TIPS TO BEING A MORE PRODUCTIVE WRITER--with Liz Tolsma

My guest this week is debut author  Liz Tolsma. I met Liz for the first time at the 2010 ACFW Conference. Warm, sweet, and sincere, Liz is the type of woman you want as a friend that lives around the corner so you can easily drive off together to the nearest cafe for lattes and good chatting. She and her husband have adopted three children from three different countries. And this September Liz will have another dream come true with the Barbour Publishing release of her novella in A LOG CABIN CHRISTMAS COLLECTION. 


First, three questions for Liz:

You and your husband adopted 3 children from different counties. Do you have a particularly interesting story you'd like to share? Any encouraging words for those considering adoption?

Our oldest is from Vietnam and we were among the first Americans back into the country after the war. We were warned to be aware that, because we would be in the North, the people may be cold and distant toward us. That was definitely not the case. We were celebrities. Everywhere we went, people waved to us – even from across the street – and gave us the victory sign and the thumbs up. We loved the country and were touched by how excited the people were to talk to us and to encourage us in our adoption. I’m sad that Vietnam is now closed to American adoptions. Pray that will change as there are many children there waiting for families.

For anyone considering adoption, I would ask that you would prayerfully consider this option. It’s a beautiful way to build a family. There are 163 million orphans worldwide. That’s more than all the children in the US put together! Ask the Lord if there might be a child (or children!) out there who need you as their parents. Yes, it may be a long, long journey that will test and try your patience, but the rewards are worth it.

Did you write your novella UNDER HIS WINGS during the Christmas season? If not, did you do anything special to get you in the holiday/snowy mood to give your writing a boost? 

I wrote it in the fall, while I was preparing for Christmas, but I didn’t have to do anything to put myself in a holiday mood. Christmas is my favorite time of the year, so I’m ready to think about it any time!

Are you planning any publicity for your novella? Any advice to others in marketing first novels/novellas?

I don’t have anything set in stone, but I’m working on a couple of book signings and I’ll have something special on my blog as Christmas gets closer, so stay tuned for that. I’m blessed to know other published authors and I have been picking their brains to help with publicity. I’m also on Facebook and on Twitter, so you can follow me there, too.

TIPS TO BEING A MORE PRODUCTIVE WRITER

Wednesday, I sent 2/3 of my kids back to school. Then I proceeded to have one of the most productive days of the entire summer. Between various therapy sessions for my youngest, lessons, volunteering and work, all along with multiple vacations, I have to admit to not getting many words written in the last two months.

But Wednesday, that glorious day, I got back into my routine and wrote 2235 words in less than three hours. If you’re counting, by writing an average of 2000 words a day, five days a week, you can write an 80,000 word book in eight weeks. Eight short weeks. Of course, there will be edits to come, but it can be done. I wrote two books – one 82,000 words and the other 17,000 words – in the space of four months. Hey, I had Christmas in there! Just three hours a day, still giving me time for cleaning my house, grocery shopping, laundry, and carting the kids around town.

1. 1. Rid yourself of all distractions. For me, my biggest distraction is the internet. I’m so tempted to play around on there. We have our wireless router hooked up to one of those Christmas light remote things and turn it off at 10:00 every night. I don’t allow myself to turn it back on the next day until I’ve written my 2000 words. Discover whatever your distraction is and then find a way to defeat it. 

1. 2. Locate a comfortable place to write. For me, strangely enough, it is my bed. I prop pillows against our tall headboard and sit there. Because I have fibromyalgia, sitting on a chair for long periods of time is uncomfortable and I don’t have the room to spread out on the couch like I need. It works for me. Whether it’s at a desk or on the floor, wherever you’re comfortable, write there.

1. 3. Establish a routine. This includes a time you write each day. I write between 8:30 and 11:30 in the morning. That’s when I’m most productive. Some do their best work in the evening. Whatever works for you.

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1. 4. Reward yourself for a job well done. Rewards can be small, like a break for a cup of tea or coffee because you’re halfway to your goal. Or they can be bigger. I like to go out to lunch with my friends – but that doesn’t happen until I’ve met my quota. And when you’re finished with your book, plan a night out with your family or buy a new piece of clothing, or celebrate your accomplishment in some way.

1. 5. Make others respect your writing time. This is your time and you shouldn’t be interrupted unless someone is tossing up their cookies or dying or the house is on fire. I now have caller ID on my phone, so that makes it easy for me to choose which calls might be important (my kids’ schools, for example) and which I’ll ignore. I know a homeschooling mom who treats her kids with candy if they leave her alone and allow her to make her daily word count. 

