Seekerville: The Journey Continues

Hello everyone, Winnie Griggs here. I’ve got a really busy schedule for the next week or so, mainly due to an upcoming release (yaaay!) so I will apologize for the brevity of this post.

What I thought I'd do today is give you a short refresher on how to reveal emotion using show vs tell techniques. Showing emotion rather than simply telling what your character is feeling allows readers to experience characters' feelings along with them, fostering a deeper connection to your characters and so your story..

Let's look at four techniques to help you accomplish this.

1. Use Physical Descriptions:
   Often, our bodies reflect our emotions. A character who is angry might clench their fists, while someone who is nervous could tap their foot incessantly. Instead of saying "Joan was sad," you could write, "Tears welled up in Joan's eyes as she stared at the empty room."
   
   
2.  Dialogue and Voice:
   The way characters speak can reveal their emotional state. A happy character may speak quickly or laugh a lot, while a worried character might stutter or trail off. Consider this example: instead of writing "Emma was worried about her exam," you could show her asking her friend, "Do you think...what if I don't pass?"
   
   
3.  Inner Thoughts and Feelings:
   Getting inside a character's head can be an effective way to show their emotions. Rather than telling the reader, "Jake was angry at his boss," you might write, "Jake replayed his boss's words over and over in his mind, each repetition fueling his simmering resentment."
   
   
4.  Actions and Reactions:
   How your character acts and reacts can say a lot about their emotional state. Instead of stating "Lisa was excited," write, "Lisa couldn't sit still. She kept checking the time, her heart pounding each time the minute hand jumped forward."

Remember, the key to showing emotion is subtlety. It's about painting a picture that allows the reader to infer the characters' feelings from their actions, dialogue, and internal monologues. Practice these techniques, and you'll find your characters coming alive with emotional depth and authenticity.

 What do you think of the above points - do you agree with them? Can you think of other techniques to show a character’s emotion without naming it?  Leave a comment to be entered in a drawing for one of my backlist books.

A sharpshooter hiding her identity. A preacher with a guilty past. Will secrets ruin their shot at love?

Violet Taylor leads a double life. She performs in a traveling show as the mysterious Masked Marvel, a daring and commanding sharpshooter. But in real life, she holds back and allows others to lead the way. When an accident puts her arm in a sling, she has to scramble to protect the secret of her identity as the Masked Marvel. So she enlists the help of her identical twin sister, a “townie” dressmaker, to secretly swap places until her arm heals. But that means she must also take on her sister’s role as director of a children’s church program. There’s just one hitch. Her sister sweet on Pastor Carson, the program’s codirector, so Violet has to make sure not to mess anything up with him.

Pastor Carson Davis became guardian to an orphaned nine-year-old six months ago and has been struggling to build a relationship with the boy ever since. It’s to the point where he’s begun to wonder if he’s even fit to be a pastor. Could finding himself a wife who’d be a proper mother figure for his foster son be the solution?

As Violet and Carson work together on the children’s program the attraction between them grows. But awareness of her sister’s feelings and guilt over her deception hold Violet back.
Little does she know that Carson is harboring secrets of his own…

ORDER LINK

 

by Mindy Obenhaus

There are lots of celebrations on tap for the Obi family this month. One grandson has a birthday, as well as our youngest daughter. Later this month, we'll be welcoming a new grandbaby AND I'll have a new book baby to boot. 

Book three in my Hope Crossing series, Loving the Rancher's Children, releases May 23rd. If you've read one or both of the other two books in the series, you'll not only have an opportunity to catch up with some familiar characters from the first two books, but you'll also get to know Jake Walker and Alli Krenek who've been mentioned in the previous books. No worries if you haven't ready either of the other books, though. Any of them can be read as a stand-alone. 

