November is National Adoption Month

NATIONAL ADOPTION MONTH, 2009- - - - - - -BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

A PROCLAMATION

"All children deserve a safe, loving family to protect and care for them. In America, thousands of young people are waiting for that opportunity. During National Adoption Month, we honor those families that have strengthened America through adoption, and we recommit to reducing the number of children awaiting adoption into loving families.

America is a country rich in resources and filled with countless caring men and women who hope to adopt. These individuals come from all walks of life, united in their commitment to love a child who is in need of the protective arms of a parent. We must do more to ensure that adoption is a viable option for them. By continually opening up the doors to adoption, and supporting full equality in adoption laws for all American families, we allow more children to find the permanent homes they yearn for and deserve."

Thus begins the formal presidential proclamation for National Adoption Month. May we take time this month to recognize individuals and couples who have adopted and raised children as their own. My sister adopted two children, Brian and Stephanie, and dedicated her time and love to raise them. My brother adopted two boys, David and Bruce, and I can't imagine our family without having known and loved these children.

When I wrote "Hidden Heritage...the Story of Paul LaRoche", the true story of a white couple who adopted an American Indian boy, I became intimately involved in the Summers-LaRoche family. Paul's story is inspiring and uplifting on both sides of the adoption coin...his adoptive home was warm and loving, and when he reunited with his birth family as an adult, he was embraced and welcomed back. His is a wonderful example of how adoption can and should work.

This month let us salute all the people and families who have given and shared love--the greatest gift of all--under the umbrella of adoption.

Blessings,
Barbara

Link to presidential proclamation: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/presidential-proclamations-national-adoption-month

Planning, Progress, and Pay-off

I finished the first draft of my current novel "Seeds of Salton" in two years, writing and working at a steady, sometimes-frenzied pace, all while keeping up with my home and part-time day-job. When I finished the last chapter this spring and read through the entire 356 pages I found myself face-to-face with the same question a lot of writers do: How do I turn this draft into a polished manuscript that I can present to agents or editors?

Like many I turned to the Internet to research my options, reading agent blogs and writers websites. I knew first-hand that writers conferences hold a wealth of helpful resources. In 2007 and 2008 I attended the Southern California Writer's Conference in San Diego, but I lacked the time and money to get to another one this fall. There were numerous editors-for-hire all over the web, but who could I trust?

To start, I turned to a writer friend who recommended editor and author Susanne Lakin in California. I contacted Susanne and we "hit it off" right from the start. I hired her to do a content edit of the manuscript, which she promptly did. She responded with many positive things to say about my writing and the manuscript, which gave me an enormous boost of confidence. In her eight-page critique she outlined my weaknesses in the premise and story arch. More importantly though, she offered suggestions on how to strengthen the manuscript in a way that made sense to me.

In the midst of working with Susanne, I attended "Story Mastery" with Michael Hauge, presented by the Midwest Fiction Writers & Screenwriters of Minnesota right near my home in Minneapolis. Michael's handouts included Key Story Component Breakdowns and a Six-Stage Plot Structure worksheet--exactly what I needed to fine-tune my own plot structure. What hit me even deeper, however, was how he presented the protagonist's character arch through "Identity and Essence" and the tug of war between the two.

Susanne Lakin also suggested I purchase the CD set for a seminar taught by T. Davis Bunn at the Mount Hermon Writer's Conference in 2009, titled "Taking Your Fiction to the Next Level," another wonderful seminar about story arch and character development. By this time everything began to "click" and I had a much clearer understanding of premise, tone, voice, and character development.

And then came the fun part! I did my best to take all these news helps and apply them to my manuscript. These past few weeks I've had a ball putting all that I've learned into action. I've cut pages, tightened paragraphs, and rewritten several scenes like there's no tomorrow. The pay-off is a much improved manuscript and a newly instilled confidence to go with it. I still plan to attend a national writer's conference this winter, but for now I am thankful for the opportunities that have crossed my path without having to leave home.

