Laurie Schnebly Campbell Writes Characters By Their Type

Welcome Laurie Schnebly Campbell, romance author who used the enneagram to teach writers about character.

AMBER: Tell me how you became interested in using the enneagram for  character development?

LSC: My mother found a really simple book about enneagrams, complete with cartoon illustrations, and the minute I saw it I loved the idea of applying those personality types to characters in my books. There's just so much built-in conflict when you put any two types (even the same kind) together, and neither person has to be a jerk -- it works just as well when they're genuinely good people.

The idea is that when we're under stress, which of course our book characters ARE because otherwise there wouldn't be any story, we all tend to show the darker side of our usual strength. Each type has wonderful strengths, but those can also cause problems when they're taken to extremes...like someone carefree becoming irresponsible, or someone responsible becoming a perfectionist.

AMBER: As a long time fan of the enneagram, I’ve wanted to use the system to write a novel. Of course, I would use all the types and it would make perfect sense. Easier said than done. When is a good time to stand back, look at your characters, and do a personality analysis (if they let you)?
LSC: I'm always amazed at how many successful methods there are for developing characters. Some writers start with an archetype in mind and craft a plot to challenge that character; others prefer watching the plot unfold and THEN deciding what the characters will be like. Either way can work beautifully, and so can all the other ways in between.

For anyone who's not sure WHAT works best, my recommendation is: decide which comes more easily to you. Are you better at coming up with plots, or better at crafting characters? Then, whichever you're better at, do the other step first.

Because if plotting is tougher and you start with that, you KNOW you can create fabulous characters to fit any plot you dream up. And if you have a tough time building personalities, do that first (hint: enneagrams will help!) because once that's done you can always create a compelling plot for whatever people you come up with.

AMBER: I also notice that you teach a workshop entitled “Creating Your  Hero’s Fatal Flaw.” As a counseling therapist and romance writer, do you have tips for  making your hero and heroine flawed, but not too crazy for a reader  to care about?
LSC: Even though the term "fatal flaw" sounds so much more dramatic than "flaw that occasionally causes trouble," flaws don't have to be anything CLOSE to crazy! We're all flawed in minor ways, and those ways are enough to create drama and turmoil in our lives.

Of course, if novelists want to write a psychotic killer or something equally crazy, they can just pick one of those minor flaws and take it to extremes. In fact, the class gets into how each of the nine types could become a villain -- it's all about exaggerating the weakness that goes along with each type's strength.

But keep in mind, the strength and weakness are always two sides of the same coin. You can't have one without the other...all you can do is use that trait for whatever results you want.

AMBER: Anything else you'd like to add?
LSC:  Just in case anyone isn't familiar with enneagrams, here's the short version: we all have some of EACH type within us, but we also have one main type. (Some people recognize theirs immediately; others can see too many possibilities to decide right away.)

    Type One, the Perfectionist, is a classic white-hat-never-black-hat who LIVES for Truth-Justice-Right. They hate mistakes; as perfectionists they get angry when they (or anyone else) doesn’t live up to their high standards. Trivia: they’re hardly EVER overweight, because that would be Wrong!

    Two, the Nurturer loves to be needed; they’re constantly giving. Great helpers who’ll go out of their way to care for others, and they take pride in being needed. If they go overboard, it’s a case of them forcing chicken soup down your throat because they identify themselves as Givers.

    Three, the Achiever, is the golden boy or golden girl who succeeds at whatever they do and always looks fabulous. Even if they’re cleaning the garage, their hair is ARTFULLY messy! But they can get so wrapped up in the fabulous image, they might indulge in deception to keep it going.

   Four, the Romantic, isn't afraid of feelings; they love big emotions...drama, tragedy, falling in love. They have glorious visions for how life should be, “scripting” what they hope for. If everyday life seems too ordinary, they fall into envy -- not of others, but of their perfect dream.

