Cynthia Ruchti: Up Close and Personal

Interview by Kelly Klepfer

Tell us a bit about your current project.

The book that just released is A Fragile Hope. In some ways, one might say it was a risky project. How does a woman write an emotion-packed contemporary novel with a male protagonist, a marriage in trouble—his own—and his wife’s point of view is “heard” only in mere snippets…for the whole book? And how can hope weave its way onto the pages of a novel with betrayal center stage?

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Then Came a Buggy

by Barbara Cameron

Students entering senior year in high school usually have a lot on their minds. Which college will they choose? How are they going to finance it? And what will be their major?

I wasn’t one of those students worrying about college. My dad was pushing me to go to the local community college and become a nurse.

That was the last thing I wanted. I was the oldest child and was tired of taking care of my younger siblings. When I saw a notice on the school announcement board about a cooperative education class at the local newspaper I decided to apply. After all, I was a voracious reader and I’d enjoyed the extra credit assignments in creative writing my English teacher gave me.

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Before You Write. . . You Must Choose a Lens

by Cynthia L Simmons

Before you began to write, you must choose which point of view, POV, you will use. That seems like an easy decision yet it’s crucial to the outcome of your work. Point of view tells who speaks to the reader, who is holding the camera. Each perspective has its strengths and weaknesses.

First person uses the pronouns ‘I, me, mine’ for singular and ‘we, us’ for plural. If you want your audience to connect emotionally, this is your best option. Joshua employed this POV when he wrote, “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” Remember in order to use this POV, you’ll share only what you know rather than the thoughts of others.

The pronoun employed in second person is ‘you’, which is both singular and plural. This POV doesn’t work well for story telling because it tends to have an authoritarian tone. Think about the Ten Commandments: “You shall not murder”.  Recipes use this POV because the author tells what to do: mix the eggs and butter well. You’ll also see it in letters, greeting cards, and poetry and song lyrics: “You are my sunshine…”

Third person uses the pronouns ‘he, she, it, they, we, and us’.  This POV offers many possibilities, but let’s start with omniscient. The narrator in Omniscient POV knows the thoughts and actions of everyone in the room. This POV has drawbacks. First, your audience doesn’t connect to the emotions as quickly. Second, readers can be confused as the narrator jumps in and out of character’s inner thoughts. Writers like Agatha Christie and Dorothy Sayers used omniscient POV. Here’s an excerpt from The Body in the Library by Christie. “In her sleep, Mrs. Bantry frowned. Something disturbing was penetrating through the dream state.” If one is sleeping, they aren’t conscious of their own thoughts, so the narrator reveals information Mrs. Bantry wouldn’t be aware of until later.

Another form of third person is limited POV, and many authors prefer this one. The POV character can only reveal what he sees and knows. Think about the story of Moses. He found an Egyptian beating a fellow Israelite. After looking around to make sure no one saw him, he killed the Egyptian and hid the body. Later, however, when he stopped two Israelites from fighting, they knew both knew about the Egyptian. Moses had limited knowledge. He thought no one saw, but he was wrong.

Deep POV is another type of third person, and many Christian writers put this POV into action for their novels. This POV can be tricky. The author must sink into the POV character revealing thoughts and emotions. Readers tend to enjoy this POV because they feel dropped into the story even sensing emotions the POV character experiences. To utilize this POV, apply third person pronouns while writing as if you are in first person. Avoid words like ‘saw’ and ‘felt’ so you can describe gut reactions. DiAnn Mills wrote deep POV in this sample from her novel, Breach of Trust: “Paige’s pulse raced into high gear as her foot pressed the accelerator. If the guy thought he’d succeed in making her nervous, he’d better think again. She changed lanes again while watching him in the mirror.” Notice Paige assumed what her pursuer intended, but she didn’t know. You see her heart beat faster in response to what she believed.

In summary, authors have several POVs to choose from. Those who want to write novels can choose first person, third person omniscient, limited, or deep POV. For instructional material, letters or poetry, authors will get the best results from second person. Perfecting your POV polishes your work and makes your readers want more.

