by jphilo | Feb 8, 2016 | Mystery Update
Yes. it’s true. I am posting a mystery novel update only 2 weeks after the previous one. Not because a publishers who received the proposal has issues a contract, though one requested the entire manuscript last week.
Which as my agent, the Man of Steel and I agree is a good sign.
I’m posting this update because I have finished the backstories of the new characters set to debut in the second book in the Tipperary County Mystery Series, chosen its title (See Jane Sing!) outlined the plot, and have completed the first chapter.
Which ends with dear Jane stuck in a snowbank.
In her bright red Super Beetle. Imagine the car on the right painted the color of the car on the right with the front bumper and half the hood buried in a snowbank during a blizzard on an isolated stretch of gravel road in far western South Dakota.
Which never happened to me or the Man of Steel during our years in South Dakota.
But it could have happened. And we did have a bright red 1973 Super Beetle. It was cool. And kind of impractical for stocking up on groceries at the nearest supermarket 70 miles from home. So we soon traded it in for a VW Rabbit.
Which was slightly more practical, but most of the ranchers thought we were nuts.
But I digress. Back to Jane who is stuck in a snowbank without a cell phone. Because cell phones hadn’t been invented yet. Even so she knows the whole town, and possibly the National Guard, will soon be looking for her.
Which is why she’s calmly eating Thanksgiving leftovers instead of panicking.
I have to admit that this week’s snowstorm put me in the mood to write the scene. And I should warn you that no more tidbits about the opening of See Jane Sing! are forthcoming, Thought you should know that the person who rescues her is a new character who may or may not bear a slight resemblance to the Man of Steel.
Which is a good place for me to stop.
Don’t worry about Jane. She has a peanut butter jar full of water for drinking and an orange juice can to pee in if worst comes to worst. She’s gonna be just fine.
by jphilo | Aug 24, 2015 | Mystery Update
Progress has continued on my mystery novel set in the wilds of northwest South Dakota since the last Gravel Road update about Jane and her excellent adventures. Of course, every good mystery novel is replete with twists and turns, and this one is no exception. What are the latest twists and turns?
The first is this.
My agent, a wonderful woman and mom to 3 lovely little girls, had planned to read it on vacation. But because that vacation included entertaining 3 lovely little girls, so she didn’t have time to read anything. Which turned out to be a good thing.
Because of the second twist.
My daughter did read the book and returned it with the most marvelous feedback. Feedback that, if implemented, will improve the novel immensely. Feedback that shows she could be a professional editor…and as a literature major she has the credentials. So if you’re looking to hire someone to shape up your manuscript, just let me know. But I digress.
Back to the second twist.
The feedback was so good, I emailed my agent and said, “If you haven’t read the book yet, don’t. Wait for the next draft which will incorporate the feedback from my daughter.”
On to the third twist.
My daughter’s feedback is as unique as she is, consisting as it does of items like the following:
- Beef up the scene at the dump
- Start the butterfly thing earlier
- Get out of Jane’s head and into dialogue more often
- Make the bad guy seem gooder (yes, I know that’s not a word) early on
And so on. My goal is to have this revision done by the last week of August when my daughter and her family come for a visit. So I can entertain the baby while she reads through it. Obviously a doubly self-serving goal, but worthwhile none the less.
Which leads to the fourth and final twist.
When I am deep into revision zone, my little inner voice pipes up every now and then with its favorite public service announcement:
Stop playing around and get back to work.
I stop and feel guilty for a moment until the realization dawns on me.
This is my work.
And I keep writing.
by jphilo | Jun 5, 2015 | Uncategorized
For the past 3 weeks I’ve been living a double life. Outside I look like a mild-mannered Iowan going about her business. But inside I’m an intrepid, rookie country school teacher solving mysteries in the wilds of northwest South Dakota. So when I ran across this June 2010 post written after this mild-mannered Iowan, along with my dear friend and fellow Iowan, Cindy, visited the wilds of northwest South Dakota, Chicken Mint instantly became this Fantastic Friday’s flavor of the week!
Ever heard of chicken mint ice cream? I hadn’t either until last weekend when four-year-old Brennen, a cowboy in training, introduced Cindy and me to the delectable treat. The chicken mint discovery occurred after supper, which was after the four-wheeler stunt video, which was after the Uncle Shawn story, which was after the tower demolition, which was after the bike riding demonstration, so maybe I should back up a little.
Brennen and his two-year-old brother Shawn are the grandkids of Gerald and Becky, our Harding County hosts over the weekend. When we arrived Friday, they were at Grandma and Grandpa’s house to greet us, along with their mom Natalie, baby sister Alexis and Grandma Becky. Those two little boys were pretty eager to have company and had planned a plethora of activities for us.