1. 6. Have some kind of warm-up time. I like to do my critique work before I write. It gets my juices flowing. Maybe you’ll want to do a blog post or some other small writing project. Sometimes getting into the flow can be hard, but I find once I get my fingers flying, it’s hard to stop them. I often lose track of time because I’m so focused on my story. I can’t wait to see what happens next!

1. 7. If you’re someone who outlines before they write, it’s probably easy for you to pick up and start writing at the beginning of the day. I’m a SOTP (seat of the pants) writer who never knows what’s going to happen. In order for me to get going the next morning, I write a sentence or two so I can find my place and remember what I was going to write next. That helps me to get going with my writing. I don’t spend much time sitting and thinking. I do that when I exercise or drive in the car or do the dishes. 

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1. 8. To borrow those famous words, just do it. In the end, if you don’t put your butt in the chair, it ain’t going to happen. Whether you feel like it or not, write. Even if it’s drivel you’re going to delete later, put those words on paper. That’s what editing is for. The sense of accomplishment when you type The End is worth it!

What other tips do you have that help you be a productive writer? Leave a comment for Liz--she'd love to hear from you!

Author Bio:

Liz Tolsma has lived in Wisconsin most of her life, and she now resides next to a farm field with her husband, their son, and their two daughters. Add a dog and a cat to that mix and there’s always something going on at their house. She’s spent time teaching second grade, writing advertising for a real estate company, and working as a church secretary, but she always dreamed of becoming an author. When not busy putting words to paper, she enjoys reading, walking, working in her large perennial garden, kayaking, and camping with her family. She’d love to have you visit her at www.liztolsma.com or at www.liztolsma.blogspot.com.


 https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100002316555886
 http://twitter.com/#!/LizTolsma

"Under His Wings" coming September 2011 in "A Log Cabin Christmas" from Barbour Publishing

"Simply His Mother" and "As American As They Come" available now in "Cup of Comfort for Adoptive Families"

     

Soli Deo Gloria

I'll Volunteer--By Sara Goff

My guest this week is Sara Goff, a truly beautiful person and friend. From New York, she now lives in England with her husband and young son. Sara's feature focuses on volunteering, a subject I can definitely relate to since I devoted the full decade of my 30s helping my community fight a mining company prepared to blast away two hills within feet our our homes, and then later serving on the zoning board of appeals. Yet, Sara goes beyond helping others and talks about how to serve God when God serves you.

I'll Volunteer by Sara Goff

Lift the Lid School Fair

I found my road to success through volunteer work. The story starts with an evening in Manhattan eleven years ago. I was approaching thirty and felt lost in my career in the fashion industry. I sat down on the hard-wood floor of my apartment and prayed until tears streamed my cheeks that God would do something meaningful with my life.

Not long after my prayer, I saw an opportunity at The National Arts Club to help kids to write. I applied right away to volunteer, but didn’t hear back, probably because I didn’t have any writing credits. So I picked up some local magazines—distributed free of charge around Tribeca and SoHo—and pitched a few articles. The SoHo Journal accepted one, and I started writing lifestyle articles for them on a regular basis. My first piece covered a story which pertained to The National Arts Club. Well, the second time I applied to volunteer at the club, my phone rang.

Marta Valle Secondary School in the East Village was my first assignment, an inner-city pubic high school with all the physical and academic bumps and bruises typical of a low-income neighborhood. My goal was to inspire the honors English students in the eleventh grade to write personal essays, and I was full of hope.

Sara and Pia

When I first walked into the school, I felt unbalanced, like riding the subway surfer-style. In addition to my fear of speaking in front of a class, I felt out of place. Metal detectors and security officers were not a part of my education growing up. Once I found the classroom, students of different backgrounds turned their caged eyes on me. How would I get them to open up about their lives and to commit their feelings to words? They needed to be confident enough to make themselves vulnerable, and yet I was struggling to keep a steady voice.

By the end of the year, I had a chapbook of 22 entries to distribute to the class, highlighting the work of each and every student. Three students were chosen to read at The National Arts Club’s Creative Writing Festival. After that one workshop, I was asked to monitor a panel of authors for the club’s Student Enrichment Program. Following that, a friend of a friend asked if I’d speak about writing for her class at Saint Francis College in Brooklyn. I even found the courage to volunteer as a writing instructor at Holy Apostles Soup Kitchen’s Writing Workshop, sharing personal essays with men and women who had far more life experience than I had. From helping others, I learned to ignore my fears, to put my trust in God and to become a leader.

