I’ve never joined a local book club for the simple reason that I like to choose what I read. I don’t want a group leader telling me to read a novel that has no appeal to me, one that I would never pick up to read otherwise. Some may say this is the perfect reason to join a readers’ circle, to be introduced to new writers. It can be a good way to make new friends. But thanks, I don’t care for forced reading when I have plenty of new writers on my own list to try and more titles on my TBR (To Be Read) shelf than I can get to in a lifetime.

Another deterrent to my joining one of these clubs is their focus. Often the group selects literary fiction or bestsellers. If I mention a title by one of my writer friends, or–gasp–one of my own, they roll their eyes or mention those fated words: "We don’t read that stuff/those kind of books/or Is it on the bestseller list?" They’d rather read a story with a sad ending because it’s, you know, literature.

So what’s the solution if I want the comradery of fellow readers, aside from the writers groups to which I already belong? Why, start my own club, of course. Here are my rules:

1. Participants choose their own book to read.

2. Books must be genre fiction: mystery/suspense, romance, or sci fi/fantasy.

3. Titles may not be on any bestseller list. If we don’t support midlist writers, the choices will narrow further than they have already. Look at the chain bookstore shelves: Rows of backlist titles by known authors means less shelf space for new and upcoming writers. If you want variety, you have to seek an independent bookstore. Support your indies! Or even consider having your meetings there if you’re lucky enough to have one close by.

4. At each monthly meeting, members will have the opportunity to discuss their read: why they liked it, what made them choose that title, what elements appealed to them, etc. I have written a detailed guide for booklovers to use as an aid to discussions. Email me privately if you would like a copy of this guide. It applies to any fiction title.

5. Books that are finished but are not destined for the keeper shelf may be offered to members first before being donated elsewhere (i.e. BookCrossing.com). Preferably, do not trade recently published books at used bookstores or sell them online. Used books do not count toward an author’s royalties and these sales, while they may help an author gain new readers, do not count toward current sales figures that publishers use to assess an author’s track record before offering a new contract. If another member doesn’t want the book, consider donating it to a women’s shelter or a library or leave it in the wild through bookcrossing.com.

6. Provide refreshments. People always want to come when food is offered.

Hopefully, this type of book club will appeal to independent readers who want to make new friends and discuss books but don’t want to be told what to read. It’s also a great way to learn about new authors. If your friend raves about a work, you might want to try it. So what could be better than making a recommendation based on what you choose to read?

Let me know if you find this idea compelling.

One writer’s trash may be a researcher’s treasure.

Recently, I read another author’s blog about how she sorted through her early rejection letters and tossed them out along with other items gathering dust in her home office. Think about all those old manuscripts taking up shelf space. I don’t know about you, my fellow authors, but we’re talking reams of paper here. For each one of my mystery titles, I have the original manuscript, sometimes a revised draft, a copy edited manuscript, plus page proofs. Consider that there are nine books in my Bad Hair Day series. Then add in a novella and the four romance novels I’d published before switching to mysteries. That’s 14 books times three or so manuscripts each!

Bitten by the cleaning bug, I figured I’m not going to need all those rubber-banded piles of paper ever again. Why not toss them?

Because I found another way to make these items useful. I am donating them to the Browne Popular Culture Library at Bowling Green State University. Here I’ve started a manuscript collection, joining such masters as Susan Elizabeth Phillips, Marcia Muller, and Romance Writers of America who archive their accumulated papers there as well.

It’s better than my husband or kids throwing everything in the trash after I’m gone. It’s better that I made this choice now, so I could put instructions in my Trust for the rest of my materials to be sent there when the time comes. It’s better that I feel great satisfaction that my work will live on, serving a useful purpose. So for any writers out there considering cleaning your office, think twice about filling your trash bags and consider donating your materials to a worthy library.

