Monday, February 15, 2021

Mid-Month Madness Party

Welcome to the Mid-Month Madness Party! 

We really appreciate you coming by! We will be giving away books so be sure to pay attention about how to enter. 

To enter for a chance to win, you MUST leave a comment WITH your EMAIL and you MUST ask one or more of the authors a question you’d like to know about them, their writing, or their books. 


We are looking forward to getting to know you better and hope you’ll get to know us better, too! 

Be sure to drop by the Facebook Party for a chance to mingle with the authors, and nab even more great giveaways! 

The party is TODAY, Monday, February 15, from 6:00 to 8:00 PM (Eastern Time)





DOUBLE JEOPARDY 
By Donna Schlachter 

New York socialite Becky Campbell inherited more than a speck of her father’s wanderlust. Now, his murder bequeaths her a mystery, a ramshackle homestead, and a silver mine. 
 Zeke Graumann signs on as Becky’s foreman to keep his portion of his family’s ranch. He shares the workers’ reservations about a woman boss, especially one who burns water and prances around in dungarees. Even though she did look awful good in the dungarees. 
 Then a series of accidents add threat to the tension. Can Becky trust Zeke, find her father’s killer, and turn her mine into a profitable venture? Will Zeke be forced to give up his ranching dream to win Becky’s heart? 





 LEGACY OF LOVE 
By Linda Shenton Matchett 

 Escaping Boston to avoid a marriage of convenience aimed at garnering society’s respect for her family name in the shadow of her father’s war profiteering, Meg Underwood settles in Spruce Hill, Oregon. Despite leaving behind the comforts of wealth, she’s happy. Then the handsome Pinkerton agent, Reuben Jessop, arrives with the news that she’s inherited her aunt’s significant estate, and she must return home to claim the bequest. Meg refuses to make the trip. Unwilling to fail at his mission, Reuben gives her until Christmas to prove why she should remain in Spruce Hill and give up the opportunity to become a woman of means. When he seems to want to be more than a friend, she wonders if her new-found wealth is the basis for his attraction. 



 
BRIDE BY BLACKMAIL 
By Debbie Lynne Costello
 
 A broken heart, a controlling father, and an intrusive Scot leave Charlotte Jackson reeling. Accused of stealing an heirloom pin, she must choose between an unwanted marriage and the ruin of her family name. With the futures of her three young sisters at stake, as well as her own reputation, Charlotte must navigate through injustice to find forgiveness and true happiness. 

 Eager to find the traitor that caused the death of his brother, Duncan Mackenzie comes to America and attempts to fit in with Charleston society. But when the headstrong Charlotte catches his eye, Duncan takes on a second mission—acquiring the lass’s hand. After being spurned several times, he uses unconventional ways of winning her heart. 





 WILD AT HEART 
By Vickie McDonough 
 Dime novelist Mariah resents a cowboy claiming her facts about the West are wrong. At his invitation, she hops a train and heads to his ranch. But when her train is robbed, and a man is shot trying to help her, she makes sure he gets home. When he turns out to be the very man she came to visit, she is shocked into silence about her identity. His sister invites Mariah to stay at the ranch as their guest, but soon she must tell the kind-hearted people who she is. And then she starts falling for the troubled cowboy who has his own secrets. Will the truth ruin their blossoming romance? 








 Donna Schlachter writes historical suspense under her own name, and contemporary suspense under her alter ego of Leeann Betts, and has been published more than 30 times in novellas, full-length novels, and non-fiction books. She is a member of ACFW, Writers on the Rock, SinC, Pikes Peak Writers, and CAN; facilitates a critique group; teaches writing classes; ghostwrites, edits; and judges in writing contests. 




 Linda Shenton Matchett writes about ordinary people who did extraordinary things in days gone by. She is a volunteer docent and archivist for the Wright Museum of WWII and is currently working with the museum curator to create her first exhibit entitled “Shaped by Conflict.” Linda is a native of Baltimore, MD and was born a stone’s throw from Fort McHenry. She has lived in historical places all her life and is now located in central New Hampshire where her favorite activities include exploring historic sites and immersing herself in the imaginary worlds created by other authors. 




 Debbie Lynne Costello is the author of Sword of Forgiveness; Amazon’s #1 seller for Historical Christian Romance. She has enjoyed writing stories since she was eight years old. She raised her family and then embarked on her own career of writing the stories that had been begging to be told. She and her husband have four children and live in upstate South Carolina with their 4 horses, 3 dogs, a miniature donkey, and 6 Pekin ducks. 




 Vickie McDonough is the CBA, EPCA, and Amazon best-selling author of 50 books and novellas. Vickie grew up wanting to marry a rancher, but instead, she married a computer geek who is scared of horses. She now lives out her dreams penning romance stories about ranchers, cowboys, lawmen, and other living in the Old West. Vickie’s books have won numerous awards including the Booksellers Best, OWFI Best Fiction Novel Award, and the Inspirational Readers’ Choice award. When she’s not writing, Vickie enjoys reading, making cards, gardening, and traveling.

