MASTERPIECE MARRIAGE - Gina Welborn - One Free Book

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

It depends on the character and the story. In Masterpiece Marriage, there’s not much of me in Zenus, but that part of Mary and Arel which resists conforming to expectations is me. Often a character’s struggles and fears are mine. Write what you know.

What is the quirkiest thing you have ever done?

I don’t think really anything I do is quirky. My mother thinks I’m strange because, since I was in junior high, I don’t eat chicken on the bone. Blame my 8th grade biology teacher who made us dissect a chicken breast. In fact, when I buy a turkey, I make College Boy clean and prepare it. Hubby carves. The closest I get to the carcass is putting pan in oven and taking it out. But that’s not quirky. That’s just psychological.

When did you first discover that you were a writer?

I don’t think a person can “discover” she’s a writer any more than a person can “discover” she’s a doctor or a public speaker or a painter. Most writers aren’t gifted writers. We’re learned writers. Writing is a learned craft, just as doctoring and speaking well in public are learned skills. What’s beautiful is when our natural bent (personality, interests, talents, passions) meshes with what we want to do, such as write or doctor or paint cathedrals. Good news is that even if you don’t have much talent to write, if you have passion and determination to learn to write, then you can. I first discovered my desire to write when I was twelve. I finally began the journey of learning to how to write fiction about fifteen years ago.

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

Non-fiction is my go-to read. I just finished Let’s Be Brave by Annie Downs and Girl Meets God by Lauren Winner. Annie doesn’t know it but she wrote that book because I am one of those people who needed encouragement to be brave. In the last few weeks, I’ve repeatedly heard God say, “Gina, let’s be brave.” Not always pleasant words to hear (see first question answer about struggle and fears). Lauren’s memoir made me think about how I’ve let religion and religious traditions, not Jesus, define my perspective on too many issues. I really do read a disproportionate amount of non-fiction to fiction, which I recently decided isn’t a bad thing for a romance author who loves romances. The last romances I read and loved were Five Days in Skye, Undeniably Yours, and Once Upon a Prince. 

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

I had to learn that just because everyone is doing something, doesn’t mean I have to. I don’t have to decorate my house with every new trend. I don’t have to be a size 4. I don’t have to put my kids in karate/dance/music/swim lessons. I don’t have to join PTA or be in church every time the doors are open or get a flu shot or read romances because authors read what they write. Life will continue on if I don’t do those things.

How do you choose your characters’ names?

Usually from a census from the state, county, and decade of my story. I scroll through the census and list first and last names that sound cool, then through a process of elimination settle on ones that fit the characters in my head. With Masterpiece Marriage, my hero’s name came from an 1880s Good Housekeeping magazine. A man named Zenus Dane had written a story about growing up with his quilt-loving aunt. Mary just sounds so English. I also found Varrs in an English census, maybe of London. Too often I see modern names in historical romances, so I don’t choose any name that I can’t find historical evidence of use.

What is the accomplishment that you are most proud of?

My five children.

If you were an animal, which one would you be, and why?

A sloth. They don’t really do anything, and I rather like not doing anything. What predators do sloths need to avoid? None. Because any predator stalking a sloth would be so lulled by the sloth’s movements that it’ll fall asleep. Plus my oldest daughter thinks sloths are cool.

What is your favorite food?

Medium-rare steak with a side of steamed and buttered broccoli. Really, the steak is my favorite, but when I’m going to be eating it, I need a side of something delicious.

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

Typing words onto the laptop screen. New story ideas I can easily come up with, but actually writing, or at least getting started, is super hard. What has helped me is brainstorming with Becca Whitham. Once I have a general idea of where I’m going, it’s easier to write.

Tell us about the featured book.

Masterpiece Marriage is the second-to-last novel in Abingdon’s Quilts of Love Series. It’s a romance set in 1891 Eastern Shore Virginia.

After a flood damages the looms at Zenus Dane’s Philadelphia textile mill and the bank demands loan payment, Zenus turns to his aunt for help repurposing his textiles. Trouble is ... his aunt has already been hired by the lovely yet secretive Englishwoman Mary Varrs. Eager to acquire his aunt’s quilt patterns, Zenus attends the summer Quilting Bee, a social event his aunt has uniquely designed with the secret purpose of finding Zenus a wife. However Zenus only has eyes for Mary, but Mary has no such desire for him. Though his aunt is determined to design a masterpiece marriage, both Zenus and Mary will have to overcome their stubborn ways. Can he realize that love requires stepping out of his routine? And will she recognize that following her heart doesn’t mean sacrificing her ambition?

