AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT & REVIEW - Loree Lough

 Good morning, everyone!

Today is the final installment of Christmas at the Amish Bakeshop. Remember, this book releases September 28th, 2021 but is available for Pre-order. 

This week, we're shining the spotlight on Loree Lough. Her face looked familiar - she ages well. ;-) but wasn't until I read her bio I realized why.

Here's a bit about Loree:

At last count, USA Today best-selling author Loree Lough had 122 award-winning books (nearly 13 million copies in circulation), hundreds of industry awards, 7 book-to-movie options), 68 published short stories, and 2,500+ nonfiction articles in print. And in August of 2019, Loree celebrated 25 years as a published author!

Once upon a time, Loree (literally) sang for her supper, performing alone and for the likes of Tom Jones, Dottie West, The Gatlin Brothers, and more. We won’t say how many years ago she traded her 6-string for a wedding ring and embarked on this career but on occasion she dusts off the guitar and croons a bit. But mostly, she just writes (and writes).

For those of you who do not know, while I've listened to 'classic country' most of my life, I've been covering the music scene as a side-line for almost fourty years! You could say I knew about Loree 'when'.  Here is an interview I found on-line about her music career:  EerieDigest

Her story, The Christmas Cupcake, is a heartwarming story. Tessa and Asher both have parental issues and deal with them differently. Tessa fears Asher may have anger management tendancies like her father and, as much as she is attracted to him, she isn't willing to stay on that track. She and her brother do just fine when left alone; Tessa as the local school teacher and Noah running the family pottery business. When Asher asks her to teach him to read, she sets her worries aside. Her teacher heart won't allow her to do anything else. What they both learn is that love can conquer a multitude of fears ... and open the door to that happy ever after we all hope for. 

I'm giving The Christmas Cupcake:

You'll find Loree Lough through the following links:

WEBSITE   FACEBOOK   TWITTER   INSTAGRAM   GOODREADS

AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE

 

MONDAY MOTIVATION - Time off for Good Behavior

Good morning, everyone!

I've scheduled posts this week so I can spend Bob's first week home with him, doing whatever he wants to do. 

I'll be back here with a new motivation post next week!

All my best!

~Angela 

AN OZARKS HOMECOMING - Dignified Transfer

 Good morning, friends

Dignified Transfer is exactly what those two words mean. The soldier is transfered (usually at least twice) before arriving at their final resting place. They are brought home with dignity and honor. 

Thanks to CBS, we have this short video on a Dignified Transfer.

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT & REVIEW - Rachel J. Good

 Good morning, friends. 

This week we look at the second story in CHRISTMAS AT THE AMISH BAKESHOP - Best Christmas Present Ever, by Rachel J. Good.

(No photo available)

Here's a bit about, Rachel:

USA Today bestselling author Rachel J. Good grew up near Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, the setting for many of her Amish novels. Striving to be as authentic as possible, she spends time with her Amish friends, doing chores on their farm and attending family events.

Rachel loves to travel and visit many different Amish communities. In searching for the best Amish soft pretzels, she's visited many Amish markets, auctions, and mud sales. Because of her love of Amish food, she tries to include recipes in her books as often as possible. When she's not traveling, she spends time with family and writing.

RELEASES September 28, 2021

PRE-ORDER HERE

Rachel wrote Best Christmas Present Ever for this anthology. I love a good story that includes animals or children. This story included both! Toss in a 'reunited' or 'second chance' romance an you have me hooked!

While life hasn't been easy for either Christian or Lizzie their circumstances are what makes them the perfect fit for a romance as sweet and adorable as the cupcakes she decorates.  

I'm giving Best Christmas Present Ever:

You'll find Rachel J. Good via the following links:

WEBSITE   FACEBOOK   TWITTER   INSTAGRAM   GOODREADS

AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE

Sign up for her newsletter HERE.

Next week, we'll look at the final story, The Christmas Cupcake and meet Loree Lough

All my best

~Angela

MONDAY MOTIVATION - A Slow Week

 Good morning, everyone!

This is going to be a busy week in the house, yet slow on writing anything.

On Wednesday I will have been married to my real life hero for thirty-seven years on Wednesday. When Bob and I got married, a lot of people in the small town we lived in didn't give us six months. But we knew we were in it for the long haul. 

As I write this a few days out, I'm hoping he gets to come home. He's to come home on Wednesday but there's been noise of some having to work over. 

I've lived with this thirty seven years as he's worked through various companies. I'm used to him not being home for holidays, Sue and I taking vacations without him, etc. It's the life of being on the river. I am thankful that Sue tries to get her truck drivers home for holidays if they have family. She learned first-hand that not having dad home for a holiday or birthday just sucks!

Aside from this, he inhaled crude fumes a couple weeks back and has been battling a nasty cough ever since. To say the least, I just want him home where he can really rest.

