Plans for the Future...

I never make resolutions for the new year. I'm afraid they would just end up depressing me because I would never accomplish them.

However, I have made a few plans. Number 1, I intend to get smarter about social media. I admit I'm uncomfortable sharing much of my personal life on the Internet. I just think it's not smart. I know people whose whole life is on their phone. I know people who have Alexa, which is one of the scariest thing to come down the pike lately. I will never have Alexa.

With Facebook on the brink of making some major new changes (which I don't yet understand), I'm going to learn more about using Facebook as a marketing tool. I have 3 Facebook pages. First, there's my profile page https://www.facebook.com/anna.jeffrey.3.

There is my professional page, Anna Jeffrey Books: https://www.facebook.com/annajeffreybooks/. On this page, I mostly comment about books and writing. My Facebook store is also on this page, with links to Amazon to buy books and audio books. I haven't yet figured out how to add links for other retailers yet, but I'm working on it.

After that, there is my new Anna Jeffrey Readers Club: https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=anna%20jeffrey%20readers%20club. This is a closed group you're welcome to join. We are supposed to talk about books and movies and share opinions and thoughts. (no politics, no flame-outs and no promotions) It's supposed to be like we all get together for coffee and cake and we're supposed to have fun. .... I don't know about you, but I have a hard time finding people to discuss good books with.

I'm going to be more active on Twitter. If you'd like to follow me on Twitter, my I.D. is annajeffrey@annajeffrey. Twitter is where I'll be making announcements if Facebook becomes un-tolerable after they make their changes and their announcements.

There's my blog, on which I'm going to try to post more. https://annajeffreyauthor.wordpress.com. I post all kinds of things on my blog (except politics), but including a few recipes from time to time. I also have a few guest authors promoting their new releases. If you would like to subscribe, a sign-up box is on the blog or it's at my web site, https://annajeffrey.com.

I'm on Pinterest. There I have boards on my books as well as a few other things that interest me, such as great people, food, and art. I would love to have you follow me there. https://www.pinterest.com/annajeffrey/

I'm on LinkedIn and Instagram, but I'm not quite into using those two yet.

And in the middle of all of this, I'm going to try to find time to write. As soon as I finish THE HORSEMAN, I'm going to start on the revisions of MAN OF THE WEST, which is a sequel to LONE STAR WOMAN. Originally, this book was to be Book #1 of a trilogy.







It took forever to get the rights to MAN OF THE WEST back from the New York publisher, but I finally succeeded. I hope to get that done in the next few months and I will be releasing it as an Anna Jeffrey book.




So those are my plans. Not resolutions.😀

Finding (or Losing) Your Muse.....

By Anna Jeffrey

In Greek mythology, there were 9 muses, the daughters of Zeus and Mnymosyne. Wikipedia defines them as "the inspirational goddesses of literature, science, and the arts. They were considered the source of the knowledge embodied in the poetry, lyric songs, and myths that were related orally for centuries in ancient cultures. They were later adopted by the Romans as a part of their pantheon."

In modern usage, the word has several definitions. As a noun, it can be a spirit or source that inspires an artist, i.e., an influential teacher, a mentor. 

 As a verb, it can be defined as someone having deep thoughts about life. To ponder or consider, to think over or about, to chew on, etc., etc. Example: "He mused on the problems he faced." Or "I mused on Mary's problems." Or "I think I've seen her before," Mary mused.

Muse is often associated with writers. If you happen to be one, your muse can be a nightmare, the thing that deserts you when you need and want it most, the fickle goddess that can bring on writer's block. 

That's where I've been for the past few months--wading through the flypaper of writer's block. I didn't recognize it at first. In the 20 years I've been writing, I've never been stumped for a plot or dialogue  or character development. I've always known, basically, where I was headed. 

Often, writers are  solitary, sensitive creatures . The slings and arrows of life can knock their muse into the middle of next week and for it to come crawling back can sometimes take months. Sometimes that's personal; sometimes it's something else.

The slings and arrows of late are the writing and publishing business itself. I've had a hard time coming to terms with the new norm. I'm still having a hard time with it. Being the maverick that I am, I don't want to be owned by the company store. However, my desire to at least finish the two books I've started is strong. I've got too much invested in writing to abandon it. I've walked away from 2 careers to do it. Finally, and hopefully, after being bitch-slapped flat, my muse is picking herself up off the floor and slowly tip-toeing back. I don't have hardheaded Irishmen genes coursing through my blood for nothing.

Horses and a Free Book

One of my current WIPs, THE HORSEMAN, is a romance in which the hero is a horse trainer extraordinaire. Some even think he's a horse whisperer. This is the same book I wrote about a while back where the heroine has suffered a rattlesnake bite.

The rattlesnake bite caused me to have to do a lot of research, but horse whispering is causing me to have to do even more.

A few real live horse whisperers are around. One of them is Buck Brannaman on whose personality and occupation the character of Tom Booker in the book and movie, "The Horse Whisperer," was based.

In the book I wrote a few years ago, THE LOVE OF A LAWMAN, the heroine is a horse whisperer.  I did quite a bit of research about this phenomenon back then, but since then, I've done more. One of the things I've done is watch the movie about Buck Brannaman and I've read his book. I've also watched several documentaries about wild horses and why they behave as they do. Horse society and herd hierarchy is interesting information and you can't keep from being drawn to it.


