Becky Wade's Blog, page 33

Inspired by Scripture

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A Midsummer Romance (& a giveaway)

I’m delighted to host author Alyssa Schwarz here on the blog today while I’m on a family vacation in the Caribbean! Be sure to comment for a chance to win the giveaway she’s offering. (More on that at the bottom of the post.) Thanks so much for contributing to InspiredByLife, Alyssa! – Becky

Teamwork makes the dream work.

I can’t count all the times I’ve heard this phrase: classroom group projects, volleyball and soccer practice, high school mission trips, professional team-building exercises…

Writing can seem like a solitary endeavor, and it often is. Which is why something truly magical happens when authors come together.

I recently had the opportunity to partner with six other amazing women to write a multi-author series together, Summer in Wild Rose Ridge. They’d already worked together in the past, and I was the young newbie who felt way in over her head but was so incredibly welcomed into their group. The weekly Zoom calls and daily prayer huddle filled my soul. We got to chat about our characters’ lives and build better stories. We designed posters for all the events in our made up small town, making it feel like a real place. And we’ve cheered each other on through seasons of difficulty and seasons of celebration.

That’s exactly the kind of community connection my characters Caleb and Jess rediscovered when they moved back to their hometown of Wild Rose Ridge for the summer. Used to living life on their own, they had no intentions of putting down roots until they realized how much better life was when shared. Even if it took some meddling mothers, a staged kiss, and some Shakespearian romance to make it happen.

It can be so tempting to want to do it all on our own, but that’s not the life God has called for us. We are called the body of Christ, family, brothers and sisters, co-heirs, called to love and minister to one another as we work toward a common goal.

“May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had, so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Romans 15:5-6, NIV)

GIVEAWAY!!!! A Midsummer Romance is available now, and I’d love to give away a copy to one of you.

Simply leave a comment telling me about a time you were part of a team, and I’ll randomly choose a winner one week from today.

Alyssa is a Colorado native who attended the Colorado School of Mines, got her masters in Geological Engineering, and promptly became a watercolor artist and author (as one does). She loves writing heartfelt romances with happy endings, a bit of mystery, faith, humor, and second chances. When she’s not writing, you can find her in her cooking, quilting, painting, or doing any number of crafty activities. Visit her website to learn more and receive a free novella when you subscribe to her newsletter: https://www.authoralyssaschwarz.com/

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Some bookish quotes for you

Last week and this week, I’ve been surrounded by some pretty amazing young women in my day job. I’m also writing book three and in copy edits for book two. It’s been full, y’all. Fun, but full. I’m honestly pretty tired as I’ve poured into more than 55 women each week.

So today, I wanted to share some fun bookish quotes with you. These are from classic books, and I thought you’d enjoy them. There’s something fun about the way these are phrased. And what’s not to love about Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, and CS Lewis?

After you enjoy the quotes, I’ve included a fun Book Talk panel from last week. I haven’t done one for awhile and had such fun with Janyre Tromp, Janine Roche, and Susan Tuttle. I think you’ll enjoy our conversation. And at the very end is a giveaway I’m offering for Jen Turano’s latest novel. Be sure to enter by Sunday, July 28. I love her books, and this latest one Meeting Her Match was so much fun.

Here’s the Book Talk. I really enjoy all of these conversations, but getting together with these three was a blast. I think you’ll enjoy listening in. 

And here’s the giveaway for Meeting Her Match! Enjoy.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Lessons Learned & Joyful Reminders

Hi friends, and happy Wednesday! 

I just returned from hosting a writing retreat, and I had the best time. While I was the one teaching, the sweet attendees taught me just as much, if not more.

We stayed at two cabins in West Virginia, and while that might bring something rustic to mind, these cabins my family loves to stay at are anything but. The owner has the best decorating eyes. No detail is left untouched. It reminded me of my interior decorator mom—from the rich colors used to the arrangement of furniture—it was like being back in a room my mom had designed, which brought a big smile to my face and joy to my heart. 

