Talkshow Thursday: Meet Chad Pettit

Talkshow Thursday: Meet Chad Pettit

Linda:  Thanks for joining me today. Congratulations on your latest release Fate of the Watchman. Where did you get your inspiration for the plot?

Chad: It started out as a short story I wrote in high school about a man trapped in a moment of time, but that was more of a horror story with no direction or purpose. Years later, after becoming a follower of Christ, I found myself in a state of apathy. I knew that there was suffering in the world, but I was a little too self-centered. Still in love with that concept of time freezing, I thought: What would it be like if we could see just a glimpse of the amount of pain and suffering that takes place in a single moment? How would that affect us? The story took off from there.

LM: Your first two books are indie published, and your most recent is traditionally published. What was different in the publishing process with Fate?

Chad: The differences were astounding, really. I had support because my publisher is like a family. They care about their authors, and it really motivated me to put more effort into marketing, something I’m not a fan of or good at. They set me up with reviewers and bloggers, helped me with the creative side of cover design and back cover copy, and were just a friend when I needed advice. Ambassador International is the real deal. It’s a CHRISTIAN publisher.

LM: In addition to being an author, you also have a speaking ministry and hold a job as a teacher, not to mention having a family. How do you balance three demanding activities with your personal life?

Chad: Great question. If I figure it out, I’ll let you know. But seriously, it’s not easy. Teaching is very demanding, and I’m exhausted by the end of the day. I also don’t like to take care of writing, social media, or marketing stuff during family time, so I wake up very early to do my writing. I haven’t figured out the balance, perfectly, but I’m learning. As far as speaking goes, that’s not really a demand on me at all. I am trying to just put myself out there as a speaker, but I don’t have any engagements, right now. I want to encourage people to follow Christ and live their best lives, and if the Lord opens that door for me, I’ll gladly step through. For now, I’m just letting people know that I’m available.

So, by all means, contact me if you’d like me to come be a blessing to your church, group, or business!

LM: What do you do to prepare yourself for writing? For example do you listen to music or set up in a specific place?

Chad: I used to listen to music, but I found it too distracting. I can basically write anywhere, but necessity of writing early in the morning while everyone is still asleep has me writing on my couch. It’s the most comfortable, but I’m not one of those writers that needs to set up or do any kind of rituals. I can write anywhere, unless I’m distracted. I have no idea how people write in coffee shops.

LM: What is the quirkiest thing you’ve ever done?

Chad: Should I let my wife answer this one? A lot of people think I’m this really serious person because I don’t walk around smiling, and I’m basically just chill. But the truth is, I’m a total mess. I sing in the car, but it’s more like a full on concert. I dance when no one is around, do voices to entertain myself. I’m weird. One time, on a spur of the moment, I was explaining something to one of my classes, and I randomly leaned back, all the way to the floor Matrix style. They’ve been trying to get me to do that and catch it on camera ever since. No thanks; my knee still hurts!

LM: Here are some quickies:

Favorite movie: The Martian. Great story, great acting. I could watch it over and over...in fact, I have. Take out some of the language, and it would be perfect.  

Favorite Food: If I can put it in a bowl, it’s a winner. I love pasta but none of that alfredo stuff. Yuck.

Favorite Season: It used to be winter, but arthritis in my knee and neck have put a damper on that. Does that make me sound old? Oops. I still love the Christmas season more than anything, but, as a teacher, summer is awesome too.

LM: What is your next project?

Chad: I’m working on the sequel to Fate of the Watchman. It’s called Fate of the Redeemed, and it continues the story of Lester Sharp and his “guide,” Draven and really dives into spiritual warfare. It’s a supernatural thriller. I’ve always wondered what happens after the credits, and I hate it when a series jumps months or years ahead without sufficient back story for how it got there. With this series, each installment picks up immediately after the previous book.

LM: Where can folks find you on the web?

Chad: I’m on social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram), but the best way to stay in contact with me is by visiting my website and joining my mailing list. I send out a weekly devotion, and you’ll get one of my books for free. Just go to http://www.chadpettit.net and sign up!

