Thursday, November 26, 2020

Thanksgiving Is STILL Alive ~ Joy Avery Melville

This year our Thanksgiving ~ though different ~ Is STILL alive!

I write Fiction, but never in my wildest story-building has God given me a story that would depict what 2020 has been to so very many individuals!

When God call me to write Contemporary Christian Women's Fiction, I knew it meant I'd be writing stories of fictional journeys leading to joy... and my prayer is, that all that you've gone through, journeying through this maze of 2020, God has still given you the hope of joy.

November 14, 2019, my Christian Contemporary Women's Fiction, Meant For Her released ~ The first chapter takes place on Thanksgiving Day and the heroine's brother, Cam, expresses, in a prayer, all that he is thankful for after having been searching for his sister for weeks after her kidnapping. At the time, Candi wasn't seeing all she had to be thankful for... in fact, she was contemplating all she'd gone through. Kidnapping, beatings, rapes... no, she saw the world as a trauma victim. 

Candi realized she never would have survived had a man and his daughter not been out deer hunting, yet her PTSD kept her behind unyielding prison bars in her heart and mind. She didn't have to keep her heart walled off... but it took the help of many to get her past it - GOD WAS HER ULTIMATE RESCUER!

How about you? When was the last time you sat and made a list of every single thing you have to be thankful for? What gives you a hope for the joy to come?   

Have you looked into a concordance of the Bible and looked at how many times the word THANKS is listed?

One of my all-time favorite challenges from Scripture is where Paul spoke to Thessalonians and told them, in spite of all they faced, he encouraged them to...
"Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.
1 Thessalonians 5:17 & 18 (NASB)

I realize this is the year of COVID 19 ~  is stretching us with each shut-down, lock-in, and mask-wearing scenario... unlike one could have possibly imagined. I'm one of those 'too-susceptible-to-be-around-people' individuals. It's been a trying year for me and for my husband, but God has sustained us... provided for us in ways we never thought possible, in spite of all the messiness. 

Meant For Her was a fictional story of one woman's journey to joy ~  like our own personal journeys, joy often comes after we've been through some form of sorrow, or hardship, or even a tragedy.

"Weeping may endure for the night, but joy cometh in the morning." Psalm 30:5 (KJV)

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My Story Title:   MEANT FOR HER

My Story Genre:  Christian Contemporary Women's Fiction with Romance

My Story Released:   November 14, 2019

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The Author of This Story:    Joy Avery Melville


As an award winning author, Joy Avery Melville's heart’s desire is to be the author God has called her to be by sharing Him with readers in such a way they long to have a deeply committed personal relationship with Jesus Christ as Lord.

Fully intending to write Historical Romance—had in fact— she had no plans to deviate from that. God had something else in mind for that ‘call’ He’d made on her life back in 1967. A mere eighth grader at the time, she had no clue about the topics she’d be drawn to write about.

Surrendering to the genre God placed on her heart has given Joy new insight into the hearts and lives of those who too often hurt in silence.

The settings of Joy’s books are near where she lives in Schoolcraft, Michigan with her husband of nearly 47years and their 2-year-old Yorkie, Is-A-Bella Bindi, (Is-a-beautiful little girl) who thinks she’s a much larger breed with tomboy tendencies.

Joy loves to hear from readers and will respond!

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Get Connected:

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WHERE can the book be purchased?

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Thursday, November 19, 2020

MY STORY BEFORE THE STORY ~ Nyssa ~ Fortune’s Fall ~ by Katherine Barger

Nyssa ~

“I’m not going. And you shouldn’t either.” I try to shove my best friend, Greer, out of my doorway, but he doesn’t budge. I glare up at him. A wisp of frizzy hair has fallen loose from my ponytail and tickles my cheek. I shove it behind my ear and try to close the door again.

            “Aw, come on, Nyssa,” Greer says. He presses his fingers against the door to keep it from closing. “You’ve been studying all week. You can take a break and go downtown with everyone. It’s just dinner.” He presses his hands together. “Please?”

            “Nope.” I shake my head. “Now get out. Go study. I’ll see you tomorrow.” I try to close the door again, and this time he takes a step backward with a wounded pout. “Night!” I slam the door, then whirl and lean against it to survey the small common room that connects my room with Ethelind’s. We’ve been roommates since we arrived seven years ago to study in the prestigious Presidential Education Program. Now, here we are: seventeen years old, on the cusp of our final exam and graduation, and about to enter the next level of elite training for America’s smartest students.

            Am I ready for this?

