Meet Denise Weimer
Denise Weimer holds a journalism degree with a minor in history from Asbury University. A former magazine writer, she is a substantive editor for Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas as well as the author of The Georgia Gold Series, The Restoration Trilogy, and a number of romantic novellas. Denise is a wife and swim mom of two daughters who always pauses for old houses, coffee, and chocolate!
Tell us about your newest book.
My novella, Across Three Autumns, releases May 1 in Barbour’s Backcountry Brides collection. I’m honored to be a part of this anthology with some amazing authors, many of whom are my fellow contributors to the Colonial Quills blog.
Travel into Colonial America where eight women seek love, but they each know a future husband requires the necessary skills to survive in the backcountry. Living in areas exposed to nature’s ferocity, prone to Indian attack, and cut off from regular supplies, can hearts overcome the dangers to find lasting love?
Across Three Autumns by Denise Weimer: Fighting Loyalists and Indians, Jenny White settles for strength over love . . .until Scottish scout Caylan McIntosh leads her family on a harrowing exodus out of Georgia’s Revolutionary War “Hornet’s Nest.”
What genre do you focus on and why?
My writing includes historical fiction and contemporary romantic suspense. My preferred technique is to marry these two genres in suspenseful time slip romance. Several of my books, including The Restoration Trilogy and a new novel that my agent is currently working to place with a publisher, contain modern characters who uncover a mystery—and resulting danger—from the past.
Why do you write? What drives you?
Since age 11, when from the back seat of the car I’d scribble stories about the historic sites my parents took me to visit, I’ve realized my calling to be a writer. Even though the publication journey has been long and challenging, I’ve never doubted that God gave me a gift He wanted me to use.
Who is your main character, and how did you choose that name?
Jenny White is my main character in Across Three Autumns. Inspired by Georgia’s Revolutionary War heroine Nancy Hart, Jenny represents an atypical romantic heroine. She’s six feet tall, raw-boned, and freckled. As such, she struggles with self-image and fears no man will ever love her. She considers the two lovely things about her to be her red hair (even though many despise that, too) and her name. Jenny comes from an English settler family, so her name had to reflect that ancestry.
What does a day in your writing world look like?
My writing begins after my family leaves home for work and school and I’ve done my devotions and checked my e-mail and social media. I try to concentrate on writing from mid-morning to early or mid-afternoon, when I start preparing dinner. Of course, I include a lunch break, and I usually brew a cup of tea to sip while I’m writing in the afternoon.
What is the hardest part of being an author? Why?
Two things come to mind. First, most authors are introverts by nature, but selling one’s books requires interaction with the public. Today, a lot of this is done online. I love Facebook parties! But I’ve also spent a lot of time over the last ten years promoting my books in person. While I adore visiting book clubs, I find all-day festivals exhausting! Second, it usually takes many years to build enough readership for writing to financially move from hobby to career status, especially when one starts in indie publishing. Many unpaid hours are clocked! Sometimes it’s hard to keep the vision.
What’s the best part of your author’s life? Why?
Spending most of my time working in the environment I’m suited to, while doing what I know God has called me to. Then, hearing from readers that the message I included in my books touched and changed them! I love writing about God’s healing power in a fictional format.
What is the craziest thing you’ve experienced as an author?
Craziest … hmm. I’m not sure how to answer this. Maybe having the first publisher I signed with for my Georgia Gold Series fold just as book one came out? But God worked that out. After I put my writing on the altar, He taught me many things about the industry, then led me to another publisher (Canterbury House) for that series. In person, maybe having a lady I’d spent several minutes in good conversation with at a festival throw up her hands and stalk away when she learned my books had a Christian influence. It made me sad for her, because something had obviously hurt or confused her deeply in her past.
What are you most proud of?
My daughters, Emily (18) and Abigail (15). Seeing them become lights for the Lord and find His will for their lives encourages me that the time I invested in them as I worked from home produced an even greater, eternal treasure than the books I’ve written.
What is your favorite pastime?
Apart from writing? Haha. Over the past years, I’d say I’ve probably had the most fun cheering for my girls at swim meets. Rich, meaningful time has been spent in fellowship with friends from our Sunday school class and small group.
