SUMMER VACATION
Jim, Wendy and Jason joined me for a Meeting on Wednesday, in spite of the hot temperatures.
I read first, a ‘Honey’ story entitled “The Birthday Gift”, about Honey taking me for lunch at the seniors’ center on my 62nd birthday and my realization that in comparison to the majority there, I really wasn’t very old at all.
Jim read Chapter 31 in Book II of “The Coventry Ghosts”. Sara, the ghost kitten meets with the living agent, Charles. They are working together trying to find Jason. Sara tells Charles the Ghastly Committee believes the Umbra are hiding Jason. They both suspect Jason is in Honywuan because there is no evidence of any ghosts in that country. Charles reports that to Launi, and she says they must get some people in there. Good plot development regarding ghost essences being stolen by Jason.
Jason (our Jason and not the character in Jim’s book) read the first chapter in a new work he has started. He read us a terrifying account of a father with some supernatural powers fleeing evil forces with his two young daughters. Trying to stop the three from falling over a snowy cliff, he’s hanging onto the girls with both his hands, so can’t use his powers to fend off the savage wolf-like beasts attacking them. He has to decide if all three will die, or if he will let go of one daughter in order to save himself and the other daughter. Nail-biting tension in this beginning right from the start. It’s just an awesome way to start a novel.
Jason also brought along a print-on-demand hard copy of his novel “Provoked”, which is available at Amazon, (by Jason Vance). The book is nicely put together and even the font used on the cover was evocative of the scary unknown.
Jim said another agent has asked to see the entire manuscript for The Coventry Ghosts, Book I. The odds are looking good that some agent will eventually want to represent him since they keep asking to see the whole book. Keep your fingers crossed for him.
Wendy has recovered from the cold she had two weeks ago. Ellie had phoned to say she couldn’t make it to the Meeting. Hope she’s okay. Lorelie had planned to attend but then had to care for her mother again. No word from anyone else.
Since I’m having surgery July 31st (right knee replacement) I won’t schedule another Meeting until I have recovered sufficiently. I will let everyone know by the end of August what’s happening. Hopefully we can resume Meeting in September. So have fun for the rest of the summer. Be sure to do some writing. And rest assured I will miss everyone until we meet again. Happy writing until then!
LISA A. HATTON
Author
Published eBooks available at Kobo Books:
FIRE: http://kobobooks.com/search/search.html?q=9780991739615
LOVE FOUND: http://kobobooks.com/search/search.html?q=9780991739608
Friday, July 19, 2013
Friday, July 5, 2013
THE REVIEW
SUMMER SCRIBES
Five of us Rams were together on Wednesday for an awesome Meeting. Lorelie, Jim, Jason, and Ellie joined me here in spite of the heat wave over the previous few days. Jim gave me a package of sugarless candy and Lorelie brought a big canister of mixed, unsalted nuts. Thank you both so much.
I read first, a ‘Honey’ story titled “Heaven And Hell”, pertaining to the recent breakdown of our central air conditioner.
Ellie read next, a rewrite of her children’s story about squirrels, with environmental themes and a storyline that will also show bullying. She hopes to show how different coloured squirrels can learn to get along without hurting each other or their environment.
Lorelie read to us her first draft of a story she’s writing based on personal experience. It starts when she receives a phone call from her elderly mother living with her husband in the Smoky Hills of Kentucky. She tells Lorelie about an independent caregiver who was looking after them, and even writing cheques and borrowing from them to buy a new tractor. And that is the beginning of a mind-boggling true story that absolutely needs to be told.
Jim read Chapter 30 of Book II of ‘Coventry Ghosts’. It shows Jason feeling like a prisoner himself being forced to do Yoon Lee’s bidding instead of being able to find and communicate with his own ghostly parents. He decides to build a new ghost collector computer that had programming that could delete parts of a ghost that tried to move through the computer on its own. He was trying to outsmart the Umbra ghosts in his computer so he would have more freedom to do as he pleased.
Jason didn’t read anything, but we all had a long discussion on self-publishing versus seeking an agent or publisher. The agent who had requested Jim’s full manuscript for “Coventry Ghosts, Book I”, later sent a rejection to Jim. I’m thinking of looking for a Canadian publisher for my ‘Honey’ stories as Margaret Moffatt thinks the collection would make a good gift book as the stories are humorous and the book would be a slimmer volume than a novel.
Lorelie has a great story to tell, but has difficulty finding time alone to write now that her mother is living with her.
