Why I Do What I Do?

Recently, the media has been going crazy over the website I Write Like http://iwl.me/ So, I checked it out.  The first time I copied a snippet of my WIP,  the site claimed I write like *insert drum roll here* David Foster Wallace.  The second time, my style matched Stephanie Meyer.  I don't really care who they say because when I type the last word, I write like me.

But I thought about why I write.  Writers have their own reasons to put themselves through the crazy, euphoric states that writers deal with.  For me, the answer is simple.  Adventure.  As a little girl, I wanted nothing more than to be an actress.  I wanted to inhabit other people [not in a creepy body snatchers way], to wear their skin and live their lives, to feel what brought them joy or pain and discover what they love dand hated.  I wondered about people's flaws and talents?  I was curious about their lives.  Still to this day, I love to hear people's stories and I often wonder about the emotions that charge through them, the choices they made that they're proud of or wish could do differently.  I love to know what makes people tick.  When people didn't tell me or couldn't, I made up stories.

A favorite game of  mine in the car was concocting stories about the people who lived in the houses  we drove past.  I wondered about their kitchens, the secrets they kept even mundane aspects of their lives.  Soon, the stories weren't enough to stay in my head so I had to put them to paper.  Acting lost my attention after time but I couldn't stop thinking about the characters that existed out there or the ones that I could create.

Now, I spin lives from a few snippets of ideas that float around and grab me.  While I write and flesh out the characters, I feel like I become the heroine with her inner conflict that must be healed or a hero, all Alpha but with his much guarded love deep inside his hard masculine shell.  To put it simply, I write because I want to be a thousand different people whether a heiress, rake or It girl and writing, just like reading, lets me experience worlds and adventures that no travel agent can get a ticket for.
Tell me why you write?

Traveling in My Mind

I’m gone. So sorry, but I’m not really here.

I’m off in a land of make-believe; a land that may have very little to do with reality as we know it. My nose is leaving sticky prints on the glass of the world created by the author of the book I’m currently reading.

Whether the place is populated by blue-skinned aliens, Egyptian goddesses, or plain old folk from Texas; this world has been built detail by detail to enchant me.

How I love to be enchanted!

How I strive to enchant in return. Whether my setting is the urban Toronto of my Painted Ladies series or the fictitious small town of my Clarence Bay series, I seek details that will capture my reader’s imagination.

FreeDigitalPhotos.net/dan

The crunch of biscotti and the bitter taste of espresso seat a reader at the bistro table with Caterina, my Italian heroine. The scents of sun on pine trees and rain-soaked earth take a reader for a walk in the woods with Ryan, my small-town hero.

Other than a description of setting, a turn of phrase evokes a time and place. You wouldn’t expect Regency cant to come from the mouth of a cowboy or to occupy his thoughts. Unless, he was a time traveler. Hmm, is there a story in there?

At the moment, I’m traveling in eighteenth-century London with a nobleman just returned from the New World.

Where are you and who are you with?

Joan Leacott

Heart, humour, and heat... Canada style

What do you really expect?

Okay, so we all do it. We write and write and write, and then we have critique after critique after critique. Then we submit. So, yes, I know that’s the abridged version. But, that’s usually the process we all follow.

But, have any of us taken a short cut or tried to figure out how to speed up the process?
So, instead of finishing the piece you’re working on…you decide to submit, and maybe finish the piece while the multi-submission process is happening around you. Yes, I did it, and I know you’re all slapping yourself upside the head…going no, Angela don’t do it. I know. I know. Too late.

I did it, and I wondered why afterwards. Why did I submit the piece before it was finished? Did I think…I have tons of time, before they contact me—if they contact me—I’ll have it finished? Did I think…it doesn’t matter because no one will contact me? I think I believed the former, not the latter…at least I hope I did, but now , faced with a waiting editor, and a finished, but unedited manuscript…what do you (I) do. And will the piece be as good as it could be with more time and no pressure? I don’t know, but I definitely will try.

But, again, why? Why take the chance? Submission after submission received rejection after rejection, so shock and awe are the only way I can describe an editor asking me for a full manuscript within hours of a submission. I’ve been bouncing off of walls from excitement at the request, but biting my nails because my manuscript isn’t clean.

