News, Reviews & Interviews

Cedar Creek Seasons

by Eileen Key, Becky Melby, Rachael Phillips & Cynthia Ruchti

Romancing America
Published by Barbour Publishing, Inc.
Ulrichsville, Ohio

350 pages
ISBN: 978-1-61626-645-5

The elections were over, and I was ready for a vacation. As God would have it, I met Rachael Phillips at the autumn ACFW-Indiana Chapter luncheon on the north side of Indy. Post-meeting, we lingered over coffee and a sweet treat with fellow writers Ramona K. Cecil and Millie Nelson Samuelson. As we were saying our farewells, Rachael offered me an all-expense paid getaway trip to Cedarburg, Wisconsin!

All right. I must tell the truth and shame the devil. What she actually said was, "Would you be an influencer for this book?" I hesitated ever so briefly. I occasionally review books, but I'm choosy. I will not write a negative review. Though I may point out what I perceive to be a weakness, the general tone of my reviews will be positive--or I'll abstain from writing it.

We've all heard, "You can't judge a book by its cover," but I disagree. The cover of Cedar Creek Seasons has several things going for it. It's appealing. It features an autumn scene; fall is one of my four favorite seasons. (Yeah, I know. That doesn't make sense. What can I say? I love Indiana where each season struts its own beauty.) It has a covered bridge. (Who doesn't love covered bridges?) Then there are the writers: Eileen, Becky, Indiana's own Rachael, and Cynthia--all solid scribes with whom I am familiar, having read their previous novella collection, A Door County Christmas, and Eileen's Dog Gone.  With all that going for the book, I eagerly accepted her invitation and soon was on my way to Cedarburg.

"Love Blooms in Every Season of Life," the back cover blurb headline, has a duo-meaning since the novellas of Cedar Creek Seasons feature protagonists in four life seasons, and each story gives the reader opportunity to enjoy Cedarburg in a different season.

A Contest of Wills by Becky Melby

It's winter when Cedarburg holds a contest. The entrant who garners the most votes from shoppers will win space in the town's historic district rent free for a year. Forty-something Willow Miles finds herself in fierce competition with artist Wilson Woodworth. Willow builds unique children's furniture and has outgrown her present area. A spot in the historic district would give her the room she needs and place her wares on the path of Cedarburg's many tourists. Wilson wants the space as a gallery for his paintings. The contest goes from friendly to fierce as the day draws near for the winner to be announced.

In Tune With You by Rachael Phillips

Chesca Appel, the twenty-five-year-old part-time choral director at Christ the King Church, is ready to begin rehearsals for the Easter cantata. She has carefully selected the music to ensure a magnificent worshipful performance. All is well until the pastor requests that she add drama and children to the program. To help out, he brings in Seth Amundsen, the tone-deaf school football coach, who loves both drama and kids. Seth, in turn, introduces his own cast of characters: several members of the football team, an obstinate donkey, and sheep. Amid all the chaos, enter one beguiling ex-fiancée and her brassy mama. This cantata is to be one Chesca will never forget.

Silvery Summer by Eileen Key

It's not personal. It's business. Recently retired Claire Parsons returns to Cedarburg with daughter Melissa simply as a vendor, to sell her pottery during the Strawberry Festival. She has no intentions of rekindling the embers of a long-dead romance with Eli Mueller. He broke her heart once. She wouldn't let it happen again. Besides, who knew if he was even still around? He is. Banners and flyers proclaiming his role in sponsoring the festival abound. His face is everywhere she looks--older than the face that haunts her memories, but just as handsome. Once he realizes she is in town, he tries to woo her again. But can cold embers be revived?

Eileen proved in Dog Gone she has a way with writing romance that features mature characters, so I knew I would thoroughly enjoy her contribution. Silvery Summer lives up to my expectations.

Maybe Us by Cynthia Ruchti

(I love word plays, and the title of this novella is that, since the main character knits and sells moebius scarves. Moebius, if slightly mispronounced, sounds like maybe us.)

