Maybe It Is . . . and Maybe It Isn't

Awhile back, I was feeling disappointed and discouraged; something hadn’t gone the way I’d hoped. (I don’t even remember what it was now.) My brother told me a story that made a strong impression on me. I was curious as to the origin of the story so I looked it up; it’s actually a parable from the book of Job, which I believe we can apply to our lives and our writing careers. I’d like to share this story with you.

There was an old man who lived in a tiny village. The man was poor but he was envied by the other villagers because he owned a beautiful white horse. The villagers encouraged him to sell the horse so he’d have some money but he refused. One morning, he discovered that the horse was not in the stable. The villagers all told him that he was a fool for not having sold it; that the horse was stolen and it was a curse. The old man replied, “Maybe it is and maybe it isn’t.  We only have a fragment; only God sees the whole picture.”

Then, one day, the horse returned and brought with it a dozen wild horses. Evidently it had not been stolen; it had run away. The villagers told the old man, “You were right. What we thought was a curse, was a blessing.” Once again, the old man told them, “Maybe it is and maybe it isn’t.”

The old man had a son who began to train the wild horses so that his father could sell them but he fell from one of the horses and broke both of his legs. The villagers said to the old man, “You proved we were wrong. You are still poor and your only son will not be able to help you now. The dozen horses were a curse.” “Maybe it is and maybe it isn’t,” the old man said.

A few weeks later, war broke out in the country. All young men in the village were required to join the army. Only the son of the old man was excluded, because he was injured. The villagers gathered around the old man, crying and screaming, “You were right. Your son’s accident was a blessing. Our sons will probably be killed but at least he is with you.” The old man finally told them, “It is impossible to talk with you. You always make judgments. You read only one page of a book. How can you judge the whole book? No one knows if something is a blessing or a curse. Only God knows.”

Get Real

In one of my favorite movies, Misery, based on Stephen King’s novel of the same name, James Caan plays Paul Sheldon, the famous author of a popular historical romance series. Paul decides that, if he’s ever going to be a “real” writer again, he needs to produce something else. He goes to his usual writer’s retreat, a lodge in the mountains, and completes a new novel, as yet untitled; he’s very proud of the book. The new novel depicts life as he knew it on the streets of New York when he was growing up. 

 Unfortunately, on his way down the mountain in a blinding snow storm, Paul loses control of his car. Annie Wilkes, played by Kathy Bates, is Paul’s Number One Fan (she has a copy of every novel in his Misery series) and an extremely unstable woman. She finds him trapped in his car, which is buried in a snow bank, and carries him back to her house, presumably to nurse him back to health. Paul allows her to read his new manuscript. Here’s an excerpt of their conversation.

“It’s the swearing, Paul,” Annie says.

“The profanity bothers you?” he asks.

“It has no nobility.”
          “Annie, these are slum kids. I was a slum kid. Everybody talks like that.”

“No they don’t! Do I go to the feed store and say, ‘Give me some of that f---ing pig feed’? Or at the bank, ‘Here’s one big bastard of a check’?”

          While I’m not a fan of the overuse of “four letter words” or using them when it’s inappropriate to do so, I agree with Paul. I believe that, in order for fiction to be realistic, the language in the story needs to be in sync with the characters and the situation. Street kids do use that kind of language and, if the story is to be believable, the characters in it need to use it too.

            I’d like to hear your thoughts on the subject.

Getting to Know You

Do you know the song, Getting to Know You? It was written by Rodgers and Hammerstein and first sung by Deborah Kerr in the 1956 production of The King and I. Julie Andrews sang it in the 2006 remake. “Getting to know you. Getting to know all about you. Getting to like you. Getting to hope you’ll like me.”            

In “real” life, people get to know us and we get to know them gradually. We all have a back story, a history that’s contributed to making us who we are. When we meet someone, we learn the basic information about them quickly but it takes a bit of time to really get to know them. How do they think? What are their dreams? What makes them tick? Why do they say and do what they say and do?

In time, we learn those things about people we get close to and become friends with and we tend to forgive them their shortcomings because we understand and care about them. However, most people we meet never acquire that status in our lives; they are acquaintances and we know very little about them. On some level, we may make a judgment. We may think “I hate running into Suzanne; she never stops talking,” or “Jack gets on my last nerve; he always has to be the center of attention.” If we knew people’s back story, we might not be so quick to jump to conclusions.

