When you cry at the end…

Good morning! I’m a little emotional this morning. I typed THE END on the Mistletoe Ranch Series late last night. To say I’m sad to see these characters go away is an understatement. This has been one of those series that totally filled me with joy.

Today marks the first day after the Mistletoe Ranch. That may sound strange, but to a writer, it’s all too clear. You spend almost everyday with these characters and it’s surreal when they no longer fill your writing time.

But as with anything, you step away and start a new manuscript. So, I say goodbye to Denver and Maddy, but maybe one day I’ll revisit them. You never know, I am a writer and we’re a different people. We love our characters fiercely and have a hard time letting go of them.

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Release date: January 29th!

Preorder now. Starting this afternoon it will be only .99 for a limited time!

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Setting up ads for week…

It’s finally Saturday. How do you spend your Saturday? Me, I take a little longer cuddling my coffee, then I check my social media. My house gets cleaned and laundry done, not saying it’s put up, just done. Then I get to work on my weekly ads.

Photo by Bich Tran on Pexels.com

How do I schedule for a week? I’ll let you in on a little secret, I have a post spreadsheet. On my spreadsheet I have the books that I will post on for the upcoming week and where. I input the information for ads that are coming out and also, my blog posts are mostly done ahead of time.

Why do I schedule all of this ahead of time? I want more time to write. But how do I do it? Well, I use Hootsuite, Twitter Scheduler, Facebook Scheduler and other programs. No, I do not pay for the subscriptions, I do as many on each of them that I can.

A little hint, do not overload your social media with books. Post stuff about yourself, your life, inspirational pictures, pets, and so on. Let your fans know who you are. I try to alternate book posts to every four hours or more. That way I’m not too overpowering.

So, what are you doing today? Are you kicking back, enjoying a good movie? Live life… Laugh a lot… and Love…

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Monday Thoughts…

Good Monday morning! I hope your Monday is fabulous. I’m on the first full day of our vacation. The boys are out in the boat fishing and I’m sitting in the room writing. Which is wonderful!

I’m finishing the last of Pier Cove, Book 4 of the Wishful Harbor Series. This is one of my favorite series and with only one more book to go, I’m so sad to see it coming to an end. I’ve enjoyed getting to know each of the characters in Wishful Harbor, the sweet little seaside town.

With each new book there is an added set of characters. Also, each book can be a standalone, which makes it versatile. I can imagine sitting out on the back deck of the little shops, watching the sun set or climbing the lighthouse to see everything around me.

If you haven’t fell in love with Wishful Harbor, then check the books out on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Apple, Kobo, and Walmart. You won’t regret it!

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Don’t forget to grab a copy of my latest release, To Dance With Dragonflies at iTunes… https://books.apple.com/us/book/to-dance-with-dragonflies/id1513491921?mt=11&app=itunes&at=1001l35iN

Tuesday Teaser – Pier Cove

Good Tuesday morning! It’s time for a Tuesday Teaser. Pier Cove is coming soon, so, here’s a little teaser of what’s inside the covers.

