Meet author Jane Daly
Jane Daly is addicted to coffee, purple pens, and her husband, not necessarily in that order. A self-proclaimed introvert, she enjoys the solitude of riding shotgun in Rigsby, her 37-foot motor home. But when they pull into a new campground, her favorite thing is to make new friends and find hangouts featuring local musicians. Her fantasy involves writing lyrics for country music songs and listening to them on the radio.
Tell us about your newest book.
The Pastor’s Perfect Wife is a contemporary romance set in the small town of Main, Oregon, not far from the Oregon Coast. Ethan is filling the pulpit for the pastor whose sister-in-law is in the hospital. Ethan has a young son and is a widower. He comes face to face with former Mean Girl Mariah, who has no intention of getting involved with a minister.
What inspired you to write The Pastor’s Perfect Wife?
When I was dating my husband, he told me he was studying to be a pastor. I decided then and there I wasn’t the one for him. I had a tumultuous past with a not-so-great reputation as a partier. My life BC wasn’t something I felt would be acceptable as a pastor’s wife. My main character, Mariah, feels the same way.
How would you describe this book to someone in a 30-second blurb?
What happens when a grieving widower with a small son meets a feisty former mean girl? Neither is looking for love, but when they’re thrown together to battle a false accusation of sexual assault from a teenage girl, the result is a perfect match.
What genre do you focus on?
I’m a sucker for a happy ending, so whether I’m writing women’s contemporary fiction or romance, I want the Hallmark-type ending.
Why do you write?
God gives gifts to all His children. Mine happens to be the ability to make up stories to show His redemption and forgiveness. I can’t NOT write, because of this incredible gift I’ve been given.
What is your work schedule like when you’re writing a book?
I am training myself to write faster, so I try to write at least 2,000 words a day. That means I can finish a romance or romantic suspense in a month. It usually takes me a couple of months to edit and get input from beta readers. I like to spend more time writing full-length novels of around 90,000 to 100,00 words and these can take me up to a year.
What’s the best part of your author’s life?
I get huge satisfaction of encouraging other writers. I remember starting out and how difficult it was. Rejection after rejection, criticism from other ‘know it all’ authors, and harsh judgements from contest judges – this is a quick path to self-doubt and imposter syndrome. With my new role as acquisitions editor for Elk Lake Publishing, Inc., I want to encourage the brave writers who have the guts to submit to a publisher.
What’s one unusual fact about you?
In January of 2022, my husband and I sold everything and moved into our motor home. We live and travel full-time in Rigsby with our two cats. We supplement our income by work camping. Hubby does maintenance and guides campers to their sites while I work in the office, making reservations and selling merch. We’ve been across the country three times from the West Coast to the East Coast. Our goal is to stay in each of the 48 lower states before we quit. We’re only about half-way through now, but even when we hit all 48, we plan to do this for as long as we physically can.
Do you have other books? We’d love to know.
You can find all my books on my website. I have 2 nonfiction and 7 novels.
My most recent releases (July 2024) are Broken Trust and The Pastor’s Perfect Wife (Winged Publications) – Book 2 in the Hearts of Main series. #3 The Heart of a Hero will be out later this year.
What are you working on now?
I’m working on the 2nd in a 3-book series under contract with Elk Lake Publishing, Inc. It’s a romantic suspense called High Heels and Horses. All 3 take place in the Gold Country of Northern California. They’ll be released in 2025 and 2026.
I also have a contract to finish a book I’ve tentatively titled “Why Are My Eyebrows Growing Out of My Chin (Aging with Snark and Spirituality.” It is nonfiction and I hope to encourage other women of a ‘certain age’ that aging doesn’t disqualify you from accomplishing things. It will be released later in 2025.
Website: https://www.janeSDaly.com
Link to book: https://amzn.to/3W7WIg9
Meet author Danielle Grandinetti
Danielle Grandinetti is an award-winning inspirational romance author fueled by tea, books, and the creative beauty of nature. Mixing romance and suspense, she brings history to life, showing the discovery of home and hope in hard times. Married to her hero, Danielle is a second-generation Italian-American, a dairy farmer’s granddaughter, and a boy mom from Chicagoland who now lives along Lake Michigan’s Wisconsin shoreline. Find her online at daniellegrandinetti.com.
Tell us about your newest book.
