An accident, a death--
love lost and love found...

 Each book $0.99 on Amazon.

The Depth of the Spirit, Book 1

When an accident leaves Thomas crippled and in a wheelchair, he resigns himself to life as a bachelor—not an easy thing for a young man to accept.  Then fate drops Margot in his lap.  Margot understands the frustrations and challenges of Thomas’ disability.  She knows the pain of loss.  Has serendipity brought Thomas and Margot together?  Or has his dead friend’s prophecy come true?  Only Kayla knows for sure…

www.amazon.com/dp/B01N27T4T2

The Breadth of the Soul, Book 2

She doesn’t know who she is or why she’s come to Colorado Springs.  Dustin has no idea why he’s met her.  Kayla whispers that her name is Ruby—if he can believe the voice of a spirit in the night.  Separate tragedies, years apart, form an invisible bond between Ruby and him.  A chance encounter over the Holidays?  Or a match made in Heaven?  Only Kayla knows for sure…

www.amazon.com/dp/B017WHH3BC

The Ascent of the Heart, Book 3

Lorena exists in the confines of her troubled past.  When her nephew, Braedon, comes along, he frees her from her suffocating life.  Then Artie arrives with a few liberating tricks of his own—good food, good company, and a not-so-deaf ear.  In the wings, someone else watches and listens.  Someone who bears Lorena’s and Artie’s most painful secrets and deepest wounds.  Will the couple need a little heavenly help?  Only Kayla knows for sure…

www.amazon.com/dp/B0781XKD4Z

Add a little magic to your holidays...

Merry Christmas with love,

~~ Linda

The Three Most Important Skills

All Writers Need to Learn:

Revising, Editing, & Rewriting

2005 Version

https://www.amazon.com/Getting-Words-Right-Improve-Writing/dp/158297358X

To begin with...

You’ve studied other authors’ novels and learned writing techniques.  You know how to plot, develop characters, and write believable dialogue.  You understand the difference between showing and telling and what purpose narration and exposition serve in a story.  You’ve finished your book, and you’re elated—and with good reason.  You’ve run a mental marathon, but you haven’t crossed the finish line.  Not yet.  Now, you must revise, edit, and rewrite, the hardest but most necessary part of the process.  How do you proceed from here?

A good editor is hard to find...

Even if you find a competent editor, and can afford the cost, you still need your manuscript to be in the best condition possible before submitting to him or her.  The most helpful editor is one who deals with content.  The person can point out the long, boring sections in your book, as well as any plot inconsistencies.  He or she will catch grammatical errors.  In the long run, however—yes, this is still part of the mental marathon—it’s you who will have to do the hard work.  You need to prepare yourself for the grueling task that lies ahead.

How-to Books...

Over the years, I’ve read many books on writing, but one stands out from all the rest: Getting the Words Right: How to Revise, Edit, & Rewrite by Theodore A. Rees Cheney.  Make no mistake: This is a technical book designed to improve your writing skills.  It’s broken up into sections with examples of what to look for and how to fix problems that arise in everyone’s first drafts.  It’s my Writing Bible, and I own two versions of the book.

1984 Version

What’s Inside?

REVISION BY REDUCTION

Takes you step by step through chapters, sections, paragraphs, scenes, dialogue, characters, and addresses redundancy, tautology, pleonasm, verbosity, prolixity, circumlocution, and repetition.  What’s authorial intrusion?  Do you use excess modifiers or idle, nonworking words?  Provides exercises.

RETHINK AND REARRANGE

Addresses issues of tone, style, and coherence; sentence, paragraph, and chapter lengths; word order, misplaced modifiers, and de-emphasizers.

REVISE BY REWORDING

Explores the parts of speech, style, and diction, along with sentence structure (syntax).  Discusses metaphors, similes, analogies, misspellings, and misuses.

Cheney’s book has been updated twice since 1984.  I have the original publication and the most recent copy (2005).  Regardless of which version you order, I can guarantee that you’ll improve your writing and editing skills.  I’ve read the first book twice and the second book once.  At long last, I think I’m “getting the hang of it.”

1990 Version

Getting the Words Right will be

the best writing class you’ve never taken!

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Thank you for dropping by Indie Lindy. 

Comments and shares are appreciated. 

Happy writing & happy reading!

N E W  R E L E A S E !

amazon.com/dp/B071WVZZPV

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/729271

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/directions-of-the-heart-marie-lavender/1126548251

https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/directions-of-the-heart-a-romantic-drama-collection

https://www.createspace.com/7239124

Embark on a remarkable journey of drama, romance, and passion...

In all of these amazing stories, there's one burning question...is love worth the risk?

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Without You

Reece and Jenna are two childhood friends separated by time and distance. Can they find a way to heal their bond, or perhaps forge a new one?

Strange Heat

Spurred by her friend’s close call, Victoria decides to take a risk and prove the lifestyle she led was her downfall. But as Tory sinks deeper into the tumultuous abyss of desire with the mysterious Rick, can she climb back out before it’s too late? Or does she even want to?

Memories

Struggling to run her family’s farm on her own, Sadie takes on a hired hand, Matt. As they grow closer, so does the danger. Someone wants her legacy. Can they combat this new threat, as well as the demons of the past, before Sadie loses everything, including her life?

A Touch of Dawn

Caitlyn thought she’d be in the dark forever. But with the light came Jack, the police consultant who found her. Can they take a journey of healing together, or will Caitlyn retreat into the darkness of her mind, where she lived for so long?

(CONTENT WARNING: With an abuse awareness theme in this collection, there may be triggers here for past trauma sufferers. However, HEAs are guaranteed.)

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For more information about Marie and her books, please visit:

https://www.amazon.com/Marie-Lavender/e/B00C10Q94I

https://marielavender.com

https://www.facebook.com/MarieAnnLavender

https://twitter.com/marielavender1

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Congrats on the release of your short story collection, Marie!  Always a pleasure to feature you on my blog.

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If you'd like to be a guest author on Indie Lindy, please email me at lindalee.author@gmail.com

Happy reading, and happy writing!