Becky Wade's Blog, page 92

A Book Twenty Years in the Making

As Tammy shared in her post last week, I am thrilled that finally, finally, Breath of Heaven, the third and final novel in the Camfield Legacy series is available to order in both print and ebook formats! (Also, if you read via Kindle Unlimited, Breath of Heaven is available there, plus, the audiobook will be available later this year.)

The first two novels in the series, Beneath a Southern Sky and After the Rains, were first published by WaterBrook Press twenty years ago. When I got the rights back to those books, we re-released them through Raney Day Press with these beautiful new covers my husband designed, but through the years, I had dozens and dozens of requests for “the rest of the story” for Natalie Camfield and David Chambers. That book is finally a reality and I’m so pleased with how it turned out.

If you read the books when they first came out, you may remember these book covers, all from WaterBrook Press:

To see how I envisioned the characters and setting for the Camfield Legacy series, check out my inspiration board on Pinterest HERE.

I want to give a huge thank-you to my husband whose talents as a designer and all-around jack of all trades, not to mention my best encourager, make all this possible. In the photo below, he’s in his office “pulling the trigger” on getting Breath of Heaven available for purchase.

Click on any image above for a link to purchase. And thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for all your encouragement and support. My readers mean the world to me.

Now, I’m taking a few weeks off to organize my office, read some books just for fun, and catch up on all I missed while I was on deadline. But I’m excited, too, for the next book! And more on that in a later post.

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.

Beautiful Maine

Big perk of the writing life? The opportunity to travel to the settings of your books!

Last summer, after I submitted Turn to Me to my publisher, it came time to dream up a new series. I decided I’d write about three brothers and titled their series Sons of Scandal. Next I needed to hunt for a location.

So far, I’ve set books in Pennsylvania, Texas, Washington state, and the north Georgia mountains. I hadn’t used the northeastern coast as a backdrop and was definitely feeling a tug in that direction. I asked readers to tell me about their favorite spots in New England. They responded with so many fabulous suggestions. I spent a great deal of time looking at pictures online, waiting for a spark of inspiration to ignite within me. That’s exactly what happened with Maine. The rugged shoreline! The thick forests! The islands dotting the sea!

So… which spot in Maine to choose? I like to nestle my fictional towns in the location of actual towns for several reasons. 1) I glean lots of ideas from the real-life history/look/feel of the place. 2) My characters can interact with real-life sites nearby. 3) It simplifies logistics. (I can quickly look up weather in the actual town during any month of the year. I can Google how long it would take a character to drive from the actual town to anywhere else.) I browsed through many more pictures and eventually settled on the town of Camden as my inspiration.

Ideally I love to visit my setting right when I begin to write book one of a series. However, our family had other plans during the ’21-’22 school year. I started working on book one of Sons of Scandal last September, but wasn’t able to travel north to see Maine for myself. Until now! My husband and I just returned from an absolutely wonderful trip.

Here are a few photos I snapped of Maine in general….

Portland Head LightMy husband and I braved the Beehive Loop at Acadia National Park! It was scary and breathtaking.A less-scary (but equally breathtaking) spot at Acadia National Park.Maine’s expressive skyWe saw five lighthouses in all. I loved them! They’re so iconic and historic.

And here are some of the pictures I took of Camden….

Camden is situated in a picturesque valley.I’m always a little leery about shopping for a setting online and was ready to switch Camden for another town if Camden wasn’t all that I’d hoped. In truth, it was BETTER than I hoped. It’s one of the most charming towns I’ve ever visited. All of the structures from the 1800s have survived and been lovingly restored.I don’t frequently see this parking sign here in Dallas.Camden harborA used bookstore in town. It was clear the people of Camden love to read. For a town of around 5K, they had a used bookstore, a new bookstore, and a library. The librarian told me they have the largest circulation of any of the libraries nearby.We hiked up to Maiden’s Cliff because I’d set a scene in my novel there. It was invaluable to visit. I realized there were details of the scene I needed to tweak. Plus… the view!

I took a large number of photos and saved many more observations in my memory. I can’t wait to rewrite book one and layer in all the details of this beautiful place. And I can’t wait to eventually take you to Maine with me through the novels!

Have you been to Maine? What were your impressions?

Before I go, I wanted you to know that I’m currently giving away three audiobooks of Turn to Me via Instagram! If you’re on that platform, click here or find me there as BeckyWadeWriter. Simply follow me and leave a comment on my giveaway post to enter!

