Cabin on Pinto Creek, by AJ Hawke

AJ, thank you for joining us today to talk about your new book Cabin on Pinto Creek!

What inspired Cabin on Pinto Creek?

I let my imagination run wild one hot summer afternoon with the question of how would you write a love story if the hero was working all alone in an isolated line cabin far from the main ranch and about to get snowed in for the winter? The story evolved from there. Letting oneself ask the what if questions are what has led to all of my stories. I very seldom outline the story but let them flow out to whatever stream takes them. Sort of like life does.

I noticed on your website that you enjoy posting recipes. What is your favorite thing to cook?

I have a terrible sweet tooth, so desserts are a favorite. I also enjoy baking bread. There is something about the smell of bread baking that signifies home. Then I enjoy trying new and different recipes, such as the Pinto Pie. I baked that for the Bible Study group that meets in my home. Those ladies are so polite with their comments of “That’s an interesting taste.” They still let me attend the Bible study (especially since it is in my home). I try not to try too many bizarre recipes in a row. They did like the hot Chocolate Cobbler with ice cream.

Can you give us a glimpse into the next book in the Cedar Ridge Chronicles?

Joe Storm by A J Hawke

If a cowhand can’t ride, what can he do? An injured cowhand finds a solution that brings him more than he ever expected.

Joe Storm can no longer ride a horse—and that hurts a lot more than his injury. Swallowing his pride, he takes a job as cook’s helper on a trail drive. He didn’t expect to fall in love with the daughter of the trail herd owner. However, Joe and Sara do fall in love in spite of her father’s opposition. The trail herd is sold to Elisha Evans (Cabin On Pinto Creek) a rancher in Colorado, where Joe builds a new life for himself. Here he learns that his abusive mother has died, but childhood memories still haunt him. Can Joe forgive his father for not stepping in to protect him years ago? Can Joe be there for the woman he loves when she needs him most?

What do you want readers to take away from your book? Any special message?

The take away from Cabin on Pinto Creek is that no matter the circumstance that with God’s help we can make the here and now a time of contentment and even joy in our lives. Elisha Evans, the hero in Cabin on Pinto Creek, had not planned for his circumstances to be such as they were, but he didn’t let that stop him for living true to his self-imposed moral standard of honesty and hard work. He took satisfaction from the simple things of his life. Susana Jamison never expected to be at the mercy of the goodness of a stranger at such a young age but determined that she would let it push her toward God, instead of making a wedge between her and her Savior.

What character traits do you find the most important when writing?

I enjoy writing about men and women of faith who have struggles and doubts but manage the courage to do what is necessary to make it through. Honesty, sense of humor, and good old fashion common sense are appealing character traits for the people who populate my novels.

How long have you been writing?

I really started my fiction writing in the summer of 2008. It was too hot to get out and do much, the TV was too boring, and I couldn’t find enough books that kept my interest. I said to myself, “Why don’t you try to write your own novel and play with that?” So I did and Cabin on Pinto Creek evolved into a full blown novel. I was kinda surprised at it and after poking it with a stick I said, “All rightie, that was fun, let’s just write another.” So now here I am working on my seventh novel and still having fun.

What are you currently reading?

Way too much, I need to get busy and finish my latest story because I have left my hero in a most uncomfortable situation and he’s howling for me to get on with it.

I recently read several of Mary Connealy’s fine books. Then I read one by Susan Paige Davis and then Karen Witemeyer, and oh yes, Vickie McDonough, Amada Cabot, Cheryl St. John, Max Elliott Anderson, Sandi Rog, Greg Kincaid, and Shawn Grady. Like I said, way too much. I read rather fast and can complete most novels in three or four hours. I try to restrain myself to only a couple hundred a year. My next book will be Highland Sanctuary by Jennifer Hudson Taylor. Probably read that one after supper.

That’s just the fiction and then there are the commentaries, devotional books, and of course my Bible.

What is your favorite past time?

Well, there’s reading, getting together with friends and family, church, and travel. I also enjoy working with my roses and other flowers. This time of year with the summer coming up soon I’m looking for things to do that involve air conditioning. I love to write about the 19^th century but thankful I live in the day and age of comfort.

