Amanda Stephan's Blog: God is Good, God is Great, page 67

Susan May Warren's Heiress - Blog Tour Stop!

Follow the tour HERE!





Heiress



They can buy anything they want—fame, power, beauty, even loyalty.



But they can't buy love.



The beautiful and wealthy heiress daughters of August Price can buy everything their hearts desire. But what if their desire is to be loved, without an enormous price tag attached? When one sister betrays another for the sake of love, will she find happiness? And what happens when the other sets out across the still untamed frontier to find it—will she discover she's left it behind in the glamorous world of the New York gilded society? What price will each woman pay for being an heiress?



Set in the opulent world of the Gilded Age, two women discover that being an heiress just might cost them everything they love.



My thoughts ~

Money can buy everything, right? Sometimes it only brings heartaches and destruction. Being brought up in a world where everything has a price, The Price family find there's more to life than riches. When Esme refuses to marry her fiance, her sister, Jinx, volunteers to take her place and is suddenly catapulted into a life filled with deceit and pain. Esme, born before her time, moves to Montana and starts her own newspaper. Instead of the grand life she was used to, disaster strikes and she learns it's much harder than she had anticipated.

This book, full of excitement and plenty of what-ifs, was satisfying and left me wanting more.

*I received this book in exchange for my honest review*





Read an excerpt here.



About Susan: Susan May Warren is an award-winning, best-selling author of over twenty-five novels, many of which have won the Inspirational Readers Choice Award, the ACFW Book of the Year award, the Rita Award, and have been Christy finalists. After serving as a missionary for eight years in Russia, Susan returned home to a small town on Minnesota's beautiful Lake Superior shore where she, her four children, and her husband are active in their local church.



Susan's larger than life characters and layered plots have won her acclaim with readers and reviewers alike. A seasoned women's events and retreats speaker, she's a popular writing teacher at conferences around the nation and the author of the beginning writer's workbook: From the Inside-Out: discover, create and publish the novel in you!. She is also the founder of www.MyBookTherapy.com, a story-crafting service that helps authors discover their voice.



Susan makes her home in northern Minnesota, where she is busy cheering on her two sons in football, and her daughter in local theater productions (and desperately missing her college-age son!)



A full listing of her titles, reviews and awards can be found at: www.susanmaywarren.com.



Buy the book!









Lonely Hearts ~ a sweet Christian Romance
releases October, 2011!
Purchase your copy on Amazon.com November 1st
and receive LOTS of great eGifts! Details Here ~
http://www.booksbyamanda.com

WIN a Prize Pack from Susan May Warren!

Win an opulent Gilded Age Prize Pack fit for an Heiress from Susan May Warren!





Susan May Warren is thrilled to announce the release of her latest historical book, Heiress !







Find out what the reviewers are saying here!







Heiress, a richly complex historical romance, is the first in Susan's three book Daughters of Fortune series. In honor of Heiress' debut, Susan is hosting a FABULOUS Gilded Age Giveaway and giving away an opulent prize pack fit for an heiress!















One grand prize winner will receive:











A $100 gift certificate to ModCloth.com
A sleek silver iPod™ Shuffle
A beautiful strand of Pearls
Titanic DVD
Speakeasy Compilation Music CD from Starbucks™
Heiress by Susan May Warren




Click one of the icons below to enter. But do so soon - this giveaway ends 10/5/11. The winner will be announced Thursday, October 6 on Susan's blog .















Lonely Hearts ~ a sweet Christian Romance
releases October, 2011!
Purchase your copy on Amazon.com November 1st
and receive LOTS of great eGifts! Details Here ~
http://www.booksbyamanda.com

Author Interview, Diane Tatum

I had the pleasure of meeting Diane Tatum one afternoon at Barnes & Noble, and it was such a delight. Not only did I meet with another author, but I made a very good friend. Enjoy!





Hi Diane, thank you for being here today!



Tell us a little about yourself.

