The last time always seems sad, but it isn’t really. The end of one thing is only the beginning of another. ~Laura Ingals Wilder, These Happy Golden Years
Thanks to those of you who have dropped in here during the month of December when so much is sometimes going on with Christmas gatherings, special church services, and maybe new books to read. I did get a book under my Christmas tree and I took a little while last night to open it up and start reading. If you are a reading friend who has checked into One Writer’s Journal the last few weeks, you know I’m having an End of the Year Book Giveaway. You have one more chance to throw your name in my giveaway drawing hat by leaving a comment on this last post before the end of the year and before I pick the three winners by random. The winners win their choice of one of my books. If you’ve entered on previous posts, a comment on this post gets you another entry.
For this last 2022 post, I’m sharing a few of the quote graphics my publishers designed for several of my books. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to pick the graphic that might make you want to pick up that particular book. (Can you tell I used to like watching “Mission Impossible?” Not much was impossible for that cast. LOL) Even if you’ve already read the stories, you can look at the quotes with a critical eye to pick the one you think might be most effective at pulling in a new reader. And if you haven’t read the stories, you can do the same.
So here goes. Of course the one up top is from my most recent novel, When the Meadow Blooms. The ones below are from various different books. You can see the titles of the books at the bottom of the graphics.
That’s a variety of choices. So choose the one you think might pull a reader into a story and leave the name of the book (at the bottom of the graphics) to have an entry in my End of the Year Book Giveaway. I’ll pick the winners this weekend and notify them by email. Then I’ll share their first names here next year or Sunday whichever way you want to look at it. 🙂 Can you believe 2023 is almost here? So blessings for the New Year and thanks for making my giveaways such fun.
And always, always, thanks for reading!
Comments 70
Author
It’s great fun seeing which quotes you think are most intriguing.
Linda , Karen, and Connie – Glad you are intrigued by The Refuge quote. The baby a secret does raise some questions. I also think the first line in that book is one of the better ones I’ve come up with. “You can’t cheat death.”
Cammy, Emily, Lisa, Lavon, and Joy – It’s neat that you picked River to Redemption. I loved staying with young Adria in that story for a few chapters.
I’m so glad you like reading my stories, Cammy. I like you reading my stories. 🙂
Lavon, the little girl Adria was definitely supposed to tug at your heart.
Joy, I hope when you read River to Redemption you will enjoy seeing the quotes there too. 🙂
Martha, Joan, and Pamela, you all liked These Healing HIlls although Pamela has it tying with When the Meadow Blooms. Ties are good. That means two book quotes grabbed your interest.
Martha, it is challenging to pick the quotes that you think will find interest with the flash of a few words. The mountain people did actually say that the frontier nurses “caught” babies.
Amy, neat that you picked Appalachian Summer and When the Meadow Blooms. Quite different stories. I’m so glad you like how I put words together to pull you into my stories. Words can be like magic to open up story worlds to readers.
Caryl, Deborah, and bn100, I’m glad some of you picked my most recent release. I so enjoyed bringing Anneliese to life in the story through Dirk’s memories.
These Healing Hills. Just reading this quote makes me want to go back and read that chapter, which would then lead to re-reading the whole book!
Author
If you do decide to head back to the hills with Francine, Connie, I hope you will enjoy the trip all over again. As I told Lucretia, if you like to listen to audio books, that’s a great way to revisit a story.
They’re all good! Since you only want one cover, I’ll go with These Healing Hills.
These Healing Hills is my pick. Makes me want to know more about who asked the question of grabbing babies.
Appalachian Summer
The Refuge quote graphic is both beautiful and it makes me want to read it!
The one from These Healing Hills does as well!
I can’t decide lol
Author
I love it that you can’t decide, Jennifer. That means both quotes were good ones for me to pick to try to catch a reader’s interest. I do like the cradle on the graphic for The Refuge. I thought maybe they would put a cradle on the cover of that book, but I suppose that would have made that Shaker book’s cover too much different from my other Shaker books. If you haven’t read the stories, I hope you’ll get a chance to and enjoy the fictional journey back in time.
I have enjoyed all your books and one of my favorite is These Healing Hills. I also enjoy your posts and pictures of the dogs.
Author
I’m so glad you’ve enjoyed my stories, Joan, and that you like my posts and seeing my furry walking buddies, Frankie and Marley. They are both liking the warmer weather today, but probably won’t be as happy when it starts raining as it’s supposed to tomorrow. It’s good to know you enjoyed going to the mountains with my nurse midwife in These Healing Hills to be along when she starts catching those babies.
I have enjoyed reading your books and have the three mentioned above..I would like to read When The Meadow Blooms..Thank you for ending 2022 and starting the new year 2023 with some wonderful reads. Take care..Hope you have a blessed Happy New Year!!
