To Write or Not to Write That Story by J.Q.Rose #IWSGbloghop

 

Insecure Writers Support Group Blog Hop

#IWSGbloghop

Happy IWSG Blog Hop Day!

Happy March!

What is the Insecure Writer's Support Group?

Founded by author Alex J. Cavanaugh, the Insecure Writer’s Support Group offers support for writers and authors alike. It provides an online database, articles and tips, a monthly blog posting, a Facebook and Instagram group, Twitter, and a monthly newsletter. To find out more, click this link:  Insecure Writer’s Support Group

The purpose of the group is 

* to share and encourage. 

* Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. 

* Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. 

*It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds! 

You're invited to become a member of this supportive group. Click here to sign-up.

Thank you to our awesome co-hosts for the March 2 posting of the IWSG Blog Hop-- Janet Alcorn, Pat Garcia, Natalie Aguirre, and Shannon Lawrence!

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March 2 question - Have you ever been conflicted about writing a story or adding a scene to a story? How did you decide to write it or not?

When I began writing my memoir, Arranging a Dream: A Memoir, I was conflicted about several scenes. The first commandment when writing a memoir is to always tell the truth. Should I tell the truth about a couple as being mean and selfish? People who were well-known and loved in the community. They have passed away, but their family lives in the area.

Arranging a Dream by J.Q. Rose

The memoir covers the first year my husband and I purchased a floral and greenhouse business in 1975. The operation was located in Michigan, five hours away from our home in Central Illinois. Because we wanted to make our dream of working for ourselves come true, we bought the operation from strangers. We didn't know anyone in the community to ask about their reputation. Trusting the owners were honest folks, we packed up our belongings, said goodbye to friends and family, and two paychecks, we moved with our one-year-old daughter to Michigan.

Still, the worry about deciding if we made the right decision niggled in our hearts. Were the owners taking advantage of a young couple with stars in their eyes? We had no business experience and no floral design skills, only a dream to work hard and develop the business. We needed the owners to stay with us, teach us about the everyday workings of the operation, and share their experience in the flower business.

No, I am not going to tell you how the book ended. No spoiler here!!

To make the story read like a novel, I made the owners the villains. Everybody loves a villain, and conflict engages readers. We had plenty of conflict with the previous owners during that year. Because the book is creative non-fiction, I  chose to change their names since they have passed and could not tell their side of the story, as well as to protect their identity due to the family still living in the area. 

The amazing revelation as I wrote the story brought about an understanding of why the owners treated us like that. I try to stress in my life storytelling workshops that yes, the participants may be writing for reasons such as leaving a legacy to their families, but I don't believe a writer realizes how much she will learn about her own life until she reflects on the experiences through the lens of time. (Sorry for getting off-topic, but you must realize I am a life storytelling evangelist!)

Reviewers have called it inspiring and fascinating, so I feel I made the right decision to forge on with telling the truth and finishing the book.

Thank you for stopping in. 

Please leave a comment below. I am anxious to discover how bloggers have wrangled with writing or not writing their stories.

Click here to visit more bloggers during the blog hop! 

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catch-up

Last week was an active week in my book marketing life. A guest interview, an article, and a podcast popped up on the Internet during the same week!

If you have time to visit them now or later, please click the links below. Thank you!

BWL Publishing author badge

How the Internet Affects Your Brain Function at the BWL Publishing Insiders Blog

Click here for a thank you from author Shannon Lawrence featuring books by all the bloggers she visited while touring with her new writing craft book--The Business of Writing Short Stories.

Click here to visit Shannon's feature of her new release on this blog.

Click here to visit the Blue Million site where author Amy Merz shows off her clever way of conducting interviews.

Click here to listen to my reading of Terror on Sunshine Boulevard at author Diana Kathryn Plopa's Indie Reads Aloud podcast.

A HUGE thank you to all of my hosts!

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Please pray for the people of Ukraine and Russia 

and the countries involved in defeating the dictator.

Happy New Year, Goals for 2020, End of Year Book Sales at Smashwords: 75% Off

HAPPY NEW YEAR
2020!!

Make 2020 the year to tell your life story! But the project is too overwhelming to consider? Life story teacher and published author, J.Q. Rose, can help. She'll guide you through her new release, Your Words, Your Life Story: A Journal for Sharing Memories.

Click here to join the FB group, Telling Your Life Story and Memoirs Circle, and share your journey with others like you.

