Roll out the red carpet!

Strap on the high heels and rhinestones.

It's time for a theatrical debut!

OK, maybe that's going a bit overboard, but my heart was pitter-pattering with opening night jitters when my publisher sent me the link to my first book trailer. Would I like it? Would it capture the essence of my book? Would it generate reader interest?

I'm thrilled to report that it surpassed all my expectations! I'll let you watch it, then I'll give you the behind-the-scenes scoop.

 

 The man at the beginning is the cover model from when the design team shot the cover. However, the live action section in the middle of the video was shot much later. So did they bring the cover model back? Nope. Four random men on staff at Bethany House snuck off when no one was watching and filmed it themselves. How cool is that! They arranged to have the same costume from the photo shoot and one of them dressed up as my hero, Travis Archer, and took on the straws. They even found the original straws from the shoot, too. Such attention to detail. Love it! Then the three other men, wearing plaid shirts, of course, played the roles of the other Archer brothers, and each took their turns drawing straws. My project manager swore me to secrecy about their identities. They are too shy for the Hollywood spotlight, so I can't reveal their names, but how 'bout those acting skills! I've never seen a better betrayal of arms. Ha!

I am so blessed to have a publisher who is willing to go the extra mile for its authors.

And did you notice the final scene where Travis pulls a little something from up his sleeve? Hmm...something tells me there is more to this story than meets the eye.

Short-Straw Bride releases later this month. You can pre-order by clicking on the cover to the right.

So what do you think about book trailers? Are they fun? Boring? Do they whet your appetite for a book or leave you unmoved? This is a new experience for me, so I'd love to get your feedback.

  Hello Darlings, The Fillies have rustled up another guest to ride the range with and will put another potato in the pot. Miss Lacy Williams will call on us Saturday, May 12th. She'll talk about mothers and how special they are. Plus, she'll tell us about a new book called THE HOMESTEADER'S SWEETHEART that has hit the bookstores. It's a Harlequin Love Inspired romance and looks like a humdinger or my name's not Felicia Filly. Miss Lacy isn't coming empty-handed either. She's toting a copy to give away. Show up and comment to get your name in the hat for the drawing. Easy as pie. So shake the wrinkles out of your bustle and head over. Saturday's the day and the Junction is the place.

 

WHAT INSPIRES CAN ALSO THRILL YOU!

 

As a multi-published author, the second question I’m often asked is “What inspires you?”  Can you guess what the first question I’m asked is? You’ve probably heard this before.  “Where do you get your ideas?” The idea question and the inspiration question are one in the same, for me.   What inspires me, also gives me my ideas.  And when I get an idea for a story, I’m thrilled.   

 

 

BOOKS AND MUSIC - A GIVEN

 

  

I have learned to fill my world with inspiration.  One of the greatest inspirations for me is simply reading a good book.  I won’t lie.  My favorite author in the universe is Susan Elizabeth Phillips.  I love her zany, but well-thought out characters, I love her voice, her sense of humor and the way her subplots are often as engaging as the main story.  I look forward to each of her new releases and she’s one author whose books I re-read for inspiration. 

I love country music, a given for an author who writes primarily cowboys and country life.  When I listen to the lyrics in a country tune, I live the love story in my mind.  I’m a fan of Taylor Swift, Tim McGraw, Lady Antebellum, Martina McBride, Brad Paisley, Ronnie Brooks, Kenny Chesney, Faith Hill and so many more.  Their songs not only make me tap my toes and clap my hands, but they move me in other ways as well.  

 

 

MY OFFICE OF DREAMS

Another source of inspiration for me is my workspace.  I’d waited for years to have an office to call my own.  I spend the greatest part of my day in there.   Every time I look at the walls, I see my friends, my family and my sweet husband’s love come through. 

 

One of my few indulgences was a gift I gave myself.  When I had achieved a writing goal I’d been seeking for a long time, I rewarded myself with this piece of metal art that is one of a kind.  As you can see, the horses that stampede over my computer every day, tell me to sit down and write.  They are the true focal point in the room.

 

The Wall of Frames, as my husband jokingly calls it, is an ongoing gift from him. Every time I get a new cover, he frames it and positions it on the wall.  Little did I know, when I was first published in 1998, that I would run out of wall space for all of my cover art!  When I look up there, I see achievement, but I am also reminded of hard work and perseverance.  But mostly, I’m reminded that I have a wonderful, supportive husband who believes in me and that inspires me.