It's rewarding and uplifting to have people like Susanne, Michael and Davis who are willing to share their expertise with those of us on this journey to publication. Thank you, thank you!
Barbara

1st Place - Brainerd Writers Alliance Essay Contest

As all writers know, the journey to publication has so many ups and downs it's like being on a never-ending rollercoaster ride. The struggles, the frustrations, the rejections can turn into a one-way ride down, plunging my unstable rollercoaster car toward the ground. Thankfully those moments don't come along too often, but when they do, they're ugly. I had one of those moments recently and wondered why we must endure these difficult, soul-searching "bumps" that want to literally throw us off the track.

This one lasted a couple days. I did some good soul-searching, dried my eyes, and went back to the computer. Later that day I received a phone call from Gary Midge with the Brainerd Writers Alliance telling me I won first place for my essay, "Under the Shadow of the Tower" in their 2009 writing contest. Wow...a much needed boost! And within minutes of Gary's call, I received an email from an editor in California, filled with wonderful words of encouragement and confidence in my writing...exactly what I needed to keep going.

So here I go with my rollercoaster car upright once again, up the slow and steady climb on the biggest and steepest hill of my journey to publication...clickety, clickety, clickety...working on the revisions of my novel, feeling the sense that something incredible is waiting for me just over the top of that next rise.

Chuck Swindoll once said, "Obstacles are what you see when you take your eyes off the goal."

Well, today my prayer is to keep my eyes on the goal--rather than the ups and downs of the journey--to obtain an agent and subsequent publication for my novel, Seeds of Salton.

"Raise your faith to trust God when you can't see around that corner," is another good quote from Chuck Swindoll, and most fitting!

Blessings, fellow writers,
Barbara

Me and Rio

Yup, I saddled up little Rio last Monday and headed west. Luckily for Rio I found the Buffalo Gap Guest Ranch west of Medora, ND that has accommodations for both people AND horses, as you can see by the corrals there behind Rio.

When I checked in to the ranch Monday evening, the man working the bar/front desk asked if I had a horse. I said, "As a matter a fact I do!" and pulled little Rio out of my purse. He didn't seem to appreciate my humor, or maybe he'd had too many city slickers trying to act like rough riders, I'm not sure. Regardless, me and Rio settled into our room at the lodge. We had an incredible view of the North Dakota Badlands off the deck, which I can testify is amazingly beautiful at sunset.

Tuesday I drove over to Wibaux, hoping to do a little deeper research about the history of Wibaux and the cattle ranchers of the 1880s, including the town's founder, Pierre Wibaux. At one time Pierre Wibaux owned more cattle than any other individual in the world! He was a true cattle baron and had friends like Teddy Roosevelt and Marquis de Mores. I roamed the sections roads for awhile, admiring the quiet beauty of eastern Montana's rolling land, spent time in the library, and had lunch at the Shamrock, downtown Wibaux.

On Wednesday I drove to Medora, the quaint little tourist town on the edge of the North Dakota Badlands, where the entrance to the Theodore Roosevelt National Park sits. On the 36-mile loop through the park there are numerous overlooks with incredible views, ones that give you a sense for how it looked a century or two ago. There are wild horses and buffalo herds, antelope, whitetail, muleys...plenty of western inspiration to stir the imagination.

I asked Rio if he wanted to stay there, but he was a little intimidated by the size of the wild horses and opted to come home with me. So now the real work begins!!

Giddy-yup!

Defeat of Jesse James Days - Northfield, MN

If anyone is looking for something fun to do this weekend, take a short drive to the beautiful river town of Northfield for the "Defeat of Jesse James Days" Celebration. The weekend is chock-full of festivities in the historic downtown--everything from re-enactments of the famous shootout to a PRCA Professional Rodeo, a parade, craft show and much more.