    Five, the Observer, isn't interested in emotions, except academically -- they're all about thoughts, analysis, study. They keep to themselves, preferring comprehension over participation, and while they don't care much about material goods, they're greedy for personal time-space-privacy.

    Six, the Skeptic, is constantly alert to risk (for themselves and their loved ones). Because of this fear, they're very aware of the rules and determined to always keep them...OR to always break them. Either way, they're deeply loyal and determined to keep their team safe, no matter what.

    Seven, the Adventurer, is enthusiastic about everything and everybody, and they want to enjoy every possible new experience...to the point where they might be accused of gluttony. They prefer not to commit to just ONE of anything -- whether a favorite restaurant, a job, or even a mate.

   Eight, the Leader, is very self-confident and accustomed to being in charge, running the show...always protecting that vulnerable core. Their lust for power can create trouble if someone else expects to share decision-making, but it also makes them exceptionally good at getting things done.

    Nine, the Peacemaker, likes to avoid conflict, avoid taking sides...even choosing chocolate or vanilla. They’re likable because they can appreciate everyone's viewpoint, and rarely express their own. Instead they kick back with whatever's comfortable...sometimes to the point of sloth.

See how each strength has a corresponding weakness? That's likely to come out under stress, which happens in EVERY book. And that's only the beginning!

AMBER:  So, can you tell I'm a FIVE, observing and interviewing (and hiding out and writing), We also love information so I guess my career as a librarian also worked. Now, back to you. Tell me about your books.
LSC: Well, the one that got me here is called Believable Characters: Creating with Enneagrams   and...hmm, I'll bet you can guess what it's about. Then there's half a dozen romance novels written for Silhouette Special Edition
AMBER: What are you writing now?
LSC: Next will be a book on enneagrams in relationships, and it's funny how that idea started. When the book for writers came out, one of my few non-writing friends -- a guy I went through counseling school with, who's now in private practice -- read it and said "gosh, I could use this for couples counseling."

I'd never even thought of the enneagram types in that context, but the minute he said that it made perfect sense. (My parents, who've been married 50-some years, joke that they never really UNDERSTOOD each other until they learned about enneagrams.) So that's the next book...but I'm only a few chapters into it, and I hate to take time away from teaching to get that done!

AMBER: I agree with your parents. I didn't understand MY parents until I studied the enneagram. I think I understand the concept of personalities evolving for the better as we age (we hope). S Can an evolved character can have all the wonderful qualities of each type? And can a completely depraved character have all the worst?
LSC: Actually I don't think either one is possible, because there are so MANY wonderful (and worst) qualities for every type. But, sure, in theory someone could show a whole lot of good (or bad) traits of their type.

AMBER: What type was your great-grandmother Sedona Schnebly (for whom Sedona, Arizona was named)?

LSC: I wish I'd met her so I could say for sure -- she died shortly before I was born. (Although I've gotta admit that if I'd met her when I was six months old, it probably wouldn't have made any difference.)
Still, from everything I've heard about her, I'd guess she was a One. Everyone who knew her talked about how conscientious she was in terms of doing her duty. She was very involved in the local church, and people who rhapsodize today about the Sedona vortexes would leave her shaking her head in disapproval because she wouldn't hold with that sort of thing. But when she was dying, she asked her husband to go deliver a get-well card to an ailing neighbor. That kind of thoughtful, attentive care is typical of a Perfectionist who's dedicated to always doing the right thing.

Laurie used to think there was nothing more fun than reading, until she discovered writing. Then, after winning "Best Special Edition of the Year" over Nora Roberts, she discovered something even MORE fun -- teaching other writers. She started with classes on synopsis-writing, which she'd always thought was easy because of her background writing ads. Psychology was next, because of her background in counseling. And when she discovered the nine enneagram types, she found those so useful that she wrote a book for people who want believable characters with built-in fatal (or not so fatal) flaws.
 
