Blitz: The Immundus by Christina Enquist

Christina Enquist is a YA author and aspiring bookstore owner. She lives with her boyfriend and several pets in Visalia, Ca.

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Would you sacrifice your humanity to save mankind?

IT’S THE YEAR 2828, and Domus is the last remaining country. Divided into twelve walled cities known as genuses, Domus spans what’s known as the purist lands—lands unaffected by the genetic modifications that killed all other species of mammals. But outside the walls of each genus the Immundus threaten the welfare of those within. From a young age, all citizens of Domus are trained for combat against these intruders.

At sixteen, Nia Luna knows little of the Immundus, except for the citywide alarms that ring any time an Immundus nears the genus walls. What she does know is that her own species is dying—their numbers dwindling as a mysterious disease called allagine kills many before their eleventh birthday. The same disease that ravaged her family when it took her sister.

When Nia is recruited into Genesis, a research company pioneering the path to a cure, she knows that her dream to find a cure for allagine is finally within her grasp. But within weeks of starting at Genesis, Nia witnesses something she shouldn’t have—something that changes everything. As she sets down a dangerous path that uncovers national secrets, Nia will have to decide not only what kind of person she wants to be but also how far she’s willing to go to save humanity.

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Q&A With the Author:

1.  What do you like to do when you're not writing? I am currently in rehearsals for a play called The Humans. We open June 7, 2019.

2. What would you say is your interesting writing quirk? I don't know if I have a quirk.

3. Do you have any suggestions to help budding authors become better writers? If so, what are they? Read, Read, Read. Especially in the genre in which you write.

4. Where do you get information and ideas for your books? I find that my best source of inspiration is through meditation.

5. What do you think makes a good story? When the reader is taken through various emotions. 

6. Tell us about your favorite summer vacation? Or what do you like to do in the summer? My favorite Summer vacation was in Yosemite National Park. My family and I stayed in these tent cabins and hiked and enjoyed nature.

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Blitz: Daisies In the Driveway by Lauraine Henderson

Lauraine Henderson began writing as a child, poems and journaling, until babies, building houses, and bookkeeping jobs usurped her world. Now, well established in Oregon and with the children grown, she devotes her time to writing her favorite genre, clean romance. 

Years of life experience translate into plots, calamities, and happily-ever-afters as she writes her inspirational and romantic stories about fictional people who seem so real, you’ll want to know what happens after the book ends!

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Allison Lockwood and Gavin Hunt have been offered the chance to take over the Lazy Daisy Inn and Campground so their respective grandparents, the current owners, can retire and marry. It seems all too easy for Ally and Gavin to prove themselves during the six-month probationary period until they’re fighting disasters at the campground and failing at over-optimistic baking expectations.

As Ally and Gavin slowly explore their growing attraction, they help each other fight fires, endure raging storms, and share a few passionate kisses. But there’s more than fires to fight when Ally’s grandfather disapproves of their budding romance and Ally is convinced Gavin has a girlfriend in the wings…a girlfriend expecting his baby!

Ride along as the two unlikely innkeepers figure out how they fit in their new life and learn the lesson taught by the Daisies in the Driveway.

  
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Q&A With the Author:

1. What do you like to do when you're not writing?
 

When I’m not writing, I’m doing schoolwork. For the last two years, I’ve been taking two online classes each semester and I’m loving it. I also make time every evening to read. There’s a saying that to be a better writer, you need to read a lot. I know that’s true and I especially love it when one of my favorite authors comes out with a new book or series.

2. What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?

I think my most interesting writing quirk is this: when I’m writing a scene, I will often close my eyes and type, while I envision the scene playing out in my mind, like a movie. I can see the setting, while I write the description. I hear the characters’ dialog and feel as though I’m transcribing it rather than inventing it. I love it when scenes like that come together.

3. Do you have any suggestions to help budding authors become better writers? 
 

Suggestions for budding authors:

•          Write a lot; read a lot.

•          You can’t edit what you haven’t written. Keep writing and go back later to edit.

•          Understand that the revision process is the hard part; be ready and willing to make changes.

•          Leave your ego at the door when you ask someone for a critique. Be willing to take the advice of others.