Author
Susan, I’m still a little surprised whenever I think about it being 2023 in a couple of days. This year has spun by so quickly. They say thinking that is a sign you’re getting old and I can’t deny I’m adding on some years. I do hope to get down a new storyroad in 2023, and that it will be a story you would want to read. I also hope you’ll enjoy going to Meadowland when you get the chance to make the trip. 🙂
An Appalachian Summer
I love the Murder Comes by Mail graphic!
These Healing Hills
I love how the fog has settled around the mountains. The quote makes me want to re-read the book.
Author
It is a nice background for the quote, Lucretia. Fun that the quote makes you want to go back and read about my nurse midwife, Francine, again. If you like audio books, the narrator did a great job reading this story. I’ve enjoyed listening to some stories that I have already read. Gives the story a new dimension.
I like them all but I would pick the Refuge quote. It makes me want to know what happened to the woman and baby and why she had to keep it a secret in the first place…it could also be because I have read all but this one and don’t know the details. Hoping to get some reading time in today to start your Christmas at Harmony Hill story. 🙂
Author
Wonderful, Hope. I hope you enjoy going to Harmony Hill and diving into Gideon’s and Heather’s story. I did enjoy bringing Sister Sophrena back for that story after she was the journalist in The Gifting. Love the name Sister Sophrena. And then maybe you’ll get to go back to Harmony Hill for The Refuge and find out about that baby in a village where babies weren’t the normal order of things.
These Healing Hills is my pick. It’s the only one that would entice me to take another look. I haven’t had much time for reading during this past month. I’m about to suffer withdrawal.
Author
We do have a way of getting busy when Christmas is coming or sometimes any time of the year, Lee. I’m glad at least one of the quotes made you think about taking a second look. Maybe 2023 will give you some more reading time.
All of them have their pull but Murder Comes by Mail’s quote is the one I keep going back to. We know that each of your books have MANY quotes and lines and plots worth remembering! I certainly appreciate your being so very prolific! Thanks, Ann~
Author
Marjorie was surprised nobody was picking Murder Comes by Mail, and now several of you have. That’s fun, Sandra. I hope if you visited Hidden Springs, you enjoyed the mysteries.
I appreciate your kind comments about my quotes and lines and plots. That has me smiling. And prolific isn’t a word I hear describing me often. Sometimes I feel very slow about getting a story written compared to some of my writing friends, but I like the sound of the word. Thanks.
An Appalachian Summer
It’s hard to choose just one! I have read most of your books, if not all, and enjoy them so much!
Do You Catch Babies (The Healing Hills) was one of my favorite books. I loved working in the OB Department! It was neat to read about the midwives in the hills!)
Will You Be My Family (River to Redemption)
I Kept My Baby A Secret as long as I could (The Refuge).
Thanks for writing GREAT stories!
Author
Well, no wonder you liked that quote and that book, Wanda. I’ve enjoyed hearing from nurses and those who have helped mothers giving birth after I wrote These Healing Hills. I do have to admit that when those first comments came in after the book was published that I held my breath worried that I had written something about the midwifery that might be totally mixed up since I am not a nurse and have never helped anybody have a baby. LOL. Of course, I write about a lot of things I’ve never done – like live in the 1800s or with the Shakers.
Thank you so much for reading my books. You can’t know how much I appreciate that. I hope you’ll enjoy my Showboat story, In the Shadow of the River, when it comes out in May. Another thing I wrote about that I’ve never done – been an actor on a river showboat!
For me, the grabber would be, “do you catch babies?”, from these Healing Hills, one of my favorites! Thank you for all of your wonderful stories!
Author
Woody was a great character and helped make the story better, Judi. That phrase about “catching” babies was how the mountain people talked about midwives doing to help a mother giving birth.
They are all wonderful but I have to pick The Refuge. I haven’t read that one and now I really want to. Happy New Year!
Author
Then I’m glad I picked that one to share, Dana. The Refuge is one of my favorite Shaker stories. I enjoyed having a few chapters from the viewpoint of a little girl and then I liked how the theme of the way sisterly feeling can grow between women even when they aren’t related was threaded through the story. I love writing about sisters.
These Healing Hills, has a funny quote, and probably the best. Also liked the quote Murder by Mail. Thanks for all the Wonderful books you write.
Author
Thank you for reading my stories, Jolynn. Woody, the character who asked Francine if she “caught” babies, was a character who brought a few smiles to the story. I liked getting to know him as the story progressed. I’ve had some readers suggest he should have a story of his own. Oh, if only I could write those stories faster. 🙂 Glad you liked the Murder by Mail quote too. Betty Jean wasn’t someone who cried easy.
I kept my baby a secret as long as I could from The Refuge. I hope this is what we’re supposed to be commenting on.
Author
Sure, Judy, but I’m okay with whatever you want to comment about. Love hearing from everyone.