The Star Prophecy by Joan Sowards

I just received my first copy of my novel, The Star Prophecy and it is beautiful. It is a tale of young Nephite men who set sail for Jerusalem to find the Christ Child.

The back cover blurb reads:

"You are crazy. No Nephite has ever returned."

Most people laugh when they hear of Enoch's dream of returning to Jerusalem to find the infant Messiah. Even Enoch's future father-in-law mocks him when he asks for a postponement of his long-awaited wedding to his beloved Rebekah. A few take Enoch seriously--the shipbuilder Omnihah, Enoch's teacher David, and the prophet Nephi.

Five Years before, a Lamanite named Samuel had stood on the wall of Zarahemla and prophesied that "five years more cometh" and the Christ would be born in Jerusalem. Time is running out! Enoch knows he must set sail across the great water in search of his dream--to see the face of the Messiah.

The Star Prophecy is a surprising story of courage and love, faith and fortitude. Sail with Enoch and his friends across the sea through hardship and adventure in search of the Christ child.

"I love Joan Sowards' inventive mind. She begins this adventurous tale with "what if?' and tells it so well that the reader closes the book thinking 'why not?' The Star Prophecy adds a surprising new dimension to the Christmas story." -Liz Adair, author of Counting the Cost

"Action-adventure, romance, inspirational, and historical fiction all rolled into one make the Star Prophecy an exciting page turner." -Margaret L Turley, author of Save the Child

Buy at Amazon and LDS Bookstores

Oh Say Can You See? by Laurie C Lewis

Laurie C Lewis has added another great historical novel in her series Free Men and Dreamers. Oh Say Can You See? and tells of the dramatic events surrounding the Battle of Baltimore and the writing of the Star Spangled Banner.

Volume 4 of this series, Oh Say Can You See? "This book is a magnificent love story—love between man and woman, love between friends, love between siblings, and ultimately, love between citizens and their country. While it tells the backstory of “The Star-Spangled Banner,” I found myself reflecting on the lyrics to another favorite song: “Oh beautiful for heroes proved in liberating strife, who more than self their country loved, and mercy more than life.”
Braden Bell, author of The Road Show

Volumes 1-3 of the series include Dark Sky at Morning, Twilight's Last Gleaming, Dawn's Early Light.

Laurie's other novels include Awakening Avery and Unspoken. Visit her website.

Watch the trailer for Oh Say Can You See?

Read a great interview with Laurie C Lewis here.

Today's Smile

There once was a woman who woke up one morning, looked in the mirror,

and noticed she had only three hairs on her head.

"Well," she said, "I think I'll braid my hair today."

So she did and she had a wonderful day.

The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror

and saw that she had only two hairs on her head.

"H-M-M," she said, "I think I'll part my hair down the middle today."

So she did and she had a grand day.

The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and noticed

that she had only one hair on her head.

"Well," she said, "today I'm going to wear my hair in a pony tail."

So she did, and she had a fun, fun day.

The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and

noticed that there wasn't a single hair on her head.

"YAY!" she exclaimed. "I don't have to fix my hair today!"

Winner of the Spooktacular Drawing!

Congratulations to Tammy of Salmon, Idaho, the winner of a copy of Haunts Haven!

Thank you all for entering. Happy Halloween. :-)

Family History

I admit it. I am totally addicted to family history research and I enjoy it as much as writing.

I actually attribute my love for writing to family history. Years ago, I found a name of a woman that possibly could be my ancestor’s mother. The impression repeatedly came to sit down at the computer and write how an interview with her would go. I did and it turned into a short story. Then it grew into a novel—my first novel (unpublished)—Bridges of the Heart. Through that experience, I discovered I love writing and crafting a story as much as I love doing family history research.

As everyone else, I had planned to start genealogy in my retirement years, but about twenty years ago a friend insisted I find a babysitter and go with her for an hour to the family history center. After that I was hooked.

I used to be like the girl I met one evening sitting in the back of the family history center as the other Young Women in her class attentively listened to the missionary sister giving a tour. I asked the girl why she didn’t join her friends. “My family has been in the church for generations and our genealogy is all done,” she said, leaning back in her chair with an air of smugness.

I had to hide a smirk. “I used to think that way too,” I told her. “But as I got into researching, I found that each of my ancestors had siblings, spouses, and in-laws that still needed finding. Outside of my direct line, very few had their temple work done.”