During weekdays, she writes and produces videos, brochures and commercials (some of which feature her voice) for a Phoenix advertising agency. For several years she would turn off her computer every day at five o'clock, wait thirty seconds, turn it on again and start writing romance.

Go to Laurie's website 

to learn more about her books and workshops
And don't miss a peek at 

Laurie's Journal Page 

showing how Laurie develops a story.

Jeffery Davis Yoga As Writers' Muse - Part 2

Welcome back, Jeff!

This week I want to ask you about your book, Journey from the Center to the Page.

The first section of the book introduces readers to what I call The Four Preparations:

• Write with intention
• Show up and shape time
• Stoke the writer's fire
• Ride the wave of concentration
 

The second second section helps writers learn to pay attention to different creative faculties - imagination, deep memory, intuition - in tandem with very specific facets of craft - imagery and detail, syntax, metaphor, dialog. I hope that writers experience craft in a whole new context.
The third chapter consider emotional crags - writing the truth, dealing with the inner heckler, writing beyond trauma.
And the fourth section addresses a variety of issues from revising to forming writers' groups to teaching Yoga as Muse in the academy to engaging Yoga As Muse for artists and dancers.
Each chapter acts like a sort of shapely essay (I hope) that interweaves a topic relevant to a writer with clear examples from writers as and specific yogic tools and philosophies. Several chapters include specific exercises that help writers begin the practice.

Can you learn this practice from a book?

Although I had doubts, several writers email me from around the world to tell me how the book works for them. A writer last week emailed me to say that the book helped her finish her first novel. That's rewarding to me.

Yoga As Muse specifically is a way to help writers and artists become aware of their embodied mind's nuances so they can become their own muses. They don't have to wait for some mysterious muse to show up each blue moon wearing angel wings and blowing a golden trumpet. Those inspired moments - like a Miles Davis impromptu solo - require a lot of practice. Yoga As Muse offers that practice.

Tell me about the Yoga as Muse workshops and e-courses.

The workshops and retreats immerse writers in this work. They typically focus on a specific theme relevant to writers (and sometimes artists) such as compassion or truth. I always ground the workshops and retreats in readings from contemporary writers. It's crucial for writers to read and to learn to read as writers (that's my old teacher talking, but it's true).
In the mornings, we practice yoga and also have Yoga As Muse sessions that generate new writing from the yoga. In the afternoons, we share our writings and discuss facets of craft. We usually conclude with a celebratory reading by the participants. What's beautiful about these events is that inevitably first-timers arrive with some secret trepidation: Is my writing good enough? Do I belong here? I'm no good at yoga. Usually, that stuff gets dispelled within the first 15 minutes.

Every one - including me - is a beginner who learns from everyone else present. Aspiring writers and writers who have published multiple books attend and support each other. Non-yogis and yoga teachers alike show up.

The YAM e-courses are really exciting. Writers from around the world can take these courses without leaving their bedroom or living room or wherever their computer is. Each week participants receive an e-lecture that focuses around one facet of Yoga As Muse and includes at least one sometimes multiple exercises. Then, participants correspond via a message board set up exclusively for participants. There, they share their experiences with Yoga As Muse, post their writings, and give each other specific feedback. It's a great way to build virtual communities.

What are you writing now?

I'm working on a short story. It's told from the point of view of a 58-year-old woman named, I think, Doris. I think she's a widow - widows keep visiting me - and is not too sad about being a widow as she's discovered online dating while grieving her faltering body. She's saucy and edgy. It's one of several stories told in first-person that have been triggered by people I've met or, in Doris's case, simply overheard in the farming hamlet where I live in upstate New York.
I've also just finished an essay called "Papa's Prana" that explores how my breath has given me what my wife's breasts have given her - an intimate connection with our five-month old daughter Dahlia.
And I'm still researching and, after feedback from my agent, simplifying a mammoth project for a non-fiction book.

What's coming up?