While the cabins are cozy and beautiful, being smack in the middle of nature was amazing. I don’t know about you, but I always feel so much closer to God when I’m surrounded by His creation. And, we spent a lot of time in it. Whether going for walks, sitting on the porch engulfed by woods, circling around the fire pit at night, or watching deer in the front yard, it was so soothing to my soul, and I learned, or rather was reminded of, the peace that God’s creation fills me with. 

Our imitate group of seven—all published authors and one awesome mentee helper— really showed me the joys of fellowship. From laughing over dinner to deep discussions on writing Christian fiction to the craft itself, friendships were made, and I was blessed. 

Last but certainly not least, I learned what a S’moreeo is. Instead of fumbling with chocolate and graham crackers, you simply open an Oreo and slip the roasted marshmallow in. Yum! 

Question for you: 

Have you attended a writers’ or readers’ retreat? 

As always, thanks for joining me this week 

Best, 

Dani

An Amazing Night

I recently shared about my experience participating in a book festival in Hungary. (You can read about it here.) During that same trip to Europe, I also had the opportunity to participate in one more book event. This one took place in Bratislava, Slovakia.

Martin, the publisher who produces my books in the Slovak language arranged an event at a large bookstore.

As authors, we never have any idea how many people might (or might not) show up to a book-signing event, so while the publisher was praying for a large crowd, I moderated my expectations.

I needn’t have worried. Many people came.

I had prepared a brief talk, which was translated by the delightful Jana.  

Then we shifted to Q & A, and with Jana’s translation help, I answered many, many questions. The crowd was engaged and asked excellent questions or shared how my books had turned them into readers (one of the best compliments an author can receive). Some of the questions made me laugh, others…almost cry.

I could tell many in the crowd were people of faith, as they asked questions about favorite Bible verses (e.g. Philippians 4:6-7) or if there are any Scriptures I reflect on before I write. (John 15:5-8 and Ephesians 2:10 are posted near my desk).

After the Q & A, I met readers, posed for photos, and signed books for over an hour.

Some of the names were difficult for me to spell, especially those with unfamiliar accent marks, but with Jana’s help, I managed.

I even got to meet two young women in person whom I’d interacted with on social media, like Instagram friend, L’ubica.

The entire night was such a unique, humbling, encouraging experience. An unexpected, undeserved blessing for sure, and a highlight of our entire trip.

Have you experienced any unexpected blessings lately?

Pink Bags and a Special Birthday

Today our adorable first granddaughter becomes a teenager! This is a special day of memory for our family because July 22 was also my amazing mother-in-law’s birthday! This will be Mom’s third birthday in heaven but she had a couple of very sad birthdays over the years. Mom’s brother—her only living sibling—died on her birthday in 1991. And unbelievably, five years later, Ken’s dad, my dear father-in-law, also died on Mom’s birthday!

I know it was hard for her to come to terms with those tragic anniversaries, but she always said she knew she needed to turn a negative into a positive. And she did just that. I so admired the way she determined to turn a difficult seeming coincidence into a special way of remembering and celebrating the lives of these two men she loved so dearly. Given the history of Mom’s birthday, you can imagine how absolutely overjoyed we all were when our first granddaughter, Brynn, made her appearance in this world on July 22! Mom made the trip to Iowa with us that year to meet her birthday twin and they always had a special bond.

Every year on this date, I’m reminded of the lesson Mom’s attitude taught me: We can mope and groan and wonder why—or we can say, “Lord, I don’t understand, but help me to allow You to turn this difficult thing into something good.”

Our granddaughter’s birthday is a fun date to share a special tradition with my four granddaughters that Brynn started when she was barely three years old. Ken and I had gone to Texas to babysit Brynn and her brother. When I commented on a cute pink bag in her bedroom, that sweet girl offered it to me to take home. I said, “Oh, no, honey, I couldn’t take it.” But Brynn insisted and filled it with cute drawings for me to also take home.