 

Oh, and Tim McGraw comes to visit every now and then.  Yes, it’s a life-sized poster of Tim given to me by a dear friend who knew how much I loved going to Tim concerts.

 

The cowboy shelf and mirror, the trinkets, the racing horses, red roses in a leather boot- one rose for each book I have written -- the western candles and lamps, are gifts given to me by my sweet, supportive friends and family, our own Tanya Hanson included!  When I step foot in my office THAT is what inspires me. It’s not the objects themselves, but the love behind them that makes me smile every day as I sit down at the computer.  And it reminds me, when I’m on a deadline, or struggling with a plot, or having a difficult time focusing on my story, that I have the support and faith of my friends and family. I have love in my life and as romantic a notion as it seems, that shared love is the impetus and motivation that inspires me, more than anything else.

  

What gives you inspiration during your day, whether at work or at play?   One commenter will win a copy of  Charlene’s book. 

 

Amazon --

 

Eharlequin

 

Barnes and Noble

Cowboy Chance Worth gets more than he bargains for when he saves damsel in distress Lizzie Mitchell. He has come to Red Ridge, Arizona, to rescue her family's failing ranch and find Lizzie a suitable husband. Too bad it wouldn't be honorable to keep the little spitfire for himself!

 

Lizzie may be innocent, but she's not naive. Fully determined to find her own way in life, she doesn't welcome Chance's intrusion. But when he plans to leave she realizes she may not be ready to see the back of him just yet!

 