My question is…when you submit do you really believe it is good enough?

One of the Good Guys or Bad, Do You Think???

To make well rounded characters, even bad guys should have some goodness, to make they real, don't you think? And if they're the good guys, they need flaws that make them real. Sooo, what do you think? Good guy or bad guy?

My beautiful book marks for the conference came in. It has Wolf Fever on one side in a lovely artistic portrait sort of way. Very lovely. Thanks to Sourcebooks marketing department for their lovely book covers and book mark designs. :)And on the other side, the latest 4 titles. :)



Preorders are now available!!!

Per request:Seduced by the Wolf Excerpt

I was at my son's wedding this past weekend, and so not around to post, so I'm going to give a hint of what's to come next week--free book giveaways! Sometimes my publisher gives more than one book to lucky winners! Hope you'll stop in and say hi!!!



First, the GREAT NEWS!!! I sold two more books to Sourcebooks: The Highland Wolf in Paradise, & The Wolf and the SEAL. :) The Highland wolf story continues with one of the brothers from Heart of the Highland Wolf (Book 7) coming in Jun 2011, and the other is about Meara, Hunter's sister from To Tempt the Wolf (Book 3). That makes book 9 & 10. With more to come! :)

But that's not all! Here's the schedule below for August for Seduced by the Wolf as Leidolf wears down a little red wolf biologist in Portland, Oregon and the surrounding area! :)

His first priority is to protect his pack...
Werewolf pack leader Leidolf Wildhaven has just taken over a demoralized pack. With rogue wolves on the loose causing havoc and the authorities from the zoo suddenly zeroing in on the local wolf population, the last thing he needs in his territory is a do-gooder female, no matter how beautiful and enticing she is...

She'll do anything to help wolves...
Biologist Cassie Roux has dedicated her life to protecting wolves in the wild. On a desperate mission to help a she-wolf with newborn pups, the last thing Cassie needs right now is a nosy and entirely too attractive werewolf pack leader trying to track her down...

With rogue wolves and hunters threatening at every turn, Cassie and Leidolf may find their attraction the most dangerous force of all...

First Reviews:

Cassie Roux is red lupus garou. As a child, she was accepted into a pack of real wolves, who cared for her during the difficult years after she lost her own werewolf pack. Her love and gratitude for the wolves led her to become a wolf biologist, traveling the globe to save the wolf and educate the public on this special species. Then Cassie stumbles into the territory of Leidolf Wildhaven, a red lupus garou pack leader. Leidolf has his own problems unifying and healing his new pack, but the scent of an unmated female lupus garou soon diverts this lonely wolf’s attention in a new and delightful direction.

Seduced by the Wolf is the fifth werewolf novel by Terry Spear. While totally a standalone novel, it also allows fans brief glimpses of the continuing lives of characters from her previous novels. I love, love, LOVE this novel! I wish I had more than 5 klovers to offer. Cassie and Leidolf steam up the pages with a delightful courtship dance, and the subplots of secondary characters are just as intriguing and well developed. All the realistic wolf behavior shows the author has done her research homework and adds depth and color that makes the action leap from the pages.

Crystal of CK's Kwips and Kritiques

"No one makes werewolves seem real better than romantic urban fantasist Terry Spear continually does with her “Wolf” saga (see Legend of the White Wolf, To Tempt a Wolf, Heart of the Wolf and Destiny of the Wolf). Her fifth were-wolfish thriller is a strong tale of two dedicated people wanting to d the best for the wolfish populace in the northwest. Sub-genre fans will want to roam Oregon with this lead couple as outside a werewolf, a book by Terry Spear’s is woman’s best friend..." ~~Harriet Klausner, Genre-Go-Around Reviews

There will be free books during the blog tour! I'm excited and will be posting the dates again during the month at:
http://terry-spear.blogspot.com
. :)




8/1 Seriously Reviewed
8/2 Seriously Reviewed
8/3 My Overstuffed Bookshelf http://myoverstuffedbookshelf.blogspot.com/

Seriously Reviewed

Casablanca
8/4 Martha’s Bookshelf http://marthasbookshelf.blogspot.com/

Seriously Reviewed
8/5 Anna’s Book Blog http://annavivian.blogspot.com/

Seriously Reviewed

SciFi Guy
8/6 Poisoned Rationality http://lastexilewords.blogspot.com/
8/7 Sat Mona's Blog www.monarisk.blogspot.com

