Author Spotlight: Laura Bradford

Hi friends! Today, our author spotlight is on Laura Bradford! Everyone, say hello to Laura! Without further ado, let's get to know Laura and her book Piece by Piece.

Author Bio:
Laura Bradford is the national bestselling author of more than 35 books and stories, including her latest release, Piece by Piece. Her first women’s fiction novel, Portrait of a Sister, was a July 2018 Book Club Pick for Delilah of Delilah Radio and a Summer Book Club pick for Southern Lady Magazine.

Laura also pens several mystery series including; An Amish Mystery series, the Emergency Dessert Squad Mysteries, the Tobi Tobias Mysteries, the Southern Sewing Circle Mysteries (written as Elizabeth Lynn Casey), and the upcoming A Friend For Hire Mysteries. She is a former Agatha Award nominee, and the recipient of an RT Reviewer’s Choice Award in romance. Laura enjoys baking, spending time with her family, and being an advocate for those living with multiple sclerosis. Learn more at: https://www.laurabradford.com/


Interesting Tidbit for Piece by Piece

The idea for Piece by Piece was born on a quote I stumbled across in the wake of tragedy: “Friends are angels that lift us to our feet when our wings have trouble remembering how to fly.” Anyone who has experienced grief of any kind knows the truth in these words.

Piece by Piece Blurb

Danielle Parker is a gold-medal mom—the kind who volunteers in her children’s classrooms, shuttles them between activities, throws legendary birthday parties, and has a remedy on hand for any emergency. Whatever her husband, Jeff, and their children need, Dani is there, always.

Except for one day.

On that day—the day that Dani reluctantly takes some “me time” while her mom and Jeff drive the children to the park—the unthinkable happens. The car crash leaves no survivors. Somehow, Dani gets through the funerals and visits, accepting neighbors’ sympathy and dropped-off meals. All the while, guilt and grief make her wish the accident had claimed her life too. Then a call comes from Lydia Schlabach, an Amish woman Dani befriended in childhood. In addition to condolences, Lydia offers Dani something more: a place to escape to.

In Pennsylvania’s Amish country, Dani’s days take on a new rhythm, marked by the clip-clop of buggies and the bustle of chores. Lydia gives Dani space to mourn, to think, and to realize how long it’s been since she felt like a person in her own right. And with the help of friendships old and new, Dani learns about the ways life continues to surprise us—even after the deepest loss—with joy, love, and second chances. . . .

Purchase Links:

Indiebound: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781496725950
B & N: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/piece-by-piece-laura-bradford/1134434825?ean=9781496725950
Christian Book Distributors: https://www.christianbook.com/piece-by-laura-bradford/9781496725950/pd/725956?event=ESRCG
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Piece-Laura-Bradford-ebook/dp/B07ZPJ6766/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1N9ISXF7ZNY0D&dchild=1&keywords=piece+by+piece+by+laura+bradford&qid=1605466571&s=books&sprefix=piece+by+piece+by+laura%2Caps%2C570&sr=1-1
 

Connect with Laura:

Newsletter sign-up: https://www.laurabradford.com/contact
“Like” me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/laurabradfordauthor/
Follow me on Goodreads: https://bit.ly/2VmI9Y8
Follow me on BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/laura-bradford
Follow me on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3ethm3I
Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/laurabradfordauthor/


Friends, I sure hope you enjoyed getting to know Laura Bradford and Piece by Piece.


Thank you so much for joining us, Laura!


If you're an author and you'd like to be showcased here, just let me know. Must be inspirational or clean, can be fiction or nonfiction.
Check out my website, connect with me, and sign up for my newsletter. https://sallyshupe.weebly.com/

Book Review: Louisa's Christmas Blessing by Dana R. Lynn (in the Amish Christmas Miracles Collection)

If you enjoy Amish stories, you'll love this Christmas Amish story by Dana R. Lynn! A delightfully enjoyable Christmas story of love, hope, and Christmas miracles.

Caleb has always loved Louisa. But when his actions cause irreparable consequences, he runs from his Amish life. Nine years later, he returns to confront his past. But will it be too late to claim his future with Louisa?

Louisa wanted a life with Caleb, but one day he leaves the Amish life behind. She thinks her future is ruined and she won't be able to marry. But when Caleb returns, will she be able to put her insecurities behind her and grasp the future God has planned for her?

Louisa's Christmas Blessing is part of the Amish Christmas Miracles collection and is a story of love and hope and forgiveness. Anyone who loves Amish stories will love this story and the rest in this set.

I received a free copy in the hope that I would mention/review it on my blog. I was not required to give a positive review, only my honest opinion - which I've done. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own and I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.


https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0875T592J/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i0

Author Spotlight: Mary Alford

Hi friends! Today, our author spotlight is on Mary Alford! Everyone, say hello to Mary! Without further ado, let's get to know Mary and her book A Christmas Homecoming.

