Winter’s Passing … I Hope

In so many ways, February is a great month. Two of our most famous presidents were born in February. My grandmother was born in February. It’s Black History month. We celebrate Valentine’s Day.

For me, February is a month to endure on the way to Spring. This year, in my little section of the world, Winter hit us with a king-sized wallop in February. #Snowmageddon2015. We got somewhere near twelve inches, which may not seem much to some of you, but in the mid-south, it’s a lot.

Even the squirrels disappeared for several days. When they did come out, they either skittered over the surface of the snow or disappeared beneath.

Having nowhere to go, I stayed inside. About now, I really need to get out, but we have freezing rain. And more bad weather in the forecast. Ack!

I don’t want you to think I’m complaining–I love the snow. My favorite time is at night, when the world should be dark, but it’s not, because the light from the stars and moon reflect off the brilliant white snow. It’s gorgeous. Even though it’s twenty below out there.

Authorview is a great success this year. My first guest was Katie Weiland, author of Outlining Your Novel Workbook and Structuring Your Novel Workbook. You can read her interview here. February’s guest was Rachel Hauck, author of How to Catch a Prince (which releases today). You can read her interview here. How to Catch a Prince is available here.

Coming up in March: Amy C. Blake, author of newly released Whitewashed, will be my guest March 3rd. And my Authorview guest on March 17th is Siri Mitchell, author of Like a Flower in Bloom. 

Guests and guest posts aside, March is big month for me. It’s my birthday month, and I’m going to celebrate by giving away books. So you will want to stop back by in March! There will be several chances for you to win free books.

As always, thanks for stopping by. I appreciate all of you. Hope you’re staying warm and safe!

The Love Boat Bachelor

Romance is a joke.

After the love of Brent Teague’s life came back into his world only to marry someone else, Brent is through with women. He might be through with being a pastor, too.

Brent was so sure that God brought Mara Adkins home to him so they could marry and live happily ever after. Six months after her wedding to another man, that theory is obviously a dud. If Brent could be so wrong about that, who’s to say he’s not mistaken about God calling him to pastoral ministry?

Tired of watching Brent flounder for direction, Brent’s feisty older sister boots him out of Spartanburg and onto a cruise ship. Brent’s old college buddy manages the ship’s staff, and he’s thrilled to finagle Brent into the role of chaplain for the two-week cruise.

As the ship sets sail, Brent starts to relax. Maybe a cruise wasn’t such a bad idea after all. But there’s just one little thing no one told him. He’s not on any ordinary cruise. He’s on The Love Boat.

What’s a sworn bachelor to do on a Caribbean cruise full of romance and love? He’ll either have to jump ship or embrace the unforgettable romantic comedy headed his way.

Now Available – 99¢ on Kindle

Future Perfect

I’m so excited about 2015. Moving ahead always excites me though. I’m the daughter of a nomad. We moved so many times, I lost count. But one thing developed in me in the midst of all that. I could leave the past behind and look ahead. Out of necessity, to protect my heart and mind, I learned to turn my back on the place we were leaving–keep my eyes on the horizon–the place we were headed.

This attitude served me well over the years. My husband and I moved a lot less. We settled into a home in the suburbs and stayed put, raised our sons, and still stayed. The house is not large, so it’s quite comfortable now, with just the two of us. Well, until the sons come to visit with all of theirs. Then it can be a little over the top, but still fun.

Now the things I have to leave behind are different. They aren’t friends and houses and schools and countryside. They tend to be old habits and wasteful ways. Spring-cleaning takes on new meaning! Revamping, revising, renovation! I’m excited!

I’m also excited about Authorview this year. I started these interviews as a way to help friends find new writers and also, to help authors and writers promote their work. It’s always best if someone else promotes you and your work and accomplishments, don’t you think?

So out of these desires, came Authorview. In 2015, it will be a monthly post, every third Tuesday. Occasionally, I might plug in an additional post when I have a special request from an author.

This new addition to my blog has already been exciting, but 2015 promises even more. I’ve changed the interview questions, but they’re still lighthearted and fun. My purpose? To bring out some of the true character of the author, let the readers gain a little insight into the real person behind the book.

Next week begins the 2015 Authorview year. My very first interviewee is Katie (K.M.) Weiland. You’ll love reading about Katie, and if you’re a beginning writer, I highly recommend her workbooks. She’s committed to helping writers become authors.

I hope you’ll stop in on Tuesday, January 20th for Katie’s interview. If you’re on Facebook, you can “like” (yes, please!) my author page to get reminders of these posts and more (Betty’s Author Page). I promise not to overwhelm you with posts. Or you can have my blogposts delivered to your email. Just fill in the blank on the upper left-hand side of this blog.

I hope your 2015 is going well so far, but if it isn’t, perhaps you need to let some things drift away in the rearview mirror. Forget the past and set your sights on what lies ahead. The road lies before us. Where will it take us this year? I’m excited.

Forgetting what lies behind … stay focused on the goal … Philippians 3:12-21