Do you have other books? We’d love to know.
- The Georgia Gold Series (Sautee Shadows, The Gray Divide, The Crimson Bloom, and Bright as Gold) – Eugenia Price-style, mid-1800s romance from the time of the Georgia Gold Rush through the end of the Civil War
- The Restoration Trilogy (White, Widow, and Witch) – modern romantic suspense centered on a restoration project, with historical back stories from three different centuries
- Holly, Ivy & Intrigue – three novellas of Christmas suspense including mine, A Holiday Intruder
- And many more in process!
What are you working on now?
I’m currently working on something very unusual and challenging for me, a modern romance about an injured college swimmer who falls in love with a special needs swim team and their recreation director during her sports marketing practicum. Anna faces many challenges as she attempts to convince the organization that she should coach a group to the Special Olympics—and the rec director that her feelings for him can overcome the obstacles in his life as guardian of his autistic sister. I started this project after a conversation with Hallmark, but since they want books-to-film, the editor decided that creating swim-meet scenes would require too much budget. Somehow, I felt compelled to continue, and hope to find a Christian publisher interested in this theme.
Website: https://deniseweimerbooks.webs.com
Link to book: https://www.amazon.com/Backcountry-Brides-Collection-Colonial-America%C2%92s/dp/1683226224/
Social media links:
https://twitter.com/denise_weimer
https://www.facebook.com/denise.weimer1
Enter a giveaway!
During the month of May, you can enter to win a print copy of Backcountry Brides plus a whole load of goodies related to the stories! Follow this link and the Rafflecopter directions: https://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/aac1581d4
Meet Dr. Craig von Buseck
Dr. Craig von Buseck is an author and editor for Inspiration.org, the website of Inspiration Ministries. He writes for CBN.com, ChristianPost.com, MTL Magazine, and Generals.org. He is a frequent guest on Susie Larson’s “Live the Promise” radio program. He holds a Doctor of Ministry and an MA in Religious Journalism from Regent University. Craig’s recent books include Nobody Knows: The Harry T. Burleigh Story and Praying the News, co-written by 700 Club co-host Wendy Griffith.
Tell us about your newest book.
I have recently completed a biography of President Harry S. Truman and the Zionist Movement to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Balfour Declaration and the 70th Anniversary of the rebirth of Israel. This new book, I Am Cyrus: Harry S. Truman and the Rebirth of Israel, will be released soon.
What genre do you focus on and why?
I love narrative non-fiction and biography. I have been interested in history and personal stories all my life. My father encouraged me early to learn from the stories of others. I think we can learn from both the success and failures of others. I often say I’m an amateur at this thing called life–this is my first time living it. So I have always tried to learn from the lives of great women and men–and of course from the Bible. I love to teach to help people grow in their relationship with God and in wise daily living. So in addition to narrative biographies I have also written several teaching books from a biblical worldview.
Why do you write? What drives you?
I’ve been a writer from my childhood. I started writing songs and short stories, then op-ed pieces for the newspaper. In my early 30s I started to have a deep desire to go into writing full-time. I have always been driven by a desire for people to walk in God’s truth and to be set free from destructive thinking and behavior. My desire is to help people find the truth in God’s word so they can then experience the freedom that comes from a relationship with Christ.
The other motivation is simply the fact that God created me to be a writer. Again quoting my Father, who is a world-class portrait painter: “If they took away my oils I would use acrylics; if they took away my acrylics I would use water colors; if they took away those I would use a pencil; if they took away my pencil I would find a stick and draw in the dirt. You see, I’m not an artist because that’s what I do, I’m an artist because that’s who I was created to be.” I feel the same way about writing.
Who is your main character, and how did you choose that name?
Most people know the main character of my new book, since he was President of the United States – Harry S. Truman. Some other key characters of this saga include Chaim Weizmann, Winston Churchill, Theodor Herzl, Arthur Balfore, David Ben Gurion, Franklin Roosevelt, David Lloyd George, among other towering historical figures of the 20th Century.
What does a day in your writing world look like?
