Tag: Music Monday

Music Monday: Pachelbel in the Garden

Happy Victoria Day! Today, the plan is that I will be spending some time in the garden with my husband getting some things cleaned up and planted.  I am not a great gardener, but I appreciate a good garden — and writing scenes that happen in gardens (see the excerpt below).  I also appreciate lovely, relaxing, imagination-stimulating music.  The video below is the soundtrack that has been playing in the background as I wrote this week.

Crystalkaleidoscope. “Pachelbel in the Garden (relaxing Music, Sounds of Nature).”YouTube. YouTube, 11 Apr. 2014. Web. 20 May 2017.

Pachelbel’s Canon in D is a favourite of mine, so I was delighted to stumble across this music on YouTube this week.  It makes great background music, so click play and read on to see what I managed to accomplish this week.

It was another good productive week for me.  I finished edits on Better Than She Deserved.  I got the print copy of At All Costs finished, proofed, and approved — it is all ready for release day this THURSDAY! [You can get your copy at this link.] 🙂

And then, I managed to almost finish writing the first draft of the story I started last week! It is amazing how just a couple thousand words a day adds up! It appears that it is going to be a short novella, but I never expected it would be very long for a couple of reasons. First, I like LOVE novellas, and I tend to write what I like. Second, it is the first story of this type that I have written, so short seemed a good place to begin my learning journey.  (Of course, I might find I like writing these just as short novellas — there is a very good chance that might happen.)

Now, having reached nearly the end of that story, I am faced with the need to design a cover and give it a title.  I had given it a name that went well with the idea I had in mind as I began typing words into my document. However, the characters as I got to know them lead me down a different path. So, that title no longer fits the idea of the book. I think I am going to call it His Beautiful Bea because the main element that I took from Mansfield Park when planning this story was to model my heroine after the quiet, reserved Fanny Price. I have tried out a couple of other ideas and my mind keeps coming back to this one.

So, here is part of a garden scene from His Beautiful Bea that I wrote this week: Continue reading Music Monday: Pachelbel in the Garden


Music Monday: Berlin ~ Original song for 12 cellos (and a kick drum),The Piano Guys

I listened to several things while writing this week — my birdsongs cd, silence, and my Music to Write By YouTube playlist.  Obviously, today’s selection is from that playlist. 🙂  I kept randomly selecting a place to begin the list and hit shuffle. This song (and The Assassination of Jessie James OST ) popped up in just about every shuffle.  Both songs helped set the correct mood for part of what I was writing — and boy, did I do a lot of writing this week!

ThePianoGuys. “Berlin – Original Song for 12 Cellos (and a Kick Drum) – The Piano Guys.”YouTube. YouTube, 10 Apr. 2013. Web. 07 May 2017.

In fact, it was a record-setting week for word count, I believe. (Seeing as I have just started keeping records, it seems safe to say that. LOL).

How record-setting was it?

Well, Caroline’s story started the week with about 5,000 words and ended the week with just over 17,000 words! Specifically, I wrote 12,961 words!  (And that does not include the few hundred I wrote for this Tuesday’s AustenAuthors.net post.  :)) But, I had some goals I wanted to reach, and I pushed hard to achieve them.  And, having hit them, I felt very accomplished at the end of the week. (I had to use that word since it was a Caroline story I was working on. 😉 )

What were those goals?

  1. Finish the first draft of Caroline’s story — which by the way now has a title (and as of Sunday afternoon an ebook cover)
  2. Finish the final edits for At All Costs.
  3. Write and schedule my post for Austen Authors, which includes an excerpt from At All Costs and an excerpt from Caro’s story that I have not shared here.

All three can be crossed off the to-do list!

So, looking forward to the week ahead, I will now need to start first round edits on Caro’s story and keep plugging away at getting At All Costs ready for publication.  And, then, well, I guess I have to pick a new writing project to start so I have something to share with you next Monday. Hmmm….I wonder what it will be?

One quick reminder before I get to the excerpt — With the Colonel’s Help will begin posting this Thursday. 🙂  I am looking forward to it!