Seriously Reviewed
8/8 Sun
8/9 Open
8/10 Fumbling With Fiction http://chandlermariecraig.wordpress.com
8/11 Sia McKye’s Thoughts Over Coffee http://siamckye.blogspot.com/
8/12 Books 4 Moms http://www.books4moms.com/
8/13 Love Romance Passion http://www.loveromancepassion.com/
8/14 Sat
8/15 Sun
8/16 Star-Crossed Romance http://star-crossedromance.blogspot.com/
8/17 A Simple Love of Reading http://simpleloveofreading.blogspot.com/

Marissa’s Sizzling Hot Book Reviews
8/18 Thoughts in Progress http://www.masoncanyon.blogspot.com/
8/19 Caroline Clemons
8/20 My Book Addiction and More http://www.mybookaddictionandmore.wordpress.com
8/21 Sat
8/22 Sun
8/23 Fresh Fiction http://freshfiction.com/
8/24 Debbie’s Book Bag http://debsbookbag.blogspot.com/
8/25 Book Junkie http://myfoolishwisdom.blogspot.com/
8/26 Fang-tastic Books http://www.fang-tasticbooks.blogspot.com/
8/27 Larissa's Life http://www.larissaslife.com
8/28 Sat
8/29 Sun
8/30 A Journey of Books http://ajourneyofbooks.blogspot.com
8/31 Night Owl Romance http://www.nightowlromanceblog.blogspot.com/

And here's beautiful Portland where the story takes place. :)

And here is the cover for Heart of the Highland Wolf, coming from Sourcebooks Jun 2011!!! Isn't he GORGEOUS???

Last chance to sign up for the Conflict class! Lessons don't have to be done by
a certain time during the month, and I do personally critique lessons. If you
need some more conflict in your life, ahem, in your mss, join me! :)

August 2-29

Conflict! Conflict! Conflict!
How to Write Conflict in Every Scene!From warriors fighting on the battlefield
and storms that threaten mayhem, to the conflict in relationships from romance
to just plain living around others--EVEN if the individual is shipwrecked alone
on a desert island--conflict is all around us.

For fiction, it's essential to show conflict in every scene, to engage the
reader throughout our tale. Even for nonfiction, conflict in the story makes for
much more interesting reading.

So we will discuss internal/external conflict, conflict in dialogue, conflict in
actions and reactions, conflict in settings, conflict between individuals,
conflict in plot, and subplots, subtle and not so subtle conflicts, and much
more. Every lesson has exercises and I critique your writing samples.

We have 3 lessons per week ($25 for the class).

So if you'd like to find some ways to make those scenes much more conflictive,
join me in Conflict! Conflict! Conflict!To Pay for this Online Writing Workshop
using Paypal,
click here: http://www.terryspear.com/online_writing_workshops_2010.html
Award-winning author of the series: Heart of the Wolf, Destiny of the Wolf, To
Tempt the Wolf, Legend of the White Wolf, Seduced by the Wolf, Wolf Fever, Heart
of the Highland Wolf, Dreaming of the Wolf, The Highland Wolf in Paradise, The
Wolf and the SEAL, the medieval Highlander series: Winning the Highlander's
Heart, The Accidental Highland Hero, and the vampire romantic suspense: Deadly
Liaisons. Spear has also written YAs, for the True confessional magazines, and
nonfiction magazines.

Terry
"Giving new meaning to the term alpha male."
www.terryspear.com

The Summertime Blues? Or the Summertime Blahs?

I've been really dragging my heels lately on promoting my latest book (obligatory link and picture here). Part of the reason is because it's out in digital right now, and not in print. I hate doing double-promo (once for digital, once for print). So I tend to center my efforts around the print version, when I promo both release types.

I'm probably doing the book a disservice. It's got a great plot, marvelous hero (Nathan Stokes, one of my more original heroes), and it's set at a casino I absolutely adore (I love casinos anyway, but that's another story!) I should be out there shouting from the rooftops about this book because I think it really ROCKS. But I've been remarkably quiet about it.

