WHETHER WEATHER WORKS

By Caroline Clemmons

April is the month when showers bring May flowers. I apologize to those who are still surrounded by snow. Spring has arrived in North Central Texas.

My mom's favorite flower, iris

Iris and daffodils are in bloom. Our hyacinths have finished. This is the time of year I vow to plant more bulbs in the fall as well as a couple of forsythia bushes.

However, this post is about weather and whether it works as one of the characters in a book. I say it does—for some books. For instance, in several of my romances the weather plays a major part of the plot.

In my first published romance, BE MY GUEST, the heroine was trapped with the hero in a flood. In THE MOST UNSUITABLE COURTSHIP, a dust storm isolated the main characters, one of whom was an asthmatic child. (Thanks to Beth Trissel for her help with the herbal treatments in that book.) In LORRAINE, a tornado had the hero and heroine seeking protection in the kneehole of a desk. Cozy, right?

In my latest release, TEXAS LIGHTNING, you can guess that lightning plays a part. In MURDOCH’S BRIDE, snow isolated the human characters. In fact, I’ve used snow in several books.

My theory is that a character doesn’t have to be human. Authors use whatever they need to develop the story and make it as entertaining as possible. Sometimes that includes using the weather to move the story forward.    

WRITING IS MY JOB

Here in North Central Texas the weather had finally moderated after a spike of temper last week to a heat index of 106. From what I hear about Arizona, residents have my sympathy. Heat index of 126 degrees F. Yikes!

To a full-time writer, the weather is not as important as to most occupations. The commute is very short for me--from the bedroom to my little pink office. Fortunately, I have a ceiling fan and an air-conditioning vent over my computer. Hero just brought me a Cherry Dr Pepper. Life is good.

I can wear my jammies to work if I wish.
(This graphic reminds me of
Vonnie Davis' bear series.)

So I concentrate on my writing. Many people assume that if a person works from home, he or she doesn't have a "real" job. I assure you that I do and I work anywhere from six to fourteen hours a day writing and promoting on social media and studying the changes to social media. The shorter time is because at times my life outside of writing interferes with my art.

My latest release, LORRAINE, Bride Brigade book 6, was published on May 22nd. I love this heroine, Lorraine Stuart. She is a feisty redhead who wants to be a recognized writer. Of course, she achieves her goal because this is a sweet romance and that means you're guaranteed a happy ending.

Now I'm working on my July 18 release, SNARE HIS HEART, Loving A Rancher Series book 5, for Debra Holland's Montana Sky Series at Kindle World. Whew! That was a convoluted sentence, wasn't it? There are numerous wonderful writers associated with Debra's series. If you haven't already, please give them a chance to entertain you.

The problem with writing a lot of books is coming up with new twists. For instance, all of the young women in the Bride Brigade Series traveled together to Tarnation, Texas. Yet, each book has to revolve around a different situation and obstacles. Each woman is in her twenties and is looking for a husband. Giving each a different motivation was a challenge. But, like most writers, I love a challenge and chance to "stretch" my skills.

The same problem is true with the Kindle World books. My series is called Loving a Rancher, but each rancher has to be different from the others. The same is true for the heroines. Believe me, after 39 books and novellas, coming up with new situations is not easy. I believe I've succeeded so far. You'll have to be the judge.

The hero of SNARE HIS HEART has been badly burned and has scars on the right side of his body. He received them when he tried to rescue his late wife from their burning home. He thinks he will never love again. The heroine is a generally cheerful and optimistic young woman who is determined to "snare his heart" and his love but faces unjust accusations from his brother.

Usually, what happens when plotting a new story is I visualize the hero and heroine in a little movie in my head. The scene I "see" may not be the opening but could be several chapters later. Still, that little imaginary movie gives me a good handle on the characters. I've heard many other authors mention they see a movie for their characters, so if that makes me insane I have good company. ☺

I recently heard from a writer friend that she's stopped writing and doesn't miss it. That surprised me. I can't imagine not writing. I love pouring out stories from my heart. Doing so makes me happy. I write and send the stories out wishing they'll make readers happy. I intend them to provide a brief escape from the days's problems with a trip to another time and place where everyone overcomes obstacles. Perhaps that will give the reader the incentive to overcome his or her problems.

I hope you are looking forward to a fun-filled  and safe Fourth of July. For my family, the day will involve peace and quiet after an impossibly hectic past month and to gear up for the coming two weeks.

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!

DO YOU PREFER HEAT OR COLD?

By Caroline Clemmons

Don’t get me wrong, I love my home state, but in the summer I forget why. My favorite times are spring and fall and I enjoy winter unless we have ice. But this heat—no thank you!

Not for me though, unfortunately, that's
how my hair looks today.

I know there are droves of you who live for summer. I see you in your shorts and cute tank tops and sparkly flip flops. I envy you, but I’m hanging close to the A/C.

There was a time when I was a lover of summer, too. I remember the days when I’d beg my parents to let me play in the lawn sprinkler. We wanted to get cooler, so my brother and I would run through the spray. (My parents didn’t have central air-conditioning until after I was married.) On good days, friends and I could go to the public swimming pool. The poor moms had to sit in the heat and watch. Well, they could have joined us, but I don’t think that ever occurred to anyone.

How crazy were you as a teen? My friends and I would help one another print a boy’s initials on each other’s back using adhesive tape. Then we’d sunbathe, hoping our effort would result in the initials of our crush showing whenever we wore a swimsuit. Mine never did because I didn’t tan easily. Okay, so we didn’t do drugs or sex or shoplift—or any of the other things our parents had warned us from doing. We were, in a word, nerds, but also nice girls who had fun doing our nerdy stuff.

Now during summer I usually write books set in winter. When the heat is scorching outside, I love being inside writing about snow. Actually, I love writing about anything at anytime, but times like writing snow in summer are especially therapeutic.

This year, I goofed. I’m writing all summer books until I switch to my Christmas story.

I just released LORRAINE, Bride Brigade book 6, which is set in late spring and summer. In case you missed getting your copy, it’s available from Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0725WQ6XG. Yes, this IS a hint! An invitation. A plea. ☺

Now I’m working on SNARE HIS HEART for Debra Holland's Montana Sky Series of Kindle Worlds, and this book is set in late spring and summer. Worse, it begins with a house fire. That makes me uncomfortably warm simply thinking about it. Thank goodness that scene is short before we switch to the heroine’s embarrassing dilemma. I think the above cover turned out well, don’t you? Release date is July 15.

This is my fifth book for the Montana Sky Series of Kindle Worlds. The others are AMANDA’S RANCHER, THE RANCHER AND THE SHEPHERDESS, MURDOCH'S BRIDE, and BRIDE'S ADVENTURE. They're all stand alone but are loosely linked in locale and having ranchers as heroes. In each, there's interaction with characters from Debra's books and my other Montana Sky Series books. We're linking mine by calling them the Loving A Rancher Series.  Do you think that's a good series name?

During June, there’s a 99 cent sale on THE RANCHER AND THE SHEPHERDESS and BRIDE’S ADVENTURE. You can learn what other books from the Montana Sky Series are on sale this month at Debra Holland's website:

http://debraholland.com/kindle-worlds.html

Back to writing in my little pink cave while keeping cool under my ceiling fan in my lovely air-conditioning. Ahhhhh. Thank goodness for modern conveniences while I write about the Old West.

What’s your favorite activity in summer?