I asked our daughter-in-law how she felt about it, and she said, “Please take it!” But when we got ready to leave and Brynn saw the bag beside my suitcase ready to go back to Kansas with me, I could tell she was regretting her decision a bit. So I told her, “How about this? I’ll take the pink bag home, but next time I come to visit, I’ll bring it back to you with a surprise inside.”

She liked that idea, and so for ten years, that bag and others like it have become part of a little tradition I now share with all four of my grandgirls. The bags have a little heart-shaped pocket to hold a photo, so each girl has a little collection of pictures tucked in the pocket to show how they’ve changed and grown over the years.

During the year, I collect little trinkets, many of which I find at garage sales or the dollar store. Nothing fancy or expensive, but just fun little items to share with the girls. Hair clips, lip balm, costume jewelry, candy, etc. Whenever all four of the girls are together, we find a few minutes to slip away and open the bags together. 

When our second and third granddaughters were born, I searched high and low for matching bags and finally found and ordered the last two from a vendor, but when our son married and brought his stepdaughter, our sweet now-16-year-old into our family, I could not find another bag anywhere. My talented sister, Vicky, stepped in and sewed not one, but two new bags, so now we even have an extra, just in case.

And I’m excited to tell you there IS a new baby coming to our family around Christmas time. But it’s not a girl. Our oldest son and his wife have a baby boy on the way! That will make 14 in all for us, and we couldn’t be more thrilled to have another Raney boy joining the family!

Happy birthday day, sweet girl! We couldn’t love you more!

Inspired by Scripture

This Sunday feature is brought to you by ClashVerseoftheDay.com. You may sign up to receive a beautiful photo with Scripture in your inbox each morning or view the verse each day online.

Writing Up a Storm

On the afternoon of Wednesday, July 3rd, revisions for my next biblical novel (tentatively titled Star of Wonder) landed in my inbox. Although the revisions weren’t extensive, the editors wanted a change in the opening part of the book that then had to be followed through the entire book. The change required me to cut all of Chapter Two. 

I’m actually kind of excited about that cut because I never have eliminated chapters to share with readers. This time I do, and it’s going to make a great blog post when the time comes. I’ll probably share it around Christmas because it has to do with the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem. Stay tuned!

Inspiration Graphic

Anyway, I got right to work on the revisions. I had no plans for the Fourth of July, so I just kept my head down and worked every day except Sunday until they were done. I sent the completed revisions to my editors on Friday evening, July 12th. Whew! Done and done.

But, as you no doubt know if you are a regular visitor to this blog, I couldn’t take a lot of time to celebrate because I have another deadline racing toward me. Thus, on Monday of this week, I threw myself back into writing my contemporary Christmas romance, Wishing for Mistletoe.

Inspiration graphics

It just so happens I had signed up in advance to take part in daily writing sprints this week. Although I know a number of authors who do this (meeting via Zoom with other writers, setting a timer, everybody writing for 20 to 25 minutes, followed by a five minute rest and letting others know how you did, then repeat the process two to three times), I’d never done any sprints myself. I’m delighted to say this experiment with sprinting couldn’t have come at a better time. I have been able to beat my daily word goal every day so far. I hope that in my next blog post, I’ll be able to tell you Wishing for Mistletoe is finished, polished, and in the hands of my sainted editor so that she can work her particular magic with it.

In August, I’ll attend the annual brainstorming retreat in northern Idaho with my very special sisters in Christ. Which means when I get back, I’ll be working on the next The British Are Coming novel, To Capture a Mountain Man. I’m so eager to return to Idaho in the 1890s.

Inspiration Graphic

What’s keeping you busy this summer? Family? Vacations? Lots of reading? Please share!

~robin

An Adventure in Branson

A couple weeks ago my husband and I celebrated our 32nd wedding anniversary with a trip to Branson. I had only been there once before, back in 2018, as part of a writing retreat, but I had been wanting to return. I’m so glad we did. We had a marvelous time.

We stayed in a lovely little cabin tucked into the woods. So quiet, peaceful, and wonderful shade with a breeze to cut back the heat.

