Into the Fire

Great song! Jesus IS alright! 

Thank you, Lord, for being the same yesterday, today, and forever. In the Name above all names, the Name of Jesus, Amen. 

I haven't written many novels. Eleven to be exact. Two are finished but not published. The twelfth one is in progress, although it's been dormant for a few months. 

I'm an indie author who's paid for the publishing of nine of those novels. 

I'm a terrible marketer.

I've written stories since I was a child, but it wasn't until I was well into adulthood that I wrote that first novel which turned out to be a 400+ thousand-word saga about horse racing as per the Lord's very explicit instruction to me. It took 8 and 1/2 years to finish because I worked 7 days a week in horse racing, home-schooled a few of those years, and did some lay ministry at church. If I'd written it now, having learned so much more than I knew then, it would never have been that long. 

I admire those authors who are structured and disciplined and keep those stories coming according to a plan. I'm not really wired that way. One year I wrote three novels, all over 90K words. That hasn't happened since.

Just some of my "author" thoughts I contemplate now and then. 

Amazon.com : Books by Nicole Petrino-Salter 

Father, thank you for every one of those novels. Apart from you, I can do nothing. That's the truth. Help me to continue to follow your instruction and inspiration. In the Name of Jesus, Amen. 

     See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ. 

Colossians 2:8 (NIV)

Reading is a pleasure, a joy, a gift for me. 

Lately, I've run into a few people who don't enjoy reading. One explained because of her dyslexia, she found it frustrating which is certainly understandable. The other didn't give a reason for not liking to read. 

I've loved reading since I learned to do it, and while I read a lot of non-fiction books as a young girl – explicitly on horses, horsemanship, and any true stories about horses – novels are my absolute favorites. No surprise to those who follow this blog. 

The inherent value in novels is the beauty of truth being told in story form. No matter the genre, truth shows up somewhere – even if it's an ugly truth about how people can be at their worst.

Those who show disdain for fiction have failed to realize the value found within their pages. I will say, in order to truly enjoy a story, the reader needs to find the genre(s) and author(s) they appreciate. From romance to science fiction, there are books for everyone out there. Never devalue the importance of novels. Written well, they can change your soul, uplift your spirit, and touch your heart. 

Father, thank you for stories, for authors that honor you with their creativity that you've given them, and please bless readers in the process. Apart from you, we can do nothing. Thank you is never enough. In the Name of Jesus, Amen. 

Ever had one of these kind of days? Yeah, well . . . 

Father, thank you for watching out for me my entire life. Thank you is never enough. You've been so gracious to me. In the Name of Jesus, Amen. 

This is a different kind of excerpt this Wednesday. The first page of . . . in a love song:

              “Heard it in a love song . . . can’t be wrong.”

                                       The Marshall Tucker Band

              Many waters cannot quench love;

                  rivers cannot wash it away.

              If one were to give

                  all the wealth of his house for love,

                  it would be utterly scorned.

                                       Song of Songs 8: 7 (NIV)

Now the foreword:

Foreword . . .

There are myriad inspirations cited by novelists when asked to discuss the motivation for a particular novel. Readers repeatedly ask, “How do you come up with your ideas for a story?” Answers will range from the mundane to the spectacular.

. . . in a love song  is a unique romance novel for me for a number of reasons.

First of all, it was inspired by the song “Heard It in a Love Song” by The Marshall Tucker Band on their Carolina Dreams album. I’m a lyrics girl so as I listened to the words of this tune, I couldn’t help but picture the “narrator” as a character in a love story. What kind of guy would he be? And of course from there Dale Rivers came to life with several exceptions to the man in the song. And what kind of female would it take to capture his heart and make him want to settle down? Enter Patricia Edison. And how would life change for them if . . . ?

In the second place I’m not a fan of the typical stack of conflicts often woven into romance novels. There is only one primary conflict in this story of two 30-somethings facing love for the first time in their lives.

Thirdly, this story features everyday life with abundant dialogue as if you’re experiencing conversations externally and internally with them. It’s flirty, romantic, and raw at times, not to “offend” but to be real. There are a few unexpected turns in the story, but really it’s all about the “Big Three”: love, romance, sex.  