I've been writing since elementary school. Gold Earrings is my first novel.I grew up in north St. Louis county, in Missouri. My husband Ken is from Nashville. We have 2 adult sons and daughters-in-love. We lived in Newport News, VA, while Ken worked at NASA/Langley for 12 years before we moved to Tullahoma, TN, 14 years ago. We love to travel and have been to Canada, England, Wales, Scotland, and France.



Diane... that's so wonderful, and I'm jealous! One day perhaps I'll get to travel further than Canada, but right now, it's not looking like it'll be anytime soon!



Where did you get the idea for your story, Gold Earrings?

I actually was on the school bus headed to high school on a dreary, rainy day. I wrote a short story with the main characters on a muddy street in frontier Missouri. Eventually it evolved into this Christian historical romance novel.



What is one thing you would like readers to take away from your story?

Gold Earrings is about not judging people by their outward appearance or family background.



Are you working on any more books?

Oh, yes! Ken encouraged me to quit teaching in order to write on my books! I kept coming up with good ideas for books, writing on them to document my inspiration, and saving them in spiral notebooks or on my computer. This second novel, which is nearly complete, is part of an historical series. A Time to Choose is set during the Civil War and has a reference to a family member and Civil War incident from Gold Earrings. The third is Colonial Dream, an American Revolution tale.



Where can readers find you?

Blog: http://tatumlight-tatumsthoughts4today.blogspot.com/

email: tatumlight@gmail.com

Facebook: Diane Elaine Tatum and Gold Earrings

twitter: @DianeTatum

Websites: http://dianeetatumwriter.weebly.com

http://webpages.charter.net/dktatum







We're going to be hosting her for her book launch on October 4th, where if you purchase her novel from Amazon.com on that day, you'll receive LOTS of FREE egifts! So come back for more details on October 4th!



Here's a little about her book, Gold Earrings:

Daughter of a bordello madame and an Italian captain of the seas, Angelina Mercy longs for a new life, free from the condemnation associated with her mother's home in Boston. A former navy man, Jonathan Thomson has accepted God's call and become a minister of a small congregation. Adrift from his Yankee heritage in the Missouri plains, Jonathan longs for a family of his own. Pursuing Alice, the daughter of the town's wealthy patron, Jonathan believes he can tame her wild ways and accomplish more as a preacher once so established. When Angelina's guardian and Jonathan's seminary professor learns of Jonathan's misguided intentions, he seeks out a solution to aid both individuals, providing a new home for Angelina in St. Joseph, and Angelina and Jonathan are brought together with a strong initial attraction. Can Jonathan ignore Angelina's Gold Earrings, a constant reminder of the implications of her less than pristine parentage? And will Alice succeed in keeping Jonathan from Angelina? The resilient heroine of Diane E. Tatum's novel will inspire you in this touching tale of love against the odds.








Lonely Hearts ~ a sweet Christian Romance
releases October, 2011!
Purchase your copy on Amazon.com November 1st
and receive LOTS of great eGifts! Details Here ~
http://www.booksbyamanda.com

Summer in Oakville Book Launch!

Purchase your book from Amazon.com TODAY and receive FREE eGifts!

24 hours ONLY





A Summer in Oakville by Lisa Lickel and Shellie Neumeier



Set in Wisconsin, A SUMMER IN OAKVILLE is the story of a family reuniting to save the rural life they once cherished. One magical summer in fictional Oakville, Wisconsin, love finds its way through four entwined lives. Tessa's marriage hangs by a thread; her daughter, Lindsay, takes on the local town board and the developer who threatens to steal not only the farm but her heart. Tessa's widowed brother Art hasn't been home in twenty years; how can he send his out-of-control teenage son, Andy, to his aging parents?



"We set out to tell the story of the changing landscape in rural Wisconsin," Lickel says. "We wanted to try something unique while using our individual strengths as authors. Shellie writes fiction for young adults, and I write older characters."