About Cabin On Pinto Creek by A J Hawke

Book Description:Elisha Evans is out of luck. By the age of twenty-five, he’d planned to have his own ranch. Instead, a series of losses forces him to beg for a job at an isolated mountain ranch. The loss of his parents at a young age has left Elisha longing for a place of his own and a family to provide for and to protect. But betrayal and loss have left him fearful that he will never attain his dreams. The only job he is offered is the line rider out of the isolated cabin on Pinto Creek. As he hunts for cattle alone in the high Colorado Rockies, he finds a broken-down wagon in the snow with an old preacher and his granddaughter, Susana, stranded inside. Elisha manages to bring them to the cabin just ahead of the winter snows that blocks the way out of the valley.
The old man’s dying wish is that Elisha should marry his granddaughter. The old man knows that the two young people will be snow bound for the next five months and the grandfather wants to spiritually protect his granddaughter by leaving her married. Elisha wrestles with the dilemma of consenting to a marriage he did not plan. He understands the reasoning of the old man. Although he does not know much about God, he respects what this grandfather is trying to do for his granddaughter. Is he man enough to take on the responsibility? But will marriage to a stranger change his life for better or worse?

Only sixteen, Susana Jamison has no choice but to marry this stranger, although he is an unbeliever. Faced with the brutal conditions of frontier living and the dangers she encounters alongside her new husband, she is challenged to the limit of her strength, hope, and faith. Can she hold on to her faith in the midst of this desperate situation? An inspirational historical Western romance, Cabin On Pinto is the first in the Cedar Ridge Chronicles.

Available on Amazon as a paperback and an ebook that can be downloaded immediately. If you don't have a Kindle you can download the Kindle for PC app for free and read it on your computer.

What is the next novel that will be published?

Caught Between Two Worlds will be published in July.

It is an Inspirational Contemporary Romance

He comes from a ranch in Colorado; she comes from Upper Manhattan. He’s struggling to provide the medical care his daughter needs; she has more money than she can spend in a lifetime. He has a strong faith to see him through; she is alone without a belief. They are caught between their two worlds. 

Back Cover Copy:

Widower Flint Tucker doesn’t have the resources to get the medical treatment his three-year-old daughter needs. Stephanie Wellbourne has a chance encounter with Flint and she offers him a job that will enable him to earn the money. The only problem is the job takes him away from his life in Colorado and brings him to New York City. Drawn to the tall rugged Westerner, Stephanie can’t understand his clinging to a belief that God will provide a way to help him with his problems. How can two such different people find a way toward love when caught between two different worlds?

How can you be contacted?

www.AJHawke.blogspot.com

Salena, thanks for inviting me to be on your blog.

Leave a comment to be entered to win a copy of AJ's book Cabin on Pinto Creek. Winner will be announced on June 5th.


EVERYONE who FOLLOWS my blog and leaves a comment will be entered TWICE!

Void where prohibited; the odds of winning depend on the number of entrants. Entering the giveaway is considered a confirmation of eligibility on behalf of the enterer in accord with these rules and any pertaining local/federal/international laws.

Journey to Riverbend, by Henry McLaughlin

Henry McLaughlin is joining us today to talk about his new release "Journey to Riverbend".

Henry, the cover of your book is stunning! You mentioned on your website (http://henrymclaughlin.org/) that you did not set out to write a romance. Now that you have officially released a Historical Romance, do you see another one in your future? If so is it all ready in the works?

I have written a sequel to Journey to Riverbend. The title is Riverbend Justice. It is presently with my agent. The romance element involves the heroes of the first book, Michael and Rachel, exploring if they even belong together while seeking to solve a murder during which Michael is almost beaten to death and Rachel is shot. In the book, Michael must resolve issues from his past if he is to move into a closer relationship with Rachel. Rachel must be patient yet questions if this is really the man God told her in a vision she will marry.

I am presently in the first draft of a third Riverbend story, called Riverbend Reunion, in which Michael’s past comes crashing into his present and he faces a decision he never thought he would have to make.

Can you describe how it felt to see and hold your baby now that it is in print?

When I opened the first box of books Tyndale sent to my house, I stood and stared. Even though I knew the cover, there is something about seeing my story as a book that is almost indescribable. The closest experience is seeing our first child for the first time. It’s something I created and to see it as a finished product left me speechless. I was in awe that something God put in my heart was now a physical reality. Eight years of work, constant re-writes and edits, was now before me. A published piece of work with my name on it.

Did you outline or did your characters take on a life of their own as your wrote the book?

Both. I do prepare a detailed outline for each chapter and scene. But when I get into the actual writing, I let the characters take me where they want to go. A minor character in Journey to Riverbend, Deputy Pete O’Brien, became larger with each appearance until I felt like I wanted to shoot him. He ended up carrying one of the subplots in the novel.

