Congratulations to Susan Reinhardt, the winner of The Preacher's Bride by Jody Hedlund! Thanks to all who participated; I'm glad you decided to stop by.
Writing Tips
Need manuscript advice? Editor Anica Mrose Rissi offers great tips in her Writer's Digest article, Nine Must-Follow Manuscript Rules. Rissi outlines what it takes to stay out of the slush pile, which is something all writers want to avoid. Love the principles here; I think that several apply to non-fiction too.
Here's another writing goodie I came across. Ask the Pro: Literary Agent Rachelle Gardner - Kara Ebhart Uhl interviews Rachelle Gardner and uncovers Rachelle's definition of a dream client, worst query, and biggest career surprise. (You might recall that Rachelle is Jody Hedlund'sagent.)
Jean Fischer posts on Common Word Mistakes at her blog The Walrus and the Carpenter. Do you know the difference between lay and lie? How about farther and further? Hop over to see Jean and she'll straighten you out on that and a lot more.
FYI - Haven't forgotten about the 150 follower/200th post giveaway that I mentioned some weeks ago. Although perhaps now I should aim for 200 followers, as 150 seems to have come and gone. :) Soon, I assure you, and I have some nifty prizes to share. Stay tuned also for a visit with Sarah Sundin. Sarah spent time with us over the summer and will return to talk about her new book, A Memory Between Us, complete with a giveaway.
What a blessing to have such rich resources at our fingertips! Found any good resources lately?
I'm thrilled to share this interview with author Jody Hedlund! Her debut novel, The Preacher's Bride is one of my new favorite books. If you happened to miss my review, check out Monday's post.
Karen: Thank you so much for joining us at Write Now. Congratulations on the release of your novel, The Preacher’s Bride. I thoroughly enjoyed it! How did the idea for this book come about?
Jody: I homeschool my children and during the course of teaching them history, I began to learn more about some of the great heroes of the faith. I was particularly fascinated with the little-known women who helped shaped these great men. These wives were strong, courageous, and faithful. I decided their inspiring stories needed to have a voice and be told to this generation.
Karen: I haven’t read much historical fiction set in 1659, and I found your description of Elizabeth Whitbread’s surroundings interesting. How much research was involved with the characters and setting?
Jody: For each of my books I spend two to three months researching before beginning the writing process. I particularly enjoy reading biographies and usually find a couple that are incredibly authentic and helpful. In the case of The Preacher’s Bride, I drew from John Bunyan’s books as well as primary documents including actual church documents recorded from that time.
Karen: Your double final in the 2009 Genesis Contest must have been an exciting milestone. What steps to publication did you take after winning?
Jody: Immediately after finaling in the contest, I contacted agent Rachelle Gardner, who had my manuscript in her slush pile. The final perked her attention and she pulled my manuscript out, took a look at it, and called me the next day to offer me representation.
Rachelle immediately set to work selling my book. Within a few months she was able to secure a three book deal with Bethany House Publishers. Needless to say, I was thrilled!
Karen: I can’t wait to read Book Two. Can you give us a hint or two about it? When will it be released?
Jody: As a matter of fact, I can now tell you that the official title of Book 2 is The Doctor’s Lady. The title committee met last week and I’m very excited about their decision! The Doctor’s Lady is scheduled to release in September of 2011 and is another “inspired-by” novel. It’s a fictionalized story based on the first white woman to travel overland West to Oregon as a missionary to the natives. It’s a marriage of convenience story, but also the tale of how a young woman overcame the odds, endured a dangerous journey, and found true love along the way. In the process, her strength and courage paved the way for all of the women who came after her.
Karen: I appreciate having you spend time with us this week. I’m sure my blogging gang would join me in wishing you much writing success in the future. Blessings to you!
Jody: Thank you for having me on your blog, Karen! I wish you and all of your blog readers much success too!
Here's a bit more info on Jody:
Jody Hedlund is a debut historical romance novelist who was a double finalist in the 2009 ACFW Genesis Contest. She received a bachelor’s degree from Taylor University and a master’s from the University of Wisconsin, both in Social Work. Currently she makes her home in Midland, Michigan, with her husband and five busy children.
She’s represented by agent Rachelle Gardner and her debut book, The Preacher’s Bride, is now available online and in most stores. Stop by her blog, Author, Jody Hedlund, where she chronicles her journey to publication and dispenses her two-cent writing wisdom.
Leave a comment to this post, include your email address like so: karenelange(at)gmail(dot)com. Entries without email address are not eligible.
Receive an extra entry by becoming a follower, or by reminding me that you already follow.
Receive a bonus entry by posting about this giveaway on your blog, Facebook and/or Twitter. Please be sure and comment telling me so.
This is open to US residents only. For those of you who follow outside the US, I apologize.
Deadline to enter is midnight Eastern Standard Time, Saturday October 2, 2010. Winner will be notified via email and will have 36 hours to respond or another winner will be chosen. Winner to be announced on Monday's post.
What questions would you ask Jody about her journey to publication?
Do you want strong characters? An interesting story line? Seventeenth century history? Burning buildings? Love? A bit of action and intrigue? The Preacher's Bride supplies all of this and more. Immediately the reader is introduced and immersed into the world and challenges of Miss Elizabeth Whitbread. This young Puritan woman's convictions are strong, stronger than most of her peers in Bedford, England.
