Mind Chocolate

Thoughts On Rejection

2011-06-10T06:10:00.000-07:00

Writing requires a great deal of vulnerability. To achieve any level of success and have your dream realized you must put a piece of yourself into an envelope or a PDF and send it off to be judged. Anyone who is in this business knows that rejection comes with the territory. You try to mentally brace yourself for its impact, but there is a small part of you that holds out hope for some good news. In that secret place deep down inside you privately imagine that you are soon going to be informed that an agent or editor thinks you’re the greatest thing since…well, the last greatest thing.

Then it comes like a sucker punch to the gut, and you realize that all of the preparation in the world could not be adequate enough to fend off the hurt that you feel.

Rejection comes in several forms. Sometimes it comes with a list of things that are wrong with your story. Sometimes it comes with a list of things that you can do to improve your story. Sometimes it comes with no explanation at all, and you are left alone to scratch your head and wonder what you did wrong.

What comes next tells the true tale of who you really are. It is the story behind the story.

Do you dismiss the criticism and vent to all of your friends about how some stupid person had the nerve to find fault with your work? Do you ignore the advice and eat seven bowls of chocolate ice cream all the while mumbling that someone didn’t recognize genius when they saw it? Do you throw your hands up in the air in defeat while pitching your manuscript in the trash? Do you walk away and never attempt to tell a story again?

Or do you work through the hurt and then take a long, hard look at your manuscript with honest eyes? Are you willing to do anything and everything within your power to become a better writer? Are you teachable?

Your reaction to rejection reflects the truth about you.

Having recently faced a publisher’s rejection I have been pondering this concept, and I have come to the conclusion that it is applicable to more than just the writing aspect of my life. You see, at the exact same time that I have been facing rejection as a writer I have also been facing rejection in some relationships.

The reality is that a life fully lived is going to require some vulnerability on my part. I am going to put myself out there…and I am going to be judged.

Inevitably, rejection will be a part of the process at times, and there is nothing that can be done to adequately prepare for pain that is soul deep. Sometimes it will come with a long list of my faults. Sometimes it will come with some advice on how I can improve. And sometimes it will come with no explanation at all.

What am I going to do with this experience? Will I retreat in fear? Will I lash out in anger?

Or will I work through the hurt and take a long, hard look at myself with honest eyes? Can I learn something from this process that will make me a better human being? Am I teachable?

As a person, and as a writer, I wish that I could say that my first reaction to rejection has always been mature and well thought out. However, if I am going to speak honestly I have to say that I have felt hurt and angry and afraid.

But I have felt the unwavering gaze of God on me in the swirl of my emotions. He is my one true thing. The One who sees all of my faults and does not walk away. The One who loves me in spite of me.

Grace given so lavishly generates a response deep within my soul. It makes me want to strive for excellence in every aspect of my life. And God is faithful to show me just where I need to apply my efforts. He has already pointed me back to some places in my life where I have been responsible for inflicting the exact same hurt that I am now feeling. Ouch. I am learning some important life lessons in an up close and intimate way. My words matter. My loyalty matters. I need to extend the same grace that I so desperately need. I knew these things in a peripheral sense, but there is nothing like making it personal to drive the point straight to the core of who I am.

There are things that I need to learn about myself and the character of God that can only be learned through the pain of rejection. There are things that I need to learn about my writing that can only be learned through the pain of rejection.

Jesus, please help me to be teachable.

~ Tracy Bowen

Indie's Interview

2011-06-09T12:57:00.000-07:00

Indie decided to interview Tracy and I over on Ralene Burke's blog. Stop by and see how it went! And thank you, Ralene!

Best Roadtrip(s) Ever

2011-05-27T07:54:00.000-07:00

As you probably know, it's almost summer. Which makes me think of watermelon, cookouts, reading in the sun, extra projects, and roadtrips. Oh, and Bliss, too, because it's such a good beach read. :-) We'll be talking about a contest in June for Bliss, but for now, let's talk roadtrip memories! Here are some of mine.

1. The summer after seventh grade, my parents bought an RV, and our family took a trip out West for the summer. Lots of memories from this--mostly of mishaps, like having to stop alongside the road in Kansas--repeatedly--because the wind would unravel the awning from the side of the RV. Or getting so badly sunburnt from tubing down the Wisconsin River, that when we went to the Mall of America the following day, my father was in a wheelchair. lol. But there were some great moments. Singing Zoe--yeah, you've never heard of them, have you?--at the top of our lungs, watching The Lion King a million times on the road, the buffalo wandering a few feet away from us in Yellowstone Park, and so much more.

2. Running across Bell Buckle, TN. How fun! Loved that place, with its one row of great shops, and drinking from old-fashioned Coke bottles.

3. Abbeville, SC, with it's cemetery with long epitaphs about Civil War soldiers, watching a hysterical play at the old Opera House, hanging out in the town square, and eating cheesecake in Abbey's Alley while an elderly man played the saxaphone by flickering lantern light.

4. Accidentally running across a historic site of an old Moravian village or something like that. It was practically deserted, but so picturesque and peaceful.

5. Dunnellin, FL. What a cute town! Antique shops and restaurants in old houses. The Front Porch restaurant with its amazing chocolate meringue pie! I could live there, I think. (The town, not the restaurant. Although...maybe.)

Okay, I could keep going and talk about the Italian restaurant Papa Pia's in Memphis, or standing on the pedestrian bridge and listening to live music from one of the nearby restaurants in Chattanooga, or the bed and breakfast that had a pet pig called Esmerelda, or being invited to a random rehearsal dinner party at a hotel where we were staying ("because no one knows each other anyway!"), or...

Fine. I'll stop. Now it's your turn! What are some fun or disastrous memories you have from past roadtrips?

~ Jenness

Fun Stuff!

2011-05-19T19:06:00.000-07:00

Last week, our publisher emailed us to let us know we finaled...in a contest Tracy and I hadn't even known we entered! Written World Communications submitted Bliss to the 2011 Next Generation Indie Book Awards. Bliss was a finalist in the humor category (see below), and the awards will be presented in New York! Another book from WWC placed first in the religious category. Congrats to Caron, and to WWC! Click here for a full list of finalists.

HUMOR/COMEDY

WINNER ($100 PRIZE):

Buffalo Unbound, by Laura Pedersen (Fulcrum Publishing) (ISBN 978-1555917357)

FINALISTS:

Bliss, by Tracy Bowen & Jenness Walker (Written World Communications) (ISBN 978-0982937709)
Cascade Chaos: Or How Not to Put Your Grizzly in the Statehouse, by William Slusher (Country Messenger Press Publishing Group, LLC) (ISBN 978-0961940751)
Journey to Virginland: Epistle 1, by Armen Melikian (Two Harbors Press) (ISBN 978-1935097518)
Laughter: The Drug of Choice, by Nicholas Hoesl (LaughterDoc Publications) (ISBN 978-0615437354)
Once More Into The Breach: A Personal Account: Reliving the History of the Civil War, by Mark Brian Swart (Outskirts Press) (ISBN 978-1432763862)

It's a Love Story

2011-05-09T16:15:00.000-07:00

If you have been on planet earth over the past few weeks you may have heard something about a royal wedding. I couldn’t help but get caught up in the buzz…just a little. Now let me make it clear that I would not get up in the middle of the night for my own wedding, much less for a complete stranger, but I did have some curiosity about the big event, so I scoped out the news the next afternoon.

I have no explanation for my interest. Given the choice between a chick flick and football, I will choose sports every time. This is not typically my “thing.” As much as I loathe shopping for clothes, you could not accuse me of being obsessed with fashion…yet I wanted to catch a glimpse of “the dress.” As much as I despise the thought of crying in public, you could not accuse me of getting all emotional at the idea of a wedding…but I did get a goofy smile on my face when she started down that long aisle.

What can I say? There is a small part of me that loved the romance of it all. I loved the dress. I loved the pomp surrounding the ceremony that was so rich with tradition. I loved listening to the prayers and the vows because, let’s all be honest, everything sounds better in a British accent. I loved listening to the pure, authentic voices in the choir. I loved laughing at some of those silly hats.

It’s a love story. And, at the end of the day, the woman in me responds to that.

While I found the whole thing fascinating, there are times when I cringe at the thought of the royal wedding, because I know all of the gals are getting caught up in the idea of their own “prince” swooping in to rescue them from the pain and problems of their past and whisking them away to their very own well-planned out version of happily ever after. Having been married for almost eighteen years, let me just go on record as saying this scenario is not anywhere close to reality. Before you fall out of your computer chair and then climb back in it to send Matt mass emails full of sympathy because he has the sad misfortune to have me as his wife…let me explain.

I came into this whole marriage experience with a lot of expectations. Marriage was going to be the great band-aid that made me all better. I wanted happiness. I wanted him to fix me…and yet at the same time I held myself back from him because my entire past experience had led me to believe that men will always hurt you. Talk about a lose-lose situation. Poor Matt. He never stood a chance with me.

Matt is just about as close as a man can get to being the perfect husband. He gets me. He is not bothered by the fact that I am not into cuddling and sharing feelings--I need space--yet he knows I am romantic enough to appreciate flowers and love notes from him. He has incredible talent in the kitchen, and has made me some mouth-watering meals. His work ethic is off of the charts. He is very skilled, and is good at literally every single thing that he attempts. I have yet to see him take on a job that he does not complete well.

He surprises me with things that really matter to me…like a freshly painted office. He supports me in every single thing that I do. He is an awesome, hands-on dad. He always makes an effort to let me know how beautiful he thinks I am, and there is not a doubt in my mind that, four kids later, he still finds me attractive. And--this one is very important--he makes me laugh.

In spite of this very “princely” resume, he could not rescue me from my past, and he could not carry the full weight of my entire future happiness. No human shoulders can. No man can, for any woman. While I am sure that not every woman walks down the aisle with all of the issues that I had, I am equally sure that most women have expectations that cannot be met.

At least they cannot be met in a spouse.

The core problem with the whole courtship process is that it is usually based in façade. We always put our best foot forward. No one goes on that first date thinking, “Well, tonight I will unload all of the baggage from my past…that sounds like fun!” And when we do finally start going through our luggage with a potential spouse we usually take out the sexy black dress. The stained t-shirts and the pajama pants we wear when we are feeling fat get left in the bottom of the suitcase. In one of the zipper pockets on the side we leave our expectations. We rationalize that it would be silly to go through the trouble of pulling them out…after all, surely our significant other can guess what they are because we were made for each other. A few weeks after the wedding ceremony we start to unpack, and the ugly truth is revealed.