For more information on Browne Popular Culture Library, visit http://www.bgsu.edu/colleges/library/pcl/page38304.html

First, a report on my garage sale. This was a once and only experience. After shlepping stuff to my friend’s house for three days, we sat outside in the lovely weather on Saturday for five hours luring customers with signs and hand signals. I netted $100. Not much for the effort involved, never mind having to cart all the remains back to my house and schedule a donation pickup. Nonetheless, this event encouraged me to clean out all the souvenirs, athletic and craft supplies, board games, and tchotchkes that I’d been keeping because "I might sell them someday." Well, guess what? Someday arrived, and no one wanted them. I can do better with a tax deduction. So with great sadness, I’ll be donating an L.L.Bean sleeping bag, paperweights, crayons, cards and games, overnight bags, exercise mat, costume jewelry, and more. All that money spent....how wasteful through the years.

Ditto for books. I still can’t part with most of my collection. My cookbooks take up three shelves in my kitchen. We’re thinking of putting the albums on our built-in family room shelves into cabinets and removing the cookbooks there. Always rearranging, sorting out, cleaning, giving away...it all ends some day, but we need to conserve now, given the bad economy.

With the clutter patrol off my mind, I’ve resumed writing and have done 19 pages this week so far. I’m projecting five weeks to go to the finish line. Revisions are easier, in that the creative work is done, but harder because of the intense concentration needed to ensure continuity. I’m eager to get there and yet I’ll be sad when the story is done.

I haven’t written a word in nearly a week. Why? I’ve been too busy with family events. Our daughter came home on Friday evening. That night was shot, but at least I had set the DVR to record my favorite programs: Sarah Jane Adventures, Doctor Who, and Battlestar Galactica.

Saturday morning, we spent sorting through the junk....er, treasured mementos...in my daughter’s room in preparation for an upcoming garage sale at a friend’s house. Do your realize how much hard work this is?  It takes effort to clean through all this stuff!  That afternoon, we stopped at the Dolphin Mall in Miami en route to my cousin’s house for her sister’s 70^th birthday celebration. Walked through the spacious mall at a fast clip, spending the most time in the Bath & Body Works outlet store. Then on to South Miami to visit with the family. My cousin V. has a modest house but it’s on a lake, and their enclosed patio and pool area leads out to a gazebo overlooking the water. It’s quite a view, so we sat on a comfy outdoor couch and enjoyed the balmy weather while sipping wine and eating appetizers. Cousin V. is a great party organizer and we always have a wonderful time at her affairs. She’d put together a touching DVD collage of her sister’s life that we all watched.

The rest of the family gathered the next night for our family Passover Seder. Passover commemorates the Hebrews' exodus from Egypt and freedom from slavery. We read the story from a booklet called the Haggadah and pray for freedom from oppression for everyone today.

Then we eat: gefilte fish with horseradish, matzohs, hard boiled egg dipped in salt water, matzoh ball soup, brisket with chicken breast and potato pancake and veggies, some sort of chocolate thing for dessert. I’m stuffed! No wonder our ancestors reclined at the meal. Who could stand up afterward?

That was Sunday. On Monday, we took our daughter shopping at Nordstrom Rack to the costly result of several hundred dollars. Then she left, and my other cousin J. came to stay over. She’s visiting from Arizona, so we had a nice chat and a good seafood meal at Grumpy Dicks.

Tuesday, we strolled along Las Olas Blvd in downtown Fort Lauderdale and lunched at Café L’Europa. Back home, other cousin L. and her husband and cousin C. came over to hang out for the afternoon. Fed them lunch and snacks. Good thing I had a lot of food in stock!

Today was critique group at my house. Put more food on the table. Dishes, laundry, straightening out after everyone left. Whew! Can I get back to writing yet?  Nope. I have to organize my junk for the garage sale on Saturday. It’ll probably be a complete bust since this is my first experience. I haven’t priced anything, just thrown it all into boxes to transport to my friend’s house. And I’ll report on that fun event next.

From attending various writing workshops, I’ve picked up the following tips in regards to creating villains:

1. Give the villain his own GMC, i.e. goal, motivation, & conflict.

2. Allow him to care about something to show his humanity.

3. Have a "good" villain as well as a "bad" villain, i.e. an official who obstructs the hero’s efforts.

4. The stronger the villain, the more stalwart the hero must be to defeat him.

5. The villain may have a twisted view of the universe. In other words, he doesn’t see himself as being evil.

It’s not easy following these dictates. As with anything we learn, a writer can pick and choose what to use during each endeavor.

