Birthdays: W.E.B.  duBois (1868), Frederick L. Paxson (1877), B. Traven (1882?), Erich Kastner (1899), William M. Shirer (1904), John Sandford (1944), Brad Cornwell (1944), Walter Wick (1953), Francesca Simon (1955),

Frederic Paxson won the 1925 Pulitzer in History

William Shirer won the National Book Award for “The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich”

John Sanford (pen name of John Camp) won the Pulitzer Prize for Journalism before he turned to fiction

Quote: “Ideas are everywhere, and you must listen out for them. Your stories will be more fun if you give them a twist. So, if you want to write about football, what about an alien football match, or a pets’ football match? It’s always easier to write the beginning and end first, and the middle last. Think of where your character is at the beginning, and what they are like, and how they are different at the end. The middle bit is what changed them. The best way to learn to be a writer is to be a reader.” – Francesca Simon

Tip: Don’t let your characters play Hamlet and give long, windy speeches. Break them up with actions.

Jumpstart: Your character walks into a diner s/he hasn’t been in for years. And there s/he is. Her/his first love. Sitting at their old table. Alone. Does s/he go to him? What does s/he say?

New books at The Wild Rose Press:

Series: Jocks and Geeks Book 3

Genre:  M/M Contemporary Romance

Blurb/Synopsis:

Marti is a confident, energetic, and talented florist who has been attracted to standoffish Ivan for the past couple of years. He’d pretty much given up on him until their paths cross again when has a meeting with the penny-pinching landlord of the flower shop where he works.

Competitive bodybuilder Ivan Detrikov has a landlord father who doesn’t approve of his career choices, or much else in his life. Ivan is well aware of Marti’s interest and he finds the other man captivating, but feels he needs to focus his energy toward his career, and any chance at love is just a distraction.

Everything changes when Ivan encounters Marti at his father’s office. Marti’s “guns blazing” attitude and forceful arguments in favor of the shop where he works captivate Ivan and awaken the attraction that has simmered since their first meeting. But his father’s heartless pursuit of his goals puts Marti’s flower shop dreams in peril and endangers the relationship they are just starting to build.

Book Links

Amazon

Author Information

Andrew grew up in western Michigan with a father who loved to tell stories and a mother who loved to read them. Since then he has lived throughout the country and traveled throughout the world. He has a master’s degree from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and works in information systems for a large corporation.

Andrew’s hobbies include collecting antiques, gardening, and leaving his dirty dishes anywhere but in the sink (particularly when writing)  He considers himself blessed with an accepting family, fantastic friends, and the world’s most supportive and loving partner. Andrew currently lives in beautiful, historic Carlisle, Pennsylvania.

Author Links

Amazon Author Page

Barnes and Noble Page

Dreamspinner Press

Facebook

Facebook Group All the Way with Andrew Grey

Goodreads

Twitter @andrewgreybooks

Website

For Other Works by Andrew Grey

(Please Be Sure To Stop by His Website to See All of His Works)

Just two new reviews this week, but both got 5 sparklers so good reading!

First, under “Mysteries” – Murder Faux Paws by T.C. LoTiempo – a delightful cozy, 5th in the series

Under “Nonfiction” – The Complete Guide to Tarot and Astrology by Louise Edington – an easy-to-read reference that combines these two practices into a stronger reading.

Enjoy!

Birthdays: Brander Matthews (1852), Anaïs Nin (1903), W.H. Auden (1907), Erma Bombeck (1927), Richard A. Lupoff (1935), Jeff Shaara (1952), Victor Martinez (1954), Ha Jin (1956), Chuck Palahniuk (1962), David Foster Wallace (1962), Jonathan Safran Foer (1977),

Victor Martinez won the 1996 Nat’l Book Award for Young People’s Literature for “Parrot in the Oven: Mi Vida”

Quote: “The final lesson a writer learns is that everything can nourish the writer. The dictionary, a new word, a voyage, an encounter, a talk on the street, a book, a phrase learned.” – Anais Nin

Tip: Show the characters through their emotions rather than telling us about them. Don’t tell the reader she’s angry, show her throwing the vase.

