Laurie Larsen's Blog, page 7

Yes, this is really my life now ...

I had a dream last night.This is not unusual for some people, but it is for me. I'm a pretty heavy sleeper. I love to sleep. Noticing and remembering stories presented in my head while sleeping is not usually something that I do.But last night, it was a fully formed story and I actually remembered it when I awoke. I remembered not only WHAT happened, but especially the strong emotions that came along with it.In my dream, I was moving across the country to start a new job. The actual moving part was fun ... arranging my furniture in my new place, unpacking all my favorite things, finding just the right spot. But when that was all done, and it was presumably a Sunday night, a familiar sense of anxiety began to creep in ... professional anxiety.Would I wake up on time or oversleep? Would I know how to get to my new office, or get lost or stuck in traffic? Once I arrived, would everyone like me, and would I like them? And most importantly, would I be able to do this job? Would I excel and make everyone glad they hired me? Lots of worry and anxiety swirling through my body.Then ... in my dream, I had an epiphany. I don't have to worry about career anxiety anymore. I'm retired. And yes, 13 months later, I'm STILL retired. Even though I still have a writing career, I am at the head of it. I can do what I want, when I want. I can work really hard to hit a self-imposed deadline, OR I can take it easy on myself and push it out a month so I can spend more time at the beach.It's awesome. And I thank God for where I am right now. My life really is a dream come true.

God's Message via a Favorite TV Show

I'm a huge American Idol fan, and have been almost since the very first season. I was watching last night's episode where they pair up the Idol contestants with a celebrity singer. Most of them were Grammy Award-winning artists who have sold millions of records. As I sat there soaking in all the talent, it dawned on me that I was hearing answers to two questions I've often prayed about in relation to my own writing career.Was God speaking to me via an American Idol episode?Ha ha, I don't know if that's true or not, but I'll tell you, I did get some goosebumps when I heard two ultra-successful professional musicians share the following nuggets of wisdom with the budding musicians, because their answers spoke right to the heart of some of my own insecurities.How do we deal with negative reviews or feedback without it completely destroying our confidence?According to Shaggy, who has been a working musician for three decades, has been nominated for seven Grammys and won two, and nominated for three American Music Awards: "Despite all your accomplishments, you still find people with something negative to say. The best way to combat it is to simply not pay attention to it. Your talent and skill has gotten you this far, and you need to have confidence in that."What is the definition of success?According to Jason Mraz, who has been nominated for four Grammys, and won two, as well as winning a dozen other miscellaneous singer/songwriter awards, here's the answer to that:"What I realized instantly is that the music is the reward. I didn't need the paycheck. I didn't even need my own apartment. I could sleep on friends' couches, because the fact that I was doing music gave me all the riches in the world."I got goosebumps when these precious bits of truth hit me and inspired me. I grabbed a pad of paper and wrote them down. All artists, regardless of the art form, have similar characteristics, and what I learned watching American Idol is that we all deal with the same uncertainties. I'll choose to believe that God was speaking to me through Shaggy and Jason Mraz to keep me going down this sometimes rocky, but always rewarding life of telling his stories, the best way I know how.

I won a bronze medal!

Earlier this week I announced that I won a bronze medal in the Illumination Book Awards. Because it was exciting, I made sort of a big deal of it on Facebook. For two days I posted mysterious pictures and hints that I had big news to share. On the third day I did a Facebook Live Video and announced the win! I also described my plans to run a big ad campaign on the winning book the last week of March.Hundreds of my readers and personal friends weighed in on my Facebook posts with likes and loves and congratulations. It's been a really banner week in my author life!The Illumination Book Awards are in their sixth year and are sponsored by the Jenkins Group (Jerry Jenkins). Their motto is "Shining a Light on Exemplary Christian Books." My book, Crescendo, won the bronze medal (third place) in the category of Inspirational Romance Fiction. I was particularly impressed that one of my co-medalists (in a different category) was Kathie Lee Gifford! I wonder if she'll invite us all on to the Today Show before she retires! Ha ha. Here is a complete look of all the esteemed winners.Today, I was updating the Crescendo book page on my website and I clicked on the video that I recorded on the very day, back in July of last summer, that I wrote THE END on the first draft of Crescendo. I was practically bursting with excitement about this book. It held the distinction of being the very first book that I wrote after retiring from my big demanding day job that I juggled with my writing career for close to two decades. It was such a pleasure to write this book, unobstructed by the pressures and demands of another whole professional world. Instead of writing when I was tired and worn out and spent, I could give my very best self to my writing. I said, in this video, that I felt this was the very best book I had ever written.In the months since I filmed that video, the level of my enthusiasm for the book gradually slipped my mind. I'd gone on to edit it, and format it, and submit it to all the retailers for sale. I'd worked with my cover artist and I created promotional graphics, and I submitted promos to bloggers and I advertised it. And when it released, it had a wildly successful launch! Then I went on to write another book, Capsized, and repeated everything I'd done with Crescendo. That's the way it goes for an indie author.Amidst all the work, and the tasks and the process steps, it slipped my mind how much I loved Crescendo when I wrote it. The fact that I was honored with this huge award, for that very book, makes me smile. The quality of my work was validated. Thank you, God. My gut may have been right. Crescendo may be the best book I've ever written. But it won't be the last. I want every book I write to speak to me. Tell me when it needs more tweaking, and tell me when it's reached greatness. And with God's help, I pray that every book I write is an inspiration to someone. I consider my books to be my ministry to the world. My tagline is: Heartwarming, life-changing Christian fiction. My books are a team effort between God and I. With His help, I write the most inspiring stories I can, and with my help, He guides them to the people He feels most needs to/wants to read them. I plant the seed and he makes them bloom.I thank you for being along on the journey!!

