Shelley Shepard Gray's Blog, page 6

Feeling Very Thankful

Today just happens to be On-Sale Day for my novel Thankful. Of course, I’m very excited about the opportunity to share my novel with readers, as well as the chance to see the book on store shelves. That feeling never gets old.

But because of the book’s title, and the theme running through the book, about remembering to get thanks for all things, my mind has drifted in that direction quite a bit, too.

Though I’m thankful for many things, I have to say that I am especially thankful for something that happened just last weekend-our son’s college graduation. He graduated on Saturday, and my husband and I flew down to his university in Alabama to see the big event.

As we found our seats in that very crowded coliseum, my mind drifted back through the years. Some things, like car pools and baseball games and making peanut butter sandwiches (boy, did I make him a lot of peanut butter sandwiches!) were a blur. But other things are so fresh in my mind, they could have happened just yesterday. Like all those afternoons when I sat with him at the kitchen table and helped him with his homework. Or making up silly songs to help him memorize his spelling words.(E-U-R-O-P-E, Europe is the place to be) We celebrated good report cards and worried over those not-so-good ones.

I remember nervously watching the mail for college acceptance letters…and, of course, dropping him off at college for the very first time. Yes, I cried the whole two-hour drive to the airport!

Someone asked if I cried during his graduation, and I shook my head. It didn’t even occur to me! He was happy, so I was happy, too. Even after all these years, his happiness still means the world to me.

This week I’ll be writing a letter to my Amish girlfriend and I’ll fill her in on all the graduation festivities. Over the years, I’ve shared with her my worries and dreams for our son, just as she’s offered me advice and confided in a thing or two to me.

That’s why I know she’s going to be interested how graduation went. I know she’s going to share my joy about hearing his name announced, and feel my pain when we packed up his very messy apartment!

Her friendship is something I will also be giving thanks for this week. Though she and I might live very different lives, we both enjoy many of the same things. We can laugh together, and sit quietly together, too. We can trust each other enough to be ourselves, which to me is something to always cherish.

What are you especially thankful for today?

Wishing you many blessings,

Shelley Shepard Gray

Pinterest Scavenger Hunt This Week!

Join us for a Pinterest Scavenger Hunt!  Questions will be posted on Facebook and on my website from April 14-20, 2014.  The answers to the questions can be found here:  http://www.pinterest.com/shelleysgray/  Not on Pinterest?  You can still find the answers by using this link.  Answers must be submitted to Laurie at laurie4ssg@gmail.com by Sunday, April 20th, to be entered into a drawing to win one of six copies of Redemption in paperback!  If you answer the bonus question correctly, your name will be entered into the drawing three times.  Winners will be announced on April 21st.  Have fun and good luck!

Questions:

1.      1.   Which pin on the Quilt Board has the greatest number of repins?

2.      2.  There are two pins of Psalm 118:24 on the Sayings and Scriptures Board.  This verse provided inspiration for Wanted.  What picture is on the Psalm 118:24 Wanted pin?

3.      3.  Two characters in Hopeful have a discussion about adoption.  How many orphans are there worldwide, according to the Adoption Statistics pin on the Hopeful Board?

4.      4.  Shelley loves to bake.  Whose cookbook has been pinned on the About Shelley Shepard Gray Board?

5.      5.  Find the pin labeled “Shelley Shepard Gray’s writing desk” on the Writing Spaces and Reading Places Board.  What was Shelley sipping when the photo was taken?

6.      6.  How many Coconut Cream Pie recipes are pinned on the Pie Recipes Board?

7.      7.  How many bunnies are shown in the pin of the Burlap Bunny Table Runner on the Easter Board?

 BONUS:  How many times have CHRISTMAS books have been pinned on the Shelley Shepard Gray Books Board?  Be careful!

 

Sales and Sweepstakes and Bonus Chapters!

Hi Everyone!

I’ve been in the middle of several deadlines, which means I haven’t gotten to do much of anything besides write, revise, or edit. I’ve been slowly counting the days until May for three wonderful reasons:

1) I’ll be turning in The Promise of Palm Grove, the first book in my Amish Brides of Pinecraft Series. Yay!

~and~

2) Our son will be graduating college. Yay! and Yay! Again!

3) Finally, THANKFUL  goes on sale Tuesday, May 6.  I loved this book and I hope you will, too.

