Author Rachelle McCalla & What’s a Princess to Do?

Posted on February 2, 2012 by StrongWomen

My guest today is Author Rachelle McCalla who finds a parallel between her grandmothers and her latest heroine, a princess! Here’s Rachelle:

“Two of the strongest women I’ve ever known were my grandmothers.  One raised five kids, the other six.  As farmers’ wives, they worked just as hard outside as they did inside the house.  Even though they were always busy and money was often tight, they still found ways to create beauty through art, music, quilting, and crochet.

The heroine in Protecting the Princess is like my grandmothers in surprising ways.  She too, loves to create beautiful things.  She uses her knowledge of jewelry and gems to find valuable clues to the uprising in her country of Lydia, by examining the Crown Jewels.  And when she flees from danger to her grandparents’ house, it’s no mistake that the beloved retreat of her childhood comes straight from my memories of visits to my grandparents’.

My grandmothers were often on my mind as I wrote this story, and I even managed to sneak in a tribute to both of them.  My Grandma Betty used to play the church organ in a little town that no longer exists.  The town was called Dorsey.  And my other grandmother’s name is Doris.

So when it came time to name the beautiful Mediterranean island where the princess and her protector flee, I named it the Island of Dorsi.  It’s a place where Princess Stasi’s ancestors used to live, so I think it’s only fitting that my ancestors have a claim to the place, as well.

It seems to me that in this story Rachelle has combined a bit of what sounds like a fairy tale (though it isn’t) and intrigue and some Greek tycoon type romance all in one. Interesting! I love it that she entwined her own life, her grandmothers into the story too. Do you enjoy a story with princesses, crown jewels and exotic Greek isles? –Lyn

Website: www.rachellemccalla.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rachelle.mccalla

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/search?query=rachelle+mccalla

To purchase or read excerpt: http://www.harlequin.com/storeitem.html?iid=25253&cid=359

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Is There Anything You Like but Most Others Don’t?

Posted on January 31, 2012 by StrongWomen

The view from my front window

Is there anything you like and others bemoan? Like fruitcake. I LOVE FRUITCAKE and people make endless jokes abou it. Does that make me weird?

What about winter?

I was driving my dh to drop his car off Saturday morning and I suddenly was so grateful for the winter day. Snow was falling–thick flakes–many flakes grabbing each other and falling down to the white earth or flying up against the “snow” sky–the kind of sky that seems heavy with snow-a white-gray sky that appears to have substance.

Both sides of the narrow winding road were thick with trees. The firs–white pine, red pine, cedar, hemlock and more–had been flocked the night before. They each wore a white “ball gown” with the boughs and needle pattern flowing down to the layers of snow underneath each. The trees that lost their leaves were tall young “men” wearing black suits standing between the “ladies.”

Even when the temperature drops to a cold that seems to suck the warmth from you and turn clothing to what feels like cellophane, I love winter. I even like it when it gets scary cold or a blizzard blows in from the west. Then we stay home and watch the storm and feel blessed to be inside, warm and cozy. And the best part in contrast to mudslides, floods and tornadoes, after a blizzard, we dig out but in the spring the snow melts and turns everything green again.

I know I’m in the minority here, but I’m strong enough to finally declare–I like fruitcake. I like winter (until March 30 then I think it’s time for spring–but that’s another story). :-)

So what do you think? Am I nuts or what? Is there something YOU love that other people moan about?–Lyn

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Two Winners Last Week!

Posted on January 30, 2012 by StrongWomen

I posted a blog on the LoveInspiredAuthors.com blog on Thursday last week and offered a free download of Winter’s Secret. wfnren(at)aol(dot)com won the download!

My friend Edward Semon chose Darlene Gardner to receive a free download of his book on Tennis–Over the Net and Between the Lines. Congrats to both of you!–Lyn

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Lyn Reviews Author Susan Page Davis’s Captive Trail

Posted on January 27, 2012 by StrongWomen

Captive Trail (The Texas Trail Series)Captive Trail by Susan Page Davis

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I enjoyed Captive Trail especially since I had done some research on the Comanche tribe in Texas for my Texas Star of Destiny series. Susan Page Davis evidently did hers too. Right on target! Fans of the Old West will welcome another tale with classic elements–a beautiful captive, her rescuer and her pursuer. Susan Page Davis knows how to immerse her readers in the frontier setting. A compelling read, reminiscent of Louis L’Amour.