Your Words, Your Life Story: A Journal for Sharing Memories
by J.Q. Rose

REVIEW: 5.0 out of 5 stars

A Must-Read for Journaling

Format: Paperback

***This book is for anyone considering journaling. More of a storyteller than a writer? It touches on audio and video journaling as well. The author has even created a private Facebook Group for journaling support. 
A must-read for folks who want guidance in leaving family stories for future generations. It also makes a great gift. Sandra Cox

***In an email to me a reader called the book "beautiful."

GOOD NEWS! 75% OFF Year End Sale from BWL Publishing, my fiction publisher. 

75% off Books released by Books We Love Publishing at Smashwords till the end of the year. Now's 

the time to pack that new reading device with incredible ebooks including my cozy fiction and thriller books. 

Click here to download my romantic suspense and thriller novels now for only $1.00 to $1.25 each!

Mysteries on Sale Now at Smashwords!

Halloween Storytime Blog Hop: The Undertaker's Daughter

Storytime Blog Hop

Halloween

BOO! and welcome to the Storytime Blog Hop! This quarterly edition theme is, what else but Halloween? Talented authors share short fiction stories from 500-1000 words for your entertainment. You're invited to hop around the especially, creepy, scary cyberspace today to read fascinating stories based on the optional theme of Halloween. The list of participants is located at the bottom of the page. 

Have a safe and happy Halloween!

I apologize if I am breaking the rules today by sharing a story I shared 5 years ago on this blog. But it is so perfect for Halloween, I couldn't resist. This piece has a place in my heart because it was the impetus to spark my mystery novel, Deadly Undertaking. 

Deadly Undertaking
Paranormal Mystery

The book's setting is a funeral home because I am the daughter of an undertaker. And I have two brothers who are funeral directors. When I wrote this story for a fun blog post years ago, I had no idea I would have a published mystery from the idea. 

Anyway, it's Halloween, a time for fun, silly costumes, and candy! You'll have to decide if the tale I'm spinning is a trick or a treat. Take a break and have fun with this. You'll get to know me better after learning about my "growing up" years.

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TheUndertaker’s Daughter

By J Q Rose

I always thought of horror writers as eccentric, peculiar people. But my perception changed when a horror story sprang from my own mind. You can imagine my surprise when my mystery/horror tale Sunshine Boulevard was accepted and published in 2011. That made ME a published author of horror stories.

Right away, I must tell you I am not an eccentric, peculiar person. I’m just a regular woman who is a wife, mother, grandmother. I like eating a burger at McDonald's, shopping at Walmart, and reading mystery novels. But, perhaps some would think my childhood was different. You see, my father was an embalmer and funeral director. I was reared in a funeral home.

It was not unusual to have a dead body laid out in a casket several days in a row in our living room which converted to the funeral chapel. In fact, sometimes we’d have more than one body in our home. The embalming room was in the back of the house, and yes, I wore lots of perfume and soap to cover the pungent odor of formaldehyde on my clothes and hair

Casket
Image by OpenClipart-Vectors from Pixabay 

We had knee caps for ashtrays in the private area of our home…not in the public area because that may upset some folks. But Dad was a heavy smoker, so he appreciated having the convenience of an ashtray nearby at all times.

In our kitchen, boxes of ashes of the departed sat in the pantry shelves next to the canned green beans and corn. Some families squabbled over who was going to pay the funeral expenses for their dearly departed, so they never showed up to claim the ashes for fear of being left with the debt.  In one case the family of Ida Mayberry never claimed their sweet aunt. So Aunt Ida took up residence in the cupboard next to the baked beans.

Can of baked beans
Image by OpenClipart-Vectors from Pixabay 

Life as an undertaker’s daughter did not seem to be any big deal. My friends, well, most of them, were happy to come over and play hide and seek in the casket room or to swipe flowers out of the funeral arrangements to put in our hair for dress up.

My girlfriends did get upset when one of the spirits who regularly hung out in the funeral home flew by. The whoosh of air was the only indicator of their presence. Yes, I lost a couple of friends that way because they were scared to death…well, not literally. They just were creeped out especially when one of the spirits would knock over the Barbie dollhouse or send the collection of Barbies swirling around the room.

Needless to say, I enjoyed going to my friend’s house. It was a treat to open their pantry door to get a can of pineapple and not see the boxed ashes of poor Aunt Ida. I could never shake the sadness I felt for her because noone cared enough to bury her ashes or at least sprinkle them on their garden.

