Giveaways

Winnie's Winner!!

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Thanks to everyone who stopped by to join in the discussion today – it”s always fun chatting!  I tossed all the names in the hat and the winner of A Family For Christmas is…

Britney Adams!!

Congratulations Britney!  If you”ll contact me via my website with your mailing info I”ll get your book out to you ASAP.

 

And for those of you who didn”t win, I”ll be giving away several more copies between now and the end of the month.  To keep up with all the giveaways, connect with my Facebook Page

 

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An Unexpected Gift 

Eve Pickering knows what it”s like to be judged for your past. So she”s not about to leave the orphaned boy she”s befriended alone in this unfamiliar Texas town. Since Chance Dawson”s offer of shelter is the only way to look after Leo, Eve is determined they”ll have a warm, welcoming home for the holidays.

Chance came from the big city to make it on his own despite a painful secret. But Eve”s strength is giving him a confidence he never expected—and a new direction for his dream. With a little Christmas blessing, he”ll dare to win her heart—and make their family one for a lifetime.

Early Automobiles – A Bit Of Trivia

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Photo WG2 smallHi, Winnie Griggs here.  In case you haven’t heard yet, I have a new book out this month.  It’s book three of my Texas Grooms series and is titled A Family For Christmas. (And I’ll be doing a giveawy, read on to the end for details!)

One of the things I have to figure out when I start a new book is what occupations my characters will have.  Usually it comes to me pretty quick, because it is part of who my characters are.  That was the same way it happened with this book.  Problem was, the occupations my two characters ended up with were ones I had to do more-than-normal research on.  And there was no changing things.  Once a character tells you who they are, then that’s who they are.  Period.

My heroine Eve opened a candy store and tea shop.  The research I did for that was fun (and fattening!).  I discussed some of that research back when I was in the middle of it (in case you missed that post, here’s the link: CANDY STORE POST).

Today I want to discuss the hero, Chance.  Chance comes from a prestigious family that is not only wealthy but  prominent in politics and society.  Only he didn’t quite fit in and was the black sheep of the family.  He’s hiding some secrets, of course, but mostly he prefers to work with his hands rather than in an office.  It’s been a year and a half since he left Philadelpia for Texas and in that time he’s opened a repair shop for mechanical items such as sewing machines and washing machines.  He’s also got his hands on a motor carriage, a definite oddity for this town in this time period.

As part of my research on early automobiles I stumbled on quite a few trivia type tidbits of automotive history and I thought I’d share some of those with you all today.

  • Flat asphalt roads were originally conceived for cyclists, not motorists as most people assume
  • The first cars didn’t have steering wheels. Instead drivers steered with a lever or tiller.  (Sort of like today’s joystick on game consoles!)
  • The first automobile related death occurred in Britain in 1896.  A 44-year old mother of two stepped off a curb and was hit by a passing motor car. She died from head injuries.
  • The driver was only doing just 4mph. The coroner ruled it an accidental death, and stated  “I trust that this sort of nonsense will never happen again.”.
  • In 1898, the New York City Police Department used bicycles to pursue speeding motorists.
  • The first official speeding violation in the US to be cited was committed by a taxi driver in New York City in 1899.  The driver was going 12 mph in an 8mph zone (I have no idea how they knew this before radar??).  He was arrested (by a policeman on a bicycle) and sent to jail, but he did not actually receive a ticket.  The first paper ticket was actually issued to an Ohio man in 1904, who coincidentally was also traveling 12 mph.  The Ohio man did no jail time.
  • In 1916, 55 percent of the cars in the entire world were none other than Model T Fords.  That kind of market domination has never been achieved by any other company since.
  • Women were every bit as fascinated by automobiles as men.  By 1923, women had been given credit for inventing over 170 automobile related items.  An electric engine starter and a carburetor two of the items on that list.

A few other fun items:

  • Most car horns in American vehicles beep in the key of F
  • The Peanuts characters made their first animated appearance in a 1957 Ford Fairlane commercial
  • According to a survey, 90% of car owners admit to singing while behind the wheel.  Between you and me, I think the other 10% were lying.
  • Cars are the most recycled consumer item in the world.

So there you have it.  Did any of this info surprise you?  Do you have any personal experience with or knowledge of vintage cars?

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And now for the giveaway.  In honor of this being release month, I’m giving away a copy of A Family For Christmas to one person who leaves a comment.

