Amy Lillard's Blog, page 16

Countdown to ACFW

To tell you that I’m not excited would be *such* a ‘falsehood’ as my English Lit teacher used to say. I am incredibly excited. In just a little over  two weeks, it’ll be time to head to Dallas to the ACFW Conference. For those not familiar, ACFW stands for American Christian Fiction Writers.

Really I’ve got a lot to be excited about. One, it’s my very first conference. I’ve been saying for years that I was going to attend a conference. It’s strange that I’m finally making good on those self-made vows. Two–I’m going as a published author. (God is good.) Three, I’m finally getting to meet some great people who have joined my life in the last couple of years. Like my agent, my editor, and all the great friends I’ve been connecting with online. And fourth, my first book signing. Squeeeeee!!!

9 fabulous authors and ME!

So if you’re going to be around,  please stop by and see us. I’d really appreciate it.

Oh,  and did I mention that the signing is on my birthday? Yep, there’s a lot to be excited about! <><

Ten Things I Love (ahem, Like) About the Electronic Age

As promised, I will do a service to the electronic age. Last week I chronicled the things I *didn’t* like about the information-at-the ready time in which we live. It is only fair,  So, let’s do it.

1–would have to be the laptop I am writing on as I watch the opening OU game for the season. (Yeah, I schedule my posts. It keeps me on task. )

2–Being able to carry 73 books around with me at all times in my Nook.

3 –Social networking. I won’t even cheat and put each of these under its own number. But I do so love Twitter, Facebook, and (sigh) Pinterest.

4–ordering books online.

5–email

6–texting my baby sister quotes from SpongeBob and MegaMind and my older sister jokes of all sorts

7–e-cards. Yes, I’m that paper hoarder who can’t part with any card I’m given. I have BOXES of them.  Go paperless.

8–Paypal

9–Wikipedia. Think I may name my next child Wikipedia (okay, okay, my next cat)

10–Google. No explanation needed

What is it about the electronic age that makes you smile? Leave  me a comment and let me know. I’d love to  hear from you.

<>< Amy

Amish vs English

I was poking around the internet as I am prone to do searching out a topic for today’s blog post. I came across a site for the PBS special American Experience: The Amish. I’ve seen the show, found it informative and provoking, but that’s not what I want to talk about today.  (for more check out–http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/films/amish/)

On the site, I found a blurb about the show mentioning how the Amish are “rooted in the past.” But what really intrigued me was this question: “What does our fascination with the Amish say about deep American values?”

To me it says a lot.

I have a friend who believes that values and behaviors are like a pendulum that swings back and forth with the ages.  Right now we are flying close to one side and it won’t be long before we swing back the other way to a more conservative time. I’d like to think my friend is right and simpler times are coming. The Amish give us hope that we can survive without all the modern conveniences, that we could go back to a simpler time. And that American values are still there, lurking just underneath the surface, waiting for a chance to be re-discovered.

What do you think? Could you go back to a simpler time?

Count Down to Gideon

I think and plan by the day. Okay, sometimes by the week. so I guess it’s not great surprise when something sneaks up on me and I’m caught off guard.

Saving Gideon will be released in 35 days. 35 days!! I. Am. So. Excited. Here’s a little peek at Saving Gideon. Enjoy!

And remember–It can be pre-ordered. :D

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

LifeWay Christian Books

~*~*~*~ An Excerpt ~*~*~*~

Three dogs lay in the sunshine just before the cool, shadowy entrance to the barn—a beagle, a black and white border collie, and a spotty dog she guessed was some sort of heeler.  None of them moved anything save a small wag of their tails as she passed them by.  Her furry friend was nowhere to be seen.

Avery stopped just inside the door, taking a moment to let her eyes adjust to her new surroundings.  It was dim even with the top half of the Dutch doors open on the other end.  She could say one thing about the barn…it was neat.   Fresh smelling, clean hay was scattered across the packed dirt floor and perfumed the air as she trod on it.  And it was big, with a trussed roof and expansive loft stretching the length of the barn.  And empty…except for a lone cow in one stall and Molly and Kate housed just to the left and opposite the tack room.

