Archive for March, 2011
Posted on March 31, 2011 - by Shari Barr
DYNAMIC DIALOGUE
“Anyone who says money can’t buy happiness doesn’t know where to shop.”
Okay, who spoke this not so famous quote? Five seconds…ding! Time’s up. Need a clue? It’s from one of the most famous shipwrecks of all time. No, not the Titanic—the S. S. Minnow. Now, did anyone guess “Lovey” from Gilligan’s Island?
Since this is one of my all-time favorite shows (yes, I know that’s scary and even a little warped), I could probably recite entire episodes, though I won’t. The amazing thing about this show is that every character has a unique voice. I love that every line of dialogue is consistent with each actor’s personality. Even if someone has never watched a single Gilligan episode, the above quote is obviously stated by a person who is filthy rich. The writers did such a great job with dialogue that I could tell which characters are speaking even if I was reading the script with no character references.
Here’s another classic example of believable dialogue from Gilligan’s Island:
Gilligan: I just saw a ghost, out there!
Skipper: Oh, for goodness sakes, Gilligan! You didn’t wake me from a sound sleep to tell me about your nightmare!
Gilligan: No, no, no! I saw a real live ghost, out there!
Skipper: Gilligan, people are alive, ghosts are dead!
Gilligan: Then I saw a real dead ghost, and he ran that way!
In accordance with his character, Gilligan portrays the bumbling but loveable doofus who always manages to louse up any chance of a rescue on each episode. Though the Skipper is frequently annoyed by Gilligan, he never fails to protect his “little buddy” in a fatherly way.
TV shows and movies are a great way to study dialogue, but I often reread some of my favorite books, paying special attention to the spoken words. Read the following two quotes from a classic book and see if you recognize the character speaking:
“Mrs. Hammond told me that God made my hair red on purpose, and I’ve never cared for Him since.”
“I thought nothing could be as bad as red hair. Green is ten times worse.”
Did you guess Anne Shirley from Anne of Green Gables? As one of the most notorious drama queens of all time, Anne never fails to amuse me with her anecdotes. Every line of dialogue written by Lucy Maud Montgomery depicts Anne’s true personality.
When I was writing the four “McKenzie” books in the Camp Club Girls series for middle-grade girls, I tried to keep her dialogue and thoughts consistent with the witty personality I had created for her. In one scene from McKenzie’s Montana Mystery, McKenzie has just been thrown from a horse. Here’s an excerpt:
She felt a strong hand support the back of her head. Turning, she saw Emma’s hired hand, Derek, holding up two fingers. “How many?” he asked.
“Four,” McKenzie answered.
Emma and Derek stared at her. No one said anything for a minute.
“But two fingers are bent over,” she added.
Hopefully, I used convincing dialogue in this scene to portray McKenzie’s fun-loving personality.
There’s nothing like good dialogue to show a character’s true colors. Write it well and you’ll create believable characters your readers will adore and remember.
To read more about the “McKenzie” books, check out my website at www.sharibarr.com. My newest book in the Camp Club Girls series, McKenzie’s Branson Brainteaser will release May 1.
Posted on March 30, 2011 - by Dawn Ford
A Flaw In The Ointment
Superman has Kryptonite. For the Green Lantern it’s the color yellow. Wolverine avoided magnets. Even Superheroes have flaws. That’s why we watch them. If they were impervious and nothing could penetrate their powers, it wouldn’t be nearly as fun to watch them battle the bad guys. Nobody likes someone who always wins. Besides not being able to identify with that concept, how interesting is it when someone is perfect? It’s not. In fact, it’s downright annoying.
The problem I found in writing my last manuscript was trying to make my protagonist believable. I was unable to envision a flaw in her that would 
leave her real and interesting. She was like plain white rice: bland. However, when I drew up my angels I already had a set personality to each one that made them stand out, even if there were no obvious flaws to that personality. My giant female angel Theron was bold, clumsy and a bit on the naïve side. Theron’s character has the most flaws but the biggest heart of all my cast. She blundered her way into the hearts of my critique partners faster than you can say Flash. Why you ask? You honestly cannot wait to see what the character comes up with next to throw a curve into the scene.
