A Chat with Mirella Patzer

When I did my virtual book tour in May, I was thinking solely about book promotion. I didn't realize I'd also be making friends, but that's exactly what happened. Mirella Patzer hosted me on her blog, and today I'm delighted to return the favor to her.

Mirella, how long have you been writing?

I always harboured a secret desire to write, but never believed I had the talent. Then one day in the fall of 2002, I had lunch with 3 authors - a published author of children's books, a published author of contemporary fiction, and an aspiring author of a World War II novel. The next morning, I ran to buy a laptop and began writing with intensity, but in isolation. Slowly, I found an on-line critique group fo historical fiction and that's when I really began to learn the art of writing. Feedback is critical. Slowly, I've been immersing myself in other on-line groups and networking sites and getting to know more and more fabulous authors.

What have you published and what is in the works?

I've been truly blessed because everything I've written has been published. I've published 3 short stories and 2 novels. My short story, Down Three Steps, was featured in the anthology, Mamma Mia: Good Italian Girls Talk Back which became a big seller in Canada.

My first novel, Heinrich the Fowler is the first of a 3 or 4 book series, a family saga about Otto the Great's family and their rise to power during the 10th century. I'm currently re-writing this particular book, adding more research and emphasizing the lives of the women. I have entitled it A Crimson Mantle and it is complete in its first draft. I have also completed the 2nd book in the series entitled Lance of Destiny. This is in its first draft also. Lastly, I'm 1/3 of the way through writing Orphan of the Olive Tree. This story was written in short story format during the 14th century. I'm expanding the plot, changing the setting and enhancing the characters.

In addition to being an author, you also review books. What are your favorite genres to read?

I love historical novels, with the medieval period being my favourite, however, I never limit myself to just this particular genre. I enjoy a good ghost story, no matter the period. I love books about the Mafia and / or books with Italy as a setting in all genres or periods. I also love court room dramas like those of John Grisham. And, I also love stories about Saints.

As you're writing your historical novels, what tips and tricks do you use to keep yourself immersed in that era?

The 10th century is a difficult era because much during that era has been lost and record keeping back then wasn't as good. So I try to collect books relative to that era. I read them and mark them, adding notes to my manuscript as a read along. I also focus on reading as many medieval novels as I can to keep myself thinking and learning, even when I'm just reading for pleasure. I will also record History Channel episodes if they are applicable for future reference and watch anything medieval in the movies or on tv.

You wrote me a lovely book review last month. How did you get to be so cool?

Aw shucks, I'm blushing. Meeting fellow authors like you help to shape and develop me as an author. I am really sincere when I say your novel was truly a terrific read. Since reading Season of Sacrifice, I've read several more novels, yet your story is still in my mind. The incredible journey through the Hole in the Rock, the way you touched upon polygamy, and your love for your faith continue to resound in my mind. With every word you wrote, your love for your family's history came strongly through.

Now it's my turn to blush! What advice do you have for aspiring authors?

The most important thing is to write. Then, you must network with other authors - a good critique group is imperative. Strong, honest feedback is a writer's best friend. As much as it hurts to hear it, embrace it and bury that ego. Dust yourself off and continue to hone your skill. Working with other authors, both published and unpublished, has been the most beneficial aspect and has provided me with the highest degree of learning.

Thank you so much for being here, Mirella, and for sharing your friendship with me!

It's been a real pleasure working with you, Tristi. Although our genres are vastly different, I have come to admire you and your work. I value our cyber friendships very much.

Feeling Blessed

My husband and I have been going through a little bit of upheaval with our careers lately. We're both looking at moving forward and we've both been given opportunities to do so. And, right now, we're both in a hold pattern, waiting to see what will happen. We've also been going through some personal trials and I can safely say, this has been one wonky month.

But in the middle of all this uncertainty, I've noticed something. Over and over again, the Lord has provided something amazing to temper the bad. Remember when I lost my file, and then found it? (You'd better remember!) I found it ten minutes before the data recovery company called to tell me it was gone forever. The Lord knew I was going to get that call, and He showed me where to find the file so I wouldn't be devastated when the call came. Some might call it coincidence. I don't.

Wednesday I got some news that troubled me a little bit, and I'm still trying to decide what to do about it. But ten minutes before that, this showed up in my e-mail box. Yes, click! Go read! And then come back. I'll wait.

