Patriotic Sale on Amazon!

Sorry I’ve been away for a couple of days, but I’m back and ready for action. I spent a couple of days with family and friends celebrating the 4th by the lake. But now I’m back in full force and working hard to keep up with everything.

I do hope you had a great holiday and for my many friends across the pond, I hope you had a wonderful weekend. In honor of our American holiday and for all those that have fought for our freedom I’m marking all my books down to .99 for the month of July on Amazon only.

Also, my book With All My Heart has remained in the top 100 on Amazon for the last two weeks. I’m so pleased and excited. Now back to the writing. I have a pirate and a southern belle breathing down my neck. I’ll give you a little tidbit from both books this week so be watching for it and also may have a little something special to giveaway.

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

The author that start it for me…

If you’ve read my bio then you know I’ve been writing for many, many years, but only started publishing in the last two years. For me it all started when I was a tender, young teenager and I picked up the first Danielle Steel book, Remembrance. I was entranced in the splendor of her writing. The story took me across the ocean to Italy and I was carried away with the story.

The story filled me with inspiration and helped kickstart my career as a writer, but of course I didn’t know that at the time. The book was filled with so many emotions such as anger, romance, love, grief, sadness and excitement. I was lost to the great romance book. I even wanted to go to Italy and experience this feeling there.

I read this two inch thick book twice that summer. The next year at school I actually did a book report on the book. My teacher was skeptical at first, but then she allowed it. Let’s just say, I turned many listeners over to Danielle Steel fans. I found myself scanning books in the store many times to grab her books.

Now, back then we didn’t have Amazon, so there was no looking up online. Then I was given a membership in the DoubleDay Book Club and that really did it for me. With the membership I was given several free books and yep, they were all Danielle Steel. When they arrived I was in awe. I was the happiest girl. I remember inhaling the scent of the newly printed pages and believe me when I say that I still do this with new paper backs.

I still have those many stories that I handwrote so many years ago. Although the writing has faded slightly, I can still feel the same excitement as I read them. Some of my books that have been published started from those books.

Do you have a author that’s inspired you? Tell us about them.

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Out of focus…

I’ve been out of touch for a day or two with a sick 14 year old. Hopefully the antibiotics he started last night will kick this sinus and ear infection in the back side.

Have you ever been writing and then all of a sudden you’re head is out of focus. Maybe you can’t seem to get the wording right. I’ve had that problem for a couple of days. I’m almost finished with “Victoria”, but for some reason my head is fuzzy. Could be the sinus medication I’m taking or the fact I have a sick teenager. The funny thing is I can picture the story in my head, but the words get jumbled when I try to type them.

I’ve even tried going back and editing the previous chapters. Maybe that would spur me on. No such luck. Maybe this is just a classic case of writer’s block. Wish the block would disappear and let me get finished before the story makes my head explode. That too could be from the sinus medication.

Ever tried writing while on Nyquil. Try it sometimes. My advice is to go back the next day and edit the mess you made the night before 🙂

As always, great writing and May God Bless You…

Interesting Article to check out:

http://warriorwriters.wordpress.com/2013/08/21/six-easy-tips-for-self-editing-your-fiction/

Stephanie Hurt – The Independent Author Network

Stephanie Hurt, Ghost Lover, The Winner Is Love, A Love Never Lost, Tender Flames, romance

via Stephanie Hurt – The Independent Author Network.

Excitement and Tears…

I know I’ve already posted my normal daily post, but just had to do this one. It’s a separate post because this one is on my life.

Yesterday was an awesome day at Church. Well, any day at Church can be awesome, you just have to be open to it. But yesterday was above the normal bar. We had a Easter Cantata. For those of you who don’t know what that is, well it’s a music driven play. The Church Praise Band performed several songs and we had video’s to go with them and a speaker in the background. It went really well, and yes I cried. I know you’re not surprised. I’ve always been open to the fact that I cry easily. I’m emotional what can I say and especially when it comes to my Faith.

The second most important thing was two of my wonderful children from the Children’s Ministry were saved last week and they went down front yesterday to make their choice public. Yep, I cried again 🙂 It’s so awesome when children make that most important decision. It makes my job so rewarding. I’m always in awe of how the Lord works in such young lives.

Then since we had rain yesterday, the annual easter egg hunt was held inside in the sanctuary. I was worried about how it would go, but I shouldn’t have been. It went off without a hitch and the children had a blast.

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Why is romance such a big draw?

Have you ever wondered why the biggest genre being sold in books is romance? It’s a huge market in any way. People are constantly looking for romance. In most cases people leave no stone unturned.

This is my thoughts on this phenomena. I think that everyone wants some kind of romance in their lives. It could be in their marriage, in their relationship with someone or just simply in their lives. Maybe it’s the fact that a good romance novel can take you to another place and let you live through the characters for a little time.

