Celebrating Two-Hundred Articles

This is the 200th article on the Christian Bookmobile since the first one climbed aboard March 31, 2010.

I set out not knowing what direction God might take me with this new way of reaching people through the Internet, but knowing I had something to say.

My stated goal was "…to provide something of interest to both readers and writers who like fiction that shows the love of God without being preachy."

Later, after reading what I had written so far, I added this:  "Since my book is set in Austin, Texas, this blog also includes some of my memories about growing up in Austin before it became weird."

To be honest, there weren't 200 new articles. There were a number of times I used an excerpt from Where Love Once Lived or Vengeance Is Mine rather than something created special for the blog. However, I think that served a purpose to give readers a sample of what to expect from the books. Excerpts were also discussed at times.

Also, the 200 includes excerpts from other author's books, book reviews, author interviews provided by other authors, as well as book descriptions provided by others. However, I tried to always follow the original goals of the blog as described above. I hope you agree that I did.

One of the problems I thought I would have with the blog was to write it in a way to reach both readers and writers. I considered having two separate blogs. But, I believe it turned out okay on that count. Writers are readers and many readers enjoy learning about the writing craft, so there was something for everyone.

Blogspot, the blogging method I use, provides a way to identify labels in each article. In reviewing those, I found the following most often used (each was in 10 or more articles):

Amazon.com

Bonnie Hearn Hill (my writing teacher)

Book Reviews

Bookmobile

California

Celeste (my wife)

Christian Fiction

CreateSpace

Georgetown

Kindle

Publishing

Texas

University of Texas

Vengeance is Mine

Writers League of Texas

Writing

Sometimes I wonder if I remember to add these labels each time. If you want to see all the articles with a particular label, click on the label on the left.

Christmas in Jail – Part 3 of 3

(Excerpt from Vengenace Is Mine)

I stood and quietly walked to the bars. I looked as far as I could to the left and then the right. No one was in sight. I picked up the Bible and grabbed the paper to make it line up with the pages of the Bible, but it wouldn't move. It was stuck inside somehow. I opened the Bible to release the skewed paper and when I did I saw the slip of paper was blank. However, there was a verse highlighted in yellow. I was compelled to read it. The verse marked was Romans 12:19. I knew it from memory. "Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave room for the wrath of God; for it is written, 'Vengeance is mine. I will repay, says the Lord.'"

I felt a chill, but shook it off. Just a coincidence. That verse would probably apply to most of the guys here. I flipped through the pages of the Bible looking for more yellow ink. I found two more. The first was Colossians 3:13. "Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive."

The third verse I found marked in yellow ink shocked me even more. It was Matthew 28:20. "…and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age."

A strange feeling surrounded me and I knew the Bible readings were for me. God was with me, even here.

I knelt on the concrete with my elbows on the cold metal bed and bowed my head. Nothing happened, but I didn't give up. I stayed there for several minutes, feeling the coldness of the cell, smelling the odor of previous occupants, and trying not to think about the pain in my leg that was worse when I knelt. I wanted to pray, but couldn't. "Help me," was all I could say, so I repeated it over and over again until a sense of comfort enveloped me. That's when I knew God was with me. I felt His strength surround my body. Even the throbbing in my leg from the gunshot wound was gone. I was at peace and pain free for the first time since Sarah's death. It was then I realized God had always been with me. He hadn't abandoned me even though I'd doubted His love. I'd even doubted His existence.

Now I could pray. "Dear God, thank You," I said aloud. "I feel Your power and know You're with me here in this cell. I don't know what to do, but I know I will look for your guidance. Forgive me, Lord. Forgive me for my doubts. And, please Lord, help my friend, Tex. Amen."

After my prayer I was so relaxed I stretched out on the cot and rested.

Christmas in Jail – Part 2 of 3

(Excerpt from Vengenace Is Mine)

I stretched out on the small metal bed to ponder what to do next. This was one of those times I wished I could pray. Or, had someone to pray to.

I may have drifted off. I'm not sure, but I felt as if I were waking from a deep sleep when I heard a voice call my name. I sat up and saw a tall black man standing outside my cell.

"Hi, son," he said. "It's Christmas eve. I thought you might like a little company."

I stared at him with what I knew must be hate as I walked to the bars where he stood. I could see the word "Chaplain" on a bright red badge attached to the left lapel of his dark blue coat that had the it. My stare didn't faze him. His smile warmed the cell. I didn't care. He was the last person in the world I wanted to talk to. Christmas eve. Hmph. Christmas without Sarah. I'd never have another Christmas with Sarah.

