It’s that time again! Book release time–Book 2 in my DEADLY COMMUNICATIONS series will be released later this week, DEADLY INTENT.
What do you think of the cover? STAY TUNED FOR MORE INFORMATION as the week continues…
UNTIL NEXT TIME..GOD BLESS & GOOD READING!
Navy wife Michelle Ule is a graduate of UCLA and the author of five novellas and a novel. She lives in northern California with her family where she works at a literary agency, teaches Bible study, plays in a woodwind ensemble, and writes. She’s a long-time lay counselor in both crisis pregnancies and budget counseling. She loves to travel and is an accomplished genealogist. You can learn more about her at www.michelleule.com
Today, Michelle tells us a little about how she researched part of her novel, 12 BRIDES OF SUMMER:
It’s always interesting when you start the research involved with writing any new story. The use of money in a business was a subplot of The Sunbonnet Bride because I’ve known so many women who have tried to run small businesses out of their homes with often limited success.
To that end, I gave Sally Martin a familiar skill—sewing—a slightly unique approach: sewing a sunbonnet whose brim kept its shape even in a tornado; and provided two men with different ideas about using their talents in a disaster.
Sally learned to her surprise that she couldn’t continue to donate her time and talents to help neighbors who have lost their homes, if she didn’t keep back some resources to refresh her supplies. That meant I had to learn how much things cost in 1875 Nebraska.
Google, of course, helped.
Her needs were few: narrow reeds (free from the creek), a thimble, needle, thread and calico. The rest she could do with a borrowed iron and her skills.
How much would it cost to sew a sunbonnet?
A yard of calico cloth cost seven cents a yard, while a spool of thread cost a dime.
I never did learn the cost of a thimble, perhaps they could be handed down, but today on ebay, you can purchase a silver 1875 thimble for $75! Way too expensive for Sally.
A needle? According to Godey’s Magazine, volume 81, published in 1880, you could buy 10 needles for four cents
So, the tools cost about 17 cents for a full yard of material, thread and needle. You could probably get at least two sunbonnets from that much—so a sunbonnet would cost about eight cents in materials to sew. Is that so much to ask.
Her time, of course, was a completely different matter and 1 Timothy 5:18 reminds us “a laborer is worthy of his/her hire.”
Sally’s two very different suitors—Josiah the banker in a pristine suit and Malcolm the teamster sweating as he toted goods to the tornado victims—both argued with her about keeping some of the money as “seed corn” for the sunbonnets she sold.
It was hard for sweet generous Sally, but as she puzzled out what type of businesswoman she wanted to be, she came to see a man’s heart toward the poor was a fine indicator of the type of husband she wanted.
And in the end, it all came down to the purchase of seven sunbonnets!
The Sunbonnet Bride
By Michelle Ule
part of The 12 Brides of Summer, Collection # 1
Bumbling teamster Malcolm MacDougall vies with suave banker Josiah Finch for the hand of the lively hat maker Sally Martin after a tornado touches down in the neighboring communities.
While Josiah sees an opportunity to make plenty of money to support a potential bride in style, Malcolm adds up the facts against his Bible and realizes helping those in need is more important than turning a profit.
When Sally’s hats become the stylish rage of southeastern Nebraska, will she choose a teamster or a banker for her life’s happiness?
Thanks, Michelle, for being my guest today and giving us a glimpse of what it takes to be a historical writer! Good for you–I’ll stick to contemporary!
Until next time…GOD BLESS & GOOD READING!
BOOK GIVEAWAY!
My Writer of the Day is Christian romance author LoRee Peery. She writes to feel alive, as a way of contributing, and to pass forward the hope of rescue from sin. She writes of redeeming grace with a sense of place. LoRee clings to I John 5:4 and prays her family sees that faith. Her desire for readers, the same as for her characters, is to discover where they fit in this life journey to best work out the Lord’s life plan.
You can connect with Loree at:
www.loreepeery.com or https://www.facebook.com/LoReePeery.
She has a brand new release,Where Hearts Meet! And lucky us, she wants to give away a PDF copy of it. To be entered in the giveaway, scroll down to the bottom of this post and leave a comment. The winner will be drawn on July 27 and announced on the blog.