Before all of these things happen, I hope you will consider some of the following fun things that are happening as we prepare for THANKFUL’s big day:

* The folks at my publisher are offering a fun incentive for those of you who would like to pre-order THANKFUL! If you click on the tab on my FaceBook Author Page-or this link: https://a.pgtb.me/4RD476, you can get an extra scene for the Sugarcreek Series! It’s a fun little scene called A Sugarcreek Surprise that I wrote especially for people who would like to pre-order a book.

* HOPEFUL, Book 1 of the Return to Sugarcreek Series, just went on sale! The e-book version is now only $1.99. If you’ve been wanting to get started on this series, I hope you’ll give HOPEFUL a try.

* We’re also offering a Sweepstakes until the end of April! The prize is a really good one-an Amish-made quilt wall hanging (2 foot square), a Kindle, and a signed copy of Thankful. To enter, please visit my FB Author page. (There’s a tab for this, too!) Or try this link: https://a.pgtb.me/l31lkW

 * Last but not least, I’ll be hosting a FB chat on Thursday, April 24, @6:00 pm, EST. These chats are very, very fun. We give away prizes every 15 minutes. I ask questions, y’all ask questions, we give things away…I so look forward to these chats! This time, we’re going to give away a signed Days of Redemption Trilogy, two $25.00 gift cards, and a signed, Amish made doll.  

Whew! I guess that’s it for now. Everyone, thank you for your interest in my books and for being so wonderful, too!

Wishing you many blessings…and the chance to enjoy some sunny spring days, too!

Shelley

Hello, Again

Hi! Just a few minutes ago I had to look at my phone to figure out whether it was Wednesday or Thursday. That can mean only one thing-I’ve been buried in a book. Today I handed the second draft off of Deception at Copper Hill to a dear friend who is my Beta Reader. She reads my whole book before I turn it into my editors and offers suggestions. Now that she has it for a few days, I can take a deep breath and get organized!

Deception at Copper Hill (working title) is the sequel to Secrets of Sloane House, my 1893 Chicago Mystery that will be published at the end of July. When I saw my Amish friend last week, (she was in town seeing a girlfriend of hers) I gave her an advanced copy of Sloane House. I just received a letter from her, saying that she read it the entire bus ride back to Sugarcreek and that she loved it! That makes me really happy.

Thank you to all of you who take the time to follow my here and on Facebook. I’m grateful for each and every one of you!

Wishing you many blessings today.

Shelley

 

 

Twenty Things About Twenty Books for Avon Inspire

HOPEFUL marks a pretty big occasion for me. It’s my 20th Amish romance to be published by Avon Inspire, and what a journey it’s been!

I thought I’d commemorate the occasion by sharing 20 tidbits about writing these books. If you’ve read some of the novels, I hope you’ll find these ‘behind the scenes’ notes kind of fun.

If you’ve never read any of my books~I hope you’ll be tempted to give one of my books a try!

So, here are 20 thoughts about my books, in no particular order:

·        PEACE was the easiest to write, mainly because I had known I wanted to write Chris and Beth’s story from the moment I finished The Search. I wrote PEACE in just about a month.

·        AUTUMN’S PROMISE was the hardest, mainly because of Lilly Allen. I had planned to make her become Amish the whole time I was writing the series. But when I was writing the last 60 pages or so, I couldn’t do it. Days went by when I’d stare at the computer, getting more stressed out. When I started crying at the dinner table, my husband had to remind me that Lilly wasn’t real. (the things my husband has to put up with!)

·        The prologue for HIDDEN was written in about an hour on a Friday night, after I had already completed revisions. My editor sent me a quick email asking me to write a scene showing just how scared Ana really was of her fiancée, I wrote it, she edited it, I approved it, and then it went to the copy editor. It was a crazy night!

·        My favorite character in the original Seasons of Sugarcreek books was Anson. I taught elementary school for about 10 years, and he reminded me of some of those squirrely boys in my classes.

·        Ella’s creepy friend Dorothy in The Protector wasn’t supposed to be in the book. But when she came along, I had so much fun writing about her scenes I let her stay~even though I was *sure* my editor was going to tell me she was too over- the-top. (She didn’t, and The Protector was my first book to be a bestseller and was nominated for the Carol Award.)

·        Each day before I would write Mattie’s scenes in the Families of Honor series, I would read a blog I had found on the internet that a 20 year old breast cancer patient was writing. Mattie’s scenes were some of the hardest things I’ve ever written. Every time she cried, I did too. Because of that, I never reread that series. That said, I’ve also received the most fan mail about Mattie and the Family of Honor books. I think Mattie’s journey touched a lot of people.