My truest and deepest wish is that every woman would open her heart to the healing grace of Jesus Christ…as I did. His extravagant love rescued me in the truest sense of the word. Not only did He save me from my sins, He saved me from myself. The discovery of the trustworthy character of God gave me the courage to trust my husband. I stopped sabotaging my marriage. The freedom that I have found through my relationship with God has allowed me to release Matt from false expectations. While his love for me has helped my restoration process, he is no longer expected to be my sole source of healing and happiness. He can just be my husband. A job that he is doing quite well.

God knows what lies beneath the facade, yet He is hard after our hearts. He has gone to extraordinary lengths to show us the depth of His compassion for us. There is nothing that He will not do to lavish His care upon us. He is the source of everything that is good and right, and He offers life-giving hope. He longs to fill every aching need that burns in our hearts.

It’s a love story.

~ Tracy

Your Great Name

2011-04-26T16:37:00.000-07:00

I love this time of year. The weather is amazing, and the flowers appear to be more vibrant. Easter, and everything that it represents, is one of my favorite holidays. It just seems as if you can feel hope lingering in the air offering new beginnings.

As of two years ago I have added a new reason to find spring so special. On April 16, 2009, our family experienced a miracle.

That evening we decided to take our kids to a park close by our home. Our eleven-year-old, Caleb, decided he wanted to ride his bike. We were going to be right behind him in our van with so we agreed to let him.

To get to our destination we had to cross a two lane road. Caleb was in front of us so he got there first. I saw a car coming, and assumed that Caleb saw it as well. (If I had a dollar for every time I have told my children to look both ways I would be writing this little story from my vacation home in Europe.)

And then I saw his foot move on the bike pedal.

What happened next is without a doubt the most bizarre moment of my life. I knew exactly what was going to happen, and I also knew that I could do absolutely nothing to stop it. My husband realized as well, and immediately began screaming, “No, no, no,” over and over and over again. It was a blood-curdling sound like nothing I have ever heard from him before or since.

Before our very eyes, the car struck Caleb full on.

His body flew up over the hood of the car and disappeared. The vehicle came to an almost immediate stop. I frantically scanned for Caleb, but could see nothing. My husband was the first to jump out of our van and he began running towards the accident, still screaming that one word desperately. I sat stunned. My brain simply could not process what had just happened.

I finally gathered my wits and yelled at our other children to not move a muscle, then I took off running as well. I was not hysterical. It felt like I was having an out of body experience…as if I was looking down at this horrible event as it happened to someone else. I rounded the back of the car that had hit him, and saw that Caleb was in the grass on the opposite side of the road. He was trying to push himself up on one elbow.

My first thought was, “He’s moving! He’s alive!”

My second thought was, “He should not be moving! We don’t know what is going on inside of his body!”

I screamed at him, “Don’t move! Please, don’t move!”

Though I have no memory of grabbing it, I looked down and saw that my cell phone was in my hands. Immediately, I called 911. It rang, and rang, and rang some more. I was frantically talking into the mouthpiece, “Pick up! Pick up!”

Finally, a lady answered. When I told her what had happened she asked for our location. I relayed what road we were on and a few landmark buildings, but she kept saying she needed an actual physical address. To this day I have no clue what she wanted me to say. There is no physical address for car/bike accidents that occur in the middle of the road. I don’t think the third pothole on the right side of the road qualifies.

Bystanders were already gathering, and since it was our neighborhood we knew most of them. One man sensed my frustration at the emergency operator and took the phone from my hands.

I then dropped to my knees beside my son. His face looked horrible. One cheek was just raw, oozing flesh and his arm looked bruised and swollen. And that was what I could see. God only knew what was hidden beneath his clothing.

I can tell you that fear is more than an emotion. It envelopes your body and takes over all of your senses. It smells like burnt rubber and freshly plowed dirt. It has the salty taste of tears, and crawls down your spine like clammy sweat. It looks like flashing lights. And it sounds like your child crying over and over again, “I don’t want to die. I don’t want to die.”

Before I knew it we were surrounded by a barrage of rescue workers. The scene was completely chaotic. Looking up from the ground, I saw the man who hit Caleb standing by his car with a look of utter shock on his face. My heart went out to him. He had not been speeding, and there was nothing he could have done to avoid what happened. I remember thinking, “Oh, that poor man. He thinks he may have killed my son.”

I tried to get his attention and told him, “This is not your fault. He pulled out in front of you. There is nothing you could have done.”

The medics were working with Caleb, and very quickly told me that because of contusions to his abdominal area that he would have to be life-flighted to a nearby hospital because of the possibility of internal injuries.

My mind just went numb.

Completely heartbroken, I crouched on the side of the road, my face in the dirt beside Caleb as they strapped him to a gurney. I just kept repeating, “Jesus. Jesus. Jesus.”

It was all that I could think to say. I knew He was our only hope.

Caleb started going into shock as they loaded him in the ambulance that would take him to meet the trauma hawk that had landed in a field nearby. His body was shaking uncontrollably. They would not allow me to get in the chopper with him.

And so there I stood, watching as my son was taken away. There is not a more helpless feeling on planet earth.

Some friends drove me to the hospital. They prayed out loud as we sped down the road, but I still could not formulate a plea of my own. My mind just kept repeating that one word. Jesus. It felt like the longest ride of my life. I had no idea what news might be awaiting me when I arrived.

Our evening of horror turned into a night of miracles when, after cat scans and x-rays, it was discovered that Caleb had no broken bones and no internal injuries. He was one sore, bruised, road rash covered little boy, but he was alive.

We found out later that night the true extent of our miracle when my husband talked to the man who hit Caleb. He told us that every evening he drives a large service truck home from work.

But not that night.

On that night he was driving a little Honda Civic.

***

This past Easter Sunday morning I listened as “Your Great Name” was sung in church. I love that song. I suppose it is because the accident is so very real in my mind at this time of year that the words took on such special significance.

“Sick are healed, and the dead are raised, at the sound of Your great name.”

As I walked through this memory and recalled how His name was the only thing my traumatized mind could think to say, I felt the full impact of verse fourteen in Hebrews chapter four.

“Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God.”

In the grief-stricken utterance of His name, He heard the cry of my heart.

The suffering and death that He so willingly endured allowed Him to take on the role of the Great High Priest. In the glory of His resurrection He has become the intercessor.

Every single moment in our lives when we feel the impact of the painful, sinful world in which we live, He comes running to our side. He crouches in the dirt and despair that surrounds us as our minds scream in desperation, “I don’t want this! I can’t take this!” His heart breaks when our hearts breaks.

And there as we struggle to survive our darkest moment, He stands before the Father on our behalf. His wounds strongly plead for us.

Every hope that we have is fulfilled in that one precious name.

Jesus.

“Jesus, worthy is the Lamb, that was slain for us, Son of God and man, You are high and lifted up and all the world will praise Your great name.”

~ Tracy

Becoming Authentic

2011-04-16T10:51:00.000-07:00

Okay, confession time.

I love clean. When my house is so strongly filled with the fumes of bleach and Pine Sol that my eyes start to burn, I get a warm, fuzzy feeling. Now, granted, that may be a high from the cleaners...but take my word for it: I really do like a sparkling house. Especially floors.

While I am sure that the men in my life still think I am a little over the top about my obsession with clean floors, I have come a long way from where I used to be. You are reading the ramblings of a woman who used to vacuum every inch of carpet in my house and scrub the kitchen and bathroom floors on my hands and knees every single day. Sometimes more than once. OCD, anyone?

I was raised in an atmosphere that put a lot of emphasis on appearance, but there was all manner of evil hiding beneath the dignified, saintly facade. I learned early on that the ugly stuff is supposed to be hidden, and I became a hard core people pleaser. The result? Someone who internalized a lot of pain and anger. It ate away at me like an insidious cancer, leaving me panicked. So then I ended up doing a lot of things that gave me the illusion of control...like keeping a perfect house. I fell into the clutches of an enslaving lie: If the outside looks good, that makes up for the fact that the core is appallingly rotten. Enter Facade Tracy--the Queen of Cover-Up. And no, I am not referring to make-up.

By the grace of God I met someone who helped bring the pain and anger from my past into His light. For the first time in my life I was real before Him. Not that He hadn't known me before, but I have come to learn that the acknowledgement of who we are is not for His benefit--it's for ours. The discovery of His love for me--just as I was--and of His trustworthy character, changed my life.

This area of authenticity is a place God is continually working on. You would think I would just learn my lesson and be done with it, but apparently I am hard-headed. Who knew? Being honest about my past before Him was wonderful and freeing, but the clutches of the facade are long-reaching, and to this very day, its tentacles are grasping at my heels.

It is hard to be real with myself. Honestly, there are some things about me that just ain't pretty. It would be easier to pretend they don't exist and go bleach something. It is hard to be real with people. Let's face it...people can be very judgmental. We all love a good fingerpointing session. It distracts us from our own faults.

I am sickened when I realize just how much time and energy I have put into efforts that make me feel in control of my life, and worrying about what others think of me. God has been killing Facade Tracy. She is dying a slow, painful death. He is rooting out the motives behind my every action. It has been downright painful.

But I have met an interesting gal: Authentic Tracy.

Facade Tracy wants everything to be perfect at all times because that makes her feel in control. Facade Tracy does not care if her family cannot be comfortable in their own home because they fear messing up her hard work.

Authentic Tracy also likes clean...but she knows that family is more important than things. Authentic Tracy knows that she can't be a good wife, raise cherished children, go to school full-time, and write books while living in a spotless house. Perfect simply isn't on my agenda--I don't have time for it. Something has to give.

That something has turned into a dust bunny behind my fridge that is so large I am thinking about buying it a collar and giving it a name. It can be our new family pet.

There is not an area of my life that has not come under His scrutiny. Why do I wear the things I wear? Why do I go the places I go? Why do I act and react the way that I do?