Lots is coming up. I'm offering a free one-hour Yoga As Muse tele-workshop on January 28 through Up2yoga.com. We use this impressive phone technology that allows us to divide callers into break-out groups for discussions, to journal, and have a rich dialogue about how yoga can help us emanate deeply creative lives in 2010. It's free, so your subscribers have nothing to lose. The fifth annual Yoga As Muse retreat in Taos comes up in March - where I'll see you! - and then I offer a retreat at Kripalu Center in May, a workshop at UNM's Taos Conference in July, and a retreat at Omega in September.

But perhaps the most exciting new offering of 2010 is the Yoga As Muse Facilitator Training. People have asked me to offer this for years, and I finally feel as if the time is right. I love to teach teachers, and I love to help people become the absolute most powerful teacher they can become. This training is not a yoga teacher training. Instead, it helps people (who must be certified to teach yoga) become a facilitator of their own Yoga As Muse classes and workshops. It's going to be amazing, if I do say so myself, with an intense immersion, an extension program, and (for graduates) a nine-month Facilitator Support Network that will give graduates support in taking the training to their communities, studios, and writing centers.

Thanks Jeff, for offering your work to writers. I am excited that you have decided to share this work through e-courses. I hope writers all over the world will benefit by bringing yoga into their writing and taking their writing to the mat. Namaste.

TIP TO READERS: If there are spaces left for 

5th Annual Yoga as Muse Writing Retreat for Authentic Writing  

Sign Up Now!

 And don't forget

A FREE Tele-Seminar hosted by Up2Yoga & MaestroConference

with Jeffrey Davis

 This Yoga As Muse conversation will inspire you to discover
how an energized body and expansive mind can awaken your muse.
Explore how specific yogic tools can remove creative obstacles
and be woven into a creative practice and a creative life.

January 28, 2010 at 1 pm EST

FREE registration now open
Come away inspired, refreshed, and well-equipped to emanate your creative spirit. 

Photograph of Jeffery Davis in Taos by Amber Polo
Photograph of Amber Polo in Taos by Jeffery Davis
Photograph of Amber's windon in Taos by Amber Polo

Jeffery Davis - Yoga as Muse for Writers- Part 1

Welcome, Jeff Davis, yoga teacher, writers' coach, and author of Journey from the Center to the Page.

Let's start with how you developed the connection between yoga, authentic writing, and creativity?

In my early thirties, I was in pretty bad shape although you'd have to peek behind my perennial smile and smirk to sense it. Work, work, work - that was my mantra. But my work as a writer suffered, and my body wore out, or vice-versa - the connections weren't yet clear to me. With a slew of emotional and physical hardships, I found my way fortuitously to a yoga class. I came back. And came back again. My body felt alive. I could sense "energy" in my toes and in parts of my body I didn't know I had. Within weeks, I could concentrate and meditate again. My imagination felt on fire.

Within another year-and-a-half, I resigned from full-time academia and entered my first yoga teacher training. My mind became more clear. My imagination, more alive. And my heart cracked wide open - frightening for a serious-minded male in his early thirties but necessary for a writer whose work was too intellectual and turgid.

With or without yoga, for as long as I have been aware of, my mind has worked avidly in metaphor. Yoga seemed to heighten my mind's ability to associate, and during that first training, my mind was forging immediate associations between yoga and authentic writing. I was also testing out my new-found knowledge on my own writing practice to see what worked for me and my writing.

Then, one of my first yoga teachers encouraged me to start a drop-in class that explored these connections between yoga and writing. This was back when I lived in Dallas. Every other Friday morning, 20-plus strangers and students would show up from all around. The results were wild and fresh, and I knew I was onto something both for myself and for others.

