Welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors, the weekly hop for everyone who loves to write! Sign up below with your name, blog and email and share an 8 to 10 sentence snippet of your writing on Sunday. Your post needs to be live between 12:00 noon on Saturday 02/04/17 and 09:00 AM on Sunday 02/05/17. Visit the other participants on the list and read, critique and comment on their 8sunday posts.

Spread the word, share the love, warriors. Twitter hashtag #8sunday.

This week I am going to share a snippet from Stolen Secrets since it's now on preorder. The trailer is up above and links are at the end, including a rafflecopter filled with goodies. 

      Pulling the collar of his robe up, he saw Isabella tug the edges of her own robe closer, and then she tightened the belt. Had the temperature dropped? No, not possible at this depth. Despite the added lights, the room seemed darker. The shadows cast by the assortment of statues fought against the light’s intrusion until the bulbs flickered and dimmed, and once more they began to dominate the chamber. Popping sounds were followed by the distinct crackle of shattered glass as an unseen hand snuffed out what remained of the artificial illumination.
      The sepulcher was filled with subtle movement as though the darkness had been awakened to their presence and resented it.  He caught movement out of the corner of his eye, but when he spun to confront the attacker—and he now felt besieged by threat—no one and nothing was there. He sensed movement overhead, and looked up. Seeing nothing again, he fished his lantern from his belt and his gun from a cargo pocket on the side of his pant leg.  

I hope you enjoyed the snippet I posted for Elizabeth today. It's such a relief to be out of the spotlight, like I was in her last post. Don't forget to sign up for all the goodies in her rafflecopter below and snap up a copy of Stolen Secrets! Visit the other Weekend Writing Warriors and Snippet Sunday Authors for more great reads!

On Sale February 14 in Kindle, Nook & Trade Paperback

This week we're supposed to talk about our best friend, so who else would I talk about except my VP of social media Hudson? Have you ever heard that childhood poem about having a little shadow that goes in and out with you? Well, I have Hudson. He follows me everywhere and is very interested in everything I do, wanting to participate. He's gotten me through some really tough times, and don't know what I'd do without my little stick-tight. He's also a star in this wonderful book about super dogs by author buddy Charmaine Gordon!  Get a copy--the proceeds help support the Red Cross affiliated PAWS FOR A CAUSE program!

So who's your best friend?

::Blush:: I get so embarrassed when Elizabeth talks about me on her blog.  But I don't mind talking about her newest release! Be sure to sign up for some awesome prizes and snag a copy of Stolen Secrets on preorder!

Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!
Posting: The first Wednesday of every month is officiallyInsecure Writer’s Support Group day. Post your thoughts on your own blog. Talk about your doubts and the fears you have conquered. Discuss your struggles and triumphs. Offer a word of encouragement for others who are struggling. Visit others in the group and connect with your fellow writer - aim for a dozen new people each time - and return comments. This group is all about connecting! Be sure to link to this page and display the badge in your post.
Let’s rock the neurotic writing world!

Our Twitter handle is @TheIWSG and hashtag is #IWSG

Every month, we announce a question that members can answer in their IWSG post. These questions may prompt you to share advice, insight, a personal experience or story. Include your answer to the question in your IWSG post or let it inspire your post if you are struggling with something to say. 

Remember, the question is optional! 

February 1 Question: How has being a writer changed your experience as a reader?
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The awesome co-hosts for the February 1 posting of the IWSG will be Misha Gericke, LK Hill, Juneta Key, Christy and Joylene Buter!

I have never met a writer who was not first an avid reader. Can you imagine asking a writer who some of their favorite authors are and having them respond that they don't read much, except internet articles or magazines?  It would be very strange if they were to write very well.

I began reading like a writer when I first began teaching students to improve their literacy. Language Arts include both reading and writing, so combining the two is the most logical and expedient method of instruction. It's also the best way to teach students to write--by showing them how good writers write, which requires reading like a writer.  

Before learning about reading like a writer, people read like readers, or reading for enjoyment alone, which means they learn about and connect with the characters. When they learn to read like writers, they identify with the author and learn about what writing techniques the author used.

To learn to read like a writer, students choose a text that is an excellent example of the type of writing they wish to write. We call these mentor texts. The reason is obvious. No one mentors a writer like a wonderful writer. There is a great deal of research to support this method of instruction and as a writer I can offer personal testimony that it is the very best and most expedient way to make improvements in both reading and writing. 

A writer stops to observe writing strategies employed by the author. They examine  how the author created mood, how they developed characterization, how they invoked various emotional responses from the reader, etc.  When I want to work on a particular writing technique, I read an author who excels in that particular strategy. Anne Rice does mood like no other, Dean Koontz does wonderful characterization, and James Joyce writes prose that can make your heart sing, and...well, you get what I mean.

What do you like to read as a writer?

I've been posting from The Tree of Life, and last week Rio has just arrived home in Sedona to secure the safety of his family. We'll go on from there...

      “Rio,” she said, rushing headlong into his arms to be swung around and then hugged close.
     “Seraphina, I’ve missed you,” he said, stepping back to take a look at her. Golden eyes, much like his own, glistened with excitement at their reunion and accentuated her sun-kissed skin. Her hair, darker than his, hung to her waist and held a mahogany sheen his keen eyes picked up even in the faint light provided by the open elevator door. “Stunning as ever. Am I in time to beat down any aggressive curs?”
    “Ever the big brother,” she countered, laughing. “Thank the stars you are home at last.” Her look sobered and she grew serious. “Trouble is coming, Rio. We are in terrible danger.”

