Lyn Cote's Blog, page 68

Lyn Cote Interviews Historical Author Laurie Kingery

I have the pleasure of interviewing Love Inspired Historical author Laurie Kingery today. She’s also offering a book giveawy so be sure to leave a comment!
Tell us a little about your writing and your real life, Laurie.

–I’m a Texan-in-exile living in rural central Ohio. I met my husband via eHarmony—it works! I’m a mother of two daughters, grandma of ten (with one more on the way!) I have three dogs, a collie, a sharpei-pitbull mix and a Bernese Mountain dog. In my “other life” outside of writing, I’m an emergency room RN of 42 years (4 more years to retirement, halleleujah! ?)

I’ve been published since 1987, having written my first 16 historicals in the general market as Laurie Grant. I switched to writing Christian fiction under my own name and have written eight books for Love Inspired Historicals with more on the way. Due to working hours at the other job being at night, I write in the afternoons, though of course at deadline time I’m writing more or less nonstop.

Was there a time in your life when you think God challenged you to become stronger? Please share.

There have been many challenging times—I think none of us through life without that, but I think the hardest one was when my previous husband left me for another nurse in the same ER I worked in. The Lord was very present and real to me during that time of heartbreak, and He sustained me during those years alone, enabling me to take care of a two-acre rural home by myself. I became stronger and more self-reliant during that time. Then He guided me to Tom, and “restored the years that the locusts have eaten” to use a Bible verse found in the book of Joel. Today, life is truly good and we are blessed.

What is special about your most recent book to you?

I enjoy writing “fish out of water” and “clash of culture” stories, and HILL COUNTRY CATTLEMAN is certainly both of those. Violet Brookfield is a disgraced English aristocrat, sister of a viscount, and must flee England just ahead of scandal when a libertine lord nearly ruins her good name. She thinks to bide her time with her brother and his wife in the hill country of central Texas where he has resettled, gathering material for the western novel she aspires to write until she can return to her earl, whom she believes will wait for her. She never counts on meeting her true love in the form of a real Texas cowboy, Raleigh Masterson—nor does Raleigh think an English noblewoman could ever fall for a landless fellow such as himself.

To purchase, click here. Hill Country Cattleman (Brides of Simpson Creek)

Violet thinks of religion as just another social duty, while Raleigh has recently come to faith during a near-disaster. But they have a love of horses in common, and when she discovers a way for Raleigh to win a ranch of his own in a horse race, she’s compelled to help him. And he helps her find her way to the Lord. I enjoyed writing this story because I believe that with God’s help, love will always find a way. And of course every Christian novel contains some sort of faith journey, and watching Violet come to faith on the screen before me was very rewarding.

Thanks, Lyn, for this opportunity to talk about HILL COUNTRY CATTLEMAN. I hope your readers will leave lots of comments for me to respond to, and or course one lucky commenter will win a copy of the book.” Blessings, Laurie Kingery

I love how candid my guests are about their struggles. And I love a happily ever after ending. And now we know eharmony.com works! Don’t forget to leave a comment to be entered into the book drawing.

QUESTION: Has anyone ever betrayed your trust? You don’t need to go into details, but please share any insight you gained from this dreadful event.–Lyn

My Sister Carole, The Smiling Cat Quilter!

Daisy-An Appliqué Cat

Hi-My name is Carole, and I’m so happy to be a guest on my sister’s blog. Though a longtime quilter, I only recently began writing a quilting & general sewing blog, where I share my projects. You can look me up at:

Author Danyelle Scroggins & The She-Ro in You

My guest today is Author Danyelle Sroggins. I discovered her through

Amish Author Kathleen Fuller & Finding Strength Within

My guest today is Amish Author Kathleen Fuller who is offering a GIVEAWAY and speaking to us about something we all find necessary to do. Here’s Kathy:

“Finding The Strength Within

In my latest release, Letters to Katie, the heroine, Katherine Yoder, may seem weak on the surface. At times she even considers herself weak, unable to free herself from her attraction to Johnny Mullet, a man who has never returned her affections. Throughout the story, Katherine is faced with several challenges that cause her to examine her faith and identity. Through those trials and by trusting God, she finds the strength she’s always possessed.

To purchase, click cover.

