Tag Archive for: Love in the Lowcountry

Benefits of Contributing to an Anthology

/in , , , , , /by

by Paula Gail Benson

Robin Hillyer-Miles and I, two blogging partners here at The Stiletto Gang, also are members of the Lowcountry Romance Writers (LRWA), a chapter of Romance Writers of America based in Charleston, South Carolina. Since 2019, LRWA has organized and published two anthologies, titled Love in the Lowcountry: A Winter Holiday Collection and Love in the Lowcountry, Volume Two: A Winter Holiday Collection Book 2. Both are available through Amazon.

LRWA is now in the process of creating its third anthology, which again requires that stories take place in South Carolina. For this anthology, they also must involve a vacation. Contributors must participate in two rounds of beta reading, work with a professional editor, and develop and circulate promotional materials. Learning and using these skills is invaluable experience for both debut and seasoned authors. We continue to have a lot of fun putting these anthologies together.

Robin and I have both written several messages about how these anthologies benefited us as writers: from Robin, “Musings on a Tuesday” and “No Regrets,” and from me “Love in the Air,” “A New Anthology,” and “The Meet Cute.”

These anthologies also provide some virtual vacations and insightful information for readers who visit in person and/or virtually. Bookstores in Charleston, South Carolina, often have customers seeking fiction about the city. Most of our anthologies’ romances describe historical or cultural backgrounds in a very engaging format, meeting the bookstores’ customers’ requests. Robin Hillyer-Miles, a certified tourism professional, has assisted all the participating writers in confirming the accuracy of the details in their work.

In addition to giving authors a writing credit, contributing to the anthology allows the opportunity for learning new writing skills, trying out new genres, and developing different characters. Not all writers enjoy crafting short stories, but the attempts demonstrate how to be more economical with word usage and narrative. Except for hints at relationships, I had not written romances prior to my stories in the anthologies. They also represent my first efforts at exploring time travel, which allow me to involve modern day characters with historical figures and events, something I find fascinating.

One author in the first anthology used her story as part of a trilogy. She offered the prequel in her newsletter to entice readers to try her work. That gave me the idea to consider how two characters I developed for my story in the first anthology (the two rejected by the main love interests) might appear subsequently. (Note: it continues to be a challenge to find those two less desirable characters’ more likable qualities.)

In the second anthology, my story had three potential romantic couples, one that became predominant. Determining how to resolve the characters’ interacting plotlines became a fascinating puzzle that led me to contemplate writing a more expansive account, featuring each couple independently.

Even if you don’t ordinarily read or write short stories, try dipping into an anthology or two. They offer some great examples of craft and compiling material by theme, not to mention some excellent reading.

The Meet Cute

/in , , , , , , , , /by

by Paula Gail Benson

Cover from First LRWA Anthology

Currently, I’m working on an up-to-10,000 word short story for the third Lowcountry Romance Writers’ (LRWA) anthology. The story must somehow involve South Carolina and a vacation.

I’m basing mine on characters I developed in my story that appeared in the first LRWA anthology. It’s been fun to give this couple its own romance since they were the antagonists in the original story. Figuring out how two basically disagreeable folks become likable and get together has been both challenging and delightful!

During a brainstorming session with some of the other anthology contributors, I described the female protagonist’s situation, background, and desires. She was focused on finding a way to connect with her 10-year-old daughter, who seemed more in sync with the ex-husband and his fiancée. I was interrupted from describing my character’s angst with the question: what’s her love interest and where’s the “meet cute”?

I’d heard the term “meet cute” and recognized the concept. Wikipedia, referencing Merriam-Webster, describes it as: “a scene in media, in which two people meet for the first time, typically under unusual, humorous, or cute circumstances, and go on to form a future romantic couple.” Wikipedia illustrated the entry with a depiction of Romeo and Juliet’s first meeting.

Image that appears in Wikipedia

Romeo and Juliet opens with a “meet cute”? I had to reread the play.

So, Romeo is pining after Rosalind, who is a Capulet niece. The Capulets are trying to fix Juliet up with Paris. Then, Romeo sneaks into the Capulets’ banquet at their home. Tybalt protests his presence, but Mr. Capulet says, don’t call attention to him. Meanwhile, Romeo sees and zeroes in on Juliet. After some fancy talk about pilgrims’ hands meeting in prayer resembling kissing, they trade a few smooches.

