I'm into genealogy and spend my free time looking for LEMERYs.
But my all time favorite past-time is learning languages ... undoubtedly my mother's fault: Mom always yelled at us in Spanish ... to let us know when she really meant it.
In college I picked up a bunch more languages: ASL, Chinese, Danish, German, Hindi-Urdu, and Latin. Add to that a smattering of Korean, Arabic, Finnish, Turkish, ... and even less French. Still, without anyone to practice with, I've forgotten most everything that comes after "Danish" on the list.
I love Linguistics (picking languages apart) and majored in it and in Spanish at the University of Wisconsin -- Madison. I love teaching almost as much as I love languages. I started teaching, part-time, while I was still in college (crazy me! 19 credits & 2 part-time teaching jobs).
I love reading, too. Anne McCaffrey's my favorite author. I can read and re-read (and often do) anything she's written. I'm particularly fond of the books which are set in Pern. She has such strong characterization and is able to create hords/worlds of unique people when I have trouble creating just a small community!
I'd been an avid reader since my mom first stuck a book in my hands. In college, I began to read the romances. They made a terrific break from "the locomotion of the foreleg of a raccoon". After graduating, when there weren't any jobs in my field, I tried writing a romance novel. Actually, Dan said (for about the 100th time) "why don't you write one" and I said "I can't do dialogue" and a friend, who was visiting, said "I'll do that if you can write the plot". I'd been kicking a plot around for about two or three years, so I handed Cliff a copy of a romance novel (his first) and the next day, when he chickened out :-), I'd already roughed out four chapters of Twilight Dawn and by then I was too hooked to quit.
Dan, always ready to come to my rescue, came home the following day with the name of a lady who wanted to start a romance writers group in the area. So, with Dan just in the other room and with Rose Marie's son in a similar location at her house (in case either of us turned out to be weird), I met my first "real" author and we talked so long that the guys both took off and we didn't even know it.
Rose Marie, at the first preliminary meeting
of our fledgling group, gave me the best piece of advice I've ever received
about writing:
"If you want to write, sit down and do it. You're the only one
who can."
Rose Marie Ferris, Myrna Temte, and I started the Wisconsin RWA chapter of Romance Writers of America that same year. It was a great support group and although we chose not to use our time to critique each other's novels, it was a great place to learn about the business end of writing.
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Fortunately for Dan (who's skinny as a rail, anyway), that "fervor" didn't last. I settled down into a less intense, but equally effective routine for my second novel while waiting to hear about my first.
Twilight Dawn is set in upstate NY and is the story of a young woman who bears a remarkable resemblance to the hero's deceased wife. She loves the hero dearly, but needs to be sure that it is she who is loved back ... and not just his memories of what could have been.
A word of advice: when a publisher says they'd let you know in "x" amount of time ... double it! I sent Twilight Dawn off in May, gave up camping out at the post office and called Harlequin in September (and was told that I'd be hearing soon --Ha!). Thanksgiving Day, I got word that Jacki Bianci recommended to novel to Vivian Stephens who was starting the American line. Just before Christmas ... or was it just after? ... I was working the third shift on the phone lines at Swiss Colony and managing Prairie House Apartments by day (while still writing) and had trouble keeping the days straight. Vivian called to say she'd buy the novel if I'd make a few minor changes. I said "YES!!!" and she sent along the changes: "Drop the suspense, add 10,000 words, make the heroine think "... little things, don't you know..
A Night In The Forest, which was inspired by John Denver's Annie's Song and a moonlight ride through the hills near New Glarus, Wisconsin with my husband, is actually set in the White Mountains of Colorado.
A Night In The Forest underwent extensive revisions (at the hands of a ruthless, but good! editor) to meet the needs of the Dell Candlelight Ecstasy line. As much as the revisions seemed painful at the time (Lydia Paglio's favorite phrase was "turn to page 'x', cut!), the revisions must have been effective. A Night In The Forest made #4 on the Walden's Bestselling Romance list in February of 1984! Pretty nifty, when you consider I was a first time author with two books out in the same month and my competition for top billing was Barbara Delinsky, Jane Anne Krentz, and Bonnie Drake.
Wishing Star, my third sale, was the most fun to write ... after I stopped pulling my hair out. I wrote six fantastic chapters, then trashed the whole lot of them and started over. When the book was finally done (I wasn't 100% satisfied, but it was done!), I sent it off ... because it sure as heck wasn't going to sell sitting on my desk.
My agent called back a few weeks later and said that the publisher (Harlequin) loved it, but that they'd already purchased one with a similar plot. Then Ellen (of Ellen Levine Literary Agency) took a deep breath and said: "They want to know if you'd consider changing the plot".
As it turned out, it wasn't really the plot that needed changing ... just a few of the plot twists, so I gutted about half of the novel and wrote it again. Much to my surprise, my agent's surprise, and my editor's surprise, the book was much, much better. In fact, it just plain feels "right". It's light and fun and the characters are really warm and caring people. The readers must have thought so, too. Wishing Star was number #9 on the Walden's Bestselling Romance List.
