Squee!, second part

Let the excitement continue!

Read the prologue at Rebekah's website here.

Two weeks ago, I told you about the e-release of Petals by my twin-separated-at-birth (but not really) and best friend (really), Rebekah Roberts. I shared a quick interview and a little bit about the book and I got my copy. You can read that bubbly post here. (And remember, I'm not getting paid for this, not even bribery money.)

Well, today, when I postponed breakfast and hopped online, I scooted over to Amazon.com and found the paperback is already ready to order! It will also be available at BarnesandNoble.com; it's jut not up quite yet.


Last time, I had asked my twin some more questions about her writing, and now I would like to share them with you.

 

D: What has the journey been like to getting published?

R: Amazingly fast. I know that I am so blessed to have found a publisher so quickly. I hope that that means my book is something special.


D: Where do you write?

R: I love to go to Barnes and Noble. Most of Petals was produced there. The smell of coffee and new books gets me in the writing mood.

D: Do you have a writing routine?

R: Not really. I just try to fit it in where I can. I work long hours and there isn't always time. I think lamenting over not getting in our writing time is a constant struggle with most writers.

D: So what do you like to do in your free time?

R: Lately I have been napping. ;) But when I am not sleepy, there is nothing I like more than to hang out with my family or a good friend. I love reading and TV and movies, but I think, given the choice I would rather hang out and have a good talk with someone than just about anything.

D: Probably because you're an encourager. How do you hope to encourage readers with Petals?

R: The themes that are in Petals and now in the following books have a lot to do with true beauty and true love. I love romances, but I want to write a story that is more than just "boy meets girl." I want to write a story that has broken characters that may not be perfect by the last page but they are on their way to becoming better people and then maybe somehow that might affect a reader in his or her own life.

D: What is your fear with your book?

R: Wow... Good question. I guess, that no one will buy it... But I think more than that I am afraid of sending the wrong messages. I set out to send a message about beauty and love, but I have learned so much since I wrote it that I hope it still rings with truth. A single book is just a small stopping place in a writer's life. I have grown so much as a person and as a writer since I started the project, so I just hope my younger self knew what she was talking about.

D: Everybody has dreams. What are yours?

R: My dream as an author (wow that looks weird to type, author..), is to keep writing and keep getting published. I don't know that I will ever just write. I am currently a full-time nanny and I love it. I think I will always write and do something else, at least on the side. As for personal dreams... I'm like any hardcore dreamer, I want my own fairytale, my own happily ever after and I pray that I find it someday.

D: In addition to writing and nanny-ing (yeah, I don't think that's a word yet) you also have a ministry outreach in the works. Tell me about it.

R: Unfolding Rose Ministries is a new adventure that I am embarking on this fall. It is a ministry that I'm starting. I want to use my own fiction, other fiction, and interviews I'm conducting with men and women as a way to talk to young women about love, purity, modesty, guys, true beauty, and most of all who they are in Christ.   

D: What keeps you going every day?

R: My faith in Christ. I suffer from anxiety. It's something that I am not ashamed to talk about and anyone who knows me, knows I deal with worry and doubt on a daily basis. I guess you could call me a sensitive artist or just a plain old worry wart, but God takes that and uses it. Jesus is the one who gets me out of my head and gives me the strength to be there for others. It's because of my fears that I am able to write better characters and I am able to be sensitive to other peoples' struggles. So I thank God for my weakness and I thank Him for His strength in my life.    

D: What's the one thing you want people to know about you?

R: I guess what it says in the info section of my personal Facebook page: "I am the creation of The Creator, the loved of The Lover, the daughter of The Father and the saved of the Savior. I am His."  And that this book is for Him as well.

 

You can keep up with the latest from Rebekah on her Facebook page or Twitter profile. There's also more at her official website, RebekahRoberts.net. And for fun, you can listen to the playlist that Rebekah put together of songs and videos that inspired Petals.

I've started reading my e-copy, and I'm excited to get my signed book soon! And I can't wait to find it in bookstores and geek out in a public place! Oh yes, I will be looking.

