Author: stephaniehurt

Stephanie Hurt lives in Georgia with her husband Tommy and their son Hunter, along with two dogs, Daisy and Jake. When Stephanie is not lost in one of the worlds that she creates, she's an accountant and children's minister. She has been writing the stories that fill her mind since she was a teenager. The moment a story comes into her mind, she's mesmerized and soon she's diving into the story with a cup of hot green tea and a notebook. Before long, the story has bones and is ready for the laptop. She happily types away in the early morning and at night. You can always find her with a notebook full of stories that have yet to come to life. Follow her journey in each of her over 40 published works! Stephanie Payne Hurt loves to hear from fans and hopes that she's helped them go to another world for at least a while! Connect with Author: Twitter: https://twitter.com/StephanieHurt4 Email: https://stephaniehurt4@gmail.com Website: www.stephaniehurtauthor.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/StephaniePayneHurt Sign up for my newsletter at www.stephaniehurtauthor.com to keep up with upcoming events and new releases.

What’s in a cover…

Good morning! We’re halfway to the weekend… So smile!

How many times have you bought a book based on the cover? Not the blurb… Not the author… Not the title… But the cover… Me, I love to look at covers. If a cover looks interesting I’ve been known to pick a book because the cover enticed me.

So, with that in mind, how much time do you spend on your cover design? Me, some of my covers have taken weeks to make just right. When I write a book, I have in mind what I want the cover to look like, of course, in reality, it’s hard to make it exactly like my vision, but we try.

The picture says it all, means so much. When I choose the photos, they have to be exact. I want the people to have the same traits as the ones in the book. I’ve been using bigstock.com for a long time, but recently, I added romancenovelcovers.com for the pictures that have models. it’s important to buy the pictures you use and have a license so that you don’t infringe on copyright laws.

The cover below took the longest to design and made my designer want to pull her hair out, but I had an idea and this totally went my way. This one took three pictures to make it happen, but it says it all.

Finding the Right Time front cover

Some of my covers have one picture and are simple, like this one.

Faith Through The Tears cover

So, whether you use many pictures or one, make a statement that tells the reader, pick me up, I’m good. The cover is the first thing a reader sees and if you don’t catch their eye, you may not catch the reader.

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

#amwriting…Beautiful morning!

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What a beautiful morning in Georgia! It may be Monday, but it feels good. I’m coming off a new release weekend full of tweets, posts, interviews, etc, so I’m feeling pretty good.

This morning I’m working on the last book in the Women of Magnolia Hill Saga. It’s sad, but true. Since this historical romance saga is based in my beloved Georgia, I’ll be sad to see it finished. But it’s time to move forward.

Now that Tuscany is out and Highlander’s Heart is on the heels of releasing, it’s time to work on upcoming manuscripts. I have some exciting projects coming up, one for Autumn and one for Christmas, but I’ll keep you posted on the progress. Also, coming up will be a couple of cover releases and blurbs to give you just a tidbit of what’s up in my writing world.

Before I leave you to slip back into my own little world of #amwriting, I’ll leave you with a snippet from Tuscany: (This excerpt is from the journal that led Lana to Tuscany)

July 15, 1970

Last night Angel climbed the trellis to my balcony and woke me. He said we could be married by his uncle in town. So I made the decision to choose the man I love over my family. I’ll never look back but only forward as I start my life as Angel Tolino’s wife.

I love the journal entries that are featured in this book. They take you back in time. It’s a special part of Tuscany!

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

 

Tuscany is a reality, today!

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Tuscany is up and running on Amazon. Here’s the link to the book preview. https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01M0MIB72&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_H2M7xbPHRZJFN

Here’s a little snippet from Tuscany:

That night, after her soak in the tub, Lana stood in the French doors to Mama Leona’s old room, watching the moon rise over the fields. With all she’d learned over the last twenty-four hours her head was spinning. This place was beautiful and felt magical. Tomorrow, she’d bury her grandmother and start a new life. But what would that life hold? Leaning her head against the door she thought about Romeo and his change in attitude since their arrival. Maybe they could become friends. She pulled out the journal and opened it up, only to shut it quickly. Maybe after the funeral she’d be able to 13 • Tuscany grasp what this leather-bound book held, but not tonight. The past could wait another day. For now, she wanted to climb into the large four-poster bed, with cream sheer curtains and slip back into the dream from earlier. As she drifted off to sleep she wondered if she’d find true love in Tuscany or was that just her grandmother’s wishful, romantic way of thinking? Romeo stood under the tree just beyond the house, watching Lana. This woman was like nothing he’d ever seen. The moonlight glistened off her blond hair as she stood gazing out at the night sky. For some reason, his heart skipped a beat at just the sight. She made him feel out of sorts, and it wasn’t a feeling he liked. Growling in frustration, he turned and headed toward the stables. A moonlit ride was just what he needed.

As I said, just a little snippet. The link I’ve included above will give you more than this, but I can assure you, this story will pull you in and leave you wanting more!

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…