After teaching creative writing on one campus or another for - at the time - a dozen years, I felt as if yoga was breaking the teaching ground wide open for writers and students of creative writing. I traveled to Greece to study with Angela Farmer and Victor Von Kooten - also very encouraging of my studies - and soon moved to Woodstock, NY where I completed another training. Then, I traveled to Chennai, South India to study with my teacher Sri TKV Desikachar and his family of heart-centered teachers. All the while, the perennial student and writer that I am, I immersed myself in some of the core texts of yoga philosophy and started gathering thirty years of neuroscientic studies to see what parallels I could draw among yoga philosophy and practice, neuroscience, and creativity. The connections are overwhelming - which is why I tried to cover so much ground in The Journey from the Center to the Page.

How would a writer benefit from bringing yoga into her or his life?

Yoga brings a clear mind that becomes aware of itself. It instills that luxurious immersion, that deep concentration all artists and writers need and yearn for. It awakens what I call the felt mind - this is a term I've just stumbled upon in my own journaling and is not something I've written about yet except in a Yoga As Muse e-course. I distinguish the felt mind from the processor mind.

Let me digress a moment because this point is essential, I think. The processor mind wants to explain and analyze and compute and calculate and, frankly, conclude and wrap stories and poems and essays up before my fingers have even completed a page of writing. The felt mind slows down. I'm not a fan of automatic or quick writing or free writing, by the way. I'm a fan of slow writing, of a process that is so deeply felt that while writing your inner ears can hear the textures of words and your inner fingers can feel the textures of words. The felt mind feels. The processor mind is made of steel and sky. The felt mind is made of silk and sinew, of felt and grit. It mind wrapped in earth.

Several yoga practices quiet the processor mind. (Neuroscience has an explanation for this phenomenon, too.) And several yoga practices awaken the felt mind.

Yoga As Muse specifically is a way to help writers and artists become aware of their embodied mind's nuances so they can become their own muses. They don't have to wait for some mysterious muse to show up each blue moon wearing angel wings and blowing a golden trumpet. Those inspired moments - like a Miles Davis impromptu solo - require a lot of practice. Yoga As Muse offers that practice.

Thank you, Jeff, for the interview and the benefits I've found in your work.  In Part 2 Jeff will talk more about his book and workshops and his new Yoga as Muse E-Courses

Namaste.

YOGA AS MUSE E-COURSES

The Four Preparations Course

Writing Into the True Self Course

 Yoga As Muse

A FREE Tele-Seminar hosted by Up2Yoga & MaestroConference

with Jeffrey Davis

 This Yoga As Muse conversation and forum
will inspire you to discover how an energized body and expansive mind can awaken your muse.
Explore how specific yogic tools can remove creative obstacles
and how they can be woven into a creative practice and a creative life.

Come away inspired, refreshed, & well-equipped to emanate your creative spirit.

January 28, 2010 at 1 pm EST

FREE registration now open

Photograph of Jeffery Davis by Hillary Harvey

Carolyn Howard-Johnson on Capitalization, CAPITALIZATION, and capitalization!

My guest this week is Carolyn Howard-Johnson, award winning novelist and author of the The HowToDoItFrugally Series for authors. Today I'm asking her questions about her book The Frugal Editor.

Welcome back Carolyn. First I have to tell you how much I love your subtitle Put Your Best Book Forward to Avoid Humiliation and Ensure Success and using the word “frugal” for your series is brilliant. (I also love your unforgettable last name.) As my regular blog readers have figured out, I interview in order to ask the questions I want answered. 

When I was in junior high (tough school) the English teacher decided only 3 students wanted to learn and instead of teaching how to diagram sentences taught only capitalization. I still don't understand diagramming and it doesn't seem to affect my writing life but I got very good at capitalization. This was enforced later in my career as a librarian where capitalizing had special rules we kept secret from the ordinary public.

So, Carolyn, tell me, when did the rules change and why wasn't I informed?

First of all, the rules don't suddenly change. They change over time and they change because we (meaning lots of people) start to use something (like capitalization) in a different way. Thus, we have several style books and all of them are "right" and they all disagree on many, many issues. Newspapers tend to use the AP Stylebook,book editors tend (but not always) use the Chicago Manual of Style. All are listed as good (-: reading in the Appendix of The Frugal Editor.