Margaret F. was unable to attend the Meeting as her husband had been in hospital again. Hope he’s recovering his health now.
Wendy had hoped to attend, but came down with a nasty cold. And it was her birthday! Hope she's feeling better now!
I’ve just finished reading Michael Hiebert’s book, “Dream With Little Angels”. After a slow start, it later gained momentum and the tension in the story kept me swiping the pages over on my eReader, wanting to know what would happen next. Set in Alabama, it is told in first person by eleven year old Abe, the son of the investigating female cop when two young girls go missing, and development of his character is brilliant. When his mother tells him not to be racist, he starts questioning the status quo and wants to know why their minister at church talked more about the missing white girl than the missing black girl. He asked if God was racist. It was a refreshing perspective to see life through his eyes as the mystery is solved and it was a great read. Well done, Michael!
The next Meeting will be Wednesday, July 17th at 7:00 p.m. here at my place. I look forward to seeing you and sincerely hope our air conditioning is repaired by then. I go for my next surgery July 31st, so the Meeting on the 17th will probably be the last one until September. Happy writing!
Lisa A. Hatton
Author
Published ebooks available at Kobo Books:
FIRE: http://www.kobobooks.com/search/search.html?q=9780991739615
LOVE FOUND: http://www.kobobooks.com/search/search.html?q=9780991739608
Five of us Rams were together on Wednesday for an awesome Meeting. Lorelie, Jim, Jason, and Ellie joined me here in spite of the heat wave over the previous few days. Jim gave me a package of sugarless candy and Lorelie brought a big canister of mixed, unsalted nuts. Thank you both so much.
I read first, a ‘Honey’ story titled “Heaven And Hell”, pertaining to the recent breakdown of our central air conditioner.
Ellie read next, a rewrite of her children’s story about squirrels, with environmental themes and a storyline that will also show bullying. She hopes to show how different coloured squirrels can learn to get along without hurting each other or their environment.
Lorelie read to us her first draft of a story she’s writing based on personal experience. It starts when she receives a phone call from her elderly mother living with her husband in the Smoky Hills of Kentucky. She tells Lorelie about an independent caregiver who was looking after them, and even writing cheques and borrowing from them to buy a new tractor. And that is the beginning of a mind-boggling true story that absolutely needs to be told.
Jim read Chapter 30 of Book II of ‘Coventry Ghosts’. It shows Jason feeling like a prisoner himself being forced to do Yoon Lee’s bidding instead of being able to find and communicate with his own ghostly parents. He decides to build a new ghost collector computer that had programming that could delete parts of a ghost that tried to move through the computer on its own. He was trying to outsmart the Umbra ghosts in his computer so he would have more freedom to do as he pleased.
Jason didn’t read anything, but we all had a long discussion on self-publishing versus seeking an agent or publisher. The agent who had requested Jim’s full manuscript for “Coventry Ghosts, Book I”, later sent a rejection to Jim. I’m thinking of looking for a Canadian publisher for my ‘Honey’ stories as Margaret Moffatt thinks the collection would make a good gift book as the stories are humorous and the book would be a slimmer volume than a novel.
Lorelie has a great story to tell, but has difficulty finding time alone to write now that her mother is living with her.
Margaret F. was unable to attend the Meeting as her husband had been in hospital again. Hope he’s recovering his health now.
Wendy had hoped to attend, but came down with a nasty cold. And it was her birthday! Hope she's feeling better now!
I’ve just finished reading Michael Hiebert’s book, “Dream With Little Angels”. After a slow start, it later gained momentum and the tension in the story kept me swiping the pages over on my eReader, wanting to know what would happen next. Set in Alabama, it is told in first person by eleven year old Abe, the son of the investigating female cop when two young girls go missing, and development of his character is brilliant. When his mother tells him not to be racist, he starts questioning the status quo and wants to know why their minister at church talked more about the missing white girl than the missing black girl. He asked if God was racist. It was a refreshing perspective to see life through his eyes as the mystery is solved and it was a great read. Well done, Michael!
The next Meeting will be Wednesday, July 17th at 7:00 p.m. here at my place. I look forward to seeing you and sincerely hope our air conditioning is repaired by then. I go for my next surgery July 31st, so the Meeting on the 17th will probably be the last one until September. Happy writing!
Lisa A. Hatton
Author
Published ebooks available at Kobo Books:
FIRE: http://www.kobobooks.com/search/search.html?q=9780991739615
LOVE FOUND: http://www.kobobooks.com/search/search.html?q=9780991739608
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