Growing up on adjoining ranches, Jake and Alli were the best of friends, always trying to outdo each other. But just when it seemed their friendship was blossoming into something more, Jake broke Alli's heart. And they've barely spoken since. Something that was easy to do when Alli lived in Austin. But now she's back in Hope Crossing and Jake is a widowed father of two in need of a nanny. A position Alli would jump on if Jake weren't the children's father. But between her soft spot for kids and God's nudging, Alli soon changes her mind. 

Have you ever encountered someone you once knew and tried to fit them into the mold of who they were only to find out they'd changed? I don't know about you, but I'm not the same person I was at eighteen. I've had a lot of life experiences between then and now and they've shaped who I am today.

As a writer, I loved watching Jake and Alli discover who the other person had become. To see their preconceived notions flipped upside down. And I hope you will, too. You can preorder your copy at any of these fine retailers: Amazon, ChristianBook.com, Barnes and Noble, Walmart, Target

But today we're celebrating, so I'm giving away a signed copy of Loving the Rancher's Children, along with a $20 Amazon gift card (U.S. mailing addresses only, please). Simply leave a comment to be entered, however, if you comment as Anonymous, please include a name so everyone will know which Anonymous actually won. Then be sure to check the Weekend Edition Saturday to find out if you're a winner.

Best-selling author Mindy Obenhaus is passionate about touching readers with Biblical truths in an entertaining, and sometimes adventurous, manner. She lives on a ranch in Texas with her husband, two sassy pups, countless cattle, deer and the occasional coyote, mountain lion or snake. When she's not writing, she enjoys spending time with her grandchildren, cooking and watching copious amounts of the Hallmark Channel. Learn more at www.MindyObenhaus.com

Hello everyone, Winnie Griggs here. On April 25^th Her Amish Patchwork Family, the third book in my Hope’s Haven series, will release. This book will feature the final and oldest of the Eicher sisters, Martha.

When writing a multi-book series there are a lot of parts and pieces to keep track of – today I thought I’d share a little bit about my personal method of doing this. First let me say that I’m a spreadsheet nerd. If I need to track anything I usually put it in a spreadsheet. So of course that’s what I use to track all the details of my story world. And let me add that I’ll keep up with a lot of this same info even if it is a standalone book – it saves a lot of time trying to remember what the name of a particular restaurant is or the street name my hero’s house is on.  SO here goes:

The first thing I start tracking is backstory. Here is a view of my tracking chart for backstory:

As you can see, I built on this from book to book - necessary because the books are so interlaced through family. So when I created this for the first book, it just had event columns for the Eicher and Stoll families, the age columns for Micah and Asher didn't exist, and the rows ended where it says Greta's story opens.  The other information was added as I began work on each book.

Next comes my character tracking which also includes pets/work animals. Here's my sheet for that. Hopefully it's pretty self-explanatory.

The next sheet in my workbook is reserved for location info

Next I have my story calendar, a day by day chart of what happens when. Having this picture helps me keep up with certain things that are fixed (holidays, church services, standing civic/committee/business meetings, etc.)  It also helps me make sure I don't have two Wednesdays in one week or a nine day week or any of the other weird things that can happen if I don't keep up with things. I have one of these for each book

I also will create sheets that are specific for each book/series.  For instance, in this serries I have children show up in each book and even some that are born between books. As these children will interact with each other, I needed a quick reference on how old they were at particulars points in time. So I created this sheet

So there you have it. my personal Storyworld Tracking method. Leave a comment letting me know what you think to get your name in the drawing for an advanced copy of Her Amish Patchwork Family.

And here is a little more info about my upcoming release

HER AMISH PATCHWORK FAMILY

In this heartwarming Amish romance, a former schoolteacher and a single father discover a second chance at friendship, family, and love

Former Hope’s Haven schoolteacher, Martha Eicher, has always been the responsible one, putting her family first and caring for her widowed father and two younger sisters. But now they’re all happily married, and Martha isn’t sure where she fits in anymore . . . until she hears that Asher Lantz needs a nanny. Even though her childhood friendship with Asher ended abruptly years ago, when a misunderstanding drove a wedge between them, Martha offers her assistance.