15 AFFC thumbnailAn Unexpected Gift 

Eve Pickering knows what it’s like to be judged for your past. So she’s not about to leave the orphaned boy she’s befriended alone in this unfamiliar Texas town. Since Chance Dawson’s offer of shelter is the only way to look after Leo, Eve is determined they’ll have a warm, welcoming home for the holidays.

Chance came from the big city to make it on his own despite a painful secret. But Eve’s strength is giving him a confidence he never expected—and a new direction for his dream. With a little Christmas blessing, he’ll dare to win her heart—and make their family one for a lifetime.

 

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And here’s a bonus giveaway that I’m only listing here.  Based on the facts above, I made a boo-boo in one scene of my book.  The first person to catch it and contact me, before the end of the month, will win a special prize!

 

 

Winnie’s Winner!!

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(Don’t you love that alliteration!)

Anyway, I tossed all the names in a hat and the one I drew out was

Brittany McEuen!!

Congratulations Brittany.  Contact me via my website with your mailing info and I’ll get your tote bag and book right out to you.

 

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And for those of you who didn’t win this time, I’ll be giving several books away every week through late October at various blog stops.  Connect with me on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/winnie.griggs) to keep up-to-date on when and where.

Reprise: A Boat With REAL Horsepower

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Photo WG2 smallHi!  Winnie Griggs here.

Below is a blog I originally posted on this site back in February 2012.  It was the result of one of those serendipitous research footnotes.

And be sure to read on down to the bottom where I have details of my giveaway.

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The other day I was doing a bit of research into ferry travel in the nineteenth century and came across a little snippet of information that immediately sent me down a rabbit trail to find out more.  Did you know that ferry boats were powered by horses at one time?  I didn’t.  Of course I knew about the horses and mules that walked along the banks of the Erie canal tethered to barges that they pulled along.

But this is something entirely different.  These boats had either a turntable or treadmill type device mounted on or below the deck of the ship.  These platforms were connected to a gear which was in turn connected to the paddle wheels that propelled the boat forward.  When horses walked on the platforms of these mechanisms it set the whole thing in motion.

A number of these horse-powered boats, of several different designs, could be found on the waterways of North America starting in the late eighteenth century and continuing through the early years of the twentieth century.  They reached their heyday in the 1840s and 1850s.

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During the early years of our country they were used on any number of rivers and lakes in the northeast, especially Lake Champlain and the Hudson River.  From there their use spread west to the Great Lakes, to the Ohio and MississippiRivers as well as other waterways that fed from these.  Of course they were generally only used for journeys of a few miles.

These boats came in various sizes.  One of the largest was powered by eight horse and could carry 200-plus passengers at about the same speed as a steamboat of its day.

There were a number of factors that led to the decline in the use of horseferrys, most notably the industrialization that occurred in America during the latter part of the nineteenth century.  With the expansion of bridge construction and railroad networks, there was less need for ferrys of any sort.  And when the internal combustion engine came along the death knell was finally sounded.

The only known surviving example of one of these horseferrys sits beneath the murky waters of BurlingtonBay on Lake Champlain.  It was discovered during an underwater archaeological expedition in 1894 and today is part of Vermont’s Underwater Historical Preserve System.  It has also been added to the national Park Service’s National Register of Historical Places.

So is this something you already knew about?  And are there other unusual ways you’ve heard of animals being used to power man-made devices that you’d like to share?

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And in honor of the upcoming release of A FAMILY FOR CHRISTMAS, the third book in my Texas Grooms series, I’ll be giving away the small tote bag pictured below and a choice of any of my books, including the new one.

Tote and book

Help Pick THE COWBOY CONTRACT Cover and Win a Giveaway!

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Hi Folks,

A few weeks ago, you helped me pick the image for THE COWBOY CONTRACT and I’m very grateful.  Now I would love your help picking the actual style of the cover.  We whittled it down to two ebook cover versions! 

Just simply vote here (below in comment section)  for which one you like best or you can vote on my blog, but you can only vote once.

On release day… September 26th, I’ll let you know by email and on my blog, if you’ve won the random draw!  I’ll pick five winners  (you don’t have to pick the winning cover image, you just have to vote).  

5 prizes are up for grabs of $20.oo Amazon Gift Cards.  

 

I can’t wait to see which cover you like best!  Click on each cover to get a better view.  

