Special Guest: Karen Witemeyer

June 3, 2014June 2, 2014 | Amy

I don’t have a lot of visitors to my blog. Let’s face it, with all the projects that I completed since the beginning of the year, I’ve barely had time to acknowledge that I even have a blog. But (there’s always a but, right?) I was scrolling through Facebook one day and ran across the cutest cover! The author was looking for readers to review the book. Sadly I was too late to get in on that. But I loved the cover so much I invited her to come to my blog during her release and share a little about the story.

Here’s the cover and the blurb–

When love simmers between a reclusive scientist and a wealthy debutante, will they abandon ship or is it full steam ahead?

Nicole Renard returns home to Galveston, Texas, to find her father deathly ill. Though she loves him, Nicole’s father has always focused on what she’snot. Not male. Not married. Not able to run Renard Shipping.

Vowing to find a suitable husband to give her father the heir he desires before it’s too late, Nicole sets out with the Renard family’s greatest treasure as her dowry: the highly coveted Lafitte Dagger. But her father’s rivals come after the dagger, forcing a change in Nicole’s plans.

After a boiler explosion aboard the Louisiana nearly took his life, Darius Thornton has been a man obsessed. He will do anything to stop even one more steamship disaster. Even if it means letting a female secretary into his secluded world.

Nicole is determined not to let her odd employer scare her off with his explosive experiments, yet when respect and mutual attraction grow between them, a new fear arises. How can she acquire an heir for her father when her heart belongs to another? And when her father’s rivals discover her hiding place, will she have to choose between that love and her family’s legacy?

Now do you understand why I’m so infatuated? :)

Karen also graciously (during her busy time of release) sent me over a Q&A for a little more info about Full Steam ahead. If you have any other questions, Karen will be stopping in periodically to answer them.

In the mean time, I’m heading over to amazon to get my copy! :)

This may be one I have to get in print. :) Love love love that wonderful cover!

~*~*~*~*~*~

Full Steam Ahead by Karen Witemeyer
Media Q&A

1. What inspired you to write Full Steam Ahead?
As I brainstormed, I decided it would be fun to have a hero who was a bit of a “mad” scientist. The trouble was figuring out what kind of scientific obsession would make sense in 1800’s Texas. I wanted something exciting, something explosive. I thought to use a chemist—think laboratory experiments gone wrong—but my high school chemistry skills were too rusty. Then I remembered the steamboat disasters of the 1840’s and 50’s. Thousands of lives were lost every year due to the rush to expand commerce into the west using technology that wasn’t yet truly understood. So I put my hero aboard an actual 19th century riverboat, the Louisiana, on the day that its boiler exploded in New Orleans, and my mad scientist was born. Darius Thornton becomes obsessed with discovering ways to make steamboat boilers safe—to the point that he regularly conducts explosive experiments of his own.

2. You’ve spoken about what drives your hero. What about your heroine? Any interesting historical happenings motivating her journey?

Only if you consider pirates interesting. Texas was actually home to one of the most famous pirates of the 19th century – Jean Lafitte. After helping General Andrew Jackson defend New Orleans against the British attack of 1815 and thereby earning a pardon for his previous smuggling operations, Jean Lafitte moved his base of operations to Galveston Island, Texas where he set up a pirate colony. My heroine’s grandfather saved the pirate’s life by taking a bullet meant for him. Lafitte rewards his valor with the gift of his personal, jeweled dagger. The Lafitte Dagger became the Renard family legacy, and over time its legend grew. As Galveston underwent political turmoil – going from Mexican rule to the Texas Revolution, then becoming an independent republic, to finally joining the union– Renard Shipping flourished. People began to believe that whoever possessed Lafitte’s dagger would find prosperity in the port of Galveston. When a rival shipping owner sets out to steal the dagger, Nicole Renard, as the only heir, takes the dagger and flees Galveston in an effort to protect her ailing father. Only, instead of escaping to New Orleans to meet up with trusted family friends, she is forced to take a detour up the Trinity River and ends up on the same plantation as Darius Thornton, our obsessed scientist.
3. Most of your books have been set in the 1880’s. Was it a challenge to set Full Steam Ahead three decades earlier?

