Once A Champion Review

The Writing

The review for Once a Champion is now available in the June edition of RT Book Reviews: 

ONCE A CHAMPION
by Jeannie Watt

RT Rating

ONCE A CHAMPION (4) by Jeannie Watt: Physical therapist Liv Bailey is surprised when calf roper Matt Montoya arrives at her family’s ranch, looking for the horse his ex-wife sold while he was away. She can’t deny she still finds him as attractive as she did in high school, when she tutored him. But Matt’s unwilling to accept the fact that a knee injury means he’ll likely never rope competitively again, and Liv isn't sure she can have another relationship after breaking things off with a controlling ex-fiancé. Watt brings her complex, wonderful characters to life. Both Matt and Liv are likable and warm, in spite of Liv’s insecurities and Matt’s reluctance to realize he can no longer compete in rodeos.

Reviewed By: Alexandra Kay

This encourages me to soldier on with the revisions for my next book, which has yet to be assigned a title. For now it’s called Ryan’s Story. 

Titling a book is a joint effort. I send in to my editor a list of 15 to 20 possible titles.  Those titles are reviewed and used as a brainstorming springboard by several  editors and then the final title is assigned. 

My first book, A Difficult Woman, retained its working title, but that never happened again—probably because I tend to call my working manuscripts things like “Ryan’s Story”. The next book I’m contracted to write is called “Shae’s story.”   Speaking of which, the first three chapters of Shae’s Story are due mid-May, so I need to get cracking on those. Shae is the bridezilla in Once a Champion and now I have to redeem her. I think it'll be fun turning a self-centered bridezilla into a sympathetic character.  I do love a challenging character arc.

Becoming a Book

French edition of Just Desserts~
April 2013

I received  the revision notes from my editor late last week. She had excellent suggestions for the areas that needed work and actually liked one part that I thought needed tweaked.  I love a second pair of eyes. Now I have until the end of May to get this book into its almost final form.

In case you've wondered about the process that goes into shaping a book from start to finish, here it is:

1) I write the synopsis of a story that’s bouncing around in my head, along with three sample chapters, and submit them to my editor. If she likes the project, she sends it on to the senior editor and if she likes it, then I get a contact. I set the due date for the first draft. I always think I’ve factored in tons of extra time, but invariably something happens (hot water tank explodes or something of that nature) or I get hung up on one part of the book and write it and rewrite it and rewrite it, instead of moving on, and the deadline comes barreling up on me. I somehow get done.

2) My editor reads the book and then sends me notes about what revisions she thinks are necessary to strengthen the story. I’ve been through this process enough that I usually know the weak areas and work on them while I wait for my editor’s notes. Sometimes, though, something comes out of left field, such as “this character isn’t working”. This happened to my hero named Rex. My advice—don’t name a hero Rex unless he’s a dog. I renamed Rex and the new character acted differently and worked much better. Names matter.

3) I revise over the course of several weeks and send in the revisions. The editor then does a line edit,

Once a Champion hits the shelves
in June.

where she reads and edits the manuscript line by line. My manuscripts are 85K or around 375 pages, so she has some reading ahead of her. Then she sends the line edits to me and I go over the manuscript line by line reviewing the changes. I send my changes back to her.

4) Finally, I get a PDF of the book in its semi-final form to proof read. This is my last chance to change anything. After that, the book goes into production. Six months later it’s on the shelves.

Revisions: No End in Sight

The Writing

I should get my editor's notes soon and that will probably send me in a different direction than I'm going right now. It's amazing what another pair of eyes can do for the process. Meanwhile, I'm writing away, raising the stakes, increasing tension, generally torturing my characters and having a good time.

The Sewing

I'm still working on the 80s summer dress, which is fine, since the weather has taken a turn for the worse and I don't think I'll wear it until next week at the earliest. I was hoping the apricot blossoms would be on the tree for the photos, but they've been deeply offended by cold. Maybe there'll still be few this weekend.

I’m a silk organza underlining newbie, so I wasn’t certain what to do about the organza feeling all prickly and itchy at the unfinished edges of the sleeve and where I trimmed the darts. I decided to try to encase the seams in bias tape. I was concerned that it might add bulk to the sleeve area, but it didn’t. If anything it seemed to support the area.  I also enclosed the trimmed darts and, violà, no more itchy edges. I've probably broken some sewing rule, but it works.