This past year has been full of hard-earned lessons. God has been teaching me that I can work till I am blue in the face, but there will always be someone who will find fault with me. And if they can't find a fault, then they will make one up. People cannot be pleased. God has also been teaching me that control is an illusion. There are some things that cannot be dominated. It would be easier to capture the wind.

I don't want to make people happy with me. I want God to be happy with me.

I don't want to be in control. I want God to be in control.

I don't want a fake, plastic life that only looks good from the outside.

I want to be real.

Don't Feed The Alligators

2011-03-11T06:24:00.000-08:00

Jenness blogged about the writing journey over on the MBT Ponderers' blog. Read it here.

Interview with Christy Barritt

2011-02-01T07:27:00.000-08:00

We're so glad Christy Barritt could be with us today! Christy is the author of the hilarious Squeaky Clean mysteries, and has recently signed on with Love Inspired Suspense.

Christy, thanks for stopping by. Do you have a favorite chocolate indulgence?

I absolutely love the blondie brownie sundae at Applebee’s. It’s covered in white chocolate and the blondie brownie is sooo warm and yummy! I love it!

Give your own definition of chick lit.

The best way I can describe chick lit is that it’s literature about real women. That’s what I find so refreshing about reading and writing it. The books are about women who think and sometimes act the way I do in real life! The stories address imperfect women with insecurities, who can be snarky at times and sweet at times, women who love God but still screw up sometimes. They’re books I can relate with!

You are now writing for Love Inspired Suspense. How has that changed your writing style? Have you needed to change your tone to write for the category?

Writing for LIS is definitely a change. I like writing for the line, but the style is very different. LIS knows exactly what formula their readers want, and writers must follow that formula every step of the way. With my previous books, I was definitely freer to think outside of the box. I’m excited to write my chick-lit and for LIS, though. I love being able to tell stories, and I get to do that through both genres!

Do you have any chick lit-like moments from your own life that you could share?

The one that stands out happened a couple of years ago. I had a rare evening to myself, so I decided to relax in the bath and have a little pampering and spa treatment at home. These are things I never have time to do anymore now that I have two children! Oh, and I had laryngitis that evening also. After the bath, I put my robe on. My hair’s in curlers. A green mask is covering my face. And you know what happens? The doorbells rings. On my way to answer it, I stub my toe. So, I’m jumping on one foot, trying to cry out in pain but unable to because I’ve lost my voice. I answer the door and it’s the UPS man. I know I must have been a sight for sore eyes! Lesson learned? Next time just pretend I’m not home.

Do you have any writing quirks?

I have a tendency to injure my characters and then forget about their injuries the next chapter. I have to really watch myself there. I also love drinking Coca-cola and eating cheese crackers while I write. I’m trying to change that, however, because it’s not great for the waistline!

If you were going to co-author a novel with someone, who would you choose? Why?

Author Mary Connealy and I have been critique partners for years. I think we’d have a blast writing something together because we both get each other’s sense of humor.

What are one or two of your favorite lit novels from the CBA?

I love Siri Mitchell’s Kissing Adrien. I also really liked Sharon Dunn’s Ruby Taylor series and Kristin Billerbeck’s What a Girl Wants.

Where would you go on your dream “research” trip, and would you take anyone with you? Who?

I’d go back to Scotland with my best friend--my husband. My husband’s family still lives over there. We visited five years ago and had a great time. I’d love to go back again sometime. It’s such a beautiful country.

If you could live in a novel, which one would you choose?

This is a little tricky because I’ve been reading lots of suspense novels lately, and I wouldn’t want to live in any of those novels—they’re too scary and tragic!

If you weren’t pursuing writing, is there another dream career you might be chasing?

I’d want to be a Broadway actress.

Finally, share two pieces of advice—one writing-related and one not.

Writing advice: Write because you love to do it. If you get too caught up in getting contracts and good reviews, you’ll be miserable.

Other advice: Believe in yourself and it will be so much easier for other people to believe in you also!

Thanks so much for sharing, Christy. It's always nice catching up with you! To learn more about Christy, check out her website here.

Interview with Susan May Warren

2011-01-20T07:20:00.000-08:00

We're honored to host Susan May Warren on Mind Chocolate today! Susan is one of our favorite authors, an amazing writing teacher/mentor, and an award-winning author who is the life of the party. (And she wears hats!) Susan has written somewhere around thirty books in various sub-genres of romance. She also founded the amazing writers' organization My Book Therapy.

Susan, we are so glad you stopped in today! Please give your own definition of chick lit.

I’m going to define Chick Lit in relationship to women’s fiction. Women’s Fiction is the journey of a woman and her relationships during a season of life. Chick lit is a slice of life, with a humorous bent.

Do you have any chick lit-like moments from your own life that you could share?

Oh, I’ll share a recent one…. I was on a plane to the West Coast, which is a fairly long flight from Mpls. I was tired and crabby because I had a late connection and had to virtually run to my gate in Mpls. Thus, when I got on the plane, the overhead compartments were already full. The only room for my carryon was where they stored the blankies for the plane (you know, the ones they say they don’t have?). So, here I am, moving these slippery blankets in their plastic containers to other places on the plane, shoving them inbetween other suitcases, etc. Finally, I get the space opened up and I lift my bag. It’s heavy and of course it doesn’t fit, so I’m wrestling it in. To make matters worse, I’m leaning over the guy seated in the seat below, and I’m pretty sure he’s looking up my shirt. No, he doesn’t offer to help. I finally get the bag in, check my ticket and turn to find my seat when I realize someone is sitting in it. He’s climbed into the window seat on the wrong side, with two elderly ladies next to him. So, instead of making everyone get up, I accept the window seat on the other side of the aisle. Of course, there are two beefy guys between me and the window. And, while the aisle seat fellow gets up, the middle seat fellow stays put so I have to climb over him to get into my seat. Nice.

Yes, I’m fairly crabby by this time, and I’ve been on the road a lot so I really miss my family. When we get at cruising altitude, I open my computer and pull open a slide show of my family and turn on a sappy Michael Buble song (Hold On) and spend some time just gazing at my lovely family and praying for them, missing them. The music seems a bit low and I’m one of those rock and roll girls - I like my music loud – so I turn the volume way up so it just fills my brain. It’s a very perfect, sad moment and I’m sort of lost in it when someone taps me on the shoulder. I look up to see a fellow standing in the aisle, holding his earphones in his hand. He’s mouthing something and I make it out just as I pull my earphone from my ear…

“Ma’am, your music is blasting throughout the entire plane.”

Yes. I’d plugged the earphones into the wrong jack. Which meant Michael Buble was crooning out “Hold On…to me tight…” throughout the entire cabin of the huge plane.

And you know how quiet those planes are.

I waited all three hours before I got up to go to the bathroom.

Do you have any writing quirks?

Popcorn makes me write better. (Rachel calls it “Popcrack.”)

I loved the Heirs of Anton series. If you were going to co-author another novel, who would you choose? Why?

I would love to write with Rachel Hauck- we would have a blast! But I so loved writing with Susan Downs, I’d definitely write with her again, too. (I loved that series, too!)

What are one or two of your favorite lit novels from the CBA?

I loved Siri Mitchell's, The Cubicle Next Door.

Where would you go on your dream “research” trip, and would you take anyone with you? Who?

Italy. My husband. J

If you could live in a novel, which one would you choose?

I think it would be interesting to visit the Gilded Age, where my current WIP is set although I don’t think I’d like to live there. As for a novel…could I live in the Mitford Series? J

If you weren’t pursuing writing, is there another dream career you might be chasing?

I love to teach – I’ve always wanted to be a high school or college English teacher. And I’ve always been in love with theater – so I’d love to pursue being a playwright. Oh, that’s writing. I think it would be neat to produce movies, too. J In a different life, perhaps.

Finally, share two pieces of advice—one writing-related and one not.

They are combined: Pursue faithfulness and you will find significance.

Thanks for having me!

Thanks so much for joining us, Susan! To learn more about Susan and her writing, check out her website.

Really??

2011-01-17T19:43:00.000-08:00

I'm having a hard time believing it's halfway through January already. Seriously? Between sickness, travel, company, proposals (the book kind), work, and whatever else, the new year has not gotten off to a good blogging start.

However...we have a new addition to our writing family. I'd like to introduce *Willis, my new laptop. So far we're getting along great. I miss the scrollbar thing on my touchpad, but just about everything else is wonderful so far. My husband chooses well. :-) Hyacinth is sticking around--don't worry about her. (Because, yes, I can hear the gasp of concern from our vast crowd of readers...Creepy, eh? :-) )

Anyway. Happy 2011! Hope it's going well for you! Tracy and I are planning for an interesting and busy year. We're wrapping up a proposal right now and are waiting to hear back on others. But you don't really care about all of that. Deep inside, you're longing for me to shut up and announce who one that free copy of Bliss last year. (See? I totally know what you're thinking. Those web-cam things are amazing...)

So, the lucky winner is...

...

...

Jessica!

Please email your snail mail addy to fiction at tandjbooks dot com.

Thank you all for commenting! Stay tuned on Thursday for an interview with none other than Susan May Warren!

P.S. I was kidding about the web cam thing--I cannot see you or hear you or read your mind. I know you were concerned.

*Still trying out names. Willis may only be temporary.

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-21T18:24:00.000-08:00

I love this time of year! Hope your Christmas prep is almost done and you're ready to relax and enjoy the holidays...and to remember the real Reason for the season.

As you look at the gifts under the tree, well, we have one to add to it! For Christmas, Tracy and I want to give away a copy of Bliss. (Which does have a few Christmas scenes in it, by the way.)

You can get your name put into the hat up to four times. 1. Tweet this link and let us know. 2. Post this link on your facebook and let us know. 3. Follow our blog. 4. Comment below, telling us about what novel you would choose to live in. Or, well, just comment below. :-)

We'll choose a winner next week. Meanwhile, Merry Christmas from the Bowen and Walker households to yours.

Interview with Rachel Hauck

2010-11-30T18:01:00.000-08:00

We're honored to host Rachel Hauck on Mind Chocolate today! Rachel is a sweet friend and fellow Floridian, a wonderful writer and worship leader. Love this lady! Rachel is an award-winning, best-selling author of the Low Country novels. She's also big part of the ACFW conference as well as Susan May Warren's My Book Therapy.

So, Rachel, do you have a favorite chocolate indulgence?

No, just chocolate in all forms!