ZIP-a-dee-doo-dah

I’ve always enjoyed a good adventure. Several years ago, my hubby surprised me with a zip-lining experience in Georgia as part of a waterfall / hiking trip. We had a blast! So when he was scheming on what to do during our Durango trip for our 30th anniversary, I wasn’t too surprised when he found another zip-line excursion–on the longest course in the country!

The day started with a train ride to Soaring. This course is not accessible by road. You have to hike in, ride the Durango-Silverton train, or take a helicopter. The college students who work there over the summer live at the ranch full-time with no cell service, no Internet, just lots of God’s gorgeous creation and a steady stream of strangers invading their space. One or two people live there year-round, only leaving to stock up on supplies.

I love mountains and rivers and forests, so the scenery offered on this course contained all my favorites! We crossed the Animas River about 7 times, I think. Beautiful!

The pictures below show where we stopped for our morning snack. A scrumptious cranberry bar that had some kind of caramel goodness inside. In fact, the local inhabitants (chipmunks) know to expect crumbs at this time every day, so they show up and scurry around the rocks just waiting for the cookie to crumble. One of our sky rangers (Jesse) took some photos for us. Then she cracked me up by photo-bombing a selfie just for kicks. There were 22 of us on the course that day, and probably about a dozen or more sky rangers. They made a point to learn our names, played photographer regularly, cracked jokes, and offered constant encouragement as they caught us and kept us from slamming into tree trunks. They were fabulous!

My favorite zipline of the morning was when we got to slide through an aspen grove. I adore aspen trees. Their white bark is so pretty, and so different from anything we have in Texas. I managed to get a video of my husband zipping through the aspens.

Some of the sky rangers were also ecologists and shared interesting tidbits about the land and forest around us as we moved through the course. One of the unexpected highlights of the day, though, was the food. We were treated to a gourmet lunch on the river. So yummy! I had Asian chicken lettuce wraps with fruit and sweet potato chips along with a delicious ice cream sandwich for dessert. Wes opted for the classic ham on a pretzel bun with potato salad. All made to order and fabulous. We ate every bite, which made hiking (or waddling) up the mountain quite a challenge afterward!

We had such a great time.

What’s the most adventurous thing you’ve done on a vacation or excursion?

Scotland Trip Recap: Week 1

We are home from Scotland! I know many of you were following along on Facebook or Instagram, but what I posted each day was just a snippet! Today I’ll run through the highlights of the first week. Two weeks from today I’ll tell you about our second week there. In between, I’ll be posting other tidbits and photos on my own website. Don’t want to miss a post? Then be sure you are subscribed to my newsletter and you won’t! You can subscribe here. 

View from out hotel room on the first night!

We got to Edinburgh on a Friday night, which was good and bad. Good because we were tired and just wanted to go to bed. It was bad because besides being tired, we were hungry—and we didn’t have a plan. Those three things combined never work well for us! But we finally found take away at a Thai place. We had put in for an upgraded room and had it for only that night, so it was lovely to bring our food back to a larger room! 

Saturday morning, we went on a walking tour. It was great because it was one limited to 10 people. A very manageable group. We got our bearings as far as where things were located as well as seeing and hearing about several of the iconic Edinburgh sites. It was a good overview. That afternoon, we had tea at The Georgian Room. It was lovely! Scrumptious scones, finger sandwiches, sweets, and tea. So. Much. Food. And so relaxing. We went to bed early, tired but happy. 

Edinburgh Castle!Execution spot–many were killed for their faith.St. Giles ChurchPrince’s Street GardensThe Writer’s Museum! Look at those huge scones! Tea with milk. Walking tour and tea!

Since we would be in Scotland for two Sundays, we wanted to worship with our Scottish brothers and sisters in Christ. This first Sunday we chose Charlotte Chapel. A more liturgical service than we are used to, but solid Bible teaching and super nice people. Jeff had gotten us tickets to tour Holyrood House Palace that afternoon because he’d seen it would be closed after that. I’m so glad he was (as usual!) on top of the details, because we’d have missed out! It was lovely. I can see why the Royal family enjoys time there. We ended the day at a beautiful dinner at The Gardener’s Cottage, a highly-rated but very small restaurant. They had a set tasting menu, and every time I read the descriptions, I panicked thinking I wouldn’t like the next course. And every single time it was fabulous! 

