Elaine Marie Cooper Author

Historical Fiction That Grabs Your Heart and Feeds Your Soul

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Book Review: Fields of the Fatherless

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It is only three weeks and two days until Fields of the Fatherless releases. A PDF copy of the book was sent to dozens of pre-readers for reading and reviewing. Several are already posted on Goodreads. Here is one:

Ms. Cooper’s Fields of the Fatherless can be summed up in one word–Wow! As an author, I enjoy the research I do to make my novels as true to the era I write as possible. But Ms. Cooper has gone above and beyond the norm, taking a small thread from an historic era and transforming it into an intense read. And by intense I don’t mean the shoot ’em up scenes from a Jason Statham move. I’m talking intense as to actually smelling the fear and grief her heroine does throughout the entire novel.

The story begins with Betsy’s ears ringing from her sister-in-law’s agonizing screams during child birth, and from the roar of gunfire and cannons outside her door. The British are storming through her hometown and the male townsfolk are ready to defend their land and country from England, including Betsy’s crippled father. Ms. Cooper than takes the reader back a few months where Betsy struggles to make sense of the impending war, where she fears for the well-being of her family and her neighbors, where she has an urgent need to possess some type of weapon to help keep safe everything and everyone she loves, including herself. Where she falters in her relationship with God to understand right from wrong, love from hate, and most of all, forgiveness.

Without the gruesome visual of battle depicted in Saving Private Ryan, Ms. Cooper gives just enough description to allow the reader to imagine on his own the ravages of war. Chilling in reality, Fields of the Fatherless precisely conveys the devastating effects of war on both sides and how, as humans, we must band together to protect what is most precious–life. As you cheer, weep, cringe, pray and even learn, you’ll come away from this novel with the same feeling as I did–Wow!

***Note–This book will be available for purchase in October 2013. I received an advanced copy from the publisher to write this review.

 

Thank you, Julie Lence! I am so honored by this review! If you’d like to pre-order Fields of the Fatherless, you can do so by clicking here

 

 

Congratulations! It’s a — Book Cover! Part 3

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While creativity is an author’s forte, sometimes the more practical side of our brain can be lacking, especially when it comes to the business aspect of writing. But reality eventually hits home when we have to put out more than words: Sometimes we have to put out cash.

This was the case last April when I arranged for a photo shoot that involved several factors. I needed a location, a model, a Colonial American costume, a makeup artist, and, most importantly, a photographer. And I needed to accomplish all this on a shoestring budget.

This is where that creativity can come into play and help an author take “the path less traveled” in order to make it successful.

I must add here that this photo was not required by my publisher. I chose to come up with this venue to illustrate an idea for my book cover. As usual, I took the idea and ran with it. Thankfully, my husband was on board with the elaborate dream.

So, for a photo shoot, when we think of “model,” most of us assume professional. On a shoestring budget, that is not happening. After searching various venues to find just the right young lady for my proposed book cover, I was blessed with seeing a photograph of my future model on a Facebook friend’s post. I knew she was the right one when I saw her image. But if you don’t have an unprofessional model in mind, I would approach either a high school drama coach or community theater group to try to find the person with the right “look” for your cover.

If you need a costume, that can get tricky, but again, a local drama department might have resources to refer you to a seamstress. Always check around and spread the word; your friends can be the best connections to resources. Be aware that this requires paying for the material for the outfit, as well as paying the seamstress. You may be able to get a good bargain, but everyone that you hire for any part of this photo should be compensated in some way.

 

Since my photo shoot required disrupting the owners of a Colonial American house for a couple of hours, I made sure that I paid them a small fee for their time and trouble. I also brought the food and bottles of water so the homeowners did not have to provide us with anything extra. I chose the food carefully—simple sandwiches and a plate of cut fruit—because it was easy to clean up and provided healthy nourishment for a tired group. Photo shoots take energy!

I knew the photographer was going to be my biggest expense and here is where you must choose a professional. If a photo is going to be used on a book cover, the high-resolution image must be perfect and the lighting just so. Uncle Harry may be asked to photograph a family wedding now and then but, unless he is actually a professional, just smile and graciously decline his offer. While professional photographers are expensive, especially if they have to travel to a location, they are the only ones to hire.

It so happened that my photographer was a friend from church—but she was definitely professional. I viewed some of her images online and was satisfied that she could do the job. She was not only capable but this photo shoot was something new for her resume and she gladly accepted the assignment for the opportunity to add to her credentials. She was so excited to be a part of this photo session that she agreed to a fee that I’m certain was a reduced one.

The last person I needed to hire was a makeup gal. I had no idea there was an entire sub-culture of makeup artists who charge fees to do professional makeup jobs either in your home or theirs. Our artist was delightful and knew just how to apply the right amount of makeup so my model looked natural, without worry of the lights washing out her skin tones.