 

Author Bio:
USA Today Bestselling Author, Mary Alford, loves giving her readers the un-expected, whether it be in a rugged mountain setting or a peaceful Amish community.

Her titles have appeared on the USA Today Bestselling List, Publisher’s Weekly Bestselling List, and have been finalists in the Daphne Du Maurier award of excellence, The Beverly, The Maggie, and The Selah Awards.

Mary lives in Texas with her husband, two very spoiled cats, and a sweet rescue dog name Cody. Mary is very active online and would love to connect with readers on Face-book and Twitter or any social platforms listed at www.maryalford.net.

Here's Mary!

Interesting Tidbit about the setting of the story

A Christmas Homecoming is set in the Amish community of St. Ignatius. An interesting fact about this community is it’s the only one located on the tribal lands of the Flathead Indian Reservation. So you have three different cultures united in one small area.

A Christmas Homecoming Blurb

A Sinner. A Saint. A Homecoming No One Expected!

Simon Lambright has plenty to be sorry for. A prideful mistake that almost destroyed three lives. A rebellious youth that led him away from his faith. A fatal decision that ended in his best friend’s death.

Simon spent most of his youth trying to prove he was the opposite of the obedient one his name conveyed. But this Christmas, after losing everything, Simon is determined to become the person his mamm and daed believed him to be.

With mistakes weighing heavily on his heart, can Simon overcome the past and the impression his former community still has of him, and be the man he was meant to be?

Widow Abigail Petersheim is embracing the future she hopes is waiting for her and her daughter Lyddie this holiday season when she returns to the tiny Amish community of St. Ignatius, Montana.

Everyone knows Abigail was a gut wife and mother, but no one knew of the nightmare she endured.

Now, after years of living with the secret, Abigail is ready to be free of the past and find the fresh start she so desires. When her cousin asks for her help at the family bakery in St. Ignatius, Abigail is convinced the job offer comes straight from Gott and will be the Christmas miracle she and Lyddie so desperately need. Yet nothing about her homecoming is as she envisioned, and the childhood farm she once cherished is about as broken as Abigail’s life.

Abigail enlists the help of her neighbor and carpenter Simon Lambright to repair her home, but soon discovers a friendship from long ago will turn into something worth cherishing. And the past that brought two wounded souls back to St. Ignatius, will become a homecoming neither expected.

Amish Christmas Miracles: Blurb:

Spend Christmas in Amish country.

As snow falls softly outside the window, curl up by the fire with this collection of 14 stories by your favorite Amish fiction authors. Let them transport you to Amish communities all across the country.

Travel to small towns where horses clip-clop down the road, farms dot the snow-covered landscape, and families gather to celebrate the real meaning of Christmas.

Sigh over sweet stories that touch your heart. Laugh, cry, rejoice, and smile as couples renew their faith and find their perfect soul mates.

These heartwarming tales of faith, hope, love, and Christmas miracles are a special gift to you from Kathleen Fuller, Lenora Worth, Adina Senft, Laura Bradford, Jennifer Beckstrand, Jennifer (J.E.B.) Spredemann, Rachel J. Good, Serena B. Miller, Mary Alford, Loree Lough, Dana R. Lynn, Susan Simpson, Tracy Fredrychowski, and Ashley Emma.

May you be richly blessed this holiday season!

Purchase Links:

Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Apple


Connect with Mary

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MaryAlfordAuthor/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/maryalford13
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/dashboard?ref=nav_profile_authordash
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/maryjalfordauth/
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/mary-alford
Or any social platforms listed at www.maryalford.net



Friends, I sure hope you enjoyed getting to know Mary Alford and A Christmas Homecoming.



Thank you so much for joining us, Mary!


If you're an author and you'd like to be showcased here, just let me know. Must be inspirational or clean, can be fiction or nonfiction.
Check out my website, connect with me, and sign up for my newsletter. https://sallyshupe.weebly.com/

Author Spotlight: Jan Drexler

Hi friends! Today, our author spotlight is on Jan Drexler! Everyone, say hello to Jan! Without further ado, let's get to know Jan and her book Softly Blows the Bugle. 

 

Author Bio:
Jan Drexler brings a unique understanding of Amish traditions and beliefs to her writing. Her ancestors were among the first Amish, Mennonite, and Brethren immigrants to Pennsylvania in the 1700s, and their experiences are the inspiration for her stories. Jan lives in the Black Hills of South Dakota with her husband, where she enjoys hiking and spending time with her expanding family. She is the author of The Sound of Distant Thunder, The Roll of the Drums, Hannah’s Choice, Mattie’s Pledge (a 2017 Holt Medallion finalist), and Naomi’s Hope, as well as several Love Inspired historical novels.