I hung my dress for 48 hours so that the bias part of the skirt would stretch before hemming (rather than after). As you can see the bias stretched almost three inches.

I did, however, run into one small problem while hemming *sigh*. Do you see where the pink lace hem tape ends? And guess who didn't have another package?

Talk about a rookie error. For the record, even though 3 yards of hem tape sounds like enough to hem one summer dress, check measurements before starting to sew. 

This hemming cloud turned out to have a silver lining, however.  My local variety store didn't have this color of hem tape, so I ordered the tape online. To justify the cost of postage (which was more than the cost of the tape) I had to add additional items to my cart. I so love adding additional items to my cart. I bought covered button kits and a zipper and four yards of daffodil yellow Bemberg to line the 60’s coat and shift I plan to make next. 

Since the coat fabric is nectarine, one of the Pantone Spring 2013 colors, I now have to enter the Sewing Pattern Review Pantetone Color Contest, right?  I hadn't planned to enter because I had no lining. Problem solved thanks to not checking the length of my hem tape before starting to sew.

The contest deadline is April 30^th, but I think I can get a coat and a shift done by that time.  Wish me luck. Another deadline. Yay!

Catching Up

The Writing
The writing is the reason I haven't posted since last Sunday. The deadline is now approaching at warp speed. I wrote 13,000 words in one day earlier this week and got the skeleton of the book done. Now I'm going back and adding all the stuff I just knew I'd have an easier time doing later, filling the holes I left gaping wide open, and generally tidying up.

I have 21,000 edited words, 30,000 rough words. When I get done filling the holes, I figure I should be close to the 70,000 I want to turn in on March 21. I'm satisfied with my progress. Things always feel a bit out of control at this stage.

After I turn in the project, I'm celebrating with a day trip to Reno where I hope to buy shoulder pads--big shoulder pads to fill out the square shoulders of my Sew for Victory 40's suit jacket.

The Sewing
I should call this post patterns, patterns, patterns. I've been busy on eBay. There's nothing like a quick shopping spree to help battle writer's block. (Actually I don't believe in writer's block, but it's a good excuse to shop.)  Here are some of the patterns that called to me and are now on their way to my mailbox:

1920s

 1930s

1940s

I think I'm done pattern shopping for a while. If not, I should be because these should keep me busy for a while. I can't wait to find the perfect fabric for each one.

I'm sorry to say I did not win this pattern for a men's catsuit, which is a shame because it makes me smile.

30’s Dress ~ The Final Chapter

The Reveal

Well, here it is--the first 30's dress. I suspect there will be more because I celebrated the completion of this dress by buying two more 1930s patterns. Before I start those, however, I will head into the 1940s and Sew for Victory with Lucky Lucille.

Here's the dress on Tillie, my unpaid assistant. It needs pressed. I think Tillie has more of a waistline than I do, but she hasn't spent the weekend at the rodeo eating chili-cheese fries.

Here is the dress on me from various angles. My husband is my patient photographer. Patient because I won't hold still and I close my eyes every other shot and then make him do it again.

Is it just me, or is does the pattern model appear a bit more willowy than me? I am so tempted to use my photo program to stretch my photo in a vertical direction...but that would be wrong.

Here's the back:

I'm really happy with the back--see how well the pattern matches between the yoke and the bodice? It's hard to tell where one ends and the other begins.

And from the side. The first photo was a total profile, but my husband made me look at him because he said it looked like a mug shot. 

And lastly a fun artsy shot. Aren't the red shoes perfect with this?

So that's it for the 30's dress. I can't wait to start my 40's dress. Tomorrow I start tracing the pattern.

The Writing.

Yes, I have been writing. I plotted out the rest of the book on tiny little post-it notes which I stuck to the kitchen table and rearranged until it felt right.

Then I put the post-its in a notebook and taped them down for travel because this past weekend was a rodeo weekend.

Every year I have a vendor booth at the local ranch hand rodeo, so for the past three and half days I sat in my booth, writing away and eating chili cheese fries. I actually produced quite a few words and had a great time.

30’s Dress ~ Chapter Four

The Sewing

The dress is progressing nicely, which makes me think that some disaster lurks on the horizon…but I’ll take smooth sewing for now.

According to the pattern primer, I’m supposed to make a narrow hem along the edges of the sleeves and the ties. My fabric is printed, so the back is much lighter than the front and since I happen to be the world’s worst bow-tier, I’m pretty certain a lot of rolled hem and lighter fabric is going to show. Therefore I decided to line the yoke using light weight black fabric. This gives the tie and the sleeves a more finished look when the underside flashes into view.