"Didn't you read my booking form?" I said it loud enough for the other inmates to hear. "I wrote atheist on it where it asked about denomination." Atheist might be too strong. Maybe I was an agnostic. Maybe I didn't know. That made me laugh, the not knowing part.

"I read it. Doesn't matter what you wrote, I can see in your heart that you love your Lord and God and always will."

I laughed. "That's funny. If you could look into my heart you might be surprised what you'd see. You might even have to run tell the guards what's in my heart." I turned and walked to the back of the small cell to put distance between us.

"I know, son. That's why I'm here. To help you get beyond your loss so you can feel the love of God once more."

When he said the word 'loss', I turned around quickly to face him. Then it hit me, he was just guessing. He didn't know about Sarah.

I laughed again and sat on the edge of my cot.

"I'm praying for you, son," the black man said. "Here's a Bible for when you're ready for it."

He was silent after that. I couldn't resist looking to see if he had left and when I did he was nowhere in sight. He'd placed the Bible just inside the bars on the floor. I wanted to leave it there and let him find it sitting in the same place after I was out of here. But I couldn't. There was a piece of paper sticking out of one side and it was crooked. Sometimes I hated this obsession of mine for neatness. I wasn't tempted to read the piece of paper, but I couldn't resist straightening it.

Christmas in Jail – Part 1 of 3

(Excerpt from Vengenace Is Mine)

 

They put me in a small holding cell at the Galveston Police Station without booking me. One of the guards said I'd probably be released soon, but after the cruise ship blew up, they changed their mind. I was photographed, fingerprinted and moved to a larger, private cell alongside other prisoners.

I started to call Angela when I was offered a phone call, thinking she might have more pull with the police, but I called Dad instead. He was in an airport in Los Angeles and wanted to cancel his trip and come to Galveston. I talked him out of it by telling him the police would learn I had nothing to do with the cruise ship bombing. They would find out that Tex and I had helped the investigation by discovering the place where the bomb was probably made. Dad's voice was more serious than I'd heard in some time while he was probably making his decision about coming or not. Finally, he said for me not to worry because he'd take care of everything.

I don't know if all the jail scuttlebutt was accurate or not, but based on what I heard from jailers and inmates, the bomb had exploded in the crew's quarters on the cruise ship. The ship's name was the same as the name on the ID card Tex and I had found in the warehouse. Since the explosion was below the water line, the ship sunk quickly. No one in the rumor mill here knew how many people had been lost, but I heard there were other ships in the area picking up survivors.

Sitting alone on the steel bed, I couldn't help thinking the bombing could have been prevented if we'd found the cruise ship uniform sooner and acted faster. I had this nagging feeling of responsibility for what had happened. Maybe I shouldn't have tried to do anything about Sarah's death. I was clearly in over my head. And what about Tex? He could end up in prison again for helping me. I didn't know if he was on parole still or not, and I wasn't sure if he had a permit to carry a weapon. What he'd said in the warehouse about putting his gun away before we called the police made me doubt it. Do they let ex-cons have permits? Probably not.

Bookmobile Christmases

In Where Love Once Lived, Christmas is the cause for the break up between Brian and Karen. Well, sort of. Thirty years earlier, Brian went home from the university because his mother wanted him there to celebrate Christmas with the family. It was while he was in California that he was tempted and failed.

In the current time of the book, Karen tells her daughter Julie the only gift she wants is for Julie to go to church with her. Although the ploy didn't work, Karen is eventually rewarded for her efforts.

Julie goes on a ski trip with her father and his new family and leaves her mother for the first time during Christmas. But Karen doesn't stay home alone. She goes to visit her brother in Iowa. However, after a short visit, she wishes she had stayed in Austin.

Meanwhile, Brian is in California with his family after the head librarian shuts down the bookmobile service. He is shocked to learn his mother has Alzheimer's and there is no mention of a joyous Christmas.

In Vengeance Is Mine, Chris and Tex borrow the bookmobile to go to Galveston searching for some terrorists on Christmas Eve. They get arrested for breaking and entering and spend Christmas Eve in jail. It is a turning point for Chris so I've included the manuscript of that night in jail in the next three posts.

Enjoy.

Another Event Scheduled

On January 26, 2011, I'll be one of four featured speakers at the Assistance League's "Booked for Lunch" event in Georgetown. The Assistance League is a nationwide organization with chapters in local areas. "Booked for Lunch" is an annual fund-raising event for Georgetown's chapter. Read about it here: http://sidneywfrost.com/BookedForLunch.pdf. There is a $20 charge with the money going to benefit Assistance League’s Philanthropic Programs.

