Category: Historical

Jessica Nelson: 'Singing in a Silo' & Giveaway

3/11/2012

This week we welcome Jessica Nelson to Author Memories.

Jessica Nelson, in keeping with her romantic inclinations, married two days after she graduated high school. When Jessica is not chasing her three beautiful, wild little boys around the living room, she can be found staring into space as she plots her next story. Or she might be daydreaming about a raspberry mocha from Starbucks. Or thinking about what kind of chocolate she should have for dinner that night. Whatever she's thinking, one thing is for certain, she is blessed with a wonderful family and a lovely life.

Singing in a Silo
by Jessica Nelson

Singing in a silo is sound and beauty and echoes enveloping you in a heady, swirling rush.

When I was a young girl, maybe ten, my sisters and I visited our grandma in Iowa every summer. Grandma Charlene lived in what felt like the country. Now that I’m an adult I’ve discovered she was but a few miles from the nearest town, but as a child familiar only with the closed-off skies of the south, it felt like Grandma’s farm had been plunked down in the middle of nowhere, on the edge of a dirt road, surrounded by corn fields I couldn’t see across and a sky that never seemed to end.

No neighbors to play with, only sisters on a farm.

During those summers, I remember wild days of doing whatever we wanted. Grandma had stacks of books from her book club lined against the wall: I was in heaven. Big, round metal things served as our horses. To this day I have no clue what they were, but we rode like the wind when we were on them. Then there were the cats. Shy creatures we could never quite catch. Lightning bugs teased us in the night. Those were easier.

And then the silo.

This looks similar to Grandma’s Iowa silo but I think hers was connected to a barn of some sort and there were less trees, more corn.

A mysterious and smelly place in which we discovered the wonderful treasure of our voices uniting together, like paint strokes, harmonious and free. It was an old one, no longer used, we thought. Pigeons roosted at the top and left their droppings at the bottom, a place we rarely ventured. Instead we poked our heads through the opening and let loose.

We sang hymns like Amazing Grace and On Eagle’s Wings. We sang about going down by the bay and seeing a bear combing his hair. Whatever came to mind, we sang. Alto or soprano, in tune or not, it didn’t matter. In that joyous cadence of melody, we belonged together.

The memory makes me smile.

Three sisters in a silo, young and carefree. Happy.

(L to R) Josie, Jenni and Jessie on our first day of school. Yes, it was the eighties, hence our stylish jumpsuits.

Those were long ago days and I don’t know if those little girls still exist. I hope somewhere deep in our hearts, they live on. I’m not sure if that silo still stands, but the farm still still stands and so does Grandma. She visited lately and I couldn’t believe how young she looked.

Maybe Grandma has been singing in the silo too. I wouldn’t be surprised.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GIVEAWAY!
Leave a comment with a valid email address by midnight, Mar 18th
to be entered in a draw for a copy of
Jessica Nelson's debut release, Love on the Range
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Love on the Range, Love Inspired Historical, Apr 2012
Available now at www.harlequin.com, pre-order at www.amazon.com

Any other socialite would view being packed off to a remote Oregon ranch as a punishment. But Gracelyn Riley knows that this is her opportunity to become a real reporter. If she can make her name through an interview with the elusive hero known as Striker, then she'll never have to depend on anyone ever again.

Rancher Trevor Cruz can't believe his secret identity is being endangered by an overly chatty city girl. But if there's one thing he knows, it's that Gracie's pretty little snooping nose is bound to get her in trouble. So he'll use her determination to find "Striker" to keep an eye on her…and stick close by her side.

Read Excerpt

You can find Jessica online at:

her website: http://www.jessicanelson.net/

Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/AuthorJessicaNelson

Christa Allan: Camellia Manor: Back to the 1840s & Giveaway

2/19/2012

This week we welcome Christa Allan to Author Memories.