Holyrood House PalaceInterior courtyardHolyrood Church ruinsHolyrood Church ruinsThe Gardener’s Cottage

Monday we met up with our five day Grand Tour of Scotland through Heart of Scotland Tours. We’ve never done anything like this before and we weren’t really sure what to expect! There were 12 of us on The Wee Red Bus. Most were couples a little bit older than us. One couple were sisters. One a brother and a sister. And all of them were a joy to travel with. It turned out to be a great mix of together and alone time. During the day we hit a bazillion sites or picturesque spots, but when we returned to our lodging city for that night, we were on our own for dinner and the evening. And that was nice. Monday took us up through Dunveld and Pitlochery, two cute villages, to Culloden battlefield and standing stones at Cairn. But my favorite that day was the Highland Life Museum village. They had probably 8 buildings there—houses from different eras, a barn, a schoolhouse, a church, a shinty pavilion (do you know what shinty is? We didn’t! It’s an ancient highlands game still played today, kind of like field hockey, soccer, and rugby had a baby.), a general store and post office, a joiner’s shop, a tailor’s shop, and a weaver’s. I especially enjoyed the stone crofter’s cottage with its heather-thatched roof and the peat burning in the fireplace! 

Dunked CathedralThe Wee Red BusStone crofters cottage with heather-thatched roofBy the River Tay.Church in InvernessEnded the day in Inverness

That night, we ended up at a fish and chips place there on the river that runs through Inverness. The tables were close together and the service slow, so we began chatting with a mother and son next to us. Turns out they were from Houston! Well, she was originally from Scotland, grew up in London, married and moved to Texas. Now she and her husband had a summer home on the top tip of Scotland. How cool is that? 

Our days through the Highlands were amazing–as was the weather! Every corner we turned revealed a magnificent new vista. I had no idea I could take so many pictures! (Only after the trip did I realize I topped 1700!) We drove much of our Highlands wandering on a one track road—that’s a road wide enough for one car, with occasional pull off areas if someone coming the other way needs to pass you! (I’m sooooo glad someone else was driving!) The sky was kind of like Texas—always a massive part of the view. And the green hills and the blue lochs added depth and color to it all. And the gorse! Those beautiful but prickly yellow flowers that were everywhere! We were a bit too early to see the heather in bloom. 

Gorse in bloomA stag in the wild! Our compadres on the Wee Red BusA drive through the Highlands.

Loch Ness was beautiful, too, though no sign of the monster. And the castle Eilean Donan was the stuff dreams are made of. Small and intimate, but lovingly restored in the 1930s by the family who owns it. We crossed the bridge to the Isle of Skye and spent the next two nights in the adorable town of Portree. Had some amazing salmon there looking over the bay. 

Loch NessEilean Donan CastlePortree Harbor (Isle of Skye)Ended the day in Portree on Skye

Skye is beyond words. The Fairy Glen—especially with the low hanging clouds and mist—was rife for imagination. The Village of Island Life was also awesome, several exhibits in stone crofters’ cottages, and one cottage just as the family left it when they walked away from it in the 1930s. It’s three rooms housed parents and 13 kids. There we also got to see Highland cow ( or coo) and where Flora MacDonald (who helped hide Bonnie Prince Charlie avoid capture on Skye) is buried. Quiraing, An Corran, Creag An Fheilidh, Upper Tote, Glen Sligachan—every single spot seemed more amazing than the next! 

The Fairy GlenQuiraingUpper Tote (Tobhta Uachdrach)A Highland “coo”!Creag an Fheildh

Our last day on The Wee Red Bus took us on the ferry back to the mainland, through Fort William, and to the Glencoe visitor’s center. Wow. Unfortunately, an accident blocking the road meant we didn’t get to drive through Glencoe or see Stirling Castle. We ended up having to backtrack and go back to Edinburgh the way we came. Disappointing, for sure, but couldn’t be helped.

GlenfinnanThe train bridge used in the Harry Potter movies.Glencoe

And when we got back to Edinburgh? We checked in to our Airbnb in Grassmarket in Old Town, at the end of of the iconic Victoria Street! An amazing flat in an amazing location. But we. Were. Beat. So after a good night’s sleep we embarked on our second week in Scotland, spent mostly in Edinburgh . . . 

Have you been to Scotland? What was your favorite thing? Have you been on a trip that exceeded your expectations? Where?

Dog lovers—and release day!

