Meet Yvonne Ortega
Yvonne Ortega is a speaker, author, speaking and writing coach, counselor, and teacher. Her counseling and teaching experiences add depth and humor to her presentations. With honesty and humor, she shares her life and struggles through messages that will help you move from broken to beautiful despite life’s transitions and challenges. Her latest book is Moving from Broken to Beautiful® through Grief.
Tell us about your newest book.
Moving from Broken to Beautiful® through Grief is not only for those who have lost a loved one through death. It is also for those who have lost a job, a home, their health, or a relationship through a broken engagement or divorce. I’ve watched the bereaved question God, their faith, and their reason to live. I did so myself when I lost two aunts, my mother, and my only child within seven months. Through this book, the reader receives assurance that grief is a normal process and they can get through it. The emotional roller coaster of grief is a ride none of us wants to go on, but it is a part of life. In Moving from Broken to Beautiful® through Grief, the readers have me as their guide and companion. They will receive comfort, peace, promise, and purpose in their new normal. My book will also help friends, coworkers, and caregivers of the bereaved understand the grief process more than before and enable them to provide the compassion, encouragement, and support the grieving need.
What genre do you focus on and why?
I focus on inspirational nonfiction. With a background in teaching Spanish and English at the secondary and college level and then working as a Licensed Professional Counselor for years, it seemed a natural choice for me. My own personal experiences with divorce, cancer, four car accidents in seven years, and multiple family losses led to first-hand experience for this genre. God doesn’t waste our heartaches, disappointments, and losses. He will use them for good in our lives and the lives of others, if we let him.
Why do you write? What drives you?
I know God called me to write and speak for him. Writing is not a pastime or a hobby, it is a divine assignment, which I fulfill with joy. Sometimes I get an idea for a book and can’t wait to get started. I feel like I’ll burst if I don’t. Other times, God gives me an idea and nudges me to write. My passion is to help hurting women move from broken to beautiful through God’s Word. I want them to be and do all God called them to be and do. I long for them to live with freedom, peace, and joy. I long for them to live the abundant life Jesus Christ came to earth to give them. To my delight, God has used my books to help hurting men too.
What is the hardest part of being an author? Why?
The hardest part is the marketing and publicity. Although I can easily review and publicize someone else’s books, I struggle to promote my own.
What’s the best part of your author’s life? Why?
When readers walk up to me and tell me how my books blessed them, gave them courage and hope to go on living, and helped them make positive changes in their lives, I thank God I answered his call to write for him. Those comments and reviews like them are the best part of my author’s life and confirm God’s call on my life.
What is the craziest thing you’ve experienced as an author?
When Revell published my first book, Hope for the Journey through Cancer, my mother put her copy in a plastic bag and took it everywhere she went. She would pull it out and tell everyone that her daughter was an author and wrote that book. She passed away before I wrote the next three, or she would have done the same with those books too.
What Are You Most Proud of?
I am most proud of book three, Moving from Broken to Beautiful® through Forgiveness, and book four, Moving from Broken to Beautiful® through Grief. They were the most difficult to write. During the writing of the forgiveness book, I had a hard drive crash, a printer failure, and computer program difficulties. During the writing of the grief book, my dad was diagnosed with dementia and my lifelong friend with pancreatic cancer. A few months later, Dad went to a nursing home, and my friend passed away. With the grace of God, I hung in there and completed both books.
What is your favorite pastime?
My favorite pastime is reading. I can get lost in a book and not stop reading it until I’ve finished it. I also love to go to the beach, walk barefooted in the sand, and listen to the waves.
Do you have other books? We’d love to know.
Yes, I have a total of four books in my Moving from Broken to Beautiful® Series: Finding Hope for Your Journey through Breast Cancer, Moving from Broken to Beautiful: 9 Life Lessons to Help You Move Forward, Moving from Broken to Beautiful® through Forgiveness, and Moving from Broken to Beautiful® through Grief.
What are you working on now?
At the present time, I’m working on the marketing and publicity of my book on grief. I’ve put together a “Grief Powerpak,” which includes downloads of A–Z Prayers for the Bereaved, A–Z Prayers for the Comforting Angels, Bible verses for the bereaved and for the comforting angels, and book marks. This Powerpak will soon be available.
Website: www.YvonneOrtega.com
Link to book: https://bit.ly/brokenbeautiful
Social media links:
Facebook Public Page: https://www.facebook.com/yvonne.ortega.98
Twitter: https://twitter.com/yvonneortega1
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yvonneortega
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g8bWlg9Nmmg
Meet Cynthia L Simmons
Cynthia L Simmons reaches out to women to deepen and encourage them in their faith. She’ll tackle any challenge, including new technology to bless others with the sweetness of God’s grace. Her writing and webinars combine history with clear presentation of Scripture. She also hosts Heart of the Matter Radio and does a video called Cynthia Chat on Chispa magazine.
