Meet Our Founding Members ~ Kristine Raymond

Author Kristine Raymond

When Kristine is not writing, she’s learning how to navigate the publishing and promotional side of the business. She enjoys spending time with her husband and furry family, reading, gardening, and binge-watching shows on Netflix.

To learn more about Kristine and read her prior blog posts, please click on her MEMBER PAGE

Finding a Writing Rhythm ~ by Author/Artist/Photographer Mina Beckett

As my bio says, I’ve been reading romance since I was a teenager.

About me link

While my friends were crowding into football games, I was curled up on the couch, listening to my Walkman, switching between my sketchpad and a romance book.  

My mother remarried and moved to Texas when I was sixteen, but I stayed in Kentucky with my grandparents to attend school. I spent my summers in Midland with her and my sister and never made the long trip without at least a dozen books. Back then, I could gobble up three to four romances a day.

Penny Jordan and Sara Craven were some of my favorite authors, but my first summer in Texas, I discovered Elizabeth Lowell and Diana Palmer. There I was, reading Fire and Rain, Granite Man and Calhoun while living in West Texas surrounded by real-life cowboys. It was the perfect catalyst for my young imagination. I began filling notebooks with ideas, character profiles, and short stories. I’d write a few paragraphs and then do a few sketches of different scenes and characters.

Fast forward ten years. I’m married, have two children, a full-time career and no time to write. My notebooks were shoved to the back of a closet and deemed unimportant. But the characters in my head were stubborn and not easily dismissed. They’d show up at the most inconvenient times, like at board meetings and during presentations, so I tried to appease them by jotting down ideas here and there. But they kept talking, loudly. It wasn’t long until those thoughts were filling notebooks again.

After spending almost two decades earning degrees, working full-time and raising children, I decided it was time to revisit my writing, so I cleaned out my utility room and set up a small writing space. There among baskets of dirty clothes and dryer lint, I began drafting my first story.

I was so excited!

But writing to complete a full-length novel for submission wasn’t anything like writing short stories for fun. I’d write a page or two – usually, things I’d scribbled down while I was at work– but then, my mind would stall. I’d spend the rest of my writing time staring at my keyboard. It was so frustrating! Soon, doubt moved in, pulled up a chair, and began whispering in my ear. Maybe writing for submission was just a childish dream. Maybe I wasn’t a writer at all.

I battled with Impostor Syndrome for months, not knowing it was a common problem among writers or how to deal with it. It took me over a year to finish the first draft and I can honestly say, it was horrible. The book didn’t get any better when a small press publisher contracted it in 2014. My second book was published the following year, but I was still struggling with the words.

My husband and I were financially stable enough that I was able to resign from my job and devote more time to my writing and work part-time in the company we owned. I finally had time to write! I moved out of that dark and dusty utility room and into the guest bedroom. Looking back, I know I resembled Andy Farmer (Chevy Chase) in Funny Farm.

In 2016, I outlined a new series called Coldiron Cowboys, wrote blurbs for the three books, and hammered out a rough draft of the first one (still stalling and struggling). But I didn’t submit it to the small press publisher. My gut told me these books were going to be different and they were.

In 2017, I regained the rights to my first two books, shelved them and enrolled in Gwen Hayes’ Romancing the Beat. That class transformed my writing and I was able to finally find my voice. That’s such a wonderful feeling!

I began working on a series proposal for the Coldiron Cowboys and successfully landed an agent. We submitted The Heartbreak Cowboy (book one) to the big five, went through a grueling four-month rewrite for a top ten publisher, and received wonderful feedback from an acquiring editor at Harlequin. But, in the end, I stepped away from her on good terms without contracting the series.

But it was during that rewrite that I made a giant leap forward. We had a conference call with the acquiring editor who requested the rewrite to discuss the changes she wanted. I did bullet points reflecting those changes in the appropriate chapters and had a firm grasp on what needed to be done. I had written the story, knew it and my characters inside and out, but after an hour of writing, I stalled.