Walking Pia in France

In 2009, my husband’s work moved us to Stockholm, Sweden, and I lost my network of schools, as well as the Soup Kitchen. In our new home, on a dark morning in November when the Scandinavian sun could barely muster an hour of light, I gathered up all my trust in God and started Lift the Lid, Inc., a charity that raises money for schools while encouraging students to write. Now I could continue to volunteer, continue to grow and to be inspired in my own writing.

I believe volunteering has three requirements: time, the willingness to learn from trial and error, and an unwavering trust in God that you are indeed qualified to help others. If you are longing for a sense of purpose or feeling stagnant in your career, my advice is to volunteer. It’s a lot like love, where the more you give, the more you get back. Once you’ve made a difference in someone else’s life, you start to see a change in yourself.

Jumping jacks in France

If you feel you need a little “I’ll Volunteer!” counseling, I’d be happy to offer my support, advice, or ideas on how to get started. Do you have a volunteer story to share…or volunteering opportunities to pass on? You might encourage someone to reach out to others. Like the force of wind, there’s no telling how far one act of love might spread.

Read more about Sara’s work volunteering in her recent article, “How to Let God Work in Your Life” on Crosswalk.com: http://www.crosswalk.com/faith/women/how-do-you-let-god-work-in-your-life.html

Sara would love to hear from you about your experiences volunteering, how God has arranged the least expected opportunities for you, or if you have any questions or need any advice. Drop by for a visit and leave a comment.

Author's Bio:

SARA GOFF has published in several New York City journals, as well as on Crosswalk.com. Her short story "The Smell of Burnt Vegetables" is published in the July 2011 issue of Christian Fiction Online Magazine. Sara received fellowships to Summer Literary Seminars in Russia and Kenya, and was a writing workshop leader at The National Arts Club. She has spoken on the topic of writing in NYC high schools and at St. Francis College and was a writing instructor for the homeless at Holy Apostles Soup Kitchen. She founded Lift the Lid, Inc., a charity for Third World schools that encourages creative writing. Sara is a Semi-Finalist in the 2011 American Christian Fiction Writers Genesis Contest, and she helped judge the 2011 Global eBook Awards. She is represented by literary agent Wendy Lawton of Books and Such Literary Agency.

www.saragoff.com

www.lift-the-lid.org

Do Tough Times or Difficult People Ever Make Sense?

We've all had stressful situations. Tough times. Difficult people. Sometimes it feels as if there is no escaping. This week I'm also be a guest blogger on Connie Almony's Blog The Living Body of Christ. Please drop by for a visit. Both Connie and I would enjoy hearing from you.


http://livingthebodyofchrist.blogspot.com/2011/08/reason-for-crazy-times-by-elaine-stock.html?showComment=1313785325661#c7612883100882912201.

WHEN TWO FAMILIES BECOME ONE--An Interview with Diana Lesire Brandmeyer

My guest this week is Diana Lesire Brandmeyer, a talented and multi-published author in both fiction and non-fiction. I've been graced with Diana's friendship ever since we met at an RWA conference in Orlando many moons ago. She has co-authored with Marty C. Lintvedt WE'RE NOT BLENDED WE'RE PUREED. The combination of heartfelt advice based on Diana's experiences and Marty's professional insights as a licensed counselor will help those who may be struggling in newly blended families or who may need encouragement. Plus, Diana, like myself, is also ruled by cats!

~*~ ~*~ ~*~As an added bonus~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Diana will give away one copy of WE'RE NOT BLENDED WE'RE PUREED to one randomly chosen commenter. Please include your e-mail address with your comments . . . and personally, I'd love for you to Follow this blog.

An Interview with Diana Lesire Brandmeyer:

In reviewing WE’RE NOT BLENDED WE’RE PUREED a lot of thought and love appears evident between you and Ed and your sons. Would you say the two of you sought to purposely figure out how to make the changes in your families smoother for your sons or did this happen as trial and error?

In the beginning we thought we were smart and had it all figured out. That lasted about twenty minutes. After that there was a lot of ‘let’s try this’ moments.