Rest?

Probably not a lot the first few days. 

He comes home Wednesday night. Then his youngest brother and wife will be here on Thursday sometime for a long weekend visit. We were just to their house earlier in the month but with so many people around it was hard for Rhonda and I to really visit and craft. Not only is she my sister-in-law and friend, she is also my downline with Stampin' Up! We just want some time to play lol.

Since I am writing this ahead of the game, I don't have any updates on my progress except to say I'm squeezing in writing where I can. The office has to be finished since that's where the sofa bed is and where Rhonda and I will craft. No pressure. Once they leave, I just want to enjoy quiet time with Bob so other than the usual posts, I won't be motivating you any more until September 6th. 

All my best

~Angela

THE WRITER'S NEST - B. D. Storey

 Good morning, everyone!

Today, we get to know Bob 'B. D' Storey a little better and take a tour of his writer's nest.  Let's go snoop!

Thank you, Bob, for having us in your space. 

Describe your writing nest?

It’s just a small office area in the house. It’s not very big, maybe 10x8. I have my desk, a bunch of shelfs, and a slew of knick-knacks and such.

What is it about this space that inspires you? 

It’s quiet, away from everyone, and I’m surround by items that have great memory’s associated with them, not to mention a few books. I have tons more books, just not got them laid out in the new space yet.

Has finding your space been an evolving journey? How so? 

No, not really. It’s just a space. It used to be my wife’s room for her model horses, but, she out grew it.

Anything you would change? 

Get it organized!  It’s a bit cluttered. But, it’s not a huge priority. I can sit and write, so that’s good enough for now.

Thanks for sharing your space with us! 

Bob's book, Fate Takes A Hike is available through the following links:

AMAZON   B & N   KOBO   GOOGLE PLAY 

You will find B. D. Storey by clicking on the links below. He loves to hear from his readers.

WEBSITE   FACEBOOK   INSTAGRAM

AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE

WRITER TIP THURSDAY - B. D. Storey

Good morning, everyone!

We continue our visit with B. D. Storey with this bit of advice for building your own writing nest:

"Quite and solitude. A place you can go that limits the outside distractions."

Come back tomorrow for a peek inside B.D.'s writing nest!

All my best

~Angela

 

 

AN OZARKS HOMECOMING - The Last Uniform

 Good morning.

Sometimes, as in Cpl. Matney's case, the body is not viewable yet this is the last time the family will see them 'in uniform'.

Today's video from 12News shows how the uniform is prepared. The precision and honor shines.

All my best

~Angela

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT & REVIEW - B. D. Storey

 Good morning, everyone!

Welcome to another week where we feature an author and get to peek inside their Writer's Nest. This week, we're getting to know B. D. Storey.

Now, I hear some of you saying 'he's a man!'  Good for you! I'm not gender biased here in The Writer's Zone. I'm about the story... and the ability for a writer to give us a satisfying read. B. D. Storey accomplishes this in his book.. Fate Takes A Hike

Before we get to the review, let's learn a bit about B. D. :

A lover of both PC and console games, Bob has spent many hours immersed in the lands of role playing and make-believe with friends and family. This is where his love of writing took off as he and his online friends spent hours writing epic tales of fantasy, love, and adventuring. Oh, and dragon slaying. One can’t forget that.

He is married to his best friend and love of his life, Pam. They live on their small ranch/farm in Clarksville where Pam keeps him busy with the multitude of chores that come with having three horses and four cats. He has three great kids who are the lights of their life.

An avid reader, he enjoys reading sci-fi, fantasy, space opera, spending hours in the tales spun by Tolkien, Zahn, Weber, and Drake, just to name a few.

My Review:

Jacob and Josie have both suffered great loss in their life - losses they believed were their soulmates. Neither feel they'll ever love again. They don't even attempt to find new companionship. But Fate has a different story to tell. What starts as a simple hike to clear her head brings Josie uncomfortably close to Jacob. A meeting that will have you cheering for both of them from the get go. 

Normally, I'm not fond of the F word and I don't believe you necessarily need the bomb or an anatomy lesson to tell a good story. That said, the elements mentioned make the characters - all of them - more realistic. I read the book in one sitting. I could not put the kindle down. I promise, you will smile, sigh, laugh throught the journey and I'm even betting tears by the end. Happy or Sad tears? I'll let you read and discover for yourself.

I'm giving FATE TAKES A HIKE:

You can purchase your copy via the following links:

AMAZON   B & N   KOBO   GOOGLE PLAY 

You will find B. D. Storey by clicking on the links below. He loves to hear from his readers.

WEBSITE   FACEBOOK   INSTAGRAM

AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE

MONDAY MOTIVATION - Progress

 Good morning, everyone!

One quick note before I contine with today's post.