Sometimes people just need to read about it. It makes them feel better about things in their lives. Maybe it’s just the feeling of getting lost in someone else’s life. Do you need to get lost for just a little while? It’s a safe way to go to another world, to leave your own troubles for just a moment.

I know personally that I love to get lost in a good book. Especially if the book has a sweet romance or the promise of romance in it. It draws me in and makes me smile. I catch myself sometimes looking forward to picking the book back up to get to the next part. Have you ever been so into a book and just had to read through the night because you were so drawn in? Yep, I recognize that look, you have. What’s worse is when it’s a week night and you’ve got to get up early the next day, but you can’t help yourself 🙂

So pick up a romance today. Even men can get into a good romance novel. Men write great romance too.

As always, good writing and May God Bless You….

Steps to Writing a good story…

Steps to Writing a good story….

While looking through the attic…

Saturday afternoon I ventured into my attic which is taking your life in your own hands. I’m, how would you say it, a pack rat. I confess, it’s a thing I inherited. When I was younger I had a book issue. I’d buy books everywhere I went. Needles to say I have a lot of books. Yes actual physical books. You remember those right?

I noticed that the pasteboard boxes that contained my books were looking a little worse for wear. So I had some extra plastic bins so I decided to take on the task of going through my books and putting them neatly in the bins. It was like a journey through my history. I laughed as I went through the different types of romance genres I’ve gone through in my 44 years. I love history, so I went through a rather lengthy historical romance stage. Everything I bought was a historical romance.

There are a couple of books that I hold close to my heart and have been known to reread several times. One of those was a book named “Violet Fire” by Jo Goodman that was published around 1987. It’s an awesome romance. It’s actually the second copy of that book I’ve owned. The first one I let an old family member borrow it. She passed away not long after that and the book never resurfaced. Not sure what happened there. I was lucky to find a copy a couple of years later in a second hand book store. You would have thought I’d found the Ark of the Covenant. I squealed and danced. Needless to say I was happy.

Well, I thought I’d lost it again as I couldn’t find it a couple years ago when I wanted to read it again. I thought I was just destined to not get to read it again. I picked up one of the boxes at the bottom of the stack and guess what, there it was with a couple of other books I thought I’d lost. I let out a whoop and my son came to the bottom of the attic steps. I assured him that I was fine and did a little silent dance. I’ve read every small moment I had. Funny how your hand cramps when trying to hold an actual book. I love it… My Kindle feels a little left out, but it will get some loving real soon.

It’s crazy how you find a book that you love and you just have to read it every once in a while. If you ever find this book on Amazon or in a book store I suggest reading it. It’s rather lengthy, but really good. I like Jo Goodman’s writing and this is one of my favorites.

As always, good writing and May God Bless you!

Romance…

Romance is so elusive and sometimes hard to find unless you’re reading it in a novel. That’s the comment I hear so often. I don’t believe this state of mind that many people have. Romance can be found, lost, and revived. Still a skeptic?

Romance has been around since the first day of creation. Some people search for it as they would gold in the hills. Sometimes you have it and just don’t see it at all. It’s that simple touch from your lover that sends tiny tendrils of goosebumps up your spine. It’s that simple look of pleasure that you share across the table.

Have you ever wondered where romance hides? Everyone has a moment when you think romance has gone away. Maybe it’s when finances are bad, tragedy looms, or when a marriage fails. Romance is still there, we just as humans put it behind our heart and refuse at times to pull it out again.

As a romance writer I try to bring romance into everyone’s heart. It’s one of the biggest sellers today, romance. Everyone wants it, but what lengths will they go to? Some will spend a fortune buying gifts to show romance, but true romance can’t be bought. It’s a part of you. A kiss is free, a look is free and a touch is free. Give it a try. You might enjoy finding a little romance.

As always, good writing and May God Bless you!

Reflecting by the fire…

It’s a brisk, sunny southern morning here in Georgia. I’m enjoying my coffee while sitting by a cozy fire. A nice way to start my Saturday morning. My husband took our son fishing, so I’ve got the whole afternoon to work on cleaning the house, my manuscript and relaxing.

I woke this morning with a fresh new feeling. I feel like my writing muse is back. Hopefully it will continue so that I can finish “Rekindled Flame”.

This morning a whole new manuscript crossed my mind as I lay in bed not wanting to get out of the warmth of the blankets. The only problem is I have to finish the one that is on schedule and I have about eight more started. Funny how the writing mind works. One minute you’re only thinking about a manuscript and the next you’re working on eight at one time.

Well, as for me, I’m glad for the escape that my writing gives me. Sometimes in this busy world we need that to get by and other times we need it just to manage our stressful lives. Through my writing I can ride horses, run a ranch, go to exotic locations, and pretty much live out my fantasies. Don’t worry, nothing crazy, just a country girls dreams.

So, I hope this post finds all of you well, happy and content. Remember to never give up on your dreams because you only live once, so live the way God intended you to live through Him.

As always, good writing and May God Bless You!