Becky Wade's Blog, page 35

Another Boston Trip in the Books

You might notice this post has gone up later in the day than usual for me. That’s because we are heading home from another great trip to Boston and it was a late night last night! But more about that later. 

Last year, one arm of my husband’s company began offering historical tours to their supporters. These tours focus on things through the lens of our religious freedom, which is the focus of my husband’s job. This was our second such trip to Boston. And Boston, for us never gets old. Likely part of that is due to getting to see our daughter, but truly, we’ve come to love the city as well. 

Almond babka

Our first morning, which was a day prior to tour participants arriving, Jeff got us babka at Bakey, which is across the street from Boston Commons. Their almond babka is the stuff or sweet-and-carb-laden dreams. After some time with our daughter, including yummy pizza, we decided the 73 degree day begged to be experienced, so we each took a book to the Boston Public Gardens and read as we enjoyed the weather. 

One of the highlights of this Boston tour is always a baseball game at Fenway. This year they weren’t playing our Rangers, so we became Red Sox fans for a day. It wasn’t hard after overhearing a conversation in the row behind us on the airplane about a Texas boy just called up to the Red Sox as a relief pitcher. Even if he still hasn’t officially made his MLB debut on the mound, it was fun to know he could have. 

Italian food and seafood are two of our favorite things here, and we especially love eating in the North End, where there are a million Italian restaurants and bakeries to choose from—along with the history of the Old North church and Paul Revere’s house, among other things. Cannoli at Mike’s is always a must for us. 

I was so excited to get to tour the USS Constitution for the first time in about ten years. I enjoy imagining what it was like to sail the seas on those old boats, but the most fun thing was walking into the visitors center and seeing Sarah Sundin’s books on prominent display!

We ended our time with a dinner cruise on the Charles River capped off by fireworks. 

It will be good to be home but also hard to return to temperatures near triple digits! The 70s and low 80s here have been a dream. But I never mind leaving Boston too much because I always know I’ll be back. 

Have a Happy 4th, y’all!

Have you visited Boston before? What is your favorite activity there? Favorite food? 

A Cotswolds Caper

If you’ve watched the show All Creatures Great and Small, you’ve likely been captured by the beauty of the Cotswolds and the Yorkshire Dales in the UK. Joe and I recently returned from ten days in the Cotswolds with some dear friends, and it was a wonderful trip!

Here are some glimpses . . .

We stayed in Burford and took day trips into the surrounding countryside…

Joe and I traveled with Jerry and Beth Trescott and had the best time. Lots of laughter and wonderful discussions about history (they’re both historians—Jerry from Belmont Mansion and Beth from Carnton). Talk about a “power couple!” We patroned numerous antique shops and country homes. I was in history heaven!

You may remember how I love door and path pics, as so many of you do. I promise you, everywhere you turn in the Cotswolds, there is beauty! I could have walked and strolled the villages and countrysides for weeks. In fact, I came home with an idea for a story that’s already brewing and taking shape. Perhaps another dual timeline story.

The bed and breakfast where we stayed—the Greyhounds in Burford—was originally built for a wool merchant in the 15th century (history lovers dream!), and later became an inn, then a Temperance Hotel. In 1908 it was restored as a home and was acquired by the present owners in 1999. The Countryman magazine was published at the Greyhounds from 1949 until 2003 and was the creation of J.W. Robertson Scott.

Below is a pic of the historic building from the 1800s, and now current day.

A definite highlight of the trip was visiting Highclere Castle, “home” to Downton Abbey. And also Blenheim Palace, Winston Churchill’s birthplace. We spent some time in Oxford, which of course meant running by The Eagle and Child where C.S. Lewis and the Inklings routinely met. The city of Oxford is great (lots of fun bookstores), but I much prefer the Cotswolds and the gorgeous countryside.