Marley turned as the bell over the door jingled happily. The man coming in wasn’t unfamiliar to her. She’d met him once or twice at the Marina when she ate dinner. He was a nice looking man, in possibly his mid thirties. The corners of his eyes had what she called, ‘sun wrinkles’ which told her that he spent a lot of time in the sun. She smiled as he walked up to the counter as though he had a purpose other than just browsing. If Marley remembered correctly, it was the first time he’d been in the store since she opened it.
“Good morning. Can I help you, uh…” Marley hated it when she forgot someones name.
“Liam, Liam Masterson, owner of the Marina. We met at the restaurant.” Liam said with a friendly smile.
“Oh, yes, Liam. Sorry. I’m horrible with names.” Marley said with a giggle. “SO, Liam, what can I help you with?”
“Well, Mr. Searcy came into the restaurant a few minutes ago and said you’d put out an old ship’s wheel. I’d love to take at look at it.”
“Sure. I just found it this past weekend. I couldn’t believe nobody hadn’t already snatched it up.” Marley said as she walked around the end of the counter and led him to the section of the store that held mariner type items. “Here it is.”
Liam stepped up to the shelf and took a good look at it. “May I pick it up?”
“Be my guest.” Marley said happily. “It’s the original patina also. I think it’s in good shape for it’s approximate age.”
“I’m thinking it is possibly early to mid 1900’s.” Liam said as he continued to look at the wheel.
Marley tilted her head in surprise. “You know your antiques.” She was impressed.
“Just when it comes to things of the sea.” Liam laughed at her surprised look. “What? I’m a anything to do with the sea fanatic.”
“I love the sea.” Marley said, then she remembered what the two older men had said earlier. “And on that note, is it true there’s a missing treasure just out from the harbor?”
Liam lifted his eyes from the wheel to stare at her. “Rumor has it that the treasure was never found. I’m skeptical at best. Why? Do you dive too?”
“Yes, several items in this store were found on my dives.” Marley pointed at a picture on the wall of her holding up several gold coins she found while diving off the coast of Georgia. “So, if someone was wanting to dive over the wreckage, who would they see about that? Is it forbidden or protected?”
“They’d come see me. I take out divers all the time. Sometimes I dive too. It’s according to my mood when I go out.” Liam crossed his arms across his chest, looking at the woman standing in front of him. “Are you dive certified?”
“Have been for years?” Marley said, standing a little straighter as she saw the doubt in his eyes. “I know what I’m doing, so don’t be afraid of that.”
“So, would you take me out to the wreckage?”
“I don’t think it’s a good idea. That wreckage is unstable and besides that, as I said, I’m skeptical. My best guess is that the treasure is a myth started by someone years ago to make people come to the harbor.”
“I’ve dived many old wrecks that were unstable. I’m more than capable to be cautious. Would you think about it?” Marley saw that pushing this man wouldn’t get her anywhere.
“I’ll think about it. As I said, the wreck is unstable and shouldn’t be explored. Leave well enough alone and if there is a treasure, which I highly doubt there is, just leave it be.” Liam picked the ships wheel back up. “But I’ll make a decision on this now. Sold.” He grinned as he followed her to the counter. She was a nice looking woman, but he had a bad feeling about taking her to the old wreckage.
“You made a good choice. This was a great find.” Marley said as she entered his purchase in her sales system.
“I know just where I’ll hang it too. There’s a spot just to the right of my kitchen window where it will look good.” Liam gave Marley his credit card and looked around while she swiped the car. “I’m glad someone revitalized this store. I remember when it was a bait shop, but that was when I was a small boy. It’s been a general store, craft store and one person put a fine art store in here, but that didn’t last too long.”
“It’s a great location. I lucked up by getting it and the apartment upstairs solved my housing issue.” Marley said, then she handed him the slip to sign.
Liam signed the slip, then looked back up at the woman behind the counter. “You seem too young to be into antiques.”
“You’d be surprised.” Marley placed his receipt in the slot on the cash drawer.
“Most likely. I’ll give it some thought about taking you to dive the wreck. But please, do some research before you do. I just think it will be a waste of your time. Not to mention the instability of the wreckage. It’s dangerous and I’d hate for you to get hurt.”
“I’ll do some research. As you said, it could be a waste of time.” Marley said, mainly to placate this man that seem determined not to let her dive the wreck. And as he said, it could be a waste of time, but she’d still look into it. If there was a chance that the treasure existed, she planned on checking it out. This could be the find of a lifetime.
“Glad you’re sensible.” Liam said with a satisfied smile. “I’m going to hang this now. Will you be coming by the restaurant later?”
Marley shrugged, “We’ll see. Maybe.”
“If you do, I’ll take you to see this on the wall.” Liam said as he put his card up and picked up his purchase. “And tonight is chowder night? You don’t want to miss it.”
“I’ll make an effort to come then.” Marley nodded as he walked out the door. She watched him walk past the front windows. He was such a nice looking man. A thrill went down her spine as she thought about seeing him again. There was something about Liam that pulled her in.
As she continued to work that day, she decided to ask Liam to take her diving somewhere other than the wreck. Maybe if he saw that she was an experienced diver, then he’d take her to the wreck. With that decision made, she went up to her apartment to freshen up before she walked to the Marina for dinner.
It was already bustling with people when she arrived. The hostess seated her near a window overlooking the marina. She ordered the chowder and a small caesar salad. As she waited for her food, she saw Liam come into the dining room. He took her breath away as he smiled at one of the people at the front table. His blue eyes seemed to twinkle, which was so cliche’, but it was true. His presence made everyone smile. She noticed several people wave at him and acknowledge him. He was well liked here in Wishful Harbor.
When Liam looked her way, he smiled at her, then started walking in her direction. “I’m glad you decided to come for chowder night. You won’t be disappointed. It’s my great grandmothers recipe.” Liam said as he gestured at the opposite seat. Marly nodded her approval, so he sat down.
“I love the view of the harbor. It’s so peaceful.” Marly looked out across the harbor and sighed.
Liam watched her face, unable to speak for a moment. She had the kind of beauty that wasn’t over the top, it was just simple and nice. “I agree. The sunset is amazing from here. Sometime you’ll have to go with me for a sunset ride across the harbor.”