And a little story note:  I took the name suggestions of Franklin and Rhett but flipped them (because I wanted to call the hero by his last name and enjoyed calling him Rhett instead of Franklin when I was typing 🙂 ) Thank you, Patty and Julie, for your help with that! 🙂

I think the story excerpt below gives a good indication of Mr. Rhett’s personality — although, it is a teaser and ends with a question unanswered. 🙂

EXCERPT FROM Better Than She Deserved: Continue reading Music Monday: Berlin ~ Original song for 12 cellos (and a kick drum),The Piano Guys


Music Monday: Fields of Gold, 2Cellos

While I wrote this week — and it was a busy week of writing, my Music to Write By YouTube playlist, which includes the song below, got a good work out. Besides music to keep me company while writing, I also had a couple of author friends who joined me via the internet during writing time.

Mborray07. “2CELLOS- Fields Of Gold.” YouTube. YouTube, 06 Aug. 2011. Web. 29 Apr. 2017.

Every evening this week, I met up with my friends, Rose Fairbanks and Zoe Burton, for an hour of uninterrupted/undistracted writing time.  Well, it was supposed to be uninterrupted and undistracted, but there are kids that wander through my corner of the living room and there is also the occasional “Oh, I need to know that” quick search that easily pulls one off onto some interesting tangents.  However, despite these little diversions, I did accomplish what I wished to and a bit extra.  Part of the reason for that is the fact that I didn’t stop writing at that hour limit unless I had completed a scene or had met my thousand-word minimum for that day.

But as you know, writing is not all that is on my schedule. I also have a scheduled editing slot in the evenings with specific daily minimums of work that have to be accomplished there, too.  🙂

(A little side note:  I am finding that I am rather driven by goals — I don’t like to miss those minimums at all. My husband would likely make some comment about my stubbornness here. 🙂 Also knowing I am going to write a post about what I did or didn’t do in a week is motivational. So keep reading these Monday posts, and you should get books/stories on a regular basis since I don’t want to have nothing to share. 😉 )

So, here are the particulars of what I accomplished:

  • Editing:  I completed my edits for Not an Heiress and have sent that story on to my first editor. So, it is well on its way to being ready for publication in June.
  • Writing:  I completed a first draft of the next Thursday Three Hundred story, With the Colonel’s Help.  I used to write these stories each week, but when I got to At All Costs,  I decided to write the full draft before beginning posting to make sure I had all the series things wrapped up as they should be.  Well, I liked having it set to post each week.  🙂  So, I decided to try it again this time around because I am kind of into the whole scheduling thing at present in an attempt to maximize my productivity. 🙂
  • More Editing:  I began final edits of At All Costs.  The tentative publication date for that book is May 18.  So, after the epilogue posts this Thursday, the story will remain up until next week. Then it will have to come down as I make final preparations to publish the story.
  • More Writing:  Since I managed to finish With the Colonel’s Help, I have turned my writing attention to writing Caroline’s story.  If it is going to be a short story, which I cannot tell quite yet, I am about a third of the way through it.  I should be able to tell if the plot I have in mind will be more or less than ten thousand words soon….I hope. 🙂

So, since my new work schedule seems to be work quite well, I have a new problem for which to find a solution.  Completing Caroline’s story will cross off all the stories on my “Write Me” list.  One of the things that I am considering putting on that list is an Austenesque story. Back in January, I mentioned that I wanted to try one, so I think I am going to give one, based in part on Mansfield Park, a shot…maybe…. 🙂 There are also those fairytales I had wished to attempt as well as a set of three stories (find them here if you wish, beginning with A Change of Heart) that I would like to develop into a Dash of Darcy story, and I have an idea floating around for a companion story to that one. I just need to decide where to begin and write out that list, it seems.

Now, for a short clip of something I wrote this week.  This is from With the Colonel’s Help and comes from the section of the story that is starting to wrap up the issues (the denouement), so, although I have tried to excerpt it without too many spoilers, it is, in of itself, a spoiler — read at your own risk. 🙂

EXCERPT FROM With the Colonel’s Help:  Continue reading Music Monday: Fields of Gold, 2Cellos


Music Monday: I Be U Be, High Valley

Happy Monday! Today, I decided to share a song because, well, it has just been stuck in my head a lot lately.  It is just one of those that sticks.  I love this group’s music. And even though this has a more traditional country sound to it, I like it, which is not always the case for me.  But then it has such fantastic lyrics which I am certain plays almost as big a part in my liking it as the rhythm and melody. Although I did not choose the song to have a connection to what I have been writing this week, I think I can make one.

Highvalleymusic. “High Valley – I Be U Be (Official Music Video).” YouTube. YouTube, 07 Apr. 2017. Web. 08 Apr. 2017.

