I'm in love with an alpaca

Actually, I'm love with a bunch (herd?) of them. I'm writing a story about an alpaca ranch, and a couple of months ago I Googled alpacas since I know nothing about them. (Still not sure what a bunch of them is called. Hmm.) In my search, Stargazer Ranch in Loveland, Colorado, run by Cynthia Fronk and John Heise, came up. Since it's so close to where I live, I contacted them to ask if I could visit. I was told they would be out doing shows, but they were having an open barn at the end of June.

So, last weekend, I went with my trusty cameraman (my hubby) and had a blast. The open barn was held on a Saturday and Sunday, and we went the latter. What a blessing! The day before they had about 25 people visit. When we showed up there was only one other couple who John was helping. As a result, we had Cindy's undivided attention for 2 hours. She was great. Very professional, but loads of fun. This lady knows her stuff!

The first beauties we met were Sonrisa, a very pregnant female, and Saffron, a new mommy to baby (cria) Peanut.

Most of the males (herdsires) were in a pen of their own away from the ladies. However, the young fella below was priviledged to be placed in a pen near some some fetching females. The purpose? To wake up those hormones. Here, he's trying to talk to the young ladies, probably something like, "Hey, chicky-baby. Wanna hang out at my paddock?"

We had a great time, learned about husbandry, behavior, and where green spit comes from. We also learned about communal poop. Hey, we're talkin' animals here, so we must mention poop! The animals all go in one place. (Note the dark spots in the pic above.) Females aren't as neat as males who like to go on each other's poop to cover up the scent and replace their own. Sounds like a guy, huh? And speaking of scent, I was pleasantly surprised that the ranch in general smelled. . .well. . .pleasant. With 50 animals on this ranch, one would think it would reek, but it actually smelled like hay, the whole place, inside and out.

This story isn't contracted yet, but I have high hopes. How does this teaser sound?

A man and a woman, both with abandonment issues, learn to forgive with the help of a melodious alpaca.

I'll announce it on my Website as soon as there is something concrete to report. Please pray!

Thank you, Cindy and John at Stargazer Ranch. You guys are the best!

Spring Newsletter

My spring newsletter is now on my Website. Here's a preview:

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IN THIS ISSUE:
What's New
~Love Letters~
~ShoutLife~
~Speaking Engagements~
Feature Article
~I Smell New Life~
Writing Tip
~Stop That!~
Groaner
Links
Parting Words
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Please come on over and check it out!
* Read how in this spring, I'm coming out of a spiritual winter.
* Learn how to search and destroy unneeded words in your manuscript.
* Discover the answer to this burning question: What kind of story does the Easter Bunny like to hear?

While you're there, I invite you to subscribe.

Love Letters is in Family Christian!

Yep! Hubby and I were walking the Colorado Mills mall a couple of days ago, and I dipped into Family Christian. There was Love Letters, on the next to the bottom shelf in the Christian fiction section. My darling took a picture with my camera phone. This is waaaay exciting, folks! Even though I did a Chicken Soup book awhile back, nothin' beats knowing that one of my stories is sitting on a bona fide shelf, for, like, everybody to buy! Wahooeee!

The other three authors in this novella collection are Mary Davis, Sally Laity, and Jeri Odell. My story is about a traditional fortune cookie maker who meets a thoroughly modern women in 1955 and woos her with scripture in his cookies.

If you can't make it to Family Christian, you can always order on line at the Barbour Website.

The Reviews Are In!

People are reading Merely Players and guess what? They like it! I guess my angst over having my name on a product was unfounded.

Michelle Hutchinson writes in part, "Reading this Heartsong novel was like delving into a delectable dessert. Delicious. The romantic element was fabulous...every reader's fantasy. Who wouldn't want a hot Hollywood movie star to be in love with them? I enjoyed every minute of this savory romance." Read the full review at Edgy Inspirational Author.