We each get 20 to 30 minutes to talk. I think I will tell about how Where Love Once Lived got started, read some from the beginning, and then tell them about my new book, Vengeance Is Mine.

For more information about the organization, see:  http://algeorgetownarea.org./.

I hope all my Georgetown friends will come. Most of you have my book, but you haven't heard me talk about it. Besides, the money goes to a good cause.

Google Maps Takes the Fun Out of Research

In my work in progress, Vengeance Is Mine, the protagonist travels a lot. To make it easier for me, I only let him go to places I've been. That way I can create better descriptions of the locations. But the other day I wished I was in Albuquerque again to get a bit a detail I needed for a scene. I wanted there to be a house close to the Petroglyph National Monument, but I didn't know if there was one or not. In the old days, such research might require a tax-deductible trip to look around first hand. But, no longer.

Here's all I had to do. I opened Google Maps in my browser and typed in Petroglyph National Monument. Then I clicked on the little orange Google man and moved him to the streets around the park. I found just what I needed. There was a whole neighborhood near the park's parking lot. Close enough to serve my needs.

From Albuquerque, my characters went to Rowe, a small town in Massachusetts I know quite well, but a place where most people don't vacation. My memory of the place was good, but I had not been to a private airport in nearby North Adams that I wanted to use in the story. With Google Maps I was able to start at the airport and follow the road to Rowe. I learned there are many turns along the way. I looked for photos as I made my virtual trip in hopes of finding a winter scene but there were none. Luckily, I went to Rowe this year and a friend there had some photos taken while there was snow on the ground.

So, no longer must we go to a villa in France or spend time on a barge in the Netherlands to absorb details enough for a realistic description. All we have to do is turn on the computer.

Planning a Subsequent Book In a Series

Where Love Once Lived developed over a long period of time because it was my first novel and, quite honestly, I didn’t know what I was doing. Vengeance Is Mine, may second effort, was much easier because of the experience I had gained with my first book. However, it has mostly new characters. Although there are references to a few others, only Liz, the librarian plays a part in both books. At the time I wrote Vengeance, I noticed a methodology emerging, but I didn’t stop to record it.

All I remember about the method was starting with an Excel worksheet with a row for each scene. I was aiming for a particular market with a maximum of 80,000 words and knew from my first book that a  scene length of 2,000 words was about right. So, I started with 40 scenes. Next, I identified the first ten scenes as Act I, the next 20 as Act II, and the last 10 as Act III. For more information about acts, see Elements of Fiction Writing - Beginnings, Middles & Ends by Nancy Kress.

By the way, the completed manuscript contains 72,334 words divided into 44 scenes.

With Vengeance Is Mine off to the publisher for review it is time to start Do Unto Others. This is the second in the bookmobile series, so I already know the characters. There will probably be a few new ones pop up and some of the ones from Where Love Once Lived will get bigger parts this time. I have a story question developed as well as the gem of an idea for each act. So I can start writing as soon as I organize the scenes.

I teach Microsoft Office at Austin Community College and, while teaching a class on integrating PowerPoint and Word, thought of a new way to get started on this book. Instead of Excel, I’m outlining with PowerPoint. Why? Because PowerPoint slides are so easy to move around using the slide sorter view.

This is similar to the way writers once used 3 x 5 cards for scenes and taped them on the wall as a guide to follow. Perhaps some still do that.

The title of each slide contains the scene number. Then there are bullets for POV, Time, Location, Goal, and Conflict. This is as far as I've gotten in my new method, but I'll continue to share the process with you as I go. Just so you'll know, my plan is to create 40 scenes, sort them as needed, then there is an automated way to convert the slides to a Word outline. Once in Word, I will convert the outline to hidden text to use as a guide for writing the book.

Do you have a method to share?

An Open Letter to the Austin History Center

As you know, I dropped off two copies of my novel, Where Love Once Lived, last week. As a long-time resident of Austin who is now living in Sun City Texas in Georgetown, I know you have a place for the publications of local authors because my last book, Automated Law Office Systems, is in the Austin History Center according to the online catalog.

What you don’t know is that the idea for Where Love Once Lived came to me when I worked in the building now called the Austin History Center. At that time it was the main library building. This was back in the 1960s when I was a part-time bookmobile driver while going to the University of Texas.

