November 2019 - K.V. Fischer

Sage: Get Under the Skin of Your Story by Kathryn Ross

Turkey time!

Have you brought home the bird yet? We’ve just about reached our “free” turkey with earned points from our grocery receipts at the local market. We’ll bring home a frozen 20 pounder and wrestle with it in the sink to rinse, clean out the innards, season and plop in a roasting pan with pats of butter slathered over it.

Hours later, the house smells amazing and our tummies rumble with anticipation for succulent gobble-ready slices on our plate, the traditional companion to stuffing, mashed potatoes, and cranberry sauce.

This year, though, I’m considering the addition of a leafy twist for added substance and spice in my turkey prep. Not that my old stand-by recipe of garlic salt, pepper, and butter isn’t enough. But with the sliding of sage leaves between the skin and meat, greater potential for lip smacking satisfaction is released as the efficacy of the herb permeates the bird with flavor.

Though primarily used today in the kitchen, sage, a member of the mint family, had been used for thousands of years in the sick room. Greeks and Romans discovered its medicinal qualities in the curing of snake bites, as well as a tonic for colds, fever, constipation, and even seizures. Add to that its effective uses promoting hair growth and whiter teeth, sage has lived up to its Latin name, salvia—meaning, to save—for centuries.

Why should a man die who has sage in his garden? Ancient Proverb

When it comes to the strong, spicy flavor of sage, a little goes a long way. Use dry sage leaves sparingly to add import to poultry, pork, and beef. Steep sage tea for a battery of health benefits. Tie dried leaves together and burn them, releasing a cleansing smoke to change the ionic composition of the air, which can reduce stress and improve energy.

In considering how to add sage to my turkey, tea, and tonics, I wonder what the equivalent of a sage injection into my writing might produce.

Sage is defined as a plant, we know, but the word is also defined as wisdom in discernment and prudence. If my writing is so flavored, I know I am prepping my words with greater substance to draw out the full potential of my work for better efficacy upon my readers.

Good writers are wise writers. They act the part of a sage injecting words of health and wellness into their work—like sliding those sage leaves between the turkey’s skin and meat in key places. Sage-spicy words of substance permeate the whole manuscript with greater reader impact, producing sticky stories for lasting satisfaction.

I’ve read many books—fiction and non-fiction—that left me unsatisfied and disappointed because they did not explore their topic deeply enough. The lack of permeated flavor made the book easy to forget and of no effect on my life or thinking at all.

Kathryn Ross, cinnamon, writers, spice, fall recipes, editors, healing, manuscript, When Cinnamon Bark, clove, peppermint, Christmas, Thanksgiving, spice, words, peppermint oil, The Gatekeeper's Key, lemon oil — The Write Spice: Writing Tips for Flavorful Words by Kathryn Ross

The Christian writer must pen words that are sage—salvia, lifesaving—whether it’s in a romance novel or a treatise on a biblical principle, chapter and verse. Don’t just season the surface. Get under the skin of the story and develop deep themes for a truly satisfying, memorable, and possibly life altering read.

Apply this sage advice to develop the full potential of your work. Wrestle with your turkey, so to speak. Cleanse it. Rip out the innards that need to be tossed. Revise and edit your work, slipping in wisdom and discernment between the lines like sage leaves between the skin and meat. In this way, you’ll draw out the fullest potential of your work and distinguish yourself, not just as a storyteller who entertains, but a sage who brings lasting health to hearts and minds.

Journal Prompt: What is the thematic-virtue story you want to tell with your current manuscript? Does it reflect biblical values, discernment, and prudence? What sage injections between the lines of plot and dialogue should you add? What depth of meaning and purpose can you draw out to produce a healthful, lasting impression upon your reader?

clove, lemon oil, cinnamon, garden, harvestwriters, spice, fall recipes, editors, healing, manuscript — The Write Spice: Writing Tips for Flavorful Words By Kathryn Ross

Writer-speaker, Kathryn Ross, ignites a love of literature and learning through Pageant Wagon Publishing. She writes and publishes homeschool enrichment and Christian living books for home, church, and school. In addition, she shepherds writers through the steps book development and production. Her passion to equip women and families in developing a Family Literacy Lifestyle, produces readers and thinkers who can engage the world from a biblical worldview. She blogs and podcasts at TheWritersReverie.com and PageantWagonPublishing.com. Connect with Miss Kathy on Facebook.

The Write Spice: Writing Tips for Flavorful Words Nutmeg: Poisoned Prose and Toxic Tales By Kathryn Ross

It’s that time of year again! When the leaves turn, and I wake to crisp air in the morning, my pantry gets a clean sweep and restocking. I’ve stuffed it chock-full of spices, sprinkles, sugars, flours, fruits, candies, nuts, and specialty ingredients for seasonal baking over the next three months. I plan my holiday recipes with experiments in October, so I can decide the winners and losers for Thanksgiving and Christmas giving.