Paula Moldenhauer said: "Kathy does some beautiful things with symbolism and fun stuff with humor, besides writing a moving story with some real meat behind the romance." Read the full review at Grace Reign and see a pic of our critique group, JOY Writers.

And I'm getting fan mail!

SS writes: "Dear Kathleen, Congrats on your first Heartsong Presents novel. I enjoyed the setting and the behind the scenes look at a movie being made. Bethany and Ricky were a great couple and I liked watching them work their way back to each other."

CVP writes: "I live in the "nice" town of Niceville, Fl. I subscribe to Heartsong Presents bookclub. I was so delighted to read your new book since everything was so familiar to me. My husband is retired Air Force and we spent two tours at Eglin AFB. We retired in Niceville. I have visited the Gulfarium many times. It was a pleasure to read your book and I intend to share it with my friends.
Thanks for a delightful book. I look forward to reading more books written by you."

And from Mary Connealy, my fellow "contract receiver", (we both received our first contracts at the 2005 American Christian Fiction Writers Conference) "I loved your book! I got it in the mail yesterday and read it before I staggered off to bed at 1 a.m. Kathy it's so good. I think it's fresh and different for HP and I love the whole feel of it and the great faith conclusion, just handled brilliantly."

There are a couple more people who offered to review the book, but it's waiting in their queues. I'll post those reviews when they do.

My next move is to enter Merely Players into a couple of contests. There will either be much celebrating in a few months, or a lot of weeping and gnashing of teeth. Stay tuned!

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Here's a heads up. . .my novella "Cookie Schemes" is coming out in March in the Barbour 4-in-1 Love Letters. This book is already available for reservations at the Barbour Website.

Backstage with MERELY PLAYERS

Ever wonder what goes on behind the story? I'm going to let you in on my research as well as a segment called, "What was I thinking?" Yes, I'm going to allow you to see into that frightening thing called...a writer's mind.
 
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It's here! After years of dreaming, my first novel is finally in my hot little hands. Now, as promised, I'd like to share some of my research with you.
 
DOLPHIN THERAPY
The Gulfarium is a real place and located in Fort Walton Beach, FL. I spent ten years in Fort Walton while my husband was in the Air Force. We were stationed at both Hurlburt and Eglin Air Force Bases. Go to www.gulfarium.com to check this place out.
 
I became aware of the dolphin therapy program probably in about our ninth year. I had a friend with two autistic children, and although she didn't utilize the program, she mentioned it to me as a possibility.
 
My imagination latched onto this little bit of information, and I began playing the "what if" game. What if my heroine was a dolphin trainer/therapist? What if she were a "fish out of water", and better suited for something else? What if she didn't really know what she wanted to do with her life, and the "something else" tried to lure her away from this noble profession? What would that "something else" be?
 
Now, before my research I knew absolutely NOTHING about dolphin training or therapy. I did know a little bit about acting, and especially high school plays. My youngest son has been acting since junior high. Ah ha! My hero was born. I may not know about dolphins, but I sure know something about drama geeks.
 
Again, I played my game. What if my hero aspired to become a professional actor? What if he became so successful that he left the "little people" behind? What if one of those people was his high school girlfriend? And what would happen if they met again after ten years? Hmm. I do believe I created sufficient conflict to start my story.
 
Then came the research. OY! This is not my forte. I pray I someday become so successful that I can pay someone to do my research for me. However, I'm not there yet. So,  I poured over the internet to learn about dolphins and training. I also found there are several facilities that use dolphins as a form of therapy. Just put "dolphin therapy" in the Google search engine and see what comes up. I found that therapists use these marvelous animals as a reward. If the child completes a task, the dolphin does a trick. But moreover, the love between animal and child can bring healing. The program at the Gulfarium is called the JF2 Dolphin Project, with Dr. Janet Flowers at the helm. Go to http://www.gulfarium.com/jfdolphin.html#what for more information.
 
And thus, a novel is born. If you're not in the Heartsong Presents book club, but would like your very own Merely Players, you can order it from their Website at www.heartsongpresents.com/book/detail/1597893382/