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GROW BOLDER – NOT OLDER by Carol J. Nelson 8/5/2020 1:55:00 AM BY Patti Shene
Featured Book: Audra – Dying For Life
Author: Carol J. Nelson
Publisher: Bookbaby
Genre: Women’s Fiction
Series or Stand Alone: Book 1 Chandler’s Grove Series
Target Age: All Women
IT IS MY PLEASURE TO WELCOME AUTHOR CAROL J. NELSON TO THE OVER 50 WRITER. CAROL SHARES HOW ANSWERING A CHALLENGE LAUNCHED HER WRITING CAREER.
CAROL IS OFFERING A GIVEAWAY! SIMPLY LEAVE A COMMENT BELOW TO ENTER THE DRAWING FOR A PRINT COPY OF AUDRA – DYING FOR LIFE.
GROW BOLDER – NOT OLDER
by
Carol J. Nelson
Grow bolder, not older is a quote used by Eileen Mcdargh, a resiliency-motivational speaker. I’ve never heard her personally, but my pastor used her quote to encourage the older ones in his flock to engage life instead of retiring to the rocking chair. I accepted his challenge.
I’d been writing little romances as a hobby most of my life. I wrote articles for our church newsletter reporting what was happening in the young married couples group my husband and I were part of. I took a writing course. I wrote four novels and did nothing with them but let them gather dust. The years passed. I grew older. My husband died. The only thing I had on my hands was time.
Then came the challenge: Grow bolder, not older.
Did that include publishing my books when all my friends were enjoying retirement? I had to prayerfully consider that. At my age, did I want to embark on a full-time career, even if it were to last only a few years? When I was satisfied that’s exactly what the Lord wanted me to do, I had to hand the whole idea over to Him. I knew zilch about getting published in these more modern times of self-publishing, websites, social media, and blogs. But I did know the Lord wanted me to write to bring Him glory.
I polished off novel number one and sent it to the ACFW Genesis contest. It didn’t even garner an honorable mention! But it did catch the eye of an editor who was one of my judges. That was the Lord’s doing. She took me under her wing, and working with her was like taking Writing 101. She taught me much as she edited all four of my novels requiring many, many rewrites.
Was it worth it? A thousand times yes.
In January of this year, I turned 81. On August 10, my debut book, Audra – Dying For Life will be released. So, writers, my word to you is don’t let age stop you. Ask yourself: When I was writing at 20 or 30, did I have the wisdom and life experiences to write what I can write now? I didn’t. Has the Lord been preparing me to write later in life? He did that for me. How will I know? Pray, pray, pray, listen and obey.
Younger writers, if the Lord has blessed you with the ability to communicate with words, guard that gift well. Write what is pleasing to the Lord and you will never regret it.
Back cover copy for Audra – Dying For Life
When Audra Knight’s gynecologist says, “I need to do a biopsy,” it numbs her to the core of her being. She’s young, she’s single, and she’s at risk for developing cancer. It’s not the time to be noticing Dann Day, the handsome new band-orchestra teacher at Chandler’s Grove Academy. But why should Dann consider her, anyway, with her unresolved anger issue, the way she’s strayed from church and God, and the fact that Heather Easton already seems to have claimed him as her own private property? No, she won’t get involved with him. It could too easily end in heartbreak, and she won’t put a man through that. Still…
DON’T FORGET TO LEAVE A COMMENT TO BE PLACED IN THE DRAWING TO WIN A PRINT COPY OF AUDRA – DYING FOR LIFE BETWEEN NOW AND SATURDAY, AUGUST 15TH AT MIDNIGHT MDT. (US residents only eligible)
BY LEAVING A COMMENT, YOU GRANT PERMISSION FOR YOUR EMAIL TO BE REVEALED TO THE AUTHOR IF YOU ARE THE WINNER TO FACILITATE RECEIPT OF YOUR BOOK.
Carol J. Nelson lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico where she spends most days writing Christian Women’s Fiction–stories that touch the fabric of women’s lives with hope, grace, and faith, combined with a smattering of clean romance. She has three daughters, seven grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren. Besides church, she enjoys gardening, cooking, and playing cards and games. Visit Carol at caroljnelson.com
WHAT LIES AHEAD by Patti Shene Gonzales 8/1/2020 6:15:00 PM BY Patti Shene
WHAT LIES AHEAD
by
Patti Shene Gonzales
The last time you heard from me, (find my post on The Over 50 Writer here), I wrote about my progress after my foot surgery on May 19th. Since then, I’ve had the cast removed, am attending PT twice a week, and performing at home exercises twice daily. I’m using a walker, wearing a Cam boot, and bearing weight on my right foot as tolerated, a little more each day.
