Telling Stories

I've always been really good at telling stories. I can lie with the best of them. It's strategy, really. Knowing when it's going to work, and when it won't. One time, when I was a teenager my mother was on a 'who did this' expedition. My husband likes to take those, too. I tend to steer clear and this is probably why. It's possible I saw it coming, maybe I didn't. I'm just not sure anymore, but I answered to a few of her questions with a contrite positive... [I'm going to remember those as being true]. On her next inquiry, the stakes were higher. The punishment most likely steeper. I'd definitely commited this offense, but realized in a moment of panic--or calculation--I couldn't answer truthfully. So I lied.

...and she said, "She could trust me because I'd already been truthful about the other offenses."

GEEZ! Doesn't that just bite?! I mean, I didn't renege. Of course not! Perhaps I even felt a little satisfaction that my strategy worked. I mean, I was young, stupid, a teenager. I'm not saying teenagers are a bunch of liars.... but there's a measure of testing that occurs as we figure the world around us out. I'm lucky to have felt the guilt. It shows my parents were doing something right.

Speaking of telling stories, I finished Black Hills. Went to bed last night, then skipped my exercise this morning and kept reading until lunch time. [yes, this means I accomplished nothing] So, I read this and think, "How does she do it?"

I can see the elements, and they make me think of my own book. Just when I think I've got something, I bite my lip and wonder if it's going to work. Well, it's too late for that now. On this manuscript anyway. :D So I'm off to write the synopsis so I can finally send this thing out.

Thanks for stopping in.
Love,
Bethanne

Black Hills

I started reading Nora Roberts' new single title Romantic Suspense this morning...
and it's just as I feared.

I won't be able to put it down.

August

Besides August being the eighth month of the Gregorian calender. The word can be dated to the 1500's meaning marked by majestic dignity or grandeur. Ooo, I really like that. I would like to write an historical with the word August in the title. I know that sounds crazy, but the muse strikes as he pleases with no warning or explanation. This time it's a word. A title. Hmm....

Speaking of majestic dignity, just another month until fall. Whoooot! What a world it will be in North America! I can't wait. Much as I love summer, the fall is my time of year. No matter where I am in another month, be it Florida or New Hampshire or Colorado...New Mexico, Idaho... where was I? Oh, no matter where I am in another month, I look forward to the change in the season.

With the kids starting school early this year, it looks like we will be sending them back to Our Lady of Lourdes. Yes, I contemplated home-schooling them for the time being, but Matt and I are a little uncertain I have the discipline level to do it well, and do it right. I'm NOT offended by this assessment. Plus, Matt will be home--as he has been all summer--and I know it's not easy for him to concentrate when the kids are hanging close by.

So that's two decisions we've made in the last month. Not bad for a married coupled. LOL The first being our decision to not go to Montana. The funny thing is, I struggled with this decision. Part of me wanted to go, to make it work, the practical part of me kept seeing all the things that would stand in the way of actually getting what we want [and need] up there. First and foremost is our desire to live in a smaller town. Great Falls, though smaller than where we live now, is still 60K populated city. And in order to get the resources we need for our son who is blind, we would have to live IN the city school district. We couldn't even go ten minutes up the highway to the next town over. It's been tricky, and a little heartbreaking to work the logistics of this .....life-changing event [I almost said catastrophe! LOL].

Wow, long post.
I'll be visiting with my parents tomorrow, they are on their way to Indianapolis where they will live... for now. :D We are lucky that they will be closer to us, for however long that is.
God Bless your weekend.
Love,
Bethanne

As July becomes August

Wow, summer always flies by, doesn't it?

Our trip to Florida was very sad, bittersweet at best. Matt's dad will be missed for a long time to come, especially by his beloved and his children. I dreamed of him last night, an odd thing where I could see his ghost and he was talking to John [my brother-in-law]. On our trip, Matt and I had a notebook where we marked every dollar we spent. Matt wanted to keep track of how much money it cost to do this trip. A curiosity thing and an effort to see how much gas we used and how well we used it. Well, in my dream, I was under some kind of financial suspicion and people kept asking me, "Can you account for the money you've spent for the last six months?"

