Birthdays: John Keats (1795), Julia Peterkin (1880), Dick Francis (1920), Lawrence A. Cremin (1925), Katherine Paterson (1932), Holly Hobbie (1944), Susan Orlean (1955), Neal Stephenson (1959), Mari Jungstedt (1962), Frank Bruni (1964),

Julia Peterkin won the 1929 Pulitzer Prize for the Novel for “Scarlet Sister Mary”

Lawrence Cremin won the 1981 Pulitzer Prize for History for “American Education: The National Experience, 1783-1876”

Katherine Paterson is best known for her book “Bridge to Terabithia” and “Jacob Have I Loved”. She won two Newbery Medals and two National Book Awards.

Quote: “The problem with people who are afraid of imagination, of fantasy, is that their world becomes so narrow that I don’t see how they can imagine beyond what their senses can verify. We know from science that there are entire worlds that our senses can’t verify.” – Katherine Paterson

“The difference between ignorant and educated people is that the latter know more facts. But that has nothing to do with whether they are stupid or intelligent.” – Neal Stephenson

“Most writing doesn’t take place on the page; it takes place in your head.” – Susan Orlean

Tip: Turn off social media and games. Don’t get into the “I’ll just check Facebook” or “Just one game of solitaire” mind set. Before you know it, an hour (or more) of writing time has gone.

Jumpstart: Tonight is Halloween. In going through your child’s bag, you find a note: “Help me. I’ve been kidnapped.” A phone number and partial address are scribbled on the note. What do you do?

Birthdays: James Boswell (1740), Kate Seredy (1899), Henry Greene (1905), Desmond Bagley (1923), Dominick Dunne (1925), Lee Child (1954), Ann-Marie MacDonald (1958), David Remnick (1958), Gerald Morris (1963), Liesel Schwarz (1974)

Kate Seredy won both the Caldecott and Newbery Awards. She is best known for her children’s book “The White Stag”

David Remnick won a 1994 Pulitzer Prize for “Lenin’s Tomb: The Last Days of the Soviet Empire”

Quote: “I’m sick of being asked to weep for killers. We’ve lost our sense of outrage.” – Dominick Dunne

“Writing is a hellish task, best snuck up on, whacked on the head, robbed and left for dead.” – Ann-Marie MacDonald

Tip: Not every writer writes in a linear fashion. Some write individual scenes out of order, then put them together later. Figure out what works for you.

Jumpstart: “I hope you can hold your breath for a very long time.” (Why? What’s happening here?)

Birthdays: Evelyn Waugh (1903), George Dangerfield (1904), Ian Hamilton Finlay (1925), John Hollander (1929), Anne Perry (1938), Joe R. Lansdale (1951), Ayad Akhtar (1970)

Ayad Akhtar won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama for “Disgraced”

Quote: “I should like to bury something precious in every place where I’ve been happy and then, when I’m old and ugly and miserable, I could come back and dig it up and remember.” – Evelyn Waugh

“A good poem satisfies the ear. It creates a story or picture that grabs you, informs you and entertains you.” – Ian Hamilton Hollander

Tip: Some people say that all the good stories have been written. That’s not true. Your story hasn’t been told yet, so tell it, in your way, with your words.

Jumpstart: Five years after I left town, I returned. Nothing had changed. Nothing except me…

Birthdays: Desiderius Erasmus (1466), Emily Post (1872), Dylan Thomas (1914), Sylvia Plath (1932), Neil Sheehan (1936), Maxine Hong Kingston (1940), J.A. Jance (1944), Steve Almond (1966), Jonathan Stroud (1970), Anthony Doerr (1973),

Sylvia Plath was the first poet to win a Pulitzer Prize posthumously.

Neil Sheehan won the National Book Award and Pulitzer Prize for Nonfiction for “A Bright Shining Lie”

Anthony Doerr won the 2015 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for “All the Light We Cannot See”

Quote: “I can never read all the books I want; I can never be all the people I want and live all the lives I want. I can never train myself in all the skills I want. And why do I want? I want to live and feel all the shades, tones and variations of mental and physical experience possible in life.” – Sylvia Plath

“When I write something that would have made me laugh as a 10-year-old, or would have scared me or would have excited me, I know I’m onto something.” – Jonathan Stroud

Tip: As Stephen King says, “Love what you do.” Writing is difficult and sometimes not at all fun, but you should love what you do.

Jumpstart: I caught a glimpse of a tattoo on her back. That really surprised me. I’d never have thought it of her. What is it and why does it surprise this person?