Cover image by 5 Prince Publishing

                                              "Beauty might just be the beast."

        Calla Williams is not like other girls.  Most girls spend their whole lives trying to be beautiful, Calla already is…and she hates it.
        When she is shipped off one summer to live with family friends in their dilapidated Mississippi plantation, Calla is faced with the prospect of living with strangers and their teenage son.  This is annoying because, like any other boy, he is sure to fall in love with her on sight. However, Griffin Davenport is not your typical teenage guy. With his hot temper and half of his face severely scarred, “hate at first sight” is closer to what she finds.
        Though the two teens try to stay out of each other’s way, an odd attraction to each other makes staying away anything but easy.
        Now, Calla must deal with growing feelings, her own prejudices, and finding the secret to Griffin’s past. As hate turns to friendship and friendship becomes something more, Calla learns a startling truth: God uses even how we look in His plan for our lives.

Squee!

Okay, I am psyched. It's not my book, and I'm not getting any money out of this (I'm actually spending money), but I'm already in line for my copies.

I'm talking with my best friend, Rebekah Roberts, PUBLISHED AUTHOR. Her first book in the Once Upon a Tuesday series, Petals, comes out today in ebook format (available at amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com) and in print form on July 11th (and it should be in some local bookstores, but we don't have the info of where yet). (Here's a link to the publisher's blog with an excerpt from the book, a list of all the places online the book can be bought, and an easy contest for a $10 Amazon gift card [contest is today only].)

Rebekah and I have been best friends (identical twins separated at birth, really) since we graduated high school together. I love her for her honesty, humor, love, graciousness, and her persistence to hope. She has been one of my main encouragers and carries hope for me when I can't.

Rebekah has a love of fairytales and romance, and a heart for today's teens and children. Through her writing she has found her gift for sharing God's love with people she may never meet (expanding her already impressive reach!).

I asked my twin some questions about this new milestone to share with you.

 

D:  Why do you want to write books?

R: I have always been a story teller.  I can remember gathering kids at church around me and I would tell them stories. The crowd would always grow bigger as I spoke.  So I write to tell a good story, but also I look at it as a ministry.  I want to write stories that will make people think, make them grow and hopefully bring glory to God.


D: What are your most and least favorite parts of being a writer?

R: Least favorite part would have to be feeling guilty for not getting any writing done in a day or week. The best part is watching the story play out. Getting to see something that was just in your head come together and actually become something real and tangible.


D: How does it feel to achieve your dream of being a published author?

R: It feels amazing.  Like going on a journey for many years and finally getting to the "Welcome" sign. It must be how Frodo felt after getting to Mordor or how Ella (from Ella Enchanted) felt when she made it to the giant's wedding. But at the same time I know this is just the welcome. I still have a lot of stories that I want to write and a lot more dreams, even in the area of writing, that I want to achieve.


D: Why this book, this story? And why now?

R: Now, is the perfect time for a wholesome look at romance. Our genaration is overly sexualized and what true beauty really is has been lost... We need to fight to get it back... This book is about inner and outer beauty, it's about realizing that God uses everything, even how we look, in His plan for our lives. I think that you will relate to the characters and maybe grow with them.


D: Why you?

R: I have always loved Beauty and the Beast.  One of my earliest memories is watching the Disney version in the theater.  I was so scared of the Beast but I still loved the film.


D: How did you choose the title?

R: Um...It started out being called "Calla and Griffin: A modern day tale of Beauty and the Beast."  But long titles were not "in" at the time so I decided to change it to something catchy. I figured petals go with roses and no one can think of B&B without the rose. It was cool how the petals became a theme and you will find them throughout the book.


D: You wear roses every day, don't you?

R: Not every day... But most days, yes. It's not even always on purpose... I just love roses so much that they end up as a pattern in a dress or on my earrings. I didn't even notice the trend until someone pointed it out.


D: What are you working on now?

R: The second book in the Once Upon a Tuesday series. The working title is Sheltering Snow.  It is a modern version of Snow White.  It's about a teen runaway who is befriended by a quirky family of siblings.  It's about heartbreak and learning what real love and real family is.