Yes, it was definitely a challenge. Being so familiar with the 1880’s, I took certain things for granted. Like the railroad, the telegraph, a simple cookstove—none of which were readily available in Texas in the 1850’s. Women’s fashion was drastically different as well. I had to relearn everything my previous novel research had taught me. One fun piece I ran across during all this research was a link between steamboat engines and the Great Exhibition going on in London in 1851, the same year my story takes place. I couldn’t resist incorporating this little jewel, so Darius and Nicole make a trip to England in the epilogue. I can’t say more without spoiling the ending.

4. What are some of the themes explored in this story?

Letting go of the past is the overall theme, based on the verse from Romans 8:1 – There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus. Darius is so obsessed with redeeming his past failures that he blinds himself to the present needs of the people around him. He must learn to forgive himself and allow God to restore his brokenness before he can move forward. Nicole, too, struggles with issues from her past. Childhood insecurities haunt her due to a father she believed always wanted a son instead of a daughter. She must learn to let go of those beliefs and recognize her own value in Christ in order to claim her happy ending.

5. Will there be future books based on the characters of Full Steam Ahead?

Yes! One of the secondary characters in Full Steam Ahead is a young runaway named Jacob who is taken in by Darius and Nicole. In early 2015, Jacob’s story will continue in an e-novella entitled Love on the Mend. Jacob is all grown up, and after serving as a Civil War doctor, where more soldiers leave his surgeon’s table dead or missing a limb than mended, Jacob wants nothing more than to establish a quiet country practice somewhere and find peace. But peace will never be his until he buries the pain of his past. So he returns to Cold Spring, Texas for the first time in seventeen years . . . and discovers that his past is still alive and kicking.

Thanks for sharing, Karen!

Why do you read Christian romance?

April 4, 2014April 5, 2014 | Amy

Please take a minute and complete the following survey. I’m investigating (for my own use) why readers enjoy Christian romance. I’d love to know your thoughts on the matter. Feel free to add your own answer and leave comments. This is all about the readers. :) Thanks!

BTW–You can answer as many that apply to you. :)

Verboten

February 25, 2014February 24, 2014 | Amy

I’m so excited to share my web space with a special guest today. Brenda Nixon is here to tell us of her experiences with the Swartzentruber Amish. Hope you enjoy! I know I did!

Amish Teens Today
by Brenda Nixon

Often admired. Misunderstood. Mysterious. I’m learning volumes deep inside the Amish from the many formers I know. Most left the Swartzentruber Order – the strictest and most punitive. Predominantly guys but a few gals have come through our home.

One thing that isn’t too different from us is that the Amish creatively push the envelope on the rules. Many see what they can get away with before the line is crossed – a rule broken – and the Bishop or Preacher comes a calling.

Sometimes the stories are funny. Sometimes they are sad.

Our “son” from the Amish – Mosie – chuckled as he told me of homes where the no electricity rule didn’t apply to the barn. Out there some Amish enjoyed lights and power tools.

Our son-in-law Harvey – also from the Swartzentruber Order – explained that buggy windshields were verboten. He grinned in glee when related the time he invented a windshield by wrapping his black buggy with clear plastic wrap.

“It was winter and I was cold going to work and back,” Harvey reasoned. “So I made a windshield. I left early in the morning while it was still dark and came home at night, so my dad couldn’t see my buggy. Then a guy saw my windshield and told Dad.”

Harvey’s dad is a bishop. He made Harvey remove the invention.

Before he left the Amish, Harvey spotted an old, broken bicycle – verboten. In the Swartzentruber Order, bicycles or any item with rubber wheels are against the rules.

“I was walking home one day and found a bike in a farmer’s trash pile.” Harvey claimed the worldly prize, walked it over two miles home, and while his parents were away, hid the thing in his father’s workshop. He explained how he tinkered with it. Made repairs. Then he took his new “worldly” device over a hill and down in a deep culvert to keep in seclusion. “I told some of my friends,” he said. So they could all share in the community “sin.” Harvey added, “But, we rode at night so we wouldn’t get caught.”

Now, I think Harvey is clever to repair something he’s never owned. Like many Amish, he demonstrates a visual learning style. He looks at, watches, and pays attention to detail to educate himself.

