Dan Walsh's Blog, page 25

Gary Smalley in Heaven Now

 

If you haven’t already heard, I have some sad news to share. A great man of God is now–to use the apostle Paul’s words–”absent from the body and present with the Lord.” Gary Smalley died on Sunday, March 6th. Here’s a statement put out by his family yesterday:

It is with heavy hearts that we announce Dr Gary Smalley, at age 75, graduated to heaven last night. The family gathered and surrounded him, his loving wife Norma kissed his forehead gently and sang to him. This beautiful transition came to an end as these words were spoke over him “The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you.” (Numbers 6:24-25)

Gary was a bestselling author or co-author of over 60 books (6 million in print), a renowned marriage and relationship expert, and had been a sought-after speaker for the past 4 decades. He appeared regularly on national TV programs including Fox and Friends, Oprah and the Today show. He appeared on Focus on the Family’s national radio program over 50 times. Gary helped hundreds of thousands of couples learn the secrets of God’s idea for marriage through his books, videos and conferences.

My Experience with Gary

Some of you might know, I had the privilege of co-authoring 4 novels with Gary, called The Restoration series, between 2011-2014. Our relationship began with a phone call from my editor. She sounded pretty excited as she explained they had been interacting with Gary Smalley and his team for the last month or so. He had decided to work on another collaborative fiction project, similar to the books he had done with Karen Kingsbury ten years earlier (the Redemption Series based on the Baxter family).

At the time, Gary was still traveling a lot, so he gave his team an assignment to find a fiction author he could work with, whose writing had a similar emotional impact as Karen’s. That began a process of evaluating a sizable number of authors from different publishing houses. After Gary and I had become friends, his executive secretary shared with me a little of the process that led up to Gary’s decision to work with me.

She said the box that came from my publisher contained books from a number of authors, but I was the only male author in the bunch. She smiled as she told me (somewhat apologetically), “I decided to read your books last.” After all, Karen Kingsbury is a woman, and she connects with women very well. Women make up the majority of the fiction reading audience. But after reading a few chapters of each of the books in the box, she set them aside. They were nice but not what Gary was looking for.

Finally, only my books were left.

She started to read my first novel, The Unfinished Gift, and said she couldn’t stop reading it. She even rearranged her schedule around it and cried at the end. She picked up the second book, The Homecoming, and the same thing happened. She felt certain Gary would want to see these books, so she handed them to him as he headed out the door for his next trip. A few days later, after reading the novels, Gary called her back through tears to say, “Call Revell, I want to work with Dan.”

We worked closely together over the next 3 years writing the spiritual saga of the Anderson family (The Dance, The Promise, The Desire and The Legacy). After every chapter or two, I’d send them to Gary. He always read them right away and would get right back to me with any suggestions or encouragement. Which reminds me…he was always SO encouraging. In fact, he was a breeze to work with.

That was especially one of the great blessings of this chapter in my writing life. Getting to know Gary better. He was the real deal. Sometimes, disillusionment sets in the closer you get to someone famous. For me, the opposite was true. My respect for Gary grew stronger, the more time I spent with him and his family. Gary loved God, loved life, loved people and especially loved his wife of 52 years, Norma, and his family. And man, did he love his grandkids.

In fact Gary’s lasting legacy, probably to an even greater extent, is not the millions of books and marriage videos he has left for us, it is the treasure of his family. All 3 of Gary and Norma’s adult children and their spouses, are making a significant impact as they follow in their father’s footsteps championing the cause of Christain marriage and family life.

I’d like to end my tribute to Gary sharing these words I read on the Focus on the Family blog last night, from his son, Greg speaking about his Dad: “He was passionately committed to living out the greatest commandment: to love God with all his heart, soul, mind and strength and to love others as himself. He built his ministry on the concept of honor—treating others as priceless treasures. His favorite verse was Romans 12:10, ‘Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor’ (ESV). What I loved best is that who my dad was up on stage was exactly who he was at home. He spent his life honoring his wife and family and helping others have an intimate relationship with the Lord and a thriving marriage and family.”

That was certainly my experience. My life is richer for having gotten the chance to work with and become friends with Gary Smalley. This world is a richer place for the time he spent here.

