides, it's Sam's turn with the camera/scene.

This is called a purist point of view, because it is one scene - one point of view.

My critique partner made the claim that when you write like this the reader doesn't get to experience both the hero and heroine's emotion...for instance, when they share their first kiss. But this is not so. Sam tells his story about their chance kiss in his cynical way. There was nothing to the kiss. It was just a peck, one he'd give his own sister. He brushes the thought aside. There's more important things to think about...like Gary at work and how he always spys on Sam.

But wait, the next scene opens in Sara's loving point of view. She feels she has met her knight in shining armour. His lips were soft against hers and his hand pressed ever so gently against the small of her back. The kiss is obviously the beginning of a relationship.

Same kiss-two scenes-two points of view gives the reader even more insight into the character's goals, motivations, and conflicts. We know even more now than had we had one scene and only the descriptions of each character's emotions during the kiss.

If your not sure what omniscient point of view is...let's take it one step further.

Well, let's introduce one more character...the narrator. If Sam and Sara pass the camera back and forth, so the reader can see each side to their emotions, thoughts, and five senses, the narrator is the producer in the private sound room. The narrator tells the story, but sometimes she steps over her boundary and she spies and she exposes their private thoughts on a T.V. reality show.

However, this omniscient character is worse than the producers of any show. Because she is aware of Sam's and Sara's emotions, thoughts, and five senses and intrudes on their privacy by exposing what she knows, which is okay for a reality show, but is awful for fiction. Readers want to discover the characters on their own without someone telling them what is going on in the story.

Try this:

First Person Exercise

Write about Sara calling Sam for a date in first person. Using the word I and the verb is and be sure to include her five senses, her emotions, and her internal monologue (what she thinks).

Third Person Exercise

Write about Sam's reaction to the phone call in an internal monologue, entirely in third person. Using the word He and the verb was and include his thoughts, emotions, and five senses.

Omniscient Exercise

Write another scene this time about Sara arriving at Sam's apartment to ask him why he won't date her. Include both their thoughts, emotions, and five senses in this one scene.