Give your own definition of chick lit/lit fiction.

Oo, good one. A woman's journey toward a goal or destiny that involves, faith, friends, family, career and hunky man. :)

You taught about chick lit at the ACFW conference a few years back. Could you give us a workshop in a nutshell? :-)

Oh, girl, what are you thinking? Um, be funny. Be deep. Create a wide stage with a humorous supporting cast, don't be snarky or mean, tell the story with dialog, don't be introspective. How's that?

Do you have any chick lit-like moments from your own life that you could share?

Well, I was a career woman for many years before I was married. I traveled the world and the country for four years before moving to an in-house job. One winter, I was in Spain, and my interpreter decided he was in love with me. Oh, mercy! He was married. I wasn't. And he gave me the willies. He flew to his home city over the weekend and about nine that night, a note was slipped under my door by a hotel staffer. It started out, "Dear Princess..." Oh no oh no oh no!

I felt sick, and slimed and a bazillion miles away from my friends. I just prayed. It was all I could do! And what a privilege to be able to pray. Monday morning, he tells me how he thought of me all weekend. He was with his family! More oh no oh no oh no!

A few nights later, our cab driver went insane or something and got lost taking us to our hotel. By then even I knew the route! So we're driving around Madrid and I preached to my interpreter the entire time. Gave him the Gospel of Jesus Christ straight up and full on. End of crush on ole Rachel. ;) God be glorified!

Do you have any writing quirks?

You mean writing itself is not a quirk?

I do tend to pick last names that start with H or W. I have to have a Diet Coke or two to get started. I have to run through email and social media before writing. And call Susie Warren. Sometimes I read before I take up my own project.

You've already co-authored a series with Sara Evans--which we're going to have to talk to you about later on! But is there someone else you would love to write with? Why?

I'd love to write with Debbie Macomber. She's such a warm, fabulous story teller. I've learned a lot from her. I'd like to write with Susie because we practically write each other's books anyway. But writing with a co-write is not easy. Sara and I have done extremely well together, and I don't take that lightly. Once you start getting into story and plot, how to write and what to write, all the rules change. Sara and I have our partnership divided in clear lines so we don't step on each other's toes.

Really, I'd love for one of my own books to just take off to the moon!!

What are one or two of your favorite lit novels from the CBA?

Well, got to bow to the master Kristin Billerbeck. She writes great stuff. I think her Ashley Stockingdale series is fabulous. My other favorite lit author would probably be Siri Mitchell.

Where would you go on your dream “research” trip, and would you take anyone with you? Who?

Whoa, you used dream and research in the same sentence. I'm not sure that's allowed. My dream trip would be to a ranch in Montana, or a beach house in Fiji. If I happened to get some research done, then so be it. I'd take my hubby for sure.

If you could live in a novel, which one would you choose?

Live in a novel? Hmmm... Maybe in Mitford, Jan Karon's great North Carolina world.

If you weren’t pursuing writing, is there another dream career you might be chasing?

This is it. My dream career. All my "eggs" are in this basket.

Finally, share two pieces of advice—one writing-related and one not.

Writing advice would be to take it one day, one book at a time. Don't get ahead of yourself but stay tuned into the industry and publishing. Get involved in writer's groups, work on your craft, work on networking.

None writing related would be to really, really, really get a hold of the fact Jesus loves you. He's declared you are worthy. Don't let anyone steal that from you. And take care of this matter before really trying to do the matter of writing.

Thanks for having me! GREAT questions. :)

It was truly a pleasure having you here, Rachel! Thanks for joining us. To learn more about Rachel and her writing, check out her website. To celebrate the release of Dining With Joy, her latest Low Country book, there's a FANTASTIC give-away on her blog, so go check it out! (I'm about to. This is one I can actually enter!)

Happy Thanksgiving!

2010-11-25T13:42:00.000-08:00

O give thanks unto the Lord, for He is good: for His mercy endureth forever. Psalm 107:1

And The Winner Is...

2010-11-23T15:27:00.000-08:00

Tonya Slagenweit! Enjoy, lucky lady.

Thank you all for participating!

Everything seems to be going perfectly for Maya Davis: She has a great job at a coffee shop, gets along with her parents, and is happily single. That is until her best friend unknowingly starts dating Maya’s high school sweetheart, her annoyingly perfect brother moves back to town, and her co-worker starts showing interest in her. What is God trying to teach her about life, love, and commiserating over coffee?

The Intercessor

2010-11-18T17:28:00.000-08:00

I had just sat down to write a devotional for this blog, and the text came with the news. My friend has been sitting at the bedside of her father. The vigil is almost over.

He is dying.

Honestly, at first I just sat staring at the computer feeling completely helpless. Her family situation has always been complex, but no matter what the complications, at this moment in time she is simply a daughter watching her father slip away. I am a fixer. I want to do something to make it better.

But sometimes there is no better. Not here. Not on this side of eternity.

My eyes moved from the blinking icon on an empty screen to a piece of paper taped to the wall of my office.

“The moment we get tired waiting, God’s Spirit is right alongside us helping us along. He does our praying in and for us, making prayers out of our wordless sighs and aching groans. He knows us better than we know ourselves, and keeps us present before God. That is why we can be sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good.” Romans 8:26-30 The Message.

I could not help but think of the role of the great high priest as outlined in the Old Testament. He was a human representative who stood before Almighty God in a holy place that was set apart specifically for the meeting of humanity and the Divine. According to directions from God Himself, a beautiful veil of ornate workmanship set apart that sacred space called the Holy of Holies from the rest of the tabernacle. No one dared enter upon the threat of death, except the great high priest. Once a year he followed the cleansing rituals, adorned the priestly vestments, and with fear and trembling would enter into the very presence of God. His purpose was to sprinkle the blood of a spotless lamb on the mercy seat. He was the intercessor. He reached out to God on behalf of himself, and God’s people.

And then my thoughts moved to the cross. In my mind’s eye I could see Jesus as He took upon Himself the weight of the world.

The Son did not don priestly vestments. Instead He was viscously stripped of His clothing. He did not follow the cleansing ritual. His body was covered with saliva from their contempt, sweat from His arduous journey to Golgotha carrying a cruel cross, and blood from the agonizing stripes placed upon His back.

It was brutal.

It was beautiful.

For in that moment of agony when He cried out, “It is finished”, that veil was torn and Jesus obtained the position of the Great High Priest.

No longer was a weak and frail human being responsible for bridging the great divide between divinity and humanity bearing the insufficient blood of lambs. The perfect spotless Lamb had been sacrificed.

I may be helpless, but He is not. The Son now stands before the Father, and is pleading on behalf of my friend.

And for me...for you.

"Making prayers out of our wordless sighs and aching groans."

He is the intercessor.

Interview with Erynn Mangum

2010-11-16T17:17:00.000-08:00

Today we have the hilarious Erynn Mangum as our guest author. Erynn is a proud new mom who writes about quirky characters and coffee...lots of coffee. The first time I read one of her books, my husband walked into the room and laughed at the smirk on my face. Fun stuff. :-)

Erynn, do you have a favorite chocolate indulgence?

I love, love, LOVE homemade chocolate chip cookies. The Charmingly Chocolate Chip Cookies from Trader Joes are the closest to homemade that I've found that you can buy store bought. I also love chocolate milkshakes. :)

Give your own definition of chick lit.

I think chick lit is has changed a little bit over the years. Before, the characters needed to be in their thirties, desperate for love and pretty sarcastic. Now, I think it can encompass different ages, different motives and different voices - as long as it's fun, entertaining and has that twinge of romance!

Do you have any chick lit-like moments from your own life that you could share?

I'm forever putting my foot in my mouth, so awkward moments are pretty much a daily occurrence for me. Sadly.

What about any crazy college Bible study stories?

I was SO lucky to be a part of some amazing college Bible studies - and yes, most of the scenes in my books are usually directly related to some of the ones I lived through! I remember we used to meet at this house that four guys shared and they would roll out huge area rugs right before everyone came over and then roll them back up right after everyone left so they never had to vacuum their carpet. Bleugh!

Do you have any writing quirks?

Oh gosh - I never do the same thing twice. Sometimes I sit on the couch, sometimes I'm at the kitchen table, sometimes at the desk. Sometimes I need coffee, sometimes a chai tea, sometimes just good old fashioned water. Usually I'm wearing sweatpants. I went through a phase where I chewed gum the entire time I was writing and let me tell you, I had enviable jaw muscles.

If you were going to co-author a novel, who would you choose to write with? Why?

Honestly, I don't know that I could co-author a novel. I think I write in such a scattered, unorganized way that I would drive any other writer absolutely insane. Plus, I never know where I'm going to take the story until I'm in the middle of writing it. Such habits do not a good co-author make.

What are one or two of your favorite lit novels from the CBA?

Love Fools Rush In by Janice Thompson - I read that recently and just cracked up. Robin Jones Gunn is always a magical read - I can only read her every so often though because I get so envious of her storytelling abilities!

Where would you go on your dream “research” trip, and would you take anyone with you? Who?

England and Austria. I want to go see where Jane Austen grew up and I want to do the Sound of Music tour. I can think of several really fun storylines that could happen on a Sound of Music tour. :) As far as people I would bring, I'd make it a girls trip and bring my mom, sister, grandma and a couple of my bestest friends.

Also, I think it would be too fun to write a story in Australia and I would definitely want my husband to come with me for that one. After growing up watching Man From Snowy River, I think Australia is such a romantic place!

If you could live in a novel, which one would you choose?

Sheesh! This is a hard question! Can I have multiple lives? I'd pick Pride and Prejudice, but they hadn't discovered deodorant yet, so that might be more of a See And Not Smell place I'd like to live. And I would love to have gone on the road trip in Elvis Takes A Backseat, because seriously - a life-sized statue of Elvis was in the backseat. But I think my top choice would be Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, because y'all, they had milkshakes falling from the sky.

If you weren’t pursuing writing, is there another dream career you might be chasing?

Every person I've ever talked to who is a photographer is absolutely in love with their job - I think that would be my next choice. Can you imagine a more fun job than capturing all of the priceless moments in people's lives?

Finally, share two pieces of advice—one writing-related and one not.

Writing-related advice: Accept criticism with a critical eye. Everyone is going to have a different thought on where your manuscript should go - listen to the advice that you believe really makes your work better and ignore the advice that changes your vision for the book.