"Our family, the Hasmers, could be anyone," Neumeier says. "They want to keep their heritage, while at the same time they struggle with the changing times. It's hard to make a living on a family-sized farm, and sometimes you have to make tough decisions."



"In our story, the adult siblings, Tessa and Art, have their own problems but come together in order to help their parents and their children," Lickel adds.



"Their children, Lindsay and Andy, are good kids who are also victims of the tough economic times and peer pressure today. But they have good hearts and learn from their grandparents' and parent's good family and faith values," Neumeier says.



Black Lyon Publishing, LLC is an independently owned Oregon-based publishing house producing fiction titles in trade paperback and e-book formats, and the only Romance Writers of America recognized publisher in the state. Black Lyon titles are available at BlackLyonPublishing.com, local bookstores and most major online retailers.



Shellie Neumeier

www.ShellieNeumeier.com



Best-selling author Shellie Neumeier holds a degree in Secondary Education from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, with a minor in Psychology, Sociology and Social Studies. A devoted mother of four, Shellie previously worked on staff with Northbrook Church as the King's Kids ministry assistant (serving children in grades 2nd through 5th). She is an active member of SCBWI and ACFW as well as a contributing author for various blogs.



Lisa Lickel

www.LisaLickel.com



Multi-published author Lisa J. Lickel also enjoys writing and performing radio theater, short story-writing, and is an avid book reviewer and blogger. She enjoys teaching writing workshops and working with new writers. She is the editor of both Wisconsin Writers Association's Creative Wisconsin magazine and Written World Communication's OtherSheep Magazine. She lives in a hundred and sixty-year-old house in Wisconsin filled with books and dragons. Married to a high school biology teacher, she enjoys travel and quilting.

Check out A Summer in Oakville Facebook fan page





What Others Are Saying:

"A SUMMER IN OAKVILLE is a cleverly-composed novel that addresses issues from the past, affecting four characters' present-day lives. Shellie Neumeier and Lisa Lickel are a dynamic writing duo!"

Andrea Boeshaar, author of Seasons of Redemption



"Like quills of bittersweet devotion that pierce the heart, yet warm with the matchless comfort of forgiveness-A SUMMER IN OAKVILLE is a beautifully woven series of unforgettable novellas." Tessa Stockton, author of The Unforgivable



"Four sweet novellas combine to tell the charming story of A SUMMER IN OAKVILLE in Oakville. Saving your heritage, forgiving the past, and uncovering years of family secrets are weaved through four very different romances to create a delightful read that I looked forward to coming back to each day. Grab a cup of tea and enjoy."

Cherie Burbach, author of Internet Dating Is Not Like Ordering a Pizza and Working Writers



"You'll be hooked from the first page of A SUMMER IN OAKVILLE. This novel grabs the senses and doesn't let go."

Carolyn Howard-Johnson, multi award-winning novelist and poet



Instructor for the renowned UCLA Extension Writers' Program

Author of the multi award-winning series of HowToDoItFrugally books:

The Frugal Book Promoter

The Frugal Editor

The Great First Impression Book Proposal

Great Little Last-Minute Edits



Lonely Hearts ~ a sweet Christian Romance
releases October, 2011!
Purchase your copy on Amazon.com November 1st
and receive LOTS of great eGifts! Details Here ~
http://www.booksbyamanda.com

Old Acquaintances

by Ursula Gorman





Two years after her mom's death, Rissa is finally ready to get on with her life. But someone else has different plans for her... Rissa Neil is confronted with an unknown enemy who turns her life into a living nightmare. She tries to convince herself that everything happening around herfeelings of being watched, strange phone calls when she's awayis just coincidence, but she can't fool herself for long. Finally, when two Old Acquaintances of hers are murdered, she turns to her best friend, Matt, for help. But who can she rely on when he suddenly jumps to the top of the suspect list? With only a few leads to go on and nowhere to run, Rissa wants to use herself for bait, but the police want to put her in protective custody. While they butt heads, things heat up as the body count rises and the suspect list dwindles. Detective Stone, a respected detective who lives up to his name, is soon assigned the case, but will he be able to solve the murders of Rissa's Old Acquaintances before the killer decides its time to end the game and destroy Rissa for good?