Every one of these aforementioned participants required a payment. Obviously, the amount can be negotiable but you must pay them a fee that makes their time worthwhile. Once a fee is agreed upon, be sure to include that in the contracts that you and the participants sign.

Now we have segued into an extremely important aspect of this photo shoot: Release forms and contracts. These are the documents that will hopefully protect you from running into any legal trouble that might result from the photo session.

First of all, the homeowner needs to sign a form stating that you have been permitted to use their home for the purpose of a book cover. You need to keep the homeowner’s name and location confidential. I cannot stress that enough!

You also need to state on the release that you are liable for any damages to their home that might occur from the photo session. Be sure to add that you hold all rights to the photos taken in their home.

You can download photo release forms and each one needs to be tailored to the specific individual.

You should also download some kind of copyright agreement with the photographer and model to make certain that your ownership of the photos from the shoot is yours. You do not want someone seeking royalties from an image. It must belong to you.

If the model is a minor, the photo release form must be signed by the parent or guardian.

Each release form or copyright agreement form should include two signatures (yours and the individual person making the agreement), along with complete addresses of both parties.

And of course, always include the date.

I hope this series on creating the photo for my book cover has been beneficial in some way to other authors. This photo session took some money, a lot of organization, creative thinking and mostly, a Divine hand that seemed to guide me each and every step of the way. I am still in awe of God’s blessing on the project. And I am delighted with His handiwork. 🙂

 

 

 

 

 

Congratulations! It’s a — Book Cover Part 2

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It was April 26, 2013—just 238 years and seven days after the events written about in Fields of the Fatherless.  Now, four women were about to attempt a photographic recreation of the book’s main character—Betsy Russell.

The day started early. I had to be at the house of the seamstress, Katie, by 7:45 a.m. to meet the young woman I’d hired to apply makeup to my model. The instructions were to make the model look as natural as possible. Just enough makeup so the lights didn’t wash her out.

While the make-up was applied, I hurried to the store deli to pick up sandwiches that I’d ordered the day before. I loaded them in the ice chest with the fruit plate and water that I’d already packed. I also got a few donuts for the model. 🙂

After picking up Katie and her granddaughter (the model), we drove to the next town to pick up Heather, my photographer. Excitement was growing as we were all working together on a project that was unique to all of us. As lovers of Early American history, it was a labor of love.

I sat next to my model as we drove to our destination. She wanted to know about the character she was portraying and she listened intently as I described her. She was totally swept up in the tale of Betsy Russell and seemed to relate well to the young woman depicted in my novel.

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The day was perfect for a long drive and we praised God for the good weather. In April of 1775, a warm spring had settled on Massachusetts and our sunny skies in 2013 in the Midwest were a perfect match. Anticipation coursed through the car as we approached the 18th century Colonial home.

The wonderful homeowner welcomed us and made us feel completely at home. While my model went to put on her dress, Heather set up lights and umbrellas. I’d participated in several photo shoots before, so I knew the drill. It would take numerous photos of the same pose just to get a few that might be considered.

And might be considered was always in the back of my mind. It was completely possible that my publisher would not want any of the photos. But at least they’d know what I was envisioning for a cover. I prayed it would go well.

It went better than I could have imagined because an amazing thing happened. It was like our lovely model metamorphosed into Betsy Russell. I watched in awe as she stared out the window as though British Redcoats were just around the corner. At one point, she became so immersed in her character that tears welled in her eyes. For two hours time, she became Betsy.

My friend, Katie, ended up in tears as well, watching her beautiful granddaughter transform into the young colonial woman from long ago who survived a terrifying time in history. It was a moment that my friend will always treasure.

I think all four of us will forever hold that day dear in our hearts.

The day was not all seriousness, however.

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At one point, the family cat showed up to participate in the photo shoot. She was right at home, even staring out the window with the model. I think she thought the Redcoats really were coming! The photo shoot kitty actually inspired the character of Pumpkin the cat in my novel. I hope you get to meet her in the pages of Fields of the Fatherless. 😉

Dozens—probably hundreds—of photos later, Heather wrapped up the photo shoot. We all laughed and shared some food and thanked our gracious hosts. Release forms were signed so that I’d own the copyright to the photos in order to give the rights to my publisher—in case they wanted them.

We were all sad to leave. It had been an inspiring day where everything came together. It was like the Lord had His precious hand in all the details, turning my imperfect human efforts into His perfect artwork. It was a masterpiece of synchronization that only He could orchestrate—and I give Him the praise for it all.

After this memorable day, the four of us waited for four months for the final decision from my publisher. And the decision was “yes.”

