RT~GIRL POWER, HUNKS, HAGGIS & THE HIGHLANDS

RT 2013 was an exceptional experience for my husband and me. Vince and I did an interactive workshop on how to write realistic fight scenes for your female characters. I hope we get a chance to do it again next year and get more people from the audience to try some of the techniques. It's always easier to describe something when you've done, felt, seen or in some other way experienced it. No one wants to experience an attack, so this offers a safe and entertaining environment to see how it may play out for your heroines.
 


I loved it. Vince loved it. I think the audience loved it.  
Vince also had the opportunity to present on Cathy Maxwell's panel: Hunks, Haggis & the Highlands, with Susanne Saville, Kimberly Killion, and Jody Allen (Scottish History Scholar). Last year we took our Scottish food business, MACSKIS HIGHLAND FOODS, national. Our flagship food is HAGGIS. Vince and Jody attended Cathy Maxwell's session on the Highlands at RT 2012 and piped in when some of what was presented about haggis wasn't accurate. Far from taking offense, Cathy asked them both to join her in 2013. The presentation rocked, not only because all the presenters were wonderful, but because Cathy Maxwell is so darned funny! And, Yes, there was Haggis to Taste! AWESOME....

   I got the chance to meet and get to know Cathy Maxwell, which pretty much made the conference for me; that and tossing my husband around :)  I also got some quality time with Mia Marlow, Bobbie Smith and Heather Graham. One of the highlights for me was meeting fellow Authors of Main Street author, Jill James, in person. How wonderful of her to come to our workshop!
The last year or so has been one of jumping in the deep end for my husband and for me. I'm writing full time, attending as many Highland events across the country as I can while we develop more food and gear for MACSKIS and market it to high-end restaurants, grocery stores and venders at Scottish events. I'm also working with historical researcher, Jody Allen to organize a national conference for writers of Scottish and other Celtic historical romance.
Sometimes jumping in is the way to make things happen. Yes it's scary...believe me, we live that. It's helpful when you jump in together. I am thankful for my best friend, the man who lets me take him to the ground in front of a group of mostly women shouting, "Kill him again." And he does it with a smile and sense of humor that never fails to crack me up. He didn't balk when I said I needed to see how the lambs where treated before we took our haggis nationwide. He flew me to Colorado to tour the meat processing facility. Not only did this vegetarian go, I saw the animals. (No antibiotics, No growth hormones, These animals weren't scared or jammed into tiny spaces, they were treated ethically.) He also helped develop a vegetarian version and a gluten free version of haggis. Many die-hard haggis makers wouldn't even consider that.
The best thing about going to RT or any of the conferences within the writing community is the people you meet. I've had the opportunity to meet some fantastic people. The thing that makes this wonderful ride so filled with joy is that I'm on it with Vince. Thanks to best-friends everywhere. You make our worlds, which as writers can be filled with solitude, complete.
   Thanks to everyone who came to our presentations! We had so much fun participating! If anyone would like to get a group together for next RT, I'm all over that :). It would be wonderful getting to know you.
Here's to jumping in with both feet no matter what you decide to jump into,
Leigh

Karate, Storytelling & Life…it’s ALL Art, Baby!

Have you ever wanted to be really good at something? Have you ever worked your tail off getting really good and then worked harder to be great? I’m guessing that for most of you the answer is a resounding, “YES!”.

For me, I want to be good at everything I do, great at the things I love, and truly excel whenever I can. But, as my grandmother still says in my head whenever illusions of grandeur pop up, “If wishes were horses, beggars would ride.” I never knew what that meant growing up.

I do now.

“Seek perfection, and you just might achieve excellence.” Sensei Daniel Schroeder, 9th Dan Okinawan Shorin-Ryu. (center below)

Sensei Schroeder is my teacher. He has been for the past 22 years. This Saturday, I will test before him for my 5th Dan (5th degree black-belt). Preparing for Saturday’s test is scary, thrilling and exhilarating; it’s also taken continuous training for almost half of my life to get here. I’m happy to say, no matter what happens Saturday, it’s been worth every sweat-filled-muscle-screaming day.