So, yes, some may believe it was an unusual childhood compared to the experiences of others. But I felt loved, secure, and safe at all times. And that’s what counts for a kid.

The growing up years certainly shape the adult one becomes. I don’t know if this is the reason I can write a horror story or not, but I can assure you I am a normal, well-rounded person, not eccentric or peculiar at all. In fact, I got rid of the knee cap ashtrays just last week. I do have Aunt Ida in the cupboard. Her family never claimed her and I have grown attached to her company.

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So do you believe what you read? I must confess most of it is made up. And of course, Deadly Undertaking is fiction, but I did have my funeral director brothers help me with the story. So, it's loosely based on the real funeral business. The keyword here is loosely.!

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EXTRA! EXTRA! READ ALL ABOUT IT!

Click here or on the JQ Rose Courier graphic at the top of the sidebar to have your copy of the JQ Rose Courier delivered to your inbox. You'll find out about new releases, giveaways, contests with prizes and what JQ is up to.
Thanks!
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If you're not scared to death, please hop on over to the participants in the Storytime Blog Hop. The list is below.
PODCAST: General Link: Alone In A Room With Invisible People

1. Family Time by Bonnie Burns
2. The Exception by Vanessa Wells
3. Number 99 by Juneta Key
4. Edda’s Second Chance by Katharina Gerlach
5. Very Thin Line by Rebecca Anne Dillon
6. Henry Moves House by Nic Steven
7. For The Ghost The Bell Tolls by James Husum
8. Never Alone by Melanie Drake
9. The Neighbor by Meghan Collins
10. Storytime Blog Hop by Raven O'Fiernan
11. Loney Lucy by Bill Bush
12. The Traveler by Barbara Lund
13. Evening by Karen Lynn
14. Man Of Your Dreams by Gina Fabio
15. The Undertaker's Daughter by J. Q. Rose
16. The Road by Elizabeth McCleary
17. Storytime Blog Hop by C. T. Bridges
18. Storytime Blog Hop by Warp World Books

#IWSG Blog Hop: Antagonists Are Awesome by J.Q. Rose

IWSG Blog Hop---the first Wednesday of every Month.

Hello and welcome to the Insecure Writer's Support Group Blog Hop! 

Always on the first Wednesday of the month.

What is the Insecure Writer's Support Group?

Founded by author Alex J. Cavanaugh, the Insecure Writer’s Support Group offers support for writers and authors alike. It provides an online database, articles and tips, a monthly blog posting, a Facebook and Instagram group, Twitter, and a monthly newsletter. To find out more, click this link:  Insecure Writer’s Support Group

The purpose of the group is 

* to share and encourage. 

* Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. 

* Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. 

*It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds! 

You're invited to become a member of this supportive group. Click here to sign-up to join.

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March 6 Question -

Whose perspective do you like to write from best, the hero (protagonist) or the villain (antagonist)? And why?
I must admit I enjoy creating the antagonist character. Maybe it's that teenage desire to rebel against being a good girl all the time. My dad was in business in our community and I had to maintain a sterling reputation or Dad would lose business. 

When writing the villain (male or female) I relish in the all the possibilities to make that character as mean, as bad, as greedy, as manipulative and all that "good" stuff readers want their villain to be. 

I also like to make the bad guy a fully rounded character with bad as well as some good traits. I don't want a cartoon character for an antagonist. 

Looking forward to reading comments and answers from other bloggers on this question. Readers, Please leave a comment to tell us what kind of a villain you like in your favorite stories. Thanks.

Thank you for stopping in today. 

Click here to visit more participants in the IWSG Blog Hop.

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Still a writer?? 😁

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Late Night Fright, #MFRWbooks Blog Hop

Book Hooks Blog Hop #MFRWbooks

Hello and welcome to the Focused on Story Blog. Today we're joining the Book Hooks Blog Hop sponsored by the Marketing For Romance Writers Group. (#MFRWbooks) Each participating blogger shares an excerpt from a novel. I'm featuring my paranormal suspense, Terror on Sunshine Boulevard. Hope it will give you smiles and chills.

You're invited to come on along to visit authors sharing their books with you.The link to the list of participants is at the end of the page. Have fun!