Eden Cove, England, 1931—Margherita Vicienzo flees Italy pursued by her former fiancé, a member of Mussolini’s Blackshirt. Smuggled illegally into England, Margherita is a foreigner at the mercy of strangers. Her limp from an improperly healed broken leg means she has nothing to offer the Ferryman family, who offer her sanctuary, and nothing to appease their son who resents her presence.
Luke Ferryman needs a wife. He wants to marry for love, but carries the weight of his family’s generations-old expectations on his shoulders. Though he inherited the role of both baker and ferryman, he knows he can’t fulfill both needs once his aging grandparents retire. A wife would help, but not an illegal one like the refugee his matchmaking grandmother is harboring.
As opposite as night and day, Luke and Margherita forge a tentative friendship that grows despite the constant threat of Margherita’s discovery. But when strangers appear in the close-knit seaside town, threatening Luke’s livelihood and Margherita’s safety, the choice between justice and mercy becomes harder. And sacrifice proves the only answer.
What inspired you to write The Italian Musician’s Sanctuary?
As I wrote Sheltered by the Doctor, the fifth book in my Harbored in Crow’s Nest series, I researched the anti-Italian prejudices that occurred in America and how actions in Italy affected Italian-Americans during the 1930s. When Anna Jenson reached out about whether I’d like to join the Our House on Sycamore Street multi-author series, the timing worked perfectly to write a novella that showed the Italian side of the research I had done for Sheltered by the Doctor. And Margherita’s story was born.
What genre do you focus on?
I historical romance with intrigue, or, more specifically 1930s romantic mystery/suspense. It was such a pivotal era, with plenty of ready challenges for characters to face before they reach a happily ever after. The Italian Musician’s Sanctuary is my first foray outside of the US, and into pre-WWII Europe, and now that I have a taste of it, I’d love to write more!
Who is your main character, and how did you choose that name?
Margherita is my female main character. Her name is Italian and means daisy. With all the trouble she faces, she needed a name that represented something beautiful.
What is your work schedule like when you’re writing a book?
I’m always working on a book in one form or another, but I’m also a stay-at-home mom. So I grab snatches of writing time in between school drop-off and pick-up, while my boys are playing in the house, or on a quiet Saturday when my husband takes the boys with him on errands.
What’s the best part of your author’s life?
The best part is showing my boys my accomplishments. They cheer when I finish writing a book and love helping me unbox my latest novel. Seeing them writing their own stories to “be like mama” makes my heart so happy.
What’s one unusual fact about you?
I come from a line of Italian musicians, so it was fun to show a piece of that in this story.
What is your favorite pastime?
Besides reading and writing? Taking nature pictures. I never seem to have enough snapshots of Lake Michigan. Or fall leaves.
Do you have other books? We’d love to know.
I do! I mentioned Sheltered by the Doctor earlier, it is part of the Harbored in Crow’s Nest series. Of course, I recommend beginning with Book One: Confessions to a Stranger, but you could also begin with Book Two: Refuge for the Archaeologist. Fun fact … the Archaeologist in that story worked at a dig in the town where Margherita is from, and both were injured in the same (historical) earthquake.
What are you working on now?
I just finished writing book six in the Harbored in Crow’s Nest series, and it’s off to editing. Investigation of a Journalist is the grand finale of the series and releases on November 19.
Website: daniellegrandinetti.com
Link to book: daniellegrandinetti.com/the-italian-musicians-sanctuary
Social media links:
instagram.com/danielleswritingspot
facebook.com/danielleswritingspot
amazon.com/author/daniellegrandinetti
Meet author Sandra Bretting
Sandra Bretting is the author of a bestselling cozy mystery series that ran for five years with Kensington Publishing of New York, as well as three standalone mysteries and an inspirational memoir. A graduate of the University of Missouri School of Journalism, she began her career writing for the Los Angeles Times and other publications. From 2006 until 2016, she wrote feature stories for the award-winning business section of the Houston Chronicle.
Tell us about your newest book.
When the U. S. military adopted a new test from France called the “intelligence quotient test” during World War 1, no one expected the turmoil it would cause. Thousands of immigrants failed the test and were forced to return to their war-ravaged homelands. Unfit to Serve is the fictionalized account of one schoolmarm’s quest to right this wrong by creating a better test. In the end, the U.S. military did adopt a second version of the IQ test, but only after it destroyed thousands of lives.
What inspired you to write Unfit to Serve?
I came across a story of how the IQ test really came to America, and I kept wondering why it took the government an entire year to come up with a better test for recruits who didn’t speak English. I couldn’t stop thinking about the men (and the families) it affected.