The physicality of the journey is important. It’s also the most obvious aspect ~ it’s what the outside world sees. Karate is much like writing in that respect (many other respects too ~ the corollaries abound). The outside world sees the finished book and the author is judged on the product of her work…Does the cover grab the reader…Do the characters resonate long after the last line…Is the plot compelling…Is the writing fresh…?

These judgments are made of the finished product ~ the book ~ and rightly so as this is what the reader sees.

What is NOT seen in Karate or in Writing (and yes here I believe writers earn the capital “W”) is the blood and guts and sweat of the process. That is where the soul lies, in the pursuit of perfection. That is also the personal, spiritual journey.




Karate is physical, mental and spiritual. So is writing. All three aspects of the art need to be present in order to form a harmonious and fluid whole. Physically we produce a product. To produce a great physical product, mentally we have to make it so. Mental discipline keeps bottoms in chairs and fingers tapping out words. Without mental discipline the practice and the product wouldn’t happen. The mental aspect of writing also involves research and craft. Both can be learned and both are necessary for storytellers.

Spirit can’t be taught. It’s not learned. It’s a gift, unique to each of us, given before we take our fist breath and I hope with us after our last. It’s that intangible bit of magic that makes our art sing. Spirit breathes life into everything we do. Writing is real and tugs at our hearts when it taps into our own spirit…when everything else is solid and then the spirit rises up, tails are kicked and names are taken. It’s a beautiful thing, in and out of print.

So, as I gear up to release my fourth book (DEFENDING DESTINY) and as I kick my training up a notch or ten in anticipation of Saturday’s test, my heart is pounding, my throat is dry and I’m focusing on what I can control on these paths I’ve chosen.

I can control how hard I work. I can strive for perfection with each new chapter and be satisfied with excellence. I can take a breath and enjoy the journey along the way. No matter what happens on Saturday…no matter what happens on Defending Destiny’s release day…the journey so far has been worth the trip. And the day after…well then, I’ll get back to work!

It’s taken 22 years to prepare me for Saturday’s test. So far, it’s taken three years for me to release four books. I can’t wait to see where my writing path to perfection (hoping for some bits of greatness) leads me in 18 years. One thing I do know, is that when I hit 22 years as an author, I’ll still be training in Karate and weapons! Hopefully with a deeper understanding of, and appreciation for, all three of these arts.

So, my friends, no matter what your journey is, may you seek perfection, find excellence and enjoy the rollicking waves of life along the way. Peace be the Journey! 

Leigh.

It's All About Character

When I woke up this morning I had no idea what I was going to blog about. Oh, I’d thought about it, albeit in the back of mind, all month. I’ve been hitting the edits and re-writes for Defending Destiny pretty hard the past few weeks and honestly I was gearing up to begrudge the time blogging takes…yea right…it’s fun and it only comes around once per month, sometimes twice if I’m feeling engaged in the process. That’s when it hit me, like a SHASZAM LIGHTNING BOLT, to the brain.





It’s in the rewrites that I actually fall in love with my characters. TAH-DAH…BLOG!



About a third of the way through any Work in Progress — WIP — I begin to really feel who my characters are. Their motivation for what they do, and don’t do in some cases, gets more nuanced and textured as I get into the rhythm of the story.
I begin with a rough character profile for every character…before I ever start typing. Some characters get added as the story goes because they write themselves in. I know I’m the one writing, and yes I know they aren’t real, but sometimes these characters push until they are on the page. For me that generally means a future book of their own and I welcome them. They get a profile too.
Profiles for me include: Name, sex, age, race, distinguishing characteristics (scars, tattoos, etc.) body type, educational background, social/family background, hobbies, employment, fears (if I know them), aspirations (short & long-term), financial status, favorite food (sometimes this plays into quirkiness), favorite shows/entertainment, religious alignment/spirituality, eye color & shape, facial structure, voice, languages, prejudices, what they love…  This list can go on, but basically it’s less than a page and gives me an idea of who they are before I start and it also makes keeping track of details easier. Most of the time I find a photo or image that represents my hero to me as well. Here’s Magnus in Defending Destiny. YUM!

