Keli Gwyn's Blog, page 24

Friday Fun Victorian Style

I recently made a list of some of my favorite shows set in Victorian times.

So that this post wouldn’t be too long, I forced myself to narrow my list down to three. That was not an easy task, let me tell you, but I made my choices. And here they are. . .

Clark Davis is one of the nicest heroes ever. I love Dale Midkiff’s portrayal of him.

I love tortured heroes, and when they’re as drool-worthy as Richard Armitage, I’m a goner.

The fact that this love story really happened totally melts my heart. Emily Blunt and Rupert Friend did a great job bringing Victoria and Albert’s romance to the screen.

• • •

Which Victorian-era shows would top your list of favorites?

(For those, like me, who tend to forget the dates, Queen Victoria reigned from 1837-1901.)

Filed under: Fun & Friends, Romance Tagged: Favorite Victorian Era Movies, Keli Gwyn

Romance Languages

What do you think of when you hear the words “romance language?”

My daughter, a German-French major, immediately thinks of French.

While French is one of the romance languages, I’m not thinking of that kind of language. I’m thinking about one’s personal romance language. Mine is mushy.

Gwynly learned years ago that if he picks out the mushiest card he can find, he’s sure to score major romance points.

His choice of a Mother’s Day card this year was spot on. How did he know? He watched the tear-o-meter. If I get misty-eyed, he figures he nailed it. And this card had definite tear-producing power.

Since Gwynly is a logical science teacher guy with a dry wit, his personal romance language is a far cry from mushy. His lingo is humor, so I look for cards sure to make him laugh. If he reads one I give him and cracks up, I know I scored.

• • •

How would you describe your personal romance language?

Do sweet words work for you, is humor your thing, or would a hug make your day?

Filed under: Romance Tagged: Keli Gwyn, Love Languages, Personal Romance Languges, romance language

Beach Reads

Here in California, summer is already knocking the door. While visiting our college daughter down in the Sacramento Valley this past weekend, the thermometer in my truck hit 100 degrees at one point. Thankfully the temperature dropped as Gwynly and I headed home and was in the low 90s by the time we reached Placerville in the Sierra Foothills.

When the mercury moves upward, thoughts turn to summer activities. Families racing to the end of the school year are eager to embrace more relaxed schedules. The big kickoff of the season takes place Memorial Day weekend. For many, holiday plans are underway.

One of the prime destinations in our area is Lake Tahoe. The locals here in Placerville–the halfway point between Sacramento and South Lake Tahoe–know to avoid Highway 50 during the getaway. A seemingly endless stream of vehicles hauling camping gear, bikes, boats, and more will pass through town that Friday afternoon and evening.

Many of those cars will be carrying people who are looking forward to relaxing with a good book. Some of those readers will stretch out on the sand somewhere around the massive alpine lake, bask in the sun, and prepare to lose themselves in their beach reads. Others will lounge around the plentiful pools at the many resorts and hotels.

The sound of lapping waves or kids splashing in a pool, the unmistakable scent of sunscreen, and a good book. Does life get any better than that?

• • •

Are you busy making Memorial Day plans? If so, do they include devouring a good book?

Do you read more books during the summer months than at other times of the year?

• • •

Drawing for a Book and a Bag!

I’m giving away a tote bag just the right size for a soda, some snacks, and a book. The winner will also get a copy of Wish You Were Here, a contemporary romance by Beth Vogt.

To enter the drawing, leave a comment by Tuesday, May 15. (Be sure to provide your email address in the appropriate field so I can contact you if you win.)

I’ll select the winner on Wednesday, May 16 and post the name here and in a comment.

No purchase necessary.

Offer void where prohibited.

Odds of winning vary due to number of entrants.

Filed under: Reading Tagged: Beach Reads, Keli Gwyn

Friday Fun California Style

The heroine in my debut novel, A Bride Opens Shop in El Dorado, California, likes to take long walks through the Sierra Foothills of California. The hero accompanies Ellie on one of her treks. While walking, Miles warns her of some possible dangers she might encounter and advises her to keep a lookout for them.