I love and hate Bridget Jones, of Bridget Jones’ Diary. She is definitely not a 
Christian character, but she has this significant esteem issue and social ineptitude that resonates with me on some level. She always sticks her foot in her mouth and misreads situations. She speaks before she thinks, moves headfirst into any given scene, and embarrasses herself continually. To say she is a flawed character is an understatement. But I can’t help loving her, even as I flinch at her antics. Somehow her weakness becomes her strength and I want her to succeed in the end. Bridget does not make it to superhero level, but languishes as the Unsuperhero Awkward Girl. And I quite like her that way.
As for movies, one whose characters I love is Steel Magnolias. Beside the 
fact that the story is good and a tear jerker, the women are so very memorable for specific reasons. My favorite is Clairee, best friend to my second favorite character Ouiser (pronounced weezer). Clairee comes off as a sweet genteel southern belle, but really has a wicked sense of humor. Ouiser is an uptight old woman with a negative attitude who speaks her mind without remorse. One of my favorite quotes comes from a wedding scene where a woman wearing a too-tight-for-her-size-dress is dancing. Clairee states of her dance moves, “Looks like two pigs fightin’ under a blanket.” The first time I heard that I laughed until I cried. Ouiser on the other hand is quoted as saying, “I’m not crazy, I’ve just been in a bad mood for 40 years.” Clairee would be Lady Sarcasm and Ouiser, well Ouiser would sock me if I gave her any kind of name. So I won’t.
I just love the dimensions and flaws these characters have that make them so genuinely human. Not perfect and pristine—too ideal to be real. They’re messy and at times a bit on the ugly side, but redeemable because of their humanity all the same.
So that’s some of my favorite flawed characters. What are some flaws that draw you to your favorite characters?
Posted on March 29, 2011 - by Shannon Vannatter
Not Falling into Bed
Sam and Diane. Creates an image, doesn’t it. Sometimes you wanna go where everybody knows your name. Okay, it was about a bar and I didn’t like that part. I thought they all needed to go to church. But the characters were great. Cliff Clavin, the annoying know-it-all. Norm, who really needed a life. Carla, the ever pregnant, smart-mouthed waitress. My favorite: Coach. So befuddled, so loveable. All the minors revolved around Sam and Diane, just like a romance novel.
Talk about chemistry. Talk about baggage. Sam was a washed up ball player, alcoholic, bar owner. Diane an intellectual, graduate student stuck working as a waitress. For a couple of seasons, they simmered to a boil. I was sixteen when the question of the summer became, ‘Will they, or won’t they?’ It was right up there with ‘Who shot Jr?’ I just wanted a kiss. Maybe a proposal. I remember waiting, and waiting, and waiting.
Finally, the new season started. Sam and Diane kissed. And promptly fell into bed. I was so disappointed. I guess I was naïve and hadn’t watched many adult shows. To me chemistry lights a fire when they don’t fall into bed. When a couple waits until they’re married. And then it’s left to the imagination. I don’t want to see it, read it, or hear about it. Some things are just supposed to be private.
Doesn’t happen very often on television, secular books, or in real life these days. What a pity.
My biggest challenge in writing lately was for my third book in my Romance, Arkansas series, White Pearls. My hero and heroine had led unsaved, promiscuous lives and shared an intimate relationship in the past. I had to get into
their heads and um—libido to keep them real and write an authentic story.
But I couldn’t cross the line and didn’t want to. I ended up writing it the way I felt two such characters would feel it and decided that if I’d gone too far, my editors would let me know. I mean—groaning, Bible reading, and her checking out his legs all in the same scene? My editors didn’t comment, so I guess I did okay.
Excerpt:
Ryler’s kiss was soft and tender, as if he treasured her. Not about sex. Dizzy, Shell leaned against him for support. Despite the gentle, undemanding caress of his lips, fire swept through her veins as it always had when she was in his arms.