Okay, that was three things, but Avery was so proud of herself for remembering the term “tack room” that she wasn’t keeping count.  She’d had an “uncle” over in Ft. Worth, one of her father’s associates, who had a sprawling ranch with lots of horses and such.  Avery had gone out there once and toured the barn and rode a gentle mare…and she’d loved it.  It was just so far out of Dallas.  She often thought of going again, but there never seemed to be enough time.  There was always a party to go to or a ribbon cutting ceremony or some sort of such.

He was sitting off to one side in the corner of the wide wooden stairs, so quiet and still that she almost didn’t see him at all.   Or maybe the fact that  he was just sitting there instead of milking a cow or throwing some hay that confused her.  He seemed to be taking the slower pace of the Amish culture very seriously.

“I—” she started, unsure of what to say now that she had actually found him.  “I was looking for you.”

“And you found me.”  Louie V. lay at his feet as if he had found a new master in Gideon Fisher.

“Right.”  Avery rocked back on her heels, enjoying the prickly feel of the straw beneath her feet.  “I came to see if I could help you with anything.”

“No.”  Simple man, simple answer.

“Yeah…well…okay.  I just thought I could do something.  I feel okay, you know.  Farms are busy places…aren’t they?  I mean, isn’t there always something to do, sun up to sun down and all time in between?” Why was she rambling?

“I s’pose.”

“Well, then…what can I do?”

“Nothin’.”

“Nothing?”

“It’s the Lord’s Day.  We only do what’s required of us on Sundays.”

Avery nodded.  “Right.  I was wondering about that.  Church and all.  I mean, if you need to leave…”  She couldn’t very well go with him dressed in her clothes or his.

She wasn’t sure, but she thought Gideon’s eyes hardened just a fraction, hiding that vulnerable light which crept into them when he thought she wasn’t looking.

“No.”

“You don’t have to stay here for me.”

“I’m not.”

“Okay,” Avery said, not really believing him.  She waited for him to load up another excuse, but he didn’t.

After several tense heartbeats, she turned to go.   A pile of quilts and a pillow stacked on the landing next to her host captured her attention.  She didn’t know much about horses or the soft equipment they used, but these surely didn’t look like horse blankets.  And she had never heard of a horse needing a pillow.  For anything.

She turned to face him.  “Did you sleep here last night?”

“Here?”

“Here.  In the barn.”

Gideon crossed his arms over his chest, his nonchalant pose of earlier vanishing in one fluid motion.  “And what’s it matter to you if’n I did?”

“Well…”  What truly did it matter to her where he slept?  “It seems sort of silly to me that I slept on the couch and you slept in the barn and nobody slept in that big old bed in there.”

“It’s not silly.”  He stood and even with the distance between them, Avery was impressed by his formidable height.  “We are not married.  We are not chaperoned.  The elders will be vexed enough to discover you’re here with me.  Sleeping in the house…” he shrugged.  “That is not something else I need on my conscience.”

“What isn’t something you need on your conscience?”  Avery eyed him warily.

“Compromisin’ your good standin’.”

Was he serious?  “Because I’m here with you…alone.”

Gideon nodded.  “Jah.”

He was serious!  And Avery was touched.

“But I’m an Englisher,” she said remembering the term she’d heard Jack use to refer to non-Amish folk.

“Jah,” Gideon agreed.  “But you are still a woman.”

~*~*~*~*~*~

Ten Things I Hate About the Electronic Age*

1– reading my Nook until it’s dead (NOW what am I supposed to do?)

2–searching for hours for a book I know I have but still can’t find.

3–KNOWING something is on YouTube but I still can’t find it.

4–My ‘smart’ phone dies more often than Mario.

5–power failure means complete and utter boredom

6–I can never find the charger when I need it

7–leaving my charger odd places–like at work or at a friend’s

8–having to have a charger for everything

9–kaput zip drives which contain very valuable story line ideas and/or irretrievable chapters (I’m still upset about this one )

10–The flashing yellow light on my laptop

And I guess that means it’s time to go (since I don’t know where my charger is this time). What’s your ‘hate’ about the Electronic Age?

*And just so no one thinks I’m being negative, next week let’s talk about what we like about the Electronic Age. ;)

Until then… <>< Amy

Have you heard?

There’s gonna be a book signing!

Swartzentruber Amish

Most people believe that the Amish are the Amish are the Amish. There’s one kind–Amish. But this is not the case. I guess it’s a naive thought at best, but understandable since the Amish do their best to stay among themselves and keep their business private.