Bearing in mind that my story takes place in 1870, which one of the three possible dangers shown below do you think Miles tells Ellie does not pose a real threat to her?

Grizzly Bear

Poison Oak

Rattlesnake

You can leave your answer in a comment. If you want to see if you guessed correctly, click this link. You’ll need a password, but it’s an easy one. It’s Romance with a capital R.

• • •

Images are from Wikimedia Commons.

Filed under: Fun & Friends, Research Tagged: California Grizzly Bear, California Grizzly Bear History, California history quiz, Keli Gwyn

Romance by the Light of the Moon

This past Saturday morning as I lay on the couch checking email on my laptop, Gwynly was on his over at the kitchen table doing research on something he referred to as the Super Moon. Although he was excited about this special event, I didn’t know what it was.

Gwynly was happy to educate me. He explained, in true science teacher fashion, that a Super Moon occurs once each year when the moon is at the closest traveling point to the earth, causing the milky orb to appear 14% bigger and 30% brighter than other full moons.

My guy invited me to take a top-down drive that night in his classic British sports car, a 1968 MGB roadster, so we could witness the astronomical extravaganza together. Being a romantic at heart, I was delighted at the prospect and quickly accepted his offer.

Around 8 p.m. Pacific time, the moon appeared on the horizon. While it was quite bright, I wouldn’t have noticed that it was any bigger if Gwynly hadn’t told me that was the case.

At 8:34 p.m. Pacific time, the moon reached perigee–the closest point. The people around us oohed and aahed, camera’s clicked, and Gwynly grinned. My guy was in his element.

What did I do? I snapped a few shots of my own, but mostly I watched my usually staid fellow get more outwardly excited than he has in a long time.

And I smiled. Why? Because Gwynly had spent hours anticipating our moon-watching excursion, one he considered quite romantic, and yet we were witnessing the spectacle from a park-and-ride just off the freeway. The lot was littered with construction cones and barricades. My shots above were taken through a chain link fence, which I cropped to remove the numerous highway signs.

Lest you think me ungrateful or unappreciative, that is not the case. I understand my guy and found his eagerness to share this event with me quite romantic. The setting was irrelevant really. Just being with Gwynly on a date he’d planned made it special.

While the actual moon viewing didn’t do that much for me, the drive home under the stars with the Super Moon bathing the night sky with light was romantic indeed.

• • •

Did you and your special someone view the Super Moon together?

Do you have any moonlit night memories you’d be willing to share?

When’s the last time your special someone planned a date all on his/her own?

Filed under: Romance Tagged: Keli Gwyn, Romance, Romance and Moonlight, Super Moon 2012

Your Reading Time

I enjoy interviewing book reviewers. One question I ask them is, “when do you read?” Not surprisingly, these voracious readers tend to give the same answer. They read whenever they can, wherever they can, as much as they possibly can.

When I began writing, my reading time dwindled. I used to be able to grab a book and savor it from start to finish in a few delightful hours. I miss those days, but the reality is I no longer have that luxury.

Click on photo to go to Amazon page for Beth’s book.

These days I use reading time as a reward. When I reach the end of the day, I indulge in my nightly Calgon-scented soak and savor a few chapters of a romance.

While I plan to read two or three chapters each evening, I often look at the clock some time later to find that an hour or more has gone by, the water is ice-cold, and my skin resembles a raisin. I blame this on the fact that there are so many talented authors out there writing unputdownable books. Not that I’m complaining, you understand.

Now it’s your turn to answer my question. When do you read?

Filed under: Reading Tagged: Keli Gwyn, Reading Habits, Reading Times

The First Giveaway of My First Book!

Goodreads Book Giveaway


A Bride Opens Shop in El Dorado, California
by Keli Gwyn

Giveaway ends June 30, 2012.

See the giveaway details

at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Filed under: My Journey, Writing & Promotion Tagged: A Bride Opens Shop in El Dorado California, Christian Book Giveaway, Goodreads Giveaway, Keli Gwyn

Friday Fun Victorian Style

A Victorian wife was instructed in all matters relating the running of a household, including the handling of money. She was to “take an honest pride in appropriating the money” which her husband entrusted to her.

