Presenting The Cover of "Ain't We Got Fun"

 Today, I am thrilled to be assisting authors Emily Ann Putzke and Emily Chapman in spreading the word about their upcoming release Ain't We Got Fun by sharing the cover! And, believe me, it is a beauty. So, without further ado, the cover:

Synopsis: 1935: It was never much of an issue for Bess: living contentedly on her family's farm, despite the Depression which loomed around them. But when her older sister Georgiana takes off to New York City to make a fortune and help Papa out, feelings of adventure and wanderlust strike Bess at home. Through their lively letter correspondence, the sisters recount to one another their adventures, surprises, and heartaches, leaving little room for depression. For in a world of such wonder, ain't we got fun?

About the authors:

 EMILY CHAPMAN, also known as Bess Rowland, is a young hobbit living in the dear old South, and she is entirely bonkers. She's a dreamer, an optimistic pessimist, and an introverted people person. Blue skies, dancing, Disney, and whipped cream make her happy, and she swears she's been to Narnia. She's been a reader all her life, became a writer because of that, and published her first novel, Cry of Hope, in March of 2014. But without her Savior, all of this would mean nothing. It is in Him that she puts her hope. “And hope does not disappoint us, for God has poured out His love into hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom He has given us.” – Romans 5: 5

 EMILY ANN PUTZKE and Gi Rowland have two big things in common – their love for God and coffee. Besides writing historical fiction, Emily enjoys being an aunty, photography, Irish dancing, spending time with family, attempting to play the guitar, reenacting, and reading. She loves polka dots, war movies, and all things vintage. Her first novella, It Took a War, was published in December of 2014.

 I don't know about you, but I am excited for this book! I have been dying to read it ever since I learned about it a few weeks ago. Are you excited? Well, don't worry the wait is short. Ain't We Got Fun is being released on Monday, May 25th! Mark your calendars.

 By the way, I think it is hilarious that their book and my blog share a name. That is what grabbed my attention in the first place.

The Bookshelf Tag

 I learned about this delightful tag for book lovers when Elisabeth Grace Foley did it last week and knew I had to participate. Natalie at Raindrops On Roses and Whiskers On Kittens originally created the tag and there are no rules about having to tag people- whoever wishes to do it can.

Describe your bookshelf (or wherever it is you keep your books- it doesn't actually have to be a shelf!) and where you got it from: Well, some of my books are on five shelves of a six shelf bookshelf, my writing books are on the shelf on my desk, and the rest of them are stacked underneath my desk. I have five stacks underneath my desk. :) Both my bookshelf and my desk are from IKEA.

Do you have any special or different way of organizing your books? First, I have my nonfiction books on animals which transitions into books on plants. On the second shelf I have craft books, then art books, historical costume/fashion, travel/atlases, and the start of poetry. The third shelf houses the continuation of poetry, a book on synonyms, plays, non-fiction history books, and the beginning of my fiction books. The final two shelves also house fiction. As I said, my writing books are stored on my desk. Underneath my desk I have children's books, more travel, some Agatha Christies I did not have space for on my shelf, and more non-fiction. For simplicity I am going to focus more on the books on my actual bookshelf and the stack nearest it.

What's the thickest (most amount of pages) book on your shelf? The Complete Works of O.Henry Vol. II published by Doubleday in 1953 at 1,692 pages.

What's the thinnest (least amount of pages) book on your shelf? The Land Beyond the Setting Sun: The Story of Sacagewea by Trace Leininger Craven at 61 pages.

Is there a book you received as a birthday gift? I have received numerous books as gifts. Last year, I received The Mrs. Meade Mysteries Vol. I by Elisabeth Grace Foley and Revision and Self-Editing for Publication by James Scott Bell from my parents, while one of my sisters gave me Vienna Prelude and Prague Counterpoint by Bodie Thoene.

What's the smallest (height and width wise) book on your shelf? A book of poetry by Tennyson and Browning from 1925.

What's the biggest (height and width wise) book on your shelf? The largest book I own size-wise would have to be Birds of the World by Oliver L. Austin, Jr. It is massive.

Is there a book from a friend on your shelf? No, unless you count members of my family.

Most expensive book? I am guessing it might actually be the copy of Ernest Hemingway's The Old Man and Sea that I picked up for $2 at a book sale. I found an identical copy of the book (a Book-of-the-Month edition with the marking W) on Amazon being sold for $150.00. I guess I know what book to sell if I need money.

The last book you read on your shelf? Wanderlust Creek and Other Stories by Elisabeth Grace Foley.

