Ann Shorey's Blog, page 2

MAIL-ORDER PROXY

Today I'm pleased to welcome Sherri Shackelford to my blog, as we continue to celebrate the release month of The Mail-Order Brides Collection. Sherri has some interesting tidbits to share on how authors create the villains in their stories.





The most important thing to remember when creating a villain is that villains don't know they're villains. In my story, "Mail-Order Proxy," the heroine is interviewing a notorious outlaw for her local newspaper. And why does this outlaw agree to the interview? He craves fame and attention, of course, but he also wants people to understand him. He wants people to know his motivation.
Generally, most villains are sociopaths. They lack a conscience. While most sociopaths do not become predators, most predators are sociopaths. They may not feel guilty for hurting someone, but they are aware of the consequences of their actions. They are aware of how they are perceived in society.
As an author, when I’m creating a villain, I use a regular person as inspiration, and embellish their flaws and weaknesses.
Villains shouldn't simply be twirling their mustaches while lashing the heroine to the railroad tracks. The outlaw in my story does some bad things, but he feels completely justified in doing these things: Why should the banks have all the money when he's just a poor, working stiff trying to get ahead?
There should always be a reason for the villain's actions. In "Mail-Order Proxy," the outlaw is perfectly cordial to the heroine until she stands in the way of what he wants. That's when she sees the darker side of his personality. Most folks aren't entirely good or entirely evil. A well-written villain has human foibles and weaknesses.
It's also important to remember that villains are often very charming and engaging individuals. The outlaw in my novella, "Mail-Order Proxy," has convinced the heroine of his sincerity. Part of her growth is learning to discern the difference between a charming villain and a cantankerous hero.  As the old proverb states "The lion is most handsome when looking for food."
I hope you enjoy my story, “Mail-Order Proxy”!

Sherri Shackelford is an award-winning author of inspirational Christian romance novels for Harlequin/HarperCollins Publishers.

A wife and mother of three, Sherri’s hobbies include collecting mismatched socks, discovering new ways to avoid cleaning, and standing in the middle of the room while thinking, “Why did I just come in here?” A reformed pessimist and recent hopeful romantic, Sherri has a passion for writing. She doesn't live on the prairie, but she can see the plains from her house. Her books are fun and fast-paced, with plenty of heart and soul. Look for her exciting new romantic suspense novel this fall!

 Here's where you can find The Mail-Order Brides Collection.
https://tinyurl.com/y76jqrmc
 

TRAVELING WEST ON THE SANTA FE TRAIL

 I'm thrilled to welcome Michelle Shocklee to my blog today! We're the authors, along with seven others, of the stories in The Mail-Order Brides Collection. Michelle has some fascinating facts to share about the type of travel some of these mail-order brides must have endured to reach true love.


To Heal Thy Heart by Michelle Shocklee
1866, New Mexico
When Phoebe Wagner answers a mail-order bride ad that states Confederate widows need not apply, she worries what Dr. Luke Preston will do when he learns her fiancé died wearing gray.


In "To Heal Thy Heart," my novella in The Mail-Order Brides Collection, Phoebe Wagner travels from her home in Kansas City to the rugged New Mexico Territory to meet the stranger she intends to marry. But in 1866, train travel was not yet available in that part of the country, so Phoebe--or any mail-order bride of that day--would have been left with little choice. She must board a dusty, uncomfortable stagecoach for the 700-plus mile journey that would take nearly two weeks, assuming they didn't encounter problems with the coach, the horses, or the weather. Luke, her intended groom, would have paid approximately $250 for her fare, and the route she would have taken is the famous Santa Fe Trail.
From 1821, the Santa Fe Trail served as a trade route between the United States and Mexico. Settlers used it as well, often facing terrifying situations including attacks from various Indian tribes, brutal weather conditions, and swollen rivers. But like Luke and Phoebe, those early settlers were willing to take the risks in order to be part of something new and fresh and exciting.
Growing up in Santa Fe, New Mexico, I often heard stories about the Santa Fe Trail. My family took many drives up the trail, now a highway, passing the same tree-covered hills and grassy fields as those brave pioneers. Even as a child my imagination ran wild, and I'd wonder about the people who traveled in wagons whose wheel ruts are still visible in some places. Who were they and what drove them to leave their homes and loved ones to come to a wild, untamed land?
Although Phoebe and Luke's story is fiction, I would not doubt that many mail-order brides took to the Santa Fe Trail in search of true love. Did they find it?