 

COVER # 1

OR

COVER # 2
COVER # 2

Coming soon on Amazon and Barnes and Noble

 About the book:

Trey Walker thought he was cursed when it came to women, but after a disaster destroyed nearly everything veterinarian Maddie Brooks owned, Trey offered the petite redhead shelter at 2 Hope Ranch.  Maddie was smart, sexy and good with animals… impossible to resist, yet he vowed not to break her heart.

Maddie knew the temporary arrangement she made with Trey was strictly business.  For over a year she’d tried to get the handsome rancher to notice her, but the man never seemed interested. Now, she’d be living under his roof and using his barn to treat animals.

Could she be the woman to break the Walker Curse?

A Pioneer Christmas–and Book Giveaway

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a pioneer christmas

A Pioneer Christmas Collection!

  (Tell us about your most interesting or unusual Christmas and you could win a book)

“Paying twenty-five dollars for me was your mistake, ma’am. I’m not worth more than fifteen.” –Margaret’s story   

 

When Barbour Publishing announced they were looking for novellas for A Pioneer Christmas Collection, they had just a few parameters: the story needed to take place between the 1700s to the late 1800s, have a pioneer experience, and celebrate Christmas in a unique dwelling.

The stories that appear in A Pioneer Christmas Collection certainly meet that criterion.

Ranging in time slots from Shannon McNear’s lead-off Revolutionary War story, to Michelle Ule’s final tale of the 1897 Alaskan gold rush, the novellas sweep across North American locales both familiar and little known.

Shannon McNear portrays a surprising romance between a militiaman loyal to the Crown hiding after a battle in which his side lost, and a young woman patriot in charge of her siblings when her father goes to fight in Defending Truth. “People were all just struggling to live their lives, and the politics were as upsetting and confusing as today.”

Celebrating Christmas in the cave where her hero was hiding,seemed a terrific idea, and certainly a unique one.

Kathleen Fuller has often driven past her setting for The Calling: the Unionville Tavern in northeast Ohio. “Once I found out the tavern was a stagecoach shop [in the early 19th century], I immediately came up with the idea of a traveler stopping at the tavern on a regular basis.”  In The Calling, the traveler is a young man convinced he’s called to preach to those heading west, rather than the settled east. It’s the tavern keeper’s daughter who catches a vision of who he really is.

How many of you have spent Christmas in a tavern?

Several writers deliberately sought often over-looked times and places.  Anna Urquhart had seldom heard of pioneers traveling by water and examined the opening of the Erie Canal in 1830’s which led to settlements in Michigan Territory. A Silent Night actually begins in Edinburgh, Scotland and follows the challenges of making a life in the big woods of the upper Midwest.

The drama of a marriage lost and found is played out over Christmas in a barn beside a smoldering cabin.

A Pony Express Christmas by Margaret Brownley takes readers to a spot most of us think we know—or do we? When a vigorous young woman goes in search of her long-lost express-riding brother, she saves a man from outlaws and drives him to help her search. Set during the Civil War era, A Pony Express Christmas leads us eventually to Chimney Rock where she finds something totally unexpected.

What happened to those Pony Express stations and could they make an abandoned spot a holiday site?

A Christmas Castle by Cynthia Hickey features a mail order bride who arrives in post-Civil War Arizona to discover her intended dead and a small child needing a mother. With outlaws trying to run her off her “inheritance,” she struggles with the help of a handsome neighbor to keep her land. Somehow she’s able to fashion a Christmas celebration in a virtual hole in the ground.

Who knew it could snow in Arizona in the winter? Have you ever had to cram a too-big Christmas tree into a too-small room?

Lauraine Snelling returns to an area familiar to her readers in The Cowboy’s Angel, set in 1875 Dakota Territory. With her long-overdue husband miles away seeking supplies, a pregnant woman is forced to give birth with a stranger in attendance. Snow socked them into a half-built claim with the farm animals a thin wall away.

Using meager resources in a rough home, a woman finds cause to be thankful. How often have you had to “make do” for Christmas?

 Marcia Gruver takes us to sophisticated 1885 New York City in A Badlands Christmas, though we don’t stay there long. Inspired by the adventures of Theodore Roosevelt in the town of Medora, A Badlands Christmas shows the contrasts between festive scenes in the city and a Christmas spent in a dilapidated sod house in the middle of a brutal Dakota Territory winter.

While you may have dealt with the weather outside being frightful on December 25, were you half under the ground?