            I smooth a few more flyaways from my face and cross the common room to my bedroom, then take a running leap onto my bed and burrow beneath my paisley quilt. Some would say I was born ready. When you have a gift like mine, it’s hard to argue the point.

            I sigh and flip onto my back to stare up at the ceiling. My room is cold—too cold. It’s still spring, but the Central Capital’s humid summer heat will arrive any day, and this freezing temperature is a preemptive attack.

            The silence is soothing, and I close my eyes. It’s been a year since President Omri had his last prophetic dream. A year since my mentor Pallas and I explained to him what it meant. And while we wait and wonder whether he’ll ever have another, Pallas and I work through his others, studying the symbols and arguing over what they mean.

            I open my eyes. Tomorrow, I’ll take an exam that doesn’t matter. At least not to me. My friends’ futures might ride on their test scores, but mine was determined long ago.

            I’m destined to become the president’s dream interpreter.

            The silence lulls me into a daze, and my eyelids grow heavy. There’s no need to tell Greer I slept instead of studied. Sometimes, omission is better than truth.

###

            The next morning, I sink into a metal chair placed at one of the many desks that sits in the auditorium. I spot Greer’s buzzed blond head near the front. He turns and our gazes meet. He grins, then whirls to face the front before I can respond.

            I shake my head, my own lips curled in a smile, as I secure my earpiece and turn on my tablet. There will be plenty of time for celebratory dinners after this is over.

             The mentor who will monitor our exams steps to the front of the room. “Good morning. Please press the green square at the top of your screen. The exam will begin shortly. Good luck."

            I do as commanded, then wait for the exam to start. The screen glows blue and a voice speaks the first question into my earpiece.

            One deep breath later and I’m ready. A bolt of excitement shoots down my spine. I’m about to finish this chapter and move to the next.

            If I’d known in that moment what the future held, would I still have wished for tomorrow? 

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The author will be gifting a winner an autographed copy of Fortune's Fall (U.S. Only)
Be sure to leave a comment with an email address where you can be reached should you win.
DRAWING TO BE HELD WEDNESDAY EVENING ~ November 25, 2020.

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My Story Title:     Fortune's Fall

My Story Genre:   YA Christian Dystopian 

My Story Released:         November 3, 2020

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The Author of My Story:    Katherine Barger



Katherine Barger  writes stories about characters of faith in a world where faith is challenged. When she’s not wrangling kids alongside her forever-forbearing husband, she’s writing, eating Mexican food, or snuggling with her family’s two rescue pets: a dog named Queen Elsa and a cat named Princess Jasmine. 

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Get Connected:

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WHERE can the book be purchased?

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Thursday, November 12, 2020

~ HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MEANT FOR HER~

~FAITH & FELLOWSHIP BOOK FESTIVAL ANNOUNCED ~ 
~THE ANGEL BOOK AWARDS FOR 2020 ~

Just in time for a birthday! 






Now, I know those photos above are far from professional, but I had to take them from a video. I am still in shock, I think. God used this award to affirm my obedience in writing a genre, I never thought I wanted to write... never thought I'd be capable of writing. WITH GOD ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE - especially when He has asked us to do it!

~ CELEBRATE MEANT FOR HER'S BIRTHDAY WITH ME ~


LEAVE A COMMENT ~ I WILL GIFT A FREE, SIGNED COPY OF MEANT FOR HER TO SOMEONE IN THE U.S. AFTER THE DRAWING IS HELD WEDNESDAY EVENING NOVEMBER 18, 2020!

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Story Title:      MEANT FOR HER

Story Genre:  Christian Contemporary Women's Fiction 
with a thread of Romance

 Story Released:   November 14, 2019
Happy birthday, Meant For Her

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Back Cover Blurb:

Had it all truly been ~ MEANT FOR HER?

Kidnapped, raped, brutally beaten, and left for dead, Candi Reynolds becomes a prisoner of fear. Faced also with the impact of the unexpected break-up with her fiancé, and an unwanted pregnancy resulting from the attacks, she believes God has forsaken her. Choosing to move back to the Michigan horse farm, owned by her older brother, Dr. Cam Reynolds, Candi essentially goes into seclusion.

Dr. Patrick (Mack) MacKevon, long-time friend of Cam’s, watches from the sidelines at the farm, where his horses are stabled, while Candi struggles to regain a sense of normalcy. His own big-brother tendencies develop into a much deeper emotion over the months he prays for her.

Is it possible for Candi to put all the pain and trauma behind her and renew her former relationship with the Lord? Will she allow her heart to open enough to discover authentic love, while making decisions of victory on her personal journey to joy?