Early in this most helpful and creatively put together book you paint an image for the reader to see your two families moved beyond a blended mix and ended up in a pureed mix. Continuing with a food theme, why blended/pureed as opposed to food-processed?

When my agent asked me what I would call a book about my life, We’re Not blended-We’re Pureed was the first thing that came to my mind. I think because when you blend you push one button and walk away and hope it’s all smooth. When you puree you have to watch a bit so you don’t end up going too far and you have a mixture you didn’t quite want. That being said I’m not much of a cook so my definition of puree may be wrong. In my mind it worked so we stuck with that.

How do you see your separate families as mixing together smoothly rather than chopping and dicing up the past that made who you were when you first merged as a family?

There were a lot of chunky moments to make us into the family we are today. It took a lot of work, patience and prayers to get to the place where we now have a Brandmeyer-Lesire flair. Like any marriage each partner brings something special to the relationship that they don’t want to change. We just brought along a few extra little people and we learned what was most important to each and tried to make that continue.

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It sounds like that despite much prayer, love, affection, and bribery of desserts, there were surprises in the beginning that you never expected to have. In hindsight now, can you summarize any major shockers that newly joined families have to go through to become blended?

One of the biggest shocks as a mom was scheduling. Increasing your family means more to be done, more laundry, more boxes of cereal, more activities. The word is MORE of everything from drama –and this is important so don’t miss it—to more hugs and love if you let it happen. That little if is a huge word. If you want this blended family to work you have to learn to love beyond what is happening. If  you don’t look at the child who is upsetting your plans of the perfect family and see love it’s not going to work. If  you don’t see past the hurt, confusion and insecurity and  in that child’s eyes and behavior and you react only in frustration you may never have a family that blends. 

The first time you’re married and have kids, it’s usually a baby right? You have time to adjust, the baby learns when mom means yes or no. But when you blend a family you get already formed children that come with opinions and attitudes. There is a lot of adjusting required from the new parents and the new children. 

Were there any one oh-wow moments that you’d also hadn’t expected but were delighted when it occurred?

I’m laughing—sorry you can’t hear that. Yes, there were many. The latest one is that while the boys were growing up I thought they would never be friends once they moved out of the house. But they are! It’s so exciting to see Ben brag about Andy’s art, Andy calling Ben for help when his truck isn’t working, and for both of them to complain that Josh lives too far away that they really miss him.

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In the beginning of your marriage with Ed you also faced the challenges of disapproving extended family members. Did this prove an obstacle that you as a family needed to overcome in order to feel more at ease with each other?

Oddly enough, it united us. We saw ourselves as a unit and we would not be broken apart. 

Was it difficult for you and Ed to see each other in a new light, separate from your previous spouses?

Being widowed made the challenge different from those who are divorced. Divorced couples must interact which doesn’t allow them to cast the ex-spouse as a perfect person in their minds. When you’re widowed it’s easier to forget the other spouse had faults.

Do you think your sons had trouble? Did you hear a lot of “my other mom/dad did it this way so why won’t you”? Any advice?

First, please note I think of all the boys as MY sons, but I have to separate them for a moment to answer the questions. Ben and Josh are my biological children. Ben was 7, Josh 2 when their dad died. It’s a lot different when it’s your dad that dies. I was their primary caretaker and yes, they missed their dad a lot. When I married Ed he filled that empty space and it worked well. Andy was 5 when his mom died. She was his world, then he was with his dad for two years before I came into his life bearing authority. So yes, I heard, “My dad doesn’t care…” often.  My advice is for parents to decide BEFORE they get married how discipline is going to be handled and how you will back each other up during a discussion.

When do you think your family experienced that turning point of letting go of the past and becoming a new family? Was this a gradual process or did any one thing or person or event smooth the bend in the road?

I don’t think we ever let go of the past because we wanted the boys to know their other parents, who they were, things they liked. We did grow closer as a new family when we started taking vacations in an RV. Nothing says I love you like 8 hours of the Three Stooges playing in the back and watching 3 small boys laughing.

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Any funny anecdotes of the pureeing process you’d like to share?

I’ll never forget the time when we were cleaning house for a birthday party and Andy told me, “The only reason we married you was so you would clean. So why do I have to help?” I didn’t laugh then, but it makes me laugh now. And yes, he did continue to help. 

If you had to do it all over again, would you? Would you change anything?

