Meet the People of Cimarron Creek

While we're waiting for A Tender Hope to be released, I thought you might enjoy connecting (or reconnecting) with some of the people who make Cimarron Creek their home. (Many thanks to Kathy F, who reminded me that not everyone has seen my posts on other blogs and that it would be a good idea to compile a list of the most interesting ones.)

We'll start at the beginning, with A Stolen Heart.

You probably remember that the hero is Travis Whitfield, the town's sheriff, but you might not be aware of the reasons why he agreed to take that position. After all, he was already busy as the town's only attorney, and although Whitfields were raised to serve the town, surely that was enough.

But it wasn't, as I discuss on Chirp and Chatter.

Then there's Aunt Bertha, the town's matriarch and one of my favorite secondary characters. She's a feisty woman, as you'll see from this conversation on Welcome to Jenn's World.

If you've read A Borrowed Dream, you know that Catherine Whitfield's life hasn't been an easy one and that her path toward happily-ever-after takes more turns than she'd ever expected. Here's a bit of her story told in her own words on Stitches Thru Time.

We wouldn't want to neglect Austin Goddard, would we? After all, he's the hero, and he deserves his own interview. You'll find that on Novel PASTimes.

And, for a different look at both Catherine and Austin, click over to Relz Reviews for a character spotlight.

Tired of reading? I hope not, because I have one more post to share with yoiu, this one about the influence that families have on both Catherine and Austin. You'll find this one on Takeover Tuesday

I hope you enjoyed these interviews and that you're almost as excited about the upcoming release of A Tender Hope as I am.

Releases, Reviews, and Relief

If you're wondering what happened to Wednesday in Wyoming this month, I took a break while I was involved in heavy-duty promotion for A Stolen Heart. The month that a book releases is extra busy and this time it simply did not leave any time for my usual Wednesday posts.  But -- don't worry -- they're returning next week.

Like most authors, I wait anxiously for the first reviews of the book. So much hinges on them, and there's no way to predict which reviewers will like a book and which will pan it. Fortunately, A Stolen Heart has received some excellent reviews, which was a big relief to this Nervous Nelly author.

Publishers Weekly is one of the most influential reviewers, and they receive far more books than they actually review. That makes simply being reviewed an honor, and when the review is as positive as this one ... let's just say that celebrations are in order.

Librarians rely on a number of sources when making decisions about which books to purchase for their patrons. Booklist is one of those sources, so once again, it was a relief and a pleasure to see what they said.

Do you like books that arouse many emotions -- both laughter and tears? I do, which is why I was pleased by this review from Compass Book Ratings.

And if you want a book to sweep you away, which is certainly something I look for in a book, you'll understand why I smiled when I read this review from The Parkersburg News and Sentinel.

I've saved this one for last, because it made me laugh. Do you like chocolate? I do, which is one of the reasons I created a heroine who becomes a candy maker. I had fun researching nineteenth century candy making, but I didn't expect my descriptions to make my editors and this reviewer hungry.

A word of warning: you might want to have a box of chocolates at your side while you read A Stolen Heart.

If you read the book, I hope you'll consider leaving a review of your own on the various online book sites. Those reviews are incredibly powerful, since they help other readers know whether or not to spend their time and money on a book.

And, of course, I hope you'll return next week when Wednesday in Wyoming resumes.

The 5 Ws of A Stolen Heart

Journalists are taught that every article needs to include the five Ws -- who, what, where, when, and why. We novelists follow the same advice, although it usually takes us longer to answer those questions. In my case it takes a lot longer.

Instead of simply counting the minutes until the official release of A Stolen Heart tomorrow, I thought I'd show you how those questions relate to the story. And, yes, there's another reason for this blog: Revell gave me some wonderful graphics to share with you.

Who? That's shorthand for "who's involved?" As you can see from the family tree, there are multiple generations of people living in Cimarron Creek. Not all of them are still alive when A Stolen Heart begins, and not all play major roles, but the family tree shows you who's related to whom.

I found the family tree invaluable when I was writing the book and hope it'll add to your enjoyment of the story.

What?  Again, this is shorthand, in this case for "what happened?" The answer to that is much more complex than the "who?" question, so let's start with the beginning.

Schoolteacher Lydia Crawford arrives in Cimarron Creek expecting to hear the sound of wedding bells, only to discover that her fiance has disappeared, leaving behind a wife. A pregnant wife.

Travis Whitfield has his hands full dealing with a missing man, a rash of thefts, and an ornery father. He doesn't have time to think about love and marriage. But sometimes love comes when it's least expected.

Where?  The answer to this one is simple: Cimarron Creek, a seemingly idyllic town in the Texas Hill Country. In case you wondered what it looks like, there's a map in the book itself and a fancier version here.

When? This is another question with a simple answer. The story takes place in 1880.

Why? And now we come to the heart of the story. Why did the people in Cimarron Creek do what they did? Why are some of them hiding deep secrets? I can't answer that without giving away the story, and you know I won't do that. Instead, I hope I've intrigued you enough that you'll read A Stolen Heart and uncover all the missing pieces to the puzzle for yourself.

Here's a link to more information as well as buying links.  http://bit.ly/2jKtzo8

If you do read the book, I'd love to hear what you think. You can find my email address on my web site. I'd also appreciate an honest review at the major online retailers.