I couldn’t understand why it was happening until I found some of those short stories and sketches I’d done in Texas. Suddenly, it hit me. Walkman. Sketchpad. Book. My brain was wired to multitask not to sit in front of a computer for hours trying to churn out chapters. Those first two books had been written while I was on lunch breaks, in class, and at little league games. I needed to find a rhythm so, I began experimenting by incorporating different hobbies and projects into my writing routine.

I set daily word goals, wrote in short spurts of five to eight hundred words, then switched to working on a watercolor painting, took a walk around the farm to snap a few pictures, baked a cake worked in Photoshop.   

Pinterest link

This has worked wonders for me, and I don’t think I would have been able to write so productively if I hadn’t found this rhythm. I wrote my first Christmas romance in 2019 and I did it in only three months.  

Website

I re-branded myself, started CurtissLynn Publishing, and self-published The Heartbreak Cowboy. I’ve since published three more books and started a new series. Breaking the Cowboy, the third and final book in my Coldiron Cowboys series will be released in March and there are at least three books planned for the Rough Creek series. Hollywood Cowboy (Morgan’s story) will be hitting Amazon sometime in the late summer or early fall. I’m crossing my fingers that Montana Cold (Colton and Lauren’s story from The Heartbreak Cowboy) will make it into readers' hands by Thanksgiving.

With each book I write, I learn more about myself, my voice and my writing process.

Thank you for having me as a guest today!

To learn more about Mina, click the links under the photographs or those listed below.

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Guilty Pleasures ~ Jacquolyn McMurray

Photo by Christian Wiediger on Unsplash

Last week, one of my longtime friends and I got on the topic of favorite YouTube videos. We giggled when we admitted to one another the music videos of little kids with big voices was at the top of our go-to lists--you know the ones that make Simon Cowell swipe at tears while trying to maintain the persona of the gruff judge. 

We agreed we also love those flash mob videos, and I even confessed my obsession with the wedding dance performances. And how about the flash mob for the marriage proposal? 

So that conversation got me thinking about other guilty pleasures that make me feel like I'm taking time to treat myself. Maybe you enjoy some of the same treats.

How about Half & Half instead of skim milk in your morning coffee, dark chocolate covered macadamia nuts tucked in your lunchbox, or the Crunchy Cheetos that stain your fingers orange?

Photo by Oksana on Unsplash

Lots of my guilty pleasures revolve around food--like when I go to a fancy restaurant at lunchtime and order only dessert and coffee. 

Photo by David Hurley on Unsplash

Or when I go to the movies and ruin my next meal by eating popcorn with Milk Duds mixed in and drinking a jumbo Coke. 

I wish I could say that's the end, but there are other guilty pleasures that feel like treats, like scheduling my part-time hours at work so I get a three- or four-day weekend, binge watching reruns of Friends or King of Queens, and scheduling a whole day to do as I please with no expectations, lists, or guilt.

Photo by JESHOOTS.COM on Unsplash

Maybe I've stumbled on a New Year's Resolution. Schedule time for myself free of guilt and treats that don't count as calories. Until next month, gotta' go. I just heard YouTube has a new Simon Cowell video.

What’s New and How-To~by Joanne Jaytanie

If you’re looking for a fun story, interested in hearing some new music, or admire a piece of art, Originality by Design is your next must-read. Stop by and see what’s new. We have a wide variety of guest bloggers with a multitude of subjects. And, we’re introducing a brand new page titled, REGULAR CONTRIBUTORS. 

Are you excited to see what there is inside the pages of Originality by Design (OBD), but a bit bewildered?

No worries. I’m here to give you a quick rundown. You’ll become an expert in no time.

When you enter the OBD site, the newest blog post will be the first thing you see (like this one). To the right of this blog post is a list of PAGES. If you click on the HOME page, you’ll see the description of Originality by Design. And as you scroll down, the next block is once again, the newest post. Under that post is a list of the ten most viewed blog posts. 

The next tab under HOME in PAGES is MEMBERS. There you will find an introduction to each of our members along with a link to their PERSONAL PAGE. Each member’s page can also be reached by clicking on their name in PAGES. Along with the MEMBERS, we have our REGULAR CONTRIBUTORS and the list of GUEST BLOGGERS – by year. You can also CONTACT US if you have suggestions, comments, or are interested in joining us as a guest blogger.