And even in my dream I thought, "Damn it, I've only got a week!" LOL

Strange.

We took the family to Georgia for some R&R on the way home. It was well-worth the extra miles. I think so, anyway. We were able to shed some of the sadness for a while and focus on the kids. I told my Aunt Peggy and Uncle Billy, "This is the most fun the kids have ever had, ever." They didn't believe me. It's true, though. They will always remember this trip... and the way I yahooed as the boat pulled me around the lake on an inner tube or the way Thomas didn't get fishing until one took the bait on his pole. He yelped and dropped the pole in his surprise, then, he wouldn't even hold the fish for a picture. Little stinker. New experiences for everyone, and a great time had by all.

What about you?
What is something fun you've done for summer this year?
Stop in and let me know.
Love,
Bethanne

That Big Copy Job

Part of me hates that life goes on....

But it does....

and here's my 308 pages of novel to prove it.

I'm about to take a long trip to Florida and I plan to use the quiet time in the car to read through it. Check for typos, grammatical errors, plot holes, mistakes...

Did I mention I have four kids? The quiet time in the car might be a dream. We shall see.

The blog is going to be silent for a while.

God Bless you all while I'm away.

Happy writing, Joyful living.

Love,

Bethanne

Edward John Strasser, Jr.

Jack

~~~~~~

My Father-in-law always made me laugh. I'm pretty sure the reason for that was his ability to remind me so much of my husband. Likewise, my husband might say something or do something and I just look and him and say, Jack.

I remember one of my first family dinners at the Strasser house. Their three youngest children, including Matt were rousing it up with loud chatter and fun stories. Though i can't remember the stories, I do remember Jack using two hands--one at his mouth and one at his ear--to gesture talking on the phone. Matt, Jane, John, and I all laughed, and Jack harumphed then took it all in stride as a parent will do when his children are laughing at with him.

On visits to our home, Jack would wrestle with the younger kids on the floor of the living room. The usually stoic German had come out of his shell, surprising me while showing the kids some of that rough, grandfather love.

I'll never forget his concern for our kids. He'd follow them around, just to make sure they didn't hurt themselves. He'd double check that they could do the stairs when we didn't have a gate, then he'd trail them anyway, talking to them the entire time. With his hands clasped behind his back, he'd murmur the usual responses a person makes when being interrogated by a two-year-old. And he didn't let any detail pass him by. When our son Sean was born blind, he made sure to stay on top of whatever research was going on with Blind kids. He joined one of the national associations for the blind, and when he called, he'd always ask how Sean's schooling was going. He wasn't going to be left out.

I danced with my father-in-law at my wedding. He was smooth on his feet and a wonderful leader.

I'll miss him.

Big Copy Jobs

Have I mentioned I live in a cornfield?
It's a largely populated cornfield of about 80K people, but it's still a cornfield...
and here's how I can tell.

There are no copy and office supply stores, but one. Staples.
STAPLES, which, by the way, is the more expensive one.
There used to be an Office Depot, but apparently that one closed, when I thought they were just remodelling. Nope.

Bugger! The Office Depot was right down the road from Dairy Queen, too. I was going to set up a date with my good friend Nikki and go celebrate the printing of my novel with something yummy and cold. Now I have to go up to Staples instead and the only thing up there is Lowe's... well, that's an exaggeration. There's lots of stuff up there, too. LOL I'm just whining.

Sorry I've been so absent.
Hopefully life will calm down a bit soon.
Have a great week.
Bethanne

PS Nikki, if you read this, email me and we'll make a date. It's time for a mom's night out, don't you think?

why I keep reading

I've been thinking about this for a little while and a crit partner brought up the topic, making me think even more.

Reading...

It's what inspired me to pick up a pen in the first place.
Reading a really great book, sets my muse playing and lights a fire under my... well, you know.