The plus side of this construction method is that it gives more structure to the yoke, and the backs of the ties look classier. The down side is that the sleeves also have more body, so they don’t exactly droop over the shoulders, but instead jut out at a perky angle. I've never been one for fussy sleeves, which made dressing during the 80s a challenge, but I think the trade off is worth it.

The bottom of the sleeve opening is finished with bias tape cut from the fashion fabric. (Obviously this photo was taken before I attached the sleeve-yoke-tie piece to the bodice.)

The pattern didn't offer the option of inserting a slide fastener (zipper) into the side opening. Instead bias tape is used to make an inner placket and then snaps and hooks are used as the closure. 

The only problem here is that I have a snap block. It’s similar to writer’s block. When I have to sew on a snap, I put it off, hoping someone else in the house will have mercy on me and sew it on for me. I don’t know why, but I believe it has something to do with vague memories—probably repressed—of me sewing on snaps with wads of thread when I was nine or ten. I believe I used so much thread that the snaps wouldn't close properly and I found this quite frustrating. I also tend to shoot snaps across the room when I’m trying to place them on the fabric. All in all, I'm not good with snaps, however...

I persevered and managed to sew snaps onto the placket. I put a hook at the waist and made my own thread catch, which I prefer to the metal loops.

As soon as the dress is hemmed, I’m done and it’s on to the 1940's suit. My fabric is supposed to be here next Tuesday—I gave in and ordered some linen rayon blend and I’m going to color block!

The Writing

After dealing with snaps, it's a pleasure to write, even if I've written everything that I know is going to happen and I'm still about 40,000 words short. Now I have two choices: 1) go back now and add all the stuff I've figured out, or 2) write brief scenes that will occur between where I am and the end of the book. I think I’m going with choice 2. Last time I did this, I ended up with a book that was so long that I had to cut 5,000 words during revisions. But I need to get this plot nailed down before going back and tweaking, or I’m not going to make deadline.  Deadlines move like speeding locomotives sometimes.

30’s Dress ~ Chapter Three

The Writing
I just received the cover of my June book, a cowboy romance set in Montana. It's the first of three connected books about a roping family in the Dillon/Butte area. The guy on this cover is the half brother of the guy I'm writing about now.

Getting a cover is one of the big thrills after turning in a book and having all the edits approved. My books are generally released 6-7 months after I finish the last official proofreading and during those months there are two things to look forward to: the cover reveal and the RT Book Review review. So here's the cover reveal:

The Sewing

I chose a black and white rayon challis for this project because I thought it looked appropriate to the period. I can see someone with marcel waves in her hair wearing it. That someone will not be me, because I once marceled my hair during high school, and it's a bit more work than I want to take on. I'm really bad with the curling iron. 

I knew I’d be matching patterns when I chose the fabric, but I hadn't expected it to be such a challenge. You see, rayon challis tends to do what it wants when it wants, shifting willy-nilly whenever  it gets the chance.  I love to wear challis, kind of hate working with it. You can imagine how much I like really slippery fabrics.

I trued up the fabric and cut my first bodice front (first, mind you—good thing I bought too much fabric) on the fold as I always do, but when I unfolded the piece I found that the while the vertical lines were true, the horizontal lines angled badly in a southerly direction.  

My solution was to do what my mom had taught me years ago (a procedure I thought a complete waste of time during my teen years) and cut out half of the bodice, keeping the center line directly on the center of the diamonds, and then carefully folding the cut piece over and matching it to the print on the other side. 

I also did this for the yoke and skirt pieces.  It took longer to cut out that garment than it did to iron and trace the pattern, but the lines are straight—nothing drifting south across the front of my bodice or skirt. Thanks, Mom.

To match the pattern of the yoke to the bodice, I folded and pinned down the seam allowance on the bodice and then matched it to the pattern on the fabric and placed pins to mark the location. 

Then I placed yoke pattern on the fabric, placing the bottom seam line along the pins. 

The scissors are pointing to the line of pins under the pattern tissue. 

The skirt inserts couldn't be matched to the skirt front because they hang on the bias, so I made the center seam true and let nature take its course. I hope it's a good course.

And that is my adventure in cutting. On to construction.