I’ve met Swartzentruber Amish who’ve purchased homes from English – with indoor plumbing – but kept promising the Bishop they’d remove that “worldly” convenience. And those who promise to build a room addition without electric and plumbing. Somehow that room addition is never built.

Mosie likes to tease. I can imagine he was ornery growing up.

Others have boasted of their ingenuity in getting around the rigid rules. I recently saw a picture of . . . well, I can hardly describe it. Not a car. Truck. Motorcycle. Nor a four-wheeler. It was a mismatched combination of those parts. Therefore the Amish driver wasn’t breaking a rule or committing a “sin” by driving the combined contraction. He wasn’t driving a car, truck, motorcycle or a four-wheeler. I guess his settlement hadn’t made a rule against using a collective vehicle.

The teens hide radios and cell phones in the woods, inside the barn, or up in the attic. Some girls buy underwear at Victoria’s Secret because, after all, nobody will SEE their “worldly” undergarment. The Swartzentruber Ordnung – rule book – prohibits English underwear; rather, they are to make their own.

Not unlike teens of any culture, most Amish youth push the envelope. I know some who keep a “worldly” automobile tucked away in the woods. They ride their buggies into the protection of the trees where they tie up the horse, change into English clothes, hop in the car, and cruise around town. Without a driver’s license! In the wee early-morning hours, they sneak the vehicle back to the designated hide out, change into their strict, plain Amish clothing, climb into the buggy, and trot home before morning. Hoping to avoid detection.

Our second “son” from the Amish – Monroe – hid his cell phone in his loose Amish pants pocket. When he was at home, he would watch movies on his DVD player. Where’d he get that? He bought a DVD player at Walmart, and then hooked it up to a battery. Monroe and his sister, Sarah, would tiptoe up the steps of their home at night carrying the DVD player to their bedroom. There, they’d watch movies into the night. I can visualize a soft blue glow emanating from the upstairs of a darkened Amish home.

Monroe told me of his friends who’d take pictures with their cell phones – during prayer in church!

We read books and see TV programs about the Amish. But I’m learning of a very human dimension. Most have a God-given inquisitiveness. Apprentices in life. Unfortunately, it’s that freelancing curiosity and resourcefulness that can get their teens in trouble. And it’s often those with imagination, goals, and aspirations that don’t fit the conformity – the solidarity – of the Amish who leave for the “outside” life.

If you’d like to learn more about Swartzentruber Amish and Brenda’s “kids” from that culture, check out her blog:

Beyond Buggies and Bonnets

www.BrendaNixonOnAmish.blogspot.com

Follow Brenda on Twitter

Thank you for sharing your stories, Brenda! You’re welcome to comeback anytime.

Raspberries and Vinegar by Valerie Comer

August 14, 2013August 12, 2013 | Amy

Hey ! I know it’s been a while, but I’m crying deadlines and summer vacation to be at fault. While I’ve been hard at work on my series (more deets to come later) my friend Valerie Comer has been hard at work getting her new release, well…released. Valerie graciously allowed me to drill her with merciless questions but before we get to the interview, I want you to read about her new book. I know I’m doing things out of order, but this is a unique release and I think you’ll appreciate the interview that much more by hearing about the book first.

Raspberries and Vinegar

Josephine Shaw: complex, yet singleminded. A tiny woman with big ideas and, some would say, a mouth to match. But what does she really know about sustainable living as it relates to the real world? After all, she and her two friends are new to farming.

Zachary Nemesek is back only until his dad recovers enough to work his own land again. When Zach discovers three helpless females have taken up residence at the old farm next door, he expects trouble. But a mouse invasion proves Jo has everything under control. Is there anything she can’t handle? And surely there’s something sweet beneath all that tart.

Interesting concept. Some might even call it…*fresh*!

Can you tell us a little about yourself and your background?

Valerie Comer’s life on a small farm in western Canada provides the seed for stories of contemporary inspirational romance. Like many of her characters, Valerie and her family grow much of their own food and are active in the local foods movement as well as their creation-care-centric church. She only hopes her creations enjoy their happily ever afters as much as she does hers, shared with her husband, adult kids, and adorable granddaughters.

What compelled you to write Raspberries and Vinegar?