These profiles I make at the beginning are rarely who my characters turn out to be when the edits and re-writes are complete. Most of the physical description is the same, but that’s about it. I learn as I go, I guess. Not the quickest way to complete a novel, that’s for sure.
So as I’m gearing up for deep edits, something that’s more conducive to a deep sigh and a “here we go again, when ARE you going to get this right the first, second or third time, Woman?” This morning I’m thankful that this is when I really get to fall in love with these larger than life, flawed, yet sincere characters. This is when the magic happens. And magic is hard work, my friends!
So, I’m curious. If you’re a writer, what’s your process? (I’m hoping that book five finds mine more streamlined) If you are a reader — and we all are — what makes a character worthy of your love? Is it the small quirks? Is it his or her kindness or sense of humor? Who are your favorite characters? What makes them resonate with you? As you can tell I write character driven stories…I love a good plot, but character is why I turn the page when I’m reading, so it’s why I write like I do.
I can’t wait to share Defending Destiny with you. Here’s a sneak peek at my cover in progress:



Happy Writing. Happy Reading. And here’s hoping that we create magical worlds readers want to return to again and again! Happy Wednesday, my friends! May February find you steeped in romance ,
Leigh

Living your Bliss: Romance & Haggis at RT in 2013!

“My mama told me there’d be days like this…” What she didn’t say was that following your bliss was going to be filled with chaotic days and restless nights fraught with emotion, not all of it good.
So what does that have to do with forgetting Wednesday’s blog?

Everything. (In the chaos of the week, I sincerely thought my Wednesday to blog, on the Authors of Main Street blog site, was this coming week.) Let me explain.

My last name is MacDonald. I am very Scottish; by heritage and more importantly, by inclination. I’ve been immersed in Scottish culture, lore and traditions since birth with the passionate ferocity reserved for American transplants generations removed from the Highlands. I am a generational Highlander, if you will . Trust me, the most Scottish Scots reside right here in the good ole’ USA.



 Just ask a native Scot. (I’ve heard this so many times on my trips to Scotland. They think we’re bloody-hilarious with our avid kilt-wearing and caber-tossing).

Right here, in Milwaukee, we have the world’s largest Celtic Festival. We celebrate Highland Games, Highland Flings, have a diverse and energetic St. Andrew’s Society, and this month all across the globe, people of Scottish descent or inclination will be celebrating the life of Scotland’s national poet, Robert Burns.

Robert Burns is most famous for his song: Auld Lang Syne, which we sing on New Year’s Eve to welcome the New Year. But it’s his ‘Address to a Haggis’ that ties to my BLISS.

My husband and I are HAGGIS makers – Macski’s Highland Foods.



Our HAGGIS will be featured at RT this year ~ more to come in another blog about that.

So, did Haggis make me misjudge my blog date???  YES!

On Thursday the 10^th, my husband and I were interviewed by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel food editor, Nancy Stohs; who is a wonderful, funny and engaging person. Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday we met with new potential vendors. Tuesday the online article came out and Wednesday the paper version hit the stands.



Hence the blown blog…sigh followed by happy dance…HAGGIS ROCKS!

Following my passions, my bliss, at this stage, is a life choice. It’s like nose-diving from the cliff of relative comfort; exhilarating, frightening, and while you’re taking that leap, you don’t know how you’re going to land.

As for me, I’m adjusting for wind shear, turning so I land on my feet poised to take off writing romance ~ mostly with a tie to Scotland ~ and bringing Scottish culture to life, with a distinctly American flair. I plan on spending as many days a year as I can in a kilt right along side my kilted family. Here’s to the romance of tilting cabers in the wind and following your Bliss. Live Well and Eat HAGGIS.