How about these examples?

"President Obama said..."

"The President of the United States said..."

"The president said.." (not just any president)

"I toured the Chicago Public Library's collections..."

"The library's collection included..." (not just any library)

In both the library and the president instance, you are referring to one specific place/person. But it is not part of a title in either of the third choices. Thus, no cap would probably be used in most cases. But anyone who faulted you for using a cap probably would be equally confused about the difference between style choice and rules. Throw a little extra something in there, too. Rules have become more lax. 
Oh, and one thing more. Often English teachers teach us wrong. I was confused about the verbs "to lie" and "to lay" by the time I'd been through 15 different teachers with 15 different ideas and explanations and examples I wanted to cry. The thing is, it's really soooooo simple. They just didn't know how to teach it.

Oh, and one more confusing thing. Different rules apply in creative writing. It's OK to use grammar incorrectly in, say, dialogue or when you are trying to create a voice.

So, any secret tricks to getting it right? 

If you're a creative writer sign up for an online subscription to the Chicago Manual of Style. Or buy a real copy (a new one--not something that's 20 years old because it's cheap). And use it.

And read books by respected MODERN editors. That probably doesn't even include the venerated Fowler's, that everyone considers holy. That book can confuse a creative writer learning rule-oriented grammar. In fact, it generally does and that's exactly what happened to you, Amber.

We get caught up in the rules, confuse one rule with another, try to memorize a catalog of rules (impossible!). I have one dictionary of English (just English--not other languages except for some borrowed words from French, German, Latin, etc. that we've made our own) that is over 1 foot tall. I have at least a dozen grammar and style books on my desk. English just isn't simple enough to boil down to a few rules and a few verbal guidelines like the one that tripped you up here.

The rule you were taught went something like this: If the word refers to a specific thing (library or president) always capitalize. See? Kids, adults (and writers) tend to over think rules like this.

Some style books argue that without the actual name and/or title, it isn't a specific thing. Thus no cap. Other style books argue the opposite. The more casual approach is winning.

How do you not get in too much trouble until your editor makes a final decision?

Basically the trick is to decide what kind of material you're writing, and choose the style book (from the two I mentioned above) that most closely matches where your end product will appear.

Lacking the wherewithal for that, choose the more casual approach. That would put you in good company with "rules" like serial commas, commas after dependent clauses, etc. etc.

Oh, and one more warning. Never, never correct someone else's grammar. Even when you're sure. Ha! You could be wrong. Even if you looked it up! 'Cause that other person looked it up somewhere else.

Well now I know I am not alone. Thanks, Carolyn for stopping by!

I hope your readers will subscribe 

to my newsletter. 

It's interactive so there are opportunities to get exposure and to help others. And it's full of tips and articles to help write and promote better. 

Send me an e-mail with SUBSCRIBE in the subject line to HoJoNews@aol.com. 

Or go to www.howtodoitfrugally.com 
and look for a subscription box 
near the top of the home page.
Another help for your readers is the  
Resources for Writers pages Find great lists of contests, media release disseminators, article banks, helpful books to read and on and on.

Mago Earth Park Generates Feelings Other Than Peace

Since this is my blog, I going to stick in an off-topic topic. In a nearby northern Arizona town a holiday season controversy continues to rage, even upstaging the Sedona sweat lodge deaths, the closing of state parks, and the sad economy.

I'm interested because I've visited over 100 sculpture parks and sacred sites throughout the U.S, most during solitary cross country drives. On a good day I could stop at more than one. Yes, I was obsessed.

Monumental outdoor sculpture is both powerful and spiritual. I visited representational parks like the classic Brookgreen Gardens in South Carolina and folk art sites like the whimsical Carhenge in Nebraska. I spent time at labyrinths and meditation gardens with Buddhist and Hindi roots. I experienced the blend of nature and art in 30 states.

