Hip Hop Author/Writer Blog

I am so excited this week to be part of the Hip Hop Blog tour, a series of blogs where writers/authors answer questions about their writing process. Linda Benson, author of The Girl Who Remembered Horses, Six Degrees of Lost, Walking the Dog, and more as well as a new series of short fiction called Cat Tales posted hers last week and tagged me to participate. You can check out her writing process HERE.  

The questions are the same for all of us, so if you are interested in writing, or a particular author or genre of book, the links provided in each blog will allow you to “hop” around as much as you wish. Here goes!

What am I working on?
I’m working on two books that I am writing, and two that I am editing. First, I am writing the third in my award-winning cozy equestrian mystery series. I am so honored that, combined, the first two in the series have won five awards, including two from American Horse Publications. My protagonist is a female horse trainer who has surrounded herself with a wacky cast of characters including a seventy-year-old cheerleader and a (possibly) psychic horse. It is set in rural Tennessee, so I have a wealth of odd personalities to draw from! Look for The Fame Equation in 2015. I am also finishing a book on therapy horse selection. What makes a good therapy horse, what should you look for when you first look at the horse, and from a donor perspective, would a therapeutic riding center be interested in my horse? That one will be out in August.

The first book I am editing is a fascinating look at the difference between Supreme Court decisions and Hollywood films and how each has treated women over the past 100 years. The “result” might surprise you Gender Results was written by California Appellate Court Justice Eileen Moore and will be published later this year. The other is an autobiography from Olympian and world-class 800-meter runner Nick Symmonds, who gives an inside look at the sport of running. I love being able to help shape books at the developmental level and see my impact in the final product.

How does my work differ from others of its genre?
I love cozy mysteries and putting that genre into a Southern equestrian setting with a number of eccentric human characters, a howling dog, an intuitive horse, and little humor makes for a fun write, and (hopefully) a fun read! With the nonfiction horse books I strive to be informative, visual, and entertaining. Some other books in that area hit any two out of the three, often not in any reflection of the author, but in the publisher’s vision of the final product. I have been very fortunate to work with publishers who bring my ideas of the book’s design into the mix with their own and I have been very happy with the results. The purpose of the autobiographies is to give a voice to someone who has an important story to share. I try to write in my co-authors’ voice, and phrase sentences the way he or she might phrase them. While written and spoken language often differ, a good balance between co-author phrasing and good written grammar is the goal. It’s a fact that few of us speak as correctly as we write!

Why do I write what I do?

I write nonfiction about horses because horses have fascinated me from the time I was a small child. Since then I have learned how much they have to teach us and I hope that my writing will pass on some of the important life lessons horses have taught me. I chose mystery as my genre of fiction because, as a child, I could never get enough of Nancy Drew or the Hardy Boys. When my mother gave me a Dick Francis mystery when I was twelve, and I realized that I could marry mystery and horses, I knew that was what I wanted to do. When I co-author autobiographies, I choose people who have overcome tremendous odds. I have always rooted for the underdog, and I am so inspired by my co-authors, people such as Brad Cohen, Fred Gill, Lyssa Chapman, and Shyima Hall, who have endured enormous hardships and still managed to come out of it with a positive attitude. Those people, and many others like them, keep me going whenever life throws me a curve ball.

How does your writing process work? 

First, I have to have an orderly space in which to write. Too much visual clutter seems to clutter my mind. I try to write in the morning, when my mind is fresh, and will write for several hours without a break. I rarely have writer’s block, but when I do, I get up, take a walk, wash dishes, or do something to take my mind off the block. Invariably, within ten minutes or so, I know exactly where the story needs to go. I outline my nonfiction extensively, because publishers usually buy a nonfiction book based on a proposal, which includes chapter summaries. The publisher then expects the finished book to be a fleshed-out version of the chapter summaries. With fiction, I just write. I start with an idea or a problem. What would happen if . . . ? How would my character react if . . . ? I usually know who the victim and murderer are, and why the victim was murderedbut once I get going, my characters take over inside my head. I just write what they tell me. :-)

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And now, here are two wonderful authors whom I adore and who have written books that I love. Please stop by their blogs and become a follower (they will be posting about their writing process next week and you won’t want to miss any stellar advice they have).

Sharon Woods Hopkins is a life-long horse lover and the author of the Rhetta McCarter mystery series. Sharon lives in Missouri with her author husband, Bill Hopkins, and is a mortgage office who owns the original Cami, the 1979 Camaro RS featured in her Rhetta McCarter mystery series. Check out her books Killertrust, Killerwatt, and Killerfind.

On or after May 12, 2014, check out her blog at:
 

Devon O’Day writes books that inspire, whether about pets, love or cooking. She has been the producer of the number one country music morning show in America and the host of the syndicated Country Hitmakers, heard in 130 markets. A successful songwriter, O'Day wrote the number one song by George Strait, “The Big One.” She speaks about animal rescue to corporations and organizations around the country, and lives with her horses, dogs, and cats just outside Nashville. Check out Goodbye My Friend, My Angels Wear Fur, and My Southern Food: A Celebration of Flavors of the South.