Rescuing Finley Only 99 Cents

My 16th novel, Rescuing Finley has been out for 3 months now, and the reviews have been absolutely wonderful. I’ve decided to offer it on Sale this week only for 99 Cents (Kindle Unlimited customers get it for Free). The sale runs till the last day of February.

If you haven’t picked up your copy yet, CLICK HERE to get it. If you have, please forward this blog post to someone you know to help me spread the word (a fiction lover, a dog lover or anyone who loves our military).

Speaking of reviews, that’s always a challenging time for an author…waiting to see how your book is received once it’s released. I’ve been pleasantly surprised by how Rescuing Finley is connecting with readers. It’s already ranking with my best-reviewed novels (85 so far, averaging 4.7 Stars). That’s right up there with how my novels The Reunion and The Discovery were doing at this point.

Here are a few samples:

“I was completely engrossed in the tale…Walsh is an expert at crafting stories that warm your heart and touch your soul without being syrupy and overly sentimental.“

“I stayed up past my bedtime to finish this wonderful story of love and redemption. There are so many things I enjoyed about this book.”

“It’s been a long time since a book made me cry and it actually caught me by surprise! It is hard to describe this book in a few words — sweet, poignant, heartwarming, gut-wrenching are just a few I would choose.”

The Dance Still FREE 

My publisher has decided to extend offering The Dance for FREE to encourage readers to check out the award-winning Restoration Series (4 books co-authored with Gary Smalley).

The Dance, Book 1 of the series, released in 2013 received a Top Pick! review from RT Book Reviews magazine (their highest), won the Lime Award in the Contemporary Romance category and was a finalist for the Carol Award. It’s received 401 Amazon reviews, maintaining a 4.7 avg.

If you’d like to check it out, CLICK HERE

(I believe the Nook version is also available for Free)

I’ll say goodbye with an adorable pic of my sweet granddaughter, Nora, taken on the playground a couple of weeks ago (remember, we live in FL…why she’s only wearing a little sweatshirt). She is SO sweet and such a girlie girl.

Help Me Find a Pic for New Cover

In Nov 2015, my first true suspense novel, When Night Comes, released. It’s done so well that I decided to make it Book 1 of the Jack Turner Suspense Series. Since then, I released Book 1 of a new inspirational series, Rescuing Finley. Well, I’m just about finished writing Book 2 of the sequel to When Night Comes. It will be called, Remembering Dresden.

All the characters in Book 1 will be returning (except those who died, of course): Jack and Rachel, Sgt. Joe Boyd and Hank. It will take place in the same setting (the little southern college town of Culpepper, GA). This time, Jack stumbles into a cold-case series of unsolved murders that happened 20 years ago, with roots that go back to a horrific event in World War II. 

Here’s my problem (and where I need some help). I have found the perfect pic for my new cover. Unfortunately, it’s not available for commercial use, but I’m hoping I can find one just like it, or something close. Here’s the pic (the cabin with a view of a lake). I’ve scoured the internet. Lots of pics of cabins on a lake, but none from this angle (where you see the cabin off to the side, and the lake in the center, with nice trees along the edge). 



I’m posting this for my reader friends and fans in hopes that some of you might either have a cabin on a lake, know of a cabin on a lake, or live nearby a lake that might have cabins on the waterfront. What I’m hoping for is a hi-res pic that looks something like this. It doesn’t even have to be a cabin (can be a rustic looking old house). If you think you can help me at all, please email me back with your thoughts.

If someone does come through, I will credit their photo on the inside of my book, and on the acknowledgment page, as well as give them 5 free, signed copies of the book when it’s done. 

Thanks for any help on this (and just taking the time to listen). If you haven’t read a copy of When Night Comes yet, you can pick one up for only $2.99 right now (Kindle on Amazon, or contact me if you have a Nook or some other device). For Kindle users, just click on the title to go to its Amazon page.

Thanks again – Dan

Fun Book Updates and Some Great Deals, Too

Can’t believe it’s been 2 months since I updated my blog. Been very busy. Not just with the holidays but with the release of my new novel, Rescuing Finley (Book 1 of the Forever Home series), and all that goes along with marketing and promoting it (I’m an indie now, have to do all the things my publisher used to do for me).