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Bio:

Cynthia L Simmons and her husband, Ray, have five children and reside in Atlanta. She has taught for over thirty years as a homeschool mother and Bible teacher. She’s a columnist for Leading Hearts Magazine and she directs Atlanta Christian Writing Conference. Cyndi has a heart for encouraging women in today’s crazy, upside-down world. She loves history and peppers her speaking and teaching with fascinating vignettes from the past. Her first book, Struggles and Triumphs, was nominated for 2008 Georgia Author of the Year. She co-founded Homeschool Answers and hosts Heart of the Matter Radio. Visit her at www.clsimmons.com.

Book Blurb:

With his father dead and his business partner incapacitated, Peter Chandler inherits the leadership of a bank in economic crisis. With only a newly minted college degree and little experience, Peter joins his partner's daughter, Mary Beth Roper, in a struggle to keep C&R Bank afloat while the Civil War rages around Chattanooga. Political pressure for unsecured loans of gold to the government stirs up trouble as tempers and prices rise. Their problems multiply when Mary Beth discovers counterfeit money with Peter's forged signature. Can they find the forger before the bank fails? The two friends must pursue gold on behalf of their business, as they learn to pursue their heavenly Father to find hope and peace.

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Shifty-Shifty ~ How to Shift From 1st to 3rd Person by Varina Denman

How to Shift (Smoothly) From 1st to 3rd Person, and Back Again

Varina Denman

When I drafted my first novel, I didn’t know it was against the rules to switch back and forth from 1st to 3rd person. My main character’s POV was in 1st which felt natural, but after a while, I wanted to let the reader see inside the hero’s head, so I plopped down a chapter in 3rd and continued drafting a crazy mixed-up jumble.

THEN, I discovered craft books. Oh me, oh my, I had broken the rules, but no … maybe not. It depended on which books and blogs I read. So I toyed with the manuscript, tweaking and re-writing, and after a while … those POV shifts almost worked. Over the course of three books, I learned a lot about POV shifts, and now I’d give anything to be able to go back and edit that first manuscript just a teensy bit more.

As a reader, many times I find myself in the middle of a chapter, only to realize I’m in the wrong character’s head. One time, I went back and skimmed several pages, re-living every word through the correct person’s perspective. So very annoying, but it taught me something. In my own writing, I need to make POV shifts easy for the reader, and now I follow a simple rule of thumb.

When switching from 1rd to 3rd (or vice versa), special care should be taken with the VERY FIRST sentence of the scene.

Even the first WORD, if possible. I need to cement the new POV in the reader’s mind, and the closer to the beginning of the scene the better. Here’s an example of the first line of a chapter written in 3rd person in Clyde’s perspective. The preceding chapter was in 1st in Lynda’s perspective.

Clyde wondered if he would always attend worship alone. As he slipped through the double doors of the Trapp church building and stood in the tiny foyer he could hear Dodd Cunningham teaching a Bible lesson behind a hollow door.

This works because I’ve immediately grounded Clyde with an internal thought to put the reader right in the character’s head. In the first two words of the chapter, the reader has no doubt in whose perspective the chapter is written (because Lynda can’t know what Clyde is wondering.)

This technique grows weaker when it is placed deeper into the scene. If I had switched the two sentences in the example, putting the action first, it would have muddied things up, because Lynda is capable of describing Clyde’s actions from her 1st person perspective.

If smooth enough, the untrained reader won’t even notice the switch from 1st to 3rd, and that’s my goal.

The goal is not to make a smooth transition, but an invisible one.

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In order to check the invisibility of the shift, it’s good practice to read aloud the last paragraph of the preceding chapter followed by the first paragraph of the new one. I put myself in the reader’s chair, and determine if the transition is smooth enough to avoid confusion.