Since I work a full-time job as content editor for Inspiration.org, I do my writing mostly at night or on the weekend. However, as I was writing “I Am Cyrus,” I got into the groove of getting up early and writing for one to two hours before work, then two hours again in the evening after dinner. Then I would work all day Saturday whenever possible. I knew that 2017-2018 was an important time of anniversaries for Israel, so I was motivated to get this book done. However, it required an immense amount of time doing the research, with many hours of reading. So the months between the fall of 2016 through the fall of 2017 were pretty much consumed by this project.
What is the hardest part of being an author? Why?
For me the most difficult part of being an author is also one of the special things about being an author–and that is the vast amount of time spent in solitude. As any writer will tell you, hours fly by when you are in the thick of a project that you love. But those are hours that other people often spend with family and friends. The writer has to make the sacrifice to give up some of the life that he or she would share with those close to them. But they also have to be careful to stay connected to keep a balance in life.
What’s the best part of your author’s life? Why?
I love when I’m speaking to promote a book and I can tell that the light is coming on in the minds of people in the audience. They are getting it. They are no longer seeing Craig, but they are seeing the love, grace, and goodness of Jesus. I get the same feeling when I receive an e-mail from someone who read one of my books or articles and express their joy in connecting with the truth from Scripture, or with a story of someone who experienced redemption in their life. That is the most satisfying part of being an author.
What is the craziest thing you’ve experienced as an author?
I was at the Christian Booksellers Association convention in Atlanta and a man who I had never met before walked up to me, reached out his hand, and said, “Craig von Buseck.” I shook his hand and said hello. Then he said, “I have taught your book, Seven Keys to Hearing God’s Voice across the continent of Australia.” That was a cool moment.
What are you most proud of?
I am proud of my three children, who are now adults. My oldest son is a film maker, and is about to graduate from Regent University with a degree in Cinema. My middle son graduated last year from Norfolk State University with a degree in communication. My daughter is a junior at Old Dominion University pursuing a joint degree in fine arts and theater.
As far as my writing is concerned, I’m proud of my book Nobody Knows because it tells the heroic story of Harry T. Burleigh who went from poverty to worldwide musical fame at the height of Jim Crow racism in America. Burleigh is a true American hero–which is why I wrote the book, and also why his portrait was featured in the Smithsonian Institute among other great African-American leaders.
What is your favorite pastime?
I love to hike in the woods or the mountains. I enjoy visiting museums and historical sites to learn about our past. I love to travel. I love hanging out with my kids and going to movies.
Do you have other books? We’d love to know.
In addition to Nobody Knows, my other books include Praying the News, NetCasters: Using the Internet to Make Fishers of Men, and Seven Keys to Hearing God’s Voice.
I have also done some ghost writing, including a book that will likely be published later this year called Yes I Can–the story of a quadriplegic who was told he could never be a physician, but who defied the odds and is now a world-class kidney specialist in New York City. I have also co-written a book about a survivor of the Holocaust that I then adapted as a screenplay. More news on this project will hopefully be coming soon.
What are you working on now?
I’m currently editing I Am Cyrus as my agent pitches it to publishers. My son and I are also starting the process of adapting Nobody Knows: The Harry T. Burleigh Story into a screenplay.
There has been some interest in a teaching book on the subject of faith that I have had on the back burner, so I will be working on that this year as well. The working title is “The Peter, Paul, and Mary Principle: Learning How to Receive from God.”
Website: vonbuseck.com
Link to book: https://www.amazon.com/Nobody-Knows-Forgotten-Influential-American-ebook/dp/B00DY9FPKY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1516748559&sr=8-1&keywords=Nobody+Knows+von+buseck
Social media links:
facebook.com/craigvonbuseck
google.com/+CraigvonBuseck
linkedin.com/in/craigvonbuseck/
Meet Janet Bly
Janet Chester Bly authored and co-authored, with late husband Christy Award winning western writer Stephen Bly, 40 fiction and nonfiction books. She lives in north-central Idaho on the Nez Perce Indian Reservation. Her most recent novels include the Trails of Reba Cahill Series, Wind in the Wires and Down Squash Blossom Road. Book 3 is scheduled for Fall release, Beneath a Camperdown Elm. Check out her website for more info: www.BlyBooks.com
Tell us about your newest book.