I will have a booth with the FINE ARTS & CRAFT FESTIVAL along the picturesque river walk, Saturday and Sunday, 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., with copies of "Hidden Heritage", Brule' CDs and DVDs, and my photo greeting cards, plus copies of my compilation books: Cup of Comfort for Single Moms, Cup of Comfort for Mothers and Sons, Celebrating Christmas God's Way, Finding and Following God's Will, and Groovy Chicks' Road Trip to Love.

Please stop by and say hello!
Barbara

Hidden Heritage TV Show Premieres on RFD-TV!

Exciting news!!

HIDDEN HERITAGE premiere episode to air on
RFD-TV Monday, August 31, 2009 – 8:30 p.m. CT

The first episode titled “Hidden Heritage—The Pilot” will air Monday, August 31st, at 8:30 pm, CT. New episodes will follow each Monday thereafter with topics that include Mount Rushmore and Park Superintendent Gerard Baker, The Elders, Circle of Celebration—Lower Brule Pow Wow and Tribal Farm, Rez Ride 2009, Arts of the Indigenous, Sacred Sites—Bear Butte, Native Wisdom—Lakota Concepts, The Music of Brulé and Friends.

Each episode will air at Monday, 8:30 pm; Tuesday 10:30 am; and Wednesday, 7:30 am, central time zone. The television show follows Paul’s journey into Native America and is based on the book Hidden Heritage by Barbara Marshak.

Paul LaRoche, a/k/a Brulé, is an award-wining Native American recording artist from Minnesota. Adopted at birth, he didn’t discover his Lakota heritage until he was 38. Paul and his band, AIRO, (American Indian Rock Opera) have sold over a million CDs worldwide and earned seven Native American Music Awards (NAMMYs) since 2002.

Locally the network can be found on:
Charter Cable – channel 138
DIRECTV – channel 345 (basic package & family pack)
DISH Network – channel 231
For further listing information, go to http://www.rfdtv.com/, Rural America’s Most Important Network.

Producer: Paul LaRoche

Director: Shane LaRoche

Writer: Barbara Marshak

Filming "Hidden Heritage" for RFD-TV

Yes, believe it or not filming has begun!





We were fortunate to join Paul LaRoche in South Dakota last month for a weekend of filming for the new television series that will premiere on RFD-TV in September 2009. We filmed part of Episode #5, titled "Rez Ride 2009"...and hope to make the motorcycle ride an annual event.





We started on the popular Iron Mountain Road in the southern portion of the Black Hills that has framed tunnel views of Mount Rushmore in the distance. It's a very popular route for motorcycles especially...numerous hairpin turns, tight curves, pigtail curves, single lane tunnels--you name it, Iron Mountain Road has it all. Even though we were there two weeks prior to the Sturgis Bike Rally, there was plenty of motorcycle traffic through the hills. It was a little tricky filming on such a busy roadway, but our fabulous crew made it work nonetheless.





We had only 3 motorcycles...which proved to be just the right amount considering the traffic and other roadside challenges. Dan and Chris Kes, from Bloomington, Minnesota; John and Barbara Marshak, and Paul and Kathy LaRoche. Next up we rode north through Nemo and Vanocker Canyon to Bear Butte, the sacred Lakota mountain on the northeast side of Sturgis. The next day we headed south and west to the Pine Ridge Reservation, the Badlands, and the Wounded Knee Memorial. The timing was perfect...shortly after we arrived at the Wounded Knee Memorial, the 4th Annual Wounded Knee Memorial Bike Ride rolled in with about 65 bikes and a number of people waiting to see them. We stayed for the ceremony as the sun began to set on the prairie...a fitting end to the episode.



In fact, as we wrapped up our final shot, in the distance we a soft chant echoed down the hillside as the ceremony came to a close. It was that perfect moment, captured on film, that happens when you least expect it. We couldn't have timed it any better if we'd planned it. It was almost surreal. I'd like to think it's a sign of good things to come for our new television series.

I'll post details about the series premiere of "Hidden Heritage" on RFD-TV--America's most important rural network-- soon!

Until then,
Barbara