The librarian I rode with most was Jean Siedo. She was outspoken and somewhat unorthodox, and clearly not the typical librarian. However, she was loved by all the patrons. Liz Siedo, the fictional bookmobile librarian in my book is an exaggeration of the real librarian based on my half-century-old memories.

Another thing you don’t know is that my next book, currently called Vengeance Is Mine, also involves Liz and the library. However, in this book, she has been promoted to director of libraries. She likes the old building where the Austin History Center is and has her office there. The manuscript for that book is with a potential publisher, but I’ll make sure you get a copy when it’s published.

I'd like to take this opportunity to apologize to Brenda Branch, the director of libraries in Austin because Ms. Varner, head librarian in my book is a villain. I didn't set out to make her evil, but early readers of the manuscript said it needed more conflict. Everyone loved the Liz character, so getting Ms. Varner fired presented a way to promote Liz. Remember, it is fiction.

Find the Perfect Name for a Fictional Character Part 4

Because of the popularity of one name over another, the meaning of the name may not seem too important to your readers. However, it may be important to you as the author to pick a name that matches the character traits you want your character to have. In my work in progress, Vengeance Is Mine, the main character is Chris, who is a young man in his mid-thirties. He was brought up by parents who made sure he attended church regularly. Chris continues to worship each Sunday after he is grown and out on his own. In fact, it is the church where he meets Sarah who he plans to marry.

When Sarah is brutally killed, Chris blames God. Not only does Chris denounce God and leave the church, he takes it upon himself to avenge her murder, knowing that vengeance goes against everything he had been taught.

Why the name Chris?

I tried several names before settling on Chris. But, before finalizing the decision, I went to Behind the Name website and typed in Chris. I learned that Christopher, the full name for Chris, was used by early Christians as a metaphorical name, expressing that they carried Christ in their hearts. Perfect. For, even though my Chris denounces God, God stays in his heart until it is time for Chris to accept Him.

Behind the Scenes is an excellent place to find the etymology and history of first names. To use it, go to:

http://www.behindthename.com/. You may want to try the name Chris and see if you agree with me that it is the perfect first name for my character.

Find the Perfect Name for a Fictional Character Part 1

In my work in progress, Vengeance Is Mine, I discovered last week that I had two characters named Paul. I always liked that name, and I know at least six Pauls in real life, probably more if I sat down and made a list. But two Pauls in a novel is not acceptable.

I'm usually pretty careful about selecting names, so I was surprised it happened. In fact, I use an Excel worksheet to track character names to make sure it doesn't happen. My worksheet is simple, and has these columns:

• Last Name
• First Name
• Comments

By separating the last name and first name, I can use Excel's Data tab to easily sort by first or last name. I try not to have two characters that have the same first letter much less the same first name. So what happened?

The double Paul error occurred because one of the Pauls had a nickname. My writing instructor, Bonnie Hearn Hill, always said it was best to have one name for a character and stick with it. Even though, in real life, we have names of endearment, nicknames, and legal names for just about everyone we know.

In my case, one of my main characters (Paul #1) was called Tex by everyone. In my Character worksheet I had included his real first name with Tex in the Comments column. The only reason I had his real first name listed was for backstory and so that I, as author creator, knew him well enough to know his full name. At some point in the process I forgot his real name and knew him only as Tex.

Paul #2 shows up in three scenes and is mentioned in two others. A minor, but not insignificant character. His name rings true to me for this character. He is a Paul.

I found out I had two Pauls when I decided it didn't sound right for Liz, Tex's boss at the library, to call him by his nickname. She might call him Mr. Thompson, or use his first name, but she wouldn't call his Tex. Since I couldn't remember what his first name was, I opened the Excel worksheet, and sorted on first name. That's when I discovered I had two Pauls.

Needless to say I had to change Tex's first name because, as I said, the name Paul was perfect for Paul #2. So, now Tex's real name is Percy. Nothing against the Percys in the world, but the character in my book would welcome a nickname if his parents labeled him Percy.

In the next posting, we'll look at other considerations when it comes to finding the perfect character name. In the meantime, I'd love to hear from you about how you select names.

More About Software and Writing

I told you about how I use Microsoft Excel to summarize scenes in my novels, Where Love Once Lived and Vengeance Is Mine. That made me think about how I use hidden words in Microsoft Word. At the beginning of every scene, I include the following information formatted as hidden:

• Time (day of week, date, time of day)

• Weather (temperature, rain, etc.)