Appalachian Mountains, RT Book Reviews, Shaker series, writer, author, romance, Thyme for Writers — Thyme for Writers – Pumpkin Harvest

Pumpkin cans stacked next to complimentary spices stand at the ready to mix and pour into pumpkin what-all. From pies to puddings, to sauces to scones to cakes to breads to souffle, pumpkin baking in the oven scents the home with tangible comfort. The sense of smell ignites stories of Autumns long ago when childhood wonder at the change of season opened a world of delights that only October brought. Can you smell the fragrant stories of bygone fall days:

Trips to apple orchards and pumpkin patches
Crunching dried leaves under our feet before raking them into piles
Pulling the sweaters out and wrapping up cozy in the evening
Cringing in fright when that giant orb spider weaves his web outside the front window
Carving pumpkins, painting pumpkins; pumpkins, pumpkins, pumpkins!

Though pumpkin itself lacks flavor on its own, a generous blend of cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg is vital to every pumpkin recipe. In fact, this blend of spices, commonly referred to as pumpkin pie spice, adds seasonal flavor to any fall dish.

Each of these spices should be measured with care, though. For instance—more cinnamon than clove, less ginger than cinnamon, and a sparse touch of nutmeg are best. The just right amount pleases the palate. Too much, though, ruins the plate.

And one of those spices, used in excess, is actually toxic.

Nutmeg, the pungent, sweet, warm spice from the dried seeds of the nutmeg tree, though an important element of pumpkin pie spice, when taken alone and in excess acts as poison. A tragic chapter in the story of nutmeg is its 19th century use to induce abortions. In fact, when taken in large amounts it may cause anxiety, drunkenness, confusion, headaches, nausea, allergic reactions, dermatitis, and episodes of hallucinations and psychosis. This type of nutmeg overdose most often happens as an accident in children or on purpose with teenagers experimenting with substance abuse.

This toxic use of a valuable and tasty spice reminds me of how our words, used well and in properly measured amounts, can delight and amplify the satisfaction of a story, well told. Our words can be used to bless or abused to poison. This is true in relation to the technical elements of writing and composition—how we measure out our words with attention to grammar and syntax. But it also relates to the subjects we choose to write about and how we use words to influence readers and culture for good or for ill.

In such times as these, words are wielded as weapons by irresponsible writers, filling print and online platforms with toxic spices. Like a nutmeg overdose. The power of words to poison minds and destroy the reputations of others has become the toxic spice of choice in popular media and entertainment.

As a writer, I feel a higher sense of calling in the words I write. My pen must be an antidote to nutmeg-like toxic-level words stirred into the current events’ mix. When I blend my word spices responsibly—with just the right amount of nutmeg balanced with companion cinnamon, ginger, and clove—I set an example of how to add spice to an otherwise bland squash and enrich a nutritious meal or sweet desert.

I hope to do so with my ready supply of baking ingredients in my pantry this season, as well as the measured words I write and speak. And, I have found the perfect spice blend to the purpose in Philippians 4:8 NLT:

And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.

My prayer for you is that your word-mix in this present season be finely measured. For all of us who seek to be God flavors in the earth, may the words of our mouths and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in the sight of the Lord—and health to all who taste of it. (Psalm 19:14)

SEO — Your Website Topic

We’ve been talking about content, because that is the most important. For this last post in my SEO Series, we’re going to explore your website topic.

How many of you write nonfiction? Fiction? Nonfiction writers have their topic laid out — the topic of your website is that of your book or books.

Fiction writers are a different story. Depending on the type of fiction they write, they may or may not be able to tie their blog to their novel or genre. If you fall into this category, choose a topic you enjoy (your sense of joy will spill out to your readers) and know about.

For example, I am a dietitian and am passionate about eating properly and exercise. I am also an attorney and am passionate about the legal profession. My first novel is a romantic suspense thriller, Hidden Bloodlines. The heroine is an attorney (of course). My theme is “adding spice to your life” with a blog tying my books, passions, and writers/readers, titled “Thyme for Writers.” I confess to not coming up with that title — Candee Fick, a fellow writer in my writer’s group did. — Thank you Candee!

My website has posts on nutrition (including delicious healthy recipes), exercise (a physical therapist has been a regular guest on my website), legal issues facing writers, tips for writers, and interesting real places that relate to my book. Whew.

Fitness, workout, weights, weight control, body, weight loss, zucchini, routine, exercise, weight lifting, cardio — Reverse Flies on Ball for the Newbie & Advanced

Statistics show that for the greatest impact, at least 2 blogs per week should be your goal. But some of us have other obligations which may make it unrealistic.

Whatever your topic, I recommend not making the same mistake that I made. I let the fear of technology stop me; don’t let it stop you. Start your website/blog now. Don’t wait until you have that publishing contract like I did. It still takes time to build that following. If you start your web now, and your book gets released in 2 years, you will have a following who will buy your book.

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With respect to the technology aspect, you don’t need to hire an expensive web master. I’m living proof. A writer I know who is a former K-12 teacher, Candee Fick is amazing. She can teach you how to get up and running and manage your own website at a very reasonable hourly rate. I am living proof. And, I confess, she used me as her beta tester for her “worst case scenario” — what is the most time it could take to teach someone.

I’d like to leave you with the 2 most important SEO tips: (1) optimize the very first paragraph on each page and (2) update often.

We all know that the web is flooded with all types of useless, inaccurate, information. When you create valuable content that serves a purpose, you are slicing through the noise and clutter on the World Wide Web and become one of the trusted resources. That is what we want to strive for sooner rather than later.

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