cry love

Researchaholic

Researchaholic

Gaddy photo 2014Researchaholic

by Eve Gaddy


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I love research. There’s nothing I like better when starting a book than to be able to do research. I love going to the library and finding books and articles on the subject I’m researching. I love being able to google the subject and have all kinds of books and articles show up in my browser. I make a research file for each book in my browser favorites and keep all the links in it. I also keep a file for print articles and I have both ebooks and paper books for research. I keep all my research for every book I’ve written. That way if I need to know something about jewel thieves, or Texas Rangers, or cops, or cold cases, or Hotshots, or any number of things I’ve researched in the past, I don’t have to start from zero. 

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A really interesting thing happened just as I was starting to do research for Cry Love. I decided that even though I’d never heard of one, that it would have been logical for there to have been another Underground Railroad, but this one running from Texas to Mexico. After all, Mexico is a lot closer to Texas than Canada. Imagine my surprise when I found that my idea happened to be true.

First, I googled Texas-Mexico Underground Railroad to see if it had existed. I found a number of articles that referred to it, some with just a mention and some with more information. Information was scarce on the subject. There isn’t a lot written about it, or at least, a lot that is accessible. Most people don’t even know the Texas-Mexico Underground Railroad existed. I’ve read that much that’s written about it is in Spanish, but even in Mexico the stories about it aren’t well known. 

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The kernel of an idea I started with was that of a black man and a white woman who fell in love just prior to the Civil War. The man was a slave. Again, I didn’t know much about the subject, but people fall in love all the time, so it didn’t seem impossible for such a situation to have taken place. One of the books I found fascinating is Forbidden Fruit–Love Stories From the Underground Railroad, by Betty Deramus. One section that particularly interested me was about interracial love stories from the Civil War era. The stories were touching and emotional and often tragic. 

Although I still research some of the medical references and situations and such, I do have my own personal go-to medical sources. My husband, Bob, is a retired physician who was a General Surgeon and Radiologist. He loves it when I ask him things. 

Me: “I need something really exciting to happen in the ER.” I go on to explain the circumstances, what I’m trying to accomplish, etc. 

Bob: “You don’t want the ER to be exciting. Things aren’t going well if they’re exciting.” 
Me: “Yes, yes, I know that. (He’s told me this before. Many times.) But tell me what could happen that requires both a trauma surgeon and a neurosurgeon. Something they might argue about.”
Bob: Sighs heavily. “Well, this could happen…”
Me: “No.”
Bob: “Or this…”
Me: “No.”
Bob: Audibly grinding teeth. “How many scenarios do you want?”
Me: “I want one that’s exciting.”

We go on like that for a while until I finally hear something that might work. Then, of course, I have to pick his brains about how to write the scene and finally, I ask him to read over it to make sure it doesn’t sound stupid or that I haven’t gotten something wrong. I’m fairly certain at times like that he wishes he wasn’t a retired physician. My daughter is a Physician’s Assistant so I have another source for answers to medical questions. I think she likes being asked. So far.:)

I also had to do some research about divorce in Texas. I warned my husband in case he came upon me reading about divorce and thought I was planning something. I don’t think he was worried. I’m pretty sure I’ve asked him questions about that as well. I’ve been a writer for a long time now, so he’s accustomed to being asked about all sorts of subjects–both those he knows about and those he doesn’t.

There are a number of groups for writers that are wonderful for doing research. An excellent one is the Yahoo groups Crime Scene Writers group, started by Wally Lind, a retired police crime scene investigator. The description from the Yahoo groups site reads: “A forum for asking and answering crime scene investigation, applied forensics, and police procedure questions for fiction or non-fiction writers. Writers are invited to ask and crime scene investigators, forensic scientists, and medical practitioners are invited to answer.”

As with a lot of things, research has changed markedly with the Internet. It can make a writer’s life both easier and harder. Easier to find books, articles and other resources to find answers to questions. Harder because it’s common to get distracted by every article you read and keep clicking on different articles until suddenly you are reading an article that has absolutely no relation to whatever you were researching. Worse, two hours have passed and you still haven’t found the answer to your question.

But you never know when you might need an article on Wolf Moon name variations.