That’s just a brief update of what’s been going on with me during this COVID-19 pandemic. I look back with amazement at the activities I anticipated in March that never came to pass.
In March, we eagerly envisioned my granddaughter’s graduation as valedictorian of her class, followed by a party where my sister from New York and my son from the UK would be in attendance. Instead of walking across the stage in the high school gymnasium, she was driven onto the football field, selected her diploma off a table, had her picture taken, then participated in a vehicle parade. Her valedictorian speech was posted online weeks later.
Last December, I obtained four tickets to the Colorado Rockies game on opening week-end. My friends who I had invited and I were practically counting the days. Then came the pandemic and Rockies season was severely curtailed, not to mention in person fanless (yeah, not a real word I guess) when they did commence their considerably shortened season.
In June of 2019, I put a deposit on an Alaskan cruise that was to sail this June. I don’t have to explain why my cabin-mate and I never stepped foot on the deck of that ship.
These are all minor disappointments and pale into insignificance in comparison to those who have lost their lives to COVID-19, lost loved ones without the comfort of a funeral surrounded by family and friends, lost jobs, or lost income. The list goes on and on as to how people have been adversely affected by the pandemic.
If I have learned anything during this time of social distancing, mask wearing, fear, misinformation, and uncertainty, it is that the future is a huge unknown…
Here on Earth, that is.
I am reading Randy Alcorn’s Heaven. I’ve always enjoyed his fiction, but this non-fiction work, based on several years of research and heavily backed by scripture, is a deep, thought-provoking read that has gripped me and won’t let go.
I’m only on page 64 of a 490+ page book, but even those pages have fortified my already strongly-held belief that we do have a final destination and a tomorrow we can count on. No world event is going to come along that will cancel or postpone that final moment in our lives, that moment when we know we will experience eternity either in God’s presence or His absence.
An invitation assures a seat at graduation, a ticket admits a fan into the baseball stadium, and a reservation permits a passenger on board ship. Our only requirement to gain the greatest experience of all, eternal life with God, is to accept His son, Jesus Christ, as our Lord and Savior.
Living in a graduate’s neighborhood doesn’t guarantee a ticket to graduation, watching the baseball team on television doesn’t enable access through the stadium gates, and a love of boating doesn’t allow one to enjoy a cruise. Likewise, salvation isn’t achieved through “good works” or “treating people nice” or “donating to charity”. There’s nothing wrong with those things, but they do not hold the ticket to Heaven.
The COVID-19 pandemic will someday be relegated to the annals of history. Even so, we can never say with any degree of assuredness in the future that graduation plans won’t be altered, a baseball game won’t be cancelled, and a ship will not sail.
We can say with absolute conviction that our life on Earth will someday end. We don’t know where, when, or how we will leave this world, but we do have a choice to make as to our eternal destination.
Jesus is stretching out His hand and inviting you to someday come home with Him.
Will you accept His invitation?
Patti Shene Gonzales maintains two blogs, Patti’s Porch and The Over 50 Writer and is working on a novel. She hosts Step Into the Light, a podcast that strives to lead others out of darkness and back to light. When not writing, reading, or broadcasting, she is spending time with friends or attending her only granddaughter’s sports activities. Patti lives in Colorado with her devoted feline companion, Duncan.
THREE TIPS ON MAKING A DEADLINE by Blossom Turner 7/28/2020 10:59:00 PM BY Patti Shene
FEATURED BOOK:Katherine’s Arrangement
AUTHOR: Blossom Turner
PUBLISHER: Wild Heart Books
GENRE: Inspirational Historical Romance
SERIES OR STAND ALONE: Book #1 in Shenandoah Brides series
TARGET AGE: Adult Women 25 and up
IT IS MY PLEASURE TO WELCOME AUTHOR BLOSSOM TURNER TO THE OVER 50 WRITER. BLOSSOM SHARES TIPS ON HOW TO MEET A DREADED DEADLINE, EVEN WHEN YOU’RE DEAD TIRED.
BLOSSOM IS OFFERING A GIVEAWAY! SIMPLY LEAVE A COMMENT BELOW TO ENTER THE DRAWING FOR AN EBOOK COPY OF KATHERINE’S ARRANGEMENT.