Okay. I understand the setup as a “meet cute.” Romeo goes to romance the girl he’s fascinated by and instead falls in love with the daughter of his family’s worst enemy. It’s the story’s tragic overtones (not to mention all the pilgrims’ hands speeches) that obscure the humor of that scene.

I thought about some of my favorite Rom-Coms: Legally Blonde, where Elle meets Emmett at Harvard, or Shakespeare in Love, where the bard first sees his muse dressed in male attire and auditioning for a role. One of my favorite romances is Lisa Kleypas’ The Devil in Winter, one of her wallflower series. The couple are acquainted but have their actual first face-to-face meeting after the male has kidnapped the female’s friend in a previous book. Evangeline Jenner is the shy, stuttering daughter of a wealthy gambling house owner who approaches Sebastian, Lord Vincent, one of London’s best-known rakes to save her from her relatives’ manipulations. That initial scene sizzles with sexual tension.

Could I do that with my characters? I’ve tried by having them reconnect at a restaurant where the female does not at first recognize the male, who is her server. I asked for some feedback from another writing group and was fascinated to hear their reactions to this couple. The group had a lot of good suggestions and questions. I always find questions encouraging because it means readers want to know more.

What’s your favorite “meet cute” scene and has it ever involved unlikable characters?

Cover of LRWA Anthology Volume 2

Cathy’s Corner

/in /by

Y’all!

I’m putting this out here so y’all can call me out in case I don’t follow through. Ha. How’s that for being an obliger? Yes, that’s me.

Here’s the opening of my “will be published by January 2021” novel. I’m hoping I beat this deadline but it is 2020.

The title is Cathy’s Corner. The hero has moved to this small southern town to open a restaurant named after his recently deceased wife. The heroine thinks this is a really awful idea, the name, not the restaurant, … actually, she has issues with the menu too.

And, here’s a cover that I created for fun. Not the final. Bear with me. I’ve hired an editor and cover designer.

Cathy’s Corner, chapter one 

Monday, March 18, 2013

Sue Fisk stretched her fingers to reach the remote without disturbing Charley, her terrier-mix rescue, who stretched boneless and warm across her unclad feet. She flipped her television to the proper channel and snuggled down into her thrifted blue velvet sofa, a nod to her late parents’ love of all things Elvis. 

She’d accepted the charity of a hand-me-down Blackberry™ phone from her uncle/boss when she’d dropped her flip phone in Lake Moultrie the other week. The Blackberry which now vibrated sharply, startling Charley who looked behind her like she’d farted and wanted to blame someone else. Sue laughed, squinted at the text, and muttered, “I make it pretty clear not to disturb me on Monday nights when I’m watching my show.”

Hey. What channel is Longmire on?

She stared at the screen trying to figure out the sender.

It’s time 4 Longmire, yes?

A&E

Thx

Her phone buzzed again seconds after the final scene. The number from earlier appeared on the screen. It didn’t look familiar, but since the lake incident, she’d been piecemealing her contact list back together. She’d learned her lesson about backing up her phone, maybe. And while her meticulous mother’s address book would have come in handy, she’d tossed every cigarette smoke-infused item in the house into the garbage the day after her parents died of lung and throat cancers within hours of each other. She bent her head to read the recent text.

I loved the familiar faces in this show. This is the pilot, right?

Yes. The new season begins at the end of May. They’re re-showing last season.

The answering text dinged almost immediately.

Thanks for the tip. Sleep tight. Don’t dream about murder and mayhem …

😛

What’s :P?

Furrowing her brow, she studied her phone. Her small circle of friends teased her about her favorite emoticon, who was this?

I’m sticking my tongue out at you.

I’m going 2 need to learn more about texting 2 keep up. Enjoyed the show. 

The next morning, Fisk Design & Print Shop’s squat square cement-block building glimmered in the morning light as she pulled into the rear parking lot. Joyce, the co-graphic designer, sat in her car and gestured toward her radio when Sue tapped on her window. Sue opened the passenger door and joined her for the last few minutes of the reading of the Tuesday morning Piggly Wiggly weekly specials on the local radio station. Curtrice Collins, Sue’s best friend, and next-door neighbor read the items with enthusiastic glee. At promptly 7:58 a.m., Joyce’s phone alarm beeped alerting them to get to the office door. 

—

Robin Hillyer Miles is published in an anthology. Look for her short story, West End Club, in Love in the Lowcountry, by Lowcountry Romance Writers of America, on Amazon.