Day 1

On our first day, we tackled Silver Dollar City. If you’ve never been, it’s a theme park centered on a 1800’s country theme. Just my cup of tea. It was very hot, but we still had a great time. We started the day by getting breakfast at a popular local diner famous for their 14″ pancake – Billy Gail’s. Yes, the pancake really was that big. I had to see for myself. I managed to do some serious damage, but I just couldn’t finish it. Super yummy, though.

After fueling up for the day, we headed to the park. Thanks to getting some recommendations before we left, I knew to visit the Wilderness Church for the hymn sing-a-long they do several times during the day. We sang my favorite worship music–old hymns–for about 30 minutes. It was wonderful!

We also rode many rides and explored several historic buildings. There was so much to see, and I’m sure we missed some gems. I suppose we’ll just have to go back one of these days.

Day 2

After being out in the heat all day the previous day, we decided for a more relaxed (and air-conditioned!) day. We played some indoor mini golf at the Coral Reef, where I’m thrilled to report that I beat my husband by 5 strokes. WooHoo! We both managed a pair of hole-in-ones, too!

After mini golf, we headed to the Branson Aquarium. It wasn’t a huge aquarium, but it was exceptionally well done. Beautiful with lots of fun opportunities for photos. My husband is a big fan of aquariums, so when I found this option, I knew we needed to add it to the itinerary.

We ended the day with the show I had been waiting to see for two years. Esther – at the Sight and Sound Theater. I saw Sampson back in 2018 and was amazed. When I saw that they were doing Esther in 2023-24, I started plotting a return to Branson. I’m so glad we were able to make it work. It was an incredible production! The sets were phenominal, the actors ultra-talented, and the singing outstanding. We had seats on the center aisle, and they are famous for bringing the actors up and down the aisles. King Xerxes even rode his horse right past us. Yes, a live horse! The had several horses in the show along with a camel, a pair of llama, some goats, a dog, and even live birds that were released to fly above the audience’s head. Just stellar! I love seeing God’s word brought to life on the stage with such care to scriptural accuracy as well as high-level entertainment.

Day 3

We ended our Branson stay with a book signing at the Fig Tree Books & More Christian store. They were so gracious to have me come, and I loved getting to see readers from the Branson area. It was a wonderful way to end our stay.

Have you taken any summer trips yet?
Do you have any planned?
I’d love to hear about them!

My New Novelette–and a Kindle Sale!

As I mentioned a few weeks ago, I wrote a novelette just for my newsletter subscribers. I’m happy to announce that it will drop in my newsletter on Saturday, August 3,  for current readers and will be a welcome gift for any new people from then on as well. 

I’ve wanted to do this for a very long time, but I kept overthinking it and talking myself out of story ideas. Then the total eclipse happened in April and I ran across the fact that the last total eclipse in our area had been in 1878, I knew I wanted to rope that fact into a story somehow. 

The most fun part? I set the novelette in my hometown of Fort Worth, although the story is set in 1885.

Here’s the blurb: 

Bea Watson loves studying nature, especially the sky, a curiosity her mother encouraged when she was alive. Even before her death, she blessed Bea’s thirst for education with a trust fund left to cover her college education. But Bea’s father is less than supportive of her academic pursuits and seems indifferent to Bea herself. And she has no idea why.

When unforeseen circumstances arise and Bea is forced to choose between her further education and her father’s well-being, she finally finds the courage to demand answers to the questions that have long haunted her. But will an understanding of the past bring any hope to her future? 

As I said, this story will be for my newsletter subscribers, so it’s only in electronic format. You’ll be able to choose an ePub or pdf file. And since this is not (at least at the moment) a book for sale, I decided to play around with designing the cover myself. Between AI and Canva, I was pretty happy with the result! 

If you want to read Bea’s story—or get book recommendations and blog post links from me each Saturday—click here to sign up for my newsletter.. 

Oh—and one more note: three of my full-length historical novels are on sale (kindle only) for $1.99 until Friday! Grab a copy for yourself and tell your friends! 

Do you subscribe to author newsletters? What is something you appreciate most in an author’s newsletter?