I do declare, wasn’t Stacey Coverstone something? What an interesting talented lady for sure.
We have a winner for her book…………..
EVA S.
Congratulations, Eva! To claim your prize, drop Miss Stacey an email at staceycoverstone@gmail.com It’s as easy as falling off a log.
Miss Stacey thanks everyone who turned out to give her a big Wildflower Junction welcome. She promises to come back soon. And for those who didn’t win, better luck next time.
Blame it on the goat,
You all come back now, you hear?
“Outlaw Trail” is my latest historical western romance, released by Champagne Books on December 1. http://www.champagnebooks.com. This novel takes place in 1882 New Mexico, telling the story of Josie Hart, a 19-year old half-Tewa Indian who lives a hard life on her farm, and Grey Paladin, a man who seeks justice after having had his fortune stolen out from under him. A cryptic letter guides Josie on a perilous journey toward freedom. Grey will do whatever it takes to retrieve what’s rightfully his and reunite with the only family he has left. The two form an uncertain partnership with promises to share in what lies at the end of the trail, but there are others who want what they’re after and will stop at nothing to get it. The two must battle outlaws, nature, and each other, while riding 200 miles to reach their destination—leading them to rethink what the future might hold for them both.
Ask anyone who knows me and they’ll tell you I’m in love with New Mexico. Why? Because the skies are bigger and bluer, the sun shines brighter, the light is magical, the people are unique, and the landscapes are diverse and beautiful. I’ve set many of my stories in The Land of Enchantment. That way I have a good excuse for traveling there often—to do research.
When I began writing “Outlaw Trail,” I had to map out all the places Josie and Grey would ride to or through. Many of these actual settings I’d been to before. Some, I had not. One of the places I’d not visited was Nambe Falls, and this was to be, I’d decided, the spot where a climactic scene in my story would take place. If I was going to be accurate in my description of the waterfalls, however, I had to see them for myself, right? You bet. So I made plans to take a research trip to Northern New Mexico. I invited one of my best childhood friends, Linda, to meet me there, because she needed a vacation bad. I’m from Maryland and Linda flew in from Illinois. One rental car later and we were off on our adventure!
Nambe Pueblo is one of the Tewa Pueblos of the northern Rio Grande region. The name is a Spanish interpretation of
the Tewa word “name”, which roughly translates as “earth roundness.” Nambe Pueblo sits at the base of the rugged Sangre de Cristo Mountains, 16 miles north of Santa Fe. It encompasses 19,000 acres of land surrounded by national forest. Its terrain is scenic and striking.
A 15-minute walk along shaded cottonwood trails next to the river takes you to the base of Nambe Waterfalls. A longer hike up the side of a steep, rocky canyon affords a magnificent birds-eye view of the stunning triple-decker falls. Can you guess which hike I chose to take? My dear friend, Linda, is not a hiker. However, she was a real trooper—all for the sake of research. Despite her fear of death by falling over the cliff to the jagged rocks below, she climbed that canyon with me all the way to the top.
As I gazed at the stunning three-tier falls that dropped through a cleft in the rock face to tumble into a reservoir below, I asked Linda if she’d ever seen anything so gorgeous. As we stood at the top and gazed out at the mountains and desert for as far as the eye could see, she agreed the tenuous hike up the canyon had well been worth the magnificent view.
I snapped lots of photos, took many notes, and sat for a while on the rocks lost in the sights and sounds of the waterfalls and surrounding area so everything would be firmly etched in my memory.
Months later, when it came time to write that scene, I traveled right back to Nambe Falls in my mind. My heart started to pound as Josie and Grey rode their horses up the steep canyon wall. I could feel the spray of the water when Grey entered the mouth of the falls. I could hear the loose rocks falling and footsteps thudding as enemies surrounded Josie. And I could feel the adrenaline pumping through my veins as Grey held the box up and… Hold the horses!
Sorry, you’ll have to read the story to find out what happens next! Readers who post today will be entered in a drawing for a free digital copy of “Outlaw Trail.”
Please visit my website to read an excerpt and to view a video for “Outlaw Trail.”
http://www.staceycoverstone.com
We’re sure tickled pink that so many of you enjoyed Linda Lael Miller’s post about her new McKetterick brothers series. We tossed the names of all the visitors who dropped her a line in a hat and drew out one lucky name. And that was….