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My Friend & Author Edward Semon, Tennis Anyone? #ebookgiveaway

Posted on January 24, 2012 by StrongWomen
My guest today is an author and a personal friend, Ed(ward) Semon. He lives on a lake not too far from my lake. :-) He is a retired teacher and a very interesting person. Recently my daughter helped him take his Out of Print book into the digital age! Here’s Ed’s interview:

1-Tell us about your book, Over the Net and Between the Lines.
ED: After I retired from a/my teaching career, I started playing tennis, a lot of tennis. I loved the game and I started playing five days a week, indoors at an indoor tennis facility in Glendale (suburb of Milwaukee.) I had many enthusiastic tennis partners, mostly men, but not all, and with all the practice, I improved my game to the point where people were asking me to join their game. At the same time, I thought I had the time to write a reading and vocabulary textbook, time I never seemed to have when I was teaching. “Gates to Understanding” was published and sold all of 136 copies. Lesson, if a teacher is going to write a text, do it while you have students in front of you. I also started writing stories about my experiences on the tennis court, I never told anyone how to play the game. The stories were published monthly in a tennis periodical-”Crosscourt News”-out of a Chicago suburb. My wife suggested I put the stories into a book. That’s how Over the Net and Between the Lines was born.
2-What story in the book is closest to your heart and why?
ED: My first and most favorite story is “Men Do Talk.” After playing, the guys all sat together, talking about the game and about their aches and pains. Sometimes the talk was serious, but mostly it was hilarious, especially when it came to out of the world cures for whatever hurt-emu oil, the cherished ointment for a close friend. Years later, I’m still laughing about the efficacy of emu oil. Second favorite, a piece of poetry I wrote about Dr. Dan Rudman, a great gentleman tennis player, intellect and medical researcher who died prematurely and was sorely missed. Its called “Waiting for Dan.”
3-Who do you think would enjoy receiving this book as a gift?
ED:You don’t have to play tennis to enjoy the book. These are human people stories which happen to take place on tennis courts. Personalities, disputes over rules, rejection and acceptance, wearing apparel, and the the day I participated in medical research. A book for younger and older men in a recreational activity.
4-What are you working on now?
ED: I’m currently editing a novel-Biblical Fiction. The Bible has many many stories, I picked this one-Capture a Comely Woman-Deuteronomy 21, Verses 10 to 14 because it tells of the first in history humane treatment of women captured in battle. I asked, “What happens to those women after capture, their lives, adaptations to a new culture and acceptance in a new and different society. Rami, a Hittite beauty is captured, brought home and her adventure is played out.
Thanks, Ed.  I love that you are letting the creative juices flow in retirment. Ed has offered a free EBOOK (not print) copy of his book to someone who leaves a comment here. Here’s a question for you–What do you plan to do in retirement? Follow a dream? Travel? Spend time with grandchildren?  Please share!–Lyn

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Lyn Reviews Author Melody Carlson’s River’s Call

Posted on January 24, 2012 by StrongWomen

River's CallRiver’s Call by Melody Carlson

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

River’s Call caught me on page one. I love the heroine who has found her roots. I read the first book in the series River’s Song but one doesn’t need to have read it to follow and burrow deep into this warm, satifying tale of redemption–in spite of family curses or family grudges carried from one generation to another. Colorful characters, entrancing setting and a twisting yet natural plot carried me along. A lovely read.

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This book really spoke to me about loving difficult people, people who resist being loved. And loving yet not enabling the person loved. This book really delved deeply into loving and families. Put this and the first book on your TBR list!–Lyn

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Author Pat Simmons & What has God’s Love Brought You Through?

Posted on January 19, 2012 by StrongWomen

My guest today is Author Pat Simmons and she shares her thoughts on love and her latest release, Guilt by Association. Here’s Pat:

“My love article:

In Guilty by Association, the scripture 1 Peter 4:8: ‘Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins,’ is proven effective when two women smother Kidd Jamieson with all the love they have to eradicate the devils that has plagued him from his youth.