![WhereHeartsMeet_w11796_300[1]](https://lillian-duncan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/whereheartsmeet_w11796_3001.jpg)
Amazon: http://tinyurl.com/o3sn5qk
Blurb: Shattered by the loss of her parents, Deena pours her love into her patients at an assisted living facility. When the son of one her charges starts showing up to spend time with his mother, Deena’s wary heart is warmed by his attention to his mother…and to her. Simon is plagued by his ex-wife’s disappearance years before. When he meets Deena, who closely resembles the woman, he fears his attraction is based only on Deena’s looks. But she exhibits a warmth his ex-wife never had. Dare he risk his once broken heart? As two lonely souls pursue a tentative, budding love, secrets and lies come forward to tear them apart. Can Simon and Deena overcome loss and allow their hearts to mend?
It sounds like a great book, Loree! Thanks for visiting with us. And don’t forget to leave a comment so you can win the copy of WHERE HEARTS MEET! Contest ends on July 27 and the winner will be announced on the blog. If I don’t have an email for you, then that will be the only way to let you know you won so be sure to check back!
Until next time…GOD BLESS & GOOD READING!
There’s tons of book giveaways, free books, and other contests out there to take advantage of so I’m going to tell you about some of them from time to time. Check out:
Amanda Cabot’s book, Summer of Promise is free on Amazon. Here’s the link:
Laura V Hilton has a giveaway on her blog for one of Irene Hannon’s books:
http://lighthouse-academy.blogspot.com/2015/07/interview-with-irene-hannon-and-giveaway.html
Robin Patchen http://amzn.to/1CTVvbE
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Everyone love a hero, right? But what makes a hero? I’m sure there are many different ways to define or describe a hero, but I believe a hero is someone who puts themselves out for someone else without any expectation of getting a “reward” whatever it might be.
In Deception, Patti must unravel the disappearance of her twin sister, in spite of the fact that she feels her sister ruined her life. She chooses to do the right thing. That’s what makes a hero!
In Betrayed, Maria thinks her nightmare is over until her husband calls–her supposedly dead husband. Terrified for her daughter’s safety, she flees. Then she hears another child is missing. Thinking her “dead” husband could be responsible, she must make a choice to hide or to help. She chooses to do the right thing. That’s what make a hero!
In Redemption, Jamie puts her own life in danger to help a friend find her missing child in spite of the danger to herself. That’s what makes a hero!
In real life, we aren’t usually faced with these types of choices but…
We can choose to do the right thing when no one is looking.
We can choose to be kind in the face of another’s anger.
We can choose to do our best in whatever job we find ourselves.
That’s what makes a hero!
What about you–what do you think makes a hero?
UNTIL NEXT TIME…GOD BLESS & GOOD READING!
There’s tons of book giveaways, free books, and other contests out there to take advantage of so I’m going to tell you about them as I discover them.Check out these:
Until next time…GOD BLESS & GOOD READING!
I know it’s Saturday but…here’s my Friday Friend-Mary L. Hamilton… and she’s been gracious enough to give away a print copy of her first Rustic Knoll Bible Camp series, Hear No Evil. Thanks, Mary! To be entered all you have to do is leave a comment.
Mary L. Hamilton grew up at a youth camp in southern Wisconsin, much like the setting for her Rustic Knoll Bible Camp series. While raising her own three children, she was active in her church’s youth ministry, including serving as a camp counselor for a week–once was enough.
Mary is a graduate of the Long Ridge Writer’s Group and a member of ACFW. She started out writing non-fiction articles and has written one play. Her fiction has won recognition in the Genesis, Selah, and Cat5 contests. When not writing, Mary enjoys knitting, reading and being outdoors. She and her husband make their home in Texas with a rescued Golden Retriever.
Connect with Mary on her website/blog: http://www.maryhamiltonbooks.com
Today, Mary shares a bit about her life and her father:
Shortly after I was born, my dad accepted a position as the first full-time director at a camp in southeastern Wisconsin. We lived there year round until I was almost twenty. If you asked me what was it like living at a camp, I’d say it’s a little like living at Disneyworld. In the summer and on winter weekends, there were always lots of people around, mainly kids. And we never lacked for things to do. We could swim in the lake, take out a canoe or rowboat, and participate in many of the activities, like the weekly staff/camper softball game and the evening campfires. In the winter, there was always ice skating and tobogganing down the long toboggan slide that dumped you out onto the frozen lake.
