The Unexpected Jayne Self (part two)...

We're back, again, with the mysteriously unexpected, Jayne Self...

(author of MURDER IN HUM HARBOR) 

ready to pick up where we left off, yesterday, when we ran out of time. Let's see, I believe we were discussing the nuances of creating characters. And I was wondering if you think up characters to fit into your plots, Jayne, or think up plots to fit your characters...

I suspect my initial ideas are plot related, although thoughts of character jump in almost immediately. I toy with both, trying to decide if they’re a good fit for each other. Sometimes they are, and the writing flows quickly. At other times I must rework and readjust. It then depends on which I’m more enamored with, the plot or the character, when I choose which stays and which moves on.

There seems to be so many more decisions involved in writing mysteries! But you must like that. What do you enjoy most about writing them?

What I enjoy most about writing mysteries is writing characters. And, it's true, I love exploring the nuances of each personality. I know this is not unique to writing mysteries, all stories are driven by character. But this genre allows me to explore people’s hurts and foibles in a way I don’t think that I would do, if I didn’t write mystery.

Hmm… more evidence that being involved with so many different people is an asset to your craft. That and having a lot of life experiences of your own. Which I'm sure you have, because I've heard you've lived in many different places, and done a lot of traveling. Looking back, which was your favorite?

Being a Canadian is an immense privilege. Canada is a wonderful country, vast, wild, beautiful. I’ve lived from Victoria, on the west coast, to our Nova Scotian cottage on the east, loving every place for its uniqueness. I feel most privileged to have lived in Labrador. That's the expansive, thinly populated region bordering north-eastern Quebec. I remain passionate about every aspect of our time there, from the isolation and natural splendor, to the cultural and life-style differences Labradorians take for granted. And outsiders would never imagine. 

Things like morning sky so pale it’s yellow. The green northern lights dancing across the night. Summer roads, and winter roads, and roads that end while the land goes on and on. Moose, wolves, and caribou… ravens, eagles, and little white ptarmigan with feathered feet. Grocery stores without milk, towns without fresh produce. Buckets of salt pork, and racks of sun dried fish. It was spectacular.

Ah, it sounds like you have the heart of an adventurer, too. A lot of those things would scare the socks off most people. And so would performing in public, which I understand you are also very good at. Especially music. What kind of music are you involved in?

 Whether I’m awake or asleep, there is always music running through my head. I listen to and enjoy almost all styles, but as I grow older, I admit loud, rambunctious music has less appeal. Music is an integral part of my worship. It is a gift I give back to the Lord. Because of that I have been involved in choirs, choral groups and solo vocals for –yikes!—fifty years.

Don't worry, we won't go there. How about telling what manuscript you're working on right now?

 I have just finished Death of Highland Heavyweight, my next Seaglass Mystery for Harbourlight Books. I’m not sure what comes next. I have a few unfinished projects on my computer right now. Any suggestions?

Personally, I favor the fisher-folk, as their children are absolutely amazing, and they are always being stretched to their limits. Whether by the economy, or the weather, or all the crazy regulations they have to abide by. But I'm sure whatever characters you come up with will be as intriguing as the others, simply because you are such a character, yourself. Which brings me to the subject of that video about yourself that I so enjoyed. 

Yes, I enjoy that every time I see it. It's where I first realized how pleasantly unexpected you are, Jayne, and immediately wanted to get to know you better. Which I'm sure others will, too. So, do you happen to have a newsletter? If so, how often do you send it out and what do you write about?

Do I have a newsletter? Oh, the guilt, the guilt! I know I should. And I’m working on it, really I am. But right now blogging over at www.JayneSelf.com is the best I’ve managed. People can definitely catch up with me there.

Well, I will be looking in on you over there, for sure, because it's been a real pleasure visiting with you, this week, Jayne, and I hope you'll come back often.

Thank you, Lilly,  and God Bless!

The Unexpected Jayne Self...

Mystery writers often lead mysterious lives. Which is one of the reasons I'm so pleased to have the author of 

MURDER IN HUM HARBOR 

(see Lilly's Book Club page for my review) 

Jayne E. Self  

as my guest today. Welcome, Jayne! You live in a very unusual place for a mystery novelist. Do you find being around so many people stimulates your creativity, or do you have to withdraw into your "creative world" to find those inspirations?  