Women all over the world face a variety of challenges and trials that push them to the breaking point. At times these women need outreach, not only to help them become independent, but to discover the God-given strength within.

Zimele is such an outreach program.

Their mission is “To confront the root causes of poverty and remove the barriers to self-sufficiency by working with one woman and one community at a time until we reach all of South Africa, through the empowerment of these women with the skills, resources, and support networks to start businesses and social service projects to sustain not only themselves, but their families and communities.”

The scripture at the core of Zimele is 2 Corinthians 5:17-18—“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation.”

According to volunteer Tera Moore, she works with Zimele “because

of my love, appreciation and respect of women. All the women of Zimele want is an opportunity to be self-sufficient and support their community for themselves and future generations. Due to circumstances beyond their control, the ability to do that has been stripped away from them and we have an opportunity to help them get it back.”

Independence. Respect. Strength. These are qualities God has given us, and as Christians we are to support and care for one another. We see examples of that in our society, in Amish culture, and in other world cultures. But there is more work to be done, and we can accomplish it through the power of Christ and our love for others.

For more information about Zimele, visit their website at

A Celebration of Mothers and Daughters Begins with a Reader Story-An Easter Egg Hunt to Remember

Every May I encourage readers to send me stories of not only their mothers but women important in their lives. I have received the most touching stories and poems over the past three years. Do you have a poem or story you’d like to share? If so, please click the Contact button above and send it to me. I’ll be happy to post it. Susan Faloon gave me permission to share this email she sent me when thanking me for a book she received through the 2nd Annual Easter Egg Hunt by Love Inspired Historical group on GoodReads.

Here’s Susan:

“I think you may get a smile from what I was allowed to do last night. I’ve been without my father for 30 years but my 81-year-old mother is still quite active. The two of us sat in her living room for about an hour filling over 175 plastic eggs with candies. She had already fill nearly 100 in my sister’s car on her way home from a chemo treatment in her eye for macular degeneration.

Then, by moonlight we spread the eggs

all over my youngest sisters yard for my niece who is 25 and still can’t let Mamie’s Easter tradition go. It was funny to watch my mother sneaking around. This is the first time I’ve been allowed on this secret mission which she usually does for her grandchildren at 3 houses,( my two sisters and I).

 

After I got back home it really hit me what a gift I’ve been given.

I still get to have my mother who has had cancer, polio, survived a bad car accident and much more.  Despite knowing she is going blind she still did all of this for those she loves.  I got to share it with her.

 That was my Easter gift from God this year!

 

Hugs and prayers,” — Susan

Well, do you think that story was worth sharing? Do you have any memories of ways your mother or grandmother or aunt made a holiday special?  Please feel free to share.

REMEMBER: EVERY MAY I DO A WHOLE MONTH DRAWING OF THOSE WHO LEAVE COMMENTS. IN ADDITION TO REGULAR BOOK GIVEAWAYS, THERE WILL BE ONE BIG GIVEAWAY TO ONE PERSON. SO DON’T MISS ONE GREAT INTERVIEW OR STORY THIS MONTH AND BE SURE TO LEAVE A COMMENT.–Lyn

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What to Do When Google Reader is Gone

I don’t know if any of you noticed

but one othe major RSS feed services, Google Reader will cease to exist in July of this year. So how will you receive your subscription to this blog and any others you follow. Here’s the info.

 

March 19, 2013 · by

Debut Amish Author Jan Drexler & Grandma was a Fighter

My guest today is a brand new Love Inspired author Jan Drexler who has begun her career with an historical Amish story set in the Depression. Sounds interesting? Does to me. She’s also offering two copies of her book so be sure to add a comment at the end. Here’s Jan who is sharing the story of her grandmother, what a woman:

Grandma was a fighter.

The oldest of five girls, Grandma was the one who bore the brunt of the farm chores in 1918 when both parents became ill with the Spanish Flu.

Grandma was the one who kept the girls working when their mother became so crippled with rheumatoid arthritis that getting out of bed in the morning was an agony.

Grandma was the one whose dream to marry her college sweetheart and work beside him as a missionary in Nigeria was shattered when he went away to seminary and the relationship cooled.

Grandma was the one who left college to marry a troubled young man who lost his mother at an early age and had grown up in a home for the orphan poor.