This all seems simple enough, right? But … oh, dear … there’s bad news:

It’s more difficult shifting from 3rd to 1st

Personally, when I read a book, third person is easier for me to digest. I feel as though the story is laid out in pieces, and I merely come along and pick them up. 1st person takes a little more work, because I’m becoming the character. Even more difficult, is reading from 3rd straight into 1st, because I have to adjust my thinking.

Once again, the trick is to put the reader into the head of the POV character as soon as possible. The problem lies in the fact that if I jump into 1st person narrative immediately after a 3rd person chapter, the reader has no idea who that 1st person character is. Not only is it jarring and confusing, but the reader is likely to throw down the book in frustration. So …

When switching from 3rd to 1st, I must label the POV character before giving the internal thought.

I have two options. In the first, I use another character to identify the POV character through a line of direct address. This points-out who the “I” is going to be, so the reader is prepared for the 1st person internal thought.

“Lynda, that man wants you.”

I pressed my lips together and scowled at Dixie, ending the conversation before it started.

The dialogue tells the reader that Lynda is in the room, and the very next sentence puts the reader in Lynda’s head, showing that this chapter is in 1st person, Lynda’s perspective. The internal thought isn’t in the first words of the chapter, so clearly, the shorter the dialogue the better. I also leave off dialogue tags here, making the distance from the word Lynda to the internal thought as short as possible.

Another way to label the POV character is to tag an inanimate object.

Lynda’s Makeup and Stuff.

The stenciling on my cosmetic case had faded, but I could still make out Velma’s handwriting.

This is the same principle as using a line of dialogue, only it gives you the freedom to have the character in a scene alone. Another option is to show a text message, or voicemail, or—with a subtle twist on the dialogue idea—have the character remember a line of dialogue from a previous scene.

In spite of going to great lengths to soften the transition for readers, POV shifts can still be jarring, but it seems that readers have learned to adjust as we writers stretch the limits and change the rules. And that’s good for us, because it’s fun to be able to give readers a different literary experience.

What tricks do you use to make POV shifts smooth or possibly … invisible?

Varina Denman writes stories about the unique struggles women face. A native Texan who spent her high school years in a small Texas town, Varina now lives near Fort Worth with her husband and five mostly grown children. Her passion is helping others make peace with their life situations. Varina’s Mended Hearts series is a compelling blend of women’s fiction and inspirational romance. Connect with Varina through her website, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or Pinterest.

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Wait a Minute... Can Procrastination be a Good Thing? by Kristy Cambron

Why Procrastination Can Make You a Better Writer

By Kristy Cambron

You read that right. 

Procrastination – the process of favoring one task over another after having weighed the importance or urgency of each, usually “putting-off” an assigned task until the last moment before a deadline. 

How, we might ask, can this possibly be a good thing?

Oh how I know we’re stirring the pot with this topic. But I wonder if procrastination has been branded with an unjust reputation. (Hey - even Forbes has gone on the record to say it’s not all bad.) There’s the perception that it causes stress. That it labels you unreliable if it’s a common practice. Or that it can leave you feeling ill-prepared if you wait until the last moment to practice before a big event. In fact, my grandmother used to say that practice does indeed make perfect. I’m not in the business of questioning my wise old Granny’s idioms, but I do have to step out in defense of this topic – at least enough to say that something good can come of a situation in which last-minute action must take place.

I confess that procrastination helped me through many writing assignments in college. I’m not talking about the research part. (I took extensive my time with that.) I’m zoning in on the actual pen-to-paper side of writing because procrastinating can actually make you better. Here’s why:

1. You learn effective time management skills. – This truth about procrastination surprised me when I became a full-time writer. Our days won’t be spent solely on writing the next story (no matter how much we might like them to be). As an author, you’ll have far more to focus on than simply putting words down on paper. There’s marketing for the books you’ve released. You’ll want to engage with your reader community on social media. There are industry trends to track, the writing craft to stay sharp on, book signings and speaking appearances to attend. All of these things will have to be prioritized against your deadlines. What needs your immediate attention may be something other than writing, and that’s okay. 

