Book review: Elderberry Croft, Volume 2 (April through June) by Becky Doughty

The story of the Coach House Trailer Park and its inhabitants continues in volume 2 of Becky Doughty’s serial novel, Elderberry Croft. All of the characters featured in this volume were already introduced in volume 1, but now we learn more about them. In April Shadows, the still mysterious Willow Goodhope helps to draw Shelly, the neighborhood “cat lady”, out of the shadows of OCD and childhood trauma. Park manager Eddie is featured in May Enchantment, as he investigates an unknown man who spooks some of the residents during his late-night walks in the neighborhood. This episode does not follow the usual pattern of the others, in which Willow is seen helping the neighbor with some problem. Instead, Willow is presented in the May episode as a more vulnerable figure who needs her friends at Coach House as much as they need her. Kathy’s friend Myra is the main character in June Melody. Willow helps Myra understand that it is okay to move on from sorrowful losses in the past and that comfort is better found with loved ones than at the bottom of a sangria glass. Shelly, Eddie, and Myra might all be regarded as misfits in society generally, but Doughty skillfully shows their humanity without romanticizing them.

In the episodes of volume 2, Willow no longer seems to have any trace of the supernatural about her, but the magic of friendship still underlies all the stories. Willow does at times appear to have an uncanny ability to know just exactly the right thing to say or do in any situation, as when she has the perfect reaction to the tension created by some of the male guests at Myra’s card party. But in this volume, Willow comes across as a more wounded figure who is struggling to keep going every day. We are given occasional glimpses of her deep sadness in private moments, as when Myra catches her singing and playing a guitar.

Volume 2 features compelling characters, a deepening mystery, and more nuggets of herbal lore. After finishing it, you will want to move on to volume 3 as soon as possible.

As of right now, the individual episodes April Shadows, May Enchantment, and June Melody are still available on Becky Doughty’s blog, beckydoughty.com. If you read from her blog, you will also be treated to some photographs that illustrate the stories. These three episodes are collected in volume 2 of Elderberry Croft and are available for purchase through several retailers including Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, and Smashwords. The whole series of 12 episodes is also available as a single ebook volume and as a paperback book.

Book review: Elderberry Croft, Volume 1 by Becky Doughty

Last January author Becky Doughty began publishing parts of her serial novel Elderberry Croft on her blog. She released one story a month from January through December 2013. Unfortunately I didn’t discover this enchanting series right away, but the advantage of reading it now is that you can go right from one episode to another without having to wait for the next one to be published.

Elderberry Croft tells the story of Willow Goodhope, a mysterious young woman who finds herself living in a trailer park that many of the residents seem to regard as a place to wait to die. We don’t learn much about Willow in volume 1 (January through March), but there are glimpses of a profound sadness that may be related to the events that brought her to the tiny cottage in the trailer park.

Each of the episodes focuses on one of the neighbors in the trailer park. The characters are engaging, and they remind us of people we know or maybe even our own relatives. Each month, Willow touches the lives of a neighbor in a way that then cascades out to the rest of the neighborhood. By the March episode, we can already sense that Willow’s small actions have helped to bring about changes to make the trailer park more of a true community where people really watch out for one another.

In this first volume, Willow’s abilities almost seem magical. Her name is even somewhat reminiscent of the names of the Salem witches; could Willow be a witch, or a descendant of witches, or at the very least born with the “second sight” or other supernatural abilities? But we also see that Willow quietly but consistently reaffirms her faith in God. In January Breeze, how did Willow know about Kathy’s cough and dogs so as to be able to provide a suitable gift so quickly? Willow says that God told her that an herbal tea remedy would be what Kathy would most appreciate. In February Embers, Patti thinks that Willow’s house looks like a witch’s house. How else could she get the plants to grow so well even in wintertime? But Willow explains to Kathy that her green thumb is a gift from God. In March Whispers, Joe asks if the elder is Willow’s tree spirit. Willow laughs and explains how in her childhood, her family found a practical use for products from the elder tree in every season of the year. The tree is a true giving tree, and when Willow saw it growing in a part of the country where it doesn’t ordinarily grow well, she knew that God was leading her to the little cottage she christened Elderberry Croft.

Once you have read the first volume, you will want to keep reading. What are the other neighbors like? What secrets is Willow trying to hide, and why is she so sad underneath her effervescent personality? Elderberry Croft, Volume 1, is a character-driven mystery story with a touch of magic (or something resembling magic) and a sprinkling of herbal lore. I look forward to reading the rest of the series to see how the mystery unfolds and eventually resolves.

Individual episodes including January Breeze may be read on Becky Doughty’s blog, beckydoughty.com, along with elderberry recipes and other supplemental materials. The first volume (January through March) is currently free on several sites for electronic books including Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, and Smashwords. Later volumes can be purchased as ebooks, and the whole series is available as a single ebook or as a paperbook.

Nanowrimo mid-point update

Yesterday was the half-way point for the National Novel Writing Month, so it is a good time to check whether my novel is on track to be “finished” in time. I did make it a little past the half-way mark of 25,000 words, though without much room to spare.

It hasn’t been easy to write an average of at least 1667 words a day. Even though I had done a lot of historical research in advance, additional research has been necessary as I go along, and it takes a lot of time. But there have been several things I have done to make progress a little bit easier:

(1)    Before Nanowrimo started, I got familiar with the writing software and even wrote a “prequel” short story. The short story doesn’t apply to the word count of the novel, but it was helpful to get a sense of how long it takes me on average to write a thousand words and to figure out what times of day work best for writing.

(2)    I have made it a point to write at least something every single day. Even if I only write 500 or so words, that at least contributes more to the word count than a zero would. It also helps to keep the writing momentum going.

(3)    This one should be obvious, but a 500-word day must be offset by at least one day with a word count larger than 1667. Before Nano started, I thought I would write more on weekends and less during the work week. As it turns out, it can be hard to predict in advance which days will have relatively small or relatively big word counts. I can often get more written on weekends, but not always. Some days it is just easier to write more, especially if I’m working on a section where I don’t have much additional background research to do. I made a spreadsheet showing how many words total I need at the end of each day, and I just do my best to make sure I meet that target each and every day. One column shows the necessary daily progress to win in 30 days and another column shows the average daily totals needed to win in 28 days. I aim for the daily totals needed to finish in 28 days, and I make absolutely sure that I at least hit the daily totals needed to finish in 30 days.

(4)    I also established check points on a weekly basis to make sure I wrote at least 12,500 words the first week, 25,000 words total for the second week, etc. I set aside time in my schedule for a mini-marathon just before these check points to help me hit the weekly targets.

Now that we are just past the half-way point, I hope the worst is over and that it will be a little easier for the second half of Nanowrimo!

Nanowrimo

National Novel Writing Month (Nanowrimo) starts tomorrow, with a goal of writing 50,000 words of a novel during the month of November. I have signed up for the challenge; it is just what I need as encouragement to finally finish the historical fiction novel I began researching more than a year ago. The novel is set in early Anglo-Saxon times, and the protagonist is a healer - somewhere between a sorcerer and a leech (physician).

The box to the right above my profile will update the daily (or nearly daily) word counts as I post updates to the Nanowrimo site. Right now it shows zero because the starting date is November 1, but throughout November the word count should progress steadily towards 50,000!