C. Deanne Rowe's Blog, page 4

These eyes

After throwing away two broken umbrellas in the same day, my dear husband bought me a new one.  Appreciative, I stored it away in the cubby of my car door for easy access and safe keeping.  My mind was on follow-up doctor appointments which were scheduled for me the next day.  Dear husband took vacation from work to go with me for moral support. 

Climbing in the passenger side of the car, I spotted the umbrella in the cubby of the driver’s door.  Making casual conversation, I asked dear husband why he bought a green umbrella.  They had to have other colors to pick from.  I’m not sure what I was expecting him to say.  Maybe, it was this or leopard print, I could have bought paisley, there was one with big huge flowers or I could have not bought you one.  Whatever I was expecting, it wasn’t what he replied.  Because it matches your eyes. 

When you have been married over thirty years like we have, these moments can be few and far between.  He took me completely by surprise.  Dear husband has forgotten my birthday, come close to forgetting our anniversary and waited until the last minute to plan anything for Mother’s Day, but he remembered the color of my eyes.  I’m a happy wife.

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What’s new

It has been awhile since I let everyone know what’s new.  I have been writing, writing, writing.  I am working hard on my next book, Southern Sophistication.  I have also been working on another one of my stories, In the Heart of Valley.  You’ll have to tune in and find out which one gets finished first.  I think I will be surprised also.

I also published a new book in The Stiletto Series, Stilettos in the South.  Each of the three Stiletto Girls grew up in the south so we decided to take a memory from our childhood and write about it.  It was so much fun and brought back a lot of memories for each of us.  I hope all of you I grew up with who read this book will enjoy it.

I also contributed to another book, Sex, Lies and Scandal in Two Rivers, with my writing group, Two Rivers Romance Authors.  Nine members of the group each created a character and wrote about them and their lives in the fictional town of Two Rivers, Iowa.  This project was so much fun for all of us. We held a book launch and were pleasantly surprised by the people who showed up to support us.

May is a special month for me and it is almost over so this is my chance to remind all of you to gather up the women in your life you love and have them make an appointment to have their annual mammogram.  If they have already made an appointment, offer to go with them.  Remind them how important it is for them to have their yearly check up because they are just that important to you.  I’m celebrating my 2nd anniversary being cancer free and appreciating every minute of everyday.  I hope you can say the same.  ♥♥♥

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THE NEXT BIG THING

The Next Big Thing blog-hop is new to me, but I’m finding it very interesting and a lot of fun.  I’ll be blogging about my book Cowboy Temptation ~ Colt and Cassy.  I’ll answer ten questions about my book and then tag a few additional authors who in turn will tag a few more.  One author I’ll be tagging is my writing partner Magnolia ‘Maggie’ Rivers.  Together we write The Stiletto Series (Blue Jeans and Stilettos, Venus and Stilettos, Ms. Claus Wears Stilettos and Stilettos (Flip Flops) in the Sand)  as Writers of the Lake.  We have four books out and a fifth coming out in January 2013 titled Stilettos in the South.  You are going to learn about some new authors and some new book to read.  I hope you come along for the fun.

A HUGE thank you to Francesca Hawley for tagging me.  You can find her Next Big Thing here: 

 

Ten Interview Questions for The Next Big Thing:

What is the working title of your book?

Cowboy Temptation ~ Colt and Cassy is the title of my book.  This is the first in a series of three in the Cowboy Temptation series. 

Where did the idea come from for the book?

Most people will tell you their story ideas come from a dream or some very interesting event.  Well, the idea for my book came from a license plate frame on a car in the parking lot where I work.  The frame read ‘Cowboy Butts Drive Me Nuts’ which was the working title until the story was complete and changed to Cowboy Temptation ~ Colt and Cassy. 

What genre does your book fall under?

Cowboy Temptation ~ Colt and Cassy falls under a contemporary romance with western elements. It’s set in the South on a farm.  There are a lot of tight Levi’s, cowboy hats and boots.

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

If Jimmy Thomas was an actor I would say he would be perfect since he was the inspiration for my characters Colt.  If not Jimmy Thomas then a young Clint Eastwood or Josh Brolin would be a perfect Colt.  Carrie Underwood would play a great Cassy.

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

Cassy, trying to put her life back in order, fights her feelings for Colt who she thinks is a bad boy, but turns out to be Mr. Right.

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

Cowboy Temptation ~ Colt and Cassy is self-published. 