You can find her author page on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/RobinHillyerMilesAuthorTourGuideYoga

Fashion Makes Sense but I’m Wearing Shorts and a T-Shirt

/in /by
It’s hot and sticky in the South Carolina Lowcountry. 

I don’t water my plants in the morning because the forecast calls for rain. I end up watering my plants that afternoon because the rain passed us by. Or it rains when I’m inside working, and the humidity leaches up all the moisture into the air. 

I’m obsessed with fashion. I put on QVC every morning and play it in the background while I’m working. The mindless chatter of the host and the brand representative filter out all the other noises in my head. 

Susan Graver, a designer, talks over the host most of the time. She’s a true chatterbox. I feel her. I’d do the same, plus her clothing line has some nice items.

Carolyn Gracie, a QVC host, and Gary Goben, the senior apparel designer for Denim & Company, have stuffed squirrels that talk with one another. I find it strangely comforting that a grown woman and man play with stuffed toys on a national television show. 

On QVC Martha Stewart shows up from her house and talks about her rather matronly line. Joan Rivers accouterments still look like they’re from her time period, but I’m oddly drawn to them. 

I’ve purchased metal slinky water hoses (see the need for one above). A pair of cute Earth shoes that remind me of a pair of wooden slides I owned for years that one of my dogs chewed a bit of one heel and I still wore everywhere. I can’t find them now. I’m glad I found a similar pair. 

Since I’m working from home, I’ve purchases skorts, T-shirts, and Cuddle Duds attire. 

I have quite a collection of fashion catalogs. North Style, Serengeti, Coldwater Creek, Soft Surroundings, Lands’ End, and Talbots. I’ve been trying to find outfits to take on our twelve-day cruise to the British Isles that will most likely NOT depart from London in late August. I have not purchased a darn thing but have dog-eared the pages of fifteen catalogs.

A dear friend of mine has a lovely fashion sense and her own Instagram account and a blog about fashion. She looks put together at all times. She never looks dowdy as I often feel. 

At eleven in the mornings on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, Style Finder Boutique, a shop in Raleigh, NC, hosts fashion shows, tips, and sales via Facebook live. Michele and Michelle (or double L as they call her) seem to be around my age. Sometimes they aren’t that streamlined in their live show, but they handle mishaps with style. 

They explain fashion terms, color schemes, core closet, and what looks good on different bodies with different face shapes. I had no idea the shape of your face has anything to do with what clothing to wear. I have a symmetrical oval face according to the online eyeglass site I recently visited. When I had my “colors done” with a Color Me Beautiful stylist back in the day, I was told I am a summer. 

I’m wearing pull-on exercise shorts and a T-shirt I got for participating in the Charleston Yoga Fest two years ago. I am learning, just not putting into practice, obviously.

Do y’all like to watch fashion shows, flip through catalogs, and follow fashion pages and shops on social media? Tell me I am not alone. 

I’m going on a “dues cruise” with the Charleston Tour Association next Monday. We board a tour boat at 5:45 p.m., have cocktails and hors d’oeuvres whilst wearing face masks, and enjoy a cruise in the Charleston harbor. I’m a tour guide and the treasurer for this group. We’re allowing half the attendees we normally do for one of our most popular meetings. I have to wear a coordinating outfit for this event. I have not a clue what that outfit will entail. O.o

Robin

Charleston Tour Association: www.tourcharleston.org



This post, while silly and all about fashion, isn’t meant to be an escape from what’s happening around us, but perhaps a bit of a respite for the few minutes you’re reading. 
White privilege doesn’t mean your life has been hard. It just means the color of your skin isn’t one of the things that makes it harder. Please take the time to learn about more than what’s in our little bubbles. 

—-

Robin Hillyer-Miles writes romance of the contemporary, magic-realism, and cozy mystery varieties. “West End Club” appears in the anthology “Love in the Lowcountry: A Winter Holiday Edition.” She’s writing “Cathy’s Corner” a 45,000-word contemporary romance set in the fictional town of Marion’s Corner, SC.
You can find her on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/RobinHillyerMilesAuthorTourGuideYoga
The anthology is offered on Amazon in paperback or e-book here:

Everything Old is New Again

/in /by
This is my first blog post as part of the Stiletto Gang. I’m excited, thrilled, and honored to be asked to be part of this wonderful group of awesome writers.
I lived in Memphis, Tenn. (Home of the Blues/Birthplace of Rock and Roll) for about 18 years before returning home to Charleston, South Carolina in 2016. When I moved to Memphis, I did group sales at a family entertainment center. We were members of a local association called Metro Memphis Attractions Association. Being a part of Double M Double A helped me acclimate quickly to the area and visit all of the historic, entertainment, and educational attractions. I’d been a tour guide in Charleston, so this was right up my alley.
In Charleston we pride ourselves on being the first to do and have most everything, you know like the first female newspaper publisher, first golf course, first municipal college, first museum, the list goes on and on. For my entire life I thought we invented the Piggly Wiggly grocery store chain. Imagine my surprise upon visiting the Pink Palace Museum in Memphis and discovering that the former owner of the mansion started The Pig.

