STARDUST - Carla Stewart - Free Book

God has really been moving in your writing life. What do you see on the horizon?

I’m amazed at God’s graciousness in allowing me to write the stories of my heart. I just turned in my fourth book which will release in 2013, but after that, it’s wait and see. I have a couple of stories I’d like to write, but for now I’m in marketing mode for Stardust and waiting for edits on my next book. One thing for sure, there’s never a dull moment!

Tell us a little about your family.

My husband, Max, and I will celebrate our 40th wedding anniversary on May 26. It doesn’t seem possible. Our four sons have married amazing girls and blessed us with five grandsons and one granddaughter. I’m also honored to celebrate good times with my dad who will be 86 this summer and am close to my two sisters.

Has your writing changed your reading habits? If so, how?

Yes. I read with a more critical eye, which takes some of my former enjoyment of reading away. I’ve been surprised at the number of endorsement requests I’ve received, and I’ve loved that—reading books before they’re released. Some of them have been wonderful! I wish I had more time for guilty reading pleasure so when those times come, I choose carefully, trying to find books that give me an escape or which have come highly recommended. Two great sources for that have been the She Reads Book Club and the Pulpwood Queens Book Club. I’ve also started reading more e-books on my iPad, but it’s not my preference.

What are you working on right now?

I turned in Sweet Dreams the first of April so I’ll be writing discussion questions and doing edits on it soon. It’s a story of two close-knit cousins who attend an exclusive Texas finishing school in 1962, a time of turbulent social change. 

What outside interests do you have?

We’re active in our Adult Life group at church, and occasionally I volunteer at the Caring Center which provides food and clothing to the underprivileged and homeless of our community. We like to attend the ballgames and special events of our grandkids, but none of them live here, so we make a lot of weekend trips.

How do you choose your settings for each book?

Setting and era are huge for me – creating a story world so that this particular story could not have taken place anywhere else or at any other time. The bayou setting in Stardust was something new for me, but I made several trips to East Texas and took the riverboat ride down the bayou and asked the tour guide a lot of questions so I could portray an authentic setting. Settings and having a “backdrop” helps me create a fresh story. In Chasing Lilacs, I used the way depressions and mental illness was treated in the fifties and chose the setting where I grew up. In Broken Wings, the jazz culture of Tulsa intrigued me, and since I live in Tulsa, I wanted to pay homage to the town I love. I like to have intimate knowledge of the setting by visiting the area, to experience the way people talk and note sensory cues like smell, the foliage, a bit of the history. 

If you could spend an evening with one historical person, who would it be and why?

Jimmy Stewart, the actor. He’s always been a favorite, and I’d love to hear his voice in person and hear him recite his off-beat poems and stories. 

What is the one thing you wish you had known before you started writing novels?

That I would have to become a technology wizard (and I’m not). I still get frustrated on a daily basis.

What new lessons is the Lord teaching you right now?

To give it my all and leave the results in His hands. There is nothing I can do about sales or reviews or people whose taste doesn’t include what I write, so I’m learning not to fret about that. Have I arrived? Absolutely not, but God is in control, and for that I’m thankful.

What are the three best things you can tell other authors to do to be successful?

One: Follow your heart and write from the deep places within yourself. In other words, don’t follow trends. Good, well-crafted stories written with passion will sell – maybe not tomorrow or even next year, but they will sell.

Two: Write another story while you’re waiting. Stretch yourself in ways you didn’t think possible.

Three: Learn the value of social networking and building a platform, and by this I don’t mean a “sell, sell, sell” mentality, but making genuine friendships and sharing your life with readers, other writers, even strangers.

Tell us about the featured book.

Stardust is the story of a young mom whose unfaithful husband drowns in the bayou of East Texas in 1952. Shortly after she buries him, Georgia Payton inherits the derelict Stardust Tourist Court from a distant relative. Faced with opposition from the aunt who raised her and others in the town, Georgia breathes new life into the cottages.

The guests who arrive, though, aren’t what Georgia expects: her gin-loving mother-in-law; her dead husband's mistress; an attractive drifter who's tired of the endless road; and an aging Vaudeville entertainer with a disturbing link to Georgia's past. Dreams of a new life are crippled amid the havoc.

Woven throughout is the presence of polio, both as a fearsome possibility and a stark reality for some. When polio strikes close to home, Georgia's only hope is that she can find the courage to forgive those who've betrayed her, the grace to shelter those who need her, and the moxie to face the future. One thing is certain: under the flickering neon of the STARDUST, none of their lives will ever be the same.