Christa Allan teaches high school English in Louisiana and received her National Board Certification in 2007. She's the mother of five, and Grammy of two precious (of course!) grandgirls. She and her husband recently moved to an 1840s home in the historic Bywater District in New Orleans. Christa and Ken are happily anticipating retirement, chasing their three neurotic cats, and sometimes dodging hurricanes.
Christa writes not-your-usual Christian fiction, stories that focus on redemption for the broken.

Camellia Manor: Back to the 1840s
by Christa Allan

In ways so unexpected I could have never predicted them, my life has come full circle. Born in New Orleans, I am now, over fifty years later, living once again in the city, in a home built almost 175 years ago. And with this recent move, the memories of my grandmother resonate with each discovery I make in my new-old home.

When my parents moved to the suburbs after my brother was born, my grandmother came with us. But during the first four years of my life, we lived on Ursuline Street in New Orleans, in my grandmother’s house. My own memories of that home are fuzzy, most of them made sharper by Gram’s recollections. It was a shotgun home, like most built during its time. Gram always said they were called “shotgun” homes because a gun could be fired from the front door and exit the back door without ever hitting a wall.

This is a picture of the house as it looks today. We lived on the left side, and when we lived there the house was painted white, with green shutters.

Gram's old house in New Orleans

Gram and I used to walk to the bakery on the corner, and we’d always get lagniappe (a little something extra) with our purchases. On the other corner was Chris’ Steak House, which would eventually become the first of the Ruth’s Chris Steakhouses (another long and colorful story!). I remember the wallpaper in my bedroom, the one Gram and I shared, the large cabbage rose design that sometimes seemed to dance when I woke up in the middle of the night. During the day, I’d entertain myself trying on my father’s and mother’s hats, since I could easily see myself in the mirrors of the tall armoirs, which served as closets. Houses in New Orleans were taxed according to the number of rooms, so eliminating a closet meant the room wouldn’t be taxed.

Gram and Christa in 1953

We didn’t have cats because Gram never recovered from being scratched by one. She said that after the picture below was taken, the cat on her lap jumped up and clawed both sides of her face.

Gram c1890

I longed to live in an old home in the city again, but it took moving from Metaire to Kenner to Liberty, TX to Houston, TX to Metaire to Abita Springs for it to happen again.

My husband needed to be closer to work, and through what could only be called a God-incidence, we found the perfect home, in the Bywater District of New Orleans. Built in the 1840s and expanded there-after by a series of owners, the house sits on three lots on the corner. Called Camellia Manor by the former owners (her father planted unusual and beautiful camellias on the property), the home used to be a bed and breakfast. Downstairs and up, the ceilings are 13 feet, and separating some of the rooms are the original cypress pocket doors. One of the owners said she had occasion to visit with mother and daughter ghosts, but she asked them to leave the home. Of course, my husband and I smiled, thinking it made for an interesting story, perfect for the quirky artsy community in which we now lived.

But then. . .

Since we’ve moved in, the fan in the upstairs hall often turns on, to full speed by itself. The light on the fan also turns on and off of its own accord. On more than one occasion, I’ve arrived home from work to find lights on that had been turned off when we left that morning.

Our bedroom fan also has a mind of its own. During the night, my husband will turn it on, then minutes later it’s off again. Or, he’ll turn it off, and it turns on sometime after that.

Camellia Manor

Separating our bedroom from my office is a tall, wood-paneled door (original to the house, with its original door knob). Our headboard actually backs against the door leaving only a few inches opening. We close the door and come home only to find it open again. One evening, while sitting in my wing back chair by the door, grading papers, the knob turned and the door opened. Seriously. It was a distinct unlatching, and I tossed the papers on the floor and sped down the stairs. Fortunately, my brother and his partner were home (they live downstairs), so I had some human company until I could unwind!

I tramped upstairs sometime later, announcing, “I’m coming up!” At first, I hesitated even sharing this with people for fear I’d come off like a total wingnut. But people who know me well, are aware that I’m not one to give credence to the whole notion of ghosts. But I suppose when you live in the voodoo capital of the country, there’s bound to be a few loose creatures running around.