Wasn't that the sweetest, nicest thing in the whole world? Thank you, Stacy!

If I hadn't been bolstered up by Stacy's incredible blog, I might have sunk into despair when the news came in. But the Lord knew that news was coming, and He made sure I had what I needed before it came.

Later in the afternoon, I was feeling a little bit down, and just then the phone rang. It was BerlinWriterGirl, calling to tell me how much she enjoyed "Strength to Endure." In fact, she even blogged about it, and you can read that here. That phone call and subsequent blog helped keep me from dwelling too much on everything.

I could go on for another four or five paragraphs, detailing everything that's happened and all the good stuff that's gone right along with it. I won't, though. Suffice it to say that the Lord is aware of everything we need. He knows when we've reached the end of our rope. He knows how strong we are, and when we reach the end of that rope, He's there to add a few more inches. When we feel He's letting us handle it all on our own, that's not the case -- He knows we can do it, even if we don't know that. And I feel so blessed that He is there, watching over everything, providing exactly what is needed in the moment when it's needed most.

Meet Author Mirella Patzer!

Last month when I was on virtual book tour, I had the chance to meet several new bloggers, and one of those was Mirella Patzer. She wrote me the nicest book review for "Season of Sacrifice" -- in fact, I liked it so much, I'm linking to it again here.

Now Mirella's on tour for her book, "Bloodstone Castle." It's a sexy historical about a man who wishes to call an end to years of feuding by marrying the daughter of his own father's avowed enemy. But she's already betrothed and has no intention of marrying anyone else. In addition, she alone possesses a pendant that unlocks the secret to the hidden treasure found in Bloodstone Castle, a treasure that many are unsure even exists. You can read more about the book here. I do advise that there is some content, if that's a concern.

I'll be interviewing Mirella later in the month. She's a sweetheart and you'll enjoy getting to know her.

The Task of the Artist

Today I had the opportunity to read this account:

On November 18, 1995, Itzhak Perlman, the violinist, came on stage to give a concert at Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center in New York City. If you have ever been to a Perlman concert, you know that getting on stage is no small achievement for him. He was stricken with polio as a child, and so he has braces on both legs and walks with the aid of two crutches. To see him walk across the stage one step at a time, painfully and slowly, is an unforgettable sight. He walks painfully, yet majestically, until he reaches his chair. Then he sits down, slowly, puts his crutches on the floor, undoes the clasps on his legs, tucks one foot back and extends the other foot forward. Then he bends down and picks up the violin, puts it under his chin, nods to the conductor and proceeds to play.

By now, the audience is used to this ritual. They sit quietly while he makes his way across the stage to his chair. They remain reverently silent while he undoes the clasps on his legs. They wait until he is ready to play. But this time, something went wrong. Just as he finished the first few bars, one of the strings on his violin broke. You could hear it snap. It went off like gunfire across the room. There was no mistaking what that sound meant.

There was no mistaking what he had to do.

People who were there that night thought to themselves: “We figured that he would have to get up, put on the clasps again, pick up the crutches and limp his way off stage, to either find another violin or else find another string for this one.”
But he didn’t. Instead, he waited a moment, closed his eyes and then he played with such passion and such power and such purity as they had never heard before. Of course, anyone knows that it is impossible to play a symphonic work with just three strings. I know that, and you know that, but that night Itzhak Perlman refused to know that. You could see him modulating, changing, re-composing the piece in his head. At one point, it sounded like he was de-tuning the strings to get new sounds from them that they had never made before. When he finished, there was an awesome silence in the room. And then people rose and cheered. There was an extraordinary outburst of applause from every corner of the auditorium. We were all on our feet, screaming and cheering; doing everything we could to show how much we appreciated what he had done.

He smiled, wiped the sweat from his brow, raised his bow to quiet us, and then he said, not boastfully, but in a quiet, pensive, reverent tone, “You know, sometimes it is the artist’s task to find out how much music you can still make with what you have left.”

What a powerful line that is. It has stayed in my mind ever since I heard it. And who knows? Perhaps that is the way of life. Not just for artists, but for all of us.

So, perhaps our task in this shaky, fast-changing, bewildering world in which we live is to make music, at first with all that we have, and then, when that is no longer possible, to make music with what we have left.

(Jack Riemer, Houston Chronicle. The 390th Memorial Museum Foundation, Vol VII, No. 1, Spring 2002).