In Book 1, Wind in the Wires, Trails of Reba Cahill … Idaho cowgirl Reba Mae Cahill searches for love and family, after being abandoned by her mother, never knowing her father, and losing several boyfriends. All she wants to do is take over her grandmother’s ranch someday and hopes for a husband to partner with her. But an old man’s quest to seek justice for two cold case murders reveals lies and betrayal that rock her world. Will the truth be too hard for her to bear? And prevent any chance at romance?
Book 2, Down Squash Blossom Road, Reba and her grandmother Pearl must save the family ranch from a lawsuit, free her mom Hanna Jo from a mental institute, and take a forced road trip to California. Along the way, she helps solve a murder and a kidnapping, plus attempts to evade a dangerous stalker. Can she also squeeze in romance?
What genre do you focus on and why?
My late husband, Stephen Bly, majored in both historical and contemporary westerns, including western romance. We also co-authored some cozy mysteries. In order to stick with the brand and connect with his fans, and yet keep within my sphere of knowledge and expertise, my solo novels focus on contemporary western mystery with a touch of romance.
Why do you write? What drives you?
In my diligent search years ago to discover what God wants me to do with my life, after some trial and error, I was drawn to several writers’ conferences. I learned the whole writer’s world process, how to develop my own communication skills, and connect with editors and other writers. I also realized I had a passion to share spiritual insights, as well as to tell stories that follow a character’s journey of the soul. My desire is for a reader’s own heart to be prepared to receive God’s truth.
Who is your main character, and how did you choose that name?
Reba Mae Cahill is a 25-year-old cowgirl with red hair similar to country singer, Reba McEntire, the general inspiration for this character.
What does a day in your writing world look like?
Now that I don’t have my soul mate, my partner in everything, my days play out so differently. I’m responsible for all the duties of home and office. So, much more of my time’s tied up with non-writing detail than it used to. However, I try to work on writing at a minimum of one hour per day during the week–in the midst of shipping orders, answering fan emails and letters, and the constant plugging away at marketing the backlist. In addition, I have the privilege of hosting birthday and holiday events for my family who live down the mountain from me and for occasional community and church events at Broken Arrow Crossing, the false front town hubby built in our yard. Plus I’m busy with assorted duties at my church—as Music Director, Sunday School teacher, church clerk, etc.
What is the hardest part of being an author? Why?
Marketing! It’s constant. It’s so hit and miss. And there are a bazillion more writers in competition for readers’ attention these days. Anyone and everyone can be a writer with the whole Indie and self-publishing craze. Plus, there are fewer serious readers than when we first started back in the 1980s, in my humble assessment, especially of our brand.
What’s the best part of your author’s life? Why?
Leaving a heritage for our family, words recorded that can be shared with future generations. Spreading an inspirational message all over the world, wherever our books travel.
What is the craziest thing you’ve experienced as an author?
Having direct quotes out of our books scattered over the internet without credit given. On occasion, whole book contents have been stolen and sold by others.
What are you most proud of?
The privilege of my three sons and I to finish my husband’s last novel for him, Stuart Brannon’s Final Shot, Book 7, The Stuart Brannon Series. He had 10% completed with a one-page summary and one-page list of character names. With a 4-month deadline, in the aftermath of losing him, we finished this committee project. A miracle happened for a supposed impossible undertaking. Most often heard from my husband’s fans, “We could not tell Stephen’s input from your own. It read like a Stephen Bly story!” This novel was a Selah Award Finalist. To learn more about the process, check out these blog articles: https://www.blybooks.com/category/finishing-dads-novel/
What is your favorite pastime?
Spending time with my three sons, their wives, and my four grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.
Do you have other books? We’d love to know.
My other books include inspirational nonfiction such as Awakening Your Sense of Wonder, Hope Lives Here, God Is Good All the Time, The Heart of a Runaway, Managing Your Restless Search, Friends Forever, Words to Live By For Women, and family books like How to be a Good Mom, Be Your Mate’s Best Friend, The Power of a Godly Grandparent, as well as fiction novels, The Crystal Blake Series, The Hidden West Series, and The Carson City Chronicles.