Countdown Day 4 -- A view of the "Love of my Life" via our first meet ...

Welcome to the Valentines Countdown to Great Giveaways Romance Special!If you are visiting as part of this special group promotional event, welcome! If you're wondering what this event is about, you can read about it right here ...My husband and I are celebrating our 30th anniversary this year. That' s a long time. He's been a loyal spouse, a devoted father, a steady provider. We make a pretty good couple. We have a lot of fun together, and our goals and values are in line. We've successfully raised two great boys. I have no doubt that God had a hand in putting the two of us together. But ... it's easy to say that in retrospect, thirty-some years later. Obviously we were meant to be together. Right?It was a Friday night in January, thirty two years ago, in eastern Pennsylvania. I was 25 years old and I shared an apartment with a girlfriend, Lisa. Funds were tight, although not unreasonably so. There was a bar near our office that charged a $5 cover on Fridays, but for that outlay of cash, you got two hours of free drinks, and a buffet full of munchie foods. It was a must-go destination for the young professionals in my office and we went there almost every Friday night. Besides, it played great music and provided a chance to blow off some steam on the dance floor after a long week of work.Lisa and I were on our second or third free drink, and we'd consumed a plate or two of munchies. Our attention had now turned to the dance floor. And the single guys lingering around the dance floor. Lisa pointed to one standing on the complete other side of the room. "I'm going to ask him to dance." Okay fearless Lisa, you go for it. She did. Soon Lisa and her first choice were dancing.That left me standing with my other friend, Marta, and it left Lisa's dance partner's friends, two of them, standing and watching as well. I don't remember which, but either Marta and I walked over to introduce ourselves, or they came over to us. But I said hello to a guy named Norm. Lightning didn't exactly strike that night. God didn't shine a light on him and send an unmistakable message from heaven, "This is him, Laurie, your future husband." Norm was just some guy I said hello to in a bar. At first. But yes, that night, Norm and I began a journey that would eventually lead us down a church aisle, vowing before God, starting a family and ultimately to this day, a few months before our 30th anniversary. It's not a "wholesome" first meeting story. I didn't meet Norm at church, doing volunteer work, or even in an office. I met him at Happy Hour. But that's okay. Because God knew what He was doing and He can work with whatever circumstances your life is in at the time. Have you met the Love of Your Life? Are you convinced that God put you two together? What was your first meet like and did you know he was the one at the time?In my book, Sanctuary, Nora and Shaw aren't a perfect match either, at least not at first. She's a Philadelphia attorney, and he's a coastal South Carolina veterinarian. They live hundreds of miles apart. She's never been in love, and he's hiding a secret about his past relationship that will eventually tear them apart. But God knows what He's doing for Nora and Shaw too. The view of Nora and Shaw's love on Day One is not what it will eventually evolve to. What the both of them pray for, and desperately need.I'm offering the e-book version of Sanctuary for free right now at all e-book retailers. I hope you'll download it and find out how God does His work to bring the two of them together.Amazon --- Barnes and Noble --- AppleThanks for visiting and I hope you have fun with the remaining stops along the way. Click here to return.Laurie

Interview with Fiona McVie

Check out my fun interviewcompleted today with British blogger Fiona:

Book birthday for Capsized!