44 comments:

  1. Does it count to ask a question to all of you? :-)
    How do you go about picking names for all of your characters? We only have 2 kids and it was hard enough coming up with 2 names we loved. :-)
    stevejoin @ donoh oanalytics. com

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    1. Hi Lisa! Thanks for stopping by. Yes, it counts to ask a question of all of us. Personally, I love selecting my characters name. For my WWII fiction, I have several high school and college year books from the era that I consult. For one of my stories I used my ancestors' names, and for others I determine their heritage and Google names of the time period.

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    2. Hey Lisa! It is hard for me to pick names as well! Especially the Hero and Heroine. When I am picking names for my characters in medieval time I look up records of people born in the time period in England or Scotland and then they have the vernacular and the more modern pronunciation. So I have to decide which way to spell it. It gets complicated sometimes. For my 19th century I search records for most popular for someone the age of my H/H. Thanks for coming by and asking!

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    3. Hi Lisa D, that's a great question. I actually struggle with names because I like names that sound very similar, but then I realize I've already used Carly, Carrie, and Cassie, so now what do I do? I will admit that I like to wander through cemeteries, so when I'm really stuck, I'll go through pictures I took and find names that fit the time period and setting.

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    4. Sometimes it's hard to come up with names for my characters, and other times I'll have the character's name before I know the story. I search a lot in baby name books and also search ethnic names like when I have a character who is Irish. Other times, I'll hear a name I like and use it.

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  2. Happy Book Day! Congratulations to all of you. I, too, have a question for any of you. So a particular book takes about a year from start to finish? Or more, depending on lots of factors. How do you each disengage from that cast of characters and clear your minds to inhabit a whole new world with the next book? Of course, unless you are in the midst of a series with that particular group of people...

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    1. Oops, email....bcrug(at)twc(dot)com

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    2. Hi Connie! Great question. I outline each of my books, and the process enables me to "disengage" from my last book.

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    3. Connie!!!! Hey! It takes me minimum to just write 4 month (I was able to do that when I was homeschooling my boys and they just needed someone to sit there and make sure they were doing their work) up to 8 months to write a book. Then comes edits, critiques, etc. It was a bit of a struggle when I went from 19th century back to medieval. But eventually your mind gets in the right setting and you quit calling your Hero by 19th century hero's name. LOL.

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    4. Hi Connie, so good to "see" you again. While the publishing process might take a year, I generally spend about 3 months writing, a month editing, then later on, when the editor has a look at it, maybe a few days here and there revising. So, by the time I'm done with my initial writing and editing, I'm ready to move on to a new project. My next book(s) have already been percolating in my brain, and even while I was writing the first book, I might have traveled for research on the next, or come up with a title and character names. I'm never truly ever working on just one book at a time.

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    5. Each book is its own world, so it's pretty easy for me to move to a new world with new characters. Those characters tend to be a bit demanding because they want their own story told. :) I really like writing trilogies, where the characters from the first book show up in the next two. I think readers like that a lot as well.

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  3. Congratulations to all you lovely ladies on these wonderful books! Linda, did you visit lighthouses when researching the Keepers of Light series?
    bettimace AT gmail DOT com

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    1. Hi Betti! I love lighthouses, and I have visited several over the years. Living in New Hampshire, I'm close to the coast of Maine and was able to visit lighthouses for the Keepers of the Light series.

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  4. This is for Linda. I notice your series Keepers of the Light has 10 books in that series. I notice many authors have a large amount of books in series now. Do you find readers buy and read that many in a series? It overwhelms me when I see that many books in a series and causes me to not want to begin reading. Thank you. teshawATsbcglobalDOTnet

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    1. Hi Tammie! Thanks for stopping by and that's a great question. The Keepers of Light series is a multi-author project, and I have found that some readers follow specific authors, only reading their particular books. Other readers do like the series no matter how long it gets.

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  5. This is for Donna. I love this cover. What type of research did you do for this book and were you able to travel there? quilting dash lady at comcast dot net

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  6. Hi Lori, thanks. The designer and I worked hard to get the cover just right. I traveled to the area, spent time around there, went to a mining museum and several other museums, and did some online reading and research. I'm hoping to do two more in the series, tentatively titled "Double Trouble" and "Double Blessings" featuring the same hero and heroine solving other mysteries.

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  7. Hello Ladies! It's always a pleasure celebrating with you!

    What has the Lord been showing each of you during this year of unusual circumstances?

    psalm103and138atgmaildotcom

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    1. Sacrifices are sometimes necessary and to be content with where you are and what you have.

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    2. Thanks for stopping by Caryl! I've learned that He is sovereign, and even when I don't understand what's happening that I need to rest in Him.