•          Don’t delete pieces and parts in your revision process; put those snippets in an “outtakes” file. It makes it easier to let the words go.

4. Where do you get information and ideas for your books?
 

Most of the time my story ideas come to me as inspiration. My characters introduce themselves to me and ask me to tell their story. Sometimes, they even tell me their names. The details of their story I frequently take from my own personal experiences or experiences of people in my family.

5. What do you think makes a good story?
 

Since I write about romance, what makes a good story for me is the discovery process of two people as they fall in love. A good story includes good character development with believable situations and genuine emotions. I don’t need an extreme heartache or insurmountable obstacles to be miraculously overcome. I like a good story with reasonable problems, quirky sidekicks, and confident characters. I especially love it when humor is included and people can laugh at themselves.

6. Tell us about your favorite summer vacation? Or what do you like to do in the summer?

My favorite summer vacation was in the winter of 2000. Our family flew from Salt Lake City to Orlando and spent six wonderful days at Disneyworld. Halfway through our trip, Tomoko, our friend from Japan, joined us. We spent one day in each ‘kingdom’ and after Tomoko arrived, we returned to our favorite rides and shows with her. Our children were old enough to ride on all the rides and young enough to still enjoy being with their parents. Disneyworld’s ability to put people from all walks of life on the same playing field, as it were, gave us the opportunity to mix with numerous cultures and find commonality in Disney-fun. I still listen to the music from the Millennial celebration and remember the good times we had there that winter.

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Blitz: Storm Child by Melanie Mason

Melanie is an author, designer, photographer, and flight attendant all rolled into one. She has told stories all her life and finds her passion in sharing the plots that spin through her head. She now lives in Portland, Oregon, with her two dachshund-chihuahua dogs. She loves the beauty of the Pacific Northwest that feeds her imagination.

When no one is listening, Melanie loves to belt Broadway songs in her living room and car. Someday she hopes to be on a flight where someone is reading her book.

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To escape capture by Imperial soldiers, 16-year-old Eridale Storm leaves the only home she’s ever known and drags her younger sister into the wilds of Mericon—the Empire that formed when America collapsed. Hoping to find safety with their mother who disappeared when Eridale was three, the girls follow clues that lead them across the country, but the empire hounds their every step.

The journey draws Eridale deeper into the conflict between the Empire and the rebel Freedom Fighters, producing questions about Eridale’s heritage, questions no one wants to answer.

Caught between the threads of deception, rebellion, and betrayal, Eridale struggles to find out who she is. The answers she finds could lead the country back to freedom or shackle them under the imperial throne forever.

This is book 1 of a 4 book series and not a stand-alone book.

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Q&A With the Author:

1.  What do you like to do when you're not writing?

            I like to read, hike, go to the beach and relax, sew, bake sweets (way more than I should), and once in a while I get caught up in jewelry making.

2. What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?

            I don’t plan out any of my stories. That being said, sometimes I really am surprised by what I am inspired to write. It’s like I’m reading the book for the first time, but it’s in my head.

3. Do you have any suggestions to help budding authors become better writers? If so, what are they?

            Write. Write. Write. Write stories about your day, write anecdotes about your experience at the store or on a drive, share stories with your friends and family. If you like writing fiction, practice making stuff up. And please, please, please, learn proper sentence structure. It will help you in the long run to have a lot less to edit.

4. Where do you get information and ideas for your books?

            The ideas I get are inspiration. I feel that nothing is born simply of my genius. All of my experiences in life, in work, in reading, in church, in relationships comes to play in the birth of a new idea. When it comes to information such as historical facts, locations, and modern views of different subjects, I really like Wikipedia. Google Maps and I are also very good friends.

5. What do you think makes a good story?

            I alway say that if a story can make me forget the outside world and feel the entire gamut of emotion then it is a great story. The stories I remember the most are the ones that make me mad, sad, happy, jealous, ache for the character or their situation, cry, or thrill at their wins.

6. Tell us about your favorite summer vacation? Or what do you like to do in the summer?

            My favorite summer vacation was actually when I was younger. We would always go camping in the summer. I loved it. Now that I’m older and don’t like to be cold, I love sitting on a warm beach (so not the Oregon coast). What I usually end up doing in the summer is reading—a lot, editing, hiking the amazing trails in the Columbia River Gorge, and spending time in my back yard soaking up the rays while I read a good book.