Ok that was just a small snippet from Pier Cove. Keep looking for the release date that’s coming soon. This is the fourth book in the Wishful Harbor Series. Each book of the series can be standalone or together. Fall in love with the small seaside town of Wishful Harbor and all of it’s citizens.

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Just when…

Good Monday morning! With tax season officially over, I’m finally getting my head wrapped around my works in progress. As deadlines loomed over my head for taxes, my writing took a hit. My brain wouldn’t focus on the words that wanted to be written. But, I’m back in the saddle and loving the feeling. I’m writing this morning with a fresh head.

As a writer, we need positive response to our writing. This weekend I received one of the most amazing reviews of Highlander’s Heart. The reviewer saw the vision behind the book and the review showed it. She saw what made this book tick for me. To say I was amazed, well, that doesn’t even begin to express my feelings. If you haven’t read the first book in the Cowen Clan series, then maybe this will encourage you to grab a copy.

Here’s the review:

Reviewed by Rabia Tanveer for Readers’ Favorite

Highlander’s Heart is the first novel in the Cowen Clan Series by Stephanie Payne Hurt. Evina McLeod is trying to escape the clutches of the cunning Laird McKinney. Sadly, being a woman, she cannot run far away unless she has a powerful guardian to protect her. That protection appears in the form of the handsome Laird Ewan Cowen. Ewan is enamored by her beauty and he is ready to provide her with protection as long as she agrees to marry him. They weren’t expecting to fall in love with each other and they weren’t expecting to be loved in return. However, the reach of Laird McKinney is strong and long. He has a plan in place and he will not stop until he has what he wants. Ewan and Evina are just pawns in a game that he plans to win. What are these two going to do?

This was an intense story of love, acceptance, and safety. I loved the dynamic between Ewan and Evina; they were perfect for each other in the most satisfying way possible. The author has done a wonderful job creating a plot that is believable, enjoyable and perfect for readers who enjoy historical fiction. Ewan is a provider and a protector who thinks he doesn’t need love, but once Evina melts his heart, he realizes how important love is. Evina may seem vulnerable at the beginning of the story, but she blooms and develops to become a protector as well. The flow was amazing, the narrative was beautifully intricate and the plot was fast-paced enough to get you involved in the story. This is brilliant!

https://readersfavorite.com/book-review/highlanders-heart

I’ll leave it at that! Didn’t I tell you it was amazing.

Have a great Monday and May God Bless You…