Book Blurb: 

Lester Sharp is a workaholic, obsessed with the success of his business and oblivious to the world around him.

All of that changes when a peculiar stranger comes into his shop asking for food and help. Lester soon finds himself on an impossible journey around the world to bear witness to some of the greatest tragedies a person can know, all frozen in a single moment of time.

In this challenging and gripping novel, debut author Chad Pettit, delivers a supernatural, pulse-pounding adventure in which Lester Sharp is in for the longest second of his life and learns lessons to last a lifetime.

Purchase Link: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B07GSFMRSK

Wartime Wednesday: Wine and War

Wartime Wednesday: Wine and War

World War II began in September, 1939 when Germany overran Poland. Nine months later, France also found herself occupied by the Germans. Initially, the country was split into the Occupied Zone (northern and western France) and the Free Zone (Southern France). However, by November 1942, the Southern zone was placed under military administration.

Life in France, especially Paris, was difficult during the Occupation as the French tried to survive the laws, deportations, rationing, and deprivation as the Germans took the best and bulk of available commodities. One report indicates that a man counted cars that passed a particular Paris café in a two-hour time span. There were three. Not surprising since gasoline so difficult to secure, many converted their vehicles to operate on coal.

One product that came under the occupying forces’ scrutiny was wine.

The history of French wine goes back over twenty-five hundred years. There are seventeen regions with Bordeaux, Burgundy, Alsace, Champagne, Languedoc, Loire Valley and the Rhone, being the most famous. Producing between seven and eight billion bottles of wine a year, France is one of largest wine producers in the world. This was also the case prior to World War II, and wine aficionados around the globe had their favorites.

Despite a love of their own country’s wines, many of the highly placed officers in Hitler’s regime adored French wine and sought to secure as much as they possibly could. Each region was assigned a “weinführer,” each with the assignment of supplying the Third Reich with an abundance of wine. The Champagne region alone was expected to provide 400,000 bottles per week.

A herculean task in a good year, wine production took hits on many fronts during the war. The 1939 growing season suffered as a result of weather, many of the fields had been damaged by tanks and mines, and as the war ground on a shortages of bottles occurred. In addition, knowing the Germans were coming, many of the wine houses hid, buried, or walled up some of their collection to prevent its destruction or requisition.

Interested in this fascinating segment of French history? Check out Wine and War by Donald and Petie Kaldstrup is an excellent book, that reads like a novel.

Mystery Monday: The Clock Strikes Twelve

Mystery Monday: The Clock Strikes Twelve

Happy New Year!

As I approached the new year, I got to wondering about mysteries that were set during New Year's Eve. Turns out there are lots! Rather than provide a laundry list, because there are plenty of those around, I decided to focus on The Clock Strikes Twelve by Patricia Wentworth.

Wentworth, who is one of the Golden Age of Detective Era authors, was born in 1877 as Dora Amy Elles in India where her father, British General Edmond Elles served. She was tutored as a child then attended Blackheath High School for girls in London. She was married twice, having been widowed when her first husband, George Dillon died in 1906.

A prolific author, she published her first two novels in 1910. She went on to write nearly seventy novels; thirty-two in the Miss Silvers series and thirty-four standalones.

The Clock Strikes Twelve, the 7th Miss Silver book, was published in 1944, and is a fun read no matter what time of the year.

The victim, James Paradine, apparently has a death wish. He brings together ten of his family
members and announces that he knows someone in the group has a guilty secret and that he'll be waiting in his study until midnight for the person to come and admit to their deed. It's no surprise when he turns up dead, having been pushed out the window.

Unlike Miss Marple, who allows her compatriots to do the crime solving around her, Miss Silver, a retired governess, jumps directly into the investigation. She manages to sift through the parade of possible suspects all while trying to determine which wool to select in knitting a child's jacket. The "locked room" mystery (one in which there is a restricted location and a definitive number of suspects) is an oft-used plot line in classic mysteries, and this one is well-done. The characters are interesting and a couple of sub-plots at depth.

Available on Amazon and other book sites, The Clock Strikes Twelve is a great way to ring in the New Year.