Please give us the first page of the book.

My marriage to O’Dell Peyton was already over when he washed up on the shores of Zion. Of course, no one knew it was O’Dell when the little boy came running from the bayou, bellowing to Cecil at the tire shop that he’d discovered a drowned body. Fact is, no one even knew O’Dell was missing. If someone had asked where he’d been keeping himself, I would’ve said, “Oh, you know O’Dell. He’s got The Book of Knowledge encyclopedia route for all of East Texas. Wouldn’t surprise me if he’s sold to half the people in Tyler by now. Goes over to Kilgore some too.”

The truth was O’Dell left me and our two girls the second week in February. I found the note tucked in the sugar bowl, telling me he’d met a woman who appreciated him. I’d spent two months chewing on that, hot as a pistol one minute, crumpled in grief the next, trying to figure out where I’d gone wrong.

Aunt Cora said, “Georgia, there are plenty of men out there. You’re lucky you found out now, while you’re still young and have your looks.” Aunt Cora, bless her, had yet to find a man in Mayhaw suitable—or willing—to marry her. And looks had nothing to do with it. She could still be a movie star pinup.

How can readers find you on the Internet?

My website: www.carlastewart.com

Follow me on Twitter: www.twitter.com/#!/ChasingLilacs

FaceBook: http://www.facebook.com/carlastewartauthor

GoodReads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3335371.Carla_Stewart

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/chasinglilacs/   

Amazon link to Stardust:

http://www.amazon.com/Stardust-A-Novel-Carla-Stewart/dp/1455504289/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1334187418&sr=8-1

Thank you, Carla, for the interesting interview.



Readers, ;

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BROKEN WINGS - Carla Stewart - Free Book

Why do you write the kind of books you do?

I’ve always been intrigued with relationships and the quirky twists in life, so I wanted to write stories that reflect the human condition – both the tragic and the victorious. Because the past influences the people we are today, I wanted to tell nostalgic stories from the eras of my parents and my own childhood. So far I’ve been fortunate to be able to do that.

Besides when you came to know the Lord, what is the happiest day in your life?

My birthday a few years ago. We went out to eat with our neighbors to a restaurant that had a jazz band playing. The band leader asked for requests so I asked him to sing Louie Armstrong’s “What a Wonderful World” since it’s my husband’s favorite song. A little later in the evening, the singer came to our table and sang the song to us, complete with the trumpet part. It was like magic in the air, surrounded with people we loved and being perfectly contented. That night I realized it’s not the big events or turning points in our lives that bring happiness, but the small moments that take our breath away. It really is a wonderful world we live in.

How has being published changed your life?

Very interesting question. Before I was published I fretted over whether I would EVER get an agent or a contract. Now I fret over whether I will have time to cook dinner or clean the house. It’s become a very consuming thing with marketing, networking, and juggling the different phases of each book. I don’t think I realized how many technical things I would have to master as a published author. Yet, when I get a letter from a reader I’ve never met, and she tells me she heard her father’s voice in my writing or that it made me her smile to remember forgotten things from her youth, it’s so rewarding. And there’s always Arby’s for dinner or the Merry Maids if I have company coming and no time to clean.

What are you reading right now?

 I’m working on edits at the moment, but the last book I read was Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand by Helen Simonson. I met this talented debut author last winter and loved her book. I’ve also just finished Patti Lacy’s upcoming novel, Reclaiming Lily, which I read for endorsement.

What is your current work in progress?

Stardust, a story set in East Texas in 1952 during the height of the polio epidemic. I just received the content edits for it and have a proposal in to my editor for a nostalgic “girlfriend” story tentatively titled Sweet Dreams.

What would be your dream vacation?

Spending three months in a cottage in England where I could walk my little dog on cobblestone streets and stop at the green grocers to pick up fresh produce for our evening meal.

How do you choose your settings for each book?

At the risk of sounding cliché, they actually find me. When I start thinking about a new book, I usually have a premise and a character or two. I put them in the setting that best fits their situation and the story they have to tell. In Broken Wings, I knew I wanted an aging jazz singer to tell her story to someone. I’d read an article in the Tulsa paper about the possible renovation of an old jazz hall. I did a little checking and found out Tulsa has a rich jazz history so it was only logical that this would be the setting. All my other contracted and published stories have been set in different parts of Texas. Someday I’d like to step away from “what I know” but we’ll see.

If you could spend an evening with one person who is currently alive, who would it be and why?