Lately, I’ve joked that I’d welcome any sort of kindly spirits as long as they participated in cleaning, cooking, laundry…If some of that would happen mysteriously, then I’d truly believe! But, alas, it hasn’t.

And while I’m not totally convinced someone or two else may be living rent-free in our house, I’m not totally convinced they aren’t. I’ve not spent a night alone, so I don’t want to boast that I’ve conquered the creepy feelings. I’m still experiencing a wee bit of hair-on-my-neck tingling when I walk up the staircase at night. I continue to sit in my wingback chair, but I’ve not closed the bedroom/office door since it opened that night.

Of course, the writer in me is stirring this around and brewing a gumbo of a story! During the summer, I plan to visit the archives in New Orleans to unearth as much information about the house as possible. There’s also a former slave cottage on the property. It’s uninhabitable, but I’m sure it has a history all its own.

I don’t know if the mom and her daughter are still hanging out. If they are, I think my grandmother might be joining them because I know she would be thrilled to find her granddaughter back in the city she loved.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GIVEAWAY!
Leave a comment with a valid email address by midnight, Feb 26th
to be entered in a draw for a copy of Christa Allan's first Historical,
Love Finds You in New Orleans, Louisiana.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Love Finds You In New Orleans, Louisiana, Summerside Press, Available now

Raised by her grandparents in 19th-century New Orleans, Charlotte knows little about her long-lost parents.

Now facing an arranged marriage to a suitor she dreads, she finds herself attracted to somebody else: a young Creole man named Gabriel Girod.

Meanwhile, her grandparents harbor a family secret.

Will the truth set everybody free—especially Charlotte?

Where you can find Christa:

Christa Allan, Author Website
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn

Blogs I contribute to:

Inspire a Fire
Choose WOW Ministries: Educating Teens
Girlfriends Book Club

Lena Nelson Dooley: A "Gift of the Magi" Christmas & Giveaway

12/11/2011

This week we welcome Lena Nelson Dooley to Author Memories.

Award-winning author, Lena Nelson Dooley, has more than 675,000 books in print. She recently received the Will Rogers Medallion award for western fiction. She has been awarded three Carol Award silver pins and received the ACFW Mentor of the Year award. Helping other authors become published really floats her boat. And she loves chocolate, especially dark chocolate. Travel is always on her horizon. Cruising, Galveston, the Ozark Mountains of Arkansas, Mexico. One day it will be Hawaii and Australia, but probably not at the same time. The high point of her day is receiving feedback from her readers, especially her fans.

A "Gift of the Magi" Christmas
by Lena Nelson Dooley

Do you remember the short story “The Gift of the Magi”? I always loved that story.

Early in our marriage, James and I had a similar, but different, Christmas event. We had two preschoolers, and money was tight.

Lena took this photo the year after this memory took place.

Before we married, my husband had built several things in woodworking class. We had an end table/bookcase in our home that he had made. The workmanship was awesome.

So that year, I decided Christmas was going to be special for the man I loved. The best husband and father I knew. For about six months, I saved every penny I could from the grocery money and hid it away. A friend of ours worked in the power tool department of Sears. He helped me purchase James a saber saw at a price I could afford. I wrapped it and hid it away.

Then on Christmas Eve, after our children had opened all their packages and were either playing with them or the boxes they arrived in, I pulled out the package. I returned to the den to discover my sweetheart holding a rather large package for me. He had saved every penny he could for an equal amount of time.

While I was in college, I put together a collection of LP record albums. (For those of you who are too young to understand, they were how the music came before CDs.) Without any way to play them, they were taking up space.

James thrust the package toward me. I opened it while he watched every move, waiting for my reaction to the HiFi set he'd purchased for me. Then he opened my present to him, and I couldn’t take my eyes off him, waiting for the moment when he would realize what I’d done. Each of us received a double blessing that year—a wonderful and useful present as well as the satisfaction of being able to bless our spouses.

We spent many an hour listening to music on that HiFi, complete with AM/FM radio, twin speakers, and a turntable. And on Christmas day, James used the saber saw and his hand tools to build our daughters a shelf unit where they could store their toys.