Tell us about your newest book: Pursuing Gold
Peter and Mary Beth depend on their Confederate bank for their livelihood, and they care about providing for their employees. Banking during the war proves tough, but their lives become more complicated when someone counterfeits money with forged signatures. They must find the counterfeiter before there’s a run on the bank, forcing it to close. Peter pursues investments that pay in gold and both of them learn the importance of pursuing God.
What genre do you focus on and why?
I’ve always loved mysteries, so when I start writing my mind contrives puzzles to solve.
Why do you write? What drives you?
I have a disabled child that I homeschooled. He was tough to teach, and at times I got discouraged. Things people wrote from the past kept me going, yet they had no idea anyone would be reading what they put on paper hundreds of years later. That told me how powerful words can be, and I started to write to share that encouragement.
Who is your main character, and how did you choose that name?
Mary Beth is the female main character. The double name is very common in the South, and many people named their girls Mary.
Peter is my male main character, and he’s modeled after my oldest son who is very gracious and methodical. I always loved the name Peter, but we chose not to name our second son Peter since Peter and Paul had a disagreement in the Bible.
What does a day in your writing world look like?
Writing is a full-time job for me because I combine my writing with a radio program. I’m always reading and preparing for an interview while juggling my projects. When working on a novel, I write until my brain goes blank in the early hours of the morning. Short pieces like devotionals take less time and don’t keep me up.
What is the hardest part of being an author? Why?
I’d rather someone else sell my work because I hate to brag on what I’ve done. Yet when I finish a long work, I have poured my soul into it.
What’s the best part of your author’s life? Why?
I love getting to know people, especially interviewing. I’ve made friends all over the country, and that’s so fun. When I homeschooled, I felt isolated, but now I feel more connected to friends.
What is the craziest thing you’ve experienced as an author?
I’ve had to learn how to handle myself on TV as well as radio. Even though I am nervous people tell me I look so calm.
What are you most proud of?
I’m proud of Pursuing Gold since a full-length novel was so challenging.
What is your favorite pastime?
I grow orchids and arrange flowers. My husband and I love ballroom dancing.
Do you have other books? We’d love to know.
Women Who Overcame is a series of historical fiction stories about women and the hardships they faced.
Solving the Dilemma of Heartache – a short Bible study on suffering
What are you working on now? The story of C.H. Spurgeon’s wife
Website: www.clsimmons.com
Social media links:
instagram.com/Cynthialsimmons
plus.google.com/+CynthiaLSimmons
twitter.com/CynthiaLSimmons
facebook.com/HrtMtr
Meet Sarah Sundin
Sarah Sundin is the author of ten historical novels, including The Sea Before Us. Her novels When Tides Turn and Through Waters Deep were named to Booklist’s “101 Best Romance Novels of the Last 10 Years,” and Through Waters Deep was a finalist for the 2016 Carol Award and won the INSPY Award. A mother of three, Sarah lives in California, works on-call as a hospital pharmacist, and teaches Sunday school.
Tell us about your newest book.
The Sea Before Us is the first book in the Sunrise at Normandy series. In 1944, American naval officer Lt. Wyatt Paxton arrives in London to prepare for the Allied invasion of France, determined to redeem himself with the brothers he has betrayed. Dorothy Fairfax serves as a “Wren” in the Women’s Royal Naval Service, piecing together reconnaissance photographs with thousands of holiday snapshots of France—including those of her family’s summer home—in order to create maps of Normandy. Maps that Wyatt turns into naval bombardment plans for D-day. As Wyatt and Dorothy work together, he hopes Dorothy will return his growing love. But will family secrets, misplaced affections—and the seas off Normandy—separate them forever?
What genre do you focus on and why?
I write historical romance set during World War II. It was such a fascinating and dramatic time, when ordinary people learned they could do extraordinary things and when people from diverse backgrounds were thrust together—and often found unexpected love. Plus, cute clothes and great music.
Why do you write? What drives you?
The characters won’t let me stop. I have to tell their stories. Each is broken in some way, even if he or she doesn’t know it. Only be putting them through the story-wringer will they become the people they were meant to be.
Who is your main character, and how did you choose that name?