How does this apply to my current WIP? This brilliant idea came to me while I was walking my dog: Why not get the Feds on my hero’s tail? That would up the ante. I’d already written a scene that would be cause for police involvement. Let’s drag the heroine into it and have the cops put the heat on her. As for the real bad guy, the villainous female in the story keeps nagging me to share her viewpoint. "Let me talk," she whispers into my ear.

It would be handy to know what the bad guys are thinking. That means inserting extra scenes into the first two hundred pages I’ve already completed. Okay, I’ll work on it.  But my daily page grind comes first. The story must move forward before I’ll move back.

What will I say in those additional scenes? First, I have to figure out the political hierarchy of the evildoer’s organization. This involves more world building and more research into Norse mythology on which my story is based. As for my most pressing question–What’s the difference between trolls, elves, and dwarves/dwarfs?--I’ll let you read about it when the time comes.

When setting goals, it’s important to reward yourself when you achieve your landmark. Thus said, I finished the first half of my WIP and decided it was time for a treat. I proceeded to Nordstrom Rack to shop for bargains on new clothes. After this delightful excursion, my husband and I headed to Orlando for a day at Disney’s EPCOT. The Flower Festival is in full swing, and we admired the brilliantly colored flowerbeds displayed throughout the park. A troupe of child dancers from Canada entertained us at one of the outdoor theaters before we proceeded to Chefs de France for lunch. I had a chicken crepe and hubby had vegetarian lasagne. Stuffed full, we meandered around World Showcase, browsing in the shops and exclaiming over the authentically designed buildings reflective of France, Germany, Japan, Italy, etc. EPCOT and the Animal Kingdom are my favorite Disney parks. Note that we didn’t go on any rides. We’ve been on most of them, and my husband doesn’t like to stand in line. So we skipped the attractions this time but had plenty to do strolling the pleasant paths, admiring the architecture and landscaping.

Friday, I visited the Thorlo outlet on International Drive in Orlando to stock up on my favorite socks. Then we headed to Leesburg which is northeast of Orlando, to take a stroll through the Venetian Gardens. This is a small park on a huge lake, but we enjoyed the winding lakeside trail and its numerous arched wooden bridges. The trees in this hilly territory are draped with Spanish moss, reminiscent of the Old South. That night, I gave a presentation at the library with fellow authors Lisa Manual (aka Allison Chase) and Cynthia Thomason. We stayed at a Holiday Inn Express on the Dead River in Tavares and ate a light meal at the Harborside waterfront restaurant.

The next day found us lost in Clermont, forty-five minutes south on Rt 27. We passed the Lakeridge Winery on the way but it wasn’t open yet. After stopping in the Clermont library for directions to the Women’s Club, I made it to the little white house where myself, Lisa, and Cindy presented an all-day Fiction Writers Workshop (Note: Contact me if you are interested in having us present this intensive workshop in your Florida town). Then it was back to our condo in Orlando in the midst of torrential rains. Usually the rains and heat don’t start until May or June, so this may herald the predictions a stormy hurricane season. If we’re lucky, we’ll get a system of high pressure again to keep the tempests far to the south. Anyway, that's a few months off.  Now we're back home and I'm going through the mail.

I am happy to report that I reached my target page count for the week. I did 30 pages, more than my usual goal of 25 because I had to make up some time from last week. I hit my target of finishing the first half of the book and I’m now done with the first 200 pages.   

So what happens next? Every story has a beginning, a middle, and an end. Many writers dread the middle because this is where the plot sags and there doesn’t seem to be enough material to write the second half of the book. In contrast, I’ve found that the story always fills itself in, and I don’t have to worry if I’ve laid the proper groundwork. In a mystery, it’s easy. This is where you throw in another dead body.

