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BookGiveaway:
Susan is offering 1 e-edition of 1 novel of the readers' s choice between: HEALING THE WIDOWER'S HEART, BETRAYED HEARTS, WAYWARD HEARTS. The winner will be announced here on Friday, February 13th between 5-6 PM EST. To be entered in the Giveaway, please leave your contact information within your comment.
Excerpt from HEALING THE WIDOWER'S HEART:
Excerpt from Healing the Widower’s Heart by Susan Anne Mason
CHAPTER 1
Paige
McFarlane paced the patterned carpet of the front office, her fingers clenched
in the pockets of her khaki shorts. How could George put her in this position?
Seated
behind his mahogany desk, the burly manager of Wyndermere House tapped a pen on
his blotter. “A seven-year-old boy desperately needs your help, Paige. His
father is a long-time customer, as well as a personal friend. You’d be doing us
both a big favor, not to mention helping a child.”
Paige
stopped to face her employer and friend, trying hard not to picture a
devastated little boy grieving the loss of his mother. Trying hard not to allow
memories of her own horrific loss creep back into her consciousness. “My heart
goes out to him, George, but I have no practical experience in grief
counseling. He deserves a qualified professional.”
George
Reynolds’ bushy eyebrows snagged in the middle of his broad forehead. “They
tried that already, but it didn’t work out.”
Perspiration
dampened Paige’s palms as she fought the beginning of panic. “I’m not sure this
would even be ethical since I haven’t earned my certification yet.” I’m not ready for this.
“Don’t
worry. I’ll make it clear that you’d treat Zach more in the capacity of a camp
counselor.”
Paige
chewed on her lip, noting the pleading gleam in her boss’s brown eyes, and felt
her resolve slipping. Why was she always such a sucker for someone needing
help? She really should practice saying ‘no’ more often. Psychology student, heal thyself.
The big man
spread his hands on the desktop. “I know how much you love kids and Zach is
already enrolled in your Bible camp, so you’ll have lots of time together.” He
fixed her with a pensive stare. “I think we can help each other out here. You
could use some extra money for school, right?”
Paige
winced. Understatement of the year—not to mention a low blow. George knew she
was scraping together every last penny for her final year of her Master’s
Degree.
“You know I
could,” she said quietly.
George
swiveled in his leather chair. “Why not look at this as an opportunity to make
some cash on the side then?”
“I don’t
know, George...” She twisted a loose strand of blond hair around her index
finger, doubts wreaking havoc with her desire to help. Textbooks were all well
and good, but could she honestly say she was ready to handle a troubled boy’s
grief? What if she made a mistake and compounded the problem?
“Didn’t I
do you a favor by adding a Christian theme to our camp?”
She sighed
and rolled her eyes to the ceiling. An even lower blow. “Yes.”
“And now I
need a favor. I wouldn’t ask if I wasn’t confident you could help.”
Paige
groaned and dropped back into the guest chair she’d recently vacated. It wasn’t
fair. As owner and general manager of Wyndermere House, George had been her
boss since she’d started working here in her teens, and he knew her too well.
He was using her weakness against her, which told her how much this meant to
him.
“Will you
at least meet Nate and Zach and see how you feel? They arrive tomorrow morning,
which will give you a couple of days before camp starts.”
He looked
so hopeful Paige didn’t have the heart to say no. And the extra money wouldn’t
hurt.
“Fine.” She
threw up her hands in defeat. “I’ll meet them and assess the situation. But I
can’t promise any more than that.”
His smile
created wrinkles around his eyes. “Thanks, kiddo. I knew I could count on you.”
Good old
Paige. Everyone could
always count on her. She sighed a few minutes later as she pushed out the
employee’s entrance onto the wrap-around porch. What had she gotten herself
into? This could be a huge disaster in the making.
She paused
to lean against the stone wall for a moment, halting her wayward thoughts long
enough to take in the view of the velvet lawn sloping toward the lake, and
allowed the beauty of God’s handiwork to steady her. Sunlight glinted off the
surface of the water like glistening jewels. She inhaled the clean air, smiling
at the faint scent of roses drifting by on the breeze. The tension in her
shoulder muscles eased a fraction.