Please give us the first page of the book.

May 9, 1891

In all his thirty-one years, Zenus Dane had never expected to see seven inches of rainfall during a six-hour period.

He trudged through the flooded floor of the textile mill he was able to inspect since the fire marshal had declared it safe. Still, the water reached the third metal clasp of his vulcanized rubber boots, a product he wished he had invented, but was thankful Charles Goodyear did. Although, at the moment, he felt more nauseated than thankful. Through the hole in the roof, the morning sun revealed the full extent of the destruction caused by Friday afternoon’s deluge setting a record for one-day rainfall in Philadelphia.

April was the month for deluges. Not May.

His mouth sour over the damage, Zenus looked to his foreman at the other end of the mill. The man didn’t have to speak for Zenus to know he shared his grim thoughts.

Zenus stopped at the loom farthest from the collapsed roof. A floral cotton print lay half-woven in the machine. Unlike the bolts of textiles in the storage room, the print was as dry as his gabardine suit. It was also water-stained on the bottom portion of the roll. As he had with the other machines, he examined the loom’s frame, the crankshaft, tight-and-loose pulleys, picker stick, shuttle, and race plate. All damp. Oxidation here, too, on the bolts where the floodwater reached its highest level. The looms hadn’t even had a month of usage, and now rust?

Here’s a link to read the first three chapters:

http://www.ginawelborn.com/#!masterpiece-marriage-excerpt/c4da

How can readers find you on the Internet?

I can be found all over the internet in non-inappropriate places. The quickest way to connect is through Facebook.

WEBSITE     www.ginawelborn.com

BLOG     www.ginawelborn.blogspot.com

TEAM BLOG     www.inkwellinspirations.com

FACEBOOK     www.facebook.com/ginamarie.welborn

TWITTER    www.twitter.com/gina_welborn (@gina_welborn)

PINTEREST     www.pinterest.com/ginawelborn

TUMBLR   www.ginawelborn.tumblr.com

AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE     www.amazon.com/author/ginawelborn

LINKEDIN     www.linkedin.com/in/ginawelborn

GOOGLE+    www.google.com/+GinaWelborn

Thank you, Gina, for sharing this book with us. I've really enjoyed reading the Quilts of Love books. I can't wait until my copy of this one gets here.

Readers, here are links to the book. By using one when you order, you help support this blog.
Masterpiece Marriage - Christianbook.com
Masterpiece Marriage: Quilts of Love Series - Amazon
Masterpiece Marriage: Quilts of Love Series - Kindle

Christian Book Store

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.)

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HIGHLAND CROSSING - Laurie Alice Eakes, Pamela Griffin, Jennifer Hudson Taylor, Gina Welborn - Three Free Books (US Only)

I've really been looking forward to featuring this novella collection. Coming from these ladies, it will be very good. How did your story for the collection come about?

LAE: My agent, Tamela Murray of the Steve Laube Literary Agency, called to tell me that Becky Germany wanted a collection centered around Highlanders in America. Pamela Griffin was a natural person to ask because she was in another Scottish novella series and is such a beloved writer in the genre, Gina Welborn because she had done research into Scotland for another project and is just a fine writer, and Jennifer Hudson Taylor because she has her lovely Highland books out. We brainstormed for a couple of weeks, put together a collection of generational connected stories set in North Carolina during the colonial era, and—voila! Becky bought it.

PG: The theme was the Argyll Colony, the Scottish settlers there. From the years (eras) the four of us talked about including, I chose to write about the first shipload of settlers that sailed from Scotland to America, to live in a new land and find peace from oppression, (when the main part of town was no more than one building in the midst of a forest).

JHT – Since I’m contracted for a 3-book series to release in 2013 in which a Scottish family migrates to the Carolinas during the colonial period, I wrote the last novella with the final generation to keep from conflicting with my other series. Hearts Inheritance is set in 1815 in what is now Fayetteville, NC, my home state.

