Tuesday, August 7, 2012

Life's Messes & Historical Novel Giveaway

It's another beautiful day! And I'm spending it (and tomorrow) with my friends over on the Novel PASTimes blog where they talk about all the latest historical, inspirational fiction coming out. They interviewed me with some tough questions about my Empire in Pine series and about writing. So I'm there chatting about life messes (writing what I know) novel sagas, and a quirky (family) thing you'll find in my fiction. I'm posing a question about reader preferences, and everyone who answers it will be entered in a FREE BOOK drawing of THE BLACK ROSE. Join me at NovelPASTimes!




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Saturday, August 4, 2012

With a Little Help From My Friends - Tips for Starting a Writers' Critique Group

Guest post by Joan Leotta
 
As a writer and a performer, I can say that a critique group has been central to modest success, earning a fair amount over the years from hundreds of newspaper and magazine articles, and once in a while having the time to send out a poem or short story or even a book proposal--some of which have met success. Being in a writing group gives me a deadline and forces me to do what all writers know is really a great exercise, read my work aloud. The comments that dissect my work, whether I agree or disagree on the specifics, usually changes my work for the better. I hope this is true for my comments on the work of my fellow writers too. The group is also a source of information in the writing world beyond my own narrow interests.

In Northern Virginia, my first group started in a library with fifteen strangers and eventually reduced itself to four women. The group was eclectic---fiction, non-fiction, adult, children's and even poetry. We read to each other and commented on each other's work in progress, shared market tips, and celebrated successes and frustrations.

When I moved to North Carolina, one of the first things I did was find another critique group. My new group is also wonderful. We read, we share, and we write.

If there is not a group near you to join, here are some tips for forming one:
*        Decide what you want the group to be like--critique, exchange information, reading, all of the above?
*        Advertise your intent at the library or community center and among any friends you know who write.
*        It is generally easier to limit the type of work to be read and critiqued. My current group is adult fiction and non-fiction.
*        Define "critique" for the group at the first meeting. If the members do not know one another well, put the rules for critique in writing. A good critique begins with a positive comment, asks what the writer's intent is, and structures all other comments with the goal of making the writing better meet that intent
*        At that first meeting, stress that each person needs to be committed to making the other person's work more refined the otherperson's work and stronger.
*        Limit the amount of time each person has to share, read, and be critiqued -- bring a bell or timer to signal the time to change -- so that no one person dominates and each person has the same time.
*        Select a place and time that seems good for the person who will run the group and begin.
Everyone's work benefits when we polish the gems of others as well as our own.


Joan Leotta has been writing and performing since childhood. Her motto is "Encouraging words through pen and performance.” Her newest work, Giulia Goes to War is book one of a four part series, Legacy of Honor  that traces the women of a family and how they find love and independence from WWII era through the Desert Storm era.

Joan’s articles, short stories, and photography have appeared in many newspapers and magazines. She performs folklore shows and one-woman shows on Civil War and Revolutionary war figures at venues up and down the east coast and teaches writing, creativity, and storytelling for children and adults. She lives in Calabash, NC with husband Joe. You can learn more about her at www.joanleotta.com and can contact her to speak to your group at joanleotta@atmc.net .

 

Giulia Goes to War, Legacy of Honor Volume One
Anna Maria DeBartolo shook her graying head as she marched up and down in the small space in front of the kitchen sink. "I am a loyal American. We have a Victory Garden. I send my cans to the surplus drive." With the wooden spoon she held in her hand, she gestured toward the front of the house and the dining room window facing Main Street and continued, "I have two blue stars in the window -- both of your brothers are serving or did you forget, Giulia?...No! E unadisgrazia!"