Non-writing-related advice: Don't get distracted while blow drying your hair or you might end up sucking hair into the wrong end of the dryer and that is painful. Be sure to break in the shoes you are planning on wearing during your wedding before your wedding day. Running while holding a bottle of water is harder than it seems, particularly if you've lost the cap to the bottle. I'm full of very important pieces of advice.

Thank you SO much! This was fun!! :)

Thanks for joining us, Erynn!

To learn more about Erynn and her writing, check out her website. She has also graciously offered to give away a copy of Cool Beans, the first book in her Maya Davis series. You can get your name put into the hat up to four times. 1. Tweet this link and let us know. 2. Post this link on your facebook and let us know. 3. Follow our blog. 4. Comment below, telling us about what novel you would choose to live in. Or, well, just comment below. :-)

And The Winner Is...

2010-11-16T11:55:00.000-08:00

Making Out Like A Bandit! :)

Thanks so much everyone for participating in this give-away!

If you enjoy the novels of Debbie Macomber, you’ll love this perfect blend of recipes and romance set in a small town with a big heart.

Steph Vandergrift is in need of a job. She left everything behind to elope with Middleburg attorney Rick Manfred, never imagining he would stand her up at the altar. Now, hoping just to get by until she can decide what to do next, Steph thinks she’s found the perfect position at the local tea shop.

Kendall James, one of the kindest and most eligible bachelors in the area, meets Steph and proceeds to pursue her. But by the time Steph feels able to consider dating again, her runaway fiancé returns and tries to win her back. Steph is wary, but she and Rick always seemed to blend so well. Are they truly meant to be together, or does God have something else in mind?

Change

2010-11-12T06:50:00.000-08:00

Tracy and I had finally finished writing and editing Bliss. We were ready and excited to find the perfect publisher for it as we went to a writers’ conference that year. We were going to pitch together for the first time. Nerve-wracking, but much better than facing the editors alone.

But then we received some news that made it more nerve-wracking. Chick lit was supposedly out. A taboo term. The year before, everyone wanted that genre. This time, no one was buying it—they all wanted historical romances instead. So we went to one meeting, smiled, and said we had a light-hearted women’s fiction story.

He smiled and said, “Are you trying to avoid the term ‘chick lit’?”

We had a story we believed in. Full of laughter (at least we cracked ourselves up, and I heard my grandmother got a kick out of it, too) and a meaningful journey about faith and relationships and the true Source of bliss. But the markets had changed. What were we supposed to do with this thing that we loved, believed in, poured our heart into?

The world’s kind of like that, isn’t it? You think you have things figured out and they change. You think you’re trucking along just fine, and suddenly there’s a tree in your path and your life takes an unexpected twist and you don’t know what to do or what lies ahead of you.

Well, you know what? There’s Someone Who never changes. You’ll never go to church one Sunday and find out that God decided to change up the requirements for salvation. He loves you. That will never change. He has a bird’s eye view of your life. He will be there to help you, to hold you, to guide you. He is the I AM. He was, He is, and He will be. Forever.

Interview with Trish Perry

2010-11-09T15:25:00.000-08:00

Today, our dear friend and award-winning author Trish Perry is hanging out with us on Mind Chocolate. A fellow ACFW member, Trish is the first published author I ever met! Thanks for joining us, Trish.

Do you have a favorite chocolate indulgence?

Oh, the list is endless—very hard to choose a favorite. But every once in a while Costco will feature the Fudgie Wudgie company’s wares, and I actually stock up when they do. I was smack in the middle of a hard-core diet the last time around, and I bought a couple boxes anyway and froze them. They’re in there, in my freezer, like jewels of the Nile. My favorite flavor is Belgian Chocolate Walnut. Amazing stuff.

Give your own definition of chick lit.

Hmm. I actually shy away from that genre title these days, because of the shallow connotation it now carries. I tend to call my books romantic comedy or contemporary romance (and let the humor come as a bonus). I think many readers now think of “chick lit” as being about young women whose lives revolve around shopping, dating, and falling down. Even though I inject plenty of humor in my romances (I love to laugh), my gals tend to deal with more in their lives—family struggles and secrets, personal growth, coping with loss and other challenges, deepening friendships, and things like that. Of course, romance plays a huge role, and there’s always at least one hunky man in my heroine’s life. But I do hope readers think of my books as more substantive than a lot of books in the chick lit genre.

Do you have any chick lit-like moments from your own life that you could share?

Just like the chocolate question, there are so many to choose from . . . but here’s one for you. Even though I’m older than your standard chick lit heroine, this one is real. Nearly two winters ago, my teenaged son and I took several drives to check out colleges in our state. We tended to use an entire weekend when we made those drives, packing for an overnight stay so we could cover several schools in the same general area. We rushed on one of these trips, because he was formally scheduled for a morning interview and tour at a college three hours away from home. We got there in time to catch a shuttle bus to the campus, but when I got out of the car, I realized I had forgotten to bring shoes. I tended to make those long drives in my socks, just to be comfy. But I had forgotten to throw my shoes in the car, and I hadn’t packed a spare pair. I had to let my son take the shuttle to the interview while I got back in the car and drove all over the rural college town seeking any place where I might find some shoes to buy. The place was like a retail-free zone—plenty of tractor and feed stores, but little else—and I kept going into places in my socks, asking where I might buy some shoes. Someone at a consignment shop finally directed me to the K-Mart, one town over, where I bought the cheapest pair of sneakers I could find. I turned a few heads on that little journey.

Do you have any writing quirks?

I’ve noticed after the fact that many of my heroines have daddy issues. This truly is a quirk, because my own dad is a total gem and has never treated me with the neglect, conditional love, or ridiculous demands that my heroines’ fathers often do. Maybe it’s because I feel so confident in him that I’m comfortable putting my heroines through such grief.

If you were going to co-author a novel, who would you choose? Why?

What a good question. I’ve never co-authored a novel before, but I’ve discussed it with a couple of women I respect. Maybe we’ll end up working together at some point in the future. Miralee Ferrell is an amazing brainstormer, and I love her to death. So she’d be one person to consider. The other person I’ve chatted with along these lines is Debby Mayne. I think she and I would blend well. Both of those women think much the same as I do, and neither of them has the slightest bit of ego problem about them.

What are one or two of your favorite lit novels from the CBA?

I thought Kristin Billerbeck’s What a Girl Wants was excellent and far more on-the-money than some of the other Christian lits that came out around that time. She “gets” the voice for the genre. And, again, I’m not sure about the genre classification, but Sandra D. Bricker has written some especially fun ones. I really enjoyed The Big 5-0. although I imagine some readers would wonder about a lit heroine at that age. My advice? Read it. You’ll love it. Sandie’s hilarious.

Where would you go on your dream “research” trip, and would you take anyone with you? Who?

I’d love to tour Europe (and if we’re dreaming, I’m dreaming a huge budget for this trip—I want comfort). If I took someone with me, it would probably be my adult daughter or my sister, or one of the women I’ve mentioned above. I’d even be happy bringing my son—he’s a fun, terrific person—but he’d probably rather not make that trip with mom . . .

If you could live in a novel, which one would you choose?

I’m so content in my real life, that I’d have to choose one of my own books that are set right here in my general area. I wouldn’t want to live in a different time than now, because I’m spoiled rotten by modern conveniences. And I have so many friends and loved ones who mean so much to me, that I’d notice their absence if I lived in a book far away.

If you weren’t pursuing writing, is there another dream career you might be chasing?

I’d still have to do something artistic, or at least something that happens via the right hemisphere. Probably acting or reviewing. There’s something about fictional stories that simply fascinate me. I don’t even enjoy good nonfiction or memoir as I do fiction. That element of human creation pulls me in like nothing else. To some extent I think of God as the creator of nonfiction and memoir. Fiction is how His creations wish it could be or imagine it could be. If I weren’t creating those fantasies myself, I’d want to be involved, somehow, with how others create such things.

Finally, share two pieces of advice—one writing-related and one not.

Writing related: Begin every day by thanking God for your gift and turning everything about it over to His will. That way you’ll always know you’re writing what He wants you to write.

Non-writing related: Know where your shoes are at all times.

Ha ha. Good advice, Trish! :-)

To learn more about Trish and her writing, check out her website. She has also graciously offered to give away a copy of her recent release The Perfect Blend. You can get your name put into the hat up to four times. 1. Tweet this link and let us know. 2. Post this link on your facebook and let us know. 3. Follow our blog. 4. Comment below, telling us about any chick lit moments in your life. Or, well, just comment below. :-)

And The Winner Is...

2010-11-08T20:41:00.000-08:00

Ann Lee Miller!

You, you lucky lady, will soon receive a pretty copy of A Shore Thing.

Callie Duflay just isn’t like the rest of her family. While they’ve built white collar lives, she prefers getting her hands dirty by working with children and local California causes. When Callie learns that a beloved piece of untouched property in her town of Otter Bay may soon be developed, she confronts the architect assigned to the project.

Gage Mitchell may be an easygoing, eco-friendly professional, but he’s not about to back off this job no matter how cute Callie or her pet pooch, Moondoggy, may be. His reasons and hers are noble—both have a heart for protecting God’s creation, and the truth is these two would be perfect for each other outside of this face-off. But will they ever figure that out?

Thanks, everyone, for chiming in. And thanks so much, Julie, for hanging out with us!

He Loves

2010-11-05T06:39:00.000-07:00

So he got up and went to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.
Luke 15:20

I love the story of the prodigal son. It is one of my favorite passages in the Bible. Since that is the case, I have read this portion of Luke 15 on numerous occasions. The Word is alive and powerful, and we never stop gleaning truths from the riches of its pages. This was proven to me yet again when my husband pointed out an aspect of this story that I had never seen before. This new perspective brought this passage alive in a new way that I found extremely meaningful.

When we read about the prodigal we often focus on the foolish choices that led him to the pig pen, or perhaps the angry older brother. Our hearts are moved we visualize the father catching his first glimpse of his son from afar. We are intrigued with what happened...the details of how the story plays out. But maybe we should, for just a brief moment, place some emphasis on what didn't happen.

The truth about humanity is that we usually want people to explain themselves. We demand to hear the reasons why someone has wronged us. We want to know what thought process went into foolish choices.