GW: Well, I think the we brainstormed contained very little me brainstormed because I was working on an editor request at the time. However, being able to trust Pamela, Laurie, and Jennifer to direct us to a great premise was easy because they’re all amazing writers. I admire their craft.

What are you reading right now?

LAE: I usually don’t say what I’m reading just in case it’s someone else’s favorite book and I end up not liking it. Mostly I read a mix of historical romance and contemporary romantic suspense or mysteries.

PG: Nothing in fiction. I'm on a February 15th book deadline, (unless the many times I go over my chapters for editing counts as reading - lol)- and won't have much time in reading for relaxation until that is sent in.

JHT – A Hope Undaunted by Julie Lessman

GW: Oh, I’ll happily share I’m reading Annapolis by Roseanna White, Summer of Promise by Amanda Cabot, and Beautiful Outlaw by John Eldredge. I just finished The Untold Story of the New Testament Church by Frank Viola, which totally gave me a new appreciation for Paul’s writing. Of course, one of my favorite novels of 2011 was Laurie’s A Necessary Deception. Laurie, should I share how you nicely insisted I re-read Patricia Veryan’s Golden Chronicles series during the summer of 2010? If you loved Laurie’s first regency, then I recommend reading Veryan’s series to see how an author can take a villain in book 1 and turn him into a hero by book 6.

What other books have you had published?

LAE: This novella collection will be my first novella. I also have Heart’s Safe Passage coming out in February 2012, which is my third book with Baker/Revell and my ninth book published.

PG: I've written for Heartsong Presents, Barbour, Tyndale House, and Summerside Press. All in romance, both historical and contemporary, set in the U.S. and in Europe. My most recent books are Love Finds You in Hope, Kansas (Summerside Press) and In Search of a Memory, In Search of a Dream, and In Search of Serenity (Heartsong Presents) which also is a 3 n' 1 with the title Connecticut Brides (Barbour).

JHT – Highland Blessings and Highland Sanctuary, both with Abingdon Press. I’m also part of another novella collection coming out in April 2012, Quakers of New Garden through Barbour Books.

GW: Later this year my second novella, All Ye Faithful, is part of the A Cascades Christmas anthology. Has anyone else notice how trendy flannel shirts are this winter? Either that or I have lumberjacks on my mind.

What is the hardest thing about writing a part of a novella collection?

LAE: Getting four creative minds going in the same general idea. We all have so many thoughts and ideas that pinning it down to the right ones is a bit of a challenge. It’s a fun challenge, though. Working with Gina and Pamela and Jennifer was a terrific experience. They are all so creative and talented and have such vast knowledge of history. Then the point comes where everything starts to click together, and it’s like creative fireworks—brilliantly fun.

GW: Amen, sister!

PG: When anyone in the group is hard to get in contact with on a regular basis (which thankfully wasn't the case with this group! :))

JHT – This was my first time working with a group of authors on a collaborative team other than a critique group, and it worked out very well. Once we started brainstorming, emails flew back and forth and ideas just starting falling into place. We are all from different parts of the country with varying backgrounds and experiences. I love how we were able to work so well together.

How did collaborating with this team impact you?

LAE: I was never sure I could work with a creative team, I’m such a lone wolf kind of writer, and I did and it worked, and I loved the energy of a team effort.

PG: In every novella team I write with, I always learn something helpful from the rest of the women, usually in relation to the setting or time period we are working with, etc., or other useful writer's tips and information. The other authors in this set were wonderful and easy to collab with.

JHT – It was nice to have other creative minds to bounce ideas around. Authors tend to work alone and that leaves me mulling ideas around in my head, wondering if I’m going in the right direction.

GW: Call me SpongeGina SquareWriter because I sat back and soaked up anything and everything Pamela, Laurie, and Jennifer could teach me.

How do you choose your characters’ names?

LAE: First I find a list of names appropriate to the time period and setting and nationality. From that list I pick names I like. In “Printed on My Heart”, my novella in Highland Crossings  the surname MacGill came from a list of ship passengers to North Carolina during the influx of Scottish immigrants in the mid eighteenth century. Her first name Fiona came from a list of Scottish names used at that time. The hero is Welsh, as many Welsh immigrated to North Carolina at that time, too, and, likewise, I picked appropriate names, though the surname was more difficult, as the Welsh were still shaky on using surnames.