May 1659 brings the sad news of Mary Costin's passing, leaving her husband John and their children behind. Mary's infant son Thomas is not expected to survive, but Elizabeth is determined to intervene on his behalf. Elizabeth is soon hired as John's nanny and housekeeper and does her best to comfort the grieving children. John, nearly oblivious to his family in his grief, throws himself into his preaching and work to drown his pain.
A series of misunderstandings between Elizabeth and John prevent them from getting off on the right foot. They come to an agreement, and Elizabeth will aid the Costin family till she weds Samuel Muddle, the local cooper. To further complicate matters, John experiences pressure from some government officials to cease the "unlawful" teaching of God's word. This persecution extends to vicious rumors about Elizabeth and John's relationship and the threat of physical harm to...well, I won't give it away.
Elizabeth's marriage arrangement with Samuel is a practical one, for she has had no other suitors and desires to marry and have a family as is expected of all good Puritan girls. The arrangement with the Costin children is a matter of conviction; she feels called to help the grieving family. She doesn't expect to fall in love. With John.
What happens when Samuel forces Elizabeth's hand, making her choose between him and her call to help the Costins? Can she separate herself from John and the children? Is John even remotely aware of how Elizabeth feels? Will John's enemies succeed in silencing him?
I wanted to read this book for a number of reasons. When I saw that this story was inspired by John Bunyan's life, I was intrigued. Jody is a blogging friend, and I shared in her journey to publication through her posts. It was exciting to see her dream made a reality. And I love Christian historical fiction, so it was a given that this would make my wish list. Imagine my delight when I was able to become an influencer.
The Preacher's Bride was excellent. Jody shares a compelling tale that captured and held my attention from beginning to end. Her ability to draw the reader into Elizabeth's world is truly a gift. This poignant story, based on real events, is one I will remember for a long time.
This book was provided as an influencer's copy by Bethany House. No compensation was received.
Interview on Thursday
Thursday's post will feature an interview with Jody Hedlund. Won't you join us? I'm excited also to share that Jody is offering a copy of The Preacher's Bride to one of my readers. Info is below; please note the details to ensure your entry.
Giveaway
To Enter:
Leave a comment to this post, include your email address like so: karenelange(at)gmail(dot)com. Entries without email address are not eligible.
Receive an extra entry by becoming a follower, or by reminding me that you already follow.
Receive a bonus entry by posting about this giveaway on your blog, on Facebook and/or Twitter. Please be sure and comment telling me so.
This is open to US residents only. For those of you who follow outside the US, I apologize.
Deadline to enter is midnight Eastern Standard Time, Saturday October 2, 2010. Winner will be notified via email and will have 36 hours to respond or another winner will be chosen. Winner will be announced in Monday's post.
My first thought was that it didn't apply to me. After all, I haven't completed, okay, or really even started a manuscript. My WIP consists of copious notes, printouts, bookmarked links, images and scenes floating around in my head and a fair sized stack of research books. I don't have all the characters figured out yet, but figure I've got enough to call it a WIP, even if it is just the starting fringe.
But then I thought, why not give it a try? After all, Elana said that it would be interesting to see all the variations from this experiment. I've created characters for kid's stories, taught fiction writing to teens, and I know what kind of characters that appeal to me, so I signed up.
Writing Compelling Characters
We need compelling characters for great stories. Setting is good, plot is important and a knack for writing is crucial too. But characters, whether people, animals, or something else - this is what the story is about. I've always thought that plot, setting, and conflict swirls around the characters.
Five things first come to mind when I consider character development.
1) The power to draw the reader in. Love 'em or hate 'em, a character has to grab my attention. I want them to be interesting. An MC needs personality and depth. I need to see how and why they relate to the story. If not, I quit reading. 2) They need to be believable. Unless I'm reading fantasy, I want to see real people. I want them to think and feel and have all sorts of emotions, actions, struggles and consequences.
3) They need to be consistent. They can't be having jealousy issues in chapter one and suddenly become unjealous in chapter two. (Is unjealous a word?) Growth and change through a story is great, but it's got to be natural.
4) The presence of physical characteristics. I want enough description of the character to be able to visualize them. A good writer, I think, paints images that enhance the reading experience. I'm not talking elaborate or lengthy, particularly with flash fiction, just enough to complement the rest of the story's elements. 5) They need to be memorable. Main characters should be memorable. For example, I just finished reading The Preacher's Bride,by Jody Hedlund. Over the course of the past week, I kept thinking about the book's MC, Elizabeth Whitbread. Her tenacity to do what she thought right was inspiring, and I will replay her comments, actions, and emotions in my head for a long time.
There you have it. My two cents on Writing Compelling Characters. Once my WIP is finished, I'll share what I've learned. :)
If you'd like some tried and true advice, check out this Writer's Digest linkfeaturing quick tips for developing characters.
What do you think makes a character great? What tips do you have for writing compelling characters?
Please join me next week when I review The Preacher's Bride. This special feature will include a giveaway and interview with Jody. Happy Weekend!