Sometimes, the best gifts are the ones you receive. Other times, they are the ones you give. That year the gifts were both of those things.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GIVEAWAY!
Leave a comment with a valid email address
by midnight, Dec 18th
to be entered to win a copy of Lena's giveaway,
Christmas Love at Lake Tahoe
Note: Maggie's Journey is NOT the giveaway.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Maggie's Journey, In stores now
Realms - a Charisma House Company

Please note - Maggie's Journey is NOT the giveaway. See giveaway above in red.

A girl who’s been lied to her whole life…
Near her eighteenth birthday, Margaret Lenora Caine finds a chest hidden in the attic containing proof that she was adopted. The daughter of wealthy merchants in Seattle, she feels betrayed both by her real parents and by the ones who raised her. Maggie desires a place where she belongs. But her mother’s constant criticism and reminders that she doesn't fit the mold of a young woman of their social standing have already created tension in their home. With the discovery of the family secret, all sense of her identity is lost. When Maggie asks to visit her grandmother in Arkansas, her father agrees on the condition that she take her Aunt Georgia as a chaperone and his young partner, Charles Stanton, as protection on the journey. Will she discover who she really is and, more importantly, what truly matters most in life?

Maggie's Journey is Book 1 in the McKenna's Daughters Series

For more info about Lena's books, info for book clubs, recipes,
and Gate Beautiful Blog Talk Radio, check her website:

www.lenanelsondooley.com

Lena participates in the following blogs:

A Christian Writer's World - http://lenanelsondooley.blogspot.com/
Bustles and Spurs - http://www.bustlesandspurs.com/
Just the Write Charisma - http://justthewritecharisma.blogspot.com/

Amanda Deed: An Unusual Blessing & Giveaway

11/20/2011

This week we welcome Amanda Deed to Author Memories.

Amanda Deed grew up in the South Eastern suburbs of Melbourne, Australia in a Christian home, and found faith at an early age. She has followed her passion to serve the Lord through music and literature since her teen years.

Now married, with three children, Amanda still lives in Melbourne and enjoys the variety of being a mother, administrator/book-keeper, musician
and fiction writer.

Amanda’s debut novel, The Game, was awarded the 2010 CALEB Prize for fiction.

An Unusual Blessing
by Amanda Deed

My Dad loves to travel. Even now at seventy-four, he and Mum are off with the 4WD and caravan – in spite of having quintuple bypass surgery on his heart only a year ago. Can you tell he’s my hero?

Well, he’s passed this travel bug on to me, a malady I bear without the least resentment. He would always take us camping as kids. One year he took the family for a three month tour of Australia – up through the centre and down the east coast, covering over 10,000 kilometers (approximately 6,500 miles).

Amanda's Parents' Caravan (Travel Trailer to North Americans)

In Arnhem Land (you may have heard of Kakadu which is in the Northern Territory) there are water buffalo. Now, my Dad REALLY wanted a pair of buffalo horns, and not just piddly little ones either, he wanted the big daddy kind of horns. The abattoirs could only offer small ones, so he took those, but was not satisfied.

So, we did what all faith-filled Christians do. We prayed and asked the Lord to provide my dad with a pair of large buffalo horns. God does love to bless His children, after all.

We drove into a place called Jim Jim Falls (also in Kakadu), and if you’re ever planning to visit Australia it is one of “must sees” of our country. On the way in, we saw this big daddy buffalo grazing by the side of the road. “That’s the kind of horns I want,” my dad said. Once again we prayed.

A day or two later, when we drove back out of the gorge, we happened to see a huge buffalo, dead on the side of the road. Could this be the same beast? We wondered. Dad wasted no time in stopping the 4WD and having a look. Without going into too much detail about the smell and the maggots and the retching – oops, too much already, eh – Dad managed to slide those two horns off the buffalo with very little trouble.

