Showing posts with label Sally Jo Pitts. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sally Jo Pitts. Show all posts

Monday, November 09, 2020

DESIGNED BY LOVE - Sally Jo Pitts - One Free Book

Welcome back, Sally. God has really been moving in your writing life. What do you see on the horizon?
 I have two more books to write in my Whodunit Seasons of Mystery Series—the winter ebook (Winter Deception) is available for pre-order now. I will be writing the spring and summer books next.

 

Tell us a little about your family. My lawman and private investigator husband of forty-eight years passed away a year ago. I miss his input and encouragement. He was my greatest cheerleader. I am blessed with “his and ours” children, and a fun mix of steps, grands and greats. I live in the Panhandle of Florida with my feisty schnauzer, Gibbs.

 

Has your writing changed your reading habits? If so, how? Yes. When I was a teacher and guidance counselor, my reading focused on learning styles and career planning. With this writing adventure, I’ve met several authors of romance and romantic suspense and read more in those genres.

 

What are you working on right now? Book #3 in the Seasons of Mystery series, Spring Betrayal.

 

What outside interests do you have? My outside interests are church related—Bible study and I teach Sunday school. And my schnauzer has me trained to walk him in the evening.

 

How do you choose your settings for each book? My romance series centered around the same town, which  mirrors my current hometown of Panama City, Florida. In the mystery series, I picked locations that interested me. The mystery I just finished was in a fictional antebellum home because that era intrigues me, and I enjoyed the research.

 

If you could spend an evening with one historical person, who would it be and why? Billy Graham. I would love to hear about his insights and experiences with the various presidents he met during his lifetime.

 

What is the one thing you wish you had known before you started writing novels? The concept of branding and building a platform.

 

What new lessons is the Lord teaching you right now? That the scriptures are timely. The writers of the Old and New Testaments spoke to those of their day but I continually find that the messages are applicable to our times.

 

What are the three best things you can tell other authors to do to be successful? 1- Don’t quit, 2- Continue learning the craft, 3- Read- you can select, from a variety of authors and genres or concentrate on one, reading in general will help your writing.

 


Tell us about the featured book. Designed for Love
is book #3 in my Hamilton Harbor Legacy series. A new War Between the States is brewing and North and South clash when a local interior designer is pitted against a New Yorker in a competition that will shape the destiny of the small town.

 

Please give us the first page of the book.

The urgent call came the night before. 

“You’ve gotta be here tomorrow.” Bagel shop owner Elaine Robinson’s anxious voice surprised Izzie Ketterling.

 After six weeks in Tallahassee helping her mom recuperate from shoulder surgery, Izzie was more than ready to get back home but hadn’t expected being needed at the Hamilton Harbor Commission meeting.

 Not that Izzie had any special pull.

 What she did have was gumption.

She could be counted on to take a stand. With the windows down on her Suburban, Izzie belted out the words to “Open Up the Heavens” along with the song on the radio. Mulling over downtown redevelopment concerns replaced her worry about passing the National Council for Interior Design Qualification test.

A half hour into the trip, she stopped worrying all together and enjoyed the colors of nature splashed on wild persimmon trees tucked among pine-scented evergreens. Crisp October air, so welcome after a hot summer in north Florida, swirled about her face. She fingered her hair, stiffened with hair gel. Earrings, she’d fashioned out of golf tees, clunked in the breeze.

On the outskirts of Hamilton Harbor, the bright red Tally-Ho Drive-In sign appeared to hang suspended in the gathering thunderclouds. Somebody must have finally located the bulbs to light up all the letters.

Throughout her high school years, the sign read, Tall O. Eight years ago, tall zero could have made an appropriate label to hang on her.

 

How can readers find you on the Internet?  https//:www.sallyjopitts.com  

 

Thank you, Sally, for sharing this book. It sounds like a great story.

 

Readers, here are links to the book.

https://amzn.to/3eLDA1p

https://amzn.to/35adcey 

Leave a comment for a chance to win a free copy of the book. You must follow these instructions to be in the drawing. Please tell us where you live, at least the state or territory or country if outside North America. (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 Goodreads, Feedblitz, Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, 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

Thursday, October 29, 2020

AUTUMN VINDICATION - Sally Jo Pitts - One Free Book

Welcome back, Sally Jo. What are some of the spiritual themes you like to write about? 

God gives everyone a purpose, and it’s not what happens to us but what we make of what happens that matters.

 

What other books of yours are coming out soon? 

This featured book, Autumn Vindication, is the first in my Seasons of Mystery series. The winter book will come out soon and I’m currently writing the spring book.