What are sculpture parks? Sculpture parks are part art museum and part park with the advantages of both. There are scores of sculpture parks and gardens across the U.S. Offering an oasis, they provide a quiet atmosphere, a slower pace, and a staff that treats visitors with courtesy. They are places to walk, sit, and spend a few hours. Imagine a giant outdoor museum; then imagine a walk in a lovely botanic garden. This is a sculpture park.

Most parks have a variety of sculpture styles. Most show multiple sculptors and exhibit a variety of styles: beautiful realistic human forms and delightful animals, powerful geometric forms, abstracts, and moving kinetic mobiles. Some pieces offer humorous views of our society, some tell a story, and others are somber memorials. Many cover vast distances and individual works are separated to allow surprises because the eye cannot take it all in a one time.

Moving to northern Arizona where I look at mountains everyday seems to have cooled my addiction to bask in man made sculpture. When I heard of the Mago Earth Park controversy, my first thought was that it was misunderstood. I visited, took photos, and tried to sort out my feelings.

Yes, there are cultural differences. The owners have tried to explain the significance of the harubangs as "symbol of peace". Placing the pieces next to a newly constructed Catholic church seems to have fanned the flames. I was surprised at the multi-colored dwarf representations and the harubangs’ eyes which, according to Wikipedia, these fertility symbols have “bulging eyes without pupils.”

In my personal opinion, other issues aside, the developers of the Mago Earth Park should have used a professional public art consultant to help design the site and perhaps installed the construction in stages over a larger area.

For more information
(Can you tell I'm a librarian? And once wanted to write a book about sculpture parks?)

The local  controversy

YouTube video
Local newspaper coverage

About Mago Earth Park
Ilchi Lee
Wikipedia Harubangs "symbol of peace"

Where to find Sculpture Parks
Websites -
ISC International Sculpture Center Directory
International Directory of Sculpture Parks & Gardens

Books
A Guide to the Sculpture Parks & Gardens of America 1996
Landscape for Art
Destination Art

More photos on my Facebook page.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Ready to Fly Off to a Caribbean Island for Christmas?

A Magic Santa brings Caribbean Christmas Joy

Marti Bell is facing the prospect of a very unmerry Christmas. Reluctantly, leaving her married lover she travels toward ice, snow, and judgmental family until a magic Santa sends her to a surprise destination in the warm waters of the Caribbean.  

Wherever Island would be a winter paradise except the only place to stay is the beachside cottage of romantic globetrotting photographer Cliff Holmes. Cliff wants to unwind and treat Marti to a little romantic Caribbean Christmas fun but she’s determined to stay in the warm ocean and out of hot water. 

Watch the Christmas on Wherever Island book video

 *************

  “Not only is the setting sensational, the hero will sweep you off your feet…this is one story I can read every Christmas season. …a great happily ever after story.”
A “You Gotta Read” from You Gotta Read Reviews. Reviewed by Roberta

Buy the ebook of

Christmas on Wherever Island

Celia Yeary's Successful Booksigning Party

Welcome Celia Yeary, Texas romance author!

Celia’s come to tell us about an unusual book signing she hosted for her first book.

When my first print came out, I thought an author should have a book signing. But I’d attended a few, and the concept made me nervous. I’m not shy at all, but I knew I’d have a difficult time sitting there, looking perky and cute (I’m not), somehow enticing passers-by to stop (I would feel “on stage.”) Not for me, I thought. I’ll have a book party at my house, instead.

How did you get the idea for a party?

I’m glad you asked, Amber, because other authors might want to try my method. An author who grew up here still visits her mother in the family mansion in the Historical District. She’s written three thick historical novels, and with her latest, she came home to have a tea party in the mansion in order to sell and sign her books. Well, of course, it was a grand success. I thought, if she can do it, so can I. My home is certainly not a mansion, but I do have a nice home, and I enjoy having groups here for various functions.