Other than
her hometown of Portsmouth, New Jersey, the Finger Lakes region of New York
rated as close to heaven as Paige could imagine. She’d been coming here during
the summer for as long as she could remember—first on vacation with her family,
and later as an activity coordinator for children. She loved everything about
Wyndermere House—the majesty of the sprawling stone inn, the breathtaking
scenery surrounding it, and most of all the wonderful people who’d become like
family.
George and
Catherine Reynolds had turned this beautiful setting into a five-star resort,
while using the rustic cabins further back on the property as a summer camp for
kids. Parents could leave their children under the counselors’ care and partake
of the resort’s amenities, knowing their kids were having a blast at camp.
Paige
squinted against the sun to see if Jerry was down on the dock. She’d promised
to help him organize the water equipment this afternoon. Knowing Jerry, he’d
probably started without her. She reached into her pocket for her sunglasses,
and her fingers brushed the envelope she’d hastily stuffed there before her
meeting with George. Immediate tension cinched her spine as she recalled the
message typed inside. “Second installment
of tuition fees due.”
Paige
unclenched her fingers and released the envelope. Maybe God was giving her a
gentle nudge—an opportunity to increase her finances, as well as a way to ease
into the type of work she wanted to do. Still, she couldn’t quite quell the
anxiety that swirled through her system. She’d been counting on next semester’s
practice sessions to give her the skills and confidence she needed before
attempting any real counseling. Would she be able to treat this boy without
falling victim to the paralyzing emotions that had engulfed her after Colin’s
death?
Was she
brave enough to try?
I think
I know how actors feel when they finally get that breakout movie that thrusts
them into the spotlight. Suddenly they have ‘made it’, and people call them an
overnight success — even if they’ve been acting for years.
The
key to it all is PERSISTENCE! Something I learned through experience with my
writing.
I
started writing stories when I was a child, but it wasn’t until after
university, marriage and babies that I got the urge to write a book again. I
won’t bore you with all the details of how I went from writing bad secular stories
to inspirational romance, but suffice it to say that a lot of trial and error
was involved.
My
first ‘break,’ so to speak, was finaling in the 2008 Golden Heart contest. I
became part of a Golden Heart writers’ loop and was recruited to write a post
for a blog called Seekerville. Though I wasn’t entirely sure what a blog was, I
blithely jumped in with both feet! Little did I know how important the
wonderful Seeker ladies would become — both as friends and mentors. (A great
blog, by the way, for readers and writers.)
After many
rejections, I sent a manuscript to White Rose Publishing and received a reply
that was both scary and wonderful. The editor liked my writing, but the story
needed a lot of work. I was so
excited that someone was willing to show me where I was going wrong. I took six
months to rework the story. When I sent it in the second time, they asked to
see books 2 and 3 in the series, and eventually offered me a contract for the
first two books! My persistence had finally paid off and I was becoming a
published author!
In
August 2013, I entered my historical romance, Irish Meadows, in a contest and prepared my pitch for the September
ACFW Conference. Though I received no interest for my book at the conference, I
wasn’t discouraged. I had confidence that when the time was right, God would
give me the desire of my heart. A few months later, I found out that Irish Meadows had won the contest I
entered, and one of the judges, an editor from Bethany House, asked to see my
manuscript. Turns out, he loved it and in March 2014, I received an offer from
BETHANY HOUSE for 3 historical romances!
Persistence, hard work, and faith! Three key elements for anything you
wish to achieve! And remember that God
can dream a bigger dream for us than we can ever imagine! So don’t give up!
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Author's Bio:
Susan Mason is a wife and mother of two almost grown children. She lives in a suburb near Toronto, Ontario, Canada and works part time as a church secretary. When not writing romance, she enjoys scrapbooking and researching her ancestors on-line.
Places to connect with Susan:
Website
Twitter
Facebook
Amazon
Goodreads
Susan Mason is a wife and mother of two almost grown children. She lives in a suburb near Toronto, Ontario, Canada and works part time as a church secretary. When not writing romance, she enjoys scrapbooking and researching her ancestors on-line.
Places to connect with Susan:
Website
Amazon
Goodreads