 

If you could spend an evening with one contemporary person (not a family member of yours), who would it be and why? 

The author, Ruth Logan Herne. She is a prolific writer of faith-based fiction who I’d love to chat with about story ideas and how she organizes her writing time.

  

What historical person would you like to meet (besides Jesus) and why? 

George Washington. I’d love to talk to him about his thoughts and feelings during the days our country fought for independence.

 

How can you encourage authors who have been receiving only rejections from publishers? 

Don’t quit. Study the craft and if the rejection includes suggestions learn from it. I entered ACFW Genesis and the suggestions were extremely helpful.

 


Tell us about the featured book.  

Private Investigators Robert Grey and Jane Carson arrive in Pine Bluff, Alabama, to work a voter fraud case but find themselves in the middle of a homicide and their client, the local sheriff, is the prime suspect.

 

Please give us the first page of the book.

Prologue

Jackson Dibbs’ heart pounded with short rapid beats as he pulled his pick-up into Fannie’s Truck Stop on State Road 52 outside Dothan, Alabama. He longed to be a regular customer stopping to take a break, get a cup of coffee or eat dinner.  But he wasn’t.


Was he supposed to park on the right or left side of the car wash? He hadn’t written the instructions down. He had been told to memorize the details. But after spending another restless night at the hospital and driving from Albany, Georgia, Jackson strained to think clearly. Pulling behind the car wash, he rubbed his sweaty palms on his jeans, rolled down his windows, and waited on the van. The warm, damp air carried the smell of hickory smoked barbeque and gasoline, sickening his stomach.


Jackson had been working his civilian job at the Marine Corps Logistics Base for about five months when he first met the tall man he knew as Tip.


Tip started the conversation as he was getting into his truck in the Hardee’s parking lot. “Hey man. I see you work at the marine base.”


“I do. How did you know that?”


“I noticed the sticker on your truck. If I could talk to you a minute, I think you might be interested in what I have to say.”


And that was how it began. When Jackson heard Tip’s proposition, it seemed to be a direct answer to prayer, but now he wondered.


 Out of the glare of the parking lot lighting, the white van materialized.  The vehicle slowly scoped the parking lot, like a buzzard circling his prey, and then pulled beside Jackson’s truck. Jackson got out and greeted Tip with a nervous handshake and smile.Tip got his name from the small mole on the tip of his nose. This was no ordinary mole. This one changed color, like a mood ring, depending on what was happening.


Jackson studied the peculiarity. Blue must be his good mood color. Chad, another one of Jackson’s contacts, claimed he could always tell when Tip was lying—the mole turned yellow.


“Relax man,” Tip said and gave Jackson a pat on his shoulder. “You’re all tense.”


“I wish I could be as cool as you.” Jackson shoved his hands deep in his jeans pockets, rolled his shoulders back and turned his head from side to side to loosen the tension in his neck.


 “It’s easy to be cool. Just think of the money we’re makin’ by side-steppin’ the bureaucrats.”


“Are you sure? I mean really sure? I don’t mind telling you, I’m scared,” Jackson said. He kept a cautious eye on the other cars and trucks in the parking area. Tip rested his tall, lanky body against the van and crossed his short, narrow boots at his ankles. Jackson found himself thinking he must have trouble finding shoes that fit. 

 

How can readers find you on the Internet?  https://www.sallyjopitts.com

 

Thank you, Sally Jo, for sharing this book with my blog readers and me. We’re all eager to read it.

 

Readers, here are links to the book.

https://amzn.to/3kIl0tf 

https://amzn.to/2GdMQPa

 

Leave a comment for a chance to win a free copy of the book. You must follow these instructions to be in the drawing. Please tell us where you live, at least the state or territory or country if outside North America. (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 Goodreads, Feedblitz, Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, 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

Monday, October 19, 2020

STUMBLING UPON ROMANCE - Sally Jo Pitts - One Free Book


Welcome back, Sally. Why do you write the kind of books you do?  

I love to read good, clean, wholesome books that are faith-based, so that is what I enjoy writing.

 

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

When my husband was elected sheriff after a long, hot summer of campaigning! My heart goes out to anyone running for public office. It is not easy.

 

How has being published changed your life? 

The publishing process has opened up a whole new interesting world to me. I have especially enjoyed meeting other Christian authors and have been astounded at the generosity of seasoned authors who are willing to help newcomers along the way.

 

What are you reading right now? 

Rachel Hauck’s, To Love a Prince

 

What is your current work in progress? 

Spring Betrayal, book #3 in my Seasons of Mystery private investigator series.

 

What would be your dream vacation? 

To go to a secluded mountain retreat, with meals furnished and uninterrupted time to write!