I’m so grateful we got to make this trip, even though it came at a very busy time as we were moving into a different house here in Nashville. We got home on a Saturday night then literally started moving the next day. We’re not nearly settled, but we’re getting there—in between unpacking and loving on our precious grandkids (Leo and Ari), and writing toward my September deadline!

Speaking of grands… : ) Oh I adore these kids.

If you’ve stayed with me through all the pictures this far, thank you! Visiting the Cotswolds was a long held desire and I’m grateful we got to experience its rich history and beauty.

Is there a place you’ve long wanted to visit (or have visited)? Please share where and what about that place draws (or drew) you to it. I’d love to know. I may need to add it to my TBT (to be traveled) list!

Hugs from my corner of Nashville,

Tammy

Enjoy this NEW #romance by my friend @NancyNaigle. THE LAW OF ATTRACTION is an absolutely perfect, feel-good summer read! 

Happy 88th Birthday, GWTW!

As of yesterday, June 30, Gone with the Wind (the book) is 88 years old! I found a copy in the house that my family rented when I was in fifth grade. I started reading it and just couldn’t stop! I so admired Scarlett–and I always joke that I learned how to flirt from reading about her. How she said to look at a man across the room and smile as though you know a secret, then coyly look away . . . and how to walk slightly pigeon-toed so that your hoop skirt sways enticingly . . . how did Margaret Mitchell know that? They weren’t wearing hoop skirts in her day!

I wasn’t very sophisticated as a fifth grader, so I believed Scarlet when she said Rhett didn’t love her, and as she ran home through the fog after Miss Melly’s death, her epiphany nearly knocked me over. I don’t think I ever got over that feeling, and it taught me what a well-written book can do. Amazing, isn’t it?

Yesterday Garrison Keillor quoted the first line in his almanac post, but he got it wrong. It’s this: Scarlett O’Hara was not beautiful, but men seldom realized it when as caught by her charms as the Tarleton twins were. What a great way to start a novel . . .

Every character in that book came off the page and seemed absolutely real. And when I saw the movie, I liked it, but it didn’t have the power of the book–probably because the camera can’t let us inside a character’s head the way a book can. Still, the movie is a classic, and for folks who can’t or won’t read a 1056-page book, it’s a good second best.

Have you read Gone with the Wind? Did you love it as much as I did? Do tell!

Angie

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.

A First Time for Everything (& a giveaway!)

Please welcome my friend Jill Lynn to the blog!! She’s generously offering a signed copy of her new release to one of you. So be sure to learn more about her book via this post, then enter to win it by commenting. Happy Friday! -Becky

It’s been a couple years since I’ve written a guest post for Becky’s blog, and it’s always such a welcoming experience. So, thank you for joining me and thanks to Becky for always being a gracious host. I’ve been a Becky Wade fan since a little book about a hockey player hit shelves. (Matt – le sigh.) And my fangirling has continued ever since.

Today, I’m here celebrating my new book, The Summer of Keeping Secret, which just released this week. 

When I first started writing this book, I didn’t know where or if it would be published. I’d been writing sweet, Christian romances for Love Inspired for years, and I knew this story wasn’t a fit for that exact line and length of books.

I went back and forth over whether I should try something new. For me, I always write a little bit scared. I’m never confident when I start writing or even when I finish writing a book. As you can imagine, I’m quite fun to live with! But I’ve learned to write anyway—even if I’m nervous. And to give myself a deadline. Those help!

My husband encouraged me to try something new, so I decided to go for it.

And in one of those fun twists like God enjoys doing for us, The Summer of Keeping Secrets found a home with the very same editor of my previous books at the new Love Inspired Trade length publishing line. (The trade line focuses on longer books with a wider variety of story lines – everything from suspense to historical to romance.) 

Continuing in that same vein, I experienced numerous firsts with this book.

While I’ve been writing books set in Colorado for quite some time, this was my first time setting a story in a real Colorado city versus a fictional one.