With a groan, he pulled away enough to gaze into her eyes. “I want to do things right.”
“Right?”
“We can’t have sex.”
“Huh?”
“We’re Christians now. God created sex for marriage only. I want to live right. The way my parents raised me to live.” He grabbed his Bible. Sitting cross-legged, Ryler kicked off his shoes. His knee-length shorts revealed muscled calves.
Concentrate on the Bible.
He flipped through the pages. “Here it is. First Corinthians 6:18–20.”
Shell sat next to him, head huddled close to his and read along with him.
“‘Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body. What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?’ ”
The text blurred as hot tears filled her eyes. “How do you know where to find stuff?”
“My youth pastor drilled this into our brains. And before I moved from Little Rock, I visited with my aunt. Our visit got me thinking about where I came from. Since then, I’ve been reading the Bible.”
“Go on, read more.”
“‘For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.’ What it’s saying is that every sin is outside the body, except for
premarital sex, which is a sin against our own bodies. When we became Christians, the Holy Spirit entered into us.”
She cringed at the places her body had been. “So, everything we do with our bodies, we’re taking Jesus with us.”
“And we were bought by the blood He shed on the cross for our sins, so whatever we do, we should glorify Him. Sort of like making Him proud or doing things that lets other people see His love inside us.”
“I don’t think I’ve ever done anything that would make Him proud.” Shell shook her head.
“But we’ve got a clean slate.” He squeezed her hand. “Today, we start over.”
“Thanks for showing me. I’m glad you know all this stuff.” She drew away from him a bit. If she could get far enough away, maybe she could resist him. Yeah, right.
Ryler kind of seems like a saint in this scene—except for the groaning. But in the next scene, he reveals his torment to his pastor and asks for advice on how to keep things between he and Shell under control. These aren’t clean-living paragons of virtue, so the scenes had to reflect that. It was delicate balance.
Read any good books lately–inspirational or secular–where the writer simmered the characters to boiling without them falling into bed?
Posted on March 28, 2011 - by Lorna Seilstad
Characters, Chemistry, and Gunsmoke?
But are those things alone enough to make a show last twenty years? I don’t think so. I think one of the key ingredients for memorable characters is the chemistry between them, and Matt and Kitty had it in spades. Watch this video and see if you can’t feel the chemistry even in the photo shots?Writers don’t have the benefit of stolen glances on screen to develop this. They have to create that chemistry on the page and bring it to life.
Posted on March 27, 2011 - by Kav
And Our Reality Winner is…
Congratulations goes to Marianne!!!!!!!!
She wins a gift package filled with good books and a few surprises.
Thanks to everyone who participated in our lively discussions about Reality TV. Hope you will all stop by again and see what’s happening here at inkspirationalmessages.
Marianne, can you please email me your address so I can get your parcel to you? Email kavluvstoread@yahoo.ca
Posted on March 26, 2011 - by Lorna Seilstad
Next Up: Unforgettable Characters
What do Spock, the Fonz, Kojak, and Steve Urkel have in common? All were such memorable television characters that the mention of their names conjures up a mental image in the minds of most people. Spock has become synonymous with logic and the Fonz being cool. When you picture Kojak doesn’t the image of a bald man with a sucker in his mouth pop in your mind?
And did you know that one school in Memphis has an Urkel system? Students whose pants hang too low are “Urkeled”. The teachers used zip ties to hoist their pants high above their waists just like the character. The staff member who “Urkels “ the most every month, gets to have the award in his or her classroom. (Here’s a link to a video about it.)
But what makes these characters so memorable? And what makes a character jump off the page and into the heart of the reader?
In the last two weeks, we discussed “reality television.” This time around, we’ll be sharing some thoughts on what makes a character real. Be sure to stop by and share your thoughts on the characters that stand out to you whether they be in a book, movie, or on television.