For example, what if you knew that Suzanne had never married; she’d devoted her life to taking care of her severely mentally ill sister and the only time she got a break (or a chance to talk with someone who was capable of understanding her) was when she ran out to the store or the post office? And, what about Jack? What if you found out that, when he was growing up, as the middle child of ten, his parents were too busy to give him any attention. Do you feel at least a smidgen of compassion for the two of them now? Do you have a better understanding of why they are the way they are?

That’s why I chose to give each of the important characters in my novels a back story. I want readers to understand why each character does what he/she does and what part their pasts play in determining who they are. Of course, it’s crucial to keep readers involved in the present story; the goal, after all, is to hold their interest and compel them to keep reading. Every writer does that differently; I prefer to blend it into the story. As I write, I get to know my characters well and I want my readers to get to know them too.

A Gem of an Idea

Writing novels is like hunting for gems.

A few years ago, my mother and I went gem hunting in North Carolina two years in a row. The first year, we went to Hiddenite, one of those if-you-blink-you-miss-it towns, to sluice and pan for a variety of gems and to dig for emeralds. The mine was located out in the boonies, even more remote than the town itself. As I drove down the bumpy dirt road to get to the office, I passed chickens, a couple of stray dogs and a rooster.

When I finally spotted the long, covered sluice line surrounded by stacks of buckets filled with unprocessed, virgin ore, I was excited about what we might find. We sat at the sluice line for hours, sifting through the dirt and, not having any luck, decided we would try our hand at digging for emeralds. It was an incredibly hot day in August; sweat poured off of us as we trudged up hills, carrying heavy shovels and buckets. Again, no luck. We ended up sitting in the creek, panning for gems, letting the cool water wash over us. We didn’t find any “quality” gems there either but we learned a lot on that trip and had fun.

Our next trip, the following May, was to Franklin, which is advertised as the “Gem Capital of the World.” I’d done my homework and I was determined that, this time, we would find what we were looking for. We went to several different mines in search of star sapphires but, after three days, we still hadn’t found any of the precious gems and we were beginning to get discouraged.

Our last day there, it rained on and off and was damp and chilly. We sat at the sluice line, shivering, with our hands submerged in the cold, running water, rinsing off and inspecting hundreds of rocks. By the end of the day, we had each found some stones, which we thought were promising, but we weren’t certain that they’d amount to anything. So, on our way out of town the next day, we stopped at a local gemologist’s shop. Our suspicions were confirmed; we’d each found stones that we would later have cut and polished to produce beautiful, star sapphire rings!

Like gem hunters, we writers often have to sort through a lot of ideas, discarding most of them, before finding one that is worth keeping and developing into a novel but, as we write our story and, especially, when we finish it, we know that it was well worth it. And then, we do it again!

Pay It Forward

Have you heard the expression, “Pay it forward,” and/or seen the movie starring Kevin Spacey, Haley Joel Osment and Helen Hunt? The movie was based on the novel, Pay It Forward, by Catherine Ryan Hyde. For those of you who aren’t familiar with the story, I’ll give you a brief summary.

Trevor McKinney is a sweet, sensitive boy. When his social studies teacher tells the class, “The realm of possibility exists in each of you,” Trevor takes those words to heart and, for his assigned project to come up with something that will change society, he creates a plan to try to make the world a better place. He calls it “Pay it forward.” The basic premise is that, if he performs a simple act of kindness for three strangers and those three strangers do the same for three more strangers, it will create a ripple effect. Trevor had no idea how far-reaching his plan would be. There is now a Pay It Forward movement around the world, which includes a Foundation of that name and a special day each year to honor it.

We live in a dog-eat-dog world so, when I see someone taking the time to perform a simple act of kindness, it renews my faith in human nature. I’ve “met” several such people in the writing community online and I want to take this opportunity to tell them how much I appreciate what they do.

Sunny Frazier is the Acquisitions Editor for Oak Tree Press and published author of two mysteries, Fools Rush In and Where Angels Tread. I submitted a query for my first novel, Mixed Messages, to her and she replied promptly. Long story short, she seemed interested in my book but was disappointed that I hadn’t developed an online presence. I expected that to be that, but it wasn’t. 

Sunny has organized a group of writers into what she calls “The Posse” and she invited me to join. She’s taken the time to guide me (and the other Posse members) in how to market effectively, a necessity if an author wants to be published these days. I owe her a debt a gratitude whether or not she recommends my novel for publication. (Although, of course, I hope she does.) I also want to thank the Posse members and other authors who seem to have the same philosophy: to pass on what they’ve learned and to support and encourage others to achieve their dream of publication. In other words, to “Pay It Forward.”

