New Look?

Found an entirely new blog design system. Probably spent too much time playing around. I can't control all the elements--at least I haven't figured out how, but this seems to work. Any impressions?

And as long as we're on the subject of blogs, I was interviewed about blogging here. I wouldn't mind a comment or two.

Friday Field Trip - Florissant National Monument

Last Sunday, we went to a new favorite breakfast place in Florissant. Afterward, we went to the nearby Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument. I'd suggested the excursion, since there is an easy 1-mile loop walk through the petrified forest. And it's not Florida, so the weather was pleasant.



Although it was a National Parks Free Weekend, since it's someplace we figure we'll visit many times, we decided to buy an annual pass. And the entire National Park system offers a special Senior rate -- for $10, you get a lifetime admission to ALL National parks. Who says there's no good side to getting older?



I brought my little point-and-shoot. Hubster (who also dressed like we were going on an all-day hiking trek) brought his good camera with the fancy lenses. He took a lot of flower shots.







But today, it's mostly my little vista shots. It was tough choosing just a few for this post. Hope you enjoy!

Men Aren't Women With Chest Hair

What I'm reading: Risk No Secrets, by Cindy Gerard

A quick recap: Sexual Tension is about the magic between two characters. It's layered. You have to consider awareness, language, and the ability to get into the characters' heads. Yesterday, I covered her discussion of awareness.


Today, we'll start with language, both in dialogue and narrative. If you're going to be writing sexual tension and sex scenes at an intense, realistic level, Linda Howard suggests that you get comfortable with the language, especially words that describe bodies. Use words when they're appropriate to the characters and situation. Judicious use of shocking language makes a point. Used too often, they lose their power.

Howard told us that in order to get used to writing words that she wasn't comfortable with, she sat at her computer and filled the screen with F-bombs. She got used to seeing the words, and her fingers got used to typing them.

It's Still About the Sex

Thanks to Julie for being my guest yesterday. A great post. If you haven't read it, you should. And, you should also read Monday's post, plus the 12 Steps to Intimacy (there's a link in Monday's post) if you didn't read them Monday.

In addition to doing her workshop, Linda Howard was generous in answering questions on all aspects of her career. She admits to being a total "pantser" and writes by telling the story of her characters. She never really knows what will happen next. That sounded very much like my process, so I was encouraged. When she closes in on the end of a book, she's totally immersed in it to the point that she skips some of the basics—like eating and sleeping. Her husband graciously steps in and does the "wife stuff." She said a recent book had her submerged for several weeks. To feel 'manly' when she was finished, her husband went and bought a backhoe.

After she went through the 12 Steps (you have read them by now, right?), she elaborated on how to apply them to romance writing.

Points to remember: It's about species survival. Human infants require many YEARS of nurturing. There has to be a strong bond between male and female in order to keep them together long enough to rear children. Sex drives this bond. Males are stuck being attracted to females long before females are attracted to males. Pheromones work differently. Male testosterone levels make aggressive behavior something that has to be curtailed in order to establish the requisite trust for bonding.

Sex and the Single Mother

Today I have the pleasure of welcoming best-selling author Julie Leto to Terry's Place. She's tackling the topic of surmounting non-sexy character situations and writing a sexy book.

My readers have certain expectations of my books, particularly when I’m writing for Harlequin Blaze. The line is super-sexy and focused, oftentimes, on how the sexual attraction between a man and a woman leads to a deeper, more emotional romantic connection.

In my own mind, I’ve equated those reader expectations with writing about heroines who are younger, somewhat unencumbered women on the brink of some new threshold of their lives. In that interest, I realized recently, I’d never written a single mother heroine. Having children around just isn’t that conducive to no-holds-barred, open-minded sexual exploration!

Well, that’s not entirely true. The heroine of my very first book, SEDUCING SULLIVAN (published in June of 1998) had a heroine who had custody of her best friend’s daughter, who I believe was eleven. In the unedited version of the book, that kid caused me more problems...every scene she was in, she stole it and destroyed the sexual tension between the hero and heroine, which was pretty powerful stuff otherwise. To fix this problem, I revised the book and sent her to camp. Score! The book sold. She still appears in a single scene in the book—but that was it.

Survival: It's All About Sex

What I'm reading: Storm Prey, by John Sanford

Not much to update on the wildlife front - a raccoon got into the hummingbird feeder again. We've been bringing it in at night, but apparently not early enough. And I did spot a coyote on our way to breakfast Sunday.

On Saturday, I drove all the way into the Springs to attend a workshop presentation by best-selling romance author Linda Howard. I've summarized her 12 Steps to Intimacy on this blog more than once. I suggest you read today's post first. I'll give you the back link at the end.

Although the 12 Steps to Intimacy was the topic of the first part of her workshop, she spent a considerable amount of time explaining the why and how these steps came to be, from a species survival standpoint. I thought I'd share that with you today. Her research, as mentioned in my earlier post, is gleaned from Desmond Morris's books. He was an anthropologist, and his concepts are based on comparisons of human beings with other mammalian species.