Terror on Sunshine Boulevard by J.Q. Rose

Paranormal Suspense

Back of the Book: Rescuing a naked woman lying in a geranium bed? Investigating mysterious murders Not the usual calls for first responder Jim Hart. He expects slip and fall accidents or low blood pressure emergencies in his retirement community of Citrus Ridge Senior Community and Golf Resort. The ghastly crime scenes turn the winter time fun into a terrifying season of death and mystery when the authorities cannot track down the predator responsible. 

Jim and his wife Gloria could escape the horror and grief by returning to their northern home, but concern for their friends and residents keep them in Florida. With the entire community in a dither over the deaths, the Harts participate in the normal winter activities of golfing, dancing, and pool parties with their friends to distract them from the sadness and loss.

Can Jim and Gloria work with the authorities to discover who or what is killing the seniors on Sunshine Boulevard and stop the increasing body count?

Video:

Video: Terror on Sunshine Boulevard Book Trailer 

Excerpt: Terror on Sunshine Boulevard, Chapter 4

Mr Tweeble’s next door neighbor, Doris Hadley, couldn’t sleep. She prowled through her cupboards to find a snack. Sometimes slurping up some raisin bran cereal and milk and watching a late night movie on the AMC channel made her sleepy. She filled a bowl and settled into her recliner.

Placing her spoon and bowl on the table next to her chair, she pulled her heavy robe around her thin body and sat down in her lounger. She clicked the remote and the TV across the room shined bright in the darkened room. Pleased to discover a favorite oldie on the classic movie channel, Doris traded the remote for her cereal and concentrated on watching the movie and indulging in the night time treat.

After a few minutes, she turned up the volume, and then again turned it louder. Ungluing her eyes from the TV screen, she realized she couldn’t even hear the TV with Mr. Tweeble’s confounded dog barking and howling interrupting Casablanca.

Doris set aside her cereal bowl on the end table. She pulled her frail body from the deep seat ready to make a phone call to complain about the dog. Of course once she was up, the pet quit yapping. She looked out the window to see if his owner had let him out into the backyard, but the motion light wasn’t on. Ah, silence from next door. Maybe now she could watch her movie without that annoying barking.

Doris picked up her cereal bowl and returned to the kitchen to fill it with more raisin bran and milk. She settled down in front of the maple TV console. As she brought a spoonful of her midnight snack to her lips, the terrier next door began raising the roof with his howls and woofs again.

She had enough of that damn dog. She wrestled herself up from the recliner as fast as she could and stood mesmerized by a dazzling yellow light blazing through Old Man Tweeble’s house. Momentarily blinded by the amazing brightness, she scrambled out to her screened-in porch to get a better view and caught a whiff of the most putrid odor she had ever smelled in her eighty-three years on this earth.

Doris moved as quickly as her legs allowed to call 9-1-1. Where was that dad-burned phone? Who ever thought of cordless phones anyway? When there were phones hooked up to the wall with a cord on the handset, no one ever missed a call because they couldn’t find the damn thing. She was exasperated, but she was more scared the house next door might explode into flames if she didn’t call right away.

Doris checked the kitchen table, the couch cushions and the night stand by the bed for the phone. Finally she found it where it should be…on the desk in the charger. She grabbed it and called 9-1-1.

“Come quick! There was a flash of bright light next door. Something’s on fire!” Doris couldn’t breathe. “Hurry!” Everything turned black as she passed out and fell to the floor clutching the phone to her chest.

* * * *

Two bodies were discovered in that early morning in the homes on Sunshine Boulevard—Mr. Ralph Tweeble and Mrs. Doris Hadley. The aura of death and mystery overshadowed the gorgeous sunny day.

Meet Jingles

Available in Paperback at Amazon 

and in ebook formats at major digital retailers.

Click here to order at these online booksellers.

Click here to visit bloggers who are participating in the Book Hooks Blog Hop. Enjoy meeting new authors and visiting your favorites. 
Thanks for stopping by.

Pointers on Writing a Blog by J.Q. Rose Updated, Facebook Live Videos

Blogging
Courtesy of freedigitalphotos.net
Photo by Stuart Miles

I love blogging and enjoy penning blog posts. Besides writing, I enjoy reading blogs. 
I can see that scowl of disbelief forming on your face. But, yes. I DO love sharing information, inspiration, and fun with readers. 

Most of all, I like receiving comments. Writing is an isolating job, so when blog readers actually respond with a comment, I feel more connected to the world. Thank you to all who take time to say hi, leave a thought about the content of the blog, or ask a question. I know you have lots of other things to do, so I appreciate the time you spend here on the blog.

