Category: GKP Writing News

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March Reading

Spring arrives in March along with gardening. That makes finding time for March reading challenging.

This month I am moving a bit out of my normal genres with a thriller “The Devil’s Punchbowl” by Greg Iles. It isn’t that I dislike reading thrillers, I do. The problem is when I read these books. Just before bedtime.

cover for "Capri Capers" by Karen GoatKeeper
This is a book for bedtime reading. It’s light reading and full or humor.

Setting Up March Reading Times

In truth, this is good for setting up reading times for all year. It has to do with the types of books that fit different times of day.

I read a lot of nonfiction. These are serious books on a variety of subjects, but they require paying attention. Bedtime, when I am half asleep, is not a good time to read these.

Tucking time into the daytime hours is best for reading these books. I tend to read them over meals. At the moment I am working on “American Psychosis” which is political, a genre I rarely read, but it was recommended to me by a friend.

Late Night Book Considerations

After a busy day, a good book can help relax me. I don’t want a book I have to think a lot about. That is when something light like a cozy mystery works well.

Cozy mysteries do follow a format and get boring after several in a row. And I needed another fiction book set in the South for the library book review. Hence I picked up the thriller. Thrillers have the same problem as cozy mysteries: they have a set format and, even though they are different, seem much alike. They are usually more intense and not as good for a relaxing read.

Finding Interesting Books

The real key to finding March reading times, any reading times is reading interesting books. Reviews are not always a good way to find a book you will enjoy simply because what interests you may not interest the reviewer.

I do read reviews and take note of books that sound good. However, I go on to read the synopsis of the book. Then I make a decision on whether or not to add the book to my reading list.

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Exploring New Perspectives

When I first began The Carduan Chronicles, there was only one ship that dropped out of a worm tunnel into a February ice storm forcing them to land in an Ozarks ravine. As the nine Carduans began to explore their new world, I began exploring new perspectives.

Exploring new perspectives in an Ozark ravine
That fallen log looks like a wall. It is only six inches high and easy to step over. Easy unless you are only four inches tall. Walking up a ravine takes an entirely different look when you are that small.

Ozark Ravines

My Ozark home has several ravines near it. I have walked up all of them at one time or another, some of them several times. Broad or narrow, the ravines have several things in common.

One thing is water. Although the ravine may be dry much of the time, it was formed by running water racing down between two hills. Some have water in them much of the time, usually as pools here and there.

Another thing are the trees. People often think of woods or forests as static populations of trees. They aren’t. Those trees are enemies in their quest for light, water and space in which to grow.

The weakest trees don’t survive. In a few years the dead trunks fall to the ground. Bigger trees are victims of storms.

Exploring New Perspectives

The Carduans are four inches tall. Fallen trees I can step over, are taller than they are. How can they deal with these?

Ice storms are not too uncommon in the Ozarks. The Carduans come from a planet where water never freezes. They have never seen ice or snow.

Arkosa, their home planet, is hot, dry and bathed with UV light. The plants are blue or red as a protection from the UV light. Their crops are mostly grasses – think wheat, oats or rice – and root tubers – think potatoes, carrots or turnips.

These people have never seen trees or birds or the many other creatures familiar to those who walk in the Ozarks. Blue jays are taller than they are.

As the Carduans go exploring their new world, I am exploring new perspectives in mine.

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Making Characters Real

Perhaps you have picked up a book like this, I certainly have. The main character is someone or something you just can’t relate to. Making characters real is not that easy.

Another problem is found in those books where all the characters seem to be clones. They think alike. They act alike. All of the characters might as well be talking to themselves.

Creating Characters

There are lots of ways for an author to create a character. One way is to have a list of characteristics. Another I came across has a series of questions to answer about the character.

Anyone who does some research on writing will find other methods of creating characters. These methods do work for some authors. Perhaps they would for you. These methods don’t work for me.

My Characters

I create the bare bones of a character in my head. As I have a vague notion of the plot, the character is based on how he or she will interact with the plot. Usually I come up with a name and a basic description.

At that point, I start writing my rough draft. As I write the novel, it starts making characters real to me. They get to the point they seem like someone I could go to the store and meet.

The drawback to creating characters this way, is that I do have to go back and rewrite the beginning of the draft. That way the characters consistent throughout.

Different Characters

Making characters real is easier for me if I base them on people I have known, even slightly. This matters because it gives each character a unique voice and behavior in the novel.

Even when writing a memoir, an author is creating, rather recreating their character from a previous time in their lives. People grow up and change with time so a younger version of you is not the modern one and is, therefore, a character in your memoir.

No matter how an author creates their characters, making characters real is important so readers can enjoy your books more.