Using Setting to Create Atmosphere

I’ve read articles on writing fiction which state that, if plot and character are the two most important ingredients, then setting is number three. I don’t look at it that way. For me, setting is an integral part of my writing. I use several key elements of setting: where the story takes place (location), when (time frame), the weather and the season of the year (including holidays) to create atmosphere (mood) in my novels. The following are examples of how I used those key elements of setting in my first novel, Mixed Messages. Notice how the elements often overlap.

Location: In the distance, she could hear the electronic carillon from Westwood Methodist Church playing the theme song from the old television show, The Adam’s Family. She began to hum along with the music as she stood there, gazing at the three-story, cream-colored Victorian, admiring its multi-gabled slate roof, turret and wrap-around veranda.

Time Frame: She finished pinning together the pieces of the kids’ Halloween costumes. She held them up, one at a time, and examined her work. Satisfied with the results, she turned her sewing machine on and, as she guided the material for Danielle’s costume under the needle, running her fingers across the smooth, satiny fabric . . . .

The weather: “What a gloomy day this has turned into,” David said aloud, flipping on the windshield wipers and turning on the headlights. The sky was gray and a light drizzle had begun to fall.

The season: Looking out at the trees with their scarlet, orange and golden leaves, she was reminded of a poem by Robert Frost that she’d had to memorize when she was in school. She strained to remember the words but all she could recall was the title, “Nothing Gold Can Stay.”

What's in a name?

Several months ago, my mom and I were talking about my writing career. She asked me what name I planned to go by, what pen name I was going to use. “Maybe,” she said, “you should choose a name that’s easier to pronounce than Gligor. Don’t most writers do that?” Our conversation reminded me of an article I once read. It was an interview with actress, Jacqueline Bisset. When the interviewer told Jacqueline that he’d heard several variations on how to pronounce her last name and asked her which was correct, she replied, “Biss-It, like Kiss it.” I think that answered his question.

Names are important; they represent who we are. When I write, I am extremely careful when choosing the names for my characters. I’ve read novels where two of the main characters had names that were so similar, beginning with the same letter, etc., that it was a bit confusing. The last thing that I want to do is confuse my readers because a confused reader may get frustrated and put down my book. I also select names that “feel” right for my characters, that seem to fit them. For example, Olivia Berger is one of the characters in both of my novels. The name suits her. You’ll have to read my novels to find out why.

So, back to the answer that I gave my mother. While I don’t see anything wrong with using a pseudonym (sometimes a writer has a good reason to do that), I prefer not to. Why? Because Gligor is my family name; it was my grandfather’s and my father’s name and I’m proud to have it. As far as the pronunciation goes: Gligor rhymes with tiger. Not too hard to pronounce, after all, is it?

! ? , ; : (-) . . . .

My dictionary defines punctuation as “the act, practice or system of using certain standardized marks and signs in writing and printing, as to separate sentences, independent clauses, parenthetical phrases, etc., in order to make the meaning more easily understood.” Punctuation  creates order out of chaos and provides us with clear, universal communication. Consider this: I love punctuation! Or, the alternative: I love punctuation  (It is extremely difficult for me to leave out the period or exclamation point on that last sentence. I can’t feel my pulse and I’m having trouble breathing. Punctuation withdrawal?) Actually, I feel the same way about capitalization, grammar and spelling but those are topics for future posts.

Words, all by themselves, could never fully express the thoughts that I’m trying to convey to the person or persons who are reading a letter, an email or a novel that I’ve written. I don’t even want to imagine a world without punctuation. Unfortunately, lately, I’ve had many opportunities to glimpse that world: texting, instant messaging and even writing quick comments on some of the social networks often show a total lack or blatant misuse of punctuation.

Don’t misunderstand me, I think all of those means of communication are great and I know that brevity is necessary; at least people are trying to communicate with one another and that’s always a good thing. My concern is that everyone will become so accustomed to using the abbreviated forms of words with little or no punctuation that, the practice will eventually become common and even acceptable. That’s how slang and buzz words came into being; people used them so much that they’ve become universally accepted. Let’s not let that happen to punctuation. I’m not sure my heart could take it!

The Five Senses

When I choose a novel to read, I want to be drawn into the fictional world that the author has created. Naturally, I look for a strong plot, believable characters and an interesting setting. Those are all important elements in fiction but, to me, the most memorable books use the five senses to make the story, the characters and the setting come alive. I can always count on my favorite authors to do that. I’ve recently found another author who, in my opinion, is an expert at it.