Beth Schurmer, just five years out of college, can't be bothered with love. It has gotten in the way too many times in the past, and she won't let herself get sidetracked again. Her plate is full, thank you, what with caring for her beloved Oompa and managing his Yarn Shop (which, by the way, is another play on words, since her grandfather revels in telling stories to all who will listen--and many come in to do just that). When chocolatier Derrick Hofferman, who is nearly seven feet tall, sets up shop just two doors down, he enlists Beth as his official brownie sampler. She loves chocolate, so that works out well. Derrick and Oompa hit it off immediately. Derrick often leaves his own business unattended to listen to Oompa's tales. As autumn progresses, Beth, Oompa, and Derrick form a strong yarn of three strands. How far will the metaphor extend? Will the yarn be knitted into an unending moebius?

I thoroughly enjoyed my post-election getaway to Cedarburg, Wisconsin, which is near Milwaukee. I checked out the town online and vicariously walked the historic district and the path to the rustic covered bridge pictured on the cover, the only one still standing in Wisconsin.

Christmas gift suggestion: Couple Cedar Creek Seasons with A Door County Christmas.

Review by Sharon Kirk Clifton

Know any young writers and readers? Invite them to visit Quirky Quill.

NaNoWriMo: Eleven Hours and Counting!

Dateline: Wednesday, 31October 2012; my writer's nest.

• Got idea? Check!
• Completed a healthy chunk of research? Check!
• Lined out characters? Check!
• Laid out town? Check!
• Interviewed MC? Check!
• Printed off character and place pictures? Check!
• Compiled Pandora.com 1930s radio station for inspiration? Check!
• Nailed down some Great Depression dates? To do today!
• Complete plot/subplot braid? To do today!
• Bought coffee? Check!
• Planned for quick meals? Check!
• Proclaimed participation through social networks? Check!
• Reviewed NaNo site? To do today!
• Warned family and friends? Check!
• Prayed? To do DAILY!
• Sent my internal editorial staff on a month-long, well-deserved hiatus to the moon! To do at 6 a.m. November 1!

Gentle reader, if you compare this list to yesterday's, you'll note that I'm on schedule. I've also added a few items, so I'll have references at my fingertips. Are you participating in NaNo? Have you in the past? Any advice? How do you prepare in advance? Leave comments and help your fellow WriMos!

Write on!
Because of Christ,
Sharon

NaNoWriMo! Two Days and Counting!

Dateline: Tuesday, 30 October 2012; my writer's nest.

• Got idea? Check!
• Completed a healthy chunk of research? Check!
• Lined out characters? Check!
• Laid out town? Check!
• Interviewed characters? To do today!
• Complete plot/subplot braid? To do tomorrow!
• Bought coffee? Check!
• Planned for quick meals? In progress...!
• Proclaimed participation through social networks? Check!
• Reviewed NaNo site? To do tomorrow!
• Warned family and friends? Check!
• Prayed? To do DAILY!
• Sent my internal editorial staff on a month-long, well-deserved hiatus to the moon! To do at 6 a.m. November 1!

ANNOUNCEMENT TO ALL MY FAMILY AND FRIENDS: I love you very, very much. However, through the month of November--National Novel Writing Month--I will be participating in NaNoWriMo, which means I must write at least 2,084 words a day for 24 of the month's 30 days to meet my goal. If I miss a day or fail to make the count, I must compensate by writing more on other days. Therefore, I cannot engage in social activities or long, delightful phone conversations. I believe in the book I'm working on. Prayers and encouragement will be gratefully accepted. This is a first for me. Please feel free to ask me how things are going, as that will hold me accountable.

Comments, including seasoned advice, welcome. Be brief. Don't expect an answer until 1 December 2012 (exception: agents and editors).

Write on!
Because of Christ,
Sharon

Reclaiming All Hallows Eve

Gentle readers, I highly recommend Dr. Albert Mohler's blog article on this subject, also.

[Note: Whenever I refer to the Church, I mean the regenerated followers of Jesus Christ, not some brick-and-mortar structure.]

The Church has allowed Satan, the ancient enemy of Creator God, to steal, or at least taint, many of our celebrations. The man Saint Nicholas, Bishop of Myra, who gave his all to follow the Savior, has morphed into a jolly, rotund, caricature we call Santa Claus, and the Easter Bunny continues to try to usurp the position of the resurrected Savior. Children are taught erroneously that Thanksgiving was a time when the Pilgrims thanked the Indians for helping them to survive in the wilderness.