I suppose living in a manse does seem like an odd place to contemplate murders. And yes, my experiences do color my writing, absolutely. Snippets of people, experiences, scenery, and funny situations pop up all through my work. Hum Harbour, the setting for my Seaglass Mysteries, is based on two communities near where we’ve summered for over twenty years. It's a whole different life out there. In fact, if you wanted to bump into my other life, you might catch a glimpse of me on Nova Scotia’s north shore.

I love Nova Scotia, too (it's so good for sailing), so I just might do that someday.  Where you do most of your writing? An amazing amount of atmosphere shows up in your book, and I was wondering if there are any specific things you have around which promote that.

 

I need to see outside when I write. My home office is in a corner of the house where I have windows facing two directions. One faces the street and the Legion with its WW II cannon pointed right at me. The other faces the church and my garden. When I write at the cottage, I’m in the screened porch. Although I know it makes absolutely no sense, I don’t think I could write without a view.

Oh, but it does. Perfectly. In a way, it's a picture of life, isn't it. A cannon pointed at you on one end, a church on the other, and in the middle, an occasional safe haven by the sea. My goodness! Almost a revelation, there. I could see some underlying currents like that in your book, too. Do you find yourself purposely writing about any particular theme, or does that sort of thing just come to you as the story unfolds?

I do not begin with the intention of inserting themes, but my writing does reflect my world view. I am a committed Christian. I believe in the value of each person, whether their faith or lifestyle is compatible with mine, or not. I believe God calls me to share His love through respect and empathy, not judgment and criticism. I hope my writing encourages those who think otherwise, to see the difference. Apart from that, I have noticed the recurring theme of belonging, crops up in my work. I’d lived at twenty-one different addresses by the time I turned forty so, perhaps it’s not surprising.

Well, Gailynn MacDonald definitely belonged in Hum Harbor. I couldn't picture her anywhere else, in fact. She seemed as natural as one of the local plants, and just as much at home there. By the way, do you think up characters to fit into your plots, or do you think up plots to fit your characters?

Oh, but we've run out of time, already, especially if we want to leave a bit to read the review. Will you come back tomorrow? We haven't even got to the most "unexpected" part, yet.

A "to be continued" sort of thing?

I suppose so, yes. 

I'd be happy to.

Wonderful. Tomorrow for part two of "The Unexpected Jayne  Self," then. I should think we have time for a cup of tea, though... one lump, or two?

A Big Little Christmas Miracle...

Continuing on with our journey into The World of Carol Ann Erhardt, here is a true story that is sure to bring you a smile...

WILLARD AND THE RED VEST

By Carol Ann Erhardt

A dear friend recently shared a story with me that brought a tear to my eye. She gave me permission to share this wonderful example of how God pulled off a miracle.

When she was younger she ran a small organization called the Christmas Bureau. When she took over, it was in terrible debt and she had no clear idea of what to do. However, she was young and full of energy and her mentor was an elderly Presbyterian minister who was on fire with the love of God and he made her believe that all things were possible. 

Armed with that belief, she and other volunteers went to the personal care homes and asked every inhabitant what they wanted for Christmas and vowed to get it for them. Though they had no idea how to do it, they still promised. The year was in the 1980’s and the inhabitants of those homes were mostly folks from state mental hospitals who had been released by Congress but money never followed to put them in decent places. Thus, the personal care homes sprang up and at the time there were no regulations governing them. The homes were grim places…the inhabitants mainly elderly, simple, and very dear.

 One particular old man, called Willard, looked like a watercolor picture of Santa, complete with white hair, beard, and fat belly. Willard was so indoctrinated into the life of the state hospital that he couldn’t put his own toothpaste on his toothbrush. He stood quietly and held it out while someone put the paste on because he didn’t know how. The caseworkers knew he had been incarcerated at a very early age, but all paperwork had been destroyed in a fire. At the time, he was believed to be around 80 years of age, although no one knew for sure.

When the inhabitants were asked what gifts they wanted, most asked for simple things: socks, talcum powder, cheap perfume, or fruit. But Willard asked for a red vest because he remembered wearing a red vest and flying a kite with his father.

My friend’s heart sank when he asked for the vest because she had no idea where that kind of money would come from. A vest would cost twenty or thirty dollars and the budget allowed for spending two or three dollars on each resident. She was sick with worry about it.

The Christmas Bureau worked hard to raise money by speaking at churches and clubs asking for donations. When she asked the treasurer how they were doing, the response was “Okay, but watch those pennies!”

Finally shopping day came and she realized she couldn’t do it. Even though they’d worked hard to raise money, the treasurer said they were limited to spending $15.00 max for Willard and receipts would be checked. My friend had thought to buy the vest herself, but she had very limited personal funds and was admonished not to do that.