Lake Dillon

Dillon, Colorado is in Summit County, which is an area known for some exceptional ski resorts like Breckenridge and Keystone. It’s also known for Lake Dillon (a.k.a. Dillon Reservoir) which provides most of Denver’s drinking water. You can boat on Lake Dillon. You can be in a kayak or on a paddle board. And you can wade in it. You like what I did with Becky’s name there? But since a person can’t survive very long in the frigid temps, they don’t allow swimming in the reservoir.

The Summer of Keeping Secrets is set on the cliffs above Lake Dillon. A couple years ago we were driving by those cliffs, and I thought, it would be fun to set a book in one of those amazing houses. And then I thought, ooh, and I should put a body in it! When I told my daughter, who is an avid reader, that I wanted to set a book in one of the houses on the cliff, she announced: you should put a body in it! LOL! I thought that was funny and also confirmation that I was headed in the right direction.

This is the first time I added a mystery element to a book. (Oof. I needed a lot of help with that!) And the first time that my three main characters range in age from 30 to 60.

The main focus of the book is about a widowed mother and her two grown children purging the grandparents’ cliffside home. When the adult daughter discovers an old newspaper clipping about a body found below the property 34 years earlier, pieces of the past begin to unfold.

This is also the first time I’ve veered from writing a traditional Christian romance novel to mainstream clean women’s fiction. (My definition of clean = no sex, no profanity, no explicit content.)

My characters might not have overt faith story lines in this book, but I think God is still “visible” in the themes of grace, forgiveness and hope. I honestly don’t think I’m capable of writing a story where He doesn’t show up. And since I’m a big fan of romance, I threaded in three romance story lines. I had a lot of fun writing those, because to me every book should have a little romance.

And in something that was not a first for this book, I am so grateful to God for taking this little idea and making into a published book. That is something that definitely hasn’t changed over the years!

If you pick up a copy of The Summer of Keeping Secrets, I hope you enjoy.

Thanks again to Becky for letting me visit!

Jill Lynn

I would love to hear about something that has happened in your life lately that is a first for you. I’m so thankful that when we do a new thing, God is with us.Giveaway!

To celebrate the book’s release, I’m giving away a signed copy of The Summer of Keeping Secrets to one of Becky’s readers – US shipping only. To enter, simply leave a comment on this post. One winner will randomly be selected on Monday, July 1st.

p.s. I also have an additional giveaway for a book tote, signed book, and chocolates going on here.

Connect with Jill!

Jill’s web site | Amazon | Instagram | Facebook

Booksignings, Bookish Confessions, and Book Giveaways

The last few weeks have been so fun. In addition to our trip to London for study abroad, I’ve had a couple booksignings. It’s been so much fun to connect with readers I’ve known via social media for awhile — there’s something about meeting in person that’s so fun!

On Saturday I was at one of my favorite independent bookstores down in Nashville, Indiana. Nashville is a charming little town that is a fun place to escape. It reminds me of Estes Park or Mackinac Island. It’s a great escape and in the fall is filled with the color of changing leaves. There are so many charming shops and restaurants. One of my favorites is Naughty Dog Books.

I love Naughty Dog Books. It is such a beautiful store and really reminds me of the many shops in England in the way it has personality. It’s a former bank, and they’ve turned the vault into the True Crime Vault. So fun! The bookstore extends bank and is filled with reading areas and so many sections of books.

I met so many new readers, but also this sweet reader who drove over from Kentucky. Y’all, it’s amazing to have y’all make the effort to come to our signings. You have no idea how encouraging it is. Sometimes — often — we write these books and send them into the void. We occasionally get an email or comment; other times reviews that are so important to others discovering our books. But meeting in person is quite fun.

Isn’t the bookstore so cute? If you’re in Grand Rapids, I’d love to have you join me Saturday afternoon at Baker Book House from 3-5 p.m. I’ll also be signing books at the Island Bookstore on Mackinac Island on Tuesday afternoon from 1-3. It’s always more fun when I get to meet friends!