All Hallows' Eve also has suffered at the hands of the enemy, though not as much as the afore-mentioned, since it was never purely Christian and has clearly pagan origins. Most agrarian cultures celebrate significant events in the seasonal growing cycle: harvest time, solstices and equinoxes, and planting time, for example.

The origins of All Hallows' Eve--Hallowe'en (don't forget the apostrophe)--go back 2,000 years to the Celtic festival of Samhain (pronounced sow-in). The word means "end of summer." Pumpkins, apples, and various gourds were a significant part of that event. The Celtic new year began on November 1. Make no mistake. Samhain was not an innocent harvest celebration. Blood sacrifices--both animal and human--were offered to Druid gods.

By 43 A.D., the Romans had conquered the Celts, and within the following 400 years, had integrated their own pagan festivals into Samhain, including Feralia, occurring in late October. Feralia was a day to commemorate the dead.

"Christianity" spread through the Celtic lands by the 800s. In the eighth century, Pope Gregory III established that November 1 would be All Hallows' Day. According to Roman Catholic belief, All Hallows' Day was when souls were released from Purgatory and allowed to wander the Earth for 48 hours. Apparently, Pope Gregory was attempting to supplant Samhain with a Christianized version. That was Pope Gregory's M.O. He often claimed pagan celebrations and buildings and imposed a "Christian" significance on them. For example, he claimed the Pantheon (which was dedicated by the Romans to "all gods") for a Christian purpose. His All Saints' Eve was celebrated much as Samhain had been, with bonfires, parades, and people wearing costumes of saints, angels, and devils.

______________________________________________________________________

Why would any Christ-follower want to celebrate a day that represents everything for which Jesus Christ gave His life to destroy?  

_______________________________________________

Today, many people claim that Hallowe'en is an innocent harvest festival, but a quick trot through the costume section of the local Wal-Mart tells a different story. With a glance backward to Samhain, Feralia, and, yes, All Hallows' Eve, one can see that the culture of death lives and thrives in today's celebration. The holiday is no holy day!

It amazes me that many Christian parents continue to celebrate this time of ghosts, ghouls, goblins, and witches, labeling it "innocent fun." What is innocent about rubber masks that portray people who have been maimed, disfigured, frightened out of their minds, or murdered? Parents who encourage such "innocent fun" are opening the creaking door on the occult and nudging their wee ones over the threshold. Hallowe'en always has flirted with the macabre.

Why would any Christ-follower want to celebrate a day that represents everything for which Jesus Christ gave His life to destroy? Hallowe'en's origins are completely occultic. But children follow the leadership of their parents. May our all-wise LORD grant to those children the wisdom that their parents and grandparents lack. (Consider Deuteronomy 18:14 and Galatians 5:19-21).

Some parents think to avoid the dark side of Hallowe'en by dressing their children as Disney character, vegetables, or historical figures. After all, children love to role-play and dress up. (So do many of us who are adults, in fact.) If it's done at Hallowe'en, it's in celebration of Hallowe'en, even if Snow White doesn't have blood dripping from enlarged eyeteeth. Kids can play dress-up throughout the year. No one day of the year has a corner on that.

Jesus says that He Is the Light of the World (John 8:12). As His followers, we are commissioned to reflect that light in today's dark world (Matthew 5:14), to be imitators of our Lord (Ephesians 5:1).

As for Hallowe'en, we need not reclaim it; we never owned it. Nor should we want to.

Because of Christ,
Sharon

Dining Like a Character

When we writerly sisters gather, we bring along a few delicacies to nibble while we ruminate on plots and protagonists. This month I suggested that we bring a food our main character would eat. Mine was easy. Since my WIP is set in the Great Depression on a small east-central Indiana farm, I made chicken 'n' dumplings from scratch. Knowing that my MC's fifteen-year-old brother takes off to ride the rails, Kathi baked Hobo Bread in a tin can. Delicious! And since she's working on a children's story about a dog, she also baked another bread that she makes for her own dogs: Spinach Peanut Butter Bread. Sounds strange but it wasn't bad.

Kathy, a multi-pubbed writer of historical romances, brought a delicious Apple Crumb Pie, something many of her characters surely would  bake to entice their love interests.