What are you working on now?
Book #3 in the Trails of Reba Cahill Series, Beneath a Camperdown Elm … Idaho cowgirl Reba Mae Cahill finally gets the guy of her dreams, who promises to be her longed-for rancher husband, and her prodigal mother returns home, when the worst possible catastrophe happens. Three generations of women struggle to find their place and destiny in God’s plan as they each fight their own obstacles alone. Will they ever get it together?
Website: https://www.blybooks.com/
Link to book(s): https://www.blybooks.com/genre/contemporary-fiction/
Social media links:
Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/BlyBooks/
Facebook Personal: https://www.facebook.com/janetchesterbly/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BlyBooks
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/janetcbly/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/269265.Janet_Chester_Bly
Google Plus: https://plus.google.com/+JanetBly/posts
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/janetchesterbly
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/janetchesterbly/
5 free chapters Wind in the Wires with newsletter signup: https://www.blybooks.com/contact/stephen-bly-books-newsletter/
Download 5 free chapters Down Squash Blossom Road now! https://www.blybooks.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/RTF-DownSquashBlossomRd-5-Chapters.pdf
Meet Martha Rogers
Martha Rogers is a multi-published author and writes a weekly devotional for ACFW. Martha and her husband Rex live in Houston, Texas, where they are active members of First Baptist Church. They are the parents of three sons and grandparents to eleven grandchildren and great-grandparents to four. She is the Director of the Texas Christian Writers Conference, a member of ACFW, ACFW WOTS chapter in Houston, and the writers’ group, Inspirational Writers Alive.
Tell us about your newest book.
I’ve had several new releases. The one I’m featuring here is Freedom’s Journey. It’s about a young woman who has no family or income after her grandmother’s death. An old friend of her father offers to pay her passage to America and asks her to be governess to his grandchildren.
(The novella, After the Ball, is in a collection of stories about first loves in First Loves Forever from Barbour. My story is about a wealthy young man working in his father’s oil business in Dallas in the early 1900’s. His heart is back at the ranch where he grew up and with Susannah, the foreman’s daughter and the girl he’s loved since his youth.
What genre do you focus on and why?
I generally focus on romance whether it’s historical or contemporary, and I have a few cozy mysteries I’m trying my hand on.
Why do you write? What drives you?
I’ve written for so long that it’s simply a part of me. So many stories float around in my head, and I must get them written. Right now, I’m driven by age because I want to get all of the stories written. I’m 81, and I’ll write as long as the Lord leaves here on earth. The death of my friend Golden Keyes Parsons reminds me I don’t have a say in that timing. Her editor finished the editing on the last book Golden submitted and published it after her death.
Who is your main character, and how did you choose that name?
My main character is Rosemary Beckett. The name sort of came out of the blue when I wrote the first line because it wasn’t the name I started with. Rosemary just seemed to fit the person I described in my character chart.
(My heroine is Susannah King, and she’s a real cowgirl. I liked the name, and the more I filled in her character chart, the more the name seemed to fit her. She’s one who loves to rope and ride with her father and his men, but she also enjoys time in the main house with the hero’s grandmother.)
What does a day in your writing world look like?
Oh my. I have to laugh at that because every day is different. I do some chores, check my email, maybe write a bit then go do something else. When I really get involved in my story, I may find an hour or two has passed without a break. Then I get a cup of tea and some chocolate and read back over what I’ve written. Sometimes it’s good, but other times it needs a rewrite.
What is the hardest part of being an author? Why?
The hardest part is promotion and marketing my books. I hate to promote myself, and the ads and other marketing materials run into more dollars than I have to spend. In collections, we can share the cost of publicity and that helps a lot.
What’s the best part of your author’s life? Why?
I love getting to write down all the stories I’ve made up. I love to see where my characters are going and what they are going to do. I’m a SOTP writer, so my characters are continually surprising me with what they want to do and say.
What is the craziest thing you’ve experienced as an author?
It’s not really crazy, but I sure laughed at myself. I was in the kitchen cleaning up from supper. I was in a hurry because I wanted to get back to a story and see what was going to happen. I walked into my office thinking, where is that book? Then it dawned on me. I was writing the book and what happened depended on what I wanted to happen.
