A SEASON AT THE GRAND - Sherri Wilson Johnson - One Free Book

Welcome to my blog, Sherri. Tell us about your salvation experience. I accepted Jesus as my savior when I was six years old. I grew up in a Christian home and going to church every Sunday was the norm. But one particular Sunday I remember a strong urgency to be saved. I asked my pastor about it and he thought I wanted a drink of water. To this day we don’t know why he thought that except he was hard of hearing. He tried to direct me to the water fountain and it wasn’t until I screamed at him that I wanted to ask Jesus into my heart that he realized I wanted the living water and not water from a fountain.

I wanted to accept Jesus into my heart when I was seven. At first my daddy told me I was too young to understand, but not too long after that, he realized I did. You’re planning a writing retreat where you can only have four other authors. Who would they be and why? I would invite my good friend and mastermind partner CD Gill because we have the best brainstorming sessions together. I would also invite Misty Beller and Christy Barritt because, not only are we friends, but they are also some of the most prolific writers I know, and I would enjoy time with them to pick their brains about their writing process. I would also invite my friend and colleague Kristy Cambron because she is one of the most thoughtful and affirming people I know, and I think she would bring such joy and sunshine to the retreat.

What is the most embarrassing thing that has happened to you and how did you handle it? I don’t get embarrassed very easily, and honestly can’t even think of one embarrassing moment in my life. Now, I have done plenty of things to embarrass OTHER people without meaning to, but they usually get over it pretty quickly, haha!

People are always telling me that they’d like to write a book someday. I’m sure they do to you, too. What would you tell someone who came up to you and said that? Whenever anyone tells me that, I always encourage them to get started now. Don’t wait for someday. Someday may never come. Life gets in the way. Make a plan and get going. It will be one of the best experiences of someone’s life. Why? Because writing that first book is really about finding oneself. There are often such wonderful, buried treasures that someone only finds through writing a book.

Tell us about the featured book. A Season at the Grand is set in 1905 in the Mobile Bay area of Alabama, specifically in Point Clear. Amelia Harris is a traveling photographer with The Photographic Times, and she’s commissioned to take pictures of the wealthy vacationers at the resort. Her matchmaking aunts are trying to marry her off because they think she’s a spinster. But she’ll have nothing to do with it. When she meets the resort manager Titus Overton, who has also resisted the matchmaking attempts of some of his guests, Amelia’s heart does a little flipflop. But they each have too many career goals and distractions to make room for love. And because someone is threatening both of them, their priority must be to stay alive. The matters of the heart can wait.

My current contemporary romantic series, Jeopardized Reunions, is set on the bay, too. My prequel novella Bayside Betrayal, which readers can receive for free by subscribing to my newsletter, is set in Point Clear, but in a contemporary setting instead of historical.

Mobile Bay, specifically the Gulf Shores area, is my favorite vacation spot. Every time we’re there, I am inspired to write another story. A Season at the Grand was born out of one of those trips.

Please give us the first page of the book.

Point Clear, Alabama, 1905

Amelia Harris stepped off the Baldwin with one gloved hand in the porter’s hand and the other gripping the handle of her camera case. She could not afford for either of them to land in Mobile Bay. If she lost her camera, then her summer in Point Clear would end before it began, also terminating her career with The Photographic Times. They had sent her here to capture nature photographs as well as images of the elite guests enjoying their seaside holiday, and she couldn’t allow any mishaps to derail her assignment.

Besides, the summer here enjoying the same luxuries of the wealthy meant a reprieve from the matchmaking of Aunt Polly and Aunt Patsy. Why did they insist her marriageable years had an expiration date and that her occupation as a photographer would damage not only her reputation but her future, as well? Why did they think a woman only twenty-five years old couldn’t still find a husband?

“Miss?” The porter’s voice snapped her out of her rumination.

With a quick nod and a prayer her embarrassment hadn’t touched her cheeks more than the June heat already had, she smiled, then released his hand. “Thank you, sir.”

