Interview that's a little different for me

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It was fun to do.

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Author's by Moonlight

Carol Award Finalists Announced

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(Atlanta, GA) At ICRS, in a press conference hosted by ACFW and CBA, ACFW proudly announced the finalists in the Carol Awards. The Carol Awards evolved from ACFW’s Book of the Year Awards to honor the highest achievement for published authors of Christian fiction. The 2011 Carol Award winners in each category will be announced at ACFW’s Awards Gala on Saturday, September 24, 2011 at the annual conference in St. Louis, Missouri.


Honoring excellence in Christian fiction of all genres, American Christian Fiction Writers announces the Carol Award finalists:

Debut Author:

The Preacher’s Bride by Jody Hedlund (Bethany House)

Crossing Oceans by Gina Holmes (Tyndale Publishers)

Rooms by James L. Rubart (B&H Publishing)

Long Contemporary:

The Choice by Suzanne Woods Fisher (Revell)

Red Ink by Kathi Macias (New Hope Publishers)

Never Say Never by Lisa Wingate (Bethany House)


Long Contemporary Romance:

Plain Jayne by Hillary Manton Lodge (Harvest House)

Anna’s Return by Marta Perry (Berkley)

Plain Paradise by Beth Wiseman (Thomas Nelson)


Long Historical:

Here Burns My Candle by Liz Curtis Higgs (Waterbrook Press)

Petra: City in Stone by T.L. Higley (B&H Publishing)

Sons of Thunder by Susan May Warren (Summerside Press)


Long Historical Romance:

The Husband Tree by Mary Connealy (Barbour)

Love Finds You In Homestead, Iowa by Melanie Dobson (Summerside)

Courting Morrow Little by Laura Frantz (Revell)

Mystery:

Mirrored Image by Alice K. Arenz (Sheaf House)

Muslin Mystery by Vera Dodge (Guideposts)

The Camera Never Lies by Elizabeth Goddard (Barbour)

Novellas:

The Prodigal Groom by Vickie McDonough (Barbour)

Ride With Me Into Christmas by Rachael Phillips (Barbour)

A Trusting Heart by Carrie Turansky (Barbour)

Romantic Suspense:

The Silent Order by Melanie Dobson (Summerside Press)

Don’t Look Back by Lynette Eason (Revell)

Pursuit of Justice by DiAnn Mills (Tyndale Publishers)

Short Contemporary:

The Wedding Garden by Linda Goodnight (Love Inspired)

A Father for Zach by Irene Hannon (Love Inspired)

Winter’s End by Ruth Logan Herne (Love Inspired)

Short Contemporary Suspense:

Night Prey by Sharon Dunn (Love Inspired Suspense)

Legacy of Lies by Jill Elizabeth Nelson (Love Inspired Suspense)

Firestorm by Kelly Ann Riley (Love Inspired Suspense)

Short Historical:

Her Healing Ways by Lyn Cote (Love Inspired)

Promise of Tomorrow by S. Dionne Moore (Barbour)

The Columns of Cottonwood by Sandra Robbins (Barbour)

Speculative Fiction:

The Wolf of Tebron by C. S. Lakin (AMG Publishers)

Rooms by James L. Rubart (B&H Publishing)

König’s Fire by Marc Schooley (Marcher Lord Press)

Suspense/Thriller:

Predator by Terri Blackstock (Zondervan)

Fear No Evil by Robin Caroll (B&H Publishing)

Medical Error by Richard L. Mabry (Abingdon Press)


Women’s Fiction:

Beaded Hope by Cathy Liggett (Tyndale Publishers)

They Almost Always Come Home by Cynthia Ruchti (Abingdon)

Beyond Summer by Lisa Wingate (NAL)

Young Adult:

Anything But Normal by Melody Carlson (Revell)

Healer’s Apprentice by Melanie Dickerson (Zonderkidz)

Katy’s New World by Kim Vogel Sawyer (Zonderkidz)

Review and a Chance to Win

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A nice review of

Deep Trouble

And if you follow this blog

You'll have a chance NEXT TUESDAY

To win a copy of Deep Trouble

CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS

ICRS-Inspirational Christian Retail Show

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This is the Inspirational Christian Retail Show, going on now in Atlanta.

That's MY COVER of Out of Control on display in a full sized poster

YAY!!!

ICRS is a trade show for Christian Bookstores so all the things you find a Christian bookstores, from books to bibles to Sunday School material to Christmas program costumes are on display there.

And that includes MY BOOK!

Out of Control is available August 1st.