Reading blogs is one of my satisfying "hobbies." I don't do it and leave a comment strictly for marketing purposes. I love meeting new folks and keeping in touch with friends. Blogging is the vehicle that allows me to do that.

TIP:  By the way, when you do leave a comment on a blog, please leave a way for the blogger to return your visit. Here's the secret formula, well maybe not so secret anymore, for constructing the HTML link to your blog so a blogger can click on the link and be taken right to your site!

You MUST copy this exactly, especially being careful not to add or delete a space in any of it, in order to make a correct link. 

<a href=http://yoursite.com>yoursitename</a>

Replace the bold sections with your information. 

Then go to your blog and in your own comment section, c/p the link and submit. You will see immediately if you have the link correct because only yoursitename will show up.--no symbols or letters. Good luck! It may take you a few tries.

Updated--Pointers on Writing a Blog by J.Q. Rose
originally published on this blog in October 2015

In my marketing research, my experience,  and reading blogs, I've picked up a few pointers I thought I'd share with you. I hope you find them helpful. Please add to the list so we can all learn more.

• When I come across information or have an idea for a blog post, I go immediately to my blog page and click new post. I make a few notes, copy the URL of an article that got my attention, and type in a working title. These ideas already collected in my behind-the-scenes unpublished blog posts give me a bit of peace when I'm struggling to think of a post. 
• Choose a day each week that you can commit to posting up your blog. Keep it like you do for a dental appointment or your kid's soccer practice. Your appointment with yourself to write your blog should be on your calendar every week or more often if you wish.. 
• All the blog gurus encourage us to have a photo of ourselves on the top of the page. The purpose of a blog is to connect with readers, so having a picture helps them to do that. Not an avatar but a real-life photo of you.
• Images help attract and keep readers. Take your own photos or look them up online. WARNING: Please be sure you can legally use the photos on your blog. Sites for finding images are freedigitalphotos.net (my favorite as you can probably tell,} pixabay.com, presentermedia.com, and makerbook.net. Leave a comment to let us know your favorite sites for images.
• Video is coming to the front as a real draw to attract readers and keep them on the site. You can make your own video from your laptop, phone, camera, record it on YouTube, Hangouts, and PowerPoint programs. 
• LIVE video is all the rage and it's fun. On FB Live, visitors can leave comments and you can interact with them in real time. Or if they have a question, they can ask and you can return to your video post and answer questions later. You can also post the Facebook video on Youtube to increase viewership and share it on all your social media. Watch my FB Live video below--Writing Tip: Focus on the Holidays 
• Make attractive, eye-catching graphics with quotes or poems quickly with Quotes Cover and  Quozio. Canva is another choice for making lots of kinds of graphics, but it takes a bit of experimenting and practice to get a decent product.

Quote image made using canva.com

TIP: When adding an image to your blog, be sure to add a caption. Phones and tablets don't always show the images, but they will display the caption to let readers know what the picture is. 

• When offering a link to a page, don't use" click here." Instead, write out the name of the URL link so the reader knows what page they will be jumping to. Be sure to set your blog to allow a new pop-up box for the link the reader is going to instead of leaving your blog completely.
• At the end of your post, ask the reader to subscribe to your page. Direct her to the location on your page so she can easily find and add her email.  The Follow by Email should be above the fold so the reader sees it right away.

Jeni Elliott, the Blog Maven, suggests bloggers not include their social media links on their website because clicking on the page will direct the reader away from the blog. What do you think of that idea? You can read more about it and other tips in her FREE guide, Five Things You Can Do to Increase Subscribers. She offers lots of resources for bloggers on her site.

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FB Live Video--Writing Tip: Focus on the Holidays

VIDEO--Writing Tip: Focus on the Holidays by J.Q. Rose

If you have time, click here to watch more of my videos at the J.Q. Rose, Author Facebook 
Page including "How NOT to Make a FB Live Video." Warning! I'm just learning and experimenting with this new way of connecting with folks.

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Thanks for spending time at the J.Q. Rose blog. Do you enjoy reading articles like this one with helpful tips and information for writers/bloggers? Do you have some suggestions for topics for this blog?

And just as I schooled you, please enter your email address in the Follow by Email box in the sidebar so you'll be notified of new posts on the J.Q. Rose blog. I promise, NO SPAM. Thank you!