Jamie Hill's May Newsletter Now Available
My May Newsletter is now available!
If you're not a subscriber, why don't you check it out? There's a contest every month, and only one email per month--no chatter.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Jamie_Hill_Newsletter/
Congratulations to Ruthie for winning last month's contest, and a copy of the Lust Anthology!
Hope to see you on the list soon!
Jamie
www.jamiehill.biz
Musings for March/April 2007
This month I've been musing about a delightful animated film I caught on TV titled: HOWL'S MOVING CASTLE. I watched the English version of the movie with the voice talents of Christian Bale, Jean Simmons, and Billy Crystal, just to name a few.
What a fun movie. It's based upon the book by the same name written by author Diana Wynne Jones. The story is an enchanting mix of fantasy and fairy tales, science and magic, old and new. I was truly entranced by the story as well as the animation. Sure, there were a few parts that were very typically hokey, but over all, I was delighted by the inventive way the director and the animators presented this story and had to smile at the many references to other folklore and fairy tales.
The Official website is:
http://disney.go.com/disneypictures/castle/
In order to navigate through the site, you use a tiny ball divided into four colors/sections in the top right corner of the page. This is a device used in the movie and one I thought quite interesting. The movie was released in 2004, but for some reason, I never went to see it. I suspect it didn't come to my town, otherwise I'm sure I'd have gone.
The main gist of the story centers around a young woman named Sophie and how she not only discovers the hidden strength and confidence buried within her, but through her hardships, discovers love and happiness.
Her adventures begin when she's rescued from the unwanted attentions of two soldiers by the mysterious and somewhat feared Wizard Howl. Before she has time to recover from that encounter, the evil witch of the Wasteland arrives at her doorstep and accuses Sophia of stealing Howl's heart. Before Sophia can explain, the witch curses her, trapping the young Sophia in an old woman's body…and making it impossible for Sophia to reveal the truth of her curse to others.
Sophia decides to journey into the wasteland and find the witch and beg her to remove the curse. Thus begins her adventures and the realization that the only chance she has of breaking her curse lies with the mysterious, self-indulging Howl and his literally walking castle.
HOWL'S MOVING CASTLE is charming. I hope some of you get a chance to see it.
Until next time, may the magic always brighten your world! Sheri
February Musings
This month I've been musing about comic books, cartoon heroes, and the TV show Smallville.
Many people don't know this about me, but I love action cartoons and comics, especially the ones of the super hero variety. I will actually set my TV timer so I won't miss Batman on Saturday morning. This cartoon is a very slickly drawn series; I watch it as much for the adventure as I do the style.
I tend to lean toward cartoons/comics with an adventure or good over evil plots, and if they are set in fantasy or futuristic worlds, I'm sold.
I grew up reading comics and watching cartoons, and even as an adult would watch Saturday morning cartoons like Pirates of Dark Water, Johnny Quest, Super Friends, Fantastic Four, Green Lantern, Batman, Ghostbusters, Thundarr the Barbarian, Gargoyles . . . and countless others. I was always amazed at the interesting plots and storylines in many of these series: apocalyptic settings, magical worlds, impossible quests, and even some unexpected giggles. Many of the shows ended each week with a cliffhanger in order to lure you back. Sadly, some of these cartoons are still cliffhanging out in limboland because the cartoon was canceled before the quest could be completed. I always hated that.
As to Smallville. One day while flicking through the TV channels, I discovered this show and quickly added it to my list of comic favorites, though this isn't a cartoon, but a show based on Clark Kent pre-Superman the man. I don't recall what caused me to stop to watch this show. Maybe because I heard someone mention K-State, so I paused to listen, then I stayed to watch, and now I tune in weekly.
Smallville is pure comic book fun brought to life and set in a time before all the super heroes like Green Arrow, Aqua Man, Flash, and Superman became legendary. They have "issues," and don't always make the best choices, but they fight evil, and save their little corner of the world each week, and hey, even look great doing it. What more could I ask for? Okay, maybe that the great Wizard of Limboland magically finish the adventure/quest of Ren and his friends in Dark Water?