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Very Unusual Book

The St. Louis Post dispatch Sunday has a page of book reviews. I took a page to my library and asked about one of them not realizing it was a very unusual book.

“Bunns Rabbit” by Alan Barillaro sounded like a typical middle grade quest book. Cute, relaxing, easy reading, reminiscent of “Watership Down”. The library bought a copy and I checked it out.

rabbit for very unusual book
Cottontail rabbits tend to have shorter ears as this cottontail shows. Yet, the domestic breeds developed from European rabbits have ears of many lengths. This is an important aspect in “Bunns Rabbit”.

Big Surprise

When I opened the book, I thought it was the beginning of a graphic novel. Each page was one picture with comments in bubbles.

It is not a graphic novel.

Ruby-throat Hummingbird
Bunns Rabbit rescues and makes friends with a hummingbird which breaks a taboo of her rabbit warren.

The first chapter looked like the beginning of a picture book. These pages were big pictures with text.

It is not a picture book for middle graders.

As the first hundred pages flew by, I found this very unusual book blended graphic novel with picture book with illustrated book. The illustrations remind me of a softer version of those from Peter Rabbit.

Gray Fox
Bunns Rabbit is searching for the Fox Spirit. In the book the fox is a red fox, but only gray ones live around me.

No Surprise

The short review I originally read was right. It is a middle grade fantasy quest book Bunns Rabbit is a young rabbit born into a warren of very conservative rabbits. She has short ears when the norm is longer ears.

The warren elders plan to banish Bunns and her family. Her only hope is to seek the Spirit Fox to get a wish so she can rescue her family. Along the way she meets many other animals who also have problems needing solutions.

Worth Reading

Many adults seem to feel reading books for younger ages beneath them. They are missing out on some lovely books. “Bunns Rabbit” is one of them.

The story is simple, cute and aimed for middle grade readers. That doesn’t make the questions it raises any the less valid or the solutions less important to consider.

Besides, this very unusual book has such wonderful illustrations.

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Cowgirls

Forget cartoons. I grew up watching westerns: The Lone Ranger; Broken Arrow; Wyatt Earp; Bat Masterson; Sky King; Roy Rogers; Gene Autry and more. One thing was missing in most of these: Cowgirls.

Westerns love to have cowboy heroes. Big, strong, brave cowboys protect the timid frontier women. They spend their time loading guns, hiding, watching the cowboys fight for them.

Are There Cowgirls?

According to “Cowgirls: Women of the American West” by Teresa Jordan, one of five pioneers was a woman homesteader. These were not wives, they were independent women who staked a homestead and proved it out. Some built up ranches. Other women became widows and decided to stay on the ranch to run it.

These women worked digging post poles and stringing fence, working cattle or horses or sheep, breaking horses, riding in rodeos, all the things cowboys did. Some of the heavier work was beyond them physically, but most of it wasn’t. It needed doing, so they did it.

What About Children?

Forget the pampered children of today. Frontier children worked as part of the family. Ranching was hard work, not that lucrative, so everyone had to help or all would fail.

“No Life for a Lady” by Agnes Morley Cleaveland tells of growing up in New Mexico territory. As soon as children were able to sit on a horse (six or seven years old), they were helping keep track of the cattle, riding tens of miles for the mail and other things.

More modern cowgirls often take their children out with them. Now babies can stay in a truck. Once they sat on the saddle behind a parent or in an insulated box on the wagon seat. As toddlers, they are on their own horses.

Today’s Cowgirls

There are still cowboys and cowgirls. Some things have changed as tractors, trucks and other vehicles have replaced many of the horses. But fencing still needs fixing. Cattle still need to be rounded up.

Find copies or this book and other books to find out more about cowgirls, women who deserve better than a footnote.

cover of "Old Promises" Hazel Whitmore #2 by Karen GoatKeeper
When Hazel and her mother arrive in Missouri, their new house has not been lived in or cleaned in a decade. As women all over, they did what needed doing: they cleaned up the cobwebs, dust and mouse nests.

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Creating Carduans

When the idea for the Carduan Chronicles first occurred to me, all I knew was that a space ship would appear during an ice storm, land in an Ozark ravine and leave the occupants trying to survive. The next task was creating Carduans.

Creating Carduans started with creating their ship
Carduan Ship 19 appeared during an ice storm which forced it to land. On the way down, it had to maneuver between trees in the ravine.

How Big?

There were several considerations. I went hiking through a number of Ozark ravines trying to spot places a space ship could land. A flat area was not a problem as bluff rocks stick out in many places. However, they are small.

Ravines have trees growing in them. The ship had to be small enough to avoid them.