Here's Jan!

What do you do when you don’t feel like doing what you need to do?

Writing isn’t all buttercups and roses, no matter what it looks like in the movies. Like any other job, no matter how rewarding or fulfilling, sometimes it’s just plain work!

When I hit that wall, I have a few tricks I use to keep me writing:

1) Mini Rewards. These are great because they’re small. I divide my writing up into small increments – usually one hundred words. At the end of the hundred words, I have a chocolate chip, or a mini marshmallow. At the beginning of my writing session, I lay out the number of chocolate chips that will meet that day’s goal – if my goal is one thousand words, then I lay out ten chocolate chips. When the chips are gone, I’ve met my daily goal!

2) How fast can I write? Sometimes I shoot for a time goal rather than a word count goal. An hour is a good time for me, and then it’s a race: how many words can I write in this limited time? At the end of the hour, no matter how many words I’ve written, I take a break. Sometimes I do two or three of these sprints a day to see if I can beat my previous word count. (Yes, I do have a competitive streak!)

3) Where’s the money? When I really have no incentive to write, I think of the cold, hard cash. I take the amount I think I might receive on a pending contract, divide it by the number of words in the proposed book, and that gives me the amount of money I’ll potentially be paid for my work per word. The amount is usually pretty small – say it’s two cents per word (by the way, I pulled that number out of thin air!) But when I multiply that by one thousand (the number of words I can write in an hour on a good day,) I can estimate that I’m earning twenty dollars for that hour. If I write two thousand words that day, I’ve potentially earned forty dollars. I know this is all just pie-in-the-sky money, but it’s a great incentive for me. (Don’t try to extrapolate this out, though, and add in the hours spent pre-writing, revising, editing, marketing… That’s too discouraging!)

I learned these tricks back when I had young children at home and many tasks were always waiting for my attention. But I broke them down, gave myself incentives, and got them done.

How could you use these ideas in your life?

Softly Blows the Bugle Blurb
Welcome back to the Amish community at Weaver’s Creek, where the bonds of family and faith bind up the brokenhearted.

When Elizabeth Kaufman received the news of her husband’s death at the Battle of Vicksburg in 1863, she felt only relief. She determined that she would never be at the mercy of any man again, even if it meant she would never have a family of her own. Then along came Aaron Zook . . .

Despite the severity of his injuries, Aaron resolves to move west and leave the pain of the past behind him. He never imagined that the Amish way of life his grandfather had rejected long ago would be so enticing. That, and a certain widow he can’t get out of his mind.

Yet, even in a simple community, life has a way of getting complicated. Aaron soon finds that while he may have left the battlefield behind, there is another fight he must win—the one for the heart of the woman he loves.

Purchase Links for Softly Blows the Bugle:

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Softly-Blows-Bugle-Amish-Weavers/dp/0800729331/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=softly+blows+the+bugle&qid=1584390564&sr=8-1
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/softly-blows-the-bugle-jan-drexler/1136472121;jsessionid=8E292E536497EF95C6645551A629FA32.prodny_store02-atgap02?ean=9780800729332

Contact Jan:

Website: https://www.jandrexler.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JanDrexlerAuthor
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/jan-drexler

Friends, I sure hope you enjoyed getting to know Jan Drexler and Softly Blows the Bugle.


Thank you so much for joining us, Jan!


If you're an author and you'd like to be showcased here, just let me know. Must be inspirational or clean, can be fiction or nonfiction.
Check out my website, connect with me, and sign up for my newsletter. https://sallyshupe.weebly.com/

Author Spotlight: Debby Giusti

Hi friends! Today, our author spotlight is on Debby Giusti! Everyone, say hello to Debby! Debby has graciously offered to give away three copies of her book! Leave a comment with your email address by Saturday evening to be entered. Without further ado, let's get to know Debby and her book Amish Christmas Search.

 

 Author Bio:
USA TODAY and Publishers Weekly Bestselling Author Debby Giusti is a medical technologist who loves working with test tubes and petri dishes almost as much as she loves to write. Growing up as an Army Brat, Debby met and married her husband--then a Captain in the Army--at Fort Knox, Kentucky. Together they traveled the world, raised three wonderful Army Brats of their own and eventually settled in Georgia, where Debby spins tales of suspense that touch the heart and soul.

Debby has more than a million books in print, and her stories have won numerous awards, including two Daphne du Maurier Awards for Inspirational Suspense, the National Readers’ Choice Award, the Inspirational Reader’s Choice Award, Golden Quill, the Beacon, the Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence and the Write Touch. Her twenty-sixth Love Inspired Suspense novel, AMISH CHRISTMAS SECRETS, released in October and HIDDEN AMISH SECRETS will be available in the spring of 2021.