So what are your passions? How do you incorporate your Bliss into your daily life, especially when your bliss isn’t being so blissful? I’d love to hear from you!

Winter Solstice~Harbinger of Growth to Come

This time of year is magical for me in many ways and grey in others. The waning light is always hard for me. I don’t always feel merry and bright when it’s dark and, well, just icky outside. That’s why I look forward to Winter Solstice like a Green-Woman waiting for Spring. I love the light.

No matter what your spiritual persuasion, Christmastime is a time of celebration. For me, it’s a promise of brighter days to come and thankfulness for the harvest life has blessed me with in the previous months. I love the presents and the candle-making (which I do in my grandmother’s double-boiler so I feel closer to her and her traditions) and the card-writing, and every moment spent enjoying communing with those I love, those I really like a lot and those I’d like to know better.


This time of year for me is about people, love, light and tradition. It is a glorious time because we want to love and relate to others and become better people.
So, I feel like I should start with tradition. Yule is the celebration of the longest night, relinquishing itself to the light half of the year. Yule varies according to the Gregorian calendar from December 20~23^rd . Traditionally bonfires are lit, crops and trees are “wassailed” with toasts of spiced cider and cheers to wish health upon one’s crops, especially apple trees. Evergreen boughs symbolize immortality and are connected to the Divine. Evergreens symbolize the ever-green spirit in all of us, even in our darkest moments.

Wheat is used to symbolize prosperity, plenty, the culmination of the harvest spent during the cold-winter’s-night, triumph, light and life. The pagans may have used this symbol first, but isn’t it interesting that WATERFORD CRYSTAL has used it in their toasting flutes and Christmas ornaments in time immemorial? Or at least as long as Waterford has been around. 

 

Often, as a child, I received an orange, actually lots of oranges, in my stocking. I didn’t realize what a gift this was for Scandinavian people and all people of the North who would have treasured citrus at this time of year. I thought it was weird and cheap. Now….?... I think it’s really cool.




So, what are the traditions for celebration in your family? Do you have a favorite food or decoration or tradition that symbolizes the season for you? Please share. I’d love to hear it! Happy Yule, Merry Christmas and May Your Celebrations bring Light and Love into your Life.

The Next Big Thing

I've meet some wonderful authors since joining RWA and Wisconsin Romance Writers. Mary Hughes is one of my favorites! Mary asked me to join The Next Big Thing and I said, YES. So here we go.

Here's a link to Mary's next big thing from last week..

Here's my next big thing:

What is the working title of your book?
Defending Destiny: Book 3 of The Warrior Chronicles, is my work in progress.
Here's a preview of my draft cover.

Where did the idea for the book come from?
I thought it would be interesting to create a world where magic and mythic objects are not only real they create goodness in our life without our knowing it...BAM the magic happens.

What genre does your book fall under?
Contemporary romance with a mystical twist.

What actors would you choose to play in a movie version?
I'd love to see Channing Tatum as Magnus, Sean Connery as his grandfather, Seamus, Jason Statham as Shannon O'Shay, but he'd have to be aged a bit for that to work. Emma Thompson as Mari, Magnus's mother, would be great. For Daisy....actually my daughter would be perfect for that; she's strong and sweet and so fiesty she'd give Channing a run for his money!

The one sentence synopsis of my book?
Druids, stone circles an evil royal and a heroine with a knack for finding mythical artifacts who saves the day.

Will it be self published or represented by an agency?
It will be published by Pen & Sword Publishing.

How long did it take you to write the first draft?
Too long! About six months.

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?
Anything by Susan Elizabeth Phillips with some Buffy badness thrown into the mix.

Who or what inspired you to write this book?
The tangible magic I feel when I'm in Scotland inspired me to set this book there and the myths of Merlin and Arthur's magic sword have been dancing in my subconscious for quite some time so I decided to add those elements to this series. That and my dojo where I meet the most interesting characters.