How would you describe this book to someone in a 30-second blurb?
When a shy schoolmarm moves to an Army outpost with her husband during World War 1, she’s appalled at the bigotry leveled at foreign recruits. The Army requires all recruits to pass an IQ test; even those who can’t read the questions on the page. The school teacher secretly works to make a better test that levels the playing field.
What genre do you focus on?
I used to write a cozy mystery series, but I didn’t like the tight deadlines imposed by that genre. I need at least a year to come up with a good manuscript, and standalone novels give me that extra time. Plus, I really enjoy history, and now I get to do research to my heart’s content.
Why do you write?
I think God created me with an empathetic personality, and I’ve always been curious about the lives of others. My husband calls it “an innate curiosity.” God also instilled in me the need and the ability to capture what I see and translate it into words.
Who is your main character, and how did you choose that name?
Josephine Pembroke is the schoolmarm who winds up at a dusty military outpost in San Antonio. I thought the name captures the period (early 1900s) and her upper-class upbringing very well. Of course, her friends call her Jo, and I like that too.
What is the hardest part of being an author?
I think the hardest part about being an author is the uncertainty. I constantly ask myself whether I’ve written something compelling enough for my readers. So much is outside an author’s control (for example, I don’t get a say on the cover art or publication timeline) and that not knowing can be stressful.
What’s the best part of your author’s life?
The best part for me is interacting with readers. I love to talk about books, both my own and others, with people who love good stories. Their enthusiasm for my characters warms my heart and compels me to keep writing.
What’s one unusual fact about you?
I grew up in a Dutch household, and our Christmas featured Sinterklaas instead of Santa Claus.
What is your favorite pastime?
When I’m not writing, I like to hike with my husband and rescue dog through the hills behind our home in Colorado Springs.
What are you working on now?
My next book will feature a real-life artist who helped wounded soldiers during World War 1. I don’t want to give too much away, so I’ll leave it at that.
Website: www.sandrabretting.com
Link to book:
Social media links:
Twitter: @sandrabretting1
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SandraBrettingBooks/
Tibbetts Point Lighthouse
Tibbetts Point Lighthouse is an iconic lighthouse where Lake Ontario meets the St. Lawrence River and the Thousand Islands Region. Here’s a little more about it—from Libby’s point of view:
Libby cleared her throat, and a tiny chuckle gurgled in her voice. “Tibbetts Point Lighthouse is situated on three acres near the place that Lake Ontario flows into the St. Lawrence River. In 1827, Captain John Tibbetts gave the land to build the first lighthouse that used whale oil and was much smaller than the one we now have. Around twenty years later, the St. Lawrence River locks were built and international trade increased, so the lighthouse became even more important to shipping. Our current brick lighthouse was built several years later and is fifty-nine feet tall. It is tapered from twelve feet at its base to eleven feet at the octagonal lantern room. The parapet and wooden deck surrounding the light are covered with copper, and the walls
inside are lined with wood, so the metal stairs aren’t as noisy as they are in the unlined towers.”
Owen sighed. “Aye, lass. I can picture it all in my mind, and it helps ease my pain. Thank you. I’d be much obliged if you’d tell me more.”
Who was this lovely lass, her voice sweet as sugar and melodic as a nightingale? Her words as that of a poet. “When you’re well, you’ll have to climb to the top and see the fourth-order Fresnel lens that came from France. It’s a beauty to behold. The lantern is huge—a six-feet-wide octagon. It’s fifteen feet high with seven lights of thick plate glass as clear as crystal. The eighth side has an iron door to service it.”
“She must be a wonder. I don’t believe I’ve ever seen one up close, but I could be wrong.”
Would his memory return once the pain subsided? What if it didn’t? His heart skipped several beats at the thought, but the lovely lass returned to painting a wonderful picture of their
surroundings and filling his mind with better thoughts.
“The light has sixty-one candle power and flashes every ten seconds and then is off for four seconds. It illuminates two hundred-and-seventy degrees of the watery horizon and keeps
ships, schooners, and all sorts of boats safe. And with the lamp so strong, it can get very hot up there, especially in the summer. Do you remember seeing it?”
He licked his lips again. “Nae, I cannot recall. But I have to say that you’re the cleverest lass I’ve ever met, and you paint a poet’s picture. The details make me head spin.”
About Libby’s Lighthouse:
When a lighthouse keeper’s daughter finds a mysterious sailor with amnesia, the secrets she uncovers may change her life forever.