The final size of the space ship was thirty inches long, eighteen inches wide and high. These Carduans had to fit inside. Four inches tall worked.

Ship 19 has landed
Creating Carduans depended on them being small. They must blend in to avoid unwanted attention.

Physical Appearance

I now had a height for creating Carduans. They had heads, arms, legs, feet and hands. Obviously, these were small and fingers would be very slender. There would be three fingers so the Carduans would count in threes and sixes.

Of course, the Carduans could just be tiny people with a few minor changes. That didn’t suit me. How would they be different?

Many creatures on Earth have blue blood. It is not based on iron which is what makes our blood red. If the Carduans had blue blood, they would be blue.

An interesting article about chickens showed up. It seems chickens have retina cells sensitive to five different color wavelengths. Insects often see in ultraviolet.

Setting Up Arkosa

The Carduans come from the planet Arkosa. I picture this planet as dry, hot, bathed in ultraviolet light. Plants would have fall colors as the pigments for these colors can deal with ultraviolet light for photosynthesis.

Seeing ultraviolet would be an advantage. Having a third eyelid to counter intense glare or shield from dust would be another advantage.

My Carduans

So, in creating Carduans, I had to consider the setting and the origins of these creatures. This was for Ship Nineteen. But, the same creatures are also on Ship Eighteen.

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Tongue Twisters

How many times have you called an office or been called and found the receptionist barely understandable? It’s frustrating. I wish I could tell them to get a book of tongue twisters.

Aren’t tongue twisters a children’s game? Children think so. Who can say one the fastest? Who can think of one?

Love of Goats tongue twister
Try saying this tongue twister three times fast. It is a good way to begin with these verbal challenges.

What Is a Tongue Twister?

The key to a tongue twister is alliteration, the repeat of the same sound in a series of words. Such alliteration can be used in various ways in literature as well as tongue twisters.

“The Bells” and “The Raven” by Edgar Allan Poe both use alliteration. In the first one, the sounds bring out the sounds of the bells. In the second, it forms internal rhymes tying the poem together.

For children, there are some old ones: Peter Piper picked a peck of pickles; She sells sea shells by the seashore; Rubber Baby Buggy Bumpers. Can you say these three times quickly and not trip over your tongue and be understandable?

For Love of Goats tongue twister
All the words in this tongue twister may begin with the letter D, but the vowel after them makes you say them differently.

What Value Do They Have?

The big value is teaching pronunciation. When learning a new one, each word must be said slowly, enunciated carefully. Once the words are mastered, speed is introduced.

No matter how fast a child says these, they must be understandable. This is the value of them. And the reason I wish some receptionists I deal with would get a book of them.

More Goat tongue twister fun
As you say this tongue twister, feel how your mouth must change shape to form these words. To say it fast three times, your mouth must move fast too.

Another value is confidence. A child who gets good at tongue twisters has something to be proud of and build confidence at mastering difficult things.

And these word games are fun.

Writing Tongue Twisters

I have loved alliteration all my life. It gives shape to the sounds of words and language. Another aspect and game would be finding homonyms.

A castrated male goat is a wether. The conditions outside is weather. Making a choice involves whether.

The three became a little story about goats. This led to more. My result was “For Love of Goats”. What will your result be?

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Creating Characters

Some novels begin with a plot. Others begin with a character. But all novels require creating characters.

Where do these fictional characters come from? How does a writer find these characters?

cover for "Broken Promises" by Karen GoatKeeper
This is the only novel I have written that uses a person I once knew. He is in the book the way he was when I knew him. He is now deceased.

Asking For Trouble

Even some famous authors like Hemmingway got into trouble by using their friends, acquaintances and enemies as characters in their novels. If they were lucky, they just had to find new friends. Unlucky writers ended up being sued.

Having written this, I do base my characters on people I know, have read about or seen. But, I don’t use the people exactly. Instead I look at some trait or traits these people have and build a character around them, one that is not the original person.

cover of "Old Promises" Hazel Whitmore #2 by Karen GoatKeeper
When I was doing a practical teaching course, I noticed a student who was extremely shy. Who was she? I never found out. Yet, she became the model for Hazel’s friend in this book.

Creating Characters Exercise

Next time you are out and about, look at the people around you. These people are strangers. You know nothing about them, really.

Pick out one. What do you think this person is like? Do they work? Invent a personality for this person. How would this person fit into a story or novel?

cover for "Dora's Story" by Karen GoatKeeper
Names were a big challenge in “Dora’s Story” as there were goat shows and every exhibitor and goat needed a name.

What’s In a Name?

I hate finding names for my characters most of the time. Now and then a character just has a name, but this isn’t usually the case.

