What could be more Romantic than a bouquet of Roses?
Please join The White Roses of The Wild Rose Press on their Valentine's Day Scavenger’s Hunt.
Below is a list of the participating authors and their websites and/or blogs. Each of the sites has an identical flower in a different color. Once you've picked all the flowers, copy the names below and list the color of the rose you found on the corresponding author's site(s).Email your answer to: twrpwhiteroses@aol.com. Please include the email address we should use to contact you if you win.
The contest runs from February 1 to the 14th.
The Grand prize will be: a mixed bouquet of our eBooks and short stories.First and Second prizes of selected titles will also be awarded.
Good luck!
Georgiana Daniels - http://georgianad.blogspot.com
Cindy Green - http://www.cindykgreen.com/
Kimberlee Mendoza - http://www.kmendoza.com/
Kim Waters- http://www.kimwatters.com/
Pamela S Thibodeaux - http://pamswildroseblog.blogspot.com
Cami Checketts- http://fitmomma.blogstream.com
Nicola Beaumont - http://www.inicola.net/
Kara Lynn Russell- http://karalynnrussell.googlepages.com/
Betsy Ann St Amant- http://www.betsy-ann.blogspot.com/
Vicktoria Pitts-Caine - http://vcaine.homestead.com/
Have fun!
Pamela S Thibodeaux
"Inspirational with an Edge!"
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Today's the Day!
Well Folks the day finally arrived!
Speaking of The Wild Rose Press, check out their 2008 Events Calendar.
Each month they are highlighting a specific line (White Rose, Crimpson Rose, etc) with contests and prizes and all sorts of things!
January was Champagne Rose, February is Sweetheart Rose, March- White Rose, etc.
This is sure to be a lot of fun, so check back often!
Until later...God Bless and remember....The problem isn't the problem; the problem is your attitude about the situation!
"Inspirational with an Edge!"
Friday, January 25, 2008
Small Town Secrets
Well Folks, as promised, today I'm spotlighting Billie Williams and her book Small Town Secrets!
Blurb: Fires rage across the tiny town of Nettlesville. Someone is bent on burning it down to the ground one building at a time. Can Chaneeta and Olga bury their rivalry long enough to stop the arsonist before the town is nothing but ashes, or will Chaneeta’s secret past destroy her and possible the town first?
Excerpt : The scene at the Barker place lit up the night sky as brilliant orange and yellow flames reached skyward. Sparks danced like the Fourth of July as pieces of wood fell, or windows shattered with the heat of the blaze. The building was totally engulfed. Chaneeta’s heart felt choked, as though the acrid smoke that filled her nostrils had tendrils that reached down to her heart and squeezed. “The children, the Barker’s?” she questioned without wanting to ask the real question that tugged at her knotted stomach. “Did everyone get out safely?” she said scanning the area, looking for Bill, his wife Chen Lei or the four children. She knew there would be no hope of rescuing anyone from that building now if they weren’t already out. The men targeted the hose on the roof and the building collapsed in on itself as they did. Sparks flew in all directions sending the onlookers clamoring to remove themselves from danger as they scuttled back farther.
“Too, late to save anything,” Stewart Lewis, Fire Chief for Nettlesville’s all volunteer fire department said as she approached his side. “All we can do now is keep her contained.
“The Barkers?” Chaneeta questioned hoping they hadn’t been inside. She scoured the surroundings again searching hopefully for the faces of the four Barker children, Bill or Chen Lei.
“Neighbors said they’re gone up north to visit relatives in Wausau. They’re the ones who called it in. Seems Emma got up to go to the bathroom and saw the blaze from her kitchen window.”
“Thank God,” the words squeezed out of her like a prayer of thanksgiving.”
The Tewsday twins, Twice and Taaktu, hurried across the street waving at Chaneeta from where they had parked their car.
“Dusty won’t believe another fire,” Taaktu’s said. Taaktu being the younger of the twins by half an hour she was actually born a day later than Twice. She was the impetuous one, always on the go with nervous energy as though trying to make up for lost time. Dusty Rhodes, the current Constable for Nettlesville, had appointed Taaktu his deputy before he left on a month long vacation. She took her job dead serious and Chaneeta was glad to have her in that position.
They stood watching the house collapse in on itself. No one spoke for a long time.
“How could it have gotten this bad before someone saw it?” Twice said and then raised her hands surrender style as she wrapped her bathrobe tighter against the chill of the early spring night air. She looked at Chaneeta fully dressed, “Were you still up?”
“I was working on the St. Patrick’s Day decorations at the café.”
“Why didn’t you wait for morning? We’d gladly do that for you,” Taaktu said.
“Yeah! You shouldn’t be doing that. Your hired help should be,” Twice chimed in.
"I enjoy doing it. Besides, I couldn’t sleep. These fires are driving me to distraction.”
Chief Lewis nodded. “You aren’t the only one. You would think the guy would slip up somewhere. Maybe we need a more sophisticated investigator to try to figure this out before some one gets killed.”
Chaneeta didn’t get a chance to answer before shouts from the approaching Olga Corn, editor in chief of The Daily Nettle let her vehemence be heard. No wonder the town’s people dubbed The Daily Nettle the Stinging Nettle, Chaneeta thought. Her usual diatribe was to cut people to ribbons, and spit them out like chewing tobacco. She was marching across the boulevard like a mean mama in combat boots dragging her poor little reporter, photographer Bobbie Bjork with her. “What do you have to say for yourself now, Chaneeta Morgan, Town Chair Woman? How long do you expect the town to put up with your incompetence?”
For two cents Chaneeta thought she would deck the woman and worry about the consequences later, against her better judgment of course. Chief Lewis stepped between them. “Wait just a minute Ms Corn, it sure ain’t Miss Morgan’s fault that the Barker place caught fire. We don’t know what caused it yet. So you hold your accusations for a bit until the Fire Marshal gets here and investigates it.”
“Don’t need no Fire Marshal to tell me this is like the other three – Don’t need no Fire Marshal to tell me that Chaneeta Morgan is no more a town chairwoman than I am the Princess Diana.”