But in truth there are many divisions within the Amish church. These divisions happened over the years as members disagreed over one thing or another from shunning to gas powered motors. Because of this, most of the differences boil down to conservatism.

This is a picture of a Swartzentruber Amish farm in Ohio.  To find out more about the Swartzentruber Amish click here

The Amish in Ethridge, Tennessee, are very conservative–very conservative–and are considered Swartzentruber Amish.

Here are some of the determining factors that make up the Swartzentruber Amish:

♦ No indoor plumbing or hot water

♦ They use outhouses

♦ Automobile travel is forbidden unless there is an emergency

♦ A more conservative dress, especially with the women. Darker clothing even on children.

♦ Church services are longer–can last up to 4 hours

♦ Their houses have a rougher appearance and they do not have flower beds like other Amish

♦ They have no DMV safety triangles on the back of their buggies or windshields on the front

Fun Fact: There are 3 distinct, practicing groups of Swartzentruber Amish in Ohio. Swartzentruber Amish are in 13 states and Ontario.

Have you been to visit an Amish community? Do you know where they fall  on the Amish spectrum? Leave me a comment and tell me about your experience. I’d love to hear from you! <>< Amy

A Math Lesson or The Importance of a Decimal Point

I admit it. I’m something of an over-protective mom. But I love my boy and would do anything in the world to protect him. He’s growing up, getting bigger everyday. He’s in that preteen stage right now. He’s knows he’s getting bigger and he stretches his wings everyday. I’m doing my best to let him have the freedom he needs while being right there to help should the need arise.

“Mom.” he said, “there’s a duel disc for sale on eBay and I want to bid on it.” It was $20.50. Not a bad price.

“Sure,” I said. So I go over and tell him how eBay works and the bidding system. How to place a bid, then I go back to my projects keeping a watchful ear out for any cries of distress.

He placed a bid for a dollar more than the current one. Then a few minutes later told me that he’d been out bid. He placed another bid for two dollars more. I told him the best thing to do was to leave the bids alone until the day the auction ends. Then try to win it then.

He said he understood and went about his way.

The last day of the auction came and went. Frankly I had forgotten all about the Duel Disc (It’s a Yu-Gi Oh thing, don’t quite understand it myself.). Then I get the email–congratulations you’ve won the Duel Disc for $61.

Wait. What? How much? I never made a bid for $61.

Holy-Guacamole! Where am I going to find the money for this?

I resigned myself to paying for it but emailed the seller. We never intended to bid $61. But somehow we did.

Thankfully we had a very understanding seller. She let us out of the contract to buy and I breathed a sigh of relief. But just how did we get a bid that high under our name?

Well, I did a little investigation and this is what I found out. Instead of making a bid for $24.50 we made a bid for $2450.

Holy Schmoley Guacamole! I’m sure glad no one got into a bidding war with us. LOL

But let this be a lesson to us all. Decimal points are really, really important.

Staying Home

Well, it’s been almost six months and I still haven’t mastered the art of staying home. For those who don’t know, this spring, I decided to take a medical leave from work. My RA has gotten bad enough that I needed time to pull myself together. Medications aren’t helping like I’d hoped. And I take so many of them that I decided a break was in order.

So here I am, trying to find my place in my own home. When to write, when to clean, And just how does one muster the drive to take a shower, put on half-way decent clothes and make up to just stare at the same walls that were there the day before?

That sounds like depression, but it’s not. I was actually trying to be funny and failed miserably. I’m not unhappy at home or bored. It’s just that I haven’t quite figured out the rhythm. I had a plan for my week. Get up with my husband each day. Didn’t happen. Cook myself breakfast after I get the boy to school, nope. Well, I got the boy to school, but then I came home and grabbed a bowl of cereal and started to work on my WIPs.

And then the summer hit. Yow-sa!

I got some writing done, but not near enough for my schedule. I did manage to edit three books (actually 2 but one of those I had to do twice. :D) Lovely, lovely edits.  I also managed to start a new project–this one contemporary. Yes, a new venture for me.

August again and time for the boy to go back to school. More time to write and get those household projects complete. Right?

I just wonder how long it’s going to take to get me used to him not being here and having the house to myself. Man, am I going to miss him!

Book signing!