Those horns have been a prized possession and a testament to the abundant love of God to His children over the years. Imagine my surprise when I found them in a garage sale my dad was having a couple of years ago. I probably don’t need to tell you that they now hang on the wall of our patio, where they can remind me of my childhood travels and God’s blessing in our lives.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Leave a comment with a valid email address by midnight, Nov 27th
to be entered to win a copy of Amanda's newest release,
Ellenvale Gold.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ellenvale Gold, Even Before Publishing, Nov 2011

It is the time of Australia’s harsh rogue-filled gold rush of the 1850’s when Miss Penelope Worthington suddenly finds herself orphaned, isolated and alone. With a large sheep station to run single-handedly, she has little option but to enlist the aid of a mysterious, but sinister stranger.

But who is the more treacherous? Gus—the scruffy, trespassing, ex-convict who co-incidentally shows up looking for work just when she desperately needs a farmhand or Rupert—the handsome, wealthy neighbour who would willingly marry her at the drop of a hat and solve her apparent dilemma?

Repeatedly, her faith is tested as she faces the unforgiving elements, deceit, lies and uncertainty. But where and how will it all end? But…is it the end? Will vengeance return or will Penny’s faith prevail?

Ellenvale Gold is available through amazon.com

Amanda invites you to visit her at

Amanda's website www.amandadeed.com.au

Amanda's blog http://amanderings.wordpress.com

Lauralee Bliss: True Heroines of Long Ago & Giveaway

11/13/2011

This week we welcome Lauralee Bliss to Author Memories.

Lauralee Bliss has always liked to dream big dreams.
Part of that dream was writing, and after several years
of hard work, the dream of publishing was realized in
1997 with the publication of her first romance novel, Mountaintop, through Barbour Publishing. Since then, she's had over twenty books published in both historical and contemporary.
Lauralee is also an avid hiker, completing the entire length of the Appalachian Trail both north and south, one of only 24 women to have accomplished this feat. Lauralee makes her home with her family in Virginia in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains.

True Heroines of Long Ago
by Lauralee Bliss

Back some forty years ago, the celebrated heroines were quite different than they are today. I remember my great delight in scanning the Christmas catalogs for toys I wanted as a child and came across this picture of great costumes for children. One of them is a nurse's uniform. Yes, these angels of mercy were adored back in my day. They were classified as true heroines. To me growing up, it was quite glamorous to bandage a wound, put a cloth on a fevered brow, comfort those in misery.

One Christmas I was given a doctor kit like the one shown here to use in my playtime. I adored it. It had everything from tiny plastic pill bottles to a play sphygmomanometer (to take a blood pressure), stethoscope, thermometer, and tiny box of band aids.

Sears 1975 Wishbook, Photo on Flikr by Wishbook

I recall one day when my sisters and I created a “doll hospital.” The dolls were our patents. We had a tray on wheels which we used as a stretcher. We wheeled the injured dolls into the laundry room which served as the examination room. I’d take out my pride and joy, the black doctor’s kit with the big red cross on it and proceed to take a blood pressure and put a tiny band-aid on a tiny plastic leg. Then I would wrap it in a strip of cotton torn from Mom’s old sheets. Eventually all this interest led to a Bachelor of Science degree in nursing and going on to practice for several years at a big teaching hospital.

Oh, those were the days and good ones when true heroines for little girls, like nurses and teachers, were admired and adored. I wish we could return to that kind of admiration these days. Recalling when firemen, policemen, doctors, nurses were heralded for their brave deeds.

Maybe that’s why I like writing historical novels. I like to examine the tried and true heroine of days gone by, when caring for the home and hearth were prized. I like to reflect on that period of time that made this country great. When women taught their children and maintained the strength and dignity of the home. In my newest release
"A Quaker Christmas" the heroine ultimately becomes a “nurse" of the heart for the wounded hero injured by a terrible crime committed to a beloved family member. In this we see that nursing the injured can take on other forms besides hands on care such as giving words of healing and comfort, providing shelter, showing mercy.