Jumpstart:  We’ve all heard about cloning experiments. What would happen if your character met his/her own clone? What if you did?

Birthdays: Georges Bernanos (1888), Rene Dubos (1901), Pierre Boulle (1912), Richard Matheson (1926), Sidney Poitier (1927), Ellen Gilchrist (1935), William Bayer (1939), Alan Furst (1941), David Kertzer (1948), Sean Wilentz (1951), Kenn Nesbitt (1962).

Pierre Boulle was best known for his books “The Bridge over the River Kwai” and “Planet of the Apes”

Richard Matheson writes fantasy, science fiction, and horror like “I am Legend”.

David Kertzer won the 2015 Pulitzer for Biography for “The Pope and Mussolini: The Secret History of Pius XI and the Rise of Fascism in Europe”

Quote: “Once you have your characters, they tell you what to write, you don’t tell them.” – Alan Furst

Tip: Go through your latest manuscript and use a colored pen (or different colors of highlighters) to mark all your main character’s dialogue. Use different colors to mark other characters’ dialogue. Your hero/heroine should be the one with the most to say.

Jumpstart: What might you find in your main character’s trash? In the fridge? Glove compartment? Medicine cabinet, junk drawer, nightstand, pocket or purse?

Birthdays: Andre Breton (1896), Kay Boyle (1902), Louis Slobodkin (1903), Maurice O’Sullivan (1904), Carson McCullers (1917), Ross Thomas (1926), Terry Carr (1937), Homer Hickman (1943),  Patricia O’Conner (1949), Amy Tan (1952), Siri Hustvedt (1955), Helen Fielding (1958), Laurell K. Hamilton (1963), Jonathan Lethern (1964), Jeff Kinney (1971), Marissa Meyer (1984),

Quote: “It’s a very daunting thing to think you’re going to sit down and write a whole book out of thin air, but you have to work, even when you’re not inspired.” – Laurell K. Hamilton

Tip: Your best characters will rise from personal experience. Dredge up everything bad – or good – that ever happened to you and let your characters experience it.

Jumpstart: Write a scene using: I found out something about my grandfather, whom I adored until then. Or: How could my grandmother…?

Birthdays: Jean Jules Jusserand (1855), Nikos Kazantzakis (1883), Wallace Stegner (1909), Jack Gilbert (1925), A.R. Ammons (1926), Len Deighton (1929), Toni Morrison (1931), Audre Lorde (1934), Janette Oke (1935), Jean M Auel (1936), Pure Leith (1940), Lisa See (1955), George Pelecanos (1957), Douglas Rushkoff (1961), Frances Osborne (1969),

Jean Jusserand was the first winner of the Pulitzer Prize for History in 1917.

Nikos Kazantzakis is best known for his novel “Zorba the Greek”

Wallace Stegner won the 1972 Pulitzer for Fiction for “Angle of Repose”

Jack Gilbert was a 2013 finalist for the Pulitzer for Poetry

A.R. Ammons won the Nat’l Book Award in Poetry in 1973 and 1993.

Toni Morrison won both the Pulitzer and Nobel Prize

Quote: “The best writing advice anyone has ever given me was to get a first draft down and then edit and re edit afterwards, and then re edit again, and again…” – Frances Osborne

Tip: Re-read one of your stories. Highlight adjectives that merely label or explain and replace them with descriptive nouns that evoke concrete sensory qualities.

Jumpstart: How might your main character react to his or her reflection in a warped mirror or window? Why?

Birthdays: Andre Norton (1912), Virginia Sorensen (1912), Russel B. Nye (1913), William Bronk (1918), Margaret Truman (1924), Robert Newton Peck (1928), Chaim Polok (1929), Ruth Rendell (1930), Mo Yan (1955),

Andre Norton published her first novel in 1934, and was the first woman to receive the Gandalf Grand Master Award from the World Science Fiction Society in 1977, and won the Damon Knight Memorial Grand Master Award from the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) association in 1983.