·        I wrote the quotes introducing each chapter in the Secrets of Crittenden County as an attempt for me to learn more about the elusive Perry Borntrager. I had assumed they’d be deleted by my editor, but she liked them too!

·        I pitched the storyline for Secrets of Crittenden County to my editor while we were eating lunch at a tapas restaurant in San Francisco. I was very nervous to tell her I wanted to begin a series with someone finding an Amish boy at the bottom of a well.

·        The setting for my first series, Sisters of the Heart is based on a small Amish community about an hour from my house. There is no ‘real’ Brennemen Bed and Breakfast, though I’m asked directions to it all the time.

·        Lovina Keim, the matriarch of the days of redemption series was my least favorite character for a very long time. After writing the first half of Daybreak, I highlighted all of her scenes and placed them in a file to be deleted! I was going to change her to be far more kind and loving~but then something made me keep her as she was. I’m glad I did.

·        I wrote A Christmas for Katie for fun, intending to maybe post it once a week as a serial. It was almost done when I received a contract for it.

·        Miriam and Kaylene read Little Women in Hopeful because that is my favorite movie to watch with my daughter. We know all the lines! I also wrote a term paper titled ‘A Literary Analysis of Little Women from the Feminist Perspective’ when I was in college.

·        The dachshund in Daybreak is based on Suzy, our 12 year old dachshund.  

·        We had a tough time coming up with Ray of Light’s title. It became a joke, (should it be titled noon? Midday? Afternoon?) The title came about because was listening to Pandora one day while I was writing and heard Madonna’s song, Ray of Light.

·        Everyone eats pie in my books because I really like pie. I usually have one character like coconut cream pie because that’s my favorite.

·        I asked a Denver Police Detective tons of questions while writing Missing, The Search, and Found. I also toured my town’s police station and asked them to show me where their holding cell was.

·        My biggest set of revisions was for The Caregiver, mainly because I had done so much research about Amtrak and the Toledo Zoo. Those scenes took up almost 100 pages. 100 boring pages! Most of it was cut, which meant I had to quickly write another 100 pages that weren’t boring.

·        The least amount of revisions was for GRACE. It was one of the few books I’ve written that I actually liked right away. It’s also my Amish friend’s favorite book.

·         Turns out I’m a fan of disasters. I had a fire in Forgiven, a tornado in The Survivor, Snowstorms in several books and a flood in Spring’s Renewal.

·        The characters are accident-prone, too! I’ve had heroines in the hospital in Forgiven, The Caregiver, The Protector, The Search, and in Eventide.

Looking forward to PLA

Next week, I’ll be heading to Indianapolis to attend a few events at the Public Library Association Conference.

  I especially excited about this trip because libraries and librarians are close to my heart. I grew up going to the Harris County Libraries in Houston, Texas, and have many fond memories of wandering around those stacks~and carrying as many books as my arms would hold!

One of my favorite libraries is in Mesa, Arizona. My first teaching contract was for Mesa Public Schools. I took a one year contract, got an apartment, and spent most of my time either preparing lesson plans for my fifth graders, grading papers, or fighting off the black crickets who somehow managed to sneak their way into my kitchen every night! (still afraid of those black crickets!)It was a hard year. I was lonely, tired, constantly sick (first year teacher side effect!), and missing my family and my fiancee.

But what I did have was that wonderful, oh-so-lovely Mesa Public Library. I went there every Saturday and checked out novels and mysteries, cookbooks and anything to do with Arizona. Then I would go to a nearby coffee shop, buy a blueberry muffin and a cup of coffee, and read and read and read. Bliss! Without a doubt, those Saturdays got me through that very tough year.

If you are a librarian, I hope you’ll stop by and say hi to me next Wednesday or Thursday! Here’s where I’ll be at the PLA:

* I’ll be  signing copies of HOPEFUL at the Harper Collins Booth from 5:00-6:00 pm on Wednesday, March 12.

* Signing DAYBREAK at the RWA Booth from 11:30 to 12:30 on Thursday, March 13

* Speaking at the Falling in Love Panel from 2:00-3:15 on Thursday, March 13 (Rooms 244-245)

* Signing RAY OF LIGHT after panel discussion, Thursday, March 13, @ 3:15pm

Wishing all of you many blessings today,

Shelley

REDEMPTION is on sale today!

Every once in a while, I write a book for fun.