It would be a couple – George and Laura Bush. We have a Texas heritage in common as well as having twins. We wouldn’t discuss politics but favorite memories, children, places we’ve been, what matters most to us.

What are your hobbies, besides writing and reading?

Traveling with my husband. Word Puzzle Books. Collecting antiques. Music. I used to quilt, paint folk art, and sew, but alas, those have gone by the wayside when I took up my proverbial pen.

What is your most difficult writing obstacle, and how do you overcome it?

Finding the balance between marketing and actual writing. I’m still trying to figure out the best way to manage that, but since I’m most creative in the afternoons, I try to keep those hours sacred for writing and tend to the marketing and editing chores in the morning. I rarely get on FaceBook until in the evening as I’ve found I spend too much time there.

What advice would you give to a beginning author?

Join a writing group and read books on craft. Don’t wait until you think you’re “set” to start writing. What you’re writing will become infused with the craft as you practice. Also, I think it’s a good idea to follow your gut and write that which is burning inside you. Agents and editors want fresh voices and yours might be the one they’ve been waiting on. That said, you have to follow some guidelines and know your genre and what is acceptable and what is not. It’s an ever-changing process and a noble calling. For a beginning writer, magazines and anthologies like the Chicken Soup books are also a good way to dip your toes in the water. And those publishing credits are like gold on your writing resume.

Tell us about the featured book.

Broken Wings is the story of an unlikely friendship between two women who end up being dependent on one another through some difficult situations. It’s a “framed” story so a good part of it is nostalgic and told as flashback which dovetails with the contemporary story. Here’s the back cover copy: 

Onstage, the singing duo of Gabe and Mitzi Steiner captured America's heart for more than two decades. Offstage, their own hearts have throbbed as one for sixty years. Only now, Gabe has retreated into the tangles of Alzheimer's, leaving Mitzi to ponder her future alone.

On the other side of Tulsa, everyone believes Brooke Woodson has found the perfect man--a handsome lawyer with sights on becoming Tulsa's next District Attorney. If only Brooke felt more sure. If only her fiancé could control his anger. If only love didn't come with so many scars.

When an accident lands Brooke in the hospital where Mitzi volunteers, the two women quickly develop an unlikely friendship birthed by providence and bathed in grace. And with Mitzi's help, kindness, and insight, Brooke learns how to pick up the broken pieces of her life.

Please give us the first page of the book. 

PROLOGUE

St. Louis, April 1935              

When you’re six years old and the only ocean you’ve seen is in a picture book at Public School No. 16, you don’t have a big view of the world. And the other kids running up and down your street in ragged knickers and hand-me-down dresses don’t know beans either. To all of us, a mountain was the pile of rocks along the banks of the Mississippi, one we clamored around, spouting truths about the universe as we knew it. And about our Huck Finn dreams of building a raft that would take us all the way to the ocean.

Sometimes when Mama sat with her arm around me on the wood steps of our two-room row house, I’d tell her my ocean dream. And how, if I couldn’t have that, I wanted to live in one of those houses on the other side of the green park. The ones that could hold a family our size six or seven times over. I’d fill it with children and get a pony for the backyard and two Great Danes for the front, I’d tell her. And it would ring with laughter and singing for everyone who passed by.

 “You’re a dreamer, Maggie,” Mama would say and twist my chestnut hair into two ropey braids. “But don’t you stop spinning those golden tales, ’cuz as sure as my name’s Lorna Beth Poole, I’m going to take you to the ocean, dumplin’. We’ll cross the mountains, dip our toes in the water, and collect sea shells by the dozen. And that’s a fact.”

Then Papa would be there, his moonshine jug hooked in the thumb of one hand, a black cigar puffing smoke like a locomotive in the other. And he didn’t allow such talk of the mountains or the ocean. Or much of anything.

How can readers find you on the Internet?  

Website: www.carlastewart.com

Follow me on Twitter: www.twitter.com/#!/ChasingLilacs

FaceBook: http://www.facebook.com/carlastewartauthor 

Amazon link to Broken Wings:

Thanks, Lena, for having me on your wonderful blog!

And thank you, Carla, for giving us another peek into your life. Come back anytime.

Readers, here's a link to the book. By using it when you order, you help support this blog.

Leave a comment for a chance to win a free copy of the book. Please tell us where you live, at least the state or territory. (Comments containing links may be subject to removal by blog owner.)