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Blitz: Second Love in New York City by Keri Brooks McWhorter

Keri Brooks Mcwhorter is a sixth generation native of Chandler, Arizona. She's fourth-generation graduate of Chandler High School, and has a Bachelor's in Psychology from Arizona State University.

While serving a mission for the LDS Church, she met her husband in New York City. They have three children, a love of family, and an English Bulldog.

  
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Madelyn's and Ben's families have been close friends since they moved next door to each other. When Madelyn's husband Luke died, she swore she'd keep her marriage vows intact by remaining single for the rest of her life. 

She and Ben relied on each other for everything after he joined the widower club. 

Now Madelyn's daughter is marrying Ben's son, and everyone's going to New York City for the wedding - including Heather, the woman Ben's been dating.

Will Heather succeed in breaking up Madelyn and Ben's friendship, or will they discover their second love in New York City?

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Q&A With the Author:

1.     What do you do when you’re not writing?

When I am not writing I am reading, cleaning, hanging out with friends and family or serving at my church. 

2.  What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?

   I have such a crazy imagination, I will get an idea or have some crazy dream and I have to stop whatever I am doing in the moment and get in on paper. Yes I always have to write on paper first. 

3.    Do you have any suggestions to help budding authors become better writers? If so, what are they?

My advice to budding authors (myself) is to get in there and get dirty. Go to seminars, take classes, join writing facebook groups, critique groups and go to writing retreats. You will create opportunities for yourself to learn and to meet others. 

4.     Where do you get information and ideas for your books?

I get my ideas from things that I think I would personally be interested in reading about, my weird imagination, my dreams and situations around me strike ideas. 

5.    What do you think makes a good story?

I always love humor in my stories, adventure and of course a little bit of love.

6.    Tell us about your favorite summer vacation? Or what do you like to do in the summer?

Arizona summer times for me mean lot's of movies with air conditioning and popcorn or lot's and lot's of swimming with my kids. 

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Blitz: Coffee Cottage Collection by Lynn U Watson

Lynn U. Watson has incorporated her love for Jesus and passion for essential oils into a three-volume devotional Collection, sharing spicy and aromatic essences of Scripture. Her devotions encourage you to diligently cultivate your heart and grow your roots deeply in an intimate relationship with Jesus. Lynn holds a BA in Journalism from University of Memphis, a certificate in aromatherapy, and is a practicing reflexologist.

 She and Steve have been married since 1973 and call Bartlett, Tennessee home. Their lives are blessed with two adult children, their spouses, and five beautiful, of course, grandchildren. Jasmine, her tuxedo kitty, runs the house. Her current work-in-progress is a novel inspired by a painfully challenging event in the life of her great-grandmother, changing the course for her family forever.

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All three of the Cinnamah-Brosia devotionals in one ebook volume! 

Fruits; spices; essential oils; & botanicals of all kinds sprinkled over & planted on the pages of the Bible provide insights into God’s word. Our Coffee Cottage’s fictional characters, Cinnamah-Brosia and friends, courageously use the essences to season the world around them with an overflowing measure of Jesus. All three volumes of Cinnamah-Brosia's Inspirational Collection for Women are featured in this single e-book.

"The Essence of Courage: Cultivating the Fruit of the Spirit in Solomon’s Locked Garden and in Your Heart"

As you breathe in the fragrant aromas found in Solomon’s Locked Garden (Song of Solomon 4), you'll harvest the Fruit of the Spirit and cultivate it in the garden of your heart.


"The Essence of Joy: Filling Your Heart with the Aromas of Jesus’ Nativity"

The scents of Christmas invite our imaginations into the holiday season. What emotions flood your heart when the holidays aromas waft your way?

You’ll meet women of the Bible and contemporary women (Cinnamah-Brosia and friends) like you and me who will encourage you to discover the refreshing essence of a life lived in the presence of Jesus. Let JOY fill your heart with the aromas of His nativity.