“My pleasure. Enjoy your stay at the Grand Hotel. Your belongings will arrive in your room shortly.”

Amelia smoothed her left hand across her stomach and breathed a sigh. As though that would calm the butterflies which flooded inside her. What did she have to be anxious about? While this might be her first assignment this far from home and without a chaperone or colleague, she carried herself well among the elite and had nothing to fear. Besides, she was here to photograph, not to make friends. Her presence as a commissioned photographer required no further burden of proof.

With The Photographic Times expecting a minimum of two thousand nature images for their penny postcards, socializing sat at the bottom of her priority stack. Best she decide right now to pack her jitters away in her trunk along with her swimwear and leave them there all summer.

Pressing her shoulders against the coastal humidity, she took a step down the boardwalk toward her awaiting adventure.

“Jimmy, come back here. No running on the boardwalk, young man,” a woman’s stern voice called from behind Amelia.

Before she could peek over her shoulder for a hint at the commotion, a boy—Jimmy, most likely—broke through the cluster of guests and slammed into her, ripping her case from her hand.

“Oh no!” She fell to her knees on the weathered boardwalk and grasped the case seconds before it spun its way into the glistening bay. With her hat now dangling by its string across her back and her body splayed out on top of the leather case like a dead fish, she must already be the subject of the onlookers’ gossip. Surely, it would be better if she reboarded the bay boat and returned to Philadelphia this instant.

How can readers find you on the Internet?

Find out more about me at my website: https://sherriwilsonjohnson.com/

I’m on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, Goodreads and Bookbub. Readers can find me there and at other places through this link: https://linktr.ee/sherriwilsonjohnson

Thank you, Sherri for sharing A Season at the Grand with my blog readers and me. I’m eager to read it.

Readers, here’s a link to the book.

https://www.amazon.com/Season-Grand-Romance-Gilded-Resorts/dp/1942265751/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1683644894&sr=1-1 

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 2 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 

BRIDGE BETWEEN US (THE ERIE CANAL BRIDES COLLECTION) - Sherri Wilson Johnson - One Free Book

Bio: Sherri Wilson Johnson is a multi-published Inspirational Romance novelist, speaker, and virtual assistant. She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) and is passionate about writing and publishing. Sherri has been published in The Erie Canal Brides (Barbour Books), 101 Simple Ways to Show Your Husband You Love Him by Kathi Lipp (Harvest House), Powerline 365 by Nicole O'Dell (Choose NOW Ministries), Open Hearts Family: Connecting with One Another by Jane Seymour (Running Press, Hachette Book Group), The Writing Academy’s Daily Devotions for Writers, and several homeschool publications. She is the author of six inspirational romances which she independently published.

She lives in Georgia with her husband and her spoiled dog. She loves spending time with her adult children and friends or curling up with a good book or her current work-in-progress. Sherri enjoys doing jigsaw puzzles in the winter, watching Bob Ross painting videos (although she can't paint), and counts the days every year until she can take another trip to the beach. You can find Sherri on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest.

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

I like to write about forgiveness, redemption, and grace.

What other books of yours are coming out soon?

Just this one! But I am working on an Indie contemporary romantic suspense that I may publish in 2019 if I get it finished!

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

Author Carrie Turansky. She's such a sweet and Godly woman who has always been so kind to answer questions about writing and about life struggles. I've met her twice briefly, but I would love to spend some time with her over a cup of tea.

Carrie is one of my special friends, too. What historical person would you like to meet (besides Jesus) and why?

I would love to meet my great-great-grandmother who came over on a boat from Sweden and started her family here.

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

Keep at it! It could be that your writing still needs work or it could be that it's not the right time for your story. Just keep working on projects and submitting queries. You never know when that yes will come. And maybe your story is meant to be Indie published!  ;)

Tell us about the featured book.

My next release is The Erie Canal Brides Collection: 7 Romances Develop Along Manmade Waterways of New York and Ohio. The ebook releases January 1st and the print version releases in March.