I think I've got the Blahs. This is my 17th book and it is SO hard to fire up that old promo machine and get out there and talk about the book. A couple of things are conspiring against me:

1. It's summer. I live in Minnesota. We don't get a lot of summer, so I try to enjoy as much of it as I can. Which means I'm not as on-task at my computer as usual.
2. My WIP: I'm nose-deep into a new book and it's giving me fits. I spend most of my time struggling with it. I've almost chucked it once or twice (anyone who knows me knows that this is tantamount to the End Times). I've just now gotten my mojo back on that book and I hate to take a break from it.
3. I took a month off. Oh, I still went to the Day Job 40+ hours a week, but I just did some editing, some reading, some relaxing. I don't do that kind of thing often. I do it maybe, let's see, once every two or three years? And damn, it was fun! And I kinda wish I could do it again.
4. I'm not sure what works, promotion-wise. I've been doing this for 3 years now, and I have no idea what resonates with readers, what makes people want to buy a book. Sometimes I feel it's all futile. Other times I feel I've really made a connection. I'm not sure if my efforts do any good, so it's hard to get out there and do...anything. 

Okay, that's all the excuses. The bottom line is...it's a damn good book and I need to get out there and promote it! And I will. As soon as I finish this blog post, and work on chapter 9, and cut some flowers, and...

Speaking of Family

Speaking of family - how unique is it to meet eight second cousins who’ve traveled all the way from Denmark to California? This past weekend I enjoyed this phenomena when I, along with five other cousins who live in California, met eight Danish cousins for the first time. The fact that our grandparents were siblings made it very unique and quite special.

In his early twenties, my grandfather and his brother left their native Denmark and traveled to America on the Lusitania, December of 1909. They left behind their parents, a brother and two sisters. My grandfather settled in Nebraska as a farmer and my uncle decided to try his luck in Iowa. Grandpa returned to his homeland when he was 82 years old and died before he could return to America.

What I found most interesting is that the Danish cousins’ command of the English language was good enough for them to travel here and communicate with us. I feel sad that I didn’t learn enough Danish to speak with them in their language. I grew up hearing Danish spoken in my grandparents’ home and when they spoke English their accent was quite strong. They learned English when my aunt went to school and became Americans.

We’ve always had foreigners in our home and have grown used to so many different accents. I had up to forty-one foreign penpals at one time beginning in 1989. Over the years I’ve lost some of my pen friends, but still write and speak on the phone with quite a few of them. We have added a Dutch son, his wife and their adopted Columbian sons to our family along with our Swedish exchange daughter and her husband. Our Magdalena still considers us her parents. Going through the exchange program was one of the best decisions we’ve ever made

Having many nationalities in our lives, we’ve learned as a family over the years how much alike we all are. Having a teenage Swedish daughter proved that point very clearly. Learning different customs and new ways of approaching life has always fascinated me. We’ve been lucky enough to visit many countries and several of my penpals have visited us. It has enriched our lives and has also helped me with my writing. I love to bring characters into my stories who bring varied nationalities with them. It also helps to have them as a resource when you want to add phrases into your dialogues.

Enthusiasm and Perseverance

In the realm of ideas everything depends on enthusiasm... in the real world all rests on perseverance.
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

I recently read this quote and saw myself. My Random House Webster’s dictionary defines enthusiasm as: lively, absorbing interest; eager involvement. My bone-deep love of storytelling and a keen desire to share my stories is what keeps me enthusiastic. I am bereft when I miss a day at my computer, lost in another world with my characters. I imagine myself published, and busy working on my third manuscript. Inside my head, I already have a two-book deal, signed, sealed and delivered. Dreams are a big part of enthusiasm. When an RWA member announces the call, I whoop in joy for her. We all recognize the effort and time it took for her to win the prize. We tell ourselves, yes, I can, too.

How do you keep your enthusiasm when someone shoots it down? An agent rejecting your query letter is like a hammer blow. And, I’ve taken my lumps from contest judges––crawled into a hole of self-doubt for awhile––but, I focus on the big picture.

This is where perseverance kicks in. Again I turn to my Webster’s dictionary for a definition of perseverance: steady persistence in the course of action, a purpose, a state, etc., especially in spite of difficulties, obstacles, or discouragement. Persistence is it, then. I’ll share two of my favorite quotes about Persistence and Determination.