 

How do you choose your settings for each book? 

For me, the setting grows out of the story theme and character goals. In Stumbling Upon Romance, my lead character has come to Hamilton Harbor for a fresh start and opens a dog grooming shop. So, I dreamed up an old building in downtown Hamilton Harbor with an upstairs apartment and a dog grooming shop downstairs for her to renovate.

 

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

Gene Stallings—football coach and motivational speaker. I’d love to hear firsthand how he managed to inspire his players and to hear about his special needs son with down syndrome who stood proudly on the sidelines with his dad.

 

I love stories like that. We were friends with a family when my husband and I first married, who had a down syndrome son. He was a delight to know. And the football team at the college made a part of the support staff. What are your hobbies, besides writing and reading? 

I enjoy working on creative household projects like painting, sewing, or refinishing furniture. However, with my writing schedule, household projects are all on hold.

 

I so understand that. I'm writing book 2 of 4 that are contracted to the same publishing company. What is your most difficult writing obstacle, and how do you overcome it? 

Effective use of the senses. I keep a list of sight, smell, sound, taste and touch descriptors to draw on and spark ideas of how to describe my character’s perceptions in a scene.

 

A good idea. What advice would you give to a beginning author? 

Don’t give up. The story will emerge in the rewrites.

 

Tell us about the featured book.  


Stumbling Upon Romance
, Book #2 in the Hamilton Harbor Legacy Series: here is the back cover blurb.

 

Accident-prone dog groomer, Claudia Stewart, is a newcomer to Hamilton Harbor, Florida. She hopes to shed her black cloud image, fit in the community, and find a guy who will knock her off her feet. 

Instead, Claudia and her canine client knock handyman Pete Cullen off his feet and leave him dangling from an overhead beam.

Pete, rejected by a past love, wants to focus on restoration projects and avoid romance at all costs. But Claudia, even with her bungling ways, threatens to steal his heart.

Was their crash meeting just another one of Claudia’s mishaps? Or did the encounter put them on a collision course that would uncover lessons of unconditional love, long-held secrets, and romance?

 

Please give us the first page of the book.

Would she ever escape misfortune?

Florida’s early morning sun bore down on Claudia Stewart, who was stuck outside her dog grooming shop in downtown Hamilton Harbor.

“Good grief. Now my apron’s caught in the door.” Harvey, her giant schnauzer client, sat down—again—on the sidewalk in front of The Pampered Pooch and cocked his furry head.

“At this rate, we’ll never make it to Elaine’s.”

Shoving Harvey’s leash between her knees, she jiggled the key into the old-fashioned keyhole and opened the door, freeing her grooming apron. The business sign, with clock hands set at 9:00 and 5:00, clunked against the door glass, accenting her pride in being a new business owner.

Claudia closed the door behind her a third time. She’d already returned to retrieve her purse. The sun’s rays foreshadowed another hot, humid summer day in the northwest Florida coastal town, and the warm air intensified the scent of vanilla bean coat conditioner on Harvey and her.

Harvey,” Claudia sniffed her shirt, “I smell like a well-groomed canine.” The big, black dog, sporting a new haircut and bandana, perked up his ears and waggled his stump of a tail.

She squinted to read the time on her wristwatch. “Seven o’clock. Should be plenty of time to walk you, and …” Claudia snapped her fingers. “Before we set out this time, I’d better make sure I have the horseshoe for Elaine’s grand opening.”

Harvey blinked at her with black, shiny eyes underneath neatly trimmed brow fringe and sat back down. Claudia stepped on his leash, freeing her hands to check her purse.

 

How can readers find you on the Internet? 

www.sallyjopitts.com


Readers, here are links to the book.

https://amzn.to/3m10xQx

https://amzn.to/2T9BDSA

 

Leave a comment for a chance to win a free copy of the book. You must follow these instructions to be in the drawing. Please tell us where you live, at least the state or territory or country if outside North America. (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 Goodreads, Feedblitz, Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, 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

Thursday, October 01, 2020

AND THEN BLOOMS LOVE - Sally Jo Pitts - One Free Book

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


Good question. Since I can’t separate me from me, my heroines think a lot like me. In addition, the other characters in my stories are still my perception of what I believe they would think or do. So, the answer would be “a lot.” 

 

What is the quirkiest thing you have ever done? 

When I was around 12 years old, I climbed with a friend onto the base of a railroad trestle that spanned over a busy four lane highway in my hometown. We hung on for dear life when a train rumbled over. I remember doing it, but it’s the WHY that escapes me!

 

When did you first discover that you were a writer? 