Void where prohibited; the odds of winning depend on the number of entrants. Entering the giveaway is considered a confirmation of eligibility on behalf of the enterer in accord with these rules and any pertaining local/federal/international laws.

The only notification you’ll receive is the winner post on this blog. So be sure to check back a week from Saturday to see if you won. You will have 4 weeks from the posting of the winners to claim your book.

If you’re reading this on Feedblitz, Facebook, or Amazon, please come to the blog to leave your comment if you want to be included in the drawing. Here’s a link.

Http://lenanelsondooley.blogspot.com  

CHASING LILACS - Carla Stewart - Free Book

Brief author bio:

A two-time ACFW Genesis winner, Carla Stewart is a Guideposts Writers Workshop alumna and has been published in Guideposts, Angels on Earth, and several regional magazines and anthologies. Her debut novel, Chasing Lilacs, releases this month with FaithWords. Carla enjoys a good cup of coffee, weekend getaways with her husband, and the antics of their six grandchildren.

Welcome, Carla. Tell us how much of yourself you write into your characters.

I don’t intentionally write myself into them, but I know I draw on my past experiences to find my character’s emotions, and the setting of Chasing Lilacs is very much like the place where I grew up. Still, my characters often say or do something that I would.

What is the quirkiest thing you have ever done?

According to my husband, I am a quirk :-) A few years ago, for our 50s-themed Christmas Banquet at church, I talked three shy, stage-frightened friends into performing a pantomime quartet for the entertainment portion of the evening. We wore matching poodle skirts and did our choreographed mime to “Mr. Sandman” and “Goodnight, Sweetheart, Goodnight.” We were the hit of the evening.

Sounds like fun. When did you first discover that you were a writer?

In the sixth grade I wrote a “steamy” romance (to me anyway) and sent my only copy to a Hollywood producer, convinced they would cast Sandra Dee and Richard Chamberlain in the title roles. I never heard back. The sting of rejection lasted forty years while I busied myself with writerly tasks like church bulletins, chatty Christmas newsletters, and critiquing my kiddos writing projects for school. So, I guess I’ve always written and dreamed that someday I would write a book, but it wasn’t until nine years ago that I began to pursue writing in earnest.

Tell us the range of the kinds of books you enjoy reading.

I read a bit of everything – mysteries (Dick Francis and John D. MacDonald are favorites), mainstream and literary fiction (Anne Tyler, Barbara Kingsolver, Sue Monk Kidd, Sara Gruen, Rosamund Pilcher), and for the past few years, a lot of great Christian fiction (Susan Meissner, Lisa Samson, Mary DeMuth, W. Dale Cramer, and a host of newer authors). I especially love to read books that transport me to the character’s world, teach me some factoid about history or have a psychological twist. I also enjoy quirky humor now and then.

What other books have you written, whether published or not?

Chasing Lilacs will be my first published book, but the first novel I completed was a mystery, followed by a few abandoned women’s fiction attempts. I have a completed Young Adult novel that was a Genesis winner in 2008, and I’ve just finished my second contracted book, tentatively titled Broken Wings. It, like Chasing Lilacs, is women’s fiction with a nostalgic thread.

How do you keep your sanity in our run, run, run world?

It helps that we are empty-nesters and I don’t work outside the home. I have the daytime to myself, and in the evenings, my husband and I spend time working on the yard, taking our doxy for walks, and discussing our day. We sometimes attend jazz concerts and Broadway shows that come to our city. Taking weekend trips to visit family (and grandkids) gives me a break from my normal writing routine. Even though writing can sometimes be hectic, I’m learning to just do what I can every day, and through God’s grace, it all seems to get done.

How do you choose your characters’ names?

I wish I had a method, but usually the names just come to me. Since I write nostalgic fiction, I have a lot of fun choosing names that give flavor to the era or sound the way I want my character to be perceived. I also like to use nicknames (Slim, Red, Bebe, Waggs, etc.) or even make up names sometimes.

What is the accomplishment that you are most proud of?
Raising four boys and surviving to tell about it!
I didn't get my boys until grandsons. If you were an animal, which one would you be, and why?
A dachshund like the one who sits on my lap while I write (Zelda). She is faithful, loves me even when I leave her at the kennel, and is always ready for an adventure. She also has a mind of her own and is not afraid to let me know. Those are qualities I love and think I would make a great pal to my owner if I were a pooch.

What is your favorite food?

This is a loaded question: sort of like picking your favorite child. I do love seafood, though, especially shrimp. I often work shrimp into my recipes at home. But I also love Mexican food when we go out to eat.