Chaneeta stood her ground and glared at the fire and brimstone broiling from the angry Olga Corn. “I’m doing what I can Olga. The Marinette County Police Department, the State Fire Marshall they are all investigating. They have not found one single clue to use to pin this on anyone.”
“And you let that useless Town Constable, Dusty Rhodes, take a month long vacation in the middle of this,” she said pointing an accusing finger in Chaneeta’s face.
“He had a vacation coming. He had made plans and I saw no reason to detain him. He had done his preliminary investigation.”
Taaktu stepped in, “I’m in charge now. If you have a gripe talk to the hand,” she said raising her hand between Chaneeta and Olga.
“Humph! We’ll see about this.” Olga turned on her heel and stomped over to direct her anger at her photographer to snap the pictures she wanted.
Chaneeta knew she had to do something to try to calm Olga down. There had to be some way to reach her and get her to work with her instead of against her, but what?
Chief Lewis shook his head and made a sign that he suspected Olga was crazy. The Tewsday twins caught it and laughed uproariously, Chaneeta didn’t join in she was too busy trying to figure out why, who, what was the purpose of these fires and why did Olga blame her? She needed to have a serious talk with Olga Corn, but that would have to wait until another day. She walked to the perimeter of the fire and noticed words in spray paint on the small lawn and garden shed that sat towards the back of the property where Bobbie Bjork was working feverishly, snapping pictures. She motioned to Taaktu and Chief Lewis, and pointed where Bobbie Bjork was grabbing shots of the words with her camera.
“Don’t print that,” Taaktu said grabbing the camera away from Bobbie. “That will do exactly what the sick mind that set this fire wants it to do.” Bobbie stepped back afraid to try to fight for the camera.
Olga didn’t have that demeanor. She reached to grab the camera back from Taaktu. “You hand that over! It’s my property,” she growled glaring at Taaktu.
“Sure,” Taaktu opened the camera and pulled out the role of film, glad it wasn’t a digital camera yet. She pulled the film in a long dark string from its case – the blazing inferno beside them flickered bright candle-like teardrops of light dancing across the surface of the exposed red-brown film as it unraveled exposing the entire roll.
Olga turned to Chaneeta. “You will pay for this. You will. Mark my words.”
Chaneeta threw her hands up in the air. “Officer Tewsday calls the shots in this investigation. I have no control over that. It seems to me she did the right thing if this could spark trouble in the community. Neighbor against Neighbor. We don’t need that. We have enough trouble. I think it’s time we work together don’t you?” she turned the challenge back around to Olga. Olga went quiet. She took the camera and handed it back to Bobbie. “We’ll do this one without pictures,” she said. “The whole town is here anyway. There is nothing we need to add to this.” She waved her arm across the inferno the burning house had become and the graffiti spray painted on the side of the tiny building.
“Chief have one of your men get a picture of that and then cover it please,” Taaktu cupped the film she had torn from Bobbie’s camera and then stuffed it in her jacket pocket.
The racial slur on the garden shed dug deep into Chaneeta’s insides. The slur stung deeper than she dared let anyone know. It was years since she let herself feel the anguish and the guilt of those kind of thoughts; thoughts that could cut a heart to shreds in seconds screamed out of anger. Her father’s voice, her mother’s tears hovered over her like a storm cloud. Twenty years of burying those thoughts to be exact. She reached down and picked up the small doll. Half of it was black, charred from the fire, the other half stark white –it seemed metaphorical. Chaneeta’s heart beat irregular, stilted. She wondered if anyone could tell her daughter was a racial mix. What did she look like twenty years later? Where was she? A tear slid down Chaneeta’s cheek. She turned away from the small group, dashing a tissue from her pocket to her eye to catch the tattle tale tear. She caught Twice looking at her out of the corner of her eye. A quizzical expression crossed her face creating little wrinkles at the sides of her eyes. She reached out and touched Chaneeta’s shoulder.
“It, its okay, it must have been an ash in my eye,” she said swiping the tears away.
Twice slid her arm around her shoulders anyway and pulled her into her side. “I know. This is awful, just plain awful. What will Bill and Chen Lei do now?” Obviously Twice wasn’t accepting her explanation of the tears, but at least she conjured up meaning of her own that Chaneeta could live with.
Ten minutes before the fire she had been content, busy with decorating her life and the café. The glitter of the saran fringe, the promise of the pot of gold all lightened her existence and gave her hope for the future. Nettlesville is a good town, a safe place for families to grow and for people to retire. Chaneeta needed to see to it that it stayed that way. But suddenly all this peace and serenity exploded in her complacent face.
How could she ever think she could bring peace and justice to a town when she is as evil, as crooked, as the person who is preying on her constituents? She is criminal. She is part of a wrong as great as this. She hurt innocent people once by her actions she caused pain and suffering. For all she knew, the repercussions may still be reverberating where she left them. What about her little girl? She abandoned her to deal with racial injustice alone. Was she any better than the perpetrator setting these fires? The questions growled and clawed at her insides, suddenly she was in more pain than she had ever been in her life. She clutched her stomach and started to return to her car.
Small Town Secrets by Billie A Williams, available from http://www.wings-press.com in print or electronic formats. ISBN 978-1-59705-766-0 (print) 978-1-59705-283-2 (electronic)
Remember folks, Billie is giving away a ton of prizes (see my earlier post) so leave your comments!
Until later.....May the God of the Universe BLESS you and your's!
Pamela S Thibodeaux
"Inspirational with an Edge!"
Blurb: Fires rage across the tiny town of Nettlesville. Someone is bent on burning it down to the ground one building at a time. Can Chaneeta and Olga bury their rivalry long enough to stop the arsonist before the town is nothing but ashes, or will Chaneeta’s secret past destroy her and possible the town first?
Excerpt : The scene at the Barker place lit up the night sky as brilliant orange and yellow flames reached skyward. Sparks danced like the Fourth of July as pieces of wood fell, or windows shattered with the heat of the blaze. The building was totally engulfed. Chaneeta’s heart felt choked, as though the acrid smoke that filled her nostrils had tendrils that reached down to her heart and squeezed. “The children, the Barker’s?” she questioned without wanting to ask the real question that tugged at her knotted stomach. “Did everyone get out safely?” she said scanning the area, looking for Bill, his wife Chen Lei or the four children. She knew there would be no hope of rescuing anyone from that building now if they weren’t already out. The men targeted the hose on the roof and the building collapsed in on itself as they did. Sparks flew in all directions sending the onlookers clamoring to remove themselves from danger as they scuttled back farther.