They say to write what you know. After writing a few speculative novels, I decided to try my hand at something contemporary. I knew I couldn’t pull off the whole designer handbag/ stiletto/ city girl kind of story. I know nothing of it, and (frankly) I’m not interested. Farming, though…that’s where I live. I hoped readers would enjoy the change of pace. Who knew that http://farmlit.com would be the next big thing?

How did you become interested in writing?

I enjoyed writing in school and started a bunch of stories as a child that I never finished. I definitely wasn’t writing what I knew back then! And of course, I loved to escape into stories. It took a long time for me to realize that normal, every day people could write them. Once I began to grapple with the process of doing so, I was hooked and have written about a dozen over as many years (most of which you’ll never hear about again, which is a Good Thing.)

Now, of course, I know that novelists are NOT normal every day people but are simply able to impersonate them fairly well.

How has your environment/ upbringing colored your writing?

Totally. I grew up a Mennonite farm girl in Manitoba, Canada and, while the Mennonite part didn’t particularly stick, my rural roots provided a strong foundation for my writing life. I want readers to respect farmers, realizing that those who provide the food we eat should be an important part of society.

Is there anything you find particularly challenging about writing?

Friends talk about quilting or knitting projects. I’m quick to say, “Oh, I don’t have the patience for that sort of thing.” They look at me rather strangely, because they know it can take me the better part of a year to write, revise, edit, and polish a novel. I guess I pick my battles! But yes, the challenge is how long all the steps take to get it right. I’d like to be one of those writers who plot out a story, write it, then only require a bit of tweaking to make it shine. Amy, don’t tell me if you are one of them—I don’t want to know!

What advice would you give to writers just starting out?

I’m always up for giving advice! I love to teach writing workshops and have done so both online and in person. Something I have found is that many new writers don’t have a clear grasp of the big picture. Just what does this new hobby or career really entail? How do you go about preparing to write? What do you really DO?

A few months ago I started a new website at http://towriteastory.com and incorporated a free writing course via email. Students can sign up on the sidebar at any time and get a new lesson in their inbox weekly. It’s not meant to be a definitive course but to guide and provide an overview of the process.

I blog weekly on a topic related to the course, which covers planning, plotting, writing, editing, publishing, and marketing.

Do you have a favorite part of Raspberries and Vinegar?

I don’t want to give away my very favorite scene, but there are several I love to read over and over. One shows Zach and his best friend Gabe, who owns a health food store. Gabe has been struggling to assemble a new display rack when Zach arrives. He asks Zach if he has a degree in engineering. Their camaraderie as they try to figure out where all the parts go just amuses me every time I read it. Of course, the majority of the dialogue in that scene has deeper meaning.

What is your biggest source of inspiration?

I have three young granddaughters, and they’re my inspiration for nearly everything I do. I care deeply about the world we’re leaving to their generation, about the food they eat and the health they will (or won’t) enjoy as a result of our current choices. There’s so much more to life than getting through today.

What’s next for you?

The other two books in the Farm Fresh Romance series will release in 2014. Wild Mint Tea releases in March and Sweetened with Honey in December.

Where can we find you on the web?

Website: http://valeriecomer.com

Blog: http://valeriecomer.com/blog

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/ValerieComer

Facebook: http://facebook.com/valeriecomer.author

Twitter: http://twitter.com/valeriecomer

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/valeriecomer/

Other (my website for writers): http://towriteastory.com

Now for the fun questions–20 fun facts about you:

Birthday? May 22.

Favorite color? Green, of course!

Favorite animal? To pet, or to eat? ;)

Siblings? Four older sisters. I got bossed around a lot. Now I take it out on my characters.

Favorite drink? Raspberry Vinegar!

If you were a jelly bean flavor, what flavor would you be? Is this a trick question? I don’t eat jellybeans. They’re not chocolate. (Maybe I should say raspberry flavored?)

Favorite Author? So many! But let me give a shout out to Krista Phillips.

Favorite Book? Krista Phillips’ debut Sandwich with a Side of Romance is hilarious and yet thought-provoking. A perfect combination.

Favorite dish? Grilled lamb chops (which answers half of the above animal question!)

Ice Cream flavor? Chocolate with brownie bits and fudge ripples. Why no, it is NOT possible to get too much chocolate.