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Author:   Joy Avery Melville


Joy Avery Melville's  heart’s desire is to be the author God has called her to be by sharing Him with readers in such a way they long to have a deeply committed personal relationship with Jesus Christ as Lord. 

Fully intending to write Historical Romance—had in fact— she had no plans to deviate from that. God had something else in mind for that ‘call’ He’d made on her life back in 1967. A mere eighth grader at the time, she had no clue about the topics she’d be drawn to write about.

Surrendering to the genre God placed on her heart has given Joy new insight into the hearts and lives of those who too often hurt in silence.

The settings of Joy’s books are near where she lives in Schoolcraft, Michigan with her husband of nearly 47years and their 2-year-old Yorkie, Is-A-Bella Bindi, (Is-a-beautiful little girl) who thinks she’s a much larger breed with tomboy tendencies.

Joy loves to hear from readers and will respond!

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  Joy would love to connect with  you:

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This book can be purchased at:

E-book, Paperback, Kindle Unlimited formats

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Thursday, November 05, 2020

Our Story BEFORE The Story ~ Jake Miller & Kali McIntyre ~ Northern Hearts ~ An Anaiah Christmas Novella

Jake Miller: I couldn’t sleep, so I’m here an hour early for the morning flight up from Winnipeg. It’s freezing sitting here in the truck, but if I go inside our tiny Churchill airport the reality of meeting this unknown relative of Cora’s—a niece, no less—means that my life is about to change completely.

At least my coffee’s good and hot, to keep my fingers from going numb in the cold. Ever since my business partner Cora McIntyre died last week, The Great Northern Lodge and Restaurant has been in an uproar. We knew her battle with cancer was ending, but none of us were ready to let her go.

Cora was my mentor, my friend, and almost a mother figure to me. Growing up in foster care in Toronto, one of Canada’s largest cities, I spent my childhood moving from home to home with a plastic garbage bag of my belongings. It was a fluke that I got myself into cooking school and came up here to Churchill, the gateway to Canada’s arctic, for a trip after graduation. I saw the sign Cora had posted looking for a sou-chef and applied, never thinking I’d get the job. And here I am, ten years later, waiting to find out if the young woman getting off this next flight is going to take away my livelihood, my dream of owning my own place—The Great Northern Lodge and Restaurant.

Hi, I'm Kali McIntyre. Now that I’m finally on this plane, I’m nervous about heading up to this arctic town on my own! I’ve always hated flying, so thank goodness this flight will be over soon. I’ve read over the lawyer’s letter in my purse a hundred times. He’s in Churchill, one thousand kilometers north of Winnipeg where I live, and he says I have an aunt who’s left me “a great deal of property both in real estate and cash” in her will. I never knew I had an aunt! My father’s never mentioned having a sister before, and my mother grew up a spoiled, only child of an extremely rich family.

I hate arguing with my father, but I have to know what this inheritance means. He wants me to join the family law firm and make use of my law degree, but I want to open my own dessert bar in downtown Winnipeg and forget the law entirely. Baking is my first love, and I want to make my mark on the restaurant scene. I’ve already found the perfect spot and hired an interior designer. Maybe I’ll inherit enough money from this mysterious aunt to make my dream a reality.

Wow, that’s a tiny town outside my window. The plane’s about to land, and I can see about five streets running east to west along the shoreline of Hudson Bay. No wonder my father told me this was a crazy idea. I hate it when the landing gears come down, and it feels like the plane’s about to fall out of the sky! Now we’re rumbling along the airstrip, braking on the ice… is the plane going to stop? Blood’s pounding in my ears. Everyone else seems to be fine. I take another peek out my window at the bright blue building that looks more like a storefront than an airport. Oh, Kali, what have you gotten yourself into?

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My Story Title:   NORTHERN HEARTS
                            Heroes Of The Tundra
                     An Anaiah Christmas Novellea
My Story Genre:  Romantic Suspense 

My Story Releases:   December 06,2019

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The Author of My Story:    Laurie Wood

           




Laurie Wood lives in Central Canada and writes inspirational romantic suspense with an edge of danger. She’s also a military wife who’s raised two wonderful special needs children to adulthood. They’ve lived all over Canada and are still on that journey. When she’s not writing she can be found at her spinning wheel, knitting, or hanging out with her dogs in the garden. She loves to hear from readers and always replies so feel free to get in touch with her.

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Get Connected:

~ ~ ~ ~

WHERE can the book be purchased?

~ ~ ~ ~


The author will be honored to gift a winner an ebook copy of
NORTHERN HEARTS
Leave a comment (with Email address so we can contact you)

DRAWING TO BE HELD WEDNESDAY EVENING ~ November 11, 2020
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