Of all the books on your shelf, which was the first you read? Moses by Leonard Everett Fisher.

Do you have more than one copy of a book? Yes. I have doubles of a Miss Marple mystery: 4:50 From Paddington (aka What Mrs. McGillicuddy Saw!). I bought a single copy of the book and then it was also in a five-novels-in-one book I bought because I did not have the other four. I also have three individual copies of O.Henry (Strictly Business, Rolling Stones, and Options) that I need to take to a bookstore to sell because I now own a two volume set of his complete works.

Do you have the complete series of any book series? Yes, the complete Kathleen McKenzie Series by Tracy Leininger Craven.

What's the newest addition to your shelf? The two newest additions are Christopher Morley's Parnassus On Wheels and Henry Herbert Knibb's Sundown Slim.

What book has been on your shelf FOREVER? I am not sure. Maybe, Winnie-the-Pooh by A. A. Milne.

What's the most recently published book on your shelf? Wanderlust Creek and Other Stories.

The oldest book on your shelf (as in, the actual copy is old)? Cranford by Elisabeth Gaskell. My edition is from 1892.

A book you won? What a cruel question. I have never won a book in my life. Someday though ....

A book you'd hate to let out of your sight (aka a book you never let someone borrow)? Probably some of my older more fragile books and my edition of To Kill A Mockingbird. I payed more than I usually would for that book and it is one of the pricier reprints with the original cover.

Most beat up book? Events of the Great War, Volume VI: A.D. 1918 compiled by Charles F. Horne. The spine is coming off.

Most pristine book? All my books by Elisabeth Grace Foley, Fly Away Home by Rachel Heffington, To Kill A Mockingbird, Plenilune by Jennifer Freitag, and pretty much every other more modern book that I have bought in the past year.

A book from your childhood? Beatrix Potter: The Complete Tales by Beatrix Potter.

A book that's not actually your book? All the books on my shelf are mine. On my desk though are a few books I am borrowing from my parents.

A book with a special/different cover (e.g. leather bound, soft fuzzy cover etc.)? The cover of Cranford is gorgeous, so are the pages inside. The cover it a whitish color with gold colored swirls and designs on it with green flowers.

A book that is your favorite color? I am not entirely sure. My book of Winslow Homer watercolors has one of his paintings on the cover that includes some of my favorite shades of blue.

Book that's been on your shelf the longest that you STILL haven't read? The Island Stallion's Fury by Walter Farley.

Any signed books? Nope.

Is It A Bird? Is It A Plane?

via Pinterest

 No, actually it is April's Camp NaNoWriMo. *insert internal screaming* I decided to participate in said event earlier this month as a challenge to buckle down and finish my novel from November's annual edition. Now, April is nigh upon us and suddenly I find myself feeling overwhelmingly unequipped. I shouldn't with 61,000+ words already written in the manuscript and having the mental knowledge of exactly where the story is going and how it will end. I should be singing out "Let's get down to business" with confidence or, donning my newsie cap, "Now is the time to seize the day." Instead, I am madly scrolling through my manuscript and wondering if I am crazy to try and even attempt to tackle a 50,000 word challenge during one of my family's busiest months of the year.

*takes a deep breath*

 Maybe it is a little crazy and I will have some days where I am wondering why I am even doing this, but at the end of day (or month in this case) I am going to be glad I did it. I will be that much closer towards a finished first draft ready for edits and polishing. And, hopefully, I won't feel like it was a complete failure.

 For anyone interested, I created a beautiful new board for The Letters of Lee Ames (my current WIP) on Pinterest. The images never cease to inspire me and help me visualize the story's setting and characters. Such a board will prove useful in this upcoming struggle.

So, what have you been working on? Are you going to participate in April's Camp NaNoWriMo? If so, what is your NaNo username? I would love to see how you are progressing. I am Lady Agda.

Book Review: "Wanderlust Creek and Other Stories"

Paperback | Kindle

  "From the author of The Ranch Next Door and Other Stories come six more short stories exploring the joys, heartaches and laughter of life against the backdrop of the Old West. In “Single-Handed,” a gunfighter’s courage comes in doubt when he refuses to explain to his friends the real reason he backed down from a fight. The capable proprietress of the busiest eating-house in town handles a day of disasters large and small in the light-hearted “The Rush at Mattie Arnold’s,” while in “Room Service,” a hotel night clerk finds himself in on odd position after he allows an exhausted traveler to stay in a reserved room. And in the title story, the novella-length “Wanderlust Creek,” a young rancher and his wife struggle to hold onto their land and their dreams in the face of adversity from weather, enemies—and even doubts of each other."