The downside was that whenever school was out, Dad was busy with camp. He’d be up early to ring the wake up bell at 7:00. He might come home for a nap in the afternoon, but then he was busy with the camp again until midnight or later. I always knew I could see him around camp, but in some ways, I didn’t really get to know him until I began working in the camp kitchen. One of the ways I got to know him was by watching him interact with the staff and campers.
Dad was unflappable. I never knew him to react in anger, even when he had every right. About halfway through every summer, the counselors would start fighting amongst themselves. The newness had worn off and the constant demands of campers took their toll. The year I worked in the kitchen, one of the counselors told me she and some of the others had gone off campus after the campers were asleep. One of the cooks had invited everyone to her house to work through the problems that were dividing them. Going off campus without permission was a serious breach of the rules, especially when counselors were supposed to be in the cabins with the campers.
The next day, Dad got wind of the midnight meeting and asked this counselor if they had indeed left the property. Ashamed at having betrayed his trust, the counselor confessed.
Calmly, Dad asked, “Did everything get worked out?”
“Yes, it did.”
“Good.”
That’s all Dad ever said about the incident, but the counselor vowed never to break another rule ever again.
Can you see why I patterned the camp director in my books after this man I called Dad? He didn’t have to say much to earn respect, and he taught me a lot by the way he lived.
Thanks, Mary for giving us a glimse into the life of a “camp kid.” I’m sure you must have tons of great memories.
Here’s a bit about her latest Rustic Knoll series novel, SEE NO EVIL:
SEE NO EVIL:
Steven Miller guards a dark secret.
Dad drilled into Steven that blindness should never be used as an excuse. So when Steven finds an old triathlon medallion among Dad’s belongings, he’s inspired to follow in his footsteps. Maybe it’ll quiet the guilt he’s carried since Dad’s death three years ago.
While Steven continues his triathlon training during his final summer at camp, a serious illness keeps Rustic Knoll’s beloved Nurse Willie from managing her clinic. When Steven teams up with his friend Claire to encourage Willie’s recovery, his feelings for Claire grow beyond friendship.
But his buddy, Dillon, has started down a dangerous path that Steven knows all too well. Can he keep his friend from falling into that sin without exposing his own past?
Purchase link: http://amzn.to/1yslU36
Thanks Mary for sharing a bit about your life and your new book with us.
Don’t forget to leave a comment if you want to be in the drawing for the book. The contest ends on July 1!
UNTIL NEXT TIME…GOD BLESS & GOOD READING!
Here’s the first afghan I’ve crocheted in more than 20 years!
It’s basically the same pattern as the Daisy Dish Towel except I used Double crochets as the basic stitch. After completing three rounds of DC stitches, I would do one single in yellow to finish it. I used 25 squares, but, of course, you could make whatever size you want. Then I put them together and finished with two rounds of shell stitches in yellow to make a border.
Not bad–if I say so myself!
UNTIL NEXT TIME…GOD BLESS, GOOD READING & happy crocheting!
I’m sure you’ve heard the phrase, when the going gets tough, the tough get going. But what about writers? When the going gets tough, they write! And so I have. GOD, LIFE & HULA HOOPS is the result.
In 2012, I was diagnosed with bilateral brain tumors. Fortunately they were benign, but as I like to say, there are two definitions for benign. One being non- cancerous, the other meaning harmless—which my brain tumors definitely are not!
My life took a dramatic turn with the diagnosis and is still topsy-turvy to this day. Life isn’t always easy, but there is always hope because God doesn’t leave us alone in our battles.
God is so good! Even before I needed them, God taught me what I needed to stay in his peace and joy, in spite of all the difficulties I face because of the tumors. How did that happen? By learning to listen FOR and TO God.
In GOD, LIFE & HULA HOOPS, I share the “spiritual listening lessons” that have helped me face adversity in, what I hope is, a godly way.
