Angela Sage Larsen's Blog, page 3

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Girl Sees Hearts

I’m freaking out a little. It’s so cool! I found my heart twin! “Using his iPhone, Eric Telchin [Boy Sees Hearts] has photographed these and 4,000 other heart-shaped objects since first spotting a heart-shaped puddle of chocolate ice cream on his kitchen counter in July 2009,” says Publisher’s Weekly. And he’s got a book. And he says, “Love is all around if you pay attention.” When I look at his pics (taken with his iPhone) they could’ve come right off of my iPhone! (But he’s been so awesomely dedicated at taking it to a whole new level.)

Yesterday, Whit laughed at me when I stopped dead in a busy QT gas station parking lot to look at schmutz on the ground that was a perfect heart. (I didn’t snap a picture because the truck coming up behind me wasn’t interested in using the brakes.) Whit’s gotten used to me yelling “Heart!”–though one of us may be in the middle of a sentence–because I see a heart.

Then there’s this post I wrote about hearts I photograph. And so many pics on Facebook. And on Instagram. And my Pinterest heart board. And my tumblr. I LOVE THAT HEARTS ARE EVERYWHERE!!!  I can’t wait to get Eric’s book (and check out his other products, like the alphabet! In the mean time, check out Eric’s daily heart(s) here.

My latest heart:

Even in the cold of winter:::LOVE.

And still my favorite:

My favorite!! This says it all.

And the winner is…

Congratulations to the winner of Fifties Chix Book 3 (Third Time’s a Charm) Giveaway on Heather Vogel Frederick’s blog!! If you didn’t “win”, remember you can always check out the Fifties Chix series for yourself in ebook or print form on Amazon, Barnes & Noble (including BN.com), my publisher’s website or in bookstores. Only a few more months and book 4, Broken Record will be out, so stay tuned!

Happy reading,

It’s Fifties Chix3 Birthday–and YOU get the gift!

HAPPY LAUNCH DAY, Fifties Chix: Third Time’s a Charm!! Today, the third book is OH-fficially available in print wherever books are sold!! To help me celebrate (because she likes any excuse for a partay), author of the fantabulous Mother-Daughter Book Club series, Heather Vogel Frederick* had me over to her blog for a GIVEAWAY. It is so cozy over there; she didn’t even make me take off my shoes, but I wanted to anyway (I was wearing clean, fluffy socks. Plus, I’m speaking metaphorically, so don’t worry).

Check out my interview with her here and then comment on her blog and join the Fifties Chix Fan Club and voila–you are entered to win a signed paperback copy of Fifties Chix: Third Time’s a Charm! (Giveaway ends at midnight January 23rd; one winner will be chosen at random and announced here on this and Heather’s blog on January 24th. US/Canada only, please.)

*Be sure and congratulate Heather on her nomination for an Oregon Book Award for her book, Once Upon a Toad!!

I’m off to go eat some birthday cake while I write the fifth Fifties Chix book, Till the End of Time!

Happy launch day and happy reading,

Sneak Peek at Book 3 via eBook Sale!

I love all of my offspring (my paper children, my word infants, my book babies!), but this one, my tenth book and the third book in the Fifties Chix series, is extra special (please don’t tell the others. Especially book 4, which I am writing now). In Third Time’s a Charm, we got World War II history, Civil War history, the 1950s and present day. We’ve got twists, turns, new characters, old characters, maps and family trees, questions, answers and mysteries. Really, the only thing this book doesn’t do is gush delicious chocolate onto a spoon and feed you (and if you discover that is does, will you please include that in your review of the book?).

HOWEVER, no birth comes without lots of, uh, growth for the mother, often times the result of unexpected challenges. Our little challenge with FC baby #3 is that we’ve been promoting a 99¢ sale! But…

…due to circumstances beyond our control, we were just notified that Amazon has changed their pricing structure and will no longer allow us to sell Fifties Chix: Third Time’s a Charm for less than $1.99.  To make up for this unexpected change in Amazon’s policy, my awesome publisher [midwife?]–who wants you to read happy–is offering to send you a promo code for $1.00 off any of the Fifties Chix print titles. Just email me proof of your purchase of Third Time’s a Charm ebook and I’ll email you the promo code.*

We love Fifties Chix readers and are so grateful for your support…we want you to read happy, always. And we still need your help getting Fifties Chix: Third Time’s a Charm to #1 on Amazon! (And it’s still a bomb-diggity price at under two bucks!).