In this passage the father saw his son coming, and immediately began to run to him. He did not stop to ask questions before he threw his arms around him, and kissed him.

He demanded no explanation. He just loved him. Period.

Sometimes we need to see this. The truth about God. About His character.

I don't know what kind of week you have had. I don't know what mistakes or choices you may have made. If you are anything like me (please, tell me you are!!) then there are times when it feels like you get it wrong more than you get it right.

Run to Him. He is running to you.

He loves me. He loves you. He loves.

Period.

~Tracy Bowen

Interview with Julie Carobini

2010-11-02T15:17:00.000-07:00

Today, the lovely and sweet Julie Carobini is joining us. A fellow ACFW member, Julie lives on California'as central coast and writes seaside novels. She and her husband Dan have three children. A Shore Thing released in July, and Fade To Blue will find its way to the shelves in summer 2011.

Julie, do you have a favorite chocolate indulgence?

Mmmm ... milk chocolate covered toffee by See's. (My family knows that whenever we get a pound of See's candy ... never touch the toffee!) It's kind of an upscale version of a Heath bar. Love it!

It looks like we may have some things in common, as your books often have chocolate and ocean themes. What inspired that? Do you intend to weave them into your future books?

All that chocolaty goodness in Chocolate Beach and Truffles by the Sea provided solace for my poor heroines. (I can relate, can you?) These days I write seaside novels filled with faith, flip flops and waves of grace. While there's not a lot of chocolate in my new series, the Otter Bay Novels, there is a dramatic seaside locale, plenty of conflict, elements of faith ~ and romance. These are the threads I plan to tie and untie in future books too.

Give your own definition of chick lit.

Defunct. Kidding. Maybe I should say "evolving." When reading one, you can't help but feel like Alice falling into the wonderland of the main character's mind. My favorites are written in first person and they don't feel like the heroine's talking to a reader ~ they feel like she's talking to me. Also, the characters often sound unfiltered, like they speak first and think later. An abundance of snarkyness might explain why the genre has tumbled from its throne, but I also see the more attractive traits of -lit books, such as humor, voice and closely-written point-of-view, showing up in other genres.

Do you have any chick lit-like moments from your own life that you could share?

You mean like the time I was so nervous about meeting my new boyfriend's (now husband's) business associates that when taking my seat I shook the table hard enough to nearly topple their drinks? No, I couldn't share that ...

Do you have any writing quirks?

Julee Schwarzburg edited my next book, Fade to Blue, and gave me a list of my "favorite words." This was her very kind way of pointing out those words I overuse. The one that sticks out to me now is 'wag' or variations of it: wagged, wagging, wags ... My characters wag their heads way too much, apparently ;)

If you were going to co-author a novel, who would you choose? Why?

That's a toughie because I already have a few co-authors, namely God and all the characters I talk to in my office. If he or she could get along with all of us, then sure, I'd consider a co-author.

What are one or two of your favorite lit novels from the CBA?

I have a dog-eared copy of My Life as a Doormat (in Three Acts) by Rene Gutteridge. I've read it that often.

Where would you go on your dream “research” trip, and would you take anyone with you? Who?

Any place coastal ~ Italy, French Riviera, Hawaii ~ and I'd take my husband Dan because he's as curious as I am. I would also love to write a novel set on our southern coast some day, however, because southerners are just so friendly!

If you weren’t pursuing writing, is there another dream career you might be chasing?

In addition to writing, I run JuliesBeachShop.com and would love to travel the world searching for quirky treasures to fill it :)

Finally, share two pieces of advice—one writing-related and one not.

1. On writing ~ Go to writer’s conferences. I know they can be expensive, but our God is extravagantly generous. When my college-aged son was a baby, I didn’t have the resources to attend a week-long conference. Then ‘out of the blue’ I was invited to participate in that sought-after conference—for free. It’s a long story, but to this day I’m grateful for the way God answered the prayer for provision. Through conferences I have made lifelong friends, I’ve met editors and, of course, I’ve learned much about writing and marketing. Find a way—some conferences offer grants—and go!

2. Whatever it is you do for work, take a real break from it each day. No email, phone calls, FB, etc. I need to follow my own advice more often, really, I do. But whenever I do step away from the computer and take a walk by the beach (I live nearby) or go grab a cappuccino, I'm AMAZED at how much better I'm able to tackle what needs to be done!

Thanks for having me here today, Jenness! Best to you and Tracy!

Thank you, Julie!

To learn more about Julie and her writing, check out her website. She has also graciously offered to give away a copy of her recent release A Shore Thing. You can get your name put into the hat up to four times. 1. Tweet this link and let us know. 2. Post this link on your facebook and let us know. 3. Follow our blog. 4. Comment below, telling us about your dream research trip (aka vacation).

And The Winner Is...

2010-11-01T20:32:00.000-07:00

Katie Johnson!

Please post your address, or send it to jenness at jennesswalker dot com. Or facebook us. Whatever. :-) And you will soon receive a pretty copy of Perfectly Dateless.

Thanks, everyone, for chiming in!

And Kristin, thank you so much for joining us!

Bliss

2010-10-29T10:27:00.000-07:00

Okay, I'm sure you're starting to get sick of hearing about Bliss. We promise we'll move on to some other fun stuff soon. But just in case you missed them, here are links to buy Bliss online.

Bliss on Amazon.
Bliss on Kindle.
Bliss at Hobe Sound Christian Bookstore. (Autographed)
Bliss at Written World Communications.

Enjoy! And...if you did happen to enjoy it, we'd love if you would post a review on Amazon!

P.S. Don't forget to read Kristin's interview! You still have a chance to win her book, Perfectly Dateless.

Daisy Crispin has 196 days to find the right date for the prom. There's only one problem--her parents won't let her date or even talk to a guy on the phone. Oh, and she's totally invisible at school, has to wear lame homemade clothes, and has no social skills. Okay, so maybe there's more than one problem. Can she talk her parents into letting her go to the prom? Or will they succeed at their obvious attempt to completely ruin her life?

With hilarious and truthful writing, Kristin Billerbeck uncovers the small--and large--mortifications that teen girls encounter. Readers will fall in love with Daisy's sharp wit and resourcefulness as she navigates the world of boys, fashion, family, and friendship.

Interview with Kristin Billerbeck

2010-10-26T07:20:00.000-07:00

Today on Mind Chocolate, we're kicking off our Lit genre spotlight with award-winning author Kristin Billerbeck. She's a member of the American Christian Fiction Writers, the mother of four, and a very funny lady who isn't afraid to tell it like it is. Her books include the Ashley Stockingdale series, the Spa Girls series, and more.

Kristin, do you have a favorite chocolate indulgence?

My favorite chocolate indulgence is an Iced Soy Mocha with two pumps of chocolate (not four) from Starbucks. It’s a weird enough order where they make it as I come in…ah, chocolate on demand, is there anything better?

Give your own definition of chick lit.

Chick lit embodies a multitude of women’s fiction. Some chick lit is deep and full of real angst, and some is lighthearted, fun beach reads. The thing they all have in common is “voice”. Chick lit is generally told in first person, and it’s about the way one character sees the world. It’s her worldview. Her character study. It has been said Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice is the mother ship for all chick authors. She skewered the society of her day (when a woman’s value was only in how well she married). The humor is wry and ironic –very much like today’s chick lit.

You once made this prediction about chick lit: "I feel that it will peak, and that those who write good fiction will be left, and the genre as a talking point will die. Leaving those who really love the genre to get back to work." Do you feel like you were right? Do you have any other thoughts about the future of the genre?

I am actually surprised at how chick lit has survived and no one is calling it chick lit. I’ve heard humorous women’s fiction, young adult, Glitz, etc. Everything, but…but there are still plenty of chick authors out there and I just saw a commercial for the new Shopoholic book. I have been concentrating more on romance, but I miss the chick lit and the voice, so who knows what’s next?

Do you have any chick lit-like moments from your own life that you could share?

The reason I have no trouble coming up with chick lit moments is my life is made up of them. If they were pearls, I’d have a very long, expensive strand by now. It’s not just that life happens and involves me, it’s that I find great humor in humiliation, be it mine or someone else’s. I feel sympathy for others, and crack up at my own. Go figure.

Do you have any writing quirks?

I have a very short attention span, so I have to bribe myself to stay at the desk. I use espresso and David Crowder music mostly. And I reward words written with email. I have some local writer friends and we meet at a local coffee shop and write “together” – we reward scenes written with conversation.

If you were going to co-author a novel, who would you choose? Why?

I don’t know that I’d want to co-write. Most authors don’t play well with others, but if I had the ability to sit at someone’s feet and watch how they did it, I’d choose Maeve Binchy because her characters are so complete and whole. I’d love to see how she works them into her mind.

What are a couple of your favorite lit novels from the CBA?

There are really a lot I enjoy, but I love Rachel Hauck’s Love Starts with Elle, Tamara Leigh’s Faking Grace, Virginia Smith and Jenny B. Jones (whose voices I just love!).

Where would you go on your dream “research” trip, and would you take anyone with you? Who?

My dream research trip would be to Thomas Hardy’s England and I’d go the way I saw Jane Austen’s England – ALONE. I like to be lost in my own world and taking in the sights and sounds and the smells. I live with four kids and a dog, so I like the quiet. I don’t even mind eating in restaurants alone. I experience the world fully that way, and that is the way I like to research.

If you could live in a novel, which one would you choose?

Pride and Prejudice, naturally. I was an Austen-geek at fifteen, and nothing has changed. Now, I’m reading it to my daughter, and she’s well-acquainted with all things Darcy.

If you weren’t a writer, is there another dream career you might be chasing?

I am simply fascinated by how the human brain works, and how we’re all different and experiencing the world differently, so if I had another profession, it would be as a psychiatrist or brain researcher. Even if it were only as someone taking notes on doctors’ work, I find it fascinating.

Finally, share two pieces of advice—one writing-related and one not.

1. Writing is subjective. If it’s in your blood, write, write, write. Don’t let anyone’s opinion sway you from your mission. Set a goal, make it happen.

2. My other advice would be don’t let other people define you. Strive to be who God made you to be in fullness and don’t pretend to be the Christian Martha Stewart if that’s not how God made you. People’s judgment doesn’t matter in the end.