This never comes out in the book, but Wyatt Paxton’s name is significant. The Sunrise at Normandy series follows three estranged brothers who fight on D-day from the sea, in the air, and on the ground. Wyatt is the naval officer brother…and his name in Welsh means “water.” And it sounded like a good name for a quiet, serious man from Texas. And “pax” means “peace,” just what the Paxton family needs most.
What does a day in your writing world look like?
I am not a morning person, so I use my mornings for emails, social media, and the business side of writing. Over lunch I usually read a research book. Then my afternoons and early evenings (if my husband is working the late shift in the pharmacy) are reserved for writing. In the evenings while we watch TV, I take care of things like author interviews and the Today in World War II History tidbits I post on my blog each day.
What is the hardest part of being an author? Why?
People assuming that because you work from home that you’re not actually working. People assuming that talking to a writer when she’s staring into space is just fine and hunky-dory and NOT ripping that writer from the dream state she needs to WORK. Not that it ever happens to me…
What’s the best part of your author’s life? Why?
I get paid to stare into space! Seriously, I get to tell stories and play with imaginary friends—it’s the best job ever. Bonus: I’ve met the most fascinating people since I started writing—first my fellow writers and then my readers. Such bright, interesting, and varied people. It’s an honor.
What are you most proud of?
My kids! Or as one of my friends calls them, “kid-dults.” All three are grown up and on their own and thriving in fields that are well suited for them and that they enjoy. One happy mama. Makes the empty nest worthwhile.
What is your favorite pastime?
Um…writing. As my daughter used to say when she was a snarky teenager—she grew out of that, thank goodness!—“It’s nice that you have a hobby that pays a little.”
Do you have other books? We’d love to know.
I do! The Sea Before Us is my tenth published novel, which is still unbelievable to me. I have three other World War II series—Wings of Glory, Wings of the Nightingale, and Waves of Freedom.
What are you working on now?
I just finished The Sky Above Us, Book 2 in the Sunrise at Normandy series (Revell, spring 2019). This book follows Adler Paxton, a P-51 fighter pilot who flies over the beaches of Normandy on D-day, and Red Cross worker Violet Lindstrom, who runs the Aeroclub on Adler’s air base.
Website: www.sarahsundin.com
Link to book: http://www.sarahsundin.com/books/the-sea-before-us/
Social media links:
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/SarahSundinAuthor
Twitter: http://twitter.com/sarahsundin
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/sarahsundin
Happy Valentines Day from me!
Happy Valentine’s Day! To all of you who read my blog and my stories and inspire me to keep on writing, I want to wish you a Happy Valentine’s Day. There’s a special place in my heart for YOU.
I want to pass on a bit of Valentine’s love and appreciation to you—all of you who have stood with me, encourage me, read my blogs, and spur me on. Writing is a long and winding road, but you have been there and I appreciate your friendship more than you know.
And you can celebrate with me. With you in mind, I just finished my second novel and have two publishers looking at it. Please pray the right publisher picks it up.
As you probably know, my first two books, written with my wonderful husband, are non-fiction premarital books, Countdown for Couples and The ReMarriage Adventure. My next two are children’s picture books, Lexie’s Adventure in Kenya and Princess Madison’s Rainbow Adventure, inspired my two of my four granddaughters and my third granddaughter is itching for a book of her own. Yikes! If you haven’t seen them, please click on the tabs of my website to check them out.
The Fabric of Hope: An Irish Family Legacy is my first novel, and I’m sticking with historical fiction. It’s just so much fun. My hubby says that creating stories is my playground and he’s right. I’m sure the other authors that I feature here on this blog feel the same way.
The work of writing is often a lonely one, but when people like you connect with me—whether through a blog post comment, a Facebook “like”or comment, a retweet, or personal interaction of some kind—well, that makes my day, week, and sometimes my month! Thank you.
To my husband who gives me the space and time to keep on keeping on. Thank you!
To my critique group who massages the story over and over again until it is just right. Thanks a bunch.
To my Beta Readers and writing colleagues who faithfully gave me honest feedback, even when that feedback is tough. Thanks for your input.
To my friends and family who inspire me, cheer me on, and never given up on me. Thank you!
To all who encourage me through your texts, emails, social media contacts, signing up for my blog, or passing on the word about my work. Thanks a million and please stay in contact. And again, Happy Valentine’s Day to you.
Meet Michelle Cox
Michelle Cox is an award-winning, bestselling author and the creator of the Just 18 Summers parenting products and resources. She’s known for her “encouragement with a Southern drawl” and has written for Guideposts, Christian Cinema, FoxNews.com, Focus on the Family, and numerous other publications. Her favorite roles, though, are as wife, mom, and being grandmama to six perfect grandchildren.