The heroine, Rachel, was also a challenge because her story arc wouldn’t develop. Finally, I sat her down in my grandmother’s rocking chair in my writing room and said, “Rachel, what do you want?” Her answer was, “Don’t you know? Haven’t you read the story?” Then she clicked for me as I realized what I missing in her character: her feistiness, her desire for independence and freedom, her drive to overcome her past and succeed.

What is your favorite past time besides writing?

Reading. I have always loved to read. Frequently, I have a fiction and non-fiction book going at the same time, in addition to magazines and newspapers.

Beyond reading, my favorite past times are traveling and baseball.

Name two of your all time favorite books.

The Black Stallion by Walter Farley. Read it as a child and was hooked on reading.

Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card. Opened the world of science fiction for me as well as inspiring me to write.

You mix romance and adventure together to give the reader a sense of real life triumphs they can relate to. Where do you draw your inspiration from?

From several sources, mostly from my own life and background. I have a Masters in Social Work and I worked in public child welfare for almost twenty years so I saw hurting and struggling people.

In my Christian walk, God has frequently given me opportunities to serve and minister to others.

As for the adventure part, I enjoy reading thrillers, mysteries and Western. I also enjoy meeting or reading about real life people facing challenges.  God has gifted me with a vivid, and sometimes warped, imagination so I can explore adventures.

I remember Donald Maass saying at a workshop: “What’s the worst thing that can happen to your hero? Put it in the book.” I use this to add tension and adventure to my stories.

And I strongly suspect, despite my continual denials, a romantic lives inside me and comes out through my writing.

For all those writers that are trying to break into the business, do you have any words of wisdom?

1. Be patient and diligent. I read somewhere that Jack London was rejected over 700 times before he published his first story. Ernest Hemingway is reported to have re-written the end of one of his stories 37 times. I worked on Journey to Riverbend for eight years. The published book is at least the ninth full draft.

2. Learn the craft of writing. Read books on the craft. Attend conferences and workshops. Explore online resources such as the Christian Writers Guild. The Guild courses taught me how to write. Get involved in good critique groups. This requires prayer and discernment to find the right group that will challenge, encourage, and help you grow. Look for someone who is willing to mentor you.

3. Read. Read books in your genre. Read books outside your genre. Read to learn as well as to be entertained. Study how other authors develop characters and plots, how they use words and sentences, how they structure dialogue, employ cliffhangers, how they use the setting of their story as a character.

4. Pray. Pray for God’s guidance and wisdom and plan. Has He called you to write? What has He called you to write? Listen to Him and be obedient. He has opened doors for me that only opened because I was obedient each step. He won’t show us His whole plan at once. He shows us the next step and invites us, urges us, to take it. But the choice is ours.

5. Write. Write every day, even if it’s only fifteen minutes. Create a schedule and stick to it. Put your butt in the chair. Writing won’t happen until you do.

Before I moved to writing full time in September, 2010, my routine was to get up at 4:00 a.m. This gave me one-and-a half hours of writing time before I left for work.

When is your best writing time? Figure it out. Block it out.

6. Learn to enjoy the art of re-writing, to making the effort to get feedback from others, to look at your work and make it better.

Additional comments.

Thank you for the opportunity for this interview.

If the desire to write is on your heart, go for it. Don’t worry about being published. Focus on being the best writer you can be.

When I was working on Journey to Riverbend, I asked some people to be test readers and to read the entire story and give me their feedback.

One commented that a scene where Michael discussed the concept of Shalom (nothing missing, nothing broken) with another character. My test reader told me that scene, that concept, really ministered to her and to keep it in the book at all costs.

The Lord then told me that if Journey to Riverbend never got published, it had stilled served His purpose because it ministered to that one test reader and changed her life, her relationship with Him.

That line is now on the dedication page.

So write, be obedient to His call on your life and let Him take care of the rest.

Thank you Henry for this wonderful interview and insight into your spectacular novel!

Leave a comment for Henry to be entered into a drawing to win a copy of Journey to Riverbend. Winner will be announced on May 29th. Make sure to leave your email address in your comment.

Void where prohibited; the odds of winning depend on the number of entrants. Entering the giveaway is considered a confirmation of eligibility on behalf of the enterer in accord with these rules and any pertaining local/federal/international laws.

The Unforgivable, by Tessa Stockton

Tessa, Thank you for joining us today. It is a pleasure to have you here to talk about your new release, The Unforgivable. 