She met her sister, who lived in a larger town, and asked for her assistance in picking up the Christmas gifts. Her sister took her to the local K-Mart. My friend had never been in the store before because there were none near where she lived. The first thing she looked at was the vests. Price $35.00. Her heart sank. There was no way.

Heavy hearted, she loaded her cart with all the other things on the list and as she approached the checkout…all of a sudden bells and whistles went off and she didn’t know what was happening. Then a voice came over the speaker saying that for the next ten minutes men’s vests were 60% off!

She ran to the men’s section, grabbed a red vest and brought it to the counter. $15.00!!

When Willard unwrapped his vest that Christmas Eve he said, “That’s my kite flying vest! That’s what I’ll wear when I fly a kite with my Dad again.”

I hope they buried Willard in the red vest. I can just picture him running around in heaven in that red vest and flying a kite with his dad.

God provided a miracle when least expected. I hope your heart was warmed by this story, just as mine was.

I’ll be sharing more about what happened to the Christmas Bureau on my personal blog next week. If you care to learn about another miracle God worked that Christmas, go to my website at www.CarolAnnErhardt on Tuesday, December 13 to read the rest of the story.

Carol Ann Erhardt also has a Christmas novella available this year,  called, LIGHTING THE TREE...

Brenda Davis is resigned to climbing into bed and shutting out thoughts of happy family gatherings. Twenty-four years ago she gave her baby up for adoption. Every year since, she’s placed a present under an unlit Christmas tree, waiting until the time they can be reunited. It’s Christmas Eve, and Brenda’s heart is heavy for she’s going to spend it alone—again.

But her friend, Dave Kingsdale, has other plans. He convinces Brenda to go to dinner with him. What he doesn’t tell her is that dinner will be at his parents’ home. For a long time, the widower has been longing to tell Brenda he wants more than friendship from her. What he doesn’t know is that she has the same feelings for him. And what neither of them know is a Christmas miracle is about to happen—delivered by an unlikely Santa.

The World of Carol Ann Erhardt...

Welcome, Carol Ann! It's great to have you stop by and share a bit about yourself, and your latest book:

TRAPPED
(see Lilly's Book Club for a peek)

First of all, Why did you write this particular book?

There’s no particular reason that I write any book. TRAPPED began with a character in mind…a man who loved animals. After tossing around several ideas, I just started writing and developed a chapter showing his passion for caring for others. I developed an inciting incident around a school bus accident after reading a newspaper article that squeezed my heart. All the things began to gel and soon the story developed with the characters revealing layers of themselves that surprised even me…something that seems to happen with each book I write. I’m not a deep plotter, though I’ve tried every method possible to become a plotter. What works for me is doing a lot of “thinking” and jotting down notes and ideas. Then I just write and the story develops naturally.

 Well, it's an interesting method, and it seems to work well for you. Is there any particular theme you most like to write about?

Seems all my books end up being about forgiveness and trust. Again, stemming I believe from my own past experiences and the trials of dealing with these issues.

Two important things I'm sure many of us can relate to. Which of those experiences would you say has contributed most to your writing life?

Growing up as an only child, I lived in books and the adventures swept me away. Once, in third grade, I was reading Bambi in school and didn’t hear the teacher calling my name until the entire class burst out laughing. As I grew older, I daydreamed a lot, creating my own stories which eventually found their way to paper. The stories stopped when I married and started my own family. I continued to read voraciously, but my daydreams were interrupted with a full-time job and raising kids. Then one day I lost my senior management job due to a corporate cut-back. The shock of having nothing to do and being an empty nester drew me into writing again. I started writing short stories for children but the dream of writing a book took hold and I penned my first novel in three months while searching for a job. Since then I “can’t not” write. I believe it wasn’t just one experience, but the culmination of all my life experiences which propelled me into writing. That, and God’s plan, of course! 

It is definitely revealing to look back and see God's hand throughout our lives, isn't it. Now that you have found this "storyteller's calling," what do you like most about being a writer?

Being incredibly rich and lazy…NOT!!! Seriously, I love being a writer because I can work from my own home in the quiet solitude of my little office cave. I don’t have to dress up or put on makeup, don’t have to get up at a particular time or drive in bad weather. I enjoy the flexibility of setting my own hours. The very best part of being a writer is hearing feedback from readers who enjoy my stories. When someone tells me they cried while reading a scene…that to me is so rewarding. My boss is the best because I write for God.