The designers at Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas took a couple of the images and used their creative magic to produce the final cover. And I could not be more pleased and excited with the beautiful cover they created.

As a side note to our perfect day: Exactly one week after the gorgeous spring weather for the photo shoot, we had a snowstorm—on May 3. It was a record breaker for that date.  🙂

 

Come back on Thursday, September 26, for the business aspect of doing such a photo shoot. Part 3 of “Congratulations! It’s a — Book Cover”

Congratulations! It’s a — Book Cover!

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It’s something every author anticipates with both excitement and dread—that instant when he or she sees their book cover for the first time.

After months (or years) of crafting and drafting the words that become woven into their book, every author hopes that their cover will not just draw readers’ eyes, but perhaps be the best possible design to illustrate the inner contents.

No one wants that moment of presenting their book cover to be met with the same facial expression one might save for a parent revealing their newborn with misshapen head and bruising from a difficult birth: “Oh yes, Mrs. Cooper, your baby is—ummm—beautiful.”

New parents and authors are tender souls whose feelings should be spared. But while newborns with the imprint of a stressful delivery will recover into beautiful children, a book cover is what it is. If it’s unattractive from the start, it is forever so.

I was delighted when our marketing person at Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas said that the design team would like input from their authors for the book cover. Wow! I had a say in the matter! Ever since I had received my contract under the Christmas tree last December—well, via e-mail, actually—I’d wondered what working with this new publisher would be like.  I was heartened that they wanted to know my thoughts.

The Deer Run Saga
The Deer Run Saga

In the past I’d had complete control over my book covers for the Deer Run Saga, hiring a local artist to design the images. What started out as paintings, morphed with the magic of technology into the illustrations for my series.

Now I was with a new publisher, and I had to go with their flow. Being allowed to voice an opinion was a relief, although I knew they still had final say.

While pondering their suggestion for input, my imagination began to work overtime. What did I envision for the cover for my historical fiction set in Massachusetts? Having grown up in that state, I knew the look I wanted. I envisioned the young heroine looking alert yet lovely. It “looked” great in my mind—but how did I transfer those creative musings into an image? I needed a photo!

Right—like I was going to travel from the Midwest back to New England just for a photo shoot! It would hardly fit in with my budget or my schedule. But here is where events started to occur that helped me see that I must be receiving help from on High. Everything seemed to come together almost magically.

First of all I hoped that I could arrange for a photo shoot at the actual setting for my story. That fell through. As did another idea. Frustrated, I shared my thoughts with my husband one evening.

“I know the perfect spot,” he said. He knew an editor that had done a photo shoot at a location not too far away. It was an authentic Colonial house—built in New England in 1755—that had been moved, piece-by-piece, to the Midwest in the 1970’s.

Are you kidding me?? What were the chances?

I tracked down the location and the owner and bravely requested to use their house for a photo shoot. The gracious homeowners were more than accommodating.

Next, I needed a photographer. My husband once again came through as he told me about a professional freelance photographer that goes to our church—and often sat right behind us! I had no idea Heather was a photographer.

All that was left was to find the right model. But how do you find someone with waist-length hair who has the right look about her? I did not want a modern-looking young lady. She needed to have that aura of a Colonial American young lady—simple yet lovely.

Well, I was having trouble here—so I prayed about it. God answered my prayer as  my friend, Katie, posted a birthday photo of her granddaughter on facebook. There was the model I was looking for, her image right on my laptop.

As if God was not working overtime to help me as it was, He threw in one more gift: The same friend was a seamstress who knew how to sew period clothing. Katie and I went shopping and I purchased the material. Her creative hands sewed the Colonial American costume that her granddaughter would wear.

I was dumbfounded by these “chance” blessings. And grateful.

April was approaching and I wanted to get the photo done at the same time of year as the events in my book. The photographer and I had already made a visit to the Colonial house to plan where the shots would be photographed. As it turned out, Heather the photographer was also from the East and loved Colonial American homes. J

Soon we had a date that we could all meet at the house location.  I prayed that everything would go well. But I could never have anticipated just how much God would continue to help us bring this project together.

 

(Come back for Part 2 this Sunday, September 22, as I write about the actual photo shoot)

Featured image courtesy of Thomas Deitner

 

 

 

Laughing At The Cemetery?

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I know the following story will sound completely fictitious as though it were written for a sitcom. And since I am a writer of fiction, I would understand your skepticism. And if I had not been there, I might have questioned its veracity as well.

But as an eyewitness, I am here to declare: If you were to ask me to swear in a court of law on a Bible whether or not this story is true, I will say “Aye”—in between bouts of laughter. [Read more…] about Laughing At The Cemetery?