Grandma faced the Great Depression

They set up housekeeping on a rented farm. The year was 1928. Their oldest son was born in May, 1929, and by fall of that year, the economic collapse leading to the Great Depression had begun.

But Grandma was a fighter.

That troubled young man loved the Lord, the church, and his family. Together they raised five children before his early death in 1951, leaving her with three young teenagers still at home.

She went back to college, earned her teaching certificate, and began supporting her family. She made a life for herself for twenty-five years – widowed, alone, and always finding ways to serve others.

Second Chance for love

And then one day she received a letter. It was her college sweetheart. He had married a wonderful woman, gone to Nigeria as a missionary, and had returned to make a life for himself and his family in California. But he was now a widower, and had learned she was also alone. Would she like to correspond?

Grandma was a fighter, but she also knew how to wait on the Lord, accepting the gifts He provided for her from His hand. She said yes, and romance blossomed once more.

Grandma married her college sweetheart at age 74, in a small ceremony attended by their families. Her two sons – both ordained ministers – officiated. They lived in California for ten years before spending the rest of their lives in her home town of Goshen, Indiana.

Grandma was a fighter and a storyteller, and I grew up listening to her stories.

In The Prodigal Son Returns, I took a snippet from Grandma’s life, and it became the story of Ellie Miller. Ellie is a young woman, widowed at an early age. In the middle of the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl years, she fights impossible odds to achieve the dream her husband had for their children – a home of their own. A farm to last for generations.

And like Grandma, Ellie discovers romance where she least expects it – but does she trust God enough to reach out to take the gift He’s giving her?”–Jan

To purchase, click here. The Prodigal Son Returns (Love Inspired Historical)

 This is what I love about inviting authors to guest on my blog. I hear such great stories. 

Question: Do you have any family stories about the Depression or WWI or the Spanish flu?

My great aunt Carrie died in that 1918 pandemic. Leave a comment to enter the drawing for one of the two books Jan is offering.”–Lyn

Website:

Lyn Interview Mystery Author Suzanne Young

Something I really enjoy about my kindle is being able to surf books that are bargains. And to me a bargain is not something cheap, but something of value for an enticing price. In this case, 99 cents. I discovered Suzanne Young’s books after reading Sarah Shaber’s Simon Shaw mystery series. Amazon suggested I would like Suzanne Young’s EDNA DAVIS MYSTERY series. And Amazon was right! I found Suzanne on

Author Merrillee Whren & A Place to Call Home

My guest today is a friend Merrillee Whren and she has a story to tell, a new book to share and one to give away! So don’t forget to leave a comment. Here’s Merrillee:

Three Strong Women

“There are any number of strong women in our family. I’d like to mention three today with an emphasis on my mother-in-law, Mary Whren, who passed away this past December. She was strong for her family and herself, as she fought against many health issues in her last days.

I believe my two daughters inherited their strength, in part, from their Grandma Whren. My older daughter battles Crohn’s disease, but she doesn’t let the disease keep her from leading a busy and fulfilling life. My younger daughter juggles family and work while she travels away from home for her job. My daughters loved their grandmother, as did all who knew her.

A Poem about a Grandma by a Granddaughter

Here is a glimpse into my mother-in-law’s life in a poem written by my younger daughter.

“Whether you knew Mary as sister, mother, aunt, Gram or friend

It certainly didn’t matter as her love knew no end.

There are so many stores and loving memories to be shared

It will never be a wonder of just how much she cared.

From bridge, to poker, to rummy of any kind

There wasn’t a card game that Mary wouldn’t find.

Always the life of the party

A laugh so fun and hearty

The love and light of her sons, granddaughters and family

She loved us all so lavishly

Mary will never be forgotten, just like her Irish roots

Now, reunited in heaven, May you Rest in Peace, Goots.”

In case you are wondering about that last word, Goots was Mary’s nickname—a strong name for a strong woman.

Merrillee’s New Book: 

To purchase, click here. A Place to Call Home

BLURB:

Molly Finnerty, the heroine of my latest book, A Place to Call Home, also has Irish roots. She is strong as she works to help abused women, but she grows stronger when she finally learns to forgive herself.

QUESTION: Do you ever find it hard to forgive yourself for something you’ve done? Why?”–Merrillee

Website:

Lyn Reviews Author Valerie Hansen’s Shadow of Turning