Why I Love Twitter

Daren Rowse at ProBlogger asked a question on Twitter yesterday: Why I love Twitter? Didn't know he would make a video out of it. I answered don't know if I made the video cut. Check it out here.

Review: Seasons of Love

Seasons of Love (Massachusetts Weddings Series #3) (Heartsong Presents #777)
Elizabeth Goddard

Rating: 3 /5 Hallelujah Handclaps

For years Riley O’ Hare’s grandfather has asked her to leave her lush, but exhausting life in California to run his cranberry farm in Massachusetts. She barely considers option except for the fact that she will be closer to her long lost brother, John. She learned of his existence a year ago and would like to get to know him better. But when John and his wife Sarah die in a car accident, she has no more time or options to consider. John named her guardian of their two-year-old son, Chad. She returns.

Zane Baldwyn’s business is in trouble now that John, his business party—and also Riley’s brother—has passed away. John was also the programmer to his software company. He knew of Riley’s business acumen and wanted her help. Problem was…his tact…rubbed her the wrong way.

But when Zane finds evidence that suggests that John’s car accident wasn’t an accident the two join forces to solve the mystery. What they discover is far more than they set out, the mystery of our faith and love.

This romance is fast paced. Quick witted, not preachy. It is also a bit too predictable for the ride and Riley’s discovery of her love for Zane takes away her strength. A woman this smart and intuitive should realize when she has begun develop feelings for a man. I can’t entirely fault Goddard for this weak character trait in Christian romance leads. I fault the genre’s overall unwillingness to push for female characters with realistic desires for the men and realistic portrayals of the difficulties of romance. Nonetheless, A Season of Love is nice bedtime snack for the evangelical woman. (Heartsongs Presents, $4.95. Click the title link for great pricing deals for this and other books.)

Why Fiction Matters: Lost Love

GRACIE BONDS STAPLES wrote a beautiful article on Author, Kendra Norman Bellamy in todays Atlanta Journal Constitution . Here's an excerpt...

I shall not die.

They were [deceased husband]Jimmy's words but they belonged now to Kendra Norman-Bellamy. For two years, they'd moved around inside of her, strumming her heartstrings every time she remembered the title of the last sermon he preached.

Growing up, it wasn't usual for her to record events of her life in diaries. She wrote plays, skits and poems and proudly shared them at her church, funerals, weddings and family reunions.

But not these words. These were meant for her eyes only.

Bellamy typed and cried and typed and cried until all the pain was gone, until there was nothing left but stories like hers and Jimmy's.

What would she do with those? More here...

Did Rowlings Give Potter Away to Fans?

J.K. Rowlings suit against Steven Vander Ark's lexicon is huge news. Shelf Awareness, USA Today, Times of London,MediaBistro to name a few are talking about this case.

Yeah, I know...Harry Potter is frowned upon in certain Christian writing circles, but this issue is noteworthy. Because the issue at stake isn't as clear, cut and dry as it seems.

Question: How much leeway does an author give a fan website?

Rowling acknowledged she once bestowed an award on Vander Ark's Web site because, she said, she wanted to encourage a very enthusiastic fan.

But she said she "almost choked on my coffee" one morning when she realized Vander Ark had warned others not to copy portions of his Web site. She said she now has second thoughts about all the encouragement she has given to online discussions and Web sites devoted to her books.

"I never censored it or wanted to censor it," she said, adding that if she loses the lawsuit, she will conclude she essentially gave away her copyrights by encouraging the Web sites.

"Other authors will say, `I need to exercise more control. She was an idiot. She let it all go,'" Rowling said. -Associated Press

I had the same reaction as she a few months ago...:)

Your thoughts.

Cite: Harry Potter Reading Map Courtesy of Round Lake Library

Could Your Debut Novel be an Orange?

The Orange Prize shortlist:

• The Outcast by Sadie Jones
• Lullabies for Little Criminals by Heather O'Neill
• Lottery by Patricia Wood
• When We Were Bad by Charlotte Mendelson
• The Road Home by Rose Tremain
• Fault Lines by Nancy Huston

The prize celebrates fiction by women and is open to any novel written in English. The winner will receive £30,000 (US$58,893) at a ceremony in London's Royal Festival Hall on June 4.

Three authors: Sadie Jones, Heather O'Neiil and Patricia Wood are debut novelists.

Imagine your debut nominated. How would you feel? I think I better go back and rewrite one more time on mine. :)

Christian Fiction News: National Library Week

Compilation of news affecting the Christian Fiction Community.

New Audience for Amish
Bevely Lewis[The Forbidden] may be finding new audiences through film. Her novel "Saving
Sarah Cain" was made into a film for the Lifetime TV network by
producer Michael Landon Jr. It has just been released on DVD, and sales
are going "very, very well," she said. Lewis has signed a deal for
several more of her books to be adapted to film. Continue reading...

Jerry Jenkins on Stewardship

"It's a burden when you've sort of hit the
lottery. I was raised to love God, but I was also taught that love of
money ... was the root of evil."

Intoning the word "love,"
Jenkins emphasized an upbringing that taught him "personal wealth will
not make you a better person, it will just show who you are." More here...

Stretched But Not Broken
"This book speaks to those who have suffered mental and physical abuse,
as well as, those who have been imprisoned by drug addiction and mental
illness. I have personally lived every aspect of this novel, from being
an abused child to [possessing the sexual morality that corrupts a
person's body. Everything I write about comes from experience as well
as God-given creativity." Tawana Jackson, author More...

Get Readers Talking About Your Book

Romance author,Rachel Hauck[Sweet Caroline]stops by Christian Fiction Blog today to participate in our 1author interview spring series.

The question: What is the best way to promote your book release?

Rachel: There isn't a best way. There are many good ways, but probably one of the most effective promotional tools is word of mouth. Get readers talking about your book. Book clubs. Blog tours.


More about Sweet Caroline:
Released: Feb 2008, Thomas Nelson
Review: "Hauck's adorable novel contains the multilayered characters readers
have come to expect from her books. . . " - 4.5 Stars, Melissa Parcel, Romantic Times."