Thought I’d take a few minutes to update you all on what’s been happening, not just with Rescuing Finley, but some other fun updates, as well (and share some great book deals, too).

Rescuing Finley Getting Super Reviews

I’ve been so happy with the reception Rescuing Finley has received (and with the sales). As of this moment, 51 Amazon reviews have already come in, 78% of them are 5-Stars (actually, the percent would be higher but, sadly, someone who LOVED the book accidentally gave it a 1-Star review thinking 1 was the highest). An excerpt of my favorite comments:

“I read it the day I got it and I must say I was so sad when I got to the last page, I did not want it to end.”
“I’ve read a number of Dan Walsh’s books and have thoroughly enjoyed every one, but this one, Rescuing Finley, may be my most favorite.”
“This was a fantastic story. As a legally blind guide dog user, I loved every minute of this book…You will laugh and cry. It is a beautiful story.”
“The book was excellent – hope more people read it. Dan Walsh did it again!” (This was the accidental 1-Star review).

If you haven’t picked up your copy yet, I’ve decided to keep the price at $3.99 a while longer. If you’re not a “dog person,” maybe you care about our Wounded Warriors (or maybe you’d like a little clean romance), or you can gift a copy for a dog-loving friend. Signed gift copies are available for $11, plus $3 shipping (email me at dwalsh@danwalshbooks.com, if interested).

I will start Book 2 of this series, Saving Parker, by April 1st (plan to release it at the end of August).

When Night Comes at Half-Price

The ebook version of my first indie novel (and my first true suspense novel) is on Sale Now, marked down from $5.99 to $2.99 (50% Off). When Night Comes had a great first year, sold over 10,000 copies, and it’s received 227 Amazon reviews (maintaining a 4.5 Star avg).

It’s done so well, I’ve now renamed it as “Book 1 of the Jack Turner Suspense Series.” I’m actually going to change the cover to add this at the top. I’m writing Book 2 right now, just past the halfway point this week. My hope is to release Remembering Dresden by April 1st. All the main characters from When Night Comes are in Book 2 (Jack, Rachel, Sgt. Joe Boyd). Jack finds himself drawn into solving a 20-year old cold case file, with roots that go back to a horrific event in World War II.

The Dance is Totally FREE

Thought I should make you aware (in case you didn’t know), my publisher has decided to

make the ebook version of The Dance available for FREE, as a way of encouraging people to check out the entire Restoration Series, which was completed with the release of Book 4 last April.

If you haven’t picked up a copy of this award-winning novel, co-authored with Gary Smalley, now is a great time to check it out. The Dance has received 391 customer reviews on Amazon (avg 4.7 Stars).

Another Great Deal - Thought I’d also add, I still have a limited number of Book Sets available, which I’m offering at the Christmas Sale price of $25 (for all 4 books in the Restoration Series). Signed copies with matching bookmarks (plus $4 shipping). That price is 40% Less than buying all 4 on Amazon. If interested, email me at dwalsh@danwalshbooks.com.

Well…guess that’s enough for now. Stay warm folks (especially those of you who live anywhere but Florida). I better get back to writing my next chapter.

 

Rescuing Finley is On the Shelves

My newest novel, Rescuing Finley, has just released and is available on Kindle for $3.99, or in print version. KU readers can read it for FREE (Nook Users – email me to get your copy for $3.99). Here are a few of the comments posted this week from the mostly-5-Star reviews:

“I stayed up past my bedtime to finish this wonderful story of love and redemption. There are so many things I enjoyed about this book.”

“This book has it all: a lovable dog, romance, challenges, patriotism, drama. It is a book worth reading and buying for others as gifts.”

Regarding the Book’s Ending - “What appears as a relationship of forgone conclusion is ramped up to a nerve-tweaking, breath-catching, standing ovation ending that this author has perfected. With my final gasp, I began ordering extra copies for family, friends, and veterans.”

To Get more info or Buy Your Copy on Amazon, CLICK HERE (or on the book cover).