Thank you so much for stopping by, Kristin! To learn more about her, check out Kristin's website. She has also graciously offered to give away a copy of her recent release Perfectly Dateless, a fun YA novel. You can get your name put into the hat up to four times. 1. Tweet this link and let us know. 2. Post this link on your facebook and let us know. 3. Follow our blog. 4. Comment below, telling us about your favorite chocolate indulgence.

Interview with Tracy

2010-10-22T06:23:00.000-07:00

What is your favorite chocolate indulgence?

This is a hard choice. There are just so many goodies out there! I am going to have to go with my friend Jan Hobbs' chocolate cake. The recipe includes chocolate and coffee. It is delicious! I feel the need to apologize to everyone that it is not available world-wide for their enjoyment. :)

Define chick-lit in your own words.

This is simple. I can do it in one word. Fun! :)

What was the most chick-lit moment in your life?

This is an impossible question to answer. There is no way that I can choose just one. I am a disaster magnent, and I married a man that can find humor in the most dire of circumstances :) I live in a chick-lit novel!

Do you have any writing quirks?

When I get a chance to break away from the chaos that is my life and write I am extremly focused. This is one area where the only quirkiness that can be found is in the characters on the page. If you ask Jenness about this I am sure that she would tell you differently. :)

What is your favorite CBA lit (chick or otherwise) novel?

Okay, these questions are hard. I am getting a headache from all of these choices! I have a strong love affair with books in general. It is difficult to choose favorites. I am going to have to agree with Jenness about Ray Blackston's book Flabbergasted. It is laugh out loud funny.

Where would you go on your dream writing "research" trip, and would you take anyone with you? Who?

I would go to Monaco, and I would take my hubby. Though I must confess that with him along I don't know how much research I would get done...unless my next novel includes lots of romance. :)

If you could live in a novel, which would you choose?

I do live in a novel! :) My life is Bliss. South Florida really is a little slice of heaven right here on earth.

If you were not pursuing writing, what dream career would you be chasing?

I am taking this question literally. I know that this will never, ever happen. It really is a dream in every sense of the word, but I have always secretly (do not laugh!) wanted to own a football team. I love this sport! The skill, detail, and sheer physical demands all come together to create the most magnificant game in the world.

Finally, share two pieces of advice--one writing related and one not.

1. I still have so much to learn that I feel a little awkward handing out advive, but here are my two cents. To become a good writer you have to be vulnerable. You cannot pretend that you know everything. You must be willing to learn from others. You have to put your hard work out there, and accept critiques. It might not always feel like it, but this is a gift. The things that other writers can bring to your craft cannot be detailed in this small space. In short...surround yourself with people who share your passion for words, and learn everything that you can.

2. Be real. Lay the facade aside and be real. We all have issues. There is nothing to be gained by pretending otherwise. However, by being transparent there is much that we can learn from each other. And most importantly from God.

Interview with Jenness

2010-10-20T06:36:00.000-07:00

Do you have a favorite chocolate indulgence?

Maybe Lindt truffles? Honestly, when it comes to chocolate, I’m not that picky. I’ll go for the chocolate chips if there’s nothing else around.

Give your own definition of chick lit.

To me, it’s a fun story told about and narrated by a sassy woman with a quirky cast of secondary characters. In a way, it's a coming-of-age tale--with or without a romance thread--where the heroine learns what is truly important in life.

Do you have any chick lit-like moments from your own life that you could share?

I live the klutzy side of chick lit. I don’t wear the stilettos, but I do have some honkin’ shoes. Once on a trip, I took a few books and a single shoe out of my suitcase before my flight in order to keep from paying the overweight baggage fee. It felt a little odd walking around the airport with that lone shoe hanging out of my carry-on…

Do you have any writing quirks?

I have issues with names. I almost always have to go back and change quite a few, because, for some unknown reason, most of my female characters have names ending in “y” or “ie” and my last names tend to be Irish or Scottish.

What are a couple of your favorite lit novels from the CBA?

Two in my long list of favorites are Flabbergasted by Ray Blackston and Miss Match by Erynn Mangum.

Where would you go on your dream “research” trip, and would you take anyone with you? Who?

I don’t have a story for it yet, but send me back to Antigua, Guatemala, and I’m sure I could come up with one. I was there briefly in high school and loved the cobblestone streets, the cathedral ruins, drinking hot chocolate at midnight in a café while someone walked around playing a guitar…Sigh. I would take my husband. If I could get him on a plane.

If you could live in a novel, which one would you choose?

Out of the ones I’ve written, I’d choose Bliss. As much as I love writing suspense, I’d much rather live in a fun, happy world. J Out of the ones I’ve read…how about Secrets by Kristen Heitzmann? I’d love to try Lance’s food and see that house.

If you weren’t pursuing writing, is there another dream career you might be chasing?

My dad restores pianos and furniture. My grandpa restores furniture. My sister-in-law paints. And I love finding unique used furniture to fix up. I think it would be amazing to open a business with my family, building and painting and repurposing things to sell. J

Finally, share two pieces of advice—one writing-related and one not.

1. I say this over and over again, but it’s so important. Find other writers. Join writers’ organizations and critique groups. You need the support and the mentoring they offer. I especially love ACFW and My Book Therapy.

2. The best way (for me, at least), to find the willpower to clean your own house is to find an audio book. If it’s a good enough story, you’ll be looking for extra things to clean so you have an excuse to finish it. J

A Heads-Up

2010-10-19T16:14:00.000-07:00

We're so excited about the next couple of months! We have some great guests lined up to do interviews and giveaways. And, of course, we'll be writing posts and giving you updates along the way. Next week, we'll kick off our lit authors tour with the queen of Christian chick lit, Kristin Billerbeck. Yay! Check back on Tuesday the 26th to see what she has to say. Meanwhile, if you're not sure what the lits are, check out the page right here.

We plan to post at least twice a week--Tuesdays and Fridays. The interviews will be posted on Tuesdays, the winner for any giveaways posted on Mondays, and then check back on Fridays for our miscellaneous but of course very brilliant thoughts.

Before we start with the big-wigs, however, we thought we'd let you get to know the new kids on the block a little bit better. (No, not the band, silly. I'm talking about us.) So stay tuned for interviews...with ourselves. :-)

Thanks so much for joining us!

Party Planning

2010-10-15T10:11:00.000-07:00

We just had our book launch Wednesday night. Fun! :) We pulled off a beach party feel, and everything went smoothly. Success!

Do you want to know what goes into planning something like this?

Imagine the longest to-do list you have ever had. Quadruple it. Now you know what it feels like to launch a book.

Ok, truthfully, that is how it would feel if you did not have support.

I have no idea how people organize events without the help of friends. We borrowed some colorful paper lanterns from one friend, and tropical plants from another, to help set the mood for our beachy theme. At least a dozen friends helped make goodies for our dessert buffet...hmmmmm...

Sorry, I got distracted thinking about the chocolate cake and pumpkin cookies. Where were we? Oh, right...friends helping. Someone else offered to provide the drinks. And we had several volunteers (including our husbands!) to help with set-up and clean-up. This party confirmed the fact that we have surrounded ourselves with awesome people. :)

There are so many details! You have to decide what to give as door prizes, purchase gift bags to put those door prizes in, and tissue paper to make the bags look pretty...you get the idea. There is never just one thing. There are layers upon layers to every task, and you have to make sure that nothing is forgotten.

This is another area where co-authoring offers fantastic perks. You get to tear the list of responsibilites, and give half of the work away. There are two sets of eyes on the big picture, and that helps to ensure that nothings gets overlooked.

Co-authoring is not so great when one half of the duo threatens to take the other half on a forced shopping trip to make sure their outfits are co-ordinated. Thank goodness, I (Tracy) dodged that bullet! For anyone who does not know me personally, I DESPISE to shop. Hopefully, I still managed to look socially acceptable at the signing in spite of this character flaw. :)

All in all, the work was worth the result. It was a really nice evening with yummy food, a fun atmosphere, and lots of books.

Ahhh. Bliss.

First Blog Tour Stop

2010-10-14T12:21:00.000-07:00

The gracious Stephanie Morrill hosted us today over on her blog. Check it out and comment for a chance to win a free copy of Bliss!

It's Monday!

2010-10-11T01:53:00.000-07:00

Okay, this is going to be the craziest week ever. Between setting up for the signing, showing our editor around town, regular work, taking care of kids--um, Tracy, not Jenness--trying not to get sick, signing a bunch of books (we hope), and supporting our friend and critique partner Ava Pennington at her book signing on Saturday...well, it's going to be interesting!

We have some fun things planned for both the signing and for the blog--interviews, prizes, etc. So forgive this short post and stay tuned! Meanwhile, if you can't make it to the signing on Wednesday, you can pre-order an autographed copy of Bliss here.

History of Bliss Part 3

2010-10-08T08:03:00.000-07:00

The rest of the Bliss story...

Step 9: As we came close to the end of Bliss, we knew editing the thing was going to be a challenge. We could each go through separately and mark up word changes we'd like, but we'd have to agree on them somehow. And what about more significant issues? The editing process was going to be time consuming and needed more than just an hour at a time at Tracy's kitchen table with kids needing attention.

So we decided to skip town. We booked a room for two nights in an inn about twenty minutes away. We went prepared: Google maps (yes, plural) with the one turn we needed to take enlarged and highlighted. A hard copy of the work-in-progress, complete with a fun cover with a fuschia car on it. A container of homemade cinnamon rolls, compliments of Jenness' mom. A laptop and notebooks and pens and sticky notes. A wishbone to use in case of any major arguments, again, compliments of Jenness' mom. (For the record, we never had to use it.)

Step 10: For a day and a half, we sat on our twin beds. Tracy read the manuscript out loud while Jenness made necessary changes on laptop version. We both flagged areas that needed more attention. Tracy almost lost her voice. We got up to eat and buy caffeine-loaded drinks from a nearby store. Then we sat back down and edited. When we finally got to the end of what we'd written and figured out how we needed to end the story, Tracy went to work on creating the skeleton, and Jenness tackled the more labor-intensive editing. A crazy couple days, but...we think it was worth it.

Step 11: The proposal and complete manuscript was sent off to our agent.

Step 12: Our agent sent it out. We received some interest from one publisher especially. They loved our voice. Alas, they had stopped publishing that genre. The genre that had been so hot at the ACFW conference the year before.