Buckskin Bride by Vickie McDonough introduces us to a capable but desperate young woman who is more comfortable in buckskin than calico. She and her sisters are squatters on land the hero won in the 1889 Oklahoma land run. The handsome Irish landowner is kind but dare she trust him when her father warned her to avoid all men? With Christmas approaching, her father missing, and young sister injured, will she and her sisters spend Christmas alone in their tipi?

Have you ever spent Christmas in a tent?

In The Gold Rush Christmas, Michelle Ule takes her trio to 1897 Skagway, Alaska where they meant to enjoy the season in the newly-constructed Union Church. Searching for a missionary father, however, lands them in a Tlingit cedar-planked long house for a lesson in how to present the gospel in a way anyone could understand.

Who can beat salmon for Christmas dinner, even if eaten off a plank?

 Interested in Christmas spent in novel ways, surprising settings, heroes and heroines filled with love and pluck? Why not try the nine stories found in A Pioneer Christmas Collection?

My thanks goes to Michelle Ule for writing this blog.

Tell us about your most unusual Christmas and you could win a copy of A Pioneer Christmas Collection.

 

Order from your favorite bookstore or Click Cover.

This book will make the perfect hostess, teacher or  party  gift!

a pioneer christmas

A LITTLE BIT OF EVERYTHING TRIP and Giveaway by Charlene

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When we headed out for our family trip to Bass Lake, up a little north of Fresno at the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains, my sister said she wanted to stop at the Indian casino along the way.  She verbalized the name Chuck Chancey Casino and I thought, what a perfect name for a casino. Chancey is catchy and gives one hope of gambling and winning! It wasn’t until we drove by that I noticed it was the name of the Indian tribe…Chukchansi. Well, after I laughed at myself, I became curious about the tribe. Obviously, I had never heard of the Chukchansi Indians before.

As the trend goes on these days, you couldn’t help but wonder if the Chukchansi tribe had any involvement in the world of online sports betting. With the rise of digital technology, more and more people are turning to online platforms to place their bets on sporting events just like one of the popular online sports betting sites such as ufabet. Those sites are more reliable these days and are easy to play too as long you have correct entrance link for the site.

As we drove past Chuck Chancey Casino, I couldn’t help but wonder what kind of games and slot machines they had to offer. I had heard about the new trend of high-paying rtp slot gacor machines that were becoming increasingly popular in the gambling world. Perhaps this casino had a few of those machines, which offered better odds of winning compared to other slots. The thought of hitting the jackpot and winning big was certainly tempting, but we decided to continue on our way to Bass Lake and enjoy the natural beauty of the Sierras instead.

But they have been around over 12,000 years living in the San Joaquin Valley and the Sierras very near the small historic towns of Coarsegold and Oakhurst. They were hunters, farmers and gatherers. In 1849 during the Gold Rush, anthropologists grouped them along with sixty tribes with similar cultures and languages, but with different dialects in what was called the tribes of the Central Valley. They were known as the Yokuts, but there is no one tribe that goes by that name. “Yokut simply means “people”.

Unfortunately, their plight was no different than many other tribes, whose population was decreased by disease and displacement. Our government provided them “Rancherias”, small parcels of land with which to live, but without the benefits of a reservation, thus many tribal members reside in the Picayune Rancheria of the Chukchansi. After a class action suit in 1983 the Chukchansi became a federally recognized tribe. They remained landless until recently and have made great strides in keeping pride and stability to their heritage.

Today, the Chukchansi Gold Resort and Casino is celebrating their 10th anniversary.

From casinos to glamping, our trip had a bit of everything. Here’s a few pictures of Bass Lake, the patio boat we rented, the views and fun we had!  We used to go to Bass Lake almost every summer when our kids were younger.  It was a tradition to camp in tents and rough it a little. Now, we are reviving the old traditon with our expanded family, only this time in a glorious cabin with flat screen TV’s, dishwashers and full bathrooms.  Twelve of us and two munchkins made the trip, and hopefully we can do it again next year.

 

View from the beautiful cabin, on the party boat, beach camp and tall pines! Below, the boys are fishing and the patio decking where we ate dinner every night. Ahh….

What are your plans this summer? Are you a beach or mountain kind of vacationer? Do you have a favorite vacation spot?  Post a comment to win a $10 Amazon Gift card!  And be sure to check out my June release, Sunset Seduction.

AMAZON AMAZON