Much has changed since these simple times of long ago, but I was encouraged just
today in church when I learned of at least four women looking to make nursing their profession. While it may not be the heroine’s costume of choice in a toy catalog, the call to care for others and be a light in times of great need still beckons to the heart and soul. True heroines can be found and cherished even today.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Leave a comment with a valid email address by midnight, Nov 20th
to be entered to win a copy of Lauralee's 2009 Christmas book,
Love Finds You in Bethlehem, NH.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lauralee's newest release is a Christmas novella, A Crossroad to Love in:
A Quaker Christmas, Barbour Books, Sep 2011

A Quaker Christmas back cover blurb:
Christmas is a simple matter among the Quakers of the historic Ohio River Valley, but can it be time to welcome love into four households?

A Crossroad to Love, a novella
by Lauralee Bliss:
The Hall family runs an inn that welcomes travelers like Silas Jones who challenge their beliefs and woo their daughter.

plus 3 more novellas in this anthology.

You can find Lauralee online at these sites:

Website: http://www.lauraleebliss.com

Blog: http://www.blissfullifejourney.com

“Readers of Author Lauralee Bliss” on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Readers-of-Author-Lauralee-Bliss/170259122202

Follow Lauralee on Twitter – @lauraleebliss

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Forward>>

Jessica Nelson: 'Singing in a Silo' & Giveaway

This week we welcome Jessica Nelson to Author Memories.

Christa Allan: Camellia Manor: Back to the 1840s & Giveaway

This week we welcome Christa Allan to Author Memories.

Camellia Manor: Back to the 1840s
by Christa Allan

Love Finds You In New Orleans, Louisiana, Summerside Press, Available now

Lena Nelson Dooley: A "Gift of the Magi" Christmas & Giveaway

This week we welcome Lena Nelson Dooley to Author Memories.

A "Gift of the Magi" Christmas
by Lena Nelson Dooley

Maggie's Journey, In stores now
Realms - a Charisma House Company

Amanda Deed: An Unusual Blessing & Giveaway

This week we welcome Amanda Deed to Author Memories.

An Unusual Blessing
by Amanda Deed

Ellenvale Gold, Even Before Publishing, Nov 2011

Lauralee Bliss: True Heroines of Long Ago & Giveaway

This week we welcome Lauralee Bliss to Author Memories.

True Heroines of Long Ago
by Lauralee Bliss

Lauralee's newest release is a Christmas novella, A Crossroad to Love in:
A Quaker Christmas, Barbour Books, Sep 2011

Recent Posts

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Jessica Nelson: 'Singing in a Silo' & Giveaway

This week we welcome Jessica Nelson to Author Memories.

Christa Allan: Camellia Manor: Back to the 1840s & Giveaway

This week we welcome Christa Allan to Author Memories.

Camellia Manor: Back to the 1840s by Christa Allan

Love Finds You In New Orleans, Louisiana, Summerside Press, Available now

Lena Nelson Dooley: A "Gift of the Magi" Christmas & Giveaway

This week we welcome Lena Nelson Dooley to Author Memories.

A "Gift of the Magi" Christmasby Lena Nelson Dooley

Maggie's Journey, In stores nowRealms - a Charisma House Company

Amanda Deed: An Unusual Blessing & Giveaway

This week we welcome Amanda Deed to Author Memories.

An Unusual Blessingby Amanda Deed

Ellenvale Gold, Even Before Publishing, Nov 2011

Lauralee Bliss: True Heroines of Long Ago & Giveaway

This week we welcome Lauralee Bliss to Author Memories.

True Heroines of Long Agoby Lauralee Bliss

Lauralee's newest release is a Christmas novella, A Crossroad to Love in:A Quaker Christmas, Barbour Books, Sep 2011

Recent Posts

Archives

Categories

Camellia Manor: Back to the 1840s
by Christa Allan

A "Gift of the Magi" Christmas
by Lena Nelson Dooley

Maggie's Journey, In stores now
Realms - a Charisma House Company

An Unusual Blessing
by Amanda Deed

True Heroines of Long Ago
by Lauralee Bliss

Lauralee's newest release is a Christmas novella, A Crossroad to Love in:
A Quaker Christmas, Barbour Books, Sep 2011