Thanks for understanding and thanks in advance for spreading the word about Fifties Chix positive message for young teen readers–and getting Third Time’s a Charm to #1 today!

Here’s how:

1) Click here to go to Amazon.

2) Click “Buy as Gift” or “Buy Now” yellow buttons on right. Gifts (link to ebook) will be emailed to recipient (can be read on computer, phone or ereader).

3) Read happy.

4) Email me your proof of purchase of the ebook so I can email you the promo code for a dollar off any Fifties Chix print book*

*Promo code good for Fifties Chix books purchased on FastPencilPremiere’s website.

Next week: 1/15/13 — Snafu-free launch of the print book of Third Time’s a Charm! It’s a girl! (Um, it’s five girls, actually…)

Happy reading!

Look for the helpers, look for the good

I’m convinced it’s still September, so watching the snow fall and realizing it’s the last day of 2012 is a surreal experience. Before I look ahead to 2013, I’m looking back on 2012 with a grateful heart. Oh, that doesn’t mean that there isn’t an impossibly long list of challenges in 2012–many of which the general public will never know about–but it does mean that however long that list is, the good outweighs (outlists?) it. Always. One of my favorite quotes that was shared during the shock of the Sandy Hook tragedy was by Mister Rogers who said his mother told him to look for the helpers in times of catastrophe. So as I look back on 2012, I am grateful for the “helpers” — my husband, family, friends,  readers, fans, co-workers (I’ll call them co-visionaries) and most of all, those sweet, divinely good thoughts that have come gently whispering in the darkest moments, assuring me that all is well.

Happy New Year…and happy old one, too.

Nonviolence requires putting down my own weapons first

I did not handle it well. I burst out sobbing and it kept happening throughout the day. My usual practice is to pray; in my world, that means quietly turning to God, that divine presence of Love that forever abides in each of our hearts, and ask, “Well, what do You say about all this?” But I felt blocked from doing that yesterday. Rage, disdain, grief, and yes, fear and all its What Ifs choked the willingness to be humble right out of me. Or so it felt. I even had these horrible thoughts, how can we help children [as so many of us have been called to do] when we can’t even protect them at school? And there were more horrible thoughts, but that’s not the point.

I searched for who to blame; the list I came up with was long (I’ll spare you the deets).  I wanted to have the Gun Control Discussion NOW so that I could convey the rage, disdain, grief, and fear I was feeling. [OH. You mean like someone who would go to a school, a mall, a parking lot, and try to convey their rage, disdain, grief and fear with a gun? ] Gently, softer and more powerful thoughts began to dawn. My husband’s full time job yesterday was providing comfort and empathy, letting me talk and reminding me what we both know. He posted on Facebook, “Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me.” I let those words wash their light over me. I could do something; I can do something everyday. Not respond to or with rage, disdain, grief and fear, not let those become who I am, not let those inspire my words. Yes, have the Gun Control Discussion, and all the others that need to be had, but not out of rage, disdain, grief and fear. Out of compassion, intelligence, empathy, respect, tenderness, eagerness to learn. All of those are childlike qualities. The best way to honor those sweet children at Sandy Hook and all our children is to express those qualities like a floodlight when the darkness encroaches. And of course, if I cherish non-violence, I must not respond either out of violent feelings or with violent words.

It’s been said if you want to change the world, change how you think about the world; to me this is how peace reigns in the world…it starts with me, how I see the world and how I tenderly nurture it in my thought. It’s the only way I can function today as I go to write for children, reminding them that life is fundamentally good, that the light always beats out the darkness and that their qualities are relevant, needed and worthy.