Virginia Sorensen won the 1957 Newbery Award for “Miracles on Maple Hill”

Russel Nye won the 1945 Pulitzer Prize in Biography for “George Bancroft: Brahmin Rebel”

Mo Yan won the 2012 Nobel Prize in Literature

Quote: “A writer should bury his thoughts deep and convey them through the characters in his novel.” – Mo Yan

Tip: Louis L’Amour had 350 rejections before selling his first manuscript. Ursula LeGuin sent out her first story when she was eleven; she got her first acceptance at thirty-three. The tip? They didn’t quit. Neither should you.

Jumpstart: “Please forgive me, but you… (finish this by using: curt, bingo, belly flop)

Let it Melt is book two in the Merilee Tours series.

Merilee reinvents her boring life by launching a tour business which leads to fun adventures and surprising romance. In Let it Snowball, she takes her guests to bakeries in three different towns to sample Christmas cookies. In Let it Melt, she hosts a Valentine’s Sweetheart Tour to a country restaurant and to a café in another town for dessert.

About Let it Melt

How on earth did Jill, a single divorcee, land on a romantic Valentine’s Sweetheart Tour for couples? Worse, she’s paired with Jack, her daughter’s brash father-in-law, and everyone thinks he’s her valentine. Stranded in a Canadian prairie blizzard, how soon can she kiss this awkward evening goodbye?

Long divorced, Jack would love to charm Jill with his toned body and dynamic personality, but his wisecracks and obsession with fitness get in the way—especially when he nabs a post at the same school where she teaches.

Even the most romantic month of the year can’t melt their differences and sweeten Jill’s feelings….or can it?

Author Biography:

Margot Johnson writes feel-good stories of dreams, family, and romance. She is the author of two sweet romance novels, LOVE TAKES FLIGHT and LOVE LEADS THE WAY, and two novellas, LET IT SNOWBALL and LET IT MELT. Her characters can’t possibly find their happy endings…or can they?

Before turning her focus to the fun writing life, Margot held leadership roles in human resources and communications. Her motto is “Dream big and work hard.”

When not writing, she loves to connect with family and friends, volunteer with SK Writers Guild, and walk at least 10,000 steps a day (except when it’s minus 40!)
Margot lives in the Canadian prairies with her amazing husband and adorable golden retriever.

Social Media

Website: margotjohnson.ca

Facebook: MargotJohnsonAuthor

Twitter: @AuthorMargot

Buy Links:

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Goodreads

Birthdays: Sax Rohmer (1883), James P. Baxter III (1896), Normal Bridwell (1928), Gregory Mcdonald (1937), Jack Dann (1945), Douglas Hofstadter (1945), Art Spiegelman (1948), Phyllis Root (1949), Linda Grant (1951), Paul O. Zelinsky (1953), Maile Meloy (1972)

James Baxter won the 1947 Pulitzer in History for “Scientists Against Time”

Norman Bridwell is best known for his “Clifford the Big Red Dog” books.

Douglas Hofstadter won the Pulitzer Prize for Nonfiction for his book “Godel, Escher, Bach: And Eternal Golden Braid”

Art Spiegelman is best known for his graphic novel “Maus”

Quote: “Set aside time to write, even if it’s only an hour or two a day, and think of the time as the requirement. So you just have to be there, and it doesn’t matter what you finish.” – Maile Meloy

Tip: Identify your characters by showing not only what they own, but how they treat their possessions. Make a list of character traits that show this.

Jumpstart: On Feb. 15, 1946, the first digital computer, ENIAC, was dedicated in Philadelphia, PA. Computers have become essential to our modern lives. Imagine you will be moving to a place where you are allowed only five electrical devices. What can you not live without? Remember, stoves, fridges, and other appliances, are electrically based – even gas ones. And for many people, water comes from electric pumps in private wells. Think carefully.