PG: - For this story, I used a great reference book- "Names Through the Ages" by Teresa Norman. it is over 500 pages- extensive- and gives the names used for each century, country, name meanings, etc. I went to the section of names in Scotland 20-30 years prior to when my story begins. I chose Seona, because it means "God is gracious" (something she must learn):  I chose Murdag (Seona's cousin) because it means "Sea warrior" (she is strong in character, helping Seona escape by ship in my first scene.) Just 2 examples. Once I choose a name, I often write the characters to reflect something about the meaning, whether all through story, something they become at end, or just a simple behavior trait that signifies them.

JHT – Since I had the final story, I had to carry on the surnames of the previous generations in the other Highland Crossings novellas. For other surnames I used a genealogical reference on the Argyll Colony entitled, Carolina Scots. Then I went through my list of characters from my 15^th century Highland series and my upcoming MacGregor Quest series to make sure I wasn’t duplicating names. My names evolved from a process of elimination. Based on what was left, I liked Brynna for the heroine and Niall for the hero.

GW: I read a 1790 census of North Carolina and compiled a list of male and female names that stood out to me. Obviously since my heroine is the daughter of Laurie’s leads, her surname was chosen for me. Once I had a list of two choices for each of my leads, I bounced them off Laurie. One choice for my hero was . . . well, hmm, all I can think of is Wolverine which makes me think of Logan which makes me think of Hugh Jackman. And Logan, Hugh or Jackman weren’t on my list. Anyway, Laurie knew a guy who had my hero’s second name choice and he was a weasel so I went with Finley instead. As far as Seran’s name, we liked how it sounded with Cardew, not to mention it was different.

What did you want the reader to take away from your story?

LAE: Trusting that God has a perfect plan for our lives.

PG: Always, always, I want them to feel inspired, encouraged, refreshed, and closer to God, while also being thoroughly entertained and feeling it was well worth their time to read.  :)

JHT – I hope that Heart’s Inheritance reminds readers that our greatest treasure is the unconditional love of God and it is given as our true inheritance.

GW: Plus looking for God’s opportunities, and if we’re really submitting to Jesus as Lord of our lives, then that means we have to be willing to sacrifice our goals, wants, dreams because God may have something better for us. Often He does. Yet we still struggle with letting go of what we think is best, which takes us back to choosing to trust God. It’s a minute-by-minute action.

Are you a member of American Christian Fiction Writers? If so, why?

LAE: Yes, I am a member of ACFW, as I believe belonging to professional writing organizations is important to writers and ACFW is focused on Christian fiction. I also belong to other professional writers organizations.

GW: Ditto.

PG: No.

JHT – Yes, because it is valuable organization that helped me transition from secular fiction to Christian fiction and I’ve found many valuable friends and fellowship.

What is the best piece of advice you received as an author?

LAE: Sit in the chair and write.

PG: No matter what happens, keep your eyes on Jesus, and never quit.

JHT – Don’t ever give up and to remember that God’s timing isn’t necessarily my timing.

GW: Don’t forget you’re telling a story so sometimes you have to tell and not show.

Where can my readers find you on the Internet?

LAE: Mostly, I can be found at http://www.lauriealiceeakes.com From there, one can find my blog. I am also on Facebook. No Twitter account yet. After February when I’ve finished up a couple of major deadlines I’ll work on Twitter.

PG: http://www.pamela-griffin.com/

JHT – www.jenniferhudsontaylor.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/JenniferHudsonTaylor

Twitter: www.twitter.com/jt4novels

GW: My sixth-grade (middle child) son googled me over the Christmas break and said, “Mom, did you know your picture is on the internet?” Even though I explained about being a writer, he still thought being able to google me was creepy. Fans, not stalkers, can find me at www.inkwellinspirations.com, my team blog with eleven other inspirational writers. A link to my personal website can be found on Inkwell. On Facebook, I’m Gina Marie Welborn.


Thank you Laurie Alice, Pamela, Jennifer, and Gina. I know all my readers will love learning about all of you and your book.


Readers, here are links to the book. By using one when you order, you help support this blog.
Highland Crossings (Romancing America) - paperback
Highland Crossings - Kindle


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