I decided to self-publish after my breast cancer diagnosis in May, 2011.  I had lost a friend in October, 2009 to a freek accident.  She was just getting started with her writing when she was taken from us.  Smiley’s death spurred me to get busy and start submitting my stories.  After my cancer diagnosis, I decided I would take my writing career in my own hands.  I wanted Jimmy Thomas on the front of my first book and I got him.  Not only is his picture on my cover but he sat next to me at my Book Launch signing books with me.  Life is good! 

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

Actually, I wrote the first draft for NANOWRIMO (National Novel Writers Month) so it took me 30 days.  There have been lots of revisions since that first draft.

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

I honestly can’t tell you what other books mine would compare to.  I know I love to read all kinds of romance, Lori Wilde being one of my favorite authors along with Jill Shalvis.  I try not to compare my writing to anyone.  I want a reader to pick up my book not knowing what to expect and then be pleasantly surprised.

Who or What inspired you to write this book?

My favorite story to write is about the small towns in the South where I grew up.  I try to incorporate people I’ve met and all the life lessons I learned growing up so it makes my stories very personal to me. 

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

I had fun writing the characters in Cowboy Temptation ~ Colt and Cassy.  I love a strong Hero who is confident, but knows how to treat a lady and a Heroine who can stand her own, but still knows how to be a woman.  Since this is the first book in a series of three books, I would like to have the next book out in 2013 hopefully with characters as much fun to write as Colt and Cassy. 

Here is a list of my tagged blog hop buddies with a link to their websites.  They will be blogging next week so checkout their Next Big Thing.  I promise you will have no regrets.

MAGNOLIA ‘MAGGIE’ RIVERS

GLENNA WEST

WRITERS OF THE LAKE

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In The Merry Month of May

May has become one of the months of the year which I look forward to with joy and trepidation.  I have always loved Spring and the new life it brings; flowers blooming, trees budding, everything turning green.  May has become an especially significant month for me.

I enjoy celebrating Mother’s Day. I always look forward to another reason to receive presents, be taken out to dinner and made feel special.  Who doesn’t enjoy letting their Mother know how much she has meant to you all these years?  I pray I am able to do that for many years to come.   May brings me that pleasure.

In May 2005 my grandson, Kael Alexander was born. He is one of the four lights of my life along with his sister, Kara Leigh and my other two grandchildren, Alexa Reese and Alivia Rowe. Being a Grandmother is one of the best jobs in the world.  May brought that wonderful responsibility to me.

May 2011 brought a life altering journey for me.  I was diagnosed with Breast Cancer. You can read about my journey in a previous blog.  It was an exhausting experience, but one from which I’ve learned a lot about life; what is important in life and what isn’t.  You would be surprised what doesn’t matter anymore and how easy it is to say ‘NO’.  May brought me that clarity.

May 2011 also brought the publication of my first book Blue Jeans and Stilettos by Writers of the lake.  The book was launched on June 23, 2011.  As a group, Writers of the Lake published an anthology of stories which is very successful.  Since then we have published two other anthologies with another one on the way.  I have become known as one of the ‘Stiletto Girls’.   May brought me that title.

May 2012 now has me preparing for the launch of my first book alone Cowboy Tempation ~ Colt and Cassy which will be launched on June 15, 2012 at the Hilton Garden Inn in Johnston Iowa.  I’m so excited about this book not only because it’s my first book as the sole author, but because Jimmy Thomas, the cover model for my book, will be there to sign books with me.  Jimmy has been on over 2,800 book covers, is a well-known Cover Model and the owner/operator of http://www.romancenovelcenter.com.   May has brought me the chance to meet Jimmy Thomas (thank you!).

Writers of the Lake will also be launching the fourth book in our Stiletto Series – Stilettos (Flip Flops) on the Sand.

I hope all of you have that special month of the year you look forward to which makes you stop and think about how precious life is.  Don’t take anything for granted; celebrate the good and the bad.  After all, we’ve made it this far, the best is yet to come!

 

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My Journey

I realized as I caught tears in my husband’s eyes, how far my journey had brought us.  He had just watched as I participated in the Survivor parade at Susan G. Komen’s Race for a Cure in Des Moines, Iowa.  I was one of many survivors who were recognized.  Survivors who all had one thing in common, we survived breast cancer.  We were a group of strangers, but yet we had a bond big enough to allow us to hug, laugh and even cry with each other as the crowd applauded when we walked by.  We all understood where the other had been and what strength it had taken to get where we were today.  Something we could never explain to someone who hasn’t taken the journey of their life.