The above quote is from my 1890 edition of Manners, Culture and Dress. The author, Richard A. Wells, included information on how a wife was to conduct herself in regard to her purchases: “Be very careful also, that you do not spend more than can be afforded in dress; and be satisfied with such carpets and curtains in your drawing-room as befit a moderate fortune, or professional income.”

I don’t know about you, but I found the phrase “moderate fortune” somewhat amusing, since a fortune is, by definition, a large amount of money. Perhaps this was the author’s way of letting his reader know he was addressing the middle classes. After all, those with vast fortunes wouldn’t have to concern themselves with the price of curtains, would they?

Since living within one’s means was a virtue in Victorian times, children were taught to be careful with the money given them. Saving money was admirable. Thus, a bank was a popular children’s toy.

Which one of the three toy banks below would not have been for sale in a mercantile in the year 1870, and why? You can leave your guess in a comment.

balking mule trick bank

combination bank

register bank

If you’d like to see the answer, click this link. The password is Romance with a capital R.

Images from  Old-Time Toys, Dolls and Novelties CD-ROM & book from Dover Publications and are used by permission.

Filed under: Fun & Friends, Research

Hope After Divorce

My dear friend Katie Ganshert is celebrating the release of her debut novel, Wildflowers from Winter, with a blog hop. But this isn’t just any blog hop. Rather than talking about her book, she’s invited bloggers to share stories about a time in their lives when the Lord brought beauty from pain. Because I’m eager to support Katie, I agreed to bare my soul and revisit one of the darkest chapters of my life. Just as the characters in her moving story experience hope after heartache, I, too, reaped wildflowers after my winter.

• • •

July 17, 1984 began much like any other day, but as is the case most days, things happened that made it memorable. On this particular Tuesday, the Prime Minister of France, Pierre Mauroy, resigned; the Soviets launched their seventh manned flight, Soyuz T-12, to the space station Salyut 7; and I turned twenty-five.

I’m one of those people who looks forward to birthdays, so when my husband of four years didn’t give me a card or gift at breakfast, I was disappointed. When he didn’t even wish me happy birthday, I told myself that was because he had a special surprise and was waiting until we got home from work that night to give it to me.

He had a surprise all right, one that rocked my world.

We returned home and ate the dinner I prepared, and yet he still said nothing to acknowledge my birthday. Another hour or so went by before I decided to ask him if he remembered what day it was. I expected him to be shocked and offer a heartfelt apology. Instead, I was the one who was shocked.

He told me he remembered what day it was but that he didn’t have a gift for me. He went on to say that he didn’t love me anymore and wanted a divorce.

The next months were tough. I learned about his infidelity. My church excommunicated me. Fellow believers who didn’t know all the facts said hurtful things, passing judgment on me, even though I’d been a faithful wife. And if all this wasn’t enough, I found out that he remarried his first wife just ten days after our divorce was final.

I’ve never felt as alone as I did during those dark days. I doubted myself as a wife, as a woman, as a witness for Christ. I was young and took to heart the admonishment of mature believers who treated me as though I’d committed an unforgivable sin. I felt certain no man would ever want me again, certainly not a godly one.

Not once did I believe the Lord abandoned me, though. In fact, there were days I felt like He was the only one who understood, who cared, and who loved me unconditionally.

In one of my lowest lows, when the world seemed a very harsh place, I imagined the Lord standing at the other end of the long hallway in my apartment building. I could almost see Him. And what I saw brought tears to my eyes.

The Lord didn’t turn His back on me or shake a finger at me. He smiled and opened His arms wide. In my mind’s eye, I ran as fast as I could into His embrace. He hadn’t forsaken me. He’d forgiven me. His love for me wasn’t something that could be tossed aside the way I’d been. It was a constant then, just as it is today.

Two and a half years passed. During that time I found a new church home, one with an active singles group that welcomed divorced members. I made some wonderful friends there, including a tall teacher who was a longtime bachelor. He asked me out, and I accepted, although I was sure this pure, godly man would want nothing more to do with me once he learned about my past. I’ve never been so happy to be wrong.