Sometimes the pressure of having lots of deadlines gets to me and I want to remember why I started writing in the first place.  That’s when I remember sitting at my desk in my 6th Grade classroom, needing a break from grading papers, and making up that first story.

I wrote my first book back in 1998. It wasn’t good! It wasn’t even okay.  But I did love the process of writing a story, of developing characters who I would like to know. I loved imagining settings and dialogue. From the first, I loved writing. I still do.

A few years ago, after reading an article about how a few men in a conservative Mennonite church district enlisted in the Union Army during the Civil War, I had an idea for a story. Over the next year or so, I wrote a few pages of it in the evenings and on the weekends, just because it made me happy.  Next thing I knew, I had over 50 pages. Then I got brave and showed it to my critique partners and agent and editors. To my surprise, they liked the book, too!

And that is how REDEMPTION came to be.  It’s an ebook, and priced at just $2.99 at most online outlets. If you’re interested in my books, or historicals, or maybe in the mood to try something new, I hope you’ll give it a try!

 

Hope to See You in Sarasota!

We’re headed to Florida this week and I’m so excited! I’ll be there to research the Pinecraft Community in Sarasota and to do a couple of book signings! I’m also really looking forward to being warm! It’s been a long winter here in Ohio.

Here is our schedule of events. If you live in the area, I hope you’ll stop by to say hello!

Thursday, February 20, 2:00 pm

SELBY PUBLIC LIBRARY

1331 1st Street, Sarastoa, FL 34246

(941) 365-5228

Friday, February 21, 2:30 pm

SUNNYSIDE VILLAGE RETIREMENT COMMUNITY

5201 Bahia Vista Street, Sarasota, FL 34232

(941) 371-2750

Saturday, February 22, 2014, 12 pm

BOOKS A MILLION

6591 S. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota, FL 34231

(941) 922-7804

 

Sugarcreek Memories

I’m back home from Sugarcreek, but I do believe I’ll be thinking of my trip to Amish Country very fondly for weeks to come.

I signed lots of books, visited with readers and booksellers, and passed out lots of tote bags, pens, and bookmarks! I love chatting with folks about my books. I love being able to thank people for reading my books in person!

But…I also had a wonderful time simply walking around Berlin, Walnut Creek, and Sugarcreek.

Like much of the country, it was cold and snowy there. Beautiful! We saw tons of buggies, horses with blankets on them, and some really beautiful quilts.

I chatted folks at the Behalt (In the Amish and Mennonite Cultural Center) and asked lots of questions. And then I bought lots more books! And, of course, I found all kinds of things for future giveaways, including a lovely Amish doll and a darling quilt.

Lynne and Laurie and I ate all kinds of wonderful meals, including a very yummy breakfast with my Amish friend.

Hmm. I also managed to eat 3 pieces of pie and two cookies in 4 days.

One of my the highlights was my visit to Rodman Public Library in Alliance, OH.  Everyone there was so nice, and it was great fun to discuss libraries, books, give out mugs and totes, and even read out loud a couple of pages of HOPEFUL.

I can’t wait to go back again! But for now, it’s really time that I write, write, write! And get ready to go to Florida next week!

Chatting all about HOPEFUL

Getting ready for Sugarcreek!

See You In Sugarcreek!

In just a few minutes, I’ll be out the door with Laurie and Lynne and on our way to Amish Country! So happy to see sunny skies for our drive up north!

Here is my schedule for the next few days. If you can stop by, I hope you will! I’ll be signing HOPEFUL and have new tote bags to give out.

Thursday, February 6  6:00 pm

Speaking and Chatting and Signing at the Farmhouse Restaurant in Berlin!

This restaurant is located right next to the Berlin Grande Hotel.

The Gospel Bookstore is in charge of this event. Here’s all their information:

The Gospel Bookstore, 4900 Oak Street, Berlin, OH 44610, 330-893-2523

Friday, February 7, Noon to 2:00 pm

Signing at the Dayspring Christian Bookstore

143 W. High Ave., New Philadelphia, OH 44663, 330-343-4881

Saturday, February 8, 10:00 am to Noon

Signing and Reading at The Gospel Shop in Sugarcreek!

112 E. Main St., Sugarcreek, OH 44681 (330) 852-4223

Saturday, February 8, 3:00-5:00 pm

Signing and Reading at the Rodman Public Library

215 E. Broadway St. Alliance, OH 44601, (330) 821-2665