Talkshow Thursday: Welcome Back, Leeann Betts

Talkshow Thursday: Welcome Back, Leeann Betts

Linda:  Thanks for joining me again. I love series and was excited to discover book #9, Silent Partner, in your By the Numbers series featuring Carly Turnquist is being released. Where did you find your inspiration for this story?

Leeann: I’ve always wanted to take an Alaskan cruise, so several books ago, a grateful friend who Carly saved from a philandering con man gifted her with a cruise. At the time, I planned the next book would take place on a cruise, but plans had to change. But it seemed a great setting: a captive population of suspects; a short time to solve the murder; and everybody loves to cruise.

LM: Research is an important part of writing any book. Have you ever stumbled on a fascinating tidbit that you knew had to be included in your story?

Leeann: I did. I learned about international law regarding cruise ships at the time the story is set, 2005, was fairly lax, which meant nobody would be there to solve the mystery, so it was all up to Carly.

LM: What is the quirkiest thing you have ever done?

Leeann: I moved from my home in Canada to the US to marry a man I’d only met over the phone and through emails. That was 19 years ago.

LM: What is your process for creating mysteries? Do you come up with the villain first, the “terrible deed” or the title? Where do you get your ideas?

Leeann: I come up with the terrible deed, match a cool title, develop the villain and the motive and how, then work back and then forward from there.

LM: How do you pick the location of your stories?

Leeann: Places I’ve been. Or places I want to go, so I have to take a research trip there first.

LM: What do you find most difficult about writing mysteries?

Leeann: Editing. I hate editing. But I’m learning to write really clean, depend on my critique group, and then I’m left with a quick edit and timeline check at the end.

LM: Here are some quickies:

Favorite Season: Summer

Favorite place to vacation: Anywhere warm

Favorite childhood author: Agatha Christie, Conan Doyle

LM: What is your next project?

Leeann:  Working on a contemporary romance set in Loveland, Colorado. And then, of course, Carly’s next book which will come out in June of 2019.

LM: Where can folks find you on the web?

Leeann: Seems like I’m everywhere these days

Website: http://www.LeeannBetts.com Receive a free ebook just for signing up for our quarterly newsletter.

Blog: www.AllBettsAreOff.wordpress.com

Facebook: http://bit.ly/1pQSOqV

Twitter: http://bit.ly/1qmqvB6

Books: Amazon http://amzn.to/2dHfgCE  and Smashwords: http://bit.ly/2z5ecP8

Talkshow Thursday: Meet Rolande Bisset

Talkshow Thursday: Meet Rolande Bisset

My next release, Love's Rescue, (anticipated date 2/14/19) is a modern retelling of the biblical story of Rahab, a prostitute who hid two Hebrew spies and diverted the attention of the authorities so the men could slip out of the city upon completion of their  reconnaissance. After lots of research, I chose the liberation of Paris during WWII as my setting to redo the story. It was a part of the war about which I knew very little. Here is Rolande to tell you what it was like to live in Paris during the dark days of German occupation:

LM: The Germans arrived in June 1940, what do you remember most about that day?

Rolande: I felt like the lights had gone out over the city. The joy was gone, overtaken by a sense of fear and foreboding. We had not believed we would be defeated, so when the government fled on the 10th, we were distraught to see German tanks rumbling down the Champs de Elysees with thousands of German troops marching behind them on the 14th. We thought we would all be killed or taken prisoner. Rumors were rampant the Germans would steal anything of value, rape the women, and kill the men. I stayed in my home with the curtains drawn, hoping to escape notice. When I went out later and saw the Nazi flag flapping in the breeze from the Eiffel Tower, my heart broke.

LM: In a show of power, the Germans implemented many laws to undermine the French culture. What were some of those laws?

Rolande: Censorship and propaganda made life difficult. We were not allowed to speak French, wear berets, fly the French flag, or sing Marseillaise, our national anthem. There was a curfew, and anyone breaking it faced stiff fines, or perhaps worse...Books and American films were banned, and the Germans changed our time zone to match that of Germany.

LM: What was it like trying to provide for yourself during the occupation?