One funny thing happened with a reader and my first book, Becoming Lucy. The granddaughter of a friend read the book and wanted it autographed. She and my grandson were in the same grade at school and I knew the family from church. After I signed the book, she held it to her chest, and with a starry-eyed look in her eye said, “Mom, Jonathan Rogers’ grandmother signed my book. Isn’t that awesome?”
What are you most proud of?
How the Lord has blessed us with three sons, nine grandchildren, three grandchildren in-laws, and four great-grans with a fifth due in June. I am so proud of them all and their walk of faith. Our oldest great-grandson was baptized last spring, so the legacy continues.
What is your favorite pastime?
That’s funny. If I’m not writing, I’m reading. I used to sew a lot and do scrapbooking, jewelry making and counted cross-stitch, but I haven’t done those for a while. Lots of unfinished projects that I plan to get around to doing someday.
Do you have other books? We’d love to know.
I have a lot of books out there. With this book, I have a total combination of 42 novels and novellas. The novellas are in collections and all can be found on Amazon. My first series, Winds Across the Prairie, had six novels including the best-selling Christmas novel, Christmas at Holly Hill.
What are you working on now?
I’m working on a cozy mystery series with senior adult characters like Miss Marple or Jessica Fletcher of Murder She Wrote. Also have a proposal with my agent.
Website: www.marthawrogers
Link to book:
Social media links: Twitter: @martharogers2, Facebook: Martha Lou Rogers and Forget Me Not Romances, Blog: www.hhhistory.com,
Meet Leann Harris
Leann is the author of 20 published novels, 18 with a traditional publishers and 4 books as an Indie author. She is a founder of both DARA and Ready Writers, local writing groups. She is a teacher of the deaf, who taught math to high school deaf students. An active gardener, master composter, who works out plot questions while pulling weeds in her garden. She is also a cancer survivor.
Tell us about your newest book.
Star Taylor goes home to finish her degree in astronomy at McDonald Observatory in West Texas. The first person she runs into his her high school sweetheart, Bart Hays coming out of her father’s barn. Her father had an accident, and Bart drives her to the hospital. Later that day, Bart comes back to the hospital with his 5 year old son, Tanner. Bart’s a widower. As Star works on her dissertation, she keeps running into Bart and Tanner. Love blooms again, but Grandma Hays doesn’t want her son to take up with his old flame. Can their love survive the obstacles this time? When Star is offered a position in Italy at an observatory, will she take the job or go home and marry the man and she loves? Can she ignore the years she’s worked for her degree? Or is there another way?
What genre do you focus on and why?
I do inspirational romance and inspirational romantic suspense.
Why do you write? What drives you?
I have stories I want to share. You can share a truth in fiction that reaches people and shows them that God works in wonderful ways.
Who is your main character, and how did you choose that name?
Star Taylor is my heroine. She was born on the 4th of July and her parents named her Star. Her mother died shortly after Star was born.
What does a day in your writing world look like?
It used to write after breakfast doing half my daily quota, do lunch, then go to the gym. Since 2013 I’ve gone through two rounds of cancer, Hodgkin’s Lymphoma and now non-Hodgkins Lymphoma. I’m 2/3 of the way through chemo. Now I’m just thinking of stories to do after chemo.
What is the hardest part of being an author? Why?
Sitting all the time.
What’s the best part of your author’s life? Why?
Having lunch with writer friends. My husband is a good guy, supports me, but understands nothing about the writer’s life. He keeps up my webpage, but has to wrap his engineer brain around my writing world.
What is the craziest thing you’ve experienced as an author?
Finding the nerve to go down to the Dallas PD and interviewing several detectives in several locations. If I hadn’t taken another writer with me, I don’t know what I would’ve done. I’ve also interviewed detectives in a small town PD and several suburban police departments around Dallas.
What are you most proud of?
My books, and my grown children.
What is your favorite pastime?
Gardening. I love Irises and have a collection of them.
Do you have other books? We’d love to know.
