Kate Lloyd's Blog, page 2
April 22, 2025
Spring Cleaning Giveaway!
As you can imagine if I’m just thinking about finding information on Spring Cleaning that I haven’t even started yet. My husband and I have joked that it’s too bad one of us isn’t compulsively neat. My sister has always been much neater than I am. We were brought up in the same household and share common DNA, so why is she already done with her spring cleaning? Plus, she’s planted and tidied up her garden.
Piper still remembers this unpleasant Spring Cleaning in our bath tub. The kitchen is the hub of our house. Ach, I just noticed our kitchen windows need cleaning bigtime! Oh my, dust, dust, dust! I didn’t realize the mantle above our small fireplace in the kitchen was so dusty. I removed photos of our grandkids, switched out a light bulb in our small lamp with its pleaded shade (more opportunities for dust to accumulate) only to find out that all the light bulbs I tried to replace it with were burned out. One small dusting leads to another?
I love drop-in guests but shudder to think they’ll see the dust bunnies hiding under the couch. This is the time of year to clean!
Next on my agenda is putting away wool clothes. In the old days I used mothballs to protect them from those pesky moths. The smell reminds me of my grandmother’s huge closet filled with trunks and boxes containing fabric and clothes. The aroma propels me back to my childhood. I referred to a closet much like it in one of my Amish books. These days I use cedar blocks and chips that come in bags and a cedar trunk. Love that cedar aroma! I’ve heard from more than one source that the sense of smell remains more distinct than any other sense.
Should I sift through my bookshelves and weed out my old books? I tend to hang on to books I’ve liked and reread them. I can always fin an excuse to hang on to my books.
Yet I’m always looking forward to my next new read by authors I’ve enjoyed. One such writer is versatile and talented Suzanne Woods Fisher. Her new book is available for pre-order and will release May 6th. Can’t wait!
Get a copy of Capture the Moment here. 
Piper has so many friends that it’s hard to know which one to use in my next book! 
I was delighted to be asked to endorse this wonderful book!
Purchase a Copy Here
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March 20, 2025
Congratulations
Please help me congratulate Sherry B., winner of my $100 Amazon gift card giveaway! Many thanks to all who entered. I appreciate each and every one of you!
March 13, 2025
Season of Change + a Giveaway!
I’m not a big fan of change, so of course I don’t like the fact that our postal carrier of over 30 years is retiring soon. I’ll miss him! How to bid him farewell and to honor him is a subject buzzing around the hood, as neighbors fondly call our neighborhood. He’s not retiring for a couple of weeks so thankfully we still have time to figure it out.
Not only that, Piper’s and my favorite UPS driver is retiring in a couple of months. Sigh. We’ll miss him too!
I feel the same resistance to resetting my many battery-run clocks again. I’m not finished yet, but change them I must. Unless I want to move to a state where there is no flip-flopping in time twice a year.
My sister was delighted to swap out her winter clothing weeks ago—on the early side. Me? I’m hanging on to my warm fleece zip-ups and vests because temperatures will likely drop again. Or not. Raincoats are a must all year.
I do enjoy glimpses of change such as the spring blooms like daffodils and hellebores that Piper and I see when we’re out walking. We live in an area with many varieties of flowering cherry trees, although most aren’t in bloom yet. I adore seeing the first evidence of cherry blossoms! Eventually the University of Washington campus will have a spectacular array.
Piper on one of our daily walks.
Something else I never grow weary of? New books to read! Where do I search for new books? I find reading @themaryreader on Instagram most rewarding. I love the fabulous Mary Jackson’s reviews!
And I never grow tired of throwing $100 Amazon gift card Giveaways! Enter HERE for a chance to win! The winner will be announced next week on March 20th and will be contacted via email.
a Rafflecopter giveawayIf you haven’t done so already, please sign up to receive my Newsletter to keep updated about my writing and future Giveaways. Thanks so much!
January 21, 2025
Congratulations
Please help me congratulate Linda Z., winner of a $100 gift card and one of my books. Many thanks to all who entered. I appreciate each and every one of you!
January 14, 2025
Working On Something New + A Giveaway
I am one of the slowest readers in the world because when I see an unusual word, a unique turn of phrase, a new idea on the page, I ponder it. I’ve been known to read a book through twice and circle words and phrases of interest. This concept was introduced to me by friend/author/literary agent Nick Harrison at a writers’ conference.
I am also a slow writer because I like to ponder my characters, location, and plot. To dig deeper than deep. I’m writing another Amish novel but it’s too early to tell you more—other than I’m in Amish country. I’ve learned that it’s best not to relate your story ahead of time for fear of deflating the story’s energy. I gleaned this concept from Becoming a Writer a book written in 1934 by Dorothea Brandt.
More on my next novel to come! Ach, so much to do!
A common sight in Lancaster County.
Speaking of Amish authors, Linda Byler Is a member of the Old Order Amish church. She writes her books by hand because she’s not allowed to use the Internet. She is not on my newsletter e-mail list because she doesn’t go online since it’s forbidden by the Ordnung, the rules that Old Order Amish must obey. How do I know she’s Old Order Amish? Because I’ve been to her home in Pennsylvania and eaten at her table. A lovely woman and hostess who has helped me check my facts in a way that no one else can. Linda told me she writes her books by hand and that “I can’t miss what I’ve never known.”
I was delighted to find that Linda Byler wrote several books that I had yet to read—until last month anyway. One romance novel I enjoyed is Who is Mary?
Why do I love writing about Lancaster County, PA? For one thing, it’s an area I know well thanks to my husband’s driving me across the county many times. And it’s the home of my dear Mennonite relatives. And I love horses. I started riding at an early age, went to summer camp with horses, and took equestrian as my college sport. One of my characters from Snowbound on Skye (Amazon | Barnes & Noble) is an Amish nanny from Lancaster County. What fun I had writing about Lydia and her the fallout from her radical decisions!
