Tamela Hancock Murray

Easily Entertained

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon February 16, 2017

Recently my husband, daughter, and I had dinner with my parents at King’s Barbeque in Petersburg, Virginia.

My paternal grandfather discovered this restaurant in the 1950s and it is still one of our family’s favorite places.

Since it was near Christmas, they displayed a unique decoration – a pig wearing a Santa hat. Amused, I took pictures with my cell phone.

I heard voices. “That’s a first!”

I turned to see the waitstaff looking at me, noting that no one else had ever taken a picture of the pig. Just as I found the pig to be comical, so they found humor in my amusement.

Anyone who spends time with me knows that I am easily tickled. New and unique sights and sounds bring me happiness. I take pleasure in little things. Over the years, I have come to believe that my ability to find everything entertaining is a little gift of sunshine from God.

Your turn:

As you develop your characters, what big gifts have you given them?

What small gifts have you given them?

How do these character traits affect your story?

Should I Join a Professional Organization?

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon February 9, 2017

Thinking about joining a professional organization? This post is geared to the writer who has decided what type of books to write and wonders if memberships would enhance the proposal. Those who are undecided would be better served by attending a few conferences as a nonmember to discern career direction. When investigating professional organizations, I recommend asking yourself questions: Can I …

Category: Career, Conferences, The Writing LifeTag: Career, The Writing Life

I Never Wanted to be Mary Tyler Moore

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon February 2, 2017

After Mary Tyler Moore died recently, several celebrity women said they were inspired by her character in her eponymous 1970s show, about a single career woman. Depression I hadn’t even entered double digits in age when The Mary Tyler Moore Show first aired. And to be fair, I was not their target viewer. But to me, the whole scenario had a pall over it. Mary had broken up with her boyfriend and …

Category: PersonalTag: Characters, Personal

Comparisons: A Losing Proposition

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon January 26, 2017

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Do not compare one person with another: it is a hateful thing to do. – St. Teresa of Avila I think this is one of the hardest of St. Teresa’s 69 maxims. After all, we make comparisons between others every day. Some are not healthy, such as, “Who is my favorite in-law?” Does it matter? Should you form an opinion to justify treating one person better than another? Or worse, use an unfavorable …

Category: Career, Christian, The Writing LifeTag: Career, The Writing Life

Unreliable Statistics

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon January 19, 2017

Facts can lie…depending on how that are presented or understood. Today I’ll keep this blog post focused on writers choosing a literary agent, based on one question. When choosing a literary agent, authors need to make assessments. Some authors ask agents questions such as, “How many deals did you make last year?” or other questions requiring a response involving some sort of number. …

Category: Agents, Book Business, Book Sales, CareerTag: Agents, Book Business

Should an Author Query by Phone?

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon January 12, 2017

Recently I was asked by an author (not a client) if I could spend “ten minutes” talking on the phone about a book before I see the submission. I prefer to see the work first. Some questions may enter the author’s mind in response to that. Here are my answers. What’s the matter, are you too “busy” or snobby to talk to authors? No, I am not. In fact, I believe most people find time to do what they …

Category: Book Proposals, Get Published, Pitch, Pitching, The Writing LifeTag: Agents, book proposals, pitch

2016: The Year of Travel

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon January 5, 2017

Conferences The year 2016 was a year of travel for me. I was privileged to be on faculty at many conferences. I appreciate the warmth and kindness of conference staff and volunteers, as well as all the hardworking and generous conference directors. Everywhere I went, I felt welcomed and at home. For me, reconnecting with editors and other publishing professionals is always a conference highlight. …

Category: Agency, PersonalTag: Agency, Personal, writers conferences

Exclamation Points!!! Avoid or Embrace?!

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon December 15, 2016

I love using exclamation points! Don’t you? How about interrobang sentences?! Finally, I think we should bring those back, don’t you?! And not just in dialogue, but in narrative! Finally, shouldn’t readers just really ought to be able to keep up with run-on sentences, no matter how complex, or whether or not they stay on topic, and I wonder how many people could diagram a sentence that’s simple, …

Category: Craft, Creativity, Grammar, HumorTag: Craft, Grammar, Humor

We Care, But We Must Choose

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon December 8, 2016

If you go through my trash, you might think I’m the world’s worst person. Why? Because my discarded mail might lead a casual observer to think that I don’t care about: The paralyzed. The blind. Amputees. Orphans. Israelites. Health needs overseas. Impoverished people living overseas. People suffering with: Lupus Muscular Dystrophy AIDS Multiple Sclerosis Emphysema Diabetes Heart disease. Cancer …

Category: Agents, Book ProposalsTag: Agents, book proposals