Her co-author, Brian Bird, is Executive Producer and Co-Creator of the Hallmark Channel original series When Calls the Heart. In his three decades in Hollywood, he has written or produced two dozen films, including The Case for Christ, Captive and Not Easily Broken, and more than 250 episodes of such shows as Touched By An Angel, Step By Step and Evening Shade.
Tell us about your newest book:
Our new book is When God Calls the Heart: Devotions from Hope Valley. Inspired by best-selling author Janette Oke and the Hallmark Channel original TV series When Calls the Heart, these inspirations from Hope Valley are about finding moments of grace, joy, and beauty amid the unexpected circumstances of life. In this collection of 40 devotions, Brian Bird, Executive Producer and Co-Creator of When Calls the Heart and Michelle Cox illuminate the “God-moments” from the fictional, 1910 mining town of Hope Valley—the stories of faith, hope, and love from each episode that will touch your soul, inspire, and encourage you with wonderful virtues and relatable life lessons. Each chapter contains a quote from one of your favorite “citizens,” a Scripture verse, a devotional reflection, a prayer, and questions to help you think a little deeper about what’s on your own heart. Hop on the buckboard wagon to see where God guides in the pages of When God Calls the Heart. You don’t want to miss this journey—because as Elizabeth Thatcher learned when she headed West to fulfill her dream of becoming a teacher—when God calls the heart, you can expect an adventure.
What genre do you focus on and why?
I don’t focus on one genre. I’ve always heard to do that, but I figure that if God brings a variety of opportunities to me, I’d be crazy to tell Him I can’t do them because they aren’t the right genre.
Why do you write? What drives you?
I write because I have to write. The words and ideas drive me nuts until I capture them on the page. That’s the simple answer, but I write because I feel God has given me a task to do for Him and I don’t want to waste the talents that He’s given me.
Who is your main character, and how did you choose that name?
Since our devotional book is based on Hallmark’s When Calls the Heart television series, it features Elizabeth, Jack, Abigail, Henry, and many other names that folks will recognize from Hope Valley.
What does a day in your writing world look like?
My writing days are usually driven by deadlines. I write for a wide variety of blogs and magazines, have the Just 18 Summers parenting blog which posts five days a week, and have co-authored five or six books a year for the past couple of years, so my writing days are often long. Writing-related travel, speaking events, and conferences have a big effect on my writing days, but early in my career, Jerry B. Jenkins taught me to always be on time for deadlines. I made that a writing goal, so I’ve learned to work ahead as needed and to take advantage of little pockets of time.
What is the hardest part of being an author? Why?
I don’t like publisher rejection letters, but I think juggling everything is the hardest part. God and family come first, but some days I feel like I’m on a merry-go-round that keeps speeding up.
What’s the best part of your author’s life? Why?
I love what I do (which is a good thing!), but I think the best part is that I get to work with and meet such amazing people. That’s how I met Susan Mathis. She was one of my editors when I wrote for Focus on the Family Magazine and I loved writing for her.
What is the craziest thing you’ve experienced as an author?
The craziest thing would probably be co-authoring two books in nine weeks, and then a week later getting a contract for a third book with a tight deadline. Yes, I’m officially nuts—and I don’t plan to do that again.
What are you most proud of?
God has brought my writing opportunities to me so I really can’t take the credit for what I’ve done—but I am proud that I’ve stuck with writing despite numerous rejections and disappointments along the way. God showed me early in my career that He didn’t call me to be successful—He called me to be faithful—and I can do that no matter what happens.
What is your favorite pastime?
Are you ready for it? Reading. Seriously, it’s been my favorite thing to do since I learned to put words together. And, of course, any time I can be with my six perfect grandchildren, my husband, and our adult children is always a favorite.
Do you have other books? We’d love to know.
Some of my recent books include my Just 18 Summers novel (co-authored with Rene Gutteridge) and my devotional books God Glimpses from the Toolbox and God Glimpses from the Jewelry Box (co-authored with my buddy John Perrodin).
What are you working on now?
We have several more books planned for When God Calls the Heart. I’m pitching a children’s book series. And I have a couple of devotional books in the works with some great writing friends.
Websites:
WhenGodCallstheHeart.com and www.just18summers.com
Link to book: https://www.amazon.com/When-God-Calls-Heart-Devotions/dp/1424556066
Social media links:
Facebook – Michelle Cox Inspirations and Just 18 Summers
Twitter – @Michelleinspire
Meet Susan Marlow
Susan is always on the lookout for a new story, whether she’s writing books, teaching writing workshops, or sharing what she’s learned as a homeschooling mom. She is the author of several series set in the Old West—ranging from new reader to young adult—and she enjoys relaxing on her fourteen-acre homestead in the great state of Washington.
