Prickle Forrest ChroniclesJuly 2020 Newsletter

PRICKLE FORREST CHRONICLES

July 2020 (Posted 07/29/2020

By Chrissy Hartmann

No Fourth of July celebration. No community celebration of Independence Day. The city not festive at all. The town sits stagnate in the presence of this pandemic. But is it truly a pandemic? Or is it the figment of fear?

The hot humid days of summer have arrived. Unfortunately, with this pandemic it makes it difficult to cool down. No fun filled days going to the local pool unless of course you call ahead for a reservation for a quick dip. Needless to say, the air conditioner is getting a workout and will be happy to see the fall come sooner rather than later.

The flowers look beautiful and the grass is quite green, but unless it doesn’t rain soon the possibility of gazing out onto a brown patchy yard is inevitable.

Hope runs abundant for the autumn that this turmoil will exit our beautiful lands and the days of peace return. God bless America!

THE TOP FIVE

Rescuing Whiskey’s Salvation finished and sent to publisher.
Hand-dipped ice cream.
Baseball is back! Go Tribe!
Lemonade.
That Blind Tech Show.

WIP IT… WIP IT GOOD…

Working on book 2 to the Rescuing Whiskey’s Salvation series. As of right now, only going to write it as a 2-book series. Reworked the outline so it better fits the romance beats that Gwen Hayes teaches. Much stronger storyline and character arcs. About six chapters written with a few edits. Loving it!

QUERYING…

Made the changes EP suggested and sent it back to them as of July 13th. Hoping to hear back from them within 60 days with some positive news and maybe an offer. Had lots of help from the Wayne Novelist Guild, RedPen, two literary agents, and a number of others are on the page of acknowledgments of the book.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

THE CRAFT

This month’s writing tip…

If you are writing a romance, please read Romancing the Beat, Story Structure for Romance Novels. How to write kissing book 1 by Gwen Hayes. It’s a short book — very short, but does a fantastic job of explaining how romance beats are different from other genres. It’s a tremendous help for creating your outline.

THE HOLIDAYS:

Fourth of July or Independence Day arrived and unfortunately, due to the COVID-19 status our stupid state government officials made it very hard to celebrate the holiday. Surreal! And with all the riots, the thought of what country this actually is crossed the brain waves a number of times. Going to a cookout at the end of the month down in the hollar. Should be fun with lots of good food. Hopefully, no one will put the 4-wheeler into the pond this time. Oops! But it will be fabulous to hang out with everyone.

MY BOOKSHELF:

Romancing the Beat, Story Structure for Romance Novels. How to write kissing book 1 by Gwen Hayes
Five Secrets of Story Structure; How to write a novel that stands out by K.M. Weiland
The Bachelor; Duke Dynasty #2 by Sabrina Jeffries
The Bromance Book Club #1 by Lyssa K. Adams

SEASONAL FAVORITES:

SEASON: Summer

SPORTS TEAM: Cleveland Indians. Go Tribe!

COLOR: Dark Brown

CAUSE: The Seeing Eye

SONG: Truly Madly Deeply by Savage Garden

FOOD: Crisps Sweet Peas… Yummy!

HOT DRINK: Iced French vanilla cappuccino.

FLOWER: Daisies and roses…better yet…both!

DID YOU KNOW…

Dexcom G6 is a fabulous continuous glucose monitor. No more finger pricks. This is almost like having the pancreas working on its own again. Provides much freedom. One quick look at their app to monitor the blood sugars and one is good to go. And if you want to dress your CGM up why not try an overlay patch from Expression Med? Lots of great designs. Puppy paws, black cats, flowers, flags, shamrocks, etc. Check them out with the link below and get $5 off your firsts order. Hopefully you’ll love them as much as I do.

http://expressionmed.refr.cc/christinabenchoff

PRICKLERS OF THE MONTH..

Cancellation of 4th of July fireworks.
Rioters!
Rain storms that cause wind damage to the roof and inexperienced insurance adjusters.
The phrase “the new normal.”
Fascists, Socialists, Communists, Liberals.
COVID-19 mask bullies.

THEY SAID…

“The most valuable of all talents is that of never using two words when one will do. ”

– Thomas Jefferson

HOMETOWN UPDATE:

Unfortunately, due to this rotten Rona Walmart, Kohl’s, CVS, etc. are now requiring masks to enter their stores.
The Wayne Novelist Guild is using Facebook meet to hold their bimonthly meetings until the Wayne County Public Library can open back up to the public.
Wooster downtown Designated Outdoor Refreshment Area (DORA), which establishes boundaries for patrons to walk around with open containers of alcoholic beverages during specified times or events is now allowed.

INQUISITIVE MINDS…

The Muses want to know…

Should everyone wear a mask or should just those vulnerable be the ones to wear them?

Please comment below.

GOOSING OFF…

Goosie & Gander

The geese are trying to do their best to lighten the mood, and celebrate each day with merriment with bright colors, patriotic themes, and traditions of summer. They started the month out rocking the patriotic colors of red, white, and blue. Then they wanted to remind everyone not to forget about their pink friends, the flamingos and another , a delicious, favorite, the plump strawberry season. And let’s not forget the blooms of the summer. Last but not least, they are thrilled to head to the pool with the sunny days. Enjoy!