30s Dress ~ Chapter Two

The Writing

This 30s flutter-sleeve dress is going together easier than I thought it would. Good thing, too, because I’ve been stalled out in my story, writing the same chapter over and over again. I know I should move on, but my gut is telling me that if I don’t set the relationship/conflict between the hero and heroine now—as opposed to going back and doctoring it—that it’ll cause me trouble later.

Every book is different and sometimes I’ve happily skipped huge chunks of the story to write a scene that defined the story. Not this story—probably because that scene has not yet fought its way into my brain. So I keep tapping away, hoping to key in on that magic bit of whatever that unlocks everything. I think I’m close.  The heroine, who is uber professional, just made a snarky comment to the hero, which has given both the hero and me something to think about.  Sometimes it just takes something like that to flesh a character out and make writing that character more intuitive. Hopefully when I wake up tomorrow and put fingers to keyboard, good things will happen.

The Sewing

Back to the dress.  The muslin went together well and it fits. Well, most of it fits. All right, the top fits. The skirt needs a bit of adjustment. 

(The top will be gathered before its attached to the skirt.)

You know...I remember when fitting a skirt wasn't quite so challenging.

I ripped out the side seams and gave myself ¼ inch on each side and now it fits. I have to remember to increase the center seam allowance of the inserts by an equal amount when I cut out the fashion fabric.

Several components of this dress are supposed to be top-stitched onto the underlying pieces. The skirt openings are top-stitched onto the inserts. Makes sense. 

The yoke is top-stitched onto the lower bodice.  Again, a logical approach. 

The bodice is gathered and then top-stitched to the skirt. I’m not doing that, because it sounds like a disaster in the making. I’m gathering the bodice and attaching it the way I always do—by putting right sides together and stitching.

So now that I know everything fits, I’m going to tackle cutting out the fashion fabric, which should prove interesting, because it’s a black and white geometric challis (stretchy bias, anyone?) and I’ll have to match the print. I can feel my OCD starting to kick into gear just thinking about it.

Stay tuned for the next chapter.

30s Dress ~ Chapter One

The Writing

I have a deadline. It’s five weeks away, but in that time I have to produce 75,000 usable words while teaching full time. Of course, this makes me want to sew.  Part of that desire is escapism, part is procrastination (I may as well be honest here) and part of it is needing to use another part of my brain while the story percolates.

When I was a newbie author, I thought writing would get easier after a few books, but it doesn't.  I’m working on book number sixteen and just hit a wall. Some people call this writer’s block. I call it “the deadline isn't close enough to panic my brain into breaking loose its secrets.”  Some may think, “But hey, you write romance. There's a formula, as in boy meets girl, etc…” Yes, but writing successful genre fiction is tricky because readers have set expectations and you have to meet them, while keeping the story fresh. Much, much easier said than done.  Sometimes it hurts my brain. That's when I start sewing. Then when I finish a tricky seam only to discover that I've sewn part of the facing into it, that's when I go back to the writing.

The Sewing

I've started my first 1930’s project using a pattern I bought on eBay for about $10--Simplicity 1690. The pattern envelope and directions are in bad shape. I’m nuts about saving old stuff, so I carefully unfolded the pattern pieces and ironed them  with a dry iron prior to tracing. I enjoy tracing the patterns. I do it freehand, even though I have all the required rulers and curves. I tidy things up later with the curves and straight edges if need be, but usually the lines are fine as drawn. I guess I've got a good eye and a steady hand.

The pattern tissue is in good shape considering the fact that it’s almost 80 years old. I encountered a couple of damaged pieces, but with the help of the pattern directions—or the Simplicity Primer, as it’s called—it was easy to figure out what the missing part looked like. One oddly shaped piece had been ripped in two, and the two pieces simply folded and put back in the envelope.  It makes me wonder about cellophane tape in the 1930s. It was during the Depression and things we take for granted, like cellophane tape,  may not have been so common. Or perhaps the seamstress had merely been out of tape. That's what I love about retro sewing—the history and the mystery.

My favorite part of this sewing adventure so far is the handmade newspaper pattern that was enclosed in the envelope. I think it was for a capelet of some kind. 

The newspaper gives me a general date—1936—a general locale—Sioux City, SD—and some interesting news headlines. For example, it was noted that DiMaggio had a bad day. My favorite part of this small glimpse of history is the ad for shoes…

I love the shoes. Especially the ones called “Women Educator Shoes”. I’m an educator by day, and these shoes would go beautifully with my new dress. Too bad I can’t get my hands on them.