Lucy Naylor Kubash

Goodbye to a Western Icon

2011-06-06T21:09:00.000-07:00

As a child of the 1950s and an avid cowboy fan, I watched my share of TV westerns. Starting with Roy Rogers and Gene Autry and running through Bonanza, Wagon Train, The Virginian, High Chaparral, and The Big Valley, I watched them all and had my favorite hero on each show, but probably my most favorite hero of all was Marshal Dillon. It was a tradition on Saturday night to watch Gunsmoke, to every week watch the tall lawman keep the peace in Dodge City. Matt Dillon just seemed to embody the spirit of the West, and for a child infatuated with the cowboy myth, he was a superhero for his time.

The other characters were pretty well drawn, too, and even a little ahead of their time. Doc and Chester, and later Festus, were quibbling sidekicks who loved to rub each other the wrong way. They added comic relief to what was often a somber story of outlaws attacking the town; hardships faced by settlers of the 1870s West, and Marshal Dillon’s quest to round up those who broke the law. He seemed a man who possessed a calm demeanor in the face of gunfire but who never failed to bring justice wherever he could to a lawless land. Then there was Miss Kitty. Today she would be known as Ms. Kitty, no doubt, but even as a Miss she led the way in independence and self-reliance for a woman of her time. Owner of the Longbranch Saloon, Miss Kitty put up with no nonsense from anyone, nor did she need to be taken care of; yet she harbored a real soft spot for the Marshal, and most of us viewers knew they were truly in love. They just couldn’t give up their individual lifestyles to live an ordinary life. I think we all were pretty sure we knew where the Marshal hung his hat when the show was over.

Gunsmoke ran from 1955-1975 and was the longest running drama on TV until Law and Order surpassed it. You can still catch reruns on many cable and satellite channels, and even today those episodes of life in the 1870s Old West stand up well. I’ve found they are great to study for characterization and tight writing and action. But I guess I watch them because I still love Marshal Dillon, and I still hope that maybe I missed the episode where he finally kissed Miss Kitty. (I’m pretty sure he never did.)

James Arness, aka Marshal Matt Dillon, passed away last week at 88, still a hero in my eyes. I’m willing to say that he was one of the reasons the hero in my first published novel had to be a cowboy. Rest in peace, Marshal, and thank goodness those reruns still live on.

Zeke and Foo Foo's New Year's Resolutions

2011-01-01T18:07:00.000-08:00

1-1-11

I'm wondering how many people across the country played those numbers in a lottery today? How many got married? How many babies were born on this day with its unusual set of numbers. Let's hope it's the first day of a number one year for us all.
While I'm not big on making resolutions for myself, I did decide on a few that I hope I'll be able to keep.
1) Write a lot.
2) Read a lot.
3) Eat less.
4) Stress less.
5)Complain less.
6) Let everything else take care of itself.

My dogs, on the other hand, came up with quite a few that I know they will have no problem keeping. So here they are, Zeke and Foo Foo's New Year's Resolutions for 2011.

1) Walk every day.

2) Eat as many liver treats as we can every day.

3) Bark enough to drive mom and dad crazy every day.

4) Keep marauding squirrels away from the bird feeders and if we chase away the birds, too, oh well.

5) Unstuff a few more of our toys and find the squeakers.

6) Did we mention walk every day?

7) Bark at every neighbor dog that walks by our house.

8) Steal each other’s rawhide chewies at every opportunity.

9) Beg for treats at every meal.

10) Be sure to get up in the middle of the night to go out, every night.

11) Stare out the window waiting for something to bark at or until we can walk, every day.

12) Wait for summer so we can hang out in the backyard and lie in wait for hapless gophers to wander in.

On this day of 1-1-11, summer seems a very long ways away, but then so did Christmas and New Year's Day, just a few short months ago.
Happy 2011 to all, wherever you may be! Let's hope it's a good one.

Forty-seven years on Thunder Lake

2010-11-29T08:00:00.000-08:00

Forty-seven years ago, my mother bought a piece of property on a small lake in western Michigan. At the time, I couldn’t imagine what she was thinking, nor was I thrilled about spending time in what seemed like the wilderness to me. I wasn’t too far wrong about that. The property bordered the Manistee National Forest and the only access to the place was a dirt two-track road. At the age of 12, I couldn’t share her vision, but forty-seven years later, I have finally started to realize what she must have felt when she first stood here and looked out over this beautiful little lake.
Thunder Lake is a small jewel that even today is fairly remote from the rest of the bustling resort areas of Michigan. Wildlife is plentiful. Deer often come down to the water to drink. Blue herons stand on long elegant legs waiting to pluck breakfast from the shallows. An occasional porcupine may waddle down the road. This summer we heard there was an eagle at a neighboring lake, but we haven’t seen him yet.