Howard's first point was that sex is very powerful, and very important. It's more than recreation. Her comment: Sex and guns are powerful—handle both with care. Writing sensual love scenes requires an understanding of the human sex drive. Our mating rituals have deep roots in survival instincts.

And, as she points out, survival of the species is a more powerful drive than survival of the individual.

Friday Field Trip - Giant's Ring

Another blog-clone day. Here at Terry's Place, you're going to Ireland. I'm over at Author Expressions again, with my job interview for the hero of When Danger Calls. Pop over and meet Ryan. These pictures will be here when you get back.

Jessica has returned with some nifty shots of Giant's Ring. I asked her to explain it, and this was her response.

It's a late Neolithic or early Bronze age henge monument. The stones in the center are the remnants of a "passage grave"...the entrance to the center, which was a ceremonial site. It's surrounded by the big earthworks about 3.5m high. There's been some archaeological evidence of cremation pits and 3 rings of timber posts (think Stonehenge & Woodhenge, but smaller). The "grave" in the center would have been originally covered with earth.

If you click on the photo, you should be able to view a larger image. Thanks to Ray for suggesting that, and Jess for re-sending them all in a larger format.

For those who might want to know exactly where this is, you can click here. The circle is clearly visible (or should be--I still don't trust links to open the same way for everyone).

Skill Sets and Transitions

No new wildlife—I think the construction noise freaked them out. Hummingbirds are fearless, however—they don't even wait until you hang up the feeder.


Construction update. Tile laid in one of the entries and in front of the fireplace. The darker tile is going to look good with the lighter oak. Hall bathroom gutted and ready for tile tomorrow, along with the other entry (if they did them both the same day, we wouldn't be able to get out of the house until they set). They're discovering extra work due to strange techniques used by the previous owners. I thought things would be quiet, but they got out power saws and power screwdrivers and power noisemakers in general. And … drum roll … we have a Dumpster! Yes, Dumpster is a trademark, just like Kleenex, so it has to be capitalized.

As I listened to the workers dealing with laying the tile, I started thinking about layers of skill sets for characters. Depending on our upbringing and experience, we might consider those who work in 'blue collar' trades as people who work with their hands, not their brains. I know the focus on my generation was to get a college degree and work in an office, rising the corporate ladder.

Slight digression here...

Waitress, I Need Two More Plot Points

What I'm reading: One Last Breath, by Laura Griffin

Thanks to Patrick for his helpful tips on editing yesterday. Lots of meat there.

Quick wildlife update: A glimpse of red in an aspen outside our bedroom caught my eye. I didn't recognize the bird, so I mentioned it to the hubster. I could sense skepticism as he asked me to describe it. I'm sure he thought I'd seen one of our regular visitors. And, of course, it had flown away by the time he came upstairs to look for himself. He poked through his field guide and showed me 'what it probably was'. I said no. It showed up a little while later, and indeed, it was a new bird. Not only new to our house, but one he'd never seen before. Ever. A Red Crossbill. Points for me.

I will confess that not a lot of writing got done yesterday. Our stalwart crew of two showed up with a jackhammer type device to break out the tile in the kitchen area. Actually, not a lot of thinking got done, either. However, on a serendipitous note, they had to take out the old range to get the tile out from underneath it. In doing so, they found that there was a capped gas line already in place, so they won't have to deal with installing a new one for my new gas range.

Also, the installer for our window treatment showed up on schedule, so he was in and out putting up our shades. We should have a dark bedroom—maybe I won't be up at 5:30 in the morning anymore. And with a covering for my west-facing office window, I can continue to work after 6 PM.

However, I did work on the manuscript Monday.

The Craft of Editing

Today my guest is C. Patrick Schulze, someone I met on Twitter. As he is in the final stages of editing his current manuscript, he offered to pass along some of his insights into the craft of editing. In addition to providing this post, he's also got a podcast version. Welcome!

I'd like to thank Terry Odell for allowing me to guest host today. It was kind of her to offer me the opportunity to meet all of you.

What makes a writer? You'd think it might be his writing. The truth of the matter is it's rare that one's writing makes the writer. For most of us, the craft of writing develops its true strength only after we learn the craft of editing. It is within our editing that our true writing emerges.

So, how does one put the craft of editing to work? Without doubt, it's a laborious undertaking but one that's mandatory if you wish to success with your writing. As with the craft of writing, the craft of editing is a process that's unique to each writer, but here's what works for me.

First of all, I complete my rough draft then set it aside and write something else for a while. When I pick my rough draft up a month or so later, I begin my first revision.

I'll read through my rough draft at least seven times and, with each read, edit for one or two related concepts. I also find it useful to record my manuscript as I read. (I use the free software from Audacity.com.) Further, my wife reads it aloud to me at least once. It really helps to see how others read it.

Here's my editing process.