Have you found a person you’d like to read more from but can’t locate their posts?

If they are a MEMBER, when you click on their name in the PAGES, their personal page will come up. There you can read all their posts to your heart’s content. You can also find links to their other sites, such as Facebook, Pinterest, and their website. Each member’s page is tailored to their choices.

If you’re looking for a specific GUEST BLOGGER, REGULAR CONTRIBUTOR, even a MEMBER, and you don’t want to scroll through pages and pages, let me tell you a little trick. Scroll up to the very top of the blog. On the top left side, above the Originality by Design banner, you’ll see a “B” next to that is a white box. Just type in the name you are looking for and hit enter. Everything relating to that person will appear. 

Those are the basics. So feel free to pursue OBD whenever the mood strikes. There’s always something new to read, a thought to ponder, or a laugh to be had.

Enjoy!  
Joanne

Everyone Should Have a Hobby, I Chose Writing ~ by Doug J. Cooper

While I’ve been told that everyone should have a hobby, my belief is that everyone should pick an art or sport that inspires them and strive to improve at it. It can be gardening, baking, golf—it doesn’t matter. But the journey becomes elevated when you set your sights on lofty ambitions.

I chose writing, and specifically science fiction novels, as my art form. After seven years and six books, I can report that I’m having a blast on my journey, and there’s no end in sight.

Science fiction is a natural fit for me. It’s what I read in my youth. And as a professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the University of Connecticut, science is in my blood. My research at UConn focuses on automating manufacturing plants to make them safer, cleaner, and more profitable. I spent years studying how neural networks and other artificial intelligence technologies might serve in that role. Over time, my research shifted away from AI, but my interest in the technology never died. 

Now I use my imagination to explore the subject. My interest is in how human-AI interaction might impact our society. I did this first in The Crystal Series, four novels of action and suspense that center on two great sci-fi themes—artificial intelligence and adventures in space. The overarching personality in the series is Criss, a “good” AI with the cognitive ability of a thousand humans. He is hard-wired to protect and serve his human leadership team, which includes Dr. Juice Tallette, the crystal scientist who created him; Cheryl Wallace, captain of a Fleet space cruiser; and Sid, a covert operative for the Union of Nations.

I am currently writing the Bump Time Trilogy, where the stories center on AI and time travel. In these books, Ciopova is a “bad” AI who manipulates humans to her own ends. We follow David “Diesel” Lagerford, his wife Lilah, and daughter Rose across time as they confront Ciopova and seek to end her dominance.

To illustrate what I mean by exploring human-AI interaction, I’ve chosen a few examples from different books and present them below.

First up is a scene from Crystal Deception, book 1 of The Crystal Series. Here, Criss is a few weeks old and growing in capability. Juice, his creator, is seeing him for the first time as a projected image—a holographic trick of light that makes him seem real—and has a human reaction.

    “Agents are watching you, Juice,” said Criss. “But they’re seeing what I show them. I suspect they’ll become quite bored with what they believe is your daily routine.”
     She examined the features of his face as he spoke. “You look a lot like my dad when he was younger. You did this to make me like you more?”
     “I want you to feel comfortable with me. Is this okay?”
     “You chose well.” Juice leaned to see him from the side. “I may develop a crush on you, though.”

Over the course of the series, Juice and Criss develop a deeply personal relationship. Here is a scene from Crystal Rebellion, book 3 of The Crystal Series. In this scene, Juice learns that her love-interest, Alex, was seen kissing another woman. We join Juice in her bedroom, confiding in Criss, who is sitting with her as a projected image.

     “I’m so sad,” whispered Juice.
     Criss caught her eye. “While Anya loves Alex, he does not feel the same about her.”
     Juice shook her head, but because it rested on a pillow, it was more of a chin shake. “Sorry, Criss. They were kissing. You’ll never understand human matters of the heart.”
     “Igor Dolovich has loved you for more than a year. You sat on his lap six weeks ago. Should Alex be upset?”
     “There were five of us in a car and I was the smallest person by far. What was I supposed to do?”
     “You danced with him four weeks ago. A slow dance. You kissed at the end.”
     “It was a company party and he asked me. And I know you chose a slow song to get me to spend time with him.” She didn’t believe that last part was true, but when he didn’t object, she wondered if it might be. “And we didn’t kiss. He gave me a peck on the cheek.”
     “You love Igor.”
     She rolled back to face the wall. “That’s dumb and this isn’t helping.”
     “Alex doesn’t love Anya, just the way you don’t love Igor.”
     Beginning to understand his logic, she looked back at him. “Are you sure?”
     Criss nodded. “Ask him yourself.”