Purchase from your local bookseller or online at:
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Mail-Order-Bri...
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-...
Books-A-Million: http://www.booksamillion.com/p/Mail-O...
Christian Book Distributors: https://www.christianbook.com/brides-...

Michelle Shocklee is the author of The Planter's Daughter and The Widow of Rose Hill, the first two books in the historical romance series The Women of Rose Hill. She has stories in numerous Chicken Soup for the Soul books and writes an inspirational blog. With both her sons grown, she and her husband of thirty-plus years enjoy poking around historical sites, museums, and antique stores near their home in Tennessee. Connect with her at www.MichelleShocklee.com

THE STORY BEHIND THE STORY, by Donna Schlachter

It's Mail-Order Brides month!
I'm happy to welcome Donna Schlacher to my blog today. Donna is one of the authors in The Mail-Order Brides Collection. Donna lives in Denver with husband Patrick, her first-line editor and biggest fan. She writes historical suspense under her own name, and contemporary suspense under her alter ego of Leeann Betts. She is a hybrid author who has published a number of books under her pen name and under her own name. She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and Sisters In Crime; facilitates a local critique group, and teaches writing classes and courses. Donna is also a ghostwriter and editor of fiction and nonfiction, and judges in a number of writing contests. She loves history and research, and travels extensively for both. Donna is proud to be represented by Terrie Wolf of AKA Literary Management.

Here's Donna's story and her take on how she chose just the right characters for "Train Ride to Heartbreak"

1895, Train to California
John Stewart needs a wife. Mary Johannson needs a home. On her way west, Mary falls in love with another. Now both must choose between commitment and true love.

October 1895
Mary Johannson has scars on her body that can't compare with the scars on her heart. She is alone in the world, with no family, no prospects, and no home.

John Stewart is at his wit's end. His wife of three years died in childbirth, leaving him with a toddler and an infant, both girls. Theirs was the love of fairy tales, and while he has no illusions about finding another like her, his children need a mother.

     Though separated by thousands of miles, they commit to a mail-order marriage. But on their journey to Heartbreak, they meet another and realize the life they'd planned would be a lie. Can they find their way back from the precipice and into the love of God and each other, or are they destined to keep their word and deny their heart?


Coming up with likeable yet flawed characters is always a struggle. I find my first draft is usually full of perfect people who always get it right, or else they are so flawed, nobody likes them. Then I have to go back in and tell myself that nobody is this good and they need at least one little thing they need to fix, or there's no story. Or I have to temper all their issues with at least one redeeming feature. For Mary Johannson, she had so many good traits--hard worker, thinks of others before herself, obedient, loving--yet the scars on her neck and arm from a fire she survived as a child constantly remind her that nobody could possibly love her. The years in the orphanage fed that lie, as she was passed over time and again for adoption. The opportunity to marry, sight unseen, seems the answer to her problems. And even better, a covenant marriage for twelve years or so, nothing expected except to raise this stranger's children. Then she would be free to go wherever she wanted. Not that she had anywhere to go.

For John Stewart, he's another good person that bad things happened to. His wife died, leaving him with two young daughters to raise. He has so many good traits, too--loving father, loving husband, industrious, loyal--so why did God abandon him? Why didn't the Almighty choose to answer his prayers? And if not his, why not answer his wife's? She loved God right to the end. Convinced he will never love again, yet he knows he needs help with his children. A covenant marriage seems perfect. No love. No intimacy. Just duty. Kind of like his relationship with God.

These characters both believe a lie--Mary's that nobody could see past her scars, and John's that he has had the one love of his life. We all believe a lie about ourselves. It might have to do with our past, with our present, or even with the bleak outlook for our future. What I hope readers will take away about this story is that God is bigger than our past, bigger than our mistakes, and has great plans for us.



Buy link: http://amzn.to/2Cur1I4


Here's more information on how to find Donna online:

www.HiStoryThruTheAges.wordpress.com
www.HiStoryThruTheAges.com Receive a free ebook simply for signing up for our free newsletter!
Facebook: www.Facebook.com/DonnaschlachterAuthor
Twitter: www.Twitter.com/DonnaSchlachter
Other Books: Amazon: http://amzn.to/2ci5Xqq and Smashwords: http://bit.ly/2gZATjm
 

WHY WASHINGTON TERRITORY?

