Many Reasons to Write Books

Variety, the spice of books as well as of life

 I have always believed that writing a good book then finding a publisher who likes it (no matter how long it takes to find one) is more important than being locked into one genre.My sales include Christian and inspirational novels, historical, contemporary, western, YA, children's books and a writing handbook: Writing Smarter, not Harder, The Workbook Way. They also represent many reasons in choosing what to write.

1. Feeling led to write a certain title
2. Seeing a need not being fulfilled
3. An editor (or fellow established author) asking me to write it 
4. Being compelled, by a character, plot idea, true incident or setting
5. Feeling I have something important to say 
6. Just plain wanting to write it!

  NEW TITLE: School Bells and Wedding Bells

In 2005, JoAnn A. Grote, asked three of her author friends,
Yvonne Lehman, Wanda E. Brunstetter, and me, to contribute to SCHOOLHOUSE BRIDES, a 4-novella collection for Barbour Publ .I was thrilled. Mom had taught all eight grades in a one-room schoolhouse that later became our home. Her experiences provided excellent material. We wrote the collection. Readers loved it.

Rights to my story recently reverted to me. 
I am thrilled the story is now a print single. 

Wanting to write the story resulted in one of my most humorous titles. Meredith Rose "Merry" Macrae's ups and downs kept me laughing when I first wrote them, and even more so while expanding and revising.

What does a jilted bride whose fortune and prestige are gone forever do? Flee from Boston with her twin brother to Last Chance, Idaho-- and end up teaching all eight grades in a one-room school.

One of my favorite scenes (condensed)

 

The most obnoxious man in Last Chance accuses the hero of claim-jumping him after he saw Merry first and warns her that she won't be allowed to continue teaching. 

 In all the weeks she’d known Brit, never had she seen him like this. Woe to Ichabod-Ignatius! He had awakened a sleeping mountain lion.

Her defender grabbed the man by his collar and swung him off the ground. He shook him as a dog shakes a rat then strode to a nearby horse trough. “This should cool you down.”

Ignatius hit the water with a resounding splash and came up spluttering.

 Brit crossed his arms on his chest and said in a voice that boded ill for anyone who challenged him, “If you ever again say one word against Miss Macrae, I will personally see to it you leave town in a manner you will never forget. Now crawl out of there before you contaminate the water so it isn’t fit it for horses to drink. Then get out of my sight before I lose my temper.”

The words “before I lose my temper” were Meredith Rose’s undoing. She couldn’t have kept from laughing if her life depended on it. Knowing it would make Ichabod-Ignatius hate her more than ever couldn’t stop her. It was just too funny. So was the way her drenched would-be suitor scuttled away after a baleful glance at the cheering crowd on both sides of the street.


School Bells and Wedding Bells