A Novel Creation www.WatersWords.com

Adam I have had a few experiences in my life that truly challenged me. For example, during my tenure as a first grade teacher, I had a little boy coming into my class who had an inoperable brain tumor. His name was Adam Gellenbeck. I had to learn how to care for the PICC line he would likely have for his meds. I met with counselors from Children’s Hospital to learn what to expect over the next few months and how to approach the subject with Adam’s classmates. I had to deal with the very real possibility that during that school year, one of my students could die. I sat with Adam’s family in their home a few weeks before school started. I made the decision that school was going to be Adam’s “normal” place. His “safe haven.” I remember the spring day Adam stood bravely in front of our class and told us he was going to California and they were going to “do something” to his brain. “I might die,” he said. “If I die, I won’t come back, but if I don’t die, I’ll come back for my...

My guest today is a uthor Norma Gail. I've read her book and it is wonderful. Now you can read how it came to be. Enjoy! Land of My Dreams: A Recipe for Romance Scotland, two broken hearts, and a mighty God—a recipe for romance. The ingredients for my debut novel, Land of My Dreams , began to reveal themselves while planning our 30 th anniversary trip to Scotland in 2006. Six years later, I had a contract with Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas, two years after; I held my dream in my hands. Click HERE to view the Book Trailer Click HERE to Order the Book The chief ingredient of a romance is love, in generous measure. And I fell hard—for Scotland, its history, the people, the accent, the dreich weather, and yes, the kilts! Though my story is contemporary, I had to include some background of a people with such fierce national pride. I ate haggis, black sausage, bangers and mash, venison stew, and to this very day, I crave sticky toffee pudding and meat pies. ...

  For today’s post I decided to share three books I think every writer attempting to draft a novel should read. Book Number 1 The first, without a doubt, is James Scott Bell’s Super Structure: The Key to Unleashing the Power of Story . (When I was in graduate school we said you could tell if a book or article was worth the read if it had a colon and a subtitle.) You may recall, I mentioned this book in an earlier post when I first heard of it at a writers group. I had ordered the book at that time, but now I’ve read it. Twice.   I think I will be reading Bell’s book over and over. Why? Because I get into a project and lose sight of the direction I was taking. I sometimes get bogged down in the middle or lose steam.   Super Structure is far more than fourteen (14) signposts to guide you through a good plot. It is a GPS for writing a novel that connects with readers on an emotional level. When to read Bell's book? Although Bell contends you can apply the fourt...