I’m reading The Wedding Shawl, Sally Goldenbaum’s latest novel. I’ve read the other novels in her Seaside Knitters Mystery series and, believe me, she can “spin a good yarn.” Sally has created interesting, likeable characters and, in each book, she’s presented them with a unique mystery to solve. The stories take place in Sea Harbor, Massachusetts, a small coastal town. Throughout the book, Sally uses seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting and touching brilliantly. As I read, I can visualize the characters and the town, hear the seagulls squawking, smell the ocean air, taste the delicious food that Nell prepares and feel the soft, vividly colored yarn that Izzy sells in her shop. Sally makes the story come alive for me.

In my novels, which are set in Cincinnati, Ohio, I try to draw the reader into the world I’ve created by using the five senses throughout each book. Mixed Messages begins, “Ann heard the sirens the second she stepped onto the front porch. She hated the sound; it evoked too many bad memories. As she hurried down the steps and into the yard, anxious to see what was going on, the wails got progressively louder, coming closer and closer. She couldn’t tell which direction the cries were coming from but she was sure that something bad had happened to someone.” Do you want to read what happens next?

Escape

Today’s world is a constantly changing, complicated, confusing place. Every day, we’re bombarded with old and new things to worry about and fear. The economy . . . well, that speaks for itself, the constant threat of natural disasters and terrorist attacks, disease, the crime rate, something we eat, drink or come into contact with that could cause cancer; the list goes on and on. And then, of course, there are the everyday personal problems that we all struggle with: aging parents, concerns about our children or grandchildren, issues on our jobs or now, more commonly, not being able to find a job. Health concerns, money worries . . . .

So, when I want to get away from it all and relax by watching TV or reading, I want something that will distract me from reality. I want to escape into a world that isn’t real. That’s why I’m not a fan of "reality" shows. I don’t enjoy watching real people struggle with real problems, publicizing their private lives in front of millions of viewers, exposing themselves to judgment and ridicule. I see and hear enough of the difficulties we all face as I go about my daily life.

That’s one of the reasons that I love to read (and write) fiction; it offers me escape from reality. I can travel to other places, learn new things and meet interesting people. The second that I begin to read, I’m immersed in a fictional world that may, or may not, resemble my own but it’s someone else’s world, someone who doesn’t really exist. And, when I finish a novel, I can rest assured that the author has resolved all of the characters’ major problems and tied up all the loose ends. If only it were that simple in real life!

Write That Novel

A comment on one of my posts reminded me of how I came to finally write my first novel. Laura wrote, “Someday I may be brave enough to write, but I only manage to get so far and then stop.” I understand how she feels because, although I never had a problem writing short stories, the thought of writing a novel overwhelmed me. My dream had always been to write novels but something held me back. A novel! Thousands and thousands of words; a huge commitment of time. Could I even sustain a story for three hundred pages?

I first came up with the idea for Mixed Messages in 1995. I spent the next seven years (yes, you read that correctly) taking notes, doing research and plotting my first novel. Friends and family encouraged me and I wanted to write it . . . but I was stuck; I couldn’t get started. Then, two things happened that both inspired and motivated me. In April 2002, I went to a book signing of Daddy’s Little Girl and got to meet and actually talk with Mary Higgins Clark, the Queen of Suspense. I told her of my “plans” to write a novel. She simply smiled at me and said, “Write that novel!” Then, she wrote those words in my copy of her book and signed it.

I was inspired after hearing Mary’s words but I wasn’t quite there yet. A few months later, I was telling a good friend of mine, Lisa, about my inability to actually start the book and she said something like, “You’re letting the thought of writing a whole book intimidate you. You only need to write one chapter at a time.” And the light came on! Now, all these years later, I have two completed novels and I’ll be embarking on a third soon. I hope that Laura won’t wait as long as I did to “Write that novel!”

The Devil's in the Details

Writing a series can be a challenge. When you're writing the second or third book, it can be difficult to keep track of all the details you’ve already written in the first book. As G. Thomas Gill commented on one of my recent posts, Stand Alone vs. Series Novels, “to remember each and every little detail about your character, like what he drinks, the color car she drives, or his detest of Thai food.” That’s true of your main character, all the other characters in your novel, the setting, dates, everything. So how do writers do it?

I can only speak for myself. Let me first say that I am a list maker. I’m a firm believer in writing everything down that I need to remember as opposed to storing it loosely in my head. I detest the “What is it I’m forgetting?” feeling and I try to avoid it at all costs. So, I make lists for everything! Groceries and miscellaneous items that I need to buy, appointments, errands, phone calls I want to return; you name it, I write it down.