Mrs. Valentine, who is an elderly resident in a premier nursing facility, is the roommate of the worrisome Grandma BB. Oddly, she uses atrocities of slavery as a way to show Jesus’s deliverance in the worse of situations. Just like those who were enslaved and trusted in God to deliver them, Mrs. Valentine uses scriptures to settle Kidd’s angry and bitter heart to show that Jesus is still setting captives free.

His eventual love interest, LPN Eva Savoy, is not one to back down from a spiritual battle that is trying to defeat Kidd, but she tirelessly begins to equip Kidd for the battle with Ephesians 6: 11-18, focusing on verse 1:1 ‘Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.’

When his soul is redeemed, the rejoicing among with family is endless because Jesus has always been on the side of the underdog.”–Pat

January 2012 release: Guilty by Association, Book I of the Jamieson Legacy series

My main character is Kevin “Kidd” Jamieson. Here’s the premise or synopsis:

In Guilty by Association, Kevin “Kidd” Jamieson suffers from the “angry man syndrome”. With an absentee father, the Jamieson name is worthless. Kidd’s anger is seeping out into every area of his life as he carelessly becomes as a roaring lion, seeking whatever and whomever he can devour. When he receives an invitation from a distant cousin, Parke Jamieson VI, to come to St. Louis, he is hesitant but accepts, almost as a dare. Though he initially bumps heads with Parke, a series of events that involve a dog named Silent Killer, Stacy Adams shoes, and two women who enter his life to calm his raging storm, Kidd makes St. Louis home. One woman is Eva Savoy who becomes his “Eve,” a woman God created out of the underlying goodness in Kidd’s own heart. Reluctantly, Kidd allows Parke to walk him through generations of his royal African tribe heritage. Overwhelmed by the care and compassion of new friends and family, Kidd struggles to keep up the bad boy attitude. His walls are starting to crumble and he knows he’s going down. Eventually, Kidd learns it’s not his association with the name that identifies him, but the man he becomes that defines him.

My social sites are www.patsimmons.net;  facebook.com/patsimmonsauthor; facebook.com/theguiltyseries; twitter.com/@patsimmons.net; www.Goodreads.com/patsimmons.

My biography:

Pat Simmons has been married to Kerry for almost twenty-nine years. She praises God for a good marriage. Pat has converted my sofa-strapped, sports-fanatical husband into an amateur travel agent, untrained bodyguard, and GPS-guided chauffeur.

Pat Simmons describes her Christian walk as an amazing, unforgettable, life-alternating experience. She is a baptized Believer who is always willing to share her testimonies about God’s goodness. She believes God is the true Author who advances her stories.

Pat has a B.S. in mass communications from Emerson College in Boston, MA. She has worked in various media positions in radio, television, and print for more than twenty years. Currently, she oversees the media publicity for the annual RT Booklovers Conventions. She has been a guest on several media outlets, including radio, television, newspapers, and blog radio.

She is the award-winning author of Talk to Me, ranked #14 of Top Books in 2008 that Changed Lives by Black Pearls Magazine; she also received the Katherine D. Jones Award for Grace and Humility from the Romance Slam Jam committee in 2008. Pat is best known for her Guilty series: Guilty of Love, Not Guilty of Love, and Still Guilty, which was voted the Best Inspirational Romance for 2010 by the RSJ committee. Her 2011 release, Crowning Glory, was voted the Best Inspirational of the year. Fans are giving her January release, Guilty by Association, five stars.

Award-winning & Bestselling Author

The Jamieson Legacy, a man is more than his name:

Guilty by Association, available now at Amazon

The Guilt Trip, June 2012

Free from Guilt, October 2012

Pat, thanks for sharing your new book and your verses on love. And you point out that Christ is always on the side of the underdog. Many times in my youth, I clung to my Bible reading of God’s love for me –when I thought myself unworthy of love. What does God’s love mean to you? What has it brought you through?

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Author & Mom Kim Doebler & ESP, Teaching Kids Character

Posted on January 17, 2012 by StrongWomen

My guest today is an “in my real life” acquaintance, Author, Speaker, and Mom Kim Doebler. Kim and I met at the church we attend in the northwoods of Wisconsin. She learned I was an author and asked my advice about getting her book on parenting published. I gave her a few tips and as they say, the rest is history! Here’s Kim about her book ESP, (Explain, Show Practice) Character Training:

“In I Corinthians 13: 4-7 we learn what God says love is. Love is patient, kind, not proud, not easily angered and always perseveres. These are all traits ESP Character Training gives practical steps to instill in our children. Ultimately, God is love and it is the books goal to help parents pass on His wisdom to their offspring. This book is a guide to purposeful proactive parenting.