Nor can you keep from being drawn to horses. It appears that the most important element is earning a horse's trust, which is no small feat. Since they are prey animals, they instinctively know that human beings are predators and and they have an innate fear of them. As a matter of survival, they want to get along with people. Basically, they already know how to do the things that people want them to do, but they have to be taught when to do it and that it's okay for them to do it. Those who are successful horse trainers and whisperers have the patience and interest in establishing the trust that is necessary for a good outcome. Some of them believe that problem horses are an extension of problem owners or owners with problems.

People who know horses claim they are just as smart as dogs and just as loyal, up to giving their lives for a human being they trust.

I've never had a horse of my own, but from the research I've done, I wish I did. I wish I had been involved with horses all of my life. I wish I were a person that a horse could trust. 

By the way, THE LOVE OF A LAWMAN is currently free at Amazon and will be for 4 more days.

Snakebit!.....Yikes!

I always try to create interesting situations and circumstances for the characters in my stories. In my newest endeavor, THE HORSEMAN, Book #3 of The Sons of Texas trilogy, I’ve created a situation where a character has been crippled by multiple surgeries after a rattlesnake bite.

Not just any old snake, but a RATTLESNAKE. Thus, I’ve been researching rattlesnake bites. And after researching them, I’m even more scared of them than before. Rattlesnake bites are different from other snake bites.

On the Internet, there are personal stories from victims. One of the most hair-raising is from a 13-year-old boy who was bitten on the hand. http://rattlesnakebite.org/ Another is by a 50-year-old female backpacker in an area where she hikes several times a week. http://www.backpacker.com/survival/out-alive-bitten-by-a-rattlesnake/#bp=0/img1.

Both of these accounts will get your attention and put you on the lookout for venomous creatures.

So what happens if one strikes you? Here is a web site with good information about what to do. http://www.desertusa.com/reptiles/rattlesnake-bites.html.

Rattlesnake venom contains toxins that damage tissue, destroy blood cells, skin tissues and cause internal hemorrhaging. It can also immobilize the nervous system which can affect and even stop breathing. In reality, a snake bite kit isn’t really a good solution. You need to get to an emergency room fast.

The experts tell you that rattlesnakes are solitary creatures. They strike when startled or when they feel threatened. That’s good information, but if one is resting under a bush and you don’t know it and walk past it—as was the case with the 50-year-old woman—I guess that’s enough for it to feel threatened. 

The experts also say rattlesnake bites are rare. I grew up in West Texas, have

lived in Texas most of my life and I’ve never known anyone personally who was bitten. I’ve run across a couple of people who’ve been bitten by copperheads, but apparently those bites aren’t the same as rattlesnake bites.

Those same experts also say that there are very few deaths in the USA from snakebites. But me? If one bit me, I would probably die from a heart attack.

It’s the time of year when everyone wants to be outside working in the yard or the garden. Just be careful out there.

Meanwhile,  I'm  working  away  coming  up  with  a  way  my   heroine  in  THE HORSEMAN, the beautiful Dallas Ann Carol, is going to go on with her life after this trauma. And how our hero, handsome and rich  Troy Rattigan,  is  going  to find her courageous and irresistible.

What's in a Name?

It's fairly common knowledge in the writing world that characterization is the most important part of a story, especially if you write romances where a relationship between the hero and heroine is the plot.

In the stories I write, I mostly fit a story around a character rather than fitting a character into a story.  Sometimes a character of a particular stripe calls for a certain story.(Does this make sense?)

So naming a character or characters is of the utmost importance. Sometimes I start with one name, but by the time I'm a quarter of the way into the story, I've switched to another name. I'm always on the lookout for the name that "fits" my guy or gal.

I take into consideration ancestry, ethnic background if it applies. For sure, that information affects a hero or heroine's last name. I want his or her last name to hint of family's history. In THE LOVE OF A LAWMAN, the heroine's parents were French Canadian, so I used the French spelling of her name, Isabelle. ..... In SWEET RETURN, the hero is part Comanche and distantly related to Quannah Parker, so it seemed fitting to give him the last name of Parker.

In the book I'm writing now, THE HORSEMAN,  I have a particular challenge in that the hero is part Hispanic, but his last name is Rattigan. Confusing. I would change it, but the book is #3 of a trilogy and his name is already well established in the previous 2 books. So I still have to figure out how to deal with that situation.

I've written several chapters and I still haven't settled on the heroine's name, which is distracting and annoying. In one chapter, I'm calling her Chloe. In another, I'm calling her Shiloh and in yet another I'm calling her Skye. 

Here's the cover, by the way. Designed by Kim Killion. What do you think?

 
All of my heroes are tall and handsome and alpha. I've named them all sorts of names, but the ones I like most are names that sound strong, pronounced with a hard C or K or T. For example, Luke, Cable, Tack, Jake, Parker, etc,.....You get the idea.

For heroines, I like feminine-sounding names. My heroines are quietly strong. They are alpha women, but also beautiful and feminine. Think Scarlett O'Hara who was tougher than a boiled owl, but an incredibly feminine woman. For heroines, I like soft-sounding names, i.e., Amanda, Dahlia, Joanna, Isabelle. ..... In the Dixie Cash book I'm working on, I've name the heroine after someone I know. This is the first time I've ever done that.  

To say that I spend a lot of times on naming by story people is an understatement. I'm always open to suggestions.