Need Sleep

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Special Bonus Day on Seekerville

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Talking about characters in

my soon to be released

Out Of Control

Book #1 in

the Kincaid Brides Series

CLICK HERE

Out of Control

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An interview I did

about my August release

Out of Control

Click HERE for the interview

Click HERE to buy

Today's my day on Seekerville

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Talking about

The Five Book Pile-up

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Formal Affair

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This is me and My Cowboy at the Rita Award Ceremony.

We're dressed up all fit to kill.

(that is a terrible expression btw)

New York City

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I've just got to put at least one picture up of what I'm doing this week. This is me in front of the fountain at Rockefeller Center. New York City.

Let me just say that New York City, although only a two and a half hour plane ride from me home, is as far as you can get from Rural Nebraska, if not geographically, the certainly psychologically.

It's been a fun and at times overwhelming week.

Deep Trouble Review in Romantic Times Magazine

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4 STARS
There is never a dull moment with Connealy, and the second book of her Wild West Weddings series starts out with a bang and never lets up. Expect romance, villains, a lost city of gold, laugh-out-loud humor — and, of course, expect the unexpected.


Read More Here...

In Memory of Marybelle

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Marybelle Connealy, my mother-in-law, passed away last week. And she was the best imaginable mother-in-law and one of my very best friends.

I know Marybelle wasn't enjoying life anymore. But about ten times a day it hits me that she's gone. And when I think of her, I don't think of the end, when she was in pain, struggling for each breath. I miss the wonderful lady who taught me so much. She was a funny, sensible, talented, loving woman.

Without her and her apple pies and her infectious laugh the world is poorer. That's not even a bit of an exaggeration.

What I've been thinking about is this philosophy I have that anything can be done well or done poorly. It's something I've said to my girls many times.

If you're a waitress, you go be the best waitress in that restaurant. If you're bagging groceries, you bring every bit of skill you have to the job.

I realize now that Marybelle taught me that philosophy. A vegetable peeler, a cake froster, a cherry pitter, a pie crust roller-outer...she did it all with flare and extraordinary talent. She could butcher a chicken and make it look like art. The speed, the skill, it was humbling. And she made it look effortless and while we'd work together she'd tell me stories of her sons growing up and the funny stories that ended up working their way into some of my books, particularly Calico Canyon. And she'd teach me, give me advice but mainly she just did it all so well that I learned just by trying to keep up with her.

Everyday things can and should be done with wild talent.

She was a genius of a farm wife, the best mother-in-law imaginable and her heart for her boisterous, ridiculously all-boy household (seven sons-can you imagine) was so huge and gentle and loving it was humbling.

And she showed amazing kindness and friendship to the variety of wives the boys all dragged home.

So being a mother-in-law can be done brilliantly, too, and she was the best.

This poem was on one of the sympathy cards we received and I think it's beautiful so I'm including it here.

The Journey

I set out on my journey when I was very young.


I knew not where the winding road would go.

At times the way was easy, the road was straight and smooth, the sky was blue and everything looked bright.

At times the road was rugged, the hills were long and steep, and darkness hid the view ahead from sight...

But never did he leave me - This Friend who came along, and never did He let me lose my way.

And every time I stumbled He offered me His hand, assuring me that I would be okay.

And then one day I saw it, at last--my journey's end, and what a wonderous sight it was to see!

For after all my travels, I'd found my way back home - the heavenly home that He'd prepared for me.

--Larry Sandman

I got a Kindle

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I'm still a little leery of it. I don't think it will ever replace my love of holding a book. But a very good friend is having her first book release FIRST on Kindle, a new thing they're doing at Tyndale House and I had to have her book so........I had to have an ebook reader and I got a Kindle.
But here's one cool thing I found. I can download the first chapter of all my books onto the Kindle for FREE.
How fun is that?
Even if you don't have a Kindle you can get what they call Kindle for PC which brings the Kindle books to your computer desktop.
So you can get the first chapter of my books REALLY for free since the Kindle for PC is free and the 1st chapter is free.
A no risk way to look at a new book before you buy.

Missouri Flood as of June 12th

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That is a week ago almost. It keeps getting worse.

I left these pictures really high pixel so you should be able to click on them

and they'll get large so you can see details.

As if anyone want to see details!!!!

 Scroll down or click HERE to see the flooding pictures I posted on June 9th.

 The picture below is of an RV parking lot.

The things sticking out of the water are hydrants and electrical posts for RVs.

This is usually full on a summer weekend.

The Miraculous Staircase

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I'm on

Petticoats and Pistols

Today

Blogging about

The Loretto Chapel's Miraculous Staircase

More Creative Madness

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You can never have too much Creative Madness, now can you?

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I'm quoted in the newspaper

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