2. You plot. A lot. – Even up to a few months ago, I was working a full-time corporate career with a daily commute through some serious traffic. I used that time in the car to get to know my characters and their story. By the time I sat down to write late at night, I’d already visited the story in my head so much that the words flooded the page. Even if you’re not a self-professed plotter, you’ll get to spend extra time with your characters when you procrastinate. Whether that’s in your head or mapping out your novel in a storyboard fashion, you’ll find that it can actually help give you breathing room to work out your plot. 

3. You tune out distraction. – Social media can be a major distraction for writers. The lure of checking out what’s trending on Twitter or being posted to Instagram can draw our attention away from the story craft. It’s fun to engage on social media, but when you’re on a deadline it can be downright dangerous. Getting serious and when you write will force the responsible deadline-aware part of your persona to trump the fun social media butterfly every time. Sign off and tune in to your story. 

4. You immerse yourself in research. – I may be dating myself with this one, but I remember spending hours in the library, digging through endless stacks of periodicals and encyclopedias to write a high school term paper.  Research then didn’t have nearly the reach that it does now. We have access to an endless amount of information to feed our stories – all at the touch of a mobile screen. Use it! If you’re not ready to write, you can be researching for when you will be.

5. You write with passion. – As Mr. Hemingway would suggest, we should be able to sit down at the typewriter and let our fingers do the bleeding. But if we’re up against a deadline and we sit in front of a keyboard, it infuses us with an added urgency to produce. That urgency – a truly centered focus – can work to remind us what we loved about writing in the first place. We revisit the pure interaction of writer and story that God has engraved upon our hearts. If you try to write and realize you’re doing it without His guidance, step away for a while. Procrastinate on it. Spend that time in prayer and communion with Him, then come back to a place where passion meets the words head on. You’ll find your story when the walk is in tune with Him.

All this being said – be professional. Never miss a deadline because you’re caught up in waiting for “your story”. Have a due date? Start on it early. Don’t procrastinate just because there’s time baked in the calendar. Give yourself breathing room but still take it seriously. This is your dream and with care (even with a little procrastinating), you’ll get to ‘The End’ in the right time.

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Kristy Cambron fancies life as a vintage-inspired storyteller. Her debut historical novel, The Butterfly and the Violin (Thomas Nelson, 2014), was named to Library Journal’s Best Books of 2014, Family Fiction’s Top Ten Novels of 2014, and received nominations for RT Reviewers’ Choice Awards Best Inspirational Novel of 2014 and the 2015 INSPY Awards for Best Debut Novel. Her second novel, A Sparrow in Terezin (Thomas Nelson, April 2015), was named Library Journal’s Reviews’ Pick of the Month (Christian Fiction, February 2015) and a Top Pick from RT Book Reviews.

Kristy is an Art/Design Manager at TheGROVEstory.com and holds a degree in Art History from Indiana University. She lives in Indiana with her husband and three football-loving sons, where she can probably be bribed with a coconut mocha latte and a good Christian fiction read.

You can connect with Kristy at: 

Facebook: Kristy Cambron | Twitter: @KCambronAuthor  | Instagram: kristycambron  

Pinterest: KCambronAuthor | Web:  KristyCambron.com | TheGROVEstory.com   

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Tis the Season to Collaborate

How Story Collaboration Works

Tricia Goyer, Cara Putman, and Sarah Sundin, authors of Where Treetops Glisten

Sometimes being an author is a lonely existence. Fictional characters fill my (Sarah’s) mind. They fight, they laugh, they talk, they fall in love ... and for most of the time I’m the only one who knows what’s happening with them. That is until I enter their world, and their words and experiences land on the page to eventually be sent to my editor’s desk. Still it’s my computer and me, lonely partners in the world of creating stories.

This isn’t the case for collaboration projects. Tricia’s written a number of them from Love Finds You novels with her friend Ocieanna Fleiss and two World War II spy novels with Mike Yorkey. Cara’s collaborated on two novella collections for Barbour. Now the three of us have partnered for a World War II Christmas novella collection, Where Treetops Glisten.