The cabin that my mother helped build on her property is still standing, and in the summer you can sit out on the deck and look out at the water that shimmers and sparkles like diamonds in the sunlight. Summer can be hot and sticky with humidity from the lake, but most times a breeze drifts across the water bringing a lovely cool-down to the evening.

In spite of summers that are as sweet as tree-ripened fruit, my favorite time at the lake is in the fall when the trees change to towers of gold and flame. They reflect in the water, sometimes so perfectly that it’s hard to tell which way is up. This time of year the quiet is almost palpable and often the only sounds you hear are the leaves and acorns falling or a fish jumping in the lake.

I have to thank our place on Thunder Lake for getting me started writing. There was little else to do when we first came here; few other kids around my age. So I started writing in steno notebooks, stories that I made up about people who lived a long time ago. I still have those notebooks stashed somewhere, never having the heart to throw them away. I can still remember sitting in our camper and scribbling in them.

My mother passed away last year, and I don’t know what will ultimately become of her little cabin in the woods. It makes me sad to think that someday I may not be able to go there, but even if that day comes, I’ll still carry the memories with me, of the early morning fog lifting from the lake and the stillness of a loon gliding through the smooth-as-silver water.

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Christmas Booksigning Bash!

2010-11-26T09:43:00.000-08:00

75 Christian Authors * One Amazing Online Event

The Christian Review of Books in conjunction with CrossPurposes Bookstore

is excited to announce the first annual Christmas Book Signing Bash.

Beginning on the day after Thanksgiving and lasting ten days (26 November

- 7 December), this book signing will be an unprecedented online event. 75

of today’s favorite Christian Authors have come together to answer

questions, chat with their readers, and offer signed copies of their

books—all without leaving the comforts of home and hearth!

Readers can search by author, title, or genre at the Christian Review of

Books (www.ChristianReviewofBooks.com) and then follow the purchase links

to CrossPurposes Bookstore (www.CrossPurposesBooks.com) and buy autographed

copies of each book featured. The authors will sign the books and ship them

to the customers.

For a full list of participating authors, visit the CRoB.

xssss

Christmas Booksigning Bash!

2010-11-25T17:24:00.000-08:00

Starting at midnight November 25, visit the online Christmas Booksigning Bash to shop for tons of autographed books by 75 different authors. What a great opportunity to find gifts without leaving the comfort of your favorite easy chair. No standing in line, no fighting the crowds, no chance that something will be sold out when you get there. Dozens of wonderful books will be available for your choosing, autographed by the authors and sent to you.

Please stop by and browse from now through December 7. You're sure to find a book for just about everyone on your shopping list. Just follow the link www.christianreviewofbooks.com
to begin your shopping experience.

November 10--a date I'll always remember

2010-11-10T04:56:00.000-08:00

I've intended to start writing here again and can't believe it's been over a year. We all know what sometimes happens to good intentions, but I hope to be a good little blogger and update much more frequently. I'll call it my nearing-the-end-of-the-year resolution.

I was inspired to write today because November 10 will always be a date I remember. First, it was my dear mom's birthday, and who among us wants to forget that very special day? She left us last year, and I still miss her so much and wish every day I could hear some of those adages of hers...one of my favorites being, "Don't go outside after you wash your hair. That's why you get sick." But even if I can't hear her say it, in my heart it's always there, especially since I've probably repeated some of those momisms to my own kids over the years. I know heaven's a better place because she's there today.

But another reason this date always resonates with me is because of something that happened hundreds of miles away 35 years ago today. Today is the 35th anniversary of the loss of the freighter the SS Edmund Fitzgerald on Lake Superior "when the gales of November came early." (Gorden Lightfoot) I can still recall how those gales battered us here in southwest Michigan, which is about as far away as you can get from Lake Superior and still be in the state.

On November 10, 1975, I was a new mother and feeling as nervous and exhausted as any first-time mother may feel. My daughter was only a few weeks old and was having some new baby allergy issues that kept her fussy and unable to sleep. I'd hadn't been able to put her down for very long all day....and then the winds started.

Roaring in from the west and across Lake Michigan, they whipped around our small house, threatening it seemed to carry us all away. I remember just sat holding my baby and wishing the winds would stop.