How much planning went in to it?

Not much, once I worked out the plan in my head.

Who did you invite and what did the invitation say?

First, let me say that I know a lot of people. I’ve lived here many years, my husband taught at the university, I taught at a private military boarding school, and I’m a member of several groups in town. This helps if you want to try a party. I didn’t want to be crass and hand an invitation to someone personally, making that person feel obligated. Instead, I used a Word document and wrote:

“I invite you to purchase my book at a slight discount. I will pay the postage. If you wish to do so, send $12.00, and I'll order the book for you. This is a two-dollar discount and I will pay the postage. Then, I will send you an invitation to my house for a Tea Party to pick up your book!” (I added the title, genre, my address, e-mail, and phone number.)

I made a Word document, two invitations to a page, printed it on pink paper, and cut in half. For a month, I took a few each time I had a group meeting of some kind. I placed the bright pink papers on a coffee table, and entry table, a desk, and during the meeting, I’d point  out the invitations and move on. I never looked to see who picked one up or who didn’t.

The checks and cash started coming in. I sold forty books. Then I had my party. Everyone

wanted the book autographed, so I did that before the party--very time-consuming.

One woman bought six books--to give five away to close friends. One bought four--for her daughters. Fifteen more people wanted the book, and even though they missed the party, I gave them the same deal. Now, I'm on my third order.

I love that you got the money ahead of time, so there was no handling of filthy cash and checks and you just had a good time.

That’s right, plus I didn’t have outstanding payments, and if a person prepaid, I knew she wanted the book. I say “she,” but three men bought the book, too! You didn’t ask, Amber, because you’re a polite person, but I’ll tell you about the money I earned. This is the most profitable way to sell a book. Yes, it’s a little work, but worth it. After I paid for the shipment and the shipping, I earned about $3.50 on each book. I would have made more, had I charged the full retail amount. Now I know I could have and every one of those buyers would have purchased a book. But I felt happy that I gave each one a little gift. Now, they’re waiting for my next one.

How many people came to the party?

Thirty-five people came. I delivered to the few who could not make the party. Three women brought their husbands, and one woman brought her teenage son who likes to write.

Can you tell us about the cost factor?

The party cost about $25. I went to a huge discount warehouse and bought pretty blue paper plates, napkins, and plastic cups. The menu consisted of Texas-shaped pretzels, assorted nuts, homemade chocolate-chip cookies, pimento cheese spread (I make this), and Texas-shaped crackers. Oh, and peach iced tea.

What are you writing now?

Several things, but this is the way I write. I never start one manuscript and write until I’m finished. I think of something else and go off in a different tangent. My currents projects are an historical love story, A Life Worth Living, set in 1918 when the Great War ended; a short western historical romance titled Painted Rock Canyon; and a short, light romance tentatively titled The Nanny and the Pro, my first attempt at an Inspirational story.

Thank you so much, Amber, for the guest spot on your successful blog. I’d love to give away a pdf of my newest release, Showdown in Southfork, a short novel for the Wayback, Texas Rodeo series for The Wild Rose Press to one lucky visitor.

Celia Yeary sometimes calls herself The Accidental Author. She only wrote science research papers in college, and adds—that was many years ago. She began writing in 2003, just “playing around,” and before she knew it, an 80,000 word novel had appeared in her files. Now, she’s addicted, just as she became addicted to playing golf at age forty. Celia and her husband travel, visit grandsons in far-away Michigan, participate in university, church, and community events, and enjoy their Texas Hill Country home.

Visit Celia at:  www.celiayeary.com   or  www.celiayeary.blogspot.com

Find Celia’s book and Free Reads at www.thewildrosepress.com       

Celia's Contest
(Contest ends Saturday 12/12)

Leave a comment to win.a .pdf of Showdown in Southfork, 

Celia's short novel Showdown in Southfork,

(The Wild Rose Press's Wayback, Texas Rodeo series)