Asher is also feeling adrift. As a single father to his niece and nephews, he struggles to balance his new family responsibilities with those on the farm and in his workshop. He’s grateful for Martha’s help, but worries things will always feel awkward with her. Yet before long, Asher realizes Martha is exactly what his family needs, and he can’t imagine his home without her. Martha and Asher thought they were lost, but could they be right where they belong . . . together?

PURCHASE LINK

 

The exciting conclusion to The Lumber Baron's Daughters series is coming in October.

A Model of Devotion...plenty of danger and action and romance.

Jilly finally faces the fact that she has to get married to be safe. And yet getting marriage is the most dangerous thing she can imagine.

She's finally claimed her independence . . . how far will she go to keep it?

A brilliant engineer, Jilly Stiles has been educated since childhood to help run her father's lumber dynasty. With the company safe from her stepfather after the marriages of her two sisters, Jilly can now focus on her dream of building a mountaintop railroad--and never marry.

Nick Ryder came into Jilly's life when he saved her mother from her no-good stepfather, and he's prepared to protect Jilly from anything that threatens to harm her--as long as he keeps his heart from getting involved.

But when a cruel and powerful man goes to dangerous lengths to make Jilly his own, she must make a decision between her safety and her hard-won independence.

*****

This week I'm on my way to a writer's conference.

I'm so nervous I can't STAND IT!

I've done a few, very few things out in the real world but mostly within my small bubble of close friends and family.

But I love the ACFW Conference and am determined to go. So...

I'm trying to ignore the upcoming conference, all while packing and planning and booking flights and a hotel room.

And yes, it's a little insane. But I think now instead of crazy, they say you're compartmentalizing.

So I can pick out clothes and pack a suitcase, while ignoring that I've got to get out of my bubble for a while.

So I'm doing it and I've got a new release coming to promote so it's a good thing, right?

Anyone else going?

Have any of you done this? Stepped back out into the real world boldly? Or had trouble doing it?

I'm a serious introvert. I think introverts make the best writers, because liking people is just so TIME CONSUMING. And not to say I don't like people...I just don't want to talk to them, or see them, or be out of my recliner.

That's not the same as not liking someone.

So tell me how you've emerged from your cocoon. Are you an introvert and an extrovert and, btw, I WOULD think Introverts make the best writers, now wouldn't I? 

And maybe, I'll see you in St Louis.

Hello everyone, Winnie Griggs here. I’m so excited - the release day for Talulla, the ninth book in the multi-author Love Train series, is almost here - it releases on August 1st.

As I posted last month, multi-author projects are always fun. The chance to bounce ideas off of each other and do some collective worldbuilding, even when the books are standalone, brings an extra layer of excitement to a project. One of my contributions to the worldbuilding aspect was to speak to a curator at a railroad museum and get a copy of a timetable that showed travel times and stops along the Union Pacific route in the 1870s. Others dug out information on Pullman cars, dining options, how sleeper berths were set-up and stored away and many other little details that went into making the train travel portion of our stories as realistic as possible.

As for the stories themselves, other than details about wordcount and other administrative issues, each of the ten participating authors were given the following set-up for the books:    

• The books will all be standalone
• Each story will have the hero and heroine encountering each other while traveling on a Union Pacific train, engine number 1216. The train travel will happen on page for at least part of the story.
• The time frame will be 1869 or later.
• A matchmaking conductor will be featured in each book. (character sketch provided).

Given these identical parameters, it was really interesting to see how VERY differently each story turned out. 

When I started brainstorming the story for my book, Talulla, I started by reading through my idea file.  You know, that place where an author stores those ‘someday’ ideas, snippets of character sketches, plot points, what-ifs that are intriguing enough to grab your attention, but not fully formed enough to earn a story just yet. And the one that tugged at me was an idea I had pitched to my editor in my early days of writing for LIH. It was rejected, and rightly so, it wasn’t developed enough at the time. But that was over a dozen years ago and with the advantage of a little more experience under my belt I could see the weak spots and figure out how best to rework it.

