Why Are We Talking About the Gilmore Girls?
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I didn't discover TV's Gilmore Girls until 2011 when I was going through treatments for cancer. A friend was astonished that I'd never watched the show and told me she knew I would love it. Five minutes in to that first episode and I was hooked! Those Stars Hollow characters got me through many a day when all I could do was lie on the sofa!
Flash forward to early 2021 when my characters were starting to make themselves known for Feathers in the Sand (new novel, floating in on 7/11/22). I had their first names- Tess and Eva, but couldn't decide on a last name for them. I googled "last names for book characters," and OMG, went through pages and pages, trying them all out . . . Tess and Eva Johnson? No. Tess and Eva Ragmanowitcz? No. On and on, until . . . I saw the name Gilmore and immediately flashed onto those other Gilmores, Lorelai and Rory!
Tess and Eva Gilmore. Perfection!
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What better name for a mother-daughter duo who are having trouble connecting? Tess has always wanted a "Gilmore Girls" type of relationship with eleven-year-old Eva, but it hasn't been happening. After making some changes in their lives, including a move three states away to Seahaven, Maine, she's beginning to feeling closer to her daughter.
Throw in an appearance from Tess's first love, new friends for Eva, mysterious bright-colored feathers that keep appearing in places where feathers aren't usually seen, a family member's unexpected cry for help, and a runaway cat . . . these Gilmore girls will need to work extra hard to find their way back to each other!
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Writing Question of the Month
In last month's issue, many of you wrote in to ask questions about the writing process. I'll do my best to answer one of them in each issue from now on. If you don't see your question answered, just send a reply to this email I'll answer!
Q: Where do you get your ideas/inspiration?
~ Linda from NM, Debby from GA, and Trinitee from OH
A: This is an excellent question! The Dragonflies at Night (2020) idea began with my love for Josh Groban and my wish for him to have a fulfilling, loving relationship. That spun into creating a musician (Ben Shepherd) with some of Josh's qualities, and a female love interest for him. It was so much fun, creating them!
A few of the other characters surprised me by showing up during the writing of the first draft. One of these was Savannah's deceased mother (Deirdre Rose) who was still finding ways to connect with her daughter. Another character, an intuitive named Tomas, whom Savannah meets when she visits Ben in L.A., showed up in a dream and I paid attention. He plays a very important part of Savannah and Deirdre Rose's continuing relationship.
The idea for Feathers in the Sand (July 11, 2022) began in 2011 on my daily walks while undergoing cancer treatments. I kept finding feathers on the sidewalk (3 or 4 per day, unusual!) and I wondered if a little girl started finding so many feathers like that, if she would think they were angel feathers. Of course, the feathers I found were not brightly colored feathers; they were ordinary bird feathers. But my imagination kept going back to a little girl thinking of them as angel feathers. I don't want to say too much more about Eva Gilmore, the 11-year-old in this novel. Why does she think the bright feathers she's finding are coming from angels? What does she do with the feathers? Who does she tell? Who does she NOT tell? And where, oh where, are they really coming from? You'll have to read Feathers in the Sand to find out!
I guess what I'm trying to say is that the ideas come from somewhere outside of me, as well as somewhere inside of me. They come from something I hear, something I read, a quote, a dragonfly, a dream, a TV character, a person I see in the post office... It's a magical, mystical thing, where all these ideas come from, and I am learning to be open to them; I am learning to pay attention to where they lead.
Stay tuned... more questions from readers about writing next month!
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🏆 April Give-Away Winners 🏆
Congratulations to our April readers who received
a hardcover copy of The Secret Ingredient of Wishes, by Susan Crispell.
Linda T. from Connecticut
Sally H. from Arizona
Didn't win? Not to worry, you can try again right now . . .
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MAY Fiction
Give-Away:
Recommended
Story That Stirs the Soul
This month I'm giving away TWO paperback copies of Allie and Bea, by another one of my favorite authors- Catherine Ryan Hyde. IMHO, you can't go wrong with one of this author's books if you're looking for a story that will stir your heart & soul!
Bea has barely been scraping by since her husband died. She's lost everything and is forced to abandon her trailer. With only two-thirds of a tank of gas, she heads toward the Pacific Ocean with her cat--on a mission to reclaim what's rightfully hers, even if it means making others pay for what she lost.
When fifteen-year-old Allie's parents are jailed for tax fraud, she's sent to a group home. But when her life is threatened by another resident, she knows she has to get out. She escapes only to find she has nowhere to go--until fate throws Allie in Bea's path.
Reluctant to trust each other, much less become friends, the two warily make their way up the Pacific Coast. Yet as their hearts open to friendship and love from the strangers they meet on their journey, they find the courage to forge their own unique family--and begin to see an imperfect world with new eyes.
If you want to enter, just fill out the short form here and I'll do a random drawing THIS SUNDAY MAY 15. I'll send you an email notice that you've won, and I'll just ask for your snail mail address after that! (NOTE: I use the random generator at random.org to choose the winners
so it's all fair and square.)
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AnneMarie, Thank you for reading my author newsletter! I love connecting with readers so please do send a reply to this email with any questions or comments about reading, writing, the Gilmore Girls, Maine, or anything else you want to chat about!
Here's a photo of me in 2020 getting ready to release my first women's novel, Dragonflies at Night: More Than a Love Story. Do you notice my special dragonfly necklace? I do love symbolism (and I already have a feather necklace for Feathers in the Sand!).
Keep on reading stories that stir your heart and soul,
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