Press On
Nothing in the World can take the place of Persistence.
Talent will not: Nothing is more common than unsuccessful people with talent.
Genius will not: Unrewarded genius is almost a proverb
Education alone will not: The world is full of educated derelicts.
Persistence and Determination alone are omnipotent.
From the 30th President of the United States

Edison failed 10, 000 times before he made the electric light. Do not be discouraged if you fail a few times.
Napoleon Hill

I haven’t reached the destination of published full length romance author yet, but with enthusiasm and perseverance I intend to succeed. I want the same for every writer reading this blog!

When you’re feeling low and need to recapture your enthusiasm, what do you do?

My Views on Judging and Critiquing by Jaclyn Di Bona

You will be surprised at what you can learn by critiquing and judging someone’s manuscript. Sometimes, you can spot your own mistakes by judging others. You’ll learn that when you enter a contest, you are going to love, or be hurt by what someone says about your baby. Read it over carefully and if you receive two similar critiques then you need to go over your manuscript.

We need to be constructive, not destructive in your critiques. Not everyone does. In one of my first contests, my heart stopped when a judge said she hated my heroine. She found her to be a ‘bitch.’ Her words. How’s that for a stopper? I figured that was because my heroine came across as a woman proud of who she was and what she’d accomplished.

Another said: ‘who wants to read about two forty-year-olds?’ I felt like yelling, “Hey, we over forty are not dead to romance.” I should say not. Especially when we write romance and I read eight to ten romance books a month.

That reminds me. August is around the corner and I need to remind B&N to hold Terry Spear’s new book for me. Seduced By The Wolf. It’ll join her other four.

You need to learn the difference between show and tell. This took me a while and I’m still learning.
Telling: She looked confused as she read the letter.
Showing: Her brows wrinkled as she read the letter.
Author Shirley Jump is great at showing and telling. Check her out.

An editor suggested I go over my manuscript and delete 50% of my passive words. Had, has, have, was, were and the ly adverbs words. Great. I found my story moved faster.
I had one heck of a time with POV until I put my heroine in pink and my hero in blue. Worked like a charm. Especially when the editor said no more than 3 POV in one chapter.

WHEN YOU’RE DONE WITH YOUR BOOK. HERE’S 20 POINTS YOU CAN USE TO DOUBLE CHECK. I FORGOT WHERE I OBTAINED THIS, BUT IT IS GREAT.

1. WILL MY FIRST SCENE GRAB THE READER
2 HAVE I WRITTEN A UNIQUE STORY
3. ARE MY CHARACTERS CONSISTENT IN THEIR ACTIONS
4. ARE THE CHARACTERS 3 DIMENSIONAL? DID THEY GROW WITH THE STORY
5. CAN THE READER IDENTIFY WITH THE HEROINE?
6. HAVE I LET SECONDARY CHARACTERS OVERSHADOW OR DISTRACT FROM THE HERO/HEROINE
7. IS THE CONFLICT TOO EASILY SOLVED? IS THEIR CONFLICT A DRIVING FORCE THROUGHOUT THE BOOK
8. DOES EACH CHARACTER HAVE A DISTINCT VOICE? WHEN THEY SPEAK, DOES THE DIALOGUE MOVE THE STORY.
9. DOES THE PACING OF MY STORY BUILD CONSISTENTLY TOWARD THE CLIMAX AND RESOLUTION? DID I AVOID A SAGGING MIDDLE?
10. DO MY ENDING SCENES TIE UP ALL LOSE ENDS PROPERLY?
11. HAVE I DELETED ALL EXTRANEOUS WORDS LIKE—WERE/WAS, ALMOST, NEARLY, VERY, COULD? ARE ALL UNNECESSARY ADVERBS AND ADJECTIVES GONE?
12. IS EVERY SCENE NECESSARY, OR DID I PAD FOR LENGTH?
13. DID I LET MY RESEARCH SHOW BY TELLING MY READER MORE THAN WAS NECESSARY
NECESSARY FOR MY STORY?
14. IS THERE A GOOD BLEND OF DIALOGUE AND NARRATIVE?
15. ARE MY SENTENCES OR PARAGRAPHS TOO LONG?
16. DID I USE ALL 5 SENSES?
17. DID I PING-PONG POV
18. FOR EVERY ACTION WAS THERE A REACTION?
19. ARE MY LOVE SCENES SENSUAL OR DOES IT READ LIKE A MANUAL?
20. IS THE MANUSCRIPT NEAT AND GRAMMATICALLY CORRECT?
Jaclyn Di Bona