  Character driven westerns with a charm of the old fashioned (something usually only found in books from the period) is Elisabeth Grace Foley's speciality and she has served that special up yet again with "Wanderlust Creek and Other Stories". I had been looking forward to another collection of western short stories ever since I read her first collection, falling even more in love with the author's writing when I read her Mrs. Meade Mysteries, "Left-Handed Kelly," and "Corral Nocturne". Needless to say, I was delighted with this collection.

  "The Rush At Mattie Arnold's" reminded me of O. Henry, "A Search For Truth" held me spellbound, I almost teared up for "Room Service," and "Wanderlust Creek" has ensconced itself among my list of favorites from Miss Foley. While "Single-Handed" and "The Mustanger's Bride" were also highly enjoyable.

  These are not rough and tumble westerns a la what most people think of when they think about westerns. They are, as I said at first, character driven. It is that small driving force that can make all the difference. For instance I would not recommend "Destry Rides Again" Max Brand to certain members of my family because they do not like westerns, but I would recommend Miss Foley's collections to them. Miss Foley's stories are not bound by their genre. They more than just westerns. They are good stories that anyone at any age could easily enjoy.

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  You can visit Miss Foley's blog The Second Sentence, where she blogs about writing, books, westerns, and history, to learn more about her. She recently did a three-part series on color photography from the early 1900s to the 1940s and closed it off by featuring old videos from that same time frame.

Snippets From February

 Here are a few brief snippets I wrote during February. They are mostly from a western short story I have been working on.

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“Then just walk away.”
“I can’t and you know that.”
“Then go, Holt. Ride out of town and don’t look back.”

from The Gunfighter

He nodded stiffly. “I’m sorry, Matt.” His voice hardened.
 “It’s alright. I guess ‘cause I never knew them, losing them ain’t never bothered me much.”

from The Gunfighter

“Just a moment, young man.” Mrs. Reilly’s voice had something impenetrable about it, like a brick wall.

from The Gunfighter

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 Yesterday, I started reading Steal Like An Artist by Austin Kleon and had a difficult time putting it down when I had to head off to work. So far, it has been incredibly inspiring. And, I believe, it has successfully smashed the creative fog I have been stuck in for the past week.

 So, what have you been working on recently? Are there any good books you are currently reading or have recently finished?

As You Like It

via Pinterest

 Here I am for my second post in one week! *high five* Today, I am going to be sharing my contribution for the one and only Rachel Heffington's monthly link-up Chatterbox. If you are not acquainted with this monthly writing exercise, enlighten yourselves by reading the comprehensive instructions she created here.

 This month's topic was superstition. I knew I wanted to pick up doing Chatterbox again, but it took me a while to figure out what on earth to write. Finally, I decided to create a whole new cast of characters just for Chatterbox. The topic was not lending itself very well to my works-in-progress.

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  “Aren’t you going to go inside?” Camilla stood by the shop door, surveying her friend with knitted brows.
  “In a second,” Zoe replied, pressing her face close to the glass display window and soaking in the newest releases added to the bookshop’s selection.
  “C’mon. Brent and Tyler will hunt down the best books before we even enter the store. You know them.” Camilla grabbed Zoe’s hand and dragged her into the shop.
  Zoe pulled backed, her short red hair bounced and her fringe of bangs jerked to the left side of her forehead. “No, no. I always read the titles of all the new releases before looking for something to buy.”
  “But you’ve already read reviews for them all on Goodreads and can recite their titles backwards.” Camilla folded her arms and cocked her head.
  “I know,” Zoe whimpered. “It’s- it’s- well it always seems to help somehow.”
  Camilla’s left eyebrow arched. “It’s superstition.”
  “It is not.” Zoe’s chin jutted forward defensively.
  “Yes, it is.”
  “Is not.”
  “Is too.”
 “Not.”
  “Is.” Camilla leaned forward, her chestnut hair spilling over her shoulders.
  Zoe’s mouth twisted in her own version of stubborn defeat. “Okay, maybe it is.... a little bit. But who was born on a Friday the thirteenth?”
  “That is mere pettiness, my dear Watson.” Camilla tried to look dejected.
  Zoe’s nose crinkled as she smiled. “Let’s go find the best copy of As You Like It we can find. I still think we’ll get a better grade on our essays then the boys.” She linked her arm with Camilla’s and led the way to the play department.

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 I have to admit to falling quite in love with this group of four friends (even if Brent & Tyler were technically not even in the scene). :) Also, I did not realize this would be going up on a Friday the thirteenth until my sister pointed it out last night. I thought that was rather funny.