THE CLAUSE IN CHRISTMAS by Rachel Bloome

Fiction, Contemporary Romance, Holiday, Sweet, 292 pages

4****

Blurb: Sometimes home is where you least expect it…
Cassie Hayward hates Christmas. Especially this year. No job. Flat broke. And an ex most definitely on the naughty list. But the unexpected inheritance of a Victorian cottage in the idyllic town of Poppy Creek may be the miracle Cassie needs. Except for one problem: a clause in the will. Cassie must complete a series of festive tasks for each day in December leading up to Christmas. Overseen by the disarmingly handsome, Christmas-loving lawyer, Luke Davis. Luke is as strong and steady as the bespoke furniture he crafts as a hobby. He has to be. Stepping into his late father’s shoes as the town lawyer comes with a sleigh full of responsibilities. Which means the alluring stranger collecting her inheritance is a distraction he can’t afford. As the unlikely pair works together to complete the daily tasks, fighting their attraction becomes more futile than putting good ol’ St. Nick on a diet. But when Cassie’s ex reappears with the offer of a lifetime, she’ll have to choose between love and the life she always wanted. 

Thoughts: What a sweet holiday romance! I really enjoyed this story—the whole Christmas calendar thing was wonderful. As Cassie, the main character, goes through each task, like the Grinch, her heart grows a little more each day until she completely embraces Christmas and the town and people she has come to love.

I loved that Luke also goes on his own journey of sorts and finds his way through too. There’s no doubt there’s growth for many of the characters. But my favorite was Cassie’s relationship with the old codger, and the melting of his heart too. That one had me in tears. The only thing that took it down a point for me was the relationship between Cassie and her mother. That didn’t work out in the end and that was a disappointment – but I have a feeling there will be more to this in later books. At least I hope so. I know I’ll definitely be looking for more from this author and her Poppy Creek people.

Recommendation: Definitely recommended.

Disclaimer: 
Disclosure of Material: I received a final and/or advanced reader copy of this book with the hope that I will leave my unbiased opinion. I was not required to leave a review, positive or otherwise, and my opinions are just that… My Opinions. I am posting this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”

It’s my birthday! So I am showcasing my Wild Rose Press books. All are available at your favorite online store.

NEW RELEASE!

For Cade Balassone, maintaining the status quo with his best friend and partner Holly VanEvery has meant pushing his true feelings beneath the surface—without giving up hope of chipping through the granite casing around her heart. He knows her survivalist mother taught her to protect herself at all costs, but someday he’ll convince her she doesn’t need protection from him.

Holly knows Cade doesn’t get it. She’s protecting him, knowing she’ll inevitably hurt him if she allows their relationship to become more. She forces her growing fear that it’s too late to take a backseat while they strive to save Victory, the business that has given them both purpose. After a saboteur nearly destroyed Victory, restoring its reputation is their number two priority. Number one is finding Niall Raff, the man seeking to destroy them.

Following a lead to the Willow Farm Resilience Collective, Cade and Holly are sent undercover through the sustainable community’s “marriage repair” services. Their participation in the Farm’s soul-bearing activities works like acid on Holly’s stone walls and incites Cade to shift their relationship out of neutral. But when they unearth a sinister plot targeting not just Willow Farm’s residents but other, similar entities, including the one Holly’s mother runs, their feelings become a distraction that could put their mission—and their lives—in jeopardy.

Buy Now!

Victory Undercover is book 2 in the Victory Series. If you missed book 1, Victory on the Edge, get it now!

If you prefer paperbacks, click here. 🙂

Visit Natalie’s website at https://nataliedamschroder.com

Birthdays: Marjorie Flack (1897), Harvey Penick (1904), Michael Crichton (1942), Antjie Krog (1952), Laurie Halse Anderson (1961), Gordon Korman (1963), Augesten Burroughs (1965), Trudi Canavan (1969), Matthew Quick (1973), Aravind Adiga (1974), James Hendry (1976), Naomi Alderman (1976),

Marjorie Flack is best known for her children’s book “The Story about Ping”

Quote: “Do you know what we call opinion in the absence of evidence? We call it prejudice.” – Michael Crichton

 “Be nice to your parents, because if you want to be a published author, you’ll probably wind up living with them after college. For a decade.” – Laurie Halse Anderson

Tip: Your characters need to be multidimensional, believable, and interesting.

Jumpstart: Each year when the roses bloom… (use: garden, trophy, retreat)

Birthdays: Ivan Bunin (1870), Doris Lessing (1919), Timothy Leary (1920), Ann Rule (1935), Deepak Chopra (1946), Debbie Macomber (1948), Elizabeth Hay (1951), A.L. Kennedy (1965),

Ivan Bunin was the first from Russia to win the Nobel Prize in Literature. He won in 1933.

Doris Lessing won the 2007 Nobel Prize in Literature.

Quote: “If you want to change the way people respond to you, change the way you respond to people.” – Timothy Leary

 “I don’t know much about creative writing programs. But they’re not telling the truth if they don’t teach, one, that writing is hard work, and, two, that you have to give up a great deal of life, your personal life, to be a writer.” – Doris Lessing

Tip: Does your book start in the right place with an interesting hook, good introduction of characters and the plot?

Jumpstart: This is the name I’ll never forget… (use: record, box, flower)