As I began to write my second novel, I found myself having to constantly go back into my first novel to check on various details. It was beginning to get on my last nerve and I realized what the problem was; I needed a plan, a list. So, I developed Characters and Chronology, an outline of “facts” that I needed to remember. I started with my main character, Ann, and listed her physical description, her age and important events in her life which I had mentioned in Mixed Messages. I then went on do the same with each character. Eventually, I expanded the outline to include the “new” characters in my second novel, Unfinished Business. When I begin to write the third novel in my series, I’ll add that information to my list too.

Why I Joined Face Book

One of the basic tenets of writing fiction is to "write about what you know." I try to do that. My novels take place on the west side of Cincinnati, where I've spent most of my life and, although I "fictionalize" the area, I know it well. The characters I create are composites of people I've known, met or just come into contact with through the years; I feel almost as if I could run into them when I'm in Westwood because I know them.

Having written that, I don't mean to undermine the importance of doing research. I think it's crucial to incorporate things I don't know into my fiction. When I read a book, I like to learn something new; when I write, I like to learn too and I want to pass that on to my readers. That's where research comes in, gathering information from outside sources: books, the internet, etc., small details and facts that add to the story. But sometimes, in order to create believable fiction, that's not enough for me.

For years, friends had urged me to join Face Book but I held back. I assumed that the social network was nothing more than a "gossip" session online. But, as I wrote my second novel, something happened to change my mind. I needed to have one of my characters locate an old friend so I decided to have him join Face Book. I phoned one of my friends and asked him to "walk me through how to join and maneuver in Face Book." He did his best to explain it to me but it just wasn't clicking in. I realized that the only way I was going to be able to accurately and realistically write about my character's experience was to experience it myself and that's how I came to join Face Book. I'm glad I did.

What if?

I find it interesting and a bit ironic when I think about how the two little words "what if" can be both harmful and beneficial. In our daily lives, if we constantly ask ourselves that question, we will become chronic worriers. "What if I loose my job?" or "What if he/she never speaks to me again?" The list can go on and on, taking on a life of its own, overwhelming us. We are tense and stressed, which wears on our health and our happiness. I try not to ask that question in my personal life.

My fiction is another story, pun intended. I've learned that those same two words can create tension and suspense in my writing, which is a good thing. What if the reader knows that the killer is hiding in the basement but the main character doesn't know? What if she is about to go down there? Or, what if the main character's next-door-neighbor is a voyeur, always secretly peeking in her windows? And, what if, while he's watching, he sees a man attack her and rushes to her rescue? So many "what ifs."

The words can even generate ideas for plots and characters. Stopping at the post office to mail a package might not inspire story ideas in and of itself; it's just one of the many errands that have to be done that day. But, what about the man in line behind me who is talking to himself? What's going on with him? And, all of a sudden, my mind asks the question: what if? What if he recently escaped from a mental institution? What if he killed someone and can't cope with what he's done? What if? And then: what's next?

Stand Alone vs. Series Novels

When I conceived the idea for my first mystery/suspense novel, Mixed Messages, my goal was to write a stand alone novel. I planned to introduce and develop my characters, tell their story and, by the end of the book, tie up any loose ends, leaving the reader satisfied. My plan is still basically the same but my goal has changed.

As I got further and further into writing my novel, I realized that, for various reasons, I didn't want to say "goodbye" to my characters; they had more to say and do. So, I decided to write a sequel, Unfinished Business. Surprise, surprise. I'm now in the early stages of plotting the third novel in the series. My characters refuse to let me go.

While I've read and enjoyed many stand alone novels, I've found that they often leave me wanting more; I want to know where the story and the characters go from there. I love reading mystery series because I like getting to know the characters and following them from book to book. For example, I eagerly await V is for Vengeance by Sue Grafton. I will be sad when I finish reading the last in the A-Z series because Kinsey Millhone has become almost like a friend to me, as have some of Sue's other characters. Also, I've recently read Scared Stiff by Annelise Ryan and I'm eager to read the other books in her series. Her main character, Mattie Winston, is absolutely hilarious; I laughed out loud as I read. And, there are so many others.

I realize that stating that my characters won't let me go may sound silly to anyone who doesn't write fiction but I'm convinced that other writers get it. The proof of that, I think, is in the publication of so many series. While authors like Sue Grafton sign on from the start to write a series, I believe that many others find themselves in the same position that I did. The first novel is finished but the characters are begging for a second book to be written. And a third. . . .