Although I normally blog about writing, marketing or books, today I’ve been wondering about something that I can’t get out of my mind. It crept up on me in its own sneaky fashion, until I finally realized that there’s no escaping it, and no turning back. It’s an obsession that is fast rivaling my daily writing “fix”.  Have you ever gone to Facebook and clicked on one of these pages set up by animal rescue organizations? I did. Now, it has taken hold of me and won’t let go.  All it takes is one look at a face like this one. You'll be hooked, too. The pleas for these animals are desperate. In many states, the organizations work to pull animals from shelters that are known as “kill” shelters. Dogs and cats that come in sick or hurt, or the ones that are aggressive—even if they are just afraid—are the first to be put down. Yes, I realize that not all stray animals can be saved. But did you know that many animals that are brought to the shelters are “owner surrendered” pets? Why would someone do this? For many reasons—I think one of the main ones being that owners believe that taking an animal to the shelter and ‘dropping it off’ will result in the shelter finding it a good home.  The hard truth is that most shelters are running over. Dropping off your animal is probably not going to result in a preferable outcome of adoption. Most likely, the animal is going to be euthanized within the week. One story that really tore at me when it was posted was the picture of a sweet golden retriever mix, that was taken in her cell at the shelter. Her eyes were kind. She didn’t understand what had happened to her world. After living with her master for 12 years, she had been “dropped off” at the shelter when her human had to go into a nursing home. I guess no one in the family was able to take her in to finish out her last years. And I can only imagine what anguish her master must have gone through, knowing that his family had surrendered his loving pet to a shelter. “Please help Sadie,” the post began. “She is alone and scared, and doesn’t understand why she’s at the shelter.” Sadie’s story haunted me all day. But it wasn’t the only one. A few hours later, I saw that Middle Mutts, one of these wonderful organizations, had posted the story of yet another sweet little dog whose family had “surrendered” him as well. Only, they had moved off and left him to fend for himself rather than try to find a home for him. How could a family do this? I pictured them driving away from their home in their mini-van, the dog sitting in the front yard watching them leave, the husband and wife comforting themselves with the hope that “maybe one of the neighbors will take him in…” Nope. Animal control got him first and he went to the shelter, where he awaits certain death if no one adopts him or sponsors him. The picture above is of Zina & Mimi. Mimi is a gorgeous Great Dane/Lab mix around 1.5 years old. She was an owner surrender along with her best friend, Zena, a deaf Boxer. Zena depends on Mimi, and if possible, they'd like to find a home for them together. Please check out a new video of them! http://youtu.be/QyIRUjGmCYI There are too many stories like this to describe in this short post. What I hope to do is to let you know how you can help these animals. First: Click on the pages for these animal rescue organizations on FB and LIKE them—Here are three wonderful, very worthy animal rescue activist groups that are in the business of working tirelessly to get these sweet fur babies pulled and transported (with help from some guardian angels across this great country of ours!) to their new owners. Pet Pardons http://www.facebook.com/#!/petpardons Middle Mutts http://www.facebook.com/#!/middlemutts The Bella Foundation http://www.facebook.com/#!/BellaFoundation Second: When these notices begin to come in on your FB page about the animals that are going to be put to sleep (PTS), the ones who are injured and in need of treatment, the pleas for fostering or transportation funding, RESHARE them on your wall. You never know who might see these pictures and stories and want to adopt that dog/cat, or maybe knows of someone else who will. This doesn’t cost a thing and is a wonderful tool to “get the word out” about these animals, especially if you ask your friends to reshare, too! Third: Most of these animals have a special “CHIP-IN FUND” that has been set up just for their needs. When you donate to it, the money goes to THAT ANIMAL for their shots, medical care (many of them have been abused or neglected terribly) and transportation if necessary. Most people think their contributions won’t matter. I have seen time and again where the contributions inched upward each day and finally reached the amount needed to pay for the “vetting” for these animals. Even $1 is important. It all matters. Some of the animals require surgery or medical treatment for other conditions. These are the ones that desperately need funding to help them get that treatment and get to a new home. If you have a Paypal account, it takes less than a minute to click on the link for the Chip-In and transfer a few bucks over. Fourth: Talk about it. Blog about it. Get the word out. Not all support has to be financial! We all have to do what we are able to do, and some can do more than others, but many of these people in these organizations are volunteers. Is there something you could do at your local shelter? Could you start a group like this on your own? Fostering dogs until a home can be found for them is a wonderful service to provide if you are able to do this. There’s no monetary gain, but the reward you get from these loving animals will more than make up for it. Many have never had a kind word or loving touch. The picture above is of Pet Pardons' co-founder Chris Hoar's dog. Here's what he has to say about his work: "You know sometimes even I find it very hard to look at the pictures people post on my own wall, sometimes it seems like this horrific cruelty will never end, sometimes I want to just give up and go hide in a hole. Then I look at my little rescue Jimmy 2 Shoes, and he reminds me that I can never give up, for any reason, because as hard as this is for me sometimes, it is nothing compared to how hard it is for all of them."  Chris has devoted his life to saving these animals. He's my hero. Have you been inspired yet? I hope so. Many of these stories have wonderfully happy endings thanks to regular people like you and me. Sadie, the 12-year-old golden retriever, was rescued within a couple of days of being posted and reshared again and again. Another remarkable story is that of Vex, a dog who had been hit by a car in Romania and was paralyzed in his back legs. He had been dragging himself around, wearing his hide off for months. But the money was raised to fly him to America to a new loving home. Someone donated the money for him to have a little cart for his back legs so he could get around on his wheels. What a happy ending! Want to be part of something wonderful? Get involved. You’ll be ‘heart happy’ as soon as you do. Our own "happy ending"--my daughter, Jessica, with her dog, Embry. This was taken about 2 years ago after Embry had to be treated for menengitis. She adopted him as a puppy from a shelter. He has brought us all so much love and joy I can't imagine NOT having him around! If you have questions, please e-mail me at fabkat_edit@yahoo.com  If we all work together, we can at least make a dent in animal cruelty, abuse and neglect and find loving homes for some wonderful sweet fur babies.

We have a winner.  Actually we have two.  I put all the names on pieces of paper and then drew out 2 names and those people are:  Missy Brown and Patricia B.  Missy and Patricia, please contact me at my email at karenkay.author@earthlink.net, and we'll talk about what books of mine you might have and if you want an ebook or hard copy book. My thanks to all who joined me today at the blog.  May the rest of your evening be filled with all good things.   