Posted on March 25, 2011 - by Kav
Say Yes To The Dress!
Yes, I am addicted.
In my neck of the woods, TLC airs repeats back to back over and over again all weekend long. And yes – I watch it all – even the repeats that are repeats to me. I’m glued to the TV with a combination of morbid curiosity and pea-green envy.
I watch as a spoiled daughter bats her eyelashes at her Daddy. The big, tough dude, who looks like he works as a bouncer at some seedy night club, dissolves into a pile of goo. He just can’t resist the erstwhile charms of his little girl. His baby has just tried on a dress that’s $15,000 over their not-so modest $10,000 budget. Dad caves. “She’s my little princess and she always gets whatever she wants. We’ll take it.”
The Sales Consultant manages to hide the $ sign commission flashing in her eyes. She is sedate and oh-so-professional as she seals the sale. “Are you saying yes…”
Daughter jumps up and down, squealing in delight. “Yes! We’re saying yes to the dress!”
Then there’s the episode with the baffling bride and groom…er, husband and wife…who have come to Klienfeld’s to buy a wedding dress to celebrate their 1st anniversary. They eloped a year ago and now they want to get married in style.
Or did anyone catch the episode where the family tried to haggle over a designer gown like it was a piece of old crockery at a garage sale?
Sometimes Say Yes to the Dress is quirky (like the bride searching for a dress that would go with fairy wings.) Sometimes it’s heartbreaking (like the grandfather going through chemo who is at the session via skype so that he can be a part of the experience since he likely won’t make it to the actual wedding date.) Sometimes it’s heartwarming (like the military mother trying to bond with her daughter after serving multiple tours overseas.) But it’s always entertaining.
I am by turns appalled over the amount of money people will pay for a dress they will only wear once and envious of all the fuss and bother made over the bride.
My Wedding Dress Story
This fascination no doubt stems from my own pathetic experience as a bride. I can laugh about it now, but at the time I was devastated.
I had just joined a new church and met my soon-to-be husband {and later-to-be-ex) at the first Sunday service. Unbeknownst to me, he had been embroiled in a soap opera of deceit and intrigue before I came onto the scene.
He’d been dating the daughter of a prominent church family. The girl he was seeing was secretly engaged to another guy who had left on a series of mission trips and then a year of college. The parents of the wronged man were furious that their son’s fiancée was stepping out on him with my soon to be fiancé. (I did warn you that this is a tale of soap opera style angst!).
Eventually, mission-bound, college graduate came home and his fiancée went back to him. Oh the gossip! The friction! The church was alive with wagging tongues and people taking sides. And then I joined the divided congregation. I was a new church member, still wide-eyed and innocent and totally overwhelmed.
Somehow I found myself engaged to one of the popular guys and I had no money to fund a wedding. I spent under $100 for a pattern, notions and the material to make my wedding dress. Trouble was I was clueless around a sewing machine – not that I had one anyway.
Enter charitable church lady who took me under her wing. An accomplished seamstress, she offered to make my dress. I gratefully accepted. No one bothered to tell me that she was the mother of the wronged fiancé and she had an ax to grind. No, I hadn’t dated her soon to be daughter-in-law, but I was marrying the man who had.
The dress was a disaster. It was HUGE. I could have been pregnant with quints and still had room to spare. The sleeves were too long, the lace was crooked and the waistline listed. It looked AWFUL!!! Hasty doctoring by another church lady salvaged the dress enough that it could be worn but it was still hideous. A rather sober precursor for the doomed marriage, actually.
So do I watch Say Yes to the Dress with some weird hope of capturing a moment I never had? Or do I simply like fashion and high drama? Or am I just weirdly obsessed? I’ll leave you to decide.
I thought it would be fun to let the heroines of the four Love Inspired books we are offering in our giveaway say yes to their dress!
Wanted: a Family by Janet Dean
After all she has been through Callie Mitchell deserves the wedding of her dreams to hunky Jacob Smith. No expense has been spared on imported lace and the church ladies rallied round and stitched this beauty up in no time. If you want to find out how Callie ends up with her happily ever-after don’t miss this book!