Great Christmas Gift for Book Lovers

I still have a limited supply of the complete Restoration Series available that I can sell for only $25(plus $4 shipping). That’s 40% less than buying all 4 books on Amazon. Plus, you’ll get signed copies with matching bookmarks.

The series has received a total of 627 Amazon reviews, averaging 4.5 Stars. Book #1, The Dance, was named a Finalist for the Carol Award and won the Lime Award for Excellence in Fiction.

To Order, simply email me and write “Restoration Series Offer” in the Subject line.

Suspense Lovers – Quick Update

For those of you who enjoyed reading When Night Comes, I am currently researching and writing Book 2 in the Jack Turner Suspense Series, calledRemembering Dresden. Just finished Chapter 12 yesterday. I hope to have it released by March 1st. More details to come down the road.

My wife, Cindi, and I hope you and your family have a wonderful Thanksgiving Holiday!

A Special Book Birthday

My 15th novel, When Night Comes, was my first indie novel and first true suspense novel. This week I’m celebrating the anniversary of its release with a special 99 CENT SALE. That’s right, you can pick up a Kindle copy for less than a dollar (Kindle Unlimited customers get it for Free). The sale runs through this Sunday (Nov 8th).

And here’s some fun news – After just a few days on sale, it soared up to #1 on Amazon in the Christian Suspense category. Here’s a screenshot from this morning:

Last year, I released it as something of an experiment, to see if readers would get behind it since it wasn’t the book genre I’m most known for. Back then I said, if it did well enough, I would write both kinds of books going forward.

Well, it did!

When Night Comes has sold over 8,000 copies so far, received 182 reviews and maintained a 4.5 Star average. So it is officially now “Book 1 in the Jack Turner Suspense Series.” I’m writing the sequel to it now, Remembering Dresden, which I hope to release this Spring. Pick up your copy if you haven’t yet. It’s still only 99 Cents for a few more days. CLICK HERE.

Rescuing Finley About to Release

My 16th novel, Rescuing Finley, is about to release. It’s available to pre-order now on Kindle for $3.99 and will release fully (including the print version) on Nov 19th.

Here’s a graphic that shows the new cover, as well as some comments from the ladies who proofread the book for me.

Click on the Pic or CLICK HERE to pre-order your copy.

Great Reviews for Keeping Christmas

My last traditionally-published novel with Revell came out in Sept. It’s been getting great reviews from bloggers and magazine reviewers such as Fresh Fiction, RT Book Reviews and Homecoming Magazine. Here’s a very recent review from Library Journal:

“Walsh is a talented writer. Centered on a tough topic, his novel will appeal to empty-nesters dealing with the same pain Judith endures. Fans of Tricia Goyer, Eva Marie Everson and Harry Kraus will be drawn to this title.”

To be honest, the book has been getting more 3-Star reviews from Amazon customers than I’m used to seeing. From reading them, it seems some people are struggling with the fact that this book deals with (as Library Journal says), a “tough topic.” That is, the holiday depression some people struggle with (such as the empty-nesters who are the main characters in the book). I still think it’s a worthy topic for a Christmas novel, considering the millions of Baby Boomers entering the empty nest years. And I should mention, the novel ends on an incredibly high note.

To get a copy or look it over, click on the pic or CLICK HERE.

Ending on a Personal Note

Here’s a pic taken just yesterday of my 4-year old grandson, Caden, learning to ride a bike. That’s Chris, his Daddy, right beside him. I can’t believe we’re already here, riding a bike. And he’s going to pre-school now, too.

He’s still such a joy to be around and although my wife and I are empty-nesters this holiday season, we are SO blessed to have both our kids, spouses and grandkids living in the same town.

Hope you all are enjoying this beautiful Fall weather. As you can see, we’re still wearing shorts and short-sleeved shirts down here in FL.

Rescuing Finley Available Now – Almost

My newest novel, Rescuing Finley (Book 1 of the Forever Home series) is available for Pre-Order NOW on Amazon at a special pre-order price of $3.99. This price is only good for 3 weeks (will be $4.99 when it releases Nov 19th).

Right now, only the Kindle version is available on Amazon. When it releases in 3 weeks, it will be FREE on Kindle Unlimited and available in print. Nook and non-Kindle users – you can buy the ebook version for your device directly from me (through PayPal, starting Nov 19th). I’ll email you the ebook as soon as I receive payment.