Then, later that night, we heard it was feared a ship had been lost on Lake Superior far to our north. Eventually we learned it was the SS Edmund Fitzgerald that sank, taking with it 29 men, including a young man from our own area. What a sad and tragic event to happen on a scary November day. A year later, Gordon Lightfoot (one of my favorite singers) recorded his song, "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald," and when I first heard it on the radio, it brought back all the terror of that night and those terrible winds.

Over the years, I've become a collector of sorts of articles and information about that shipwreck and others on the Great Lakes. I have a folder stuffed with newspaper articles I've cut out and saved. Sometime ago we visited the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum at Whitefish Point in the Upper Peninsula and saw the bell that had been brought up from the ship. I remember as I sat watching a video about a diver's investigation of the wreck, I spoke with a woman who had been there the night the freighter sank. She said it was a horrible thing and everyone who had a boat wanted to venture out into the storm to look for any survivors,but knew they were no match for the lake's fury. I heard the sadness in her voice and could only imagine the horror they must have felt, knowing they were helpless to do anything.

Maybe you have to live near the Great Lakes to fully appreciate how much they affect the people here, as those who live near the ocean are affected, and how anyone who ventures out onto the big lakes always takes a chance at being at their mercy.

So the bell at Whitefish Point will ring 29 times today in memory of those 29 men lost on November 10, 1975 and a 30th times for all the mariners lost on the Great Lakes. I will have a little moment of silence, maybe light a candle and say a prayer that all the mariners traveling the Great Lakes this November 10 may travel safely.

2009-09-30T19:42:00.000-07:00

This is Banned Books Week!

Every year the last week in September is designated Banned Books Week by the American Library Association. To help us celebrate our freedom to read, the ALA event this year is September 26-October 3.

Begun in 1982, Banned Books Week serves to remind us all of our intellectual freedom and the right to seek information and read what we choose. A challenged book means there has been an attempt to remove it somewhere. Banned means material was removed. Here is just a short list of some well-known challenged and/or banned books:

The Call of the Wild
The Lord of the Rings
The Great Gatsby
The Grapes of Wrath
To Kill a Mockingbird
The Color Purple
1984
Gone With the Wind

Authors and readers alike need to guard this freedom and treasure it. That doesn't mean we all need to read or even like the same thing, but we must protect our right to write and read the books of our choosing. Remember to thank your friendly librarian and bookseller for helping promote and protect this right, and celebrate your freedom to read!

2009-06-17T19:38:00.000-07:00

Today my husband and I celebrated our 37th wedding anniversary. That seems like such a long time, and yet nothing compared to the couple I heard about who were celebrating their 80th. What a blessing for them to be together that long.
It will be 40 years come this fall since we first met when our two rival schools merged together to make one school. Two years later we became engaged while on a trip out West with a group of college friends. In the Grand Teton National Park! I guess that's why I still consider the Tetons one of the most beautiful places we've visited and why I chose to set Chance's Return there. It's been over 25 years since we last visited those mountains, but I haven't forgotten how majestic they are and how perfect a setting for a romance. I still remember the horseback trail rides we took, the scenic drives through the park, and the chill of 32 degrees on a mid-summer morning. We always camped, and it was a bit of shock to wake up to that. I remember walking around Jackson Hole and seeing the antler arch in the park, and stopping to visit the little chapel in the valley. I remember seeing those powerful rivers and reading about the settlers who had crossed them and made their homes in this northwest corner of Wyoming. Even then, I think I knew I would write about them someday.
I hope we can go back to the Tetons some day soon, because there are other stories I would like to tell about this magnificent area of our country, but I feel like I need an update that no amount of book or internet research can give me. I need to see that spectacular mountain range and feel the nip of a chilly mountain morning in July again. Maybe for our 40th? I can only hope.

Those last minute decisions...

2009-06-08T19:06:00.001-07:00

Have you ever made a last minute decision that suddenly turned out to make a big difference in how your day went? One morning a few weeks ago, I was heading out the door for a job interview for a second part-time job. At the last minute I stopped and hurried back to my computer, remembering I'd wanted to send some writer friends an email reminder about an upcoming lunch date.

While I was quickly typing out that email, I suddenly heard a loud racket right outside my living room window. I couldn't figure out what on earth I was hearing, and when I looked out was surprised and dismayed to see several large branches falling from one of the old maple trees in our front yard. It had been windy the night before but the wind had died down some, so it seemed strange for the branches to suddenly break. What was even more unsettling, the branches now lay in the driveway, right in front of my van. Nuts, what was I going to do?