The Alexanders are dog lovers. You likely already know that Joe and I have two dogs—Murphy and Bailey (who has a treat in her mouth but stopped briefly to pose)…

Murphy and Bailey are Australian Terriers
Half siblings, they share the same mom but different dad

Kurt and Kellie, our son and daughter-in-law, also (as of this weekend) have two dogs. You may have already met Malcolm, a Double Doodle (a multiple hybrid mixed breed containing elements of Golden Retriever, Labrador, and Standard Poodle in their makeup). Here he is as a puppy…

Malcolm as a puppy

And here’s Mal NOW!

And now meet Malcolm’s newly-adopted sweet sister Rue!

Rue is a mixed breed but we think she has some Staffordshire Terrier in her

Kellie and Kurt just adopted Rue this weekend. Isn’t she a beauty? And she and Malcolm are already getting along famously.

Our daughter Kelsey also got a dog this weekend, but not “for keeps.” Kels has decided to foster dogs for a local animal rescue called Proverbs 12 while the dogs await adoption.

Meet Clifford…

Clifford is a lovable little dog who definitely looks like he has some Chihuahua in him

If you live in Middle Tennessee, check out Proverbs 12 Animal Rescue, an organization committed to ‘Helping His Helpless’ through quality care and healing, adoptions, and population control awareness.

Finally, it’s RELEASE DAY! But not for me. : )

Our own Deb (Raney) and I have been writing critique partners for over—what, Deb—22 years now? And Deb’s newest book has just released…

HER FAMILY’S LEGACY HAD BEEN FULL OF DEEP SORROW.
AND NOW IT LOOKED AS IF HER LIFE WOULD FOLLOW THE SAME PATH.
BUT HER GOD WAS STILL IN THE BUSINESS OF REDEMPTION.

Grab Breath of Heaven on Amazon

I’ve read this story and it is gripping!

The setting is South America. David and Natalie Chambers are newlywed missionaries to the villagers in Timoné when the unthinkable happens. As the backcover blurb states, “Their faith—and their love—will be tested in ways they never dreamed, and the decisions they make will echo for generations to come.”

Breath of Heaven is the third in a series but also stands wonderfully on its own. If you haven’t read Beneath a Southern Sky (book 1) and After the Rains (book 2), now you’ve got three fabulous new reads!

So are you a dog lover? Cat lover? Llama lover?

What’s your favorite animal of choice?

Blessings on your Tuesday, friends, and hope you had a wonderful July 4th celebration!

Tammy

Pictures and Patterns

I have often heard that the gospel of Jesus is in every book of the Old Testament, but I never realized how true that was until recently. I learned to see Him when I worked on my doctorate in theology, but it wasn’t until I began to read books by Messianic Jews that I began to see the pictures.

The Bible is filled with picture patterns that illustrate God’s truths. For instance, consider Noah, who believed God, built an ark, and saved mankind by delivering his family from the deluge. Now consider Moses, whose mother believed God, built a tiny ark, and her son saved the Jews by delivering them from Egypt. 

Noah’s Ark riding on a swell after the Great Flood

Remember when the Israelites were attacked by venomous snakes in the desert? God told Moses to create a snake, affix it to a pole, and to lift it high. Those who had been bitten had only to look at it, and they would be saved. 

Sounds like an odd cure, doesn’t it? But God was painting a picture, and Jesus Himself explained it generations later: “Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, so that whoever believes in Him may have eternal life!” (John 3:14-15). 

But the picture that gives me goosebumps is the one contained in the story of Abraham’s sacrifice of Isaac on Mount Moriah. This picture is so precious I used it in The Apostle’s Sister. 

After Abraham and Isaac climbed the mountain without a sacrifice, Isaac asked, “Who will supply the lamb?” Abraham answers, “God will provide for Himself a lamb for a burnt offering, my son” (Gen. 22:8). 

In the scriptural story, however, God doesn’t supply a lamb, but a ram. There’s a picture being painted. 

From the Hebrew, Abraham’s reply could be translated: “God will provide Himself a lamb for the burnt offering. God will provide Himself a lamb in His son.”

PRCANJ, MONTENEGRO – JUNE, 08: Abraham Sacrificing Isaac, Catholic Church of the Birth of the Virgin Mary, on June 08, 2012, in Prcanj, Montenegro

Do you see it? God is painting the picture of Jesus’ sacrificial offering. God provided the Lamb of the World in His son. For Abraham, God provided a ram. For sinful men, God provided the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world. 

Abraham named that place Adonai Yireh, meaning “On the mountain, Adonai will provide.” 