To Pre-order the book on Amazon now – CLICK HERE.

Here’s the Cover for Rescuing Finley

Excited to present the final cover design for my newest novel, Rescuing Finley. It will be the first in a trilogy of books for the Forever Home series. Here’s the blurb that will appear on the back cover:

Amy Wallace has made plenty of mistakes in her young life, but she didn’t see this one coming. Chris Seger is a marine serving in Afghanistan. His life is forever altered by a single, fateful step. A mother of another Afghan war vet suffers a devastating loss, which changes the course of Finley’s life for good. Finley is a mostly golden retriever, who suddenly finds himself alone and confused in a dog shelter. Could this prison actually become the place where Finley finally finds freedom? Rescuing Finley tells the story of how one rescue dog powerfully impacts three tragic lives and puts all of them on a road toward redemption and healing.

Dan Walsh is known for page-turning, character driven novels. Fans of Dan’s other novels, as well as dog-lovers everywhere will especially enjoy Rescuing Finley.

I love how the cover turned out. Thanks to Lynnette Bonner of Indie Cover Design (www.indiecoverdesign.com). And I’m also so proud of my son, Isaac, who took the cover photo. Although not mentioned in the paragraph above, as with my other books, there will also be a love story element in Rescuing Finley. It’s scheduled for release on Thanksgiving Day (hope to have it ready for pre-order on Nov 2nd or 3rd).

Book 2 in the series will be called Saving Parker and Book 3 will be Finding Riley. I hope to have both of these on the shelves before the end of 2016.

When Night Comes part of 5-Book Set

I’m happy to announce that When Night Comes is now a part of Fatal 5, a five-novel mystery/suspense boxed set for Kindle. You can pre-order ALL 5 of these novels for only 99 Cents through Nov 2nd. Once it releases, it will still be a steal, at $3.99.

The other 4 novels are by bestselling suspense authors:

CHRISTY BARRITT

HEATHER DAY GILBERT

KARIN KAUFMAN

DON & STEPHANIE PRICHARD

Below are the blurbs and covers to each book so you can get a feel for the set. You can find them for pre-order here on Amazon. If you get them on pre-order, the entire collection will be delivered to your Kindle November 2nd!

Check out the intriguing books in this set!

Only two other people know Holly was at the site of the murder, and one of them is the killer. Making matters stickier is the fact that the detective assigned to the case is her old high school crush and present day nemesis.  When Holly Anna Paladin is given a year to live, she embraces her final days doing what she loves most—random acts of kindness. But one of her extreme good deeds goes horribly wrong, implicating Holly in a string of murders. Holly is suddenly in a different kind of fight for her life.

The clock is ticking as Holly is forced to play a dangerous game. Will Holly find the killer before he ruins what’s left of her life? Or will she spend her final days alone and behind bars?

 

But when an anonymous warning note shows up in her best friend Miranda’s mailbox—a note written in a dead woman’s handwriting—Tess quickly discovers that ghosts are alive and well in Buckneck, West Virginia. Hot on a cold trail, she must use limited clues and her keen insight into human nature to unmask the killer…or the next victim might be Tess herself. Child of the Appalachian mouns, Tess Spencer has experienced more than her share of heartache. The Glock-wielding, knife-carrying housewife knows how to survive whatever life throws at her.

Tinged with the supernatural and overshadowed by the mountains’ lush, protective presence, this twisting psychological mystery is the first in A Murder in the Mountains series.

 

Christmas in Colorado means snow. Lots of it. And murder.

Just days before Christmas in the mountain town of Elk Park, Colorado, genealogist Anna Denning discovers a client’s body. When she starts asking questions no one wants answered, she becomes the killer’s next target. Still grieving the death of her husband, Anna must draw on her wounded faith to enter a world of wicca and witchcraft–reminders of a past she buried long ago–and discover the secret of The Witch Tree.

The Witch Tree was a finalist for a Grace Award in the mystery/suspense category.