What is the problem with writing that was your greatest roadblock, and how did you overcome it?

As a new writer, I knew little about the “rules” of the craft – backstory, point of view, goals and motivation, how to write scenes and sequels. When I became aware that I needed to learn these things, I went at it like I was training for the Olympics. I took internet classes, attended workshops, and let others critique my work. Eventually, I started entering contests. I still read craft books regularly and study my favorite novels to see what makes great prose. I’m not sure it’s possible to learn all the nuances of great writing, but my goal is to continue toward excellence and to continue learning all that I can. The challenge of that is what keeps me moving forward and makes me fall in love with writing all over again each new day.

What advice would you give to an author just starting out?

Learn the craft. Attend writers’ groups and conferences. Allow others to critique your work. Then, just write with abandon and let your voice come through. Don’t be afraid of being unique and writing the novel of your heart.

Tell us about the featured book.

Chasing Lilacs is Women’s Fiction with a nostalgic flavor. In this coming-of-age story set in Texas, the year is 1958, Elvis is on the radio, and summer is in the air. The times are simple and carefree. Or should be, but twelve-year-old Sammie Tucker has plenty of questions about her mother’s “nerve” problems. About shock treatments. About whether her mother even loves her. When tragedy strikes and a not-so-favorite aunt arrives, Sammie has to choose who to trust with her deepest fears. Her best friend with an opinion about everything? The mysterious kid from California whose own troubles plague him? Or her round-faced neighbor with gentle advice and strong shoulders to cry on? Then, there’s the elderly widower who seems nice, but has his own dark past.

Trusting is one thing, but accepting the truth may be the hardest thing Sammie’s ever done.

Please give us the first page of the book.

That June, right after I finished sixth grade, Norm MacLemore’s nephew came to Texas for a visit. Benny Ray Johnson brought home a new Edsel. And Mama tried to take her life for the first time.

We lived at Graham Camp then—a petroleum plant with company housing. A spot in the Panhandle of Texas where the blue of the sky hurt your eyes and the wind bent the prairie grass into an endless silk carpet as far as you could see in every direction. God’s country, some people called it. While it may be true that God created that corner of the world, it crossed my young mind that he must have been looking the other way when it came to Mama. Why else would Mama’s spells, as Daddy called them, drive her deeper into her quilts? Lights out. Shades drawn.

Her spell that June had gone on longer than most, and she seemed to be slipping farther away. I hoped my being out of school might snap her out of it, and I had no trouble inventing excuses to linger in the house and be of some use to Mama. Mostly, she let me fetch her things. An ice bag for her headache. Another one of those pills from the brown bottle.

I tiptoed in and out with her requests and studied her for signs of improvement. With every smile or pat on my hand, my insides lurched. Maybe today she’ll suggest we bake a cake. Or take a walk down to Willy Bailey’s store. I would have settled for just having her sit with me on the couch and watch television.

Please don’t get me wrong. Mama was the primary thing on my mind, but a few days into the summer, I began to get restless. Itchy. As I scribbled ideas for the newspaper my best friend, Tuwana Johnson, and I planned to write, my mind drifted, wondering what the next three months would hold. When the floorboards creaked beside me, I looked up, startled to see Mama shuffling into the front room. A little flutter came into my chest. Mama’s robe hung limp on her thin frame, the belt trailing behind.

How can readers find you on the Internet?

My website is http://www.carlastewart.com/
My blog is Carla’s Writing Café: http://www.carlastewart.blogspot.com/
Twitter: www.twitter/ChasingLilacs
You can also find me on Face Book, Good Reads, and Linked In.
Thanks, Lena, for having me as your guest and for the work you do in promoting Christian fiction. God Bless.

Thank you, Carla, and thank you for allowing us a glimpse into your life and your book.

Readers, here's a link to the book. By using the link when you order, you help support this blog.














Leave a comment for a chance to win a free copy of the book. (Comments containing links may be subject to removal by blog owner.)

Void where prohibited; the odds of winning depend on the number of entrants. Entering the giveaway is considered a confirmation of eligibility on behalf of the enterer in accord with these rules and any pertaining local/federal/international laws.

The only notification you’ll receive is the winner post on this blog. So be sure to check back a week from Saturday to see if you won. You will have 6 weeks from the posting of the winners to claim your book.

If you’re reading this on Feedblitz, Facebook, or Amazon, please come to the blog to leave your comment. Here’s a link.

http://lenanelsondooley.blogspot.com/