Rolande: The occupiers took about eighty percent of food production, so finding enough to eat became a daily struggle. There was a rationing system of sorts, but it was so mismanaged the black market flourished and people became malnourished. Lots of substitutions had to be created to handle the shortage of things like gasoline and coffee. My friend started roasting chicory to replace her coffee, but I never developed a taste for it. Many vehicles were converted to run off charcoal.

LM: Your father was part of the Vichy government. How did that come about?

Rolande: My father was a wealthy and successful man long before the Germans arrived. He is cunning and has a lot of business savvy which is a lot of what helped him get ahead. But he also knows how to ingratiate himself with whomever is in power at the time, so I was not surprised that he managed to find a position within the new government

LM: Despite your father's job, you chose to join the Resistance. How did that come about, and weren't you frightened for your life?

Rolande: I could not stand by and let the occupiers win. I knew I might die, but it seemed more important to do the right thing rather than live in bondage under the Germans. There were times I was terrified. What if the circuit had been discovered? What if I had been betrayed? Those thoughts were with me every moment of every day, and more so when I was on a mission. My friend Adele was involved in the Resistance first. She knew how I felt about the Germans, and she eventually got me into the organization.

LM: A little more than four years later, Paris was liberated. What was that day like?

Rolande: It was very scary, but also exciting. The FFI had staged an uprising, so there was a battle in the streets. Barricades and trenches were created, and hundreds of people had guns. I was frightened to think I had survived the occupation only to be killed in the fire fight to liberate the city. After the surrender, people were dancing in the street, singing, and drinking. They were hugging the Allied troops who had come to save us.


About the book: 

Cover revealed in January!

A prostitute, a spy, and the liberation of Paris.

Sold by her parents to settle a debt, Rolande Bisset is forced into prostitution. Years later, shunned by her family and most of society, it’s the only way she knows how to subsist. When the Germans overrun Paris, she decides she’s had enough of evil men controlling her life and uses her wiles to obtain information for the Allied forces. Branded a collaborator, her life hangs in the balance. Then a British spy stumbles onto her doorstep. Is redemption within her grasp?

Simon Harlow is one of an elite corps of American soldiers. Regularly chosen for dangerous covert missions, he is tasked with infiltrating Paris to ascertain the Axis’s defenses. Nearly caught by German forces moments after arriving, he owes his life to the beautiful prostitute who claims she’s been waiting for the Allies to arrive. Her lifestyle goes against everything he believes in, but will she steal his heart during his quest to liberate her city?

Inspired by the biblical story of Rahab, Love’s Rescue is a tale of faith and hope during one of history’s darkest periods.

Available February 14, 2019

Wartime Wednesday: Christmas 1944

Wartime Wednesday: Christmas 1944

Here in the Northeast almost everyone crosses their fingers for a white Christmas. Most years it happens – this year we got our first snow at the beginning of November and it's been snowing ever since. We anticipate a White Christmas. Other years we barely get any snow – like 2001 when nearly every outdoor snow or cold-related event was canceled. More often than not, unless I'm traveling for the holidays, I don't give the weather too much thought.

Not so for the Allied troops hemmed in on all sides by German soldiers in December 1944.

After the successful landings at Normandy in June 1944, the Allied soldiers pushed toward Germany and made better time than expected. Because troops were fatigued by weeks of continuous combat, supply lines were stretched extremely thin, and supplies were dangerously depleted this was not the good news one would think. Eisenhower analyzed the situation and decided to stay put in the Ardennes region of Belgium. He felt that fewer troops would be needed to defend the area.

However, blizzards and freezing rain often reduced visibility to almost zero. Frost covered much of the soldiers’ equipment, and tanks had to be chiseled out of ice after they froze to the ground overnight. A turning point in the war, the Battle of the Bulge lasted from December 16, 1944 to January 25, 1945.

By Christmas Allied defeat seemed almost certain. On December 22 the German commander sent the following ultimatum to General McAuliffe, acting division commander of the 101^st Airborne Division defending Bastogne:

To the U.S.A. Commander of the encircled town of Bastogne.

The fortune of war is changing. This time the U.S.A. forces in and near Bastogne have been encircled by strong German armored units. More German armored units have crossed the river Our near Ortheuville, have taken Marche and reached St. Hubert by passing through Hompre-Sibret-Tillet. Libramont is in German hands.