Usually, the name search takes time and persistence. There are online lists. Books, telephone books, old school annuals are all places to look.

Several factors need consideration. One is the time frame of the novel. Names change in popularity or even existence over the years. Nova is not a possibility for an eighteenth century novel.

Plus, the name needs to be one the writer is comfortable with. I tend to like two and three syllable names. There’s no real reason, but I am happier with characters with names of these lengths.

cover for "Capri Capers" by Karen GoatKeeper
As this was a fun novel, the names had to be fun. Roscoe Rascal, Dan Janus, even Harriet Zeigenhert which is German for goat.

Names Can Change

No matter how detailed a writer is creating characters, things including names can change as the plot evolves. New traits will emerge in the characters. They will become like people you know well.

A great compliment was paid me talking with a woman about Life’s Rules. I was describing Stephanie, my main character. The woman thought she was a real person, someone she wanted to meet.

Creating characters is important for a writer and compliments like this one make the effort worth while.

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Writing Illustrated Books

A lot of authors are writing illustrated books now. Perhaps these books are popular because people love to watch television and movies and find books of nothing but words boring.

Of course, books for very young readers are filled with pictures. Some have no text at all or very little. As these readers get older, they may like to have those pictures.

I came across such a book. “Matilda” by Roald Dahl seems like a typical book and has an interesting story. What sets it apart are the illustrations by Quentin Blake scattered through the text telling the story.

Writing illustrated books like Ducks Love Hats
Picture books are a kind of illustrated book. “Ducks Love Hats” has no text so the images form the story.

What Are Illustrated Books?

Picture books are listed as illustrated books. These books are in a special category as the pictures tell the story. Even if there is text, the pictures convey the story.

An illustrated book uses pictures to augment the story. Usually, if all of the pictures are removed, the text would tell the story.

"For Love of Goats" is an illustrated book
This image from “For Love of Goats” goes with the entry for E for Electric Fence, but the text is needed to explain what is happening. This is an illustrated book.

Graphic novels are a third type of illustrated books. They trace back to comic books, but now tell much more elaborate stories. These use the pictures to tell the story, but have text and dialogue to add details. Removing the pictures removes the story, just as removing the text would. Both must be there.

Writing Illustrated Books

How an author approaches writing such a book depends on the type of book. Picture books are primarily pictures. When I write a picture book, I see it as a series of pictures. Any text is added later, although I may write out the text before beginning to draw the sketches.

In an illustrated book the pictures are an afterthought. As I write about Ship Eighteen of the Carduan Chronicles, I know I want to have illustrations heading each chapter. The pictures aren’t necessary, however, they will enhance the story.

I have read several graphic novels. It is an interesting format, but one I haven’t used.

Instead, I will continue writing illustrated books mostly as picture books.

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Setting Reading Goals

I don’t think much about setting reading goals. Every year seems to be set for 70 books as that is about how many I read over the year.

There is a secondary goal. My home bookshelves are full of books. Out of the 70 total, I like to read at least 40 from my own shelves.

Picture Books

My reading goal does not include picture books normally. If I added these, my goal would be 370 books over the year.

There are so many wonderful picture books available. I do limit my selection to those I can check out of my library. Evergreen expands my library shelves to include libraries all over southern Missouri.

Reaching Reading Goals

As I found out this past year, life can really upset everything. I started last year intending to write several books and read 72 books.

Disaster struck in July. Most writing stopped. Reading stopped. A few months went by.

Setting reading goals helped. I do like to get to that reading total. There were a half dozen picture books to fill in at the end, but I did make my set goal.

January Again

So, here I am at the beginning of a new year of possibilities. Will disaster strike again? Maybe, but I won’t act like it will.

My reading goal will still be 70 books. I will still read those six picture books each week.

This year’s Library Review theme is the states. January is Washington, D.C. and used “First Ladies: An Intimate Group Portrait of First Wives” by Margaret Truman, a book I highly recommend along with some others.

February involves the New England states. The central book is “Of Time and Turtles” by Sy Montgomery, a fascinating look at the world of turtles and turtle rescue based in Massachusetts. There is the Tia Lola series set in Vermont and a new to me mystery series set in New Hampshire as well.

These won’t count for my new reading goal as I have to read ahead to do the reviews. But books on the South, Southwest, Midwest, Plains, West, Northwest, California, Alaska, Hawaii and Puerto Rico (U.S. Protectorate) will count.

Setting reading goals only adds a little incentive to read. The real incentives are all those books, books that look so interesting and appealing, waiting for me to read them.

The Salem Public Library, Salem, Missouri, does put their newsletter online.