I finished sending off my email, grabbed up my purse and keys and ran out to figure out how I was going to get to the interview. While they really didn't appear to be very large branches, in truth they were pretty heavy, and I had a less than fun time moving them. But I did manage to get them out of the way and was able to make my interview on time. Of course the writer in me always has to wonder, what if? What if I hadn't stopped to send that email? What if instead I'd been in my van, driving out just as those branches were falling? Instead of going to my job interview, I might have been calling the insurance company to report damage to my van (which is 9 years old but is also paid up, and which I intend to keep driving for a few more years). I might not have made the interview on time and lost the chance to make some extra money to help pay for my trip to Washington DC this summer.

But as it turned out, my angel was watching out for me that morning. The worst thing that happened was I had to move the branches out of the driveway, and I wasn't even late for the interview. So, sometimes those last minute little decisions can make a big difference.

And oh yes, by the way, I got the job!

Mother's Day 2009

2009-05-10T16:56:00.000-07:00

This was a tough day to get through. We lost my mom two weeks ago and it was hard to know I couldn't see her today. We went to church and then took flowers to the cemetary. It was sad, but I got through it with no tears, and I know she'd be proud of me.
At 94, my mom had lived quite an amazing life. At least it seemed amazing to me. She was born of immigrant Italian parents who came through Ellis Island, before WW I. I remember when 9 years ago, how excited she was to see the dawning of a new century and new millenium. Having lived on a family farm and through the Great Depression, she was the queen of recycling before it was ever cool. We didn't throw things away because we, or someone we knew, might need them someday. That trait often drove me nuts, especially when I had to try to clean the house, but I find I now have to fight the urge to keep "stuff" just because I might need it someday.

My mom was a young wife and mother during the hard WWII years (I was a boomer and came along later.), and she worked in the war plants, keeping the family farm from falling into foreclosure. She cared not only for her children but her parents and worked while the men were away, just as so many women of her time did. She later raised her daughters as a single mother when she was widowed, and she did a pretty darn good job of it! She was the mother of three, grandmother to 14, great-grandmother of 38 and great-great grandmother of 14.

Mom taught us lots of valuable lessons such as:

No one is better than you, and you're no better than anyone else.

Perseverance is next to godliness, and the only way you fail is if you don't try.

Go through the water where it is the shallowest (or as they say today, take the path of least resistance.)

You catch more flies with honey than vinegar.

You don't need money to be happy, but it helps.

They're lessons that have served me well in my writing life, and I know she was always proud of my accomplishments. She taught me the love of reading, and I will always remember how we loved our romance novels. Mom loved the gothic romances of Victoria Holt and Phyllis Whitney, as well as Barbara Cartland's regencies. She read the inspirational novels of Janette Oake and Catherine Marshall's "Christy," but also the Appalachian crime mystery novels of Sharyn McCrumb. I remember she would often read until the wee hours when a book was too good to put down, and I don't know how many times she'd read the Bible. When her eyes failed her in recent years and she could no longer read, it was a huge loss for her. Now that she's in heaven, it's my sincere hope that there are plenty of books, and she can now read them all to her heart's content.

So here's a heartfelt wish to all the amazing women who went before us--Happy Mother's Day, and may we your daughters be as strong as you were in facing whatever life gives us.

May 10, 2009

May 1 Release Day for Chance's Return!

2009-05-02T08:06:00.000-07:00

May 1 was the release day for Chance's Return, the story of young widow Casey Girard and ex-rodeo champ Chance McCord. It was released from White Rose Publishing yesterday. While it's been up in print on Amazon and Barnes and Noble for a few weeks, this is the official and digital release for my inspirational contemporary western romance. Here is a short excerpt:

Chapter 1

"Chance McCord pushed back his hat with his thumb and lifted his weary gaze to the mountains up ahead. In the past half-hour, storm clouds had amassed over the Tetons, staining the sky a violent shade of purple. Thunder rolled across the valley, setting a nearby bunch of Herefords lowing nervously and a jackrabbit scurrying for cover. In a minute, it was going to pour buckets.

Chance didn’t mind the rain. The stretch of Wyoming highway shimmered under a sun that burned mighty hot and dry for this early in the summer, and he would welcome a rush of cool mountain air right about now. He just hated for his saddle to get wet. A fine cutting saddle, it had been a parting gift from his buddy Hank and, since the truck broke down outside of Boulder, one of the few possessions of any value Chance had left in the world. He’d thumbed the rest of the way and wished now he hadn’t asked the semi driver to let him out ten miles back. Did he think walking would make things easier? Give him more time to think about what he faced? He’d had plenty of time to think— five long years—and nothing in his mind had changed. Maybe walking was a form of retribution.A way to make amends. In truth, Chance knew it was just another effort to put off the inevitable.