I wish I could do it again. I miss those boys so much my eyes water! Yes, I would change things; I would communicate with Ed using words instead of trying to get him to read my mind. The mind reading doesn’t work. I wish I would have known some of the things Marty suggests to do in the book. I do believe with that information, my relationship with Andy would have been better if I had realized what he was telling me by his actions. I must say I am so proud of him and love him to pieces.

Diana's cat Wendell

As a cat lover I ask: Did you bring any pets into the family when you and Ed married and did that help or add to any stress? 

When we combined our houses we had a total of 4 cats! That’s a lot of litter boxes and there didn’t seem to be anyone around to clean them—isn’t that odd? The cats blended faster than we did!

Oliver--owner of Diana

And, how essential is it to write in the presence of your cats?

My cats keep me healthy. We have two now and they have this odd way of deciding when I need to take a break from the computer. One sits on my keyboard, the other my lap—one of them even wants me to file his claws! 

Diana would love to hear from you about your "pureed" families, writing, or cats

Diana Lesire Brandmeyer's Bio:

Diana Lesire Brandmeyer has a background in education and psychology. Her credits include My Devotions, The Metro East Family Gazette, Little Visits Family Devotions and The Lutheran Witness. She received her degree from Webster University. She is the author of, A Bride’s Dilemma in Friendship, Tennessee (Barbour 5/2012), We’re Not Blended, We’re Pureed: a Survivor’s Guide to Blended Families (Concordia Publishing House), Hearts on the Road (Barbour), and A Time to Dance (Awe-struck E-publisher),. She lives in Southern Illinois where the corn grows at a rapid rate behind her home. Married to Ed, they have three grown sons all on their own now, each of them bringing someone special to join the family. Yay! Daughter-in-laws!

www.dianabrandmeyer.com

www.pencildancer.com (blog)

To purchase We're Not Blended We're Pureeed:

www.cph.com

www.amazon.com

www.barnesandnoble.com

WHEN ONE DREAMS BIG—Debut Author Sandra Orchard

My guest this week is debut author Sandra Orchard. Sandra has dreamt big through the years, blessed from inspiration by friends and family. A debut author this coming September, Sandra has sold not just one novel to the Love Inspired Suspense line but three! Congratulations, Sandra. A special bonus . . .

From Friday, August 5th-Sunday, August 7th, if viewers would like to leave a comment on this blog and then go to Sandra's GoodReads Giveaway page you can be entered to win her debut novel DEEP COVER:

http://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/show/12860-deep-cover 

IDENTITY: GUARDED

Maintaining his cover cost undercover cop Rick Gray the woman he loved. Sweet Ginny Bryson never really knew Rick. He never gave her the chance. Not then, and not now, when he's back with a new alias to gather evidence against Ginny's uncle. The man's crimes led to Rick's partner's death, and Rick wants justice to be served. But his investigation is stirring up trouble, and Ginny is smack-dab in the middle. Someone wants Ginny to pay the price for what her uncle has done. But how can Rick protect her without blowing his cover, jeopardizing his assignment...and risking both their lives?

Deep Cover is the first book in the series, Undercover Cops: Fighting for justice puts their lives—and hearts—on the line.

First, a few questions for Sandra:

What surprises came along on the family, social, and career level upon publication of your first novel?

Aside from a website and participating in online forums from ACFW and RWA, I had no presence on the web. Getting set up on Facebook, building a blog, planning a blog tour was all a huge learning curve for me, and very time consuming. I always prioritize family time, but if they were just hanging out watching a movie, I'd slip away to work on the marketing stuff. 

You've recently volunteered at Write!Canada. Can you tell us a bit about this opportunity and the organization?

I was "special assistant to the director" and I still get a kick out of the title. It sounds so prestigious. Basically, I answered questions, offered advice and encouragement, and helped people find where they needed to be. It was a wonderful experience. Write!Canada is a smaller conference that takes place at a retreat centre—beautiful setting. It feels like a reunion every time I attend. The fellowship is awesome. It is hosted by The Word Guild, an organization for Canadian writers (both fiction and non-fiction) who are Christian. 

I love your Journey Tales on your website when you share other authors' stories of the journey to publication. Now that you've published, can you look back at any specific childhood experience or perhaps a life-lesson from any particular person that helped to tighten your perseverance on the road to seeing your writing become available for purchase? 