Lori, who contributed a platter of tasty toasted sandwiches filled with fried bananas and peanut butter, is crafting a tale about a character who is a loyal fan of Elvis Presley.

Finally, I come to Natalie. Frankly, I was a bit anxious about her offering. I warned her in advance, "If it tries to crawl off the plate, I'm not eating it." You see, Natalie writes high fantasy. I needn't have worried. Her presentation was exotic enough for a fantastic repast, but familiar enough to arrest anxiety. Each plate was lined with red lettuce leaves topped with roasted mushrooms, toasted piñons, steamed asparagus spears, chive blades, steamed artichoke leaves, lemon-pepper tilapia, and "grubs" (sculpted from string cheese). Since her MC lives in a desert, Natalie served a luscious layered dessert bar made of figs and dates atop a graham cracker crust and spread with a sweet cream-cheese layer.

This delicious idea provided one more way we each connected with our characters, and we won't soon forget what our cohorts are writing.

Your turn: Have you had an interesting writers' meeting? Do you ever utilize themes for your meetings? Share the fun by leaving a comment. Thanks!

Write on!
Because of Christ,
Sharon

Decrescendo

The trees play a symphony of color,

With the maples and the sweet gums

Filling in the brass section,

The willows, the graceful, high-pitched strings,

And the oaks, leather-headed drums.

It is September, that unsubtle month,

That must be heard beating out summer,

Heralding fall,

Warning of winter to come.

"These crisp mornings put sweetness in the apples,"

Mama used to say.

And the orchestra plays on--

Sometimes in the raucous sunlight that seems

Brighter because it is rarer than in July,

Sometimes under billowing clouds,

Sometimes softly muffled in the early morning mists.

The song is as sweet as a golden delicious,

But with overtones of melancholy,

Foreshadowing a change of key.

(Copyright 1998 by Sharon Kirk Clifton)

Write on!

Because of Christ,

Sharon

Half a Dog Won't Hunt: Writing in a 50% World

Two years ago, I had bilateral knee-replacement surgery. The left knee is nearly perfect. It works fine. The right? That's another story. It's nearly as bad as it was before surgery. I got 50% of what I expected.

Yesterday, my air-conditioning went out. Zilch. Nada. The fan wasn't even blowing warm air. I called the office of the apartment complex where I live, and within a half hour, maintenance had yanked the old unit and wrestled a different one into place. (Notice I didn't say a "new" one.) The fan worked on that one, but it didn't cool. I got 50% of what I expected. After another call to the office, I actually got a new one that cools. Huzzah! 100% at last!

Years ago, I worked in advertising for Sears, Roebuck, and Co. (Yes, it went by its full name before they truncated it, hacking off more than 50%.) I loved my work. I laid out the ads, designed and built floor and window displays, and wrote ad copy. When floor managers would go to lunch, guess who got to cover for them. Yep. Me! I loved that, too, because if it was a slow day, I hauled out the hefty books from which the department managers ordered their stock, and I studied, so I knew why this sofa's construction was better than that lower priced one, how muslin differed from percale, how to determine which tire tread would best suite a customer's needs, and how to tie a four-in-hand knot. I also loved those times when business was bustling. The problem-solving element of sales I found exhilarating.

Times have changed. In this 50% world, the part that has been lopped off is service. Seldom can sales clerks tell customers where to find items, especially if it's something outside their department. (In days of old, we had to memorize department names and numbers before we were let loose to help customers.)

Our writers' craft requires 100%. We can't get by with a 50% approach to research, for example. I'm not sure how writers of yore avoided anachronisms, since I'm constantly chasing down internet rabbit trails to verify some fact such as when certain words entered the common lexicon. My work in progress is set in 1935, so Tillie, my ten-year-old protagonist, can't use a bobby pin to hold her hair back, nor can she say to her best friend, "Hey, toots, wha'cha reading?" Neither term was recorded as in use prior to 1936.