THREE TIPS ON MAKING A DEADLINE
I am a new author at the ripe old age of 58. I’m finally doing what I was born to do. With my first book Anna’s Secret (contemporary romance), I had the privilege of taking my time…years in fact. No one knew my name, nor was my writing in demand. Currently, I’m contracted for a five book historical romance series. The first book in the series, Katherine’s Arrangement, will be launched on August 4th, 2020 with the following four at what I feel is warp speed—every half year thereafter.
My situation has drastically changed. I still have my mother-in-law to care for, my huge property as an avid gardener to keep up, my family and personal life, and full-time hours writing. I understand stress. So, for all you writers out there with deadlines and real life pressing in, here are three tips on making a deadline when feeling dead tired.
Number one may seem logical but is indeed the most important tip.
Start your day with a quiet time with God. Give Him your stress. Give him permission to interrupt the day in any way He deems necessary. (And trust me, He will deem people more important.) God will supernaturally give you the wisdom, balance, and strength you would not otherwise have.
Two: Ask this question. What is the best use of my time?
With only so much energy in a given day, I had decisions to make. My deadline to meet an extensive edit of book two loomed large. The outside work beckoned. As an avid gardener on a ¾ acre lot, all neatly groomed with a copious array of flowers and weeds fighting for dominion, I waffled. I had my mom-in-law who needed help and a friend who could not get her groceries because she is at high risk for Covid. I had my husband and household etc., my other writing of blogs, newsletters, emails, and social media, FB, Twitter, Instagram notifications all reaching out for a piece of me.
Answering this question put all in priority, God, people, work…and more precisely, what work? My God and people got the attention. Gardening and housework got the boot. I turned off social media, blog writing and unnecessary emails. My editing took up the rest of the focus. God helped me prioritize and finish my grueling edit. In other words, I had to let some of it go, and when you are a perfectionist like I am…let me tell you, this was good therapy. LOL
Three: Don’t forget to take care of YOU.
Get enough sleep. Eat properly…don’t binge on sweets while sitting at the computer, (it will make you more tired). Go for a walk or run at least once a day. Exercise feeds the happy endorphins in your brain. My dog schedules this like clockwork. By mid-afternoon, she lets me know it is time to go. This little break gives me energy to sit again.
Lastly, don’t forget to laugh. My husband always has something funny to share, so spending time with him adds that much needed humor. Whatever makes you smile…don’t be stingy on giving that a thumbs up in your day.
Blurb for Katherine’s Arrangement:
Marrying him is her only choice to save her family, but Josiah Richardson isn’t at all the man she expected.
Katherine William’s family was left destitute when their home was burned to the ground by Yankee soldiers, so the ready solution presented by the prominent Mr. Josiah Richardson seems almost too good to believe. He’ll provide a home, work for her pa, and a new beginning for her family...if only Katherine will accept his proposal. A marriage of convenience is the last thing she wants, but there doesn’t seem to be a better option for her family or herself. Setting aside her dreams of love, Katherine agrees to the arrangement.
The gentleman in Josiah Richardson can no more force his frightened bride into his bed than he can force her into loving him, so he sets out to gently woo her. He works hard to befriend her, to earn her trust and win her love.
Katherine is pleasantly surprised to find herself drawn to the man she thought she would never love, until an unexpected friendship tears apart all they’ve worked for. Where once the promise of love had budded between Josiah and Katherine, now they wonder what to do with their so-called marriage. Is love strong enough to weave its healing power through two broken hearts?
DON’T FORGET TO LEAVE A COMMENT TO BE PLACED IN THE DRAWING TO WIN AN EBOOK COPY OF KATHERINE’S ARRANGEMENT BETWEEN NOW AND (DAY), (DATE) MST.
BY LEAVING A COMMENT, YOU GRANT PERMISSION FOR YOUR EMAIL TO BE REVEALED TO THE AUTHOR IF YOU ARE THE WINNER TO FACILITATE RECEIPT OF YOUR BOOK.