Yes. I have 7 Love Inspired book and 4 Indie books. You go brain dead at the end of chemo. I remember the day when story came back to me. Years earlier I had a book that occurred to me, and my agent couldn’t sell it. I prayed about it and I knew it wasn’t that book’s time. After the chemo and radiation to my head, I knew that was the time to rewrite the book that book. It’s The Last Lie, my first Indie book.
What are you working on now?
I’m working on the story of the sister of the heroine of my last book, The Cowboy Meets His Match. Kai is half Navajo, half German, and is an award winning Cutting champion. When she moves to Fort Worth, she runs into grumpy cowboy who is trying to recover from a career ending injury which keeps him from returning to competing in rodeo. Kai works with his sister.
Website: www.leannharris.com
Social media links: https://www.facebook.com/authorLeannHarris/
Meet Liz Tolmsa
Liz Tolsma is the author of several WWII novels and prairie romance novellas. She is a popular speaker and an editor and resides next to a Wisconsin farm field with her husband and their two daughters. Her son is a U.S. Marine. She enjoys reading, walking, working in her large perennial garden, kayaking, and camping.
Tell us about your newest book.
It’s 1943 and Anna Zadok, a Jewish Christian living in Prague, has lost nearly everything. Most of her family has been deported, and the Nazi occupation ended her career as a concert violinist. Now Anna is left to care for her grandmother, and she’ll do anything to keep her safe—a job that gets much harder when Nazi officer Horst Engel is quartered in the flat below them.
Though musical instruments have been declared illegal, Anna defiantly continues to play the violin. But Horst, dissatisfied with German ideology, enjoys her soothing music. When Anna and her grandmother face deportation, Horst risks everything to protect them. Anna finds herself falling in love with the handsome officer and his brave heart. But what he reveals might stop the music forever.
What genre do you focus on and why?
My passion is for WWII fiction, because there are so many untold stories that are in danger of dying away with the Greatest Generation. My desire is to dig deep and bring these stories to light before they are lost forever. My generation and the generations to come must understand what happened
Why do you write? What drives you?
The stories in my head LOL! Every since I was small, I’ve loved to make up stories and pretend about far away places. And they keep coming. I don’t have enough years left in my life to write all that’s in my head.
Who is your main character, and how did you choose that name?
The heroine is Anna Zadok. My mother’s family is Slovak, and my great-grandmother’s name was Anna. I know much more about my father’s side of the family, so when I started to write this book, it also took me on a journey to get to know my mom’s ancestors.
What does a day in your writing world look like?
I usually write in the morning with a goal of around 2000 words – about a chapter. After lunch, I work on social media and editing. I try as hard as possible to be done about five when the rest of my family comes home so I can spend some time with them.
What is the hardest part of being an author? Why?
All the social media. I find it hard because I don’t understand much of it. I was never taught anything about marketing in school, so I’m having to learn as I go.
What’s the best part of your author’s life? Why?
The thrill of meeting my readers and hearing how my stories touched their lives. There’s nothing better than knowing that your words impacted someone’s life.
What is the craziest thing you’ve experienced as an author?
The first time someone, having recognized me, came up to me exclaiming, “Ooo, Liz Tolsma, you’re Liz Tolsma. I love your books. Can we get a picture together?” That was wild.
What are you most proud of?
I’m most proud of not giving up on my dreams, slogging through the times of doubt, and becoming a published author.
What is your favorite pastime?
Reading, of course! I also love walking and gardening. They’re right up there. But give me a beach and book, and I’m a happy girl!
Do you have other books? We’d love to know.
I have three other WWII books currently out – Snow on the Tulips, Daisies Are Forever, and Remember the Lilies. I also have four novellas out, another one coming in February, an Amish romance, The Amish Widow’s New Love, releasing in May, and the next one in this WWII series, What the Heart Sings, coming out in August. Yes, I’ve been busy!
What are you working on now?
I’m just starting book three in this series. It has the working title The Music Within and is set in Hungary during the war.
Website: www.liztolsma.com
Link to book:
Social media links:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/liz.tolsma.9
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LizTolsma
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/liz-tolsma-64992ab7?trk=hp-identity-name
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/liztolsma/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authorliztolsma/
Book Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aaj5gp7Yvk4