AMY T
Congratulations Amy! Contact me at winnie@winniegriggs.com for information on how to receive your shirt.
If you depend on a morning cup of coffee to get the old blood flowing, you can thank a bunch of frolicking goats. According to legend, coffee was discovered more than a thousand years ago by a sleepy-eyed goat herder who noticed that a certain berry gave his goats insomnia. After making himself a berry brew–and spending the night dancing with goats–he named the concoction Kahwa, the Arab name for wine.
Though coffee became the drink of choice for rebels after the Boston Tea party, its appeal was limited. Sold green, the chore of roasting beans baffled housewives and chuck wagon cooks alike. According to one old timer, beans had to be clean-picked, placed single layer in a roasting pan and stirred constantly. One burned bean would ruin the whole batch. Once the beans were roasted, they quickly lost flavor and aroma. The short shelf-life meant that roasted beans could be sold only in big cities. 
John Arbuckle, a Philadelphia grocer, had an idea. Why not coat the roasted beans with something to keep them from deteriorating? He bought a roaster and got to work. He tried coating roasted beans with a glaze consisting of Irish moss, gelatin, isinglass, white sugar and eggs and it worked. Eventually, this glaze was simplified to only white sugar and eggs. This coating allowed him to ship roasted beans all over the country.
Not only did John Arbuckle solve the roasted bean problem, he pretty much invented the whole concept of marketing. He was the first to use premiums to encourage the sale of coffee. A peppermint candy was included in each one pound bag. “Who wants the peppermint?” was a familiar cry around chuck wagons. This call to grind the coffee beans got a rash of volunteers. No rough and tumble cowboy worth his salt would turn down peppermint candy.
Never one to rest on his laurels, Arbuckle next came up with a voucher plan. He printed a coupon bearing his signature on each package. A given number of coupons would earn the bearer one of a hundred items available in the Arbuckles’ catalog– the wish book of its day. Items included everything from a toothbrush to a double-action revolver. A young man could even order a golden wedding ring for his lady love. Claiming to mail out 80,000 rings a year, Arbuckles became known at the biggest distributor of rings in the world.
Not only was the coffee a life saver to those early westerners, so was the packaging. Coffee was shipped in sturdy Maine fir crates, 100 one-pound bags to the lot. The 
crates were used to make furniture, coffins and cradles. The Navajo Indians even used the wood to make hogans, and the trademark flying angel that emblazoned each package of coffee adorned many a western Christmas tree.
The next time you brew a pot of coffee, just think: all this happened because a bunch of caffeinated animals got one man’s goat.
Miss Deborah sure enjoyed her warm Wildflower welcome, and after shaking all the names in a mighty fine Stetson, she lassoed herself three winners.
Please e-mail her with your contact information at
Amy S.–autographed copy of Promise Me
Charity L. –Starbuck’s gift card
Jeanne Sheets –Starbuck’s gift card
You sweet little darlings,
Miss Stacey Coverstone is riding into the Junction on Saturday.
This is the first visit ah believe for the dear lady. She’s going to share her love for the state of New Mexico and talk about her new book called OUTLAW TRAIL. Sure does look like a book ah’m going to have to buy! There’s something about outlaws that gets my blood pumping. Ah just love bad boys, the badder the better. Hee-hee!
Miss Stacey isn’t coming empty-handed. She’s toting a book to give away.
If you want a chance to win it, hitch up your buggies and follow the trail to Wildflower Junction. Pull up and chair and stay a spell.
The Fillies will be glad if you do.
Each morning shortly after the sun rises over Spokane, Washington, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author author Linda Lael Miller pulls on her cowboy boots and heads for the stables for a few quiet moments with her horses before she settles in to write her pages for the day.
As the daughter of a town marshal, Linda has come home to the western lifestyle that gave birth to one of today’s most successful authors. With more than 80 novels to her credit, the self-confessed barn goddess left Washington years ago and pursued her wanderlust, living in Arizona and London and traveling the world. But now the “First Lady of the West” is glad to be back home, writing contemporary and historical novels that have earned her awards and placements on all the national bestsellers lists.
This month Linda is excitedly anticipating spending more time with her current favorite cowboys, Tate, Austin and Garrett, the McKettricks of Texas.
She says:
My Dear Reader Friends,
It’s a new year—and a new decade; what an amazing prospect!