First on the list was Brennen demonstrating his newly acquired bike riding skills. He was pretty sure his ability to ride without training wheels would leave a memorable impression, but Cindy and I were shaking with laughter before he and his tag-along little brother, Shawn headed out the door. Too excited to pay attention to details, Shawn grabbed the first pair of boots available, never mind that they were two sizes too big and came up to his knees. Brennen didn’t even look down as he put his boots on the wrong feet.
“How about you boys stand in front of the door, and I’ll take a picture of you in those fancy boots,” I suggested. The little wranglers were happy to oblige.
I have to admit, Brennen’s bike demonstration was amazing, along with Shawn’s herculean efforts at digging dirt from a pile by the driveway and collapsing dramatically from the effort. But the fun was only beginning. Back inside, the boys showed us how to build a tall tower from blocks and knock it down.
Then Grandma Becky, perhaps in need of a moment of quiet and wanting to pass on the memory of her son who died six years ago, asked me to tell them a story about being their Uncle Shawn’s teacher. They listened intently as I described Shawn at age six taking me for a ride in the pick up to show off the stock tank he’d helped install on the hill in the pasture. He also made me get out to open all the gates on the way there and close them on the way back. When we reached the last gate, he waved and his eyes twinkled as he drove off without me. Grandma Becky said Brennen’s face was deeply thoughtful throughout the story. Perhaps Uncle Shawn’s daring sets a dangerous precedent. Hmm.
Before supper, we watched a four-wheeler stunt video. From what I observed, the interest level of the viewers was in inverse proportion to their ages. It captivated Brennen and Shawn, and the only thing able to drag them away from it to the supper table was the promise of ice cream cones for dessert.
Brennen altruistically volunteered to haul the ice cream containers from the freezer to the ice cream cone box sitting on the counter. “Which kind do you want?” he asked. “We have regular, root beer which is my favorite, and chicken mint.”
“Chicken mint?” Cindy asked.
Brennen held up the box so we could see the picture of a bowl of mint green ice cream flecked with brown. “Chocolate chip mint is hard to say,” Natalie explained.
“I’ll take chicken mint,” we said in unison.
“It’s really good,” our dessert chef approved. He was right. Cindy and I agree it was the best chicken mint ice cream we ever tasted. Who could ask for anything more?
by jphilo | Jun 4, 2015 | Mystery Update, Three Thoughts for Thursday
- When writing a mystery novel set in northwest South Dakota, determine the color, make, and model of every character’s dusty pick up truck before writing the story so the information doesn’t have to be painstakingly added later.
- Keep in mind that readers can’t picture what’s in an author’s head until the author describes it.
- Writing and editing are hard work. But they’re also incredibly fun. So authors should get over the guilt of having the best job in the world and simply enjoy it.
What are your thoughts about writing and editing? Leave them in the comment box below.
by jphilo | May 11, 2015 | Mystery Update
Yes, you read the title right. No more pity parties for poor, poor Jane. After months of languishing while her creator dealt with silly things like greeting beautiful new grandchildren into the world and meeting non-fiction book contract deadlines, Jane is once again up and running.
More than running.
Actually, Jane is galloping toward the finish line. Only the final scene remains to be written before THE END will conclude the first draft. Of course, when an author strings out the writing of a novel over more than 2 years, substantial time needs to be spent on rewrites and edits. Because the author did the writing when she was in her late 50s. Which means her memory’s not so good any more, and her chances of remembering what she wrote more than 2 years ago are about the same as blizzard on Mother’s Day in western South Dakota where dear Jane lives. Which really, truly happened yesterday.
As it has happened before.
The author knows this because she experienced a Mother’s Day blizzard in Jane’s stomping grounds in either May of 1984 or 1985. 18 inches of snow. Wind and drifting. 3 day blizzard. School cancelled. Water pipes frozen. Dead lambs and calves everywhere.
The kind of thing even authors in their late 50s can’t forget.
The kind of juicy real life event that could become a bang up scene in a mystery novel. Except that this mystery is set in the fall of Jane’s first year teaching country school, ending just after first quarter parent-teacher conferences and just before the Halloween party. And Jane’s former school teacher creator can’t imagine a final resolution scene encompassing more than 6 months, 3 more grading periods, and enough art projects to placate the imaginary students in Jane’s class until school’s out in May. Just thinking about that much tempera paint, glitter, and construction paper is exhausting.
So Jane’s creator will stick to the ending already planned.
But, she will tuck the Mother’s Day blizzard idea into her idea file. Just in case the first book in the Dick and Jane series gets published. Just in case it does well enough to warrant a second book. And just in case a writer in her late 50s with memory issues can remember where the idea file is, find the idea in the file, and recall why in the world she scribbled “Mother’s Day blizzard” on a piece of paper and stuck it in the file. The chances of all those things happening are about the same as the chance of a Mother’s Day blizzard in western South Dakota.
You know, it just could happen!