I haven't read this book yet, but I'm dying to! It looks so good...I'll let you know what I thought of it when I read it!





Connect with Ursula:

Facebook

Twitter

Website



Lonely Hearts ~ a sweet Christian Romance
releases October, 2011!
Purchase your copy on Amazon.com November 1st
and receive LOTS of great eGifts! Details Here ~
http://www.booksbyamanda.com

iPod, Nook, & Kindle

Yep. I'm offering you the chance to win 

an iPod ~ Nook ~ or  Kindle

My upcoming Christian romance novel, Lonely Hearts, is going to be released at the end of October, and I'm planning on having a HUGE book launch in honor of that on November 1st. Prizes include:

Autographed books. Audio books.Gift Cards.FREE eGifts.














I'm looking for friends willing to blog about my book launch, 

share it on Facebook, as well as tweet about it 

beginning the last week of October and ending November 1st.




If you commit to blog, tweet, or share on Facebook about my book, 

you'll be entered to win a Nook, Kindle, or iPod!





Ready to sign up? Great!

email me at ~

amanda38401 at gmail dot com

and be sure to include the link to your blog so I can find your post. 

If you Tweet about it, include @amandastephan so I can find you

and if you share on Facebook, send me the link! 




*note ~ I'll send out a friendly reminder to each respondant just before the event!*




Lonely Hearts ~ a sweet Christian Romance
releases October, 2011!
Purchase your copy on Amazon.com November 1st
and receive LOTS of great eGifts! Details Here ~
http://www.booksbyamanda.com

Book Review ~ To Die For

To Die For by Sandra Byrd





What happens when a king is given all power and no one will say anything against him for fear of their life? Take care, and read the story of ill-fated Anne Boleyn and learn from history. Too much power is never good in the hands of sinful mankind. Anne is drawn into a web of lies, deceit, and debauchery - and history itself tells who the unfortunate loser is.



I have always been fascinated by Anne Boleyn and Henry VIII, so when I saw that Sandra Byrd had written a book about the very historical people I willingly studied without the gentle prodding of any teacher, I was thrilled.



I will admit that I am not a passionate historical fiction reader. I am as likely to put down a historical novel as read it. Not so with Ms. Byrd's novel. She is a charming storyteller that was able to blend historical facts and fiction without any interruptions that pulled me out of the story.



You'll find yourself empathizing with young Anne Boleyn in love with the king of England, and shuddering with trepidation as she allows herself to be persuaded that he is honest and forthright. You'll cringe and shake your head when she becomes blinded to his faults and wonder to yourself how the whole of history would have been changed had she decided to marry someone else. Bemoan a young life lost to the whim of a narcissistic king who thinks he does no wrong and a court too terrified of losing their own heads than to tell the truth and save innocent lives. Finally, you'll sigh with sadness and allow yourself a moment of bittersweet contemplation as well as triumph to know that the surviving child of their ill-fated union would grow up to be arguably the greatest queen of England.



I was moved by Ms. Byrd's description of Anne on her dying day and how, as she faced the chopping block, she didn't rebuke her king and still offered him her love. Ms. Byrd portrayed a woman whom I had considered to be a grasping, devious, home-wrecker, and transformed her into a young and deceived reformist carried away with the attentions of one of the most powerful men of her time. A task not easily done, I assure you. Sandra Byrd is now one of my favorite historical fiction authors, and I will indeed seek out more of her writings.







*I was given a copy of this book by the author in return for my honest opinion. I was in no wise required to give a positive review*















Lonely Hearts ~ a sweet Christian Romance
releases October, 2011!
Purchase your copy on Amazon.com November 1st
and receive LOTS of great eGifts! Details Here ~
http://www.booksbyamanda.com

Sell More Books!

