What's in a name?

I first read The Great Gatsby in college. My literature teacher dissected everything about the book, including why F. Scott Fitzgerald selected the names for his characters. I remember wondering at the time if my teacher was simply guessing or had the train of thought he attributed to Fitzgerald been on track or off the rails.

When selecting names for my characters I give it considerable thought. One factor that always influences me is the people I knew by whatever name I am considering. If I was to name a character Hilda, she would probably be a sweet, kind hearted person like my grandma Hilda, whereas another writer might think of Broom-Hilda, the green cartoon witch who smoked cigars, chased men and drank beer.

I’m currently working on two new Coulson books, Coulson’s Wife, and another that has no title yet.

In Coulson’s Wife two of the main male characters were initially named Randall and Robert. I gave Randall’s character his name when I wrote Lessons in the mid-90s, so there was no changing that name. I felt Robert fit his character, and so did my beta readers.

However, one beta reader had serious reservations. Was Robert and Randall too similar, would it confuse readers? Afraid she might have a point, I decided to change his name. After much back and forth, we decided William would fit the character.

The other day I told my mother I decided to go with William. Mom is like me in that she relates names to people she once knew. 

Mom, who is 85 years-young then related a memory of a William she once knew when she was in elementary school. Apparently this William was always getting into some sort of mischief. One day, during show-and-tell, he brought to class a very explicit book (with illustrations) on making babies and childbirth.

Apparently the teacher was not paying attention, allowing her mind to wander to more interesting thoughts while young William stood before the classroom sharing his fascinating book. I imagine the teacher finally noticed something was funny, when the class was so quiet, and the kids were sitting on the edge of their seats.

It did not end well for poor William. Once the teacher figured out what was going on, the principal was called, and William was taken outside and given a severe paddling. Mom said as she and her classmates sat in the classroom, they could hear young William wailing in pain. 

My self-publisher protagonist, for my fellow writers

Aspiring writers have long been reminded of Mark Twain’s famous quote, “write what you know.” Some argue the quote shouldn’t be rigidly applied. If everyone did, there would be no books about vampires, time travel or alien invasions.

As for me, I tend to stay close to what I know when crafting characters. I probably won’t be writing spy novels like some of my author friends. I tend to stay closer to Nancy Drew.

In Lessons, the protagonist and her husband owned a restaurant. There are four generations of restaurateurs in our family.  My grandfather owned a restaurant – my parents owned a restaurant and my husband and I once owned a restaurant. Our son is in restaurant management.

The next book in the Coulson Series, The Senator’s Secret, the female protagonist is an Arizona real estate agent. My husband is an Arizona Broker and I was a real estate agent for a number of years.

The female protagonist in After Sundown works in the restaurant industry, and the male protagonist is a general contractor. My father was a general contractor.

In my soon to be released, While Snowbound, the female protagonist is a self-published independent author. Her career is an intricate part of the story line. In fact there would be no real story if she worked in any other field.

For independent writers who enjoy reading romance, I suspect they might get a kick out of While Snowbound, especially considering what happens at the end of the story.

Barnes and Noble Delay

I'm a bit frustrated. I expected Lessons to be up at Barnes and Noble by now;  it has been over a week since it was uploaded on the site. I've been having some issues, and so far have called them three times. It really isn't their fault - it involves an issue with my tax identification number.

Yet, yesterday I talked to someone over at Barnes and Noble who said he'd handle it manually, and the book should be live within 72 hours. Yet, when I log into the account, I see the same warning message, asking me to call them.

One of my friends has been waiting patiently for the Nook version, as she doesn't want to purchase the eBook at Smashwords, and I assume there are others who feel the same way.

I am also waiting for the proof of the paperback to arrive, so I can give that a go.

I hate waiting. I should be writing.

Lessons , available in print – Almost

Lessons will be available in print, sooner than I originally anticipated. I am waiting to receive the proofs from the printers.

Yes printers, there are two of them. I decided to offer the book in hardback and paperback, as well as eBook format. Yet, I really don’t expect to sell any hardbacks, as the price is a little hefty, especially for a “new author.”  But, there is someone on my Christmas list who would love a hardback of the book, and I am hoping it arrives in time.

The hardback I’m doing through Lulu.com, and the paperback through Amazon’s Create Space.

The book still isn’t live on the Barnes and Noble Nook site, as I had some issues with my tax information. Hopefully, the book will be live next week. Yet, Nook readers can purchase the file at Smashwords.

On the marketing front, I recently joined Goodreads, yet am still familiarizing myself with the site.

So much to do, when all I really want to do is get working on the next book, The Senator’s Secret. It is also set in my fictional town of Coulson, and will bring back characters from Lessons.