Life Lessons: My current work in progress - Ruth L. Snyder

One of the projects I'm tackling this year is a collaborative effort with five other authors. Helping Hands Press is publishing the San Francisco Wedding Planner series, a light romance. Our publisher presented us with the context for the story and the main characters. It's up to our team to fashion a fun, interesting story. To launch the project, each of the six authors wrote one chapter of the opening story. The Initial Consultation was published in February. I will also be writing the complete story for volume 6, but I have to wait until volume 5 is written (the beginning of June) so that I can tie the loose strands together to end this first series. Volume 6 (my story) is scheduled for release on July 3rd.

For the second series of the San Francisco Wedding Planner, each of the authors is writing a prequel about one character from the first series. My character is Heather Donovan, wedding planner extraordinaire. I'm just putting the finishing touches on Life Lessons, which will be published in mid-July. Heather is in her first year of nursing practice, experiences her first love, and comes up against some challenges which cause her to examine her choices.

I am finding this project challenging in several ways. First, there is only one plot which is shared by all six authors. You never know what interesting twists the writer before you will throw into the mix. Another challenge is the quick turn-around time for writing. Each writer has between two to three weeks to write 10,000 words once she receives the story previous to hers. I'm also finding it a challenge to write for the general market - keeping the story light, funny, and interesting, but also offering the reader something to think about.

Here's a teaser for you:

"Ms. Simons is in labor and will deliver soon. You'll assist, of course. She has requested a late-term abortion."

"How far along is she?"

"Twenty-two weeks."

"That far? What if the baby is viable?"

"The fetus will not survive. Do you understand?"

Heather searched Jonathan's eyes. "What are you saying?"

"You will not provide any extra support that could determine viability. Ms. Simons is near the edge mentally and I've agreed to perform a late-term abortion for health reasons."

"But Jonathan. How can you even say those words? Do you realize what that means? Baby Shannon was born at twenty-two weeks and she's viable. How can you not provide the same level of care for this baby?"

"Because my patient, Ms. Simons, has the right to choose. It's our job to meet the needs of our patients."

"But technically, once the fetus is delivered, he or she becomes your patient too. Do we just stand by and let him or her die? Doesn't that make us complicit in murder?"

"Heather, you studied abortion. Didn't you know you'd be asked to provide medical assistance with these types of procedures?"

"Of course, but I never expected to be presented with two babies at the same gestation, with totally opposite requests for care. Did you encourage Ms. Simons to consider adoption?"

"Heather, you know that's not my place. Yes, I presented her with options, but she had to make her decision. I couldn't sway her."

"But what about the Hippocratic Oath, specifically that phrase about never doing any harm?"

"I'm glad you brought that up, because providing treatment to the fetus may prove harmful to Ms. Simons. I have my instructions from her and I intend to carry them out. What I need to know is whether you're prepared to back me up or not. I'm hoping I know the answer to that question, but I need to be sure before we assist Ms. Simons."

"How can you even ask me to do this?" Heather glared at Jonathan.

"Because it's your job." He glared back. "This may be the first time you've been asked to help with this procedure, but it won't be the last." He grasped her firmly by the shoulders."I know it's tough, but as a medical professional you must do it."

"And if I refuse?"

"You don't want to go there."

For more about Ruth and her writing go to ruthlsnyder.com and "like" her Facebook Author Page

Why I Wrote Cecile's Christmas Miracle - Ruth L. Snyder

People write fiction for many different reasons, several of which have been discussed already by other bloggers this month. As a Christian writer, I take my writing seriously. I believe that God has gifted me with an ability He expects me to hone and use to accurately reflect His image. This doesn't mean that what I write has to be heavy theology. In fact, I believe that God is just as delighted with me expressing His image through a creative, fun story (fiction) as He is with a thought-provoking devotional (non-fiction).