I was very excited to be able to finally breathe new life into this story and get it ‘out there’ in the world at large. I know this may sound silly, but whenever I develop a story to the point of having a proposal pulled together, I get invested in the characters and feel I’m letting them down if I don’t get the story written.

Here’s an excerpt. For context, Tally and Max were childhood friends but a tragic accident that resulted in the death of her brother changed all that. She went away to boarding school and it’s been twelve years since they’ve seen each other. Max is now a widowed father and he and his seven-year-old daughter Bonnie are traveling home on a train in the crowded coach car when Bonnie falls prey to travel sickness. The conductor finds a passenger with extra seating in her Pullman section who agrees to share her space with the sick child. Here is how the first meeting goes.

A split second before Henry made the introductions, recognition kicked Max in the gut. Tally!

Henry waved to the woman. “Mr. Maxwell Wallace, this is Miss Talulla Alden. Miss Alden, this is Mr. Maxwell Wallace and his daughter Bonnie.”

Max saw her stiffen, as he was certain he had. He gave a short nod. “Tally.”

“Max?” Her tone conveyed shock, as if she’d just bitten into something that was unexpectedly sour.

Henry looked from one to the other of them in obvious delight. “So you two know each other?”

Max nodded. “We do. Or at least we did, many years ago.” Tally Alden—the flesh and blood reminder of one of the lowest moments and biggest regrets of his life. No wonder she’d seemed familiar out there on the platform and that he’d thought of her earlier.

The conductor rocked back on his heels looking very pleased with himself. “Well this is excellent. You can get reacquainted and there won’t be any of that awkwardness strangers experience when meeting each other for the first time.”

Max barely managed to keep from rolling his eyes. If Henry only knew.

Then Max shifted, settling Bonnie more comfortably in his arms. Tally seemed to collect herself at that. She waved to the upholstered seat across from her. “Please, lay your little girl down. And have a seat as well.”

She glanced from his daughter to the conductor. Anywhere but at him it seemed. “I know you’re not a porter, but would it be possible to get a blanket for Bonnie?”

The conductor touched the brim of his hat. “I’ll see to it right away. And if there is anything else I can do to make this new seating arrangement more comfortable for the three of you please let me know.”

Max hesitated, not sure he was truly welcome. But another fretful movement from Bonnie settled the matter. He took the seat across from Tally, laying Bonnie gently down with her head in his lap. “I know you and I didn’t leave things on the best of terms when we were last together.” A definite understatement. That eyes-blazing declaration that she hated him had been the last words she’d spoken directly to him before today. “But I’m very grateful that you’re doing this for Bonnie.”

She folded her hands in her lap. “Your daughter is an innocent and she’s suffering. I wouldn’t be so cruel as to turn her away.”

Her tone and cold look said that the characterization of innocent didn’t extend to him. It seemed she still hadn’t forgiven him.

“You look good Tally, all grown up. I wouldn’t have recognized you as that gangly, freckle faced girl I remember.” This poised, graceful, fashionable woman was nothing like the little tomboy who used to follow him and her older brother around with sometimes annoying persistence, wanting to be included even when her presence wasn’t welcome.

She smiled, though it didn’t extend to her eyes. “No one’s called me Tally since I left Windflower.” A shadow crossed her face. She was no doubt remembering Jamie, the one who’d given her the nickname.

“Would you prefer Talulla?” he asked quickly. “Or Miss Alden perhaps?”

She waved a hand. “Tally’s fine.”

He leaned back, careful not to jostle Bonnie, and studied her a moment as she fiddled with a chain at her neck, her gaze once more focused elsewhere. Max finally decided it was up to him to carry the conversation. “So what takes you home after all these years?”

She tucked a tendril behind her ear, her expression closed off, just short of hostile. “There’s an heirloom I’m supposed to inherit on my twenty second birthday, which happened this week. My father is holding it hostage until I come to personally collect it.”