Your background being in dance intrigued me. Have you always wanted to write or is this a love that developed over time? I’d say it’s both. I’ve written on and off over the years and have always had the interest to write more seriously and to seek publication, but I didn’t have the time because I toured a lot. Yet, I believe that if you love something enough, you find a way to do it. It’s that “finding a way” that developed over time. It didn’t happen overnight for me.

What inspired you to write this book? About 16-17 years ago, I was involved in human rights. In fact, I choreographed a dance suite in memory of victims of Argentina’s Dirty War (1976-1983). Then I sort of had an epiphany. God gripped my heart and compelled me to pray for the very people whom acquaintances wanted to see brought to trial. I saw flaws in the blind zeal that buzzed around me, and even when I dove into the hard-to-stomach research way back when, the entire time, I couldn’t help but feel conflicted. I believe the Lord prodded me to dig deeper, searching for the spiritual significance of these events that evolve from the aftermath of war. He led me on the path to forgiveness. All people, labeled monster or not, are children of God, regardless of earthly repercussion caused by sin, violence, war, remorse, guilt...God offers healing. My novel, The Unforgivable, is a result of that era in my life that left such an impact.

  

Do you draw inspiration from your own life for your books? I think so, yes. All along, I believe the Lord led me on a trail of breadcrumbs. Now, I have a full basket. During my travels overseas, I had a number of experiences that left me with haunts and questions. Different individuals, at different times, appeared in my path who shared the essence of their involvement with war crimes, whether a genocidaire, victim, or defense attorney. Some conversations that took place many years ago have stayed with me as if they occurred only an hour ago. One, in particular, happened while in Brazil, and I will never forget the depth of this person’s remorse.

  

What household chore do you dislike the most? All of them. Oh—wait, only one? Probably laundry. It just takes so long…several loads interrupt what I really want to do in a day—which is to write (and I don’t like interruptions). Clothes…haul ‘em to the laundry room, sort ‘em out, throw ‘em in the washer, toss ‘em in the dryer, iron ‘em—and by the moment you’re done and have everything put away it’s time to start all over again. It’s an all-day chore. Yeah, my choice is definitely laundry.

  

Are you currently working on another book? Is this to become a series? Yes, The Unforgivable is Book #1 in the Wounds of South America series. Each book is about love and redemption in the midst of some of the desperate political situations in the southern cone. I just turned my manuscript in for the second book in the series, which is set in Colombia. My publisher is expecting my outline/synopsis for the third book in May.

  

  

Where is the strangest place you ever received an idea for a book? Chuck-E-Cheese. In fact, I wrote the entire ending of Book #2, just before I turned it in to my publisher to meet the deadline. Yeah, I scribbled the whole thing on a set of napkins. That’s pretty strange when you consider the topics on which I write. Later that night, of course, I transcribed the scene into my manuscript, making it all official. I don’t think my editor would have been amused receiving a pile of ink-soaked (and in some cases, pizza oil-infused) napkins.

  

  

Do you outline or are you a pantster? Panster—and I like that word! However, I’m learning how to outline, because outlines are due before I can begin or finish a manuscript. It’s a challenge for me, but has helped me to grow in the craft. This series is a concept that I didn’t foresee, but was developed by my publisher.

 How does it feel to see your dreams of being published coming true? Does it feel like the real work is just beginning? It feels surreal. I’m not sure it’s really hit me yet, because I’ve been so busy. At the same time, this is a dream come true after disappointment in my pursuit for publication. It didn’t come easy for me. I scrapped for years, trying to get a foot in the industry’s door. Now, after a short blink, it does feel like the real work is just beginning. Still…YIPPEE! I slid down the sought after rainbow. Now, if I could just find that pot of gold. ;)

  

Any additional comments? The Unforgivable, a love story set against the backdrop of Argentina’s Dirty War, is available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, in paperback, Kindle, and Nook. Also, readers can visit me at http://www.tessastockton.com/.

Buy a copy of Tessa's book here
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_3_34?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=the+unforgivable+by+tessa+stockton&sprefix=the+unforgivable+by+tessa+stockton

Follow Tessa on her website by clicking here
http://www.tessastockton.blogspot.com/
http://www.tessastockton.com/

Leave a comment for Tessa for a chance to win her NEW book, The Unforgivable.
The winner will be announced May 15th.

Void where prohibited; the odds of winning depend on the number of entrants. Entering the giveaway is considered a confirmation of eligibility on behalf of the enterer in accord with these rules and any pertaining local/federal/international laws.