A new review...

Winter Wonders
Anthology by Cindy K. Green, Joann Carter, Meg Allison, and Muncy Chapman

The Long and the Short of It


This brief 79 page book is a compilation of four short, sweet, winter romances. All four tales were enjoyable, easy reads. It's definitely a curl-up-with-hot-chocolate-and-relax-by-the-fire sort of book that leaves one with a warm and agreeable aftertaste - you know, the type where you close the cover with a dreamy smile and a satisfied sigh.

#3 GWEN'S RESOLUTION by Meg Allison
Folks, I am a consummate sceptic in the "love at first sight" arena, but Meg Allison's beautifully woven story has softened my stance. She paints a wonderfully believable portrait of being in the right place at the proverbial right time and falling in love. Gwen is determined to stop sitting home alone, feeling sorry for herself. She's going to be bold and brave by celebrating New Year's Eve on her own. Her plans are changed, however, once she meets Tad.

Gwen and Tad are both depicted with depth and gentleness. And Ms. Allison didn't overshoot the brevity of the story by trying to take them beyond the beginning of their relationship - a be-ginning that promises to bloom into "Happily Ever After".
I think this may have been my favorite of the four stories!
Review by Black-eyed Susan

Wintry anthology

Winter Wonders
(anthology)

This month from
By Grace Publishing!

Featuring four wintery stories:

Gwen's Resolution
By: Meg Allison

Gwen sets out in the cold, snowy wonder one New Year's Eve to keep her sole resolution: she refuses to let single-hood spoil her fun anymore. But when fate takes her by the hand she comes face-to-face with the one thing she thought impossible—love.

Snow Kissed
By: Cindy K. Green

Today is one of those days Logan Reilly wished he’d stayed in bed. Not only does he have to deal with the annoying Winter Wonderland Carnival, but his close friend, that whimsical lover of snow, Holly Armstrong, was leaving town forever. The question is why didn’t she tell him and why today of all days does he realize he loves her? Can he change her mind and make her stay?

Smuggler of the Heart
By: JoAnn Carter

Disheartened and tired, Samantha Warren returns to Vermont during the winter break. Her passion for history rekindles after finding an old smuggler’s chest hidden in her grandparents' attic. Will she be able to return to New Jersey without her heart being smuggled like the chest once was? Or is it already too late? '

Maybe Forever
By Muncy G. Chapman

When Marcy Mayfield gives shelter to a near-frozen man during the worst blizzard of the season, her tender heart rules over her sensible head. But what if this stranger turns out to be the escaped prisoner reported loose in her area?

Coming soon... a choice

This DECEMBER from By Grace Publishing...

Gwen's Resolution
(c) 2007 Meg Allison
featured in WINTER WONDERS anthology

Gwen sets out in the cold, snowy wonder one New Year's Eve to keep her sole resolution: she refuses to let single-hood spoil her fun anymore. But when fate takes her by the hand she comes face-to-face with the one thing she thought impossible—love.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

So, I'm wondering ... have you ever made a New Year's Resolution, only to have it blow up in your face soon after? In a good way? Or a bad way? (GGGG) Yeah, I think it can be either/or.

We go through life making decisions, sometimes they turn out well. Sometimes we end up with more trouble than we ever dreamed of and sit there mumbling: "What the hell was I thinking???"

Choices. It's a big part of life. A good part. I'd hate not to have the ability to choose, really... even if I do screw it up once in a while. ;)

FREE read!

Stop by my website for a short read this October! It's written by one of my favorite unpublished authors. :)

Title: A Bad Start

Enjoy!

a FAMILIAR blurb...

Familiar
A short story by, Meg Allison
AFTER DARK anthology ~~ Sep. 28, 2007
By Grace Publishing

Sometimes things can be too FAMILIAR.

Penny Brown returns home to West Virginia hoping to get a fresh start.

But a ghost in the kitchen and prophetic dreams make her homecoming feel a bit spooky. It doesn’t help that she’s falling in love again. Could it merely be déjà vu?

***Stop by tomorrow for a short excerpt!***

Just the facts...and then some.

I'm in the midst of writing a short story and I've discovered I now have to go back to finish my research. Oh joy.

I'd rather be writing, honestly, but I know the story will suffer if I try to fudge the facts even a little. Sure, as writers we have the liberty to 'make up' people, places, crimes, fashion... hell we can create entire worlds and realities! But for this story -- a paranormal, historical romance with suspenseful elements -- I need facts. Dates. Places. Even names. I need a sense of the environment and culture of the time. All this goes into making a story -- yes, a fictional story -- seem more real to the reader.

Can I tell you a secret? You've probably figured it out already, but I HATE this part. If I were a wealthy woman I'd hire someone to do the ground work for me. Seriously. Let some poor flunkie sift through the mounds of info and verify the truth from total fiction or speculation. That alone would save hours of my time. Like I said, I'd rather devote those hours to creating the story.

But even a small fortune wouldn't get me out of all the research. I'd still have to jump in and look at the information for myself. As a writer, you're lucky to use even half of the info you come up with in the actual story. If you use too much -- particularly in historical -- the reader's eyes can glaze over and you've lost them. It's all about balance.

But you cannot write about something if you don't know it or understand it. Remember, I didn't say "write what you know", that's very limiting. What I am saying is you have to know what you're writing about. You have to learn about it.

Being a writer is more than stringing words together in a decent fashion. It's so much more. It involves imagination, creativity, long-suffering, diligence, an open mind, and constant learning and growth. Even if it's that stuff, like Algebra, that leaves you wondering: "Will I ever need this?".

Um, probably not. But do it anyway. ;)