Wreader Fun

It's Monday morning and I'm a-headin' for Denver very shortly. At this point, I'm not sure of my itinerary because I'm doing recon for my books enroute but one thing I can tell ya ... I'm headin' south! Perfecting timing, too because the plumber just walked in. He's going to get that leak fixed that caused all the trouble in the living room. (See earlier blogs if you dare, ha!) Okay, this is my last act before I close up my Mini and pack it up. I'll be reporting live from Stateside tonight...

STANDING FIRM...MOVING FORWARD " Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord,
forasmuch as ye know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord ."
1 Corinthians 15:58 (KJV) DENVER, COLORADO
SEPTEMBER 17 - 20, 2009 Bestselling authors, publishing industry representatives, and newcomers to Christian fiction writing will gather in Denver at the American Christian Fiction Writer’s annual conference September 17-20 to compare notes, learn from each other, and encourage one another in the pursuit of publishing goals. This year’s conference theme , Standing Firm…Moving Forward, will especially inspire the full range of talent and dreams in the ever-changing publishing world today. This amazing conference will feature representatives from major publishing houses like B & H, Guideposts, Zondervan, Harvest House, Barbour, Steeple Hill, Summerside Press, Bethany House, Waterbrook Multnomah, Marcher Lord Press, Tyndale House, and...

I do, I do! Of course I'm talking about none other than that most prestigious of romance writing contests, the Golden Heart. Actually, it would be nice to win any of the romance contests, but the Golden Heart . . .ah, that's something to dream about. Approx 1,000 snail mailed entries will be sent to Houston, TX in the next 3 months as unpubbed writers like myself find the courage to assume we have the right stuff to be published. It's like standing with my hand up and shouting, 'Pick me! I'm ready, I know I am.' It's a long road to the award ceremony which is held at the RWA convention every July. And unlike most awards, you don't receive a statuette for winning one of the 10 categories in the Golden Heart contest. Instead, you win a golden heart pendant like the one you see here. I think that's so practical. You can wear it anywhere and whip it out as proof that someone actually believed in you. How many writers have you seen lugging a RITA award a...

Fearless - Imagine Your Life Without Fear by Max Lucado, Thomas Nelson 2009 (click here for more info) Today is a special day because Max Lucado’s newest book, Fearless , is being released everywhere. As an official Book Review Blogger for Thomas Nelson, I am one of the lucky ones who received this book last week to read and review in preparation for today. Because it’s my day to blog, you get to hear it from me. And you want to hear about it. Especially if you live your life in fear... I’m not a deep thinker. I like skimming along the surface, taking words for what they say, not looking for a hidden meaning. I don’t like reading between the lines. In Fearless , Max Lucado has written so many profound sentences, I had to stop many times to think about them. And yet, I understood them. Here’s an example: ‘ Fear creates a form of spiritual amnesia. ’ I read that sentence one morning and it stayed with me throughout the day. The urge to pass it on became unbearable so finally, I tweeted...

Early Friday morning, Nelson and Jessie left for the 8 hr drive to Calgary. I gave her the Sony eReader I'm test driving so she could read enroute without lugging around extra books. Here she is registering for The Edge program at Rocky Mountain Bible College. Instead of staying the night, Nelson drove back - and forgot Jess had my eReader. :(

I know you’re all waiting with bated breath for this report so hang onto your chair because here it comes… Writing-wise: - Inkwell Inspirations , my new group block went online Aug 31st. It a group of Christian writers but the content isn't just about writing. It's about life. We're giving away daily prizes and then 2 grand prizes at the end of Oct - one for writers and one for readers. Leave a comment and throw your name in the hat. - submitted When You Least Expect It to the Southern Heat contest - worked on Silent Keeper . This book is going a lot slower than I wanted but at least it’s moving forward and I’m basically keeping to the plotting chart - did not work on Marry Me Ma’am . I wanted to but trying to get ready for ACFW conference in Denver in Sept has taken precedence as well as getting Jessie ready for college. Oh yeah, and we can't forget the tear down in the living room (see below) - because of the damage in the living room, my writing cave is still in the...

Sweet Trouble (Bakery Sisters Book 3) by Susan Mallery HQN Sep 08 I read this book on the Sony 505 eReader. It was one of several free books I was able to get with the $25 coupon from eHarlequin – a gift for test driving the eReader. I don’t usually buy HQN books because I tend to go for the smaller ‘series’ books that are easier to stuff in my purse. But Sweet Trouble was free and it was going in my eReader which easily hides in my purse. I chose Susan Mallery because I’ve always enjoyed her Special Edition books. I wanted to see how she made the switch to a bigger book. I wasn’t disappointed. Every time a conflict was resolved and I wondered how she’d fill the rest of the pages, either of the main characters stumbled and I realized the conflict really hadn’t been resolved at all. It was lurking in the background waiting for the right moment. The book has many ‘right moments’. Some I saw coming. Some I didn’t. It kept me entertained. Jesse’s story is the conclusion to the Bakery Siste...