My favorite Pig cup.
Clarence Saunders opened his first Piggly Wiggly grocery store in 1916. Before then, shoppers would hand clerks a list and the clerks did the shopping, while the client waited for their order to be filled. When Saunders opened his store in Memphis, Tenn., it was the first true self-service grocery store. He laid out his store in a sort of loop that allowed for a greater variety of items to be visible and bought. Saunders received his patent for the self-service shopping in early 1917. 
Saunders may or may not be surprised to see his concepts still in use since he was a forward thinker. However, here we are in 2020 back to shoppers sending in their lists to clerks who do the shopping for them and bag up the items, leaving the customers to only ensure they have proper payment when picking up their groceries and or having the groceries delivered directly to their door. 
Saunders only had a couple of years of formal schooling and he became self-educated via reading. Which segues into the correlation of grocery shopping and bookstore evolution similarities, somehow, for me at least. 
Amazon has only been around since 1994 but is the giant of the bookselling (and everything else) industry. Jeff Bezos has put many an independent, and quite a few big-box brick-and-mortar stores out of business. And yet, in the Charleston area we have five independent bookstores: Blue Bicycle (downtown Charleston), Buxton Books (downtown Charleston), Main Street Reads (Summerville), Itinerate Literate (North Charleston – it used to be a bookmoblie store, hence the name), and The Turning Page (Goose Creek). Plus, I recently had someone tell me that an independent bookstore will open just over the Cooper River bridge in Mt. Pleasant in the near future. Take that Amazon! (just kidding)
I enjoy visiting and purchasing from independent bookstores. I dig their energy, their book signings, coffee talks, helpful staff, and book clubs. 

Itinerant Literate hosts “Get Lit Bookclub” where you dine at a local restaurant and the small plates of food incorporate the meals present in the book, plus you get a serving of wine with each course. They sell out monthly. 

Buxton holds book talks in their store and in conjunction with the Charleston Library Society next door to them. Buxton is home to Tour Charleston where all the tours are book-based. (Full disclosure: I occasionally give their ghost tours.)

I’m excited to write books and have signings in these local stores. I’m truly hopeful they all succeed. 
And when I plan ahead, a rarity indeed, I love ordering my groceries online. 

Have you noticed this trend of returning to the way we were? In what other ways are we going back to the way things were done once upon a time? 

—
You can find out more about Clarence Saunders and the museum collection at www.memphismuseum.org, and the Charleston Library Society at https://charlestonlibrarysociety.org. 

To learn more about Charleston, SC independent bookstores visit https://bluebicyclebooks.com, https://www.buxtonbooks.com, https://www.itinerantliteratebooks.com, https://mainstreetreads.com, and https://turningpagebookshop.com. You can find a book-based tour at www.tourcharleston.com. 

Love and Presidents are in the Air

/in /by

by Paula Gail Benson

This
year, the two mid-February holidays–Valentine’s Day and Presidents’
Day–happen to border a long celebratory weekend. As part of the “love fest,” I’ve
been encouraging folks to consider a recent anthology to which I contributed.

Love in the Lowcountry features stories
that take place during the winter holidays, from Thanksgiving through New Year’s
Day, but the location of each story, Charleston, S. C., is well worth a virtual
vacation during any time of the year. The anthology includes stories from
experienced as well as debut authors, some sweet and others for mature
audiences, some present day while others take place in historical periods. My
story, “Wisest, Swiftest, Kindest,” allows two English graduate students to
time travel back to Charleston of 1936 to meet DuBose and Dorothy Heyward at the
new Dock Street Theater following the year that Porgy and Bess failed on Broadway. Some of the stories have paranormal
elements. All provide delightful couples finding their own happy endings.










If
you would like to do a little combination reading for the holidays, why not
check out some books about Presidential love stories? Here are a few you might want
to consider:


Mount Vernon Love Story (2002), first
issued as Aspire to the Heavens
(1969), was Mary Higgins Clark’s first novel. It was inspired by research she conducted for a radio program about George and Martha Washington’s
relationship.