Completed in 1825, the Erie Canal connected the Great Lakes to the Hudson River, and soon other states like Ohio created canals linking Lake Erie to the Ohio River. Suddenly the Midwest was open to migration, the harvesting of resources, and even tourism. Join seven couples who live through the rise of the canals and the problems the waterways brought to each community, including land grabs, disease, tourists, racism, and competition. Can these couples hang on to their faith and develop love during times of intense change?

My story is titled The Bridge between Us. Here is the blurb:

Susannah Higley is the daughter of sawmill owner Chauncey Higley. Since losing her fiancé to the railroad and his quest for gold, she has focused on her bookkeeping job with her father’s company, declaring never to love again. Susannah almost loses her life when the Albion, New York Main Street bridge collapses on opening day of the county fair, sending her and hundreds of others into the Erie Canal. When John Hawkins, returning from years away in New York City, saves her from drowning, Susannah finds herself drawn to him despite her opposition to love.

Although John doesn’t plan to stay in Albion a day longer than it takes him to complete his business, he’s as captivated by Susannah’s beauty and intelligence as he was seven years ago, before his family left town over an unresolved feud between their grandfathers. Susannah’s loyalty to her grudge-holding father is weakened while her empathy for John grows as he works to clear his family’s name of the shame associated with it. Can she trust a man whose mission is to finish what their grandfathers started thirty years earlier? If so, will her confidence in John destroy her family or will it save it?

Please give us the first page of the book.

The aroma of boiled peanuts and fried dough traveled along the crisp September breeze and tickled Susannah Higley’s nose as exhilaration over the day’s events delighted her heart. She had never experienced a Wednesday like this in all her twenty-three years. Waiting for the results of the wax flower contest and hoping a blue ribbon and prize money would be hers, she stood on the three-arched, iron Main Street bridge with hundreds of other townsfolk ready for the tightrope artist from Brockport to walk across the Erie Canal. Susannah adjusted her white crepe bonnet and stuffed in a few unruly curls then sighed. The fearless young man would do on this fall day what she could never imagine mustering the courage to do. For months, she had lived under the shadow of abandonment. Richard had declared his love for her, but when she had refused to go to California on a quest for gold, he hopped on a train and broke her heart.

Although she longed for unforgettable experiences, eloping and leaving behind her widowed father was not among them. She should have known entertaining the idea of love with a drifter who had worked his way to Albion on boats traveling the canal would not be wise. Since Richard’s departure, Susannah had devoted her time to Pa’s sawmill as the bookkeeper, a position Mama held before her passing. Once she balanced the ledgers and completed the household chores each day, Susannah fashioned flowers from wax and dreamed of one day sharing her creations with merchants in New York City. The black metal box containing her patterns, brushes, tints, and wax was the last gift Mama gave her. Every time she formed the red roses, yellow geraniums, and purple and white violets from wax Mama had loved so much, she felt her presence. Winning a ribbon at the Orleans County Fair not only increased her chances of someone discovering her but would also confirm to her this pastime brought as much joy to others as it did to her. The long-awaited day was finally here.

How can readers find you on the Internet?

Website

Amazon Author Page

Facebook

Twitter

SIGN UP FOR SHERRI'S MAILING LIST!

Pinterest

Goodreads

BookBub

Thank you, Sherri, for sharing this collection with my blog readers and me.

Readers, here are links to the book.

The Erie Canal Brides Collection  - Christianbook.com
The Erie Canal Brides Collection: 7 Romances Develop Along Manmade Waterways of New York and Ohio - Amazon Paperback
The Erie Canal Brides Collection: 7 Romances Develop Along Manmade Waterways of New York and Ohio - Kindle

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, Google+, 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

GRAFTED INTO DECEIT - Sherri Wilson Johnson - One Free Book

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

My sixth Inspirational Romance novel, Grafted into Deceit, came out just a few months ago. I’m super excited about how God moved in that process from the beginning of the story idea all the way through to the publication of it. I’m working on the sequel now, and I’ve also been asked to be a part of an upcoming novella collection. I feel so blessed!