There is only one possibility to save the encircled U.S.A. troops from total annihilation: that is the honorable surrender of the encircled town. In order to think it over a term of two hours will be granted beginning with the presentation of this note.

If this proposal should be rejected one German Artillery Corps and six heavy A. A. Battalions are ready to annihilate the U.S.A. troops in and near Bastogne. The order for firing will be given immediately after this two hours term.

All the serious civilian losses caused by this artillery fire would not correspond with the well-known American humanity.

The German Commander.

Not one to use profanity, McAuliffe sent the following reply:

To the German Commander.

NUTS!

The American Commander

McAuliffe then sent a memo to his troops, notifying them of his refusal to surrender. He included a copy of his reply to the Germans. Despite the dire circumstances, reports indicate that morale skyrocketed, and the soldiers vowed to win at all costs.

Fortunately, relief troops and supplies arrived the day after Christmas. The battle continued, and the Allies ultimately won.

Have you ever suffered a exceptionally difficult Christmas season?

Victorian Twelfth Night Parties with Kelly Goshorn

Victorian Twelfth Night Parties with Kelly Goshorn

Thank you, Linda, for hosting me on your blog today. It’s such great fun to meet others who love Christian fiction as much as I do, especially historical romance.

While Linda’s wheelhouse appears to be World War II fiction, I’m going to take you back a little further in time. My debut novel, A Love Restored, is set in Virginia in 1873-74. My heroine, Ruth Ann Sutton, “can’t carry a tune with a handle on it” according to her beau, Benjamin Coulter. In one scene, I have her decorating the Christmas tree and I wanted Benjamin to stumble upon her off-key singing once again. While searching for the lines to the “Twelve Days of Christmas,” I stumbled upon something called Twelfth Night parties that were quite popular during the Victorian era. I knew right away that I wanted to incorporate such a party into the book and decided that Ruth Ann’s friend, Charlotte Peterson, would be the perfect hostess.

Traditionally the twelve days of Christmas begin on Christmas day and conclude on January 5 (or the twelfth night). The next day, January 6^th, is the Feast of the Epiphany on the church calendar and honors the day when the Three Kings brought Jesus their gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Although not as popular in American, the Twelve Days have been celebrated throughout Europe since the Middle Ages.

Much debate surrounds when to actually hold Twelfth Night celebrations. According to Christmas: A Candid History by Bruce David Forbes, it depends on how the first day of Christmas is counted. If day one is counted as Christmas Day, December 25, then Twelfth Night is celebrated on the evening of January 5, the eve of the Epiphany. However, if day one is counted as the day after Christmas, December 26, then Twelfth Night is celebrated on January 6, the evening of Epiphany itself. 

  

The highlight of the evening would be choosing the king and queen of the party. According to the 1923 Dennison's Christmas Book, "there should be a King and a Queen, chosen by cutting a cake..." Apparently, it was quite a large cake as one recipe I found called for a dozen eggs. Can you imagine? The Twelfth Night Cake would have both a bean and a pea baked into it. The man who finds the bean in his slice of cake becomes King for the night while the lady who finds a pea in her slice of cake becomes Queen. The new King and Queen sit on a throne and are adorned with "paper crowns, a scepter, and if possible, full regalia are given them."

Games, singing carols and dancing were a huge part of the evening’s entertainment. In A Love Restored, Charlotte and her party guests play a Victorian parlor game called Forfeits. In this game, an activity was chosen for all the guests to participate in. If the guest failed to complete the activity there was usually some kind of penalty in which you had to do what the winner asked. In ALR, the gentlemen requested the ladies sing, “The Twelve Days of Christmas.” If the women made a mistake, the gentleman could ask for restitution in the form of a ‘sweet,’ either an edible treat or a kiss on the cheek. Ruth Ann’s rival for Ben’s affections, Rose Martin, intentionally messes up hoping that Ben will ask for a kiss. Being a gentleman, and one who is smitten with Ruth Ann, he passes and asks for a peppermint instead.