Blossom Turner is a free-lance writer published in Chicken Soup and Kernels of Hope anthologies, former newspaper columnist on health and fitness, avid blogger and novelist. She lives in a four-season playground in beautiful British Columbia, Canada, with gardening at the top of her enjoyment list. She has a passion for women’s ministry teaching Bible studies and public speaking, but having coffee and sharing God’s hope with a hurting soul trumps all. She lives with her husband, David, of thirty-eight years. Blossom loves to hear from her readers. Visit her at https://blossomturner.com and subscribe to her quarterly newsletter. Don’t miss Blossom’s other book, a contemporary romance, Anna’s Secret. A Word Guild semi-finalist.
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Featured Book: Audra – Dying For Life
Author: Carol J. Nelson
Publisher: Bookbaby
Genre: Women’s Fiction
Series or Stand Alone: Book 1 Chandler’s Grove Series
Target Age: All Women
IT IS MY PLEASURE TO WELCOME AUTHOR CAROL J. NELSON TO THE OVER 50 WRITER. CAROL SHARES HOW ANSWERING A CHALLENGE LAUNCHED HER WRITING CAREER.
CAROL IS OFFERING A GIVEAWAY! SIMPLY LEAVE A COMMENT BELOW TO ENTER THE DRAWING FOR A PRINT COPY OF AUDRA – DYING FOR LIFE.
GROW BOLDER – NOT OLDER
by
Carol J. Nelson
Grow bolder, not older is a quote used by Eileen Mcdargh, a resiliency-motivational speaker. I’ve never heard her personally, but my pastor used her quote to encourage the older ones in his flock to engage life instead of retiring to the rocking chair. I accepted his challenge.
I’d been writing little romances as a hobby most of my life. I wrote articles for our church newsletter reporting what was happening in the young married couples group my husband and I were part of. I took a writing course. I wrote four novels and did nothing with them but let them gather dust. The years passed. I grew older. My husband died. The only thing I had on my hands was time.
Then came the challenge: Grow bolder, not older.
Did that include publishing my books when all my friends were enjoying retirement? I had to prayerfully consider that. At my age, did I want to embark on a full-time career, even if it were to last only a few years? When I was satisfied that’s exactly what the Lord wanted me to do, I had to hand the whole idea over to Him. I knew zilch about getting published in these more modern times of self-publishing, websites, social media, and blogs. But I did know the Lord wanted me to write to bring Him glory.
I polished off novel number one and sent it to the ACFW Genesis contest. It didn’t even garner an honorable mention! But it did catch the eye of an editor who was one of my judges. That was the Lord’s doing. She took me under her wing, and working with her was like taking Writing 101. She taught me much as she edited all four of my novels requiring many, many rewrites.
Was it worth it? A thousand times yes.
In January of this year, I turned 81. On August 10, my debut book, Audra – Dying For Life will be released. So, writers, my word to you is don’t let age stop you. Ask yourself: When I was writing at 20 or 30, did I have the wisdom and life experiences to write what I can write now? I didn’t. Has the Lord been preparing me to write later in life? He did that for me. How will I know? Pray, pray, pray, listen and obey.
Younger writers, if the Lord has blessed you with the ability to communicate with words, guard that gift well. Write what is pleasing to the Lord and you will never regret it.
Back cover copy for Audra – Dying For Life
When Audra Knight’s gynecologist says, “I need to do a biopsy,” it numbs her to the core of her being. She’s young, she’s single, and she’s at risk for developing cancer. It’s not the time to be noticing Dann Day, the handsome new band-orchestra teacher at Chandler’s Grove Academy. But why should Dann consider her, anyway, with her unresolved anger issue, the way she’s strayed from church and God, and the fact that Heather Easton already seems to have claimed him as her own private property? No, she won’t get involved with him. It could too easily end in heartbreak, and she won’t put a man through that. Still…
DON’T FORGET TO LEAVE A COMMENT TO BE PLACED IN THE DRAWING TO WIN A PRINT COPY OF AUDRA – DYING FOR LIFE BETWEEN NOW AND SATURDAY, AUGUST 15TH AT MIDNIGHT MDT. (US residents only eligible)
BY LEAVING A COMMENT, YOU GRANT PERMISSION FOR YOUR EMAIL TO BE REVEALED TO THE AUTHOR IF YOU ARE THE WINNER TO FACILITATE RECEIPT OF YOUR BOOK.
Carol J. Nelson lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico where she spends most days writing Christian Women’s Fiction–stories that touch the fabric of women’s lives with hope, grace, and faith, combined with a smattering of clean romance. She has three daughters, seven grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren. Besides church, she enjoys gardening, cooking, and playing cards and games. Visit Carol at caroljnelson.com
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