Happy reading!

Counting the Days

As the subject line says, I'm counting the days -- seven -- until A Stolen Heart releases. This is always an exciting time for me, knowing that soon my book will be in the hands of the most important people -- readers. It's also a bit of an anxious time as I wait for your reactions.

Believe it or not, there's a lot of waiting involved in writing. Once the manuscript has gone through the editing process, the next step is to send it to well-known authors for possible endorsement.

I was so fortunate that New York Times bestselling author Jane Kirkpatrick enjoyed the story enough to say this:

And Margaret Brownley, another bestselling author, offered this praise:

The next step is to send the manuscript to major review sites.  One of the most influential is Publishers Weekly. Since they receive far more books than they can review, simply being reviewed is an honor. As you might imagine, receiving a favorable review like this one is cause for celebration.

Romance readers often turn to RT BookReviews for recommendations, so I always wait eagerly to see what their reviewers have to say about my books. I smiled when I read this, since both of my editors had said the same thing about A Stolen Heart, namely that it made them hungry.

Now I'm waiting for you, my readers, to tell me what you think. Will you love Lydia and Travis's story? Will you be intrigued by the secrets in Cimarron Creek?  I hope so.

If you'd like to read more about the book before it releases, here's a link to my web site. It includes a sneak peek at the first chapter as well as discussion group questions, in case your book club would like to feature it.

http://bit.ly/2jKtzo8

Happy reading!

Behind the Cover for A Stolen Heart

Do you ever wonder how book covers are designed? Ever since my first book was published, I've been fascinated by the process, which is why I've written about it several times. I'll include links to those earlier blogs at the end of this post, but for right now, let's focus on A Stolen Heart. It's one of my favorite covers and one that gets almost universal rave reviews when people see it. So, what was involved in creating it?

Authors are taught to show rather than simply tell, and in this case, that means pictures. Many thanks go to Art Director Patti Brinks and graphic designer Dan Thornberg of Design Source Creative Services, who were kind enough to share a number of behind-the-scenes pictures with me so that I could show you the story.

Although some publishers use stock art for their covers, Revell prefers to custom design their historical fiction books.  While it's a more expensive approach, it also means that the covers reflect the book. Don't you hate it when the cover shows a blonde, but the book describes her as a brunette? That doesn't happen at Revell.

The Model
One of the first steps is to choose a model. As part of the cover art process, the author is given a questionnaire which asks her to describe her heroine, not just in terms of her physical appearance, but also her mood. Using that, the design team reviews portfolios to find a model who has those characteristics.

I'm delighted with the choice of Laura W. to portray Lydia.

Costume Selection
Next comes the costume, which is oh, so critical for historical novels. As part of the questionnaire, I noted that Lydia wore fancy pinafores to work at the candy store. That led Patti Brinks to a search for just the right apron.

In the original version of the manuscript, Lydia wore gray dresses under the aprons. While that may have been historically accurate, Patti pointed out that more color would be better for the cover. I agreed and, in fact, liked the blouse she chose so well that you'll find a description of it in the book. It was a special blouse, and Lydia wore it on a special day.

The Photo Shoot
Once the model is chosen and her clothing selected, it's time for the photo shoot. As you can see from the outtakes, the photographer experimented with various positions and expressions.

Are you surprised by the white background? We'll talk about that next.

Each one of these has its own appeal, but I prefer the pose Dan and Patti chose.

The Background
As you saw above, the photo shoot was done in front of a plain white background, and you've probably guessed that the background was added later. That's true, but there's more to the story than that.

The first step was to purchase an image with the basic design.

If you compare this to the final cover, you'll see many similarities, but also many differences. In addition to the color of the building, the background is different. That's because Dan Thornberg used the photo below to substitute hills for the second row of buildings.

He also made a number of other changes to create this final background. How many can you find?

One of the first things I noticed was that the flowers on the right side are different from the hollyhocks in the original art. The ground in front of the store is also different. And then ... I'll let you search for the other differences.

The First Cover
Before the cover is finalized and presented to the sales staff for their approval, the design is sent to the author for her comments.

My first reaction was that I loved it. As I said before, I think it's one of the best covers I've had, but there was one problem. Can you find the difference between this and the final version?

You're right. The problem was that the store name says "tionery." It's true that Lydia's store is a confectionery, but its name is "Cimarron Sweets." I knew readers would be as bothered by that discrepancy as I was, so I asked for it to be changed. Fortunately, that was an easy modification.

The Back Cover
With the front cover completed, it was time to write the back cover copy and design the back cover. Like every aspect of the manuscript-to-finished-book process, it was a team effort. One person was responsible for obtaining the endorsements; another wrote the back cover copy; still others were involved in the actual design of the back cover. But at last, everything was finished and ready to be sent to the printer.

I'm thrilled with the final product and hope you find it as beautiful as I do.

You can find more information about A Stolen Heart, including an excerpt, on my web page.  And if you'd like to order a copy, here are some buying links:
Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Christian Book Distributors

Other Cover Art Blogs
As I promised at the beginning of this rather long blog, here are links to previous posts I've done about cover art.

Summer of Promise
Waiting for Spring 

I hope you enjoyed learning more about the process of creating a book cover. I can't wait to see what Revell has in store for the next one in the series.