That is exciting. Tell us a little about your family.

My husband, Dan, and I live northwest of Atlanta. We will celebrate our 30th anniversary next summer and hope to take a two-week road trip. We have two grown children, one of them is married. We are Mama and Daddy to a spoiled rotten Chihuahua named Posey. Life isn’t always easy, but we always feel blessed.

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

Yes, I usually read in the genre that I’m currently writing. It helps me to “get into” my story better.

What are you working on right now?

The sequel to Grafted into Deceit. I haven’t titled it yet, but it starts off with gunfire at a wedding. 

What outside interests do you have?

I love to swim. I also enjoy hanging out with friends and taking vacations to the beach.

How do you choose your settings for each book?

I don’t choose them. They choose me.

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

I’d love to spend time with some of my ancestors. I’m fascinated with genealogy and would just love to hear the stories of how my family came to America.

I’m a second generation American on my father’s side. A cousin did an extensive generational search. I used some of the stories in the novels in my Brides of Minnesota collection. What is the one thing you wish you had known before you started writing novels?

How long the process to publication is. And I wish I’d been warned about rejection—that it is inevitable.

What new lessons is the Lord teaching you right now?

Endurance. Running the race and staying in it until the end (no matter how it ends) is vital.

Some people think it’s about the goal, but it’s really about the process. What are the three best things you can tell other authors to do to be successful?

Commit your writing to the Lord.

Practice, practice, practice.

Hold your projects with open hands.

I really like that last one. Tell us about the featured book.

Grafted Into Deceit:

Answers are hard to find when there's no one to trust.

Disappearing business funds and a missing dead body have Marina Acres doubting everyone—including the detective who can't solve his case without her help.

When Marina Acres launches an investigation to find her company's missing money, she becomes a killer's target and uncovers a tangled vine of deception in the process. Detective Steven Pennington, who suspects drugs are at the root of the problem, must keep Marina safe from the killer while keeping himself from falling for yet another victim. Marina refuses to believe that her business partner could be part of a drug trafficking ring, but when evidence points its finger at her, she must join the fight with Steven to weed out the killer.

Here’s a link to Grafted Into Deceit: http://amzn.to/2AllFwt

Please give us the first page of the book.

Marina Acres opened her eyes to utter darkness, except for the sliver of mid-November moonlight that crept its way between the almost-bare branches of overhanging trees. Her ‘85 BMW lay on the driver’s side in an overgrown ditch smashed against a telephone pole. If her seatbelt hadn’t restrained her, she’d probably have gone through the shattered windshield when her car wrecked on her way back to the office.

Lifting a trembling hand to her aching forehead, she tried to recall what had happened. Then a warm droplet of something landed on Marina’s temple, trailed its way down her right cheek, and trickled into her mouth. The question of what had happened no longer seemed important. Blood poured from her head, and she needed help. She spat and wiped the metallic substance off her tongue with a shiver.

“Help! Can anybody hear me?”

The engine hissed echoing her cry for help.

Marina held her breath and resisted the pungent smoke billowing from beneath the hood and the gasoline fumes which leaked into the car. Another shiver coursed its way through her as blistering pain penetrated her right leg all the way to the bone. The coffee she’d brought with her from the restaurant in Lewistown must have spilled and scalded her when she crashed.

How had she crashed?

She closed her eyes and tried to remember how she’d gotten here in the ditch. She wasn’t far from her landscaping business’s property. Was she? She last remembered passing the entrance to the O’Reilly’s Southern Hope ranch, adjacent to her business.

Another droplet, thick and sticky, assaulted her face, barged its way into her personal space, and forced her eyes open again. She crinkled her brow but winced when more pain sliced across her forehead. Steam from the engine wafted in the wind, and her gaze landed on something jutting through the passenger’s side of her cracked windshield.