“Too, late to save anything,” Stewart Lewis, Fire Chief for Nettlesville’s all volunteer fire department said as she approached his side. “All we can do now is keep her contained.
“The Barkers?” Chaneeta questioned hoping they hadn’t been inside. She scoured the surroundings again searching hopefully for the faces of the four Barker children, Bill or Chen Lei.
“Neighbors said they’re gone up north to visit relatives in Wausau. They’re the ones who called it in. Seems Emma got up to go to the bathroom and saw the blaze from her kitchen window.”
“Thank God,” the words squeezed out of her like a prayer of thanksgiving.”
The Tewsday twins, Twice and Taaktu, hurried across the street waving at Chaneeta from where they had parked their car.
“Dusty won’t believe another fire,” Taaktu’s said. Taaktu being the younger of the twins by half an hour she was actually born a day later than Twice. She was the impetuous one, always on the go with nervous energy as though trying to make up for lost time. Dusty Rhodes, the current Constable for Nettlesville, had appointed Taaktu his deputy before he left on a month long vacation. She took her job dead serious and Chaneeta was glad to have her in that position.
They stood watching the house collapse in on itself. No one spoke for a long time.
“How could it have gotten this bad before someone saw it?” Twice said and then raised her hands surrender style as she wrapped her bathrobe tighter against the chill of the early spring night air. She looked at Chaneeta fully dressed, “Were you still up?”
“I was working on the St. Patrick’s Day decorations at the café.”
“Why didn’t you wait for morning? We’d gladly do that for you,” Taaktu said.
“Yeah! You shouldn’t be doing that. Your hired help should be,” Twice chimed in.
"I enjoy doing it. Besides, I couldn’t sleep. These fires are driving me to distraction.”
Chief Lewis nodded. “You aren’t the only one. You would think the guy would slip up somewhere. Maybe we need a more sophisticated investigator to try to figure this out before some one gets killed.”
Chaneeta didn’t get a chance to answer before shouts from the approaching Olga Corn, editor in chief of The Daily Nettle let her vehemence be heard. No wonder the town’s people dubbed The Daily Nettle the Stinging Nettle, Chaneeta thought. Her usual diatribe was to cut people to ribbons, and spit them out like chewing tobacco. She was marching across the boulevard like a mean mama in combat boots dragging her poor little reporter, photographer Bobbie Bjork with her. “What do you have to say for yourself now, Chaneeta Morgan, Town Chair Woman? How long do you expect the town to put up with your incompetence?”
For two cents Chaneeta thought she would deck the woman and worry about the consequences later, against her better judgment of course. Chief Lewis stepped between them. “Wait just a minute Ms Corn, it sure ain’t Miss Morgan’s fault that the Barker place caught fire. We don’t know what caused it yet. So you hold your accusations for a bit until the Fire Marshal gets here and investigates it.”
“Don’t need no Fire Marshal to tell me this is like the other three – Don’t need no Fire Marshal to tell me that Chaneeta Morgan is no more a town chairwoman than I am the Princess Diana.”
Chaneeta stood her ground and glared at the fire and brimstone broiling from the angry Olga Corn. “I’m doing what I can Olga. The Marinette County Police Department, the State Fire Marshall they are all investigating. They have not found one single clue to use to pin this on anyone.”
“And you let that useless Town Constable, Dusty Rhodes, take a month long vacation in the middle of this,” she said pointing an accusing finger in Chaneeta’s face.
“He had a vacation coming. He had made plans and I saw no reason to detain him. He had done his preliminary investigation.”
Taaktu stepped in, “I’m in charge now. If you have a gripe talk to the hand,” she said raising her hand between Chaneeta and Olga.
“Humph! We’ll see about this.” Olga turned on her heel and stomped over to direct her anger at her photographer to snap the pictures she wanted.
Chaneeta knew she had to do something to try to calm Olga down. There had to be some way to reach her and get her to work with her instead of against her, but what?
Chief Lewis shook his head and made a sign that he suspected Olga was crazy. The Tewsday twins caught it and laughed uproariously, Chaneeta didn’t join in she was too busy trying to figure out why, who, what was the purpose of these fires and why did Olga blame her? She needed to have a serious talk with Olga Corn, but that would have to wait until another day. She walked to the perimeter of the fire and noticed words in spray paint on the small lawn and garden shed that sat towards the back of the property where Bobbie Bjork was working feverishly, snapping pictures. She motioned to Taaktu and Chief Lewis, and pointed where Bobbie Bjork was grabbing shots of the words with her camera.
“Don’t print that,” Taaktu said grabbing the camera away from Bobbie. “That will do exactly what the sick mind that set this fire wants it to do.” Bobbie stepped back afraid to try to fight for the camera.
Olga didn’t have that demeanor. She reached to grab the camera back from Taaktu. “You hand that over! It’s my property,” she growled glaring at Taaktu.
“Sure,” Taaktu opened the camera and pulled out the role of film, glad it wasn’t a digital camera yet. She pulled the film in a long dark string from its case – the blazing inferno beside them flickered bright candle-like teardrops of light dancing across the surface of the exposed red-brown film as it unraveled exposing the entire roll.
Olga turned to Chaneeta. “You will pay for this. You will. Mark my words.”
Chaneeta threw her hands up in the air. “Officer Tewsday calls the shots in this investigation. I have no control over that. It seems to me she did the right thing if this could spark trouble in the community. Neighbor against Neighbor. We don’t need that. We have enough trouble. I think it’s time we work together don’t you?” she turned the challenge back around to Olga. Olga went quiet. She took the camera and handed it back to Bobbie. “We’ll do this one without pictures,” she said. “The whole town is here anyway. There is nothing we need to add to this.” She waved her arm across the inferno the burning house had become and the graffiti spray painted on the side of the tiny building.