Giulia gains her independence while still remaining a loving daughter and makes a life for herself in Wilmington, contributing to the war effort while beginning a romance with a boy who is not Italian -American, and saving the Wilmington shipyard from a spy's planned terrorist act in this action packed adventure of a young girl on the Home Front in World War II.,

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Wednesday, August 1, 2012

Lumberjacks, Ladies, Land Barons, and Love -- Empire in Pine, a Series of HOT Summer Reads



What will you read during these final weeks of summer?
I hope to make your decision easier by giving you the highlights of this romantic series of historical fiction and sharing why readers think Empire in Pine is a series of HOT Summer Reads.

     
Empire in Pine Series
Historic, romantic, women's fiction -- a multi-generational family saga of love and deception, hope and turmoil, and the rise of a wilderness empire.
Purchase Links:

-- The Green Veil --
Empire in Pine Book One

One is the man she missed. The other is the man she married.


Lumberman's daughter, Colette Palmer has understood the industry since her youth -- and she's always loved timber cruiser Manason Kade -- even though he only remembers her as a child. Leaving Michigan to settle with her family in the Wisconsin wilderness, and separated from him by miles and years, compassion compels her to marry another.


Manason longs to plant roots of his own in Wisconsin Territory. But when he stakes his claim and challenges the illegal log harvesting of a rival company, Colette's husband swears to ruin him. Then one day Manason and Colette meet again. Now, an empire in pine hangs in the balance, and she will have to choose between her first love and her commitment to a difficult marriage.

A "HOT" Summer Read? Here's what reviewers say:

"Lovely, soft, quiet in some ways. Gritty and painful in others."

"Think Gone With the Wind, only not so long."

"Just when you think you know what's going to happen next, Musch throws in a spin and twist that'll take your breath away."

--The Red Fury --
Empire in Pine Book Two

Spurned twice since the death of her first betrothed in a logging accident, Lainey Kade has become the object of talk."That Lainey, she's a shrew all right. Not ever going to marry, likely," the gossips say. Fleeing heartache and flaunting convention, Lainey seeks solace instead in seeking adventure and breaking the rules.


Embarking on a journey where she hopes to put the past behind, Lainey crosses paths with brothers Zane and Kelly Beaumont and pretends to be a married woman. But they find her out, and she soon forges an adventurous companionship with these men whose nightmares since the Civil War have never let them return home. Following the lead of the next thrill, the ties of their friendship tighten, and Lainey denies love's rekindled spark. However, as fires rage across the Wisconsin wilderness, the brothers’ attraction may tear them each apart, and Lainey may be consumed by the fury burning inside her.

A "HOT" Summer Read? Here's what reviewers say:

"This is a powerful novel that will rip your heart out, so be prepared. It's a great love story of self-denial, trust, selfishness, courage, loyalty, and true love so passionate the red fury has nothing on it."

"The Red Fury is already on my Top Ten of 2012! Naomi Musch is a master at planting nagging questions in the reader's mind--questions that must be answered. Now."

"This is a story about Lainey Kade, her failed attempts at love, and how friendship, and selflessness can make love possible. I highly recommend this book and this author."

-- The Black Rose --
Empire in Pine Book Three


Despite the panic of 1893, logging reaches its golden era in the growing state of Wisconsin, and twins Jesilyn and Corianne Beaumont enjoy a comfortable life with family in the bursting Great Lake city of Superior. But when jealousy incites Jesi to seduce Cori's fiance, a flight and fall from grace lands her in a boomtown brothel, where a fresh start is denied her.
Camp preacher Paul Winter longs to offer hope in the logging and mining towns of northern Wisconsin, but not in the way he expects when he meets a redhead he calls Pie Girl. He's never had to battle his own longings quite this way before.
Meanwhile, stung by Jesilyn's betrayal, Corianne's bitterness might separate her from a second chance at happiness and peace. Only by Grace can both women begin new lives, and budding love can bloom in places neither of them expect.

A "HOT" Summer Read and a BRAND NEW Release! A reader says:

"Don't miss this series. The first novel, The Green Veil was terrific. The second novel, The Red Fury, was even better if it could get any better, and I'm reading The Black rose now. You'll be hooked in Chapter 1."

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