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Can authors have a favorite among the books they write? Well, my friend and fellow author, Mary Pat Johns has an interesting take on that. See what you think and get a sneak peek at her book soon-to-release (which sounds amazing!).  Book 4 of the Valiant series will release in July. Waitin’ On Paige is the last book of the series. With the release of Books 2 and 3 in 2024, I struggled to find the balance between marketing and writing. However, the Lord is in the refreshing business, and he gave me the time and strength I needed to make it happen. How good is that?
People often ask if I have a favorite in the series. That’s a hard one to answer. Book 1, Countin’ On Jesse will always hold a special place in my heart, as it’s my first published novel. Kind of like my firstborn. Everything was new and harrowing, but we made it. In Book 2, Lovin’ On Red, I wanted to show and share God’s extravagant love, because when the Lord makes things new, he does a bang-up job that lasts forever.
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Do you love all things royal? I fully admit I love wearing a tiara every now and then. There's just something about it. But why? Well, good news. Guest Author, Megan Schaulis is chatting about just this today. Read on to see her theory, as well as learn more about her amazing-sounding books!  Last year on my daughter's seventh birthday, she spent the entire day dressed as a queen. Like a real queen—Mary, Queen of Scots. My parents found the elaborate regal costume on a trip to England.
In fact, her birthdays have had a royal trend for years, starting at age two when I gave her a gold tutu and a little white dress with "Princess" emblazoned on the front. If you're a girl-mom and you're reading this, you're likely either sighing because your own daughter is in the throes of her princess phase or sighing because you miss the sparkly crowns and tutus that once covered the house. It was a case of mistaken mail ... I'm thrilled to have Sarah Anne Crouch on my blog today, chatting about her newest story, which is dear to both of our hearts. It's so exciting to see this book finally coming into the world and I know you're going to love it as much as I do. After all, how can you not love a story that starts with mistaken mail? Read on to see what I'm talking about.  On Tuesday, my new novel A Homecoming in Shady Springs will be released into the world! I’m so grateful to Amy for editing (multiple times over the course of multiple years) this novel and the whole series.
I thought I’d share with you the very first spark of an idea that inspired Henry and Catherine’s story. Do you have a bucket list place to visit? After reading two of Terri Wangard's novels, I'm leaning toward Brazil and Iceland! Maybe not, but she does make them sound amazing. She's my guest today to talk about some of the amazing landscapes in Iceland and how she used it to shape her newest book. I think you'll be as intrigued as I was.  Where in the world would you like to go? Paris? Tahiti? Monaco? How about Iceland?
I like to set my World War II stories in unlikely places. Book One of my series, Seashells in My Pocket, is set in Brazil. Did you know Brazil played a role in the war? Brazil wasn’t completely foreign to me. I’d spent a day in Rio de Janeiro at the end of a South American cruise. Of course, the book was set farther north in Natal, but that’s beside the point. For Book Two, No Leaves in Autumn, Iceland won the honor. While researching my first series about B-17s based in England, I frequently found references to refueling stops in Iceland. Much more occurred there than the busy gas stations. Do you like birds? How about books with empty-nesters as the main characters? well, Jen Dodrill has some stories for you! Read on to find out why she chose to use a quetzel in her latest cozy mystery.  I often get told – “You must love birds!” since my cozy mystery series is about a woman who starts a birding group. But really, I don’t know much about them. My dad and stepmom were avid birders, and I got the idea for the series when I stayed with them a few years ago.
What I do know about is being an empty nester. That’s why the series is the Empty Nesters Cozy Mystery series. I wanted to write about women in my age group—women of a “certain age”—who were going through the same stages of life I was. Now I may be a bit older than the main character, Peg, but her mother-in-law Hazel and I are definitely the same age group. I just had more kids than Peg and was older when my last was born. None of that matters though, because being an empty nester is challenging, regardless of age. You raise those kids for years, then they leave, fly, take off. Just like birds. Do you ever think about how people eat in other areas of the United States? Or world? Guest Author Jennifer Chastain is chatting with us today about some food that has inspired her latest story. It sounds yummy to me. See what you think. And keep reading all the way to the bottom for a free short story from Jennifer too!  Lethal Connections is the third book in my Targeted for Elimination series. The adventure begins on the Big Island of Hawaii and finishes in my fictional town of Providence, NC, just outside of Charlotte.
Even as a young girl I’ve always been fascinated by the Hawaiian Islands. The flowers, the food, the culture, it was so different that my small dairy farming community that I grew up in. Visiting Hawaii or even one of the smaller islands, such as Maui or Kauai, is on my bucket list. When plotting this story, as well as the others in the series, I thought, “what better setting than to start a romantic suspense book?” From the mountains, to the beaches and everything in between, there were a lot of options to use as a backdrop, as well as create danger around every corner for my hero and heroine. It's very true that authors incorporate real-world problems into their stories. My friend J. L. Burrows had a book release last week that is a Dystopian thriller. In it, her main character is a teacher, just like her. She's here today to tell us how she used some real-life experiences in her classroom to strengthen her story. See what you think.  “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”—John 8:32 (NIV)
As a public school teacher, I work with students who struggle with very real-world problems, but in that capacity, I can’t share with students the real solution and Truth that God loves them and has a plan for their lives—that they matter and are loved more than they’ll ever know. I can’t tell them about the scriptures that hold me together in my worst moments and drive me to do better in my best moments. So, I write. Can fictional murders lead to real-life ones? I'd like to hope not, but just listen to this funny story from my good friend Deborah Sprinkles. She writes mystery and suspense and this new series of hers is sure to pique your interest.  When I decided to write my Mac and Sam mystery series, starring Mackenzie Love and Samantha Majors, the first thing I had to do was choose a location. Would their private investigation firm be in an imaginary town like my first series or a real one? There were advantages to both.
I liked the idea of a small town close to a big city. It offered the best of both worlds. And, being from St. Louis, I knew the perfect location. Washington, Missouri, a small town on the Missouri River about forty-five minutes southwest of St. Louis. I’d been there a number of times and loved it. This time of year, it's easy to get caught up in cheesy holiday movies on TV, but do you pay attention to the ratings? My friend and fellow author, Regina Rudd Merrick is here today to tell us how those ratings inspired a scene in her newest book.  Christmas books are fun to write. Christmas Rewired is book 4 of my RenoVations, Inc. series, but, like last year’s Christmas story, 12 Days of Mandy Reno, it’s not a mystery—it’s just a little romance, a little fun, and a lot of Renos.
A few years ago, after years of avoiding them, my oldest daughter introduced me to the mindless joy of watching Hallmark movies. They come in all genres, and some are better than others. My favorites are the Rom-Coms. I realized, then, that these movies are exactly the kinds of stories I like to read as well as watch! Can you fall in love during a boat race? It's a different concept for a romance, isn't it? And yet, guest author Mary Pat Johns wrote about just that. See what you think.  My latest book release, Glitter and the Grouch centered around the Texas Water Safari, a legendary river race. Many of my readers have mentioned they knew nothing about the race and particularly enjoyed the setting.
I love following the annual race. So when two minor characters from Books 1 and 2 of my series, Romance in Valiant, insisted on having their own story, I thought the race would be a marvelous place for them to fall in love. Many readers had the impression Glitter and the Grouch was going to be a romantic twist on “Row, row, row your boat.” They were delighted it was so much more. Read the race logistics and see if you agree. |
This is a place for me to tell you about what I'm writing, talk about the process or where some of my ideas came from, or even have other authors come in and talk about their books.
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