He reached into his shirt pocket, drawing out a tattered photograph. He always carried it with him,right over his heart. As he studied the photo now, a memory pierced him so swift it took his breath away.Lately, those memories had begun to fade, taking with them some of the pain, but today he held onto the pain so he wouldn’t forget. Thunder rumbled again, and he slipped the photo back into its place, making sure his dusty denim jacket covered it. He lifted the saddle and rested it against his hip. The town of Jefferson Falls lay up ahead. He could sit out the storm there, but he’d never make it in time to beat the rain. He knew too well how fast storms moved out of the mountains, and this one wasn’t wasting any time.The wind picked up and sent a scraggly tumbleweed skittering across the pavement. Chance raised his face to feel the breath of the mountains on his damp brow. Then with a heavy sigh he pulled the brim of his Stetson low over his forehead, shifted the weightof the saddle, slung his duffel bag over his shoulder, and prepared to be drenched."

I hope you will enjoy Chance and Casey's story. Please leave a comment here, and I will enter your name into a drawing for a free digital copy of my book. Wishing you Happy May Day (a bit late!) and happy spring.

Lucy

New Publishing venture for The Wild Rose Press

2009-03-02T11:45:00.000-08:00

It has just been announced that The Wild Rose Press has launched a new second company, White Rose Publishing, www.whiterosepublishing.com All the White Rose inspirational romance titles will be moving there, so when you have a chance, check it out. It's a beautiful website! This is really exciting news for all the White Rose authors. My book Chance's Return is on the "Coming Soon" page at the new site.
I'm a longtime member of the Mid-Michigan Romance Writers of America, (and chapter president this year!), and in our chapter we talk a lot about never giving up when it comes to our writing and how perseverance pays off. In that vein of thought, I thought I'd tell you a little bit about the history of this particular book.
When I first wrote Chance's Return, I was very new to the publishing world. I had just sold a couple of short stories to Woman's World magazine, and though I'd finished several book length manuscripts, I'd had nothing but rejection letters for them. I joined RWA that year (1984) and attended my first RWA conference in Detroit, MI. I had an appointment with an editor there and when I pitched my manuscript to her, she loved it and asked me to submit when it was finished. I did and she accepted it. It was scheduled for release and even listed in that publisher's spring catalogue. Then, without warning, that publisher decided to cancel their line of romances. The rights to my book were returned to me and after submitting it a few more places, I gave up and put it in the file cabinet and went on with other writing projects. I sold more short stories and had other manuscripts rejected, and then I hit a very long dry spell. At the time, I was busy raising my family and working various jobs and after awhile I stopped submitting. But I didn't stop writing. I actually took a novel writing course by mail (this was of course way before online courses and workshops) and I kept going to chapter meetings and hoping someday I'd be published again. Then when my youngest went off to college, I decided to resurrect this book and rewrite it beginning to end. Took me a lot of late nights but I finally finished it (again!) and sent off a query. After a wait of several months, it was rejected. A short time later I heard of an epublisher that was starting up a new line for inspirational romances, so, what the heck I figured, and sent in my query. They ended up accepting Chance's Return and it became the launch title for their new line. It was an exciting ride while it lasted. My book garnered some wonderful reviews and won a CAPA (Cupid and Psyche Award) for best inspirational romance in 2006 from The Romance Studio and it was up against some very popular authors in this genre. Then a few months later that publisher filed for bankruptcy. The rights to my book were held up in the court system but eventually released when another publisher bought them up and released all rights to the authors. So once again the search for a publisher began. This led me to The Wild Rose Press and as you know, that had a happy ending, or should I say beginning? Chance's Return will be released in June and now will be a part of a new publishing venture. I keep thinking, the third time has got to be the charm for this book. It has come a long way with me, and in rewriting it several times, I have learned so much about the characters, ex-rodeo star Chance McCord and young widow Casey Girard. I hope you will enjoy reading about them as much as I've loved telling their story. In finding a home for this book, I've also learned a lot about perseverance and how it pays to never give up.

2008-12-20T20:51:00.000-08:00

I just this past week received the release date for my first book with The Wild Rose Press-June 24, 2009, Chance's Return will be a White Rosebud. It's exciting to be a part of this group and I look forward to celebrating on June 24!