I read a book differently now, yes. My current book--a romance, contemporary. No magic, no suspense. Just a story about two people, how they meet, fall in love and finally end up together. In one scene, the hero is with his immediate family for dinner. At the end of the scene, I asked myself, "What was the purpose of that scene?" There was a smidge of conflict--if you can really call a bitchy sister who holds a the heroine's mother's sins against the heroine conflict, which I didn't because the hero just blew her off. So what?

Here's the thing with romance. As a writer, we're told every scene, every dialogue...everything has to somehow affect the MCs, has to either bring them closer together or pull them a little bit apart.

Of course, I'm not sure I'm on that boat. This scene was good[entertaining] and it showed me the hero in a different light. How does he treat his mother? His sisters? How does he relate to his dad?

Did the story move forward? No. Might I mark a scene like that in a crit and question it's importance? I might... I just might.

Reading reminds me that stories can be told in a thousand different ways. It opens doors when I see deadbolts and helps me be sensitive [hopefully] to my crit partners. Well, that's me anyway. I can't imagine not reading.

Read! It's what's for funner. ;-) haha.

Pages

Have you ever read a book where the pages aren't cut evenly?
What is that? Is that some new fad?

It's the craziest thing to be annoyed by, but it's taking me twice or three times as long to turn a page on my current read than it usually does.

I suppose it's more a matter of changing habits. It's not like the pages can't be turned quickly. It's that I can't do it the typical way. Weird.

Still... loving the story, so I can't fault the author. :D

I'm HOME!

No matter where it is, it's always nice coming back.

Sunburnt

Yes, you can apply sunscreen multiple times, but that doesn't matter if you're in the sun for six hours. NOt that I didn't know this...

It's just easy to lose track of time.

The doctors at Duke say there is hope for my father-in-law. That he has some good lung tissue that should recover. Yay!

Taking it one day at a time around here.

My writing is on the back burner, though I actually opened my computer today and almost worked on some final revisions. :D It's nice to have a little break, especially before doing the rewrites on the last chapter. I'm excited about getting back to it this week. *thumbsup*

Thanks for joining me on the ride.
Talk to you later.
Love,
Bethanne

In Florida

I'm in Florida with my husband's family.
He has 4 sisters and 2 brothers. They're not all here... [probably a good thing].

My father-in-law is very sick and we're praying for a miracle.
I don't know how long it will be before I can get back on regularly.
You all are in my thoughts.
Have a great week.

See you when I get home.

Endings

Endings should be easy. We go through so many.
The end of a minute, sixty times an hour.
The end of a morning and the end of an afternoon.
Days last only twenty-four hours.
Stories only last a number of pages.
And a song will be over in a matter of minutes.
Friendships end, as do careers.
Life is short no matter how long it lasts.

Some endings will bring celebration and others will bring tears...
But, whether with joy or sadness, endings always bring new beginnings.

Have a great new week.
Love,
Bethanne

Week Two--JUNE 1--relocation, again

My head his swimming. Matt and I spent last week revising and updating his resume and cover letter [though, he'll redo the cover letter with each company if need be]. We're both anxious--Matt because he wants to find a job he likes isn't sure it's what he's been doing for ten years--Me, because the research that goes into relocating is overwhelming, to say the least. Schools, doctors, ocularists, blind services, real estate, topography [yes, we research topography]. What am I missing? I always think of stuff after the fact. Let's not forget the question, what does God want us to do? [seriously pulling my hair on that one] Does God micromanage? *sigh* Being part of God's will is important to us... so I've been on line searching for the burning bush and a deep, manly voice to tell us what to do next--I've got nothing. ;-)

Anyone near Cedar Rapids, IA?
How about Boise, ID?
OKC, OK?
*tap tap tap*
anyone out there????
Hello? God? Are you there? It's me, Marg...Bethanne.
Maybe He's in Bountiful, UT...

Two Chapters Left

So, I'll share my excitement with a little hair band. I love music, and the seventies and eighties. Okay, the sixties weren't too bad and really, neither were the fifties... but mostly classic. You can't go wrong. :) Sorry I've been so absent lately. I'm working through the end of this manuscript and researching places to live. Thanks for stopping by. Love. Bethanne.