You can keep up with the latest from Rebekah on her Facebook page or Twitter profile. There's also more at her official website, RebekahRoberts.net.


...I feel like a bridesmaid: excited for my dear friend and anticipating the bouquet toss! And I can't wait to read this novel again!

Cover image by 5 Prince Publishing

                                              "Beauty might just be the beast."

        Calla Williams is not like other girls.  Most girls spend their whole lives trying to be beautiful, Calla already is…and she hates it.
        When she is shipped off one summer to live with family friends in their dilapidated Mississippi plantation, Calla is faced with the prospect of living with strangers and their teenage son.  This is annoying because, like any other boy, he is sure to fall in love with her on sight. However, Griffin Davenport is not your typical teenage guy. With his hot temper and half of his face severely scarred, “hate at first sight” is closer to what she finds.
        Though the two teens try to stay out of each other’s way, an odd attraction to each other makes staying away anything but easy.
        Now, Calla must deal with growing feelings, her own prejudices, and finding the secret to Griffin’s past. As hate turns to friendship and friendship becomes something more, Calla learns a startling truth: God uses even how we look in His plan for our lives.

Teamwork

This couple. And this song. Because they're a team.

I want something like this. Though I realize how I come to it would probably be different, much different: I haven't done any solo gallivanting across the country lately, so far as I know Excalibur isn't missing (leastways, it doesn't have to be returned to Arthur any time soon), and one could hope that I won't be at odds with my future spouse the moment we meet (nor him trying to get rid of me).

But some things might be the same: I can prattle on a bit, he might be blind, and we might sing together. One can never tell ahead of time for sure.


If you're single or dating, what characteristic do you want most in your potential marriage relationship? If you are married, what characteristic of you and your spouse together do you enjoy most?

Belated Valentine Sap

First, a word of wisdom from a young woman I know:

It's never a good idea to fall in love with someone you've never met. It always ends in tragedy. Especially if you never meet.

Second, a poem from yours truly:

He stands on the stage
Blind to those around
Singing his heart
Uplifting my own

He knows a good show
And keeps it sincere
His love pours out
All charm and treasure

It's impossible
And some dreams must
But I hope mine won't
Simply turn to dust

...Thoughts on Valentine's Day? Love it, hate it, apathetic, ignore it?

 

Warrior Matron

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

 

Warrior Matron

by Dorathea Maynard

 

Go off, my love,

Accomplish thy tasks.

Come home to me, 

Day's end at last.

 

My work unseen,

You'll wonder what I've done.

But if not for me,

You wouldn't call this "home."

 

I work all day,

So you'll be fed,

The house clean,

And made, thy bed.

 

My tasks unending,

Yet rarely known.

My work is mending,

What all needs sewn.

 

I work for you,

My love, my champion.

Striving all day,

Against a battalion.

 

You fight in the field,

Where money wars wage.

The mouse, my enemy;

The dust, my plague.

 

You are my warrior,

And I thy matron.

This home is ours,

Our love unshaken.

 

 

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More poems at my poetry page.

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Absentminded Woolgathering

I watch and I wait and I try to hold fast. I am a shieldmaiden of the shelter, defender of the home, but not an adventurer or soldier on mission. My assignment is wait, watch, hope.

Essentially, this fellow said it perfectly. I have thoughts like that at times; I often wish for such pivotal life moments. But they don’t always happen the way they’re expected. Sometimes I have a sweet thought of a romantic moment, and suddenly I’m disappointed because I realize it probably won’t happen that way. I’ve “jinxed it,” or rather, God’s plan is always better than mine if mine is other than His, and often He chooses to surprise, so I don’t imagine that my daydreams becoming reality will be His primary method. Sometimes my imaginings are creative, but I have to remember He is more creative than I.

I am a shieldmaiden, so I watch. But when the meeting comes, I will likely be caught off guard, unprepared, and at a loss for words. My first defense is silence. My second, quiet reasoning. It may be agonizing, wishing that I could act, that I could speak, but it will be perfect. It may be shy and sweet, but it will be perfect. It may not seem like the life-changing moment it is, but it will be perfect. It may have movie soundtrack music in the background (though that might be awkward), but it will be perfect.

