Writing lessons learned from UNENDING DEVOTION

"Unending Devotion" by Jody Hedlund was a compelling book, and I blew through it in no time. It was a deliciously romantic and inspirational story. For a brief book blurb and more about Jody, click here.

Of course there's always plenty to learn from reading great books, and here are the lessons I learned from "Unending Devotion:"

• Open with character-revealing action: Lily, the main character, is devoted to rescuing young girls from a life of prostitution. But we aren't told this. We're shown through the opening scene, where Lily orchestrates an escape.
• Unanswered questions, stat: On page two we already have unanswered questions. Why is Lily's sister suffering? And where is she? Why are the sisters separated?
• Introduce the love interest early: We meet Connell McCormick on page 15. Sparks fly right away, and we know we're in for a great love story.
• Give the MC more than one enemy: Lily not only fights an evil bully in a small town, she also fights the woman who runs the brothel. Lily makes enemies of both characters, and they later work together to hurt her.
• Explain why the MC can't run to the police to solve her story problem: Lily soon learns that the logging town of Harrison is lawless because the villain has paid off the sheriff. This explains why she doesn't arrive on the sheriff's doorstep and ask for help.
• In a romance, tether the couple together to create a bond: Lily and Connell are caught in a snowstorm, and forced to survive the elements together. A great opportunity to fall in love, yes? Or kill each other, depending on the story :)
• Think of the worst thing that can happen to the MC, then make it happen: Connell loves Lily, and the town bully knows this. When he wants to exact revenge on Connell, he knows capturing Lily gets to the heart of the matter.
• Give the MC a physical and moral battle: Lily's main objective, or her surface story problem, is to find her sister. But there's also a larger moral objective--to rescue young girls from lives of prostitution, and erase evil from a lawless town. These multiple goals kept the pacing tight.
• Use a symbol to reflect a character's journey: In this case, a quilt. Lily reflects on all the mis-shaped pieces, and the seemingly ugly patterns. But those pieces, just like the imperfect pieces of our lives, come together to make something beautiful.

Have you read "Unending Devotion" yet? Is there another book you've read lately that taught you important writing lessons? Please share!

Fun Secret About Bestselling Author Jody Hedlund

Friends, today we have a special treat. In celebration of her latest release, "Unending Devotion," bestselling author Jody Hedlund is here to share a fun secret wtih us. If you don't follow Jody's blog, you must remedy that. Stat! It's one of the most helpful blogs in the writing community.

But first, a little tease about Unending Devotion:

In 1883 Michigan, Lily Young is on a mission to save her lost sister, or die trying. Heedless of the danger, her searches of logging camps lead her to Harrison and into the sights of Connell McCormick, a man doing his best to add to the hard-earned fortunes of his lumber-baron father.

Posing during the day as a photographer's assistant, Lily can't understand why any God-fearing citizen would allow evil to persist and why men like Connell McCormick turn a blind eye to the crime rampant in the town. But Connell is boss-man of three of his father's lumber camps in the area, and like most of the other men, he's interested in clearing the pine and earning a profit. He figures as long as he's living an upright life, that's what matters.

Lily changes everything he thought he knew, and together they work not only to save her sister but to put an end to the corruption that's dominated Harrison for so long.

Jody Hedlund's Secret #6: What I wanted to be when I grew up.

By Jody Hedlund, @JodyHedlund

Every child dreams of what they want to be when they grow up. And that often changes multiple times over the years as they mature.

For example, when my youngest son was about five, he was determined to be a professional football player when he grew up. He saw his Daddy getting excited about football games, and so he would go outside and practice and play football. 

When he was seven, he decided to forgo the professional football career in place of becoming Batman. A year after that, he thought maybe he'd like to be a drum player.

Unlike my son, I didn't waver in my career of choice. From my earliest recollections, I wanted to be a writer. I loved listening to my mom read. All my creative play reflected the stories that were already growing in my mind. And eventually when I learned how to spell and form sentences, those stories naturally made their way into notebooks.

During summer vacations, in the back of our old conversion van, I'd sprawl out with my notebook, and I'd spend the long car rides penning stories about princesses, princes, and happily-ever-afters. I filled notebook after notebook. 

When I was in junior high, I decided to take my writing a little more seriously, and so I began to enter writing contests for kids. I actually placed in a couple contests which was a valuable lesson in competition and honing my skills. 

The passion for writing followed me into adulthood. But when my college days came around, I knew I couldn't major in "novel-writing."  I'd need to pursue some kind of work that would help me pay the bills while I worked on my books. So I ended up in Social Work for quite a few years and liked it enough to get my Masters.

But ultimately the passion for writing wouldn't let go of me. And I'm grateful it didn't. Because there's nothing better than being able to do what you love, every day.

I love this quote from the late Steve Jobs: "The only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle."

Maybe we won't be able to do what we love full time, all the time. But we can make a point to do it a little bit. Because eventually a little bit adds up to a long way.

What about you? What did you want to be when you were a child? And what did you end up doing? 

To celebrate the release of Unending Devotion, Jody is giving away a signed copy. Leave a comment (along with your email address) to enter the drawing. Valid only with US or Canadian addresses. Giveaway ends Friday, September 14th, 2012. The winner will be announced Saturday, September 15th.

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Publisher's Weekly calls Unending Devotion "A meaty tale of life amid the debauchery of the lumber camps of 1880s Michigan . . . exciting and unpredictable to the very end."

For more secrets about Jody and additional chances to win her newest release, visit her Events Page to see where she'll be next in her "Fun Secrets About Author Jody Hedlund" blog tour.

Also join in the Pinterest Photo Contest she's hosting. Find more information about it on her Contest Page.

Jody would love to connect with you! Find her in one of these places:

Website: http://jodyhedlund.com/

Blog: http://jodyhedlund.blogspot.com/

Facebook: Author Jody Hedlund

Twitter: http://twitter.com/JodyHedlund

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/jodyhedlund/