Boys, Puppies, and Authors

I've been puppy-sitting.

First, let me remind everyone that I’ve never had a house pet, so I’m not the best one to know if a puppy needs to go outside every 5 minutes, or if he’s hungry (again).

However, over the last few months, I have discovered that 1) yes, he is hungry (again), and 2) yes, go outside. Better safe, than sorry.

Anyway, now that I’m an old pro at this puppy-sitting business, I ended up sitting my son’s Boxer and Boston terrier this weekend, Champ and Bean. They’re both about 7-8 months old.

After picking them up on Saturday, I let them have some time outside to play. Our 10 month old, Dakota, (an outside dog) was ecstatic to have company. Those puppies ripped, and ran, and jumped and play-fought to their hearts’ content.

I went inside to clean, and the next thing I knew, they were gone. I called and called, but they didn’t come. Finally, I saw them about a ¼ mile from the house down our long driveway. In this picture taken last year, that would be on your left.

They were exploring, Dakota leading the way. I called again, but they wouldn’t come. I went back inside, and kept working, thinking they’d come back. A few minutes later, I stepped outside so I could see down the long driveway.

No puppies.

Called and called.

Then spotted movement even farther away on the RIGHT side of the picture almost at the tree line. And do you think they came when I called? Of course not. They ignored me.

I went back inside (it was still pretty nippy outside) and debated going after them on the four-wheeler, but then knew that they would follow the 4-wheeler from now on.

She who hesitates, loses her puppies.

Yep.

When I looked again, they were GONE!

(Seriously, do you see any puppies in that landscape picture above? Cows, yes, but no puppies. Sigh)

Now, it was about this time that I was reminded of my youngest son’s 13th birthday party. He invited all his friends, and we had somewhere between 14-16 boys here that weekend. Why 14-16, you ask? Every time I counted heads, I came up with a different number, and after you hear the tale, you’ll understand why!!!

Those boys piled off the school bus about 3:30 and hit the woods. Well, first, they asked about riding the 4-wheelers, but I nixed that. They had lost a classmate the previous year in a 4-wheeler accident, and they understood my no meant N.O. and didn’t press me. Then the horses came next, but with that many boys, and only 3 or 4 horses I talked them out of that, too.

I should have let them ride the horses…

So, instead, they decided they would catch a calf.

This was in April. Mary will understand exactly what I mean without the benefit of a picture, but for everyone else...

Do you know how big most calves are in April?


Here’s a pretty good idea. This youngster got his head caught in a tree, and dh is in the process of getting him out. Blackie weighed about 450-500 pounds, and this pic was taken in March 2008.

Back to the boys.

I told them to have at it. There’s hundreds of acres here, and I knew they couldn’t catch one of those calves.

But whoo-eee, the ensuing chaos was un-BE-lievable!



Even though all those cows were used to being herded into pens with my own whooping cowboys on horses and/or four-wheelers, 14 (or was it 16?) Comanche-whooping, running, yelping COYOTES was just too much for them to handle.

Those cows stampeded and left the country.

Hours later, my poor long-suffering hubby finally rounded up all the cows. I finally rounded up all the boys. We had one fatality (a black calf similar to the one in the picture), and it took dh about 3 days to find his new prized registered bull!

That was the last birthday bash we hosted.

By now you’re probably wondering what similarities can be drawn between the above two stories and writers.

Glad you asked!

Sometimes we run off after every new thing that comes along. Like a pack of puppies or boys on a sleepover, we rush to the next exciting thing, or the next story, without thought of the consequences.

Get a bunch of us together, and we go a little stir crazy! And we might even...ahem...fall into a ditch or two. (Matthew 15:14.)

Here are a few tips to keep you out of the ditches and on the straight and narrow:

• ACFW is top of my list. RWA is also critical if you’re writing non-inspirational romance. There are other groups that target sci-fi, mystery, western. Find your niche and join!

• Editors and agents: Seek out editors who are buying or representing the type of stories you write. Go to conferences where these people are speaking, listen to their workshops, friend them on Facebook, follow their blogs. Get to know them on a professional level as much as possible. If Chip MacGregor is your dream agent, you should know that he is a die-hard Oregon Ducks fan. If Karen Ball is your dream editor, you should know that she absolutely adores dogs. Hmmm, I guess I should mention something about my own agent…if you’re trying to reel in agent Steve Laube, you should know that he went to high school in Hawaii. You might not know these exact details about the editor or agent you want to work with, but my point is to keep your finger on the pulse of the industry.

• Online communities: Of course the best is Seekerville! We’re here to encourage and assist and not lead you down the wrong path. While some of us are farther along that path than others, there’s always someone a little farther along or behind. Let’s all give each other a helping hand to pull ourselves forward.

• Utilize contest feedback to point you in the right direction. But be wise and don’t follow blind advice. After you’ve entered a few contests, you’ll start to get a feel for the solid advice that’s thrown your way.

• When researching, double-check your facts. Don’t rely on one source and assume that’s exactly the way something happened 200 years ago.

• How-to books can be very helpful, but don’t get so immersed in them that you traipse all over the place learning how to write, but never actually write.

• Authors who know their stuff are one of your most valuable assets. I’m so thankful to have my Seeker Sisters and Friends of Seekerville, as well as a host of other writer friends I can call on for advice.

• And, last, but certainly not least, saturate your brain with story. I’m reading Glynna’s book, Audra’s, and Tina’s books right now, as well as an advance copy of Robin Caroll’s In the Shadow of Evil, and I’m learning so much from these authors’ techniques. I just wish I was brave enough to highlight the pages. Maybe I need an intervention.

These are just a few tips to keep us all from falling into the ditch. I’m sure you can think of dozens more. Let’s hear ‘em!

Back to the puppies…

Just about the time it crossed my mind to call in the National Guard (ie. my son, who really is at ANG training!), the puppies came tearing around the side of the house. They’d done all their exploring and landed safely back at home.

Whew!
All tuckered out!