That's absolutely wonderful. Do you ever use music for inspiration? If so, what kind?

The music I play isn’t something most people would listen to. I listen to CD’s in the Creative Mind System which are supposed to stimulate the creative mind pattern in my brainwaves. The recordings are like background music that I tune out, but keep me in a creative zone. Not sure if they would work for everyone, but it sure works for me. The 2-CD set came from therelaxationcompany.com and I purchased through Writer’s Digest several years ago.

Well, it must have worked, because I really enjoyed reading TRAPPED (you can read my review over on Lilly's Book Club page), and am looking forward to what comes next. Speaking of which, what manuscript are you working on right now?

Currently I’m working on the second book in the Havens Creek Series. In the first book, TRAPPED, the readers are introduced to the hero’s sister, Rebecca (Becca) Middleton. This new book, as yet untitled, is the continuing story of Becca and her daughter Jenny and a new hero, Chance Stevens. Chance is fulfilling a promise made to a dying soldier when he builds a home near Becca. The last thing he expects is to fall in love with that man’s widow. Is it God’s plan that drew them together? Chance needs to reveal the truth about that fateful day in Afghanistan, but if he does he risks the chance of losing Becca and Jenny. 

Sounds like another one I won't be able to put down, so I'll be looking forward to it. I think you did a marvelous job of making Haven's Creek a place people will want to come back to time and again. I'm sure I definitely will!

The Essential Barbara Early...

Welcome, Barb! It's great to have you stop by during this very special week of the release of your book:

GOLD, FRANKINCENSE, AND MURDER
(see Lilly's Book Club for a peek)

What a wonderful way to start the holiday season. And since it is that time of year, it's nice to think about the ways God has touched our lives with His purpose and plans, even when we haven't realized it at times. Often we can look back and see how certain experiences formed the essence of who we have become today. With that in mind, what experience in your youth do you feel most contributed to who you are?

I was one of very few professing Christians in a fairly large public school. And I had more zeal than sense. I was called a “Jesus freak” and a “holy roller,” and well, I was bullied tremendously. It was torturous. 

In my junior year, when the schedules came out, I was upset that all of my few friends were in a different lunch period. So I sat with this group of girls. They were just nice quiet girls. After several weeks of being the last to the table, one day I got there first. And waited. And waited. Later, I saw that they had found another spot at a different table.

It was a hurtful and humiliating experience. From then on, I arranged to sit in on another class during lunch--said I wanted to review before taking the achievement tests. It was a half truth. I couldn’t face lunch alone in a room full of people.

Two weeks later, one of the girls and her boyfriend were murdered by a romantic rival--a rather disturbed kid whom she had rebuffed. And I regretted that she died when I was still bitter at how she and her friends treated me. I also regretted that I didn’t look past my hurt feelings to see an eternal soul--one for whom Christ died.

The bullying stopped as the whole school began some soul-searching. Suddenly people wanted to hear about my faith. But what a terrible price! And it’s affected how I’ve viewed others since--especially those who have mistreated or abused me. Life is so short, and so many are just hanging by a thread. We may not have tomorrow to share the gospel with others.

What an experience to have to go through at an impressionable age. But what you took away from it is so true, and still timely, today. And I agree with you that many people are just hanging by a thread, and looking with all their heart for answers. So many on the verge of making vital decisions! Have you ever had what you would consider a divine appointment? 

I think life for the Christian is a series of divine appointments. So many times we meet people in what appears to be chance, but God has a special purpose. I remember one time being in a church that had a bus that went to pick up children and take them to church. In helping with that, I misread an address, and met a young college student from China. 

He’d been raised in atheism, but he was curious about Christianity. My husband and I spent a lot of time with him and his wife--answering their questions and telling them about Jesus. He eventually came to faith. Later, I learned that he was the son of a major figure in the communist party in China. I’ve lost touch with this man, but the last I heard, he wanted to go back to China and start a church--presumably in the underground church movement. And all because of a misread address!

What an amazing story! Definitely a God thing. Being an adventurer, myself, I'm always interested in hearing about anything unusual or exciting that others have experienced, too. What is the most exciting adventure you ever had?

Well, the investigation is still ongoing. I did spend my wedding night in a hotel that had a reputation for being haunted--not that we saw anything other-worldly. Although when we arrived, we couldn’t get the door open. It appeared the deadbolt had been turned--and it was locked from the inside.

But perhaps writing itself has been the biggest adventure for me. Putting words on paper and sending them out into the world--just to see what comes of them.