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    3. Thanks for a great question. God has shown me that my problem with lack of patience is rooted in an independent spirit. If they/he/she/God won't do it on my timetable, I'll do it myself! I'm working hard on that revelation.

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  8. Hi Ladies! It is fun to be here and see this blog and all about these wonderful books. First my email sonja dot nishimoto at gmail dot com . This is to Vickie. How do you come up with the names of your characters? Are they friends, family or just totally made up? Do you travel to the places your books are about?

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  9. Hello Ladies Its always a pleasure celebrating with all you wonderful Authors! Are all Your books in Print? Or just e-books? Thank you Sarahbaby601973(at)gmail(dot)com

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    1. Hey Sarah! Thanks for dropping in! All my books are in Print and in ebook and one is audio as well!

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    2. Hi Sarah: Nice to have you with us. All of my books are in print.

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    3. Hi Sarah, my books are available in both ebook and print.

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  10. This is for any of you who wish to answer. What is the longest time span between writing a book and finally seeing it published!
    Connie
    cps1950(at)gmail(dot)com

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    1. Bride by Blackmail was 10 years! Yikes!

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    2. Almost 5 years, with my first, which was included in The Pony Express Romance Collection.

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  11. My email is ecgcreationist@galaxyhit.com amd thank you for the fun party. I am a nerd and like the Q and A's even though I read them wrong sometimes🙂. Also if I happen to win an ebook please give it to someone else. I can't read ebooks

    It is late so I am probably reading the directions wrong so here are questions for each of the authors.

    Debbie Lynne Costello weird question... Do you raise the ducks for eggs? I heard of people doing that and do they taste similar to chicken eggs?

    Vickie McDonough you may of already been asked this, but what location was your favorite to set one of your books in?

    Linda Shenton Matchett what was your favorite historical place that you lived in?

    Donna Schlachter what was your favorite location to put your characters in? Also I am putting your book Kate on my Christmas List😂

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    1. Hi Beth! Thanks for stopping by. My favorite historical place that I lived was Washington, DC because the area encompasses so many different eras.

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    2. Hi Beth, there is no such thing as a wrong question :) My favorite location was the Bouquet of Brides story, because I set it near Cave Creek, Arizona, which is where my father married my step-mom, who I loved very much. My alter-ego Leeann Betts would say her favorite location was for the book, Silent Partner, which is set on an Alaskan cruise, and actually contains characters and information we learned on that cruise, which was my first.

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  12. Hey Beth! Not a weird question at all. Our ducks do give us eggs and we eat them and sell them. They do taste like chicken eggs. If you didn't know you wasn't eating a chicken egg you would have no idea it was a duck egg. My son says he can tell the difference. I cannot. But they are bigger than jumbo eggs!

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  13. How much research did you have to do for this story? Did you learn anything that surprise you?

    worwichistory101@hotmail.com

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    1. I know a lot about lighthouses, but have never been to the Pacific Northwest, so I had to do a bunch of research about Oregon's geography, history, weather, laws, etc. I also had to do a lot of research about the Pinkerton Agency because my hero is an agent.

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    2. Hey Ann, I love Charleston and have 4 books set there so I've been doing research for a while. One thing I learned about the earthquake in Charleston and I put that into Shattered Memories was the people went outside and gathered in the parks and sang hymns to calm their spirits. I thought that was so cool!

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  14. Congratulations to all the authors. This question is for all authors. How do you choose names for your characters?
    jhdwayne@peoplepc.com

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    1. Hi Deana! Thanks for stopping by. Personally, I love selecting my characters name. For my WWII fiction, I have several high school and college year books from the era that I consult. For one of my stories I used my ancestors' names, and for others I determine their heritage and Google names of the time period

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    2. Hey Deana. I do a lot of research for the time period and the names of people in that area as well as the time my H/H were born and the minor characters. I then pick names that I feel like fit the character. Thanks for coming by and your question!

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  15. Vickie McDonough, you are completely new to me, when you begin writing do you plot out your book or do you sit back and enjoy the journey that the book takes you? tammylewis.tl67@gmail.com

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  16. Names are tougher than titles. I try to pick something true to the time period, and if possible, one that could have a strange or unique nickname.

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  17. Hi ladies,
    Historical are so much fun to read. And I love the research part of the stories. How hard is it to "stop" the research and digging part and get to the writing part? I find when I dig into something interesting I lose track of time and everything else. I'm not sure I'd get anything written for getting lost in the digging.

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    1. Hi Lisa! You hit the nail on the head with this one! Research is my favorite part of the process, and I can chase rabbit trails forever. I've learned to curb my digging by doing a couple of things. I outline my stories and indicate in the outline what research needs to be done, so that focuses my digging somewhat. If I find something unrelated but interesting I write it down, and then give myself some time at a later date to research that topic. But it is tough to stop!

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