Favorite Season? Spring.

Dream Vacation? A Mediterranean cruise.

Favorite TV show? I watch almost no TV, but when hubby has Duck Dynasty on, I find it hard to resist watching.

Pet peeve? Excel. They call those teensy boxes cells for a reason. **shudder**

Favorite Place to Write? In my home office, looking out over our garden and farm to the mountains beyond.

Favorite Superhero? Mr. Incredible’s wife, Elastigirl.

Cat or Dog? Meow.

Favorite Candy Bar? I’ll take my chocolate organic and fairtrade. Camino Dark is my usual, but when I can get Dark Chocolate Cinnamon from Galerie au Chocolat, I’m in chocoholic heaven.

Favorite guilty pleasure? See above!

Favorite vacation spot or place you’d like to visit but haven’t yet? My favorite spot is near Tofino on Vancouver Island, off Canada’s west coast. We don’t get there often, but I love the majesty of God’s creation along the ocean beaches. It brings life and the universe back into perspective.

~*~*~*~ About Valerie ~*~*~*~

Valerie Comer’s life on a small farm in western Canada provides the seed for stories of contemporary inspirational romance. Like many of her characters, Valerie and her family grow much of their own food and are active in the local foods movement as well as their creation-care-centric church. She only hopes her characters enjoy their happily ever afters as much as she does hers, shared with her husband, adult kids, and adorable granddaughters.

Valerie writes Farm Lit with the voice of experience laced with humor. Raspberries and Vinegar, first in her series A Farm Fresh Romance, released August 1, 2013. Visit her at http://valeriecomer.com.

A Farm Fresh Romance Series:

A Farm Fresh Romance. This unique farm lit series follows the adventures, romantic and otherwise, of three college graduates who move onto a reclaimed farm where they plan to take the rural area by storm with their sustainable lifestyle and focus on local foods.

I don’t know about you, but I definitely want to invite Valerie back and find out more about growing up Mennonite. Until then, don’t forget to check out Raspberries and Vinegar–available now!

Carol Award Finalists Announced

June 25, 2013June 24, 2013 | Amy

Yesterday an exciting day! Why, you ask? Because the finalist for the 2013 Carol Awards were announced, and Saving Gideon is a finalist in the romance category! I am grinning from ear to ear! So very excited to be among such great names as my dear friend, Margaret Daley as well as Carolyn Zane, Bradilyn Collins, and Beth Wiseman, who are also finalist this year.

Whew! Now we have to wait until September when the winners are announced. Truly it’s an honor to be a finalist…I can wait…for a while. :) Until then, here’s the cover and blurb for Saving Gideon:

Gideon Fisher wants only one thing out of life— to be left alone. This is not the Amish way, but he’s devastated after the death of his wife. He has lost his faith. He buys a farm on the outskirts of the district and pulls away from his community. But when a freak spring snowstorm brings a beautiful Englisher to his farm, what choice does he have but to let her in?

Dallas socialite, Avery Ann Hamilton is intrigued by the Amish farmer who pulls her out of the snow and into his austere life style. Poor little rich girl, Avery has just gone through—–yet another—–bad breakup. Every man she meets only wants her for her father’s money. All she has ever wanted is to be loved for herself. Avery soon discovers that the Oklahoma Amish country is the perfect place to hide out and heal her broken heart.

But she finds a peace in those back roads that she’s never felt before. Now her life has purpose and meaning as she connects with God and those around her. But it has even more as she begins to care for this man who needs both love and forgiveness.

Gideon never wanted to live again much less fall in love, but Avery finds her way into his heart, showing him the beauty of life and God’s greatness. But as the feelings between Avery and Gideon grow, can they overcome their dissimilar lifestyles or will their sheer differences pull them apart?

B&H Publishing

Saving Gideon is the first novel in the Clover Ridge Series

Cover Reveal–Gabriel’s Bride

June 14, 2013June 12, 2013 | Amy

Katie’s Choice has launched and it’s time now to view the incredibly awesome cover for the third installment in the Clover Ridge Series. Here it is…Gabriel’s Bride

Personally, I LOVE it! (But green is one of my favorite colors). Weigh in…what do you think?