As I was writing novel MS #2, partially set in 1860, I had to toss away a beautiful handgun. I loved that weapon. As guns go, it looked good. It was a revolver that had some shotgun features, too--a gun the southern-Indiana deputy in the story would cherish. Problem was, I learned the following:

1. it wasn't invented until mid-Civil War; 
2.  it was a Southern weapon
3. only a few hundred were manufactured
4. for the most part, it was a favorite of Confederate officers

A pre-Civil War sheriff's deputy wouldn't have had one. What if I had done only 50% of the research necessary to discover the truth?

Consider the many genres of fiction--Regency romance, Amish, bonnet, biblical, historical, thriller. The list is endless. Writers who excel in their genre possess an amazing abundance of esoteric knowledge about that genre. Recently I asked an Amish friend if she reads Amish fiction. "Yes," she said, "but only by the writers who get it right." To get it right, Vanessa Chapman, Wanda Brunstetter, Beverly Lewis, Cindy Woodsmall, Beth Wiseman, Amy Clipston, etc., can't settle for less than 100%. Even if they've lived among Plain communities, they constantly check with contacts for accuracy's sake.

The same dogged determination that drives us to get the facts right should propel us through the other aspects of our writing, as we thoroughly get to know our characters (I like to interview mine, as I've written about before), our setting (sometimes I draw up house plans or layouts of a town or farm to use as reference), and the plot.

The world around us may settle for "50% off," but we dare not. Neither publishers nor readers will tolerate it.

"Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord. . . " ~Colossians 3:23

Write on!
Because of Christ,
Sharon

Celebrating Dr. Calvin Miller's Life

Yesterday, the Lord's Day, 19 August 2012, Dr. Calvin Miller passed from this life into the Presence of our Lord Jesus Christ. We are blessed to have his great body of work remaining to continue his legacy. 

I am most familiar with his poetic works, The Singer trilogy. When I was classroom teaching, I often read it aloud to my high school English students and saw it touch their lives. 

Dr. Miller was to be the keynote speaker at the 2012 Indianapolis Christian Writers' Conference, held the first weekend of November at the world headquarters of the Wesleyan Church. I was looking forward to hearing him speak and hopefully meeting him. Alas, I'll have to wait for Heaven. 

Do you have memories of Dr. Miller? Which of his works especially affected your life? Please leave a comment.

Write on!

Because of Christ,

Sharon

WriteOnCon Begins

Today is "gear up" day for the 2012 WriteOnCon. It begins officially tomorrow. This is my first year to participate in this FREE online conference for writers of MG, 'Tween, and YA. Can you tell I'm excited?

Write on!

Because of Christ,
Sharon

The Name Game

When our group of writerly sisters met this month, Natalie had a problem. She writes speculative fiction--fantasy, to be specific--and she couldn't settle on a name for her mc (main character).

"I'm stuck," she said. "I can't write on until I have a name." She needed one suitable to both her genre and her character. The girl no longer worked. The character was gelling in her mind, but the name eluded her. So we sat around my dining room table brainstorming names--alas, to no avail.


A couple days after our gathering, Natalie sent out a Facebook message to the sisters that she had found the perfect name. We all celebrated her victory.

Character names are extremely important. Try to imagine The Adventures of Clarence Finn, Harriet Eyre, The Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Joe B. Smythe, or Robert the Pooh. What if Old Yeller had been named Golden Boy or Because of Winn-Dixie were Because of Walmart? Would a rose by any other name truly smell as sweet? I'm with Anne Shirley on that one. If roses were called skunk cabbages, they couldn't be as fragrant. (And would you want to read Bertha of Green Gables?)

As with most words, a name carries with it connotation and denotation, the latter being its actual meaning (which the writer can discover by visiting baby-naming sites). The connotation is the baggage the name carried with it, for the writer, but also for the reader. The two may be quite different, depending on personal experience with the name. For example, I won't name a positive character Jackie because a boy by that name tormented me throughout my public school years. Bonnie is out for me, too. You likely have a list of off-limit names.

Now I have my own naming quandary.  I'm writing my third middle-grade novel, this one for the lower end of that readers' range. It's set in east-central Indiana in the 1930s. My mc is a ten-year-old feisty girl who dares to confront her step-father about his parental skills--or lack thereof. I'm torn between Leora and Tillie (short for Matilda).

Which name do you prefer and why? Or is there one you like better than either of those? Please click "Comments" to register your input. Thanks much!

Write on!
Because of Christ,
Sharon