I had the desire to write since I was elementary school age. I would make up plays and write out movie plots that played in my head. It was after I retired from teaching that I decided to pursue that desire in earnest.

 

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

Sweet stories with happy endings! Romance, romantic suspense, mystery—especially cozies.

 

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

You must have seen my to-do list for today! This question hit home. I read a devotion in the morning to start the day. I write down the night before calls and appointments I have to make and then things I would like to accomplish. As the day unfolds, it helps give me direction and focus and keeps me relatively sane.

 

How do you choose your characters’ names? 

If I hear a name that strikes me as interesting, I keep a list and draw from it. I also use my church prayer list!

 

What is the accomplishment that you are most proud of? 

The first thing that pops into my head is partnering with my husband for 48 years.

 

I understand that one. James and I will celebrate our 56th anniversary in November. If you were an animal, which one would you be, and why? 

Dog. They are loving and forgiving—traits I’d love to have all the time.

 

What is your favorite food? 

Butternut squash soup. I had Wolfgang Puck’s soup at Disney World and became a fan.

 

The most delicious butternut squash soup I ever had was on a mission trip in Guatemala. I'd never eaten squash soup before that. What is the problem with writing that was your greatest roadblock, and how did you overcome it? 

Expressing the senses and showing. I continue to work on it and found the little book, Rivet Your Readers with Deep Point of View by Jill Elizabeth Nelson, to be helpful.


Tell us about the featured book. 


In And Then Blooms Love, I posed the question, What if two people were married but didn’t know it? Out of that premise came this more specific question: What if a wedding florist discovers she’s married to the groom?


She is determined to forget him …

Hurt by her former fiancé Clifton Davenport, new flower shop owner Emme Matthews is working hard to establish a successful business and provide for the three-year-old child she is raising. Financial woes plague her, and she is forced to accept a floral job for a special dinner at the Davenport plantation. Not wishing to upset the event, Emme stays behind the scenes, only to learn the dinner is to announce Clifton’s engagement.


He loved her from the first day he saw her …

Plantation manager Clifton Davenport harbors deep regrets. Two rash decisions not only pushed the family business near bankruptcy but cost him his first love—the girl he knew as Mary Elaine Matthews. She has moved on and so must he. Ironically, his impending marriage to the daughter of a Brazilian oil magnate might be the salvation of the Davenport legacy and the answer to Emme’s indebtedness.


A discovery threatens to change things …

Shocking news forces Emme and Clifton to face not only their past but the love they left behind.

 

That sounds intriguing. Please give us the first page of the book.   

Could she steal ten minutes of quiet before life found her? With a devotional book squeezed under her arm and a steaming mocha latte in hand, Emme Matthews crept down the stairs of her living quarters to the flower shop below. First light was ushering a new spring morning into Hamilton Harbor, snuggled in the crook of the coastline on Florida’s Panhandle. She didn’t want to miss the show.


C-r-e-e-e-a-k


“Shh.” She lifted her foot from the squeaky step and listened. No stirrings came from three-year-old Richie’s room. The plink of water dripping in the work sink downstairs provided customary white noise. Floral fragrances sparred with the musky scents of new carpet and freshly painted walls.


Only two more steps.


But when her bare foot touched the hardwood floor at the bottom of the stairs, a warning alarm shrieked from the refrigerated floral display case. Emme jumped. Hot coffee sloshed on her hand and the devotion book skittered across the floor. She plunked the cup on the work table, ran to the sink, and shoved her hand under the faucet to let the water cool her skin. Sunlight pushed through the front display window, exposing a layer of condensation on the cooler’s glass doors.


“My flower shipment.” The words spilled from her mouth. She snatched the cooler door open. Inside, a blend of sweet odors filled her nostrils. The damp shelves and sides of the refrigerated case were barely cool to the touch. The daisies were holding up, but the daffodils had begun to nod. “Please, please, please stand tall.” No way she’d give voice to the florist’s dreaded wilt word.


Talking to plants had a therapeutic effect, and these flowers needed encouragement. “You can make it. I’ll get help as soon as I can.” She closed the door and ran shaky, damp fingers through her long hair, snagging on the tangles.

 

How can readers find you on the Internet? 

www.sallyjopitts.com


Thank you, Sally, for sharing this story with my blog readers and me. I'm so glad my copy came earlier this week. I'm eager to read it.

 

Readers, here are links to the book.

https://amzn.to/33gqmWq 

https://amzn.to/3n7GGAy

 

Leave a comment for a chance to win a free copy of the book. You must follow these instructions to be in the drawing. Please tell us where you live, at least the state or territory or country if outside North America. (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 Goodreads, Feedblitz, Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, 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