My concern with this WIP is that I have the hero and heroine separated in upcoming segments. For a romance, that’s less than desirable. I’ll have to figure out a way to have them share more adventures. I may also have to step back, and take some time off from writing, to work out the different plot threads. My characters have to uncover a murderer, find a jamming device, locate the source of illegal arms shipments, deal with political intrigue on their home world, rescue the heroine’s missing landlady from the bad guys, stop an invasion...and I forget what else. All of these are jumbled in my head. Thanks to my synopsis, I already know how some of the quests will be resolved but not all of them. Should I pause to figure it out? Or should I go with the flow and see where the story takes me? Let’s hope it carries me through the next 200 pages with nonstop action, suspense, and sexual tension!

There's a new review of Killer Knots  posted at http://freshfiction.com/review.php?id=20279

Hope you'll take a look.

I finished my six page quota for today!  Yea!  On to the household chores.....

As the scene described in my March 12^th post gelled in my mind, I began writing. My goal is to finish the first half of the book by the end of this week. That means I have to write six pages a day for five days this week. Because I’ll miss a day on Wednesday when I go to critique group, that means today through Friday. I’ve already finished today’s quota, so now I am free to enjoy the rest of the afternoon. Happy Easter to those of you who celebrate the holiday. We’ve been to a friend’s house for lunch and now I can relax. Tomorrow morning begins the agonizing duty of coming up with another six pages. Some days the words flow. Other times, it’s like picking splinters from your finger. It hurts, but eventually comes out. I’m following a tighter pace than I did for my mystery novels but those books were 25,000 words less, meaning I have to write 100 pages more in the same amount of time. Tomorrow morning my maid comes, so the household will be disrupted and it will be harder to concentrate. The pest-control guy comes the morning afterward. At least I know what’s supposed to happen in the upcoming scene. My characters are still on the island but they are approaching their final adventure. Then they’ll vector shift back to Orlando and I’ll have to figure out what happens next. Thank goodness for my synopsis, which acts as my writing guideline. When the time comes, I’ll see what is coming up in the story and then plot it out like I did below. Piece by piece, the story comes together. If I look at it as a whole, I’ll be overwhelmed. But viewing it six pages at a time makes writing a book possible.

We just returned from Orlando again. Our first day we went to Disney’s Hollywood Studios, formerly known as MGM Studios. Just after nine in the morning, the park wasn’t crowded, so we headed for my favorite attraction, the Great Movie Ride. Nothing new here, but I still enjoy the pleasant cruise through favorite films such as Indiana Jones, Aliens, the Wizard of Oz, and many more. Next we headed to the Backstage Tour, first getting a demonstration of special effects with a patrol boat on the water attracting enemy aircraft fire. Then we boarded a tram for a tour through the lot, viewing the costuming warehouse, props department, etc.. Right next to this ride is the new car racing stunt show. Just the noise of the brakes screeching and engines revving put me off for that show due to the high decibels. From here, we stopped to watch the Jedi Academy in front of Star Tours, where little kids got their chance to fight Darth Nader. We strolled around, ending up at Mama Melrose’s Italian Restaurant for lunch. The eggplant Napoleon was delicious. A wood and brick interior, mini white lights throughout, gave the place a pleasant atmosphere.

We exited the park at one o’clock in the afternoon, having walked all the way around and eaten lunch. This is the good part of living nearby, and having annual passes. The next day, we did the same thing at the Animal Kingdom. We strolled around the shady jungle paths, enjoying the fabulous job Disney employees did of depicting ancient ruins, Nepalian prayer flags, and other accurate details for the lands represented in Asia and Africa. At the far end, we took the train to the conservation station, noting where the animals spend their nights, the veterinary hospital where they are treated, and the research facilities. After strolling around for the rest of the morning, we ate lunch at the Flame Tree Barbecue before leaving the environs.

For other entertainment, we took our kids to Ikea that took up a good portion of the day. We  stopped in at Macy’s in Millennia Mall and ate dinner at the new Elephant Bar, an Asian restaurant, attached to Altamonte Springs Mall. There are many more things to do here now that the weather has warmed, aside from the tourist places. I like to visit the surrounding city parks and gardens and lakes, but we’ll save them for the next time.  Have to get back to the routine.