Reunited Hearts by Ruth Logan Herne
Bring Kleenex to this wedding – and lots of it. It took Trent and Lyssa a while to get to this point (a whole book in fact!) but they’re here to say their vows now – with the whole community of Jamestown squashed into the church and overflowing onto the streets. I’m not sure who is getting more attention – 
Lyssa or her adorable four-year-old, Cory. Either way, Trent is one lucky man.
A Family for Faith by Missy Tippens
Faith and Gabe battled the odds and won! The parishioners of the community church have been preparing for weeks. Faith’s dress has been a carefully guarded secret – only Chelsea and Miss Ann have seen…and now you. What do you think?
The Rancher’s Reunion by Tina Radcliffe
At last! Annie has her cowboy and Rose can finally relax and enjoy the wedding after all the hard work the Sullivan’s housekeeper has put into it. Not the least of which is this lovely understated dress – the perfect foil for Annie’s natural beauty! Will is going to be gobsmacked!
Okay – now it’s your turn. Do you have a wedding dress story to share? How about a favourite dress? You can share by posting a link.
And don’t forget – leave a comment for a chance to win a wonderful surprise package filled with Canadian treats and the above mentioned Love Inspired titles. We’ll announce the winners on Sunday.
Posted on March 24, 2011 - by Regina
THE REALITY OF HOME
This round of blogs has been an eye-opener for me. Of course I knew about the usual ones like The Bachelor, or Survivor, but I was thrilled the other night to flip through the channels and find American Pickers and an advertisement for Swamp People! 
But what kind of reality do I and my husband enjoy? Home improvement. Oh, not the Extreme Makeover: Home Edition variety, but our interest in housing goes all the way back to when we first married and had four channels to watch, and one of our favorite shows could only be seen on Sunday afternoon on PBS. And you can STILL catch it on Sunday afternoon on PBS.
Yes, it’s This Old House.
If you’ve read some of my earlier blogs, you’ll know I’ve been blessed for the last 10 years to live in a 1916 bungalow. I finally got MY old house!
We got in on This Old House when Bob Vila was the host, with his trusty Ford F150 pickup and his sidekick, Norm Abrams. We’ve seen it through a couple of hosts, and now it’s been extended to not only the original format, but the last half hour is Ask This Old House with the main contractors going out and solving problems for real-live people that write in about problems they’re having.
In addition to This Old House, we eventually had cable and discovered HGTV. We know more about buying and selling houses than any civilian should. I have finally somewhat tired of House Hunting, but for my husband, it’s relaxation TV. Something about the format of touring three houses, talking over the pros and cons, and then selecting one, is soothing for him.
One of my personal favorites is on A&E, on Saturday mornings. Sell This House. They take a house that’s been on the market for a while, have an open-house with hidden cameras to find out what’s wrong with it that it’s not selling, and they go in and fix the problems. Many times it’s simply clearing off the kitchen counters, rearranging the furniture, or painting a wall. Sometimes there is major construction involved. HGTV has a similar show, Designed to Sell, which I love.
After years of watching these shows, and many more, I’ve come to realize that we watch them not only to learn how to do things in our own home, but also to reap some of the satisfaction of a finished product, even if it is achieved vicariously.
What IS it about watching someone ELSE work that makes us so happy? No guilt, because they don’t KNOW we’re out there, not offering to help. No sweat, because we’re sitting in the recliner in the living room.
I think, too, that this kind of reality TV, while somewhat scripted, I’m sure, is more real than many of what we’ve come to know as “reality.” There is actually a finished product. Hopefully the homeowners are happy with the results.
I sometimes dream of what it would be like to have my favorite designer, Candice Olsen of Devine Design, come in and redecorate my house. I dream of John Gidding of Curb Appeal: The Block coming with his team to redo my front landscaping.