            Today is the release date for The Mail-Order Brides Collection!

            My latest novella, titled "Miss-Delivered Mail," is included in this collection. Here's a little background:            Some of you may know that I've often used my family's history as a source of inspiration in writing my novels. The Edge of Light uses many instances from the life of one of my great-great aunts. In The Promise of Morning I went to my great-great grandparents' lives for the storyline. The rest of my novels all contain tiny bits of family lore as well.            The takeaway here for new writers goes beyond "write what you know" to "write what you can find out." What I know isn't always a whole lot, but with an inquiring mind and a willingness to dig a little, I've learned that there is a world of story material out there, waiting to be pressed into a manuscript.            Moving forward to my most recent publication, here’s a bit of background for "Miss-Delivered Mail."            As far as I know there are no mail-order brides in my family history, so that part is fiction. But in "Miss-Delivered Mail," the main character finds herself in Washington Territory in the 1880's, where she meets the Halliday family. I hope you'll read the story--the "Hallidays" in this novella are my great-grandparents. They are not the main characters, but they play an important supporting role. In real life, they homesteaded in eastern Washington in the 1880's, and many of the descriptions of their lives and surroundings come straight from my grandfather's memoirs. They settled there in the Coulee breaks long before the Grand Coulee Dam was ever imagined. My husband and I visited the area in 1997, and located the site of my family's original homestead. I brought home a rock from the farmland as a memorial. Now they are further memorialized in "Miss-Delivered Mail."
            Now that you’re armed with insider information, I wish you happy reading!

A PLAIN LEAVING, By Leslie Gould

When Jessica Bachmann left her Amish family, she made a new life for herself in the Englisch world. She knew she couldn't return after turning her back on her family and her faith. But life has a way of rearranging people's plans.
    Her father dies unexpectedly, and she decides to brave the shunning she knows she will face in order to mourn the man who has been a loving guide throughout her life. What she hadn't expected was the recurrence of feelings she once had for Silas Kemp.
    Fortunately, she has an ally amongst the cold shoulders she receives--her Aunt Suz. To pass the time, and to encourage Jessica, her aunt begins telling her a tale of early Bachmann history in the years prior to the American Revolution. The story of Rebecca Bachmann is woven into A Plain Leaving, so the novel moves between modern day Amish life and the early Amish settlers on their land. Leslie Gould has drawn these two stories together to build the framework for A Plain Leaving.
    I must confess a preference for historical fiction, and found the pre-Revolution sections fascinating. Not to say that Jessica's dilemma isn't equally interesting--I had no idea of the lengths the Amish would go to when they shun someone. Even Jessica's immediate family treat her coldly.
    You will have to read A Plain Leaving for yourself to learn how the story ends. I promise you, you'll be glad you did.

    My thanks to the author and Bethany House for my review copy.

MANY SPARROWS, by Lori Benton

    Many Sparrows hits the ground (or the reader's eyes) running and doesn't stop. Set in 1774, it follows Clare Inglesby as her husband takes them through Indian country over an untested trail into an unknown destination. When his foolhardiness strands them far from civilization he rides off for help, leaving Clare, who is eight months pregnant, alone with their four-year-old son, Jacob. Her labor begins unexpectedly and she slips away into the woods to avoid disturbing Jacob as he sleeps. The next morning, Jacob has disappeared. She's utterly alone, in hard labor, and wild to find her missing son.
    Brilliant pacing characterizes Many Sparrows. Without a moment's rest, Lori Benton's prose draws the reader through page after unforgettable page. Her descriptions of frontier life in the months before the Revolutionary War are beautifully crafted as the story moves from one heart-stopping moment to the next. I particularly enjoyed the thread of people in extreme circumstances struggling to understand where God's promises fit into their lives. 
    Many Sparrows is an outstanding novel--the best book I've read in a very long time. I'm still thinking about the characters and wondering about their lives as though they were real people.
    The book's official release date is August 29, but it’s available for pre-order on Amazon now. http://tinyurl.com/yayyfhr8
    Don't wait! You have a treat in store.

    My thanks to Waterbrook and the author for my review copy. My opinions are my own.