“Chief have one of your men get a picture of that and then cover it please,” Taaktu cupped the film she had torn from Bobbie’s camera and then stuffed it in her jacket pocket.
The racial slur on the garden shed dug deep into Chaneeta’s insides. The slur stung deeper than she dared let anyone know. It was years since she let herself feel the anguish and the guilt of those kind of thoughts; thoughts that could cut a heart to shreds in seconds screamed out of anger. Her father’s voice, her mother’s tears hovered over her like a storm cloud. Twenty years of burying those thoughts to be exact. She reached down and picked up the small doll. Half of it was black, charred from the fire, the other half stark white –it seemed metaphorical. Chaneeta’s heart beat irregular, stilted. She wondered if anyone could tell her daughter was a racial mix. What did she look like twenty years later? Where was she? A tear slid down Chaneeta’s cheek. She turned away from the small group, dashing a tissue from her pocket to her eye to catch the tattle tale tear. She caught Twice looking at her out of the corner of her eye. A quizzical expression crossed her face creating little wrinkles at the sides of her eyes. She reached out and touched Chaneeta’s shoulder.
“It, its okay, it must have been an ash in my eye,” she said swiping the tears away.
Twice slid her arm around her shoulders anyway and pulled her into her side. “I know. This is awful, just plain awful. What will Bill and Chen Lei do now?” Obviously Twice wasn’t accepting her explanation of the tears, but at least she conjured up meaning of her own that Chaneeta could live with.
Ten minutes before the fire she had been content, busy with decorating her life and the café. The glitter of the saran fringe, the promise of the pot of gold all lightened her existence and gave her hope for the future. Nettlesville is a good town, a safe place for families to grow and for people to retire. Chaneeta needed to see to it that it stayed that way. But suddenly all this peace and serenity exploded in her complacent face.
How could she ever think she could bring peace and justice to a town when she is as evil, as crooked, as the person who is preying on her constituents? She is criminal. She is part of a wrong as great as this. She hurt innocent people once by her actions she caused pain and suffering. For all she knew, the repercussions may still be reverberating where she left them. What about her little girl? She abandoned her to deal with racial injustice alone. Was she any better than the perpetrator setting these fires? The questions growled and clawed at her insides, suddenly she was in more pain than she had ever been in her life. She clutched her stomach and started to return to her car.
Small Town Secrets by Billie A Williams, available from http://www.wings-press.com in print or electronic formats. ISBN 978-1-59705-766-0 (print) 978-1-59705-283-2 (electronic)Remember folks, Billie is giving away a ton of prizes (see my earlier post) so leave your comments!
Until later.....May the God of the Universe BLESS you and your's!
Pamela S Thibodeaux
"Inspirational with an Edge!"
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Author Spotlight - Billie Williams!
Hello Friends,
Friday, Jan 25th I'll be spotlighting Billie Williams and her book, Small Town Secrets. Billie is giving away lots of prizes! Here's what she'll do for you if you participate in her Virtual Book Tour:
Everyone who comments on your blog will get a PDF sampler of the first chapters of all my books published so far, if they want one.
Everyone who comments on your blog and leaves an email address with you, will get a copy of The Golden Kettle Café Cookbook designed with recipes from Small Town Secrets for the holidays (all of them St. Patrick’s day to Christmas and New Years and everything in between.)
I will draw a name from the commenters on February 1st one person will receive a copy of “Adrift” – a book of flash fiction and short stories (download copy)
A second drawing will be for a book of poetry titled “Feathers in the Wind”
The third place winner will get a copy of Magic Carpet Ride – a children’s story
I will draw a winner from any one who comments and sends an email to the host with Writer in the subject line—a copy of my writing book Writing Wide Exercises in Creative Writing. (stateside only- Over seas it will be a download copy-sorry folks postage is a killer now days)
The grand prize for one lucky person who comments on your blog will be a download copy of Small Town Secrets (I will draw a name from all those who comment on February 1 – so keep a list of the email comments on your blog)
Now the Grand Prize for the BLOG HOST/HOSTESS for the blog that has the most comments will be to the host/hostess — Your choice of any of my published books (novels – in the format you prefer) and any of my writing books published so far.
The second place winner will receive her/his choice of my writing books in whatever format you choose.
Third place winner will receive a beach towel to help when you want to relax and let the words flow— beach side or tub side.
Also, anyone can go to my website at www.billiewilliams.com and pick up all sorts of freebies!
Wow, Friends! Sounds like a lot of fun.
Come back Friday for more information on her book!
Until then....Be BLESSED!
Pamela S Thibodeaux
"Inspirational with an Edge!"
Friday, Jan 25th I'll be spotlighting Billie Williams and her book, Small Town Secrets. Billie is giving away lots of prizes! Here's what she'll do for you if you participate in her Virtual Book Tour:
Everyone who comments on your blog will get a PDF sampler of the first chapters of all my books published so far, if they want one.
Everyone who comments on your blog and leaves an email address with you, will get a copy of The Golden Kettle Café Cookbook designed with recipes from Small Town Secrets for the holidays (all of them St. Patrick’s day to Christmas and New Years and everything in between.)
I will draw a name from the commenters on February 1st one person will receive a copy of “Adrift” – a book of flash fiction and short stories (download copy)
A second drawing will be for a book of poetry titled “Feathers in the Wind”
The third place winner will get a copy of Magic Carpet Ride – a children’s story
I will draw a winner from any one who comments and sends an email to the host with Writer in the subject line—a copy of my writing book Writing Wide Exercises in Creative Writing. (stateside only- Over seas it will be a download copy-sorry folks postage is a killer now days)
The grand prize for one lucky person who comments on your blog will be a download copy of Small Town Secrets (I will draw a name from all those who comment on February 1 – so keep a list of the email comments on your blog)
Now the Grand Prize for the BLOG HOST/HOSTESS for the blog that has the most comments will be to the host/hostess — Your choice of any of my published books (novels – in the format you prefer) and any of my writing books published so far.
The second place winner will receive her/his choice of my writing books in whatever format you choose.
Third place winner will receive a beach towel to help when you want to relax and let the words flow— beach side or tub side.
Also, anyone can go to my website at www.billiewilliams.com and pick up all sorts of freebies!