Tell us about your newest books.
Books 3 and 4 of the Circle C Stepping Stones series for young readers ages 7-10 continue the adventures of nine-year-old Andi Carter, who is growing up on a large cattle ranch in 1870s California. In Andi Lassos Trouble, Andi wants nothing more than to compete in the upcoming rodeo, but she’s too young, and she’s a girl. Andi to the Rescue finds Andi and her mother kidnapped in a case of mistaken identity by a gentleman outlaw who wants to learn to read and thinks Mother is the schoolteacher.
What genre do you focus on and why?
I focus on kids of all ages, from young readers ready for first-chapter books to teens. I’m just a kid at heart and want other kids to have a romping good time reading about spunky young heroines and heroes living during the time period known as the Old West. Four of my series focus on Andrea “Andi” Carter, sort of like a young Laura Ingalls in the same time period but with the wealthy ranching angle instead of the poor pioneer wanderer. My other series, Goldtown Adventures, features a twelve-year-old boy living the “dream” (not) in a rowdy, post-gold rush town near Mariposa, California.
Why do you write? What drives you?
I’ve written since I was a child and young teen. I loved to embellish and improve on some of my favorite books and TV shows of the 60s. It was so much fun to “beam out” (yes, I wrote Star Trek stories) or gallop into the Old West for an imaginary journey. I wrote only for myself and never intended to become a published author . . . ever! But God had other plans. He used a dear author friend to prod me into submitting to Kregel Publications (with her endorsement) and I was propelled—quite unwillingly—into the publishing world. Very. Scary. Deadlines and contracts took the joy out of my writing style for a season, but God used that time to teach me how to live by faith in this area. Now, I write for parents (and kids) at the dozens and dozens of homeschool conventions at which I vendor, who beg me for more books for their kids. I also create enrichment activities (study guides) and lapbooks to create year-long literature and language arts curricula for homeschooling families. So my reason for writing has changed—from self-motivated escapism to serving others.
Who is your main character, and how did you choose that name?
The main character in my four Circle C series is Andrea Carter, but if you want to stay on her good side, you’d best call her Andi. She starts out at age six, and the final book of the final series ends with her turning eighteen and marrying. I chose a name that I thought would go well with a prominent ranching family, but that could also be easily shortened to reflect her tomboyish high spirits. She’s the youngest of six. Her father was killed in a ranching accident, and her older brothers run the ranch. She also has a couple of older sisters.
What does a day in your writing world look like?
When I’m under contract, I devote the mornings to writing, after asking the Lord to provide me with my daily “manna,” i.e. words to complete a chapter or scene! Afternoons are times for walking in our pine forest and then checking out new marketing ideas.
What is the hardest part of being an author?
Writing the book! I always feel that I gave my all to the previous book in whichever series I’m working on at the time and have nothing left for a new book. Hence the desperate daily manna prayer.
What’s the best part of your author’s life?
Marketing! I love marketing. I love creating bookmarks. I love messing with my website and figuring out how to stuff the next new books into a tri-fold brochure. I love vendoring at homeschool conventions around the country—meeting parents and having kids and teens come up and say, “I love your books. Can we have a picture together?”
What are you most proud of?
Looking at a published book and wondering, “How in the world did this come to be?” I’m proud of taking the scary step of faith and saying “yes” to my publisher when he asked me to either add more books to a series or come up with another new Andi series.
What is your favorite pastime?
I like to go on walks in the forest, but mostly I like to help my daughter (with eight children) homeschool. The children use my books and curricula for their literature and language arts, and it’s fun to hear one of them say, “Grandma, I found a mistake in the study guide.” They are my quality control team.
Do you have other books? We’d love to know.
I have six Circle C Beginnings books (for ages 6-9), there will eventually be six Circle C Stepping Stones books in all (ages 7-10), six Circle C Adventures (ages 9-14), four Circle C Milestones (ages 12 and up), and four Goldtown Adventures (ages 8-12).
What are you working on now?
The activity pages and lapbook activities for the upcoming books 5 and 6 of the Stepping Stones. They are almost as much work as writing the 16,000-word books. But I’m a teacher and do love creating wholesome and educational materials to give a book a longer life.
Website: CircleCAdventures.com
Link to books: https://circlecadventures.com/stepping-stones-special-purchase/
Social media links: FB group page: https://www.facebook.com/groups/CircleCAdventures/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/susank.marlow/