I would have to agree with writing being the best adventure, too. Tell me what you like most about being a writer.

I like when the characters I’ve created start surprising me and won’t obey my carefully plotted outlines. It’s a little like puppets coming to life. They start expressing themselves, demanding their own voices, and determining their own courses. It’s a little like magic.

Well, the magic was certainly there in GOLD, FRANKINCENSE, AND MURDER, I really enjoyed it (head over to Lilly's Book Club to see my review). How did it come to find a home at White Rose Publishing?

Someone had passed along the call for submissions for the Christmas extravaganza. I had a short mystery story that I had written for a contest. It had a subtle romantic subplot that I deepened and added scenes to get to the requested length. Then I edited it, prayed, and hit “send.”

It must have been just the right amount of "faith and works," then. Another divine appointment that will touch many others. I'm sure it will bring enjoyment to a lot of Christmas holidays, this year. Speaking of which, What is your favorite Christmas tradition?

Cookie baking. I love making a variety of cookies and decorating them, and loading them up into tins and platters. These days, I try to give away as many of them as I can. I certainly don’t need them. But I do enjoy the process.

I notice there was some cookie baking in GOLD, FRANKINCENSE AND MURDER, too. You wouldn't happen to want to share one of those recipes with us, would you? 

I'd be happy to. While this cookie is more German-Hungarian in origin, this is the cookie I imagined that Sam offered to Donna. This is a time-consuming, artisan cookie, and it can take a bit of practice to get them to look nice. But absolutely scrumptious, and well worth the effort. I recommend making extra and eating the mistakes!

Kiffal 

(although I guess the accepted spelling is Kiffles)

Dough:

1 cup butter, softened

2 cups flour

1 egg

9 ounces cream cheese, softened (awkward amount today, but this recipe goes back to when cream cheese was sold in 3 ounce packages)

Using an electric mixer, cream the butter, cream cheese, and egg. Add flour. Do not over-mix. Form dough into a ball and refrigerate overnight.

Filling: (makes enough for multiple batches)

2 cups finely ground walnuts (Grandma used a meat grinder. I use a grinder attachment to my mixer. I’d imagine a food processor would work too.)

2 cups sugar

1/4 cup butter, melted

2 egg whites

juice of one lemon, about 1/4 cup

2 tsp cinnamon

Mix all ingredients. If made ahead, refrigerate. Extra can also be frozen and kept for other purposes. It makes a great filling for nut rolls (instead of cinnamon rolls) or in quick breads and coffee cakes.

On baking day:

Refrigerated dough

filling

2 egg whites, beaten

Powdered sugar

Roll out dough onto a well floured surface, to a thickness of less than an eighth of an inch. (The dough will incorporate more flour as you roll.) Cut into circles with a round glass or large cookie cutter. (You want a diameter of around 3 3/4 to 4 inches.)

Put a little less than a teaspoon of the filling on the edge of the cookie. (You’ll be tempted to use more, but the cookie will burst while cooking if you do.) Starting at that side, roll loosely, then curve into a crescent. Use egg whites to seal, and pinch edges shut. Brush tops with egg whites, then place on an ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 30-35 minutes. Remove carefully from cookie sheet and sprinkle with powdered sugar while still warm. (I put my sugar into a wire mesh strainer and shake it over the top.) Allow to cool completely, then sprinkle with sugar again. Enjoy!

Thank you, Barb, can't wait to try them out, they sound delicious. And thank you so much for stopping by this week, and sharing a bit of your heart with us. Here's wishing you all the best with GOLD, FRANKINCENSE, AND MURDER, and may this be your best Christmas ever!

Gold Fever... Could Happen to Anybody

I'm not that fond of jewelry, or even driven to accumulate mountains of wealth for myself. I am quite happy as long as my needs (and some of my wants) are met, and there is a bit of extra left over for adventuring. All-in-all, a pretty average citizen, except for one thing. I have a very chronic case of Gold Fever.

It has gone on for so long, I'm not sure when it actually started. However, after many hours of contemplation on the matter, I can trace the earliest origins of it back to the fact that my father had a subscription to Westways Magazine during my very impressionable growing up years. Yes, I am sure that's where it all started. I don't know what the magazine is about these days (it has been published continually for over  a hundred years). But back then, it highlighted unusual places one could travel to, by car, on a weekend from Los Angeles. 

