Book Update

It's been a year since I turned in the finished ms for The Maverick Preacher. Here's an update on my pub schedule for the next year or so:

The Maverick Preacher, LIH, February 2009

"Home Again" in In a Mother's Arms, LIH Mother's Day Anthology, April 2009

Kansas Courtship is Book #3 in the Love Inspired Historical portion of the "After the Storm" series. It's the last book in the continuity and comes out in March 2010. The overall series starts in June 2009 in LI contemporary line. The first book is by Valerie Hansen. The contemporary books (six of them) wrap up in December 2009. The LIH series, set in the same town but in 1859, launches in January 2010. It starts with another book by Val, goes to Heartland Wedding by Renee Ryan, and then wraps up with Kansas Courtship. It's been a blast to work with such wonderful, generous authors.

Somewhere down the line, I'll have three more books coming out. The series is called "The Women of Swan's Nest" and starts with The Maverick Preacher. One of those books is 3/4 written. The other two are in the idea stage.

Looks 2009 will be a busy indeed!

A Gift

One of the nicest things I did for myself in 2008 was to finally read Francine Rivers' MARK OF THE LION series. I'm not done with As Sure As The Dawn yet. I'm on Chapter 18 and will finish it New Year's Weekend if not sooner. But I know I'll love the end as much as I loved the beginning.

Who says Christian romance has to be tame? That the characters can't experience strong, passionate attraction? Rizpah and Atretes sure do. They're wonderfully human, fully human. I dream of writing like this. These books are going on my "inspiration" shelf along with Penelope Williamson's The Outsider, Autumn Blue by Karen Harter and The Scarlet Thread also by Francine Rivers.

One of the joys of reading is that it seeps into my own work. I feel inspired. I absorb the rhythms. I pick up on new words. Best of all, I remember why I love to write and what I believe the Lord has called me to do. Praise be to God for the wonderful Gift of his Son!

So Fast...

Christmas brings home a lot of memories. As we were opening gifts this morning, I needed scissors to snip a ribbon. I instantly missed my dad. As long as I can remember, on Christmas morning he'd be ready to pop ribbons with his pocketknife.

As a family we thought about Chico, the Chihuahua-corgi mix we had for 16 years. He passed away in August 2007, but the stories live on.

While stirring the gravy, I thought about my mom. She's makes the best turkey. My kids tell me I do, too. Memories in the making...

I thought about my brother and his wife in Colorado and my inlaws in Kentucky. More memories. Other holidays . . .

With both of our sons grown, my husband and I are very aware that each Christmas could be the last that the four of us are in the same place at the same time. We made good memories today and I'm glad.

Christmas Countdown

Here's my list:

Monday, Dec. 22nd: Day job until 1:30 p.m.. Hit a store for a quick gift. Hit the grocery store for diet ginger ale, vanilla, and somethng for dinner. Get youngest son to dentist. Chat with oldest about Christmas gifts. Do a load of laundry. Walk the dog. Think about writing.

Tuesday, Dec. 23rd: Day job from 7:15 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.. Finish Christmas shopping no matter what (just a few little things). Finishing wrapping no matter what (not too bad, but still...) Bake cookies. Walk the dog. Call my mom. Think about writing.

Wednesday, Dec. 24th: Bake the cheesecake. Cook the giblets for the turkey. Make the stuffing. Go to church (an evening service--it'll be gorgeous).

Thursday, Christmas Day! Put the turkey in the oven and let the festivities begin!

Big Red Bows

"Nothing says Christmas like a big red bow." That's what I said to my husband about two hours ago in the Walmart holiday section, the one that's usually the Garden section. There's nothing remarkable about that comment unless you know that I hate to shop. I really do. It's a small torture for me to riffle through rolls of wrapping paper or piles of gift bags. I'm good for about five minutes and then everything looks alike. Truly, I lose all perspective.

But today there was something about that bow I really enjoyed. It was big. It was simple. It's just what we needed for a certain gift. Not a lot of choices. No decisions. No worries about it fitting or being "right."

I really do like that bow! I wish all Christmas decisions could be as simple.