 

 

All Marine Corps reservist Jake Chalmers wants is to give his dying wife a last, romantic cruise to the Philippines. Unable to save her in a mass murder aboard ship, he washes ashore a jungle island, where he discovers three other survivors. Heartbroken that he failed to save his wife, he is determined not to fail these helpless castaways. First they had to survive the island … then each other … then their rescuer.

Federal prosecutor Eve Eriksson rescues a young girl and her elderly great-aunt from the same ship. They badly need Jake’s survival skills, but why is he so maddeningly careful? She needs to hurry home to nail a significant career trial. And, please, before Jake learns her secret that she’s responsible for his wife’s death.

And in case you haven’t read my suspense novel….

Joe Boyd thought he’d left big city crime back in Pittsburgh when he took a detective job in Culpepper, Georgia, a sleepy southern college town. His peaceful life ends when two students turn up dead in two weeks. The coroner is saying natural causes, but something doesn’t add up. Jack Turner comes back to Culpepper to give a series of lectures for his old history professor. Within days, he starts having bizarre experiences at night. Like he’s traveling back in time, experiencing the epic events in his lectures firsthand. He has no control over these experiences and can’t make them stop.

Rachel Cook, a teaching assistant at Culpepper, can’t believe Jack is back in her life again. She’s had a crush on him since she was fourteen, but Jack never knew. He instantly seems attracted to her, but she can tell…something is deeply troubling him. 

Watching all this from a distance is Nigel Avery. He’s certain this experiment’s about to unravel. It’ll be his job to tie up all the loose ends when it does.

Hope you can get this amazing set and please, share it with others.

My Wife – the Best Dog Trainer

I am so proud of my wife. Here’s one of the reasons why.

Five years ago, my wife and I had a pivotal conversation about her future. We had just

officially become empty-nesters. I said, “For so many years you have done everything for everyone else: you’ve raised our kids, even homeschooled them, ran our household and even held down a part-time job as a bookkeeper. I think it’s time you started doing something you really want to do. If you could do anything else for the remainder of your working years, what would it be?”

Without hesitation, she said, “I’d like to go back to school and become a certified dog trainer.” Great, I said. Let’s find the best school. So we did.

A year later, Cindi graduated from the Animal Behavior College certified in 2 different areas of dog training with a 4.0 GPA.

A couple of months later, she volunteered at our local Humane Society and suggested they let her to do some dog training classes to show them how a well-trained dog will better serve their goal to make sure the dogs that get adopted stay in their new homes. The forward-thinking CEO, Miguel Abi-hassan, already believed in this idea and wanted to hire someone for their shelter. He just wanted to make sure Cindi was the right someone.

Cindi being interviewed on TV

By the end of the second class, he was thoroughly convinced and offered her a job. She’s been working there now almost 4 years as their Animal Behavior Manager. She does several group classes on the weekends and private lessons during the week. She’s written a number of training brochures and also manages several in-house programs for them.

Her reputation as a dog training pro has grown dramatically in the past few years. She’s successfully trained several hundred dogs and has been asked to speak on local public television and radio programs, as well as provide advice and counsel to our local prison, which has a wonderful program training dogs to help serve our military veterans. Many of our area veterinarians recommend Cindi to their patients.

Recently, she was surprised by an award that makes it official — Cindi is the best dog trainer in the entire greater Daytona Beach area. Each year our local newspaper conducts a program allowing citizens to pick out there favorite stores, restaurants and service people.

Cindi had nothing to do with this and didn’t even know she had been nominated. She was not only nominated in all three of our biggest towns (Daytona Beach, Ormond Beach and Port Orange), but she received the most votes in all three cities and won the “Reader’s Choice Award” as the best dog trainer in all three. Here are the certificates to prove it (click to see it bigger).

Cindi’s exciting news actually ties into my writing career. In my last few blog posts, I’ve mentioned my newest novel is about to release, called Rescuing Finley. Finley is a shelter dog who actually winds up rescuing the female inmate who trained him and the Afghan war vet who adopts him. Cindi has provided invaluable input and advice as I wrote this book and even helped me put together the concept for this book and the rest of the books in the new series.

And as you can see, I haven’t just asked for her help because she is my wife. I asked because she is, quite literally now, the very best dog trainer in town!