She shrugged and I knew that was my cue to leave her alone to bask in her all-is-well-in-Zion attitude, though I knew the joy she'd miss.

Sometimes I feel guilty spending time doing family history, but in the long run, I know it is not time wasted. Every name found goes on familysearch.com. I feel warm all over finding a name that isn’t already recorded there. Making records public takes lost individuals out of

obscurity who may otherwise never be remembered.

Another good thing about researching, is that I can do it at home in my spare time, between loads of laundry, and grandchildren visits. I can do it when I’m burned out from writing on my novel. I can write my novel when I’m burned out doing family history research.

The bottom line—doing family history work brings happiness. :-)

Read Haunts Haven

October is a great month to read Haunts Haven. Besides that Halloween is coming up, Haunts Haven has a real a ghost--a handsome ghost. The synopsis is right here in the sidebar. Click and read the first chapter.

Happy reading and happy haunting!

How Do You Write a Smile?

Don't take me too seriously on this one, but I like my characters to be happy and I find it a challenge to write a smile. Yes, I know it’s all right to write he smiled, but sometimes it gets monotonous. In an 80,000-word novel it takes a lot of creative writing to keep your character creatively smiling.

The English language doesn’t have enough substitutes for the word smile.Grin, beam, and smirk is all my thesaurus offers. To avoid each smile from sounding like the last, the writer will sometimes use modifiers such as toothy, wide, lopsided, ridiculous, or that the ends of her mouth turn up. If the character’s eyes light up, her smile smiles differently than two pages ago.

Maybe someone should make a long list of smile descriptions, cut them in slips, put them in a jar and market it to writers. Whenever they need to write a smile, they can draw one out and, kazam! It’s done. (The inventor will probably make more money than from book royalties.)

Another word we English conversers got shorted on is laugh. There isn’t a word for an ordinary, boring huff. If it is an everyday grin—no emotion involved—there’s not a lot to choose from. Everyone laughs. If we don’t blow out our breath in a quiet laugh, we just smile, or there we go grinning again.

The best we can do is chuckle, and if you’re under sixteen you can giggle. If you are a little loony you may twitter and chortle. Boys snicker. Males hoot. Old women snort and cackle (may I never be that old.) And if you just lose it altogether, you are allowed a guffaw or two.

None of these offer what I’m looking for. Got laughs?

My Double Life by Janette Rallison

Today's guest reviewer is Dylan.

My Double Life by Janette Rallison

Everyone wonders what it is like to be a celebrity for a day.

What a fun book! Any teen would love this story about Elexia, a witty honor student from a poor family, who is a dead ringer for pop star Kari

Kingsley. When Elexia's picture gets posted on the Internet, Kari's manager calls and offers her a job as Kari'

s double. Unbeknown to her fans, Kari is knee deep in debt for gambling and a shopping addiction. And to add into the mix, Kari's father happens to be Elexia's mother's celebrity i

dol.

This rags-to-riches story is fun, whimsical, and has a touch of sweet romance. MDL is a

laugh-out-loud ride that keeps you enthralled to the last page. Readers will relate easily to the realistic, likable characters, including the Nazi-ish manager. My Double Life's well thought-out plot is executed smoothl

y like a great movie.

Visit Janette's website.

Visit Dylan's blog.

Today's Smile

Today my young adult children were talking.

Ted: Do kids really believe there are monsters under their beds?

Rex: We always had so much food storage under there that we knew there wasn't room for monsters.

Editing Song

by Joan Sowards

(Tune: Christmas Bells are Ringing)

Editing, editing, here we go!
My manuscript needs shaping.
Finding typos like a pro—
None will be escaping.
Change the words that tell, not show,
Out of point of view, don’t go!
Slice, slice, cut, cut,
Anxious readers waiting!

Editing, editing to refine,
Hoping soon to publish.
Proofing carefully each line,
Delete all the rubbish.
Ousting passive verbs and such,
Adding taste and smell and touch.
Slice, slice, cut, cut,
Publishers are waiting!

Editing, editing page by page,
Ridding repetition,
So the reader will engage
To the tale’s completion.
Dialogue and tenses right,
Ditch the chitchat, make it tight.
Slice, slice, cut, cut,
Bookstore shelves are waiting!