MEMORIES OF THANKSGIVINGS AT OUR HOUSE -- Laurean Brooks

When I was growing up, Thanksgiving Dinner might consist of a couple of squirrels or a rabbit that Daddy brought home from his early morning hunting excursion. Daddy rose early on Thanksgiving day, took his rifle off the rack, and trekked through the woods with our trusty dogs, Rex and Joe at his side. 

These dogs were a funny-looking pair. Rex was an Airedale mix while Joe was mostly Daschund. One small, one large. “Mutt and Jeff,” we used to call them. It didn't bother them. They were best of buddies.

After Daddy skinned the rabbit or squirrels, Mama did the cooking and made creamy mouth-watering gravy to go with it. No matter what meal we shared on Thanksgiving Day—turkey, squirrel, or rabbit, with mashed potatoes and gravy, pinto beans, green beans, sweet potato pie, and banana pudding--the best part was the conversation. And it flowed among our large family gathered around the long table as we caught up on the latest developments in each others' lives. Plenty of laughter filled the air, good-natured teasing and such.

Only when the older kids went to work, did our family feast on Butterball Turkey for Thanksgiving. Henry I. Siegel, where I worked, gave one away to its employees at Christmas, while my brother got one from his factory for Thanksgiving.

When I was in my teens, my two older brothers joined the service to fight in the Vietnam conflict. They were sorely missed, more so during the holidays. The empty chairs around the table spoke volumes. But, although they were absent in body, they were still in our hearts and in our prayers.

These Thanksgiving memories dwell in my heart as proof that family ties, love and laughter can still exist while conflict rages across the ocean. I thank God for those special family get-togethers and for bringing both my brothers safely home.

A Happy Thanksgiving to all my friends. Enjoy these special holidays with your loved ones. But most of all make lasting memories while you can. 

May God bless you all. 

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When Josh Kramer picked up his aunt's house help at the depot, he had no idea she had actually ordered the young woman as a bride for him. The plot thickens. Carrie Franklin isn't even the young woman Josh's aunt ordered. She's an imposter, running from the law. 

If you enjoy Western Romance with plenty of unexpected twists, you will love NOT WHAT HE ORDERED.

https://www.amazon.com/Not-What-Ordered-Laurean-Brooks/dp/194509429X

I try to leave out the parts that people skip. ~Elmore Leonard

When I first took up writing historical romance with an all-out passion, I knew absolutely nothing about the genre, or the business of writing. No notion of the massive journey that lay ahead. I was as unwitting as a newly hatched duckling, and thought I could embark on this quest and sail along. 

I remember the first contest I entered, assuming I would, of course, win. I was mentally planning my award acceptance speech when I received my scores. Not good, would you believe. I was stunned. One judge tossed me a bone. 'You have talent,' she assured me, 'as evidenced in your flair for description.'

Another bemused judge observed, 'You broke every rule.'

'Rules?' I mused. 'There's rules?'
I mean, who knew?

After a three day pout, I resumed the journey.

Somewhere along this rugged uphill climb, a kind soul directed me to RWA. I can't imagine how I would have grasped the rudiments without them and other writing groups. Always before me lay a new turn in the path, another hurdle to master, and onward ho I went like a sled dog through blinding snow, uncertain where shelter lay. Quitting might have been threatened, but was never a real option. No one ever achieves success by abandoning the quest. I knew that. Still do. So, wherever you are in the process, whether reveling in your stardom, or just undertaking this life changing journey, keep going. Though heavily veiled, it's a well worn path and there are kindly guides along the way.

My basic thinking about writing is that stuff's gotta happen in the story or you lose the reader's attention. 

Some wise quotes for inspiration:

If there's a book you really want to read, but it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it. ~Toni Morrison

Writing is a socially acceptable form of schizophrenia. ~E.L. Doctorow

A word is not the same with one writer as with another. One tears it from his guts. The other pulls it out of his overcoat pocket. ~Charles Peguy


Writing became such a process of discovery that I couldn't wait to get to work in the morning: I wanted to know what I was going to say. ~Sharon O'Brien

 
I'm not a very good writer, but I'm an excellent rewriter. ~James Michener


Fill your paper with the breathings of your heart. ~William Wordsworth

The story I am writing exists, written in absolutely perfect fashion, some place, in the air. All I must do is find it, and copy it. ~Jules Renard, "Diary," February 1895


Proofread carefully to see if you any words out. ~Author Unknown

A critic can only review the book he has read, not the one which the writer wrote. ~Mignon McLaughlin, The Neurotic's Notebook, 1960


There are three rules for writing the novel. Unfortunately, no one knows what they are. ~W. Somerset Maugham 



Writing comes more easily if you have something to say. ~Sholem Asch


I love being a writer. What I can't stand is the paperwork. ~Peter De Vries


Publication — is the auction of the Mind of Man. ~Emily Dickinson