"The Essence of Humility: Live and Love Like Jesus"

We live in a culture overwhelmed with disrespect, egos, entitlement, rudeness, and offense — lives focused on self, rather than God or others.

Jesus entered our world and walked among us. He placed no importance on rank or position. Jesus’ life reflected love because it reflected humility, and He invites us to live and love like Him.

You’re invited to travel with Cinnamah-Brosia and friends once again to meet real-life people — our contemporaries and those on the pages of God’s word, who encountered the same real-life challenges you and I face each day. Learn the blessings of a life lived like Jesus lived —- with love and humility.

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Q&A With the Author:

What do you do when you’re not writing? 

My other job is reflexologist. I serve about 8 clients a week. That helps pay the bills, (yes, I have those, too) giving me freedom to write. I have a few online game obsessions like Words with Friends and Wonka’s World. Mostly they’re a great escape from life’s demands. I also bake bread for my family from freshly milled grain, read, craft, travel a little, and spend time with my grandchildren. It’s summertime, and I’m eager to get in the pool.

What would you say is your interesting writing quirk? 

As a child, I learned to focus on books, homework, and projects while tuning out many distractions around me.  It became a coping and survival skill – one carried throughout my life. Not always a positive thing, when sometimes I tune out important stuff, too. So, there’s usually noise in the background when I write, don’t ask me what songs they played on the radio. I won’t have a clue, but I will have accomplished much in my writing world even in the midst of television shows, others’ conversations, radio blaring and more.

Do you have any suggestions to help budding authors become better writers? If so, what are they?

            Attend writers’ conferences. They are available throughout the year at different locations. Many are very affordable. Soak up all you can from those who lead these workshops. Make connections with other authors on many different mile markers along their writing journeys. Many will become treasured friends.

            Encouragement from a well-published devotional writer during a one-on-one session at a writers’ conference in 2016, led to the three devotional books which are compiled here as the Coffee Cottage Collection.

            During a first chapter critique group at the same conference this year, we were given a resource list of great books to help us really learn how to “craft” our books. I’ve completed one of them and started on a second. My work-in-progress is a Christian Historical Fiction novel. A novel is definitely uncharted water for me. Reading the books, I’m learning so much to make my story shine. Make the investment.

Where do you get information and ideas for your books?

            In 2004 I discovered essential oils and their properties and aromatic influences. God gave me many fresh insights into different passages of Scripture where the plants are mentioned. Almost from the beginning of my essential oil journey, He laid the task of putting knowledge I gleaned into book form. Through prayer, and over time, the devotional books look much different than I ever expected. I’m thankful it all came together perfectly and in God’s perfect timing.

            Many of the stories in the devotional collection came from friends, family, and even strangers willing to share snippets of their lives that fit the chapter themes.

            Inspired by events in the life of my great grandmother, I stepped up to the challenge of fictionalizing and writing her story as a novel. There is so much more I don’t know about her than I do, but I believe the story will be used to bring beauty from ashes almost 150 years later. Her noble cause: a voice for the unborn. I’m praying a trip to her home in Germany will become reality this summer. I count on even more insight, walking where she walked.

            Most authors, I believe, would agree. Research, research, research, for accurate facts and information. I remember the tediousness of card catalogs and periodical indexes from school term paper days, and sing praises for the ease and extent of research made possible by the internet today.  

What do you think makes a good story?

            Characters inviting us into their lives honestly and authentically. Their flaws and troubles, their positive attributes, and their quirks are visible. The characters also willing allow us to witness their changed lives often through perils and less than ideal circumstances. By the story’s conclusion, they leave the reader with an encouraging dose of truth and hope. 

Tell us about your favorite summer vacation? Or what do you like to do in the summer?

            Long weekend getaways to more places than occasional long trips are my favorites, and keep it interesting. We joined friends in Charleston, South Carolina a few years ago. Our rented cottage on the beach offered perfect sunrises. Up early and coffee in hand, I caught them from the third floor deck each morning. The history and architecture of the city, the friendly people, wonderful cuisine, a sunset sailing adventure, and seagrass baskets along with good company, made for a memorable get-away – one I would repeat in an instant!

To view our blog schedule and follow along with this tour visit our Official Event page 

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