Celebrating Christmas

My husband could be one of Santa's elves. This man is amazing. He put up the outside lights over Thanksgiving. He likes to shop. He wraps presents. He put lights on the banisters. . He put 1,200 lights on our 7-foot Christmas tree. He even cut it down (we went to a tree farm in Great Falls). He's amazing. I'm in awe.

My turn comes next. I'll bake cookies, cook a turkey, and finish up the shopping and wrapping. By the time Christmas Eve arrives, we'll be ready. We make a good team except for one thing . . . His idea of a Christmas flick is Die Hard. Mine is The Sound of Music. Somehow we manage : )

Got The Books!

The UPS man dropped them off in the pouring rain. They were protected by plastic, but I'm glad I was home to bring them inside.

The best moment came when I showed my husband the dedication. This is the second book I've dedicated to him. After 28 years of marriage, we both got choked up. Now that's love. He also wrapped about 2/3 of the Christmas presents, packed them into boxes for shipping and hauled the load to the Post Office. That's love, too.

So is saying, "Honey, set the heater (in the car) wherever you want it. I'll be fine." I like to crank it up. He likes it set at 72 degrees. One of us either hot or cold. I'm sure you know how that goes.

Love is also taking the dog out at 5 a.m. in the freezing cold. I did that!

We're a good match :)

Come and Say Merry Christmas!

eHarlequin is having its annual Open House / Holiday Post Party today. It's a ton of fun and there are prizes! Lots of Love Inspired authors will be there, along with authors from all the other lines, including HH.

Here's the link for Steeple Hill:

http://community.eharlequin.com/forums/cafe-social/chat-room/open-house-post-party-steeple-hill

Got the Cover!

The Maverick Preacher comes out in February 2009. Harlequin Book Club members will be receiving it any day now, and it'll be in stores the second Monday in February.

As usual, the Harlequin / Steeple Hill Art Dept. did a magnificent job . . . except for one itty bitty thing. Can you see it? The answer's at the end of this blog : )

Here's what I like. The cover captures the atmosphere of the book perfectly. I love the wrought iron sign against the blue sky. It's a light-and-dark kind of cover, just like the hero. Josh's expression is sufficiently brooding. I like that, too. His hair isn't what I imagined, but it's close enough. I like his eyes a lot, especially in a larger picture.

Okay, here's the glitch. Is it just me, or is he holding the Bible upside down? What do you think?

Writing Thoughts

I've been going mildly nuts with the current ms. I'm at 50,000 words, which is the 2/3 mark and oops! I'm out of romantic conflict. There's no logical reason for the h/h to continue fighting their feelings. I knew things were falling apart when I looked at the computer and said, "My hero's a mental case."

I wasn't sure how to fix it, but my editor came up with a wonderful idea. No spoilers here, but here's what I learned: when things aren't going well with the story, don't keep fighting the same battle. Go back and find where the train ran off the tracks. In this case, the train had to back up a few miles. Instead of starting the story in one place, I had to push it back a bit.

I'm now zipping through a rewrite and my hero no longer strikes me as neurotic. That's good news! It's one thing for a hero to be tortured, but idiotic just doesn't work.

* The tornado picture is from www.noaa.gov. I picked it because this current ms is set in Kansas in 1859 after a devastating storm. It also fits my current state of mind : )

Writing Binge

Just before Thanksgiving, I got to Chapter Twelve of Kansas Courtship. I was pretty happy. The chapter has a pivotal scene, a real turning point between the h/h, and I've been looking forward to writing it. I sat down, opened the document and . . . . pfffft. Nothing! Not a word. Not a thought. I was totally, absurdly bored with the characters.

A good friend made a suggestion. "Why don't you work on something else for a few days?"

It's my nature to finish the book that's due next. I just makes sense. Except I couldn't focus on what I had to do. I took my friend's advice detoured back to Cheyenne and the next book in the Swan's Nest series, and polished up two chapters.

In the middle of this dry time, I took stock of my writing pattern and realized something. Somewhere in the middle of every story, I've taken a break and written something else. It keeps things fresh for me. I feel the excitement of the hunt for something new, and that helps with whatever else I'm workingon.

Now I'm back to Kansas Courtship. Chapter Twelve is done (it's good, too!) and I'm zipping on Chapter Thirteen. This part of the book is heavily plot-driven, which means it's easier to write the first draft.

Back to it : )