Last week we also got to attend the USA Swimming Olympic Trials. As a former (slow) swimmer, it was amazing to watch the semi-finals and finals two nights with my swimmers. Watching the officials was hilarious and interesting — I told my husband that as someone who spends a lot of time on deck at our kids’ swim meets, serving on deck at the Olympic Trials has not been added to my bucket list. I loved being in the stands though. There’s something amazing about celebrating with those who get the two spots on the Olympic team for each event. And at the same time, there are swimmers who’ve worked just as many years and are fractions of a second behind — sometimes a mere touch. That was hard to watch and consider.

There are actually a lot of paralells with writing. You can do all the work — but there are only so many spots with traditional publishers. One of the things I love about being in the Christian publishing is how much we encourage each other. It’s really something special. If you are an aspiring writer, be sure to check out this year’s line up of workshops and speakers at the American Christian Fiction Writers national conference September 5-8 in New Orleans. And if you’re a reader, consider joining us September 5-7 in New Orleans for Storyfest.

My husband and I are slipping away for a couple quiet days. Any recommendations for books I should read?

In celebration of summer holidays and reading, I want to give away some books to some lucky readers. Often when I’m interviewing authors for Book Talk, publishers send me advanced reader copies of the books. I’d love to share the wealth with you. Just use the form below to enter. Good luck and happy reading!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

COMMUNITY and CONNECTION

Hey friends, Happy Wednesday! I am so excited to have my good friend and fellow author, Kimberley Woodhouse, share with you today about the importance of community and connection as both a reader and a writer! I hope you enjoy, and be sure to check out her amazing stories!

I want to challenge and encourage each one of you to make a resolution for this year. (I know, I know, it’s not January, but who says you have to only make resolutions at the beginning of the year?)

The resolution is to find and/or engage in community and connection.

Coming off an amazing weekend with one of my mastermind groups and a reader event has me flying high and exhausted all at the same time. But it’s made me do lots of deep pondering. (Don’t you just love that word? To ponder means to think about and reflect on.)

Sometimes, we get so busy with life that we neglect what our souls need: community, fellowship with others, and deep connection that fills our hearts. We go and go and go with deadlines, family life, church, and kids/grandkids, and before we know it, we are dry, empty, and disconnected.

As avid readers and writers, we desperately need community—fellow lovers of the written word and fellow creatives. But many of us have introverted personalities, and as much as we need community, it also scares us to be among our people. Because… it requires us to be around people, right?

Getting together with others who love the same things makes us feel safe. We have our own tribe, our own family. And events like the MidSummer Mingle at Baker Book House in Grand Rapids, Michigan, this past week were one of those amazing community and connecting times.

You see, it’s not always easy to put ourselves out there and be real. But, oh, how beautiful it is to do that, and when we do—especially at something like this—it blesses us in unexpected ways.

We make new friends.

We realize there are others who love and enjoy the same things.

We are refreshed and soul-filled and heart-happy and can’t wait until the next time we can be with our “family” of book-loving peeps.

We laugh until we cry, like this picture of me, Karen Witemeyer (left), and Pepper Basham (right). We had so much fun simply being together and being real. We’ve been friends for many years, but intentionally being part of a mastermind group has grown and deepened those friendships.

It has been incredible to grow relationships with new friends, too. This past weekend, we shared from our hearts, prayed together, joined in lots of laughter, and got to do one of our favorite things – connect with readers and each other.

So, are you up for the challenge?

Join a book club. Or even better yet – START one!

Attend a reader event like the one last weekend.

Reach out to other readers or bookstagrammers you meet online.

Send your favorite author a message or email.

Connect with other authors via groups like ACFW and AWSA etc. 

I promise you won’t regret intentionally investing in community and connection.

I stole this picture from the amazing Bethany Turner of our Mastermind Group. 

From us to you – lots of love and happy reading!

Until next time, enjoy the journey!