Seriously, Wishing Star was the most fun to write. Taking it all apart ... and actually having the time to let the story "perculate" long enough to figure out what changes I would have made if I'd have had a second chance --- which I did get! --- taught me a tremendous amount about the actual creative process involved in preparing a saleable novel. Putting the whole thing back together again in less than three months was a real challenge. Then, moving to Florida and finding out that the local post office handled over-night express mail with a phone call "Oh, hey, an over-night package came in for you yesterday and the postman forgot to deliver it today. Do you want to come by and pick it up tomorrow, or can you wait till Monday?" was a real eye-opener. The only thing even more stunning for a medium city girl who'd just moved to a small southern town was finding out that the nearest post office with out-going express mail was "down the road a piece" (eight miles!).
Winters End was, perhaps, the most difficult to write. The subject matter was trickier -- a romance gone sour and brought back to life after a separation of nearly ten years. What's more, the "kernel" of this novel's idea came from something I believed might have happened in my grandmother's past. (Though by the time I got done with the first set of revisions, I'm not sure I could even tell you what the original idea was!)
Winters End was set in Platteville, WI where my husband, Dan, and I met. Several months after the novel was published I received a call from the local paper. It seems that one of the patrons of the local library had told the local librarian all about the book and it's accurate depiction of the community. The librarian had gotten ahold of a couple of copies and had passed them on to other readers, one of whom was a reporter for the local paper ... etc, etc, etc. Nice to know that accuracy can turn into an interview and increased sales. Harlequin was pretty happy, too.
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Make
Your Words Work; Gary Provost: ISBN: 0898796369
This is a gold mine, especially if you have problems with "show, don't
tell." When Make Every Word Count went out of print, I was
devastated until I found this book -- it includes all the best of Provost's
earlier work and a lot of new goodies, too.
Creating Characters : How to Build Story People; Dwight V. Swain: ISBN: 0898796628
The Art of Romance Writing : How to Create, Write and Sell Your Contemporary Romance Novel; Valerie Parv: ISBN: 1863734244
How
to Write a Romance and Get It Published; Kathryn Falk: ISBN:
0451165314
This is a terrific book if you really concentrate on the articles contributed
by a number of well-known writers. Most of what Kathryn writes herself,
however, is more "fan-zine-ish" than practical. For example,
IMHO, you don't need to equip an office before you start, you just need
to start!
You Can Write a Romance and Get It Published; Yvonne MacManus: ISBN: 0963749811
How to Write & Sell Romance Novels : A Step-By-Step Guide; Linda Lee: ISBN: 0929195000
How to Write a Romance and Get It Published: SBN: 0451129032
How to Write and Market the Regency Romance; Gayle Buck: ISBN: 0962942308
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Silent
Dances (Starbridge, Book 2) ... best of the series. If
you reallly want to understand Deaf culture (and the fact that the Deaf
don't see themselves as "limited" or "missing" anything when it comes to
communicative abilities, get this book!
Shadow
World (Starbridge, Book 3)
Serpent's
Gift (Starbridge, Book 4)
Silent Songs (Starbridge, Book5) ... back on Trinity with the Deaf, The Cranes, the AmerIndians ... and now a Maori & Manatees ;-)
Ancestor's
World (Starbridge, Book 6)
Voices
of Chaos (Starbridge, Book 7)
The
Chronicles of Pern : 1st Fall (The Dragonriders of Pern)
(mass market paper) ... also available in another paperback
form
All
the Weyrs of Pern
(hardcover) ... also available in paperback,
another paperback
form, and audio-cassette.
Whatcha gonna do-do-do on Doona?
I'm hard pressed to pick a second favorite series ... is it Doona &
the cats ... or Damia & the free-thinkers? Well, one's
got to go first, so I guess I'll opt for the furry favorites :-)
Crisis
at Doona
(mass market paper)
Crisis
on Doona and Treaty on Doona
(audio-cassette) ... this series is even good enough to listen
to while you're driving down the road or sitting around the house with
your hands busy.
The "X" Who "Y" ... Series
This universe finds a niche for even the most severely and physically
disabled in a way that never diminishes them!
The
City Who Fought
(hardcover) ... you can also order this book in paperback
(paperback)
The Unicorn Series
Acorna:
The Unicorn Girl
(hardcover) ... you can also order this book in paperback
Acorna's
Quest
(hardcover)
Anne
McCaffrey's the Unicorn Girl : An Illustrated Novel
The "Coffee-Table" Books
These are terrific little stories, well written in the best McCaffrey
style, but they're not as much for readers (who want long, involved, complicated
stories rich in word and deed). These are the kind of books you buy
for someone else who isn't that much of a reader, but likes a showy cover/display.
If you're looking for a gift to encourage reading --- or want the perfect
gift for a child who hasn't quite gotten away from the "where are the pictures"
line of thought, these are the books for you!
Black
Horses for the King
(school & library binding) ... you can also order this book
in paperback.
Coelura
... this is an intriguing little tale that follows a young girl's "coming
of age" in an alien environment. What make it so "alien" is that
she thought she knew all about her world, her life, and what was expected
of her. But when faced with the ultimate loss of freedom -- a loveless
marriage -- she finds that making her own choices is the only thing that
can ensure her happiness and freedom in the future.
(mass market paperback)
Edited by McCaffrey
Alchemy
and Academe
... This was probaby my least favorite book ... not because
it isn't good -- it is! -- but it's not McCaffrey's writing. It's
a collection of stories by other authors whom she likes (a bit like
this list
her is a collection of writings by authors I admire :-).
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