An Author and an Officer: Stephanie Burkhart

It is my pleasure to introduce Stephanie Burkhart, a multipublished autor and officer who served in the Army for eleven years. Stephanie will tell us about:

Berlin 1988 and Now

I'd like to thank Mona for having me today at Voices From the Heart to promote my book, "Destination: Berlin."

Just a little about me: I was born and raised in Manchester, NH with a hungry appetite for reading gothic romance, especially by Victoria Holt. I served in the Army for 11 years from 1986 to 1997 and spent 7 years in Germany. My time in Europe inspired two passions – my love of history and the paranormal. Currently, I live in California and work for LAPD as a 911 dispatcher.

Destination: Berlin is a "sweet" military romance. When the Berlin Duty Train is derailed in the middle of East Germany, American Corporal Sharon Cates must rely on help from an unlikely source – Soviet Jr. Sgt. Dimitri Nagory to make it to safety.

Destination: Berlin was the first book I wrote. It was released in 2001 and updated in 2007 with maps. The story was inspired by my own trip to Berlin on the Berlin Orientation Tour in July 1988.

So what was Berlin like in 1988?

First, I can't believe that was 22 years ago! How the time flies. In 1988, I was a 20 year old Specialist in the US Army on active duty. My job? 95B – Military Police.

I arrived in Berlin at 0600 am, after leaving Bremerhaven at 1000 pm the previous night. Travel to West Berlin through East Germany could only be a night and the windows in the train were covered.

I had a decent night's sleep and our tour guide meet us right away. He took us to rooms on Roosevelt Barracks. After getting settled in, we were off.

Berlin was a divided city in 1988, and a wall still surrounded West Berlin. It was full of graffiti on the western side, barren facing east. The West was a thriving city with buildings full of color, parks, and the sounds of an urban hub.

One of the places I stopped to see was the Soviet War Monument in the American sector (Tiergarten). It was guarded by two Soviet soldiers. Historically, the Soviets arrived in Berlin first and thought the land the monument was on was going to go to them. When the city was officially divided, the land went to the Americans. They allowed the Soviets to guard it.

The Soviets were notorious for putting up war monuments in Berlin. The most famous is Treptower Park in East Berlin. It houses 5 mass graves with 1,000 soldiers buried in each grave. I had a chance to visit this park in 1988, but I had to wear my dress uniform (minus my nametag) to clearly identify my affiliation with the US Army.

The Americans had no monuments. In 1987 Rudolph Hess finally died in Spandau Prison. (Interestingly, the Americans, British, French, and Soviets switched guard duty on a monthly basis). As soon as he died, the British demolished the prison.

I also visited the Brandenburg Gate, looking at it from the west. The Berlin Wall was right in front of it, filled with graffiti. In 1990, I would have schnapps under the Gate itself while I celebrated New Years with my fiancé.

East Berlin was dull in color. Buildings were brown and gray, covered in soot from burning coal. The most modern buildings were from the 1950's and constructed in dull colors with panels of glass.

I visited Checkpoint Charlie, the only official place to enter East Berlin from the West. I also went to Wansee Lake, a natural border between West Berlin (the American sector) and Potsdam. I also walked on Freedom Bridge, where spy exchanges were frequently conducted. In fact, the Wansee and Freedom Bridge play a big part in the novel's end. hint, hint.

So what is Berlin like now?

I visited in 1990, 1991, 1992, and my last visit was in 1996. In 1996, East Berlin was gaining color and old sooty buildings were getting face lifts. The wall had been completely taken down, uniting two cities. Brandenburg Gate looked like new.

The four allies had left the city by 1996. Now, Berlin is the official capital of a united Germany. The history of Berlin is rich with accomplishments, yet tarnished by war, but one thing is true now as it was then – Berlin is a vibrant, international city which captures the heart of the German nation.