A man!

“Oh no!” She locked her hands over her mouth and fought not to lose consciousness and the contents of her stomach.

Who is he?

Her suspicions that someone was using her landscaping company’s money for personal gain had haunted her every waking moment for months. The feeling that something was on the verge of happening had brought her back tonight. Could this guy be part of whatever might be going on at the nursery? Why else would someone be on foot all the way out here away from the town at night?

“Hey, man, are you okay? Please, answer me.” She stretched out her quivering arms, but because of the seatbelt, which no longer represented security but confinement instead, she couldn’t reach him to see if he was alive. She jerked the strap and pressed the release button six, seven, eight times until finally her trembling fingers succeeded, and the seatbelt dropped her with a thud against the driver’s side door.

She reached out to the man—was he dead?—but her arms quaked, and she couldn’t get enough leverage to push her way to him. She needed to rest and get her strength, then she could help him.

Marina closed her eyes to make it all go away if only for a minute, but in the distance, a dog’s howl startled her and invaded her attempt at peace. Head pounding, her heart hammered against her ribs. She sucked in a deep breath. “Ouch!” Heat seared through her rib cage. “Mister, wake up and answer me. Are you okay?”

Nothing. Not even a groan.

Wow. This is a departure from the other books of yours that I’ve read. I love it. How can readers find you on the Internet?

Website

Amazon Author Page
Facebook

Twitter

SIGN UP FOR SHERRI'S MAILING LIST!

Pinterest

Goodreads

BookBub

Thank you, Sherri, for sharing this suspense novel with me and my blog readers. We’re all eager to read it.

Readers, 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, Google+, 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

SONG OF THE MEADOWLARK - Sherri Wilson Johnson - One Free Ebook

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

I want to uplift readers and share with them the wonderful goodness that God has allowed me to see. I want readers to feel hope and to know that there’s always an answer to their troubles. I also want to entertain them, make them laugh, make them think, and make them swoon.

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

The happiest day of my life has to be the day I married my sweetheart in 1988. Twenty-five years later I am still happy I did it.

I know what you mean. I’m very happy I married my husband forty-eight years ago. How has being published changed your life?

Being published has allowed me to speak to audiences (in person and through blogging/interviewing) that I never would have been able to. I’ve enjoyed meeting fellow authors, bloggers, and readers and have loved hearing their feedback on how my stories have influenced them. It’s really a dream come true.

What are you reading right now?

I am reading two books actually while editing my fourth novel. The Respect Dare (40 Days to a Deeper Connection with God and Your Husband) by Nina Roesner is a book designed to equip Christian women with the ability to practice applied respect to their marriage relationship while growing their relationship with God. I am also reading A Flight of Fancy by Laurie Alice Eakes.

What is your current work in progress?

My current fiction WIP, After the Raging Storm, is part of my New Hope Series, set in drought-stricken Georgia in 1894. Annabelle is engaged to the son of the town's copper supplier but feels uneasy about the whole thing. She's searching for the meaning of her life apart from this relationship. When she runs into an old friend and compares him to her fiancé, she begins to doubt her chosen path in life even more. As the storm rages inside her heart, a storm of a natural kind threatens to destroy her family home and the neighboring farms. What will it take to calm the raging storm inside Annabelle?

What would be your dream vacation?

I’ve never been outside of the United States and have only been to a few states, so I am sure any place other than the east coast or the Gulf would be grand. But if I could go anywhere it would definitely be Italy.

How do you choose your settings for each book?

I usually pick places that are familiar to me or places that bring me inspiration. My first novel, To Dance Once More, is set in Panama City Beach, Florida where my family frequently vacations. Song of the Meadowlark is set in South Georgia but briefly visits Florida. The currently unpublished sequel to To Dance Once More is set in Atlanta, Georgia. After the Raging Storm is set in a real town Northwest of Atlanta.