The last two author reviews for stories in the Christmas at the Amish Bakeshop have been moved to the last two Tuesday's of this month. We have a guest author all this week leading up to The Writer's Nest post on Friday. Beginning tomorrow I'll be featuring B. D. Storey

Another week begins.

While last week was productive, I didn't do as much as I'd hoped... including getting Burroughs emailed. I'm doing that TODAY, before the task gets lost in the shuffle.

I managed to clear the big work table in my studio but before I could make further progress, I remembered I had a Stampin' Up! retreat this past Saturday. I was thinking it was this coming weekend! Oh well, I watched some very creative people resurrect old techniques. I was one of the very few who remembered when those techniques were 'new'. While they're still fresh in my memory again, I want to play with a couple of them this week.

Why? Because I'm trying to come out of 'hobby' dem status with the company and be more of an 'earning' level. I'm not going full speed with building a sales team, but it would be nice to sell enough to pay for my crafting habit ;-)

I also learned last week that my sister in law and her husband (Bob's youngest brother) will arrive on the 26th for three days. Mind you, this comes the day after Bob is supposed to come home... on our 37th wedding anniversary. Rhonda is also my only down-line in my Stampin' Up! business. We'll spend three days crafting.  That said, the studio has to be finished... 9 days from today to be exact!  

I'm still knocking off between 3-4 p.m. to get two or three writing sprints in on the book. Felt good to be sprinting again last week. One of my dear friends has been dividing her writing time between our two groups. We do the shorts sprints in mine - which she prefers. Then when I'm done for the night, she moves back to our 'Goddess' group and does the longer sprints. The five of us have been a group for almost 15 years. I just can't do the longer sprints. My brain starts wandering after longer than thirty minutes.

That's me for this week. I know the tasks are not exciting, but they are things I must get done. 

My TOP 3:

* Email Burroughs

* Catalog stamps

* Sprint every day

I'm hoping the dog days of summer are moving out and we can begin to breathe a little cooler air. 

All my best

~Angela

AN OZARKS HOMECOMING - A Final Salute - Casualty Affairs Assistance

 Good morning, friends.

We've talked about the process of bringing home remains of a fallen soldier from the Korean War. 

One thing we've not talked about yet is notifing a family. We see in movies all the time about the angst and heartbreak in seeing military notification representatives appear at someone's front door. There is always a roller coaster of emotions from the family. Denial, heartbreak, acceptance. They count on the Casualty Affairs Assistance to help them navigate this devastating path they are forced to walk. 

Today's video is a dramatization of their task.

All my best

~Angela

 

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT & Review - Shelley Shepard Gray

 Good morning, friends!

For the next three weeks, I'll be sharing three different authors with you. Each came together for a lovely collection of Amish Christmas stories, releasing September 28th, 2021

This week, we're starting with A Christmas Cake for Rebecca, written by Shelley Shepard Gray.

First, let's meet the author:

Shelley Shepard Gray lives in southern Ohio and writes full time. A busy wife and mother of two, she spends her days writing and keeping track of her two teenagers. Her two dogs keep her company when she writes in her basement.

She enjoys writing about the Amish and visits Amish communities in Adams and Holmes counties several times a year. When not spending time with her family or writing, she serves on several committees in her church.

She also bakes a lot, loves coconut cream pie, and will hardly ever pull weeds, mow the yard, or drive in the snow.

A Christmas Cake for Rebecca was the perfect introduction to the book. While each of the three stories could stand alone, Shelley's story sets the stage as well as creating a backdrop for the other two stories. 

I loved Rebecca's determination, in spite of being overwhelmed with over 150 orders of her famous Christmas cake. Aden is the perfect addition to the story. I loved how he is brought into the very female setting. You have to love a guy that will jump outside of his comfort zone to help the woman he loves succeed! 

That's all I'm going to say LOL.  You can pre-order Christmas At the Amish Bakeshop now. Also... Head over to Shelley's FB (link below) to get details on how to WIN an autographed copy this month! 

I'm giving this series:

Oh, one more thing! If you want to check out some great interviews with Shelley, search her name on YouTube.

Shelley spends a lot of time on line! Please follow her on any of the links below:

    WEBSITE   FACEBOOK   TWITTER   INSTAGRAM   PINTEREST

GOODREADS   AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE

All my best

~Angela

MONDAY MOTIVATION - Time to Tell a Story

 Good morning, everyone!

Wow!

Well, I can say first of all that last week did not go as planned. 

For starters, Bob left on Monday. From there I dove in to really making progress on clearing the studio by working through one area at a time. I managed to complete my filming area except for a shelf I need Bob to add to my shelving unit. He tried to do it before he left but the one shelf board I had wasabout 1/2" too short. In the mean time, I'm making progress elsewhere.

Yesterday, I found about 80% of my 4'x8' work table. I need it cleared for working on other areas, like cataloging the stamp sets and cutting large pieces of mat and foam core board - again, for other projects that need finished.