Elizabeth Montonna, daughter of the Tibbett’s Point Lighthouse keeper, thought she’d love the lighthouse life forever—until her mother, on her deathbed, reveals a long-buried secret. Now Elizabeth’s world has been turned upside down, making her question if she’ll ever truly belong and be loved. But when a dashing young sailor appears on her shore, wounded and disoriented, she finds purpose in helping him recover. Although the man knows nothing about his past or identity, his kindness and character steal a little more of her heart each day. If only she knew his full name.
When Owen awakes on the shore of Lake Ontario with no knowledge of who he is, or where he was headed when his ship wrecked, he has no choice but to accept the hospitality of the lighthouse keeper and his lovely daughter. But as Owen works to repay their kindness, and his relationship with Libby turns into something more, he knows their budding romance can go no further until he uncovers his past.
With each passing day, Owen inches closer to discovering the secrets of his identity, but will the revelations bring him closer to Libby or tear them apart forever?
Meet author Davalynn Spencer
Internationally acclaimed novelist and Will Rogers Gold Medallion winner, Davalynn Spencer writes historical Western romance set along the Front Range of Colorado’s Rocky Mountains. She is a Publisher’s Weekly and ECPA bestselling author, and an award-winning rodeo journalist and former crime-beat reporter. She teaches writing workshops, plays and sings on her church worship team, and loves bacon and chocolate—but not necessarily in that order. Connect with her at https://www.davalynnspencer.com.
Tell us about your newest book.
Covering Grace is Book 6 of The Cañon City Chronicles series. Books 4 and 5 tell the story of Grace’s twin brothers, Cale and Hugh. Now Grace gets center stage—a perfect place after three years riding with Bill Cody’s Wild West Show. She can do it all—rope, ride, and take care of herself. But fitting in back at the home ranch is beyond her. She has more in common with her grandmother, Annie Hutton, the heroine of Book 1, Loving the Horseman. Full of the grit and independence of the renowned Hutton women, the road won’t be easy to the love and acceptance Grace longs for.
How would you describe this book to someone in a 30-second blurb?
After three years with a Wild West show, Grace Hutton returns home to Cañon City with Harley the Wonder Horse and a broken heart. She needs work and a place to live—not romance.
Dan Waite is caring for his invalid father and trying to keep their hat business in the black. Grace Hutton turns out to be more than he bargained for because he’s not ready to bargain with his heart.
What genre do you focus on?
I enjoy writing historical Western romance because I love happy endings and cowboys. The 1880s are my favorite period of the American West. Life was simpler then. Not easier, by any means, just simpler. I believe that’s one of the primary reasons people enjoy reading historical fiction.
Who is your main character, and how did you choose that name?
Grace Hutton has been riding around in my mind ever since I wrote her brothers’ stories. She’s the kid sister tag-along, and she resents it just enough to prove herself better than her brothers. But Grace also wears her name well, in the way she moves and thinks—in spite of her grit and sass.
What is your work schedule like when you’re writing a book?
As much as I would love to jump right on a story the first thing in the morning, I end up writing primarily in the afternoon – especially in the summer when I’m working outside more. I write every day except Sunday, and I look forward to that day of rest, a sabbath, if you will. I find it rejuvenates me for getting back to work on Monday.
What’s the best part of your author’s life?
Writing is hard work, but I love it. I’m compelled to write, to get the story of a character’s challenges out there so readers will root for her or him. The greatest reward is hearing from a reader who struck gold in a personal way because of how they related to the people, struggles, or themes in my books.
What’s one unusual fact about you?
When my children were little, our family went to Southern California and stood in line for two hours to get on the television show, The Price Is Right. I thought sure the people running the show would pick my husband in his cowboy hat, but they picked me! I didn’t win, but the consolation prize was a crate of Jelly Belly jellybeans. Can’t go wrong with that.
How have you changed or grown as a writer?
It’s all about word choice. Saying more with fewer words, the right words. I’m a work in progress, with hopes of achieving the more-with-less finesse of writers like C.S. Lewis.
What is your favorite pastime?
I like to walk early in the mornings and take pictures.
What are you working on now?
Currently I’m working on a Christmas novella collection and kicking around the idea of combining Books 4, 5, and 6 of the Cañon City Chronicles under one cover as I did for Books 1, 2, and 3.