Good afternoon or evening & Happy Tuesday! Did you know that most American Indians (before the advent of European civilization pushed in upon them) could tell from a footprint, a piece of clothing, the style of bow and arrow or other facets, what tribe the article came from?  How many of us could tell by simply looking at a person, where that person was from and what he or she did for a living?  We share so many common traits today (one state to the other), that it might be hard to tell, let alone pick up an article and tell at a glance where it was from and what tribe.  Anyhow, I thought that it might be fun to have a look at a few of the Western tribes and how they were not only similar, but how they were different.  Oh, I’ll be giving away a free book today, also. I thought we’d have a look at the different hair styles: This young fellow here to the left is Crow.  Notice the hair straight up on top, the loop necklace, the braids starting high and going straight down.  The hair going up like this was called pompadour style.  Here are some other images of the Crow: Notice the looping necklace, the braids starting high mostly and the pompadour style of hair.  The Crow men were known to be very proud of their very, very long hair and their hair frequently touched the ground as they walked.  The women, due to cutting their hair when a relative died, women often had to augment their hair by adding to it in order to get the length. Then there were the Sioux or the Lakota, Dakota or Nakota (depending on the dialect).  Now the picture to the right is a favorite of mine — it’s Adam Beach, who is not Sioux.  However, his style of hair and dress could be Sioux.  What we generally think of as Western Indian is often the image of the Teton Sioux.  The men wore their hair in many different styles, but often left it loose.  Two braids with a center part was common.  Here are some images of the Sioux:  Notice that the braids start a little lower down on the face and note the part in the middle.   The Sioux men also made a habit of wearing a bone choker and what I’ve always referred to as a breast plate made of bone.  Notice that the young man nearest wears this bone breast plate.  Also note that the image on the far right is that of Sitting Bull. Handsome, handsome people the Sioux, and they still are.  Notice this young man on the left wearing traditional hair-style with a superman T-shirt.  And then there were the Cheyenne.  The young man to the left (nearest) is Cheyenne.  Because the Cheyenne were allied to the Sioux, often their style of dress and hair-style often mimicked the Sioux.  The Cheyenne were fearsome warriors.  Interestingly, they once were farmers, but moved West, or were pushed West and once settled there, they became some of the most famous warriors in all of American history.  Here are some other images of the Cheyenne: Notice that the images of these men look to me to be as if they might be Sioux as well as Cheyenne. And then there were the Blackfeet.  The Blackfeet men sometimes wore their hair in the style of the pompadour, but one would never have confused them with their traditional enemies, the Crow.  Like other tribes, the men wore braids (and the women, too), but the men wore their hair in three braids (one in the back).  Shell earrings (white but often pink) were traditional styles for both men and women.  And often the Blackfeet wore the choker and the looping necklace as well. The picture to my far right is Blackfeet, also.  Notice, too, the manner in which the Blackfeet wore their war bonnets…straight up — a little different than the Sioux. Now, because the book, WHITE EAGLE'S TOUCH has just hit the ebook bookstand, and to celebrate, I thought I'd include an excerpt with this post. WHITE EAGLE'S TOUCH by Karen Kay An Excerpt "Has a right?" Katrina leapt to her feet. Benjamin Lloyd followed her up onto his, the man's slight stature detracting from, rather than adding to the strength of his argument. At five-foot-five, the lawyer's eyes were just level with hers. "Has a right?" Katrina repeated. "Do you think so? What does the law say about my uncle's abandonment of me? About desertion?"  "Katrina, you know that your uncle did not truly desert you."  "Didn't he? I have not seen him for fourteen years. What is that, if not abandonment? Or are you speaking of the succession of nannies and governesses, the multitude of servants he hired?"  