I hope you enter my Giveaway for a chance to win an Amazon $100.00 gift card plus one of my books! Snowbound on Skye or another of my books if you’ve already purchased a copy. US only. The winner will be announced on Tuesday, January 21st, and has three days to respond to my email.
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December 11, 2024
The Most Wonderful Time of Year + a Giveaway
Is this the most wonderful time of the year or are you trudging along in gloominess while your mind skips ahead of itself thinking of what you need to do before the end of the year?
A good friend recently shared with me how much she hates being cold. And dark.
Which makes me think about the winter solstice. Are we almost there? I’m ready for more daylight!
The darkest season can be brightened and uplifting by giving. Once out shopping for presents or at home sitting at my computer I find much on sale—one of my favorite words. But wait, I remind myself, do I have space to put those clothes and items away? Wouldn’t I be better off finishing my new manuscript? Or making my yearly donations to charitable organizations. I must not forget that giving really is better than receiving!
If you’re in the mood for winter romances, I recommend reading
An Amish Christmas Table: Four Amish Christmas Sweet Romance Stories written by four authors I admire: Tracy Fredrychowski, Mindy Steele, Rachel J. Good, and Jennifer Beckstrand. I hope An Amish Christmas Table brings joy, laughter, and a touch of Amish magic to your holiday season!
Please help me celebrate the season by entering my $100 Amazon Gift Card Giveaway plus one of my books
a Rafflecopter giveaway USA only. The winner will be notified by email that she or he won the gift card and a book! Winner has three days to respond. Winner announced on December 17th. Good luck to all who enter!
Sign up Here to receive my newsletter to hear my latest announcements and hear about future giveaways! Now, back to reading, writing, and nibbling on chocolates!
Wishing you a joyful December! May your days be merry and bright!
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I always enjoy books by this author and this one is no exception!
Michelle P.October 24, 2024
Sweepstakes!
Do you enjoy sparkly lights draped around your yard all year—the way I do? How about a string of colored lights over the living room mantle? I admit that I never put mine away!
Lights on our mantel all year round. My mother sculpted the carolers.
Magnificent Mt. Baker where I have skied many times.
Does spying a snowy mountain peak make you smile? We have mountains aplenty in the PNW so I can usually catch a glimpse, unless we’re socked in.
Have you entered my Sweepstakes by leaving a short online review of Snowbound on Skye? If so, then you have already entered!
C. Weaver was my first winner of a $30 Amazon Gift card, chosen at random.
Two more weeks and two Sweepstakes winners to go.
Easy to enter. Leave a short online review anywhere and send the link to me at info@katelloyd.com to enter.
The winner will be picked at random. Thanks to everyone who has already left a short online review! You are already entered.
Leave a review on Amazon Leave a review on Barnes & NobleI find myself being drawn toward Christmas already. That’s the power of snow! And one reason I wrote Snowbound on Skye. Have you started reading Christmas books? I always love RaeAnne Thayne’s books and can’t wait for my copy of The December Market to arrive. I fell in love with the cover!
Piper and I on the beach with Mt. Baker in the background
Best wishes, Kate
PS: I hope everyone has requested Snowbound on Skye at your public library. Thanks!
October 8, 2024
Congratulations
Please help me congratulate Brenda, winner of my $100 gift card and Snowbound in Skye Many thanks to all who entered. I appreciate each and every one of you!
October 1, 2024
Happy Birthday to Snowbound on Skye and a Giveaway!
Yay and hurrah, my new book Snowbound on Skye is available in Paperback and eBook!
I’m so excited I want to do cartwheels—if only I could—and dance the highland fling!
Click here to purchase a copy of Snowbound in Skye
I think writing a fiction book is akin to completing a patchwork quilt. I stand in awe of people who sew them even if I can’t manage the task myself. I suppose that first the quilter envisions the design and patterns, then imagines the colors, and finally completes the arduous task of sewing all the pieces together and attaching the back. Oh, my!
Yet fiction authors must imagine a plot, and then create the characters, and fabricate a unique plot. No wonder my writing keeps me up at night!
I’m often asked where my characters come from. Honestly, they seem to sprout from the back of my mind when I’m journalling or walking Piper, my cairn terrier, and demand to be brought to life on the page.
Who are my characters in Snowbound on Skye? A single woman who owns a used bookstore, her cooking-show diva sister and her daughter, plus her Amish nanny who venture to the Isle of Skye in search of adventure, healing, and possibly love. Anyone who follows my writing knows there is sure to be a good dose of love!
Why set the story on the Scottish Isle of Skye? For one thing, I love my time spent in Scotland, the Isle of Skye, and the Scots in general! To learn more about my Scottish heritage please check out last month’s blog post.
Why a snowstorm? Snow is something that I adore any time of year! I’ve even gone skiing on nearby Mount Baker on July 4th! Hey, that sounds like a fantastic plot for another book, when I have a novel half-finished that begs for attention.
Help me celebrate Snowbound on Skye’s birth by entering for a chance to win a $100 Amazon Gift Card plus a copy of Snowbound on Skye or another of my books if you’ve already purchased a copy. US only. The winner will be announced on Tuesday, October 8th, and has three days to respond to my email. Only by responding to my email can you win.
If you haven’t done so already, please sign up to receive my Newsletter to keep updated about my writing and future Giveaways. Thanks so much!
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September 17, 2024
Congratulations
Please help me congratulate Brenda Burt Wheeler, the winner of my $100 Amazon gift card giveaway. Many thanks to all who entered. I appreciate each and every one of you!