Wow, Friends! Sounds like a lot of fun.
Come back Friday for more information on her book!
Until then....Be BLESSED!
Pamela S Thibodeaux
"Inspirational with an Edge!"
Monday, January 21, 2008
Publishing Company Gives Back
Hello Friends,
Please pass this information on to everyone you know and purchase your copy today and help support St. Jude's Children's Hospital.
As you all know, I am very proud and pleased to be a part of The Wild Rose Press. Their acceptance of my novel The Inheritance and my short stories, Cathy's Angel, Choices and A Hero for Jessica has been an exciting part of my life and career and I'm constantly impressed with the quality of work they publish.
Below you'll find a letter from Rhonda Penders sent to all who are associated with TWRP about a very special release, On the Run by Judith Rochelle.
This is just one more reason I'm proud to be a TWRP author!
Judith Rochelle, is one of our multipublished authors at The WildRose Press as well as a personal friend. In late summer, 2007 I approached her with an idea of a project that would enable RJ and me to give something back for all the wonderful things that had happened to us since we opened in May 2006. I wanted to find an organization that I felt everyone, everywhere would care about and really embrace. While many qualified, the one that kept coming back to my mind was St. Jude's Children's Hospital.
A few days later, Judith created a synopsis and a proposal for a book incorporating romance, suspense and St. Jude's. It took my breath away at what she'd come up with. Judith wrote the book, RJ and I edited it, and Kim Mendoza did the beautiful cover. None of us, including the publishing company, will receive any compensation; every penny will go to St. Jude's. Children's Hospital.
The result of this, is the amazing Crimson Rose book called "On the Run" by Judith Rochelle. The book will be offered in both print and electronic format. The amount raised will be announced on our website twice a year. The first report to be posted at the end of June 2008.
If you've purchased this book, thank you for your contribution to St. Jude's, if you haven't purchased it yet, I strongly encourage you to do so. The download is $5.00 and will go into a special fund to be donated to St. Jude's twice a year.
If you would like more information on this project, you may contact Rhonda Penders at rpenders@thewildrosepress.com.
To learn more about the author, please visit http://www.judithrochelle.com/.
To see the amazing work St. Jude's does, please visit their web site at http://www.stjude.org/.
Thank you for your support of this important project. Rhonda Penders
Please pass this information on to everyone you know and purchase your copy today and help support St. Jude's Children's Hospital.Thank You, Friends.
Until later...Be BLESSED!
"Inspirational with an Edge!"
Friday, January 18, 2008
Reviewer's Top Pick!
And the BLESSINGS just keep coming.....
My short story Choices was chosen as the Reviewer's Top Pick by Night Owl Romance!
Gail said, "Pamela S. Thibodeaux's motto is "Inspirational with an Edge!" Her short story Choices lives up to those words......Thibodeaux writes a fast-paced story as inspirational as it is honest. The characters are realistic and their thoughts and emotions brought to the forefront. They struggle with decisions much the same way as any of us. This story is well worth reading."
Read the entire review here!
Coming Jan 30th from The Wild Rose Press
What a WONDERFUL surprise and a GREAT start to 2008!
Until later....Be BLESSED!
Pamela S Thibodeaux
"Inspirational with an Edge!"
My short story Choices was chosen as the Reviewer's Top Pick by Night Owl Romance!
Gail said, "Pamela S. Thibodeaux's motto is "Inspirational with an Edge!" Her short story Choices lives up to those words......Thibodeaux writes a fast-paced story as inspirational as it is honest. The characters are realistic and their thoughts and emotions brought to the forefront. They struggle with decisions much the same way as any of us. This story is well worth reading."
Read the entire review here!
Coming Jan 30th from The Wild Rose PressWhat a WONDERFUL surprise and a GREAT start to 2008!
Until later....Be BLESSED!
Pamela S Thibodeaux
"Inspirational with an Edge!"
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Recommended Read!
Wow, more good news!
My TWRP short story, Cathy's Angel received a great review and "Recommended Read" status at My Book Cravings!
Read the review here!
Cathy's Angel is available NOW! from The Wild Rose Press.
Watch for my new short story Choices, coming Jan 30th also from The Wild Rose Press!
Read the review here!
Cathy's Angel is available NOW! from The Wild Rose Press.
Watch for my new short story Choices, coming Jan 30th also from The Wild Rose Press!
Until next time....Be BLESSED!
"Inspirational with an Edge!"
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Liana LaVerentz & Jake's Return!
BLURB:
Rebecca refuses to believe Jake is guilty of murder. The boy who’d been her friend and protector when they were town outcasts together could never have killed a woman. Not to mention the tender, loving man who’d given her their daughter, Katie.
But who is Jake now? That’s what everyone wants to know, including the town council chairman, who is determined to send Jake back to prison, by any means available.
Jake’s been running from love for all of his life. Will he find the courage to defeat his demons and stay this time?
Omigod, she thought. He’s here. He’s really here. In Warner. Her heart jerked to a start again, and she was sure every soul in the building could hear its wild, erratic beat in the shocked silence that had settled over the room.
Jake stood at the front desk, his left profile turned toward her and the rest of the main reading room. He looked tall, dark and rangy in faded denims and a black T-shirt that matched his windswept hair. The clerk behind the desk finished checking out a patron with two small children. A short, stout, no-nonsense woman who had never married, Eunice Lee Larmer had been with the library for as long as most of the town could remember. She looked up at Jake and froze, her eyes rounding with recognition. Her face two shades paler, she stepped back carefully.
Obviously not. Telling herself she was rescuing the situation—not Jake—Rebecca started forward just as Jake turned her way. His expression stopped Rebecca in her tracks. He looked completely out of place. Completely unapproachable. A lone wolf barely tolerating the trappings of civilization.
An eternity passed as she bore the weight of his sharp scrutiny from across the now suffocatingly silent room. Rebecca would have sworn she actually felt his cold, dark gaze move from the top of her French twist to the tips of her navy pumps.
She shivered.
Sounding as if it were right next door instead of three blocks away, the daily noon wail of the firehouse siren pierced the unnatural silence. The familiar sound seemed to nudge everyone back to life. Rebecca swallowed hard and braced herself to meet Jake again, to speak with him for the first time in eight years.
