Write WHERE you know

Several years ago, I read a book that was set in Mississippi. I was raised there, and it's where most of my family still lives. The book felt like it had been written by someone who had, at best, visited. I put the book down after the first chapter. The author had not only captured the setting wrong; it felt as if this peculiar-and-diverse state had been described disrespectfully.  I'll never read that author again.

It's one of the reasons I chose to set Whisper Falls in North Carolina. I'd lived there twenty-five years. I know this place.  The little nuances and Raleigh-isms just flow. Writing my first published novel was hard enough without being tripped up over getting the location correct.

My summer vacation has really brought this home. I'm spending a week in Rotterdam, Netherlands while my daughter attends a conference. I'm not planning to do anything except revise two sequels and enjoy "living" here.

I don't have any plans to set a book in Rotterdam, but I am noticing little details that are completely different from the life I have in the US. Things like:

• supermarkets are not open on Sundays (which I wish I had known on Saturday)
• most stores of any kind do not open until around noon on Monday
• nothing is air-conditioned--including some big, expensive hotels
• bicycles are almost as numerous as cars; cyclists are more aggressive toward pedestrians
• there are more ethnically-diverse couples
• parents hold hands with their children into their tweens
• people like to eat outside at sidewalk cafes
• everybody speaks decent (or better) English

 So maybe I'll never use any of this specific data in a book. But no longer will I take A/C, the opening hours of stores, modes of transportation, etc for granted when I write.

In fact, it's just easier to stick with North Carolina. For now.

Body language

My best friend and I were sitting at lunch the other day, and a hot guy walked by. So I said, "That guy is hot." (I'm eloquent that way.)

"Would you say that in front of your husband?" she asked.

"Sure would. And he doesn't mind."

She expressed some disbelief on his behalf, but it's the truth. It has to be.  It is my job to notice people.

I'm an author. I write stories where I must describe things. Human beings are the main things I describe.  Mostly, a story is about what my characters think and how they act. But their appearance (either the one they're born with or the one they create) can have a powerful impact on their thoughts, their actions, how other characters react to them, and--ultimately--how the reader responds.

Authors must be good manipulators of body language.

I know a dozen ways to say "blond."  If I call a girl "overweight", the reader has a different mental image than if I call her "curvy." I might give a minor character light brown eyes, but the hero's eyes are amber.

I pay attention to details. What is the shape of a person's face? Is it symmetric? Do they have scars? Facial hair? Does their hairstyle flatter or detract? How about their hands? Do they have long, elegant fingers? Is the skin supple, rough, or wrinkled? Are the nails long? Manicured? Dirty? Bitten? 

I might say that I find a guy attractive, but I could also write you a five-hundred word description to tell you exactly why. And it is likely that elements of that description will wind up in a book of mine one day.

Authors have careers that require understanding from spouses, but we're not the only ones. Actors kiss people who aren't their partners. Health care providers see and touch bare body parts as part of their daily routine.  The lady at the lingerie store knows precisely what bra size I wear just by looking.

My husband understands. He knows that a lot of what I say is simply exercising the tools of my trade.

Really. If I say you're hot, it's professional, not personal. Most of the time.

Hitting the road

Book 2 is due next spring. Half of the story takes place in 2016; the other half circa 1800.

I've had a brainstorming session with the brilliant Laura.  But, as I found with Whisper Falls, delving into the history often unfolds the story.  It's all there, waiting to be discovered.

So I'm heading on a couple of road trips.  First, daughter #2 and I will be traveling through eastern North Carolina, seeking out historical sites--hoping the land, buildings, and keepers-of-the-past share their wisdom.

Two weeks later, I'm heading to Virginia.  One of my eighteenth-century characters earns her living as a seamstress.  I'll explore the life styles, fashions, and textiles of that period in Richmond, Alexandria, McLean, and Mount Vernon.  My amazing husband has offered to drive.

The only thing better than learning about American history is to experience it with my family. I can't wait. 

While I Wait

I'm in a lull period with Whisper Falls.

I submitted my first round of revisions to my editor three weeks ago.  But I am not the only author he supports, and someone else takes precedence.

While waiting my turn, I'm working on another project. I Wished is YA contemporary magical realism novel.  This manuscript won over my agent.  I love the prickly heroine Lacey, the complicated family she protects, and the "genie" who shows up to make a difference.

I'm a better author today than I was four years ago when I wrote the original manuscript.  If I work hard--and with freelancer Laura's help--I Wished could be a great book.

I'm psyched.  This is going to be so much fun.