Meet and Greet Kansas Authors
Meet and Greet Kansas Authors
Sunday, March 4, 2007
11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Annual Gathering of Kansas Authors
Kansas Originals Market and Gallery
Wilson, KS
Over twenty Kansas authors from across the state will be on hand to meet the public: Roy Bird, Tom Parker, Lora K. Reiter, Suzanne Honeycutt, Richard Nelson, Velma Cooper Purdy, Eunice Boeve, Wanda Haney, Raymond E. Noah, Jerry Engler, Tom Mach, Angela Bates, Mike Klaassen, Pat Kirk, Max Yoho and the Coffee Shop Writers Group which includes Barbara Baldwin, Jamie Hill, Lee Killough, Linda Madl, and Sheri L. McGathy.
Labels: Invitation
Now available - just in time for Valentine's Day
Convincing Cate
by Jamie Hill
Vince Mason is sure the perfect woman doesn't exist. When he meets elusive Cate Reynolds and finds she's nearly as close to perfect as he can imagine, he doesn't want her to slip away.
Cate is attracted to Vince, but she sees one major problem - he's almost ten years younger, an age span she refuses to live with.
It's going to take one carefully crafted plan, a few well-meaning relatives, and maybe even a shot from Cupid's arrow before Vince is through Convincing Cate.
Alisha at TwoLips Reviews gives Convincing Cate 4 1/2 Kisses:
Jamie Hill creates a wonderful story of a young persistent man who knew what he wanted and was very determined to get it.. be warned, you need plenty of ice!
Suzette at Rites of Romance Reviews gives Convincing Cate 4 Lyra:
Convincing Cate is a lovely story for the romantic at heart... It reminds us that love finds a way and that it's not always sweet and mild, but also hot and passionate.
To read an excerpt or purchase, click here:
http://www.lovestruckbooks.com/convincingcate_excerpt.html
Finally writing again
This month I've been musing about the new novel I've been working on. After going through what I consider to be a rather long, dry spell, I am happy to report I've six chapters completed, over 16k, and several index cards with scenes written upon them ready to storyboard.
This story has been a hard one for me to vocalize--or rather hard for me to pull from my head and write in such a way that would allow each of you to "see" what I see. I suspect some of my problem has to do with the story being a bit different than my normal fare . . . or at least, at the very beginning, a bit different. Once I managed to take my five characters from the real world to the fantasy world, then I felt right at home. The words are flowing faster now and with much greater ease.
I've spent a good part of the morning organizing all my notes on the story, all my "just occurred to me" notes, that I have squirreled away as I pondered the story, and wanted to be sure to either include or enhance. I will spend the rest of the day entering them in my database for quick reference.
And since I finally seem to be in a writing mood, I also organized and revisited several of my "Ideas" notes…snippets of ideas that may or may not grow to stories.
Here are a few story ideas that will for sure be written after I finish my current wip:
The dragon story I have planned that was conceived from my readings on the Sarmatians
A duet with a friend, a story about mirrors and faeries and magic
Two novels started long ago that I wish to return to and complete:
Portals;
The Blood Stone
Both titles will most likely change, but the essence of the stories will remain the same.
Tanner's story
And finally, a few ghost stories that have been bugging me to give them some airtime.
There are a few other snippets of ideas that may or may not bear fruit. One never knows . . . WITHIN THE SHADOW OF STONE grew from a one line reference hastily scribbled on a small post-it note after I'd read a bit of history concerning the King's Stone. I tucked it in my ideas box and simply forgot about it for a few years, but one day, I opened the box and magic happened….
Sheri
Worth the Risk by Jamie Hill
Book 2 in my
Unexpected Love Trilogy
Worth the Risk
is now available from
LoveStruck Books!
Sarah Stevens isn't looking for romance when Sam Buchanan leases her loft. But that all changes when their mutual attraction finds them together, half naked, after only one day. After this momentary lapse, they agree to back off and move forward at a slower, more reasonable pace. Sam's slow dance of seduction is torturous—and thrilling—for Sarah, who's been alone since losing her husband eight years ago. With a teenager in the house, sneaking around is titillating but also risky, forcing Sarah to re-examine her priorities and decide if the pleasure Sam brings is Worth the Risk.
Read an excerpt or purchase here!
We're a diverse group of writers who came together around a table over our favorite beverages one day and began a dialogue about our love of writing. We shared our experiences, resources, and knowledge. We laughed a lot and commiserated some. The experience was so enlivening that we decided to continue to meet and to support each other in our respective creative journeys.