Perfect because I didn’t plan it; He did.

And that is enough for me.

Favorite ...Disney Movie

On a recent road trip, out of the blue I asked everyone in the car, "What's your favorite Disney movie?"

When it was my turn to answer, I couldn't limit to just one.  I like several, and for different reasons.  Here's the list I came up with.

• Sleeping Beauty  ~  Princess Aurora is beautiful, but it's Prince Phillip and Merryweather, the fighters and defenders of the movie, who make this one sweet.  I loved Merryweather's spunk so much, I dressed like her for Halloween once.  And who could turn down a man who would face and defeat a dragon of Hell to save his love?
• Beauty and the Beast  ~  The friendship that grows from this one is the highlight of the story.  Belle learns to see past the outward appearance, and she notices when the Beast is selfless.  The Beast is given a chance to act like a human, and the transformation of his heart melts mine.
• Mulan  ~  A coming-of-age story with honor, danger, a hopeful wish of romance, building friendships, and a large goal.  All with a happy ending.  This is my favorite type of story to write, and this one is arranged beautifully.
• The Princess and the Frog  ~  I love to watch opposites Naveen and Tiana, a lazy party guy and a workaholic woman, find the balance of play and work.  And I like that Naveen catches on a little quicker than Tiana does and is ready to sacrifice.  These two are crafted well for each other.
• Tangled  ~  The adventure is fun, Mother Gothel is frighteningly convincing - making an excellent villain, and I couldn't love Eugene and Rapunzel more.  But the end makes this movie.  Eugene's sacrifice ties my stomach in knots, and every time I fear that all is lost.  Yet in that loss, it is beautiful because Eugene's choice reminds me of Jesus of the Bible on His way to and hanging from the cross.  It leaves me speechless.

What's your favorite Disney movie?  What about it touches your heart?

Fiction ...And Real Life... Can Tie Together

Marriage is not the solution because singleness is not a problem.  They are both good.

Ah, okay.  Now that I have that lovely thesis statement, the rest of this post may or may not have anything to do with it.  You see, I was writing a novel (don't worry, I still am).  I wanted it to be a romance.  I haven't written romance stories before (though I do like the subplot option sometimes) but my best friend writes romance, I like romances, and I thought I'd give it a try.

Welp, I tried.  Moving on.

No, really, I did try.  I had my characters semi-solid in my mind, my setting basically figured out, and a fair bit of the backstory in my head.  But probably about five or seven thousand words into it, I realized that my leading man would never choose the leading lady over his fiancée if the two women were side by side.  Even though the direct comparison is impossible in the story, it wouldn't be very satisfying to anyone (the characters, myself, and most importantly readers) if my leading lady was a second best.

And so, the romance died.  My book turned on its head, and I was left trying to patch together a plot that works and satisfies.  But, never fear (not that you would, and that's okay), that is happening.  I am far far far behind where I wished to be, but that is also in the works.

So I guess the whole couples/marriage/single thing has been in my mind for a while.  Concentrated, that is, on my story.  Now, I want my leading lady, the main protagonist, to be satisfied and happy even with being single.  But, I confess, it was pretty hard to figure out how to do that for my character when I couldn't do it for myself.

Thus the thesis.  (Hey, I am tying this together!)  Singleness is not a problem to be solved because it's not a problem.  Singleness and marriage are both good things in their own time.  It's just something that I've come to realize recently, largely due to a friend sharing this.  I think my life had been leading up to hearing that for...oh, say...eh, we'll call it six or seven months.  Let's not think about it too hard; just recognize that it's been a process.

Now, I am freed of the worries, fears, and even aimless hopes that I personally have had for years.  I have never been more excited to be single.  Maybe I won't be single for my whole life...and maybe I will.  But now I understand that singleness is not a problem.  It is a good thing to be enjoyed and used to its fullest.

Now I think I can give my character the same appreciation.

Problem solved.