God still speaks and he can use the oddest things to do so—even a hula hoop!
Are you listening?
GOD, LIFE & HULA HOOPS:
God still speaks…but are you listening?
As a retired speech-language pathologist, Lillian knows the importance of listening. God can speak to us in many different ways. There may be weirder examples, but God used the hula hoop to teach the author new insights as well as remind her of long-forgotten gems of wisdom that have helped her face adversity.
In 2012, she was diagnosed with bilateral brain tumors. Fortunately they were benign, but as she likes to say, there are two definitions for benign. One being non-cancerous, the other meaning harmless—which her brain tumors definitely are not!
Her life took a dramatic turn with the diagnosis and is still topsy-turvy to this day. Life isn’t always easy, but there is always hope because God doesn’t leave us alone in our battles.
God still speaks and he can use the oddest things to do so—even a hula hoop!
GOD BLESS & GOOD READING!
“So now that you have your Gift, it is time to talk about the Blessed Vessel.”
Rose thought that was exactly what they’d been doing. She had her Blessed Vessel in front of her, didn’t she?
With a knowing smile, Princess Lilianna asked, “You didn’t think The Creator’s Gift was the Blessed Vessel, did you?”
Around the room, girls nodded and a few giggled.
“Not to fear. That’s a very common mistake. In fact, I suppose we rather trick you into believing that, just so we can tell you it’s not. The Creator’s Gift is filled with good things the Creator has given you but it is not the Blessed Vessel. And even though your Gift is decorated with those things you love, it is not all that the Gift contains.”
The things they loved? Rose’s gaze drifted back to Bells and her Gift. Did that mean Bells loved nothing but Bells?
“The Gift contains many things you will need on your One True Journey.”
What sort of things?
“Courage. Compassion. To name only two. But other things as well for you to discover along your journey. But as with the paths, you make the choice to use them or not. The Creator’s Gift and your Blessed Vessel are linked together. Use the two together correctly, and they will help you complete your One True Journey to its final destination. Squander them and they will lead to pain and sorrow. And, perhaps, even worse emptiness.”
Oh, she would use them correctly. Rose was sure of that. She didn’t want pain or sorrow or emptiness. She wanted nothing more than to complete her One True Journey to become a Princess.
Even if she didn’t understand how—quite yet.
“When you treat the Blessed Vessel with the respect it is due and use the Creator’s Gifts, you will discover the path for your One True Journey that will lead to the destination we all should strive for.”
“But be careful. It is so easy to squander your Blessed Vessel. Many will want to help you to do just that. Once squandered it is so very hard to stay on the path of you One True Journey. But once again I must remind you the Creator can repair the damage if you allow it to be so. Never forget that.”
“Your Blessed Vessel is yours and yours alone. But once you find your own true love, you may share it with him. But take heed. True love is not easy nor quick as many would have you believe. So take care of where you allow your feet to fall. Not just tonight but in all the days and nights that will follow.”
Princess Lilianna looked over at Princess Michella. “And now a word of warning about those pesky Knights-in-Training that you shall meet tonight at the Ball. Even though you have known many of them all your life, it will not be the same after this Ceremony of the Blessed Vessel. Do not allow them to lure you from your One True Journey with their pretty words or their empty promises.”
Still confused, Rose looked over at Veronique who was looking at her. She shrugged. Rose had no idea what the Blessed Vessel was. Apparently what she held in her hand was the Creator’s Gift, not the Blessed Vessel. Both were meant to help her complete her One True Journey, but she wasn’t quite sure how.
“But this is the Ceremony of the Blessed Vessel. My dear children, each of you are so very special to the Creator. He has created the One True Journey for each of you that will lead to a special happiness that can only be found by completing it.” She paused. Her beauty shone through. Why had Rose ever thought her ugly? Again, it seemed as if her gaze met every girl in the room.
Then another beautiful smile as she said, “And if you haven’t figured it out quite yet, let me be the first to tell you that you are the Blessed Vessel.”
THE END!
UNTIL NEXT TIME…GOD BLESS & GOOD READING!
Tiaras & Tennis Shoes 