And then I think, what if Bob Vila and Norm Abram came and worked out that pesky load-bearing-wall issue between my kitchen and family room . . .
Sigh . . .
Posted on March 23, 2011 - by Brenda Anderson
No Place Like Home
I don’t watch Survivor. I have no desire to know who The Bachelor chooses. And Toddlers and Tiaras just makes me sad.
But, I admit there are a few reality shows I do enjoy. Chances are you’ll notice the theme.
It all began with a quiet little show called Decorating Cents. For a mere $500, Joan Steffend showed me how to breath life into a tired room. I loved her practical ideas for a tight budget.
And then there was Trading Spaces. For $1000 two families would trade homes and redo one room in their friend’s house. Seriously, how many of us couldn’t wait to see what Hildi came up with next? Do you remember the walls she papered in straw? How about when she stapled silk flowers to every inch of one bathroom wall? Can you imagine undoing that mess?
Extreme Makeover: Home Edition took remodeling a home to new heights. While in the first episodes, Ty Pennington and crew merely gutted a house and remodeled it, now they come up with creative ways to obliterate the house–My son’s favorite part, naturally–and build a new home from scratch.
I love watching Designed to Sell. With a $2000 budget, a designer gives three living spaces a makeover and/or stages them. Someday, when I sell my home, all those hours I spent watching Designed to Sell will be justified, right?
Lately my husband and I have discovered House Crashers. The host, contractor Josh Temple, shows up with his camera crew at Home Depot, Lowes, IKEA, and other home stores and scours for his latest homeowner victim. Once a victim is found, Josh and crew have three days to completely remake a room. Budget doesn’t seem to be an issue. How many of you now hang out at Home Depot hoping Josh Temple comes through that door and angles for you? I’d love to see what he could do to my kitchen/dining room.
Watching all those home improvement shows have inspired my Christmas and birthday lists many times. Over the years I’ve been given a palm sander, a jigsaw, and a Dremel. (Don’t ask how many times I’ve used them.) I’ve also applied many different painting techniques to my walls. I love the Woolie. I even used a butter brush to dapple my bathroom wall. Of course, such faux painting is now passé so those walls need to be repainted. Maybe before we move.
But where should I move to? And what should I look for in a home?
Ah, those questions are quickly answered when I watch House Hunters. I find the disparity in prices around the United States fascinating. Don’t you wonder how people can afford to live in California? What about New York?
That leads me to a new favorite, Selling New York. I originally began watching this show because one of my characters lived in a New York high-rise, and I wanted to see how accurately I drew his home. (I was spot on.) But now I’m hooked. Teeny cracker boxes in New York City sell for a million dollars. Want space? You’re talking several million.
I guess it makes me realize how good I’ve really got it. My home is far from perfect. I’ve got ugly wallpaper on twenty foot walls that I’m dreading taking down. We live in a 4-level split so we have too many floors, and the rooms are too small to have large family gatherings. Our house sits on a quarter acre lot in the suburbs, not on a several acre lot by a lake.
BUT … it’s home.
It’s where we’ve raised our children and have created endless memories. As Pliny the Elder (Gaius Plinius Secundas) said probably 2000 years ago, “Home is where the heart is.” I completely agree with him.
Do you enjoy home improvement shows? Which ones? Have you used what you’ve learned in your own home?
How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord Almighty! … Blessed are those who dwell in your house; they are ever praising you.” Psalm 84: 1,4
If you’d love to bring extra reading enjoyment into your home, then comment here and we’ll enter your name into a drawing for 4 Love Inspired novels. Click here for complete contest details.
Posted on March 22, 2011 - by JerriLynn
Just How Much Reality Is In Reality TV?
I have to admit, I’m not a huge fan of reality TV. Of course, I will also admit that my view of reality TV has broadened considerably over the last two weeks. Before this whole series started I didn’t really think of shows like American Pickers and Chopped as reality shows. But that’s because I have a horrible mindset about reality TV.