Because the writing process is so different when writing novella collections, we have a few recommendations for those considering a collaborative collection.

1. Understand the strengths and the weaknesses of your collaborators. No one person writes a novel in the same way. Tricia is a write-by-the-seats-of-her-pants type of author, Sarah runs off of spreadsheets, and Cara was the connecter and lead researcher for us all. Through a few calls and many emails we figured out a system that worked. We leaned on each other, depending on each other’s strengths to create a unique collection.

2. When collaborating, look for the elements readers expect from each of you, and focus on combining them. We had all agreed we wanted to work together, but then we had to decide how. We started with a conference call where we specifically discussed what we believe each of our readers like in our books. Fortunately, we could weave those together into a collection tied by location, family, and home front careers plus a sister who goes overseas.

3. Look for a theme and other elements that can tie the series together. Our initial theme was Christmas carols. So many wonderful carols were penned and released during World War II, songs that we cherish today. Then we decided that our story would center on siblings and their experiences during the war – each in a different year. After that we decided their wise grandmother would hold the collection together through a prologue and epilogue in her point of view, as well as her presence in each of the novellas. She became the voice of wisdom to each grandchild at the moment they needed it. She also became a fun, feisty lady who added spark and sass to the pages.

4. Evaluate what you’re willing to give up for the good of the project. In our case we were able to pull everything together…but you have to be willing to give as well for the good of the story. That means asking others for input on their characters to make sure they are consistent from story to story and that you’re willing to acknowledge when you need help.

5. Organize your information. Since our stories followed one family from 1941 to 1945, many details flowed through each story. Cara drew up a floor plan of the home we used for the Turner family. Sarah kept a master timeline listing dates of births, deaths, weddings, graduations, military training, and pertinent WWII events. Likewise, a character chart tracked physical traits, quirks, nicknames, etc. Our editors also found those documents useful.

6. Communication. Not only did we communicate in the brainstorming and proposal-writing phases, but during writing and editing, and now doing publicity. We sent lots of emails: “Who would Abigail want in her wedding party?” “What would Pete be doing now?” “What would Merry be feeling?” “Is there a garage on the property? If not, where do they park the car?” Not only was communication vital for story flow, but it built our friendships and our appreciation for each other.

Collaboration is a wonderful addition to the writing experience. If you can find the right concept and the right friends to write with, then we highly recommend it.

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Cara C. Putman, the award-winning author of 19 books, graduated high school at 16, college at 20, and completed her law degree at 27. FIRST for Women magazine called Shadowed by Grace “captivating” and a “novel with ‘the works.’” Cara is active at her church and a lecturer on business and employment law to graduate students at Purdue University’s Krannert School of Management. Putman also practices law and is a second-generation homeschooling mom. Putman is currently pursuing her Master’s in Business Administration at Krannert. She serves on the executive board of American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW), an organization she has served in various roles since 2007. She lives with her husband and four children in Indiana.

Sarah Sundin is the author of six historical novels, including In Perfect Time (Revell, August 2014), plus a novella in Where Treetops Glisten (WaterBrook, September 2014). Her novel On Distant Shores was a double finalist for the 2014 Golden Scroll Awards. In 2011, Sarah received the Writer of the Year Award at the Mount Hermon Christian Writers Conference. Sarah lives in northern California with her husband and three children, and she works on-call as a hospital pharmacist and teaches Sunday school and women’s Bible studies. You can find her at

USA Today best-selling author Tricia Goyer is the author of 45 books, including the three-book Seven Brides for Seven Bachelors series. She has written over 500 articles for national publications and blogs for high traffic sites like TheBetterMom.com and MomLifeToday.com. Tricia and her husband John live in Little Rock, Arkansas. They have six amazing children, a wonderful daughter-in-law, and two adorable grandchildren.

Learn more about the authors!