The first time since the night he’d given her Katie.
Amid a rising tide of rustles and scandalized whispers, Jake seemed to recall why he’d come to the library. As he slowly wended his way across the crowded reading room to where Rebecca stood, neither of them smiling, a paralyzing thought struck her.
What if he still doesn’t want anything to do with us?
She beat back her own wave of fear, and focused on Jake. He was leaner now, harder and tougher-looking than she remembered. True, he’d always looked tough, but his toughness as a teenager had been a façade. One she’d seen through from the start. But this was different. This was no small town bad boy trying to make the best of his messed-up life alone. This was a grown man who’d spend most of his adult life in hell.
With a sinking sense of dread Rebecca realized she’d made a mistake. She was staring into the face of a stranger.
“Hello, Rebecca.”
His voice was rougher, deeper than she remembered. Deep enough to send a shot of awareness down her spine. “Jake.”
“Been a long time.”
Rebecca knew exactly how long it had been. Counting Jake’s four-year stint in the army, with the exception of those few unforgettable hours they’d shared in Pittsburgh eight years ago, they’d been apart for almost twelve years.
Before that, they’d been the town outcasts together.
“You’re looking good,” he said quietly.
“Thank you. You look...fit.”
He arched a dark brow. “Considering I spent the last eight years locked up, you mean?”
Rebecca flushed. A nearby cough reminded her everyone within earshot would shamelessly repeat anything she or Jake said, first chance they got. A town like Warner had precious few secrets, and Jake obviously didn’t intend to play down his recent parole from prison.
She squared her shoulders and offered Jake her most professional smile. “Would you like a cup of coffee? My office is right behind the desk.”
“Your office?” He looked blank, then over his shoulder at the checkout desk, the open door that led to the tiny office behind it. The eavesdroppers’ expressions ranged from indignant to shocked. Frowning, Jake turned back to Rebecca. “You’re head librarian?”
She understood his confusion. She wasn’t even supposed to be in Warner, much less working at the library. The last time he’d seen her, she’d had much bigger plans. “For three years now.”
Jake stared at her a moment longer, then ran a slow, speculative gaze over her short-skirted navy summer suit and heels. Just as slowly, he smiled. “Well, I’ll be damned.”
Rebecca’s knees nearly buckled. His smile was vintage Jake. Reckless, unrepentant, and sexier than black satin sheets. Her heartbeat soared, her palms broke into a sweat. With what she considered an amazing amount of grace, given the state of her nerves, she managed to smile back neutrally and avoid tripping over anything as she led Jake past their astonished audience, and into her office.
Once inside, she made a beeline for the coffee pot, then forced herself to take a deep breath before she handed Jake a steaming mug of coffee. “Black still okay?” Her hand only trembled a little.
His slow half-smile hovered between some private amusement and pleasant surprise. “You remembered.”
Jake's Return by Liana LaVerentz available NOW from The Wild Rose Press!
The last person small town bad boy Jacob Donovan expects to find when he returns home in disgrace after serving time is Rebecca Reed, head librarian. Rebecca had always had much bigger ambitions. Jake hadn’t wanted to stand in her way, so after one night of passion with his former best friend, he’d hit the open road.
Rebecca refuses to believe Jake is guilty of murder. The boy who’d been her friend and protector when they were town outcasts together could never have killed a woman. Not to mention the tender, loving man who’d given her their daughter, Katie.
But who is Jake now? That’s what everyone wants to know, including the town council chairman, who is determined to send Jake back to prison, by any means available.
Jake’s been running from love for all of his life. Will he find the courage to defeat his demons and stay this time?
EXCERPT:
Rebecca Reed would never forget the sound of Jacob Donovan walking back into her life. The sharp hiss of startled gasps that suddenly swept across the town library’s main reading room was enough to grab anyone’s attention. She frowned and straightened from where she was shelving books in the children’s section, looked to see what had happened, and felt her heart stop.
Omigod, she thought. He’s here. He’s really here. In Warner. Her heart jerked to a start again, and she was sure every soul in the building could hear its wild, erratic beat in the shocked silence that had settled over the room.
Jake stood at the front desk, his left profile turned toward her and the rest of the main reading room. He looked tall, dark and rangy in faded denims and a black T-shirt that matched his windswept hair. The clerk behind the desk finished checking out a patron with two small children. A short, stout, no-nonsense woman who had never married, Eunice Lee Larmer had been with the library for as long as most of the town could remember. She looked up at Jake and froze, her eyes rounding with recognition. Her face two shades paler, she stepped back carefully.
The sight of Eunice’s fear sparked a surge of protective anger in Rebecca, taking her by surprise. Damn. She’d thought she was prepared for this.
Obviously not. Telling herself she was rescuing the situation—not Jake—Rebecca started forward just as Jake turned her way. His expression stopped Rebecca in her tracks. He looked completely out of place. Completely unapproachable. A lone wolf barely tolerating the trappings of civilization.
An eternity passed as she bore the weight of his sharp scrutiny from across the now suffocatingly silent room. Rebecca would have sworn she actually felt his cold, dark gaze move from the top of her French twist to the tips of her navy pumps.
She shivered.
Sounding as if it were right next door instead of three blocks away, the daily noon wail of the firehouse siren pierced the unnatural silence. The familiar sound seemed to nudge everyone back to life. Rebecca swallowed hard and braced herself to meet Jake again, to speak with him for the first time in eight years.
The first time since the night he’d given her Katie.
Amid a rising tide of rustles and scandalized whispers, Jake seemed to recall why he’d come to the library. As he slowly wended his way across the crowded reading room to where Rebecca stood, neither of them smiling, a paralyzing thought struck her.
What if he still doesn’t want anything to do with us?
She beat back her own wave of fear, and focused on Jake. He was leaner now, harder and tougher-looking than she remembered. True, he’d always looked tough, but his toughness as a teenager had been a façade. One she’d seen through from the start. But this was different. This was no small town bad boy trying to make the best of his messed-up life alone. This was a grown man who’d spend most of his adult life in hell.
With a sinking sense of dread Rebecca realized she’d made a mistake. She was staring into the face of a stranger.