I hope you enjoyed the snippet I posted for Elizabeth today. I like the twisty trees in Sedona. They make me want to chase them, but I am too busy looking in the mirror right now. I went to the groomer today and if I do say so myself, I look very handsome. Elizabeth thinks it's a little short and asked me if I had joined the military.

I posted her book trailer below. Stolen Secrets is now available on preorder (whatever that is)!
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Be sure to check out all the other great Weekend Writing Warriors and Snippet Sunday posts for more great reads!

Most writers write in layers, using a writing process. That's how I know my most common mistakes so intimately. I'm not talking about those scattered typos and occasional wrong word use mistakes. I'm talking about craft, the skillfully (that's the goal) applied techniques that writers use to make their writing more immediate, realistic, and intense. 

My final stages are always laced with efforts to remove passive voice where appropriate, to flesh out more detail when needed, and to add depth to characters. I think this may be even more essential when you're a pantser, like I am. 

Through my Beta readers I know that I have a penchant for leaving in too much passive voice. I've discovered I often do this when my goal is to add more individualism and depth to a character by using internal dialogue or reflection. I have to consciously go in and take out as much as possible, though of course in some instances it just works better.

And though description is generally one of my strengths (probably because I'm an amateur artist) I sometimes get so wrapped up in what's "happening" in my action-packed stories that I forget to add setting or character features, the things that ground the reader and give the story that "movie" feel to it that makes a reader able to actually visual the story in their head.

Being aware is the key to continual improvement, which is something I hope to do. So what's your most common writing mistake?   

​Welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors, the weekly hop for everyone who loves to write! Sign up below with your name, blog and email and share an 8 to 10 sentence snippet of your writing on Sunday. Your post needs to be live between 12:00 noon on Saturday 01/21/17 and 09:00 AM on Sunday 01/22/17. Visit the other participants on the list and read, critique and comment on their 8sunday posts.

Spread the word, share the love, warriors. Twitter hashtag #8sunday. 

The Tree of Life, Book 2 of my Illuminati Series. As Kirin tries to convince her mother there's no reason to suspect she knows anything at all about Rio, Rio is headed home to rejoin his family and, he hopes, keep them safe from Queen Isis.

I hope you like the snippet I shared for Elizabeth this week. Not sure why she likes this kitty so much. Everyone knows doggies make better protectors. Be sure to read the other Weekend Writing Warriors blogs and the #SnippetSunday authors for more great reads.

​You know I love Game of Thrones. Dragons, mayhem, betrayal and revenge. What's not to love? Another historical slam dunk. How dare they EVER end this series? LOL! Everyone must die! Why? Why? Why? 

Favorite characters? Daenerys and Drogon, and all the Starks, and then there's Tyrion, and...endless list, though they all keep dying, of course! LOL! I think this is the last season and I am so bummed about that! The settings are spectacular, the special effects, the costumes, the twisting scripts...wonderful stuff!

Last week I shared from my WIP, The Tree of Life, book 2 in my Illuminati series. We left off at Kirin trying to get her parents to let her accompany her brother Luc to America to find Rio, He managed to get away from them once, in Rio, and then in the rainforests of Brazil he shapeshifted and escaped from her mother. They have found out that he is in Sedona, and Isis wants him captured and sent to the underworld. Kirin has other plans, but doesn't want her mother to know or interfere. 

            Rio thought of his gift as a curse, a curse that her ancestors had caused. He couldn’t know that of course. Could he?
            “It’s settled then,” her father was saying.
            “Muhktar’s a great operative,” Luc said. “He just helped return Ornias to where he belonged.”
            “This scientist is hardly evil, and certainly not a Jinn,” Kirin snapped, before she could stop herself.
            “And you know this how?” Sekhmet asked, her attention riveted to Kirin’s face and her eyebrows lifted in curious expectation.
            Kirin clamped her jaws together. She could feel her mother’s stare boring into her, knowing with certainty without even probing her thoughts that Kirin knew more than she would admit.

I hope you enjoyed the snippet I posted for Elizabeth today. She has been sick all week and had something called hives because she took some medicine she was allergic to. She scratched more than a doggie without flea medicine, but when I tried to lick the little bumps and make them better she stopped me. They finally went away by themselves, not if only her cold would go away too. She's not nearly as much fun as usual! ;( Please visit the other Weekend Writing Warriors and #snippetsunday authors for more great reads!

My family would probably disagree with the above quote. My husband in particular thinks my writing is absolute torture, especially in November. Why November? NANOWRIMO (National Novel Writing Month, in which one is expected to write a complete novel of 50,000 plus words in at least rough form), for which I have my husband trained to respond to "Not now, please, it's NANO!" with silence and walking away. 

He has asked me why I can't just write during his working hours, when he's not home, and doesn't understand that sometimes I'm in the middle of a brainstorm or the muses are flowing like crazy and I just have to get down a scene or a chapter while it's sparking in my head. 

And during brainstorming I may look like I'm vacuuming, dusting, or out for a run, but I am actually hard at work, so a distruption sometimes makes me lose my train of thought, that thought that was becoming a brilliant ending or plot twist! 

So how does my husband survive my crazy writerly behavior? He complains. He goes outside to do some yard work. He comes up with spontaneous compromises like write later when I'm at work or sleeping and I'll ..... Or, "Okay, 20 more minutes, tops, and then you're all mine the rest of the night." His imagination is fairly good too. After all, he's Irish!

The best undistrubed writing time in my house? During a Packer's game!