Hello everyone!Today is the birthday of Book 4 in my Murrells Inlet Miracles series, Capsized! If you enjoyed the previous books in the series, I hope you'll love this one too. However, if this is the book that led you to me as an author, you should be able to enjoy this book as a standalone as well. I’ve created quite a library now of inspirational romance novels and I’m enjoying it so much. It’s only because of you guys who love what I’m doing, and wait for each one, that I am able to live my dream.I began writing Capsized in a hotel in Tennessee when my parents and I had evacuated our homes in Pawleys Island and Murrells Inlet, SC in the throes of Hurricane Florence. We were staying in beautiful Kodak, TN while our beach communities were getting pummeled with wind and rain. To fill the long days, I started writing. With the plotting help of some of my closest writer friends, I came up with this plot about Sadie, who you met in Book 1: Sanctuary, and her eventual hero, Jett. I made Sadie a daredevil, an extreme sport athlete, so of course, she needed someone with similar interests to give her a run for her money. I wanted an extreme sport that is beachy and settled on competitive yacht sailing.Great! Except I’ve never sailed a sailboat. And I knew I would have to learn or else the story would fail. Errors in a fiction storyline pull an informed reader right out of the story. Some small “errors” are forgivable if they don’t affect the plot or the storyline. But writing a book about sailing and making mistakes about sailing basics is definitely not acceptable.So I reached out and connected with three fantastic sailing experts. All three of these generous sailors were “volunteered” by people I know to help me with their sailing expertise. When I reached out to them for help I had already written about twenty pages with sailing content. I explained what I wanted from them – to correct all my technical errors. They read the sailing pages and wrote back with corrections, suggestions, ideas. Consolidating all their feedback, I went back through the pages and made updates and sent them out again. I still hadn’t gotten it completely right, so they sent me back feedback again. Now, I feel confident that the sailing content is “right enough” not to be disruptive to the storyline. If there are still errors that remain, first of all, they’re entirely mine. And second, they don’t hurt the story.So, my great thanks to my three sailors: Charity Monroe, Tim McKenney and PaulMcNamee. I truly could NOT have written this book without you!Another expert I need to mention is Tricia Martin. Tricia was my inspiration for Sadie’s character from Day One when I decided she would be a dedicated extreme athlete. I used to work with Tricia in my previous career, and one Monday she walked into work, full of her normal energy, and revealed to me that she’d just ran a marathon the day before. Instead of limping down the hall, or better yet, taking the day off to recover, she breezed in just like it was any other day. After expressing my shock at her physical fitness, she shared that she had made a goal to run a marathon in all fifty states. AND she was well on her way to completing it.I called Tricia after I’d created Sadie. We talked about what is inside a marathoner’s brain and spirit to make her keep running, keep training, through the pain and the discomfort. I hope I did justice to Sadie’s marathon scene. A lot of it incorporated Tricia’s input.So, sometimes it takes a “village” to write a novel and I’d like to thank the knowledgeable peeps from my village of dedicated athletes who helped me get this one right. Enjoy “your” book. And readers, hope you enjoy it too.

It's my therapy

Yesterday, my husband and I spent six hours, along with over a thousand dollars, getting our two automobiles recognized as South Carolina vehicles. First, to the Tax Assessors' office, where you pay for an annual property tax on the value of your vehicles. Then, to the Department of Motor Vehicles where we got our license plates and drivers' licenses. As an added benefit, we also got our Voter Registration cards, our Organ Donor status, our state-specific car titles and our "Real ID" which all airports will require eventually when you go through TSA.So, it was a productive day. A long day, a tiring day, and at times, a frustrating day. And last night, we got a call from our friendly DMV representative saying he'd missed something, and we needed to bring more documents back in today. Which I did. SIGH. Make that SEVEN hours of work.I realize even seven hours spent getting those mandatory tasks done, is not bad. I've heard the horror stories of others that it's taken weeks, and multiple trips, and pulling their hair out to get it done. So I'm not complaining. But I do have a book coming out in a week, and there are other things I could be doing. So, when I started to feel the blood pressure increase, and the frustration build in me, I drove to the beach. It's my therapy, my beach time. It's a crisp, sunny 55 degree day today in my corner of the Grand Strand. No wind whatsoever. The ocean barely sported a single wave, just mirror-smooth blue. The sun glittered off the smooth water, sparkling against the sand. The sound of the surf is as vital to me as my heartbeat. A flock of fulmars, little seabirds, grouped together in the ocean, their heads up then pop down, hoping to catch fish for their next meal. An albatross sails just inches over the water, searching for his own prey, gliding with long wings outstretched.I smile my greetings to my fellow beach walkers, stop to pet the dogs that are accompanying their owners on a leash. I breathe in deeply. I let the sun warm my face. I love it here. The ocean feeds me, replenishes me, inspires me. Forty minutes of beach time had me calm and happy and serene again. What's your therapy?