Let's face it. If you're an author, you want to sell books. Whether it's for monetary gain, enrichment for others, gaining exposure, or whatever, the bottom line is that you want to sell books. And there's nothing wrong with that.



But the publishing and book arena has taken a huge hit ~ which isn't news to anyone that has been breathing.



eBooks are taking the industry by storm. Traditional publishers are trying to keep up with the new lower price of eBooks and still trying to sell paperbacks. Self publishing has seen a dramatic increase because it's easier than ever to get your books out there.

Nowadays, anyone can get their book published.



But the key is selling that book. You can have fifty books to your name and have them published, but if they're not selling, what's the point?
Today, I want to introduce you to a friend of mine who has written an



excellent resource to help low-profile, not-yet-famous authors...



Sell More Books.





Utilizing today's social media potential, J. Steve Miller has compiled a comprehensive manual on what you should try, why you should try it, and how to git 'er done.



Chapters include:

Write a Marketable Book

Write a Title and Subtitle That Attracts Audiences

Attract People with your Cover

Publish through the Most Marketable Channel

Get Lots of Blurbs from All Kinds of People

Optimize Your Amazon and Barnes & Noble Pages

Build a Professional Online Presence

Submit Your Book to Contests

Check Your Attitudes toward Marketing

Use Guiding Principles to Prioritize Initiatives

Seek Early Reviews from Respected Book Review Sources

Seek Reviews and Endorsements from Busy Blogs

Seek Reviews and Endorsements from Other Publications

Attract Attention through Social Media

Optimize Digital Sales

Sell Your Book in Brick and Mortar Stores (Not Just Bookstores!)

Help Reporters and Journalists with their Articles

Consider Radio (Even if You're Shy!)

Consider Speaking (Even if You're Shy!)

John Kremer's Twelve Tips for Low-Profile Authors

Bulk Sales Beyond the Bookstore: An Interview with Brian Jud

Consider Press (News) Releases



About the author:








Steve is the founder and president of Legacy Educational Resources,
providing global resources for teachers of life skills in public
schools, churches, and service organizations at
http://www.character-education.info. A self-styled "wisdom broker," he
collects wisdom from many fields and packages it for teachers and
writers via his published books and the Web.

Steve is an educator,
investor, entrepreneur, and speaker, having taught audiences from
Atlanta to Moscow. He's known for drawing practical wisdom from serious
research and communicating it in accessible, unforgettable ways. His
wife, Cherie, and their seven sons continually remind him what works and
what doesn't.

Connect with him at http://www.jstevemiller.com.


This biography was provided by the author or their representative.




 












Lonely Hearts ~ a sweet Christian Romance
releases October, 2011!
Purchase your copy on Amazon.com November 1st
and receive LOTS of great eGifts! Details Here ~
http://www.booksbyamanda.com

Who's Your Daddy?

A seminary professor was vacationing with his wife in Gatlinburg, Tennessee.

One morning, they were eating breakfast at a little restaurant, hoping toenjoy a quiet, family meal. While they were waiting for their food, theynoticed a distinguished looking, white-haired man moving from table totable, visiting with the guests. The professor leaned over and whispered tohis wife, 'I hope he doesn't come over here.' But sure enough, the man didcome over to their table.

'Where are you folks from?' he asked in a friendly voice.

'Oklahoma,' they answered.

'Great to have you here in Tennessee,' the stranger said. 'What do you dofor a living?'

'I teach at a seminary,' the professor replied.

'Oh, so you teach preachers how to preach, do you? Well, I've got a reallygreat story for you.' And with that, the gentleman pulled up a chair and satdown at the table with the couple.

The professor groaned and thought to himself, 'Great.. Just what Ineed.... another preacher story!'





The man pointed out the window, 'See that mountain over there? Not far from the base of that mountain, there was a boy born to anunwed mother. He had a hard time growing up, because every place he went, hewas always asked the same question, 'Hey boy, who's your daddy?' Whether hewas at school, in the grocery store or drug store, people would ask the samequestion, 'Who's your daddy?'

