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All About Kate
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Connect with Kate
Kate's Fun Facts
Hometown:Back of beyond, NC GH Year(s) 2008,2009 Completed Manuscript(s) too numerous to count Genre(s): Historical romance Started Writing: 2000 Day Job: retired, thank you, Lord For Fun: boating, swimming |
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The Ruby Slippered Sisterhood
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Blog Posts from Kate
What’s in a Name?Posted by Kate Parker Apr 18 2012, 12:01 am What’s in a name, you ask? My answer is plenty. Not only is this how we communicate ideas, it’s how we misunderstand and disappoint each other. For example, a co-worker at the book store my daughter worked in was chosen to lead the mystery book club. She quickly found none of the readers liked her choice of books. When I asked what type of mystery she was choosing, I got a blank look. It turned out, the readers wanted cozies and the girl was choosing hard-boiled. Both are mysteries, but very different types. The young store clerk and her audience had different interests, but only used one word to describe what they wanted. Another example, which my youngest will never forget, is that “bodice-ripper” is not a synonym for “romance.” The neighbors probably heard my lecture that day. All the child wanted was a book that didn’t have a cover she was embarrassed to take on an airplane with her. Blood and gore were fine; naked skin was not. She tarred a certain type of book cover with far too wide and inaccurate a brush. Not only do we need to be specific with what we are offering the reading public, we can also confuse each other within the publishing industry. I’ve heard internal and external goal, goal and conflict, and a host of other terms which never made much sense to me. The other day, someone sent me a copy of an article where these were described as goal and task. Finally, something that didn’t confuse me. Here, goal was used as the internal, universal goal the heroine has that everyone can relate to. Finding love, creating a home of one’s own, making the world a safer place, seeing justice done. And task was used as the external goal which is specific to every story. A marriage of convenience to save her brother in the castle dungeon. Forging a document that allows an innocent man to go free. Saving his family’s small business in the face of competition from a conglomerate. These are specific tasks, but they can all lead to finding love as the universal, internal goal. This is a perfect example using a word I understood and could relate to. We try to use words as labels. Sometimes that works, and sometimes it only adds to the confusion. Is that book romantic suspense, mystery with romantic elements, suspense with romantic elements, romance, suspense, or all of the above? And try to guess where to locate that book, either in a bookshop or in an online catalog. A “hot” rating to one person meets their expectation for a romance, while another wonders if their Nook will melt. What words in the world of books do you find the most confusing? Or have you recently come across a word that explains something in a new and better way? I’d love to hear your favorite, or not so favorite, phrases. Let’s see if we confuse or clarify things for one another. Welcoming the Class of 2012 Golden Heart Finalists!Posted by Kate Parker Mar 27 2012, 12:01 am Congratulations to the 2012 Golden Heart finalists The screams, the tears, the joyous dances haven’t stopped yet, but the Ruby Slippered Sisterhood wants to congratulate all of the 2012 Golden Heart finalists. Some are new faces, others old friends, but all of them are embarking on a roller coaster ride not unlike the ones in [...] Memorable CharactersPosted by Kate Parker Dec 13 2011, 1:10 am While in Denmark recently, my husband was flipping through the TV channels while I worked on dinner. When I heard my husband go, “Oh, my” I ran in from the kitchen, leaping over thresholds (more on that in a moment), to discover him watching what would never appear on TV in the US at dinner [...] Tips for Entering the Golden Heart: Historical Romance EditionPosted by Kate Parker Oct 13 2011, 12:01 am in craft, golden heart, writing tips Advice on how to final in the Historical Golden Heart by Jeannie Lin, CJ Chase, Jennifer Bray-Weber, Elise Hayes, Gwynlyn Mackenzie, and Kate Parker (Imagine this in Edwardian script. It looked timeless, elegant. Oh, well. Back to the 21st Century. Kate) From Jeannie Lin, who won the Golden Heart for historical in 2009, and whose [...] The rights/wrongs of HistoryPosted by Kate Parker Sep 13 2011, 12:12 am in historical romance, research I’m a history bug. If it’s old, I’m curious about it. And so the title of this blog is a misnomer, but I didn’t have four lines to work out a correct title. What I really want to ask our readers is: what are the rights and wrongs of historical romance? I don’t mean the [...]
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Kate has found historical romance fits her to a tee, since she discovered romance in an era most consider historical these days. A lifelong reader, she began writing when her three children were grown and no longer dragging her away from the typewriter every thirty seconds. Now she writes on a computer, which is faster, except when her very own historical hero calls.