A popular beverage served throughout Europe on New Year’s Eve and Twelfth Night is wassail. Wassail comes from the Anglo-Saxon phrase ‘wases hael’ which means ‘good health’. Wealthier folks, however, were known to indulge in the drink throughout the twelve days. Wassail is mixture of mulled ale, curdled cream, roasted apples, eggs, cloves, ginger, nutmeg and sugar, and is often served with great fanfare and presented to those in attendance in a special Wassail bowl usually made of silver or pewter. Often people would take the wassail and present it as a gift to others. Here is a recipe for wassail.

I’ve never attended a Twelfth Night party, but after learning about the custom it’s something I’d like to do. The history lover in me thinks it would be fun to host such a gathering and have those attendance come in period costume.

To be entered in the drawing for a Kindle copy of A Love Restored, share your favorite line from the “Twelve Days of Christmas” in the comments below.

Book blurb:

She was nothing like the woman he’d envisioned for his bride, but he was everything she’d ever dreamed of—until a promise from his past threatened their future.

With pert opinions and a less-than-perfect figure, Ruth Ann Sutton doesn’t measure up to society’s vision of a perfect lady. When she accepts a position teaching in a Freedman’s School, it threatens the only marriage offer Ruth Ann is likely to receive. She’s forced to choose between life as a lonely spinster or reinventing herself to secure a respectable proposal.

Determined to rise above his meager beginnings, Benjamin Coulter's reputation as a fast learner and hard worker earn him the opportunity to apprentice with a surveyor for the railroad-a position that will garner the respect of other men. After a chance encounter with Ruth Ann Sutton, Benjamin is smitten with her pretty face, quick wit, and feisty personality.

When others ridicule his choice, will Benjamin listen to his heart or put ambition first?

Purchase Link: www.amazon.com/dp/B07CPQ1ZDJ

Excerpt from A Love Restored:

Loudoun County, Virginia

August 1873

Benjamin Coulter cringed as the shrill tune hung in the air. That woman sure knew how to ruin a Sunday afternoon. Sounded like something was dying and needed to be put out of its misery.

He shook his head. All he wanted to do was rest a while longer. His decision to go around his headstrong superior and talk to Mr. Farrell directly about his boss’s inaccurate measurements had made for a nerve wracking week. That decision could have cost him his job. Thankfully, his discovery had been received well, saving the struggling railroad both time and money.

Benjamin leaned against the sycamore tree and tossed his line into the creek. A slight hint of remorse nicked his conscience. He now sat poised to guide the construction of the Washington & Ohio Railroad through the town of Catoctin Creek and over the Blue Ridge Mountains to Winchester, but he hadn’t intended to get his boss fired. If only the man hadn’t refused to admit he’d made a mistake.

Yep, it was all coming together. Just the way he’d hoped it would when he agreed to leave Texas and take this apprenticeship in Virginia. All he had to do was pass that examination next spring and...

He shuddered. The woman’s screeching escalated to a bone-grating pitch. She’d frighten the fish away for sure. Like most folks, Sunday was his day off, and he didn’t intend to spend it listening to her sing off-key.

Wedging his pole in the mud of the creek bank, he set off to investigate. Her ear-piercing slaughter of The Merry, Merry Month of May led the way. He spied his first glimpse of the lyrical assassin through the thin limbs of a dogwood tree. Perched on a large, flat rock at the edge of the creek, she swirled her bare feet in the water. Behind the rock sat a pair of woman’s boots—fancy ones. Too bad she hadn’t spent some of her shoe allowance on singing lessons. Her voice cracked. “The skies were bright, our hearts were light, in the merry, merry month of May...”

Benjamin winced. That was the fourth time in a row she’d sung that part. For the love of Pete, didn’t Miss Fancy Boots even know the words? He needed to put a stop to this so he could continue fishing—and napping. He stepped forward then stopped. The woman reached up and removed a pin from her hair, then another. Mounds of long chestnut brown ringlets spilled over her shoulders into the middle of her back.

Curls. He groaned. Why’d she have to have curls?

“The skies were bright. Our eyes were light...”

Never mind. Curls or not, the woman’s voice could haunt the dead.