I also didn't get Burroughs emailed. That is tops on my list for this week. Review my contract to make sure I have dates correct, then email them a formal request for rights back. Cross your fingers because I really want to offer Somewhere Down the Line in print in time for the Ozark Creative Writers conference in October.

TIME TO TELL A STORY

I woke up this morning with the realization of why An Ozarks Homecoming is moving so slow for me. I'm so caught up in getting details correct that I've stopped giving you a STORY! The light bulb clicked on last night as I finished the last novella in Christmas at the Amish Bakeshop. When I finished The Christmas Cupcake by Loree Lough I thought, 'she told such a beautiful story'.  (No spoilers as to why since you'll learn more in Week 3 of the Author Spotlight series for this book) The sense dawned on me is that's how my first two books came about. I just told a story. 

So effective with tonight's writing sprints, I'm just going to sit with a blank page and start telling a story. I'll fix all the 'telling to showing' stuff in edits. 

Hello Kitty in honor of Sarra Cannon

Here's my Goals for the Week:

* Contact Burroughs

* Clear Sofa

* Tell the Story

That's it for my week. What is ONE THING you want to do TODAY! Tomorrow will come soon enough!

All my best

~Angela

AN OZARKS HOMECOMING - A Final Resting Place

 Good morning.

Today's post is the last in this series about Cpl. Donald Matney. In the previous video, Tom gave kudos for the respect and the coverage given to his nephew's homecoming. 

This video is the presentation from one of our news stations out of Springfield MO.

All my best

~Angela

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT & REVIEW - Christmas Comes to Morning Star

 Good morning, friends!

Last week was hectic. I'm so happy to be back in a quiet house and regaining my regular routine.

After a four-day family visit in Oklahoma to visit with Bob's side of the family, I'm anxious to get back to work.

Today, we're shining the spotlight on Charlotte Hubbard (also writing as Naomi King)

Here's a brief bit about Charlotte from her Amazon Page:

Charlotte Hubbard sold her first historical romance in 1990, and she’s been a slave to her overactive imagination ever since. As she writes, her stories invariably take on a life of their own, different from the way she proposed them: unforeseen characters and plot twists come along, and they keep her guessing right along with her readers!

I always enjoy a good Amish romance. Not for the religious aspect but because they are wholesome and sweet reads... the way romance should be in my opinion.

Christmas Comes to Morning Star (Book 3 in the Morning Star series) releases on August 24, 2021

I was a bit confused at first. There seemed to be too many players all at once, people I didn't know anything about. This makes it hard for someone who hasn't read previous books in a series. All book in a series should be able to stand alone yet give you enough to want to go back and read the others... not prompt you to read previous books in the series to smooth out the tangle. 

That said, I kept reading. (a book has to be HORRIBLE for me to not finish reading to The End). I was pleased to see that all of the players had a purpose in bringing the story to a blessed Christmas conclusion. 

For the immediate confusion I am giving Christmas Comes to Morning Star:

With those four quills in mind I have gone back and picked up the first two books so I can read them all as a series.

As I type this (August 3, 2021)  Book 1 and Book 2 are available on Kindle for .99 eas. but you can pick up Book 1 as a FREE Read if you have Amazon Prime. 

You will find Charlotte through the Social Media Links below. Sadly, not all of the links on her page are direct - requiring you to sign in/ create an account first, as opposed to her account name. 

WEBSITE   FACEBOOK    TWITTER   B & N  GOODREADS   BOOK BUB

   AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE

My Korean War research series continues tomorrow. 

All my best

~Angela

MOTIVATION MONDAY

 

Good morning, everyone!

Another month is behind us... as well as Camp Nano. I can say without reservation that I did not meet my goal for July. I just can't write in chaos and my office/ studio has been a disaster. My goal has been to get that space organized so that I will have my peaceful writing space back. 

Since this picture was taken, I've made a new sofa cover but the area is a complete disaster at the moment. The sofa is buried beneath my sem-day job as a Stampin' Up! demonstrator. That's been the project I've been working on. As I said in last week's post (or the week before) putting it out there is a great motivator. I need my space back so I hope to have reclaimed my sanctuary by next week. 

Bob leaves tomorrow - opening up my week to really dive in.

* Dedicated writing time

* August blog posts scheduled

* Continuing work on the conference items

* Following up with Burroughs

Note: I'm writing this post a couple weeks ahead. I can do that thanks to my planner. By the time this airs I hope to have heard back from my editor at Burroughs and gotten the rights back to Somewhere Down the Line. If that's the case than an additional task will be added to my list of cleaning the manuscript up (can't believe the mistakes they put back in after we'd taken them out during edits!) as well as getting my new cover ordered

That's a full week for me. What's on your agenda?  Please share in the comments below and we'll motivate each other! 

All my best

~Angela