Make That Lemonade!

 LINK TO TEDDY'S STORY JOINT!!!!!

Start your day with a smile and take the four-plus minutes and go to the link above and see just how easy this all is. :) Really... 

And then come back and we're gonna talk Write That Story!

Okay.... hysterical? I loved it! Sooooo funny! 

Now back to our regularly scheduled program!

WHAT A YEAR.

That's all I'm going to say about it. Not the good... not the bad... not the never-ending aspects of flattening a curve that had a mind of its own.

Let's talk the talk of spring.

Rebirth.

Begin again, like poor old Michael Finnegan. 

It would be so easy to list the bad things. To focus on the negative. To shrug off the positive.

There's no time for that. That's not our purpose here. And I don't mean on this blog "here". I mean on Earth "here".

If we are really God's children, if we are put here to do some good in some way, well, let's go! Let's do it! Off our laurels, off our butts, and into the mainstream of life we go and as we go... let's write that story.

What I found funniest about the skit above was the absolute truth in it. Plot devices. Plot twists. Characters. Writing tomes..... Sometimes we just plain make this gig way harder than it needs to be.

So making that lemonade is two-fold: 

FIRST: Figure out the kind of stories you want to tell.

SECOND: Tell 'em.

Now before the lot o' youse start gnashing your teeth and staring with your yellow eyes and not blinking once (Where the Wild Things Are, Maurice Sendak) let me share my theory and then you tell me yours in the comments. Tell me what works... what should work... or if you've been a dormant slug, take this as your moment to awaken-stretch-reach! You've got this!

Goal/Mission/Calling: Write stories that uplift women.

I do this for a lot of reasons, but mostly because we only got the stinkin' vote 100 years ago, that's ridiculous, and we've been second-class in work-related things in many areas for, oh... ever? So I want stories that uplift women, where women rescue themselves but if it's a romance, they find the absolute right man to be their point/counterpoint! 

Plots used:  Prodigal is one of my faves, and like the skit showed, one story can use the same plot device and be so completely different!  

Running on Empty: "Anne Kellwyn has a secret. It's cost her everything to keep it."

Anne fled her life when her abuser threatened to "out" her... and now she's back home to help her dying mother but can this prodigal face the man she loved-- and left-- and still loves? 

Back in the Saddle (Book 1 Double S Ranch): "He’s broke, but not broken..."

It’s been a long time since Colt Stafford shrugged off his cowboy legacy for shiny Manhattan loafers and a promising career on Wall Street. But when stock market manipulations leave him financially strapped, the oldest son of legendary rancher Sam Stafford decides to return to the sprawling Double S ranch in Gray’s Glen, Washington.

A Hopeful Harvest (Book 1 Golden Grove): "Her orchard. His heart. Can they successfully heal both?" 

When her family’s apple orchard is damaged by a storm, single mom Libby Creighton knows the harvest she’s depending on is in jeopardy. Though he prefers a solitary life, Jax McClaren has the skills to revive Libby’s orchard—and her guarded heart. But he’ll have to overcome the secrets of his past if he and Libby are going to have a fruitful future together.

                                                                   ***********

The prodigal theme is used often because it works. So does the sacrificial lamb, the person going off to save the lamb in trouble, risking life and limb. There was a reason Jesus used these stories to relay to the crowds because they are relatable.

But if you don't have a prodigal lying around, an overcomer works just fine! 

Overcomers are the survivors. They've made it through the rough times, the wars, the pestilence, the sorrows, the poverty, the lack, the losses of parents or children or divorce... and they take their lives very seriously because they have something to prove. To themselves... their parents... their ex-wives or husbands or their old friends, the neighbors who thought they'd amount to nothing.... That's where the "How Do You Like Me Now?" attitude can be put into play.

I've done a lot of Overcomer books because I'm an overcomer. I know lots of overcomers. I love them! They're not whiners. They're of the "race that knows Joseph". They're the ones who see a job and do it and even when the going gets tough, they tuck their chins and carry on.

Hush Thackery in "Sweet Hush" was one of those heroines. I love Hush. Deb Smith touched all the right buttons for me in that story because Hush reminded me of myself. THAT'S CLUTCH.

Make the story relatable. 

I have a brand new prodigal story for you! I have two copies of "Rebuilding Her Life" to give away to two lucky commenters.... 

If you're a writer, leave a comment about story themes/tomes/plots and give me an idea of where you're at....

If you're a reader, let's talk reading! 

Either way, thank you for stopping by. Coffee is on! And because it's Lent and some of youse might have forsworn treats, I have some fresh bread and butter that you can have plain or slather it with my homemade jam. Sour cherry or Triple Berry or there's even a pot of Strawberry Rhubarb, a farm favorite! 

Multi-published, USA Today bestselling author Ruth Logan Herne is thrilled to introduce this newest book.... and loving that winter is coming to an end in Western New York where Ruthy runs a growing pumpkin farm with her husband Farmer Dave, a bunch of kids and friends and grandkids and mud.... Friend her on Facebook (she's a conservative Libertarian so be forewarned!) visit her website ruthloganherne.com and you can always visit with her here in Seekerville.... or just straight out email Ruthy at loganherne@gmail.com.