Finally, I write Christian Fiction. Unashamedly. One thing you will always find in my novels is the contrast of life lived in the world without Jesus as opposed to life lived knowing Jesus personally. The two main characters in this story have a vague awareness of God but it’s not personal in the beginning.

Having said all of that, if you love straight-up romance, I think you’ll fall in love with Dale Rivers’ and Patricia Edison’s love story. 

Raw, Romantic, Redemptive

Father, only you can help me, inspire me, encourage me, and direct me. Apart from you, I can do nothing. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Halleluuuujah! 

Praise the Lord God Almighty. In the Name of Jesus, Amen. 

I've just finished three novels in a series written by a familiar author (to me) who I'm sure is writing under a pen name which encompasses many other authors. An indie published author(s) of many series books, some of which are at the 22nd, 18th, and so on number of novels in each series, cannot be accused of mistake-free or edited literature. Popular stories that borrow from the mystery genre as well as sometimes using the characters or at least their names from some mystery television series.

But let's face it, some readers pay little attention to what would be considered "good" writing and tend not to notice when the author writes about their main characters getting a tingling up their spines nearly every paragraph or that their hearts are beating out of their chests in every third paragraph during a discovery moment or "scary" interaction. For those of us who take great pains not to use such obvious repetition or cliched descriptions, it definitely gets eye-rolling tedious. 

However, why, you ask, did I bother to read three of these novels? Because at first, I was interested in the heroine's story and the restoration of her reputation. And although the actual writing was annoying at times, I wanted to see how she was developed in the series. Beyond that, I don't have much to say because the third book just became frustrating, and I started not to like her for the way she handled "things." 

Anyway, these multiple series have sold thousands, maybe millions, of copies, and sometimes that in itself is a mystery to me.  

Father, thank you for the stories and characters you've given me. May I honor you with each one. Apart from you, I can do nothing. In the Name of Jesus, Amen. 

     "If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Counselor to be with you forever — the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept Him, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. But you know Him, for He lives with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him."  (Jesus) 

John 14:15-21 (NIV) 

                        From my unfinished manuscript . . . 

Chapter 10

I hustled back to my house and into the room I’d dedicated for my gym. I jerked off my shirt and went to the treadmill. Warming up at a brisk walk, I did my best not to contemplate my behavior, but it was no use. As I turned up the speed to a jogging pace, I realized this attraction was more than casual lust for me. That terrified me. Because I had no idea why or how I was supposed to act realizing that this woman I barely knew was wrecking my concentration, inspiring a new novel in the middle of another one I had to finish first! Things couldn’t have been more chaotic in my mind as I increased the speed to a run.

     Completely sapped, I shut down the treadmill without looking at all the read-outs, dripping sweat. Grabbing the towel I kept nearby I wiped off most of it and walked over to my weights.

     I did every lift I could handle, put the last of my weights back on their rack, and walked over to the portable fridge to grab some electrolyte water, chugging the entire 16 ounces. I kept one straight back chair in the large room and I plopped down on it with the empty container still in my hand while I stared at the bamboo flooring.

     Something was up with me – something I didn’t recognize. Unfamiliar, and for sure nerve wracking. I honestly felt like change was sneaking up on me, and I had no idea why or what it was supposed to look like, be about, or what it intended for me. Change was not a good thing in my world unless I determined I wanted it, unless it was my idea. And this? This was like being tied to the proverbial train track with six locomotives roaring toward me from a distance.

     I leaped up and stripped, walked over to the shower in the bathroom I had installed in a corner of the room. I must’ve stood under it for 20 minutes, first very warm, then lukewarm, trying to right my wrong mindset. But was it wrong? Or was it just confounding me because it introduced something I wasn’t expecting and consequently attempting to resist?

     I stepped out of the shower and wrapped the towel around my waist without drying off.

     “What?!” I shouted, my voice cracking from the volume.

     It was then I heard the front doorbell chime. My clothes were too sweaty to throw on so I walked to the front door to see if it was the UPS driver leaving a package. He always rang the bell to let me know he’d delivered one. When I looked out the tiny peephole, I frowned and threw open the door so hard it hit the door stop and bounced back nearly hitting me.

     “What the hell are you doing here?”

Father, only you make stories happen, give me words and characters. You know how I'm struggling with this one even though I like it. Help me, Lord, as only you can do. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.