Cara Putman

www.caraputman.com

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Sarah Sundin

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Tricia Goyer

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Trends, Tie-ins and Writing From Your Heart. Possible? Carrie Turansky

Authors are often told, don’t try to follow the trends, write the book of your heart. But does being aware of trends and what’s popular in culture, and choosing to write about it, mean you aren’t writing a story that comes from your heart? I think not!

I believe what people actually mean when they give this advice is: don’t just follow a trend for the trend’s sake, and don’t try to write a particular genre just because it’s popular. Write a story you are passionate about, one that comes from your heart. 

And I agree . . . but I do think you can follow a trend and write a story that you and your readers will love.

In 2012, Downton Abbey was just becoming popular. I enjoyed the show, and I wanted to write longer historical novels, but I wasn’t sure I could write a series that required so much research. After doing some reading about the era, I promptly fell in love with it and decided to create a proposal for The Edwardian Brides Series. I used some of the same elements that made Downton enjoyable: characters from both the staff and a wealthy, aristocratic family; a beautiful English estate as the setting; and important events and issues from the era as part of the plot.

When I pitched the series I said it’s like Downton Abbey meets Jane Eyre. This piqued the interest of several editors, and soon I had a three-book contract. The series was connected to a popular trend, it was a time period that was interesting, but had not been overdone in CBA, and it was the type of story that I loved to read and wanted to write.

Tying my book to Downton Abbey has been a wonderful marketing tool and a great connection point with readers. We mentioned it in the back cover copy and the endorsement on the cover. We used it in our book launch promotions and often use Downton Abbey gifts in our giveaways. I gave my website a makeover so it had an English Historical feeling similar to Downton. I joined a few Downton Abbey Facebook Fan groups and set up a Downton Abbey list on Twitter. I set up a Google Search for Downton Abbey articles and often share those photos on Pinterest, Facebook, and Twitter. I visited the Downton Abbey Costume Exhibit and even traveled to England and Scotland to visit two filming locations for Downton Abbey. I used that research in my books and shared those trips on my blog, email newsletter, Facebook and Pinterest, and my readers love it. 

My publisher created a special poster they distributed to libraries all over the US called “Downton Abbey Read Alikes.” It included my book and several others. This gave me another opportunity to connect with Downton Abbey fans.

I’m not the only author who has ridden a trend with good results. Several authors including Cathy Gohlke, Tricia Goyer, Janice Thompson, and others planned ahead and took advantage of the 100th Anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic, using that as a back drop for their stories. Other authors like Julie Klassen and Katherine Reay have connected their novels to popular author, Jane Austen. Julie’s books are historical, and she has used her Austin research in marketing her books and connecting with readers who enjoy Regency novels. Katherine’s books are contemporary, but she uses themes and quotes from Austen in beautiful ways in her award-winning books. Cara Putman used the popularity of The Monument Men as a tie-in when her WW2 historical novel, Shadowed by Grace released. And several WW2 novelists recently joined together for a promotion remembering the 75th Anniversary of the beginning of WW2. Very clever ideas! 

So do write the story of your heart . . . and do consider cultural trends, historical anniversaries, unique settings, popular authors from the past, and other tie-ins that might allow you to connect with new readers and expand your audience.

Carrie Turansky is the award-winning author of more than a dozen novels and novellas, including Surrendered Hearts, Snowflake Sweethearts, and Along Came Love. She has been the recipient of the ACFW Carol Award, the Crystal Globe Award, and the International Digital Award. Turansky’s first historical fiction novel, and the first in the Edwardian Brides series, The Governess of Highland Hall, is a 2014 Carol Award finalist. While Turansky has been writing articles, devotions and essays since 1999, writing fiction is her passion, and she’s thankful for the creative ideas God has put into her mind and heart.

When she’s not writing Turansky enjoys spending time with her family, working outside in her flower gardens, cooking healthy meals for family and friends, or walking around the lake near her home.

To keep up with Carrie Turansky, visit www.carrieturansky.com, become a fan on Facebook (AuthorCarrieTuransky) or follow her on Twitter (@CarrieTuransky) and Pinterest (CarrieTuransky).

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