-Kimberley

Kimberley Woodhouse is the bestselling author of more than forty books, which have earned many accolades, including Christian Retailing’s Top Pick, Booklist starred reviews, and multiple Publisher’s Weekly starred reviews. Winner of the Carol Award, the Holt Medallion, the Golden Scroll, the Christian Market Book Award, the Selah, and many others, she is also a popular speaker/teacher and has shared with more than two million people at over 2,500 venues. A lover of history and research, she often gets sucked into the past, and then her husband has to lure her out with chocolate and the promise of eighteen holes on the golf course. Married to the love of her life for three-plus decades, she lives and writes in Colorado, where she’s traded in her hat of “Craziest Mom” for “Nana the Great.” To find out more about Kim’s books, follow her on social media, and sign up for her newsletter/blog, go to: https://kimberleywoodhouse.com

5 Unexpected Blessings of Being an Author

Become a published author is my lifelong dream come true. I have written stories from a young age and, if I’m honest, wanted the pleasure of seeing something I wrote on a library shelf or in a bookstore. But over the years I’ve realized there are far greater pleasures and blessings on this writing journey. Here are just five of them, in no particular order:

Friendships with readers: Whether online, or at a reader event, book club, or signing, meeting readers is a blessing. I have become lasting friends with many readers, which is such a delight.

Friendships with sister-authors: I love that in the Christian publishing realm, authors are primarily cooperative and supportive instead of pitting against one another as competitors. I am grateful for every one of my fabulous and fun author friends. There are too many to list here, but you know who you are.

Books translated into foreign languages: I never expected, never even considered that my novels might one day be translated into languages like Hungarian, Slovak, German, Dutch, and others. This has led to some interesting emails over the years—emails I can’t read without Google translate. It has also led to occasional travel to countries I would probably never be able to visit otherwise. (In fact, if all goes according to plan (Lord willing), I will be visiting Hungary and Slovakia this month.)

Lifelong learning: I was never much of a non-fiction reader until I started writing fiction. Now, I read a lot for research. There’s always more to learn! Writing is also another way to learn spiritual lessons. Often the things I’m learning in church weave their way not only into my own life but also into my characters’ journeys.

Being myself: This one’s harder to put into words. I feel like, as a writer, I am able to be more myself, and let myself be known—foibles and all. In previous careers (marketing/advertising), I sometimes felt frustrated, trying to impress, to sell products I didn’t necessarily love, to fit into the wrong mold, a la “fake it until you make it.” By comparison, talking about, even promoting books (which I love and believe in), is still not always easy, but is much more satisfying. Also, as an introvert, I’m not great at small talk and don’t always express myself well in social situations (I often don’t know what I truly want to say until my fingers are on my laptop keyboard!) Yet writing novels has given me an avenue to express more of myself. And by the time you read my books, my words have been edited and polished by skilled editors so I sound much smarter than I would if you met me at a party.

What have I missed? What blessings of the writing (or reading) life would you add? Thank you for reading this today—YOU are a blessing, too!

The Camfield Legacy Novels (and a giveaway)

We have company from California this week, Ken’s brother and his wife, so I’m going to make this post short—and hopefully sweet—so we can enjoy spending time with family we haven’t seen since we traveled together in Europe last September.

I wanted to let you know that one of my favorite series I’ve written, the Camfield Legacy novels, are now available as a collection (also known as an omnibus.) You can now get all three novels, Beneath a Southern Sky, After the Rains, and Breath of Heaven, in one e-book purchase for only $5.99. Simply click on any of the cover images to order.

In case you prefer to listen to your books, the entire series is also available in audiobook format, read by the lovely Julie Lancelot.

A GIVEAWAY!

I would like to gift an omnibus collection of the ebook version to one reader of this blog. To be entered in a drawing for The Camfield Legacy Collection, simply comment on this post and I will name a winner tomorrow night. Be sure to check back on this post to see if YOU are the lucky winner.

Have a wonderful week!

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.