“Hello, Rebecca.”
His voice was rougher, deeper than she remembered. Deep enough to send a shot of awareness down her spine. “Jake.”
“Been a long time.”
Rebecca knew exactly how long it had been. Counting Jake’s four-year stint in the army, with the exception of those few unforgettable hours they’d shared in Pittsburgh eight years ago, they’d been apart for almost twelve years.
Before that, they’d been the town outcasts together.
“You’re looking good,” he said quietly.
“Thank you. You look...fit.”
He arched a dark brow. “Considering I spent the last eight years locked up, you mean?”
Rebecca flushed. A nearby cough reminded her everyone within earshot would shamelessly repeat anything she or Jake said, first chance they got. A town like Warner had precious few secrets, and Jake obviously didn’t intend to play down his recent parole from prison.
She squared her shoulders and offered Jake her most professional smile. “Would you like a cup of coffee? My office is right behind the desk.”
“Your office?” He looked blank, then over his shoulder at the checkout desk, the open door that led to the tiny office behind it. The eavesdroppers’ expressions ranged from indignant to shocked. Frowning, Jake turned back to Rebecca. “You’re head librarian?”
She understood his confusion. She wasn’t even supposed to be in Warner, much less working at the library. The last time he’d seen her, she’d had much bigger plans. “For three years now.”
Jake stared at her a moment longer, then ran a slow, speculative gaze over her short-skirted navy summer suit and heels. Just as slowly, he smiled. “Well, I’ll be damned.”
Rebecca’s knees nearly buckled. His smile was vintage Jake. Reckless, unrepentant, and sexier than black satin sheets. Her heartbeat soared, her palms broke into a sweat. With what she considered an amazing amount of grace, given the state of her nerves, she managed to smile back neutrally and avoid tripping over anything as she led Jake past their astonished audience, and into her office.
Once inside, she made a beeline for the coffee pot, then forced herself to take a deep breath before she handed Jake a steaming mug of coffee. “Black still okay?” Her hand only trembled a little.
His slow half-smile hovered between some private amusement and pleasant surprise. “You remembered.”
Jake's Return by Liana LaVerentz available NOW from The Wild Rose Press!Want to know more about Liana and her work? Here are some places to find her:
Well Folks, hope you enjoy this excerpt from Jake's Return!
Until next time we meet....Take care and be BLESSED!
"Inspirational with an Edge!"
Monday, January 14, 2008
Author Spotlight - Liana Laverentz
Merry Monday!
Yep, you heard it right...Merry Monday!
If you've read my previous posts, I've determined to change my perception of Monday's and to keep everything on a positive note...So....MERRY MONDAY!
Tomorrow I'll be spotlighting author, Liana Laverentz and her book Jake's Return.
Liana is multi-published and an award winning author! She is a member of Romance Writers of America, the Washington Romance Writers, and a charter member of Pennwriters, Inc., where she has served as their critique coordinator, contest coordinator, conference coordinator, treasurer and president.
Published by The Wild Rose Press, Jake's Return is a contemporary romance with an element of suspense, has received Five Angels and a Recommended Read from Fallen Angel Reviews.
So, drop by tomorrow for a blurb and excerpt of Jake's Return!
Until then...take care and remember...without a Vision the people perish....
The Visionary coming in 2008 from Enspiren Press!
Pamela S Thibodeaux
"Inspirational with an Edge!"
Yep, you heard it right...Merry Monday!
If you've read my previous posts, I've determined to change my perception of Monday's and to keep everything on a positive note...So....MERRY MONDAY!
Tomorrow I'll be spotlighting author, Liana Laverentz and her book Jake's Return.
Liana is multi-published and an award winning author! She is a member of Romance Writers of America, the Washington Romance Writers, and a charter member of Pennwriters, Inc., where she has served as their critique coordinator, contest coordinator, conference coordinator, treasurer and president.
Published by The Wild Rose Press, Jake's Return is a contemporary romance with an element of suspense, has received Five Angels and a Recommended Read from Fallen Angel Reviews.
So, drop by tomorrow for a blurb and excerpt of Jake's Return!
Until then...take care and remember...without a Vision the people perish....
The Visionary coming in 2008 from Enspiren Press!
Pamela S Thibodeaux
"Inspirational with an Edge!"
Friday, January 11, 2008
5 ***** Star Review for The Visionary!
MissK said this....Once again, I am struck by Ms. Thibodeaux's ability to create realistic characters and situations that both portray things the way they truly are for Christians and honor God, while never becoming graphic. While many romance writers feel it necessary for people in love to automatically say "yes," she shows that it is possible to do the right thing and in a way that can be seen as the hero and heroine being strong, not white Wonder bread milquetoasts. This story in particular tackles tough, dark gritty subjects, not the least of which being how difficult forgiveness can be. It is a true crime she is not on the NY Times bestseller list; the world desperately needs to read things like this timely, relevant tale.
Read the entire review here!
The Visionary coming soon from Enspiren Press!
Pamela S Thibodeaux
"Inspirational with an Edge!"
Read the entire review here!
The Visionary coming soon from Enspiren Press!
Pamela S Thibodeaux
"Inspirational with an Edge!"
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
Geaux Tigers!
Just gotta brag a bit...the LSU Tigers (Louisiana State University) WON the BCS National Championship last night!
Geaux Tigers!
On a different note, I'll be at Romance Excerpts Only yahoo loop ALL DAY on Jan. 10th posting excerpts from my books.
Hope to see you there!
PamT
Geaux Tigers!
On a different note, I'll be at Romance Excerpts Only yahoo loop ALL DAY on Jan. 10th posting excerpts from my books.
Hope to see you there!
PamT
Friday, January 4, 2008
Author Spotlight - Hazel Statham
Hello Folks,
Blurb:
Well as promised, today I'm spotlighting Hazel Statham on her virtual book tour for her novel My Dearest Friend.