This struck me with certain force in light of the book I lost last month, and the copy of it I found. The copy wasn't the most recent draft; I've got some work ahead of me to get it back to where it was. But I have the pieces. I can take them and test my artistic talent to see what I can create out of what remains.

Contest Reminder

I have posted other things since my contest announcement, but want to keep it foremost in your minds. Scroll down to read the rules.

A Laugh for Today

I just stole this from Laughadaisy. It just struck me as funny, how now everything has gone to blogging. And I have to say, I myself have found a lot of inspiration from reading blogs. Not the Pope's blog, necessarily, but yours, my bloggy friends.

Cedar Fort's Writers Conference

I spent the day with some of my favorite author friends down in Springville for Cedar Fort's fabulous writers conference today. It was great to see so many people I knew and to make new acquaintances, meet authors whose books I've reviewed but I've never met, and to talk to other authors about reviewing theirs. I learned a lot about things I can be doing to further my own career and came away feeling as though it had been time well spent.

I don't know if Cedar Fort will be having an event like this yearly, but if I get to put my two cents in, I think they should. It was a valuable experience and I think the attendees will be a lot more inclined to submit to Cedar Fort and to have a better understanding of what Cedar Fort is looking for. I wonder if other publishers will follow suit (they should, if they aren't already thinking about it). What better way to attract new submitters than to teach them what they need to know to succeed?

I also came away with a nice little stack of books from the scratch and dent shelves. It was a very good day . . .

Candace Salima is on Virtual Book Tour!

My good friend and fellow LDS author, Candace Salima, is on tour this month to promote her religious nonfiction book, "Forged in the Refiner's Fire."

To read my review on this book, click here.

To read the interview I conducted with Candace, click here.

Be sure to visit Candace's blog to see where else she'll be appearing while she's on tour, all month long!

Miracle at the Pinkstons

Another episode in the soap opera that is my life . . .
Remember last week?

Well, this is what I look like today:

Not the red hair, but I'm definitely crying happy tears.

I shall explain.

After discovering that the flash drive I used was corrupt, I sent it off to a data recovery company in Florida. They were awesome and they did the best they could, but they told me a little while ago that they didn't think they would be able to help me. I tried not to get too down, but it was hard.

I did have an earlier version of the story burned onto a disk and I decided to pull it up and see how much work I would have to do to bring it back to how it was. I put the disk into the drive and went into my computer, and somehow clicked on the wrong thing. Up came a drive I didn't know existed, and there, sitting there, in all its glory, was THE BOOK.

I'm still in shock. We looked all over this computer. I looked everywhere I could think of. My husband looked all over the place. We thought the computer had been wiped clean. Not so -- the book was still there. That's right, the one I've been working on for years, the one that had hundreds of hours of research. The one that it would be almost impossible to recreate.

We had been told through countless prayers that the file would be recovered. When the guy in Florida told me that it wasn't possible, I was really wondering if I had completely misunderstood those peaceful feelings of the Spirit. Not so -- the answer just came in a different way than we had expected.

Miracles happen, guys -- they really do.

Tuesday Thoughts on Politics

It would be way cool to have the first black president.

It would be way cool to have the first woman president.

But that doesn't mean that Obama and Clinton are the best ones to fill those roles.

I'm worried at the way some Americans are flocking to vote simply because of Obama's blackness or Clinton's womanness. "But we have to vote for Clinton! She's a woman!" they say. Or "We have to vote for Obama. We need a black president!"

I have no problem with the idea of having a black president or a woman president. As I said, it would be way cool. But to give these two your vote, just for that?

I cringe to think what will happen to America if either of them take the election. I find very little to admire in any of them.

There will be other black nominees. There will be other female nominees. It's okay, guys -- you don't have to get all wiggy over these two politicians just because they're the first. There will be other chances. Let's make sure that we're voting for the people we really feel will do the next job and not just vote because of their color or gender.

Still Playing with Storycasting

If you want to have some fun, come check out the casting I've been doing over on Storycasting. These are the actors that most closely resemble who I see when I think about my books. Of course, they aren't done, so check back later to see who I've added. And be sure to leave comments on Storycasting and let me know who you see when you read my books.

Nothing to Regret

Strength to Endure

Season of Sacrifice - I did a contemporary cast and a classic cast