Our first trip was out into the southern California desert (hotter than blazes out there, too) to dig up shark's teeth. Rumor had it that there was some huge inland sea thousands of years ago (leftover from some world-wide flood?) and there was a veritable hoard of ancient teeth that could be dug up with a mere hand-shovel and a piece of screen. And we found some! I dug them up myself, out there in that dry cactus-strewn wasteland of sagebrush and tumbleweeds. What an amazing thing-- and what fun! 

You might wonder what shark's teeth have to do with gold, but I have thought about that, too. And perhaps if we hadn't found any that day, I would have gone on to grow up into an entirely different person altogether. But the experience of searching for a peculiar treasure -- and finding it -- has an amazingly strong pull attached. Especially for a child. Besides that, there was the digging.

Digging has some kind of pull all its own. And I have found that if you are to successfully avoid Gold Fever, you should avoid the pleasures of digging at all costs. Because it almost always leads to the the onset of Gold Fever. Even people who dig in gardens have been known to accidentally dig up treasures (or even valuables) from the past. Before you know it, you're hooked. Well, that's what happened to me back then, at that innocent age, when I wasn't aware of the dangers. 

But a person can accommodate an inordinate pleasure of digging. A lot of people do, and they still lead fairly normal lives. It was the second thing we added  that actually knocked us over the edge. But we didn't see that coming, either. In fact, we had such a good time on that little shark tooth expedition, we decided to go for another. We were prime targets by then, but blissfully ignorant, and I happily looked forward to whatever my dad might pick out for us next.

It was a trip to "Fat Hill."

A place you should avoid at all costs if you are to escape the perils of Gold Fever. But don't worry, I will tell you how. Next time. After I tell you what happened to us, there. Meanwhile, be careful if you find yourself having to dig, for some reason. Because at this point, it could still take you unaware. 

And it could happen to anybody.

The Trouble with Relationships

   A continuing warm welcome to to my guest, E.A. West, who is going to talk to us today about something everyone can relate to...

As we all know relationships take work. Some take more work than others, but if the other half of the relationship is worth it, you’ll do whatever it takes to nurture that relationship. The same is true of relationships in fiction. The very foundation of romance novels is the development of the relationship between the hero and heroine. They can face all kinds of dilemmas and pressure, both internal and external, but in the end their love for each other conquers every challenge.

In The Key to Charlotte, Zakaria faces a unique challenge with being attracted to Charlotte -- she's autistic. While this really isn't as big a deal as you might think, it can create some interesting 

relationship situations. After all, one of the key components of autism is social deficits. This can mean a lack of social graces, an inability to participate in small talk without going insane, missing the subtle nuances of social gatherings, speaking out of turn, or even a complete lack of comprehension of what a relationship entails. This is by no means a comprehensive list, but I think you get the idea of what kind of challenges Zakaria could face by considering a relationship with Charlotte. To find out exactly what kind of social deficits Charlotte has, you’ll have to read the book.

Relationships are complex, evolving things that run a spectrum from flowing fairly smoothly from the start to seeming like nothing will ever go right. When it comes to romance novels, you’ll see both ends of the spectrum and everything in between. I like to write stories that fall somewhere in the middle, with enough smooth moments to give the reader hope all will turn out great for the hero and heroine and enough rough spots to make readers wonder if there will be a happy ending.

The development of relationships may drive you crazy or leave you feeling all warm and fuzzy inside. If the relationship is in a romance novel, the development probably involves a combination of the two. Non-writers may not realize it, but fictional people can be just as exasperating as real people. The biggest difference (aside from the fact that one is a figment of the imagination and the other isn’t) is that if authors get too frustrated with their characters, they can rewrite them with different personalities or make them conform to the author’s will in some other way. That doesn’t work with real people, which is just as well. If everyone did what you wanted all the time and you could make them act however you wanted whenever you wanted, life would be so boring.

So, enjoy your relationships with others, appreciate their differences, and realize that your hard work now is worth it in the end. Even if the relationship doesn’t work out, at least you’ll know you gave it your best shot, and that’s always a good feeling.

To celebrate the release of The Key to Charlotte, I’m giving a copy to two lucky commenters on this blog tour. The rules are simple. Between October 28 and November 6, leave a comment on any of my blog tour stops (including this post) with your name and email address letting me know you want to be entered into the drawing. You can find a complete list of the blog tour stops on my blog http://thewestcorner.wordpress.com. I will draw two names at random from all of the entries and announce the winners on November 7 (winners will also be contacted by email). The two winners will each receive a free PDF of The Key to Charlotte. 

Good luck to you all!