• Scene number

• Scene setting

• Scene goal

• Scene conflict

If you're not familiar with hidden text, read up on it in Word Help. It can be quite useful. You'll also need to go to Word Options to turn on display and print for hidden text. If you want to see the manuscript without your notes either on screen or in print, modify the settings

Sometimes the date doesn't matter to a story. However, I included it anyway to add realism. I don't always include the year, but it helps to know the month and day. Same for weather. You can use the real weather for a particular day by looking it up online, or use some imaginary dark clouds or rain to add a mood if it helps your story.

One problem with using hidden text in this way is that when scenes are added, deleted or moved, the numbering has to be changed. However, if you do this in conjunction with the Excel scene summary I described previously you can make the change there first.

I teach Excel, plus the rest of Microsoft Office at Austin Community College, so feel free to ask if you have questions.

Let Your Computer Help Your Writing

In a recent post in The Writer's Alley, Krista Phillips talked about using software such as Microsoft's Outlook and Excel to keep track of the timeline in your novel. Her reason was to make sure you don't overlook an important event such as Independence Day as you are writing.

I used an Excel spreadsheet while writing Where Love Once Lived for a simple scene summary worksheet. The fields included:

• Chapter number

• Scene number (computed after scene 1)

• Number of pages in chapter

• Number of words in scene

• Total number of words (computed)

• Date

• Day of week (computed)

• Location

• Scene Goal

• Conflict

This worked fine for Where Love Once Lived, but when I started working on Vengeance Is Mine, I ran into trouble trying to line up events with the calendar. I had my amateur detectives finding clues hidden in a field in Massachusetts that was more than likely under five or six feet of snow at the time. As it is, they spend Christmas day in the Galveston jail. I decided I liked that and made use of it in a later scene.

To simplify change, I only enter the date of scene 1. The rest are computed. That way, I can modify the starting date until all the scenes fall into place. So, I've added a new field before Date called Days. It is the number of days from scene 1 to the current scene. With this information I can easily compute the date and day of week of the scene.

It's not easy to explain worksheets in text, so if you're interested, I'll be glad to send you a copy of what I ended up which includes the formulas.

Book Publishing Status Report

CreateSpace Projects:

LCCN Assignment--Completed. LCCN stands for Library of Congress Control Number. I also have an ISBN, International Standard Book Number.

Total Design Freedom Custom Book Interior--I approved the interior design (again) Friday, May 14, 2010. CreateSpace is now preparing the interior proof. I will have the opportunity to make text changes prior to the creation of the final files. I've been making notes of changes I want to make and hope I can get it all done soon. To see the latest interior design, see Where Love Once Lived.

Comprehensive Copyediting--Completed

Promotional Text Creation--Completed

Press Release Creation--Being prepared. Next is reviewing, approval, and final verification

Press Release Distribution--Currently scheduling. Next is distributing.

Publicity Kit--Currently working on proof. Printing is next. However, since the cover is used in the publicity items, I don't believe much will be done until the cover is complete. I'll tell you more about this later.

Illustrated Book Cover--The account manager called last Wednesday, May 12, 2010 to talk about the cover design. I told her I see a man and woman looking at each other with a bookmobile in the background with children near it. I said I would like a symbol to show it is a Christian novel, but I wasn't sure what. She said the artist would read everything they have about the book and then come up with a sketch. If I like the sketch, the artist will prepare two cover designs for me to chose from. She said it will be about ten days before I get the sketch.

This is a slow process. I can see now why it takes so long to publish a book. In addition to what CreateSpace is doing, I am writing a daily (M-F) blog called the Christian Bookmobile to help publicize the book and build title and author name recognition. By mentioning the book each day since March 31, 2010, the search engines have already picked up the title and the blog.

In addition to the blog, I've made contact with other Christian Fiction blog writers and am planning a virtual book tour using blogs. As soon as I have a definite publication date, I'll finalize the tour schedule. I'm also working on a Facebook fan page which I'll activate shortly before the publication date.

I've identified book reviewers who I will send sample copies of the book to in hopes they will review it. I will ask for honest opinions only and will not pay anyone for a fake review. If any of you would like to review the book when it comes out, please let me know. I can also send pdf versions sooner, but not until I quit changing it. Soon, I hope.

Also, I have identified book stores in both Georgetown and the Austin area, and will be talking to them about book signings. I'll prepare press releases for area newspapers as well and I plan to write articles for the newsletters of two of the writers' organizations I belong to.

Meanwhile, I should be working on my second book, Vengeance Is Mine. I've been so busy with Where Love Once Lived, I haven't touched the new book in several months.