With Love, Wherever You Are, by Dandi Daley Mackall

    Helen Eberhart has aspired to be a nurse since she was a girl. When the attack on Pearl Harbor occurs, she decides to enlist as an Army nurse. While she is in training for a wartime assignment--she hopes in Europe, since she hates heat--she meets Frank Daley, a doctor who is undergoing basic training before being sent to a battlefield hospital--he hopes in the Pacific, because he hates being cold.
    After their memorable first encounter, they begin a friendship which quickly blossoms into love. Despite the almost unanimous disapproval of their family and friends, Frank and Helen marry after a whirlwind courtship. First Frank, then Helen, are sent to separate duty stations in the heart of the European conflict.
    Beginning a marriage by correspondence--"With love, wherever you are"--forms the basis of this gripping novel. But the hospital scenes and wartime conditions are fully as much a part of the story as their romance. The realism of the situations they encounter in their separate fields of medicine left me with images I won’t soon forget.
    Based on a true love story, With Love, Wherever You Are, is an outstanding novel. I couldn’t put it down. Readers who enjoy World War II-era fiction will want to put this one at the top of their list. It's not to be missed!

MURDER MEZZO FORTE, by Donn Taylor

    Professor Preston Barclay seems to have a talent for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. In Murder Mezzo Forte, he and Mara Thorn, another faculty member at Overton University, leave a reception to answer Professor Mitra Fortier's summons to her office. Mitra implies that something dire is taking place at the university. Despite the late hour, Preston and Mara cross the campus to Mitra's office--and find her dead.
    Notwithstanding his protests to the contrary, Preston is drawn into the investigation as rumors circulate that he and Mara are responsible for Professor Fortier's death.
    Murder Mezzo Forte is populated with eccentric characters. Preston is plagued with an internal orchestra that provides musical accompaniment in his head wherever he goes. Mara is a former Wiccan, now a Christian, who cannot seem to shake the Wiccan label. Toss into the mix a faculty and board of trustees as individual as they are quirky, stir them up with a corrupt police officer, and you have a hugely entertaining novel. 
    I've been looking forward to this book since reading Donn Taylor’s Rhapsody in Red, which also featured Preston Barclay and Mara Thorn. Murder Mezzo Forte does not disappoint.

I thoroughly enjoyed this story and recommend it to all readers who love a tense mystery laced with a humorous point of view.

MURDER COMES BY MAIL, by A. H. Gabhart

When Deputy Michael Keane takes a bus full of ladies to see a play in a nearby town, they encounter a suicidal man on a back country bridge. Michael stops the bus and is successful in pulling the man away from the edge and thus saving his life. Unfortunately, Michael's act of mercy results in far more attention than he's comfortable with. He's hailed as a hero, even to the point of news media from other areas flooding into Hidden Springs to interview him.
    Just as the attention begins to wane, photos of a dead girl arrive in the mail. The message attached leads Michael to believe that the man he saved is the murderer. As things spiral out of control in Hidden Springs, Michael is convinced that he is dealing with a madman.
    I could hardly put the book down--it's that good. With Murder Comes by Mail, A. H. Gabhart lifts the "cozy mystery" genre to new heights. Twists and some gruesome surprises fill the pages.
    Murder Comes by Mail builds on the characters introduced in Murder at the Courthouse, although it's not necessary to have read the first book in the Hidden Springs series to be fully absorbed in this one. If you love mysteries, you'll be glued to your chair by Murder Comes by Mail. I highly recommend this book!
My thanks to the author and Revell for providing my review copy.

REMEMBERING DRESDEN, by Dan Walsh

When Jack Turner rents a lakeside cabin near Culpepper University to work on his doctoral dissertation, he expects to escape all distractions and focus on his goal. But like so many of us (me included), he begins to seek ways to avoid what he's supposed to be doing. When he decides to look through a bookcase in the living room, he makes a surprising find. Eventually his curiosity leads him to uncover further material, and now his surprise turns to shock.

Dissertation all but forgotten, Jack and his girlfriend, Rachel Cook, start on a dangerous course to learn how Jack's discoveries might relate to current-day citizens of the Culpepper area. As the WWII bombing of Dresden weaves its way into the fabric of the documents Jack discovers, he and Rachel have to decide between their personal safety and pursuing the links they've unearthed. Which choice is the right thing to do?

Dan Walsh has created another page-turning mystery-suspense to follow When Night Comes, though it's not necessary to have read the first book to love this one. I thoroughly enjoyed Remembering Dresden. The story caught me on the first page and didn't let go until the harrowing climax.

I give Remembering Dresden two thumbs up and recommend it highly.  My thanks to the author for providing my review copy.