In addition to full-length fiction, Debby has written magazine articles for Southern Lady, Woman’s World, Our Sunday Visitor, Army and Family, and served for over twelve years on the editorial advisory board of ADVANCE for Administrators of the Laboratory.


Here's Debby!

STORY TRIVIA:

The beach is my happy place so I set the beginning of Amish Christmas Search in Pinecraft, Florida. Established in the 1920s as a tourist camp, the once rural section of Sarasota County has long been a favorite destination for Amish and Mennonite families eager to trade the harsh northern winters for Florida’s blue skies, salt air and sunshine.

From January to April each year, some 5,000 folks travel on chartered buses to the historic district, now surrounded by the sprawling city of Sarasota. Approximately 700 homes—a mix of bungalows and trailers--rent to the influx of vacationers, with many families reserving lodging a year in advance. Bikes, either traditional or three-wheel tricycles, are the favorite mode of transportation, and everyone from grandparents to youngsters can be seen peddling along the backstreets, waving to neighbors or stopping to chat with friends.

Pinecraft Park provides a central gathering spot, along with shuffleboard and bocce ball courts that are always in demand. At night, concerts of bluegrass or gospel music entertain folks who tap their toes or nod to the strum of banjos and guitars. On warm days, a city bus takes the vacationing snowbirds to Siesta Key, where they bask in the sun or frolic in waves that wash up on the sand.

The various Amish and Mennonite sects remain segregated at home, yet they mix and mingle while on vacation. Many of the rules under which they usually live are loosened or disregarded. Even their aversion to photographs eases, and while they don’t pose for picture, they don’t shy away from the camera either.

Just as seasons change, vacations come to an end, and saying goodbye is always hard. Warm hugs and hearty handshakes, coupled with the promise to return again next year, help soften the separation. As they’ve done for decades, Amish and Mennonite families will continue to find rest and relaxation in the tranquil community that encompasses 178-acres known as Pinecraft, a vacation oasis found in my October release, Amish Christmas Search.

MY WRITING PROCESS:

When I chat with readers, I’m often asked about my writing process. Folks want to know the inspiration for my stories, but they also want to hear about the techniques I use to get words on the page—or on the computer screen. Writers know that the best way to improve their craft is to write, and after penning twenty-seven books for Love Inspired Suspense and three stories that I’ve independently published, I’ve settled on a process that works for me.

I start with a fairly detailed outline of my story. Most editors, including mine, request a story synopsis along with the submission of a new proposal. Using the outline as a guide, I write a synopsis that reveals the major plot points, the faith arc and how the characters change and grow. I also add what the hero and heroine learn and the obstacles, both internal and external, they overcome to get to their happily ever after. Then I write the first three chapters and submit them, along with the synopsis, to my editor.

At that point, I turn to my AlphaSmart, a word processor that runs on three AA batteries. The small device was developed for special needs school children so it’s durable and portable. Only four lines of text are visible on the small screen and the editing functions are limited, which keeps me moving forward as I write my first draft. The AlphaSmart has eight files, each holding about 5,000 words of text that can be downloaded into a computer. Once I have a first draft written and in my computer, I start revising and rewriting. That’s the part of the process I most enjoy. The fine-tuning takes my very rough manuscript and turns it, eventually, into a compelling story.

Writing a first-draft on my AlphaSmart works for me, but I’d love to learn the way other folks craft their stories and hope you’ll share any techniques you use in the comment section. Whether you write stories or enjoy relaxing with a good book someone else has written, I’m glad we could be together today. Thanks so much, Sally, for inviting me to your blog.

Amish Christmas Search Blurb

An Amish girl’s disappearance is a mystery… and the clues lead straight into danger at Christmas.

Convinced her friend didn’t run away as the police

believe, Lizzie Kauffman searches for the truth—but

someone will kill to keep it hidden. Now the Amish

housekeeper and her friend Caleb Zook are on the

run for their lives. And if they want to find their

missing friend, Lizzie and Caleb must figure out

a way to survive the holiday.

Purchase Link:
Amazon: https://tinyurl.com/y2zltr7x

Debby loves to hear from her readers. Connect with Debby in the following ways:
Website: www.DebbyGiusti.com
Email: Debby@DebbyGiusti.com
Blog: https://seekerville.blogspot.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/debby.giusti.9
Twitter: https://twitter.com/DebbyGiusti


Friends, I sure hope you enjoyed getting to know Debby Giusti and Amish Christmas Search.
Don't forget to leave a comment with your email address by Saturday evening to be entered for the giveaway!


Thank you so much for joining us, Debby!


If you're an author and you'd like to be showcased here, just let me know. Must be inspirational or clean, can be fiction or nonfiction.
Check out my website, connect with me, and sign up for my newsletter. https://sallyshupe.weebly.com/