To say I’m not a fan of shows like The Bachelor and The Jersey Shore is a colossal understatement. My belief is that these shows give an entire audience a completely skewed view of what reality really is. It’s not a secret really that most of these shows are “creatively edited” to feature only the juiciest drama, yet somehow people (mostly young adults) still buy into them and many seem to believe that real life should reflect these shows. And that is evidenced more and more by the entertainment that younger generations choose.
So, what does that mean for us as writers? Does that make us an endangered species? Sometimes I wonder. Will the young adults of today still be interested in books and stories that are based on real human emotion, rather than on creatively edited versions of human emotion? Will books take the same path that television has taken?
I can only hope not. For those of you that know me, it’s not a secret that I don’t watch a lot of television. I tend to like a few detective dramas that I don’t have a lot of time to watch. And I occasionally like a movie marathon. Once in a while I’ll even catch a reality show, though I admit to preferring those shows that feature cooking or science. But if I have time to relax (and that’s not very often) I prefer a good book. I don’t care if it’s paper or electronic. What matters to me is that there is a good story, and if I can learn a lesson about life on the way, so much the better.
Those are the things that I don’t think you can find through reality TV (or most other types of TV for that matter). The relationships that you see in MOST reality shows aren’t real, they’re creatively designed to show only the most dysfunctional elements of a relationship. And the lessons that are there to be learned are usually lessons that we would rather not teach.
So why has reality TV taken such a hold on our culture? Why do shows like Toddlers & Tiaras grab our attention so that
we’re sucked in, and can’t seem to stop watching them?
I think it’s because those people on those “reality” shows have lives that are way more messed up than our own. Sure, we have had a terrible day. The car died, we were late for work, the kids brought home bad grades. But look, at least our four year old isn’t demanding her Ni-Ni and trying to run the whole show while screaming at the top of her lungs. Or gee, our wedding was stressful, but at least we weren’t fighting like heathens when it came time to pick the dress.
Some of these shows illustrate the worst possible moments in human behavior. And we can watch them and be thankful that we’re better people than that. For me, it’s saddening. So, just pass me a good book. Let me laugh and cry with characters that make the same mistakes I do, but that usually handle it with much more grace and dignity than I ever will. I’m good with that. Because when I put that book down, I will have learned something, no matter how small, that makes me a better person.
Do you agree? Disagree? What’s your take on reality TV? Am I off base, and is MY view of reality a little skewed? I’d love to hear your thoughts.
And while you’re at it, remember to leave your comments below. You comment could earn you a Love Inspired prize package that will give you plenty of opportunity to indulge in a great book!
White Pearls by Shannon Taylor Vannatter
Shell doesn't have a good reputation...But no matter what everyone in Rose Bud, Arkansas, thinks of her, she's back in town with a job to do. She'll stick it out and make the best of things. But why does Ryler have to be the landscaper on this project? She was just getting her heart under control. Ryler has his own reasons for being in Rose Bud, and they don't include Shell. Spying on his birth family was going to be hard enough. He doesn't have time to worry about a woman who dumped him...even if his heart says otherwise. McKenzie’s Branson Brainteaser by Shari Barr
McKenzie and Sydney meet in Branson, Missouri, where McKenzie has been recruited to help at the Dixie Stampede. While the girls take in the sights and sounds of Silver Dollar City, they become involved in a search to find a teen girl’s long lost uncle–who is rumored to have settled near the Branson area. With no clue other than a whittled necklace with an “SS” on the back, how will they ever reunite Shara with her uncle? The Camp Club girls are on the case, and they’re not about to give up until they close the gap and reconnect Shara’s family.
The Prodigal Daughter by Linda Fulkerson
Ruled by despair, remorse, and anger, the author’s life had become a classic rendition of the cliché “What’s a nice girl like you doing in a place like this?” Desperate. Overwhelmed. Isolated. Trapped. She hit bottom.
On the elevator of life, those descending will all exit on different levels–some much lower than others. You don’t have to go all the way to the bottom. Stop now and push the “up” button. This book will show you how!