Ideas and Inspiration

Ideas and Inspiration
Gaddy photo 2014Ideas and Inspiration
by Eve Gaddy
“Where do you get your ideas?” That’s a question writers hear a lot. There are as many different answers as there are books. For me, the short answer is everywhere. Every book is different.
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A song can be inspiring in a number of ways. The lyrics might inspire me, or the tune, or the title, or all three. I remember driving somewhere and a song came on the radio and suddenly a plot point became obvious to me. Of course, I don’t remember the song or the plot point now, but I think the book was Cry Love. Driving is great for getting ideas, except you can’t write them down.

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A quote, any kind of quote, might inspire me to have an idea for a new book, or a book I’m currently working on. Articles in the newspaper or from the Internet can also be sources of inspiration.

When I heard the song Cry Love, by John Hiatt http://bit.ly/1m0enN1, I knew that was the title of my book. Cry Love is the first song on my playlist. I posted the playlist for Cry Love in an earlier blog.

Pictures are wonderful at firing the imagination. I often make a board on Pinterest for my books. I make them public after the book is published. I pin pictures of people who resemble my hero and heroine, of settings, buildings, and houses. Often, I’ll pin outfits the heroine might wear.

Sometimes I pin inspiring or pertinent quotes.

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For some reason, I have a lot of pictures of men who might resemble my hero.

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I found the movie Hurricane very inspiring. I also found Denzel Washington (in his prime!) inspiring.

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In fact, I found several African-American actors inspiring.

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Here are some more images I found for Cry Love. I’ll leave it to you to discover why each picture might be important in the book.

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I’m sure other authors have other things that inspire them. These are just a few of mine. Finding inspiration is one of my favorite things to do for a book.

Books of the Heart

Books of the Heart

Gaddy photo 2014Books of the Heart

by Eve Gaddy

Have you ever heard the expression a “Book of the Heart?” It’s a common phrase among writers. We toss it around, certain that everyone knows what we mean when we say it. Recently I heard from another writer that readers might not know what the phrase a “Book of the Heart” means. “Aren’t all your books written from your heart?” a reader might ask. And the answer is yes. Absolutely. But a Book of the Heart has a different meaning.

A book of the heart is often a long time in the making. I know of several writers whose books took years to develop. Mine certainly did. I haven’t heard of one that wasn’t a struggle in some way. Sometimes a book of the heart is very difficult to write. The subject matter, the format, the genre, something makes it different and harder for the author to write it. Are there any books of the heart that come easily? Yes, but we call those “gift books.” More on those in another blog.

To me, a book of the heart is a book that calls to the author. The book insists on being written. It won’t let the author alone. It hangs around in the back of our mind, sometimes dormant, sometimes perking away and demanding we stop whatever we’re doing and write the thing. Books of the Heart do not care if the author has another contracted book due. They do not care if it’s difficult to write, if it wrings you dry. Quite simply the book of the heart demands to be written. We might put it off for many years, writing other things, but the time is never quite right. We know when it is. Mine rose up and whacked me in the head.

I was talking about books of the heart to amazing author, Justine Davis. I said that I didn’t know of anyone who hadn’t thought about their book of the heart for a very long time before writing it. Often years. The writing itself might not take years, but the book needs time to develop before you can write it. Justine said, “But to me it means not only one that’s close to your heart, but one you’ve had to carry in your heart because the time/situation wasn’t right, or you didn’t have the time to devote to it.” I’m planning a series of future blogs in which other authors discuss their own Books of the Heart.

My book of the heart, Cry Love, was not written quickly. It was not written easily. At times I wondered if it would ever be written at all. It is far and away the most complex, difficult, different book that I’ve ever written. I love romantic suspense and write a lot of it. In fact, my next book for Bell Bridge Books is romantic suspense. I also write contemporary romance. I’m a bit confused about what genre to place Cry Love in. It’s a love story about lovers from three different time periods. It’s about how the past connects to the present. There is triumph and tragedy, suspense, and a mystery that runs through much of the book, including the present. And romance. Cry Love is definitely a romance.

For the longest time, I wasn’t sure I’d ever write Cry Love. Then I wasn’t sure I’d finish it. I was also unsure that it would ever be published. Every new book is a thrill to me. Every book I write is important and matters to me. My heart is in every book. But Cry Love is my Book of the Heart, the one that’s been on my mind and in my heart for many years. I’m so happy to be able to share it with you now.

Just click the link above to buy Eve Gaddy’s romantic new release!