On or after May 12, 2014, check out her blog at:

My Friend

A dear friend of mine passed away recently. He was kind and gentle and patient. Forgiving and quiet. Friendly. He hated the heat and loved sticking his face in front of a fan. He was polite and always let others go first. He was the first to compromise during a disagreement, the last to pick a fight.

Nelson loved being out in nature, but he also loved--like most of us do--for others to make him feel special. He gloried in a job well done and he enjoyed the success of others. Nelson was especially good at encouraging people to reach their goals. He was a confidence builder, a teacher, a nurturer. Nelson was the best.

My friend Nelson was older, but not elderly. When he passed, he went quickly. He would have wanted it that way. He'd had some health concerns in the past, but nothing life threatening. When it was his time, it was his time. I only wish we'd had time to say goodbye.

Nelson inspired me every day to step up and be a better person, a better teacher, a better friend. He reminded me to be thorough, and to take time to breathe every now and then. And sigh. Nelson gave the best sighs.

My friend Nelson was a 16.1 hand, solid colored Paint gelding. He was a show horse in his younger years, but I knew him as a therapy horse, a horse who taught children with disabilities not only to ride, but about fairness, teamwork, determination, hard work and success. I will miss you, Nelson, my friend. And I will never forget you, or all that you taught me. Rest well and in peace.

Happy Horses / Happy People

Valentino: happy at work.*

I recently wrote an article for NARHA’s Strides magazine on equine stress that will be in their Summer issue. In taking several photos to illustrate the article I decided to use Valentino, an eight-year-old, 14.2 hand, Tennessee Walking Horse cross who only gaits when he is near a mare who is in heat. Vali gives ground and riding lessons to people with disabilities, and he is very good at what he does.

My idea for the photo shoot was to simulate scenarios during a therapy lesson that might make a horse tense and then photograph the physical reaction. The problem was, Valentino is so happy and loves his job so much that nothing we did caused any signs that he was stressed, uncomfortable, or unhappy in any way. In fact, in more than five dozen photos, all you see is a relaxed, happy, confident horse.

I wonder how many people can say that about their horses and the jobs they do. I also wonder how many of us can say the same thing. We spend so much time at work, we should enjoy most of it. Not everyone is able to switch jobs or careers, but there are ways to find more enjoyment in what we do everyday. Here are a few ideas:

1.  List the three best things about your job or career, then see if you can find a way to do more of that aspect of the job. Or, schedule the things you like best during times when you typically get bored or tired. Doing something you love is a great way to keep your enthusiasm up throughout the day.

2.  Set a work-related goal and then be sure to treat yourself to something nice or celebrate whenever you complete the task. This works great for both group projects and also in improving personal performance.

3.  Re-organize your work space so you can find things more easily and can work more efficiently. A little sprucing up around the work place goes a long way in sprucing up your attitude as well.

* For more information on Valentino and what he does, go to Therapeutic Animal Partners. 

Feed Promotion

The current economy means there are a lot of hungry horses out there. There are also a lot of nonprofit organizations such as NARHA programs and equine rescue groups that are struggling. While I do my own clinics and seminars, I also team up with Sam Powell and other horsemen- and women for an event called The Power of a Whisper.

One of our sponsors for The Power of a Whisper is Purina Mills and I am so proud to say that through a program The Power of a Whisper is running on Facebook, we are able to help feed some of these wonderful horses. Basically, for every new Facebook fan for The Power of a Whisper  before April 15, we will donate one serving of feed to a NARHA program, equine sanctuary, or horse rescue group.

So far we have four recipients! They are:
Horse Haven of Tennessee
Proud Spirit Horse Sanctuary
Therapeutic Amimal Partners and
Coyote Hills Stable and Rescue

Please take time to check out these wonderful organizations, for they are doing a lot to help both horses and humans. And if you can, please become a fan of The Power of a Whisper on Facebook. Soon. We'd love to feed even more horses.

Energy

Most of you know my only child passed away recently. For days after, I purposely stayed away from horses I was actively working with because I knew my energy and emotions were all over the place. Horses are so intuitive, and I didn't want all the hard work spent establishing trust, confidence and respect wasted. I didn't want the horses to view me as unstable and incapable of leading them away from danger, if danger arose. It's been almost a month now, and I hope to soon go back and re-integrate myself into the "herd."

Since Colby passed, I have spoken at two therapeutic riding conferences and the horses there were noticeably more jumpy when I was near, than when I was not. I don't expect my emotions to level out immediately or automatically, but I do expect the horses to let me know how I am doing. They are a far better judge of where I am in the healing process than I am.

This is something we all need to remember. Our horses can immediately pick up on our mood and feelings. And they will react accordingly. Does that mean every time we have a bad day, we need to stay away from the barn? Of course not, but we should be aware of the energy and emotion we are projecting and alter our actions and interactions accordingly.

And horses aren't the only ones who pick up on wavering emotions. People do, too. We've all encountered someone our instincts told us not to trust, whom we felt for some reason was unstable. So if you are going through a hard time, for any reason, remember that while people are not as intuitive as horses, we do often pick up on the fact that someone is more emotional than usual. So adjust accordingly, take a deep breath, focus as best you can and you'll find that during times of crisis you'll get through with a lot more support from others than you might expect.