Website: www.davalynnspencer.com
Link to book: https://davalynnspencer.com/books/covering-grace/
Social media links:
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Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5051432.Davalynn_Spencer
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Meet author Janice Cole Hopkins
Janice Cole Hopkins grew up with an Appalachian heritage and has set several of her novels in the region. She is an avid reader herself as well as a prolific writer who has now published over seventy books. She works hard to make her stories come alive for readers, draw them in, enthrall and inspire, and give a sigh-worthy ending that makes the book hard to forget.
Tell us about your newest book, A Match for Merle.
Vanessa Acker didn’t have a very good reputation in Pinyon Falls, Texas. All the men she’d flirted with had rejected her, and some people even considered her a shrew. Since she’s not getting any younger and wants to marry, she decides to contact the same matchmaker three of the men in Pinyon Falls had success with.
Merle Sullivan has made a lot of money as a successful real estate speculator, but he’s ready to move on with his life and settle down. He contacts a matchmaker to begin the process. When he meets Vanessa Acker, she’s pretty enough, but he knows he’s in for a challenge. However, he senses something special about the woman buried beneath what she shows to the world.
What inspired you to write A Match for Merle?
A Match for Merle is part of a multiple-author collection, although each book can also be read as a standalone. Vanessa Acker had been an almost villainous character in my first three books in the collection (also set in the Hill Country of Texas), and I had no idea that she would eventually insist that she have her own book where she was the heroine. Of course, she does a lot of changing here.
How would you describe this book to someone in a 30-second blurb?
People in Pinyon didn’t much like Vanessa Acker, but when she sends to the matchmaker for a groom, she gets more than she expected in Merle Warner.
What genre do you focus on?
I write mainly inspirational, historical fiction and have written sixty four of them. But I also have seven inspirational contemporary ones and two Christian non-fiction with another on the way sometime next year.
Why do you write?
I have been an avid reader since I was six years old. Even writing full-time, I still read well over 350 books a year. I started writing my own stories in the third grade and freelanced for magazines when I taught school, but I didn’t start a novel until I became tied down to take care of my mother. I can look back and see how God was preparing me for this time in my life, so I write for Him, to hopefully bring Him glory and encourage others to draw closer to Him in an entertaining way.
Who is your main character, and how did you choose that name?
Merle Warner and Vanessa Acker are my two main characters in A Match for Merle. I try to choose names that both go with the region where the book is set and match the characters’ personalities.
What is your work schedule like when you’re writing a book?
When I’m working on a new manuscript, I set my goal to write a chapter a day, and I spend most of my day writing. When it’s finished, I take a break and catch up on some other things, especially editing.
What is the hardest part of being an author?
I love writing, but there are some challenges. I find editing to get an error-free book difficult. I personally edit each book at least six times, my husband edits it once, and I always have a professional editor, and yet, a few mistakes still sometimes sneak through. Promoting and marketing are also challenges because, with Amazon and all the changes in writing and publishing, there are so many books available.
What’s the best part of your author’s life?
I love the actual writing. I write character-driven novels, and I get lost in their stories, writing fast because I’m eager to see where they take me. As a history and English major, I also enjoy the research, and I’m meticulous with it, even making sure the vocabulary I include was used during that time.
What’s one unusual fact about you?
I’m also an avid traveler, believing that to be a great way to learn. I’ve been to all 50 states and 45 other countries.
How have you changed or grown as a writer?
Tremendously, but it’s something that’s hard to pinpoint, describe, or measure. It just happens, and it’s hard to separate from who you are.
What is your favorite pastime?
I’ve had many hobbies and interests over the years: Most crafts, art, drama, folk studies, history, travel, home canning, etc.; but now, most of my activities revolve around my faith, family, and writing.
Do you have other books? We’d love to know.
I’ve been publishing for ten years and now have 71 books listed on Amazon. You can check them out here:
https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B00SIFWZLG/allbooks
What are you working on now?
I just finished writing the rough draft of Andrea: Christmas Quilt Brides, and I’ll start on Willa’s Woe’s, a book in Westward Home & Hearts series, next.
Website: Reflections – Past, Present, and Future with God (janicecolehopkins.blogspot.com)
Link to book: https://www.amazon.com/Match-Merle-Matchmaker-Agatha-Returns-ebook/dp/B0CR41BL9F
Social media links:
Facebook (https://www.facebook. com/JaniceColeHopkins/)
Twitter – Janice Cole Hopkins (@J_C_Hopkins) / X (twitter.com)