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

I’d like to spend the evening with my friend, Carrie Turansky, a fellow writer who has encouraged me so much along my journey. We’ve never met in person and I’d love to meet her.

Carrie is a dear friend of mine, too. What are your hobbies, besides writing and reading?

Well, it’s not often that I’m not writing or reading but when I have the time, I enjoy hanging out with my friends. I love to go to amusement parks and I love to bird-watch.

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

Thickening the plot is definitely quite challenging for me. Usually I have to write the basic story and then take my time and go back through the manuscript with a fine tooth comb to add all the depth and the twists and turns. Until the main idea is out of my head and into my computer, I can’t get down to the nitty gritty.

What advice would you give to a beginning author?

Don’t ever give up. Keep writing and practicing. Read books on the craft and take classes if you can. Read well-written books in the genre you write. If you receive a rejection (which you probably will) pick yourself up, polish your story, and submit again. Oh, and don’t forget to pray A LOT and seek God’s will for your story.

Tell us about the featured book.

Song of the Meadowlark is a Contemporary Inspirational Romance full of hope, forgiveness, and second chances at life and love set in South Georgia on a ranch with an ornery cowboy.

When trusting others only leads to pain and rejection, and loving ends only in loss, what will it take to restore hope again? Shunned by the uncovered truth about her missing husband’s secret life, Cora Buchanan sets out on a road trip for home to mend her broken relationship with her parents. When her car breaks down, she’s stranded in a small Georgia town. While staying at the struggling Southern Hope Ranch, she meets little Susie O’Reilly, who unexpectedly fills a void in Cora’s heart. But Rex, Susie’s rugged cowboy father who lost his wife a year earlier, seems to go out of his way to either confront or avoid Cora. It doesn’t help her comfort level that the news continues to report missing and murdered women in the area. Cora has no idea just how close to home the crimes will hit … or how much the sweet sound of the meadowlark’s song at the ranch will impact her future.

Sneak peek at the first chapter! http://sherriwilsonjohnson.com/sherris-books/song-of-the-meadowlark/

I love to read cowboy stories. Please give us the first page of the book.

June — Lake Murray, South Carolina

Cora Buchanan stared out the paned window of her bedroom at Lake Murray through a mist of rain and sighed, her olive green eyes filling with salty tears. This picturesque place had become a prison to her.

Tossing her dark hair over one shoulder, she moved across the room to her bed. Lying on her stomach on her flowery comforter, she remembered how it had all happened. For the first time since then, she scanned the tattered pages of her scrapbook, memories flooding her with weariness. It had been such an innocent time.

On the next page, she saw the pictures from her twenty-first birthday party. Twenty-one had seemed so old and wise at the time, and Panama City, Florida, like the big city. She’d worked awhile in college and considered herself a perceptive woman. But her middle name should have been Naïve, since she didn’t see some people for who they really were.

Cora rolled over onto her back, propping herself up on her pillows. She raised her knees and placed the scrapbook on her legs. Her eyes found the picture of her running in the town relay race with him, and she remembered the pulled calf muscle that still hurt on cold winter days. As she turned the page, she saw her engagement pictures and the newspaper clipping from the wedding announcement. She remembered that day like yesterday, her parents’ disapproval forever seared into her mind.

She closed the scrapbook, and it fell to the floor with a thud, another chapter now over in her life. Three years had passed since Cora’s marriage to him, and she now lived, as a twenty-five-year-old woman, with her in-laws. As she sat up on the edge of her bed, she wondered where to go from here. She couldn’t wait any longer to move on.

Cora left her room and entered the earth-toned den. The Buchanans were watching “Wheel of Fortune” on the television.

“It’s been a year tonight.” Cora knew she didn’t have to explain what she meant. She plopped on the couch next to Judy. “I think it’s time I finally do something.”

“What do you plan to do?” Judy looked up from the television and patted Cora’s knee.

Cora pushed her hair behind her ears. “A good place to start would be to go home and take time to figure out what to do and how to make amends with Mom and Dad. I want them to forgive me.”