Goals for a New Year

Another new year is upon us! I hope 2018 holds some sweet memories and learning opportunities for you and I hope you're looking forward to 2019!Every year I set new goals for my writing life. They help me to put some thought to my priorities. So here we go.Writing goals:I'm so excited about the books I want to write. Retiring from my big day job really set my muse and imagination loose and I actually have my next SIX books partially planned! It's the first time I've ever entered a new year with more than my very next book planned. 1. Set up a regular release schedule so readers can consistently expect new books from me. At this point I want to release 3 books a year, in spring, summer and fall.2. Complete the Murrells Inlet Miracles series. Release Capsized (Book 4) in January. Write and release Book 5 (featuring Aunt Gloria from Crescendo) in June/July.3. Release super-secret multi-author anthology project, currently scheduled for mid-May. Get my contribution, a historical/paranormal/inspirational novella ready in time for group release.4. Start new series for fall release!! Although I'm not ready yet to reveal what the series will be about, rest assured I have an awesome new idea simmering for a new 5-book series that I'm really excited about. I'd like to use a unique release schedule for this one. Here's a peek at what to expect: -- Fall 2019: Release a prologue novella introducing characters and premise of series. Follow a month later with first full-length novel. -- Spring 2020: 2nd full-length novel. -- Summer 2020: 3rd full-length novel followed a month later by epilogue novella wrapping up the series. Business goals:There's so much more to the business of writing, besides writing. There's the whole publication and promotion side! I made a "deal" with God when I began writing Christian fiction exclusively, that I would write the stories HE wanted me to write, if He would guide the right people to them for meaning and inspiration. So, my business goals have less to do with making best-seller lists or making a bunch of money. Instead, my business goals have more to do with clearing the way for God's target people to read my books. Of course, if lots of people read my books, the chances of making a list, or making dollars, is greater. But the intent that God and I agreed on was reaching people for the sake of leading them closer to Him.So ... keeping that in mind:1. Continue to refine and improve my release plan for each book. Follow the processes that have proven to be successful, and adjust based on what I learn along the way. Try new things and determine if they're worth continuing. Be intentional about the advertising and promotions I employ.2. Continue to build relationships with the bookstores that carry my books. Network to expand into more bookstores and libraries across the country.3. Transform my current newsletter subscriber list into supportive fans who are excited about each new release. Monthly newsletters should be fun, entertaining content that make subscribers feel like they're part of a family. Not "sell sell sell" content. 4. Join American Christian Fiction Writers national organization and engage in the local chapters. Learn more about the Christian fiction market and network to form relationships.5. Evaluate each travel opportunity (conferences, booksignings) from a profitability perspective. Personal goals:1. Remember that I'm retired. I write because I love to write, and because I consider my novels to be my primary ministry in the world. Resist the urge to replace my time-consuming, stressful job with another one. I will continue to do this as long as it brings me joy.2. Remember this is my dream job. I've worked a long, long time to be in this position. I live at the beach and write novels, and I've longed for this my whole life. Don't EVER take it for granted. Don't forget to thank God for it. So that's it! Thanks for being here!