Criss has a different relationship with Sid, a highly-trained military operative. When no threats are present, Sid treats Criss like a frat-brother. Here is a scene from Crystal Escape, book 4 of The Crystal Series, where Sid goads Criss into making a wager.

     With the launch test completed, Sid pushed Criss to bet on whether the chicken egg inside survived. “Pick either broken or intact.”
     “Which do you want?” Criss replied.
     “You go first,” Sid insisted. “Broken or intact? You have to choose.”
     “I’ll take broken.”
     “You really think the equipment is that bad?”
     “No. I’d say the chance of failure is small. But I know you want to pick intact, so I’ll take broken.”
     Giving him a sidelong glance, Sid stood and made for the exit.  “You are the opposite of fun.”

But when danger lurks and tensions rise, Sid’s hard edge emerges, creating difficulties for Criss. In this scene from Crystal Escape, the AI must negotiate his path carefully.

     As they raced to intercept the stolen craft and rescue Juice, Sid called to her, “Is it just you and Lazura on the ship?”
     “I think so,” Juice replied. After a brief pause, she continued, her voice rising. “And Sid, don’t even think about making a move on her until I’m back and we talk. Criss, you hear me?”
     Cheryl offered her support. “We’ll wait.”
     “Acknowledged,” replied Criss, who used formal language to convey that he would be following strict protocol during this period of leadership disharmony.
     Outnumbered, Sid, who wanted to destroy Lazura at the first opportunity, grunted and folded his arms.

Not all interactions need be dramatic to be interesting. In this scene

from Bump Time Meridian, book 2 of the Trilogy, Lilah’s first time-travel experience is to jump to the future to visit an older version of her daughter, Rose. While there, Rose has her try out a neural link with Luca, the home AI.

     Rose watched Lilah go quiet and begin to sway, and knew that meant Luca was giving her the grand tour. His valley excursion made you feel like you were flying over the hillsides as he glided you past amazing wildlife and dramatic geographic features. His extended tour included virtual visits to notable homes along the mountain ridges, a sampling of the popular winter and summer sports, an overview of the local history, and more.
     “Luca,” Rose called aloud. “Please keep the tour short. We have work to do.”
     She’d committed a major faux pas by speaking to the AI about a linked human. In polite society, one always addressed the person. But she was anxious to move things along and counted on Lilah’s inexperience to miss her gaffe.

But when the bad AI shows her cards, like Ciopova does in this scene from Bump Time Origin, book 1 of the Trilogy, it becomes the kind of interaction we all fear.

     Tap. Tap. The knock on the workshop door caused Rose to turn. Whispering to Ciopova, she asked, “Who is that?”
     “It’s your father," replied the AI.
     “It’s not my dad.” Her tone was matter-of-fact, almost dismissive. Then she thought about it. “Unless you reactivated the T-discs?”
     She’d always felt safe in this house and comfortable with Ciopova. That history tempered her caution, and, in the moment, she made a critical error. She unlocked the door.
     The instant Rose disengaged the door lock, the house bot forced it open from the outside and lunged for her.

Whew! While this is a tiny sample of the human-AI interactions I explore, I hope you’ve gained a sense of what you’ll find inside the pages of my books.

Thank you so much for hosting me. I am grateful for the opportunity to visit your wonderful blog.

When he is not writing science fiction novels, Doug fills his day

working as a professor of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering at the University of Connecticut, and as founder and director of Control Station, Inc. His passions include telling inventive tales, mentoring driven individuals, and everything sci-tech. He lives in Connecticut with his darling wife and with pictures of his son, who is off somewhere in the world creating adventures of his own.

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