“I hope they’re ready. You could not have predicted the future,” Ben said tenderly.

“I’m tired of this wedge between us. Three years is a long time, but I’ve feared the arguments that will, without a doubt, occur.”

Judy nodded. “That’s the mature thing to do.”

“I hope so, Mom.”

With her mind made up, Cora felt a load lifted off her shoulders, like at the end of a tornado warning. Though she still hoped deep inside things would change before she left for Florida, she doubted they would.

How can readers find you on the Internet?

http://sherriwilsonjohnson.com 
https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Author-Sherri-Wilson-Johnson/138396456193536 
https://twitter.com/#!/swj_thewriter 
http://nicoleodell.com/sherri-wilson-johnson-on-inspiring-purity 
http://www.habitsforahappyhome.com 
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5233294.Sherri_Wilson_Johnson 
http://sherrijinga.wordpress.com

Thank you, Sherri, for giving us a peek at your new book.

Readers, here are links to the book. By using one when you order, you help support this blog.
Song of the Meadowlark - paperback
Song of the Meadowlark - 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

TO DANCE ONCE MORE - Sherri Wilson Johnson - Free Book

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

There is a part of me in every one of my heroines and maybe even a little bit in my heroes, too. My heroines strive to live a life of purity, no matter what time period. This is something I am passionate about.

What is the quirkiest thing you have ever done?

I put a bark collar on my throat and barked to see if it would work because my Labrador would not stop barking. I was convinced something was broken with the device. I quickly discovered it was not broken.

When did you first discover that you were a writer?

When I was about eight years old I began to enjoy creative writing class in school. All throughout high school I devoured the assigned novels and wanted to write stories like them.

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

I love romances, legal mysteries, suspense, the Bible, of course. I prefer to read Christian fiction but I do enjoy non-Christian literature as long as it is appropriate.

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

I spend time praying and studying my Bible. I stay up late at night and read or write when the house is quiet. That keeps my mind feeling balanced. I turn down invitations if I’m too tired or overwhelmed and I put time with my family before time with others. I do not over-commit myself.

How do you choose your characters’ names?

Some character names just come to me. Many of them, however, are the result of much research. I try to find names that have meanings similar to the personalities of my characters.

What is the accomplishment that you are most proud of?

Besides becoming a published author, I am most proud of the family I have. I don’t mean that in an arrogant way. I have been married since 1988 and have two children who are seeking God’s will for their lives. What more could I ask for?

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

If I could be any animal, I suppose I would be a dolphin. I love the ocean. I love to swim in it and to play in it. However, I am a bit afraid of sharks. Being a dolphin would allow me to play all day and swim around and to never have to fear sharks.

What is your favorite food?

Pizza, hands down.

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

The greatest problem I encountered in writing was coming up with a plot that was strong enough to carry the reader through to the end. My first novel did not even have a plot by the time I completed it—the first time. I overcame the problem by writing and rewriting and also by reading lots of good books.

Tell us about the featured book?

When Victorian debutante, Lydia Barrington, accidentally discovers that her father has promised her to the son of an unscrupulous businessman in payment for his own debts, she must make the biggest decision of her life…to concede or to fight. To Dance Once More explores the possibilities for a young woman, who longs to find God’s will for her life, yet is faced with a decision that will change her life forever. If she follows her heart, she disobeys her father; if she abides by her father’s wishes, she betrays herself.

To Dance Once More is a special project originating from my love of pure romance, and inspired by the love stories of my ancestors. It sets out hoping to prove that true love still exists. I candidly speak of the purity of not only the heroine, but also the hero, and wholeheartedly desire to point others to Jesus through my words. It is set in Victorian Florida, which is a combination of two of my favorite things—the beach and Victorian times. Of course, there has to be more to a novel than just the romance and so there is betrayal, sacrifice and a bitter enemy that Lydia must overcome.

Please give us the first page of the book.