Blurb:Devastated and wracked with guilt by the death of his younger brother, Stefan, in the Peninsular War, Robert Blake, Duke of Lear, readily agrees to aid Jane Chandler to bring her seriously wounded brother back from Portugal. Much against Jane's wishes, he decides to accompany her and together they embark on the hazardous mission to retrieve the young soldier. However, the journey holds many revelations, not least of all the abiding friendship and growing love between the two travelers. That special love is put severely to the test by the treachery that awaits them upon their return to England, when a tenant of Jane's former home invades their lives, maliciously creating jealousy and misunderstandings for his own nefarious reasons. Can their friendship and love conquer the emotions that threaten to tear them asunder?
Excerpt:
Their arrival at the inn that night went quite unnoticed, the sound of the horses' hooves clattering over the cobbled yard exciting no more interest than had done their predecessors during the day. Once they were halted, the duke hurried Hannah and the sleeping Sophie from the vehicle and into the private parlor. He had hoped to find Jane within, but the room was deserted and he knew a moment's disappointment. Just as he was about to go in search of her, Eaves pushed open the door and stopped in some surprise.
"Your grace," he beamed coming into the room. "We had given up hope of you arriving today."
"Where is Miss Chandler?" the duke demanded, making toward the door.
Eave's countenance sobered. "She's with the major, sir. I am afraid he took a turn this morning and she has not left his side since. The doctor has been called and says that despite it being but a momentary setback we must delay our return journey for a few days. Shall I fetch her for you, sir?"
"No need, I will go to her directly," the duke said. "However, I would be grateful if you would arrange suitable accommodation for my ward and her nurse and make sure they are well nourished before they retire. It has been a very long and tiring day."
With that, he strode from the room and took the stairs two at a time to the second landing. Eagerly pacing its length, he came to a sudden halt just as Jane stepped out of Harry's room and quietly closed the door behind her. In the dimness of the corridor, she did not immediately perceive him standing but a short distance away, awaiting her notice, and was startled when he softly called her name from the shadows.
"Robert," she cried, involuntarily pressing her hand to her throat, unable to move, as a new shyness overcame her.
For an instant, they stood thus until the duke moved forward into the pool of moonlight that filtered through a small window and slowly opened his arms to her. She did not hesitate but ran to him and buried her face in his neck. Words were not necessary for the moment as they both rejoiced in their reunion. Indeed, if she had tried to speak she would have found her words crushed into oblivion as, bending his head, he fiercely kissed her, demanding a response. Finding in herself no resistance to his embrace, she welcomed it as if to be loved by him was the most natural occurrence in the world.
Eventually pulling apart and capturing her hands in his the duke gave a low chuckle, "I see you have missed me as much as I have you, my love."
"That is unkind of you, sir," she replied dropping her eyes before his fiery scrutiny, thankful that the shadows hid the warm glow his embrace brought to her cheeks. "But oh, how I have longed for you, my dear friend."
He smiled mischievously, once more drawing her to him, the better to study her features. "So, you will still insist on calling me your dear friend, sweetheart. I had hoped for something more."
"You will always be my dearest friend," she replied meeting his gaze openly. "Whatever else you may become, you will still be my friend."
"Tell me then, my little friend, do friends marry?"
"Of course they do," she replied without hesitation. "Who else would tend me when I am nauseous and become a burden?"
He laughed, his green eyes dancing with delight, his face transformed. "If that is to be my role in life, then I must bear it with what fortitude I can muster, imp. Then sobering slightly, "Does it matter to you that we have known each other so short a time, for to me it seems an eternity?"
"Not a whit," she replied cradling his hand against her cheek. "For me the seed was set when you so obstinately refused to desert me to my fates on The Mistral. It showed an unparalleled fortitude and a kindness I will never forget."
"Not a whit," she replied cradling his hand against her cheek. "For me the seed was set when you so obstinately refused to desert me to my fates on The Mistral. It showed an unparalleled fortitude and a kindness I will never forget."
"I wish you would, my dear," he said, attempting to hide his smile, "for I can see you regaling our grandchildren with it in years to come and it will do nothing to enhance the superior image that I would cultivate."
"I assure you your image is quite safe, sir, for will I not tell them what a true and faithful friend you are and how I have come to love you?"
He would have taken her in his arms once more but the sound of a door opening at the further end of the corridor drove them guiltily apart and instead, he clasped her fingers securely in his and led her to the stairs.
"In my eagerness I have become remiss in my duties," he said. "You are no doubt impatient to know the results of my journey and to see the babe, and you must tell me of Harry and what is to be done. We have so much to arrange. I must warn you, however, that we are increased in numbers. When we set out on the journey we were two, anticipated four, and now we become six. We will present quite a cavalcade on our return."
She smiled, returning the pressure of his fingers. "I care not however many we become as long as I have my dear friend, for without him I am desolate."
This did not go unrewarded and having achieved the first landing, he found it necessary to quickly catch her to him.
"My love, I can see you will be an enchanting wife," he chuckled before briefly kissing her upturned face. "It is well that we need not be separated again, forswear I could not bear it. Now come and meet our babe. She is named Sophie and is a delight. You will love her I'm sure."
For more information on virtual book tours, visit Pump up Your Book Promotion Virtual Book Tours
Until later remember...when the going gets tough the tough get on their knees.
"Inspirational with an Edge!"
Thursday, January 3, 2008
THE INHERITANCE nominated for TRS CAPA!!
Hello Friends,
Just wanted to drop by and share my news with you....The Inheritance has been nominated for The Romance Studio's CAPA!
Wow, what a way to begin the new year!
Don't forget, tomorrow I'll be spotlighting Hazel Statham and her book My Dearest Friend. She'll be here all day to answer questions and address comments, so stop back by!
Until later remember...God has set YOU apart for an Inheritance!
The Inheritance available now in Ebook & Print from The Wild Rose Press!
Pamela S Thibodeaux
"Inspirational with an Edge!"
Just wanted to drop by and share my news with you....The Inheritance has been nominated for The Romance Studio's CAPA!
Wow, what a way to begin the new year!
Don't forget, tomorrow I'll be spotlighting Hazel Statham and her book My Dearest Friend. She'll be here all day to answer questions and address comments, so stop back by!
Until later remember...God has set YOU apart for an Inheritance!
The Inheritance available now in Ebook & Print from The Wild Rose Press!
Pamela S Thibodeaux
"Inspirational with an Edge!"
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