On December 5th, my novella, Cecile's Christmas Miracle, will be released in e-book format on Amazon, Kobo, and Barnes & Noble. (This is the 7th story in the Kathi Macias' 12 Days of Christmas series with Helping Hands Press.) There are several reasons I wrote this story:

• To introduce people to the beautiful country and people of Botswana, where I spent several of my growing up years. Botswana is a land-locked country in southern Africa, most of which is part of the Kalahari Desert.
• To force myself out of my comfort zone. I'm very comfortable writing short pieces and haven't written a novella or novel before. I like a challenge and this was an opportunity to write a longer piece.
• To give people an enjoyable story that would make them think.
• To show people in North America what it's like to spend Christmas overseas, where it is celebrated in the middle of summer with no snow, no turkey, and perhaps no family nearby
• To remind people of the true essence of Christmas. In North America we often define Christmas by traditions (turkey and mistletoe), weather (snow), and shopping (gifts). People celebrating Christmas overseas are often stripped of these facades and forced to truly focus on the birth of Jesus Christ.

I found it enjoyable and challenging to write this story. It was fun because I was able to relive some childhood memories and share a treasured part of my life many of my friends know little about. It was also gratifying to rise to a challenge and conquer it. The challenge came in crafting a plot that was believable and entertaining, but also true to life and educational. When I did my research for the story, I was horrified to read about the resettlement of the San Bushmen. It was challenging to present that part of the plot in a way that didn't put anyone down, but at the same time showed the struggles that expatriates face in foreign countries.

What about you? Do you write fiction for any of the same reasons I do?

Ruth L. Snyder

Ruth L. Snyder was privileged to spend the first ten years of her life in southern Africa where her parents served as missionaries. Ruth now lives in north-eastern Alberta with her husband and five young children. She enjoys writing about her journey of faith, special needs, and adoption.

http://ruthlsnyder.wordress.com

Collaboration On The Road To Publication - Ruth L. Snyder

I'm working on my final assignment for the course "Shape, Write, and Sell Your Novel" with the Long Ridge Writers' Group. The assignment focuses on putting together a traditional query package to send to potential publishers and/or agents. A couple days after I researched possible markets, I received an email from Kathy Macias, an acquaintance through The Christian PEN. She was looking for writers interested in writing a short story of 8-9,000 words as part of a Christmas project. I sent an email back requesting more information. As of July 8th, I'm officially part of the Kathy Macias 12 Days of Christmas Series. My deadline is November 1, 2013 and my story will be released in e-book format on December 1, 2013.

Here's my synopsis of the story I'm writing:
It's Christmas time, but Cecile is surrounded by heat, dust, strangers, and death. If she'd accepted Colin's proposal and stayed in Canada, she would be enjoying a "normal" Christmas. Instead, she's stranded in the middle of the Kalahari Desert, serving as the lone nurse at a mission clinic, faced with medical emergencies she wasn't trained to deal with. Little has changed despite months of hard work. Cecile has never been a quitter, but she's tempted to just pack it in and return home. She wants her life to make a difference. Did she mistake God's calling in her life?

So far, the process has been wonderful. There are twelve authors involved (including Marcia Laycock and me). We have contact with each other through email and questions/comments fly back and forth on a regular basis. Once the publisher, Helping Hands Press, received our contracts, we were invited to choose our cover pictures on shutterstock. We were also introduced to Giovanni Gelati, first through email and then through phone calls. He gave us an overview of the process and a list of things he needs from us as authors so that our stories can be promoted effectively. (He encouraged me to look at this process as a marathon, not a sprint.) The cover for the series will be released shortly and Kathy Macias' story will be released as the first in the series on September 1st. After that, a new story in the series will be released every 15 days. If sales warrant, the stories will also be released in paperback format.

Part of the publishing agreement is that each of us will "have and grow the following social media: Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, Amazon Author Page, Pinterest, Blog/Website." We also agree to make appearances on The G-ZONE blogtalk radio show on a monthly or bi-monthly basis and provide a guest post or Q &A at least twice a month for use on social networks. We are also strongly encouraged to support each other by writing reviews and posting them on the release date and interacting on the Helping Hands Press Facebook Page. If we have any questions along the way, we are coached and encouraged. Instead of focusing solely on developing our own platform, we are able to help each other and increase the size of our platform reach.

I'm looking forward to what God has for me and the other writers on this collaborative journey!

What has been your experience with publication? Did you feel alone or supported on your journey? I'd love to hear from you.

 Ruth L. Snyder and her husband, Kendall, live in scenic northeastern Alberta with their five young children. Ruth has had several articles published and is working on her first novel.

www.ruthlsnyder.com
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