My Dearest Friend: the Letters of Abigail
and John Adams
(Harvard University Press, 2010) features correspondence from forty years
between the second President and his wife.




























Irving
Stone’s The President’s Lady (1996)
and Patricia Brady’s A Being So Gentle
(2011) survey the romance between Rachel and Andrew Jackson.







































Courting Mr. Lincoln (2019) is Louis
Bayard’s novel told in alternating voices by Mary Todd and Lincoln’s roommate Joshua
Speed to reveal the complex, often misunderstood relationship between the
President and his wife.







































Kristie
Miller’s Ellen and Edith (2014)
explores the lives of Woodrow Wilson’s wives and their influence on the
President and the country.

George and Barbara Bush: A Great American
Love Story
by Ellie LeBlond Sosa (the President and Mrs. Bush’s granddaughter) and Kelly
Anne Chase, with a Foreward by President George W. Bush, tells about the seventy-seven
year love story between the 41st President and his beautiful bride.



What are you reading for the Valentine’s Day/Presidents’ Day weekend?

Love in the Air

/in /by
by Paula
Gail Benson
When
I first became serious about writing, a friend took me to a meeting of the
Lowcountry Romance Writers (LRWA), a chapter of the Romance Writers of America
(RWA), based in Charleston, South Carolina. At the time, LRWA was the one venue
close to where I lived that consistently provided good information about the
craft and business of writing. Although I didn’t write romance, I joined both
the chapter and the national organization and I benefited a great deal from the
programs and fellowship at LRWA.
http://lowcountryrwa.com/
By
the beginning of last year, I had more options. I didn’t have to make the two
hour drive to Charleston because I was actively involved in the Palmetto Chapter
of Sisters in Crime that provides monthly programs and meets in the city where
I live. In addition, I belonged to the Guppies, the online chapter of Sisters in
Crime, and several other organizations that gave me the opportunity to learn
about writing craft and business. I considered the matter carefully before renewing
my membership with LRWA and RWA. Finally, I decided to give it one more year,
even if I couldn’t make the meetings held in Charleston.
I’m
so very glad that I did. LRWA decided to publish an anthology this year and
allowed any of its members to participate. I had fifteen published short
stories, mostly mysteries, but the first had hinted at a love story. Could I
write another one?
The
requirements were that the story had to be a romance taking place in
Charleston, S.C., during the winter holidays. Any time period. 7,500 words
(although that got extended later).
I
faced two initial challenges: (1) could I write a credible romance, and (2)
could I write a 7,500 word story (most of mine are in the 3,500 word range)?

https://www.amazon.com/Love-Lowcountry-Winter-Holiday-Collection-ebook/dp/B07XJZSRBT/ref=sr_1_1?crid=39SS7H3SQCNG5&keywords=love+in+the+lowcountry&qid=1576438516&s=digital-text&sprefix=love+in+the+%2Cdigital-text%2C171&sr=1-1
Through
the great process set up by LRWA, I found I was able to do both. In addition, I
had the opportunity to network with some wonderful writers who became beta
readers, editors, and marketing directors. Romance writers have developed an
incredible ability to reach their audiences. From the experience of working on
this anthology, I’ve learned so much and made many valued friendships.
My
story is a time travel tale about two English graduate students, both unlucky
in their first relationships, finding love with each other when transported
back to a Charleston where the literary figures they have been studying lived.
I was amazed to discover how many famous persons happened to be in Charleston
the day before Thanksgiving 1936. I hope you might read my story to learn about
those connections!
In
addition, the anthology features stories about ghosts, pirates, magic, new
loves meeting, old loves reuniting, families working out how to spend the
holiday together, and people who thought love couldn’t possibly be in their
lives encountering it. Here’s a list of the other authors, among whom I’m very
proud to be included: Amy Quinton,
Angela Mizell, Carla Susan Smith, Casey Porter, Elaine Reed, Gracey Evans, Jen
Davis, Jessie Vaughn, Michele Sims, Rebecca A. Owens, Robin Hillyer Miles, Savannah
J. Frierson, and Zuzana Juhasova.
Are
you looking for a great holiday gift or a virtual trip to Charleston? You can’t
go wrong with Love in the Lowcountry. Here’s the link on Amazon.

P.S. This first
volume has been so successful; a new one is in the works. Guess who signed up
to write another romance?