Dear followers and friends,

I have no excuse for not posting last week . . .

Other than that I had no ideas bursting forth to share.

This week?

It’s kind of similar, except the words of my copy editor are going around my head. I will share them with you as one of you recently asked me to keep doing so.

Jordan who lives in South Africa is my present source of encouragement, and he does this by showing in his critiques a better way to write this book-in-progress, sentence by sentence.

The motivating factor is I am improving. He now has less changes for me to consider, and his applause for what is working is loud and clear.

I’m loving how your characters’ desires and hopes are coming across and how you’re blending historical narration with in-the-moment action illustrating your characters’ wants, desires, and fears more. Great work! Jordan

I have another Jordan who I glean tips from as well – this American insightful teacher is a woman, and she posts tips on Twitter.

Each day she reminds me of the depth, width and height writers explore in the lives of their characters, and how much or little of what we dream up is needed in the story.

I find myself retweeting many of her tips as they are a source of reminders worth filling social media with, so other writers get to discover her magic.

Characters ought to be haunted by something: a childhood loss, a recent breakup, a dream unfulfilled. Jordan

Remember that you demonstrate your character’s emotional state with every word they speak or think, and with every action they take. Jordan

Back to my copy editor Jordan –

When I compare that chapter to preceding, you’ve made great strides in balancing action, foreshadowing, narration and heartfelt emotion in the scenes. When comparing the two, I’d say more of the incidental (that reveals the experience of, for example, women in this time and place) and the historical voice for connective passages between these types of illuminating incidents. You’re definitely on the right track and I see the improvement! 

I look forward to reading the next part, soldier on :). Jordan

Therefore, dear friends and followers of my writing adventure,

I continue turning peoples emotional crises and losses into the very words they might speak of think in the chapters filling book two.

I enter their lives as if I am them, bringing alive situations that happen to many of us, attempting to bring reality to the episodes so that twenty-first century readers may understand.

Some of you experience empathy for the people who struggled through these events in the nineteenth century. Others of you will be thankful your own life is somewhat easier.

There can be sadness, unbelievable brokenness, and also joy and for some, the realisation of the reality of spiritual hope as you turn the pages of this second novel of The Fortune Seekers series.

Within my story I attempt to bring to you the fragrance of the flowers, the powerful social expectations of the time and the realism of genuine historic situations.

It is all about the dramatic effects of living under the power and authority of certain people and how it affects ordinary people such as us, today.

Whether male or female, of what ever racial background or financial and social classification we were born into, we are who we are because of our pasts.

To be living today is no easier than it was a century ago for we suffer many of the same challenges as our ancestors did.

• We hurt just as they did.
• We come under judgement and mis understanding just the same as back then.

Perhaps by looking back we can see ahead.

The wrongs that in this century societies are trying to put right may have lessons that need to be learnt before society is able to move one and not repeat the same mistakes.

Well, it looks as if my blog has found a message.

As I share my thoughts I am dreaming up ideas that you will discover in my novels – both present and future.

#editing; #TheFortuneSeekers-DanAndCharlotte; #amwiting; #PowerAndAuthority