Good for Rupert. “Then let me offer you a belated happy birthday. And I’m sure your father will be happy for the opportunity to see you again, whatever the reason.” He couldn’t resist adding “It’s been some time since you were last home, hasn’t it?”

Tally’s eyes narrowed at that.

I hope you enjoyed this sneak peak into Talulla. Leave a comment with your thoughts to be entered in a drawing for a copy of Talulla, to be delivered once it goes live.

TALULLA

Ten-year-old Talulla watched in horror as her beloved brother fell through the ice while trying to save her. Thanks to the quick actions of Max, her brother’s closest friend, she survived. Her brother didn’t. 

When she overhears Max and her father discussing that she’s to blame, Talulla feels betrayed by those she thought she could most trust. A boarding school becomes her refuge, and she never looked back. Until now.

Widowed father Max is traveling home with his young daughter. Unfortunately, a bad case of travel sickness overtakes the little girl, and Max turns to the conductor for help. When the man finds a passenger willing to share her Pullman section, Max is relieved—until he discovers their benefactor is Talulla, a woman whose last words to Max were an impassioned I hate you.

Can these two find a way to push past their mutual distrust to regain the friendship they once shared. And perhaps something more…

To pre-order, click HERE

by Mindy Obenhaus

It’s here! It’s finally here! The third installment of my Bliss, Texas series, A Future to Fight For, released last week and I couldn’t be more thrilled. I love this story. It’s a tale of love, loss and overcoming tragedy to discover new dreams.

You know, life is full of ups and downs but there’s one thing—one person—that remains faithful. God. Whether we’re in the valley or on the highest mountain top, He is there, willing to walk with us, even carry us.

Paisley, the heroine in A Future to Fight For, woke up one morning to a horrific tragedy. One that would have done many of us in. And threatened to do so with her. But God. His mercies are new every day.

Here’s a snippet from the story:

“Cute kid.” Crockett pointed to the photograph as Paisley lifted her head. “His hair’s the same color as yours.”

Her movements stilled as she looked away. “That’s my son. Logan.”

Son? He wasn’t aware she had a son.

She reached for a towel, wiping her hands as she approached him. “He died in the same car accident that took my husband.” Stopping beside him, she continued. “He was ten.”

Speechless, Crockett simply stood there, feeling as though he’d been punched in the gut. How does one overcome something like that? Losing a spouse to death would be hard enough, but to lose a child at the same time? He couldn’t even begin to fathom the amount of strength it must take for her to get up every morning knowing that they weren’t there.

Looking down at her, he could see the sorrow in her eyes. Yet, there were no tears.

He felt like a heel. “I—I’m sorry, Paisley. I had no idea.”

“I know you didn’t.” She tilted her head to meet his gaze, her smile tremulous. “That’s why I told you.”

Could that be why she’d needed a change of scenery? “How long ago?”

“It’ll be five years next month.” Making her son a few years older than Mackenzie, had he lived.

Reminding himself to give his kids extra big hugs this morning, he searched Paisley’s face, her peaceful expression, realizing just how wrong he’d been about her. She had an inner strength and determination he wasn’t even sure he possessed.

“I’m sorry you had to go through that.”

She nodded. “Me, too. But God is good, and I firmly believe that He has a plan and a purpose for everything, good or bad.” Her tone left no room for argument.

How was that possible? She’d lost her entire family, not to mention all of the hopes and dreams that went along with it. Something he could relate to, though on a different level. Yet, there wasn’t a hint of anger or self-pity in Paisley’s words.

I don’t know about you, but I need to be a little more like Paisley. It’s easy to trust God when things are going good, but when life deals us a hard blow…

Now don’t let this excerpt leave you thinking this is a sad story. I mean, it has a castle. In Texas, no less! How cool is that? There are also a couple of cute kids and lots of banter between the hero and heroine who are anything but friends when the story opens.

How has God proven Himself faithful in your life? Leave a comment—you don’t have to go into detail—to be entered to win a copy of A Future to Fight For (US mailing addresses will receive a print or digital copy, digital only for international).