We'd missed the boom.

Step 13: We worked on other stuff, together and separately. We attended another conference together. Thought we'd made a great connection. That fell through as well. We set Bliss aside.

Step 14: A friend and critique partner began doing some reading for a brand new start-up company called Written World Communications. They were looking for a beach read. "Send Bliss," Cathy said. "It's perfect."

Step 15: "Send Bliss." "Are you ever going to send Bliss?" "Hey, have you sent Bliss yet?"

Step 16: Fine. We talked to our agent. We sent Bliss.

Step 17: The next day, Tamela called us. WWC wanted the full manuscript. We tweaked it a little and sent it in.

Step 18: They sent a contract. We signed.

Step 19: Revisions. Cover art. Planning.

Step 20: Buy Bliss here.

History of Bliss Part 2

2010-10-07T01:35:00.000-07:00

To refresh your memory, we were talking about Bliss. (Is that a surprise?) We were in the midst of trying to figure out how to go about writing it. Which brings us to...

Step 6: Time to try something. Tracy wrote another section. By herself. While Jenness worked on something else. (Or at least pretended to. You never know with her.) Then Tracy handed it off to Jenness and bit her nails while she waited. Jenness rewrote it, polishing and adding in her own attempts at cleverness. Then she handed it back for approval. It was granted. Time to move to the next scene.

Step 7: That's the way we did it, although it got faster the more we wrote. Tracy would keep working on sketching out scenes. Jenness would keep working on filling in between the lines. The emails and attachments would go back and forth. If either of us got stuck--no problem. We had a built-in brainstorming partner. If we didn't like something the other had done, again, no problem. We'd talk it out...and end up agreeing with each other. No need to pull out the contract.

This type of writing worked very well for both of us. Tracy could work quickly, not worrying about stilted dialogue or correct grammar. She would learn as she went. Jenness could work on her own writing projects (she started Double Take before we'd finished Bliss), then have a sketched out scene land in her inbox, so her creative juices would get a solid kick-start. Very helpful.

But it also had a few disadvantages. Life got in the way. The writing came to a halt before Bliss was even halfway finished. Maybe Jenness would get the rights to the unfinished manuscript after all. (Considering we built this blog to promote Bliss, this is a lame excuse for a cliff-hanger. Guess that means we should keep going.)

The Genesis contest deadline crept up on us. We had enough written to submit, so we finally decided to go ahead and see what the judges thought of our partnership so far. We sent in the first three chapters and went on with our lives.

A few months later, we both received a phone call. Bliss had made it to the final round of judging! For a while, that inspired more work on the project. Life was crazy-busy, however, and we didn't get far. But that year we both attended the ACFW conference in September. In preparation for that, Jenness' agent, Tamela Hancock Murray of Hartline Literary Agency, signed Tracy on. Tracy and Jenness went to a steakhouse to celebrate and make the writing partnership official. We didn't even spill A-1 on the contract. At the conference, rooming together still didn't ruin our friendship, so we figure we're pretty safe with the whole friend thing. :-)

The Genesis winners are announced at the awards banquet, which is later on in the conference. So we had time to get nervous, as if editor appointments didn't cause enough quaking nerves. Then we learned that one of the judges had misunderstood where we were going with our contest entry. Bliss is told from the perspective of a young woman who is totally clueless when it comes to Christianity. She looks to the universe for direction until it leads her wrong one too many times. Our tag line is When the universe lets you down, its time to go over its head. But we hadn't had a place to give a tag line or a synopsis of the story or back cover copy. (The following year they began allowing contestants to submit a synopsis.) So, though there were hints that there would be changes in our heroine's life, the direction of the story wasn't obvious in the first few pages. So the judge saw the horoscopes and thought we'd entered the wrong writing contest. We were very afraid our scores were going to reflect that. (Just for the record...they did.)

So the night of the banquet, we shivered and drummed our fingers and jiggled our legs all through dinner and the presentation of the awards. All of the awards. Because our category was last. Go figure. By then our nerves were shot. (First place winners had to give acceptance speeches. Jenness prayed Bliss would not place first. Tracy prayed it would.) Our names were called. Bliss had placed third! We made our way to the front (Jenness trailing behind because she hadn't quite figured out how to walk in skinny heels), claimed our certificate...and didn't have to give a speech.

People had liked our writing. They'd liked our story. It was time to finish the book.

History of Bliss Part 1

2010-10-06T01:33:00.000-07:00

People frequently ask us how in the world co-authoring works. Aren't there control issues? Or at least a lot more work? How do we decide what direction to go? From talking to a few people, it seems like each writing team comes up with a different system. (Sidenote: We do plan to interview co-author teams at some point. Stay tuned for details!) Here is how it worked for us.

Step 1: On that long walk on the beach (Note from Jenness: A seriously long walk. As in, my feet hurt the next day. Word to the wise--if you go walking with Tracy, wear decent shoes.), we talked out that little "what if" question, brainstorming and expanding it to a story we could work with. We were both on board and ready to run with it. (After Jenness bought new shoes, that is.)

Step 2: We divided up characters and came up with basic character sketches. Not Jenness' typical seat-of-the-pants style of doing things, but sort of necessary for tag-team writing. We wanted them to have consistent eye color, you know?

Step 3: We did research on how other writing teams have done it. We were friends and hoped to protect that friendship even if the co-author stuff went bad. Eventually, we found a contract online that we tweaked and signed. It spelled out things like whose name would go first on the cover (Tracy, because Bowen comes before Walker, which meant books placed with the B's would, on most bookstore shelves, be stocked closer to eye level). How expenses and royalties would be divided. Who retained the rights to the manuscript if we dissolved our partnership. Who had the final say if we didn't agree on plot points or whatever else. Etc.

Step 4: So all the preliminary stuff was out of the way. Now what? We weren't exactly sure how it needed to be done. Should we take turns writing chapters and then edit to make the style consistent? Or should we sit side-by-side and spell it out together? Or...? Finally we decided to both write the first scene/chapter/however far we got. Separately. And then we'd compare.

Step 5: Though we knew the basics of what should go in that first scene, we didn't have any set criteria, so the finished products were very different. What we discovered wasn't exactly earth-shattering. (1. Tracy was very funny and had great ideas. 2. Jenness, who had finished two novels at that point and had a published short story, was more experienced.)

As we worked on meshing the two scenes, we figured out a few things of importance. 1. Though we worked in some lines and ideas we really liked from Jenness' version, Tracy's take on the scene won. No real competition. 2. Tracy's scene couldn't stand as it was. It was funny, but incomplete. It needed to be fleshed out and fixed up. 3. This way of doing things--in the same room, one of us typing, the other staring over the typist's shoulder at the screen--would not work. It was a little creepy, to tell the truth.

We were going to have to figure out something else.

Jenness' Side of the Story

2010-10-05T01:11:00.000-07:00

The Bliss journey started with this question: What if a girl was addicted to horoscopes but following them led her straight into disaster every time?

I put that question in an idea file--figured it would be a romantic comedy or chick lit--and put it away, then continued working on my romantic suspense novels.

Enter Tracy.

A new choir member, fresh from South Carolina with the accent and the fried chicken prowess to prove it. We talked some during rehearsals when the director was distracted. He didn't seem to mind, probably for two reason: he happened to be my father, and Tracy and I could make him laugh.

I started reading Tracy's blog. Her status updates on Yahoo 360. (It's been a while, eh?) She has this gift for taking a phrase and twisting it in an unexpected and humorous way. As we got to know each other a little better, she told me she'd like to write a book someday. When an update appeared saying her floor was so clean you could eat off of it...but she'd find you quite odd if you did, I figured writing humor was something this lady needed to do. Since I had had a romantic comedy attempt returned to me for being too slapstick, I thought maybe finding someone to help me write funny could be, well, fun. :-) So if I could find a story Tracy would be interested in co-authoring, I was ready to give it a try.

So out came the idea file. And the story about the poor girl addicted to horoscopes. And Tracy was interested. And that, my friends, was the beginning of a great writing partnership.

Tracy's Side of the Story

2010-10-04T01:36:00.000-07:00

I am from a book-loving family. We were passionate about our reading! So much so that we often brought our books with us to the table. On any given night you could find me stuffing my face with the best fried chicken and gravy that exists on this planet (thanks mom!) and exploring under the sea with Captain Nemo. Or solving a mystery with Nancy Drew.

At some point I began to secretly nurture the thought that I would love to try to write a book. And then life happened. With marriage and babies came a huge work load, and my dream got lost underneath a pile of laundry. Trust me, there is nothing like a pile of sweaty socks to kill your creativity.

Enter Jenness.

After finding out that she was an author, I could not help myself--I blurted out my long-held private dream to someday write a book. One day she casually mentioned that we should try to write a novel together. She even had a story idea in mind. I have to confess, I was thrilled...and a little scared. Could I really do this? I have responsibilities! For some strange reason my laundry pile has not shrunk over the years. It has, in fact, grown to monstrous proportions.

And that is when I found out that this was more than just a dream. It was a calling. Thankfully, when God asks us to do something, He equips us to fulfill the task. He used Jenness to push me out of my comfort zone, and I could not be more happy with the results.

Bliss on Kindle!

2010-10-02T10:10:00.000-07:00

Just got the news today! The Kindle version of Bliss is now available! If you don't want to wait for the old-fashioned paper version, hop on over to Amazon to buy a copy. Just click here!

Welcome

2010-10-01T04:05:00.000-07:00

You have reached the brand-spankin' new blog of Tracy Bowen and Jenness Walker. We're so glad you're here! Why Mind Chocolate? Let us explain.

1. We couldn't come up with a clever, easy to remember, easily identifiable website address for our writing partnership, so we're tandjbooks. But...that's a little boring. Admit it. So we wanted to give our blog a title. Tracy came up with Mind Chocolate. Jenness liked it. End of story.

2. Well, not completely the end. We wanted to choose something that reflected our writing. Chocolate suggests something fun, something comforting, something that helps improve your mood so that when you face the world again, you do it with a new perspective.

That's what we want to do. Have fun. Make you laugh. Talk about books. Talk about life. Talk about God.

So welcome to Mind Chocolate. Pull up a chair and stay awhile. Maybe grab a Bliss bar while you're at it.