"Ruthless Purging" or the Art of the Move

Our house has sold. After 23 years of living in it and filling it up, we have to be out in a few days, along with 100% of our "stuff." This blog post is a Public Service Announcement to those of you who are facing the same challenge.First of all, I came up with the term "ruthless purging" to describe our move because I'm not just packing up all our "crap" and moving it into our next house. We've already owned our new house for over two years, and it's about 85% furnished. I don't want, nor have room for our old furniture. Not to mention our clothes/furnishings/kitchen items, etc. I'm moving from a midwestern home to a coastal beach home. The decors are completely different. Also, the climates are different. I'm moving from a state with four distinct seasons, to a state with much milder winters. All good reasons to start fresh in our new house.So, going through all our stuff, I used the following approach:1) First preference is to donate. Can someone else get good use out of this item?2) Second preference is to pitch. If it's old, worn out, not in good shape, it's time to end its life.3) If we absolutely need the item or can't live without it, we bring it with us.Here's a look at the donation options I employed:Clothes: When we put our home on the market in May I went through all our closets anddonated 7 big garbage bags of clothes. When we sold, I went through them again and donated another 7. I donated them to a local mission and I was particularly happy that I was able to donate about 6 winter coats and 3 pairs of snow boots. Won't need them where we're going! But someone is going to be warm this winter.Furniture: We were able to get "takers" for all our furniture via people we knew. In addition to both our sons getting furniture for their own homes, we were also pleased that when we spread the word among extended family and friends, people came forward with "I've always loved that piece." At least we know our furniture not only went to someone who could use it, but someone who really loves it.Furnishings: This covers a lot of ground: paintings, mirrors, clocks, kitchen items like pots, pans, small appliances, serving dishes. You name it. We have an organization in town called Habitat Restore. When a new Habitat for Humanity home transitions to its owner, sometimes that owner needs help furnishing. The home items donated are available for sale at extremely low prices.Musical instruments: I got a guitar when I was 12 years old. It became a big part of me for at least 15 years. I took it on vacation every year, I took it to college, I took it on spring break trips, and even my semester in Mexico City. The guitar case is plastered with bumper stickers of everywhere that guitar and I traveled together. I did a lot of playing and singing ... but not lately. The guitar just sits in its case, probably wondering if it would ever live again. I'm happy to say that at the suggestion of my old guitar teacher, I found a new arts center for youth in town, that was hoping to expand its instrumentals program. They were thrilled to accept my guitar.Wedding gown: A wedding gown is a very special purchase, and more often than not, a one-day dress. It will never be worn again following the wedding. I've been married almost 30 years. The week after I returned home from my honeymoon, I took it to a dry cleaner and had it preserved in an air-tight box, where it's been sitting ever since. I had two sons, so there was never the possibility of passing the dress along to a daughter. The idea of cutting it up and making it into christening gowns arose, but instead, their father and I dressed them in cute white cotton "boy's suits" for christening. So, here I am with a beautifully preserved wedding gown, and absolutely no plans for its future. I'm happy to report that I discovered an organization that accepts donations of formal wear (prom dresses, bridesmaid dresses and wedding gowns), makes them available to young women for special occasions, in exchange for so many hours of community service. They were pleased to receive my gown, along with several bridesmaid dresses. I'm thrilled at the thought that my beautiful gown may someday be in the spotlight again, worn by a bride.At this writing, I have "two sleeps" left in our beautiful home where we raised our family. It was an absolutely perfect home for us. I'm excited that a new young family is moving in, and I'm excited about my new full-time life, living at the beach and writing novels. Yes, there's emotion; yes, there will be a few tears. But, tears of joy. I wouldn't change a thing.

Beauty at the Beach on Halloween

Happy Halloween! This day brings up memories of my own kids dressing up in costumes, making the trek through our neighborhood to fill bags with candy, sorting through it to separate the good from the bad, and of course, eating it. In central Illinois, Halloween weather was a mixed bag. Some years it was pleasant and they could trick or treat with no coats over their costumes! Other years, there was snow on the ground. And everything in between.Today, we're in South Carolina and yes, it's a little bit different. It's beautiful and hot and sunny. We've yet to see a trick or treater, but we hope we do, so we don't have to eat all that chocolate by ourselves!So it's odd to me that this late in the year, I'm writing a blog post called "Beauty at the Beach." But in my new home right here near the coast of the Atlantic ocean, it's appropriate. Every day, I go to the beach. If it's warm enough, I'll go in a swimsuit, set up my chair, occasionally an umbrella and I'll soak in the sun, the waves, the breeze, the sights and sounds. It brings me not only joy, but inspiration. My books take place at the beach, and being at the actual beach feeds my muse and my soul. I'm the happiest when I'm at the beach. The most peaceful. The most serene.Even when it's too cold to swim or sunbathe, I can always walk. I strive for daily exercise, and my favorite form is walking the beach. Fortunately I live only a short drive from an absolutely gorgeous oceanfront state park called Huntington Beach. It's magnificent. Armed with just my eye and my cell phone I've captured some remarkable photos that document my sights of the day. Although I've taken hundreds, I just picked out a few of my favorites to share with you from this past week's walks. I believe you can click on each one to enlarge it and see its caption. So wherever you are for Halloween, whether it's hot or cold, whether you have trick or treaters excited to hit the streets, or you're waiting for the doorbell to ring to hand out candy, enjoy!!Laurie