She puckered up her face and leaned forward. “This can't be truly legal."  "It most certainly is." Benjamin Lloyd slapped his hand on his desk.  "Benjamin, don't you talk to me this way."  "Then start speaking sense."  Katrina blew out her breath, shaking her head at the same time "I am I . . .Does my uncle hate me so greatly?”  "Hate you? Cease this sort of talk at once. I'm sure that isn't the reason--"  "He must," Katrina insisted, her chin hiking up into the air. "I have always suspected it to be so. Why else would he never visit me, never write to me, never . . . ?"  She stopped, her glance falling away from Benjamin's before she continued, "Do you know that when I was a child, I used to write to him? I used to think of him as something of a knight. Did you know that, Benjamin? I used to dream of him coming to get me here; I used to envision . . ." Katrina glanced away into a corner of the room. It was some moments before she spoke again, saying, "But that was all so long ago, wasn't it?"  "Katrina, I didn't know that--"  "How could you?" She sighed. "He wants me to go there, you say? He is demanding that I travel out West and meet with him, if I desire my inheritance?"  "Yes, he--"  "And he would provide my transportation there?"  "Yes, he--”  "I know of no reputable coaches that travel that far."  "You are right," Benjamin Lloyd was quick to note, "but I have looked into this, and I could make travel arrangements that would be quite comfort able for you. Firstly, I could hire a private coach that would carry you all the way to St. Louis. I would ensure your comfort and your safety, that is, if you decide to make the trip."  "If I decide? I thought I had to--"  "You don't have to go, Katrina."  "But didn't you just say that--"  "You wouldn't have access to your dowry, of course, nor to the whole of your inheritance, until you are twenty-five, the age your father set down in his will as the time to receive the remainder of your legacy.”  "Twenty-five. Six years away . . . You know that I can't wait that long. I barely have enough funds to pay my current bills. What would I do for six years?"  "You would have to be most frugal, my dear."  "Frugal? Penniless is more the correct word."  "Yes, well. . ."  "Benjamin, this carriage that you would hire for me"--Katrina returned her glance toward her solicitor--"would it see me all the way to the Northwest Territory?"  "Well, no, there are no roads that travel that distance, but it would take you to St. Louis, and from there, I could arrange your passage aboard a steamboat to Fort Union in the Northwest Territory. And there you would meet with your uncle."  "I see. Whatever, do you suppose, possessed my father and uncle to become traders?" "Hmmm . . . What did you say, Katrina?"  "Traders," Katrina glanced away. "It's a savage and uncivilized life that they chose for themselves, wasn't it? Trading European goods for the furs of the Indians. Why do you think they chose it?"  "Perhaps for the adventure. Mayhap for the money. They did accumulate quite a fortune for themselves . . . and for you, my dear. Might I re mind you that all the wealth and enjoyment that you have possessed thus far in your life has come down to you from the richness of that trade?"  "Yes," Katrina said on a heavy breath, "all my enjoyment." Then, lowering her voice, she whispered, "And all my sorrow."  "Pardon?"  Katrina didn't answer. Instead, she raised her chin, and asked, "Is that all, then? I have only to go there and meet my uncle and then I might have--"  "And your fiance."  "Excuse me?"  Benjamin Lloyd cleared his throat. "Didn't I mention that to you?"  "No, you did not."  "Oh, yes, well, your uncle here stipulates that he must meet and," Benjamin Lloyd lowered his voice, speaking quickly, ". . . and approve of said fiance before the distribution of--" "Meet? Approve?"  "Yes, well..." Katrina leaned over the desk. "What further madness is this?"  Benjamin Lloyd fingered his collar. He leaned backwards. "I was certain I had told you that. I was . . . why, here it is. This document says"--he shook out a piece of paper--"when the party of the first-- your uncle--shall meet and approve of matrimonial choice of said ward--that is you--any hitherto obligation of said ward will be discharged and the distribution of funds shall commence--"  "He wants to meet my fiance?"  "Yes, I--"  "Why does he want to . . . This makes little, if any sense at all. First, he asks me to place myself in danger to go and meet him, and now he is demanding to approve of my fiance?"  "In danger, my dear? I'm not sure I would use those terms to..."  Katrina no longer listened to the lawyer's ramblings. No, she had already lifted the hem of her pink satinet dress, stepped away from her chair, and begun to pace beside the solicitor's desk.  She stopped suddenly, intercepting the lawyer, as she said, "Well, I am certain of it now. My uncle hates me." "Katrina . . ."  "It's the only possible explanation. Perhaps my uncle hated my father, as well as me, and it is only in this way that the awful man can seek full revenge." Katrina hurriedly dropped the hem of her skirt and turned around, stepping briskly to her solicitor's desk, the bustle under her skirts swaying with her movement.  Benjamin Lloyd, however, watching her, did nothing more than swallow noisily.  "Well, at least I understand my uncle, now," she said. "He hates me, has hated me all my life, and this is his way of getting back at me."  "Katrina, I'm not sure that I--"  "I always wondered why my only living relative never came to see me, why all the nannies and servants . . ."  "Now, Katrina, I don't see that this makes any difference to what is being asked now. The servants and the maids, the--"  "Don't you?" Katrina interrupted, turning away and presenting her back to the spectacled solicitor. Briefly she glanced into a corner of the room. A moment passed. Another. At last, though, she took a deep breath and, pivoting to confront her lawyer, looked directly at him. "You're probably right, Benjamin. None of the past matters anymore."  "Please, my dear, I know that this is all so unexpected. Naturally you are upset and--"  "I will go."  "Now, now. Don't make too hasty a decision. It's best to think it over carefully before . . . You will?"  "Yes, I will. My uncle wants to see me. I will go. He never came here to see me, but I will go to him. Besides, what choice do I have? If I don't do this, I will lose all reputation here, what with no more available funds to draw from." She turned so that the pink bonnet she wore did not obstruct her view of the solicitor. "My uncle has played an excellent game with me, I think. A game of chess, if you will. He has laid siege to my queen for the moment. Do you know that? I thought to marry in order to avoid my uncle and draw upon the rest of my inheritance without ever a word to him. I thought I had placed my uncle's king in checkmate. Now I see that I had a more worthy opponent than I had at first envisioned."  "Katrina, what are you saying? You might be taking this too much to heart. Perhaps, my dear, it would be best not to judge your uncle until--"  "He will not win, though."  "Katrina, I don't think that..."  But Benjamin Lloyd might as well have remained silent. Katrina had already collected her purse and umbrella, marched to the room's door and flung it open before she turned back toward him. Her lips parted for a moment, as though she might say something further, but with a definite shake of her head, she merely stated, "Good day, Benjamin."  And with that said, she delayed no longer. Picking up the front of her dress, she swept through the door, her head held in a stiff, defiant angle.  And there was no one, not a single person at this moment, who would have interfered with her without cost.  At least no one in New York City.  WHITE EAGLE'S TOUCH by Karen Kay On sale at: http://store.samhainpublishing.com/white-eagles-touch-p-6773.html   And so to close, I thought I'd offer you a bit of a challenge.     The photo above isn't as large as I would have liked, but I’m wondering if you can guess which tribe is represented?     Can you guess?  All of the following books of mine were all written about this tribe:  Gray Hawk’s Lady, White Eagle’s Touch, Night Thunder’s Bride, Wolf Shadow’s Promise, Soaring Eagle’s Embrace, The Princess and the Wolf.  I’ll be giving away one of these books to a lucky blogger today — and it doesn’t matter is you get the tribe right or not.    So come on in and make a stab at this — I’ll announce the tribe when I announce the winner  