 From the gal who said "I'll never write a mystery... my brain just doesn't work that way..." comes a new mystery for a new Guideposts mystery series "Miracles and Mysteries of Mercy Hospital"!

Prescription for Mystery

When Dr. Byron Wellington disappeared without a trace, no one knew what to think. Was he forced to leave without saying goodbye? Or was it something worse? Something even more sinister? As the ladies search out tidbits of information, they discover much more than they were looking for.
In this lingering mystery of the past, the women realize that all is not what it seems on the surface and that, in the end, the truth does indeed set you free."

That's the official description of the story, and as the four women work together to figure things out, they uncover an unknown past that helped build Charleston's future. 

And that's the fun of time-slip. We can look back and see how our present hasn't just happened. It's evolved based on the actions of the past. That can be sacrificial... or greed. Honor... or crime. Good and bad combine to build the cornerstones of today with the actions of the past. 

I hope you love this book and the whole series! I've been working with a great group of authors and we've had a ball! 

I've got two copies of Prescription for Mystery to give away... leave a comment or question below. If you're a writer and want to talk mysteries, I'm in. If you're a reader and want to talk mysteries, well... I'm in there, too! 

Because I love, love, love a good mystery!

And here's a link to an article about... you guessed it!.. ME! :) Guideposts Magazine interviewed me for this month's issue and it was so much fun to be part of it. I love the magazine, the stories of hope and expectation.

LINK TO GUIDEPOSTS ARTICLE ABOUT OUR VERY OWN RUTHY! 

 I’m especially excited to talk about for upcoming release, a Love Inspired short contemporary romance coming out next month. I wrote The Sheriff’s Promise during the first six weeks of COVID quarantine. It was a wild ride. A story that began as a huge stressor due to its extremely tight deadline turned into a wonderful distraction during some very dark days. To be honest, there is no way I wrote this one on my own. God’s Hand was on this book from the first word I typed to the final sentence.

When I started writing the story, I tried to think of all the things I loved most. I adore animals. They have a way of softening hearts and teaching us unconditional love. I’ve learned a lot about God’s unmatchable grace from my pets. For that reason, and many others, I never grow tired of adding four-legged, furry characters to my books, often in the form of dogs and puppies.

I’m also a fan of home renovation shows. There’s something about watching an ordinary room transform into a spectacular space that makes me feel both happy and creatively inspired. How easy it would have been to give my heroine the same passion. But, wait. Just like her alpaca, Remy proved difficult. The veterinarian had little interest in remodeling her home, discussing backsplashes or looking at paint swatches. My hero’s nephew, Samson, came through for me. The little boy couldn’t stop redesigning his dream daycare. Well, when he wasn’t playing with puppies or riding his bike. Kid after my own heart.

Want to know more about The Sheriff’s Promise? Here’s the blurb: 

Overworked and overwhelmed, all Sheriff Wyatt Holcomb wants is to be the best guardian to his seven-year-old nephew—and dealing with a runaway alpaca and the animal’s frustrating owner isn’t helping. 

Then veterinarian Remy Evans offers a solution for them both. She’ll watch his rambunctious nephew, Samson, this summer if he’ll fast-track her permit application for a petting zoo. But this temporary solution might just be their chance at forever…

I also love giving away free books. Let’s talk favorite things. I love puppies, alpacas and renovation shows. What’s guaranteed to make you smile? Leave a comment with your answer and you’ll be entered in a drawing to win a print copy of The Sheriff’s Promise. 

While you’re online, feel free to stop by my website www.reneeryan.com. You can also contact me by email at reneeryanbooks@gmail.com or visit me on my Renee Ryan Facebook page.

Two-time winner of the published Daphne Award for her WWII romantic thrillers, Renee Ryan grew up in a Florida beach town. She received an undergraduate degree in Economics and continued her education on the graduate level at Florida State University, focusing on Religious Studies. She went on to teach high school AP Economics, Political Science, and Latin.