Gwynly and I were married in that church on December 19, 1987. We’ll celebrate our twenty-fifth anniversary this year. Ours isn’t a perfect marriage, but it’s a happy one. From my winter came a bumper crop of wildflowers.

Image from iStockphoto

Filed under: My Journey

Talking Romance with Katie Ganshert

I’m delighted to have Katie Ganshert as my guest today. She’s a talented author with her debut novel, Wildflowers from Winter , just beginning to hit shelves across the country. She’s also my agency mate and a treasured friend.

In addition to being a published author, Katie is a busy wife and mother. Because an empty nest romance is a lot different from that of a young mom, I invited Katie to talk about what romance looks like in her chapter of life. (Lest you think I bribed her to say good things about me by offering her a shipment of chocolate, let me assure you, that is not the case. However, I think she deserves some anyhow. )

Take it away, Katie. . .

Keli Gwyn has been a source of inspiration. A wonderful reminder that romancing the one we love is an important part of marriage. A wonderful reminder that just because he’s a dude, the romantic responsibility does not rest on his shoulders alone.

But I will be the first to admit…

In the midst of the craziness that is launching my debut novel and planning an adoption fundraiser and taking care of my wild-child of a son, finding time to romance my hubby can get lost in the hustle and bustle of the daily grind.

I don’t think this romantic challenge is unique to women with a book coming out. I don’t think it’s unique to women who are adopting. I think any woman who has a young one (or two or three or four) at home struggles to find ways to keep the romance alive.

But like I said, Keli Gwyn has been an inspiration.

Thanks to her, I’ve been much more cognizant of romance. Much more intentional about searching for ways to show my husband that I love him, that he means the world to me, that I couldn’t do this thing called life without his love and support.

And as I search for opportunities, I’ve realized romance doesn’t have to be big. Grand gestures are great, but equally so are an accumulation of small ones.

Like pausing to give my husband a good kiss. Not a mindless, habitual kiss that happens when I’m running out the door or he’s off to work. But a good kiss. The kind of kiss Jennifer K. Hale talks about on her blog.

Like leaving my husband quick little love notes in his lunch. Sure, those Post Its are great for plotting. But they have other uses too.

Like texting him in the middle of his work day to let him know how much I love him and respect him and appreciate him. What a wonderful husband he is. What a wonderful father. Or sometimes a simple, “U R hot” works too.

Like picking up one of his favorite treats at the grocery store, then surprising him with it after dinner.

Like taking the time to flirt.

Not only are these small gestures super beneficial for our marriage, they’re great for our son too. The other night, Ryan and I got into a very playful wrestling/tickling match. We were laughing hysterically while Brogan observed from the couch.

When I glanced over at my son, he had the most precious smile on his face.

Our children want to see us acting “in love.” They also need to see that staying “in love” doesn’t just happen. It takes effort. It takes intentionality. And it’s totally, 100% worth it.

• • •

I featured Katie on my blog not long ago. I invite you to visit that post,”Welcome Author Katie Ganshert,” to learn more about her and her debut novel. And if you haven’t read her moving story, Wildflowers from Winter, I highly recommend that you get a copy and find out for yourself why readers are posting rave reviews by the dozens.

Katie is hosting a blog hop this week, which she explained in her post, “Creating Buzz and Spreading Hope.” Since she does just that in Wildflowers from Winter, she’s invited bloggers to share “beauty from pain” stories from their real lives.

I debated joining Katie’s blog hop, because I like to keep my blog upbeat. Not only that, but I’ve suffered some real hurts in years past and don’t like to dwell on them. However,  because I want to support Katie, I’ll be sharing one of my “wildflowers from winter” stories in a rare Thursday post. It’s my hope that hearing how the Lord led me through a tough time and blessed me beyond belief afterward will serve as an encouragement to others.

So, until tomorrow. . .

Filed under: Guests, Romance Tagged: Katie Ganshert, Keli Gwyn, Romance, Romance and young children, Romance for busy moms