On that same mountain, generations later, the God provided the sacrifice that will bring salvation to all who accept it through faith. He had first promised salvation in Genesis: “I will put animosity between you and the woman—between your seed and her seed. He will crush your head, and you will crush his heel” (3:15, TLV). 

The woman’s Seed—Jesus—was wounded by the tempter, but through His death and resurrection, Jesus crushed his head. The evil won struck a severe blow, but the victory was God’s. 

Why did God send want to test Abraham in the first place? God is omniscient; He knew the strength of Abraham’s faith. Perhaps he wanted Abraham to experience His loving provision. Or perhaps the lesson was intended for Isaac. 

But when the venture was finished, God said, “For now I know that you are one who fears God because you did not withhold your only son from me” (Gen. 22:12).  

Perhaps the experience was primarily for us . . . so we can realize that God did not withhold his only son from us. God’s love provided the perfect sacrifice. If we fear God, and believe Him, we can rejoice in that same provision. 

Goosebumps.

Independence Day!

I love the Fourth of July because I am privileged and honored to be an American. We are not a perfect country, but for generations we have been the country to whom the world looks for an example of freedom.

When I was eighteen, I spent a year traveling with a singing group called “The Re’Generation.” We traveled throughout the United States doing unabashedly God-and-country programs at civic clubs and churches. I learned so much during that year–not only about music and performance, but about life and God and getting along with people who didn’t grow up exactly as I did. One of the key things I learned is that Christians should not be cloistered–Jesus sent us out into the world to live, work, and raise our families.

Don’t get me wrong–I appreciate large churches and have been involved in several, but when a church gets so large that its people never have to go into the world to eat, educate their children, or play sports, that’s not what Jesus intended. In John 17, he prayed, “My prayer is not that you take them out of the world, but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified. My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message . . .”

I remember one church we attended wanted to start a Christian little league so the kids wouldn’t have to hear swearing from the coaches. I thought, “Why don’t they send Christian men into the current little league so those men can be a witness to those kids? My hubby coached “secular” little league for years, and prayed before every game with the kids who wanted to join him in prayer.

We have become far too cowed by the voices of people who don’t believe and who actively denigrate godly values and virtues. American may never be the country it once was (one clearly founded on Judeo-Christian values and prayer), but it should be a country where we are free to stand for our Christian beliefs and ideals.

So speak up when you can. Go into the world; don’t remain in your pew. Be a visible witness for Christ. Don’t preach; love, and speak God’s truth when asked why you believe as you do. Jesus did those things. We can do them, too.

And thank God that we still live in a country where we are free to share Christ. In the last few days, the Supreme Court has issued decisions that support our right to do that, so thank God for our independence!

Inspired by Scripture

Have a blessed 4th of July weekend. Let freedom ring!

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.

COVER REVEAL!

After the overwhelming enthusiasm for more books in my time-crossing series, Waters of Time, I’m excited to announce TWO more books are slated for release!!

Book 3, STAY WITH ME, releases Dec. 6, 2022, and Book 4, WAIT FOR ME, releases May 9, 2023.

STAY WITH ME continues the adventures with the miraculous holy water and gives Sybil Huxham and Nicholas Worth their happily-ever-after!

I’m thrilled to pieces with the way the cover turned out! I love the balance of modern and medieval, the movement of the hair (representing the motion of time), the bokah dots (representing water drops), and the green tones (representing the color of water).

Without further ado, here is the lovely cover (courtesy of Roseanna White Designs). 

Here’s a little more about the book:

As a private investigator, Sybil Huxham has seen her fair share of bizarre occurrences. But nothing in her career has been more perplexing than the miracles she’s witnessed as a result of people drinking ancient holy water. When she discovers more of the rare holy water, she experiences strange overlaps with a nobleman in the Middle Ages who is languishing in a dungeon, accused of treason and condemned to die. To save his life, she finally crosses to the past completely.

Nicholas Worth has never met a woman quite like Sybil, and as the two run for their lives into the Weald, they find refuge among a community of outlaws. With both of their reputations on the line, they have little choice but to marry. As they get to know each other, an undeniable attraction develops. But danger and disease chase after them, drawing ever closer. Will they be able to escape the threats? And will Sybil choose to stay with Nicholas in the past, or will she be ripped apart from him forever?

The book is available for pre-order here: Amazon (And have no fear, it will be in both ebook and paperback!)

To find out more, visit my website here: http://jodyhedlund.com/books/stay-with-me/

Hope you have a happy 4th of July!! What are your plans?