I’m embarrassed that my first response was to be overwhelmed by feelings of violence. But this is a learning and growing time for all Americans; we have some very hard discussions up ahead. So let’s show how much we value our children by emulating their innocence, affection, tenderness, eagerness, and spontaneous joy as we begin individually with ourselves to manifest earth’s natural state: peace.

I’m grateful to God who is present in every heart, showing us the way to love and revealing what is true despite the horrific images presented about the nature of man. I’m so grateful for you (whoever you are reading this), my family, my friends, my church, and the millions of strangers I don’t know. Thank you for all that you are doing to manifest peace and light and love. It is working.

#1, Baby (again)

Woot! Thanks to all the Fifties Chix fans who took Keeping Secrets (book 2) straight to number one on Amazon yesterday!!

Both Travel to Tomorrow and Keeping Secrets are bestsellers!

If you missed the 99¢ sale yesterday, no worries, my publisher has told me the sale goes on today! So grab your ebook here. And if you just aren’t sure, check out this list and see if you qualify for any of these reasons to buy.

Happy reading! And … thank you! ♥

 

Keeping Secrets is HERE!

I can’t believe it’s really here! I’m so excited!! It’s the long-awaited second Fifties Chix book, Keeping Secrets! Please help us get Fifties Chix: Keeping Secrets on the Amazon bestseller list (like you all did with Travel to Tomorrow) and grab your ebook for just 99 cents. And read it…and enjoy!

(Paperback comes out November 15! Woot! See all the fun events we have planned here)

Thank you! And happy reading,

My Adoption Story

November is National Adoption Awareness Month! I’m a big fan of adoption because I am adopted. Every adoption story is different; some kids or babies are adopted by other members of their birth families, some kids never meet or know their birth parents or families, some kids never even know they’re adopted (or find out when they are adults). But the idea of adoption is so powerful: bringing people together to make a family. There are currently over 100,000 kids in foster homes waiting for permanent homes!

My story is that my natural parents divorced when I was an infant and my mom remarried a couple of years later. She, her new husband, and my biological dad all decided that it would be best for me to have her new husband adopt me. That’s the clean and simple version. There was a lot of soul-searching and prayer on everybody’s part; including my grandparents on my biological dad’s side who didn’t want to lose me. It’s easy to say, “I want to adopt someone;” but much harder to say, “I’m willing to put my child up for adoption” (and then go through with it).

I’m eternally grateful for how my adoption story ended. My dad–that is, the man who adopted me–provided a loving home and encouraged me to be of service to my community and the world, follow my dreams as an artist and a writer, and passed his sense of humor to me. He’s inspired me to be a strong woman and person. My dad and my mom made sure that I stayed in regular contact with my biological dad who is also a good man. He is someone I would want to be friends with and have in my family even if we weren’t related. He is creative, funny, and warm. Both “dads” have supported me financially and encouraged my endeavors. Both were present at my wedding. I’m most thankful for how well everyone has gotten along over the years. Even if it was hard at times, I never knew about it. They worked it out.

Me and my two dads (no, this is not a sit-com. But it could be). Biological parents on the left, adopted dad on the right. Can I just add, what a fabulous hat my mom is wearing!

Being “half” adopted has shown me that family has little to do with bloodlines and DNA. My sense of family has always felt expanded and open and I think it’s helped me to be an inclusive and loving person. Their example of creating a harmonious transition and maintaining it has also helped me to be forgiving of others, and I think–generally!–pretty well-adjusted.

I’m grateful to live in a country that celebrates adoption every day, but especially to have a month to focus on it. It’s so important that we all expand our sense of family and see each other as one big family–God’s children. In a sense, we’re all adopted by our parents because God is our Father-Mother

If you have an adoption story you’d like to share, go on over to my Fifties Chix site, where we’re introducing Emily, a character who makes her debut in books 2 and 3 of the Fifties Chix series (Keeping Secrets, due out this month! and Third Time’s a Charm, due at the beginning of 2013). Share your adoption story by posting here, post the link of the Fifties Chix “Meet Emily” page (and your post on it) to Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, or your blog (and share the link with us) and you are eligible to win one copy each of Travel to Tomorrow and Keeping Secrets!