I love a mystery

I love to travel and I love a mystery! That's why, whenever I go on vacation and visit a city that I've never been to before, I search for a local bookstore where I scan the shelves, looking for mystery/suspense novels by local authors. I do this for two reasons. First, I think it's important to support writers everywhere (maybe someday, someone will return the favor) and secondly, because, when I come home and return to my daily life, I can open the pages and escape to the place I've just been. It's a way to hang on to the "vacation" mode, I guess.

Two examples come immediately to mind. In 2004, I visited Cape Cod, Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard, my favorite of the three. I found a bookstore on Martha's Vineyard and purchased a mystery novel, Murder on Martha's Vineyard, by David Osborn, a local writer. Back at home, I read the book and really liked it so, eager to see if I could find more of his novels, I went to the library and was thrilled to see that they were available. I read them all and was able to stay on Martha's Vineyard a lot longer than my one week vacation allowed.

Another example, in 2009, a friend and I went to Wilmington, North Carolina where I bought two mystery novels by Wanda Canada. I found Island Murders and Cape Fear Murders to be very enjoyable reading. When I got home, I read both novels and felt as if I were still sitting on a pier, gazing out at the Cape Fear river, watching the boats go by. Delightful!

I wish

I try to be a realist but sometimes I can't help but wish for certain things, even though I know that my wishing won't make it happen. My Dad had a favorite expression, "Wish in one hand and &%$# in the other and see where you have the most." I lost my Dad in May and I miss him more than words could ever express but I believe that he's here with me now and that he always will be. Dad, try not to laugh too hard when you read this!

I wish, among other things, that all publishers accepted queries from first-time novelists. There, I've written it! The road to publication is a rocky, treacherous one and certainly not for anyone who is easily discouraged and/or can't deal with rejection. I understand that. What bothers me, what I wish for, is that every novel be given an opportunity to be judged on its own merit whether the writer has been published before or not.

It's a vicious circle. It's difficult (some might say, impossible) to get a literary agent to represent you if you haven't been previously published but large publishers will only consider queries from agents. You do the math! It seems that the only hope that we first-time novelists have of ever seeing our books in print is the small publishing companies. Thank God for them!

Perseverance

I've been reading a lot lately about the frustrations that many writers are experiencing these days. I feel their pain and I share it. We live in a society of fast food, instant messaging, etc. and we've come to expect everything we want to be delivered immediately. Unfortunately, that's not (and probably never has been) the story when it comes to getting published.

Still, we hope for a miracle; that we will be the exception to the rule. We write and rewrite endlessly until we believe we have the most "perfect" version of our novel possible. We compose our cover letter and synopsis following all the rules we've studied. Then, we begin the search for a publisher who will love our book only to discover that, while all of the above is crucial, we need to achieve an "online presence" in order to be taken seriously. It can be a bitter pill to swallow after all of our years of hard work. But, we adapt or we die!

To top things off, our friends and relatives, who have been waiting for years to read our published novels, don't seem to understand that being published doesn't happen overnight and so it's easy for us to become even more frustrated.

I've discovered that the most important quality writers need to possess, just as important as being a good writer, is perseverance. Fortunately, that is not the same thing as patience. Perseverance means trudging on no matter how frustrated and impatient we feel.

I personally believe that God put a dream in my heart and that He wouldn't have done that if He didn't intend to see it come true. I have to do my part and, if I do, I know that He will (and has) put people in my life who will help me along the way.

Introduction

I'd like to introduce myself. My name is Patricia Gligor (rhymes with "tiger") and I'm a fiction writer. I live in Cincinnati, Ohio and have for most of my life. I grew up reading Judy Bolton and Nancy Drew mysteries and knew, from the time that I was ten years old and had a poem I'd written accepted for publication in my Sunday School magazine, that I wanted to be a published author when I grew up.

Well, I've been grown up for some time now. I've spent my whole life writing and I did have three short stories published locally at one point. Unfortunately, although I tried from time to time to market my writing, I didn't focus on the publishing side of things. Through the years, I attended numerous writing classes, seminars and writers conferences but I let "life" get in the way of pursuing my dream of becoming a published author. I'm not willing to do that anymore.

Which brings me to why I started this blog. Quite simply, to network, to get my name out there because that seems to be the path to publication these days. Also, I'm interested in hearing from other writers. After all, we're all in this together and I believe that we need to help and encourage one another. I'd love to hear from you.