This week, I reached what I think is the end of Not an Heiress.  It still needs an epilogue and would have one by now, but I ended up with a touch of the flu and had to take a day off from writing. (That was not easily done 😉 )

In this story, the hero, Richard, and the heroine, Mary, are really opposites when you consider them separately.  She is bent on propriety, and he is more willing to have some fun. However, they blend together into something unique and strong.  They have a passionate love that overcomes her propriety, and they both have a desire to help those who are less fortunate. And though, they, at first, think they cannot be together, it becomes obvious that their love is not going to just fade away and be replaced by another.  Thankfully, Lady Catherine guesses that they love each other and forces the issue, so the coming together of the two happens more rapidly than it would have otherwise.  And it is a sweet relationship that they have!  I can see Richard singing this song to Mary. It seems to echo what his thoughts of Mary are.

In addition to finishing the main portion of Not an Heiress, I also completed the line edits of Discovering Mr. Darcy.  And, just now, late on Sunday evening, I have just submitted my ebook files for review to all my retailers for a short preorder. The release day for the ebook book is April 18, 2017.  (Print will probably be about a week later.)

Tomorrow, it is my turn to post on Austen Authors, where I will be sharing an excerpt from Discovering Mr. Darcy and talking about short stories/novellas a bit. And there is a chance to win an ebook copy. I hope you drop by and say hi!

Before I post an excerpt of what I wrote this week, I thought I would share the cover images for Discovering Mr. Darcy and Not an Heiress.

DMD_Cover (1)NAH_cover

 

 

 

 

 

 

And now for a bit of what I wrote this week.  Remember, this is from the end of the book so it will contain spoilers. It is a bit shorter of an excerpt to hopefully avoid any major reveals. Read at your own risk. 🙂

EXCERPT FROM Not an Heiress:  Continue reading Music Monday: I Be U Be, High Valley


Music Monday: A Walk in the Forest, Brian Crain

I’m pulling out an old comfortable favourite for today’s post.  This song and others by this composer just have a way of wrapping me up in my imagination and tucking me away to find a good story.  So snuggle into the music, grab a cup of something warm and cozy, and let me tell you about what is happening in my writing world.

“A Walk in the Forest – Brian Crain.” YouTube. Ed. Connie K. YouTube, 28 Aug. 2009. Web. 11 Mar. 2017.

This was a busy week at my home.  March Break starts today, so there were lessons and test and essays that needed to be completed before the break.  There were also appointments and gym sessions — well, only one as it turned out. And in between and around those things, I had to fit in some writing work.  But, you know, that’s just how life is — busy and satisfying even when it get tiring and you just want a nap.  I cannot complain. My life is good.

Last week started with a Romance Writers of Atlantic Canada meeting and workshop where we discussed dialogue and fan fiction. I enjoy those craft sessions. It is good to stop and think about what we as writers are doing.

Then on Monday, I made certain my Austen Authors blog post was ready. Tomorrow, March 14, I will be sharing that Mansfield Park scene I mentioned writing a couple of weeks ago.  Be sure to stop by to have a read!

And then, I began on my list of writing projects.  Currently, I have three projects underway.

Discovering Mr. Darcy is nearly ready to send to my last editor before publication. I had hoped to have this story out this month, but it is looking more like it will be April before that will happen.  Right now, I am working on an epilogue at my first reader’s suggestion. However, my brain was a little short on creativity, so I have sought the excellent help of the members of Leenie’s Sweeties for ideas.  This week, I will sift through their suggestions and get that written.

I have begun first round edits on At All Costs.  I am through chapter 5, and I think, I may have begun posting this story on the forum at darcyandlizzy.com.  As I am writing this post on Saturday afternoon while my guys are all off at work, I have not yet begun posting it.  I assume I will get to that, but you know how life can be at times and what is planned is not what happens.  The chapters have not changed drastically from what has been posted here…a few more details have been given and more of the typos have been eliminated.

My third project is probably going to be the next Thursday’s Three Hundred story when At All Costs wraps up at the end of April.  It is called With the Colonel’s Help and is the story that I shared a portion of last week.  I have only gotten a bit further in that story. I am now on chapter 2 and only part way through it. It is a good think I have until the end of April to have it ready to being posting. 🙂 However, even though I have not progressed as far as I would have liked to since last week.  I will share a bit of chapter 2 below.

EXCERPT FROM With the Colonel’s Help:  Continue reading Music Monday: A Walk in the Forest, Brian Crain