I had originally planned to attend the Race for the Cure with my friend.  She became sick so I recruited my husband.  It wasn’t long before I realized fate had intervened and I had chosen the perfect person.  He had been my caregiver during my journey.  It was only right he be with me as a survivor.

We started my journey in April of 2011 when I went for my annual exams.  Everything was wonderful.  My first book was coming out.  Life was good.  Then I received a call back a few days later requesting me to return for another mammogram and ultrasound.  I returned the next week, worried and hesitant but sure everything would be all right.  The Doctor who read my screens explained he found a mass and wanted to refer me to a surgeon.  The mass he found was too close to the chest wall for a needle biopsy so I needed to have a surgical biopsy.  In less than a week I was meeting with my surgeon as he explained how we were going to proceed.  That Friday, the 13th of May, I was to show up for surgery, they would take what tissue was necessary and send it off to pathology.  I would know the results by the next Tuesday.  I tried to rest and not think about the results, but after Tuesday came and went with no word, I was worried.  Wednesday I called my surgeons office.  The Doctor returned my call Wednesday, May 18th around 4:30 pm.  When I heard his voice on the phone, my heart sunk.  I knew the news wasn’t good.  He proceeded to tell me he had received the test results back and I had Ductal Carcinoma In Situ (DCIS).  The only word I understood was carcinoma.  Cancer, I had cancer.  My journey had begun.

As the words mastectomy, lumpectomy, radiation and chemotherapy were tossed around I had a discussion with my body during a morning shower.  I was doing everything I could to maintain the ‘girls’.  They were given to me as a pair and I wanted to keep them a pair.  My mother and my aunt had been through this so they were my long distance supports.  My brother was information and support since he worked in the field.  After many tests to determine if there where anymore hot spots and a second surgery to gain a clear margin of tissue and take lymph nodes to find out if the cancer had spread, radiation was the course of treatment.  I was referred to an Oncologist and Radiologist.  These were two doctors I never thought I would be a patients of.

During my recovery time my husband was my caretaker.  My mother and aunt continued to call to check in almost every day, but my husband was there to drive me to surgeries.  He was there to fix me breakfast, lunch and dinner until I was back on my feet and we both returned to work.  I made it through my first book launch and a wonderful, relaxing week at the lakehouse with my writing frineds.  I was scheduled to start radiation July 18th, two months after I was diagnosed.  The fun was just beginning.

My husband’s boss made it possible for him to work from home during my treatments.  For the next six and a half weeks he would be available, available to take me to treatments and take care of some of the responsibilities around the house since I continued to work full time.  The people in my department had also surprisingly taken on the responsibility of getting me through this time.  Two of my bosses had already been through their journey and knew the fight I was up against.  The numbers thirty three through zero were written on the white board on the wall so I could cross each treatment off as they were completed.  Also the number of people who had seen my breasts was updated.  I was expecting to collect beads for each one when all this was done.  I was given a grade at the end of each week showing how well I was doing along with treats being brought in to celebrate.  The goal was to go out to dinner to celebrate when my treatments were completed.

After six and a half weeks of exhausting treatments, burnt skin, daily trips to the cancer center and Doctor appointments I had made it through.  At my last treatment I received a certificate of completion.  I was never so happy to be done with something in my life.  After many hugs, I said my goodbye’s and returned to work.  As I walked on the trading floor, the first person I ran into was a male co-worker who was wearing a strand of pink beads around his neck.  As I glanced around the floor, I noticed everyone else was wearing pink beads around their neck.  There was a bouquet of pink balloons placed on my desk along with a bag full of strands of pink beads and a gift certificate for a spa treatment of my choice.  My monitors were covered with strands of pink beads.  I could feel the emotion welling up but there was no way I was showing anyone else my breasts.  These people, my friends, had been there with me every day for the past six and a half weeks and now, together, we could celebrate the end.  There was a full sheet cake with pink icing and a large pink ribbon in the middle.  With the help of my husband, mother, aunt, family and friends I had made it through.  Now it was time to heal.

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Congratulations!

Congratulations Cheryl Lynch Hosel!

Cheryl is the lucky winner of an autographed copy of my first book Blue Jeans and Stilettos.

Thank all of you for entering my birthday give away contest.

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