  The Fillies have made quite a splash in the contests this year and I'm as happy as a June bug in a strawberry patch to tell you about it.

The National Readers Choice Award Finalists:

• Donna Alward - How a Cowboy Stole Her Heart
• Karen Witemeyer - To Win Her Heart
• Linda Broday - Trouble in Petticoats (her story in Give Me a Texas Outlaw)

 

Bookseller's Best Award Finalists:

• Phyliss Miranda - Texas Flame (her story in Give Me a Texas Outlaw)
• Phyliss Miranda -  Away in the Manger (her story in A Texas Christmas)
• Donna Alward - How a Cowboy Stole Her Heart

 

RWA's RITA Award Finalists:

• Donna Alward - How a Cowboy Stole Her Heart
• Karen Witemeyer - To Win Her Heart

 

Holt Award of Merit

• Phyliss Miranda - Away in the Manger (her story in A Texas Christmas anthology)

 

Winner of the HOLT Medallion

• Karen Witemeyer - To Win Her Heart

  The list is pretty impressive if I do say so myself. Leave a comment to let these ladies know how proud you are of them and how much you hope they keep writing these award-winning stories that could be told around the campfire.

When my new duet was in the conceptualization stage, I knew that my heroine was a social worker. I knew that because she showed up in an earlier book, PROUD RANCHER, PRECIOUS BUNDLE, as the case worker who helped Wyatt and Elli as they cared for Wyatt's niece. She intrigued me. I had an idea for a women's shelter - a place that Angela would be personally invested in and something she'd believe in passionately. And I got thinking - so many times we think of shelters as a place for women to go when they leave an abusive situation. But then what? How does a woman rebuild her life when she's left her old life with, perhaps, nothing more than the clothes on her back? The shelter in the story is what we call "Second Stage" housing. It's for women who are at the point where they need a helping hand getting started - finding a job, finding housing, taking those last steps to independence.  Like Clara Ferguson, for example. Clara is a sweet, strong woman and Angela's first resident. Clara's focus is on finding a job and saving enough money to afford a place of her own, growing emotionally stronger as she goes. When it came time to name the house, I really struggled. I'm not good at that sort of thing. In the end I settled on Butterfly House. Why? A few reasons. It's a place where its residents can grow and change, to gain their confidence again and feel whole and beautiful and worthy - not unlike a caterpillar transforming into a beautiful butterfly. And while they've been injured and had their wings clipped, Butterfly House is a place where they can put their past behind them and learn to fly again. In THE LAST REAL COWBOY, Angela has to move beyond her own past to accept both Sam's help and his love.  It's harder for her because she knows she's got to set the example as the director, and yet she has her own issues that she hasn't addressed.  Good thing Sam is strong and patient - but not too patient, of course! And in the second book, out next month (THE REBEL RANCHER), Clara meets Ty, Sam's adopted brother. Ty is trouble - and also surprisingly gentle - just the kind Clara needs to restore her faith in men - and in herself. You can find out more about my Cadence Creek Cowboys duet at www.donnaalward.com/LastRealCowboy.htm and www.donnaalward.com/RebelRancher.htm

 

Lordy, Lordy what a passel of books to give away.

I put all the names in my old bonnet and here are the winners.......

A copy of MISTAKEN BRIDE goes to..........

VALRI

SUMMER

CINDY WOOLARD

GRAND PRIZE WINNER (set of all three Irish Brides series)

CRYSTAL GB

Woo-Hoo! I'm kicking up my heels for you ladies!! Someone will contact you for your mailing particulars so pour a cup of coffee and get comfortable. Miss Renee thanks everyone who rode the range with her this weekend. She surely enjoyed it.

  Thanks to the fillies for inviting me back to guest blog with some of my favorite authors.  It’s always a pleasure.  I’ve decided to talk about a topic that’s been on my mind lately.  Cover art.  You have no idea how many questions I get about my Love Inspired covers, mainly from people wondering how much control I have over the final product.  Well, it depends. Here’s the process.  About a year before one of my books hits the shelves I fill out the Art Fact Sheet (AFS) for the book.  That means I have to go a website hosted by the publisher and answer pages of questions about the story.  The questions fall under several categories, such as: Characters, Scenes, Synopsis, as well as a detailed page with basic questions surrounding theme, story hooks, date, setting, story timeline, etc.  The character questions range from superficial things such as physical traits to deeper issues such as psychological wounds.  The synopsis is basically a short and sweet summary of the story, something I would tell a friend at a party or sitting in the stands at a football game. Most of the above is both easy and fun.  However, I find the section about scene description difficult at best.  The publisher wants three very distinct, yet detailed scene descriptions.  This should be easy for me.  I love putting my setting in my books.  But knowing that a real artist will be using my words to create a picture suddenly makes the ideas freeze in my head.  That’s why I love the last and final portion of my job in the cover art process—creating a separate file of the images I think best evoke the mood of my story.  I get to cruise the Internet looking for pictures of my hero and heroine, as well as possible scenes or other similar book covers I think will work for my book as well, especially in terms of overall tone. This final component really makes the story come alive for me in my head.  It’s so effective that I now try to capture many of those types of images before I start writing a book rather than after.  I spent most of my time on this last phase for my current release, MISTAKEN BRIDE.  The final product is one of my best covers yet.  Well, in my opinion, anyway.  In case you’re wondering, I chose images of Alex O’Loughlin and Kate Beckinsale for my hero and heroine.                    Because the three books in the Love Inspired Historical Irish Brides series are so closely connected (each story highlights one of three sisters) the art department decided to create closely connected covers.  If you look at Book 1: THE WEDDING JOURNEY by Cheryl St. John next to Book 2: MISTAKEN BRIDE by Renee Ryan beside Book 3: A BABY BETWEEN THEM you will see that all three covers have a similar color scheme, feel and overall tone.  Each scene depicts the heroine of the story and a ship in some form or another.  What do you think of the three covers for the Irish Brides Series?  Did the art department knock it out of the park, or what?  Leave a comment and you’ll be included in a drawing to win one of three copies of MISTAKEN BRIDE.  An additional grand prize winner will receive all three books in the Irish Brides series. Renee Ryan writes for Love Inspired Historical and Love Inspired.  Her fabulous editor is Melissa Endlich.  For more information, you can visit Renee at renee@reneeryan.com