He would hide at recess and lunch time from other students. He would avoidgoing into stores because that question hurt him so bad. When he was about12 years old, a new preacher came to his church. He would always go in lateand slip out early to avoid hearing the question, 'Who's your daddy?'

But one day, the new preacher said the benediction so fast that he gotcaught and had to walk out with the crowd.

Just about the time he got to the back door, the new preacher, not knowinganything about him, put his hand on his shoulder and asked him, 'Son, who'syour daddy?'

The whole church got deathly quiet. He could feel every eye in the churchlooking at him. Now everyone would finally know the answer to the question,'Who's your daddy?'

This new preacher, though, sensed the situation around him and usingdiscernment that only the Holy Spirit could give, said the following to thatscared little boy ~ 'Wait a minute! I know who you are! I see the familyresemblance now, You are a child of God.'

With that he patted the boy on his shoulder and said, 'Boy, you've got agreat inheritance. Go and claim it.'

'With that, the boy smiled for the first time in a long time and walked outthe door a changed person. He was never the same again. Whenever anybodyasked him, 'Who's your Daddy?' he'd just tell them, 'I'm a Child of God.''

The distinguished gentleman got up from the table and said, 'Isn't that agreat story?'

The professor responded that it really was a great story.

As the man turned to leave, he said, 'You know, if that new preacher hadn'ttold me that I was one of God's children, I probably never would haveamounted to anything!' And he walked away..

The seminary professor and his wife were stunned. He called the waitressover and asked her, 'Do you know who that man was -- the one who just leftthat was sitting at our table?'

The waitress grinned and said, 'Of course. Everybody here knows him.

That's Ben Hooper. He's governor of Tennessee !'













Lonely Hearts ~ a sweet Christian Romance
releases October, 2011!
Purchase your copy on Amazon.com November 1st
and receive LOTS of great eGifts! Details Here ~
http://www.booksbyamanda.com

You Didn't Just Do That, Did You?

Do you find that when you walk into a room, most of it's occupants leave? Do you find it difficult to make or maintain friendships? Do you find yourself voicing opinions without being asked for them?



Watch out. You just might be a discouraging Christian. (or person if you're not a Christian)



People are different, let's face it. We can't expect everyone to be like us, but there are things we can do to make our lives more enjoyable. Here are just a few thoughts-



- Be pleasant. Make eye contact and smile at people, at least giving the illusion that you're a friendly person. How you behave yourself later is totally up to you.



- Keep your opinions to yourself unless you're directly asked for them. Of course, the exception to this rule would be if someone were about to hurt themselves by sticking their finger in the light socket or driving off a cliff, then by all means, voice your opinion. And quickly, in some instances!



- Never expect something for free. Ever. I'm serious here. Too often in our society, people take things for granted. Let's look at this objectively for a moment. Let's say you know that I'm a sewing fanatic and I have an Etsy store. You've searched my store and found the cutest little cell phone holder, and because we're friends, you ask me to give it to you because you just can't offer me the $10 I'm asking for it. It's just a scrap of material and you're positive it didn't take me very long to create it, so because we're friends...



Do you see anything wrong with this? The Bible says, 'The workman is worthy of his hire' ~ if God expects us to pay our workers, wouldn't this fit in here? We're told in the Bible we're not to muzzle the oxen. I assume the oxen are allowed to eat some of that grain they're grinding? My point is, if you're truly friends with someone, don't expect something for free just because they have something you want. It's not fair to the worker, nor to your friendship.



 - If someone is kind and gives you something for free, THANK THEM! This one should be a no-brainer, but I'm beginning to wonder...



What do you think? Did I miss something important? Leave a comment, and we'll chat about it









Lonely Hearts ~ a sweet Christian Romance
releases October, 2011!
Purchase your copy on Amazon.com November 1st
and receive LOTS of great eGifts! Details Here ~
http://www.booksbyamanda.com