Excerpt from Destination: Berlin
"Have you been to West Berlin?" asked Sharon.
"A couple of times."
"Where did you go?"
"I visited the old Reichstag, Spandau Prison, and the Soviet War Memorial."
"Which place impressed you the most?" Sharon asked.
He put the olives aside and stretched out his legs. "Spandau Prison."
"Why?"
"I went there last year before Rudolph Hess died. It was a fortress. The prison itself was an old brick building surrounded by electric and barbed wire. The walls were thick and sturdy, yet Hess was very frail. It didn't seem appropriate to the prisoner," Dimitri replied.
"What sector of Berlin is the prison in?" she asked.
"The British sector. Every month the guards of the prison rotated between the allies and I accompanied Major Orlov to inspect the Soviet Guards in July 1987."
"Hess was an old man, wasn't he?"
"Yes," said Dimitri.
"How did he die?" Sharon asked.
"He committed suicide," Dimitri answered.
"Do you think Hess should have had more freedom in his waning days? Maybe he would have lived longer," said Sharon. She was impressed with the fact Dimitri had seen the Nazi before he had died.
"Perhaps. Perhaps not. He was part of a nation that aspired to dominate the world and no country should be allowed to impose its will on another. That's why we aren't successful in Afghanistan," he replied.
"And why the US was unsuccessful in Vietnam," Sharon added. "The suppressed will always mount a resistance that will challenge the oppressor."
"Very true. The Germans found the French resistance challenging in the last world war," said Dimitri. He yawned. "I suggest we sleep here another night and go to Plaue tomorrow."
"Dimitri, one more thing."
"Yes?"
"What happened to Spandau Prison?"
"The British demolished it. The allied government didn't want the prison to become a shrine for any of the neo-nazis," he answered.
"Well, I guess that's one thing our governments have in common."
"I guess," said Dimitri.
She sighed. She would have liked to have seen Spandau Prison. Now it was a slice of history only to be remembered in the books and archives of World War II.

Here's a link to Destination: Berlin's Book Trailer on You Tube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cuav1ZTlWOA

Destination: Berlin is a Print book only. Here's where you can buy it: Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Destination-Berlin-S-Cardin/dp/0595164196/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1277131006&sr=8-3

Barnes and Noble:
http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Destination/S-G-Cardin/e/9780595164196/?itm=1&USRI=Destination%3a+Berlin

IUniverse: http://www.iuniverse.com/Bookstore/BookDetail.aspx?BookId=SKU-000008175

Goodie Time: Post a comment. I'll pick two lucky winners out of a hat to receive an autographed postcard of the cover. Follow me on my blog tour and earn a chance to win an autographed copy of Destination: Berlin. To find out the dates on the blog tour visit my blog, "Romance Under the Moonlight."

Visit me at:
SG Cardin/Stephanie Burkhart Online
http://sgcardin.tripod.com/

Romance Under the Moonlight
http://sgcardin.blogspot.com/

Twitter:
http://twitter.com/StephBurkhart

The Same But Different

I'm at a writers conference, see, and the editor of the line says there's opportunity for new writers. WhooHoo! She says,


"Just write a story that's the same, but different."


Oh. Almost helpful. Well, let's start with the Same part.


I once heard a jaded, older, white, male, veteran of the publishing industry say,


"All romance stories are the same: boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl."


I remember smiling and shrugging at the notion. Then I remember getting a bit miffed at the POV of the aphorism. A tad sexist, no?


For the sake of argument, let's say it's true, but with different wording and an extra step. Let's say,


"All romances are the same: beauty meets beast, they fall for each other, they misunderstand each other, they reunite and commit to each other.


Easy peasy. Now let's move on to the Different part.


Make the beauty a virgin. Pablum to some, but popular with most.


Make the beast a mogul. That's a genre with a few thousand books published every year.


Make the beauty a widow. We're on a roll now.


Make the beast a vampire. Ka Ching!


This is fun, but I could use a little help. Can't we all? Let's share our best ideas for Different, in the form of the imperative:


Make the X a Y.


If you find the formula too constricting, and you have a Different idea that you are sure will knock the socks off the genre, please feel free to stick an adjective or two in front of each variable.


Thanks!
Quinn Tellier