Chapter One

April 6, 1886

The warm sun beamed through the lace curtains covering the whitewashed windows of Lydia Jane Barrington’s bedchamber. Her home at Live Oaks Plantation sat on the outskirts of Gulf Resort, Florida, a modern, bustling port. Outside, the mourning doves cooed, and the bushy-tailed squirrels scampered about the lawn. Chickens clucked while they pecked at the ground eagerly gathering corn kernels. In the distance, cows mooed, waiting for the farm hand to milk them, unaware that summer waited patiently for its chance to scorch the land.

A salty breeze blew across Lydia’s porcelain face and called her from her deep slumber. Her curtains rose with the breeze and jerked down quickly, slamming back against the windowsill. She stretched with a yawn, and as morning nudged her, languorously she opened her eyes. She slid from her bed, cast the covers onto the floor, and sauntered across the sun-drenched room. Her crystal blue eyes sparkled like the sun on the ocean in the morning. Her hair, an auburn-colored cascading waterfall, was a gift from her mother’s side of the family. She went to the window and, pushing back the curtains, looked out at the plantation. The moss-draped live oaks and the towering cypress trees painted shadow puppets on the ground. The sun shone on the land as far as Lydia could see.

Lydia put on the pastel-blue cotton dress her Aunt Rebecca had made for her, then gazed out her window and drank in the scenery. As a child, she had stared out this same window and dreamed, like most young girls, about being the lady of her own manor with many children. However, over the past year, during moments like this, she wondered what else the world had to offer beyond what her eyes could see, away from this vast estate. She did not want to be like all the women she knew who seemingly disappeared in the shadows of their husbands. She feared most of all a betrothal to someone whom her father chose for her; forced into a loveless relationship simply to increase her father’s money pouch. To her, that was nothing more than slavery, and slavery no longer existed, thanks to the Civil War.

She wanted to travel and see the entire world, not simply entertain guests who had come from exotic locations around the world. She knew in her heart that there must be a higher purpose for her life. Therefore, she vowed that she would find her way in this world, like the women about whom the new governess, Kathryn, had taught her.

Soon she descended the oak staircase, ten-feet-wide and slightly curved, and headed for the sweet-smelling breakfast room, where her family gathered for the morning meal. Isabel Ann, the cook, with a delightful smile across her dark, round face, placed the steaming food on the twelve-foot-long oak table, hewed from one of Live Oak’s old trees.

Lydia found her seat next to Kathryn. As usual, she reached for a nibble of biscuit and instantly received a scolding from Isabel Ann as her father, Archibald, began his prayer of thanks. This mirrored almost every other morning Lydia had experienced, except that this morning marked her sixteenth birthday.

“You and Nathan have a good day in the fields, Archibald. Eliza and I are going to prepare the house for tonight’s birthday festivities. Josie, Alexa, and Lydia, you young ladies get off to school now,” Rosalyn, Lydia’s mother, said as she gracefully rose from her seat at the table.

“Oh, Mother, do I have to go today? It is my birthday after all,” Lydia protested, twisting sideways in her chair to face her mother.

“Yes, of course you do. Nathan is working today, and so will you. Now run along,” Rosalyn said, dismissing her with a wave of her delicate hand. Her eyes sparkled with love for her animated daughter.

Lydia’s father looked on in reserved silence. His dark eyes, in contrast to Rosalyn’s, seemed like coal dust. “A good education is something to be appreciated, Lydia,” Archibald chastised in his firm but loving way.

“Yes, Father.” Lydia stood up from her chair and excused herself.

How can readers find you on the Internet?

www.sherriwilsonjohnson.com

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Author-Sherri-Wilson-Johnson/138396456193536

http://www.oaktara.com/sherriwilsonjohnson

http://www.sherrijohnsonministries.com/

https://twitter.com/#!/swj_thewriter

http://sherrijinga.wordpress.com/

Thank you, Sherri, for this peek into your life and your book. I love your cover and your story premise.

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To Dance Once More


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