Blog Posts - Liz Tyner

Santa's Review: Saying I Do to the Scoundrel

12/22/2018

Katherine's plan to hire the man who liked to spend the night in the tavern, and sometimes sweep up in the morning, probably wasn't the best of ideas. But it worked because she checked his references.

Brandt kidnapped her as she'd requested, but he didn't see any need to do anything illegal such as ask for a ransom.

After a few nights with her, he decided on marriage as a way of keeping her away from her evil stepfather. The ransom would have been easier.

Rodolph believes there should have been deer in the countryside which would have added a pastural moment when the couple was hiding away in the stable. He thought the emphasis was far too strong on the horses, and wanted to see two deer fall in love. He's such a romantic.

Santa's Review of Forbidden To The Duke

12/18/2018

This is the story of the third sister in the Rogues and Goddesses series. Three years after its release, it's still a favorite in the Claus household. Bellona is the sister who likes swords and small weapons, and accidentally stabs the duke in the hand.

While I don't advocate violence, I will admit that Mrs. Claus is a bit jumpy too, so I can relate to someone being easily scared after hearing a sound in the darkness.

Bellona also doesn't want to see animals trapped in the forest, and Rudolph really identified with that.

I will give this book a five stocking review.

Santa's Review: Redeeming The Roguish Rake

12/17/2018

Personally I like Foxworthy, and I've known some men like him. They usually get coal in their stocking. In his case, I'd give him something that Rebecca would like.

Spoiler Alert.
This does touch on an eating disorder, and that put a more serious note into the story. I've known people with that kind of issue and know it doesn't always end tragically, and I appreciate that this story had a happy ending. There's no doubt in my mind that this woman, back in her safe environment, would have recovered and as the marriage progressed, she would have been able to tackle any problem.

I liked that Foxworthy was willing to change his life to help her recover, so I have to give this a five stocking review.

And my bet is that Foxworthy had to listen to a few more verses from the Good Book because I don't see him as ever becoming the perfect man Rebecca expected, but I do see him as a good husband to Rebecca.

Santa's Review of The Notorious Countess

12/16/2018

Beatrice the Beast is a bit of a scatterbrained romantic, and an artist, and I could just imagine her boyfriend's face as he realized there was a nude painting of him hidden somewhere in London. He couldn't find it to destroy it. That had to hurt.

Mrs. Claus has promised that she would never do such a thing, but she did ask for some paints and canvas after reading the story. She did not get them in her Christmas stocking.

Mrs Claus suggested a five stocking review, and wishes that a replica of the painting had been included in the book. So, I'm giving this a four stocking review as I don't think Mrs. C. should be given such ideas.

When Santa drops by...

12/15/2018

In a season of peace and goodwill, sometimes I forget about the peace and goodwill and focus on...whatever pops into my mind.

Looking back, I remember waiting for about a year for a snow so I could take this picture. The trap is probably about the same age as Santa, and I had to have help to get it set. I couldn't do it.

Santa could have probably gotten a toe broken. And while the snow appears fluffy, the air was cold. Very cold.

This just proves that Santa is an extremely good sport and enjoys a bit of a jest. I did get presents that year and no coal. If Santa had broken a toe, I would have had a medical bill in my stocking.

Five Writing Tips

12/1/2018

   1. You can revise a project forever. Don't fall into that trap. No one gets out with the same book, and you might learn more from writing several stories than turning story A into story B.
   2. It's almost a contradiction of #1, but write the book of your heart and revise it to get the book that is a better story.
   3. Write something that makes someone feel an emotion or link to your character. It isn't always easy. Want proof, try it. And if you prove me wrong and discover it's easy, I'm fine with that too. The world needs as many good stories as it can get.
   4. Writers who write a lot don't always remember their stories or characters' names, but it's okay. They've documented them on the page. They can go back and look them up. But for that moment when they were writing, that character and story should have been as alive to them as anyone with a birth certificate.
   5. Writing fiction is all about reality. Creating a world in the imagination. Your characters need body language, pauses, expressions and maybe a few aches and pains.

Elmore Leonard's rules:
https://www.liferichpublishing.com/AuthorResources/General/Elmore-Leonards-Ten-Rules-Of-Writing.aspx

Pixar's Rules:
https://www.aerogrammestudio.com/2013/03/07/pixars-22-rules-of-storytelling/

Twenty-Six Letters

11/27/2018

   "There are twenty-six letters in the alphabet, and we will learn one a day."
   My heart sank. School was going to be harder than I thought. Twenty six letters.
And then, after learning all twenty-six letters, we read Dick and Jane. They fell down a hill.
      The plot was a little slow. It didn't get better.
This was not the exciting story of the little skunk that I remembered telling my mother and she wrote down for me.
I don't remember what happened to the little skunk. But it, and the twenty-six letters, plus Beezus and Ramona, Trixie Beldon and Harlequin Romances, became a part of my world.

The Question Mark Again?

11/26/2018

Outdoors or Indoors? Both!

11/3/2018

Nature fascinates me. While I'm not suggesting that I don't like climate controlled environments or spaces that are mosquito free—nature is not only a sea of greens in late spring or the depressing grays of winter.

I've even discovered that one butterfly is called a Question Mark which is only slightly different than the Comma butterfly. I didn't think to research if there are any insects with an exclamation mark in their name.

I'm always pleased when I see a butterfly that looks like a leaf.

The good stuff in nature often hides from humans and the bad stuff tends to get too close to us—poison ivy, thorns and snakes to name a few of my enemies. Even against those three, I still say mosquitoes as the most blatantly evil part of nature. They are responsible for a large number of fatalities.

Sometimes I write outside even though the sun can make the computer screen difficult to read. It's easy to get distracted by the outdoors, but the distractions are part of the adventure.

My Impressionist View of My Flower Garden

10/6/2018

I put a copy of one of the Impressionists pictures on my wall—the Monet with the woman in the field. I asked people what they thought of when they saw it, and the answers were slightly different, or completely opposite.

No two people read the same book and perhaps no two people see the same painting or picture, and yet we are basically very similar.

We all want our happily ever after.