My parents instilled in me a belief that I could do anything I set out to do. They were always very supportive of all my endeavors from orienteering in junior high (I placed second in the North American championship, and the Ontario Summer Games) to my senior high pursuit of darkroom photography (yeah, okay, a cute guy was head of the photography club at the time…grin). Consequently, I had an innate confidence that my perseverance would eventually pay off. Although, I admit to sometimes breaking into song ala The Sound of Music … "I have confidence in confidence alone…" But more often, I spent a lot of time on my knees, praying for assurance that I wasn't squandering my time. 

Dare to Dream and Enjoy the Journey by Sandra Orchard

"I wasn't going to be one of those people who died wondering what if? I would keep putting my dreams to the test - even though it meant living with uncertainty and fear of failure. This is the shadowland of hope, and anyone with a dream must learn to live there."

 - Alex Haley 

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By the time I typed the end on my first manuscript, I’d read enough writing craft books to know that writers rarely publish the first novel they write, and that more often than not it takes years of hard work to break into publishing. I’m glad I did, because that knowledge empowered me to embrace the emotional highs of contest wins and editor requests, and not get too hung up on the equally frequent rejections.

The Lord blessed me with parents who raised me to believe I could do whatever I set my mind to, so quitting never crossed my mind. But I am immensely grateful for the Lord’s nudges of encouragement whenever discouragement set in.

Rejection prompted me to comb the local Christian bookstore for other potential publishers, which led me to discover Castle Quay publishing, which led to finding out about Write!Canada, the first writing conference I attended, where I met my first agent and a published author who mentored me.

Two days before I was scheduled to fly out to an ACFW conference a couple of years later, I blew a disc in my back and wound up spending three days in the hospital. That too was a blessing in disguise. Since it was too late to request a refund of the registration fee, I asked if I might receive the CDs for the workshops, since a medical emergency had prevented me from attending. The director graciously agreed and with months of waiting for back surgery and then recovery from the surgery ahead of me, I had plenty of time to listen to the classes, that brought my writing to a whole new level.

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I’ve always been a highly task-oriented person. I’ve ripped out walls and floors and rebuilt a bathroom, sided my house, built a shelter for my daughter’s horse from foundation to shingled roof. The back injury put an end to those kind of projects, but the one thing I could do relatively pain free was sit at my desk and type. That meant I had a lot more time for writing and studying the craft.

But the encouragements I’ve most delighted in are the friendships God brought into my life on this writing journey. I have no doubt He orchestrated the delivery of my Romance Writer’s of America magazine to another writer in my small community. She was so excited to discover another romance writer in town that she hand-delivered the magazine to my doorstep and invited me to attend a local writing group she attended. 

The other cool thing I discovered was that God was giving me a ministry through my writing long before I ever became published. Two members of the group in particular have become dear friends. I pray for them daily. One is battling cancer and we’ve had many discussions about faith. They’ve both helped shape and polish my stories as I have theirs, and we’ve had tons of fun brainstorming book ideas and celebrating each other’s little victories.

“So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.” Hebrews 10:35-36

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My advice to all whether published or aspiring is enjoy the journey. See God’s hand in the little things. Embrace the friendships. And don’t give up. To encourage others to persevere with their writing, I’ve created a page on my website that shares the journeys of published, and yet-to-be published writers, alongside inspirational quotes. We all have a story to tell. God may call some to tell their stories to a wide audience while others may only be writing for that one person who needs to read exactly what God has laid on their heart to write.

"If one dream should fall and break into a thousand pieces, never be afraid to pick one of those pieces up and begin again."
- Flavia Weedn 

Sandra would enjoy hearing about any anecdotes of inspiration and encouragement that you've received, whether about writing or any other goal you'd strived for. Please leave a comment.

Author Bio:

Romantic Suspense author Sandra Orchard hails from the beautiful rolling hills of Niagara, Canada. Deep Cover, the first novel in her Undercover Cops series with Love Inspired Suspense (Steeplehill), releases in September and is available now at eHarlequin.

You can find Sandra online at

www.SandraOrchard.com;  www.SandraOrchard.blogspot.com

www.facebook.com/Sandra-Orchard

 Although DEEP COVER doesn't hit bookstore shelves until September, it is shipping now from eHarlequin. 

The link <bit.ly/DeepCover> (If you paste it into the browser—minus the brackets--it really works!) will take you to Deep Cover’s page. And…

Free shipping for 1^st time customers (in US, choose Economy, in CA, choose Standard. Free shipping will be applied automatically on checkout)

Good time to stock up on summer reading. 

Deep Cover ~  Sept 2011 Love Inspired Suspense

Shades of Truth ~ March 2012