What else about your book might pique a readers interest?
The love stories are what make romance for me. I love the romance Magnus and Daisy create out of the most unlikely situations. I like having older secondary characters find love as well and that element is in all my stories. Romance doesn't die after forty! Neither does great sex!

Since every author that I contacted to join in with this blog event has either already participated, been tagged to participate or no longer blogs, I am including the following links to previous submissions.

Stacey Joy Netzel

Liz Kreger

Betsy Norman

...and here's a link to one of my favorite authors, James Lee Burke.

ANTICIPATING CELEBRATION

It’s the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, one of the best days of the year for me. I love to create food to share with the people I love and creating that feast with my husband and my children is, in a word, transformative.
Of course, it would be wonderful if the house would magically transform itself into a pristine environment, but I’ve come to appreciate that our house is very much a microcosm of life: kinetic energies mingling together in an environment full of potentiality and chaos. Even so, a not perfectly put together house that smells of pie, veg and whatever meat is the current offering is comforting. If there are a few socks the kitties have stolen milling about, if every bookshelf is overstuffed and haphazardly double-stacked and if every square inch of the fridge and pantry is covered with photos and random artwork well…welcome to my world.
My daughter is waking up in her bed this morning---at least I hope she wakes while it’s still morning as she’s still sleeping as I type---home from UW for the weekend. She’s put in her request that we bring up all the candle making supplies Thursday after everyone is gone and the cleaning up is accomplished. She wants to get an early start Friday making votives for Christmas.
Today it’s nearly 50 degrees here, about a half hour south of Milwaukee. Perfect pie baking and candle making weather! The doors can stay open, flushing the scents of autumn through our home. She says she misses that at school which cracks me up, because she’s never really been interested in candle making. She likes the candles, but it’s my son who helps me every fall and every spring creating our mini-wax-creations-of-love.
So this year, the energies flowing around me are converging into a stew of contentment and anticipation over what can happen surrounded by family.
My parents are coming tomorrow and we’ll serve all the traditional things they remember from their parents---with the exception of the pan-ultimately icky Jello mold corrupted by that sour cream layer of grossness my mom insisted on making every year which every child hates. At heart, and in the taste-buds, I am still a child, a purist of the highest order, when it comes to Jello. Some things should be sacred. Not-so-sorry, mom, but it’s not on the menu.
I digress…
This year my husband and I have picked out a handful of new dishes to try. This is huge since we’ve always been about tradition for Thanksgiving dinner, but this year has been full of firsts. This year has literally scared the (add the expletive of your choosing) out of us. We’ve started a new business built around our mutual love for all things Scottish, we’ve ridden the waves of the building market, and we’ve jumped into book publishing with eyes toward expansion and diversification.
Yep, it’s been quite a ride. And it’s far from over. But each new journey begins with shutting the door on your safe place and stepping onto a new path.
So, consciously or not, this has translated into Cranberry-Meringue Pie, Pumpkin-Chocolate Torte with Pumpkin Whipped Cream (which thank the spirits of the season we made early because I love pumpkin and chocolate), which is going directly in the garbage with mom’s Jello recipe, and turkey breast stuffed with walnut and mushroom stuffing. All the traditional items will be there as well. I’ll let you know what turns out and what we shrug off as culinary waste.
         This morning as I type this blog, which was supposed to be about Thankfulness, I’m smiling. Tomorrow, the house won’t be perfect; a flaw that will not go unnoticed nor uncommented upon. Something will be under or overdone. Someone will say something outrageous and most likely hurtful. And, on a day filled with old favorites and new potential masterpieces, I will be celebrating the moments as they happen, letting it all wash over me, grateful for the meaningful moments and the moments of absolute absurdity with those I love. 
So, I raise a figurative glass to you, my friends! May Thanksgiving find you well and leave you better. May you anticipate the up-coming holidays with love in your hearts and courage in your souls. May you always be warm, well-fed and loved.
Happy Thanksgiving Eve, Leigh.