I’m so looking forward to the possibilities that this brings. I’m immersed in my art and have even pulled out my old sewing machine to explore quilting. I’m also excitedly anticipating spending more time with my current favorite cowboys, the McKettricks of Texas: Tate, Austin and Garrett. Look for McKettricks of Texas: Tate on sale January 26.
My wonderful publisher, HQN Books, is eager to introduce you to these fine-looking gents. Go to TakeACowboyHome and check out the videos of these gorgeous McKettrick men. While you’re there, be sure to sign up for a chance to win $10,000 in a special sweepstakes promotion!
Here’s to a creative, exciting, peaceful 2010!
Linda Lael Miller
Linda has come a long way since leaving Washington to experience the world. “But growing up in that time and place, in a family grounded in Western values, served me well,” she allows. “And I’m happy to be back home.”
THE McKETTRICKS OF TEXAS: TATE
For divorced dad Tate McKettrick, there are barely enough hours each day to run the Silver Spur ranch, do the suit-and-tie thing for his business and run herd on his beloved six-year-old daughters. But time stands still at the sight of Libby Remington. When they were high school sweethearts, the wealthy McKettrick made a mistake that cost him the love of his life. But now they’re both back in Blue River, Texas. And cattle rustlers, a manipulative ex-wife and a killer stallion can’t keep Tate from trying to win Libby again.Libby has her hands full caring for her mother and running the Perk Up Coffee Shop. Caffeine she needs. Tate McKettrick—with his blazing blue eyes and black hair. No way! Oh, heck—yes! But can Tate and Libby really hope for a second chance?
As an added bonus, leave a comment here for a chance to win a Take a Cowboy Home T-shirt from Linda Lael Miller and HQN Books!
My new release, Promise Me features a hero with an interesting secret life. Everyone in Willow Creek Montana believes he’s a prosperous businessman, the owner of a successful sawmill.
But one other man, his partner – knows the truth. They’re in town to investigate a consortium of mine owners who are plotting to control the supply of silver and undermine the fragile post-Civil War economy.
Sam is a Secret Service agent, and that raises some questions from folks who have heard me talk about the book or read the excerpt on my website. Because most people know the Secret Service as the agency entrusted with one of the most important jobs in government, to keep the President, his family and other government leaders safe.
But on July 5, 1865, the first head of the agency, William P. Wood, was sworn in by the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury. The agency was given one main objective, to track down counterfeiters in order to help restore faith in the currency of the newly reunited United States of America.
That’s right, as much as we value our political leaders, everyone in the country also values money. And protecting it has been the key mission of the Secret Service. Much like our financial problems today, the country faced a banking crisis. This one was due to the tremendous amount of counterfeit money circulating. Unlike today, with the Treasury responsible for printing all the money, at the time of the Civil War, state banks designed and printed their own currency. Imagine several thousands of currency printed and the opportunities for criminals to step in and print their own.
In 1862, Congress passed the Legal Tender Act, setting up a national currency system. The “coney” men, or counterfeiters still found many ways to create and circulate fakes.
Wood recruited ex-soldiers, police officers, or detectives to serve as agents who were expected to on duty 24 hours a day, with no days off. They were required to maintain peak physical fitness and swear utter, unquestioning obedience to the agencies directives. In other words, if you were a Secret Service agent, your job was your life.
I loved the idea of putting a man devoted to his job and mission in circumstances that made him question those ideals when faced with a woman who melted his heart and made him wish for the comforts of a home and family.
One lucky name will be drawn today to win a signed copy of Promise Me, and two others drawn will receive $10 Starbuck’s gift cards to honor Deborah’s hometown!
In addition, please follow Deborah Schneider on her virtual blog tour and enter a contest to win a free copy of “Promise Me” and some great valentine goodies. (There will be chocolate!) Every time you enter a comment on a blog she’s written from January 10 = February 10, 2010, you will be entered in the contest. Check out www.debschneider.com
To see the Promise Me video, click here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDHxItopIyQ
To order a copy, click on cover:
Well, ah guess it’s time to end the suspense. The names of everyone who commented were shuffled and one popped right out……
LAURIE G
Woo-Hoo!! Ah’m so happy for you, Laurie G.
All that’s left now is for you to drop Miss Liz an email at writer.lizadair@gmail.com and let her know where to send the book. Then, watch your mail for it.
Miss Liz thanks everyone for making her day very special. Hopefully, she’ll come back again real soon.