The book ESP Character Training was first written to have an outline to pass on to our children. After sharing these examples with other moms, a realization came that there was a bigger need. Many young moms were longing for someone to come along side them. A book seemed the most realistic way of doing my part to fill this need.

Since writing ESP Character Training we have received testimonies of how the book has been the thing families have needed to go from theory to application. This book allows our family to share what we have learned and to be mentors one page at a time.”–Kim

“Character entails living the way God calls us to live.

Sometimes we expect our children to learn the most important traits in life by chance. This book presents a process that incorporates Explaining, Showing and Practicing, in other words ESP, as a way of teaching character. Each chapter holds Biblical reasons for training, an abundance of ideas and practical examples to inspire and motivate every parent.

Honesty, Respect, and Self-Control are some of the character traits expanded on in these pages. Haven’t we each noticed a child that stood out because of his/her character? With God’s grace and a planned approach we too CAN instill character that shines bright. Let Kim come along side you as she shares her personal stories of training children in character. Then as families produce an abundance of young people with godly character there will be a noticeable light spreading throughout our dark world.

‘When wealth is lost, nothing is lost; when health is lost, something is lost; when character is lost, all is lost.’ Billy Graham

May be purchased in print at Kim’s website: www.espcharactertraining.weebly.com

May be purchased in e-book form at: amazon.com

Kim is also available to speak to groups. Again go to her website for more info.

I think it’s really interesting that Kim wrote the book first to pass it on to her children. I think the most important character traits I wanted to “pass down” to my children were honesty and kindness. What intangibles do you want to leave behind as a legacy to your children?–Lyn

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Author Lillian Duncan & Wronged by Her Twin Sister

Posted on January 12, 2012 by StrongWomen

My guest today is Author Lillian Duncan, a new author too. She writes about strength and love and her new book. Here’s Lillian:

“Strong Women, Brave Stories…interesting topic. This was so hard for me to write about and yet I know tons of strong women who have overcome a myriad of obstacles in their life. For some it was breast cancer, others it was substance abuse, abusive marriages, or a personal tragedy.

I think there are certain characteristics they have in common that put them in the category of Strong Women. First they don’t give up. They keep taking that next step, that next breath, and refuse to give up. Second, they keep smiling. In other words, they don’t invite you to a pity party every time they see you. And finally, they keep their focus on others and not just on themselves and their problems.

One woman I know went in for a routine mammogram and discovered she had stage 4 breast cancer that had spread to the lymph nodes. To say it was a shock would be an understatement, but she didn’t give up.

Yes, there were tears and she expressed her worries, but she also kept smiling, kept taking care of her loved ones, and never gave up. She’s a seven year survivor at the moment and all looks good. She was in inspiration to me then and now. Her focus has always been on taking care of her family and I believe this was one of the keys to her recovery.

In my newest book, DECEPTION, Patti Jakowski doesn’t start out as a strong, brave woman. She’s been wronged by her twin sister and has let it affect her attitude and her actions. When her sister disappears and she begins to focus on someone else instead of herself, then she gradually becomes a Strong Woman with a Brave Story.

To celebrate the release of DECEPTION, I’m having a contest on my website: www.lillianduncan.net so be sure to stop by and sign up. Grand prize is a NOOK!

Thanks for having me on your blog.”–Lillian

www.lillianduncan.net
www.lillianduncan.wordpress.com
Twitter @lillianduncan

I highlighted a few of Lillian’s key sentences. The two in blue are the ones that I think show that the fruit of the spirit, love, was at work. Can love heal even a physical ailment? What do you think?

Also don’t forget to drop by Lillian’s website and put your entry in for that NOOK!–Lyn

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Lyn Reviews Author Melody Carlson’s River’s Song

Posted on January 11, 2012 by StrongWomen

River's Song (Inn at Shining Waters, #1)River’s Song by Melody Carlson

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Melody Carlson’s River Song eased through me gently layer by layer, deeper and deeper. This story of re-awakening or renewal appears, deceptively simple but wields great emotional power. I look forward to, book 2 in The Inn at Shining Rivers series.

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